Chapter 54: Water Too Clear Has No Fish (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 54: Water Too Clear Has No Fish (2)
BOOM!
As a massive boulder sealed the entrance, the cave was plunged into absolute darkness. Everything vanished from sight.
‘Since your cultivation is no longer something to be taken lightly, you can’t just enter closed-door training anywhere. If things go wrong, you might accidentally smash your way out. That’s why I’ve prepared the cave I used for my own training. If you reach the next realm, you should be able to break out on your own.’
Yeon So-wol recalled Lee Yu-baek’s words as he calmly surveyed his surroundings.
Not that there was anything to see. He was merely retracing the faint layout he had glimpsed before the entrance was blocked.
‘The fasting pills and beef jerky were stacked over there. The spare clothes are on that side. Hmm… I can hear the spring, so I can use the sound of water to get my bearings. He even dug a latrine with running water a little further down…’
As he methodically mapped out the cave’s interior in his mind, a wave of gloom washed over him. How long would he have to spend in this place where he couldn’t even see his own hand in front of his face?
No matter how many times he did it, he felt he would never get used to closed-door training. Lee Yu-baek’s voice kept echoing in his ears.
‘Still, So-wol, this time won’t be as long as before. It’s just a matter of absorbing the elixir and fully digesting it. At most, it’ll be over in a month. And honestly, it’ll be fun until you’ve absorbed the Human-shaped Ginseng. I can’t say the same for the Great Restoration Pill, though.’
Is that really true? Can closed-door training actually be fun? Just being in this pitch-black hole is already making me feel depressed…
‘The darkness can’t be helped. This time, the danger of an inner demon is greater than the risk of qi deviation. Always remain aware that your surroundings are pitch-black. That way, you’ll know that anything you do see is a lie.’
I get what you mean. But it’s so dark I can’t even see my own hands. I feel like I’m about to fall prey to an inner demon already…
Muttering to himself, Yeon So-wol plopped down onto the floor. He rummaged through his robes, took out the incense he had been given, and lit it with a fire starter.
A single red dot appeared in the darkness. The incense was nothing special; it just had a faint, mugwort-like scent. It wasn't for aromatherapy, but to help him gauge the passage of time.
One stick of incense took exactly two shichen to burn out. Excluding the time he spent sleeping, burning four sticks meant a full day had passed.
Yeon So-wol stared at the faint red dot that did nothing to illuminate the void, then shook his head.
“Hoo. Shall I begin? No need to drag this out.”
He placed a wooden box, about half the size of his forearm, in front of him. It was the box containing the Human-shaped Ginseng.
Click.
He opened it.
“Ugh?” Yeon So-wol flinched. “Is it… just my imagination?”
He remembered a rich forest scent, accompanied by something piquant yet milky, like a baby’s formula. But now, perhaps mixed with the damp air of the cave, it seemed to carry a coppery tang.
Yeon So-wol traced the Human-shaped Ginseng with his fingertips. The milky skin, the long, straight limbs, and even the fine root hairs—it was the same elixir he had seen before.
But, whether it was his imagination or not…
“…It’s trembling.”
It felt as if the Human-shaped Ginseng was vibrating faintly. He wasn’t sure. Was the darkness making him jumpy? Without realizing it, Yeon So-wol lifted the ginseng with both hands and offered a small apology.
“Sorry. But I’ll try my best… to eat you without it hurting. I won’t even chew.”
Was it his imagination again? The ginseng’s trembling seemed to subside. The coppery scent lingering in his nose faded. It was dark, so he couldn’t see anything, and nothing was certain. Still, for some reason, Yeon So-wol felt he had done the right thing.
“I’m going to swallow now.”
He carefully brought the Human-shaped Ginseng to his mouth. Opening his jaws as wide as he could, he began to swallow it headfirst, whole.
Lee Yu-baek’s teachings echoed in his mind.
‘Consuming the Human-shaped Ginseng will allow you to enter the realm of a first-rate martial artist. However, depending on how you absorb it and the depth of your enlightenment, there will be a vast difference in potential, even among those in the same realm.’
Lee Yu-baek had said:
‘If you awaken your Qi properly, you will first feel the harmony of heat, pressure, and weight.’
‘Next, you will feel the harmony of sound, color, and scent.’
‘If you deepen your enlightenment from there, you will see something vast.’
‘Some see a great tree, or a great beast. I saw a great mountain. Those who see such things are destined to achieve their goals faster and go further than others.’
‘In particular, those who see something exceptionally large are said to attain an even deeper enlightenment. When I told my master I had seen a great mountain, he rejoiced, saying I would one day reach the Peak Realm.’
Gulp.
The entire Human-shaped Ginseng, down to the last root hair, slid down his throat. It went down much more easily than he’d expected, as if it were gliding on its own.
“Sssshhhh… Hhhhaaaah.”
Yeon So-wol slowly began the breathing and movements of the Soft Willow Art. As he did, he was reminded of his previous closed-door training. It hadn’t been this dark back then, but…
‘It was so hard. I barely slept for seven days and nights.’
Thinking back, this session might actually be easier. At least he could sleep as much as he wanted.
“But… what’s this? I swallowed the Human-shaped Ginseng, but I don’t feel anything special. My body just feels a bit tired and hot… and?”
Yeon So-wol abruptly closed his mouth.
“…What the?”
It was pitch-black. He looked around, but there wasn't a single speck of light. Just the void. Well, it had been dark to begin with, but…
“Where’d the incense go? The one I just lit.”
The incense stick, which had been a steady red dot just a moment ago, was gone. Yeon So-wol fumbled around on the floor.
“…”
His fingertips touched warm, crumbled incense powder.
“…It burned out already?”
He was certain one stick was supposed to last for two shichen.
“Four hours have passed?”
His throat was parched. His body felt cool, yet his skin was rough. Yeon So-wol slowly felt his own limbs. He was scorching hot, drenched in sweat. It was as if he had been cultivating like his life depended on it for hours.
But Yeon So-wol had no memory of it. He only remembered just having started.
“What is going on…”
He said it would be fun! He said it would be fun!
Yeon So-wol cursed Lee Yu-baek in his mind as he wiped the sweat from his brow. Now that he noticed, his body was truly blazing. He wasn’t just talking about his temperature; the fire circulating within him was hotter than ever before.
Elixirs were fire.
The fire contained within the Human-shaped Ginseng was moderately hot, its flames vast and clear, possessing a docile nature that allowed it to be guided easily. Therefore, there was no difficulty in circulating his qi. With every cycle, the heat in his body intensified.
Yeon So-wol broke out in another cold sweat.
‘No way. The fire got this hot, and I just zoned out and circulated my qi without even being conscious?’
A quick check revealed that he had, fortunately, circulated his qi without issue. But he couldn't be at ease. The thought of an accident happening while he was unconscious—of melting away and dying—seemed like a truly pathetic end.
“Why… is this happening… Ah.”
Yeon So-wol asked the question and found the answer himself.
“My energy is too hot right now.”
During his last training session, he had suffered hallucinations simply because his once-cold body had suddenly become warm. The sudden heating had caused a disharmony in his Spirit—the part of him corresponding to his mind and soul.
But now, his already warm body was becoming white-hot. It was only natural that his Spirit would be just as shocked, if not more so, than last time.
‘Still, for my consciousness to just vanish like that…’
How could anyone call this fun!
Thinking of the utterly unbelievable monsters of the Jianghu, Yeon So-wol steeled his resolve once more.
“Hoo… I have to go back in. Alright. This time, I’ll stay sharp.”
Yeon So-wol slapped his cheeks hard, then lit another stick of incense. The surrounding scenery was briefly illuminated before vanishing again.
“Hooooh…”
He steadied his breathing and began the Soft Willow Art, carefully observing everything with his full attention so as not to lose consciousness.
‘First, he said to kindle the True Fire.’
Within the human body, Acquired Essence is constantly formed. It was the essence that took the shape of the 108 Baleful Stars. The key to kindling the True Fire was to heat that essence until it was scorching hot, scattering it like sparks.
FWOOSH!
Everything was dark, but within Yeon So-wol’s body, an unseen fire blazed.
Through the Twelve Standard Meridians, the Twelve Divergent Meridians, the Fifteen Collateral Vessels, and the web-like Collateral Meridians, Yeon So-wol diligently circulated the fire as far as his Fire Phase would allow, heating the Acquired Qi throughout his entire body.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
And finally.
FWOOOOSH!
The Acquired Qi that had formed throughout his body melted into the 22 Stems and Branches and rose like sparks.
‘It worked! This is the start! It was faster than I thought…!’
Just as he had that thought, Yeon So-wol glanced to the side and was once again at a loss for words. The incense had already gone out. Another two shichen had passed in a flash.
‘What in the world…’
His senses were growing stranger. It wasn't just his sense of time; it felt as if all five of his senses were melting into a gooey puddle. He hadn’t eaten anything, yet his mouth would become unbearably sweet, then suddenly so astringent it made his whole face scrunch up.
He said it would be fun! He said it would be fun!
Wiping his sweat-drenched eyes, Yeon So-wol screamed inwardly. With trembling hands, he lit another stick of incense. The ashes of the previous one were still warm, so he figured no more than nine hours had passed in total.
‘Hoo. Focus and keep going. The goal for today is to kindle even the tiniest bit of True Fire.’
FWOOSH!
Following Yeon So-wol’s breathing and movements, the fire within his body grew hotter. Due to the intense heat and pressure, the Turbid Qi in his body burned away fiercely. Puffs of smoke billowed endlessly from his mouth.
The impurities that couldn’t be burned were pushed out by the pressure, seeping through his skin. The sweat trickling down his body grew sticky and black.
But Yeon So-wol was unaware. His consciousness had once again drifted away.
However, contrary to his worries, his cultivation continued without a hitch. It had only been a little over a year since Yeon So-wol had started learning martial arts, but it was a craft engraved upon his very instincts through countless brushes with death. Just because the time was short did not mean its depth was shallow.
Even while unconscious, Yeon So-wol continued to circulate his qi without the slightest waver—no, with even greater perfection.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
The essence that had risen as sparks filled his meridians, making them even hotter. As the innate fire coursed through those channels, it grew more purely compressed… until finally, at its very peak:
FWOOSH!
A True Fire (眞火) blossomed.
Even at this moment, Yeon So-wol had not regained his senses. But despite that, he continued to circulate his qi exactly as Lee Yu-baek had taught him.
He drove the tiny spark of True Fire onward, gathering it in the Pericardium where the Eight Extraordinary Meridians began—the Dantian.
The Dantian was the seat where the Conception, Governing, and Penetrating Vessels, the largest of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, originated. This was called the One Origin Three Qi. By setting fire to the Pericardium, which enveloped this origin like a net, one could heat the three major vessels all at once.
Yeon So-wol, despite performing this qi circulation for the first time, executed it perfectly while unconscious. His mental cultivation method had already advanced to a stage where it was deeply engraved into his very soul—a realm where conscious control was no longer essential.
Flicker, flicker.
The area around Yeon So-wol’s body grew slightly warmer. Not just the heat of qi, but a change in the actual, physical temperature.
Whoosh—
A faint wind began to blow.
‘If you awaken your Qi properly, you will first feel the harmony of heat, pressure, and weight.’
In the darkness, flashes of red, blue, white, and yellow light appeared and vanished. The faint sound of distant voices seemed to drift in and out of hearing, and the subtle scent of grass brushed past him.
‘Next, you will feel the harmony of sound, color, and scent.’
And then…
‘Ah.’
Yeon So-wol’s mind snapped back to clarity. No. It hadn’t.
Was this a hallucination?
‘What in the…’
He was utterly stunned by the sight that unfolded before his eyes. A world of darkness—but it was different from before.
‘The universe…?’
Endless lights shone brilliantly in the infinite dark. Swirling galaxies, clouds of light scattered across the cosmic void, pinpricks of shining stars, and faint, dot-like planets that barely caught their light.
It was a surreal landscape with no sense of perspective, where large and small, near and far, were all visible at once. The entire world was light, and the entire world was darkness. He could see the endless chain of superclusters formed by the galaxies, and something even larger beyond that…
‘Ah.’
For some reason, Yeon So-wol felt tears welling up in his eyes.
Transcendence.
Martial arts was a person’s journey toward transcendence. He had never felt the meaning of those words more vividly than he did now.
It was different from when he had crossed dimensions. It was also different from when he used the power of the Heavenly Killing Star. Yeon So-wol had once again glimpsed the other side of the world—this time, in the body of a mere mortal.
He came face to face with the cosmos.
‘If you deepen your enlightenment from there, you will see something vast.’
‘In particular, those who see something exceptionally large are said to attain an even deeper enlightenment.’
One year after falling into the martial world, Yeon So-wol had finally reached the realm of a first-rate martial artist.