Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Second Growth (1)
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Three days had passed since my promise with the Demonic Doctor.
Today was also exactly 30 days before the fourth test.
"The air is cold, probably because it's morning."
Why did I visit the infirmary before sunrise?
Because a mountain of training, with no end in sight, awaited me.
To me, every minute, every second was precious right now.
Well, I wasn't sure who would be awake at this hour, but what could I do when I was in such a hurry?
"Thankfully, someone's out here."
Despite my worries, someone came into view in front of the infirmary.
Seeing his stooped back and long beard, I figured it was the Demonic Doctor.
Just then, as if sensing my presence, he waved his hand.
"Guess old folks really don't sleep in."
I said it like that, but I was grateful in my own way.
Just as thirty days felt short to me, three days must have felt short to the Demonic Doctor.
Dang Hyeon-woo had said that the Demonic Spirit Pill was an elixir comparable to Shaolin's Great Rejuvenation Pill, and that even for the Demonic Doctor, creating it within three days would require being cooped up in the brewing room day and night.
'He must be exhausted, yet he kept his promise to the letter.'
I used my lightness technique to approach him a little faster.
"Elder, you must have worked hard for three days. You could have left it to Hyeon-woo..."
"Hahaha, that boy would even take the pills I hide in the brewing room. How could I trust him with something for the man who will soon become the next Heavenly Demon?"
It seemed he was still upset about Dang Hyeon-woo swiping the pills.
Well, that was a problem for Dang Hyeon-woo to solve.
It was time to receive the Demonic Spirit Pill and leave.
The Demonic Doctor seemed to sense this as well, reaching into his robes and saying as he pulled his hand out.
"Ah, you must be busy, and I haven't even given you the item."
*Ssk.*
On his palm rested a small, very expensive-looking box.
I took it and gently opened it.
"…!"
But the scent of the pill wafting through the small opening pricked the tip of my nose.
The scent alone felt far more alluring than when I saw the inner core of the Jade Serpent.
If I had to describe it, the scent was almost bewitching.
As my eyes widened at the aroma, the Demonic Doctor chuckled beside me and said.
"Hahaha, don't be fooled by the scent. Its taste and intensity are enough to make most deadly poisons feel like candy."
"...Is it that bad?"
"Well, is the taste really that important? Don't worry. I guarantee its effects."
Judging by his expression, he didn't seem to be lying.
'Damn old man. Saying the taste isn't important because he's not the one eating it.'
My high expectations came crashing down, but as the Demonic Doctor said, all that mattered was that its effects were sufficient.
Now that I had what I came for.
I headed to that place, a short distance from the infirmary.
"Hah, these mechanisms are fascinating no matter how many times I see them. I bet even those Zhuge bastards would have a hard time disarming them."
This was the path to the cave containing the will of the first Heavenly Demon, including the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
Just as I had seen on the first day, the path was lined with mechanisms at every turn.
In my past life, these mechanisms were what gave me the most trouble when warring with the Orthodox Faction, so my eyes were constantly drawn to them.
'If only the Green Forest had this level of technology, we wouldn't have been pushed back so badly...'
What's past is past.
I forced myself to shake off the regret and entered the cave before me.
"Alright, first, let's move that."
Before circulating my energy, I moved the coffin containing the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon and the Heavenly Demon Sword from the center of the cave to a corner.
"I need to start training the Divine Arts of the Tiger right after taking the Demonic Spirit Pill, so I'll move this beforehand."
Only after moving the wooden box next to the coffin could I sit on the floor.
*Ssk.*
I took out the box with the Demonic Spirit Pill again, and its appearance was beautiful.
"What a strange life for a back-alley thug."
It felt like just yesterday I was digging up tree roots to survive, yet now I held a Demonic Spirit Pill that even the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult couldn't easily obtain. The feeling was surreal.
"Hoo... there's no time, so let's get this over with."
*Gulp.*
To hell with sentimentality, I tossed it into my mouth in one go.
Then, while still in a cross-legged position, I circulated my internal energy according to the heart-method of the Divine Arts of the Tiger.
The energy of the Demonic Spirit Pill, gathered in my lower dantian, flowed through my energy channels.
The energy flowed unhindered, passing through the middle dantian to reach the upper dantian.
It was then that I understood why the Demonic Doctor had said the Demonic Spirit Pill was more intense than most deadly poisons.
A cracking sound echoed as my entire skin began to fracture. A grinding noise followed as my muscles and bones twisted.
An indescribable pain spread through every corner of my body, from head to toe.
But I couldn't even let out a small groan.
'If I can't overcome a little pain like this, I can't do anything...! Maeng Ak, endure it! Haven't you experienced this once before?!'
In truth, I had experienced this pain in my past life.
Commonly known as Body Reformation, it was a process one had to inevitably endure to achieve an Indestructible Body.
Body Reformation.
The difference between a martial artist who has undergone it and one who has not is like heaven and earth, even if they are at the same level.
It also meant that it was not a fortuitous encounter that came to just anyone who reached a high realm.
Yet for it to happen to me twice... if anyone knew, they might call it a heavenly blessing.
'A heavenly blessing... whoever said that has definitely never experienced it!!'
But it was too painful a process to be called a blessing. If one experienced it firsthand, they would never dare to speak of it so lightly.
It was literally a process where the bones, energy channels, blood vessels, and even every inch of skin in the entire body were shattered and then regenerated.
'Well, thanks to this, my body is becoming suitable for using techniques like the Indestructible Body.'
The saving grace was that the reward was as great as the terrible pain.
Look how my body has already become incomparably tougher.
It was also proof that the Divine Arts of the Tiger was reaching its peak.
How much time had passed like that?
Judging by the change in the sunlight pouring into the cave entrance, a full day must have gone by.
"Hoo... I barely survived that."
It wasn't actually fatal, but the pain was so intense that death would have been a relief.
The seemingly eternal pain subsided, and my body had changed.
The Body Reformation was successfully completed, and I had achieved the physique of the Indestructible Body.
In other words, I had accomplished half of the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
"Shall I try opening it then?"
Without hesitation, I took the coffin I had stashed in the corner.
According to the coded journal carved on the wall, I should definitely be able to open it.
So, to test my changed body, I applied my strength and pushed the coffin lid open.
"Hup!"
*Krrrrk!*
Placing a hand on each side of the lid and pushing outward as if spreading my arms, the thing that hadn't budged before began to open little by little.
Seeing that it was still difficult even after achieving the Indestructible Body, I could understand why the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult members had never obtained it.
'Or perhaps, they didn't even know this cave existed in the first place?'
Opening the coffin wasn't so difficult that I couldn't afford stray thoughts.
"Hup!"
I channeled strength into my lower dantian again, and the lid finally opened.
*Thunk!*
"What's this?"
But contrary to the information carved on the wall, only a single secret manual for the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon was inside.
"Hmm... well, that's not what's important."
At least several decades must have passed since this place was created.
So it wasn't too strange for something to be different.
Above all, the most important thing, the secret manual for the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon, was still here, which was a relief.
'Why was only the secret manual left...?'
It wasn't that I had no questions.
But with a day already gone, I only had 29 days left.
I didn't have the luxury to dwell on curiosity.
*Fwip.*
I first flipped through the secret manual, giving it a quick look.
"What kind of monstrous sword art is this... so there was a reason it was separated from the Divine Arts of the Tiger."
The forms written in the secret manual for the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon were movements that a human body couldn't even imitate.
So much so that even a master of a considerably high realm would not be able to avoid injury if they tried to follow them.
It wasn't for nothing that the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon was split into the Divine Arts of the Tiger and the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
It seemed one first had to achieve an Indestructible Body through the Divine Arts of the Tiger and obtain a superhuman physique to properly learn it.
And if the Divine Arts of the Tiger were combined with the forms of the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon, it felt like it would become incomparably stronger than the original Green Forest Divine Arts of the Tiger.
"Was it incomplete?"
That meant my past self, who was called the greatest under heaven, was only a half-baked martial artist compared to someone who had learned the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
I didn't feel bad or empty.
No, what martial artist could feel a sense of futility in a situation like this?
"Potential for growth..."
The feeling I had when I first learned martial arts wasn't futility, but joy.
I am joyful now.
To think what I considered my limit was just the beginning—there is probably no happier fortuitous encounter than this.
"I have 29 days left. Within that time, I will master the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon and complete the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon!"
I couldn't imagine how much stronger I would become.
Just as I couldn't fathom how painful the process would be.
New learning was joyful, but at the same time, it was also painful.
I had to completely overhaul the forms I had practiced, which were centered on the fist.
Fortunately, having created the Green Forest Demon Subduing Sword Arts with my new body was a great help.
"A Heaven and Earth Body that has even undergone Body Reformation... it's my own body, but I'm at a loss for words..."
In reality, mastering one of the divine arts that constituted a part of the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon—not some third-rate technique—in just 29 days...
...mastering the Sword Arts of the Heavenly Demon was next to impossible.
That is, if it weren't for my Heaven and Earth Body and the unique internal energy I had newly cultivated by combining evil and demonic ki.
"At this rate, I should be able to meet the deadline."
I took out the Black Plaque Sword I had brought and began to learn the forms written in the secret manual, practicing them one by one.
First, to get an overall grasp, I performed each of the ten forms once.
But it was unbelievably difficult.
"Hah. Hah."
I was out of breath, cold sweat poured down like rain, and even my limbs were trembling.
Even with the Indestructible Body, it took time to adapt.
It was truly a sword art worthy of the name 'Heavenly Demon'.
The energy consumption was so great that my dantian churned every time I executed a form.
Having done that a whole ten times, I felt the Indestructible Body had lived up to its name just by preventing me from collapsing from exhaustion.
"Damn it... Hehehe."
It was hard and frustrating.
I had achieved the Indestructible Body by enduring such harsh pain, only to be on the verge of exhaustion after just ten forms.
But at the same time, it was joyful.
It meant there were still many more steps to climb.
Fifteen days passed like that.
I had now perfectly mastered the first five of the ten forms.
Each form was on par with the ultimate techniques of other so-called divine arts, making them difficult to handle.
Yet, there were still five more to go. And they were even more complex and difficult.
To make matters worse, a big problem arose.
'To think the blade of the Black Plaque Sword, which could easily be called a famed sword, is this damaged.'
The power of the forms was so immense that the sword I needed for training had been damaged.
'I might have to stop my training.'
At a time when every day counted, stopping my training was no small matter.
Moments of continuous enlightenment were rare.
Just then, something that could overcome this difficulty entered my sight.
"What is that?!"
