Chapter 148: Star, Abroad (5)

Chapter 148: Star, Abroad (5)

Chang-Sun was about to put on his sleep mask when he suddenly heard someone talking to him, making him open his eyes wide.

“Oh! We’re sitting next to each other. I was worried I’ll get bored while we were on the plane.” Jaegal Hyeon-Rong was smiling as he looked at Chang-Sun.

Furtively taking a look around, Chang-Sun turned his head to Baek Gyeo-Ul, who was a bit far away from Chang-Sun. He looked at Chang-Sun with an apologetic expression as he checked if Chang-Sun looked angry. It seemed Hyeon-Ryong subtly blackmailed Gyeo-Ul to change seats. Chang-Sun silently clicked his tongue. Their seats were spacious because they were in business class, but Chang-Sun wouldn’t be able to relax if Hyeon-Ryong kept talking to him from the side.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ looks at his subordinates.]

However, Chang-Sun thought this was for the best. ‘I would end up fighting them in France, so I have to find out who they really are now by fooling them or using other methods.’N0v3lRealm was the platform where this chapter was initially revealed on N0v3l.B1n.

Chang-Sun had to find the [Fifth Cryptical Book of Hsan] while Hyeon-Ryong and the other two elders kept an eye on him so he wouldn’t do anything that would go against Executive Director Oh’s favor. Because of that, he would have to stay on high alert and find out the elders’ strengths and weaknesses.

Hyeon-Ryong likely had the same thoughts, considering Chang-Sun could see his eyes sparkling with curiosity amid his wrinkled face. It seemed he had sparked Hyeon-Ryong’s curiosity when he easily defended himself from Hyeon-Ryong’s Hohwan Mama. Chang-Sun stood up from his seat and politely bowed to Hyeon-Ryong. “I hope to learn a lot from you, sir.”

“Hahaha, don’t be too polite. You’re making me feel embarrassed. Come on, sit.” Hyeon-Ryong gestured at Chang-Sun.

『Hello, dear passengers. Thank you for choosing...』

Just then, the pilot announced that the plane was about to depart. Chang-Sun and Hyeon-Ryong stopped exchanging conversations, sat down, and fastened their seatbelts. Soon after, the plane took off.

* * *

‘Executive Director Oh’s ‘eyes’ are more skilled than I thought...’ Chang-Sun thought, then concluded that he should finish making his ‘ace in the hole’ quicker than he originally planned.

Otherwise, there could be a high possibility that he would encounter many issues while acquiring the [Fifth Cryptical Book of Hsan].

‘Fortunately, I can speed up the process without any issues.’ Chang-Sun straightened his posture.

The ace in the hole that Chang-Sun had thought of was very simple. It was his subordinates—his very own secret weapons that Executive Director Oh and the rest of the White Tiger Clan weren’t aware of. He planned to increase the abilities of his ‘weapons’ very quickly over the next several days, and he had already decided how to train them.

‘The Atrytones I met in ‘Owl Nest’ are the perfect goal...!’ Chang-Sun recalled.

Although he was only in ‘Owl Nest’ for a short time, Atrytones left a very strong impression on Chang-Sun. They were very free-spirited yet absolutely loyal to Minerva, and the way they fought side by side in combat was exceptionally splendid.

All his life, he had lived as a fighting deity and a fiend, so he never imagined he would get to see such a sight. It made him decide to train his subordinates to be just as good as the Atryrones in the long term. Fortunately, he had a way to raise an army using his subordinates within a short period of time, and it would be more than just a possibility if he could conquer the Changgwi Cave and uncover all the secrets of the [Fourth Cryptical Book of Hsan].

‘Of course, I have to become at least twice as strong as I am right now before I can acquire <Blood Lightning>.’ Chang-Sun could also make that possible, however. ‘Stigma... I should learn how to use the Inferno Sights.’

The Inferno Sightswas technically a way to control <Darkness>, a power he didn’t have even as the ‘Divine Twilight.’ When he first used it, Chang-Sun became certain that it was the second power that he had to get before <Blood Lightning>. Even ‘Gemini’ was afraid of <Darkness>, which was the ace up in his sleeve that doubled his power—no, quadrupled it.

Of course, just as how he didn’t know much about the [Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan], Chang-Sun was clueless—no, he was way more clueless about what <Darkness> was, but he wasn’t worried. After all, there was someone who could teach him how to use it. In fact, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that no one could teach Chang-Sun about <Darkness> better than...

‘Mephistopheles,’ Chang-Sun thought.

Badump!

For some reason, it felt as if the stigma hidden underneath his clothes was burning up.

‘I have to meet with him again,’ Chang-Sun concluded.

Chang-Sun had only ever met Mephistopheles whenever he was caught in a crossfire or in need of Mephistopheles’ power, but it was different this time. He was going to meet Mephistopheles voluntarily this time to achieve his goal.

“That’s... because you resemble someone,” Minerva said.

“The Pale Star... has been looking for him for a long time.”

Although Chang-Sun didn’t know whom he resembled, Mephistopheles would definitely try to find something within him to meet that person. He had to use that to his advantage if he wanted to learn how to properly control <Darkness>. However, he had to make everything happen before they got to France.

* * *

[The Curse ‘Changgwi Cave’ has been activated!]

...

[Survive for 72 hours.]

[72:00:00]

[71:59:59:99]

[71:59:59:98]

...

[Current Location: First Sector of the Fifth Floor.]

‘Three days, huh? The duration that I have to survive through keeps increasing.’ Chang-Sun noticed. He then concluded that three days was enough to train his subordinates in the way he wanted to and contact Mephistopheles.

Woosh!

By the time Chang-Sun’s eyes shone in navy blue light...

[You have successfully lit up the Inferno Sights using the ‘Darkness’!]

[You have entered the ‘Concentrated’ state.]

[You have entered the ‘Meditated’ state.]

...

[You have understood Yama[1].]

[You have learned Niyama[2]]

...

[You have completely understood the Yoga of Eight Limbs and are now entering a deeper level of your consciousness.]

...

[You have successfully mastered Serene Mind! Accumulated 5,000 Karma.]

...

[You have entered the ‘Brink of Death’ state.]

...

Ding!

Ding!

Ding...

Ding...

....

The message notification sound kept ringing, but it became so quiet at some point that he couldn’t hear them anymore. At the same time...

Woosh!

[You have successfully entered the world of the unconscious!]

[Achievement unlocked!]

“The Ceta’s Yogi[3]”

Reward: Intelligence and Willpower +10. Title ‘Samadhi Demonstrator.’

He saw two giant navy blue fires blazing up when he opened his eyes again, just like the last time he was in the Pale Divine Ground. Hence, he could tell that Mephistopheles was looking at him.

[The ‘Pale Eyes’ are looking at you!]

Looking at Mephistopheles, Chang-Sun faintly smiled. “You have indeed been watching me. I thought doing this would let me meet you.”

To meet Mephistopheles, Chang-Sun used a very simple method, which was to look into his mind by activating the Inferno Sights using the <Darkness> in his stigma. Since Mephistopheles had given him that power, Chang-Sun thought he could use that link and the <Darkness> as a medium to easily meet with Mephistopheles.

Why. You. Called. Me.

When Chang-Sun first ran into him, Mephistopheles was really intimidating and looked very ominous, but Chang-Sun had gotten used to him now that he had directly met up with him several times. Perhaps it was also because of the <Darkness> within his stigma or the thought that Mephistopheles wasn’t related to the Zodiacs, his enemies.

“I would like to ask you for a favor,” Chang-Sun said.

What. Your. Request.

Chang-Sun inhaled deeply for a moment because he had been pondering how to establish a good relationship with Mephistopheles for the past several days. Now that he had chosen to actually carry out his plan after days of agony, he shouldn’t make mistakes in his explanation. Chang-Sun soon came to a decision, and the navy blue Inferno Sights similar to that of Mephistopheles blazed up.

“I want to become your disciple.”

1. Refers to the first stage of the Yoga of Eight Limbs that had originated from Ashtanga Yoga. It’s about ethics and restraining one’s behavior to purify oneself before one reaches enlightenment. ☜

2. Refers to the second stage of the Yoga of Eight Limbs. It’s about observing oneself before one reaches enlightenment. ☜

3. Yogi means a practitioner of yoga. ☜