Chapter 252 : Enlightenment Through Battle (1)

Chapter 252: Enlightenment Through Battle (1)

"Didn't you say that if I lose, the young lady will meet with me? Isn't that enough?"

"That’s true. Then, I’ll leave it to you."

Tang Cheolgi made a fist gesture and subtly attempted to administer poison.

As he performed the fist technique, he let the poison he had in both hands spill toward the direction where Yong Hwarin was.

‘In a short while, you won’t even know what poison you’ve been hit with. You will fall and snore while sleeping. This poison is the "Ten-Day Drunken Dream Poison".’

The Ten-Day Drunken Dream Poison wasn't fatal, but it was close to a formless poison that even the most skilled martial artist wouldn't be able to identify.

Just one breath of it would cause someone to collapse on the spot and fall into a deep, unending sleep for ten days. The martial artists of the Tang Clan often used this poison when they didn’t intend to kill.

However, Tang Cheolgi was unaware that Yong Hwarin had already encased her entire body with the protective energy of her self-defense technique, rendering the poison useless.

Even her breath was carried out within the confines of her self-defense technique, making the poison ineffective.

Yong Hwarin had already anticipated Tang Cheolgi’s attempt at poisoning and had protected her body with her defensive energy when he approached.

"Then, please go ahead."

When Yong Hwarin spoke to Tang Cheolgi, he hesitated.

‘What? Why isn’t the Ten-Day Drunken Dream Poison working? She should have collapsed by now.’

After a brief moment of confusion, Tang Cheolgi, seeing that Yong Hwarin appeared unaffected, decided to demonstrate his most confident secret technique.

"If you can avoid this, I will admit defeat!"

This technique, which he had recently mastered, was inferior to the Tang Clan's signature technique, the "Full Sky Flower Rain", but it was still a formidable move—a method where he released ten secret weapons in the form of Qi strands, known as "Ten-Direction Hidden Rain."

The Full Sky Flower Rain was well-known, but few martial artists could avoid the Ten-Direction Hidden Rain.

The ten hidden weapons released by Tang Cheolgi were all famed secret weapons of the Tang Clan.

The "Soul-Shattering Golden Needle", "Blood Heart Coins", "Deadly Dual Demon Dagger", "Chasing Soul Arrow", "Ink Jade Nail", "Chasing Soul Swallowtail" and more—just the names of these secret weapons were enough to instill fear.

Whirrrrr!

The ten secret weapons marked the ten directions and surged toward Yong Hwarin’s body.

Each weapon carried an energy akin to a peak martial artist’s Qi, enough to easily pierce through even the best defensive techniques.

Since secret weapons like the Soul-Shattering Golden Needle and Blood Heart Coins were specifically designed to break through defensive energy, Tang Cheolgi was confident that even if Yong Hwarin had protective energy, these weapons would still be effective.

‘Still, I should be thankful she avoided the bloodshed. Otherwise, she would have been finished.’

Tang Cheolgi, grinning with self-satisfaction, rose into the air and watched as the secret weapons aimed at Yong Hwarin's body.

Yong Hwarin, however, was thinking of something else as she observed the oncoming weapons.

‘If I send these secret weapons to Lee Yung, it will be interesting!’

In a situation like this, no one could blame her for sending the weapons toward Lee Yung.

Yong Hwarin flowed her Qi into her finger and unleashed the Dragon Scale Finger technique.

In an instant, she marked ten spots in space and executed the Dragon Scale Finger technique so quickly that it seemed like her body had turned once.

Pipipipipiping!

The ten secret weapons that were descending upon Yong Hwarin suddenly shifted direction and flew toward Lee Yung.

"Hey, get out of the way!"

Yong Hwarin deliberately raised her voice.

Tang Cheolgi, dumbfounded, opened his mouth and stared at Yong Hwarin in disbelief. He had never seen anyone flick away Tang Clan’s secret weapons with their fingers.

To make matters worse, these secret weapons, which were capable of breaking through the protective energy, were now being flicked away by Yong Hwarin’s finger at an even faster speed than they had been launched.

Lee Yung, startled inside, was unsure if he could dodge any of them.

Some could perhaps be avoided, but there were others that were moving too fast for him to block in time.

"Exterminate the Flame!"

Lee Yung called out at the last moment.

As soon as Exterminate the Flame's eyebrow twitched, two Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners appeared in front of Lee Yung.

Puffpuffpuff!

The ten secret weapons were lodged into the bodies of the Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners.

However, the Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners stood still, seemingly unaffected.

Lee Yung's lips trembled.

If they weren’t Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners, he would have been dead from the secret weapons.

The speed at which the weapons arrived was beyond Lee Yung’s abilities to dodge.

"This is how you challenge me, isn’t it?"

Lee Yung, exuding killing intent, spoke.

"Exterminate the Flame, accept the challenge."

At his words, Exterminate the Flame turned its head toward Yong Hwarin.

Then, four Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners surged toward Yong Hwarin.

The rapid development of the situation left the onlookers in awe.

As the clash between Yong Hwarin and the Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners erupted, the martial artists in the inn quickly retreated to a corner.

However, there was a gleam of excitement in their eyes as they watched this rare battle between two high-level martial artists.

Since the Ghost Spirit Demonic Practitioners were bound together by Exterminate the Flame’s spiritual power, they moved according to his will.

“Would you look at that, where the hell did those things come from.”

As Jeong Suji shot up from her seat, Yong Hwarin spoke.

“You three stay seated. I’ll handle this quietly.”

Jeong Minji added.

“No need to stir things up. Leave it to Young Master Yong. If you step up, it'll just get chaotic.”

Jeong Suji sat down with a frown, clearly displeased.

“Even if they’re enemies, there’s a time to fight and a time not to. But in this case, I don't think refusing a duel is the right choice.”

Yong Hwarin drew his sword and swung it toward the incoming Gwi Ryeongma-in.

Clang!

Sparks burst as one of the Gwi Ryeongma-in was forced backward.

“Indeed… impressive.”

Apparently, not even Man Inhwa and the Four Demonic Generals had been able to gain the upper hand against them. They were that strong.

Yong Hwarin noticed that Myeolhwa had her eyes closed. He became convinced that she was identifying his presence through her energy sense.

‘So that’s how it is.’

He became curious—if he suppressed his energy sense, would she still be able to track him? Soon, he began to blend his qi with Nature’s Energy and gradually erase his presence.

He released all the qi inside his body and attempted fusion with Nature’s Energy.

Myeolhwa’s expression twisted in surprise.

The Gwi Ryeongma-in stood still, glancing around as if unsure of where to go.

They mirrored Myeolhwa’s confusion.

Seeing Myeolhwa’s reaction, Yong Hwarin realized something and began focusing his externalized qi to the left, envisioning a sword.

Wooden chopsticks and teacups on the left table began floating in the air.

Because the qi had formed a shape, the lighter objects reacted.

Myeolhwa slowly turned her head to the left.

She didn’t sense Yong Hwarin’s presence—only the qi itself.

Yong Hwarin could faintly sense it. His qi had taken on a crude sword-like form.

He consciously focused on the qi and slowly lifted it upward.

Myeolhwa’s head tilted upward along with it.

‘So that girl senses qi. That’s why she’s being deceived right now.’

Suddenly, Yong Hwarin felt his mind becoming hazy.

At that moment, the sword shape dissolved and returned to Nature’s Energy.

Yong Hwarin sensed it clearly.

‘Even if it was brief, I reached the Realm of Intent and Form (意形境) of the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra. But I lacked enough spiritual power to fully manifest the qi.’

Yong Hwarin had grasped the nature of Enhanced Qi.

He recalled something Manmyeonggwak, the Wielder of Ten Thousand Lives, had once told him while explaining the peerless martial artist Gwae Wolbaek.

‘To create Enhanced Qi, you need to envelop the expelled qi with spiritual power and shape it. That’s the only way. He was right. The ones I used against Eum Sajeok back at the manor were all Nascent Qi—exploding forms without any defined shape. That’s why they were hard to control. But now, as I try to form a sword shape, it’s taking form to some extent, though it drains me mentally to the point of haziness. That means my spiritual power is too weak to shape qi. If I had used the Demonic Master's soul to craft Enhanced Qi, I might have succeeded in forming True Qi.’

That thought made him regret giving Eum Sajeok the soul of the Demonic Master.

In a fleeting moment, Yong Hwarin had gained a tremendous realization.

True enlightenment always came in the blink of an eye.

Then, as new questions followed one after another, answers began to emerge.

‘Now I understand. Why Heavenly Demon Sect was so obsessed with the Four Great Divine Items. The fact that the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword was infused with Demon-Subduing Power means it was meant to suppress the spiritual energy within it. That proves all Four Great Divine Items contain spiritual power. When Myeong Gujeong told me I had to obtain the Blue Dragon Three Marbles to complete the Soaring Dragon Emperor Sword, it meant I needed them to manifest Enhanced Qi with that sword. And the same goes for the Phoenix Heavenly Vault Art from Jeong Family Manor—it only shows its true might when paired with the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice.’

The connection between the Four Great Divine Items and martial arts became clear in Yong Hwarin’s mind. He finally understood why the divine items were distributed among clans—to restrain those families.

Because if those clans ever sought to dominate the murim, no one else would be able to stop them.

As those doubts cleared one by one, Yong Hwarin found himself at the threshold of the final stage of the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra: the Realm of Life and Death (生死境), even if only momentarily.

At the same time, the state that had long felt like a distant wall—The Boundary of the Upper World (上界境)—was starting to reveal its shape.

Yong Hwarin’s eyes slowly shut.

Watching him silently, Lee Yung finally understood why the bastard wasn’t fighting back.

‘Hah… he’s meditating in a situation like this. A mad genius, that one.’

With both awe and envy in his eyes, he ordered Myeolhwa.

“Myeolhwa, now!”

But Myeolhwa couldn’t sense Yong Hwarin’s presence.

On top of that, since he had expelled all his qi and was now in a state of unity with nature, she couldn’t feel him at all.

“Open your eyes and look!”

Knowing this, Lee Yung shouted.

At his words, Myeolhwa slowly opened her eyes. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d opened them.

Her eyes glowed bright red.

It was Blood Eyes.

And with those eyes, Myeolhwa saw Yong Hwarin in front of her, eyes closed, seemingly asleep in meditation.

The downside of Blood Eyes was that once open, she could no longer control the Gwi Ryeongma-in.

Realizing this, Myeolhwa accepted that she would have to take Yong Hwarin down herself and began approaching him.

But the Three Chivalrous Sisters weren’t about to stand by and watch.

Even in that moment, Yong Hwarin’s enlightenment continued.

‘The Boundary of the Upper World… it’s a realm resembling nature itself. Imperfect, but where one naturally nurtures qi in harmony with nature. And I had something that brought me closest to this realm all along… yet I never considered it. How foolish of me.’

He recalled the final aphorism spoken by Zhang Sanfeng when discussing the Realm of Life and Death.

When mind and matter become one (物心一如), the Realm of Intent and Form will be realized naturally.