Chapter 47

===================
Translated by Seoulbound

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
===================

“I am Yeon Baek-jung of the Wudang Sect. I studied under Immortal Gangwon.”

The gazes of the young disciples of the Qingcheng Sect and the Wudang Sect were fixed on Su-gyo and me. In inverse proportion to the intensity of those gazes, the flame of motivation that had been burning in Su-gyo’s eyes began to die down.

“Ugh.”

A small groan escaped his mouth.

‘What is it?’

Su-gyo’s reaction was unusual.

I thought he had come because I had bypassed his Concealment Method, but he did not ask any further at my answer and simply hesitated.

Looking at his face, which was gradually losing color and turning pale, I recalled the moment I first saw him, when he was trying to leave the place while using the Concealment Method.

The behavior of trying to escape from his sect members despite the rumors that the River of Three Crossings assassins were gathering near the Shaolin Temple, where the Martial Alliance Assembly was being held.

His face, which had been miserable among people even before that.

And even his current appearance, looking pale under the gaze of the people.

—They said Qingcheng Sect’s Qingyun Chixia has a problem with his personality…

It was not a random thought that my master’s words came to mind.

And I was not unfamiliar with people like this.

They were not unfamiliar because there were many similar people around me in the butterfly dream.

Therefore, I said the words that Su-gyo would likely want to hear the most.

“There are too many people here; would you like to step outside for a moment?”

It was something I said by guessing from what had happened so far, but in truth, I could not be sure of its effect. Since every person’s personality varied wildly. However.

“Huh? Shall we?”

Color returned to his face, which had been continuously turning pale.

The effect was outstanding.

**

In the shade of the Guest Hall, where the deep silence of the mountain temple lay, Su-gyo was able to obtain peace of mind.

‘Ah. This is nice.’

Just a moment ago, when everyone’s eyes were focused on him and the young Wudang disciple, Yeon Baek-jung, he had felt as if he were suffocating, so this relative silence and peace touched him even more deeply.

The relaxation following the tension made his body go limp.

‘Ah. Should I take a nap?’

Although he had been able to rest in his room for a long time thanks to the consideration of Taoist Uncle Cheong-in, that was then and this was now.

The problem was that he was not alone.

‘Yeon Baek-jung…’

The boy who had bypassed his training of the Concealment Method was looking at him with bright, intelligent eyes. Looking at the boy, who seemed similar to or even younger than Su-byeok, the youngest junior brother of the Pacifying Sword Unit, Su-gyo hesitated for a moment.

Should he press him on how he bypassed the Concealment Method, or should he just keep his mouth shut?

At that moment, the boy moved first.

While he was hesitating, Yeon Baek-jung occupied a soft spot under the pine forest in the corner of the Guest Hall.

‘Hmm?!’

Surprisingly, however, Yeon Baek-jung took a spot right next to the best location—that is, the place where the shadow was deepest.

It was as if he had left the best spot for Su-gyo himself.

Sometimes, there are moments when you can understand many things without a word. Yeon Baek-jung’s consideration for him reached Su-gyo. Su-gyo took a seat next to Yeon Baek-jung, in the deepest shade.

Then suddenly, he was puzzled by the peace rising in his heart.

‘Huh? Why am I comfortable when there is someone next to me?’

Martial artists who practiced martial arts—especially those belonging to affiliate branches like the Seven Great Families—exhaled the turbid Qi from their bodies through breathing. Whenever Su-gyo faced such people, he could not shake the mental image that they were defecating through their mouths.

It was the biggest reason among the countless reasons he disliked people.

Yet the breath exhaled by the young Wudang Sect disciple quietly existing next to him now did not bother him at all. Moreover, even the flow of true Qi trembling along with his movements harmonized with the wind blowing along the mountain ridges at night.

It was proof of the pure quality of the cultivation Yeon Baek-jung had accumulated.

Since Su-gyo felt that even the breathing of his own fellow disciples was crowded and noisy, the boy was able to win Su-gyo’s favor just by breathing.

‘Yes. This is actionless nature.’

As he lay down in the corner without any bothersome sensations, the sky came into view.

The halo of the stars and the moon could be seen faintly.

Su-gyo closed his eyes for a moment.

‘Ah. This is nice.’

Along with peace, stability came to the essence in his middle dantian, and the spirit in his upper dantian moved quietly.

Just as Yin and Yang were born from a single root called Primal Chaos, rest and training shared a single root.

The state, which was optimized for training martial arts—even if it was internal rather than external training—was deeply satisfying.

At that moment, a clear and pleasant voice was heard.

“You are curious about how I bypassed the Concealment Method stealth technique the other day, aren’t you?”

The question that he had been curious about all along, but could not bring himself to ask first due to his personality, came out of Yeon Baek-jung’s mouth.

Suddenly, such a thought occurred to him.

‘Is it alright to tell me such a secret technique? Won’t he get scolded by the elders of his sect?’

Just as worry arose, Yeon Baek-jung’s explanation came.

“I found the principle of training the Concealment Method quite interesting. It seemed to draw out true Qi like microscopic tubes to wrap around the body. The principle is that the light passing through those tubes undergoes total internal reflection along them, failing to reach the body itself and only reflecting the surrounding scenery. Thereby assimilating into the surrounding scenery…”

Absorbed by the explanation that felt like an insight piercing precisely through the profound meaning of training the Concealment Method, Su-gyo listened to the story without realizing it.

Hearing the principle he had implemented physically explained in words like this, a new realization came to him, making him think, ‘Ah, so that was the principle?’

Listening to Yeon Baek-jung’s words, which told him what he wanted to hear and know so badly before he even asked, Su-gyo’s mind became peaceful once again, and Su-gyo’s tongue, which had only felt heavy, gradually lightened its weight.

**

How could we define the act of seeing?

When light in the visible wavelength range was reflected by a specific substance and gathered in our eyes to form an image, it resulted in the act of ‘seeing.’

In other words, in order for us to ‘see ‘ an object, an ‘image ‘ had to be formed.

Light traveled in a straight line.

It was a self-evident fact.

When such light encountered another substance, it was absorbed, reflected, or sometimes bent to pass through the substance depending on the properties of that substance.

If the degree of bending was adjusted well here, the ‘image ‘ could be distorted. The Concealment Method wove internal force like thin threads to distort light. The bent light only carried the surrounding scenery, while failing to capture the image of the one who released the internal force.

This was the principle of the invisibility cloak that had been implemented even in the butterfly dream.

However, even such an invisibility cloak was not perfect. This was because light did not consist only of visible light.

“…In other words, if you look at light outside the visible light spectrum, the refractive index of light also changes, so you can see the image, albeit faintly.”

When I explained the way I bypassed the Concealment Method, Su-gyo opened his mouth for the first time since leaving the building.

“…Then, Young Friend Yeon, you are saying you can see light in regions that the human eye cannot see? Huh, then does the Wudang Sect also have upper dantian training like our Celestial Master’s Immortal Law?”

I nodded at Su-gyo’s words.

Since it was not about speaking of the secret techniques of my sect anyway, but simply sharing each other’s training, I continued the explanation simply.

“In the Wudang Sect, there is a divine art called the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition. It is a cultivation method that utilizes the upper dantian. Since senses are influenced by the upper dantian, depending on how you utilize it, such modification of senses is also possible.”

Saying just that much was enough for Su-gyo to understand.

“Interesting. As expected, the Wudang Sect is a Taoist sect just like Qingcheng. The cultivation called Qingcheng’s Celestial Master’s Immortal Law is a training that utilizes the upper dantian’s Peach Garden Force… You don’t know what Peach Garden Force is, do you? Ah, are you not curious? Am I needlessly rambling about something you have no interest in…?”

I hurriedly shook my head at his words.

The Peach Garden Force was a type of immortal Taoist internal force.

It seemed to mean that while the Wudang Sect integrated the upper, middle, and lower dantians to reach the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown and cultivate the Three Clarities Power, the Qingcheng Sect cultivated the Peach Garden Force.

Since I did not want to miss the opportunity to hear in depth about the martial arts of one of the Nine Sects, especially a Taoist sect.

“Not at all. I want to hear it. There is nothing uninteresting in Taoist Priest Su-gyo’s words.”

“R-Really?”

At my words, the expression of Su-gyo, who had been trailing off, brightened, and his voice began to rise slightly.

“If you ask what the Peach Garden Force is, you can think of it as the divine power accumulated by the prior generations of Taoist priests—that is, the upper dantian internal force. But as Young Friend Yeon also knows, divine power scatters if we do not have our body’s physical essence, right? Feeling regretful about this, the prior Celestial Master Zhang created a divine art so that this Peach Garden Force could be passed down to future generations, even if only in part, and that is precisely the Celestial Master’s Immortal Law. However, a critical side effect of this Celestial Master’s Immortal Law is that the thoughts and wills of the ancestors contained in the Peach Garden Force remain in the form of a Nascent Soul…”

The content regarding a divine art in a form completely different from the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition stimulated my upper dantian and began to plant a small seed of inspiration.

I accumulated new inspiration while engraving Su-gyo’s explanation in my mind.

Meanwhile, at some point, my eyes met Su-gyo’s blank face.

‘Ah.’

Realizing that I had fallen into thought by myself, I neatly organized the thread of inspiration in a corner of my upper dantian and opened my mouth again.

“It is amazing. Thanks to Taoist Priest Su-gyo’s words, I have gained a small realization. If I compile it into a proper formula later, I will tell you.”

At my words, Su-gyo spoke with a subtle expression.

Even his tone was secretive, making him look just like a spy sharing a secret.

“T-Then, perhaps, could Young Friend Yeon also give some good opinions?”

“Pardon?”

“I was thinking about what Young Friend Yeon said just now. You said that the way you bypassed the Concealment Method was by looking at light outside the visible range, right? Then, if we devise a new formula that bounces off light in all those ranges… wouldn’t complete stealth become possible?”

I nodded reluctantly at his words.

Although I felt like I was telling him something I shouldn’t, the realization I gained from the teachings on the Celestial Master’s Immortal Law and the Peach Garden Force was not small, so I told him a small piece of information.

Since I would not speak of the core formula anyway, how to develop it was up to Su-gyo himself.

“A while ago, I was taught training for a similar protective Qi by my Grandmaster. It is a training to layer and stack protective Qi, and if you stack the training of the Concealment Method in a similar form according to each wavelength of light, it seems it would be possible.”

At my words, Su-gyo’s expression brightened even further.

“Oh, there is a martial art that comes to mind at those words. Although its transmission was cut off long ago, it is a martial art that has been under restoration recently… Would you like to hear about it?”

“What kind of martial art is it?”

“It is a sword art called the Qingyun Sword… Its basic form is a martial art that emits and overlaps sword Qi to dominate the sword circle. But if we mix the formula of the Concealment Method into this sword Qi force-release formula, wouldn’t we be able to obtain an effect similar to the protective Qi layering that Young Friend Yeon mentioned just now…?”

A subtle enthusiasm could be felt in his words.

In addition to his tone of voice, which carried a sense of purpose to achieve something by all means, since he belonged to the same Taoist lineage, I felt it would also be helpful for our Wudang Sect’s martial arts.

I nodded naturally and fell into his words.

Thus, we conversed without realizing how time was passing.

**

Mu-seong, a disciple of the Shaolin Guest Hall, headed along with his junior brother to the area where an intrusion by an outsider had occurred among the Buddhist power barrier zones densely spread within the Shaolin grounds.

The sight of a young Taoist wearing the martial robes of the Qingcheng Sect’s Pacifying Sword Unit and a young Taoist wearing the Taoist robes of the Wudang Sect’s True Martial Pavilion Black Pine Gate actively debating martial arts came into view. Warm smiles spread across the faces of Mu-seong and his junior brother.

‘Yes. This is the reason for holding the Martial Alliance.’

Meanwhile, as the voices of the young Taoists reached them, Mu-seong’s expression gradually stiffened.

“…Drawing out true Qi like microscopic tubes to wrap around the body… if you look at light outside the visible light spectrum, the refractive index of light also changes, so you can see the image, albeit faintly.”

‘What… are they saying?’

At the sensation of hearing what was completely hard to understand, as if listening to a language from another world, Mu-seong felt for a moment as if the consciousness in his upper dantian was fading.

Furthermore, no matter how young the Taoists were, it was a conversation regarding the martial arts of other sects. Eavesdropping carelessly was impolite. In addition, since there had been an order from the Guest Hall Lord previously not to excessively reinforce the guard tonight, the Guest Hall disciple Mu-seong and his junior brother immediately left the spot.

However, they should not have done so.

Although they failed to notice, it was because the young disciples of Qingcheng and Wudang were not the only ones in the shadows.

**

The central grounds of the Shaolin Temple.

In front of the giant Buddha statue of the Mahavira Hall, dozens of people were sitting together. If they were anyone with even a slight understanding of the affairs of the Jianghu martial world, they would have fainted upon seeing the faces of those gathered here.

Because those gathered were all famous martial figures who formed the backbone of the Nine Sects and One Association and the Seven Great Families.

The first to speak among them was Goeng-song, the head of the Shaolin Temple’s Eight Guardian Courtyards. He opened his mouth while wearing a face that looked just like the flower sermon smile worn on the face of the giant Buddha statue behind the Mahavira Hall.

“First, I apologize for the fact that I am welcoming the various famous figures of the martial world since the Abbot Senior Brother has entered secluded meditation.”

Gangwon, who participated in this meeting representing the Wudang Sect, immediately shook his head and replied.

“The Manjusri Bodhisattva of Shaolin has stepped forward, so who would dare to think that Shaolin is treating us poorly?”

Manjusri Bodhisattva.

That was Goeng-song, who had obtained the moniker of the Buddha symbolizing wisdom. Furthermore, the head of the Eight Guardian Courtyards meant he was none other than the second-in-command of the Shaolin Temple. No one frowned.

At that, Goeng-song maintained his characteristic flower sermon smile and spoke again.

“In that case, let us move straight to the main point. I believe there is no one here who does not know the reason why the various famous figures of the martial world have gathered here.”

Everyone nodded slightly at his words.

The reason the Martial Alliance Assembly was held.

There was no one who did not know that it was to prepare countermeasures against the atrocities of the Six Great Evils. True to that thought, Goeng-song presented his opinion simply and directly.

“While the world is gradually falling into disorder, the common people in areas untouched by the hands of the Nine Sects and One Association and the Seven Great Families are suffering. In order to resolve this, I declare that the greatest agenda of this Martial Alliance meeting is to request each sect and family participating in the Martial Alliance Assembly to dispatch experts.”

The expressions of those dispatched from each great sect upon hearing those words were all different.

From those who nodded deeply as if in profound agreement with Goeng-song’s words, to those who leaned back half-heartedly.

Those who had seized hegemony in each region showed different reactions depending on their respective interests.

Gangwon, and the Wudang Sect’s position was active agreement, but he could guess that today’s meeting would not easily reach a conclusion.

Nevertheless, because the smile never left Goeng-song’s face, Immortal Gangwon received a strange sense of incompatibility. That sense of incompatibility was not received from Goeng-song alone, either.

‘Oh, by the way. Even though information that the movements of the River of Three Crossings assassins had been captured must have been received, the guard within the Shaolin Temple grounds was strangely loose… Don’t tell me?!’

The moment a certain premonition flashed by.

Immortal Gangwon glanced at Goeng-song’s face.

At that moment, the door of the Mahavira Hall opened, and a young monk hurriedly entered and spoke.

“It is said that the Third Young Master of the Zhenzhou Yan Clan was attacked by an intruder who entered the Shaolin grounds!”