Sovereign of the Infinite Clones [Novel] Chapter 445

My Alter Ego’S Path To Greatness Chapter 445

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The Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero (3)

After Mok In-gwang joined the battle, the fight continued for a little while longer.

Thanks to that, Ha Seunghoon was able to gain some more practical experience against a formidable opponent, but unfortunately, it did not last very long.

“Ugh! That damn old man…”

“Tsk, tsk. How many times have I told you that you must always maintain your breathing? You refuse to listen and let yourself be consumed by your madness again, and this is what happens. You have such a frail body, yet you’re so foolish. When will you ever become useful?”

“How can you compare a human like me to a yokai’s body…? No, more importantly, is that really something you should say to a disciple whose body has been smashed to pieces… Guh!”

“Hoho! Your breathing is becoming disordered again, isn’t it? If you would only properly follow your master’s teachings, even injuries like those would be something you could simply shake off and recover from. Although it has become quite diluted over the generations, there is still yokai blood flowing through your veins.”

“Grit… You damn bastard. One day, I swear I’ll…”

“Hahaha! See? You can do it if you try! With this rate of recovery, you’ll be back on your feet in no time.”

Mok In-gwang lay sprawled on the ground, writhing helplessly.

His limbs were twisted at unnatural angles, and blood dripped from his nose and mouth as though his internal organs had been damaged as well. There wasn’t a single part of him that remained unscathed, making the word “ragged” seem almost too mild to describe his condition.

Standing before him, an old man calmly stroked his beard with one hand behind his back.

Ha Seunghoon’s eyes gleamed.

‘The Rakshasa King, one of the leaders of Geumo Island. He was a key figure in the faction composed of yokai other than the dragonkind, wasn’t he? I’ve exchanged greetings with Horus before, but…’

However, Horus’s connections were heavily concentrated among the dragons, so he had never really had a personal conversation with the Rakshasa King.

After all, despite being merely nominal, he bore the name of the Yellow Dragon, so it was only natural for him to be at the center of the faction led by the dragons.

Of course, having endured difficult times together, the various factions weren’t openly hostile toward one another. But even within the same class, there were always groups that were close and others that remained distant.

Moreover, hadn’t the Rakshasa King stayed behind to protect Geumo Island during the final war, even when it had become virtually leaderless?

“Aaaarghh! Damn it, why…!”

At that moment, the sound of ragged breathing from beside him drew Ha Seunghoon’s attention.

The savage creature that had rampaged like a natural disaster was nowhere to be seen.

In its place was a gigantic creature writhing on the ground in a state no better than Mok In-gwang’s.

“Rakshasa King! Why are you here when you were supposed to be in the Phantom Realm? How did you get here so quickly?!”

“Hoh hoh. Just consider it bad luck. Though, even if I hadn’t stepped in, you wouldn’t have been able to escape Geumo Island’s grasp.”

“Don’t make me laugh! If only I had a little more strength! If only I’d had a little more time to devour the Dragon’s Child and grow stronger, I definitely would have—!”

“You’re free to think whatever you like. You’ll be sealed in the Cave of Repentance for the next thousand years or so, so you’ll have plenty of time to think about it alone.”

“Guh… No. This can’t be happening! It can’t end like this!”

Taotie desperately struggled to escape.

He twisted his body this way and that as his wounds slowly began to regenerate.

But his resistance came to nothing the moment the old man opened the stopper of the gourd hanging from his waist.

“N-no… Noooooo—!”

As though being swallowed by a black hole, Taotie’s gigantic body stretched unnaturally long before being sucked into the gourd.

His grotesque scream continued to echo until the stopper was firmly sealed again.

‘…Amazing.’

Ha Seunghoon stared at the Rakshasa King as he calmly fastened the sealed gourd back onto his waist.

The old man had intervened at the exact moment Ha Seunghoon had thought he had reached his limit, instantly turning the situation around.

Even though Taotie was clearly another Great Yokai, the difference in their levels was so obvious that it was almost palpable.

‘Well, he is one of the leaders, after all. There’s no way he could be weak. Was sending Mok In-gwang out first part of his training?’

His gaze shifted toward the man still writhing on the ground and hurling curses. He could tell at a glance.

The madness circulating endlessly through Mok In-gwang’s body, which had been pushed to the brink of life and death, was not merely repairing his damaged body. It was reconstructing him into something even stronger.

‘It’s similar to Harley’s method. Though their basic foundations are different, so the efficiency can’t really be compared.’

Moreover, the fact that Mok In-gwang, whose blood contained only a trace of yokai blood, had managed to face a clearly superior Great Yokai head-on and survive must have been tremendously helpful in training his mind, which had previously been unable to think normally because of his madness.

And that would eventually become an essential foundation for him to break through the wall of the Profound realm.

‘Of course, I’m not the only one who grew stronger from this battle.’

Ha Seunghoon took a light breath and looked inward at himself.

-Individual Name: Ha Seunghoon

-Common Traits: [Mind Hub], [Persona], [Great Mind], [Insight], [Xenoglossy], [Subspace Storage], [Limit Break], [Imitation]

-Individual Traits: [Empty Spirit Physique], [Heavenly Dragon Divine Art], [Myriad Streams Converge to One], [Martial Extremity], [Versatility], [Introduction to Comprehensive Medicine], [Field Cooking], [General Theory of Formations], [Gathering]

-Special Note: Due to long-term changes in cognition, the individual’s name has been changed from ‘Hugo’ to ‘Ha Seunghoon’. [Martial Extremity] has made it possible to harmonize different types of Martial Principles more naturally. Due to the effects of 『Elixir of Growth』 and the Dragon God’s blessing, additional growth bonuses are applied to all actions.

Among the various traits he had acquired throughout his journey through the martial world, there was one new skill that stood out clearly.

[Martial Extremity].

He instinctively knew.

The moment he became capable of properly wielding this power would be the moment he finally crossed the wall of transcendence.

‘It’s a shame I couldn’t break through the wall right away, but it can’t be helped.’

He had gained plenty from this battle.

At the beginning of the fight, he had barely managed to stay alive by throwing every ability he had into the fray.

But by the latter half, he had become capable of responding to attacks imbued with the powerful demonic energy of a Great Yokai to a certain degree.

Expecting to reach the Profound realm from a single battle would have been nothing short of greed.

Rather, the fact that he now possessed everything necessary to reach transcendence at any moment was already a far greater achievement than he had expected.

It was proof of just how significant a role the ‘Black Dragon Codex’ had played.

“Young Master Ha!”

Just as he was organizing his thoughts, a fresh floral scent suddenly swept across his face, followed by a soft, warm body rushing into his arms.

“You’re safe! Ahh, what a relief! And all because of me again…!”

Before he could even respond, the petite woman threw herself into his arms and looked up at him with teary eyes.

She must have been under immense emotional strain, because despite the battle itself being rather short, her body was still trembling slightly.

‘No. Maybe the real problem is that far too many things happened in such a short time.’

Ha Seunghoon smiled bitterly and gently patted her shoulder.

“I told you I’d be fine, didn’t I? The Dragon’s Child was kidnapped right in front of their doorstep. There was no way Geumo Island would simply sit back and do nothing. All I had to do was buy some time until reinforcements arrived.”

“But… even so, you were hurt this badly…!”

She carefully ran her hands over Ha Seunghoon’s battered body while pouring the Dragon God’s divine power into him, her expression becoming sorrowful once again.

Thanks to the regenerative effects included in the [Empty Spirit Physique], most of his wounds had already healed.

But his torn clothes and the blood covering his body were more than enough to give her an idea of how much pain he must have endured.

“…I owe you another debt.”

She quietly whispered those words as she gazed at the remnants of the fierce battle.

Just like before, she had once again been kidnapped simply because she was the ‘Dragon’s Child,’ only to be rescued by him.

Naturally, the emotions she felt were even stronger this time.

If it weren’t for him, she probably wouldn’t even be alive right now.

“Young Master Ha, I…”

She bit her lip for a moment before looking up at him with eyes glistening with emotion.

His face was dirty with sweat and dust, but none of that registered in her eyes.

Thump— Thump— Thump…

The sound of her own rapidly beating heart thundered in her ears.

Realizing it, her face flushed bright red.

And just as she took a deep breath and prepared to continue—

“Hey, Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero. Let’s head back soon. Oh, and my master wants to have a little chat with you.”

Mok In-gwang, now able to walk somewhat properly, limped over and lightly tapped Ha Seunghoon’s shoulder.

Perhaps they had developed some sense of camaraderie after facing a powerful enemy together, or perhaps he had simply acknowledged Ha Seunghoon’s strength.

Either way, his attitude was noticeably less guarded than before.

“And you too, girl from the Jegal Clan. Since what happened at Mount Mao this time, my master wants to invite you to Geumo Island’s main base in the Phantom Realm. Your entire group as well.”

Since the Phantom Realm existed as a space on the other side of this world, it didn’t matter where one entered or exited.

However, passing through Mount Mao, which had been designated as its main entrance, made traveling between the two worlds considerably easier.

Mok In-gwang continued, emphasizing that this was not a privilege granted to just anyone, before giving a crooked grin.

“I’m jealous, I’m jealous. I only got permission to enter recently myself. Looks like Master thinks highly of you guys.”

“That’s quite an honor. But are you all right? You should probably rest a little longer…”

“Hmph. This much is nothing. I’m fine, I’m fine.”

Mok In-gwang puffed out his chest and grinned at Ha Seunghoon’s concerned words.

“……”

Meanwhile, Jegal Hyemi narrowed her eyes at him, silently glaring at the intruder who had abruptly ruined the atmosphere.

She was clever enough to immediately understand the situation simply by looking back and forth between the old man standing some distance away, who was chuckling and shaking his head, and Mok In-gwang, who wore a sly grin.

After twitching the corner of her lips for a moment, she soon approached him with a radiant smile.

“Master Mok, you still look like you’re in quite a lot of pain. Let me take a look at you. Dragon sorcery can also be used to heal wounds.”

“…Hm? Uh, well, I wouldn’t mind.”

“You came all the way here to help us, and seeing you injured like this makes me feel terrible. Come on, this way.”

“Well, all right. Let’s see what you can— Gkkgh!”

The divine power that entered his body activated his regenerative ability dozens of times beyond its normal level.

As a result, the cells throughout his body began violently convulsing, visibly writhing beneath his skin.

Normally, the process would also include measures to reduce the pain—

“Oh, there’s a little side effect if I sacrifice stability to maximize efficiency. It hurts a bit, but… well, surely a great man like you won’t mind, right? I’ll just use maximum output and finish it all at once, okay?”

“Ghhk— You rotten…”

Barely standing with his battered body, Mok In-gwang finally collapsed on the spot, trembling like a bird that had been hit by a slingshot.

The effect, however, was undeniable.

His body, which could certainly be called human despite containing only a trace of yokai blood from his ancestors, began recovering at an abnormal speed.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. I told you to behave. I wonder when that nasty personality of yours will finally improve.”

The Rakshasa King, who had been standing some distance away, clicked his tongue softly while stroking his luxuriant beard.

He looked displeased as he gazed at his pathetic disciple, who had eventually foamed at the mouth and passed out.

“Hm. Still, if he recovers this quickly, we can resume training immediately. There’s no need to reduce the intensity just because he was injured. Hahahaha!”

He soon nodded in satisfaction.

For the record—

The Rakshasa, one of the yokai factions belonging to Geumo Island, were once even known as ‘evil spirits,’ so they were hardly known for having pleasant personalities.

Capturing and sealing Taotie did not mean the incident was completely over.

His reckless actions had made it clear that there was plenty for Geumo Island to deal with as well.

‘Come to think of it, this was never something we could afford to worry about only on the human side.’

Harmony was something everyone had to work toward together.

Now that the reconstruction of the world had only just begun, it was necessary to take precautions in advance so that another problem wouldn’t arise.

‘Horus has quite a lot of influence within Geumo Island. If I make use of that, I should be able to control the yokai’s behavior to some extent.’

Most of the surviving yokai now belonged to Geumo Island, the largest yokai faction.

But this system wouldn’t last forever.

Many of them, like Taotie, had entered under the same umbrella simply because they had needed somewhere to survive.

Now that the Demon Cult had been annihilated and their safety was secured, it was only natural that those who no longer had to worry about anyone else would eventually start acting however they pleased.

‘Everyone’s still extremely sensitive. If something major happens at a time like this…’

He had already taken various measures to minimize conflict, but nothing in this world was perfect.

If even a minor dispute were to reignite the flames of war, the situation could quickly spiral out of control.

‘I can’t just leave things like that. I’ve already got plenty to do as it is.’

The Kanghwan Realm had already finished its major events and entered the final stages of its conclusion.

With Karma steadily producing results in the direction of stabilizing the world, he had no desire to complicate matters by allowing chaos to spread again.

Thus, with the help of the other Five Dragons, Horus worked to establish a system that would keep the world as peaceful as possible and prevent the unrestrained yokai from running wild.

Because he was so busy with this, he did not personally appear when Ha Seunghoon’s group was invited to Geumo Island.

There was no need, since he was already monitoring the situation in real time through the eyes of one of the people involved.

《A specific condition has been met. The special reward [Yellow Dragon’s Orb] is beginning to react.》

That was why the sudden message appearing before his eyes left him even more bewildered.

“Huh? All of a sudden?”

One day, when Avatar Ha Seunghoon, the Dragon’s Child Jegal Hyemi, and the others were visiting Geumo Island—

The special reward he had completely forgotten about after obtaining the achievement ‘Last Yellow Dragon,’ because he had never figured out how to use it, finally began to reveal its presence.