Chapter 39 - Act 6. Heavenly-Demonic Dual-Meridian Constitution (2)

“How badly was he hurt?”

“I hear he won’t be able to get around for a while. Don’t worry too much. Attacks from demonic arts tend to leave lingering effects.”

Yise pressed his lips together. Cultivator Gwak Chan had fought the demonic practitioner to fulfill his own mission, but he had also saved Yise and his companions. Otherwise, he could have continued hunting in his own way, on his own hunting grounds.

Yise owed him a debt.

Etching that fact into his heart, Yise recalled the face of the demonic practitioner who had escaped. That face, expressionless as he hurled lightning down from the cliff.

The bastard was alive.

‘If we ever cross paths again... I’ll repay that debt then.’

“Ease up. What’s with that scary face?”

Park Gangseo tapped his shoulder, and Yise restored his usual expression as though apologizing for his lapse.

“There’s good news, too.”

“Good news?”

“Azure Dragon Hall Master Hae Il has returned to the main mountain.”

Yise, who had been matching his stride, stopped short. Then he stepped right up to Park Gangseo.

“Really?”

“Yes, really. It’s been so long since his last visit that the main mountain is buzzing.”

At last...

One-on-one instruction from a Hall Master, the privilege he had earned by placing first in the entrance examination. Yise’s eyes shone with anticipation at the hope that he might finally unravel the secret of his constitution. The opportunity that had been postponed indefinitely was finally opening up.

“The atmosphere there is a little unsettled, though. The Hall Masters seem to be getting summoned frequently, and word is that Hall Master Hae Il didn’t look well when he returned.”

“Could something be going on?”

“Who knows? Maybe it’s the Iron Sun Thunder Sect. Anyway, if you want your lesson, now’s your chance... but don’t get your hopes too high. He’s a busy man. There’s a famous story about a few people who requested lessons before. All he said was, ‘You want me to wipe babies’ asses?’ Then he vanished.”

“...”

“S-still, you’re so promising, things might be different. Even if Hall Master Hae Il refuses, Hall Master Kang Itae will come see to you himself, so don’t be discouraged. To ignorant nobodies like us, Nascent Soul and Core Formation are equally lofty realms, aren’t they?”

Yise was torn between hope and apprehension. Yet his heart was already racing.

There was something Park Gangseo didn’t know: Yise possessed the same constitution as the Lord of Daemudo. And from what he had heard, Hall Master Hae Il was following in the Lord of Daemudo’s footsteps.

He would surely agree to meet Yise, if only out of curiosity.

‘Time to cultivate.’

Yise had no intention of idling while he waited for Hae Il’s summons. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He wanted to meet the man at as high a realm as possible.

* * *

Shutting himself in his private training room, he took out a single-use talisman, one of the elemental talismans looted from Kim Siwon’s secluded abode. When he infused it with spiritual energy, the talisman burned red, and flames rose from his fingertips.

As the spell sealed within it activated, he watched the process by which the spiritual energy he had supplied took on the fire attribute. Then, retracing the sensation, he tried to manifest the spiritual energy within his body in the same way.

It failed.

Despite having failed several times already, Yise drew another talisman instead of despairing. He clearly understood the process through which the attribute manifested. He could follow the sensation, but reproducing it was impossible.

Only after using up all three of his fire-attribute talismans did he sit down and begin accumulating spiritual energy within his body.

After another such session of sluggish cultivation, he headed to the butcher shop. Alongside probing the barrier to the fifth star, he had steadily honed his immortal cuisine skills.

He studied the theory, made small test batches to find compatible ingredients, and established his own rules and system through practice. He researched so diligently that, at least when it came to immortal cuisine, he felt confident he could hold his own against most experts.

From a refrigerator kept cold with ice-attribute talismans, he took out the Dreadflesh Raptor carcass he had smoked whole for storage. He deboned it and carefully separated the meat: neck, ribs, tenderloin, wings, and legs.

After dividing it into those five cuts, he coated them with fat rendered from the trimmings. He studded the meat with freshly procured ten-year herbs, then sprinkled on spices made from ground spiritual herbs to remove the gamey odor.

Flames rose beneath the raptor meat skewered on a pitchfork, and it sizzled as fat dripped down. All that remained was to turn it slowly until it cooked evenly.

The bird of prey’s meat roasted, giving off a rich, savory aroma. The finished dish was whole-roasted Dreadflesh Raptor, chicken-style. With ten-year herbs on the side.

Unlike his previous immortal cuisine, for which he had simply tossed together compatible ingredients and stir-fried or boiled them, this was a respectable creation that delivered both flavor and efficacy.

“It’s ready.”

Seol Ryeong, Pi Garam, and Hong Wonseo had already arrived and were waiting outside the butcher shop. Yise plated half a catty each of the tenderest leg meat.

Their faces full of anticipation, the three carefully pulled off pieces and put them in their mouths. Astonishment soon spread across their faces. Only after watching their reactions did Yise tear off a piece to taste.

“Wow...”

Seol Ryeong was the first to voice her amazement.

“I can feel the effects after just one bite... What’s the multiplier on this?”

“Eat the full half-catty serving and you’ll get about three-point-three times your usual speed for a week. Eating more won’t increase the effect.”

Seol Ryeong let out another awed “Wow.”

Immortal cuisine was different from elixir pills. Whereas an elixir pill could grant anywhere from months to years of cultivation at once, immortal cuisine increased cultivation speed for a set period after consumption. The increase could range from a few percent to several times the usual speed.

Though it was less effective than elixir pills, it was correspondingly easier to make and more accessible.

“I’ve had immortal cuisine a few times with my family, but never anything this effective. At most, it only cleared out a little impure energy.”

“Most immortal cuisine on the market is eaten raw because cooking reduces its efficacy. Either that, or people cook rice with spirit rice. Who would cook spirit beasts unless they were eccentric? There aren’t even enough ingredients for pill refining.”

While Seol Ryeong continued marveling, Hong Wonseo offered a calm analysis.

“I’m curious what kind of uproar this would cause if word got out... and a little scared.”

“Yise’s the only one who can make demonic beast meat as effective as spirit beast meat, after all.”

“If I were a high-level Cultivator, I think I’d come straight here, abduct him, and lock him up.”

Seol Ryeong, Pi Garam, and Hong Wonseo each added their thoughts.

Through all of this, however, Yise merely tore into his meat with a grave expression.

“What? Is hearing all this making you nervous, too?”

Yise shook his head at Seol Ryeong’s question.

“No.”

Then he added firmly, “The flavor isn’t good enough.”

“...?”

They wondered whether they had heard him correctly. Here they were, looking at an enormous, revolutionary step forward, and he was talking about—

“Immortal cuisine is food. Its effects matter, of course, but a dish is only complete when the main ingredient’s natural flavor and aroma come together beautifully.”

“Are you actually insane?”

The words slipped out of Seol Ryeong’s mouth at Yise’s earnest insistence.

“So long as... however good the effects may be...”

Seol Ryeong flinched at the sound so close to her name.

“If the flavor is lacking, it isn’t a finished dish.”

Seol Ryeong tilted her head at his words.

“Is it really that bad...? Isn’t this pretty good?”

“It’s hard to go wrong roasting a whole chicken in the first place.”

“It isn’t chicken. You should call it Dreadflesh Raptor meat.”

As Pi Garam and Hong Wonseo threatened to veer off topic again, Seol Ryeong waved her hands.

“That’s not the point! What matters is that his immortal cuisine is tempting enough to make Cultivators drool. Spirit beasts are rare, and demonic beasts are everywhere. Daemudo might even... take action just for you.”

“So I barely have enough to eat myself, and every Cultivator out there is going to stick a spoon into my food and get their spit in it?”

“... To put it crudely, yes.”

“It’s too early to worry about that. There’s no guarantee it’ll have the same effect on higher-level Cultivators. Still, drawing too much attention won’t do me any good. Thanks for the advice.”

He had already had a general sense of the situation. The cultivation world was quite literally a world of lunatics obsessed with cultivation.

Even if Daemudo wanted it, though, mass production would be impossible. The limitations were clear.

First, he, as the possessor of the Heavenly-Demonic Dual-Meridian Constitution, had to hunt and purify the demonic beasts himself. He had confirmed that beasts hunted by others did not produce the effect.

Second, the ingredients had to be fresh. Their efficacy diminished noticeably over time, no matter how cold he kept them. Stockpiling them was therefore pointless.

Third, though he could obtain the main ingredient, demonic beast meat, on missions, supplementary ingredients such as spiritual herbs, spirit grains, and spirit vegetables remained scarce and expensive.

Ultimately, it was a matter of resources. There was a limit to how much Yise could produce alone, and ingredients were far from cheap. With missions to complete and cultivation he could not neglect, only a handful of people, himself included, could enjoy the benefits.

‘For now, I’ll sell it.’

If he set aside enough for himself first, then sold the surplus to novice disciples to fund supplementary ingredients, he could maintain the benefits of immortal cuisine while continuing his cultivation.

“Yise!”

Just as they were finishing their portions, Bu Chun came running from a distance. He was the fellow novice who had let Yise go first when reading cultivation manuals on their first day. He had also been the first to bring news of Yeom Bo’s death.

“I got that purple-thriving herb powder you asked for.”

His aptitude bordered on poor talent, leaving him still at the first star of Qi Refining, but he was remarkably affable and got along with people everywhere.

“You should call me Senior, first-star.”

“... S-Senior.”

“I’m kidding.”

Perhaps because he knew so many people, Bu Chun sometimes managed to procure supplementary spiritual materials Yise couldn’t find himself. Just as he had now.

“How much?”

“Five spirit stones. I got a good deal.”

“You really did. You’re good at this. Thanks. Have a plate before you go.”

Yise dished up some roast bird in the butcher shop and handed it over along with the payment.

“Wow. Really?”

Bu Chun had been bitterly disappointed to miss Yise’s immortal cuisine when he served the three-tailed fox restorative soup. Watching several novices advance to the second star afterward had left him green with envy.

As Bu Chun wolfed down the food, Yise added, “Your cultivation speed should roughly triple for a week. I think I’ll have about fifteen servings. What would be a fair price?”

“You’re selling this?”

“If anyone’s willing to pay. I have to cover the ingredients, at least.”

Bu Chun thought for a moment, then asked, “Would you like some help?”

“Oh, I’d appreciate that.”

“Great. Leave it to me.”

With that, Bu Chun licked his plate clean and went off somewhere. He returned in less than half a day, with a line of novice disciples clutching pouches of spirit stones behind him.

“I made meal tickets and put them up for a group auction. With a little more time, I could’ve pushed the price to seven spirit stones, but you said it was perishable...”

Bu Chun had settled on six spirit stones per person and quickly found fifteen customers. Before long, ninety spirit stones piled up before Yise. Ingredient costs would cut his actual profit in half... but even so, this was quite a haul.

Bu Chun even helped hand out the food with practiced efficiency.

“Everyone was hoping for another chance anyway. Getting elixir pills is like plucking stars from the sky.”

Six spirit stones for immortal cuisine that tripled cultivation speed for a week. Cultivators were evidently quite willing to pay that much.

What if he could increase the effect to four times their usual speed, or more?

Yise’s head filled with heaps of spirit stones. It was a delightful vision.

Deeply moved, he looked at his customers. Then he handed Bu Chun fifteen spirit stones, one for each person.

“Come work with me.”

“I’d love to.”

A few days later, a respectable makeshift tent stood in front of the butcher shop. Four tables, sixteen chairs, and even a partition separating the cooking area from the seating.

They also put up a freestanding sign using timber Bu Chun had tracked down. Yise folded his arms and gazed at the finished sign.

[Dine Before You Depart.]

In other words, have a meal before you go.

Yise and Bu Chun stood side by side, looking in the same direction.

“Looks pretty good, doesn’t it?”

“The best.”

Their palms met in a crisp high five.