Chapter 150 Sword Qi
“Ge… Gegek.”
A lizard sprawled out limply.
I lay down, stretched out after an intense training session with Baek Yeonyeong.
It was a rare privilege to have a master like Baek Yeonyeong assist in my training.
You might think it’s a blessing, but there’s more to it.
My master was undeniably a great expert, someone with few equals.
However, being an expert didn’t mean she was necessarily good at teaching.
I knew that better than anyone else.
In the past, when I was weaker, she trained me by toying with my body in a way that suited my limited abilities.
But what about now?
A lizard that had grown larger, much larger.
On top of that, I had dragon scales, so rough treatment wasn’t much of a problem anymore.
You could say I’d gone from being Baek Yeonyeong’s cherished doll to her punching bag.
Of course, she wasn’t tormenting me without reason.
She was probably trying to lead me to some sort of enlightenment.
“Your internal energy is certainly at the pinnacle, but there’s still something lacking.”
As expected, my internal energy had reached the peak level.
I had surpassed the initial stage of the pinnacle long ago, so I was now at the mid-stage.
After consuming all those elixirs, remaining at the expert level would’ve been its own problem.
“What do you think the pinnacle realm truly is?”
“Gegekk.”
“The opening of the middle dantian. That’s one way to think of it, and people often divide it that way.”
I had also been certain I reached the pinnacle when I opened my middle dantian.
Indeed, opening another dantian had made me incomparably stronger.
Panting, I listened intently to her words.
“The concept of realms can’t be divided as cleanly as with a knife. Especially the terms third-rate, second-rate, and first-rate—they weren’t originally meant to indicate stages. But these days, I’ve heard people say strange things like ‘a fully matured third-rate’ or ‘the entrance to second-rate.'”
Fully matured third-rate? What nonsense is that?
Then Baekwoon would call himself ‘the extreme of first-rate’ when introducing himself.
“In comparison, the pinnacle realm does have clear divisions. The opening of the middle dantian is one, and another is the use of sword qi.”
…Sword qi!
Now I understood what Baek Yeonyeong was trying to teach me.
“You don’t necessarily need a sword to use your internal energy.”
Baek Yeonyeong picked up a nearby twig.
Sssssk…
Black energy rippled across the surface of the twig.
“If you wrap it around a blade, it’s sword qi. If you wrap it around your fist, it becomes fist qi.”
With Baek Yeonyeong’s level of internal energy, she could probably produce a sword qi as large as an entire tree.
Nevertheless, she controlled it so precisely, clearly demonstrating it for me to learn.
“Just because you’ve opened the middle dantian doesn’t mean your combat power suddenly surges—unless, of course, you’re someone who indiscriminately consumes elixirs and cores.”
“Gekgek…”
I glanced at her, trying to read her tone.
My increased strength after opening the middle dantian was largely due to the fact that I could finally handle the power of the elixirs and cores that had previously been out of my control.
In other words, an ordinary human, who might have difficulty even encountering a low-level core, wouldn’t experience the dramatic growth I had after opening their middle dantian.
Elixirs from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, like Azure Sky Immortal Dew, and those I received from the Snake Queen seemed to have worked wonders.
“Gekgek.”
“But sword qi is different. It allows you to cut things that normally can’t be cut, truly befitting the term ‘pinnacle.’”
My master’s wrist moved slightly.
Ka-kak!
The twig, following a perfect trajectory, sliced a deep groove into the wall.
“This is sword qi.”
She had cut into a solid wall using a mere twig.
It was astonishing, but who was Baek Yeonyeong?
Such a feat would have been possible even without sword qi.
However, without sword qi, the twig would have broken under her strength.
“If you cover your whole body with it, it becomes body protection qi.”
Black energy enveloped her entire body.
It took the form of armor.
…Wasn’t it more like body protection steel qi?
“Rather than covering your whole body, focusing the qi on a weapon is easier and more efficient. That’s why martial artists of a certain level insist on using weapons.”
“Gek…”
In other words, the fact that Baek Yeonyeong didn’t carry a weapon showed how far beyond them she truly was.
She was so overwhelming that there was no difference between wrapping qi around her entire body or focusing it on a single point.
“So, to use sword qi, gripping a weapon comes first.”
Maybe that’s why the Snake Queen wielded a sword.
Rather than spreading qi across her massive body, focusing it on her sword must have been much more efficient.
Does that mean I need to use a sword too?
Should I bite down on a sword like I did when I fought Dilophosaurus?
“Hya, what are you worrying about?”
“Gekgek?”
“You have ten swords already.”
I looked at my hand.
Five sharp claws on each hand.
If I could focus my internal energy and produce sword qi through these claws?
Dragon Claws, Snake Fist, Nine Yin White Bone Claws, Gecko Divine Claws.
Every technique would become immensely more powerful.
“Do you understand now?”
“Gekgek!”
Baek Yeonyeong was surprisingly good at explaining things.
It all made perfect sense.
“Good. Now, are you ready?”
Of course, Baek.
…Huh?
Ready for what?
“Get into position, Hya.”
***
“Gegek… Gekgek…”
A lizard with sorrowful eyes.
I had been thoroughly beaten by Baek Yeonyeong, even subjected to the humiliation of having sword qi wrapped around my body as I became her new sword, the mighty “Gomodo.”
Fortunately, Baek Yeonyeong seemed to hold an important position within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, so she couldn’t stay and train with me endlessly.
Thus, the first session of my sword qi training came to an end.
Baek Yeonyeong had left, but I remained in the room.
“Geeeeng…”
The pitiful disciple was left gnawing on a tasteless Bijokdan, feeling sorry for himself.
I was on the verge of tearing up in the corner when…
Drrrk.
The thick door opened, and a familiar voice echoed through the room.
“Wow, this place is really deep inside, huh?”
My faithful follower.
The pride of the Tang family.
The ever-kind Tang So-yeong.
“Gegegek!”
Overjoyed, I rushed toward her.
“Kyaa! What’s with your size? Why did you get so big?”
Huh?
Oh, right. Tang So-yeong didn’t know how large I’d gotten after evolving into Komodo-Lania.
“Kiioooong!”
“Kieeeek!”
The spiders clinging to her shoulders couldn’t hide their excitement.
Why are they getting excited?
“Pl-please calm down! You can catch up soon enough…. If not, maybe just certain parts…”
Thud!
I lightly tapped Tang So-yeong’s head with my tail.
“Ouch! I was just joking. Ahem, this is perfect timing. Can you help me move this?”
I looked over to see that she was dragging a large box.
“Since you’ve been stuck chewing on that Bijokdan for days, they told me to bring you something tasty.”
So my master had sent this.
“Gekek!”
“If I had known you’d gotten this big, I would have brought more.”
Our lovely So-yeong.
I gently patted her head with my tail.
“Hehe… Ah! Don’t get mad!”
Tus and Pus, switching back and forth, hit her on both sides.
I left the four of them to settle their argument and opened the box that So-yeong had brought.
Inside was a large, freshly cooked dish.
If I had to describe it, it was something close to boiled chicken.
Drool started to drip from my mouth.
Although I thought Bijokdan had its own savory flavor, my taste buds leaned more toward meat.
I wanted to swallow that chicken immediately.
But there was a problem.
“Gekek…”
After training with my master, my body didn’t move as I wanted.
To be more specific, my front legs and mouth weren’t responding properly.
I had used my claws and teeth recklessly to unleash sword qi.
“…Hm? Go Dae-hyeop, are you hurt?”
“Kiioooong!”
“Kieeeek!”
The three Tang sisters, who had been bickering, all looked at me simultaneously.
Tus and Pus, seemingly angry, raised their front legs.
“Gekek…”
I let out a sad cry, explaining that Baek Yeonyeong had done this to me.
“Kieek.”
Tus and Pus quietly sat down as if they had never been upset.
…Faithless creatures.
“Kieee!”
Nephila Jurassica approached me and tapped my front leg with her long legs.
‘Come on, human, couldn’t you have done better?’
Nephila couldn’t have said that, but it felt like I heard something along those lines.
“…So that’s why they sent me. I guess I have no choice but to feed you!”
Tang So-yeong.
The more I looked at her, the more I liked her.
And it wasn’t just because she brought meat—I’ve always thought she was reliable.
Tang So-yeong and the spiders came closer and tore the chicken apart, placing it in my mouth.
Gulp.
Ahh.
Now this is food.
I couldn’t be sure, but I felt like even that “Gourmet” guy inside me was satisfied.
Eating boiled chicken after a hard training session—there’s nothing better.
As I was hungrily devouring the meat…
“Gek?”
I noticed something strange about Pus.
“Gekgek.”
She looked a bit thinner.
Her backside had definitely been plumper before.
I wagged my tail and asked So-yeong what was going on.
“Ah, well… We needed some spider silk.”
“Kiioong!”
Pus nodded in agreement.
Spider silk?
Now that I think about it, Nephila’s rear end seemed a bit smaller, too.
“Kieeng.”
Judging by their reactions, it didn’t seem like they were forced—they must have given it willingly… But why did they need spider silk?
“They said they needed to make some clothes.”
Clothes, huh.
It’s true that their spider silk is of excellent quality.
These weren’t ordinary spiders—they had evolved into upper species, capable of producing webs as strong as steel and as smooth as silk.
But why the sudden need to make clothes?
“Don’t pretend you don’t know. You know, that outfit with the perfect mix of black and white.”
Tang-whatever-your-name-is.
What nonsense are you spouting now?
“The Mae-do?”
Something seemed to be going terribly wrong.
“They said it’s because of the beautiful black and white divided fabric that covers the head. That’s why they gave it the name.”
Had I ever mentioned those clothes to anyone?
The Snake Queen had once seen them in my mind.
And then…
“You could’ve consulted me first. Ahem, I even put some effort into it.”
There was another who had seen everything about me.
“That red dragon and that long-clawed dragon were furiously—Go Dae-hyeop? What’s with that sharp look?”
I wrapped my tail around Tang So-yeong and lifted her into the air.
“Kyaaa! I get it! I’ll keep my mouth shut!”
It’s already too late!
What have you been blabbering about?
And why did you make those ridiculous clothes?
At this rate, won’t some bizarre culture spread throughout Zhongyuan?
“Well, my only understanding is that your master wanted clothes tailored to her size….”
Srrrrk.
I unwrapped my tail.
A bright smile.
You should’ve said so earlier.
“Gekgek.”
“What’s with that mischievous grin?”
If it’s for humans to wear, I’m all for it.
“Hmph! Anyway, don’t worry. Whatever it is, I, Tang So-yeong, told them everything I remembered!”
I am a bit worried, but if it’s something my master wants to wear, I can accept it with an open mind.
Even if that outfit spreads throughout Zhongyuan, it’s fine.
As long as it’s worn by humans.
“Of course, I still don’t understand why they need to make clothes for that plump snake!”
…It’s for humans, right?