Acquiring the Murim with Money - Chapter 19

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 19. Sweet Rewards and a First-Rate Instructor

“What is this?”
“Inside the silk pouch is a precious pill of the Family Secret Techniques—the Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill. It will not only increase your Inner Power but also make your body lighter.”
Baek Un-hui’s eyes widened. No matter how much money one had, the secret treasures of the great clans were difficult to acquire on the open market.
“And that manual contains the Shadowless Step Technique—a lightness kung fu I poured everything into perfecting with my human body alone, since I cannot communicate with spirit beasts to walk on air.”
Byeok Hyeong-geom’s gaze turned serious.
“Since we’ve already decided to stake the clan’s future on this, I should give you everything I can. You have an excess of Inner Power, but you don’t know how to channel it. When you return to Nakyang, start by learning that technique. Stop crawling and flailing about like some fool—your shoes are flying off.”
‘A jackpot!’
Baek Un-hui’s grin stretched from ear to ear. He had been troubled by the vagueness of martial training, and now this—the most perfect and sweetest reward won through an ordeal that had walked the line between life and death.
It was the fruit of a genuine trial, obtained at grave cost.

* * *

The descent from Bicheon Peak.
On the way down, the step of Baek Un-hui—who had clawed up the cliff on all fours on the ascent—was markedly lighter. Between the precious manuals and elixirs carefully kept in his possession, and the greatly expanded Inner Power he now carried, his spirits were buoyant and his heart light with silent song.
“You’re pleased with yourself? After prying loose secrets that nearly destroyed another clan?”
Dang So-yu clicked his tongue in reproach.
“Naturally I’m pleased. Sir, if a merchant risks danger for an investment, shouldn’t he secure a return commensurate with it? Besides, the circumstances are now much more favorable.”
“More favorable, you say?”
“Yes. If the temporary clan head had administered the poison himself, we would have needed to stake our lives to overturn the whole affair. But if he’s merely an opportunistic bystander, the matter is entirely different.”
Baek Un-hui smiled with ease.
“A greedy old man who lacks the stomach to bloody his own hands. All we need do is let slip the fact that the Fung Cheon Trading Company’s contract contains ‘poison clauses’ that strangle his own throat and his clan’s together—then Using Barbarians to Control Barbarians becomes perfectly feasible, wouldn’t you say?”
“Tsk-tsk. You merchants certainly have black hearts, the lot of you.”
While the two men conversed at their ease, Byeok So-yeon’s shoulders sagged heavily as she walked ahead.
Her uncle hadn’t tried to kill her father directly, but he had wished for his death. And now, the clan faced crisis from both internal and external enemies. The weight of her position as acting clan head pressed down upon her.
Baek Un-hui quickened his pace and fell into step beside Byeok So-yeon.
“Acting clan head, your expression grows far too dark. The Qing Feng pill paid for itself, we’ve found the source of your father’s ailment, and we’ve even confirmed your instructor’s true heart. What more could we ask?”
“It’s easy for you to be so optimistic, sir. The clan stands on the brink of collapse.”
“Collapse into what? I shall take center stage as a perfect ally and hold the line for you.”
Baek Un-hui laughed and flicked a silver coin from his pouch into the air, catching it deftly.
“Put your mind at ease. As acting clan head, your only task is to establish your legitimacy as the ‘true successor’ upon the stage I’ve prepared for you. Leave those poisoned bundles of silver the Fung Cheon Trading Company has thrown—I’ll shove them straight back down their throats.”
At that bold and shameless declaration, the faintest of smiles finally bloomed at the corners of Byeok So-yeon’s lips.

* * *

The main house of the Baek Un Trading Company in Nakyang.
Having returned from the suffocating ordeal on Bicheon Peak, Baek Un-hui sat alone in his quarters, barring entry to all comers.
His gaze fixed upon the small silk pouch resting on the table—the precious pill Byeok Hyeong-geom had given him, the Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill.

[Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill: Bicheon Byeok Clan Secret Treasure]
[Market Value: 3,000 silver coins or more (estimated)]

‘The core principle of the Great Heaven Capital Technique is converting the value of my owned assets into Inner Power. But it doesn’t grow infinitely in perfect proportion—as assets increase, the utility drops sharply. Still, now that this pill is in my possession, it’s added to my current Inner Power reserves.’
A ruthless accounting ledger spun rapidly through Baek Un-hui’s mind.
‘But what if I put it in my mouth and swallow it down? The object itself—the asset—would disappear, which means my Inner Power would decrease again, wouldn’t it? Or would it actually increase as it gets absorbed into my body?’
It was risky to consume it carelessly and lose hard-won Inner Power in the process. Yet Baek Un-hui chuckled and unfastened the silk pouch.
“When a company depletes its cash reserves to invest in factory equipment, the total assets of the company don’t shrink. The cash simply changes form into infrastructure—fixed assets. If my reasoning is sound, even this meticulous system should apply that level of accounting principle.”
Baek Un-hui boldly tipped the Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill into his mouth and swallowed.
Whoooosh—!
In an instant, a scorching wave of energy surged down his throat, past his core energy center, and exploded through every bone and blood vessel in his body. Amid the intense heat and the sensation of his entire skeleton being reassembled,
a crimson system window materialized before his eyes, accompanied by a warning tone.

[Notification: Premium asset (Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill) has been destroyed and absorbed into your body!]
[Warning! Massive liquid assets have been eliminated.]

‘As expected! Once it enters my stomach, it registers as asset destruction. So what happens next?’
Even as cold sweat drenched him, Baek Un-hui’s lips curled upward in a smile while he channeled the Great Heaven Capital Technique.

[Capital Replacement triggered!]
[The corresponding value has been approved for conversion into infrastructure investment (CAPEX) for the caster’s ‘foundational framework’.]
[Physical durability increases substantially. The risk of falling into Demonic Deviation decreases even when leveraging vast reserves of Inner Power.]

“Bingo! My hypothesis was correct!”
Baek Un-hui clenched his fist, and a crisp, satisfying crackle echoed from his joints.
His body, which had always creaked and groaned despite his ample Inner Power—a vessel far too fragile for what it held—had transformed into something solid and supple, like a freshly forged masterwork blade.
It was a thrilling vindication of his theoretical gamble.
Now that the hardware upgrade was complete, it was time to install the software—the movement technique.

* * *

The guest quarters of the Baek Un Trading Company, in Dang So-yu’s private chambers.
Dang So-yu’s eyes gradually widened in alarm as he examined the worn manuscript Baek Un-hui had thrust into his hands that early morning. It was the first time his expression had grown so rigid since he’d confirmed the poison that could kill a million stones.
“…That mad sword-demon. He wagered the very fate of his clan, and handed everything over to you wholesale.”
Dang So-yu closed the manuscript with trembling hands and spoke in a low murmur.
“This is a supreme-level Lightness Kung Fu designed so that mere human strength and Qi and Blood alone can tread upon empty air. A tragic prodigy who transcended the limits of his own talent when it clashed with family tradition. That man was a genuine monster.”
Baek Un-hui leaned in with gleaming eyes.
“Oh, it’s that remarkable? Then let’s call Lord Fung and your sister right away and—”
Whack!
Dang So-yu brought the rolled manuscript down mercilessly on Baek Un-hui’s crown.
“Ow! Why are you hitting me!”
“You foolish brat! You’re meticulous about protecting trading ledgers, yet you don’t understand the first thing about how the Martial World operates. Carelessly revealing or circulating another sect’s secret techniques is tantamount to declaring that entire family your enemy!”
Dang So-yu’s voice was sharp and terrible.
“That man Byeok Hyeong-geom handed this treasure to you without condition because he acknowledged your caliber and trusted you absolutely as a warrior to master it alone. Do you understand?”
‘Ah… so this was a high-level technology transfer contract with an iron-clad confidentiality agreement attached.’
Baek Un-hui rubbed his crown and nodded. The weight of martial tradition and secret techniques suddenly felt visceral.
“Understood. I’ll learn it alone, thoroughly. But here’s the problem—even after reading the manual, I can’t comprehend a single word of it.”
Dang So-yu cleared his throat with a soft cough.
“What would a fool who’s accumulated Inner Power but never learned to use it know of anything? You’re fortunate you found me. A supreme-level martial art like this requires a master of my caliber to convey its subtleties.”
Dang So-yu stroked his beard with a touch of self-satisfaction.
“Since you have no escape technique to flee with, and I’d find it troublesome if you died somewhere from careless wandering, I’ll make an exception and teach you myself. No need for a formal apprenticeship ceremony—this isn’t my family’s secret. Now follow me.”

Half an hour later, in a clearing on the Rear Mountain where few travelers ventured.
“Aaaaah! Master! Wait! Time out!”
Baek Un-hui’s desperate cry echoed through the mountains.
Dang So-yu, with four short Poison Needles wedged between his fingers, hurled them mercilessly at the ground beneath Baek Un-hui’s feet.
“Time out? What time out are you babbling about? Didn’t I tell you to gather your energy at the Yongquan Acupoint on your right foot and kick off?”
“But you never told me exactly where the Yongquan Acupoint is located! Explain first, then throw!”
Baek Un-hui scrambled across the ground in panic.
After taking the Qing Feng Soft Bone Pill, his hardware had improved wonderfully. But for someone who’d spent his entire life staring at spreadsheets and ledgers, the footwork of the Shadowless Step Technique was equivalent to memorizing quantum mechanics at the highest level of difficulty.
Whoosh!
As a Poison Needle grazed his pant leg, the Golden Divine Eye flared to life in response to mortal danger, tracing the trajectory of the hidden weapon in crimson lines.
‘I can see the trajectory! I can dodge! But my body—!’
He tried to draw the vast Inner Power from his core and unleash it through his feet, but having never properly trained his Qi and Blood circulation, the force leaked away in all the wrong directions.
Boom!
Baek Un-hui’s body rocketed into the air, only to lose balance mid-flight and crash into the dirt.
“Pfft! Pah-pah! Argh, this is ridiculous! I have so much Inner Power—why can’t I fly!”
Covered in dust, Baek Un-hui struck the ground with his fist in frustration.
“That’s how advanced martial arts are—they become poison for those without foundation. And yet…”
Dang So-yu clicked his tongue silently.
‘The medicinal energy is still circulating, yet with that chaotic Qi and Blood control, he just barely dodged my poisoned strike. His uncanny perception and that sheer volume of Inner Power… he’s a genuine monster.’
“We’ll stop here for today. Don’t overexert yourself—you might twist your meridians.”
Dang So-yu lowered his Poison Needles and spoke with apparent indifference.
“Don’t worry… I’ll make this mine… I’m the one who brought a trading company back from the brink of ruin through sheer grit.”
His words came out in complaint, but Baek Un-hui’s eyes had sharpened with an intensity never seen before. Though he still rolled in the dust, he was gradually learning how to bring that immense Inner Power under his own command.

That night.
Baek Un-hui sat in his office, his body covered in bruises, while So Ryang faced him across the desk with a thick ledger in hand.
“So, did your intensive training yield any results?”
So Ryang asked irritably, slurping his tea.
“I feel like my lifeline has been extended by at least another month, you bastard. Now, let’s stop wasting time on pleasantries.”
Baek Un-hui unfolded a map of the Nakyang region across the table. The central area and the mountain ridges to the north—Mang Mountain—were heavily marked in red ink.
“I’ve secured perfect justification, and I’ve gained reliable allies. Now it’s time to drive the Fung Cheon dogs’ value down to nothing, then scoop up the choicest pieces at bargain prices.”

Money and Martial World Acquisitions: Episode 19

Author
Song Jjun-bul
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yun Tae-ri
Cover
Sik

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260907057.0019

ⓒ2026, Song Jjun-bul

This e-book is protected under the copyright law of the Republic of Korea.
No part or all of this work may be reproduced or modified in any form without the permission of the author and publisher.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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