Rebirth of the Thunder God

"Mount Hua."

"By Mount Hua, do you mean the Mount Hua Sect?"

"Yes. Perhaps because of the recent commotion, they have requested many things from our guild. It seems I must go in person."

For a moment, Namgung Hui fumbled for the Purple Mist Divine Art in his bosom and thought.

'Should I return the Purple Mist Divine Art on this occasion? It's a martial art that's not very useful to me.'

He didn't know if the timing was right.

But if he delayed it any further, the Mount Hua Sect would not look upon Namgung Hui favorably.

They would first suspect that he was trying to swallow the secret manual whole.

In a way, now could be the perfect time.

'They must be burning with anticipation, so I should at least return the Purple Mist Divine Art. I can't do anything about the Purple Mist Pills since I've already swallowed them.'

Of course, he wasn't going to give it for free.

A prestigious orthodox sect like the Mount Hua Sect would surely try to reward Namgung Hui.

Well, since their circumstances were not good, they wouldn't be able to give anything grand, but it would be fine if they just protected the Namgung family.

'The more chaotic the situation, the more allies one needs.'

That didn't just mean simple conflicts.

As the Thunder God who had experienced the great war between the orthodox and demonic factions.

He could roughly guess how great the chaos to come would be.

The current martial world was too peaceful.

Even with the advent of the Blood Cult, they didn't feel a great sense of crisis.

Should this be called an insensitivity to peace?

Well, it would be ridiculous to make a fuss about a crisis that hadn't even arrived yet, but it seemed the Blood Cult and the Hoicheon Association could not be taken lightly.

'Their schemes are so insidious. It was easier to deal with the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Because they fought head-on.'

If they had engaged in secret strife and used petty tricks, the great war between the orthodox and demonic factions would not have ended so simply.

The Thunder God was able to play an active role because the Demonic Cult insisted on a head-on confrontation.

If they had fought with strategy, the Three Martial Gods would have had a Thunder God with a brilliant mind, not a Thunder God who wielded lightning.

"Then, Young Master. Shall we go?"

"Yes. Let's go. But where should I ride?"

"Of course, you must ride in the carriage with me. You rode in it on the way here, so you must know how comfortable it is."

It was a good thing for Namgung Hui, but he wondered if it was okay for a bodyguard to be so comfortable.

In the first place, in a normal case, shouldn't he be guarding the surroundings from outside the carriage?

'Well, with my senses, it's fine even if I'm inside the carriage.'

Moreover, Luoyang was not far from Mount Hua in Shaanxi Province.

They were located at the ends of Henan and Shaanxi provinces, respectively. A four-horse carriage would likely arrive in two days.

The Hoicheon Association's forces in the Myriad Gold Merchant Guild had also been exposed once, so they wouldn't be able to move rashly.

'Still, they might struggle desperately, so let's not be careless.'

And so, Namgung Hui, steeling his resolve, boarded the carriage with Eun Seolrin.

* * *

At the time Namgung Hui left for Mount Hua.

The inside of the Myriad Gold Merchant Guild was quite bustling.

Moreover, screams were sometimes heard from inside the General Manager's office, which was quite different from its usual appearance.

Still, as one of the three great merchant guilds in the Central Plains, the commotion quickly subsided.

In less than half a day, it returned to its usual state.

Among those who returned to their places was Eun Chunghyeon, who had left his office.

He spoke to the Hao Faction Head sitting across from him.

"Have you caught the tail of the Association?"

"It's not certain, but I feel like I've caught a glimpse of their shadow. The one I interrogated at the end left some pretty good information."

"Was it Jo Samsim from the General Manager's office? I bestowed no small amount of silver upon that man. Tsk, tsk. To think he was a spy for the Association, my judgment must be getting old. So what information did you get?"

"First, the Mount Hua Sect. They say there's a spy from the Association there too. That news will be coming from there soon? Since it's a prestigious orthodox sect, there probably won't be any major problems. Well, this is minor information, and the core is..."

Eun Chunghyeon, who had been nodding, suddenly slammed his desk and said.

"Wait! Did you just say Mount Hua?"

"I did?"

"Isn't that where my granddaughter just left for? Send a message at once!"

* * *

Namgung Hui, despite being in a Myriad Gold Merchant Guild carriage that was much more comfortable than an ordinary one, felt quite uncomfortable.

After riding it three times, one should get used to even an uncomfortable carriage.

Why was Namgung Hui so uncomfortable inside the carriage?

'Being in such a small space together is so uncomfortable. Why?'

Was it because the maids with them kept staring at Namgung Hui?

Of course, that wasn't without its influence, but above all, Namgung Hui was uncomfortable with Eun Seolrin.

But he didn't know why.

Was it simply because she was a woman?

She was also quite a beauty, so it was understandable to be uncomfortable in such a situation.

'But it's strange. Seolhwa is also a woman, and I wasn't this uncomfortable. In terms of beauty, she's even prettier.'

As Namgung Hui tilted his head, Eun Seolrin, who was sitting across from him, asked.

"Your expression is not good. Are you perhaps uncomfortable?"

As expected, a woman's intuition is frightening; she had noticed Namgung Hui's discomfort right away.

Namgung Hui laughed awkwardly and replied.

"Hahaha. How could such a comfortable carriage be uncomfortable? I just had a lot on my mind."

"It seems you had a complicated conversation with the Tang family."

"Yes. And I also have some personal business with the Mount Hua Sect, so that's even more so."

"Personal business? May I ask what it is?"

"Just know that I have something to return to the Mount Hua Sect. You'll find out when we arrive at the Mount Hua Sect anyway."

The walls have ears.

He couldn't trust the maids next to him, and there was no need to tell Eun Seolrin in advance.

But Eun Seolrin, whose expression rarely changed, frowned slightly.

At that sight, this time Namgung Hui asked.

"Are you uncomfortable somewhere?"

"No."

It felt like a chill was emanating from Eun Seolrin's tone.

Could it be that the aftereffects of the Ice Soul Poison still remained?

Namgung Hui nodded and thought.

'It was different from the Ice Soul Poison I experienced. I'll have to check her pulse properly later.'

And so, with their mutual discomfort, the carriage soon arrived at Mount Hua.

* * *

Mount Hua, which was in charge of the Western Peak among the Five Great Mountains of the Central Plains.

Mount Hua was not only beautiful in scenery, but also had good public security because of the Mount Hua Sect.

Not only that, but the land was also fertile, and as a transportation hub, many people had no choice but to pass through.

The Myriad Gold Merchant Guild also benefited greatly from this.

In fact, there was an interesting story about Mount Hua that people didn't know, beyond what was commonly known.

Commonly, people think that Mount Hua (華山), which uses the character for flower (華), would be full of plum blossoms.

But in reality, Mount Hua was a rocky mountain made of rocks.

In other words, there were no plum blossoms blooming at all.

Then why does Mount Hua use the character for flower?

That's because the shape of Mount Hua resembles a flower.

Then another question could arise here.

Why on earth did the plum blossom become the symbol of the Mount Hua Sect, which is on a rocky mountain?

'That's because of the founder of the Mount Hua Sect, Hak Daetong.'

He didn't know how many people would remember now, but Namgung Hui knew the history of the Mount Hua Sect better than anyone.

To be precise, it was the long and winding love story of the founder, Hak Daetong, rather than history.

But unfortunately, Hak Daetong's love story ended in tragedy.

Because the woman Hak Daetong loved died young from an incurable disease.

Perhaps because the woman who died young particularly liked plum blossoms, Hak Daetong made the plum blossom the symbol of the Mount Hua Sect to commemorate her.

Perhaps the scent of plum blossoms that bloomed from the Plum Blossom Sword Art was because Hak Daetong's longing was imbued in it.

Even in the Purple Mist Divine Art that Namgung Hui possessed, traces of such longing could be seen here and there.

He probably thought of her every time the sun set.

The reason the Purple Mist Divine Art was dyed purple was probably for that reason.

'Of course, it's not something I need to know... Wait!'

As Namgung Hui recalled the past story and thought about the Purple Mist Divine Art again.

Suddenly, the incantations of the Purple Mist Divine Art began to be interpreted differently.

'Purple Mist Ten Thousand Li. It's not that the Purple sunset stretches for ten thousand li. It's that he longed for her, who was ten thousand li away!'

It seemed the woman's name was 'Jaha'.

Whether it was I Jaha or Yu Jaha.

He didn't know her surname, but her name was surely Jaha.

Such a name was quite common in the martial world.

Well, the name wasn't important; what was important was that the word 'Jaha' didn't simply mean the Purple sunset.

'If this means a person, then the flow of qi changes. Instead of sending the qi far away, it must be combined into one.'

Hak Daetong was yang.

The woman named Jaha was yin.

In a way, it was similar to the principle of the union of yin and yang.

The harmony of the two brought a lightning-like enlightenment to Namgung Hui's mind.

Namgung Hui, having gained enlightenment, immediately sat in the lotus position.

It might have been a very dangerous thing to do, but he trusted that the intelligent Eun Seolrin would protect him on her own.

'First, I'll try to combine the yang and yin qi.'

Namgung Hui sent the yang qi, Thunder Energy, through the Du Meridian according to the incantations of the Purple Mist Divine Art.

Then he had to send the yin qi through the Ren Meridian, but the only energy Namgung Hui possessed was the energy of extreme yang, the Thunderous Energy.

Then how could he send yin qi through the Ren Meridian?

Fortunately, should it be called a blessing in disguise?

Namgung Hui had once extracted an extreme cold energy from his middle dantian due to the Ice Soul Poison.

Recalling the sensation from that time, he tried to form a yin-cold energy from his middle dantian.

'The middle dantian governs emotions. Hak Daetong's longing for the woman named Jaha must have created the yin qi. I too will use my emotions to the fullest to extract the yin qi!'

Namgung Hui stimulated his heart as much as possible and was seized by all sorts of emotions.

There were many bitter fragments of the past, but above all, the emptiness he had obtained at the end of his life was the most intense.

And for some reason, in the last fragment, Baek Seolhwa came to mind.

Then, surprisingly, a yin-cold energy was formed.

Was it because Baek Seolhwa was a master of ice arts?

For a moment, he thought that might be the case, but that wasn't what was important right now.

'If I collide this as it is, an enormous explosive force will be created. If I release that according to the incantations of Purple Mist Ten Thousand Li...!'

For a moment, a Purple flash erupted from Namgung Hui's body.

It was slightly similar to the Purple color of the Purple Mist Divine Art, but in Namgung Hui's Purple flash.

-Zzzzt!

Lightning flashed.

Purple lightning. Purple Thunder.

'This is not the Purple Mist Divine Art, nor the Divine Thunder Art, but the Purple Thunder Divine Art.'

In an instant, a new martial art was created.

A divine art that was a level more evolved than the Divine Thunder Art.

It was the moment when a peerless divine art called the Purple Thunder Divine Art was born.

-Flash!

When Namgung Hui opened his eyes, there was no one inside the carriage.

The surroundings were also quite quiet.

Namgung Hui scratched the back of his head in embarrassment and stepped out of the carriage.

But when he came out of the carriage, he was surprised for two reasons.

First, one reason was that the surroundings had become dark.

The time when Namgung Hui had sat in the lotus position was around morning.

For a whole half-day, Namgung Hui had been operating the Purple Thunder Divine Art while in the lotus position.

Considering the depth of the Purple Thunder Divine Art, it wasn't strange at all that it took over half a day.

Then what was the second strange thing?

That was because a huge crowd of people had surrounded the carriage at a certain distance.

A net from which there is no escape?

Of course, it wasn't at that level, but it meant that it was a dense and huge net.

It looked as if no one could approach without a single gap.

'She didn't have the confidence to protect me herself, so it seems she hired people with money. I've become indebted to her.'

Since Eun Seolrin didn't know martial arts herself, she probably didn't know what state Namgung Hui was in.

She must have figured it was an important moment and gathered people by spending money like that.

Namgung Hui approached the dozing Eun Seolrin and said.

"Ahem. I'm sorry. I've really become indebted to you."

Eun Seolrin, waking up from her sleep, widened her eyes in surprise.

Then, realizing that the person who had woken her up was Namgung Hui, she smiled shyly and said.

"It was you, Young Master. Did you achieve the enlightenment that those martial artists talk about?"

"Yes. Thanks to you, I was able to catch it without missing it. I will really not forget this debt and repay it."

"Debts, by their nature, grow day by day, so you can repay it slowly."

As expected of a merchant, she was calculating interest even on a debt of gratitude.

Namgung Hui, at Eun Seolrin's consistent appearance, had a gentle smile on his lips and continued.

"By the way, because of me, it seems we'll have to go up Mount Hua tomorrow."

But as soon as Namgung Hui finished speaking, flames shot up from the Lotus Peak where the Mount Hua Sect was located.

(End of Chapter)