Chapter 37
Shortly after Baek Mu-Gun arrived at the Heavenly Underground Cave’s entrance, the warriors of the Great Huangfu Family entered. They couldn’t help but be surprised when they saw the interior of the Heavenly Underground Cave, which was akin to a separate world.
For a while, Huangfu Ming was the same. He then smiled triumphantly as he spotted Mu-Gun, wearing a black mask and standing not too far away.
“It’s great to see you again.”
“I’ll give you a chance,” Mu-Gun said underneath his mask.
“A chance?”
“Turn around and leave.”
“Or what?”
“Or a year from today will be the death anniversary of you all.”
“Kuhaha! Such empty bravado for someone who can’t even show his face in fear of his identity being revealed.” Huangfu Ming taunted Mu-Gun.
“Think carefully. If you don’t leave now, you won’t be able to get out alive.”
“Is that so? I think you should be the one worrying about your life.”
“I definitely gave you a chance, but you all chose to turn it down. Don’t resent me for what’s to come.”
Mu-Gun didn’t have any intention of allowing the Great Huangfu Family’s warriors to leave so easily in the first place. Nevertheless, he gave them the opportunity as a form of formality so that he could justify the actions he was about to take, even if just for a little bit.
Without a hint of hesitation, Mu-Gun recited the incantation to invoke the Thunder God’s Descent.
[O’ God of Thunder shining brightly in gold. Adhering to the ancient covenant, I long for your power. Manifest your existence and show your domineering power to these foolish ingrates!]
The words flowing out of Mu-Gun were the long-forgotten Language of the Gods. It was also the only language that could manifest the Thunder God, a supreme being of the Heavenly Realm.
As soon as Mu-Gun finished chanting the spell, the air around him began to pulse fiercely. Huangfu Ming’s face stiffened. He didn’t know what it was, but he understood the fact that Mu-Gun had done something unusual. He had to put an end to it before Mu-Gun could invoke it.
“Attack that bastard right this instant!”
At Huangfu Ming’s urgent scream, the warriors of the Great Huangfu Family charged toward Mu-Gun all at once.
At that moment, Mu-Gun’s eyes shone with gold. A golden thunderstorm formed around his body like a typhoon and engulfed the Great Huangfu Family’s warriors that were rushing toward Mu-Gun. As the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists tried to surround Mu-Gun, the golden thunderstorm tore them apart in an instant. in the presence of his overwhelming prowess, the Great Huangfu Family warriors completely froze.
After calling forth the Thunder God and manifesting it in his body, Mu-Gun shuddered due to the tremendous power in him that was more than capable of destroying the entire world. It was something he had experienced several times in his previous lives, but it still made him shiver.
However, he couldn’t afford to revel in the Thunder God’s power. He was already going numb, and his internal energy was depleting like an ebbing tide. Before the power of the Thunder God disappeared, he had to deal with all the warriors of the Great Huangfu Family.
Mu-Gun lightly shook his right hand in the direction of the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists. The golden thunder aura enveloping him formed and fired a myriad of sword qi toward them.
“Everyone, dodge!” Huangfu Ming hurriedly cried out.
The Great Huangfu Family warriors sidestepped in all directions to evade the golden thunder sword qi. However, the sword auras were as fast as black rays and had a wide range. More than half of the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists collapsed as the golden thunder sword qi pierced through them.
Huangfu Ming was able to escape the fastest, but the sight that unfolded before his eyes shocked him. It wasn’t just because of Mu-Gun’s power. It was because of the person who came to his mind when he saw Mu-Gun—Guyang Hwi, the Heavenly Thunder God's Swordsman.
He was a hero who died bravely in battle when he fought against the Hell-Blood Demon together with the Seven Saints, the previous patriarchs of the Seven Great Clans. That golden thunder sword qi was a technique that symbolized him.
‘Don’t tell me he’s the descendent of the Thunder God?’
Huangfu Ming bit his lips. If he had known that Mu-Gun was the Thunder God’s descendant, he would have tread more cautiously. However, there was no use crying over spilled milk. He was at the point of no return and he couldn’t stop now.
“Scatter to the sides and attack him!”
At Huangfu Ming’s scream, the surviving warriors rushed to Mu-Gun’s flanks and launched an attack stemming from the thought that if they pincered him, they’d be able to successfully pierce through at least one side. However, they took Mu-Gun too lightly.
From his hands, Mu-Gun condensed his golden thunderbolt aura into a wheel. Rotating at high speed, it then shot forth using the theory of the Flying Golden Shield Scripture.
The wheel of thunder devastated the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists at the same time despite them charging in from both sides. Those caught by it were ripped into shreds and burnt to the ground.
The three Peak Realm masters, Huangfu Ming included, barely managed to block the golden wheel of thunder. Unable to overcome the impact, they were blasted away and rolled on the ground. Their expressions filled up with despair. All the subordinates they had brought with them had been killed by one man—a single unstoppable force.
An intangible aura restrained Huangfu Ming and the two other Peak Realm masters sent to support him, Huangfu Kuan and Huangfu Juan, preventing them from escaping or attacking.
“See? Didn’t I tell you to leave?” Mu-Gun raised his hands, implying that the current situation was not his fault.
“Aren’t you the Thunder God’s descendant? Why are you hostile toward us?” Huangfu Ming hurriedly cried out.
“Why do you ask? Is it because the previous Thunder God fought alongside the Seven Saints?”
“That’s right. Considering the relationship between our predecessors, do you think you should do this?”
“Would it be understandable if I told you that the previous Thunder God died due to the betrayal of the Seven Saints?” Mu-Gun tried to expose the facade of the previous patriarchs of the Seven Families.
“What nonsense! It doesn’t matter if you kill us, but don’t insult the former patriarch of our family!”
At Huangfu Ming’s retort, Mu-Gun chuckled.
“It’s not an insult. Blinded by their greed for the authority of murim, the Seven Saints, Huangfu Tianyue included, killed the previous Thunder God while he was weakened due to the battle with the Hell-Blood Demon. That’s the truth.”
“You bastard, how would you know if that’s the truth?”
“It’s because I went through it myself,” Mu-Gun said with a smirk.
“Huh?”
“The conversation ends here. Let’s put an end to things.”
Sensing that the time limit of the Thunder God’s Descent was imminent, Mu-Gun extended his hand toward the three Peak Realm masters. Three blades of golden thunder sword qi formed in his hand and sprang forth like rays of light. The three golden thunder sword qi pierced the Peak Realm masters’ hearts without even a moment’s notice. Staring at Mu-Gun mortifyingly, they soon succumbed to death.
They were the last standing members of the Great Huangfu Family that entered the Heavenly Underground Cave. After wiping them out, Mu-Gun deactivated the Thunder God’s Descent. Losing all strength in his body, he fell unconscious and collapsed to the ground.
***
Mu-Gun opened his eyes. His whole body was throbbing in pain. Let alone raising himself up, he couldn’t even muster up the strength to raise his arm. Mu-Gun smiled bitterly at the aftereffects of the Thunder God’s Descent that he had felt for the first time in a long while.
“Have you returned to your senses?” Seonwoo Kang asked. He had been guarding Mu-Gun while he was unconscious.
“How long has it been?”
“You woke up in half a day.”
“Can you help me up?”
Mu-Gun was able to lift his body with Seonwoo Kang’s support. He then assumed a lotus position with great difficulty.
“I have to circulate my qi for a while. Could you excuse yourself?”
“Okay.”
As soon as Seonwoo Kang left, Mu-Gun immediately began to circulate his qi. He had dealt with the Great Huangfu Family warriors that invaded the Thousand Pine Valley, but it wasn’t the end yet. If the Great Huangfu Family found out that the people they deployed to the Thousand Pine Valley had been killed in an incident, they would send their martial artists again. At that time, they would deploy a much stronger combat force than before.
Before that could happen, Mu-Gun and the Medicine King Family had to leave the Heavenly Underground Cave. Hence, he had to hurry. He circulated his qi thirty-six times to recover the internal energy he had exhausted and recuperated his strength. Mu-Gun then came down from the bed and moved around. It was still stiff, but it wasn’t strenuous.
After confirming that there wasn’t any abnormality with his body, Mu-Gun immediately headed for Seonwoo Pyo’s residence. While he was on the way to Seonwoo Pyo’s place, he noticed the Medicine King Family’s people were moving about busily, likely making preparations to leave this place and move to another location. Mu-Gun soon arrived at his destination.
“How are you feeling?” Seonwoo Pyo asked the moment he saw Mu-Gun.
“I’m fine. What happened to the Divine Thunder Essence Pill?”
“It was completed a while ago.”
Seonwoo Pyo extended a wooden box in front of Mu-Gun, and Mu-Gun lifted its lid. Inside were three pills wrapped in gold foil placed side by side.
“Thank you,” Mu-Gun expressed his thanks and took the wooden box in his hands.
“It’s nothing compared to what you’ve done to protect the Medicine King Family.”
“You’re likely well aware of this, but the Great Huangfu Family’s threat isn’t over yet. We will have to leave this place as soon as possible.”
“Actually, we’re already making preparations to move. We will be done with all preparations in one hour at the latest.”
One hour was enough time for Mu-Gun to consume one pill of the Divine Thunder Essence Pill and absorb the aura as internal energy.
“I’ll consume a Divine Thunder Essence Pill and enhance my internal energy while you’re preparing, then.”
“Go ahead.” Seonwoo Pyo bade his farewell and watched Mu-Gun leave before he continued with his preparations.
Mu-Gun returned to his residence with the wooden box containing the Divine Thunder Essence Pills, then took out one of the Divine Thunder Essence Pills. The greatest amount of internal energy he could obtain from a single Divine Thunder Essence Pill was sixty years’ worth, but he had to circulate his qi 108 times to fully absorb it.
In fact, to absorb sixty years’ worth of internal energy in one go was, at best, barely achievable even if one’s skill with circulating internal energy was at the early ascension realm. In addition to one’s skill with circulating internal energy, the absorption rate varied depending on the type of internal energy cultivation method as well as the harmony between the cultivation method and the spiritual elixir.
Mu-Gun possessed a supreme internal energy cultivation method called the Heavenly Thunder Constellation Divine Art, and his understanding of the cultivation method as well as his skill when it came to circulating internal energy was so great that none would be able to match up to him.
In addition, the Divine Thunder Essence Pill was a spiritual pill made to be similar to the Heavenly Thunder Constellation Divine Art’s Thunder God qi. Above all, he even had experience from his previous lives. In short, Mu-Gun possessed all the best conditions to absorb the Divine Thunder Essence Pill.
Unless there were other variables, Mu-Gun would undeniably be able to absorb the energy contained within the Divine Thunder Essence Pill. Despite so, he didn’t let his guard down for a single moment.
Mu-Gun consumed the Divine Thunder Essence Pill. He then focused and began to circulate his qi. After an hour, Mu-Gun opened his eyes after circulating his qi 108 times. His eyes shone in gold but soon stopped. Mu-Gun smiled satisfactorily. He had fully absorbed the Divine Thunder Essence Pill’s energy and obtained sixty years’ worth of internal energy. Now, he had ninety years’ worth of internal energy, which was equivalent to the internal energy of a Peak Realm master.
The basic amount of internal energy an Absolute Realm master possessed was at least 180 years’ worth. Of course, just obtaining that much didn’t make one an Absolute Realm master. On the other hand, one could become an Absolute Realm master even if they didn’t have that much internal energy.
However, to achieve metamorphosis, which was the basic criteria of the Absolute Realm, at least 180 years’ worth of internal energy was needed. Furthermore, that was also needed to properly handle vajra qi, which could be considered an exclusive skill of the Absolute Realm.
Mu-Gun had two Divine Thunder Essence Pills left. Even if he consumed all of it, it would still be insufficient to reach 180 years’ worth of internal energy. However, if he also consumed the Yin Yang Poison Horn Serpent’s beast core, he would be able to barely amass 180 years’ worth of internal energy.
If he could achieve metamorphosis through that and advance into the Absolute Realm, he would never be in danger in most cases. However, the Divine Thunder Essence Pills had to be consumed at least seven full days apart. Time was necessary to stabilize the Divine Thunder Essence Pill’s energy within him.
After stashing away the remaining two Divine Thunder Essence Pills in his pockets, he equipped the Flying Golden Shield and a sword before heading outside. When he left his residence, he saw the Medicine King Family’s people had gathered at a rendezvous spot in the Heavenly Underground Cave.
The Medicine King Family had a little less than one hundred people, and they each carried a large backpack. Inside their backpacks were rare herbs as well as books containing the secret knowledge of the Medicine King Family. Having completed all preparations to leave, they waited for Mu-Gun. Mu-Gun quickly joined up with them.
“I’m late,” Mu-Gun announced his arrival.
“No, we just finished our preparations a moment ago. Have you properly consumed the Divine Thunder Essence Pill?” Seonwoo Pyo asked.
“I did, thanks to you.”
“That’s a relief. Let’s depart, then.”
“Okay.”
Mu-Gun and the Medicine King Family members left the Heavenly Underground Cave, which they had become attached to. Seonwoo Pyo had decided to move to Yandang Mountain as per Mu-Gun’s suggestion, but the key problem was that they had to go to Yandang Mountain while avoiding the Great Huangfu Family’s pursuit. Hence, the members split apart and took different routes. It was also decided that Seonwoo Pyo, Seonwoo Kang, and Shangguan Bihe would travel along with Mu-Gun to attract the Great Huangfu Family’s attention.
Given the fact that the Great Huangfu Family would be tracking them, it was possible that they’d find themselves in a dangerous situation. However, with them becoming the lure, the rest of the members would be able to reach Yandang Mountain safely. What was important was that they traveled with Mu-Gun. Mu-Gun had taken a Divine Thunder Essence Pill and enhanced his internal energy. Hence, although he had yet to reach the Absolute Realm, he would be able to go up against the Ten Heavenly King Fists even with the current internal energy he possessed. Even if they were pursued by the Great Huangfu Family, it was highly likely that there wouldn’t be any major danger as long as Mu-Gun was present.
Upon leaving the Heavenly Underground Cave, the members scattered into groups of ten just like they had planned and dispersed in different directions. Just like that, each group traveled along the pre-designated route and headed to Yandang Mountain in Zhejiang Province. Mu-Gun also began to hike down Mount Tai along with Seonwoo Pyo, Seonwoo Kang, and Bihe.
Mu-Gun planned to go to Nanjing by land. There, they would board the Baek Sword Sect’s ship which had sailed to Nanjing for the Eun Merchant Group’s escort mission, and head to Wenzhou.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺