67. Jilin (1)
Jilin (1)
67. Jilin (1)
After only a month, I returned to Shenyang. Still unsure what face to wear when meeting Murong Hyeok-jung, I quietly returned the thousand-ri horse to the gatekeeper without visiting the clan estate, and went straight to find the largest construction firm.
"S-so... you said eight hundred taels of gold?!"
"Yes. Two hundred in advance. Another two hundred when the work reaches the halfway point. And the remaining four hundred upon completion."
"Do you have a design in mind?"
"Please prepare paper, brush, and ink."
Onto the paper the man hastily brought, I used the dwarven soul to meticulously draw up the architectural plans.
A magnificent main gate. Sturdy stone walls. A training ground paved with granite, and a spacious kitchen equipped with five hearths and a large oven. A small dining room for about twenty people, beside a second dining hall for the disciples who would one day fill the sect. Naturally, we also needed a tea room where everyone could gather and a meeting hall worthy of a proper sect. Our living quarters would retain their current arrangement, but the interiors would use fragrant wood and marble to create bedrooms comparable to those of the Murong Clan. A five-story pavilion would provide lodging for future disciples. In my own residence, I would install a separate bathhouse in preparation for a happy future.
I had considerable architectural knowledge, but this was a wuxia world, not fantasy. Using the Murong Clan estate as a reference, I drew up the plans without hesitation.
A pond would have been pleasant, but it would waste space. I decided instead to renovate the hot spring more splendidly and make it Yeongsan Sect's symbol. Beyond the training ground, I planned private practice rooms, a sturdy chamber for closed-door cultivation just in case, and a prison for captives. I even included guest halls and guest rooms we didn't yet need. There would be a decoction room, essential once I obtained the Medicine Immortal's soul, and an infirmary for future injuries. Finally came a large library and the magnificent Great Clarity Palace Heosan had advised. I drew everything in such detail, down to the roof tiles and stone-lantern designs, that the builder stared in amazement.
"Yeongsan Sect, you say? So it is a martial sect."
"Yes. You can get a general idea of what kind of sect it is by inquiring at the Martial Alliance Liaoning Branch. Is this plan feasible?"
"We are. Daeseon Construction Company employs the finest stonemasons and carpenters in Shenyang. That said, may I make several suggestions?"
"Of course."
"The plan is remarkable, but a few necessities are missing. First, I recommend digging a well. You would need the aid of a spiritually gifted Daoist to locate the water veins, but a sect with a hot spring like yours is certain to have an underground water source."
Ah.
"I will locate the water veins myself."
"You are a Daoist, so I assumed as much. And for a sect of this scale, I believe it would be wise to add an armory and a smithy for repairing and forging weapons. Our company handled the construction for Seven Fingers Sect a few years ago, and if a sudden war breaks out, a village smithy full of farm tools is not particularly reliable."
Ah... what good is knowledge when your head is broken? To have weapon-crafting ability and not even think to build a smithy. This was exactly why expert advice was indispensable.
They were called Liaoning's finest for good reason. I accepted his advice and revised the plans, and he promised to begin work immediately if later changes became necessary. I drew up the contract on the spot and handed him a draft worth one thousand taels. He took the two-hundred-tael down payment and issued me an eight-hundred-tael draft from Daeseon Construction Company. Accepting another trading company's note without charging a fee was impressive service. A project this large must have been a rare opportunity for them as well.
"We will begin with preliminary surveys, and construction will start next month. We will do everything possible to finish before the end of the year."
That was damn fast. They lacked twenty-first-century machinery, but these buildings were incomparably simpler than modern structures. A company of this size must also have employed many skilled craftsmen who had trained in martial arts specifically for construction, so it wasn't impossible. If the down payment had been only two taels of gold, I might have worried about fraud, but it was two hundred taels. Anyone bold enough to swindle a contract of that size would run an unorthodox faction like the Black Heaven Association, not a construction company.
I concluded the construction contract simply, spent a day resting comfortably at a fine inn in Shenyang, and the next day slipped out the city gate and headed for my hometown, Jilin. Neither Hwangseong nor the Four Heroes of Dong-o had noticed the demon's visit at all. I had spoken aloud in an ordinary way, but whatever trick the demon had used, no one knew of that conversation.
That was a relief, in a way. If he learned that the Spirit-Binding Art he had created was the trigger that would destroy the world, Hwangseong, a Daoist, would have been devastated. Come to think of it, Geo Am and Heosan had initially refused my request too, saying that power which defied natural order would one day bring ruin upon my surroundings. My surroundings meant the entire world. They didn't even have the concept of a solar system yet, but if they ever learned the scale of the universe, they might well go mad themselves.
My internal energy had grown far stronger than before. For more than ten years, I had nearly killed myself consuming every elixir and pill I could get, yet I had barely accumulated ten years' worth of internal energy. In only a few days, the Flame Emperor had increased it to twenty years—and that was after completely erasing the Baek Clan Estate's internal energy and rebuilding it from scratch. Twenty years of internal energy was still slightly insufficient to use Sword Qi properly. Moreover, attributed Sword Qi, like that produced by the Northern Sea Ice Palace's Ice Soul Divine Art, was considered a level above ordinary Sword Qi. The Flame Emperor was not only superb at accumulating internal energy; his ability to wield martial arts exquisitely with minimal internal energy also defied common sense.
With more than twice my previous internal energy, the Flame Emperor raced toward Jilin faster than a thousand-ri horse. At that speed, cutting through the wind as we approached northern Jilin should have chilled me to the bone, but the nature of Flame Qi seemed to surround me with warmth. Nothing was truly urgent anymore, yet the Flame Emperor ran without eating, sleeping, or resting. Even when I let go of consciousness and fell asleep, he moved my body on his own. I merely entrusted it to him and served as his navigator, guiding him along the road.
This was what made the Spirit Possession Art so convenient. The Spirit Vessel Art always required me to focus my consciousness and maintain my field of vision for its power to function, but possessing my own body carried no such restriction. Of course, possessing someone else's body worked on the same basic principle as the Spirit Vessel Art, so that still required my field of vision. If it hadn't, I would have left the other three heroes, aside from the Flame Emperor, at Yeongsan Sect in the bodies of suitable White Tiger Sect bandits to guard and train the women.
After running for a long while, the Flame Emperor threw the sword he inhabited and caught a wild boar.
—This seems to be the current limit. Though I still have internal energy left, I no longer have the stamina to keep running. Let us rest a while.—
—You can rest longer. But what will you do with the boar? Roasting it over a campfire is impossible. If you use Flame Aura, you'll turn it to ash.—
—I have an unexpected talent. Watch.—
The Flame Emperor skinned the boar, drained the blood, and cut a chunk of meat from the loin.
—This task looks simple, but it is difficult without our Flame Blossom Art. A martial artist's sword is stained with filthier human blood and oil than you might think, so meat cut with a sword is no different from poison. Before cutting meat, you must burn away all impurities cleanly with flame qi.—
Heat sterilization. He had no concept of germs, but it was wisdom naturally acquired through decades of life in the martial world. After slicing the meat appropriately, he gathered wet soil and built a mound as if playing in the dirt, then hollowed out a hole inside. He placed the meat on top of a leaf inside the hole, inserted his hand, and activated flame qi.
—With second-stage Flame Qi, one tea interval will be enough.—
This was... a makeshift oven! It used the principle of an oven, heating the air and circulating it by convection when direct heat would cook unevenly or burn the food. Flame Qi was incredible. It protected my body so completely that I felt no heat despite the scorching temperature, could easily sterilize utensils, and could even create a makeshift oven. And someday, once I reached Flame Aura, it would honestly look far cooler than the other heroes' Sword Auras.
After one tea interval, the Flame Emperor removed the meat. It reminded me of the air fryer I had relied on so heavily in my previous life. The outside was crisp, and the flesh beneath was tender and full of juice. With no spices or seasoning, the gamey smell remained, but I was now a fifteenth-century Chinaman bastard who could eat anything with four legs except a desk or chair. Faced with such a delicacy on the road, I nearly cried.
—How is it? Edible?—
—Thank you, Teacher.—
—Teacher? Me?—
—I already have one Master, so it would only be proper to call you Teacher now.—
—Teacher, is it. Not a bad feeling.—
—Not bad. I was quite displeased that our Yeong kept calling me Moon Immortal. I shall have her address me the same way.—
When I thought about it, it was a peculiar relationship. Their eras and sects were all different, but she had been unable to find a fitting title for a relationship of teaching martial arts, and she responded well to the word "teacher."
—Grandfather is enough for me. Being called teacher by that adorable child would make me feel rather forlorn. Our Cho-ryeong. I wonder if she misses this old man about now?—
—Reverend Heo San is enough for me. They are righteous children. Perhaps those children are closer to Grandmaster's intent than the descendants of our Wudang, which has grown too vast.—
As expected. It had been awkward at first, but they too were old men who had spent a hundred and fifty years as mere ghosts, lonely and unable to exchange a single word with one another. Having found conversation partners and successors, they were bound to be in good spirits.
—Grill some more. I would like to taste it once myself. Meat after several hundred years. Even Shakyamuni would forgive this.—
Geo Am spoke up casually. Like the precept-breaking monk he was, he seemed to have a palate that went mad for meat.
—I would like to eat sweet things again someday.—
—I really hate sweets.—
—Then put them in our Yeong's body, not the reverend's. Surely you could prepare some sweet refreshments for your precious senior sister?—
—Hm... hm. If I were to indulge a desire of my own, I would like to drink liquor now and then.—
—As expected of Reverend Heo San. Daoists are truly different.—
Hwangseong spoke to Heosan, who was quietly revealing his craving for alcohol—a rare occurrence. It was a solitary journey, but I never had a moment to feel lonely. Thanks to the five souls accompanying me, the journey was pleasant and comfortable.
The Flame Emperor had become my teacher. Whether his style was Spartan or absurdly generous, once my stamina returned after eating, he raced through the dark again—not by teaching me to move, but by moving my body himself. His lightness skill, Flame Blossom Steps, was the second fastest among the four heroes. Moon Immortal Steps was the fastest, but even brilliant prodigies could not learn the Moonlit Divine Sword, much less a dullard like me.
Naturally, the supreme Flame Blossom Steps required extremely complex qi circulation and footwork. But after several days of having my body repeatedly follow those steps, I could reproduce them even with my eyes closed. My memory was not poor, but physical repetition taught far faster than memorizing by sight. Once this trip to Jilin ended, he would likely wield the Solar Sword Art through my body in the same fashion until my body learned it too. Since the four heroes were cooperating so readily, I planned to forge fine swords once Yeongsan Sect's smithy was finished and present them with new resting places.