Chapter 62: Mimicking the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art-2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 62: Mimicking the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art-2
'What? Why is this happening?'
Sun-woo could not hide his bewilderment.
Unifying poisonous qi and internal energy was supposed to be possible only when he mimicked the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art.
Yet now, the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art had begun to unify the poisonous qi on its own.
The Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art was not a poison-based martial art. Without mimicking the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art, harmonizing with poisonous qi should have been impossible.
And yet, that impossible feat was occurring.
It was a fortuitous encounter—and a massive one at that.
Originally, Sun-woo had been able to handle poison arts by mimicking the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art to unify poisonous qi and internal energy. Since the essence of that art was to seek harmony between the two, Sun-woo had been able to mimic it perfectly.
However, a problem had arisen: the imbalance between the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art and the poisonous qi.
Because the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art was not a poison art, the moment the mimicry ended, it would push out the unified poisonous qi. Consequently, the poison would slowly begin to erode Sun-woo’s body from within.
Of course, the rate of erosion was so slow that he could resolve it by periodically unifying the energies through the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art, but he hadn't known how long that would remain effective.
But now, the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art had begun to harmonize and merge with the poisonous qi.
Just like the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art.
In other words, this meant he could now absorb poisonous qi and use poison arts without having to mimic the other technique.
Ssssp.
As he circulated the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art once more, even the poisonous qi that had seeped into his very marrow dissolved into the Yin-Yang Harmony Qi.
He had achieved perfect unification.
Flash!
Sun-woo snapped his eyes open.
His body felt light, as if he could fly.
"Tang Seo-yoon, check my body."
Flip.
Without warning, Sun-woo yanked up his shirt and spoke to Tang Seo-yoon.
Thud.
Tang Seo-yoon silently placed her hand on Sun-woo’s Dantian, closed her eyes, and began to sense his energy.
Wrooooooom.
"What!?"
A moment later, her eyes went wide with shock.
Something impossible had happened.
Based on the standards of the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art, his poisonous qi—which had barely been at the 2nd stage—had surpassed the 5th and reached the 6th stage.
He now more than met the requirements to enter the Godok Hall.
"This makes no sense."
She stared at Sun-woo’s face, utterly stunned.
How could such a miracle occur?
To obtain such powerful poisonous qi, one normally had to endure immense periods of suffering. Yet Sun-woo had shortened that agonizing timeframe to a mere few weeks.
It was a growth rate that shocked even Tang Seo-yoon, who lived on a diet of poisonous creatures instead of food.
"How did this happen?"
"I don't know."
Sun-woo shook his head. He didn't have the slightest clue why this was happening. He could only speculate that there was something about the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art that he didn't yet understand.
Even though he had been soaked in extreme poison, he never imagined he would go beyond adapting to it and actually absorb it.
"With this much poisonous qi, most common poisons won't affect you at all anymore," Tang Seo-yoon said bitterly as she pulled her hand away from his Dantian.
Poisonous qi is not consumed by a poison weaker than itself. With this level of poisonous energy within him, he could look down on most other toxins.
While this was a stroke of luck for Sun-woo, it was a misfortune for the Tang Clan, who specialized in poisons. Knowing this, she swallowed a groan.
With Sun-woo’s current state, even if she were to launch a surprise attack, he wouldn't be as helpless as before.
"Did I develop an immunity? To what extent? Is it Poison Immunity?"
"Keep dreaming. Do you think Poison Immunity is the name of some neighborhood dog?"
Tang Seo-yoon let out a hollow laugh at Sun-woo’s question.
Poison Immunity. It was the legendary realm that all martial artists dreamed of and the ultimate peak that every poison master sought to reach. The idea of him having it was so absurd it was laughable.
"Ah, so it's not Poison Immunity."
"Of course not. Poison Immunity is a realm every poison user covets. Do you really think you can attain it just by being soaked in some poison?"
Sun-woo’s expression turned sullen at her words. He had held a sliver of hope, but it seemed his expectations were misplaced.
In the novel High School Senior Goes to Murim, there was an episode where the protagonist, Lee Jae-won, awakens Poison Immunity after being soaked in the poisonous qi of the Five Poison Sect Leader. He had wondered if the same had happened to him, but apparently not.
"But it's enough to enter the Godok Hall, right?"
"Your poisonous qi is more than sufficient now."
Sun-woo felt a bitter taste in his mouth. If he had been soaked in poison like this from the start, he wouldn't have needed to steal the Hundred-Year Flower, nor would he have had to spend the night with Madam Tang.
He quickly shook his head. It was foolish to regret the past based on uncertain assumptions.
Even if he had been soaked in Absolute Poison, it was unknown how the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art would have reacted then. He couldn't have staked his life on such a gamble. Furthermore, without Tang Seo-yoon’s help in properly detoxifying him, he would have died of poisoning before he could ever absorb it.
Regaining his composure, Sun-woo stood up.
"Where are you going?"
"To train."
The poisonous qi was ready. All that remained was to perfectly recreate the Ten Thousand Streams Return to the Source Divine Art. Although he now emitted an aura similar enough to surprise even Tang Seo-yoon, it was still lacking.
He needed to refine it further. Enough to deceive even the Poison King.
Creak.
Just as Sun-woo was about to open the door and leave.
"Wait!"
Tang Seo-yoon called out to him.
"What is it?"
"For the time being, visit Madam Tang’s quarters regularly and play the part of a filial son."
"Why?" Sun-woo asked, puzzled.
Given the embarrassing situation they had created, shouldn't they be avoiding each other for a while?
"Even if she enjoyed the relationship with you, she’ll be psychologically withered. She’ll feel guilty. You need to go and reassure her so she doesn't start having dangerous thoughts."
In the worst-case scenario, she might take her own life or confess everything to the Tang Clan Head. Such an outcome had to be prevented.
"And what if something 'unfortunate' happens again?" Sun-woo asked, just in case.
Madam Tang became aroused just by looking at him; he didn't know what she might do if he visited. If he shared an intimate moment with her again, Tang Seo-yoon might actually kill him this time.
"It can't be helped. Isn't Madam Tang’s body already at a point where she can't live without you? Just take good care of her," she replied calmly.
Hadn't he said that Madam Tang burned with lust whenever she saw him? Trying to force a stop to it would only backfire. Since things had already come to this, the only option was to let her satisfy her desires until her mind stabilized.
"I don't intend to do anything to you over your relationship with Madam Tang anymore, so rest easy."
Sun-woo gave her a strange look. One moment she was trying to kill him, and now she was being understanding? She was completely unpredictable.
"What are you staring at?"
"Nothing. I was just looking because you're pretty."
"That didn't look like the kind of gaze you give someone who's pretty."
She looked at Sun-woo with suspicious eyes. Sun-woo flinched. Perhaps because he had nearly died, his heart pounded every time she glared at him. It was a mix of the terror of almost dying and the fluttering excitement of her being breathtakingly beautiful.
'What a bitch.'
Sun-woo pushed aside his complicated emotions and turned around.
"Anyway, my business here is done. I'm leaving."
With those words, Sun-woo turned and walked out without looking back. Tang Seo-yoon simply watched his retreating figure in silence.
*
What is a Demonic Cultivator?
A Demonic Cultivator, or Main, is a term for those who have mastered the horrific martial arts known as Demonic Arts. They are cruel beings, like devils who enjoy slaughter and crave blood.
Then, what are Demonic Arts?
The world broadly categorizes all martial arts that differ from the path of the Orthodox Faction as Demonic Arts—those that involve cruel or dangerous training methods, or those that offer rapid progress at the cost of severe side effects.
There are countless types of Demonic Arts, and almost all of them are unimaginably cruel and leave behind terrible lingering effects.
There are Demonic Arts where the practitioner loses their reason and falls into a murderous frenzy as their mastery grows.
There are cruel Demonic Arts that increase power by absorbing deathly energy from the corpses of young boys and girls.
There are Demonic Arts that gain power by consuming human blood or flesh.
There are Demonic Arts like the Great Art of Energy Absorption that steal the essence of others.
Countless such techniques are listed as Demonic Arts, and those who practice them are ostracized by the Central Plains Murim.
Then, where is the source that created these cruel Demonic Arts?
If one were to ask, many would answer:
If the source of all martial arts is the Shaolin Temple, then the source of all Demonic Arts is the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
At the edge of Qinghai lies the Hundred Thousand Mountains. There stood the holy land of the Demonic Cultivators, known as the Demonic Cult. What began as a mere religious group grew through ages of persecution and oppression, eventually coming to worship the deep-seated ideology of Survival of the Fittest.
To those deeply rooted in the idea that the strong prevail, the means of becoming strong did not matter. Only the result—being the strongest—was important. Consequently, they incessantly created sinister and dangerous martial arts, resulting in the production of countless Demonic Cultivators.
They were strong. Incomparably stronger than Orthodox martial artists of the same age. However, having traded their reason for rapid achievement, they caused numerous bloodbaths in the Central Plains, leading to the deaths of many.
This happened a very long time ago.
Before the Nine Sects and One Gang or the Six Great Clans had established themselves, a massive Orthodox power called the Jeongmu Alliance was formed. Created through the cooperation of numerous great sects and prestigious families, the Jeongmu Alliance boasted a scale and strength greater than any other, and was called the supreme power of the Murim.
Then one day, a female martial artist of the Orthodox Faction was raped and murdered by a Demonic Cultivator. The culprit immediately fled to the Hundred Thousand Mountains, and the Jeongmu Alliance sent a letter to the Demonic Cult demanding his surrender.
However, instead of surrendering him, the Demonic Cult beheaded the messenger and sent his head back to the Jeongmu Alliance.
It was the start of a war.
The Jeongmu Alliance Leader declared war on the Demonic Cult and led his elites into the Hundred Thousand Mountains. The sounds of clashing weapons and screams filled the mountains; blood flowed, and many lost arms, legs, and their very lives.
They fought for several days and nights. It was just when the victory of the Jeongmu Alliance seemed within reach.
That was when 'He' appeared.
'He' sat atop a mountain of corpses, welcoming the elites of the Jeongmu Alliance. The elite warriors of the Alliance laughed, calling him mad. There were nearly two hundred elite warriors. It was not a number one person could ever hope to face alone.
However, it did not take long for them to realize their mistake.
One Il-gak. That was all the time it took for nearly two hundred elite warriors of the Jeongmu Alliance to meet their deaths.
'He' was strong to the point of terror. The Jeongmu Alliance Leader, who was said to have reached the supreme realm of the Absolute God, perished without being able to withstand even a single exchange.
After slaughtering the Leader and the elites, 'He' went alone to the headquarters of the Jeongmu Alliance and erased everything related to them from history. Then, he returned to the Hundred Thousand Mountains and vanished.
'His' unprecedented actions horrified the Central Plains Murim, and people trembled in fear, calling him the Majungma—the Demon Among Demons.
The greatest power in the Murim had been destroyed by a single man. It was impossible not to be shocked. The terror of 'Him' was etched into the memories of the people, passed down through the history of the Murim as a legend.
*
In a grand hall.
Inside, numerous naked men and women bound in shackles were trembling.
"Damn it! Undo this right now! Do you know who I am?" a man shouted.
"That's right! Let us go! Let us go!"
"Please, I beg you, let me go..."
"If it's money you want, I'll give it to you! Please, just send me home!" a woman began to plead.
With hundreds of people shouting at once, the hall was deafeningly loud.
"Noisy."
It was then. A middle-aged man emitting an ominous aura entered the hall. With a single word from him, a massive Formless Qi filled the room and began to coil around their bodies.
Gasp.
Urgh.
Exposed to the Formless Qi, they all began to clutch their throats as if they were suffocating.
"If my ears ring again, I shall tear out your hearts."
The man’s somber voice echoed, and the people in the hall fell deathly silent. They realized that this man would truly kill them.
"Hmm."
The man raised his gaze and began to inspect their faces one by one.
"Perfect."
Soon, he smiled as if satisfied. The preparations were complete.
"Be joyful. You shall become the keys to awakening one greater than any other!"
Having finished his speech, the man swung his sword.
Swish!
As he swung his sword through the air, the people in the hall looked at him in confusion. Why would he suddenly swing his sword at nothing?
But they soon understood why.
Their heads tilted, then began to fall forward.
"Huh?"
Because the sword speed was so incredibly fast, they didn't even perceive their own deaths; they watched their own bodies as they fell.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The sound of heads hitting the floor echoed from everywhere. In a single strike, he had decapitated hundreds of people.
After confirming that every head had fallen to the ground, the man then placed the sword against his own neck.
Slash!
Without a moment's hesitation, the man cut his own throat.
Thump.
Gurgle, gurgle.
His headless body collapsed to the floor, and a massive amount of blood began to pour out, soaking the ground. The floor of the hall was completely dyed red with the blood of hundreds of corpses.
It was then.
SHWAAAAAAA!
From the blood-soaked floor, a blinding radiance erupted, covering the entire hall.
.
.
.
.
.
How much time had passed?
The radiance that filled the hall vanished. But then, a strange phenomenon occurred.
The headless corpses and the blood that filled the hall began to gather in one place. All the corpses merged together, forming a massive mound that eventually reached the ceiling of the hall.
A mountain of corpses had been created.
Cr-crack. Crunch. Snap.
From within the mountain of corpses, a sound like something being squeezed began to emerge.
Crunch.
After a while.
Rip!
Tearing through the mountain of blood and corpses, a man revealed himself at the summit.
Thud.
The man who appeared sat down upon the mountain.
".........Lee Jae-won."
The man spoke, a cold smile spreading across his face.