novelraw Chapter 179
Chapter 179
Kwak Yeon was gazing at the campfire burning at the mouth of the cave.
—Fweee!
With a sharp whistle, two figures appeared—
the White-Haired Demon Queen and Ju Yeoryeong.
Kwak Yeon bowed respectfully to her.
“Elder, welcome.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen frowned at the brightly burning fire.
“A needless waste of firewood.”
“My apologies. The mountain path was rather treacherous, so I lit it to make things more comfortable for you.”
She gave him a sharp look.
“Was it you who sent this girl?”
“When I returned here, Young Lady Ju had already left. Of course, even if I had known, I would not have stopped her. In any case, Elder, I ask that you not misjudge your grand-disciple’s intentions.”
“Tsk, tsk! You never let yourself lose, do you? As expected from a Wudang Taoist. Enough useless talk—just take me to the boy.”
“Then allow me to go ahead and check the path.”
Kwak Yeon smiled briefly at Ju Yeoryeong and went ahead.
—Step, step—
Inside the cave, Danmok Seong, who had been regulating his breath in meditation, looked up in surprise when he saw the White-Haired Demon Queen following behind Kwak Yeon.
“Ah! Lady Hong...?”
Her voice was icy.
“I am not here on your account, so stay seated.”
“...?”
As Danmok Seong faltered awkwardly, Kwak Yeon said,
“Elder Danmok, the Elder has come to release the Young Lord’s sealed points.”
Danmok Seong’s eyes widened in shock, and soon those large eyes began to glisten.
“...Lady Hong.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen turned away from him and spoke to Kwak Yeon.
“Hermit Taoist, lead the way.”
****
At the very back of the cave, the White-Haired Demon Queen and Kwak Yeon sat facing each other.
Danmok Cheong, freed from his sealed points, had just left after expressing deep gratitude.
The firelight from the entrance cast a faint glow inside, so it was not completely dark.
“Once again, I thank you for coming all this way.”
Kwak Yeon bowed, but she replied coldly,
“I did not come to collect insincere courtesies, so spare me the thanks.”
“...”
“Well then, how exactly do you intend to help me?”
“How could I possibly offer great aid to you, Elder? As I said before, I simply thought I might act as a hand on the reins.”
“What do you mean by ‘hand on the reins’?”
“When you circulated the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline earlier this evening in the clearing outside, my own mental cultivation responded in resonance.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. That was how I realized that the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline originated from the Daoist school.”
“...”
“And so, I thought that if I circulated my mental art, you would certainly sense it as well.”
“You mean you believe that, sitting in the same place and circulating our respective mental arts, they would resonate together?”
“Yes.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen regarded him for a long moment, then asked abruptly,
“Did you receive instruction from the Grandmaster Emeritus?”
The sudden question startled Kwak Yeon.
“No.”
“Then who taught you the method of mental-image sparring?”
“So that’s what it’s called? I have never even heard the term before.”
This time it was her turn to be surprised.
“You truly came up with the idea yourself?”
“...”
“Remarkable!”
She let out a note of admiration.
“You have at least heard of sparring by debate?”
“Yes.”
“As you know, that is a contest of martial arts ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) through discourse. But mental cultivation is composed of insights and inner formulas—an intangible realm, is it not?”
“That is true.”
“And so, naturally, one cannot compete in mental cultivation through discussion. Yet there are rare cases when two who share mutual intent exchange their mental arts through their inner vision to reflect on their own enlightenment. The reason it is still called mental-image sparring is that mental cultivation is also part of martial training, and martial artists tend to call anything involving an opponent a ‘contest.’”
In truth, even sparring by debate was most often about learning from one another rather than truly competing—yet it was still termed as if it were a duel.
Kwak Yeon, well aware of martial artists’ boundless competitiveness, readily accepted her explanation.
“In any case, circulating one’s mental cultivation before another is no different from entrusting them with one’s life—extremely dangerous. Moreover, there are few who have reached a level to reflect on such enlightenment. That is why the existence of mental-image sparring is known to only a very small number.”
“...”
“Even I, as a grandmaster of my sect, only learned of it when I happened to hear of the single time it occurred in our generation—what more need I say?”
At those words, a realization struck Kwak Yeon.
“That one instance was with the Grandmaster Emeritus, was it not?”
She nodded.
“Yes.”
“And who was his counterpart?”
“The Martial Sage, Cheon Muja.”
An exclamation slipped from Kwak Yeon’s lips.
“Ah!”
“The Martial Sage Cheon Muja and the Wudang Sword Sovereign Grandmaster Emeritus were like immortals who had no equals left in the world. At such a supreme realm, they would naturally find mutual reflection in one another, making mental-image sparring possible. Haa...”
She let out a quiet sigh before continuing.
“As a martial artist, to say I did not envy their mental-image sparring would be a lie. And now you speak of it and propose it—how could I not be both surprised and impressed?”
Kwak Yeon’s face brightened.
“Then you will permit it, Elder?”
“I am in the position of asking for help—embarrassing as that is. To have the chance at mental-image sparring, how could I refuse?”
“Elder, what I do hardly counts as help, so please do not speak of embarrassment. In any case, now that you’ve explained mental-image sparring, it makes it much easier for me to request something.”
“Oh? And what is that?”
“To conduct mental-image sparring, you and I must circulate our mental arts at the same time, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“That means placing ourselves in a situation of extreme danger—which means we will need a trustworthy protector.”
“You mean to entrust that role to the old man of the Danmok Clan?”
“Yes.”
She frowned, then said,
“Very well. Do it.”
“Thank you for granting permission.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen disliked being indebted to Danmok Seong, but with no alternative, she agreed and waited.
Yet the Hermit Taoist merely stared at her without moving.
“...?”
“...”
As the silence dragged on, she could not help but ask,
“I’ve given permission—why aren’t you going?”
Kwak Yeon answered as if waiting for that question.
“With you here, how could I go?”
“And what does that mean?”
“Please consider my position, Elder. I am of far lower seniority—how could I, in the etiquette of the martial world, dare to ask Elder Danmok to serve as protector?”
“...!”
“My apologies, but I would be grateful if you, being of equal rank to him, would go instead.”
She saw right through the Hermit Taoist’s little ploy—
but there was nothing in his words she could refute.
“...!”
After a moment of staring at him, she rose to her feet.
****
—Step, step—
The three sitting around the campfire outside all rose when the White-Haired Demon Queen emerged from the cave.
Danmok Seong quickly spoke in welcome.
“Lady Hong, I am truly grateful. I have no words to excuse myself...”
“Enough foolish talk. It’s not because of you.”
“....”
She looked past the guilty-faced Ju Yeoryeong to the youth beside her—Danmok Cheong.
In the light, she could see him clearly: tall, solidly built, with the unmistakable martial bone of one born for the sword.
Even with the bluish bruises on his face, he carried the noble bearing of a scion of a great martial clan.
The image of Danmok Seong in his youth.
So, Young Palace Mistress... I see now why you were drawn to this one.
Compared to him, that Hermit Taoist inside might as well have been a chicken before a pheasant—
no, that was wrong. The Hermit Taoist was a phoenix.
If he had been merely a pheasant, she would not have cared so much if Ju Yeoryeong chose a chicken.
Haa...
Letting out a faint sigh, she spoke to Ju Yeoryeong and Danmok Cheong.
“You two wait outside the cave.”
Realizing the elders had matters to discuss alone, Danmok Cheong quickly replied,
“Understood. I was about to fetch more firewood anyway. Let’s go, Young Lady Ju.”
After bowing, the two quickly left the cave.
With only the two of them left across the fire, Danmok Seong’s insides burned.
—Crackle, crackle—
It was hard to tell whether it was the fire crackling or his own chest.
He wanted to speak first, but no words came.
He had surely prepared more than a thousand things to say when he met her again—yet now, nothing.
While he hesitated, the White-Haired Demon Queen finally spoke.
“I have a request for you.”
Danmok Seong could hardly believe his ears.
“Lady Hong... what did you just say?”
“I said I have a request. Are your ears already failing?”
“No, no! My ears are perfectly—no, sharp as ever. I just... Ah! Please, ask. Ten requests, a thousand, ten thousand—I will grant them all.”
“Hmph! Even if your ears fail, your mouth is as exaggerated as ever.”
“Lady Hong, I am sorry.”
“In any case, just keep one promise properly this time.”
“I swear I will.”
“I want you to stand guard here as protector. That is my request.”
“Understood, Lady Hong! Even if I draw my last breath, I will guard this place like an iron wall.”
“There you go again, making grand declarations.”
“...?”
“How will you guard it if you’ve already stopped breathing?”
“Ah! Lady Hong, I’m sorry. I only meant—”
“Don’t stammer. Just stand guard properly.”
She turned sharply on her heel.
—Tap, tap—
After a few steps, she stopped abruptly.
“...?”
Danmok Seong looked at her, tense.
“Lady Hong... is there something else you wish to ask?”
“Stop calling me ‘Lady Hong.’ At my age, is it fitting to call me a ‘lady’? Especially in front of the grandchildren.”
His face flushed.
“Lady Ho—... my apologies. I just didn’t know what else to call you.”
“Call me ‘Sister Hong.’”
“Ah!”
“And don’t get any ideas. It’s only because I couldn’t think of a more fitting address.”
“Understood... Sister Hong.”
His eyes glistened faintly.