Chapter 69: The Walking Dead (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 69: The Walking Dead (1)
A walking corpse?
My mind went blank at the Immortal Healer’s unexpected words.
He pressed on, his expression deathly serious. “You, what in the world did you consume for this to happen?”
“What do you mean…?”
“There are numerous kinds of qi warring inside you, and they are all fundamentally incompatible. How are you still walking around in one piece?”
He’d hit the nail on the head. I had absorbed many different types of energy, so I knew exactly what he was referring to: my demonic power, the power I’d gained in Sichuan, and the recent infusion from the treasure of Mount Hua.
“Is it really that serious?”
“As a martial artist, you can’t possibly be unaware of how dangerous this is… I’m more astounded that you’re still breathing after what you’ve done.”
Is it really that severe?
I knew the qi of a orthodox Taoist sect and the Gu Clan’s demonic energy were incompatible, but I thought I had been managing to keep them stable.
Is it because of the beast Elder Shin mentioned?
[It’s probably not that. What kind of madman would willingly host two opposing types of qi in their body unless they had a death wish?]
But it wasn’t intentional…
[That’s precisely why he’s so astounded.]
That was my greatest fear. When two types of qi with opposing natures flow within the same body, they inevitably and endlessly clash. Each collision inflicts damage. The higher the rank of the qi, the worse the damage becomes. If I had an ordinary body, I would have been crippled long ago.
Maybe I was too careless.
Nothing had happened to me so far, so I’d taken the risk lightly. But did that mean the beast Elder Shin was suppressing was actually the collisions damaging my body—
[That’s not it.]
It’s not?
[To answer that healer, the beast is the only thing keeping you alive.]
What does that mean?
[That creature is suppressing the other qi from rampaging out of control, even though it is itself a volatile entity…]
I couldn’t make heads or tails of what Elder Shin was saying.
…What the hell is going on inside me?
I turned back to the Immortal Healer urgently. “Then what should I do?”
“What should you do? Either find a way to purge all that energy from your body, or continue living as you are and pray your body doesn’t explode.”
“Excuse me…?”
What kind of advice is that?
“It wouldn’t be surprising if you exploded right here, right now. I certainly wouldn’t dare try to extract it recklessly.”
Even the Immortal Healer couldn’t handle this easily?
“I didn’t call you a walking corpse for no reason. You could die at any moment—while eating, while bathing. That is the state you are in.”
A condition where death could come for me at any time. It meant the energy lying dormant within me could erupt at any moment and kill me.
…I can’t believe I’ve been carrying a time bomb inside me.
I suppose it’s my fault for assuming everything was fine after absorbing all that energy?
…Yet, the fact that I hadn’t consumed it willingly made the situation all the more frustrating.
“This is a bigger problem than I anticipated,” the Immortal Healer said, then turned to the Celestial Plum Blossom. “I thought you asked me to examine him because you were aware?”
“How could I have known…?”
“You hold the title of Celestial Plum Blossom and you didn’t even know this!?”
“I caught a faint glimpse of it, which is why I brought him to you for a thorough examination.”
As the two old men bickered in front of me, my thoughts were in turmoil.
What should I do?
I couldn’t even focus on Zhuge Hyuk standing nearby or the future events I had to face. I was in a position where I could die at any moment.
…What do I do?
I was still alive thanks to the mysterious entity inside me, but I’d been warned that even that could go berserk if I expended too much qi, so it wasn’t exactly safe. And to think Elder Shin was the one suppressing it…
This is so goddamn complicated.
Essentially, a war was raging inside my body. And it was all because of the foreign energies I’d been forced to absorb. I might have felt less frustrated if I had taken them willingly.
As I wallowed in these thoughts, the Immortal Healer spoke again. “There is one way for you to survive.”
“Huh?”
“No, since you are still alive, it’s more accurate to say there is a way for you to continue living.”
“What is it?”
A flicker of hope ignited within me.
The Immortal Healer responded with utmost gravity. “If the energy inside you can explode at any moment, then we can simply seal your dantian.”
“…!”
“The explosion would originate from your dantian. If we seal it now, before a problem occurs, you can preserve your body.”
He wasn’t wrong. Sealing my lower dantian would destroy the energies within, solving the problem and saving my life. However, it would also mean the end of my path as a martial artist.
I can’t do that.
It wasn’t out of greed for the power I’d accumulated. It was because I would be killed regardless if I sealed my dantian—whether by the Heavenly Demon or the Murim Alliance.
…Shit.
Why were my options never straightforward? Couldn’t I ever get a safe choice?
[You still have no intention of giving up, I see. I suppose that’s fair; martial artists often value their dantian more than their lives.]
It might sound foolish, but that was the reality for most.
The Immortal Healer read my expression and spoke. “Judging by your face, you have no intention of sacrificing your dantian.”
“…”
“If that’s the case, then I have no other solutions for you. You can only pray that your luck holds and your body continues to endure as it has until now.”
“You told me you would only examine him, but you already devised a solution, Tae!”
“You old fool, I told you to get lost!”
What a hassle…
The Immortal Healer gestured toward the door, signaling us to leave.
“I have a patient here. If you’re done, get out.”
“Still as cold as ever…”
“You especially, Dohwa, piss off.”
The Celestial Plum Blossom smiled and stood up. The Plum Blossom Sword Queen moved to bow, but he gestured for her not to bother.
“Rest well. I’ll visit from time to time.”
“Yes… my Lord.”
“It’s too noisy when you come, so don’t—”
“I’ll see you next time, Tae.”
“Get lost.”
The Celestial Plum Blossom walked out. Just as I was about to follow,
“W-Wait.”
I turned at the voice and found myself facing Gu Ryunghwa. Her eyes trembled as she looked at me.
“Huh?”
“…You… are you dying?”
“What did you say?”
“Are you dying!?” Gu Ryunghwa shouted.
What was this sudden outburst? It had been so long since I’d seen her, I wasn’t sure how to interact with her. Did she ask because she wanted me dead? Was our relationship really that bad—
–Get out of my sight. Your presence alone disgusts me.
…Perhaps it was.
A sigh escaped me as a sudden memory surfaced—words I had definitely spoken. I looked at Gu Ryunghwa and replied, “I think so.”
“…Why… why…”
“Hmm?”
“Why are you so calm…?”
“Should I be terrified? I’m not dead yet.”
“But they said you could die tomorrow!”
“But I’m still alive now.”
Gu Ryunghwa’s expression shifted strangely at my words. Was it really that odd? And why was she so fixated on this? I didn’t think she held any affection for me anymore.
[It is strange. A young man who has never faced death shouldn’t be able to speak so calmly.]
Hmm.
[I know you sometimes act mature beyond your years, but this is extreme. I hope to hear the story behind this composure later.]
How can you be so sure there is a story?
[If not, then never mind.]
…
Sigh.
This pointless exchange only deepened my fatigue. I let out a heavy sigh and focused my gaze back on Gu Ryunghwa.
“I’m returning to the clan in a few days. You have to come as well.”
“I’m… not going.”
“You’re not?”
“That horrible place… why would I ever want to go back!”
“Fine. Do what you want.”
As soon as I said she could do as she pleased, Gu Ryunghwa’s expression grew even more peculiar. Her face had already made it clear she had no desire to return.
“You… you’re really not going to force me?”
“You said you don’t want to.”
“Huh…?”
“What do you think Father would say if I told him I couldn’t bring you back because you stubbornly refused?”
“…”
“Exactly. As you’re thinking, he wouldn’t say a word about it.”
He’d probably just say something like, “I see.” But the Heavenly Pill I was supposed to receive as a reward… Ah, I’d forgotten about that.
Then again, if I took it now, it would only put more strain on my body.
My body was already a powder keg; adding more fuel would only make it worse. That was my primary concern. Besides, seeing Gu Ryunghwa in the care of the Plum Blossom Sword Queen made me feel there was no need for her to return to the clan. Mount Hua felt more like a home to her than the Gu Clan ever did.
[Is that a brother’s concern I sense?]
Don’t say things that make my skin crawl.
I’m already worried about dying; ‘brotherly concern’ is the last thing on my mind…
As in my previous life, I decided not to dwell on it.
[You always say the opposite of what you truly feel.]
I ignored Elder Shin’s comment and bowed to the Immortal Healer and the Sword Queen. My eyes met Zhuge Hyuk’s in the process, but I decided to let him be for now.
For now.
Once outside the hut… The Celestial Plum Blossom was nowhere to be seen; he must have already left. Did he really just abandon me?
Thinking I should leave as well before night fell, I gathered qi into my feet, but then I realized—
“Wait, I don’t know the way back…”
…Huh?
* * *
“How strange.”
Those words escaped the Immortal Healer’s lips after Gu Yangcheon had left the hut.
It was strange. Profoundly so. To find such a chaotic mix of disparate qi within a boy not even twenty years old… and for that qi to be roaring against each other yet not exploding. And then there was the boy’s demeanor as he listened to the diagnosis.
I feel like I’ve seen those eyes before.
His eyes had remained unsettlingly calm upon hearing he could die at any moment. Fear would have been understandable, but his gaze seemed to simply accept the fact with eerie tranquility. They were eyes the Immortal Healer had definitely seen somewhere before, but he couldn’t place where. Perhaps he was truly getting old.
The Immortal Healer turned to Gu Ryunghwa. “Child, what kind of person is your brother?”
“…Huh?”
Stunned by the sudden question, Gu Ryunghwa was at a loss for words.
What kind of person was he?
An older brother, just a year her senior. She had once been proud of her kind brother, but he had changed abruptly. And… he had been there during her mother’s final moments. It happened when she was very young, her memories were hazy, but she knew Gu Yangcheon had definitely been there. Along with her father, Gu Cheolun.
“…”
“Ryunghwa…?”
Gu Ryunghwa gripped the Sword Queen’s hand tightly, her nerves showing.
“Ahem…”
The Immortal Healer averted his gaze, feeling he had asked something he shouldn’t have.
“Then when and where did I see those eyes—”
…!
He remembered. The Immortal Healer recalled the people who had possessed the same eyes as the boy. It was so long ago he had nearly forgotten. Long before he became famous for his healing arts, he had been tasked with treating a group of people. Their eyes had been utterly devoid of emotion. They seemed to have transcended the fear of death, unaffected by anything. And as if to prove it, they had ended their own lives shortly after, their eyes unchanged even in death.
“…But why does that boy have the same eyes…?”
The Abyss.
Those eyes were akin to the eyes of those who had survived the abyss.
* * *
By the time I finally found my way back to Mount Hua, the sun had long since set.
“It’s already night. I didn’t even get to eat dinner.”
When the Celestial Plum Blossom found me, he apologized with an expression that suggested he’d only just realized he’d left me behind. He really had forgotten me…
Furthermore, when I asked him what to do about the Mount Hua qi inside me, his response was flippant:
– It’s not like I can take the qi back… So why don’t you just keep it and pretend you don’t know? There doesn’t seem to be another way.
What was even the point of taking me there?
The only things I gained from the trip were the knowledge that Zhuge Hyuk was the Immortal Healer’s grandson, and the confirmation that I was a ticking time bomb.
…My life.
Nothing ever came easy for me. Did I commit that many sins in my past—
Oh, right. I did. A lot.
Sigh.
I tried to blame karma to cope with my situation, but some things just never went my way. Like right now.
“…What is going on?” I muttered.
I was in a guest room provided by Mount Hua. The escorts were probably stationed nearby, and servants were likely within call as well.
“But what about you?”
The room was of average size, neither small nor large. And in the middle of it, someone was laying out a blanket. At first, I thought it was a servant, but her unique hair color was unmistakable.
“What are you doing here?”
The person looked up at the sound of my voice. She tilted her head in confusion, as if my question was strange. It was Namgung Bi-ah.
“Blanket…” she said.
“Why are you setting it up…?”
“To sleep?”
“Where… here?”
“Yeah.”
“Together?”
“Yeah.”
“…Why?”
…Just, why?