Chapter 8: Reading a Book a Hundred Times Reveals Its Meaning (7)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 8: Reading a Book a Hundred Times Reveals Its Meaning (7)
Lee Yu-baek spoke, his voice grave.
“Cultivating the mind is a treacherous path. It is especially perilous for someone like you, whose Essence and Qi have long been cold and rigid, only to be suddenly flooded with such immense warmth.”
He tapped a finger against Yeon So-wol’s forehead.
“It is not just your body at risk; your mind is in danger as well. When Essence and Qi surge, the Spirit is shaken along with them. You might suddenly believe you’ve attained enlightenment. You might be struck by a strange thought, mistake it for a grand awakening, and believe it to be the absolute truth.”
Yeon So-wol thought to himself.
A manic episode? Like megalomania?
“Furthermore, for a time, you will hear things that aren’t there and see things that don’t exist. You will believe things that never happened are real. You will lose the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood.”
Auditory and visual hallucinations. Schizophrenia?
“Therefore, you must enter closed-door training. If you were to roam freely and interact with people in your current state, a great disaster could occur.”
Closed-door training.
To seal oneself inside a room and do nothing but cultivate. It was an act that was, for all intents and purposes, a form of solitary confinement.
Isn’t this… a bit much?
He was already performing a difficult practice where a single mistake could be fatal, and now he had to do it locked away, all alone, without any help.
“…”
Yeon So-wol fell into a gloomy silence. Lee Yu-baek calmly explained the necessity.
“In this Jianghu, there have been many tragic incidents born from a failure to enter closed-door training when it was required.”
He told a story of a certain disciple of Shaolin. While practicing a mental cultivation method, the monk deluded himself into thinking he had achieved ultimate enlightenment. He came to firmly believe that the path to true attainment was to burn away all worldly afflictions and sins with holy fire.
Rather than practicing this "enlightenment" alone, he sought to bring all his brothers to salvation with him. That night, a great fire broke out at the Shaolin Temple, and thirty martial monks burned to death in their sleep.
“…”
Yeon So-wol swallowed hard. Lee Yu-baek continued.
“Something similar happened to me as well.”
About thirty years ago, a renowned sword expert settled in Xinxing County and took on two disciples. The second was Lee Yu-baek; the first was a man whose name Lee Yu-baek had long since erased from his memory.
That man had stabbed their master to death.
While practicing his mental cultivation, he became convinced that his master had insulted his parents. Of course, no such thing had ever happened. But he alone believed it. He concealed his murderous intent for fifteen years while learning the sword, only to strike his master down at a critical moment.
Lee Yu-baek had eventually cut off the man’s limbs and asked him why he’d done it. Only then did he learn of the inner demon the man had nurtured for fifteen years.
“That is why, when undertaking cultivation that might invite an inner demon, you must never allow anyone near you. The simple fact that you are alone becomes the standard by which you can distinguish truth from falsehood. If that man had properly undergone closed-door training back then…”
A chill ran down Yeon So-wol’s spine. Why is this world so goddamn insane?
Lee Yu-baek went on.
“Because closed-door training is done in solitude, you must always maintain the utmost sincerity of heart. If your heart is not sincere, you will fail to see your own state. And if you fail to see your own state, you will fall into Qi Deviation.”
Qi Deviation—Zouhuo Rumo. The fire of one's own power spiraling into a demonic disaster.
“A person is composed of the harmony of Essence, Qi, and Spirit. The act of igniting a fire within them must, at all costs, be done in a way that does not shatter that harmony.”
He told another story of a Daoist from long ago. The man wished to make his body flexible by heating his Essence to an extreme degree. However, he focused only on the Fire Phase, neglecting the harmony of his internal elements. He felt his body softening and was satisfied, believing he was becoming younger and more supple.
Then one day, his disciples arrived to offer their morning greetings and were met with a nightmare. Their master’s bones and flesh had completely melted, dripping onto the floor like wax.
The master, wrapped in his robes and stuck to the floor, was still alive, his mouth gasping: “Pour me into a mold. Pour me…” The disciples screamed and fled, never looking back.
“…”
Lee Yu-baek didn't stop there. He told of a fist artist who neglected his breathing until his Essence and Qi putrefied, causing his rotten organs to spill out of his stomach, and of a strongman who failed to circulate his heat, only to be reduced to a pile of ash from the inside out.
“…”
“So, So-wol. When you enter closed-door training, you must cultivate the Soft Willow Art with the utmost sincerity of heart.”
“…How can I cultivate with the ‘utmost sincerity’?”
“I will give you this Meridian Chart.”
Lee Yu-baek held out a diagram depicting the human body’s Twelve Standard Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians. It was a simple drawing of lines connecting various points, with only the names of the acupoints written down. There were no explanations.
“Practice the Soft Willow Art while looking at this. If your heart is sincere, that alone will be enough for you to realize how the meridians work.”
Yeon So-wol felt his mind go blank. “Master, this is the first time I have ever seen this chart.”
“Yes. But you have learned the Soft Willow Art, have you not?”
“I have only learned the breathing technique and the movements. Master, if you could offer even a little guidance on this chart, it would be a great help.”
“So-wol. Reading a book a hundred times reveals its meaning. The principles of the Twelve Standard Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians are contained within the Soft Willow Art. If you repeat it with all your heart, you will naturally come to understand.”
“…”
“You must not break your closed-door training before you attain that understanding.”
“…Yes, Master.”
Yeon So-wol didn’t argue further. There was no point arguing with a man who would carelessly pass on a practice that could easily kill or cripple him.
Seeing Yeon So-wol give up, Lee Yu-baek smiled faintly. “That attitude—not asking twice. It is good. You… you will do well.”
“Thank you.”
Yeon So-wol simply bowed his head. He figured if he had to do it anyway, he might as well stay on the man’s good side.
“Ah, and So-wol.”
“Yes, Master.”
“This.” Lee Yu-baek held out a basket of raw garlic. “It will help if you chew on this when you feel sleepy.”
“…Thank you.”
With that, Lee Yu-baek led Yeon So-wol to the site of his training: a cleanly emptied warehouse. Inside were several changes of clothes, a lit lantern, and a small spring from which water trickled. Piled high were Fasting Pills and beef jerky to sate his hunger.
“This paper is a seal. As long as this paper is intact, it means this door has not been opened.”
Lee Yu-baek dabbed ink on Yeon So-wol’s palm and pressed it onto the paper.
“Then, I wish you good fortune in your martial path.”
Thump!
The door closed. The windowless warehouse plunged into shadow, the faint light of the lantern barely illuminating the walls.
“Attach the seal.”
At the voice from outside, Yeon So-wol silently affixed the paper marked with his palm print to the center of the double doors.
Drrrrrk! Clank!
The heavy sound of a bolt sliding and a chain being fastened echoed through the room. Soon, the outside world fell silent.
“…”
For a moment, Yeon So-wol thought of his mother.
“This goddamn crazy world.”
How long would he have to live on a knife's edge?
Still, this training will help me survive. Right. Let’s do it. Let’s just get it over with.
Gritting his teeth, Yeon So-wol slowly began to move. He started his cultivation of the Soft Willow Art.
*
Seven days and seven nights passed.
I’m going to die. I’m going to die. I’m going to die.
During that time, Yeon So-wol had barely slept. He was too on edge.
Tick. Shhhhhh—
One gak is fifteen minutes. In the training chamber, there was an hourglass that measured exactly one gak. Yeon So-wol obsessively flipped it over and over. He had to ensure his breathing technique never stopped for longer than that interval.
He checked himself again and again. He was terrified of what might happen if he fell asleep and his rhythm broke. Fortunately, the Soft Willow Art made his whole body heat up, driving away the drowsiness and leaving him feeling strangely refreshed.
But he was reaching his limit. Yeon So-wol stood swaying in the middle of the chamber, dozing on his feet with bloodshot eyes.
Just then, the door opened slightly, and Mo Cheong stepped inside.
“Oof. So-wol, you’re suffering so much. It’s tough, isn’t it? Get some sleep. If your breathing gets disrupted while you’re sleeping, I’ll wake you. Rest easy. Master gave his permission.”
At those words, Yeon So-wol felt a surge of ecstasy. He didn’t have the energy to show it, but he was truly delighted.
“Thank you.”
Flip.
Yeon So-wol turned the hourglass. He sat down and closed his eyes. But sleep didn’t come immediately; he was too tense. He opened his eyes again and saw Mo Cheong waiting. The sand in the hourglass was about halfway down.
“It’s okay. Get some sleep.”
“Yes.”
Flip!
Yeon So-wol turned the hourglass again. He closed and opened his eyes a few more times. Each time, Mo Cheong reassured him.
“Go on, sleep.”
“Yes…”
Finally feeling the tension ease, Yeon So-wol flipped the hourglass one last time and slowly closed his eyes.
…Wait.
A moment later, he shifted and habitually cracked his eyes open.
“Huh?”
He shot up and looked around. A shiver ran down his spine.
“…”
The sand in the hourglass had almost run out. And Mo Cheong was gone. He wasn’t there.
Didn’t he say he’d watch over him all night?
“You… son of a…!”
Yeon So-wol was furious. “That son of a bitch!!!”
You’d trick me even in a situation like this? You said you’d wake me up, but as soon as I fall asleep, you sneak out?!
Rage boiled up to the crown of his head. The entire world felt like it was made of thin, fragile threads—the ground, the sky, the flickering candle. If Mo Cheong had been in front of him, he would have killed him. He was certain of it.
His heart pounded. The sand left in the hourglass was barely sixty seconds’ worth.
I almost died! My Essence and Qi almost rotted, and I almost died!
Yeon So-wol hurriedly resumed his breathing technique.
“Sssuuuhhh. Hooooo…”
A foul stench spewed out with his exhale. It was like the sour, mildewed smell of laundry left out in the rain, but ten times worse.
“…”
Goosebumps covered his body. It was real. It had been less than a single gak, yet his body was already producing such a stench. Even the last shred of doubt in his mind was blown away. Lee Yu-baek hadn’t been exaggerating.
You really do die from your Essence and Qi rotting.
Yeon So-wol gritted his teeth. “Mo Cheong… Mo Cheong…”
He would never forget this grudge. Humiliation suffered during times of hardship is not easily forgotten.
Yeon So-wol shot to his feet. Wondering if Mo Cheong might be standing outside the warehouse door snickering, he muffled his footsteps and crept closer.
“…”
Then he realized.
Rattle. Clank.
The warehouse door was perfectly locked. In the center of the door, the seal with his palm print was stuck fast, slightly damp from the humidity. This door had never been opened.
“Come to think of it…”
The Mo Cheong in his memory had said he’d gotten Lee Yu-baek’s permission to enter. But Lee Yu-baek had stressed repeatedly that he must not meet anyone. There was no way he would have allowed Mo Cheong inside.
If that was the case…
“...It was all an illusion?”
A horrifying chill crept over him. He could still clearly recall Mo Cheong’s expression and his voice. But it hadn't been real.
He fumbled for the basket, grabbed a handful of raw garlic, and shoved it into his mouth. The garlic was so pungent that his eyes welled with tears.
“Hoo. Hooo. Ssp.”
Yeon So-wol chewed the garlic and forced his body to move. Struggling to calm his ragged, heaving breaths, he practiced the Soft Willow Art with tear-filled eyes. He ignited the fire throughout his body with the breathing technique and spread the fire-qi through his limbs with the movements.
So he wouldn’t be afraid. So he wouldn’t go mad.
Yeon So-wol repeated the Soft Willow Art without rest.
“Hoo. Hooo. Sssuuuhhh… Hooo…”
This crazy world. This goddamn crazy world.
What the Twelve Standard Meridians and the Eight Extraordinary Meridians actually were remained as distant a mystery as ever.