Chapter 177

Unable to stand it any longer, Bian Bu intervened.

“Though I am not as well-cultivated as my Taoist master, I have lived by my wits until this age. May I say a word?”

“Yes.”

Bian Bu pointed to the sun in the sky.

“What is that?”

“The sun.”

Bian Bu pointed to the sun’s reflection in the pond.

“Then what is that reflected in the pond?”

“Of course, that is also the sun.”

Bian Bu waved his finger back and forth.

“How did you know that what I pointed to with my finger was the sun? The sun in the sky and the sun reflected in the pond are different.”

“Well, the sun is just reflected on the water’s surface. Whether it is in the sky or in the pond, the sun is the sun.”

“That’s right. The sun in the sky is the sun, and the sun reflected in the pond is also the sun. The form may change, but the essence does not. You already knew that. But you see…”

Bian Bu continued.

“There are clouds and the moon in the sky. I didn’t point exactly at the sun, so why did you think I was pointing at the sun?”

Woon-jeong blinked.

“I don’t know.”

“There are carp and water plants in the pond, and… well, it’s not pretty, but there are severed limbs and blood. Anyway, why did you think I was pointing at the sun?”

Woon-jeong was also puzzled.

“I don’t know. How could I know?”

“Because I pointed at the sun in the sky first. If I had pointed at the pond first, you wouldn’t have known I was trying to point at the sun.”

“Now that you mention it… that seems to be the case.”

Bian Bu straightened his back while stroking his mustache.

“By pointing at the sun in the sky and then at the pond, you must have realized that I was trying to talk about the sun. And you must have also realized that this is related to what that friend Poison Dragon just said when he said ‘I found it.'”

“Ah, I see. I really expected that.”

“So, what I did was just two finger points at the sun, but through that action, you already guessed what I was trying to say. What I am explaining is just a process of confirmation.”

Woon-jeong had a puzzled expression.

“Sometimes, even without words, we already know. We can know by acting or by meditating and observing ourselves.”

“Ah…”

Woon-jeong’s eyes suddenly became hazy.

Woon-jeong began to mutter unconsciously.

A monkey throws stones at the moon in the river, striking it with a staff

The moon scatters and ripples with the waves.

Is the moon broken?

I reach out my arm to touch it.

The moon in the water is originally formless

I laugh at myself for seeing illusions.

When the waves settle, the moon becomes round again

My doubts will also disappear.

Bian Bu tried to memorize it, thinking it might be a martial arts formula.

Dan Ryeong-gyeong smiled softly.

“It is Eastern poetry.”

“Ah, it was a poem?”

After reciting the poem, Woon-jeong’s eyes completely changed.

His focus was blurry, but his eyes became clearer and shone with crystal light.

Though blood was still flowing from his stomach, he seemed unaware of the pain and was staring blankly at the sun in the sky.

Soso went to apply medicine to Woon-jeong after seeing the blood, but Dan Ryeong-gyeong stopped her.

“Leave him be. Now is not the time.”

Bian Bu smiled with a slightly jealous but amused expression.

“It seems the Qingcheng Taoists are indeed Taoists. With a good foundation, even reciting poetry brings enlightenment.”

Meanwhile, the fight between the unorthodox and orthodox warriors was almost over.

The orthodox warriors eventually stopped fighting and fled. Since it was meaningless to kill them all, the unorthodox warriors quickly cleaned up the arena.

The leader who had brought them came to Dan Ryeong-gyeong.

“We must leave Sichuan now. The carriage is ready.”

But while speaking, he saw Woon-jeong standing blankly beside Dan Ryeong-gyeong.

“What is this young Taoist?”

It was a ridiculous sight to see someone in a state of trance achieving great enlightenment in the middle of the battlefield.

“He looks like a Qingcheng Taoist. Should we kill him?”

Though he said that, he seemed to be unsure whether to kill or not.

Dan Ryeong-gyeong smiled and shook her head.

“No. There is no need.”

When the unorthodox warriors gathered, Dan Ryeong-gyeong bowed to them in gratitude. One arm was missing and one hand was broken, so she couldn’t even properly salute.

“I will not forget your help.”

“Not at all. We have received great help from you, my lady. How could we accept your gratitude for such a thing? It is our great honor.”

The unorthodox warriors brought carriages and horses.

The horses neighed.

When the commotion around them increased, Woon-jeong came out of his trance.

He looked very regretful. Woon-jeong smacked his lips and sighed deeply.

Bian Bu tapped Woon-jeong’s shoulder.

“Come on. We have to go.”

But Woon-jeong looked at Bian Bu with eyes full of respect rather than anger.

“Poison Dragon said there is a wise person in this manor. It was true. I feel my eyes have been greatly opened.”

“Huh? That friend said that?”

Bian Bu felt embarrassed because he had just tried to memorize the poem Woon-jeong recited, thinking it was a martial arts formula.

Bian Bu glanced at Jin Ja-gang, but Jin Ja-gang was indifferent. Jin Ja-gang also had a somewhat pensive expression like Woon-jeong, as if thinking about something.

“I think I should think about something too…”

Dan Ryeong-gyeong urged.

“Do it after getting on the carriage.”

“Ah, yes. Of course.”

Woon-jeong also got on the carriage without really knowing why he was there.

The unorthodox warriors who came to help scattered on different carriages and horses to disperse the eyes of pursuers.

“Let’s go!”

Jin Ja-gang’s carriage also departed. The carriage was large and spacious. The group finally seemed to catch their breath.

The coachman said from outside.

“There is pursuit from the Zhuge family from Guizhou, and from Sichuan to Huguang there are many orthodox sects, so we cannot shake off the pursuit. We must take the route through Qinghai to the frontier and then return.”

“Do so.”

Qinghai was even further west than their current location. It was a route much farther from Shandong, but there was no choice to escape Sichuan.

While the carriage was moving, Soso took care of Dan Ryeong-gyeong’s wounds and applied medicine to Woon-jeong and Jin Ja-gang’s wounds as well.

After traveling silently for a while, Jin Ja-gang looked at Dan Ryeong-gyeong in the carriage. Dan Ryeong-gyeong was sitting cross-legged even in the shaking carriage, but noticed Jin Ja-gang’s gaze and opened her eyes.

“Do you have something to say to me, young hero?”

“I want to express my gratitude. I am indebted to you once again.”

“It seems what I taught you before was helpful.”

She was referring to the Parting Hand Arrow Shot technique.

“It became a crucial moment that saved my life.”

Actually, it was not Jin Ja-gang but someone else’s poison that had defeated Zhuge Yan, but if it had not been for the Parting Hand Arrow Shot, Jin Ja-gang would have been defeated by Zhuge Yan.

Woon-jeong and Bian Bu’s ears perked up as they realized the conversation between Jin Ja-gang and Dan Ryeong-gyeong was about martial arts.

Though eavesdropping on others’ martial arts is not good, Woon-jeong was still a curious teenager, and Bian Bu, though old, had not given up his desire for martial arts due to his compensatory psychology for living as a third-rate person.

Dan Ryeong-gyeong spoke comfortably despite knowing this.

“That earlier technique is called the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique.”

It was the name of the internal cultivation method she had passed on to Jin Ja-gang.

Jin Ja-gang didn’t know, so he just memorized the name, but Woon-jeong and Bian Bu were surprised.

“That earlier technique?”

They had both seen Jin Ja-gang suddenly emit Taoist energy and his martial prowess rise.

That was the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique that Dan Ryeong-gyeong had transmitted.

Woon-jeong exclaimed without realizing it.

“The Toad Technique is an old tradition of our Qingcheng Sect! No wonder I heard strange sounds from Poison Dragon’s body!”

Jin Ja-gang heard it as the sound of thunder inside his body, but others heard it as the croaking of a toad, hence the name Toad Technique.

Woon-jeong looked at Dan Ryeong-gyeong and Jin Ja-gang with surprised eyes. Dan Ryeong-gyeong answered.

“The Toad Technique is a martial art that has been passed down for a long time not only in Qingcheng Sect but also in the Taoist sects.”

“No, how could a Taoist sect’s martial art… Did you steal it?”

Woon-jeong’s eyes showed a little anger. Even though they had helped each other, if the unorthodox sect had stolen the orthodox sect’s martial art, it was absolutely unforgivable.

Bian Bu shouted at Woon-jeong.

“What are you saying! The Toad Technique is also my lady’s family martial art!”

“What?”

In the past, it would have been unimaginable for Bian Bu to shout at a Qingcheng Sect Taoist. But even Woon-jeong, who had glared at Dan Ryeong-gyeong, strangely couldn’t stand up to Bian Bu.

Because Dan Ryeong-gyeong was strongly recognized as the great mother of the Shandong unorthodox sect and was still seen as an enemy, while Bian Bu was considered wise and intelligent.

“That’s nonsense. How could the Toad Technique be passed down as a family martial art in an unorthodox sect family?”

“Exactly! Well… um, I can’t really explain that in detail.”

Bian Bu hesitated and then asked Dan Ryeong-gyeong in protest.

“How could you think of passing that on to that fellow? That is…”

“The situation was not favorable. I didn’t expect Jin So-hyup to master it all at once.”

“But… tsk.”

Bian Bu closed his mouth.

Dan Ryeong-gyeong understood Bian Bu’s feelings.

“You have served me for a long time. So you must be dissatisfied that I didn’t teach you but only told Jin So-hyup. But that martial art has no connection with you.”

Bian Bu sighed and turned his head.

“This fellow is just old enough to feel childish disappointment. Please don’t mind it too much, my lady.”

Woon-jeong interjected.

“The Toad Technique is known as a martial art with great power but also great side effects, so it is not taught carelessly in the Taoist sects. It is passed down to a few but not practiced. Isn’t that the Toad Technique?”

“As the Taoist said, the Toad Technique is a martial art with terrifying power and is difficult to master. Therefore, it has been passed down to very few. The founder of our family was a lay disciple of the Taoist sect and obtained the Toad Technique through connections but did not master it.”

“Ah, then…”

If Dan Ryeong-gyeong’s family was from a lay disciple family of the Taoist sect, then she would not be completely unknown to Woon-jeong.

Woon-jeong was overwhelmed by the complexity of the relationships.

“But our family’s Toad Technique was passed down orally for a long time and no one practiced it until the previous generation, when it finally saw the light of day. The beginning was meeting the Five Thunder Heaven-Shaking Technique.”

“Isn’t the Five Thunder Heaven-Shaking Technique a demonic martial art of the heretical path!”

“I won’t deny it. The Five Thunder Heaven-Shaking Technique is a fierce and violent demonic martial art of the Western Region. But when combined with the Toad Technique, it became the Five Thunder Toad Technique, which gained much more powerful force than the original Toad Technique.”

“Ah, a Taoist martial art combined with demonic martial art. I don’t know what I’m hearing. Primordial Heavenly Venerable. If my master knew I was hearing this so casually, he would try to tear off my ears immediately.”

Dan Ryeong-gyeong continued the story.

“After that, the Five Thunder Toad Technique went through one more refinement to finally become the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique. What I passed on to Junior Jin is part of that advancement.”

Woon-jeong looked at Jin Ja-gang and chanted Taoist invocations.

“Is he a demon because he learned demonic martial arts, or should he be called orthodox because the Toad Technique came from the Taoist sect? Primordial Heavenly Venerable, Primordial Heavenly Venerable.”

He looked very uncomfortable about being with someone who had learned demonic martial arts.

Moreover, being in the same carriage with unorthodox sect people was not easy for Woon-jeong.

“Is it difficult to handle?”

“Primordial Heavenly Venerable, Primordial Heavenly Venerable. For this poor Taoist, it is too difficult.”

Then Woon-jeong suddenly realized there was something more and looked at Dan Ryeong-gyeong with an anxious face. Dan Ryeong-gyeong smiled as if teasing a child.

“The person who helped eliminate the biggest side effect of the Five Thunder Toad Technique and complete the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique is none other than the Dark Venerable Master.”

“…Ugh!”