NOVEL WEB Chapter 17
Chapter 17. Magic (2)
TL: xLordFifth
ED/PR: The reader
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly as I said.”
As if to prove he is a Constellation.
The Heavenly Demon looked at him with exceptional eyes.
Shimun maintained a stoic face, but internally, it wasn’t the same.
‘Could he be asking about my regression?’
Being a high-ranking Constellation, he might have noticed the fact that I regressed.
But that assumption didn’t seem right.
‘Zeus and the Black Goat seemed clueless about regression.’
Though the rank of the Black Goat was unclear, Zeus was definitely a high-ranking Constellation.
And yet, the Heavenly Demon asked something Zeus hadn’t?
Shimun’s contemplation didn’t last long.
“You dare get distracted in my presence? Ha! You’re not just blindly brave, I see.”
The meaning was unclear, but the Heavenly Demon seemed to have made up his mind about Shimun’s response.
“How much do you know about me?”
Shimun’s mind was flooded with various descriptors upon the sudden question.
Mostly.
‘Perverted old man, damn geezer, crazy bastard, power-hungry…’
These were the typical images spat out by Go Malsuk in his previous life.
Of course, he didn’t make the mistake of voicing these thoughts.
“I know you as a Constellation who pursues the Path of Domination and prefers the survival of the fittest, similar to the Demon Realm.”
“Young friend, you are indeed sharp. You’ve seen it right.”
The Heavenly Demon nodded, satisfied with Shimun’s answer. Yet, the look in his eyes hidden between wrinkles suggested otherwise.
“Even before I became a Constellation, I have always pursued power walking the Path of Domination.”
Simply facing him seemed to slice open one’s insides, sending a shiver down one’s spine – such was the intensity of the Heavenly Demon’s stare.
‘That gaze is…’
It reminded him of a gaze he had encountered once before.
‘Right. It feels similar to that giant eyeball I saw in my previous life.’
This meant that the giant eyeball he had seen was at least of the Heavenly Demon’s rank.
His gaze moved to the side.
The scenery unfolded like a painting.
Then, suddenly,
“Ah!”
Shimun, who had been maintaining a poker face, let out an involuntary gasp.
And for good reason.
Where did the picturesque landscape go?
Swirling into darkness, as if abandoned alone in a universe without a single star.
‘It’s like… sinking into an unknown abyss.’
Yes.
Just like sinking into the depths.
But why wasn’t he afraid?
Any normal person would have been terrified.
But Shimun was only surprised by the change of scenery.
And somehow,
‘It feels familiar.’
Was it a strange sense of comfort?
Then,
“Indeed, befitting one marked by him. A mortal who faces the void yet remains unflustered.”
The Heavenly Demon’s voice intruded into Shimun’s ears.
Turning his head, he saw the Heavenly Demon, his gaze now serene as before.
“Are you still going to pretend you don’t know?”
His knowing smirk suggested he understood everything.
Shimun slowly nodded.
“It must be because of the title I possess.”
“Title?”
“Yes. I possess the title ‘He Who Attracts the Gaze from Beyond.’”
At that,
“Hahahahaha!!”
A roaring laughter from the Heavenly Demon shook the world.
A phenomenon that could be classified as a disaster, but
Shimun simply looked at the Heavenly Demon with calm eyes.
“Beyond, beyond… Yes, that does make sense for him to describe himself as a dimension! Ha!”
When his laughter subsided,
The Heavenly Demon, with a significantly somber face, emptied the cup before him.
Quietly observing, Shimun spoke.
“You’ve met with this ‘beyond’ entity before.”
The Heavenly Demon’s movement halted.
Then,
His wrinkled lips curved into a smile.
“That’s right.”
“You must have been defeated then?”
“Ha! Bold, this one.”
A chilling aura crawled up Shimun’s spine and circulated through his body.
Realizing it was the Heavenly Demon’s killing intent wasn’t hard.
But Shimun wasn’t frightened.
He already knew of the Heavenly Demon’s personality.
‘If anything were to happen to me, the Black Goat wouldn’t just stand by.’
Facing the void directly, it became clear.
Should any threat befall him, the Black Goat, a Constellation of another dimension, would surely intervene.
How could he be so sure?
-Hehe…
From within the dark abyss the Heavenly Demon conjured,
He could sense the meaningful laughter and sticky gaze of what he presumed to be the Black Goat.
‘Thus, I am safe. ’Thanks to that, Kim Shimun remained unfazed by the murderous intent of the Heavenly Demon.
“Haha! As expected, worthy of his attention! I can now understand why that crazy woman took an interest.”
Pleased by this, the Heavenly Demon burst into hearty laughter and finished his drink. Then, he admitted, albeit with a hint of bitterness.
“Yes, just as you said. I was defeated by him. And quite miserably, at that.”
Galaxy Arena.
Anyone familiar with the Heavenly Demon would be astonished by such an admission. Unfortunately, Kim Shimun was not among them.
“I see.”
He simply nodded calmly in response.
Perhaps liking his reaction even more.
“That makes me even more intrigued. I wonder what it is about you that has caught his attention.”
The Heavenly Demon looked at Kim Shimun with a deep, infectious smile.
“Truth be told, just between us, it took me a whole thousand years to catch his eye.”
“…A, a thousand years?”
The Heavenly Demon spoke of a millennium as if it were nothing.
“But then again, you, being a mortal, wouldn’t know. That being is something else…”
He seemed ready to continue, but then.
“How noisy these creatures are!”
Was it a hint from the Galaxy Arena’s side?
The Heavenly Demon waved his hand through the air.
After a few more glares into the void, he said,
“Alright, alright! Tch. Sadly, it seems we must end our meeting here.”
“Yes. But, what do you mean by ‘sadly’?”
“Aren’t you the one to inherit the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts? That makes you no different from my own.”
Kim Shimun nodded at that explanation.
Since he wasn’t directly chosen or taught martial arts by him, it made sense not to be considered a disciple, but rather a spiritual inheritor.
“Then, as you mentioned earlier…”
“Indeed. I have no objections to you learning the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts. In fact, I welcome it. It’s pleasing that someone of his interest is continuing my legacy.”
The Heavenly Demon smiled contentedly.
“But you’re not my disciple. So, I have one favor to ask of you.”
[Heavenly Demon issues a quest]
[Quest Window Activated.]
Kim Shimun’s eyes widened upon reading the message.
“A quest?!”
Unlike the missions laid out by the spectators or the constellations, missions directly from the Galaxy Arena were not restricted to the ordinary.
Most players were eager to receive such quests.
Kim Shimun quickly reviewed the quest details.
[Find a Disciple]
-The Heavenly Demon seeks a worthy candidate for sponsorship.
Reward: Achievement Points 5,000, Second Stage Heavenly Demon Divine Arts
“This is!”
“How about it? I tailored it to fit the format these creatures propose.”
Kim Shimun’s eyes bulged at the straightforward yet efficient reward.
But before he could comment on that.
‘A candidate worthy of sponsorship of a constellation?’
He couldn’t help worrying if Go Malsuk’s future would change because of him.
The Heavenly Demon laid out his conditions, seemingly unaware (or perhaps completely aware) of Kim Shimun’s internal turmoil.
“I believe you, being of his interest, have a unique eye for talent. However, I do have some conditions.”
“Conditions?”
“Yes. Since you are here, I would prefer a female. Preferably younger than yourself. She must be beautiful, with a bold, if not brash, personality. Heavenly Demon Divine Arts requires an aggressive approach.”
“Um, wait a moment…”
“Her limbs should be long and slender. Ah! I prefer fair skin.”
“Heavenly Demon, sir?”
“Look well! Choosing a disciple is a very important matter! Not to mention, her chest and hips should be ample but her waist must be…”
Fortunately, Go Malsuk’s future seemed unchanged.
* * *
“Ah, this is exhausting.”
‘Criteria for the successor to the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts,’ when translated, meant. ‘the Heavenly Demon’s personal preferences.’
Listening to the Heavenly Demon and returning, Kim Shimun sprawled on the bed, weighed down by fatigue.
‘But, it’s a relief.’
A smile formed on Kim Shimun’s lips.
‘Malsuk’s future won’t change.’
She was destined for the Heavenly Demon’s support, but now only Kim Shimun had the power to decide the successor.
He didn’t need to worry about the butterfly effect.
‘By the way, Malsuk said she lived in Busan before becoming a player, right?’
A level 1 Alchemist, one of the few people he interacted with, who had the opposite personality to his.
Recalling her brought a spontaneous smile to his face.
Then,
-Aaaah, oppa!!
“Huh?”
A piercing tinnitus rang through his chest.
-Are you okay? You got your senses back?
A voice filled with concern resonated loudly.
It was the Philosopher’s Stone.
“Ah, sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment.”
-Really! Do you have any idea how worried I was? What happened? Why did you suddenly pass out?
“Pass out? Ah! That’s because, well, the thing is…”
About to say he had encountered a pervert, Kim Shimun caught himself and took a deep breath before replying.
“I met a constellation.”
-A constellation? It’s not even a regular arena match, how did you meet a constellation? Wait. Don’t tell me… you met the Heavenly Demon?
“Huh? You seem to know?”
-Of course! He’s famous as the constellation who knows nothing but strength.
The Philosopher’s Stone buzzed with excitement as it continued. “And then there’s the taste, it’s supremely vivid. You know that famous saying, right? Be it man or woman, if the taste is good, that’s all that matters!”
“What, what?!”
Kim Shimun’s breath involuntarily halted. Such words were completely unfitting for his usually serene and almost divine appearance.
“Hey, you didn’t happen to run into some trouble with the Heavenly Demon, did you?”
“No. Nothing of the sort happened.”
“That’s a relief. Being able to come back in one piece after meeting that psycho is lucky in itself. I bet if you were an absolute eyesore, you would have been killed on the spot, you know?”
Could it be an illusion that his head suddenly felt dizzy? Kim Shimun raised his fist to his forehead and fell into a brief silence.
“Anyway, it looks like that demon sent you back nicely. So, you got some favor from him after all. He didn’t go off ranting about mastering Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, did he?”
“He didn’t. In fact, he said it was good that I learned it.”
“Just as the rumors said, a total madman. Well, it’s good for us.”
With that, the Philosopher’s Stone continued. “Let’s quickly make the potion then. Now that you have the skill to handle demonic energy, let’s acquire some demonic energy quickly.”
“Let’s do that.”
Kim Shimun immediately got up and approached the previously set up workstation. The ingredients were laid out just as before.
“I’ll start right away.”
“Hmm! You don’t need me to give you a separate recipe, right?”
“Of course.”
The hobgoblin serum was an ingredient Kim Shimun had handled countless times in his previous lives. He expertly purified the serum and began processing the additional ingredients, of course.
-“Ah! Do you hear it? Every time I remove the poison, the serum screams out. What are you trying to do to me! It says.”
-“Ohoho! The poison has been perfectly removed, huh? Its prickly appearance is nowhere to be seen.”
-“My, my! Already surrendering? That’s too bland. I thought you’d last a bit longer.”
He completely ignored the ceaseless, cryptic utterances emanating from his chest and soon said, “Done.”
What sat atop the table was something with the gelatinous texture of black slime. “Oh? It’s not a potion, but a pill?”
“I didn’t have the right container ready, so making it in liquid form was difficult.”
“Right, since it’s based on demonic energy.”
The potion’s form varied depending on its ingredients and primary effects. In the case of pills like these, they had the advantage of sustaining less loss of qi, a commonly preferred form during the creation of most elixirs. Not needing a specialized container was an added bonus.
“Shall we see what state it’s in?”
Kim Shimun carefully placed the elixir in his palm and pulled up the information window.
[Blood Blossom Pill]
Rank: C – Consuming increases strength, agility, and stamina stats permanently by 2.
– High chance of acquiring stat demonic energy upon consumption.
An elixir made from special blood as its base. High-level alchemy had maximized the dormant demonic energy rather than the main efficacy of the ingredients.
“Wow!”
He couldn’t help but let out an exclamation.
‘Although I made it, it turned out quite well.’
He had been somewhat nervous about making a potion after so long, but to think he managed to draw out a permanent stat increase for strength, agility, and stamina.
“Even though it’s ranked C because of poor ingredients, the options are insane. As expected of my creation! Worth cultivating after all!”
The Philosopher’s Stone marveled. As an entity meant for cultivation, it fully understood the value of the Blood Blossom Pill.
“But there’s a chance the demonic energy might not be acquired, right? The chance isn’t 100%.”
“Typically, yes.”
Perhaps because of the small amount of demonic energy beset in the serum. Although the potion didn’t come with a guaranteed demonic energy stat acquisition option, it wasn’t a big deal.
“The basics of Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, Rank 1, are already here. Just need to manage it well after consuming.”
Kim Shimun tapped his chest. “Oh right, I forgot that! Hehe, just trust me!”
The Philosopher’s Stone quivered like a pleased cat. “Little guy.”
Kim Shimun let out a chuckle at its appearance and immediately swallowed the potion. It melted in his mouth like thin ice, and Kim Shimun swallowed it whole, gathering even his saliva.
[The effect of the potion increases your strength by 2.]
[The effect of the potion increases your agility by 2.]
[The effect of the potion increases your stamina by 2.]
Pleasant messages popped up one after another. However, Kim Shimun didn’t relax but immediately started to meditate in a crossed-legged position. Perhaps because the Philosopher’s Stone had completely understood the structure of Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, the flowing of qi following the meditation felt as natural as if he had practiced it for years.
Soon enough, “I found it.”
Kim Shimun detected a surging demonic energy within him. It was demonic energy. However, “Darn, it’s already dissipating?”
Despite the maximization through the potion’s creation, the energy was slowly fading. Contrary to the high chance mentioned, he seemed to have hit the low probability of not acquiring the demonic energy stat.
Kim Shimun quickly clung to the weakening demonic energy and called out, ‘Philosopher’s Stone!’
“I know. Got it! This little thing!”
Immediately, the Philosopher’s Stone utilized its nurturing power to scoop it up, or more accurately, to envelop it. ‘So much for a high probability, I almost lost it there.’
Confirming the dissipation of demonic energy had halted, Kim Shimun attempted to move it to below his navel, to where the energy core is located.
‘First, to create a energy core and then to the Great Heavenly Circulation…’
-“Oppa, wait.”
Had the Philosopher’s Stone not interrupted. “Do you really have to make a energy core right below the navel?”