NoveLight ™
“There's more than I expected.”
Kalstein kept his eyes glued to the scrolls, flipping through them without rest. There was still more than half left. Truly an overwhelming amount. He had learned the basics of spiritual energy cultivation from Mayucheol, but before diving into the Tai He Yuan Jing (太虛練經), he needed to complete some prerequisite learning.
“Ugh…”
It felt like his head was going to explode.
Most of all, learning the characters took far more time than he had anticipated.
Of course, if anyone else had seen his learning pace, they would have been horrified.
“Gahwi, are you really reading and flipping through it properly? If you keep skipping over it like that, nothing will stick in your head.”
Gahwi.
It was the name Kalstein had adopted in this place. An approximation of his original name, given to him by the old man who couldn’t pronounce it properly.
It was oddly similar in this world's pronunciation and not bad, so he accepted it.
The woman who had just spoken was the one who had named him, Jeong Ilhong, his Saseo (mentor).
She was an attractive woman, but there was a strangely strict, no-nonsense side to her.
“Sigh. How long will this take…”
From time to time, Jeong Saseo’s complaints could be heard, but it wasn’t hard to understand. After all, she wasn’t training herself and was instead stuck taking care of a young, inexperienced person.
Still, Jeong Saseo didn’t cross any lines.
Was she thinking of the future?
In this world of the Seon-kyuh sect, skill was everything.
As Mayucheol had said, if Kalstein's talents, like Cheon Yeong-geun’s, were fully awakened and his levels rapidly increased, Kalstein could become a superior to others here.
Of course, even if that didn’t happen, his personality didn’t seem to be the type to easily overstep boundaries.
“You should just do what you need to do. Don’t make it noisy for no reason.”
“Wh-what! You little brat! What kind of disrespectful attitude is that toward your Saseo?”
If anything, it was Kalstein who was overstepping the line.
“There’s no need for you to come every day.”
“The task Saseo gave me is not something I can just do carelessly!”
“Saseo’s order wasn’t to play the role of a nanny, was it?”
“Th-that’s…”
“Why don’t you just go and train? You’re in a rush for your own cultivation, aren’t you?”
“Ugh.”
Kalstein said this because he knew she had a very stubborn side.
‘Excessively high sense of responsibility?’
She wouldn’t understand with just a simple hint.
“If you need help, just call me. Saseo also gave me a charm for emergencies.”
“That… That’s only for real emergencies. It’s expensive…”
“Being alone is actually better for studying.”
“…Alright. I guess you’re just saying that to consider my feelings.”
That wasn’t quite true. But Kalstein didn’t feel the need to clear up the misunderstanding.
“I think it’s probably due to your narcolepsy. You only need to check in once in a while, so don’t worry too much.”
“If you say so, then it must be true.”
In the end, Jeong Saseo couldn’t argue anymore and reluctantly headed down the mountain.
The pendant at her waist was gleaming.
The pendant Saseo had given her.
It was apparently a necessary artifact to enter and leave this place.
“Good. Now…”
With the obstacle gone, Kalstein headed toward the spring in the backyard.
They had told him not to go in until he had mastered the Tai He Yuan Jing's formula, but...
“Ugh.”
Splash—
He threw himself into the oddly shimmering spring, even though it was in the shade.
“Huu…”
The warm yet cold, contradictory sensation wrapped around him.
He leaned back with his arms propped up like an old man at a bathhouse, closing his eyes.
Ether.
The discomfort he had felt ever since waking up in the Seon-kyuh world.
He couldn’t feel his true ether.
“Hmm.”
A possession body was supposed to draw from the original body's ether, but this wasn’t working right.
“Hmm…”
It wasn’t like the connection was completely severed. It was definitely still there… but something felt off.
Wait. Could it be?
Kalstein closed his eyes and focused inward, blocking out all senses. No sight, no sound, no touch—only his internal awareness.
...The connection was definitely there. There was no response, though.
But, yes. Something was… something was in the way?
Suddenly, an odd sensation struck him.
A vaguely familiar feeling.
Wasn’t this similar to when the platinum egg absorbed ether?
The only difference was that the energy flowing from the spring didn’t seem to absorb it.
‘The feeling is similar, but it might be slightly different from ether.’
Spiritual energy felt lighter and freer compared to ether, and the energy the old man had projected felt almost rhythmic.
Of course, Kalstein thought ether was superior in most respects, but he couldn’t be sure about the applications here.
On the other hand, the dimensional pressure here was much higher.
‘Hmm.’
This world was full of things to explore.
Kalstein started chanting the formula that came to his mind.
Humm—
Tai He Yuan Jing (太虛練經).
He had already completed the first formula. While he hadn’t finished all the preparatory texts, he was ready to give it a try.
And it made sense.
The formula encompassed the Tai He state.
Tai He (太虛). Could it be the universe?
Kalstein, thinking himself knowledgeable about the universe more than anyone here, interpreted the formula and began to practice it accordingly.
This was something neither Jeong Saseo nor the old man knew about.
Humm—
The glimmering of the spring deepened. The energy in the water that surrounded him gently poked at his body.
Shaa—
Ah.
He felt the spiritual energy from the spring and slowly started absorbing it into his body.
Shaa—
The absorbed spiritual energy circulated through his body with a grinding sound. It wasn’t a problem because he was used to circulating energy through his body.
However.
Whooo—
The energy slowly evaporated, as if it couldn’t be held.
But he had expected this.
‘This time.’
Kalstein focused all his energy on absorbing the power.
Tzzzzz— Tzz-
His entire body tingled as the energy from the spring was quickly absorbed.
Zzz-
The sensation of tingling turned into numbness. It was dangerously close to overloading his body.
However, Kalstein didn’t care if his body was going to explode, focusing solely on forcing the energy into himself.
Zzzz- Pssh-
His skin cracked in places, and the spring water turned red as it mixed with his blood.
Just when he felt like he had reached his limit.
Flash—
Kalstein quickly opened his eyes and hurriedly accessed the [Dimensional Integration Community].
-@%!### Welcome!6@12!35da.
The broken characters still showed that a connection had been made.
Without hesitation, he immediately said, “Logout.”
Pssh—
A dark shadow covered his vision.
At the same time.
Flash— Kalstein’s eyes snapped open.
[Already back?]
Aria’s voice greeted him.
But there was no time for a reunion.
“Aria! What’s the coordinate of the dimension I just connected to?!”
[The data has definitely changed. What happened?]
“I’ll check later! Just send the items first!”
[Understood.]
Quick to catch on, Aria didn’t ask what to send.
After experimenting a bit...
Tzzpat—
[The relay device isn’t working at all. There are limitations on the items that can be sent.]
“It’s fine! Just send them now!”
[Understood.]
Aria moved her fingers quickly, sending the items.
Just as Kalstein thought he could take a breath...
[For some reason, the connection was lost again.]
“Hm…”
[At least the second batch of items has been sent. Basic supplies and conventional weapons.]
“Oh, really?”
Thankfully, things seemed to be proceeding according to Kalstein’s expectations.
“I’ll explain later.”
Kalstein checked the time and hurried into the capsule to attempt contact with his possession body.
“Oh right, what about the egg?”
[Ether response readings have increased slightly.]
It was definitely that egg, wasn’t it?
[However, it seems that you’ll need the egg’s help when you connect, Master.]
“Yeah, it was like that the last time too.”
The dimensional connection wouldn’t work when the egg was kept far away from his body, but when it was close by, there was no issue.
He couldn’t decide whether he should be pleased or bothered by this.
For now, he’d tolerate it since he needed the egg’s help to connect.
Even though using the original body’s ether was impossible, it wasn’t completely out of reach.
[Got it. Please check it. I’ll see you soon.]
Kalstein said goodbye to Aria and hurried to connect.
Tzzpat-
***
“Did he fall asleep again?”
“Yes. As Saseo said, it seems like he’s unconscious.”
“Hm... This can’t keep happening.”
“Is the Master sick?”
Jeong Ilhong's face was filled with concern.
The old man coldly replied.
“That’s not something you should be worrying about.”
“…Yes.”
“Let’s go and check on him.”
Mayucheol hurriedly took Jeong Ilhong onto the flying device and headed toward the Golden Mountain where the cabin was located.
According to Jeong Ilhong, Kalstein had fallen into narcolepsy not long ago. It was something he had overlooked, and it was only on their way back that they discovered it.
However, in the meantime, Kalstein had been soaking in the Awakening Spring (覺醒泉), and his body was covered in wounds.
In a rush, Jeong Ilhong had come to find him.
What on earth happened...?
They had told him not to go in before learning the Tai He Yuan Jing.
The Awakening Spring.
One of the Fire Gold Sect's treasures that greatly aids in awakening talents.
If he went in without understanding the cultivation methods, his body would have exploded.
Mayucheol increased the speed of their flying device and rushed forward.
Kalstein had seemed intelligent, yet he had a rebellious streak.
If that was the case, it might be time to teach him a lesson.
The path of cultivation was filled with dangers.
Such a rebellious nature might sometimes bring lucky chances, but it never led to long life.
Patience is a necessary virtue for a cultivator.
But when he arrived, what he saw was far different from what he had expected.
What... is this?
***
Meanwhile, Kalstein scratched his head upon the unexpected visit from Mayucheol and Jeong Ilhong.
Why now?
Kalstein was in the middle of organizing the supplies sent from the Galactic Empire when the sudden visitors arrived.
“What is... this?”
“W-wait, be careful. That’s a strengthened grenade.”
“And that…?”
“Oh, that’s a Skyboard…”
“What in the world is all of this?”
Buried under what seemed like junk, Kalstein had nothing to say.
“Uh...”
“Didn’t I tell you not to go into the Awakening Spring? If you’re injured, show it now.”
Ugh, this is going to be annoying.
Kalstein’s mind raced to find a way to resolve this situation all at once.
How could he solve all of this with one move...?
Scratch scratch-
“Uh, a deceased person suddenly appeared and left these... flying devices behind.”
They were taken aback.
“Huh?”
“What did you say?”
“Master, what are you saying?”
“I was told by the deceased to enter, so I had no choice but to follow.”
“Huh? Why all the fuss?”
“W-what?! Say that again!!”
“Master!!”
Their jaws dropped.
...Huh?