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Ding-dong!

Ding—dong!

A faint sound of a bell echoed.

Yet strangely, it seemed as if the sound did not travel through the air but rather reached the soul directly, crossing through space in an eerie way. Listening to the sound, I felt my mind slipping, and I also experienced an inexplicable pull rising from deep within my heart.

When I stopped walking, passionate emotions would boil up inside me, but with every step I took, a comforting ease of finding the right path would wrap around me. However, the more I walked, the more my mind became hazy, and I felt like I was merely marching behind the person in front of me, staring blankly at their back.

A mesmerizing sound.

An evil spirit.

It was a power only possessed by a very strong evil spirit.

Jinseong smiled at the sound that tried to muddle his emotions.

‘Nothing shall disturb my mind.’

Only his spirit remained intact while he dragged around a body no different from a corpse. With a body that could have laid in an ICU, heavily dosed with narcotic painkillers, waiting for the day of death due to the accumulated costs inflicted upon a twisted soul, it was none other than his spirit that moved.

An obsession bordering on madness for magic, his sharp mind determined that everything was worth sacrificing for it.

He had rewound time, purified his flesh, and cleansed his soul, yet only his mind remained connected to that time. So, the spirit from the future, as well as from the past, dominated him, which meant that nothing could encroach upon Jinseong’s mind. Even if great evil spirits attacked in droves, they could not shake his spirit filled with dreadful madness.

‘However, if it is the minds of others that aren’t mine, yes. A weak capable person would be easily charmed. Quite splendid indeed.’

Using the sound of the bell as a landmark, Jinseong continued to walk.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.

As he walked, the bell sound grew increasingly clear, filling his ears as if it was overwhelming his surroundings. When a colorful figure finally appeared in his sight, the sound of the bell began to ring so strongly that it threatened to jolt his head.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.

From his ears.

From his eyes.

From the deepest part of his head.

The sound of the bell, vibrating, directed itself toward his head, seemingly straining to fill his body with that sound. But Jinseong merely scoffed at the evil spirit’s attempt and muttered.

“How dare a lowly shaman try to charm me?”

The moment Jinseong’s words escaped his lips, the bell sound abruptly stopped.

In its place, the colorful figure from afar turned its body and began to hop toward him like a rubber ball.

Thump—

Thump—

It gathered its feet, raised what it was holding high into the sky, and shook its head wildly as it approached Jinseong. When it jumped, there was no sound, but when it soared high into the air, a dull thud resonated as if it was pounding the ground. However, the sound did not travel through the air once again; it presented itself as a peculiar vibration that seemed to resonate with Jinseong’s body.

This was yet another scheme by an evil spirit trying to charm a person.

By showing something completely absurd, it aimed to draw attention to itself, hoping to create confusion in perception and thus bring down the mental defenses.

In Korea, there is an expression:

“To have your soul taken away.”

It means being left in a daze, and as this phrase suggests, our ancestors believed that the soul and the mind were closely linked. Indeed, when the mind weakens, the soul can also become unsteady, leaving one incapable of adequately defending against the malicious deeds of external entities.

A similar expression is “to be spellbound,” which also signifies the inability to think or losing one’s senses. This expression too implies a close relationship between the mind and the soul.

The evil spirit approaching Jinseong was attempting to confuse his mind through visual distortion, seeking to infiltrate and possess him.

To confuse a person and then inhabit their flesh to commit all sorts of dreadful deeds.

Yet the unfortunate reality for the evil spirit was that the human it sought to disturb had an astoundingly strong mental fortitude.

Thump—

Thwoooooo—

Ultimately, the evil spirit abandoned its bizarre antics and hastily arrived right in front of Jinseong.

Ding-dong.

The evil spirit that reached Jinseong took on the form of an old woman.

She had long, sparse white hair and a face completely drooping with loose skin, so stretched out that it hung down to her collarbone, filled with wrinkles. Moreover, she revealed teeth stained bright red as if she had been feeding on rats, and a long tongue was wrapped around her neck, reaching down to her toes, as if she had been hanged to death.

Dressed in tattered and worn robes in five colors typical of shamans, she appeared barely able to maintain her shape. Moreover, holes dotted her body, exposing her skin, covered entirely in bruises, as if she had received a terrible beating, leaving no trace of her normal flesh tone visible.

In one hand, she clutched a bell, and in the other, she held a long piece of white fabric, staring menacingly at Jinseong.

Jinseong gazed intently at her, and suddenly, appearing infuriated, he shouted.

“What kind of lowly wretch are you, spreading superstitions and believing in strange demonic acts! How dare you lift your head arrogantly to look at me!”

As if he were of noble status, his voice booming made the shaman shrink back slightly. Yet she quickly rolled her eyes back into her head and began hopping in place.

Ding-dong!

Ding—dong!

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong!

[Heeheeheeheeheehee! Oh-ho! Eek! Since the noble lord has called upon the shaman, I must respond at once. As there’s no elderly here, it’s not about calling down some rootless, reasonless, elderly-shaman! These fools, who call only in desperation, heed the noble lord’s call! Heehee! Oh-ho! Shaman! You pitiful shaman! What a wretched thing you are, unable to rush over at my call!]

The shaman mocked Jinseong, bouncing in place as she shouted that out.

It was an attempt to unsettle Jinseong’s emotions.

If Jinseong were truly a noble with a weak mind, his anger would surely boil at those words, distorting his clarity, and in that moment of hesitation, the evil spirit would have attempted possession without a second thought.

But Jinseong was neither a noble nor someone whose mind was feeble.

Instead, Jinseong merely watched the bouncing shaman impassively, and as the shaman poured forth her mocking words, frothing at the mouth, Jinseong remained unmoveable. Eventually, she bobbed her head up and down in a dejected manner and sighed.

[It’s truly hard dealing with a being that is not human but carries a clear mind. Must be some buffoon from Hanyang, better find some place to do a shamanic ritual!]

The evil spirit grinned, revealing its teeth as it laughed at Jinseong.

Then it began to dance.

Wielding the fabric as if it were a blade, it fluttered the colorful robe draped over its body, creating illusions. And then, it started shouting as it bounced around.

[Harmonize your vibes and banish negativity!]

[The deity’s safety is essential while everything else is negative!

When the galaxy’s songs muddy the head with sadness and negativity!

Banished, I say, negativity shall sweep away this place!

The tricky fox of the hills and wyrm’s confusing clamor!

Even the badgers waiting above shall fall!

Even the earth badger prancing about, today is a day of negative energy!

Water negativity, fire negativity, afterbirth negativity, keep it all at bay!]

[Oh, all the negativity gathers! It is negativity indeed, so much negativity. Eat and burst, get full, chew too much, and die choking on this negativity! Ah, the horror, the horror!]

With the evil spirits surrounding her, the shaman seemed to gain more power, wildly thrashing around. And at the peak of her exorcism, she swiftly swung the piece of fabric she’d been holding like a blade at the evil spirits, and the possessed beings that had been staring blankly were immediately scattered by the blow, their figures disintegrating into nothingness.

It was a successful exorcism.

By beings not of the human realm.

As the shaman carried on, she repeated these actions time and again during her ritual.

With each swing of the fabric, she dispersed evil spirits, and wielded the bell like a weapon, crushing the heads of evil beings.

Jinseong observed the scene silently.

Silently.

With an expressionless face.

When the ritual was nearing its conclusion, he untied the burden he’d been carrying on his back and placed the golden pyramid on the ground.

Koooom.

The golden pyramid let out a massive sound as if it had suddenly gained weight upon touching the ground.

Jinseong placed his hand on the apex of the pyramid, and immediately, the solid gold began to roll and shift, changing its shape.

The surface that had been flat began to form a cluster, entwining together, elongating to become a stick. Gold collected and twisted around the top of the stick, taking the shape of a cross with a round handle.

Holding the ankh (☥) staff made of gold, Jinseong looked at the artifact that had finally been liberated.

The object spread horrific negativity in all directions, almost as if it had been waiting to be freed from the golden pyramid, generating a mold that spewed poison onto the barren land. It also dyed the spirit of the bewildered evil spirit at the ritual in a deep black and started breaking down its form.

That negativity was undeniably akin to a calamity.

Even the shaman, who had paused her exorcism, widened her eyes and stared dumbfoundedly at the artifact.

Lifting the staff he was holding high towards the sky, Jinseong shouted.

“Puhuhuh-!”

With all his might, he struck down at the artifact that was exuding negativity.

 

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