Chapter 97

“I feel like I misheard. Did you just say ‘price’?”
“Yes. You heard correctly.”
“Hah. Like you said, we walk different paths, but I’m still your senior in Murim. Isn’t it too much to demand a price?”
“Isn’t the one being too much the Dao Master who used me without a single word of explanation?”

Jeok-hyeon frowned slightly, as if I’d caught him off guard.

“Mu-seong.”
“Yes?”
“Go back into the sack, no, back to the campsite.”
“Yes, yes!”

With none of his usual slow, clueless demeanor, Jin Mu-seong vanished quickly.
He must have been waiting for those words.
Jeok-hyeon spoke.

“‘Used’ feels like an excessive expression. Of course, it would’ve been better if I’d explained everything first, but I had my circumstances as well.”
“What circumstances?”
“Mu-seong is a talent Mount Hua gained after half a century. He has the potential to become Mount Hua’s future. But just as even jade has flaws, that child lacks a temperament a martial artist must have. Do you know what it is?”
“Not sure. Social skills?”
“……Desperation.”

Jeok-hyeon let out a low sigh.

“Mu-seong has no true rival. Because my generation rank is too high, all his peers only find him intimidating. None of them truly match up against him.”
“So while he was stuck in place, I showed up?”
“Exactly! You, who don’t care about his status at all, seemed like you could become his first wall, and his friend as well. It was going quite successfully, right up until you caught me like this.”

He explained at length, but the important point still wasn’t resolved.
So was he going to pay, or not?

“You need my help, right?”
“Right.”
“Then pay the price.”

As if he couldn’t believe it, one of Jeok-hyeon’s eyebrows twitched.

“I wasn’t going to say this much, but aren’t I currently guarding you and Dao-friend Seol? Is that not enough?”
“That’s why I’ve held back until now. You must’ve seen how much Jin Mu-seong had been annoying me.”
“No, that’s—”
“You’re the one who turned our relationship into a business relationship.”

Jeok-hyeon’s mouth fell open.
He wouldn’t have anything good to say in rebuttal.
I smiled as if I were being generous.

“Don’t feel burdened. I’ll deliver results worth the price.”
“……Results?”
“I’ll turn Jin Mu-seong into the kind of disciple you want.”
“How?”
“With the right method. I’m not trying to belittle your training policy, but your method is wrong. What does stuffing him in a sack all day do? There’s an easier way.”
“And what is that?”
“Getting beaten.”
“……?”

Jeok-hyeon looked like he doubted his own ears.
He stammered.

“B-bea……”
“Beaten.”

I knew the power of this better than anyone.
In my past life, hadn’t I been beaten countless times by the Heavenly Demon under the guise of training?
Back then it was hard enough to kill me, but looking back later, I had still achieved quite a lot of growth during that time.

“I’ll guarantee it. Jin Mu-seong will become desperately earnest about martial arts. Even if it’s just to avoid getting beaten.”
“Were you beaten a lot by Dao-friend Seol, by any chance?”
“N-not really. I just know someone who improved by getting beaten.”
“Mm.”

Maybe my confident attitude convinced him, because Jeok-hyeon stroked his chin.

“First, I’ll hear what it is you want.”

I smiled in satisfaction.
They said starting was half the battle.
If I’d gotten this far, it would be easier from here on.

“The thing I want.”
“Yes. What do you want?”
“Mount Hua’s inner cultivation method. A supreme one.”
“…….”

Jeok-hyeon’s mouth fell open.
He really seemed to be getting surprised over and over today.

“Y-you need an inner cultivation method? And a supreme one? Heh. Hahahaha.”
“I heard Mount Hua’s inner cultivation methods are top-notch. I heard you have excellent ones piled up, like the Zixia Divine Art, the White Plum Heart Formula, and the Great Clarity Qi Art.”
“That is true, but why do you want our sect’s inner cultivation method? There isn’t a single point where it meshes with the Divine Cult’s martial learning.”

The reason I wanted Mount Hua’s supreme martial arts out of nowhere was because of the Heavenly Demon.
This time, I had realized something.
That the cause that turned the Heavenly Demon into a demonic fiend might have been Heart-Demon Qi.
The Heavenly Demon had absorbed Heart-Demon Qi three times.
In a situation where he might already have boarded the current of ruin, what would I need to stop that ruin?

What I thought of was Perfect Demonic Qi.
That alien sensation I had felt when the Nine Heavens Demon-Ascension Art reached its third stage.
It was pure like that of an orthodox supreme inner cultivation method, and yet it felt as if it stood at the opposing pole to all Demonic Qi.
Might there be an answer in this very energy that let me endure even Heart-Demon Qi’s pressure?

‘The problem is that it’s wrapped in too much mystery.’

Perfect Demonic Qi had many parts that weren’t revealed.
Even the Demon Valley Lord who discovered it barely grasped its essence.
So I turned my eyes to orthodox supreme inner cultivation methods that might resemble Perfect Demonic Qi.
Because I had a vague guess that if I studied them, I could get closer to the true nature of Perfect Demonic Qi.

I hadn’t planned to fleece Jeok-hyeon, but a perfect opportunity had come, so what could I do?
I could only grab it.
But Mount Hua was only the beginning.
Later, I planned to obtain the inner cultivation methods of Shaolin and the Wudang Sect as well.

‘By one method or another.’

I lied without even wetting my lips.
I couldn’t talk about the Heavenly Demon or Perfect Demonic Qi, after all.

“The reason I want Mount Hua’s inner cultivation method is because of you, Dao Master.”
“Because of me?”
“Jin Mu-seong keeps telling me, until my ears bleed, that demonic arts are inferior and only orthodox martial arts are superior.”
“Ahem, d-did he?”

Playing dumb.

“So I wanted to check. By comparing inner cultivation methods, the foundation of martial arts.”
“Just for that reason?”
“It’s an important matter to me.”
“Hah. A supreme inner cultivation method.”
“As far as I know, Mount Hua has a supreme inner cultivation method that no one practices.”
“……The Great Clarity Qi Art?”
“Yes.”

Jeok-hyeon put on a serious expression.

“You know quite a lot.”
“I do, a bit. Heh.”
“As you said, no one practices the Great Clarity Qi Art these days. It was a proper supreme inner cultivation method that continued from the Minor Clarity Qi Art, but several generations ago, a sect leader created the White Plum Heart Formula.”

Jeok-hyeon added a few more words.
The White Plum Heart Formula had a relatively simple training process and was optimized for Mount Hua’s Plum Blossom Style martial arts, but the Great Clarity Qi Art was not, so it became an unwanted leftover.
Now, it was only quietly stored in the Library Hall.

“Even so, it is a precious asset of our sect. I cannot commit the grave sin of letting it leave our gates.”

In other words, he couldn’t leak it to an outsider.
I suspected Jeok-hyeon was Mount Hua’s greatest master, but even for him, it would be a burdensome act.
So I brought out something he couldn’t refuse.

“Jin Mu-seong. You said he’s a talent Mount Hua gained after fifty years, right?”
“I did.”
“At this rate, he’ll end up becoming a dunce. What do you think?”
“Hoo. I can’t deny it.”
“Between a relic of the past and the sect’s future, which is more important?”
“If I must choose one, it’s the future.”
“Right? I can do what Mount Hua and you can’t. I’ll make him into a proper person with these fists.”
“And if you can’t produce the result you boast about?”
“Of course I won’t take the price.”

At that moment, Jeok-hyeon’s eyes flashed.

“You, aren’t you taking me too lightly?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“You have nothing to lose!”

The sloppy, full-of-openings look he’d shown until now vanished, replaced by a sharp gaze.

“Whether you succeed or fail, your situation won’t change from what it is now. You have no burden. I understand that I started this, but this is not fair.”

Inside, my mouth went bitter.
I was going to gloss over this part, but it seemed Jeok-hyeon wasn’t going to just take it.
Of course. Jeok-hyeon had been through everything. There was no way he’d fall for it.
Hiding my true thoughts, I smiled and spoke.

“Heh, you’re sharp. I didn’t consider that part. I was too focused on Jin Mu-seong.”
“It doesn’t seem like something you wouldn’t have considered.”
“I’m still young and inexperienced.”

Jeok-hyeon shot me a suspicious look.
When I took it calmly, Jeok-hyeon let out a quiet exclamation.

“Hah! Dao-friend Seol really did raise an incredible disciple. No matter how I look, you don’t seem the same age as Mu-seong. I can even feel a sense of seasoned experience.”

Seasoned experience, my ass.
Even counting before and after regression, I’d only lived twenty-seven years. Ridiculous.

“So, have you decided?”
“I’m trying to think in a positive direction. But I can’t accept the idea that simply beating Mu-seong will make him desperate.”
“I’ll tell you the plan in more detail.”

I laid out a hastily assembled plan.
First, I would ‘spar’ with Jin Mu-seong three times every day. To be precise, it was a beating under the guise of sparring.
Second, after Jin Mu-seong gets beaten senseless, Jeok-hyeon would take him right away and fix the flaws revealed in the spar.
Third, when Jin Mu-seong returned a bit improved, I would beat him again.

“We repeat this process until we reach the Divine Cult. We create an environment where he has no choice but to grow stronger.”
“Hm. Make him feel what he lacks, fix his shortcomings, have him apply it through sparring, then make him feel what he lacks again.”

It looked crude, but there were no openings.
He already hated me. After a few spars, he’d outright loathe me.
That would translate straight into desperation.
Truly, Jeok-hyeon, Jin Mu-seong, and me.
All three of us would benefit.

“But there is a flaw.”
“What is it?”
“It’s an issue of sustainability. You would have to overwhelm Mu-seong from start to finish. Is that truly possible? Everyone has habits. Mu-seong would quickly find them and dig in. He is pathetic, but his talent is real.”
“Hahaha.”
“You find it funny? I’ll fix even his shortcomings after each spar. How long will you keep the upper hand?”
“Until the end. Because I won’t lose.”

In that moment, a vein stood out on Jeok-hyeon’s brow.

“You, aren’t you looking down on me and Mu-seong too much?”
“It’s not looking down. It’s an objective evaluation.”
“Then let’s do it like this. If you do not lose to Mu-seong until we return to the Divine Cult, I’ll pass on the Great Clarity Qi Art. But if you lose, then you will instead teach me the Divine Cult’s inner cultivation method.”
“The Divine Cult’s inner cultivation method, all of a sudden?”
“That seems fair. And it sounds fun.”
“But I don’t think Master would allow that.”
“That’s your problem.”

I fell into thought for a moment.
The only inner cultivation method I knew was the Nine Heavens Demon-Ascension Art. Was it okay to teach that?

‘Why am I worrying about something useless?’

There was no way I’d lose to Jin Mu-seong.
I answered readily.

“I accept.”
“Ohoho. Then we start tomorrow morning.”

For once, Jeok-hyeon smiled brightly.
Starting the next morning, a new daily routine was added to our journey.

Ppabababak!
At the consecutive impacts, Jin Mu-seong couldn’t even scream properly before he dropped to his knees.
The first spar was over.

“Kkeok, kkeoheuk…….”

I looked down at Jin Mu-seong as he suffered.
Even so, it wasn’t like I was beating him at random.
It was a very meticulous beating that stimulated points that helped blood flow circulate smoothly.

‘From the receiving end, it probably felt the same either way.’

Well, that wasn’t my problem.
I nodded to Jeok-hyeon, who was watching from a short distance away.

‘Take him.’

Jeok-hyeon nodded back and walked up to his disciple.
Like harvesting in autumn, he stuffed Jin Mu-seong into the sack.
Hwiik, as Jeok-hyeon shot away, his voice drifted faintly from behind his back.

“Pathetic bastard. You call that a spar? I’ll thoroughly fix your rotten mindset.”
“Hweeeek-!”

Jin Mu-seong’s pitiful scream could be heard as well.
That guy was going to suffer plenty too.

“Young Master Baek, we’re back. We’ll begin sparring at once.”

From that day on, as planned, I completed three spars with Jin Mu-seong every day.

“Kkeuk.”
“Kkeok.”
“Euheok.”

There wasn’t a day when bruises disappeared from Jin Mu-seong’s body.
Maybe because of that.
His gaze began to change little by little.
In eyes that had been full of fear and resentment on the first day, venom slowly began to fill up.

‘Of course he’d be angry.’

Physically and mentally, it would be extremely exhausting.
The only way for him to escape this sparring hell was to beat me.
He had no choice but to grit his teeth and come at me.

Jeok-hyeon was extremely motivated too.
No, beyond motivation, it was close to madness.
All through the spars, his shouts boomed loudly.

“Is Mount Hua’s sword truly that weak! Haven’t I told you again and again that gentleness and weakness are different!”
“Didn’t I tell you that isn’t it! Do you want to eat your meals inside the sack too!”
“You bastard, you lost again! Get in the sack right now!”

In this environment, Jin Mu-seong struggled day by day.
But then an unexpected side effect appeared.

Ppabababak!
Ppabak!
Ppak!

At first, he could hold out for more than ten exchanges.
But after two days, he couldn’t even pass five exchanges, and around the fifth day, Jin Mu-seong collapsed even though I’d only grazed him somewhere that wasn’t a vital point.
For some reason, the gap between Jin Mu-seong and me was growing wider and wider.

‘What is this?’

Not understanding why, I looked down at my fist.
As Jeok-hyeon put Jin Mu-seong into the sack, I heard him mutter.

“The one being trained is this bastard, so why is that bastard getting stronger?”

I scratched my cheek.
That was what I wanted to ask.