Alhazard, Are You Insane? (3)
Alhazard worked with unexpected diligence. Of course, it was not because he had been moved by the Khan Emperor’s character and now followed him with genuine loyalty. As mentioned before, he was the quintessential mad-scientist type of mage. The reason he threw himself into the work was simple. The martial arts, spells, mysterious monsters, scholarship, and philosophies of the East—none of which he had ever encountered in the West—made the East a treasure trove of new knowledge for him. Why would he not be delighted when he could study, without interference from anyone, things he would normally have to pay to learn, all while receiving the Emperor’s full support? To him, the East was no different from paradise on earth.
What Alhazard studied with particular interest was the Jiangshi arts practiced by the Daoists. The concept of Jiangshi arts was quite different from the black magic commonly imagined in the West. In the East, there was a belief that a person’s corpse must be buried in their homeland; if buried in a foreign land, the soul would turn into a vengeful ghost and curse the place. Jiangshi arts had been created by Daoists to overcome this superstition. To transport a corpse to its homeland without letting it decay, embalming was necessary, and talismans were used to control the bodies so that a small number of people could move large numbers of corpses. In other words, Jiangshi arts had been invented for surprisingly humane reasons.
Yet no matter how noble the original intent, human endeavors tend to become corrupted over time. Just as Nobel created dynamite for safe mining only to see it used far more often to kill people and destroy buildings on battlefields, there were countless cases in the East where Jiangshi arts were abused. The most notorious examples involved turning martial artists who had used inner energy in life into Jiangshi and forcing them to serve as soldiers.
Alhazard saw in Eastern Jiangshi arts a possibility that diverged from black magic. Undead created through black magic were extremely incompatible with the ordinary magic he used. Because the source of black magic—black mana—originated from beings like demon kings or devils from other dimensions, it repelled the mana of the natural world. Casting spells on the undead was therefore extremely inefficient, which was why the West widely believed that black magic and ordinary magic could never coexist. Alhazard had reached the same conclusion through countless experiments, yet he had always found it regrettable. High-grade undead such as liches or death knights were like ideal disciples—highly efficient and easy to command. They neither ate nor slept, and they faithfully carried out their master’s orders. From a teacher’s perspective, no talent could be more desirable. If he could successfully reconcile black magic with ordinary magic, he would never again have to waste time teaching mediocre disciples.
To someone who had always held such thoughts, the Jiangshi arts of the East were the ultimate technique. After years of painstaking effort following his arrival in the East, Alhazard finally succeeded in creating the “disciples” he had always envisioned: the Blood Jiangshi, automatic puppets. By fusing Western golem magic with Eastern Jiangshi techniques, he had produced undead that operated on an entirely different system from black magic. And this was only the beginning.
Through mechanisms, formations, the Human Technique Formation, the Qimen Formation, and countless other Eastern arts, he and his Blood Jiangshi—into which he had copied his own personality—devoted themselves day and night to research, gradually absorbing Eastern knowledge and fusing it with Western magic to forge something new.
Then one day, while Alhazard was completely absorbed in his creative work, the Khan Emperor came to see him. Alhazard had been reporting regularly on his progress with “dismantling magic,” so the sudden visit puzzled him.
“Great Sage, I am aware from your reports that you have achieved some results. However, my other ministers do not seem convinced. Can you demonstrate results sufficient to silence their complaints?”
“Understood. I had not yet reported this to Your Majesty, but there are aspects that require their cooperation. Explaining everything verbally here would be far too lengthy. If you could arrange a separate venue, I will present everything I have accomplished before a large audience.”
The Khan Emperor was pleased by his words and immediately prepared a venue—the vast outdoor banquet hall normally used for imperial banquets. Into that hall streamed the many Eastern intellectuals who had once persecuted the so-called Great Sage during his first visit to the palace. They had not gathered to praise his achievements. They had come fully prepared to find fault and tear him apart.
“I wonder what that fake sage has prepared.”
“Heh… no matter what it is, he will be thoroughly humiliated today.”
Finally, the Great Sage appeared before the crowd seething with malice. Behind him followed seven Blood Jiangshi. At the sight, several martial artists and Daoists cried out in shock.
“What is the meaning of this! How dare you bring such vile things as Jiangshi into the imperial palace!”
“Wait—that Jiangshi… isn’t that Elder Jang Seok-gong? To turn a great senior of the martial world into a Jiangshi… how tragic, how tragic…”
“There is even a woman among them! Such an act that would anger both gods and men… tsk, tsk.”
As one Daoist pointed out, a woman was indeed among the Blood Jiangshi. Her silver hair and striking beauty were enough to stir lust in any man, and several noblewomen present began to regard the Great Sage with cold, disapproving eyes.
“…Remarkable. How can a Jiangshi move so naturally? It is as though it were alive.”
“That is not the issue. Those Jiangshi all appear to have been martial artists… They walk with the distinctive gait of those who have trained in inner energy.”
“Nonsense! How could a mere corpse use martial arts?”
In their common sense, it was impossible for a Jiangshi to wield martial arts. Jiangshi moved with a stiff, grotesque, bouncing gait because they were embalmed corpses devoid of blood, controlled only by spells. With neither inner energy nor even a single drop of blood in their bodies, it was only natural they could not use martial arts. Yet the seven Jiangshi Alhazard had brought moved with such natural grace that they seemed like living martial artists.
“Everyone, please be silent. From now on, I will explain the progress made in ‘dismantling magic.’ I have brought these ‘Blood Jiangshi’ that I created myself to assist in that explanation, so do not be too surprised.”
Blood Jiangshi. This was the moment the “Jiangshi capable of using martial arts” that would be remembered throughout Eastern martial history first appeared. Later accounts would tell how countless Jiangshi artisans strove to replicate these legendary Blood Jiangshi, only to fail every time.
“After years of research, I have finally found a way to explain Western magic to everyone present. I assume none of you are unfamiliar with the theory of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements.”
As the Great Sage said, there was no one in the hall who did not know the foundational philosophy behind both Daoist spells and martial artists’ inner energy. Negative and positive, female and male, cold and hot—opposing yet complementary concepts of yin and yang. Added to these were the five elements—metal, water, wood, fire, and earth—whose application could create or destroy all things in heaven and earth. That was the philosophy of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements.
“Western magic can be explained through this very Yin-Yang and Five Elements. As the saying goes, all streams return to the same source; Eastern thought applies directly to Western magic as well.”
Having said this, the Great Sage gestured to two of the Blood Jiangshi. One was the beautiful silver-haired woman who had drawn everyone’s attention earlier. The other was a man whose physique appeared massive by Eastern standards. The male and female Blood Jiangshi faced each other and extended their hands as though executing a palm technique. Between them, cold and hot energies began to intertwine and manifest in the empty air.
“Heavens—”
“Amitabha… Amitabha…”
“Good heavens! The Jiangshi are truly using martial arts!”
The hall erupted in uproar as the Blood Jiangshi overturned common sense by wielding martial arts. Even the Khan Emperor, seated at the highest place, could not hide his interest. This was clearly an achievement that would be recorded in Eastern history.