Rebirth of the Thunder God

"What are you staring at blankly? Come on, help me dismantle the hut."

The reason there was no trace of Gwon Cheong in the hut was that he was packing all his belongings as if preparing to move.

He was even asking Namgung Hui for help, as if he intended to move the hut itself.

"Don't tell me you're planning to climb Qilin Peak with all this?"

"Of course. If I can't find the spirit herb, I'll have to stay in the mountains for several days."

"No. Didn't you say it would only take a day?"

"I only said a day, not how many days. It could be that I have to work all day for several days."

Where could such a sophistry be?

If he asked Gwon Cheong, he would say it was right here.

He didn't know if the people of Guangdong Province were this shameless and changed their words so easily, but Gwon Cheong was a truly peculiar person.

To the point where he wondered how he had come to know Cheongi-ja, it didn't make sense.

Namgung Hui decided to help him for now, as dismantling the hut was not difficult.

He had to carry out the mission anyway.

And since he needed spirit herbs at the moment, there was nothing wrong with helping him.

On top of that, if he built a friendship with him, he would be able to hear information about the Blood Cult more objectively and in detail.

With such shamelessness, he must have eavesdropped on the Blood Cult members to some extent.

As Namgung Hui helped, the hut quickly lost its shape and turned into a tent and wooden poles.

Gwon Cheong stared at the tent and wooden poles and then continued.

"What are you doing? Not shouldering it. I already know you're a man, so don't think of feigning weakness."

At this point, Namgung Hui was so dumbfounded that only a hollow laugh came out.

Still, Gwon Cheong's attitude was just amusing, so he wasn't hateful.

After all, this much luggage wasn't that heavy.

Namgung Hui shouldered the hut, and Gwon Cheong took care of the rest of the luggage and set off.

He met some guard martial artists on the way, but they recognized Gwon Cheong's face and didn't particularly check him.

'So this is what it means to be a native. If I ask Gwon Cheong later, I might get a lot of information.'

And so, Namgung Hui was walking side by side with Gwon Cheong when a question arose, and he asked him.

"Is Qilin Peak by any chance that largest peak over there?"

The largest peak that Muchi had used as a landmark.

It wasn't that far, so Namgung Hui had inwardly hoped it was there.

As if to dash that expectation, Gwon Cheong shook his head and said.

"That's Gwangcheon Peak, a place like a sacred ground for the Blood Cult. They say they enshrined the successive founders there. I don't know the exact details, but it's definitely a suspicious place."

"Anyway, that means that's not Qilin Peak. Then how far is Qilin Peak?"

"Fortunately, Qilin Peak is the second largest peak next to that Gwangcheon Peak. You might think I was just joking, but Qilin Peak is a really terrifying place. Aside from ordinary wild animals, various poisonous creatures, as well as poisonous herbs and spirit beasts, pop out from time to time. It's not for nothing that it's known that a Qilin resides there."

Considering the domain of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, he couldn't help but nod.

Yunnan, the sacred ground of poisonous creatures.

In the vast mountain range that extended to that place, there was no law that said poisonous creatures couldn't cross the mountains.

On top of that, the hot and humid climate of Guangdong Province and Yunnan Province was also similar.

And most of all, based on the information that only Namgung Hui knew, the fact that a spirit beast lived there would by no means be a wrong statement.

'In the secret history passed down in my sect, it was said that the Black Tortoise once lived in this area. Hainan Island and Guangdong Province were said to be its sphere of influence.'

At present, the existence of the Four Divine Beasts was only a symbolic meaning, so no one had witnessed their real bodies.

Perhaps at the time the Blue Dragon ascended, they had agreed not to interfere in the human world.

If so, there was a high possibility that the Qilin, which was comparable to the Four Divine Beasts, also did not exist in the human world.

But this, in its own way, was a boon for Namgung Hui.

A legendary Qilin would have abilities comparable to a god.

It would be an advantage for Namgung Hui not to have a being he might not be able to handle.

Because even if he discovered a top-grade spirit herb, he might not be able to take it.

Because spirit beasts usually protected spirit herbs and tried to preserve nature.

And so, while walking on the mountain path, this time Gwon Cheong had a question and asked Namgung Hui.

"Did you come alone?"

"I came with two companions. And there was one more Blood Cult member as a guide. By the way, are you a native of Guangdong Province?"

"Yes. I've lived here since I was born. I've lived here before them."

Just as Namgung Hui was a stranger to the Blood Cult members.

To Gwon Cheong, the Blood Cult members would be strangers.

At the complicated expression that appeared on Gwon Cheong's face, Namgung Hui had no choice but to continue his questions.

"Do you have no other family?"

"I'm alone. The only remaining blood relative, my father, passed away 10 years ago. When I had a severe cold, he went to Qilin Peak to dig up medicinal herbs and never returned. Well, the rest of my family passed away when I was young, so I don't even have memories of them."

As the atmosphere became quite heavy, Namgung Hui wondered if he had asked a needless question.

It was an era where one could die even from a severe cold if they didn't receive treatment in time.

That was no different 60 years ago or in the present era.

That was why the Divine Physician Sect, which wandered the Central Plains and provided medical treatment, was respected beyond factions.

"It's a good thing you're alive. They say it's better to be in this world even if you roll in a dog's dung heap. Let's live hard together."

"Hahaha! The way you talk is like seeing my own peer. Yes. The reason I brought this up is because the one who saved me when I was dying was the elder Cheongi-ja. By the way, how did you come to know the elder?"

"Ah. I got to know him through a friend who is from the Jegal family."

Gwon Cheong looked at Namgung Hui with a look of seeing him in a new light.

"Oho. So you were a child of a noble family. Are you also a child of a family like the Five Great Families or the Four Great Families?"

"Yes. I can't tell you the details right now, but just know that I'm from one of the Five Great Families."

"Alright. Tell me when the time comes. Qilin Peak is slowly coming into view. I'll set up a campsite around here. I'll go see if there's a good spot, so wait here."

Since Namgung Hui was not a mountain man like Gwon Cheong, he nodded and waited for him.

'He doesn't seem like a bad person. Indeed, Cheongi-ja wouldn't have recruited just anyone clumsily.'

A little while later, Gwon Cheong, who had looked around the area, put down his luggage and said.

"I don't think there's a better place for a campsite than here."

Namgung Hui frowned at Gwon Cheong's words.

In his view, this place had a steep slope and was in the middle of a mountain path, so it was easy to become a target.

"I'd rather go and look around myself."

"You?"

"I may look like this, but I've lived in the mountains for quite a long time. Because my sect is located in a corner of the mountains."

The Thunder Sect of Mount Huang in Anhui Province.

It was a place where Namgung Hui had lived for almost 40 years.

Although he wasn't a mountain man, he had lived in the mountains longer than anyone else.

Since he knew the characteristics of the mountains well, he was able to find a place suitable for setting up a campsite in one go.

A place where large trees were dense and one could hide under a rock, making it difficult to be spotted by wild animals.

And if he sprinkled tiger droppings on the side, most living creatures would not approach.

Namgung Hui flattened the ground and immediately began to set up the hut on it.

Gwon Cheong, who was watching this from afar, stealthily approached and spoke.

"Ahem. You're quite skilled. For a child of a noble family, you're quite something."

"Don't just watch from there, if you have tiger droppings, sprinkle them. I'd rather not be woken up in the middle of the night."

Would Namgung Hui be defeated by a mere tiger?

However, if a crowd of riffraff gathered, he would have no choice but to wake up.

On top of that, Gwon Cheong was a man who didn't know martial arts.

To protect him, he couldn't ignore the wild animals.

"Hoho. You even knew about tiger dung. You're really something. As expected, you're worthy of knowing the elder. Then I'll go around once and set up... You're already done."

For Namgung Hui, setting up a mere hut was no different from eating cold porridge.

On top of that, the hand movements of a fist artist were much more agile than those of an ordinary person.

His grip was also outstanding, so his work speed was bound to be remarkably fast.

That was why it was extremely natural for Gwon Cheong to be so surprised.

"Just give me the tiger droppings. I'll go and sprinkle them."

"...Here you go."

Namgung Hui, who had received the item, performed a movement technique and sprinkled it in a place where wild animals were likely to pass.

Now, he wouldn't be woken up in the middle of the night for any trivial matter.

Namgung Hui, who had returned to the campsite, patted the shoulder of Gwon Cheong, who was standing blankly.

"Now that the campsite is all set up, let's hit the road."

"Let's do that. This time, I'll really take the lead and guide you properly!"

Gwon Cheong walked away vigorously, without even knowing what Namgung Hui had wiped on his shoulder.

Still, an herb gatherer was an herb gatherer, and he soon discovered an herb.

"It's a knotweed that's at least fifty years old. You can have this."

To discover an herb from the start, the omen was not bad.

He prayed that he would discover a top-grade spirit herb within today.

'I hope I can get a spirit herb to give to Seolhwa...'

The spirit herb of extreme yin that he would eat himself was not yet in his mind.

Because thanks to his internal energy of over five cycles, he didn't feel any particular lack.

Of course, if he were to use two martial arts simultaneously with the Two-Forms Heart Method, even five cycles of internal energy would feel small, but unfortunately, the Two-Forms Heart Method was not a martial art that could be used at will.

Because if it became known that he had learned the Two-Forms Heart Method, he could make an enemy of the Wudang Sect.

'And if I operate such a huge amount of energy at the same time, my blood vessels and dantian won't be able to withstand it. One way or another, I do need the efficacy of the Fire Spirit Divine Pill.'

The efficacy of the Fire Spirit Divine Pill, which strengthened the blood vessels, was more valuable than increasing the total amount of internal energy.

Although there were many spirit pills and spirit herbs that increased internal energy, spirit medicines that strengthened the blood vessels and dantian were rare in the human world.

This would only be possible with an otherworldly item made with the alchemy of an immortal.

After that, he dug up a few more hundred-year-old knotweeds and wild ginseng roots.

Besides that, he was also able to obtain trivial medicinal herbs such as ground ivy, peony, and angelica.

This alone was a considerable achievement.

To the point where if he sold this at a pharmacy and procured food, he could feed the Blood Cult members to their hearts' content.

It would be a great help to the feast that Muchi had mentioned.

Well, he didn't know how much of a sense of belonging Gwon Cheong felt to the Blood Cult.

Namgung Hui, lifting the rather heavy basket, said.

"Mister. I think we can stop digging up medicinal herbs now."

"I suppose so. Perhaps because of your good luck, the medicinal herbs are being found unusually well today."

"Is that so? Well, I am lucky. Then let's slowly move to the center where the precious spirit herbs grow."

"Alright. The fog has lifted now, so it should be fine to enter."

In the morning in the mountains, the fog is thick, so it's hard to see ahead.

But now that the sun was in the middle of the sky, the fog had lifted somewhat.

In fact, even if there was fog, it wouldn't be a big problem for Namgung Hui, but for Gwon Cheong, who didn't know martial arts, it was a huge restriction.

As that restriction disappeared, Gwon Cheong roamed the mountains like a fish in water.

And when he reached the center of Qilin Peak that he had mentioned, an unexpected existence was waiting for Namgung Hui and Gwon Cheong.

(End of Chapter)