Chapter 29 : Pashang Strikes the Star

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A massive explosion echoed inside the Yeongongbu. If the formation suppressing the inner energy waves hadn’t been set up in the Yeonmujeong, the roar would have been loud enough to be heard anywhere within the Samga.

Pashang Strikes the Star. From this point on, the technique fully involved inner energy.

Until now, lacking inner energy, I had only been able to perform up to the third technique, Iryeonmanjang, but after taking Haemyo Hwan, I could extend it to the fourth.

The hallmark of this technique was a thunderous sound as if the sky were collapsing.

Even I was startled the first time I heard it.

Although I should have expected such a loud noise from a technique named Pashang Strikes the Star, who could have imagined it would be this deafening?

Matching the magnitude of the sound, this sword technique was by far the most aggressive one I had mastered so far.

It required every muscle and ounce of inner energy in my body, and just performing it once would drain me completely.

“Is this right?”

I tried several times, but it felt off. Something about the sensation was unusual—not a natural flow of energy.

I briefly sheathed my sword and took a rest.

Up to Iryeonmanjang, the third technique, I could use it without much inner energy, but starting from Pashang Strikes the Star, the required inner energy consumption shot up dramatically.

It was as if I had to pour in the entire amount of inner energy that would have been needed from the first to the third technique all at once.

That made sense considering the destructive power and the deafening roar the technique produced.

But the order of the techniques seemed strange.

Iryeonmanjang was a gentle sword move, like ripples spreading softly through calm water.

Yet, the very next technique transformed into something so violent.

“Still no sign of him today, huh.”

I briefly opened the Yeongongbu door and stepped outside.

The constant questions felt like a never-ending chain, making me restless. I needed to breathe in some fresh air.

The reason I couldn’t be confident was because Gwak Jindo wasn’t here.

Since I had taken care of it, naturally, Gwak Jindo was responsible for handling the aftermath of Lee Cheongmyeong’s death.

The delay in managing Lee Cheongmyeong’s death was due to Cheonjuseong’s decision.

Cheonjuseong had invested more manpower into the Hwanggeum Family than expected, and when they suddenly vanished, many gaps opened up that had to be filled.

Gwak Jindo was gradually patching those holes one by one.

It was already a prepared process for us, so other forces didn’t have the chance to take advantage.

It felt like the stranglehold of surveillance over the Samga was finally loosening.

With two holes appearing in the surveillance network, I now had direct watchers assigned to me: one behind a large Seokbaek Tree on the northwest side, one inside the Hosu lake which was less than ten paces away, one hidden behind the reeds beyond the lake, and one on top of the Yeongongbu pavilion.

Four in total.

No matter how perfectly hidden I thought I was, the sensitive Sangdanjeon was catching every bit of energy they leaked.

These were the ones who had been attached to me since Gwak Jindo was assigned.

“You’re quite popular.”

Myung Jaehee, who had been sitting quietly in the Yeongongbu main hall, hurried over and whispered to me.

At least while Myung Jaehee was around, she had agreed to take over what Gi Cheoli had been doing.

When I said that, Gi Cheoli’s expression looked like he both liked and resented the idea.

“Really?”

“You know what I’m talking about, right?”

“You’re talking about the people following me around.”

Myung Jaehee smiled at my reply, but her expression deflated.

“What? How did you know?”

“I just did. How did you find out?”

I was actually curious about how much she knew. They too were hiding their senses well.

If I hadn’t had the Sangdanjeon, I wouldn’t have been able to notice.

Myung Jaehee’s answer was a little off from common sense based on my standards.

“The rock splashes water while standing on the back, and that moss is mysteriously lowered, and the bees that used to wander the bushes every day are gone.”

“Impressive.”

I sincerely praised her.

She stored past scenes inside her head in meticulous detail.

Although unspoken, she surely had a way to distinguish between traces left by animals and those left by humans.

“But there’s one more person. On top of the pavilion.”

“Huh?”

Myung Jaehee was startled.

For a moment, it looked like her hair was going to stand on end, but her superhuman neck muscles seemed to hold it back.

She was definitely talented.

I put a finger to my lips.

“Don’t make loud noises. And you have to stop whispering now. They might get suspicious. From now on, use formal speech with me.”

“Understood, sir.”

Myung Jaehee scolded me with a wink but spoke gently.

Though she seemed sharp-tempered, she was perfect at handling tasks.

My twelve past lives naturally came to mind.

Needless to say.

I dragged out two iron chains attached to shackles inside the Yeongongbu.

The weapon was a heavy iron ball attached to the head, with iron shackles on the limbs.

There were all sorts of weapons in the Yeonmujeong, and I had brought a few of them.

Myung Jaehee looked at them with fascination.

To a child, they were terrifyingly large.

I bound the iron shackles around both ankles.

Since Gwak Jindo wasn’t around lately, my progress in martial arts seemed slow, so I was working on my basic physical strength.

I couldn’t train indoors, so this had to be done outside.

Now that I was learning martial arts, it wouldn’t matter even if I showed it publicly.

Hoo.

I looked up at the sky briefly.

Martial arts and techniques were easier to keep up with by borrowing the power of Sangdanjeon, but basic physical strength was truly a battle of willpower.

I put down my heavy footstep.

Breath came quickly already, but I had no intention of stopping.

***

Myung Jaehee glanced slyly at the pavilion as she looked at the sky.

No one would notice the flicker in her black pupils.

Eunyeongjo trained the control of the pupils’ movement as well.

“Where is he hiding?”

Honestly, Myung Jaehee was very proud.

Even inside Eunyeongjo, where she was treated as a genius and trusted, she had never been outmatched in sensing qi or secret arts.

That was a realm close to talent, so every province considered it “ultra-sensitive perception,” and Myung Jaehee quietly took pride in that.

But this guy dragging around heavy iron balls said there was one more person.

She wasn’t lying to make herself feel better.

Although they hadn’t seen each other for days, that much was certain.

Myung Jaehee rested her chin on her hand and looked at Gold-necked Hwan.

There was nothing else to look at.

It wasn’t proper to watch others’ training sessions anyway, so waiting like this was actually easier.

Patience was the training Myung Jaehee practiced most in Eunyeongjo.

Like all places in Biyeon-gak, Eunyeongjo specialized in training stealth and concealment.

If someone had better qi sensitivity than herself, what kind of person would that be?

And why were the training methods so outdated?

The more I thought about Gold-necked Hwan, the more questions intertwined.

Among them, the biggest knot was this:

Carefully, I took out from my pocket a silver nugget shaped like a saddle.

It was a Wonbo given by Gold-necked Hwan.

Something ordinary citizens could only hope to touch once in their lifetime.

“How many must have died to open this one-tenth portion…”

Whenever meeting other members of Biyeon-gak, they always misunderstood me as a special child just because of my youthful appearance.

It was a source of annoyance in an already irritating world.

They used to boast about their success rate in operations within Eunyeongjo.

Of course, some doubted even that.

But this Gold-necked Hwan person, whether he had cursed me or not, had personally assigned me a task and given me a Wonbo.

Coincidentally, it was something I was best suited for.

— Take care of everyone tailing me.

The words Gold-necked Hwan muttered as he handed me the Wonbo didn’t even acknowledge the possibility of failure.

At that moment, something twitched in Myung Jaehee’s spiderweb-like senses.

She had been concentrating on the pavilion, so she could feel it.

She found it.

Now I recalled the locations and senses of the people.

Myung Jaehee had never once forgotten anyone she memorized.

“You should let them know when someone’s doing a good job.”

Myung Jaehee thought that way.

It would be fun to surprise that cold expression with better-than-expected results.

He was the one who gave me the huge Wonbo.

Even if I thought of it as pride, I didn’t want to disappoint him.

The girl who had been pacing the air got up and lightly touched the ground.

Not a speck of dust rose.

***

As expected, Gumjeongwon was noisy.

Though I knocked and entered quickly to avoid suspicion.

“Sorry to interrupt your meeting.”

I said that and quickly glanced around.

There, Yeosangwoo and Yang Cheolmok were also present.

The reactions from other Elders varied.

Some looked simply curious about why I came, while others were quite taken aback.

Of course, I couldn’t tell which forces were hostile or friendly based on expressions alone.

Even Gwak Jindo, who sat in the center on my side, looked extremely confused.

Gwak Jindo turned to me with a reluctant expression and asked,

“What’s the reason for your visit?”

“I came to see the Seunggyeonim.”

Gwak Jindo looked around the conference room briefly, then stood up from his desk.

“Let’s end here for today.”

I expected at least one person to oppose that, but everyone fell silent.

Gwak Jindo was fulfilling his role well.

He immediately opened the door and walked out, and I followed.

Gwak Jindo entered his own room within Gumjeongwon, and I went in after him.

“Why are you here?”

“I came to see the Seunggyeonim.”

I answered as I had before.

“Is there no other purpose?”

“Why would you think that?”

“Isn’t this a crucial time? I thought it would be easier with Cheonjuseong gone…”

“They’ve unified.”

The words cut off, and Gwak Jindo looked a little embarrassed.

“…I see. You really are quick-minded.”

I immediately thought so.

For now, the forces below Cheonjuseong must be in chaos due to the sudden imbalance.

“That’s right. I heard from the provinces that the Murim Alliance was involved.

So now the Murim Alliance is helping a lot.”

“They want to refill the watchers no matter what.”

“It feels like there’s fire on their heels. Even the Elders who kept quiet before have started speaking up. It’s not the time to hide their true identity anymore.”

I nodded in agreement.

It was a satisfying result.

I hadn’t expected unification so soon.

I thought each force would be too different to unify quickly, but apparently discussions had been ongoing for a while.

Still, it didn’t matter much.

Judging by how no one spoke when Gwak Jindo declared the meeting adjourned, it was clear those unified forces were insignificant.

“Yes. But why did you come find me? Nothing wrong with your status, right?”

“No, nothing like that.”

I had watchers attached, but Myung Jaehee could handle them.

The first reason I came was martial arts.

Pashang Strikes the Star was devouring my inner energy, and I felt it wasn’t connecting well with Iryeonmanjang.

“Then why did you come?”

I opened my mouth but stopped in awe.

The unification of forces—such a massive wave and flow—never just appears overnight.

The currents beneath the surface must have been turbulent for a long time.

Maybe even years ago.

It only looks like sudden unification now, but preparations had been steadily underway.

Then, Iryeonmanjang wasn’t merely calm ripples but a quiet calm hiding rough waves inside.

An unexpected realization.

As I awakened from that sudden insight, Gwak Jindo stood guard beside me.

“So the realization you asked about was related?”

“Yes.”

“Then don’t ask anymore.

That’s entirely an answer you found yourself, and it might differ from mine.”

Gwak Jindo said that and sighed softly.

“I feel like I can’t do much as your Seunggyeonim.”

“No, that’s not true.

Just talking to me like this is a big help.”

I comforted the downhearted Seunggyeonim.

The second reason I came was just to pass the time like this.

That alone would surely trouble the other Elders.

Especially since Myung Jaehee even handled the watchers.

It was like lighting a bonfire in front of the rabbit burrow.

“Even if it looks like nothing’s moving, everything’s moving.”

I looked out the window.

The night seemed peaceful, but it was as if Myung Jaehee’s hidden blades were flying all around.