EP.52 Plum Blossom Sword Dragon (2)
Plum Blossom Sword Dragon (2)
“Small business?”
Youngpung called me again.
However, I was not in a position to answer Youngpoong’s question.
‘What just happened…? ’
Did I mishear you?
It must be an auditory hallucination.
It definitely had to be that way.
Otherwise, you might end up biting your tongue and wanting to die right here.
‘I must have misheard, you just woke up.’
Yes, I guess I couldn’t wake up properly from my dream because it happened so suddenly.
After trying to organize my thoughts, I had to quickly answer Youngpoong’s question first.
“… It’s nothing.”
[Oh, what! Can you hear me, Aesong?]
“Whoa, shit!”
I screamed in surprise at the second voice I heard.
Because of that, Young-pung, who was in front, was the most surprised and his eyes widened.
I didn’t even see Youngpoong’s reaction and immediately hid behind him.
Youngpoong shouts in horror.
“Cow, cow! Why are you doing this!”
“Room, room, didn’t you hear what just now!?”
“What are you talking about… Are you talking about the swearing Sohyeop just now?”
“No… Not that! It’s the kind of voice that sounds like it’s from an old man with a strict personality.”
“What on earth are you talking about…?”
[This little guy! Who are you calling me so picky!]
“Look at this…!! Seriously, can’t you hear anything!?”
I asked Youngpoong as if I was pressing him, but he just looked at me as if he was looking at a strange person.
When I came to question him about something, he suddenly turned around and hid behind me, holding onto my clothes. It was understandable.
What the hell, you can’t hear this? How can you not hear such a loud voice?
A full sound? No, it was definitely different from a full sound.
It’s like a direct hit to the brain…
[You little bastard, you’re saying this to a guy who would wet his pants just by making eye contact with me when I was alive. You should just die when you’re old!]
‘When you were alive? Are you a ghost after all…!?’
[Shut up, you punk! What the hell is that little punk freaking out about!]
… Where on earth was that written?
I’ve never been to a graveyard or an abandoned house before, so what the heck is this? It’s a bolt from the blue!
[What are you wearing, you idiot, you just wore it because you liked it.]
In the words of the evil spirit.
[Evil spirit!? Aaaah, evil spirit!?]
… ..I stopped in my tracks at the ghost’s words.
What do you mean I turned it over?
[When you were stealing so happily, why are you sticking your flippers out now? Aren’t you ashamed!?]
“No! What did I eat that makes you keep saying this!”
“Cow, cow…?”
Now, I ignored Young-poong, who was looking at me as if he was scared.
Because I was in a more urgent situation right now and it wasn’t a situation where I could save face.
The ghost responds to my words as if he finds them ridiculous.
[See this guy? Didn’t you really know? Even after sucking it up like that.]
What on earth does this mean?
What did I eat?
[You can’t even remember properly, how ridiculous. Do you really not know who helped you break through the wall?]
wall?
A thought crossed my mind at the ghost’s words.
The day when Gu Yan Hualun Gong rose to 4 stars.
The thick plum blossom scent I felt the night before.
And the next day, the light of the ghost that seemed to have strangely diminished.
It was a creepy thought.
Surely that’s not the case.
[Hahaha! Fortunately, I wasn’t completely stupid.]
… Oh, God of Heaven and Earth.
[Thanks to me, you were able to overcome a wall that took a long time to overcome so easily, and yet you treat me like an evil spirit… You’ve come out of the closet, you little brat.]
What the heck, did the volcano’s magic originally have such effects?
No, what kind of deal is this, treating a possessed object as a precious item? What kind of precious item is this? It’s a ghost item!
[You’ve come this far and still maintain that unruly snout… You’re amazing in another sense.]
‘Who are you?’
Is it really true that ghosts are possessed by ghosts?
[Ghost? Don’t compare me to such a trivial thing.]
My heart tingles with the ghost’s words.
Is it hot? It feels refreshing and calm.
The bet moves on its own.
It’s a really unpleasant feeling to bet without my will.
It was a disgusting feeling, as if hundreds of bugs were crawling on my skin.
‘I feel like I’m going to throw up…!’
Although it was said to be gentle, it was not painless as it turned my whole body over.
I’m trying to grit my teeth and hold on, but it’s not easy.
Even during that time, the ghost’s words did not stop.
[I am the 8th head of the Daehwasanpa.]
My heart flutters at the ghost’s words.
The energy that had settled heavily on my shoulders squeezed my entire body and eventually penetrated my danjeon.
Yeongpung seemed flustered and tried to support me, but my mind was becoming hazy and I was getting further and further away, not even thinking about coming back.
It seemed like the world before my eyes was gradually turning white.
yet.
[This is the Hwasan Immortal Sword, Shincheol.]
I lost consciousness after hearing the ghost’s last words.
******************
Blood Demon War.
This refers to the war that the Blood Horse started centuries ago.
Even before the appearance of the Heavenly Horse, it was said to be the greatest disaster in the history of martial arts.
Strangely enough, there weren’t many stories told about the blood horse.
It was just a cruel and brutal act, and the fact that the heroes of the time prevented the Central Plains from becoming a sea of blood at the hands of the Blood Demon was, in effect, the end of history.
I wonder why, maybe because I am not interested in history. I don’t know if there were no records in the first place, or if someone deliberately did not pass it down.
Anyway, it was true that the part about the blood horse was particularly lacking.
King of Iron and Gold, Geum Il-cheon.
Hwang A-bul-yeong (煌阿佛尊) Cheol-yeong.
The Hwasan Immortal Sword, Shincheol.
Namgung Myung, the Thunder Heavenly Sword.
The Poison Heavenly Dangjemun.
The five absolute masters who prevented the bloodshed will continue to be remembered in the history of martial arts in the Central Plains for centuries to come.
In the process, Geum Il-cheon died, and Geumcheon Yeon-ga, which reigned as the best family, disappeared without a trace.
There was a time when the Tang clan was greatly shaken when the Tang clan’s leader also died.
In the end, it was fortunate that the blood feud was finally stopped and the blood demon was successfully killed.
I heard it so loud my ears started bleeding that the current Central Plains exists because of them.
Later, when Cheonma extended his hand to the Central Plains, many heroes along with Wi Seol-ah blocked it, so wasn’t it along the same lines?
That’s why I couldn’t believe it even more.
He asked, holding her pounding head.
“…Who are you?”
[I am Shincheol, dear.]
“… So, you are the Volcanic Sword…”
[Do you know how many times I’ve asked this?]
“Yes, I think I asked you ten times.”
I lost consciousness for a moment, and when I opened my eyes again, I was in a carriage, not outside.
I wondered if the voice I heard was a dream, but as soon as I opened my eyes, the rough voice was still there, making my expectations seem in vain.
[A magpie? This guy! His mouth is still as shameless as ever!]
The tone of voice is gruff and full of harshness. But, it’s the Volcanic Sword…?
At least, if you grew up as a member of a martial arts family, you couldn’t not know the nickname, Hwasan Seonmaeom.
If you ask the Hwasanpa’s most respected person, the first name that comes up, aside from the Tang Dynasty’s most respected person, is Hwasan Seongeom.
It is said that his affectionate nature and popularity spread beyond the volcano and throughout the Central Plains.
[Anyway, kids these days… tsk tsk. When I was younger, if my seniors said something, I just believed them.]
It is said that the highest realm that the Volcanic Sword reached was where plum blossoms bloomed on dry old trees every time he walked.
[Even if it’s not the case, when an elder speaks, you have to listen to him. If a man is really scared…]
“… .”
… But do you want me to believe this?
Da-jeong feels like she has a twisted personality that has been through the storms of time for a long time, almost freezing to death. Popularity?
Plum blossoms bloom on an old tree? The plum trees that were in bloom will all dry up. What the…!
‘It would be more believable to say it’s an evil spirit.’
In fact, it seemed closer to that side.
Yes, it’s definitely an evil spirit.
It was clear that I had been possessed by an evil spirit without even realizing it.
‘…Shit, should I really do something like this?’
[This rotten bastard…! Where the hell is he, swearing in front of a Taoist master!]
I held my forehead against my pounding head again.
How on earth am I supposed to find the pottery of the volcano in that beggarly speech?
No matter how I looked at it, it was something I simply could not believe.
No, it’s not something you can believe just because you’re told to believe that the hero of the volcano would become an evil spirit.
[You were just eating it up and saying it was good, but now you’re talking nonsense.]
“Why do you keep saying this? What did I eat?”
[You’re pretending not to know, I have more to ask, you little brat. How could you, who isn’t even a child of the volcano, take the energy so easily?]
I was left speechless by the evil spirit’s words.
Now that I’ve come this far, it’s strange that I don’t remember it.
The thick scent of plum blossoms and the voice I felt in the middle of the night were not a dream, but a clear reality.
So, is it right to say that the fact that I was up to 4 stars in the morning was ultimately due to the influence of the Magic Heavenly Absorption?
‘What happened…’
So it was even more questionable. If this was because of the magician’s suction power.
It is said that the magical power that can only be used when touched is contained in the treasure and sucks up energy at will.
I thought it was a magic that only absorbed the energy of magic stones, but now it even absorbs ghosts… .? Even without my hands touching it, it does whatever it wants?
‘… I have a headache.’
I wasn’t sure because the condition of the ghost didn’t seem to be much different from before.
Coming here, it seemed like there was less and less room to escape.
[It seems clear that there is another internal energy in the body, but how can this be…]
“… Before that, if you are the Volcanic Sword, why are you talking to me like this?”
[As I said before, it is because you, Aesong-ah, have sucked up the energy of the stone without permission.]
“So you’re saying it was inside the ghost the whole time?”
It’s been hundreds of years since the ghost appeared, so does that mean it’s been in the stone for that long?
Is that even possible…?
[That’s not it. I just opened my eyes.]
“It hasn’t been that long…?”
What does this mean?
[Yeah, it was right around the time you first picked up the plum blossom stone. That’s when I came to my senses.]
When the elder handed me the treasure? Then it really wasn’t that long ago.
If that’s true, then how on earth…?
Could this all just be an auditory hallucination, a side effect of having absorbed the spirit of the demon?
It was to the point where I even thought like this.
Even if he really is the Volcanic Sword, or if he is really just some random ghost disguising his identity.
Whatever it was, it was still annoying to me.
[It’s funny, he tried to climb over the wall without knowing the topic, and I helped him so he wouldn’t lose his breath, and now he’s being treated like an evil spirit!]
The ghost said.
As you said, this must be a coincidence.
Because of the rough bet, the blood vessels could not hold up, but thanks to absorbing the spirit of the ghost, I was able to pass smoothly.
The problem was that he had tried to ignore it, but had gained confidence from the words of the Sword Dragon.
The energy that mixed into my body.
A shallow plum blossom scent that seeps out no matter how hard you try to hide it.
I, who had no connection to the plum blossom path that the literati of the volcano could obtain after arduous training, was stepping into it.
“… What should I do?”
It wasn’t going to end with something like, ‘Hehe! I got the spirit of a ghost. I’m sorry.’
It is also a problem that the bet of the Volcano faction is held by someone who is not recognized by the Volcano faction.
The biggest problem was that I couldn’t explain clearly how I had the bet.
The ghost laughed at my worries.
[Who told you to just accept it and eat it?]
“Do you know who ate it because they wanted to eat it…?”
[At night, you eat up energy like a thirsty beast, but you talk a lot.]
I mean… how hard must I have eaten to make it look like this?
This was all the more frustrating and annoying because it wasn’t intentional.
What a fucking magician… You’re trying to ruin this life I’m trying to live diligently.
I asked, suppressing the irritation that was about to rise on its own.
“… Let me ask you something. Why on earth were you there?”
If it really is the Volcanic Sword, then there is a reason why it was attached to the object like this.
If it wasn’t the Volcanic Sword, I had to know what it was.
The ghost paused for a moment in response to my question.
[…hmm.]
Is it because something is difficult to say, or is it because it is important and you are choosing your answer?
After a moment, the ghost’s voice was heard.
The voice was much smaller than before.
[… I don’t know either. Why was I here?]
I sighed deeply at the ghost’s words and opened the carriage door.
In the end, the answer was that I didn’t know anything.
I don’t know if you’re just pretending not to remember.
If that’s the case, then it means you don’t want to tell anyone, so it’s not helpful either way.
Volcanic Sword is just a piece of shit, it was just an evil spirit.
I had to stop this useless conversation and get out of there as quickly as possible.
Because of what had happened before I passed out, I had to quickly check the situation outside.
[This guy…! That’s what I said!]
“No, what do you mean it’s not…”
“Oh! Sohyeop!”
The lively voice made both me and the ghost stop talking at the same time.
It was because Yeongpung’s voice was heard from far away.
But the situation was a bit strange.
This is because Youngpung’s appearance was considerably rougher than before, unlike his neat appearance.
He is shown on both knees, his limbs tightly bound with rope, his neck threatened by a smokeless sword.
And behind it all… .
“Volcano wave…?”
Unmanned personnel wearing white clothes identical to Youngpung were confronting our people.
No matter how I looked at it, the atmosphere wasn’t friendly, so I opened my halibut eyes and looked towards Yeongpung.
Youngpoong looks at me and smiles brightly.
“Haha! Sohyeop! Could you help me with this?”
“….what?”
The voice was so lively, unlike the situation, that I couldn’t help but let out a dumb reply.
[…Why is that guy doing that again?]
It seemed like something strange had happened again.
