Swordless Demonic Path

Chapter 46 : Laughter Fills the Mountains and Rivers

Jin Sa-wol, who had returned home, memorized the secret manual that Dokgo Shin-wi had given him. Since it was important to memorize it first, he skimmed through it once.

-It is read as Jinma Shingong and called Jinhyeol Magong.

The reason it was called a demonic art was because of the explosive burst of the True Demonic Divine Art. Generally, it was a divine art that trained and enhanced internal energy, but when the explosive burst was operated, it would double one's own internal energy in an instant.

Naturally, all of the body's abilities would also be doubled, and even the sensory parts would be made more sensitive.

But it had one of the major characteristics of a demonic art, a side effect.

After operating the explosive burst, one had to rest for a day. In a state where all of the body's energy was drained, one would suffer from hunger, and in severe cases, one would vomit or have diarrhea.

To compensate for this drawback, it was good to learn a profound internal energy heart art of the orthodox sect in parallel, but if one did so, the two different energies would mix, and one could fall into a state of qi deviation.

'The Ink Shadow Heart Art will have to be completely absorbed by the True Demonic Divine Art...'

Internal energies with different properties were bound to clash. One had to overcome that.

The Ink Shadow Heart Art of Ghost Spirit Valley was like a shackle to the Slaughter Ghosts. It was a heart art that would cause one to fall into a state of qi deviation and die the moment one reached great accomplishment.

It was because it was a demonic art that had been tampered with to prevent the Slaughter Ghosts' martial arts from rising above a certain level and to make them easy to dispose of.

Jin Sa-wol had instinctively judged that there was a problem with the Ink Shadow Heart Art due to the headache and the pain that pierced his acupoints, so he had wanted another divine art.

Dokgo Shin-wi had granted that wish.

Jin Sa-wol was fully satisfied with the True Demonic Divine Art. Since he could no longer learn the Ink Shadow Heart Art, he was in a position where he had no choice but to be satisfied with anything.

It was a better choice to train in another martial art than to die from falling into a state of qi deviation.

Although he could have learned the martial arts of the Dokgo family from Dokgo Shin-wi, if he had, he would have had to become a person of the Dokgo family.

Since he did not want that, Dokgo Shin-wi had sent him the True Demonic Divine Art, one of the many demonic arts. Dokgo Shin-wi must have made a lot of effort to obtain this secret manual.

He was thinking of repaying that kindness if he survived.

Jin Sa-wol, after memorizing all of the True Demonic Divine Art, put it in the furnace without any lingering attachment.

Hwareureuk!

The True Demonic Divine Art quickly burned up. It was the moment a precious secret manual disappeared.

If he had memorized it in his head, the secret manual was not needed.

After that, Jin Sa-wol went up on the bed, sat in a cross-legged position, and moved his internal energy, operating the True Demonic Divine Art.

With the first breath, the faint power of the True Demonic Divine Art sat in his dantian.

Pong!

With a feeling like a small drop of water falling into a large lake, a small ripple spread out in a circle.

When the internal energy of the Ink Shadow Heart Art and the small power of the True Demonic Divine Art mixed, a large wave arose and wrapped around his entire body.

"Ugh!"

An extreme pain as if his internal organs were being torn arose from his abdomen.

But he had to endure it. He had to catch both the swirling Ink Shadow Heart Art and the True Demonic Divine Art, the two energies.

This fight was just the beginning. And to go to the next step, he had to overcome it.

Darkness descended around Jin Sa-wol, who was sitting on the bed.

That darkness disappeared at a fast speed, and the morning sun rose again and shone on Jin Sa-wol.

"Hooooo..."

A deep breath flowed from Jin Sa-wol's mouth.

A black mist that had been spread on the floor around him was instantly absorbed into his nose and mouth and disappeared as he breathed in.

A huge amount of internal energy, enough to be one sixty-year cycle, had accumulated in Jin Sa-wol's dantian.

A short while later, Jin Sa-wol, who had taken and let out a few breaths, slowly opened his eyes.

There was no change in his appearance. But he felt that his body had become much lighter than yesterday.

As he left the room, food was set on the dining table.

The only person who would come into his house and prepare food was Bi-sun. It seemed he had visited during the night.

Jin Sa-wol, who was sitting at the dining table and eating, thought of the deceased Sang Yu-rim. As his thoughts reached the Namgung family, which was related to her death, his brow narrowed.

Creak!

Just then, the sound of the main gate opening echoed for a long time.

Jin Sa-wol put down his chopsticks and went out to the yard. He saw Woo Jeong-bong standing with a messy appearance.

Woo Jeong-bong's eyes widened when he saw Jin Sa-wol in the house.

"You were at home?"

"Ah!"

Jin Sa-wol nodded as if he had just remembered. That was all.

Woo Jeong-bong raised his voice with an absurd face.

"Ah? Ah-ha? I waited for you, but you didn't come, so I thought you were dead and wandered all over the place! I couldn't eat for a few days because I was worried! I couldn't even sleep properly. But you were at home? What on earth is this?"

"You thought I was dead, so why did you wander around?"

"I was looking for your body. But you're alive and well like this?"

Jin Sa-wol stared at Woo Jeong-bong and then turned his body and went into the kitchen. Woo Jeong-bong ran.

"Hey! If I told you to wait, you should have waited!"

"Eat."

At the words to eat, Woo Jeong-bong, who sat at the dining table, picked up his chopsticks and ate the food greedily. As if he were hungry, Woo Jeong-bong put the food in his mouth without resting.

"Chomp! Chomp! Hey, this... chomp! You! Slurp! ...If I'm not here, you should look for me! Chomp-chomp!"

It was Woo Jeong-bong, who was speaking while stuffing meat and vegetables into his mouth.

"You didn't come back for a few days, so I thought you had gone to Wudang Mountain."

"Not yet. I have something to do... Well! Well! Chomp!"

Woo Jeong-bong snatched even Jin Sa-wol's rice bowl and took it.

Thump!

Woo Jeong-bong, who had emptied the rice bowl, put it down noisily on the dining table and emitted a strong prayer.

"Let's fight for a bit."

It was a very angry expression.

Woo Jeong-bong raised his fist and spoke again.

"Without swords, let's fight like men with these fists."

It was an expression that showed he was very confident in his fist art. Jin Sa-wol nodded. Anyway, this match was already decided.

"Good."

Thwack!

"Ugh!"

Woo Jeong-bong, who was hit in the abdomen, vomited the rice he had just eaten.

"Ah, damn it! What a waste, ugh! The things I ate... ugh!"

Woo Jeong-bong clutched his stomach, staggered, and collapsed.

Woo Jeong-bong said to Jin Sa-wol with a wronged face.

"Haa! Haa! I haven't been able to sleep for a few days, and my body is not normal because of hunger. I can't fight today. So let's fight again in a few days."

Jin Sa-wol also knew that Woo Jeong-bong's body was not normal. Woo Jeong-bong, who had not been able to sleep for a few days and had not eaten properly, was naturally in a weakened state.

That's why he had easily allowed the duel.

But he had no intention of having a duel when he returned to normal.

"I refuse."

"What?"

At the words of refusal, Woo Jeong-bong's eyes widened. His face turned red because of the injustice.

Jin Sa-wol turned his body and said.

"Get some rest. Wash up. And clean the yard."

Jin Sa-wol went out of the house without even listening to Woo Jeong-bong's answer.

Woo Jeong-bong looked not at Jin Sa-wol, but at the vomit he had thrown up.

"Haa..."

A deep sigh flowed out at the thought of having to clean it up.

* * *

Many people were coming and going on the market road near the south gate of Nanchang City.

A small stream was flowing next to the market road, and there were also many people around it.

There were various people, from people washing clothes to people washing, and a group of beggars had also settled there.

Jin Sa-wol, who had entered the market road, passed the beggars who were sitting near the entrance.

Jin Sa-wol walked through the crowd and entered a small bookstore located in the back alley of the market road.

It was a place that sold the four treasures of the study. If you went inside, they also sold books and painting collections.

Since it was a small-scale place and was in the back alley, there were not many customers coming and going.

In the shop, Bi-sun was sitting. As Jin Sa-wol came in and sat at an empty desk, Bi-sun said.

"The Blood Curtain is in Wuchang County, Guangdong Province, on Wuchang Mountain."

"It's far."

"This morning, a large number of beggars from the Beggars' Sect came in. It seems the Beggars' Sect is also interested because the branch master of the Nanchang branch of the Martial Alliance died."

At Bi-sun's words, Jin Sa-wol nodded. It was because he had confirmed that the number of beggars had noticeably increased while coming to the market.

It was clear that they were not only here, but also at the four gates of the city, east, west, south, and north, and on the market streets.

The Beggars' Sect, which had the most extensive organization in the world, was known to have more than a hundred thousand members.

But there was a rumor that that was also only a part. The place that was mentioned along with the Beggars' Sect was the Hao Mun.

The Hao Mun was also a place that boasted an extensive organization. It was a place where the number of unknown members was greater than the known ones.

Bi-sun, who had stood up from his seat, observed the books on the bookshelf and spoke again.

"A while ago, in Zhejiang, it seems that Pine Sword Sect, one of the branches of the Wudang Sect, suffered considerable damage from an attack by the Sea Blade Gang. The bigger problem is that they say Elder Hyun-un of the Wudang Sect was there and died."

"Oh dear."

Jin Sa-wol, who had shown no particular reaction, threw a word at the news that Hyun-un of the Wudang Sect had died.

The Hyun generation were those who would lead the next generation of the Wudang Sect. In terms of seniority, they were the first-generation disciples, and they were the chosen ones among the numerous disciples of the Wudang Sect.

Since one of them had died, it was obvious that the Wudang Sect would be angry. On top of that, the Martial Alliance would by no means just stand by.

Although the Sea Blade Gang was a gang with a long history in Zhejiang Province, it was destined to disappear soon.

"It's an even more meaningful event since it happened after the master of Azure Sword Sect was killed by an assassin whose existence was not even known, the Ten-Sword Demon."

At Bi-sun's words, Jin Sa-wol asked.

"Are you saying that the Wudang Sect killed the master of Azure Sword Sect, and the Namgung family killed Hyun-un?"

"There's no evidence. Anyway, it's killing with a borrowed sword. Don't you think so?"

Jin Sa-wol, who received Bi-sun's gaze, nodded.

The Namgung family, which had aimed for Hyun Jin and failed to kill him, had clearly killed Hyun-un instead of Hyun Jin.

The martial world is a place where you give back as much as you receive.

The secret struggles of the martial world always have a different inside and outside.

"It seems it would be better to part with Hyun Jin now. What do you think?"

When Bi-sun asked, Jin Sa-wol shook his head.

"There's nothing wrong with forming a connection with the Wudang Sect. The Namgung family too."

Hearing Jin Sa-wol's story, it seemed he had an intention to form a connection with the Namgung family.

Bi-sun took out a palm-sized notebook from the bookshelf and placed it in front of Jin Sa-wol.

"Since the city is noisy, it's good to be away for a while. There's also the matter of the Blood Curtain."

Jin Sa-wol nodded.

"Although it wasn't intended, it turned out well."

He had not expected to have a bad relationship with the Blood Curtain. But he knew that once you had a bad relationship like this, it would continue forever.

To solve it, he had to either get rid of the Blood Curtain or kill the master.

When he opened the notebook, he saw that there was a story about the direct line of the Namgung family.

Jin Sa-wol skimmed through it with his eyes and then stopped his gaze for a moment at the name Namgung Ji.

Bi-sun's voice was heard again.

"They say the Murong family is also coming to investigate the death of Yun Deok. It seems they are probably trying to join hands with the Martial Alliance. Or the inspection pavilion master of the Murong family will come in person."

"You've worked hard."

Jin Sa-wol, who had put down the notebook, stood up as if his business was over and went outside.

As he left, Bi-sun hid the notebook deep in the bookshelf again.

Rattle! Rattle!

Jin Sa-wol, who had left the market, watched a carriage and dozens of horses and the warriors of the Namgung family pass by.

They were all heading for the Nanchang branch of the Martial Alliance.

Jin Sa-wol's eyes turned to the carriage.

'Namgung Ji.'

It was a name that stood out among the members of the Namgung family.

(End of Chapter)