Chapter 4

Chapter 3. What the hell is going on here? (3)

Guchil seriously pondered what absurdity was.

It was because Cheongmyeong, who had stormed out of the shack with a bizarre cry, returned with a huff and started spouting nonsense.

"I'm going to the volcano."

"......"

"It might sound absurd, but listen to me carefully."

At least he knew it was absurd, which was worth giving him some credit.

But that thought vanished instantly when he heard what followed.

"I can repay a favor twofold and a grudge tenfold. There will be a day when I repay this favor, so remember the name Cheongmyeong of the volcano. I will definitely repay this favor when we meet again."

It was a very impressive statement.

If it weren't for the scrawny, beaten-up young beggar saying it, it would have been very impressive.

Unfortunately, Guchil's appreciation of Cheongmyeong's impressive words was very simple.

"......You're talking nonsense."

Cheongmyeong's face slightly distorted.

"Of course, it might sound strange now, but remember these words well. One day, they will change your fate......"

"Wangcho is looking for you. He said he'll beat you to death."

"Really?"

Their eyes met.

"......"

"......"

"Ahem."

There are all kinds of lunatics in the world. It's not particularly strange or unusual for someone you know to join their ranks.

Of course, it is very strange for someone to suddenly change overnight.

"Anyway, I'm going!"

"......Bring back some food. Or he really will beat you to death."

"I'm going, I'm going! Anyway, remember! Cheongmyeong of the volcano. Remember this name!"

Cheongmyeong turned his body and walked out of the shack with a confident stride.

Guchil shook his head involuntarily as he watched the scene.

Life is full of surprises.

But then again, it might not be a bad choice. If he gets caught by Wangcho, he'll probably get beaten to within an inch of his life.

"What should I say to Wangcho......"

Just as he thought that, the rag covering the entrance of the shack was suddenly pulled aside, and Cheongmyeong walked back in.

"......"

Why did he come back?

Before Guchil could ask, Cheongmyeong asked confidently first.

"Hey!"

"Yeah?"

"What was the name of that beggar kid?"

"Who?"

"The one who hit me."

"Oh...... Wangcho? His name is probably Jongpal (宗八)?"

"Jongpal? What a beggar's name. Tell that kid I won't let him off next time."

......He won't let you off.

Wangcho will.

"Then I'm really going."

Cheongmyeong walked out again. Just as Guchil thought it was a fiery day, Cheongmyeong came back in again.

"Ah, why again!"

"Hey."

"What? Why? What again!"

"Which way do I go to get to Huashan in Xianxi Province?"

"......"

"......"

No matter how he thought about it......

This kid is definitely crazy.

* * *

Cheongmyeong ran and ran.

There is no one in the world who would carry a dirty, small beggar all the way to Xianxi. The only thing he could rely on was his sturdy... or rather, what used to be sturdy legs and his tired... heart.

When did Cheongmyeong ever ride a horse or a carriage?

In the past, he never rode a horse. He was not the type to leisurely ride a slow horse.

If he added up all the distances he ran in his previous life, he could circle the Central Plains ten times. So he ran with all his might, without a hint of doubt.

And before a mere moment had passed, he collapsed on the ground.

"Phew! Phew! Phew! Whee! Oh, I'm going to die!"

He didn't think about the body of a child.

His steel-like legs had turned into thin sticks of bone, and his heart, which seemed to never tire, was protesting violently against the unexpected overwork.

What do you mean?

His heart felt like it was going to jump out of his throat.

"No, what kind of body is this!"

To make such a fuss after running for just a moment!

Did I run for an hour, two hours! Just a moment and I'm out of breath! What kind of low-quality body would produce such a result?

"Ugh."

When he slowly examined his body, it made sense.

Before even talking about innate talent, his nutritional state was very poor. He was literally not getting enough to eat.

Going to Xianxi with this body?

It's a dream. He would surely die of exhaustion before reaching Huashan.

The great Plum Sword Master dying of exhaustion on a journey? If he met anyone he knew in the afterlife, he would be laughed at for three days and four nights.

"I need to fix this rotten body first if I want to go to Xianxi!"

The best way to make the body healthy?

He already had it.

"Hehehehe."

A meaningful laugh escaped from Cheongmyeong's mouth. He couldn't hold it back no matter how hard he tried.

"Kukukukuk."

All his martial arts were gone, his body was in the worst condition, he didn't know if Huashan was destroyed or upside down, and he was so hungry he could die.

This was the only comfort that made Cheongmyeong laugh in this beggar-like situation.

"So, I need to start practicing martial arts from now on!"

He could start again.

No one could imagine how incredible this was.

Those who haven't reached the top regret their lives? Of course, that's true. But even those who have reached the top have regrets.

If I had done that back then!

If I had been a little younger, if I had laid a better foundation!

If I hadn't run away when my master dragged me by the ear to practice, and at least pretended to practice!

If I hadn't been caught stealing the alcohol my senior brother had hidden...

Ah, except for the last one.

Anyway!

"I can do it again."

In the past, Cheongmyeong was one of the three great swordsmen in the world. But that didn't mean he was satisfied with his martial arts. On the contrary, the more powerful he became and the deeper his understanding of martial arts, the more he realized how inefficiently he had trained and how he had grown in the wrong direction.

Foundation.

The foundation, the foundation, the foundation that everyone, from masters to senior brothers and secret manuals, kept shouting about!

During his training days, the word "foundation" that the damn foundation theorists kept repeating like parrots was extremely boring and annoying, but after becoming a high-level practitioner himself, he could keenly understand why the foundation was important.

The foundation is ultimately the base.

To build a tall tower, a solid foundation and a strong base are necessary. The height you can reach is determined by how much effort you put into building the foundation.

But you can't understand that as a child. No matter how much you hear, you can't understand it. And even if you understand it, you can't put it into practice.

Why?

'Because you're human.'

If I'm digging the ground to lay a foundation, and my senior brothers are already building a three-story tower, wouldn't anyone get impatient?

Moreover!

"They only talk about laying a foundation, but when you actually do it, they only praise and favor the ones who are ahead!"

The damn meritocracy!

Of course, I understand. In the end, my master is human, and my senior brothers are human.

Everyone knows that laying a foundation is necessary to achieve greatness, but when my disciple is struggling to lay a foundation and my senior brother's disciple is showing off amazing sword techniques or winning a friendly martial arts competition, the foundation and everything else go out the window.

Up to that point is fine. Up to that point, the master can somehow endure. Huashan is a place where Taoists live, and Taoists are known for their patience.

But once the masters start drinking together in the evening, the foundation training is half over.

And if someone starts boasting about their disciples at a drinking party? It's all over.

Those who are drunk on boasting will package their disciples as unparalleled geniuses, and those who have nothing to boast about will have to hold on by gripping their thighs. And the next morning, all that frustration and anger will be poured onto their own disciples.

- My senior brother's disciple is already making two plum blossoms!

- That bastard's disciple has entered the Zihua Gangqi! I've never lost to that guy! It's his fault that I'm destined to farm disciples! It is!

- Not enough effort! Not enough effort!

In such a situation, why would anyone bother with foundation training? They're too busy learning a new practical technique.

This was a chronic problem in major sects where martial arts were passed down through master-disciple relationships.

"But!"

The current Cheongmyeong is different!

Cheongmyeong doesn't need to be impatient. There's no master to push him impatiently. He has already seen which path to take to reach greater heights, so he just needs to follow the known path steadily.

Foundation?

While others are tilling the ground and digging the floor, Cheongmyeong plans to level mountains, fill lakes, and create vast plains. On those vast and enormous plains, he will build a tower that no one has ever built before!

'The beginning is important.'

Huashan's martial arts are both Daoist arts and orthodox arts.

Orthodox arts are slow and weak at first, but they become stronger at a rapid pace as training progresses. While the arts of shamans and demons provide immediate power upon learning, orthodox arts, though weak at the beginning, surpass other martial arts in depth by the end.

So, to put it simply.

'It's like rolling a snowball down a snowy mountain.'

Imagine rolling a small snowball from the top of a snow-covered mountain. It starts as small as a fingernail but quickly grows to the size of a fist, and as it rolls, it grows exponentially. A small pebble will eventually turn into an avalanche that cannot be stopped by human strength.

What Cheongmyeong needs to do now is to create a solid pebble that can become the center of the snowball. And he needs to find a slope where the pebble will never stop rolling.

"Then, let's start."

Just as Cheongmyeong was about to sit in a lotus position, he suddenly looked around.

If he started his practice in the middle of the road, who knows what might happen.

Cheongmyeong, who had struggled to get up, went into the forest. Creating a dantian for the first time is a very dangerous process. He needed to avoid external stimuli as much as possible.

Although it's unlikely to happen, there are stories of experts who went into a state of madness due to bee stings while meditating.

'This should do.'

Finding the shade of a large tree, Cheongmyeong tidied up the ground and sat in a lotus position.

"Now, what should I practice?"

His mind was filled with countless advanced martial arts. All of Huashan's martial arts and its history were with him. He knew more than a dozen internal cultivation techniques alone.

The Zihua Gangqi, which can dominate the world.

The Plum Heart Method, which is said to be the most suitable for the Plum Sword Technique.

The Qixing Zhenqi, which boasts the sharpest energy.

The Taiyi Miliqi, which contains everything needed to reach the highest level.

In addition to these, there were countless cultivation techniques in his mind that were not limited to Huashan.

But Cheongmyeong didn't hesitate.

The cultivation technique he needed to practice now was very clear.

"Six Harmonies."

Cheongmyeong's voice rang out crystal clear.