The Three Immortals Beyond Heaven (1)
Jin Yigang looked at Sindo Jongri without a word.
"Your father must have bowed to everyone coming out of Sinmumun — the Divine Martial Gate. Knowing him, probably a thousand times a day. That's what he told me. 'My son sits for the examination this time. Please look after him.'"
Jin Yigang had heard Jin Jachu's plea and forgotten it almost immediately. He was hardly a man of such leisure that he would do favors for someone who spent his days bowing at a gate — he wasn't even the gatekeeper.
Then he saw the man again at the examination grounds. When the name "Jin Yigang" was called out during roll, he looked once more. In truth, Jin Yigang and Danmok Cheonri had been celebrities by then. The reason was simple: neither had failed to take first place in a single examination from the preliminary rounds through the provincial finals.
Everyone else sang their praises, but he could not. If either of those two passed, the laurel of youngest top scorer in the empire would become worthless, and he would clearly fade from everyone's attention. Then both of their answer sheets received the highest marks. One of them was bound to walk away crowned with the glory of first place in every single examination.
That was when the Cheonchu Danmok Clan began pulling strings to make Danmok Cheonri the top candidate.
Jin Yigang's answers were far and away superior.
When the emperor was handed the papers, he chose Jin Yigang on the spot. The answers themselves were outstanding, of course, but the calculation behind it was just as clear: a dirt-poor commoner's son like Jin Yigang was far more useful to the throne than Danmok Cheonri, who stood backed by a powerful aristocratic house.
"It struck me as strange at the time — how I'd beaten a great clan's son in competition. It was thanks to you, wasn't it?"
"It was. I am the one who selected your paper."
"So you decided a worthless nobody becoming top scorer suited you better than some aristocratic brat?"
"You know it well."
"Does Danmok Cheonri know any of this?"
"How could he possibly."
"He'd grind his teeth to powder if he found out."
"He never will. And for what it's worth, your answers were several times better than his."
"Not exactly the consolation you think it is."
"No, I suppose not. What use is top scorer now that the world has turned over? And now—"
"Now you're going to kill me?"
"You didn't merely defy the imperial command. You mocked it. That is treason, and the law of this land says traitors lose their heads. Nine Dragons in the Clouds Corps — hear me!"
"Awaiting your command."
"Right now, seize that bas—"
"If I were you, I'd hurry."
"..."
Oo—ooooooh!
A horn blast rolled across the peak, and with it came the stir of dozens of people climbing toward the summit.
Sindo Jongri looked at Jin Yigang.
"Those are the ones who've been hunting us. The fool in front — the one you shoved aside on your way up — is Danmok Cheonri."
"Then I suppose cutting off your head will have to wait."
"Prudent as ever. Much like how quickly you traded in your emperor. In any case, safe travels."
Jin Yigang raised a hand in farewell.
"Go."
Sindo Jongri slammed his foot into the ground. His figure shrank away into the distance in the blink of an eye.
"Earth-Shrinking Steps," the Demon Venerable murmured under his breath.
"Quite the movement art, I'd say."
"Unfolding Earth-Shrinking Steps requires at least eight jia of internal energy."
"He's got it all. Every last bit."
"Envious, are you?"
"Of course I'm envious. Envy doesn't cover it — I'm green enough to rot through."
Jin Yigang stayed where he stood, his gaze fixed on the route Danmok Cheonri was climbing.
"You're not going?" Je Ha-yeong asked.
"I want a look at his face before I go."
Wooooooh!
The horn kept sounding. A short while later, Danmok Cheonri descended onto the summit — with demon masters at his back. Six of them, not nine.
The moment Danmok Cheonri's group spotted Jin Yigang and the Absolute Five Venerables, their faces stiffened.
"You—"
"Second time seeing me?"
"Jin Yigang?"
"The one and only."
Jin Yigang nodded.
"Were you... waiting for me?"
"Just wanted to see your face before I left."
"You think I'll simply let you walk away?"
"You've got Sindo Jongri to chase, don't you?"
"S-Sindo Jongri?"
Danmok Cheonri stared at him in open shock.
"He's carrying a sword. Nine dragons engraved on the scabbard — and nine more on the blade itself."
"Th-that's true?"
Even his words stumbled. He knew better than anyone that a sword bearing nine dragons was the weapon of the Hidden Dragon Imperial Inspector.
"Anyway, I'm so jealous of you, Sama Yucheon, and Sindo Jongri that it's driving me out of my mind."
Jin Yigang turned away.
"Th-that bastard—"
"That way!"
Jin Yigang pointed to where Sindo Jongri had vanished.
"Chase him."
Danmok Cheonri gave the order to Shin Gon and his men.
"Understood."
Shin Gon's group shot off instantly.
Danmok Cheonri looked at Jin Yigang.
"The next time I see you, I will kill you."
"Suit yourself. In any case, safe travels."
Jin Yigang flapped his hand at him.
Whoosh!
Danmok Cheonri launched himself, eyes still locked on Jin Yigang. He flew a good thirty feet backward like that before wheeling around and disappearing from sight.
"We should go too."
Jin Yigang set off. His destination was Noryeong Cliff. It took about two hours to get there.
"Good heavens. A lake, all the way up here?"
The whole company stood gaping. Beneath the sheer vertical cliffs spread an enormous lake — roughly a thousand feet from north to south, five hundred from east to west. It looked as though water had gathered in a basin blown open by a volcanic eruption. Cliffs ringed it on every side, and the wall lining the western shore was the tallest of them all.
"How long until the full moon rises?"
"Five days," Mu Daebo answered.
"Let's find somewhere to rest down by the shore."
"The full moon matters, does it?" Na Hujeok asked.
"Yep."
Jin Yigang nodded.
Feeling their way down, the group descended to the eastern shore. Even that was a cliff, though it rose only some thirty feet. As they scouted the area they discovered a cave and went inside — evidently an animal's den, judging by the reek of droppings that hung thick in the air.
After a rough cleanup and posting a watch, they settled in. Jin Yigang claimed a relatively bright spot and pulled out a book.
"Would you use this?"
Je Ha-yeong thrust something out without warning. Jin Yigang looked at what she offered — a palm-sized object wrapped snugly in black cloth.
"A lantern made from a Luminous Pearl."
"A lantern?"
He took it and unwound the cloth. Instantly, a bright glow spread out in front of the object.
"Well, this is nice!"
Jin Yigang broke into a wide grin. A Luminous Pearl sat set inside a hexagonal column, one face left open so that the radiance concentrated in a single direction.
"Even with it shuttered like this—"
Jin Yigang tilted his head. Even with only one side exposed, far too much light spilled out, and it was blindingly bright.
"There's a bronze mirror set inside. It doesn't just reflect the light — the mirror's angles are precisely adjusted so that every ray converges to a single point."
"Good heavens."
Jin Yigang's jaw hung open. He had never once dreamed such a thing could exist. A sudden thought struck him — how much would he have given for one of these back in his studying days?
"It's called the Luminous Pearl Lantern, since it's made from a Luminous Pearl."
"It even has a fine name."
"Take it."
"Really?"
"Yes."
Jin Yigang beamed and angled the lantern at his book.
"Amaaazing! It's broad daylight in here — broad daylight!"
The characters stood out crisp and clear. Jin Yigang read on, sweeping the lantern's beam across the pages.
"I can focus so much better too."
Seeing only a portion of the page at a time instead of the whole spread made the meaning land far more firmly. And lines between the lines he'd never noticed before now carried a whole second layer of sense.
"Hehehehe! Hehehe!"
He sat there giggling over his book.
"Crazy fool."
Mu Daebo, watching the scene, shook his head.
"What?"
Jin Yigang looked up at him.
"Is it really that fun?"
"Wasn't it fun for you?"
"The whole thing is about third-rate martial arts. What's fun about that, you brat?"
Jin Yigang had been so absorbed that Mu Daebo had wondered what the book was and skimmed the opening pages. Every last bit of it concerned third-rate martial arts. It was a book pitched precisely at the level of someone just beginning to train.
"It's boring because all you see is the martial arts."
"Then what do you see?"
"I read The Life of the One Defeated a Hundred Thousand Times."
"There's hardly anything in it about life."
"It was written by a man who fought and lost a hundred thousand times. Every single word on every page is a record of a life. Hardly anything, my foot, you rascal."
"..."
"You only ever see what you're capable of seeing, so don't worry about it."
Jin Yigang flapped a hand at him.
"You're joking."
Mu Daebo flopped over onto his back.
"Don't you need to examine the map further?" Je Ha-yeong asked.
"Would you show it to me?"
"If it becomes necessary, I must. With the lantern, we could go in there and study it properly."
"If my thinking is right, we won't need to look at it again."
"Understood."
Je Ha-yeong nodded and returned to her spot. Namgoong Wonmu and the Eight Kings, along with their followers, arrived about two hours later. They too claimed a cave and moved inside.
Then Namgoong Wonmu's party came into the cave where Jin Yigang's group was staying.
"Looks like you bastards have gone and cooked up a grave for yourselves."
Jin Yigang said it as he closed his book.
"What are you talking about?" Namgoong Wonmu asked.
"That Sindo Jongri fellow turned out to be the Hidden Dragon Imperial Inspector."
"Truly?"
"The one who came for the treasure map on the emperor's direct command is him."
"Hmmm!"
A low groan escaped Namgoong Wonmu's lips. They exchanged glances with one another.
"Let's discuss this privately."
Namgoong Wonmu stepped outside. The remaining seven followed him out shortly after. Jin Yigang went on reading his book without pause.
The next day, Jin Yigang summoned Na Seokjin and Mak Hong.
"Crossing fifty jang of open water is impossible, I take it?"
"Supreme masters could manage it with water-treading arts or the Ilwi Dogang river-crossing technique, but for men like us it's impossible," Mak Hong said.
"Then we'll have to find ourselves a means of crossing."
"We'll need to build rafts."
"Build them quietly."
"Of course."
"Make one more — that one's my seat."
"Understood."
The mercenaries and the Jicheon Physician Clan members disappeared into the forest to build rafts. Before anyone noticed, five days had slipped by and evening had fallen.
"Let's go."
Jin Yigang left the box inside the cave and stepped outside. The moon was just beginning to climb, and the wall of cliffs that had loomed like a folding screen along the lake's western shore was slowly brightening.
Jin Yigang and the Eight Kings took up a position where the entire cliff face could be seen at a glance, and waited for the moon to rise.
"That's the place."
Namgoong Wonmu murmured it, a touch of excitement in his voice. The cliff face before them was unmistakably the spot from the map. But finding the entrance hidden somewhere along that wall would be like hunting for a needle in a desert.
He glanced at Jin Yigang. Jin Yigang had turned his head upward, gazing at the moon.
Soon the moon climbed higher still, and the cliff appeared on the surface of the lake as well.
"Good heavens."
Namgoong Wonmu's mouth fell open.
The map was not simply the same picture drawn in reverse. It was the cliff and its reflection on the water, drawn together as one.
"Look there."
Jin Yigang pointed ahead.
"Where?"
"The spot in the middle of the water. Look."
"What is tha—"
"That wasn't on the map!" Ji Yakran shouted.
"Go, before it disappears."
"...Understood. And — thank you."
With those words of gratitude, Namgoong Wonmu and the Eight Kings launched themselves first.
"Let's go."
Mu Daebo grabbed Jin Yigang's arm. He intended to carry him across.
"No."
Jin Yigang shook his head and pulled his arm free.
"Why not?"
"If we go in together we might get separated, and if things go wrong we could end up as the Eight Kings' target practice. I'll go in slow and do a little sightseeing."
If it weren't for his one-year expiration date, he might have charged in ahead of everyone else. But he had already sampled the martial arts of two of the Five Venerables of past and present, and confirmed that the body he had now could not learn them. There was no need for such arts, and no use for them — he had no desire to claw and scramble for power he couldn't spend. No — more important than any of that was the simple fact that the Eight Kings could not be trusted. Ji Yakran and Dang Chwi-ryeo would probably be fine, but the rest he couldn't say.
For all he knew, they were nursing grudges right now, just waiting for their chance.
"You're truly not coming?"
"Hurry, before the Eight Kings take it all for themselves."
"Understood."
"When you come out, come to the cave where we left our gear!"
"Got it."
"Cha-ha!"
Mu Daebo launched himself first.
"We'll go on ahead as well."
The Absolute Five Venerables and Je Ha-yeong followed, bodies knifing through the air.
"Um..."
Je Chuyeong looked at Jin Yigang.
"I'll go with them. Hurry along."
"All right."
Je Chuyeong nodded and leapt out over the water. A short while later she reached the far shore, looked back at him, waved, and then climbed away after the others.
"Time for us to go too," Jin Yigang said, and the ronin and the Jicheon warriors filed into the forest and came back out with the rafts.
Ten rafts in all. They set them afloat on the lake, climbed aboard, and dug their paddles in.
The rafts cut swiftly across to the far side.
"Someone's coming, my lord."
As they drew near the cliff, one of the ronin pointed back the way they'd come. Jin Yigang turned his head. Dozens of figures were flying toward them.
"Ugh!"
His face contorted. The ones bearing down on them were Sindo Jongri and his men.
"Hm?"
Kicking off the water and soaring up into the open air, Sindo Jongri looked down — and his eyes went cold.
"Geomseon!"
"Yes, my lord."
A white-haired old man answered.
"Good heavens," Mak Hong breathed.
"What is it?"
"That is the Three Immortals Beyond Heaven."
"Strong?"
"They're rated equal to the Absolute Five Venerables — or above them."
"You couldn't just tell me they're a bunch of nobodies?"
"That is..."
Mak Hong let the words trail off.
"Say — there's someone right here who called Geomseon and your honorable company 'dogs.'"
"What would you have us do, my lord?"
"The order has already been given."
"As you command!"
Three of them hurled themselves straight at Jin Yigang.
"Damn it! I was about to go follow Je Chuyeong!"
Jin Yigang yanked two stones from his pack, his face twisting.