Chapter 136

“Still, I succeeded.”

Jinseong slowly rose from the mountainside, far from the Last Days Well.

His body was covered in damp dirt and patches of grass, emanating the distinct scent that one would associate with forest expeditions. He looked like a sniper dressed in a ghillie suit.

Dusting himself off lightly, Jinseong enhanced his vision and gazed at the Last Days Well.

There, soldiers were boarding a two-ton truck, heading back to their military base, and Seong Min-hyuk was riding alongside on a Retona. But something seemed off; he appeared to be in a heated argument with an officer inside.

“Hahaha, he looks like he’s about to explode from frustration.”

The officer’s face looked like it could burst at any moment.

It wasn’t the kind of fury that resulted in an explosion, but rather the tormenting kind of frustration, like talking to a wall. On the other hand, Seong Min-hyuk maintained a stubborn attitude, as if to say, ‘I’ve said what I needed to say, and it’s correct, so you should understand.’

Even without hearing their conversation, Jinseong could imagine the exchange taking place.

However, there’s a world of difference between guessing and confirming.

Jinseong focused intently on the inside of the Retona.

As if zoomed in, he could see their faces clearly, and he could even read the movement of the officer’s lips.

『I’m in charge of Elder Kim Jong-soo!』

Jinseong couldn’t help but chuckle at the officer’s expression of unfairness.

“Oh dear, that bear is coveting something that doesn’t belong to him.”

Just from that alone, he could tell what the conversation inside the Retona was about.

Seong Min-hyuk was envious of Cheon Hee-soo. He likely thought it would be just perfect to have someone as smart accompanying him while also being able to maintain control, and it’d be like a light revenge against Kim Jong-soo, who had cut in line.

Of course, that dull-witted bear wasn’t actually coveting the officer, but…

Having answered the second question Jinseong posed earlier must’ve given him some confidence.

‘He’s not particularly talented, but he’s clever enough to realize that’s not quite perfect, so his hesitation faded and envy took over.’

Jinseong thought that wasn’t so bad.

Just like a foolish ghost not recognizing a talisman, facing Seong Min-hyuk alone could actually be more challenging.

The explosive actions of a fool are truly beyond imagination. It’s not the “common sense-defying” actions of a smart person. They do things that one couldn’t even fathom, actions completely outside the realm of thought.

For instance, someone might take a dibbuk box saying, ‘While it said not to open it, it didn’t say I couldn’t squash it with a hydraulic press,’ and end up pulverizing the box, unleashing evil spirits, or people playing in the cold might hear that gasoline has high caloric content and end up consuming it, only to vomit into a campfire, causing a massive blaze.

Seong Min-hyuk was entirely capable of such incidents.

But if there was an external brain attachment, it would reduce those variables and make him easier to control.

“Yeah, since it’s a precious National Defense Council unit, it should be easier to control.”

Jinseong thought, then paused in contemplation.

‘By the way, did the Patriotic League manage this around this time before my return, or did this change happen because the future has shifted?’

If it had always been the case, it was merely a mishap caused by Jinseong’s insufficient or flawed information.

However, if it was different, then it meant the future had changed, indicating that Jinseong’s actions were starting to affect the world.

Lost in thought, Jinseong picked up a few scattered twigs and began to ignite the Samādhi True Fire in his hand. Soon, the twigs began to dry out, and he dropped the fire onto the parched wood, shaping it into a specific form.

Eventually, the twigs took on a shape resembling chopsticks, akin to what a fortune-teller would carry.

But he didn’t use it for fortune-telling. According to the I Ching, 50 sticks were required for divination, and he was merely holding four.

Instead, he angled the sticks into a shape with one vertex, resembling a square pyramid.

He stared at it quietly, then settled into the lotus position. Soon, as he silently murmured, the ground beneath him began to tremble. From the quaking earth, a hole emerged, and something began to ooze out.

Gold.

The gold that had earlier played its role in the well now swam up to Jinseong.

With his eyes closed, he guided the liquid gold into the pyramid.

As if a pond, the gold sloshed around the pyramid and some began to rise up the sticks, filling the very tip. The filled top of the pyramid started forming some pattern, resembling an eye.

The pupil seemed almost alive, tilting right then left repeatedly, eventually focusing on Jinseong, who was seated.

The eye of the mysterious pyramid.

The eye scrutinized Jinseong closely. Like a machine scanning him, it projected a mineral light onto him, surveying him from his toes to the top of his head as if a king examined mere commoners, then closed its eye, showing no further interest.

Seeing this, Jinseong nodded.

“I’m not quite significant enough just yet.”

It was a way to gauge the danger of external forces through the gaze of the soul that protects the flesh slumbering within the pyramid.

Naturally, such a method wasn’t precisely accurate, but it served as a crude way to measure one’s presence.

Here, “presence” referred to the impact one had on the world.

Not merely an accumulation of energy in the body or the ability to cast certain spells, but the power to influence the world. In other words, the intangibles where myriad causes and massive fates intertwine.

Indeed, a ruler over many would exude a stronger presence than a warrior wielding a sword, and a general leading troops would emanate far more presence than a lone extraordinary traveler.

In a sense, this connection between presence and danger reflected the pride of Egyptian civilization.

No matter how strong an individual might be, they could never harm Egypt.

The measurement of danger based on numbers and influence suggested that only an overwhelming army or a powerful ruler could dare to intrude upon Egypt.

However, this Egyptian confidence was proven to be hubris by history.

This was demonstrated by old holy sorcerers who led their groups away from Egypt, the curse of the Jews that fell across the land, and a necromancer who sought the records of the Book of the Dead after returning.

Yet even if hubris existed, the technique itself wasn’t flawed.

At least, it was true that presence and power often correlated.

The sorcery describing presence was telling Jinseong that he was currently an utterly useless existence.

It claimed he was unable to manifest a true presence, an entity without any power, reminiscent of a child.

“People can only stand on their own and live for themselves once they reach adulthood. Only then can they begin to write history with their own hands. The coming-of-age ceremony is a rite that firmly imprints an existence in the world and serves as a turning point for exerting influence.”

He hadn’t undergone a coming-of-age ceremony.

As he had yet to become an adult, he could not extend his influence upon the world.

Jinseong accepted the outcome of the sorcery.

If it were the likes of warriors, summoners, or sorcerers, such an outcome would not have occurred.

However, Jinseong was a shaman using sorcery and symbols, thus he was ensnared by the significance of something so trivial as “adulthood.”

And if what the sorcery said was true…

‘I misjudged the information I had.’

The outcome of the sorcery indicated so.

The world doesn’t change that easily.

An individual’s actions alone cannot alter the great tides of time.

Although he had roamed about since his return, merely that was insufficient to change the future.

‘Let’s see. If that’s the case, I should focus on building a good relationship with the National Defense Council without worrying.’

But Jinseong remained unfazed.

He hadn’t actually done much, just set the foundation for sorcery and wandered to establish some bases, so what was there to be disappointed about?

What mattered was the sorcery and establishing a close relationship with the National Defense Council, which required showing them he could be of help during the impending crises.

Jinseong pulled out his smartphone and texted Rise.

“Do you have any spells for creating or summoning yokai?”