The Power Of Demonic Horn Warhammer Art

The reason I had the White Wolf Warhammer made and was training in Demonic Horn Warhammer Art was so I could gather medicinal herbs and spiritual herbs growing a little deeper in than the outer edge of the demon realm. Yōma such as Gōrō and Armored Boars lived in that area, and gathering there was difficult unless one could drive off those yōma.

Gōrō were wolves covered in fur as hard as iron, while Armored Boars were giant boars with skin as tough as armor. To defeat these yōma, I needed attacks with power—in other words, the White Wolf Warhammer and Demonic Horn Warhammer Art.

While I was practicing Demonic Horn Warhammer Art, Zengu came over.

“You always use a mountain blade, so did you change weapons?”

“More or less. Right now I’m practicing Demonic Horn Warhammer Art.”

“Huh. Kou, you really do think differently from normal outer disciples sometimes.”

“What do you mean?”

“With a warhammer that has such a short handle, wouldn’t you be at a disadvantage when fighting yōma?”

“All I have to do is get in close enough to attack.”

“You’ve got guts.”

Hearing that, I gave a wry smile. It wasn’t as if I had chosen a warhammer with no reach because I liked it. If I had been bigger, I probably would have chosen to study Plum Blossom Spearmanship or Layered Resonance Sword.

After that, we started chatting, but midway through, Zengu made a face as though he had remembered something.

“Come to think of it, they were recruiting helpers at the apothecary.”

“Helpers for what?”

“It sounds like they’ll be gathering herbs and doing prep work for compounding medicines.”

Since I was also training in alchemy, helping there might be a good opportunity to learn more about it. I decided to apply.

When I went to the Main Hall and said I wanted to apply to help at the apothecary, I was assigned to work there right away.

“You, go to the storeroom and use a medicine grinder to turn the dried Shishirua Grass into powder.”

“Understood.”

When I went to the storeroom, two outer disciples were grinding Shishirua Grass into powder.

“Kou, you came to help too?”

Those two outer disciples were Ashin and a young man named Junhai. Junhai was a young man in his late teens who specialized in the sword.

“Yes, that’s right.”

After answering Junhai’s question, I looked around inside the storeroom.

“The tools and the Shishirua Grass are over there.”

Ashin told me. I took some dried Shishirua Grass and began grinding it into powder with the medicine grinder. After working for about two hours, I had built up a pile of Shishirua Grass powder, so I carried it to the compounding room. That was where they made the medicine.

In the compounding room, the inner disciples were making Banshō Wound Salve, a medicine for injuries. It seemed they were extracting essence from the powdered Shishirua Grass and mixing it with other medicinal ingredients to make the Banshō Wound Salve.

In the back of the compounding room, an older inner disciple was making immortal medicine using an alchemy furnace. An alchemy furnace was a device used to make immortal medicine and spiritual medicine with qi or spiritual power.

I watched how he made immortal medicine. The inner disciple held the alchemy furnace between both hands and was pouring qi into it. I could sense that qi swirling inside the furnace.

I had only observed for a short time, but my understanding of both how to use an alchemy furnace and of alchemy itself deepened. There was a limit to how much one could understand just by reading books. Seeing an alchemy furnace actually being used and sensing the movement of qi had been educational.

That helping job ended after about three days. It was a gain that I had learned how to use an alchemy furnace while helping at the apothecary, but it was also a gain that I had become acquainted with Kang Yuen, a pharmacist who was one of the apothecary’s customers.

Yuen was knowledgeable about immortal medicine and spiritual medicine as well, and he purchased the medicines made by the apothecary. Apparently, the money from those purchases was one of Gyorei Cave’s sources of income.

After that, I began preparing to go deeper into the demon realm. I had completed the warhammer version of “Wind Cutter” by fusing the techniques of Demonic Horn Warhammer Art and the Shrinking Earth Method.

The next day, after finishing my morning chores, I slung a carrying bag over my shoulder and headed for the demon realm. Going around to the back of Mount Gyorei and descending to the outer edge of the demon realm, I advanced deeper inside.

I was walking with my mountain blade tucked into the sash at my waist and the White Wolf Warhammer fastened behind my waist. It was spring, young leaves were sprouting on the trees, and fresh grass was growing up from beneath the dead grass.

On the way, I encountered a Fang Rabbit and killed it by slashing open its neck with my mountain blade. Fang Rabbits already felt like minor fry.

“A little farther now.”

About thirty minutes in, once I had entered the inner side of the outer edge, I started seeing the medicinal herbs I was after. The ingredients needed to make a Qi Prosperity Pill were Celtan Grass, Borbeek Grass, and the antlers of a Demon Twin-Spear Deer.

For Celtan Grass, the leaves had medicinal value, and for Borbeek Grass, it was the roots. Around the time I had gathered one dose worth of Celtan Grass and Borbeek Grass needed to make a Qi Prosperity Pill, I sensed the presence of a beast and stopped.

I felt the presence from behind a thicket of shrubs, so I turned my gaze that way and drew the White Wolf Warhammer from my back. At that instant, the bushes shook violently with a rustling sound and an Armored Boar burst out.

It was a giant boar with a body length of around two meters. Faced with such a large foe for the first time, I felt a fear like my heart had been seized. Even so, my body moved, and I jumped sideways to dodge its charge.

The Armored Boar that had passed by me slammed into a tree about thirty centimeters in diameter, bending the trunk into the shape of a “<”. A tremendous crashing sound rang out through the area.

“Whoa, that power is insane.”

After that, the Armored Boar charged at me again and again. At first, all I could do was desperately dodge, but as I kept avoiding it, I started to understand the timing.

Then, after barely dodging its fifth body slam, I poured qi into the White Wolf Warhammer and brought the hammer side of the warhammer crashing down onto the Armored Boar’s back. At that instant, the qi shockwave combined with the special effect of the White Wolf’s claws, producing an effect called “Qi Claw Strike.”

The blow from that Qi Claw Strike caused flesh and blood to burst from the Armored Boar’s back. However, that one blow was not fatal. It seemed I still had to hit a vital point after all.

That said, the damaged Armored Boar’s movements became sluggish. When I dodged its next body slam, I smashed the White Wolf Warhammer into its neck. Then, due to the effect of Qi Claw Strike, the flesh and blood around the blood vessels in its neck burst apart, and a great amount of blood poured out.

The Armored Boar staggered around for a short while, but before long it collapsed to the ground. After confirming that it was dead, I let out a long breath in relief.