Whooosh!
A tremendous amount of internal energy began charging down the path.
To open the Conception Vessel, one had to pass through a path made up of twenty-four acupoints. Its starting point was the Huiyin Acupoint.
The problem was that the Huiyin Acupoint was located in a rather important area.
No, no!
A forced opening?!
No scream escaped my lips. The internal energy, transformed into a raging bull, slammed into the Huiyin Acupoint.
Boom!
……!
It was a sensation only someone who had experienced it could understand. My vision turned white as though I had arrived in heaven, and all my senses drifted away.
The faces of the people precious to me flashed before my eyes one after another.
Mom. Hayeon. Among them was the unfamiliar face of a newborn baby.
Y-You’re…
Waaaaah!
A baby’s cry echoed like a hallucination.
Only then did I realize who it was.
Oh, my baby!
Jin Taekyung Junior, whom I had yet to meet.
The face of a child I might never meet at all.
The baby’s innocent eyes seemed to ask me:
“Daddy, can’t I come out?”
The next moment, my whitened vision returned, and unimaginable pain shot up from my lower body.
Kyaaaaaaah!
As I screamed with my soul, a desperate voice lashed against my ears.
“Get a hold of yourself! If you can’t endure this pain, death is all that awaits you!”
“……!”
Death? Me? And in such a disgraceful way?
My mind snapped back as if someone had dumped cold water over my head.
The pain, like a knife stabbing into my lower abdomen, was still there, but I summoned superhuman patience.
I can’t die like this!
I was someone who had survived countless bloody battles. Even when my injuries had been severe enough to put my life at risk, I had stubbornly endured.
This was only this much—no, it wasn’t only this much, but still, I wasn’t so impatient that I’d let my life end over something like this.
Hng!
While I stubbornly endured the pain, the tremendous internal energy broke through the twenty-four acupoints without hesitation.
And finally…
Boom!
It collided with the gate known as the Conception Vessel.
At the same time, pain on a level similar to what I had felt at the Huiyin Acupoint came surging in like a wave.
The difference was that this collision did not end after just one strike.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Once, twice, three times. Thunderous booms and vibrations rang out inside my body like thunder from the heavens.
Only then did I understand why Jeok Cheongang had pressed my Paralysis Acupoint and Mute Acupoint. And why he had secured me with ropes on top of that.
Gnnngh!
Even though my acupoints had been sealed, my entire body trembled. My body was reacting on its own to pain beyond its limits.
Pop.
The tiny blood vessels in my wide-open eyes burst.
Through my vision stained entirely red, I saw Jeok Cheongang roaring.
“Endure it! This is the last one!”
The last one? Really?
Whether it was true or not didn’t matter. His words gave me strength.
Just a little more. More!
I drew up the internal energy sleeping in my dantian.
Forty-five years of internal energy raced through the wide-open acupoint pathways, where all the turbid qi and obstacles had been removed, and surged upward in one burst.
Then it joined the elixir’s energy, which was already pounding against the Conception Vessel, and Jeok Cheongang’s internal energy.
The battering ram formed from the three energies struck the gate with more force and sharpness than ever.
Bang! Kwoooong!
That was the finale—the end of the long, arduous struggle.
The tightly blocked Conception Vessel collapsed, and the energies poured in like an occupying army.
For an instant, pain sharp enough to make me dizzy swept through me. Then a pleasure and refreshing clarity several times greater than the pain I had felt flooded my entire body.
Ding.
System
You have successfully opened the Conception Vessel!
The handling of qi has become much freer!
Your speed of circulating and accumulating internal energy has increased dramatically!
You have achieved the Conception Vessel Opening Achievement!
As a reward…
Ah… Ahhh!
My body trembled now not from pain, but from joy. This was different. Everything I had known until now had been no more than a drop in the ocean.
The difference was as enormous as the gap between First Rate and Peak.
How can things change this much?
Although I had to endure tremendous pain, an achievement like this was worth it. No—it was something I had to endure.
Jeok Cheongang beamed at me as I stared in amazement.
“You did very well!”
Seeing how genuinely pleased he was made a corner of my chest grow warm.
To think he had gone all out to help me like this. If my acupoints hadn’t been sealed, I would have performed a formal bow to Jeok Cheongang.
Jeok Cheongang, you really…
Just as my eyes began to grow moist, he spoke.
“We can open the Governor Vessel this way, too.”
“…….”
Oh, fuck.
I forgot about that.
He wants me to do this one more time?
No. I’m not doing it! At least let me rest for a little while first!
Seeing me blink desperately, Jeok Cheongang chuckled.
“You’re so eager to do it right away. I was going to let you rest a little first, but… Very well. Let’s ride this momentum and open both the Conception and Governor Vessels!”
“……!”
“Here we go!”
And so, the express train to hell departed once more. One shichen later,1 I could faintly hear a System notification through my dazed consciousness.
Ding.
System
You have opened the Governor Vessel!
Quest Conception and Governor Vessels was completed successfully!
You have achieved a rare Achievement! As a reward…
.
.
.
Whatever, fuck.
To hell with rare Achievements and whatever else. I couldn’t endure any more.
Having exhausted every last bit of my mental strength, I plunged headfirst into endless darkness.
The moment Jeok Cheongang loosened the ropes, Jin Taekyung’s collapsing body fell into his careful embrace.
The sweat Taekyung had shed while enduring the pain and the turbid qi he had expelled earlier created a powerful stench, but Jeok Cheongang didn’t care.
Those were the traces left by a martial artist striving to reach a higher realm.
The gaze Jeok Cheongang directed at the unconscious Jin Taekyung was deeper and gentler than ever.
The more I learn about him, the more remarkable he is.
At first, Jeok Cheongang had wondered about it.
Why him, of all people?
In Jeok Cheongang’s eyes, Jin Taekyung was neither white nor black. He was gray—the sort of gray one could find anywhere in the world.
He wasn’t exactly burning with a sense of justice, but neither was he evil.
Nor was he particularly devoted to training in martial arts.
From the moment Jeok Cheongang arrived at the Jin Family of Taiyuan, he had heard so much about Jin Taekyung that the words had been driven into his ears.
Even without asking, the people around him were always talking.
His martial arts were Third Rate, while his drinking, womanizing, and gambling were First Rate. Unlike his two older brothers, who possessed outstanding talent, he had been called a disgrace to the family.
When Jeok Cheongang learned the truth, he had resented the heavens, if only for a moment.
Why did you give the Heavenly Martial Physique to someone like him?
A fine sword ought to belong to a swordsman, not a farmer.
Yet the Jin Taekyung of the rumors was no different from a farmer holding a fine sword. He didn’t even possess the farmer’s diligence.
The only thing he applied himself to diligently was drinking, womanizing, and gambling. What more was there to say?
But…
I was wrong.
Looking back, Jeok Cheongang realized that everything he had thought was merely an old man’s stubborn prejudice and contradiction.
He wasn’t some immortal sage, so how could he divide someone he had known for such a short time into black and white? And what if Taekyung was gray?
A human heart. If he holds on to that, it’s enough.
From everything Jeok Cheongang had seen so far, Jin Taekyung was more than good enough.
Humans were imperfect beings to begin with, so it was absurd to divide them into perfect white and black.
Perhaps gray was simply another name for a good person.
And on top of that, he possesses remarkable mental strength.
What good was being born with a fine physique? The process of opening the Conception and Governor Vessels was so difficult and painful that it could be called hellish.
Yet Jin Taekyung had done it. And he had done it splendidly.
It must have been unbearably difficult and painful. Even so, he had held on with nothing but the single-minded determination to become stronger.
Jin Taekyung possessed a mental strength as firm as his physique.
The Heavenly Martial Physique chose its master well.
A satisfied smile appeared around Jeok Cheongang’s mouth. After gazing at Jin Taekyung for a long while, he muttered:
“Perhaps… it can happen much sooner than I thought.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Jeok Cheongang’s wrinkled fingers began to tremble.
This had cost even him a considerable amount of internal energy and mental strength. Before his mind could fully process it, his aging body was already informing him of the fact.
“It’s too soon, you bastard. Hold out for just a few more years.”
Jeok Cheongang muttered bitterly and lifted Jin Taekyung’s body.
They had crossed a great mountain. Now it was time to rest.
The young man and the old man alike.
It was around noon when Ak Bulgun, the spear Instructor at Heaven’s Gate Temple, arrived at Jin Wikyung’s office.
When he opened the door and entered, Jin Wikyung, who had been scribbling something across a bamboo slip, brightened and rose from his seat.
“Sir Ak, welcome. Thank you for accepting my invitation despite how busy you must be.”
“It’s only sensible for the man with more free time to make the trip. Please don’t worry about it.”
The Shandong Yue Family was a prestigious clan of spear techniques, famous throughout the Murim.
Yet despite being a direct scion of such a prestigious family, Ak Bulgun was a straightforward man with no inclination toward empty formalities.
The questions that followed immediately, before he even had time to take a sip of tea, reflected that personality perfectly.
“By the way, why did you summon me? Could it be…”
Jin Wikyung smiled faintly.
“Unfortunately, this isn’t about Mukyung.”
“I see.”
Ak Bulgun nodded and added bluntly:
“Lesser Family Head, please understand that Heaven’s Gate Temple has strict regulations.”
Heaven’s Gate Temple was both a treasure trove of outstanding talent and a gateway to advancement.
As long as they possessed sufficient talent, people could become cadets regardless of their backgrounds. As a result, its members ranged from disciples of small sects in remote regions to disciples and scions of prestigious major sects.
Despite bringing together people from such different backgrounds, Heaven’s Gate Temple had avoided major disturbances because it imposed strict regulations on every cadet.
“If someone fails to return by the appointed date, they can be expelled. Even the Ten Dragons and Phoenixes aren’t exempt.”
“I did go to see him myself, as it happens, but…”
“Did he refuse?”
“Yes.”
Jin Wikyung had gone to see him after much deliberation, but Jin Mukyung hadn’t even shown his face.
According to Childeuk, the martial artist stationed at the training hall, Mukyung hadn’t come outside even once since entering.
He subsisted on fasting pills and refused to let anyone approach him. At least, when he heard that Jin Wikyung had come, he sent back a brief answer:
“I won’t return until I achieve complete mastery.”
Ak Bulgun let out a short laugh after hearing Jin Wikyung’s explanation.
Having taught Jin Mukyung several times before, Ak Bulgun was well acquainted with the young genius’s personality.
“That sounds like him.”
“It’s unfortunate, but I don’t think even I can break my little brother’s stubbornness.”
“The Temple Master will regret it just as much as you do, Lesser Family Head.”
Everyone had their own path to follow. Ak Bulgun nodded matter-of-factly and continued:
“It seems I still haven’t heard why you asked to see me.”
“Oh, I wanted to deliver a letter to you.”
“A letter?”
Instead of answering, Jin Wikyung took a small bamboo tube from inside his robe and handed it over.
Ak Bulgun checked the inscription engraved on the surface of the blue bamboo tube and muttered:
“Heaven’s Gate Temple?”
“It arrived half a shichen ago. I thought it best to bring you here so I could hand it over personally.”
“Please excuse me for a moment.”
After asking permission, Ak Bulgun silently read through the letter.
He checked it twice, then a third time, before raising his head and staring at Jin Wikyung.
“Lesser Family Head.”
“……?”
“I’m going to need your help.”
Footnotes
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A shichen is a traditional Chinese time unit of approximately two hours. ↩
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