Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: The Sect Leader's Choice
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Mu-heun first attended to Pa-sun, who was sitting cross-legged and circulating his qi.
Pa-sun and Un-pyo were the ones who had benefited the most from inhaling and detoxifying the poison mist.
The two of them had been unable to fully absorb the elixirs they had consumed in Blade Leaf Valley due to the large amount of impurities accumulated in their bodies.
However, with a large amount of those impurities now purged, they had absorbed all the remaining energy from the elixirs.
As they circulated their qi in this state, the energy from the elixirs consumed in Blade Leaf Valley began to stir, circulating more deeply and powerfully throughout their bodies. It wasn't just stirring; it was also absorbing more of nature's energy.
‘This is… an amplification of qi…! The energy that has been steadily accumulating since they took the elixirs is now running wild, unleashed by the removal of the impurities.’
Mu-heun placed his left palm a handspan below Pa-sun's neck and his right hand over the dantian area near his waist.
He then mixed the energy of the Five Elements with the Myriad Fragrances, helping to amplify Pa-sun's stirring qi by circulating it even more forcefully.
“Kuaargh!”
Pa-sun felt an agonizing pain, as if his body were being torn apart by the sudden, violent circulation of qi. Mu-heun ordered him to focus.
“Endure the pain and concentrate! If you overcome this moment, you will reach the Transcendent Realm!”
“Kraaaaaaah!”
Hearing Mu-heun's shout, Pa-sun endured the excruciating pain with his entire being and focused on the flow of his qi. Within the raging energy, he could faintly sense the energies of fire, water, metal, wood, and earth. All these energies exploded from his dantian and surged through his Eight Extraordinary Meridians.
“Guuuh.”
The powerful flow of qi soon broke through Pa-sun's lower dantian, then his middle dantian, and finally opened his upper dantian simultaneously. Ordinarily, such a violent surge of energy would have caused qi deviation…
But Pa-sun. He was one who shattered the natural order.
Like a salmon swimming against the current.
He defied gravity,
Like a bird soaring through the sky.
He advanced freely.
The natural order, what some would call a predetermined path,
Pa-sun was the one to break it.
It was the first lesson Mu-heun had given him. From the day he chose his own name, the natural order ceased to exist for Pa-sun. He would simply continue to break it and make it his own.
With supreme mental fortitude, he began to accept all of the surging energy.
He recalled how to manage his qi, a lesson learned while being beaten during their training spars. No matter how much his qi increased, he never forgot that feeling, and so he managed it methodically.
And then…
The energy, which had felt on the verge of exploding, began to flow uniformly throughout his body. The few remaining impurities were expelled, and the qi channels throughout his body were activated, granting immense strength to his muscles and tendons as well.
Thus, under Mu-heun's guidance, Pa-sun found stability.
“Th-this is…”
Un-pyo couldn't help but be astonished. Pa-sun's growth had always been surprising, but Un-pyo's own progress was also steep, so Pa-sun had always been chasing him from behind.
While Un-pyo felt a sense of urgency at Pa-sun's growth, he had also secretly enjoyed it. But the energy he felt now seemed to have shattered even his own understanding of what was possible.
Pa-sun had far surpassed him.
Slowly,
Pa-sun opened his eyes and assessed his internal energy.
“Th-this is…”
His reaction was the same as Un-pyo's.
Pa-sun dropped to his knees and pressed his forehead to the ground.
Thud!
“Thank you for your grace, my lord!”
“Enough. Manage the remaining energy well. From now on, you must refine your practical martial arts to match your increased internal energy. Be careful not to let your power leak when you thrust your spear.”
“Sir!”
“Next. Un-pyo, circulate your qi.”
“Yes!”
Un-pyo shouted excitedly, sat cross-legged, and began to circulate his qi. Just as he had with Pa-sun, Mu-heun stood behind Un-pyo, helping him circulate and amplify his qi.
Because the properties of the elixirs they had consumed were perfectly compatible with Mu-heun's Five Elements and Myriad Fragrances, this session yielded the best possible results.
And so, both Pa-sun and Un-pyo surpassed the Peak Realm and ascended to the ranks of Transcendent Masters.
As a result, Mu-heun's party now possessed enough power to overwhelmingly crush several small to medium-sized sects in an instant.
Including Seol Ha-ryeong, Gu Yang-baek, Pa-sun, Un-pyo, and the Heavenly Demonic Corpse, Hyeok, they now had five Transcendent Masters, with Mu-heun, who had reached the Demonic Pinnacle, anchoring them.
***
- Kunlun Sect, Sect Leader's Office
“What I am about to tell you is the absolute truth, without a single falsehood. Please listen without misunderstanding.”
Pae-seon said, his expression grim, as he stood before the Sect Leader and the Elders.
“My close friend, Baek Jung-hyeok, one of the three great physicians of the Central Plains, was researching a grand technique capable of curing all diseases and poisons. That technique is called the Myriad Fragrance Grand Restoration Formation. It is a miraculous art that, as we have just witnessed, can even cure poisons never seen before.”
Hearing Pae-seon's words, the Elders' faces lit up.
“There are no words for it but astonishing.”
“Indeed.”
The Sect Leader and all the Elders agreed.
“However, I must ask you all. Was the Divine Doctor of Sichuan truly abducted by the Demonic Cult? Or was he already killed by them?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I have brought the Divine Doctor of Sichuan’s disciple here to tell all of you, my sect brothers, the truth.”
“The truth?”
“Yes. And that is…”
Pae-seon paused, waiting for everyone to focus on him. Then, in the moment of silence when all eyes were on him, he continued.
“The betrayal of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”
“…!”
“Under the pretext of supporting the Divine Doctor’s research, the Sichuan Tang Clan has been monitoring him all this time. As his longtime friend, this is something I have witnessed continuously.”
“But… what proof do you have that the Sichuan Tang Clan betrayed the Divine Doctor?”
“The current head of the Tang Clan, Dang Baek-ho, ordered the Golden Fang Poison Claw to steal the Divine Doctor’s research. He judged that the completion of the Myriad Fragrance Grand Restoration Formation would endanger the Tang Clan, which relies on poison as its main weapon. So, he decided to modify the formation and capture children to cultivate them into Poison Blood Demons.”
All the Elders who heard Pae-seon's words could not hide their bewilderment. Then, one Elder asked.
“Senior Brother, our opponent is the Sichuan Tang Clan, one of the Five Great Families of the Orthodox Sects. Can you take responsibility for such a statement?”
At that, Pae-seon, with a ferocious expression like a goblin's, rebuked his junior brother.
“Responsibility? You dim-witted fool. Is it the way of the Orthodox Sects to defend a clan that sent such useless whelps while Ok Cheon-wi and Yeo Wi-cheon were dying? If you don't know what you're talking about, shut your mouth and listen until the end.”
“…”
“My apologies. That was a slip of the tongue. It will not be too late to judge the truth of my words after you have heard everything. So, if I may, I will continue.”
After Pae-seon's fiery outburst, everyone in the room fell silent. Anywhere else, an Elder of Kunlun would never have been treated this way.
However, Pae-seon was their Grand Senior Brother, so it was customary for them to show respect when he grew angry.
With one exception.
The Sect Leader of Kunlun, Un Hyeon-jong, opened his mouth.
“Please continue, Senior Brother.”
“Thank you for your consideration, Sect Leader.”
Pae-seon politely thanked the Sect Leader and continued speaking.
“Feeling his life was in danger, the Divine Doctor fled into the territory of the Demonic Cult. And there, he took on a disciple. The miracle physician you witnessed today. He is the last seed left behind by the Divine Doctor.”
“S-such a thing…!”
“The physician, Baek Mu-heun. He is the one who obtained the Myriad Fragrance Blood Jade Tree and inherited the Divine Doctor’s will, and he has become the benefactor of the two Cloud Dragons and of Kunlun.”
The atmosphere in the office instantly descended into chaos.
“B-but, even if he is Kunlun’s benefactor, he is from the Demonic Cult… Can we just let him be…?”
“That’s right. If we simply let someone from the Demonic Cult go, the Orthodox Sects of the Martial World will not stand for it. Senior Brother, how could you bring such a person here?”
Pae-seon had expected this reaction.
And he refuted them once more.
“What? Then what would have happened today if I hadn't brought Baek Mu-heun, the Divine Doctor's disciple? Are you saying the right path was to send over sixty disciples and physicians to the afterlife, and to let the two Cloud Dragons pass away as well?”
“Ah…! No, what I mean is…”
“Then, is the Sichuan Tang Clan in the right—the clan that betrayed and tried to kill the Divine Doctor who dedicated his life to saving the poor and powerless, and that intends to capture parentless children to raise as Poison Blood Demons? Is following them the right path?”
“Th-that is…”
“What is an Orthodox Sect? What is righteousness? What is chivalry? Is it righteous for the powerful to cover for each other's evil deeds? Or is it chivalrous to kill or capture a man based on his origin, regardless of his intentions?”
Pae-seon fiercely shot down the Elder who kept interrupting him, but at that moment, another Elder cut him off.
“However, Senior Brother. There is a reason why origin is important. Why are we proud of Kunlun and cherish our disciples? It is because Kunlun has inherited the will of great predecessors and possesses the ability to nurture people.”
Starting with his rebuttal, others began to rise up one after another like bamboo shoots after rain.
“That’s right. Even if we don't need to listen to the Sichuan Tang Clan, defending the Demonic Cult is another matter entirely. The reason the Demonic Cult and the Orthodox Sects cannot mix is that they judge people solely by their strength. No matter what evil they commit, they feel no sense of guilt in their philosophy.”
“Furthermore, if the Divine Doctor of Sichuan's disciple is from the Demonic Cult, we can simply accept him into Kunlun from now on. Can we not protect him?”
The mood shifted once again. No matter that Mu-heun was from the Demonic Cult, he was Kunlun's benefactor. The Elders, not ignorant of this fact, began to argue that if his will had not yet been tainted by the cult, Kunlun should protect him.
Pae-seon knew that was impossible, so he cut them off decisively.
“No, he is a man with a grand ambition. Who are we to take in someone who does not wish it? Are we physicians? Are our medical skills superior to his? Did you not see his skills for yourselves!”
“Th-that is…”
Slurp.
Just then, the sound of tea being drunk was heard. It wasn't just any sound of drinking.
Everyone's eyes and ears turned to one place. It was the very center of the office where they had all gathered. The Sect Leader's seat.
Pae-seon also stopped talking, and the Elders listened intently.
The Sect Leader of Kunlun, Un Hyeon-jong, set down his teacup.
Tak.
“It seems none of you consider the Sect Leader’s opinion to be important?”
“H-how could that be? Everyone here respects you from the bottom of their hearts, Sect Leader.”
Pae-seon also nodded.
“Will you listen to what I have to say?”
“O-of course. We may offer our opinions, but everyone here knows the years you have sacrificed for Kunlun and your devotion to the sect. How could we not listen to your words?”
“Thank you. Then, first, I will ask the Elders three questions. First, the physician Baek Mu-heun. Is there anyone here who can deny that he is our Kunlun's benefactor?”
“…”
“It seems not. Then, second, is there anyone who denies that the Sichuan Tang Clan has been deceiving and using us?”
“…”
“My final question. Is there a more certain and better way than having the Light-Splitting Immortal, Gu Pae-seon, Kunlun’s current greatest master, watch over the physician Baek Mu-heun?”
“…”
Not embracing the physician Mu-heun, nor turning him into an enemy, but placing him beside Gu Pae-seon, the greatest master of the Cloud Dragons, to be both escorted and monitored.
Such was the Sect Leader's proposal.
Pae-seon was both surprised and delighted by Sect Leader Un Hyeon-jong's words, and no one present could raise an objection.