Chapter 81: Spirit Spring Valley (3)

The third-generation disciples hurriedly moved through the mist.

Since childhood, they had played in the mountains. Their speed in exploring Spirit Spring Valley was no less than that of experienced herbalists.

Among them, Son Hee-il, the most skilled in martial arts among his peers, moved briskly.

He effortlessly hopped across wet rocks without slipping.

“Found it!” Son Hee-il exclaimed but quickly covered his mouth.

The water collected in the rock crevice was not mere rainwater. It was Rock-Carving Water, a kind of spiritual water, not a spiritual herb but almost as precious. This water, imbued with the essence of Spirit Spring Valley, was often used in making spiritual pills. It could earn him some points.

Son Hee-il scooped the Rock-Carving Water into a leather pouch he had brought along.

His bag had become quite heavy. Few third-generation disciples could collect as many spiritual herbs. Even if the test ended now, he would rank high.

But Son Hee-il’s ambition did not stop there.

‘It’s not enough. I need to find more precious spiritual herbs.’

He wanted to become the great disciple. To do that, he had to be the best.

Son Hee-il then realized that the mist around him had thickened.

“Hmm…”

It was not a bad sign. Precious spiritual herbs often grew where the mist was thick.

‘Something feels… off.’

Suddenly, Son Hee-il felt a chill down his spine. At that moment, a flash of blue light sparked from behind him.

Then, a muffled scream erupted from that direction.

“Kkeu-euk!”

Startled, Son Hee-il hurriedly turned around.

“What the…!”

He saw nothing.

However, soon after, he heard the sound of someone collapsing.

Gritting his teeth, Son Hee-il rushed towards the sound. One of the third-generation disciples lay there, a face he obviously recognized.

“Yang Won! Who on earth did this!”

Yang Won was just a child, barely over ten years old. He lay unconscious, his eyes rolled back.

Son Hee-il, horrified, checked Yang Won’s body. Thankfully, he was still breathing.

“There are no visible wounds…”

He couldn’t understand why Yang Won had fainted. There were no noticeable injuries on his body. He might have passed out from a precise hit to the jaw or from being strangled, but…

As Son Hee-il carefully laid Yang Won down, someone appeared in front of him.

“Hee, Hee-il!”

“Uh!”

The one who appeared was Jun Myung. He, too, had rushed over upon hearing Yang Won’s scream.

He alternately looked at Yang Won, who had collapsed, and Son Hee-il, who was holding him. Then, he opened his mouth wide in shock.

“You! Did you do something to Yang Won?!”

“It wasn’t me, you maniac!”

Son Hee-il felt unjustly accused and was on the verge of exploding.

It took a while to convince Jun Myung.

“Even if it’s for the sake of scoring points, would I make a fellow disciple faint and steal their spiritual herbs? Do I look like that kind of person to you?”

“Hmm… maybe a little…”

Only when Son Hee-il firmly grasped his hoe did Jun Myung nod in agreement.

Even he didn’t think Son Hee-il was that cruel.

“I just came because I heard the scream. The mist was so thick I couldn’t see anything. Who could have done this to Yang Won…”

“It’s not just one person.”

“…What?”

“It’s not just Yang Won who’s been attacked. I just saw Yuk Su-chan unconscious.”

“Yuk Su-chan? But he’s really fast on his feet.”

“Exactly my point.”

Jun Myung’s expression was grave. He explained that he had found Yuk Su-chan unconscious before coming here.

It seemed like Yuk Su-chan had been suddenly attacked, as he was found with his mouth agape, unconscious.

Son Hee-il’s expression turned serious as well.

“Could someone be ambushing the kids…?”

“Not sure… It might be possible. Considering Su-chan couldn’t escape, it might be someone he knows.”

Jun Myung’s speculation was sharp.

“To steal spiritual herbs? No way… There aren’t such bad people among the third-generation disciples!”

Son Hee-il vehemently denied the possibility.

Jun Myung agreed. While they all had a competitive spirit to win, none of them would backstab a fellow sect member who was like family.

They pondered deeply.

Son Hee-il cautiously spoke up.

“Maybe… could it be…”

“Do you have a suspicion?”

“Isn’t it Baek Yi-gang?”

“What?”

“The other kids wouldn’t do such a thing. And Su-chan knew him, so he might have let his guard down.”

Jun Myung momentarily fell silent. He was not convinced by Son Hee-il’s words.

“There’s no way that’s true.”

“Why are you so sure?”

“If that were the case, he would have taken the herbs from the bags.”

“…Ah.”

Son Hee-il had to agree. Jun Myung’s point was valid. If Yi-gang was really knocking out the third-generation disciples, it would be to steal their spiritual herbs. However, Yang Won’s bag was still full.

At that moment, a strange scream echoed through the mist.

“Kkuiiiik!”

Son Hee-il and Jun Myung exchanged glances.

“Let’s go check.”

“Right!”

They ran towards the source of the scream.

A large rock loomed out of the mist.

“Where is it? This way, right?”

“I’ll go left. You go right!”

Son Hee-il turned left, and Jun Myung went right.

Son Hee-il was slightly more skilled in Cloud Treading than Jun Myung. He was the first to find another collapsed third-generation disciple.

Just like Yang Won earlier, this disciple was unconscious with his eyes rolled back. Again, there were no visible injuries.

“How on earth…”

Son Hee-il quickly stood up and looked around.

Then, he heard footsteps.

Thud, thud…

Son Hee-il tensed up in alarm.

Fortunately, it was Jun Myung who appeared.

“Phew, why did you take so long?”

“Kkeuuh…”

But something was off about Jun Myung.

Groaning, he staggered towards Son Hee-il and then collapsed in front of him.

“Y-you, what’s wrong with you!”

Son Hee-il felt a chilling sensation.

Jun Myung had completely passed out. He must have been attacked in that brief moment. His martial arts skills were not inferior to Son Hee-il’s.

Son Hee-il was extremely tense. But before he could even think, another set of footsteps echoed.

They sounded leisurely, as if someone was out for a stroll.

The figure appeared from the direction Jun Myung had come from.

“You…”

Son Hee-il recognized him.

A boy resembling a nobleman, with a strikingly red top. It was Baek Yi-gang.

“You, could it be…!”

Son Hee-il’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he clenched his fists.

Though Jun Myung had denied it, Son Hee-il had harbored suspicions about Yi-gang.

And now, his suspicions turned into conviction.

“You did this to Jun Myung—!”

“Look at that.”

Yi-gang cut him off, prompting Son Hee-il to halt abruptly and follow Yi-gang’s pointing finger.

The finger was pointing at the collapsed Jun Myung.

Son Hee-il was dumbfounded by Yi-gang’s casual reference to Jun Myung as “that.” But the words that followed were even more outrageous.

“It’s because of that beast.”

“You…”

To think that Yi-gang would ambush his friend Jun Myung and then refer to him as a “beast.”

Son Hee-il felt a surge of anger boiling within him.

“You bastard—!”

Unable to contain himself, he lunged at Yi-gang.

Baek Yi-gang had devoured all the Cave Red Fruit he found in the cave.

Yet, he wasn’t satisfied and continued to seek more spiritual herbs. Now was the time to gather points.

Even though a considerable amount of the exam time had passed, Yi-gang was not worried. He had a secret weapon that other disciples didn’t possess.

It was his sharp senses and the existence of the Immortal Divine Sword.

Yi-gang could sense the direction of abundant spiritual energy just by closing his eyes and concentrating. The Immortal Divine Sword rose high in the sky to show him the way, and all he had to do was follow.

As he moved toward the center of Spirit Spring Valley, the fog thickened. The density of spiritual energy in the air intensified similarly.

He was walking for quite a while when…

Crack—

Suddenly, he saw a blue spark flickering through the mist.

‘Lightning…?’

「What lightning strikes within the fog?」

At first, he thought he had seen it wrong.

But a little later, he discovered one of the third-generation disciples lying unconscious. Their eyes were rolled back, and their hair stood on end as if they had been electrocuted.

When he found another such disciple for the second time, he witnessed something else.

‘What is that?’

「Looks like a little fox…」

The fur of the small fox was a bright blue color, almost as if made from blue flames.

It ran astonishingly fast and then, unnoticed, jumped onto the back of a third-generation disciple.

With a flash of light, the disciple collapsed with a shriek.

The fox sniffed around in the bag and then quickly left.

‘I don’t know what it is, but…’

「It seems like a spirit beast, let’s follow it.」

Such a wild animal couldn’t possibly exist naturally.

It had to be a spirit beast or a yokai. Yi-gang put his search for spiritual herbs aside and chased after the blue fox.

It was so fast that catching up was difficult.

Finally, Yi-gang caught up with the fox.

Coincidentally, it was right after the fox had electrocuted Jun Myung.

「Someone else is here.」

Sensing someone’s presence, Yi-gang slowed down.

There, Son Hee-il was holding the collapsed Jun Myung. Yi-gang stopped in his tracks, feeling inwardly flustered.

It was because of the twisted expression on Son Hee-il’s face as he looked up at Yi-gang.

“You…”

Yi-gang saw Jun Myung and the fox sitting on Jun Myung’s back. The fox seemed indifferent to the situation, casually licking its paws.

“You, could it possibly be…!”

Son Hee-il glared at Yi-gang, seemingly filled with anger. Yi-gang couldn’t understand the hostility.

Wasn’t the fox that knocked down Jun Myung sitting right in front of them?

‘Does he think I did it?’

「Could it really be so?」

However, Son Hee-il vehemently shouted, “You did this to Jun Myung—!”

Yi-gang couldn’t hold back and interrupted him.

“Look at that.”

Yi-gang pointed at the fox, stretching and yawning.

“It’s that beast’s fault.”

He was just trying to point out the obvious.

Yet, Son Hee-il’s anger seemed to grow even more intense.

Only then did Yi-gang and the Immortal Divine Sword realize a possibility.

「It seems that guy can’t see the fox.」

‘Right…?’

There was no chance to explain.

“You bastard—!”

Son Hee-il had lunged at him.

His momentum was extraordinary.

Indeed, he was the most promising of the third-generation disciples of the Azure Forest.

He was as agile as Yu Su-rin and as powerful as Jun Myung.

Even in his rage, the sharpness of his oncoming attacks was formidable. A direct hit could break bones.

Yi-gang dodged to the right instead of facing the attack head-on and shouted, “Calm down for a moment.”

“Shut up!”

Son Hee-il immediately swung his fist at Yi-gang.

But at that moment, the blue fox that had been still jumped onto Son Hee-il’s chest.

Crack!

With a spark of electricity, the fox landed on the ground and ran away.

Son Hee-il stood frozen, in the midst of throwing a punch at Yi-gang.

His eyes rolled back, and his body trembled as if electrocuted.

“Cough!”

After heaving a heavy breath, Son Hee-il collapsed to his knees.

“My hands…”

Then, with eyes filled with confusion and horror, he looked up at Yi-gang.

“I couldn’t see it…”

“…”

Yi-gang was silent, at a loss for words.

“How did you…”

Eventually, Son Hee-il lost consciousness and fell over Jun Myung.

A cold silence settled.

The Immortal Divine Sword burst into hollow laughter.

「You knocked him down without even lifting a hand. Euhuhuhu.」

“Beating the drum and playing the gong all by yourself…”

Yi-gang was incredulous. All he had done was dodge to the side.

Checking Son Hee-il’s nose, Yi-gang found he was still breathing. After shaking his hand off, Yi-gang looked in the direction where the blue fox had disappeared.

“Are spirit beasts invisible to others?”

「I’ve heard there are spirit beasts that can hide their appearance. This one is no ordinary creature.」

Yi-gang had recently studied various yokai and spirit beasts, but he had never heard of a fox that could electrocute people.

As he contemplated whether to stop chasing it, the Immortal Divine Sword tempted him with an intriguing idea, 「Next to the supreme elixir, there often lies a spirit beast that covets it.」

‘What?’

「Haven’t you heard such stories? Beasts, too, are fond of spiritual herbs.」

Yi-gang’s eyes sparkled.

Somehow, the blue fox seemed more intriguing now.

‘Should I keep chasing a bit more?’

「That might be a good idea.」

Yi-gang started walking in the direction where the blue fox had vanished.

Left behind were Son Hee-il and Jun Myung, lying stacked on each other.

“Evil… bad guy…”

“S-so heavy… Su-rin…”

Only their sleep talk occasionally filled the air.

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