An Impossible Figure
Baek Geum-un rubbed her eyes in disbelief. "Th-that... Hong-hyang, I’m not seeing things, am I?" she stammered, her voice trembling with shock.
A look of profound impact was etched across Ak Hong-hyang’s face as well. She had always known Bukjin was strong—in her eyes, Im Bukjin was a man far more powerful than anyone else she knew. Yet, even she hadn't imagined his strength reached such a terrifying level.
What did it mean to lift 2,500 jin using nothing but raw physical power, without a single drop of Mystic Energy? It meant that even without his cultivation, Bukjin could theoretically crush any warrior below the Martial Warrior Realm with his bare hands.
A shadow of gloom flickered deep within Ak Hong-hyang’s eyes. A realization struck her: no matter how hard she worked, she might never be able to catch up to him.
In the spectator stands, the teachers watching the trial were equally stunned. Every single one of them sat with their mouths agape, their eyes glazed over. Gu Cheon felt as if he were trapped in a nightmare. Cho Heun, Ryu Gye-hae, and Ban Oe-min felt like they were experiencing a waking dream. Teachers from other academies questioned their own sanity, wondering if the reality unfolding before them was some sort of elaborate illusion.
Even Yi Cheong-hyeon, the official in charge of the examination, and the other proctors looked utterly blindsided. Yi Cheong-hyeon was perhaps the most shocked of all; he knew better than anyone how Bukjin had grown. Once the disgraced wastrel of a fallen house, Bukjin had steadily climbed upward since the city-wide competition. But even Yi Cheong-hyeon hadn't expected a growth rate this explosive. The display Bukjin was putting on now seemed to eclipse even the genius his sister, Im Cheong-seon, had shown in the past.
The students were in a state of mental paralysis, their thoughts completely halted by the shock. The young priestess Ya Mi-ang watched Bukjin with sparkling eyes, a light resembling the moon reflecting within her pupils. Im Jin’s expression remained relatively calm, though beneath her stoic mask, a hint of genuine surprise lingered.
"Th-that's..."
The gambling den, which had been filled with raucous cheering only moments ago, suddenly went deathly silent, as if doused with ice water. The gamblers stared intensely at the screen, some even suspecting that the Mystic Energy Suppression Array had malfunctioned. The bald man’s eyes looked ready to pop out of his skull.
"How is that even possible?!"
He glanced sideways at a nearby table. It was a massive piece of furniture, nearly thirty feet long with legs forged from black iron. If he's that strong... he could eat a mountain of rice cakes and still have room for more!
"Wahahaha!" Wang Chung burst into a fit of maniacal laughter. "I knew it! I knew he’d do it! Hahaha! Jackpot! I’m rich! I’m finally rich! Let’s see how much I won... Eh? Seven hundred gold coins!"
"Do you really think Five Tripod Strength is that impressive?"
Bukjin’s mocking voice rang through the hall, shattering the heavy silence. He looked at Jo Pacheon with a cold, derisive smile. Jo Pacheon’s face had turned a sickly shade of blue. Even if someone had stepped in fresh manure a hundred times in brand-new shoes, their expression wouldn't look as rotten as Jo Pacheon’s did right now.
"Hmph, even so, you're just..." Jo Pacheon began, gritting his teeth.
Bukjin cut him off instantly. "Just Five Tripod Strength? Is that what you were going to say?" Bukjin laughed loudly. "I told you I’d show you true despair, didn't I? True despair doesn't end here."
With long, confident strides, Bukjin walked over to the sixth cauldron. The students in the hall began to murmur in agitation.
What is he doing?
No way...
The sixth cauldron?!
Before anyone could process the situation, Bukjin reached out and lightly gripped the handle of the sixth cauldron with his left hand. And then... he hoisted the 3,000-jin vessel over his head in a single, fluid motion!
The hall became as silent as a tomb. When Bukjin had lifted the fifth cauldron, the students and teachers had lost their ability to speak. Now that he had lifted the sixth, their very ability to think had ground to a halt.
Jo Pacheon’s entire body went rigid. He clenched his fists so hard his nails dug into his palms. "Impossible... How... how can this be..." He couldn't believe his eyes. But the nightmare was far from over. Bukjin moved on to the eighth cauldron.
4,000 jin. Eight Tripod Strength!
Jo Pacheon began to tremble violently. Holding the eighth cauldron aloft, Bukjin looked down at him and sneered. "Did you really think you were special with that measly Five Tripod Strength?"
Every word Bukjin spat was dripping with sarcasm. Without waiting for a response, he set the cauldron down and walked over to the ninth. He gripped the handle and, with a short, sharp shout, heaved it upward.
BOOM—!
The shock was so immense that it felt like an explosion went off in the minds of everyone watching. Every mouth in the hall was wide open, but no sound came out. A massive wave of confusion swallowed the crowd. Bukjin held the ninth cauldron for five breaths before slowly lowering it to the ground. He turned back to Jo Pacheon and asked again.
"I asked you: did you really think you were something great with just Five Tripod Strength?"
Jo Pacheon was pale, cold sweat pouring off him like rain. Each of Bukjin’s questions felt like a jagged dagger plunging deep into his heart. Nine Tripod Strength! 4,500 jin! It meant Bukjin’s raw power exceeded Jo Pacheon’s by a staggering 2,000 jin. If the two were to engage in a pure physical brawl, a single punch from Bukjin would shatter Jo Pacheon’s bones and leave him coughing up blood.
Yi Cheong-hyeon, the head official, was so stunned he forgot to announce the results. And then, the unthinkable happened once more.
"Keep your eyes open and watch closely. I’ll show you what true power looks like."
Bukjin headed back toward the first cauldron.
"What is he doing now?"
"Is he going to lift them all again from the start?"
"What on earth..."
The students couldn't hold back their cries of astonishment. Bukjin picked up the first cauldron and carried it to the second. He tucked the first one inside the second. His bizarre behavior continued. The second went into the third, the third into the fourth, and the fourth into the fifth. The process was as smooth as flowing water.
Everyone—students and teachers alike—stared with bulging eyes. No way... A thought occurred to them that had never been imagined in the history of the academy.
Having stacked the first through fifth cauldrons together, Bukjin gripped the handles with both hands. He drew his Blood Qi to its absolute limit. A massive surge of vitality roiled within him, and a faint red glow began to emanate from his body. He braced his arms and let out a thunderous roar.
"HAAAH!"
He lifted all five cauldrons simultaneously. For the first time, he used both hands. The combined weight of the first through fifth cauldrons was exactly 7,500 jin! It was a figure that made people forget to breathe. Bukjin raised his arms high, hoisting the five nested vessels above his head.
CRACK—!
The stone tiles beneath his feet finally gave way under the immense pressure. White cracks spider-webbed outward from his feet in every direction.
"Did you really think you were great with just Five Tripod Strength?" Bukjin’s voice boomed through the hall like thunder. "Did a nobody like you really think you could trample over the records of my Im family? Did you think you were even worthy?"
Jo Pacheon’s spirit shattered just like the stone tiles beneath Bukjin’s feet. His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the floor, looking like a man who had lost his soul.
"Gah!" Jo Pacheon spat out a mouthful of blood. "Th-this is impossible... absolutely impossible! You... you must have used a trick!" He began to scream desperately, as if he had suddenly found a lifeline. "How could you possibly possess such strength!"
Bukjin set the five cauldrons down and merely sneered, saying nothing. He had already proven everything through his actions; words were beneath him now.
"Silence! How dare you cause a scene in the examination hall!" Yi Cheong-hyeon barked, finally snapping out of his shock. Officials from the Education Bureau rushed forward, hauled Jo Pacheon to his feet, and began dragging him out.
"Wait!" Jo Pacheon shouted, wiping the blood from his mouth with his sleeve. "Lord Yi! Teachers! Students! You all saw it, didn't you? The faint red light flowing over Im Bukjin’s body when he lifted those five cauldrons! It looked exactly like Mystic Energy! Is no one else suspicious?"
The hall immediately broke into hushed whispers. Everyone had indeed seen the phenomenon Jo Pacheon described. Most had assumed it was a rare physical reaction caused by his Blood Qi reaching a boiling point. But hearing Jo Pacheon’s accusation, doubt began to take root.
If that red glow was indeed the true measure of Bukjin’s physical strength, then what kind of monster was he? Even a Great Dragon might not possess such vitality. It was certainly not the kind of power a mere junior academy student should possess.
Could Bukjin have used some mysterious technique to bypass the Mystic Energy Suppression Array and use his internal energy to perform these impossible feats? The question spread through the crowd like a plague.
"I also believe an investigation is necessary!" Im Yeok shouted, seizing the opportunity.
"I agree!" Dongbang Jeon added, his voice loud as he shook off his stupor.
"Investigation this, investigation that! Is this competition being held in your living room?" Baek Geum-un snapped, crossing her arms in fury. However, many other students began to side with the call for an inquiry. The miracle Bukjin had performed was simply too far beyond common sense. It wasn't something a person of his age should be capable of. The suspicion only continued to grow.