One must endure pleasure, harmonizing yin and yang energy in unison, and anchor it into each other’s dan’tian.
Only then can one accept pure qi and later ascend as an immortal.
In so ways, it could be said that this thod of training was even more grueling than that of other Daoist sects.
While other Daoist sects practice celibacy by distancing themselves from won, Qingcheng Sect required celibacy while being close to won.
For this reason, Qingcheng Sect was not widely known among the public, unlike other Daoist sects.
Still, because Mount Qingcheng was considered one of the birthplaces of Daoism, the sect was acknowledged as one of the orthodox Nine Sects.
Qingcheng Sect’s martial arts were divided into techniques using yang qi and those using yin qi, and they demonstrated their greatest power when perford in unison.
Due to this sect’s unique nature, marriage was an absolute requirent—but the problem was that Yeongmyeong, Qingcheng’s head disciple and the child of the sect master couple, had yet to find a woman.
The reason he didn’t have a partner was because there was already soone in his heart.
Why would that be a problem, you ask?
Because the woman in his heart was the daughter of the Palace Lord of the Blazing Fire Divine Palace.
Blazing Fire Divine Palace was one of the Eight Great Demonic Sects that made up the unorthodox martial world. It held the sa status among the unorthodox as the Nine Sects did among the orthodox.
There was no way such a place would send its daughter into marriage—especially not to a Daoist sect, and even more so one as obscure as Qingcheng Sect.
If it were a one-sided love, there’d be no issue.
But the problem was that the two of them loved each other.
And now, that problem had erupted.
The daughter of Blazing Fire Divine Palace had packed her belongings and co to Qingcheng Sect.
Naturally, chaos ensued.
So insisted she be sent back imdiately, while others argued, “How could we send her away when she ca of her own accord?”
But one thing was clear:
There was bound to be conflict with Blazing Fire Divine Palace.
Yeongmyeong was equally troubled.
That the woman he loved had co to find him was sothing that brought him pure joy and happiness—but he couldn’t help but worry about the storm this would bring upon Qingcheng Sect.
“Gaga, I’m sorry... I shouldn’t have co.”
Seeing her on the verge of tears, Yeongmyeong pulled her into a tight embrace without even realizing it and said,
“No, I’m sorry. All of this happened because of .”
“Gaga, what do you an? I was the one who liked you first.”
“No, I liked you first.”
Even in this situation, the two of them were arguing over who fell in love first.
Those watching from afar saw the earnest affection in their eyes and began to align on one opinion.
“Those two truly love each other. For now, how about we do our best to persuade the Palace Lord of Blazing Fire?”
“Yes. We can say she doesn’t have to officially join Qingcheng Sect, and that she’s free to return to Blazing Fire Palace whenever she wants. That should help smooth things over.”
“If the Palace Lord loves his daughter, surely he would want her to be with the man she loves.”
At the elders’ words, the sect master couple let out a long sigh.
Then they bowed gratefully toward the elders.
“Thank you, everyone. To have you all step up like this, as if it were your own family’s matter...”
“What are you saying? Aren’t we one family?”
“That’s right. Now more than ever, we must stay united.”
The sect master couple exchanged a look and nodded, as if coming to a decision.
“Very well. I’ll personally receive the Palace Lord of Blazing Fire and attempt to persuade him. But just in case he refuses and declares war, I ask that you all be ready.”
“Yes, understood!”
“I’m sorry to trouble you all because of my foolish son.”
“Not at all. Besides, Yeongmyeong’s quite the capable fellow. He’s even managed to win the heart of such a beauty. Hahaha!”
Even with the threat of war looming over them, the elders of Qingcheng Sect still laughed heartily.
The sect master couple felt both deeply grateful and painfully apologetic toward them.
‘Primordial Heavenly Venerable, please... grant us your aid.’
All they could do was pray to the heavens for things to turn out well.
****
A middle-aged man with a flaming red beard twitched with fury as he barked orders at his subordinates.
This was none other than the Palace Lord of Blazing Fire Divine Palace—Hwa Sogwang.
“You bastards! Run faster!”
“Pant, pant! Please, Palace Lord! Slow down!”
“He’s right! We don’t have the sa level of internal power as you do!”
“That’s why I told you all to train properly! Look at ! I never slacked off, and now I’m this strong!”
“How can we possibly compare ourselves to the Palace Lord?”
“You’ve got to compare apples to apples! Please, stop using yourself as the standard!”
When his n started grumbling, the Palace Lord shouted again.
“Quit yapping and move your feet!”
“Ughhh!”
“Why did the young lady have to fall for that guy and make us suffer like this?”
Smack!
“AAAGH!”
A sudden flick to the head made them scream.
“Bastards! Don’t talk crap about my daughter! That damn punk who seduced my innocent girl is the one at fault!”
With their lips jutted out, the subordinates trudged along behind the Palace Lord.
Just then, they spotted a caravan procession in the distance.
Judging by the direction, it seed to be heading toward Mount Qingcheng.
“That looks like a caravan bound for Qingcheng Sect, doesn’t it?”
“Seems like it.”
“If we go in like this, Qingcheng Sect will definitely block us, right?”
“Of course. We ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) look like people who ca to start a fight.”
“And then we’ll end up fighting. Worst case, my daughter inside could be in danger, right?”
“They might even take her hostage.”
“So we’ll disguise ourselves and sneak in with the caravan. How’s that?”
“Oh! Palace Lord, how rare for you to co up with such a clever plan!”
“Bastards! I can be smart when I want to!”
“So we’re going to sneak in with that caravan?”
“Exactly.”
“What if they don’t let us?”
“They won’t let us? How could they not?”
The Palace Lord raised his fist.
“I’ve never seen anyone say no in front of this.”
“You’re the best, Palace Lord!”
“Khahahaha! Right? Judging by the na, it looks like a brand-new caravan, which makes it even easier.”
“You’re right! ‘Shincheon Escort Bureau’? Never heard of them before. Let’s go!”
“This is gonna be fun! Let’s move!”
“Khahahaha! Let’s go!”
****
“YOU BASTARDS! HALT!”
At the Palace Lord’s shout, the entire procession of the Shincheon Escort Bureau ca to a stop.
“From here on, you’ll do as I say.”
At those words, Namgoong Hwan stepped forward and offered a martial salute.
“What seems to be the matter?”
“Nothing much. You're headed for Qingcheng Sect, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Perfect. We’ll be accompanying you.”
“Accompany us?”
“Yeah. We’ll disguise ourselves as guards and sneak into Qingcheng Sect.”
“That won’t be possible.”
“You’d do well to listen while I’m being nice.”
“Your temperant is exactly as the rumors say.”
“You know who I am?”
“Red beard, massive build, and the Dragon-Blood Axe on your back... You’re the Palace Lord of Blazing Fire Divine Palace, aren’t you?”
“You’ve got good eyes. Then you should also know what happens if you refuse , right?”
“I do.”
“And yet you’ll still refuse?”
“Yes.”
“You’ve got guts. What’s your na?”
“I’m Namgoong Hwan, Head of the Changcheon rchant Guild under the Namgoong Clan.”
“...What?”
Realizing Namgoong Hwan’s identity, the Palace Lord instinctively took a step back.
He had thought this was just so no-na caravan—but if this procession was being led by the Head of the Changcheon rchant Guild, that changed everything.
ssing with them would be ssing with the Namgoong Clan.
“W-Why is the Namgoong Guild Leader here...?”
“The real question is: what are you doing? Sneaking into Qingcheng Sect like this? Interfering with Qingcheng ans picking a fight with our entire orthodox alliance. Are you declaring war?”
“Grk... No. I have my reasons.”
Having learned Namgoong Hwan’s identity, the Palace Lord began to back off.
“And what kind of reason justifies threatening an escort bureau to bring you along?”
“Grgh... The truth is... my daughter... says she wants to marry Qingcheng’s head disciple... So I’m going to bring her back. But I know the Qingcheng Taoists will try to stop , so I planned to slip in with the caravan, take my daughter, and leave.”
Namgoong Hwan looked behind him.
There were only three subordinates with the Palace Lord. It was clear he hadn’t co for war.
With a cold gaze, Namgoong Hwan stared him down.
“If that’s the case, you should’ve asked for permission first. Why start with threats?”
“Grgh... Co on. I’ve explained myself. I’m trying to be civil here. But if you push , I won’t hold back.”
“What are you saying? Are you threatening to attack us? You an to go to war with the Namgoong Clan?”
“Tch. Why not? I’m not afraid of the Namgoong Clan.”
At those words, Namgoong Hwan’s eyes narrowed.
Unnerved by his expression, the Palace Lord scowled and said,
“Dammit. I even explained myself and backed off, but this is how you respond? Fine. You lot are getting your asses kicked today.”
Is this what they call a thief crying foul?
At that mont, Yeon Woo Jin stepped forward with his hands behind his back.
Namgoong Hwan quickly moved to his side and bowed respectfully.
The Palace Lord raised an eyebrow.
Who was this?
For the Guild Leader of the Changcheon rchant Guild to lower himself like that—this boy must be soone very high-ranking in the Namgoong Clan.
Given his young age, it was likely he was the Young Lord.
“And who are you? The Namgoong Clan’s heir?”
“No. I’m the Master of this Shincheon Escort Bureau.”
“This isn’t your place to speak. Step aside.”
“No, this is exactly my place. You’re threatening my escort bureau—so it’s only right that I, as its master, step forward.”
“Hah... Seems I’ve really been slacking off lately. Every mutt and runt thinks they can disrespect now.”
The Palace Lord glared and growled,
“Fine. Let’s make an example out of you lot to mark my return to active duty.”
Yeon Woo Jin smiled.
“When you raise your hand to strike soone, you’d best rember—there’s a chance you’ll be struck as well.”
“What? Khahaha! You’re a funny one. Go on, then—try hitting . Let’s see how much that dainty little fist can hurt. Kekeke.”
Yeon Woo Jin clenched his fist.
“You’re going to regret this.”
“Regret? The mont you swing, your wrist will snap off.”
“It’s going to hurt. A lot.”
“Khahaha! You’re hilarious! I like you!”
With a wide grin, the Palace Lord spoke again.
“Do you even know my cultivation level? I’m at the Fifth Star of the Manifestation Realm. The mont you throw that punch, my protective qi will activate automatically. Your fist will shatter like tofu. Still want to try?”
He was confident. What kind of power could the master of a re fledgling escort bureau possibly have?
“I don’t mind. Just don’t cry when it hurts.”
“Keh. Arrogant brat. Fine, but don’t co crying when your arm gets blown off.”
His subordinates pald their foreheads.
He’d once again gotten distracted by sothing ridiculous and forgotten the real issue.
Now they might have to face the Namgoong Clan.
Could this blow up into a full-scale orthodox–unorthodox war?
Still, they didn’t plan to stop him.
They were pretty pissed too.
They just wanted to see this cocky kid’s arm break and flop to the ground.
Yeon Woo Jin’s fist moved.
WHUMP—
His punch sank deep into the Palace Lord’s abdon.
“Gkk...!”
Unable to breathe, his waist bent in half, the Palace Lord of Blazing Fire struggled desperately just to draw breath.
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