Chapter 48
Baek-Cheong fought a desperate battle with the Crystal Orb in her Abode all night.
Like cracking a password, she alternately infused Five Elements Qi in sequence, and even mobilized all nineteen strands of her Divine Sense to scan it.
She didn’t even hesitate to perform the eccentric act of stroking the orb while chanting spells from fairy tales she had read in her past life, but the heartless Orb Artifact merely maintained its silence.
“Ah, seriously!”
As dawn broke, Baek-Cheong, having stayed up all night with her eyes wide open, found her patience hitting rock bottom.
Huffing and puffing, she grabbed the Orb Artifact and headed to the Clan’s spacious Training Ground.
“I told you; let’s see who wins.”
Baek-Cheong placed the Orb Artifact down on the hard bluestone floor in the corner of the Training Ground.
“Let’s see if you’re still fine after taking a hit.”
She took about five steps back and sharply drew up the Water-attribute Qi from her Dantian.
She simultaneously deployed the 1st-Grade High-Tier Spell, Ice Dragon Shatter, in both hands.
Two ice earthworms cleaved through the air and flew forward.
Under the control of her Divine Sense, the ice earthworms plummeted accurately toward the Orb Artifact.
BOOOOM!
Along with an ear-splitting roar, thick cold air swept through the corner of the Training Ground.
The hard bluestones paving the floor shattered into pieces and shot up in all directions, while a dense cloud of ice dust obscured her vision.
“Gasp, why is the Young Lady using such a fierce spell this early in the morning!”
The Family members wandering nearby were startled by the loud explosion and turned their gazes.
What reflected in the Family members' eyes was the sight of the Youngest Young Lady breathing heavily amidst the thick cold air.
“No way…”
Baek-Cheong couldn’t close her mouth at the sight revealed as the dust slowly cleared.
The bluestone floor had been smashed to pieces by the 1st-Grade High-Tier Spell.
However, she wasn’t looking at the broken floor, but at the Orb Artifact sitting demurely in the middle of the shattered bluestones.
“Is it a bulletproof orb or something?”
Baek-Cheong was dumbfounded by the unbelievable sight.
Despite taking a direct hit from a 1st-Grade High-Tier Spell, the Orb Artifact boasted a brilliant appearance without a single scratch or a speck of frost.
Rather, the dust that had been on its surface was cleanly brushed off, making it seem to shine even whiter.
“This durability is seriously crazy, isn’t it? I might as well use it as a shield.”
Clicking her tongue, she trudged over and picked up the Orb Artifact.
Despite the orb having just been hit by a cold-attribute spell, its temperature still maintained a pleasant warmth.
At this point, her annoyance gave way to a strange sense of stubbornness.
‘Qi doesn’t work, blood binding doesn’t work, and it won’t break… Then how on Earth am I supposed to use this?’
Baek-Cheong rested her chin on her hand and fell into deep thought.
Then, as she looked at the pure white orb’s appearance, a fantasy novel came to mind.
At the same time, an absurd yet brilliant idea flashed through her head.
“In fantasy, wizards usually carry round orbs like this at the end of their staffs, right? Then what if I use this as a medium to cast magic… no, a spell?”
In the common sense of the Cultivation World, an artifact was closer to an object used like an intuitive tool.
A Flying Sword flew and cut down enemies, a shield blocked attacks, a bell rang and shook the mind, and a fan whipped up winds.
They were all intuitive, fully utilizing the inherent abilities the artifact possessed.
However, to cultivators stuck in standardized molds, the idea of using the artifact itself as a sort of amplifier to pass one’s own spell through was bound to be an extremely alien and unfamiliar attempt.
Therefore, it was highly likely that even her grandfather hadn’t been able to try it.
“Right, I have nothing to lose anyway, so let’s give it a try.”
Suppressing her excited little heart, Baek-Cheong gripped the Orb Artifact tightly with both hands.
She closed her eyes, drew up the Qi from her Dantian, and began the Meridian Manipulation for the Basic Technique, the Water Stream Art.
She forcefully twisted and concentrated the exit point of the Qi - which would normally extend out through her fingertips or hands - toward the Orb Artifact she was holding.
“Ugh.”
But because it was harder than she thought, her brow naturally furrowed.
The task of shaping a spell through an external object, an artifact, outside of her own body was far more demanding and painful.
The Qi lingered on the surface of the Orb Artifact and tried to bounce off, and a wave of discomfort washed over her as the flow in her meridians twisted and threatened to reverse.
‘Ah, so this is why everyone else doesn’t do this.’
She keenly felt the reason why other cultivators didn’t deploy spells using an artifact as a medium.
If she wasn’t careful, there was a high risk that the artifact and the Qi would clash, causing Qi Deviation.
But Baek-Cheong did not give up.
“Still, I see a possibility.”
She managed her vast Divine Sense with extreme delicacy to exercise Qi Control.
Then she forcefully attempted to manifest the spell through the Orb Artifact; it was an ignorant attempt that would have long since resulted in Qi Deviation had it not been for her exceptional Qi Control.
“Just a little more…”
Narrowly overcoming dozens of failures and crises of Qi reversal, she had sweat pouring down her forehead like rain.
And finally, after persistent attempts, she felt the signs of a faint Qi Resonance occurring inside the orb.
“Huh? It went in!”
Baek-Cheong cried out in a voice full of joy and finished the final Incantation of the Water Stream Art.
With that, the pure white orb instantly took on a blue hue and shone brilliantly.
Swoosh!
At the same time, a stream of water spouted from the Orb Artifact.
However, the stream of water had a strange shape.
The Amount of Spiritual Energy she had infused was definitely the exact amount needed to cast a single Water Stream Art, but the Water Stream Art that extended into the air through the orb was split into two streams of water.
“Uh?”
Baek-Cheong’s eyes widened as she looked back and forth between the orb and the streams of water.
She had consumed the spiritual energy for one spell and had obtained the results of two spells.
“Could it be? Is this Technique Replication?”
It was definitely an unknown artifact whose origins even her grandfather couldn’t figure out.
However, the ability of this orb - no, this White Orb - which only revealed its true value when used by twisting the common sense of the Cultivation World, lies in replicating spells.
“Jackpot.”
Excited, Baek-Cheong’s eyes flashed with interest.
Using one spell would deploy two spells.
Just imagining what bizarre effects this simple yet fraudulent ability would cause if it met her Multi-Technique Deployment sent shivers down her entire body.
However, a fatal restriction was hidden in the White Orb’s Replication Ability.
Since the replicated second spell was also shaped by the caster’s Qi, fully controlling the spell’s trajectory and power required double the consumption of Divine Sense.
Especially in the case of a spell like Ice Dragon Shatter, which required precise control by maintaining a connection with a thread of Divine Sense even after casting, the load placed on the Divine Sense skyrocketed exponentially.
Even for a cultivator who had mastered the Mind Splitting Art, handling these replicated control spells simultaneously would be a daunting challenge.
“If this is the case, I can be the best in the Mid Qi Condensation Stage.”
But Baek-Cheong was confident in her vast Divine Sense and her ability to divide it.
Rather, the only shackle hindering her Multi-Technique Deployment was the Qi Limit her meridians could withstand.
If five Ice Dragon Shatters were the limit of her meridians, injecting Qi through the White Orb meant she could launch ten ice dragons.
As long as her Divine Sense Control could support its expansion, it was the icing on the cake - an artifact capable of infinite expansion.
“Shall I give it a try?”
Baek-Cheong lightly leaped to the center of the Training Ground.
Gripping the White Orb with both hands, she drew up the spiritual energy from her Dantian.
She split her Divine Sense into ten strands while simultaneously initiating the Meridian Manipulation for five Ice Dragon Shatters.
The Water-attribute Qi rode her meridians and poured into the White Orb all at once.
Vwoooom!
The White Orb Context: While simultaneously initiating the Meridian Manipulation to ten strands for five Ice Dragon Shatters.
Vwoooom!
The White Orb trembled violently, emitting a blue light as if it were about to burst.
And the next moment, the Qi that passed through the White Orb was replicated, and ten ice dragons spectacularly unfurled in the sky above the Training Ground.
And the next moment, the Qi that passed through the White Orb was replicated, and ten ice dragons unfurled spectacularly in the sky above the Training Ground.
Since it was at the beginner level, they hadn’t yet acquired the majesty of true dragons and were closer to the shape of ice earthworms, but even for ice earthworms, the cold air and overwhelming pressure exuded by ten of them tangling together were truly a spectacular sight.
“Go!”
Full of excitement, Baek-Cheong smiled and steered them with her Divine Sense.
Under her command, the ten ice dragons began to crisscross the empty air of the Training Ground.
Three soared vertically to pierce the sky, four skimmed the ground and kicked up dirt, and the remaining three circled around her to form a Defensive Formation.
Soon, with a single hand gesture, the ten ice dragons moved in perfect order, performing a fantastic synchronized dance.
Even while she was moving ten independent ice dragons simultaneously, her Divine Sense did not tangle and perfectly manifested their movements.
“Whoaaaa!”
“I-Is that truly the level of the Qi Condensation Stage!”
“To handle ten spells at the same time…”
The Family members of the Baek Clan, who had gathered early due to the commotion, stopped what they were doing and lost themselves in the synchronized dance of the ice dragons embroidering the sky, unable to close their mouths.
The grand and majestic sight went beyond visual wonder, evoking an instinctive sense of awe.
Baek Mu-Jin, Baek Mu-Yeong, and the Clan’s executives, who had rushed out from inside after hearing the commotion, also stood frozen nearby, witnessing the unbelievable sight.
“Elder brother… for Cheong’s sake, you must absolutely reach the Core Formation stage…”
Baek Mu-Yeong muttered in a trembling voice.
Without answering, Baek Mu-Jin wore a blank expression as he looked back and forth between the ten ice dragons embroidering the sky and his daughter below, who was excitedly handling them as if conducting with her fingers.
Her skillful handling of an artifact whose origins even the Supreme Clan Head couldn’t uncover demonstrated an astonishing level of comprehension.
“A hidden dragon… has been born in our Baek Clan.”
Baek Mu-Jin swallowed dryly and tightened his clenched fists.
To protect a daughter with such brilliant Talent and comprehension, he needed to not only focus on Clan affairs but also devote himself to cultivation to elevate the Clan’s standing.
Only then could he protect her in the name of the Yeonha Baek Clan, even if vicious forces reached out their evil claws to covet his daughter’s Talent.