Chapter 318 – Hyeon Won (13)

A cool twilight fell over the hillside.

It was near Taiyuan in Shanxi Province. While Jeong Yeon-shin, Won Jeok, Goon Yu-rin, and Jeon Baek were surrounding one of the Profound Martial Alliance’s Martial Venerables, a problem arose.

It was about how to deal with the Flying Blood Venerable.

First, Won Jeok asked Radiant Demon Wing Leader for his opinion, saying, ‘Would this humble monk be permitted to spare his life?’

Jeong Yeon-shin pondered.

An adversary who had shown killing intent first. Someone who had committed visible atrocities.

He had only delivered fatal blows to such people from the beginning.

The only exception was Azure Qilin Namgung Se-jin, which might be why his dreams were occasionally troubled.

He felt he could even manifest the Emperor Sword Form if he wanted to.

“I’m not saying I’ll heal him,” Won Jeok said. “Just that I won’t kill him. This monk is inherently hypocritical, so it’s enough to leave him breathing on the ground and move on.”

Shaolin Temple has a rule against killing. Despite being a martial sect, they do not permit killing.

Because it’s a Buddhist temple.

The moment a monk kills someone, they break their precepts.

This is why fist techniques, staff methods, and other self-defense techniques developed at Shaolin.

It was an absolute principle that remained unbroken even when the Yuan Dynasty covered this land.

The birthplace of martial arts on the continent is Mount Song. It could be called the martial world itself. Shaolin’s stance was a principle that had been passed down through the ages.

Even the famously eccentric “Namgung First Sword” never forced Shaolin monks to kill, they say.

Both when he was at the Namgung family and after he burned his household register and moved to the Thirteen Evil Sects Martial Dragon Association.

Jeong Yeon-shin slowly opened his mouth. Below him, the Flying Blood Venerable, covered in blue bruises, was glaring up at him fiercely.

“It would be painful to live as a commoner.”

The precept marks engraved on Won Jeok’s forehead rose slightly.

“A commoner, you say?”

“We should destroy his dantian and limb meridians. There must be no future trouble.”

Huh…

A sigh escaped from the renowned elf monk’s lips.

Jeong Yeon-shin, who had casually issued the sentence as Radiant Demon Wing Leader, inwardly flinched. This was a time when the Buddhist reputation was higher than ever.

No one in the world would want to offend a high monk of Shaolin Temple.

For someone from Henan who had grown up admiring the Hundred Step Divine Fist game as a child, this was especially true.

‘Am I cold and harsh?’

It was like when he dealt with his niece Hye-ah. He was about to reflect on himself.

“How incredibly compassionate!”

“Pardon?”

“The patron is truly worthy of being called the incarnation of Nezha by the people. You truly value the lives of common people.”

Won Jeok laughed heartily.

A quality similar to fondness emanated from the monk’s gaze. It felt as if he were stroking Jeong Yeon-shin’s head with his eyes.

“Considering what this man has done in the martial world to earn the name Flying Blood Venerable… that much should be done to him. This humble monk failed to think of it. Even a common method becomes a brilliant solution when applied in the right situation.”

“I see.”

Jeong Yeon-shin straightened his shoulders.

Goon Yu-rin, who had been staring blankly at the two of them, hastily opened her lips.

“Wait, wait a moment. You’re going to let him live?”

“He’s an extremely wicked person! His malice reaches the heavens! Who knows what methods he might use to become powerful again…!”

Jeon Baek choked out from behind her.

They were the ones who had dealt with the Flying Blood Venerable the longest.

They must have witnessed his qualities and character, even the achievements he had accumulated to reach the position of one of the Profound Martial Alliance’s Three Martial Venerables. Their unease must feel like a thousand pounds.

The corners of the Flying Blood Venerable’s mouth trembled as they curled upward.

“Desolate Fortress, Shaolin. How… merciful. Someday, I will… learn upper dantian sword techniques… and surely repay this kindness. To our lady as well.”

His voice was ice-cold. It was a tone that evoked blades.

He was someone renowned throughout the world as a sword master. A grandmaster who had systematized the Profound Martial Alliance’s high-level martial arts into twin sword techniques. His boast about sword techniques didn’t sound like empty words.

Goon Yu-rin bit her lower lip, unable to do anything among these powerful figures, and a gleam flashed in her eyes.

It was then.

A faint yellowish-brown line flashed five times in the air, followed by a dull noise. It was the sound of flesh tearing.

The Flying Blood Venerable’s groan flowed out a breath later.

Argh—!

His limbs shook violently.

Bruises began to rise on both his arms and legs. A gentle breeze spread from his sunken lower abdomen.

It was the energy wave flowing from his exploded dantian, and the internal energy he had accumulated was so profound that even the surrounding undergrowth continued to shake.

He wields his staff like an iron palm. Won Jeok had struck the ground vertically with his staff.

Thud!

The punishment Shaolin gives to expelled disciples.

A staff strike imbued with the weight-increasing technique had been delivered.

His limb meridians were crushed and his dantian shattered to pieces by the heavy energy waves. It had happened in an instant.

Won Jeok did not even glance at the Flying Blood Venerable after delivering such a harsh blow.

The renowned elf monk’s gaze was fixed on Radiant Demon Wing Leader. Unlike when he had swung his staff at the Flying Blood Venerable, his eyes were extremely benevolent.

“Earlier, you followed me with mystical footsteps. The dharma power traces in your movement technique were rich, and it seems the patron is truly born with immortal bones and Buddha material. The guardian deity Nezha permeates all your conduct.”

The tone of one of Shaolin’s Four Great Vajras had lost the stiffness of a first meeting. It had softened tremendously.

A clear light gleamed in his two eyes.

“Ha.”

Goon Yu-rin, who had been holding her breath among these supreme masters, took a step back with a disgusted expression. The high monk before her was said to have devoted a hundred years to wall-facing meditation, making him a monster of incredible power.

He couldn’t possibly be in his right mind. The light in the handsome monk’s eyes looked bizarrely like some kind of infatuation.

“When Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty wanted to contend with Bodhidharma, Bodhidharma crossed the river on a single reed leaf to avoid killing, which became known as the ‘crossing a river on a single reed’ movement technique benchmark. The body cultivation methods he created for nurturing life have been passed down as the Muscle Changing Classic and Marrow Washing Classic.”

Won Jeok smiled brightly.

“There are widespread rumors that Radiant Demon Wing Leader, who engages in combat, surrounds himself with lotuses to intimidate his surroundings, and the movement technique you showed this humble monk might become known as the steps of Nezha treading the lotus throne of the Western Pure Land.”

It was a story about the Buddhist afterlife.

The lotus throne refers to the platform where practitioners sit after death. Its proper name is the Nine-Grade Lotus Throne.

It is said to be made of nine lotuses… Jeong Yeon-shin slightly moved his lips but stopped. He merely thought: Is this acceptable?

He gains favor no matter what he says or does.

He wondered if this was what would happen if his maternal grandfather’s and the Seven Evil Lords’ temperaments were mixed, but then inwardly slapped his own cheek for having such thoughts about a high monk of Shaolin.

‘This unworthy Jeong Yeon-shin, how extremely wicked…’

This was because one of Shaolin’s Four Great Vajras had fully accepted Radiant Demon Wing Leader’s Shanxi title.

It was like being acknowledged with a title containing plum blossoms by an ancient immortal of Mount Hua Sect.

“Your words are too much for me to bear. I’ve recently come to deeply respect Bodhidharma.”

Jeong Yeon-shin’s voice carried sincerity. That was how profound the sense of kinship he had felt with Shaolin’s founding patriarch.

The current Radiant Demon Wing Leader felt as if he had finally met another person after being alone in a remote jungle at the edge of the world.

“Excellent, excellent!”

Won Jeok uttered the archaic phrase for “very good.”

A supreme master who has opened their upper dantian is extremely sensitive to others’ energy colors.

They are adept at distinguishing truth from falsehood and the intensity of emotions, having mastered the ability to block enemy strikes by reading them. The corners of the supreme monk’s mouth split completely.

“I must make an offering to the patron.”

“…What do you mean by offering?”

“Actually, I came down with one disciple, but due to his extremely slow pace, we became separated. That child is carrying the Clear Mind Pill that this monk received from the temple’s Medicine King Hall. This old monk doesn’t like having things cluttering his body.”

Indeed, his only luggage was a single staff. He didn’t even have a bowl for alms or a sleeping bag to rest comfortably.

“Monk…?”

Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes widened.

Would he be able to heal his internal injuries even before returning to Desolate Fortress?

Shaolin’s Clear Mind Pill.

It was a millennium-old internal injury medicine that incorporated renowned clan secrets into Shaolin Medicine King Hall’s medical techniques.

He had taken it before. It was right before Radiant Demon Wing, Annihilation Team, and Azure Sky Squad had joined forces to attack the Hwangbo family.

He remembered how his entire body’s energy and blood had recovered instantly upon consumption. The medicinal efficacy flowing throughout his body had felt extremely precious.

“However, since the patron’s body is not well… I’m reluctant to let you leave alone. It will take quite some time to find my inadequate disciple.”

“Compared to the monk’s kindness, a long wait is nothing.”

Jeong Yeon-shin answered calmly.

Suddenly thinking of Hyeon Won-chang, Lazy Flame Dragon, and Shin So-bin, he realized that refusing here made no sense.

He might even be scolded by his companions. They would say the squad leader’s body comes first.

The same was true for Won Jeok’s absence.

A Desolate Fortress black-rank relying on one of Shaolin’s Four Great Vajras? Anyone would find it absurd.

He did not feel any great threat from the Slaughter Sect and Murong family he would face.

A strange feeling had come over him since defeating Zhuge Clan Leader. A premonition that somehow things would work out.

Even now, the image of a sword was flickering in his mind.

The Northern Light Divine Sword at his waist was whispering to him. Telling him to go meet his companions.

“The patron is already a complete martial artist.”

A smile remained on Won Jeok’s smooth face, like a shaved head.

“My concerns were unfounded. Let’s meet in Taiyuan.”

Crunch.

The sound of stepping on snow was crisp. With those final words, the monk turned and moved away. The orange hem of his robe fluttered over the snow field.

Jeong Yeon-shin, Goon Yu-rin, and Jeon Baek remained.

“Now things are clean.”

Goon Yu-rin, who had glanced at the Flying Blood Venerable twitching at her feet, brushed back the hair by her ears.

“I feel at ease. I’ve prevented the sect’s dregs from interfering with my great cause. Now all that’s left is to truly charge ahead.”

“Did you really take control of the Profound Martial Alliance’s martial forces?”

Jeong Yeon-shin asked abruptly.

Goon Yu-rin snickered and shrugged her angular shoulders slightly.

“Unless my damned father comes himself, there won’t be any problems. There are only four people who outrank me in the command hierarchy. Just the Profound Martial Alliance Leader and the Three Martial Venerables.”

“What about the young master?”

“He’s equal to me.”

She spoke seriously, her lips moving.

“Really, don’t worry about it. The high and mighty ones are too busy strategizing for the world to move their heavy backsides. The Flying Blood Venerable was the limit.”

Flap!

Goon Yu-rin shook her sleeve dramatically.

She seemed to have lost interest in the sprawled Flying Blood Venerable. At least outwardly.

“Heh… hehehe…”

The swordsman who had lost everything only let out a laugh that sounded like a groan. He appeared completely insane.

Occasionally, his eyes would glance at Jeong Yeon-shin, revealing frustration and despair.

Earlier, he had spoken of upper dantian sword techniques, but after losing the dantian and limb meridians he had cultivated throughout his life, he could not maintain his composure.

This was the martial world.

“Let’s go.”

Jeong Yeon-shin turned his steps first. Soon after, Goon Yu-rin and Jeon Baek followed.

The late winter sunlight was deep.

Everything was pure white. The group, which still maintained a strange distance despite having grown closer, walked in silence for a while.

The one-armed Jeon Baek was now watching Jeong Yeon-shin carefully, unlike during their first meeting.

“Excuse me, I need to visit the latrine.”

“Where is there a latrine around here?”

“My lady, please understand. One shouldn’t pry into private matters.”

“Hurry back. If you steal again, I’ll break your wrist. Our sect has its reputation…”

With a “yes, yes,” Jeon Baek slipped away and only returned after a long while. He came with a glib excuse that his excrement had hardened in his stomach.

The scholarly martial artist with a face that would look quite handsome if he smiled broadly maintained a subservient attitude in front of Goon Yu-rin and Jeong Yeon-shin.

Jeong Yeon-shin detected a faint fishy smell from Jeon Baek’s fan. It was the smell of blood that hadn’t been there before. He could guess that the latrine story had been an excuse.

He had gone to kill the Flying Blood Venerable.

“……”

Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t question him.

Only the crunching sound of snow underfoot echoed. A cool silence followed behind the three pairs of footprints being made in a line.

This was the martial world.

***

Read only at nineheavens.org

Translated by Nine Heavens!

https://discord.gg/XC9DTsTQ9Z

***

The shadow cast at the foot of the cliff was enormous. It was large enough to swallow several figures without showing it.

“We should have killed him earlier. How many times have we caught him only to let him slip away?”

“They’re all disciples of renowned clans. They’re carrying medicinal energy that hasn’t fully dissolved in their bodies, so naturally, they should be treated like treasures.”

“Let’s say that’s true for the Slaughter Sect’s b*at*rd and the Scorching Divine Meridian, but what about the Desolate Shin family’s daughter? I don’t know who she takes after, but her temperament is extraordinary. That slender neck should be cut with a single stroke…”

“Don’t be frivolous. There are no exceptions.”

“Is this an order from above?”… “There’s much to extract from that girl too. The heirs of families under Desolate Fortress are all being raised as future black-ranks. They don’t worry about energy accumulation. They only care about the time it takes to fully dissolve the medicinal energy.”

“What a fate. Damn it.”

“You should be grateful that the origin of the Energy Absorption Great Technique is from the Heavenly Demon martial lineage. Be thankful that secret technique has come to our main house. Who knows, you might benefit from it someday?”

“Hmm…”

“More importantly, the Hwangbo boy is the problem. We’ve successfully separated his group, but the damage is enormous.”

“I heard. The southern formation of the net of heaven and earth has been broken?”

“It melted away.”

“What about the branch leader? There’s no way that second-rate supreme master of the Murong family couldn’t catch him…”

“He captured a messenger from the Blazing Moon Slaughter Sect’s Shanxi branch. There was some incomprehensible information written on it, apparently a secret password being distributed to all Blazing Moon Slaughter Sect branches across the country.”

“That’s no small matter. Can we know about it too?”

“Of course. It was a phrase warning to beware of pink robe hems…”

Crack.

The shadow at the foot of the cliff swallowed a horrific sound of flesh being crushed. With a single noise, the presences in all eight directions lost their vitality.

There wasn’t even the sound of bodies falling. It was as if all their bodies had been completely pulverized.

Soon after, until a pale pink robe hem with a slight white tinge coolly brushed past one corner of the shade.

There was no sound at all.