Chapter 148: Let’s just sssh, slash! What do you think? (2)

Cale immediately fixed the misunderstanding.

"I do not walk the path of sorcery."

Sima Pyeong calmly asked with no emotions still visible on his face.

"Young master Kim-nim, you also wish to hide your sorcery?"

Cale looked confused.

"Why would you hide that, Coalition leader-nim?"

A faint smile appeared on Sima Pyeong's face.

"I see. However, I will hide it."

His face quickly changed to a full smile like the one from earlier that seemed suited for flattery.

"The Martial Arts world has no positive thoughts regarding sorcery. Haha!"

He touched the tip of his goatee that influenced his appearance quite a bit and lightly grumbled.

"Whether it is sorcery, internal ki, or External Martial Arts, all of them must be trained. However, there are many who only treat internal ki as the answer."

The Martial artists currently believed that internal ki was best followed by External Martial Arts and that something like sorcery was not right.

This was because they mistakenly believed sorcery to mainly revolve around curses or ghosts.

However, the sorcery that Sima Pyeong learned was not something like that.

"In fact, there is nothing that uses the power of nature like sorcery does. It was quite disappointing that people don't know about it. Don't you agree, young master-nim?"

Of the three dantians, sorcery mainly used the middle dantian to pull the aura from the surrounding nature to use it for the user's needs.

"Coalition leader-nim."

Cale observed Sima Pyeong for a bit before nonchalantly asking.

"You don't seem to believe that I do not use sorcery."

"That's right, young master-nim. Haha!"

Sima Pyeong calmly answered.

"There is currently a large aura of nature curled up by your side, young master-nim. How could I believe you when I can clearly feel that existence?"

He picked up his teacup.

"Furthermore, I heard about the power that you use, young master-nim. The more I heard about it, I couldn't help but think that it was sorcery and not martial arts."

It was at that moment.

Shaaaaaaaaaaa-

The sky that had been getting darker finally started raining.

Sima Pyeong held his teacup out the open window.

Shaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-

Some of the rain falling from the sky changed directions.

It swirled into a small whirlwind before going into Sima Pyeong's teacup.

The small whirlpool inside the teacup created a small ocean with rippling waves.

"After my family lost everything, I lived as a beggar before entering the mountains to hopefully find some medicinal herbs to sell. I found a cave during my search. And, as it always is with fateful encounters, I found a book inside that cave which gave me this power."

Clang.

Cale finally heard the jewel at the end of Sima Pyeong's fan make an odd noise.

"This power was closer to a concept. This concept that uses the attribute of water was quite compatible with the Sima Clan's martial arts and formations. I used this power, I used sorcery as the background to newly establish my martial arts."

Sima Pyeong was still smiling as he looked at Cale.

"Basically, I currently use both martial arts and sorcery. Young master-nim, you use fire like I use water, isn't that right?"

Sima Pyeong noticed a smile appearing on Cale's face at that moment. He started speaking.

"Raon."

"!"

Sima Pyeong's eyes opened wide.

The small whirlpool in his teacup shot up.

It slowly grew in size before heading back out the window.

Baaaaang—!

It then sucked in the raindrops around it.

The whirlpool slowly grew in size before shooting up into the sky.

A power that made the water move in an opposite direction than the falling rain…

That power made Sima Pyeong's eyes start to shake.

There was now a crack on that mask he had maintained so well until now.

"T, this-"

He heard a young voice at that moment.

Dark blue eyes appeared in the air. Sima Pyeong realized that this was the divine beast that his daughter had mentioned.

The young eyes looked at Sima Pyeong and nonchalantly commented.

"Hey Divergent Coalition Leader! You're wrong!"

Sima Pyeong's face turned blank.

Raon didn't care and continued to speak.

"The power I have is magic! It is different from sorcery!"

Raon revealed his chubby black body as well and spoke to Cale.

"And our human's power is different from sorcery as well! Human, show him!"

"…Me too?"

"Yeah! You do it too, human! The Divergent Coalition Leader has the wrong concept in his mind! Goldie gramps told me something. He said that you need to understand the concept in order to create a foundation and increase your abilities!"

Raon seemed very frustrated and annoyed while looking at Sima Pyeong. He was probably frustrated because he finally found someone in the Central Plains who used a power similar to his own but this person was thinking that sorcery, magic, and Cale's powers were all the same thing.

Cale chuckled and extended his hand toward the window.

– Just a little bit, right?

When Cale first consumed an elixir in this world… There was an ancient power that awakened alongside the glutton priestess.

This power, the Sky Eating Water, was usually always quiet and Cale had no reason to use its powers until now. She asked for the first time in a long while and Cale nodded his head.

53%. The power that had its seal removed that much…

It revealed its powers just a bit.

"!"

Sima Pyeong's eyes opened wide again.

The raindrops falling on the ground gathered together in one spot. They then created a decently large arrow. The arrow was then immediately shot up into the sky.

Clunk.

Sima Pyeong got up from his seat and pushed his head out the window.

The whirlpool created by Raon and the arrow behind it continued to shoot up into the sky. It was as if they were aiming for the sky

Baaaaaang—!

The two powers exploded in the sky and disappeared.

The noise was quite loud despite it happening quite high up in the sky.

Sima Pyeong could see windows opening in the building and the annex as other people stuck their heads out as well.

It was his children and the other guests from the Orthodox faction.

Shaaaaaaaaaaa-

Only the sound of the rain remained once again.

Sima Pyeong looked away from the gazes directed toward him and slowly closed the window.

Click.

They could faintly hear the rain now.

The inside of the room was dark, potentially because of the cloudy weather.

However, Sima Pyeong could still clearly see young master Kim, who was seated across from him, and the young Dragon.

The young Dragon banged on the table as he spoke.

"Hey Divergent Coalition Leader! Do you understand the difference between your power, my power, and the human's power? Just because they are all from nature does not mean that they are the same! The characteristics of it change based on how you use nature!"

Sima Pyeong had a blank look for a bit before letting out a short gasp.

"Ho!"

He looked as if he realized something.

Raon's eyes sparkled in response.

"Hey Divergent Coalition Leader, you are kind of smart! You understood immediately after seeing it just once! You are not as smart as our very smart Rosalyn, but great job!"

Raon continued to chatter but Sima Pyeong didn't seem to even hear him as he was looking up into the air deep in thought.

He then looked toward Cale.

Maybe it was because his mask was broken, but he was looking at Cale with no emotions visible on his face.

"Young master-nim, no- divine beast-nim."

His gaze moved to Raon.

"Just now, what was that power?"

"Hmm? Which one?"

"I'm talking about the power that got the water in my teacup and the raindrops to stick to each other and move as you wished, divine beast-nim! Each and every bit of it seemed small, but that power that seemed to hold the true nature of nature itself-!"

Sima Pyeong's voice was slowly getting louder. He was truly excited right now.

"That was a power that did not have any of the five elements of yin and yang in it! It was just life that existed in nature. Yes, it was life itself!"

"Oh!"

Bang!

Raon slammed his paw on the table.

"Hey Divergent Coalition Leader! Did you feel the mana?!"

'What is this?'

Cale quietly watched Raon and the Divergent Coalition Leader chat.

However, the two of them started to have a passionate discussion as if they had no interest in Cale at all.

"Is that thing called mana, divine beast-nim?"

"That's right! It is called mana!"

"Oh. Mana…! What a truly beautiful name! The power that grabbed each of the raindrops was small but within that small amount of power was life itself. To be able to control that extraordinary thing as you wish!"

"That is it! That is magic which uses mana! You're smart, Divergent Coalition Leader!"

The young Dragon and the middle-aged man with a goatee stopped talking for a bit and looked at each other.

The middle-aged man looked as if he had something he wanted to say but was hesitating. He then tightly grabbed his fan with both hands and cautiously asked.

"…Divine beast-nim."

"Call me Raon!"

"Yes, Raon-nim. Would it be possible for me to get even the tiniest bit of teaching from you regarding the power you just used?"

Raon's eyes opened wide as he looked at the Divergent Coalition Leader before he warily looked at Cale.

– Human, is that okay?

Cale thought to himself while listening to Raon's voice in his mind.

'Is he going to talk about the God of Balance or whatever and say that magic is not okay?'

Would the balance be broken if he shared a power created in Cale's world in this place?

He pulled out the divine item mirror.

Tap. Tap.

He tapped on the mirror as he spoke.

"I'll give you ten seconds. I'll take it as you being okay with it if you don't send a message saying no."

Ten seconds passed by.

The mirror was silent.

Cale nodded his head toward Raon.

"Do as you wish. However, only the basics."

"That was the plan! The sorcery that the Divergent Coalition Leader has learned is different from Gashan's as well! That is why it cannot be carelessly mixed with magic! I will just teach him what mana is and it will be his problem to figure out how to use it! You got that, Divergent Coalition Leader?"

"Yes, Raon-nim."

The Divergent Coalition Leader politely responded. It was as if he was treating his master.

He seemed to be sincere.

"I will call you master."

"Hmm?"

Cale noticed that although Raon had been confused for a moment, the corners of his lips were now twitching.

"I, I am your master?"

"Yes, Raon-nim. Someone who teaches even a little bit is of course my master."

"… Hnnnng."

Raon's breathing was getting heavier and sounding weird. His chubby cheeks were twitching.

And that moment, ding! A message came through on the divine item.

< Only until middle-grade! >

It was a message from Central Plains.

The bastard who had been quiet when Cale was coughing up a ton of blood and Raon was talking about destroying the sculpture finally popped up.

The corners of Cale's lips curled up.

As if he saw Cale's gaze turning vicious…

Ding, di, ding!

< I am currently trying to come to an agreement about something, sir! Please wait a bit longer! >

I wonder what he is trying to negotiate.

< My powers alone are lacking. I don't have enough strength because my world is still young! >

As Cale was about to frown…

Ding!

< That is why I dragged in the other worlds having issues with the Hunter households to make a proposal to the god who cares so much about balance! >

< So for now, just go wil- >

The letters suddenly became weird.

A moment later, ding! A message popped up.

< ...Apparently I cannot use that word. Anyway, I believe that you understood what I was trying to say, sir! >

< Central Plains will do his best to come back with great results! >

The divine item then turned quiet.

'This Central Plains kid is surprisingly shrewd.'

His actions until now and how he was dragging in the other worlds… This bastard was not just smart, he was extremely shrewd and tried his best not to take any losses.

'Either way, this is good for me.'

It was obvious what Central Plains was trying to say just now before it was censored.

'So for now, just go wild.'

He said to go wild for now.

Then he will do that.

"Raon, magic is only okay until the middle-grade."

"Yeah, I got it!"

Sima Pyeong slightly bowed toward Cale.

"Thank you for your permission, young master Kim-nim. I will make sure to learn properly from my master."

Raon's cheeks twitched whenever the word master came up.

Sima Pyeong gently smiled as he spoke.

"To be able to learn from a great and mighty Dragon. This Sima Pyeong is truly honored and happy to receive a blessing that I will most likely never receive again in my life. Master, I will do my best."

Raon's face stiffened at that moment.

Sima Pyeong flinched and the young Dragon sternly spoke to him.

"I don't like overly oiled tongues!"

Raon was clearly sharing his thoughts on the matter.

"But it is true that I am great and mighty so you can say that!"

"Ah, yes, Master!"

A slightly tense Sima Pyeong answered while Cale watched with satisfaction.

'This is great.'

Cale was going to get rid of the Blood Cult, also known as the Blue Bloods of the Hunters.

However, this was destroying the core of the Blood Cult; it was difficult to resolve all issues related to the Blood Cult.

It would take too much time.

In that case, he needed to leave the aftermath to the people of the Central Plains.

'The situation is different from Xiaolen.'

Xiaolen had necromancers and an understanding of the dead mana that the Hunters used.

However, the Central Plains did not seem to have any idea about mana or dead mana. Sima Pyeong understanding mana would make it easier to take care of the aftermath regarding the Blood Cult.

"Coalition leader-nim. However, there is a condition to you learning from Raon."

That was why Cale added a condition.

"You must use what you learn from him to resolve any issues related to the Blood Cult."

"Ha."

Sima Pyeong gasped.

"Young master Kim-nim, you are truly an amazing individual. I didn't know such a person could actually exist."

Cale felt that something was weird, but…

"I understand. Such a lesson cannot come for free. I can even sign an agreement if you wish."

Cale did not ask for that after seeing the truly positive response.

Instead, he heard the excited Raon mumbling.

"I have a student...!"

…Wasn't it good enough that Raon was excited?

Cale had that thought and was about to sigh when…

"I believe that the leader of the Green Forest is most likely a living jiangshi."

Cale stiffened at Sima Pyeong's nonchalant comment.

"…What did you say?"

Cale asked back and Sima Pyeong smiled like a disloyal subject and commented coldly.

"And my eldest son is probably a living jiangshi as well. Since some time ago, I could see that the two of them had started scheming to start a war between the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions. I was suspicious about their actions so I pretended to have become weak and was observing what was going on, but… I saw the answer after hearing about the Blood Cult."

Sima Pyeong was as smart as Zhuge Mi Ryeo.

Sima Pyeong was also the person who taught his extremely intelligent youngest son, Sima Gong, despite the latter's issues with gambling.

"In addition to them, I made a list of people who showed suspicious movements. Please take a look. They are probably living jiangshis or spies."

He then added on.

"I also brought the information left in the Sima Clan regarding the Blood Cult so it will probably be beneficial to go through it as well, young master-nim."

'Wow.'

Cale was amazed.

– Human! I like this Divergent Coalition Leader a bit! Not because he is my disciple but because I feel like he would understand us!

'I know, right?'

The issues regarding the Unorthodox faction seemed as if they would go much better and easier than he had expected.

It was at that moment.

Bang! Bang!

They heard a noise that sounded as if someone was trying to destroy the door.

"Young master-nim, young master-nim!"

"Young miss, you cannot do this. Please calm down first-!"

"This is not something I can be calm about!"

The door burst open.

Daoshi Un Seon, who had invited Cale to the Kunlun Sect, looked at him with an urgent look on her face and shouted.

"The Sect leader is looking for you, young master-nim!"

There were not many reasons for the Kunlun Sect Leader to urgently call for Cale.

Cale immediately asked.

"Did something happen to Noble Warrior Jang Hyung?"

The living jiangshi in the Kunlun Sect was the future sect leader, Jang Hyung.

"…Yes sir! He is going berserk!"

Cale spoke to Raon as soon as Un Seon answered with a teary look on her face.

"Go call the Heavenly Demon. We are heading to the Kunlun Sect right away."

After dealing with Jang Hyung, it was through the Unorthodox faction to the Blood Cult.

—

Translator's Comments

Uh oh! Berserk Jang Hyung!

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]