Absolute Regression
Chapter 52: If They Hate You Like You Hate Yourself
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TL: FoodieMonster007
My first stop was an inn in the village below Mount Hong.
The inn bustled with people, and the workers ran frantically. I stood at the entrance for a long time, but no one approached me.
Then, I saw a little boy carrying dishes, shuttling between the kitchen and the guests. I smiled the moment I saw him.
In my past life, when I came here for the Echoing Thunder Bell, that same boy greeted me as a grown man. His face hadn't changed at all.
The boy finally noticed me and scurried over.
"Hello, warrior. As you can see, we don't have any seats right now."
"Are there any rooms?"
"No, there are no rooms either. We're flooded with guests because of the Blood God Festival."
"When is the Blood God Festival?"
"Exactly ten days from now. There's another inn down that road, but I doubt it's any different there."
With those words, the busy boy ran off, called away by another customer.
Ten days before the Blood God Festival. I had arrived at the perfect time.
The Blood God Festival was the Heavenly Wind Cult's largest annual ceremony to honor the Blood God. This was exactly why the third method to stop the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme's evil arts required two months.
It was only on the day of the Blood God Festival that I could get what I needed to subdue the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme. Fortunately, the festival was two months away. If the timing had been off, killing her might have been delayed by a whole year.
In the past, it took me years to infiltrate the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's throne room, where the Echoing Thunder Bell was kept. That was how long it took to find the secret escape passage the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader used in emergencies.
Infiltrating and retrieving the divine object itself took less than half a quarter-hour, but finding the passage had taken years.
But even after I found the secret passage, stealing the Echoing Thunder Bell was not easy. The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was the problem.
He spent most of his time in the throne room. He ate there and even slept there. I couldn't use the brief moments he left to relieve himself, because a cage of Millennium Cold Iron would descend over the divine objects, including the Echoing Thunder Bell.
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was not alone. Another person guarded the divine objects. Shackled with Millennium Cold Iron, he lived like a spirit bound to the Echoing Thunder Bell. He was a skilled martial artist with an exceptionally keen sense of smell. He would immediately notice any intruder and warn the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader.
It was therefore impossible to steal the divine objects without the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader noticing.
So how did I retrieve the Echoing Thunder Bell? Once a year, there was a single moment when the iron cage was raised and the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader left his post. That moment was the day of the Blood God Festival.
On this day, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader left the throne room to perform a ceremony at the grand training grounds. As part of the ritual, the shackled master guarding the Echoing Thunder Bell would strike it thirty-six times. I aimed for the moment of the final, thirty-sixth strike.
After the final bell toll, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader would return in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. In that short interval, I performed a miracle.
I had practiced my escape route dozens of times, allowing me to flee from the Heavenly Wind Cult's followers.
Investigating, infiltrating, recruiting, fighting, practicing. The countless events of that time flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern.
My target this time was in the same place as the Echoing Thunder Bell. Stealing it would be simpler than taking the bulky bell. This trip to the Heavenly Wind Cult was a gift from my difficult past.
I stood before the inn, watching the crowds. During the Blood God Festival, countless sects allied with the Heavenly Wind Cult sent delegations. The streets and inns were packed with people.
This was exactly what I wanted. With so many people, no one would remember me. Still, I wore my bamboo hat pulled low to conceal my identity. I would arrive quietly and disappear without a sound.
In the marketplace, I bought camping supplies, basic food, and a pot for brewing medicinal herbs.
My last stop was an apothecary.
"You want Gihwacho?"
The old apothecary owner stared at me with a surprised face.
"Gihwacho is expensive."
"How much for one geun?"
"How much do you need?"
"I need two geun."
"It's eighty taels per geun. I don't know if you're aware, but it's a very rare herb."
"I understand. I'll buy two geun at that price."
"But what are you planning to use the Gihwacho for?"
The old man, unused to selling Gihwacho, looked at me again.
He couldn't see my face, as I kept my bamboo hat pulled low. I was also using a different voice.
"I don't know either. I'm just buying it on orders from my superior."
The old man asked no more questions and brought the Gihwacho. I confirmed the herb, and he wrapped it nicely for me. I paid the old man and left.
I left the apothecary and went to another one far away to find Gwiryong Tree and Gyuhwa. After buying those two ingredients, I went to an apothecary in another distant village for Dokmalpul and Baekdanhyang.
I bought the herbs from different places for one reason. I had to prevent anyone from knowing what I was making. Buying them all at once probably wouldn't have been a problem, but I was preparing for a one-in-a-million chance.
There is no harm in being cautious. In life, carelessness costs you money. In the murim, it costs you your life.
With all the necessary herbs, I headed straight for the mountains. Deep in a secluded area, I found the cave where I had stayed before. I cleaned it and began brewing the medicine.
Some ingredients had to be brewed separately, while others had to be brewed together. The process would take at least a few days.
This medicine was a special elixir that could paralyze the shackled master's sense of smell. I had heard he was captured in his youth and held there his entire life, so he was surely still there. Discovering this secret formula in the past had cost me considerable time and money.
While the medicine brewed, I sat cross-legged and cultivated the Heavenly Demon Defense Art.
I nearly died when I first learned it, but now the Heavenly Demon Defense Art has become an indispensable childhood friend. The more I cultivate it, the more I feel its uniqueness.
Is it because of its nature? It awakens me when danger approaches and activates on its own, so there are many times the Heavenly Demon Defense Art feels like a living martial art. I know it becomes even more powerful when combined with the Nine Calamities Demonic Art, so I can only hope that day comes soon.
After training late into the night, I stepped out of the cave and looked at the starry sky. Before my return, I had stood in this same spot and looked at the same sky, but now my heart felt a crucial difference.
Back then, my only thought was of returning home. Now, that desire was replaced by a longing for the people I wanted to see. I was especially curious if Seo Daeryong was learning well from the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
They would both deny it, but the two were surprisingly similar.
He's doing well, right?
On the first day of training, Seo Daeryong waited in the courtyard for the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. He had arrived on time, but the Blood Heaven Blade Demon had not yet appeared.
He was learning martial arts from the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. Seo Daeryong felt like his heart would burst.
Seo Daeryong tried swinging the blade himself. Without using inner arts, it was still too heavy. He decided not to waste his energy and waited for the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
After waiting a long time, Seo Daeryong cautiously approached the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's residence. As he peeked through a crack in the window, he felt a cold presence right beside him.
Startled, Seo Daeryong turned. The Blood Heaven Blade Demon had appeared from nowhere and was also peering into the window.
"What are you peeking at?"
"……"
The startled Seo Daeryong let out a scream.
"S-sorry! I was waiting and wondered if you were inside."
"I hear the Second Young Lord has left the sect?"
"……"
"For about two months, I hear?"
"So you've heard."
"That's plenty of time for someone to go missing, or maybe die in an accident."
Seo Daeryong quickly said, "The Director is such a brilliant man, he wouldn't believe such a tragic event could happen in just two months."
"A brilliant man would also quickly forget a tragedy that has already happened."
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon mimed gouging out an eyeball with his long, slender fingers.
"I'll never peek again!"
"Then what are you doing here?"
"Ah, yes. I'm going!"
Seo Daeryong scurried to the center of the courtyard.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon showed him how to hold and swing the blade, then turned to go inside. "A thousand times!" he said.
Seo Daeryong swung the blade until his entire body was drenched in sweat. "Eight hundred fifty-three, eight hundred fifty-four…" The blade felt impossibly heavy, as if his arm would fall off.
Ugh, I can't do this anymore!
Seo Daeryong flopped onto his back. He couldn't help it, even if the Blood Heaven Blade Demon was watching. He didn't have the strength to lift a finger.
He would normally be at home now, eating snacks and reading a book in bed.
Did I make a mistake?
Exhaustion washed over his body, and with it came regret.
No, no. I've already made up my mind!
If he failed on the first day, he wouldn't be able to face Geom Mugeuk.
Seo Daeryong shot up and swung the blade, barely managing to complete a thousand swings.
"I did it!"
Seo Daeryong slumped to the ground and looked down at the blade in his hand.
He felt the cold, heavy steel. Yes, this feeling would surely guide him to a better life than one spent lazing around.
Just then, the window opened, and the Blood Heaven Blade Demon appeared.
"If it's too hard, then quit. I won't stop you."
Seo Daeryong shot to his feet. His arm felt like it would fall off, but he spoke resolutely.
"I won't quit."
"……"
"Because a chance like this will never come again in my lifetime."
"I will never pass on my unique martial arts, you know?"
"I'm not even hoping for that. The chance I'm talking about is the opportunity to learn from you, Demon Supreme. Later, when I have a child, I'll tell them, 'Your father learned martial arts from the Blood Heaven Blade Demon in his youth.' That's enough for me. As a martial artist, that memory is all I need."
"So you plan on getting married."
"Yes, I want to."
"……"
"I want to try raising a child. I want to give them the fatherly love that my own father never gave me."
His words carried a story and a deep sadness.
"What if your child hates you, just like you hate yourself?"
"Then… would you be willing to put my child through this training too?"
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon let out a small laugh at Seo Daeryong's words. For some reason, making the Blood Heaven Blade Demon laugh made Seo Daeryong feel good, and he grinned brightly.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon closed the window. "One thousand more!" he said.
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