Chapter 450

The reason I noticed the village in the first place was because of the smoke from cooking rice, so Qing thought that when he got back, the dining table would be all set up.

“My rice table!”

Qing shouted as he flung the door wide open.

But lying on the floor, Cheon Yu-hak just looked up at Qing with a face that seemed to say, “Who the heck are you?”

No rice table?

Qing’s expression fell flat.

“They left the rice out while they went off to fight, and it all burned up.”

Osan Choo’s brother was in the kitchen cooking, but there was no one there.

So that rice turned to charcoal.

Always be careful with the heat control.

“I’m making it again, but oh dear, you’re going to starve to death. Is that little one making rice, or is he out in the fields cutting down unripe rice?”

“Hmm. Let’s check.”

And so Qing dashed to the kitchen.

He found Jin Jangmyung hopping anxiously with her feet.

“Jangmyung? Where’s the rice?”

“Not ready yet.”

“Eh?”

Jin Jangmyung slowly turned her head.

While Qing looked around, he spotted two pots shoved into a corner.

One was filled with completely burnt rice, and the other, when opened… huh? What is this?

Congee? But the state of the rice doesn’t quite match either solid or liquid?

The culprit causing this weird state of the rice cowered.

“Maybe I added a bit too much water…”

“Hmm. Not just a bit too much, it’s like it’s flooded. Oh? By the way, Jangmyung, you don’t know how to cook rice? You’ve never been in charge of it?”

“The elder said he likes soft rice. I added a bit, but it’s different from our pot…”

Classic sign of someone who can’t cook.

When the pot changes, they can’t adjust the water.

Before joining the Divine Maiden Sect, Jin Jangmyung had never cooked at all.

Even if she had, it was more of a duty of cooking in the Divine Maiden Sect rather than really cooking.

The pot of the Divine Maiden Sect has markers indicating the water level for the various types of rice.

“Hmm, this is just porridge, or rather can’t even be called that, but well, it’s edible at least.”

Qing rummaged around the kitchen looking for anything else, and in the pantry, he found grass, dried fish, salted meat, and such, threw them all together, stir-fried them, and placed them on a plate.

Rice? Porridge? Something in between? Add a little more water, boil it again, pour in some soy sauce, and crack in a bunch of eggs—

“Jangmyung, stir that! Don’t just gently; give it your all and stir!”

“Okay.”

With her tiny hands, she put her all into stirring and turned it into egg porridge.

“Oooh.”

Jin Jangmyung’s eyes sparkled as she tasted a spoonful.

“You cook well. You could be a chef.”

“If someone like me, a renowned master, becomes a chef, that’d be a huge loss for the martial world, right?”

“Doesn’t sound too bad. If I’m the owner and you could be the chef, we could get Jeomsoi and open up a small tavern in the countryside…”

“Not going to happen. That sounds really ominous.”

“…? What’s ominous about it?”

“Oh, come on. And cooking? You’re just making rice.”

The truth is, Qing doesn’t actually know how to cook.

He just knows tastes well enough to throw a few things together and have a general idea of how it’ll turn out.

He can serve up a decent plate of food, but proper cooking? Not a chance.

“Then just a rice shop—”

“Why is this happening again? Is there something you don’t like about life in the Divine Maiden Sect? Is someone bothering you? No, wait. That little one wouldn’t be the one doing the bothering, would they?”

“I was just thinking. Doesn’t it sound fun? If a fight breaks out, we could knock them out and collect repair fees. Oh! Setting up in front of the Divine Maiden Sect might even attract the nobility for fun.”

What is this? The chef is hiding power?

It does sound entertaining.

But if some troublemaker like Madou shows up, just load them up with some paralysis drug, while I study some medicine too.

If it’s in front of the Divine Maiden Sect, later when the revenge-seekers come crashing in, we could just mop them up.

And if a strong one shows up, I can just shout for Master, and he’ll be flying over on his sword, right?

So, from the head of the dining table, Qing casually threw out that idea.

But after saying it, he realized it wasn’t really because he disliked life in the Divine Maiden Sect.

It was just empty chatter.

“Hmph. You think it would be fun?”

“Don’t you think it sounds fun?”

“Well, many who say they want to retire and run a tavern don’t really mean it, so it’s not something you should aspire to. Do you think being bossed around is an easy thing?”

“Ah. To be called ‘lower class’! That’s a dangerous statement.”

“I’m only saying that after having done it all. Whether merchant, Jeomsoi, or tavern owner, they’re all my lower class. Do you think it’s easy to live off someone else’s money?”

Cheon Yu-hak (the thief) said.

“Hmm.”

“Anyway, surprisingly, this meal isn’t bad. But what is this? It’s neither porridge nor rice; what is it?”

“Water control failure. Jangmyung’s masterpiece.”

“Well, as long as it tastes good, that’s all that matters. It’s going to come out the other end anyway.”

“That’s true. Should I bring more rice and water? It’ll come out the same regardless.”

“I’m too old to digest raw rice. You can eat it instead. Aren’t you at the age where you can chew steel?”

Not exactly something you should say at the dining table.

But Cheon Yu-hak and Qing don’t care; they’re tough folks who’ve rolled around in the wild for ages.

Only Jin Jangmyung, raised in privilege, quietly set her utensils down.

However, Qing subtly glanced at Cheon Yu-hak, then carefully broached the subject.

“Oh. But hey, Master, do we really need to secretly clean up the Heart Consumption Technique?”

“Why?”

“I see a lot of scum around. Why not just wander around with our swords drawn like this morning and take out anyone that seems troublesome?”

Hearing that, Cheon Yu-hak let out a deep sigh.

“I too, given a moment to think, have my heart say it isn’t right. But how? Kill some and send back the others with broken dantians? Should we lecture the lesser evildoers and send them away?”

“But waiting until they do something bad is not right. We were just a moment too late this time, but what if we’d come earlier? Would we have let such terrible guys live? Are they going to reflect and become better people?”

“Hmm.”

“If we need to clean up harmful things from this world, don’t we need to eliminate not just trivial things but also those that should not live?”

“The rest. I get what you mean, but…”

Cheon Yu-hak sighed again.

“But then, where do we draw the line? How can we tell how evil someone is if we don’t know how they lived or what stories they carry?”

“Still, anyone who knows about the Heart Consumption Technique must be scum, right?”

“True. Thinking back, you’ve never had a strong desire for martial arts. If everyone was like you, maybe it would be different, but the name of Divine Skill stirs hidden desires in people. Do you think I’m just saying we need to eliminate it for no reason?”

Qing, who doesn’t care much about martial arts, can’t understand this.

Similarly, the children of the martial world, who’ve been promised enough divine skills already, won’t get it.

But how many renowned martial artists are there in the world?

For most martial world individuals, divine skills are treasures floating high above, always out of reach, causing anyone who has fought to thirst for stronger, rarer, and more mysterious martial arts.

So, the Heart Consumption Technique?

How dangerous or evil it might be isn’t that important.

What’s important is that it’s a well-known, powerful martial art, and the chance to grasp the divine skills they’ve only dreamed of is now here.

The terrifying drawbacks of the Heart Consumption Technique?

For those living as outsiders or mere footnotes in the martial world, these drawbacks hardly cross their minds.

Even without basis or reasoning, they think they could withstand those side effects.

It’s not a warrior’s problem; it’s a human one.

Who goes to a casino expecting to lose money?

All gamblers somehow hurry there with a great feeling.

Today’s going to be their lucky day.

Today, they feel like they’ll set a record at the casino.

As soon as they get a hand, it’s all going to align, and they’ll become a millionaire.

It’s the same with the Heart Consumption Technique.

Once they learn it, side effects?

If too much vitality builds up and affects the mind, then they can just be careful and minimize the intake.

Will they become martial heroes?

They can simply live hidden with their divine skills, can’t they?

The Heart Consumption Technique only fills the gaps of their inner strength. Who’s to know if they use other martial arts?

Then, when they reach the level of a master like Hyun-gyeong, no one would dare touch them.

“Treasures are like this. Even those who just swing their swords and live ordinary lives can be lured by its seduction. So remember this well. You must remember.”

It was Shintu imparting wisdom to his successor.

Shintu are not simply working as compensation for the martial arts they received.

They understand the principles behind treasures causing chaos and bloodshed, which is why they fulfill their duties as Shintu.

Seeing Cheon Yu-hak was unusually serious, Qing unconsciously nodded.

This must be why even though Cheon Yu-hak dabbles in villainous trades, his account stays in the green.

“Okay, now do you understand how shameful your words are? You want to kill all who seek the Heart Consumption Technique simply because they’re all the same type?”

“Hey, but what about that infamous Madou? Isn’t it better to wipe out someone like that before they become a greater threat? What if the manual falls into their hands?”

“Hmm. Madou is definitely more beneficial to the world not existing, but…”

“I’m not saying we have to hunt them down and kill them. It’s enough to pass through normally and when we come across scoundrels, we deal with them and wipe out the wicked ones, right?”

“Hmm.”

“Anyone who learns the lay of the land will probably be tucked away somewhere suspicious already. If we keep searching for them like this, won’t the precious manual land in the hands of dangerous folks?”

With that, Cheon Yu-hak began stirring the egg porridge in his bowl.

After a while, he let out a deep sigh.

“You’re right. I mentioned the casino, didn’t I? That was me. I thought that as soon as I stepped into No Mountain, I could easily find and destroy the manual. However, in hindsight, that was merely reckless bravado. If someone were to get their hands on the manual and leave quietly, a cursed monster known as Heart Demon would be born.”

And then he muttered.

“Abolish Hell, Bring in Hell.”

If I don’t go to hell, who will?

That’s the saying of Venerable Ksitigarbha.

Surprisingly, Qing knew that saying too!

Because it’s the spirit of the Shaolin monks and originates from the opening words of the ancient scriptures of the Buddha.

While claiming to rescue the innocent by converting evil folks,

If Ksitigarbha hears this, the Ksitigarbha’s club wouldn’t be able to contain itself either and would charge in to open the floodgates.

Originally from the Ksitigarbha Sutra, it’s Ksitigarbha’s great vow to rescue even evil beings.

But it has now morphed into a saying that suggests beating evil beings to death and going to hell with me. Is this a true mad mess or what?

But the Shaolin Temple is basically a cult.

It’s merely a martial sect wearing the form of Buddhism, so martial arts fundamentally involve harming others.

But to have the most formidable martial arts and say, “I will fight evil for the world!” is quite the ambition.

And while Ksitigarbha could save everyone,

Humans are just weak beings struggling to protect the innocent.

Qing burst into a silly laugh.

The art of eliminating competitors.

Lower yourself so they look down on you.

Fools’ achievements turn into accidents that draw no one’s vigilance.

The art of negotiation and persuasion.

Make an absolutely unacceptable proposal.

If they resist, then offer realistic alternatives.

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