The Myth of the Greek Heavenly Demon

Chapter 5 – Chiron-The Mentor Of Heroes

-Shuwaaaak!!!

The pitch-black dark sphere that unfolded in my left hand voraciously devoured the brilliantly shining arrow of divine qi.
Each time a thread of silver light permeated my body through the dark sphere, my entire meridians and qi channels absorbed it like parched land.
Under the function of Martial Spirit Cultviation, the qi was gathered and steadily circulated through my dantian and meridians, invigorating my vitality.

Ghost Demon.
A pilgrim of the Podalap Palace who directly challenged the teachings of Buddha as taught in Buddhism, aspiring to surpass the heights of enlightenment.
Her study had mastered all the phenomena of the universe, realizing their essence, and this realization was wholly contained in her teachings, controlling the heavens and earth.
She appeared in the world of swords and martial arts like a magical knight, and at Shaolin, they called her Mara and declared her an enemy of Buddha, while the world called her Ghost Buddha for her god-like aura and power.
The bizarre demon who destroys hypocrisy soon became known as the Buddha of Demons, the enemy of Buddha.
They called her the Deathly Ghost Buddha, and people both feared and praised her.
And the qi art that she invented, the Reverse Buddha Way, was the Skanda Defeating Arts.
It was a rare and bizarre power that achieved great enlightenment by accepting the Skanda, which even Buddha feared.
Among them, Shankhara Arts was the only qi arts that entered the realm of the divine by devouring the qi of all things.

“Puhuhuuu… this…”

But as expected, the silver divine power that entered me did not easily harmonize with my internal qi.
Just like water and oil do not mix, I suppressed my inner qi and followed the heart technique to circulate the heavenly circuit.
Suddenly, an extraordinary situation occurred where foreign energy flowed through the meridians where my qi used to flow.
Even the founder of the Martial Spirit Cultivation Technique would not have anticipated such a phenomenon.
Now, although the heavenly path was being followed according to the cultivation technique’s instructions, the divine power’s nature of rejecting other forces could potentially collide with my qi and cause qi deviation.
Thus, I began to maintain the Martial Spirit Cultivation Technique and the Cultivation Technique with all my might.

“Wh-what? What kind of magic is this?!”

“Magic, huh…”

In a way, it could be called magic since it was an act against the gods.

Seeing me absorb the power she emitted, Artemis was so shocked that she couldn’t even think of attacking again and just stared blankly.

‘Do they have such a shallow mentality just because they are called gods…?’

Honestly, I felt a bit grateful.
I was in the process of swallowing this foreign and intense qi into my body, and barely controlled it. If there was even the slightest external shock, I would die from haemorrhage.

And that moment of hesitation was enough time for me to stabilize the qi.

‘Phew… euh!’

The qi and blood, which had been boiling as a result of the clash between my qi and the divine qi, gradually subsided and came under my complete control under the supernormal ability of the Martial Spirit Cultviation.
But the nature of the qi was so unknown and unique that it still felt dangerous for me to absorb it on my own.

‘Woah… maybe I should start training harder.’

It was such a clean and clear qi.
I had been mixing all kinds of qi and herbs to nourish my body.
Yet even combining all those things, it couldn’t match the qi I had extracted from that dazed woman.
Although its nature was quite different, if my body had grown properly and my achievements were a bit higher, it would have been smooth.
It’s just a pity.

“Ugh… It really stings. A woman is still a woman, huh?”

Men and women had inherently different qi’s in their body, yang and yin.
No matter how close to perfection the divine qi was, accepting the immense divine qi of a goddess, especially a virgin goddess, into a man’s body…
Due to that disharmony, yin qi slowly accumulated in my qi and blood, causing muscle pain.
However, such minor muscle pain and accumulated damage to my qi and blood could be considered trivial.
With the powerful divine power filling my dantian, qi and blood, my fighting spirit was at its peak since my reincarnation.

“Let’s see…”

-Whoosh!

Raising my hand to draw in the qi, it wasn’t the shimmering of the Martial Spirit Cultivation Arts nor the pitch-black qi of the Demonic Arts.
A slightly murky silver light of the moon’s divine qi flickered in my hand.

“H-how… my power? H-how are you able to control it?”

“You don’t need to know. Let’s get started. It’s been a while since I could fight without holding back.”

A thrilling shiver ran down my spine, and the long-absent surging qi in my dantian and meridians brought a natural smile to my face.
This powerful and reassuring feeling that I could never help but yearn for.
This must be what it feels like to hold a poison-laced holy grail that one cannot refuse.

“…..”

“What? What’s wrong? Weren’t you just talking about killing me a moment ago?”

If you don’t come, shall I come to attack?

-Bang!

With just a light push off the ground, the ground shattered, and using the explosive momentum as my weapon, I charged at the beautiful assailant.

Although I was still in a young body, Artemis, the robust huntress, had a slight height difference with me.
In a situation where I increased my speed for a pre-emptive strike, my shorter height was actually advantageous.

“Defilement Attack.”

The silver divine power manifesting in my hand—no, the qi that should now be called my own vigor—transformed into a sharp blade that appeared at my fingertips.
The ten sharp edges, gleaming with silver flames, encircled Artemis from all directions.

“Th-this…!!”

However, as expected of a god, the silver qi that Artemis quickly summoned rose like a shield and blocked them in mid-air.

“You wretched being!!”

“Isn’t it a bit too early for you to get angry?”

-Pajijijik!

My hands swung sharply like a bear aiming to sever its prey’s neck.
Against my attack, Artemis raised both her arms, infusing the shield with qi.
Before we could even exchange the first move, the Goddess and I entered a power struggle.

“You insolent, worthless, rude scoundrel…!!”

“My sense of honor, worth, and manners are reserved for those who understand them, whether they be cultured individuals or gods. To a madwoman who suddenly tried to blow off my head, I can only offer a bloody mess.”

In an instant, the ten beads of light clustered around my fingers transformed in shape, condensing at the tip of my finger. Sensing an ominous premonition, Artemis turned pale and tried to withdraw.

“What kind of magic is this…?!”

It’s something really painful, let me tell you.

“Four Demons – Worrying Heartbreak.”

-Wooong!

The ten beads gathered at my fingertips vibrated violently and resonated.
It was evident that something extraordinary was about to happen just by looking at it.
Unable to retreat or erect a barrier, Artemis could only glare at me, grinding her teeth.
There was no other way but to endure.

“What’s the use of being in good shape and having a lot of power? Getting caught up in such a low-level trick leads you straight into a dead end.”

“You rascal!!”

What’s the point of shouting at me?

I quickly widened the distance, and Artemis could only look at me in bewilderment.

“Surely, you won’t die, right?”

As I smiled and snapped my fingers, the ten resonating beads began to vibrate intensely and emit light.
And then.

-BOOM!!!

A beautiful silver explosion surged like an aurora, brightly illuminating the midnight forest.

“Oh…. That’s impressive.”

Just as I was about to clap in satisfaction at the beautiful night show I had created.
A sharp pain shot through my palm and dantian.

“Ouch?!”

My body recoiled instinctively at the sudden surge of pain.
The cold chill stroked my spine, and the piercing pain, as if stabbed by ice shards, struck my lungs.
My face twisted involuntarily at the pain of internal injuries I hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Kuuh… kuhuhuhu, damn it. I should have taken it easy.”

In fact, looking at the method of divine power I had just used, it wasn’t something to complain about.
Although I used divine power with Martial Spirit Cultivation Arts and Shankara Art’s abilities, it wasn’t originally mine, and it didn’t mix well with my own, so it was divine power I was forced to use.
Even though I could use it, each time I circulated the qi, it clashed with my vital qi, accumulating damage. I reverse-utilized this, leading the clash with the vital qi and enhancing the explosion with its explosive force.
It was obvious that the reaction would be enormous.

“To think there’s qi that my body cannot digest.”

As expected, a god is indeed a god. I marveled inwardly as I struggled to rise up.
No matter how powerful the qi or how appetizing the chunk of meat, if I kept holding it any longer, my teeth would freeze and fall out.
I began to channel the silver divine qi that permeated my entire body according to my blood points.

“Skanda Arts – Black Expulsion.”

-Shaaa!!

As it was expelled from my body and seeped into the ground, the silver divine qi turned into tiny particles and fell away.
Just as I wondered if it had turned into frost due to the coldness.
I couldn’t help but be astonished when I picked up the silver particle that touched the tip of my foot.

“…Silver?”

The form symbolized the material essence of the five skandas that Buddha warned against.
The Black Expulsion of Arts, symbolizing this, was a divine technique that altered the nature of the qi itself.
However, even if one tried to change it, it was only possible to transform demonic qi into fire qi, or such fire qi into cold qi.
It was impossible to transform it into actual matter like this.

“I was just trying to change it into cold qi or intangible energy…”

This wasn’t martial arts or magic. It was almost creating something out of nothing, so should it be called a miracle.

[Kraaaaa! You blasphemous creature!!]

As I pondered deeply on the black form I saw for the first time in my life, a sudden roar that struck my brain was calling me.
Beyond the gradually subsiding silver light, two blazing eyes were glaring fiercely at me.

[You, how dare you…?! You dare mock the divine power of Artemis, and insult the goddess?! You filthy man!!]

Hmm… oh dear.
Did I push too hard out of excitement?
Artemis, who was utterly furious, was like a demon on the verge of a rampage.
Her beautiful face twisted like an evil spirit, and the explosion of her divine power was reminiscent of a tsunami.

“Tsk, it reminds me of the old days again.”

Yes, back then.
Like the day when half of the Great Snow Mountain Range froze and the other half collapsed.
Facing the white tsunami that enveloped everything, I was burning with the grudges of the perished documents, yet inwardly admiring their beauty.

“Alright, shall we start the second round?”

Having more internal qi is an advantage, but it doesn’t determine the outcome of a fight.
My opponent was just an old brat born with a silver spoon.
It was time to give her a proper lesson.

With that resolve, I was about to step forward again…

“Stop!”

A strange being intervened between me and Artemis.

“…?”

His looked like a middle-aged man.
He wore simple travel clothes and carried a massive bow, almost as big as Artemis.
Due to his size, it didn’t seem that large.
His thick brown beard shone like the roots of an old tree, and his eyes, filled with profound wisdom, sparkled like the morning star.
He seemed like the archetypal professor one might find in an academy.
However, what was impressive about him was his lower body.
Instead of human legs, a large horse’s lower body was attached below his upper torso, his hooves clattering as he halted.

Centaur.
Their origins were numerous, but they often appeared in Greek mythology as a half-human, half-horse race.
Their common characteristic was that they were very impulsive and enjoyed running wild like wild horses.
Why did this centaur that appeared before my eyes seem to be trying to protect me, blocking the furious Artemis and preventing her from shooting her bow?

[Chiron! Move aside immediately!]

“Lady Artemis, please calm down.”

Chiron.
He was someone I had also heard of.
The immortal centaur who claimed to be the mentor of many heroes.
But why did he suddenly pop out and interfere at such a good moment?

“First of all, Lady Artemis was hasty in her actions this time.”

“Chiron, I—!”

Shh.
With a finger to his lips, Chiron silenced Artemis with a smile and continued speaking.

“If Lady Artemis had designated this forest as a hunting ground and proclaimed it to the nymphs from the beginning, this child wouldn’t have rashly set foot in the forest today. However, this child was almost assaulted while wandering through the forest without any prior warning.”

“But Chiron, I have been dishonored by that boy. Do you realize what you are saying?”

“I’m not against it if you want to continue. Shall we keep going? Are you just going to leave after riling up a man like this?”

“You insolent fool, who do you think you are speaking to with such audacity?!”

“Who else? I’m talking to the bitch who tried to blow off my head.”

As Artemis growled and I prepared to continue with a combative smile…
Once again, the old centaur intervened and restrained Artemis.

“Lady Artemis, please…”

“What is it?”

Then he whispered something to Artemis so I couldn’t hear, and her eyes widened in surprise.

“Is that really true?”

“Of course, how could I dare to lie to the Goddess of the Moon?”

Artemis, who looked at the human child glaring at her with arms crossed behind Chiron, soon sighed and lowered her bow.

“If that’s the case… there’s no choice. Even for me…”

“A wise choice indeed.”

Tsk. Spoiled it.
As I clicked my tongue inwardly and withdrew my fighting spirit, I turned my gaze from the moonlit madwoman to the old centaur.
Not only did that moonlit madwoman calm down instantly, but a powerful aura that could rival even Artemis, though not a god, surged through his entire body.
Moreover, the combination of a strong warrior’s upper body with the lower body of a horse showed a perfect balance despite its oddity.
If anything, if they were to fight, he might be more…

“…?”

Oh dear.
Chiron, as if noticing my gaze, turned his head to look at me.