Chapter 40 - Act 6. Heavenly-Demonic Dual-Meridian Constitution (3)

* * *

Azure Mountain Capital was still a city thick with the scent of humanity.

In other words, it was full of impure energy. The further Yise progressed in his cultivation, the more unpleasant he found the impure energy ordinary people gave off. That was likely proof of how far he was drifting from ordinary humanity.

Yise headed for the Daoists’ street. Whenever a mission took him outside the training compound, he made a habit of browsing the market street.

His first stop was the spiritual herb shop. His album held the meat of a new demonic beast, a Cat-Headed Serpent secured on the mission he had just completed, so he wanted to replenish his supplementary ingredients and check for anything new.

“You again?”

“Yes. You make it sound like a surprise.”

The herb merchant, a Qi Refining Cultivator at the same realm as Yise, sighed as soon as he saw him. It was an exceedingly rude way to greet a customer, but Yise knew the reason and simply browsed the wares without taking offense.

“Have you gotten any new spiritual herbs?”

“I have. An herb called black jade grass. It only grows this time of year.”

The merchant opened a wooden box that radiated warmth. Yise looked at the bundle of spiritual herbs inside. It was an herb that briefly bloomed and withered in midsummer along sun-drenched coasts. It was not rare, but being seasonal made it well worth picking up.

“How much for one root?”

“Sixteen.”

“That’s rather expensive. I don’t suppose you could grind it into powder and sell me one spirit stone’s worth?”

“If you weren’t a Daemudo disciple, I’d throw salt at you.”

Looking regretful, Yise held out his spirit stones.

“I’d also like one spirit stone’s worth each of powdered ten-year herbs, fragrant sprout grass, and oil pine.”

“Again? Why not just buy a decent amount in the first place?”

“They lose their potency if I store them too long.”

“What can you possibly do with those tiny amounts...? At this rate, I won’t even cover the labor of grinding them.”

“But I always buy from you instead of going anywhere else.”

“Of course you do! This is the only spiritual herb shop here!”

The merchant looked fit to burst with frustration, but a customer was still a customer. They were both at the same realm, and both must be running short of resources while trying to advance. It was not as though he could not understand the Cultivator standing before him.

‘Fine... If he keeps buying spiritual herbs, he must be a pill refiner. Perhaps he’ll become an important big spender someday.’

Without further grumbling, the merchant neatly wrapped the black jade grass and powdered herbs and handed them over. Yise tucked them deep inside his robes, bowed, and left.

The reason he bought herbs in such small amounts was simple: he only needed small amounts.

Combinations of spirit beast meat and spiritual materials were listed in immortal cuisine primers, and many recipes were widely known. Combinations using demonic beast meat, however, had no precedent.

Yise had to test everything himself, verify the effects, and record his findings. Once he discovered the best pairing, he bought only as much of that ingredient as he needed. As his findings accumulated, formulas and a system would eventually emerge. Until then, he had to repeat this tedious process.

He felt a renewed respect for the grandmasters who created cultivation methods and spells.

His next stop was a secret-manual bookshop. Its proprietor also openly scowled at the sight of him. Somehow, he had the feeling he had not made a particularly good impression on Azure Mountain Capital’s merchants.

“... You’re not here just to browse again, are you?”

Of course, since Yise always read only the freely available sections and left empty-handed, he had brought this on himself too.

“I’d like to buy something, but nothing really catches my eye.”

“Just how remarkable a find do you expect from a little bookshop like this?”

Instead of answering, Yise ran his fingers over the titles inscribed on the outsides of the bamboo scrolls. Opening a scroll revealed only its introductory page; spells sealed the rest.

Secret manuals in the cultivation world fell into two broad categories: cultivation manuals containing mental cultivation methods for advancing one’s realm, and spell manuals for learning various spells.

Most spell manuals were useful only to those at Middle Stage Qi Refining or above, who had crossed the minor threshold and could wield spell power. Some cultivation methods included spells, but most spells had to be practiced separately.

The manuals he could afford were all trifling things of dubious practicality, while those that interested him commanded prices in the hundreds of spirit stones. He did not have that many stones, but even if he had, nothing tempted him enough to buy it in advance. He decided it would be better to return after crossing the minor threshold and buy what he needed then.

“Do you have any technical manuals on preparing immortal cuisine?”

“Immortal cuisine... Hardly anyone asks for those, so I rarely stock them. Would a book on growing spirit rice interest you?”

The proprietor pulled a book from a pile in a grain chest marked “Twenty each. Two for thirty,” and handed it over.

Spirit rice was rice imbued with spiritual energy. Simply cooking and eating it was remarkably effective at suppressing impure energy, and it was a versatile ingredient that paired reasonably well with any demonic beast meat.

Yise immediately opened to the first page. Daemudo’s library had books on immortal cuisine, but they were primers offering broad overviews. This one contained specialized, concentrated knowledge on cultivating spirit rice: growing conditions, when to infuse spiritual energy, and even storage methods after harvest.

After checking the contents listed on the first page, he closed the book.

“I’ll take this.”

Yise paid twenty spirit stones. It felt a little wasteful to spend them on a technical manual rather than a cultivation or spell manual, but he could not keep browsing for free forever. Besides, it was something he would need for the future.

“If you get any new manuals on immortal cuisine, I’d appreciate it if you set them aside for me.”

“I will. Buy some spell manuals next time, too. Look properly, and you’ll find plenty of useful ones.”

Yise smiled, agreed, and left the shop.

‘So much to buy, and nowhere near enough spirit stones.’

He needed to replace his destroyed shield too, but cooking utensils were the most pressing concern. He was fortunate to have a fine tool like the immortal-cuisine knife, but a knife alone was not enough.

Cutting boards, pots, even tableware—he felt the need to replace every tool that touched the food with ritual implements made from spiritual materials or rare metals that would not diminish its effects. He had confirmed that whenever immortal cuisine touched objects used by ordinary people, it lost a little of its potency.

‘Don’t begrudge the expense.’

Once he had the basics in place, he could earn the spirit stones back. Had he not already confirmed the demand?

Yise spent all his remaining spirit stones on as much darksteel as he could buy at the lowest price. Cold iron or spirit bone—the bones of spirit beasts—would have been ideal, or even black iron, but those were beyond his means. Still, this would be far better than hundred-fold refined steel or ordinary iron.

Just then, a message talisman flew in from somewhere and fluttered before him. When he extended his arm, it settled on his palm.

- Come to the administrative office.

It appeared to be from U Jeol.

‘How did he know I was here?’

Yise examined the talisman from every angle, but found no trace of a tracking spell or anything similar. There was no other message. Having read it, he infused it with spiritual energy, reducing it to powder that scattered on the wind.

When he returned to the training compound, U Jeol was waiting outside the administrative office.

“You summoned me?”

“You returned quickly. Were you nearby?”

“Yes. Here is my mission report.”

While U Jeol copied the report, Yise checked the mission board. It was empty. Missions had been scarce lately.

“Why have so few missions been coming in lately?”

“Perhaps those industrious novice brats have wiped out all the low-grade Demons. Take a good look at yourself.”

Yise readily accepted the explanation. The senior Cultivator before him had a remarkable talent for leaving people with nothing to say.

Then U Jeol added out of nowhere,

“I hear there’s a wayward disciple who’s abandoned cultivation to become a cook and earn spirit stones. I’m wondering whether to report him to the Kirin Hall Master.”

“How thoughtless of me. I’ll make sure to set aside a portion for you from now on, Senior.”

“Talent in the crafts is always precious. Apply yourself without worry.”

What a refreshingly human Cultivator.

Barely suppressing a laugh, Yise came to the point.

“May I ask why you called for me?”

U Jeol took a sealed message from inside his robes.

“This is from Azure Dragon Hall Master Hae Il.”

At the long-awaited news, Yise’s heart began to race.

U Jeol infused spiritual energy into the sealed message, and the chainlike apparition surrounding it vanished. Yise accepted it and cautiously examined its contents. A location and a simple map were drawn on thin pine paper.

“It’s... a map.”

“It must show where the Azure Dragon Hall Master is staying. Go.”

“So I’m to make my own way there.”

“Did you expect the Azure Dragon Hall Master to come to you? He is a very busy man.”

The marked location was Black Tortoise Plateau on the Hangsan Peninsula. It lay in the middle of the large peninsula jutting southwest from the Three Kingdoms of the Peninsula.

“Is this Daemudo’s main mountain, by any chance?”

“I don’t know. Only the intended recipient can read a great Nascent Soul Cultivator’s message. But the main mountain’s location has never been shared with a novice disciple.”

Yise had hoped this might be his chance to see the main mountain, but apparently security was tighter than he had thought.

“Leave at once.”

“Yes. I’ll be on my way.”

Yise took the spirit stones and demonic beast corpse U Jeol offered, then withdrew with a silent bow.

* * *

It took Yise five full days to reach his destination. Even hurrying as eagerly as he did, it was quite a distance.

Once he reached Black Tortoise Plateau, he realized Daemudo’s main mountain might be somewhere nearby. He had no evidence, but his intuition told him so. If he were choosing a location for the main mountain, this would be perfect.

At the southwestern tip of the Three Kingdoms of the Peninsula, a vast mountain range occupied the heart of the Hangsan Peninsula. Ordinary people’s cities lined the coast, while farther inland the terrain grew rugged enough to be called a natural fortress.

The highlands were so lofty and harsh that even birds would tire and need to rest while crossing them. Black Tortoise Plateau stood higher still, overlooking the clouds.

‘How strange.’

Its shape was even more remarkable. The terrain was as cleanly cut as... a carrot sliced with a kitchen knife. Could it possibly have been made by human hands? He doubted it at first, but recalling Hall Master Hong Mihui lifting the training rooms, it did not seem entirely impossible.

A plateau above the clouds, and a single house standing in its barren expanse.

It had black roof tiles and red pillars. A stone statue of an azure dragon perched on the roof, its open mouth facing south. There was no sign of anyone nearby. The residence’s doors were shut.

‘Should I wait here?’

He considered knocking, then stopped, thinking it might be disrespectful to touch a great Cultivator’s residence without permission. Instead, he sat in the lotus position and decided to cultivate while he waited.

Before long, as though someone had sensed his arrival, space tore open. That was no metaphor. The perfectly normal air literally split like paper, and a man wearing blue Daoist robes stepped through.

Above his warrior’s headcloth, a forked feathered crown swayed in the wind. He was young and imposing, with a subtle resemblance to Hae Unchan.

But Yise could not get a proper look at Hae Il’s face. The instant the man’s soles touched the ground, a torrent of immense spiritual pressure bore down on Yise’s entire body.

First his breath caught, then his vision narrowed. His legs gave out, and his mind reeled.

It was on an entirely different level from the pressure he had felt upon first meeting Kang Itae. If that had been a waterfall, this was an enormous tidal wave.

Hae Il.

The force of his spiritual pressure seemed to embody the very sound of his name: a tidal wave.

Yise’s consciousness flickered.

* * *

“My apologies.”

Those were the first words he heard when he opened his eyes. He was still lying flat, while Hae Il sat in midair with his legs crossed, scratching his head sheepishly.

“It’s been so long since I last saw a fledgling like you that it slipped my mind.”

Yise looked up at him from the ground. He instinctively tried to rise, but every muscle in his body was limp, as though he had just suffered a convulsion. Propping himself up on his elbows was all he could manage.

“I apologize... for a mere novice disciple daring to greet you in such a disrespectful posture. My name is Yise.”

“It’s all right. Normally, you shouldn’t even be able to speak. You’re doing splendidly as it is. I’m Hae Il.”

The Eastern Continent’s only great Nascent Soul Cultivator.

This was Yise’s first meeting with Hae Il.