"Internal arts..."
Dark night.
The sky was filled with countless stars, and vast plains stretched out before my eyes.
As the wind rippled through, my mind grew calm.
A fire crackled warmly beside me, and the donkey was crouched down, resting.
When she was around, she felt like a nuisance and made me self-conscious, but now that Dang Soran was gone, I couldn't help but feel her absence.
Leaving aside whether this rare time alone was enjoyable, it was definitely boring.
To fill the gap, I was in the middle of trying to meditate.
As I'd seen somewhere before, I sat cross-legged and attempted to circulate my qi.
Honestly, I had no real sense of it.
I couldn't concentrate much.
I'd tried meditating before to alleviate boredom, but far from calming my mind, I'd just get sleepy, crave food, or think up new SM tools to make—that was exactly it.
It seemed I had no talent for building up internal energy.
No helping it.
The curse of knowledge.
I knew too much about SM and all that, and with having to worry about earning my daily bread, where would I find the leisure for it?
Still, with nothing else to do right now, I forced myself to keep trying.
What was it Dang Soran said?
She told me to do as she taught.
While building up qi, think about the influence of power... or something...
And to diligently pursue it with a clear understanding of why I was cultivating.
"..."
...It was just to see a pretty masochist frozen in place.
Striking her acupoints just right, leaving her unable to move in an embarrassing pose...
Even thinking about it myself, it was so ridiculous that a hollow laugh escaped me.
The first skill I'd seriously try to learn since arriving in the Central Plains was tied to my perverted nature, after all.
But I was curious. Could you really paralyze someone just by pressing an acupoint with your fingertip?
Who knows.
Might as well give it a shot.
With my eyes closed, I tried to focus my mind on it.
I wanted to make someone unable to move.
More specifically... a pretty masochist.
****
Dang Soran was quite tense.
Her face was serene, but the hand hidden in her sleeve was already resting on her hidden weapons.
It wasn't anything else.
The atmosphere around the person she was meeting after so long was completely different from usual.
"...It's been a while."
Dang Soran spoke casually, but the other remained silent.
She had been sitting quietly on the mountain path Dang Soran was passing through, standing there as if she'd known they were coming all along.
After a long, awkward silence, Cheongwol's gaze turned to Dang Soran.
It landed on Dang Soran, scanned her surroundings, then returned to her.
"...Ha."
Only after sighing did her demeanor soften a bit.
"Everyone was worried, Senior Dang. How could you just disappear without a word?"
"It surprised me. I didn't expect you to worry about me this much. I heard you searched diligently for me."
"Yes. But you really didn't show up anywhere. It was as if you'd deliberately hidden yourself. It was only recently that sighting reports came in, so I came looking."
"Why would I go to the trouble of hiding?"
"...Right."
Cheongwol slowly approached Dang Soran.
Dang Soran just smiled casually.
She felt a chill too.
What emotions would Cheongwol show when she met Han Seojin later?
Would she just find it absurd?
Or laugh it off, saying she'd been pranked again?
...Or get angry? Cry, even?
It didn't seem likely for this boring nun to show such intense reactions.
Cheongwol then slowly circled around Dang Soran.
Forgetting all sense of propriety, she scanned her up and down like she was inspecting her.
"What is this, Wol-ah?"
"No. I was just checking if anything had happened to you in the meantime."
"If there's something you want to ask, just ask. No need to inspect me like this—I'd tell you."
"..."
Cheongwol had no response.
In truth, both she and Cheongwol probably knew it already.
That Han Seojin's presence could be felt without a word.
But neither brought him up first, likely because they didn't want to mention him in front of the other.
He had become someone they wanted to keep hidden to the point that even uttering his name felt reluctant.
On the other hand, the ruder Cheongwol acted, the more Dang Soran enjoyed it.
The relieving conclusion was already set.
Plus, no matter how much Cheongwol struggled like this... Han Seojin had spent a full month with her.
Even if Han Seojin minded Cheongwol, Dang Soran had an unshakeable confidence.
She could still feel the sensation of his hand on her buttocks, even if it hadn't led to more.
His image spanking her while scolding her was burned intensely into her memory.
There was that intense pleasure of stealing something precious from Cheongwol.
Of course, it wasn't over yet.
She had no intention of stopping here. Not just because it had been Cheongwol's... but because Han Seojin himself had become truly desirable now.
Taking two steps forward meant stepping one back sometimes.
"...Hoo."
Cheongwol sighed again.
It was like a sigh of relief from not finding Han Seojin's traces on her.
That was the end of it for Cheongwol.
"I'll be going now, Senior."
"That's it? You searched so hard just for this?"
"Now that I know you're safe, what more is needed?"
"...Hmm."
Dang Soran had nothing more to say to Cheongwol either, so she started walking away.
After a few steps, Cheongwol suddenly spoke up.
"There is something, Senior."
Dang Soran turned back, but Cheongwol didn't look at her.
Her black hair and white nun's robes fluttered in the wind.
"...We of the Emei Sect are taught to let go of many desires."
"What's this about all of a sudden?"
"Greed for wealth, for food, for fame, for power, for laziness and comfort."
Cheongwol lowered her head slightly and continued in a whisper.
"But here's something strange... Perhaps because we watch others' eyes and let go even of what we don't want to. Like how the rich can part with silver without a thought, but the poor cling to a single grain of rice with their lives. The more you let go, the harder it becomes to let go of what's left."
"..."
"You know I don't have much. So my greed for what is mine runs deep. Senior Dang. Do you understand?"
"...I do."
Cheongwol nodded.
"Yes. That's enough."
But Dang Soran had words she hadn't shared.
That having much doesn't make one's heart rich.
And conversely, only then do you see what's truly important.
...And who says he's yours?
****
Three days after parting with Dang Soran.
We were almost back at Mount Emei.
Coming back from Zhongjing, everywhere we walked felt new, but even the air seemed to be filling with Emei's aura.
As usual today, I touched the hairpin for Cheongwol tucked against my chest.
The gift still positioned closest to my heart.
I was deeply conflicted.
Was it really okay to give her this?
It carried far deeper meaning than my intentions.
"..."
...Nah, she won't misunderstand.
A nun wouldn't think that way to begin with.
We're not that close anyway.
If you nitpick like that, every flower has its own flower language—do people pick gifts thinking of that?
Then what, the wild strawberries Honghwa gave me have meaning too?
And above all, I couldn't not give it.
I didn't know what would happen if I didn't.
Even if I could excuse away the Dang Soran thing, being late was inexcusable.
I said I'd be back in a month, but now it was about 45 days.
I promised delivery in an hour, and if it took an hour and a half, anyone would be mad.
She'd nitpick again, no doubt.
My heart demon this, that...
"...Sigh."
Whatever. Let's not look too far ahead—just live day by day.
It felt like heading to the slaughterhouse, but not going back would be real trouble.
Before Cheongwol found out, I'd sneak into Mount Emei and act like I'd been back ages ago.
Anxiety made me push a bit too hard.
Walking a little faster, covering more ground.
Waking earlier, walking later.
Today too, I was pushing.
Rest time, but I kept going a bit more.
The sun blazed hot, sweat poured like rain, but I didn't stop.
"Groan..."
Just get over this mountain before evening.
No plan to rest here anyway.
Without Dang Soran, mountains at night are dangerous alone.
Bandits aside, even wild beasts are trouble.
The donkey smelling like prey made it worse.
"...?"
Then, the unnatural sound.
Those who climb mountains a lot know: even amid nature's noise, man-made sounds stand out more than you'd think.
...Beast? Or person?
Sudden tension gripped me, and I gripped the donkey's reins tighter.
...What if it's Cheongwol or—
'...Catch him!'
A man's voice rang out then.
"Shit!"
I bolted at the same time.