254 Chapter - Yesterday Feels Like Today.
254 Chapter - Yesterday Feels Like Today.
I decided to fully embrace Geugak Soma’s advice.
Take a step back from the Sicheon Secret Technique.
Of course, as he said, it wasn’t easy. We were warriors who always ran forward, never backward.
First, I chose to reduce the training time spent on the Sicheon Secret Technique and use that time to refine the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill instead.
Right, now wasn’t the time to worry about any other martial art.
With this mindset, I focused on the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill.
Honestly, if it weren’t for the Sicheon Secret Technique, I’d want to spend all day mastering the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill.
It was truly a complex yet highly refined martial art, and precisely because it was difficult, it possessed a magnetic allure.
Even the mental method alone was incomparable to others. The internal energy gathered from training it far exceeded that of conventional methods.
If my father were here, he’d surely boast,
—So you’ve been mastering this wonderful skill all alone!
I was completely immersed in training the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill.
I hadn’t yet begun technique training; I was trying to get my body fully accustomed to the breathing method of the skill, and even that was enjoyable.
Of course, I hadn’t completely abandoned the Sicheon Secret Technique. The more I mastered the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill, the more I realized the Sicheon Secret Technique was necessary.
And I realized something else.
Reducing training time was not the solution to stepping back.
That approach was wrong.
When I arrived at the residence of Hyeolcheondoma from Namdo Sect, he was reading a book.
I stood far away watching him.
Strangely, seeing Hyeolcheondoma sitting by the window reading calmed my mind. I wanted to read more but couldn’t, so maybe I was living vicariously through him?
Then his telepathic message reached me.
—Stop spying and come over here.
—I can send telepathic messages far. Are you using the Cheonli Telepathy Technique?
—Who said that!
I walked toward Hyeolcheondoma.
“Not busy? I’ve never seen such a leisurely Junior Sect Leader.”
“Busy, of course.”
“But?”
“No matter how busy, isn’t this where I belong? Right next to our elder!”
I leaned against the windowsill.
“Honestly, these days I’m rather free.”
“A Junior Sect Leader should find work to do.”
“No thanks. Suddenly a bunch of things will come at once. I’m just resting while I can.”
“Then why come here to rest?”
“Being with the elder is the most comfortable.”
Hyeolcheondoma shook his head but clearly looked glad.
Entering the room, I joked,
“Ah, wonderful! How can you smell so good at your age?”
“You don’t need to feed caught meat.”
“I’m serious, not flattering.”
I looked over the books on his shelves. I remembered the ones that looked interesting. I planned to buy and shelve them later—surely I’d read them someday.
“Have you read all these books?”
“Unlike some, I don’t just buy books for decoration.”
“Who said that? Buying books is the start of reading.”
“You prefer looking at shelved books rather than reading them yourself?”
“I’ll read them all someday! More than you, elder!”
“Do you think that’s all I’ve read?”
I was surprised and stared at Hyeolcheondoma.
“No, you’re a Majon. If you opened a secret storage, would you find books piled where weapons or elixirs should be?”
“When swords fly, block them with books.”
At first, it seemed odd, but now the image of him holding books suited him better than the Destroyer’s Great Sword.
“There’s freshly brewed tea there. Drink if you want.”
“I was just craving tea.”
I sat at the tea table and drank.
“Why does tea brewed by the elder taste better even if it’s the same?”
“Because of the desire to boss around an old man.”
I pretended not to hear and caressed the tea table.
“I’ll have the same one for my room.”
Then Hyeolcheondoma suddenly asked,
“Do you have worries?”
He knew me better than anyone. Playing with my teacup, I asked him,
“Have you ever taken a step back?”
He looked up from his book at me.
“From what?”
“From what the elder desires most.”
He seemed to think about the meaning for a moment, then answered decisively,
“No.”
His expression said my life was nothing but moving straight ahead.
Of course, to strangers, Hyeolcheondoma might seem that way—a stubborn old man who doesn’t step back.
But he had already taken several steps back.
By accepting me.
Instead, I was the one who charged forward. I moved toward him to open his heart, and he stepped back as he accepted me.
If he had also charged forward, our relationship would have been different.
“Why do you suddenly ask that?”
“To figure out how to take just one step back.”
Having experienced everything, Hyeolcheondoma would guess what I meant.
“Is there a book you’ve read about taking one step back?”
“Is there such a thing?”
His gaze shifted toward his book, then back to me. He was curious.
“Seeing a smart kid like you worried means it’s no ordinary matter.”
“Martial art.”
He must have thought it was the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill. It was my concern after becoming Junior Sect Leader.
“But why try to step back?”
“It’s so complex and difficult I’m stuck. I want to step back a little to look at it anew. Maybe wanting it too desperately makes it harder.”
“Not less desperate?”
“Probably not. I’m confident in my efforts.”
After a moment, Hyeolcheondoma asked,
“But trying to step back to find a way in that way… isn’t that actually getting closer to the martial art?”
“!”
A sudden realization struck my head.
I jumped up unable to contain myself.
“That’s right! I wasn’t stepping back—I was clinging all the more fiercely.”
I ran to Hyeolcheondoma.
“To cling, you have to embrace the elder! Elder!”
“Don’t come, gross!”
Hyeolcheondoma pushed me back with an invisible force, seating me again at the tea table.
Then he lowered his voice.
“Junior Sect Leader, maintain your dignity.”
I slurped the remaining tea and answered,
“No, I’ll let go more. I found the answer.”
“The prodigal returns! Rejoining!”
Three people from the midnight training group stared at me.
They’d been too busy to attend for a while but suddenly showed up today.
Ian said to me,
“You’re Junior Sect Leader and still want to do the midnight group?”
“Yeah. Even as Sect Leader, I’ll keep doing it.”
“We don’t want that.”
Thanks to Hyeolcheondoma, I realized something.
I reduced training time for the Sicheon Secret Technique to take a step back and tried other methods.
Now my conclusion was to just do it like before.
Before mastering the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill or the Sicheon Secret Technique.
Back then, I trained hard but without burden. I sparred with Majon diligently and used every spare moment for training. It was natural, without pressure to achieve anything by a certain time.
And I kept getting stronger and improving.
I must step back—not from martial arts, but from the burden and impatience. Just live frantically like before, and one day it will happen.
“Teach me after a long time.”
Kwonma took off his shirt with a smile that said, “Let’s do this properly.” Fierce face, perfect muscles—he looked as he did long ago.
I also took off my shirt. Compared to him, I was just a kid.
I felt sorry for neglecting Kwonma’s training, even though I begged to be his disciple.
Together, we unleashed the Lightning Water Fist. Normally, with the Sicheon Secret Technique problems, I wouldn’t have thought to use Kwonma’s martial art.
Ian and Cheon Sohui also trained nearby. Ian had improved again. Just seeing her focused face for this brief moment said a lot about how hard she trained.
As I formed my technique and briefly met Ian’s eyes, I smiled. She smiled back slightly.
Cheon Sohui looked at Kwonma with a face saying, “Did you see that virgin’s teasing just now, Kwonma?” then was surprised by herself. She had unintentionally sent that message to the difficult Kwonma.
Kwonma ignored it and kept training.
Then—
Krarrrung!
Thunder sounded from my punched fist.
Ian, Cheon Sohui, and I were all startled.
“Was that my sound?”
“Yes, it came from your fist.”
Everyone was surprised, but I was the most shocked.
“What happened? To be honest, I neglected Kwonma training recently. Today was the first time in a while I used it. Why did thunder sound?”
Kwonma gave a look meaning, “How would I know?” and silently continued training.
Had I grown stronger? Or had I stepped back unknowingly in Kwonma training?
One thing was clear.
After mastering the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill, my martial art began to quake.
Krarrrung!
Now thunder sounded from Kwonma’s fist, louder than mine.
“Why didn’t you make sounds before? You never made sounds while training.”
I complained, but Kwonma ignored me and kept training.
“Why do you make thunder the first time I do? Are you jealous...?”
Krarrrung!
My words were drowned by Kwonma’s thunder.
“That’s too much...”
Krarrrrrung!
Exhausted, I headed toward my residence but suddenly thought of someone and turned back.
Someone I expected to be awake at this late hour—and he was.
“What did the stars say about you, hyung?”
Chwima, who was floating a boat on the lake and looking at the night sky, answered.
“The stars say this: among the martial world, your fate is the best!”
Chwima smiled warmly as he looked at me.
“You’re here?”
Standing at the lakeshore, I used Waterstep to cross the water in one breath and climbed onto the boat.
“Now you’re showing your true strength.”
On the day I was named successor, I demonstrated my prayer in front of all the Majon. Now that I was Junior Sect Leader, there was no reason to hide my strength.
“I’m not one to hide. I like to stand out and be noticed.”
“Actually, me too.”
“Do you think we’d be sworn brothers otherwise? Next time let’s get some attention in the Central Plains!”
“I know many good places. Let’s go!”
Who else knows as much as me? We should drink together where the alcohol tastes good and the scenery’s great.
We filled each other’s cups.
“Congratulations on becoming Junior Sect Leader.”
“You helped a lot, hyung. Thanks.”
“You must’ve helped about a fifth of the way.”
“You’re drunk, hyung. Self-pity again.”
After the toast, we drained our cups.
“Ah, this is nice!”
“As expected! You have to drink with me.”
It was so good to drink with him after a long time.
We talked about all sorts of things, trading stories while drinking.
I confided my frustration with my martial arts wall.
The answer came from Chwima.
“Drink! The answer is in the alcohol. When you get drunk, everything will be solved.”
“You really are the luckiest person in the world, hyung.”
“Drink. Life’s in the alcohol, in the rivers and the martial world—it’s all there.”
We drank again. Drinking with Chwima after a long time, the alcohol went down like water.
Chwima talked about everything—Majon gossip, women he met when young, martial arts stories.
He seemed drunk and talkative but never crossed the line. I always thought Chwima’s mistakes happened when sober.
Splash!
Eventually, Chwima jumped into the water, and I followed.
We swam here and there, floating under the night sky.
“This place is still good.”
“When you live like an immortal here, time feels frozen. One hour ago feels like now, now feels like an hour later, yesterday feels like today, and today like tomorrow.”
Hyung, at that moment, I must stop.
Talking about time made me think of the Sicheon Secret Technique.
I imagined the blood vessels inside my body overlapping the stars in the night sky. I’d tried many ways—sending internal energy through this blood vessel, then that, back and forth. There were still too many attempts left.
‘Why think of that now, at such a good moment?’
Playing here with Chwima to step back from the Sicheon Secret Technique.
Splash!
I dove back underwater.
But the next moment, I popped my head above the surface again.
I imagined the blood vessels overlapping the stars again.
Not here, not there. Where was it just now?
Then I found a spot where the blood vessels perfectly matched the stars.
‘Found it!’
A shiver ran through my body.
Coincidence? Or something else?
If I operated internal energy following the star constellations’ order, maybe something would happen.
Could it be that the Sicheon Secret Technique was made by observing the stars in the sky?
“Hyung!”
“Why?”
“I think I solved the problem I mentioned earlier.”
Chwima was surprised, then laughed joyfully.
“I told you! Drinking solves everything!”
“I’m heading out first! Thanks, hyung. Talk later.”
I shot up from the water into the air.
Changing direction in midair, I flew toward the lakeshore.
Behind me came Chwima’s voice.
“This hyung is always here.”
Starlight poured down on Chwima floating ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ above the water.
Back in the training hall, I prepared two incense sticks.
After lighting both at once, I placed one in the incense burner and cast the Space-Time Transformation Technique.
The created space was empty, designed to increase concentration and minimize internal energy usage.
There, I chanted the formulas of the Sicheon Secret Technique. This time, I moved my internal energy following the star order I’d just discovered.
Had I succeeded?
I still didn’t know.
At this stage, I could tell by leaving this place and comparing the time. Even a small difference would mean the Sicheon Secret Technique had begun!
Please!
It was my desperate wish to reach the twelve-stage pinnacle of the Ninth Calamity Demon Skill.
As the incense burned down, I ended the Space-Time Transformation Technique.
Ssssss—
The space disappeared, and I slowly walked toward the still-burning incense.
I crouched in front of the incense burner and placed an incense stick at the same depth.
My heart trembled as much as my steady gaze.
The two incense sticks were burning unevenly.