Possessing Nothing

TL: Yul

PR: Gort

–

Yokai powers -> Yokai essence

Blood Ring Heavenly Demonic Art -> Blood Phantom Demonic Art 

–

Lee Sungmin didn’t want to fight Gemini. He didn’t exactly know what Gemini was planning, but wasn’t there a saying like the enemy of your enemy is your friend?

He didn’t have any thoughts of bringing Gemini to his side, but he also had no thoughts of killing her now. In the first place, that wasn’t an easy task. 

Gemini was as old as the Blood Demon, if not older. Fight Gemini, who was on par with the Blood Demon, with the moon out, while Geniella was nearby? Lee Sungmin declined that option. 

[[If you back away now, everything ends cleanly.]]

Gemini whispered.

[[I told you before, remember? The Queen doesn’t have any thoughts on killing you now. Even though she’s in that state from using the 3rd Demon Eye, she is not powerless. She can force herself to move; she just doesn’t want to.]]

The Sword Saint was dead.

Lee Sungmin couldn’t help but feel bitter and regret at his death. In the end, he wasn’t able to avenge his dead disciple and died.

However, Lee Sungmin couldn’t get swept up in the wave of emotions. Aine was still moving around incredibly fast, and Chen and Kuhn were aiming for his blind spots.

Lee Sungmin kept trying to find Gemini’s location as he fought the trio.

[[I’ll warn you again. Back off. Don’t make me step in.]]

He didn’t have any thoughts of fighting for long, anyway. 

The reason why he took his time fighting instead of acting out what he had in mind was to make time for the Wudang Sect’s remaining practitioners to run away from the mountain.

He thought it was a sort of courtesy toward the Sword Saint, who died fighting Geniella, and Chung Myung, who died in vain.

Enough time had flown. They should have had enough time to run away from the mountain.

“Good,” Lee Sungmin nodded. Gemini giggled at that small voice.

[[Excellent. At this point, you can’t do anything on this mountain. You right now can’t stop Geniella… and I don’t see any way you can stop her, even in the future. But isn’t that better than dying here?]]

Lee Sungmin listened to Gemini speak, lowering his spear. It was an action to show Gemini that he was not hostile. 

Chen and Kuhn’s movements stopped; Gemini had probably given them an order. 

However, Aine was different. She still felt hungry, and the urge to kill Lee Sungmin intensified. 

Lee Sungmin was grateful that Aine acted this way. Because she behaved stupidly, he was able to act without alerting Gemini.

Lee Sungmin dodged Aine’s attack and jumped into the air.

Like a cat being reeled in by a mouse, Aine followed Lee Sungmin high into the air.

Lee Sungmin glanced down. The distance was enough. He pointed the spear at Aine, who dashed up recklessly.

He already knew what to do. His yokai essence bloomed and grew, surrounding the tip of the spear. 

When the spear that shot forward touched Aine, the highly concentrated yokai essence swelled greatly.

PUHWAK!

The yokai essence exploded; like a mouth, it opened its jaws and encapsulated Aine.

Nine Heavenly Spear Techniques: 8th Art – Violet World

The illusionary world opened.

“Ah.”

Gemini, who was watching from within the darkness, widened her eyes. She hurriedly stepped forward as a thought passed her mind.

She knew what that was. She didn’t know what it was called, but it was a space that contained the Blood Demon for a short time.

It was a technique that even the Blood Demon, with immense strength, had to struggle to escape.

Gemini couldn’t laugh like usual. What if…

She grinded her teeth and shouted.

“STOP HIM!”

At the loud yell, Chen and Kuhn shot up into the air. Purple clouds were draped over the sky. Gemini also took a step forward.

Crimson-red energy gathered above her hands. When Gemini opened her hands wide, the accumulated magic power swelled several times its size. Gemini glared at the clouds and fired out the red energy.

KWAAAAAAAAA!!!!

The crimson-red energy, which ripped apart the space around it, collided with the violet clouds.

“Tell Geniella,”

A voice spoke from within the clouds.

“I’m willing to negotiate.”

Shooook.

The world that hung above the sky collapsed, and the violet clouds dispersed into the air. Gemini’s face, locked into the sky, was frightening.

Lee Sungmin and Aine were gone. 

It was true that Aine’s presence prevented Geniella from stepping forward.

What Geniella wanted was not to end the world by destroying it with her own hands, but for the future she wanted to bring to reality.

There is no doubt about it.

As long as she wanted to turn Aine into a massacre predator, Geniella would not be at the forefront.

If Aine dies, there is no reason for Geniella not to step forward herself.

That was not what Lee Seong-min wanted. What he wanted was time and a variable.

BOOM!

Lee Sungmin and Aine fell together from the top of the Pegasus. Aine screamed without knowing what was happening and swung her claws at Lee Sungmin.

Lee Sungmin grabbed Aine’s wrists with both hands and slammed his forehead into her face.

Aine’s head was thrown back with a dull sound.

“Kruk!”

Blood spurted from her collapsed nose. Lee Sungmin twisted Aine’s wrists, which were in his hand.

From his left hand, the Blood Ring Heavenly Demonic Art’s energy exploded forward and hit Aine’s solar plexus. 

KWAAANG!!

Blood Phantom Demonic Art: Internal Combustion

Aine’s insides exploded, and dark red blood spurted from Aine’s orifices. 

Lee Sungmin knew that Aine’s internal organs were shattered by this blow, but he knew that he couldn’t subdue her with just this.

Lee Sungmin flicked his finger toward the spear that had fallen on the floor. Immediately, the spear flew into the air and shot through Aine.

Aine’s mouth split open as blood rose like a fountain, showering the surrounding area with blood. She quickly moved her hand and struggled to pull out the spear that pierced her armpit.

Lee Sungmin stood up and kicked Aine, knocking her down to the ground.

[They finally came.]

Heoju cackled as he spoke.

Lee Sungmin wiped the blood on his face with his hand. 

Just now, he had dragged Aine into the Violet World, immediately summoned the Pegasus, grabbed Aine by the collar, and leaped through space. 

He was worried that Aine would struggle and fall off the mystical horse along the way, but they had succeeded in arriving at the Forest of Fairies safely.

“What is this?” 

Due to the sudden commotion, the place became crowded. Lee Sungmin headed toward Aine, who was still struggling on the ground. 

No matter how powerful one’s regenerative power was, once something penetrated one’s body, one couldn’t regenerate properly unless it was removed.

Lee Sungmin kicked Aine, who was trying to pull out his spear, without hesitation. Aine’s body rolled on the ground with a terrible sound.

“Kya!”

Teresa’s scream rang out. 

It wasn’t a pretty sight to see, but there was no choice.

When he glanced back, the Black Dragon had appeared and was covering Teresa’s eyes with his hands. 

The others didn’t seem to understand the situation, but they did not try to stop Lee Sungmin, who plunged the spear that pierced Aine’s body deep into the ground.

“Stay still.”

Aine gritted her teeth, her golden eyes flashing. Her body twitched, and tentacles shot out.

However, Lee Sungmin’s hand moved even faster, grabbing Aine’s throat before the tentacles could attack.

Since he knew that Aine was not someone who would die easily, Lee Sungmin had no mercy in his hands.

CRACK!

Aine’s neck broke in Lee Sungmin’s hands. Aine’s body went limp, but Lee Sungmin knew that it wouldn’t be long before she regenerated.

“What’s going on?”

Finally, Oslo appeared. The fairies who followed behind her opened their eyes wide as they saw Aine struggling.

The unaware fairies tried to approach Aine, flapping their wings as to welcome the new guest, but Oslo raised her hand and stopped the fairies from doing so.

“Don’t.”

Oslo warned the fairies and approached Aine directly. She pouted her lips and grumbled.

“There are too many guests here.”

“I apologize,” Lee Sungmin smiled bitterly, bowing his head toward Oslo. 

She snorted and lightly waved her hand.

Glittering powder decorated the air. Slowly, the shimmers descended and wrapped around Aine’s body.

Aine, who was convulsing, slowly stopped. She looked at Lee Sungmin and Oslo alternately with an expression of disbelief.

Aine’s eyelids, which were shaking and twitching, closed. Lee Sungmin looked at Aine sleeping and made an expression of disbelief.

“What’s that expression?”

“How’d you do that?”

“You think I’m the Fairy Queen just because my wings are the biggest? I’m the Fairy Queen because I have the power to be a ruler. In this forest, there isn’t much that I can’t do.”

Oslo proudly stuck out her chest. Lee Sungmin pulled out the spear stuck in Aine’s sleeping body.

Aine did not wake up, but the wound pierced by the spear quickly regenerated in front of everyone. Lee Sungmin clicked his tongue when he saw her regenerative speed.

“So, what is it?”

Oslo pressed for an answer. Lee Sungmin looked back at the people gathered. Everyone was gathered except for Scarlett, who was at the Magic Tower, and Yana, who went to the Demonic Spirit. 

Baek Sogo, the Black Dragon, the Spear King, Teresa, Rubia, and Lloyd. 

Among these, only Rubia and Lloyd had met Aine in person. Due to this, they were looking at Aine with surprised expressions.

Lee Sungmin explained to everyone why he brought Aine here. If Aine died, there was a high possibility that Geniella would go on a rampage.

However, Aine, who would become a monster from feasting on the Sword Saint’s corpse, could not be placed under Geniella’s control.

That was why he brought her here. The Forest of Fairies was a place that even Geniella, with her immense power, could not easily challenge.

Since there was room for negotiation through Gemini, they could predict Geniella’s movements to some extent.

“Will the Vampire Queen agree to negotiate?” 

The Black Dragon frowned and muttered.

“Her favorite card was taken away, so she might come back to get it…however, there is a high possibility of her giving up.”

“If that happens, we can kill her then,” Lee Sungmin spoke with a calm expression. (TN: he’s talking about Aine)

The end result would remain unchanged. 

If Geniella goes on a rampage without trying to find Aine, they could kill Aine without hesitating.

At least with that, Aine would no longer be a threat.

“What if the Vampire Queen does want to negotiate?”

The Spear King asked, glancing down at Aine.

“Our goal is to gain as much time as possible. If Geniella agrees to negotiate, that’s extra time for us.”

“The time to get from Wudang to the Forest of Fairies? If the Queen wants to come here, it wouldn’t even take a month. What about after that? Are you planning to gently return that girl to the Queen?”

“No. I don’t have any thoughts on waiting for the Queen in this forest. I’m planning on being prepared to run away from her.” 

At that, the Spear King grinned.

“Do you think it’s possible?”

“We’ll have to see, but even if we do end up fighting, I think we’d be able to do something to her to some extent.”

“That also goes for the Queen as well. What are you going to do if that bitch picks a night when the full moon rises and attacks us?”

“We can only hope that doesn’t happen,” Lee Sungmin laughed bitterly and spoke.

That was why Heoju said it might be a “악수”. (From the last chapter, I still don’t know what this means. It might literally mean a handshake [악수 means handshake] as in both sides don’t want to fight but want to negotiate.) 

Now that Aine was taken away, Geniella would do whatever it takes to find Lee Sungmin.

“No, there is no need to run away.”

Oslo, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, spoke up.

“If there is a fight in this forest, I can actively intervene. I can’t kill the Queen, but… I can interfere with her. If we fight in this forest, we might have some chance of winning even under the full moon.”

Lee Sungmin didn’t want to get Oslo involved. He thought about fighting here, but he didn’t want to endanger Oslo, who had helped him many times. He also did not want to destroy the forest that his master loved.

“It’s okay.”

Before Lee Sungmin could say something, Oslo shook her head.

“It’s to prevent the Apocalypse, remember? If the Apocalypse starts and everything ends, I won’t be able to die and will have to go through something terrible. I don’t want to go through that either. Now that we’ve come this far, there’s no reason to save face.”

“…I understand.”

“But, I won’t actually fight. I’m not that good at fighting.”

Lee Sungmin also couldn’t imagine Oslo stepping forward to fight in person.

[Do you have any thoughts on using Predation?]

Heoju tossed out a question. At that, Lee Sungmin replied without hesitation.

‘No.’

In the first place, he thought that it would be impossible.

—

Hello, it’s Yul again. Happy New Year! The offer from the last chapter (last year lol)  is still active. 

Thank you for bearing with my slow updates for more than a year (I think I started TLing in late 2022). I hope someone contacts me about wanting to TL (discord is 24hearts btw, also if you want to TL, please be fluent in Korean as PN is very hard to translate just with MTL), but if no one does, I hope you guys will be more patient with me. This year is probably going to be one of my busiest years so far, but I’ll at least try to get to chapter 400 by the end of 2024. That’s an abysmal release rate, so if anyone can release fellow readers from my pain, please reach out to me. Now, I wish I spent my time more wisely. Anyway, that’s it from me. Thank you once again, and I hope you guys have a wonderful day.