Chapter 100
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: What Are You Doing?
That voice made Gong Son Mu-oe frown.
He had been consistently displeasing from the very start until now.
"Then we'll take our leave."
Ha Mu-baek rose from his seat.
[We'll meet again at midnight tonight.]
Gung Mu-hyeok's eyes widened round. Gong Son Mu-oe conveyed his gratitude with a glance.
And so Ha Mu-baek and Wi Ji-gun departed.
"Hm..."
Namgung Ji-hu gazed down at his sword with a face full of worry.
The one and only spar he'd had with Ha Mu-baek before.
He'd tried to challenge him again afterward, but since he still hadn't solved the riddle Ha Mu-baek had thrown at him then, all he could do was keep brooding over it.
"Still agonizing over it?"
At that sudden voice, Namgung Ji-hu turned his head.
It was his older sister, Namgung Ji-yu.
"He told me to create an opening... If it were an opponent weaker than me, it'd be easy, but against someone on my level or stronger... I just don't know how..."
His voice brimmed with hesitation.
"Hoo."
Namgung Ji-yu let out a frustrated sigh.
"You have to seek out the answer. You're not seeing the path because you're waiting for some perfect solution before making a move."
At Namgung Ji-yu's advice, Namgung Ji-hu's eyes went wide.
"I'm telling you because I got fed up waiting. You've always been like that. You only move once you've deemed it perfect. Sometimes you need to act even when it's not. Like those guys."
She added those words.
He knew exactly who she meant by "those guys."
Yes.
Back then, they had been utterly imperfect.
But what had been the result?
His own defeat.
"And at your level, it's only natural not to be perfect. Does perfection even exist in this world?"
With those parting words, Namgung Ji-yu left the spot.
Namgung Ji-hu had been handed yet another riddle from his sister.
That what he considered perfect didn't exist in the world.
Namgung Ji-hu's eyes shook fiercely.
His small world was shaking right along with him.
After floundering in shock for a while, Namgung Ji-hu abruptly shot to his feet.
"Right. Let's just clash first."
He hadn't found the answer. But his sister's advice was to move even without one.
He planned to put it into practice right away.
The training ground of the Fierce Dragon Corps where Ha Mu-baek was. Namgung Ji-hu's steps headed there.
He'd come with his mind firmly set, but Ha Mu-baek wasn't at the training ground.
Instead, cadets from Squad Seven and Squad Twenty were tangled up in spars.
The ones sparring right now were...
'Dan Mok Un-roe. And Joo Woo-myeong.'
He'd heard that Joo Woo-myeong, a disciple of the Wudang Sect, was someone whose skill he couldn't confidently claim superiority over.
He'd clashed once with Dan Mok Un-roe at the previous Summer Combat Festival.
Judging from that experience, Joo Woo-myeong's overwhelming victory seemed assured.
"Huh? Ji-hu? What's up?"
While everyone was focused on the two's spar, Dang Jin-san somehow spotted Namgung Ji-hu and approached.
"Ah, well..."
He was just about to ask about Instructor Ha's whereabouts when Dang Jin-san dragged him along.
"We can talk about that later. It's getting good right now, so come here."
Namgung Ji-hu followed, his face dazed, led by the hand.
Dang Jin-san was someone you could never quite figure out, no matter how much you dealt with him. That friendliness was utterly impossible to get used to.
And so Namgung Ji-hu ended up watching Joo Woo-myeong and Dan Mok Un-roe's spar.
His eyes soon bulged wide.
Dan Mok Un-roe's skill had improved beyond recognition, but more than that, he sensed something brilliant flashing in his movements.
"What are you doing?"
A voice rang out suddenly then.
It was Ha Mu-baek.
"Huh? Isn't today self-training?"
At Ha Mu-baek's appearance, Dang Jin-san asked with a surprised look.
Ha Mu-baek had been absent frequently lately, so showing up today was quite unusual.
"Yeah, pretty much. Anyway, what are you doing?"
The spar between Joo Woo-myeong and Dan Mok Un-roe had just ended with Joo Woo-myeong's victory.
"Well, Instructor Han told us to do self-training."
Ha Mu-baek nodded at Dang Jin-san's answer. He wasn't in a position to complain about what another instructor did, after all.
"Then what's this guy doing here?"
Ha Mu-baek gestured toward Namgung Ji-hu with his chin.
The cadets' gazes all turned to Namgung Ji-hu at once. Only then did some notice his presence.
"I've come to see you, Instructor."
"What for?"
"I request a spar."
Namgung Ji-hu said politely, cupping his fists in salute.
Ha Mu-baek smirked at that.
"Took you longer than I expected."
The spar with Namgung Ji-hu had been around when the deputy leader had first arrived, over a month ago.
Back then, he'd seemed like he'd come challenging often, but there'd been no word since.
"I was deep in thought."
"So, did you find the answer?"
Namgung Ji-hu shook his head at Ha Mu-baek's question.
"I have no idea at all. So I came to just clash and see."
A deeper smile crept onto Ha Mu-baek's lips at those words.
"Not bad. Alright, come on."
Ha Mu-baek crooked a finger.
They were at the edge of the training ground right now. Not an ideal spot for a spar.
Namgung Ji-hu glanced around briefly before shaking his head.
Hadn't he decided to just clash first?
What did the location matter?
With that thought, he drew his sword.
The cadets hurriedly cleared space at the sight.
Then Namgung Ji-hu kicked off the ground and swung his sword.
Just as Dan Mok Un-roe had done moments ago in his spar with Joo Woo-myeong.
Dan Mok Un-roe had swung his sword without hesitation at an opponent who showed no openings at his level.
And that had brought about change.
Namgung Ji-hu moved his sword with the intent to create change first, unlike last time.
The initial form of Vast Sky Sword Art unfolded from his hand.
It was a sword technique he'd already faced once at the Summer Combat Festival, but its power had grown even stronger since.
That was only from the cadets' perspective, however.
In Ha Mu-baek's eyes, there was hardly any difference.
This time was the same.
Ha Mu-baek simply stepped forward, easily dodging Namgung Ji-hu's strike.
And then.
Snap!
Another flick right on Namgung Ji-hu's forehead.
"Ugh!"
Namgung Ji-hu gritted his teeth with a pained groan. Last time he'd clutched his forehead and collapsed, but this time was different.
He'd already endured this pain once.
He swung his sword again.
The blade that had been dodged once flew toward Ha Mu-baek anew.
Ha Mu-baek smirked at the sight.
His moving fingertip once more.
Snap!
A flick striking the exact same spot again.
"Aaaack!"
This time, even Namgung Ji-hu couldn't bear it.
He dropped his sword and sank to the ground.
Namgung Ji-hu clutched his forehead with both hands.
It was already swelling bright red.
"Not bad. Enduring one hit."
At Ha Mu-baek's words, Namgung Ji-hu, who had been sitting, barely managed to stand.
"Th-thank you."
He bowed his head.
The cadets of Squad Seven stared blankly at the scene.
It was different.
Utterly different.
Comparing how he handled them versus Namgung Ji-hu, he seemed like an entirely different warrior.
"He was going easy on us, matching our level..."
Dang Jin-san muttered in dismay.
"I wonder what it feels like to get hit by that."
At Nak Woo-jin's question, everyone shuddered.
Ha Mu-baek's gaze turned to those cadets.
"What? Wanna find out?"
All five cadets shook their heads furiously at the question.
"C-could you teach me as well, Instructor?"
Then Joo Woo-myeong stepped forward and asked.
Instead of answering, Ha Mu-baek crooked a finger.
Joo Woo-myeong immediately drew his sword and lunged, only to collapse after two flicks as well.
Midnight.
The time Ha Mu-baek had hinted at.
The Myriad Alliance's escort squad was still guarding the annex of the inn airtightly.
Some should have been sleeping by now, but in the dead of night, they were all awake instead.
They had taken turns resting during the day.
Ha Mu-baek appeared on the inn's roof. He indifferently looked down at the annex from there.
Not a single member of the escort squad detected his presence, even though he was nearby.
"Impressive, even on a second look."
It was the model example of escorts: thoroughly trained and executing flawlessly.
But that was as far as it went.
It wouldn't stop Ha Mu-baek from breaching their guard.
Infinite Formless Step Technique.
This footwork, which could perfectly blend into the surroundings, was mysteriously variable and excelled at stealth.
Ha Mu-baek fully assimilated into the darkness, slipping leisurely through gaps in the escort squad's guard net.
And entered the annex without a trace.
"I've been waiting."
As Ha Mu-baek appeared, Gong Son Mu-oe said quietly.
Gung Mu-hyeok stared at Ha Mu-baek in disbelief.
"Heh. I didn't expect the escort formation to be breached so easily. And it was one I devised myself..."
Gung Mu-hyeok's face was complicated.
Joy that Ha Mu-baek had broken through the overzealous guards to protect him, mixed with disappointment that his own escort formation had been undone.
"It was an excellent formation. No ordinary warrior could infiltrate without a trace."
Even as Ha Mu-baek said that, words from the one who'd already breached it offered no comfort.
"Leader Ha has the skill for it. You knew that too."
Gung Mu-hyeok, leader of the Myriad Alliance, knew of Ha Mu-baek's existence.
Even so, he'd trusted his own formation and hadn't truly believed it possible.
"That's not the important part. Leader's treatment comes first. We couldn't do any today either."
Gung Mu-hyeok had no choice but to agree with Ha Mu-baek.
That was indeed what mattered.
"This way."
Gung So-yu was already deep in sleep. They decided to treat Gung Mu-hyeok first and headed to his room.
"Do you have a way?"
Gong Son Mu-oe asked.
"We need to draw out the poison, but in the current state of his meridians, he won't survive the process. So we'll start by strengthening the meridians first. Master thinks the same."
Gong Son Mu-oe agreed that was the proper path.
But he had no method to strengthen the meridians. It was a different manifestation from the Five Sounds Severed Meridians, so he couldn't recklessly use the prescriptions he knew.
"Is it possible?"
Gung Mu-hyeok looked tense at Gong Son Mu-oe's question.
"After discussing with Master, it seems theoretically possible, at least."
Gong Son Mu-oe's gaze now turned to Gung Mu-hyeok.
The patient himself would decide, since he'd be receiving the treatment.
"You said I have a year left anyway. Might as well try any method. Especially if it's theoretically viable."
Gung Mu-hyeok answered without hesitation.
With only one option available, he could decide quickly.
Gung Mu-hyeok lay naked on the bed.
Ha Mu-baek needled acupoints to sedate him, then placed needles densely over his entire body.
He looked no different from a porcupine.
Far more needles than on Dan Mok Un-hye or Gung So-yu.
Not just at blood points, but everywhere, even non-points.
Gong Son Mu-oe swallowed dryly as he watched.
It was a method beyond his medical knowledge.
Ha Mu-baek took Gung Mu-hyeok's wrist and pushed in his internal energy.
Ever so faintly.
The Infinite Formless Heart Method seeped cautiously into Gung Mu-hyeok's meridians, as if it were there or not.