"Gegeck..."
Finally, I was able to cut off my tail.
It had been with for so long—possibly the longest-lasting and most powerful tail.
Had my tail ever been this thick before?
I could understand why Tus swallowed his saliva every ti he saw it. It was quite tempting.
No, it wasn't just Tus.
My followers had started making strange expressions whenever they saw my tail growing thicker.
At first, it was treated as sothing of a relic of Gae Gak Sect, and they had all tasted it once, so they must have known the value of my current tail.
They swallowed their saliva, but sadly, this tail couldn’t be shared.
This was only for the Master.
It was a thick tail with a red cloth tied to it.
Cutting such a tail felt refreshing, but at the sa ti, it felt a little regretful.
It almost felt like the tail was speaking to .
Saying that it had been enjoyable to be together all this ti.
Normally, I’d be crying and begging it not to go, but I wasn’t an ordinary lizard.
Without hesitation, I cut off my tail.
If I didn’t cut it off, a great disaster would happen.
There’s a mysterious story that a lizard doesn’t have just one tail, but two, so it might seem okay to lose one, but when you experience it firsthand, the story changes.
It’s a precious tail, and no matter how many there were, I couldn’t lose it.
Besides, if I delayed, the problem wouldn’t just stop at one tail.
I had heard the shocking news that I could turn into a female lizard if I didn’t cut it off, undergoing Gyeohwabojon (Transformation Preservation Ritual), so how could I afford to waste ti?
That, above all, couldn’t happen.
I was almost there.
Once I dealt with Jinryong, no one would be able to stop .
Then, I could live a comfortable life, and days of carefree lounging would continue.
But in such a situation, changing my gender would be out of the question.
So, I finally cut off my tail, and up until that mont, there were no problems.
However, the side effects ca when the Master lightly touched my tail to taste it.
I had already been in poor health, and I imdiately fainted.
"Gerolong."
When I ca to, I was lying on the Master’s bed.
To exaggerate a little, the amount of energy I accumulated was more than all the elixirs I had consud combined.
Cutting off the tail at once ant side effects were inevitable.
It would be a lie to say I didn’t feel regret, but it was okay.
Helping the Master was the priority.
The energy I lost wasn’t originally mine, and there were marvelous elixirs left in my nest.
The Neidan of Qiongqi and Bihui were being purified.
Each one would likely have better efficacy than my tail.
Though the recovery power was far lower than that of the tail, which was custom-made for the Master, the internal energy itself would certainly be greater.
It was Neidan from a legendary beast-level spirit.
"Gerong..."
The Master gently stroked my head with one finger.
"Remarkably clean and pure internal energy."
It couldn’t be helped.
My body acted as a kind of filter, taking in the bad elents of the elixir and concentrating the good elents in my tail.
"Frost-cold Yin energy, warm Yang energy like the sun, and nurous other energies all converged in one place."
The Master evaluated my tail as though savoring it.
Hearing that made feel a little proud.
"Hiya, my disciple. You've truly beco much stronger."
"Gegeck!"
The Master extended his left pinky finger toward .
What was that?
Was he asking to do sothing?
Well, since he’s asking, I’ll do it.
Wang.
Thud.
The mont I touched his finger, he lifted as if he had been waiting for it.
"Geek."
Dangling like that, he gently tickled my belly with his other hand.
"To think that the little lizard I saw back then has already reached the level of advanced stage."
"Gegeck."
Yeah, ti flies.
It feels like it was just yesterday when I took a stance in front of the Master, and now I’ve reached advanced stage...
Wait, advanced stage?
Not Super Peak?
When I looked at the Master with that expression, he nodded lightly, as if he had expected it.
"Yeah, now you can be called advanced stage, not Super Peak."
"Geck?"
"From the expression, it looks like you didn’t know."
I could understand that I had the power at the level of advanced stage.
The realm was Super Peak, but my physical strength was stronger than most advanced stage masters.
But the Master’s words ant that my level itself had reached advanced stage.
"I’ve been wondering about sothing. There’s an instability. The vessel has expanded to the level of advanced stage, but there’s no enlightennt. It’s still a half-baked level, but still, it’s undeniable that you’ve reached advanced stage."
The vessel has expanded to advanced stage?
I hadn’t realized any enlightennt though?
How could I have reached advanced stage so soon after becoming Super Peak?
With that expression, the Master smiled faintly.
"Try to use a sword energy."
Right, the biggest difference between advanced stage and Super Peak is the presence of sword energy.
I raised my front leg, half believing in it.
Naturally, sword energy ford.
The sword energy gathered like threads, then condensed into a sword form.
A definite shape appeared as a blue energy wrapped around my claws.
"Gegeck!"
"What did I say? I told you you’ve definitely reached advanced stage."
Am I really at the advanced stage?
Why?
...
No way...
Is it... Shimma, that bastard?
— Hmph. I expanded the body I'll use as I please. Do you have a problem with that?
A problem?
I should have said this earlier, Shimma-sensei.
Giving two techniques, and forcibly pushing to the advanced stage.
Could it be that he's actually a better guy than I thought?
"My disciple has entered the harmonious advanced stage, so if only our hearts were the sa, I’d love to share a drink."
Sensei drinking?
I want to see you drunk.
...Of course, I don't think my teacher would ever get drunk.
And if he did, it’d be a disaster if he has a bad habit.
If there was so habit of turning a perfectly fine lizard into a mummy by hugging it too tightly, no one would be able to stop it.
But suddenly being at the advanced stage... It feels like a new experience.
At the sa ti, I can't help but feel a little deflated.
After all, it wasn’t sothing I achieved on my own. It happened while Shimma temporarily took control of my body.
"My disciple’s advanced stage isn’t accompanied by natural enlightennt. At first, it may seem no different from an ordinary advanced stage, but as you grow stronger, it will inevitably beco unbalanced."
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
I see... Could that be the case?
It seems inevitable.
If reaching the advanced stage is this easy, the other advanced beings would be furious.
"On the other hand, if natural enlightennt accompanies the stage, you could beco stronger than you are now."
"Eh!"
You’re telling to gain enlightennt after reaching the advanced stage?
Is it like paying back what you took?
"Three Flower Blooming Technique—when three flowers bloom and the three Yangs appear at the upper dantian, it may just reach the heart."
Three Flower Blooming Technique!
I rember hearing about that from Cho-Do as well.
I didn’t quite understand it at the ti.
"Since you’ve co here, and we need to heal the internal injuries, what better ti could there be?"
Right, right.
Since my whole body is worn out, I do need to heal these internal injuries.
And it seems like the hot springs Seolhwa ntioned might be nearby.
If that’s the case... then of course...
"Ke-rong, ke-ro-ro-ong."
Heh heh...
I let out the kind of laugh that a Bicorn would make.
I really didn’t want to do this, but the world won’t leave alone.
Sensei, co here!
"Get into position, I’ll personally guide you."
...Huh?
"Ge-e-e-ek?"
"What's that expression? It’s the look of a lizard who had its at snatched away."
It wasn’t "Ke-ro-ro-ong" after all?
I’m injured, you know?
"The more so, you must focus more on your training."
"Ge-ge-ge-ge-ek!"
What’s with this "Sensei, co here"? I’m stuck in your hands, unable to move.
Aaaagh!
I’m an advanced-stage master, damn it!
*
Bihui and Qiongqi haven’t returned.
The absence of two advanced-stage spiritual beings must’ve been baffling even for Jinryong.
Of course, it wasn’t that he underestimated the power of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
The spiritual creatures were not to be dismissed lightly, even if they weren't unified.
Moreover, the leader of the group bearing the na Heavenly Demon Cult was so strong that she could carve an indelible wound into Jinryong, and the Cheonho, rumored to be in contact with gods, was a difficult opponent in a different sense.
There were many other strong figures too.
That’s why Jinryong considered the possibility of defeat while sending out Qiongqi and Bihui.
However, their failure and the silence from them was another matter.
Qiongqi, that’s acceptable.
He was a strong spiritual being, but he wasn’t truly loyal to Jinryong.
If he t an entity that could give him the death he longed for, he would dive straight in without thinking about what ca after.
That’s why Jinryong chose Qiongqi.
To deal a crippling blow to the Heavenly Demon Cult and, at the sa ti, gain a reason for war.
But Bihui was different.
He was the eldest son of the Yongsaengguja, a being that could use the na of a dragon.
Furthermore, unlike Qiongqi, he was a spiritual being with strong defensive capabilities.
How could such a being die without sending any word?
That doesn’t make sense.
Even if there really was a being who could subdue Bihui in one blow...
There would’ve been word of it.
If it was a being that strong, Bihui would’ve sent word before even encountering it.
Bihui was that kind of being.
Even if death was approaching, he would fulfill his duty as a spiritual being.
But there’s no word from Bihui.
It’s not just about strength; it’s like there’s sothing special about him.
For instance, a being that could shake Bihui’s resolve.
But could such a spiritual being exist in this world?
A being with the strength to overwhelm Bihui and sothing so special that Bihui wouldn’t even dare to look at it?
At least in this generation, no.
...Perhaps in the previous generation.
If we include ancient spiritual beings, there could have been such a being.
A figure crossed Jinryong’s mind.
A tail with an old death.
The earth dragon that could face Jinryong, a monstrous being that could be called death itself.
It’s said that Jinryong defeated him in his last monts, but in reality, it was different.
When the claws of Gomodo, who had massacred thousands of spiritual beings, finally touched Jinryong’s neck, the battle ended.
Gomodo disappeared without a trace.
As if he was never in this world at all.
Others who saw that scene from a distance claid that Jinryong killed Gomodo, but Jinryong knew better.
Gomodo wasn’t dead.
He was alive, and would return one day.
Jinryong knew this, and that’s why he couldn’t act recklessly during Gomodo’s absence.
"...Why have you returned, brother?"
Jinryong spoke quietly, looking into the air.
His massive white body slowly began to stir.
Gomodo had returned.
Extre evil, extre poison, extre sound.
The energy from the wounds he received that day began to amplify.
The bitter pain.
The death marks etched into Jinryong’s body that could never be erased.
Jinryong roared into the sky.
The true dragon.
A sky dragon capable of facing Gomodo, a divine beast that could be called life itself.
"Spread the word to the central plains."
Realizing that Gomodo had returned, Jinryong decided to use everything he had prepared.
"It’s ti to form the Martial Alliance."
The martial artists of the Murim had been brainwashed by him for a long ti.
Brainwashing wasn’t sothing that grand or complicated.
Simply put, he had defined Gomodo as evil and had Jinryong accepted as a human ally.
From the humans’ perspective, Gomodo would just seem like a monster to be defeated.
That’s why the spiritual beings of Kunlun and the martial artists of the central plains...
Jinryong’s plan was to unite these two forces, march to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, and obliterate Gomodo, as well as the annoying Heavenly Demon Cult.
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