After their long journey to the north, they finally have reached the wasteland of ice and snow where the ruler of the north is said to be living at. In the search for 1000 Year old bone freezing spirit water for the body reforging that Hyang has planned for Perlmut to heal her body from all her scars.
As they wander in this endless cold, Hyang starts telling stories from time to time.
Hyang: "Truly the Ruler of the North, the black tortoise known to endlessly fight with a snake clinging onto its shell is a mystical being. The endless winter here is also believed to be its doing, having anyone struggle here who dares to enter its territory. A never ending cold, as if to say, "Struggle like I with this snake if you wish for me to look upon you"..."
Time passes, and he tells another one, this time about supposed eyewitnesses telling a story about the fight with the snake.
Hyang: "Another time there was this mortal telling a story about an eyewitness who said he saw the Black Tortoise and snake fight with his own eyes. And how the turtles struggle with the snake, also as mystical as it is, resembled his own struggle he was facing in this frozen desert he was wandering in."
More time passes, and he remembers more of the mortal's story.
Hyang: "Ah, now I remember the story the mortal told more clearly. The story of the tortoise's struggle with the snake. Once the snake dared to get too close to the head of the ruler of the north, and in no time the mouth of the ruler of the north chomped the snake's head. Unable to kill the snake in that quick and decisive move before it came to again. However, the black tortoise had already retracted its limbs together with the snake's head into its shell. Realizing its predicament, the snake loosened itself from the black tortoise's back in an attempt to break free from its clutches. Now itself had to struggle much like the tortoise had to with the snake all the time. Furthermore, in this struggle, the eyewitness could see the snake's body stretch out for miles trying to get free through wild and decisive movements like untamable waves of the ocean causing tremors in the icy desert. Similar to a devastating earthquake, but rhythmical. Apparently the eyewitness called it the earthshake for how beautiful those moves where also he was terrified at the same time. Of course, there was no telling if he would get swiped by the snake's body or not because of how long and fast it moved. The snake's struggle, however, paid off, as it managed to escape the black tortoise's clutches. However, the snake returned the very next day, continuing this endless fight. This struggle is much like us right now, searching in this icy desert. It's also just like a mortal who is struggling to get through winter. As there isn't a lot of food around, and warmth has an availability problem as well at that time."
And so even more time passes…
Hyang: "Ah, and there was this other time when I found... which was described in one of the scriptures I read. And then..."
With Hyang getting less talkative like this over time as the struggle of the icy north is slowly getting to him. He wanders this icy monotony with Perlmut.
-
'1000 year old bone freezing spirit water', it echoes in Hyang's mind on this endless search.
Hyang: *Why is it so rare?*
If it wasn't for Perlmut always taking spacial rings with her, they might have gotten into food troubles while searching for the 1000 year old bone freezing spirit water, as Hyang does not carry the largest amounts of reserve food with him in his ring.
Black Tortoise voice transmission from who knows where: "The northern Iceland is meant to let the ones that enter struggle, but not you. Why? Hmm, I see. I'm hungry. Leave some food there for me to pick up some day, and I'll tell you where you can find something humans would call a mighty fortuitous encounter of luminous treasure. I am not to judge humans' sense of treasure. So?"
Only Perlmut got that voice transmission and leaves food in large amounts behind.
Hyang, exhausted from the search: "I'm too exhausted for your shenanigans... but I hope you do still have enough food for the both of us after your shenanigans you are indulging in."
Perlmut Just grins at him and says: "Do not question the actions of this young mistress. commoner scum! hehehehehe."
Hyang 'ugh'
After aimlessly searching for a while in this icy tundra, Perlmut now finally receives the location of a supposed treasure from the ruler of the north, the Black Tortoise, and speaks up to take the lead.
Perlmut: "How about going in to that direction?"
Hyang: "Sure, couldn't be less than nothing in that direction either."
Perlmut leads the way to a massive hill that looks quite unnatural, as the falling snow around it seems to be somehow drawn to the location of that hill.
Hyang: "Finally something interesting, not just normal snow. You really did it Perlmut."
Much to Hyang's surprise, instead of slowing down and digging into the hill or walking up on top of the hill, Perlmut just continues walking straight into the hill and starts to make snoring sounds.
Perlmut 'ratzepueee' 'snorrrr' 'puee' 'RRRRRR' 'zzzZ'
Hyang: "Wha- ? You can't fall asleep, especially not in the cold, not in this kind of co- never mind, you're carrying Rex."
Hyang *If this could hurt her in the slightest, then it wouldn't be because of the cold itself. It would have to be some sort of poisoned cold if such a thing even exists, but if it did, I would have to be the first of the both of us to be able to feel it, but all I feel is this unnatural cold.*
As Hyang goes in, to try and pull Perlmut out, she falls over before he can touch her, revealing a magnificent cave in front of them with a golden glowing lake in the middle. On the inside its curvature resembles that of a quarter of a circle on every snow wall, with the entire inner snow wall of the hill having the exact same distance to the water inside this hill, water with a golden hue. It seems as if this cave that lies within this hill built itself around this water through freezing snowflakes unworthy of getting closer to this mythical golden bone freezing spirit water in the air, at a distance, building a hollow hill, a cave of snow, a glistening beauty.
Hyang puts Perlmut on her back just in case so she won't just suffocate and checks up on her condition. He pokes her cheeks in an attempt to test if she is awake or not, after which he checks on her body by checking her inner qi, putting his hands on her head, starting his qi sense there instead of her back. As to imply that there is something wrong with her head, still suspicious of her falling asleep on purpose or her pretending to sleep. After all, she has a thing for messing with him frequently.
Hyang *She seems to be fine. But considering her randomly falling asleep, her body must still be unstable and unable to bear with whatever it is that causes her to fall asleep like that. UNLESS she is doing this on purpose or because she feels like it, despite being a cultivator. Well, nothing I can do. I'll just set up the cauldron and the mixture with this hopefully bone freezing spirit water. Also, the yellow hue the glow gives off doesn't seem like something described in the scriptures I read about it. I'll just hope it is what we were searching for.*
Hyang walks closer to the lake and checks up on the water.
Hyang *Hmmm, it definitely is not the kind of bone freezing spirit water described in the scriptures, but it seems to have similar, if not the same effects as the one that was described in them. In fact, it seems to be even more potent than described in those scriptures. That could actually be dangerous. But it could also harbor unknown benefits. I'll just have to experiment a bit with the mixture.*
After having found this golden bone freezing spirit water in this cave, and after Hyang finished his experiments. He goes to wake up Perlmut, who surprisingly enough wakes up.
Hyang tells Perlmut that he is actually worried about her because of how painful body reforging normally is and that because of how useless spirit is to people, as it doesn't result in raw physical power, people normally don't ever do it, despite its benefits being unparalleled when it comes to breaking through and cultivating one's spirit. Furthermore, he is worried because of this new ingredient despite his tests, not to mention that it will make it harder to break through in the future.
Hyang: "I have been cultivating for centuries and am already at a stage seen as mystically rare. ...close to the emperor King Sejong, Sejong of Joseon."
Perlmut: "Then, how strong is our emperor Yi Do?" Perlmut says with a mischievous grin.
Hyang starts sweating lightly: "Well, no one really knows how strong our honorable emperor, King Sejong of Joseon, is."
Perlmut: "And here I thought our Master Yi Hyang would know."
Hyang *=う!ん&%こ*
Hyang: "... Regardless! It would be hard to breakthrough like the cultivators of old and focus purely on qi strength when breaking through. And so if I can't even breakthrough in the first place through focusing only on Qi strength. I might as well do this, as I otherwise won't be strong enough to protect you anymore."
Perlmut: "Cause I'd be stronger."
She happily adds to it.
Hyang enters his master mode and starts to teach her a lesson - about cultivating. This water cultivates the soul stronger than it does qi, causing harder breakthroughs and weaker capabilities in comparison to equally cultivated people. However, the soul persists after death and is the truest form of oneself.
Hyang further clarifies that body reforging is a tremendously painful process. People could die if they were not prepared, which he, of course, is. As he believes that thanks to his expertise, it should still be survivable unless the golden bone freezing spirit water has a bad unknown effect.
Hyang: "... I'll do it together with you out of solidarity and also because it should give me some resistance to Rex Unustus's cold aura that you have currently in check."
Perlmut: "Hmm, seems too dangerous for you to do that. And I already have cold resistance in addition to the crown for appearance."
Hyang: "..."
Hyang: "If we don't rid ourselves of these obvious weaknesses, there is no telling what trouble they may cause in the future."
Perlmut: "Yes, Master Yi."
Taking her jest just fine, Hyang thinks to himself.
Hyang *She might not be wrong with it being too dangerous. But from what I can see, there is no telling when her body might collapse. Normally one shouldn't even be able to cultivate with such a destroyed and maltreated body. Her being fine through the elixir is one thing, but who knows how well that elixir was able to glue that body of hers together, really?*
Hyang and Perlmut both bathe in two different cauldrons beside each other to do the body transformation.
'AAAAARRRRGH AAAAA'
Hyang screams and withers in pain, while Perlmut just seems like she is taking a normal bath. While Rex Unustuse stands turned in to the opposite direction of them, the same as a pillar of ice would, unmoving.
Perlmut: ""
'AAAAAA'
Hyang's screams permeating in this snow cave. As the transformation continues, they start glowing more and more until one cannot even see their body frame anymore. Hyang holding on and closing in further and further to the verge of death. However, they both manage to break through to the 8th realm of cultivation in the end, the Martial/Sword King realm stage 0 of 9, where flying is enabled.
As the light from the body reforging fades away, it reveals a face once of an old woman, a face once filled with scars attached to a crooked body. Now no longer being so grotesque to look at, instead it is a glamorous appearance, a flawless face without scars, attached to a body uncrooked. Her scalp, thanks to cultivation, is covered in beautiful hair. It has no longer any scars left, not even a single one. Furthermore, her feet, once covered in scars, missing toes, and deformed by foot binding, no longer look smaller. Instead, they as well are flawless and have a normal size. Her four eyelashes, once with only one of them being seemingly untouched, are now all lushes and full, extra unordinarily extraordinarily like a white forest of pine trees. In the end, they are now all standing in their dreamstate glory of eyelash, none of them mutilated anymore. While the eye, once missing on the right, giving a shocking difference to normalcy, no longer is missing, with now two eyes reminding of an endless bright clear blue sky, one one would get lost in like in a never ending distant dream. Truly, none under the heavens and outside the "frog in the well" could claim to be a beauty as unparalleled as her without lying. A beauty even fairies would be jealous of or admire, extra tall, extra slimthick, and extra curvaceous.
Putting her clothes on swiftly, she goes to Hyang, hoping he is still alive after this to help him out. After all, he has stopped screaming.
Perlmut *Has he fainted? Is he dead?*
Perlmut: "Open your eyes!"
She says in a louder voice, with a slightly worried tone. As he doesn't react right away, she starts her assault, slapping him on the cheek, giving him a wet willy in his ear, and holding his nose tight, after which he finally reacts, opening his mouth.
Perlmut *Puh, so he only fainted for now.*
After having put some clothes on him and waited for a while, Hyang finally wakes up.
Hyang: "Who are you?"
Perlmut: "You didn't need to do this."
Hyang: "Who are you?"
Perlmut: "Perlmut, you idiot." she sadly says.
Hyang *I see.*
Hyang, quite exhausted from it: "Ah, I can't lag behind my student now, can I?"
Perlmut actually acting worried for once: "You nearly died. I even had to use the "Heimlich maneuver"."
Hyang: "...that doesn'-"
Perlmut: "Let's go and do something fun. How about we look for something in a city that you would enjoy doing?!"
Perlmut helps out Hyang packing things up, taking with her all the golden water, filling her rings with it.
'Yoink'
Hyang: "...I think - you'll need - to learn first aid…"
'cough'
Perlmut, meanwhile, is distracted by her looting spree.
Perlmut: "It might not be what I would really want to take with me, but- it's kind of fun to use these rings, and with this I have an excuse to put even more into them, because it's precious despite it looking like glowing piss."
Hyang: "..."
'cough'
Hyang 'shocked' *She might actually be onto something. What if this is the ruler of the north's... Let's not think about it...*
Hyang: "..."
After looking healthy and younger, Perlmut now uses the crown to look older, around 60-90, depending on funniness or unattractiveness.
And so Perlmut leads Hyang on to go to a city for entertainment that he would enjoy while looking like an old granny with a big humpybucklehunchback and a cane.
Perlmut: "Ney, ney, ney, you youngin could've at least gotten me a little cart to push me around in, so that I could've sat down, ts, ts, ts. My old legs can't take such long walks anymore."
She swings her cane in a judging manner. And just like that, she now uses the crown the other way around and eggs Hyang on in this manner on their long walks.
Hyang 💢*She really- now that she is- she- haaaa, really.*😓