Chapter 40: Golden Blood Rat (2)
Chapter 39 – Golden Blood Rat (2)
Shashashat!
The Golden Blood Rat hid between the bushes.
The Golden Blood Rat targeted the navel of whoever met its gaze.
The reason the creature was obsessed with the navel was simple.
It was because it was the closest to the dantian, and the skin there was also the thinnest.
Through the navel, the Golden Blood Rat smelled the scent of internal energy that humans could not perceive.
Therefore, ordinary people who had not learned martial arts had no need to fear the Golden Blood Rat.
Even if their eyes met, it would not attack someone who had no dantian.
In any case, the creature’s obsession with the navel was outstanding to a sickening degree.
Just how much was it?
For example, when someone prostrated on the ground to cover their navel, it would dig into the earth and fly towards the navel of the prostrated person.
To fly underground.
Although the expression might sound funny, if one actually knew the speed at which the Golden Blood Rat traveled underground, they would not even be able to scoff.
It was that fast.
To the point where one had no choice but to describe it as flying even underground.
So, one must never lie face down.
If one instinctively prostrated in terror, they would completely lose their means of defense.
Jin So-hong also almost instinctively prostrated.
If Namgung Cheon had not shouted, she would have been lying flat on the ground by now.
And her navel would have been pierced.
Jin So-hong shuddered as she calmly exhaled.
Shashashashat.
The wind brushed against the bushes.
But it was not the wind.
It was the Golden Blood Rat.
Just as she was hesitating and trying to back away, Namgung Cheon’s voice caught her steps.
“Don’t move.”
She even stifled her breath.
Shashashat.
Shashashashat.
The Golden Blood Rat was circling around so fast that it was hard to keep her senses.
Her injured right calf stung.
‘There’s no poison, right? Since I’ve never heard that the Golden Blood Rat has poison.’
Jin So-hong swallowed dry saliva.
Namgung Cheon had turned to stone with the Emerald Silk Sword held forward.
It was as if he were not here.
At some point, Namgung Cheon’s pupils turned to the right.
‘Soon…!’
The scouting battle was coming to an end.
The Golden Blood Rat’s movements stopped.
‘It will be close.’
It was already close, but he had to pass another crisis.
It was extremely fortunate that Jin So-hong’s scream reached the ears of Namgung Cheon, who happened to be nearby.
‘Now, come!’
At the same moment Namgung Cheon tightly gripped the Emerald Silk Sword, the internal energy within the Golden Blood Rat’s body moved.
The golden energy rising from its inner core slowly stretched to its four paws.
Originally, all energy moved faster than action. In addition, there was no difference in the speed of circulation for the Golden Blood Rat until just before it moved.
However, once the Golden Blood Rat began to move, there was no way for a human to chase it.
This was because no human could be faster than the Golden Blood Rat.
However…
‘I am different!’
Of course, Namgung Cheon was also slower than the Golden Blood Rat.
But he could read it in advance with the First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes like now.
In other words, he just had to move first.
Furthermore, the Golden Blood Rat’s movements were simple.
It was not a martial artist who could employ variations or feints.
Once it decided on a direction, it moved in a straight line to its destination.
Paat.
Namgung Cheon threw himself first.
Jin So-hong winced, her eyes widening.
‘What is it?’
Even though the Golden Blood Rat was not in sight, Namgung Cheon moved first.
In an instant.
Shukaaang!
As a clear metallic sound burst out, Namgung Cheon was flung back.
Only then did the Golden Blood Rat, which was moving away cutting through the darkness in the distance, come into view.
Jin So-hong’s mouth fell wide open.
‘He, he blocked it…!’
No way.
He blocked the Golden Blood Rat.
A human faster than the Golden Blood Rat had appeared.
Was this possible?
Jin So-hong composed her breathing while looking at Namgung Cheon’s back.
Let’s think rationally.
She was overly excited and making a wrong judgment.
Jin So-hong closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
Taking a deep breath with her eyes closed when the Golden Blood Rat was aiming for her navel.
If anyone heard, they might say she was crazy, but strangely, it was possible.
Looking at Namgung Cheon’s back, a strange sense of relief washed over her.
He was just a fellow cadet. Where did this trust come from?
The back of the single man blocking the front was as reliable as a huge, thick rock wall.
As her mind calmed down, her thoughts were organized.
‘Right, it’s not that Namgung Cheon is faster than the Golden Blood Rat.’
That was for sure.
If Namgung Cheon were faster than the Golden Blood Rat, the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect would have to come and bow down to him.
Then how did he block it?
‘He moved first!’
But how?
Did he know the Golden Blood Rat’s behavioral habits?
Well, if he had targeted the Golden Blood Rat from the start, he would have some knowledge.
‘Even so…’
Still, she could not fathom how Namgung Cheon blocked the Golden Blood Rat.
Did he not seem like someone running ahead of time?
In the meantime.
Shupaat.
Once again, along with the sound of breaking through the air, the Golden Blood Rat flew in.
However, this time too, Namgung Cheon moved a step ahead.
Shiiiit! Clang!
Kweeeeek!!
The Golden Blood Rat retreated while letting out an unpleasant shriek.
Was it wounded?
The sound of its movement was not as clean as before.
Namgung Cheon brandished his sword once more and stared blankly into the air.
‘Once again!’
Jin So-hong calmed her pounding heart and stared intently at Namgung Cheon.
Surprisingly, Namgung Cheon had blocked the Golden Blood Rat once more.
And just like before, by moving first.
At this rate, it was almost as if the Golden Blood Rat came and collided with the sword when Namgung Cheon held it out.
A reader of the future…?
Was that possible?
What was clear was that the Golden Blood Rat seemed to have been wounded by the strike just now.
A yellowish liquid stained one side of the Emerald Silk Sword.
‘Golden blood…!’
Perhaps, the hope that they could live bloomed.
Namgung Cheon slowly took a step back.
However, no movements were seen like before.
Namgung Cheon spoke in a low voice.
“It seems it has entered a scouting battle again.”
It seemed to have become cautious after failing repeatedly.
It had no choice.
Even Jin So-hong, who was watching it with her own two eyes, found it hard to believe.
How much more so for the Golden Blood Rat?
It must be driven absolutely crazy.
A delicious dantian was right ahead, yet it could not dig into it.
Something kept blocking it.
Even without knowing, this was probably the first time in the Golden Blood Rat’s life.
Namgung Cheon instructed in a low voice.
“Back away slowly, and when you take your third step, leap onto that rock.”
Gulp…
Even though he probably couldn’t see her, Jin So-hong nodded.
“Go.”
At Namgung Cheon’s word, Jin So-hong slowly took steps backward.
One step…
Two steps…
Three.
Paat!
Swish!
Almost at the same time Jin So-hong leaped, Namgung Cheon soared upward.
Swiiish!
Suddenly appearing from somewhere, the Golden Blood Rat flew and crashed into Namgung Cheon’s sword.
Indeed.
This time too, Jin So-hong clearly saw it.
The Golden Blood Rat crashed into Namgung Cheon’s Emerald Silk Sword blocking the front as if it were committing suicide.
Shukaak!
The Golden Blood Rat bit the Emerald Silk Sword with its hard teeth.
Kagagak!!
For a moment, sparks flew.
If it were an ordinary sword, it would have snapped in two on the spot.
A blade bitten by the sharp teeth of a premium spiritual beast was bound to break.
However, the Emerald Silk Sword was no ordinary sword.
It was a treasured sword passed down through generations of the Namgung Clan.
Kagagak!
The sight of a forearm-sized rat hanging onto the sword and floundering was enough to make one frown.
It seemed the blade had gotten stuck between the creature’s teeth.
‘No way… Namgung Cheon didn’t plan even that, did he?’
Landing on the rock, Jin So-hong shuddered.
In the meantime, Namgung Cheon quickly sheathed the blade into the scabbard.
“Haat!”
Splat.
Along with the shout, a dull sound rang out.
The Golden Blood Rat, caught in the joint where the blade met the scabbard, let out a ‘Kyaak!’ sound and went completely limp.
Jin So-hong’s mouth fell wide open.
Heavens.
Who would have known?
That the Golden Blood Rat would pass out with its teeth stuck to the blade.
He really… really caught it.
That Golden Blood Rat.
Namgung Cheon grabbed the Golden Blood Rat by the neck and said.
“Whew. I can breathe a sigh of relief now. Once caught, it isn’t much of a threat, so rest easy. Since it’s passed out right now, it’s even better.”
“Ah… yeah…”
“How is your leg?”
“It’s, it’s fine.”
“That’s fortunate. It’s not a poisonous creature, so don’t worry too much.”
“Y-Yeah…”
“Let’s go.”
“Okay…”
Jin So-hong replied blankly and followed behind Namgung Cheon.
Hey, it’s the Golden Blood Rat.
What you caught is the premium spiritual beast, the Golden Blood Rat.
Isn’t your attitude too calm?
However, having experienced such a dizzying event in a short time, she could not utter a single word.
Long after the two of them left the place, two people wearing black bamboo hats and capes ran at high speed and stopped.
“Hah, hah, hah…!”
“Whew, whew…!”
The two of them held their knees and gasped repeatedly.
“Damn it! Where did it go?”
“It seems we lost it.”
“What on earth happened?”
“Could it be that it went back to sleep?”
At his subordinate’s words, the other man raised his head and looked at the sky.
The beginning of the Hour of the Ox was almost over.
It was not impossible.
“It would be a relief if so.”
The man who caught his breath looked around.
The two were members of the Spirit-Tracking Corps who had been watching the Golden Blood Rat.
They had relaxed minds even when midnight passed.
Since they only needed to observe the Golden Blood Rat, they had nothing to do compared to the other members deployed to Mount Mulan.
It was truly a cushy mission.
However, when it became the beginning of the Hour of the Ox, their thoughts were completely shattered.
The Golden Blood Rat, waking up from its sleep, dug out of the ground and suddenly ran like crazy.
There was only one reason when the Golden Blood Rat ran that fast.
Someone was burning a roe deer horn infused with internal energy.
They hurriedly chased the Golden Blood Rat, but there was a limit to their lightfoot art.
In the end, they could not find the Golden Blood Rat.
The subordinate spoke reassuringly.
“Nothing major will happen. It must have gone back to sleep.”
“Right. Probably. It must be so.”
The man muttered to himself like that and turned around.
However, they failed to realize that golden liquid had dripped on the spot where they had been standing just moments ago.
* * *
“This is…!”
Yun Jong-seung flinched as he looked down at his belly.
A vivid lotus.
Was this what it meant that a path might be seen if one reflected on the pain?
The palm strike Namgung Cheon had thrown at him was definitely the Red Lotus Palm.
However, he had not loaded much internal energy into it.
No, he had barely felt any energy.
Even so, a vivid lotus bloomed on his belly.
‘How did I get hit?’
He had to recall the memory.
That moment, that pain.
Literally reflecting on the pain might allow him to grasp the subtle principles of the Red Lotus Palm.
At that moment, a single thought flashed through his mind! No, should he call it a sensation?
‘Right! When I was hit in the belly, it felt like I was struck by a finger technique rather than a palm method.’
It was definitely like that.
Rather than the feeling of being hit with a broad palm, he had thought that five fingers were digging into his flesh.
Could the subtle principle of the Red Lotus Palm lie precisely here?
‘Shall I give it a try?’
It was when Yun Jong-seung took his starting stance and glared at a wooden pillar.
Rustle. Rustle…
Just then, the bushes shook, and Namgung Cheon and Jin So-hong appeared.
Jin So-hong looked exhausted for some reason, and Namgung Cheon was holding a forearm-sized rat in one hand.
Yun Jong-seung’s mouth fell wide open.
“Heh! No way… did you really catch it? The Golden Blood Rat?”