The Black Dragon Gold Pill
Tang Yuhyeon opened the wooden box.
Inside rested a black pill.
He snatched it up, ready to swallow it without a second thought.
Tang Cheonwi’s fist crashed down onto his head.
Thud.
“Ow! Why did you do that, Hyungnim?”
Tang Yuhyeon clutched his head with both hands, face contorted in pain.
Tang Cheonwi looked down at him and said, “Do you even know what that is before you shove it in your mouth?”
“You said it was something good…”
“What if I handed you a poison pill?”
“You would never do that, Hyungnim.”
“I’ve told you over and over. Doubt everything. Even family. You have to stay on your guard.”
The lecture left Tang Yuhyeon looking crestfallen. He was still holding the Black Dragon Gold Pill.
Tang Cheonwi rapped him on the wrist.
Smack!
“Ow, that hurts, Hyungnim.”
“If that had been a poison pill, you’d already be poisoned. Don’t touch things carelessly.”
“Yes…”
Tang Yuhyeon looked thoroughly dejected.
“Fortunately that pill strengthens the body’s energy, so you can take it.”
“I can take it now?”
“Yes.”
Tang Yuhyeon raised the Black Dragon Gold Pill toward his mouth again.
Thud.
Once more Tang Cheonwi’s fist dropped squarely onto his head.
“What is it this time, Hyungnim?”
“I told you to doubt.”
“But you just said I could take it.”
Tang Cheonwi shook his head at the response.
“I don’t even know where to start fixing you. Tch.”
That pure, innocent nature. He trusted people far too easily. In the Tang Clan, that attitude was an invitation to be used.
“Hnn.”
“We’ll talk about your personality later. First, take it.”
Only then did Tang Yuhyeon begin to show real suspicion.
“I really can take it?”
“Yes.”
“For real? If you hit me again I’m going to get mad.”
“Fine.”
With a wary glance, Tang Yuhyeon carefully brought the Black Dragon Gold Pill to his lips. After being struck so many times, he was finally starting to question everything.
The pill vanished down his throat.
“Sit in the lotus position.”
Tang Yuhyeon sat exactly as told.
“Your body is going to heat up in an instant. When it does, circulate the Returning Origin Heart Method. I’ll guide the true energy with you.”
“Yes, sir!”
He answered with full confidence.
Tang Cheonwi shook his head at the sight.
What a fool.
By the realm he was known for, he was only third-class. Trying to guide true energy with that level of skill? Preposterous. It made no sense. One wrong move—no, it would inevitably ruin the other person.
Yet Tang Yuhyeon was ready to entrust his entire body to him.
[Your little brother seems to place blind faith in you. That’s an extremely dangerous personality.]
I agree. After we get back from Jamun Village, I’ll have to start fixing that nature of his in earnest.
He resolved to be ruthless about it—to force the boy to doubt everything.
[The Black Dragon Gold Pill’s energy is starting to rise. Can you really guide that?]
Hwancheonjihwan’s doubt. It was asking whether the likes of him could possibly control such immense power.
My closest friend taught me the method. Don’t worry about it.
[Oh? Someone who knows how to guide a Black Dragon Gold Pill? Must be quite the figure.]
It’s you from a past life, idiot.
He didn’t even realize he had been the one to teach it.
I need to focus now.
Before circulating his Tyrant Blood Poison Qi, Tang Cheonwi spoke into empty air.
“Don’t just stand there watching. Stand guard for me, would you?”
No one answered.
“Choeun!”
Only when he called her name did she reveal herself.
“So you knew I was here.”
“I’ve known since the moment I entered the Dark Dragon Pavilion.”
Her eyes flickered. She had been trailing him from the instant he left the clan head’s residence. Watching his every move was her duty, and she had completely erased her presence while she did it.
“I need to guide Yuhyeon’s energy right now. Make sure no one approaches this training ground.”
“You’re… doing it yourself?”
“I’m not going to harm your master, so relax.”
Trusting her, Tang Cheonwi immediately began circulating Tyrant Blood Poison Qi. Third-star Tyrant Blood Poison Qi flowed down Tang Yuhyeon’s back and into his body.
Tyrant Blood Poison Qi stood at the absolute pinnacle of poison arts. No other internal cultivation method surpassed it. The only poison capable of matching Tyrant Blood Poison Qi was the toxin contained within the Black Dragon Gold Pill itself.
Wrap the blood vessels and meridians in Tyrant Blood Poison Qi.
Tang Yuhyeon’s own energy tried to attack the invading Tyrant Blood Poison Qi, but the poison art was not about to sit idle. It crushed the charging energy in an instant.
[That’s a completely direct method. Who the hell taught you this? I thought all you knew was poison.]
The way to dissolve a Black Dragon Gold Pill swiftly:
First, protect the meridians and blood vessels.
Second, suppress the energy of the Black Dragon Gold Pill.
Third, drive out every scrap of the energy already established inside.
Fourth, settle the Black Dragon Gold Pill into the emptied space.
Those four steps were all that was required.
Simple in words, yet an extremely difficult process. Suppressing and erasing two energies at once was beyond most masters. Without Tyrant Blood Poison Qi, the attempt itself would have been impossible.
[Hey, hey—if you force it like that you’ll take internal injuries.]
He had already finished the first stage. Tyrant Blood Poison Qi had shielded Yuhyeon’s meridians and blood vessels, raising a wall firm enough to withstand any shock.
Straight to the next stage.
Tang Cheonwi suppressed the Black Dragon Gold Pill with Tyrant Blood Poison Qi. The second stage proved just as easy; before Tyrant Blood Poison Qi the pill became as meek as a lamb.
[You’re completely insane.]
Reaching the second stage had taken less than a single shichen. The speed was monstrous. And he did not stop—he pressed into the next stage.
[Even if your Tyrant Blood Poison Qi has reached three stars, pushing that hard is going to get you killed.]
Third stage: extinguish the energy already rooted inside Tang Yuhyeon. Again there was no hesitation. The energy built through the Returning Origin Heart Method vanished in moments. Before long Tang Yuhyeon’s interior was completely empty.
[Even a monster like you has to have a limit by now.]
Perhaps that was the price of ignoring Hwancheonjihwan’s warning. A thin line of fresh blood trickled from the corner of Tang Cheonwi’s mouth.
[See? This isn’t work you rush.]
Hwancheonjihwan was already fretting over him.
[You all right? There’s going to be incredible pain after this… From here on, take your time and do it carefully.]
The concern was wasted. Tang Cheonwi never paused. He drove straight into the final stage.
All I have to do is release the power of the Black Dragon Gold Pill into the empty space.
Releasing the suppressed energy of the Black Dragon Gold Pill would finish his part. After that it depended on Tang Yuhyeon’s ability—how thoroughly he could settle the pill’s power. Here his talent would show. If it was exceptional, he would take that power into himself.
Now!
While still protecting the meridians and blood vessels, he released the suppressed energy of the Black Dragon Gold Pill.
KWA-GWA-GWA-GWA!
Like a dam bursting, tremendous force poured into the meridians and blood vessels.
[You’re forcing it through? Have you lost your mind? Why the hell are you going this far?]
He seemed utterly indifferent to his own pain. Every scrap of strength was being poured out solely for his younger brother. With every moment his internal injuries deepened.
Hup!
This final stage was the hardest. He had to unleash the Black Dragon Gold Pill’s overwhelming power while simultaneously protecting Yuhyeon’s meridians and blood vessels. The more boldly he released that power, the higher the chance it would settle inside. The last stage hinged almost entirely on Tang Cheonwi—hence the recklessness.
Just a little more!
Cracks began to form in the meridians and blood vessels shielded by Tyrant Blood Poison Qi. The protective barrier was fracturing under the Black Dragon Gold Pill’s force.
[Hey, stop it. You want to fall into qi deviation?]
Tang Cheonwi had already passed his limits. He seemed to be operating under the delusion that he was a Transcendence or Transformation master. His insights ran deep, but by pure internal energy he was still only second-class. The continued internal injuries left his dantian empty. He was generating poison qi from his own blood, burning his life force to keep going.
Just as Hwancheonjihwan decided it could no longer stand by and prepared to intervene—
[You’re insane. You actually settled the entire Black Dragon Gold Pill? In this short a time?]
The rampaging power of the Black Dragon Gold Pill inside Tang Yuhyeon calmed. As if it had found its true nest, it began healing the damaged blood vessels and meridians.
[Being around this guy is going to shorten my lifespan… Hooo.]
Meanwhile, Choeun—still standing guard—had gone wide-eyed.
Her master, Tang Yuhyeon, looked perfectly peaceful. It was Tang Cheonwi, the one helping him circulate, who had suffered severe internal injuries.
I can’t interfere.
Terrifying poison qi swirled around the two of them. There was another reason she could not step in: the qi barrier raised around them completely cut off any approach. She stretched out a hand—
Thud!
A powerful rebound shoved her back.
I knew the Young Master was hiding his strength, but… this much?
Guiding another’s energy while simultaneously erecting a barrier? Even most masters could not manage it. Of course it was a misunderstanding. The barrier had been raised by Hwancheonjihwan, not Tang Cheonwi, to keep the poison qi of Tyrant Blood Poison Qi and the Black Dragon Gold Pill from leaking outward. If either toxin escaped, the surroundings would be devastated. That was why the ring had formed the barrier.
Incredible. Has he already reached Transcendence at that age?
She could not stop marvelling. In the entire current martial world there was only one person who had reached Transcendence at fifteen.
Skill enough to rival Young Heavenly Demon Yong Sahyeok, the Young Master of the Demonic Cult. As expected of the Tang Clan’s true bloodline.
That was why he could guide his younger brother’s true energy at such an age.
I’ve completely misunderstood the Young Master.
No matter how much of a genius her master Tang Yuhyeon was, he had only just stepped into first-class. Catching up to the current Young Master would be difficult. Using that level of strength to keep a younger brother in check would have been nothing but wasted effort.
So that’s why the brothers are so close.
Her entire assessment of Tang Cheonwi had flipped. The wary look in her eyes vanished completely. What remained was pure curiosity.
If anything, it’s better for Master to stay close to the Young Master. If he can learn even one more thing from him, Master’s skill will soar.
Now she actually hoped Tang Cheonwi and Tang Yuhyeon would grow closer.
In the meantime Tang Cheonwi slowly rose. His body swayed—
“Are you all right?”
She started forward to support him.
“I’m fine. Just a little light-headed.”
Tang Cheonwi wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. His face was deathly pale, without a scrap of color.
“Guard him until Yuhyeon wakes. It’ll take quite a while.”
“What if the Clan Head summons you in the meantime?”
“No one is allowed to interrupt this circulation. Absolutely no one.”
“And if Master tries to force it to end…?”
“Tell him never to show his face in front of me again. Make sure he understands this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance for Yuhyeon.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Hearing her answer, Tang Cheonwi left the Dark Dragon Pavilion on unsteady feet.
[Where do you think you’re going in that condition?]
“The internal injuries will heal naturally on the way. I’ll circulate energy now and then too, so it’ll go even faster.”
[Wow. I’ve never seen a venomous bastard like you.]
Tang Cheonwi was making full use of the Poison-Ghost Body. Once internal injuries appeared, the Poison-Ghost Body would actively respond, healing him stronger and more solid than before the damage.
[Don’t tell me you calculated that?]
When the injuries fully healed, his internal energy would roughly double. The Poison-Ghost Body thrived far better when rolled through the mud than when raised in a greenhouse.
[Nah, no way you thought that far. Say you didn’t. It’s annoying.]
Hwancheonjihwan denied it, yet Tang Cheonwi only smiled with that pale face.
[This is driving me crazy. I never imagined a monster like this would be the one to wake me.]
Even surprise was growing tiresome for Hwancheonjihwan. Amused by the reaction, Tang Cheonwi left the Tang Clan still smiling.
Not long after, a single shadow slipped into step behind him.