The first place I visited was the guest house in the lower village of Hongsan.

The guest house was bustling with people and the workers were also very busy.

I stood at the entrance for a long time, but no one came to me.

Then, I saw a little boy going back and forth between the kitchen and the guests, carrying food. The moment I saw him, a smile formed on my lips.

When I came here to save the Eumryejong in my life before returning, that little boy had welcomed me as a grown man. His face was still the same as when he was young.

The boy who found me late ran over and greeted me.

“Hello, Musa. As you can see, there is no room right now.”

“Do you have a room?”

“No, there is no room. The guests are flocking because of the Blood God Festival.”

“When will the Blood God Festival be held?”

“Exactly ten days later. There’s another inn at the end of that road, and it’s probably not much different there.”

The busy kid left those words behind and ran to another guest’s call.

He arrived at the right time, ten days before the Blood God Festival.

The Blood God Festival is the biggest ceremony held once a year in the Fengchun Sect to welcome the Blood God.

That’s why the third method to prevent the evil spells of the Sub-Hon Ma-Jon required two months.

The Blood God Festival.

Only on the day of the Blood God Festival could one obtain a way to subdue the Sub-Hon Ma-Jon. Fortunately, the Blood God Festival was two months later, so if the timing hadn’t been right, killing the Sub-Hon Ma-Jon could have been a year later.

In the past, it took years to infiltrate the Fengchun Sect’s throne where the Yin Thunder Bell was stored.

That was the time it took to find the secret passage through which the Fengchun Sect’s leader could escape in times of emergency.

It didn't even take half an hour to sneak in and steal the sacred water, but it took that long to figure out the passage.

Even though they had found the secret passage with difficulty, it was still not easy to steal the Eumraejong.

The problem was the leader of the Fengchun cult.

He spent most of his time in the place where the throne was.

He ate there, and even slept there. He couldn't use the short time he had to take care of his body.

That's because there was an iron bar made of eternal iron down where the sacred waters, including the Eumraejong, were stored.

Furthermore, there was not only the leader of the Fengchun cult, but also someone guarding the sacred waters.

He wore chains made of eternal iron and lived around the Eumraejong like a bound spirit. Not only was he excellent in martial arts, but he was also born with a great sense of smell. He would immediately notice if someone approached and warn the leader of the Fengchun cult. Therefore, it was impossible to steal the holy water without the eyes of the Fengchun sect leader.

In this situation, how could I have brought the Eumryeong Bell?

There was a moment when the iron bars went up and the Fengchun sect leader briefly left the place.

It was the day of the Blood God Ceremony.

On this day, the Fengchun sect leader left the throne and performed the ritual at the Great Yeonmujang according to the established ritual.

At that time, the chain master guarding the Eumryeong Bell rang the bell thirty-six times according to the rules, and I was aiming for the moment when the last thirty-sixth bell was rang.

After the last bell sound, the time it took the Fengchun sect leader to return from the Great Yeonmujang to the throne was one tea time.

In the short time it took me to drink a cup of tea, I accomplished a miracle.

I practiced running away dozens of times, so I was able to escape the pursuit of the Fengchun sect leaders.

Investigating, infiltrating, recruiting, fighting, practicing… … The countless things that happened then flashed before my eyes.

This time, my goal was stored in a place like the Eumrye Bell. It was simpler than stealing the bulky Eumrye Bell, so this trip to Pungcheongyo could be seen as a gift from my hard life.

I stood in front of the guest house for a moment and watched the people passing by.

When the Blood God Festival was held, many sects that interacted with Pungcheongyo sent congratulatory envoys, so the guest house and the streets were full of people.

That was what I wanted. With so many people, no one would remember my existence. Of course, even in this situation, I wore a bamboo hat and thoroughly hid my identity. I would come quietly and disappear without a sound.

I bought some camping supplies, basic food, and a herbal medicine pot from several shops in the market.

And the last place I arrived was a pharmacy.

“You want some cigar?”

The old man at the pharmacy looked at me with a surprised face.

“Gihwacho is expensive.”

Gihwacho is a medicinal herb that is only found here in Saewae and cannot be found in the Central Plains.

“How much does one geun cost?”

“How much do you need?”

“I need two geun.”

“You have to pay eighty nyang per geun. I don’t know if you know, but it is a very precious medicinal herb.”

“Okay. I will buy two geun for that price.”

“But what are you going to use the gihwacho for?”

Since the gihwacho was a medicinal herb that was not commonly used, the old man looked at me again.

However, since he had been wearing a bamboo hat pressed down deeply since he came here, he could not see my face. His voice was also different from mine.

“I don’t know either. I bought it because I was ordered to do so from above.”

The old man brought the gihwacho without asking any more questions. After confirming the medicinal herb for me, the old man wrapped the gihwacho well and gave it to me. I paid the old man and left.

After leaving the pharmacy, I went to another pharmacy far away. This time, I found acorns and quince.

After getting the two herbs there, I went to a pharmacy in another village far away and bought some poisonous plants and sandalwood.

The reason I got the herbs from so many places was one thing. It was to keep the other people from knowing what I was making by collecting these herbs. There wouldn’t be any problems if I bought them all from one place, but I was preparing for the unlikely event.

It’s never a bad thing to be careful. In life, inconveniences come back as financial losses, but in the world of martial arts, inconveniences cost lives.

After getting all the herbs I needed, I went straight up to the mountain.

In the deep mountains where there were few people, there was still a cave where I used to live. I cleaned it up and started boiling the medicine.

Depending on the ingredients, some herbs had to be boiled separately, and some had to be boiled together. I had to boil it for at least several days.

This medicine was a potion that could paralyze the sense of smell of a chained master. He said that he had been held captive since he was young, so he must still be there now. The time and money it took to find out this secret method at the time were not small.

While I was boiling the medicine, I sat cross-legged and practiced the Cheonmahosingong.

The Cheonmahosingong almost killed me when I first learned it, but now it has become my indispensable friend. The more I practice it, the more I feel the specialness of the Cheonmahosingong.

Is it because of the characteristics of the Cheonmahosingong? When a crisis comes, it wakes me up and activates on its own, so there are times when the Cheonmahosingong feels like a living martial art. I know that it becomes even more powerful when combined with the Guhwamagong, so I just hope that day comes soon.

After practicing late into the night, I came out of the cave and looked up at the stars in the night sky.

I had stood here and looked at the night sky before returning, but there was one thing that was decidedly different about that time.

At that time, the only thought he had was to go back, but now, instead of going back, he was longing for the people he wanted to see. In particular, he wondered if Seo Dae-ryong was learning martial arts well from Hyeolcheon Doma.

They both denied it, but they secretly resembled each other.

‘Is he doing well?’

* * *

On the first day of training, Seo Dae-ryong was waiting for Hyeolcheon Doma in the yard.

He arrived on time, but Hyeolcheon Doma hadn’t come out yet.

Learning martial arts from Hyeolcheon Doma, his heart really felt like it was going to burst.

He swung his sword alone.

It was too heavy if he didn’t use his internal energy.

He waited for Hyeolcheon Doma, thinking that he shouldn’t waste his strength.

He waited for Hyeolcheon Doma for a long time, but he didn’t come out, so Seo Dae-ryong cautiously approached Hyeolcheon Doma’s residence.

As he looked inside through the closed window, he felt a cold air next to him.

I turned around with a start, and Bloodthirsty Doma, who had appeared before me, was looking into the window with me.

“What are you peeking at?”

“Ugh!”

Seo Daeryong screamed in surprise.

“I’m sorry! I was waiting for you, but I thought you might be inside.”

“I heard that Lee Gongja was expelled from the school?”

“Yes.”

“It’ll take about two months, right?”

“You heard.”

“That’s enough time for someone to go missing or die in an accident.”

Seo Daeryong said quickly.

“Your Majesty is so smart, you wouldn’t believe that such a tragedy could happen in just two months.”

“You’re so smart, you’ll forget the tragedy that’s already happened.”

Bloodthirsty Doma pretended to gouge out his eyeballs with his long, thin fingers.

“I’ll never peek again!”

“Then what are you doing here?”

“Ah, yes. I’ll go!”

Seo Dae-ryong ran to the middle of the yard.

Hyeolcheon Doma showed Seo Dae-ryong how to hold and swing the sword.

Then he went inside and said.

“A thousand times!”

Seo Dae-ryong was swinging the sword with his whole body soaked in sweat.

“Eight hundred and fifty-three, eight hundred and fifty-four…….”

The sword was so heavy that his arms felt like they would fall off.

‘Oh my, I can’t do this anymore!’

Seo Dae-ryong collapsed on the floor. Even if Hyeolcheon Doma was watching, he couldn’t do anything. He didn’t have the strength to move a finger.

Normally, he would be lying in bed at home eating snacks and reading a book.

‘Did I do something useless?’

When his body was tired, regret came flooding in.

‘No, no. ‘I’ve already made up my mind!’

If I can’t complete the training from the first day and get kicked out, I won’t have the face to see the sword dance.

Seo Dae-ryong jumped up and swung his sword. He barely managed to complete a thousand.

“I did it!”

Seo Dae-ryong looked down at the sword in his hand as he sat down on the floor.

This cold and heavy feeling of the sword! Yes, if I follow this feeling, it will definitely lead me to a better life than a life of rolling around.

At that moment, the window opened and the Blood Heavenly Sword appeared.

“If it’s hard, stop. I won’t stop you.”

Seo Dae-ryong jumped up. His arms felt like they were going to fall off, but he said firmly.

“I won’t quit.”

“Why?”

“Because I won’t get a chance like this in my life.”

“I will never teach you my Dokmun martial arts?”

“I don’t even want that. The opportunity I mentioned is the opportunity to learn martial arts from Majon-nim. I will tell you later when I have ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) a child. This father, he learned martial arts from Hyeolcheon-do-ma when he was young. That’s enough. If you live as a warrior and have that many memories, that’s enough.”

“You are thinking about getting married.”

“Yes, I want to.”

“Why?”

“I want to raise a child. That’s why I want to give him the paternal love that my father never gave him.”

There was a story and sadness in his words.

“What if your child hates you like you do?”

“Then…… would you let my child do this training?”

Hyeolcheon-do-ma snickered at Seo Dae-ryong’s words.

Seo Dae-ryong also laughed heartily at the thought of making Hyeolcheon-do-ma laugh.

Bloodthirsty Doma said as he closed the window.

“A thousand more times!”