“First, let me explain about the Ho Wang Gong.”
“Isn’t that the external skill that strengthens the body?”
Pang Oh Jin, who had placed a large jar and an empty bowl on the ground, nodded his head.
“That’s right. However, the training areas are different. The three areas that most external skills train are?”
“The skin, muscles, and bones.”
“You know it well. Most external skills train these three areas to increase their strength or protect their body. Depending on how quickly they can train these areas, the level of the external skill can vary.”
For example, the Iron King’s Heart Method that I have learned. I can train all three areas, and the speed is not bad either.
That’s why Hong Yeon Hwa and Pang So So are both pretty good external skills.
On the other hand, there’s Chul Po Sam, the representative of third-rate external skills. This guy only toughens his skin, and the speed is painfully slow.
“The difference between the Ho Wang Gong and other external skills comes from here. Where do you think you need to train to make existing external skills stronger?”
“Uh… internal organs? Like the heart?”
“The heart is not entirely wrong. However, the side effects are too great in that case.”
“If there are side effects…?”
“Our Pang family has a unique bone structure. So we have researched various external skills to find ways to utilize it for a long time… and among them, there was someone who trained their heart.”
“What happened to that person?”
“Their heart exploded, and they died.”
“….”
Okay. Let’s not touch the heart area recklessly.
“… Let’s get back to the point. The Ho Wang Gong trains the brain.”
Pang Oh Jin tapped his head. Wait, does that mean…?
Pang Oh Jin saw my expression and grinned.
“You guessed it right. The Ho Wang Gong is training the brain.”
“But isn’t the brain as dangerous as the heart?”
If you accidentally touch the White Marrow Point and become an idiot, or if you make a mistake near your head during the practice and spill blood like a bucket, there must be more than a few cases of that…
“Of course, we don’t directly touch the brain. We just release the limits of the body that the brain controls.”
“….?”
I’ve heard this setting somewhere before.
“You also know what kind of nature Pang family’s martial arts have through the Oho Danmun, right?”
“Yes. It’s a martial art that relentlessly attacks and prevents the opponent from using their strength, a hegemonic martial art, isn’t it?”
“Right. As a result, you can sometimes see opponents who are cornered making a final desperate move. Most of the time, it ends with just that, and they are finished off with the openings they reveal afterward…”
“Some people must have shown extraordinary power beyond their limits in a crisis situation.”
“Hmm? Well, since your fighting style is similar to Pang family’s martial arts, you might know.”
Actually, it’s something I’ve heard here and there in my past life, but I don’t need to mention it.
Like the power at the scene of a fire or the technique of releasing the limits that the brain puts on muscles to protect oneself, which appears in various works of fiction.
It was a concept that I was familiar with.
“But isn’t that something that can’t be consciously controlled? Even if you can consciously exert that power, I don’t think your body can withstand it.”
“You know it well! Basically, what you said is correct. However, isn’t there one thing you’re missing? The Ho Wang Gong is not a simple technique. It gradually releases the limits according to the achievements, rather than releasing them all at once.”
“In the process, the achievements of the existing external skills are also deepened.”
Most external skills follow the principle of super-regeneration, where broken bones become harder and severed muscles become tougher.
In the process, the ki is melted to exceed the limits of ordinary organisms.
Pang Oh Jin nodded with a satisfied smile, as if my prediction was correct.
“You’re quick to understand. Then let’s start right away. When you first learn it, you need the help of medicine to practice smoothly, but once you get on track, you don’t need it.”
So, the goal this time is to surpass the initial stage of Ho Wang Gong before I leave for Mo San.
“A tiger uses all its strength to catch a rabbit. Once you learn Ho Wang Gong, you can fight with full strength at any time.”
Pang Oh Jin said so and opened a large jar, pouring its contents into a bowl.
A dark brownish-purple color, a strange color that mixes sticky viscosity and a foul smell. It felt like something too strange to eat, like something that humans couldn’t eat.
“Now, drink it all.”
“Do I really have to drink this?”
“It also has the effect of making your senses sensitive, making it easier to feel tense situations. Without this, you would have to feel a real threat to your life… which is better?”
“I’ll just drink it.”
I reflexively accepted it, but I couldn’t bring myself to put it in my mouth. Then, I heard Pang So So’s voice from behind.
“Oh, that’s been a while. I didn’t want to drink it to death when I was young… but don’t worry. If you hold your breath and drink it, it’s not bad.”
“Really?”
“Do you think I would lie to you about something like that?”
“Well, then…”
I slowly swallowed the medicine, as Pang So So had suggested. The sticky texture and weight of the ginseng were a bit off-putting, but it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t bear it, as Pang So So had promised, even though it tasted a bit strange.
“Eugh.”
It wasn’t exactly tasty, either.
As I made a face, Pang So So, who had hugged the red lotus flower on her lap like a doll, opened her mouth and chuckled.
“Seeing Jin Gaga reminds me of when I was young. After drinking the medicine, he used to scrunch up his face and stomp his feet… “
“So, did this father always prepare honey water for you?”
“Yes. Later on, even though I got used to it, I still pretended to be scared and shake to get some honey water.”
What did the young Pang So So look like? It’s a shame there are no photos in this era.
“Oh! Jin Gaga. Do you know about that? During Ho Wang Gong training, if you shout ‘Ho Wang!’ and release your ki, you can achieve more progress!”
“Huh? Really?”
“My father used to say that, so I did that every day. Isn’t that right, Father?”
“Um…”
Pang Oh Jin hesitated for a moment, then smirked and shook his head.
“To be honest, that was all a lie.”
“What?”
“I just wanted to see my cute daughter joking around a bit…”
“What?!”
Pang So So was stunned, like someone who had just learned that a duck-billed platypus had teeth when it was young, but lost them during its growth process and only had a beak now.
“No! How could you deceive me like that?! I thought it was real all this time!”
“I was going to tell you when you grew up, but you ran away before that and didn’t bring back any prey.”
“I’m 21 years old! I’ve grown up a long time ago!”
“You’re still a baby in this father’s eyes.”
The two women suddenly started arguing. In fact, adults intentionally giving out false information to children is quite common.
I myself have had a similar experience.
In my past life, there was a time when I refused to eat kimchi no matter what.
It was because I couldn’t handle spicy food as a child, but the problem was that I also refused to eat dongchimi, which is a type of water kimchi, just because it was kimchi.
At that time, my mother lied to me and told me it was soda to get me to eat it…
By the way, that lie was exposed when I started elementary school and called dongchimi soda during lunch, only to be teased by my classmates.
That well-intentioned lie to get me to eat my side dishes ended up hurting me. At the time, I was more shocked that my mother had deceived me than being teased by my classmates.
“Really?”
“I’m sure Pang So So is feeling that kind of betrayal right now.”
“…But now I think I know why Pang Oh Jin lied.”
“Do you remember when young Pang So So used to run around shouting ‘Ho Wang!’ during Ho Wang Gong training?”
“That must have been so cute.”
“Really…?”
Pang So So blinked as if she didn’t quite understand.
She turned to face Hong Yeon Hwa, who was eating snacks and had buried her forehead in her chest.
“Hong Unni? Can you do it once for me?”
“M-Me?”
Hong Yeon Hwa was surprised and nearly choked on her snack.
“There’s no mirror here, and I can’t confirm what it feels like if I do it myself.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Hong Yeon Hwa hesitated, not really feeling up to it. But she couldn’t ignore Pang So So’s request, so she put down her snack and raised her hands, mimicking an animal’s movements as she opened her mouth carefully.
“Ho Wang!”
“Ugh…”
Pang So So froze up like she had been struck by lightning.
When there was no response from her, Hong Yeon Hwa asked again, tilting her head as if to ask if it was right.
“Ho Wang…?”
“Ugh…Kyaa!”
Maybe she couldn’t hold back anymore. Pang So So hugged Hong Yeon Hwa and started smacking her cheeks.
“Let go! What’s wrong with you all of a sudden? Can’t you breathe?”
“So cute! Hong Unni is so cute!”
I couldn’t see her face, but I could tell from Pang So So’s reaction what kind of feeling it was.
“Kyaa! It’s ticklish there! Let go! I don’t want to let you touch me because you’re always clinging to Hong Unni, Jin Gaga!”
Hong Yeon Hwa tried to push Pang So So’s shoulder with her small palm, or poke her in the side, but Pang So So kept pressing her down and started to stroke her here and there.
“Ugh…Why is it that I…?”
In the end, Hong Yeon Hwa gave up struggling and accepted Pang So So’s touch weakly.
When Hong Yeon Hwa’s arms began to shake weakly with resignation, Pang So So finally seemed satisfied and let her go.
“Phew…That was really good, Hong Unni. Now I’ll show Jin Gaga too.”
“Huh?”
Before Hong Yeon Hwa could react, Pang So So turned back to me.
“Really?”
“I’m sure Pang So So is feeling that kind of betrayal right now.”
“…But now I think I know why Pang Oh Jin lied.”
“Do you remember when young Pang So So used to run around shouting ‘Ho Wang!’ during Ho Wang Gong training?”
“That must have been so cute.”
“Really…?”
Pang So So blinked as if she didn’t quite understand.
She turned to face Hong Yeon Hwa, who was eating snacks and had buried her forehead in her chest.
“Hong Unni? Can you do it once for me?”
“M-Me?”
Hong Yeon Hwa was surprised and nearly choked on her snack.
“There’s no mirror here, and I can’t confirm what it feels like if I do it myself.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Hong Yeon Hwa hesitated, not really feeling up to it. But she couldn’t ignore Pang So So’s request, so she put down her snack and raised her hands, mimicking an animal’s movements as she opened her mouth carefully.
“Ho Wang!”
“Ugh…”
Pang So So froze up like she had been struck by lightning.
When there was no response from her, Hong Yeon Hwa asked again, tilting her head as if to ask if it was right.
“Ho Wang…?”
“Ugh…Kyaa!”
Maybe she couldn’t hold back anymore. Pang So So hugged Hong Yeon Hwa and started smacking her cheeks.
“Let go! What’s wrong with you all of a sudden? Can’t you breathe?”
“So cute! Hong Unni is so cute!”
I couldn’t see her face, but I could tell from Pang So So’s reaction what kind of feeling it was.
“Kyaa! It’s ticklish there! Let go! I don’t want to let you touch me because you’re always clinging to Hong Unni, Jin Gaga!”
Hong Yeon Hwa tried to push Pang So So’s shoulder with her small palm, or poke her in the side, but Pang So So kept pressing her down and started to stroke her here and there.
“Ugh…Why is it that I…?”
In the end, Hong Yeon Hwa gave up struggling and accepted Pang So So’s touch weakly.
When Hong Yeon Hwa’s arms began to shake weakly with resignation, Pang So So finally seemed satisfied and let her go.
“Phew…That was really good, Hong Unni. Now I’ll show Jin Gaga too.”
“Huh?”
Before Hong Yeon Hwa could react, Pang So So turned back to me.
“Did you know that Hong Unni used to do the Ho Wang Gong training with me when we were younger? She’s really good at it. Do you want to see, Jin Gaga?”
