WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Chapter 183: Spring Silkworms Spin Silk Until Death (7)
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Hwamyeongja wore an expression he had never made in his life.
His cheeks crumpled, his eyebrows rose, one corner of his mouth drooped while the other lifted. Even his eyelids trembled.
The collapse of his Clear Heart was written all over his face.
In that state, Hwamyeongja muttered,
“Celestial Worthy Who Commands All Spirits Through Awe...”
Commanding all spirits through awe.
It was originally a line from the Protective Saint Incantation, a spell for driving away evil ghosts and calamity while praying for the protection of the True Martial Great Emperor.
The Protective Saint Incantation began like this:
Born of the Great Yin,
You became the spirit of water.
Since it was the opening of the incantation, it first called upon the True Martial Great Emperor’s very nature.
If you asked someone for help, you needed to be precise about who was supposed to help you.
Thus, the Daoist invocation, “Celestial Worthy of Great Yin Transformation...” was in fact a reference to the Protective Saint Incantation. Its hidden meaning was, “From what I can see, you look like someone who needs a deity to drive away calamity and grant you protection.”
Naturally, it was an invocation one used when feeling sorry for someone.
Meanwhile, Commanding All Spirits Through Awe appeared in the third line of the Protective Saint Incantation.
You travel throughout the Six Harmonies,
Commanding all spirits through awe.
It was a direct praise of the True Martial Great Emperor’s power and authority.
Thus, the Daoist invocation, “Celestial Worthy Who Commands All Spirits Through Awe...” was like a fox hiding behind a tiger. It was something one used when deeply shaken or afraid.
That was Hwamyeongja’s current state.
“Celestial Worthy Who Commands All Spirits Through Awe... Junior Brother Yeon. So, um. Are you saying that ability was simply produced with peak-realm qi? Not through some other martial art?”
“Yes. I created qi that resembles the universe, so I can contain and conceal every force within it, then draw it out and reveal it again. That is the principle.”
“Just... qi alone...?”
Hwamyeongja’s expression twisted even more bizarrely.
He suddenly turned his gaze.
He looked at Hwagokja, then the elders, then Chungdam True Man, then Hwagokja again, then the elders again.
‘Is this really right...?’
Was something like that even possible?
He said nothing, but his eyes clearly asked the question.
“Hwamyeong. Is the spar already over?”
Only after Chungdam True Man’s rebuke did his wandering eyes finally stop.
“Ahem! Forgive me, Grandmaster. I will begin again.”
As though trying to shake the thoughts from his head, Hwamyeongja vigorously shook it and resumed his stance.
His presence and gaze settled far more deeply than before.
Flap flap flap!
Though there was no wind, his robes billowed and fluttered. Veins bulged along his arms, neck, and forehead, while hot haze rose from his back and shoulders.
He had drawn up his true qi with all his strength.
Hwamyeongja thought,
‘If what Junior Brother Yeon says is true... Fine. Even so, it is ultimately just qi. It is merely a rather special kind of qi.’
It was certainly astonishing, but that did not mean there was no way to deal with it.
‘If he relies on qi alone, without other techniques or profound martial arts, the expenditure of power cannot help but be great.’
Laborers with no internal energy could carry heavier burdens and walk farther without tiring than third-rate martial artists who had cultivated internal energy.
That was what technique did.
It let one produce greater power with less strength and maintain it longer.
‘In the end, Junior Brother Yeon will be the first to exhaust himself.’
Even if their movements looked similar, Hwamyeongja himself was using the Cloud Ladder at the level of a master, while Yeon Sowol was crudely pouring true qi into his movements.
‘And if I can land even a single Cotton Palm...’
Hwamyeongja had no doubt of his victory.
‘First, I will win. Then we can speak some more.’
Chungdam True Man’s words from earlier passed through his mind.
Our Wudang has no reason not to place flowers atop the tree Sowol has raised.
At the time, he had wondered what that was supposed to mean.
Now, he understood clearly.
That the young martial artist Yeon Sowol had raised a tree large and deeply rooted enough to bear Wudang’s flowers.
Gulp.
Without realizing it, Hwamyeongja swallowed dryly. A smile had already formed on his lips.
“Then! Let us begin again, Junior Brother!”
Whoosh!
His body accelerated like a ghost and suddenly appeared before Yeon Sowol’s nose.
Whoosh!
At the same time, Yeon Sowol’s body drifted aside like smoke.
Two peak-realm masters moved as though ignoring inertia, chasing and fleeing as they tested their martial arts.
* * *
“Huff... Hoo.”
The foundation of the stage of maturity was breathing.
Just as one blew air into a firewood stove to regulate the flames, one drew the primordial qi mixed into the air down beneath the navel and mixed it with the purest, most refined postnatal essence.
‘It feels kind of like an internal combustion engine.’
When gasoline was sprayed into tiny droplets and mixed with air, it could be exploded.
Likewise, when primordial qi taken in through breathing was mixed with heated, lightened essence, it created qi with immense heat and pressure.
That was called True Flame.
But now, having reached the peak realm, Yeon Sowol did not merely produce True Flame. He considered what kind of True Flame he ought to produce.
‘I can’t use just any essence. I need to adjust the purest qi of the Ten Heavenly Stems according to the situation.’
Not all essence was the same.
When qi cooled, it became essence.
When essence cooled, it became matter.
Even among essence, the Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches, and Malefic Stars were divided according to how much it had cooled and how turbid it had become.
The dullest and most turbid qi, closest to matter, was the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends.
Qi that was similarly dull but clearer than the Earthly Fiends was the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits.
Together, they were called the One Hundred Eight Malefic Stars.
When it grew hotter and clearer still, enough to flow like sand or beads, it became the Twelve Earthly Branches. Since the type of essence qi flowing through heaven and earth changed slightly according to season and direction, ordinary people also used the Twelve Earthly Branches to mark times and directions.
After the Earthly Branches came the Ten Heavenly Stems.
This was the hottest and purest essence qi, drifting in accordance with the circulation of heaven and earth. When it settled into things such as people or stones, it influenced their qualities.
That was why the Ten Heavenly Stems were mentioned when discussing fate calculations such as the Four Pillars, or the properties of material things.
At that moment, Yeon Sowol was examining every one of the Ten Heavenly Stems, from Jia and Yi to Ren and Gui.
‘When stopping while ignoring inertia, it is best to produce True Flame with Gui essence.’
Gui was yin water. True Flame kindled from Gui essence was most suited to spreading evenly and maintaining itself steadily.
It stabilized the stage of maturity throughout his body, allowing the qi of the universe to absorb other qi without wavering.
‘On the other hand, when I stop and suddenly move, it is best to produce True Flame with Jia essence.’
Jia was yang wood. It was suited to rising forcefully, grasping a great current, and extending outward.
It made it easier to alter the stage of maturity throughout his body at once, making it perfect for expelling the qi he had swallowed.
No one had taught him any of this. Yeon Sowol had realized it all himself.
‘Until recently, regulating the stage of maturity meant choosing which meridians to circulate through and how strongly to do it. That was all...’
Back then, he had not cared about the kind of essence used to create True Flame. As long as True Flame appeared, that was enough. He had mixed everything together without distinguishing Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren, or Gui, then kindled the flame.
But now he adjusted the nature of the flames themselves by properly switching among the essences of more than ten Heavenly Stems.
It was like someone who used to buy any gasoline beginning to use premium gasoline, even sorting it by brand. Or someone who used only seasoned salt beginning to switch between Maldon salt and Guérande salt depending on the dish.
It was excessive.
But he had no choice. He needed to be that excessive to use the qi of the universe properly.
‘Seriously... This study requires an insane stage of maturity.’
As a result, the more qi Yeon Sowol used, the more quickly he tired. Far more quickly than he had expected.
The deeper stage of maturity he maintained made the meridians throughout his body ache and sting in no time. The Eight Extraordinary Vessels radiated heat as though they would melt his entire body.
Trying to circulate and release that heat required another stage of maturity, so his already exhausted body and mind were driven harder and harder.
“Hahk. Haaah... Hup!”
The moment Yeon Sowol’s unbroken breathing finally faltered,
Thuuum!
For the first time, Hwamyeongja’s Cotton Palm struck Yeon Sowol in the chest.
Whoom!
A strange shockwave swept through the area.
Yeon Sowol floated back as though shoved by a heavy wad of cotton, then landed while dragging his feet.
“Hmm...?”
He touched his chest. Despite being pushed back, it did not hurt at all. He felt as fine as though he had truly been struck by a wad of cotton.
The instant he tilted his head and drew up true qi again,
Urk!
He vomited blood without meaning to.
Sticky blood ran from between his teeth and lips.
“This is...”
When he wiped his lips, his hand was covered in blood.
Only then did Yeon Sowol realize that his true qi was vibrating wildly from where the Cotton Palm had struck his chest.
It was different from penetrating force.
If it had been penetrating force, Hwamyeongja’s true qi should have entered him like poison.
Nothing had entered him.
Only Yeon Sowol’s own true qi was trembling on its own, as though it belonged to someone else.
“Celestial Worthy, Incarnation of the Golden Palace Who Subdues Demons...”
Perhaps it had already become a habit. Yeon Sowol murmured the Daoist invocation and asked,
“What kind of technique is this?”
This time, Hwamyeongja neither ignored him nor launched a surprise attack. He relaxed his stance and answered.
“That is the Cotton Palm. The very Cotton Palm Art you brought with you, Junior Brother Yeon.”
“Ah.”
“The Cotton Palm is like cotton. It does not damage the surface, nor is it qi that pierces inward. It merely conveys vibrations like a heavy wad of cotton. That is why it cannot be defended against.”
Deep pride showed on Hwamyeongja’s face.
“No matter how powerful a protective qi art one has mastered, even if it is Shaolin’s legendary Indestructible Diamond Body, one cannot block the Cotton Palm. In the end, what topples the strongest things is their own vibrations.”
As though he had said all he needed to say, he slowly resumed his stance.
“The second strike will shake you more than the first, and the third more than the second. Do not overdo it. Concede at an appropriate time.”
Hwamyeongja’s judgment was reasonable.
Yeon Sowol’s lightness art had already begun to slow.
And now he had taken a Cotton Palm strike.
All that remained was for him to take a second and third.
For all practical purposes, the match had already tilted in Hwamyeongja’s favor.
“Cotton Palm...”
Yet Yeon Sowol was too busy marveling at it.
‘It can ignore a protective qi art?’
Wudang’s martial arts really were incredible.
His heart pounded.
Was contact not the condition for activating Heaven-Killing Star? Enemies with powerful protective qi arts had always been troublesome because of that.
But...
‘He says it is not penetrating force, so landing a Cotton Palm might not activate Heaven-Killing Star right away.’
That might be true.
Still, how incredible was it to have a means of striking past protective qi arts? If he accumulated enough hits, the protective qi art itself might begin to shake.
‘And if I study the principle carefully, I might find a way to force the power of Heaven-Killing Star through a protective qi art.’
This was it.
He truly wanted to learn the Cotton Palm.
With that thought, Yeon Sowol took his stance as well.
“I would like to learn more.”
“I will teach you gradually another time.”
It was a declaration that he would end this now.
Whoosh!
Hwamyeongja charged in swiftly.
But this time, Yeon Sowol did not evade.
He was already too tired to display the inertia-defying lightness art.
Instead,
“You are not dodging?”
“No.”
“You will regret it. Here comes the second.”
Thuuum!
Hwamyeongja’s Cotton Palm drove into his chest.
Yeon Sowol raised a protective qi art with the qi of the universe and received the blow. At the same time, he tightly gripped Clear Mirror’s hilt and swung it, sheath and all, in counterattack.
Swish!
Hwamyeongja escaped through a sudden change of direction with the Cloud Ladder, and Clear Mirror cut uselessly through the air.
Hwamyeongja, having retreated, lightly pushed off the ground with his toes and drew near again like a ghost.
“Third.”
Thuuum!
Hwamyeongja’s Cotton Palm struck Yeon Sowol’s chest once more.
Tap!
At the same time, Clear Mirror, still in its sheath, grazed Hwamyeongja’s shoulder.
Hwamyeongja furrowed his brow.
‘Persistent.’
He had already taken the Cotton Palm three times. His condition should have been terrible by now...
With that thought, Hwamyeongja drew up true qi again and targeted Yeon Sowol.
Thump!
“Fourth.”
Thump!
“Fifth.”
A hit. Then another hit.
Each time, Yeon Sowol received the attack with his protective qi art and searched for a counterattack.
Giving.
Taking.
Yet to anyone watching, Yeon Sowol was clearly suffering much greater losses.
But then,
“...Ten?”
Hwamyeongja’s face twisted comically once more.
Thuuum!
“...Fifteen...?”
His voice cracked and wavered.
“T-twenty?”
Finally,
Thump!
Smack!
“Urk!”
As Hwamyeongja struck Yeon Sowol’s chest, Clear Mirror struck his shoulder. He recoiled and staggered back.
“Hahk! Haa... Hahk!”
Yeon Sowol was in a dreadful state.
His shoulders rose and fell, his breath coming up to his chin. The resulting instability in his stage of maturity made his true qi flicker unsteadily. His whole body was hot and dizzy.
But Hwamyeongja was in no good condition either.
“Huff! Hoo...”
His breathing was rough, for one thing. It was not as bad as Yeon Sowol’s, but Yeon Sowol’s refusal to fall had forced him to keep drawing up more true qi until he had overexerted himself.
More importantly,
‘My shoulder bone... Is it broken?’
Had it been a real blade, his arm would have been severed.
Yeon Sowol was swaying as though he had reached his limit.
Hwamyeongja’s arm would have been severed by a real blade.
If they fought to the end in a battle to the death, it would not have been strange for both sides to suffer grievous injuries.
Cold sweat ran down Hwamyeongja’s spine.
Which meant...
‘Did we... reach a draw?’
He, standing at the end of the peak realm, had drawn with a martial artist who had only just reached it?
Hwamyeongja stared blankly at Yeon Sowol, then suddenly asked,
“...Junior Brother. Did you disperse the qi of my Cotton Palm with that qi of the universe?”
“Hahk. Hahk. Yes... The qi of the universe is vast and deep, so I think it holds a favorable affinity against... almost every kind of qi. Hoo. I neutralized the Cotton Palm’s qi... with my protective qi art.”
That had been Yeon Sowol’s strategy.
Since he was too exhausted to evade, he would simply take the hits without being hurt.
Of course, from Hwamyeongja’s perspective, having to face that was simply absurd.
‘...What kind of damned qi is that...’
Hwamyeongja’s lips moved.
He could no longer endure it.
‘I have to ask.’
He wanted to know immediately how Yeon Sowol had created such qi.
He could not replicate it exactly, but perhaps Wudang could accept it in its own way.
If they could do that,
‘Would not the Cloud Ladder and Cotton Palm develop much further?’
Hwamyeongja was not the only one thinking that.
“Hmm...”
“Is the spar finally over?”
“Ahem! Ahem!”
The elders shifted their hips and wiggled their toes.
Even Sect Leader Hwagokja was slowly moving his feet, preparing to step forward.
They all had much to ask Yeon Sowol.
However,
“Sowol.”
When Chungdam True Man stepped in, all they could do was dart their eyes about and gauge his mood.
“Yes, Master. Huff. Hoo.”
Yeon Sowol answered even as he forcibly calmed his breathing.
“You.”
Chungdam True Man stared at him and asked,
“Would you perhaps consider becoming a mountain-guarding disciple of Wudang? I will accept you as my direct disciple.”
Yeon Sowol’s eyes widened.
To offer a lay disciple the position of direct disciple.
And for Chungdam True Man, known as the Sword Immortal, to make that offer.
He understood how significant it was.
But Yeon Sowol shook his head.
“I am sorry, Master.”
If he became Chungdam True Man’s direct disciple, he could no longer remain affiliated with the Guangdong Martial Alliance.
He would have to abandon his ties to the secular world and live a new life as a Daoist of Wudang.
Yeon Sowol liked Wudang, but he did not want that much.
He wanted to learn diligently, then someday return to Guangdong and happily live alongside Yi Yubaek and the Windflow Three Young Lords.
That was the future Yeon Sowol envisioned.
“I see.”
Chungdam True Man did not seem disappointed. He merely nodded, then turned to Sect Leader Hwagokja.
“Did you hear him?”
“Yes, Grandmaster.”
“Sowol is a lay disciple.”
“Yes, Grandmaster.”
“Even so.”
Chungdam closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.
“Can you entrust him wholly to me? Let me decide what to teach him.”
Hwagokja looked at Chungdam True Man.
Wudang’s supreme secret arts could not be taught to outsiders.
Chungdam True Man, the greatest master among them, could take in any disciple and teach them anything. But if that included Wudang’s supreme secret arts, the matter became complicated.
The transmission of supreme secret arts had to follow the sect’s rules, and it was the Sect Leader’s authority to enforce and carry out those rules.
Chungdam True Man could teach whatever he pleased. Who could stop him?
But whoever learned those arts would have to become a mountain-guarding disciple of Wudang. As Sect Leader, it was Hwagokja’s duty to compel that, even if force had to be used.
That was why Chungdam True Man was asking Hwagokja now.
Whatever he taught Yeon Sowol, could Hwagokja refrain from forcing him and simply leave him as a lay disciple?
Could he do that?
“...”
Hwagokja could not help but hesitate.
It might mean breaking the sect’s rules.
But Chungdam True Man’s earlier words echoed in his ears.
Our Wudang has no reason not to place flowers atop the tree Sowol has raised.
Study that allowed one to use the Cloud Ladder’s techniques with qi alone and endure the Cotton Palm without trouble.
If Wudang could learn from Yeon Sowol rather than only teaching him...
The calculation was clear.
“As you wish.”
At Hwagokja’s approval, a smile touched Chungdam True Man’s lips.
“Good. Then I will decide for myself what to teach him and how much. In moderation, so that you need not worry too much, Hwagok.”
“Thank you, Grandmaster.”
“Good. Then...”
Chungdam glanced over the elders.
They kept looking toward Yeon Sowol, their hands and feet twitching. If Chungdam True Man had not been there, they looked ready to rush over and bombard him with questions.
But Chungdam True Man ignored them all and said,
“Sowol, let us go.”
“Yes, Master.”
Having caught his breath, Yeon Sowol answered with shining eyes.
He could not hide the joy in his voice.
‘Will I be able to learn even a little of the supreme secret arts?’
That was clearly what Hwagokja and Chungdam True Man’s conversation had meant.
Chungdam True Man chuckled and turned away.
“Come. And if those fellows bother you by throwing their status as your senior martial brothers around, tell me at once.”
“Ah...!”
“...!”
The elders’ faces turned red with grievance and regret.
Chungdam True Man started walking away with loose strides.
“Then I will see you again, Senior Brothers!”
Yeon Sowol gave a deep bow and hurried after Chungdam.
“Ah.”
Hwamyeongja reached out as though to stop Yeon Sowol, then hesitantly lowered his hand.
“Ah.”
His wavering eyes met those of the other elders.
“Ah...”
Together, they stared blankly at Yeon Sowol’s back as it receded beyond the wall.
That heartless youngest junior brother merely laughed loudly with his indifferent Martial Uncle, never looking back even once.
Only the cold winter wind shook the langmei branches as it passed.
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