Nano-engineering Immortal Cultivation Chronicle

Chapter 31

Episode 31: Entering the Enemy’s Barrier

The Earth Walking Ghost conjured by Jang So-cheon’s Alchemical Saint ability was both swift and stealthy.

Thanks to this, he was able to track the Demon Clan members without being detected.

The ones he was following now were a rare breed—humanoid heads atop centipede-like bodies. They weren’t among the nine major Demon Clans of the Gu-yu Kingdom.

Still, their mastery of the Earth Escape Technique made them highly valued by the Tamrang Tribe.

But they didn’t seem to be tight-lipped.

"White Tribe! Are you sure there’s a lava river flowing beneath the Extreme Heaven Sect?"

"Of course. Three thousand jang below ground, the lava flows like a river. If we redirect that energy upward, the Extreme Heaven Sect will be wiped out in an instant."

"Have you found a way?"

"I discovered a Fire Meridian near the lava river. If we bore a hole there, the lava will surge back and turn the Extreme Heaven Sect into hell."

"If you pull this off, Lord Tae Hwa-rang will be very pleased."

"No one else knows about the lava beneath the Extreme Heaven Sect yet. We’re the first to discover it, so our merit will be great."

"Let’s hurry and report back."

Overhearing their conversation, Jang So-cheon knew he couldn’t let them go.

He had to stop them from reporting to Tae Hwa-rang.

Which meant—

He had to kill them right now.

Once he made up his mind, Jang So-cheon didn’t hesitate for a moment.

Controlling the Earth Walking Ghost, he moved ahead of the Demon Clan members using his Special Ability, staking out the path they’d take. He crouched low, and as they passed, he shot upward like an arrow.

His target: the one at the rear.

Graaagh!

The Primordial Divine Sword split the demon’s belly, and the creature writhed in agony.

It thrashed so violently that the rock walls cracked and the ground shook.

Yet Jang So-cheon remained perfectly calm. He slipped into the rock wall, then burst out again, severing the demon’s head with the Primordial Divine Sword.

Sssht!

Before dying, the demon spat Poisonous Liquid at Jang So-cheon.

But it never touched him.

He had already conjured a sword barrier with the Primordial Divine Sword.

"Who are you?!"

With one of their own dead, the Demon Clan members panicked and quickly assessed Jang So-cheon’s cultivation level. Seeing it was lower than theirs, their courage surged and they charged him all at once.

But cultivation level wasn’t everything.

Jang So-cheon could use the Earth Escape Technique far faster than they could...

And he wielded the Primordial Divine Sword.

He also had a compelling reason to kill them.

Crash!

Slash!

Jang So-cheon didn’t dodge.

Trusting in the sword’s sharpness, he charged in, unleashing sword energy and slicing through their legs.

But the gap in cultivation wasn’t so easily overcome.

Thunk.

Their thick carapaces deflected even his sword energy, and with their many legs, they had the advantage in close combat.

And there were three of them.

Changing tactics, Jang So-cheon used the Earth Escape Technique to lure them, aiming to take them down one by one.

But one of them was a problem.

This one was nearly as fast as Jang So-cheon and skilled in joint techniques, putting him in danger several times. If not for the sharpness of the Primordial Divine Sword, he might have been killed.

After several brushes with death, Jang So-cheon retreated from them.

Circling wide, he discovered an underground tunnel.

The tunnel led in the same direction the Demon Clan members were headed.

That meant they’d likely use the tunnel to avoid the hard rock and travel more easily.

Delighted, Jang So-cheon hid in a secluded spot in the tunnel and activated the Invisibility Talisman Makjang had given him.

He also readied a Thunder Strike Talisman in his hand.

"The youngest was killed by a human wearing a ghostly shell. I’ll make sure to avenge this. Once we report the secret to Tae Hwa-rang and destroy the Extreme Heaven Sect, I’ll come back and hunt him down."

The strongest among them, White Stone, spoke as he stepped into the Eastern Region. Their special Divine Miracle allowed them to track traces of the Earth Escape Technique, even if delayed. If they hurried back, finding the human wouldn’t be hard.

He swore to kill him in the most brutal way possible, then slipped through the narrow gap in the tunnel.

At that moment—

Sssht!

Crack!

A bolt of Thunderbolt flashed in the darkness, striking White Stone.

Whoosh!

Hit by the Thunder Strike Talisman, White Stone was split in two, his body engulfed in flames with no hope of survival.

Even so, he wildly swung his magic tool and sprayed Poisonous Liquid into the darkness.

Slash!

Jang So-cheon decapitated White Stone with the Primordial Divine Sword, then started after the remaining two—but stopped abruptly.

He snatched the Heaven and Earth Pouch from White Stone’s waist before resuming the chase.

Rumble!

With their strongest member dead, the two remaining Demon Clan members abandoned the tunnel and burrowed into the rock wall.

They raced with all their might toward the Demon-Suppressing Cave, where Tamrang Tribe’s heir, Tae Hwa-rang, was.

Having paused to grab the Heaven and Earth Pouch, Jang So-cheon now used the Earth Escape Technique at full speed, but the gap between him and the Demon Clan members didn’t close easily.

Rushing water echoed in his ears as he pushed his consciousness to the limit, using the Earth Escape Technique.

An underground water vein.

Using Divine Sight, he saw it was substantial.

Judging it enough to use water-based Magic Techniques, Jang So-cheon summoned the White Horse.

Clinging to its back, he shot through the water at high speed.

Swish, swish, swish!

From Jang So-cheon’s hand atop the White Horse, a dozen sword energies flew out.

They sliced through the Demon Clan members’ legs.

One sword energy punched a huge hole in the shoulder of the White Tribe member—the one who had discovered the lava river beneath the Extreme Heaven Sect.

Crash!

The White Tribe member, using the Earth Escape Technique, toppled forward and smashed into the rock wall.

One of the others, with more than half his legs severed, reached out to support him.

But sensing Jang So-cheon’s approach, he abandoned his companion and fled underground.

Realizing he was close to the enemy’s core, Jang So-cheon unleashed both the Thunder Strike Talisman and Flame Talisman Makjang had given him, targeting the White Tribe member without hesitation.

Slash!

He cleanly beheaded the burning White Tribe member, then began pursuing the last demon.

With its legs severed, the demon’s escape was slow.

Jang So-cheon closed in, firing sword energies into its back again and again.

Just as he moved in for the final blow—

A red light shimmered before the demon’s eyes.

A barrier.

Jang So-cheon knew he had to kill it before it entered the barrier. He lunged, Primordial Divine Sword in hand, slashing through its back and tail.

But the demon fought desperately.

Before its head was cut off, it managed to activate the barrier and slip inside.

But—

Slash!

Jang So-cheon followed it in and decapitated it.

He burned the corpse with a Flame Talisman.

Then he tried to exit the barrier—only to realize, with a grimace, that he didn’t have the ability to break it.

With no other choice, Jang So-cheon retreated deeper underground.

No one had told him, but he instinctively knew this was the underground of Mubulsan Mountain, the place Soso had mentioned.

This was as dangerous as the Demon-Suppressing Cave itself.

With his low cultivation, he had no business causing a stir here.

Recognizing his limits, Jang So-cheon continued deeper underground.

He soon entered a zone of intense heat, and as he descended further, it became almost unbearable.

Clenching his teeth, he pressed on.

He widened a space to rest.

Underground, only Divine Sight and hearing could be relied on to sense his surroundings.

His greatly improved vision was useless here...

With nothing but the Earth Escape Technique to depend on, Jang So-cheon opened the Heaven and Earth Pouch he’d taken from the demon to see what was inside.

He hadn’t expected much.

He’d hoped for some secret technique related to their strange Earth Escape skills.

But there wasn’t a single manual inside.

Just one Pill Recipe.

And it was a Demon Clan pill recipe.

The Jade Spirit Pill, as it was called, used the inner core of a Stone Monkey as its main ingredient.

Examining the recipe, Jang So-cheon realized it was suitable for the demon’s cultivation level.

Late Human-Centipede Rank.

For a human, that was equivalent to late Qi Refining Stage or early Spirit Refining Stage.

Judging it safe for himself, Jang So-cheon searched the pouch thoroughly.

There were no pills, only a pile of Water Spirit Monster inner cores.

Using his Special Ability, he confirmed they were Stone Monkey inner cores, then checked the rest of the herbs listed in the recipe—and his eyes lit up.

They were the very herbs he’d obtained from the Red Fox Tribe and planted in the Mysterious Heavenly Blessed Land.

Still, this wasn’t the place to leisurely refine pills, so Jang So-cheon transferred everything from the demon’s pouch into his own Heaven and Earth Pouch.

---

"What?! You’re saying all the disciples sent to uncover the Extreme Heaven Sect’s weakness are dead?!"

The giant Golden Wolf roared, and the centipede-like Demon Clan elder shrank back.

"Y-yes, sir. Judging by the enemy’s pursuit, they must have uncovered an important secret."

"But they’re all dead, aren’t they?"

"One disciple made it inside the barrier before dying."

"So the fiend is already inside the barrier. He must know the Extreme Heaven Sect’s weakness."

"That’s why he dared follow us this far. I’ve sent disciples skilled in tracking; it won’t be long before we capture him."

"Disciples won’t be enough! Send the elders. Capture him alive and bring back the Extreme Heaven Sect’s weakness!"

"Understood!"

After the centipede tribe elder left, Tae Hwa-rang summoned a Black Phoenix Tribe elder to ask about the Spatial Barrier.

He’d heard there were several signs it had been breached.

Meanwhile, having sorted through the Heaven and Earth Pouch he’d taken from the centipede demon, Jang So-cheon exhaled Fire Spiritual Energy and summoned the Fire Dragon to deal with the suffocating heat.

Whoooosh!

The Fire Dragon roared at the overwhelming heat.

It absorbed the surrounding heat, then burrowed into the rock, melting stone and earth.

Jang So-cheon had made himself a larger resting space.

Even with both the Earth Walking Ghost and Fire Dragon summoned, Jang So-cheon was still comfortable.

His mastery of the Nameless Manual of Intent had grown, allowing him to control two Avatars with ease.

Breathing easier thanks to the Fire Dragon, Jang So-cheon rested a bit longer before heading further down.

Before long, he reached the Eastern Lava Region, where the lava boiled fiercely.

The Eastern Region was vast.

But the heat was so intense it felt like his whole body would cook.

Overwhelmed by the heat, Jang So-cheon first dismissed the Earth Walking Ghost.

Then he focused his Alchemical Saint’s intent on the Fire Dragon.

"Phew! Is that any better?"

No.

Within half an hour, he was gasping for breath again.

Just as he was about to use the Earth Escape Technique to leave the Eastern Lava Region, Jang So-cheon stopped in his tracks.

Was leaving really the right choice?

Of course not.

Nowhere else could guarantee his survival.

Step, step.

Biting his lip until it bled, Jang So-cheon walked toward the hottest part of the Eastern Region.

There, he meditated on the heat, seeking enlightenment and crystallizing his insights with his Alchemical Saint’s intent.

One day.

Two days.

As time passed, the Fire Dragon guarding Jang So-cheon began to absorb the surrounding heat, growing larger—nearly ten jang long.

But Jang So-cheon, lost in deep meditation, barely noticed.

Creeping into the Eastern Region came a centipede-like Demon Clan elder.

This was the Fire Dragon Residence—even other elders avoided entering.

Only he, with his high heat resistance, could force his way in. Suddenly, a massive wave of flame surged toward him.

"Aaagh!"

Screaming, the elder fled without looking back.

His beard and clothes aflame, he didn’t even try to put out the fire.

He swore to himself never to enter this place again.