Reunion 2
“Yaaawn.”
Shin Gi-woon let out a massive yawn and purged the alcohol that had settled deep in his body. He had drunk so much that it felt less like residual liquor and more like pure turbid qi.
Beside him, three people lay sprawled in every bizarre posture imaginable.
Replaying the previous night, the one who had been bellowing the loudest—Ma Ra-jin—had been the first to face-plant. The moment he went down, the drinking party was over. Bi So-hyang and Sama Yul had followed him into sleep in that order. Shin Gi-woon himself had managed about one shichen of rest before his eyes opened on their own and he cleared the alcohol from his system.
His friends were all dead to the world. Forcing them awake now risked a faceful of vomit if luck turned against him, so he decided to take in the dawn air instead and headed for First Peak.
Why was it called First Peak? Simple. It was the best place to watch both sunset and sunrise. By the same logic, Moon Peak was the finest spot for viewing the moon at night.
When Shin Gi-woon reached the summit, the pale light of dawn washed his mind clean without effort. It was the kind of vista that made a man suddenly hungry for quiet qi circulation.
Maybe it was because he had spent so long on nothing but missions in a bleak world. Standing on a mountain peak with a view this fine, watching the sun rise, left his heart unexpectedly warm.
Of course the feeling did not last. An uninvited guest arrived.
“Not even a full day has passed, and already we meet again.”
“I trust the night treated you well, Geom-dan Sect Leader.”
“Come to watch the sunrise? First Peak is famous for it, after all.”
Dan Ju-hyeong stepped up beside him with his hands clasped behind his back. Well, First Peak was the mountain the Geom-dan Sect had claimed as its own. The moment Shin Gi-woon set foot on the summit, a report would have reached the man. He had expected as much, yet the meeting still came early.
Dan Ju-hyeong could not have been unaware how uncomfortable this would be. If he had sought him out anyway, he had business.
“You didn’t come to rough up my boy already, did you?”
“Hardly. I overdid it last night and came to clear my head with the sunrise.”
“Is that so.”
The conversation went no further. Words were unnecessary; both men had long since understood they were opponents who would one day have to fight.
Shin Gi-woon had left room for doubt, but Dan Ju-hyeong was sharp enough to notice. He already knew Shin Gi-woon suspected him.
“How much better it would have been if we had shared the same boat.”
“Hard to say. I’ve always preferred the spear to the sword.”
“A pity. Once the Myeolcheon Squad is formally organized, free conversations like this will disappear.”
“Even after it’s formed, I’ll pay a proper visit. You asked me to, after all, Sect Leader. How could I refuse?”
“I’ll be looking forward to it. I’ll give you a splendid welcome.”
They were speaking in circles, but it was a declaration of war in all but name.
Shin Gi-woon was saying he would not come to discipline a son—he would come as the Myeolcheon Squad to the Geom-dan Sect. Dan Ju-hyeong was answering that he would select the sect’s absolute elite to meet him.
Whenever the day arrived, the two of them would clash amid a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
“The view from First Peak truly is magnificent.”
“Along with the fact that the Geom-dan Sect is stationed here, it is one of our two great prides.”
“A place I’d like to visit now and then. But I suspect climbing it empty-handed will be difficult from now on.”
“And why do you think that?”
“Just… call it a hunch.”
Shin Gi-woon fixed Dan Ju-hyeong with a cold stare. The other man’s eyes were no different. They had no weapons, yet their words alone placed them in the middle of a battlefield.
Both men restrained themselves. Barely a day had passed since the Extreme Heaven Conference ended, and Heavenly Mountain still swarmed with Extreme Demon experts.
Dan Ju-hyeong could not risk striking first. Shin Gi-woon, for his part, was completely unarmed. If he were drawn into a technique exchange, he would start at a disadvantage—so he had no genuine intention of killing the man here.
“I’ll take my leave. May your health remain robust.”
“Go well. Brief as it was, I enjoyed our talk.”
Shin Gi-woon nodded and began a slow descent. The moment he was gone, a man who had been watching from concealment stepped into view.
“You simply let him go?”
“Making a scene would have been pointless. This is the same man who took the Eleventh Martial General’s technique head-on and still dropped him without a serious wound. Push too hard and we would be the ones who pay.”
This conversation had confirmed it. The boy’s confidence was not baseless. Climbing to the summit of First Peak without a weapon was proof enough. Even if things went wrong, he was certain he could protect himself and escape. That certainty radiated from every line of his body.
Yet the man—Dan Jung-ho, Dan Ju-hyeong’s son—frowned.
“But he was alone. No escort in sight.”
“...Heavenly Mountain has eyes you cannot even imagine. First Peak may be in our hands, yet not every soul on this mountain is a Cheongung disciple.”
“Father’s techniques cannot be compared to something as crude as the Eleventh Martial General’s.”
“Of course not. But if we assume he is facing a technique for the first time… the most troublesome of all is still the Black Abyss Spear Interval.”
Among the many martial generals and unorthodox experts, the Eleventh Martial General’s technique was unique: total visual blackout. Its sole weakness—immobility during activation—was perfectly offset by the complete denial of the enemy’s sight. An opponent struck by it would panic at the first experience of absolute darkness, then be slowly torn apart by the black tide pouring through the Black Abyss Spear Interval until death claimed them.
“My technique, on the other hand, is finished the moment it fails once.”
“Father. Even the Heavenly Demon himself would struggle to block your art.”
“I’ve said enough for you to understand, you dense brat.”
“...I misspoke.”
When Dan Ju-hyeong’s eyes flashed, Dan Jung-ho tucked his tail. Clearly the older man had taken a genuine interest in Shin Gi-woon. He looked almost regretful that they would have to stand against Cheongung. Youngest Extreme Demon, was it?
The talent was absurd. Reaching Extreme Demon at barely twenty?
Dan Jung-ho had never thought the world unfair—until now. He himself was a Transcendent expert, yet Extreme Demon still lay far beyond his reach. He still had a long road ahead. And some pup younger than him had already arrived.
How could envy not take root? Worse, he could not endure the intrigued light in his father’s eyes—a light never once directed at him. Defeat pressed down on him from a man he had never even met face-to-face.
“Is the Young Leader Contest preparation proceeding well?”
“If Shin Gi-woon were not in it, I believe I know how it would go.”
“We cannot remove him immediately. Interference along the way is possible, but do not expect much.”
“What do you mean?”
“Accident or ‘mistake’—I do not care which. Kill Shin Gi-woon during the Young Leader Contest. Or isolate him so thoroughly that no one can intervene. Do only that much, and I will handle the rest myself.”
The Geom-dan Sect Leader clenched his fist, Samadhi True Fire flickering around it. Shin Gi-woon was Cheongung’s greatest variable. If that one man died, Dan Ju-hyeong could abandon the Geom-dan Sect entirely and flee to Cheongung’s main palace without a second thought.
The long-standing destiny of the Dan bloodline was nearly complete.
“He has already noticed. He simply keeps silent because he lacks hard proof. You may find yourself under heavy surveillance during the contest.”
“I will bear it.”
“Opportunities will come. Until the perfect moment arrives, you must hide your true intent. Kill him or isolate him. Fail this mission and I will kill you myself.”
“Understood.”
Dan Jung-ho clasped his fists and accepted the order. The word “kill” was not something a father should speak to a son. Dan Ju-hyeong no longer saw him as a son at all—only as a tool. A tool for completing Cheongung’s true goal: the Opening of Heaven and Earth.
“Go.”
“Yes.”
As Dan Jung-ho returned to his quarters, a thin anger simmered on his face. Kill or isolate—two methods, yet his ears had already translated the mission into a targeted assassination. Kill Shin Gi-woon in the Young Leader Contest.
That single thought filled Dan Jung-ho’s mind.
When Shin Gi-woon returned to their quarters, he was greeted by a rare spectacle.
Ma Ra-jin was heaving nonstop, stomach clearly in revolt, while Bi So-hyang—face a shade of pure misery—patted his back. And last of all, Sama Yul sat in quiet qi circulation. Absolute chaos.
Especially Ma Ra-jin.
“Hey. Just purge the alcohol already?”
“You clearly don’t get it… booze is supposed to be drunk like this— blaaargh!”
Bi So-hyang shook her head with a look that said her skull was splitting. There were always stubborn idiots like this.
Compare that to Sama Yul. Sitting still and circulating qi—how much prettier a sight was that?
“You hungover bastards. You only had ten bottles and you’re like this?”
“You little… you think nobody noticed you cleared your own hangover and snuck off somewhere?”
Ma Ra-jin muttered through a queasy face. So he had been awake after all, or maybe the stench had dragged the memory back. Mildly embarrassed, Shin Gi-woon cleared his throat and changed the subject.
“For the record, we have to visit the Cult Leader’s Palace soon, so quit being stubborn.”
“What?! You should’ve said that fir— uwek! The smell!”
The instant she heard him, Bi So-hyang expelled every last drop of residual alcohol. The qi that burst free from her hit Ma Ra-jin full in the face; he gagged harder than ever.
She no longer bothered to look after him. Instead, veins rose at her temples as she rounded on Shin Gi-woon.
“Shouldn’t you have told us that in advance, future Squad Leader?”
“I figured you’d handle it yourselves. Look at Yul circulating qi so nicely… wait.”
Something was off. He looked closer.
“That little shit is asleep.”
Sama Yul was only pretending to circulate qi. Cross-legged, eyes closed—she was sound asleep.