Chapter 202: Achieving the Inner-Outer Realm (1)

"Unjeong is currently unconscious from having her acupoints sealed, but even if she awakens, that bastard’s sorcery won’t be broken, so she’ll still be out of her mind."

"Can’t you cure her, Elder?"

The Demonic Master shook his head.

"It’s a Soul Reaping Art I do not know. I’ve never seen a Soul Reaping Art with such a powerful Forbidden Restriction."

"Then we’ll have no choice but to wake that bastard up and interrogate him."

Yong Hwarin spoke, looking toward Eum Sajeok, sprawled like a corpse in the corner.

"There’s no other way for now."

"I’ll find out."

Just as Yong Hwarin tried to move, the Demonic Master pressed down on his shoulder.

"You may look fine now, but your insides must be in a terrible state. This isn’t the time for that. You should focus on circulating your qi, regulating your energy, and tending to your injuries. That bastard can be interrogated anytime, and your daughter is not in immediate danger. Don’t worry."

Yong Hwarin sat down and spoke.

"Understood. Then I’ll ask you to handle it for a moment."

He hadn’t mentioned it, but the truth was that Yong Hwarin’s body was a complete wreck.

Had his True Qi—which had reached the Realm of Self-Existence—not moved on its own to heal him to some extent, he would’ve long since collapsed. The injuries he sustained weren’t ones to shrug off.

"Is my Contract House request still valid?"

When Yong Hwarin looked at Baekseom and asked, Baekseom nodded.

"Unless the client cancels the request, it remains valid until we deem the task complete."

"Then I ask for your protection."

As soon as Yong Hwarin said this and entered Qi Circulation, Baekseom found himself amazed at how easily Yong Hwarin inspired trust in people.

‘No wonder the Young Cult Leader and the Youngest Young Master treat him like family.’

Baekseom remembered Yong Hwarin from long ago—when he had stepped forward with a youthful face, defending against an attack on the Jaegal Clan. He had thought back then that the boy would grow to be someone great.

Seeing how that thought was more or less correct, a strange sense of pride welled up in him.

"Secure the area."

Baekseom gave orders to his subordinates as he stepped outside.

Yong Hwarin, entering Qi Circulation, knocked on his Upper Dantian to awaken the Demonic Master.

He meant to inform him of the current situation and seek a piece of advice.

After Yong Hwarin told him the full story of what happened at the manor, the Demonic Master surprisingly didn’t react much.

‘The middle-aged Demonic Master drew upon Innate Qi just to protect his daughter?’

Of all things Yong Hwarin had said, that one didn’t sit right with the Demonic Master.

‘Still, it’s clear that the current me is a better father than I ever was. If it were me now, I wouldn’t have laid down my life for my daughter.’

When the Demonic Master thought back to his past life, his greatest regret was losing his daughter so helplessly—and failing to be of any help when his wife died.

Even though he couldn’t quite believe that he—this version of him—was doing everything he could to save his daughter, it felt like a burden had been lifted from his heart.

‘There must be a reason you woke me?’

‘Yes. Your daughter is under the effect of a Soul Reaping Art, and the middle-aged you can’t break it. I think it has to be you, Elder.’

‘Understood. I’ll take a look.’

‘Before that, I have a question. It’s about martial arts.’

‘Speak. But this makes five. After this, our deal is done.’

‘What do you mean five? This makes four. The last one was in exchange for protecting your daughter.’

‘You cheeky brat, nitpicking over that.’

‘I’m old enough to nitpick. And if anyone’s being petty here, isn’t it you? If a disciple wants to learn, you should be teaching him for free, not charging. Besides, I just risked my life fighting to save your daughter.’

‘Hahaha! You give back with steel when I give you brass. Enough chatter, just ask.’

By now, the Demonic Master considered Yong Hwarin no different from a disciple and didn’t hesitate to pass on his secret techniques.

Originally, he had no intention of teaching more than five techniques, as promised.

But after sharing a body with Yong Hwarin and spending so much time together, affection had inevitably formed.

In his entire life, Yong Hwarin was the first person the Demonic Master had stayed so close to for so long.

Perhaps because of that, there were times when Yong Hwarin felt less like someone else and more like family.

‘I suppose I’m human after all.’

Though he was a master of the Demonic Path, the Demonic Master realized he still had human emotions.

"From the battles I've fought, I think I have a weakness against Poison Arts. I want to learn how to fight against poison without falling prey to it."

After a brief silence, the Demonic Master opened his mouth.

"You really think such a method exists? A way to fight against poison without being harmed?"

"If anyone would have it, it would be you, Elder."

"Hahaha, you brat, now you’re not just scratching the old man’s ass—you’re trying to rip it off. But before that, let me ask you something. Why did you risk your life to save my daughter? You could’ve died. You came back to the past—you could’ve just lived happily. Why go through something so dangerous?"

Yong Hwarin paused for a moment to think after hearing the Demonic Master’s question.

"My past life was filled with nothing but regrets. So I don’t want to live like that again. Truthfully, I wasn’t very eager to come here alone either. That’s why I even put out a Contract House request to have assassins protect me. I couldn’t handle it alone. I was afraid—but I had to do it. Because I know how painful it is to live after losing someone you love. If I were to lose Jeong Mae like this, then even if I returned to the past and trained in martial arts to grow stronger..."

There was no reason. I just didn’t want to lose the people I cherished, the people I loved, and be left with regret anymore. That’s why I came here to save Jeong Mae, even if it meant I might die.’

The Demonic Master let out a short and deep belly laugh.

‘Heheheheh, perhaps you’ve attained a greater enlightenment than I have. Maybe that’s why I ended up inside your body. In this world, there’s no such thing as true coincidence. What we call chance always has its roots in something from before. Perhaps my entering your body is also part of such causality. In any case, the question you asked—my answer both exists and does not. Because what you asked can’t quite be considered martial arts in the traditional sense.’

What the Demonic Master taught weren’t necessarily classified as martial arts, yet they displayed power that far surpassed advanced techniques.

The Dragon Concealment Heavenly Art, the Dragon Scale Finger, and the Dragon Claw Five Fingers that he taught were in no way inferior to any superior techniques.

One could see the breadth and depth of that martial knowledge.

So even if it wasn’t considered a martial art, Yong Hwarin wasn’t disappointed.

‘That might be the only way to block poison arts. What do you think it is?’

Whenever the Demonic Master taught something, he always prompted one to think through questions like this.

Seeing that, the Demonic Master truly was an excellent martial arts teacher.

‘When I held my breath, I could endure to some extent. But that, too, had its limits.’

‘Yes, breathing is important. But with that alone, you’ll never defeat a poison arts master.’

‘Then what should I do?’

‘You should cloak your body in qi so that poison cannot invade it.’

Hearing those words, Yong Hwarin muttered in disbelief.

‘Surely you don’t mean Protective Energy?’

‘Indeed, that “surely” is the answer to your question. If you wrap your body in Protective Energy, poison qi will not be able to invade, will it?’

‘Are you being serious? Protective Energy, of all things.’

Though the term Protective Energy was so widely known that even children on the streets spoke of it, there were few martial artists in the Murim who could truly utilize it.

‘Calling it Protective Energy is one thing, but executing it is not so simple, is it?’

‘Fine, then tell me what you know about Protective Energy.’

‘Protective Energy refers to forming a qi barrier by expelling true qi from within the body to wrap and shield the body. But normally, qi tends to be retained inside the body, so once it leaves the body, it doesn’t last long. That’s why enhanced qi is so difficult. And now you’re saying one could cloak the entire body in it and maintain it for long? At my level?’

‘It’s because it’s possible at your level that I bring it up.’

Upon hearing those words, Yong Hwarin’s eyes lit up.

‘Really? Elder?’

‘You’ve unknowingly learned something strange. You’ve already reached a realm where your true qi continuously connects with the outside. Even I was surprised. I noticed it when you fought Heaven-Cleaving Saber Gu Hyeong. From then on, your true qi began to resonate with the external world, even drawing in nature’s energy.’

Yong Hwarin couldn’t understand the Demonic Master’s words.

What he was referring to now was the Inner-Outer Realm.

But the notion of drawing in nature’s energy hadn’t even occurred to him.

‘When one reaches the Body-Nature Realm, the body’s true qi flows outward and fuses with nature’s energy.’

‘When you say Body-Nature Realm, do you mean a state where true qi circulates freely between the body and the outside?’

‘That’s right. I call it the Body-Nature Realm.’

Yong Hwarin nodded.

In the Tai Chi Dantian, that realm was referred to as the Inner-Outer Realm.

It was a name that felt more direct than Body-Nature Realm.

Whatever it was called, be it Inner-Outer Realm or Body-Nature Realm, the idea that true qi could leave the body and harmonize with the energy of nature was a profound teaching.

After hearing the Demonic Master's words, Yong Hwarin vaguely began to understand what had been said in the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra.

The Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra stated that reaching the Inner-Outer Realm meant achieving the state of a superhuman, because it involved fusion with nature’s energy.

However, he still couldn’t comprehend why the Inner-Outer Realm was also referred to as the Realm of Emptiness.

Yong Hwarin realized that he had only grasped a fragment of the Inner-Outer Realm.

Because what the Demonic Master said became a crucial clue in understanding the Inner-Outer Realm, he listened closely to his words.

‘But what you must not misunderstand is that even if the true qi that flows outward merges with nature’s energy, it doesn’t mean that energy becomes your own. True qi has the property of harmonizing with qi of the same nature, so the reason it appears to blend with nature’s energy is simply because of its compatible nature with the cultivated inner power within your body. But nature’s energy is still nature’s energy. It does not become true qi inside the human body. The true qi we accumulate through internal techniques is, by nature, not compatible with nature’s energy. That’s because the characteristics and properties are different. However, if the cultivated energy is pure, it can blend more easily with nature’s energy. That’s also why demonic internal arts cannot harmonize with nature’s energy.’

As Yong Hwarin continued to listen attentively, the Demonic Master resumed.

‘Protective Energy is the act of emitting true qi outward and fusing it with nature’s energy to envelop the body. Therefore, merely accumulating true qi will not allow you to achieve Protective Energy, even if you reach the state of Three Gaps. You must train to release your true qi outward so that it continuously exchanges with nature’s energy. There’s a saying that sometimes one can extend their qi to detect presences five or even ten jang away. That is only possible if one has attained Protective Energy. It’s not something any dog or cow can do. If your true qi doesn’t harmonize with nature’s energy, how could you possibly sense the energy of nature? Hence, there will come a moment when your true qi suddenly escapes outward beyond your own will. When that happens, it signifies that you have reached the Body-Nature Realm, so don’t be startled—just let it happen.’

‘Ah!’

Upon hearing those words, a vivid memory surfaced within Yong Hwarin.

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