The Great Kunlun Takes Wing
Ten months.
That was the rough estimate for how long Un Hu could hold out, so they had to get started right away.
A massive cauldron was prepared, and the horn of the Armored Dragon was placed inside, filled to the brim with clean water.
Un Yeon, watching with sharp eyes, gave the order to Heo Cheong.
"Begin."
"Yes, Martial Uncle."
Heo Cheong stuffed the space under the cauldron with firewood and lit it. The flames quickly roared to life.
It wasn't long before the water began to boil.
"Good. It has to boil like this, nice and furious. We can't skimp on the firewood."
"Don't worry, Martial Uncle. The younger martial brothers have gone to gather more wood—they'll be back soon."
Just then, Jeong Gwang appeared, carrying something on his back.
"Oh, there you are."
"Yeah. So, what're you all doing?"
"What do you mean? Boiling the water just like you said."
"It's barely lukewarm."
"...What did you say?"
"At this rate, it'll take a hundred years."
Jeong Gwang set down what he'd been carrying.
A bellows.
The Taoists who had just returned with firewood watched as Jeong Gwang gathered his internal energy.
His hands gripped the bellows handles and moved at blinding speed.
Pang! Pang! Pang! Pang!
The flames surged wildly, shifting colors before their eyes.
From red to orange.
Orange to yellow.
Yellow to yellowish-white.
Yellowish-white to pure white.
Only when it reached that brilliant white did Jeong Gwang nod.
"Now that's more like it. Keep it like this for ten months."
"...!"
Everyone gathered there went pale.
The firewood's already burning up! How much wood will we need?
To keep flames that big going, even with internal energy, no one could last long!
Jeong Gwang dipped a finger into the boiling water, tasted it, and turned to Un Yeon.
"Martial Granduncle. What kind of water is this?"
"I figured the clearer the better, so I used spring water from Chunwoon Peak. Is that no good?"
"Nah, it's perfect. When it boils down by more than half, just add more and keep going. Chunwoon Peak water will do the trick."
They'd have to keep hauling water too.
From the spring on the neighboring peak, no less.
As their faces turned to stunned despair, Heo Cheong stepped forward with fiery determination.
Letting things stand like this would crush morale.
He had to show them that even the toughest-looking job was nothing once you got into it.
"I'll give it a try."
He took the bellows from Jeong Gwang and channeled his internal energy into his arms.
Pang. Pang. Pang. Pang.
Not enough—the flames instantly died back from white to yellowish-white.
"Master! You can't go easy on it!"
"Urk!"
Heo Cheong gritted his teeth.
The secret technique: Jade Heart Unification Art!
Internal energy surged powerfully from his dantian!
"Hah!"
Pang! Pang! Pang! Pang!
With his shout, the bellowing changed.
The growing gusts pushed the flames back to pure white.
"That's it. Exactly."
"Hahaha! It's nothing after all!"
Unlike his hearty words, thick sweat dripped from his brow.
And half a shichen later, Heo Cheong handed the bellows to his martial brother Heo Uk and collapsed in a heap.
He raised an arm to wipe his brow, felt the stares around him, and flashed a refreshed smile.
"Whew, just sweating it out in this heat feels invigorating. Hahaha."
Invigorating, my foot.
His arms trembled visibly—he clearly wouldn't even be able to hold chopsticks tomorrow.
Un Hyang, the Fifth Elder overseeing the Kunlun range, had stopped by to check and quietly backed away, vanishing back into the mountains.
Un Jeok, the sect leader, tried to slip away just as quietly—but Jeong Gwang caught him.
"Where you headed?"
"...Shouldn't I go help the disciples laboring in the mountains?"
"Sect Leader Martial Granduncle, you need to stay right here."
"...Here? You mean the main sect?"
Jeong Gwang had half-suspected as much. And there it was.
"No, the cauldron. Keep the fire at white-hot. Even if it drops to yellowish-white, it can't stay that way for more than half a gak a day."
The explanation continued.
In simple terms: if someone collapsed with no replacement, the sect leader would have to hold it with his superior reserves.
"Heh. Heheheh. We're short on hands, aren't we?"
"The squads will help when they get back. How many have returned?"
"None. Not even word yet."
"What?"
Jeong Gwang stared in disbelief, then realized something.
This was Kunlun Sect—full of Taoists with zero flexibility.
It wasn't about martial prowess high or low.
What was a simple task his way became grueling the Taoist way.
Ahh. Should I have spoon-fed every single detail?
Jeong Gwang shook off the regret.
What was done was done. Finish it fast—that was the play.
He was a bit annoyed at having to go himself, though.
"I'll be back."
"Huh? Where to?"
"Qaidam Basin, Yellow River, Qinghai Lake, Tanggula Mountains."
"...R-Right. Good luck."
The Taoists, daunted by the sheer workload, looked at Jeong Gwang with pity.
A strange mix of relief and fighting spirit began to stir.
Better to chop wood, haul water, and pump bellows!
We'll burn it fierce! Pure white!
Jeong Gwang left the revitalized Kunlun and broke into a run.
First stop: First Squad at Qaidam Basin.
Qaidam Basin was a vast depression ringed by peaks two thousand zhang high, its length and width immense.
The northwest was desert, narrowing the search area somewhat, but it was still too huge.
Blue flowers were everywhere here, dragging out the time terribly.
Even the moist soil was packed hard, so no shoveling—pickaxes it was, powered by internal energy, making it all the worse.
They needed a full basket each of Azure Blood Flowers and Damp Rock Mushrooms, but after over two months, they'd barely scraped a handful.
First Squad Leader Un Seong's initial high spirits had dwindled day by day to ashes.
This won't do.
Un Seong sensed they needed a change.
Time to lift the mood.
Then laughter rang out from squad members digging flowers.
His face lit up—he hurried over to amplify it.
But.
It wasn't the kind of laughter he'd hoped for.
"Hahaha! Look at my nails, martial brother. Aren't they just lovely?"
"Heh heh. That pink flower dye really took nicely."
"Yours are green. So refined and subtle—easy on the eyes."
"Still, pink's better. I'm jealous of you, senior brother."
Un Seong's face twisted.
They'd lost their minds.
As he pondered how to handle it, raucous shouts came from disciples pickaxing in the distance.
Yes! That's the energy I wanted.
Un Seong dashed toward them.
He had to spread that vitality to the others.
"Aaaagh! My back! It hurts like it's splitting!"
"Whoa, martial brother. Your back muscles are ripping apart. Pickaxing's the way to build 'em."
"Ugh. All this pickaxing's making my chest lag behind. What should I do?"
"Hmm. Try swinging it backward? Over your shoulder."
"Like this? Feels awkward—is the form okay?"
"Perfect! Yes! Squeeze the chest more! Keep going!"
This group had lost it too.
Un Seong let out a sigh that could sink the earth.
"Heavens. What a mess."
"Did everyone eat something bad?"
"You'd think so. What the—hey?"
He looked up to find Jeong Gwang standing right there.
"H-How'd you get here?"
"You weren't coming back, so I checked."
Jeong Gwang alternated glances between the flower-diggers and pickaxers, frowning.
"At this rate, it'll take forever."
"I-Is it that bad?"
"Sigh. Can you gather everyone?"
Un Seong pulled out a signal firework.
He lit it—boom! A white flare shot skyward and burst.
Half a shichen later, Kunlun disciples from all over converged.
"Watch and follow."
Jeong Gwang demonstrated.
First, Azure Blood Flowers.
After sprinting awhile, he spotted blue blooms and swung his sword without hesitation.
Not just the flowers—everything around them sliced clean and floated in the air.
"No red sap? On to the next."
Same method.
No plucking—slash it all.
Whatever was nearby, all at once.
Repeating this turned the area to wasteland in moments.
Un Seong couldn't take it anymore and tried to intervene.
"Isn't that too rough? Just take the blue flowers—why cut everything else...?"
"They'll grow back anyway."
"...What?"
"The cuttings rot into fertilizer. Lush green in no time."
"Ah! The cycle of life and death!"
Whatever realizations hit them, Jeong Gwang kept swinging, securing one Azure Blood Flower.
"Already?!"
"That fast?"
The Taoists gaped, but Jeong Gwang stayed calm.
"Don't bother picking out just the blue ones. Fine internal energy control eats up stamina and qi."
"But slashing everything—that uses tons of qi too, right?"
"Different."
"...?"
"Nothing to worry about when you're mowing it all down."
"...!"
The Taoists' eyes shook.
A basic warrior's mindset they'd long forgotten—time for reflection.
"And why pickax the ground?"
"Efficiency, obviously..."
"We're warriors."
"...True, but."
"You all know Falling Petal Sword, right?"
Of course.
Basic Kunlun swordsmanship, learned within ten years of entry.
"Sixteenth form: Falling Petal Sprout."
Standing on the damp soil, Jeong Gwang leaped high.
"Normally, you swing in midair!"
He drove his falling momentum into stabbing the sword into the ground.
"But thrust and sweep!"
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
"And release energy!"
Kwaang!
Clods of wet earth exploded outward.
"Clear the dirt with low-qi Lightning Hand!"
His free left hand flashed, scattering the clumps.
"Repeat!"
Alternating Falling Petal Sword and Lightning Hand dug a zhang-deep pit in short order.
No Damp Rock Mushrooms this time, but ridiculously faster than their months of toil.
Now the Taoists were fired up.
"You can use Falling Petal Sword like that!"
"Blast the dirt up and smack it with Lightning Hand—no need to shovel and haul!"
Having reflected on warrior mindset and technique application, Jeong Gwang added,
"Pairs make it easier. One on sword, one on fists."
"Smart. More efficient."
"Like coordinated assault."
Jeong Gwang led the Taoists charging through Qaidam Basin.
Awkward at first with the new ways, they grew accustomed, and days later wielded them masterfully.
Harvests of Azure Blood Flowers and Damp Rock Mushrooms dwarfed two months prior.
"Not hard, right?"
"Of course not!"
"You can finish quick without me?"
"Naturally!"
"Then hurry up, return to Kunlun, and... show off to the Fifth Squad."
He'd almost said "help the Fifth Squad," but tweaked it.
"...Brag to the Fifth Squad!"
"Wahaha!"
"That's the spirit!"
"Let's go!"
Morale rocketed sky-high!
They couldn't imagine.
Endless labor awaited back at Kunlun.
White flares—Kunlun's symbol—burst over Qaidam Basin, Yellow River, Qinghai Lake, Tanggula Mountains in turn.
Each time, miracles unfolded.
Qaidam Basin's soil was turned.
The cruelest of Yellow River Waterway Alliance's Aklin Stronghold burned.
Qinghai Lake's Four Evils lost their heads.
Tanggula Mountains' landslide-blocked path suddenly cleared.
Qinghai's commoners buzzed with excitement.
"Kunlun's immortals tilled this barren land! We'll survive the year thanks to them!"
"River pirates who gouged tolls and slashed at whims—gone! What a blessing!"
"And those villainous Four Evils! Word is a beautiful young immortal skewered them in one strike!"
"Tanggula path's open again? Kunlun immortals did that too!"
Other righteous sects slew bandits or demons too.
But for fame and sect glory, mostly. None toiled this hard for the common folk.
Kunlun's name etched across Qinghai.
As cool, elegant, mighty heroes!
The Great Kunlun's wings beat once more!
Meanwhile, Kunlun Taoists raced the range, gathering final ingredients.
"Raaagh!"
"It's done!"
"We did it!"
All was ready.
Jeong Gwang added everything to the cauldron where the Armored Dragon's horn boiled.
Another month passed.
The pure white flames of ten months finally died.
"Ooh! Is that it?"
"Such a mystical sight!"
All marveled.
Jeong Gwang peered in with satisfaction... then tilted his head.
"Huh?"