Bringing the Fire (3)
As he exhaled his demonic qi, every pore on his skin opened wide, as if breathing in unison. It felt like releasing his qi and communing with nature. Of course, nature was rejecting this demonic qi outright.
"You're a Wudang lay disciple?"
"And?"
"No disciple of Wudang could possibly harbor such sinister, eerie energy."
"That's just my personal business."
"Unbelievable."
Mun Il-ji raised both fists to his cheeks. He was pretending not to care, but it was clear he was on guard after sensing the protagonist's demonic qi. Fortunately, it had been ages since the Demonic Cult's downfall, so he only perceived it as foul energy, not recognizing it as true demonic qi.
"Here I come!"
Mun Il-ji kicked off and charged. It was quite a distance, but he closed the gap to face-to-face in an instant.
But this place was now dominated by demonic qi. The protagonist could sense Mun Il-ji's every movement with his senses. Right now, he was fighting more by feel than by sight.
He drew his sword in a flash, slashing toward Mun Il-ji's wrists.
"You bastard!"
Mun Il-ji's eyes widened as heat rippled from his fists. Come to think of it, he bore the moniker Flame Ghost Hand.
"Die!"
As the protagonist swung horizontally, Mun Il-ji struck the flat of the blade upward with his fist. The protagonist's arms were flung skyward, exposing his entire body's openings.
Bam!
Mun Il-ji's fist smashed into the protagonist's ribs. Agonizing pain brought tears to his eyes, and before they could fall, he was sent flying into the alley wall. The wall crumbled as he tumbled several rolls.
"Aaaah!"
Behind the collapsed wall was apparently some commoners' home, as screams erupted from within. But there was no time to apologize to them.
"Looks like you don't fight much."
Buoyed by landing a solid hit, Mun Il-ji cracked his neck side to side as he approached.
"Mu-Mun Il-ji?"
"It's the Flame Ghost Hand!"
The commoners recognized him and fled their homes in panic.
"Is that weird energy all you've got?"
The protagonist didn't answer, kneeling on one knee to rise. Then his body lurched from a sudden shock. Laughter echoed from ahead—Mun Il-ji's.
"My Penetrating Meridian has entered your body. How do you expect to move when it's shaking you up?"
Mun Il-ji sauntered closer leisurely. The protagonist thrust his sword into the ground while down on one knee. It was a dire situation, yet a chuckle escaped him for some reason.
"You're definitely different."
"What is?"
"Didn't expect you'd deflect my sword with your fist and follow up with a strike."
"Exactly. You don't fight much."
"I've sparred plenty at Wudang, but I've never seen anyone fight like you."
Orthodox sects typically viewed their weapons as extensions of themselves. They respected not just their opponent but the opponent's blade as well. Smacking an enemy's sword with a bare fist to redirect it was the way of the unorthodox. The problem was that the protagonist wasn't used to such tactics, so he'd taken the hit.
"Quit bluffing when you can't even move."
The Flame Ghost Hand, Mun Il-ji, was the first true warrior the protagonist had faced since entering the jianghu. But it was strange. Was it because he'd died once before? Or something else? He didn't feel afraid at all.
"Farewell, Hebei Divine Healer."
Mun Il-ji, now right at his feet, swung his fist down at the protagonist's head. That punch, loaded with qi, would surely shatter his skull like a watermelon.
But the protagonist couldn't just take it lying down. As he rose, he thrust his sword upward. His target: slicing Mun Il-ji's shoulder before the fist could descend.
"Huh?"
Mun Il-ji's startled voice rang out. The protagonist had stayed still until now to hide that he could still move.
Mun Il-ji hastily withdrew his fist and leaped back. His face twisted in utter confusion.
"What? How are you moving after taking internal damage?"
"Do I have to stay put?"
The protagonist smirked mockingly. He'd sensed it from the moment Mun Il-ji's Penetrating Meridian entered him: the demonic qi inside was attacking and dissolving it. By the time Mun Il-ji approached, it was already fully neutralized.
He'd heard once before: demonic qi was the natural counter to all internal arts. It had eradicated the invading energy before it could reach his dantian.
"You're weirder the more I see. But I get one thing now."
"What?"
"You're no saint worthy of the title 'Hebei Divine Healer.' You probably healed people just to get something out of it."
"Tch. That's a huge leap."
"A person's energy reflects the person. I don't care if it's foul—that's just your cultivation method. But the way it moves? It's ruthlessly designed to crush opponents. How could someone like you earn that name?"
"Think what you want."
The protagonist brushed it off casually, but it hit close to home. Cheonhwa too—were all warriors mind readers or something?
The demonic qi alerted him to people approaching from afar. Opening it up really sharpened his senses. He could even hear the murmurs beyond the wall. That meant he needed to end this fight quickly.
"Mind if I go first this time?"
"Who said you could?"
"Don't need permission."
Swish. Blending demonic qi into his graceful Cloud Step turned it into the stealthy footwork of an assassin—silent and insidious. They'd said the heart method was the cornerstone of all martial arts, and even Wudang techniques twisted darkly when fueled by demonic qi.
In an instant, the protagonist circled behind Mun Il-ji and slashed. Startled, Mun Il-ji pitched forward with a forward roll.
Mun Il-ji sprang up from his roll and charged. He seemed to instinctively know not to give the protagonist the first move. Fists and sword wove together in a flurry, exchanging thirty clashes in seconds.
"You've seen plenty of this style."
The protagonist remarked. Mun Il-ji's eyes bulged. He had no breath to reply, so the casual comment shocked him.
"The unorthodox way of fighting, I mean."
His heat-infused fists were fearsome, but the fist techniques were pure brute-force brawling, straight out of the unorthodox playbook. He'd lucked into a decent heart method but never properly learned any fist forms. It was threatening enough on its own. But to the protagonist, who'd studied orthodox arts extensively, it was ultimately shallow punching.
Still, he'd observed to learn—after taking that first hit. As a merchant, he'd clash more with unorthodox types than orthodox ones. Know your enemy, win every battle.
"Now behold Wudang's arts."
"A mere lay disciple? Pfft."
Mun Il-ji barely spat a retort before his eyes widened. Thick mist blanketed the courtyard. Wudang's sword arts, famous for conjuring fog with the blade, were known to all.
"Cloud Mist Sword Method?"
"Good eye."
"No way. A lay disciple wielding this?"
Mun Il-ji's shock couldn't continue. The mist engulfed him.
"W-Wait! Hey!"
The panicked cry rang out. To Mun Il-ji, the hazy fog must have brimmed with killing intent, blades lurking everywhere. The protagonist had nearly suffocated from the pressure when Cheonhwa first used it on him.
"I surrender! I surrender! You madman!"
"Surrender?"
The protagonist halted his blade at Mun Il-ji's throat. Mun Il-ji immediately hurled off his fist guards and punched his own lower abdomen.
"Cough."
Blood sprayed from Mun Il-ji's mouth. Proof of self-inflicted internal injury. Swift and precise surrender.
"Th-This enough?"
"Think so?"
The protagonist slashed Mun Il-ji's throat.
"Gaaahhh!"
Mun Il-ji clutched his neck, rolling and screaming. Tears, snot, and piss flowed in terror's grip.
"Cut it out, you punk. You're not dying."
"Uh... huh?"
The protagonist had only nicked the flesh beside his throat. The wound was more scrape than cut, with sparse blood. Sitting up and pressing it, Mun Il-ji stared blankly.
"Time to settle your life debt."
The protagonist's tone shifted to business mode. From kill-target to customer—natural progression.
***
Entering the Hwi-yeong Merchant Group with Mun Il-ji in tow drew wide-eyed stares.
"M-Merchant leader."
"Yes?"
"That guy next to you... Isn't that the great hero Flame Ghost Hand Mun Il-ji?"
"What's a black dao punk doing as a 'great hero'? Just call him 'that bastard'."
"G-Gasp!"
Once confirmed as Mun Il-ji, everyone dropped their work in shock. Halting operations during peak hours showed how stunning his visit was.
"I-It's the Flame Ghost Hand."
"But there's blood on his mouth?"
"Does that mean the leader won?"
"Makes no sense. The leader's that strong?"
"He's a Wudang lay disciple."
"Big deal? Lay disciple just means anyone with cash can join."
Murmurs reached the leader's office. He'd concealed his demonic qi, but his senses were leagues beyond ordinary. They probably thought he couldn't hear.
Sitting in the leader's chair, he bellowed for Jo Chung-heon.
"Manager! Get in here."
Jo Chung-heon flung the door open instantly. Crowds peeked through the gap, dying of curiosity about Mun Il-ji's presence.
The protagonist grinned at Mun Il-ji.
"Quite the celebrity."
"...They knew me in Wuhuan."
"Yeah?"
"You're the weird one. Even a core Wudang disciple your age couldn't handle me. How'd a lay disciple beat me?"
Mun Il-ji fumed, rethinking it. But one glare from the protagonist, and he bowed his head again.
Jo Chung-heon, entering and closing the door, stammered.
"I-It’s really him."
"What is?"
"You beat the great hero Mun Il-ji."
"Not a 'great hero'."
Even believing the win, Jo Chung-heon eyed Mun Il-ji warily. The man's notoriety in Wuhuan ran deep.
"Mun Il-ji's mediated plenty of unorthodox squabbles, earning quite the reputation. 'Reputation' for a black dao guy, anyway."
Jo Chung-heon explained. The protagonist had noticed in life: not all black dao folk were drunken louts smashing taverns. Most acted rationally; their paths just led them astray.
"Anyway, why bring him?"
"He owes me."
"Owes?"
"I spared his life."
Jo Chung-heon alternated glances, still adjusting to the victory.
"I'm no ingrate who bites the hand after being saved."
Mun Il-ji affirmed. The protagonist nodded.
"Damn right."
"But let's keep the accounts clean."
"Merchant's honor—always clean."
Anxiety flooded Mun Il-ji's face.
"...What do you want?"
"What else?"
The protagonist rubbed his hands with a grin.
"You'll lead the vanguard to smash the Black Dragon Gate."