Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Cultivation Through Copulation.

Episode 57: Elder Han Ryeo-un

Elder Han alternated her glare between Sang-gwan Geuk and So Han-pyeong.

This place was deep within the ruins.

Until the true heart of the ruins emerged, the three elders had entered together under a truce agreement.

When the three elders combined their strength, formations and barriers melted away, and there seemed to be nothing their Core Formation stage aura couldn’t penetrate.

In the midst of this, they were blocked by a barrier that seemed like it would take a long time to break through, and were in the middle of a discussion.

The debate was whether to bypass this or to take the time to dismantle the barrier and proceed.

The former drew opposition from Old Monster Sang-gwan due to the time it would take, while the latter drew opposition from Elder So due to the risk of forcibly dismantling the barrier and potentially collapsing the ruins.

This way or that way, nothing was satisfactory.

What on earth were they supposed to do?

Elder Han was exasperated by their ridiculous stubbornness.

The old monsters whose eyes were turned by a single ancient ruin.

Of course, Elder Han wasn’t exactly young either. Having reached the Core Formation stage, she was well over 150 years old. But compared to those nearing 300, she was only practically halfway through her life.

“What do you intend to do? You don’t like this, you don’t like that. What do you want?”

“A clash of opposing opinions means we need to mediate, doesn’t it? Do you think we want to miss out on treasures and fortuitous encounters?”

“Of course, of course. There might be clues about the Nascent Soul stage here. At my age, I need to rely on such fortuitous encounters.”

Sang-gwan Geuk and So Han-pyeong responded in harmony like seasoned performers.

“The mediation of differing opinions is taking too long. At this rate, a day will pass without resolving anything.”

Sang-gwan Geuk shamelessly replied to Elder Han’s incredulous remark.

“Hmm, then how about we first decide the order in which we’ll divide the treasure? We can think more about whether to bypass or break through later.”

“Huh, you want to decide the order of dividing the treasure without even figuring out how to get in? Why decide the order when there’s no treasure in front of us?”

“How important is the order of dividing the treasure?”

“Forget it, let’s decide how to get in first. What’s with the order of dividing the treasure?”

Despite Elder Han’s words, Sang-gwan Geuk inquired about Elder So’s opinion.

“Elder So, what do you think?”

“The order of dividing the treasure is….”

Mid-sentence, Elder So of the Perfected Dao Sect charged ahead with his unique cloud art. In the direction of the left passage they had decided as the detour.

His Earth technique was certainly rare even at the Core Formation stage.

His speed, using cloud spells along with wind spells, was difficult to follow with the eye.

At Elder So’s sudden start, a senior frowned under her mask. What a cowardly person.

Elder Han quickly tried to follow…

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Swoosh, swoosh!

Elder Han’s view turned crimson. Blood gushed from the walls, ceiling, and floor, as if engulfing the space.

The passage of the ruins became entirely blood-red.

Is this a sea of blood? The legendary Blood Sea, where everything turns into a handful of blood?

Sang-gwan Geuk’s magical art that induces such illusions.

Core Formation stage magical arts are at a level where imagination replaces reality. Sang-gwan Geuk’s imagery, ‘Blood Sea Overwhelming the World’, engulfed the passage of the ruins, expanding its domain.

The imagery visualized by a Core Formation cultivator becomes reality.

In the mental realm brought into reality, a Core Formation cultivator becomes a god. Within that world, they can summon storms, overturn the earth, and split the sky with a mere gesture.

Even entering the mental realm of a Core Formation cultivator was dangerous for another of the same level.

Sang-gwan Geuk attempted to draw Elder Han into his mental realm.

However, Elder Han was not one to simply stand by and watch.

Elder Han also unleashed her own mental realm, where biting winds raged, to prevent the Blood Sea Overwhelming the World from further eroding the ruins.

A chill pervades.

The air had grown so cold that white mist formed with every breath.

Though the floor, ceiling, and walls were still a sea of blood, the air was filled with frozen moisture forming tiny frost crystals.

The frost crystals swirled like falling snow.

Crack!

Sang-gwan Geuk felt his skin freezing. With every movement, the moisture on his skin froze, forming a thin layer of ice.

This chill was intensifying, eventually becoming an extreme cold that would freeze everything.

It was the elder’s mental realm, ‘Ice White Snow Mountain Blossom’.

The clash between Ice White Snow Mountain Blossom and Blood Sea Overwhelming the World turned the ruins’ passageway into a completely different world.

Blood surged everywhere, and the chill that froze it lingered around.

The blood froze and surged, froze and surged repeatedly.

Sang-gwan Geuk stood on the surging sea of blood, while Elder Han stood on the frozen sea of blood.

The two people’s mental realms formed a peculiar balance.

Elder Han maintained her mental realm strongly, attempting to persuade Sang-gwan Geuk. Fighting like this would only drag on endlessly without an easy resolution.

“Can you just stand by and watch as Elder So departs like that? Aren’t you afraid he will seize everything?”

“So Han-pyeong? Does it really matter how far that petty man has gone right now? I’m more interested in the fact that Han Ryeo-un, you’re here.”

“You insane bastard!”

Elder Han shuddered at the creepy words of Sang-gwan Geuk and fiercely channeled her Spiritual Qi.

The chill intensified, and a snowstorm began to rage.

The cold frost pierced the skin sharply, turning the passage inside the ruins into a world of ice.

Sang-gwan Geuk also laughed bizarrely and raised his Spiritual Qi, making a sea of blood surge.

The waves of a sea of blood. Within those waves were screams and shouts, cries mixed with murderous intent, and the ecstasy of killing.

The amount of blood surging from all directions increased.

The blood froze but soon erupted with hot energy, gushing forth.

The chill tried to freeze the sea of blood, but it surged, never fully freezing. The frozen blood and unfrozen blood divided equally, maintaining balance once more.

Sang-gwan Geuk continued to drag out time, repeating this back-and-forth struggle.

Then suddenly, he asked,

“Don’t you smell something strange?”

Trying to sniff the air, Elder Han felt her head spin.

Her mind was hazy, and her entire body itched. No, it was a strange sensation, unsure if it was itching or burning.

Especially in the groin, her private parts itched and burned so intensely that her juices were seeping out.

‘Aphrodisiac!’

Elder Han realized immediately.

It wasn’t because she knew much about it. Her body was burning up, and she was going crazy with desire, matching the description of an aphrodisiac perfectly.

Knowing she was poisoned, Elder Han was furious.

As if responding to her emotions, the snowstorm intensified, and frost whipped around. The ice turned into hail, battering and shaking the walls.

Kwang! Kwakwang!

The sound of ice crashing against the walls and the bloody sea echoed like bombs falling, shaking the heavens and the earth.

Elder Han exerted her full strength, causing the entire ruin to tremble!

“Sang-gwan Geuk! Using cowardly tricks!”

“Ha ha ha! In a fight, what place is there for cowardly tricks? Han, my baby, come and embrace me!”

Sang-gwan Geuk was very interested in Elder Han of the Dark Moon Sect, the Ice Jade Goddess Han Ryeo-un.

It was said that the most beautiful woman of the Yue Kingdom, as cold as ice and snow, resided on the Jade Maiden Peak of the Dark Moon Sect. This rumor was widely spread in the cultivation world of the Yue Kingdom.

There was a famous story about a poet who, upon accidentally seeing her beauty, sang for her without sleep for three days and nights, unable to help but fall in love with her.

However, the Dark Moon Sect was one of the most prominent sects in the cultivation world of the Yue Kingdom. Who could come just to see an elder of such a great sect?

Moreover, she was known to extremely dislike the commotion caused by her beauty, so she always wore a veil.

How beautiful must she be for someone to wish to see her face as their life’s desire?

Sang-gwan Geuk, as much as he loved blood and violence, was also captivated by feminine beauty.

To him, the Ice Jade Goddess Han Ryeo-un was a more tempting target than any treasure or fortuitous encounter.

Therefore, he coaxed Elder So to keep him from checking his actions and deceived Elder Han into thinking he was interested in fortuitous encounters and treasures.

The result was this.

He isolated Elder Han and intoxicated her with an aphrodisiac.

Of course, Elder Han, being one of the five peak lords of Dark Moon Sect, had tremendous personal martial strength.

No matter how strong she was, in a cramped place like the ruins, there was a limit to her power, and if the potent aphrodisiac had fully taken effect, it was a certain victory for Sang-gwan Geuk.

Elder Han felt her breath grow hot and her head spin due to the aphrodisiac. Her mind was filling with thoughts too shameful to speak aloud.

Though she was suppressing it with her current level, if she failed and the aphrodisiac’s energy surged, she would undoubtedly become a beast.

“Ugh…”

“Hehehe, stop resisting and come to me, Han Ryeo-un! That aphrodisiac is extremely potent. If you don’t relieve it through intercourse, it will lead to death!”

“Even if it means my death, I will never fall into your arms!”

Elder Han shouted and then twisted the Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth greatly. Then, with the Ice White Snow Mountain Blossom, she vibrated it intensely and exploded.

Boom!!

It was as if a bomb of cold air had exploded.

Frost scattered and ice struck all around. The cold swirled, freezing the entire bloodbath in an instant.

Sang-gwan Geuk raised his arms to protect his body from the tremendous power.

‘She’s driving her mental realm into a frenzy! It can’t be an easy decision to drive the mental realm you’ve cultivated all your life into a frenzy! Is she so unwilling to fall into my arms?’

Eventually, as the snowstorm subsided,

Elder Han, who Sang-gwan Geuk was looking for, had already vanished without a trace.

The secret movement technique Elder Han had hidden was incredible.

In an instant, it was beyond Sang-gwan Geuk’s ability to catch up.

Sang-gwan Geuk began to follow the traces left by Elder Han.

“Tsk, she must have used a life-saving escape technique that assumes extreme depletion. She won’t have gotten far. It’s only a matter of time before I catch her.”

‘Han Ryeo-un… Do you think you can escape my grasp?’