Chapter 5. You Don't Know Me.

A guy with a hateful expression approached, his breath reeking.

"Don't even think about getting close to Chaehyang. I'll feel dirty too. If you really do anything with her, she'll have to retire from here. Got it, you bastard?"

I tilted my head.

"What was your name again? I can't remember."

Honestly, I couldn't remember his name because he was less noticeable than a passerby.

"What?"

My hand flew and struck his face. With a crack, he fell backward.

Did I hit him too hard?

The unexpected impact made me feel strange, so I looked at my hand.

I shouldn't have any inner strength, but my punch was surprisingly strong.

Then I noticed that the feeling in my dantian was strange. I hadn't even started my first qi circulation, yet it was already churning. I decided to check this later, but for now...

As soon as the guy got up, he started cursing and lunged at me.

"You son of a bitch!"

When you curse while attacking, it leaves a huge opening.

I dodged his clumsy punches and hit him on the back of the head.

Crack!

This time, he fell forward.

"Young man at the fabric shop, what's your name again?"

I kicked the face of the guy who was trying to get up, and he rolled to the side.

'Oh, I'm going to kill you. I should stop hitting him.'

But I could still provoke him. The guy, feeling humiliated by being hit by a shop assistant, refused to speak.

"Feeling wronged? You should feel wronged for being hit by a shop assistant."

But what can you do...

If he doesn't die from my hands, it'll be a miracle.

I grabbed his hair and pulled him up, making eye contact.

"Hey."

Was it because my eyes, trained in the martial world, had returned to the past, or were they still the kind, shop assistant's eyes?

Eyes convey emotion.

When I looked at him with the intention of smashing his face, he finally flinched.

I asked again.

"What's your name?"

"Why are you suddenly asking?"

"Answer the question."

As my hand raised again, he finally answered.

"My name is Myeonggon."

"Oh, I remember. Damn, Myeonggon. Why do you put 'damn' before my name? Why do you do that? Say it again."

"Jaha."

"Again."

"Jaha."

Only then did I let go of his hair.

"Call my name only. Don't add any crap. If you don't want to die."

This level of gentle beating and lecturing would make any young man in Ilyang County soften.

Myeonggon, still with a fierce look in his eyes, got up stubbornly and took a deep breath.

"Huh..."

I gave him another chance.

"If you feel wronged, come at me again."

Myeonggon nodded and lunged at me.

'Sure enough, he's a young man from my hometown.'

This time, I threw a punch.

I felt nothing.

Because I'm also a young man from my hometown.

Myeonggon seemed to prefer passing out from a punch rather than getting hit clumsily by a shop assistant. When he wakes up, his emotions will change. He'll realize that he passed out instead of dying.

A simple dodge followed by a direct hit.

Thud!

Myeonggon, hit directly in the face, fell backward and passed out.

I shook him for a moment.

"Myeonggon?"

"..."

He didn't answer, but he was still breathing. I looked at his chest, which was still moving, and then left.

"Grow up."

As I returned to the inn, I thought:

Just because I've returned to the past doesn't mean my character will revert to that of a shop assistant.

I muttered, "You don't know me," as I returned to the inn.

Still, the state of my dantian was definitely strange.

I sensed something and rearranged the chairs and tables inside, temporarily hanging a "closed" sign.

In such times, not doing business is the best option.

* * *

As a shop assistant, I shouldn't have any inner strength.

Yet, I felt a considerable amount of inner strength in my dantian.

Strangely, it wasn't like that of an active soldier on the battlefield, but rather like a trainee soldier waiting in the barracks. This feeling was similar to what I experienced after taking a spirit medicine. Ultimately, I needed to perform qi circulation to accumulate the power of the spirit medicine as inner strength.

Still, the amount of inner strength waiting in the barracks was considerable.

Why is this so?

Back in my room at the inn, I sat in a lotus position and pondered this problem.

The method to check inner strength is relatively simple.

I just needed to re-enter the first level of the Golden Turtle Soaring Technique.

The Golden Turtle Soaring Technique is a unique martial art that is hard to find even in the vast martial world.

The name itself suggests a crazy idea of a steel turtle that can withstand swords and knives, wandering as it pleases.

In the early stages, it's similar to a demonic technique, progressing quickly.

In the middle stages, it's similar to a pure technique, progressing slowly.

In the final stages, it pursues the invincible state of a golden diamond, making it extremely difficult.

Therefore, conquering the final stage, which can be considered the ultimate level, is an extremely difficult martial art, akin to achieving enlightenment.

After a while, the inner strength, which had been calmly flowing, started to stir, transforming into true qi and moving through the meridians.

There are two main paths for the true qi to circulate. The first path, the Governor Vessel, starts from the anus, travels up the spine, reaches the top of the head, and ends at the lips. The second path, the Conception Vessel, starts from the lips, travels through the chest, abdomen, and navel, stimulating the lower abdomen, and returns to the anus.

Each sect has its own method of conquering these paths, just as each mountain has its own way of climbing.

This is why each sect has its own unique inner strength cultivation method.

The common point is that once you start the circulation, it's difficult to stop midway. It's like trying to stop food from passing through the esophagus, which can easily lead to a mental breakdown.

Fortunately, our inn had few customers, and the "closed" sign ensured no one would come.

If the digestion of food goes wrong, it just causes indigestion, but if the flow of true qi goes wrong, it can severely damage the body.

Before I could fully understand the inner strength in my dantian, I had completed the first level of the Golden Turtle Soaring Technique, the Wood Chicken stage, with perfect clarity.

I don't know how much time had passed, but I had skipped meals and held my bowels while meditating, which is also a part of me.

The feeling was very strange and peculiar. However, once I realized there were no side effects, a pleasant shiver ran down my spine.

I summarized the situation as follows:

First, my inner strength rapidly improved before I fell off the cliff due to the Heavenly Jade.

Second, during the improvement of my inner strength, I clearly felt that the state of my dantian was forcibly divided into yin and yang.

Third, I was sent back to the past by an unknown man.

Fourth, because I was sent back to the past, the soul of the Heavenly Jade, which was attached to my body, either ascended to heaven or, if it is still alive, returned to its original body.

Fifth, however, the unknown spiritual power contained in the Heavenly Jade returned with me.

...This is my conclusion.

The sect leader probably didn't crave the 'soul' of others when he consumed the Heavenly Jade. Martial artists create such things solely to become stronger.

So, the final conclusion is?

I had consumed the Heavenly Jade, which had its side effect, the soul, completely removed.

Even though I had returned to the past.

Just as I had returned with my memories intact, the spiritual power contained in the Heavenly Jade had also returned with me.

Otherwise, I couldn't have broken through the first level of the Golden Turtle Soaring Technique so quickly.

Of course, not all questions were answered.

I had a baseless premonition that this wasn't just simple inner strength.

The man's words came to mind.

"This is the best choice I can give you, and the best gift."

So...

The best choice is regression.

The best gift is the Heavenly Jade.

This interpretation makes everything clear. However, there was still a task to be done.

For some reason, about half of the latent power did not respond to the Golden Turtle Soaring Technique at all.

I rested my chin in thought.

'Why doesn't half of it respond?'

After much contemplation, I came to a simple conclusion.

This was clearly the power left by the Heavenly Jade, so the 'latent power' must also be divided into yin and yang.

The Golden Turtle Soaring Technique is a purely yang martial art. It's natural that it can't smoothly use yang-defined inner strength.

Therefore, I need to obtain a new martial art that can use yin inner strength.

This leaves a rather attractive task.

I now have a foundation for using both yang and yin martial arts. Since I'm not the type to overthink, I decided to stop here.

I couldn't help but feel elated. It was as if I had forgotten that I was once crazy. People can only feel satisfied when all the conditions are met.

"Hehehe..."

Inner strength isn't everything in martial arts.

Skill, psychological warfare, innate talent, fighting instinct, and luck all play a role in determining the outcome of battles between top martial artists.

However, inner strength is crucial from start to finish. I had returned with latent but sufficient inner strength, a value that couldn't be measured in human currency.

Breaking through the first level of the Golden Turtle Soaring Technique alone made me unmatched in my hometown.

I felt full, even though I was actually very hungry.

Rumble...

I couldn't let myself starve.

Moreover, to beat up the guys at Plum Tower, I needed to eat well.

* * *

In the kitchen, I poured side dishes into a large pot, added leftover rice and seasonings, and mixed them thoroughly.

After mixing, I had a bowl of bibimbap.

It looked like dog food, but it tasted good.

I always solved my meals this way to avoid wasting side dishes.

The bibimbap made from the inn's leftover side dishes was a real delicacy.

I smiled from time to time as I savored the nostalgic taste.

Living alone, I felt I might not be able to stay sane in this life.

But that's okay.

I was already used to such loneliness because I had been crazy before.

More importantly, my future enemies would go completely crazy.

While eating the bibimbap, I thought about the strong martial artists of the era.

Compared to the martial artists of the Central Plains, I came from a humble background. Even when I had learned martial arts to a certain extent, I often had to run away during battles because there were many strong martial artists in the martial world.

This is why my lightness skill, which is essential for survival, developed faster than my martial arts.

Thinking about them, my jaw kept tensing up while chewing.

After finishing the bibimbap, I took out the alcohol I needed to sell to customers and drank it freely.

"Ah... This is good."

Excessive consumption is always thrilling.

It was a decent dinner.

I filled a flask with alcohol, put a sickle on my back, and left the inn.

With a full stomach, I felt confident that I could take on all the men in Ilyang County.

I planned to say something that would sound like a joke but would be a serious statement.

I kept drinking as I walked to Plum Tower.

* * *

The man guarding the entrance of Plum Tower opened his eyes wide when he saw my face.

"Hey, you crazy bastard. What are you doing here? Don't cause trouble and leave."

"Is that how you talk to a customer?"

"You crazy bastard."

His hand flew at me.

I caught his hand with my left hand and hit his face with the flask.

Thud!

I grabbed his collar and threw him to the ground. I kicked the face of the guy who was trying to get up, knocking him out, and then looked at Plum Tower.

"This customer service is terrible. Are you crazy?"

The place was still noisy, with people drinking and laughing, paying no attention to the commotion at the entrance.

Laughter erupted from various directions.

"Why are you all so happy? Why are you always happy without me?"

Since the doorman was unconscious, I opened the door and went in. I shouted loudly, something I had always wanted to do here.

"Come here!"

You bastards!

* * *

When the drunk shop assistant from Jaha Inn appeared, the faces of the Plum Tower staff serving the customers hardened.

"Isn't that the guy from Jaha Inn?"

"What is he doing here?"

I responded to the murmurs.

"Where is this? A place to drink, right? Did I come to the wrong place?"

"Ha ha ha."

A guy named Chae Sung-tae, who was looking down from the railing on this floor, laughed loudly.

"You're right. It's a place to drink."

His subordinates asked,

"Should we kick him out?"

Chae Sung-tae, who had been smiling, waved his hand at me.

"No, bring him up. By the way, who hit him? Why does his eye look like that?"

"I didn't hit him."

Chae Sung-tae, known for his cunning in Ilyang County, smiled at me.

"We can't turn away a customer. Come on up."

Despite his cunning, in the southern part of Ilyang County, only the Jo brothers could match Chae Sung-tae in a fight. There were two other middle managers who served as overseers in other brothels.

To be precise, I had been beaten by Chae Sung-tae's subordinates. Because he hadn't managed his subordinates well, I had planned to torment him for a long time. However, he hadn't done anything too bad to me before I left Ilyang County, so there was no reason to kill him.

As I climbed the stairs, Chae Sung-tae said from this floor,

"Prepare a good drink for our Jaha Inn shop assistant. He might not come here again. Treat him well. A customer is a customer."

"Understood."

When I reached this floor, a guide attached to me.

"This way."

We followed the corridor and were led to an empty room.

It was a strangely structured room.

A table was placed in the center, and the floor around it was sunken, allowing people to sit with their feet inside. It was a private room where about six people could sit and drink, with a space for the entertainers to sit and perform.

A young staff member, almost speaking informally, asked,

"What kind of alcohol would you like?"

"I'll know when I see it. Just bring the expensive stuff."

The staff member stared at me for a moment and then changed his tone.

"But why are you speaking informally..."

I sat in the seat of honor and replied,

"Sorry for speaking informally. Bastard, bring the alcohol."

The staff member glared at me with a murderous look.

'Is this guy crazy?'

But he knew why the shop assistant was treated as a customer, so he left without a word.

I like that look.

A look filled with anger, hatred, killing intent, and bloodlust.

It's nothing special.

If you hit him enough, his eyes will become pitiful, and he'll beg for mercy.

I crossed my arms and waited for the alcohol, then touched my eyes again.

'My temper is flaring up again.'