How to Stack Inner Power as Easily as Eating Dang-gwa - 2
In Cheonsang Myeongwol, there were three ways to raise your inner power. The first was leveling yourself up through training, combat, and sparring duels.
The second was enlightenment gained through events—the kind of sudden awakening you see all the time in wuxia tales. Passing through one raised your inner power and your overall stats.
And then the third and final method: consuming elixirs.
Naturally, the easiest was the first—steady, consistent training. Enlightenment, being event-driven, wasn't something that simply came whenever you wished, and elixirs that boosted inner power were hard to find in the first place; the vast majority lay hidden in secret realms or concealed places.
Even then, you could only learn their locations by playing through events, and there were countless tales of players who sweated blood conquering a secret realm only to trudge out empty-handed and all alone.
In short, common wisdom held that obtaining an elixir through a secret realm was next to impossible unless you knew exactly how and where to get one.
And that meant... if you did know where and how, the possibilities opened up more than enough.
"Whew..."
Exhaling a long, low breath as she finished her qi-circulation meditation, Sayun slowly opened her eyes. The pallor that had clung to her face only moments before now carried a faint flush of color.
"Huh? Sister Yu Hui...?"
"I told you to stay put and behave, so what exactly were you doing here...?"
One of the worried girls ruffled Sayun's hair, rough and scolding, yet the affection in that touch was plain enough for even an outsider like me to read.
"No, it's just... that man over there seemed dangerous... and I'm a disciple of the prestigious Hongseong Sect, so I..."
Aid the weak. Uphold justice. She had tried to put Hongseong's teachings into practice—and practice them she did.
As Sayun made her excuses with a scarlet face, Yu Hui, who had been holding her tongue, planted a knuckle rap on her head.
Thwack!
"Ow!"
"Still, that's no excuse! That was way too dangerous! Who on earth were you fighting?!"
"Hoe-rang Gakjun."
The moment I threw in that word from the sidelines, Yu Hui's face crumpled even further. Followed by another knuckle rap. Not that I couldn't understand how she felt.
"Hoe-rang? The unorthodox factions' Hoe-rang?! No—what on earth goes on in that head of yours..."
"Our Eldest Sister taught that to guard righteousness and carry out chivalry, one must know to press forward even into danger, so I..."
"The youngest... talking back?!"
Thwack!
Another knuckle rap. Cradling her head, Sayun pulled a face on the verge of tears, while Yu Hui huffed that she was in for a proper lecture the moment they got home—and launched into her scolding.
"She did it to help me, so don't be too hard on her."
"Haah... in any case, sir—are you hurt anywhere?"
"Thanks to Lady Sa, I came away without a scratch. Ah—pardon me, I've been slow with my introduction. I'm called Yu Wol. I run the inn and the trading house in Seomhwachon."
"Ah... oh?!"
When I offered a light cupped-fist salute, Yu Hui looked visibly startled—but only for a moment before she returned the salute with a bow of her head.
"Yu Hui of Hongseong Sect."
The other Hongseong disciples beside her gave their names as well. And once the brief greetings wound down, I seized the momentary awkward pause to take a step back.
"In any case, Lady Sa came to my aid, and it wouldn't sit right with me to simply wipe my mouth and walk away. If there's anything you need, the trading house can provide it. I hear Hongseong doesn't take payment for such things, after all."
"Aha-ha... yes, that's right. Our sect's teaching is that those with power bear a responsibility to match. And—I heard from our Eldest Sister."
That before long, the Hongseong disciples would be summoned to the inn for a proper feast.
She said her piece briefly, and I nodded.
"That's one thing, and this is another. It's just about lunchtime—why not come in and share a meal before you go?"
"Er... we couldn't possibly..."
Grrrowl...!
Who was it? Who let their stomach growl?
I looked at the three of them—and saw that one of the three, the girl who'd just been locked in a fight for her life, had gone bright red.
"That answers that, then."
Of course, I hadn't forgotten to deal with Gakjun's corpse first. There were always plenty of people willing to report a body to the authorities for a few coins.
Only after the officials arrived and hauled off Gakjun's body and the groaning wretches did I finally lead the three of them toward the inn.
By the time we reached the inn, Sugsu was already on shift. It wasn't quite lunch yet, but getting a meal ready should be no trouble.
If I'd told them to order whatever they liked, they'd surely have picked cheap fare like somen noodles or dumplings—so I placed the order myself.
The moment I ordered several of the inn's pricier dishes, Sayun's face began to pale.
"Th-those are far too expensive... that isn't why I helped you. And, um..."
"It's quite all right."
I said flatly, and took a seat nearby.
"More to the point—Lady Sa, you said you're the youngest of Hongseong... you're quite strong, you know."
"Ah. About that."
Sayun stole a glance at Yu Hui, and when the older girl nodded, she let out a small sigh.
"I've been learning a little, separately, from our Eldest Sister lately. So..."
Learning separately from Hong Ryeon? Why? And how far had she come?
But Yu Hui's gaze was too sharp for me to press that far. It was an internal matter of Hongseong, after all.
What mattered was that Sayun had progressed further in the Hongseong Divine Art than I'd expected—and that was nothing but good news for me. The stronger she grew, the more smoothly I could block the sect-destruction event I absolutely had to prevent.
"I see."
Around the time I nodded, the first dish arrived—an appetizer of fried eggplant tossed with other vegetables and seasoned to perfection.
At the sight of it, the three girls' eyes lit up.
"Then eat your fill, all of you."
"Er... won't you join us?"
"It would only make things awkward, an outsider inserting himself into your table. Eat without worrying. Ah—and I'll say this now: take a box of dang-gwa each on your way home. If there's anything else you need, speak up freely."
"Huh? E-even dang-gwa? I'm fine, really..."
"If not for Lady Sa, something dreadful might have happened."
I smiled, and Sayun hesitated, then managed a strained smile of her own.
With that, I returned to my room.
Since entering this world, the only things I'd done for Sayun were sending one letter and a single nyang of silver. And yet her martial arts had grown—which meant those small gestures had somehow rippled outward, bending the original story off its course.
If that change was moving in a positive direction, then I had to change more. More. And more.
I sat in my room smoking my pipe, letting the thought run on. How long had I been at it? When I stepped outside, the inn was packed with other customers. The Hongseong disciples who'd been there earlier seemed to have already gone; in their place, two strapping men who looked like herb peddlers were sipping cheap rice wine over lunch.
"Innkeeper."
"Hm? What is it?"
"I heard from the Hongseong disciples earlier. That you were attacked..."
One of the inn's waiters—the kind who doubled as hired muscle whenever trouble stirred—spoke up worriedly, and I laughed.
"It was nothing. Think nothing of it."
Right. Because there were far more important things than that.
Several days passed since the day of the attack. I kept watch against a possible second strike, but perhaps because Hongseong Sect itself had stepped in, nothing out of the ordinary happened. So, around the time the wine-seeking crowd began to fill the inn, I finished my preparations and slipped outside.
I couldn't promise there'd be no ambush like the one days prior—but sitting idle wasn't an option either. At the very least, no one seemed to be on my tail...
"Whew..."
Guided by moonlight, I arrived at Mount Hongseong. The beautiful sacred mountain where Hongseong Sect had long kept its seat. There was only one reason to climb this mountain, awash with Thousand-Day Plum Blossoms in riotous bloom, in the dead of night.
"Hmm..."
Midway up Mount Hongseong, a short way west of Dragon Head Rock, lay a cliff. Climb down it, and a path showed itself between the rocks. Hidden by dense brush and trees so that it was invisible unless you drew close, the passage led a short way down to an enormous cave.
Unless you knew where and how to obtain the elixirs that raise inner power, you could never obtain them at all. Even in Cheonsang Myeongwol, it took extensive investigation and long chains of events just to learn this location. That was precisely why elixirs were so hard to get.
But if you already knew all that? Then there was no easier road to strength than this.
Which was why I had come to this cave—one of Mount Hongseong's secret realms, the kind a player normally couldn't set foot in until the latter half of Part 3. Pass through it, and elixirs awaited. Which meant I had to make sure I could conquer it.
I entered the cave and found a formation triggered by floor plates. Normally you'd have to work through events just to learn how to disable one—but I already knew the method.
I fiddled with the plates and ornaments until the formation released, and in the same instant the wall simply vanished. Behind it stood a massive stone gate.
I pressed one step toward the gate, where a crimson aura rippled—and the moment I did, that crimson aura barred my entry.
— Who seeks entry? —
"I am the keeper of Seomhwachon's only inn, master of its only trading house, and one who wishes for the peace and prosperity of Hongseong Sect."
— We know him not. —
I'd expected as much. But I had no real intention of forcing my way in—I only wanted to confirm that this was the place I remembered, so I didn't press the matter. I stepped back, and the crimson aura that had flared like a sentinel on guard died away completely.
Right. Confirmation complete—time to head home, then?
"Tsk..."
Descending the mountain by moonlight, I turned the problem over in my mind. There was, in fact, an easier way to stop Hongseong's destruction: simply inform the sect about the Iron Blood Dan and send a letter warning them to beware of future attacks. And I had already sent exactly that.
The only question was how they would take it.
Step... step...
I found myself recalling the letter I'd sent some days ago. Its content was simple enough: Hongseong Sect might be attacked and destroyed, so be on your guard.
The trouble was that letters like that arrived at Hongseong constantly. Hongseong was a renowned orthodox sect, one that wielded a powerful deterrent in the Sword Saint. Few in number they might be, but beyond the eldest disciple Hong Ryeon, her next-in-line Ryu Hyeon and several other disciples were strong enough to make their names ring throughout the murim, and deeply respected besides. And the sect's prestige went without saying.
Naturally, that meant plenty of people wanted to use Hongseong. Among their methods were letters sent in the shape of "Hongseong may be in danger, so be careful," or "A dangerous shadow faction has appeared in the murim—lend us your strength." From what I'd gathered, quite a few people in the past had sent letters in exactly that mold, angling to exploit the sect.
So the odds of them believing mine were vanishingly low. At the very least I'd have to build a real measure of trust before I could move Hongseong as a whole... but considering that not even the Murim Alliance could move the Sword Saint, would that ever be easy?
"Haah... well, what can I do?"
I already knew it wouldn't be simple. For now, the task at hand was to do my utmost within the bounds of what I could. Thinking through my next move, I trudged back toward the inn, and—
"Hm?"
Someone was standing in front of the inn. A woman whose burning-red hair caught the eye at once. It was Hong Ryeon, Hongseong's eldest disciple, whom I'd seen once before.
"Waiting for someone?"
"Oh! Where've you been?"
"Had some business to see to. And judging by that answer, you came to see me. Why wait out here instead of inside?"
"Ha-ha... well. This month's a little tight, you see."
I shrugged at her sheepish laugh as she scratched the back of her head. Fair enough—Hongseong's operating and upkeep costs were perpetually stretched thin. If she'd waited inside, she'd have been obliged to accept at least a cup of tea, so I supposed she was trimming even that expense.
"So? What brings you?"
"Ah. Well..."
Her awkward expression shifted. Just as she opened her mouth, face turned grave—
Shiiiing!! With the shriek of tearing wind, a dagger came hurtling out of the darkness. Hong Ryeon twisted only her head to let it pass, then narrowed her large eyes toward the source.
"Tsk."
"Hohoho... Hongseong's eldest disciple, meeting a man in secret in the dead of night. Now, that is an amusing sight."
A honeyed, rather high voice.
The moment I laid eyes on her, I couldn't help but grit my teeth. Of course, not because of her looks. The slightly upturned eyes, the skin-tight clothing—little more than leggings—that left every curve of her body on blatant display. The long, straight limbs, the slim waist, the contrastingly full hips—anyone would be captivated at the sight of her.
And yet there was exactly one reason I couldn't keep the scowl off my face: she was none other than Chae Jin, eldest disciple of Moon Lotus Pavilion—the sect led by the 'Blade Emperor'—and the central figure of Sayun's forced-defeat event.
Wait. Why is that woman here right now? Shouldn't she be off making a name for herself with the Murim Alliance around this time?
"Ducking out of our duel now, are we...?"
The honeyed voice dropped to an icy chill, but Hong Ryeon answered as if it hardly mattered.
"There are more important things than that."
"Hah! Meeting a man?!"
"No."
She let out a small sigh and said, slowly:
"Finding elixirs. For our youngest."