The Wizard Who Endured the World of Murim - Chapter 26

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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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Surviving in the Martial Realm as a Mage: Episode 26
Six days prior.
Sungwha Island on the Yangtze River, the central stronghold of the Jiao Long Faction.
At the heart of Sungwha Island stood its master—Sun Tae-go, leader of the Jiao Long Faction.
A middle-aged man had come calling at his office.
Clink—
The middle-aged man, whose weathered face bore a savage expression beneath coarse, bristling whiskers, brought an amber-hued liquor to his lips and feigned a casual tone.
“Say, didn’t our faction leader push himself too hard this time?”
“What choice is there when you must eat? One simply works diligently.”
The elderly man with a goat-like beard, seated across from him, answered evasively.
The middle-aged man chuckled and spoke again.
“Our faction leader assembles such a massive convoy and travels personally. Truly, one sees wonders in this world. Moreover, I hear you’ve agreed to pay generous commissions to those neighbors—the Blood Wolf Faction and Yan Wang Faction. Is that true?”
“Tsk tsk, Maeng Ryeo. You need only arrive on time and lend your blade. Why must you talk so much?”
“I’m curious, you see. Our tightfisted Sun Chae-ju is spending lavishly and traveling personally. What cargo could possibly warrant such measures? I’m genuinely dying to know.”
“It’s nothing so remarkable. This old, ailing body merely wishes to procure some medicinal herbs to extend my years. Ah, my shoulders are stiffening again.”
The master of the Jiao Long Faction.
Sun Tae-go, known as the Yangtze River Fisherman, suddenly groaned and began kneading his shoulders.
Yet at this exaggerated display, Maeng Ryeo, the Iron-Blooded Scythe, merely scoffed. He leaned forward, tilting his head up, and asked once more.
“Do I still appear to you as some snot-nosed child? Should I perhaps perform a little massage here to earn your respect?”
A baseless threat.
Yet it was impossible to dismiss lightly—Maeng Ryeo’s reputation was far too formidable.
He was counted among the top three problem-solvers in this world.
“Hehe~ Who would dare mock our Iron-Blooded Scythe, who has ventured to the seas when the Liu Chang River grew too narrow? Please, compose yourself.”
Sun Tae-go hastily retreated a step, waving his hands placatingly.
Only then did Maeng Ryeo relax his serpent-like, narrowed eyes and grumbled.
“But why spout such worthless lies? Are you trying to embarrass yourself in front of the men?”
“Hehe, if I said the cargo was a Demon Spirit Pill, wouldn’t you grow greedy?”
“Hmm? What did you just say? A Demon Spirit Pill?”
The Demon Spirit Pill.
A legendary elixir crafted by a secret organization known as Cheonsa-ok.
A single dose could instantly increase one’s inner force by a full decade—such was its potency.
It was no wonder that martial artists coveted it with such fervor.
In Kangho, the Demon Spirit Pill was regarded as equal to the Great Restoration Pill housed within Shaolin Temple.
“Is that true? Is the cargo really a Demon Spirit Pill?”
“It is. Why? Are you considering keeping it for yourself now?”
“A Demon Spirit Pill would certainly be worth the effort.”
An elixir that could not be purchased even for a fortune—such was the Demon Spirit Pill.
Moreover, rumors spoke of the Demon Spirit Pill not merely enhancing inner force, but dramatically extending one’s lifespan.
Greed blazed in Maeng Ryeo’s eyes.
Sun Tae-go, facing him, smiled with a sinister expression.
“Kekeke, I knew it would come to this. But what exactly are you planning to do alone? Surely you’re not thinking of stopping the Jinseong Escort Agency by yourself?”
“That is….”
“We’ve already laid out all our plans for the assault. But you?”
“….”
When Sun Tae-go’s sharp questioning left Maeng Ryeo speechless,
the Jiao Long Faction Leader
Sun Tae-go opened his mouth in a coaxing tone.
“Just help me out. I’ll give you double the amount we originally agreed upon. Consider it hush money.”
Maeng Ryeo fell into contemplation.
He had been offered a hundred gold coins for a single assignment.
And now he was being offered double that?
An astronomical sum—enough to spend lavishly without working for at least several decades.
After a brief moment of consideration, Maeng Ryeo smacked his lips regretfully before answering.
“…Very well. Since our Faction Leader is making such an offer, this man Maeng Ryeo must make a special concession.”
It had been the original contract all along.
Maeng Ryeo boasted as though he were making some magnanimous sacrifice.
‘Hehe, I’m a bandit myself, but truly, these underworld dogs cannot be trusted.’
Sun Tae-go’s insides twisted, but with years of experience, he maintained his composure
and skillfully managed Maeng Ryeo’s mood before sending him out. Then, with an exhausted expression, he pressed his fingers firmly between his brows.
He then collapsed into a chair made of crocodile leather.
Just then.
Knock, knock—
“Who is it?”
“It is Gong Jeol-gang, Faction Leader.”
“Ah! Come in, Pharmacist Gong.”
Sun Tae-go sprang up from his slouching position, opened the door, and greeted the middle-aged man with a refined, clean appearance warmly.
“You have worked hard, Faction Leader.”
“Ugh. Pharmacist Gong, I’m exhausted to death. These accursed bandits—every last one of them has no conscience whatsoever.”
“Did you not anticipate this from the beginning?”
“I anticipated it, yes! But the money—it pains me! I have to spend my lifeblood on these worthless dogs!”
Sun Tae-go could not abandon his characteristic stingy nature and began cursing the hired masters who had extracted more payment.
For this operation,
aside from the generous gold ingots he had provided to the Yan Wang Faction and the Blood Wolf Faction,
he had nearly had to uproot the very foundations of the Jiao Long Faction to satisfy the peak-level masters he had hired.
“It is no matter. Once the item is in your hands, Faction Leader, you will consider all this spending mere pocket change.”
“Well… I suppose that’s true. Given that it’s the Spirit Orb.”
When Sun Chae-ju, who had been wilting like overcooked vegetables, heard the words “Spirit Orb” and broke into a low, hopeful laugh,
Pharmacist Gong opened his mouth.
“How is Sun Young Master faring?”
“Ah, our second son? Well, it seems he’s blended in without any particular problems. The Jinseong Escort Agency’s security is quite lax, I must say.”
“The Second Young Master is remarkably perceptive, after all.”
“Heh heh, indeed? That fellow is my true treasure. Still, none of this plan would have been possible without our Gong Jeol-gang. I’m truly grateful.”
“Not at all. It is I who should be grateful. If I can only exact vengeance upon Jinseong Transport Company, I would walk smiling into the very flames of hell itself.”
“Kha! Truly, our Gong Jeol-gang is a real man. To endure such hardship for the sake of avenging your parents’ deaths. I have learned much from you. As for Jinseong Transport Company, worry not. This time, I shall erase them completely from Kangho.”
Gong Jeol-gang kept Sun Chae-ju company, whose exhaustion was evident, lifting his spirits with conversation.
Then, after clasping his hands together respectfully, I slipped out of the Chae-ju’s office.
“Phew….”
With a deep sigh.
After walking for some time, I returned to my Pharmacy Chamber, and Gong Jeol-gang’s expression shifted entirely.
The humble and virtuous face I had displayed in the corridor moments before vanished, replaced by a sinister smile.
“Soon. That creature will fall into my hands.”
A Demon Spirit Pill?
Such a precious thing had never existed in the first place.
It was merely a fabrication to deceive Sun Chae-ju.
Of course, I had to expend considerable sums and minor spirit medicines to make Sun Chae-ju believe my words.
But for a sorcerer of Cheonsa-ok like myself, such a task was hardly difficult.
It was merely tedious.
Yet I could endure it.
Soon, the “treasure” that Jinseong Transport Company was transporting would fall into my grasp.
“Heh heh, who would have thought a Three-Tailed Fox still remained in this Lower Realm.”
A fox with three tails.
I had heard that in the distant past, when the Upper Realm and Lower Realm were not yet separated, such demons were commonplace.
But in this world where the Upper and Lower Realms were now divided, a demon of the Three-Tailed Fox’s caliber was truly a heavenly treasure.
“If I absorb its inner core, my cultivation could rise by at least two stages.”
I had already reached the seventh stage of Breath Cultivation.
If I could advance two stages from here?
The ninth stage of Breath Cultivation.
Beyond what would be considered a supreme master among ordinary martial artists.
A realm equal to that of a Transformation-stage master.
“Haha, and with a touch of fortune….”
The tenth stage of Breath Cultivation.
In other words, becoming a Breath Cultivation Grand Master was no longer a dream.
A Breath Cultivation Grand Master was a superhuman who would yield to no one, at least within the Lower Realm.
Thus, six days passed as Gong Jeol-gang indulged in such blissful fantasies.
At last, the hour of ambush drew near.
* * *
When a mage achieves enlightenment or breaks through a realm barrier,
they awaken entirely new concepts regarding the magic they already knew.
Among these, the most representative concepts emerge when magic is unleashed:
adjusting the density of mana and the compression ratio of the Magic Circle to control the intensity of the spell’s power.
Or perhaps they use the same energy but apply it with maximum efficiency.
Let me give you an example of what I mean.
*Crack—*
Upon the turbulent waters of the river.
Thick ice platforms the size of a palm materialized.
Despite the rough current.
The ice platforms locked firmly in place like marble, refusing to be swept away by the raging waters.
A stepping-stone bridge formed from these ice platforms.
A young boy in black robes walked across it as if treading on flat ground, his footsteps silent.
Ilhyang had separated from the sailing ship, submerged briefly to conceal himself.
Then drifted with the current, traveling as far as possible.
After that, he began approaching the massive sailing ship named Nataryongwang—a splendid name—which carried the faction leader of the Jiao Long Faction.
Walking casually across the water’s surface.
*Crack— Crack-crack—*
With each step Ilhyang took.
Small ice platforms materialized beneath his feet, then dissolved.
And once he passed a certain distance.
He systematically dismantled the ice platforms from behind, converting them back into mana.
The ice platform magic I was currently deploying was originally a second-circle ice platform spell.
An application of the Freeze magic.
The original Freeze spell was an ice-type magic with extreme mana consumption.
But I had recreated it on the spot—a magic that severely limited its manifestation range while implementing it in a specific form.
‘Still, I can’t use it indefinitely.’
Though I recovered mana diligently.
I couldn’t recover one hundred percent.
There were unavoidable losses.
Still, it was certainly true that actual inner energy consumption was minimal.
Moreover, I was currently using Wind magic to supplement my body’s balance.
I had to calculate precisely and conserve my strength.
‘It’s a shame. Things would be far easier if I had a wind spirit.’
I felt the absence of a spirit acutely once more.
Why couldn’t I reach the Spirit Realm?
There seemed to be several doors nearby.
But no matter how many times I knocked and called, there was no answer.
This was definitely something I’d need to investigate thoroughly later.
‘For now, focus on the immediate task.’
I continued moving while rapidly calculating the formulas for both spells in my head.
Yet my expression remained unchanged.
This much was nothing to me.
‘First, there are two enemies I need to be wary of on that ship.’
The detection magic I had used before falling into the river. Mana Scan.
With it, I pinpointed the exact locations of every internal energy master within 500 meters of this vicinity.
And.
Upon observing the enemy’s deployment, I couldn’t help but let out a quiet chuckle.
‘This is rather amusing. The Water Bandits’ strategy and the Jinseong Transport Company’s plan align in a peculiar way.’
The massive sailing ship Nataryongwang loomed directly before me.
Surprisingly, there were only two masters aboard.
The Water Bandits had positioned five each.
A total of ten peak-level masters divided on the left and right sides.
In other words, an assault strategy from both flanks rather than a frontal attack.
Yet this coincidentally aligned perfectly with the strategy the Jinseong Transport Company had prepared.
‘Moreover.’
As I gazed upon the colossal form of the Nataryongwang now drawing near, a subtle smile crossed my lips.
One of the passengers aboard possessed a peculiar aura.
Someone whose internal mana reserves were exceptionally pure and pristine.
I had encountered a similar quality of aura before.
The white-haired young girl from the Mansi Sect who had turned to charcoal.
‘There’s a mage who has reached the Fourth Circle?’
The magnitude of the energy within their dantian was even greater than that Fourth Circle mage from the Mansi Sect I had observed a month ago.
A smile naturally bloomed across my lips.

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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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