Pulsation
I gathered everything I would need for closed-door training.
In truth, there wasn’t much to prepare. The Ju family maintained its own dedicated training caverns, already stocked with clean drinking water and wall-avoiding pills.
But I had zero intention of choking down those tasteless pills, so I packed dried meats, preserved fruits, and other provisions instead. Since I had publicly declared my seclusion, the family still needed time to arrange the necessary supplies.
With that settled, I first went to see Mother.
Her condition had improved so dramatically it was almost startling. Of course, she had always been frail, so the change wasn’t immediately obvious to others. Still, her complexion and overall vitality were clearly getting better. It was a relief.
“Closed-door training? So suddenly?”
As expected, Mother’s first reaction was worry. Coming from a merchant family rather than a martial one, she had always been an outsider to the world of martial arts. Even so, she understood exactly what closed-door training meant.
“Yes. It’s something I would have had to do eventually, even if not right now.”
I tried to soothe her anxious heart. But her concern refused to fade so easily.
“We live in the same house, yet seeing my own son’s face has become so difficult…”
“Once my training ends, I’ll come visit you often.”
At those words, Mother smiled brightly and shook her head.
“No, no. Seeing you like this is already wonderful. Consider it nothing more than this mother’s small complaint.”
In the Ju family, almost no one came to call on Mother. The frail matriarch. That was why Father always attended clan gatherings alone.
“Mother.”
That was why I had prepared this.
“There’s someone I’d like to introduce to you.”
“Introduce? To me?”
Mother’s eyes widened in surprise. I simply smiled and opened the door without a word.
Yakseon, who had been waiting outside, stepped in.
“He is the renowned doctor known throughout the murim as Yakseon.”
“Tsk. No matter how much I owe you, dragging me out for chores like this…”
I had practically begged the reluctant Yakseon to come. His grumbling mouth snapped shut the moment he entered the room.
It wasn’t Mother’s gentle smile that silenced him. His eyes bored into her pale complexion and slender wrists like needles. The instinct of a master physician.
He cleared his throat once, straightened his robes, and bowed with proper respect.
“This one is called Yakseon. Madam, may I be so bold as to examine you for a moment?”
“Oh my? I have indeed heard your illustrious name. I am Yu Ha-rin.”
Mother rose immediately and offered him a respectful bow. Yakseon approached her without hesitation.
“As I just said, may I take your pulse?”
His tone toward Mother was far more courteous than it had ever been with me. She smiled and readily extended her wrist.
Yakseon took it and quietly felt her pulse. Unlike his usual demeanor, he examined her with grave seriousness.
“Hehe, well now…”
He let out a hollow chuckle, his voice tinged with resignation.
“What is it?”
At my question, he gently released Mother’s hand and spoke softly.
“Her congenital meridians are exceptionally thin. The pulse is slow, yet it seems she has been consuming many beneficial tonics.”
“Is it serious?”
I couldn’t help but worry. Fortunately, Yakseon shook his head.
“You unknowingly ingested poison some time ago, yes? Most of it appears to have been expelled. The problem is that it was a particularly vicious toxin, so traces remain in her body. Once we purge the remainder completely and provide her with nourishing pills, she should recover fully. Indeed.”
“Whew. That’s a relief.”
As expected of Yakseon. To diagnose someone’s condition so precisely with nothing but a touch to the wrist.
“Don’t worry too much. I will prepare medicines at regular intervals to help her maintain good health.”
Only then did I truly feel the weight lift from my shoulders. This was the word of one of the Twin Sages of the World. His name alone was proof of his skill.
I stayed with Yakseon and Mother, talking late into the night, and only returned to my quarters after dinner.
Before entering seclusion, there was still much to do.
I wouldn’t be locked away for years, but I still needed to establish the minimum countermeasures for everything I had set in motion during my absence.
First was the Black King Sect.
“Let’s see how far things have progressed.”
Night belonged to the black path. I headed straight for the Black King Sect with Muyoung.
“Young master…? How did you know about this place…?”
Yeo Mong came out to greet me personally. She had never once revealed the Black King Sect’s location to me, so her surprise was only natural.
“It wasn’t difficult.”
I entered without making a fuss. The Black King Sect used a shabby manor without even a proper signboard as its headquarters. In Nanchang—indeed, throughout Jiangxi Province—most black path organizations operated in hiding like this.
“Is everything proceeding smoothly?”
At my question, Yeo Mong frowned and shook her head.
“I’m not sure if it’s because I’m still inexperienced, but all sorts of stories keep pouring in.”
She rubbed her temples as if her head ached.
“There’s no need to take it too seriously. Out of a hundred pieces of information a day, maybe one or two are actually useful.”
With those words, I handed her several more slips of paper.
“Thirty thousand taels. Added to the twenty thousand I gave you before, that makes fifty thousand total.”
“…What is this for this time?”
“Running things with only Geungnakru won’t be enough. No matter how prestigious it is as Nanchang’s finest pleasure house.”
I intended to expand the business. First, I would swallow Nanchang whole.
“If we do that… it will mean war.”
Yeo Mong’s expression twisted awkwardly with tension.
“Don’t you hold some influence in Nanchang already?”
“There are two other organizations of similar size. The Haedobang and the Geumcheon Assassins.”
“Ah, I think I’ve heard of them.”
Especially the Geumcheon Assassins. As their name suggested, they were a group of killers. In the future they would become an unfortunate faction completely eradicated by the Ju family. Since they murdered for money, it was an inevitable outcome. Still, I planned to uproot them with my own hands before that happened.
“We’ll start with the Geumcheon Assassins.”
I had come prepared for war. To spread an information network across the entirety of Jiangxi Province, I needed these underworld forces firmly in my grasp.
“Are you serious? The Geumcheon Assassins aren’t some random street gang… If we move against them, the casualties on our side will be unimaginable. In the worst case, we may have to prepare for total annihilation.”
The most crucial point remained.
“Above all, we don’t even know where they are.”
Have you ever seen an honorable assassin? They were essentially common enemies to everyone. They never operated under their true names. Naturally, their hiding places were unknown.
“I know where they are.”
Of course I did. As I said, the Ju family had already completely destroyed the Geumcheon Assassins once before. Though it had been in my previous life, I remembered that time clearly. Locating them would not be a problem.
“Did you not hear what I said? Even if we know their location, the moment we confront them directly our side will be wiped out.”
Since this could shake the very foundation of her organization, Yeo Mong had no choice but to be cautious. I understood her concern. But this was something that had to be done.
“In terms of intelligence networks, the Geumcheon Assassins hold the advantage.”
They were assassins, after all. Assassins never moved without accurate information. They needed to know their target’s background, daily routes, habits—everything. Information gathering was both the most important and most essential element of their work.
“If we remain idle, their influence will only grow. Right now we can crush them with thirty percent of our strength, but later we may need our full hundred percent and still struggle.”
“……”
Yeo Mong’s face hardened as she fell into thought. The Geumcheon Assassins still knew nothing of the Black King Sect’s movements. Now was the perfect opportunity.
“Then what about the Haedobang? If we clash with the Geumcheon Assassins, they won’t simply stand by.”
“We’ll have to deal with them as well.”
Yeo Mong tilted her head, clearly wondering why I was making things so complicated.
“Couldn’t you simply bring the Ju family’s warriors and crush them yourself, young master?”
“That won’t work.”
I shook my head.
“For now, I am still only the youngest son. I have no authority to mobilize the family’s martial forces.”
“……”
“Moreover, if the Ju family steps forward now—when the Black King Sect is trying to seize the initiative in information—who would trust the Black King Sect?”
“Hmm… I see.”
Fortunately, Yeo Mong understood quickly. If the Ju family intervened, the matter would be simple. But who would buy information from a powerless Black King Sect? Information wasn’t something people bought simply because it was for sale. The intelligence I needed most concerned the movements of the Demonic Cult. I had to create a perfect information network to replace the Beggars’ Sect, which would soon be destroyed. To become trustworthy and establish a clear position, the Black King Sect needed to be seen carving out its own place by eliminating its enemies.
The Haedobang and Geumcheon Assassins were merely the first small steps.
“Well, not immediately. Prepare for war slowly. Expand the business enough to provoke them.”
I would create a justification for war. The surest way to force friction was to invade the opponent’s territory.
“When the new year arrives, the war begins.”
“Why next year specifically?”
At Yeo Mong’s question, I slowly clenched and unclenched my fist as I continued in a low voice.
“I need time to prepare as well.”
I needed time to grow stronger. And when I emerged from training, there needed to be a solid foundation ready for immediate action.
After a moment of hesitation, Yeo Mong asked carefully.
“Then… my brother?”
“Your older brother?”
Yeo Mong nodded. Of course she would be most concerned about her brother’s whereabouts.
“Chimwanggak. That is where your brother is.”
“If it’s Chimwanggak…”
I smiled and nodded. Chimwanggak was a type of medical ward—a place that treated patients and researched medicine. It had become famous because its master was the other of the Twin Sages, the Needle Sage.
“Now you understand? Even if you knew the location, there is nothing you could do.”
Inside Chimwanggak, no martial artist could cause a disturbance. It was an unwritten rule of the murim, passed down through generations. The Needle Sage had declared that he would treat everyone equally, whether from the black path or the white. As a result, many sought to exploit that rule.
“Is he… being pursued?”
“Yes.”
“By whom?”
The reason Yeo Gwak could not move was simple. Chimwanggak was protecting him. And those pursuing him were none other than the prestigious orthodox murim families.
“It’s rather troublesome.”
Therefore, if I wanted to bring him out, I would need to prepare thoroughly as well.
I need him too.
Yeo Gwak was someone I required. But for now there was no immediate problem, so leaving him in Chimwanggak’s care was actually safer.
“Please… take care of him.”
Yeo Mong yielded obediently. Given her personality, I had half-expected her to rush there immediately, but the mention of Chimwanggak seemed to have eased her mind somewhat.
“I will.”
I rose from my seat. It was time to go.
“See you in the new year.”
On the night road home, the sky was calm and my heart was still. All preparations were complete.
There is no end to training, and no limit to growth. To reclaim the achievements of my previous life, I would finally enter closed-door seclusion.
In my last life… I was pathetically weak.
I could only watch as the Ju family collapsed, powerless to protect anything. But this life would be different.
On the day I emerge once more, I would no longer return as the youngest son of the family. I would return as a proven member of the Ju clan who had carved out his own worth.
Thud!
The massive stone door slammed shut, cutting off all light from the world. A long winter was beginning.