Treasures Should Be Kept in the Warehouse (4)
Palgap's reaction made me ask again.
"You can't see this?"
But Palgap just looked at me with strange eyes.
"Then what color is this inkstone?"
I pointed to the inkstone that had turned jade-white, and Palgap replied.
"It's black, young master."
"……."
"I think we need to call a physician."
So only I can see these things?
I stared at them blankly.
"Please wait a moment."
"W-wait, hold on... I'm fine. It doesn't hurt."
But before I could stop him, Palgap left the room to fetch the physician.
Damn it...
His movements seemed even quicker lately, ever since he'd started practicing the secret manual left by the King of Killing.
"Hoo..."
I sighed and turned around.
The white door was still there, and the inkstone was still glowing like white jade.
I approached slowly, and when I was about two steps away...
Creak.
The door opened by itself.
As if inviting me in.
I peered inside, but saw nothing.
Should I go in?
As I hesitated, Gold Spirit poked its head out from my sleeve and hopped right through the door.
"Hey!"
I lunged to grab Gold Spirit and stumbled inside.
The moment my feet touched the floor, the scenery before my eyes changed completely.
"Huh?"
I blinked.
It happened in an instant.
A pleasantly cool energy filled the air, and shelves lined the surroundings.
"A warehouse?"
Then Gold Spirit appeared from somewhere, a book in its mouth.
"What if you just wander off like that."
"Kui."
Gold Spirit dropped the book on the floor and patted it with its front paw.
"You want me to read this?"
I picked up the book.
Secret Vault Usage Manual
I didn't need to read it. The moment I opened the cover, its entire contents imprinted in my mind.
"It really is a warehouse?"
In other words, this space I was in was called the Secret Vault, and the Dancheon Yeon was its key.
Once certain conditions were met, one gained the qualification to open this warehouse.
Those qualifications were three:
Possess the Dancheon Yeon for at least three years.
Cultivate yin-based inner arts.
Reach the Peak Realm or higher.
Having fulfilled them this time, the Secret Vault appeared before me, allowing entry.
And by infusing energy into the Dancheon Yeon while strongly visualizing the warehouse, the entrance to the Secret Vault would open.
I must have unknowingly leaked energy into the inkstone earlier while grinding ink.
Anyway, I needed a warehouse just now, and to think a secret, spacious one like this appeared!
It felt like the heavens were helping me.
Plus, the inkstone was a bonus.
Should I tell the old man from the sundries shop about this? But it had been over three years already.
And even if I did, he'd probably just say, "Oh? I see. Use it well."
Besides, the warehouse's size expanded with one's martial realm, giving me yet another reason to train diligently.
I picked up Gold Spirit, who was waddling around inspecting the place, and tucked it into my sleeve.
"Time to head back now."
"Kui."
I opened the warehouse door and stepped out.
The moment I passed through, the scenery shifted back to my room in an instant.
A quick glance back showed the white door still there.
I tapped the inkstone on the desk, and it returned to normal, the white door vanishing along with it.
Got a good treasure.
I can store the night-luminescent pearl and Thousand Fragrance Dew here. Same for future treasures.
Just then, Palgap's voice came from outside.
"Young master, I brought the physician."
"……."
No, I said I'm really fine.
The next morning, I rose early for training as usual.
Palgap looked at me worriedly.
"Why don't you rest today too?"
"I'm fine."
"But the physician yesterday... said it's best to rest a few days."
The physician Palgap brought had checked my pulse, asked a few questions, and diagnosed it as seeing things from fatigue.
The report went straight to Father, forcing me to rest from yesterday afternoon onward.
I got plenty of bed rest, but knowing from my future self that the more you rest, the harder it gets, I couldn't relax.
Even if the body rested, the mind counting pending tasks never did. It was... frustrating.
Anyway, Palgap worries too much.
"Palgap, there's a saying: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. So lying in bed because it hurts won't make you strong."
"What's that got to do with work?"
"Work is a kind of hardship too. Who in the world has it easy? So all work is hardship."
"Does that mean you hate working too, young master?"
"Yeah."
I nodded.
"I hate work too. But if I don't work, I won't get stronger."
"So working makes you stronger? That sounds off. Work tires the body, doesn't make it stronger."
"No, you have to work to survive. And it's not the strong who survive, but the survivors who are strong. So you work just enough not to die, survive, and become strong. It's a harsh truth."
Palgap pondered my words, then clapped.
"That's profound. I should tell Captain Kwak when he comes later."
Cold sweat trickled down my back at that.
Master would hear it and think it's great, then train me right up to the brink of death.
"N-no! That's not it!"
"Pardon?"
"That's really not what it means."
"……."
I sighed deeply.
"Actually, 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger' means to get strong by avoiding hardships that could kill you."
"Young master."
"Yeah?"
"...Nothing."
Did he just curse me with his eyes?
After finishing breathing exercises in the courtyard, Master entered my pavilion.
"Master, did you sleep well?"
"Yes, good morning."
I tilted my head at Master. His aura felt different today.
Before, it was like sharp, solid ice. Now, it felt like gazing up at a massive ice canyon.
Master noticed my expression.
"What's wrong?"
"Pardon?"
"You seem puzzled."
"Ah, well... maybe it's my imagination, but your aura looks different from yesterday."
"...How so?"
I described exactly what I felt, and Master's expression shifted slightly as he nodded.
"As you said."
"Pardon?"
"While studying the manual you gave me yesterday, I had a small realization."
"Congratulations."
I clasped my hands in salute, and Master looked faintly embarrassed—a rare sight.
"Thanks to you."
"I think the heavens, caring for you, returned the manual through me."
Master gazed at me steadily, then spoke seriously.
"I'll study the manual more and pass it on to you."
"I'll await the day."
"Then let's begin training."
Time passed, my birthday in the eleventh month came and went uneventfully, and I turned nineteen.
Four years since I returned from death.
And this winter solstice, the imperial court ranked us forty-ninth among the Hundred Great Merchant Groups of the world.
The summit was in sight.
Once we entered the Ten Great Merchant Groups, I'd clash head-on with Baekcheon Merchant Group.
For now, I was just undermining Baekcheon and the Murim Alliance from the shadows.
We were still small compared to them, so direct confrontation risked danger.
Of course, I had hidden preparations, but they were daggers—useless if revealed too soon.
I was heading to my office in Hyeonpung Branch.
Rumble, rumble.
Wheel sounds approached from afar. It was Heo Un, the branch manager.
"Ah, heading to work?"
"Yes."
Heo Un moved on a wheeled chair I'd commissioned from Gongmil.
It could be pushed by others or rolled by oneself.
Yeon Branch Chief had lit up at the sight and yelled at me.
"Young lord! Sell this!"
The chair was named Yirunui—Wheel Chair of Reliance.
Father had named it, meaning a chair with supportive wheels. His naming talent surpassed mine.
Anyway, per Yeon Branch Chief's wish, we were preparing to sell the Yirunui.
Many like Heo Un had mobility issues, so demand would be high.
But I wouldn't exploit their hardships for exorbitant profits.
"Seems you've adapted to the Yirunui."
"Yes, very comfortable."
"I'll push you to Sangyu Pavilion."
"No need. I can go alone."
"I need company on the way."
I tried to push Heo Un's Yirunui myself, but Palgap intervened.
"I'll do it."
"Yeah, sure."
True, Palgap couldn't just stand by.
Rumble, rumble.
As we chatted heading to Sangyu Pavilion, Heo Un brought up something else.
"Did I mention before? That I remember all of Baekcheon's ledgers."
"Yes, I heard."
"And recently, one entry bothered me."
"What is it?"
"Baekcheon funneled quite a sum to Yeoncheon Village in Hubei Province."
Yeoncheon Village?
I racked my brain and recalled: next to Wudang Mountain?
"I checked related records... They bought spirit medicines."
"Spirit medicines? Hmm, unusual, but maybe for trades."
Trading spirit medicines for business rights happened often.
"Yes. But what caught me was... costs for acquiring nearby merchant groups were listed alongside."
I pondered deeply.
Then, glancing at Seo-u Warrior, a thought flashed.
.
.
.
After dropping Heo Un at Sangyu Pavilion, I returned to my office in Hyeonpung Branch.
I closed the partition between my office and the main room.
I needed to think alone.
In this life, I saved the Revival Spirit Mushroom, letting Seo-u Warrior recover.
But in my previous life, Moon Ju-seong Gongja saved it, dooming Deokhaeng Merchant Group.
And someone else consumed that mushroom.
A Blood Cultist sealed away.
Sealed in Wudang Sect.
That recovered Blood Cultist ravaged Wudang, causing massive damage.
He destroyed and slaughtered everywhere, plunging Hubei into chaos.
When the threat grew too great, the Murim Alliance intervened.
Soon after, the cultist was subjugated.
Thinking back, the Murim Alliance profited: their prestige soared from slaying him.
They absorbed bankrupt local merchant groups, swelling Baekcheon's size into the Three Greats.
Could that have been the Murim Alliance's scheme?
If so, I must stop it.
The horrors were indescribable—why Blood Cult is Blood Cult.
But he was a supreme expert, so stopping him requires one... Huh?
Something's off.
Wudang is top among Central Plains sects.
How could they fail to stop him with their experts? They even sealed him originally.
I need to check this out.
A pretext to visit Wudang without suspicion...
Ah, perfect.
I have the title Seonhyeopmirang, and donating to Wudang would open their doors wide.