Chapter 107: Jaseung, Runs

“What in the world is happening right now?”

At Heukso’s question, Ban Yeo only fiddled with the cup of liquor in his hand without answering.

He had faked his death and hidden himself in this place.

Rage burned inside him like an erupting volcano. Whenever he thought about the Void Azure Stone Oil that had taken him a lifetime to gather, he felt like smashing his forehead against the wall.

But he forced himself to stay calm. If he let vengeance consume him and lost control, even the head he had barely kept attached would be gone.

He would calmly assess the situation and respond. Then he would take revenge on everyone involved in bringing him to this state.

“Where are the Virtuous Heroes?”

“They all returned to the Alliance.”

“Do they believe I am dead?”

“Yes. Since the matter was handled thoroughly, they cannot help but believe it.”

The truth was, the one filled with doubt was Heukso. He had rushed back and carried out Ban Yeo’s orders, but he could not understand why the situation had turned out this way.

Until now, he had obeyed Ban Yeo’s commands without question. He never entertained unnecessary doubts because he thought they would only betray his loyalty and shorten his life.

But things were different now.

“I must ask now. Please tell me everything.”

Perhaps Ban Yeo judged that the time had come as well. He began to speak of what he had never revealed before.

“The cauldron has been boiling for a very long time.”

“What?”

At the strange words, Heukso looked puzzled.

Ban Yeo continued, unconcerned.

“It is a cauldron filled with bones. A broth simmered until the marrow gives it a rich flavor. Those who tend the cauldron know well that it must be boiled for a long time to bring out the true taste. A bowl of that broth with a cup of liquor, it is exquisite.”

He finally emptied the cup he had been toying with.

“The biggest bone in that cauldron is Jang Wonso.”

Only then did Heukso understand. Ban Yeo was speaking in metaphor about the current situation.

“Long ago, when he drew me in, he asked me if I wanted to help make a fine dish together. Since then, I thought I was standing on the same side as those who tended the cauldron.”

“Were you not?”

Ban Yeo gave a self-mocking smile.

“The second largest bone in that cauldron was me.”

He downed several cups of liquor in succession.

“To be honest, I never thought I would be discarded so easily.”

He said it calmly.

“Who exactly are they?”

“I do not know their true identities. They always appeared masked.”

“I cannot understand. Why would you join hands with such people?”

His master was greedy and ambitious, but Heukso found it hard to believe that Ban Yeo had become the pawn of people whose identities he didn’t even know.

“They are that strong. Truly powerful. But there was a decisive reason I let myself be drawn in.”

“And what was that?”

“My ambition. They thoroughly used my ambition, my desire to become the Alliance Leader of the martial world. I am sure Jang Wonso was the same.”

“You mean Jang Wonso too was recruited from the beginning?”

“Of course. It was they who placed him as Alliance Leader. They chose him instead of me.”

“…!”

Heukso was shocked. He had known there were formidable figures in the shadows, but he never imagined they had even created the Alliance Leader.

“Did I not tell you? The cauldron has been boiling for a long time.”

“Then what is their goal? To secretly rule the world?”

Ban Yeo gave a silent nod. He could not say it with confidence because he didn’t know for sure what those powerful shadow rulers truly wanted.

“One more question. Is that old woman from One Fleeting Dream involved in this?”

He knew Ban Yeo had secretly met her when he visited Heaven’s Gate. Curious about her true identity, he asked just in case.

Ban Yeo emptied his cup and replied vaguely.

“You can say that she’s both not involved at all, or completely involved.”

* * *

Not far from the Murim Alliance, in a quiet manor, an old man lay on a bed. His body was emaciated, his face deathly pale.

Anyone could tell, even without being a physician.

He was dying. He had little time left.

A man stood before him.

The man wore a mask, and on his forehead was written the character for Earth. He was the same man who had once visited the Alliance Leader.

His eyes were too cold, too pitiless for someone looking at a dying man.

The old man spoke with difficulty.

“I want to see him.”

The Earth-marked man answered calmly.

“We sent word through Ban Yeo before, that you were very ill.”

“Contact him again.”

“Is there any need?”

His tone was as if to say, the man would never come anyway.

The old man glared at him with eyes full of resentment.

But the Earth-marked man didn’t avert his gaze. Instead of apology, he radiated a chill like a snake.

Then a voice came from behind.

“I will take him.”

A masked woman stood by the door. Her exposed eyes were breathtakingly beautiful, and though she wore martial attire, her figure was so graceful that it would draw admiration from anyone.

Like the man, her mask bore a character on the forehead. Water.

The Earth-marked man looked at her with disapproval.

But the Water-marked woman paid no attention. She strode to the old man and said,

“Come. I will take you.”

* * *

For a master like Lee Jaseung, inner Qi itself didn’t hold much meaning. With little inner Qi he could still kill most enemies.

It only mattered when facing someone of equal skill, or when fighting many at once, because stamina allowed him to endure.

But even then, with him possessing three hundred years worth of inner Qi, it had not meant much.

So he had thought that gaining more inner Qi would not change his martial arts.

In short, three hundred or five hundred and forty years, it didn’t make a difference.  

But now he had to change his mind.

His martial body technique had transformed.

When he used the power of the five hundred and forty years worth of Qi, the feeling of his martial techniques, no, the very techniques themselves, changed completely.

Pow! Pow! Pow!

His fists and feet tore through the air.

When he needed speed, he was faster. When he needed weight, he struck heavier. The stability of his martial arts had become something entirely new.

His inner Qi and his movements were united, flowing perfectly. It was a feeling beyond words.

Lee Jaseung realized.

The body technique required five hundred and forty years worth inner Qi. Only with it could the techniques show their full potential.

And what about this?

He took a book from his robes.

It was the Manual of Limitless Steps, which he had obtained from the Murim Alliance’s strategist Sa Jo-pyeong.

He had already memorized its contents perfectly.

He checked one last time, then gathered Qi into his hand. Using the True Flame of Sammae, flames burst forth and consumed the book.

Fwoosh.

Just like that, the ancient secret manual became ashes.

He destroyed it because he saw no need to keep a book whose contents he already carried in his mind.

It was the same as not storing elixirs but consuming them immediately. He believed it was better to erase any item that could be stolen and cause trouble. This had always been his principle.

He then put the Manual into practice.

Without knowing how to direct Qi, the techniques were no better than common footwork. But he had already learned the internal cultivation method from the iron chest.

His steps became swift and dazzling. Faster than before, with more control.

Until now, his footwork had been based only on instinct, born of talent. It had been enough.

But now he was learning the true art of movement.

Moreover, it was deeply connected to the body technique he had recently mastered.

He combined the two, and just as he expected, they enhanced each other.

His body moved faster and more precisely, as if the two arts were one.

When he finished one sequence, he added something more.

This time, he used the five hundred and forty years worth of inner Qi with the Manual.

Both his body techniques and the Manual’s movement changed drastically. It was clear that the Manual, too, required five hundred and forty years worth Qi.

With both united, his movements reached their finest form since he had ever learned martial arts.

It was like giving wings to a tiger.

He marveled at himself again and again. He had been strong before, but he knew the former him could never defeat this version that combined body technique with the Limitless Steps.

Who had once used such extraordinary martial arts?

When his training ended, a strange smile curved his lips.

He was at the fourth sub-level as a Transcendent Peak Realm master.

But he felt he had moved one step further.

The first step was always the hardest. Now he had firmly set foot toward the third level of the Transcendent Peak.

It could take only three steps or even a hundred to reach the end. The long journey had begun.

The Void Azure Stone Oil Ban Yeo left behind had given him this great opportunity.

Along with his progress, Lee Jaseung realized something else.

What the eyes see and the body feels are not everything.

He had never dreamed the body technique would feel so different.

The more you know, the more you see.

In this case, it applied differently.

Only when he had filled the five hundred and forty years worth could he understand that this was what the art demanded.

Some things could only be known by reaching that realm yourself.

And this truth didn’t apply only to martial arts. It applied to human relationships too.

There are things you can only know at the deepest end of a bond. Without reaching that point, you never understand them.

And there was more he gained.

The Manual contained not only footwork for body techniques, but also instructions for speed and lightness arts.

“Mook Young.”

“Yes.”

At his call, Mook Young appeared. When Lee Jaseung trained, he usually kept his followers at a distance. They avoided watching out of courtesy, though he never hid his training.

“You were faster in lightness movement arts, weren’t you?”

“Just a little faster.”

He was showing modesty. At least in running, Mook Young was much faster than Lee Jaseung, and in stealth and tracking he excelled even more.

“Shall we have a race?”

“Are you serious?”

“To the village gate. The loser buys the drinks. How about it?”

Though usually quiet at his side, Mook Young had a strong competitive streak. Especially since this was about the lightness skill he was most confident in, there was no reason to refuse.

“Very well.”

The two stood side by side.

“Three, two, one.”

They leapt at the same time.

From the start, Mook Young pulled ahead. The distance grew quickly, but he didn’t slow down.

He thought Lee Jaseung would not propose this unless he was sure he could win, so he ran with all his strength. Even though he admired him, he didn’t want to lose.

Mook Young vaulted over a wall and flew between the buildings, taking the shortest route.

When he reached the village gate, he opened his eyes wide.

Lee Jaseung was already there.

The lightness movement art within the Limitless Steps was truly extraordinary.

It made him faster than even Mook Young, who was famed for it.

With a trembling voice, Mook Young asked,

“… How did this happen?”

Lee Jaseung grinned and replied.

“I wanted you to buy me a drink, so I ran like my life depended on it.”

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