Chapter 65 – Victory!

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Translated by Frog in the Well

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Jin So-myeong, who spat out the blood welling up, glared at his opponent.

Operating the Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art to heal his wounds, he gathered the Sword Qi that was about to scatter.

Just before Ha Yul-hee, who was staring back, swung the fan once again,

– W-Wait!

the referee’s voice filled with spiritual power stopped the match.

“What! Who told you to interfere!”

Although she, who was interrupted, raised her eyes fiercely, the referee was firm.

– Lady Ha Yul-hee. No matter how I look at it, that Rank 3 Magic Treasure, the Elegant Wind Fan, does not seem to have been used with your own spiritual power.

“…Huh?”

– Did you perhaps use what the Lord of the Sky Island gave you for self-defense? Using another person’s spiritual power is a violation of the tournament regulations.

Ha Yul-hee, who was huffing in excitement, froze.

Her expression as she looked at the feather fan was dyed with embarrassment. She seemed to realize only now what she had done.

“S-Sorry.”

She mumbled her lips for a long time, uttered just that one word, and fled with a bright red face, as if ashamed.

***

Meanwhile,

the Golden Core Sages who were watching the tournament frowned.

“Lord of Sky Island. What is the meaning of this? I can feel your dharma power from the Magic Treasure your daughter used.”

At the questioning gaze, the Lord of Sky Island wore a bitter smile.

“I am sorry. I had imbued my dharma power for her to use for self-defense, but I did not know she would use it in the tournament.”

“…Hmm. Raising children is not easy.”

One of the Golden Core Sages who coughed dryly, In Hu-yeon, shifted his gaze slightly.

He spoke to the Golden Core sword cultivator who was crossing his arms as if dissatisfied with something.

“By the way, Gwang-myeong. Why did you block me? Even if it was not a complete Golden-Core-grade blow, it would be difficult for a Foundation Establishment cultivator to bear, so I tried to prevent it in advance.”

“Because he could block it.”

“Because he could block it…?”

“He did block it in reality, didn’t he.”

At his tone that seemed to ask what the problem was, the expressions of the Golden Core Sages, including In Hu-yeon, turned bizarre.

Although his life was not in danger thanks to the formation, they did not know what kind of internal injuries he would suffer if hit by a Rank 3 Magic Treasure.

Yet, to leave him alone merely because a possibility was visible.

“A pity. It would have been more interesting if they fought until the end.”

Everyone shook their heads while glancing at Gwang-myeong. As expected of a sword cultivator, he was clearly insane.

“…I have a premonition that becoming your disciple might not necessarily be a good thing.”

The Golden Core sword cultivator closed his eyes as if uninterested, and In Hu-yeon changed the subject.

“In any case, the winner is decided.”

“Jin So-myeong.”

“In all my life, to think I would see an early Foundation Establishment cultivator win the Ascending Immortal Tournament… I have truly lived long enough to see everything.”

“Whose turn is it to give the championship gift this time?”

“It’s mine.”

At the voice as cold as a sword, everyone nodded. As if it worked out well just in time.

***

After the final match ended somewhat in vain,

Jin So-myeong had only one thought first.

‘A pity.’

He wanted to fight to the end with Ha Yul-hee holding the Rank 3 Magic Treasure. He was curious about what the result would have been.

He calculated while excluding emotions as much as possible, and for now, one thing was certain.

‘If I use the Supreme Great Ability, it is a guaranteed victory.’

If he poured in all of the nearly 2,000 golden beads, even a late Foundation Establishment stage cultivator could not handle it. This was clear without room for argument.

What if he did not use it?

It was ambiguous. He could not predict who would win or lose.

The energy of the Golden Core Sage contained in the Rank 3 Magic Treasure versus the body tempered by the body tempering cultivation method.

The result seemed likely to be decided by which of the two collapsed first.

‘I feel like I might win too…’

Because he fought centered around the swift sword in the tournament, other people might not know well, but Jin So-myeong’s true strength was battle endurance.

With the spiritual power flowing from the Secret Realm of the Mind and the body tempering cultivation method specialized in regenerative power, he could truly fight for three days and three nights.

At the moment he was contemplating in his head how to face the Rank 3 Magic Treasure,

‘Ah.’

he suddenly realized an important fact. That the distant Rank 3 was beginning to be dimly visible.

Being able to confront the Magic Treasure called the Elegant Wind Fan head-on was proof of that!

‘It was a good thing I participated in the Ascending Immortal Tournament.’

He had gained a lot. Just as he was nodding, standing alone on the devastated stage,

Rumble!

The earth shook. Along with a vibration like an earthquake, the shattered stage pieces began to float in the air.

Those that rose against gravity…

Screech! were compressed into one large mass.

It was as if an invisible giant were kneading rocks.

Thud!

The stone pieces that had been the arena before long became a neat platform, replacing the stage.

“Winner Jin So-myeong! Come up!”

On top of the platform. One of the five Golden Core Sages who suddenly appeared shouted.

Within the gazes of over tens of thousands of spectators.

Step. Step.

Only Jin So-myeong’s footsteps were heard.

“I greet the Seniors.”

Until he climbed onto the towering platform and paid his respects. Everyone held their breath.

“Hmm.”

“Haha. I watched the tournament very well. Congratulations on the championship.”

The expressions of the Golden Core Sages were diverse. Gentle smiles, admiration, satisfaction, and so on.

they were much more favorable than expected.

“The demonic beasts are also suspicious lately, and seeing someone like you appear reassures me. You did really well.”

Just as the generous-looking Golden Core Sage said with a smile,

“In Hu-yeon. Stop with the useless talk and hurry up and give the reward. Otherwise, I will attend to my business first.”

The man who was clearly a sword cultivator looking at his sharp aura and sword snapped coldly.

“Ahem. Such a hasty personality.”

The grumbling Golden Core Sage pulled out a storage pouch.

“This is the reward announced when holding the Ascending Immortal Tournament. It will be of great help to your cultivation.”

Scanning inside the storage pouch with his Divine Sense, he saw countless medicinal pills.

The storage pouch, the size of a small warehouse, was full, which was an amount an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator would consume over twenty years.

Even better, they were all high-quality medicinal pills difficult to obtain in ordinary shops, which pleased him even more.

“Thank you!”

A greeting full of sincerity emerged of its own accord. It felt like the path toward the Golden Core stage had become much shorter!

“Haha. This is merely the basic reward. The real gift will be given by Fellow Daoist Gwang-myeong.”

The generous-looking In Hu-yeon shifted his gaze slightly. At that signal, the Golden Core sword cultivator strode closer as if he had been waiting.

“Jin So-myeong. Do you have a master?”

“…Uh.”

The question that came in abruptly instead of the expected gift was baffling, but he pondered over it.

However, it was difficult to answer. This was because he was confused about whether he had a master or not.

‘A master…’

First, it was true that he had learned Sword Qi from Hong Seol. However, they had never directly formed the bond of master and disciple.

At that moment, when he pondered for a few seconds, Gwang-myeong nodded.

“As expected… everyone’s eye for people is the same. If you already have a master, I will not make things difficult for you.”

He was resolute like a sword cultivator. Gwang-myeong, who cut it off cleanly, got to the point.

“According to custom, we should give what would be of most help to the winner as a gift. In my opinion, your sword is lacking compared to your skill.”

At the calm voice, anticipation rose of its own accord.

‘Could it be he is going to give me a sword?’

Naturally, it was welcome!

How good would a sword given by a sword cultivator who reached the Golden Core stage be. It would be nice if it were a sword that reached Rank 3.

Although he did not show it, at the moment he gulped,

Swish!

Gwang-myeong snapped his fingers and threw something.

He caught the small object that flew drawing a parabola in his daze, and it was a seed glittering in gold.

The surface was rough, and for some reason, its appearance brought to mind an almond seed.

“Oh, um. Thank you.”

Although he did not know what it was, he greeted first, and the Golden Core Sage who was watching from the side let out a sigh.

“Look here, Gwang-myeong. You should at least tell him what that seed is so the junior can use it properly.”

“It is a Sword Seed. It is a good thing, so use it well.”

A seed of a sword.

It was a name that a sword cultivator could not help but be interested in.

‘How do I use it?’

Just as Jin So-myeong, who felt curious, was carefully inspecting the golden seed,

the Golden Core Sage who shook his head stepped forward as if he had no choice.

“The Sword Seed can be called the womb of a Magic Treasure.”

“If it is a Magic Treasure… does this seed turn into a Rank 3 sword if it grows?”

“Yes. Of course, if that were all, Gwang-myeong would not have said it is a good item either. You will also find out when you reach Rank 3, but I will tell you in advance.”

When the story about the Golden Core stage, which he had always been curious about, came up, he pricked up his ears.

“If it is a proper Golden Core cultivator, everyone has their own Natal Magic Treasure.”

The Natal Magic Treasure was different from ordinary dharma treasures, which were external objects.

It was a companion closer than anyone else, connected to the cultivator’s soul and spending a lifetime together.

As deeply as it was connected, there were several advantages.

Being able to handle it as skillfully as one’s own hands and feet was natural, and its spiritual power efficiency was also overwhelmingly high, making it far more powerful than other Magic Treasures.

‘…Can it be viewed as a growth-type customized dharma treasure?’

In a way, it was similar to Sword Qi. When the owner grew stronger, the Natal Magic Treasure also grew stronger.

Conversely, merely the Natal Magic Treasure becoming stronger could raise the owner’s realm.

Like this, it could be said to be a very important existence that provided great help to cultivation, but as much as that was the case, one could not adopt just any dharma treasure as a Natal Magic Treasure.

“Balance is important. If you are greedy for a Magic Treasure that is too powerful, you will spend too much time making the Magic Treasure and fail to perform the truly important cultivation.”

“Ah.”

“However, if you make it half-heartedly, the Magic Treasure that will be your lifelong companion will become weak, so you must absolutely not do that.”

At the moment he groaned because it was tricky just to think about, In Hu-yeon continued speaking.

“The best way is to give good materials to a trustworthy Artifact Refiner and request its creation, but this is not easy either.”

“…I suppose so.”

He felt he knew what he meant. The Natal Magic Treasure was important enough to be practically a second life.

Who should one request to make equipment that they would spend a lifetime with?

If the Artifact Refiner harbored bad intentions, there was no telling what tricks they would perform on the Magic Treasure. Unless they were blood brothers, it was hard to trust.

“And to make it directly? A dharma treasure. Furthermore, is it easy to make a Magic Treasure corresponding to Rank 3? That can absolutely not be.”

The skill of crafting dharma treasures, artifact refining, was a study difficult enough to be counted among the One Hundred Arts of Immortal Cultivation.

Learning artifact refining just to make a single Natal Magic Treasure was…

a waste of time. Even if one had a genius talent in artifact refining, it would take at least several decades.

It was simplest to just gather materials and leave it to an expert.

“The Sword Seed is a treasure born from such worries. It is a seed developed by ancient cultivators proficient in the Spiritual Crop Art; it is a rare spiritual crop that grows by feeding on its owner’s Sword Qi and eventually becomes a sword.”

“…Can the sword born like that be used directly as a Natal Magic Treasure?”

“Yes. As it grew feeding on your Sword Qi, it will fit your hand perfectly. Also, the biggest characteristic of the Sword Seed is that it is alive. Even after becoming a sword, it grows stronger as time passes and can grow by absorbing various nutrients.”

Indeed.

It was a truly good item. Especially for him, it was highly likely to be used even more usefully.

‘If I plant this in the Secret Realm of the Mind and grow it with the Supreme Great Ability…’

Jin So-myeong, who was fiddling with the golden seed that resembled an almond, nodded.

“Thank you. I will use it well.”

“Mmh.”

Just when the Golden Core sword cultivator who was crossing his arms nodded his head,

the late Golden Core stage cultivator called the Lord of Sky Island, the Castellan of Filial Moon City, approached with a gentle smile.

“My daughter made a mistake with you. I will apologize on her behalf.”

“…It is fine. It was no big deal anyway.”

“No. It is because it was you that you endured intact; if other Foundation Establishment cultivators had been struck by the Rank 3 Elegant Wind Fan, they would have spat blood. Even if they did not die thanks to the formation, they would have suffered quite a bit.”

He wondered why the preamble was so long, but the Lord of Sky Island, who smiled awkwardly, offered a wooden box.

“An apology has no meaning if it is only in words. Open it when you are alone. If you use it well, it will be of help to your body tempering cultivation. It is my sincerity, so do not decline it in vain.”

“If so, I will accept it gratefully.”

He scanned the wooden box, which was harder than most irons, with his Divine Sense, but it was tightly sealed, so he could not identify the contents.

Just as Jin So-myeong, who pondered for a moment, put the wooden box into his storage pouch,

– Do not lose your Dao Heart by being tempted by the shortcut before your eyes.

the Lord of Sky Island’s voice rang in his head.

He, who had sent the Divine Sense transmission, was still wearing a gentle smile…

Jin So-myeong, who paused, bowed and came down from the platform.

Ha Yul-hee, who appeared dragged out by force, followed. After the awards for 2nd to 10th places were all finished,

the time to enter the long-awaited Soul Washing Land arrived.