80. Rejuvenation to Youth
“Control fire?”
“Exactly as it sounds. Anyone who absorbs the Flame Fire Jade becomes completely immune to any fire damage. They can even manipulate flames like extensions of their own limbs. According to the records, they can spew fire from their entire body even without firewood to ignite it. And especially…”
Cheol Mu Geuk continued in a trembling voice.
“The jade’s flames… produce a blue fire…”
A jade was the crystallized form of a mystery from Murim Returner.
It granted powers that defied physical laws and martial arts alike—true miracles.
Just look at the Blinking Jade. Simple teleportation could be achieved with qinggong, but passing through walls? Impossible with any technique.
So.
Controlling fire… sounds too good to be true.
Flame powers were often portrayed weakly in stories, but fire itself was an immense threat. A mere graze could be fatal. Even without direct contact, it could damage lungs through heat or permanently impair muscles.
Those who cultivate inner energy might resist to some degree.
But if it was described as outright domination, even they wouldn’t last long. Considering the escalating power levels in this world, a commoner absorbing it could wield Peak-realm firepower.
If I absorb this…
I ran the scenario.
For close-range attackers, blind them with Flash Step, block with flames, then blink away.
At range, just spam fire from afar—like mindlessly clicking buttons in a game. Still devastating.
[What are you doing?]
Pa Cheon spoke to me.
[Absorb it now. This Flame Fire Jade is rightful spoils you earned. Hesitating would be foolish.]
He’s right.
My stats in webnovel terms? Attack, defense, stamina—all F-grade trash. Pa Cheon absorbing energy to project sword qi might bump it to B at best.
Absorbing the jade would at least boost my offense significantly. It could turn a nobody into Peak-level firepower.
But.
[Then why hesitate?]
Could I even maximize it?
Simply put: survival and opportunity cost.
[What nonsense is this?]
If I use it myself, I’ll end up on the front lines more often.
Many cultivated the Ten Thousand Phenomena Sun Divine Art, but no one wielded jade flame powers. Its rarity would draw hunters straight to me.
Absorbing it could turn me into prey.
The more I stand out, the more danger for me—for us.
If I were like those possessed protagonists who power-leveled effortlessly and rampaged, I’d hog it without a second thought. But my reality was different.
Absorbing it wouldn’t change the fact that experts would one-shot me. Would its power let me beat them for sure?
Absolutely not.
Take Sa Wol. If I spewed flames, she’d Nine Swamps Ghost Step past my reaction and stab my heart.
If it were defensive or evasion-focused like the Blinking Jade, I’d absorb it instantly.
So.
What if I give it to Cheol Mu Geuk instead? As an investment.
[Like with Paeng So So?]
Exactly. Pass it to someone who’ll use it better, and I reap the real benefits. Think about it.
Turning Sado Hwan Co. into a murim stock empire.
[Nonsense.]
Pa Cheon snapped abruptly.
[…If you were a cultist, no. But you’re a yokai. It might actually be the right call.]
Agreeing this easily? Why?
[Hmph.]
Paeng So So’s results had probably swayed him. She’d exceeded expectations.
With her and the relic squad, there was always a risk of zero gains—some ruins were just trap-filled jokes.
But Cheol Mu Geuk?
Securing a Heavenly Grade blacksmith on my side meant guaranteed top-tier treasure artifacts on tap.
[No regrets? This could be a once-in-a-lifetime shot.]
I’ll take the gamble.
I closed the jade’s container lid.
“Goe Mountain Iron Family Head.”
His eyes widened like saucers at my next words.
“Absorb this.”
Cheol Mu Geuk doubted his ears.
Blacksmiths often lost hearing to forge clamor, after all.
“What?”
“The Flame Fire Jade. Absorb it.”
He waved a hand in front of my face—
“Are you sane?”
Sado Hwan’s eyes twitched as he swatted it away.
“Get that out of my face.”
“You must not grasp it, but this is a jade. A jade! Even the Heavenly Demon’s secret records list only two. And this isn’t some vague one—it’s confirmed!”
“I know.”
“Then why give it to me?”
Sado Hwan replied calmly to Cheol Mu Geuk’s outburst.
“My path has no need for it.”
The nonchalant answer left him speechless.
“Are you too young and naive? Arrogant words.”
“Listen, Goe Mountain Iron Family Head.”
Their eyes met—
“…You’re serious.”
“Goe Mountain Iron Family Head. I may not know blacksmithing, but I can say this.”
Sado Hwan extended his hand. His palm bore thick calluses from blisters burst and reformed hundreds of times.
“So you’ve put in effort too?”
Cheol Mu Geuk was exasperated.
Super Peak was a heaven-granted realm. Achieving it at such a young age demanded talent beyond divine craftsmanship.
And now this kid presumed to lecture him—a man who’d toiled decades at one craft?
“No.”
Sado Hwan shook his head.
“Not everyone reaches higher realms through effort alone. It’s just the bare minimum.”
“Then what are you saying?”
“Once you set a goal and choose your path, if effort falls short, use any means necessary.”
“What?”
“You know it too, Goe Mountain Iron Family Head. You can’t ignite true blue flames this way.”
Cheol Mu Geuk frowned at Sado Hwan’s words.
“So instead of clinging blindly to effort and grit like a fool, achieve your goal by any method. It’s all pointless obsession.”
“Obsession?”
“Acknowledge your limits, Goe Mountain Iron Family Head. That’s the key to the next realm.”
“…Hahaha.”
Cheol Mu Geuk felt a strange mix: irritation, yet refreshment—like a thorn finally pulled free.
No one had dared call him foolish, stubborn, obsessed. Yet this youth, with his eerie gray-rippling eyes, did just that.
I see.
Awakening from a dream, he realized: he’d never truly yearned. He’d been drunk on “effort,” blind to his limits.
One sentence shattered it.
Those strange eyes? Or pointing out what he’d missed?
“The seal won’t suffice as payment for the jade.”
Sado Hwan nodded.
“Naturally.”
“Everything used by the Sado Family from now on—swords, spoons, chopsticks—will be supplied by the Goe Mountain Iron Family.”
“Not enough.”
“As long as I live, one Dragon Grade treasure artifact and two standard ones monthly to the Sado Family.”
“That’ll do.”
“…A powerhouse like you trading treasures not for personal glory, but your clan. The Sado Family’s found a worthy head this time.”
Sado Hwan just shrugged.
“To the forge.”
[Your words flowed like clear streams, but bending a seventy-year-old’s stubbornness with one speech…]
Pa Cheon grumbled. It was a gamble, sure.
But maybe words he’d longed to hear his whole life.
At his age and status, no one would critique him.
Genius had its woes, but mediocrity’s regrets cut deeper.
Or maybe the jade dulled his wits. Anyway, it worked.
At the forge, Cheol Mu Geuk lit the furnace and placed Cloud Demon Iron inside.
Like a solemn rite, he shed his thick outer robe, revealing a gaunt upper body unfit for a blacksmith.
“The jade.”
I handed it over from the case.
Gazing wistfully, he gripped it tight—
Crack!
The instant it shattered—
Rooooar—
A vast, silent rumble emanated from his hand, like an earthquake.
Then.
Whoosh!
Blue flames erupted from his hand, engulfing him in seconds.
“Wh-what’s happening?!”
The commotion drew—
The door burst open as Cheol So Pyeong rushed in, face pale.
“F-Father!”
He leaped forward in shock.
“Stop.”
At my word, his eyes rolled back, veering mid-air.
“…You bastard! You must’ve done something to him!”
Ominous energy surged from Cheol So Pyeong. A massive phantom overlapped his form.
[A simsang!]
A fiery giant rose behind him. His already hulking frame swelled further. Was that even human?
…Fuck.
Past simsangs I’d faced were in safe spots. Not now.
One wrong move, and my head’s gone.
[Blink out now.]
Timing’s the issue.
“Bastard! You won’t even draw your simsang against me?!”
Cheol So Pyeong roared, lunging. Sensing I couldn’t track him, I focused for the perfect blink timing—
“Stand down.”
Then.
Cheol Mu Geuk’s low voice cut through.
“Father?”
The blue flames vanished—
Revealing not the white-haired elder, but a black-haired middle-aged man.
[…Rejuvenation to youth.]
Rejuvenation to Youth.
The body regressing in age. Typically tied to Super Peak’s bone-shattering rebirth.
Yet the jade alone had restored Cheol Mu Geuk’s youth.
He approached the furnace. With a wave—
Fwoosh!
The crimson flames turned blue. The Cloud Demon Iron melted instantly into a mystical liquid shimmering like golden starlight.
“Cl-Cloud Demon Iron…!”
Cheol So Pyeong gasped.
“F-Father? Is that really you?”
“Who else? Your mother?”
“H-how… how?!”
“Move. And douse that racket first.”
Cheol So Pyeong dismissed his simsang. Cheol Mu Geuk approached me. Then—
Swoop—
Bowed deeply.
As elder, cult senior, and head of a Six Demonic Families clan, it was unthinkable.
“Sado Family Head. You are my benefactor. You fulfilled my lifelong wish, making me a true Heavenly Grade blacksmith.”
I nodded, keeping a straight face.
“So Pyeong.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Fetch the family head’s seal. If anyone objects, say this old man ignited true blue flames.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
Cheol So Pyeong bolted out.
Alone now, Cheol Mu Geuk said,
“Sado Family Head.”
“What?”
“That sword.”
My composure nearly cracked.
“The Pa Cheon Sword?”
Pretending to Be the Heavenly Demon