The Coincidence That Changes the Situation (2)
Upon returning to his quarters, Yeon Hojeong drank a carefully prepared porridge and some water before sleeping for ten full shichen.
It was as if the entire day had been devoured. Considering Yeon Hojeong’s realm, it was clear just how exhausted both his body and mind had become.
The fortunate part was that this rest alone had dispelled nearly all his fatigue. It had only been possible because he had managed to sort through his turbulent thoughts to some degree.
When he rose from bed, the sun was already setting once more.
Yeon Hojeong drank cold water, then immediately sat in a lotus position and entered a state of cultivation breathing.
Whoooong.
The Yeon Family Divine Elixir released a heavy groan. It feels heavy.
The power held within his inner core had grown even greater than before.
An increase in power meant the density of the core itself had risen.
This was truly astonishing. To raise the density of an inner core so dramatically normally required profound enlightenment in qi condensation, overwhelming medicinal potency, or the oppressive pressure of a duel against a supreme expert.
Not gradual layering, but explosive growth.
Yet that was exactly Yeon Hojeong’s current condition. He had gained no extraordinary enlightenment, the energy from the inner core he received from Yang Cheon had been passed to Kang Liang, and no supreme expert had exerted any dominating force upon him.
Nevertheless, the density of his inner core had risen. To a terrifying degree.
What was even more shocking was that he had not even noticed this increase until now. Why?
Yeon Hojeong was bewildered. Why has the density of my inner core increased to this extent… Ah! An involuntary exclamation escaped him.
Just to be certain, he examined each strand of the Four Gods Qi, but it remained in a state similar to before.
His guess had been correct. The refinement of the five desires and seven emotions…!
In his days as the Black Dark Emperor, he had used the Crimson Heaven Technique as the inner energy that empowered the Four Gods Qi.
The Crimson Heaven Technique was a heart method centered on the lower dantian that forged an ocean-like reservoir of inner energy. At least in the realm of qi accumulation, no other heart method in the world could compare.
Endless true qi. The output of the Four Gods Qi riding upon that power produced infinite killing methods. Behind the terror of Sasinmu, which crushed enemies without ever tiring, lay the solid foundation of the Crimson Heaven Technique’s true qi.
But the current Yeon Hojeong was different.
He had formed the Yeon Family Divine Elixir. It was an inner core located in the middle dantian.
And the middle dantian was strongly influenced by a human’s five desires and seven emotions—their feelings.
Of course, the inner energy of the middle dantian was not unconditionally swayed by emotion. Both qi and human emotion were stimulated by countless factors. Failure to control the five desires and seven emotions could shatter the lower dantian or collapse the upper dantian.
Yet the center of the mind was the middle dantian, and when it was properly aligned, the heart would not be easily shaken by ordinary matters.
My anguish, my mental suffering, has instead nurtured my inner core.
He had not anticipated growth of this scale. Since qi was influenced by will and intent, the mind’s effect on any change could not be ignored, yet he had never before experienced such rapid advancement.
If the Crimson Heaven Technique’s accumulation was infinite expansion, then the Yeon Family Divine Elixir’s accumulation was a cycle of convergence and diffusion.
Asked which heart method was superior for the power of Sasinmu, it would be difficult to answer. However, Yeon Hojeong had seen possibilities within the Yeon Family Divine Elixir that surpassed even his days as the Black Dark Emperor. That was why he had completed it and continued to nurture it.
Through the anguish caused by my subordinates’ deaths, I have strengthened my own power…
A bitter expression settled on Yeon Hojeong’s face. I tried to shake it all off, yet it has gripped me this tightly.
This power was not simple power.
He had been the one to feel the anguish and the one to overcome it, but without his subordinates’ deaths, he could not have achieved this level of growth.
In other words, this power was something his subordinates had given him. Yeon Hojeong decided to think of it that way.
At the very least, I will not use this power to tarnish your honor.
Gaining strength through the sacrifice of one’s own people was something an ordinary mind would struggle to endure. Anyone who truly valued others would have floundered in yet another wave of torment.
Yeon Hojeong did not.
Showing a pathetic side once was enough. If he had decided to view this power as a gift from his subordinates, then it was time to move forward.
Let’s do this. There is still a mountain of work left.
After slapping his own cheeks several times with both hands, Yeon Hojeong ended his cultivation and left the room.
“You’re awake?”
Muk Bi, sweating profusely as she swung a short spear, greeted him with a bright smile.
Yeon Hojeong tilted his head.
“Where is your bow? Why a short spear?”
“Ah, this? I figured I should master it properly.”
“You were already handling it as well as anyone else.”
Muk Bi possessed outstanding talent for martial arts. Though she had trained in archery her entire life, the fist and palm techniques she learned from Yeon Hojeong had shown remarkable progress as well.
It had not been long since she took up the short spear. The fact that she could wield it well enough to use in real combat against high-level experts revealed just how exceptional her aptitude was.
“Being on par with others isn’t enough. I need to reach a level where I can overwhelm them.”
“Isn’t your archery sufficient?”
“It isn’t, so I’m learning. My subordinates are fighting with blood spraying in their faces, yet I’m just plucking a bowstring from the rear. It feels wrong.”
“A martial artist should focus on maximizing their strengths rather than covering weaknesses. Especially in the murim, where a single slip can cost your life.”
He meant she should not feel ashamed of shooting arrows from the rear. In truth, the Myeolsa Army, who trusted in her archery that had reached the level of divine skill, never hesitated to engage in frontal warfare.
Muk Bi nodded.
“That’s true when we move together. I have something I’m better at, so I don’t want to risk my life relying on an awkward specialty.”
There were certainly times when one had to break through chaotic melee alone.
With her archery, she could probably pierce through attacks from all directions. Still, it seemed the recent battle involving Sama Hyeon had left her with something to ponder.
Yeon Hojeong nodded.
“Come find me when you’ve made some progress. I’ll correct anything that’s lacking.”
“Thank you.”
“What about the others?”
“They’ve all finished training and are resting. Though not everyone.”
“Not everyone?”
Muk Bi smacked her lips.
“While you were busy moving around, there were people here training more frantically than anyone. It would be more accurate to say they were nearly going mad.”
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes sharpened.
“I think I know who you mean.”
“Shall I take you?”
“I just want to see their faces. It’s been far too long.”
“Later, you should also visit Sama Gongja. He said there is something he must speak with you about.”
“Understood.”
After ending the conversation in a calm tone, Yeon Hojeong headed toward the Myeolsa Army’s area.
Muk Bi watched his back for a moment, then called out.
“Let’s have a drink together later.”
Yeon Hojeong simply waved without replying.
The first thing Yeon Hojeong noticed upon entering the Myeolsa Army’s quarters was Ok Cheong.
At a time when everyone else had finished training, Ok Cheong remained alone in the simple training ground, swinging his sword with gentle fluidity.
Whooooong.
The air flowing along the blade felt impossibly soft.
It had not been long since he recovered from his injuries. Indeed, white bandages still wrapped the arm and collarbone visible beneath his clothes.
Yet his complexion was healthy and his energy remarkably stable. His recovery seemed swift.
Whoooong. Whooooong.
Given his injuries, intense training should have been forbidden. However, Ok Cheong’s movements did not seem slow merely because of his wounds.
Yeon Hojeong recognized the sword art at a glance.
Wudang Sect’s supreme technique. Its movements were so soft one might question their effectiveness as swordplay, yet within that supreme gentleness lay fierce, intricate flows of qi.
Ok Cheong’s Taiji Wisdom Sword was exceedingly soft—so soft it seemed almost questionable whether it could function as a sword art at all. Yet in Yeon Hojeong’s eyes, he saw the intense movements of qi woven into those incomparably gentle motions.
Within simple actions, the qi displayed dozens, even hundreds of variations. It was a level of qi circulation impossible for Ok Cheong before his injury.
It was still far from completion, but this achievement alone was impressive. The qi movements held no gaps, enough to deflect most attacks with a single swing.
It seems he gained enlightenment.
It probably had not come from swinging the sword itself. After regaining consciousness—or even while unconscious—Ok Cheong must have reflected deeply on his own martial arts.
After watching quietly for a time, Yeon Hojeong moved while concealing his presence.
Part of him wanted to speak. To ask if he was all right, to tell him not to push himself.
But he did not. It was not only that he did not wish to break the man’s concentration; he had intuitively sensed that a change had occurred within Ok Cheong’s heart as well.
When Yeon Hojeong had walked another half-gak further—
Shashashashashashak!
Suddenly, a chilling sound rang out as dozens of flashing sword lights embroidered the air.
A spark of interest lit Yeon Hojeong’s eyes. Hoo.
In the rear garden, a young man was swinging a cleanly broken half-sword with perfect posture.
It was Yeon Ji-pyeong.
Yeon Ji-pyeong, who had moved with the Myeolsa Army, had played no active role in this mission. Since the Myeolsa Army itself had not engaged in unit-scale combat, that was only natural.
I thought he would be tense and on edge.
Yeon Hojeong felt pleased that his prediction had been wrong.
Yeon Ji-pyeong was no longer the merely young and inexperienced younger brother of the past. Even in this brutal situation, even while the Myeolsa Army conducted separate unit training, he had not forgotten what he needed to do.
I’m sorry.
Yeon Hojeong felt a fresh pang of guilt toward his brother.
No matter how busy the unit’s affairs, he could have checked on him once in a while if he had truly wanted to. Yet he had been so focused on the mission that he had not taken proper care of his own sibling.
Even so, his brother would not have resented him. On the contrary, fearing he might become a burden, he had probably trained even more diligently.
You must feel you have no face left to show Father, either.
They said to gain one thing, one must abandon another.
Yet he felt he had abandoned something that should never be abandoned. While unit discipline meant he could not give his brother special treatment, surely offering a few words of encouragement in private would have been acceptable.
Still.
The sword light slicing through the air was as clear and cold as a crescent moon hanging in a cloudless night sky.
You have been advancing on your own, no matter what.
The sword he swung showed no fixed forms or techniques.
One could call it free. One could also call it impossible to read. Moreover, since the blade had been snapped cleanly in half, delicate thrusting was out of the question.
Cutting, and cutting again.
Within that simple swordplay, he seemed to have found something. A faint smile lingered on his younger brother’s face.
After watching Yeon Ji-pyeong for a long time, Yeon Hojeong smiled bitterly to himself. It seems today is not a good day for conversation.
Neither with Ok Cheong nor with Yeon Ji-pyeong.
Perhaps the problem lay with himself. Though he had tried to console himself, his mood had not yet fully lifted.
After observing his brother’s training for some time, Yeon Hojeong quietly turned away. I’ll come back tomorrow morning.
It was then.
“Commander Yeon! Is Commander Yeon here?!”
The resounding voice carried both its owner’s usual free-spirited tone and the urgent pressure of the current situation. The sudden arrival caused both Yeon Ji-pyeong’s and Ok Cheong’s training to snap to a halt.
Yeon Hojeong crossed the training ground in a single leap. Ga Deuk-sang stood before him.
“Junior Beggar?”
“Ah! They said you’d be here.”
“What is it?”
“Something serious has happened!”
What now.
Yeon Hojeong frowned.
“If it’s something serious, don’t tell me it’s from the government side?”
“It’s not that.”
Ga Deuk-sang’s face darkened.
“Commander Yeon, do you know about Botam?”