Longevity - Chapter 29

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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 29: Sealing the Seven Orifices
When Jin Ip-chu fell silent, Jang Saeng closed his mouth as well and sat down beneath a tree a short distance away. The vial holding two red pills remained in Jin Ip-chu’s hand.
Even after an hour had passed, Na Yang-ja had not returned from the Bamboo Forest. There was no sign of Ba Tu-ru, Yi Joong-yong, and Jeon Jin-gung, who had set out toward Seo Mountain.
The sun caught on the mountain ridge and slowly descended. Jin Ip-chu kept his gaze fixed in that direction without moving, and even after the sun had vanished completely, he did not lower his eyes.
Jang Saeng opened his mouth to speak several times but held back. On any other day, he would have been the first to crack a joke, but now his lips were pressed firmly shut.
When darkness had crept down to the base of the Bamboo Forest, footsteps sounded from the western woods. Ba Tu-ru appeared first, and the expressions of Yi Joong-yong and Jeon Jin-gung who followed were equally grim.
Jang Saeng pushed himself up with one arm and limped forward. Before he could ask, Jin Ip-chu spoke first.

“Why did it take so long?”
“My observation was not mistaken.”

Ba Tu-ru answered with the Empty Iron Staff slung across his shoulder.

“There really was someone on Seo Mountain. But by the time we arrived, they had already fled.”

Jin Ip-chu’s brows drew together.

“Who were they?”
“We don’t know.”

Ba Tu-ru shook his head.
Yi Joong-yong withdrew a sheet of gray paper from his robe. When Jin Ip-chu took it and unfolded it, oil stains remained here and there across its surface.

“It appears to be greasy paper used to wrap food.”

Yi Joong-yong said.

“Farming families do not commonly use such paper. It is likely that merchants or martial practitioners used it.”

Jin Ip-chu turned the paper over to examine it.

“Can you determine how many people there were?”
“More than one. The grass beneath the tree was pressed down in multiple directions.”

Jeon Jin-gung continued.

“Even thin branches were broken into pieces. It was not the careless mark of people who had just arrived.”
“So they were plucking at them while they waited.”

At Yi Joong-yong’s words, Jeon Jin-gung nodded.

“If they had been following us, they wouldn’t have had time for that. It seems they were already there before we arrived.”

Jin Ip-chu’s face hardened further. This meant someone had known beforehand that they were coming to Dong Guan County.
It was far worse than simply being followed. Just then, Ba Tu-ru lifted a water bucket and drank nearly half of it, wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

“Why hasn’t the master returned yet?”
“He should be here soon.”

Jang Saeng pointed toward the northern Bamboo Forest.

“I saw him coming down from the mountain just a moment ago.”
“I’ll go meet him.”

Ba Tu-ru picked up the Empty Iron Staff and took a few steps before turning back. He also grabbed the water bucket, then headed north again.
Jin Ip-chu folded the greasy paper in his hand.

“How could they have known we were coming to Dong Guan?”

Yi Joong-yong paused to think.

“We didn’t speak of Dong Guan County on the road. We revealed our destination to neither the post-runners nor the garrison soldiers.”
“Then someone knew it long before we arrived.”

Jin Ip-chu spoke quietly.

“After the rumors spread that we possess a forbidden text, someone may have dug into the past of our teacher. They would have learned what he’s been searching for all these years.”

He turned toward the direction of Dong Guan County.

“When we made for Ong-ju, they would have guessed our destination.”

Yi Joong-yong nodded in agreement.

“It’s possible. They might have been after the forbidden text, or they might have been after whatever our teacher intends to obtain in this place.”
“What they’re after doesn’t matter.”

Jin Ip-chu tucked the paper into his breast. A faint smell of grease lingered on his fingertips. Someone had wrapped food in that paper and come here to wait, watching this mountain for a long time.

“To get what they want, they’ll eventually have to attack us.”

Yi Joong-yong and Jeon Jin-gung nodded silently in agreement.
Jang Saeng hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Did you only scout Seo Mountain? Couldn’t there be men hiding in other places?”

Jin Ip-chu turned to face Jang Saeng.

“You’re right. We can’t assume the ambush is in only one location.”
“I think the same.”

Yi Joong-yong examined the Bamboo Forest to the north.

“When our teacher returns, let’s inform him first and ask for his judgment.”

The group unpacked their provisions before the hour grew any later. It had been long since they’d had a proper meal, and soon they might need to cut bamboo or dig earth. No one spoke of hunger, but dried meat and jerky disappeared quickly. Before long, Ba Tu-ru returned, supporting Na Yang-ja.
Na Yang-ja was walking on his own, though his pace was slower than before. His face appeared pale even in the gathering dusk.
When his disciples rushed toward him, Na Yang-ja raised his hand to stop them and, without resting, continued walking westward. Only after advancing some hundred paces did he halt and point north.

“Cut a path northward from here. It doesn’t need to be wide—just enough for us and our baggage to pass through.”
“Yes, Teacher.”

Yi Joong-yong left a mark on the ground, and the group returned to the cart to move the wooden chest and tools. Na Yang-ja remained by the mark, standing and watching.
Shortly after, Ba Tu-ru stepped forward with his firewood-cutting blade. The slender bamboo bent once, then was severed clean beneath the edge.
Snick! Snick!
With each sweep of Ba Tu-ru’s blade, the path advanced by a step. His speed was so rapid that severed bamboo stalks piled beneath their feet.
Jeon Jin-gung and Jang Saeng pushed the bamboo aside to left and right from behind. Jang Saeng limped on one leg, but he could not stop pulling dry stalks away with both arms.
Cut leaves scratched his face and neck. On the ground, leaves that had lain for ages sank to their ankles, and with each step, dust and the smell of mold rose up.
Yi Joong-yong and Jin Ip-chu carried the wooden chest. Both bore wounds, but neither showed any sign of strain in front of Na Yang-ja.
As they cleared the path, Yi Joong-yong reported the traces he’d found on Seo Mountain, and Jin Ip-chu explained the possibility that someone had guessed their destination and waited ahead. Na Yang-ja listened quietly, then simply nodded.

“I understand.”

That was all. Jin Ip-chu wanted to say something more, but he knew that whether or not there were ambushes nearby, they could not turn back now, so he held his tongue.
The sun set completely, and the first watch of the night drew near. Ba Tu-ru cleared the path ahead, Jeon Jin-gung and Jang Saeng tidied the rear, and they took turns carrying the wooden chest.
After advancing nearly a hundred paces, Na Yang-ja checked his bearings once more. He studied the moonlight and the contours of the mountain in turn, then pointed north.

“Three hundred more paces this way will do.”

After a long silence, Na Yang-ja finally spoke, and Yi Joong-yong seized the moment without hesitation.

“Master, whose tomb lies here?”

Na Yang-ja did not answer.
Jin Ip-chu pressed forward immediately.

“How did you know there was something to cure inside this tomb?”

Again, there was no reply.
Na Yang-ja watched Jeon Jin-gung and Jang Saeng ahead, clearing away bamboo.

“Joong-yong, Ip-chu. Go forward and relieve Jin-gung and Saeng.”

The two men understood his intent to separate them, but could not disobey. They moved ahead. Jeon Jin-gung and Jang Saeng withdrew, taking their place at Na Yang-ja’s side.
The moon rose above the mountain. Unlike the warm sunlight, a cold white radiance seeped through the Bamboo Forest.
Under that pale glow, Na Yang-ja’s face looked less like a living man than like a mask made of paper. Before they could advance further, Ba Tu-ru’s voice rang out from ahead.

“Master! There are stones here. Like a collapsed wall.”
“Keep going.”

The bamboo fell again under the blade.
A moment later, Ba Tu-ru called out once more.

“Stone walls here too. There must have been a house here long ago.”

Na Yang-ja spoke quietly.

“The tomb will be behind the house site.”

After advancing another dozen paces, Ba Tu-ru’s blade came to a halt.

“Found it.”
“Clear the area around it.”

All five set to work at once. As bamboo fell and roots were pushed aside, a rounded burial mound revealed itself beneath the moonlight.
The burial mound was roughly three paces across in both directions. To Jang Saeng’s eyes, it was a grand tomb, but to the senior disciples who had been excavating for years, it appeared rather meager.

Moreover, there was not even a stone marker. It was a grave with no name inscribed, no birth date, no date of death.
Ba Tu-ru circled the mound, studying the contours of the earth. Yi Joong-yong checked for fresh footprints in the surrounding soil, while Jeon Jin-gung kept watch for any movement beyond the bamboo thicket.

“The earth hasn’t crumbled much at the sides. This doesn’t seem to be an ancient tomb.”

Na Yang-ja stepped back several paces and sat upon the wooden chest. His eyes resting on the burial mound held not the relief of having reached their destination, but rather the exhaustion of finally confronting a task long deferred.
He placed his hands upon his knees. His fingers remained still, and his chest barely rose and fell.
After steadying his breath, he gestured to his five disciples.

“Come here. I have something to say.”

Jang Saeng’s heart sank.
As the disciples gathered around, Na Yang-ja looked at each face in turn. His gaze passed over Ba Tu-ru, Yi Joong-yong, Jin Ip-chu, and Jeon Jin-gung, lingering last on Jang Saeng.

“No feast beneath heaven lasts forever.”

His voice was low but distinct.

“My bond with you ends here.”

No one could speak at once. Yi Joong-yong had already suspected as much, but hearing it spoken aloud, his face went rigid.

Jin Ip-chu lowered his head, and Jeon Jin-gung bit her lip. Only Ba Tu-ru failed to grasp the meaning.

“Master, what do you mean by that?”

Na Yang-ja looked at Ba Tu-ru. He opened his mouth several times before finally exhaling a long breath.
Ba Tu-ru grew more uneasy.

“Are we too late? Did someone disturb the tomb first?”
“No.”

Na Yang-ja shook his head.

“The mausoleum is intact. Inside, there should still be one Returning Heaven Golden Pill

remaining.”

Ba Tu-ru’s face brightened, then hardened again at the next words.

“But even if that pill is there, it does me no good.”
“Why would it be useless?”

Ba Tu-ru stepped closer.

“Isn’t it a medicine that breaks poison and extends life?”

Na Yang-ja couldn’t answer at once.

“Words that must be spoken will have their time. Putting them off won’t make them disappear.”

He fell silent again. Jang Saeng believed his master was about to reveal who lay in the mausoleum. If the tomb was opened, the seal would break—the lifespan would be severed. Yet without opening it, he could not save Na Yang-ja. It was a knot that could not be untied.
When Na Yang-ja hesitated to speak, Jang Saeng stepped forward.

“Master, I will dig it.”

All eyes turned to Jang Saeng.

“I have the most years remaining. Even if opening the mausoleum cuts my lifespan, it’s better that I do it.”

Ba Tu-ru struck his own head in belated realization.

“That’s right. I nearly forgot.”

He immediately turned toward another wooden chest.

“But I am the eldest brother. I should dig before the youngest.”

As Ba Tu-ru rummaged through the chest searching for an iron shovel, a faint smile crossed Na Yang-ja’s face.
It was a smile shadowed more by sorrow than by joy.

“Don’t quarrel. I will open it myself.”
“That cannot be.”

Ba Tu-ru shook his head firmly.

“You are already wounded, Master. If you lose more lifespan here—”
“Enough.”

Na Yang-ja cut him off. Silence fell, and only the sound of dry bamboo leaves scraping in the wind circled the burial mound.
Na Yang-ja gazed at his disciples once more.

“I’ll tell you the truth.”

He exhaled slowly. His chest rose and fell, but the breath carried no warmth, no vitality of the living.
Jang Saeng suddenly remembered the moment Na Yang-ja’s hand had been ice-cold against his own.

“My Life Force ceased two days ago.”

The words were spoken quietly, yet they erased every other sound before the burial mound. No one could mistake their meaning.
The Iron Shovel slipped from Ba Tu-ru’s grasp.
Clang.
The blade struck the corner of the Wooden Chest and clattered to the ground. Na Yang-ja continued, watching the faces of his trembling disciples.

I sealed the Seven Orifices with the Soul-Sealing Needle, binding his Soul and Spirit to his Physical Body so it could not depart.

Jang Saeng forgot how to breathe. Now everything converged—why no medicine for two days, why no food or water accepted, why the cough had ceased so suddenly.
Na Yang-ja had not come to this place alive. He had died, yet walked here still, leading his disciples beyond even that threshold.

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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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