Chapter 53: 53. Dual Core

While Ryu-o was having a good time, on a street in the South...

Ethan saw the sparkle in Riner’s eyes and felt irritation well up inside him.

"Miss Riner, sexual desire and romantic love are usually two different things, you know?"

Riner beamed and tilted her head at a forty-five-degree angle.

"Hmm?"

At her response, which showed that she truly did not understand at all, Ethan’s narrow eyes nearly flew wide open.

Ethan took a deep breath as he recalled the face of the teacher who had saved him.

"Whew... Drugging someone and making them grind their hips isn’t love."

"??? Then what is love?"

How could she possibly be stronger than him with intelligence like that...?

In his head, Ethan began devising a customized educational curriculum for Riner.

He would meet her at her level, so she could understand it easily.

"Hmm... It’s the feeling of always thinking about the other person and wanting to do anything for them."

Riner clasped her hands together with an excited look on her face, then spun around in place.

"I knew it! What I’m feeling is love!!"

The words burst out of Ethan before he could even think.

"Would a woman like that try to force-feed her partner narcotics and aphrodisiacs?"

"Huh?"

"...My mistake."

After that swift admission came his second attempt at educating her at her level.

"Think about it, Miss Riner. The person you drug will go wild just from seeing you and turn into a male dog that does nothing but drool."

"Hmm..."

"Without any warm exchange of feelings, his head will be filled with sexual desire, and he’ll rub his cock raw chasing after you all day just to mate with you."

"..."

"He’ll do it while eating, do it while bathing, do it before bed..."

"That sounds really..."

"In the end, no feelings will remain—only drugs and sex. He’ll be licking up spilled drug powder from the floor while grinding his hips."

"That sounds great!?!?!?!!?"

They said women had thought of nothing but fucking men since ancient times... and she thought that sounded good?

As a man, Ethan could not understand it at all.

Riner trembled as though even imagining it made her happy.

"You know, Ethan... I think that counts as a kind of love too..."

"...What?"

Even at Ethan’s reaction, the filth spilling from Riner’s mouth showed no sign of stopping.

"In the end, I’ll be the only thing left in that person’s head, right?"

"???? I clearly said drugs and mating..."

"Thinking of me while eating, thinking of me while bathing, thinking of me before bed... In the end, the other person ends up in the same position as me, right?"

Ethan was gradually beginning to pity the man named Jang Ryu-o.

What sin had he committed to lodge himself so perfectly in a woman like this’s heart?

‘He was quite strong, though...’

Ethan shuddered as he recalled the swordsmanship that had torn through his chest.

"Ugh... Now that I think about it, it would be better to help you, Miss Riner."

"So you understand love too, Ethan!"

He had decided that, rather than face Jang Ryu-o again in the future, it would be better to become Miss Riner’s living dildo.

"Um... Miss Riner? Rather than doing this here, why don’t we ask Teacher?"

Riner lowered her brows as she spoke.

"He told me to try it myself first, as practice... He said if it really doesn’t work out, he’ll help me..."

"Oh dear~ What a shame."

As the two continued their trivial conversation, they arrived at the red-light district at the very bottom of the South.

Jingle~

A cheerful sound rang out as they opened the door.

Creaking echoed from the dark staircase.

Creeeak... creak...

"A man and a woman? You’ve come to the wrong place. If you want it with three people..."

"Hi! I heard the ‘love potion’ sold here is the strongest?"

"Miss Riner, it’s called an aphrodisiac. Could we perhaps buy aphrodisiacs in bulk here? My friend has someone she wants to thoroughly soak in them."

The woman in a prostitute’s outfit riddled with holes frowned and began shouting.

"Boys! Our guests are heading somewhere far away! Show them the way!!!"

"Yes!!!"

After booming voices rang out once from beneath the wooden floor, the floor opened.

Thugs began climbing out one after another.

Yet they looked rather imposing for third-rate street punks.

Riner cocked her head as she watched the crowd pour up from underground.

"I told you, I just need the drugs?"

Ethan stroked his chin and drew his sword.

"It seems they aren’t for sale."

With a disappointed expression, Riner took out a wand.

"Mmm... Then I’ll have to ask nicely and take just a little."

The thug at the front flashed a small smile at the prostitute and walked toward the two.

"Sister-in-law, we’ll bury them somewhere quiet and..."

When Riner swung her wand at the mercenary approaching her...

Whoosh!

"Listen, I really, really reeeally need it, so..."

Bone that sprouted from beneath the ground instantly devoured the mercenary’s legs...

Crunch! Thud!

"Huh? Ah...? Huh? Aaaaaaagh!"

Pssshhhhh!

Riner crouched down before the thug who had collapsed onto the ground.

"So, can I get even a little?"

The thugs could not move, even as their companion’s blood from his missing legs splashed up to their shins.

Silence swallowed the room.

.........

The prostitute, her face drained pale, spoke.

"I-I’ll... bring the boss..."

"Really!? I’m counting on you!!"

**

"..."

"..."

Cheon Hwayeong, cradled in my arms, stared blankly at me.

I stared blankly back at Cheon Hwayeong.

So right now... um... we’d both come a lot, and were in that post-nut state.

As though the blaze that had burned between us until just moments ago had been a lie, nothing but ashes remained of the two of us.

"I need to train..."

"...Rest today."

I sensed a weariness on Cheon Hwayeong’s face that I had never seen before.

It was the sort of expression that said, ‘Does anything even matter now?’

Honestly, taking a day off would not make much of a difference.

But if I rested now, anxiety washed over me that we would end up like this again next time.

‘N-no...’

"Cheon Hwayeong!"

"...What now?"

"There’s something I want to try!"

Cheon Hwayeong’s expression, which had been like that of a sated lion, changed into that of a startled rabbit.

She shoved me away and escaped from my embrace.

"S-stop! If you keep doing it in that hole, I’ll ascend into immortality! At least... use my mouth! Yes! Use my mouth and..."

"No, not that! What I want to try is..."

I explained to Cheon Hwayeong what I wanted to try.

After hearing it, Cheon Hwayeong...

"You crazy bastard... Just use them separately. That alone is more than enough."

She shook her head with an utterly fed-up expression.

But I had a question.

"Is combining two powers really that impossible?"

There were powers in all sorts of subculture, like the union of yin and yang, forming a taiji.

Techniques where two powers came together, amplified one another, and produced tremendous power!

Perhaps sensing my anticipation, Cheon Hwayeong shook her head and began explaining.

"To begin with, the Heavenly Demon Divine Art is among the most profound divine arts, a martial art that handles the energies of heaven and earth to achieve primal chaos."

"Oh..."

"Not ‘oh.’ You stumbled upon me, a once-in-an-eternity stroke of fortune, and gulped down pure primal-chaos energy for free. And what? You want to achieve primal chaos again?"

Cheon Hwayeong firmly pressed the spot where my dantian was located.

"I guarantee it won’t be possible through ordinary enlightenment. You have already learned an orthodox art that teaches you to respect all things in the world, and a demonic art that teaches you to despise all things in the world. Are you confident you can combine those two opposing realizations?"

Respect the world, yet look down on it... What kind of feeling—no, what kind of realization would that take?

"I was thinking of drawing out both powers at once and mixing them. Is there no way it could work?"

Cheon Hwayeong shook her head with a serious expression.

"That is the sort of fantasy one might have with two dantians. But it won’t be easy. One energy may drive out and taint another, but amplify it? Hmm... You will either suffer qi deviation or your body will burst apart."

I had not tried it so far because I feared something serious might happen, but after hearing that explanation, I was glad I hadn’t.

Still, I could not help feeling disappointed. For some reason, it felt like it ought to be possible.

Cheon Hwayeong studied my face, then gave a quiet snicker.

"You are greed itself... Go ahead and try it once."

My eyes widened at the unexpected response.

"Really? Can you keep my body from exploding?"

Cheon Hwayeong smiled and firmly pressed my cheek.

"Hehe, yes. Both energies are quite stable to begin with. As long as you do not try to create the amplification you desire, they will merely taint one another. Do not get your hopes up too much."

Looking at Cheon Hwayeong reminded me of an uncle secretly buying snacks for his nephew behind the parents’ backs.

The kind who secretly lets the child do something that Teacher would have had a fit over...

‘Teacher...’

In an instant, Cheon Hwayeong made a frightening face and viciously pinched my cheek.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Ah, I can’t talk! No, it’s nothing!"

Cheon Hwayeong stared at me intently with suspicious eyes before letting go.

"Hmm... Sit in the lotus position. But if it seems like something is going wrong, I’ll block your qi and blood... Ah, you have no qi and blood channels. I’ll manage somehow. Just use a little of each energy."

I nodded and sat cross-legged.

Cheon Hwayeong sighed and placed her hand against my back.

Puzzled by her changed position, I asked...

"Your posture is different this time?"

"Quiet! J-just hurry up and do it!"

...So prickly. Still, it seemed she intended to properly watch over me this time.

‘Should I really not do something I was told not to? No. Stop overthinking it and give it a try.’

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and circulated the energy of [Cloud-Treading Phantom Step].

Energy spread through me like concentrated dye dispersing into clear water.

My entire body overflowed with strength, and my senses sharpened.

This time, I operated the Heavenly Demon Divine Art that I had been practicing.

The qi of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art steadily pushed away the energy of [Cloud-Treading Phantom Step] that had filled my body.

As if they could never mix.

Hmm... My body did not explode or anything.

I merely felt an overwhelming sense of omnipotence as my sensations shifted into those I experienced when operating the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Cheon Hwayeong also spoke in a somewhat deflated voice.

"...It is strange, at least."

What I wanted was amplification, but they would not mix in the first place.

So I decided to change my approach.

Rather than use [Cloud-Treading Phantom Step] and then the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, I would try drawing out both powers simultaneously.

I withdrew my inner energy and reset my body.

Then I tried to draw out the qi, but it was quite difficult.

I could not draw out both energies at once, only pull them out little by little in alternation.

And it took quite a while to alternate the energies.

Four seconds—a far too long a time to use in actual combat.

Still...

"You crazy bastard..."

Red energy rippled from my left hand, while blue energy rippled from my right.

Cheon Hwayeong’s mouth fell open, and she began feeling my back.

"No, how are you using two energies at once? Is this kind of bullshit possible just because you have two dantians?"

"First, I sent one energy into one arm. Then I sent the other energy to the opposite side. Since the two energies do not mix, I’ll use them like this for now."

Store one energy in place, switch over, and use the other energy.

As I repeated this process, I became able to use a different energy on each side.

It was still awkward, but with enough practice, I felt I could definitely use it in actual combat.

The light went out of Cheon Hwayeong’s eyes as she looked at me.

Her gaze was emptier than it had been during post-nut clarity.

By now, she was looking at me almost as though I were an alien life-form.

In a completely drained voice, Cheon Hwayeong said,

"Haha... Yes... Well done..."

Hmm, judging from her reaction, I did damn well!

I should practice more and put it to use in real combat.

If possible, I would like to try mixing them too.

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