Chapter 46

The awkwardness was only momentary.

It’s true that hearing such words from Paeng Hu-sang left Namgung Woo feeling unsettled. However, Namgung Woo wasn’t so naive as to let it show on his face.

Quickly returning to his usual demeanor, Namgung Woo matched his steps with Paeng Ha-ryeong and walked side by side.

The warm summer sunlight brushed past them along with the cool northern breeze. The weather made it feel as though the life-and-death battle they had fought just a few days ago was nothing more than a dream on a summer day.

Paeng Hu-sang had just returned yesterday after wrapping up matters in Beijing.

Having rushed from Beijing to Tianjin in just one day after concluding negotiations with the Imperial Family, he had arrived in Tianjin almost at the same time as Namgung Woo.

In other words, the Beijing turmoil was a very recent event, having occurred less than a week ago.

Namgung Woo could still vividly recall the chaos of the Beijing turmoil. However, unlike Namgung Woo, who was a fake martial artist, Paeng Ha-ryeong, a true martial artist, said:

“Ye-ryeong has really improved a lot.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It was the Void Spirit Divine Art, right? She said it was incredibly difficult, and she’s only just reached the third star. But when my brother saw her, he said her celestial gate had narrowed. Ye-ryeong has started controlling her upper dantian through the divine art! If this continues, she might even be able to close her celestial gate and regain her lifespan within this year! Isn’t that great?”

She was the precious younger sister he had vowed to protect, even at the cost of his own life.

Seeing Paeng Ye-ryeong show such noticeable improvement, Paeng Ha-ryeong’s joy was so great that she could even laugh at the pebbles she stumbled over.

As Paeng Ha-ryeong chattered like a lark about how Ye-ryeong was doing this and that, her face was filled with hopeful anticipation for the future.

However, Namgung Woo wasn’t particularly curious about Paeng Ye-ryeong’s story. It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in her.

In fact, Namgung Woo was just as concerned about Paeng Ye-ryeong as Paeng Ha-ryeong was.

In fact, right after returning to Tianjin, Namgung Woo had personally checked on Paeng Ye-ryeong’s condition.

The Yang Brothers, who had taught him the Thirteen Lightning Flash Swords.

Paeng Ye-ryeong, who had taught him the Void Spirit Divine Art.

All three were precious connections who had shared their invaluable martial arts with him.

Especially in Paeng Ye-ryeong’s case, he felt a special bond because it was thanks to her that he had been able to overcome Yi Ja-ryong’s sorcery.

However, there was no need to discuss Paeng Ye-ryeong with Paeng Ha-ryeong, was there?

“How about you, Miss?”

“Huh?”

“Not Miss Ye-ryeong, but you, Miss Paeng. You fought a formidable opponent this time.”

“Ah… you mean that.”

The Black Tortoise Lion, who had blocked the two of them from reaching Yi Ja-ryong.

From what Namgung Woo remembered, it was an opponent one level above Paeng Ha-ryeong but one level below Paeng Ja-ryeong.

Fortunately, Paeng Ha-ryeong had endured without major injuries, but he had heard that if Paeng Hu-sang hadn’t arrived in time, it could have been dangerous.

At the time, he had brushed it off as something that was over and done with, but he hadn’t expected Paeng Ha-ryeong to bring it up separately, so she stumbled over her words in slight panic.

“Um… it was more manageable than I thought? I guess it’s because they had just entered the Transcendent Peak, so there wasn’t much difference in internal energy between us. Our experience in the moment was also quite similar.”

Paeng Ha-ryeong, whose fully opened meridians compensated for the relatively weaker Twelve Regular Meridians and Eight Extraordinary Meridians, had managed to hold her own against a Transcendent Peak Master, albeit temporarily.

The Black Tortoise Lion was among the lower ranks of Transcendent Peak Masters. Still, it was remarkable that she had managed to hold her own against a martial artist of a higher level.

“But in the end, the difference in stamina was clear. I guess I’m still not ready to fight an internal energy battle with a Transcendent Peak Master who has achieved the Three Flames Convergence.”

“Even though your fully opened meridians make your internal energy usage more efficient, the total amount of internal energy itself hasn’t changed. It’s important to recognize that difference.”

It might seem odd for Namgung Woo, who gains power so easily compared to Paeng Ha-ryeong, to give advice, but this advice was based on his own firsthand experience.

The battle with Yi Ja-ryong. The moment when his dantian’s internal energy was fully depleted.

In that moment when even using his internal energy to perform footwork was exhausting, Namgung Woo blamed himself for not being fully aware of his total internal energy capacity during the fight.

If Namgung Woo had been clearly aware of his limits and recognized that his internal energy could run out, he might have used his energy more efficiently and avoided such a crisis.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I guess I stated the obvious. Just take it with a grain of salt.”

“Take it with a grain of salt? I’ll definitely remember it!”

Namgung Woo felt the pressure from Paeng Ha-ryeong’s sparkling eyes, which looked at him as if he were a once-in-a-millennium martial arts prodigy.

‘I should be careful about what I say.’

Namgung Woo tried to view himself as objectively as possible.

He had a certain level of knowledge and understanding of martial arts.

However, that was only something granted to him by a certain power. It wasn’t a realization he had achieved through his own contemplation and study.

There’s a world of difference between knowing something theoretically and truly understanding and embodying it as your own.

‘I need to work harder.’

When he first had a martial duel with Hwang Moo-tak, Namgung Woo didn’t know how strong his power was in this world.

After fighting the Ghost Gate Sealing Battle in Muan County and learning common sense from the Yang Brothers, Namgung Woo came to understand his position.

And in the long-awaited Beijing, Namgung Woo directly witnessed and experienced that there were those stronger than himself.

‘It was luck that I defeated Yi Ja-ryong. If it weren’t for the Azure Tranquility Eyes, or if I hadn’t experienced the resonance with Paeng Ye-ryeong beyond the celestial gate, I would have lost.’

Luck was on his side.

At the same time, Namgung Woo still hadn’t fully utilized his power.

‘I haven’t used my upper dantian at all.’

His essence, energy, and spirit were still not fully unified. As if to prove this, Namgung Woo had relied solely on his lower and middle dantians in battle.

He had only used his upper dantian once, when teaching Paeng Ye-ryeong martial arts.

He did use the Azure Tranquility Eyes, which could be considered an upper dantian ability, almost daily.

However, that was only a part of the infinite potential contained within the upper dantian. A very large part, but there were still other possibilities remaining.

The Void Spirit Divine Art and the upper dantian. These were the tasks left behind by the battle in Beijing.

“Miss Paeng, if you’re going to the training ground, would you mind sparring with me?”

“Huh? Of course! I’d be happy to… but will I be of any help to you, Eun-gong?”

“I’ll limit my internal energy to some extent. You also need time to digest what you’ve learned from the last battle, right? We’ll help each other.”

“If that’s the case, then of course I will.”

Perhaps it was because she was happy to be of help to Namgung Woo. A small hum could be heard from Paeng Ha-ryeong.

The training ground they headed to was a small martial arena attached to the Hall of Beginnings, provided by the Paeng Family for Namgung Woo’s group.

Though it was called small, it was more than enough for three people to use.

Yang Kwae, who had been on the training ground first, noticed the approaching pair and jumped down from the arena.

“Oh! The boss is here?”

“You’re here.”

Yang Jeong, who followed Yang Kwae down, spoke.

Then, Yang Kwae suddenly started scratching his ear and said:

“What’s this, could it be an auditory hallucination? I thought I heard a voice that shouldn’t be coming from anywhere… Hmph, that can’t be. My hearing as a Peak Master has already surpassed that of ordinary people.”

“Sigh… Aren’t you embarrassed? You should know better than to act like this in front of the boss… It’s like writing characters in front of Confucius.”

Yang Jeong sighed and scolded, but Yang Kwae, without changing his expression, said:

“Talking back, troublesome. I, Peak Master.”

“You’re really out of your mind.”

Even Yang Jeong, who had always been so polite, ended up cursing at Yang Kwae’s incessant teasing.

“Boss, please tell him to stop. He’s been like this every day since we left Beijing.”

“Sigh… Boss, the words of the weak are not worth listening to. How about we set a proper rule for our Changcheon Pavilion? No entry for those below Peak Master. Or those below Peak Master are only probationary members. Something like that.”

The Beijing turmoil had caused many to grow.

Namgung Woo and Paeng Ha-ryeong.

And even the Yang Brothers.

But unfortunately for Yang Jeong, the extent of their growth varied.

Yang Kwae, who had entered the Peak Master level, and Yang Jeong, who had not.

Perhaps out of a sense of crisis over Yang Jeong’s recent progress, or perhaps out of a sense of responsibility as the older twin, Yang Kwae had taken a step ahead of Yang Jeong.

“Yang Kwae, let’s stop the jokes. I saw before that you’re still behind Yang Jeong in basic techniques.”

“Ahem, ahem. Well, that’s…”

“I know you’re happy about becoming a Peak Master, but don’t get too caught up in it.”

“I know, boss. If I act all high and mighty in the martial world just because I’m a Peak Master, I’ll end up dead.”

Yang Kwae answered without his usual playfulness.

“Good that you know. It would be good for you brothers to spar and discuss martial arts more often. Yang Kwae, you can teach Yang Jeong about the insights and internal energy usage of a Peak Master, and Yang Jeong can help Yang Kwae improve his basic techniques.”

“We’ve actually been doing energy circulation and discussing martial arts before bed lately. Even my brother takes it seriously then.”

It seemed Yang Kwae’s Peak Master talk was all in good fun.

“Alright then? So, we’ll use the training ground for a bit?”

“Go ahead. We’re pretty much done here.”

Namgung Woo shifted his gaze from the two to Paeng Ha-ryeong and asked:

“Would it be alright if they watched our spar?”

In the martial world, it’s taboo to spy on someone’s personal training.

Sparring is also a form of training. Of course, it’s justified for the sparring partner to observe the martial arts, but spectators are a bit ambiguous.

However, Paeng Ha-ryeong agreed without hesitation.

“Of course. The Paeng Family’s martial arts aren’t so easily deciphered with just one observation, right?”

Tap.

Paeng Ha-ryeong stepped onto the training ground first.

With a determined expression that said she wouldn’t go down easily, even against Eun-gong, Paeng Ha-ryeong shouted:

“I’ll give it my all!”

Seeing Paeng Ha-ryeong shout so boldly, Namgung Woo smiled faintly and leaped onto the training ground.

If that’s the case, then I should do my best too.

Soon, the sound of collisions echoed.

The man and woman focused on each other, sweating.

It was summer.