Chapter 36
Chapter 36
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: That's How That Guy Lives
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Martial God (36)
That's how that guy lives.
At first, I laughed, calling him a 'total lunatic.' Still, his sincerity was admirable, so I decided to give it a listen. But damn, he really was a 'lunatic.'
No one in their right mind would ever teach this martial art to another person.
'What is this?'
Gorgan was stunned.
The martial art Ak Muyoo was reciting wasn't just any technique—it was the Radiant World Divine Art, something Gorgan had never even heard of before. By then, Ak Muyoo had finished the first recitation and launched into the second. Gorgan focused every ounce of his attention. The incantation was incredibly long. A wave of anxiety hit him—he might not memorize it all in ten repetitions.
'Get it together, Gorgan. Have you forgotten all the humiliations you've endured?'
Gorgan whipped himself mentally as he committed the incantation to memory. Before he knew it, all ten recitations were done.
Gorgan and the other six closed their eyes and silently reviewed what they'd memorized.
A moment later, they opened their eyes.
"Why are you teaching this to us?"
Goha asked.
She had recognized immediately that it was an extraordinary martial art. She thought that if she were in Ak Muyoo's position, she would never share it.
"It's a bit much, isn't it? Even I think so. Plus, you all came here to kill me."
"Strictly speaking, it was you and the generals traveling with you."
"Since I promised to bury them, it's the same thing."
"Are they dead?"
"One is. The rest are on their way. With some luck, one might pull through. What about General Choyu?"
He asked while looking at Gorgan.
"I gave him a proper burial."
"Good call."
Ak Muyoo nodded.
"Why did you teach us this martial art?"
"Do you really need to know?"
"I do."
"Can't you just say 'thank you' and 'I'll repay the favor if I get the chance,' and leave it at that?"
"I want to know."
"...Two reasons. First, because of my masters who lived their whole lives as losers. Second, because I don't need it."
"Who were your masters?"
"The Central Plains Avoidance Seven Freaks."
"The Ten Thousand Defeats Seven Freaks?"
Gorgan knew of the Central Plains Avoidance Seven Freaks.
"Yeah. They're called that because they never won a single fight. How do you know about them?"
"I went to the Central Plains when I was young."
"To the Martial God Tower?"
"Yes."
"Looking for a fateful encounter?"
"Exactly."
"How far did you get?"
"Fifty floors over ten years."
"...And you found nothing?"
"Nothing stronger than the Warwolf Ten Arts."
"Why'd you come back?"
"I got word that my father was gravely ill. I had no choice."
"I see."
Ak Muyoo nodded.
"What do you mean you don't need it?"
"I told you earlier. My body has no internal energy."
"You really don't?"
Goha asked.
"Want to check?"
Ak Muyoo extended his hand.
"Yes."
Goha took his pulse and pushed in some qi.
"My god..."
She stared at Ak Muyoo in shock.
What he said was true. There wasn't a shred of internal energy in his dantian. No—his dantian wasn't even formed.
"How..."
Goha pushed in more qi. Same result. She sensed nothing.
"How can you beat your father with a body that has no internal energy at all?"
"That just shows how pathetic the Warwolf Ten Arts are."
"I told you we weren't done, you punk."
Gorgan bristled.
"I'm heading out."
Ak Muyoo stood up.
"Where's your home?"
Gorgan asked.
"Why do you want to know?"
"I want to repay the favor."
"How?"
"I'll dedicate my life to you."
"..."
Ak Muyoo looked into Gorgan's eyes. The two locked gazes for a while.
"I'll gratefully accept the sentiment."
"You're not going to tell me?"
"Even if I wanted to, I don't have a home. I never got paid for ten years of work. No guarantee I'll even survive and make it back. Even if I do, I don't know where I'd live or how. So forget we ever met."
"I could never forget."
"They say fateful encounters and opportunities come like passing guests. Those who recognize them and seize them succeed; those who don't live the same life forever."
"You mean meeting you was my fateful encounter?"
"That's up to how you see it."
"Have you ever had a fateful encounter?"
"I told you one of the generals died."
"Right."
"Before he died, he said this to me: 'You can only climb one step at a time. Never skip two or more. Even hundreds of enlightenments won't change that. Just one step at a time. That's the fate of one without a dantian. Walking the path without certainty, calluses building all over your body.' Anyway, I'm really going now. Good luck."
Ak Muyoo waved and turned around.
Clang!
As he turned, he lowered both arms.
The two Demon Hooks dug into the sand and lodged there.
"Hah!"
With a shout, he unleashed Mad Thousand Blood Steps and charged off.
"Did you hear that?"
Gorgan said quietly.
"We did."
The five bowed their heads in response.
"Did you see that?"
"We did."
"He has no dantian. And yet he beat me with that body. We're in far better shape—we have dantians and internal energy. Pass this martial art on to every Warwolf clansman. Train with everything you've got. In one year, all Warwolves will set aside their positions and compete in a tournament. I'll step down as clan leader and join in. The winner of that tournament becomes the new Warwolf clan leader. Understand?"
"Yes."
The five bowed in unison.
Gorgan stood up.
"Raaargh!"
From afar came Ak Muyoo's piercing roar. Gorgan watched him steadily.
"That shout sounds sad."
Goha said.
"That's not a shout."
"Then...?"
"It's the rage, resentment, and lament of a warrior without a dantian."
"..."
"Do you know why I lost?"
"No."
"That guy threw himself at the Warwolf Blade, loaded with full power."
"He didn't dodge and get hit—you're saying he threw himself into it?"
"Yes. He used his own body as a shield to block the blade and severed my left hand."
"That's..."
"That's how that guy lives."
Gorgan dropped to his knees right there.
He bowed his head.
'I'll come find you. No matter what.'
Gorgan muttered to himself. Then he stood.
"We're heading back."
He turned around.
The Warwolf clan followed the footprints back. Soon, they emerged from the Killing Sand Pit.
'Huh?'
Gorgan's eyes widened. At the entrance to the Killing Sand Pit stood a group of people. Standing atop a sand mound, gazing into the pit, was Jeok Yeom-cheon, the Wind Lord ranked fourth among the Desert Ten Heroes.
—Isn't that Jeok Yeom-cheon?
Goha sent a transmission to Gorgan.
—It is.
—Why's he here?
—Probably because of the Four Evils Bandits.
—Why the Four Evils Bandits?
—Rumor has it Jeok Yeom-cheon's son, Jeok Ri-ha, founded them.
—So one of the Four Evils Bandits corpses we found on the way was Jeok Ri-ha?
—Looks like it.
"Warewolf Clan Leader Gorgan, the great hero, I presume?"
Jeok Yeom-cheon spoke first.
"Yes."
Gorgan nodded.
"I'm Jeok Yeom-cheon."
"Pleased to meet you."
"I have one question..."
"Ask away."
"It seems Great Bow Dragon Lu Ha entered there. Is that right?"
"Yes."
"My thanks."
Jeok Yeom-cheon cupped his fists.
"No trouble at all. Well then..."
Gorgan returned the gesture and left.
Jeok Yeom-cheon watched Gorgan's group depart.
"We're going in."
Once they were out of sight, Jeok Yeom-cheon gave the order. The Sand Wind Spirit Demon Squad entered the Killing Sand Pit.
They had no trouble following the Warwolf clan's footprints until the spot where Ak Muyoo and Gorgan had fought.
There, the tracks suddenly stopped.
"From here on, use your palm power to probe for solid ground."
Geo Bu-chi shouted.
The men at the front unleashed their palm strikes in unison.
Thud! Thud-thud-thud! Thud-thud! Thud!
Their palms struck the sand.
But the depth of the craters was uniform.
"Hit harder!"
Geo Bu-chi shouted again.
"Hah!"
"Tah!"
"Haa!"
The squad members swung their arms with shouts.
Dull thuds echoed from the sand ahead and to the sides.
"There."
Geo Bu-chi pointed to the shallowest crater and yelled. The group shifted there and struck again. Unleashing full-power palm strikes repeatedly wasn't easy. After five or six tries, they rotated with others.
Progress was slow, but they pressed on without rest. Before long, night fell. With it came a sharp drop in temperature.
The squad ate and burrowed into the sand, covering their faces with sand-proof masks.
"How are the squad members holding up?"
Jeok Yeom-cheon asked as Geo Bu-chi approached.
"They're fine."
In truth, Geo Bu-chi hadn't checked yet. Even if they were exhausted, he couldn't say 'They can't go on.' Nor could they stop. Reporting all clear was the best option.
"They're not struggling?"
"They'll recover after a night's rest."
"You rest too, Division Leader."
"Understood."
Geo Bu-chi returned to his spot.
—How are the squad members?
He asked the deputy beside him via transmission, not daring to speak aloud where Jeok Yeom-cheon might hear.
—They're worn out. And with the cold like this, they can't circulate qi...
The deputy trailed off.
The temperature was too low for qi circulation.
"The clan's master will handle the extermination himself. We just need to find them. Pick up the pace tomorrow."
"Got it."
The two closed their eyes right away.