novelraw Chapter 169 : Their Own Ways
Chapter 169 : Their Own Ways
Chapter 169: Their Own Ways
“Hoho……”
Pung So-bong received the Dragon Blood Pill.
This alone wouldn't immediately heal Gwak Yu-chan. However, it would greatly assist in neutralizing the curse. That was how valuable the Dragon Blood Pill was.
Overwhelmed by the unexpected fortune, Pung So-bong simply laughed while holding the pill.
Meanwhile, Jang Woo-hyun examined the top of Gwak Yu-chan’s head.
Flickering shapes that appeared and disappeared.
‘Souls? Or are they ghosts?’
He wriggled his fingers, alternately staring at Gwak Yu-chan’s head and his own palm.
‘Feels like I can do it,’ he thought—and acted right away.
“Senior Pung.”
“Hm, what is it?”
“That thing floating above his head. I think I can grab it. May I try?”
“What? Grab what exactly?”
“That thing that keeps flickering in and out.”
Pung So-bong and Jin Ha-un followed the direction Jang Woo-hyun pointed.
They too saw something faintly appearing and disappearing above Gwak Yu-chan’s head.
After reaching the Boundless Realm, Jang Woo-hyun had encountered cultivators and gradually became able to cut through the unseen.
It was different from Space Severance, which could be used upon reaching the end of the Boundless Realm. He had achieved this simply through practice.
The first time he had seen his own Microcosm.
Perhaps it was the thought of being able to cut through anything that helped—he became capable of slicing through invisible forces, spells, or even the essence of cultivators.
As a result, lower-level cultivators had difficulty regenerating or reviving when attacked by Jang Woo-hyun, and he was able to cut down Manun’s entire sorcery last time.
“Whatever it is, go ahead and try.”
With Pung So-bong’s approval, Jang Woo-hyun activated the Dragon King's Scale.
Clatter.
Dozens of blade-shaped scales detached and wrapped around his hand like a gauntlet. It now looked like he wore a metallic glove armed with blades.
He had done this to prevent any unforeseen harm.
As Jin Ha-un and Pung So-bong watched with tense faces—
Jang Woo-hyun infused Will-Form Qi into his hand and reached toward the top of Gwak Yu-chan’s head.
And then, he grasped something that had been repeatedly vanishing and reappearing above the head.
Screeech—
A harsh, grating noise like scraping metal echoed, and a black, skull-shaped smoke was caught in Jang Woo-hyun’s hand.
Screeee—
The entity, appearing like a soul or ghost, struggled violently to break free, but Jang Woo-hyun clenched his fist.
Boom!
With a burst, the black soul in his hand vanished.
What followed was a massacre.
Every time Jang Woo-hyun saw a black soul, he snatched and destroyed it.
Screee—
Screeeeech—
The black souls exploded and screamed. Jin Ha-un and Pung So-bong grimaced at the sound.
Jang Woo-hyun, as if playing a fun game, plucked out the black energy hovering over Gwak Yu-chan’s head and shattered it. The ominous energy quickly vanished.
Now, no ghosts lingered around Gwak Yu-chan.
The ghostly spirits were gone, leaving only the curse behind.
“This is… ridiculous……”
Perhaps due to the screaming souls, Gwak Yu-chan woke up.
“Senior Gwak!”
“Gwak!”
His faint breathing grew slightly stronger, and color returned to his face.
“Woo-hyun.”
“Yes, please speak.”
“How strong have you gotten?”
He had to ask as soon as he regained consciousness. What he had just witnessed was astonishing.
“I’m at the Boundless Realm now.”
“Ha, haha, hahaha!”
Despite the pain, Gwak Yu-chan couldn’t hold back his laughter. Even as his body trembled from the aches, he didn’t stop smiling.
He had expected Jang Woo-hyun to grow rapidly. He had even discussed it with Pung So-bong before.
But this… this was beyond fast. It completely surpassed his expectations.
‘Has he reached the end of the Boundless Realm?’
The technique Jang Woo-hyun had just shown—it was Space Severance, a method that cut through logic and souls. Gwak Yu-chan assumed that Jang Woo-hyun had used it to rid him of the spirits draining his life.
In truth, the technique was slightly different from Space Severance—a power unique to Jang Woo-hyun—but Gwak Yu-chan, unable to fully grasp it, had misunderstood.
In short, Gwak Yu-chan had misjudged Jang Woo-hyun’s skills due to his unprecedented growth.
“I heard from Cho-su. A lot has happened, right?”
The battle at the Giant Tree Grove. Encounters with cultivators. Facing a True Immortal and staying behind to evacuate the party.
Gwak Yu-chan had heard it all.
“You’ve grown splendidly.”
Suppressing the pain, Gwak Yu-chan laughed heartily once again.
“Well, yeah. I guess so.”
Jang Woo-hyun responded with a smile.
It was Gwak Yu-chan who had taught him Void Movement Technique and the Realm of Transcendent Sensory. In a way, he was his first master to impart Central Heavens Martial Realm’s basics.
Receiving praise from such a man filled Jang Woo-hyun with pride.
It felt like being complimented by a long-separated master.
“I owe you.”
“Owe me? No way. Of course, I’d help.”
As he responded, Jang Woo-hyun turned his head. Someone was approaching.
“Jang Woo-hyun! Woo-hyun!”
Hurried footsteps echoed, the door burst open, and Cho-su ran in.
“Hey! You—seriously!”
With a face on the verge of tears, he rushed forward and hugged Jang Woo-hyun tightly. Jang Woo-hyun laughed again at the warm welcome.
The path he had walked hadn’t been in vain.
“Where on earth did you get this?”
With a dumbfounded look, Cho-su pointed to the object before them.
It had shone like an ore, then transformed into a small planet. Now, it had turned into a black sphere again.
Even Cho-su, who had created many mysterious artifacts, had never seen something like it. And even Cho-yul, who had lived much longer, had only seen this metal once.
Divine True Steel (神珍鐵).
Jang Woo-hyun had brought the mystical item without warning.
“Hoho, this makes the Dragon Blood Pill look like nothing.”
The Dragon Blood Pill, said to be made from dragon’s blood, was indeed an astonishing item. However, it was nothing compared to the Divine True Steel now before them.
The last time he had come, he poured out a heap of precious items. Now, he had brought Divine True Steel. At this point, Cho-su and Cho-yul couldn’t help but wonder just what kind of person Jang Woo-hyun was.
“I received it as a reward for saving someone.”
“As a reward? Who in the world did you save?”
Jang Woo-hyun briefly explained what had happened to him.
How he had fallen into the Lower Realm due to a True Immortal’s power, ascended again, and arrived in the realm of the cultivators.
He summarized how he had fought cultivators there, saved someone named Lee Ahn from the Blood-Drop Realm, and received the item from him.
“So you saved someone from Seocheon.”
“Seocheon?”
“That’s not the official name, but the person you saved is said to be from Seocheon (西天). This side is called Dongcheon (東天). If it’s not the Blood-Drop Realm, they rarely meet.”
“You know about them?”
“I’ve never actually met one myself. They don’t come to the Central Heavens. There are beings known as Dimensional Merchants who travel between realms, and I’ve heard about them through those merchants. We often seek special items, so we do encounter those Dimensional Merchants. Honestly, unless it’s the Blood-Drop Realm, there’s almost no interaction with those Seocheon folks. It’s just too far away, and their world is entirely different.”
“Cho-su-nim, what’s a Dimensional Merchant?”
Jin Ha-un, who had been listening nearby, interjected.
“They’re people who travel across multiple Middle Realms, collecting and selling items. Just think of them as wandering merchants. The only difference is that the distances they travel are absurdly vast.”
Though it was his first time hearing the term “Dimensional Merchant,” Jang Woo-hyun was aware of people who traveled across Middle Realms for trade.
Introduction to Central Heavens Martial Arts.
He had seen it mentioned in that book.
— I once met a merchant who traveled through various Middle Realms. I will borrow his words to explain the Immortal Realm.
— The Immortal Realm is the realm of divinity, where one steps onto the Divine Throne.
If a heavenly god, then he builds his palace and territory. If a demon of the Abyss, then he creates his throne and hell.
Terms like divine palaces and demon thrones seemed ill-fitting for the Murim, but now he understood why they were described that way.
‘They travel between worlds, so they must be using their own expressions.’
It all made sense now.
Besides, Jang Woo-hyun had already witnessed the battle of the Six Heavens.
The power they displayed looked exactly like gods or demons creating their own worlds and domains.
“For him to hand over Divine True Steel… he’s clearly no ordinary man.”
At Cho-yul’s words, Jang Woo-hyun nodded.
“I’m not sure of his full strength, but I believe he’s quite well-known in the Blood-Drop Realm.”
Being in the Central Heavens, Jang Woo-hyun couldn’t fully grasp Lee Ahn’s power. But the aura he exuded and his presence gave enough hints.
Lee Ahn had said confidently. If it had been in the Blood-Drop Realm, not the Central Heavens, he wouldn’t have been captured by Yang Jeon-gun.
“I received this as well.”
Jang Woo-hyun took out a sinister-looking necklace that Lee Ahn had given him from the Inner Robe.
Cho-su and Cho-yul examined the item for a while and said that aside from the ominous energy it exuded, it didn’t seem particularly special.
“What do you plan to make with the Divine True Steel?”
“I’m not sure. I thought of the two of you the moment I received it and brought it here.”
“Divine True Steel isn’t an ordinary metal. It can’t be refined here.”
“Meaning we have to go somewhere else?”
Cho-yul nodded in affirmation.
“To use Divine True Steel, we need to return to the Nation of Mechanical Marvels.”
“Then please do that.”
Cho-su and Cho-yul looked at Jang Woo-hyun. Once again, he was handing over something incredibly valuable without hesitation.
“Divine True Steel is a rare treasure. You might never get your hands on it again. Are you really okay just giving it away like this?”
“Yes.”
Jang Woo-hyun answered without a moment’s thought.
“I can’t tell if you’re stupid or just a fool.”
“Cho-su-nim, aren’t those the same thing?”
“Ha-un, let’s just let it go.”
Jang Woo-hyun truly had no greed. Last time, he handed over a bunch of rare items just as casually. Now, he was giving up Divine True Steel the same way.
“What if we get greedy and decide not to give it back?”
“Do you need it? Then go ahead and use it.”
To Jang Woo-hyun, Divine True Steel was just a curious item that constantly changed form.
He couldn’t use it without Cho-su and Cho-yul’s help anyway. So if they needed it, he was more than willing to give it.
Besides, if not for them, he wouldn’t have been able to modify the Dragon King's Scale, nor obtained Mukya. Thanks to their help, he could also travel around while hiding the Brand of Wind-Passing Great Sage.
He owed them both a great deal. That’s why he always felt indebted to them.
“Forget it. What can we even say to him?”
Cho-su’s comment made Cho-yul laugh. He too found it absurd trying to reason with someone like Jang Woo-hyun.
“Did you bring anything else? Last time you came pouring in with stuff.”
Cho-su asked casually, and Jang Woo-hyun once again pulled something out from the Inner Robe.
Six blade scales that had fallen from the Dragon King's Scale.
One of them had a silver icicle embedded in it.
“What’s this… now?”
Staring at the bizarre scene, Cho-su asked, and Jang Woo-hyun began to explain about the giant hand of the True Immortal he had encountered again.
“You beat it?”
“Yes. I destroyed it, but some remnants of it struck back and left me like this.”
Cho-su alternated between looking at Jang Woo-hyun and the silver icicle. He opened his mouth to speak several times but couldn’t find the words.
“Haah, fine. What’s the point of talking to you? You won, and that’s what matters. Let me take a look. I just need to remove this, right?”
“Yes, that’s all.”
“Then you’ve got nothing else to give us now, right?”
“No.”
“Alright, I’ll take care of it. You just show me what we’ve made.”
“What did you two make?”
Cho-yul didn’t answer and simply pointed to Cho-su.
“I’ve been working on something for a while now. Ever since that incident.”
Cho-su smiled and led Jang Woo-hyun and Jin Ha-un to one side.
There was a large storage-like space in the building, and inside was a ship made from Dry Wood harvested from the giants.
But its appearance was strange.
‘An airplane?’
Four wings were attached on each side of the ship.
One pair was made of metal, and the other was a smaller pair resembling bird wings with feathers.
Moreover, the overall shape had changed.
“Cho-su-nim, this is……”
“Wait a moment, there’s more.”
Cutting himself off, Cho-su walked to one side and returned carrying two columns over one jang in length.
Thud.
Once again, Jang Woo-hyun instantly recognized what Cho-su had brought.
‘No way… cannons?’
Indeed, there were holes drilled into one end. No one would put holes in pillars without a reason. No matter how he looked at it, they were cannons.
“Annihilation Thunder Cannons.”
Just as he thought—they were cannons.
After failing to resist the power of the True Immortal and fleeing, Cho-su had sought his own method.
Just as Jang Woo-hyun had trained to become stronger, Cho-su had used his own skills to create something.
And that was the ship and cannons now before their eyes.
“Just like Ha-un fought like a madman because he couldn’t help you, this is the method I found.”
He had modified the giant’s ship for escape, and to either stall for time or launch an attack, he had created the Annihilation Thunder Cannons.
Seeing Cho-su’s unique way, Jang Woo-hyun was dumbfounded—but in his earlier words, he caught something that he hadn’t known before.
“Ha-un fought like a madman? What? You didn’t say anything about that.”
“Hahaha.”
Jin Ha-un stepped back, flustered.
“Don’t even bring it up. After you disappeared, he went wild threatening to kill anyone even remotely connected to the Ascension Cult. If Ye-ju and I hadn’t stopped him, he might have killed this guy already.”
“Huh?”
Previously, Jin Ha-un had conveniently omitted that part, so it was the first time Jang Woo-hyun was hearing it.
“Ha-un.”
“...Yes.”
“We need to talk.”
Seeing Jang Woo-hyun’s stiffened expression, Jin Ha-un realized he was in serious trouble.
And that day,
Using a sparring match as an excuse, Jang Woo-hyun let out his anger on Jin Ha-un.
“Hyung-nim, I’m a patient.”
Of course, even saying he was a patient didn’t work.