Chapter 172
Chapter 172
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: An Unwanted Companion
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Bu Eun-seol, having left Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, soon arrived in Hwanghyeon.
As soon as he entered the town, he looked for an inn where he could rest comfortably. After much thought, he chose the Eunhwaru, the most luxurious tavern in the vicinity.
“I wish to rent the entire annex here.”
Bu Eun-seol immediately handed a thousand-nyang note to a servant upon entering.
At that, the manager, who was in a private room on the first floor, rushed out eagerly.
“The entire annex, you say?”
“That's right.”
“Please, follow me.”
Following a small path behind the inn, a beautiful garden unfolded before them.
Walking along the tranquil stone path, they saw a cozy building perched on a small hill.
“Our establishment has two annexes. One is…”
“I'll rent them both.”
“By yourself?”
The manager waved his hands, vehemently trying to dissuade him.
“Young Master, our annexes are right next to each other. If someone reserves one, the other is never rented out.”
“It doesn't matter. I'll rent them all.”
“As much as I appreciate the money, how can I accept double the payment for no reason?”
The manager said with a solemn expression, rubbing his hands together.
“The reason our establishment has prospered in this Hwanghyeon region for over a hundred years is not only because we provide our esteemed guests with top-class facilities and high-quality service, but also because we make honesty our utmost priority…”
One of the things Bu Eun-seol disliked most was listening to someone's meaningless chatter.
When the manager's tongue, moving dazzlingly while spattering saliva, showed no sign of stopping, he immediately turned around.
“I suppose I'll go elsewhere.”
As if he had never protested, the manager's eyes widened as he spoke.
“I'll assume you're using both annexes and have the maids attend to you at once.”
“…”
“The reason our establishment has prospered for over a hundred years is, above all, because we faithfully meet our guests' demands.”
The manager's twitching lips began to spew more chatter.
“For your information, the maids assigned to our annex are all skilled in poetry, calligraphy, art, and painting…”
“Don't let anyone in until I call. That includes the maids.”
“Pardon?”
“One more word, and I'm leaving.”
“As you command…”
The manager, about to reply, remembered Bu Eun-seol's words and quickly drew his protruding lips back in.
Only then did Bu Eun-seol nod with a satisfied expression and turn to enter the annex.
“Hoo.”
He entered the lavishly decorated bedroom and immediately lay down.
The matter at Jeok-cheon-mak-ji had been resolved well, but a terrible fatigue had accumulated.
No matter how neutral they claimed to be, Jeok-cheon-mak-ji was one of the Ten Demonic Sects.
Entering that place alone was like walking into a tiger's den.
Especially the Phantom Demon, Hyeok Gong-baek, a great demon whose emotions were impossible to predict. What if things had gone even slightly wrong?
No matter how resourceful he was, there was no way to escape the Phantom Demon's pursuit in the heart of the Ten Demonic Sects.
In truth, he had risked his life to visit Jeok-cheon-mak-ji.
*‘But… what I gained was just as certain.’*
The ones in the Peach Blossom Land all appeared as gentle old men, but in reality, they were great demons who had shaken the world.
Over two months of building coffins, he had learned not only their divine arts and ultimate techniques but also their little-known secret histories…
Bu Eun-seol had acquired knowledge and martial arts that would have been impossible to gain even after years of wandering the martial world.
“I'll have to master them slowly. Those techniques.”
Murmuring softly, Bu Eun-seol sat cross-legged on the bed.
Before going to Muhasuyujeong, he intended to slowly digest the insights he had gained here.
*Chirp, chirp, chirp.*
Having rested comfortably, Bu Eun-seol slowly rose to the sound of chirping birds.
“Hmm.”
Looking up at the warm sunlight, he felt a pang of hunger for the first time in a while.
He had barely eaten during his time in Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, and he had used his lightness skill for four straight days to leave Lanzhou, where Jeok-cheon-mak-ji was located.
All he'd had in that time was a single sip of water the day before, so it was only natural for hunger to set in.
*Creeak.*
As he opened the door and stepped out of the annex, he felt the pleasant sunlight and breeze.
As he passed the beautifully decorated garden and a small pond…
“You're finally out?”
A young man who had been crouching against a large garden rock shot up and spoke playfully.
“Good morning.”
He was as tall as Bu Eun-seol, with very long eyes and gleaming pupils.
It was none other than the successor of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, Hyeok So-jin.
“Do you need something?”
Bu Eun-seol wasn't particularly surprised.
He had already been aware that Hyeok So-jin was squatting in the garden while he rested in the annex.
The reason he had left him alone was that Hyeok So-jin hadn't tried to hide his presence at all.
“Well, it's not that I need anything specific.”
Hyeok So-jin said, scratching his head.
“I'm just planning to wander the martial world. I need to gain various experiences to improve my martial arts.”
Bu Eun-seol immediately saw through Hyeok So-jin's intentions.
He might be the successor of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, but from another perspective, he was a novice just starting out in the martial world.
His intention was clear: rather than wandering aimlessly, he wanted to travel with someone experienced to build his skills.
“I refuse.”
“Are you serious? I'd be a great help if we traveled together.”
Bu Eun-seol looked puzzled by Hyeok So-jin's persistence.
Who knew Hyeok So-jin, who always wore a look of annoyance, could be so shameless?
*‘So he’s found a goal.’*
People with goals change.
A faint purple light swirled in Hyeok So-jin's eyes, where an obsession with martial arts was burning.
“Hmph.”
With a cold snort, Bu Eun-seol walked past him toward the inn's entrance.
Hyeok So-jin, who had been staring blankly, bit his lip.
Had he ever been ignored like this in his life as the successor of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji?
“I have no choice. The moment I lose my temper, my journey will be over before it starts.”
If he confronted Bu Eun-seol now, he wouldn't be able to have a proper journey through the martial world.
In the end, he had to set aside his pride as a successor of the Ten Demonic Sects for the time being.
Bu Eun-seol's meal was simple.
He had only ordered a bowl of noodles and a plate of stir-fried vegetables.
In contrast, Hyeok So-jin ordered five different dishes and a bottle of Seolhongju, which cost over thirty nyang.
As if that weren't enough, he even gave the servant money to order some fruits and rice cakes separately.
“Hmph, they've used fine ingredients for everything.”
Hyeok So-jin sat down next to Bu Eun-seol with a nonchalant expression.
He ate the food on the table at a leisurely pace, regardless of whether people were watching.
Just one bite of each dish, that is.
“Compared to that, the chef's skill is a bit lacking. He failed to bring out the ingredients' true flavors.”
Looking down at the food filling the table, he put down his chopsticks with an expression that said he had lost his appetite.
To others, it might seem like extravagance, but from the perspective of the successor of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, it was just an ordinary day.
“Hmm.”
With nothing else to do, Hyeok So-jin glanced at the eating Bu Eun-seol.
*‘He eats well.’*
Bu Eun-seol's chopsticks moved slowly but without pause.
He picked up a small amount each time, but he chewed thoroughly, not leaving behind a single strand of noodle or a piece of vegetable.
The way he slowly put food in his mouth was so solemn it was reminiscent of an ascetic undergoing penance.
*‘He looks serious no matter what he does. Is it because of his eyes?’*
Feeling intrigued, he soon began to stare openly at Bu Eun-seol.
*‘Wait a minute?’*
As Hyeok So-jin stared intently at Bu Eun-seol, his pupils gradually widened as if he had noticed something.
Bu Eun-seol's hand movements with the chopsticks were somehow subtle.
There was a certain conciseness to them, yet they held a strange discipline.
*‘He's practicing martial arts, isn't he?’*
Bu Eun-seol was incorporating the principles of martial arts even into the simple act of lifting noodles or picking up vegetables with his chopsticks.
*‘He’s insane. Absolutely insane.’*
Hyeok So-jin's jaw dropped when he realized Bu Eun-seol's chopsticks were executing the Linked Sword Forms.
*‘To study martial arts even while eating.’*
Then, Bu Eun-seol's chopstick movements changed again.
It seemed like he was repeating the same motion, yet it was exquisite. He picked up the slippery noodles strand by strand, but they didn't fall, as if they were iron stuck to a magnet.
*‘Now he’s training his sense of balance too?’*
This time, Bu Eun-seol was training his sense of balance by exquisitely distributing force and angle in his chopstick movements.
*‘So that's how it was.’*
Watching quietly, Hyeok So-jin finally realized something.
Studying martial arts while eating, pondering its principles while sleeping.
Every breath he took, every move he made, was an act solely for the advancement of his martial arts.
There were countless eccentrics in the martial world, but Hyeok So-jin had never even imagined someone so obsessed with martial arts.
*‘It's not like my skills are inferior to the other successors of the Ten Demonic Sects.’*
He just couldn't understand.
*‘What on earth is the reason for him to be so engrossed in martial arts?’*
Hyeok So-jin didn't know.
That after meeting the Heavenly Demon, Bu Eun-seol had found a new goal.
A path no one has ever walked.
He was trying to reach not the Heavenly Realm, nor the Martial Apex… but a new realm that no one had ever reached before.
*Clack.*
Just then, Bu Eun-seol, having finished his meal, stood up and walked out of the inn.
*‘Where is he going?’*
Hyeok So-jin, coming to his senses a moment later, went outside, but Bu Eun-seol was already gone.
“There's no need to search for him. He'll come back to the inn eventually.”
About to leisurely turn back toward the annex, he then shook his head.
“No. I need to get rid of this mindset quickly.”
While they were apart, he could encounter powerful enemies or fight against large groups of people.
If he couldn't stay with him all day, every day, Hyeok So-jin's journey would be a failure.
“Shall I try to find him?”
Taking a deep breath, Hyeok So-jin lowered his body to the ground and listened intently.
He was using one of the ultimate techniques of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji, the Empty Sense Earth Listening Art.
*Rumble, rumble.*
As he activated the Empty Sense Earth Listening Art, he felt the vibrations transmitted through the ground, along with the movements of everyone within a fifty-zhang radius.
Among them, he sensed the movements of someone walking briskly, with almost inaudible footsteps.
It was probably Bu Eun-seol.
“That way.”
Having found the direction Bu Eun-seol had gone, Hyeok So-jin hurriedly set off.
***
On the outskirts, far from most towns, slums for vagrants had formed.
Usually, places like these were home to the Beggars' Sect, various information organizations of the martial world, or black market dealers trading in poisons and hidden weapons.
Bu Eun-seol, surveying the area, spotted an old man sitting alone under a bridge and approached him without hesitation.
He then took out his coin pouch and offered a large silver piece.
“Oh, thank you!”
The old man accepted the silver with trembling hands.
*Swish.*
For a fleeting moment, the old man's hand moved incredibly fast, but no one saw it.
When Bu Eun-seol emerged from the slum again, he was holding a small letter.
Bu Eun-seol walked to a quiet, deserted reed field and slowly unfolded the letter in his hand.
“I wonder what the Master sent.”
Before leaving the Demonic Palace, he had sent word to Nang-ya-gak via a carrier pigeon.
He had reported that he had met the Heavenly Demon and that he planned to bring Jeok-cheon-mak-ji and Muhasuyujeong under his influence.
And just in time for the reply, he had found a Pungun Squad member loitering nearby and received the message.
—*Geogyeong-gungni.*
The unfolded letter contained only four short characters.
*Geogyeong-gungni*.
It means to guide one's body and mind to the true path and to do one's utmost to study and comprehend the principles of all things.
“A reply worthy of the Master.”
For the first time in a while, Bu Eun-seol wore a faint smile.
This short letter conveyed more meaning than hundreds of rambling words could.
—*I believe you will do well. I will be watching, so strive on until the end.*
If one were to summarize the many meanings contained in the letter, it would probably be something like this.
Baek-yeon, Nang-ya-gak… they always believed in and supported Bu Eun-seol.
Even though he had been braving the martial world alone, the thought of Nang-ya-gak reassured him.
*Fwoosh.*
He summoned the Samadhi True Fire, and the letter in his hand instantly turned to ash and scattered.
*Rustle.*
But just then, a man in blue robes approached from a distance with quick steps and stood before Bu Eun-seol. It was Hyeok So-jin.
“You've gone quite far in that short time.”
Despite his friendly tone, Hyeok So-jin flinched.
Because the look in Bu Eun-seol's eyes was growing colder.
“Do you intend to keep following me?”
“Of course.”
“I believe I already refused.”
At that, Hyeok So-jin spoke with an unprecedented fire in his eyes.
“I refuse your refusal. I will never give up.”
An unprecedented heat was blazing in his pupils.
Hyeok So-jin had already transformed into a martial artist in pursuit of the Martial Way.
“Hmph.”
Realizing Hyeok So-jin's resolve was firm, Bu Eun-seol briefly looked up at the distant sky.
He had to go to Muhasuyujeong soon.
And what awaited him there would be incomparably more arduous than gaining the support of Jeok-cheon-mak-ji.
He had no time to look after a naive novice.
Bu Eun-seol was lost in thought, his brow furrowed. Then, as if an idea struck him, a brief flash glinted in his eyes.
“So you're determined to follow me.”
“I'm glad you understand.”
“Then let's make a wager.”
Hyeok So-jin's eyes widened, wondering what this was about, as Bu Eun-seol spoke in a low voice.
“Can you strike my neck?”