Chapter 146: Tianjin is Clear After the Rain Today (2)
Chapter 146: Tianjin is Clear After the Rain Today (2)
"Hmm, the seasoning on this is far too strong. I’ve heard that the further south you go, the more spices they use. In Liaoning, we eat much more simply than this!"
"Isn't that just because there are no spices in Liaoning?"
"What... How could you say such a thing!"
Murong Cheong strolled energetically through the streets of Tianjin, munching on a skewer.
Occasionally, she would stop beneath a large building, let out a sudden giggle as if something were hilarious, and then start walking again.
It felt a bit strange. Whether it was Ju Woo-rin or Hwa-yeong, I was always the one leading them; I had never experienced being dragged around the streets like this.
Actually, come to think of it, the experience of simply wandering the streets like a normal person was extremely rare for me.
Outside the gates of the Peng Family, it felt like I was always walking with my life on the line.
Is it really okay for medieval China to be this peaceful?
"What are you thinking about so deeply?"
"The weather is nice."
"Hmm. Hmmm..."
Murong Cheong looked at me with eyes that were uncharacteristically sharp.
However, since there was skewer sauce smeared around her mouth, she wasn't particularly intimidating.
She lowered her voice with effort and spoke in a chilling tone.
"How did you spend your time with Lady Im?"
"What?"
"You two... you must have done something together! No matter how lewd the Han people are, surely... surely you didn't share a, a, a bed without the permission of both families! Don't you dare say you didn't! I am no fool! The way Lady Im looks at you is not the look of a maiden to whom nothing has happened!"
Murong Cheong continued her tirade as if she were firing off the Great Yan King’s Bow.
I mostly let it go in one ear and out the other as I reached behind me.
Understanding my signal, one of the guards from the Assassination Pavilion quickly stepped forward and handed me a small towel.
I took it and roughly wiped the corners of Murong Cheong’s mouth. She fell silent instantly.
"Don't eat like a child. You're a grown lady."
As I did that, Murong Cheong suddenly bit down hard on my finger through the towel.
"Did you do this with Lady Im too?"
"That hurts..."
"Fine. Whatever. What does it matter anyway?"
Murong Cheong snatched the handkerchief away, tucked it into her robe, and resumed her brisk pace, waving her empty skewer.
"At any rate, Lady Im is far away in Jiangnan right now, and I am here."
"You seem quite conscious of her for someone who says it doesn't matter."
In the first place, could Hwa-yeong’s attitude toward me even be called romantic? It was likely an emotion closer to an obsession with childhood memories.
And the feelings I had for Hwa-yeong were exactly that—nothing more, nothing less.
As I’ve said many times, the concept of free romance didn't really exist in medieval China, and I wasn't particularly interested in it anyway.
If someone were to ask how a grown man could be like that, I’d describe it as the harsh reality of being the youngest son of a prestigious family in medieval China.
When you have siblings who send assassins after you from the age of seven and plot schemes every time you step out into the Martial World, that kind of soft sentimentality tends to die out quite a bit.
Just then.
"You're not paying attention again, are you?"
Something was pressed into my hand. Glancing down, I saw a small set of prayer beads.
It was the kind Buddhists roll in their hands, worn smooth and polished from years of use.
One of the beads was unique—it was made of a metal that gave off a distinct yellow luster. Perhaps it was a style from Liaoning.
Murong Cheong thrust it into my hand, then turned her back with a huff and walked away.
"Rather than watching you get hurt and broken everywhere you go, just carry that with you. It’s an object I’ve prayed over for a long time, so it will surely bring you good fortune."
"This... thank you."
"Hmph. Just hurry up and come on."
Murong Cheong gave a cheeky grin and quickened her pace again.
That day, I had to wander through every single alleyway in Tianjin.
As if determined to do everything she had wanted to do back in Wuchang, Murong Cheong dragged me by the sleeve into random teahouses, walked along the canal banks, and ate whatever street food caught her eye.
Surprisingly, it wasn't a bad way to spend a moment of leisure.
*
The next two days passed peacefully.
It’s not as if I spend every single day killing people, thinking about killing people, or plotting to kill people.
In fact, I’d like to say that most of my life has been quite flat and ordinary.
The last few years have been exceptionally turbulent, but for most of Peng Hyeon-hwi’s eighteen years, I spent my time training.
Fuuuu...
I regulated my breathing in the small training ground of the Dragon Slaying Alliance’s Inner Hall, my blade drawn.
There was a koan I had been obsessing over lately. Naturally, it concerned the Soul-Stealing Blade.
I had already received all the oral instructions and internal energy circulation methods. This was because after Grandpa Peng Ik-cheon became half a corpse in Chongqing, the only part of him he could move was his mouth.
However, the clue to mastering the Soul-Stealing Blade still eluded me.
"You seem to be having a difficult time."
"Ah, Elder Peng."
Elder Peng Gyeon-ho, the acting leader of the Dragon Slaying Alliance, entered the Inner Hall while stroking his beard.
Since we were from the same family and he was a former Inner Hall Elder who had mastered the direct lineage arts, there was no issue with him observing my training.
I sheathed my blade and shook my head.
"It isn't easy. Is there something I'm missing?"
"The Soul-Stealing Blade at your age... You are progressing excessively fast, so there isn't much advice I can give from my position."
Elder Peng Gyeon-ho was on the weaker side among the Inner Hall Elders.
From what I heard, when Peng Hyeon-ryang was ordered into secluded meditation, the weakest among the elders was appointed as the acting leader of the Dragon Slaying Alliance.
This was because no one in the Peng Family Council of Elders wanted to take on such a tedious chore.
Indeed, even though it had only been a year since I last saw him, Peng Gyeon-ho looked three times older.
"Have you felt the 'Intent' yet?"
"If you mean the sights displayed by masters of other sects, then yes. I have seen it occasionally."
"When you encounter peerless martial arts, have you felt how they differ from the techniques of the ordinary Peak Realm?"
"Uh... well..."
The signature techniques of Peerless Masters, the so-called Intent-based techniques, were the kind of things one could never understand simply by watching.
In the first place, I couldn't even imagine how a human body could drag up hell or split the heavens.
As I hesitated, Elder Peng Gyeon-ho gave a small smile.
"Can you recall when you first built your foundation? You might not remember well since you were so young, but doesn't building a foundation mean the process of breathing natural energy into your Lower Dantian?"
"Yes, I remember."
"Reflect on that process. The moment you first felt what you couldn't feel before, and first moved what had never moved in your entire life. That is the first step toward Intent."
Elder Peng Gyeon-ho’s martial power was in the Super Peak Realm. I wasn't sure exactly where he stood within that rank, but regardless, he was at a stage where he was challenging the Upper Dantian.
Just as one is called Second-Rate when they can feel internal energy and manifest Sword Qi, and First-Rate when that Sword Qi can harm others without a physical blade...
Every realm has a specific benchmark. The difference between the Peak Realm and the Super Peak Realm is the same.
Both utilize Astral Energy skills. It’s only natural, as the limit of what can be manifested through internal energy ends at Astral Energy. However, from the Super Peak Realm onward, one can imbue their martial arts with Intent.
The True Form of the martial art. The true meaning that the founder of the sect imbued when they first created the technique.
This is called the Gyeol (Core/Essence). It is the signature of a martial lineage, the nature that permeates the founder’s original texts. It represents the unique purpose that the martial art pursues.
The most famous example is the Namgung Family’s Emperor’s Sword Manual.
A supreme art that one can only begin to learn upon reaching the Super Peak Realm.
It is the very martial art that became famous when the Sword Empress, Namgung Bi-yeon, crushed the Spear Ghost, Jeon Il-so—who was one of the Fifteen Lords at the time—to death.
In that way, only when one can fully manifest the True Form and the essential principles of a martial art can they be said to have mastered that lineage’s techniques.
In that sense, I could be considered to have barely mastered only the Hunyuan Thunderbolt Blade.
"In this world, no martial art is named carelessly. The Soul-Stealing Blade is the same; if you wish to move beyond the Chain Blade and enter the Heaven and Earth Chain Soul-Stealing Blade, you must reflect on its name."
"Thank you for your guidance."
This was different from being told breathing techniques or essential principles. The Soul-Stealing Blade was a Super Peak martial art, and from my current position, even stepping onto that line was a bridge too far.
Instruction at this level inevitably took on an ambiguous form, much like Zen Buddhist monks tossing out a koan.
Unlike Peak Realm martial arts, which can be refined by following energy circulation paths, Intent is entirely dependent on enlightenment.
It is a realm where what one person realizes and refines cannot necessarily be the correct answer for everyone else.
The Super Peak Realm is the process of challenging the Upper Dantian and awakening the Essence, Energy, and Spirit, and the method for doing so manifests in a different form for every martial artist.
That is why the Intent-based techniques of Peerless Masters who have reached the Harmony Realm all take different forms.
"By the way, how long do you plan to stay in Tianjin?"
"I was thinking of staying for the time being... Do you have a task for me?"
"If so, could you help with the affairs of the Dragon Slaying Alliance for a while?"
Seeing Peng Gyeon-ho’s face, which seemed to have aged instantly, I couldn't help but smile. He certainly seemed to be having a hard time.
Then again, the Inner Hall Elders, including Peng Gyeon-ho, had been supporters of Peng Hyeon-ryang.
The fact that he was showing me favor and interest now that Peng Hyeon-ryang had fallen from power might have had other motives.
It wasn't a bad deal. Peng Gyeon-ho was a Super Peak martial artist who had fully mastered the Soul-Stealing Blade.
"If you can occasionally provide guidance on my martial arts, then it is only right that I help."
"There is no need to speak of 'guidance' between family members. If you hit a wall, come and ask me anytime."
We parted ways after chatting in the Inner Hall.
Watching Peng Gyeon-ho’s retreating back, I thought to myself:
Most of the influence Peng Hyeon-ryang had rooted while acting as the alliance leader’s deputy was now slowly disappearing. Now that the Leader of the Assassination Pavilion—who had chosen to remain a bystander—was in a crisis, could the Dragon Slaying Alliance even afford to refuse the Hao Clan’s support?
It was time to start borrowing the Hao Clan’s strength.
The time for Peng Hyeon-ryang’s secluded meditation to end was this coming autumn, about half a year away.
Half a year was more than enough. When my eldest brother finally returned, I wondered if there would even be a place left for him within the headquarters of the Dragon Slaying Alliance.
*
"This is troublesome..."
Dan So-hye bit her lip as she flipped through a letter.
It had been several months since she had handled the affairs of the Secret Line at the Yueyang branch of the Hao Clan.
"Did something really happen to Big Sister...?"
Recently, the various branches of the Hao Clan had become powder kegs that felt like they would explode at the slightest touch.
The Hao Clan Leader had a total of thirteen disciples, and ten of them were currently in charge of managing their respective branches.
There was no such thing as a strong bond of brotherhood between them.
The Hao Clan Leader had raised most of her disciples while wandering the Central Plains alone, and once they grew up, they were sent to manage a branch without even having time to meet their other martial siblings.
Thus, the relationship between the Hao Clan branch leaders was a bit closer than business partners, but more distant than true siblings.
It was fair to say they were slightly awkward with one another, making it difficult to gauge each other's character, virtue, or tendencies.
As such, with the Hao Clan Leader missing for several months, it was difficult to even identify which of the branch leaders harbored ambitions.
"Brother Baek, the Chief of the General Bureau, is fine. The first and second sisters are fine too... but the rest are the problem."
The eldest sister, who was in charge of the Secret Line, and the second sister, who was the acting leader of the July Society, were reliable.
These two were not the type to waver even in the absence of the Hao Clan Leader.
Baek Seo-ui, the Chief of the General Bureau who oversaw the Martial Alliance gathering in Wuchang, was also fine.
He had no interest in the position of Hao Clan Leader to begin with.
That left the other ten. Excluding herself and the youngest, the remaining eight were the problem.
They were like spiders who had woven deep networks of relationships with high-ranking officials and nobles while gathering information across the Central Plains.
Half of them were slowly cutting off contact with the General Assembly.
Whether this was intentional or simply a coincidence of timing resulting in delayed information, she didn't know.
"Looks like I'll have to see my youngest brother's face again."
It would be better to exchange information with a certain ally.
With that thought, Dan So-hye packed her bags and stood up.