Ranker's Return

NEW NOVEL: First and foremost, I'm delighted to announce that our long-time veteran translator littleshanks has finally launched his new novel, Rise!  Rise is a novel about the esports scene in Shanghai, the competitive gaming capital of China. It follows the story of Lin Feng, a boy who has just moved to the city for his last year of high school. He's a passionate gamer and dreams of being the best professional League of Legends player in the world. The twist? He almost achieved his dream, but failed at the...

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“Then today’s streaming will end here. I don’t feel like streaming anymore,” Hyeonu said in a somewhat weary voice. 

After his strike declaration, he sat down in the middle of Geomdan Mountain and talked to the audience for 30 minutes. It took a while, but it was a good rest. Then Hyeonu’s energy left him when he turned his head and saw the steepness of Geomdan Mountain. He once again realized that he had to wander through this mountain.

‘The Hejin Great Mountain Range, the Balder Mountains, and Geomdan Mountain...’

Hyeonu was tired of mountains. He vowed that he wouldn’t go wandering to a mountain area next time at all costs.

-It’s okay. Today’s stream was well done.

-Alley Leader, have strength. You’ll find it soon.

-It won’t take a few days. You’ll find it soon.

-I will give you some gold coins for strength.

-Leader Big Fan has gifted you 333 gold coins.

-Alley Leader is the Best Best Best has gifted you 100 gold coins.

Despite Hyeonu’s sudden announcement about the end of the stream, the viewers cheered him on and gave him gold coins. Everyone understood. Honestly, the most interesting part about today’s stream was the fight against the mountain bandits. However, a new content called the East Continent was released. For that alone, viewers were thankful to Alley Leader.

Ordinary streamers hid new content once they found it. They hid and hid it, only reluctantly revealing it when they could no longer hide it. Yet, Hyeonu was different. He just revealed it once he found it. There was nothing to hide. He shared most of what he found with the viewers. This was Alley Leader’s charm.

“Thank you Leader Big Fan for the 333 gold coins. Thank you the Best Best Best for the 100 gold coins. Thank you for watching my live stream today. See you next time. I’ll be back with more content.”

Hyeonu ended his live stream. Then he lay on the ground. He had no real motivation. The commonly called ‘sage time’ had come, but it was only for a moment. A short time later, a message window appeared in front of Hyeonu that revived his motivation.

[The quest has been updated.]

[Signs of xxxx] → [Conversation with the Mysterious Sky Sect member]

‘The quest changed?’

It was a sign that Hyeonu was heading in the right direction to clear the quest. Hyeonu recovered his energy and started to wander the Geomdan Mountain again. However, the mountain was wide and rugged. Just because he was motivated now didn’t mean he could wander all over this wide mountain. Time was absolutely necessary.

“Uwaaaah!”

Hyeonu swung Dark Star randomly. The dark pure energy that shot from Dark Star destroyed the trees mercilessly. He wandered around Geomdan Mountain for hours while muttering, “Just a bit more, a bit more.”

During this period, Hyeonu did a combination of rock climbing and mountain climbing, but he found nothing. Hyeonu was troubled when he recalled the recent events of the Hejin Great Mountain Range and the Balder Mountains. This was why Hyeonu was randomly releasing magic power. It was for stress relief.

‘I’m a bit empty now.’

“Sigh,” Hyeonu sighed as he gazed at the wreckage of the trees. Now it seemed a bit hollow.

‘I’ll have to rest and come back tomorrow.’

All his exhaustion piled up in an instant, and Hyeonu prepared to log out. Just then, Hyeonu heard a voice from behind him. “Who are you?!!”

Hyeonu turned around at the shout. There was an old man in a black robe who was releasing a fairly hostile air.

‘There is actually a NPC who looks like this...’

“It is a very unique design.” Hyeonu’s thought popped out of his mouth without any filters. Hyeonu’s annoyance disappeared when he saw the old man’s appearance.

All the hair on the man’s body was white like in a fairytale. White hair, white eyebrows, white beard... From his head to his beard, there was no place that wasn’t white. His skin was a tan color that made the white hairs appear more prominent.

“What is your identity? How have you learned the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art?” The old man screamed at Hyeonu again when he failed to answer properly.

‘He is a person of the Mysterious Sky Sect!’ Hyeonu realized. He had been briefly dazzled by the old man’s appearance and hadn’t heard him clearly, but when the old man shouted again, he recognized the old man’s words.

Hyeonu smiled brightly. He instinctively felt the end of the quest in front of him.

“Are you a person of the Mysterious Sky Sect?” Hyeonu showed a courteous attitude to the NPC.

“Yes. I am in charge of the current Mysterious Sky Sect. I’ll ask you again. What is your identity?” The old man’s pressure declined sharply when the words ‘Mysterious Sky Sect’ came out of Hyeonu’s mouth.

“I’ve crossed Mount Cheon. I learned the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art from a journal left on the West Continent.”

“You came from beyond Mount Cheon? Don’t tell me... The martial art he left...” The old man’s anger disappeared at Hyeonu’s words. Instead, hope started to fill him. 

“Then can you show me the Mysterious Sky Range? I need accurate proof that you know the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art.” The old man asked Hyeonu to demonstrate the Mysterious Sky Range.

‘It isn’t hard.’ Hyeonu nodded and happily agreed. “I’ll show you straight away.”

Hyeonu immediately injected magic power into Dark Star and started to wield it. The blades of pure energy were revealed one by one as Dark Star moved. The pure energy started to crush the already half-broken trees to the point where not a single trace could be seen.

“Ohh! It really is a technique of the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art...” The old man was moved to tears by Hyeonu’s demonstration. He approached Hyeonu and grasped Hyeonu’s hands tightly. “Come to the sect with me. I think we need to have a long conversation.”

“I understand. Let’s go to the Mysterious Sky Sect.”

***

Hyeonu followed the member of the Mysterious Sky Sect and climbed Geomdan Mountain. He couldn’t help sighing once he arrived at the entrance of the Mysterious Sky Sect. ‘I would’ve never been able to find it by myself.’

The Mysterious Sky Sect was really well hidden. Its location alone was hard to find, and it was also hidden by an array. It couldn’t be accessed by anyone who didn’t know the exact location.

‘This is why there is a rumor that the Mysterious Sky Sect has been destroyed.’

It was understandable for such rumors to circulate when people couldn’t find it. How could they believe in its existence when it couldn’t be seen? Once time passed, it just became a sect in a legend.

“This is the Mysterious Sky Sect.”

The home of the Mysterious Sky Sect had structures similar to rural houses. There was a building presumed to be a house and a huge yard that appeared to be a training ground. It was simple and seemed too small to belong to a martial arts sect.

“It is smaller than I expected,” Hyeonu remarked while looking around the interior of the Mysterious Sky Sect.

The old man answered Hyeonu’s unspoken question, “As you know, the Mysterious Sky Sect only consists of a few disciples. It doesn’t have to be too big. We only need a house to live in and a training field to learn martial arts.”

“That is true. It would be difficult to clean if it’s too big anyway. By the way, can I ask you something?” Hyeonu wanted to resolve a doubt in his mind.

“Anything. An alumni’s disciple is asking, so how can I not answer?” The Mysterious Sky Sect member opened his arms like he was pleased with Hyeonu’s words.

“Why do people call the Mysterious Sky Sect ‘the Mysterious Sky Demonic sect’?”

“There are circumstances. In the past, we frequently fought against the demonic forces. In the process, the martial arts we used became more demonic. This was when the martial artists of Jianghu [1] started to call us ‘demons who suppress demons’ and added the word ‘demonic’ to our martial arts. It is just a metaphorical expression...” There was sadness on the face of the Mysterious Sky Sect member as he spoke. “Many facts have been distorted in the past 100 years since we’ve been unable to appear in Jianghu due to internal circumstances. It seemed the small forces were organized systematically, but we couldn’t pay attention because our situation didn’t allow it.”

‘Is it a grudge?’ Hyeonu thought about the explanation the Mysterious Sky Sect member gave.

This time, the Mysterious Sky Sect member asked Hyeonu a question. “Can I ask you a question this time?”

“Yes. Speak.”

“How much have you mastered of the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art?”

Hyeonu opened the skill window to confirm his proficiency of the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art.

[Mysterious Sky Demonic Art (4 stars)]

“Four stars. I can use Mysterious Sky Steps and Mysterious Sky Range,” Hyeonu answered.

The expression of the Mysterious Sky Sect member changed dramatically at Hyeonu’s words. “It is fortunate... I can teach the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art properly.”

‘What does this mean?’ Hyeonu cocked his head at the old man’s words. “What are you saying?”

Teach it properly…?

Then what about the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art he had learned so far?

Hyeonu’s questions were soon resolved. The Mysterious Sky Sect member started telling the story. “It has been more than 100 years. The master who gave you the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art toured Jianghu just like the previous Mysterious Sky Sect members. However, there was a problem. He was caught up in something unexpected.”

‘It is a common story.’ Hyeonu only listened to the first part of the Mysterious Sky Sect member’s words and roughly predicted the latter part. Perhaps the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art that the next generation learned was lacking, and it was highly likely that the section they were missing included the Mysterious Sky Steps and Mysterious Sky Range.

Sure enough, the words of the old man met Hyeonu’s expectations. “He never came back. The biggest problem was that the beginning part of the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art that remained in the Mysterious Sky Sect was damaged and lost. This is why the current Mysterious Sky Demonic Art is incomplete.”

Once the words were over, a message window appeared in front of Hyeonu to indicate that the quest was cleared.

[Conversation with the Mysterious Sky Sect member 1/1]

[Trail of the Previous Generation has been cleared.]

[Experience has been acquired.]

[xxxx’s keepsake has been acquired.]

‘Nice!!’ Hyeonu thought it was good that he was wearing a mask. If he weren’t wearing it, his expression would be seen clearly by the Mysterious Sky Sect member.

‘I’ll check the rewards later.’

“What can I do for you? Didn’t you say that I am an alumni’s disciple? If there is anything I can do to help out, I will do it.”

The Mysterious Sky Sect member’s expression brightened at Hyeonu’s words. This only lasted a moment though. The expression of the Mysterious Sky Sect member quickly darkened. He was ashamed that he had to make this request to an alumni’s disciple who had come here for the first time. “The Mysterious Sky Demonic Art... Mysterious Sky Steps and Mysterious Sky Range. I want you to pass me the beginning part.”

“Naturally I should pass it onto you. The Mysterious Sky Demonic Art belongs to the Mysterious Sky Sect.” Hyeonu accepted the request. At this moment, a quest was created.

[A quest has been created.]

[Handing Down the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art]

[There is no original copy of the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art in the Mysterious Sky Sect of the East Continent.

Achieve a proficiency of 5 stars to pass the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art onto them.

Rating: S

Conditions: Mysterious Sky Demonic Art 5 stars 0/1

Rewards: Experience, the full Mysterious Sky Demonic Art.]

‘I have to reach five stars.’

It was only then that he could hand it over to them. Hyeonu was a player. Even if he could control his magic power, he couldn’t transfer skills like NPCs. This was the domain of NPCs.

“My accomplishments are currently lacking, and it isn’t enough to organize the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art. Five stars. Once I achieve five stars in the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art, I think I can sort out the parts you want,” Hyeonu explained. 

He simplified his situation as much as possible, and the other person bought it. The old man said, “It is natural. It is said that one only truly succeeds in the Mysterious Sky Demonic Art after reaching five stars. I can wait until then.”

“I understand. I will try to convey it as quickly as possible.”

---

[1] jianghu= rivers and lakes. A community of martial artists in wuxia stories. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuxia#Jianghu

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