Tangmunjeon - Chapter 325



Only Noblemtl

Episode 325: How great would it be if I could go back to the past?

It was a common story of regret, but the story showed Dang Mujin a possibility. It wasn’t that he could really go back to the past, but at least someone showed him a way to return his body to how it was in the past. The case of Hwa Yeon Shin Ni.

Of course, it is a solution that is different from what Toohee requested. However, it is natural for a member of the National Assembly to want to solve a problem in a way that saves people.

Also, Tohee didn’t want to die because he wanted to die, but because he couldn’t find a better way. It would be even better if he could find a solution in another way.

But regaining a young body would not solve the problem. The bigger problem was the turbid energy that had seeped deep into his head, and the madness brought about by the turbid energy.

What Dang Mu-jin really cared about was the following question.

‘If I were to gain a new body, would I be able to drive out the evil spirits and regain a clear mind?’

We can’t know for sure yet, but the fact that it’s possible is enough. Dang Mu-jin made up his mind.

*

“···what?”

When Dang Mu-jin told his party about his plan, they all couldn’t hide their bewilderment.

“You said you were going to meet Elder Hwayeonshinni? He is in Chongqing.”

“Okay. I’ll go and come back as soon as I can. If I keep practicing lightness and save time, I think I can go and come back within a month.”

Namgung Myung and Hong Geol-gae’s reactions were not very good. It seems that they were not happy with the situation where the schedule was delayed for more than a month in an unexpected place.

But Hyun-gong was different.

It seems like Dang Mu-jin has already made up his mind, so even if you try to stop him from going, he won’t listen.

In this situation, it is the right decision to willingly back down and gain points.

Hyun-gong said.

“Dang Mu-jin. I respect your opinion. There seems to be a possibility of curing the patient, so what’s the big deal about a little delay?”

Not only Dang Mu-jin, but even Assemblyman Yeom and Seol-hwa looked at Hyeon-gong with their eyes wide open. Hyeon-gong showed an indifferent expression.

Hyun-gong asked again.

“By the way, how did the treatment for Elder Tohui’s internal injuries go? We came here at the request of having him treated.”

“The simple treatment is over. After you finish taking the powdered medicine, you can take the medicine that Dr. Yeom prescribes while observing the progress. It will take some time, but if you rest, you will get better without any major problems.”

Since Dang Mu-jin said so, it will be so. Hyun-gong asked the next question.

“Okay. Is there anything we should do while you’re gone?”

“Well. You should at least do some training. If you don’t have anything to do, follow Elder Yeom around and collect some poisonous and medicinal herbs. If things don’t go well, you’ll have to use some poisonous herbs so that Elder Toohui can end his life without suffering. Who knows, if you’re lucky, you might even be able to get a spirit herb.”

“I get it.”

Hyun-gong answered very confidently, and Dang-mu-jin immediately left for Jung-gyeong.

*

Hyun-gong got a clue through Dang Mu-jin’s story.

‘Yeongcho-ra. Old memories come to mind.’

Although he had never specifically told his party about it, Hyun-gong actually had knowledge about medicinal herbs and poisonous plants.

As a child, before he was about ten years old, Hyun-gong explored various career paths in preparation for the situation where he would not have talent in martial arts.

Among the many choices, the one that appealed most to the young Hyun-gong was the herbalist. He had heard that herbalists who were good at finding precious elixirs could make a lot of money.

Another thing that was appealing was that I didn’t have to work my bones off all year round like other people. If I succeeded in one big thing, I could have a few years to myself.

As it happens, Mt. Mudang was also an excellent place for the aspiring herbalist, Hyeon-gong.

Because herbalists were not allowed to enter the highest peak of Mt. Mudang and several nearby peaks, there were quite a few medicinal herbs and spirits that had not been touched by herbalists.

And at the same time, among the Taoists, only Hyun-gong was looking for elixirs and herbs.

In other words, all the elixirs and medicinal herbs on several peaks of Mt. Mudang were Hyeon-gong’s. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Hyeon-gong ate more than half of the elixirs on Mt. Mudang.

Of course, he had never found an elixir of life. Even if Hyun-gong had found an elixir of life, it was only a little bit above the level of a medicinal herb.

However, if you eat even such a subtle spirit once every other day, it’s a different story. As the saying goes, a little goes a long way, so you can’t eat less if you have less internal energy compared to your peers.

As a result of adding Hyun-gong’s outstanding five stamina and a little bit of luck to the internal energy he had accumulated in this way, Hyun-gong was able to surpass the peak wall earlier than anyone else.

As Hyun-gong reminisced about old memories, confidence rose in his heart.

‘Come to think of it, I may have been unable to break through the wall of super ecstasy because I haven’t been taking elixirs lately. I need to take this opportunity to break through the wall of super ecstasy too.’

Hyun-gong was deep in thought.

In the past, Hyun-gong had discovered several tricks for finding elixirs and spirits while searching for them. The most important of these tricks was that elixirs were often found in suspicious places.

For example, the trees may be unusually lush, the surrounding grass may not grow properly and may be yellow, there may be a cool breeze compared to the surroundings, or the forest may be unusually sunny.

And in Hyun-gong’s opinion, there was a suspicious place on this hill as well. It was the cave where Tu-hee had been staying.

‘I feel like there’s something.’

If you want to spend several days in the cave, you need food. Even if you get help from the villagers to bring food, you have to get drinking water inside the cave.

And to Hyun-gong, it was suspicious, no matter how you looked at it, that there was water to drink inside the cave. No, the cave itself was suspicious.

Caves are not common even on high rocky mountains, so it is strange to find a cave on a hill of an ambiguous height. And is it even possible to get water inside the cave?

There was also another reason.

Tuhee said that his current martial arts skills are higher than when he was first trapped in the cave. It is an extremely rare occurrence for a person with a mental disorder to have his martial arts skills grow instead of deteriorate.

‘I have a feeling.’

Hyun-gong went straight to see Tu-hee and made a proposal.

“Sister.”

Hyun-gong has a talent for confusing his opponents with just one word.

“···Huh? Sister? Me?”

“Yes. There’s no one else you can call sister.”

“Hey. How many years is the age difference? What about your older sister?”

“Does age matter? I guess he looks a few years older than me. Anyway, you’re not planning on going into the cave today, are you?”

Toohee’s expression brightened noticeably.

“···Yeah. I’m feeling okay today.”

“Then, is it okay if I clean the inside of the cave?”

“I guess it’s not impossible, but… I feel embarrassed for some reason. Is there a reason to clean the cave?”

“I have a hobby of cleaning. I feel good when I see a clean space.”

“If that’s the case, then there’s no reason why it wouldn’t work. Do whatever you want, little brother.”

“thank you.”

Hyun-gong entered the cave with Tu-hee’s permission. As expected, there was a fairly deep and wide pool at the innermost part of the cave.

Hyun-gong looked up with the torch. There was a little moisture on the cave ceiling, but no water droplets were dripping down. No water was running down the walls.

‘That means water is gushing out from the floor.’

This is ridiculous. If it were flat ground, it would be understandable, but this is a cave on the side of a hill. The ground is higher than the surrounding area, and yet water is gushing out from the ground.

Hyun-gong scooped up some water with both hands, took a sip, then sat cross-legged and contemplated his inner self.

A faint energy spreads out from my stomach. A clear and refreshing energy. It’s extraordinary.

‘As expected, that was the right answer.’

Hyun-gong buried his face in the puddle and drank the water in gulps.

A mean smile appeared on Hyun-gong’s lips as he sat up after drinking water until his stomach was about to burst. He would be able to enjoy this water for the next month.

Any other fool would have been satisfied with the unexpected good fortune, but Hyungong was not that naive. When an opportunity comes, you have to embrace it.

‘Then next time···.’

Hyun-gong, a man who might have been the world’s best herbalist if he had not had talent in martial arts, thought about it with his extraordinary mind.

Just as fruit grows on vines and gold follows veins, so too does elixir have veins.

The energy gathered in this pool is not thick, but if you look at the amount of energy gathered in the entire pool, it is not inferior to that of a top-class elixir. This level of luck does not appear easily.

There must be a lot of elixirs, big and small, around this hill.

Since Dang Mu-jin happened to ask me to gather some medicinal herbs and poisonous plants, I had enough excuses.

‘While gathering herbs and poisonous plants as requested by Dang Mu-jin, I will take only the elixir.’

Hyun-gong approached Nam-gung-myeong and Hong-geol-gae with a satisfied smile.

“Are you busy right now?”

“Uh… Nothing’s wrong. Why?”

“Since Mujin asked me to do something, I’m going to go collect medicinal herbs and poisonous plants.”

“Why are you so aggressive? Is there a need to rush like that···.”

As expected, Hong Geol-gae looked annoyed. However, Hyun-gong skillfully teased Hong Geol-gae.

“It’s not often that Mujin asks for something. Since it’s been a while since you asked for something, I wanted to pay attention to you. I came back without much expectation, but you’d be surprised to find a bunch of herbs and poisonous plants piled up.”

“Ahem.”

There was no need to persuade Namgung Myung separately. Once the atmosphere was set, Namgung Myung was the type to follow along without being pushy. As expected, Namgung Myung slowly got up from his seat and headed outside with Hong Geol-gae.

“Don’t move together, but move in different directions and look for them. Let’s first find out which side has the most… no. herbs.”

“Oh, okay, I got it.”

At that moment, Seolhwa suddenly opened a book and began to study.

However, it is impossible to escape from sacred labor through shallow tricks.

“Snow Flower. Can you look this way?”

Before long, Seolhwa had to go out in search of medicinal herbs, poisonous plants, and any spirits that might be stuck among them.

*

Less than two weeks after departure, Tang Wujin arrived in Chongqing. He had never traveled such a long distance so quickly before.

I was so tired that as soon as I entered the alley of Zhulou in Chongqing, my whole body felt like it was melting away.

As Dangmujin entered Juru Alley in the early evening, the Juru’s rouges gathered there as expected.

“Dang Daehyeop, it’s been a while since you’ve been here!”

“You seem very tired. I think it would be better for you to spend a comfortable evening at our residence today…”

I didn’t move in a hurry with the intention of making a fuss on the base.

Dang Mu-jin declined the people’s invitations and headed straight to the observation deck.

A familiar face. Deng Seon-ru-ju popped out and greeted Dang Mu-jin.

“It’s been a while!”

“It’s been a while. Elder Haryeong…”

Dang Mu-jin was about to ask Hwa Yeon-shin to come as usual, but then changed his mind.

I’m so tired, I think I’ll fall asleep if I sit down right now.

“···No. Could you tell me where Elder Haryeong is staying?”

“You want to go yourself?”

“I’m a subordinate, so isn’t it a bit strange that I always have to tell you to come and go?”

Since it was a story that fit the circumstances, Deungseonruju nodded.

“If you go straight that way, you will find a building called Jeok-eum-ru (笛音樓). There are many gisaengs around this building, and you can always hear the sound of a flute, so you will not pass it by without noticing it. The innermost room on the second floor of that building is where Elder Haryeong lives.”

All of those courtesans must belong to the Haomun led by Hwa Yeon-shin-ni. Dang Mu-jin nodded.

“Okay, see you next time.”

Dang Mu-jin dragged his tired body and walked slowly, and just as Deungseonruju had said, he found a place with an unusually large number of gisaengs. When he raised his head, he saw the words Jeok-eum-ru written on it, just as expected.

“Customer. Would you please come this way?”

The gisaengs approached Dang Mu-jin and tried to lead her away, but Dang Mu-jin waved his hand and pushed the gisaengs away.

And then he walked up to this floor, stumbling along. The gisaengs looked very surprised when a guest suddenly appeared and headed straight for the upper floor.

“Guest, guest!”

The gisaengs called out to Dang Mu-jin, but Dang Mu-jin moved without paying any attention.

And as he approached the innermost room, another gisaeng approached and stopped Dang Mu-jin.

“Customer. This area behind here is not for guests. Follow me this way…”

“I know. I came to see Elder Haryeong.”

“Please tell me your name so I can speak to you, sir.”

“You’ll know me when I say Dang Mu-jin. And you don’t have to tell me. I’ll come to you. It’s the room over there, right?”

“but-”

“It’s okay. It’s not like I don’t know about your hobbies, sir.”

Unlike other people, Dang Mu-jin was close to Hwa Yeon-shin-ni, so he knew many aspects of her. He knew that she had some unsightly sides, and that she liked erotic novels.

Hwayeonshinni also didn’t bother to hide that fact from Dangmujin.

To put it bluntly, we can say that Dang Mu-jin is someone who has entered the fence of Hwayeon Shin-ni.

Dang Mu-jin skillfully deployed his magic and moved behind the gisaeng.

The gisaeng seemed to have mastered martial arts to a great extent, but with that level of enlightenment, she could not stop Dang Mujin, who had mastered the Bulyeongseonhabo and Jawoonbo.

“customer!”

The gisaeng shouted something from behind, but Dang Mu-jin paid no attention and stopped walking in front of the door.

And then he spoke into the room.

“Hwayeonshinni, elder. This is Dangmujin. I will go in.”

Dang Mu-jin opened the door lightly.

And at that moment, Dang Mu-jin felt a strange sensation. It seemed like there was more than one person in the room.

My mind suddenly opened.

Dang Mu-jin opened the door wide. A small, plain room with a few bookshelves came into view.

And then, for a moment, I thought I saw a huge, gray shape disappearing beyond the window.

‘intruder?’

However, the situation was a bit strange for an intruder. Hwa Yeon-shin-ni was reading a book as if nothing had happened. However, the book was upside down.

Hwayeonshinni asked Dangmujin in a slightly stiff voice.

“What… What is it? You came all of a sudden. If you had sent a message, I would have gone looking for you.”

“Wasn’t there an intruder just now?”

“Intruder? No. There was no one. I was alone all day today.”

It’s a little suspicious, but it’s strange to question it since Dang Mu-jin’s intuition isn’t as sharp as Hwayeon Shin-ni’s.

‘I guess I was hallucinating because I was tired from moving a long distance.’

Dang Mu-jin thought so and told Hwa Yeon-shin-ni what was going on.

“I came here because I had something to ask you.”

“Really? If that’s the case, it would have been okay to come tomorrow…”

Hwayeonshinni looked a little annoyed, but she didn’t chase Dangmujin away or scold him.

“Anyway, what are you curious about that made you come here?”

“Elder. I would like to know about Banrohwan-dong.”

“Half-life?”

I thought that Hwayeonshinni might be reluctant to explain, but unexpectedly, Hwayeonshinni obediently talked about the transformation into a half-life and a complete transformation.

Banrohwandong (返老還童). The phenomenon in which a person who has attained enlightenment and has elevated Wuyi returns to his childhood appearance.

Transformation of the body. The phenomenon of acquiring a body suitable for learning and practicing martial arts.

Because it is such a legendary realm, people tend to perceive the two things differently, but in reality, they are not on the same track, according to Hwayeonshinni.

“···The only problem is that I can’t be sure of the outcome in advance. I didn’t know it would be this difficult.”

Hwayeonshinni concluded the story like this.

Now the most important question remains.

“If a person who has lost consciousness due to the inhalation of turbid air in his head achieves a half-moon effect, will he be able to drive out the turbid air and regain a clear mind?”

However, Dang Mu-jin did not have high expectations while asking the question. Aren’t the mind and body separate? It was just a story he brought up in the hope of grabbing at straws.

But unexpectedly, Hwayeonshinni nodded readily.

“It will most likely be so.”

“Really?”

“okay.”

Because Hwa Yeon-shin-ni answered so readily, Dang Mu-jin became a little anxious.

This is a question that could change Tuhee’s life, so he needs the most accurate advice possible.

Dang Mu-jin asked again.

“By any chance, are there any other unmanned beings who have achieved the Half-Life Revolution, other than you? Or perhaps a hermit I don’t know about.”

“There was one among the masters of the past. Master Jang Sam-bong achieved the return of the throne. But among those alive now, I am the only one.”

“Then how can you be so sure that you can get rid of the turbid air that has settled in your head? It’s not like anyone else has suffered from similar symptoms.”

Hwayeonshinni frowned after hearing Dangmujin’s story.

“Sometimes you ask very rude questions.”

“yes?”

“···No, that’s fine. Don’t worry about it. I don’t think it was malicious.”

Dang Mu-jin thought about why Hwa Yeon-shin-ni was so irritated, but nothing came to mind.

Now, only the last matter remained. Dangmujin asked Hwayeonshinni.

“Sir, would you mind going south of Dongjeong Lake with me?”

“Sympathy?”

“yes.”

Dang Mu-jin told Hwayeon Shin-ni about the situation in Tu-hee Wi-jinan-hyang.

Hwa Yeon-shin-ni was a little indifferent at first, but soon became very absorbed and listened intently to Dang Mu-jin’s story.

When the story finally ended, Hwa Yeon-shin sighed.

“Yes. Your circumstances have become difficult. You look so tired. Is it because you ran a long distance in one go for the fight?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, let’s go together.”

“Would you like to leave right now?”

The two people’s gaze turned out the window. A reddish sunset was visible in the western sky.

It is too late and dangerous for an ordinary person to set out on a journey at this time, but for someone as powerful as Dang Mu-jin and Hwa Yeon-shin-ni, there is no danger whether the sun sets or rises.

But Hwayeonshinni shook her head.

“No. Your aftereffects must be deep, so get some rest today.”

“I’m fine. I can move right now.”

When Dang Mu-jin declined, Hwayeon Shin-ni glared.

“Do as I say. Go back and rest today.”

“···All right.”

Although she is full of motivation, she cannot be stubborn any longer since Hwayeonshinni is so worried about her physical condition.

As Dang Mu-jin stood up from his seat, Hwayeon Shin-ni gave him a strong order.

“Just in case you get impatient and come back before sunrise tomorrow, I won’t be able to accompany you to Dongjing Lake. I hate impatient children.”

“All right.”

“If you’re thinking of waiting a few more days and going, just let me know.”

“yes.”

Dang Mu-jin bowed to Hwa Yeon-shin and came out of the room.

As I closed the door, the presence of people inside Hwayeonshinni’s room seemed to have doubled.

‘···Am I hallucinating again? I guess I’m more tired than I thought.’

Dang Mu-jin shook his head and came down to the first floor. Jeok-eum-ru-ju happened to be waiting for Dang Mu-jin.

Thinking that it was a good opportunity, Dang Mu-jin asked Jeok Eum-ru-ju.

“If you have a vacant room, can I stay for a night?”

Dang Mu-jin’s gaze scanned the first floor of the restaurant. Since there didn’t seem to be many customers in the restaurant, it seemed like he could rest quietly for a day.

Then, Jeok-eum-ru-ju shook her head.

“Coincidentally, we just got fully booked.”

“···Is that true?”

“Yes. I really want to invite a famous hero like the Great Hero of the Tang Dynasty, but coincidentally···”

Dang Mu-jin nodded with a bitter smile.

‘I’m out of luck.’

It wasn’t a big problem. Even if it wasn’t a small restaurant, there were dozens of restaurants and inns in the alleys of Zhulou in Chongqing.

Dang Mu-jin returned to the observation deck as usual and fell into a deep sleep.