novelraw Chapter 12 : I Am a Regressor
Chapter 12 : I Am a Regressor
Chapter 12: I Am a Regressor
"It is me, you son of a bitch."
I muttered those words and met Beom Cheon's eyes. Naturally, the gazes of the idiots in the Great Hero Hall poured onto me.
Beom Cheon smirked and flicked his sleeve once. At that light movement, all the third-rate Unorthodox martial artists fainted.
The Abbot of the Shaolin Temple with its thousand-year history. My friend from my past life.
'I feel as if I have come too early.'
I had not yet equipped myself with sufficient martial power. Although Beom Cheon was not the type to do so, if he intended to harm me, I was in a situation where I would be helpless.
An audience with the leader of the Nine Sect Alliance is not an opportunity easily obtained in the first place. I spoke to Hwa Pyeong, who stood behind me.
"Hwa Pyeong, get out. Unless you want to die."
Hwa Pyeong looked back and forth between me and Beom Cheon, eventually complying with my words and heading outside.
Beom Cheon looked at me with his calm, lone eye. An elegant scent of incense drifted to the tip of my nose, and the Buddha statue behind the old monk greeted me with a benevolent smile.
In the current world where a "Zenith" was absent, he was among the top eight people.
The Three Gods, and below them, the Five Emperors.
Among them, the monk sipping tea in front of me was the Divine Monk, Beom Cheon.
He had long since passed the age of eighty and was the old man closest to being the strongest under heaven.
He was an elder who remained alive until ten years before I died.
He was a peerless master who prolonged his life for hundreds of years with inner Qi as deep as the sea.
If not for the Dark Heaven Society, he would have lived longer. The reason I came here in the first place was due to a single suspicion.
There were points that looked new to me after my regression, which I had not noticed in my previous life.
'This too must be the grace of regression. Amitabha.'
As such, there are numerous fortuitous encounters in the world. Falling down a cliff to meet a hidden master or obtaining a long-lost divine art is called a "Cliff Encounter." Instead of falling from a cliff, I returned to the past after being struck by the Lord's blade.
If I were to give this a name, it would be the Baek Cheon Encounter... ah, come to think of it, this body has no talent for naming things.
Tap.
The sound of the teacup setting down on the wooden tea table reached my ears with high class. It was then that Beom Cheon's voice echoed in a hum.
[So, for what reason has our beggar patron come to seek this Old Monk?]
The Buddhist technique of Mind-Voice of Wisdom Light.
It was a skill that conveyed intent rather than a voice. Naturally, it was a voice heard only by me, like a voice transmission.
One of the numerous secret arts of Shaolin.
How many of the seventy-two divine arts had the Abbot of the Shaolin Temple, which boasted a long history, mastered?
In truth, it was none of my business. I toyed with the old iron sword at my waist and spoke to Beom Cheon.
"Among the peerless masters of Shaolin, is there a martial monk who primarily uses the Dragon Claw Hand?"
I did not need to use excessive honorifics. This was because I was standing in this position as the representative of the Beggar Sect. I had easily obtained the moment that Elder Hwa, who went to hell, had desired his entire life.
Idiot Elder Hwa. I hope you are reborn in paradise.
Regardless, Beom Cheon sipped his tea again as if indifferent and opened his mouth.
[There is none. This Old Monk has also learned the Dragon Claw Hand, but the achievement is not deep. The leader of the Hundred and Eight Arhats, the pride of Shaolin, is still in the Fusion Realm, and neither the 'Mount Song Mountain-Keeper' who guides supernatural entities nor the former leader of the Hundred and Eight Arhats has mastered the Dragon Claw Hand.]
The Mount Song Mountain-Keeper.
How could Shaolin be the only temple on a mountain as massive as Mount Song?
Just as there are numerous Taoist temples on Mount Zhongnan and Mount Hua, Mount Song also had many temples excluding Shaolin.
However, most of those temples were akin to secular branches of the Shaolin Temple.
That is to say, they were not sects separate from Shaolin.
The only difference was that most of them lived with the intent of exterminating supernatural entities.
The Mount Song Mountain-Keeper referred to the strongest martial monk among the masters of the numerous temples located on Mount Song.
He held the qualification of acting Abbot during the Shaolin Abbot's absence.
This was the case for the entire Nine Sect Alliance, excluding the Beggar Sect.
I glanced at the third-rate Unorthodox martial artists still sleeping beside us and asked him.
"Are there not the seniors of Shaolin?"
Just as Beom Cheon lived for over a hundred years in the future, the senior masters of Shaolin should also be able to enjoy a damnably long life due to their pure inner Qi.
However, Beom Cheon shook his head and replied.
[They have all entered Nirvana.]
"You could have just said they died."
Beom Cheon's lips twitched for a moment.
Realizing how high of a monk he was by the way he desperately maintained a benevolent smile, I showed a satisfied grin.
[Why are you smiling like a maniac.]
"......"
[I apologize. It seems the Mind-Voice of Wisdom Light is a skill that conveys the heart. When I get momentarily excited, words just burst out.]
"I shall try to understand."
Come to think of it, there was no one normal among the people I knew.
They wouldn't be martial artists in the first place if they were sane.
As expected, I am the only normal person in this vast martial world.
I looked at Beom Cheon with a dazed face. There were things that finally came into view.
He possessed a solid body from mastering the Muscle-Bone Strengthening Scripture, which was said to be Shaolin's greatest art alongside the Supreme Grand Ability.
The Muscle-Bone Strengthening Scripture is a "Moving Art." A moving art refers to martial studies that allow one to handle the body freely. A typical moving art involved changing the acupoints of the entire body at will to make it solid.
Among them, Shaolin's Muscle-Bone Strengthening Scripture was an art that discussed the Diamond Indestructible Body. Even if I struck Beom Cheon repeatedly with the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, he likely would not die.
'It would be a good way to vent my anger though.'
As I desperately ignored the shiny bald head, I noticed strong hands covered in the calluses unique to a martial artist.
Shaolin handled all of the Eighteen Basic Weapons, but there were many disciples who primarily mastered fist and palm techniques.
This was because it was convenient for maintaining Shaolin's principle of not killing.
Of course, it was clear that one would die if struck at the moment inner Qi was loaded.
Still, compared to sharp weapons like swords or spears, the probability of survival was slightly higher.
Seeing as I was having these kinds of thoughts while looking at a person, I suppose I am doomed to never escape being a martial artist. However, the Hungry God Wang Cho is not a martial world insect.
That was enough.
I asked Beom Cheon just in case.
"Do you know anything about the Three Hidden Figures?"
The old monk shook his head.
[I feel as if I have heard of them before. However, I know nothing about them. Why do you ask? Are you interested in old legends or something?]
I sneered alone at his answer.
This was because my suspicion toward Beom Cheon was growing even deeper.
Had he also read my intent? He was wearing an expression as if he did not know the reason while looking at me.
A martial artist's intent is bound to be revealed outwardly due to their heart method. If one were a peerless master, they could read that intent with the insight of the Upper Dantian.
However, in my current state, I could not read his intent. It was clear he had protected his Upper Dantian with the Marrow-Washing Scripture, which was paired with the Muscle-Bone Strengthening Scripture.
Beom Cheon's eyelashes trembled for some reason, and then he spoke to me.
[By the way, regarding that friend you brought.]
"What about Hwa Pyeong...?"
[He is running a gambling game against our monks.]
A brief, awkward silence followed. Surely not, right? However, is there not an old saying that "surely" can catch a man?
Beom Cheon let out a deep sigh and continued.
[It is a rigged game, at that. He is pulling from the bottom of the deck. Those bastards called martial monks cannot even identify it properly with their eye techniques and are being helplessly swindled. I should lock them all in the Bodhidharma Cave and force them into secluded meditation.]
Nonsense.
The Bodhidharma Cave was the place made famous by the founder of Shaolin, Bodhidharma, who spent nine years meditating while facing a wall.
Beom Cheon showed signs of holding back a laugh at the name Bodhidharma, so I questioned him. He had clearly read my thoughts through Upper Dantian insight, but I could not tell why he laughed.
Anyway, talking about Hwa Pyeong reminded me of the other purpose for coming here. I moved my mouth quickly to change the subject.
"Can I obtain Lesser Returning Pills and Great Returning Pills? I have plenty of money ready."
Naturally, I would take the Great Returning Pill, and the Lesser Returning Pill was the elixir needed for Hwa Pyeong's mother. As for money, I had more than enough due to Elder Hwa's slush fund.
Beom Cheon wore an archaic smile.
[Are you crazy? No, has your Upper Dantian perhaps fallen into internal injury, making you unable to distinguish right from wrong? If so, I shall personally break your head with the Hundred-Step Divine Fist. Amitabha.]
The reaction was more intense than expected. I thought I could at least get a Lesser Returning Pill.
Then again, it is rare for a sect to leak elixirs they created to the outside. Especially if it was a once-in-a-lifetime elixir like the Great Returning Pill.
"Is it not possible?"
Beom Cheon seemed to ponder for a moment and then spoke.
[A martial arts competition among the disciples of this temple will be held soon in Shaolin. The first-place prize is, naturally, a Great Returning Pill. Second place is a Lesser Returning Pill. I shall specifically use my authority as the Abbot to let you and your friend participate in the competition. How about it?]
To let us participate in a competition for Shaolin monks without any conditions. It was an excessive kindness. Why was he making such a proposal to me?
However, it was a proposal too good to refuse.
"It is naturally fine with me."
Come to think of it, I wondered if Hwa Pyeong could act like a decent human being. However, it was a profitable deal since his experience would surely broaden just by sparring with masters of the level of Shaolin monks. Surprisingly, Hwa Pyeong was one of the direct disciples of the Hao Clan Leader.
[Then it is settled. Is your business finished now?]
Asking if my business was finished huh. Was he already telling me to leave? My business was only beginning.
I hesitated for a moment and stared at him. No matter how much I thought about it, my suspicion was not wrong.
It was an intuition developed over a long time living as a beggar.
The Beom Cheon before my eyes was the Beom Cheon I knew, yet he was also not the Beom Cheon I knew.
"Do you know what you said to me in the past?"
[What do you mean by that?]
I smirked while looking at him feigning ignorance as if he didn't know the reason.
"It was you who told the past me about the Three Hidden Figures. Furthermore, the content was quite detailed. I originally knew about the Three Hidden Figures, but I had never heard such vast information as that."
[And?]
"It makes no sense for the current you to not know about the Three Hidden Figures. You have fallen into a contradiction of your own words."
I pulled the iron sword from my waist and pointed it at Beom Cheon.
The Star Moon Sword Qi unique to the Sun-Drenched Moonlight shone like milk on the iron sword.
"You are a regressor, just like Baek Cheon. My intuition is saying exactly that. Am I wrong?"
Silence lingered between the two comrades-in-arms for a long time.
Only after some time had passed did the Shaolin monk, who still had not lost his smile, finally speak.
[You have certainly become smarter.]
In an instant, I felt as if time and space in the area were slowing down. It was a function identical to the Hundred and Eight Arhat Formation performed by a hundred and eight monks.
He was personally recreating the function of the Arhat Formation, which was said to have never been broken in a thousand years of history.
To what level must one's martial arts rise for that to be possible? Beom Cheon, who assumed the posture of clasping hands with both hands, recited a Buddhist prayer, "Amitabha."
"I am a regressor, just like you."