It was difficult to judge. Had he reached late-stage Foundation Establishment, or Perfection, he might have had some sense of the realm beyond it. But he was a fledgling who had only just established his foundation. The shadow of death drew one step closer.

“Still, unlike you butchers, I am a cultured Daoist. Hand over half your spirit stones as a toll. Comply, and I shall let you leave alive.”

Yise barely suppressed a hollow laugh. Wasn't Core Formation the realm of the continent's greatest masters? And all this man could find to do with such tremendous power was extort money from a junior, like some mountain bandit. How very refined.

“... Does a great Core Formation Cultivator truly covet a junior's paltry savings?”

“I could covet that junior's life instead. I have indulged you twice. My patience has reached its limit.”

There was no room for negotiation. Yise took half his spirit stones from his storage pouch and sent them to the old man with telekinesis. The old man cackled.

“You may go. Tell that Hong bitch and that Hae bastard that I am collecting their debt from their disciples, without fail.”

“I shall take my leave.”

Yise withdrew slowly, maintaining the utmost courtesy to the very end. Carefully, lest the old master change his mind.

Once he could no longer feel the old man's divine sense, Yise raised the flying boat's altitude and increased its speed. Blood was still flowing from his right eye.

His elation plummeted, and his blood began to boil. At the same time, he felt relief.

'I was arrogant.'

All that complacency as he savored the wind aboard the White Luan Boat after his breakthrough. The world was full of powerful people. He had only just reached Foundation Establishment, and threats to his life lurked everywhere.

The old man could have taken every last spirit stone. He could have taken his life. He had deliberately left him something and let him go—so that word of this petty harassment would reach Daemudo's Hall Masters.

* * *

The moment Yise crossed the Jeong Empire's border, a message talisman flew to him. It was a message from the main mountain asking where he was. He immediately sent back his location and headed for the Heungryeong Mountains.

After passing through the main mountain's defensive barrier, he found strangers waiting at the entrance. One of them was at Core Formation. Yise immediately jumped down from the flying boat and paid his respects.

“Riding a flying ritual implement within the main mountain is against the rules.”

“My apologies. I didn't know.”

Yise immediately put the White Luan Boat away in his storage pouch. The man studied him quietly, then gave a faint smile.

“Forgive me, but may I ask which of the Inner Halls you preside over?”

“This is the Chief Administrator.”

The reply came from the Foundation Establishment Cultivator beside him.

“Ah,” Yise breathed. Chief Administrator Sugyeom. The brains of Daemudo, the man who had the final say in matters great and small.

“My respects, Chief Administrator.”

“Congratulations on reaching Foundation Establishment. How many years has it been since you joined?”

“This is my eighth year.”

“A historic moment. What happened to your eye?”

Yise hesitated briefly before explaining his encounter with the Core Formation Cultivator on his way back. He had returned alive, after all. Surely it wouldn't spark a war on his account. After hearing his description of the man, Sugyeom clicked his tongue.

“That old monster is still up to his tricks.”

“You know him?”

“Han Juok of the Han clan. An old monster who was already at Core Formation some three hundred years ago. Over seventy years ago, he killed a Daemudo disciple and incurred the wrath of Hall Masters Hae Il and Hong Mihui. His clan was nearly wiped out, but they paid half their wealth as a settlement. He's held a grudge ever since and takes his revenge in these petty ways. You're not his only victim.”

Han Juok of the Han clan. Yise committed the name to memory.

“His binding contract with Senior Hae Il prevents him from truly harming Daemudo disciples anyway. Instead, he skirts the limits, harassing them and calling it revenge. He's a headache. If he simply crossed the line, we could make him pay the proper price.”

“I thought it strange that he would deliberately leave a potential enemy alive.”

“It's nothing more than a protest. But keep this matter to yourself. The timing is poor.”

“Yes.”

Yise agreed readily. He had no intention of running to the Hall Masters like a child and asking them to punish the man. He would simply remember, endure, and repay him.

“Who laid a hand on him?”

At the voice that suddenly interrupted them, Sugyeom pressed a hand to his forehead as though a headache were coming on. Yise paid his respects to Winged Dragon Hall Master U Yuhee, whose arrival he hadn't even noticed.

“My respects, Winged Dragon Hall Master.”

U Yuhee raised a hand and healed Yise's eye, then asked Sugyeom, “Han Juok? That old fossil is still alive? Why won't he die already? How many damn Longevity Pills has he stuffed himself with?”

“Calm down, Hall Master U.”

“Sure. I'll go kill him.”

“I said, calm down. Our senior is away.”

“Then I'll kill him without anyone noticing.”

“And how would you manage that? He's in the same realm as us.”

Holding back U Yuhee, who was still trying to rush off despite his repeated objections, Sugyeom gestured to Yise.

“You may go. We'll summon you again soon to follow the procedure.”

“Procedure? What procedure do you mean?”

“Now that you've reached Foundation Establishment, you need to choose your affiliation.”

U Yuhee stopped short at those words, then came right up to Yise.

“You're joining Winged Dragon Hall, right?”

With that, Sugyeom grabbed U Yuhee by the scruff of the neck and dragged the Hall Master away. Yise stood there, utterly bewildered.

* * *

Inside Dine Before You Depart, Park Gangseo let out a deep sigh. The owner still hadn't returned. They had long since run out of ingredients for immortal cuisine and stopped doing business. Even the spirit stones set aside for upkeep were gone.

“What do we do now? Starting next month, we'll have to take the rent out of the deposit. At this rate, we'll lose the shop.”

But no amount of thought yielded an answer. With the owner absent, what could a handful of employees do?

“Seol Ryeong, lend us some money.”

“Why should I? I don't even work here!”

“We can pay you back when Yise returns.”

“Besides, I'm just a Qi Refining ritual-implement artisan. What makes you think I have money to spare...?”

“A noble family's daughter, pleading poverty.”

Pi Garam's sardonic remark made Seol Ryeong bristle.

“They discriminate against me even though I'm a Seol too. The purebloods get all the resources... All I get are the scraps...”

“...”

“It's so unfair. Honestly...”

“I see. I didn't know. I'm sorry.”

Pi Garam apologized at once.

So that was why she kept visiting Dine Before You Depart when she had no business there, instead of spending time with her relatives. He hadn't known there was a reason behind it.

“Should we post a request at the Mission Pavilion?”

At Bu Chun's question, Park Gangseo waved a hand dismissively.

“Forget it. With what money? Senior is at the tenth star of Qi Refining, so we'd need to request a Foundation Establishment Cultivator at the very least. They wouldn't even look at it for less than a hundred a day. Haven't you heard? Foundation Establishment Cultivators won't even take a job to shit in a spirit field for under a hundred.”

Bu Chun looked miserable. Seol Ryeong, the only one who seemed unperturbed, gazed blankly at the sky.

“Don't worry too much. Yise's divination shows great good fortune.”

“Well, that's a relief, but...”

Ever since Yise entered the secret realm, Seol Ryeong had been reading heaven's secrets concerning him almost every day. There had been a mix of good and ill fortune along the way, but his readings had been positive overall. Most recently, great good fortune had been followed by minor misfortune. Even that misfortune could have been avoided if he didn't hurry.

That was when a message talisman flew to Park Gangseo.

“... Everyone.”

His face lit up as he read the message.

“Senior Yise is back! He just left the Mission Pavilion!”

They all rushed out of Dine Before You Depart at once. What met them were two enormous pythons floating toward them through the sky.

“Gyaaah!”

The sight of the two enormous pythons the instant he opened the shop door sent Park Gangseo falling flat on his backside.

Yise, who had been moving the two Witch-Tree Great Pythons with telekinesis, dropped them in front of Dine Before You Depart and greeted his companions.

“It's been a while.”

“Senior!”

Their faces showed delight first, then astonishment.

“Y-your realm...”

Foundation Establishment. Yise, who had disappeared after entering the secret realm, had returned having broken through in the meantime.

“Ha, haha...”

His advancement was so absurdly fast that it hardly felt real.

“Congratulations, Senior.”

Bu Chun recovered first and offered his congratulations. One by one, the others followed.

“I thought my investment was gone for good.”

“How self-centered do you have to be not to send a single message when you finish secluded cultivation? You really hurt my feelings.”

Pi Garam expressed his delight in his usual fashion, while Seol Ryeong grumbled.

“Sorry. I'd only just come out when I heard the secret realm had opened. There wasn't much time, so I was too busy rushing in. How's the shop?”

“On the brink of going under. We've been closed for a while, and we were just about to start deducting this month's rent from the deposit.”

“Let's go inside. I'll get things back on track. Snake soup is next on the menu.”

His companions' faces brightened considerably.

The interior of Dine Before You Depart was just as he had left it. The display shelves were nearly empty, and an empty spirit-stone box sat on the back table beside the open account book. One glance was enough to tell him how carefully everyone had been scrimping to keep the shop going.

Yise poured roughly a thousand spirit stones into the box for operating expenses. His companions' eyes widened. Then he laid out the ingredients he had brought in the kitchen.

Hwangju ginseng, angelica root, and astragalus. Most were ordinary medicinal ingredients rather than spiritual herbs.

Yise deftly skinned a Witch-Tree Great Python, stripped off its meat, and put it in a pot. He added a handful each of Hwangju ginseng, angelica, and astragalus, then crushed two dried spirit fruits into the mixture. Lastly, he sprinkled in a handful of glutinous spirit rice. A cloud of milky steam rose from the pot.

“Witch-Tree Great Pythons are first-rank demonic beasts, so just adding glutinous spirit rice and some dried candied fruit should give it a decent spirit-gathering effect. The rest are ordinary medicinal ingredients, so they're easy to get. I'll write down the proportions. Pi Garam, Bu Chun, practice as much as you can.”

Yise checked the effects of the demonstration dish.

“The taste passes.”

Its effects were similar to those of the candied Thunder Boar pork, too. This was more than good enough to sell.

“Ahh, now this is nourishing food. It even tastes like ginseng chicken soup!”

“That's why it's ginseng and snake soup. Let's lower the price a little. We need to bring our regulars back.”

“Right! Plenty of people have been asking when we're opening again!”

Yise chuckled at Park Gangseo's exuberance. After serving each of his companions a bowl of ginseng and snake soup, he asked, “By the way, what about Hae Unchan? Did he make it out safely?”

“Yes. He got back long before you. He must have gained quite a bit. He went straight into secluded cultivation.”

“That's good news.”

That night, after everyone had finished their immortal cuisine and dispersed to attend to their own business, Seol Ryeong remained alone, staring absently out the window, seemingly lost in thought.

“Aren't you lingering a bit long for someone eating for free?”

“...”

“Why the long face? Did something happen?”

“It's not that...”

Seol Ryeong remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

“... I suppose I should call you Senior from now on?”

“Only now?”