Chapter 7
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Water
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Water.
Just as people and all living creatures breathe air, it takes on any form depending on its container, the pinnacle of intangibility.
When vaporized, it rises lighter than air; when solidified, it becomes harder than anything else.
It boils furiously with the outside temperature, or exhales chilling cold; sometimes it bubbles endlessly to pierce through stone, other times it gathers into a torrent to reshape the heavens and earth...
Right now, Yu Hyun was gradually assimilating with the properties of that very water.
Bubble, bubble bubble.
Feeling the soft water enveloping his body, he exhaled his breath in quiet, measured puffs, and soon the trapped air rose in beads like pearls.
Without gills like a fish, he couldn't breathe in and out repeatedly—he had to ration his inhalations and endure slowly.
Five days had passed today.
Yu Hyun devoted himself solely to breathing techniques, without any other training. It was to endure as long as possible in the water and adapt.
To control and observe every organ the body needed, making them usable only for movement.
This was the foundation of the Dragon Water Technique, the secret art he had stealthily learned from the Yangtze Waterway Pavilion.
First, he had to last long enough to practice anything else, so he focused on that alone.
And now, just shy of half an incense stick's time.
Roughly one quarter of an incense stick.
It was said that when the Dragon Water Technique reached its peak, one could breathe through the skin like a fish with gills,潜行 like a merman for extended periods. But for now, this was sufficient.
This level alone was the entry into breath-holding, a realm achievable only after reaching that stage.
Thanks to this, Guard Huang, whose body had slimmed from worry, had no idea how many times he had jumped into the water.
“Pha!”
Successfully surpassing the limit once more, Yu Hyun erupted above the surface, expelling ragged breaths.
Splash.
The waves surged fiercely in the bathing pool from the motion of his massive frame.
“Gr-Grand! Incredible, Young Master.”
“What’s so great about this...”
Guard Huang glanced at the half-burned incense, eyes widening in astonishment, but Yu Hyun waved it off.
Yeah, nothing special.
This was the foundation of foundations for what came next. There was much more to do ahead.
“What about the thing I told you to prepare?”
“Ah, here...”
Guard Huang lifted the iron device he had grunted and hauled over to the side.
“Hmm, perfect weight.”
Yu Hyun nodded after roughly gauging it.
A buoyancy restraining device, by name.
Invented to suppress the upward force in water, allowing one to endure longer.
Until now, to limit buoyancy, he had no choice but to expel the air from his body.
But with a weight stronger than buoyancy added, he wouldn't need to struggle against floating.
Moreover, he could hold even more air in his body and still stay submerged, lasting longer than before.
“Put it on.”
“Yes? But if something goes wrong again...”
“It’s fine. I’ll take responsibility.”
“Still...”
“I already told Father.”
“...”
“It’s just neck-deep water. If I run out of breath, I’ll surface. If needed, I’ll wave my hand.”
“...”
His words and expression brimmed with confidence, but the worry was unavoidable. Guard Huang gave Yu Hyun an anxious look, then hesitantly fastened the iron device to his ankle.
“Good. Shall we dive in now?”
“Already? Rest a bit more.”
“Where’s the time for rest?”
“...”
Yu Hyun grinned and drew a deep breath before plunging into the water.
Splash.
As Yu Hyun vanished beneath the surface, Guard Huang gazed worriedly at the rippling water, then clicked his tongue.
“Still, it’s impressive. Holding breath all day like a pearl diver, even managing to sit in meditation...”
The water was so clear that Yu Hyun, seated against the sunken iron ball, looked as if floating in midair.
Bubble, bubble, bubble.
Bubbles rose, then the surface grew still.
Eyes closed, Yu Hyun sank slowly into his own world of breath-holding meditation.
The realm martial artists called qi circulation and breath regulation.
A person's meridians are fully open at birth but harden and clog with age. Thus, cultivating qi is best started as young as possible, even a year earlier.
But Yu Hyun was seventeen, never having trained in martial arts.
Extremely disadvantageous conditions for building internal energy.
He could temper his body through effort, but at his age, cultivating internal energy had inevitable limits.
However, before returning to the past, the Righteous Six Saints had devised and taught him a method for such cases.
The Spirit Heart Core Method, by name.
Unlike conventional methods of accumulating internal energy in the dantian, it forms a spirit core inside the body to store qi, then borrows its power.
And that spirit core is made in the heart, which circulates blood.
Using the heart instead of the dantian, and blood vessels instead of rigid meridians to channel qi. That was the essence of the Spirit Heart Core Method.
Bubble bubble, bubble.
Following the incantation of the Spirit Heart Core Method from memory, Yu Hyun began slowly gathering and moving his energy.
The basics were a path he had already walked in his previous life.
No matter how fat he had grown, his heart and blood vessels were the same as anyone else's, so it wasn't difficult.
Once the heart transformed into a core, he could finally learn martial arts.
He hadn't decided yet whether to save the martial world or simply enjoy his given life as father and son, but power was better than none.
Having set his goal, Yu Hyun poured all his time except eating, sleeping, and excreting into training.
One day, two days... and nearly a month.
At some point, a confident change appeared on Yu Hyun's face.
It worked!
Finally, spirit energy began to dwell in his heart.
A minuscule amount, but creating it was what mattered.
Swoosh—
Letting the heart's pulsing spirit energy flow freely, the energy spread through his blood vessels across his body.
First, the hands.
Spreading the hands he had neatly gathered on his lower abdomen to part the water, he clearly felt the water's flow through his skin.
Though a small amount, it sufficed to observe the interior of the bathing pool.
Extending his qi to merge the surrounding space with his senses, Yu Hyun fully assimilated his senses with the water's free-flowing properties.
The sensation of the stream extending from his hands striking the inner wall of the bathing pool and returning to touch his body.
Was it because it had been so long? The tingling from the periphery slowly spread through his body, rising as goosebumps along his spine and chilling the nape of his neck.
It felt good.
He wanted to move his body.
Swish.
Releasing his seated posture, he spread his legs into a horse stance and swirled his hands like whirlwinds.
Swoosh.
Not fast. Far slower than on land due to water resistance, but that made it more suitable.
The water reduced the weight of his massive flesh, sparing strain on his joints... The resistance provided just the right restraint across his body, demanding more focus on movements for greater training effect.
His hands, tracing a large circle to form a taiji, gathered at his chest then slowly thrust forward. It was the face technique of Wudang's Unhyeonja among the Righteous Six Saints who taught him, embodying its essence.
Though invisible to the eye, he could clearly feel it.
The faint energy leaving his hands crossed the water, crumbled against the distant wall, and a small rebound returned.
Swipe, thud.
Receiving that force, he retreated then advanced slowly, his stepping foot resonating with the water.
The shock transmitted to his knee, twisting up his waist. Channeling it into his fist and thrusting slowly—it was the Hundred Paces Divine Fist taught by Shaolin Divine Monk Won Gang-seonja.
Splash!
The surface churned from the waves created by the power in the Hundred Paces Divine Fist.
Yu Hyun flowed into the next movement without pause.
Riding the rippling waves, his staggering steps as if drunk summoned the eight immortals—Beggars' Sect's Drunken Eight Immortals Steps.
Hands and feet whirling in countless variations, embodying ten thousand changes in one sword—Nangong's Azure Heaven Swordsmanship.
Shattering forms and stances so even experts of his own sects couldn't recognize them, taking only the pure essence: the teachings of the Righteous Six Saints.
Wudang, Shaolin, Beggars' Sect, Nangong...
Fragmented ultimate arts from the six sects began unfolding through his body as naturally as if pieced together.
“Gasp! Th-that’s!”
Guard Huang, who had been anxiously watching for any mishap, bulged his eyes and shot to his feet.
Guard Huang.
Currently serving as Yu Hyun's personal guard under the Yu Clan Manor, he was originally a renowned general in the military.
In martial terms, infusing will into qi for deployment—around the Intent Qi realm?
Enough to be sect leader of a minor sect, elder in a major one.
His eyes trembled finely as he watched Yu Hyun.
The walking steps in water, the hands and feet slicing through currents vertically and horizontally, the rippling waves in response...
That was clearly...
“Isn’t he flailing too much? He’s not drinking water again, is he?”
Right.
Sublime ultimate arts? No way to recognize such things from Yu Hyun's body.
The floating fat... jiggling even underwater with every movement, concealing everything.
It just looked like waddling around in the water.
“No, wait!”
Just as Guard Huang watched worriedly, Yu Seong-hwan arrived, feeling neglected by his shut-in son enjoying his water play, and let out an exclamation at the sight.
Brushing past Guard Huang's hasty bow, he approached the bathing pool and called to Dam Cheon-u in a trembling voice.
“H-hey, son-in-law.”
“Yes, Father-in-law.”
“Our Hyun, Hyun is...”
“...?”
“Displaying martial prowess.”
“...”
Dam Cheon-u and Guard Huang stared at Yu Seong-hwan as if struck on the head.
What? Displaying what?
Fine, a hundred concessions: enduring that long underwater was impressive.
His lungs were large from his big frame, but even they, trained in martial arts, struggled to last that time.
But no matter how blind a father is to his child, how could that look like martial arts?
Guard Huang aside, Dam Cheon-u was no ordinary man.
To others, a lucky son-in-law living off his father-in-law, punching bag in Yu Clan Manor—but in the martial world, he was renowned.
And to those two, Yu Hyun's movements were clearly, sufficiently, perfectly just splashing, no, flailing arms.
“Father-in-law, isn't that going too far? It's just flailing...”
“Hey! Flailing! Flailing, you say!”
“...”
“Others might not know, but I do! I'm his father!”
That's the biggest problem.
Seeing even flailing as martial arts—that crazy paternal blinders!
“L-look. The entire pool ripples from that child's brilliant movements! Ha ha!”
“...”
That huge body flailing like that—if the water didn't move, that'd be the issue.
Dam Cheon-u and Guard Huang forced smiles and nodded.
What to do with this old man, poisoned to the marrow by fatherly love...
“Hey, son-in-law.”
“Yes?”
“That child seems destined to become a general.”
“...”
“Heh heh, a pity he sets his sights on martial over scholarly, but what can be done? If he wants it so badly. As a father, I can only support him materially and morally...”
S-support him?
Dam Cheon-u, who had been nodding absently, stiffened.
No way this damn dotard was...
“I must send a letter to the Imperial Palace.”
“Pardon?”
“A letter, a letter.”
“...”
The fear was becoming reality.
A letter to the Imperial Palace... petitioning the Emperor? Get his nephew-in-law into the military exam?
No. Must block this at all costs, even dying.
This man, with his immense power, had never asked a favor in his life—the Emperor handled everything himself.
So if he asked, the Emperor might issue an edict immediately.
“No, you can't!”
“Hm?”
“Petitioning? Father-in-law is the symbol of incorruptibility all scholars revere. How could you think such an unjust thing!”
“...”
Dam Cheon-u's face flushed red as he raised his voice, and Guard Huang nodded solemnly in agreement.
“Petition? What nonsense?”
“Pardon?”
“Tsk, for my son-in-law to harbor such unjust thoughts...”
“...”
“How could one who eats the country's salary make such a petition? And would His Majesty even grant it if I did?”
“Then?”
“I'll request, in place of the superior tribute from last time, one of the finest martial arts manuals from the Imperial Martial Arsenal.”
“...”
“Ha ha ha! Right, no time for this. I must send the letter at once.”
Yu Seong-hwan burst into hearty laughter, clasped his hands behind his back, and departed.
Dam Cheon-u and Guard Huang watched his excitedly wiggling back with matching looks of dismay.
Not a petition, good—but the Emperor has it rough too.
Ruling the nation, granting this dotard's requests...