Chapter 23: Debts of the Heart - Dark Sky Martial Emperor

Dokgo Jin spoke in an even, unhurried tone.

"As I have already said, I merely carried out my assignment. It ended without failure, and that alone is enough for me."

Grand Elder Yong looked at him with an expression of mild surprise. "...Are you truly certain?"

"I am."

"Hahaha, a rare young man in these times."

The elder's gaze softened considerably, warming with genuine regard. It was unfolding precisely as Dokgo Jin had intended.

I could take a reward, but the moment I accept it, my connection to Grand Elder Yong ends right there.

Such was the measure Dokgo Jin had taken of Grand Elder Yong's character. Material compensation settled accounts, neatly severing ties. An unpaid debt of the heart, however, bound people together. By earning the man's goodwill while saddling him with a lingering sense of indebtedness, Dokgo Jin stood to gain far more than any immediate treasure could offer.

Moreover, if he ever ascends to Master of the Elder Hall, the return will be incomparable.

Of course, there was no telling who would ultimately seize the seat of the Elder Hall Master. Yet Grand Elder Yong undeniably stood among the foremost contenders.

Unaware of his silent calculations, Yong Chae-rin wore a crestfallen look.

"Is there truly... nothing you desire?"

"Nothing, Young Miss."

Her face fell into an unmistakable pout. "Now I'm the one feeling disappointed."

"..."

"Fine. If that is your wish, Hero Dokgo, there is nothing I can do. But in return, whenever you find yourself in need of aid, you must tell me. Even if it has to be in secret. Tell me, and I will ask Grandfather on your behalf."

"Hm? Are you pawning your debt of gratitude off onto me?" Grand Elder Yong asked, raising a brow.

Yong Chae-rin smiled sweetly. "I'll count it as my fifteenth ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠birthday gift."

"Ha! I certainly didn't foresee that."

Though ordinarily calm and reserved, she became very much a child before the grandfather who doted on her. Turning her blind eyes in Dokgo Jin's ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠direction, she pressed softly, "Promise me you will, Hero Dokgo."

"..."

Caught in the warmth of her insistence, Dokgo Jin had no choice but to give a silent nod.

After Dokgo Jin took his leave, Grand Elder Yong's expression settled into quiet contemplation.

"Chae-rin. That young man, Dokgo Jin... what did you make of him?"

"To me, he is naturally a good person," she replied. "He saved my life, after all."

"Not that. I mean through your special senses."

Grand Elder Yong was well aware of her unique gift. Her father was one of the foremost magnates in Lanzhou, having reaped enormous profits by relying on her extraordinary intuition to assess people and fortunes. Yet Chae-rin slowly shook her head.

"I... honestly do not know."

"Oh?"

"The 'color' Hero Dokgo harbored is unlike anything I have ever perceived before."

Grand Elder Yong's curiosity piqued. "What was it like?"

"It was fathomlessly dark."

The elder stiffened slightly. "Could it be... you sensed demonic qi?"

Chae-rin shook her head with absolute certainty. "It was not demonic qi. Having faced Sihyeolma, I had my fill of that foulness; I know the difference clearly."

"..."

"There wasn't the slightest trace of malice or hostility within him. Hero Dokgo was simply... darkness itself."

Grand Elder Yong stroked his beard thoughtfully. "From what I have heard, this Dragon Tiger Plaque Master is the inheritor of the Dark Soul Style. It is an obscure martial tradition, and by all accounts, one with severely limited ceilings."

"..."

"If that holds true, he may have unlocked the deepest secrets of the Dark Soul Style and attained an unprecedented plane within it."

Such anomalies were not unheard of in the martial world. Occasionally, a disciple of a third-rate sect experienced a sudden awakening, ascending to a level of mastery that ought to have been impossible for their lineage.

To reach such lofty heights at his age... what a pity.

In other words, the techniques of the Dark Soul Style were already bone-deep within him. In that state, cultivating any other higher-tier martial discipline was out of the question. Even if Dokgo Jin had broken past the traditional limits of his school, he remained bound to its foundations; climbing any further would prove exceedingly difficult. Had such heights been achievable, past masters of the Dark Soul Style would have proven it long ago. He might transcend one boundary, but surpassing two or three was simply impossible.

He has the caliber of a squad leader, but nothing more. Just when I thought I had stumbled upon an exceptional talent...

"Grandfather."

Chae-rin's soft voice pulled the elder from his musings.

"Hm? Ah, yes."

"Will you tell me now? Why did you summon me to the Northern Heavenly Alliance?"

"Right, that..." A shadow of guilt crossed Grand Elder Yong's face. "Once again, I am so very sorry. I had no idea Sihyeolma would be so venomous and relentless."

In his younger days, Grand Elder Yong had clashed with the Corpse Blood Demon and beaten him bloody. The defeated demon had sworn vengeance. Though more than twenty years had passed, Sihyeolma had never forgotten, lying in wait for an opportunity until he caught wind of Yong Chae-rin traveling toward the Northern Heavens Fortress and sprang his ambush.

Yong Chae-rin shook her head gently. "You have apologized enough, Grandfather. Even if it was an ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠oversight on your part, the blame lies entirely with Sihyeolma for using such despicable methods."

"...Thank you, my dear." Grand Elder Yong smiled warmly, his tone turning hushed and reverent. "The reason this old man sent for you is to free you from this Heavenly Punishment."

"...Pardon?"

"At long last, I have found it. A way to heal your eyes."

Chae-rin's lips parted in stunned silence.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Upon returning to his quarters, Dokgo Jin was promptly summoned by Yeom Baek.

"So, what did the Grand Elder say?"

"He expressed his gratitude," Dokgo Jin replied smoothly.

Yeom Baek nodded. "As expected. Well, what did you ask of him?"

"I requested nothing."

"What?" Yeom Baek stared at him.

"I merely carried out my duties as a member of the Iron Soul Unit. I sought no compensation."

"Hahaha!" Yeom Baek burst into hearty laughter. "Well, that is the righteous stance, certainly. But couldn't you have displayed a bit of flexibility?"

"Is that so?" Dokgo Jin countered mildly.

Yeom Baek crossed his burly arms, shaking his head. "Fine, let me give you the justification you need to claim what's owed."

He held up his index finger.

"First, strictly speaking, this was never an official mission. I acted solely on Grand Elder Yong's personal request, proceeding independently without filing a single report to the Alliance."

In his younger days, Yeom Baek had been a hot-blooded warrior who feared nothing, ready to butt heads with superiors whenever something rubbed him the wrong way. It wouldn't have been strange if he had been driven out of the Alliance long ago, but Grand Elder Yong had recognized his grit and quietly looked after him. Thanks to that patronage, Yeom Baek had risen to become Leader of the Iron Soul Squad. Because of that debt, refusing the elder's plea had been out of the question.

"In the end, you were mobilized for a private affair," Yeom Baek concluded.

Dokgo Jin shook his head. "My view differs. You are my commanding officer, Commander. To execute an order issued by one's superior is the natural duty of a subordinate."

Yeom Baek chose not to argue the point and simply unfolded a second finger.

"Second, even if it were an official mission, one is fully entitled to special commendations. There is no breach of conduct whatsoever, so why refuse a reward?"

"..."

"Third, and most importantly, your performance was nothing short of brilliant. Do you think just anyone can stand before the Corpse Blood Demon and live to tell the tale? That feat alone warrants a handsome prize."

Yeom Baek's boisterous expression hardened into genuine seriousness.

"It isn't too late. Request an audience right now and tell him you'll accept compensation. I strongly recommend an elixir or an advanced secret manual."

A young martial artist's greatest vulnerability was almost always a shallow pool of internal energy, and Dokgo Jin belonged to the Dark Soul Style—a school widely regarded as modest at best. To Yeom Baek's mind, a high-grade elixir or a profound manual would be invaluable to him.

"It might feel slightly awkward to ask now, but that embarrassment lasts only a moment. Compared to the benefits of a rare elixir or secret manual, you shouldn't hesitate for a second."

Yeom Baek seemed far more anxious on his behalf than Dokgo Jin was for himself. Yielding to the man's insistence, Dokgo Jin gave a slight nod.

"I shall consider it."

"Good. Make sure your deliberation doesn't take too long."

"If that is all you wished to discuss..."

As Dokgo Jin moved to rise from his seat, Yeom Baek spoke up again, his voice dropping an octave.

"From what the squad members told me, you held your ground against Sihyeolma for over a quarter of an hour."

Dokgo Jin offered a calm, unblinking lie. "It was hardly that long. In the heat of such a dire crisis, perceptions easily warp."

"Vice Leader Yu and all the section leaders swore by it."

"They were all under immense strain. When facing mortal peril, doesn't fifteen minutes feel like two hours?"

Unable to contain himself any longer, Yeom Baek finally voiced the question gnawing at his gut.

"Whether it was ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a quarter of an hour or half of one, none of that matters. How on earth did you hold out against that monster and walk away in one piece?"

Dokgo Jin delivered his prepared response without missing a beat.

"Part of it was that Sihyeolma let his guard down... and my sect possesses a specialized technique designed to neutralize an opponent's strikes. Thanks to that, I managed to buy a little time."

"...Is that so?"

A 'specialized technique' was another way of claiming an esoteric secret art. In the martial world, relentlessly prying into another martial artist's core techniques was a grave breach of etiquette.

Even so...

Yeom Baek found it somewhat hard to swallow, but it wasn't entirely outside the realm of possibility.

"Understood. You know this mission remains strictly classified, don't you? Not a single word to anyone."

"Understood, Commander."

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Having returned to the Northern Heavens Fortress separately from the Iron Soul Unit, the Vermilion Bird Banner Leader headed straight for her personal archives.

"I know I've read about something similar before..."

For a peerless martial expert of her stature, she possessed an unexpectedly scholarly passion: reading. Her private library was vast, its towering shelves housing well over ten thousand volumes. She pulled tome after tome from the racks, scanned their contents for a fleeting second, and tossed them casually over her shoulder.

"This is why reading too much is a curse."

What the Vermilion Bird Banner Leader sought was the true identity of the energy she had sensed from Dokgo Jin. It had been an internal qi that was dark and bottomless, yet veiled in mystery and brimming with ferocious intensity. In all her years, she had never encountered anything quite like it.

I am certain I came across an account describing an energy just like that somewhere.

Having devoured books since childhood, her mind was an overflowing reservoir of trivia, histories, and obscure legends. The sheer density of that knowledge was precisely why she couldn't pinpoint where she had seen it. After sifting through shelf after shelf, she let out a long, frustrated sigh.

"Haah. Should I just summon him and ask?"

The Vermilion Bird Banner Leader was already thoroughly convinced that Dokgo Jin was no ordinary disciple of the Dark Soul Style.

Well, he might have learned the Dark Soul Style, but that certainly isn't his core martial discipline.

That meant he was concealing his true sect, but that secrecy didn't particularly offend her. What troubled her was her own curiosity.

No. Just asking him would wound my pride.

She wanted to corner the sly rogue and strike right at the heart of his secret unprompted.

I will unearth your lineage myself, Dokgo Jin. Just you wait.

A peculiar gleam of obstinate obsession ignited in her eyes.

How much time passed? Before long, she was practically buried under mountains of discarded literature. Despite the sea of scattered scrolls and open texts littering the floor, more than two-thirds of the books remained tucked untouched on the shelves.

"...Damn it."

She fished out her long pipe and lit the tobacco at its tip.

"Pheeew."

A plume of pale white smoke billowed into the air, swirling languidly before dispersing into the shadows.

This is useless. I won't find it this way.

She arrived at the grim realization that she would have to cross-reference every single martial text she had ever read, one by agonizing one.

It's right on the tip of my tongue, which makes it all the more infuriating.

Still, the Vermilion Bird Banner Leader was not devoid of patience.

First, I need to place eyes on him.

Come to think of it, she had never actually witnessed him execute his martial arts in the flesh. If she could observe even half a stance or a single exchange of his true technique, the sight might jog her memory.

To keep watch on him day and night without a single gap, I'll need to assign at least two shadows.

Conducting the surveillance personally was below the dignity of a Banner Leader.

My subordinates' reports will be more than enough.

And so began the Vermilion Bird Banner Leader's eccentric, relentless obsession.

Dark Sky Martial Emperor

Debts of the Heart

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