Chapter 225
Chapter 225
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 225
Chapter Title: The Spirit Void Daoist
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Nangong Myeong relayed the story that Blood Rain Guest had told him to his friends.
"Learn a hundred martial arts?"
"It's not literally a hundred. It's just that there need to be enough of them to grasp the underlying essence from the various directions of numerous martial arts."
"That's the same thing. You might even find that a hundred isn't enough."
Hong Geolgae was swept up in a small wave of self-loathing. He had heard Blood Rain Guest's story alongside Nangong Myeong, yet Nangong Myeong was the only one who had gained any enlightenment.
However, Hong Geolgae's self-loathing melted away like snow before long. Neither Hyeon-gong nor Dang Mujin had managed to grasp a single clue from Nangong Myeong's recounting.
Blood Rain Guest's advice wasn't the sort of thing ordinary people could comprehend and accept.
Hyeon-gong replied indifferently.
"I'd rather spend the time I've got perfecting the Taiji Sword like always, instead of hoarding that many martial arts."
"But Absolute Peak is on the line here."
"It's not a guarantee. Besides, if I train hard on the Taiji Sword and fail, at least my mastery of it will improve. Fail at miscellaneous arts, though, and you've got nothing to show for it. No telling how much time it'd even take."
Dang Mujin and Hong Geolgae showed more interest in the realm beyond Absolute Peak.
Hong Geolgae asked Nangong Myeong.
"There's a realm after Absolute Peak too, right?"
"That's what Blood Rain Guest said."
"I've wondered about it before—hasn't Nun Hwayeon already reached that realm? The other Absolute Peak experts don't even dream of measuring up to her. She's the only one who's achieved rejuvenation."
But Nangong Myeong waved it off.
"I doubt it. The Three-Eyed Buddha once mentioned that the Three-Eyed Elder had brushed against rejuvenation but chose not to pursue it, since it diminishes the value of external arts."
"Is that right? Well, anyway, if anyone reaches the next realm, it'll be Nun Hwayeon for sure."
Hong Geolgae spoke with utter conviction, but the other three didn't share his view.
Other Absolute Peak experts devoted most of their spare time to training. Nun Hwayeon, however, was a different story.
She poured a great deal of time into managing Haomen, investing what was left in her hobbies.
Hong Myeon No-gae had once said that her residence was packed floor-to-ceiling with erotic novels from across the Central Plains.
Nun Hwayeon didn't just skim them, either. Word was she delved deep enough to recite substantial passages from memory.
Lately, she was constantly shuttling between Zhongjing and Chengdu, even imparting dubious romantic knowledge to Mok Wan-ah.
No matter how charitably you looked at it, her life was far removed from that of a devoted martial artist.
"Hey, Mujin. Mok little sis is coming."
Was it because they were talking about Nun Hwayeon?
Mok Wan-ah came into view, tray of snacks in hand as she glanced around. Dang Mujin quietly rose and slipped off to a spot out of her line of sight.
Hyeon-gong grumbled as he watched Dang Mujin's retreating figure.
"Some folks are dying just to hold Mok little sis's hand once. So why's she always trailing after Mujin? What am I lacking?"
"Dang Mujin is the lord of the house."
"So that's it."
Ever since the last incident, Mok Wan-ah had stopped hiding her fondness for Dang Mujin.
She had even gone out of her way to learn cooking—something never in her stars—and her dedication was truly admirable.
Yet Dang Mujin found her presence uncomfortable.
Of course, he knew she was an exceptionally bright and kind soul. Had he not married Dan Seol-yeong, he surely would have enjoyed a fine relationship with Mok Wan-ah.
The issue was that he was already married, and growing close to Mok Wan-ah felt like a betrayal of Dan Seol-yeong.
Even though Dan Seol-yeong herself had half-accepted Mok Wan-ah. This wasn't about her permission—it was a matter of Dang Mujin's own heart.
Mok Wan-ah arrived before the group of friends and scanned their faces. Three of them, missing Dang Mujin.
A normal person looking for him would have simply asked where he'd gone, but Mok Wan-ah did no such thing.
Instead, she stood still, closed her eyes, and gave a slight sniff, sensing Dang Mujin's distinctive toxic qi.
A moment later, she opened her eyes and headed off in the direction he had vanished.
Hyeon-gong watched her back and muttered in a forlorn voice.
"Lucky bastard."
*
And so year-end drew near, until one day.
Dang Mujin had taken refuge at Three-Eyed Buddha and Blood Rain Guest's home once again to dodge Mok Wan-ah.
But shortly after, an unexpected visitor stepped into the courtyard.
A Daoist of Qingcheng Sect clad in pale blue Daoist robes. He looked at least a dozen years older than Yellow Spirit Master, with an aura far from ordinary.
Dang Mujin and Blood Rain Guest had never met him, but they knew who he was without needing to be told.
He was the one among the Righteous Six Venerables who stayed closest to the Dang Family Fortress—and the only one Dang Mujin had yet to encounter. The Qingcheng Sect Leader, the Spirit Void Daoist.
Blood Rain Guest tensed rigidly, desperately averting his gaze to avoid meeting the Spirit Void Daoist's eyes.
'...How far down the pecking order am I gonna fall?'
He had planned to strut around Chengdu's alleys like a gang boss in his old age, but first it was Three-Eyed Buddha and Nun Hwayeon, and now another of the Righteous Six Venerables.
The other three weren't much better off. Dang Mujin and Three-Eyed Buddha found the Spirit Void Daoist just as awkward, and he too seemed ill at ease in the atmosphere.
In the end, Dang Mujin spoke up first. Easing the mood in a gathering like this was the youngest's duty.
"You're the Spirit Void Daoist of Qingcheng Sect, aren't you? The pure winds of Qingcheng are unmistakable—no way to miss it."
The Spirit Void Daoist responded as if he'd been waiting.
"So you're the young hero Dang? Yellow Spirit Master went on about you every time we met—turns out the man has a good eye after all. Just as the rumors say, a fine, upstanding look about you. Special attainments in medicine, metallurgy, and swordsmanship, they say?"
As the subtle pleasantries continued, Three-Eyed Buddha glanced sidelong.
Blood Rain Guest clearly had no intention of saying a word, too busy dodging the Spirit Void Daoist's gaze. It was as if he believed that if he didn't look, the other man couldn't see him either.
In the end, Three-Eyed Buddha joined the conversation.
"Long time no see, Spirit Void Daoist. What brings you here?"
Unlike Dang Mujin or Blood Rain Guest, Three-Eyed Buddha was acquainted with the Spirit Void Daoist.
Their last encounter had been during the final Righteous-Demonic War, years before the most recent one. The young Spirit Void Daoist had set off for the Heavenly Mountains alongside warriors from the other righteous sects.
There were no particular grudges between the two.
Too much time had passed to hold onto any resentment, and they hadn't inflicted any great wounds on each other.
The reason Three-Eyed Buddha found the Spirit Void Daoist awkward was something else. He could guess why the man had come here.
It wouldn't be strange at all if the Spirit Void Daoist took umbrage at Blood Rain Guest putting his unorthodox past behind him. The temperament of Qingcheng Sect warriors was never a mild one.
Yet the Spirit Void Daoist began from a slightly different angle.
"You seem to think I've come to talk about Blood Rain Guest, but I'm not particularly opposed to that matter."
Blood Rain Guest, who had been listening quietly from the corner, startled at the mention of his moniker and let out a hacking cough.
The Spirit Void Daoist desperately ignored the sound as Three-Eyed Buddha pressed again.
"Then why have you come?"
"Truth be told, with these goings-on in Sichuan Chengdu, it'd be absurd for me to pretend not to notice and stay away. Abbot Hyangbaek of Emei Sect will attend for much the same reason—bear that in mind."
If you viewed Blood Rain Guest's situation askance, it was an unorthodox warrior squirming his way into righteous murim.
But looked at positively, it was a moment when a vicious unorthodox figure cut ties with his past and received guidance.
The Spirit Void Daoist placed greater weight on the latter.
Moreover, attending this gathering as a righteous representative would make it look as though he had lent a hand in guiding a wicked soul.
This was the first case of an unorthodox warrior publicly disavowing his past deeds—he'd have ample cause to swagger before Kunlun Sect Daoists for life.
Even Kunlun Sect, which made converting the unorthodox its mission, had never managed to convert anyone on the level of an Absolute Peak expert.
Three-Eyed Buddha eyed him and added a remark.
"But you've got other business too, don't you."
"Naturally. Each of the righteous sects will be sending at least a few people, so I've come with a message for them. In fact, that's far more important."
"What message?"
The Spirit Void Daoist began his explanation in a voice thick with frustration.
"As you all know, things with the Demonic Cult are far from normal, but even when we try to convene a meeting, no one wants to show up. They're all starting to wriggle out, trying to foist the responsibility on someone else."
This was the very story Dang Mujin had passed on to Yellow Spirit Master after escaping the Demonic Cult.
The current Demon Lord had slain the previous one and seized control of the cult, and the atmosphere there was anything but normal.
Evidently, Yellow Spirit Master had relayed it to the Spirit Void Daoist as well.
Truth be told, the current state of righteous murim was precarious in the extreme. The Demonic Cult could come crashing down on them at any moment.
The Kunlun Sect Daoists, who lay closest to the Demonic Cult, were especially uneasy.
If the Demonic Cult invaded the Central Plains, Kunlun would be the first to clash with them.
Qingcheng Sect and Emei Sect in Sichuan Chengdu weren't much safer, for all that Sichuan wasn't as exposed.
Sichuan was a natural fortress ringed by sheer peaks, but geographically speaking, it lay fairly close to the Demonic Cult.
Three-Eyed Buddha smirked as he listened.
"Looks like the righteous warriors can't get their act together."
"Embarrassing as it is, you're right. They're passably proactive when it comes to unorthodox matters, but somehow they drag their feet when the Demonic Cult is involved... In any case, Three-Eyed Buddha, since we're here, I've got a question for you."
"What is it?"
"As someone who once held high office in the Demonic Cult. Do you think the current Demon Lord will lead his cultists charging into the Central Plains? Or might they stay holed up in the Heavenly Mountains, as they've always done?"
After a brief moment of thought, Three-Eyed Buddha answered.
"The current Demon Lord isn't one who upholds doctrine—he craves power. And when such a man obtains power, he inevitably turns his gaze to somewhere he can wield it."
"But there's no guarantee they'll come east. Couldn't they push west instead? I hear the Demonic Cult's arts have their roots in the Western Regions."
It was a notion no one had considered before, but upon reflection, a highly persuasive one.
The Demon Lord, far-off in the Western Regions and practicing their arts, might invade westward to deepen and expand his mastery of them. It wasn't impossible.
From the Demonic Cult's perspective, the Central Plains and the Western Regions were equally distant.
Three-Eyed Buddha nodded.
"Could be. But I doubt they'd stay put after striking west. They'll surely come to the Central Plains too. In fact, you'd be better off hoping they hit the Central Plains first."
"Why in the world?"
"I've clashed with the Demon Lord when he only had a surface grasp of those arts. The power was tremendous. If he fully establishes them in the Western Regions and gains real combat experience to boot... well, I wonder what sort of bloodstorm he'd unleash on Central Plains murim."
"So it's just a matter of time."
Three-Eyed Buddha grinned.
"Want some practical advice?"
"What?"
"Don't wait around until the Demonic Cult starts rampaging. Pull together whoever you can however you must, and strike the Heavenly Mountains before the Demon Lord finishes his training. And not for some retaliatory Righteous-Demonic War like before. Do it to survive."
It was an utterly radical suggestion.
The Spirit Void Daoist stared hard at Three-Eyed Buddha. Was this Demonic Cult veteran spinning tales to look out for his own interests?
Logically, that was the rational take, but somehow it rang true.
The Spirit Void Daoist let out a deep sigh and rose to his feet.
"Understood. I'll be staying at Qingcheng Chengdu Branch until year-end, so come find me anytime if you've got something to say."
With that, the Spirit Void Daoist departed.
Three-Eyed Buddha had offered his sincere counsel. But he didn't expect the righteous warriors to actually heed it and muster their forces for a preemptive strike on the Demonic Cult.
People never budged until the flames were licking at their feet, no matter how clear the approaching threat.
It had always been that way in the past, and it surely would be now.
*
The long-awaited year-end finally arrived.
Inns with attached rooms in Chengdu typically operated only from spring through autumn, shuttering for winter.
Most visitors to Chengdu were merchants riding the Yangtze during warmer weather, so there was no reason to keep open during a winter so harsh even flies froze to death.
This year was different. As winter approached, outsiders steadily increased until Chengdu's empty rooms were filled to bursting.
Room rates, which normally cost a dozen coppers, skyrocketed. It took forty or fifty coppers just to spend a single night at an inn. Rooms were that scarce.
With cold winds blowing, innkeepers could earn a full year's typical income in a mere two months—rumor had it they bowed toward the Dang Family Fortress once a day in gratitude.
With crowds thronging the inns, plenty of outsiders failed to secure rooms.
But no one had come all this way from afar just to turn around empty-handed. They settled into private homes like long-term boarders.
Hand over two or three silver taels a month, and you could easily snag a spot by the heated kang.
Folks who usually scraped by in winter flashed broad grins at the windfall.
From time to time, visiting men from out of town took up with local women—especially widows.
Lonely man and woman sharing warmth by the kang through endless winter nights—it was only natural for feelings to develop.
It was a winter unlike any other, in more ways than one.
Even Chengdu's eldest elder said he'd never seen a winter so bountiful and warm.
Blood Rain Guest's popularity soared right along with it.
The first words out of every visitor's mouth were "Where does Blood Rain Guest reside?" or "Where is the lord of the Dang Family Fortress?"
Even the snot-nosed kids knew this winter's prosperity was thanks to the Dang Family Fortress—and to the warrior Blood Rain Guest.
And a bit more time passed, until three days before New Year's Eve.
Namung the River Brigand, who had become Blood Rain Guest's disciple, along with Hyeon-gong, climbed atop the highest roof of the Dang Family Fortress.
The two focused their energy in their dantians and bellowed loudly.
"The Absolute Peak expert of unorthodox murim, Blood Rain Guest, hereby washes away his past life and returns to being the Jang family's eldest son, Jang Il-nam! Any with objections, come to the Dang Family Fortress by sunset three days hence!"
From that proclamation, the masses who had converged from across the Central Plains surged toward the Dang Family Fortress like the tide.