Chapter 344. A Flame Was Merely a Flame.

The White-Clad Scholar, who had been looking up at the sky, spoke.

“……Look. The kindhearted fools left first.”

The White-Clad Scholar looked around at us and continued.

“In the end, evil bastards are the ones who survive the longest. Isn’t that right?”

I nodded.

“You’re right.”

There was no need to argue. It was something I already knew.

It was not difficult to tell that the White-Clad Scholar was thinking of Mak Gunja.

“……That damned master killed the youngest first on purpose. He was younger than us, but even in hell, the youngest was the sort of man who never complained, never grumbled, and never blamed others. It was rare for someone to be liked by both those above and below him. Even Master would marvel at him, saying the youngest was an unusual fellow. What do you think the Black Immortal’s psychological warfare was, killing that youngest in a single move?”

I nodded.

“Seizing the initiative. He meant to shock the ones who had rebelled against him, and since the youngest among the attackers was likely the weakest as well, he probably intended to dispose of him in one strike.”

“That’s right. Because I could see right through his mind, it wasn’t easy to maintain my composure. It might have been better if all of us had died and the youngest had led things afterward. Even in that hell, the only one truly worthy of being called a scholar was the youngest.”

I looked at the White-Clad Scholar.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“What?”

“You seem to think you lost a battle of wits against your master, but that isn’t necessarily the case.”

The White-Clad Scholar glared at me.

“What do you think was a battle of wits?”

I looked around at the Four Great Villains and said,

“The reason White-Clad brought even the youngest along for the raid was, in truth, to deal a shock to his master. Look at this. Even the youngest, the one with the best reputation both inside and out, wishes for you, Master, to die. You must have intended to inflict a mental blow, but from the beginning, that so-called master was a far more complete villain than you expected. Sitting on his bed, he looked around at you and simply thought he should kill the weakest one first. It just happened, unluckily, to be the youngest. Rather than losing a battle of wits, you were unlucky.”

It seemed the White-Clad Scholar had brought along even the youngest, whose martial strength was somewhat lacking, for a fight where he could gain the upper hand in psychological warfare. But since the youngest had been killed by their master in a single strike, his pride must have been wounded, and he must have been shocked by the mental world of a master he could not understand.

Though he himself possessed an inclination toward evil, a hatred for evil men must have taken root in him.

Even though I had deliberately told him it was not his fault, the White-Clad Scholar denied it.

“It is my fault.”

I nodded, then looked at the White-Clad Scholar.

“Then make it your fault. Mak Gunja died because of you.”

“…….”

“Spend your life atoning to Mak Gunja. What a pathetic senior brother you are.”

Still, I thought that if the White-Clad Scholar raised an outstanding disciple like Mak Gunja, then Mak Gunja in the heavens would be happy as well. But I could not go so far as to say that to this clever man.

I looked at the campfire and said,

“That’s why you have to become stronger. There are twenty-eight thousand six hundred and eighty reasons to become stronger.”

“…….”

I looked at the Four Great Villains.

“It’s the same for us. Now, no one can treat us carelessly anymore. But the time has come for us to cross the next bridge.”

I spoke to the White-Clad Scholar as sincerely as I could.

“If you look back too often while walking across a single-log bridge, you cannot cross it. It is your fault, yes, but Mak Gunja wouldn’t want to see his senior brother standing blankly on that single-log bridge, lost and wandering. Would he? In any case, the five of us will someday grow old and leave as well. Apologize when you reunite with him then.”

The White-Clad Scholar did not answer.

As I listened to the White-Clad Scholar’s story, I thought about the next realm of martial arts.

There were two kinds of emotional martial arts I knew of, or martial arts others could not easily imitate.

The Zaha Divine Art that I used, and the Six Direction Great Sword that Alliance Leader Im used.

But according to the White-Clad Scholar’s story……

I had the feeling that Cheonak had either used emotional martial arts as well, or else broken through the realm where he had been stuck through some state of mental awakening.

If so……

What was it that the current me, Cheonak, Im Sobaek, and the Four Great Villains needed in order to reach a higher realm? Among us, did I in particular not need to overcome the level of martial arts performed in an emotional state?

In other words, my guess was that even if one displayed a divine art emotional enough to be rarely seen in the martial world, there was a limit to surpassing the wall of the Three Talents with that level.

Just as Cheonak, who was currently at a higher level than me, could not defeat the Cult Leader.

The conversation was cut off without any particular warning, and while silence flowed, each of us sank into our own thoughts.

Suddenly, the Ghost Demon rose from his seat, walked somewhere, and set a flat stone down near the campfire.

We looked at the Ghost Demon without a word.

The Ghost Demon washed the flat stone with the remaining Du Kang wine, then took out the Mukga Dagger, infused it with internal energy, and after striking and pulling it away several times, made a flat stone slab.

He placed the slab on the ground, set the two remaining fish on it, and quietly began to prepare them.

Each time the Ghost Demon swung the Mukga Dagger, the fish changed into neat shapes. Then he cut the fish into pieces exactly the right size to pick up with chopsticks.

He lightly sprinkled salt taken from his bundle over them, then finely cut jerky at the corner of the stone slab and scattered it around the pieces of fish.

The Ghost Demon brought the stone slab to his own brazier and cooked the seasoned flesh over the fire. Since he had dismantled two large fish, there was plenty. As the meat cooked, the Ghost Demon said,

“Each of you, hold up your bamboo tube.”

“Like this?”

“No, lay it flat like a tray.”

The Ghost Demon stoked the fire further, then looked at the meat as it cooked. Only now did I see that the meat had been cut to a size that could be placed on the bamboo tubes. The smell of the meat, seasoned in the Ghost Demon’s style, now reached even my nose.

I flared my nostrils and enjoyed the scent.

“Wow, that smells good.”

Only then did the Ghost Demon rise, holding the stone slab, and approach the White-Clad Scholar.

“White-Clad, your bamboo tube.”

When the White-Clad Scholar held out his bamboo tube with an awkward expression, the Ghost Demon lifted golden-brown pieces of cooked meat with the dagger and placed them on it. Since everyone was full, it was a slightly excessive amount.

The Ghost Demon then served the seasoned meat onto the bamboo tubes in order: the Sword Demon, me, and the Lust Demon, before taking what remained and returning to his own seat.

We stared at the Ghost Demon chef who had appeared at Manjang Cliff.

“…….”

For some reason, the atmosphere was such that we could only eat after the chef gave us permission.

The Ghost Demon looked around at us and said,

“Let’s call what we ate earlier spirit medicine. Its energy was too precious, so we couldn’t even drink wine. But let’s call what we’re eating this time just a delicious dish. Eat it well, and finish off the remaining wine too. Eldest Brother? Let’s eat.”

The Sword Demon smiled and nodded.

“All right.”

The Ghost Demon looked at the White-Clad Scholar.

“White-Clad, thank you for saving me before. Eat at ease.”

So this was food the Ghost Demon had prepared wholly for the White-Clad Scholar.

Saekma smacked his lips and asked Gwima.

“Can we eat it?”

Gwima nodded.

“Let’s eat.”

I deliberately drew the Mukga dagger from my bosom, slid the blade across, picked up a piece of meat, and put it in my mouth.

The salty flavor of the salt and jerky gave way as the thick meat’s juices spread through my mouth. Being a fish naturally overflowing with fat, sweetness and oil swirled between my teeth as I chewed.

I was busy eating, but.

From the start, we had been maintaining a defensive formation, so while observing each other’s expressions, we cleanly finished off the meat on the pot one by one like assassins. It was truly a dish I had never tasted anywhere before.

I wiped the oil from my mouth and spoke.

“It’s an incredible taste.”

Geoma said to Saekma.

“Disciple, let’s drink the liquor you’ve been hoarding.”

“Yes, Master.”

Saekma finally took out a pot from his bundle and went around distributing the alcohol. We filled the pot we had placed the meat on with liquor and looked at each other’s faces.

There wasn’t much to say, but silly laughter spilled out.

I suppose it was the feeling that life, upon reflection, was nothing special after all. Gathering to eat meat and drink liquor—we wanted for nothing more than that.

I looked at the Four Great Evils and the White-Clad Scholar, who could not say a word, and spoke.

“…Since we have nothing to say, let’s just drink.”

“Sure.”

I coolly downed the Dugangju that Saekma had been saving. The oiliness in my mouth mixed with the Dugangju as it traveled down my esophagus, and sensations of coolness and heat intertwined.

Even though I too had been born an inn servant, this was the first time I had ever drunk liquor that tasted this good.

If it was this good for me, how much more so for Baekui Seosaeng……?

Baekui Seosaeng was a man who, surprisingly, could not utter words like “delicious,” “refreshing,” “the liquor tastes good,” or “thank you,” so he simply kept his mouth shut.

We understood that as well, so we stayed still.

Fortunately, there was a campfire burning, so it was a relief for all of us to have somewhere to direct our gazes.

Perhaps only now could we finally set our hearts at ease for a moment and rest.

This was a long-overdue rest.

My breathing naturally grew calm.

I gazed at the flames coiled around the campfire for a long time, until at some point I realized I was staring at those flames without thinking of Jahagak Inn engulfed in fire.

The flames were simply flames.

Nothing more than flames that shared their warmth even with villains like us.

Absurdly, we watched the flames, silently throwing in firewood until the sun set.

It was only when darkness settled and we could no longer see each other’s expressions well that…….

Baekui Seosaeng’s voice flowed out, half-buried in the darkness.

“…It was a delicious meal.”

Gwima answered.

“That’s a relief.”

Those extremely ordinary words came out with such difficulty. We could have kept camping like this through the night, but flames were dancing in our stomachs too. Even mixed with alcohol, the elixir was still an elixir. The second phase of qi circulation was waiting for us.

I changed my posture to the lotus position and spoke to the Four Great Evils and Baekui Seosaeng.

“When you close your eyes and darkness surges in.”

“…….”

“I hope that death and terror, or deviation, do not drag me away. When crossing a narrow log bridge alone, even if sudden gales blow and high waves seek to swallow me, I hope not to fear. Entrusting body and mind solely to perfect qi circulation, I cross the narrow log bridge. How long was it, how dangerous was the bridge? When I safely cross to the other side and open my eyes once more, what I desire is solely to become stronger than I am now. I pray that it becomes the power to save those who must die, to protect those who must not die, and to surely kill those who must be killed. Even if I meet an opponent so strong that life feels unfair, as long as I can fight with my whole being, whom should I blame?”

I gazed at the flames, and the moment I closed my eyes, I entered the qi circulation of the Geumgu Soyo Gong. In a world that had instantly gone dark, I stepped onto the narrow log bridge holding in my hand the flame I had watched all this time.

The surroundings were pitch black.

…Baekui Seosaeng looked at Geoma, Yukhap Seonsaeng, and Mongrang, then looked again at Haomunju. Haomunju had muttered something like a Buddhist prayer and immediately entered qi circulation, falling into deep breathing.

It was also a face more peaceful than ever.

Geoma, who had been silently listening to Haomunju’s words, entered qi circulation next, and Gwima immediately straightened his posture, assumed the lotus position, and closed his eyes.

Baekui Seosaeng looked at Mongrang, who had kept his eyes open until the very end.

“…….”

Mongrang glanced at Baekui Seosaeng, then quietly closed his eyes after resting both hands comfortably on his knees. In an instant, everyone had entered qi circulation.

Baekui Seosaeng looked around at the four of them with a dumbfounded heart.

‘Are there such absurd fellows…….’

With nothing left to do, Baekui Seosaeng gazed at the campfire and looked around the surroundings. He tilted his ear to the small chirping of grass insects and the sound of tree branches swaying, brushed by the wind.

All these sounds were largely peaceful.

Placed in a situation with nothing to do and nothing to guard against, Baekui Seosaeng eventually raised his head and looked up at the night sky. Countless stars had suddenly appeared, filling the sky as if they would pour down, each emitting its own light.

While gazing at the stars, emotions of terror, regret, anger, and hatred scattered without taking form, unlike usual. If he looked at the stars any longer, he would begin to think of the dead, and because it seemed that would stir up sentimental feelings…….

Baekui Seosaeng looked at the flames again.

Assumed the lotus position, closed his eyes, and began qi circulation.

No guardian was needed at the bottom of Manjang Cliff.

Because the energy sloshing in his stomach was longing for qi circulation, Baekui Seosaeng entrusted his body to the cold wind beginning to blow from Manjang Cliff with his eyes closed.

Not long after, the campfire went out, but…….

The five people buried in the darkness focused on their qi circulation without so much as twitching.