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Chapter 201. Eight Years of Hardship and Suffering (22)

“Yes! Of course.”

Gyeong Mu-Gi’s eyes were filled with sadness, and at the same time, his gaze had developed a depth that hadn’t been there before. In that short time, he had grown mentally.

‘Little brat. The apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree. He has a strong heart, like his father.”

Woo-Moon took Gyeong Mu-Gi to the owner of the estate where he lived, explaining that he was the boy’s master and would be taking care of him for the time being. He let the boy say his goodbyes, then led him out of the estate.

“How long will it take to get there?”

Woo-Moon answered Gyeong Mu-Gi’s question casually.

“A minute, probably.”

“Huh?”

Woo-Moon lifted the boy up before blasting into the air like a slingshot, leaving behind a cloud-like streak.

Just like he had promised, the two arrived at the Baek Family estate in a minute.

The incredible experience of flying in the sky allowed Gyeong Mu-Gi to get over his sadness somewhat.

“So this is the famed Iron Sword Baek Family. It really is big!”

“Yes. This is where you’ll be living from now on.”

While heading for the Song Family residence, Woo-Moon explained Yu Yu’s story to Gyeong Mu-Gi.

“I have a junior sister?”

“Yes. Her name is Yu Yu, and...”

Woo-Moon slowly told Gyeong Mu-Gi what the little girl had been through.

Her story was so sad that it, combined with the fresh loss of his father, overwhelmed Gyeong Mu-Gi to the point of tears as he listened to his master.

He quickly wiped away his tears and put on a brave facade, afraid that Woo-Moon would scold him for being a baby. However, Woo-Moon just snorted and didn’t say anything.

After all, he himself shed tears just as easily as Gyeong Mu-Gi did.

Entering the residence, Woo-Moon introduced Gyeong Mu-Gi to the others.

Gyeong Mu-Gi’s eyes lit up when he saw the warriors of the North Sea Ice Palace, a force that he had only ever heard legends about, and when Woo-Moon said that Ma-Ra was also present, he looked around diligently, trying—eagerly but unsuccessfully—to find her.

When he saw Eun-Ah, he was surprised and impressed by her size, but he wasn’t afraid of her at all.

Since he had been by his father’s side since he was young, he had gone through all sorts of experiences and hardships. His worldview was broad, and his courage vast.

Finally, Woo-Moon introduced the boy to Yu Yu.

“Hello, Junior Sister! It’s nice to meet you.”

Gyeong Mu-Gi, who had only just recently gone through the trauma of discovering his father’s death, still greeted Yu Yu with the brightest smile that he could muster.

“Hello.”

However, Yu Yu just simply greeted Gyeong Mu-Gi with a cold expression before turning away.

‘Hmm. Why is she acting like that?’

Having only ever seen Yu Yu being kind and considerate of others, Woo-Moon was quite surprised by her response. Still, it felt ridiculous to scold Yu Yu into getting along with her senior brother, so Woo-Moon just left them to figure things out among themselves.

‘Now, there’s one more thing I have to do.’

Woo-Moon left the Baek Family estate once again and flew off into the distance.

***

Crack!

A bottle of liquor hit the wall and shattered, spilling the remaining alcohol everywhere.

Bi Yeo-Jeong silently walked over, picked up the broken pieces, and wiped the wall clean.

“Bring me another,” said a man with disheveled hair and a bushy beard.

Bi Yeo-Jeong just responded quietly but with sincerity.

“If you continue to drink so much while restricting your qi, your body will deteriorate. Your body is no longer the same as it was, senior brother.”

There was regret in her eyes.

After betraying her lover, Woo-Gang, for the sake of her family, Bi Yeo-Jeong was constantly tormented by guilt. Later, she was truly happy for Woo-Gang when he reunited with his grandfather, the Palm Martial Emperor, gained the strong backing of the Baek Family, and achieved a tremendous step ahead in cultivation.

Back then, she had sincerely hoped for Woo-Gang’s happiness.

Wherever she was, at any and all times, she only wished for Woo-Gang to be happy.

Her days by Yu Cho’s side were unhappy, and every moment was spent dreaming of returning to Woo-Gang. However, she couldn’t do something like that. She hated herself, thinking that it would be both selfish and self-serving for her to return to Woo-Gang after betraying him. She didn’t have the face to return to his side now that he was on top of the world.

However, when the Palm Martial Emperor and Woo-Moon both went missing and then were eventually confirmed dead...

When his parents, Dae-Woong and Jin-Jin, both went missing...

Woo-Gang had suddenly become an orphan... and he had finally reached his breaking point.

He wasn’t like this at first.

Shouting that his brother and the Palm Martial Emperor couldn’t have died like this, he refused to listen to the sect and ran all the way to the Heavenly Demon Mound. Entering the ruined cavern, he made a fuss about collecting their remains and getting revenge, fighting scavengers and cultists repeatedly and barely managing to come back alive.

This happened four times over.

He was only able to return alive due to the Heavenly Demon Cult’s mercy, as the cultists guarding the Heavenly Demon Mound had sympathized with him and let him go.

In any case, he eventually reached his limits and eventually accepted their deaths. Once his parents disappeared, and he couldn’t find their whereabouts no matter how hard he searched, he crumbled in grief and began drinking.

However, his strong cultivation kept him from getting drunk easily, and eventually, he permanently suppressed his qi in order to be able to drink his sorrows away.

Bi Yeo-Jeong couldn’t bring herself to leave Woo-Gang’s side after hearing what happened to him and confirming his state.

As soon as he woke up, she would go to his side and take care of him until he fell asleep. It quickly became her daily routine.

Yu Cho was infuriated, cursing her and threatening her. However, she didn’t have the heart to leave her beloved again as he fell apart in his endless sorrow.

She just couldn’t do it again.

She later heard that Yu Cho had left to participate in the Marriage of the Snow Flowers at the North Sea Ice Palace. However, she didn’t care at all, just continuing to stay by Woo-Gang’s side.

However...

Woo-Gang picked up the chair next to him and threw it against the wall, smashing it before shouting again.

“Bring me more liquor! Liquor!”

Bi Yeo-Jeong shook her head.

She had brought him alcohol out of pity all this time, asking herself...how heavy must this burden be that he had to drown himself in alcohol to endure it? However, she now realized that she couldn’t do that anymore.

Drawing oneself in alcohol and indulging in pleasures to forget and soothe the scars in one’s heart wasn’t the same as healing them.

Even if it was scary.

Even if it hurt.

He had to face his wounds head-on, with a clear mind, and accept and endure them. That was the only way he could properly heal. Relying on alcohol or whatever was just running away from the problem. Fundamentally, it could never be a solution.

“I can’t, senior brother. It’s time for you to face this. You can’t do this any...”

“Face this? What am I supposed to face? Oh, oh, okay. You want me to face that, then? The time you swore to our future together and then ran off to Yu Cho and whored yourself out for his pleasure? Huh? Is that what you want me to face? That misery? That sadness? Is that it?”

Tears finally flowed from Bi Yeo-Jeong’s eyes.

“Don’t cry! What right do you have to cry? If you’re going to cry, go find your dear Yu Cho and cry to him, okay?”

At that moment, the door suddenly opened, and someone strode in, walking up to Woo-Gang.

Surprised, Bi Yeo-Jeong tried to stop the intruder. However, before she even took a step, a few of her acupoints were pressed and she was paralyzed.

“Hey, who the hell are you?!”

Bang!

As Woo-Gang shouted violently without even looking at the person who had come barging in, his head suddenly snapped back. To Bi Yeo-Jeong’s shock, the intruder had simply lifted one hand and smacked Woo-Gang in the face.

The intruder didn’t stop there, continuing to beat Woo-Gang.

They didn’t even seem to use any qi, only using their physical strength. Yet Woo-Gang, who was born with heaven-defying strength thanks to the incredible bloodline of his father, was utterly unable to resist the intruder. He was like a little child in front of an adult.

“Wh... who—AH!”

Bi Yeo-Jeong had just opened her mouth to question the intruder’s identity when she finally saw his face.

‘He... It’s him!!! It’s Song Woo-Moon!!!’

He had come to see his brother immediately after bringing Gyeong Mu-Gi home.

Woo-Gang was his most treasured younger brother, the only direct family he had left. At the same time, he was also the one Woo-Moon trusted and believed in more than anybody else, which was why he had come here last. Yet the scene in front of his eyes completely belied his trust, and he felt incredibly disappointed.

“Agh! Agk!”

Woo-Gang protected his head with both hands and crouched down as Woo-Moon’s fierce barrage hit him.

After beating him for a while, Woo-Moon grabbed Woo-Gang by his disheveled hair and lifted him.

Woo-Gang’s eyes were filled with shock as he checked the face of the intruder.

“H-hyung! You’re alive.”

Tears flowed from Woo-Gang’s eyes.

Woo-Moon’s heart was breaking at the sight of his younger brother’s pain. Woo-Gang’s eyes clearly showed the pain and scars he had endured.

But Woo-Moon had made up his mind.

He had to teach him a lesson, and that lesson had to be taught now.

Woo-Gang would never be able to fix this weak heart and rotted nature of his if he wasn’t taught a lesson at the appropriate time, and there was no time better than now.

Having a drink once in a while to relax is one thing; drinking yourself into a stupor for months on end is something else entirely, and a real man... no, a real human being cannot do something like that. Not to the point where your body and soul are ruined.

Smack!

After hitting Woo-Gang in the face once more, Woo-Moon flickered out of the room like a gust of wind, returning after a few seconds.

Then, he poured the cold water in the bucket he was holding all over Woo-Gang.

Up until this point, Woo-Moon hadn’t said anything.

As he gradually sobered up, Woo-Gang also realized why his brother was acting like this. Then, he felt a wave of shame. He could clearly see his older brother’s disappointment. After all... all Woo-Gang had shown him was that his incompetent younger brother was only worth this much.

However, on the other hand, he felt relieved and at ease.

Even though it hurt to be hit like this, the pain still lifted the burden off of him.

Deciding that the water in the bucket wasn’t enough, Woo-Moon took Woo-Gang outside and took him to a nearby valley. As he passed Bi Yeo-Jeong by, he also unlocked her acupoints, allowing her to chase after them.

Woo-Moon grabbed Woo-Gang by the hair and dunked his head into the water, repeating the process over and over again.

After doing this for a while, Woo-Gang’s eyes, nose, and mouth were filled with water, and he started gasping and gagging.

Woo-Moon finally opened his mouth, glaring at Woo-Gang.

“Are you coming to your senses now? Good, now back to business.”

Holding Inkblade’s scabbard in his hand, he kicked Woo-Gang face-down and started striking his back

Thwack!

The sound was so loud and intense that Bi Yeo-Jeong flinched from the side.

Woo-Gang’s back, visible through his wet white clothes, was now adorned with a thick red line.

However, Woo-Moon would never have started this punishment if he was going to stop at one.

Thwack. Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.

The sound of wood striking flesh continued to resonate. Yet Woo-Gang kept his lips shut tightly and said nothing, just shedding hot tears.

Woo-Moon shouted with anger and regret.

“Your parents disappeared. Then, your grandfather passed away. You probably thought I was dead, too, didn’t you?”

The skin on Woo-Gang’s back was red and swollen, in spite of his tough physique.

“I don’t even want to ask how you got to this point. I don’t even care. What matters is how pitiful you look right now.

In the end, the skin on Woo-Gang’s back was torn open, and his already wet white robes were dyed with blood.

“I never could have imagined this was how you’d end up. My death? Grandfather’s death? And our parents’ disappearance? What, did that make you sad? Were you frustrated because you wanted revenge but couldn’t do it? Then why the fuck did you start drinking, you loser? You should have whipped yourself harder and worked more diligently! If you wanted revenge, you should have become stronger!”

Woo-Moon’s scabbard was stained with blood.

After rinsing it in the river, Woo-Moon sheathed his sword and put it back at his waist. Then, he began punching Woo-Gang all over his body.

This time, it wasn’t just a simple beating. He imbued his fists with the qi of the Forbidden Divine Art, which penetrated deep into Woo-Gang’s body and drove out the alcohol while releasing his self-imposed qi seal.