Chapter 33 Killing Two Birds with One Stone (5)

Chapter 33 Killing Two Birds with One Stone (5)

* * *

Clang! Clang!

After the man left, Gu Yangjeok began hammering nails, nearly a hundred of them, one by one into the middle of the stone mountain.

When he climbed high enough, he paused hammering, stepped on the nails, and climbed further.

Once, twice, and soon the count became too numerous to measure, yet Gu Yangjie climbed relentlessly upward without rest.

The ground below had already become a distant blur.

The stone mountain itself was formidable enough to make even masters of divine techniques gasp, but the oil flowing across its surface was truly hellish.

‘One slip and you die.’

Yet despite this thought, Gu Yangjeok absolutely refused to use his internal energy.

Relying solely on the strength of his human body, he climbed silently, just as a Buddha in life would willingly subject himself to ascetic practices.

Even as every muscle screamed in agony, Gu Yangjeok took no countermeasures.

Not even when his feet slipped on the oil midway up.

“…Guh.”

Gu Yangjeok reflexively grabbed a nail he’d hammered in.

Zzzzt!

Blood streamed from his palm, scraped raw by the nail’s tip.

“Damn, that stings.”

As flesh tore and dangled, Gu Yangjeok reflexively tore a clean cloth and bound it tightly.

Though it too was stained with oil and hardly clean, it was better than risking further bleeding.

After struggling all day like this, they had advanced less than thirty paces.

Glancing down, Gu Yangjeok let out a deep sigh.

“This task is so grueling, I almost considered just giving up.”

Wasn’t this the path to negotiate with the Xiangzhu of the Black Dragon Sect’s Shaanxi branch?

Moreover, acting rashly after what happened with Ha Jin’e was tantamount to inviting trouble.

“We should play every card we have. To leave no room for regret.”

Crunch.

Gu Yangjie shoved the dried meat and provisions he’d prepared earlier into his mouth.

Even if he had no appetite, he had to eat.

‘There’s still a long way to go ahead.’

He had no choice but to conserve his strength as much as possible and push upward.

Giving up midway would only result in tumbling down the cliff, thanks to the endless oil seeping from above.

If that happened, even someone like Gu Yangjeok would have no choice but to die.

Tonight, the only things he could lean on while sleeping were the few nails hammered into the ground beneath his feet.

The slightest movement would shatter his skull in an instant, leaving him to go down in history as a foolishly dead Huashan sect cultivator.

“…I’d rather not.”

Even for Gu Yangji, such a meaningless, dog’s death was something he’d pass on.

With practiced hands, Gu Yangji pulled out his ringed climbing gear. He tied the rope and secured it tightly on both sides of his body.

This way, at least he wouldn’t die from something trivial like oil or a minor shift.

Tap, tap.

After checking the knots several times with his fingers, Gu Yangji drifted off into a deep sleep.

From the corner of his mouth, the thing that had tormented him all day escaped like a sleep-talking murmur.

“It’s hot… Damn it.”

Late summer, the heat still lingering.

It was a day when autumn had begun to approach with strides.

* * *

How many days had passed like that?

In Gu Yangjeok’s possession, the nails had dwindled to single digits, and the food was pitifully meager.

Particularly, much had been discarded as inedible.

While sleeping, oil had seeped out thickly, or the scorching heat had burned the skin, spoiling it so badly that flies swarmed over it, leaving him no choice but to throw it away.

“No wonder it felt slightly better after being so bitterly painful.”

Gu Yangjeok glanced irritably at his palm, which was starting to fester.

The wound from his first day’s trial and error was rapidly worsening in the summer heat.

He’d barely been up here a week.

A hollow laugh escaped between Gu Yangjeok’s lips.

‘Just as you’d expect from a place named by those bald bastards. Guess they only welcome the bald.’

Damn bald bastards.

Muttering such words, Gu Yangjeok drove a nail into the next position.

He didn’t bother looking up. No, there was no need.

At most, one or two more sections.

He just needed to hammer in the remaining nails and climb up.

That should have been it…

“Damn it, fuck.”

Gu Yang-jeok scowled in frustration, frantically searching his clothes.

“It’s gone?”

Not a single nail remained, as sparse as a Shaolin monk’s hair.

Pulling out nails already hammered in for reuse was nearly impossible.

He’d climbed this far using every nail with maximum efficiency, leaving none within reach.

Only then did Gu Yang-jeok recall his miscalculation.

“…Was I twenty-one back then?”

Three years ago.

There was no way the man hadn’t grown taller in that time.

Gu Yang-jeok frowned deeply as he calculated the remaining distance to the summit.

“No wonder it felt slightly off each time.”

Sighing deeply, Gu Yang-jeok reluctantly drew the Chameon.

This legendary sword wasn’t meant for such a situation, but given the circumstances, he had no choice.

Whoosh, thud!

Whoosh, thud!

Seeing the oil seeping into the Chameon pained him deeply, but Gu Yang-jeok forced himself to look away.

If the Sword of Truth possessed a sharp, piercing aura, the object above held a special spiritual energy.

It possessed the power to dispel evil, making it exceptionally potent against heretical sects like the Black Dragon Sect.

Whoosh, grab!

Feeling the sound suddenly grow dull, Gu Yangjeok immediately used the Sword of Truth as a pivot to leap upward.

There, an inexplicable seated Buddha statue and two palm prints lay side by side.

A delighted smile spread across Gu Yangjie’s face. It was a feeling of liberation—or perhaps, achievement.

“It’s been nearly twelve years.”

Thud.

Gu Yangjie, hands open, gathered all his internal energy from his dantian and bowed with utmost sincerity.

He had to perform this act a hundred times.

It was an utterly foolish action, but it was a necessary ritual to obtain the Vajra Fist Seal.

That’s why martial artists who had climbed up to this place left without discovering this secret, and the Shaolin Temple was no exception.

In his previous life, Gu Yangji had discovered this truth after dozens of trials and errors, experiencing immense joy.

He had even made a vow here, promising to devote himself to Buddhism once all matters were concluded.

But now, the situation was different.

After completing one bow, Gu Yangji met the gaze of the Seated Buddha Statue and spoke.

“I am now a Taoist of the Huashan Sect. Therefore, I can show you respect, but I cannot serve you.“

Gurgle-gurgle-gurgle…….

At those words, the oil flowing over the surface of the Seated Buddha Statue stopped.

Clank, clang!

Simultaneously, the Seated Buddha Statue shattered into pieces, revealing a single fist-shaped armor.

* * *

Pushhhhh-

”Huuu…….”

The man, wiping sweat from the heat radiating from the furnace, estimated how many days had passed since that day.

Yes, it had been a week already.

A week since the day he tried to pickpocket the seemingly clumsy young man carrying silver coins and failed.

During that time, the man had dug escape routes so he could flee whenever Gu Yangdi stormed in.

And that wasn’t all.

He’d ordered a bored little beggar boy to keep watch on the village outskirts.

‘It took a bit of fuss, but it was worth it.’

Judging by the fact he hadn’t shown up even after a week, he must have headed off somewhere far away.

A sneer appeared on the man’s face. It was about time the caravan trying to cross this area arrived.

“Right, then it’s time to resume my activities as a bandit…”

“What?”

At those words, the man’s head whipped around. His complexion had reflexively turned ashen.

A dog that’s been properly beaten once will cower at the mere sight of a fist.

The man turned his gaze to see the face of the speaker and shuddered violently.

Gu Yangjeok tapped the man’s forearm lightly with his slightly clenched hand.

“No, say it again. What did you say?”

“Um, well…”

Suddenly stuttering, the man scratched the back of his head with an awkward smile.

“After getting thoroughly beaten by the Great Hero… No, after receiving your guidance, I’ve resolved to walk the true path of a knight-errant from now on.“

”Is that so?“

Gu Yangji’s eyes narrowed. He pointed a finger at the man’s hand.

”Then what is this cloth you hold, inscribed with ‘Great Green Forest’?“

”I was going to burn it! Ha ha!”

The man casually tossed the green cloth into the brazier. When he turned back, Gu Yangjie’s condition was plain to see.

Thick grime caked between his fingernails.

His palms were a mess of blood and pus, clearly in poor shape, and his hair was soaked in grease—it looked like it would go up in flames instantly if a spark landed on it.

‘Could it be…?’

The man seized the hammer resting on the table the instant he saw his chance.

A cold sneer flashed across Gu Yangjeok’s face at the sight.

“I knew it. You worthless piece of trash.”

“Kwahaha! How dare you put on airs looking like a beggar’s rag! Tell Yama with your head smashed in! That you died at the hands of the descendant of Cheoljangbang!”

Tsk.

Gu Yangji looked at the man with pity.

That was an incurable flaw.

“Madman.”

What era was the Iron Cage Sect from, claiming to be descendants in the Great Ming era?

Gu Yangji’s hand extended lightly, simultaneously grabbing and twisting the man’s fingers.

Snap!

In both speed and strength, the man was far inferior to Gu Yangjie.

He didn’t even realize his finger had been broken, reacting only reflexively to the pain.

“Gahhh…!”

“Shut your mouth, or the hammer goes in.”

Gu Yangjeok instantly unfolded his golden palm, snatching the hammer from the hand that had twisted his fingers.

Then, just as he’d said.

Thud!

He lightly struck the man’s Yintang acupoint.

Though it left no major external injury, only a minor wound, the precise strike to the vital point meant survival was impossible.

After that, Gu Yangjeok sat down briefly to catch his breath.

“Hmph, I was the fool for hoping he might reform even a little.”

Gu Yangjeok chuckled, thinking he wasn’t acting like himself.

‘I’m not some fool who gets beaten around like others.’

In truth, the reason Gu Yangjeok had spared the man’s life was to create the current situation.

A burning brazier.

Medicine for treating wounds.

Even an iron-clad tool—he could wash off the oil from the iron bars.

By sparing him and sending him back alive, he had essentially provided him with temporary shelter.

Gu Yangjeok looked around, gathering what he needed.

‘It would be nice if a house came with it… Ah, there it is.’

Thud, thud, squeak…

As Gu Yangji nonchalantly shed his clothes and stepped into the bath, the murmuring outside gradually grew louder.

“Could it be Jang Yeong?”

“No way. He’s the best fighter in our village.”

“His temper’s a pain in the ass, but he’s done so much for us…”

Just as the conversation continued…

CRASH!

The blacksmith’s shop door was ripped off entirely.

Smash!

Gu Yangji, who had crushed the hinges underfoot, glanced at the old man pinned beneath the door.

He’d only meant to strike lightly, but the grip-enhancing function of the Diamond Fist Armor made the blow considerably powerful.

But he felt no guilt toward the old man.

Instead, Gu Yangji’s lips parted slightly.

“Did you aid them, or did you join them?”

At those words, the villagers could offer no reply.

Their stance was already clear.

Seeing each of them holding farming tools or weapons, Gu Yangji let out a long sigh.

“I’ll send you off quickly.”

The word “mercy” did not exist for Gu Yangjeok.