Future Over the Past (4)
“Uncle Pilsaeng.”
“Yeah.”
Having caught an earful from So Hye over the morning commotion, Im Pilsaeng stuck out his tongue a good foot long as he swept the yard of Unjeong Pavilion, mumbling his reply.
“You’re a bodyguard, so you must’ve trained in martial arts, right?”
“Of course.”
“Then you know heart methods and all that too?”
“Yep.”
“Mind if I ask you something?”
“Sure?”
Jin Yeo-rip still hadn’t unraveled the puzzle from that morning. Both were heart methods, so why had Baji felt so off while Twelve Flows flowed so naturally?
“I got up early anyway and reread the Baji manual a bunch of times.”
“What?! You already seemed to have it memorized. You went over it again?”
Im Pilsaeng gawked at him, eyes wide and mouth agape. The guy wore his heart on his sleeve—his sheer delight was plain as day.
“Yeah! Ask away. What part of the Baji heart method’s got you stumped?”
“Well, it’s this.”
Jin Yeo-rip explained what he’d felt.
“The breathing’s different?”
“Yeah.”
“Hmm.”
His face grew serious, a flicker of disappointment crossing it.
“Whew, I see. Hate to say it, Young Master, but you might not have the talent for it.”
“……No talent?”
“Yeah. Heart methods aren’t easy at first, sure, but if you can’t even nail the basics like breathing, that’s pitiful talent.”
Straight fastball, right down the middle. Typical blunt Im Pilsaeng. Even if he really thought that, did he have to say it so casually? It could hurt someone’s feelings.
“Young Master, the heart method in the Baji manual ain’t all that great anyway. You gotta learn the real ones separately—like Dark Thunder Technique or something.”
“……”
“But if you can’t even master basic breathing……”
He got it the first time—why keep repeating? It was starting to grate. And what was with that disappointed look?
His pride stung, Jin Yeo-rip gritted his teeth.
“That’s weird. Everything else works fine.”
“Huh? Everything else? Wait, you didn’t train the Baji one—you learned some other heart method?”
His eyes sparkled again, brimming with excitement. The man was an open book.
“No way! From Shaolin?!”
His eyes flew wide; realizing he’d shouted, he glanced around furtively before whispering.
“You learned a heart method from Shaolin?”
“Well, you could say that.”
“Whoa! No kidding!”
It was from Repentance Cave, but seeing Im Pilsaeng’s face, he couldn’t bring himself to admit it. Wouldn’t want to crush the guy.
“That explains it. Heart methods each have their own circulation paths, so clashes happen. If you learned Shaolin’s first…… Hmm, but that’s still odd. Shaolin’s orthodox—shouldn’t mess with Baji much.”
“Really?”
“Yep. Unless it’s Reverse Heaven Method.”
“What’s that?”
“Oh! They didn’t teach you?”
“Wasn’t an official disciple.”
“Must’ve been all jumbled up. Heart method types are basic stuff…… Well, makes sense—you’re not ordained. Just learning Shaolin arts is a huge stroke of luck.”
Im Pilsaeng nodded knowingly, heaping on the praise. If he heard about the Xiaohuan Dan, the guy might break into a dance.
“Ahem, anyway, since you asked, I’ll walk you through the basics.”
Clearing his throat, Im Pilsaeng put on a solemn face that didn’t quite suit him.
“Righteous sect warriors train in forward circulation heart methods.”
“Forward circulation?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s that?”
“The flow in the Baji heart method you read—that’s forward.”
“Then Reverse Heaven is?”
“The exact opposite.”
“Huh?”
Jin Yeo-rip’s eyes widened slightly. Hold on—Twelve Flows did that. Opposite of Baji…… So that was reverse too?
“Reverse Heaven grows fast. Way faster than orthodox paths. But high risk of qi deviation.”
“Qi deviation?”
“Yeah. Most who train it turn demonic. It constantly stirs up emotions.”
“What emotions?”
“Savagery, cruelty, that sort. So demonic cultivators get treated worse than visiting scholars. Most publicly wanted fugitives are like that.”
“M-Murim fugitives?!”
“Yeah. Why’re you sweating buckets?”
“H-Hot. It’s hot.”
“Morning ain’t that warm……”
“It’s hot. Don’t believe me?”
“No way! I totally believe you!”
Startled by Jin Yeo-rip’s tone, Im Pilsaeng waved his hands frantically, then checked for So Hye and sighed in relief. How bad had her scolding been?
“Anyway, if you train reverse, can you still learn orthodox forward ones?”
“Nope.”
“Why?”
“You’d drop dead.”
Im Pilsaeng mimed slitting his throat. The brutal truth hit like a dagger to the heart.
Damn it.
“Then how do you spot reverse cultivators?”
“High realms, they exude demonic qi automatically.”
“What realm?”
“Transcendent. Beyond human.”
“Before that?”
“Check their pulse for qi flow. Casual qi use won’t show…… Huh? Why the sudden arm-cross?”
“Cold.”
“Huh? Earlier you said……”
“I’m cold. Don’t believe me?”
It was full summer. Not chilly, even in the morning.
“I believe you.”
“Keep it quiet.”
“You got it.”
Still smarting from So Hye’s tongue-lashing, Im Pilsaeng glanced around before nodding gravely.
“But why grill me on reverse methods? Got nothing to do with your Shaolin one.”
Good thing he wasn’t the sharpest tool.
“J-Just curious. Lots to learn.”
Tears nearly welled up. Of all the heart methods to stumble into first, it had to be that demonic mess.
“Reverse ain’t all bad, though.”
“What?”
“Young Master, forward or reverse—it’s all just flow. Depends how you use it, not which one. Righteous folk commit atrocities too, and some demons earn respect.”
In that moment, Im Pilsaeng looked like an enlightened monk. His calm words sank deep.
Use is what matters.
His mind eased a bit. No one would know until he hit a high realm and demonic qi leaked—unless someone checked his pulse.
But wait—why hadn’t Beomgang noticed? When he first built inner power, the monk had checked his pulse and scanned his body.
—If you don’t circulate it, the inner energy permeates your channels without trace. Even Shaolin dogs won’t know what you’ve trained.
That must be it. Still, better safe.
“One more thing.”
“Ask all you want.”
“Can you learn Baji spear arts with another heart method?”
“Of course. Martial arts split two ways.”
“Two ways?”
“Yeah—one where heart method and forms are linked, or separate. Baji’s the latter.”
“So other heart methods work?”
Im Pilsaeng nodded.
“Yep. Baji’s heart method is just basic support for the spear. Your Ak family ancestors built a foundation with it, then trained advanced clan ones separately……”
“Exactly!”
“……Huh?”
“Other heart methods are fine, right?”
“Yeah. Master Shaolin’s and Baji might hit even harder.”
Im Pilsaeng grinned.
More power? Time to probe slyly.
“Would it look like Shaolin spear arts?”
“Huh?”
“Worried someone might spot the Shaolin heart method in the spear power.”
“Haha! Martial arts ain’t that simple.”
“……”
“Sure, high-realm Shaolin might give faint golden Buddhist aura, but guessing inner power from spear strikes alone? Nah.”
“For real?”
“They’ll recognize the forms—each art’s unique. But not the power source.”
“Aha!”
Jin Yeo-rip beamed.
“Even reverse heart methods stay hidden?”
“Yep. Unless they check your channels. Why keep circling back to that?”
“N-Nah. Thanks. Big help.”
“Huh?”
“Gotta go. Shaolin stuff’s secret. Got it?”
Twelve Flows. Learned blind, locked out other methods. But no sweat—don’t get caught.
And Im Pilsaeng nailed it: use matters more than what you learn.
Only Repentance Cave arts and Baji for now. Forms would give him away, and with his Repentance Cave past, he wasn’t exactly righteous—too many grudges.
Trouble if spotted. So train Baji, infuse with Twelve Flows.
Ak family cleared— no one’d gripe about him using it. Everyone saw him as the last Ak bloodline.
Worry about details later. No need fretting over a clear sky collapsing.
His face brightened as he dashed back to his room, arms crossed……
Im Pilsaeng watched, biting back a grin, muttering.
“Heh, Shaolin heart method. Perfect. Whew, almost showed disappointment over his ‘no talent’—dodged that.”
He patted himself for hiding his feelings perfectly. The guy had zero tact.
“What? The academy?”
“Yes.”
It was after breakfast. Jin Yeo-rip scowled at So Hye’s words as she poured tea.
What now? Academy?
“Lady Stepmother’s request. Now that you’re back with the clan, you need a solid foundation in merchant basics.”
“Stepmom did?”
“Stepmother! Not ‘auntie’.”
So Hye corrected him firmly with a smile when he parroted it back. What? She’d always been resolute, but that glint in her eye…… Veiled hostility?
Something off. Her look, and it being stepmother’s idea—not the patriarch’s.
“So Hye.”
“Yes.”
“Anything about Cheongeumbang I should know? Tell me if there is.”
Her smile faded. Hwang Ja-su and Im Pilsaeng mirrored it—something was up.
“Spill.”
“Sigh. Fine. You need to know anyway.”
So Hye laid out what she knew of Cheongeumbang’s situation. She didn’t have the full picture, but piecing it together painted it clear.
Not surprising anymore. The original body’s genius plus his own adaptability let him infer from scraps.
Why his father had been so distant upon return. Why he’d told him to do nothing.
“So…… protecting me from them?”
“Yes. The more attention you draw, the more they’ll notice.”
“Tch. Could’ve just said so.”
“You’d just returned.”
“Fair.”
No father wants to burden a son after fourteen years apart. Might hurt worse.
Crystal clear now. Blind before—like fog—but knowing made it sharp as day.
Cheongeumbang was a battlefield. Shandong’s Saihai Money House, with vast capital, swallowing it whole. Father barely holding on.
Stepmother and elders plotting to carve out his bright future.
……New life in crisis from the jump.