Chapter 41
41
"Deokju, stay back ten paces."
"Yes, Elder."
After sending Deokju away, Dang Jung sat cross-legged in front of me with a solemn expression.
"Now, first, try sitting cross-legged."
I followed Dang Jung and crossed my legs. Crossing both feet over my knees...
"Huh? Grandpa, how do I do this? My ankles won't go up."
"...To think I have to teach you how to sit cross-legged first. I have a long way to go."
Dang Jung, suppressing a sigh, came over and adjusted my feet. It was a position that required more flexibility than it looked.
As I awkwardly wiggled my feet, Dang Jung chuckled and opened his mouth.
"Young Miss, what do you think poison is?"
"Um... poison is poison."
It was a dumbfounded answer, but Dang Jung didn't scold me.
"That's right. Poison is poison. Whether you mix it with water or alcohol, it's still poison. Do you know what that means?"
"Well, poison doesn't dilute easily?"
"Yes. One drop of poison is enough to contaminate a well. But to purify that one drop, you need ten wells. Conversely, it means poison has good penetrating power. It can permeate all Qi."
"Permeate?"
As I tilted my head at the unfamiliar concept, Dang Jung nodded.
"What do you think will happen if you release a freshwater fish into the sea?"
"It'll die."
"What about a saltwater fish in freshwater?"
"It'll still die."
"Martial Artists are the same. If someone who has cultivated pure Inner Energy accepts impure Inner Energy, they will become a cripple. Even if you inject Inner Energy containing the Energy of dispelling evil into someone who has mastered Demonic Arts, their Dantian will shatter."
"You mean the qualities of Inner Energy must be the same?"
"You understand quickly. That's why you shouldn't recklessly exchange Internal Qi with Martial Artists from other Martial Sect / Schools. Each School has different properties."
Dang Jung, changing his gaze, raised the corner of his mouth and asked.
"But what if you permeate the accepted Qi with poison?"
I pondered deeply.
Permeate it with poison? Give the Inner Energy a common property?
"Are you saying that if you dissolve Inner Energy with different qualities into poison and make them the same, you can accept them into your Dantian?"
"You're smart. No need to explain. Then how can you change the properties of Inner Energy?"
"Um... is it like making the Dantian a poison jar? So that anything you put in becomes part of the poison?"
Dang Jung smiled contentedly, as if he liked my answer.
"That's right. That's my Unique mental cultivation technique. A secret technique that no one can imitate. You can't even attempt it without poison resistance."
At his proud voice, I laughed weakly.
I guess so. Ordinary people would die if they carried poison in their bodies...
"Then how do you make a Dantian?"
"First, you have to recite the Incantation..."
Dang Jung, trailing off, scratched his chin. He stared at the air with a serious face.
What's wrong? I glanced at Dang Jung, rolling my eyes.
"I just made it up, so I don't remember it after so long. It's not important, so don't worry about it and close your eyes."
...Is it okay to forget the Incantation of the mental cultivation technique? Isn't it important?
"Grandpa, can I trust you?"
"You rascal. What do you take this grandpa for? Just close your eyes."
I really can trust him, right? I glanced at Dang Jung and closed my eyes.
* * *
The excitement of finally learning proper Martial Arts Technique was fleeting, and I soon squirmed with boredom.
It was fine to gather the External energy flowing in through my breath and condense it into something the size of a grain of rice. It was also okay to thoroughly chew the impure External energy and dissolve it into the poison.
The problem was what came next.
Even if I circulated the Qi along the path Dang Jung had cleared, my Lower dantian only tickled, and there was no sign of a Dantian forming.
Why isn't it forming? How long do I have to do this?
Unable to endure the boredom, I opened my eyes slightly as I endlessly moved the Qi.
It was dark all around, as if the sun had already set.
Surprised by the darkness with not a single light, I looked around, and Dang Jung's voice was heard.
"Your concentration is good."
Dang Jung, with his arms crossed, was watching me. I rubbed my stiff neck and asked.
"Grandpa, what time is it?"
"It's past midnight."
"Huh? Midnight?"
Had eight hours passed since I started circulating energy?
It felt like only an hour, but it was already night. I felt like my sense of time was broken.
As I scratched my head with a dumbfounded face, Dang Jung asked with a satisfied look.
"So, how was it?"
"I still don't really know. My Lower dantian just feels ticklish. Is it usually like this?"
"You can't be full on your first try. You'll get a feel for it in a few more days."
Dang Jung replied as if it were natural. He didn't expect me to create a Dantian right away today either.
"Let's take a look."
Dang Jung, naturally grabbing my wrist, sent in True energy. I could feel the dark blue True energy examining every corner of my body.
Dang Jung, twitching his eyebrows, let out a hollow laugh.
"...You've gathered it well. I didn't know you could scrape it all together like this."
"Huh?"
"It means your Lower dantian has properly settled. The size isn't bad either."
Dang Jung, withdrawing his True energy, stroked my head.
"The tickling in your Lower dantian is because the Spiritual energy remaining in the Fine meridians is mixed with your True energy. It'll be fine once it dissolves into the True energy, so don't worry about it."
"Really? I made it properly?"
"Yes. You're quite something."
As I rubbed my Lower dantian with wonder, a faint Qi moved along my palm with a gentle ripple.
Wow. What is this?
Once I realized that a Dantian had formed, I could feel it.
The hot Spiritual energy of the Dark Blood Fire Energy, the cool Yin energy of the Thousand-Year Violet Jade, the pure Qi of the Spiritual herbs, and the impure External energy were mixed together, dyed in the same light.
It was a dark blue light, like Dang Jung's True energy.
"Grandpa, this color is the same as yours!"
"It's the same mental cultivation technique. The color of your eyes will change too when your Inner Energy accumulates."
Dang Jung chuckled and replied to my fuss.
"To be able to accept the Qi of the entire universe and dissolve it in your Dantian, isn't it profound? There's a microcosm inside your body too."
...What you just said sounded like a cult leader.
"That's enough for today. Hold onto Grandpa and slowly get up. Are you dizzy?"
"No? I'm fine... no, I'm not. I'm dizzy."
The moment I stood up holding onto Dang Jung, the world spun.
Seeing all the muscles in my body screaming, it seemed I had been sitting in the same position for too long.
Ah, my legs. My legs.
As blood began to flow into my legs, my soles tingled. As I hopped around on one foot, Dang Jung furrowed his brow.
"Tsk, tsk. What are you doing so frivolously? Come here."
Dang Jung, clicking his tongue, laid me down on his lap. He covered my face with thin silk and began to press down on the top of my head.
"When a Martial Artist is Circulating energy and regulating breath, they become vulnerable to even small shocks. Only do it when this grandpa or Deokju is by your side to be a Guardian."
"Yes."
"Of course, it's good to do it often. Your body will become stronger and your Inner Energy will accumulate faster. But don't touch the Baihui point recklessly. It's dangerous."
"Yes."
"You can't touch Innate true energy either. That's using your life force."
"Okay."
"And..."
He continued to pour out instructions as if he couldn't rest easy. Even so, he didn't stop Thrusting Palace Acupressure.
The pressure control was so perfect that each time he pushed out the knotted muscles along the grain, the fatigue melted away.
Wow. It's so refreshing.
My eyes closed on their own at the languid sensation.
"...have to. Young Miss. Are you sleeping?"
"No..."
Dang Jung's voice gradually faded.
I have to say I'm not sleeping... I'm sleepy...
I dropped my head weakly.
* * *
"...Goodness, I'm going to die raising a child in my old age."
Dang Jung, chuckling, brushed away the hair that had fallen over his sleeping disciple's face.
For a Martial Artist to fall asleep so defenselessly, exposing their vital points.
He should scold her severely, but he didn't feel like it. Rather, he was pleased.
It meant she trusted Dang Jung that much.
Just today, she had been whining and complaining. It was different from when she was afraid of offending Dang Jung and carefully watching his mood.
Dang Jung was very pleased that his granddaughter was acting her age and starting to rely on him.
"Elder, I'll do it."
"Leave it. This old man will move her."
Dang Jung, waving away Deokju who was approaching, carefully picked up Dang So-hye.
"She's sleeping soundly. How did I end up picking up such a little thing?"
He muttered, carefully moving so as not to wake the person in his arms. Deokju quickly followed behind him.
"How is the new master? Is she kind?"
"Yes. She is a good person."
"This one is soft-hearted and can't be ruthless. Deokju, you must take good care of her."
"Yes, Elder."
Dang Jung, giving instructions, patted Dang So-hye's back as she mumbled as if having a nightmare.
"Umm..."
"It's okay. Sleep more."
Deokju, glancing sideways at the harmonious grandfather and granddaughter, swallowed hard.
Dang Jung personally carrying his sleeping granddaughter and whispering sweetly to sleep more was unfamiliar.
Did the Poison King have such a side?
Even in the Dang family, famous for their bad personalities, the Poison King was second to none in terms of eccentricity.
That Poison King was coaxing and comforting his granddaughter, teaching her Martial Arts Technique, always carrying her around, feeding her Spiritual herbs every seven days, and even putting her to sleep gently with Thrusting Palace Acupressure?
Anyone who knew the Poison King wouldn't believe it.
What was surprising was his master as well.
The Patriarch's illegitimate child who appeared one day holding the Poison King's hand. Deokju's new master, the youngest Young Miss, was an amazing Martial Arts prodigy.
It takes an ordinary person a month to train to feel the flowing Qi. Some dullards don't feel it for over half a year.
But Dang So-hye gathered Qi and created a Dantian in just one day after learning the mental cultivation technique.
Dang Jung had fed her Spiritual herbs and expanded her meridians with guiding Qi, but it was still an extraordinary speed.
Deokju thought.
Perhaps, her master would inherit the name of the Poison King and dominate Jianghu.
When Dang So-hye returned in Dang Jung's arms, Kyung-ah, who was sitting on the porch waiting, made a shrill sound.
"Hic! Y, Y, Young Miss is... are you... sick?"
"She just fell asleep. I'll lay her on the bed, so change her clothes, wipe her hands and feet with a wet towel, and put her to sleep."
"Yes, Elder."
Songji, answering instead, quickly opened the bedroom door and checked the bedding.
Dang Jung, glancing at the bedroom, frowned.
"Young Miss will be cold. What if she catches a cold when the room is so chilly? Warm up a hot water bottle and put it in the blanket."
"Yes."
It wasn't likely to be cold in a season when spring flowers were falling and summer was approaching, but Songji prepared a hot water bottle as instructed.
Dang Jung, holding Dang So-hye for a long time, touched the warmed bedding with his hand before laying Dang So-hye on the bed.
"Young Miss, have good dreams."
Dang Jung, whispering softly with a smiling face, soon erased his expression and left the room.
