Chapter 1537 – 1537. The Ascent To Radiance
After a series of happenings, Seong Ji-gon and I sat facing each other at a table in the inn.
In my past life, I was the Heavenly Demon who ruled the martial world, but in this life, Baek Mu-han, a humble innkeeper from a small village, brought us food.
As was typical for the inn, it was noodles. The broth was so clear it was almost transparent, and the white noodles were neatly arranged. It looked rather plain, and in fact, it was.
I ate three chopsticks full of noodles and stopped. The fact that I ate a whole three chopsticks meant it was at least a decent place.
Slurp, slurp!
Seong Ji-gon, sitting across from me, was slurping down his noodles. I glanced at his bowl and then at mine. It wasn’t just my imagination. His bowl was filled with significantly more noodles than mine.
I glanced towards the kitchen and saw Baek Mu-han’s grandmother watching Seong Ji-gon.
“Wow~! This is so delicious! Yu-jin! Aren’t these noodles incredibly tasty? I’ve never had such delicious noodles in my life! They’re even better than the ones my mother used to make!”
Seong Ji-gon spoke in an exaggerated tone. It was clearly a performance for the old woman. As far as I knew, Seong Ji-gon didn’t like noodles that much. He preferred meat dishes.
And in this world, neither my mother nor his knew how to cook. They were women who were born into wealthy families and lived as wealthy wives. There was no reason for them to cook when they had professional chefs.
“Yu-jin, aren’t you going to eat your noodles?”
“They’re not bad… but they’re not really my taste.”
“Can I eat yours? These noodles are really good.”
“Go ahead.”
I pushed my bowl of noodles towards Seong Ji-gon. He immediately began inhaling them.
I glanced at the old woman, who was smiling contentedly. Baek Mu-han was watching Seong Ji-gon with a complicated expression. He didn’t seem to care about me at all.
After finishing all the noodles, Seong Ji-gon grinned and stood up abruptly, bowing to the old woman.
“Ms. Biwolryeong! The noodles were delicious! They were incredibly tasty!”
“I’m glad you enjoyed them!”
The old woman laughed heartily, clearly pleased. Watching this, I thought Seong Ji-gon would probably sleep with her within three days.
‘Maybe even less than two days.’
I checked on the Taoist priest sitting a little further away. The handsome priest was pretending not to, but he was wary of Seong Ji-gon and me.
‘Gwanggeom Myeongwol, the top disciple of the Wudang Sect. How should I kill him?’
I couldn’t kill him in front of Baek Mu-han. Baek Mu-han would 100% interfere. Killing him without Baek Mu-han knowing was the best option. But it wouldn’t be easy to kill Myeongwol while evading Baek Mu-han’s senses.
‘Should I lure Myeongwol out of the village?’
I began to formulate a plan while watching Seong Ji-gon talk to the old woman.
‘Kill Myeongwol and use Baek Mu-han.’
Mental attacks wouldn’t work on Baek Mu-han, by the way. It was because of the reformation system that King Yama had given him.
‘That means I can’t use the absolute hypnosis sticker to find out about Baek Mu-han’s Heavenly Demon martial arts.’
Even if the reformation system didn’t exist, Baek Mu-han’s mental strength, with his memories of his past life, would be far beyond that of an absolute master, so it wouldn’t work.
‘He’s the type who wouldn’t utter a word even if I tortured him with bone-breaking techniques. It would be the same even if I took the old woman hostage. He’s only suppressing his true nature because of the reformation system, but his essence is that of a great demon.’
Baek Mu-han would eventually achieve enlightenment and reform in the future. But that was in the latter part of the original story. I couldn’t be sure if Baek Mu-han would truly reform in this world.
‘There’s no benefit to killing Baek Mu-han right now. So then…’
Then I’ll use him.
Like Kyle in the [Baekhwan] world, I would use Baek Mu-han.
This world was full of all sorts of mysterious treasures, so maybe a treasure that would allow me to obtain Baek Mu-han’s Heavenly Demon martial arts would appear later. Until then, I would maintain a good relationship with Baek Mu-han and use him.
I approached Baek Mu-han.
“Innkeeper, it seems we’ll be staying at the inn for a few days. Do you have any rooms available?”
Baek Mu-han, who had been watching Seong Ji-gon, turned his head towards me.
“We do have rooms available… but you said you’ll be staying for a few days?”
“My friend and I are tired from our long journey. We need some rest.”
“This village is quiet and might be boring…”
“It’s perfect for resting.”
“…I understand. I’ll show you to your rooms.”
Seong Ji-gon and I went up to our rooms. After briefly checking the rooms, we left the inn and wandered around the village.
Most of the villagers were elderly. There were a few young women, but none of them were beauties. I focused on understanding the layout of the village.
“This village is peaceful and nice. Especially since there are so many ladies?”
“Ladies? You mean ‘old ladies’?”
“Old ladies?”
“Yeah, old women.”
“Old? They’ve just matured after living their lives diligently. If you knew their taste, you wouldn’t be able to escape.”
“Bullshit. You can have all the old women you want. You said you were living in Sichuan, right? How’s work? Is it manageable?”
“The military is all the same. Usually, I focus on administration and training, and when something happens, I grab my weapon and go.”
“Does the military have to go out on missions? The Jin Empire rules this continent.”
“There aren’t any other countries, but there are martial artists. You don’t know how much trouble martial artists cause. And the monsters. The monsters are really annoying. Even if you exterminate them, they reappear after a while and attack humans.”
“Sounds like you’re busy. Your path to success isn’t blocked, is it? It would be great if you became a general as soon as possible.”
“It doesn’t seem too difficult to become a general. My master is helping me in many ways. It’s just a matter of time.”
Seong Ji-gon’s master, Guwol Seonja (Nine Moon Fairy), was once the crown prince’s teacher. That crown prince died of old age without inheriting the throne. It was because the emperor didn’t age and didn’t die. Even though the crown prince was dead, the influence Guwol Seonja had on the imperial family couldn’t be ignored.
“Recently, I’ve been getting marriage proposals because of my master’s name.”
“Marriage proposals? Well, it’s about time you got married. Considering your age, it’s a bit late…”
Seong Ji-gon and I looked like we were in our early to mid-twenties. Reaching the Five Qi realm at an early age slowed down our aging, and after consuming all sorts of beneficial elixirs, our aging had practically stopped.
“Who are the marriage prospects?”
“Most of them are daughters or granddaughters of high-ranking officials. Oh, and this isn’t confirmed, but there’s even a princess.”
“A princess, as in royalty?! If you marry her, it’s more than just opening the path to success.”
“I don’t think it’s for me. But if I don’t get married, people will think it’s strange… Ah, if I get married, I’ll let you taste the princess’s virgin pussy. Are you curious?”
“I am curious… but are you really going to let me taste the princess’s virgin pussy?”
“The princess isn’t my type.”
“You, you lucky bastard!”
I was so happy that I put my arm around Seong Ji-gon and stomped my feet. A princess’s virgin pussy! Just the words made my mouth water and endorphins surge.
“Yu-jin, wait, just stop for a second.”
Seong Ji-gon said in a serious tone. I tried to suppress my excited heart.
“Why?”
“That woman over there.”
He was looking at a field. An old woman was squatting in the field, working.
“Isn’t that sight of her focusing on her work truly beautiful?”
These were the words of my friend who had promised to give me a princess’s pussy. Instead of cursing, I silently stared at the old woman working in the field.
I tried to feel the charm.
I tried to feel the charm, but it was impossible. She was just a shabby old woman. Her back was bent, her hair was gray, and her hands and face were full of wrinkles. Honestly, I didn’t feel anything.
“I don’t get it.”
“You’ll understand someday.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever understand.”
“I can’t take it anymore. I’ll be right back.”
Seong Ji-gon’s eyes sparkled with lust as he walked towards the field. This guy was the real deal.
I couldn’t bear to watch Seong Ji-gon defile the old woman, so I turned my head and looked at the sky. The weather was disgustingly nice.
•••
The next day.
We woke up at the Baekmu Inn and went down to the first floor for breakfast. It wasn’t noodles, but pork dumplings. Seong Ji-gon was enjoying his meal again.
We were in the middle of breakfast when Myeongwol walked towards us.
“Greetings. I am Myeongwol from the Wudang Sect. It seems we’ve met by fate, so why don’t we join tables? I’ll pay for the meal.”
I couldn’t think of a reason to refuse. I nodded to him.
“Please, sit down.”
“Thank you. What are your names?”
“I am Joseon’s First Swordsman, Mujuk Yu-jin. This is my friend and brother, Choi-gang Ji-gon.”
“I am Choi-gang Ji-gon.”
“Your names… are quite unusual.”
“I hear that a lot.”
He clearly didn’t believe that they were our real names. And they weren’t.
Myeongwol raised his hand towards Baek Mu-han, who was in the corner.
“Mu-han! Bring three bottles of Jukyeopcheong! We’ve made a precious connection, so we can’t have a gathering without alcohol!”
“Shouldn’t Taoists abstain from alcohol?”
“Don’t be so rigid. How can we have such a good gathering without alcohol?”
“…Well, I understand.”
Baek Mu-han brought the Jukyeopcheong. We raised our glasses and continued our conversation.
“How did you two end up in this village?”
“There’s no particular reason. We were wandering the martial world and ended up in Gangno Village. It’s a peaceful village, not as chaotic as the cities, so we plan to stay here for a few days and rest. What brings you to this village, Taoist?”
“I am traveling the martial world, practicing chivalry and justice. Specifically, I am eliminating evil. The more evil is reduced, the better the lives of the people will be.”
“Is there evil in this village?”
“I can’t be sure yet. I came to Gangno Village in pursuit of the traces of the Monstrous Hole Demon, but I haven’t found him yet.”
The Monstrous Hole Demon.
He was a famous demon from the evil faction.
Myeongwol arriving in the village in pursuit of the Monstrous Hole Demon was also as it was in the original story.
“If you haven’t found him yet, isn’t it possible that he’s dead? Or that he’s already left the village?”
“He was injured. He must be hiding in this village, recovering. That’s why… if you have nothing to do, would you help me? It would be very reassuring to have experts like you helping me.”
“Choi-gang Ji-gon, what should we do?”
“Let’s help him. I like this village too. I want to help.”
I nodded and said to Myeongwol.
“We’ll help you.”
“Thank you! Thank you so much! May the Heavenly Lord bless your future!”
