“Looks like it’s done.”
Seo Mun-yeon meticulously revitalized the array formation she had momentarily put away. She would likely be away from home for a long time and needed to protect it with the array.
With her bundle slung over her shoulder, Seo Mun-yeon began to walk towards the House of Jegal without hesitation. She grumbled, recalling her recently parted companions, Ho Cheon-an and his group.
“They treated me decently, but they were still stingy. What’s so great about just giving me a ride in their cart?”
When she asked if she could catch a ride to the House of Jegal since she had business there, they collectively furrowed their brows. Even though the carriage driver, Tang Do-yeon, said it was fine, Ho Cheon-an’s group stubbornly insisted they were too busy to help.
Unaware that Ho Cheon-an’s group had saved her from misfortune, Seo Mun-yeon moved with dissatisfaction. After a day of walking while lightly deploying her lightness skill, she arrived at the House of Jegal.
The main gate, typically bustling with crowds due to array formation requests, was guarded by martial artists. One of them recognized her and widened his eyes.
Soon, she came face to face with Jegal Yeong-myeong.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Of course, who else would I be but the one who spins her brain?”
Seo Mun-yeon’s light teasing made Jegal Yeong-myeong smile broadly.
“I merely introduced you to the senior array master because I couldn’t possibly provide the answer myself.”
Playing coy, Jegal Yeong-myeong turned his gaze from Seo Mun-yeon’s glare.
“Did you provide the Brain Knife Outcast with a good array?”
“Yes. I gave him an array based on the Heart-Piercing Method, as you wished.”
“I’m curious about what kind of array that is.”
The two engaged in a light conversation about the events with Ho Cheon-an and the recent updates from the House of Jegal.
“It seems the Moyong Clan has drawn their swords properly in response to the Shengsu Faction. They might be planning to deploy many direct line members to the formation.”
“Is that so… They suffered a major embarrassment due to the Blood Sect, so it makes sense.”
“Yes. Even ten array masters would be insufficient for the workload, but isn’t your brother handling the Moyong Clan’s arrays all alone?”
Seo Mun-yeon smiled bitterly.
Although they had parted ways due to the Heart-Piercing Method, they had still been betrothed. She vividly imagined Jegal Seong-chan throwing himself into work to forget his pain.
“…”
“If someone were to help, he could catch his breath.”
“That’s what I was intending.”
Jegal Yeong-myeong, who had been cautiously probing Seo Mun-yeon, widened his eyes at her straightforward response.
“…Hmm, may I ask just one thing?”
“I will try to revert it.”
Seo Mun-yeon recalled Ho Cheon-an’s group. Unlike her and Jegal Seong-chan, who had collapsed before the Heart-Piercing Method, how did they manage to wholly achieve Oh Seong-jin?
By observing Ho Cheon-an’s group, Seo Mun-yeon found the answer.
To be precise, she realized the answer by looking at Ho Cheon-an.
“Delving into one’s heart… certainly seems like something special, but that isn’t the whole of it.”
Action.
Even when Ho Cheon-an’s group was bickering, he kept moving. He was calming down the angered ones, mediating peace among the fighters, and sometimes scolding or even appeasing the greedy.
Outwardly, it may have seemed like a chaotic mess of four women piling on, but Ho Cheon-an’s diligent actions, despite the chaos, were indeed the driving force behind achieving Oh Seong-jin.
“If we’ve confirmed that our hearts do not align, we ought to make an effort to align them… But I just stood by and watched.”
So Seo Mun-yeon wanted to take action even at this late hour.
“Moyong Clan, huh…”
Seo Mun-yeon smiled. What a convenient excuse it was.
If she were to visit the Moyong Clan, it would undoubtedly put pressure on Jegal Seong-chan.
Thus, having a suitable excuse would make things proceed more smoothly.
“If I set up an array for the Moyong Clan, it would also assist the Brain Knife Outcast’s group.”
The Moyong Clan had lost face because of the Blood Sect’s affairs.
If they could substitute their main family’s defenses with arrays to strengthen their forces, they would also work hard to actively thwart the Blood Sect’s activities as they sought to regain their honor.
Thus, establishing an array for the Moyong Clan would also mean helping the Brain Knife Outcast, to whom she had connections.
Helping the hero of the Martial World.
Even if Jegal Seong-chan found Seo Mun-yeon burdensome, it would be a hard excuse to dismiss.
Jegal Yeong-myeong, realizing her intentions, chimed in.
“That would be the case.”
“Will you arrange our transportation?”
“Haha.”
Jegal Yeong-myeong answered with a smile.
“Of course.”
*
What comes to mind when you hear ‘spirit entity’?
Typically, one envisions a majestic figure, coiled up, waiting for a challenger in a grandiose form.
However, such spirit entities are but a tiny fraction among them.
The chances of encountering them are virtually nonexistent.
Those entities take residence in places where human feet cannot tread.
Most spirit entities live like Seo Gong.
Squeak!
“Why does this little guy keep bugging me for Spirit Herbs?”
“Again! You’ve gotten all muddy. Come here!”
Leaving the handling of Spirit Herbs to Tang So-yeol, and fur fur maintenance to Hyeok Gi-rin— no, not quite a life of a pet spirit entity.
It essentially means living a life in normal mountains, fields, and forests while concealing one’s identity.
So, for spirit beast hunting, one must first gather information.
A large tiger reportedly appeared in some mountains.
Someone claims to have seen a giant creature emitting its glowing eyes at night.
Many going missing in a certain forest path.
Gathering numerous rumors about spirit beast hunting and filtering the truth of those rumors to ascertain the existence of a spirit entity is the primary step for spirit beast hunting and a mandatory task.
Even well-established sects can end up fruitlessly hunting for years through this process.
However, there exists a place in this Martial World where one can engage in spirit beast hunting without needing to invest immense labor and time.
That place is the Thousand Tree Forest.
Thousand Tree Forest (天樹林).
As the name suggests, this giant forest, home to endlessly tall trees, naturally creates an environment where spirit entities must inhabit, eliminating the need to confirm their existence.
It could be considered an entry point for spirit beast hunting.
Among players, it is referred to as the Spirit Beast Forest or Spirit Beast Hunting Ground.
Though it’s called a hunting ground, it doesn’t mean that spirit entities are swarming; usually, there might be one or two at best.
Saying that it’s a confirmed spot for hunting spirit entities is not entirely incorrect.
Squeak!
Not long after entering the Thousand Tree Forest, Seo Gong stood with its tail raised, warning us that danger was imminent.
The warning from Seo Gong soon materialized.
A pack of dozens of wolves began to surround the Bicheongmacha.
“What should we do? They clearly look like they’ve had experience ambushing carts and devouring people,” Tang Do-yeon, who was driving the carriage, asked with a stiff voice.
“There must be a spirit wolf commanding these wolves. Let’s take care of the wolves and draw it out.”
“Understood.”
For those who have not mastered martial arts, beasts in mountains and forests pose a threat.
Without a bodyguard to protect them from such threats, most wouldn’t set foot in places like the Thousand Tree Forest.
The wolves that live in the Thousand Tree Forest must recognize the might of the bodyguards (martial experts), yet they approached us fearlessly, surrounding the Bicheongmacha.
It meant they were confident they could hunt us.
Without any entity watching their backs, that confidence was simply bold.
“Do-yeon and I will take care of the pests, so you all rest and prepare for the spirit’s attack.”
Tang So-yeol opened the door to the carriage and climbed up onto the roof.
Clang! Thud!!
Bok bok! Kreeeek!!
It appeared the wolves were caught by surprise, as they fell defenselessly. The wolves momentarily startled, retreated but soon revealed their ferocity and charged toward the Bicheongmacha.
Tang So-yeol busily used hidden weapons and traps from the rooftop, but even so, they couldn’t fend off all the approaching wolves from all directions.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Swoosh!!
Tang Do-yeon swung her weapon and fended off the wolves closing in.
In an instant, several wolves fell, but a loud roar echoed from the forest.
Arooo!!
It was less of a howl and more like a heavy soundwave.
My group, sensing the manifestation of a spirit entity, jumped from the Bicheongmacha to form a formation.
From deep within the forest, the spirit wolf emerged.
Standing over ten shins tall and measuring four to five shins in length, it had a massive body. Its bared teeth looked frightening enough that being bitten would be a gamble for survival.
Faced with the appearance of the spirit wolf, the regular wolves retreated.
Despite withdrawing, they seemed to be preparing to assist the spirit wolf, their momentum not wavering.
The wolves were likely to be handled by Tang Do-yeon and Tang So-yeol.
If any interference arose, Oh Seong-jin could adequately respond.
“Release!”
“Charge!”
With now-familiar commands and movements, Oh Seong-jin began to form up quickly.
Craaang!
Realizing they couldn’t let the formation take shape, the wolves dashed forward like the wind.
I stepped forward against their attack.
Avoiding an attack from the spirit wolf without fully forming the array wouldn’t boost its momentum effectively.
While spreading the array’s vigor, I drew up the spirit energy to brace against the wolf’s jaws.
Boom!!
I’ve never been hit by a truck, but if one were to hit me, I imagine this would be the feeling.
I prepared for the shock, harnessing my strength with the utmost finesse, but with that massive beast charging me, the impact was tremendous.
Wham!!
In an instant, my arm felt numb, and my whole body was pushed back.
Perhaps displeased that I maintained my balance while being dragged by its strength, the spirit wolf shook its head, chomping on my great sword.
The animal instinctively applying pressure was expected.
I twisted my whole body, barely managing to keep my balance.
It seemed the wolf, having moved side to side, had made up its mind and raised its head high. Even though I was using my strength to work with the load, I was still being lifted with ease.
If the spirit wolf dropped its head, I would undoubtedly hit the ground.
However, my companions were quicker than the wolf.
“Haah!”
Withdrawing a powerful breath.
Although insufficient to be called the full force of Oh Seong-jin, Hyeok Gi-rin’s small strike, infused with enough vigor to impact a spirit, was unleashed with an ardent motion, targeting the exposed neck of the wolf!
Suddenly, Hyeok Gi-rin’s blade pierced the spirit wolf’s neck, comparable to the attacks of Yeo Il-ye.
Kreeeek!!
The spirit wolf howled in pain, and I seized the opportunity to kick away its mouth and escape.
In the midst of all this, I glanced back at the thrashing creature’s nape.
Although there was some blood, it didn’t appear to be a deep wound.
It seems fully harnessing the power of Oh Seong-jin is necessary to break the spirit entity’s breath.
I reassured my companions with a nod, letting them know I was fine, and navigated back to my position.
As I reorganized in response to the basics of Oh Seong-jin’s structure, the spirit wolf, still reeling from the neck injury, calmed down.
Grrrrr!!
Was this its first time receiving such a wound from a human? Or perhaps it felt threatened for its life?
Unlike before, its previously cold red eyes now glared at us completely enveloped in fury.
It was as if it no longer needed to scout us and was fully prepared to attack with all its might.
If it’s an all-out battle, we were more than ready for it too.
It was crucial to ascertain how strong Oh Seong-jin truly was and just where its limits lay.
With a fearsome roar, the spirit wolf dashed forward, erupting with fury.
