-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Your name is now Dang Chunsik (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
It was indeed the right decision to involve Second Brother.
Our family's intelligence network seemed more formidable than I'd anticipated.
Dang Mok's usual conduct and character level were assessed very quickly.
In summary:
A mediocre man who loved self-preservation, reveled in wealth and glory, and dreamed of wielding power indiscriminately.
Our three opinions on how to deal with Dang Mok were sharply divided.
True to his bandit leader nature, Master Rooster, possessed by a barbarian warrior, strongly insisted on splitting his head open with an axe.
I, however, advocated for extracting information using a state-of-the-art torture technique: repeatedly dunking him in water.
"Hmm. Is it really necessary to resort to violence with such a person?"
Like the scholar he was, a former Hanlin Academy member, he expressed reluctance towards violent methods and then, on the spot, laid out a brilliantly woven plan for us.
And now.
"W-what in the world is this...?"
"Instructor Dang. Aren't you dissatisfied with the Heavenly Creation Society's recent actions?"
"?!"
The solution Second Brother proposed was recruitment.
Master Rooster and I held the belief that 'people can't be fixed and reused.'
But there seemed to be some merit to his argument that having a double agent would be beneficial in the long run.
Golden Wolf's snake-like tongue moved artfully, gradually ensnaring Dang Mok's psyche.
I dared to say that such captivating eloquence would be hard to find an equal for in the martial world.
Even I, a Korean-style genius and the owner of the greatest mind of all time, had been swayed by that tongue-twisting technique more than once.
If there were a martial arts Olympics, the fact that it could charm me, the guaranteed grand prize winner, meant that tongue was truly an intangible poison.
Of course, the most crucial factor in persuasion:
Physical force was handled by our master.
He continuously shot murderous glares.
And whenever Dang Mok's posture became sloppy, he'd ignite his axe with internal energy, creating an atmosphere of terror.
What perfect role distribution!
Now *this* was party play.
Me?
How could a good, smart, model student like me participate in oppressing a revered instructor?
"...You know nothing! I can never betray the Society—"
"Ah, you mean the Gu Poison?"
Golden Wolf smiled softly.
"You know who our family serves, don't you?"
"The Life-and-Death Divine Physician..."
Dang Mok let out a low groan.
I cautiously asked Master Rooster, who was still making his axe sparkle with light, what Gu Poison was.
::Gu Poison is a means of control where insects are placed inside a human body. Even from a great distance, if a signal is given through their male and female counterparts, it can inflict pain so severe that death seems preferable. The Heavenly Creation Society... they are far more insidious than I imagined.::
As expected of someone old, there's nothing he doesn't know.
Thanks to Master Rooster, I could update the martial arts common sense dictionary in my head.
"...Can the Life-and-Death Divine Physician truly remove the Gu Poison?"
Dang Mok's voice trembled at the end.
"Of course. Here, isn't there a living witness whom he saved?"
Golden Wolf pointed at me.
Anyone could see the great emotional turmoil in Dang Mok's eyes as he looked at me, trembling violently.
Hmm.
It feels a bit suspicious, though.
"...If I cooperate, can you overlook everything I've done so far?"
Somehow, it felt like he was talking to me, not Second Brother.
Master Rooster clicked his tongue uncomfortably beside me, but I readily nodded.
"Of course. Aren't we all in the same boat now? Haha."
I definitely did *not* harbor the atrocious thought that if his crimes turned out to be too heinous later, we could just dump him in a drum and concrete him in.
And then.
"Once the Heavenly Creation Society's influence vanishes, the Tang Clan will also become a better place. And Instructor Dang, who led the charge, could even aim for the Clan Head position, couldn't he?"
Golden Wolf delivered the final blow to Dang Mok's wavering heart.
Is that what that is?
Like, 'You want to control the Clan Head position, don't you?'
From then on, Golden Wolf's tongue moved ceaselessly, and the moment it completely melted Dang Mok:
"...You, you must guarantee my treatment...!"
Dang Mok, wearing a face that said, 'It was too much money to refuse,' promised us his full cooperation.
His gaze then turned to me, as I idly fanned myself with the fan I'd snatched from Second Brother.
"That..."
"Just speak informally to me."
"...Understood. By any chance, do you still have that plaster I gave you last time?"
When I took out the box containing the plaster and showed it to him, Dang Mok avoided my gaze and continued.
"...It contained poison."
"I knew that the moment I received it."
At my calm reply, Dang Mok's pupils trembled violently.
Of course, this was also due to the fact that the moment the word 'poison' was uttered, Master Rooster's axe glowed even more vividly with internal energy.
There's no need to tremble so much.
My satisfaction with the plaster was 100%.
Even though it contained poison, perhaps because of it, it felt a bit like Mentholatum, very cool and refreshing, which was quite pleasant.
"Don't worry. Sometimes in life, one might accidentally put a bit of poison in a plaster, or complain about the terrible smell of bird droppings in a gallery, or even, in this day and age, send coded messages via carrier pigeon to the main family."
"Ah, no, how, how did you..."
"Just do well from now on."
I sincerely cheered on Dang Mok's 'Kyaru' actions.
Did my sincerity not get through properly?
Dang Mok's face twisted into an expression so terrible it was beyond words.
His already ugly face.
He's really just abusing it.
Well, it seems mostly settled.
"I'll take my leave now due to curfew. You instructors can have your cozy chat."
Cheering on the rehabilitation of (formerly) Dang Mok, (now) Dang Chunsik, who would be viciously squeezed, I left the scene.
A white heron should not go where crows play.
I've lived a life like a noble crane, keeping my distance from schemes and stratagems my entire life, so it's time to wash my hands of this.
Later, when Golden Wolf's plan is properly laid out, I'll just possess the final approver, stamp it, and shout, "Okay, proceed!"
For now, I have a very urgent matter that must be attended to, setting everything else aside.
* * *
Upon returning to the dormitory.
"What, you're back from whoring around?"
"Kyawoo!"
A first-rate ordinary gambling addict, who at his age had still only reached the first-rate realm, was messing around with Wolfie.
"Why are you so late... Huh?"
The first-rate ordinary beggar, who was still sitting in a lotus position even on his bed instead of the training hall, his eyes sparkled.
Still, like a martial arts fanatic, he had an eye for it.
I haughtily raised my nose.
"This one, Peak."
"Bullshit, really?"
I personally demonstrated a performance for the unbelieving gambling maniac, gathering energy at my fingertips and shooting it into the air with 'pyong-pyong' sounds.
Murong Taek's face twisted into a sour expression.
At the same time, awe filled Unhak's face.
"Ohh...! As far as I know, it's almost unheard of for a first-year student to reach the Peak realm at Baekhwa Academy."
*Creeee.*
This is why people humblebrag.
More!
"Even across the entire martial world, reaching the Peak realm at such a young age is enough to be considered a prodigy; how could it not be amazing!"
More!
"Of course, Brother Geum's internal energy was quite profound compared to other first-rate martial artists, but when sparring, he seemed so clumsy that I honestly wondered if he just accumulated it by consuming too many elixirs— *gasp, cough!*"
I choked Unhak.
How dare he praise me then drift with facts and hit me in the solar plexus?
"Kyawoo!"
Wolfie also joined in, gnawing on Unhak's forearm.
Indeed, you can't trust black-haired beasts.
So this is why pets are so great.
I should train the Thousand Hand Ghost Heart Art a bit more diligently.
* * *
The next day.
Perhaps because I had reached the Peak realm, I savored the exceptionally clear sky.
For the first time in a while, I took out my dusty bow and the Korean version of the Northern Sky Divine Art manual, which I had carefully preserved until now, and headed to my private training hall.
Honestly, I thought an assassin was just a one-trick pony with back attacks, so I'd win easily if I just blocked that.
But it was tougher than I expected.
Although it was quite an interesting option to thoroughly grill Dang Chunsik with my brother to dig into the Heavenly Creation Society's background.
No matter how meticulously one plots, what can be achieved if one's own martial prowess is lacking?
I must become stronger.
As the outline of the forces targeting our family gradually became clearer, the pressure exerted on us would also intensify.
Frankly.
Unless the Heavenly Creation Society was a bunch of incompetent fools who only plotted day and night and enjoyed Brazilian waxes...
If they were a reasonably sized force, they would certainly have at least one Peak master, and probably a Hwagyeong-level expert among their higher-ups.
Using the tactical weapon 'Rooster' is only for a day or two; if a calamity were to strike the Green Forest and our family simultaneously, where would our master be?
If it were me, I'd choose the Green Forest.
Then the weak, fledgling Peak-realm Geum Sihyeon would tremble, cut into a star shape by sword energy, becoming 'Geu/m/Si/Hyeo/n'.
Therefore.
"Northern Sky Divine Art."
If it was a 'mod byproduct' martial art written in the greatest script of all time, created by King Sejong grinding the Hall of Worthies, it could surely make me a master in a short period.
Indeed, the more you know, the more you see.
Compared to when I skimmed it quickly in the Heavenly Martial Arts Library before, the content definitely sank into my mind with ease.
I sat in a lotus position and closed my eyes.
Savoring the deep meaning within the oral traditions, I carefully circulated my internal energy with the sensation of embracing the surrounding natural energy within my body.
At first, I thought, 'Hmm, is that all?'
"…!"
Suddenly, a strange phenomenon occurred.
The internal energies that had been freely frolicking within me—those originating from the third-rate heart method I'd initially learned, and the Yang-attribute energy accumulated through the Fiery Shadow Heart Art—began to converge toward my dantian.
No, this wasn't right, this shouldn't be happening. My hair stood on end, but the True Qi, already beyond my control, clashed against each other, 'pang-pang'-ing around my dantian.
"Khh...!"
I felt a trickle of blood run down my chin from the corner of my mouth.
But with the sensation that if I forced myself to stop here, I'd experience the 'Qi deviation ending cutscene' firsthand.
I desperately focused my mind.
Fortunately, the True Qi, which had been clashing violently, soon began to smoothly merge into one.
Setting aside the slight doubt of 'how is this possible?'
I added another 'spoonful' by drawing in as much external natural energy as possible and pouring it into my dantian.
And then.
"Whooo..."
Finally, I could breathe a sigh of relief.
The function of the Northern Sky Divine Art was to melt and assimilate any energy, including natural energy, into one.
As I savored the internal energy flowing through my meridians, now purer than before, a smile naturally bloomed on my face.
As expected of a cheat martial art from the 'mod'!
I knew I could trust it!
With the thought of checking my achievement, I grabbed the bow that was leaning against the wall.
As I drew the bowstring and concentrated my mind.
*Humming... humming... humming...!*
Not only the internal energy within my body but also the surrounding natural energy resonated with it, vibrating the air and coiling around the tip of the bow.
The moment I released the bowstring.
*Pwoooong!*
"?!"
An invisible arrow, far more powerful than I had anticipated, left the bowstring and shattered the wall, almost piercing straight through it.
No.
It really did pierce through.
"Uh..."
I hadn't expected this level of power.
This... surely I won't get into trouble for property damage, right?
Harboring the delusion that I could somehow pick up the fallen fragments and glue them back together, I scurried to the scene of destruction.
I let out a groan, staring at the trace of the invisible arrow that had almost pierced through, digging in to a depth of nearly two cheok, or about 50cm in modern terms.
There was even an actual hole.
A faint light was seeping through from the other side.
Surely there wasn't someone on the other side, right?
If I harmed a person, that wouldn't be property damage, but accidental injury...!
Unable to bear the rising anxiety, I pressed my eye to the hole.
And then.
"…!"
I suppressed the scream that threatened to burst forth with superhuman patience.
Beyond the hole, there was a person.
Their clothes were neatly folded beside them.
The back of a woman, sitting naked in a lotus position, shrouded in a dark crimson aura, came into view.
On her back, characters like incantations of a spell were faintly etched in a blood-red hue.
That round, neatly coiled 'bun' hairstyle.
That tiny body, which looked like it could be lifted with one hand.
Black hair, with hints of red here and there.
It was Cheon Ruri.