Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: Forgetting Sword (3)
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The first thing he felt after consuming the elixir and attempting the Great Heavenly Circulation to open his thousand minor meridians was pain.
A sensation of his entire body being torn into a thousand, ten thousand pieces.
It was on a completely different level from when he had succeeded in the Small Heavenly Circulation with the help of the Orthodox Faction.
‘If I force the minor meridians open, my channels will be damaged and I'll become a cripple. If I take my time, I'll fall into Qi Deviation.’
Ouyang Jue began to circulate the Purple Mist Divine Arts to absorb as much of the elixir's energy as possible.
Of course, that process was by no means easy.
Because he had pushed through the Small Heavenly Circulation so quickly, the capacity of his lower and middle Dantians was not large.
As a result, Ouyang Jue had to endure the pain of his lower abdomen and solar plexus swelling.
It took half a shichen to absorb more than half of the elixir's energy with the Purple Mist Divine Arts.
He sweated so much it was as if a flood was pouring from his forehead, and his robes smelled musty.
The intense humidity of the jungle twisted his thoughts, and the temptation to postpone it whispered in his ear.
But Ouyang Jue hesitated no longer.
‘Move, move!’
The internal energy gathered in his middle Dantian was a full cycle and ten years.
Although it was more than what most masters of internal energy possessed, he absolutely did not let his guard down.
The Small Heavenly Circulation was manageable if a master was helping, but the Great Heavenly Circulation was on another level.
It involves breaking through the path from the middle to the upper Dantian and opening the thousand minor meridians throughout the body's channels.
Since the flow of qi becomes free, allowing for instantaneous offense and defense, some called it the unification of Essence, Qi, and Spirit.
But the risks involved were just as great.
Drenched in a cold sweat, Ouyang Jue began to move his internal energy with great delicacy.
…*Rumble*.
With such potent internal energy, the slightest movement felt like it would tear his body in two.
Blood seeped from between his clenched teeth. The corners of his eyes were already faintly bloodshot.
Yet, he could not open his mouth to groan.
Disrupting the flow of his internal energy was one problem, but it would be a disaster if a beast, drawn by the sound, were to interfere.
‘Move, hurry!’
Perhaps it was due to Ouyang Jue's unyielding will.
Even the elixir's energy, which had been stuck as if embedded somewhere, began to move slowly, mingling with his Purple Mist True Qi.
It traveled up along the Qihai acupoint, very slowly, but with certainty.
*Drip.*
The internal energy was too much for his young body, causing internal injuries that made blood trickle from the corner of his mouth.
But he never stopped.
*Grind.*
He must have ground his molars down several times over. That was how much effort it took to guide the internal energy from the lower to the middle Dantian.
It was a pain that would have caused anyone other than Ouyang Jue to collapse from exhaustion long ago.
Only after enduring that agony for another shichen could Ouyang Jue finally stand at the starting point.
The Great Heavenly Circulation—breaking through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians leading to the upper Dantian and the thousand minor meridians of the entire body at once!
‘This will be a hundred times more painful.’
But this was no time to stop.
Without hesitation, Ouyang Jue attempted the Great Heavenly Circulation.
*THUMP!*
“………?!”
His vision turned completely white. It felt as if the pain was burning his mind to ash.
And what of the blood congestion that appeared as he struck the Girdle Vessel?
Bright red blood seeped from between Ouyang Jue's teeth. Fresh blood was clearly not a good sign.
If he swallowed it, his internal injuries would only worsen.
Ouyang Jue squeezed his eyes shut.
*THUMP! THUMP-THUMP!*
“Kuhup!”
The congestion burst uncontrollably. His mouth filled with blood, and it felt as though all strength had drained from his body.
Ouyang Jue shook his head.
He felt a bitter lump on the tip of his tongue. It was surely a piece of something that had been torn off.
‘Is this too dangerous?’
He pondered for a moment, but the conclusion came quickly.
When had he ever stopped just because something was dangerous?
What a ridiculous thought.
Ouyang Jue's eyes were completely bloodshot.
Sixty years of internal energy surged through the Yutang acupoint once more.
*THUMP! THUMP-THUMP!*
How many times had it struck? His consciousness grew hazy.
But Ouyang Jue forced himself to hold on as he was about to collapse.
In doing so, one thing became certain.
He could see a crack leading to the upper Dantian.
That meant the Great Heavenly Circulation was succeeding.
‘One last time, again, I won't give up!’
*CRASH! KRAAAAA...!*
The dam blocking the path between the middle and upper Dantians burst, and elation washed over Ouyang Jue.
At the same time, the thousand minor meridians that had been blocking his internal energy all opened their gates at once.
Through those gates, Ouyang Jue saw clearly.
The steep, narrow path he had never once reached in his past life was now laid out at his feet!
Although there were still hundreds of steps to climb, making it perhaps impossible to stand at the summit of that steep path.
But for this moment, at least, he was satisfied.
“And you expect me to believe that?”
The Omniscient One looked dumbfounded.
Ouyang Jue couldn't say he didn't understand.
A brat not even of coming-of-age who had reached the peak through the Small Heavenly Circulation had now completed the Great Heavenly Circulation?
It was a situation where his body should have simply exploded.
He had indeed almost exploded, so the Omniscient One's words were certainly reasonable.
But what else could he say? He had done what he had done.
Ouyang Jue grinned and formed sword qi at the tip of his finger.
“…Crazy.”
The Omniscient One muttered a curse but didn't withhold his advice.
“You've reached too high a realm at such a young age, so you have to be truly careful now. You wouldn't want your body to explode while using your martial arts, would you?”
“I know. But the problem is whether other people will leave me alone.”
“Two years.”
The Omniscient One said with a serious expression.
“At the very least, don't borrow the power of the Great Heavenly Circulation until you've reached the age of maturity.”
“I'll try.”
The sword qi lingering at Ouyang Jue's fingertip vanished.
‘…*Hk*.’
Ouyang Jue swallowed a groan.
Indeed, because his body hadn't fully matured yet, his skin tingled.
If he were to fight at full power like this, he might just self-destruct.
Yet, he had a premonition that a day when he must fight would soon come. After all, there had never been a peaceful day in either his past or present life.
Ouyang Jue slung his bundle over his shoulder.
“Well then, I'll see you in Myeon, Omniscient One. Try not to cause any more strange incidents!”
“See you then!”
The Omniscient One waved.
***
Meanwhile, at the Mount Hua Sect, Liu Zhangming, who was in the middle of training, whipped his head around.
“……?”
“What is it, Master?”
Liu Zhangming raised his fist to give the Divine Demon Fist—no, Yeon Mu-rang now—a knock on the head for his flippant tone.
But for some reason.
He couldn't easily shake off the sense of unease he had just felt.
‘What was that?’
The longing he had felt upon reaching the peak seemed to have washed over him again.
But this time, it was even stronger. A heart-wrenching longing.
The feeling that something was within reach yet slipping away made Liu Zhangming feel wistful.
“Mu-rang.”
“Yes.”
“Let's end today's training here.”
“Then what should I tell Uncle Jo? He said he came up with a new technique and wanted to show me.”
What was that path called again? Yeon Mu-rang couldn't remember at all and scratched his head.
“By the way, Master, this name feels really awkward. Can't you just call me Nameless?”
“How can a person be called nameless? A name is a sacred thing.”
“Ah… Aah, yes.”
Yeon Mu-rang maintained his insolent attitude and turned his back.
A deep sigh escaped Liu Zhangming's lips.
It was a mix of irritation and anger.
“This won't do. Let's have a little spar.”
“What? Wasn't it training today?”
“As your master, isn't it about time I checked to see how far your skills have progressed?”
“Aigoo, I'm sorry! Master!”
Yeon Mu-rang quickly tried to flee. But he was eventually caught and received a sound beating from Liu Zhangming as a lesson in discipline.
Afterward, Liu Zhangming reviewed the new martial theory Jo Hun had created, called the Path of Zen Scripture.
Then, he casually asked.
“This feels familiar somehow…?”
“Huh? That can't be right.”
“Then I must be mistaken. I've been finding too many things familiar lately; it's a bit worrying.”
Liu Zhangming laughed it off, but Jo Hun couldn't help but feel concerned by his behavior.
‘Is it because Senior Brother Ouyang is gone?’
The thought occurred to him, but he quickly shook his head, deciding that wasn't it.
In fact, more things had happened when Ouyang Jue was around.
Suddenly becoming a peak master, or defeating Cheol Geum-san single-handedly—these things had happened as Ouyang Jue grew closer.
If anything, nothing happened when he was far from Ouyang Jue, like now.
‘Is it because he's so close with Senior Brother Ouyang that his rate of improvement is similar? No, that can't be it…’
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't find an answer.
After clearing his thoughts by practicing the Plum Blossom Sword Arts, Jo Hun bowed to Liu Zhangming.
“Thank you for always looking over my martial arts, Senior Brother!”
“What's so difficult about looking them over?”
“Well then, I have an appointment, so I'll be going!”
After leaving Liu Zhangming, Jo Hun scurried along the mountain foot to the Plum Blossom Cave.
Today was the day he would learn about the history of the Mount Hua Sect from Grandmaster Jin Mu-wol.
***
“It's a shame about the Black Dragon.”
To the words of the King Yama mask, the Sowhaja mask replied in a spiteful voice.
“Didn't he get himself killed by acting like an idiot? Hoho.”
“Still, he was a comrade of the Eight Evils.”
The Asura mask stared at the empty seat with its arms crossed.
“He was much better than Ghost or that bastard Crow, who don't even attend.”
“Oh my, but Crow always helps us, doesn't he?”
“When it comes to being unpleasant, that one's the absolute worst.”
The Asura mask shook its head as if disgusted.
It then turned its gaze to the Buddha mask, which was sitting silently in the corner.
“Hey, you got nothing to say? You're not so insignificant that you'd come here just to listen, are you?”
“Pathetic fools.”
The Buddha mask let out a sneer.
“So far, the ones who have shattered the Heavenly Design are me, Crow, and Sword Demon. What have the rest of you even done?”
“Your words are a bit harsh.”
“Harsh? Is your job just to go around mountains, planting stakes and sticking talismans on them?”
As voices began to rise, the King Yama mask raised its hand.
*THUD!*
He had merely struck the round table lightly with his hand, yet a noise like a landslide swept through the entire meeting hall.
And yet, there wasn't a single scratch on the table.
Not only was his internal energy profound, but this was the pinnacle of the Fist's Lightness!
Even Buddha, who had been glaring at King Yama with dissatisfaction, was impressed.
“With skills like that, why don't you take action yourself?”
“Because it is still difficult for me to move about.”
“You want me to take care of the Pillars of the World?”
When King Yama nodded at his words, Buddha showed a look of disbelief.
“Hey, Yama. My mask is Buddha. How can you ask me to deal with the Shaolin Temple?”
“Because there is no one better suited for the job than you.”
“…Tsk.”
Clicking his tongue, Buddha stood up from his seat.
“I'll think about it.”
“Thank you.”
Watching Buddha leave, King Yama calculated how much time was left until the Eight Evils could run rampant.
‘Roughly… three years.’
No, perhaps it could end even before that.
Even if King Yama himself was not yet free from the laws of causality, as long as there were other members of the Eight Evils who could act, the forces of the Heavenly Design would not be able to defeat them, even if they gathered together.
“Us, whom even Lü Dongbin could not stop… what mortal would dare stand in our way?”
A cruel smile formed on King Yama's lips.