What is a dantian to a martial artist?

‘Everything.’

Even a master of external martial arts must study internal energy.

Only by creating a dantian and accumulating internal energy can external martial arts also reach a realm.

Learning martial arts generally involves accumulating internal energy in the dantian as a basic.

So if the dantian is destroyed, the emptiness and sense of loss that a martial artist would feel would be indescribable.

Yuk Seong, whose eyes were trembling, was like that.

“N-No way…”

A large hole was pierced in his dantian with just one finger flicking technique.

It wasn’t just a hole.

It was torn to shreds by the destructive power.

All the internal energy he had accumulated for decades flowed out through the torn and pierced gap.

“I have one question. Are you from the Blood Demon Sect and became a secular disciple of Mount Hua Sect? Or did you live as a secular disciple, get blocked by a wall, and then get tempted by the Soul Sucking Demonic Art and go over to the Blood Demon Sect?”

There was no answer.

There was only the sight of a shabby old man fumbling with his hands as if trying to pick up the flowing internal energy with his unfocused eyes.

“Well, I have a rough idea.”

Cheon Mubaeck sneered.

“You must have been blocked by a wall. The kind of wall that all martial artists experience at least once.”

In an instant, Heo Seong, who was behind him, flinched.

Heo Seong narrowed his lips and looked back and forth between Cheon Mubaeck and Yuk Seong, who had aged into a shabby old man.

Cheon Mubaeck’s calm voice flowed.

“No matter how hard you try, it won’t break. No matter how much you swing your sword and have duels, you can’t move forward.”

“…”

Only then did the bloodshot eyes of Yuk Seong, who had been acting like a madman, turn to Cheon Mubaeck.

Heo Seong took a sharp breath.

Just a moment ago, he had shown an immortal-like demeanor, but now he was not just shabby but grotesque.

His lustrous skin had withered like a piece of wood. His fine white hair, pale eyebrows, and beard had all lost their energy and become stiff.

His pupils, which had been full of a bright light, were now filled with all sorts of lust, violence, and desire.

“What do you, a mere brat, know to dare to speak!”

“Well, it’s obvious. I’ve seen one or two guys like that.”

“Shut up! I said shut up!”

“You were blocked by a wall and frustrated, so you started looking for excuses. Come to think of it, I’m a secular disciple, right? Huh? I couldn’t learn the Plum Blossom Sword of Mount Hua Sect, right? Huh? So I can’t break the wall, right? You must have thought like that.”

Heo Seong was swept away by a strange emotion.

It was clearly a mockery of Yuk Seong. But it felt like a sharp dagger was stabbing his lungs.

“Ha. So Mount Hua Sect doesn’t feel like a master, but like a dog. Huh? It would have been so much better if they had taught me the Plum Blossom Sword! And the internal energy cultivation method that the first-generation disciples learn? You thought you couldn’t realize your talent because of these guys. But the guys from the Blood Demon Sect are breaking through the wall you were frustrated by with the Soul Sucking Demonic Art without a problem, right? You were tempted.”

Heo Seong swallowed his saliva.

‘If I hadn’t met my lord, I might have become like that person.’

Of course, he now knew well how extremely evil the group called the Blood Demon Sect was.

But when faced with such a situation, would he be confident that he wouldn’t do as Cheon Mubaeck said?

Heo Seong could not easily give an answer.

Because he might have become like that too.

‘It’s a funny thing. If I had gotten married early, I would have had a child as old as my lord… That insight that pierces the core in an instant, I can’t believe his age.’

Goosebumps rose slightly.

There were many scary things about Cheon Mubaeck. The realm of his martial arts, whose end could not be known, his meticulousness in leading the situation, and his strange charm that drew people in.

But among them, what Heo Seong thought was the scariest was that insight.

‘Insight is something that cannot be easily obtained no matter how great one’s talent is. Because it is something that can only be obtained through experience.’

It wasn’t for nothing that there was a saying in the martial world to be careful of the elderly.

No matter how little internal energy they had, an old man who had survived for a long time in the martial world had a lot of experience. The insight that came from there contained all wisdom.

But he saw that in Cheon Mubaeck, who was only sixteen.

“Doesn’t it seem bitter when you look at it like this? Escort Warrior Heo?”

“Pardon…?”

“I’m talking about him touching demonic arts after struggling against a wall.”

“That’s…”

To be honest, it wasn’t that he couldn’t sympathize at all.

Because he had also been on a similar path.

Cheon Mubaeck looked at the struggling Yuk Seong with a somewhat bitter expression.

“Guys like this are really…”

I’ve seen a lot. I’ve seen a lot.

There were countless of them.

One of the reasons why the Blood Demon Sect had gained power was because quite a few good masters from the orthodox and unorthodox sects had joined them.

Because the power of the Soul Sucking Demonic Art they had was that tempting.

Perhaps there were countless cases like Yuk Seong in the martial world.

Even if they didn’t fall for the temptation of the Soul Sucking Demonic Art, how many martial artists’ lives ended there after meeting a wall and being frustrated in the Central Plains?

Even so.

“I sympathize, but I don’t understand. You’re trash.”

Paak!

Cheon Mubaeck’s kick shattered Yuk Seong’s shoulder.

“Then where is righteousness, and where is chivalry? Huh? If everyone gets blocked and relies on the Soul Sucking Demonic Art like a dog or a cow.”

Paak!

This time, his knee was completely shattered.

“No matter how desolate the martial world becomes, the existence of the martial world can only survive if there is righteousness and chivalry.”

When his last wrist was stepped on and shattered by his foot, Cheon Mubaeck threw his head back and sat opposite him.

“Alright. It’s hard to discuss righteousness and chivalry with you, so I shouldn’t do that either. Shall we start by talking about one thing you know?”

A smile bloomed on Cheon Mubaeck’s face.

Yuk Seong, who was groaning in pain, trembled all over when he saw the smile and then smiled serenely.

It was a smile that seemed to mock Cheon Mubaeck.

“I can’t tell you even if I want to!”

“Huh. You’re different from Gu Jin-hae. You know you have a restriction on you?”

“A restriction? So… those guys put a restriction on me. If not, they wouldn’t have shown themselves to us. I didn’t know either. I just guessed.”

“You’re a smarter guy than Gu Jin-hae. But seeing how you came to the Lotus Pavilion without anything, you seem to be a fool too.”

“It was a conclusion I came to after investigating all the information. Even if that guy named Heo Seong beat Gu Jin-hae, I’m stronger than Gu Jin-hae.”

“Don’t you know that 30% of the information in the martial world is always hidden?”

“So that 30% was you.”

“And that 30% is what changes things.”

At Cheon Mubaeck’s sneer, Yuk Seong vomited blood and laughed.

“I’m learning about the martial world from a young brat today.”

“Because that’s the martial world.”

“Right. That’s the martial world. So what can I do? I can’t tell you even if I want to.”

Yuk Seong smirked.

He had already sensed his death.

He couldn’t be saved anyway.

No, even if he was saved, it wasn’t living. His dantian was torn, his internal energy had flowed out, and his limbs were all broken. He was no different from an old man who had to live by begging now.

Revenge on Cheon Mubaeck who had made him like this?

Not a chance.

‘This bastard. Even if three or four elders attack him, they won’t be a match!’

The absolute feeling of martial power.

He couldn’t even resist at all.

Only then did the sword hanging at his waist come into Yuk Seong’s eyes.

“Brat, do you even use a sword?”

“You have an eye for things.”

“Hahaha!”

The sword was not held in the hand of the swordsman who used it.

But with just a few flicks of his fingers, his dantian was torn. With his fists and kicks, his arms and legs were broken.

The realization of that overwhelming difference in martial power finally came to him.

‘Elders? No, even if the sect master comes…’

It’s no use.

This bastard is no use.

‘Then what about those guys?’

Those monstrous guys whose end could not be known, who made him shudder?

What about those guys with the strong smell of blood, to whom even the sect master trembled and bowed his waist?

He didn’t know.

He really didn’t know.

Wasn’t it that the fight between masters of a realm he could not fathom was something he could not rashly predict or even do?

But Yuk Seong, recalling one of those guys, the one who felt the most like a ghost, smiled without even realizing it.

“Hehehe. Brat. I don’t know what kind of fortuitous encounter you had to have such a strong martial art, but the martial world is wide and there are many masters.”

His ability was outstanding compared to his age.

Whether it was a fortuitous encounter or whatever, so he must be arrogant.

But the martial world is wide. There is a ghost among those guys with the smell of blood. If it’s him, he will give a great lesson to the brat who is not afraid of anything in this world.

Yuk Seong was rather pitiful that he could not tell him that there was such a terrifying ghost because of the restriction.

“Sometimes, not knowing can make your mind at ease.”

“No, it’s okay. It’s okay. There’s a way to know everything.”

“…?”

“I saw Gu Jin-hae’s head explode from the restriction, so did you think I wouldn’t have predicted that this situation would come?”

No, he must have predicted it.

But… so what if he predicted it? It’s not like you can do anything about the restriction, right?

Around the time such a question arose in Yuk Seong’s mind.

Cheon Mubaeck’s smile deepened.

There’s a way to know everything.

Cheon Mubaeck’s two pupils shone brightly.

* * *

“Guest, I’m sorry, but a big incident has occurred inside the gisaeng house. Please visit again later.”

The Lotus Pavilion suddenly became noisy.

The playboys who had taken a room and were drinking and discussing entertainment got angry at the sudden order to leave.

It is a law that people get courage when they drink.

“What do you mean! Do you know how long I waited to get in here?”

“You’re telling me to leave without a word?”

“Is this how you do business?”

It was truly a mess.

Although some guests were displeased, they left as the Lotus Pavilion intended. But a few guests almost caused a riot.

“I’m sorry, but an incident has occurred, so we are trying to protect the safety of our guests. If you visit later, we will repay you with better treatment.”

“So what is that incident… ahem.”

The people who were causing a riot quickly tucked their tails when they saw Neung-heo’s murderous one eye.

Even the ruffians who were quite capable had a hard time making eye contact with Neung-heo.

Like his nickname, the One-Eyed Snake, his impression was not just rough but terrible.

Although he had become a little gentler recently, the words he spat out, although polite honorifics on the outside, felt almost like a semi-threat.

“Damn it. Am I the one doing business? Am I? He’s so self-willed. So self-willed.”

Neung-heo grumbled and looked at the top floor where Cheon Mubaeck was.

After the Wansegum Yuk Jin-ryang had come, a strong qi wave was felt from above.

The quick-witted Neung-heo immediately noticed.

“I knew it. The orthodox sect guys, they all pretend to be noble on the outside. Huh? On the outside, they’re orthodox sect martial artists, and on the inside, they’re the trash of the Blood Demon Sect.”

It was a shocking thing for him too.

Although he was the Wansegum who was active based in Shaanxi, the fact that his title was known even in Henan meant that he had that much fame.

If the group called the Blood Demon Sect was revealed to the Central Plains of the martial world, and it became known that the Wansegum was a member of the Blood Demon Sect, it would be quite a sight.

“No, that’s that. But to kick out all the guests without a word.”

What on earth is he trying to do?

Even if he glared at him right now, there were a few guys who had learned a martial art that was quite capable.

They wouldn’t get up at all, with a gisaeng by their side, even if Neung-heo came to find them.

‘Shit. Should I have a go?’

While having a war of nerves with a few guys who wouldn’t leave, clenching and unclenching his still unfamiliar left hand.

-Kkeuaaaaaaaaaak!

“…!”

At that moment, at the scream that was faintly heard from the top floor, the faces of the few martial artists who were having a war of nerves and Neung-heo hardened.

It was a terribly desperate scream.

Like a scream let out just before death.

Wouldn’t the scream of a ghost burning in the endless flames of hell be like that?

At the same time, the top floor rang, and a blade-like qi wave was felt even by Neung-heo, who was on the first floor.

-Kkeuak, kkeuaaaak!

“I-I’ll be going now!”

The continued screams felt like they were squeezing a person’s chest.

The guys who had been holding out quickly left with pale faces.

Neung-heo just stared blankly at the top floor.

‘What on earth… are you doing?’

(End of Chapter)

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