Chapter 85: The Origin (4)
The law represented order, while the outer world embodied chaos.
If one were to assign attributes, those would be fitting.
Order was, quite simply, order.
It formed the foundation of the world, shaping its very structure.
This includes the Mixed Origin and the Four Elements,
Yin and Yang, alongside the Five Elements,
As well as the Seven Luminaries and the Eight Trigrams.
To delve into specifics, there were countless varieties, though most stemmed from the aforementioned properties.
Then there’s the Energy of Defying Heaven.
This power aligned with the law, yet it verged on that of the outer world.
‘Strange, isn’t it?’
The Energy of Defying Heaven was part of order but also of the outer world.
In fact, it’s akin to their confluence.
If Seo Ga-yeon’s starlight magic harnessed the power of ‘affirmation’, a quintessentially orderly force, then my power was its antithesis.
I wielded the power to negate everything.
The Energy of Defying Heaven refuted all—special abilities, magic, martial arts, and even the chaotic energies and spells from the outer world.
Yet, it acknowledged one exception.
Mystery.
For mystery was intertwined with the system that underpins this world.
‘The Energy of Defying Heaven does not reject mystery.’
And within this world, mystery was deemed nearest to the origin.
Both mystery and the system originated from the beginning.
Celestial deemed this power profoundly intriguing.
The Emperor exhibited substantial interest in it.
And I, too, perceived this power as more than a mere negator of magic.
‘That’s the issue.’
I glanced at the status window.
[Name: Lee Seo-ha]
Strength: 29
Agility: 30
Stamina: 29
Skill: 29
Conceptual Stats
Energy of Defying Heaven: 33
◈ Talent
'Reading(-)', 'Sword Demon(S)', 'True Heart(A)', 'Inscrutable Talent(A-)', 'Dexterity(B+)'
◈ Skills
'Black God Martial Arts(?)', 'Divine Sight(S)', 'Black Flash Step(B+)', 'Soul Absorbing Sword Technique(B)', 'Alturn's Arcane Alchemy(B+)', 'Ikar's Advanced Spirit Energy Control(C+)', 'Black Shadow Step(C+)', 'Black Flash Sword Technique(C+)'
◈ Constitution
'Heaven Defying Body(S-)'
My talent was abnormal.
I didn’t use the power known as mana and specialized in Spirit Ability.
Spirit Ability, likened to a martial arts world, relates to the upper dantian.
When this power acted purely, it could barely lift a stone, but combined with other powers, it could exert a terrifying force.
It was also the power most depleted in the Abyss.
Furthermore, this was the ‘minimum condition’ for entering the upper ranks.
‘That’s why it’s a headache.’
In other words, things related to Spirit Ability were either expensive or came with ridiculous penalties.
That’s why I was saving up points.
I checked my points.
[157,000p] contemporary romance
An enormous amount of points.
But it wasn’t as much as it seemed.
‘A proper S-class starts from 500,000 points.’
Ex-class was beyond even my dreams.
It seemed that level wasn’t even made to be achievable. One hundred million points, whose dog came up with that?
Even one hundred million points was just the starting point. The costlier ones were even higher.
Anyway, I could only buy S- grade items with penalties, not a complete S grade.
S- grade started from 100,000 points.
Most physical system items were unnecessary. That was because Black God Martial Arts remodeled the body into a heavenly one.
It grew stronger with each breath and accelerated growth the more the body was trained.
Therefore, what I could choose were talents that significantly increased Nyeom or those related to defense.
‘Defense is somewhat weak.’
I felt it when I fought with the students. It would be good to have some defense.
When several people attacked me, dodging each one was challenging. It’s fine for now, but if more enemies come, I’ll need a shield.
‘…….’
My gamer’s instinct advised against going for a defensive skill like a beginner but rather to boost my attack power.
I sighed and selected my talent.
[Seed of Origin (S-)]
A seed that contains the power of the origin. It enhances the user's Nyeom and increases capacity.
: Absolute minus correction in magic power.
: 100% increase in all efficiencies of Spirit Ability.
The description was straightforward.
But in Epic World, the simplest abilities were often the best.
Like Dexterity, which applies a correction to all systems.
[Shield of Spirit Ability (B-)]
Creates a translucent spherical shield at the user's will.
: Absolute minus correction in magic power.
: Defense power is enhanced according to the user's Nyeom.
With the remaining points, I conservatively purchased one defensive talent.
After choosing the two, I felt a mystical power envelop me, and knowledge on how to use them flooded my mind.
‘Is this how it’s done?’
I manifested a translucent barrier with Nyeom.
A translucent barrier materialized in the air with a buzzing sound. I hit the barrier with my fist.
Thump thump – It felt quite sturdy.
I examined my weapons. Winter’s Sword was inside White Rouge, and Black Heaven contained some of my Energy of Defying Heaven.
I summoned the black sword from the black bracelet and swung down with considerable force.
Crash!
A slight crack appeared in the barrier.
‘Not bad?’
The strike was strong, but it seemed the barrier could withstand a hit or two from an opponent.
As my Conceptual Stat Energy of Defying Heaven increased, it also grew stronger.
I experimented with the Shield of Spirit Ability and realized that quite some time had passed.
‘Should I contact her?’
I turned on my phone.
When I opened the chat app, there were messages from various women.
Looking closely, I noticed messages from women I didn’t know.
Kang Yeong-ji:
Seo-ha, it’s Kang Yeong-ji. I got your contact from a classmate because I have something to ask you?
‘Who is Kang Yeong-ji?’
I immediately blocked her and then sent a message to Kim Ara.
Are you free this Saturday?
As soon as I sent it, the number 1 disappeared immediately. Lucky. Did she see it right away?
Kim Ara:
Yes, I’m free.
Why?
(Emoticon of a hamster looking curious)
Me:
Then, do you want to go somewhere with me?
Kim Ara:
Could it be…
Are you asking me to go to a dungeon or something?
Me:
Yes.
Kim Ara:
…Okay.
Got it.
(Emoticon of a hamster looking deflated)
Kim Ara’s response seemed disheartened.
I turned off my phone, stretched, and headed off to complete the Homunculus.
Time flew by quickly.
I made medicine for the guild, sold recipes to the Alchemy Guild, and entered the electronic world to give alchemy lectures.
I focused on my studies to get as many internal marks as possible, trained in martial arts with Black Heaven, and experimented with my recently acquired abilities.
Teaching Seo Ga-yeon various things, overwhelmingly dominating the occasionally rising Hong Yu-hwa, being called “elder” by Seolhwa Ryeon, and going out to exterminate Mines.
Time passed in a whirlwind.
Somehow, I managed to digest it all and kept my top position. In fact, my top position was largely due to the talent, Reading(-).
Even if I’m proficient in this game, I’m an outsider after all. Most theories and such, I don’t know.
-Aren’t you pushing yourself too hard these days, master?
-Right! You’ve only been sleeping for 3 hours lately.
“It’s okay. It’s not as hard on my body as you think.”
My body felt no strain.
I was blessed with a heavenly body by the Black God Martial Arts, and the continuous circulation of the Energy of Defying Heaven through my body, thanks to Black Energy, helped.
“The Seed of Origin is more effective than I had anticipated.”
Once I upgrade it to an S-grade, its efficiency will improve even further.
I trained physically with Kim Seo-hyun and refined my martial arts with Black Heaven.
I also learned some spells from Eternal Heaven, just in case of unforeseen situations.
And so, Saturday arrived.
I teased Hong Yu-hwa, who had recently lost to me in every competition during club activities, discussed business with Ershil, and then headed to the location where I had agreed to meet Kim Ara.
“Hello.”
Her hair cascaded down to her waist in a violet wave. She wore black stockings paired with a red and black checkered skirt. Over it, a tank top and a black coat adorned her figure.
She stood with the proportions of a model and, for a woman, a notable height of 175cm.
It was somewhat sudden, but looking at her now, she truly was beautiful.
I tried to conceal my feelings as I spoke.
“Hello. Did you come early? Have you been waiting?”
“No, I haven’t waited long.”
After our exchange, it somehow felt like we were lovers who had agreed to meet for a date.
“But this place is a famous hunting ground, isn’t it?”
“That’s correct,”
Kim Ara said as she surveyed the area.
“Swamplands are difficult to navigate.”
“I have faith in our Ara. You’ll do well, even in the swamplands.”
“…”
At my use of ‘our Ara,’ Kim Ara’s cheeks tinged with a faint blush.
We had arrived at a swampland. It was a region known for man-eating trees and lizardmen appearances, and also a hunting ground for ‘Hunters’ who possessed magical aptitude but hadn’t become heroes.
Hunters outnumbered typical heroes by a significant margin. That’s why places like dungeons were scarce.
‘It also pays less.’
Regular dungeons could earn you hundreds of millions per clear, but in these hunting grounds, you could barely make a hundred even after toiling all day.
‘But 1 million won isn’t a small amount.’
My sense of money had completely numbed.
That was because I had over 20 billion in my bank account. Come to think of it, I needed to spend some of that 20 billion.
Perhaps on an alchemy workshop.
Or buying land for the guild building I planned to construct wouldn’t be bad either.
I walked around with Kim Ara, checking the time on my phone.
It was 10:30 AM.
‘It’s about time they show up.’
As I thought that, magical power nearby exploded and surged.
‘They’ve arrived.’
Ding.
Main Quest Chapter 6: Deal with the Lizardmen and the Man-Eating Tree controlled by the Demon World Tree!
A seed from the outer world has taken root and grown here.
If the Demon World Tree isn't dealt with here, it will return as a disaster in the future!
◈ Reward: 20,000P. Additional rewards depending on the content.
done.co