Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1353. It's just how it was born. (3)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Paaaat!
The surrounding scenery turns distorted and elongated. Chung Myung kicked the ground, accelerating even further.
'This way?'
He narrowed his eyes slightly, adjusting his direction and increasing his speed.
A distinct scent at the tip of his nose guided him.
As he followed the scent, a past conversation replayed vividly in his mind as if it had happened just yesterday.
- I told you, I don’t need this kind of thing?
- Just do as you’re told and learn it! You would be surprised how often it comes in handy!
- I’m not some dog. What use do I have for learning how to sniff things out?
- You certainly act like a mutt when sniffing out alcohol though.
- What did you just say, you bastard?
A small smile naturally forms at the corners of Chung Myung's lips.
The scent that cuts clearly through even these thick grass smells is none other than Tang Family's secret ‘Ten Thousand Li Pursuit Incense’ (만리추종향(萬里追從香)).
An incense used by Hao Sect and Beggar Union for tracking people. Those who have mastered the corresponding martial arts technique never lose track of this scent. True to its name, while one might not detect it from ten thousand li away, tracking someone for at least several dozen li poses no problem.
'Good thing I made sure to get this from Tang Gaju beforehand.'
Of course, he had to endure Tang Gun-ak's peculiar gaze when receiving the Ten Thousand Li Pursuit Incense, but it was worth the trouble.
The incense was planted on that slow-witted Dongryong, so there's no need to worry about losing the trail. Simply following the scent would naturally lead him back to the vanguard.
Without slowing down, Chung Myung glanced down at his hand. He clenched and unclenched it a couple of times before nodding with satisfaction.
Despite fighting for quite a while with an unwell body, he felt more energetic rather than fatigued. If his physical condition when leaving the cave was at seventy percent compared to peak condition, now it had to be evaluated at least at eighty percent or higher.
‘This is better than I expected.’
Of course, in the past, Chung Myung had benefited greatly from the Taoist internal strength coursing through his body.
Even after countless injuries and wounds sometimes severe enough to endanger his life, being able to fight until the very end was, upon reflection, thanks to the Taoist internal strength's outstanding effectiveness in healing and recovery.
But the speed of recovery that his body was showing now easily surpassing even Chung Myung's expectations.
Each time he swings his sword and draws upon his internal strength, the pure energy flowing within his body pushes out impurities and waste while naturally repairing his damaged body. Like a house conducting its own repairs.
'Nature....' (자연(自然))
The purest energy in the world could also be said to be the energy closest to nature. And if so, it all made sense. Nature inherently functions that way. Wasn't nature about returning to its original form over time, even after collapse and deterioration?
Yes, just like Mount Hua now.
Taat!
Chung Myung's feet lightly touched the ground. Though he hadn't applied much force, the internal strength flowing through his legs gently propelled his body up.
It was a strange sensation.
His body moves along leisurely as if taking a stroll, yet the world around him blurred past at an incredible speed. In this moment where two incompatible things coexist, all the senses he had taken for granted become entangled and ambiguous.
Paaaat!
Each step accelerated him further.
Soon reaching speeds invisible to the eye, Chung Myung's gaze gradually lost focus.
‘Humans are a part of nature too... but when will is involved in their actions, it becomes artificial (인위(人爲)/human doing, human effort). Nature inherently rejects artificiality, seeking to return to its primordial state. Therefore, nature means excluding humans.'
An indescribable depth began to settle in his unfocused gaze.
‘However… if humanity is part of nature, then human will is also nature’s will. So why reject will as artificial? Actions with will and actions without will. But even animals have will in their actions...'
His thoughts flowed like water. This stream of thoughts, whose beginning and end are unknowable, soon flows like a mighty river and seeps into him. His senses expanded yet became indistinct, as the world around him sharpened and blurred simultaneously.
The boundary between himself and the world blurred.
It flows and flows. But ultimately that flow connects back to the beginning.
The form of yin and yang merged into the Tai Chi. But that form soon distorts again into a warped circle.
‘A circle symbolizes equality. No beginning, no end, endlessly continuous. Life is both an end and a beginning, simultaneously a closure and a continuation....'
"Huh?"
Chung Myung's eyes widened for a moment. He blinked a few times before his face twisted.
"Oh, damn! I lost it!"
He had clearly just entered the realm of enlightenment, and he couldn’t even recall the last time he had reached that state.
Achieving enlightenment was akin to breaking through a wall. It was an unspeakable feat for a martial artist.
In the pursuit of martial arts, one faces two barriers: the physical and the mental. While his body hasn't yet reached its past level, this was clear evidence that his mental realm was advancing beyond the past into deeper territory. And yet...
"Hm?"
Why had he snapped out of it?
Normally, once you entered enlightenment, you didn’t just snap out of it like this. Usually, you withdraw from it yourself when you hit the limits of your comprehension. But now, it feels as if something forcibly blocked...
Tap. Tap.
Chung Myung's toes probed the empty air.
Only then did he realize that his feet hadn’t touched solid ground for quite some time. The vast sky spread out before him finally came into view.
"Sky...?"
The earth stretched out far below. And behind him was a sheer cliff that he had somehow kicked off without realizing.
Wow, I jumped from there all the way here. That's quite a long jump...
"AAAAAAAAHHHHH! HEY, YOU CRAZY BASTAAAARD!"
Chung Myung's body began plummeting at high speed, tumbling head over heels.
But no matter how much he flailed his limbs, there was nowhere to grab onto or reach. How could he possibly grab onto a cliff that was already more than thirty zhang away? He wasn't even the legendary Sun Wukong.
“Hiiiiikk!”
As the ground closed in at a tremendous speed, Chung Myung hurriedly unleashed his internal strength. The recoil reduced his speed somewhat.
At that moment, his eyes caught sight of a towering pine tree with a thick branch jutting out. His eyes flashed the moment he saw it.
‘Gotta grab that!’
Kicking hard against the empty air to push his body sideways, Chung Myung stretched out his hand with all his might. The moment his fingertips made contact, he snatched the thick branch in one go.
'Got, it....'
Crack!
"Huh?"
Kuuuung!
Finally landing face-first into the ground, Chung Myung's body trembled pitifully before going limp.
Thump.
The broken pine branch rolled indifferently beside him.
Fortunately, he wasn't dead, as evidenced by the breath that puffed out from his nose. A puff of dry dust into the air.
"Keuuuugh..."
He groaned as he pushed against the ground with trembling hands. Blood gushed from his nose steadily.
Though the tree had broken, it had at least reduced his speed enough to keep him from dying. Whether that was truly fortunate was another matter entirely.
"...Keuuuugh."
He realigned his twisted nose and spat out a spray of blood. Bright red nose blood dripped onto the ground.
“This....”
They say that unlucky people can break their noses even when falling backward, and sure enough, being unlucky means falling off a cliff even while entering enlightenment...
"If I enter enlightenment twice, I'll really end up in the Heaven! How does this make any sense? How?"
Sure, he had said he wanted to ascend, but not straight to the Heaven!
"What kind of enlightenment comes while running?"
Unable to contain his regret, Chung Myung scratched his head furiously.
If it weren't for the cliff, he could have grabbed onto something, but the cliff appearing before his eyes forcibly pushed him out of enlightenment. The more he thought about it, the more his insides churned with irritation.
Of course, Chung Myung understood. That there's no need to obsess over this fact. Enlightenment once achieved will always return, so he just needs to wait patiently. If you keep regretting and obsessing, enlightenment only grows more distant.
He knew that. He knew it very well. The problem was…
"Aiigoooo! I'm dying of regret!"
Chung Myung rolled on the ground while frothing with frustration.
If knowing something meant being able to control oneself, would he still be Chung Myung? He's Chung Myung precisely because his stomach turns even though he knows better.
While advancing a bit mentally wouldn't instantly restore his past martial prowess or put him at a level where he could slice up the likes of Jang Ilso with ease, it would have made things considerably easier!
“Why did there have to be a damn cliff there! This is why people should just flatten mountains, fill rivers, and make everything a smooth plain!"
- Oh Yuanshi Tianjun, that thing there is a Taoist.
"Kaak! Just shut it!"
Chung Myung spat fire into the empty air.
“A person ought to know when to speak and when to keep their mouth shut! It's not like fanning flames at a burning house, but whenever something happens, you don't even know where to sit and just slyly push in your butt first!"
Gesturing violently toward the sky, Chung Myung suddenly flinched and stopped his hand. It struck him how long it had been since he’d heard Cheong Mun’s voice this vividly in his mind.
“...Tsk.”
Feeling awkward, he needlessly scratched the back of his head. Being human after all, his mood seemed to lighten after crossing the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
“Live long enough, and you end up experiencing all sorts of things."
With a scoffing laugh to dispel the awkwardness, Chung Myung turned his attention back to the now faint scent lingering in the air. His body moved like the wind once again. It was no different from before, but as expected, the thread of enlightenment didn't easily return.
Though he clicked his tongue in regret, he had no choice but to shake off the lingering regret and keep running.
'But....'
As he raced ahead, a peculiar gleam flickered in Chung Myung’s eyes.
'What was that?'
The flow that had coursed like a mighty river. A seamless cycle where the beginning and end folded into one another. Like the yin and yang intertwining in the form of Tai Chi. But those yin and yang soon broke down their boundaries and connected as one.
It was the primordial circle. Or perhaps something that should be called Infinity (무극(無極)/Ultimateless, Limitless, Ultimate Void).
Chung Myung also knows the concept of Infinity, but this was the first time he had seen it manifest in the realm of his mind. This enlightening alone could push him to a higher stage of understanding.
But what Chung Myung was thinking about now wasn't that Infinity.
Just before being pulled from enlightenment, he had seen it.
Signs of the eternally spinning circular flow transforming into something.
‘There’s definitely something beyond that.’
That might be a place Chung Myung hasn't yet reached. No, perhaps something that no one has ever reached, not even passed down as a concept.
Understanding that circle’s significance might open a path. An absolute power that was completely unattainable. The method to confront an overwhelming, godlike power.
His fingertips trembled faintly.
'But....'
An indescribably complex light briefly settled on Chung Myung's face. If his assumption was correct, that circle should be something supremely auspicious. It would be a profound truth that encompassed everything he had learned and contained the origin of the world. It must be so without doubt.
‘Then why… why does it feel so ominous?’
Even though he had glimpsed what he had been seeking, why did his heart feel so heavy? What was waiting for him beyond that circle? What he meant to see...
“Tsk.”
Lost in thought, Chung Myung clicked his tongue sharply and shook his head.
“Talk about being spoiled.”
Shaking off at once the sense of dissonance that had been creeping into his mind, Chung Myung put strength into his legs with a much refreshed expression.
'Think later. Right now, I’ll just focus on what I need to do.’
His feet kicked the ground briskly, following the scent.
The cloudless blue sky looked down upon him as he cut through the forest leading to the towering mountains. Warmly, but just indifferently.
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