Chapter 24 Plum Blossom Succession (1)

Chapter 24 Plum Blossom Succession (1)

“Master and disciple, our first meeting wasn’t pleasant, was it?”

At those words, Gu Yangji lifted his head with great effort.

There, Ha Jin-ak, painted entirely white, knelt motionless, staring at him.

The world was entirely pitch black.

As if painted over with black ink, there was nothing.

It felt as if only Gu Yangjeok and Ha Jin-ak existed.

‘……This.’

Gu Yangjeok bit his lip.

This sensation, this feeling, this situation. He had experienced it all before.

This was a world isolated from the outside.

At the same time, it was a fragile space that could shatter at the slightest impact.

The moment of supplication wrought by Ha Jin-ak’s immense inner strength.

Within it, Ha Jin-ak placed his right hand upon Gu Yang-jeok’s Baihui acupoint.

Though he seemed on the verge of collapsing, he painfully lifted his chin and smiled.

“But it’s fortunate, isn’t it.”

Ha Jin-ak murmured.

He seemed to lack even the strength to speak loudly.

“Since it ended so well like this…”

Simultaneously, the world, which had been entirely painted black, began to shift toward Gu Yangjie.

An infinite sense of fulfillment filled Gu Yangjie, his dantian expanding instantly, increasing the vessel’s size.

Gu Yangjie knew this process.

Internal Energy Transmission.

Or the art known as Transmission.

He also knew its end.

‘Certain death.’

Moreover, Ha Jin-ak was in the midst of guiding the internal energy during the transmission to enlarge the dantian.

To completely drain what little stamina he had left.

One hundred times out of one hundred.

He would die.

Grab…!

Gu Yangji raised his left hand to seize Ha Jin’ak’s wrist.

But Ha Jin’ak’s hand did not budge.

Ha Jin’ak, too, was acting with an iron will, close to steel.

“This cannot be done.”

“Are you not in the midst of transmission? Shut your mouth, enemy.”

Gu Yangjeok’s face flushed crimson with every emotion.

“Senior Brother… no, you are someone who must not die!”

“Now that death approaches, you dare to rival even Senior Brother.”

Blood trickled from the corner of Ha Jin-ak’s mouth, dripping down and soaking Gu Yangjeok’s abdomen.

He was undoubtedly dying.

Gu Yangjie clamped his mouth shut.

As if sensing his feelings, Ha Jin’ak gave a bitter smile.

“How can a person’s lifespan ever flow as predestined? Do not grieve too deeply. Do not weep. Are you not a disciple of Huashan?”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the world, painted black, shifted abruptly to monochrome.

The internal energy he possessed had long since permeated every vein in Gu Yangji’s body.

This transmission was possible because both martial artists shared the same fundamental Zha Jin Qi.

The thirty-five years of cultivation Ha Jin’ak had built alongside the elixir was gradually taking root.

Even if he couldn’t assimilate it immediately, it would prove immensely beneficial someday.

“You must become a more accomplished Taoist than me, enemy.”

“Senior Brother!”

“If you only do not slack in your cultivation, the martial world will welcome a formidable master of internal energy.”

With Ha Jin-ak’s thirty-five years of cultivation and Gu Yang-jeok’s five years, even if some was lost during the transfer, he would still possess at least half a cycle’s worth.

Ha Jin-ak shrugged his shoulders, seemingly satisfied.

Simultaneously, the white form sustaining Ha Jin-ak began to crumble.

Soon, warm vital energy surged in through Gu Yang-jeok’s Baihui acupoint.

The world warped.

The vital energy sustaining the very life of Ha Jin-ak—commonly called Zhenyuan (眞元) by connoisseurs.

As the foundation scattered, the aura Ha Jin-ak had forged gradually enveloped him from the outside.

If this continued, Ha Jin-ak’s survival would become nearly impossible.

Gu Yang-jeok cried out urgently.

“Big Brother!”

“…Damn it, shut your mouth.”

Before he knew it, the area beneath Ha Jin-ak’s knees had been erased.

The world of the Qianqing had already been eroded from the outside, turning gray and acrid.

Ha Jin-ak smiled.

Though he had many lingering regrets and things he hadn’t seen, he smiled.

“I am grateful that you were the one who shared my final moments. Had I died in vain, how could I blame you for faithfully guarding me? It’s all karma. This elder brother’s fault—overconfident in his martial arts, failing to guard himself.”

Having spoken his final words, Ha Jin-ak exhaled his last breath.

Watching this, Gu Yang-jeok was struck by a chilling thought.

‘Could that sigh have been the final words of Ha Jin-ak from his past life?’

Perhaps because no one was nearby, Ha Jin-ak met a death shrouded in mystery.

As this thought reached its end, Gu Yang-jeok twisted his lips.

“…Kuh.”

Even now, having inherited everything from Ha Jin-ak, he was still inferring the karma from his past life.

Disgusted with himself, Gu Yangjeok frowned.

Seeing this, Ha Jin-ak forcibly pulled Gu Yangjeok’s lips into a smile.

“Ha, ha ha… Why such a sour expression? You’re the very person who will make me worthwhile.”

“……?”

“Because I’ve gained someone who can tell the world what kind of man Ha Jin-ak was… that Ha Jin-ak remained composed even against countless evil foes…”

Is that the thought you harbor?

Are you truly satisfied with that, Ha Jin-ak?

Feeling the internal energy surging up to his chest, Gu Yang-jeok nodded.

“The disciple will prove it.”

“Yes, that… will suffice.”

As if there was nothing more to desire.

Swish.

The remnants of Ha Jin-ak’s body scattered in the wind and vanished.

His Zhenyuan Zhenqi, his inner energy—all were now Gu Yang-jeok’s.

As the fleeting moment forged by Quan Qing shattered, Gu Yang-jeok caught a wisp of wind.

“I’ll be watching. I entrust the rear guard, the Huashan Sect, to you.”

“Leave it to me.”

Giving that answer, Gu Yangjie smiled, facing Ha Jin’ak until the very end.

“…But shouldn’t you be watching that from the sidelines?”

Swoosh!

As if the long-lost Mo Shan Sect’s divine technique had taken root in Gu Yangji’s hand, it seized the scattering soul of Ha Jin’ak.

* * *

While Ha Jin’ak was imparting all his inner strength to Gu Yangji, a heavy silence settled outside.

Gwak Un-pae, the Qingxuan Sword.

Even if he appeared outwardly like a potbellied middle-aged man, any martial artist with open ears knew of the great feats he had accomplished in the past.

Therefore, even the Evil Army, confident in victory, broke out in cold sweat from the tension.

‘This is impossible.’

Even before the battle began, the Evil Army sensed defeat.

Even if the five dead swordsmen rose to join him, he had no confidence he could defeat Gwak Un-pae.

‘Still, I must take that bastard’s life.’

The evil general’s gaze turned deliberately fierce.

It wasn’t reckless.

His infamy as one of the Three Evils of Shaanxi was built precisely because there were three of them.

Even if he remained alone, a reputation once shattered could never be rebuilt.

And if this happened while facing a late-stage cultivator? He wouldn’t even be considered third-rate.

If the dead Tugang could see this, he’d faint on the spot.

‘So it wasn’t just bluster after all?’

Eokgun had long since decided to retreat.

This life wasn’t something to be thrown away lightly through rash actions.

The commission with the Black Dragon Sect was, after all, just a commission.

Compared to life itself, it was utterly insignificant.

If he could survive and plan for the future, that would suffice.

Swish.

Just as Akgun’s footsteps slipped backward.

Gwak Unpae’s right hand moved. No, the afterimage of such a movement blurred his vision.

Clang.

Soon, a clear, resonant sound echoed from Gwak Un-pae’s sword.

“How did you…!”

The swordsman, vaguely sensing the gap in skill between them, stiffened his expression even further.

It was said that in the past, the moment that sword’s name resonated, the heads of the six Black Path warriors who had been pressing in from all sides flew off.

This was not good.

The Black Dragon Sect swordsmen, sensing the icy aura emanating from Gwak Un-pae, broke out in cold sweat.

“You die here.”

This was a far cry from the Gwak Un-pae who usually greeted visitors with a carefree smile as the head of the Visitor’s Hall.

Short. Cold.

The killing intent in those words froze the swordsmen solid, like frogs before a snake.

The evil forces swallowed their breath.

‘Is that truly…’

As a joke, such rumors had circulated among the villains of Shaanxi.

They couldn’t fathom why someone who had once made such a name for himself in martial arts was now reduced to being treated like a potbellied uncle, let alone used as a shop boy.

Back then, the bandit leader had cursed Bai Danxian’s mercenary tactics.

He had sneered at it as foolish.

But what of it now?

‘Deadly.’

Akgun suppressed a sneer.

‘This is beyond me. Best to beat a hasty retreat and plan my next move.’

Swoosh.

Akgun stealthily widened his stride backward.

With that, Gwak Unpae sensed he was about to flee.

Gwak Unpae’s eyebrows twitched.

But it wouldn’t be easy. Between him and the villain stood the swordsmen of the Black Dragon Pavilion, blades raised in alert.

Just then.

A blade suddenly shot out from behind Gwak Un-pae.

Thwack! Bang!

The spear, flying like an arrow, pierced the villain’s body and kept going until it embedded itself in a tree.

Truly peerless.

It was a moment that fully harnessed the sword’s momentum.

“You rotten bastard, trying to run away?”

Gu Yangjie flicked his bloodied hand back, pushing his bangs aside.

The internal energy Ha Jin’ak had cultivated his entire life was more than enough to fill Gu Yangjie’s dantian.

And that wasn’t all.

Thanks to the consumption of the True Origin Qi to smooth the transition, no significant conflict arose.

Consequently, Gu Yangjie could move his limbs as freely as if the energy had always been his own.

Confirming the death of the evil warrior, Gu Yangjie urgently urged Gwak Unpae.

“Elder Gwak, please examine the senior brother immediately! His life can still be saved now.”

“……! Understood!”

At those words, Gwak Un-pae’s figure vanished in an instant, only to appear before Ha Jin-ak.

Seeing this, the swordsmen of the Black Dragon Sect felt a chill run down their spines.

Facing Gu Yang-jeok, who wielded the Flying Sword Technique capable of striking ten targets, and Gwak Un-pae, hailed as the strongest gatekeeper north of the river—

Victory was utterly impossible to predict.

The swordsmen trembled in this hopeless situation.

Gu Yangjie glanced at Ha Jin’ak with a distant gaze.

He had used the Moshan Sect’s divine arts to save his life, but he couldn’t guarantee how he would survive going forward.

In the worst case, he might never return.

“……”

Gu Yangji bent one knee.

His expression was impassive, yet his eyes were wildly tangled.

Raging fury and profound sorrow intertwined within them.

……Swish, crack.

Gu Yangjeok grasped the sword Ha Jin-ak had dropped on the floor.

Well-maintained, its edge was sharp, and its center of gravity was perfectly balanced.

Though not as exceptional as the Chameon, it was a fine sword that could hold its own anywhere.

It was just like Ha Jin-ak himself.

‘So I’ve inherited not only his internal energy, but his sword too.’

Gu Yangjie raised the sword, his mind racing with thoughts.

At first, he’d been drunk with the joy of returning, believing he could change everything.

Six months of training amplified that confidence, and cutting down the Golden Ring Society branch turned that confidence into certainty.

That’s why he could stand tall at the Huashan Sect meeting, gathered around him.

Then, by winning the Nine Dragons Tournament, he gained the fame he had never achieved in his previous life.

Moreover, having dealt with one of the Three Evils representing Shaanxi, change was inevitable.

Amidst these momentous events, Ha Jin’ak was merely someone he would part ways with after a brief journey together.

But.

He ended up receiving everything from him.

To that insolent disciple who never once showed respect, Ha Jin-ak handed over everything.

And he showed an absurdly pure smile.

“I am grateful that you were the one who shared my final moments.”

Disgust, rage, hatred.

Such emotions surged through Gu Yang-jeok.

Yet, the demonic mind did not stir.

‘I’ve been through too much to fall apart over something like this.’

Gu Yangjeok fidgeted with the fingers gripping his sword, chewing over the emotions he felt.

Disgust at his own reckless arrogance, anger at himself for failing to stop it despite knowing the future.

And deep hatred for himself for ultimately failing to protect Ha Jin-ak.

……Gwaaah!

Gu Yangjeok tightened his grip on Ha Jinak’s sword.

“Bear down and endure that wound, Senior Brother.”

He would not let Ha Jinak die like this.

Gu Yangjeok resolved it thus.