Pae Jin-gwang decided to assess how much weight Seo-jun could lift and brought out several large boulders.
There was one about the size of a person, another slightly larger, and then a few more. The last boulder was about the size of a typical house.
"Start with this one," Pae Jin-gwang pointed at the boulder the size of a person, and Seo-jun scoffed.
"Come on, I'm at the Supreme Stage," Seo-jun said as he easily lifted the boulder. It wasn't particularly heavy for him.
However, Pae Jin-gwang shook his head.
"Don't use your internal energy!" he commanded.
"What?" Seo-jun grumbled as he reluctantly withdrew the internal energy that had been reinforcing his body.
"Grrr..."
He could still lift it, but now he could feel the weight more.
At the Supreme Stage, even the body itself is fundamentally different from that of an ordinary person. Lifting a boulder the size of a person was no real struggle, though it was a bit heavier without internal energy.
"Not too hard. What's next?" Seo-jun said confidently.
He lifted about three more boulders, but when it came to the one about twice the size of a person, no matter how much he strained, he couldn’t lift it.
"Agh...! I'm gonna die!" Seo-jun exclaimed.
"Haha, so weak," Pae Jin-gwang laughed as he casually lifted the house-sized boulder with one hand. And he didn't even start from the bottom; he dug his fingers into the side and lifted it from there.
"You're kidding me," Seo-jun muttered.
Boom!
When Pae Jin-gwang dropped the boulder, the ground shook. Frustrated, Seo-jun put his hand on the massive boulder.
"Come on, if I use my internal energy, this is nothing!" Seo-jun grumbled, applying a combination of lightness techniques and absorption tricks to make the boulder easier to lift.
With a surge of effort, the boulder rose into the air, attached to Seo-jun’s palm.
Pae Jin-gwang’s face scrunched up in displeasure.
"With that rotten attitude, what do you think you're doing, huh? Even the women are trying their hardest," Pae Jin-gwang scolded.
Seo-jun glanced over and saw Chun-bong and Namgung Su-a struggling to lift their own boulders.
Though Pae Jin-gwang seemed like a foolish old man, he was a man renowned with the title of "King." Both women insisted on training alongside Seo-jun, and Pae Jin-gwang had readily agreed.
The result? Chun-bong was barely managing to lift a boulder the size of her torso, and Namgung Su-a was hefting the one Seo-jun had given up on, raising it over her head with difficulty.
"Sister... How did you do that?" Seo-jun asked, dumbfounded.
Boom!
Namgung Su-a set the boulder down and, drenched in sweat, smiled sheepishly.
"I trained in external techniques a bit back in the family."
"Oh..."
Even without internal energy, she's stronger than me? Seo-jun thought, struggling to come to terms with the reality. While "strength" didn’t refer solely to muscle power, that wasn’t the important part.
‘Am I really weaker than her?’ Seo-jun’s expression turned serious.
"No way, seriously?"
He couldn’t accept it. This was a matter of pride.
Seo-jun suddenly lay down on the ground, planting his right elbow down.
"Sister, let's do this," he said.
"Hm?" Namgung Su-a looked confused but lay down opposite him and clasped his hand. It was an arm-wrestling challenge.
Pae Jin-gwang shut his eyes tightly.
"Do you have to be so pathetic?"
"Gramps, be quiet for a second. I’m serious here," Seo-jun said, fixing his gaze on Namgung Su-a with determination. Her cheeks flushed slightly at his intensity.
"Sister, give it your all. If you go easy on me, I’ll really cry."
"Okay, I won’t hold back," she laughed softly.
Chun-bong, watching from the side with great interest, took on the role of referee.
"Ready... go!"
Squeeze!
The veins bulged on Seo-jun’s arm as he poured all his strength into it. Namgung Su-a, true to her word, also went all out, since Seo-jun asked for it.
It didn’t take long for the result.
Tap.
Without any surprising twists, Seo-jun's hand was gently pushed down to the ground.
"......"
Seo-jun stared blankly at his hand.
"Pfft..." Laughter.
Seo-jun slowly turned his gaze toward Chun-bong.
"Pffft...! Why, why are you looking at me like that?"
"How... how could you...?"
"Heeheehee!" Chun-bong couldn't hold back anymore and laughed openly. Seo-jun’s pride shattered.
He slowly got up, staring at Pae Jin-gwang with dead eyes.
"...Fine. I’ll do it. I’ll get stronger."
"...Right," Pae Jin-gwang muttered, at a loss for words at Seo-jun’s ridiculous display.
But Seo-jun was dead serious.
"Everyone's gonna pay today!" he shouted, fully resolved.
A few hours later, Seo-jun lay sprawled on the ground, panting like he was about to die.
At one point, he considered developing a martial art specifically designed to stimulate his muscles, but external techniques aren't just about building muscle. True training embeds martial power into the muscles, so creating useless "show muscles" was pointless.
Besides, if he wanted to rely on internal energy to build muscle, he might as well just use the internal energy directly. It was much more efficient.
Pae Jin-gwang looked down at him with a disgusted expression.
"This crazy kid..."
Beneath Seo-jun's torn training clothes, his arms were darkened with bruises. His legs and waist were probably in similar condition. After tearing his muscles and bursting blood vessels from nonstop training, it was no wonder his body looked like that.
‘What the hell is wrong with this guy?’ Pae Jin-gwang wondered. How can someone keep training to the point where their body looks like that? The pain alone should stop him, but he’s still putting in strength?
Despite his curiosity, Seo-jun soon stood up as if nothing had happened.
"Man, I'm beat..." Seo-jun muttered.
"If you push yourself like that on the first day, what are you gonna do tomorrow?" Pae Jin-gwang asked.
"Ah, this? It’s nothing," Seo-jun said as he spat out some blood and brushed the dirt off his clothes.
After all, if he rested for a bit, he’d heal. Even getting his neck chopped off could be patched up with internal energy in a few days, so this was no big deal.
"Seo-jun, are you really okay?" Namgung Su-a asked as she supported him. Chun-bong, anxiously pacing behind them, tugged on his sleeve.
"Hey, big bro... Is this because I teased you earlier...? I was just laughing at the situation, not at you..."
Seo-jun, who was the one being fussed over, felt a little embarrassed.
‘Didn’t they hear that I was fine even after getting my neck chopped off?’
Compared to that, this was really nothing. But seeing them all so worried, he felt like he had to act hurt.
"Aaagh...!" Seo-jun groaned dramatically.
Chun-bong's expression shifted.
"You’re really not in pain, are you?"
"What!"
"You almost scared me. Let’s just get you to rest already. It’s painful just watching you."
But now that they seemed so suddenly relieved, Seo-jun felt oddly disappointed.
"...Hmph."
Seo-jun stretched and waved to Pae Jin-gwang.
"See you tomorrow, gramps."
"...Mm. You’ve got a good attitude!" Pae Jin-gwang laughed, giving a wave in return.
"Tomorrow, let’s increase the weight!"
"Is he serious...?" Seo-jun muttered, flipping him off.
After cleaning themselves up, the group gathered in a room together.
"Ta-da!" Seo-jun pulled out some coffee beans. Namgung Su-a’s eyes widened as she recognized them, revealing her blue eyes.
"Oh, coffee? Where’d you get this?"
"That guy, Amjungmilgeom, gave it to me."
Chun-bong’s head shot up.
"What, you bastard? Who?"
"Amjungmilgeom. You know him?"
"Of course I do! He’s a famous assassin, even killed a Supreme Stage master once!"
"Wow, he’s really that famous, huh?"
A famous assassin—what an interesting reputation.
While Seo-jun was mulling it over, Chun-bong was staring at the coffee beans in the jar.
"So what’s this stuff?"
"Heh, Chun-bong, don’t you know coffee? You’ve been missing out on half your life."
"Aren’t they just beans?"
Seo-jun clicked his tongue in disapproval at her response.
"Goldie, these aren’t just ordinary beans."
"Wha—"
"I’ll let you have some, but don’t go spreading it around."
"Mm...! My lips are sealed!"
As the little scene unfolded, Namgung Su-a tilted her head in curiosity.
But Seo-jun, already accustomed to these short exchanges, focused on the glass jar.
Surprisingly, there was something that looked like a barcode printed on it. Thin bars with numbers underneath them.
"28104511844658345."
What the heck? Is this really a barcode? At this point, Seo-jun started wondering what life must be like in the West.
‘Maybe I should go sightseeing someday.’
In any case, that was for another time. Feeling a little excited, Seo-jun opened the jar.
"Ooooh...!"
A fragrant coffee aroma wafted through the air. Chun-bong’s eyes sparkled.
"Mmm, smells good!"
"It’s amazing, isn’t it?"
As Seo-jun grinned, Chun-bong reached out and grabbed a coffee bean, popping it into her mouth.
"Oh no—"
"Huh?"
Chun-bong’s eyes widened as she immediately spat the bean back out.
"Ugh...! What is this...! I thought you said it was tasty...!"
"Goldie, who eats coffee beans raw?"
"Then you should’ve told me sooner...!"
Seo-jun had plenty to say, but he let it slide because it was Chun-bong.
He then brought out some thin paper and ceramic cups he had prepared earlier.
"Chun-bong, hold this for a sec."
"Like this?"
"Yeah."
Chun-bong held the paper cone with both hands as Seo-jun poured hot water, heated with internal energy, over it to remove the paper smell. Then he ground the coffee beans by hand and piled them onto the cone.
"Perfect."
He carefully poured the hot water in a circular motion, and rich, golden-brown coffee began dripping into the ceramic cups below.
"Ooooh..."
Chun-bong marveled at the sight.
"It smells really good. Do you think it tastes like scorched rice?"
"Maybe?"
After making enough for three cups, they all sat together, holding their cups.
"Alright, cheers!"
"Hehe, it’s been a while since I’ve had coffee."
"This better taste good."
Chun-bong still looked suspicious, but Seo-jun nodded seriously.
"You don’t trust me?"
"I really do."
"It’s good, I promise."
Seo-jun took the first sip, savoring the comforting aroma as it relaxed his mind and body.
"Mmm."
Who would’ve thought he'd be drinking coffee in the martial world?
Seo-jun took a long sip of coffee and shivered slightly from the experience.
Amjungmilgeom... his alias was Ye-hwa, wasn’t it?
Whatever it was, this coffee had quite a bit of acidity to it, which matched his mysterious persona. As the rich flavors filled his mouth, he almost couldn’t tell whether he was in the martial world or the modern day.
"Wow... this is the life."
"It really does have a nice aroma. This must be some high-quality coffee, huh? Did Amjungmilgeom really give it to you?"
"Yeah, said he liked me."
"Hmm, I see."
Namgung Su-a took a graceful sip, and Chun-bong seemed to have dropped her suspicion.
"Hehe."
Excited to try something new and tasty, Chun-bong took a big gulp.
"Pffft!"
And immediately spit it back out.
"It’s so bitter!"
Seo-jun, now drenched in coffee courtesy of Chun-bong’s spit-take, smiled warmly.
"Chun-bong, you’re still too young."
"But you said it was good...! You liar!"
"I thought you were all grown up, but I guess not."
Chun-bong flinched at the remark, then hesitantly took another tiny sip, just enough to wet her lips.
"I... I guess it’s starting to taste better?"
Her face scrunched up in displeasure, making Seo-jun chuckle.
"If you don’t like it, just give it to me. I’ll finish it."
"Hmph, it’s mine!"
In the end, Chun-bong slowly but surely finished her half a cup of coffee. Well, more like a quarter cup, considering how much she spat out earlier.
That night, Chun-bong ended up staying awake all night thanks to the caffeine.
In the following days, Seo-jun trained hard with Pae Jin-gwang, and he could feel his body improving rapidly.
Pae Jin-gwang’s training regimen was closer to extreme weight training than typical martial arts, but thanks to Seo-jun’s inexplicable regenerative abilities, his muscles tore and healed quickly, allowing him to see results fast.
Naturally, his muscle growth was abnormally fast as well.
It was all because of his determination to eventually beat Namgung Su-a in arm wrestling.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, Pae Jin-gwang’s training didn’t take up all of his time, so Seo-jun often found time to hang out with Chun-bong and Namgung Su-a in his spare moments.
At night, however, Seo-jun continued training alone.
Whether it was martial domains, sorcery, the Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art, the combined technique, demonization, the Sovereign Sword Form, the Hwangun Divine Sword, or even his stealth techniques whenever he felt like it, he trained without end.
The nature of training was that it never truly ended, so at least he was never bored.
‘Huh? Maybe I’m actually quite diligent,’ he thought.
Late at night, Seo-jun stretched out on the roof, taking a break. Suddenly, he sat up.
He couldn't be diligent all the time. Sometimes, you had to slack off for a balanced life.
But it was too late at night to do much. His only options were annoying sleeping Chun-bong, watching Chun-bong sleep, or secretly poking her chubby cheeks.
Looking around for someone still awake, Seo-jun spotted a light in the distance.
"What’s that?"
With a quick leap, Seo-jun moved towards the light.
Despite the darkness of the night, the buildings were brightly lit.
They were clustered together, and after a moment of observation, Seo-jun noticed a strange smell wafting from the area.
Most importantly, there was a significant amount of energy activity.
After watching for a bit, Seo-jun realized that the area was where elixirs were made.
"Oh."
This could be interesting.
Of course, given the importance of the place, security was tight. Seo-jun hadn’t been noticed yet because he was testing his stealth technique, but judging by the defensive formations around the area, staying hidden would require effort.
But who was he? He was Namgung Family’s young master.
Seo-jun strode forward confidently.
"Ah, young master?"
"Can I go in?"
"Umm..."
The gatekeeper exchanged a glance with someone who looked like a superior.
After a moment’s thought, the man shook his head.
"It’s difficult without the family head’s permission."
"Oh."
What a pity.
The next day, after training with Pae Jin-gwang, Seo-jun got permission from Namgung Jin-cheon and confidently entered the elixir compound.