Thirteen Statements

[You're awake.]

I stared up at the cracked, collapsing ceiling of the cavern, packed full of luminous night pearls.

"How long have I been lying here like this?"

[Not even a quarter of an hour.]

"…What happened?"

Mumyeong answered as if nothing of consequence had occurred.

[Nothing at all. The moment you pressed your palm to the jade stele, you convulsed as though struck by lightning and toppled over backward.]

Still lying down, I felt my knees. I felt my lower body. Everything was intact.

"My legs. They didn't burst or anything?"

[What nonsense are you talking? Nothing happened. Again: you simply placed your palm on the jade stele, screamed, and fell over backward.]

"No, what I mean is—"

I recalled the two figures endlessly playing go beneath a burning twilight.

"Mumyeong, while I was out… did you try to find me or anything?"

Mumyeong fell silent for a moment.

[…I have no idea what you are talking about.]

"Never mind. It was nothing. Must have been a delusion."

There was no need to speak of pointless things.

Pssssht.

On one side of my right knee was a red, straight scar, as if it had been raked hard by a fingernail. The width of the scar matched the width of a dagger's blade exactly.

This was no mere dream or hallucination.

Mara Jin. Heavenly Blood Demon.

Those were the names of the unknown beings I had met after touching the jade stele. I wanted to ask Mumyeong who they were. But I did not open my mouth lightly.

Within ten days. Obtain a lock of hair from the successor of Emei's Guardian.

Mara Jin had clearly promised that if I granted him just one wish, he would pass on the Patcheon Hyeolma Gunrimbo. In a world where a single superior martial arts manual was worth more than human lives treated like flies—especially if that manual was the Patcheon Hyeolma Gunrimbo—there was nothing to think about. I had to do it.

"Mumyeong, Mount Emei, Geumjeong Peak, where the Emei Sect is. How far from here?"

[That direction is also to the north. If you push Hwan-yeong-dae-sin-bo to its absolute limit, you should arrive within three days. But why the sudden interest in the Emei Sect?]

That question confirmed it. Mumyeong knew nothing of the conversation with Mara Jin. For now, I would act on that basis.

"Nothing special. Just remembered something I need to visit for."

I trailed off vaguely.

[Hm. As long as it is not a matter of life and death, I do not care.]

Mumyeong did not press further. I had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to hurry. I brushed myself off and rose.

Before leaving, I searched the cavern. Inside the Five Treasures Cave there was nothing but the corpse of the Golden-Furred Divine Ape. No matter how many times I looked, the result was the same.

"Damn it. Looks like…"

[I think the same. Someone got here first.]

I swept my palm across the floor. Only the traces of where heaps of treasure had once been piled remained. The site had been cleaned out without leaving a single coin—naturally the golden bronze incense burner was gone as well.

[Come to think of it, from the beginning the Golden-Furred Divine Ape was agitated far more than necessary.]

We had clashed so abruptly that I had not noticed. Looking back, there had been more than one strange point. No matter how ferocious a spiritual beast the Golden-Furred Divine Ape was, it had charged us without even a moment of reconnaissance. It had been like a creature that had spotted the very thief it was hunting—and the instant it found us, it had lunged to kill.

"Well, it's not as if I have no idea who."

I recalled the man who, even before we arrived, had been certain the Golden-Furred Divine Ape was here. I walked along the corridor, past the Golden-Furred Divine Ape's corpse. Just in case, I searched the already-dead body once more. I had not expected anything, and indeed there was no spiritual core or the like inside the spiritual beast's remains.

"I'll take this at least."

I emptied a gourd bottle and filled it with the blood welling from the Golden-Furred Divine Ape's heart. From everything so far, a spiritual beast's blood demonstrated outstanding recovery for my body alone. Keeping some would prove useful for injuries.

After gathering what I needed, I advanced toward the entrance blocked by rock.

[Host, are you unwell somewhere?]

I staggered once every two steps. At first I was uncertain. But the alien sensation grew stronger with every single step.

The sensation below my knees is strange.

In truth it was not a bad feeling. It felt as if power was overflowing. Where before I had put three-tenths of my strength into each step and driven off, now my feet shot out so excessively that I had to reduce it to one-tenth.

I recalled Mara Jin's words about holding my legs as collateral—along with the line, "I can hardly turn the one who will grant my wish into a cripple."

What kind of change has happened to my legs?

If this sensation was any measure, it felt even more overflowing with strength than when I had relied on the Belt of Protector Ryu. The Belt of Protector Ryu had felt like a wind shoving me from behind—only speed forced higher. Now it felt as though my entire lower body had been tempered and reinforced.

I stood before the boulder blocking the corridor. I drew a deep breath.

Let's try this.

Kiiing—!

Both eyes flushed red.

I stamped my foot. Loading my weight, fists drawn to both flanks, I unleashed three consecutive strikes against the boulder before me.

Jjeo-jeo-jeong!

As though coarse salt had been scattered, a full third of the hard granite boulder collapsed under the impact.

"…"

The true essence of the Vajra Demon Subduing Fist—delivering three successive straight punches of mounting power—was the Heaven-Shaking Three Demon Fist. Unlike the Vajra Demon Subduing Fist, however, I had only copied this one; I had not fully internalized it, so I should not have been able to draw out the martial art's essence perfectly. And yet even with incomplete mastery, the destructive power had reached this level.

No delusion. My lower body has been reinforced, and because of that the power of the Heaven-Shaking Three Demon Fist has grown fiercer still.

Every strike originates from the lower body. That was the core of martial arts, the foundation, the point hammered into the ears of every practitioner from third-rate to first-rate to absolute masters. In the meantime I had not even further refined the Heaven-Shaking Three Demon Fist. Yet the force rising from the calves through the entire lower body had become conspicuously more ferocious.

Even with the same martial art and the same degree of mastery, the destructive power changes completely depending on the level of the body executing it.

I felt the importance of physical tempering with piercing clarity. At ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the same time that I grasped a direction for growth, I also felt how distant the path I had to walk still was.

I must temper myself further. Relying only on the Heavenly Demon's authority will leave me obsolete in the end.

I had to drive myself harder. If I waited for someone else to bestow teachings, I would end up with nothing. I had to do everything I myself was capable of first. Even a single spoonful of rice would do—whatever it took to grow stronger. I could not pin hopes on the future. Vague rewards yet to come meant nothing. I had to grow right now. I could die tomorrow. I had no faction to lean on. No one to look after me or protect me. I myself had to guard myself, nurture myself, and raise myself.

Kwang! Kwang-kwang-kwang!

In the end I smashed every last granite boulder that had blocked the entrance. Thick clouds of dust rose. Far ahead I saw the cave mouth and light pouring in. A figure stood in front of it. Silhouetted against the light, the figure was clapping.

"As expected, as expected! You're the only one who comes out alive. The Blood Sect underlings all said we should just leave, but I alone stayed to the end. Why? Because I believed you would come out! Welcome!"

"You."

I ground my teeth. I strode out without hesitation.

"Happy to see me again, aren't you? I'm extremely happy as well. From the first moment I saw you, I had my eye on you alone. To be precise—ever since I witnessed that wild ferocity of yours when you slaughtered the Blood Hand Unit while daring to invoke the Heavenly Demon?"

I kept advancing step by heavy step.

"Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am the seventh among the eight Palace Lords who serve the Third Blood Demon Cult Leader… Hmm, it seems our Moyong Bi-gun has no interest in conversation?"

Watching me approach, the figure dissolved into shrieking laughter.

"U-uhoho!! Look at those eyes! Actually seeing the phrase 'killing light pours from the eyes'—aside from our Blood Demon Cult Leader, this is the first time I've—!"

Kwaang!

I seized him by the collar and slammed him into the wall in a single motion.

"What the hell kind of scheme is this. A Blood Sect bastard infiltrating Cheonsubaekryeonsa as a disciple—what do you gain from pulling this shit?"

"Uha, uhahaha! Don't worry! Moyong Bi-gun, I absolutely will not fight you today!"

Ryu Hwasa no longer bothered to conceal his true nature. He laughed as though the situation delighted him to the point of madness, mouth stretched wide enough to tear.

"Whether a piece of trash like you fights or not is none of my business. Laugh one more ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time. I'll rip that mouth open."

"Why? Could it be that you're grieving the deaths of those who mocked and sneered at you and planning revenge? Because you're still orthodox, is that it? You know how funny that is, right? That you—who tore dozens of Blood Sect members apart with your bare hands—would act so hypocritically?"

Kwaang!

My fist buried itself in Ryu Hwasa's face. His nose twisted and a molar flew free. He crumpled to the ground.

"Uha, uhahaha! Your excitement is just like a child's. Clumsy, filled only with emotion, lacking any real technique. But."

He wiped the blood streaming from his broken nose while still lying there and laughed.

"That's exactly why I'll let you live. Because I like you."

"You son of a bitch!"

I rushed forward and kicked his face upward. There was no need to use martial arts. It was no delusion. Setting the fight aside, this bastard was weak. The martial level he displayed outwardly was third-rate. I would have believed that in the bloodbath with the Blood Sect, the Blood Hand Unit and remnants were high-ranking while this one was a mere foot soldier. Yet from the words he spat and the circumstances I could infer, he was clearly high-ranking even within the Blood Sect. And that stood completely outside every system I had known until now.

Until now I had lived in a jianghu where strength was absolute.

Those who spoke loudly always possessed the power to back it up. Or they possessed a faction. If one's strength was weak, one's voice naturally grew small; one was ignored, and no one respected one's words. That was the essence of humanity. I too had crawled like vermin through the capital's underbelly and received that feeling countless times. Yet the one collapsed before me existed outside every one of those categories. That was precisely madness.

Clutching his collar and shoving my face close, I snarled.

"Nice to meet you, you fucking bastard. I'm the type they call a mad dog wherever I go too."

"Yes. We're alike."

I spat on Ryu Hwasa where he lay on the ground.

"I don't even need to kill you here. I'll handle you according to the laws of the jianghu."

"Aha?"

For the first time an expression other than laughter appeared on Ryu Hwasa's face.

"I'll hand you over to Cheonsubaekryeonsa. Thanks to you, three disciples of Chu-mu-gwan are dead. Leaving factions aside—even if one kills a fellow martial artist, laying a hand on a Cheonsubaekryeonsa disciple means any measure is tacitly permitted. You know that jianghu rule too."

"Uhi, uhihi. I like the number thirteen. It gives me this feeling of something infinitely incomplete and precarious. In that sense."

With wet, coughing sounds he spat blood and muttered.

"From this moment on I'll overturn that decision of yours with exactly 'thirteen' statements. Euheuheu."

"Crazy bastard."

Giggling, Ryu Hwasa murmured with bloody foam at his lips.

"At first it was mere curiosity. What kind of bastard could butcher our Blood Sect members—famous for retaliation—without flinching like that. But when I dug into your background, it was far more entertaining than expected. Oh yes, indeed."

My expression hardened. A chill spread through one side of my chest.

"Moyong Bi! Born the child of a concubine in the Moyong Family, at the age of five you took the hand of your mother—who was nothing more than a womb for breeding—and fled under cover of night."

My mind went blank white. That bastard was now enumerating, point by point, my personal history—my rag-like past.

"You hid in some mountain valley, and your mother died in winter without even being able to light a single stick of firewood, still searching only for the family head?"

"You."

"After that you crawled like vermin along the ground, begging for instruction, wandering the capital while getting beaten even by servants. 'Please let me in, please let me in. I have no courtesy name, no teachings, and I started learning late, but please just teach me a single scrap of martial arts'—groveling so abjectly, truly the frozen-to-death son of a concubine—"

A fist laden with internal energy drove upward into Ryu Hwasa's abdomen.

"Uwek!"

Ryu Hwasa vomited. I drove my fist in hard enough that his cheek nearly burst.

"Run your mouth one more time."

Ryu Hwasa's lips mashed as he tumbled.

"I said run your mouth!"

My roar echoed wretchedly through the cave.

[Host, calm yourself.]

Eyes rolling, I lunged at Ryu Hwasa.

"You son of a bitch, I'll kill you!"

Ryu Hwasa rolled about as a bloody mess. He coughed blood and laughed wretchedly.

"Uha, uhahaha! Just like a child caught hiding candy!"

Wiping his nosebleed, Ryu Hwasa panted.

"You! Can never! Become an orthodox martial artist! Don't pretend to follow the rules so clumsily. I know you! You're the same kind as me. I saw it at a glance when you butchered our kids in that bloodbath."

He shouted with eyes swelling blue-black. I snatched Ryu Hwasa by the collar and hoisted him up. His feet dangled in the air. My eyes seethed with red killing light ready to explode. Ryu Hwasa gasped as he cried out.

"Euheuheu, this is truly a demon god from the myths! Yet for now you're still a coward. I've been waiting for a bitter, grudge-filled bastard like you. Until now the jianghu has been far too boring. We were made for each other. Moyong Bi-gun."

[Host, regain your reason! You must not fall into exactly what he wants!]

Pssssss!

Red light ran wild in my eyes. In a hoarse voice I said,

"You think I can't do it? You sincerely think I can't? You've got the wrong man…!"

"Uhihi, I think I've got him exactly right!"

My hand unfurled like a claw and lunged for his face.

"Hostages!"

Ryu Hwasa shouted.

My fingers froze as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if iced over right in front of his face. Ryu Hwasa added,

"The mother and sons I captured to offer as sacrifices. I haven't killed them all yet. Some still remain."

My dilated pupils trembled violently. With a face swollen blue-black, Ryu Hwasa said,

"What? Even with your eyes rolled back, you remember, don't you? You can never ignore this. I know. Because this is one of the twisted driving forces and roots that move you right now. Hihihi…"

Watching my twitching fingers, Ryu Hwasa laughed.

"Not enough? Then I'll add one more. The Five Treasures Cave—empty, wasn't it? Who did that? You already know. I did."

Ryu Hwasa smacked his lips as he spoke.

"Then where is that golden bronze incense burner that must have been there—the one absolutely necessary for you to pass your trial? Ah, and come to think of it."

Ryu Hwasa smiled with blue-black eyes and split lips.

"With the statement just now, is that exactly the thirteenth? Unfortunately, I win. Moyong Bi-gun."