Chapter 32

Jun-gyeong sat on the wooden platform overlooking Seoul and reviewed the gains from this incident.
A dramatic increase in Karmic Purification.
And the white orb he had obtained after defeating the Corpse Fiend, the Northern Corpse Fiend’s Nether Core.

Until now, the cores he had obtained had been Inner Cores. This time, it was a Nether Core.
It would probably cause his synchronization rate to rise dramatically as well.

His body was steadily approaching completion, but his internal energy still couldn’t keep pace.
But this incident had finally shown him how he could increase his internal energy and how he could cultivate it.
He reached into his pouch and took out one of the stones called Mana Stones.
A stone still unknown to the world.
Barkan had called it a Mana Stone.
He didn’t know why they were being found beneath Sajik-dong in Seoul, but Barkan had said they were proof that Mana was leaking through a dimensional rift.
Which also meant monsters had entered through that same rift.

“One more reason to move to Sajik-dong.”

He needed to hold his ground there.
He had no idea how many monsters had already crossed the dimensional rift into Seoul, but he could not allow any more to come through.
To prevent that, he needed to establish himself in Sajik-dong, where the passage lay, and stop them there.
For now, he had restored the Seonghwangsin, the local tutelary deity, and stationed him there, but there was no telling when something powerful enough to overwhelm him might appear again.

And then there was the most decisive reason of all for settling there.
He looked at the Mana Stone.

“So saving souls causes a Purification Lotus to bloom, and I can use it to purify Mana Stones and cultivate my internal energy.”

Jun-gyeong sat cross-legged with the purified Mana Stone before him and closed his eyes.
Then he slowly steadied his breathing and began Qi Circulation.

Sssss-

His internal energy began circulating with the flow of his Qi and blood, stimulating his vital points.
At the same time, the Mana Stone before him steadily began to shrink.

“Sssup-”

The Mana Stone turned to smoke as though crumbling away and began flowing into him through his nose and mouth.
The energy followed the flow of his Qi and blood, pounding against the vital points throughout his body.

Thump- Thump-

His vital points gradually strengthened, while the flow of his Qi and blood expanded.
When he finished his Qi Circulation and opened his eyes, they flashed sharply.

“Hoo-”

After steadying his breathing, he opened and closed his hand, gauging his strength.
He had absorbed all the Mana Stones he had brought back from the altar.
He had recovered nearly all the internal energy he had expended, but the amount was still pitiful compared to what he had possessed in the past.

“I should increase my internal energy before raising the synchronization rate.”

He tossed the white orb back into his Dokkaebi Pouch.

“Which means moving comes first, I suppose.”

Jun-gyeong stood and slowly looked around the rooftop.
A barren rooftop without so much as a single flower.
A cramped space with nothing but a lone wooden platform and a door leading into the small room enclosed in window frames.
He had grown attached to it during his time here, so leaving brought a trace of regret.
But not enough regret to justify giving up so much just to remain.

Riiing-

Jun-gyeong took out his phone and checked the screen.

[Yang Seung-ho]

Seeing the name clearly displayed, he answered.

-Hello, hyung-nim.
“Yeah.”
-I have one piece of good news and one piece of bad news.

‘Bad news?’

Jun-gyeong’s brow furrowed slightly.
He wondered what bad news there could possibly be for him now.
But before the thought could go any further, Seung-ho continued.

-First, the good news. We bought that property in Sajik-dong.
“The house with the peach tree?”
-Yes, that one.
“Good. What’s the bad news?”
-Well… Mayor Han is going to be released with a suspended sentence.

Jun-gyeong gave a faint chuckle.
Whether he was released or not hardly mattered anymore.
He would no longer be able to interfere with Jun-gyeong.
And wherever he went, divine punishment would follow him.

-He seems perfectly normal most of the time, but he has occasional fits, so I think they treated it as a mitigating circumstance. I’m sorry. I should’ve paid closer attention.
“That’s nothing for you to apologize for.”

Whatever happened in human politics was no concern of his.
What mattered was that they had acquired the house with the peach tree.

“So when can I move in?”
-If you’d like, immediately.
“Really? Good. I’ll move in today.”
-Today?
“Now.”
-Ah… yes. Do you perhaps…
“I have no luggage.”
-Right. Then we’ll take care of getting everything you need ready at the new house. How about heading over this afternoon?

Jun-gyeong looked up and roughly gauged the sun’s position.
It had not yet reached its highest point.
It was around ten in the morning.

“All right. I’ll head over this afternoon.”
-Yes! We’ll hurry and get everything ready.

After ending the call, Jun-gyeong lay back on the wooden platform.

The moment Yang Seung-ho ended the call with Jun-gyeong, everything became hectic.

“Hyeon-seok. This just became urgent.”
“Yes? I mean, what?”
“He’s moving into the Sajik-dong house today. No, basically right now.”

Kim Hyeon-seok’s brow furrowed slightly.

“That is urgent.”
“Yeah. Hurry.”
“Got it.”

Hyeon-seok pulled out his phone as he left the CEO’s office.

“Yes, this is the Chief Secretary. Cancel the renovation work at the Sajik-dong house. We’ll finish it in its current state by furnishing the interior, so send the designers only. I’m heading to the site now.”

He hung up without even waiting for a response.
Then he got into his car and headed straight for Sajik-dong.

After parking on a side street inside the alley, he jumped out and ran straight into the house with the peach tree.
The designers had already arrived and greeted him at the entrance, but with no time even for pleasantries, he immediately herded them inside.
Fortunately, the renovation work had not yet begun.
After surveying the empty interior, he immediately started issuing instructions.

“Make it as cozy as possible, as efficient as possible, and absolutely comfortable. No renovations. Design the furnishings, place the orders, and get everything inside by noon.”
“What? Noon? Chief, even getting things delivered would take at least a week…”
“Noon.”
“Ah… well…”

As expected, asking nicely was not enough to get people moving.
Hyeon-seok’s eyes gleamed as he continued.

“I don’t care whether you run there or fly. These are the CEO’s orders. Move. Once it’s done, you’ll get a bonus bigger than anything you’ve ever seen. After taxes! In cash.”

The designers’ eyes began to sparkle.

“Yes! Let’s move!”

The designers flipped open their notebooks, began talking over one another, scribbling things down, making calls, and shouting into their phones.
Hyeon-seok watched them for a moment, then stepped outside.

He didn’t know whether the place had once been a bar or a teahouse, but it had a large picture window overlooking the courtyard.
It would be pleasant to sit there in the sunlight and look out over the garden.

“Call the landscaping team and clean up the courtyard. Preserve this peach tree and make the surroundings look nicer. And tell them to finish demolishing the house next door before noon. We need a parking lot.”
“Yes! Understood.”
“And confirm that CCTV cameras have been installed around all the buildings we acquired throughout Sajik-dong. We need to be able to see the entire neighborhood at a glance.”
“Yes. I’ll check immediately.”

Hyeon-seok nodded.
Yang Seung-ho had not purchased only this one building.
He had bought properties scattered throughout Sajik-dong and had also become directly involved in rebuilding the collapsed buildings.
Many people had been listed as missing after the incident, and excavation efforts were still underway.
Samo Group had secured those rights by agreeing to shoulder all the costs associated with the aftermath.
The redevelopment plan was gone, but construction on a comparable scale was set to begin.
And the rights to that project belonged to Samo Group.

One of the designers bustling around inside suddenly rushed out and called urgently to Hyeon-seok.

“Chief! What should we do about the bed?”
“The most expensive one.”
“And the sofa…”
“The most expensive one.”

The designer nodded.
As he turned to head back inside, Hyeon-seok caught him by the shoulder.
Jun-gyeong had exercised every morning by running up and down that hill.
Once he moved here, his daily exercise would definitely decrease.

“And he’ll need somewhere to exercise. Set up a private gym with a treadmill and the latest equipment.”
“Yes, understood.”

The designer ran back inside.
Before long, the site grew even more frantic.
Sofas, beds, kitchen fixtures, and every kind of household furnishing began pouring in.

Jun-gyeong woke after a long nap on the wooden platform and looked around his home.
He truly had nothing to pack.
Which was only natural, since he had arrived with nothing in the first place.
With a faint chuckle, he turned, left the house, and started down the hill.

“I’m moving.”
[What? Moving? Right now?]
“Yeah. To the house with the peach tree.”
[Oh! They bought it?]
“Yes. Yang Seung-ho turned out to be more capable than you.”
[Tch! Don’t compare me to a chaebol. Whatever, fine. When are you moving in?]
“I just told you. I’m going now.”
[What? What about your luggage… Right. You don’t have any. Fine. Is there anything you need? I could at least bring a housewarming gift.]
“Nothing.”
[All right. I’ll stop by soon.]
“Fine.”

When he reached the bottom of the hill, a pitch-black Escalade was waiting instead of the usual black van.
The same employees as before were waiting beside it and bowed in greeting.

“Good afternoon, sir.”
“Mm.”

Jun-gyeong nodded.
One of the employees immediately opened the car door.

“Right this way, sir.”
“Thank you, as always.”
“Not at all. It’s our job.”

The car passed through the Gwanghwamun dimensional Gate and entered Sajik-dong.
Whether they had been demolished or removed some other way, the pointed structures he had seen before were gone without a trace.

After traveling along a gleaming black road that looked freshly paved, Jun-gyeong arrived at the house with the peach tree and stepped out.
Nothing about its exterior had changed.
The neatly tended peach tree, the flagstone path extending from it like a small trail, and the hanok standing at the end were all just as before.
With a bright smile, Jun-gyeong opened the front door and stepped inside.
The neatly furnished interior came into view at once.
The first thing that caught his eye was the living room directly ahead.
A three-seat sofa faced a large picture window overlooking the courtyard, with a single armchair on either side.
A low table stood between them.
Turning to the right, he saw the sink and kitchen, with a four-person dining table and chairs beside them.

“There’s a bedroom and another room farther in, along with a separate home gym for you.”

Yang Seung-ho, who had arrived ahead of him, stepped forward to explain.

“Thank you. You worked hard.”
“Not at all. What did I even do? The Chief Secretary did all the work.”
“Then thank you for your hard work.”
“Thank you.”

Hyeon-seok bowed his head.
After walking through the house, Jun-gyeong sat on the sofa and looked outside.
The blossoms had already fallen, but the peach tree now stood covered in green leaves.

“You found me a good home. Thank you.”
“This is nothing.”

Seung-ho shrugged.

“Ok-hee said she’ll come by soon. Let’s all get together and have a drink.”
“Ah, yes. We’ll prepare that too.”

Jun-gyeong lightly shook his head.

“The host prepares the housewarming. Don’t interfere.”
“Understood. Then we’ll be going. Get some rest.”
“Thank you.”

After the two left, Jun-gyeong remained seated on the sofa, staring outside.
Now that the move was complete, he had plenty to do.
He needed to find more Mana Stones, use them to cultivate his internal energy, and then absorb the Corpse Fiend’s Nether Core.
And that was not all.
Afterward, through nervous-system acceleration, he needed to bring his body, internal energy, and nervous system into harmony.
All of it formed one interconnected progression.

Yet he did none of it.

“Sleet has been falling in my mind all day.”

His calm voice continued.

“That day from the past came back to me again, when I cut down dozens, then hundreds more. And the house I returned to. In the yard of that house without you, a peach tree stood alone just like that one.”

An entirely different scene passed through his mind.
The inside of the house that day.
A house that had been unnaturally still and quiet.
After hearing that his wife had entered the palace, Jun-gyeong was seized by a strange foreboding. He took Mukhwa and left the house.
And then the events of that day unfolded.

“Seol-hui. Are you living well? As for me… I’m not so sure.”

Tap, Patter, Patter.

Rain began striking the window.
The peach blossoms had fallen, and the summer heat was beginning in earnest.
The monsoon season had begun.

The rain continued as the moon climbed high into the sky, then slowly began descending toward the opposite horizon.
Jun-gyeong remained seated on the sofa with his eyes closed.

Patter, Tap, Patter.

The rain continued tapping against the window, and everything around him was silent.
Jun-gyeong slowly opened his eyes.
Beside the peach tree in the courtyard.
A little girl was standing there.
Clutching a teddy bear to her chest.

Jun-gyeong opened the front door and stepped outside.

Soaked sneakers. A body covered in bruises. Ragged breaths.
But she was not a living child.
Jun-gyeong slowly lowered himself onto one knee.

“Mister… my mom… my mom keeps getting sick.”

Jun-gyeong placed a hand on the girl’s shoulder.
A record of the girl’s identity appeared before him.