Chapter: 386
The Ghost Sword Noea (雷牙), known as the Fang of Thunder, is one of the most renowned and celebrated swords in the world, also regarded as a significant treasure.
It was none other than Namgung Myung, the hero of the Namgung Clan who saved the world from a bloody calamity, who used this sword as his cherished weapon—so it’s no surprise it holds such importance.
Moreover, Noea carries a lot of meaning for me as well.
This same sword was also wielded by Namgung Bi-ah, the Demon Sword Queen.
Because of that connection, I had the opportunity to observe Noea from quite a close distance—though I never had the chance to come into contact with it directly, as the Demon Sword Queen would never allow it.
It was a sword that radiated an elusive aura, almost transparent, yet possessed an indestructible essence that made it unfathomable.
In addition, there was one clear distinction it had from other swords, but let’s just skip that part for now since it isn’t particularly important.
What’s crucial here is the question of why Noea, which is a treasure and, in many ways, a symbol of the Namgung Clan, is now in the possession of a wandering shaman.
That shaman is none other than the infamous Shaman Ghost Gyu-do.
He is the current owner of Noea, the precious heirloom of the Namgung family.
As Woo Hyuk pointed out, it’s true that he is a famous figure.
Originally a Taoist monk of the Shaman Sect, he is known to be wandering the Central Plains for some unknown reason.
He’s also somewhat renowned as a sage. When the Ma Kyung Moon went on a rampage and demons attacked a village, it’s said that Gyu-do, who happened to be staying there, dispatched all the demons and saved the villagers before vanishing into thin air.
Conversely, the reason why the character known as Do-in has the strange title ‘Gwae’ (怪) is due to his bizarre behavior.
He randomly talks to himself and gets angry out of nowhere or barges into random places creating chaos.
Add to that, he practices his sword moves in thin air, leaving total destruction in his wake—his antics are so incomprehensible that people started calling him Goeseon whenever they saw him.
On one hand, he’s a sage in the good stories, yet, on the other, he’s a warrior whose actions are so perplexing that one would prefer to keep their distance.
That man is none other than the Shaman Ghost Gyu-do.
But…
‘That guy was the master of the waking dragon?!’
This is something I never knew, even in my past life. Not only did the sleeping dragon never tell me, but it wasn’t even a rumor that spread through the Central Plains.
“Oh, I was going to keep that quiet.”
Even I was shocked to hear that. Woo Hyuk, who spoke it, seemed uneasy, letting out a series of sighs.
“I mean, he’s a teacher that’s just too embarrassing to brag about.”
After hearing Woo Hyuk’s words, I began to piece together the reason behind it a little.
… Was that why you kept it a secret? Because of embarrassment?
It truly is an awkward tale to share.
“But… you want to go to Sacheon to find such a teacher?”
“There’s really nowhere to stay if I go out. It’s best to say I’ll stay with my teacher for the sake of appearances.”
Well, sure, Gyu-do might have been half-shunned by the Shaman Sect, but he still belongs to their ranks.
If Woo Hyuk claims he’s going to stay with his teacher, he’ll at least have a justification.
“… So you’re saying you’d like to accompany me to Sacheon on the way?”
“Sounds fun! Just two buddies!”
“Buddies? How many people are going with us?”
I hadn’t had a chance to discuss detailed plans yet, but from the moment I decided to head to Sacheon, I had a few companions in mind.
I had already wrapped up discussions with Venerable Pae.
He mentioned it was fine since he had business in Sacheon as well.
As for Pae Woo-cheol, he had proposed we visit his clan together since I’d be passing through.
Additionally, since Tang So-yeol’s family is the Tang Clan, the rulers of Sacheon, traveling together could lead to some decent connections…
‘Hold on, does that mean the Poison King will be joining us…?’
The thought sends a shiver down my spine, but it can’t be helped.
Coincidence or fate, now’s the perfect time to head to Sacheon.
Shinryonggwan has unexpectedly decided to close down, after all, and the graduation timetable has advanced considerably.
The next incident I’m keeping an eye on will happen two or three years from now.
If possible, I need to boost my strength before then.
Now that I’m in Hwagyeong, what I need to prioritize is…
‘I need to get my hands on the white magic stone first.’
This is a precious stone dropped by elite white monsters, the highest rank of monsters.
I’ve known about it for quite a while, but I’ve been holding off until I could truly manage it.
In an era where only blue-grade monsters are commonly found, the existence of a white magic stone is a highly coveted treasure.
Moreover, when a monster dies, the magic stones it drops typically lose their energy shortly thereafter.
Yet, the white magic stone I’m after retains its energy even after quite some time has passed.
I’m not entirely sure why that is.
What matters is that the power contained within such a white magic stone is unfathomably vast compared to any elixir.
For someone like me, who can absorb such energies, the white magic stone would be the best elixir in the world.
Having reached the state of Hwagyeong, albeit an imperfect one, it’s crucial for me to acquire more Baekma Stones.
Thus, in this situation where there’s still time left, I am compelled to venture to Sacheon.
In that regard, Woo Hyuk’s accompanying me doesn’t matter much, as long as he doesn’t cause any trouble.
“I need to get permission. First off, I’ll need our lord’s approval…”
“Oh, the old Lord gave permission already.”
“…What?”
I was left utterly stunned by Woo Hyuk’s declaration.
My father granted permission?
“When?”
“Huh? I asked him yesterday when you had passed out.”
“…”
From Woo Hyuk’s words, I gathered that the spar with my father happened just last night.
“He said it was okay…?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“How?”
“What do you mean how? I just told him since I’m going, can’t I go with Woo Hyuk? And he said that was fine…”
It’s funny that Woo Hyuk would openly ask my father this.
And my father’s casual acceptance of it was rather shocking.
“Is it alright then?”
“…Uh… well… just do as you like…”
With no solid reason to refuse, I eventually relented.
If any issues come up, I’ll handle them.
‘Well, this actually worked out nicely.’
Though I grumbled about the arrangement, it turns out hearing Woo Hyuk’s intentions wasn’t half bad.
Then again, he’s talking about going to see the Shaman Ghost.
‘And here we are.’
I had my own business with the shaman.
To be precise, I had business with Noea.
Hwang A-bul-yeong once mentioned:
– “Find Namgung Myeong.”
This implies that Namgung Myung still has a soul in this world.
Furthermore, while heading towards the Namgung Clan, I remembered hearing a voice that resembled Namgung Myeong.
What he said was:
“Find Noea.”
He had directed me to search for his beloved weapon.
What that means escapes me, but I infer it’s related to the mysterious Shin Noya.
‘The real issue is that Shin Noya seems to be nowhere in sight.’
This old man keeps disappearing, really now. It’s quite frustrating.
Regardless… At a point where I need to find Noea,
if Woo Hyuk is going to see the Shaman Ghost, then it isn’t a bad situation.
It allows me to handle multiple matters at once, including the search for Noea.
After running the calculations, I turn to Woo Hyuk and say,
“I’ll go with you, but there’s a catch.”
“A catch? What kind of catch?”
At the moment Woo Hyuk looks puzzled, I lay out my condition.
“If we head to Sacheon, can you introduce me to your teacher?”
“…Huh?”
“Then we can go together.”
The expression on Woo Hyuk’s face twists as he processes what I just said.
I’ve never seen him wear such a look before.
For whatever reason, it seems he really doesn’t want to make that introduction, but I was keen on holding my ground here.
After quite a long moment of hesitation, Woo Hyuk ultimately nods, perhaps recognizing he has no other choice.
The deal was struck.
After wrapping up my conversation with Woo Hyuk,
with no remaining matters to address, Woo Hyuk grabbed him and tossed him out the window.
The building appeared tall, but I knew that, given his resilience, he’d be fine, so I didn’t sweat it.
I remember him pleading that he needed his top clothes while airborne—ahh!
I’ll let him figure it out.
During all this, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia.
In my previous life, I was so frustrated that I couldn’t do anything about the constant teasing from the sleeping dragon, yet now I could casually deal with it like this.
Squeak.
I exit the room and head down the stairs. My destination, of course, is where my father is.
“Huh?”
As I descend, I notice Gu Hee-bi coming up the stairs from afar.
She appears to have just finished her morning practice.
Looks like she’s still diligently showing up for her training.
Thinking of to at least greet her in the morning, I see Gu Hee-bi suddenly burst into laughter upon spotting my face.
What’s so funny?
“Why do you laugh as soon as you see someone’s face? You’re making me feel bad.”
“Heh… heh… no… Hahaha!”
She can’t contain herself and ends up laughing even louder.
“What’s so amusing?”
“Haha… Ah… Little brother, why does your face look like that?”
“My face?”
“Your eyes… heh heh… what happened to get hit?”
At Gu Hee-bi’s question, I instinctively touch my eyes.
A sharp pain flashes through.
Why does my eye hurt so much… Ah.
“Your eye is all bruised. You look ridiculous.”
“…”
So it turns out the mess was from my father. Did that leave a bruise too?
It must be pretty funny because Gu Hee-bi is laughing so hard she’s holding her stomach.
“Who hit you? Tell me, and I’ll scold them!”
“Your lord.”
“…”
“Why aren’t you responding? I thought you were going to scold me, big sis.”
Gu Hee-bi shifts her gaze away from my words. Guess she wasn’t actually planning to go after the culprit this time.
It was such an amusing reaction that I almost chuckled, but instead decided to just move on.
“Okay… where’s my lord?”
“…Training ground.”
“Training ground?”
Honestly, I suspected he might be there, and it turns out I was right.
As I move past Gu Hee-bi, she calls out to me.
“Little brother.”
“Yeah?”
“Did something happen between you and your lord?”
“Can’t you tell just by looking? I got hit.”
“…Not that.”
It’s ridiculous asking about my eyes turning all purple, yet now she wants to inquire what’s up?
“What do you mean ‘not that’?”
“Just… I said that because your lord seems unusually happy.”
“What’s my lord’s good mood got to do with me?”
“Whatever, never mind.”
Without giving me a proper reply, Gu Hee-bi starts ascending the stairs ahead.
I glance at her retreating back with a puzzled expression before resuming my steps.
My destination remains the training grounds.
An open area located behind the guesthouse.
Since there are often martial artists staying here without notice, it feels as though they’ve repurposed an empty lot into a training space.
Typically, a few other martial artists would be around.
But as it seems, since Mrs. Mi rented the entire guesthouse, that’s probably not happening.
Even if there were some martial artists initially, I can’t imagine how many could withstand the heat radiating here.
‘It’s so humid!’
The moment I step onto the training ground, I find it stifling.
The heat oozing from the center immediately directs my attention.
As expected, the owner of this heat is indeed my father.
The heat seems to taper off gradually.
Clearly, my father has sensed my presence.
His robe, which was fluttering, settles down. Once he fully regains control of his energy, he turns around, spots me, and opens his mouth.
“You’re awake… um.”
“…?”
Noticing my face, my father abruptly trails off, shutting his mouth tight.
I can see his eyebrows twitching. Could it be?
‘…Is he holding back laughter?’
Of all people, it’s the one who left my eyes looking like this?
“You’re up.”
“Just go ahead and laugh.”
“…What’s that supposed to mean?”
It seems he’s attempting to feign ignorance now.
But really, it’s far too late for that reaction.
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