Chapter 124
Chapter 124
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Draw Your Sword
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Upon arriving at the Golden Jade Villa, Byeok Taesan headed for the area where the Heavenly Medicine Hall physicians were making medicine.
Fortunately, no one came out to greet him, so he could go there directly without any hassle.
Byeok Taesan's pace gradually quickened.
Soon, he arrived at a wide, open space.
The physicians from the Heavenly Medicine Hall were diligently at work.
Their tasks were, quite literally, menial labor.
Slicing, trimming, sorting, and grinding herbs into powder, boiling them in cauldrons, then collecting, dividing, cooling, and solidifying the mixture...
It was enough to keep them so busy they lost track of how the day passed.
The sheer volume of herbs they had to handle was immense.
The pile in this open space was already enormous, but that wasn't all.
By the time they were close to using it all up, workers would bring another large batch of herbs, replenishing the pile to its original size.
At first, the sight had made them feel faint, but now they could look upon it with a calm resignation.
As soon as Byeok Taesan entered the open space, he observed them one by one.
Perhaps because of his experience with Cho Seoran, he seemed to notice a strange, subtle commonality among them.
As he watched for a moment, the physicians noticed him and flinched in surprise.
"Y-Young Master?"
Byeok Taesan nodded.
"Yes. It seems you've all been well."
The physicians were slightly moved by Byeok Taesan's words.
The Byeok Taesan they knew was not someone who would ever say such a thing.
But for him to show this kind of attitude meant something had changed, didn't it?
The thought that he might be acknowledging their hardships stirred their emotions.
Of course, it was possible their hearts had grown a little weaker, exhausted from the intense and repetitive daily routine.
That might be why they were so easily moved.
But what did it matter? The outcome was good, after all.
"Has our Hall Master arrived as well?"
"She'll be here soon."
No sooner had Byeok Taesan finished speaking than Cho Seoran rushed into the open space.
She was startled to see Byeok Taesan there. She hadn't expected him to come straight here upon returning to the Golden Jade Villa.
"Y-Young Master?"
Cho Seoran's eyes wavered.
She attached a small amount of significance to the fact that Byeok Taesan had come here before anywhere else.
After spending a night with Byeok Taesan in Uichang, she had been endlessly worried.
She feared he had seen her as nothing more than a one-night fling.
Those worries had led her to mention her concerns for the Heavenly Medicine Hall to the Divine Doctor of the Ages, which in turn led to the decision for the Hall to relocate.
In any case, her worries had only deepened under the circumstances.
But now, it seemed her worries had been for naught.
As she regained a bit of composure, the thought of Yeon Harin suddenly surfaced.
A flicker of anxiety crossed Cho Seoran's face.
'Surely... I won't get my hair pulled out, will I?'
While she was lost in such worries, Byeok Taesan nodded lightly and spoke.
"Well, you can fill them in on the details."
"Pardon?"
Cho Seoran's eyes widened as she looked at Byeok Taesan, who had suddenly addressed her.
It seemed she had been so lost in thought that she hadn't heard what he said before.
But Byeok Taesan didn't elaborate and simply turned to leave.
Cho Seoran's gaze shifted to the Heavenly Medicine Hall physicians.
Their eyes were all sparkling. A mixture of anticipation and anxiety filled their gazes.
"Is it really true?"
"Uh, yes? W-What is?"
"Is our Heavenly Medicine Hall truly relocating here to Wuhan?"
Only then did Cho Seoran give a wry smile and nod.
"That's what happened."
She then began to explain in detail what had happened to the Heavenly Medicine Hall and how things had progressed afterward.
As they listened, the physicians' eyes seemed to sparkle even more brightly.
* * *
The next place Byeok Taesan headed was the training grounds.
His absence had been quite long, so it was meaningful to see how they had been training.
In truth, there weren't many people left to train at the Golden Jade Villa's training grounds.
He had taken most of the people who originally trained here with him to Uichang.
When he arrived at the training grounds, he found Yeon Harin, Heuk-il, Heuk-i, and Heuk-sam training with gritted teeth.
All four of them were training, their bodies wreathed in a venomous aura.
Byeok Taesan tilted his head at the sight.
Yeon Harin was known for her brutal training regimen, so that was expected, but seeing Heuk-il, Heuk-i, and Heuk-sam like that was rather surprising.
They were leaning more towards being workers than intense martial artists.
They had learned martial arts, but that was about the extent of it.
But after returning from Uichang, they were training as if they were completely different people.
They were so focused on their training that they didn't even notice Byeok Taesan's arrival.
Byeok Taesan stood still, suppressing his presence so as not to disturb them, and watched them train.
Watching people train so hard, as if their lives depended on it, always put him in a good mood.
He suddenly felt the urge to give them something.
Even though this was a feeling he rarely had in the past, Byeok Taesan didn't panic or deny it.
He simply accepted it naturally.
He had recently realized this was part of the process of his soul settling into his body.
If he continued to accept it naturally, the subtle dissonance that remained between his body and soul would eventually disappear completely.
Having organized his thoughts, Byeok Taesan once again observed the four training individuals.
It seemed the four had practiced the Limitless Steps all morning, as they were now training in their respective martial arts.
Heuk-il, Heuk-i, and Heuk-sam were engaged in a three-way dogfight.
The Dark Iron Arts was a martial art that made the body as hard as dark iron.
With their hardened bodies, they practiced practical combat forms.
The manual for the Dark Iron Arts contained not only the internal energy technique for absorbing the aura of dark iron but also combat forms that utilized it.
The martial forms of the Dark Iron Arts were incredibly vicious and violent.
That was to be expected, as it was a martial art based on charging forward recklessly, relying solely on one's body.
Their training was a raw display of that viciousness and violence.
Perhaps due to their past in the underworld, all three of them were certainly a good fit for the Dark Iron Arts.
They fought so ruthlessly that anyone other than Byeok Taesan watching would have been shocked and tried to stop them.
But Byeok Taesan simply gave a single nod.
Warriors of the Heavenly Demonic Cult did that much all the time. It was nothing special.
Byeok Taesan's gaze then shifted to Yeon Harin.
Yeon Harin was practicing the unique martial arts of the Yeon family, swinging her sword against an imaginary foe as if in a real battle.
But it was truly deadly.
As Byeok Taesan watched quietly, his eyes flashed sharply.
In the form Yeon Harin had just executed, something other than the Yeon family's martial arts was mixed in.
At first, he thought it was a coincidence. But now, it was happening repeatedly.
Byeok Taesan could be certain because the martial art mixed into Yeon Harin's forms was one he knew very well.
It was definitely mixed in.
'Then have their souls truly merged? What about that child? Could she be dead?'
Byeok Taesan's expression hardened slightly.
He watched Yeon Harin's swordplay once more.
The amount being mixed in was increasing. It was certain. That was the Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword.
It was the very martial art that Byeok Taesan had intended to teach Yeon Harin later.
'First... I need to stop that.'
If left alone, the Yeon family's martial arts and the Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword would mix imperfectly, likely leading her down a wrong path.
It would be better to stop her now and have her learn the proper Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword from the beginning, step by step.
Given her incredible tenacity, her progress would probably be very fast.
Though, of course, it would be a bit painful.
Byeok Taesan approached Yeon Harin, gradually increasing his presence as he did.
When he was halfway to Yeon Harin, the four people in the training grounds flinched and turned to look at him.
Yeon Harin's eyes went wide as saucers.
"Young Master!"
Yeon Harin quickly sheathed her sword and ran to Byeok Taesan.
She wanted to embrace him right away, but her entire body was drenched in sweat from training. She stopped in an awkward posture right in front of him.
Byeok Taesan chuckled at the sight.
The child from before would never have hesitated in this situation. She would have just rushed in for a hug.
Of course, Byeok Taesan had blocked and dodged her, so she had never once succeeded.
In that respect, Yeon Harin was a bit different from that child.
Yeon Harin studied Byeok Taesan's face from every angle with a peculiar gaze.
"Young Master, when did you arrive? Did you just get here?"
When Byeok Taesan nodded, Yeon Harin's face lit up with emotion.
"Does that mean you came to see me first as soon as you arrived?"
He hadn't, but Byeok Taesan didn't bother telling her the truth. Even he knew to be considerate in such moments.
"I-I'll go wash up quickly. I can come to your room, right?"
Byeok Taesan shook his head at her words.
"There's no need. You'll only get drenched in sweat again anyway."
However she interpreted that, Yeon Harin's face turned as red as heated iron.
"N-No. Still, it would be... unpleasant for you."
Byeok Taesan's attitude seemed different from usual, making her heart pound like crazy.
Yeon Harin swallowed nervously, her face tense.
Then she glanced over and shot a glare at Heuk-il, Heuk-i, and Heuk-sam, who were staring blankly in their direction.
The three men flinched in surprise, then bowed at a ninety-degree angle toward the pair.
"We're glad to see you've returned safely, Young Master!"
"Well then, we hope you two have a good time!"
"We have work piling up, so we'll be on our way!"
The three of them scurried out of the training grounds as if fleeing.
Byeok Taesan watched them go with slightly narrowed eyes before turning his gaze back to Yeon Harin.
Yeon Harin averted her eyes, looking embarrassed.
"Draw your sword."
"Pardon?"
Yeon Harin looked at Byeok Taesan, her expression asking what he meant by that.
"It seems your mind, spirit, and body are in alignment. You won't need to practice the Limitless Steps for a while, so focus on the sword."
"Ah... Yes. I should."
Yeon Harin's eyes wavered slightly.
Byeok Taesan paid her no mind and continued.
"What I intend to teach you is called the Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword."
"Soul-Shattering... Demonic Sword?"
Her eyes widened at the words "Demonic Sword." The name was far too ominous.
"What does the name matter? What's important is how well the art suits you."
At Byeok Taesan's calm words, Yeon Harin found herself nodding. He wasn't wrong.
"It is very powerful, but the training will be incredibly difficult. So, prepare yourself. If you don't want to, say so now. There are other arts that are easier to learn."
"But they would be weaker, wouldn't they?"
Byeok Taesan grinned. That went without saying.
The Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword was a truly special martial art. It meant shattering the soul, but not the opponent's—one's own.
It was a martial art that gained power by shattering the soul.
It was somewhat related to the Soul-Devouring Demonic Arts.
And it was also a martial art that might have been the reason that child's soul, Seon Haryeong's, had merged with Yeon Harin's.
"Well then, shall we begin?"
Byeok Taesan smiled faintly.
And for some reason, Yeon Harin found that smile terrifying.
In the training that followed, screams filled the training grounds for some time.
Even the tenacious Yeon Harin failed to endure the training for the Soul-Shattering Demonic Sword with just gritted teeth.
Byeok Taesan considered it a matter of course. It had been the same for Seon Haryeong in the past.
And he said the same thing he had said back then.
"You're noisy. If you scream like that, all the power you've gathered will escape through your mouth."
Yeon Harin almost cursed but managed to hold it back.
And after two hours had passed, she finally succeeded in suppressing her screams and swinging her sword.
A tremendous power swept through her entire body and erupted through her sword.
She stood there blankly, looking back and forth between her sword and Byeok Taesan's face.
"You've taken the first step. Well done."
He hadn't expected her to accomplish this in just two hours. Even Seon Haryeong hadn't been this fast.
Perhaps it was only possible because Seon Haryeong's soul had merged with hers.
"What are you doing? Once you've started, you must keep walking. Surely you're not satisfied with just that?"
Yeon Harin gritted her teeth. A venomous energy began to overflow from her eyes.
Of course not. If that were the case, the pain she had just endured would be too much of a waste.
With her lips pressed tightly together, she began to swing her sword again.
Watching her, Byeok Taesan nodded and turned to leave the training grounds.
* * *
As Byeok Taesan left the training grounds, the general manager came running up to him, out of breath.
"Young Master! Why didn't you let us know you were coming!"
The general manager said, his face full of disappointment.
"Has anything happened while I was away?"
"What could have happened? Ah, Young Master. There's a rumor that the Heavenly Medicine Hall is relocating here to Wuhan. Have you heard anything about it?"
Since Byeok Taesan was with Cho Seoran, the Queen of Medicine, he was asking if he had heard anything.
"Wuhan has been quite noisy lately because of it. When it comes to medicine, isn't the Heavenly Medicine Hall the best in the world? Everyone is desperate to form a connection with them somehow."
The general manager said this with sparkling eyes as he looked at Byeok Taesan. When Byeok Taesan said nothing, he pouted his lips with a slightly disappointed expression.
But he quickly composed himself and spoke to Byeok Taesan.
"Young Master. The Villa Master wishes to see you."
"Oh? Should I go now?"
The general manager shook his head.
"You just arrived today, did you not? Please rest well today and tomorrow to recover from your journey. You can visit him the evening after tomorrow."
"Well, if you say so."
"And Young Master. The Young Villa Master will also be present."
The Young Villa Master referred to Byeok Jehyeok, the son of Byeok Taesu.
Byeok Taesan turned his head to look at the general manager.
"You know I have no intention of getting involved with the Golden Jade Trading Company, don't you, General Manager?"
The general manager laughed awkwardly.
"I know that, of course. And I'm sure the Villa Master knows as well."
In that case, it probably wasn't a meeting about the succession issue.
"Alright, I understand. I'll go the day after tomorrow."
With that, Byeok Taesan strode off toward his personal pavilion.
The general manager bowed respectfully toward Byeok Taesan's retreating figure.