Bu Eunseol continued to circulate his energy relentlessly even amid the agony.
The Ban-Geuk Mind Method, which could simultaneously employ yin and yang energies, embraced everything—and that included poison as well.
‘It’s not converting into true energy.’
When the Seven-Step Soul-Severing Snakes bit him, the injected venom had instantly transformed into true energy, healing his body.
But now that the Red-Faced Black Scorpions’ poison entered at the same time, it became an entirely different matter.
Even the Ban-Geuk Method was utterly failing to neutralize these two poisons.
‘If only it could become “using poison to counter poison.”’
Now the threat to his life felt real.
He had hoped the mixing of different poisons might produce at least some “using poison to counter poison” effect.
Instead, they had fused into a new poison that seemed intent on melting his five viscera and six bowels.
Ssssss.
Before long, hot steam began rising from his body.
If this continued, his body would eventually melt away completely.
‘Hm?’
Amid the excruciating pain, as Bu Eunseol stared upward at the ceiling, his eyes suddenly widened.
Words that had been completely invisible just moments ago were now appearing one by one as the two poisons were injected simultaneously.
‘Turning Poison into Merit, Poison Transformed into Qi…’
Unlike the renowned poison arts of the martial world, these were secret techniques whose purpose was to purify absorbed poison within the body and use that power to strengthen muscles and activate nerves.
‘I have no need to strengthen my physical body.’
Even in such torment, Bu Eunseol began to study the ceiling inscriptions carefully.
‘What if, instead of reinforcing the body, I use that power to purify the body itself?’
Even Ak Muryeong, rumored to be obsessed with martial arts, would have cursed him as a madman if he saw him now.
He was on the verge of drawing his last breath, yet instead of accepting the ceiling method exactly as written, he was stubbornly twisting and applying it in his own way.
‘It works.’
The moment he used the method to purify the poison seeping into his body,
Oooong.
His body grew comfortable, and suddenly he felt as though he were floating lightly on clouds.
By adapting the ceiling inscriptions to cleanse his body of poisonous qi as though sweeping away filth, not only did the remaining poison vanish, but for an instant every ounce of power in him disappeared as well.
‘This is…’
Even though all his strength, super-senses, and internal energy had vanished, his body felt incomparably light, as though all the turbid, unclean energy that had permeated him had been expelled.
‘Impure, unrefined power and turbid qi have been cleanly driven out.’
Bu Eunseol closed his eyes.
The more he circulated according to the method, the more it felt as though he were returning to an embryonic state.
“Done.”
In the meantime, the paralysis that had gripped his body lifted.
Quickly rising to his feet, Bu Eunseol gaped at the sprawled snakes and scorpions around him.
“Why on earth is Wind God Palace raising so many venomous creatures?
This many poisonous things could never occur naturally.
Moreover, this is Wind God Palace—the place that wields the most mysterious of the Four Divine Energies, the Wind-Cloud Divine Qi.
Yet they went out of their way to create this underground hidden chamber to cultivate venomous insects?
“Could it be that one must cultivate poison arts in order to master Wind-Cloud Divine Qi?”
After pondering for a moment, Bu Eunseol shook his head.
“No, that can’t be.”
All Four Divine Energies originate from nature; they are pure powers untainted by any impurity.
There was no need for the power of venomous creatures.
If poison arts were mixed in, the power would only weaken.
Thud, thud.
Bu Eunseol slowly began walking toward the passageway.
‘My internal energy has dropped to barely one day’s worth.’
Though he had just managed to purify the poison, almost all his internal energy was gone and he had no strength left.
Yet strangely, compared to before he was afflicted by the light energy, his body felt far lighter.
Shwaak.
At that moment something shot rapidly toward the space between Bu Eunseol’s brows.
He twisted his body to dodge, but it still grazed his skin lightly.
Looking closely, it was an extremely sharp scale.
Grrrrrr.
Passing through the passageway and entering a large stone chamber, a house-sized serpent that spat scales revealed itself.
It was the legendary spirit creature Blood Python, in the form of an imugi* before becoming a true dragon.
*Imugi - literally a large snake that turns into a dragon after a thousand or so years
“So that’s why that Heartless Shadow fellow deliberately dropped me here.”
Bu Eunseol wore a hollow smile.
He had wondered why a young man from the Returning to One Realm—not particularly outstanding in martial arts—had dared to challenge him so boldly.
This hidden chamber was teeming with an unimaginable number of venomous creatures and spirit beasts.
“Fine. Let’s do this.”
Slash! Swish!
Bu Eunseol wielded his Silent Tiger Soul Sword nimbly, slashing at the Blood Python.
Clang!
Sparks flew, but the Blood Python could not be cut.
‘Only this much?’
The Silent Tiger Soul Sword might look like an ordinary iron sword on the surface, but it was forged from a mysterious metal whose durability defied imagination.
To what degree?
It was strong enough to contain the Power of Harmony—which could erase all things in the world—without breaking.
Clang!
Yet the Blood Python’s body was so tremendously tough that even the Silent Tiger Soul Sword could not sever it.
Whoosh!
At that moment the Blood Python’s tail whipped toward Bu Eunseol’s body.
Boom!
Unable to evade completely, he was sent flying more than ten zhang and crashed into the wall.
An ordinary person would have been crushed on impact, but Bu Eunseol used the Nangyang Pavilion martial mystery Soft Body Escape Strike to dissipate the force and avoid instant death.
Still, with his internal energy at rock bottom, he could not generate sword aura capable of cutting the Blood Python.
“Good.”
A bloody gleam rose in Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
“No matter how powerless I am, I cannot lose to a mere beast.”
Shaaak!
As the Blood Python lunged, Bu Eunseol did not dodge; instead he struck downward with all his might.
Clang!
Only a metallic ring echoed—the creature did not budge.
Yet Bu Eunseol did not stop; he struck the same spot relentlessly.
Clang! Clang!
When he continued pounding the exact same place without pause,
Psssh.
Finally a scale split open and blood gushed from the gap.
Whoosh!
The Blood Python tried once more to lash with its tail, but Bu Eunseol swiftly evaded.
But that was a feint.
Crunch, crunch.
In an instant the Blood Python coiled around Bu Eunseol and opened its massive jaws.
At that moment, Bu Eunseol’s eyes caught sight of white fur beneath its jaw.
Everywhere else gleamed with glossy black scales, but that one spot looked as though white fur had grown there.
Pook.
He thrust the Silent Tiger Soul Sword in and like piercing tofu, the blade sank all the way to the hilt in an instant.
Crimson blood poured over Bu Eunseol in torrents from the wound.
Boom! Boom!
At the same time the Blood Python began writhing in agony.
That spot must have been its vital weakness.
“Ugh.”
Gritting his teeth, Bu Eunseol stubbornly refused to let go of the hilt.
Swoosh! Boom!
After thrashing violently for a long while, the Blood Python finally shuddered and collapsed.
Exposed to the massive volume of blood pouring from the Blood Python, Bu Eunseol was drenched from head to toe in gore.
“Huu.”
Exhausted, Bu Eunseol finally collapsed flat on his back.
Though covered in blood, his body felt even lighter.
Ssssss.
Yet the blood that touched his skin began absorbing into him like poison.
“What now…?”
As the blood was absorbed, Bu Eunseol’s skin grew even smoother and took on a strange luster.
It felt as though he had shed his previous body and been reborn into a new one.
“Something keeps changing in my body.”
Lying flat, Bu Eunseol closed his eyes.
His body felt light as a feather, as though floating on clouds, yet his strength still had not returned.
“Stubborn thing… Infinite Reverse Power.”
No matter how many venomous creatures poured out and restored his body, unless he obtained power on the level of Wind-Cloud Divine Qi, he could not awaken the strength sealed within him by the light energy affliction.
“Ugh.”
Rising once more, Bu Eunseol surveyed the area to find a way out.
“This is trouble.”
Looking at the place from which the Blood Python had emerged, he saw a long, deep passageway.
Judging by the size inside, there could be dozens—no, perhaps hundreds—of different venomous creatures.
“I need to get out quickly.”
If Elder Hyang had openly lured him into this trap, she would never leave Hyeok Sojin alone.
He had to escape this place fast and rescue him.
Gripping the Silent Tiger Soul Sword tightly, he walked forward.
Yet something was strange.
As he entered the large passageway, he felt a faint breeze blowing from somewhere.
Looking closely, the walls of the dark passageway were covered with various drawings.
They depicted countless forms of wind.
Mountain winds blowing through peaks and valleys.
Harsh winter gales.
Warm spring and summer breezes, sea winds blowing from ocean to land…
Every natural form of wind that existed was illustrated.
‘No… they aren’t mere drawings.’
As he gazed at them, it felt as though someone were transmitting martial secrets directly into his mind through an acupoint.
At the same time, the breeze blowing from somewhere grew steadily stronger.
‘Strange indeed.’
Each time the whispers entered his mind, Bu Eunseol felt an odd sensation.
Yet he still could not grasp anything concrete.
It was like reaching for a mirage that seemed within reach yet forever eluded him.
“Wind God… Passage?”
At the end of the drawings on the passageway wall were engraved the characters for Wind God Passage.
“The path the Wind God walks. Does the Wind God like poison?”
Even as he said it, a hollow laugh escaped him.
Just what was this place for?
What did the methods entering his mind truly mean? He still could not tell.
“Let’s keep going for now.”
Bu Eunseol opened the door at the end of the passageway.
Oooong!
This time a large grand hall appeared, with another door visible on the opposite side.
At the same moment, from the ceiling, countless fist-sized blood-sucking flies—Demonic Head Blood Flies—poured down in an uncountable swarm.
It was as though a black cloud had descended upon him.
With nowhere to flee, Bu Eunseol began slashing them one by one with the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
“Ugh.”
But in the end the Demonic Head Blood Flies clung blackly all over his body.
Without internal energy, no matter how he shook himself or swung his sword, he could not dislodge the leech-like creatures attached to him.
If he had been an ordinary martial artist, his blood would have been drained dry in moments, leaving him a corpse. But within Bu Eunseol’s body was the inner core of the Poison-Horn Flood Dragon, and having stored the venomous qi of countless creatures so far, his blood had become the most virulent extreme poison in the world.
Plop, plop.
As a result, the Demonic Head Blood Flies fell off after sucking only a little blood.
Yet thousands still remained.
If his blood continued to be drained like this, eventually even he would collapse.
‘Wind.’
At that moment the strange method he had heard in the passageway suddenly echoed in his mind.
The swarming Demonic Head Blood Flies were also a kind of wind.
A sticky, unpleasant wind that clung to people and sucked their blood.
Whether venomous insects moved or snakes slithered…
Everything that moved generated wind.
‘Is this Wind God Palace’s martial study?’
Finally Bu Eunseol could interpret the method that had been entering his mind since earlier.
It described the thousand transformations and myriad changes of wind.
No matter what form it took, its essence remained unchanged.
And no matter how tiny the creature, the instant it moved, it stirred the flow of air…
It was explaining the profound principle of this subtle martial art.
‘It’s similar to the Thirteen Guiding Energies.’
The Thirteen Guiding Energies could also transform into various forms while its essence remained constant.
It generated wind-like force to attack enemies and wind-like force to defend against attacks.
When the principle of Thirteen Guiding Energies that floated in his mind combined with the method engraved on the passageway wall,
Ziiing.
Before long Bu Eunseol’s body turned transparent.
The Demonic Head Blood Flies passed straight through him, unable to bite.
In that instant he had merged his body with nature, making his very flesh a part of the natural world so that nothing could invade or touch him—a mysterious power.
Avoiding the area thick with Demonic Head Blood Flies, he walked forward again and saw a wall made of light.
“It’s not a door.”
Approaching it, Bu Eunseol found only dazzling radiance; he could not pass through.
‘So if one does not comprehend the principle of wind, the Demonic Head Blood Flies are meant to kill them.’
Bu Eunseol gave a wry smile.
Wind God Passage.
True to its name, it was the path of the Wind God—a gateway only the Wind God could walk.
For anyone who could not fathom the will of the Wind God and entered anyway?
Only death awaited.
Shuuuk.
Bu Eunseol’s body briefly turned transparent and was sucked into the wall of light.
Using the wind method combined with Thirteen Guiding Energies, he passed through the light-constructed barrier in an instant.
This appeared to be a special formation or barrier technique that only one who could wield the power of the Wind God could traverse.
Boom.
Inside the door, the space was filled with a stillness as though time itself had stopped.
The ceiling and walls were all stone, polished so smoothly that not even the smallest crack could be seen.
Here and there were engraved patterns resembling wind currents and ancient glyphs.
When Bu Eunseol entered, they began to emit a mysterious light and in the center of the stone chamber stood a large crystal coffin.
As he drew near, divine light poured from the crystal coffin.
Inside lay a beautiful woman with long, unbound hair, sleeping deeply.
“A person?”
With one glance Bu Eunseol knew she was not sleeping normally.
Her silk robes had yellowed and discolored from extreme age.
“Could it be.”
Bu Eunseol approached the crystal coffin and examined the woman’s features.
Her face glowed with a pale moonlight whiteness.
Her hair cascaded to her waist like scattered petals, and beneath eyelids as thin as butterfly wings, long lashes cast shadows.
Between them could be seen her elegant neckline and beautiful shoulders.
Her appearance was mystical to the point of transcendence; merely looking at her made time seem to halt forever.
“Poison.”
Taking one step closer, Bu Eunseol frowned.
Merely approaching her released a suffocating, lethal venomous qi.
“So that’s it.”
She was likely a disciple of Wind God Palace.
Like him, she must have broken through the venomous creature-guarded checkpoints and, after untold hardship, reached this place.
But without the inner core of the Poison-Horn Flood Dragon, she had unfortunately been unable to perfectly control the poison, and had inevitably fallen victim to lethal poisoning.
In the end, after much contemplation, she must have entered this mysterious crystal coffin and used a preservation technique to enter suspended animation, hoping that someday someone would come and detoxify her.
“But.”
Bu Eunseol shook his head.
“I don’t understand. The martial world has many detoxification specialists. Why would Wind God Palace ignore this woman?”
Though discolored, her silk robes were luxurious, and her body was adorned with various ornaments.
Though young in appearance, she was clearly no ordinary disciple but someone of very high status.
How could someone of her standing have been left trapped in a crystal coffin in this hidden underground checkpoint, preserved in suspended animation all this time without rescue?
“This isn’t my concern.”
This was Wind God Palace’s affair; he had no desire to get involved.
Yet the venomous qi emanating from the woman’s body beyond the crystal coffin was beyond imagination.
To detoxify such poison would require someone who had reached the realm of Poison Saint.
If Bu Eunseol had not consumed the Poison-Horn Flood Dragon’s core, he too would have become nothing more than a puddle of blood.
‘Ah.’
Only then did Bu Eunseol recall the words the former Lord of the Thousand Poisons Sect, Jo Baeksan, had once spoken to him.
—If you absorb one more extreme poison comparable to the Obsidian Single-Horn Flood Dragon… you will have a Poison Body capable of detoxifying any poison. And if you absorb two more… you will reach the Poison Saint realm, a level that has not appeared in the martial world since three hundred years ago.
‘The venomous qi emanating from her body is at least as virulent as the Poison-Horn Flood Dragon’s core.’
Perhaps because she had harbored poison within her body for so long while asleep, the venom had aged and become even more concentrated?
The poisonous qi flowing from the woman’s body was more vicious than even the Poison-Horn Flood Dragon’s core.
“I’ll give it a try.”
Though she had remained in suspended animation for a long time, her breathing had grown so faint that she could no longer hold on.
Even if he left now and called the disciples of Wind God Palace, there was no guarantee they could immediately find a master with Poison Saint ability nearby.
In the end, if he did not help her, she would die.
“Is this fate as well?”
Having made up his mind, Bu Eunseol hesitated briefly before opening the crystal coffin’s lid.
Ssssk.
A white mist rose, accompanied by a sharp, piercing sour smell.
“The accumulated poisonous qi clashed within her, forcing her body into suspended animation.”
If the crystal coffin’s function was to prevent decay, then the reason she had survived so long was likely because an unimaginable amount of poison had accumulated in her body.
“Forgive my rudeness.”
Using the Heavenly Mirror Heart Sutra, Bu Eunseol began to examine the flow of her true energy.
‘Truly close to suspended animation.’
Then, employing the Ban-Geuk Method, he converted the woman’s poisonous qi and began drawing it into himself.
Oooong.
Instantly Bu Eunseol’s skin turned pure white.
The poisonous qi permeating her body had spread throughout him.
‘Do I need skin-to-skin contact?’
Moreover, there was a limit to extracting poisonous qi using internal energy alone.
Only by placing his hand directly on the dantian where the poison had accumulated could he properly draw out such vicious venomous energy.
“Forgive my rudeness.”
Toward the woman in suspended animation, Bu Eunseol respectfully clasped his hands.
“This is an effort to save your life, so please forgive any discourtesy.”
Then he placed his hand on the sleeping beauty’s dantian.
As he circulated the Ban-Geuk Method, a majestic radiance bloomed from Bu Eunseol’s body.
Crackle.
Yet when his hand touched her clothing, the aged silk robes crumbled away, instantly revealing the woman’s beautiful naked body.
‘This…’
For a moment Bu Eunseol could not tear his eyes away.
In his childhood, whenever female corpses were brought in, his grandfather always handled the preparation.
But while working, Bu Eunseol had unavoidably seen many female bodies as well. Thus, from a young age he had been able to look upon a woman’s naked form with composure.
But now he could not collect himself.
Was it because most of his internal energy had vanished?
No—he knew the reason.
It was because the woman’s body was simply too beautiful.
‘If I lose focus, both of us will die.’
In a situation like this, if his mind wandered? Not only would the woman die, he himself would suffer fatal internal injuries.
Whoooosh.
Steeling his heart, Bu Eunseol circulated the Ban-Geuk Method with all his power.
‘Her internal energy level…’
Astonishingly, the woman’s internal energy far exceeded four hundred years and approached five hundred.
‘So that’s how it was.’
Her abnormal internal energy level had not been gained through ordinary internal cultivation methods but had been augmented using poisonous qi.
‘She needed a massive amount of internal energy in a short time.’
That was why so many venomous insects had been placed in this checkpoint.
It was to cultivate a body capable of wielding Wind-Cloud Divine Qi and rapidly grow internal energy through poison.
While great dharma or elixirs had limits in increasing internal energy, the secret art of augmenting internal energy with poisonous qi could raise the level indefinitely—so long as the poison was sufficiently virulent.
Oooong.
In a trance-like state, Bu Eunseol continuously circulated his energy, drawing the poison from within the woman’s body.
The Ban-Geuk Method not only contained yin and yang energies but could embrace any poison whatsoever.
Ziiing. Ziiing.
As he absorbed all her poison, black qi erupted in every direction from Bu Eunseol’s body.
Shuuuuu.
Finally every trace of black poisonous qi was fully absorbed into him.
He immediately converted it with the Ban-Geuk Method and stored it in his dantian.
Flash!
When he opened his eyes, a darkness deeper than night flowed within Bu Eunseol’s pupils.
By absorbing the extreme poison accumulated in the woman’s body, he had taken another step toward the realm of Poison Saint… and finally achieved the Poison-Saint Physique, capable of absorbing and detoxifying any poison.
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