Chapter 147
Wei Yan-ho asked, "How much longer until we reach Luoyang?"
Seomun Da-yeon answered Wei Yan-ho's question.
"About three more days should get us there."
"…That's really taking forever."
Seomun Da-yeon's face twitched.
If they hadn't taken the carriage and used lightness skills instead, they would have arrived already. In the first place, whose fault was it that they were going to Luoyang so late? How could he say such a thing?
'I'm about to burst from frustration!'
If his martial arts were weak, she would have just turned the whole thing upside down, but having seen him defeat the Twin Demons with her own eyes, she couldn't bring herself to challenge him.
Moreover…
'…He was kind of cool.'
Seomun Da-yeon's face flushed red.
Compared to Wei San-ho, who lived up to his reputation as a peerless beauty, Wei Yan-ho wasn't bad looking either. It was just that his drowsy expression and usual lifestyle created a prejudice that normally prevented this fact from showing.
But seeing him somewhat serious this time, she suddenly realized something she hadn't noticed before.
"We'll arrive soon. If we increase the carriage speed, it'll be quite uncomfortable for you. Would that be alright?"
"Uncomfortable?"
"The bumping around."
Wei Su-ryeon laughed and answered instead.
"My big brother is someone who can sleep comfortably anywhere as long as there's a place to rest his back. You don't need to worry about that."
"Oh, really?"
Seomun Da-yeon was about to increase the speed when she closed her mouth at the groaning sounds coming from inside the carriage.
'Ah, that person was there.'
Since he was stuck inside the carriage like a dead mouse, his presence was extremely weak.
"It seems difficult. There's an injured person."
Wei Yan-ho frowned and glanced downward, then let out a deep sigh. Having committed a crime, he couldn't even scold.
"Ugh, there's nothing we can do."
Wei Yan-ho shook his head and lay down flat.
Gong Mu-jin clicked his tongue watching this scene.
"Don't you even train? I don't think I've seen you practice even once during our journey together. If you sleep lying down for ten shijin a day and skip training, you'll lose even what you have."
"…Training? Su-ryeon, someone's calling you."
"Yes?"
"Not that Su-ryeon!"
Wei Yan-ho yawned and turned his head away.
'I really don't want to.'
It was natural that others would see it as playing all day long.
But Wei Yan-ho didn't want to make excuses. Explaining the Dream Training Technique to make excuses was also an extremely bothersome task.
Trying to convince them that sleeping ten shijin a day was equivalent to training ten hours a day would only result in hearing, "That lazy bum is now making up ridiculous lies."
"What talent, really."
Where on earth did he create and learn such a bizarre martial art? The more he thought about it, the more unfathomable his master was.
"I can see an inn over there."
Wei Yan-ho slightly raised his head and looked ahead. In the distance, he could see a large wooden building.
"Now I can finally eat some proper food."
"Brother, your appetite seems to have increased? You didn't used to be picky about food."
"I was foolish."
Wei Yan-ho said wistfully.
"Who knew mother's cooking would be so delicious? Living on moss for five years made me realize it."
"Hey, how could a person live on just that for five years?"
"…I would have been fortunate to eat even that."
Wei Yan-ho shuddered, recalling his hellish cave life.
"And mother can't cook. That was all made by the servant ladies."
"Oh, really?"
"If you ate mother's cooking, you'd miss the moss."
"…"
Mother.
Why can't you cook?
"Anyway, now when we enter the inn, I can eat delicious food and sleep soundly. Traveling by carriage seems to accumulate fatigue too. I thought all I had to do was sit still, but apparently not."
Wei Yan-ho nodded and looked at the inn.
* * *
"Huff! Huff! Huff!"
His breath came up to his chin.
His qi had already hit rock bottom, and with every step he took, his dantian pricked like needles.
But he couldn't stop. The moment he stopped, those demon-like pursuers would tear him to pieces.
'I just need to shake them off.'
No matter how hard and painful it was, if he could just shake off his pursuers, a new world would unfold from that moment. The heavy presence of the book in his arms was supporting Gwak Sun.
"Ugh."
Blood had been surging up his throat for a while now. Gwak Sun forcibly swallowed the rising blood clot and ran forward again and again.
A burning pain was felt from the long cut on his back, but there was no time for complaints.
'How did it come to this?'
He had simply become greedy for something called a secret manual.
If it was the Sword Emperor's legacy, wasn't it a treasure among treasures that any martial artist couldn't help but covet?
'I never thought I'd actually get it.'
Though he had come targeting it, he had half-hoped for luck, never really thinking that the Sword Emperor's secret manual would fall into his hands.
There are times when humans must look at what they cannot reach, and Gwak Sun had simply looked.
But fortunately. Really fortunately, the Sword Emperor's secret manual fell into his hands.
The two people who had been fighting for the secret manual in front of him killed each other, and it was fortunate that he had quickly snatched the manual that fell to the ground.
But from then on, hell began.
Those he couldn't even dare to face began frantically chasing him.
He couldn't rest for even a moment. All he could do was flee and flee until his qi was exhausted.
"…No."
Every time his qi dried up, he felt an impulse. If he just threw this secret manual far away, he could live. No one was targeting him. They were only targeting the secret manual in his arms.
"Ugh…"
Gwak Sun put his trembling hand into his shirt and pulled out the secret manual.
Sword Emperor's Treasure.
Just from the title written in soaring calligraphy, one could guess how amazing the contents inside would be.
The method to make him the greatest in the world was right inside this secret manual.
And he should give this up?
Simply to preserve his life?
"…I can't!"
Gwak Sun muttered as if spitting.
"Kill… Kill them! Huff! Kill!"
If he could just shake off all his pursuers and hide in the deep mountains…
Just five years would be enough. In that time, he could interpret the contents inside and emerge into the world again as the Sword Emperor's heir.
Then those currently chasing him wouldn't even dare to properly open their eyes in front of him.
He couldn't live as second-rate forever.
He had already been rolling around in the martial world for over twenty years. How much humiliation had he endured from those with power during that time? And now they wanted him to return to that life?
He couldn't!
Absolutely not!
Gwak Sun gritted his teeth and ran forward again and again.
But contrary to his will, his body was gradually slowing down. A body drained of all qi drooped like a deflated balloon. His hands trembled so much he felt like he might drop the secret manual.
"Ugh."
Blood flowed continuously from his mouth. Seeing that it was dark, dead blood rather than bright red, his internal injuries had already reached a serious level.
His vision was blurry and his head was dizzy.
'I need to… gather strength… '
Gwak Sun knew what his symptoms meant.
Due to qi depletion and qi deviation, his body was rapidly losing its vitality. If he continued just a little more like this, he would die alone even without someone putting a blade to him.
But he couldn't stop even so.
'Just a little more… '
Just a little more and he would reach a village. Then he could temporarily hide among the traces of many people and slip away to shake off his pursuers.
He could confuse those following his tracks.
He just needed to get there!
Just there!
Not even groans came out anymore.
Gwak Sun stepped forward with unfocused eyes.
How much further had he run like that?
Gwak Sun saw a large white carriage.
'Enemy!'
Everyone he could see was his enemy.
Even if they weren't his enemies, the moment they knew he had the Sword Emperor's secret manual, they would turn into enemies or bandits.
Then there was nothing to hesitate about.
Gwak Sun drew his sword from his waist with trembling, struggling hands.
His body was so weak that the hand holding the sword kept dropping downward.
Shaking legs.
Blood that kept surging up.
Gwak Sun laughed helplessly.
'Is this the end?'
Though he had boldly drawn his sword, realistically his body couldn't execute more than a single strike.
'Fine.'
Gwak Sun gritted his teeth.
Given the situation, he ultimately wouldn't become the owner of the secret manual. But he had no intention of meekly handing over the treasure that had come into his possession.
Gwak Sun blinked his increasingly blurry eyes and looked at the figure in front of him.
"…"
The young man who had been in front of the carriage was ignoring him and walking into the inn.
Huh? That's not right.
"Grr…"
No proper words came out. But it seemed fortunate that he had at least made a groan. The young man who had been shuffling into the inn turned his head to look at him.
"…Are you hurt somewhere?"
For a moment, Gwak Sun almost picked at his ears.
If his hands had moved as they pleased, he would have definitely stuck his sword into the ground and picked his ears.
He was starting to hear things.
It must be a hallucination.
It was definitely a hallucination.
There couldn't exist in this world a crazy person who would ask someone where they hurt when they had turned their white clothes into red clothes by spilling not just a bowl but a whole basin of blood, with their entire body covered in wounds.
If such a person existed, they would either be the stupidest person in the world, or someone who had just woken up and couldn't grasp the situation.
"Can't… give it…"
Unfortunately, Gwak Sun didn't have the capacity to keep thinking about such things. All that remained in him was the thought that he had to protect the secret manual and his stubbornness.
"…Can't give it."
The young man tilted his head, then looked at Gwak Sun's face and said,
"Sir, if you're hurt, don't do this here and go find a doctor. I know a skilled doctor – shall I introduce you? It's a bit far from here and the kid is a bit difficult, but he's really good at treating people."
"…"
Strength drained from his body.
Gwak Sun's body began to slowly fall forward.
"Can't…"
At that moment, a hand reached out and grabbed Gwak Sun's chest, supporting him.
Then a low voice was heard in Gwak Sun's ear.
"No one will take it away. So sleep peacefully."
Hearing the gentle voice in his ear, Gwak Sun slowly curled up his lips into a smile.
No one will take it away.
No one.
With those words, Gwak Sun could peacefully close his eyes.