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Chapter 13
The mess hall of the Tomb of Soldiers and Horses.
After everyone had finished their meals and left, three third-generation trainees sat facing each other.
They were the representatives of the third-generation trainees: Baek Yuhwa, Lee Pung, and Yoo Jacho.
“…He says he’s the ‘Alpha,’ and another Danyeop is the ‘Beta’? Anyway, I’ve never heard such insane nonsense before.”
Having finished speaking, Yoo Jacho gave an awkward shrug.
Lee Pung, frowning as he listened, asked for confirmation.
“So, you’re saying Danyeop fell into qi deviation and went mad… and the one calling himself ‘Alpha’ is crazy strong, while the ‘Beta’ is just the Stone Monkey?”
“That’s right.”
“Damn it, is this a joke? But why does the Stone Monkey have to be bullied?”
“I don’t know.”
“But Alpha or Beta, it’s all one body, isn’t it? Shouldn’t he be saying not to touch it, then?”
That was the part Lee Pung couldn’t accept.
Going mad due to qi deviation was common enough that he could shrug it off.
But Alpha or Beta, they shared the same body. Why would Alpha tell them to bother his own self?
“At first, he did say not to touch Danyeop. But then he muttered something to himself and changed it—told me to pick a fight instead. That’s when it hit me. Damn, he’s truly crazy.”
“But was this mad Danyeop really that strong?”
“Yeah, he toyed with me just like the instructors do. Just a finger brushing against me felt like being stabbed with a spear… Ha! You can’t understand unless you’ve actually gone through it.”
Blinking in disbelief, Lee Pung turned to Baek Yuhwa.
“What do you think, Junior Sister Baek? Does Danyeop really seem crazy? Or is he just pretending to be?”
After a brief thought, Baek Yuhwa replied.
“There was a crazy uncle at my sect. He couldn’t speak coherently at all. Senior Yoo, when Danyeop spoke, did he ramble nonsense?”
“Not at all. He even recited difficult characters.”
“Really? Then it’s possible Danyeop has been deceiving us all this time.”
Startled, Yoo Jacho asked,
“Why? What would he gain by deceiving us?”
“That’s what we need to find out.”
“Junior Sister Baek, don’t tell me you’re thinking of meeting Danyeop yourself?”
“If Senior Yoo couldn’t handle him, Senior Lee would struggle too. Then the only one left to confirm is me. I need to know what kind of scheme made him pretend to be a fool for thirteen years—and why he’s suddenly acting insane now.”
The eyes of Baek Yuhwa, the pride of her sect, burned with a sense of mission.
While Yoo Jacho and the others held their little meeting, Danyeop was wandering about the quarters, carrying a satchel slung over his shoulder, searching for a place to train.
For the martial arts of the Six Gates, training anywhere was fine, but cultivating Taeulqi while wearing the Golden Jade Garment would draw unwanted attention.
After wandering for quite a while, Danyeop stopped in front of a dead end covered with carved patterns and writing.
“No matter how I look around, this place is the best.”
Remote and oddly familiar, it appealed to him.
But the problem was that, being a dead end, anyone passing by could easily spot him.
He was about to leave reluctantly when he froze.
“…This writing feels a bit provocative.”
If the inscriptions were ever leaked by bandits or tomb robbers, descendants of Wind Lord or Rain Master might come to the Tomb of Soldiers and Horses.
“That won’t do.”
Muttering to himself, Danyeop picked up a piece of stone and stood before the wall.
“Since Master already went to take revenge himself, it should be fine to erase this. The words I erase, I’ll forever engrave in my heart.”
Resolute, he scratched out three characters: “Wind Lord,” “Rain Master,” and “Heaven Realm.”
When the task was done, he left the spot with satisfaction.
Beyond the main tomb and its open courtyards, the outer areas were a maze of corridors lined with countless stone chambers, large and small.
Danyeop chose the stone chamber closest to the erased wall as his training spot.
The closer to the dead end, the more secluded it was.
After sitting cross-legged on the floor, he raised his senses and scanned the surroundings.
As expected of an underground tomb, nothing unusual could be felt.
It was so quiet that he figured he’d notice anyone approaching by their footsteps.
Only then did he open the satchel and check inside.
It was empty.
He even turned it inside out, but the result was the same.
“Wow… how strange.”
Restoring the satchel, he slipped the Taeulqi garment inside.
Immediately after, he opened it again.
Still nothing.
“Gasp!”
Startled, he reached in and felt the cool-warm touch of jade scales.
The Starry Golden Jade Garment.
It couldn’t be seen with the eye, but his fingers confirmed its presence.
He slowly pulled it out.
Clink—!
The clear sound of jade scales brushing against one another filled the chamber.
As he draped it over himself, he murmured absentmindedly,
“Surely the Beta won’t suddenly awaken while I’m cultivating?”
His heart skipped for a moment, but then he shook his head.
He remembered performing the Great Circulation three times before his master.
With the cultivation method of Taeul Original Transcendent Art, there was no way Beta would awaken.
Danyeop began reciting its formula in his mind.
His breathing followed the principles of Simjeong Dan Method, a habit ingrained since childhood.
Half-lidded, he fixed his gaze on the tip of his nose, breathing steadily. A white mist began to gather around him.
As time passed, the mist gradually thinned.
After four hours, it vanished completely.
His half-closed eyes slowly opened.
“Phew—! Absorbing Master’s Eungidan is no easy feat.”
Had he absorbed thirty percent yet?
He thought wearing the Golden Jade Garment would let him finish in one go, but it still felt like a long road ahead.
In truth, he wanted nothing more than to shut himself in a stone coffin for ten years of cultivation like his master, but in his case, he’d simply starve to death.
As the saying goes, “A sparrow trying to follow a crane will only tear its legs apart.”
With a sigh, he removed the garment, stowed it in the satchel, and left the chamber.
Back at his quarters, Danyeop began writing a long letter addressed to “Beta.”
He described learning Split-Mind Art, his qi deviation, becoming smarter, the fight with Deungpyeong, and now with Yoo Jacho…
But he deliberately omitted anything about his master or the Taego Sect.
Someone else might read the letter first, and Beta didn’t need to know those things.
Finally, he stressed: “Don’t lose the satchel kept under the bed, it’s essential for treating the qi deviation. Also, maintain your virginity until the treatment.”
Both the satchel and his chastity were necessary for cultivating Taeulqi.
By the time he finished, drowsiness swept over him uncontrollably.
“Ugh, I’ve still got such a long way to go… This is driving me crazy.”
Clutching the letter, he lay down and fell asleep instantly.
When Danyeop awoke, he lay staring blankly at the ceiling for a long time.
He had clearly been dragged out and beaten by Yoo Jacho, yet here he was, back in bed?
“Was it… a dream?”
Given how long he fought Yoo Jacho on equal footing, it did feel dreamlike.
“With Magol, I couldn’t last long at all…”
Oddly enough, the fight with Yoo Jacho, who was stronger than Magol, had felt manageable.
He could see the punches coming, and even getting hit didn’t hurt as much as before.
Well, at least until Yoo Jacho used inner power—then it was excruciating.
Thinking this far, Danyeop lifted his arms to check.
He expected bruises all over, but surprisingly, they were fine.
“…What’s this?”
In his right hand, neatly folded paper.
I am Danyeop. While practicing Split-Mind Art, I fell into qi deviation and developed a split personality…
The long message ended with, “Destroy this after reading.”
Danyeop was stunned at the words written by his other self.
“I’m in a state of qi deviation?”
He wanted to believe it was some cruel prank, but given the bizarre things that had happened to him, it seemed likely to be true.
After processing it, he went to the latrine, tore the letter to pieces, and pushed the scraps deep into the filth with a stick.
“Fine, but why does he call me Beta? It’s my body, so I’m Alpha.”
He didn’t like that the split personality was acting like the true owner.
By reason alone, it made no sense.
“What gives him the right to call himself Alpha? Ridiculous.”
As he muttered his complaints on the way back to his quarters, a clear voice called from behind.
“Senior Danyeop.”
Startled, he turned.
It was Baek Yuhwa, smiling gently. The strongest among the third-generation trainees.
Realizing who it was, Danyeop quickly looked away.
“Oh? What?”
“I met Senior Yoo earlier today. He said you’re actually a hidden master?”
“….”
Danyeop neither denied nor confirmed.
The letter had told him everything, but nothing had really changed.
He still found it hard to deal with people, and he still wasn’t good at anything.
But Baek Yuhwa continued, unfazed.
“I always thought you were a little strange. Your martial arts seemed ridiculously weak, but you never bowed to other trainees either. That’s not easy in the Hao Sect, especially if you’re not from a great clan.”
A wry smile crossed Danyeop’s face.
That was just another way of saying, “You managed to endure all the beatings.”
“What’s your purpose?”
The sudden question made Danyeop lift his head instinctively.
“Purpose?”
“Pretending to be weak, pretending you can’t fight—clearly you’ve done it all to stay here in the tomb. Why do you want to remain in the Tomb of Soldiers and Horses?”
“That’s not it, I really do want to graduate…”
“If you can defeat Senior Yoo, you’re easily top ten here. Someone like that failing to graduate? No, you’re just not doing it.”
“The truth is, while practicing Split-Mind Art, I—”
“I already heard. They say you fell into qi deviation and your mind is unstable. I don’t believe it. Before I joined, I saw a real lunatic at my sect. You’re not like that.”
“I’m not crazy. My personality split. If I’m Alpha, then inside me lives another me, Beta. Do you understand?”
“That is what people call being crazy. But you don’t look crazy to me. So tell me the real reason you’re pretending—even to the point of acting insane—just to stay here.”
“This is driving me mad, honestly.”
“Or… did you find some treasure in the tomb?”
“Treasure?”
“I saw you suddenly carrying around a satchel. No one needs a satchel here.”
“That’s not it.”
“Oh, please. I saw it myself.”
Baek Yuhwa’s gaze grew sharp with implication.
A satchel was a privilege reserved for graduates, especially those from wealthy families.
Trainees without background, like Danyeop, usually left empty-handed.
Yet Danyeop, who couldn’t even graduate, had a satchel?
That could only mean he’d found something valuable.
Considering the tomb was an ancient royal mausoleum, it was very possible.
“I’m telling you, that’s not true.”
“Come on, I’ll help you. Whatever you picked up, you can’t handle selling it alone. Let’s be partners.”
As she spoke, Baek Yuhwa naturally reached out and grabbed his wrist.
Her touch carried the essence of Flowing River Technique.
Danyeop instinctively tried to pull away, but in a blink, his wrist was caught.
“Oh? Caught you, didn’t I?”
She teased, then suddenly tugged him hard.
It was a kind of test.
But Danyeop was still no better than the Stone Monkey.
Losing balance, he collided with Baek Yuhwa.
“Eh?”
“Ah!”
In that instant, the two of them fell entangled together.
