Chapter 102 : Black Silk Celestial Silkworm (1)

Chapter 102: Black Silk Celestial Silkworm (1)

As hundreds of fine needles flew toward them, the Demonic Master swung the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm imbued with the energy of one cycle.

The idea was to form a wave of qi to deflect the incoming needles.

But then, something strange happened.

The Black Silk Celestial Silkworm, charged with the energy of one cycle, stiffened like a sheet of iron and bounced the needles away.

Ting ting ting ting ting ting!

‘Ah, so the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm only becomes as hard as iron when infused with the energy of one cycle.’

Yong Hwarin realized this and also understood that the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm wasn’t just durable but could be as sharp as a soft sword.

At the same time, the Demonic Master smoothly swept the incoming needles aside with the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm and flung them toward Bingajeong.

Whoosh!

Several needles flew in Bingajeong’s direction. Just as she was about to throw another hidden weapon, her eyes widened in shock when she saw one of the needles pierce her elbow.

Without even a moment to think, she coldly severed her arm with a dagger where the needle had embedded itself.

Even the Arhat monks of Shaolin couldn’t help but be shocked by the sight of a beautiful woman emotionlessly cutting off her own arm.

“Amitabha.”

Bingajeong then shot a venomous glance at Yong Hwarin before leaping out the window.

Yong Hwarin didn’t foolishly try to chase after Bingajeong.

Right now, rescuing the Shaolin Arhat monks and escaping this place was the most urgent matter.

As he was about to retrieve the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm, he noticed a red energy surfacing on it and examined it closely.

‘This looks like some kind of pattern.’

Sensing that the pattern was gradually fading, Yong Hwarin, realizing something, infused it with internal energy.

Then, the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm absorbed the energy, and the red glow deepened.

Upon seeing the pattern sketched out by the red energy, Yong Hwarin marveled inwardly.

‘I don’t know what method was used, but when infused with energy, it reveals the image of a Black Tortoise.’

The pattern, which looked like a fusion of a turtle and a snake, emerged with intricate detail.

‘It’s definitely a special artifact.’

However, since he didn’t know its purpose, it was useless for now.

He pulled his gaze away from the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm and approached the Shaolin Arhat monks.

“Where were you sealed with pressure point strikes?”

The Shaolin monk shook his head.

“I was drugged and lost consciousness, so I don’t remember how I was sealed.”

Pressure point sealing was a technique that couldn’t be undone unless the exact sequence and depth of force used were known.

Since they were sealed while unconscious, there was no way to know what technique had been used.

‘Is there a way to undo it?’

To this, the Demonic Master replied.

‘Listen carefully, brat. Without internal energy, undoing pressure point sealing is difficult even with simple techniques. However, if you have the energy of three cycle, knowing the method makes unsealing them not so hard. The basics of sealing lie in blocking the qi from flowing through the Dantian’s meridian pathways via the Mingmen acupoint. So, typically, the sealing is done around the Mingmen point to stop qi from moving. If you inject internal energy into the opponent’s Dantian and the qi responds, that Dantian is not sealed. If the qi doesn’t move, then it is sealed. Try injecting energy into the Dantian of those Arhat monks.’

Yong Hwarin spoke to Master Gak Woo.

“May I examine you to see if I can undo the sealing?”

“If Benefactor Yong is willing to help us, we would only be grateful.”

Yong Hwarin examined the Lower, Middle, and Upper Dantian in order, but the qi didn’t budge in any of them.

‘All three Dantian are sealed. The qi doesn’t move.’

‘As expected. There would be no other method if they intended to completely immobilize Shaolin Arhat monks.’

Even the Demonic Master acknowledged the Arhat monks.

‘In that case, you must strike all three Dantian at once with the force equivalent to one cycle of energy. By striking the Dantian, the energy will forcibly release the sealed meridian pathways.’

‘But how can I strike all three Dantian simultaneously? Wouldn’t doing it in order be enough?’

‘No, then it won’t work. When all three Dantian are sealed, they must be struck at the same time to break through the blocked meridians. If done sequentially, the force will be blocked and unable to pierce through.’

‘Then how do I strike all three Dantian at once?’

‘Must I really spell everything out for you?’

The Demonic Master truly lived up to his title as a martial arts sage of the demonic path, possessing immense knowledge in martial arts.

Because of that, Yong Hwarin had unknowingly grown reliant on him.

Realizing this, Yong Hwarin reproached himself.

‘I’ve already suffered bitterly in my past life, learning the hard way that relying on others brings no growth or progress.’

After a brief moment of thought, Yong Hwarin came up with a method.

However, it wasn’t a very elegant one.

But without this method, there was no way to strike all three Dantian at once.

If he had more time, he might have found a cleaner solution, but now, they didn’t know when Bingajeong might return with her allies.

Yong Hwarin, fully aware that immediate action was the best course when a plan was in mind, spoke to Master Gak Woo.

“Master, I apologize, but to undo the sealing, I may have to act in a rather crude manner. Would that be acceptable?”

“You needn’t worry. We monks of Shaolin are not people who judge by appearances. Please proceed as you see fit, Benefactor Yong.”

“Then allow me to ask for your understanding first.”

Yong Hwarin lifted Master Gak Woo and tossed him upward.

As Gak Woo fell, Yong Hwarin thrust both arms up, striking the Upper and Middle Dantian. Simultaneously, he kicked upward with his right leg, hitting the Lower Dantian.

He struck each Dantian with exactly one cycle of internal energy, and Master Gak Woo’s body soared once more into the air.

“What are you doing?!”

Master Gak Pung shouted in shock, but his senior brother, Master Gak Yoo, calmly spoke.

“Be quiet and observe.”

“But if each Dantian is struck with one cycle of energy, how could Senior Brother Gak Woo’s Dantian remain intact? I’ve never heard of such a method for unsealing pressure points.”

“Quiet. With Benefactor Yong possessing the internal strength of three cycle, why would he use such a method without reason? Trust him and wait.”

Among the four Arhat monks, Gak Yoo was the wisest and most cautious.

That was why, when they had come to East Moon Pavilion to search for the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword, he had been the most vigilant and careful.

However, they were all rather ignorant when it came to women or conspiracies, so they had ended up collapsing after ingesting the sleeping poison in their food.

Gak Yoo stopped Gak Pung because he had sensed the immense energy flowing within Yong Hwarin.

The force momentarily emitted from his body was certainly the strength of three cycle.

It was reminiscent of the aura of Muheo, the first seat of the Shaolin Eighteen Arhats. Muheo, a monstrous figure with three cycle of internal energy, was renowned even within Shaolin Temple.

‘How could someone so young have cultivated such power?’

Gak Yoo clicked his tongue in admiration.

‘To have such a promising figure in orthodox Murim, what a blessing.’

Yong Hwarin caught the falling Master Gak Woo and gently lowered him to the ground.

“Cough!”

As soon as he sat in a lotus position, Master Gak Woo spat out a mouthful of dark red blood.

The blood was from the internal congestion that had accumulated at the sealed acupoints due to the vicious pressure point technique.

“Senior Brother, how are you? Are you alright?”

Gak Pung and Gak Un asked in concern. Master Gak Woo gave them a slight smile.

“I’m fine. It seems the pressure point seals have been fully released.”

“Ah, what a relief.”

“Benefactor Yong, could you release my fellow brothers’ pressure points as well?”

“Of course.”

Yong Hwarin used the same method to release the seals of the remaining three monks.

Though the technique appeared brutal, it was remarkably effective, allowing the flow of qi to resume freely.

“This is the most insidious pressure point sealing I’ve ever seen. Normally, our internal strength would suffice to break simple seals, but with this, we couldn’t even twitch.”

As Gak Pung remarked, Gak Woo cut in.

“Gak Pung, silence for a moment.”

He furrowed his brow, sensing something amiss outside.

“It seems we are surrounded.”

Yong Hwarin nodded at Gak Woo’s words.

“If we’re to escape from here now, the masters will need to carve us a way out. Will that be alright?”

“We don’t need to kill to open a path.”

Though it sounded like a naïve statement, they had confidence in their skills, so it made sense.

“Then let’s go.”

“Wait. We came here to recover the lost artifact from our main temple. We must continue the search.”

To that, Yong Hwarin shook his head.

“The item you’re looking for isn’t here.”

He explained that the Black Killing Sword was currently in their possession and that he had already handed the other Shaolin artifact to someone else.

Although they couldn’t act solely on Yong Hwarin’s word, his sincerity up to this point left no room for doubt, and they trusted him.

“Understood. For now, escaping this place should be our priority. Brothers, begin forming the Four-Star Lotus Formation. We will break through.”

Master Gak Woo issued orders to his fellow monks and then turned to Yong Hwarin.

“Benefactor Yong, please move to the center.”

The Shaolin monks formed the Four-Star Lotus Formation with the intention of protecting Yong Hwarin.

They assumed he had exhausted all his internal energy to help release their pressure points and thus placed him in the center out of consideration.

“From now on, we will make our way out. Do not stray from the formation.”

As the four Arhat monks soared outside, Yong Hwarin followed right behind them.

Almost immediately, arrows filled the sky in a chaotic barrage, as if they'd been waiting for their emergence.

The moment a commotion erupted around East Moon Pavilion, the Three Chivalrous Sisters and Hoi Unkyung sprang to their feet.

“It seems Young Master Yong has been discovered and is engaged in combat.”

“Sister, let’s go help him.”

As Jeong Daji and Jeong Minji exchanged words, Hoi Unkyung hesitated briefly at their suggestion.

“That’s the enemy’s hideout. With our forces alone, we won’t be enough.”

“But we can’t just sit back and do nothing.”

Jeong Suji replied coldly.

“We should report this to the authorities.”

Hoi Unkyung wasn’t a martial artist—she was a merchant. She didn’t see the point in involving herself in a large-scale battle.

Until now, she had approached this matter hoping she might acquire some artifacts through the information she had gathered, but she had no intention of joining a hopeless battle.

As a profit-seeking merchant, she couldn’t pursue righteousness.

When Hoi Unkyung suddenly tried to back out, the Three Chivalrous Sisters looked at her with contempt.

They were swordswomen who had lived as knight-errants. To them, such profit-driven behavior was distasteful.

“Then we’ll head for East Moon Pavilion. Miss Hoi, please go to the authorities and ask for reinforcements.”

Despite her frustration, Jeong Minji addressed Hoi Unkyung kindly, remembering the help she had received.

“Understood. We will provide support from the rear.”

Watching her, Jeong Suji sneered.

“Do whatever you like. Let’s go, sister.”

Jeong Suji led the charge.

Jeong Minji and Jeong Daji exchanged glances and smiled faintly.

Despite always acting cold toward Yong Hwarin, Jeong Suji was always the first to step up when it counted.

“Let’s go. If we’re late, Young Master Yong could be in danger. Don’t take what my sister says too seriously, Sister Hoi. And the Black Killing Sword is still safe with you.”

“Got it. We’ll keep the Black Killing Sword safe. Take care.”