When the Years Gather in the Dantian (2)
After I went down all the stairs and stepped onto the floor, the door above closed automatically.
It was dark there. However, faint markings were drawn on the wall. A substance that glowed even in darkness had been applied to the wall.
Following the wall, I found a fire striker placed on a small table. With the fire striker, I lit the lamps hanging in various places along the walls.
The internal structure was simple. There was one room in the center, and behind it, there was a single passage. It seemed to be an escape passage for when the entrance was blocked.
The end of the passage was blocked, but it was made so that it could be broken through. The moment this place was broken, it would lose its function as a safe house.
I returned to the central room.
There was one small bed, and on top of it lay a leather satchel made to be worn on the back.
The reason there was a bed was probably that, in the case of serious injuries, one was meant to lie down here and rest.
The necessary items would be inside the leather satchel.
I felt as though I understood why all the items had been put inside the leather satchel. If one were being pursued by enemies, the intention was for one to come here, take only the leather satchel, and immediately rush out through the rear passage. Truly, this was a safe house to be used in emergencies.
Why had Gal Sa-Ryang called this place special?
Perhaps it was because of the item inside this leather satchel?
I carefully took out the items in the leather satchel one by one.
First, the things my hand touched were medicine bottles. When I took them out and examined them, they were medicines for treating internal and external injuries.
It made me think that this was truly meticulous consideration. They had been placed at the very top so they could be found first when one was injured.
Since this was a place that had to remain an absolute secret, Gal Sa-Ryang had probably prepared the leather satchel himself. Truly, I was able to confirm his meticulousness once again.
Next, there was an antidote to neutralize poison. Though I was impervious to all poisons, it seemed this had been prepared in case I suffered severe injuries and my body could not function properly.
The next thing inside was clean cloth that could be used as bandages. This too had been prepared with injuries in mind. There was also clean underwear and two sets of martial robes to change into. One was gray, and the other was black.
For example, if one were changing out of bloodstained martial robes, then in the daytime one should wear gray, the color most commonly worn by people of the Jianghu, and at night one should wear black martial robes that would not stand out. That was the consideration behind it.
There was a map marking the important places of the Central Plains, a hidden weapon case containing ten Willow-Leaf Flying Knives, and two thousand nyang in small-denomination notes that could be used anywhere.
And at the very end was what I wanted.
It was a wooden box about the length of an adult’s forearm. It was clearly a box containing a spiritual herb.
I was slightly disappointed. It was impossible to fill one gapja with a single spiritual herb.
I carefully opened the box.
When I saw what was inside, I cried out in joy.
“Ah!”
Astonishingly, what was inside was none other than Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng. It was that very Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, which could be considered top-grade even among spiritual herbs.
In ordinary cases, it was an extraordinary spiritual herb that could increase one’s internal energy by one and a half gapja, that is, ninety years.
Of course, that standard applied when the internal energy was ordinary. The more internal energy one already possessed, the less internal energy one could obtain from a spiritual medicine.
Since the internal energy I possessed was two gapja, I would not be able to absorb the full ninety years of internal energy. The amount of internal energy I needed was one gapja, sixty years.
Could I really obtain it with this one root?
It seemed possible, and it also seemed as though it might fall slightly short.
There was no choice but to try.
I closed my eyes and settled my mind. I was more cautious than ever. Reaching three gapja of internal energy was an extremely special matter to me.
I slowly consumed the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.
It had truly been a long time since I had eaten Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng. Even during my actual days as Alliance Lord, I had only eaten one root of Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng. That was how precious this spiritual herb was.
Sssssssss.
The energy of the spiritual medicine spread throughout my entire body. I activated the Heavenly Martial Heart-Protecting Art and absorbed all of that energy.
It became one large current of energy and raced through the blood vessels of my entire body. It was a stronger energy than any spiritual medicine I had consumed after being reborn as Byeok Ri-Dan.
I allowed it to race freely through my body.
Swaaaaaak.
It felt different from other spiritual medicines. Like wearing luxurious silk robes, like holding a treasured sword in my hand, like riding a famous horse that ran well, it gave me a special feeling.
After giving me that wonderful sensation, the energy of the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng gathered in my dantian and became one with my existing internal energy.
I slowly opened my eyes.
With a heart even more trembling than before I had consumed it, I examined the internal energy in my dantian.
“It worked!”
As if fate itself had arranged it, the internal energy in my dantian was exactly three gapja. I had succeeded in absorbing sixty years of internal energy.
“Ah!”
I was so happy I felt as though I could fly into the sky. Now, at last, I could use the Sixth Form, Great Annihilation Calamity.
Of course, Great Annihilation Calamity was not a form that could be used carelessly. Its tremendous power was one thing, but controlling the true qi was so demanding and difficult that, if mishandled, it could inflict irreversible internal injuries.
Even in my previous life, I had only used it in actual combat when facing the cult leader of the Blood Sky Cult.
At last, I had recovered all of the Martial Arts from my previous life.
If there was someone I absolutely had to kill, I would be able to kill him.
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When I came outside, Gal Sa-Ryang was standing ahead, looking up at the sky.
When he saw me come out, he approached me with a tense expression.
“What happened?”
But before hearing my answer, he realized the result from my expression.
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you. It is all thanks to you, Strategist Gal. The leather satchel inside, did you prepare it yourself?”
“Yes, I did.”
It was just as I had expected.
“How did you think to put such precious Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng inside?”
“At the time, the Alliance Lord was already the Strongest Under Heaven. If someone like him had to flee to a safe house, then the worst possible situation must have occurred. If that were the case, I judged that at the very least, something like Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng should be there.”
“That was truly a wise thought.”
“Of course, it was also possible because, at the time, the Alliance Lord did not need Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.”
“Thanks to you, I have reached three gapja.”
“I sincerely congratulate you. At last, you can now use the final form of the Soul-Chasing Asura Sword Art.”
I wanted to show him Great Annihilation Calamity.
But if I used it carelessly here, leaving aside the danger of suffering internal injuries, this Somang Plain would no longer exist. I could not blow away a place that held people’s wishes like that.
Thank you truly, Sa-Ryang.
If Gal Sa-Ryang had not remembered this place, if he had not prepared something like this, it would have been something I could never have accomplished.
I smiled and threw him an arrogant joke.
“Is there perhaps some bastard you want to kill? If he is human, I will definitely kill him for you.”
After leaving Somang Plain, we returned straight to our residence.
“Now, let us deal with Ma Yang-Hwa and Ma Gung-Tae.”
That was the first step for us to rise above the surface.
“The masters they sent are scattered around the vicinity of Wuhan. They will probably move on the day of the ascension ceremony, using the confusion as cover.”
“Have you perhaps thought of a plan?”
“I believe we should use their weakness.”
“What weakness do you mean?”
“Even if they have joined forces, Ma Bong-Gi’s blood relatives basically do not trust one another. If we use this point, we may be able to drive them into internal strife and, further, find the person behind them.”
I nodded.
“Cheon So-Seon will be behind them.”
Gal Sa-Ryang and I had seen Ma Bong-Gi die directly because of him. The impression Cheon So-Seon gave me at that time had been very special.
He was young, but I knew he was no ordinary person.
When I met him at the time, I did not realize his true nature. Of course, he did not realize anything about me either. That meant our skill was almost equal.
Of course, now that my internal energy had become three gapja and I could use the Sixth Form, my skill was likely one step above his.
“The person we ultimately have to eliminate is the one behind Cheon So-Seon.”
This conspiracy had been in progress for a very long time. Behind Cheon So-Seon, there must be someone seasoned and cunning. Someone connected to Cheon Bo-Myeong, the Phantom Thief of the previous generation.
“Always keep in mind that such a person exists.”
“I will remember.”
“And there is one more thing we must find out.”
“What is it?”
“Senior Brother had reached the realm of being impervious to all poisons. Then how, exactly, did they kill him?”
This was a matter that had to be considered seriously. I too was impervious to all poisons. But if there was some method that could break through this immunity, then the current me could also be in danger.
With a cautious expression, Gal Sa-Ryang said,
“I will keep that in mind as well.”
“Thank you.”
It was reassuring to have Gal Sa-Ryang. If he were not here, I would have to worry about and think through all these things myself.
I could leave matters of strategy to him, while I only had to take care of my Martial Arts and the people around me.
“Before they discover anything about me, we must first uncover what their objective is.”
The old man and Cheon So-Seon were playing Go.
“Stone movement should be swift and light. Right now, your movement is only suffocating.”
At the old man’s words, Cheon So-Seon answered,
“Is there not a saying, ‘Do not be rashly hasty’?”
Those words were one of the Ten Golden Rules of Go, meaning that one should not hurry and should play cautiously.
The place where they were playing Go was the same cave as before. On one side, a boy was lying on a blue jade bed, and they were playing Go on a broad rock nearby.
“Caution and suffocation are clearly different things.”
“There is also the saying, ‘When the opponent is strong, first secure yourself.’”
That too was a saying from the Ten Golden Rules of Go, meaning that when the opponent is strong in an area, one should first seek safety.
The old man raised his head and stared at Cheon So-Seon. With a self-mocking smile, Cheon So-Seon said,
“To be honest, I simply cannot find any interest in Go.”
“Have you been feeling impatient lately?”
“Does it look that way?”
“You are not like your usual self. Is it perhaps because of Gal Sa-Ryang?”
“At first, I thought he was someone who merely used his head under Cheon Ha-Jin. But he was far more capable than I expected.”
“In the end, he is nothing more than a passing wind and wave.”
“He could become a typhoon.”
“That may be so. But people on land do not die because of a typhoon blowing at sea.”
“It could become a tidal wave and overflow. If we fail again this time, I think I will have to step forward myself before the matter grows any larger.”
“No!”
The old man suddenly raised his voice.
“Let the typhoon simply blow out at sea. If a tidal wave rises, then this old grandfather will block it for you. So do not jump into the sea yourself.”
Cheon So-Seon knew very well just how terrifying his grandfather was. He was a person who could kill hundreds without batting an eye. He was cruel and heartless.
But at least to Cheon So-Seon, he was an endlessly good person.
Sometimes, he felt afraid.
What if some other poisonous intent was hidden even inside that benevolent heart? What if, in the end, there existed an unavoidable, fundamental evil that would even stab someone close?
It did not exist in his grandfather……
Or perhaps it existed in himself.
It was at that moment.
Srrrk.
The boy on the bed raised his body.
The old man rose from his seat and walked over to the boy. Cheon So-Seon only stepped back and watched the two of them.
The child was staring blankly into the air. He was an extremely handsome boy.
The old man approached him and said,
“How do you feel today?”
His tone was friendly yet respectful. It was absolutely not the way one spoke to a child.
The child turned to look at the old man. His empty eyes were strangely frightening.
“……I do not feel good.”
There was a strange resonance in his words. It was not only because they were inside a cave.
The child’s face began to twist.
“My head hurts.”
As if the pain were growing stronger, he clutched his head.
“Kkuaaaaa!”
Gradually, his scream grew louder.
“Endure it just a little.”
The old man took out a small medicine bottle from his robe and handed it to the child.
The child drank the medicine in a hurry.
Though he drank the medicine, the child spent a long while clutching his head in pain. Only after the old man held him and soothed him for quite some time did the child slowly fall asleep.
The old man laid the child back down on the bed.
The child’s eyes slowly closed. Just before falling asleep, the child said,
“……Who are you?”
With those words, he fell asleep, and once again returned to an extremely peaceful state.
Only then did Cheon So-Seon approach the bed.
“The medicine is gradually losing its effect.”
“Will it be all right?”
“We must make him endure somehow.”
The old man’s gaze turned toward Cheon So-Seon.
“Look far and see broadly. If this matter succeeds, then a typhoon in that distant sea will be nothing more than the breeze of a fan.”
In the old man’s two eyes, flames of ambition rose. Those flames, filled with a long-held desire accumulated over many years, were hot flames that seemed as though they would never be extinguished.
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