Relentless Harassment
Six years ago, a ten-year-old boy named Yeop Pung entered the Cheonun Sect as an outer disciple. With a cultivation speed that defied belief and a martial talent that left everyone else in the dust, he reigned as the idol of every outer disciple in the sect.
In those days, Beom Undae had been one of the crowd that trailed after him, always calling out "Brother Yeop Pung!" as he tagged along at his heels. Yeop Pung, pure-hearted and righteous to a fault, counted Beom Undae as his closest friend, and the two of them were never apart. Beom Undae was no slouch himself—together with Yi Hwawu, the three of them were known as the Trio of Geniuses.
Then, for reasons no one could name, the friendship between Yeop Pung and Beom Undae soured overnight. At that year's outer sect tournament, Yeop Pung even went so far as to crush Beom Undae and the three outer disciples who followed him without a shred of mercy. Nobody ever learned why. After that, Beom Undae and his three companions kept their distance, living as though they had never been close at all.
A year later, Beom Undae was promoted to inner disciple. Yeop Pung, his three-year cultivation period at an end, was reduced to menial labor in the Herb Garden. The once-celebrated Trio of Geniuses of the outer sect went their separate ways, and that was that.
Yeop Pung remembered it all. Whatever longing might once have lived in his heart had long since died. Other people could wonder all they liked—he would never forget what Beom Undae and his pack had done that night six years ago.
And it had not ended there. For two years after Yeop Pung started work in the Herb Garden, those beasts—freshly ascended to the Profound Realm—would come looking for him under the pretext of training. Every time, he walked back to his quarters looking outwardly fine. Every time, the pain and the humiliation were so severe he could barely walk for days afterward.
Then, perhaps they had simply grown bored of it, they stopped coming. For a full year, they left him alone.
Three days after Yeop Pung arrived at Nagun Peak, Beom Undae came looking for him.
This bastard. He won't let me go until he's broken me completely, is that it?
Beom Undae and his three followers arrived in front of the hut, set down their heavy loads, and let out a long, low whistle. Then they turned cold eyes on the courtyard.
Yeop Pung… so this is where you've been hiding.
The thought of trampling him again—after a whole year of going without—already had them buzzing. They were curious, too. Yeop Pung had reached the Profound Realm. How much stronger had he become?
The hut before them was every bit as desolate and dilapidated as the rumors claimed. Word was that the only soul living here was some old drunkard who did nothing but drink. Who, exactly, was supposed to protect Yeop Pung in a place like this?
"Kwahahaha!"
The four of them looked at one another and laughed, low and ugly.
That was when a bark exploded from the courtyard, and a streak of gold shot out like lightning.
Bone's speed made all four of them flinch. In the space of a blink, a massive golden-furred dog was standing right in front of them.
Bone did not so much as glance at Beom Undae's group. It sniffed the air, lunged at a bamboo basket hanging from their luggage, clamped it in its jaws, and trotted straight back into the hut.
What the hell is that dog? It's insanely fast!
They were startled—but they could sense no Profound Qi from the animal, and that was enough to put them at ease. When no one came out of the hut, they dumped the rest of what they had brought in the courtyard.
Bone had already pried the basket open and was tearing into a great slab of smoked meat with single-minded greed. It had no attention to spare for the likes of them.
"Undae. That Yeop Pung… where is he?"
The other three looked to Beom Undae.
"Inside that hut."
Beom Undae held the highest cultivation among them. Having already reached the 5th Meridian Mysterious Realm, his senses ran far sharper than the others'. He focused, and the hut laid itself open to him: someone in a deep sleep in the large room, and in the small room beside it, no presence at all except Yeop Pung's.
Heh. Yeop Pung. It's been a year. How I've missed you.
A nasty little smile curled across Beom Undae's mouth as he stepped up to the small room's door and called through it, the mockery dripping off every word.
"Brother Yeop Pung! An old friend has come! Come on out—let's have a look at you!"
"Grr?"
Bone, still ripping at the meat, lifted its head and gave the four of them a deeply peculiar look.
Those bastards. Did they come here to fight?
The door creaked open, and Yeop Pung stepped out. The expression on his face was one they had never seen on him before—grim, set, and cold as winter iron.
If it had been worthless trash like Gi Beonjin, Yeop Pung would have ignored them and stayed hidden inside. There would have been nothing Beom Undae's pack could have done about it. But Beom Undae was the one opponent Yeop Pung could never walk away from. For years, Yi Sang had told him there was no point in fighting them—just stay out of their way. But there are some things a man cannot run from. Things he has to stand and face.
Yeop Pung had made up his mind a long time ago. Even if that night six years ago were to repeat ten times over, he would never forgive them. If he had been afraid that night—if he had run just to spare himself—he would no longer be Yeop Pung. So every time Beom Undae's pack beat him down until he collapsed coughing blood, he never once hid. He had not then. He would not now.
Beom Undae's group lit up at the sight of him. The boy standing on the left was Oh Gang—the one who had tormented Yeop Pung the worst that night. The instant his eyes found Yeop Pung, a manic gleam flared in them. He looked like a starving wolf that had just spotted a lamb, ready to lunge that very second.
Beom Undae raked his gaze over Yeop Pung from head to toe, slow and cold, and smiled.
"Brother Yeop Pung. It's been a year, and you look even sturdier than before."
"Well, our Brother Yeop Pung always did have one hell of a talent for taking a beating."
"Puhahaha!"
Yeop Pung did not take the bait. He did not give them a single step. His voice was a blade.
"What, Yeop Pung? You really got a death wish?"
Oh Gang's eyes narrowed, killing intent rolling off him in waves.
"You thought if you crawled all the way to Nagun Peak we wouldn't be able to touch you? You got any idea where you are? You think somebody here's gonna protect you?"
"Looks like our Brother Yeop Pung forgot the old days. Undae, what are you waiting for? I can't stand looking at that bastard's face. Drag him out already!"
The shameless mockery, the insults piled on insults, stoked the fire in Yeop Pung's chest. The old, humiliating memories rose up behind his eyes, and his fists clenched until the knuckles went white. He glared at Oh Gang, the urge to throw a punch right then and there pounding through him. He knew Oh Gang was at the 3rd Meridian Mysterious Realm. With the combat strength Yeop Pung had shown against Gi Beonjin, it would be a fight worth taking.
The problem was Beom Undae. A year ago the bastard had already been knocking on the door of the 4th Meridian Mysterious Realm. Looking at him now, he was stronger still. If he had broken through to the 5th Meridian Mysterious Realm, Yeop Pung could throw everything he had at him and it would not be enough.
"Aigoo, what's this? Is our Brother Yeop Pung getting angry?"
Oh Gang took one look at that set face and laughed even louder.
"So what if you are? Come on, big brother—step outside and we'll have ourselves a real match."
Those damn bastards.
Rage boiled up through Yeop Pung until it scalded. But he had only just stepped into the Profound Realm. He was not ready. If he could reach the 3rd Meridian Mysterious Realm—no, even the 2-Vein Profound Realm—he could borrow the power of his golden Profound Qi and give those animals a fight. It was not time. Not yet.
The door to the large room groaned open, and Maeng Chang-haeng came staggering out.
"Yaaawn…"
He rubbed his eyes, yawned so wide his jaw cracked, and muttered in a voice still thick with sleep.
"What's all the racket this early in the morning? Where'd you little brats come from, waking this old man from a perfectly good sleep? This won't do!"
Beom Undae's group stared.
What the hell is that supposed to be…
Whatever they had expected of a Peak Master, this was not it. He looked like nothing more than an old drunkard who lived at the bottom of a wine jar.
"Ah. You came to drop off the goods."
He did not even give them a chance to answer. Maeng Chang-haeng shuffled forward, still picking the sleep from his eyes, as if he had not heard a single word of the exchange between Yeop Pung and Beom Undae's pack.
"That's right, Peak Master."
Beom Undae recovered in an instant.
"We were ordered to transport supplies. We were catching up with our fellow disciple Yeop Pung and our voices got a little loud. Our apologies."
"Ah, is that so? Then go talk over there. Don't make a racket here… Aigoo, Bone! What are you sneaking off and eating this time?!"
Maeng Chang-haeng did not so much as glance at Yeop Pung. He bent over the baskets on the ground and started poking through them.
Perfect. The old drunk really doesn't give a damn about Yeop Pung.
Beom Undae's group exchanged looks and smiled, slow and ugly.
Oh Gang took a step forward.
"Brother Yeop, the Peak Master has spoken. Let's step outside and talk among ourselves. Wouldn't want to disturb the elder's cultivation."
"This way, Brother Yeop…"
Behind Oh Gang, Wang Maeng and Sa Ryang beckoned as well, wearing smiles that belonged on wolves.
"Hold on."
Maeng Chang-haeng's voice cut in from the side.
"Where's the plum blossom wine I specifically asked for? Why don't I see it? Where did you put it?"
"What? Plum blossom wine?"
Beom Undae's group blinked at him. They had used the supply run as a pretext to come harass Yeop Pung; they had not the faintest idea what Daughter's Red even was.
Maeng Chang-haeng rummaged through the luggage again, then looked up at Beom Undae.
"You. You don't know either?"
"How would I know, sir?"
"Don't just stand there saying you don't know—get over here and look for it! You clueless brat! Tell those others to go talk somewhere else for a bit. You stay here and find my wine. Now."
Damn it.
Yeop Pung looked at Maeng Chang-haeng. The old man was paying him no attention whatsoever, still digging through the big crates and grumbling under his breath.
"Hurry up and find it, you damn brat! If you can't find my wine, I'll pick your bones clean!"
"Y-yes, Peak Master."
Promising inner disciple or not, Beom Undae did not dare talk back to a Peak Master to his face. He had no choice but to step toward Maeng Chang-haeng, flicking a look at Oh Gang and the others as he did.
"You three go on ahead. I'll catch up shortly."
"Don't you worry, Brother Undae! Leave Yeop Pung to us!"
Oh Gang's group caught none of the undercurrent. They nodded, and their eyes swung back to Yeop Pung.
"Shall we, Brother Yeop? Leave this to Brother Undae. The rest of us can have a little quality time, just ourselves."
Yeop Pung's face was a mask of fury, the look of a man driven into a corner with nowhere left to run. He glared at Beom Undae as if he meant to burn a hole through him—then turned and strode out of the courtyard.
"Hahaha!"
Oh Gang, Wang Maeng, and Sa Ryang laughed as though they had already won, drunk on the sight of Yeop Pung's retreating back as they fell in behind him.
What they did not see—what they never thought to look for—was the expression that settled over Yeop Pung's face the instant he turned away from them.
It was cold as glacial ice.