Chapter 381: With Everyone (5)
I first roamed around the village to gather information.
'First, half of this village's residents are followers of the Wuji Religious Order.'
Among them are my comrades: Jeon Myeong-hoon, Kim Yeon, Buk Hyang-hwa, Yeon Wei, and Yeon Jin.
To find the rest of my comrades, I will likely need to visit other villages.
'The place I landed is called Penglai (蓬萊).'
Penglai is approximately the size of India on Earth, and the four hundred million followers of the Wuji Religious Order who entered Penglai all fell as citizens of 'Penglai Kingdom'. It is estimated that the population of Penglai Kingdom is around several hundred million.
'Of course, this is just an estimate.'
It's possible that not all are humans but have been reborn as beasts, demon spirits, or even real ghosts.This Penglai Kingdom is divided into a central capital and seven provinces nation-wide besides the capital.
Each province is divided into ten prefectures, and each prefecture is followed by more than ten counties and districts, with villages as the unit below the districts.
And this village I am in is one such unit.
'This village's name is Taiyi Village (太乙村).'
Yeon Wei's husband, Tae Won, is the village head and local authority, known by the nickname 'Old Gentleman Nolbu.' Jeon Myeong-hoon, Yeon Wei's younger brother, seems to be called 'Heungbu's' (meaning Heungbu's household), due to being a relative of Nolbu's family.
It seems to be influenced by the folk tale in the memories of me, Jeon Myeong-hoon, and Kim Yeon.
[TL/N: 'Heungbu and Nolbu' is a Korean story written in the late Joseon Dynasty.]
'Except that Heungbu and Nolbu are on good terms in this world.'
Jeon Myeong-hoon has a harmonious relationship with his wife Jin So-hae, and they have 12 children. Gentleman Nolbu Hon Won is a good husband who listens well to Yeon Wei, and thus takes good care of Jeon Myeong-hoon, Yeon Wei's younger brother.
Moreover Jeon Myeong-hoon is also diligent in managing the household with Jin So-hae, so he rarely has to ask them for help.
Buk Hyang-hwa and Kim Yeon are step-sisters due to Kim Yeon's father remarrying a stepmother with a daughter. Kim Yeon's father passed away early, and while the stepmother heavily favors Buk Hyang-hwa, Buk Hyang-hwa and Kim Yeon have a good relationship.
Much like a distorted version of Kongjwi and Patjwi.
[TL/N: Another Korean folk tale.]
'Then, am I also a protagonist in a folk tale? But what kind of folk tale features a charcoal seller as the protagonist?'
Despite pondering deeply, I can't recall any folk tale involving a charcoal seller as the protagonist.
'Should I carry Kim Yeon on my back and go around slaying demons?'
With such idle thoughts, I walk around the village once and then head to the back mountain, approaching the 'charcoal kiln', the workplace of the charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun.
Upon casual inspection, the charcoal kiln appears neglected, with various parts on the verge of collapsing, clearly showing that charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun hadn't taken care of it properly.
'Did they say he always produced poor-quality charcoal?
Moreover, charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun would sell his low-quality charcoal to earn a pittance, which he would then spend in the neighboring Soeul Village, indulging in drinking, dancing, and gambling with a local named So Ddong (cow dung).
As a result, he has no savings.
'...Was he just a hopeless case?'
Sighing, I pick up a rusty axe lying next to the kiln.
'I thought about selling the charcoal kiln to raise money and leave for another village, but...who would buy this kiln?'
I shake my head in dismay.
"What a fool..."
No wonder he was poor, sticking to a low-selling business like charcoal.
'In this era, the best way to make money is by selling soap. Selling charcoal? That's foolish!'
I open the charcoal kiln.
It's filled with a thick layer of ash.
'If I could get some oil and turn all that ash into soap...'
Old memories surface, making my hands start itching.
I want to make soap right away.
"Tsk, this is not it."
Shaking off the temptation of starting a soap business, I begin searching beneath the kiln, recalling the memories of charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun.
"Found it..."
I find a fire poker beneath the kiln.
Its pointed end makes it seem useful as a weapon.
Holding the axe and poker, I venture into the forest.
'According to Yuk Rin's exploration logs, the way to gather comrades within this formation is not to foolishly wander around the seven provinces, but rather making them come to you.'
And the best way to summon comrades is by building 'achievements.'
In this world, accomplishing something worthy of note will gradually raise one's status, and those I seek would appear before me.
'According to the memories of charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun, there's a demon spirit living on the mountainside beyond the back mountain of Taiyi Village.
Every night, the demon spirit would come down from the mountain to devour livestock, and at times even humans, causing constant anxiety among the villagers. Only someone shunned by the village, like the charcoal seller, would dare go up the back mountain.
I decided to first meet the demon spirit at least once.
'The demon spirit could also be a comrade, and more importantly, I need to gauge the level of demon spirits in this world.'
The only significant threat in this world seems to be demon spirits.
Apart from them, the likes of soldiers or constables are honestly not very frightening unless more than ten thousand of them are coming.
How long have I been walking through the forest? I realize I have entered the demon spirit's territory.
White fur is scattered throughout the forest.
"This is..."
Approaching the fur, I pick it up and sniff it, immediately identifying the demon spirit.
"Oh...this demon spirit..."
Just then.
Kuung!
A house-sized fox with three familiar tails appears before me.
[Grrrr...grrrr!]
The fox glares at me with red eyes, baring its teeth as if ready to devour me.
It's Shi Ho.
[Kwaoooooooh!!!]
I stare at Shi Ho for a moment, then ask nonchalantly.
"What...are you asking for an arm for trespassing into your territory?"
What a nostalgic situation. It really brings back old memories.
"No way, you bitch."
[Kiyaaaaaak!]
It seems Shi Ho reverted to a complete beast after falling into Penglai Kingdom, losing his reason and attacking me.
I swiftly control my muscles perfectly to climb up a nearby tree, and map the surrounding terrain in my mind to devise my battle plan.
Shi Ho, after a moment of searching, finds me and bites into the tree I climbed with his massive jaws.
Waduduk!
Dududuk!
After biting and thrashing the tree about ten times, it shows signs of collapsing.
'Judging by his muscles and the strength he's displaying, he has the power of two or three bears combined.'
Calmly and with a cold gaze, I leap to another tree like a monkey and observe Shi Ho.
In his frenzy, he continues to destroy trees, and as I keep evading, he becomes more furious and roars even louder.
At one point, I notice his muscles swelling.
'Hoo...'
Simultaneously, Shi Ho kicks off the ground, flying towards the treetop where I stand with his jaws wide open.
And I, with a faint smile, grasp the fire poker in reverse.
Since I could kill him by stabbing him with the pointed end, I intend to use it merely as a club.
"Is that all?"
Back in the early days on Ascension Path, the reason why I always had my arm torn off by Shi Ho wasn't because of its size or appearance.
This damned mutt was, after all, a demon beast at the Core Formation stage, and once it started using its demonic abilities, it was impossible to counter.
However, now that it has fallen to Penglai Island, Shi Ho only resembles his former self in appearance. He can't use his demon abilities, lacks rationality, and is no different from a demon beast at the very early stages of Qi Refining, only amplifying his physical abilities with demonic power.
And if that's the case...
'I can catch him blindfolded, even without spiritual power or internal energy.'
With the opportunity to test my physical capabilities, I grip my axe and fire poker and charge to kick the jaws of Shi Ho, who is also charging at me.
Immediately after, I swiftly move behind him, thrust the fire poker into the gap between his shoulder muscles, and grab his fur tightly.
[Keeeeekk!]
Shi Ho screams and falls from the tree. Before hitting the ground, he quickly twists his body to land and then starts running around frantically, trying to shake me off.
But I read his muscles, predict all his movements, and skillfully stay on his back. When he shows an opening, I reach for his head.
Kugugugu!
Squeezing all the muscles of my entire body for a brief moment, I take a breath and focus my muscles' strength into one place.
Then, in an instant.
Kwaaang!
I use all my might to strike the back of Shi Ho's head, feeling his brain shake from the impact containing the subtlety of vibrating force.
His eyes roll back, and he faints immediately.
"Huu..."
I step away from Shi Ho's body and check my condition.
Since I used my body without the brain’s restriction for a bit, my body is not in good state.
'Not being able to use energy makes capturing even a guy like this without injury difficult.'
If I had even a tiny speck of internal energy, I could have captured Shi Ho much more easily.
After calming my startled muscles with a few deep breaths, I stand up.
Then, I recall the surrounding terrain I observed earlier.
'Shi Ho spun around a central point while trying to shake me off.'
So, it's likely that the center is Shi Ho's den.
After looking at the unconscious Shi Ho and realizing it will take some time before he wakes up, I head towards his den.
'Since he's a demon spirit, it'll be nice if he collected some treasures.'
And indeed, I found an unexpected 'treasure.'
"S-Senior!!! Did Senior get captured too!?"
It's Seo Ran.
"...No, I came to rescue you."
I smile as I unexpectedly find my next ally to regain awareness after me.
"...First, let's talk about what has happened."
________________________________________
Crack, crackle, crackle!
We light a fire and roast the carcasses left behind in Shi Ho's den.
Lying on Shi Ho's tail, who now obeys me after waking up and returning to his den, I ask.
"So, as soon as you gained awareness, Shi Ho kidnapped you and you've been here for a few days?"
"Yes, that's correct. It seems the obsession with me remains even here."
Interestingly, Seo Ran is of the 'Human' Race.
"First of all, my setting...seems to be an orphan beggar who lost his memory and ended up on the streets. My identity is 'an orphan with no ties', and I don't have any other memories. So far, I haven't met any other comrades besides Shi Ho."
"Hmmm..."
Listening to him gives me a headache.
'What exactly are the conditions for gaining awareness? Is it just random?'
Seo Ran has neither lived long, has a large consciousness, nor has a high cultivation.
But from what I hear, it seems he had gained awareness even before me.
I try to think of commonalities that might exist between Seo Ran and me.
'Seo Ran is an orphan beggar. And I am a poor charcoal seller.'
Both of us have experienced hunger.
'Could it be that our awareness is triggered at the boundary between life and death?'
I hypothesize as I look at Shi Ho.
"Hey, Seo Ran. If I push this guy to the brink of death, do you think Shi Ho will gain awareness?"
Seo Ran is taken aback and shakes his head.
"P-Please don't do that."
"...?"
"No, I mean...if it doesn't work, wouldn't Shi Ho die for no reason?"
Shi Ho, who had been tense at my words, relaxes when Seo Ran seems to dissuade me, and I nod for now.
"Well, that is true. Then what should we do..."
"First of all, in my opinion...this seems to be something that will take a bit of time. There are still too few examples, and the conditions are unknown. So, rather than gathering comrades right now, how about focusing on establishing a reputation as Senior initially aimed for?"
"Hmm...indeed."
I nod.
There will be no difference whether Seo Ran and I kill or spare Shi Ho.
So, raising our reputation by establishing great achievements seems like the best course of action to attract comrades to my side.
"Good. Then for now, let's start planning in detail..."
Gurururuk—
Suddenly, a hungry growl comes from Seo Ran's stomach.
I stare at Seo Ran for a moment and hand him some roasted meat.
Seo Ran devours the meat voraciously, but I keep observing him.
Seo Eun-hyun, the charcoal seller, had never gone hungry since he could always steal money for rice and soup, but Seo Ran, an amnesiac beggar orphan in this world, seems severely malnourished.
"...For now, let's go to my place and get you some food. Then we'll make a plan."
Since Seo Ran can't starve to death, I decide to feed him before discussing our next steps.
We order Shi Ho to stay put and descend the mountain.
Shi Ho appears to want to follow Seo Ran, but after a little beating from me, he becomes very obedient, so no big problems arise.
Back home, I wash the rice that Yeon Wei mixed with sand and pebbles.
Amazingly, what had been a bucketful of rice is reduced to a few handfuls once all the sand and pebbles are washed out.
I explain to Seo Ran about the rice Yeon Wei gave and apologize for the small amount.
'...Yeon Wei, that human. I need to kidnap her and hang her upside down someday.'
Perhaps influenced by charcoal seller Seo Eun-hyun's persona, a bad thought flashes through my mind.
I somehow manage to cook the scant amount of rice, and Seo Ran, after eating the rice with soy sauce despite being filled with stones even after being washed, gives me his opinion.
"How about becoming mountain bandits?"
"Mountain bandits?"
"Yes. We will use Shi Ho to raid the village. Since Elder Yeon Wei still hasn't gained awareness, if we empty the granary and make them go hungry like Senior and me, won't they come to their senses?"