Chapter 281

Jin Ja-gang didn’t rest for long.

Starting the very next day, he woke up before dawn, making Woon-jeong click his tongue.

Elder Bok-cheon clicked his tongue when he saw Woon-jeong, who was still half-asleep without realizing it.

“A fellow who’s crossed the threshold of death several times is acting like this, tsk.”

Woon-jeong rubbed his sleepy eyes and giggled foolishly.

Even Elder Bok-cheon couldn’t get more angry at Woon-jeong’s innocent laughter.

Seeing Elder Bok-cheon’s anger dissipate at Woon-jeong’s laughter, Jin Ja-gang suddenly realized something.

Sometimes a single laugh, rather than emotional complaints or logical excuses, could induce people to let their guard down.

Jin Ja-gang practiced smiling briefly while following Elder Bok-cheon up the back mountain.

Woon-jeong, who was walking while dozing, saw Jin Ja-gang and was startled.

“Oh my, what a shock!”

“Yes?”

“Why are you suddenly looking at me like you’re going to kill me? What did I do wrong to Brother Poison Dragon?”

“No. I was just trying to smile.”

“Brother Poison Dragon sometimes smiles like that when killing people.”

“…Did I do that?”

“That’s why I’m asking why you were trying to smile while looking at me. Please don’t smile like that just any time. It’s scary.”

Woon-jeong showed the goosebumps on her arms.

“I’m sorry.”

There was a reason Tang Ha-ran had once said Jin Ja-gang looked good when he smiled. It wasn’t easy to force a smile when it wasn’t natural laughter.

“Haha…”

“That’s much better when you smile like that.”

Elder Bok-cheon, who had been walking ahead, looked back.

Come to think of it, Jin Ja-gang lacked the innocent appearance that Woon-jeong had, which made him seem less human.

Perhaps it was too much to ask such things from someone who lived to survive.

* * *

Elder Bok-cheon still had an unhealed hole in his lung and breathed wheezily. However, he showed no signs of weakness during the climb to the mountain peak.

“Try energy circulation breathing.”

It was Woon-jeong who objected to Elder Bok-cheon’s words.

“Again?”

Elder Bok-cheon glared.

“Haven’t I always said it! I told you basics are most important!”

“My fellow disciples said I have the best posture for breathing techniques, but Master scolds me every time.”

“Am I your peer?”

“No…”

Elder Bok-cheon gestured to Jin Ja-gang with his eyes. It meant to try it.

Jin Ja-gang silently prepared for energy circulation breathing. It wasn’t cross-legged sitting but rather a slightly crouched position due to uncomfortable legs.

Woon-jeong pointed out.

“Master, Brother Poison Dragon’s leg posture is wrong.”

“…”

“Master, Brother Poison Dragon’s breathing method is wrong.”

But Elder Bok-cheon didn’t scold Woon-jeong for his observations.

“How is it wrong?”

“First, his posture is too unstable so he can’t breathe in properly, and his breathing is too big and rough at once. Breathing should be long and thin without interruption.”

“Right. But that’s not wrong. It’s just a different method.”

Elder Bok-cheon asked Jin Ja-gang.

“Have you ever learned properly?”

Jin Ja-gang answered.

“When I was young, I learned basic breathing techniques at Hundred Flowers Valley Curve.”

“But why aren’t you doing what you learned then?”

“I became like this without realizing it.”

“Let me tell you exactly. That’s not a breathing method for accumulating internal energy in the dantian through breathing techniques, but already close to Celestial Cycle Fire Regulation.”

Woon-jeong added explanation to Elder Bok-cheon’s words.

“Breathing method is the process of storing nature’s energy in the dantian through breathing, and Celestial Cycle Fire Regulation refers to the body warming up during energy accumulation or before practice!”

“Since you don’t do breathing methods and have no energy accumulation, yet show signs of regulation, it’s because you either can’t store internal energy in your dantian or have already stored internal energy in a different way. You’re doing breathing that instantly triggers the internal energy stored in your body through large amounts of breathing.”

Elder Bok-cheon accurately grasped Jin Ja-gang’s condition.

Jin Ja-gang honestly agreed.

“For eight years trapped in mine tunnels, I practiced breathing and energy circulation countless times, but it didn’t work properly. So I haven’t done the commonly called thin and long, deep and even breathing for a long time.”

“Energy moves through intention and is controlled through breathing. If you neglect breathing methods just because you can’t accumulate internal energy through normal methods, you won’t be able to handle energy effectively.”

Elder Bok-cheon continued.

“Unable to control internal energy, your internal energy runs wild, and you’re even doing breathing that encourages running wild, so your body gets damaged. The reason your body’s blood vessels burst due to damaged meridians is for this reason. If you do correct breathing, even when drawing out maximum internal energy, internal order will be maintained and your body will be less damaged.”

“I understand.”

Jin Ja-gang breathed again in his slightly crouched posture. Jin Ja-gang seemed to instantly fall into a trance-like state. It was tremendous concentration.

But suddenly something flew and hit Jin Ja-gang’s shoulder. No, even before it touched his shoulder, Jin Ja-gang twisted his body and rolled on the ground.

Thwack!

The tree branch Elder Bok-cheon swung down couldn’t hit Jin Ja-gang and struck the ground.

Elder Bok-cheon waved the branch as if he expected this, saying.

“The posture doesn’t have to be proper sitting. But can correct breathing come out when you’re always ready to leap out?”

Jin Ja-gang’s unstable posture was a stance to move immediately whenever he felt threatened.

“I’m standing guard. Put your mind at ease. Right now, no one can harm you.”

Jin Ja-gang couldn’t answer immediately. Woon-jeong stood up from her spot.

“If you really don’t trust Master, I’ll also stand guard…”

Smack!

“You sit.”

“Yes…”

Woon-jeong got hit on the head once and immediately sat down in lotus position.

Jin Ja-gang thought for a moment, then closed his eyes, relaxed his body more, and focused on breathing.

After a while, Jin Ja-gang suddenly flinched and tried to move his body.

It was because a single leaf blown by the wind had passed right in front of his nose.

“It was a leaf that flew from far away. Don’t try to sense only what’s right nearby, but spread your senses far while breathing. This is called escaping shadows to view forests. Leave the shade of trees and see the forest. You are part of great nature. Just let everything around you flow by. There’s no need to be wary of things that won’t harm you. However, if you don’t release your wariness, the internal energy within you will harm you.”

Elder Bok-cheon continued.

“If there are times to be tense, there must also be times to let go. If there are times to pull, there must be times to push. Or there are times when you must do nothing at all.”

Jin Ja-gang recalled Woon-jeong’s carefree laughter. A single laugh that was nothing had dissolved tension.

Escaping shadows to view forests.

The theme Elder Bok-cheon threw out struck Jin Ja-gang’s heartstrings with shock.

The current Jin Ja-gang had been running only for revenge right before his eyes. But now the time had come to see further into the future and complete his revenge. To do that, his field of vision needed to broaden first, and he needed to have a relaxed appearance befitting that.

That was exactly escaping shadows to view forests.

But even so, it took Jin Ja-gang a full five more days to completely relax his mind and focus only on breathing.

* * *

As his breathing method settled in place, Jin Ja-gang grew remarkably fast. He was in a state where he already had everything he needed but couldn’t move forward because he couldn’t refine it delicately.

As his breathing was refined, order gradually established in his body as Elder Bok-cheon said. He gained the power to control internal energy rampage even in situations where he drew up internal energy to extreme heights.

As he overcame the limits his body could endure and his threshold increased, Jin Ja-gang’s vessel became more solid and broader. Since his body wouldn’t be damaged even when drawing internal energy to the maximum, he gained leisure in his own energy practice.

Jin Ja-gang realized he was becoming stronger through breathing methods alone. It was much more effective than constantly training and pushing his body to the limit through whipping himself.

It was truly amazing to be able to overcome the wall blocking his path without such pain.

“To escape from a well, you need not only the strength to climb up the well but also the heart to accept the world outside the well. You had the strength but lacked mental leisure, so you didn’t know how much you had grown. Only now have you escaped shadows to view forests and left the tree shade.”

Elder Bok-cheon spoke bluntly without showing it, but he was proud of Jin Ja-gang, and Woon-jeong couldn’t help being amazed at Jin Ja-gang’s changing appearance every time she woke up.

* * *

Though Jin Ja-gang couldn’t accumulate internal energy through breathing methods, he achieved considerable accomplishment by learning proper breathing methods.

He was already approaching the Fifth Light. Jin Ja-gang could tell that he would be able to surpass the Fourth Light before long.

However, even if he gained the power of the Fifth Light, it would still not be easy to fight against masters approaching transcendent levels.

According to Woon-jeong, orthodox martial learning must be sustained throughout one’s lifetime and its effects appear late. No matter how much he tried not to be impatient, he couldn’t spend decades on revenge.

Ultimately, unless he obtained some fortune, Jin Ja-gang would have to face them by filling the lacking parts with his poison.

Jin Ja-gang had turbid energy accumulated in his body. The turbid energy in his left half-body was created by the concentration of numerous poisons, with considerable quantity and formidable power.

Even the immortal-like Mount Emei’s Non-Killing Sword Myowol, who couldn’t be defeated even when Woon-jeong and Dan Ryeong-gyeong combined forces, became powerless when hit by turbid energy poison, and even Baek Li-jung, who had defeated Venerable Woo-am, couldn’t easily escape the turbid energy poison.

But there was a drawback.

Because it was a mixture of essences of all kinds of poisons, the effects couldn’t be predicted.

Poison must spread through the body and cause poisoning before the opponent realizes it to achieve proper effects. This time he was lucky that the poison took effect immediately, but if minor symptoms appeared before fatal effects manifested, masters could respond immediately.

Even Baek Li-jung had contracted leg muscles to prevent poison needles from penetrating his energy channels, and Myowol had immediately stopped moving and blocked the poison’s spread with internal energy the moment she realized she was poisoned. Only Zhuge Son-gi was late because he thought he had blocked Jin Ja-gang’s poison needles and couldn’t respond immediately.

Poison must be used secretly, and for that, effects must be predictably certain. Only then can one penetrate the opponent’s carelessness and poison them.

Or be powerful enough that it doesn’t matter if the opponent notices the poisoning.

Finding that means was Jin Ja-gang’s concern.

Recently, while establishing proper breathing methods, Jin Ja-gang noticed new changes occurring in his body.

Beyond breathing methods, when he unconsciously moved to energy practice, he could feel the internal energy gradually becoming more pure and smooth.

Warmed through Celestial Cycle Fire Regulation, internal energy naturally circulated throughout the body through Water Rising Fire Descending, and even turbid energy participated and moved together. Then after energy practice ended, the right half-body’s internal energy would return to meridians and the left half-body’s turbid energy would return to its original place in the energy channels.

Through this, internal energy was partially consumed, the body filled with vitality, and impurities were expelled through sweat.

While the absolute amount of internal energy decreased, the original pure internal energy itself didn’t decrease. Rather, the purified internal energy flowed through energy channels quickly and stably, producing much stronger power.

Jin Ja-gang focused on this and decided to continuously practice energy circulation with the left side’s turbid energy. Through continuous energy practice, he filtered out and refined the impurities in the turbid energy.

Pure poison, and even purer poison than that, he continued improving it.

He also didn’t forget to wander the surrounding mountains and consume poisonous plants whenever he had spare time.

For Jin Ja-gang, who couldn’t accumulate internal energy through energy circulation breathing, poison intake through consumption was an important means of internal energy improvement.