Ultimate Martial Venerable - Chapter 11

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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 11. Stronger Through Survival
Morning sunlight streamed through the windows of the freshly renovated Separate Quarters.
Yuk Beom rose from his bed and glanced around the room. The roof that had leaked every time it rained was now covered with new tiles, and the creaking bed and desk had both been replaced.
It had felt strange at first, but after a few days, the comfort was undeniable.
Still, he had no intention of letting comfort make his training slack.
The moment Yuk Beom finished washing, he headed for the Book Pavilion. He was certain the Geuk Gwang Dan had elevated him to the seventh stage of the Yeon Che Gong, but he needed to confirm his realm with the Museok before his mind could settle.
At this early hour, no one was in front of the Book Pavilion.
Yuk Beom lowered his stance before the Museok. Drawing power up from his waist, he channeled it to his fist and drove a punch forward.
Bang!
Fine cracks spread across the black surface, and golden characters bloomed into view.
――――――――――
【Museok Assessment】
Realm: Yeon Che Gong

Stage 7
Rank: Superior
――――――――――
A smile spread across Yuk Beom’s face.
Stage seven of the Yeon Che Gong.
Now there was no need to worry about next year’s Martial Arts Academy examination. Just two more stages and he would reach the pinnacle of the Yeon Che Gong.
Then a familiar voice came from behind.

“Visiting the Book Pavilion at dawn—industrious, aren’t you?”

Yuk Beom turned to find Yuk Ho Yeon and Yuk Ho walking side by side.

“Grandfather, Father.”

Yuk Beom bowed respectfully, but Yuk Ho Yeon waved his hand.

“When we’re among ourselves, you needn’t be so formal. How has your training been going……?”

Yuk Ho Yeon’s gaze halted on the Museok as he spoke.
Yuk Ho’s eyes widened as he spotted the golden characters.

“You’ve already reached the seventh stage of the Yeon Che Gong?”
“I was fortunate enough to break through the barrier last night.”
“There’s no luck in cultivation.”

Yuk Ho burst into laughter.

“Another stage in just one month—when I was your age, it took me far longer to advance a single stage. No, never mind. Comparing myself won’t do anything but damage my dignity.”

Yuk Ho Yeon laughed aloud as well.
The Book Pavilion door swung open, and the old man Shim appeared.

“Making a racket at this hour. If you’ve something to hand over, do it quickly and be gone.”

Yuk Ho seemed to remember something just then, producing three small bottles from his garment.

“Beom, take these.”

Inside the bottles was a deep crimson medicinal liquid.
The moment Yuk Beom saw it, he recognized what it was.
Danryeon San.
Moreover, it was the very item he had consigned to auction under the name of Master Cheol Myeon.

“I acquired it from the auction house.”

Yuk Ho placed the bottles in his son’s hands and spoke.

“It helps speed up cultivation. Yesterday I tried to buy Heo Hwa Gwa as well, but at the last moment Teacher Iron Face snatched it from me. If I’d obtained that fruit too, your Blazing Gold Body training would have progressed much faster. What a shame.”

Yuk Beom didn’t know whether to laugh or look troubled.
His father was buying back the medicine Yuk Beom had made himself at a premium price. The Heo Hwa Gwa had already become Heo Hwa Dan, stored within Yuk Beom’s Nine Heavens Ring.

“Thank you. I’ll use it carefully.”

Yuk Beom accepted the bottle with a composed expression.
Yuk Ho’s eyes narrowed as he watched his youngest son.
Exchanging a glance with Yuk Ho Yeon, he suddenly asked.

“Beom. Do you know Teacher Iron Face who appeared at the auction house yesterday?”

Yuk Beom’s heart suddenly raced.

“I do not, sir.”

His answer came a touch too quickly.
A meaningful smile played at the corner of Yuk Ho’s mouth.

“Someone you don’t know was speaking about you. Said you were quite the promising boy.”
“It’s possible they know me, but I truly don’t know them.”

Yuk Beom kept up the pretense to the end.

“Well, if you don’t know them, there’s nothing to be done about it.”

Yuk Ho pressed no further.

“Still, if Teacher Iron Face is a Flame Practitioner, cultivating that connection alone would be of great benefit to our household. Should you happen to meet them, mind your manners.”
“I will remember.”

Yuk Beom stayed only a moment longer before his expression threatened to give him away, then hurried to leave.
The moment he disappeared around the Book Pavilion wall, Yuk Ho Yeon stroked his beard.

“He knows for certain.”
“A terrible liar, that one. Not much use for deception.”

Yuk Ho chuckled softly.

“Do you think he’s receiving instruction from Teacher Iron Face?”
“It’s possible. The timing of Beom’s sudden transformation and the Flame Practitioner’s appearance is too coincidental to dismiss.”

Old Shim regarded the two men with something like disapproval.

“If the boy has encountered good fortune, that is cause for celebration. Don’t poke at it and try to unearth the details. When the time comes, he’ll speak of it himself.”

He closed the Book Pavilion door without waiting for a reply.
Yuk Ho Yeon and Yuk Ho exchanged a simultaneous, awkward cough before the closed door.
* * *
The moment Yuk Beom stepped through the Main Gate, he pulled out three bottles of Danryeon San.

“Here I am, drinking medicine I made myself.”

With a bitter smile, he drained all three bottles in quick succession.
A month ago, a single sip would have left his skin itching so badly he’d want to peel it off. But after a month of taking Danryeon San, his body barely registered the medicinal properties.
His inner forearm felt only mildly itchy.

‘Even though it’s a commercial product, there’s a considerable difference from what my master makes.’

Yuk Beom placed the empty bottle into the Nine Heavens Ring and made his way to O Jin’s tavern.
But today, the shop—usually empty—had a customer inside.
A middle-aged woman in a green robe sat across from O Jin, her sharp gaze holding a composure that made her age difficult to discern.
On the table to her left lay a Blue Bamboo Flute, and around her right wrist was fastened a small bell made of deep purple metal.
When Yuk Beom stopped in the doorway, O Jin glanced at him only briefly.

“So Man, it’s time you left.”

The woman’s name was So Man.

“It took me a long time to find you.”

So Man did not take her eyes from O Jin.

“I can heal your wounds. I’ve already prepared the necessary medicinal ingredients.”

O Jin tilted his cup.

“I have no intention of healing.”
“Just because your body is broken doesn’t mean you should turn your back on the world.”
“The body, perhaps. Yes, that can be mended.”

O Jin set down his empty cup.

“But can you cure the sickness that remains in my heart?”

So Man’s gaze wavered for a moment.
Between the two of them lay what seemed to Yuk Beom like an eternity that he could not fathom.
So Man made no further attempt to persuade him. She rose slowly from her seat and gathered the flute and bell.

“I understand. Let’s pretend I never came today.”
“You never came at all.”

So Man smiled bitterly and turned toward the door.
As she passed Yuk Beom, she suddenly halted.
A sharp gaze swept over him from head to toe—not merely observing his outward form, but seeming to perceive the vital energy flowing through his body.

“Is this child your disciple?”

O Jin gave a brief nod.
Surprise flickered across So Man’s face.

“I thought you meant to carry everything you’ve built all your life into the grave.”

She reached into her robe and withdrew a Jade Tablet no larger than her palm.
In the center of the tablet was carved a single character in strong, deliberate strokes—the character for the Way.

“Take it.”

Yuk Beom found himself accepting the Jade Tablet almost without thinking.

“What is this?”
“A small token of greeting from an old friend to his disciple.”

So Man looked back at O Jin once more.

“Even if you never return to the world, this child will find his way out someday.”

With those words, the woman left the tavern.
Her footsteps were unhurried, yet in the span of a few blinks, she vanished at the far end of the street. Yuk Beom looked back and forth between the Jade Tablet in his hand and the empty alley.

“Master, who was that woman?”
“You don’t need to know now.”

O Jin glanced at the Jade Tablet and drained his cup.

“Keep it safe. It will be useful later.”

Yuk Beom asked no further questions and placed the Jade Tablet inside the Nine Heavens Ring.
O Jin gazed around the run-down tavern for a long moment. His expression was impassive, yet the faintest trace of reluctance — that ache which comes before leaving a place where one has lingered — seeped through.

“This too has come to an end.”
“What do you mean, Master?”
“Our hiding place is compromised. We cannot stay. I’m closing the tavern and heading into Seoshan.”

Yuk Beom’s expression hardened.

“You mean you’re leaving, Master?”
“You’re coming with me.”

O Jin gestured toward the Rear Courtyard with his chin.

“Your second training must take place where there are no people. Pack what you need into the ring, go home, and tell them you’ll be away for several months. Bring plenty of food and medicinal materials.”
“What will I be learning this time?”
“How to use Original Qi in combat, and how to survive.”

O Jin’s voice dropped lower.

“Let me warn you now: in this training, you could truly lose your life.”
“If I survive, how strong could I become?”
“You’ll be able to draw on both Strong Energy and Original Qi in the shortest span of time.”

Yuk Beom laughed.

“A price like that? I was already prepared long ago.”
* * *
Four days later, deep in Seoshan.
A thousand feet down, a waterfall roared as it crashed upon the rocks below.
Yuk Beom stood shirtless on a smooth stone beneath the cascade. Each time the fierce current struck his shoulders and back, his knees threatened to buckle.
But the water’s weight was not the only problem.
Beneath the stone, the Jasim Cheonhwa was burning.

A single violet flame, no larger than a fingernail, made the entire pool boil like scalding broth.
Yuk Beom clenched his teeth and drew Original Qi down through his feet.
He created a current of air to support his body.
It was the first task O Jin had taught him.
A faint Ki Current wrapped around his soles. His body grew slightly lighter.
But the moment the waterfall struck his head, his concentration shattered.

“Ugh!”

Yuk Beom’s feet slipped.
He plunged into the scalding pool.
Pain seared through his skin and deep into his bones and organs. Yuk Beom gritted his teeth, crawled out of the water, and pulled himself back onto the stone.
Not far away, in the forest, O Jin was suspending several trees in the air, constructing a new shelter.
His master had not once turned to look at him.
Whether Yuk Beom ripened to death or was swept away by the Waterfall and his bones shattered, he was to solve it himself.

“You truly don’t care if I die?”
“Then my eye for people would have been mistaken.”

The answer came back with utter calm.
Yuk Beom let out a hollow laugh, then steadied his breathing once more.
The Waterfall crashed down on his head again.
Crash!
This time he dropped to his knees but did not fall into the water below.
Yuk Beom suppressed his wavering body and gathered the Ki Current beneath his feet anew.
The training had only just begun.
Either he would survive and remain on the stone.
Or he would fail to endure and fall into the scalding water.
There were only two choices.
Until the sun began to set, Yuk Beom wrestled with the Waterfall upon the stone.
The Ki Current beneath his feet could not hold for long. Each time his concentration wavered, he plunged into the hot water and clawed his way back out.
When evening came, his skin was swollen and red like boiled meat. Wounds had split open across his shoulders and back where the water’s force had struck him.
As Yuk Beom limped back to O Jin’s quarters, a pile of medicinal herbs lay arranged on the table.

Before you rest, make a Hobok San.

“In this state?”
“If you want to train tomorrow, you’ll make it.”

O Jin tossed a worn Medicine Manual across without concern.

“There is no fixed formula. Extract only the properties you need from the herbs and blend them. You shall make the medicine that cures your own wounds.”

Yuk Beom looked back and forth between the manual and his own arm.
This meant not that he would make medicine because he was injured, but that if he could not make medicine, he would enter the next training bearing those wounds.

“Would it not be faster if you made it for me, Master?”
“Then you would learn nothing.”

There was no answer to give.
Yuk Beom clenched his teeth and sat before the herbs. His fingers trembled and spilled the powder several times, and the moment he kindled the flame even slightly too high, the herbs turned black and charred.
Separating medicinal properties proved far more difficult than creating Danryeon San. Within the same herb dwelt heating energy and cooling energy, the quality to stanch blood all tangled together.

Yuk Beom cleared away the failed herbs and began again.
Only after midnight did a cloudy gray liquid gather barely at the bottom of a small vial.
It was something difficult to call a quality medicine.
Yet when he swallowed a sip, the burning pain subsided somewhat.
Yuk Beom set down the empty vial and exhaled roughly.
O Jin watched from a distance, tilting a cup of wine.

Tomorrow, make something better than today.

Yuk Beom laughed without strength.

And if I cannot?
Then you enter the Waterfall with a body that hurts worse.

Yuk Beom barely managed to pull himself upright as his body nearly collapsed across the table.
Now at last he understood the meaning of the second trial.
If the body cannot endure, you must master Original Qi to survive.
If you cannot heal your wounded body, you must make medicine and cure yourself.
There was not a single step another could take in his stead.
Yuk Beom set aside the remaining herbs and gazed out the window toward the waterfall.
Tomorrow he would stand on that stone once more.
Yet anticipation outweighed his fear.
If he survived, he would emerge stronger than he was today.

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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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