Chapter 47
The Heavenly Demon’s martial arts training began immediately.
The first lesson was about internal energy cultivation techniques.
“The first technique of the Demon Empress’s martial arts you must learn is the Demonic Soul Rebirth Divine Art. I will teach you the incantations, so memorize them.”
“Uh, Master, I already know an internal energy cultivation technique.”
“I know.”
“Then why…?”
“I-geon has done well.”
“…?”
“He did not recklessly decorate the sturdy roots with gaudy flowers.”
“What does that mean…?”
“It means he did not tamper with your blank slate.”
“Excuse me?”
This is why martial artists are so frustrating.
Why can’t they just explain things clearly, objectively, and concisely?
Every time they open their mouths, they sound like philosophers or start talking in riddles. It’s impossible to understand.
“Do you not understand?”
What do you think?
But this was the Heavenly Demon.
I quickly switched to a guilty expression.
“Your disciple lacks understanding, and I am ashamed to admit it.”
“No, it’s my fault as your Master for not explaining things at your level. That is my shortcoming.”
If you know that now, please explain it more simply.
I waited expectantly for his next words, my eyes sparkling with hope.
“Alright, let me make it easier to understand. Let’s imagine building a house.”
“A house?”
Out of nowhere?
“To build a good house, you must first solidify the ground. Then you lay down strong foundation stones, erect pillars, and finally put on a roof.”
We started with internal energy techniques, and now we’re talking about construction.
Couldn’t we approach this more straightforwardly?
“The technique you’ve learned can be seen as a clean, organized plot of land. When I-geon helped you open the Grand Circulation of your energy flow, it solidified that organized ground.”
“Then what does it mean not to tamper with the blank slate?”
“What would happen if you started shaping the land here and there while solidifying it?”
“Well… it would likely restrict the construction of the house.”
“Exactly. You understand well.”
Oh, now I’m starting to get it.
No one can call me stupid now.
“The method I-geon used to open your Eight Extraordinary Meridians, Transference of Energy Through Barriers, is, in a broad sense, a kind of Shearing Off Impurities and Cleansing the Marrow.”
That technique is said to be incredibly difficult.
As expected, Jeok I-geon really is a genius.
“Internal energy inevitably carries traces of the person who cultivated it. This is why even if two people learn the same technique, their energy can never be identical—it’s influenced by innate true energy. I-geon, however, transferred internal energy into your body without leaving a single trace. Do you know what that means?”
No traces were left when there should have been?
I don’t fully understand, but it must have been an incredibly difficult and intricate task.
Why did Jeok I-geon help me so meticulously?
Recalling the event, I found myself questioning it all over again.
Was it the chicken soup?
Or the rice balls?
I suddenly became curious about which had played a bigger role.
“Right now, your condition is like a blank sheet of white paper, free of any writing or drawing. Upon that paper, we will build the house that is the Demonic Soul Rebirth Divine Art, left behind by the Demon Empress.”
A house left by the Demon Empress…
“Master, your expression is truly poetic.”
Finally, a look of pride spread across the Heavenly Demon’s face.
The nervous tremor in his pupils that had appeared whenever I tilted my head in confusion seemed to have vanished.
It appeared he had been quite flustered by his first-ever disciple’s inability to follow along.
Now I wondered if I should pretend to understand even when I didn’t, to spare him the trouble.
To summarize: Lady Shin Geum initially granted me pure internal energy, and Jeok I-geon had intricately and meticulously opened my Ren and Du Meridians.
Now we would cultivate the Demonic Soul Rebirth Divine Art.
Wow, so this is what it feels like to have your heart swell with pride.
The martial arts of the Demon Empress, a legendary figure too revered for even the demonic world to aspire to.
To think I’d be inheriting that incredible power.
This isn’t some hidden camera prank, right?
Vroooom!
Imagine a luxury sports car speeding down a highway—no, let’s say the Autobahn in Germany, where there’s no speed limit.
As the Demonic Soul Rebirth Divine Art merged with my energy, the true energy coursing through my meridians felt like a sports car racing down the Autobahn.
Of course, I’ve never ridden in a sports car.
It’s just a metaphor.
How frustrating it must have been until now, driving a compact car.
Even with an immense amount of energy equivalent to One Gapja (a 60-year cycle in East Asian calendrical systems), I hadn’t been able to fully utilize the Demon Empress’s martial arts with my existing techniques.
To unleash high-level martial arts, you needed a corresponding cultivation method.
Compatibility between the two was a variable that couldn’t be ignored.
Amusingly, it was only after mastering the Demonic Soul Rebirth Divine Art that I finally felt like a martial artist.
In the calm stillness of the cultivation chamber’s center.
Hummmmm!
Sitting cross-legged, Seol-ha’s body slowly rose into the air, ascending gently.
At the same time, a crimson aura began emanating from the Baihui Acupoint at the crown of her head, enveloping her entire body.
The crimson aura expanded and contracted rhythmically, as though breathing.
‘Oh-ho.’
The Heavenly Demon, who had been silently observing, was visibly astonished.
There is a saying, Mul Gak Yu Ju, meaning every object has its rightful owner.
Typically, it is humans who choose objects.
But sometimes, it is the object that chooses its owner.
The martial arts of the Demon Empress were just like that.
It did not give its allegiance to just anyone, as though it were a scholar of high virtue.
Thus, it had remained unused, unable to find a worthy successor.
But now, the martial arts of the Demon Empress had finally found its master.
He had only begun teaching Seol-ha seriously after seeing her make the Demonic Phoenix Sky Art her own, but he had not anticipated such a perfect fit.
Watching Seol-ha blossom like a crimson flower, the Heavenly Demon’s expression was subtle—perhaps joyous, perhaps not.
_
Have you ever heard of the word déjà vu?
In French, it means “already seen.”
It refers to the feeling or illusion of having already experienced something new.
Why am I suddenly bringing up déjà vu?
Because that’s exactly what I feel right now.
Whoosh!
The sword roared forward like a raging wave, slicing through the air with force.
The sword techniques were backed by solid internal energy.
Internal energy and swordsmanship are like a three-legged race.
When the sword thrusts forward, the internal energy must follow; when the sword slashes, the internal energy must slash with it.
What does that have to do with a three-legged race?
Because they don’t always move in the same way.
Each move is not just any other move.
There are feints, lethal strikes, and variable strikes.
For a feint, the internal energy must retract a beat earlier. For a lethal strike, the energy must push forward as if exploding.
As for variable strikes, which lie between feints and lethal strikes, the internal energy must adapt to the situation.
This is far easier said than done.
Even the incantations were so difficult to interpret that it was nearly impossible to understand them in one go.
And yet, it worked.
It worked!
Why is it working?
It felt as though the internal energy was alive, moving on its own.
“Ahhh!”
It worked so well that I was startled, causing me to drop my sword.
Could martial arts be haunted by ghosts?
If I asked, would everyone think I was crazy?
Then, is this déjà vu?
I have no words to describe this strange feeling of familiarity, as though I’ve done this before.
“Are you alright?”
As I calmed my startled heart, Jeok I-geon rushed over, holding me as though to steady me.
I guess he thought something had gone wrong since I dropped my sword while practicing alone.
“I apologize. You told me never to let go of my sword, but I’m still inexperienced…”
“As long as the flow of your energy is fine, it’s alright. Continue.”
“…Yes.”
To be honest, practicing the martial arts of the Demon Empress was incredibly exciting for me.
How many times had I imagined this while reading martial arts novels?
The story of becoming a renowned female martial artist, defeating villains, and traveling the martial world with a handsome male lead.
Lately, I’d been pinching my cheeks often, wondering if this was all a dream.
That’s how surreal my current situation felt.
If not for being unable to leave the Demonic Cult, I’d say this was the peak of my life.
But there’s a limit to everything.
No matter how important the sparring tournament was.
Shouldn’t people get to rest sometimes?
Jeok I-geon, Cheon Gang, Seo Ryeon.
Rotating sparring matches with those three was exhausting enough to kill me, yet I was given no personal time except for meals.
I was only allowed two sijins (4 hours) of sleep per day and wasn’t even permitted to contact anyone.
I begged Jeok I-geon to let me see my grandmother, but all he said was that it would be possible after the sparring tournament.
That heartless bastard.
If I don’t win the tournament, he seems ready to kill me.
If he wants the victory so badly, why doesn’t he enter himself instead of tormenting me?
Just wait until this tournament is over.
I’ll never go near Geonyeong Pavilion again.
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