The Divine Monk and Yu Jeong-shin scolded Yi-gang.

They couldn’t contain their curiosity about what had happened inside and why Yi-gang had become so enraged at the First Founder Bodhidharma.

However, Yi-gang found it difficult to explain everything in detail.

As a result, he had no choice but to omit the part where Bodhidharma had touched upon his personal matters.

“Bodhidharma read your mind?”

“Not just my mind, but also my memories.”

“What kind of memories did he read that made you so angry?”

“Well….”

“Was it something like wetting your bed as a child or getting rejected by someone you liked?”

“Huh? Ha ha ha.”

The Divine Monk and Yu Jeong-shin let out hollow laughs.

Yi-gang cleared his throat and muttered, “But… he apologized.”

“Apologized?”

“He told me he was sorry.”

The Divine Monk smiled bitterly.

“The First Founder is a great person… Yes. It’s only natural that he could read your memories.”

He spoke with deliberate caution.

Yi-gang, wondering what the Divine Monk meant, looked at him, only to see the Divine Monk glance at Yu Jeong-shin.

Yu Jeong-shin quietly stepped aside for a moment.

Seeing such secrecy, it was clear that matters regarding Bodhidharma were one of Shaolin’s greatest secrets.

“Among monks, those with great spiritual power who are nearing nirvana often choose to meet the First Founder Bodhidharma of their own volition,” the Divine Monk spoke in a hushed voice.

Among the elder monks, especially those who had achieved deep enlightenment and possessed great spiritual power—

Some of those whose lifespan had reached its end and were on the verge of nirvana made a very special choice.

They sought to pass away before the First Founder of Zen himself.

“Such a thing happened recently. My fellow disciple Mu Gyeon made that choice.”

Only a tiny fraction of Shaolin monks ever heard of Bodhidharma’s existence.

Because of this, only one or two people every few years had the opportunity, and even fewer actually chose to face the First Founder Bodhidharma in their final moments.

“However, this has continued for over a thousand years.”

It was said that Bodhidharma could see through the elderly monk standing before him.

His thoughts, his enlightenment, the life he had lived, even his darkest aspects.

An old and enlightened monk was laid bare before someone even older and wiser than himself.

That was the final test.

To truly achieve perfect nirvana and break free from the cycle of reincarnation—to become a Buddha.

Or, he may recognize himself as merely a human and continue the cycle of reincarnation to cleanse his soul.

“That’s why he might have instinctively seen through your life.”

“…I see.”

Yi-gang understood.

Bodhidharma’s words were blunt, and while his actions seemed considerate, they were clumsy.

It might have been an impudent thought… but he appeared to lack social skills.

“I had many questions to ask him. But since he wished to meet only you, I’ll have to set them aside for now.”

The Divine Monk had planned to take this opportunity to ask Bodhidharma a few things.

Among them was deciding how to handle the Heavenly Demon’s Plaque, as well as addressing the Evil Cult.

“Can’t you just go back in and ask?”

“…Originally, once someone enters, no one else is allowed inside for at least half a year.”

“Then today was…?”

“A highly exceptional case.”

“Why is that?”

The Divine Monk hesitated for a moment before answering, “Hmm… He said that facing people too often is not easy for him.”

Yi-gang briefly wore a puzzled expression.

For someone as legendary as the First Ancestor Bodhidharma, it somehow didn’t seem to fit his personality.

However, even an extraordinary being could still be introverted.

Yi-gang decided to just accept it as it was.

The Divine Monk muttered with a tone of pity, “Having endured a thousand years of suffering, one would think it’s time to stop.”

Now that he thought about it, a thousand years was undoubtedly an unfathomably long time.

“Why does he keep doing this?”

“He doesn’t wish to return to the world.”

“He secluded himself in that cave after growing weary of the mundane world. That seclusion has lasted for a full thousand years.”

“Why don’t you tell him it’s time to come out?”

“Well… The past abbots have tried multiple times.”

The Divine Monk fell silent for a moment.

Was it difficult for him to say it himself?

For some reason, he seemed to be carefully selecting his words.

“He… simply doesn’t want to leave. He’s been inside for so long…”

Trailing off, the Divine Monk eventually closed his mouth.

Yi-gang thought to himself.

‘That’s basically…’

This was definitely the kind of person he had heard about somewhere before.

It was a word too bold to say aloud…

‘A recluse…’

“Bodhidharma seems to have taken quite a liking to you. Personally inviting someone is unheard of.”

The Divine Monk interrupted Yi-gang’s irreverent thoughts.

“I-I see.”

“What he can teach you is limitless. Maintain a respectful attitude and be sure to make no mistakes.”

For some reason, Yi-gang felt that there was some kind of fate connecting him to Bodhidharma.

He had a strong premonition that they would meet again in the future.

“It doesn’t seem like he told me everything.”

The Divine Monk had explained a great deal, yet there were still too many uncertainties.

What happened to the monks who achieved nirvana?

Inside the cave, there were no remains or mummified bodies of high monks.

If hundreds of monks had entered over a thousand years, even just their bones would have filled the narrow cave.

Yet, there wasn’t a single trace.

And above all else…

‘Bodhidharma was definitely not human.’

The First Founder Bodhidharma, whom he had faced in the darkness—could that truly be called a human being?

But Yi-gang chose not to question it, at least not for now.

He had a strong feeling that even if he asked now, he wouldn’t receive an answer.

“Come in.”

The Divine Monk led Yi-gang toward a small hut set up in front of Ilryong Valley.

Inside, for some reason, Yu Jeong-shin was preparing bedding and moxibustion.

The acrid scent of burning mugwort momentarily caught Yi-gang off guard.

“…Master?”

Yu Jeong-shin remained silent as he disinfected a needle with alcohol.

While sterilizing a sharp acupuncture needle, he muttered, “At the Tranquil Manor…”

“I heard that the successors were subjected to the Hundred Refined Great Technique.”

The fire burning inside the hut cast shadows on Yu Jeong-shin’s face.

Though he was usually gentle, his expression now was anything but calm.

Yi-gang was visibly flustered—something that rarely happened.

“I distinctly remember forbidding its use…”

“It wasn’t the Hundred Refined Great Technique, but the Thousand Refined Great Technique. Senior Brother Dam Hyun modified it.”

“Do you trust Dam Hyun?”

Yi-gang closed his mouth.

He couldn’t say that he didn’t trust Dam Hyun, but at the same time, it was difficult to say he fully trusted him.

“Tsk tsk, you must have some lingering aftereffects. I distinctly told you to take care of your body.”

“I’m sorry…”

Behind Yi-gang, who had stepped back, the Divine Monk was blocking the entrance of the hut.

“Take off your upper garments.”

“…What?”

“I will perform energy realignment on you and transfer my internal energy.”

The Divine Monk spoke as if it were nothing.

However, what he said was not something that could be taken lightly.

“…What do you mean? I thought you only transferred your internal energy to the successors.”

“I already did.”

Yi-gang was startled.

He had never heard about this.

“So So-woon and your younger brother had another duel. The one who earned the right was your brother.”

“Then…!”

Now it made sense why Ha-jun and the Divine Monk had been nowhere to be found. The Divine Monk had already transferred his internal energy to Ha-jun.

“However, there was no need to transfer all of it. That child could only receive so much.”

The pure internal energy that an Absolute master had accumulated over a lifetime…

Even if it had been further refined into the purest natural Qi, Ha-jun would not have been able to absorb all of it.

“I will transfer a third of it to you.”

Only then did Yi-gang understand why the Divine Monk appeared noticeably older.

He had already transferred a third of his internal energy to Ha-jun.

And now, he was declaring that he would transfer another third to Yi-gang.

“Sit.”

Yi-gang hesitated, wondering if this was really the right thing to do. But in the end, he sat down.

The Divine Monk followed suit, sitting in a lotus position.

The transfer of internal energy required an extremely delicate process.

Yet, still in a daze, Yi-gang removed his upper garments.

Though still pale, his well-trained body was revealed.

His body bore scars all over—marks of the path he had walked as a martial artist.

The Divine Monk placed both hands on Yi-gang’s lower back, pressing against his Mingmen acupoint.

“Focus. The transfer of internal energy is like trying to pour sand into a bottle with a narrow mouth. It’s difficult to transmit, and even harder to receive properly.”

The fact that a monk was using a wine bottle as a metaphor was odd, but Yi-gang closed his eyes and concentrated.

“Half of the half. If you can make even that much your own, it will be enough.”

Yi-gang steeled himself.

And through the Mingmen acupoint, pure energy began to surge into him.

‘…What the!’

Yi-gang was shocked by the violent waves of Qi pouring in.

It was the essence of a martial artist’s life itself. Yi-gang desperately focused to control the Qi rushing in like a tidal wave.

—

It had been seven days since the duel ended.

The morning of the long-awaited duel between the Immortal Divine Dragon and the Green Forest Tyrant King had arrived.

The sun had just begun to rise, but the streets were already bustling with a crowd.

From the tavern where the masters of the unorthodox sects were staying, the entire view of Zhengzhou was visible.

The crowd below was all heading toward the martial stage.

There were several times more people gathered than during the previous duel of the successors.

It was only natural—this was a duel between the Green Forest Tyrant King, Gal Sa-hyuk, and the Immortal Divine Dragon, Baek Yi-gang.

The Divine Monk had used the term Twelve Stars of the Divine Land, discussing a reorganization of the Ten Grandmasters Under Heaven.

If that were the case, this was no different from a challenge from the new generation against the old.

A newly emerging Supreme Peak master was challenging the Green Forest Leader, who had been dominating the martial world for decades.

The Unorthodox Union Leader stopped looking down from the pavilion.

Swish— Swish—

Inside, the eerie sound of an axe being sharpened echoed through the room.

Gal Sa-hyuk was honing the blade of his massive axe.

There was a certain gravity in his demeanor, as if he had his own Tao.

The Unorthodox Union Leader murmured in a low voice, “The Divine Monk has introduced a new justification, and the plan has gone awry.”

Originally, the plan was to hold a duel between Baek Ryu-san and Gal Sa-hyuk.

With that, they intended to diminish the authority of the Murim Alliance Leader while boosting the reputation of the unorthodox sects.

However, with the opponent changed to the extremely young Baek Yi-gang, the plan had crumbled.

Now, the situation had completely reversed.

Even if they won, they would gain nothing. But if they lost, it would be a huge setback.

“There is one iron rule of the unorthodox sects.”

This kind of situation was utterly intolerable.

“We never suffer losses.”

If they were forced into a losing position, they would take another step forward instead.

Gal Sa-hyuk, inspecting the perfectly sharpened blade of his axe, responded, “Do not worry.”

The blade was sharp enough to claim a life with ease.

“That brat—I will make sure to kill him.”

If he killed Yi-gang during the duel, it would strain relations with the Murim Alliance, but that didn’t matter.

In any case, the Murim Alliance was not in a position to break the truce for personal reasons.

“He must be killed before he grows any stronger.”

Whoosh—!

As Gal Sa-hyuk lightly swung his axe, the air split with a sharp sound.

He calmly prepared for battle.

Time passed, and the appointed hour for the duel arrived.

Then, from across the martial stage, Gal Sa-hyuk saw Yi-gang walking toward him.

His face, which had been deliberately tense and full of intimidation, suddenly slackened.

“…That…”

He swallowed the words that almost slipped from his mouth.

Yi-gang’s appearance was undeniably different from what it had been a week ago.

‘What… is that?’

Gal Sa-hyuk’s pupils trembled violently.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep