Terms used in this chapter:
The Heart Sutra – one of the most revered Buddhist sutras in both Chinese and Japanese cultures. Some of its lines include: Form does not differ from the void, and the void does not differ from form. Form is void, and void is form. Most Koreans don’t know what it means, but because it seems deep, it is often used in situations where one tries to look cool/deep. Though in this chapter, Jude seems to know its real meaning, so he uses it to calm himself down. I won’t explain what the lines mean, as there are different interpretations of it, but just know that ‘form’ can refer to one’s body, and ‘void’ can also mean emptiness.
Level is a thug – Korean gaming slang that means that as the levels increase, the stronger or better one’s skills or abilities are. It’s actually hard finding a good explanation about this slang, but it just means that a weak character can become as strong as a thug if they had a higher level. When this slang is used on bosses, it means that boss’ high level makes it so strong that it is like a thug/bully towards the player.
One’s eyes are covered with bean pods – a Korean idiom which means to only see good in someone after falling in love with them. (T/N: OMG, is this a confession, Jude?)
Inside the lodging prepared by the Gentle Snow Breeze tribe.
Jude, whose face, neck, back of his hands and so on were covered in saliva, stared down at the floor with a look of liberation.
Cordelia was curled up on the blanket and asleep with a happy face.
“Huu…Form does not differ from the void, and the void does not differ from form. Form is void, and void is form…”
After reciting lines from the Heart Sutra, Jude covered Cordelia with a blanket and sat down on a chair in exhaustion.
“So exhausting.”
It was physically and mentally exhausting.
But he eventually smiled afterwards.
Because the curled-up Cordelia’s face looked so happy.
‘Will she make a fuss when she wakes up tomorrow?’
The side effect of Beast Mode made her act like a puppy cat, but her memories of it won’t disappear.
Several experiments have already revealed that.
A rather wicked smile appeared on Jude’s face as he thought of how Cordelia would act tomorrow.
In fact, Jude had already formed a plan on how to tease her.
“How peaceful.”
Just a few hours ago, they had a life-and-death battle against a mid-ranking demonic human, so it wasn’t really peaceful at that time.
After he smiled again, Jude washed his face with water from a basin before he sat on the floor with his back towards Cordelia.
‘The Essence of the Blue Moon.’
As he silently stared at the blue gem in his hand, Jude straightened his back and closed his eyes.
Reality wasn’t exactly the same as it was in the game, but it was still a world that had many similarities with the game.
An example of that was the level.
Like what he told Cordelia, as the level increased, the overall stats also increased.
Level is a thug, and just as the saying goes, Jude was originally born with a weak body, but after reaching levels 40-42 now, the strength of his body was high enough to look down on most ordinary knights of Count Bayer.
His muscle strength had also become stronger, and it was at a level that the strength/power he can exert was almost like a superpower.
‘It’s not some kind of built-in muscle though.’
Jude had become quite strong, but that doesn’t mean that he became a muscular man like Landius.
However, his power was nearly twice that of a typical adult male.
‘Because these days, I feel like Cordelia is as light as a feather.’
He was fine with holding her on his arms or carrying her on his back.
Though it was also true that he had been carrying her a lot these days.
‘Well…maybe it’s a little like bean pods covering my eyes.’
When he thought of that, Jude cleared his throat and tried to clear his mind again.
Didn’t he sit with his back on Cordelia to get rid of all the distractions in the first place?
‘Anyway.’
Leveling up was the surest and most basic way to become strong.
‘But this alone is not enough.’
One’s body becomes stronger when they level up.
Not only did the physical and muscle strength increase, but the physical body itself was strengthened, and the stamina and defensive abilities also increased.
But there was no tech/skill tree here.
‘This is the most painful thing.’
In the game, new skills appeared just by leveling up, but this was reality, so no matter how much he leveled up, no new skills had appeared.
‘Cordelia’s case is a little different though.’
Cordelia had the witch’s spell book.
It was a magical spell book wherein more pages could be opened when she reached a specific level, so Cordelia was able to learn new magic spells at certain levels, just like a game.
But that didn’t apply to Jude.
‘In the end, the only means to become strong now is to level up and the Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors.’
He had to open a new door of the Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors.
Landius had said that it was how he gained new abilities.
‘I’ll be able to evolve the Twenty-Four Gale Steps.’
When the first door was opened, the Thirty-Six Worldly Steps became Twenty-Four Gale Steps.
When the second door opened, a whirlwind was added to his Twenty-Four Gale Steps.
Following this pattern, it was highly likely that the Twenty-Four Gale Steps would evolve again when the third door is opened.
‘All right, let’s open the third door.’
The Essence of the Blue Moon contained the power of the pure moonlight. If he can absorb it all, he would be able to open the third door.
Jude closed his eyes and focused his mind.
Cordelia’s breathing from behind his back slightly disturbed his mind, but he soon calmed down his mind.
With a pure and serene mind, he entered a state where he accepted the power of the moonlight from the Essence of the Blue Moon.
The pure energy of the moonlight entered his body.
It was so clear and pure that it seemed to be harmful to ordinary people.
But not for Jude.
Jude already possessed a pure energy due to the meeting of both Yin and Yang energies.
When both Yin energies met, they became one with each other without much difficulty.
T/N: Moonlight is Yin energy, so when combined with Jude’s Yin energy, the two becomes one.
Jude slowly controlled his breathing.
He recited the mnemonic chant of the Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors, bringing the Yin energies inside and outside of his body into one.
Jude forgot the time.
He was isolated from the passage of time.
The pure and clear energy of the moonlight that accepted the power of the moon, spread throughout his body.
He collected his breathing, and he controlled his breathing.
Jude felt it.
The last meridian which had been blocked by his Gueumjulmaek was pierced.
As the energy of the moonlight spread throughout his body, his meridians also began to open.
His meridians completely opened.
His inner Qi freely cycled his body.
A door emerged in Jude’s mind.
The third door.
The third door of Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors.
Jude slowly opened the door.
He opened it at the same time it was installed.
He had already done it twice.
The opening of the third door was the same as the opening of the first and second doors.
No.
It was different from before.
Jude could feel it.
Everything was pitch black.
A white light appeared in this black area.
It covered the sky and the ground.
There was someone who stood in that white world that spread out on the pitch-black darkness.
He or she.
He didn’t know yet.
It was an unrecognizable existence at the level of the third door.
But he or she saw Jude.
They had a smile on their face.
A person who sat inside that white world.
A silhouette of a person who seemed to have been drawn with rough ink lines.
He or she began to move.
He or she made a slow but clear move, as if telling Jude to look carefully.
And that was the moment.
A new chant came to Jude’s mind.
A clear voice echoed in his head.
It became a little clearer and more visible.
It was a woman.
The figure of a woman who seemed to be drawn with rough ink lines taught Jude.
New movements, a new chant, and a new skill.
Black Dragon Release Technique.
The woman said. She stretched out her hand. At that moment, a giant black dragon rose from her palm and struck the white world.
Roaaaaaaar-!
The black dragon roared. It smashed and destroyed the white world.
The woman turned to Jude.
Once again, she smiled brightly, and raised her hand to point at Jude. She pretended to use the skill again.
Give it a try.
You can do it.
Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors’ Black Dragon Release Technique.
Jude recited the chant.
His aura moved. His Cheonmujiche responded. It naturally knew what to do and how to do it.
“Black Dragon Release Technique.”
Jude said.
He stretched out his hand.
***
The next morning.
Jude and Cordelia left the basin after being sent off by Gentle Snow Breeze, and the two headed towards Raptor Canyon.
However, the facial expressions of the two were different.
Jude’s face was glowing with a smile, and Cordelia kept looking at him with an awkward face.
“Hmm-hmm~huhu-hmm~”
Cordelia flinched when Jude began to unusually hum.
And she studied Jude’s face again.
Why is he so excited?
Why is he broadly smiling?
Um…anyway, shouldn’t I behave like nothing happened at that time?
‘That’s right! Let’s pretend that I don’t remember!’
Having made up her mind, Cordelia cleared her throat and made a cool and dignified expression as if she had not done something shameful, and Jude had a wicked smile and said in a low voice.
“Lick, lick.”
Cordelia’s face turned red.
But Cordelia didn’t give up yet.
“What nonsense are you suddenly saying?”
“Lick, lick.”
“You b*stard! You wretched b*stard!”
Cordelia eventually gave up and began slapping Jude on the back, and Jude just smiled in satisfaction.
“Ugh! Hey! It no longer hurts when I hit you? Have you been lying so far that it doesn’t hurt?”
“No, it hurts a lot. Ouch, it hurts. Ouch, it hurts.”
“I hate you so much!”
Cordelia, whose neck had turned red too, began to increase the strength in her hands.
“Ack! Hey! Hey! It hurts! It really hurts!”
“It doesn’t hurt!”
“No, you’re wrong. It really hurts, okay? Your level is high too, right?”
Though it may be less than the martial artist Jude, the wizard Cordelia also had her physical abilities increased every time she leveled up.
As Jude frantically cried, Cordelia asked after reflexively stopping her hand.
“Does it really hurt?”
“It really hurts.”
“That’s great!”
“Ah! Ah! Hey! Hey!”
“More! Be more hurt!”
“Lick, lick.”
“Hey! It doesn’t hurt? You’re not actually hurt, huh?”
“It hurts, but still, lick, lick.”
“Die!”
A few minutes passed since the violence and relentless teasing between the two began.
Cordelia panted after getting tired, and Jude said.
“It’s all right, because it was very cute.”
“F*cking b*stard. I’ll reconsider using Beast Mode again.”
Cordelia glared at Jude and decided to change the topic instead of hitting Jude more.
“Anyway!”
“Anyway.”
“Are we going to Raptor Canyon now?”
“Yes, because it seems that there’s a relation between Lena and the elves’ magic kingdom, which is said to be in Raptor Canyon.”
“The ruins of the magic kingdom…there must be a lot of rare items, right?”
“Tsk, tsk…you’re greedy for everything.”
“Die.”
As Cordelia glared at Jude again, Jude cheerfully smiled and said.
“Well, I’m looking forward to it too. It’s a magic kingdom, so there’ll be a lot of stuff that you can use.”
“Moonlight is still worth using, so I hope that there would be a lot of other things. Like armor or accessories.”
“Since you’re using the witch’s magic, wouldn’t it be nice to have items that speed up your mana recovery?”
“Yes, yes, I must completely raise my mana itself. It’s good that the witch’s magic is strong, but it consumes a lot of mana.”
After she said that, Cordelia suddenly stopped and looked back at Jude.
“Come to think of it, did you absorb the Essence of the Blue Moon well?”
“I absorbed it well.”
“For real? Then did you open the third door? Are you stronger now?”
Cordelia asked as she walked up to Jude with her eyes shining.
Jude replied as he impulsively pinched Cordelia’s cheeks.
“I opened it.”
Cordelia would have usually called him crazy and asked why he was pinching, but this time, her eyes got bigger and she widely smiled.
“Wow! Third door! The third door! How did it go? Has something changed? Did you learn some new skills or something?”
“Should I show it?”
“Yes, show it to me. I want to see it. I want to experience it.”
As she jumped in place with the rabbit ears headband on her head, Jude smiled again at the sight of such a Cordelia, before he suddenly hugged Cordelia on her waist with just one arm.
“I’ll show it to you.”
It was not only the Black Dragon Release Technique that he learned.
Twenty-Four Gale Steps also received a new change.
‘Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors.’
Nine worlds and nine doors.
It was the special martial arts of the transcendent being who defeated the overlords of hell when they came down to this world in the past.
“Twenty-Four Gale Steps – Black Wind’s Advent.”
Jude said in a low voice before he carried Cordelia with both hands. Cordelia clung to him as he stirred up the wind.
Dozens of golden-colored whirlwinds rose.
And in between that, a jet-black wind soared up too.
“Kya?”
Jude laughed at Cordelia’s scream that was a beat late.
He unhesitatingly stepped forward and became the wind itself.
Shaaa-!
Instead of a deafening roar, what was heard was the sound of something piercing the air.
The jet-black wind that was surrounded by the golden whirlwinds blew. It became a gale as it crossed over the white snowfield.
***
At the time when Jude and Cordelia were headed for Raptor Canyon…
Gaël and Adelia were facing Red Wind.
“Uh…so you mean that Cordelia bought you?”
“Yes. Cordelia-unnie bought me. To save me at the auction house.”
Though her fluency in the continent’s official language was poor, Red Wind expressed her admiration for Cordelia with great enthusiasm.
Gaël asked after listening to her story.
“By the way, Miss Red Wind, did you happen to hear where Jude and Cordelia got the money?”
Although Gaël had never been involved in the slave trade, he at least had some knowledge of it.
As the heir to one of the 12 northern families, he understood how the world works to some degree.
Red Wind inherited the blood of the Winter Elves, so she was a very beautiful girl, which meant that her price was likely higher than usual due to the nature of the Lankebuste’s slave auction house.
But Jude and Cordelia bought her in a normal transaction?
At Gaël’s question, Adelia also had a curious expression.
“Come to think of it, you’re right. It’s not something they can do from just their pocket money.”
In addition, when they looked back on Jude and Cordelia’s journey, the two had constantly spent a lot of money.
So they were curious on where the two got the money to buy an expensive slave.
“Uh…Cordelia-unnie said. She gambled.”
“Gambled? Uh, you mean the casino?”
“Right. It was called casino. They made money there and bought me. Jude-oppa said they went to the casino to earn money to buy me.”
As Red Wind broadly smiled, Gaël and Adelia looked at each other, and soon, anger rose on Adelia’s face.
‘He was a gambler?!’
Did they just go to the casino because he wanted to, or did they go to earn money to buy slaves?
It was one of the two.
Either he is too pure and honest, or he is a gambling addict!
“Uh…ahem…it seems they somehow won though.”
Adelia’s eyes narrowed when Gaël cleared his throat and spoke.
And Red Wind said again.
“Right. Cordelia-unnie said she won a lot. Unnie boasted that she was good at gambling.”
“Wait, Lady Cordelia won?”
“Unnie is very good at gambling. She said that she’ll take me later.”
Gaël’s gaze went back to Adelia at the innocent remarks of Red Wind, and Adelia flinched before she said as she cleared her throat.
“Ahem, ahem, she must be lucky…I guess. That’s it.”
“…I see.”
In any case, it was good that they made a lot of money and saved Red Wind, instead of squandering their fortune in vain.
“Miss Red Wind, can I ask you to continue your story?”
“Okay, I’ll continue.”
Red Wind also talked about the things that had happened after crossing the border.
“The Ghostblade Kamael…”
“I didn’t expect Jude to be Landius’ disciple.”
It was an unexpected appearance of important figures.
The Ghostblade Kamael, and Landius, the iron man.
The two were undeniably the continent’s top swordsmen.
“Umm…I’m sorry. I didn’t really understand what they talked about with that person named Kamael.”
“No, this is enough. Thanks for telling us.”
When Gaël brightly smiled, Red Wind unconsciously blushed and giggled as she left the room, and Adelia spoke after she cleared her throat due to some unexplainable discomfort that she felt.
“It certainly doesn’t seem like normal.”
“Yes, I don’t think it’s just a matter of being involved with demon followers. Them crossing the border seems to be due to an important mission rather than an elopement. Perhaps…I don’t know if we should also change the purpose of our trip.”
They also had to help the two solve the current problem in addition to recovering the immature runaway couple.
“Haa…Cordelia…”
Adelia bit her lips and let out a troubled voice.
It would have been better if they had just run away.
According to what they had heard, Cordelia was running towards an even greater danger.
“Don’t be so worried. We’ll be able to join the two soon.”
“Yes…you’re right. Thank you, Lord Gaël. I’m thankful that Lord Gaël is here.”
“I’m also thankful that Lady Adelia is here.”
Gaël and Adelia stared at each other.
If Violent Avalanche was here, it would have a truly uncomfortable expression at the two staring at each other.
It was Adelia who turned her head away first.
“Ahem, ahem. Anyway, I think we shouldn’t delay ourselves. Let’s start heading towards the Gentle Snow Breeze tribe.”
“Okay, I think that’s a good idea.”
Gaël casually smiled and stood up from his seat before he held out his hand to Adelia.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Lord Gaël.”
Adelia held Gaël’s hand and stood up as she wondered why he was being more modest than usual, and as they were leaving the room, she suddenly stopped walking. Because there was something else that came to her mind.
“That, by the way, Lord Gaël.”
“Yes, Lady Adelia.”
“That…Lord Gaël doesn’t do anything like gambling, right?”
“Yes, I don’t. That…Lady Adelia…you don’t too, right?”
“Yes, me too.”
“That’s good.”
“Yes, that’s good.”
It was relevant to them that the other was a virtuous person.
Anyway, the two were relieved by the fact that neither side gambled, and they went out of the room with a small smile on their faces.
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