Chapter 46
Baek Mu-Jin held a small welcome banquet for his daughter and younger brother, who had returned from their short outing.
Delicacies were laid out in the Inner Hall, and Yak-seon, who happened to have some free time, also joined the gathering.
“So, did you enjoy looking around the Marketplace?”
“…Yes, it was a valuable experience.”
“I heard from your uncle that you broke through to the 5th star.”
“…I was lucky.”
“Right, if you continue building your foundation like that, you’ll reach Foundation Establishment without any issues.”
“…I’ll keep that in mind.”
As her father asked with a pleased smile, Baek-Cheong forced the corners of her mouth up and nodded.
Normally, she would have pretended to be demure and maintained the image of a lovely daughter, but she was too distracted devouring the interesting posts she had seen on the Nameless Forum on her way back to the Main Family.
If she had her way, she would have run straight to her room and binged on forum activity.
Fortunately, her uncle excitedly stepped in and opened his mouth.
“Elder brother, the auction at the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion this time was truly incredible. The Five Elements Pill crafted by Venerable Yak-seon actually fell into the hands of the Pacheon Sword Saint.”
“Is that true?”
At those words, Baek Mu-Jin’s eyes widened.
Yak-seon, who had been drinking tea, also set down his teacup, showing interest.
“Have I ever lied to you, elder brother? Not only that…”
Baek Mu-Yeong vividly recounted the story of the Pacheon Sword Saint’s overwhelming bid and the Sword Art Diagram of the Sword Tomb that was added on top.
“Hoho, to think the Pacheon Sword Saint took my humble work. It is truly an honor.”
Yak-seon stroked his beard, feigning humility.
However, Baek Mu-Yeong’s main point was just beginning.
“And the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill that Venerable Yak-seon specially bestowed for Cheong-Yi’s Training! I committed the discourtesy of putting such a precious item up for auction at the Platinum Pavilion without Venerable Yak-seon’s permission. However, the impact was truly immense; the reputation of the Baek Clan Merchant Guild is rising day by day, and everyone is praising Venerable Yak-seon.”
“…An Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill, you say.”
When Yak-seon heard this for the first time, his thick eyebrows twitched slightly.
He fell silent for a moment, then cast a sidelong glance at Baek-Cheong, who was bowing her head like a sinner.
However, he didn’t bother revealing the truth to scold Baek-Cheong.
Instead, he chuckled and naturally played along with Baek Mu-Yeong’s tune.
“It was merely a pastime born from a lighthearted idea. Guild Master Baek is overstating things just because a Spirit Gathering Pill formed a pattern.”
Baek Mu-Jin was deeply moved by Yak-seon’s transcendent demeanor, dismissing his own achievements as trivial matters.
“I do not know how to thank you for your endless Pill Refining spirit and deep generosity, Venerable One. Come, let us raise a toast to Venerable Yak-seon’s health and the Baek Clan’s prosperity!”
As the atmosphere of the welcome banquet ripened, the conversation between the adults grew longer.
Just as Baek-Cheong was about to take the opportunity to connect to the Nameless Forum, she looked around to check her surroundings and locked eyes with Yak-seon.
His usual benevolent gaze was nowhere to be found; instead, he seemed to be watching her with meaningful eyes.
‘If I go to the Pill Refining Room tomorrow, I won’t even have my bones left.’
Under that gaze, a cold sweat ran down Baek-Cheong’s spine.
And she intuitively realized that the impending, terrible Pill Refining Hell would by no means be smooth sailing.
Sighing inwardly in resignation, she averted her eyes and began frantically shitposting on the Nameless Forum, preparing for the time when she wouldn’t be able to enjoy her forum activity.
‘She’s deep in thought about something again.’
Meanwhile, Baek Mu-Yeong chewed over what the Pacheon Sword Saint had said.
A comprehension so incredible that she could instantly grasp a Sword Art Diagram and attain Sword Intent.
Fear crept in as he wondered if the narrow fence of the Yeonha Baek Clan could handle such a massive Talent.
‘Even if we can hide her under the Clan’s protection for now, it’s inevitable that Cheong-Yi’s Talent as a prodigy will become known to the world as time passes. When that time comes, countless packs of wolves will swarm in.’
Though he considered it premature, he reached the conclusion that they needed to solidify the Clan’s foundation even further for the future.
And the most certain way to strengthen the Baek Clan’s pillar was for his elder brother, the Clan Head, to break through the wall as a Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator and ascend to the Golden Core stage.
“Elder brother, since you have reached Great Perfection, how about entering Secluded Cultivation right away to prepare for ascending to the Golden Core?”
Baek Mu-Yeong firmed his resolve and raised his glass toward Baek Mu-Jin.
At his younger brother’s sudden suggestion, Baek Mu-Jin paused and set down his glass.
“The Clan’s affairs are piled up like a mountain; how can I devote myself solely to my own cultivation? It is not yet time.”
However, Baek Mu-Yeong did not back down.
“If it’s the Clan’s affairs, I will handle them concurrently while leading the Merchant Guild. Cheong-Yi’s Talent is already expanding day by day. If the Baek Clan is to be a sturdy windbreak for her when she spreads her wings in the future, you, as the Clan Head, must establish the authority of a Golden Core. Only then can the Yeonha Baek Clan lay the cornerstone for our Millennial Plan.”
At his younger brother’s earnest persuasion that put his daughter at the forefront, Baek Mu-Jin paused once again.
He then looked at his daughter, who was staring blankly into space, and fingered his glass.
After a long silence where his responsibility as the head of the Family and his ambition as a cultivator intersected, he opened his heavy mouth.
“Once the current discussions with the Biun Sect are concluded… I will entrust all affairs to you and enter Secluded Cultivation.”
At the momentous news announcing Baek Mu-Jin’s challenge for the Golden Core, cheers erupted from the surroundings.
Baek Mu-Yeong also raised his glass high, pleased with the progress in what had been a stagnant situation.
The heat of the welcome banquet reached its Peak, and the room was bustling with laughter late into the night.
* * *
The next morning came.
Baek-Cheong headed to the Pill Room with heavy steps, like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
As she opened the door and entered, Yak-seon greeted Baek-Cheong in front of the Pill Furnace with his hands clasped behind his back.
“So, did you have fun selling This Old Man’s name again this time?”
At Yak-seon’s reprimand, Baek-Cheong shrank back, unable to even make an excuse.
“I pondered all night how to punish your insolent behavior. So you had better brace yourself starting today.”
Thinking that what was bound to come had finally arrived, Baek-Cheong squeezed her eyes shut and was about to resign herself.
Yak-seon suddenly thrust a jade bottle in front of Baek-Cheong’s eyes.
“Open it.”
With a puzzled expression, Baek-Cheong took the jade bottle and opened the lid.
Inside the jade bottle was a single Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill, identical in form to the one she had made.
On its surface, a Silver Cloud Pattern was faintly writhing.
Since she hadn’t made any additional Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills, this meant it was entirely Yak-seon’s handiwork.
“Is this… something you made, grandfather Yak-seon?”
When Baek-Cheong asked in surprise, Yak-seon relaxed his stiff face, smiled, and spoke.
“I carefully observed the bizarre antics you were pulling in front of the Pill Furnace the other day, that preposterous Pill Refining Method where you hardened the exterior using the Principle of Water Overcoming Fire, and trapped the life force using the Principle of Fire Overcoming Wood to forcibly forge a pattern.”
Only then did Baek-Cheong realize that Yak-seon had grasped her Pill Refining Method just by watching and had replicated it perfectly.
“The fact that a pattern can be artificially inscribed regardless of the time and season bestowed by the Heavenly Dao is akin to a revolution in the Alchemy World. However…”
Deep wrinkles formed between Yak-seon’s eyebrows.
“The difficulty of that method increases several times over as the pill’s grade gets higher. I attempted to apply your method to inscribe a pattern on a Qi Condensation Pill, a 2nd-Grade Low-Tier Pill, but I failed over a dozen times in a row. I simply couldn’t suppress the Qi Collision.”
Listening to Yak-seon’s lament, Baek-Cheong inwardly clicked her tongue.
From the Five Elements Pill to the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill.
Yak-seon’s insight and skill to instantly see through and replicate the bizarre Pill Refining Methods she demonstrated were nothing short of astonishing.
She realized that despite being at the Golden Core stage, he had reached the quasi-5th grade and had possessed a reputation befitting the name Yak-seon.
At the same time, a groundbreaking and excellent idea to escape the Pill Refining Hell popped into Baek-Cheong’s mind.
‘Since he has such a strong inquisitive mind, if I tell him the Pill Refining Method I spouted off randomly, he won’t look for me for a while, right?’
Based on the nonsense she had thrown out as a shitpost on the Nameless Forum, she recalled the commentary on the Five Elements Pill Refining Method that Dao Friend (553.24) had organized logically.
Although Baek-Cheong didn’t understand the pedantic content in the slightest, Yak-seon would be able to grasp the logic of the text and digest it perfectly.
“Grandfather Yak-seon, actually, I came up with another new Pill Refining Method a little while ago.”
Baek-Cheong’s eyes sparkled as she subtly broached the subject for the sake of her Forum Activity Grand Plan.
It was out of the blue, but since she was a child with extraordinary comprehension, Yak-seon listened attentively.
“It’s not just hardening the exterior with water overcoming fire… It’s a method of applying a Formation inside the Pill Furnace for the Deployment of the Realm of Chaos, and within it, rotating the life force of the medicinal herbs in a Taiji Orbit to draw out the Resonance of Heavenly Dao. If done well, I thought it might be possible to artificially inscribe patterns even on a High-Grade Pill. I gave up because it was too difficult when I tried to do it myself, but I thought maybe you could do it, grandfather Yak-seon.”
Searching her memory, Baek-Cheong recited the contents of the guide post written by Dao Friend (553.24) on the Nameless Forum without missing a single word.
And as she continued speaking, Yak-seon’s eyes grew so large they seemed ready to pop out, and his beard began to tremble.
A new horizon of Pill Refining that had been blocked for a long time was suddenly broken through, bringing the shock of enlightenment.
“Applying a Formation for the Deployment of the Realm of Chaos… rotating the life force in a Taiji Orbit…”
Yak-seon muttered the phrases Baek-Cheong had recited like a madman and dashed to the front of the Pill Furnace.
The anger that had made him consider Baek-Cheong insolent and want to punish her just moments ago had long been wiped clean from his mind.
“It’s absurd, but it makes sense… With this, even a High-Grade Pill could artificially have a pattern…”
Looking as if he would devour the Pill Furnace right then and there, Yak-seon threw in the medicinal herbs and frantically raised the flames.
In his eyes, only a fanatical obsession with the new Pill Refining Method burned.
“Mission accomplished.”
Smiling inwardly, Baek-Cheong quietly backed away from behind.
She had successfully escaped the crisis of almost falling into the Pill Refining Hell.
With this, it seemed there would be no shortage of time to enjoy her forum activity for a while.