Chapter 15: Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng
After a while, as my excitement settled down, I realized that taking the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng itself was another problem. I knew well that elixirs should not be consumed recklessly.
If it were as easy as eating a meal, the competition for the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng wouldn’t have lasted so long…
Elixirs like the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng are not something you encounter every day. In fact, among elixirs discovered or created in the last century, it could only be compared to the Shaolin Sect’s Daehwandan. An elixir represents a pinnacle of natural energies, a massive conglomeration of qi.
Without proper preparation, consuming the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng would surely cause my Sun’s Vital Energy to swell, making my dantian and body burn with heat until my blood vessels burst, leading to death. It was clear that handling the immense qi contained in the ginseng would be extremely challenging.
The Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng contains extreme yin energy. To consume such a mass of yin energy, one must possess the energy of extreme yin, which is only found in the North Sea. However, the Thunder Dragon One Qi Technique is fundamentally a Yang Force technique.
One must either adapt to the same yin energy or counterbalance it with strong yang energy to sustain one’s life.
My only option was the latter.
Naturally, there was doubt whether my cultivation level was sufficient to survive after consuming the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng. My martial arts skills might have reached a top level, but it was still a stretch compared to the formidable masters who participated in the contest for the ginseng. To survive after consuming it, thorough preparation and concentration were necessary.
Let me recall the events. How did the competition for the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng unfold? There must be some clues…
The competition for the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng began when Danmok So, the young master of the Danmok Clan, went on a journey. Danmok So befriended the righteous sect’s later master, Five Dragons, during the journey and began touring Huangshan. During their travels, they stumbled upon the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, which led to a dispute and argument.
As a result, Danmok So managed to escape with the ginseng, and Five Dragons began to pursue him. During this chase, masters from the Huangshan Sect, followed by experts from the Jongnam Sect and the Huashan Sect, rushed from afar to seize the ginseng. Even the dark sect and demonic masters swarmed to capture Danmok So.
Danmok So was fortunate to have survived, but he lost one arm. It is said that he offered the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng to the leader of the righteous sect who saved him. In the end, everyone involved ended up with nothing.
Wait a minute… Something doesn’t add up. Did he escape from here?
Noticing the inconsistency in my memories, I looked up.
The snowy field I stood on was not part of a valley’s terrain. The cave behind the waterfall extended for over ten spans and suddenly dropped into a sheer cliff. Although there was a small side path in the valley – escaping through it while being pursued by righteous sect experts like Five Dragons would be nearly impossible. Not only would it be impossible to pass through if even one person blocked the path, but it would also be too easy for the pursuers to stab you in the back.
I guessed that there was some underlying issue between Danmok So and Five Dragons. I also suspected that the competition that day was a vicious, dirty fight far from the usual righteous sect demeanor.
Anyway, I had to make a decision now. Should I attempt to consume the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng right here, or take it with me and think things over more calmly?
Take the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng out? Absurd! I’ll just eat it here.
Without hesitation, I decided to consume it on the spot. When one obtains something precious, there should be no chance of it being taken away or lost. Since coming this far was a life-or-death gamble, I had no choice but to trust in my stamina and mental strength and take one more risk.
A bead of sweat ran down my forehead. I swallowed and took out the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, holding it in one hand. Truly, as a legendary elixir, just holding it caused a chill to seep into my hand. The fresh aroma filled my nostrils, giving a refreshing and pleasant feeling as if my insides were being cleansed.
“Ah… No. Let’s recover a bit first.”
I shook off the fear that emerged as I prepared to eat it and realized that I had expended a lot of energy to get here. More stamina would clearly be advantageous for survival, so I understood that now was the time to rest and recover.
I took out some dried meat and a pouch of beans from my bag and had a simple meal. I had also brought a bottle of alcohol but intentionally avoided drinking it. I was not the type to drink before consuming an elixir.
Still a bit hungry… Hmm.
As I was chewing on the hunger, I spotted a lotus flower in the pond. Lotus flowers, leaves, and roots are excellent for consumption. I thought they could make a good tonic if boiled properly.
Didn’t the monks of Baekhwansa eat those black lotus flowers for health? I couldn’t imagine there being any adverse effects. With that thought, I went to the pond and began to collect the lotus flowers.
I cut one black and one white lotus flower and separately gathered the leaves and roots. I then made a small fire, filled a bucket with water from the pond, and started boiling it. After it boiled enough, I poured the water over the snow to cool it and removed the rotten parts.
The lotus flowers and leaves with the right warmth were very delicious. I compared the taste of the white and black lotus flowers and found both to be quite good.
“I’m full.”
Satisfied, I leaned against the cave and lay down, planning to rest a bit before consuming the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.
“……?”
At that moment, I felt a strange sensation.
As I lay still, I suddenly felt a searing heat rising from my dantian, almost as if my insides were being melted by a furnace! The intense pain felt like it would set my heart on fire, and I quickly sat up.
“Ugh! Ugh! Cough…!!”
What is happening? Why is this occurring?
I hurriedly activated the Thunder Dragon One Qi Technique and sat in a lotus position, focusing my mind. By channeling the qi through the Great Circulation, the overwhelming yang energy that had been surging up was momentarily stabilized, and the pain throughout my body lessened.
Gurgle, gurgle
“Cough…!”
In the next moment, I coughed up blood. Although I managed to calm the energy, the immense yang qi was still rampaging through my body. Despite the excruciating pain, I struggled to make sense of the situation.
Then an idea flickered through my mind.
Elixirs… elixirs have a symbiotic relationship… They live together… Could it be…!!
I was stunned.
The White Lotus and Black Lotus!
No one had noticed it, but this was also a legendary elixir! Elixirs have a natural tendency for yin and yang energies to coexist, so it was likely that the Black Lotus with extreme yang energy was living near the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng with extreme yin energy.
But… the monks who ate the black lotus flowers were fine…
Could it be that the combination of White Lotus and Black Lotus caused this?
It was indeed a thought no one would have entertained. Even those who came here to explore later would not have considered consuming both. Eating just one would not cause the latent yang energy to manifest, but eating both would unleash yang energies comparable to the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.
Creak
Thud, thud, thud
I could feel my blood vessels surging. Despite my desperate attempts to suppress it with the Thunder Dragon One Qi Technique, it was impossible to handle. I felt as if my heart might burst, and the blood vessels in my organs would burst like balloons. I sensed that there was barely any time left before this would happen.
If it comes to this… there’s no choice!
I shut my eyes tightly and held the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng in one hand. Without hesitation, I opened my mouth and began to chew.
Chew
Chew
I felt the refreshing chill of the ginseng traveling down my throat. Moments later, I sensed that the remnants of the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng had reached my stomach.
Boom!!
The extreme yang qi and yin qi collided like an explosion! The intense pain felt worse than being stabbed with a knife, and I was writhing on the floor, my nose bleeding. The pain was so overwhelming that I couldn’t even focus on the blood pouring from my nose. It was as if my flesh was being pierced and overturned piece by piece.
“Ugh… Ahhh…”
I screamed and crawled on the ground. The thought of sitting in a lotus position to calm the qi was beyond me. At the same time, I could feel a brief relief as sweat poured down my back.
Inside, the energies of the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng and the Black and White Lotuses were mixing. The feeling of my organs bursting from the collision was countered by the elixir’s energy mending the damage. Despite the agony consuming me, I was in disbelief at the situation.
This was a suicidal act… If I had just tried to eat the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng alone…
The situation would have been the exact opposite. The extreme yin energy would have surged, and no amount of Thunder Dragon One Qi Technique would have been able to contain it. The thought of freezing to death from consuming the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng alone sent chills down my spine.
And I realized that I had miraculously discovered the correct method to consume the elixir.
To consume the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, one must simultaneously eat the Black and White Lotuses!
That was the only way to survive after consuming the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.
I felt the pain gradually subsiding. More precisely, the yin and yang energies mixed and expanded, and I was slowly guiding this energy into my dantian.
“Cough… Ugh… Ugh…”
Desperately trying to focus, I sat in a lotus position and gritted my teeth, attempting the most advanced cultivation technique I knew.
When the yang energy reached my solar plexus, I was finally able to perform the Spirit Needle Technique.
With my body relaxed, I touched the tip of my tongue to the roof of my mouth. Breathing through my nose, I slowly inhaled until my lower dantian was full. Then I exhaled slowly in the manner of the Wheel Arm Method, positioning my palms outward and adopting the Mabo posture.
(TN: The Mabo posture (마보자세, 馬步姿勢), also known as the horse stance, is a fundamental stance used in various martial arts, particularly in Chinese martial arts such as Kung Fu.)
After repeating this process three times, the yang energy finally settled into my dantian.
The moment the yang energy settled in the dantian, it resonated with the stored energy of the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng and the Black and White Lotuses, causing my entire body to tremble. However, there was no pain. Instead, my vision began to be shrouded in mysterious energy, and an endless stream of sweat poured from my body. Explosive power gathered in my dantian and struck the meridians around me.
Boom!
The force traveled along the Ren Meridian and eventually met a barrier. The energy gently pushed against the barrier, but it did not open. I felt a faint pain around my temples, but I couldn’t discern if it was real pain or merely a vague sense of discomfort. I gathered the energy from my entire body into my dantian and then released it all at once.
Rumble…
After a long while, I opened my eyes. It felt as though a clear light was penetrating through my entire body.
The bloodstains around me, the two nails I lost from scratching the floor in agony, the sweat and blood covering my body, and the dried blood tears from my eyes—they no longer mattered.
A mist-like haze rose from my body.
I gradually stabilized my internal energy and stood up. I had successfully concentrated all the energy into my dantian, and the power of the elixir spread throughout my body. As a result, I had crossed the threshold of life and death.
With this, my internal energy had undeniably reached the pinnacle level of a master!
I now possessed internal energy comparable to the elders of the Great Gate Sect. My techniques and martial arts skills had at least increased tenfold compared to before.
“I did it.”
I had achieved a fortuitous success through effort.
Words could not express the feeling of elation I experienced.
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