Chapter 22: You Can Just Teach Me in Secret
Chapter 22: You Can Just Teach Me in Secret
After leaving the Heavenly Demon Library, I headed straight for the Heavenly Demon Hall.
"I have returned."
My father, who had been staring down at me in silence, beckoned me forward.
"Come closer."
I took five steps forward.
"A little more."
Three more steps this time.
"More."
I walked until I was standing directly before the stairs of his throne.
My father was scanning me, his eyes sharp. He was likely curious about which martial arts I had mastered, but since I hadn't utilized the Wind God Four Steps while walking, he couldn't discern a thing from my movements.
"What martial art did you learn at the Heavenly Demon Library?"
"It’s a secret."
As if he had expected me to act this way, my father didn't hesitate to release his demonic energy.
"I will not ask twice."
The demonic energy that surged toward me was on an entirely different level from what the Blade Ghosts had unleashed. It wasn't a mere stinging pain; it felt like plunging into a dark, bottomless abyss. My body grew cold, and the flow of my true qi slowed of its own accord.
Since I never intended to hide it from him in the first place, I answered honestly.
"I learned a footwork technique."
"Which one?"
"The Wind God Four Steps."
A silence born of pure shock filled the room.
Soon, the demonic energy that had momentarily receded washed over me again, even more intensely than before.
"Stop talking nonsense."
"It’s the truth."
The demonic energy dragged me deeper into the abyss. Even as it rose to my neck, threatening to submerge my face, my gaze toward my father remained unwavering and transparent.
I sank endlessly into the swamp-like depths. I couldn't breathe. Though I told myself he wouldn't actually kill me, an uncontrollable fear of suffocation gripped my chest.
At that moment...
It felt as if something massive was staring at me from within the darkness.
'!'
The moment our eyes met, the weight crushing me vanished. I found myself standing at the edge of the red carpet in the Heavenly Demon Hall.
Having withdrawn his demonic energy, my father spoke with the weight of a command.
"Show me this martial art you claim to have learned."
He still didn't believe it was the Wind God Four Steps.
"What will you give me in return?"
My father looked at me with an expression of sheer disbelief. In his entire life, no one had ever dared to demand conditions from him.
"I’ll let you live."
I gave a faint smile, stepped back, and stood in the center of the main hall.
Then, I slowly began to perform the Wind God Four Steps.
The moment I executed the Dark Shadow Step, my father bolted upright from his seat. From the very first movement, he recognized that this was unlike any other martial art.
I completed every form of the Wind God Four Steps.
Though my father rarely showed emotion, he couldn't hide his shock now. Since it was a lost art, this was likely his first time seeing the Wind God Four Steps as well, but he could accurately judge just how incredible the technique was.
"Where did you learn the Wind God Four Steps?" he asked, finally believing me.
"I learned it at the Heavenly Demon Library."
Whoosh.
In an instant, my father crossed the space and stood before me. He grabbed my throat and asked coldly, "Do you dare lie to me?"
He looked ready to snap my neck then and there. It was the first time he had ever laid a hand on me, and the emotion behind it was pure rage.
But I wasn't angry. My father was a man who was sincere about martial arts. That was why he held his position, and why he was so strong. I understood him.
"The Wind God Four Steps was not in the Heavenly Demon Library."
A cold energy that felt like it would freeze the blood in my veins seeped through his fingertips. It was a different sensation from being submerged in the abyss earlier.
"I definitely learned it there."
"Liar!"
"Can you guarantee that you’ve seen every single manual in that place? It might not have been on the shelf for footwork techniques; it could have been tucked away somewhere else."
"Then you knew it was there all along!"
"I didn't."
"Lies!"
"I really didn't. I was looking for a different martial art and found it by chance."
I stuck to my guns. There was no other way to explain it. Of course, he wouldn't believe me.
My father released his grip on my throat and asked again, "Where was it?"
"It was being used as a wedge to level a crooked bookshelf."
"And how did you find it?"
"I saw the shelf was tilted and tried to fix it."
My father contemplated whether to believe this or not. He almost called a subordinate to go retrieve it, but then stopped.
"I assume you’ve already destroyed the crucial parts of the manual."
"How did you know?"
"Because that’s what I would have done."
After glaring at me for a moment, he returned to his Grand Tutor's chair as quickly as he had approached me.
"Recite the oral formula."
Aha! That’s my father.
My goal wasn't to defeat my father and take the position of Heavenly Demon. Nor did I intend to wait for that bastard Hwa Mu-gi in the same situation as before.
Killing him was important, but the purpose of my regression was to save my father and the people of the Heavenly Demon Hall.
I wouldn't let revenge be the entirety of this life. Revenge was the reason for my regression, but the purpose was to live this life happily.
After killing Hwa Mu-gi, I planned to wander the world and enjoy myself without being tied down to the Cult until the day my father handed over his position.
That would be when my real life began. I would live a life without restraints in this young body. The title of my autobiography would be The Life of Geom Mu-geuk.
Therefore, teaching my father the footwork was no problem at all.
Of course, it wouldn't be for free.
"I refuse."
To save my father the trouble of flying back at me in anger, I spoke quickly.
"Nothing in this world is free, after all."
"I recall the secret technique I taught you at the hunting grounds was free," he countered.
"That was payment for the alcohol you drank there."
At my brazen words, my father looked dumbfounded.
"How on earth did you hold it in until now? You're such a shameless brat."
"I had to grow up before I could talk back. I'm taller than you now, Father. I grit my teeth and held it in until I reached this height."
I didn't back down an inch.
Father, you can't beat me. You have no idea how much I've suffered. I've crossed the threshold of death several times.
"Is there something you want?"
"Since what I'm giving is an oral formula, it’s only fair that I receive one in return. Ideally, I’d like to learn the Nine Calamities Demonic Art, but since that seems unlikely, I’ll settle for the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art."
A heavy silence fell.
The Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art was, as the name suggested, a defensive technique. It was a unique martial art passed down exclusively to the Heavenly Demon.
"Impossible!"
"This is the Wind God Four Steps we're talking about. Strictly speaking, I'm the one getting the short end of the stick."
"The Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art can only be learned by the Heavenly Demon and his successor."
"You can just teach me in secret. Besides, the Body Protection Art is a technique that activates without leaving a trace, so no one will ever know."
It was a martial art that would never be revealed to the outside world.
I could sense my father's internal conflict. If he got serious, grew angry, and pressured me, I would eventually have to tell him. But he didn't. He was still my father.
Regardless, it was a martial art I had to obtain. Mastering the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art was essentially like gaining an extra life.
"Think it over and let me know."
I bowed politely and turned to leave when I heard his voice.
"Fine. But the Wind God Four Steps comes first."
Surprisingly, he had decided to teach me the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art.
He's really going to teach it to me?
I wondered if perhaps he wanted me to be his successor. Or did he just not care because he thought I was a dead man walking once I faced the Eight Demon Lords?
"Deal."
"Why do you accept so readily? I could take the Wind God Four Steps and refuse to teach you."
"Because you aren't the type of person to do something so pathetic in front of your own son."
A smirk flickered across my father's lips. Using the word 'pathetic' was the strongest card I could play. How could he not see through me?
I'm sorry, Father. But I can't just hand over the Wind God Four Steps for nothing, can I?
Fortunately, his reaction wasn't bad. He was the type of person who would value me more for securing a price than for naively offering up the formula.
"Very well. Give me the formula."
"Yes."
I recited the oral formula for the Wind God Four Steps to him.
My father quietly closed his eyes and reflected on the words.
Three hours later, he began to perform the Wind God Four Steps.
I watched him without blinking once.
The Wind God Four Steps he performed was the same as mine, yet different.
It was as if he were saying: This is how I interpret this martial art.
I engraved every single movement he made into my mind. I didn't intend to just mimic him. I knew that the realm of one's martial arts was determined by how one interpreted those minute differences—where he differed from me and why.
After completing the forms, my father fell into quiet contemplation.
I, too, entered a deep state of meditation, comparing the Wind God Four Steps he had just performed with my own.
I had to learn.
I had to learn his attitude toward martial arts, the way a master thinks, and the depth of his interpretation.
Eventually, my father emerged from his meditation.
"It is truly a magnificent martial art."
If the words "magnificent martial art" came from my father, it was the highest form of praise.
"Your conscience won't let you back out now, right?"
My father snorted, but this time, there was a hint of satisfaction in it.
I had now created the biggest variable since my regression.
Could Hwa Mu-gi really defeat my father now that he had mastered the Wind God Four Steps?
Of course, I intended to take down Hwa Mu-gi myself, but giving my father this technique was a form of insurance.
My father kept his promise.
"I will now pass on the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art. I will only say it once, so memorize it well."
Before listening to the formula, I sat down in a cross-legged position.
Since he was only going to say it once, I didn't just want to memorize it with my head; I wanted to memorize it with my body by circulating the qi according to the formula immediately. It was something no one below the level of a master should ever attempt.
My father began to recite the formula for the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art.
"Move the internal energy smoothly from the Myeongmun acupoint to the Sinyu, Jisil, and Wiyu. At this time, the true qi must be as light as snow landing on a blade of grass. Speed is crucial as you move to the Biyu, Ganyu, and Gyeogyu. Increase your speed as if walking, then running, then lightly taking flight... and upon reaching the Sinju, Pungmun, and Gokwon, pour it out powerfully like a crashing waterfall..."
The formula was blatantly difficult from the start. The difficulty level was absolute. Even as I moved my true qi according to the instructions, my heart was pounding. I almost resented my father for not stopping me from circulating the qi, knowing how dangerous the formula was.
Naturally, several crises arose. I managed the minor ones well, but toward the end, I hit a major wall.
In an instant, my true qi began to flow backward, and my meridians surged as if they were about to burst. The taut meridians felt like they would snap at any second. If I hadn't strengthened them with the Thousand Meridian Strengthening Technique previously, I would have certainly suffered a severe internal injury.
So, mastering the Thousand Meridian Strengthening Technique was a preparation for today. If that's the case, I won't die today!
Standing on the edge of a cliff where a single slip meant qi deviation, internal injury, and death, I fought back with absolute positivity.
I also believed.
I believed that I wasn't destined to die while learning martial arts from my father.
Did my faith pay off?
The true qi that had been bucking like a wild horse finally settled down. My internal power flowed along its intended meridians, and having passed the crisis, I was able to complete the final part of the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art's formula.
"Phew..."
I finished the circulation with a long breath and slowly opened my eyes.
My father was standing by the large window of the Heavenly Demon Hall, looking outside.
Did he know about the great crisis I had just faced?
If I had fallen into qi deviation, would he have helped me?
Until I heard the words "From now on, you are the next Heavenly Demon" from his lips, I couldn't be sure of anything.
Whether he knew my thoughts or not, my father spoke of the greatness of the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art while still looking out the window.
"When your life is in imminent danger, the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Art will activate on its own. Once you achieve great success in this art, you will never die."
The moment I heard those words, a single question rose in my mind.
Then why did you die, Father?