Chapter 531 - The Primordial Gwimul.
-What is your relationship with the Blood Demon.
At Namgung Myeong's abrupt words, my mind felt chillingly sober.
The Blood Demon.
'Why here, too.'
No matter what incident occurred, it seemed to end up connected to the Blood Demon.
Why would one even think of the Blood Demon simply from the fact that Noea had ended up like that?
I tried to ask Namgung Myeong why he had said such a thing.
[That is far enough....]
Suddenly, Sin Noya stopped me.
[Let us be on our way.]
'Noya?'
It was strange enough that he cut me off, but I was bewildered by his suggestion to leave mid-conversation.
This was something connected to the Blood Demon, of all things.
I felt I had to hear it by any means necessary; how could we just leave like this?
While I was wondering what this was about.
[I shall explain when we return. Let us go now.]
'...'
I could sense it from that.
That Sin Noya knew something.
And furthermore.
'Is it something I shouldn't hear here?'
The fact that Noya deliberately cut me off meant there was good reason.
I had to choose.
Whether to insist on hearing it here.
Or to trust Noya.
What choice did I have to make? The answer was obvious anyway.
"...I shall see you again next time."
I chose as Noya wished. Without hesitation.
Coming all this way and being unable to trust Sin Noya was a problem in itself.
"So. What was that about?"
I returned to my room, leaving behind the Namgung Trio and Uhyeok. I hadn't even heard the rather important reason why Namgung Bia had refused Noea.
Both body and mind were exhausted. I wanted to lie down right away, but still, I had to ask.
[...]
At my question the moment we entered the room, Noya fell silent.
Was he choosing his words, or was it something he could not speak of?
"Noya."
On any other day, I would have held back, wondering if it was something unspeakable.
But now I had to ask.
This was about the Blood Demon; all the more reason I had to know.
He had thought of the Blood Demon upon seeing me.
For there was nothing else that made me as sensitive as this, and Noya knew that better than anyone.
So I waited.
I had faith that he would surely give an answer, so I had to wait.
I thought he would give an answer if I waited.
And surely enough.
[...Youngster.]
Sin Noya began to speak.
"Yes."
Mmh.
I replied while unfolding a Qi Barrier.
Because there were far more than one or two martial artists gathered around.
They were likely martial artists sent by the Poison King.
It was not a strange occurrence.
Given the incident had blown up, it was to protect the guests.
There was likely also the intention to monitor.
It did not matter.
By now, I could easily avoid that level of attention.
Others couldn't hear Noya's words anyway, so honestly it wouldn't have mattered if I didn't deploy the barrier.
'I just need to be a bit more comfortable.'
Only then would my mind be at ease, even slightly.
I also wished to avoid rumors spreading that the Gu Clan's madman was walking around talking to himself.
Ah, but rumors that I'm a madman have already spread, so perhaps it doesn't matter.
'...None of it really matters anyway.'
The rumor of being a madman had been convenient.
Whatever I did, people would let it slide, thinking, "He's crazy."
'I'll have to do even crazier things going forward.'
I was confident, for it was what I did best.
While I was firmly resolving myself thus.
[Before explaining this.... there is something I must say first.]
Noya began his tale.
[Youngster, you.]
The first words I heard as I strained my ears were.
[What do you think a Gwimul (貴物) is?]
It was a somewhat unexpected question.
******************
What is a Gwimul (貴物)?
There are various definitions, but to put it conclusively.
An object with a special power attached to it was called a Gwimul.
Like Noea or Gwijeong, they also served as symbols of sects or clans.
There was even an era where a clan's prestige was determined by how many Gwimuls they possessed.
If one asks how mere number of objects could determine such a thing.
What mattered was that a Gwimul was an object which could not be created by human power.
Why did it become a symbol?
Why did it remain a valuable asset?
Ultimately, it was a matter of whether it could be created by human power or not.
Special objects gain value.
The rarer and fewer in number, the higher their value was bound to become.
If you ask why a Gwimul is a Gwimul, it is partly because it holds special power.
But as its name implies, it is called a Gwimul because it is precious and rare.
Ah, of course....
'There will be someone who can make Gwimuls later on.'
In just five or six years. There was one human who could create artificial Gwimuls.
It was ambiguous to call them Gwimuls, but they had caused quite a stir when they appeared.
It was also the birth of a new Gwimul, rarely seen these days.
'But that's not important right now.'
So, was he asking if I knew what a Gwimul was?
From my perspective.
"...A strange object."
No other word came to mind.
Was it not so?
A sword that emitted blade aura when you fed it energy,
or a bandage that never broke,
or a lump of rock of unknown origin, and so on.
They were all obviously abnormal objects. I didn't think there was a more fitting word than that.
Hearing this answer, Noya scoffed with a laugh and said,
[It is not wrong. Rather, it is accurate. Then.... a different question.]
[When do you think Gwimuls have existed since?]
"Huh?"
Asking since when Gwimuls have existed?
That...
'...Right?'
Since when had they existed?
By the time I was born, the existence called Gwimuls was already widespread,
and historically, they had been around for several hundred years.
'...I don't particularly recall learning when Gwimuls first existed.'
I merely knew that such objects existed in the world.
I had never heard when or how they came into being.
I had never been particularly curious either.
Because Gwimuls existing was a matter of common sense.
But.
For Noya to ask me such a question now.
"...Are you saying Gwimuls are related to the Blood Demon?"
Between the Blood Demon (血魔) that appeared centuries ago
and the Gwimuls spread throughout the world now, was there some connection?
To this question, Noya
[I am not certain. Myeong likely thinks the same.]
gave a somewhat ambiguous answer.
'Not certain.'
Not being certain also meant he couldn't firmly deny it.
"...Then, why did you bother mentioning Gwimuls?"
I also needed an answer regarding why Namgung Myeong had associated me with the Blood Demon.
Regarding this, Sin Noya, after a brief silence like before,
continued.
[The objects called Gwimuls today originally.]
I perked my ears up, thinking it would be an elaboration like earlier.
[are objects that appeared together with the Demonic Realm Gate.]
"...What?"
His words took me by slight surprise.
'Gwimuls are objects that came from the Demonic Realm Gate?'
It was the first time I had heard such a thing.
"Is that true...?"
[How could I speak falsely? I witnessed it with my own eyes.]
Did this mean Noya had seen with his own eyes that Gwimuls were objects which sprang from the Demonic Realm Gate?
If that were true, it was not strange.
Sin Noya was from the era that began falling into chaos due to the Demonic Realm Gate.
Only, what preceded was simply bizarre.
"Then does that mean the Demonic Realm Gate just... spat out Gwimuls?"
[Surely you don't think so?]
"Then what? How on earth did Gwimuls..."
[To be precise, a Gwimul is an object that demons from the Demonic Realm spat out.]
...Isn't that even stranger?
"Demons spit out objects?"
Not magic stones, but objects?
While dumbfounded by the absurd answer, I barely collected my wits and had to point out the contradiction in Sin Noya's words.
"If that is the case, then why have I never heard of such things until now?"
If demons truly spit out Gwimuls,
then why do they not spit them out now?
Furthermore.
'There aren't even any records.'
It was incomprehensible why I was only hearing such information now.
[They may not come out now.]
"Huh?"
[Are not the White ones no longer appearing now?]
"...Noya, you mean..."
If I was not mistaken, the White that Noya spoke of.
'White-grade demons.'
Those bizarre beings that possess a white hue and are so powerful that they lay curses upon the terrain even after death.
Bizarre beings that no longer appeared after the Blood Tribulation ended.
According to Noya's words, it meant Gwimuls were objects that came from such White-grade demons.
[Yes, Gwimuls are all objects obtained by killing those beings.]
"How... is that possible."
Obtaining objects by killing demons.
If it were leather, bones, or magic stones, perhaps, but this was incomprehensible.
It would be more realistic if Gwimuls were made using such byproducts.
They just popped out?
[I do not know the reason why. It simply happened to be so.]
If that was the origin of Gwimuls, many questions arose.
Various contradictions came to mind.
'...That's that.'
The birth of Gwimuls was not important to me right now.
"Then, what does that have to do with what Senior Namgung Myeong said?"
Because this was what mattered.
The essence of what Namgung Myeong said about the Blood Demon.
I had to hear that.
At my indirect urging, Sin Noya began to speak to me in a calm voice.
[Youngster.]
"Yes."
[The Gwijeong on your arm. Have you never harbored doubts about how you are able to use it?]
So it was about Gwijeong.
'...I didn't find it particularly strange?'
Noya had taught me how to use it.
It was Noya himself who had scolded me for not using it.
That meant I simply hadn't known the method; if I had tried, I could have used it from the start.
I had even absorbed Noya's energy, so I naturally thought I could use it thanks to that.
[It is different.]
But Noya gave a denial.
[Your ability to use Gwijeong is secondary. What I mean is that Gwijeong has changed.]
"Changed?"
At those words, I raised my arm and examined the Gwijeong.
'If it's changed, does he mean the color?'
The purplish-red energy used by the Hwasan martial artists.
Gwijeong's color had originally been like that. But now it was imbued with blue.
Looking at it, I had thought it was naturally influenced by my energy.
[Yes, that is the problem.]
"...This?"
[Do you know the position Gwimuls hold in clans today?]
"I know."
There are various Gwimuls.
Moreover, they were classified into grades within.
From things called Gwimuls but not very useful,
to those that became symbols of an organization, like Noea or Gwijeong.
Yes, symbolic Gwimuls.
All representative prestigious clans and renowned sects possessed such Gwimuls.
The Gu Clan had one too, but I had never seen it used.
[What do you think makes that possible?]
"Why... Of course, because their characteristics match."
Because the characteristics match.
I thought that was correct.
Noea was, as its name suggested, a weapon imbued with thunder energy.
Even Gwijeong or the Gwimul I had brought to Hwasan contained plum blossom energy.
Other symbolic Gwimuls were the same.
They all possessed energy that evoked their respective sects or clans.
'Now that I think about it, that's quite amazing.'
How could that be?
It was nothing short of amazing.
If Gwimuls came from White demons, did it mean everyone had simply taken Gwimuls that matched their energy from among them?
Noea used thunder energy, so Namgung Myeong took it.
Gwijeong held Hwasan's Tao energy, so Noya took it?
Just as I was thinking it was roughly like that.
[...The order is wrong.]
Once again, Noya said no.
"Then what?"
[The objects that first appeared as so-called Gwimuls did not have such energy.]
"They didn't?"
This time I was more surprised than before.
The Gwimuls that popped out weren't imbued with energy? Then what are current Gwimuls?
[The primordial Noea was merely a nameless rod, and Gwijeong was merely a white bead.]
"Then...?"
[Do you know how such Gwimuls came to appear as they do now?]
It flashed through my mind at Noya's question.
Because Noya's words that the order was wrong had stuck with me.
Taking a guess, I tentatively answered.
"...You imbued them with energy?"
[Yes, we imbued such objects with our energy.]
And surprisingly, that was correct.
The Noea that had originally been a rod became Noea because Namgung Myeong took it and imbued it with his energy.
Gwijeong became Gwijeong because Sin Noya had put his energy into it.
'So that's why symbolic Gwimuls are in each clan.'
They made them by putting their own energy into objects that had none.
Because they put Hwasan's energy into the primordial Gwimul, they took it to the Hwasan Sect.
Was that the meaning?
In other words.
"So because I put my energy into this too, it changed like this?"
[Yes.]
Did it mean the color changed because I put my energy into Gwijeong?
Then it was roughly explained.
The problem here is.
"How... is that a problem?"
The Gwimul changed to match me because I put my energy in.
What was the problem with that?
That was supposed to be the effect.
While I was furrowing my brow, not knowing what the problem was.
[How could it not be a problem.]
Noya spoke to me with a sigh.
[...Originally, a Gwimul that has been imbued with energy once does not change.]
"...Huh? It doesn't change?"
The moment I heard that, I raised my arm where Gwijeong was bound.
Then what is this?
There was one that had clearly changed. How did it make sense that it couldn't? Its color had changed so distinctly.
[That is why it is a problem. Myeong probably had the same problem.]
"Hm...."
Why do you think symbolic Gwimuls are symbols in the first place?
Most are things that cannot be used unless one learns the bloodline martial arts of their origin, or unless their energy matches.
If just anyone could use them, how could they be symbols?
But if that's the case....
'Why can I use them?'
It was certainly strange.
Granted, I also possess Hwasan's Tao energy, so let's say Gwijeong is understandable.
Noea was not.
I had taken a weapon already saturated with thunder energy and used it by breathing my own heat into it.
How could I explain this?
While my doubts were growing. Noya spoke.
[...We called such a thing Subjugation. It was called such because it meant subjugating a Gwimul to oneself by imbuing it with energy.]
My mind raced as I listened to the explanation.
Sin Noya continued speaking, whether he knew how I felt or not.
[Not all weapons absorbed energy so readily, but objects especially compatible with their wielders absorbed energy remarkably well. When that happened, martial artists bearing different internal energies could no longer use them.]
Things like Gwijeong and Noea were representative examples.
[However.]
The more he spoke, the darker Noya's voice became.
[There was one who snatched away and used such objects without a care.]
I had to react to those words.
Because a foreboding sensation swept over me.
[One who used Gwimuls as if they were his own, as if energy meant nothing.]
One who would toss them aside after a few uses as if he had lost interest.
A true monster who had no need for Gwimul power from the very beginning.
That was the nature of his deeds.
[Even Gwimuls that had been changed. Upon entering his grasp, they would transform as if meeting a new master.]
"...Noya. Don't tell me...."
The person Sin Noya was referring to now.
My stomach churned because I felt I knew who it was.
Perhaps because I had thought this far.
Namgung Myeong's words from earlier kept circling in my head.
-What is your relationship with the Blood Demon?
"...Fuck?"
Why had Namgung Myeong mentioned the Blood Demon upon seeing me like that?
And recalling that Gwijeong's change occurred right after my breakthrough....
[...Yes. That bastard is exactly.]
There was only one answer to this tale.
The true meaning Noya had been trying to tell me from the beginning.
That was.
[The Blood Demon.]
That calamity which had dyed that era in blood.
He was saying that I was using the exact same power that Blood Demon Dokgo Jun had once shown.