Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Orca
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Floating Clouds Wandering.
Clouds drift freely across the vast sky.
Winds and Clouds Dancing.
The wind follows the clouds. The clouds scatter, dancing with the wind.
Dark Clouds Veiling the Moon.
Clouds cover the darkened sky. The widespread clouds swallow the moon.
Thunder Clouds Dragon Fangs.
A dragon bares its teeth from clouds boiling with thunder.
"These four forms make up the Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds Fist."
Bakerd, who had been focused on the manual for hours, finally spoke.
"It's called a fist technique, but you don't need to rely solely on punches. Sometimes use open hands, sometimes fists. The key essence emphasizes freedom, so you must not be bound by the name or frame of a fist art."
Yuri listened while brazenly lying on the ground. He had no choice. Up to this point, he'd endured hours of grueling training under the guise of external arts conditioning from Bakerd.
"Unlike mages, martial artists store inner energy in their dantian and circulate it through their meridians to generate power. If your inner energy is profound enough, even a delicate woman could swing a fist and crumble a mountain."
Bakerd looked down at the panting Yuri and crossed his arms.
"But you can't rely on inner energy alone. In the end, when conditions are equal, life and death are decided by proficiency in external arts and techniques."
"..."
"Train hard. Don't try to cheat by squeezing out your shallow inner energy."
"I never cheated, sir."
Yuri sat up abruptly, grumbling. Until now, he'd been polite with honorifics due to the age gap and his position as a student, but exhaustion made his words come out curt.
"I've done everything you ordered. Running, and those things over there."
In the corner of the garden were the exercise tools Bakerd had brought. They looked like ones from a gym Yuri—as Lee Soo-hyuk—had peeked into a few times.
"I've done it all. Just as ordered. No cheating. No inner energy."
"Good job."
"But sir, muscles don't grow quickly no matter how hard you train, right?"
"Did you bite your tongue during training? Your speech is weird."
"I didn't."
He quickly corrected his tone.
"What I'm saying is, back when I was in Oldor, I did some training too. No inner energy or martial arts then, so I tried bulking up. But muscles just wouldn't stick."
"What's the biggest difference between then and now, in your opinion?"
"Inner energy?"
He answered but tilted his head, unsure. Bakerd stroked his beard and nodded.
"Correct. Now that your dantian is open and holds inner energy, you're a completely different person from back then."
"..."
"Cultivate your external arts and Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds Fist daily, along with heart method meditation, and your body will naturally grow to suit the martial path you aim for. Even I wasn't like this before starting martial arts."
That was true. Seronis wasn't a kind game with illustrations, but the NPC Bakerd hadn't been this bulky and muscled.
"Yuri. How old are you?"
"Twenty."
"I first learned the Vajra Shatter Fist at twenty-four."
"Why did you learn fist arts, sir?"
Seizing the chance, he asked.
"I heard from Ha-ryeong. Twenty years ago, you were in the Sairan Guard with a spear, right?"
Bakerd stared at Yuri silently without answering. Assassins and information were inseparable, so it wasn't surprising that Killing Guard Sect killers knew about twenty years ago.
They might even link Bakerd abandoning his spear to become a wanderer with the Raspeon Family massacre. But they couldn't know he was the Raspeon bastard son.
"You don't need to know."
Even if they'd guessed, Bakerd wouldn't admit it.
Just a spark of interest led him to teach fist arts; he had no intention of revealing old secrets to Yuri.
'Not close enough yet.'
His attitude had softened since the auction house, so Yuri probed, but it was still too soon.
'If not, I'll look into it myself.'
Yuri kneaded his sore thighs while thinking that.
"Rest enough?"
"Huh?"
"You look rested. Stand up."
The mood didn't allow refusal. As Yuri rose, Bakerd raised both fists.
"You're not suggesting a spar, are you?"
"No inner energy."
"Huh."
"I'll attack with Winds and Clouds Dancing. Counter with Floating Clouds Wandering."
Bakerd moved his fist after announcing the technique. No inner energy, barely any power—just a fist heading at Yuri.
Yet the movement was eerie and subtle. The fist didn't move fast, but Yuri couldn't read it.
'Just two fists.'
He understood why Floating Clouds Wandering. If Winds and Clouds Dancing focused on chaotic changes, Floating Clouds Wandering was relaxed and fluid. It was also Yuri's most familiar form.
His left hand extended cautiously to meet Bakerd's fist. Not easy. The movement still invisible.
Before becoming Yuri, he'd learned prolonged combat from Lorellia. It helped now, but he needed more.
'Read the changing trajectory, see the hidden, predict the movement.'
He'd thought Floating Clouds Wandering familiar—wrong. This form deflects or parries attacks to ram in your fist. Too many prerequisites.
'Floating Clouds Wandering is the first form of Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds Fist. It represents this art.'
The basics, the essence.
That's why it's hard. Fail this, forget the rest.
—In the game, forms weren't implemented.
Padrip Immunity's Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds Fist was just that—no specifics.
Learning it boosted agility stats greatly, added evasion bonuses beyond stats. Casting raised evasion percentage; successful evasions dealt counter damage proportional to enemy level and attack.
Unarmored Padrip Immunity needed agility and evasion, so early builds crammed those skills.
But lacking decisive offense, useless against physical immune like Heavenly Thunder Orca or magic attackers.
Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds Fist got cut during build trimming. Skill limits forced it.
What about here?
Unlike game, offense shouldn't lack. Yuri had Heavenly Principle Annihilating Evil Art besides. No real combat yet, but Holy Flame Force Emission too. Raise tiers for qi, boost attack more.
'No agility stats, no evasion bonuses here. No probabilistic evasion or counters.'
All on him. Thud, thud, thud. Bakerd's fists grazed Yuri's arms to tap his chest. Yuri hadn't countered that slow change once.
No rush. Yuri focused, watching Bakerd's fists. Clouds follow wind. Two fists were clouds and wind. One responds to the other. All connected. One dance.
'What about me?'
Floating Clouds Wandering. Clouds drift free in vast sky. Essence is freedom. Am I free? Body stiff. Arms sluggish, blocked. Eyes? Mind?
'Free? How?'
Not wild flailing. Even forewarned of the 'how'. Yet bound.
Free in life-or-death combat?
[Stand on ground, look at sky. Cloud-filled sky seems terribly low. Climb to sky, stand with clouds. Ground still below; sky never low.]
Same scene changes by viewpoint.
'Ah.'
Eyes bound first. Dazzled by chaos. Staring at fist. Wrong. Opponent is the person.
See whole. Beyond fist: forearm, shoulder, chest, waist, knees, feet, gaze. Infos linked in Yuri's mind.
'Sky is space.'
Gap where fist moves is Chaotic Heavens' sky. Widens, narrows by Yuri's movement.
'Free in my space.'
Unlike mouse-keyboard skills. Never tried, wanted, thought possible, knew existed.
Why so thrilling, this unfamiliar?
"Hah."
Bakerd's fist grazed Yuri's.
'Got it.'
Understood external arts' importance. Just graze now, but real fight—Yuri's fist shattered.
'Touched, but I lost. No, died.'
Real combat, yes.
"Haha..."
Yuri laughed unwittingly.
'What the hell is this guy...?'
Bakerd couldn't laugh. Eyes wide at touching fists. Real fight, over. He knew, but irrelevant now.
Winds and Clouds Dancing of Chaotic Heavens. Unfamiliar to Bakerd too. Just mimicked forms from manual, no depth. But 'Fist Wanderer Bakerd' was sixth tier. Fresh forms today, but martial—especially fist—understanding profound.
Told to counter with Floating Clouds Wandering, didn't expect success. Not to torment.
High master pulls power, spars pure forms. Experience alone gains insight.
This guy gained too much.
Can't read, pierce, predict—expected.
'He read it.'
Imperfect. But read changing path crudely. Blocked fist with fist before hit. Real fight: sacrificed fist, dodged death.
"Huh... Haha."
Bakerd laughed belatedly. Chill sweat down spine. Guy started martial yesterday...
'Last one mixed footwork.'
Yesterday.
Saw self-deploy footwork practicing Floating Clouds Wandering. Wondered if in spar...
'Did it.'
No plans to test, low expectations.
Hence great shock.
'Different from Table Wind Cloud Stride. But same essence. Pure, necessary footwork.'
Bakerd eyed touching fists, nodded slightly, withdrew.
"Yuri."
"Yes?"
Grinning Yuri hastily schooled face.
'Hope no scolding for cockiness.'
Touch showed: one Bakerd punch would hurt like hell.
"If you counter my fist using all Chaotic Heavens Drifting Clouds forms, I'll give you a gift."
"A gift?"
"Yes. Don't ask what."
Bakerd grinned, stepped back, raised fists again.
"Again. I'll attack with Winds and Clouds Dancing..."
"I'll counter with Floating Clouds Wandering."
Gift unknown, but thrilled heart. Orphaned young, rarely gifted—Yuri especially.
Fists became wandering clouds.
*
Years ago, a hit song lamented twenty-four hours too short.
Lovers' time flies; day feels brief. Yuri's tasks overflowed; twenty-four hours short.
Daily: early rise, qi circulation.
Elena breakfast prep.
External conditioning.
Fist practice.
Spar with Bakerd.
More external.
Elena dinner prep.
Fist practice.
Spar review, meditation.
Qi circulation.
Elena claimed self-sufficiency for meals, but Yuri persisted mornings and evenings. Quick, easy.
And eating with Elena joyful.
"You're progressing fast due to hard work."
While Elena at tower, idle Ha-ryeong visited daily, watched Yuri's conditioning.
"Muscles filling nicely."
"Stop watching."
"Who'd think you're stripping? Doesn't wear out from looking. Why fuss? Not even Chaotic Heavens."
"Bothers me."
"I'm fine, so don't mind. Thirty seconds up. Again, one, two..."
Ruthless assassin Ha-ryeong pitiless. Her counts led to noon; Bakerd arrived.
"Then I'm off."
Post-Ha-ryeong, forms before Bakerd.
"Shoulders stiff."
"Shoulder exercises earlier."
"No excuses. Loosen up."
Yuri's forms, then Bakerd's turn.
"Your shoulders stiff, sir."
"..."
"Just muscles, huh."
Review own forms post-Bakerd, then spar.
"Winds and Clouds Dancing to Thunder Clouds Dragon Fangs."
"I'll counter with Dark Clouds Veiling the Moon."
"Why not Floating Clouds Wandering?"
"Why?"
"You suck at Dark Clouds Veiling the Moon."
"Better than yesterday. Might get gift today."
"Just talk improved."
Wash before Elena home, dinner prep, eat together.
Room: refine fist, review, meditate, qi, sleep dead.
Month like that, but weekly rest day—no overwork.
Those days: solo mansion exit, city stroll. Eat out, shop gaze, walk streets.
Library often, long stays.
Learned twenty-year Sairan tragedy.
'Raspeon Massacre.'
Noble house slaughtered overnight; secret sword art lost. Twenty years, culprit unknown.
Suspicions: three, possessor did it?
'Sword, magic, spear...'
Common here.
'Only Bakerd survived.'
Game differs from reality.
Game: hidden field Raspeon needed Bakerd-drop flag probabilistically.
Reality: no hidden, just raid with force—no flag needed.
'FS?'
FUCKINGSEXY.
Among known possessors, only FS mained Raspeon secret sword.
But no certainty FS massacred twenty years ago.
Community-famous high-value skill; other possessors possible.
'If FS...'
Bold Ox God Head might know. If FS culprit slaughtering noble sword house, with comrades... maybe contacted Ox God Head.
No confirmation.
Bakerd stays Lutran for Ox God Head duel.
Hides Raspeon bastard.
Duel is Bakerd's personal aspiration, unrelated.
Yuri halted speculation. If needed later—gain power, ask Ox God Head.
'But does this guy even come?'
Elena mentioned possible Ascard guest, no date. Really coming?
Bakerd's promised map month passed. Yet came next day casually.
"Full Moon Night Dance not here yet."
"You just wanna give gift somehow."
"Don't want?"
"No way."
Twenty-four hours short.
Unspeakable lyrics swirled mind.
"Yuri."
That evening table. Stone-faced since home, Elena cautiously spoke.
"Come with me tomorrow."
"Why?"
"Tower Lord wants to see you."
What now?