Episode 14
Episode 14
Translation: Godtl
■ About the Acupuncture Easter Egg. Let me explain.
There's been a lot of debate all morning about whether it's possible or not, so I'll summarize it for you.
First of all, all of this is only possible if you choose the "Lust Demonic Art."
After mastering the Lust Demonic Art and reaching the Peak Realm, an Easter egg unlocks.
This is none other than acupuncture. Some might be confused—acupuncture? Really?
But it's not just ordinary acupuncture. It's a technique that allows you to impose forbidden seals. The full list of seals hasn't been fully uncovered yet, but the best one is said to be the Memory Seal.
With this, some insane gameplay becomes possible.
This is exactly why I recommend the acupuncture Easter egg. Just look at the screenshot below.
(Screenshot of an insanely beautiful slave girl created using the Memory Seal)
Pretty sick, right?
Enjoy the game.
***
After gaining the ability to enter Devouring the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, Cheon Mu-jin scoured as many strategy guides for the game as he could.
He hoped there might be some hidden opportunities he could exploit. And today, he found one.
"Acupuncture?"
It didn't seem like something that could be used as a combat skill, but upon reflection, it wasn't bad at all.
Unlike conventional martial arts, since this was a game, he wondered if learning acupuncture would allow him to use it like a skill. Moreover, mastering acupuncture seemed like it would be useful in the long run.
Above all, he wanted that overpowered skill—the Memory Seal.
Just in case, I should grab this.
Cheon Mu-jin stuffed the various acupuncture-related books he had just bought from the bookstore into his inventory and immediately logged into the game.
[Entering Devouring the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.]
After arriving inside the Demon Path Pavilion, the first place Cheon Mu-jin headed was the infirmary.
Officially, he was there to treat the injuries he had sustained recently, but his real purpose was something else entirely.
The Acupuncture Technique is supposed to be obtainable inside the infirmary, right?
The current physician in the infirmary was none other than a disciple of the Demonic Doctor.
Hidden among the countless medical texts authored by the Demonic Doctor was something called the Forbidden Acupuncture Technique—a method he had researched in the past.
Who would've thought it'd be hidden in a place like this?
Most of the disciples here were physicians who didn't practice martial arts, so they couldn't decipher secret manuals. Essentially, until someone who could understand its meaning appeared, no one would be able to learn the Forbidden Acupuncture Technique.
It was a move truly befitting the name "Demonic Doctor."
Before entering the infirmary, Cheon Mu-jin lightly slashed his calf.
After confirming that the wound was bleeding, he stepped inside.
"What brings you here?"
The physician looked puzzled at Cheon Mu-jin's sudden visit.
"I was ambushed late at night and ended up injured like this. Could I receive treatment?"
"T-This is serious! I'll prepare immediately—please wait here for a moment!"
The physician immediately busied himself gathering medicinal herbs to treat the wound. Physicians like him were the type to get overly excited in front of patients.
Leaving the physician to his work, Cheon Mu-jin quietly opened a ceiling drawer.
All the secretly hidden books were stored here.
Found it.
The Forbidden Acupuncture Technique was here as well.
Now that he had obtained it, there was no further reason to stay in the infirmary.
Cheon Mu-jin immediately headed back out.
A short while later, when the physician returned after finishing his preparations, he couldn't help but be confused.
"Where did he go? Did I imagine it...?"
Though he found it strange, he simply chalked it up to being haunted by ghosts due to his long hours of medical practice.
After all, nothing around him seemed out of place.
Meanwhile, Cheon Mu-jin, now in possession of the secret manual for the Forbidden Acupuncture Technique, immediately settled into his personal training room and began studying it.
Normally, mastering a secret manual takes an extremely long time. But whether it was due to the game system or not, the moment Cheon Mu-jin read it, he felt an odd sense of comprehension.
It was similar to the feeling he had when the Heavenly Demon Divine Art and the Lust Demonic Art merged.
[Do you wish to learn the Forbidden Acupuncture Technique?]
"Of course."
At the same time, he felt a slight nausea, as if something was rising in his throat.
It meant all the knowledge required for the technique was flooding into his mind.
From the locations of every blood pathway to the eight extraordinary meridians.
In less than an hour, he had mastered everything the Demonic Doctor had left behind.
If the Demonic Doctor had seen this, he would've undoubtedly been shocked beyond words.
But what could he do? This was simply Cheon Mu-jin's ability.
The fact that I mastered it without issue confirms I've reached the Peak Realm.
Moreover, perhaps due to the basic medical knowledge he had accumulated while learning the Forbidden Acupuncture Technique?
He realized his understanding of the human body had increased dramatically.
"That should be enough."
For emergencies, he could use the taser, and for regular situations, he could slowly build his skills by targeting the weak points of the human body.
Still, just in case, Cheon Mu-jin quietly summoned Ju-rin.
She seemed flustered for quite a while, clearly taken aback by the sudden summons.
"I thought you said there was nothing else to call me for today. What's the matter?"
Ju-rin's response was sharp. Given the nature of the place, she made it abundantly clear she didn't want any unnecessary misunderstandings.
Standing before her, Cheon Mu-jin immediately drew a long needle and pressed it into the acupoints around her shoulder.
"Ugh! What are you—?!"
Ignoring Ju-rin's scream, Cheon Mu-jin proceeded to grope her chest. Even through the fabric, the sensation was immensely satisfying.
"What the hell are you doing all of a sudden?!"
Just as Ju-rin tried to wrench herself away, she froze, sensing something strange, and glared at Cheon Mu-jin.
"What did you just do?"
"I sealed your acupoints. Right now, no matter how much you want to move, you won't be able to lift your arms. In short, you can't refuse my touch."
"Tch..."
For a long while, Ju-rin had no choice but to endure his hands on her, paralyzed. She was only freed after her chest had been thoroughly violated.
***
The next day dawned, and the disciples were given a single mission.
[Mission: Subjugate the Murim Alliance]
Beneath the short and simple mission notice were listed the names of the Righteous Faction's experts they were to face. Of course, since they were opponents meant to be handled by late-stage martial artists, calling them true masters was a stretch.
They were roughly at the same level—late-stage martial artists.
This was a task every cohort of the Demon Path Pavilion had to undertake. To be precise, just as the Murim Alliance issued missions to hunt down the demonic scum, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult also assigned missions to deal with the Alliance's late-stage martial artists.
Those who survived here were raised as true successors of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
More often than not, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult won about six out of ten times. Given the nature of those who practiced Demonic Arts, they were naturally stronger than the Righteous Faction's late-stage martial artists.
Cheon Mu-jin's opponent was a renowned female expert of the Righteous Faction—Namgung Ju-hee, the Sword Flower.
At a young age, she was said to have surpassed the wall of the Transcendent Peak, and she was even considered a candidate for the future title of Best Sword Under Heaven.
He felt a slight chill.
'Can I actually win this?'
No matter how skilled he was in Acupuncture Techniques, he had no confidence in defeating a candidate for the Best Sword Under Heaven.
"What, frozen in fear at the sight of your opponent? Pathetic weakling."
Cheon Gi-baek provoked him as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Of course, before he could even finish speaking, Cheon Mu-jin brushed past him, ignoring him completely.
A mix of bewilderment and fury flashed across Cheon Gi-baek's face. It was the indignation of being dismissed by such a lowly bastard, but beyond that, it was a severe blow to his pride—something that had never been slighted before.
But Cheon Mu-jin was no longer afraid of someone like Cheon Gi-baek. After mastering the Acupuncture Technique, he could clearly gauge his level.
Cheon Gi-baek was a Peak martial artist—not much different from himself.
***
Before setting out on the mission, Cheon Mu-jin stopped by the modern world just in case and bought various items.
From Sleeping Incense to aphrodisiacs and even handcuffs that wouldn't come loose easily—he packed everything.
He would've liked to bring Ju-rin along, but she had to follow Cheon Yu-rin.
In the end, it meant he had to move alone—a bit of a nuisance for Cheon Mu-jin, who still had no subordinates.
Still, there was one advantage to being alone: he could set as many traps as he wanted.
Hoping Namgung Ju-hee would fall into one, he left numerous traces of human habitation in the mountains and changed into shabby clothes.
He didn't forget to set up a makeshift living space inside a cave either.
Before long, Cheon Mu-jin had fully transformed into a perfect mountain hermit.
Then, on the third day of his mountain life—
A brown-haired woman in martial attire appeared before his cave. Though she was full of wariness, there was a strange vulnerability about her.
"...Oh my, who might you be?"
"What a bizarre sight. Who the hell are you, hiding in this place?!"
"Ah, I'm just a physician who fled here to escape bandits. Might you be...?"
"I am Namgung Ju-hee of the Namgung Clan."
"Ahh, a noble of the Namgung Clan!"
Though he inwardly bristled at Namgung Ju-hee's blatant use of informal speech, he decided to ignore it for now. It wasn't like he'd have to endure it for long.
On the other hand, the mention of being a noble of the Namgung Clan made Namgung Ju-hee smile.
"Have you received the Namgung Clan's kindness before?"
"Yes, the ones who drove away the bandits were nobles of the Namgung Clan."
"You said you're a physician, didn't you? Then repay that kindness to me."
It was an unbearably arrogant demand. But when Namgung Ju-hee removed her outer robe, the reason became clear.
Given the long wound across her abdomen, the fact that she was still standing and speaking was nothing short of miraculous.