Reincarnation of the Cloud Dragon - Chapter 39

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This chapter is translated by Falnar Novels Team.
Support us by reading on our official site: https://falnarnovels.com
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Chapter 39.
“I believe it is time to conclude this match.”
Uuuummm—!
The rotational force that began in Yun Cheon’s lower dantian surged through his fingertips and into the teacup.
It was far more than a simple infusion of cold qi.
It was the decisive move—accelerating the vortex that had already formed.
“How dare you!”
Gong Ya Pae scoffed and poured more of his inner force into the cup.
Yet the situation within the teacup refused to bend to his will.
The thin layer of ice coating the bottom began to crawl up the inner walls of the cup, riding the ferocious rotational force.
Like a living serpent coiling around its prey.
A transparent barrier of ice closed in on the boiling water from below and the sides simultaneously.
‘What… what is this?’
Gong Ya Pae’s eyes widened.
The heat from the Yeom Hwa Demonic Art he had poured in did not seem to spread evenly throughout the cup.
No—it was worse than that. The heat he had infused could not remain in the cup for even a moment.
“I see you have noticed.”
“The heat is… leaking out!”
Yun Cheon was ingeniously exploiting the very nature of heat itself.
This was why he had focused his efforts on manipulating yin-cold qi.
‘This bastard…! He is not simply pouring in yin qi—he deliberately created a rotation to drive my heat upward!’
Gong Ya Pae’s heat, with nowhere else to go, surged violently through the only opening at the top.
Like smoke escaping up a chimney.
The hottest qi was expelled into empty air, while the remaining heat circled within the ice barrier.
Circulation and expulsion.
This was the solution Yun Cheon had devised—containing yang-heat qi within a vessel of yin-cold qi.
“You… cunning fox!”
Gong Ya Pae was astounded.
No matter how much inner force he poured in, it was like pouring water into a bottomless vessel.
‘I am superior in raw power. Yet… I cannot win?’
A crack formed in Gong Ya Pae’s pride.
If this continued, he would have no choice but to remain trapped within that ice prison and admit defeat.
As a disciple of Yeom Hwa Jjon, this was unacceptable.
‘If I cannot win within the rules, then I will shatter the board itself!’
A venomous glint appeared in Gong Ya Pae’s eyes.
He abandoned all pretense of delicate control.
He withdrew the protective barrier of inner force around the teacup and unleashed the destructive Yeom Hwa Demonic Art in a raw explosion.
“Hah!”
Kaboom—!
Savage heat erupted from Gong Ya Pae’s palm and struck the teacup with devastating force.
The explosive pressure from within collided with the encroaching cold from without, surpassing the critical threshold.
Crack—!
With a sharp fracturing sound, the teacup shattered into countless pieces, as if crying out in agony.
Fragments of the teacup scattered in all directions.
A thick veil of steam obscured the view.
“Oh no! I failed to control my strength. Well then, how about we call this a draw?”
Gong Ya Pae clicked his tongue, feigning a careless mistake with an expression of dismay.
By the rules, whoever broke the teacup was defeated.
“Or perhaps… we could say I lost by judgment?”
Yet bearing the shame of losing an inner force contest was far worse than accepting a judgment loss for failing to control his strength and shattering the cup.
Gong Ya Pae’s words trailed off as he gazed regretfully at the floor.
“Huh? How is this…?”
The floor was not wet at all.
Not a single drop of water had spilled.
“…It is not yet over.”
As the thick steam dissipated, Seol Young’s hand flew to her mouth at the sight revealed before them.
“Ah…!”
Between the shattered fragments, a strange object was clenched in Yun Cheon’s palm.
‘A brazier sculpted from ice.’
Whiiiing—.
A transparent ice membrane forming a perfect sphere.
Though the teacup’s shell had shattered, the ice form created by Yun Cheon’s inner force remained intact.
Within that transparent ice, the crimson flames that Gong Ya Pae had poured forth in his final assault burned fiercely, trapped and contained.
Hisssss—.
A small opening at the apex of the ice sphere.
From it, unbearable heat escaped as white vapor, billowing outward.
‘Without that small opening, it would have shattered.’
A structure that maintained its form independently, without even needing the broken teacup, confining and circulating the opposing forces in equilibrium.
This was no mere contest of inner force.
This was the triumph of ‘principle’.
“Ha…! Hahahaha!”
The look of dismay vanished from Gong Ya Pae’s face, replaced by a wild, exhilarated joy.
He seized Yun Cheon’s shoulder with crushing force.
“…My lord. I have lost.”
Gong Ya Pae conceded his defeat with genuine relief.
“I am ashamed. I who sought to overwhelm through brute strength—a blacksmith who hammers steel—have proven inferior to you in the very principle of crafting vessels.”
His gaze was fixed upon the burning flames and the ice membrane that embraced them.
“Even opposing forces that push against each other… can coexist if shaped by the proper ‘vessel’….”
It was then.
“…A vessel!”
Seol Young’s eyes snapped open.
The ice confined the flame but did not extinguish it, and the fire, trapped within the ice, circulated without melting it.
‘That’s it… it exploded because I was trying to force them together.’
Seol Young approached Yun Cheon as if entranced.
“This is it!”
At her cry, both Yun Cheon and Gong Ya Pae’s gazes snapped toward her.
“Rather than forcibly fusing two opposing natures, one qi becomes the ‘vessel’ for the other! That was the true solution to Dual Extremes Union!”
Seol Young’s eyes trembled with elation.
The ‘ice brazier’ Yun Cheon had demonstrated was the answer to a problem she had struggled with for years.
“Thanks to you, I believe we’ll make tremendous progress in our Dual Extremes Union research!”
“I’m relieved it proved useful.”
Just then, Gong Ya Pae gazed at the ice brazier in Yun Cheon’s hand and licked his lips.
“Say, Brother Physician, wouldn’t it be a shame to simply melt that exquisite ice cup?”
“…?”
“Pour some liquor into it! I’m dying to know what it tastes like to drink fiery spirits from an ice cup! Kahahaha!”
Gong Ya Pae pulled a bottle of fire liquor from his robes and tossed it over.
Yun Cheon chuckled softly and filled the ice cup with the spirits.
“Please, enjoy.”
Gong Ya Pae accepted the ice cup and drained it in one gulp.
“Ahh! Magnificent! The frigid liquor carrying the heat of fire slides down the throat with such a tingling sensation it feels like my throat might tear!”
Gong Ya Pae wrapped a crushing arm around Yun Cheon’s shoulders.
“Now that we’ve shared a cup, from this day forward you are my sworn brother. No objections. That’s final!”
Yun Cheon offered a wry smile.
I won, yet here I am being treated as a younger brother.
Seol Young, watching from the side, also smiled shyly and spoke.
“Could you pour me a cup in the ice cup as well?”
“Well now, Young Ah! On such a joyous day, a cup of spirits would be lovely, but….”
I thought Saengsa Jjon was about to stop Seol Young, but his next words were unexpected.
“Even cold water has its hierarchy, does it not? This old man comes first.”
Saengsa Jjon suddenly stepped forward and extended his hand to Yun Cheon.
“Come now, pour a cup for your guardian.”
“….”
…A moment later.
Yun Cheon stepped aside and gazed up at the night sky.
From within the Demonic Physician Hall came the hearty laughter of Gong Ya Pae.
Not to mention Seol Young.
Even that stubborn Saengsa Jjon could not hide his joy.
‘…How strange.’
These were the very Demonic Cultists I despised so intensely in my past life.
Yet now I find myself discussing medicine with them, testing my martial prowess against them, and just moments ago, clinking cups together.
From within the Demonic Cult, I observed that they were merely martial artists walking their own paths.
‘Perhaps my heart would find peace if they were openly malicious like the Snake and Scorpion Ink Family or the Demonic Cult members I once faced.’
Yet, observing from within the Demonic Cult, I realized they were simply people.
Merely martial artists walking their own paths.
An inexplicable sense of guilt and confusion bloomed in a corner of Yun Cheon’s heart.
‘Do not forget. I am Yun Cheon of Kunlun.’
But Yun Cheon shook his head, casting aside the wandering thoughts.
The teachings of his sect master, carved deep into his very bones.
[Kunlun Never Forgets Resentment.]
The target of vengeance was the Demonic Cult itself.
To destroy the Demonic Cult from within.
That was Yun Cheon’s objective.
‘Even if they are demonic beings, it matters not. To become the Heavenly Demon and destroy the Demonic Cult, I will gladly play this role….’
As Yun Cheon recalled his objective, his gaze grew cold once more.
When Yun Cheon returned to the Demonic Physician Hall, Saengsa Jjon was waiting for them.
“Let us end the drinking here. I have something to tell you now.”
At Saengsa Jjon’s words, Gong Ya Pae untied his bundle and laid out heavy iron rings.
“As you instructed, I have brought them prepared.”
Gong Ya Pae grinned widely and turned to look at Yun Cheon.
“Young master, you didn’t think I destroyed these iron rings without reason, did you?”
What he had produced were black iron rings that seemed to absorb light itself.
“Yun Cheon, and young lady Seol. Take a look at these.”
They were no mere iron rings.
Personally forged by Gong Ya Pae, they were restraints that suppressed the wearer’s vital energy and crushed the muscles.
“Ugh… the weight is tremendous!”
Seol Young, who had taken the iron ring first, gasped as she spoke.
“They’re training rings made from Ink Steel Cold Iron. They’re heavy and durable while withstanding the cold. Perfect for you two.”
Yun Cheon silently donned the training ring as well.
Certainly, the weight was substantial.
But the difference was not merely in weight.
‘…Despite this weight, movement feels easy?’
When I moved my limbs, despite the considerable burden, there was surprisingly little discomfort.
As Yun Cheon’s eyes widened, Gong Ya Pae burst into laughter at the sight.
“Krahaha! That’s exactly the expression! A blacksmith’s hammer strikes find their worth in that face! It moves easily while the load is properly applied. Perfect for training.”
“…A precious treasure indeed.”
Yun Cheon offered a sincere bow of gratitude.
Then Saengsa Jjon spoke.
“To endure the Heavenly Demon Technique, your body must be refined until the weight of Ink Steel Cold Iron feels like a feather. Three conditions must be met for the procedure.”
“Three conditions, you say?”
“First is the tool. That has been resolved since Gong Ya Pae brought it.”
Saengsa Jjon turned to face the two of them and spoke.
“Second, there is the matter of your bodies. In your current state, you lack the fortitude to endure the agony of the Heavenly Reversal Technique. To maintain consciousness throughout the procedure, your bones, muscles, and meridians must be tempered far more rigorously.”
Saengsa Jjon folded his last finger and gestured toward his own chest.
“And finally, the third matter—my own preparation as the one wielding the blade.”
A chill of tension flickered across his gaze.
“I too have set aside the practice of medicine for a prolonged period. The Heavenly Reversal Technique is a surgical art of such precision that even a momentary lapse is fatal… I must hone my senses to surpass their former peak.”
This was not merely the patient’s struggle, but his own as well.
“I cannot commence the procedure until all three conditions are met.”
Saengsa Jjon surveyed the three of them and declared solemnly.
“In six months’ time, on the night when the full moon rises. I shall perform the Heavenly Reversal Technique here in the Demonic Physician Hall. Until then, I shall enter closed-door seclusion to sharpen my senses. Each of you must cultivate your bodies with every ounce of your strength. Do not forget—failure means death.”
“Yes, Grandfather!”
“…I shall do so.”
Yun Cheon’s eyes gleamed with cold resolve.
‘Six months… long if measured one way, yet fleeting in another.’
During that time, I would return to my fundamentals, don the Muk Gang Han Chul once more, and temper my body anew.
* * *
Days later.
The Poison Fang Hall, subordinate to the Snake and Scorpion Ink Family, one of the Twelve Orthodox Families of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.
In a damp, sealed chamber, Dok A Dang Ju, seated upon a chair carved with serpents, received a report from a shadow in the darkness.
“…Saengsa Jjon entered closed-door seclusion yesterday. Based on the quantity of his grain-avoidance provisions, he will not emerge for at least six months.”
Dok A Dang Ju’s voice was low and ragged, like the sound of dry leaves crumbling.
The shadow bowed and reported.
“Kekeke… An opportunity! The old tiger walks into his den of his own accord.”
A grotesque laugh spilled from Dok A Dang Ju’s lips.
It was a bitter, venomous sneer steeped in resentment.
“This Yun Cheon, then?”
Dok A Dang Ju spat the name as though chewing it.
To support his direct descendant Muk Ha Jin, he had gathered even the collateral branch children and had them enter Zamadong.
Yet the result was worse than doing nothing at all.
The honor of the Snake and Scorpion Ink Family had been utterly trampled into the earth.
“…Indeed.”
“That a mere disciple could obstruct our family’s affairs so thoroughly….”
“I beg your pardon, Lord Dok A Dang Ju.”
Not only had the collateral Muk Wi Jin been defeated, but the direct descendant Muk Ha Jin had fallen to a vagabond with no roots.
That alone was difficult to fathom, yet the family elder Muk Wi Gyou had been afflicted by Saengsa Jjon and reduced to a cripple in terrible agony.
And yet… not long after, rumors began to spread that Saengsa Jjon himself had taken the boy under his patronage.
“…Something about this situation feels decidedly amiss, does it not?”
“…Now that you mention it, it does seem so.”
“He cannot be a mere disciple. Someone… there is clearly a backer. His identity and origins are deliberately concealed.”
“Shall we investigate further?”
“That’s right. The opponent moves in step with Elder Muk Wi Gyou’s actions, and is someone capable of mobilizing Saengsa Jjon… At minimum, they must hail from the Ten Sects or have connections reaching into the Cult’s upper echelon.”
“…Whoever it may be, our duty is to sink our fangs into the main family’s enemies. It matters not.”
“Good. Six months is sufficient time. Don’t act rashly—conduct thorough background investigations first. Everything from Zamadong to their past movements in the Central Plains, down to the last detail.”
Dok A Dang Ju’s eyes gleamed with sinister intent.
He withdrew a heavy pouch from his garment and hurled it toward the shadow.
Clink.
The sound of gold coins colliding rang out with greedy resonance.
“If necessary, actively recruit personnel from the Demonic Way Hall. We can even offer positions as retainers of this family. Focus on those without backing…”
“As you command.”
The shadow dispersed into darkness.
Dok A Dang Ju’s eyes glimmered like a serpent’s.
He extended his hand toward empty air, miming the grip of an invisible hand around Yun Cheon’s throat.
“Little whelp. The moment you show an opening, I’ll devour you alive.”

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This chapter is translated by Falnar Novels Team.
Support us by reading on our official site: https://falnarnovels.com
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