Chapter 202: Entrance To Heaven Ascension Cave (1)

When the name of the Evil Cult was mentioned, Yi-gang’s eyes sparkled.

It was a bad relationship that started with Sohwa and the clan.

Although not certain, it might even be connected to the events of the Five Elements Tomb.

‘Did you know about them?’

「A little.」

Naturally, Yi-gang’s reaction was intense.

‘Why didn’t you tell me earlier? You know how much I hate those people.’

「Hehe.」

Zhang Sanfeng just laughed leisurely.

Seeing this, Yi-gang stopped his anger. Showing anger towards Zhang Sanfeng was actually pointless.

‘…Keep your promise.’

For now, that was all he could say as he dashed away.

He exhibited the secret art of light footwork as he leaped up.

Yi-gang, using the techniques of Cloud Dragon’s Great Eight Forms and Shadowless Splendor, changed directions even in mid-air.

He lightly stepped on a rock jutting out on a cliff-like slope and went down.

Thud- Thud-

The movement technique of the Azure Forest, Cloud Treading, was similar in name to the Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Ascend.

Yi-gang descended at a speed close to falling.

He was faster than anyone. Despite having no easy competitors.

Watching Yi-gang shrink to a dot in the distance, Cheong Su became anxious.

He was forcibly detained by Dam Hyun.

“Are you not focusing properly?”

“Yes? Yes!”

Dam Hyun showed an inexplicable kindness to Cheong Su.

However, the problem was that Cheong Su didn’t feel it was kindness.

But this time was different.

Having come this far, Cheong Su had no intention of backing down, so he quietly accepted the item Dam Hyun handed over.

“This is a transaction. Do you understand what I mean?”

“I’m not sure if it’s okay to use such an item.”

“Didn’t you hear? Any method is fine. You just need to find the secret cave somehow.”

“I think he said to think like Founder Zhang Sanfeng…”

“How can a human follow an Immortal? I am, after all, an honor flower disciple of the Azure Forest.”

Cheong Su knew just how remarkable being an honor flower disciple of the Azure Forest was.

Even the Taoists sought help from the Azure Forest Grand Library. Wasn’t Dam Hyun a disciple of that library’s master?

“Find the secret cave by any means. I don’t want much in return. You just have to use the second item.”

“If Sword Emperor knows…”

“I asked him myself if it’s okay to use.”

“…”

“He said it was fine. So, try using the second item and see if it works well. I made the Treasure, after all.”

Dam Hyun claimed he had made the Treasure. He quickly added, “Strictly speaking, it’s not really a Treasure but…”

“Make sure to let me know how it was after using it.”

“…I might not be able to use it.”

With that, Cheong Su rushed out.

Dam Hyun just smirked, as if he had expected it.

Cheong Hye caught up with the departing Cheong Su. Instead of leaving earlier, Cheong Hye had been waiting for Cheong Su.

A sneer appeared on Dam Hyun’s lips.

Golden Needle Phantom approached Dam Hyun and said, “It has to be someone like you.”

“Cheong Su? I’m much better looking than him.”

“No, I mean that kid, Cheong Hye.”

“He takes good care of his own interests. And his heart is as dark as they come.”

Cheong Hye had been paying attention to this side ever since Dam Hyun took Cheong Su away a little while ago.

He also saw Dam Hyun hand something over to Cheong Su.

That’s why he was so friendly with his aloof senior brother.

“Cheong Su really thinks highly of his own junior brother.”

“Is that so?”

“His nature is very kind. He’s a foolish guy.”

Dam Hyun laughed as if that was ridiculous.

Golden Needle Phantom asked with an incredulous expression, “So, why did you give him that item?”

“It’s nothing strange. Yi-gang has plenty, so it would be fun if Cheong Su could beat him.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

After thinking for a moment, Golden Needle Phantom said with a sly smile, “Shall we make a bet? Between the kid who took your item and Yi-gang, who will find the secret cave?”

“Sure, why not.”

“I’ll still bet on Yi-gang.”

Dam Hyun chuckled.

“I thought Yi-gang would be the one too, but this means no bet then.”

“Tsk tsk… that’s boring.”

Golden Needle Phantom clicked his tongue and returned to the Sword Emperor’s straw house.

With nothing left to do, Dam Hyun sat on a rock in one corner of the garden.

On the rock, Cheongho was already lying down, leisurely enjoying the sunlight.

“Hehe…”

Dam Hyun carefully stroked Cheongho’s back.

Luckily, feeling good, Cheongho just flicked her ears and stayed still.

Normally, when in a bad mood, Cheongho wouldn’t allow anyone but Yi-gang to approach.

She would have gone with Yi-gang originally, but recently she started to stay alone as she gained more power as a yokai.

“Let’s just relax here together.”

The power of the Heavenly Thunder Bell was connected to all Heavenly Thunder White-Tailed Foxes.

Above all, this power also extended to Yi-gang, who had gone down to Tianzhu Peak.

Since she could sense Yi-gang’s safety through the same power, Cheongho began to stay alone.

Cheongho yawned lengthily.

It felt like Yi-gang was still fine.

Among the Great Immortals, he was a high-ranking existence.

Xuanwu the True Martial Great Emperor performed his practices in one of the mountains in Hubei.

It was said that the name Wudang Mountain originated from the phrase, “If not for True Martial Great Emperor, it cannot be defended.”

Perhaps because the character for “wu,” for martial, is in the name, Wudang focused on martial arts.

They did not emphasize external techniques.

Often, the higher-ranking Taoists couldn’t even perform minor tricks that one would typically expect them to know.

Therefore, Yi-gang thought that even a master who could slice through a waterfall with his sword would have limits in concealing techniques for the secret cave.

「Do you think my tricks are unimpressive?」

‘I can’t say I haven’t thought that.’

「You speak disappointingly. I have hidden the entrance to my secret cave with all my might.」

Yi-gang was certainly running.

Although he wasn’t using lightfoot techniques to run fiercely, what Yi-gang was doing was quite significant.

He was “searching.”

While maintaining his running speed, he scanned his surroundings with his eyes.

With his ears, he listened, and with his nose, he sought the scent of the oil lamp that the Sword Emperor might have left in the secret cave.

He also spread his Qi to detect any awkward flows in the surroundings. Even Zhang Sanfeng was inwardly surprised by this sight.

「In my prime, I could even spit fire from my mouth.」

Thus, he spoke to disrupt the concentration.

‘I’m not sure if spitting fire from the mouth is that impressive.’

「It’s a symbol of high Taoist power, didn’t you know?」

‘But isn’t hiding a secret cave a matter of Qi Men Dun Jia rather than simple tricks?’

「Well, you could say that. Hehe, even if you’re a young Taoist priest, you wouldn’t have deep knowledge about Qi Men formations, right?」

Yi-gang chose not to respond.

This caused Zhang Sanfeng to become a bit more imposing.

「Breaking Qi Men formations is, above all, a matter of experience.」

‘I may lack experience, but I have knowledge. Wudang is famous for its Three Talents Formation.’

「It’s not just the Three Talents Formation. Hehe.」

‘Now that you mention it, the Wudang Sect also has the Five Elements Sword Formation. Qi Men formations utilizing the five elements are usually complex, impressive indeed.’

「Hehehe, trying to flatter me to extract information is quite an obvious tactic, isn’t it?」

‘Haha…’

「Well, it’s okay to tell you this much. Even in the Five Elements Formation, there are countless possibilities, so find the clues yourself.」

‘Thank you. That’s enough for me.’

Yi-gang then started to increase his running speed.

Zhang Sanfeng felt somewhat anxious and asked, 「Enough?」

‘I have experience with Qi Men formations using the Five Elements.’

「Experience with Qi Men formations? Hmm… What kind of formation was it?」

Yi-gang and Zhang Sanfeng had shared quite a bit, but not everything was laid out.

He had omitted the story related to the Five Elements Tomb and Blue-Eyed Mad Demon.

‘I found a map to the tomb of the Five Elements Divine Lord and went there once.’

「F-Five Elements Divine Lord…!」

The Five Elements Divine Lord was considered a paramount figure in generations prior to Zhang Sanfeng.

At the mention of such an ancient master’s name, Zhang Sanfeng’s face turned grim.

「That there was such a place. So, the Five Elements formation was set up there? I had no idea that a master like the Five Elements Divine Lord was skilled in formations…」

“No, it wasn’t the Divine Lord who made it, but a man named Master of the Ghost Valley.”

「Ghost Valley…」

The Master of the Ghost Valley was also a legendary figure.

“Based on that experience, I guess you used the Water Qi in the Five Elements Formation. It’s quite apparent.”

「Keuh…!」

Zhang Sanfeng grimaced.

Then he muttered as if he couldn’t understand, 「How could you be so proficient, even if you have experienced such formations?」

‘What are you referring to?’

Yi-gang changed direction.

He was heading towards the sound of water, a valley where a stream flowed.

「It’s about using Water Qi in the formation.」

‘That was just a guess.’

「Wh-what!」

Zhang Sanfeng’s mouth dropped open.

His rough beard quivered with incredulity.

He realized that he had been completely fooled by Yi-gang.

「I thought you were a vessel of the Tao, but you aren’t. How can you be so cunning!」

Yi-gang just smirked.

Zhang Sanfeng grumbled a bit and then, eventually, chuckled.

「I didn’t realize you could be so scheming.」

‘Haven’t you often spoken about the Tao of Watching Water and such? Besides, a valley isn’t a bad place to hide a secret cave.’

Soon after, Yi-gang arrived at the stream.

Despite the clear weather, the volume of water in the valley was considerable.

The clear jade-colored water was crashing and breaking white among the sharp rocks.

「From here on, it’s up to the young priest to find the way.」

There was nothing that seemed to be the entrance to the secret cave, no matter how much he looked.

Yi-gang did not give up and stepped into the valley.

The ice-cold water sharply awakened his senses.

The valley was long.

The rocks were numerous, and the water was cold.

Having used all the knowledge he could obtain from Zhang Sanfeng, it was now up to Yi-gang to use his own sense of Qi and knowledge to find the entrance to the secret cave.

He had promised Zhang Sanfeng to find it within a four hour time limit.

Yi-gang quietly searched the valley with his sword in hand.

He was so focused that if someone had been lurking around him, they would surely have been noticed.

Indeed, he encountered a few people, but Yi-gang drove them away with a look close to hostility.

However, not all observers were absent.

From a distance, two individuals were quietly watching Yi-gang.

‘What exactly is he doing continuously? Wouldn’t it be better to go somewhere else?’

Unable to use voice transmission yet, Cheong Hye whispered the question to his senior brother.

Cheong Su shook his head.

‘He must have found something for sure. Let’s just wait a bit.’

They had been watching Yi-gang’s actions for about half an hour.

In Cheong Su’s hand was an object called a telescope, a precious item used by Western sailors from Portugal, and it was one of the two items that Dam Hyun had lent him.

They were able to secretly observe Yi-gang from a distance using the telescope.

Cheong Hye looked frustrated.

‘Still…’

‘Shh.’

Cheong Su gestured with his hand for silence.

Cheong Hye quickly shut up and took the telescope.

Yi-gang was standing in the middle of the valley.

Then, suddenly, he thrust his sword into the water’s surface.

“Gasp!”

Cheong Hye inadvertently took a sharp breath in, even though he shouldn’t have made a sound.

Yi-gang had disappeared into the water.

It was impossible to understand what kind of trickery was at play.

“He disappeared into the water!”

“Let’s go!”

Cheong Su and Cheong Hye quickly ran to the spot where Yi-gang had been.

Naturally, the valley was not a place where a secret cave could likely be.

They concentrated and tried to find any suspicious traces like Yi-gang did, but nothing was visible.

Even inspecting the exact spot where Yi-gang had disappeared, they could detect nothing.

Their bodies became cold from standing in the water so long.

“Wait… let’s wait a moment.”

Cheong Su gritted his teeth and plunged his head into the water.

Then, he saw it.

There were artificial traces in the clear water at the bottom of the valley. The bottom was flat.

Cheong Su quickly pulled his head out and called Cheong Hye.

“Here! I found the entrance!”

Yi-gang had already gone in, so it might be too late.

However, the true test of success or failure would be meeting the Sword Emperor waiting inside secret cave.

They were unsure of the structure of the secret cave, but there might still be a chance to catch up.

“Are you sure it’s the entrance?”

“Here, on the floor, the characters for ‘Heaven Ascension Cave’ are engraved.”

“How do we open it?”

“It seems like pressing here should work.”

“Try pressing it.”

Following Cheong Hye’s suggestion, Cheong Su naturally tried to put his head back in the water.

What stopped him was the autumn sunlight shining through the gaps in the leaves.

It reflected on the water’s surface, making Cheong Su hesitate.

Thus, his gaze turned to the water’s surface.

In the reflection, he could see Cheong Hye.

The figure of his junior brother about to strike at the back of Cheong Su’s neck, at the paralysis acupoint.

Snap—

Cheong Hye’s fingers pressed on Cheong Su’s neck.

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