IJWTGO 09

Episode 9

However, no reply came.

The longed-for voice, which used to say not to call anymore and to please let it rest in peace, did not answer this time.

“Ha… ha, ha….”

Letting out a hollow laugh, Cheonrang slowly released his energy. The crimson-stained surroundings returned to their usual state.

A soul summoned by Cheong-gwi-eum could not refuse the call.

But if the soul neither answered nor appeared, it meant that the spirit was not in the afterlife.

In other words, it had either reincarnated and stepped into the mortal world once more—or had never died to begin with.

“So it really is inside Tang Baekseon’s body…?”

My master?

The moment he voiced that thought, the pieces began to fall into place.

The reason Tang Baekseon, heir of the Tang clan, twisted his meridians while practicing martial arts. The reason he forgot the Tang clan’s mental cultivation method, and even forgot where he had come from.

All of that happened because, midway, his master had taken possession of Tang Baekseon’s body.

“Ha, ha ha… hahahaha!”

Cheonrang laughed madly.

The calm, tangled emotions within him rippled outward, swelling into an overwhelming tide.

Everything made sense now.

Why his feelings had churned whenever he looked at Tang Baekseon. Why words that only his master would have spoken came from Tang Baekseon’s lips.

But soon, fear surged within him.

“What if he resents me…?”

His fingertips trembled with guilt—guilt for having forced his master into such a fragile body.

Had Manyugang entered that body of his own will? Or had he been dragged there on the day Cheonrang performed the Soul-Returning Ritual, when Tang Baekseon barged in like an intruder?

Either way, Cheonrang had failed to restore him completely. Chewing his nails in unease, he shook his head.

“…As long as I don’t get found out, it’s fine.”

His master wouldn’t know how he had come to awaken inside another person’s body. No matter how great Manyugang was, he couldn’t possibly know the secret arts of the Blood Sect.

“I don’t know anything. That’s how it is.”

If Tang Baekseon’s body was weak, then Cheonrang would protect him. This time, he wouldn’t be complacent—he would slaughter anyone who dared harm him.

That way, no one could ever drive a wedge between him and his master.

“Master… Master…”

The realization that Manyugang was alive again swept away all fear. Even if he carried countless sins and secrets, it felt as though all of them could be forgiven.

But then a thought froze his face.

“But then… why didn’t Master tell me?”

Even if Cheonrang failed to recognize him, surely his master had recognized him.

Why, then?

Could it be that he wanted to keep his distance? To observe him while pretending to be a stranger, and if Cheonrang proved unworthy as a disciple, to leave?

Dark thoughts began to stir. But then he recalled how he had treated Tang Baekseon.

He had choked him, mocked him for imitating his master, even ridiculed him as a fool.

“…Of course he wouldn’t say anything.”

Cheonrang had grown sensitive whenever the subject of Manyugang came up.

But now it was too late to suddenly shout “Master!” If he revealed that he knew the soul inside Tang Baekseon was Manyugang…

“…He might find out that I summoned his soul.”

Holding his breath, Cheonrang recalled Tang Baekseon’s behavior toward him.

Whenever intruders came to his cave, Cheonrang killed them and used their bodies for the Soul-Returning Ritual. Naturally, no trace of them remained. Any martial artist would notice that the surrounding energy had turned foul.

Yet Baekseon never asked.

If it had truly been Tang Baekseon, perhaps he would have blamed his weak body for not noticing…

But no matter how weak his body had become, inside was still Manyugang. He must have noticed—and deliberately remained silent.

“Could it be…?”

“……I intend to leave.”

Had he planned to leave Cheonrang’s side? Because he had sensed the truth?

In life, Manyugang had warned him never to commit one unforgivable act:
That all living beings were born to die, and that this was the law of the world. To defy this law was a crime beyond redemption.

But Cheonrang had broken that law.

To summon his master’s soul, he sacrificed countless lives and even studied the despised Blood Sect’s techniques.

And even then, he failed to bring him back in a proper body…

“All this time, I taught you wrongly. Leave. You are no longer my disciple.”

He might hear such merciless words.

“I must never let him find out.”

That he had broken the natural order, and summoned his master’s soul.

Then…

Pretend not to know.

Pretend he didn’t realize his master was inside Tang Baekseon’s body.

When glimpses of Manyugang occasionally surfaced, he could simply approach and say, “You remind me of Master.” That would stir his gentle heart.

Yes… pretending ignorance might even allow him to reveal the vile desires he had hidden deep for so long.

“…Wait.”

As he was finishing tidying up, unease struck Cheonrang.

How long have I been gone from the inn?

He had climbed the mountain, checked the corpse, and performed Cheong-gwi-eum. At least a whole day must have passed.

“Master.”

Cheonrang spun around and rushed away. Though he had infused energy into him yesterday, by now it must have worn off.

If he really is my master, then that chill…

It wasn’t meridian failure—it was the aftereffect of the dead walking again.

After Cheonrang hurried out of the cave…

Beneath the pond, in a silent chamber, a long-slumbering hand twitched.

After a while…

“…Tch. I only meant to rest a moment.”

The man lying on the bed slowly stirred.

As he flexed his stiff fingers, he muttered:

“So, the one who dared use my body still lives in this world…”

The heavy, alien voice filled the cavern.

“Well then… perhaps I should pay him a visit.”

Something that should not exist in this world slowly began to move.

“Huff, huff…”

Baekseon staggered, leaning against a tree. His legs were numb, and each breath felt as if ice was filling his lungs.

He had expected his body to falter on the road to Sichuan, but not this quickly. His yang energy had nearly been depleted already.

“Heh heh heh. Stop struggling and stand there. You should realize by now there’s no point in running.”

“Look at that face. He thought dressing as a man would fool us?”

“They’ll pay handsomely if we sell her off.”

As if things weren’t bad enough, bandits blocked the road. And they mistook him for a woman in disguise.

“Sigh…”

Back when he was Manyugang, this had never happened. But Tang Baekseon’s face was strikingly beautiful, enough to invite such trouble.

“…Well, with that old face, no one would’ve made this mistake.”

He muttered, and the bandits sneered as they closed in.

What should he do?

His hand toyed with the hidden weapons in his sleeve.

Escaping will be difficult.

With his crippled dantian, he couldn’t use martial arts. Even if he had weapons, he couldn’t infuse them with inner energy. Acting rashly would only provoke them.

Should I use poison?

He brushed the poisons hidden in his sleeve.

But most of them are deadly toxins…

Part of him wanted to use them. But he wasn’t sure how resistant Tang Baekseon’s body was. If he poisoned himself by mistake, that would be another disaster.

“Heh heh heh…”

While he hesitated, the bandits drew near.

One of them reached out to grab him—

BANG!

A loud crack echoed, and one of the men was sent flying into a tree.

“W-what the…?!”

The rest spun around in shock.

“You really don’t listen, do you, Tang Baekseon?”

Cheonrang’s voice, laced with quiet fury, cut through the night.