Chapter 9

I Withdraw All Support Starting Today

[ Starting today, I completely withdraw my support for Oz ] - Nonexistent

Starting today, I leave behind our relationship of support

Oz and I become one

An attack on Oz will be regarded as an attack on me

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Comments(12)

-Passing Immortal) Fellow Daoist, have you perhaps gone mad?

-Outside the Boundary) What's wrong with this guy again? Until recently, he spent all day cursing Oz lol

└Nonexistent) Please refrain from malicious slander and fabrication.

└Outside the Boundary) Bullshit hahahahahahaha

-Old Newbie) But seriously, what happened? Did something happen between you and Oz?

└Nonexistent) Nothing... happened...!!!

└Old Newbie) Sigh, fuck

"...Does he really like it that much?"

Nonexistent had practically entered the seizure stage.

This was a post that appeared in the gallery after I told him his position in the ranking.

I couldn't quite understand the joy and happiness radiating from the post.

I mean, in the original story, they certainly weren't depicted as perfect and flawless transcendents.

They were merely transcendent powerhouses who felt joy and sorrow like ordinary people and acted according to what they considered rational.

But even so, they still possessed a certain degree of solemnity and dignity.

[ Really? Really? That ranking is right, isn't it? ] - Nonexistent

[ Wooow hahahahahahahahaha ] - Nonexistent

[ I believed in you, Oz!!!!!! I love you!!!!!! ] - Nonexistent

But then he sent such frivolous messages and posted something like this.

"...Is this really okay?"

This was the leader of a group that governed an entire dimension.

It was a moment that inevitably inspired a certain degree of concern from a cosmic perspective.

_____________

The Winter Tree Magic Tower recruited a new mage!

...That news caused no particular ripple or conflict.

Naturally, that was because he was only a Two-Star mage.

Wanderers of that level weren't common, but every now and then, one would voluntarily pledge allegiance somewhere.

Naturally, from the faction's perspective, that was good news.

A mage who possessed stars, a cultivator who had entered cultivation, a martial artist who had reached the pinnacle, an augmenter who had awakened dominion.

None of them were beings who could be easily cultivated.

However, everyone knew that this would not help with the city's power structure or struggles for dominance.

"Jin, huh. Nothing particularly shady in his background?"

Therefore, the only ones reacting to this incident were the people directly involved.

Those were the words of Irene, a Six-Star mage and the chief mage of the Winter Tree Magic Tower.

"Yes. His identification is obviously forged, but at the very least, he doesn't seem to be involved in any other trouble. Of course, I wouldn't know about anything that happened in another country."

"No need to look that far. Anything else unusual?"

"As I mentioned earlier, he's on the verge of Three-Star. And he resonated with the Winter Tree."

"Hmm, so there was a reason he specifically came here."

Phew-

Irene blew across the fingernail she'd been grooming.

The file, which had been moving on its own as it ground away the keratin, stopped.

"So there's nothing else particularly unusual?"

"Yes. After verifying him from several angles, that appears to be the case."

"Then there's no problem. Approve him according to procedure, and if he really becomes Three-Star, I'll talk to the old men later about whether we should call him into the Inner Tower."

Then this matter is finished!

Irene tapped the desk a few times and declared the matter closed.

"Now the only thing left to discuss is obviously the Cheongheo Sect, right?"

"Yes. The Eight Extremes Hall and Sejin have contacted us."

"What did the Tower Master say?"

"He did not send a separate response. However, he seems inclined to watch the situation."

"Again? Well, I suppose that's what happens when you get old. What's the point of using medicine to make yourself look young again?"

The mage standing before her remained calm despite the disrespect spilling from her mouth.

After all, Irene had been speaking this way for more than a day or two.

Even the Tower Master had effectively tolerated it.

"The Eight Extremes Hall must definitely be getting impatient. Sejin is probably just trying to get one foot in the door. Nothing else afterward?"

"It appears they're planning to take separate action."

"Those two alone would be a bit ambiguous, though?"

"That's why they seem to be recruiting medium and small factions. The major powers, including our Tower, have all taken a step back."

"If the Eight Extremes Hall were in better condition, they wouldn't be rushing this much. They've made a gamble."

Irene snickered and shook her head.

It was essentially nothing more than two declining factions tearing at one another.

The other side didn't seem interested in making the matter too large either, so one of the two... perhaps both of them, would probably meet ruin and bring the matter to an end.

"Still, it's really boring. Should we play around a little?"

"...I cannot agree with that statement."

"But if I order you to, you'll do it, right?"

"I have no choice."

Irene smacked the shoulder of the mage who answered somberly.

"Hey, lighten up! I don't really want to get involved in something like this. I was joking too."

"..."

The problem was that her claim that it was a joke did not sound like a joke.

Leaving the man staring at her with somewhat distrustful eyes behind, Irene was walking out of the room when she suddenly whipped around and shouted.

"Ah! Damn! I forgot to ask!"

"What is it?"

"You know that new mage who joined."

"Yes."

"Is he handsome?"

"..."

_______________

That very day, after spending the day at the Magic Tower.

I immediately left the temporary accommodations and headed for the inn.

It sounded somewhat ironic, but if security was the concern, the inn was a much better option than the Magic Tower.

"...Eek."

The inn's madam turned slightly pale and looked away when she saw me.

It seemed the trauma from last time had been thoroughly engraved into her.

"Heh heh."

Well, it must have been a situation she'd never imagined.

I still remembered the face she'd worn that night, delighted at the prospect of fleecing some sucker.

It had merely been punishment befitting that degree of wrongdoing.

Besides, I had restored the inn room completely afterward.

The lodging fee was also more than three times the original price. Strictly speaking, there was no part where she had actually suffered a loss.

I had simply decided on what I considered a fair usage fee.

After entering the room, I immediately took several materials out of my spatial pouch.

Several bundles of herbs, glass bottles filled with magical beast bodily fluids, refined spirit-stone powder.

After laying them out one by one across the desk.

Thunk-!

I placed a small furnace in the center, then set up a shielding formation on the floor in case of an explosion, along with soundproofing magic.

The entire sequence flowed like water.

Naturally, this too was something I'd learned from the Archive.

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I had more or less learned everything related to alchemy, pill refinement, synthesis, and the like.

Once my realm and experience accumulated, it probably wouldn't be difficult to become a transcendent-class grandmaster in an instant.

Therefore, something as simple as the abbreviated preparation I was attempting now should be more than manageable...

That was my calculation, anyway.

"...Am I nervous?"

I knew that the fruit in my hand was worth an astronomical fortune.

If I showed this anywhere, wouldn't I be killed without anyone even noticing?

Therefore, what I was about to do was extract and dilute the components of the Jade Dew Fruit.

The idea that Jade Dew Fruit was treated as little more than something for skincare, like a cucumber facial pack, only applied by the standards of transcendents.

Including myself, there was probably no ability user in all of Hyeondeok City capable of enduring the medicinal potency of the Jade Dew Fruit itself.

The basic preparation would be diluted roughly one thousandfold.

The ones with slightly higher medicinal potency, diluted to around one two-hundredth, would be for my own use.

Slice-

Therefore, I cut off a piece of the flesh that resembled a large plum.

Immediately afterward, a rich fragrance and sweetness strong enough to make my nose tingle spread throughout the entire room.

"Fuuuu."

I exhaled at the intense fragrance that made my head momentarily spin.

If someone with weak willpower smelled this, they might unconsciously take a bite.

Of course, they would have had to pay for that foolishness with their life.

I had no desire to die with my entire body bursting from excessive medicinal potency.

"...Good."

Once my briefly shaken mind cleared again.

I immediately continued with the predetermined procedure.

Drip-

I turned all of the medicinal properties contained within a single piece of Jade Dew Fruit into one liquid.

The liquid filled roughly one-third of a small cylinder.

While waiting for a few more drops to fall, I created the base inside the furnace by combining the other materials I'd prepared.

As a result, a translucent liquid enough to fill the entire furnace was completed.

I poured some of it into another container, then poured nearly all of the completed Jade Dew Fruit concentrate into the furnace, leaving only a small portion behind.

Pop-!

At the same time, a small explosion erupted.

The interior of the furnace, where the two liquids were mixing together, remained calm, but the sound itself was intense.

If I hadn't cast soundproofing magic, it would have caused quite a commotion.

And then, the resulting product appeared.

A cauldron full of spiritual medicine, its surface gleaming as it displayed its presence without restraint.

"...That was anticlimactic."

It succeeded so easily that all my earlier worries seemed ridiculous.