Chapter 26
Chapter 26
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Embroidered Uniform Guard
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The road to Mangryang was quite far and treacherous. That made sense, since he lived in Jinrang Valley near Luoyang, and getting there from my village required crossing mountains and rivers dozens of times. I covered my travel expenses roughly with fifty taels of silver and trudged along day after day in dull monotony.
With no amusements to speak of, I spent my spare time practicing only the Thunder Dragon One Qi Art. Perhaps because I'd taken the elixir a second time, even just circulating the Small Celestial Circuit filled my entire body with crackling lightning.
Rumble!
Thunderous sounds poured out. It wasn't just a sensation— it seemed to manifest externally too. Sometimes, when I finished my qi cultivation, the innkeeper would burst in, startled.
"W-what happened?"
"Nothing happened."
"There was some flashing light..."
When I played dumb, the innkeeper tilted his head and left.
'Hmm. Practicing qi is getting burdensome now.'
Was it the elixir's effect? Whenever I circulated the Thunder Dragon One Qi Art, thunder qi automatically boiled around my body, extending outward like flashing lightning for over ten zhang. I was curious about the reason, but at least it was definitely not harming my body.
Because as time passed, I realized it clearly. Even if I scooped out my inner power like from a basin and kept using it, the massive energy swirling in my dantian showed no sign of diminishing. When I first took the Millennium Snow Ginseng, it felt like riding a swift steed at full gallop. Now, it was like sitting astride a dragon's back, soaring through the skies.
Only then did I realize what had happened to my body.
The elixir's effect had forcibly propelled me to the true essence of the Thunder Dragon One Qi Art!
The realm where thunder qi emanated every time I used the Thunder Dragon One Qi Art now was probably one that would take decades or centuries of practice to reach. The first time I took the Millennium Snow Ginseng, my meridians weren't fully opened, so there were no major changes. But the second time, the massive natural qi flooded my entire body, forcibly advancing me to the next stage of the Thunder Dragon One Qi Art.
I no longer knew what level my inner power had reached.
Whoosh!
Tap-tap.
What was certain was that my running speed now far surpassed that of an average horse, and even after dashing twenty li nonstop, I felt no fatigue whatsoever. I considered renting a horse a waste of money, buying only new straw sandals as I ran.
Judging by the local terrain, detouring along human paths like a corkscrew was slower than cutting straight over the mountains. So I was leaping swiftly up the mountains. It took less than half a shichen to crest one.
Tap!
I leaped over a massive cliff rock spanning five zhang in just two steps, reaching the summit. The view from the mountain peak stirred unique emotions. It made me truly feel that I'd gained physical abilities transcending humanity, while vitality for the path ahead permeated my body.
'Yeah. Let's forget that massacre. Right now, just think about moving forward.'
Just two days more, and I'd reach Jinrang Valley where Mangryang lived. It was at least five years before I first met him in my past life, so he might not even be there now. But whether I met Mangryang or not, what mattered was that I now had a goal and was pursuing it.
It was then, as I stood on a rock at the summit.
[Young friend, you seem to have remarkable skill. Who might you be?]
A telepathic message rang out abruptly. I flinched in surprise, having been posing with arms crossed atop the rock. I hadn't expected a Peak Expert to initiate conversation in such a place.
'Where is he?'
Flustered, I focused my qi sense to locate the source. But my qi sense detection relied merely on intuition; I'd never trained it professionally. I couldn't pinpoint the opponent, who was clearly concealing his presence expertly.
Moreover, I didn't know how to use telepathy. So I stood silently atop the rocky peak before bellowing loudly.
"I am Baek—Woong!!!"
Roooar!
I'd simply infused qi and roared, but it turned into a Lion's Roar, resounding thunderously across the entire mountain. It probably blanketed the slopes and reached nearby villages. I could almost see the intangible sound waves expanding.
Then, the rock beneath my feet suddenly cracked like an egg and crumbled to dust. I stabilized my position with lightness skill and landed, at which point another flustered telepathic message came.
[Urk...! Using a Lion's Roar in a place like this?]
I knew he could hear my voice without it. But I'd unleashed the Lion's Roar to intimidate him. To avoid seeming weak, I replied coldly.
"I've revealed my identity as you wished. I have no desire to clash with you, so let's part ways here."
He'd already mistaken me for a Peak Expert after seeing my lightness skill. Whether he was aggressive or merely curious, his skill felt extremely threatening. Getting into trouble or being underestimated would be bad for me. So I aimed to seize the initiative with the Lion's Roar and leave curtly.
Swish.
The sender emerged from a bush about three zhang away, revealing his presence. He must have decided telepathy wouldn't work.
"Baek Woong. I didn't approach you with ill intent."
And I could finally see his appearance.
A Taoist!
Not some fraudulent one like Mangryang, but a genuine Taoist in his early fifties, properly clad in whisk and Daoist robes. His face was slightly gaunt but overall refined and benevolent, with a neatly tied Daoist cap. Above all, the qi emanating from him was exceptionally pure, confirming he was a senior expert of the Righteous Faction.
I regarded him warily.
"Whatever your intent, it's none of my concern. I'm leaving now, so don't interfere."
"Why the rush? I just want to talk."
"There's no guarantee conversing with you will benefit me."
As I turned to leave, he waved his hands hurriedly.
"No. Actually, I stopped you to ask for your help."
"......?"
"I am Hyuncheon Taoist, hall master of the Great Purity Hall."
I was startled inwardly.
Hyuncheon Taoist!
That name belonged to a legendary eccentric of the world's mightiest Daoist sect, the Wudang Sect. Though not among the Three Great Righteous Eccentrics, he had earned resounding fame in Hubei by slaying countless unorthodox sects and demonic cults. His reputation was so great that even I, an escort in my forties far from Hubei, had heard tales that made my heart race.
'He looks early fifties now, yet he'll still be active in the martial world thirty years from now?'
Impossible without extraordinarily profound inner power cultivation. I wondered if this encounter might aid my future lives. After a brief thought, I said,
"What is it?"
"You'll hear me out?"
"If it's not a waste of time..."
Hyuncheon Taoist smiled warmly.
"I've been patrolling and residing near a shrine dedicated to the Zhenwu Emperor. But recently, a wicked energy has arisen in nearby villages, troubling me greatly. It's an extremely ferocious force."
"Wicked energy?"
"An evil cult."
An evil religion. Of course, even Buddhist or Daoist figures sometimes did strange things, but for a Righteous Faction senior like Hyuncheon Taoist to declare it an evil cult meant they weren't ordinary weirdos. I racked my memory for any evil cult traces in martial history, but 'now' was too early; nothing plausible came to mind.
'If anything, the White Lotus Cult.'
The White Lotus Cult was nationally banned and driven far south. That was all I knew, so I asked just in case.
"Could it be the White Lotus Cult?"
"I thought so at first, but no. The White Lotus Cult was suppressed by Emperor Hongwu for political reasons, but it's fundamentally a righteous faith. It wouldn't perform human sacrifices like this cult I've discovered."
Human sacrifice!
I shuddered at the horror of the term. Human sacrifice meant killing people to offer to one's god on an altar. Usually decapitated and laid out, or sometimes vivisected to display hearts or organs. In my later years, I'd seen fanatic devotees summarily executed for it.
'Huh? Could it be... the Nain Cult?'
I blinked in disbelief.
Come to think of it, I had no memory from this time, but near the end of my forties as an escort, a mad religion had emerged.
Called the Nain Cult—an absurd name—they were known for human sacrifice, cannibalism, and bizarre sorcery, just as Hyuncheon Taoist described. They suddenly surged from central China's south, causing chaos everywhere. Later, the state massacred them indiscriminately, unleashing a bloodbath. As a quiet escort, I was unaffected, but other regions suffered such bloodshed that public order collapsed in places.
But the Nain Cult's rise was over forty years from now. Their appearance now was completely off.
As I stood silently, Hyuncheon Taoist continued.
"Human sacrifice rituals have already occurred in the village over the mountain and the next one. I eliminated the fanatics, but innocent lives were lost. If we don't suppress them quickly, the evil cult's forces will rampage further."
"Even if they're cultists, aren't they just ordinary folk? With Peak Expert Hyuncheon Taoist alone..."
I trailed off.
Indeed, one Peak Expert's combat power outmatched any horde of commoners. Unless hundreds of fully equipped soldiers, even thousands of armed peasants could be slain given time by a single Peak Expert.
Moreover, Hyuncheon Taoist's qi had materialized, comparable to an assassin leader or Iron Blood Sect elder. He shouldn't struggle against mere village cultists.
But Hyuncheon Taoist shook his head.
"No... Shamefully, when suppressing the cultists in those two villages, I lacked the strength to catch the ringleader."
"What?"
"It's not mere fanatics— there are bizarre demonic beasts. Their numbers are too many for me alone."
Demonic beasts!
That matched the Nain Cult features I'd heard. They handled horrific things not of this world, so even regular troops couldn't easily quell their upheavals. The beasts were so grotesque that merely seeing them could break one's spirit.
'Is it really the Nain Cult?'
Hyuncheon Taoist said gravely.
"To me, you appear as a youth, yet harbor peerless inner power. Perhaps a reborn senior expert. Regardless, I shamelessly ask your aid. With your help, Baek Woong, we can surely defeat the fiend controlling the demonic beasts."
"What's this fiend?"
"Seemed to manipulate the beasts with sound arts via flute. Likely the culprit behind this bloodshed..."
My curiosity was considerably piqued.
This was a first in my life. Investigating might prove useful in future lives. But I took one step back and said,
"Isn't reporting to the authorities better?"
"Would they believe a mere Taoist claiming human sacrifices and demonic beasts ravage villages? I tried, but was dismissed as spouting nonsense... I was meditating here when I witnessed your exquisite lightness skill."
"Hmm."
After a moment's thought, I nodded.
"Understood. I'll help."
"Really! Thank you."
"But there's a price."
Hyuncheon Taoist's joyful expression darkened. He hadn't expected me to demand payment.
"A price?"
"In exchange for my help, impart Wudang Sect's ultimate arts to me."
"......!!"
His face fell further. With slightly sharp eyes, he said,
"Did you know I'm from Wudang Sect?"
"Are there other Taoists with such profound martial arts besides Wudang?"
Hyuncheon Taoist looked utterly perplexed.
"...I cannot. Wudang arts are not taught outside the sect. Only after formal initiation at the main mountain and receiving the Wudang sword license can I personally transmit them."
I chuckled and turned away.
"Then I'll be off."
"W-wait. Isn't there anything else? I'll grant whatever within my power."
To provoke him, I sneered.
"Innocents are dying, an evil cult rampages, yet you prioritize self-preservation. Is that a truly desperate plea? No one else would believe you either."
"......!!"
I'd meant to prod him, but unexpectedly, Hyuncheon Taoist looked deeply shocked—nay, enlightened. He nodded solemnly and declared firmly.
"Very well. Once this is over, I'll take you as my disciple and impart all ultimate arts! I take full responsibility."
Huh?
It worked better than expected; I was the flustered one. But hiding it, I smiled.
"Understood. I'll help as best I can."
An unexpected opportunity had arisen.
Defeat this cult or whatever, and afterward, I'd learn martial arts from a Wudang Peak Expert whose fame rivaled the Three Great Righteous Eccentrics. I didn't know what demonic beasts were, but if it turned disadvantageous, I could escape with my body intact. Should be fine.
Thus began my first Nain Cult subjugation.