I Will Become a Phoenix More Noble Than the Emperor - Chapter 11

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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11.

It was a question he had fully anticipated while heading here.

“It was a Demon Lair that had formed within Sorok Mountain on the outskirts of Myeonggyeong.”

Sorok Mountain. Cheong-eum’s expression became strange at the mention of a place so unfamiliar even by name. It was a location that even the Great Temple had been unable to discover.

“May I ask how you happened to find that place?”

It was a polite question that very skillfully packaged suspicion about Seon-o. As expected, he had no choice but to provide the best possible answer.

“I saw it while passing by.”

At those words, silence briefly flowed through the hall.

Seon-o didn’t avoid Cheong-eum’s stare and smiled shamelessly. In any case, unless he revealed the truth, there was no answer he could give that would dispel Cheong-eum’s suspicions. Of course, even if he confessed the truth here and now, the probability that Cheong-eum would believe him was extremely low. So he had no choice but to brazen it out.

Soon Cheong-eum also accepted that Seon-o would not tell him the truth. Instead, he continued with his questions.

Questions that could confirm whether Seon-o was truly a survivor who had emerged alive from within the Demon Lair.

“What was inside there?”

At Cheong-eum’s question, Seon-o looked at him.

What had been inside. This time he could answer truthfully.

“There was an evil dragon.”

It was a clean answer. With that, Cheong-eum confirmed that Seon-o’s words were true. The previous five candidates had also testified that there was an evil dragon inside the cave. Evil dragons were demons that had been driven to extinction by the First Phoenix. So naturally, the evil dragon in the cave would be a test from the gods.

“How did you subdue the evil dragon?”

At that question, a troubled sigh rose from deep within Seon-o’s chest. Just recalling the massive evil dragon that had been crouched in the depths of the cave was enough to give him chills.

In the original work, On Gang knew the evil dragon’s weakness.

‘The evil dragon’s reverse scale.’

If you pressed the inverted scale under its chin, the evil dragon would freeze solid and be unable to move. Remembering a fact he had coincidentally heard from the Neighbor Grandmother as a child, On Gang waited for the evil dragon to fall asleep, then precariously scratched under its chin and succeeded in seizing the Yin Stone the evil dragon was guarding.

But that method was too flimsy. Moreover, while On Gang had endured two days inside the Demon Beast Cave, Seon-o only had one night remaining, so he had to calculate for the possibility that the evil dragon might not fall asleep.

Therefore, Seon-o decided to use a different method. It was a clever move he could make because he knew what was inside the cave, and at the same time, it was a life-or-death gamble.

‘Evil dragons are demons that the First Phoenix completely exterminated. And they were dragons that served the First Yin Cult Leader as their master.’

Seon-o had decided to exploit exactly that aspect. Therefore, before heading to the cave, Seon-o spent his remaining time buying all sorts of ancient books and reading every part that recorded information about evil dragons.

Fortunately, since the Yin Cult had been completely shattered by the First Phoenix’s hand, all records of the defeated remained in writing. With that information, Seon-o completed all his preparations.

Thus, Seon-o entered the cave and with very careful steps positioned himself on a cliff where he could look directly down at the evil dragon, then lay flat. After putting on a face mask, he scattered poison herb powder that he had purchased with money earned from selling several Yin Stones.

‘It’s the poison herb that evil dragons like most, so the cult leader used to sprinkle it every day to tame the beast. If it still works…’

Seon-o’s gaze slowly moved toward the evil dragon’s sharp tail. The creature’s tail, bristling with spikes, was stretched out in a straight line.

‘Finally, the beast’s tail should collapse.’

It was said that a tamed evil dragon would retract all the spikes on its tail as a sign of submission to its master, and for Seon-o, that was his only remaining hope.

So Seon-o lay flat on the cliff for hours, waiting for the creature’s tail to collapse. And finally…

‘It worked!’

The creature’s tail had collapsed.

Not missing that signal, Seon-o stood on the cliff and took out what he had brought. It was well-roasted swallow meat that evil dragons were said to go crazy for.

Sure enough, the evil dragon reacted to that smell, widening its nostrils greatly and suddenly looking up at Seon-o.

Meeting those huge yellow eyes, Seon-o pressed down on his heart that felt ready to explode and opened his mouth.

“Lower your scales and hide your claws to serve your master. Your master has come, A-ryong.”

A-ryong. That was precisely this evil dragon’s pet name. Moreover, the incantation Seon-o had recited was the First Cult Leader’s spell that had been imprinted on the evil dragon.

Would it work on the resurrected evil dragon too? If it failed, Seon-o would have to immediately jump down and somehow scratch under the evil dragon’s chin. Even if it meant losing an arm.

However, at that moment, the evil dragon’s pupils narrowed into slits, and the creature bowed its head as if surrendering.

Seon-o’s plan had succeeded!

Of course, he couldn’t share all of this with Cheong-eum.

‘I can’t say that I knew there was an evil dragon inside.’

Moreover, crucially, what had enabled Seon-o to subdue the evil dragon was unrelated to that.

Seon-o recalled the events of that day once more.

Sensing success, Seon-o swallowed his trembling sigh and threw the swallow meat to the evil dragon. As the delighted evil dragon caught the meat in one bite and floated up, the Yin Stone that had been hidden beneath the evil dragon was revealed.

It seemed like everything had been resolved with that. However, there was a fact that Seon-o had failed to discover. Namely, that the first leader of the Yin Cult had always coated the roasted swallow meat with human blood.

The evil dragon’s eyes snapped open, immediately recognizing that difference.

And….

‘I almost really died.’

Seon-o swallowed dry saliva as she recalled the horror of that moment. The four-headed dragon had realized she wasn’t its master and spat out the swallow meat with a terrifying roar.

It immediately breathed fierce flames and charged at Seon-o. She had almost been roasted alive by the flames it spewed, let alone participate in the Phoenix Competition.

The reason Seon-o was able to survive was….

Seon-o looked directly at Cheong-eum and answered calmly.

“I subdued it with force.”

Seon-o’s power was strong.

Much stronger than expected.

The moment the four-headed dragon charged, Seon-o used all her strength to draw up all the underground water, and that tremendous water element slammed the dragon against the wall in one blow, saving Seon-o. Of course, all that water immediately dried up, so Seon-o quickly went down, seized the Yin Stone, and ran with all her might to escape the cave.

The four-headed dragon seemed to howl and chase after her, but at that moment the cave collapsed, so the dragon couldn’t come out of the cave.

That was the end.

At that anticlimactic answer, Cheong-eum stared at Seon-o again.

“….”

Actually, it was a natural answer. Only someone with enough power to subdue a four-headed dragon could participate in this competition.

The problem was that the woman before his eyes didn’t look like such a master at all. If she had that level of skill, she would have already made a name for herself. Like the other five candidates.

Cheong-eum spoke again.

“I would like to know what energy you handle.”

It was a polite voice, but one that felt somewhat distant. A polite voice that still concealed suspicion.

Clearly sensing that intention, Seon-o suddenly looked at Cheong-eum’s neck. It was because she had the illusion that blue veins were showing through his long neck.

That blue light quickly disappeared, and Seon-o also looked at Cheong-eum again and answered.

“I handle water element.”

“Can you show me?”

Ah.

When Seon-o’s face became troubled, Cheong-eum’s eyes darkened. He stared intently at the suspicious candidate who couldn’t readily agree and was hesitating.

“Do you need a specific type of water element?”

Very occasionally, there existed superhumans who could only handle power through specific substances. For example, clean water without a single impurity mixed in, or conversely, only being able to handle muddy water.

Understanding Cheong-eum’s question, Seon-o moved her lips slightly.

“It’s not that….”

Then it was even stranger. Water element was lurking everywhere in the garden. It wasn’t an environment to hesitate about at all. Moreover, superhumans who had reached a certain level could create power on their own even without substances around them. So Seon-o should naturally be able to do the same. If she was truly as powerful as she had just claimed.

“Well, I haven’t been awakened for very long.”

At those words, Cheong-eum’s puzzlement deepened even more.

A superhuman who hadn’t been awakened for long had subdued a four-headed dragon with force.

Since Seon-o had her name on the Divine Oracle and brought the Yin Stone, she was clearly a candidate, but Cheong-eum as High Priest also had to grasp at least the minimum information about the candidates.

He couldn’t ignore the possibility that the woman before him had discovered some trick that could even deceive the god’s eyes and participated in the competition. No one had seen the Demon Beast Cave that Seon-o had conquered. Nor the scene of her conquering the Demon Beast Cave and coming out.

Seon-o made another excuse.

“I’m a bit clumsy, but….”

“It’s fine.”

Cheong-eum answered calmly but firmly. At the voice that contained the will to confirm Seon-o’s abilities here no matter what, Seon-o became quite troubled. But it wasn’t something she could avoid forever. Finally, Seon-o straightened her posture as if she had made up her mind, and Cheong-eum stared at her intently.

At that moment, when the ground vibrated finely and rumbled, Cheong-eum’s eyes moved suspiciously.

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