At Shindo Gwang’s words, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan stared at Yeon Woo Jin with their mouths open.“Are you really telling the truth?”“Of course it’s the truth.”“Then… do they also know he’s of the Martial Deity Heaven Lord’s bloodline?”“They know.”“Are they following him because he’s of the Martial Deity Heaven Lord’s bloodline?”“This man? How can you say that when you’ve seen our lord? Of course not! The fact that our lord carries the Martial Deity Heaven’s bloodline isn’t what matters. We’re simply captivated by him. I would have followed our lord even if he weren’t of the Martial Deity Heaven’s bloodline!”Follow him even if he weren’t of that bloodline?What kind of pull could he have for Shindo Gwang—who hadn’t even followed the Martial Deity Heaven Lord—to turn this fanatical?“You’ll soon understand. Just stay by his side and watch. You’ll naturally come to follow him.”Shindo Gwang’s face eased, as if the frustration in his chest had vanished.By contrast, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan’s expressions grew complicated.“Ah! As for your grandson, there’s nothing to worry about. Since our lord stepped in, your grandson is as good as completely cured.”There wasn’t a shred of doubt in his eyes.Dong Yeohae spoke.“I hear you. As you say, I’ll watch him.”“I hope you make the right choice. An opportunity like this doesn’t come whenever you please.”There was sincerity in Shindo Gwang’s voice, and Dong Yeohae nodded. ****Three days later.With anxious hearts, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan were on their way to see the child.“Do you think our child was really cured in just three days?”“Haah, I don’t know either.”“If he hasn’t been cured, what should we do?”“We’ll see. Let’s just hope the treatment went safely.”The two looked at each other, took a deep breath, and went inside.The moment they opened the door, a startling sight unfolded.The child who had always lain in bed was walking.“Papa!”As soon as he saw Dong Baekdan, the child toddled toward him, calling out.At that, Dong Baekdan burst into tears without even realizing it.“F-Father. What I’m seeing—this isn’t a dream, is it?”“You fool, it isn’t a dream. I’m seeing it too.”“Our Wiryong is walking, Father.”“He is. Those steps are strong.”Father and son, eyes brimming, watched the toddling child come closer.WHUMP-Once the child drew near, Dong Baekdan stepped in and hugged him tight.Warmth spread through his arms.“Papa!”He heard the child’s strong voice calling him.They had never heard a voice this lively from him before.He had always called them with a thin, exhausted voice.TRICKLE-Tears kept falling.He could feel it.The child’s heart was pounding, strong.Even without being a physician, anyone could tell—that was a healthy heart.The boy’s body was firm.It was no longer that soft, frail body of before.He could feel it clearly.The very frame had changed.It was astonishing.Had that Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation really remade the child’s body like this?While they were overcome with emotion, Yeon Woo Jin’s voice came.“You can relax now. The child is very healthy.”At Yeon Woo Jin’s words, Dong Baekdan lifted the boy up with one arm and stood.“Thank you. Even if you hadn’t said it, I can feel it. He’s healthy again.”Dong Yeohae said,“Truly, thank you. How could we ever repay this grace?”At Dong Yeohae’s words, Dong Baekdan spoke.“Father, you already know how to repay it.”“Right. Our Yanghwa Palace will support you. We will absolutely not support any other candidate.”“If you need our strength, say the word anytime. We’ll drop everything and come running.”Hearing they would support him and help whenever needed, Yeon Woo Jin smiled.“Thank you.”“No—thank you. Thank you so much for saving my child.”Holding his child, Dong Baekdan bowed again and again in gratitude.Watching the scene with satisfaction, Shindo Gwang put in a word.“Hey, don’t just say thank you—show some sincerity. Set a table so heavy it breaks the legs and give him a proper feast.”At Shindo Gwang’s remark, Dong Yeohae laughed heartily.“Hahaha! You’re right.”Then he turned to Yeon Woo Jin.“Won’t you stay one more day? I want to give you proper hospitality.”“He’s right. We can’t just let you go like this.”At their earnestness, Yeon Woo Jin smiled.“I was thinking of staying a few more days anyway.”“…What?”“Is the child’s treatment not finished?”Anxious, the two looked at Yeon Woo Jin.“No. I have business with the two of you.”“With us?”“Yes. Could you spare me three days?”“Ah, understood.”Then he looked to Shindo Gwang.“You too, Clan Head. You’re joining in.”Guessing what Yeon Woo Jin intended, Shindo Gwang was slightly flustered.“M-Me too?”“Yes. I need to see whether you’ve been neglecting your training.”“I—I’ve worked hard. I really have.”“We’ll see when I check.”What?This exchange?They couldn’t make heads or tails of it, but Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan didn’t think much of it.They were simply happy that Yeon Woo Jin would be staying three more days.“What are you doing? Go and throw the granary doors wide.”“Yes, Father! Today we’ll throw a rousing banquet.”“Hahaha! That’s right! That’s the spirit!” ****What is this?How on earth can this be happening?Dong Yeohae couldn’t believe the situation he was in.“Grrrgh!”The pain kept crashing over him.At my age, am I supposed to be going through pain like this?That’s what he thought.All he’d done was lend Yeon Woo Jin the training ground when he asked—and he lent him the palace lord’s private training ground at that.So why was he suffering like this here?Amid his agony, another groan sounded.Dong Yeohae knew very well who that groan belonged to.His own son, the young palace lord, Dong Baekdan.It began like this.When they arrived at the training ground, Yeon Woo Jin raised a formation around it.He was curious what kind of formation that was, but he just watched.Once the formation spread, the air around the training ground began to ripple.Yeon Woo Jin told them to go inside, so they followed him in.He felt something was off as they stepped through.Inside, Yeon Woo Jin made a proposal.Would they like to experience the same Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation their grandson had gone through?If they did, even an aged body could grow young again.He was tempted.He did mention there would be pain, but judging by the grandson’s case, it didn’t seem like it would be that bad.Dong Baekdan readily agreed as well.He was even pleased at the thought that he could experience what his own son had gone through.That was the mistake.“Grrrk!”This insane pain.It was no different from torture.CRACK-“Guo-agh!”If only it ended all at once—but it didn’t.If this were torture, at least he could say whatever the torturer wanted and get a moment’s rest.“Bear with it a little longer. We’re almost done.”At Yeon Woo Jin’s voice, anger surged.If he could plant a fist in that damned face just once, he’d die satisfied.As if he’d read Dong Yeohae’s mind, Yeon Woo Jin grinned and said,“When this is over, I’ll give you a chance to attack me.”He’d give them a chance?A chance to attack?His eyes flew open.Endure!And he would absolutely drive his fist into that face.He had clearly promised a chance to attack.Even if he did slam a fist into him, he wouldn’t complain… probably.Still—he was their benefactor. He decided he’d control his strength when he struck. ****Days later.At last freed from the Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation, the two glared at Yeon Woo Jin with eyes full of venom.Shindo Gwang spoke up.“Hey, is that how you look at your benefactor? Anyone would think he was your mortal enemy.”He was their benefactor, true.But at this very moment, he was their mortal enemy.“You clearly promised. You said you’d give us a chance to attack.”At Dong Yeohae’s words, Yeon Woo Jin grinned and nodded.“Yes.”“You’re strong enough that even Shindo Gwang acknowledges you, so we’ll go all out. Is that acceptable?”“Yes. That’s exactly what I want.”Exactly what he wanted?Hearing him say that made them curious.About Yeon Woo Jin’s true ability.“Come at me together, both of you.”At that, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan bristled.“Are you saying you’ll take the two of us at once?”After a brief thought, Yeon Woo Jin corrected himself.“No. Clan Head Shindo, you come too.”Shindo Gwang, who’d been keeping quiet, jumped in surprise.“Huh? M-Me as well?”“Yes. Attack me with everything you have. That’s an order.”An order—to attack him with everything they had.Shindo Gwang moved in beside Dong Yeohae, face tense, and spoke.“We’re going all-out from the start.”“What?”“Pour out everything from the start!”“R-Really?”“Yes! Thanks to you two, I’m caught up in this! Go all-out!”At his roar, an immense energy surged from Shindo Gwang’s body.WHOOOOM—FLAP— FLAP—His robes whipped from the sheer force of the aura.Realizing Shindo Gwang meant it, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan sensed something was wrong.A feeling like… maybe they shouldn’t do this.Then Yeon Woo Jin’s voice came.“You’d better do it properly. Until I’m satisfied, none of you are leaving.”At that, Dong Yeohae and Dong Baekdan clenched their fists.Fine.Let’s do this.Surely three of them, going all-out together, could satisfy him… right?With that thought, the two unleashed their power.WHOOOOM—The energy was truly immense.They expected Yeon Woo Jin to be surprised.But his response shattered their expectations.“Hmm. This won’t do.”Won’t do?This much aura won’t do?“I shouldn’t have been worrying about the outside. My own house is the real mess.”Gazing at the three with a grave expression, his face turned fearsome.“There’s no time, so I’ll make you as strong [N O V E L I G H T] as possible, as fast as possible.”The mutter had barely ended before Yeon Woo Jin hurled himself toward them. ****Time-Space Division Formation.That was the name of the formation we entered.One day outside equals one month in here, he said?I thought that made no sense.But it was real.We suffered like dogs for a month, stepped outside, and only a single day had actually passed.The outdoor air nearly brought me to tears.Tasting outside food made the tears spill.We shoveled it into our mouths, hardly knowing what we were doing.He told us to prepare two months of provisions.Once we went back in, it meant we wouldn’t even see this food for two months.You don’t know what you have while you have it.These little things felt like great happiness.For a month, we truly suffered like dogs.We trained until our bodies were rags, then sparred.But still, we didn’t satisfy Yeon Woo Jin.He said we would now begin in earnest.“In earnest,” he said.Then what had we been doing until now?I was scared.I didn’t want to go back in.And yet, part of me did want to go in.What do I mean?We were getting stronger.We could feel ourselves growing stronger.I had never felt myself grow this fast.So even knowing hell awaited us in there, we couldn’t turn away.Two months.Right.If we held on for two months, we’d walk out different men.Endure.CHOMP-CHOMP-Let me just finish this.GULP— GULP—Even the liquor tasted like honey.CHOMP— CHOMP—I didn’t know I could eat this much—food just kept disappearing without end.And still, my belly wasn’t full.We probably needed not two months of rations, but ten.The two of them devoured everything in front of them like madmen.Shindo Gwang watched them with a look of disbelief.“Good grief. At least act like you’ve got dignity when you eat. Anyone would think I’d been starving you.”At that, Dong Yeohae answered with an incredulous face,“Finish the meat in your hands first before you say that.”In Shindo Gwang’s hands were two hefty slabs of meat, and the area around his mouth was slick with grease.

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