Chapter 174

Chapter 174

An entirely black world.

—All we can do is buy time…!

—Right now we have to do even that. How much demonic power is left?

—From what I sense, just a little now. If we pour in just a bit more, she’ll regain consciousness quickly!

—I’ll hold out.

‘So noisy.’

At the urgent voices heard rumbling from far away, Seohwa thought with a dazed mind, then suddenly tilted her head in confusion. Because she couldn’t understand what situation this was.

‘What am I… doing right now?’

She remembers up to saying she must save Choa. But no other memories come.

‘Who was… Choa.’

She doesn’t know. She can’t remember.

At the drowsiness washing over her, Seohwa blinked in her mental state and tried to release the thread of internal energy she’d been unconsciously controlling from her hand. And at that moment, a voice rang in her ears.

—If you close your eyes, you’ll be comfortable, right?

‘…Who?’

At the unfamiliar voice, Seohwa turned her gaze around. But in the empty space where nothing was visible, the voice continued.

—If you close your eyes now, you’ll really be comfortable. Because you’ve had a hard time until now.

—The duties as grand disciple, your fellow disciples surpassing you in martial arts, the master’s expectations—they all weigh down your shoulders. Meeting people’s expectations is too hard. Because responsibilities keep arising that I never wanted.

‘No.’

—It’s not “no.” You never originally wanted this life, right? You just wanted to live normally, like others—eating, laughing, making clothes… You wanted to live like that.

At the voice penetrating her psychology with surprising accuracy, Seohwa fell silent. But the voice continued without stopping.

—You don’t need to hesitate. Right now your burden won’t fall on the people you love either. You’ve finished all your duties, haven’t you?

—The responsibilities are over. So.

You can rest now.

‘Should I… do that.’

At the thin voice granting permission to her actions, Seohwa accepted while slowly lowering her increasingly heavy eyelids. But before her eyelids fully closed, a subtle doubt arose.

‘…Responsibilities are over?’

—Of course. You don’t need to be responsible for anything now.

‘Did Master say that? That I don’t need to be responsible for anything. That all responsibilities are finished.’

That can’t be.

The Baek Riyun she knows is kind, but never soft. Even if something is finished, he’d say “you worked hard” rather than saying you don’t need to be responsible for anything anymore.

That would be no different from insulting the will of one who bore responsibilities until now.

—What does your master matter? Just do what you want…

‘I still don’t know what I want to do.’

—You want to rest, don’t you?

‘I want to rest. But I don’t want to rest. Being a grand disciple is burdensome—that’s the same. But though it’s burdensome, I also want to meet expectations.’

Memories of agonizing under pressure. And memories of being acknowledged at the end. Memories of swinging the sword until hands blistered. Memories of first mastering lightness skill.

None can be simply called good or bad. Compared to when not learning martial arts, they were undeniably continuous hard days, but that doesn’t mean those days were painful. Rather, they were enjoyable.

‘I was weighed down, but I haven’t collapsed yet.’

‘I can still stand. This wasn’t something someone else made me do. It’s what I wanted to do.’

She still doesn’t know what she wants to do. But isn’t she finding out?

After meeting Baek Riyun, the world she saw changed. The world that seemed to flow plainly reveals its complex structure sharply with just one facet. Having already learned, she can’t return to before.

‘I decide what I want to do.’

‘What I want to do now is one thing. Fulfilling my role.’

Untying the knot she tied herself.

‘I can’t sleep yet.’

—…Really?

At Seohwa’s firm will forcibly opening her half-closed eyes, the voice spoke coldly. And.

The next moment.

—Then endure it. What you’ve caused.

The dark world brightened, and simultaneously.

Seohwa’s consciousness was engulfed in tremendous agony.

A soundless scream.

Unable even to open her mouth in pain, Seohwa rolled back her eyes and trembled while gritting her teeth. Pain so intense she couldn’t even imagine such pain existed.

Memories fly away. Will evaporates.

At the sensation of dozens of sharp hammers pounding and crushing her entire body, Seohwa shed bloody tears from both eyes. Because it felt like she’d die immediately from the pain.

‘It hurts…!’

A body rejecting unfamiliar energy. And demonic power breaking through the Immaek, circling the entire body preparing to attack the Dokmaek.

Just one would make her cry tears of agony, but two overlap. Her consciousness instantly turns white-hot.

‘What, what should I do…’

Thoughts don’t continue.

Eyelids trembling, Seohwa unconsciously released her cross-legged position and tried to stab her own heart with the bone dagger in her hand. But at that moment, voice transmission piercing her ears.

—Seohwa. Come to your senses.

‘…Ma-Master…?’

—You don’t have to answer. Just listen.

Without any urgency, Baek Riyun continued voice transmission in his usual tone.

—It will hurt.

—Your current situation can be simply explained as entering deviation. And quite seriously too.

‘Juhwaipma…’

—You’ll suffer pain so extreme that even torture couldn’t produce it, and you may see hallucinations or hear voices. It will keep shouting in your head to give up.

—But I know you won’t give up. Because you’re our Uicheonmun’s disciple who most… wants to resemble me.

Never giving up in any moment. If there’s a path, definitely finding it. Even if it’s the thinnest gap.

Recalling Baek Riyun’s actions, Seohwa gritted her teeth while opening and closing her eyelids once as a sign of affirmation despite the pain. And Baek Riyun’s voice responded as if in answer.

—Can you hold out?

She can hold out. No, she will hold out.

—Choa’s demonic power is almost drained. After waking and awakening Choa, you just need to return the demonic power.

Just a bit more. Just a bit more.

—Once all the demonic power is drained, I’ll give you a signal. So.

Hold out until then.

Understanding Baek Riyun’s words, Seohwa closed her eyes and bit her lip until it bled, turning her consciousness inward. Her condition becoming clear though covered by pain.

‘It’s a mess.’

Not a single place is unharmed.

Confirming the state of blood pathways swept by thick and dense demonic power, Seohwa newly realized the seriousness of the situation. Blood pathways in such disarray they could be described as nearly shattered despite being major pathways.

It’s miraculous she’s maintaining consciousness. With her body in this state, not falling into deviation would be stranger.

‘That’s not what’s important now.’

Now she must only think about surviving.

Seohwa quickly circulated internal energy while gauging time.

‘At most… I can’t last even one gak.’

The demonic power has crossed the Immaek and is touching the Dokmaek, and the repulsive force knocking on the Dokmaek’s wall is striking her entire body.

Whether the demonic power breaks through the Dokmaek or not, the situation is the same. In the former case, demonic power will penetrate to the brain marrow and she’ll die; if it fails to break through, her whole body will shatter from the repulsive force and she’ll die.

Then what should she do?

‘I need to reduce the force.’

She must reduce the colliding force. But the demonic power isn’t following her control.

Then there’s only one method.

‘Plant my internal energy in the middle of the demonic power.’

She has no choice but to take measures so the demonic power absolutely cannot strike the blood pathways at full force.

The moment she finished judging, feeling the demonic power starting to rush, Seohwa drew up internal energy to plant cushioning internal energy and prepared for impact. Now truly no method remains except enduring.

Kung!

Once.

Kuung!

Twice.

Kuuung!

Three times.

The demonic power strikes the Saengsahyeongwan to occupy the body. Though the wall is solid, the demonic power just endlessly repeats destruction as if willing to burn its own body.

‘I must endure.’

Did the heart demon say that? To try enduring what you caused.

Blood rushes up. She feels like she’ll go mad from pain. Nevertheless, she must endure.

This is something she brought upon herself.

Gritting her teeth, Seohwa desperately circulated internal energy to block the demonic power’s charge.

—Jjeojeoek.

Slowly.

Like the broken Immaek walls, the moment the solid Dokmaek walls began showing cracks from repeated impacts.

—It’s done now.

With a voice full of laughter, lightning rising from the palm center burned the demonic power, confirming.

—Well done. As expected, my disciple.

‘…Yes.’

Relieved, Seohwa lost consciousness.

Because now, everything was finished.

[The task has ended.]

[The form of karma has been determined. Check through the status window!]

It’s finished.

“It ended well.”

“We-well ended, my ass…!”

As I spoke while supporting the collapsed Seohwa with my arm and watching Choil and Choa conversing in the distance, Shinui scowled and looked directly at Seohwa. Eyes full of pity as if looking at a patient who couldn’t be treated.

“He-her entire body’s blood pathways are shattered… If no measures are taken, she’ll become a cripple… You know?”

“You’ll take measures.”

“Even so, I can’t guarantee I’ll fix everything completely… There are limits to the wounds a human body can accept.”

Telling me some strange method caused this to happen.

Speaking with a grave expression, at Shinui’s appearance I showed a bitter smile and patted her back. Then she was pushed forward making a squeaking sound.

“Wh-what are you doing?”

“Don’t be so discouraged. There is a way to treat her.”

“A treatment method… exists?”

“Yes.”

Though the entire body’s blood pathways are shattered, in reality they’re not completely broken. With proper recuperation, she can definitely recover to some degree.

Of course, if the human body receives more than a certain degree of damage, limits arise in healing. Seohwa’s body now is probably in a similar state. At this rate, aftereffects will definitely remain.

[Recovery 10th grade is being applied.]

[Materialization 9th grade is being applied.]

That’s only the story of ordinary martial artists.

The standards for Uicheonmun disciples are quite different.

“What if there’s an elixir that works as well for internal injuries as Sohwandan?”

“Huh? Th-that could be fixed… But can you obtain it?”

“I can obtain it. If not Daehwandan, then about Sohwandan level.”

Though not quite Daehwandan, Sohwandan is also a difficult elixir to obtain, but other elixirs of slightly lower grade can be obtained without difficulty if you pay properly. If I use materialization to specialize abilities, the ability to treat internal injuries could stand even above Sohwandan.

“I know it goes against your standards, Shinui-nim. But will you treat her?”

“Please.”

“…Eu.”

When I lowered my head, Shinui stepped back as if fed up and lowered her eyes. And the answer that returned.

“Anyway… if I’m going to teach that brat, wandering around for a while is impossible…?”

“Does that mean?”

“Youngster. I heard you es-established a sect.”

Do you have a spare room?

At Shinui’s shy question, I let out a small laugh.

“If it’s rooms, we have more than enough.”

Because we literally had more than enough rooms.