The Proposal
The treasure belonged to the White Spirit Medical House — so why did some outsider have to come barging in and attain enlightenment with it?
Ha.
A hollow laugh burst out of him. His irritation flared all at once.
But with this, the obsession he had clung to for so long could finally be brought to an end.
That was enough.
"Seomun Hyeok."
Seomun Hyeok, who had been waiting nearby, hurried over at once.
"Yes, Clan Master."
"Keep an eye on this one for me."
"……Are you certain that is wise?"
"I'm more than certain — that's the problem. From this day forward, this man is a benefactor of our White Spirit Medical House. Guard him as you would guard me. And judging by the look of things… it won't take long."
"Clan Master, if I leave your side, who will protect you?"
"You worry over nothing. This is the White Spirit Medical House, and I am about to unfold the Mansang Ijeol Formation — the Myriad Thoughts Restraining Formation. Who could possibly break into this place? Even a sect leader of the Eight Great Sects would not find it easy."
"Clan Master…"
"And when he wakes, bring him to my private residence. I shall be conducting the 'treatment' there."
"Understood."
A promise was a promise.
It would be grueling work, but he had the hands for it.
Yang Il smiled and made his way to the private residence, and Yi Do sank into the stillness of no-self.
His eyes opened slowly.
Vitality surged through his entire body. He clenched his fist — strength brimmed over as well.
From the halfway realm of Heavenly Flower Scattered Pillar, he had now risen, whole and complete, to Five Qi Unification.
He was satisfied.
Rising from where he sat, he turned his head.
Seomun Hyeok was watching him with a faintly dazed expression. Not much time could have passed.
The enlightenment had come suddenly, but it was a process he had already lived through once in his previous life.
Gathering his energy, he asked, "Where is the Divine Doctor?"
"He is treating someone."
"In his private residence?"
"Yes."
"I see."
He started walking, and Seomun Hyeok scurried along behind him.
"Excuse me."
Yi Do did not stop.
"If you have something to say, say it while we walk."
"……You must care for that person a great deal. That — you are the Brutal Demon Yi Do, aren't you?"
"I am."
"And you're seventeen."
"That's true as well."
Before he knew it, they had crossed the courtyard and reached the entrance of the private residence where they had first arrived. Naturally, his footsteps did not stop — and neither did Seomun Hyeok's mouth.
"How can anyone reach Five Qi Unification at that age? Even seeing it with my own eyes, I can hardly believe it… What exactly are you?"
Yi Do turned his head.
What should he even call it? A sense of déjà vu?
Myeong Hyeon lay over there hovering between life and death, and here was another Myeong Hyeon wearing nothing but a different face — the way he spoke was remarkably similar.
"Seomun Hyeok."
"Yes."
"Did Ak Nan-hyang tell you nothing?"
To anyone else it would have sounded utterly out of nowhere, but not between the two of them. Seomun Hyeok's expression froze — or rather, it turned to ice. He answered in silence.
"I have no intention of joining the Ming Cult. I have no interest in it, either. So stop clinging to me."
"……My existence is a secret among secrets. How could you possibly know?"
"Do you believe there are such things as eternal secrets in the murim?"
"……"
"Stop bothering me."
"……For now, understood. Please go in."
Yi Do turned and went on his way. Walking quietly toward the residence, he found Yang Il inside, sweat beading on his forehead as he treated Myeong Hyeon.
He made for a corner of the pavilion and sat down, setting the Cloud Dragon Sword beside him still in its sheath, and watched Yang Il work.
Yang Il spoke without taking his eyes off Myeong Hyeon.
"You care for him quite a bit, it seems."
"He's my man."
"……Such a young whelp, carrying himself like a full-grown man. And above all, the fact that it isn't an act — that alone never ceases to astonish me."
Yi Do said nothing.
"Scars will remain, but the wounds to his body can be treated cleanly. The real concern is his blood pathways…"
Yang Il wiped the sweat from his brow, then took out needles and a whole arsenal of medicines from the corner and began working them into every part of Myeong Hyeon's body. He continued as he worked.
"The Ink Dragon Asura Art. Among demonic arts, its side effects are comparatively mild — but strictly speaking, a demonic art is a demonic art all the same. Judging by the state of him, he must have kept his blood pathways sealed most of the time… If he hadn't, we might have had to tear every one of them apart and stitch them back together."
"Can he be treated?"
"Isn't that obvious? Do you not know why they call me the Divine Doctor?"
"I asked just in case."
"……Cheeky whelp, aren't you. The treatment will be flawless. There'll be no problem with his realm either — but the recovery will take considerable time. Could be a month. Could be a year. Could be ten. If you had an enormous supply of elixirs, the time could be cut down exponentially… but that's your affair to arrange."
Yi Do listened in silence.
"And as far as I know, only three martial artists in all have learned the Ink Dragon Asura Art… This one here — he's a Yaksha, isn't he."
Yang Il's knowledge was remarkably broad.
Denying it would have been absurd. So would staying silent.
"He is a Yaksha."
"……You truly are trying to walk a difficult road."
"Is that wrong?"
"An ordinary martial artist would choose to kill this Yaksha rather than save him. Or, if only to curry favor with the King of Swords Sect, he might heal the man completely and then try to forge a connection with the Sword Emperor. But that's not what you're doing."
Yang Il lifted his head and looked at him. Their eyes met.
"Purge the demonic qi and remake him as an ordinary martial artist? That means you intend to accept this man, fully and completely, as one of your own."
"And is that not allowed?"
"……The Ink Dragon Asura Art he learned may have fewer side effects than most demonic arts, but its root is demonic all the same. And above all, he spent years handling every manner of dirty work behind the Sword Emperor's back. Those traces do not simply vanish. Accepting him is your freedom — but one day, he will become a shackle around your ankle."
"Is that concern I hear?"
"I simply cannot allow a benefactor of the White Spirit Medical House to end up a public enemy of the murim."
Yi Do smirked.
"If I become a public enemy of the murim, it will have nothing to do with his past."
"……The road you've walked is a brutal one, but not brutal enough to earn that name. This man, however, could be the one to earn it for you."
"The reverse is possible too."
"Reverse?"
"I could drag the King of Swords Sect down as a den of demons instead."
"……The King of Swords Sect is the greatest sect of the Jeok Nation. You think that's possible?"
Possible or impossible.
That was never the question.
"They already walk the demonic path in practice. You think I can't?"
On this point, at least, even Yang Il seemed to be caught off guard.
"……You. How much do you actually know?"
"More than you do."
"……"
"If I become a public enemy of the murim, it will be nothing more than the result of my own actions. What can I do if people insist on calling me that? I merely do what must be done."
"……Such a young whelp… Are you really seventeen?"
"How old do I look?"
"……Like some ancient master who's half returned to childhood… How would I ever guess your age?"
Yi Do laughed.
And so the hours slipped by.
One double-hour. Two.
Five. Ten.
The sun rose, set, and rose again.
At last, the Divine Doctor slumped back on his heels.
"It's done."
Yi Do extended a hand toward him. Yang Il took it and pulled himself to his feet. Yi Do spoke.
"Would you be interested in the post of Pavilion Master of the Uigyeong Pavilion of the Asura Sword Sect?"
How was he supposed to describe it?
Absurd. That was the only word for it.
"Pavilion master of what, where?"
"Pavilion Master of the Uigyeong Pavilion of the Asura Sword Sect."
"……Hey, you brat. Why in the world would I go there? I'm not going. Not a chance."
"I see. Then that settles it."
Yi Do walked back to the corner of the pavilion and sat himself on the railing.
"……What? You only offer once?"
"I offered once. You refused. What more is there to say?"
"……"
"If I offered a second time, would you come?"
Heh. Truly, an impossible man to read.
"I've been rooted in the White Spirit Medical House for over two hundred years now, and you're telling me to throw it all away and move to far-off Wisu Commandery? Forget it, brat."
And yet.
Meeting Yi Do's gaze, Yang Il found himself continuing.
"……If you ever come to command an organization on the level of the Eight Great Sects… then, perhaps, there might be a sliver of something worth considering…"
Yi Do smirked.
"Then make the offer again when that happens."
"……Hah, you brat. You think leading an Eight-Great-Sects-level power is easy? To be sure, from where you stand now, swallowing the Asura Sword Sect whole might well be your aim… but you know it better than anyone. The road you walk is the blood path. It's soaked in blood. And if everything goes your way and you seize control of the Asura Sword Sect, then whether it will be an Eight-Great-Sects-level Asura Sword Sect — or a demoted one, Eight Great in name alone — no one can say."
It was not, by any means, a wrong assessment.
Though he had not attained mastery over every principle of the world, this was a future that could be predicted with even the barest grasp of them.
No one was ignorant of the Asura Sword Sect's circumstances.
Factions had split the sect, and its internal law had calcified, orbiting around those men at the center.
Elevating the relatively untalented, casting aside the exceptional.
For now, however deep the factional rifts ran, the sect's raw strength kept its seat among the Eight Great Sects secure — but a year from now? Two? Five? Even ten? No one could say.
"I've heard every rumor there is about you, and now that I've seen you with my own eyes, I understand. Those rumors were not exaggerated in the slightest."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Nothing much. You killed, and killed again. There's nothing wrong with the method itself — but your sword does not distinguish between friend and foe. A storm of blood blowing in from outside the sect may temper it, but a storm of blood within will be its undoing."
Yang Il had something he wanted to say. Yi Do knew it. So he simply listened in silence and gave him the time.
"Try gathering allies, at least once. Take those who share your will under your command — that is what I mean."
Yi Do smirked.
"Is that advice?"
"Consider it counsel from a man who has, at the very least, lived longer than you."
That was enough. Yi Do asked, "When can he move?"
"He can move the moment he wakes, but his breathing cultivation will need at least two days of rest, and he should avoid strenuous exertion. More to the point — are you returning to the Asura Sword Sect straight away?"
Yi Do nodded.
"……I can hardly send a benefactor of the White Spirit Medical House off empty-handed. I'll provide you two fine horses and a small carriage."
"I'll accept the gift gratefully."
"What good does a thank-you do me?"
Yi Do changed the subject.
"There seems to be a guest outside."
Just then, Yang Il's brow creased. He cocked his ear — and a thunderous voice bored into it.
"Brutal Demon, come out at once!! We have come from the Baegam Branch of the Full Moon Saber Sect!! Will you not explain the massacre of the Bright Moon Sword Clan?!"
Yang Il smirked.
"They're not here for me, it seems. They came looking for you."
Not every sect stationed branches in every surrounding territory — but Baekmun Town, lying not so far from the Full Moon Saber Sect's main mountain, was one of its most vital holdings.
It bordered the Asura Sword Sect to the north, the King of Swords Sect to the east, and the territory of the Southern Ten Thousand Moons Sect to the south. As a core region, it could only be called a strategic linchpin.
And into precisely such a place, it was said, a branch master of the Asura Sword Sect had come and annihilated the Bright Moon Sword Clan.
If the Baegam Branch did not move, the name of the Eight Great Sects would lose its luster — and beyond that, the influence of Baekmun Town as a whole would suffer.
And so they had no choice but to come.
Knowing the Divine Doctor's rules, they waited at the gate first.
They shouted at the top of their lungs: Yi Do was to come out. The Brutal Demon was to emerge this instant and explain his annihilation of the Bright Moon Sword Clan.
After some time had passed — creeeak — the gate opened.
A man appeared, dressed in robes of fairly clean cut. He looked quite young. His hair was tied back to a moderate length, and he was, all in all, strikingly handsome — but his two eyes… were terrifying.
He spoke.
"Night is deep. Refrain from such shouting."
Noh Gyegwang, Branch Master of the Baegam Branch of the Full Moon Saber Sect, felt his brow knot fiercely. This brat.
"……Are you the Brutal Demon?"
"I am."
"……I am Noh Gyegwang. I hold the post of Branch Master of the Baegam Branch."
"I see."
"……You bade me refrain from loud voices, so very well — I shall refrain. Then tell me the reason you annihilated the Bright Moon Sword Clan here in Baekmun Town."
Yi Do rested a hand on the Cloud Dragon Sword at his hip and cast a languid glance around his surroundings.
The number of them: nineteen in all — including the man speaking before him now.
The realm of the one who had introduced himself as Noh Gyegwang was Three Flowers Gathering.
The highest present.
"An explanation, is it…"
Trailing off, Yi Do smiled faintly.
In truth, Yi Do was not so merciless a man as all that. Nor did he take any pleasure in blood. He simply did not hesitate when there was something that had to be killed.
He could well understand why a branch of the Full Moon Saber Sect had come all this way. And so he opened his mouth without protest.
"The Bright Moon Sword Clan was a vassal force of the King of Swords Sect."
"……What manner of baseless talk is this? The Bright Moon Sword Clan is under our Full Moon Saber Sect. The tribute they send is considerably higher than that of the other sects. A family that loyal to the Full Moon Saber Sect — a vassal of the King of Swords Sect? Are you attempting to sow discord at this very moment?"
"You seem to have a misunderstanding about me."
"……What did you say?"
"I do not engage in the business of sowing discord. Whether you believe me is your own affair — so I shall offer you a few more clues. Examine the bookshelf in the clan head's chamber of the Bright Moon Sword Clan, and you will find a hidden space leading behind it. There, you will discover traces of correspondence exchanged with Bang Ju-hon, the Eight Immortals Sword of the King of Swords Sect. If that does not persuade you, then look through their ledgers. You will find evidence that all of their tribute and all of their funds flowed into the King of Swords Sect."
"……That is… truly the truth?"
"It is the truth. I apologize for the disturbance I have caused Baekmun Town."
"……Would you be willing to accompany us to Baekmun Town, then?"
Yi Do shook his head.
"I have things to do."
Noh Gyegwang let out a long sigh.
"……We have our own position to consider, as you have yours — but we cannot simply withdraw like this."
"You need justification, is that it?"
"……"
"What a bother."
Yi Do drew the Cloud Dragon Sword from his hip.
Energy gathered slowly along the blade.
White astral energy of unbearable clarity stretched outward — more than a full jang in length, ten feet and beyond.
The branch members of the Baegam Branch standing there were thrown into open disarray.
"F-Five Qi Unification…"
The realm of Three Flowers Gathering and the realm of Five Qi Unification were, beyond any doubt, different worlds.
And the greatest difference of all was this:
In a situation like the present one, the matter could be settled without ever needing to exert real force.
"Go. Investigate the matter — and if something is amiss, send word to Jangan Commandery."
With that, the Baegam Branch had been granted its justification to withdraw without shame.
Yi Do's realm was Five Qi Unification. The strongest martial artist in the entire Baegam Branch was a mere Three Flowers Gathering master — they could not take this man with them. If anything, every last one of them might die.
Now there was a rational reason to retreat.
Swallowing hard, Noh Gyegwang bowed with clasped fists.
"……I am grateful for the chance you have granted us. We shall withdraw."
The martial artists of the Baegam Branch began to fall back.
Yi Do slid the Cloud Dragon Sword back into its sheath.
Yang Il, who had been watching from behind, remarked as if tossing it away, "Settled neatly, I see."
Yi Do turned his head.
"Listen well, boy. Now that you have ascended to Five Qi Unification, you are a strong one in name and in fact — and from this day forward, strong ones worthy of matching you will become your enemies."
To the silent Yi Do, Yang Il went on.
"If you're ever wounded, come here. If circumstances keep you from coming, then send a letter. I can't say whether the time will be right, but once or twice — consider it an excursion — I can make the trip."
"I heard you were treating me as a benefactor. Shouldn't you come every time I call, then?"
"Ha, you prickly whelp. Be satisfied with once or twice. The carriage is ready. Go."
Yang Il gave a vague flourish of his hand and disappeared into the White Spirit Medical House, and before long Seomun Hyeok came leading the carriage and horses.
"I hear you are leaving."
"I am."
"Even so, I would like to ask one final time. What are your thoughts on an 'alliance' with the Ming Cult?"
It seemed Seomun Hyeok had no intention of giving up on him.
Yi Do regarded him for a moment, then spoke quietly.
"As I have said — I have no intention of placing myself beneath the Ming Cult. I have no interest in moving hand in hand with them, either. However."
Yi Do paused, then continued in a voice of iron resolve.
"If the Ming Cult comes beneath me, then the story changes."
"……"
"Absolute loyalty. If you are confident you can offer that, then approach me. If not, do not approach at all. Is that sufficient now?"
"It is sufficient."
Seomun Hyeok bowed with clasped fists.
"Travel safely."
Yi Do boarded the carriage and departed.
His destination was Jangan Commandery.