Into the Creations 1810

Chapter 1810 – 1810. Ascending To The Light

Disguised, Baekran and I blended into the crowd, wandering through the market. First, we needed to grasp the market’s layout.

The market was much larger than it appeared, and the crowd grew denser with each passing moment. Most people were martial artists, with some sorcerers mixed in.

‘About 2,000 people, give or take.’

It seemed like too many, but considering the scale of this world, it was understandable. Humans were abundant in this world.

‘Seeing those merchants makes my hands itch.’

If there weren’t so many people around, I would have killed the merchants and looted all the goods from their stalls, along with their Heavenly Jade. But the crowd was too thick to cause trouble.

“Did you notice?”

Baekran, who was beside me, asked.

“Notice what?”

“The market space is cleverly divided. Look. That bend in the path. Doesn’t it seem narrower than the others? And that shop there is slightly pushed forward. It means there’s an invisible, cleverly hidden space in the center.”

Baekran pointed here and there, explaining. Honestly, I didn’t understand a word she was saying.

‘What kind of woman is she, really?’

The path is narrower than other places? Who walks around paying attention to the width of the paths?

A shop is pushed forward? The shops here were similar yet different. Who would know if they were pushed forward or set back?

‘I can’t pretend I didn’t understand, how embarrassing.’

Fortunately, I had the necessary ability at this moment.

[Opening the Heavenly Eye.]

Things that were invisible began to appear.

In the end, Baekran was right. There was a hidden space in the center of the market. In that space, there was a building. It was a building that looked like it had been hastily made by modifying a carriage. The outer walls were covered with strange drawings and symbols, and 24 magical artifacts were embedded in the ceiling. A sign hung in front of the building’s door.

“Baekran. You’re right. The main branch of the Yuun Trading Company is in that hidden space.”

“You sound so sure. Can you see the hidden space?”

I hesitated before shaking my head.

“No, I can’t. It would be nice to have such a convenient ability.”

Baekran didn’t reveal her hand. So, there was no need for me to reveal mine.

‘It feels like she’s subtly trying to extract information. The way to attract the attention of women like her is to not show your hand.’

If I can attract her attention in a good way, it will turn into favor. Once that happens, half of the conquest can be considered complete.

“So, what are we going to do now?”

Charge in and kill them.

That wasn’t the answer she wanted. There was still too little information. I focused my eyes. I used one of the Heavenly Eye’s abilities, X-ray vision. There was nothing inside the building. It was completely empty. There wasn’t even a common chair or desk.

‘Is this not their base…?’

Whether we could even get to that isolated space was another matter, but even if we did, we wouldn’t get anything.

I looked around. The crowd was still large, and the merchants of the Yuun Trading Company were still operating, hiding their true colors. But time continued to pass. It was darker than before. The sun was setting.

“…First, we have too little information. We need to grab a suitable guy and extract some information.”

“Ah, that’s pointless.”

“Why?”

“I’ve already tried it. They have a mental restriction on their heads. When I tried to forcibly extract information about the Yuun Trading Company, their minds went blank.”

“……”

Should I just go on a rampage now? I felt a strong urge as I spoke.

“We kill the merchants one by one in secret. And while we’re at it, we take what they have. Maybe there’s something among their possessions that could be useful information.”

It was no different from saying I wanted to loot. Baekran didn’t object to my words at all and nodded.

“Understood.”

She was too agreeable. Should I have just gone on a rampage openly?

• • •

“Hehehe.”

The elixir merchant chuckled ominously as he checked the heavy pouch inside his stall, where customers couldn’t see.

“With this much profit, even after giving it to the Yuun Trading Company, my share will be…”

I approached the guy who was muttering in joy. I had completely concealed my presence, so he didn’t notice me right behind him. I quietly drew my sword.

*Hiss*

The merchant seemed to sense something and turned around. Too late. My sword had already delivered his death sentence.

*Swish!*

The merchant’s head rolled onto the floor. I picked up the pouch he was holding.

There were 24 Heavenly Jade inside. I smiled at the considerable gain.

Adding these to what I already had, I now had a total of 663 Heavenly Jade. I only needed 37 more to level up to VIP.

‘Would it be too embarrassing to ask Baekran to lend me 37?’

I turned around at the rustling sound. Baekran was searching through the shop, looking for elixirs. When she made eye contact with me, she gave her usual smile.

“Since you have the Heavenly Jade, I’ll take the elixirs. They’re all low-grade, so I’m at a loss.”

“Those elixirs wouldn’t mean anything to you.”

“Do you know how to extract the maximum efficiency from low-quality elixirs? By making them into pills.”

“You know how to make pills?”

“I studied it a long time ago. It’s a cruel world to leave precious elixirs in the hands of others. Well, it wasn’t that difficult for me. It only took a few years of study.”

I made a strange expression. Wasn’t she younger than Yeom Guseok? But she had acquired such skills and even mastered pill-making? While also mastering sorcery and disguise?

‘Is she a genius on par with Yuria?’

*Thud!*

Suddenly, pressure pressed down on my entire body. It felt like I had been thrown from land into the depths of the sea. Baekran and I looked at each other.

“It seems their harvest has begun.”

She said calmly as she put all the herbs into her spatial storage.

“Then we don’t have to go on a rampage openly. Let’s quietly observe the situation.”

We quietly went outside. It seemed we weren’t the only ones who felt the strangeness; the people walking through the market were also bewildered.

“My body suddenly feels heavy. Is there something wrong with the barrier?”

“This is unpleasant. What are those Yuun Trading Company guys doing with the barrier management?”

“Hey! Look at the moon in the sky! It’s a blood-red moon! Isn’t it too ominous?”

“How can the moon be red? It must be the effect of the barrier.”

“Hey, merchant! Where is the head of the Yuun Trading Company? I want to have a serious conversation with him!”

“This is ominous. I need to get out of here!”

The market was in an uproar due to the sudden anomaly.

Baekran looked at the red moon in the night sky and said quietly.

“Be careful.”

Before I could ask what she meant, someone appeared and stomped his foot. *Bang!* The shockwave from his foot swept through the surroundings. The murmuring people shut their mouths and stared at the man who had suddenly appeared.

“Silence!”

He was a martial artist with a stern and serious face.

“From now on, we will begin the selection. Stay still!”

The man was a master who had reached the realm of Aura, so most people shut their mouths and watched carefully. However, some people stepped forward and argued. A man in flamboyant clothes was a prime example. He hadn’t even reached the realm of Origin, yet he was arrogant despite his weakness.

“I am a member of the Yoon family, who manages the Baeyoung City! How dare you threaten me?! Let me meet the head of the Yuun Trading Company! I must thoroughly investigate this matter!”

The man looked at the member of the Yoon family with emotionless eyes.

“You’re a weed.”

“What?”

“Your flamboyant clothes cannot hide your inferiority and incompetence.”

The man waved his hand. It seemed like a light wave, but there was a subtle mystery in his hand movement. It was a formidable hand technique.

*Crack!*

The head of the man in flamboyant clothes exploded. The merchants from the stalls came out and dragged the corpse away to clean it up.

The man still looked at the others with emotionless eyes.

“Next.”

People trembled with fear.

The man selected people one by one. If they didn’t meet the standard, he smashed their heads, and if they met the standard, he restrained them with pressure points and magical artifacts. Even if martial artists resisted, he didn’t kill them indiscriminately. Those who tried to escape were caught by the merchants nearby. I watched the approaching man and asked Baekran.

“It seems there’s a standard for the selection. Do you know what it is?”

“I think it’s martial talent. Look there. He’s sparing those who show potential even if they attack him. And he’s also sparing those who have reached the 5th stage of Origin or higher.”

Screams could be heard from a short distance away. Similar things were probably happening in other areas.

“How is your condition?”

“Not at its best. I can still feel the pressure.”

“The moment he comes in front of us, we attack immediately. If we cooperate, we can kill him in an instant, even if he’s a master of Aura.”

“Hmm. Are you going to reveal yourself after all that disguise? Getting caught on purpose is also an option.”

“That’s too dangerous. And because we’re disguised, we have this opportunity.”

The Hong family, who were in league with him, knew what we looked like. If we hadn’t disguised ourselves, they would have tried to kill or capture Baekran and me first.

‘If we can eliminate one master of Aura, it’s a much bigger gain.’

The man, who had selected 30 people, approached us. The man’s eyebrows twitched as he looked at me.

“You’re ambiguous. I need to see your skills.”

He raised his hand without warning. I clicked my tongue inwardly. I had hoped he would completely let his guard down, but that was out of the question.

I gripped my sword hilt and took a stance to draw it. His eyes widened. He was an Aura master, after all. He seemed to have realized something was wrong. Before he could react, I drew my sword. The sword was enveloped in demonic energy as it left its sheath.

Demon Slaying Sword Technique, Evil Slash.

The man quickly gathered his energy to protect his hand and grabbed my sword. His white hand aura flickered like a candle.

“So you’re the Flash Sword Yeom Guseok that Hong Ganghu mentioned. I didn’t expect you to be hiding like a rat.”

“If you want to act calm, at least hide the blood coming out of your mouth. I know you strained yourself to gather your energy and suffered internal injuries.”

“Hmph. Your sword is in my hand. A swordsman who can’t swing his sword. It’s as good as over.”

I chuckled and said.

“There’s a sword going in beside you.”

The man just stared at me. He seemed to have judged that what I said was a lie. That was his mistake. Baekran’s sword pierced into the man’s neck. Her sword, a killing blade that had completely concealed its presence, was exquisite and deadly.

The man saw the sword in the corner of his vision and forcibly twisted his body. In that instant, he activated his protective aura to prevent his neck from being cut.

‘He’s straining himself again.’

He had no choice. If he didn’t strain himself, he would have died. The price for that strain was a severe internal injury, and his protective aura quickly faded. I didn’t miss that moment.

‘Meteor Sword.’

There was no need to drop the Meteor Sword from high in the sky. Ten Meteor Swords were instantly created around the man and pierced his defenseless body.

*Thud!*

“Cough!”

The man, with swords embedded all over his body, looked at me with a hollow expression before collapsing to the ground. The Meteor Swords disappeared into dust as if they had finished their job.