The Ancient Dragon Gorge
The Nakyangru was a fairly well-known pleasure house in Guangdong Province. Not the best of its kind — if you counted on ten fingers, you'd hesitate whether it even made the list. But today, that establishment was in an uproar.
"M-Manager!! That bastard's here again!"
"What...?! Not Mo Yong-cheol again...?"
The middle-aged man called manager grimaced. Servants scrambled to sweep and wipe the floors.
"Damn it...! What the hell does he want crawling all the way out here...!"
The notorious brat of the Mo Yong Family, famous in Liaoning for their Fist Arts. He had arrived. If he were a normal customer, they'd welcome him with open arms. But he wasn't, and that was the problem.
The Nakyangru was a cheongru — a house where women sold song and laughter, but not their bodies. If he wanted women who sold their flesh, he could go to a hongru instead. But he insisted on causing trouble here, trying to take women by force.
CRASH!
Mo Yong-cheol kicked the door open, his flabby flesh jiggling. He used his foot when his perfectly good hands would have sufficed. The man couldn't even control his own heavy body properly. Pathetic for someone who called himself a martial artist.
"W-whoa..."
The thick slab of fat wobbled and stumbled as if about to fall. The bodyguards behind him stood like decorations, making no move to help. It would have been laughable if anyone dared to laugh, but no one could.
Mo Yong-cheol hadn't even been in Guangdong for two weeks. In that time, he'd already crippled over ten people. He was famous as the Mo Yong Family's unmatched piece of trash, and he proved that reputation true without fail every single day.
"Oh, oh, welcome!"
"Tch...! Who the hell cleaned this floor?!"
A servant who'd been watching nervously stepped forward.
"F-Forgive me! It was, it was me, sir!"
SLAP!
"Agh!!"
What he got in return was a vicious slap across the face. He'd bowed as low as he could with the most pathetic expression possible, but it meant nothing. A few yellow teeth clattered to the floor.
"Heh heh...! So damn weak. You! Manager!"
"Y-yes, young master! You honor us with your presence again today. Which room would you like—"
"What?! You still dare to ask me that kind of question?!"
"F-Forgive me. I'll escort you to the top floor immediately!"
Every kind of luxurious and extravagant food filled the table to overflowing. When the gisaeng entered with slightly awkward smiles, Mo Yong-cheol bellowed.
"What's this! Where the hell is Ae-hwa? Why are you bitches here instead?"
"Y-Young master. Ae-hwa has taken ill today. Please allow us to serve you instead."
"Tch...! Goddamn— I'll kill that manager bastard!"
"A-Ah, please... calm your anger for the sake of this Chunwol, if nothing else."
The gisaeng opened her bodice, revealing her bare flesh. Mo Yong-cheol's fit of rage stopped instantly.
"Keum...! Fine!"
Wine and song. The gisaengs' laughter rang out endlessly.
"You bitch... What are you doing not drinking?"
He gave them no time to rest. The gisaengs drank wine like water to please the young master's whims. Even women who'd lived half their lives drowning in alcohol couldn't endure it. Eventually, they collapsed one by one, unconscious.
"Ugh..."
Thud.
Even the last gisaeng collapsed, and silence fell. The delinquent Mo Yong-cheol stared down at his wine glass, expressionless.
The moment the last gisaeng lost consciousness, his eyes changed. No emotion could be found on his face — it became as blank as a mask. He checked the acupoints of the sleeping gisaengs, one by one, without missing a single one.
He picked up a piece of meat from the table crowded with food. With a simple motion, he sliced his finger and the meat split open. Breaking the bone inside, a small piece of cloth popped out. Strange patterns were drawn on the cloth. A command letter written in blood-red characters. Despite the seasoning from the dish, a thick scent of blood could be smelled.
Ancient Dragon Gorge · Treasure Map · Chaos
Mo Yong-cheol stared down at the cloth with cold eyes, then closed his eyes for a moment.
CRUNCH!
He clenched his fist around the cloth so hard it seemed ready to crumble. When he opened his hand, the command letter had turned completely to dust. The scattering powder swirled and settled into a wine glass. He drank it as if nothing had happened, then returned to the reckless brat he'd been moments before.
He kicked over the table still piled with food and roared.
"You goddamn manager!! Where the hell is Ae-hwa? Why did only these trash bitches show up?!"
Si-woo clicked his tongue. He stored almost everything in his inventory, but the pouch he used to make it look like he was carrying things was gone.
'What did I have in there anyway?'
He always just reached in and pulled things out without thinking, so he could never remember what was actually inside.
'Ah... whatever.'
It was just an ordinary cloth pouch full of junk anyway. She probably didn't know, but he'd already seen her real face. He decided that if they ever met again, he'd give her a proper scolding.
'Repaying a favor, huh... Not bad.'
Since she'd taken from him with her upper mouth, she'd have to repay with her lower one.
After running nonstop day and night, he'd nearly reached Guangdong. Now all he had to do was find a place called the Ancient Dragon Gorge.
'Let's find a decent village.'
He picked the tallest tree in the area. A massive tree towering well over ten meters.
Tap! Tap!
Without even using his hands, he reached the top in just a few leaps.
'Oh...!'
In the distance, he could see faint smoke rising. The distinctive smoke from cooking fires — a village.
Something occurred to him the moment he arrived at the village. Now that he actually wanted to earn Karma, the criteria felt ambiguous. Even the same action yielded different amounts of Karma depending on the target.
A small village in some nameless mountain valley. He gathered the orphans there.
"Is it true you're giving us food?"
"Yeah. Listen well and I will."
He taught the gathered children a simple martial art. Nothing impressive — just the Samjae Shimbeop, something you could buy for a few coins at any market stall in a big city. Most of them couldn't even read. He couldn't teach them through words or writing. He injected energy into each child's body, imprinting the flow directly into their meridians.
A few talented children's eyes sparkled, but he gained almost no Karma.
'Tch...'
He gave the children steamed buns and sent them on their way.
'This isn't enough?'
No message saying their fates had changed appeared either. Some of the children definitely had different looks in their eyes — the look of recognizing this was a great opportunity. Their fates should have shifted considerably, yet he'd gained almost no Karma.
'Is it because they lack talent...? Hmm... I don't know.'
He decided to experiment again later if anything came to mind, and set off down the road.
To find Mok Yi-do's legacy, he needed to know where the Ancient Dragon Gorge was. This was a small village, so there weren't many people to ask. He entered what passed for the largest inn. There were more people inside than he'd expected. Martial artists with swords at their waists mingled with ordinary folk, all talking and laughing loudly.
He found a decent spot and picked at a dish mixed with meat and vegetables.
'Not bad.'
It was good enough to explain the crowd. After grabbing a few bites, he focused his energy on his ears. He needed to find the Ancient Dragon Gorge, after all. He looked for someone who seemed well-informed. His attention was naturally drawn to two men speaking the loudest.
"Have you heard that rumor?"
"Rumor? Surely you don't mean... that crazy rumor about the Shadowless Divine Fist vault or whatever?"
Rumors about treasure always popped up somewhere. The problem was that nine out of ten were fake. At the other man's mocking tone, the first speaker raised his voice.
"Hooh...! You must have cloth ears, my friend. I'm telling you, this time it's real!"
The two men argued back and forth, each insisting they were right.
'Shadowless Divine Fist? Divine Fist... is that a thief?'
The word thief reminded him of the thief girl who'd picked his pocket not long ago.
'Nah, no way.'
"Aigoo... aren't you being a bit too naive? If it were real, the Murim Alliance would be the first to move."
"Well said. But you've heard that the Righteous Sky Brigade has been mobilized, haven't you?"
The two great powers that divided the martial world were the Murim Alliance and the Evil Dao Alliance. The Righteous Sky Brigade was the front-line combat unit that operated most actively under the Murim Alliance.
"What does that have to do with— surely not?"
"That's right. It's because of this matter."
This was an interesting story, but he was more curious about Mok Yi-do's legacy. He approached the men who seemed well-informed.
Knock knock.
He rapped on the table to draw their attention.
"Excuse me, gentlemen. I have a question — mind if I sit? Of course, this round's on me."
He gestured at the food on the table, and the men broke into wide grins.
"Hahaha! Young hero — no, great hero! What a generous spirit! So, what's your question? I'm the village's information broker, you see."
"Nothing too special. Is there a place around here called the Ancient Dragon Gorge? I heard it's in Guangdong."
The confident man's expression stiffened awkwardly.
"Ancient Dragon... Gorge? Do you know it?"
"...Surely you don't mean the gorge in Pilga Mountain?"
Fortunately, one of the two knew. According to him, it was about a month's walk southwest from here — by an ordinary person's pace. At his running speed, it would take a day or two.
The Ancient Dragon Gorge. It was a massive canyon. Rough currents flowed endlessly through the deeply carved terrain. The scenery was breathtaking, but he had no time to appreciate it. He sensed someone running toward him at high speed.
'What now?'
For the past few days, there'd been many people rushing about urgently. It seemed something was happening in these mountains. The fact that he could sense them at all meant they were weaker than him. Not much to worry about.
Whoosh!
"Stop right there!!"
"Goddammit! Hah...! Hah...!!"
Four men — three chasing one. The pursuers' eyes were filled with greed, while the fleeing man's face was desperate. He looked exhausted, his breath rattling in his throat, but he showed no sign of stopping. Of course not — if he stopped, he'd be full of holes. But his limits were approaching fast.
The fleeing man gritted his teeth. Then he spotted Si-woo. His expression twisted. Looking like he was dying of resentment, he hurled something toward Si-woo.
An antique-looking scroll came spinning through the air.
'What?'
Si-woo wrapped his hand in inner energy and caught it. It felt like paper rolled up with something written inside.
"Stop, you bastard!!"
"Shit!!"
Looking closely, it was a bundle of paper that gave off a distinctly aged feel. The men hadn't seen the scroll thrown and kept chasing their target. They rushed past Si-woo without a glance. No one was looking at him.
"Kuaaah...! I threw it to that bastard over there, so stop chasing me!!"
At those words, everyone's gaze turned to Si-woo. The scroll he was holding so casually was visible.
"There it is!!"
The men quickly approached, trying to surround him. Si-woo clicked his tongue softly and threw the scroll. He infused it with the subtle technique of hidden weapons he'd learned from Tang Hwarin.
CRACK!
The paper scroll embedded itself in a rock.
"What...!"
The three men who had been charging at him stopped dead. Their mouths, which had been about to curse at him, snapped shut. They exchanged glances, awkwardly sizing each other up.
"Take it and get lost. Don't bother me."
"Ahem... Yes. We apologize for troubling you!"
The men grunted and strained to pull the paper out of the rock. Drenched in cold sweat, they departed, leaving him alone.
'Hmm...'
He pulled a paper from his inventory and unfolded it. It contained the exact same content as the scroll he'd thrown into the rock moments ago. Right before their eyes had focused on him, he'd taken it back to the modern world and made a copy.