CHAPTER: Chapter 27
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Chapter 27
The spear of the guard protecting the entrance to the Inner Archive thrust toward Uncheon’s shoulder like a venomous snake.
SWISH—!
It was not a mere threat.
It was a practical killing move, one that would pierce his shoulder if he failed to respond properly.
‘Fast.’
However, Uncheon did not dodge.
No, he had no need to dodge.
CLANG—!
A dull, heavy metallic sound echoed through the corridor.
Uncheon had merely raised his left arm and lightly knocked aside the incoming spearhead.
“……?!”
The one shocked was the warrior who had attacked.
He had struck a human arm, yet the rebound that rang through his hand felt as though he had struck a massive boulder, nearly tearing his grip apart.
‘W-What is with that arm?’
His gaze stopped on the black iron rings wrapped around the inside of Uncheon’s sleeve.
Iron Weights specially ordered from the Quartermaster, three times heavier than usual.
An overwhelming mass capable of forcibly twisting the trajectory of a spear’s attack was there.
“Is that all?”
Along with Uncheon’s cold voice, this time his right hand moved.
It seemed to brush past his waist, and then something flashed like a streak of light.
‘A Flying Dagger!’
The warrior flinched and hurriedly tried to withdraw his spear shaft to block, but Uncheon’s movement was different from what he expected.
Instead of throwing the Flying Dagger, Uncheon unfolded the Shadowless Step.
Uncheon’s form slipped into the warrior’s reach like a shadow.
“Ugh!”
The warrior tried to retreat in fright, but it was already too late.
The cold sensation of metal had touched the cartilage of his throat.
“……!”
The Flying Dagger gifted to him by Yajin was in Uncheon’s hand, aimed at the guard’s throat.
“Just because it is called a Flying Dagger, throwing it is not the only proper way to use it.”
As Uncheon recited Yajin’s teaching exactly, his gaze was cold enough to cut down the warrior before him at any moment.
“Has my qualification been proven with this? Or… should I show you more?”
The Flying Dagger in Uncheon’s hand pressed coldly against the man’s throat.
Cold sweat flowed beneath the warrior’s mask.
The monstrous strength that had deflected a spear with Iron Weights, the movement art that slipped inside his guard, and even the killing intent without a trace of hesitation.
He was by no means an opponent who could be underestimated because of his young appearance.
“…It has been… proven.”
The warrior answered in a trembling voice, withdrew his spear, and opened the way.
The other warrior who had been watching from the side also swallowed dryly and hurriedly turned the opening mechanism of the iron gate.
CREEEAK—.
The heavy iron gate opened inward, and at last the heart of the Demonic Martial Hall, the Inner Archive, was revealed.
The murmurs of the warriors could be heard behind him.
“That bastard… that movement just now, was it not the footwork of the Shadowless Killing Sect?”
“Those Iron Weights on his arms were no ordinary weight. He is young, but another monster has entered….”
Their voices were shaken by the overwhelming martial prowess Uncheon had shown in that brief instant.
They clicked their tongues as they watched Uncheon’s back disappear.
“Is he not the youngest among the rising talents Hall Master Gal Muheun has selected so far?”
“The other Book Ghosts were all far from ordinary, but… somehow, his atmosphere is different.”
Leaving their whispers behind, Uncheon stepped into the Inner Archive.
“…….”
The heavy air, mixed with the smell of old paper and the dust of time, wrapped around Uncheon.
Before his eyes, bookshelves reaching the ceiling stretched endlessly, forming a vast forest of knowledge.
Its scale was beyond comparison with the basic martial arts archive.
‘Are all of these martial arts manuals gathered by the Demonic Cult from across the Central Plains…?’
The scale was overwhelming.
Furthermore, the cool temperature, the suitable humidity, and the perfect protection from light were all ideal. The preservation conditions were also at the highest level.
Uncheon quickly examined the overall structure first.
‘It is not only martial arts manuals… Formation arts, medicine, pharmacology, alchemy… Books from various fields are mixed in here.’
There were even records on martial forces located throughout the Central Plains.
‘They have information not only on sects and noble clans, but even on the imperial household and the military….’
The scale of the records far exceeded his imagination.
There were even books on Tibet, Tianzhu, and Persia, which were called the martial world beyond the borders.
‘…They were not taken only from the Central Plains.’
The main headquarters of the Demonic Cult was located between the Western Regions and the Central Plains.
Because of that, there were also many books that did not belong to the Central Plains.
‘What if medicine from beyond the borders, rather than the Central Plains, has an answer…?’
Putting his admiration aside, Uncheon immediately headed toward the section where the medical books that concerned him most were gathered.
In particular, ancient books that dealt with strange illnesses related to Qi, blood, and meridians, such as Severed Meridian Affliction, Qi-Blood Reversal, and Qi Deviation, caught his eye.
[Compendium of Extraordinary Meridians], [Art of Reversing Blood], [Differentiation of Demonic Meridians] ….
It was filled with rare medical texts whose names he had never even heard.
The moment he reached out to take [Compendium of Extraordinary Meridians]—
WHIZZ—!
A heavy wind blew in from an unseen blind spot and aimed for Uncheon’s wrist.
It was not a simple check.
It was a precise acupoint strike aimed directly at the pulse gate of his wrist.
Uncheon instinctively withdrew his hand and took a half-step back.
In the spot where he had reached out, a Judge’s Brush, shaped like a writing brush but forged of steel, had lodged itself.
“Are you the newcomer? You have no manners. To reach for a book first.”
A man walked out from the darkness behind the bookshelf.
He had pale skin and nervous-looking eyes.
He pulled the Judge’s Brush from the bookshelf and spun it skillfully between his fingers.
‘A weapon of the same type as Hall Master Gal Muheun’s beloved weapon….’
That alone was enough to tell whom this man admired.
“I manage the medical books in this section. Do not touch them recklessly.”
“I came in with Hall Master Gal Muheun’s permission. I did not know I needed your permission as well.”
“Hmph. All the Book Ghosts here were chosen by the Hall Master. However, this place is also part of the Demonic Cult. There are no exceptions to the law of The Strong Are Exalted.”
The man smiled unpleasantly and pointed the tip of his Judge’s Brush at Uncheon.
“The harm that can arise if an unqualified fool handles medical books cannot be taken lightly. If you want to handle the medical books here, you must first earn the acknowledgment of this Baek Rihyeon.”
The steel core gathered like the tip of a brush gleamed coldly.
This Inner Archive, too, was part of the Demonic Cult.
If one could not prove one’s strength, even knowledge could not be obtained.
“Let us see what kind of newcomer the Hall Master has sent this time.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than Baek Rihyeon rushed forward.
‘Martial arts performed with a Judge’s Brush. I could only guess at the level of Chief Instructor Gal Muheun’s martial arts. I am curious.’
SWISH!
Baek Rihyeon’s Judge’s Brush dug in, aiming for Uncheon’s acupoints.
It was a precise acupoint-sealing technique that could be performed only by someone thoroughly versed in the acupoints and meridians of the human body.
It was a martial art perfectly suited for subduing an opponent without drawing blood.
CLACK!
However, Uncheon did not panic and received it with the Iron Weights on his wrist.
“Ho. You look young, but your basics are not bad… Every time you block my brush, I will teach you one rule of this place.”
When Uncheon received a move, Baek Rihyeon widened his eyes as though surprised and opened his mouth.
As though that itself were a reward.
“First, do not needlessly load your internal energy into your attacks. The books will be damaged.”
Baek Rihyeon’s Judge’s Brush curved in like a snake and aimed for Uncheon’s side.
‘My body cannot use internal energy in the first place, so that condition has nothing to do with me.’
Even without internal energy, its sharpness carried enough force to dig into flesh.
Uncheon stepped with the Limitless Step and avoided the trajectory of the Judge’s Brush by the width of a sheet of paper.
“Second, each archive will have senior Book Ghosts in charge. Do not touch books without their permission. Even if it looks disorderly, each of them has organized things in his own way.”
A silent exchange unfolded between the narrow bookshelves.
Whenever Uncheon avoided or received the Judge’s Brush that stabbed at him again and again, Baek Rihyeon recited the rules of the Inner Archive to him.
‘Baek Rihyeon, is it? He is rather capable. He knows how to use the space.’
Baek Rihyeon seemed accustomed to duels in narrow archives, and his ability to occupy space was excellent.
He predicted where Uncheon would evade and thrust his Judge’s Brush there in advance.
However, Uncheon used the rotational force created by the weight of the Iron Weights to redirect Baek Rihyeon’s attacks while watching for a chance to counterattack.
“Third, when asking a senior a question, show proper respect!”
Baek Rihyeon’s gaze sharpened, and his Judge’s Brush dug in toward the Jianjing acupoint on Uncheon’s shoulder.
Dense bookshelves stood on both sides. His back was blocked. There was not enough room to dodge.
‘If there is no room to dodge….’
Instead of evading, Uncheon crossed both forearms wrapped in Iron Weights and caught the incoming Judge’s Brush head-on.
CLACK—!
At the instant steel met steel, Baek Rihyeon’s eyes widened at the vibration transmitted through the Judge’s Brush.
“…You?”
The faint tremor at the tip of Baek Rihyeon’s Judge’s Brush stopped.
Instead of continuing his attack, he stayed exactly where he was with his weapon caught and looked Uncheon up and down as though something were strange.
“Your physical condition…?”
In that instant, Baek Rihyeon’s gaze changed.
From the eyes of one looking at an enemy to the eyes of a physician looking at a patient.
“From what I can see… the Qi and blood throughout your entire body are twisted. Could it be Severed Meridian Affliction? And… congenital at that?”
Uncheon’s eyebrow twitched.
‘He noticed my constitution after exchanging only a few moves?’
Uncheon had thought the man was merely trying to assert seniority, but he was indeed skilled enough to be in charge of the medical book section.
“Is that why you were lingering around the medical book section? To find a way to survive?”
Uncheon did not lower his guard and merely tilted his head slightly.
“…What if I was?”
An interested smile appeared on Baek Rihyeon’s lips.
His gaze examined Uncheon’s body not as a mere intruder, but as an extremely rare subject of medical study.
“How curious. To think another patient with Severed Meridian Affliction would enter the Inner Archive….”
“There is another patient with Severed Meridian Affliction?”
At that moment—
[…How noisy.]
From the pitch-black darkness high above the ceiling, a heavy pressure poured down.
It was a resonant sound that seemed to make the space itself tremble.
[End the test there, Baek Rihyeon.]
Eyes gleaming in the darkness swept over Uncheon.
Sensing instinctively that this was no ordinary manager, Uncheon lowered his head.
[So you are that newcomer. Not bad. To receive Baek Rihyeon’s brush technique while still preventing damage to the books. It is understandable that Gal Muheun made an exception for you.]
In that instant, Baek Rihyeon asked back as though he could not believe it.
“Elder Cheon Gyeon! An exception? Surely….”
[Yes. That child has been granted free access to the Inner Archive.]
“Free access…! I had to suffer for more than half a year just to become responsible for the medical book section…!”
Baek Rihyeon’s face flushed red, then blue. It was not simple defeat. It was shock and jealousy toward the fact that the Hall Master of the Demonic Martial Hall, who had always seemed as fair as the heavens, was favoring a newcomer who had just entered.
[Accept it, Baek Rihyeon. If you feel wronged, prove yourself with your skill. Your current appearance is unsightly.]
“…Kuh.”
At Cheon Gyeon’s rebuke, Baek Rihyeon bit his lip and lowered his head.
If he incurred the displeasure of Cheon Gyeon, the manager of the Inner Archive, even his qualification as a Book Ghost could be stripped away.
[Guide the newcomer yourself. Are you not one who walks the path of saving lives?]
“…Understood.”
Baek Rihyeon forcibly suppressed his anger and turned his head toward Uncheon.
His gaze still held curiosity about Uncheon’s physical condition.
“Follow me. The medical book section is this way.”
Uncheon silently followed behind him.
Baek Rihyeon walked ahead and spoke curtly.
“From here to that end is the medical book section. I do not know whether there will be a method to fix your broken body.”
“I appreciate it.”
“Hmph. And I will give you one piece of advice. As you search through the shelves… you may run into ‘her.’”
“Her?”
Baek Rihyeon’s expression stiffened subtly.
It was a complicated expression mixed with fear, pity, and awe.
“And… avoid her whenever possible. Wherever she is, even the bookshelves freeze.”
Baek Rihyeon paused for a moment.
What flashed through his eyes was pity.
“Most of all… she may not have another winter.”
After leaving behind those meaningful words, Baek Rihyeon hurried away.
***
A week had passed since Uncheon set foot in the Inner Archive.
Every day, Uncheon felt sticky gazes piercing into his back.
Between the shelves, in every gap where the darkness lay thick, glistening eyes were hidden.
‘Book Ghosts… Chief Instructor Gal Muheun certainly gathered a fine collection of eccentrics.’
Some hung upside down from the ceiling like bats while reading books, and others lay flat on the floor, muttering something endlessly without rest.
They were interested in Uncheon as a newcomer, but they did not rush at him like Baek Rihyeon.
‘…Just as that fellow said, it seems each Book Ghost has a shelf he is responsible for.’
Before long, Uncheon stopped paying attention to them.
Instead, he silently immersed himself in reading medical books.
Then, from one of the shelves, he pulled out an old medical text.
Rustle.
Uncheon’s hand stopped as he turned the pages.
‘…What is this?’
The paper had wrinkled and warped.
It had not become wet and then dried.
These were traces left behind after the paper had frozen and then thawed, destroying its texture.
When he touched it with his fingertips, he could feel a faint trace of cold energy still seeping from it.
‘Someone was reading this until just a moment ago.’
When he examined the contents, it was a section describing how to respond when someone fell into Qi Deviation after forcibly opening the acupoints.
‘Is this the earlier visitor Baek Rihyeon mentioned?’
Uncheon closed the book and stared once more into the depths of the shelves.
Ignoring the proper temperature of the Inner Archive, only that section held the cold of deepest winter.
‘To turn the surroundings into frozen earth with only the energy leaking out….’
It was then.
Click, clack…
The sound of teeth chattering.
And a suppressed groan.
“Uuuh… ugh….”
It sounded both like a beast enduring pain and like a person trembling from the cold.
Uncheon’s eyes narrowed.
‘There is something… at the center of the cold energy.’
Step.
Uncheon carefully followed the traces of cold energy. Each time he took a step forward, the cold that rushed in pierced through the edges of his clothing.
At the end of the bookshelves, where the darkness lay thick.
Someone was leaning precariously against a shelf, clutching her chest as she struggled to remain standing.
Each time she exhaled, a faint frost seemed to form in the air.
“Huuugh…!”
The closer he drew to the center of the cold energy, the more clearly he heard the faint groans.
‘…Is this truly energy originating from a person?’
It was a savage and ferocious Yin-Cold Qi that seemed capable of digging beneath the skin and freezing even the blood within the veins.
A figure had wrapped her entire body tightly in a thick woolen cloak and even wore a veil that covered her face.
She seemed so vulnerable to the cold that she was trembling violently despite wearing layers upon layers of fur-lined clothing.
Perhaps sensing his presence, the figure turned her head with difficulty and looked at Uncheon.
What was revealed through the veil was not the color of the Central Plains.
‘Blue eyes…?’
Her eyes were like deep blue glaciers embedded directly into her face.
Even as they wavered with pain, those eyes alone did not lose their cold and mysterious light.
Like an ice flower blooming alone at the summit of a snowy mountain.
“Who… are you…?”
With even her lips turned blue, she looked at Uncheon with eyes full of vigilance.
‘…Yin Severed Meridian Affliction. And not an ordinary severe case, either.’
In order to survive, she was fighting a desperate battle against the cold energy that was eating away at her own life.
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