Chapter 654: Back to the Central Plains (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 654: Back to the Central Plains (6)
It was the night before my departure for the Central Plains.
I sought out the Palace Lord in the dead of night to settle my final task in the North.
“This is a place where, for generations, only those of the bloodline destined to become the Palace Lord have been permitted to enter.”
Holding a single lantern against the darkness, we entered an underground passage located on one side of the royal palace. I honestly don’t know why this place has so many subterranean areas.
I followed the Palace Lord’s lead, walking for a long time, when he suddenly broke the silence.
“Young Master Gu.”
“Yes.”
“There is something I wish to ask.”
“Please, go ahead. I’m listening.”
“Why did you seek to save Biwegun?”
It was a rather abrupt question to ask while trekking through the gloom. I took a moment to steady my breathing before looking at him.
“In what sense are you asking?”
“I mean it literally. I went along with your wishes, but I do not truly understand them.”
I nodded at his words. It was just as I thought.
So, his reaction back then was intentional.
The confrontational atmosphere when I first met the Palace Lord… Just as I had predicted, he had staged that situation. He knew I needed Woo Hyuk and had reacted that way on purpose to test the waters.
“Because we’re friends. Is that reason enough?”
“How does that sound to you, Young Master?”
“It does feel a bit lacking, doesn't it?”
I wondered if I should add more. If I had to find other reasons, there were plenty.
“Seeing his condition, I thought he’d be useful to have around.”
Woo Hyuk had been forcibly dragonized by the energy Mang forced into him. Not only had he become significantly stronger, but with Demonic Qi now infused within him, the chances of him betraying me were slim. There is no bond more trustworthy than one forged by such a tie.
“Besides, I have a specific job in mind for him, and the timing was right…”
Moreover, Woo Hyuk was a man of Wudang. His current standing might be ambiguous, but he was originally their most promising disciple. Even the Monster of Wudang, a master of the sect, would have been considered a candidate for the next Sect Leader if not for his eccentricities and temperament.
Considering that alone, having Woo Hyuk by my side was incredibly advantageous. He was the disciple of a future Sect Leader and the greatest prodigy of Wudang’s current generation. At not even thirty years old, he possessed enough talent to rival the elders in skill. As a connection, Woo Hyuk’s value was immense.
If asked why I had to take him, I could give a dozen more reasons, but…
Even without all that.
My decision wouldn't have changed.
“In the end, there isn’t much else besides the reason I first gave.”
I saved him because he’s my friend. Any other reason would just be an excuse to justify it.
“It may be uncomfortable for you, Palace Lord, but I find it difficult to offer any other explanation.”
“…I see.”
The Palace Lord said nothing more. Normally, it would have been impossible to take Woo Hyuk away like this. It only happened because the Palace Lord chose to turn a blind eye.
If it had come down to it, I really would have fought him, just as I said.
The fact that it wasn't necessary meant the Palace Lord had intentionally let it slide.
Should I thank him?
I considered it for a moment but realized it would be meaningless. Apologies or thanks—neither were things I should say to the Palace Lord right now.
His own daughter had been consumed by the Ice Crystals, started a rebellion, and ultimately met her end. In the chaotic aftermath of that war, one of the men involved in the affair was not only spared execution but was being sent away alive and well. It was obvious the Palace Lord’s feelings were anything but pleasant.
It’s a wonder he’s even guiding me so calmly right now.
What was going through his mind as he walked? I couldn't begin to understand. What would I have done in his place? I didn't particularly want to imagine it.
“…I wish to ask one last thing.”
“Please, speak.”
“Do you have a set goal, Young Master?”
“Pardon?”
A goal? So suddenly?
The question caught me off guard, but I quickly found an answer.
“It’s nothing so grand, but…”
It wasn't my goal at first, but perhaps it was what I was meant to do ever since I regressed.
“There’s something I have to do. And while I’m at it, I thought I might as well save the world.”
Stop the Blood Demon and the Heavenly Demon, and prevent the Calamity of Blood. That was my current objective.
As I said this, the Palace Lord, walking ahead of me, let out a dry laugh.
“Haha… You say it is nothing grand, yet those are quite the words.”
“It’s just a goal, so I thought I’d state it boldly.”
I said it partly so he would take it as a joke. The Palace Lord didn't look like he particularly believed me, anyway.
Just as we were about to resume our walk, he spoke again.
“Then, what will you do after that goal is achieved?”
“...”
At those smoothly delivered words, I stopped dead in my tracks.
After?
What would I do after? For some reason, the question filled me with a sudden sense of desolation.
When it’s all over. After it’s all over…
What I would do once I finished everything I needed to do. I tried to think about it, but nothing came to mind.
I don't know.
Maybe I’ll just get some peaceful sleep. It was something I couldn't know yet.
As I stood there with a blank expression, touching my lips, the Palace Lord glanced back at me and added, “It would be good to think about it deeply, at least once. It is not my place to meddle, but… Young Master, you…”
I could feel the Palace Lord’s pale blue gaze piercing through the darkness.
“…seem to be buried in something.”
“...”
After that, the Palace Lord and I didn't exchange another word until we reached our destination.
* * *
The place we arrived at was a massive underground chamber, filled with countless unknown books. A cool breeze mingled with the scent of old paper, creating a unique aroma. For someone like me, who hadn't studied a lick in his life, it was a smell I truly loathed.
I pulled out a book to examine it. It had no title. Curiosity piqued, I opened it slightly.
Srrk.
“Ah, that book has a sorcery spell on it. If anyone not of the bloodline opens it, there will be a prob—... You’ve already opened it.”
“…You could have told me a little sooner.”
“I did not expect you to open it immediately.”
“My apologies. I did it without thinking.”
What should I do? Should I close it? As I stood there awkwardly, the Palace Lord spoke.
“Since you’ve already opened it, how is it?”
“…What do you mean?”
“I am asking if you can read the text.”
At his words, I looked down at the book. My eyes were met with densely packed characters. How on earth could someone write so small?
“Yes, I can see it very clearly. So much so that it’s giving me a headache.”
Perhaps because I’ve hated reading since I was young, just looking at it was irritating.
“I see. So you can read it.”
“Why? Am I not supposed to be able to?”
“That is correct.”
“Pardon?”
“That is an object crafted so that none but the bloodline can see its contents.”
Uh… then why can I see it so clearly? Just as I was wondering if something was wrong…
“However, it seems to be a meaningless restriction for you, Young Master Gu.”
“What do you mean by that?”
The Palace Lord approached and took the book from my hands.
Rustle.
The sound of a page turning tickled my ear.
“You said you wished to hear information about sorcery.”
“That’s right.”
“Then, before that, do you know what sorcery is?”
“…Not in great detail, but…”
Recalling what I had heard…
“Something the Dragon brought… That is what I was told.”
They said the Dragon itself brought the unknown power called sorcery.
“That is correct. Sorcery was originally brought by the Dragon.”
Saying so, the Palace Lord closed the book, placed it on a desk, and—
Clap!
—lightly clapped his hands.
In that instant.
Fwoosh!
The lamps on the walls ignited. Of course, it wasn't my doing. Did he light them with his qi? It felt subtly different from that. There was no trace of Samadhi True Fire, and I couldn't feel any heat from the Palace Lord, so it wasn't a flame art. It was something else.
“…That just now.”
“Correct. This, too, is sorcery. From your expression, it seems you recognized the difference immediately.”
I did recognize it. I knew it felt different. But…
What exactly is the difference?
I couldn't pinpoint that subtle quality.
“Haha.” Seeing me like this, the Palace Lord let out a laugh. “Does it not seem strange?”
“Yes, it’s very strange.”
“Indeed. That is sorcery.”
“Pardon?”
“A power that does not conform to reason. That is what sorcery is.”
“That’s a very insufficient explanation.”
More than insufficient. A power that doesn't conform to reason? As an explanation, that was utter nonsense.
“Before that, may I ask why you wish to know about sorcery?”
“Hmm.”
I fell silent for a moment. Not because it was hard to answer, but because I wanted to give a more plausible reason. However, no matter how I thought about it, I couldn't. My reason for wanting to know about sorcery wasn't anything grand.
“Because it seems useful.”
“…Hmm?”
“It’s information I didn't have, so I thought it would be good to learn. The difference between knowing and not knowing is important.”
Since it was something I had never seen or heard of in my past life, I figured it would be convenient to at least understand it.
The Palace Lord showed no particular reaction. He simply raised his hand lightly.
Swoosh.
I felt a movement from the bookshelf.
Thud.
From among the gathered books, one volume slid out and flew into the Palace Lord’s hand. Holding the book, the Palace Lord asked me again, “What did you see this time?”
“What do you mean?”
“Did it seem like I used sorcery? Or…”
“You used your internal qi.”
This time, it wasn't sorcery, but the Spatial Art.
“Oh.”
At my firm answer, the Palace Lord looked genuinely pleased. I had to wonder why he was reacting that way.
“You are quick-witted. Or was it a guess?”
“A guess? It was obvious.”
“Hmm?”
It might look similar, but it was clearly a flow of qi. The sorcery he showed me earlier had a completely different kind of flow.
The Palace Lord tilted his head. “How curious.”
“What is?”
“When I experienced the same thing, I answered that it felt ‘somehow different.’ Hearing this, my father, the previous Palace Lord, commented that I had a talent for sorcery.”
Somehow different? It felt very different.
“Considering that, I cannot be certain, but it appears you possess a remarkable talent for sorcery, Young Master.”
“…Hmm, is that so?”
Talent, huh. I let out a small snort inwardly.
Do I actually have a talent for something?
I’ve lived my whole life being called a dullard and an idiot, so discovering a talent now was a strange feeling indeed. And of all things…
Not martial arts, but this unknown power called sorcery.
It wasn't a particularly welcome realization.
As I was having these trivial thoughts, the Palace Lord handed me the book he had retrieved.
“Read it.”
I took the book and opened it. It was no different from before—filled with dense text that made me frown instinctively. However, since he told me to read it, I decided to try.
“Hm?”
Suddenly, I noticed something strange. I was reading it, line by line.
Why can I read this?
From what I knew, the writing systems of the North and the Central Plains were completely different, so why was I reading it so effortlessly?
Noticing my reaction, the Palace Lord spoke. “As I said before, sorcery belongs to the Dragon, and that book is also enchanted with sorcery. A spell that allows only the bloodline to read it.”
“…Does the fact that I can read this mean…?”
“It would be correct to assume that barriers made of sorcery do not work on you. Because you are a Dragon.”
So, the ability to read this was also the power of sorcery? If it was blocked by sorcery, shouldn't it be impossible for me to read it?
A power brought by the Dragon…
It seemed to mean something brought by Mang or the Blood Demon. What did those bastards bring this for?
Besides, now that I think about it, the Immortal Healer mentioned it too.
Not just in the North, but back in the Central Plains, the Immortal Healer had also spoken of sorcery.
It was when he was fixing Zhuge Hyuk’s neck.
Back when he was using a White-Grade Demonic Stone to treat Zhuge Hyuk. As promised, I had watched the process. He had placed the White-Grade Demonic Stone on the floor, drawn a host of unknown symbols, and had Zhuge Hyuk sit in the center while he kept his eyes closed for hours.
Was that also ‘sorcery’? Considering Zhuge Hyuk’s neck was healed in the end, he must have done something. An irrational power that defies reason. It was definitely something different from martial arts.
“Information about sorcery. The reward I promised you, Young Master, is that which you hold in your hands.”
I looked back at the book. “…You mean this one book?”
There were books all around us, and I only got this one? I looked at the Palace Lord as if to say, ‘Aren't you being a bit stingy?’
“Do not look at me like that. I am breaking the laws of the Ice Palace, passed down for generations, to give you this.”
Is he telling me I should be grateful I get to see even this much? Tsk.
“Furthermore…”
While the Palace Lord continued to speak, I began to read the text in the book once more.
“The book you are holding describes the method of building a ring on the heart, which is most crucial for using sorcery.”
His explanation entered my ears as my eyes were absorbed in the text.
A ring on the heart. At a glance, it doesn't look much different from the oral formulas for learning a Qi art.
Most Qi arts involve drawing energy from the air into the dantian and converting it into internal qi. The Gu Flame Wheel Art used that internal qi to emit heat. The martial arts of other clans and sects might branch off differently, but the fundamental principle was the same.
But…
This ‘ring’ thing…
Starting by building a foundation in the heart was strange. And it was bizarre how it ignored the dantian and focused on the heart and upper dantian.
So I have to do this to use sorcery? Should I give it a try?
“Therefore, even if I cannot show you the other books due to the laws… I thought it right to at least show you the beginning.”
The formula is… let’s see…
“I am sorry, but I cannot let you take it with you. Even with the Palace Lord’s authority, this was the best I could do.”
The Palace Lord kept talking, but I ignored him and focused on the flow.
“I can allow you to make a copy. If you start now, you should be able to finish before we leave. But I would advise against trying to learn it right away. It took the previous Palace Lord half a year to master it…”
Next, this… send it to the heart…
Using the formula, I moved a minuscule amount of qi and wrapped it around my heart.
And then.
Click.
I felt a sensation of something locking into place. Just as the name suggested, I could feel a faint ring forming around my heart.
“Even I, who was praised for my talent, took a good three months, so rather than rushing…”
“Done.”
“Take your time and step by step… What did you say?”
I spoke to the Palace Lord with a refreshed expression.
“I’ve formed the ring. Thankfully, it wasn't difficult. Ah, can I read the next part? It feels like there’s still a lot of time left if I’m only receiving one book.”
“...”
For some reason, at my words, the Palace Lord’s expression crumpled. I felt like I’d been seeing that expression a lot today.
Why?