Chapter 112 – Clue (2)

“Ah, ah! Please do it! Please!”

The desperate Myungwoljinin was lifted up onto my lap as I urgently grabbed Hong Yeonhwa.

“What’s wrong all of a sudden? Weren’t you the one who said we should maintain our dignity in important situations?”

“There’s something more important now, so just stay still.”

“Well, if you say so…”

I didn’t know what was going on, but Hong Yeonhwa obediently entrusted her body to me as if she would follow whatever I commanded.

Feeling the small back touching my chest, I naturally placed one hand on Hong Yeonhwa’s stomach.

This position was so familiar that it felt empty without it.

Pang So-so seemed to have guessed what I was up to and quickly removed the uneaten snacks, instead taking out a vial of medicine and handing it to Hong Yeonhwa.

“Huh? Can I eat this?”

“Yeah, go ahead. You have to, actually.”

As I gently stroked her pink hair, Hong Yeonhwa hesitantly started to swallow the medicine.

Once I saw her shaking her legs, which didn’t even reach the floor, I knew she was feeling better.

Good. I won’t unintentionally ruin the mood now.

Blocking Hong Yeonhwa’s mouth with the medicine, I opened my mouth.

“Just in case, I want to clarify that what I just said wasn’t a threat. It was a simple business proposal.”

“Uh…t-that’s right?”

“Yes. If we were really ruthless people, the Lord of the Martial World wouldn’t have given us the Green Jade Valley. We wouldn’t have gone through such a troublesome method.”

“Troublesome…huh!”

Myungwoljinin started trembling alone, probably imagining something.

Why is such a powerful member of the Mo Sanpa so scared?

On the other hand, it means that he must be very skilled to have reached such a high position despite his personality.

I smiled and summarized what I had said to Myungwoljinin.

“Please find a way for Hong Yeonhwa to return to her world. The deadline doesn’t matter. In return, we will give you the secret of the Single Marriage Sword. …What do you think?”

“……”

It was an offer that Mo Sanpa couldn’t refuse.

***

After finishing our business, we couldn’t leave right away.

Hong Yeonhwa certainly knew about the Single Marriage Sword, but it was only in her head.

We had to extract it and turn it into a secret, and teaching martial arts wasn’t something that could be done with just one secret.

So we stayed at Mo Sanpa for a few more days.

Once again, Hong Yeonhwa was lying on a cushion with her ample chest as she hummed a tune while scribbling something down. It looked like she was writing a diary in a cheerful and lively manner, but in reality, she was probably jotting down the details of the unique martial art, Danhon Dohwageom, which combined martial arts and sorcery.

Resting my head on her plump back, I gazed up at the ceiling with a dazed expression.

“I’m so tired…”

While Hong Yeonhwa was diligently writing her notes, I wasn’t just idling around.

Every day, I sparred with Pang So-so to test the things I had learned during the trials.

Although there wasn’t much difference in my daily life, even with the Upper Realm Tournament approaching, I realized that many things had changed when I actually fought.

First of all, as I had confirmed before, I could now wield the Sim Sangsok Sword without exerting too much time and mental energy.

Naturally, I could also use it in real combat situations.

This was probably enough to say that I had fully awakened the true power of the Muryeong Divine Skill, right?

Of course, I was still at a level where I could move my body a little more accurately and precisely.

I was far from reaching the level I had shown at the Yongbongji Association.

Although even a slight change in posture could produce much greater power, I couldn’t be satisfied with this and had to continue to work hard.

Next was my internal energy.

My blood vessels had expanded significantly, and my already abundant internal energy had increased even more.

I could already emit sword energy in an instant, but now I could also reflexively concentrate my energy on the area where I was hit to minimize damage.

It goes without saying that it doesn’t block the sword energy completely. If that were possible, it would be a miracle.

However, it could prevent the opponent’s energy from penetrating my body and minimize injuries.

I couldn’t spar with Pang So-so to the point of getting injured, so I couldn’t really confirm this.

I just assumed that it was probably true since Hong Yeonhwa said so.

Oh, but it did hurt less when I got hit.

Lastly, there was my Five Elements.

Surprisingly, my Five Elements had improved slightly. It’s rare for the Five Elements to grow when you’re already grown up, especially since I was already an adult.

But this was surprisingly useless.

I could barely learn third-rate martial arts with great effort, so I could only learn second-rate martial arts if I worked really, really hard.

The reason why the Rising Dragon Divine Skill was treated as a treasure was that it guaranteed at least the minimum level of mastery.

However, I had been practicing the Samjae Swordsmanship and Palbangbo for over ten years and had reached the peak of my abilities. Now, I was supposed to abandon my existing martial arts and learn new ones? And even then, it would only be at the level of a beginner?

That was…too inefficient. It was clear that the depth of my martial arts would disappear, and I would become even weaker.

Hong Yeonhwa and Pang So-so agreed with me, so we decided not to learn any new martial arts.

If I were to learn anything, it would be auxiliary martial arts like the shallow Kwonbeop or the Geumnasu technique, which would come in handy in certain situations.

I decided to focus on the fact that my mind had improved.

Anyway, it was clear that I had become much stronger than before.

But there was one fatal problem.

“My head hurts…”

It was because the consumption of my internal energy was enormous.

Due to the nature of the Muryeong Divine Skill, my physical strength and internal energy were abundant, but mentally, I was exhausted.

If I repeated it several times like when I first brought out the power of the Muryeong Divine Skill, it would gradually improve.

On the other hand, it meant that it would be difficult until my determination grew.

As I stared blankly at the ceiling, Hong Yeonhwa, who had been happily writing her diary, began to fidget.

“Hey, where’s So-so?”

“She’s taking a bath…oh, by the way, can you use Sammaejinha to get rid of my impurities? I’m too dizzy to even go to the bath…”

“Just wait a moment.”

Hong Yeonhwa put down her book and brush and flicked her fingers lightly.

Snap!

At the same time, I felt a warmth that covered my whole body. It was like soaking in a warm bath, just the right temperature.

Hong Yeonhwa’s Sammaejinha covered my body, and soon, instead of feeling stuffy, I felt refreshed.

“Ah…that feels good. Can I just ask you to use Sammaejinha on me if I’m too lazy to take a bath from now on?”

“Madam prefers you to be wet, so I won’t do it too often.”

“Then just ask her to wash me.”

“Oh…?”

Hong Yeonhwa showed a playful reaction to my tired words. Come to think of it, it might be okay. I’ll ask her next time.

Anyway, as I lay there, Hong Yeonhwa carefully lowered me onto the cushion.

“Uttchacha.”

Then she climbed on top of me and lay down.

“Ubuuk.”

Overwhelming weight on my face. Warm, flowery scent, and above all, incredibly soft.

With her chest covering my face, Hong Yeonhwa casually pulled out a brush and ink from mid-air.

“…What’s going on all of a sudden?”

As I mumbled with my face buried in her chest, Hong Yeonhwa playfully smiled and pressed her weight onto me.

“Do you feel energized when you touch the lady’s breasts? She gave them to you today to cheer you up since you looked particularly tired…or do you not like it?”

“Of course not.”

I slowly reached out my hand, as if afraid it might fall, and pulled Hong Yeonhwa close, placing my hand on her waist.

I couldn’t help but make a pitiful expression, but Hong Yeonhwa just kept nodding her head with a contented smile.

After a while, she began to fill the silence with her humming and the faint smell of her breath. It was a peaceful scene that made me feel calm, and I closed my eyes for a moment.

***

Roughly ten days had passed like that.

I had already completed the Bi-geup, and under Hong Yeonhwa’s guidance, I had even surpassed the beginner level of the Myeongwol Swordsmanship.

Now, I could practice on my own, and then pass it on to others as I pleased.

It was time to leave the Mosan Faction.

As we chatted and exchanged drinks, the Myeongwol Swordsman, who had gradually become less afraid of Hong Yeonhwa, proposed a drinking session. I had no reason to refuse, so I accepted it gladly.

During our conversation, we stumbled upon a topic that I never expected.

“What? You know my master?”

“I was also surprised by the coincidence. Sohyeop is a disciple of Manyeondongjeong…what a small world.”

I never thought that the Myeongwol Swordsman and my master would know each other.

Well, they looked to be around the same age, even though I didn’t know their exact ages.

It wouldn’t be strange if they had worked together during the same period.

“Can you tell me who your master was in the past?”

All I knew about my master was his dark history, and even that was only a few stories.

I was excited at the prospect of hearing more vivid stories from his active days, but Myeongwol Swordsman awkwardly avoided my gaze.

“Well, um, maybe…”

“…Maybe what?”

“Perhaps it’s true. I refused his confession, but Bindo was once confessed to by Gyeongam’s friend.”

“Oh.”

I never thought I would be a witness to my master’s dark history…!