Chapter 57. Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder
Twice toyed with, the man ground his teeth and chased after Won Seung.
He'd always been confident in his lightness skill, but the man's movements seemed even faster.
'Gah... Never skip martial arts training again!'
Won Seung vowed to himself as he ran.
After leaving the mountains, he'd neglected his martial arts practice. He'd kept up with his internal energy cultivation, the Clear Mind Heart Technique, morning and night, but he'd slacked on swordsmanship and fist techniques, using his disguise as a traveling scholar as an excuse.
Right now, he bitterly regretted it down to his bones.
'Just make it to the main road.'
Surely the man wouldn't kill him in broad daylight on a crowded street.
But Won Seung couldn't reach the main road.
Suddenly, the man leaped up from the side wall with a thud, blocking his path.
He'd cut straight through someone else's house to pursue him.
Without hesitation, the man closed the distance in a flash and swung a fist straight at Won Seung's face.
Even before the fist arrived, a fierce gust of fist wind battered him first.
Won Seung dodged back, only to find his retreat blocked by the wall.
"Hup!"
He hurriedly raised his left hand to block, but that punch was a feint.
The man's left hand shot out like lightning, seizing Won Seung's hand that held the vial of soul-confusing powder.
Clearly wary of the poison, he aimed to neutralize Won Seung's poison first.
Won Seung flicked open the vial's lid with his thumb and let it drop.
In dart techniques, if an enemy grabs your wrist, you drop the dart and kick it up to attack.
Adapting this, Won Seung kicked the falling vial with his toe. As the man flinched, Won Seung twisted his captured hand around, grabbing the man's wrist instead.
The vial spun into the air, scattering soul-confusing powder.
The man held his breath and tried to retreat, but Won Seung wouldn't let go.
The man stiffened his left hand like a blade, his wrist hardening like iron as his rigid energy tried to invade Won Seung's palm.
With no choice, Won Seung released him.
In that brief struggle over wrists, the man's eyes had flicked to the scattering vial.
He was definitely on guard against poisons.
Won Seung didn't miss the moment and pulled out a hornet venom needle hidden behind his ear, hurling it.
"Hmph!"
Instinctively sensing something flying at him from Won Seung's motion, the man leaned back, but the distance was too close, and the needle too fast.
He twisted his neck aside, but it still lodged in the side of his throat.
Thwuck!
The soul-confusing powder vial shattered between them, and at the same time, Won Seung scrambled back, drawing the dagger his master had given him.
The man retreated three steps as well, yanking the needle from his neck with his right hand.
The needle's tip was yellowed with poison—anyone could see it.
The man's face twisted. Being able to hurl needles like that meant specialized training in hidden weapons or peak expert level.
Won Seung was a far greater master than he'd thought. Still, he wasn't some novice who'd fall for such tricks.
He'd let his guard down thinking the guy was just a traveling scholar, gotten a nosebleed, and now, trying to neutralize the poison first, he'd been needled instead. It was ridiculous.
Grinding his teeth with a crunch, the man circulated his energy to the wounded spot and demanded,
"Are you from the Sichuan Dang Clan?"
Aiming his dagger, Won Seung replied,
"Don't mention that pathetic Dang Clan in front of me!"
The man's rage boiled over at Won Seung's mocking tone.
"You little shit, I'll kill you!"
He hadn't liked killing a kid to begin with and had planned to end it quietly, but now fury surged at being outmaneuvered instead.
Won Seung had used his wits to land the needle, but the crisis wasn't over, and anxiety gnawed at him inwardly.
No master would die from mere hornet venom.
'All that's left is the Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder.'
As Won Seung subtly shifted his foot outward, the man's form twitched in response.
He was definitely a master. Just by glaring at Won Seung's eyes, he pierced through every subtle movement from head to toe.
Won Seung pushed open the dagger's hidden compartment lid but paused at a sudden thought.
'Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder is for mixing into tea or food. Not much use subduing this guy right now.'
Save it as a last resort.
The man was growing impatient. Whatever the poison, he needed to subdue Won Seung and seize the antidote before it spread.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, he stepped forward.
Then Won Seung pointed at the man's foot and said,
"You don't even check what poison's on that needle? You're underestimating me way too much. You've just taken your fourth step."
Puzzled by Won Seung's out-of-nowhere words, the man frowned.
"Take three more steps forward, and you'll die. You've been poisoned with Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder."
"Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder!"
The man's face drained of color.
He touched his neck where the needle had struck—it was swelling red.
Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder was the legendary deadly poison that had etched Dokgoe into the martial world as a figure of terror. It was said you'd die after seven steps, but no one knew its exact nature.
Since Dokgoe had vanished, few even knew the name. That's why a young kid like Won Seung mentioning it made it seem real.
'Dokgoe's disciple?'
Despair, doubt, anxiety flashed in the man's eyes.
Was he really dying so pathetically? That's what his gaze said.
Won Seung sneered,
"You know of Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder, so you're no nameless scrub."
After circulating his energy briefly, the man glared at Won Seung with disbelief.
"Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder isn't for needles, though?"
'Not a scrub after all.'
Poisons had specific uses—wrong application meant no effect.
Some, like scattering powder, used wind; others, like soul-confusing or Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder, were for tea or food.
"Heh heh. So I spent years researching how to apply it to needles. The potency's a bit weaker... but I guarantee death in seven steps."
Won Seung bluffed shamelessly.
"Lucky for you, the needle didn't go deep. Still, this isn't the time to stand around chatting. Drive out the poison now, or you're dead."
With that, Won Seung bolted.
"Follow if you dare."
The man wavered between belief and doubt.
He didn't know the exact poison Dokgoe had used back in his heyday, so he hesitated.
Glare at the fleeing Won Seung, then he sat cross-legged right there to circulate his energy.
And after a long while, he realized he'd been tricked.
"Arghhh! You bastard! I swear I'll kill you!"
'That was close. Nearly died.'
Back at Baekhwa Pavilion, Won Seung reflected on his arrogance. The world was vast, full of masters.
A thug waiting in the alley had turned out to be a peak expert.
A pile of poisons from the workshop lay before Won Seung. If the guy had followed, even a peak expert would've melted to the bone.
Calm now, he realized how much he'd neglected training.
'Poisons alone aren't enough.'
Until now, he'd considered himself at least first-rate.
The instructors hadn't always been brutal. Sometimes they'd encourage, saying ten years of training would make him first-rate.
-Once you're first-rate, there's nothing to fear!
-Reach first-rate, and you can dominate the jianghu!
So he'd trained hard. Plus, with forty years of internal energy, he'd assumed he was first-rate.
What was first-rate? Better than average, right? At least not dying randomly on the road.
Yet he couldn't handle that middle-aged man.
If he'd fought head-on... he'd probably be lying in that alley right now, neck snapped, a gruesome corpse.
'Ugh... Something's wrong.'
After ten years rolling in the mountains, nearly dying right away? He'd have died unjustly, eyes wide open.
Killing a stranger without even stating a reason...
Mountains or world... both were equally vicious.
Curiosity struck about his actual standing in the martial world.
'Master said deep energy is just lots of firewood—dangerous against real masters. He was right.'
Suddenly solemn at thoughts of Dok Sabu, he yelled,
"Jong Wonbo, you bastard. I'm not letting you off."
Truth be told, when using the hornet venom, Won Seung hadn't really meant to kill him.
Jong Wonbo knew the scented powder spot and had eyed the hornet sting. If it were fatal, Won Seung would've slit his throat himself.
'And that's how I spared him... but he sends a master to kill me?'
Hiring that level must've cost a fortune. Made it even more infuriating.
Of course, Jong Wonbo would think it absurd if he heard, but furious Won Seung resolved not to let him live.
And...
First, check his current level in the martial world.
He called Jong Bi.
"Song Teacher, compared to martial world average, what level are we at with our training?"
"First-rate."
Jong Bi beamed proudly. Seemed she'd been brainwashed too.
Won Seung sighed and asked again.
"What's the benchmark for first-rate?"
Jong Bi faltered, tilting her head before saying,
"Us?"
Hmm. Useless. Even after two years in the jianghu...
Side effect of the Blood Chain Mountain antidote? Jong Bi seemed dumber by the day.
Should've excluded yam from the ingredients? Drugs were tricky—interactions could yield surprises.
Nah. If yam dulled her, mountain kids would be idiots too.
Jong Bi was always a bit dim.
Thinking that, he asked,
"Ever killed a first-rate?"
"Once?"
Her voice lacked confidence.
"Peak?"
"Not yet..."
Bombarded with tough questions, Jong Bi grew serious.
"Peaks are rare. That Yong descendant is a freak. At our age, even reaching first-rate is rare. It's the fruit of ten years' grind."
Enough. I know that.
Won Seung sighed and handed her a document from the table.
"Take this to Gu Ja-ang, get Cheon Bangju's approval."
"What's this?"
"Tripartite duel agreement."
"Oh! A real duel?"
Her eyes sparkled at the chance to watch masters fight.
"Be right back."
"On your way, tell Ogu Teacher to come in."
Moments later, Ogu entered.
"What level is Ogu Teacher compared to martial world average?"
Ogu furrowed his brows in thought before saying,
"Don't know the average, but in Sangyang, I'd say upper tier... No one there dared ignore me."
"What makes you think so?"
"I held my own in Gwangeonbang. That's why Gu Ja-ang kept me as a confidant."
"Hmm. So first-rate?"
"That's what I think..."
Ogu trailed off.