The Martial Assembly

Gwak Cheolyong couldn't set the jade slip down, even after he'd left his purchase comment.

If I take that pill... can a high-rank cultivator really dual cultivate too?

He went back to the start of the review and read it again. A man who had dual cultivated for three days. A man whose woman had begged him to stop first. He lingered on that passage for a long while.

There was a time I was like that...

He couldn't even remember when the last time had been. At first he'd assumed it was exhaustion from training. A few days' rest and it would pass, he'd told himself. He'd only just come out of closed-door cultivation; maybe his body simply hadn't caught up yet.

But rest changed nothing.

He remembered the night he'd sat on the edge of the bed until dawn, while behind him a woman clutched the blanket and waited. She was beautiful enough that, in the old days, he would have tried every trick he knew just to get a single word out of her.

Ah... Hwaran...

And even with a woman like that beside him, all he could do was roll over.

This isn't why I clawed my way to Core Formation.

How desperately he had trained. He'd believed that once he was strong, he would never again have to watch other people's faces, never again have to turn his back on something he wanted. Now he had spirit stones. He had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the power to take any woman in the lower realm into his arms.

So why... why won't it stand!

It was all because of those lowly bitches. Because those women were lacking. Anyway, it was all their fault.

Gwak Cheolyong closed his eyes and called up the day he had slaughtered the Hundred Flowers Palace.

Ah... women who couldn't even live up to their name...

He'd gone because he'd heard a single one of them could take on ten men. Every word of it had been an empty rumor.

If those women had been as splendid as the stories... I never would have had to crawl all the way to the lower realm's cultivator gallery.

If word ever got out that a high-rank cultivator was giggling around with low-rank ones on the lower realm gallery, he would be a laughingstock among his peers for the rest of his days.

He checked whether anyone had replied to his purchase comment. Not yet. He opened the review again. Dignity be damned — if those words were true, he had to get his hands on at least one pill.

Reading on, he came across the phrase Pure Yang Constitution.

A Pure Yang Constitution...

Without realizing it, Gwak Cheolyong licked his dry lips. He wasn't even hoping for that much. If he could just stop the humiliation of laying a woman down beside him and fumbling at nothing...

That would be enough.

He went straight to the sales notice. Two hundred spirit stones a pill. He could pay that without a second thought. He'd gladly pay more, if it meant holding one even a day sooner.

Beneath his purchase comment, he added another line.

I checked the purchase comments and wrote down the order quantities.

Good thing I scaled up production.

Increase the supply, and demand had followed right along with it. I'd been prepared to let the price run a little wild if it meant turning these Chinese bastards— no. These cultivators — into junkies. The price hadn't budged. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Only the sales had climbed. Pure profit, in other words.

But is this guy some famous tycoon? He's using his real name as his handle, and he just doubles the price out of nowhere. That's cool...

I read the purchase inquiry above it again. He really was asking for a single pill. Underneath, the gallery crowd was yielding to one another, each insisting the other buy first.

Ah...? So that's because he's Core Formation.

I sat up straighter. A man like that had come to buy my pills. Anonymous-login coward that I was, money or no money, I simply didn't want to sell to him. But I didn't have a pretext for refusing, either.

I sent a message at once.

I wrote down the Thunder Pavilion's receipt code and sent it over. Gwak Cheolyong sent back the place where he wanted the pill delivered. I copied that code and added one more pill to the batch I meant to make today.

I hadn't even finished writing when another message arrived.

Already? Must be the Core Formation. A man like that forms his decisions fast. Heh heh heh.

I hurried off a reply.

The moment I got off work I went to the Thunder Pavilion, collected the money, bought talismans and materials until my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠arms were full, and headed home. Then I went straight to the storage rack and pulled out the traps I'd bought earlier.

I should have set these up ages ago.

I carried the traps out into the yard, circled the outside of the wall once, and stopped where the trees grew thick. Pushing in between the branches, I could see clear to the wall — an angle where someone hiding here to watch the house wouldn't be noticed at all from inside. I set a trap there and covered it with fallen leaves, placed another wherever the wall ran low, and added more along the boundary.

Go on. Try climbing over.

I straightened and started toward the front gate, then stopped and looked back at the spot where I'd just laid the trap. Buried under leaves, it barely stood out from the ground around it.

Hmm... at this rate I might stumble home drunk and die a miserable death myself.

I picked my way around the traps and went in through the gate. Then I fetched paper and a brush and marked where the traps were buried, and the safe path through them.

"Hoo..."

Only then could I relax enough to head back to the workshop.

Ah... and I still need to figure out what principle that steroid even runs on.

I had no intention of sticking it into my own body again. Catching a rat wasn't exactly easy either.

"Nothing for it. I'll have to put it off until I can catch a rat."

The next day, on the way to work, I sent the Viagras I'd made the day before out to the buyers and went straight to the Alchemy Pavilion.

"Whew. I'm wiped."

I was about to step inside, still catching my breath, when I realized the atmosphere was off. From the murmuring within, it felt like some major announcement was coming. If it had been up to me I would have turned around and fled home, but as a functioning member of society, I couldn't. I edged my way into the Alchemy Pavilion.

"Oh, you're here? The Martial Assembly is in half a month."

The moment the Deacon saw my face, he got to the point.

"From Qi Condensation Layer One through Layer Three, you'll spar by layer. Every disciple who qualifies will participate. No exceptions."

Sparring. A loser like me, throwing hands in front of everyone watching.

Ugh... I already don't want to. Can't I just forfeit?

I was still turning that over when a bolt from the blue came down.

I couldn't hide my shock.

"Use the time you have left and prepare well. Understood?"

"Yes, Deacon."

I answered along with the others and went back to my workbench.

Even so, execution is a bit much, isn't it? What a genuinely horrifying worldview.

Soyeon portioned out the herbs she had to prepare onto the workbench.

Th... this time... I want to win...!

Ever since she'd become Jihun's assistant, she still had time left after the work was done. Thanks to that, she'd been able to set aside a great deal more for training. If she pushed hard for the next half month, maybe she really could win.

Not first place... but I have to stay out of last...

She counted the herbs left in the basket and glanced out the window.

"Um... Senior?"

Jihun looked up from the herbs he was inspecting.

"What is it?"

"If I finish today's work early... would it be all right if I left first?"

"Do you have somewhere to be?"

Soyeon looked down at the herb in her hands.

"I... I want to train a little harder."

"Ah. Because of the Martial Assembly?"

"Y-yes..."

Jihun nodded.

"Once the work is done, you may go."

"Th-thank you!"

Soyeon quickly picked up the next herb.

The work was finished, and the sun was still high overhead.

"I'll be going, Senior!"

"Go carefully!"

Soyeon bowed to Jihun and left the Alchemy Pavilion.

I'm really lucky to have such a good senior...

The training ground wasn't crowded yet. She took a corner well away from the other disciples. Here, she thought, she could fail a few times without quite so many eyes on her. She faced a scorched stone pillar, formed her hand seal, and drew spiritual energy up from her dantian to gather at her fingertips.

"Ah—!"

Soyeon flung her hands up over her face.

Did I rush it...?

She formed the seal again. This time she moved her hands with care, determined not to let the energy gathered at her fingertips slip away.

Like this... I'll be hit before I ever get the shot off.

Her opponent would be using arts too. No one was going to stand there and wait while she finished preparing. Soyeon looked down at her hands and traced the seal she had just formed. She shook her fingers loose, then drew the energy up once more.

Soyeon's eyes went wide.

It... it worked!

The size of the fireball had been steady, and the heat wasn't bad either. If she could just keep doing it the way she had a moment ago, it would be enough. She spread her fingers, and before the feeling could fade she formed the seal again.

That was when she sensed someone behind her.

"What are you working so hard for?"

Soyeon stopped. She turned and found three women standing there, and her hands dropped before she knew she was lowering them.

Ah... why did they have to come so early today...

They were the female assistants she used to work with at the medicine shop. All three were Qi Condensation Layer One, the same as her, but Soyeon couldn't even manage a proper no in front of them. Not since the time she'd refused once and they'd boxed her ears with her surrounded. How relieved she'd been when the Deacon transferred her to the Alchemy Pavilion. The moment her eyes met one of theirs, she ducked her head.

"Don't tell me you're doing all this because you mean to enter the Martial Assembly."

The woman in front asked it, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the other two laughed before Soyeon could answer.

"Th... they said we have to participate..."

"The likes of you, trying to beat us?"

Soyeon shut her mouth. A little while ago, she really had thought she might be able to. But if she said so now, they would only laugh harder, and she couldn't get an answer out.

The woman looked her over from face to feet.

"A pretty little bitch like you ought to go to Paradise Pavilion and help the male juniors with their dual cultivation. What are you doing, putting on airs like you're a cultivator?"

The woman beside her laughed and piled on.

"They'd like you there, too, the way you are. I hear the male juniors these days prefer the obedient ones with no opinions of their own."

Soyeon clenched her fingers. She pressed her nails into her palms and lifted her head.

"Um..."

All three of them were looking at her. She couldn't remember what she'd meant to say. If she opened her mouth for nothing, she was sure she'd only hear something worse. She took one step to the side. Right now, she just wanted to be gone from this spot.

One of them stepped in front of her.

"Where are you going?"

"That's..."

"Came early, so you thought we wouldn't be here?"

Soyeon shook her head. She'd only wanted to practice a little longer.

"It's not like that... I..."

"Kaaack—"

The woman blocking her hauled phlegm up out of her throat.

"Ptui."

Spit hit Soyeon in the face, and she squeezed her eyes shut. One of the three burst out laughing. She opened her eyes slowly. She raised a hand to wipe her cheek, and the woman in front moved her arm. Soyeon jerked her head down.

"Oh my."

The woman tucked her hair behind her ear with the hand she'd raised.

"What's wrong? Did you think I was going to hit you?"

The other two laughed even harder. Soyeon lowered the hand she'd lifted. She couldn't even wipe her face. She only stared at the ground.

"It's on you."

The woman grabbed Soyeon's collar and yanked. Soyeon tried to step back and bumped into the woman standing behind her.

"Where do you think you're running off to?"

That was when someone spoke.

The woman gripping Soyeon's collar turned toward the entrance of the training ground. The two who had been laughing beside her shut their mouths. She hesitated a moment, then let go of the collar.

Soyeon turned her head toward the voice. Jihun was walking straight toward them.

S... Senior Jihun?