Chapter 16: I Dominated the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly (1)

Healing Sage had said it.

That when the Third Stage: Impenetrable was completed, it was only the beginning.

The beginning. It meant that I had stood at the starting line, and that I had become strong enough to protect my own body. In Healing Sage's words, it was the cultivation of the self.

To say it was the beginning for a body that had consumed ten drops of the Immaculate Pomegranate, been immersed in high-purity Azure Scale Elixir, and eaten the fruit of the immortals, the Vermilion Fruit. Healing Sage was certainly no ordinary man.

Nevertheless, I understood Healing Sage.

He was a person who had created the unprecedented mind cultivation art known as Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art and vied for the title of the best under the heavens in his time, so how could his standards be the same as a commoner like me?

Anyway, what was important to me was the fact that he was a strict person.

Therefore, I knew that the starting line he had drawn was far ahead of someone's, no, most martial artists' destination.

Among those Dragons and Phoenixes called the prodigies of the Jianghu, half would not be able to reach the starting point Healing Sage had mentioned.

This was the truth.

During my Myeong-gae days, I saw and learned too much to be disheartened by Healing Sage's single word and belittle what I had already achieved.

Currently, I had learned the first half of the Dancheon Sword Art and reached the Peak realm, and I had entered the Third Stage of the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art.

It was to reach the best under the heavens in the future, and to become the leader of the Murim Alliance. Ultimately, it was to prevent the Great War of Righteousness and Evil that would happen in the future.

But how could a person run while looking only at the end? Isn't the one who also enjoys the process a true first-rate individual?

In order to enjoy the process, small pleasures are necessary, so I planned to find that small pleasure here today.

I would dominate the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.

I would bask in the praise of being the number one up-and-coming prodigy in the Jianghu Murim. The Third Stage was for that purpose.

Of course, in the end, it was obvious that this would also be beneficial to me.

This was because I was well aware of the fact that the majority of the past Murim Alliance Leaders were those who had distinguished themselves at the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.

Didn't they say you can tell a promising tree from its cotyledons?

So in the end, this too would be a stepping stone to getting closer to becoming the Murim Alliance Leader.

***

The inside of the pavilion, which had been bustling with Dragons and Phoenixes, was already quiet. It was the result of everyone rushing towards the mountain gate of Mount Song.

As if by promise, Lee Chun-baek and I did not move until the venue was empty.

“Brother Chun-baek. Good luck.”

“You too.”

During his King of Wanderers days, Lee Chun-baek's movement art was rightly called the best in the Jianghu. It would not be difficult to predict that he would achieve an excellent result in this test.

The reason he was being leisurely now was, to put it bluntly, the privilege of the haves.

And it was the same for me, thanks to the characteristics of the Dancheon Sword Clan.

Although we were called a Sword Clan like the Namgung because we mainly used swords, the two clans were somewhat different.

The Namgung, who pursued the Emperor's Sword, could be said to be a clan that pursued the path of powerful sword strikes rather than a fleeting movement art.

Their heavy movement art could certainly press down on Mount Tai, but it was a bit too heavy to ride the wind.

But the sword of the Dancheon Clan, as its name Dancheon suggested, was a clan that placed its path in cutting the heavens.

In order to cut the heavens, one must first reach the heavens, so the Dancheon Clan had made a light and fleeting movement art its specialty.

Stepping on Clouds Gait.

It was the secret movement art of the Dancheon Clan, said to be a gait that walked on clouds. In fact, I knew that Uncle Yeo Baek's fleetingness also derived from this Stepping on Clouds Gait.

It was Stepping on Clouds for the sake of Severing Heaven, a result of the ancestors' will being carried on.

The reason I had survived for so long as a member of the Secret Pavilion was also thanks to having learned this Stepping on Clouds Gait, albeit imperfectly.

Since it was a peerless movement art comparable to the famous Eight Forms of the Cloud Dragon of Kunlun or the Drunken Eight Immortals Gait of the Beggar's Gang, I thought there was nothing better for facing the first test.

I operated the Dancheon Mind Art.

Since it was not a situation where I needed to absorb spiritual medicine, there was no need to add the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art.

Nevertheless, the remnants of the Immaculate Pomegranate melted into my entire body's meridians amplified the circulation of my energy.

My internal energy circulated steeply through the opened Ren and Du Meridians.

Even though I had achieved the Third Stage of the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art, my current realm was the Peak.

Considering the current Murim system where the Peak was substituted with Sword Qi, the Transcendent Peak with Sword Silk, and the State of Harmony with Sword Flux, this was not an incorrect statement.

But how could the realm of martial arts be cut so cleanly like a radish?

At least in terms of movement art for running long distances, my current achievement surpassed that of a Transcendent Peak master and was comparable to that of a State of Harmony master, that was my thought.

It was thanks to the efficacy of the Immaculate Pomegranate and the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art.

Guuung.

As if responding to my will, my internal energy gathered at the Dragon Spring Point.

“See you later!”

Paeng-

My body shot out like an arrow.

I thought it wouldn't be much different from the appearance Uncle Yeo Baek had shown me.

As I was about to leave the pavilion using my movement art, my eyes met with Great Monk Beomgak's. He gave me a wide smile, as if he was pleased with my appearance.

The minds of masters who had reached the Transcendent Peak were still difficult to fathom.

“See you later.”

Lee Chun-baek's voice was heard faintly.

And soon after, Lee Chun-baek's figure also disappeared fleetingly.

***

During the time Myeong-gae was a member of the Secret Pavilion.

Running long distances could be said to be a daily routine.

This was because intelligence units also performed the role of messengers, so crossing between battlefields with movement arts was a fateful task.

In a battlefield where hundreds of lives came and went with a difference of a quarter of an hour, taking a rest in the middle of using movement arts was truly a luxury, so in that desperation and urgency, my Stepping on Clouds Gait was carved and refined.

What I naturally learned in that process was the distribution of internal energy and stamina. And that experience and memory were still completely melted into me, Dancheon Myeong.

But those Dragons and Phoenixes were different from me.

Even if they had followed a long history, in the end, the ones performing those martial arts were nothing more than up-and-coming prodigies with little experience.

Among those Dragons and Phoenixes, how many would there be who had operated their movement art at full power for more than a quarter of an hour?

In fact, I was confident that there were none.

For the up-and-coming prodigies of prestigious clans who had lived in an era of peace, it would have been a difficult time just to operate their mind cultivation art and practice their techniques.

Sure enough.

After about a quarter of an hour, the backs of the Dragons and Phoenixes began to appear one by one. A quarter of an hour was the limit to how long they could use their movement arts at full power.

Although they were struggling to use their movement arts, their speed had clearly slowed down, and their breathing was heavy and their legs looked heavy. It was truly a sight that did not suit movement arts.

It was a point where not even a quarter of the half a shichen suggested by the Shaolin Abbot Beomgak had passed.

In order to reach the turning point and return within half a shichen, they would now have to experience the taste of blood in their throats and their lungs feeling like they would burst.

‘As expected.’

I had expected it from the moment he suggested two hundred li and half a shichen.

This test was not a test of running fast in the first place.

It was a test of stamina and internal energy management, as well as persistence and grit.

It was also the reason why I didn't rush out with them when the start of the test was announced.

Even though I didn't use my fastest movement art in order to distribute my stamina appropriately, the speed difference between them and me was significant.

Ssaeng.

Numerous up-and-coming prodigies disappeared behind my back.

I could feel the gazes of the up-and-coming prodigies who were looking at my figure shooting forward quickly with empty eyes, even without seeing them, even after a quarter of an hour had passed.

It seemed I had already overtaken more than half of the up-and-coming prodigies gathered at the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.

In other words, it meant that half were still maintaining their speed and running well. It could be said that the future of the Jianghu Murim was not all dark.

As someone who knew the future of the Great War of Righteousness and Evil, I could accept this with pleasure.

The surrounding scenery constantly changed. The Dragons and Phoenixes who were sparsely ahead were overtaken by me.

There were up-and-coming prodigies who lost their own breathing trying to force themselves to follow me, and there were also up-and-coming prodigies who ignored me and stubbornly went their own way.

The important fact was that none of them were able to catch up to me.

The Dragons and Phoenixes that the Dancheon Myeong of the previous life had admired and envied were looking at me with the same eyes.

And after a little more time passed, I was also able to realize one of my misjudgments.

‘Hmm.’

It was a problem if it was a problem, and not if it wasn't……, it was the fact that I wasn't accumulating any fatigue at all. It was a problem that arose because I had managed my stamina and internal energy thinking of my days as a member of the Secret Pavilion.

It was thanks to the efficacy of the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art reaching the Third Stage.

If the Immaculate Pomegranate melted into my meridians was helping the smooth operation of my internal energy, I could feel that the fatigue accumulated in my body due to the efficacy of the Vermilion Fruit was being instantly detoxified.

I now clearly understood the reason why Healing Sage had deliberately named it 'Impenetrable' and not 'Myriad Poison Immunity'.

Impenetrable, literally, was preventing everything that interfered with my body reaching its best condition.

“I can run even faster.”

I had been adjusting the speed of my movement art assuming a half-shichen run, but I realized there was no need for that.

I assessed the current situation.

I had already run for more than a quarter of an hour and covered about eighty li.

Looking at my current state, there was no problem in covering two hundred li even if I ran at my maximum speed.

‘He’s still not in sight.’

Even though I had overtaken most of the up-and-coming prodigies, Dancheon Hak's figure was still not visible. It meant that he was still leading.

In my past life, he was the one who had won the title of Dragon, so it might be a natural result.

But I was confident that the distance between him and me was not much.

Ssaeaeng.

I began to deploy my movement art at maximum speed. The scenery, which had already been changing rapidly, was distorted to the point where it was difficult to take it all in with my eyes.

Before I reached the turning point, I would be in the lead.

***

A little more time had passed since the test given by Great Monk Beomgak had begun.

Dancheon Hak and Namgung Tan were running in the lead group.

In fact, they were the ones who proved that not all who were at the Peak realm were the same.

Eight Forms of the Cloud Dragon, Kunlun's Taeha.

Drunken Eight Immortals Gait, Beggar's Gang's Gu Ho-gae.

Dark Fragrance Drifting, Mount Hua's Cheonggang.

Nine Revolutions Illusory Gait, Emei's Yeoha Sinni, and so on.

They were all up-and-coming prodigies of the great sects that were called the best in the Jianghu in terms of movement arts.

Although all of them were hiding their tired expressions and using their movement arts calmly, everyone knew.

The fact that, unlike at the beginning, the speed of the entire lead group was gradually slowing down.

Dancheon Hak, who was using the Stepping on Clouds Gait that had reached the Peak, was deliberately not standing out and was following behind them, managing his stamina.

After running for another ten li or so, the mountain gate of Shaolin on Mount Song came into view in the distance. The turning point had finally come into view.

When Dancheon Hak turned his head, Namgung Tan came into view.

Namgung Tan no longer had the energy to maintain his expression, and was barely holding his breath with a completely contorted face.

“Are you, alright?”

Since the Namgung was not a clan that specialized in fleeting movement arts, it was admirable that he had run with the lead group until now.

“No, problem.”

Namgung Tan answered, pretending to be calm, but he couldn't hide the disturbance in his breathing.

It was then.

“You were here?”

Startled by the sudden voice, he turned his head to see a familiar face.

It was Dancheon Myeong.

He, whom he had thought was struggling far behind, had revealed himself. Before even reaching the turning point.

Moreover, that Dancheon Myeong was smiling with a refreshed expression. It was a stark contrast to Namgung Tan's face, which was full of fatigue.

“Oh my, are you tired already?”

Dancheon Myeong asked Namgung Tan.

Namgung Tan's face crumpled. His pride must have been hurt.

“Hmph. I'm not, tired!”

Namgung Tan shouted, pretending to be calm, but even in Dancheon Hak's eyes, he was ‘not at all’.

Dancheon Hak's gaze fell on his half-brother.

Such a calm expression.

Dancheon Hak felt that something was going wrong.