After gaining a new perspective on the stone Jang-yeong that Hyeon-gu had brought, Jaekyung commended Hyeon-gu, who was still trembling. If Hyeon-gu had not shown the initiative to go outside the water territory and survey the situation, Jaekyung would have been belatedly bewildered at the next Exchange Meeting, seeing that Dae-yeong hadn't come.
“By the way, why did you go outside the water territory?”
After Jaekyung composed himself and withdrew his aura, and having received a round of praise, Hyeon-gu felt much better, and even a faint smile appeared on his lips. At Jaekyung's question, the fellow immediately began to recount his humble tale of heroism.
“It was because I wanted to do even a little more work before the power of the grace given by the Dragon Lord faded. With the Dragon Lord's grace, the riffraff outside the water territory dare not approach me. As long as I have the Dragon Lord's grace, I can work outside the water territory as much as I want.”
Although he said it indirectly, Hyeon-gu's meaning was clear. Was he not asking for more blood?
'This fellow.'
Jaekyung inwardly chuckled as he looked at Hyeon-gu, who was anxiously watching his reaction. If he was going to be like this, he shouldn't have brought it up at all.
“I understand what you mean.”
Although asking for his blood was a bit audacious, he ultimately had no intention of blaming him, as it was a request to work harder.
“What kind of work are you planning to do outside the water territory?”
"I plan to search for the creatures you mentioned before.”
“Good. But be careful. Some creatures might not back down even after smelling my blood.”
"I will keep that in mind.” Jaekyung gave Hyeon-gu a few more drops of his blood. His blood contained his energy, so if he gave too much, Hyeon-gu might not be able to handle it.
This amount was appropriate.
“Go. You must return before the blood's energy dissipates.”
“Yes.”
If it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have bothered with such a reminder. But Hyeon-gu was special. Jaekyung didn't even fully trust Han Cheong-yu, but he trusted this clever turtle.
The loyalty this fellow showed him was such that it could be described as devotion. Jaekyung did not know where that devoted loyalty came from. He could only vaguely guess that it was related to the incomprehensible expectation he sometimes felt in the fellow's gaze.
At first, he was suspicious, and later he even found it burdensome, but now he had decided to accept it as it was. His expectation is his expectation, and his loyalty is his loyalty. There is no need to be reluctant when a capable subordinate serves with such devotion.
'If Hyeon-gu brings something back this time, it might be fine to give him a spiritual fruit.' Hyeon-gu had been coveting Mook-soo's spiritual fruit for some time. Of course, he never said it openly, but he would subtly drop hints, talking about how his son, Bi-gu, was foolish and his foundation was muddled.
Each time, Jaekyung pretended not to hear. It was partly because he was reluctant to part with the spiritual fruit, but also because Hyeon-gu and his son had not performed any deeds worthy of receiving one.
A reward is only meaningful if the recipient is happy to receive it, so Jaekyung's stinginess with the spiritual fruit was also for the sake of Hyeon-gu and his son's joy. ...
Hmm...
A cultivator must be honest with their true heart. Jaekyung thought that he really did have about one-tenth of such intentions. The other nine-tenths were due to the fact that he didn't have many spiritual fruits.
It had always been that way, but now, with no telling when Mook-soo might bear spiritual fruit again, how could he carelessly promise one? However, the work ethic Hyeon-gu showed this time was quite impressive, so it was worth being generous at least once.
Hyeon-gu probably had such calculations in his own mind, so Jaekyung planned to play along with his calculations if he performed a great service. * The Blood Contract Restriction Art arrived. As expected, the seal on the jade slip showed no signs of being damaged or altered in the slightest.
Jaekyung joyfully broke the seal on the jade slip and examined the Blood Contract Restriction Art within. Since he had heard about it from Choi Ju-tang before, the overall content was familiar. 'Senior Choi did not deceive me.'
The Blood Contract Restriction Art was exactly as Choi Ju-tang had described. Nothing was hidden, and no part was exaggerated or downplayed. 'This secret art is certainly quite good.'
The principle of the Blood Contract Restriction Art was simple. It was a kind of transaction, paying the price of a single drop of my blood to buy the life of another.
Naturally, the value of a drop of blood and a life could not be equal, so such an extremely unfair transaction would normally be impossible, but the Blood Contract Restriction Art could forcibly establish such a ridiculous deal. However, a condition was required for this, and that was a difference in realm.
The one paying with blood must be of a higher realm than the one paying with their life. A difference of one minor realm could be slightly precarious, while a difference of one great realm was stable. 'How truly absurd.'
Jaekyung sighed after repeatedly examining the contents of the Blood Contract Restriction Art. Is the difference of one minor realm large? It certainly is.
But whether in terms of the amount of energy or actual combat power, it was by no means the absurdly large difference described in the Blood Contract Restriction Art. One could tell just by looking at the demon races.
Isn't it often the case that a mid-stage Great Spirit Beast with a superior bloodline surpasses a late-stage Great Spirit Beast with a mediocre bloodline in terms of both energy and skill? Of course, the Blood Contract Restriction Art is a human secret art, but in that respect, humans probably aren't much different.
'That must be why they say a difference of one minor realm is unstable. After all, monsters who can overcome the difference in realms through innate talent and Cultivation sometimes exist in this world.' It was a restriction and a limitation of its own, but even so, the Blood Contract Restriction Art was certainly remarkable.
However, after reading it over several times, three points stood out. First, the targets that can be controlled with the Blood Contract Restriction Art are limited to Foundation Establishment cultivators. Even then, the early stage was manageable, the middle stage was difficult, and the late stage had to be considered nearly impossible.
Second, while it can control the target, complete manipulation is impossible. It meant that although he could hold their life in his hands and threaten them at any time, he could not treat them like his own puppets.
Third, due to the nature of the blood contract, the number of people that can be controlled at one time is not large. This is like how the number of characters that can be written on a single sheet of paper is limited.
If one mastered the secret art, they could increase the number of controlled individuals to some extent, much like writing smaller characters to fit more on the page, but even that had its limits.
Jaekyung guessed that no matter how proficient he became with the Blood Contract Restriction Art, the number of people he could control at one time would not exceed a hundred. Looking at these three shortcomings, the limitations of the Blood Contract Restriction Art were clear.
Setting aside the limit on the number of controlled individuals, this secret art ultimately oppressed others by holding their lives hostage, so it was bound to create resentment, big or small. Moreover, if a target were to break through to the next realm, the restriction could loosen or even break completely. However, Jaekyung wasn't concerned about these points.
'That has nothing to do with me.' The humans under his command, with the exception of Han Cheong-yu, are all in the middle Qi Refining Stage. Even if they all broke through to the late Qi Refining Stage, they could not escape the control of the Blood Contract Restriction Art.
He didn't even consider the possibility of Han Cheong-yu breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm. Putting aside whether or not the fellow could reach the Foundation Establishment realm, even if by some chance he did reach it someday, by then, Jaekyung himself would have long since broken through the middle stage of the Great Spirit stage.
If anything was disappointing, it was the limit on the number of people. After all, it meant that the number of workers he could use without worry could not increase significantly.
‘It's fine.
This is more than enough.' For now, the number of people on Black Flood Dragon Island is not insufficient to manage. I don't know what it will be like later, but matters of the future can be thought about in the future.
Having settled his mind, Jaekyung soon began to cultivate the Blood Contract Restriction Art in earnest. The Blood Contract Restriction Art was a secret art, and Jaekyung had cultivated secret arts before. The Transformation Secret Art was one, and the Aura Concealment Art could also be considered a type of secret art in a way.
Because of this experience, Jaekyung had some confidence regarding the Blood Contract Restriction Art. He thought that even if he couldn't master it at a glance, he could learn it without much difficulty if he invested the time. It was a huge miscalculation.
It was only after cultivating the Blood Contract Restriction Art that Jaekyung realized not all secret arts were the same. It wasn't just its complexity; there was a difference in aptitude and talent. When learning the Transformation Secret Art and Aura Concealment Art, he was like a fish in water.
But now, it felt like he was swimming not in water, but in a swamp. He could move and advance, but it was much harder, and even when he put in all his effort, the pace was frustratingly slow.
After struggling with frustration for a while, Jaekyung had no choice but to admit his lack of talent and aptitude for contracts and restrictions. ‘Still, it's a relief that I'm making some progress.' Mastering it would take an unknown amount of time, but there would be no problem learning it to a level where he could use it adequately.
All it would take was sufficient time. 'This is better, actually. It's better to focus on my Cultivation than to get distracted by side paths.'
He knew it was a childish mental victory, but he couldn't help it, as it was the only way to soothe his uncomfortable heart. 'It's not just blood. It's about imbuing it with will and power.
Looked at this way, it seems to have some similarities to Refined Blood…?' Having acknowledged his own shortcomings, Jaekyung tried even harder. He focused so intently on cultivating the Blood Contract Restriction Art that he lost track of time.
“Dragon Lord!”
He had been so focused that he didn't even realize Hyeon-gu had arrived until the turtle called out to him from the entrance of the Black Flood Dragon Palace.
"Enter.”
Once Jaekyung's permission was granted, Hyeon-gu entered the main hall with steps uncharacteristically nimble for a turtle. His breathing was as quick as his steps, his excitement palpable.
“Thankfully, I have not failed the Dragon Lord's expectations.”
"Oh?
It seems you had some results.” When Jaekyung showed interest, Hyeon-gu became even more excited and chattered on. However, Hyeon-gu was wise and had a certain understanding of the one he served, so he did not embellish his report with useless stories.
"I have found the school of Thunder Egg Fish you mentioned before. However, these creatures fled in an instant whenever I got close, so I was unable to catch any. Still, I have memorized the location of their habitat, so if I go again, catching a few of them will be no trouble at all."
“I see. Well done.”
The Thunder Egg Fish was one of the aquatic spirit beasts Jaekyung had taken note of at the Star Rock Island auction. Now that Hyeon-gu had discovered a school of Thunder Egg Fish, Jaekyung felt the urge to rush over to their habitat immediately. But it was only an urge.
He could use the Aura Concealment Art to move quietly, but if he unfortunately ran into any Great Spirit Beasts in the area, it would become troublesome in many ways. It wasn't that he couldn't do it, but there was no need to go through the trouble for just a few Thunder Egg Fish.
"Dragon Lord. Finding the school of Thunder Egg Fish was a small matter. The real harvest is this. Please, look."
Hyeon-gu took an object out of the storage pouch he wore like a scarf. It was a reddish stone about the size of Hyeon-gu's torso, and one could tell from its appearance alone that it was no ordinary stone.
Jaekyung, who had been looking down at the object in a relaxed posture, suddenly changed his expression as if he had sensed something. And soon, without realizing it, he straightened his body and stretched his neck forward to examine the stone-like object up close.
As the Dragon Lord's eyes, larger than his own body, came right above his head, Hyeon-gu, who had been excited, turned pale and began to tremble. But unfortunately, Jaekyung, whose mind was already captivated by the object, did not notice Hyeon-gu's condition worsening.