Rebirth of the Thunder God

Namgung Hui, while performing his lightness skill towards the Kunlun Mountains, recalled what had happened before leaving the village.

'Are you ready to open your mouth now?'

'J-Just... kill me... Heok.'

One of the bandits whose vital points he had pressed.

He seemed to know a lot, so he had performed the Bone and Tendon Separation torture.

As a result, he had spilled everything he knew, and not only did he know more than he had thought, but Namgung Hui was also able to hear the answer he wanted.

'W-We just learned the martial arts that the Association gave us. And once a month, the leader negotiates with the North Heaven. He's currently away from the hideout, as he has received some kind of mission... You were lucky. If the leader had been there, you too...'

It was not strange for the bandit group to communicate with the North Heaven, as there were many people from the frontier in the North Heaven.

However, what was surprising was that they had not learned the martial arts they had plundered, but the martial arts provided by the Hoicheon Association.

'But it's strange. The martial arts they've learned are certainly close to demonic arts. And they're all at an incomparably high level. They're not inferior compared to what the Blood Cult disciples have learned.'

A sense of déjà vu, as if he had seen it somewhere.

He had a faint memory of seeing it in the first Cult Leader's diary.

At that time, the first Cult Leader, who had helped the emperor, had been given a martial arts manual by the emperor.

It was a martial art with many flaws and weaknesses, which was now classified as a demonic art.

Thinking about it now, it seemed to have a lot of intentionality.

'Perhaps they're trying to keep the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult or the bandit groups from becoming too strong.'

"Brother. What are you thinking about so hard?"

"I was just recalling what happened before we left the village."

"I see. I was about to talk about that too."

"What about?"

"It's about the seven-tailed fox."

What Jang Hwang brought up was simple.

That the seven-tailed fox seemed to love humans.

From what Jang Hwang had read from her memories, that fox, despite being betrayed, still foolishly cherished and loved humans.

Perhaps she even admired humans themselves.

'So that's why Mungchi showed a desire to be reincarnated as a human, mentioning reincarnation. It seems he thinks the reason Nahi isn't interested in him is purely because of his appearance.'

Mungchi's speculation might not be particularly wrong.

Because originally, when other animals, including humans, chose a mate, the proportion they allocated to appearance was large.

Although Mungchi had a reliable appearance, he was still far from the standard of beauty.

On the other hand, the seven-tailed fox, Nahi, had a beautiful appearance, so much so that she could be called an incarnation of beauty.

On top of that, the enchanting atmosphere she exuded further sublimated Nahi's appearance.

'Mungchi was a fellow who had no talent in sorcery, but he learned the transformation art for this reason. By the way, to think the seven-tailed fox still loves humans even after being betrayed by them so many times. She's not a fox, but a bear.'

The fact that she had attacked martial artists and bandit groups until now was all to protect the villagers.

Jang Hwang, in addition to that, mentioned the efforts Nahi had made for the village until now and urged him not to be so harsh from now on.

Well, even for Mungchi's sake, he wouldn't treat her so coldly.

And since the conversation he had had with her before leaving the village was also quite useful, he had no choice but to treat Nahi better than before.

'Great Hero. It's a little awkward for me to say this, but Cheongheo Jin-in is not a very nice person. You might not be able to hear what you want.'

'What? Are you saying a Daoist of the Kunlun Sect is eccentric?'

'Yes... Perhaps because he has been training alone for a long time, his mind seemed a little unstable.'

'Hmm...'

This was not something to be taken lightly.

In the first place, wasn't it the Qi deviation that martial artists sometimes suffered from?

Even a Daoist who was accumulating training could not be free from such a mental demon.

As Nahi said, if one were to practice the Dao alone for a long time, there were quite a few times when problems arose in the mind.

Namgung Hui speculated that the reason the Thunder God's master had been eccentric was also in that context.

'Well, I have no choice but to meet him and try to resolve it well. If things go wrong, I'll have to listen even by force.'

Of course, that would be the worst of the worst moves.

Attacking an elder of the Kunlun Sect had a high probability that the Kunlun Sect would not stand still.

It was better to resolve it peacefully through conversation to have a high probability of getting what he wanted.

As Namgung Hui finished organizing his thoughts about Cheongheo Jin-in, Jang Hwang continued to speak.

"Ah. And you said you were curious about what the Poison King and the Fist King talked about, right?"

"Yes. I didn't have the leisure at that time, so I couldn't listen. Did they have some great conversation?"

"I don't see it as that important of a story, but it might be different for you. First, the Fist King requested your friend, Tang Soso. I don't know the reason, but that's what he said."

"Soso."

Tang Soso was currently in the middle of researching an antidote for the Human-Faced Poison.

Although he didn't know if the Fist King knew that and had called for her, he speculated that it was probably a request for support related to poison.

If not, there would be no need to single out Tang Soso.

"And the words 'Hoicheon Association' came out of their mouths. But after this, perhaps because they were worried about being overheard, they spoke through telepathy."

"Well, if it's the Poison King, he wouldn't have said good things about the Association. Even if the Fist King doesn't know his inner thoughts, now that he's established the Iron Blood Fortress, he wouldn't harbor goodwill, let alone be an enemy. Was there any other story besides that?"

"The most important thing was actually this. Namgung Hui. He mentioned your name and insisted that you should be recruited into the Iron Blood Fortress. It was the Poison King who said that."

"The Poison King? Why me, of all people..."

A good idea flashed in Namgung Hui's mind.

Just as you have to enter a tiger's den to catch a tiger.

To grasp the Iron Blood Fortress, the fastest way was to become a member and find out from the inside.

Wasn't this the reason he had infiltrated the Blood Cult a while ago?

If it were the Poison King's recommendation, the Fist King would gladly accept Namgung Hui.

If that were to happen, the attention of the Hoicheon Association would also be drawn, so the probability of being isolated would be lowered.

'Even if it's not using a barbarian to control a barbarian, I might be able to blow my nose without using my hands. On top of that, if I'm active with my true identity, I can show off my ultimate techniques to my heart's content. Although the Two Principles Heart Art would be unreasonable.'

It was time to make a name for himself.

And if there were any precious talents in the Iron Blood Fortress, it would be a good thing to secretly smuggle them into the Righteous Heaven Alliance.

As Namgung Hui nodded his head, Jeok Hwarin and Dancheong, who had belatedly followed Namgung Hui, panted and spoke.

"Heok. Heok. What were you talking about so intently just now?"

"We were just talking about the Iron Blood Fortress. It's none of your business, so you don't need to know."

"Really? I thought I heard the name 'Namgung' faintly. Are you by any chance a person of the Namgung family?"

"Didn't I tell you? My real name is Namgung Hui. I'm the youngest son of the current Namgung family."

Although Namgung Hui said it casually, Jeok Hwarin's reaction was intense.

"What!? You were really from the Namgung family? The Namgung of the Righteous Heaven Family?"

Namgung Hui shook his head as he looked at the suddenly fussing Jeok Hwarin.

"You're the orthodox heir of the Sun God Palace and a body that might become the next palace master. What are you so surprised about?"

"No. That's not it. Your name value is no joke these days. Jade Qilin, Hidden Dragon. Your fame is widespread among women! Ah, I should have recognized you by your face from the start."

"Face, not martial arts? Your way of speaking is closer to that of a woman than a martial artist."

Then again, since she had lived in hiding for many years, her identity as a young woman might be stronger than her position as a martial artist of the Sun God Palace.

"Hey. Since you brought it up, I have to ask. Are you really in that kind of relationship with the young palace master of the Moon Maiden Palace?"

"What kind of relationship?"

"A-Are you lovers!"

If it were before, Namgung Hui would have been flustered by this question, but now, he was by no means.

But he didn't feel the need to answer truthfully.

Besides, he couldn't guarantee what would happen yet.

"Well. I'm at a loss for an answer as to what I should say. If you have the chance later, ask Seolhwa yourself."

"What? Then it could be that you're not in any kind of relationship?"

According to the laws of the Moon Maiden Palace, there was a probability that it would be so.

Depending on what choice Beak Seolhwa made in the future, it was possible to return to the relationship of their past lives.

Since reason and emotion were strictly different, where it would flow would depend on the actions of Beak Seolhwa and Namgung Hui.

'That's a problem to think about then. For now, I just hope nothing happens to Seolhwa.'

"By the way, from here on, it's no different from the territory of the Kunlun Mountains, so be especially careful. Dancheong, you too, don't touch anything."

"Yes..."

Dancheong smiled awkwardly and scratched his head.

As it was, he had had a hard time on the way here due to Dancheong's carelessness.

He would touch a poisonous mushroom he had never seen before without fear.

Or he would say he was going to get something to eat and would only catch a lot of poisonous plants and poisonous insects.

Although Namgung Hui had no worries about being poisoned, Dancheong and Jeok Hwarin were different.

Thanks to that, time was slightly delayed to detoxify Dancheong's body.

'Well, Jeok Hwarin might not be poisoned due to her constitution. Still, it's a pity that a person of the Sun God Palace can't even distinguish poisonous plants.'

Poison is generally vulnerable to fire Ki.

And even considering the past residences of the Sun God Palace, their knowledge of poisonous plants was bound to be extensive.

When they lived in the desert, they would be well-versed in poisonous insects, including scorpions.

And when they lived in the southern jungle, they were bound to be knowledgeable about poisonous plants.

But since they were a later generation raised after the Sun God Palace was annihilated, they had no such background knowledge.

That was why Namgung Hui had no choice but to give Dancheong guidance every time he did such a thing.

And every time, Jeok Hwarin would exclaim in admiration, saying that there was nothing a kid younger than her didn't know.

Well, when you think about it, since his inner self was much older than her, it was...

'It wouldn't be a matter of course. Even in my past life, there were few people as knowledgeable as me.'

"Anyway. From here on, there are many things I don't know. If you see a strange creature, never approach it first. This won't just end with poisoning, so you all understand, right?"

"Yes! From here on, I will not extend my hand carelessly."

"Okay. I've been doing as you told me until now, so don't worry."

Jeok Hwarin, after seeing Namgung Hui's original face, felt much more obedient.

Now that she even knew his background as the Namgung family, it was thought that she would listen even better.

"Brother. From here on, may I take the lead? I'm saying this because I think I'm better than you at sensing spiritual energy."

The Kunlun Mountains, where a sacred energy flowed.

This area was full of not only immortals who were accumulating Daoist training, but also spirit beasts trying to accumulate spiritual power.

Just as humans had both evil and good people, the personalities of spirit beasts also varied greatly.

However, the monsters that committed evil deeds could not come to the Kunlun Mountains area.

Perhaps because of the check of the Kunlun Mountains and the ostracism from other spirit beasts.

"Yes. Please do so. However, if it seems really dangerous, I will change our position again."

Although Namgung Hui could not detect the sacred energy like Jang Hwang, Namgung Hui had two other helpers.

'If it's the Sword Spirit, it should be able to exert some ability even in the Kunlun Mountains. Besides, I might be able to use Chichi, who's been sleeping like a log lately.'

Chichi, who had consumed a lot of Thunder Ki recently, had become very sleepy, as if it were about to evolve.

Hadn't it gone through a similar process before and its own abilities had developed further?

Namgung Hui, inwardly hoping that the ability of the treasure detector would develop further, followed Jang Hwang.

And so, the resumed journey to Kunlun, perhaps because of Jang Hwang's guidance.

They were able to enter the center of the Kunlun Mountains without any particular trouble.

On the way, Dancheong and Jeok Hwarin also did not cause any accidents.

If they just finished one night of camping here, it seemed they could climb the Kunlun Mountains tomorrow.

But variables always arise.

"Great Hero. Something has come out over there."

"I see it too. It seems to be a watchman."

As if to announce that this was now the real Kunlun Mountains.

A spirit beast appeared, blocking Namgung Hui's party.

(End of Chapter)