Almighty God of War - Chapter 9

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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009

The next morning at dawn.

Tap- tap tap-

Guyang Cheongang jolted awake from his bed, startled by the faint sounds coming from outside the window.

His heart was beating frantically, and cold sweat poured down his entire body.

“Huff… huff…”

He looked outside the window while breathing heavily.

In the darkness, the only thing moving was tree branches swaying in the wind.

‘Damn it… getting so startled by the sound of tree branches.’

[Doctor, are you alright? Your heart rate exceeded 140 beats per minute. Your cortisol levels are also 3.2 times higher than usual.]

‘So this is what PTSD feels like. My mind knows I’m safe, but my body won’t listen.’

[Considering what happened yesterday, it’s a natural reaction. Someone who lived peacefully in 21st century Republic of Korea suddenly faced an assassination attempt – it would be stranger if you were completely fine.]

Guyang Cheongang wiped his face with trembling hands.

It didn’t seem like he would be able to sleep anymore.

‘I might as well do some Energy Circulation and Breath Control. If I just lie here, I’ll keep having strange thoughts.’

He took out the Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade, held it in his hand, and sat in lotus position.

With the warm energy, he repeated the breathing pattern of inhaling for 4 seconds, holding for 2 seconds, and exhaling for 6 seconds, gradually calming his mind and body.

A subtle warmth was generated in his dantian and carefully flowed through his conception vessel.

After finishing about one hour of Energy Circulation and Breath Control and opening his eyes, Guyang Cheongang felt much more refreshed.

[Doctor, I have good news.]

Akasha’s voice was an octave higher than usual.

‘What’s got you so excited?’

[I’ve finally completely decoded the secret of the pattern on the Budai Monk Jade Statue. And it seems to contain much more important information than expected.]

‘Really? What is it?’

[I think it would be faster for you to see it yourself.]

Guyang Cheongang took a deep breath and began pressing the patterns on the jade statue in the order Akasha had previously shown him in his mind.

When he completed the entire unlocking pattern, red light burst forth from the jade statue.

And a wondrous sight unfolded before Guyang Cheongang’s eyes.

Semi-transparent red lines appeared in the air and began drawing complex three-dimensional figures.

It was a scene both vivid like a hologram and mysteriously beautiful.

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes widened to twice their normal size in surprise.

‘A hologram in the martial arts world…!’

The first image was a meridian map of the human body. But it was on a completely different level from what Guyang Cheongang had seen in the Transcendent Heart Method.

The red lines pulsated as if alive, showing the flow of qi in real time.

‘This is… four-dimensional information projected into three dimensions. It’s a dynamic model that includes the flow of time!’

As he thought, small arrows flowed along the meridians, indicating the direction and speed of qi circulation.

Fast in some places, slow in others, and forming whirlpools in yet others…

The second, third, fourth… images continued to appear.

Each meridian map showed different stages of cultivation, becoming increasingly complex and sophisticated.

After the final eighteenth image disappeared, the jade statue returned to its ordinary appearance.

Guyang Cheongang couldn’t speak for a long while.

The scene he had just witnessed was too shocking.

[Doctor? Are you alright?]

‘Akasha… what I just saw was real, right?’

[Yes! 100% real!]

‘I can’t believe such high-tech exists in this world that’s similar to Earth’s medieval period.’

[You can believe it. I saw it together with you.]

Guyang Cheongang tried pressing the patterns on the jade statue again just in case, but there was no reaction.

[Doctor, it seems to have been a one-time information transmission and demonstration system. But you don’t need to worry. All the video and data are safely stored in my memory.]

Guyang Cheongang nodded and asked.

‘The images shown by the hologram looked like an Internal Energy Method – what are the analysis results?’

[Well… the data is so vast that I need some time for accurate analysis. Please wait a moment.]

Akasha fell silent.

Guyang Cheongang put down the jade statue and recalled the images he had just seen in his mind.

‘The meridian map in the first image… I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere before…’

He went to his desk and opened the Transcendent Heart Method secret manual that Guyang Cheongi had given him.

His hand stopped as he turned the pages one by one.

‘This is it!’

The meridian map drawn in the secret manual was remarkably similar to the first image from the hologram.

No, to be precise, the hologram was much more sophisticated and three-dimensional, but the basic structure was identical.

‘So the hologram was indeed an Internal Energy Method…’

While he was deep in thought, Akasha’s voice was heard.

[Doctor, analysis complete.]

‘How did it turn out?’

[First, your guess is correct. This is definitely an Internal Energy Method. But it’s different from ordinary Static Cultivation or Seated Cultivation.]

‘What’s different about it?’

[This is ‘Dynamic Cultivation’. It’s a method that you practice while moving. Instead of sitting in meditation, you circulate qi while performing specific movements.]

Guyang Cheongang nodded.

‘So that’s why the arrows moved so dynamically.’

[Exactly. And those arrows and bend indicators showed the circulation path, direction, and speed changes of internal energy. It’s truly a sophisticated system.]

‘How does it compare to the Transcendent Heart Method?’

Akasha hesitated for a moment before speaking.

[To be honest… if the Transcendent Heart Method is elementary school arithmetic, this is graduate-level calculus. They’re on different dimensions.]

‘That much?’

[Yes. But Doctor, there’s one more important analysis result. This hologram Dynamic Cultivation is not complete.]

Guyang Cheongang’s eyebrows twitched.

‘Not complete? What do you mean?’

[The recorded 18 qi circulation images appear to correspond to the first half of the complete Dynamic Cultivation. Based on the complexity of the currently analyzed patterns and the convergence points of energy flow, there should be a similar amount of second half content to form a complete method system.]

‘A half-complete divine technique… That’s disappointing. Though it’s still much better than having nothing.’

[Even though it’s half, its value is beyond imagination. The principles contained here alone could serve as invaluable reference material for revolutionarily improving your Transcendent Heart Formula Plus. But…]

‘But?’

[You cannot practice this Dynamic Cultivation, Doctor.]

Deep wrinkles formed on Guyang Cheongang’s brow.

‘As expected… because of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians?’

[Correct. This method was designed based on a normal body without heavenly afflictions like Nine Yin Severed Meridians.]

‘Hah… damn it…’

Guyang Cheongang smiled bitterly.

‘Half-complete and just a picture to look at. Is this a double dose of frustration?’

[It’s not just a picture to look at, Doctor.]

‘What do you mean? You just said I can’t practice it.’

[While you can’t practice it directly, analyzing the principles and structure contained in this incomplete Dynamic Cultivation has a high possibility of providing key clues for upgrading the Transcendent Heart Formula Plus. Just like how partial blueprints of cutting-edge technology can still dramatically advance existing technology.]

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes sparkled.

‘Oh really? So even half a blueprint can be fully applicable if it contains core principles?’

[Yes. Some parts of this Dynamic Cultivation’s qi circulation principles, especially those related to energy conversion and flow control, have sufficient room for modification and application to suit your current physical condition.]

‘What level of improvement effects are expected? Based on the Transcendent Heart Formula Plus.’

[If we apply the principles of this incomplete Dynamic Cultivation, we can expect at least 200% efficiency improvement compared to the current Transcendent Heart Formula Plus. If it had been complete Dynamic Cultivation, the effects would have been unpredictable.]

‘It’s really regrettable that it’s only half and I can’t learn it right away…’

[In cases like this, it’s better to forget regrets quickly, Doctor. What’s important now is maximizing the use of the parts that can be utilized.]

‘I have no choice.’

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes became intense.

‘I need to upgrade the Transcendent Heart Formula Plus right away.’

Guyang Cheongang took out paper and brush and began drawing complex diagrams.

Together with Akasha, he compared the incomplete yet wondrous qi circulation paths and principles of Dynamic Cultivation with the Transcendent Heart Method, searching for the optimal combination.

Around noon, there was a knock at the door.

“Young Master, I’ve brought your meal.”

It was Elder Hwang’s voice.

Unlike usual, his voice carried a stiff tension.

When Guyang Cheongang opened the door, Elder Hwang entered.

“Elder, how is the pursuit of the assassin going?”

“We’re doing our best, so we should catch their trail soon.”

“If it becomes dangerous, stop immediately. Understood?”

Elder Hwang only smiled bitterly without answering.

Instead, seeing the papers on the desk, he asked with a puzzled expression.

“Young Master, what is this?”

“I was researching something.”

“Please don’t overdo it. You’ll harm your body.”

“Yes.”

After Elder Hwang left, Guyang Cheongang immersed himself in research again.

Except for trips to the privy, he didn’t budge from his seat, pouring all his time into research.

As the sun was setting, Guyang Cheongang, his brow deeply furrowed, slowly put down his brush.

Dozens of papers on the desk were filled with complex calculations and diagrams.

[Doctor, we’ve completed up to the 22nd revision… but it still feels like something’s missing. Since we’re borrowing principles from incomplete Dynamic Cultivation, energy flow becomes unsmooth and stagnates at certain points.]

‘Exactly. The efficiency improved, but the fundamental limitations remain. There’s no way to stop the cold qi of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians from continuously interfering…’

Then Akasha spoke in a cautious voice.

[Doctor, what if we think completely in reverse?]

‘In reverse?’

[Yes. Until now, we’ve only tried to avoid or block the cold qi of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians. But what if we could utilize that cold qi as an energy source?]

‘Hmm…’

[Hologram Dynamic Cultivation has as its core principle the precise balance and mutual conversion of two energy systems with opposing polarities – yin and yang. Meanwhile, the cold qi of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians has a clear ‘yin energy spectrum.’]

‘So?’

[What if we separately extract and use the logic that controls and converts yin energy flow from Dynamic Cultivation’s principles?]

‘But wouldn’t that break the harmony and balance of yin and yang?’

[I think we could reconstruct and optimize it to match your special biological conditions, Doctor.]

‘Did you run a simulation?’

[Yes.]

‘What were the results?’

[The probability of being able to selectively separate and refine the cold qi to utilize it as a useful energy source for system operation and life maintenance is estimated at 89.7%.]

‘Hmm…’

[And using this method, weakening the Nine Yin Severed Meridians wouldn’t be impossible either.]

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes grew intense.

‘What did you say?’

[The Nine Yin Severed Meridians is a condition caused by cold qi continuously accumulating in nine major acupoints. But what would happen if we continuously consumed that cold qi?]

Guyang Cheongang crossed his arms.

‘For that to work, the speed of using the qi would have to be faster than the rate at which cold qi accumulates in the meridians, right?’

[We just need to make it that way.]

‘Easier said than done.’

Guyang Cheongang grumbled but urgently began drawing new diagrams.

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