Chapter 259

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As if the fact she had been hiding all along had been precisely pierced, she asked me with an attitude close to resignation.

“How did you know that?”

“I have faced a similar situation before. And a perfect Specter Transformation like yours is not a common occurrence.”

“…I had heard rumors, but you truly are an extraordinary Taoist Master.”

After a moment, she seemed to organize her thoughts in her head and then began to unravel the story she had concealed from me.

“Yes. As you guessed, I know the cause of this phenomenon. I know what Specter did this to me, and why.”

“Then why…?”

“Because telling you would be meaningless. On the contrary, it would only endanger everyone in my family.”

What filled her eyes was a profound despair.

She knew all the facts yet did not ask for help from her family or the Taoist Masters she had commissioned. The implication was simple.

It meant the entity behind this was overwhelmingly powerful.

“Although my level wasn’t very high, I too had a master and learned Taoist Arts. That’s how I knew.”

One day in the past, a Specter came to her.

It possessed power that could be called absolute, she said.

“I just knew. No matter how many excellent Taoist Masters were gathered, they could not oppose it…”

Having heard that far, I briefly wondered if it might be Polar Night, but upon reconsideration, that didn’t seem likely.

However, one thing was certain.

That thing was also undoubtedly one of the Great Specters representing this era.

“That existence held my family hostage and demanded a one-sided contract from me. And I… had no choice but to accept it.”

“Is the Specter Transformation its influence?”

“Yes. I’m not certain, but it seemed to want to unfold its consciousness again through me, who had undergone Specter Transformation. And even now, it must be waiting somewhere for the moment I completely become a Specter.”

Pyeong Eunha offered me advice with a self-deprecating smile.

“You should forget about it too, Taoist Master. Be satisfied with the advance payment you received, and just… let it flow by.”

“Is it a Specter that powerful?”

At my words, she remained silent for a long time before speaking.

“Its name is Docheol. It calls itself a Great Specter inheriting the blood of the Heavenly Dragon. That is the true identity of the Specter that made a contract with me.”

Just as I heard that, a mysterious presence was felt from the other side of the mansion. It soon approached the front of Pyeong Eunha’s room and shattered the Barrier.

“…Whatever it is, stop here. I don’t want to fight you, but protecting this young lady is also part of my job. What you’re doing right now is very troublesome.”

“Yes. I was planning to withdraw soon anyway. I apologize for the rudeness.”

Thus, I left the cleanup to Seo Cheonye and slipped out of the mansion. Simultaneously, I sank into deep thought.

‘If it’s Docheol, it’s a Specter known as one of the Nine Dragon Sons, just like Kongha.’

However, in ancient Chinese mythology, it is also mentioned as one of the Four Fiends, a Specter with higher recognition compared to the other Nine Dragon Sons.

‘Kongha was strong too, but it wasn’t an overwhelmingly powerful opponent like that.’

In other words, judging from Pyeong Eunha’s testimony, it was reasonable to view Docheol as possessing far greater power than Kongha, whom I had met before.

Furthermore, thinking that far, another memory suddenly surfaced.

• However, let me warn you. Such immense power will, on the contrary, drive you to your death… You have already become a target.

A single warning I heard from Kongha just before meeting its death.

Perhaps that too might be related to Docheol’s existence.

Something was beginning to connect, but there was still far too little information.

‘Why do I have more and more to think about…?’

Of course, this is somewhat removed from the original objective. From my standpoint, ignoring it wouldn’t be a major issue.

However, overcoming crises and growing was also one of the main objectives, and simply ignoring it left an unresolved feeling.

‘Is this matter truly unrelated to our goal?’

It was just a pure intuition.

We still know far too little about this era, and a clue we never expected could emerge from any direction at any time.

Even as a remote possibility, for now, poking our noses here and there isn’t a bad choice.

When the information gathered this way is combined with comrades we’ll meet later, perhaps the outline of some secret we haven’t known until now might become visible.

Harboring such thoughts, I quietly moved on.

“…That’s too much. I got scolded a lot by my master for no reason.”

When I returned to the designated rendezvous point, I saw Shin Pyoeul looking very upset for some reason.

“Thanks to you, the work was completed well. Thank you.”

“…Is that all you have to say? I was accused of fooling around with an outsider man in front of my master, who is like heaven to me, and endured all sorts of abuse and beatings.”

Although I had explained the circumstances to some extent beforehand and she had understood, it seemed she had gone through considerable hardship keeping Seo Cheonye occupied.

I answered Shin Pyoeul with a hint of apology.

“It’s not much of a repayment, but if there’s a Cursed Technique you need, I’ll teach you something useful within my knowledge.”

“R-really, is that okay?”

“Yes. It’s not knowledge I particularly need to keep to myself.”

Perhaps sharing Cursed Techniques with each other was a very rare occurrence in this era, as Shin Pyoeul nodded happily with a softened attitude.

Then, getting to the main point, she asked me again.

“So, did you get the answers you needed?”

“Yes. As I thought, the young lady was aware of the cause of her Specter Transformation herself.”

When I conveyed that much, Shin Pyoeul’s expression immediately stiffened, showing a bewildered reaction.

“D-Docheol? Does such a legendary Specter really exist?”

“I’ve already met a similar being. It probably exists.”

“How can that be…?”

Now comes the problem.

We know the cause, but from here on, we need to be careful with our actions.

“If we rashly pursue it, we cannot deny the possibility of harm coming to the young lady.”

“…That makes sense.”

Actually, my initial plan was to reveal all the circumstances and then ask Seo Cheonye for help.

Her skill is such that even I find it hard to measure, and while not certain, it’s highly likely she wouldn’t be inferior to a Great Specter of this era.

However, something felt off.

Did Seo Cheonye truly know nothing about the contract implanted in Pyeong Eunha?

[We cannot deny the possibility she really didn’t know, but the opposite case is just as plausible.]

‘I think so too.’

That’s why I couldn’t involve her immediately.

For some reason, I get the feeling Seo Cheonye is also hiding something.

At least until more information is gathered, I couldn’t act rashly.

“Anyway, there’s still quite some time left before she becomes a complete Specter. Since I heard it from her own mouth, it should be reliable.”

“You mean there’s no need to rush and ruin things?”

“Yes. That’s why I plan to first seek trustworthy comrades.”

No matter how capable I am, I have no intention of immediately challenging a Great Specter that forms one axis of this era.

Considering that the Specters who escaped from the Oracle Bone Casket had lost a significant portion of their original power, it’s highly likely that a Great Specter of this era possesses power greater than even Bikang or Cheonho.

Facing that alone would be nothing short of suicide.

“Do you have any comrades who might join us?”

“No, well, you see. I’ve mostly worked alone, so…”

In short, she didn’t really know anyone.

Looking at Shin Pyoeul blushing as if embarrassed, I continued.

“I have comrades with outstanding skills, though we are separated for now. So, I plan to first find them and increase our forces.”

“Ah… Yes. In that case, I agree. If our opponent is a Great Specter like Docheol, the more forces, the better.”

Although temporary, someone of Shin Pyoeul’s caliber would be a sufficiently helpful comrade for the journey.

It unintentionally ended up using her, but since our objectives ultimately align, it shouldn’t be a major problem.

“Then, do you have a destination in mind?”

“Yes.”

While checking the geography of the nearby area, I happened to discover a region that also appeared in the original work.

That place was none other than Yeocheon, known as the city of pleasure and revelry.

“We will go to Yeocheon.”

I don’t know why, but I have an intuition that I might find what I’m looking for there.

Although I spoke confidently, it takes a tremendous amount of time—a full ten days and four more—to reach Hoobaek Yeocheon.

Naturally, we couldn’t just head there blindly, so we decided to trade with merchants departing on a commercial journey, taking on the role of guards in exchange for using them as guides.

“You get used to this with repetition. At first, camping in forests or plains wasn’t easy either…”

“How long have you been living as a Taoist Master?”

“About four years? Before that, I was always studying under my master.”

Since we were to embark on a long journey together, we maintained the commercial journey while engaging in various conversations with a more relaxed demeanor.

Also, since it felt wasteful to idle away the time during the process, I decided to use this journey as an opportunity to teach her the Cursed Technique I had promised.

“Your Taoist Arts are fascinating, Kangyoon… I pride myself on having witnessed quite a few Art Formulas, but these are completely unfamiliar.”

Well, of course. These are all Cursed Techniques brought from a distant future.

Whether she knew that or not, Shin Pyoeul happily accepted the new knowledge.

Certainly, reaching such a level at a young age was no small feat; her progress was remarkably fast even compared to the Academy’s top students.

In the end, having mastered the desired Cursed Technique in just two days, she looked at me with a somewhat regretful expression, smacking her lips.

“You really are a mysterious person… If I had met you before meeting my master, I might have begged to become your disciple.”

And looking at her, I made a proposal I had been contemplating.

“Then, how about making a deal with me?”

“…Huh? A deal?”

“Yes. If you, Shin Pyoeul, teach me the Art of Eight Trigrams Star Sky, I am willing to impart various other Art Formulas to you during our travels.”

At that, Shin Pyoeul’s eyes widened in surprise.