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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: The Road to Blade Leaf Valley 2
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"Pack your things. Let's go."
"Yes!"
Rummaging through the thugs' belongings yielded an unexpected prize: Bamboo Leaf Liquor, a spirit made from bamboo leaves and various medicinal herbs.
'Bamboo Leaf Liquor… The scent of bamboo…'
The distinct, strong scent of the liquor could travel a great distance. A scent—a trace, a footprint that cannot be seen or touched.
If I could combine this with the principles of the Myriad Fragrance Grand Restoration Formation, it might be useful for tracking.
"Um… Young Master."
"What is it?"
"Thank you… for saving my life and for treating my wounds!"
Jangbong clasped his hands and bowed his head to his knees in gratitude. The same man who had initially regarded me with indifference had completely changed his attitude after I saved his life and healed him.
"As the old saying goes, if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold."
"Ah, yes! I will serve you with even greater diligence!"
Whether he understood my meaning or not, Jangbong's eyes filled with emotion as he began to stick close to me.
We didn't have much time, so we began to walk diligently. We walked continuously, and when night fell, I trained my body. There's a limit to producing explosive power by circulating ki. If the vessel—the body—is not trained, it will eventually break.
One night, during one of those repetitive days…
Jangbong muttered to himself as he watched me, drenched in sweat as if caught in a rain shower under the clear moonlit sky.
"Will I be able to make it back alive?"
It seemed his gloomy mood hadn't lifted since his near-death experience with the ruffians.
"I survived this time thanks to the Young Master, and my wounds have mostly healed. But in the future…"
A weak existence. A life like a candle in the wind.
Even though he was a servant, the difference between being within the family's walls and being outside was night and day.
"When did the Young Master learn martial arts like that?"
I heard all of his mumblings, and they were starting to get on my nerves. Jangbong was muttering from a distance, likely thinking I couldn't hear him, but the difference in hearing between a martial artist and an ordinary person was greater than he imagined.
Watching him complain, I recalled that day's events once more.
'Even if they were third-rate thugs, Jangbong's response was admirable. He might have the potential to grow as a warrior.'
I closed my eyes for a moment, thinking about my life as the Divine Doctor and the life I had after meeting the Heavenly Demon.
After a brief deliberation, I was the one who spoke to Jangbong first.
"Jangbong."
"Yes, Young Master."
"That day, you almost died. You, who almost died at the hands of such pathetic thugs, were less than dust blowing in the street."
My words struck a nerve with Jangbong, who had faced death not long ago.
"Are you satisfied with such a life?"
"Pardon?"
I interpreted the wavering emotion in Jangbong's eyes.
It was a deep-seated anger.
"I asked if you are satisfied."
"S-Satisfied…? But I have no talent."
Jangbong was flustered. In the martial world, the deaths of the weak were commonplace. Moreover, this was the Demonic Cult, a place where the law of the jungle was applied more cruelly than in nature itself.
"This is my last question. Think carefully before you answer. Are you satisfied?"
Even as a servant, he had been treated as lowly, but out here, the absence of power was a sin in itself. How many times had he been forced to walk on eggshells while growing up? If asked if he was satisfied, the answer was, of course, no.
In the Demonic Cult, which thirsted for strong talent, he had simply given up, believing he had no aptitude.
But wasn't that the same for the Young Master?
Who could have imagined that the scoundrel of the Heavenly Dance Family would change so drastically? Having finished his thoughts, Jangbong opened his mouth.
"I… I am not satisfied."
Had I asked him this while he was still a servant in the Heavenly Dance Family, his answer would have been different. But the cold touch of the sword that had been at his throat not long ago changed his reply.
"Good. Listen carefully."
"Yes!"
Jangbong straightened his posture. He instinctively felt that a change was coming to his life.
"From now on, you are not Jangbong. Instead of a name carelessly given to you by others, choose one for yourself."
"Pardon?"
"Choose."
"Yes."
'What in the world is wrong with the Young Master? First, he lifts a man to the clouds, and now he throws him into the sea. Wasn't he going to teach me some martial arts? What kind of nonsense is this, telling me to choose my own name first!'
Jangbong was dumbfounded, but I calmly sat in the lotus position and began to meditate.
'What does being asked if I'm satisfied have to do with choosing a name!'
While I trained, Jangbong racked his brain.
Watching him, I thought.
'A new life must be different from the one before. Will Jangbong, who has overcome the brink of death, be able to walk the same path as me?'
I had posed a question to him, and I couldn't interfere until he found the answer. The moment he answers my question will be the day he shatters the shackles he placed upon himself.
* * *
At noon the next day, Jangbong and I stopped at an inn and ordered noodles.
We were sitting across from each other at a table.
After some hesitation, Jangbong looked up, his expression resolute.
"I have chosen a name."
"Tell me."
"My name is not Jangbong, but Pa-sun."
"To break the order?"
"That's right. I thought deeply about what you said yesterday. At first, I wondered what a name had to do with anything."
I could see life returning to his once-dead eyes.
"And?"
"Until now, I have lived a life of compliance. If told to farm, I farmed. If told to serve, I served. When someone called me Jangbong, I just lived as if that was my name. Thinking back, I was never satisfied with anything, yet I lived a life where I decided nothing for myself. I intend to shatter that life now. I will live a life that breaks the order. Therefore, my name is Pa-sun."
After hearing Pa-sun's words, I remained silent for a moment. He grew tense at my reaction, a bead of sweat forming on his back.
"Excellent, you fool."
"Th-Thank you."
"For now, eat up."
Jangbong, no, Pa-sun had finally broken the shackles he had placed upon himself. He had shattered a wall and taken a leap forward.
It wasn't a great leap, of course, but there was a vast difference between doing only what is ordered and doing things without being told. By choosing his own name, Pa-sun had grown, even if only a little.
'He's more articulate than I thought, this one.'
After finishing our meal, we left the inn and walked along a forest path until we found a small clearing. I led Pa-sun to the secluded spot, had him sit in the lotus position, and said.
"I'm going to place needles in you, so don't be afraid."
"Pardon? N-Needles?"
"It might hurt a little."
"Pardon?"
I reassured the bewildered Pa-sun and then inserted the needles.
First, I stimulated his hardened Dantian Acupoint to awaken his dantian. This would have been an extremely dangerous procedure if I weren't one of the three greatest divine doctors of the Central Plains, but this kid was lucky.
"Gah!"
Of course, the pain was another matter entirely.
"Shh! No matter what pain you feel from now on, do not speak. You could die if you're not careful."
"Mmph, mmm!"
I don't know if Pa-sun understood the underlying meaning of my words, but he steeled his will and firmly shut his mouth.
I had Pa-sun ingest the Restoration Pill I had prepared earlier. It was to invigorate the dantian that had already been stimulated by the needles.
Next, just as the Heavenly Demon had done for me, I circulated true ki through Pa-sun's body to get his energy flowing.
I stimulated the Yongquan acupoint to receive the earth's energy, opened the Baihui acupoint to receive the heavens' energy, and cleared the Laogong acupoint to allow the energies of heaven and earth to circulate without obstruction.
As ki flowed through Pa-sun's meridians, it broke through blockages, and pain washed over him.
Pa-sun endured the surging agony with all his might.
'This hurts like hell! I thought he was going to teach me martial arts, so what's with these sudden needles?'
Pa-sun couldn't comprehend my actions at all, but after a glimpse of my intensely serious expression, he closed his eyes again and endured the pain.
After some time had passed, impurities began to seep from Pa-sun's body, and he coughed up black blood.
Pa-sun was bewildered, but I paid it no mind. The various herbs and poisons I brought from the Heavenly Dance Family, along with the medical arts of the Divine Doctor, were supporting him.
"Listen well. I have purified some of the impurities remaining in you. Now, there should be no problem in your martial training. As long as you don't set your own limits, you can continue to grow stronger."
Still reeling from the pain, Pa-sun answered, gasping for breath.
"Yes…"
"Do not forget the path of ki you just felt, and focus on awakening the senses in your dantian. You will train with me until we reach Blade Leaf Valley."
"Yes."
After I had gained a new life, Pa-sun became the first being I took in by my own will, not one connected to the original Baek Mu-heun.
* * *
According to the Sun and Moon Divine Maiden, the journey to Blade Leaf Valley would take about two weeks.
In addition to my own training, I trained Pa-sun. Compared to what I endured under the Heavenly Demon, I was treating him as gently as a baby, but he seemed to think it was harsh. The look of discontent rarely left his face.
In the end, I had no choice but to show Pa-sun what truly harsh was.
Even while training so arduously, I thought about what would happen after our arrival.
I didn't know what to expect in Blade Leaf Valley. It would be ideal if I could grasp the situation there, win over the Blade Leaf Demon—who was said to be the Cult Leader's man—and eliminate only the Golden Fang Poison Claw…
But for now, nothing was certain. The Blade Leaf Demon might have betrayed the Cult Leader and joined hands with the Red Demon Pavilion. If he, the Golden Fang Poison Claw, and everyone else were all in it together, I would be in a difficult situation on my own.
'If not, a chaotic battle could still break out.'
If that happened, I might not be able to protect Pa-sun. No, I had to assume the worst-case scenario. That was why I pushed his training harder.
'You fool. If you don't want to die, you have to get stronger.'
After that, each day felt like a month to Pa-sun. There were about ten days left until we reached Blade Leaf Valley, but to him, it felt like ten months.
While walking to Blade Leaf Valley, Pa-sun trained his external body whenever he had time, and before sleeping, he listened to my teachings.
He was not one to be ignorant of his own place, but now, he had to change.
"Do not define yourself. You can become Mount Tai, or you can become an ant. Of course, for now, you've only gone from a millet seed to an acorn. From now on, strive to become an apple."
Pa-sun thought, bewildered.
'It was hard enough going from a millet seed to an acorn. How am I supposed to become an apple?'
"How can I become stronger?"
"First, train your body. As you said, the body is the vessel. And you must believe that you are becoming stronger."
"Yes…"
Although he didn't fully understand it intellectually, from the day Pa-sun chose his own name, he began to change.
He tried to internalize concepts he didn't understand and sought enlightenment through his body. Furthermore, with his exceptional knowledge and effort, he grew rapidly.
He worked with the spirit of grinding an axe to make a needle, and I was pleased with him.
Meanwhile, as I trained in martial arts, I also studied the power of this body, which was different from my previous life.
The upper dantian, wide open unlike in my past life.
How to use this power…
The spiritual energy that filled it so strongly.
Soul-Stealing, a type of sorcery that uses spiritual energy.
The Spirit Eye, which could interfere with people's minds and souls and read their emotions.
'I might be able to schematize emotions and create a formula. If I inscribe it on the eyes, tongue, mouth, and ears and then amplify it, it would be effective against those who haven't learned martial arts.'
And the tracking technique using scents.
I recalled my study of the Thousand-Mile Subtle Fragrance in my past life.
After training for a long time, we finally arrived.
"That's the place."
Pa-sun, emaciated from the hellish training, said. Blade Leaf Valley, situated between two small mountains. We observed it for a moment from a hilltop.
'We've finally reached a place I can see with my own eyes.'
"Blade Leaf Valley is a village that formed along a stream flowing between two mountains. We just need to go in there and pretend to be farmers."
"Don't forget your original mission."
"Yes!"
Although flanked by mountains, a stream flowed through the middle. Deep where the stream originated, a massive building was visible.
That must be where the leaders who manage Blade Leaf Valley are located.
Well-maintained estates surrounded the massive building, and large structures sprouted up one after another. At the edge, a main gate marked the boundary with the village, and a wall curved around it.
Beyond the main gate, the village was formed along the stream. The farmers were all out, tilling their crops.
"It may look like a simple village, but it produces many medicinal herbs and is good for farming, so its scale has been gradually increasing. I heard the Cult considers it an important location."
'The Myriad Fragrance Blood Jade Tree must be there…'
It probably was. The Tang Clan's information network was not that shallow.
'And the Golden Fang Poison Claw, too…'
I assessed my own martial skill.
'Not yet, not yet…'
"Let's go, Young Master!"
Pa-sun seemed a little excited. He had left the Cult as a mere servant, but after repeated training, he seemed to have gained quite a bit of confidence.
And for good reason. Despite his gaunt face, Pa-sun's body was now packed with solid muscle.
Although his accumulated internal energy was minimal, his external skills had improved noticeably.
I couldn't pass on the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon, so I used my knowledge as the Divine Doctor to improve a common breathing method easily found in the marketplace and taught it to him.
It was a basic cultivation method, but it was something that could only have been created by me, who had a complete understanding of the human body's meridians, sinews, and the interaction of each organ.
'However, what I've taught him now is the bare basics. I'll need to modify the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon to create a martial art that suits Pa-sun.'
Does this punk even know this is all thanks to the care of one of the Central Plains' three greatest divine doctors?