Chapter 1343 – 1343. Ghost Romance
I crossed my arms and stared at the barren field.
The entire mountain had vanished, opening up the view. The sky, which had darkened due to the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons, was clear again, and the sun shone brightly.
‘This is the scene I created.’
An extraordinary power that could obliterate an entire mountain!
Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Ultimate Technique (極技), Thunder Heaven Decree (雷天命).
Of course, this power was difficult to use in reality. My real-world specs couldn’t keep up with my current specs.
‘I don’t think I’ll never be able to use this technique again. If I reach S-class… I might be able to use it?’
I couldn’t be certain.
But I would become stronger than S-class. With the game-like life app, it was entirely possible.
‘So, I need to remember this feeling.’
The ultimate technique I created, Thunder Heaven Decree, wasn’t really a technique. Its power was immense, but its structure was simple.
‘The principle is Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Thunder Cry (雷鳴), a technique that resonates two or more lightning strikes.’
It wasn’t just about resonating. It required perfect control over the resonating lightning. In reality, the limit of Thunder Cry was about six lightning strikes. If I pushed it, I could resonate eight.
But Thunder Heaven Decree resonated thousands of lightning bolts from the sky. Control was impossible. All I could do was set the direction.
‘Since there are so many lightning strikes, if I get the start right, they resonate on their own even without control.’
The principle of Thunder Heaven Decree was simple.
And there was a simple problem.
‘Energy. The energy to generate thousands of lightning bolts is the problem. And once the resonance starts, it can’t be reversed? Well, that’s not much of a problem.’
Could an S-class hunter use Thunder Heaven Decree with their mana? I was skeptical. The reason I could use Thunder Heaven Decree now was because the ghostly energy that filled the space as hundreds of ghosts died.
‘But if I reduce the resonating lightning, the power won’t be right… and the resonance could fail midway. Is the answer just to keep raising my mana stat?’
I pondered. Thunder Heaven Decree was the first ultimate technique of the Thunder Heaven Style I created, so I was attached to it.
Then, in the far distance of the blue sky, I saw a cloud slowly approaching.
‘Clouds… right. If I use thunderclouds, I can use Thunder Heaven Decree without consuming a lot of mana. But such an environment isn’t always available. So, if I had the power to control clouds… no, weather… hmm?’
I felt something slipping out of my head. No, it wasn’t just a feeling. Something black actually came out of my forehead. It took shape about five meters in front of me.
A muscular man with long black hair.
His fangs protruded from his lips like a vampire. His skin was a dark, ashen gray. His sclera was black, and his irises were red. The typical eyes of a demon. He held a sword in his right hand. It looked exactly like the Ghost Slayer Sword I held.
“You, are you Dojin?”
“Yes.”
“What, you could come out?”
“I only materialized temporarily using ghostly energy. My true soul is still within your mind.”
“Have you given up on your attachment to my body?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I created that body. When I was trapped in that damn jar, I used the ghostly energy I gathered to transform it!”
“You’re right, your body did get a bit better. But my body is mine.”
I had no intention of handing my body over to Dojin. My body was mine. I had complete control. That was why Dojin had materialized using ghostly energy.
“…Wait a minute. You materialized using my ghostly energy without my permission.”
“Your ghostly energy? That’s ridiculous. That ghostly energy is mine too.”
“Bullshit.”
I checked my body’s condition.
My ghostly energy had decreased by about 10%.
‘So, that’s about 10% of the ghostly energy he can use.’
Dojin swung his sword in the air. His eyes were full of fighting spirit and murderous intent as he looked at me.
“For now, I will give you control of the body. But I will, at any cost, reclaim my body someday.”
“So, you’re going to stick with me.”
“Why? Did you expect me to leave?”
“No, I’m relieved. If you leave, I can’t use ghostly energy.”
Ghostly energy was the power of ghosts.
Only ghosts could use it. If Dojin disappeared from my body, I would just be a human with a good physique.
‘Now that I know how convenient ghostly energy is… do you think I’d let it go?’
Honestly, it was extremely unpleasant that a guy was parasitizing my mind. But it was unavoidable if I wanted to use ghostly energy.
“Seong Yujin. You better be on your guard. I will analyze you and grow stronger within you. And someday, when this body surpasses you… that body will be mine again.”
“That will never happen.”
“Ha, I wonder how long you’ll be so relaxed.”
Dojin took a stance.
A stance with his center of gravity slightly lowered.
It was a familiar stance to me.
The stance taken when using Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Thunder Flash (雷光). Of course, Thunder Heaven Style was a martial art that didn’t rely much on stances once you reached a certain level, so stances weren’t that important. What was important was that he was imitating the Thunder Heaven Style.
Crack, crackle.
Lightning sparked from Dojin’s sword. It meant he perfectly understood Thunder Flash.
“Well, I’ll spar with you about once a month.”
I was still relaxed.
Just because Dojin used the Thunder Heaven Style didn’t mean he was the same as me. Physical performance, the total amount of thunder energy. I was overwhelming in all of it. It was like Dojin, who was only level 10 in a game, was fighting me, who was level 100.
“Listen carefully. This is a one-hit kill. If you’re careless, even you will suffer a fatal wound.”
“Careless? You’re the one who will be careless.”
Whoosh.
Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Thunder Flash (雷光).
I swung my sword, passing by Dojin. Dojin hurriedly swung his sword at me in retaliation. Two lightning trajectories crossed in the air.
Of course, my Thunder Flash won. Dojin was severely cut, scattering blood everywhere, and fell to the ground. I said without looking back.
“You’re slow… even when falling.”
“Kuh… you bastard…!”
“Don’t use such strong words, you look weak.”
“Someday… I will…!!”
As I heard Dojin’s disintegrating voice, I hurriedly moved my ghostly energy. The ghostly energy was visible on my chest. There was a small cut where Dojin had slightly grazed me.
‘Shit. How embarrassing. I can’t let this be seen.’
I used a lot of ghostly energy to increase my recovery, and the wound disappeared without a trace.
“Anyway, as long as you’re parasitizing my mind… you have to absolutely follow my orders.”
“…The logic of power, huh. I can’t help it. For now, I’ll play along with you…”
Dojin’s materialized body turned into ghostly energy and disappeared.
•••
『Day 5 checkpoint has been saved.』
Day 5 had dawned.
I went home, cut my cumbersome long hair, and slept. I had rushed through Day 4 to prevent any unforeseen variables.
‘With this, I won’t have to go through Day 4 again.’
Day 5.
Today was the day of the showdown.
I put on my school uniform and headed to school. I ran into Shin Oh-jung on the street. Shin Oh-jung’s eyes widened when he saw me.
“You’ve gotten taller and your skin is whiter. What happened yesterday?”
Since I was bored, I told Shin Oh-jung what had happened yesterday. There was no reason to hide what happened yesterday.
“You accepted the Rakshasa demon sealed in your family’s main house and dealt with the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons?!”
Shin Oh-jung, who had just been rambling, clenched his fists and became very excited, his eyes sparkling.
“Is it true that those who fight monsters become monsters themselves…? Kuh. Nietzsche-sensei was right!”
“You’re really happy about it.”
Shin Oh-jung. This guy’s reactions were quite entertaining. Not only that, but he didn’t cross the line.
“How do you use ghostly energy? Is it the standard physical enhancement and telekinesis?”
“Physical enhancement is basic… I don’t know about telekinesis, but I can do this.”
Crackling.
I created lightning on my palm. Shin Oh-jung’s eyes widened. He took a deep breath and quietly muttered.
“Lightning fairy Seong Yujin…!”
“This bastard.”
He suddenly crossed the line.
Thwack!
I punched Shin Oh-jung on the head. Shin Oh-jung, who had been hit, didn’t lose heart and walked beside me. He was chattering about the information he had gathered on the internet last night. Information about ghosts not only in this neighborhood but also in South Korea.
I listened with one ear and let it out the other. The reason I had been exorcising ghosts was to lower my ghostly energy to deal with the Snow Woman. But now that I had gained the power of ghosts, there was no need to go around exorcising them.
After passing through the school gate, I immediately turned towards Seol Jiyoung’s class.
“Is Jiyoung-sunbae not here?”
“Jiyoung? She hasn’t come yet. She usually comes to school first… she’s a bit late today.”
She wasn’t late, she hadn’t come at all.
She probably had something up her sleeve.
I smiled coldly and turned around.
The reason I had come to school to find Seol Jiyoung was to give the Snow Woman one last chance.
‘In the original story, the Snow Woman was a beauty.’
That’s why I gave her a chance.
If she had given up her ambition and returned to her daily life, I would have quietly let her go.
‘She’s determined to try me. Well, it’s obvious where she is.’
I left the school and headed to the abandoned hospital.
I felt much more ghostly energy than when I had come before. What did this mean?
‘She’s gathered all the ghosts in this neighborhood. Is this her last stand? Ah, does she know that I dealt with the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons?’
Perhaps the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons was also the Snow Woman’s doing. The Snow Woman was from Japan.
‘Maybe the Snow Woman gave the Night Parade a hint, which is why they tried to kill me because of the prophecy.’
Well, it didn’t matter now. The Night Parade of a Hundred Demons was dead, and the Snow Woman couldn’t handle me.
I took the Ghost Slayer Sword I had brought and entered the abandoned hospital.
