I Became the Academy’s Genius Shikigami Summoner – Chapter 257

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟓𝟕

【Son Pyo-jiun 】

▶Level 49

【Man-eating Ghost】

▶Level 54

Thud!

Son Pyo-jiun ran out and scattered some kind of talisman I’d never seen before while chanting, and fog poured out from all sides, covering the Man-eating Ghost’s entire front.

And then, right after that, came the second move.

Son Pyo-jiun threw the talisman onto the ground, and an earthen hand burst out of it and began pressing down on the Man-eating Ghost.

Koon!

Bam!

“Hmph! That’s nothing. This place is nothing but full of complete and utter frauds.”

However, despite Son Pyo-jiun’s confidence, the Man-eating Ghost blinked and tensed up its entire body, getting up from its spot.

And then it picked up the now flustered Son Pyo-jiun.

Bam!

“Kuaaagh!”

As Son Pyo-jiun struggled and thrashed, the Man-eating Ghost nonchalantly threw him away and slammed him into the bushes inside the courtyard.

It didn’t seem like he was badly injured, but it was certainly a miserable defeat.

Seeing that, the Taoist priests became even more cautious, and they couldn’t just rush in recklessly, so they were lost in thought.

The one who broke that silence was Jang-sam, who came out swinging the coin tied to a string like he always did.

“Well, I think I get the gist of it.”

He immediately rushed in without a single shred of hesitation and began to perform the ritual. Strangely enough, from the scattered talismans, his clones appeared and muddled the vision of the Man-eating Ghost.

Then he followed up with a second ritual.

Jang-sam exhaled and blew out an unidentified powder, and the Man-eating Ghost’s movements became slower and slower as it came into contact with it.

If you just looked at it, it was the same pattern as Son Pyo-jiun, but the skill involved was incomparable.

“Hmm, it’s more resistant than I thought.”

About 2 minutes later, the Man-eating Ghost shook its head and barely regained its original speed, but by that time, several wounds had already been carved into the Man-eating Ghost’s body from the repeated attacks.

“Hmph, I guess it’s about time to finish this.”

Jang-sam took out the iron staff that was strapped to his back and stuck a bunch of talismans to it, then ran up to the Man-eating Ghost and swung it around with a mighty force.

The characters on the talisman shone and cut through the air like a flash of lightning.

The Man-eating Ghost’s flesh couldn’t withstand it and was torn apart one after another.

Seeing that, I could tell at a glance that he was not only proficient in sorcery but also in martial arts.

“I think this should do it. What do you think, elder?”

“. . .Excellent. I shall allow you to pass.”

Finally, with the first person passing, the Taoist priests, who had confirmed Jang-sam’s great skill, opened their eyes wide and exclaimed in admiration, forgetting their own situation.

And then, right away, Shin Pyo-eul, who had been waiting for the battle to end, stepped forward and signaled her intention to challenge.

“. . .What should I defeat?”

“Don’t worry. I have several shikigami prepared.”

When Pyeong Won-myeong winked somewhere, smoke rose from the spot where the Man-eating Ghost had been defeated, and another Man-eating Ghost appeared.

If they could use this many shikigami as mere test subjects, then the level of that sorcery isn’t ordinary either.

I thought that maybe she was the same person who had performed the True Method in the first test.

As I was thinking that, Shin Pyo-eul raised her hand, her eyes shining from within the clothes that covered her entire body.

“Eight Trigrams and Celestial Heavens Art. . .”

Kiiiiing!

Her latent spiritual power erupts, forming an intricate shape above her head that transforms into a spell.

“Three Trigrams.”

Clang!

A sound like gears interlocking echoes as torrential rain pours down from the sky, drenching the Man-Eating Ghost.

The Man-Eating Ghost staggers from the force of the attack, its movements slowed as if it had been struck by Jang-sam’s spell.

“Heptagram.”

Clack-clack!

Crackle, crackle!

『───!!』

For the first time, the Man-eating Ghost, who had been silently fulfilling its role, let out a scream.

It was because its flesh was being burned by the strange flashes of light, and that alone was enough to guess its deadly power.

And then, as if declaring victory, Shin Pyo-eul calmly chanted the final incantation.

“Monogram.”

Cla-clang!

Boom!

Swish!

Clang!

The blade of wind that suddenly gushed out cut off the Man-eating Ghost’s limbs, and that settled the match.

As the battle ended, exclamations of admiration echoed from all around.

“What amazing skill! To be able to use that level of sorcery  without even looking like you’re exerting yourself. . . . . . .”

“Whew, I’ve never seen such skill, even in my hometown.”

“Deadly. So deadly.”

Even amidst such praise, Shin Pyo-eul didn’t show much of a reaction.

However, I could sense that she was quite pleased from the smile hidden within those clothes.

“Hmm, hmm. Is this enough?”

“Of course. There’s no room for argument.”

With that, two people had passed in a row.

As if drawn to that flow, the Taoist priests began to challenge one after another, and in the process, many were eliminated.

In the end, out of everyone besides me who had taken the test, there were only 6 who passed.

Cheol-woong was also eliminated, and Jang Ri-gyeong was barely able to pass after a hard-fought battle.

And then, countless gazes turned towards me, the last one remaining.

“How foolish. . . . . . .”

“It’s impressive to have broken through the True Method at that age, but it’s still too much.”

“He’s just too scared to come forward until the end, so it’s an obvious defeat.”

Most of them ignored me and simply waited for the test to end quickly.

However, Pyeong Won-myeong, Jang-sam, and Shin Pyo-eul were silently staring right at me.

Soon after, Pyeong Won-myeong opened his mouth as if he were puzzled.

“Is it you? Did you have to wait on purpose?”

“I was just a little focused on watching.”

“Is that so? Then let’s get started.”

At that, I smiled broadly and stepped forward without hesitation.

「𝙎𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨.」

At first, I thought that they were simply creating and using multiple of the same shikigami.

However, from the middle, I felt a little strange.

No matter what, the number of shikigami was too large, and from my perspective, I couldn’t feel any difference between them.

Even if I were to painstakingly create ten of the same shikigami, there would inevitably be very subtle differences between each individual.

Unless the shikigami were being created like factory-made products, the current situation was completely incomprehensible.

「𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩.」

You’re going to test their skills by pitting them against a strong shikigami at level 54 and Taoist priests who don’t know where they came from? And you’re doing it on your own private property?

No matter how you look at it, it’s too careless.

In other words, there was only one conclusion that all these clues pointed to.

We thought we had broken the first True Method, broken through the welcoming, and returned to reality, but in fact, that wasn’t the case.

So, while the other Taoist priests were taking the test, I had been making preparations.

Preparations to break this strange welcoming.

“Sahwanjae.”

『Kyaaagh!』

Boom!

Sahwanjae, who had emerged from my shadow, began to create a passage leading to his nest right in front of me, just as I had ordered him to do beforehand.

「𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛.」

The level of this barrier is formidable. Perhaps only someone like Xiao Chen, who interfered even with the Verdant Labyrinth, would be able to break through it head-on.

That’s why I decided to use a different method.

『Kreeeeek!』

As if things weren’t going his way, Sahwanjae got fussy and kept pouring his strength into it.

Of course. This barrier was clearly above Sahwanjae’s level.

However, Sahwanjae is also a type of yokai with a similar lineage.

And the racial trait that goes with that is definitely not something to be ignored.

Clang!

Clang, clang, clang!

Finally, a passage large enough for a human hand to fit through was created in front of Sahwanjae, and seeing that, I performed a ritual  through the incantation I had recited beforehand.

“Realm Devouring Illusion, Earth Realm. . .”

As if doing expansion work, I first drilled a small hole and used that as a cornerstone to break the entire barrier.

The passage created by Sahwanjae sucked in my spiritual power like a vacuum, and soon the barrier began to crack like a broken glass window and reveal its original form.

Clang, clang, clang!

Craaaaash!

“W-What is this.”

“What in the world is going on!”

“Whew. . . . . . .”

The people were the same, but the surrounding scenery had changed in an instant.

The Taoist priests also seemed to have realized that they had been trapped in an illusion, and they kept exclaiming in disbelief.

Jang-sam and Shin Pyo-eul were also surprised, and so was Verdi, who had been watching the situation unfold.

『I wondered if you’d notice.』

“Yes. I realized it about halfway through.”

『. . .Even if you live to be a hundred years old, you may become the greatest sorcerer of all time.』

My current achievement was half-cheating, so that was probably impossible, but I smiled and neither agreed nor denied it.

That’s because I had now fully acknowledged the talent that I possessed.

Looking at me like that, Pyeong Won-myeong said with a dumbfounded expression.

“. . .You pass. I guess you’re a much greater sorcerer than I thought.”

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

And so, the seven who had passed were led by Pyeong Won-myeong to one of the Pyeong Clan’s dwellings.

However, Jang Ri-gyeong, who had been pondering something the whole time, and another one of the people who had passed declared that they were giving up on the request, so the number quickly became five.

“Excuse me, but there are many who have not passed, and I don’t think I will be of much help among such skilled sorcerers.”

“. . .I feel the same way. Knowing my own abilities, I think it’s better not to be greedy this time.”

With those two leaving, the remaining five who had passed walked through what was almost like a castle and finally arrived at an audience chamber.

“I will now convey the details of the request. If there is anyone who has changed their mind, even now, please speak up.”

“. . . . . . .”

“It seems there is none. Then I shall enter.”

Creak.

After opening and moving through several luxurious sliding doors, they soon came to a room where they could sense someone’s presence.

“. . .Our young lady of the Pyeong Clan is staying in here.”

As soon as the door opened, some of the Taoist priests gasped.

A sickly girl, wrapped up tightly in a blanket, was facing the Taoist priests with only her upper body raised.

She was very beautiful, but the small horns sprouting from both sides of her head and her left eye, which had turned red, indicated that her condition was not good.

“. . .It is a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Pyeong-eun-ha. I apologize for the rudeness of not being able to greet you properly due to my illness.”

At the same time, Pyeong Won-myeong bowed his head as if he were the one in pain and began to explain the situation.

“One day, for some unknown reason, parts of the young lady’s body began to transform into something non-human. I would like to ask you to investigate the cause of that and find a way to resolve it.”

Pyeong Won-myeong, who had his head bowed low, begged us in a desperate tone, casting aside the arrogance he had had until just now.

“Please, save the young lady.”

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