〈 Episode 654 〉 Back to the Central Plains.
Before heading to the Central Plains, around the time night had fallen.
I went to find the Palace Lord in the middle of the night to settle my final affairs in the Northern Sea.
“This is a place that only those of the Bloodline—more specifically, those designated to succeed as Palace Lord—have been permitted to enter for generations.”
The place I found by the light of a single lantern at night was an underground passage located on one side of the royal palace.
I don’t know why there are so many underground places here.
I had been walking for quite a while following the Palace Lord’s guidance, and in the midst of our steps, the Palace Lord suddenly spoke to me.
“Young Master Gu.”
“Yes.”
“There is something I wish to ask.”
“Please speak. I shall listen intently.”
“Why did you seek to save Lord Biwoe?”
It was a rather out-of-the-blue question to ask while walking in the dark.
I composed my breath for a moment and looked at him as I spoke.
“In what sense are you asking?”
“The literal sense. I matched your intent with my words, but I cannot understand it.”
I nodded at the Palace Lord’s words.
As I thought.
‘So my reaction was the intended one.’
The confrontational atmosphere when I met the Palace Lord.
As I had suspected then, it was true that the Palace Lord had intended that situation.
It meant he had deliberately reacted that way, knowing I needed Uhyeok.
“If I said it was because we are friends, would that be insufficient as a reason?”
“How does it sound to you, Young Master?”
“It does seem a bit insufficient, but….”
I wondered if there was more explanation to add.
No, if I looked for them, there would certainly be more.
“Judging by his condition, I thought he would be useful if I took him with me.”
Uhyeok had undergone a forced draconic transformation due to the energy the Net had planted within him. He had grown much stronger, and because demonic qi had been infused into him, the probability of him betraying me was low.
There was nothing quite as reliable as a relationship forged through such bonds.
“It just so happened that there was a matter well-suited to entrusting to him, and the circumstances were fitting, but….”
Moreover, Uhyeok was a figure of the Mudang. Though his standing was currently ambiguous, he had originally been the disciple receiving the most attention.
Even the Mudang expert Goeseon, who was currently strange in his actions and disposition, was originally someone who would have been treated as the next sect leader without question.
By that fact alone, simply having Uhyeok by my side was considerably useful.
As the disciple of the future sect leader.
And the Mudang’s foremost prodigy.
At an age where he hadn’t even reached his coming-of-age ceremony, he possessed such outstanding talent that he could contend with the elders in realm.
Uhyeok was an individual of tremendous value as a connection.
If asked why I had to take Uhyeok, I could offer explanations aplenty.
‘Even excluding such things.’
My mind probably wouldn’t have changed.
“In the end, apart from the reason I gave at first, there isn’t much else.”
I saved him because he was a friend. To assign any other reason would merely be making excuses in pursuit of a pretext.
“Even if it displeases the Palace Lord, I find it burdensome to seek anything beyond that.”
“…I see.”
After my words, the Palace Lord said nothing more.
Originally, taking Uhyeok away like this should have been impossible.
It was likely possible only because the Palace Lord had deliberately turned a blind eye.
‘If push came to shove, I would have really forced the matter, as I said.’
The very fact that there had been no need to do so meant the Palace Lord had intentionally let it pass.
‘Should I thank him?’
I pondered for a moment, but I knew this too was meaningless.
Apology or gratitude—either was something I should not say to the Palace Lord now.
Not only had his daughter been consumed by the Ice Spirit and rebelled, but she had ultimately met her end.
While the Palace was in turmoil from the aftermath of war, the one who had participated in that affair was not beheaded but was instead being sent away alive and well.
The Palace Lord’s state of mind was obviously far from good.
‘It’s practically a wonder that he’s guiding me like this in one piece.’
What heart could be guiding his steps right now? I couldn’t understand it in the least.
If it were me, how would I feel?
Well, I didn’t particularly want to imagine it.
“…There is one more thing I wish to ask.”
“Please ask.”
“Do you have a set goal, Young Master?”
“Pardon?”
Suddenly?
‘A goal?’
A goal. The question was so abrupt that I was slightly flustered, but I soon found the answer.
“It is nothing so grand, but….”
It hadn’t been originally, but perhaps it had become what I had to do upon regressing.
“There is something I must do, so I thought I might as well save the world while I’m at it.”
Blocking the Blood Demon and the Heavenly Demon while simultaneously stopping the Blood Tribulation.
That was the goal I held now.
Upon mentioning it, the Palace Lord walking ahead suddenly let out a laugh.
“Haha… You said it was nothing grand, yet those are momentous words.”
“I just spoke big since it’s a goal.”
I had deliberately said it so he could pass it off as a joke.
The Palace Lord didn’t look entirely convinced either.
Just as we were about to resume walking.
“Then, what will you do after that goal is finished?”
“...”
At those smoothly spoken words, my feet came to an abrupt halt.
‘After?’
What to do next.
I felt an inexplicable emptiness at those words.
When everything is over.
‘After everything is finished…’
What I would do after finishing everything I had to do.
I tried to think of it, but nothing came to mind.
‘I don’t know.’
Would I just sleep comfortably?
That was still something I couldn’t know.
As I touched my lips with a dazed expression, the Palace Lord glanced at me and added.
“You ought to think deeply on it at least once. It is not my place to interfere, but… you, Young Master….”
Beyond the darkness, I could feel the Palace Lord’s deep blue gaze.
“…seem consumed by something.”
“...”
After those words, the Palace Lord and I exchanged no further conversation until we reached our destination.
******************
The place we arrived at afterward was a large underground room.
It was filled with unknown books.
The cool breeze and old papers combined to create a unique scent.
From the perspective of someone who had never studied a lick, it was a smell I truly hated.
I took out one book and examined it.
It had no title written on it.
Curiosity piqued, I opened it slightly.
Rustle.
“Ah, that one is bound by sorcery; if one not of the Bloodline opens it, there will be a problem… You have already opened it.”
“…Could you not have told me a little sooner?”
“I did not think you would open it straight away.”
“I apologize. I did it without thinking.”
What should I do, should I close it again?
As I made an awkward expression, the Palace Lord spoke.
“Since you have already opened it, how about this.”
“…What do you mean?”
“I mean, can you read the text?”
At the Palace Lord’s words, I looked at the book.
Extremely densely written characters entered my eyes.
How in the world could one write so small?
“Yes, I can see it very well. Enough to hurt my head.”
Perhaps because I had hated reading since olden times, it irritated me just to look at it.
“I see. So you can see it.”
“Why? Should I not be able to?”
“Indeed.”
“Pardon?”
“That object is made so that it cannot be seen by anyone not of the Bloodline.”
Huh… but why can I see it so clearly?
Just when I was wondering if something was wrong.
“However, it seems to be a meaningless matter for you, Young Master Gu.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Hearing the question, the Palace Lord approached me and took the book I was holding.
Swish.
The sound of turning pages tickled my ears.
“You said you wished to hear information regarding sorcery.”
“That is correct.”
“Then, do you know what sorcery is?”
“…I do not know in great detail.”
If I recall what I heard.
“That the Dragon brought it… That is what I heard.”
I had heard that the Dragon had brought this unknown power called sorcery.
“That is correct. Sorcery is originally something the Dragon brought.”
Having said that, the Palace Lord closed the book he was reading and placed it on the table.
Clap!
He clapped his hands lightly.
In that instant.
Fwoosh!
The lantern on the wall lit up. It was obviously not my doing.
Did he ignite it with qi? If so, there was something subtle about it.
There were no traces of Sammaejinhwa. Nor did I feel any heat from the Palace Lord for it to be Hwagong.
It was something else.
“…What was that just now?”
“Correct. This too is sorcery. By your expression, you seem to have recognized the difference immediately.”
I had recognized it.
I could tell it was something different. However.
‘What is different?’
I couldn’t quite grasp that subtle something.
Haha.
The Palace Lord laughed upon seeing me like that.
“Does it not seem strange?”
“Yes, it is very strange.”
“Indeed. That is sorcery.”
“Pardon?”
“A power that does not align with reason. That is what sorcery is.”
“That is a very lacking explanation.”
It was far too lacking. A power that does not align with reason? As an explanation, it was truly absurd nonsense.
“Before that, may I ask why you wish to know about sorcery?”
“Hm.”
Hearing the question, I had to stay silent for a moment.
It was not because the answer was difficult. I simply wanted to give a more plausible reason, but no matter how much I thought, I couldn’t.
The reason for wanting to know about sorcery was honestly nothing grand.
“Because it looked usable.”
“…Hm?”
“It was information I didn’t know, so I thought it best to be aware of it.”
The difference between knowing and not knowing was important.
Having never heard nor seen it in my previous life, I thought it would be easier if I at least knew of it.
The Palace Lord showed no remarkable reaction to my words.
He merely raised his hand lightly.
Swish.
Then, movement was felt from the bookshelf.
Tok.
Among the gathered books, one volume slipped out and flew into the Palace Lord’s hand.
Thereafter, the Palace Lord holding the book asked me again.
“How did that look this time?”
“What do you mean?”
“Did it seem like sorcery? Or…”
“You projected your qi.”
“Oh.”
The Palace Lord reacted as if pleased by the firm answer.
Seeing that, I had to raise a question.
Why that reaction?
“You are perceptive. Or were you guessing?”
“Guessing? It was that obvious.”
“Hm?”
Though they looked similar, it was clearly the flow of qi.
The sorcery shown earlier was fundamentally different in flow.
Hearing this answer, the Palace Lord tilted his head as he looked at me.
“Remarkable.”
“What is?”
“When the same thing happened to me, I merely answered that it felt somehow different. Hearing this, my father, the previous Palace Lord, evaluated that I had a talent for sorcery.”
It was more than just “somehow different.”
“Judging by that. Though I cannot be certain, it seems you possess outstanding talent for sorcery.”
“…Hm, is that so?”
Talent.
Hearing those words, I inwardly let out a wry smile.
‘So I do have at least one thing, after all.’
Having lived my whole life hearing all sorts of things—that I was a dullard, a fool—it would be truly strange to discover something now.
And that something.
‘To be a power I know nothing about called sorcery, rather than martial arts.’
It wasn’t a particularly welcome feeling.
While harboring such idle thoughts, this time the Palace Lord handed me the book he had brought.
“Read it.”
I immediately received and opened the book.
It was no different from before. Still filled with dense writing, my brow automatically furrowed.
However, since I was told to read it, I tried to read it first.
“Hm?”
I suddenly noticed something strange.
It was strange that I was reading line by line.
‘This…’
‘Why can I read it?’
I had heard that the script of the Northern Sea and the Central Plains were different; why was I reading it so effortlessly?
Noticing this, I looked at the Palace Lord again.
“As I mentioned, sorcery belongs to the Dragon, and that book too is bound by sorcery. A sorcery that makes it so only those of the Bloodline can read it.”
“…That I can read such a book means?”
“It would be correct to say that barriers made of sorcery do not work on you. Because you are a Dragon.”
Then, did that mean being able to read this was also the power of sorcery?
If it was blocked by sorcery, shouldn’t it normally be unreadable as well?
‘A power brought by the Dragon…’
It seemed to mean that the Net or the Blood Demon had brought it.
What had they brought this for?
‘Moreover, now that I think about it, Sinui had mentioned it too.’
Not only in the Northern Sea, but Sinui had also mentioned sorcery in the Central Plains.
‘It was when treating Jegal Hyeok’s neck.’
Around the time I treated Jegal Hyeok using the Baekgeup Demon Stone.
I had watched the process as promised.
He placed the Baekgeup Demon Stone on the floor, drew numerous unknown patterns, seated Jegal Hyeok in the center, and kept his eyes closed for hours.
Was that too ‘sorcery’?
Since Jegal Hyeok’s neck was healed as a result, one could say that something had been done.
An unreasonable power beyond logic.
It was definitely something different from martial arts.
“Information regarding sorcery. The promised reward is precisely what is placed in your hand.”
At those words, I looked at the book again.
“…You mean this single book?”
With books everywhere around us, just this one? I looked at the Palace Lord as if to say this was too little.
“Do not look at it like that. I am breaking the law of the Ice Palace that has continued for generations to hand this to you.”
Was he saying I should be grateful I could even see this?
Tch.
“Moreover….”
As the Palace Lord continued speaking, I began reading the text in the book once more.
“The book you hold contains the method to build rings around the heart, which is the most important aspect of using sorcery.”
The explanation entered my ears. At the same time, my eyes were absorbed in the text.
‘Rings around the heart. At a glance, it didn’t look very different from the formulas used to master simgong.’
Most simgong inevitably involved drawing the energy from the air into the dantian and converting it into projected qi.
The Guyeomhwaryun Gong used that created internal energy to emit heat.
Though the branches extended by the martial arts of other families or sects might differ, they would not differ from this principle.
However.
‘These so-called rings…’
Building the foundation in the middle dantian from the start.
And not caring about the dantian while focusing on the middle and upper dantians was strange as well.
‘I have to do this to use sorcery or whatever it is?’
Should I try it once?
“Thus, though the other books cannot be shown according to the law… I thought it right to show you at least the beginning part.”
‘The formula says so, so let’s see…’
“Unfortunately, I cannot let you take it with you. This was the best I could do with the authority of the Palace Lord.”
The Palace Lord kept saying something, but I ignored him and focused on the flow.
“I can let you transcribe it. If you start now, it should be possible before departure; however, it would be best not to think of mastering it right away. The previous Palace Lord took half a year to master this….”
‘Next, this… If I send it to the middle dantian…’
Using the formula, I moved a faint energy and wrapped it around the heart area.
Then.
Click.
At the same time as feeling something filling, I felt a shallow ring being completed around the heart, as the name suggested.
“Even I, who was praised for my talent, took a full three months, so rather than rushing—”
“Done.”
“Take your time with it, step by step… What did you say?”
I said to the Palace Lord with a rather refreshed expression.
“The ring is complete. Fortunately, it is not difficult. Ah, may I read the next one? It seems there is still quite a lot of time before I leave to receive just one.”
“...”
At my words, the Palace Lord’s expression somehow crumpled.
For some reason, I felt like I had seen that expression a lot today.
Why?