The Strongest in Our Neighborhood - Chapter 76

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Strongest in the Neighborhood (76)
“I’m willing to borrow resources by trading on the name of a great being, but Sapir is naturally fertile land, so we can repay it with interest quickly enough.”
“I don’t want my name used so carelessly.”
“How can you call it careless when countless lives hang in the balance? Please, have mercy on the people of this land.”
“I have no reason to take on this territory and endure such inconvenience. Stop wasting my time.”
When Noxkasarsis refused flatly, Jang Gain spoke up.
“My, you’re quite picky about this. Using your name, the people of this land won’t be dragged away as slaves and can live well here. Just agree to it. From what I hear, you’re not actually doing anything substantial anyway.”
“What? And why won’t you take the territory, then? In the end, you also hate the inconvenience, don’t you?”
“You’re a dragon, so if you lend your name, the surrounding lords will bow their heads. But I’m a marquis from another kingdom. Would the neighboring lords sit idly by? And even if they did, I already told you the emperor of this nation wouldn’t stand for it.”
“No matter what you say, from where I’m standing, you just hate the hassle.”
“I’m not.”
“If that’s the case, then I’ll allow this woman to use my name, so you take this land. That way it’s fair for both of us.”
After hearing Noxkasarsis’s words, Jang Gain thought for a moment, then nodded.
“Fine! Since you’ve allowed her to use your name, I’ll take this land. You said your name is Meiruji, right?”
“Yes, Marquis Kain.”
“Since the dragon Noxkasarsis has allowed me to use his name, from now on this land belongs to both the dragon Noxkasarsis and myself. As you mentioned, I’ll use the dragon’s name to request support from the neighboring territories, and I’ll also prepare documents promising to repay it with interest later.”
“I understand. Thank you for your kindness toward the people of this land.”
“I’ve only recently become a marquis of the Smed Kingdom, so I don’t actually have the leisure to attend to this territory. Therefore, I’d like you, Meiruji, to govern this land in my stead, and if you need any help, speak to this friend here.”
Hearing Jang Gain’s words, Noxkasarsis’s expression darkened.
“What? Why are you telling me?”
“Since I’m busy and can’t pay attention to this territory, it’d be nice if you, who don’t have much to do, would look after it.”
“I do have things to do!”
“Like what?”
“I have to watch over you from the side, occasionally see the world, meet with dragons I’m acquainted with, and honestly, I have plenty to do.”
“To my ears, those sound like things you have nothing to do about.”
……
“You lent me your name. Are you really just going to lend the name and that’s it? How will the neighboring lords believe it then? You need to show your face at least once so the surrounding lords will accept it.”
“Do I really have to go that far?”
“Even if it’s bothersome, just do it.”
“Why should I listen to you?”
“What, didn’t you just say we’re comrades who fought together risking our lives? Can’t you grant a comrade this small favor?”
“Well, that’s… damn it, fine.”
Noxkasarsis took a small crystal orb from his pocket and handed it to Meiruji.
“Meiruji.”
“Yes, great one.”
“This is a communication orb you can use to reach me. Only contact me for truly important, essential matters.”
“Th-thank you.”
“Since I gave you a communication orb, you should give me something too.”
“What? What do I have to give you? As you know, right now my pocket dimension only has a demon’s head and body.”
“You said that sells for money to mages. Give me that, then.”
“Alright. What should I give?”
When Jang Gain pulled the demon’s head and body from his pocket dimension, a bone-chilling, vicious demonic energy spread throughout the surroundings.
“Gasp!”
“Ungh!”
“M-Marquis Kain. We cannot handle that.”
“True. If you give that to us, we’d go mad from demonic corruption.”
“Please don’t give us that. If you truly wish to help us, allow us to dispose of the corpses of the demonic beasts and magical creatures you two have slain.”
“Ah! Now that I think about it, if we sell those to the merchants of the neighboring territories, we could raise quite a bit of money.”
“Yes. On the way here, I noticed that most of the bodies were burned by lightning, but there were several corpses in decent enough condition to sell.”
“Good, then sell those and use the proceeds to help manage the territory.”
“Thank you. Once the territory recovers, I will repay you from the money earned selling the demonic beast and creature corpses.”
“No, even if you’re a lord in name only, you’re still a lord, so use that money to govern the territory.”
“Th-thank you. Marquis Kain—or rather, my lord.”
* * *
‘If the wind elemental Sillon hadn’t blocked that demon’s fist in the middle and dispersed the impact, I’d be dead!’
Sitting in a cross-legged position and practicing the Yungi Yosang Haenggong, Jang Gain reviewed the battle scene and realized why he had survived.
Observing his body’s interior, the broken bones and torn internal injuries had nearly recovered thanks to the potion the dragon had given him, but the aftereffects still lingered considerably.
‘My dantian seems to have sustained significant damage too, but it’s almost healed now. When a dantian ruptures and heals, does it grow a bit larger than before?’
Back when he killed the ogre, his dantian had ruptured and grown larger as it healed, and this time he was experiencing a similar process—his dantian had become larger and more solid, as had his meridians and acupoints.
‘At this rate, I should be able to use the Strong Thread as effectively as when fighting a duke-rank demon.’
When fighting Duke-rank Demons, the high concentration of demonic energy in the air had allowed him to use thick, powerful Thin Force, but now with the demonic energy so scarce, he couldn’t rely on that. Yet if his Dantian and meridian points changed like this, he could generate comparable strength even without demonic energy.
After recovering his depleted energy through the Daejucheon and opening his eyes, he could see the sun hanging high overhead.
He’d been practicing the Yungi Yosang Haenggong since yesterday evening until now.
As he rose from his crossed-legged position, he spotted the dragon sleeping beside him.
“They said the body needs long sleep to recover, yet it’s still sleeping.”
A Defensive Magical Formation spread out around the two of them, impenetrable even to insects, and beyond that formation, Dimitrion and Leodosn Terra stood watch.
Jang Gain infused his energy into the gem the dragon had given him.
This gem was the only key that could pass through the magical formation.
As light emanated from the gem and a transparent barrier wrapped around his body, he stepped beyond the formation’s edge.
“Oh! Gain, you’ve awakened?”
The moment Jang Gain’s form materialized from thin air, the two standing watch jolted in surprise.
“Yes. Don’t tell me you’ve been standing guard here since last evening?”
“Yes.”
“You said the dragon created this formation, so no one but another dragon could enter it. You didn’t need to keep watch at all.”
“We heard that, but we thought it was only right to guard it regardless.”
You both must be exhausted. I’ll keep watch now—go get some rest.”
“But sir, your wounds were quite severe. Are you certain you’re well?”
“The potion the dragon gave me is remarkably effective. I’m completely recovered now.”
As Jang Gain let a hint of his controlled energy show, both men’s eyes widened.
“Ah! Yes, we understand. Then we’ll rest for a while.”
As the two men turned to leave, blinking their bloodshot eyes, Jang Gain summoned Sillon.
A small wind spiraled, and then it took the form of a sparrow no bigger than his palm.
“What? Sillon, why have you become so small?”
-I took a direct hit from the Demon King’s fist and got banished! You barely managed to resummon me, but for now, I can’t go any larger than this.
“The one who threw that fist at us wasn’t a Demon King—it was a Duke-rank Demon. And since you’re a spirit, shouldn’t you recover instantly when you return to the spirit realm, even after taking damage here?”
-Ordinary physical blows, yes, but that Duke-rank Demon’s fist was suffused with a chilling demonic energy. My spirit body here in this world was severely damaged by it.
“Ah, right—spirit power and demonic energy are fundamentally opposed.”
-Not comparable to divine power, but yes, they’re opposed.
“I can absorb demonic energy, so… wait, you don’t have any demonic energy left in you.”
Jang Gain examined the tiny sparrow’s aura and shook his head.
-If demonic energy remained, it would conflict with me, and I couldn’t have manifested at all.
“So even if I give you a lot of spirit power, you won’t be able to grow like last time?”
-Not for a while. Only time will heal this.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
-No. I’m just going to return to the spirit realm and… wait? Huh? Why is my spirit body recovering?
As Sillon’s dejected expression shifted to confusion, Jang Gain perked up.
“Your spirit body is recovering? Really?”
-Yes, and the person supplying me with spirit power right now is you, but… now that I look closer, your spirit power has demonic energy mixed into it! Wait, is it demonic energy? If it were, it would oppose me and cause harm… what, what is this? How can it be like demonic energy yet not be demonic energy? Is such an energy even supposed to exist in this world?
As Jang Gain examined his own spirit power and watched Sillon struggle in confusion, he grasped the reason.
“I told you I can absorb demonic energy, didn’t I?”
-Right? Oh yes, you did.
“The martial arts I’ve learned make it possible to harmonize different energies. By absorbing demonic energy and harmonizing it this way, I can make it seem as though it’s not demonic energy at all.”
-But no matter how harmoniously you mix them, spirit power and demonic energy are fundamentally opposed, like water and fire…
“According to the principles of the Poongun Divine Art that I’ve learned, from chaos emerged the supreme ultimate, which then divided into yin and yang, which then produced the five elements. When you reverse that sequence, everything ultimately returns to the fundamental chaos. Chaos can contain fire, water, demonic energy, divine power, spirit power—all of it together.”
-Poongun, what? Suddenly you’re saying things I don’t understand at all.
“Simply put: no matter how opposed the energies I’ve absorbed might be, I can make them coexist harmoniously so they don’t clash. I haven’t yet gained profound enlightenment about chaos, but recently I’ve gained some insight, and now I can harmonize them far more effectively.”
-Chaos! Honestly, I still don’t fully grasp what you’re saying, but regardless, my spirit body is recovering, which is good for me. I should stay manifested at your side until I’m completely healed.
As Sillon settled onto Jang Gain’s shoulder, he channeled spirit power toward it.
* * *
“It’s sleeping far too long.”
As more than ten days passed without Noxkasarsis showing any sign of waking, Jang Gain found himself seriously deliberating whether to wake him.
“Dragons naturally enter extended sleep periods,” Dimitrion offered from his post.
Jang Gain looked beyond the formation toward the dragon.
Though ordinary eyes couldn’t see through, he could see inside because he held the gem key.
“But it’s not in a natural sleep cycle—that’s why it’s sleeping so long.”
“Having fought a Duke-rank Demon and sustained grave wounds, it’s bound to sleep longer. And didn’t it say before falling asleep that you must absolutely never wake it until it wakes of its own accord?”
“It did say that, but I’m worried since it’s been sleeping so long. I’ve already recovered completely, yet the dragon hasn’t recovered at all.”
Haaaaahhhhh…
Just then, Noxkasarsis, who had been sleeping inside the formation, opened his eyes with a long yawn.
“I was deliberating endlessly about whether to wake you, and here you are, waking on your own.”
Noxkasarsis sat up and surveyed his surroundings before dismantling the magical formation.
“How long have I been asleep?”
“Ten days. Are your wounds fully healed?”
“No, I’ve only recovered enough to use magic again. I’ll need much more rest before I’m completely healed.”
“You’re not thinking of sleeping more, are you?”
“Yes. I’m going back to the Lair to sleep until my body recovers completely.”
“Back to the Lair? Why not rest here?”
“I can’t sleep properly here in human form. Recovery is far too slow like this.”
“Ah! So recovery is faster when you sleep in your true form?”
“Exactly. Once I’ve had a good rest and recovered, I’ll be back.”
“All right then, hurry and recover.”
Just as Noxkasarsis was about to cast Spatial Displacement Magic, Jang Gain suddenly remembered something and spoke up urgently.
“Wait—before you go to the Lair, could you tour the surrounding territories and let them know that Sapir is yours?”
“Hmm? I could, but why the sudden request?”
“Meiruji sold them your name, but the neighboring lords don’t seem to believe her. Just show them your true form once, let them see you in person.”
“Ugh, what a nuisance. I didn’t want to accept this land precisely because I knew this would happen. Fine.”
Noxkasarsis transformed into his dragon form and took flight, while Jang Gain waved goodbye.
“Get plenty of rest.”

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