Dokmaeuiseon - Chapter 75

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 75

 

 

“Young Lady, you have also achieved success. Congratulations.”

“To think I would gain such an opportunity. It’s all thanks to you!”

 

Yeo Eun-so offered a Cupped Fist Salute filled with gratitude.

She too seemed to have gained enlightenment.

The atmosphere she gave off had changed due to her deeper Cultivation Level than before.

 

‘Her aura has become more elegant.’

 

Generally, the bearing that comes with achievement follows a Martial Artist’s personality.

The fact that she exuded a more elegant atmosphere as her Cultivation Level deepened showed that her usual appearance matched well with her alias of Seol Mae-geom.

 

“Thanks to me? I too had unexpected learning thanks to you, Young Lady.”

“It’s what you gained on your own.”

“Haha. Then let’s say it’s thanks to each other. Actually, even so, I’ll think of this as a debt.”

“What? A debt? I haven’t been acknowledged by my senior brothers yet, but… I think of us as fellow disciples.”

“Even fellow disciples don’t easily teach Incantation Formulas like that, do they? So it’s a debt.”

“That’s…”

“Don’t think too deeply about it. I’ll be thinking of it that way.”

“…”

 

For some reason.

Even though she would know that owing Jung Myeong a debt was quite a significant gain.

In Seol Mae-geom’s expression as she listened to him, a hint of disappointment seemed to flicker and disappear.

 

‘I can’t understand her thoughts at all.’

 

For Jung Myeong, it was difficult to fathom her inner thoughts.

Since this wasn’t a situation where he could dig into things he didn’t understand.

Jung Myeong adjusted his clothes and said to her.

 

“Well then, shall we go further Inside?”

“Yes!”

 

 

* * *

 

 

After dismantling the Bronze Puppets and feeling that the Formation was no longer operating, the two went further Inside.

The Inside they entered was not very spacious.

 

“This place is for storing Bronze Puppets.”

“There’s writing here.”

“I see. Shall we look at the contents?”

 

[Return].

This character was carved there.

Its meaning was clear.

 

“It says to go back?”

“Hmm. Is this the end of what the Secret Cave gives?”

“Yes. The test seems to go up to here… I don’t think anything more malicious would be arranged.”

“Is that so? For some reason, I feel like there’s more.”

 

Jung Myeong and Yeo Eun-so’s opinions diverged.

 

“Could there be more tests? Don’t tell me finding hidden things is also part of the test?”

“No. The test itself should be over.”

“Then what are you looking for?”

“Don’t you think there should be a reward for the test?”

“Well. Nothing is visible right now, is it?”

“Just because it’s not visible doesn’t mean there isn’t anything.”

“Hmm… Then shall we look for it?”

“Good idea.”

 

She seemed half-doubtful but agreed.

She decided to invest time precisely because it was Jung Myeong’s words.

Moreover, the reasoning was sound.

 

“There really does seem to be something.”

“That’s what I’m saying. Considering the level of arrangements in this place… actually, this can’t be the end.”

“Let’s search carefully.”

 

The harmony of Bronze Puppets and Formation.

The transmission of Incantation Formulas through these two.

It was a test that could never be overcome unless one was a disciple of Jeon Jin.

 

‘To make them learn Martial Arts in real time… this wasn’t an easy test.’

 

The hidden arrangements here were complex.

Even if Jeon Jin’s disciples didn’t come, it didn’t matter to this place.

Because there would be nothing to learn and take away.

What if they overcame the Bronze Puppets with Martial Power?

That also didn’t matter to Jeon Jin. By destroying the Bronze Puppets, one couldn’t learn the teachings contained within them.

 

‘Either way, it’s designed to go the way the designer wants. How meticulous.’

 

It was an arrangement worthy of being called spine-chilling.

That’s why Jung Myeong wanted to examine the Inside further.

Because there seemed to be something to gain.

 

“There’s nothing.”

“From what I can see, there doesn’t seem to be anything more Inside.”

 

However, no matter how much they examined the Inside, nothing was visible.

Dozens of Bronze Puppets that had now stopped operating.

Among them, only a few facilities that appeared to be the central axis of the Formation were visible.

 

‘I should leave this as it is.’

 

These things were also artifacts that should someday be passed down to the descendants of the Quanzhen Sect.

The two had no intention of taking them separately and withdrew for now.

No matter how they looked, there seemed to be nothing more to obtain here.

 

“Hmm….”

“What’s wrong?”

“I feel somewhat disappointed. Looking at the level of arrangement in this place, it seems like there should be something more.”

“Isn’t this already amazing? Teaching through Bronze Puppet and formations. It’s a method I never even thought of, isn’t it?”

“Yes. It’s amazing, which makes it even stranger.”

 

But for some reason.

The feeling that there should be something more wouldn’t go away.

The problem was that no matter how thoroughly they searched the surroundings, there was nothing more to gain.

However, they couldn’t just waste time like this.

 

“Still, there doesn’t seem to be anything. Let’s go back for now? This is the Jusan Archipelago, so it doesn’t seem good to drag out time any longer.”

“Yes. Let’s go back for now.”

 

There was still much work left to do.

They couldn’t just waste time endlessly.

The two decided to return for now.

The way back was short.

From the beginning, the size had only been enlarged using the illusions of the formation, but the space itself was small.

If you subtract the space for operating the formation and the Bronze Puppet, the size becomes even smaller.

So they were quickly on their way back.

The eyes of the two, who had almost returned to the entrance, opened wide.

 

“Huh? What’s this… They’ve set up an interesting trick.”

“This looks like it just opened, doesn’t it?”

“Yes. It seems to be a method of going back again. I can see things that weren’t there before?”

“Exactly.”

 

The entrance was still in a closed state.

But next to it, another cavern different from before could be seen.

What this meant was clear.

 

‘There was a reward here.’

 

It meant there was still more to obtain.

 

 

* * *

 

 

‘To think they would leave something only after we gave up everything and came back.’

 

The designer of this place was certainly someone full of mischief as much as deep planning.

The two naturally entered the newly opened cavern.

 

“This place looks just like a bookshelf.”

“Indeed.”

 

Countless books could be seen.

Were they all secret manuals? That wasn’t the case.

 

“Hmm. These are books about medicinal herbs and spirit medicine.”

“This is a medical text, isn’t it?”

“That’s right. Medical text. Hmm… These are related to alchemy?”

“Yes. After learning martial arts, what we get are alchemy manuals. How fascinating?”

“Exactly.”

 

What was densely positioned on one side of the bookshelf were things related to training.

That order felt strange to Jung Myeong.

 

‘If you can’t learn martial arts, don’t learn alchemy either?’

 

The place they were in now was quite remarkable.

The level of arrangement contained within was also high.

Such an arrangement in such a place. There was certainly some intention behind it. However, that intention wasn’t immediately clear.

The important thing was something else.

 

“Oh…!”

 

[Alchemy: Ascension]

 

‘After Foundation comes Ascension. Then is Transcendence left? An interesting method.’

 

The real alchemy he had been hoping for was hidden here as well.

Seeing this, Jung Myeong rejoiced.

 

“It’s alchemy.”

“May I take this?”

“This was Young Master’s from the beginning.”

“I’ll gratefully accept it.”

 

Yeo Eun-so didn’t miss the opportunity and secured it for him.

Jung Myeong accepted it without refusing.

 

[You have obtained Alchemy: Ascension.]

[Would you like to learn Alchemy: Ascension?]

 

‘Learning it right away…. Huh?’

 

He was about to learn the given skill book but stopped and immediately turned his head.

 

“Young Master.”

“…Did you sense it?”

“Yes. I can sense presences.”

 

Presences could be felt from outside.

 

 

* * *

 

 

‘Did Black Point betray us? No. There are too many presences for it to be betrayal.’

 

Outside the cavern. The presences felt from there.

Had Black Point betrayed them and come?

It wasn’t that. Even considering the time, it was too short.

However, something was definitely happening outside.

 

“It seems like the Sea Horn people have made their move.”

“Indeed! If it’s them, they could notice and mobilize people right away.”

 

Sea Horn. The main force of the Jusan Archipelago.

Sea Horn was also one of the three major forces of Hangzhou.

If it was them, they could mobilize this many people.

 

“What should we do?”

“Hmm…”

 

What should they do.

The cavern wasn’t spacious.

From what he could see, it was hidden by walls, but.

 

‘If we go out, they’ll discover the cavern in an instant.’

 

The entrance they came through was still blocked, so this was the only exit.

If they saw that exit, those people would also see the cavern inside. And then.

 

‘If we try to take this with us, it might get stolen.’

 

It didn’t matter if the Bronze Puppet and formation were discovered. There would be nothing to gain just from looking at them.

However, the alchemy manuals and other secret manuals inside were problematic.

 

‘Medical texts or books about spirit medicine wouldn’t matter much… but handing over the secret manuals is a problem.’

 

Anyone who saw this would obviously go crazy with greed.

They would surely read the hidden traces of the Quanzhen Sect too.

That would be troublesome.

 

‘What should I do?’

 

Jung Myeong quickly racked his brain.

Meanwhile, Seol Mae-geom spoke with an expression as if she had made some decision.

 

“Rather than hand it over to them, there’s no choice.”

“What method do you have?”

“Let’s burn it all.”

“What. You want to burn it?”

“Rather than let Jeon Jin’s teachings fall into their hands… it would be… better to burn it.”

 

Burn it.

From the way she didn’t stop speaking despite her trembling voice, it was clearly a big decision for her too.

It was an extreme method of destroying rather than not obtaining.

But for Yeo Eun-so, it seemed better than carelessly handing over Jeon Jin’s teachings.

The problem was the aftermath.

 

“If we do that, they’ll chase us no matter what. No, they’ll even torture us to find out what we obtained.”

“Then should we show them?”

“Hmm…”

 

Would they really give up easily after seeing the traces of burning?

Absolutely not.

 

‘If they saw no traces from the beginning, it might be different. But if they see even burned remains, they’ll try to cause trouble. They’re not the type to be stopped just because we try to stop them.’

 

In the end, traces were the problem either way.

 

‘Wait?’

 

The problem was ultimately traces.

Here, Jung Myeong realized there was a method.

 

“Miss, do you trust me?”

“Pardon?”

“Rather than obtaining nothing and burning it right now, there’s a way to obtain it later.”

“How?”

“If you trust me, there is a way.”

 

Now all that remained was implementing that realized method.

For that, she needed to turn a blind eye.

 

“That’s why I asked if you trust me.”

“Young Master is someone who will become my sworn brother… I should trust you. No, I do trust you.”

 

When he asked, the answer was affirmative.

What need was there to hesitate further?

 

“Good. Then don’t be surprised.”

 

Whoooosh-!

At his following movement, Yeo Eun-so’s eyes widened in surprise.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————