The Rejuvenation of Mount Hua

Baek Dan-yeong led the way, slicing through the air as though she were soaring across the sky.

Her white hair fluttered. Her martial robes billowed.

Her steps were remarkably light. The way her toes brushed across tree branches and her feet met the rocks carried no sense of weight at all.

After running for a long while, we reached our destination. It seemed to sit roughly midway between Mount Hua and the Black Merchant Sect.

A modest city lay in the distance, and on its outskirts stood a simple thatched cottage.

"Is that you, Dan-yeong?"

An elderly man emerged after sensing our presence.

I could detect no inner energy from him, yet he was clearly no ordinary person. Still, I recognized it immediately. This man had practiced martial arts, and to a considerable level.

At least the Transformation Realm. But he possessed no dantian. Or more accurately, he once had, but it was gone now.

"My apologies for the late greeting. I am Kang Jeong-un, Lord of the Silent Sword Forest."

The old man's eyebrows twitched. He had probably never heard the name before, which explained the reaction.

But then Baek Dan-yeong stepped close to the old man, covered her mouth, and whispered something to him.

What? She could speak naturally after all?

Ah, of course. It wasn't that she was incapable of speech.

Besides, if this was where she had been staying, these people would naturally know her. And this man was almost certainly connected to Mount Hua.

Having reached the Transformation Realm, that only made sense.

"My, my. To think I have shown such discourtesy to such an honored guest. I have nothing worthy to offer, but please, come inside."

The old man spoke, and Baek Dan-yeong stared at me with clear, insistent eyes.

A silent urging to follow them in.

Having no reason to refuse, I went along.

The cottage was not large. The old man guided us into a small room. This must be where he lived.

I sensed several presences in the other rooms. Seven or so. All of them children.

The three of us sat around a small table. As soon as we were seated, the old man brought out tea that was little different from plain water and bowed to me with deep respect.

"This insignificant old man is called Hwang Jeong-yong. I once held the lowest seat among the Plum Blossom Sword Masters. To hear that you helped our Dan-yeong, I can only express my deepest gratitude."

From his self-introduction, I could roughly picture the situation.

"When Mount Hua suffered its calamity, you took the child and fled?"

"That is correct. You speak as if you witnessed it yourself."

"I have seen similar situations many times."

The old man's gaze deepened.

I didn't know exactly what Baek Dan-yeong had told him, but this man clearly held goodwill toward me.

Moreover, he had been a Plum Blossom Sword Master. This was perfect. There were many things I could do now.

This was getting interesting.

"Dan-yeong has never been one for many words, so I could not hear the full story. That is why I wished to ask you directly, honored one... For what reason did you help Dan-yeong? Furthermore, why are you wearing the uniform of our sect? And just how is it that you can execute the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Art? Could you possibly clear up the curiosities of this old man?"

So that's how it was. Baek Dan-yeong hadn't given him a proper explanation.

Well, that tracked. She had only ever nodded or shaken her head at me as well.

"Answering those questions is not difficult, but my own curiosity comes first. So you had better answer well, Plum Blossom Sword Master Hwang Jeong-yong."

I released my energy, confining it strictly to the area around our table.

Hwang Jeong-yong's eyes widened at the sudden change. He clenched his teeth.

Baek Dan-yeong tensed at once and spread her own energy, shielding both herself and the old man.

Her eyes held a storm of emotions.

Betrayal? A mistake? Being used? A sense of futility and despair.

"I feel sorrow for what happened to Mount Hua. Yet why did you turn this young woman into an instrument of revenge? Is Mount Hua the sort of place that would obsess over vengeance to the point of staining a woman's delicate hands with blood?"

At my harsh tone, Baek Dan-yeong opened her mouth, struggling to speak, but the words would not come.

Hwang Jeong-yong, barely regaining his composure thanks to her protection, raised a trembling hand to stop her. He looked directly at me.

"That... is the fault... of this old man... Ugh. There is no room for excuses... Your rebuke is entirely justified. What could this old man possibly say..."

Baek Dan-yeong, who had been fidgeting helplessly while watching him, still looked frustrated as she covered her mouth.

For a long moment she shifted restlessly, lips trembling. Then she squeezed her eyes shut and cried out.

The energy that burst forth was formidable.

I had no choice but to use my own power to contain it, preventing it from spreading further. At that level, it would have woken every child in the next room and possibly caused them internal injuries.

"Now I'm finally hearing your real voice."

I withdrew my energy and smiled.

Baek Dan-yeong looked bewildered by my sudden change once again, though suspicion still lingered in her eyes.

Hwang Jeong-yong, now able to breathe freely after the crushing pressure vanished, regarded me with a somber expression.

"It doesn't seem you urged the child toward revenge. She has been acting on her own."

"...Since I could not stop her, it is no different from encouragement."

"How old is she? Twenty-three? Twenty-four? Around that, I would guess. A woman of that age does not listen easily. You must have looked after her since she was at her most rebellious."

"She is twenty-four."

The moment I revealed her age, Baek Dan-yeong, who had still been watching with doubtful eyes, suddenly turned to Hwang Jeong-yong in a flustered panic.

Even now, that was what mattered most to her? Women.

"Very well. Let us call that unavoidable. Next question. Your dantian was also destroyed, causing your true energy to leak until it shattered completely? And your meridians are clogged with impurities?"

Hwang Jeong-yong's eyes widened in shock, as if asking how I could possibly know.

It was obvious. The Formless Poison again. If not for that, how could a sect like Mount Hua have fallen so easily?

"It would not have been only you. Every person in Mount Hua must have suffered the same."

"H-how could you know that?"

"It was not only Mount Hua. The Namgung Family suffered the same. The Tang Clan as well. The Demonic Cult too... Nearly every major sect during the Righteous-Demonic Great War must have faced that situation."

Hwang Jeong-yong stared at me as though hearing this for the first time. Baek Dan-yeong watched me with an equally grave expression.

"So the two of you ended up connected through this as well. I suppose this is the result of my visit to the Golden Heaven Palace."

As I muttered to myself, Hwang Jeong-yong continued to look at me in utter confusion. That was understandable. The current situation would require far more explanation before it made sense.

"Alright. Let's do this my way. I intend to act a little selfishly, so I would appreciate it if you would play along. It won't take more than half a shichen. Have the child tell you everything that happened to her. I will return shortly."

I rose from my seat and left the cottage at once. Hwang Jeong-yong called after me, trying to stop me, but I paid him no mind.

He could not even catch me, so what did he hope to do?

I flew like the wind and soon reached the Silent Sword Forest. Though it was well past midnight, Seolha was still awake. She greeted me with wide-eyed surprise.

"Ajeong!"

"Why are you still awake waiting like this?"

"I just... had a feeling you would come back, Ajeong."

She smiled brightly as she spoke. Knowing she waited here like this every single day, I found her utterly endearing and kissed her.

"I must go out again, so go sleep. Ah, but before that, could you bring me two Ja-ha-sin-dan?"

"Two Ja-ha-sin-dan? Of course."

Seolha ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠quickly brought two wooden boxes containing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the elixirs and asked carefully.

"Ajeong... is there something that requires the Ja-ha-sin-dan?"

"Yes. Mount Hua is going to rise again."

Her eyes widened, curiosity blooming across her face.

"I'll explain everything when I return. So go to sleep tonight. Understood?"

"Yes, Ajeong."

I returned to where Hwang Jeong-yong and Baek Dan-yeong waited, the Ja-ha-sin-dan in hand.

When I reappeared, both of them looked slightly relieved. But the moment I set the pills on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the table, Hwang Jeong-yong's eyes bulged.

Yes. This was the enjoyable part. Their reactions were always the same.

"T-this is..."

"Plum Blossom Sword Master Hwang Jeong-yong. I ask you this. I can restore your dantian. I can purge every impurity from your meridians. Do you have the will to step back into the kangho and rebuild Mount Hua?"

The old man's deep regret. The longing I could feel. The sorrow and heartache. And the hope that swept all of it away.

I liked that look very much.

It was like watching green sprouts emerge from a withered, dead tree—a miracle.

"Good. Then I will give you the opportunity. Sit in lotus position. You too, Baek Dan-yeong."

Baek Dan-yeong, who had been shedding tears while watching him, looked startled when I called her name.

"Why do you think I brought two Ja-ha-sin-dan? So sit down. The night is short."

Both of them immediately sat on the floor in lotus position.

I took out one of the pills and swallowed it immediately. Hwang Jeong-yong reacted with shock.

Everyone had the exact same reaction. Well, it was impossible not to be surprised.

What came next was something I had done several times before.

Since his dantian was cleanly gone, the process was simple. I removed all the impurities from Hwang Jeong-yong's body and channeled the energy of the Ja-ha-sin-dan to create a new dantian.

Having once been a Plum Blossom Sword Master, forming the dantian was not difficult. When he ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sensed it forming in his lower abdomen, his face filled with overwhelming emotion and he wept once more.

For Baek Dan-yeong, I carefully wrapped the pill's energy and guided it into her dantian.

But I noticed that many of her qi meridians were in terrible condition. I did not know her full story, but having seen it, I could not leave them as they were.

I corrected her qi flow at once and cleared the turbid meridians. This much was no trouble at all.

"Congratulations. With this, Mount Hua has gained a new Sect Leader."

The two of them could not answer as they focused on circulating their energy.

But I saw it clearly. Hwang Jeong-yong had stopped crying. A faint, gentle smile now graced his lips.

Yes. Mount Hua would rise again. It would not happen overnight, of course.

But it would happen without doubt.

Because I would be watching over them.