Chapter 105: The Battle for Possession

Read more at Nineheavens.org

They say hidden strength emerges when a person encounters an urgent situation.

PA-PA-PA-PAK-!

Tae Sa-ja’s movements kicking off the ground and advancing were incredibly nimble.

Like the wind, the wind.

And that’s not all.

The workers chasing behind were equally fierce, as if employing lightness arts.

“That way, that way!”

“Hey, just a little more!”

“Got… Damn, I lost him!”

“Damn it!”

“How far do you plan to run!”

“No matter how much you run, it’s still inside the sect!”

“Ah, stop it already! You thief who’s neither boss nor squad leader!”

“Urk! Isn’t there a stone somewhere? Throw it and hit his head!”

Tae Sa-ja, hearing that while fleeing, flared up and shouted.

“GAL! You bastards, look at those manners! Don’t you know upper and lower ranks!”

But it was like pouring oil on a burning house.

The voices full of fury from the workers who had equally flared up.

“That crazy…!”

“Who started it first, huh!”

“Act like a squad leader first before you bark!”

“Yeah, that’s right! You hemophobic idiot!”

“Found it! A stone!”

“Take this!”

“Lee, you missed! Hey, throw properly!”

When several stones even flew after him, Tae Sa-ja’s rage ignited his stubbornness.

“Urk! If you’re going to be that way, I absolutely can’t give it up! Try chasing me with all your might, you slugs!”

The workers who had been crisscrossing the wide yard soon burst through the middle gate as if to break it and quickly disappeared, chasing the fleeing Tae Sa-ja.

Of course, Cheol Ryu-heun yawned and remained indifferent throughout.

At that moment.

The two white currents resembling semi-transparent discs that had been spinning above Yeop Hwon’s head shattered into dust with a FLASH!

Following that.

SSSS, SSSSSS…

All the pure white light particles quietly disappeared as if drawn into and absorbed by the pores all over his body.

Hyeop Mu-geuk also encountered the same phenomenon.

SSSS, SSSSSS…

Light particles falling softly like snow.

Finally, the Circulating energy and regulating breathing of the successful Crown Opening Grand Method had reached its conclusion.

With barely audible breathing sounds, the thick muscles of his chest, looking as if flat stones had been placed on it, moved subtly up and down.

His peaceful breathing like a sleeping person seemed to represent today’s remarkable achievement.

Before long.

“Phew.”

The two people, having exhaled long breaths, slightly trembled their eyelashes and immersed themselves in the lingering sensation of the final thrill sweeping through their entire bodies.

A voice suddenly struck their ears.

“If you’re done, come out.”

It was Cheol Ryu-heun’s voice, thrown from where he sat comfortably under the tree.

Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk soon opened their eyes, regulated their breathing, and walked out of the bathing tubs.

SPLASH, SPLASH…

Wonder filled the pupils of both.

The reason was simple.

They were each surprised at their unrecognizably changed state of muscle development.

As if they had practiced only external martial arts for long years, distinct lines of major and minor muscles were densely visible.

Moreover, their blood vessels had swelled thicker than before, making it seem like worms were squirming all over their bodies.

Shoulders, chest, abdomen, arms, legs – all parts had developed elastically into something impressive enough to pass as a military commander’s physique.

Yeop Hwon wore an expression of deep emotion.

‘Another miracle…!’

In his youth, he had once worked hard to build a body somewhat like this.

But he never thought that upon reaching his seventies, his entire body’s muscle-meridians would change again like they had back then.

Looking at his own abs, which appeared like lumps of clay being stuck on one after another, he felt peculiarly strange.

He quietly moved his hand and stroked the bulging muscles.

They were truly no different from stone.

Even without using internal energy, it seemed he could shatter a small boulder with pure arm strength alone.

Hyeop Mu-geuk was the same.

Originally, befitting a swordsman representing the sect, he had quite a good body, but this was his first time having muscle-meridians strengthened to this degree, so he wore an expression of amazement.

Looking at the muscles alone, one might even think he was an expert who had reached the ultimate realm in external martial training.

Yet it didn’t feel heavy at all.

Rather, it was light.

As if deploying swift lightness arts by operating internal energy.

Suddenly, words Cheol Ryu-heun had said crossed his mind.

-Superhuman muscle strength – this is the first step toward obtaining it. The greater the development and achievement of muscle-meridians that support energy meridians, the greater the force that comes out when swinging a sword…

Before long, Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk approached Cheol Ryu-heun sitting under the tree.

“Sect Master, is this truly the effect of Sky Clear Stone Milk? Huh… It’s truly admirable.”

“Moreover, not just muscle-meridian strengthening but even ten years’ worth of internal cultivation increase…”

Cheol Ryu-heun replied in a languid posture, leaning back.

“It’s a Crown Opening Grand Method in name, so achieving at least that level of results is normal.”

At that, Hyeop Mu-geuk brought up a question he had been holding in his mind.

“But did anyone in the past use Sky Clear Stone Milk in this way? This is the first I’ve heard of it…”

“Yeah, there was exactly one person.”

“Pardon? Who was that?”

“Martial Immortal.”

At Cheol Ryu-heun’s brief words, the gazes of Hyeop Mu-geuk and Yeop Hwon greatly wavered.

‘Gasp!’

Martial Immortal Dongbang Ya.

An unparalleled superman who, about four hundred years ago, was said to have had no worthy opponents due to his martial prowess that seemed to have reached the realm of an immortal.

It was shocking.

To think that the Crown Opening Grand Method of the Martial Immortal, recorded alongside the Sword Emperor as the strongest in orthodox martial world history, had been reenacted through Cheol Ryu-heun’s hands after such a long time…

At this point, a question even arose whether that versatile cave might be a passage connecting to other worlds like the Heavenly Realm, Immortal Realm, or Demon Realm.

“When you mix Sky Clear Stone Milk in warm water and immerse your body, effects related to external martial arts appear. The one who first discovered that was precisely the Martial Immortal. I added a few more things to that to bring about the current achievement.”

At the unexpected story, Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk could only be surprised again and again.

At that point, Cheol Ryu-heun asked in an annoyed tone.

“Do I have to explain other details too?”

Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk flinched and hurriedly shook their heads.

“N-no, you don’t.”

“It’s fine, Sect Master.”

Right, what was so important about that.

Having achieved results beyond expectations like this, there was no need to fuss about the origin of the Crown Opening Grand Method; they just needed to be satisfied.

Hyeop Mu-geuk changed the subject while stroking his belly.

“As Sect Master said, my whole body feels refreshed. Even my hunger seems to have disappeared.”

“It’s the effect of Sky Clear Stone Milk. That’s why I skipped dinner.”

“…!”

“Well, going without food for about two days shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Good heavens… It really does seem to be the highest-grade elixir.”

While Hyeop Mu-geuk stuck out his tongue, Cheol Ryu-heun stretched his body long, then stood up brushing off his rear.

“As of today, the first piece of the big picture I had in mind is complete. Before long, I’ll have to start completing the second piece. Of course, Elder and Chief Supervisor are the top priorities.”

At that, Hyeop Mu-geuk carefully probed.

“Um, Sect Master… If you could give us a slight hint about what it is…”

“Bone Replacement and Marrow Cleansing.”

“…!”

The gazes of Hyeop Mu-geuk and Yeop Hwon wavered greatly once more.

“Don’t be so surprised.”

“W-wait, so you’re saying we will realize that…?”

“I told you. That you’re the top priorities.”

“Ah…”

Hyeop Mu-geuk cast a blank gaze along with a short sound.

Yeop Hwon standing beside him was no different.

Yet Cheol Ryu-heun continued without caring.

“You need to achieve Bone Replacement and Marrow Cleansing to somewhat function as martial artists. Hmm, roughly estimating, you should be able to reach a level approaching that of the Dark Hall Master bastard.”

Simultaneously, the faces of Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk turned pale white.

UH-UK!

A martial prowess level approaching Dark Hall Master Jeo Gyeom…?

Their minds were spinning.

Although Cheol Ryu-heun’s recent achievement of Bone Replacement and Marrow Cleansing was due to fortune and talent, enabling others besides himself to achieve it was learning of a different dimension entirely.

“I’ll prepare everything myself, so Elder and Chief Supervisor should just diligently practice the secret techniques of White Peak Sword Forms final chapter.”

At Cheol Ryu-heun’s blunt words, Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk quickly corrected their dazed expressions.

“Ah… Yes, Sect Master. W-we shall keep that in mind.”

“We momentarily lost our senses. It was too tremendous a statement…”

At that moment, Cheol Ryu-heun stared fixedly at those two people’s faces.

“Both of you still don’t seem to have come to your senses.”

“Huh?”

The moment Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk spoke in unison and tilted their heads, Cheol Ryu-heun’s gaze went downward.

“How long are you going to keep showing off those ugly things?”

Only then did the two realize they were naked and hurriedly gathered and put on the clothes they had left on one side of the floor.

Cheol Ryu-heun soon strode toward the middle gate and spoke.

“I’m going to eat now and rest. So when all that is finished, clean up thoroughly. As you can see, all the workers have left their posts.”

Hyeop Mu-geuk looked around the yard and asked.

“Where did they all go?”

Earlier, toward the end of Circulating energy and regulating breathing, he had heard a commotion of sounds, but having been so deep in meditation, he couldn’t accurately grasp the content.

“They were watching the fireworks and went to play tag.”

At Cheol Ryu-heun’s quietly dropped words, Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk’s eyes went wide.

“Huh…?”

What? Tag? Suddenly? Why?

* * *

“Damn, this is practically playing tag!”

“There he is! Get him!”

“You think we’ll give up!”

The uproar of ten workers, and Tae Sa-ja diligently fleeing, leaving it behind.

It wasn’t a fight between martial arts masters, but it was a chase with its own sense of urgency.

How long did they run around the White Peak Sword Sect grounds, desperate to escape?

GLANCE.

When Tae Sa-ja, who had been squeezing out his strength to flee, slightly turned his head, he could see that the number of people behind him had decreased by a few.

‘Did some of them give up?’

Just as he had turned one corner.

THUD!

Tae Sa-ja tripped on something and tumbled forward.

“Urgh!”

The pain was brief.

‘OH NO!’

Realizing he had dropped the gourd bottle, he quickly raised his head, and the sight of three workers standing nearby filled his pupils.

“Finally caught you!”

One who had picked up the gourd bottle that had fallen on the ground shouted with a broad smile, as if cheering.

Some personnel had clearly calculated the direction, taken a shortcut, and waited.

“Squad Leader, haven’t you heard the saying that there’s a flying one above a running one?”

Meanwhile, the remaining personnel arrived at their side, gasping for breath.

“Huff, huff… Oh my, I’m dying.”

“But still… Huff, huff… We recovered it.”

Yet at that moment.

The worker holding the gourd bottle suddenly lit up his eyes, pushed away his colleague, and fled madly toward yonder.

“Urk…!”

“Th-that bastard…!”

In an instant, Tae Sa-ja leaped to his feet and furiously chased after him, bellowing.

“Traitor!”

At that, nine workers also resumed the chase.

“Fuck…!”

“If you get caught, I’ll kill you!”

“Huff, huff, huff! Crazy… When does this end?”

Before long, the worker fleeing with the gourd bottle lost strength in one leg and lost his balance.

“Ah…!”

Having crashed to the ground with a thud, he quickly checked the gourd bottle first and let out a sigh of relief.

‘Phew, thank goodness. It’s not broken.’

At that moment, the group of workers including Tae Sa-ja ran up quickly, each with an angry face.

Well, now there was nothing to do but fight each other.

In an instant, everyone tangled together, rolling this way and that, engaging in a fierce battle for the gourd bottle.

“ACK, ACK! Don’t pull my hair!”

“Give it here! I’m going to drink it all!”

“Crazy, who says you can…!”

During the fight filled with such loud shouts, the gourd bottle precariously passed from hand to hand until at some point, the stopper came out and it floated high into the air.

“AHHH!”

“Th-that…!”

“Catch it!”

“It can’t break!”

The moment everyone was startled and cast their eyes upward.

WHOOSH-

One large shadow suddenly appeared and leaped, grabbing! the end of the unstoppered gourd bottle.

No.

It bit it.

THUD-

The identity of the large shadow that landed with a heavy sound was none other than Divine Wind.