The Wizard Who Endured the World of Murim - Chapter 69
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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 69
The Upper Realm and the Lower Realm.
Before the boundary between these two worlds became as clearly defined as it is now.
This world was filled entirely with chaos and confusion.
Humans who cultivated their strength consumed one another without hesitation, desperate to grow stronger even marginally faster.
The Dokkaebi and other demon beasts likewise preyed upon humans—the weakest and most defenseless—treating them as playthings or devouring them as casual sustenance.
The weak humans had no protection whatsoever.
A life born merely to be consumed.
Like livestock being raised for slaughter, humans were endlessly depleted.
There was a great transcendent being who watched this tragedy unfold from the Upper Realm with sorrow.
In the Lower Realm, he was called Buddha, the one who created the vast world known as Buddhism.
The Tathagata.
The Tathagata wished to prevent the fleeting deaths of the Lower Realm’s humans.
So he sought aid from those who had constructed the greatest worlds of that age.
Among those who joined him was the Three Pure Ones, who created the world known as Daoism.
The supreme immortal among the three highest immortals—the Jade Emperor.
Also called Yuqing, the Primordial Heavenly Worthy, he was moved by the Tathagata’s purpose and shared his vision.
The Tathagata and Yuqing—their presence alone was formidable, yet it was insufficient.
One more pillar was needed to stem the endless deaths of the Lower Realm.
And so, finally.
A third being joined their cause.
The first sage, called the Mother of Humanity.
Nuwa.
Unlike the others, much was not known of Nuwa in later ages.
In any case, these three.
Three unshakeable pillars came together and established a single purpose.
This became the teaching that has been passed down in the Immortal Celestial Realm since ancient times.
[Three Pillars Support Heaven, One Will Becomes Truth.]
‘Three pillars uphold the heavens; through a single aspiration, truth is realized.’
This was the teaching left behind by those great immortals who came before.
After they established their purpose in this way.
And finally reached an agreement with the great demon beasts of the Demon Immortal Realm to create the Dimensional Barrier.
“…only then were the fleeting deaths of humans dramatically reduced, you see.”
“I see.”
Among all the nutritionally empty stories that Nacheon Jingun had rambled on about for a full two hours.
This ancient tale was the only one that Ilhyang found genuinely intriguing.
‘Three of them.’
Yuqing, the Tathagata, and Nuwa.
These three offered their own bodies as sacrifices to create the Dimensional Barrier.
The Dimensional Barrier was that web-like barrier Ilhyang encountered each time he opened a door.
‘What’s intriguing about this.’
The bodies that the Transcendents offered as sacrifices each became colossal continents connecting the Immortal Celestial Realm and the Demon Immortal Realm in the Upper Realm.
‘In order, they became the Dao Yuan Realm (Yuqing), the Cang Qiong Realm (Tathagata), and the Gui Yi Continent (Nuwa).’
A Transcendent’s body became a continent.
How immense must it have been?
What’s more, I heard earlier that its size is still expanding infinitely.
What kind of law governs this?
What strange principle was applied that the size grows immeasurably in the terms of this world?
Curiosity stirred within me.
“Hmm, those three places are accessible only from the Original Essence stage and above. Among them, the Gui Yi Continent has such a harsh environment that the minimum entry requirement is the Ethereal Void stage.”
“It must be a very dangerous place.”
“Indeed! Just the carnivorous plants and natural environment there are beyond what ordinary Immortals can handle. Of course, I’ve only briefly visited the Dao Yuan Realm myself! Those who’ve safely traversed the Dao Yuan Realm number fewer than ten even if you search this entire region, wouldn’t you say? Ahem!”
Ilhyang’s eyes brightened as I gave appropriate responses to Nacheon Jingun’s boastful rambling, stretching his neck proudly.
“Do you perhaps have plans to visit the Dao Yuan Realm again in the future?”
At Ilhyang’s question, Nacheon Jingun flinched for a moment.
Then answered with a cautious expression.
“Well, I don’t think it will happen within the next hundred years. Going there requires considerable preparation. And…”
A reliable guardian would also be necessary—he trailed off quietly, but Ilhyang heard it clearly.
‘I see.’
From what I could gather, Nacheon Jingun must have slipped in when the Upper Sect moved and visited the Dao Yuan Realm that way.
“Ahem! Those three continents are dangerous places where the Immortal Celestial Realm and the Demon Immortal Realm intersect.”
The monsters of the Demon Immortal Realm likewise had no choice but to come to those three continents to obtain rare resources.
Some of the great demons had even declared certain territories in this shared region as their own.
The Immortal Celestial Realm had no choice but to increase their numbers as much as possible each time they moved to reduce potential dangers.
The only place in the Upper Realm where one could encounter wild demons.
‘I wish I could visit there someday.’
I was extremely curious about what materials might be found there.
But right now, more than such curiosity.
I had to endure Nacheon Jingun’s barrage of chatter before me.
“Hmm, normally our Sect requires considerable contribution points before bestowing the teachings of Ethereal techniques. But I shall specially teach you myself.”
Nacheon Jingun was quite fond of this small boy before him.
His attitude of listening carefully to words was excellent.
The remarkable talent he displayed for Ethereal techniques also deserved additional credit.
‘Most importantly.’
His eye for materials was exceptional.
Even with the same metal or gems, the quality differences were obvious.
Yet those other ignorant fools in the Sect with their dull eyes never noticed such distinctions.
But.
‘This one is different!’
How frustrating it had been all this time?
To achieve practical utility, I had to personally procure or craft every single material that went into alchemical techniques, now that I’d reached the Origin Realm stage.
The work progressed slowly, and with no one to appreciate my efforts, my spirits had begun to flag.
Then suddenly this unexpected fellow arrived.
Without even touching the materials arranged in the workshop, he swept his gaze across once and immediately classified which ones were superior—a feat of remarkable discernment!
Such a thing was impossible without extensive experience.
‘So it’s true that he reached the Second Realm intermediate stage in the Lower Realm without a master!’
This one might well be a genius of that rare talent—技進於道, where technique transcends the bounds of cultivation—that appears only occasionally in other sects or Upper Sects.
There was nothing wrong with making a good impression early.
“How can this junior repay the senior’s boundless generosity…”
One would expect someone with innate talent to be arrogant, yet he was remarkably humble.
I found myself liking him even more.
“Puhaha! Generosity? As a senior, it’s only natural to give. You needn’t feel burdened at all.”
With that, Nacheon Jingun produced a small jade slip from his sleeve and handed it to Ilhyang.
“This is the upper volume of the Heavenly Strength Seven Stars Treasure Scripture. Unfortunately, the lower volume is only available in the Upper Sects, but mastering this alone will be sufficient to reach at least Third Realm cultivation.”
“This junior is merely grateful.”
Ilhyang readily accepted the jade slip Nacheon Jingun offered.
In truth, crafting artifacts was far too simple a task for me, but this world had its own unique methods.
Viewing it as an opportunity to gain knowledge from a fresh perspective made this genuinely valuable assistance.
Of course, this help came at a price.
‘Damn.’
From that point on, I had to shoulder the entire responsibility for material classification and procurement for the entire Purple Cloud Sect for a full two days.
* * *
In the dead of night when everyone slept.
I opened my eyes slightly and rose, walking toward the door of my dormitory.
Looking up at the sky, I saw three moons.
‘This is the Immortal Celestial Realm.’
I now stood in the Immortal Celestial Realm of the Upper Realm.
One of the nine great continents representing the Immortal Celestial Realm was the Taecho Honyeon Continent, and this was it.
The Hyeontcheon Holy City, located to the north of the Taecho Honyeon Continent.
While it was one of the central cities of the Taecho Honyeon Continent in its own right.
The Purple Cloud Sect was situated slightly to the east, on the outskirts of that central city.
‘The mana surrounding this area is perfectly controlled.’
I’d heard the Purple Cloud Sect was built upon a 4th Realm Spirit Vein.
The flow of mana was remarkably thin.
More precisely, the mana was being drawn away somewhere.
‘It flows in that direction.’
Formation arrays.
One of the Four Arts of Immortal Cultivation.
This too was a discipline with roots identical to the magic circles I knew.
A world where, strangely enough, concepts similar to those of the Seven Continents existed.
For reasons I couldn’t quite explain, I found myself tracing the flow of mana with remarkable ease, sketching the formation’s shape in my mind.
‘The scale of this is absolutely enormous.’
A magnitude comparable to an entire small city.
Carefully mapping the mana’s current in my thoughts, I channeled mana into the formation’s terminus.
Very slowly.
Just enough to avoid triggering any alarms.
‘I only need to read the flow.’
Had I attempted this from the outside.
The alarm would have sounded immediately, and every Celestial Watcher from the Purple Cloud Sect would have come rushing out.
‘But since I’m inside.’
Thus I breached the security with surprising ease and deciphered the formation’s entire flow.
And once I understood the formation’s flow.
Disrupting its control or manipulating it proved far less difficult than one might expect.
‘Two formations are layered together.’
The Purple Cloud Sect was renowned for its formations.
So it came as no surprise that they had deployed a composite formation with dual functions.
‘One is a Sect Protection Formation, and the other is a Spirit Gathering Formation.’
My eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
I had found exactly what I was searching for.
The Spirit Gathering Formation drew mana from the surrounding area.
The 4th Realm Spirit Vein was being controlled through this Spirit Gathering Formation.
First, I channeled my own mana into the Spirit Gathering Formation.
The formation began absorbing my mana quite naturally.
After a certain amount flowed into the Spirit Gathering Formation.
I slowly reversed the process, casting a siphoning technique.
Swuuung―
‘Phew, I’ve expended considerable mana since ascending to the Upper Realm. I need to recover however I can.’
The circle maintained as a thin thread within my heart rapidly thickened.
Having drained and replenished my mana in an instant, I surveyed my surroundings with a satisfied expression.
Now that my mana recovery was complete.
It was time to accomplish the purpose for which I ascended to the Immortal Celestial Realm.
‘Where are the demon beasts?’
Demon beasts existed in the Immortal Celestial Realm as well.
Most were subjugated by Immortals and enslaved like servants.
I had several experiments I wanted to conduct using such creatures.
As my gaze swept slowly across the surroundings.
A mischievous glint flickered in my eyes—like a child searching for a new toy.
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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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