The Xianxia World at the End of Dharma
****
Han Yu-jin did not try to use his ability again right away. He spent his time pondering what form of wish would be the best.
After he finished lunch, he went out for a walk for no particular reason and even bought an ice cream at a convenience store.
While fiddling with his smartphone, he thought of something and contacted a friend from his university.
- Busy tonight?
The reply came quickly.
- Nah, why?
- Wanna get dinner? I'm craving some galmaegisal.
- All of a sudden?
The guy seemed a little puzzled, but he soon accepted. In truth, it wasn't that unusual of an occurrence.
Time passed quickly, and while Han Yu-jin was calming his heart and gathering his thoughts, the time for their meeting arrived.
The friend he met in front of the restaurant was a guy named Park Hee-won, and he was his closest friend at this university.
There was no need to explain every detail of how they became close; what was important to Han Yu-jin right now was that the guy was quite knowledgeable about matters related to Hunters.
Additionally, he liked manga and genre novels, so it seemed he might be able to provide some fresh ideas.
'Or not.'
With that thought, Han Yu-jin entered the galmaegisal restaurant with Park Hee-won.
They sat down at a suitable table, placed their order, and made small talk about their lives until the meat arrived.
Just like a few days ago, it seemed the guy still hadn't resolved the issues with his girlfriend.
While Han Yu-jin was offering some comfort and advice, the meat arrived, and as he began grilling it himself, he subtly guided the conversation toward the topic of Hunters.
"What would you do if you suddenly awakened?"
"What do you mean, what would I do? I'd have to become a Hunter."
"Do you have an ability in mind?"
At that, Park Hee-won let out a hollow laugh.
"As if I can just decide that myself?"
"You've never fantasized about it? I do it all the damn time."
"Ah~ Of course I have. I've probably done it more than you have."
After that, the conversation flowed without end.
As someone who knew a lot about Hunters, the industry, and various abilities, he didn't just look at it simply but added elements like social standing and influence, chattering on in a very exciting way.
Han Yu-jin was very satisfied, as he was able to gain a new perspective.
But he wasn't completely satisfied yet.
"You read fantasy novels, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"How come the abilities in those novels don't exist in reality?"
"There are plenty that do, but way more that don't. It's pretty much a requirement over there to give the main character a special cheat."
"What kind of cheat?"
"Well, for one, there are a lot of types where they grow through a game-like system…"
Han Yu-jin wasn't a complete stranger to genre novels either. He didn't read the novels, but he had seen a few webtoons based on them.
However, he was inevitably less knowledgeable than Park Hee-won, who could be called a genre novel enthusiast.
Thanks to that, he was able to continue listening with a very engaged attitude.
It was also due to a small hope that, with his ability, he might somehow be able to obtain the 'cheat' of a protagonist from such a novel.
This wasn't hoping for a fluke; it was setting a goal.
As he listened, the conversation arrived at the topic of settings.
"These days, it seems Xianxia is slowly getting known too."
"Xianxia? Is it like Wuxia?"
"It's the same Eastern fantasy style, but a bit different. If Wuxia has martial artists, Xianxia has immortals."
"Immortals?"
The only immortal Han Yu-jin could think of was the one from the "Golden Axe, Silver Axe" fairy tale.
But, from the story that followed, it was a completely different concept.
The Immortals of the Xianxia worldview were deathless and transcendent beings.
You could think of them as the Gods of any other fantasy worldview.
Therefore, those who dreamed of becoming an Immortal and cultivated were called cultivators, and in fantasy terms, this was similar to a wizard.
However, it seemed the power balance was wildly chaotic.
This was evident from the descriptions of how a top-tier master from a Wuxia world would have a hard time defeating even a low-level cultivator.
"And that's the trend these days?"
"Not quite a trend, more like it's in the stage of slowly getting known? It's just my opinion, but I feel like readers who used to like Wuxia are gradually moving over to Xianxia. After seeing the same stuff all the time, this is something new, you know?"
"Ah, I can see that."
After agreeing appropriately, Han Yu-jin suddenly asked.
"Then what if, hypothetically, someone in reality awakened a Xianxia ability?"
"What do you think would happen?"
Park Hee-won smiled as if the mere thought was enjoyable.
"They would just become a god."
<><><>
After returning home.
Instead of going to sleep right away, Han Yu-jin looked up information about Xianxia on the internet.
Combined with Park Hee-won's earlier explanation, he was able to build up and reinforce his knowledge on the subject without much difficulty.
'Could a world with this kind of feel really exist?'
To someone else, it might have been nothing more than a fantasy, but for Han Yu-jin, it was a very serious thought.
It was because his future could change drastically depending on whether it existed or not.
'But, even if it does exist, it would be incredibly dangerous.'
Perhaps because it was a setting where individual power was immense, there seemed to be an unusual number of stories with collapsed moral systems.
It felt like they would truly do 'anything and everything' for the sake of their own cultivation.
And in Han Yu-jin's view, that was quite convincing.
'If it's a world where individuals can really become that strong, what wouldn't they do for the sake of cultivation?'
The logic of survival of the fittest could not be applied more blatantly than that.
It would be a world where almost any problem could be solved as long as you succeeded in your cultivation and increased your power.
In reality, too.
When rifts first appeared after World War II and people with special abilities began to emerge, the world was thrown into enormous shock.
It would be difficult to explain every detail of what kind of shock developed into what kind of conflict and how it was resolved, but one must know that among that shock and conflict, the concern over the 'emergence of an absolute being' was by no means small.
It was because if a single individual were to obtain excessive power and authority, they could turn into a disaster at any moment. Historical examples included the deeds of countless emperors and dictators.
So, it wasn't an unreasonable setting for the atmosphere of a Xianxia world to be so dangerous and barbaric.
Because in reality, no principle or logic is of any use if it is not backed by power.
'In the end, it is power that rules the world…'
Anyway,
The important thing now was to think about how he could safely visit a world with that kind of feel, if one truly existed.
He shouldn't try to succeed in this in one go. If he rushed it unnecessarily, a disaster like last time could repeat itself.
As he slowly prepared for bed and continued to deliberate, Han Yu-jin suddenly came up with an idea.
The more he thought about it, the more plausible it felt, making him slightly excited.
A moment later.
He lay down in bed and attempted to activate his ability, and he was able to fall asleep more easily than before.
<><><>
A space filled entirely with darkness.
Standing before the ever-changing door, Han Yu-jin refined his 'wish' one last time.
As his hand, extended while he remained focused, touched the door, a faint but body-resonating hum spread out, and the door's transformations stopped.
What appeared was a wooden door in an ancient Eastern style, quite large and decorated with jade in various places.
However, it was severely worn down overall, and parts of it were rotted, looking as if they would crumble away at any moment.
Soon, silver letters floated up above, catching Han Yu-jin's attention.
[The Yeongryeon Continent After the End of Dharma.]
'End of Dharma…'
Strangely, he could understand exactly what that meant.
It signified the great catastrophe where the Spiritual Energy that filled the world faded away without recourse, and the Path of Immortality was severed.
In short, it was the end of cultivation.
Han Yu-jin had thought that if he could really visit a world like a Xianxia one, the most dangerous thing there would have to be the people.
So, he had wondered if he could achieve his goal in a world where all those people were dead and gone, and at the same time, a world that did not have lingering unknown dangers like the 'Earth After the Apocalypse' he had first visited.
'To think a door like this actually materialized.'
Of course, he would only know what the world beyond this door was really like by looking.
Steeling his heart, he pushed the door open with force. Then, naturally yielding to the invisible force that appeared, he stepped inside.
"..."
After glancing back to confirm the sight of the door disappearing, he surveyed his surroundings.
It was the entrance to a certain mountain range, filled with a very desolate feeling, which closely matched his expectations.
All that was visible were withered, twisted trees. He couldn't tell if they were dead or alive, and naturally, there were no signs of other insects or animals either.
The sky, despite not being cloudy, was an ashen gray and gloomy. The ground, as if suffering from a long drought, was cracked all over and seemed beyond recovery.
The last thing he checked was his own attire, which was like that of a martial artist from the ancient East.
It might have fit the era, but it was too clean and stood in stark contrast to the surrounding desolation.
'Well… does it matter?'
There were no living beings around to be conscious of anyway.
Maintaining only a minimum level of tension, he pondered where to go before starting to climb a mountain path.
The reason was that there was a large stone monument at its entrance engraved with the characters for 'Five Elements Sect'.
They were letters that had weathered so much they were barely a trace, and they were characters from another world that he had never seen before, but Han Yu-jin could read them as naturally as if they were Korean.
He would surely have no problems with writing, listening, or speaking either.
'It was like that when I talked with that bastard, too.'
He briefly thought of the middle-aged man who still made him grind his teeth just by thinking about him.
But Han Yu-jin soon shook off the distracting thoughts and focused on climbing the mountain.
How many times did he have to stop to rest because it was so tiring, only to start climbing again?
Finally, the sight of the ruined sect buildings came into his view.
The closer he got, the more he could feel the severity of their condition; it didn't seem like any artificial destruction had occurred, but rather that they had weathered and collapsed under the force of time.
Stopping in front of a huge gate, Han Yu-jin carefully checked for any potential dangers. But no matter where or how he looked, it was just a ruin.
'…I shouldn't get my hopes up too high.'
It was a little disappointing, but he didn't know yet. And even if there really was no reward to be had, he would only be wasting a single night's sleep.
Feeling rather relieved, he began to explore the entirety of the ruins of this faction called the Five Elements Sect.
Fortunately, the sun didn't set early, so he wasn't forced to take a break.
Rather than exploring aimlessly, it was better to first take a broad look around and then explore the places that seemed important.
That was his thought, and just then, a tower-shaped building with a plaque that read 'Library Pavilion' caught his eye.
Library Pavilion.
In Wuxia novels and the like, it was a place where important martial arts manuals and such were stored.
Perhaps the Library Pavilion of this world was similar.
With a sense of curiosity and a bit of excitement, he carefully opened the building's rotted and tattered door and stepped inside.
The smell of dust in the dry air that rushed out made him frown.
The interior, aside from being old and crumbling with age, showed no signs of any particular disturbance.
Many of the bookshelves, which were set up at regular intervals, had collapsed, but some were still standing.
Approaching a relatively intact bookshelf, Han Yu-jin examined the books placed there.
As expected, most were in a state where they were impossible to read, but still, the characters on the cover of one book caught his eye.
Secret History of the Path of Immortality.
It roughly meant the secret history of the Path of Immortality.
His heart pounded at the sight of a book that actually mentioned Immortals.
Being extremely careful, he picked up the ancient, worn-out book and opened it.
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