I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 140

To properly assess the effects of this Aura, I purchased water from the auction house.

One might ask why I didn’t just melt the ice stored in my crates, but if things didn’t go as expected, I’d have to go chop ice all over again.

Refusing to deal with that hassle, I bought water just this once.

Next, I poured the water into an iron bucket and submerged my sword inside.

All that was left was to manifest the Aura just like before and wait for the result.

Crackle!

The moment I manifested the Aura, the water froze at extreme speed.

But it wasn’t just the water freezing solid—frost began spreading across the entire iron bucket as well!

At this rate, I’d end up ruining the iron bucket entirely, so I hastily pulled the sword out.

Fortunately, because the effect seemed restricted to parts touching the Aura directly, the ice didn’t trap the blade.

’Can’t I control this?’

Freezing water was great. I had gained a wonderful ability.

But if I couldn’t control it, it would become a poison rather than a medicine.

Whether my mana itself had transformed or not, I clearly needed to investigate it thoroughly.

’It seems I can control the intensity with the amount of Aura, but...’

Through testing, I realized I could adjust the strength by varying the Aura output.

But I didn’t know how to turn the frost effect on and off.

I didn’t even know if this was permanent or temporary.

After much deliberation, I decided to ask the Gallery.

Title: Let it come...

Wild Grylls

(Video of the Aura-infused sword freezing the water bucket solid upon contact)

My sword hungers...

Just kidding, but does anyone know why this is happening?

I was woodcutting when an entire tree froze solid, so I tested it. Turns out my Aura acquired a frost attribute.

The thing is, I can’t turn it on and off at will. Anyone know how?

↳ Heavenly Demon) What a beautiful color that Sword Qi possesses. It even shimmers. It is far more exquisite than what those North Sea fools employ.

↳ Wild Grylls) Do people in the North Sea control cold?

↳ Heavenly Demon) Most do. However, they master martial arts to govern the cold. Thou dost not know any martial arts to control cold, dost thou?

↳ Wild Grylls) Nope. I only know the mnemonic you taught me, Heavenly Demon-nim.

↳ Heavenly Demon) How wondrous. It may be that thy Internal Energy itself has taken on a chilling nature.

↳ Sword Matstar) Heavenly Demon-nim is correct. Elemental Aura isn’t unheard of, but it usually requires mastering specialized mental cultivation methods. In Grylls-nim’s case, it seems your mana itself radiates cold.

↳ Wild Grylls) Is there no way to toggle it on and off?

↳ Heavenly Demon) That, I know not. As stated before, even the North Sea Ice Palace channels cold through martial techniques.

↳ Sword Matstar) I’ve never seen a case like this either. I’ve seen people wielding fire or lightning, but never mana itself inheriting an element inherently.

↳ But with that level of performance, doesn’t he not even need a Stone Ice Storage or whatever?

↳ Fr, he wanted a fridge so bad he turned into one himself lol

↳ Why does this guy keep getting stronger in the weirdest directions? ;;

↳ Getting strong in such novel ways is hilariously ridiculous lmao

↳ Lady Starlight) As the others said, it seems the essence blended into your mana and gave it a cold attribute. I didn’t anticipate this either.

↳ Wild Grylls) It’s not a bad thing, right?

↳ Lady Starlight) If your body couldn’t withstand the cold, your mana would have frozen first. There’s a risk it could turn into something like the Blocked Meridian Syndrome I suffered from, so it would be wise to prepare beforehand.

↳ Wild Grylls) I’ll keep that in mind.

↳ Allfather There are a few rare cases where mana acquires specific elemental properties after birth. It has been mentioned in ancient texts.

↳ Wild Grylls) Did those people undergo a process like mine?

↳ Allfather No. Most of them directly injected it into their mana circuits. The results were far from pleasant.

↳ Wild Grylls) What do you mean by far from pleasant?

↳ Allfather Those injected with cold essence had their internal organs frozen as if struck by Blocked Meridian Syndrome, while those injected with fire essence had their mana circuits melt shortly after, unable to bear the heat.

↳ Wild Grylls) Yikes...

↳ Allfather Just to be safe, it would be wise to secure Mature Mandrake essence as Lady Starlight suggested.

↳ Wild Grylls) Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?

↳ Allfather Because you used an Elixir in tandem. An Elixir is hardly a common potion, is it? It heals the body while it absorbs and adapts to the essence, making it the perfect safeguard. What I mentioned applies only to cases of injecting raw, unmixed essence.

So this ability wasn’t purely a blessing.

If not for the mnemonic Heavenly Demon gave me, enabling the absorption, it would have been extremely dangerous.

Time would tell, but side effects could manifest later, so I needed to be prepared.

↳ Praise the Sun With that, you’d never have to worry about ice for the rest of your life. Can you give me one? Running an ice business sounds sweet.

↳ Wild Grylls) Sorry, but I made this with the only Ice Snow Flower I had. Plus, I don’t know what kind of side effects it might have.

↳ Praise the Sun I’m not the one eating it anyway, so I don’t care about side effects. Sucks that there’s no Ice Snow Flower left though.

↳ Wild Grylls) Who on earth were you planning to feed it to?

↳ Praise the Sun Don’t worry about it. If you find another, would you be open to trading?

↳ Wild Grylls) Let’s talk after I actually find one. I haven’t even obtained the ability I wanted yet.

I gained a frost attribute, but that didn’t mean I gained cold resistance.Read the latest chapters at novelping(.)com.

Besides, if left unchecked, this ability could easily become a double-edged sword, making practice essential.

Too much of anything is never good.

’Wait, can I use this with my bare hands?’

Would cold manifest if I channeled Aura into my hand instead of a sword?

Driven by curiosity, I smashed the ice inside the iron bucket with a hammer and refilled it with water.

After filling it back up, I dipped my hand inside.

Crackle!

Sure enough, the water froze solid. Apparently, my bare body was more than enough.

’This could come in handy when I don’t have a weapon.’

I was heavily dependent on weapons. I barely knew any bare-handed martial arts.

So this ability could prove vital in turning the tide during a worst-case scenario.

Of course, as I had repeatedly reminded myself, failing to control it properly could invite unforeseen dangers.

’For now, I need to focus on controlling it.’

Practicing swordsmanship, circulating mental cultivation arts, training my abilities—I was packed.

Is this why people say it’s best to master one craft?

It seemed wise to master the cold just enough to keep it in check.

’It’s not like I’m trying to cast Ice Age or something.’

Even if this was a fantasy world, magic on that scale was probably impossible.

Well, sure, there were monsters here who could slice through mountains with swords, but I was an exception.

Finishing the clean-up, I resumed logging.

Since the frost prevented me from using Sword Qi, I had to do it purely with raw physical strength.

Still, thanks to my enhanced constitution, I gathered timber without much trouble.

’Time to eat dinner soon.’

Maybe because it was winter, the sun seemed to set exceptionally early.

I recalled that sunset speeds were dictated by revolution rather than rotation.

If the sun truly set earlier, it meant this phenomenon operated on a planetary scale, far beyond local weather.

’I’ve heard of the midnight sun, where daylight lasts all day...’

I didn’t really know. Since it was the Forest of Four Seasons, I had no choice but to take it in stride.

Afterward, I ate smoked tiger meat and warmed myself by adding logs to the fireplace.

Despite all the chaos that had transpired, our cutie Wonmo was sound asleep.

It seemed he slept through the winter to conserve energy.

’Well, he’s just a cub...’

Besides, other animals had grown inactive as well.

The only crises so far had been blizzards or avalanches.

And while inexperience made them dangerous, they were all preventable.

’I definitely need to build an emergency escape route... Should I build it like a chimney?’

Considering the sheer force of an avalanche, it had to be built out of brick.

Even when the avalanche struck, the chimney remained intact. At the very least, it wouldn’t get swept away.

Still, wear and tear were inevitable, so periodic inspections would be necessary.

’Something better than mud... has to be cement, right?’

Did cement even exist in this world? Or was there something else?

Back on Earth, numerous ancient structures endured for centuries without collapsing.

City walls, in particular, required cannon fire to barely crumble.

Despite technological limitations, ancient humans used everything at their disposal to build civilizations.

The same applied to me. I’d utilize every single resource to survive until the end.

’I should ask the Dwarf... wait, no, the Gallery. It might not be his specialty, so he might not know.’

The Dwarf often brought it up: he didn’t know things outside his field.

Everything he’d taught me so far was stuff he had personally researched.

Title: Anyone know how to bind bricks more firmly?

Wild Grylls

(Photo of chimney)

Up until now, I’ve just slapped mud on to hold things together, but does anyone know a better method?

Asking because I want to rebuild it sturdier if it ever collapses. Mud feels like it has its limits.

↳ Lady Starlight) From what I’ve heard, castles were built using a mortar made by mixing lime and sand.

↳ Passing Dwarf) Yep, the user above is right. To be exact, there’s something called cement. You just mix that with sand.

↳ Wild Grylls) Cement? As in the cement I know?

My eyes widened. Cement existed in this world too?

I refrained from using the word "cement" assuming it didn’t exist, but he blurted it right out.

I never imagined that even if the materials were identical, the name would match too.

↳ Passing Dwarf) What’s the cement you’re thinking of?

↳ Wild Grylls) Slapping it on after mixing it with other stuff, then it hardens solid over time.

↳ Passing Dwarf) You hit the nail on the head. You’ve got plenty of money, why haven’t you been using it?Enjoying the story? Read on at novelpin‌g.com.

↳ Wild Grylls) I never imagined it would exist here;; By the way, when was cement invented?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Dunno? It’s been around forever so I have no idea. But one thing’s for sure: we Dwarves invented cement.

↳ Wild Grylls) You’re not lying, right?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Wanna bet?

↳ Allfather It is no lie. Rumor has it that the Dwarves’ remarkably rapid technological advancement was thanks to the discovery of cement, as it fortified the shelter aspect of basic survival.

↳ Passing Dwarf) Ah, why’d you tell him ㅡㅡ I could’ve scammed something out of him.

↳ Wild Grylls) You would’ve just begged for booze anyway lol

↳ Allfather However, there are suspicious aspects. It was considered out-of-place technology for its time, provoking endless debates among scholars. That is precisely why it is termed a discovery rather than an invention.

↳ Wild Grylls) So you’re saying it just popped out of nowhere?

↳ Allfather Indeed. Strictly speaking, the gift I gave you is a similar case. It cannot be crafted even with modern technology.

The gift Allfather referred to was the Subspace Backpack.

A bag that couldn’t ignore mass, but completely bypassed spatial limitations.

It was a magnificent tool, saving immense amounts of space.

↳ Allfather The prevailing hypothesis among scholars is that it is an ancient artifact preserved by chance.

↳ Wild Grylls) An ancient artifact?

↳ Allfather Yes. An era when gods descended upon the earth. An age that modern humanity cannot even fathom matching.

A lost technology from an ancient civilization, common in novels or manga?

A civilization that vanished for unknown reasons, leaving behind only traces.

Since Earth had similar mysteries, I wasn’t surprised that the same happened here.

Look no further than ancient Egypt. How they built the pyramids remains mind-boggling.

’Though joining the military makes you realize humans definitely built the pyramids by hand.’

Anyhow, putting that aside, I got back to the point.

Knowing cement existed, what remained was how to use it.

The Dwarf seemed to know the basics and passed them along.

↳ Passing Dwarf) If you’re smearing it between bricks, mix it with sand, not dirt.

↳ Wild Grylls) Why?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Dunno. My dad told me to do it that way.

↳ Wild Grylls) Gotcha.

↳ Strangely trustworthy advice lol

↳ Isn’t that the exact same as doing what an academy professor tells you to do?

↳ Yep, exactly. Undergrads just gotta do what the prof says. Nobody knows the principle lol

’Do I have to go downstream or to the sea?’

Surrounding this place was dirt, not sand. Sand was only at the river downstream or the ocean.

Even in winter, I preferred avoiding the sea. Going downstream would be far better.

I wasn’t going to build it right away, but I intended to gather materials steadily from now on.

’They don’t sell sand at the auction house.’

Glancing through the auction house briefly, I replied to the Dwarf.

Cement aside, there was something else I wanted to ask.

↳ Wild Grylls) Hey, are there weapons imbued with elements too?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Yeah, there are. Like hammers with lightning attributes, or swords wrapped in flames. Why ask?

↳ Wild Grylls) How are those usually made? Naturally?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Usually, yeah? A lightning hammer is created when struck by lightning from the sky. Though the original owner got struck by lightning and died lol

↳ Wild Grylls) What about fire then? Did someone burn to death?

↳ Passing Dwarf) Nah. I heard it was a sword stuck right in the middle of a volcanic crater. Why are you asking?

↳ Wild Grylls) Just curious if it can be crafted artificially. Like infusing the essence I drank into a sword being forged.

↳ Passing Dwarf) Talking nonsense again lol. Go find another Ice Snow Flower or whatever first before talking.

↳ Frost sword sounds badass though? Lmao

↳ But even if you make it, you’re not gonna sell it anyway.

↳ Wild Grylls) Just for decoration lol

As the Dwarf said, crafting was impossible unless I found more Ice Snow Flowers.

Even if I found one, I had no intention of combining it with a sword.

’Unless I find two or three more...’

After making small talk like that, I wrapped up my day.

Speed Sloth zoned out staring at the fire while I slept. I could probably leave adding firewood to him.

Thus, the next morning dawned, bringing extraordinarily clear weather.

"Oh. There’s another one?"

While chopping wood, I found another Ice Snow Flower.

"There’s one here, one there... Why are there so many?"

It wasn’t just one—there were several. You could easily find them by searching between the trees.

’Is this like seasonal produce?’

It’s not like it’s wild greens or something.