We Can Even Flatten a Mountain Now (1)
Through the window high in the Ice Palace, Seol Cheon-sang gazed down at the world below, his eyes half-lidded and calculating.
Ringed by solid outer walls, the Ice Palace was a fortress blessed by heaven itself. No invading force would ever take it easily.
But what caught Seol Cheon-sang’s attention was not its strength. It was its utter, uncompromising isolation.
“Hmph.”
He did not know what lay beyond those walls, but the people of the North Sea who lived within them praised the Ice Palace and went on with their lives. The gains wrung from prisoner labor were handed out to them without restraint, and those who received such generosity became his supporters, further strengthening the power he held.
A perfect kingdom.
The perfect kingdom he had dreamed of was being built before his eyes.
A voice slipped from between Seol Cheon-sang’s lips.
“...Brother.”
Then the corners of his mouth twisted upward.
“You were far too soft to ever imagine something like this.”
There was someone born to become the true king.
His brother had never understood that.
Seol Cheon-sang intended to build a thousand-year kingdom centered on the Ice Palace, right here in this place.
For that to happen...
Just then, Seol Cheon-sang, who had been staring down in silence and brooding, suddenly turned around.
His face twisted at once.
“...There is a limit to insolence.”
Within the deep, dark shadow cast across the room, a pitch-black shape slowly revealed itself.
It was almost as though something were being born out of the darkness.
Seol Cheon-sang spat, “This is the Ice Palace. Do you have a death wish, barging into the palace lord’s chambers like this?”
“Death, you say...”
The one who emerged from the darkness looked calmly at Seol Cheon-sang and said, “If you mean to threaten me, save your breath. The Law Enforcer does not fear death.”
Seol Cheon-sang’s brows twitched with anger.
The reason those words were so infuriating was because he knew they were not empty bluster. Those who wrapped their souls in fanaticism could greet death with a smile. And these men were among the worst fanatics he knew.
“Your report was late, Ice Palace Lord.”
“The outsiders are here. You know that much, don’t you?”
“That is no excuse.”
The man’s eyes, the eyes of the Demonic Sect’s Law Enforcer, shone with a blood-red radiance in the darkness.
“The Bishop is enraged that the supply of Ice Crystals has not been going smoothly.”
At the mention of the Bishop, Seol Cheon-sang gave a slight flinch.
“The Bishop...”
Just thinking of the Bishop who led them sent chills racing over his entire body.
Of course, the other Demonic Sect members were disgusting enough. But that Bishop was on a completely different level.
“I’ve said it already...”
Seol Cheon-sang let out a long breath.
“Ice Crystals aren’t something you can just decide to mine more of. I can’t simply control the output however I like.”
“So?”
“...”
He glared at the man with open hostility, but the Law Enforcer met that look without the slightest reaction.
“Don’t mistake things, Ice Palace Lord. That is only your problem. What matters is that the Bishop wants Ice Crystals.”
...Damn it.
Seol Cheon-sang bit down on his lip, barely holding back the rage surging through him.
Bringing the Demonic Sect into the Ice Palace had not been a matter of choice. If he had not taken that path, he would still be wandering some miserable backwater post, under the thumb of the previous palace lord’s interference.
How was he supposed to endure a life with no chance of ever reaching the summit?
Nothing comes without a price. He had known there would be losses in bringing in the Demonic Sect, but to someone like him, who had always kept his eyes fixed only on the top, the gains had seemed far greater than whatever he would lose.
Yet now, the price he had to pay was arriving with cruel, bone-deep clarity.
“Don’t forget, Ice Palace Lord.”
The Law Enforcer’s eyes gleamed with madness from within the dark.
“We gave you everything you wanted. The reason we supported a faithless man like you was because there was something we expected in return.”
Slowly, the Law Enforcer licked his lips.
That red tongue was as sly as a snake’s.
“If you cannot do your part, then we will have no choice but to reconsider our arrangement.”
“...That won’t happen.”
“That would be best.”
The Law Enforcer, who had been silently watching the Ice Palace Lord, slowly stepped backward into the shadows.
“Remember this. The Bishop is angry. If you earn his wrath, even death will seem sweet to you.”
“...”
“If you don’t want a backlash that your life alone cannot repay, then struggle harder.”
The man vanished into the darkness, and his traces disappeared as if it had all been a lie.
Seol Cheon-sang stared at the empty spot in silence, then clenched his teeth and raised his fist.
Crash!
The marble table shattered into pieces and flew in all directions.
“...Fucking bastards...”
His ragged breathing spilled out.
The Demonic Sect.
Once, they had tried to destroy even the North Sea Ice Palace.
He had welcomed them with the feeling of swallowing poison. Even if it meant becoming addicted, there were things he had to achieve.
But the poison he had swallowed was far more vicious than he had imagined, and now it was slowly, relentlessly destroying his body from within.
“...Don’t think I’ll keep moving however you please forever.”
Seol Cheon-sang’s eyes flashed with a cold, eerie light.
* * *
Bang Pyo, the elder of the Ice Palace in charge of the Ice Crystal Mine, could not hide his disbelief as he looked at the people standing before him.
“So, let me get this straight...”
He let out a hollow laugh as he repeated what he had just heard.
“You’re asking how much Ice Crystal you have to mine before I let these people here rest?”
“Yes.”
Bang Pyo stared for a long moment at the Central Plains Daoist fool speaking to him with one leg cocked lazily to the side, then shifted his gaze to Song Won.
Song Won averted his eyes slightly, as though he had nothing more to say.
Arrogant brats, the lot of them.
It was not hard to explain in exhaustive detail just how difficult Ice Crystal was to mine. He needn’t even bother explaining it with words. If he simply showed them the graves of those who had died digging it up, they would turn pale in an instant.
But Bang Pyo had no interest in persuading them.
The palace lord told me to keep them here as long as possible.
He had been wondering how he was supposed to do that, and now a pleasant excuse had appeared right in front of him.
“Ten pieces will do.”
“Ten? That’s all?”
At Chung Myung’s reply, Bang Pyo let out a dry laugh.
“Listen here, young Daoist from the Central Plains.”
“Yes?”
“Do you know how many Ice Crystals were mined here over the course of this entire year?”
“How would I know?”
“...”
That was such a brazen answer that Bang Pyo’s brows twitched.
Is he stupid?
He had explained it so kindly, and yet this idiot didn’t understand at all what his own words meant?
“...You’re agreeing to it?”
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Ah, you talk too much.”
Watching Bang Pyo’s face slowly redden with anger, Yoon Jong leaned toward Baek Cheon and whispered from behind, “Shouldn’t we stop him?”
“Stop whom? That elder?”
“...Chung Myung.”
“Heh. Now that is a funny thing to say. Yoon Jong, you’ve grown very witty.”
“Amitabha. I had no idea Yoon Jong Shija could make jokes like that.”
“...”
Well, then.
If he could be stopped, he would not be Chung Myung. He would be something else wearing Chung Myung’s face.
Baek Cheon looked at Chung Myung’s back for a moment, then shook his head.
“He must have his reasons.”
“...Do you really think so?”
“That’s what we have to believe. It’s more comfortable that way.”
“...”
Yoon Jong thought that Baek Cheon had become remarkably hopeless lately.
“So if we mine exactly ten, that’s enough?”
“That’s right.”
Chung Myung grinned.
“Don’t forget. The palace lord promised it. We can buy all the Ice Crystals we mine at half price.”
“If that is what the palace lord said, then of course we must honor it.”
Bang Pyo nodded readily.
But the prisoners who were listening from afar looked at them with terribly pained expressions.
“...What in the world are they planning?”
“Those young fools...”
For prisoners who knew exactly how brutal labor in this place was, it was heartbreaking to watch people stroll straight into hell on their own feet.
Even if mining Ice Crystals meant they would be given a rest, how could it be as easy as it sounded? If it were, no one would be suffering here in the first place.
“...The other people of the North Sea treat us as though we don’t exist, so why are those Central Plains people...”
It was utterly incomprehensible to them.
“Don’t forget your promise.”
“You be sure not to forget yours either.”
After making sure once more to the very end, Chung Myung turned with a grin. Then he ambled back toward the group.
“...Chung Myung.”
“Yeah?”
“What do you plan to do?”
Baek Cheon’s question made Chung Myung shrug.
“What else? Mine it.”
That hopeless answer was enough to make Baek Cheon open his mouth to scold him, but someone abruptly cut in.
“Wouldn’t it be enough to just dig?”
Everyone’s gaze turned to Yoon Jong, who had spoken.
“If one piece is hard to find even after ten days, then wouldn’t it be enough to dig for the equivalent of a hundred days? Honestly, it sounds a little ridiculous to say it, but digging, breaking, and charging straight through are Mount Hua’s specialties, aren’t they?”
Everyone fell silent and clutched their heads.
There he goes again.
Apparently, now that he was talking about helping the prisoners, his eyes had gone wild in a way that was not at all usual.
Baek Cheon let out a heavy sigh.
Still... I can understand it.
For one thing, they did not seem evil.
As much as he could guess why these people were being treated like criminals here, he could not help sympathizing with Yoon Jong’s heart.
Besides, even while doing forced labor, the prisoners kept looking at them with pitying eyes.
In the end, Baek Cheon nodded firmly.
“Fine. Well, I suppose we’ll manage somehow if we keep at it.”
Hye Yeon also brought his palms together, his expression solemn.
“Amitabha. Since it has come to this, I will make sure to use my strength properly.”
“I’ll help too!”
Dang Soso clenched her fist with a face full of determination, and Jo Gul added indifferently, “What’s the big deal? It’s got to be easier than hauling carts all the way to the North Sea. If they say dig, then we dig.”
Just as the Mount Hua disciples were building each other’s fighting spirit, Chung Myung frowned and clicked his tongue.
“Seriously, why are all of you so damn dumb?”
“...”
Huh?
Dumb?
When everyone looked at him in confusion, Chung Myung smacked his tongue.
“If something happens, you should use your head and find a way to solve it. Does charging in and smashing things really fix anything? Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
Then everyone bulged their eyes and shouted at once.
“And who the hell do you think is saying that?”
“I don’t want to hear that from you of all people, you bastard!”
“Who do you think got us into this mess in the first place?”
The complaints flew like arrows, but Chung Myung ignored them completely.
“...So what’s the plan?”
Yu I-seol, who had at least managed to keep her composure, asked him. Chung Myung shrugged.
“Find where it is, and dig only there.”
“There’s too much yin energy. It’s hard to find.”
“Normally, yeah.”
“...Then?”
Chung Myung grinned with utter confidence.
“I’m not normal.”
“...”
Annoying bastard.
For a brief moment, a vein popped on Yu I-seol’s forehead, but she forced herself to calm down and asked, “Can you find it?”
“Hmm.”
After nodding and thinking for a moment, Chung Myung pointed downward with his chin.
“If I can find it, then digging it out won’t be a problem, right?”
Baek Cheon smiled faintly and answered, “Chung Myung.”
“Yeah?”
“We can even flatten a mountain now.”
“...”
That is... incredibly reassuring.
Nodding once, Chung Myung stepped forward. He knelt there, placed a hand on the ground, and closed his eyes.
What?
Too much yin energy to search for the Ice Crystals?
That’s your problem.
Damn it, his inner energy.
It had been useless for practically everything, but once in a while, it turned out to be useful in moments like this.
His inner energy was a purification gathered only from the clearest energy under heaven. Even when he circulated it, the amount he could absorb was less than a spoonful from a vast lake.
And Ice Crystals are the concentrated essence of yin energy taken to the extreme.
Things that resemble one another are naturally drawn to each other.
Even if no one else could, he would be able to find them.
No, he could find them.
Energy flowed from the tips of Chung Myung’s fingers and seeped into the ground.
Then, slowly, very slowly, it began to spread through the entire valley.