Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Shaolin Temple
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The next day, the monks gathered in the assembly hall.
Even though it was an emergency meeting decided just the day before, far more people filled the seats than at a regular gathering. Naturally, Dang Mujin and Yi Chung had claimed their spots as well.
"It seems everyone who was coming has arrived, so let's begin the meeting. The agenda is the punishment for Layman Dang, who violated the third precept of the Great Three Vows. Of course, it would be ideal if Layman Dang revealed who taught him the martial arts, but that seems unlikely."
The person who taught him the martial arts. The first ones that came to mind were Dan Seol-yeong or the Dan family.
But Dang Mujin had no intention of mentioning the Dan family. The Precepts Master wasn't the type to accept that explanation—he'd argue that Dan Seol-yeong had broken the precepts too and deserved punishment alongside him.
All eyes turned to Dang Mujin. He spoke up.
"I can't understand this situation. Do you think I repaired the Wooden Man Alley with the intention of stealing Shaolin's martial arts, Precepts Master?"
"That's not the case."
"And yet you believe I should be punished?"
"That's the precept."
It was the expected response, but it was still absurd. Dang Mujin addressed the Precepts Master and all the attending monks.
"From repairing the Wooden Man Alley, I realized that anyone who fixes it has no choice but to learn the White Lotus Divine Fist and Shadowless Immortal Steps. If mastering those two arts is the problem, then Shaolin Temple has been dangling sweet bait for three hundred years, luring people to punish."
Dang Mujin's words could be interpreted as a blanket criticism of the entire Shaolin Temple.
But no one called him out on it. Most of those gathered were there to defend him.
The Precepts Master spoke.
"It's an overstatement to say repairing the Wooden Man Alley inevitably leads to learning the White Lotus Divine Fist and Shadowless Immortal Steps. If you had no knowledge whatsoever of martial arts, could you have learned them? I doubt it."
Someone muttered softly, criticizing the Precepts Master. But he pressed on undeterred.
"Even if you repaired the Wooden Man Alley, you wouldn't have had any issue if you hadn't learned the White Lotus Divine Fist and Shadowless Immortal Steps. If you lacked the confidence, you could have taken refuge in Shaolin first and then repaired it—or if that was difficult, you could have simply avoided getting caught practicing them. But Layman Dang avoided none of those three possibilities."
"Are you saying I should take refuge in Shaolin even now?"
At Dang Mujin's question, the Precepts Master shook his head.
"It's too late. The fact that you stole and learned martial arts without a master is unchanging."
"Stole, you say. An interesting choice of words, Precepts Master."
Yi Chung, who had been silent until now, latched onto the Precepts Master's words. As always, he spoke with a casual swagger.
"Let's think about what 'stealing' even means first, Precepts Master. If you were a Beggars' Sect disciple without a single coin to your name, could a thief steal money from your pocket?"
"That couldn't happen."
"If you were dirt poor without even a single barley grain for breakfast, could a thief steal your morning meal and eat his fill?"
"Impossible."
"Exactly. The point is, you can't steal what isn't there. From what I saw yesterday at the Wooden Man Alley, not only were there no forms of the White Lotus Divine Fist or Shadowless Immortal Steps, no one even knew their names. Does it make sense to steal from Shaolin what Shaolin itself doesn't possess?"
Yi Chung stood, stretched his shoulders, and paced slowly. There was something commanding in his confident demeanor that drew everyone's attention.
"We need to think about this differently. Restoring a martial art that no one knows, one not even recorded anywhere—what's the difference between that and creating a new one? There might be some distinction, but aren't they essentially the same?"
"The outcome may be similar, but there's a crucial issue: the Wooden Man Alley containing those martial arts is Shaolin's legacy."
"That doesn't change anything. If Dang Mujin hadn't come here, that precious Wooden Man Alley of yours would be a flat training ground by now."
Amid dozens of peak masters, Yi Chung boldly mocked the Shaolin monks.
"Set aside Shaolin Temple's pride and think about it. Did Dang Mujin steal martial arts you yourselves couldn't master? Or are you the ones brazenly stealing and learning the martial arts he presented? Was there anyone here who offered the rites of discipleship to take him as their master?"
"Yi Chung, that's going too far."
"You're right—it is excessive. Precepts Master, both your words and mine have crossed the line. Just as Dang Mujin hasn't demanded the rites of discipleship from you, you shouldn't invoke the precepts against him."
Yi Chung's arguments danced between sophistry and logic. For monks who had devoted their lives to martial arts, dismantling and refuting his points one by one wasn't easy.
Moreover, most of Shaolin's martial monks had no intention of countering Yi Chung's claims.
To them, the shame lay not in his mockery, but in Shaolin debating the punishment of its benefactor.
The verbal sparring fell into a brief lull, and the monks sank into their own thoughts.
Soon after, the Senior Monk spoke.
"It seems all the arguments have been made, and everyone has sorted their thoughts. Those who believe Layman Dang must pay for his crimes, raise your hands."
The Precepts Master raised his hand confidently. A couple others fidgeted hesitantly, but only he lifted his hand fully.
"Those who believe Layman Dang need not pay for his crimes, raise your hands."
Numerous hands shot up.
There were a few who hadn't raised hands for either side, but not many. One night was far too short to shake off the感動 from the Wooden Man Alley.
"The decision is made. No more debate on Layman Dang's violation of the precepts or the White Lotus Divine Fist and Shadowless Immortal Steps he has mastered."
The monks nodded at the Senior Monk's words.
Dang Mujin let out a sigh of relief as he glanced at the Precepts Master.
Unlike his hardline stance on punishment, the Precepts Master's face showed no trace of defeat, regret, or anger. It remained as serene as ever.
It almost seemed like he had arranged this meeting knowing his arguments wouldn't be accepted, even anticipating defeat and criticism.
But Dang Mujin's thoughts didn't linger. The Senior Monk called his name.
"Now, one question remains for Layman Dang."
"Yes?"
"What do you desire as reward for restoring the Wooden Man Alley?"
Busy with the repairs, Dang Mujin had half-forgotten about compensation.
In retrospect, he might have viewed the Shadowless Immortal Steps and White Lotus Divine Fist as his reward. Mastering two advanced arts in a short time was definitely a profitable deal.
But separately from that, his demand had been set from the day he began the repairs.
"I want the Great Return Pill."
A spirit pill worthy of being called the world's best.
A spirit pill crafted over long years from the rarest ingredients gathered together.
Even among Shaolin's abbots, few had ever taken one.
Whether Dang Mujin could receive it was uncertain. The Senior Monk had said he could provide anything except the Emerald Jade Buddha Statue, but it was unclear if he meant it.
Yi Chung had said the Great Return Pill was too extravagant a demand and likely to be refused.
Yet Dang Mujin demanded it precisely because of Yi Chung's advice.
Propose something big to get rejected once, then offer something smaller—the odds of acceptance rise. Naturally, he had prepared a follow-up demand.
'Lesser Return Pills, minor spirit herbs, and any leftover ores if available.'
But Dang Mujin and Yi Chung's plan missed the mark.
For one reason: the Senior Monk was far more straightforward than expected.
"I'll visit this evening, so wait at the guesthouse."
"Yes?"
"You need to take the Great Return Pill properly. I can give it to you, but I can't allow it to fall into unworthy hands."
Dang Mujin looked at the Senior Monk with uncertainty. Was he really giving him the Great Return Pill? To someone who wasn't even first-rate, let alone peak?
But the Senior Monk's expression was serious. No sign of a joke.
Dang Mujin glanced around blankly. The other monks' reactions weren't much different.
Dozens of eyes conveyed the message to Dang Mujin.
'You are worthy of the Great Return Pill. If not you, then whose hands should it go to?'
Even the Precepts Master regarded him as if it were only natural.
Dang Mujin's chest swelled with emotion.
The Great Return Pill was one thing, but their recognition of his ability and effort brought even greater joy.
In a slightly trembling voice, Dang Mujin replied.
"...Understood."
That was the final agenda. The emergency meeting ended, and Dang Mujin rose to head to the guesthouse.
The Precepts Master watched his back until the end before departing.
*
That evening, as Dang Mujin lay in the guesthouse, he heard footsteps.
It was unmistakably the Senior Monk. Dang Mujin shot up impolitely and looked toward the door.
"I'll enter."
The Senior Monk announced unilaterally and opened the door to step inside.
He must have sensed Dang Mujin and Yi Chung waiting from beyond the door.
In the Senior Monk's hand was a wooden box wrapped in silk, containing a white pill.
A large pill befitting the name Great Return Pill. He wondered if it could even fit down his throat.
Yi Chung's face was full of curiosity too—a natural reaction, since it was his first time seeing one.
Dang Mujin sniffed the Great Return Pill. Perhaps he could figure out its recipe, however slim the chance.
But he couldn't identify the ingredients from the scent alone. It contained more spirit medicines than medicinal herbs, after all.
He wanted to examine it slowly, but the Senior Monk's gaze was burdensome.
"...I just swallow it?"
"I've never taken one myself, but that's how it's done."
Unlike Yi Chung's pure curiosity, a hint of envy colored the Senior Monk's voice. What must it feel like to give a lifelong companion he never consumed to a young man like Dang Mujin?
Dang Mujin sat in lotus position, took a deep breath, and placed the Great Return Pill in his mouth.
He was tense. Eating the Black Peony and swallowing the Seven Treasures Sect's poison pouch had both been harrowing experiences.
But the Great Return Pill barely touched his tongue before vanishing like a lie, leaving only a brief freshness.
'What?'
The next instant, a peculiar aroma bloomed in his mouth. A refreshing, intense mint-like scent.
It filled his mouth in an instant, then slid down his esophagus on its own—no need to swallow.
Then, an explosive energy erupted in his stomach.
His internal energy surged beyond what it had been after the Black Peony, incomparable.
Yet the pressure he felt now was even greater than from the Black Peony. The Great Return Pill's energy was unimaginably vast.
However, there was a crucial difference between the Black Peony and the Great Return Pill.
'It doesn't hurt at all.'
Moreover, the Great Return Pill's energy knew exactly where to go, moving on its own toward his dantian.
But its volume was too much for Dang Mujin to contain. Once his dantian was full, the excess began circling and scattering.
'No.'
Scattered energy wouldn't stay meekly in the body. Just as breathing gathered qi, it could also let it escape. Facing the loss of much of the Great Return Pill's power, Dang Mujin felt two palms press against his back. The Senior Monk.
"Don't resist the flow. Slowly guide the energy."
The Senior Monk's internal energy flowed in through his back, seizing the Great Return Pill's energy and splitting it in two.
He elongated the first portion from the perineum in the lower body to the under-jaw, forming a long pillar.
Then, he stretched the second portion from the base of the spine to the upper gums, creating another long pillar.
The two energies formed a ring encircling his body. Dang Mujin recognized the meridians: the Conception Vessel and Governing Vessel.
"The Conception and Governing Vessels form the body's pillars, so the Great Return Pill's energy won't easily escape. In the future, when ascending to the peak realm, opening the Ren and Du channels will be easier too."
Dang Mujin completed a short session of qi circulation and opened his eyes. Both Yi Chung and the Senior Monk remained, watching over him.
He felt a surging power. It wasn't possible, but he half-wondered if he'd skipped first-rate and become a peak master.
Dang Mujin tested a Flying Palm Strike form into the air. He felt a sensation like tearing the air from his fingertips.
He had executed it exactly as before, yet the body's movement and the form's sharpness were incomparable to previously.
Seeing this, Yi Chung muttered.
"You're probably the only one to gobble a Great Return Pill without even reaching peak."
"It's all thanks to my own ability. Anyway, it ended much faster than expected—I'm a bit thrown off. I thought it'd take days of full qi circulation."
"Naturally. Unlike natural items like the Black Peony or the Seven Treasures Sect's poison pouch, the Great Return Pill is a spirit pill made solely to boost the consumer's internal energy. It has to be easy to absorb."
The Senior Monk, who had been behind Dang Mujin, stood and spoke.
"Layman Dang, you should circulate without sleeping tonight. The Great Return Pill's energy won't scatter easily, but today is when you can absorb it the quickest."
"Understood."
"I hope for your excellent progress."
The Senior Monk departed briskly. A faint envy lingered in his retreating figure, not fully shaken off.