Chapter 80: Spirit Spring Valley (2)

Hu-woong—

Even though it was a warm spring, a cold and damp wind blew through Spirit Spring Valley. The sun didn’t shine much here due to the sunken terrain.

The air was fragrant with the fresh scent of grass, but for the children who had to wander through this place, it felt like a suffocating smell.

It was the same for Yu Su-rin.

She was under a rock covered with moss.

Yu Su-rin, scraping the soil gently with a blunt hoe, wiped sweat with her hand. Unaware of the dirt smudging her face, she beamed a broad smile.

“Phew… Found it!”

What she found under the rock was a Red Spirit Mushroom.

Red moss was growing attached to the rock. The Red Spirit Mushroom grew by absorbing the sap that the red moss dripped into the ground.

Yu Su-rin, wearing thin gloves, carefully dug out the Red Spirit Mushroom. It should not be handled like a normal edible mushroom. She wrapped it carefully in a piece of yellow paper and then placed it cautiously into her basket.

“Lucky I came here quickly.”

The Red Spirit Mushroom was highly scored compared to its discovery difficulty. If she had not followed Yi-gang and jumped off the cliff, she might not have found it so quickly.

Although more than 100 third-generation disciples were involved, Spirit Spring Valley was not small. Finding even one spiritual herb in the middle compartment of the sample box would score above average.

Yu Su-rin stood up with a pleased expression on her face.

“G-give it back to me!”

“Go away! I found it first!”

Mists swirled as the sound of arguing echoed from beyond.

It was common for disciples from different sects to quarrel over finding a single spiritual herb. It’s best to avoid encountering other disciples. Yu Su-rin didn’t expect anyone to be vile enough to steal an entire basket, but…

Yu Su-rin clenched her fist. If she did encounter such people, she knew she’d just have to knock them down.

She slowly halted her steps.

“The fog has… thickened.”

The fog hadn’t been this dense before she started digging for the Red Spirit Mushroom. Now, she could barely see a foot in front of her.

It was strange. While it was natural for the fog to be thickest at dawn, the sun was already high in the sky.

The fact that the fog was getting thicker instead of clearing was odd.

‘Maybe I should take a closer look.’

Yu Su-rin formed a circle with her fingers and brought it to her eye. This was the Insight Eye spell she had used before to observe Yi-gang.

She had grown too. The Insight Eye now showed her much more than before.

Ching—

Yu Su-rin’s eyes sparkled through the finger circle.

Now, her vision could penetrate the fog. She began to see the flow of the abundant energy in Spirit Spring Valley.

“Indeed…”

It’s because the energy of the mountain was concentrated here that so many spiritual herbs grew in Spirit Spring Valley.

The energy of the mountain became spiritual energy and settled into the ground. It clustered together, creating particularly sacred places in Spirit Spring Valley. In such places, even more precious spiritual herbs grew.

“This way.”

The fog had thickened, and she had suspected as much, but she was right.

Ahead, the spiritual energy was especially abundant. Yu Su-rin walked with a flushed face.

As she pushed through the fog, a cave just big enough for a person to enter appeared.

“Aha.”

Yu Su-rin clenched her fist tightly. She had a strong feeling that a considerable spiritual herb must be inside.

Yu Su-rin, who had started almost at the forefront with Yi-gang.

Moreover, it would be nearly impossible for anyone else to penetrate this fog and find this hidden cave. It was likely that no one else had discovered this place yet.

Chik—

Yu Su-rin used a firestarter to ignite a flame. The inside of the cave was more spacious than the entrance.

But it was more damp and eerie than the outside. The ground was covered in soil, allowing grass and moss to grow.

She continued deeper inside.

Drip- Drip—

The only sound was the dripping of water droplets from the ceiling.

The air grew colder and colder.

Yu Su-rin’s complexion turned increasingly pale to match the surroundings.

She had been so focused on the test that she had forgotten she was afraid of dark places.

“Hoo, hoo. It’ll be okay.”

She muttered to herself, trying to calm her nerves.

However, the cave was longer than she had thought. Despite having walked quite a distance, the end was nowhere in sight.

The spiritual herb that seemed like it would be discovered soon was not visible at all. Only the sounds of dripping water and the wind echoed eerily.

Moreover, as the cave grew narrower, Yu Su-rin’s steps slowed even more.

Maybe she should just turn back.

That impulse was getting stronger.

Udeuk—

Such a noise was heard.

Yu Su-rin froze, startled. The noise was so faint she couldn’t be sure.

She waited a moment, then, just as she was about to step forward again.

Wojeok- Kkadeuk—

Chills ran down her spine. The sound was coming from right nearby. Just around the corner ahead, there was the sound of something “chewing.”

‘A-a yokai, perhaps?’

The thought that it might be a yokai rather than a wild animal crossed her mind first.

In Spirit Spring Valley, the famous ghost story about spiritual beings or yokai living off of spiritual herbs was well-known.

Yu Su-rin instinctively reached for the soft sword at her waist.

But then she realized in panic that she hadn’t brought her sword with her.

“Ah…”

In a hurry, she grabbed the hoe instead and lifted her head.

There was someone standing right in front of Yu Su-rin.

A person dribbling blood from their mouth…

“Ahhhh!”

Yu Su-rin screamed.

It was remarkable that she didn’t faint.

“You saw…”

The moment the ghost opened its blood-red mouth to speak, Yu Su-rin dropped the candle she had lit with the firestarter.

“I’m s-sorry!”

Yu Su-rin prostrated herself, apologizing. She wasn’t even sure what she was apologizing for, but the words just came out instinctively.

The presumed ghost, after a moment of silence, spoke.

“…Keep it a secret.”

“Huh?”

Somehow, the voice of the ghost sounded familiar to Yu Su-rin.

Carefully lifting her head, she realized that the interior was faintly illuminated. Behind the ghost was a torch.

Surely, a ghost wouldn’t carry a torch around.

“Why are you so scared?”

“You are… Y-Yi-gang?”

The one who helped Yu Su-rin up was indeed Baek Yi-gang.

“Who else did you think it was?”

“Why is your mouth…”

Yi-gang’s mouth was so brightly red that it could be seen even in the dark cave. That’s why Yu Su-rin had mistaken him for a ghost.

Yu Su-rin sensed a strange, fragrant scent coming from Yi-gang.

“If I knew you didn’t recognize me, I would have kept pretending.”

After wiping his mouth with his sleeve, Yi-gang chewed on something like a mountain berry in his left hand.

A loud crunch resounded. It was the same strange noise she had heard earlier.

“C-could it be that those are…!”

Yu Su-rin recognized what the berries Yi-gang was holding were.

“Cave Red Fruit! So, that’s where it grows.”

“Yes.”

“You ate it? Are you crazy?”

Yu Su-rin’s shock was understandable.

Naturally, eating spiritual herbs collected in Spirit Spring Valley was forbidden. Everything gathered by the third-generation disciples must be brought back intact.

Not only to earn points, but more importantly, because the martial artists of Grass Flower Hall kept a strict eye to ensure no spiritual herbs are taken secretly.

If caught eating Cave Red Fruit, there would undoubtedly be severe consequences.

“If the Grass Flower Hall Head finds out…”

“It’s fine. I only ate a little.”

“It’s not fine. After the end, they’ll check the meridians. If the internal energy in the dantian has increased significantly, it’ll be obvious…”

Yu Su-rin stopped mid-sentence and gasped.

Yi-gang, born with Great Yin Meridian Blockage, couldn’t accumulate internal energy in his dantian. Even if he ate elixirs, his internal energy wouldn’t increase. Although it would disperse through the three meridians throughout his body, having eaten many such elixirs before, it wouldn’t be noticeable.

“S-still. Cave Red Fruit is a very precious elixir, and it scores high…”

“Here.”

Yi-gang silenced Yu Su-rin by pushing a Cave Red Fruit into her basket.

Then, Yi-gang took a step towards Yu Su-rin. She instinctively stepped back, her back hitting the wall of the cave.

Yu Su-rin felt a sudden chill down her spine.

“I’ll give this to you. So, keep your mouth shut,” Yi-gang spoke as if making a threat.

Under normal circumstances, if Jun Myung or Son Hee-il had made such a threat, she would have punched them in the jaw.

But Yu Su-rin just nodded her head foolishly.

“Go on, then.”

“…Okay, um, eat just a bit!”

Yu Su-rin exited the cave much faster than when she entered.

Yi-gang stood still for a long time, waiting until Yu Su-rin had completely disappeared.

When her footsteps were no longer audible, Yi-gang let out a sigh of relief.

“Phew, I guess I wasn’t caught.”

「That was a close call.」

Yi-gang returned to the spot he had been before.

At the end of the cave, the dead end was covered with vines growing against the wall. Dangling from the vines were the precious Cave Red Fruits.

Even after giving one to Yu Su-rin, there were still five left.

“Hmm, there’s still plenty.”

「How about eating them all up!」

“Let’s just leave enough. So they can grow back later.”

Yi-gang plucked another Cave Red Fruit and crunched into it. The sweet juice burst forth, feeling refreshingly cool.

His inability to accumulate elixirs as internal energy turned out to be an advantage. He could eat as much as he wanted and only get healthier.

For Yi-gang, eating spiritual herbs was a far better deal than earning points.

However, he didn’t consume them entirely. He had no intention of completely depleting the Azure Forest’s resources.

“There seems to be something to the west of the cave entrance. Let’s go there after eating.”

「I also sensed an extraordinary energy there.」

Yi-gang and the Immortal Divine Sword’s senses were even more acute than Yu Su-rin’s, who used the Insight Eye.

「Watch your step! You might step on a Ghost Soul Herb.」

“Okay!”

Yi-gang walked out feeling good.

The light footwork technique test was a lengthy affair.

Several second-generation disciples, including Yeop Su-nam, served as supervisors, but they didn’t roam Spirit Spring Valley together.

They simply waited endlessly on the cliff where the test started, waiting for the third-generation disciples to finish the test and climb back up the cliff with their baskets.

Unlike the fog-covered Spirit Spring Valley, the cliff was bathed in pleasant spring sunlight. It wasn’t surprising that Yeop Su-nam began to doze off around noon.

“Mmm…”

“You’re living the good life, kid.”

“Mmm… Huh…”

Then, a star seemed to flash in Yeop Su-nam’s field of vision.

Snap—

“What the… M-Master!”

“Were you sleeping on the job as a supervisor?”

The Grass Flower Hall Head had come here personally. As Yeop Su-nam looked around, he noticed the other second-generation disciples were pretending not to notice.

“Feeling unfairly singled out for punishment?”

“Hehe, how could that be, sir? But why have you come so early…?”

“What, can’t I come?”

From the way he kept nitpicking, it seemed that the Grass Flower Hall Head was not in a good mood.

Yeop Su-nam decided it was best to keep his mouth shut.

The Grass Flower Hall Head relaxed his expression and smirked slightly.

“It’s a good feeling.”

“A feeling?”

“You didn’t ruin the Ghost Soul Herb sample by drying it out, did you?”

“What… R-right.”

“So, I decided to make an exceptional visit to Spirit Spring Valley a few days ago.”

Spiritual herbs needed time to grow. Even with the accumulation of Mount Heng’s energy in Spirit Spring Valley, a minimum amount of time was necessary.

That’s why Spirit Spring Valley was not open except for the first-flower promotion test, but the Grass Flower Hall Head entered because the Immortal Divine Sword caused the Spirit Grass to wither.

“I’ve never seen such dense spiritual energy in Spirit Spring Valley.”

At that, Yeop Su-nam looked down below the cliff.

Today, the fog in Spirit Spring Valley was particularly thick.

“Does that mean…”

“It’s time for the Three-Element Sacred Flower to bloom. It’s been 60 years.”

The most precious and legendary spiritual herb among those that grew in Spirit Spring Valley.

“Are you saying the Three-Element Sacred Flower has really bloomed? Then, instead of the children, we should search first…”

“Don’t you know the tradition? Only children can harvest spiritual herbs in Spirit Spring Valley.”

The Grass Flower Hall Head added a remark.

“I just thought it might be the case. I’ve never seen the Three-Element Sacred Flower myself.”

Yeop Su-nam swallowed his disappointment.

If they really found the Three-Element Sacred Flower, the prestige of Grass Flower Hall would soar immensely.

“I admire you, Master. I never even imagined it.”

“Hehehe, no need for admiration.”

The Grass Flower Hall Head smiled contentedly.

In fact, even so, it was impossible to know if the Three-Element Sacred Flower had really bloomed. He had come here only because the energy of Spirit Spring Valley was peculiar.

Yeop Su-nam was looking down at Spirit Spring Valley at the time.

Boom—

With a low rumble, a blue flash sparked within the fog that enveloped Spirit Spring Valley.

“M-master, did you see that?”

“I saw it too!”

It was like a flash of lightning. But it was neither the dark clouds in the sky nor any reason for lightning to strike from the fog on the ground.

Yeop Su-nam spoke with a trembling voice.

“Could that be… related to the blooming of the Three-Element Sacred Flower?”

There were tales of multicolored lights emanating or lightning striking where legendary spiritual herbs grew.

Of course, the Grass Flower Hall Head couldn’t answer Yeop Su-nam’s question.

“Cough… M-maybe?”

That was all he could say.

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