Chapter – 66
Kang Yoo thrust his bare fist into the air.
Just as it was about to hit the striking point, a bolt of lightning flickered.
Crack.
Kang Yoo let out a sigh.
“Ugh.”
Once again, he had failed the Heaven-and-Earth Tiger technique.
– Outwardly calm, inwardly powerful. To appear strong yet remain soft and flexible. Only when you strike a perfect balance, without leaning to either side, can you achieve the profound principle of all things: stillness within movement, movement within stillness (静中動)…
“-Hey, can you not lecture me when I’m gasping for air?”
The real Heaven-and-Earth Tiger required maintaining the principle of stillness within movement to its absolute extreme.
Even a moment of distraction, like just now, would make the bolt of lightning leap from his fist.
The difficulty could be likened to skipping a stone exactly 758 times, only to have the final skip land at precisely one thirty-thousandth of a distance.
Of course, the fake Heaven-and-Earth Tiger had a single devastating strike, but it couldn’t compare to the real one.
The real technique could pierce anything it touched.
Even the strongest person he had met, Grandfather Jin-Hwa, had his right arm pierced by it.
Despite its overwhelming power, the real Heaven-and-Earth Tiger had several drawbacks.
First, it was difficult to maintain the mental state of stillness within movement throughout the fight.
Second, even if successfully executed, it was extremely slow.
If it connected, that would be fine, but if it missed, his strength would drain completely from his lower abdomen.
Missing Grandfather Jin-Hwa’s elbow the first time and failing the second Heaven-and-Earth Tiger were largely due to these two issues.
From now on, Kang Yoo would need a way to strike swiftly if he succeeded and more abdominal strength to prevent his legs from giving out if he missed.
For now, it was impossible to use the Heaven-and-Earth Tiger recklessly.
Using rice as if it were barley might only sap a little energy, but missing the Heaven-and-Earth Tiger would leave him drained for several hours.
“This isn’t something I can master through practice alone…”
Kang Yoo muttered to himself as he focused on the technique while walking.
“Hey! What are you doing dawdling on the street!”
A voice shouted sharply from behind.
Judging by the lack of any force behind the words, it was an expert-level fighter.
“Huh.”
Kang Yoo remained calm.
Even if it was luck, he had already defeated several masters.
The street was wide enough for everyone, so there was no reason for a confrontation.
Good masters usually apologized first if their bodies accidentally bumped into someone.
These were clearly like the nasty masters who had robbed him in Soho.
Kang Yoo turned around confidently.
“Hey, I might be a little slow, but what’s your—”
“What?”
Three masters stood before him, arms crossed, one, two, three.
“…Uh.”
Even so, Kang Yoo had no confidence against three.
“Sorry, sorry!”
A young woman tightened her crossed arms.
“Well, well! Just looking at you, you’re so rude and—”
A sudden gust of wind blew fiercely.
“Ah!”
Kang Yoo vanished into the air, leaving the three staring upward in shock.
With a backpack on his shoulders, Kang Yoo landed in a sparsely populated part of the city.
All around were large halls and wealthy villas.
“Hey, Dong-sang!”
Tae Cheong-hwan, who had arrived earlier, waved his hand high.
He, too, had come from meeting his master, Hyeon-je.
Kang Yoo hurried up to him.
“Oh, you got here first.”
“The old man’s lecture ended sooner than I expected.”
“Hehe, nothing could be better than that.”
They smiled and continued walking, heading toward the place Kang Yoo had been asked to deliver something.
“So, the person who sent you, the O family elder…?”
“Yes?”
“The one who told you about the glass from the Dang family before?”
“That’s right, that’s O Elder.”
“Does he know a lot of unusual things?”
“Various things. Sometimes, I even wonder if he’s lying, but it seems real.”
“I see…”
“Why do you ask?”
As Tae Cheong-hwan walked, he continued.
“I once went to the western region and met someone similar. Their stories were incredible yet somehow believable.”
Tae Cheong-hwan placed a hand on Kang Yoo’s shoulder, recalling the past.
“Well, it’s not important. Let’s just get to where we’re going.”
“Yes!”
They soon arrived in front of a large hall.
[陝西種子園]
Tae Cheong-hwan tilted his head at the sign.
“Shaanxi… Seed Garden?”
He asked as Kang Yoo entered.
“A seed garden is where they manage crops, right? Seeds and the like.”
“That’s probably right. I don’t know much either. I just came because O Elder told me to.”
“What did he ask you to do?”
“Olives.”
“Olives?”
Kang Yoo gave a thumbs-up.
“I heard they’re only about the size of a thumbnail. They’re imported from the Western Regions. He told me to come about a month and a half after the last time I delivered them.”
Kang Yoo snorted.
“Surely it’s something trivial again.”
“Hmm?”
Tae Cheong-hwan continued.
“O Elder said this delivery is the only one that must be done. Everyone in the village agreed.”
“Oh… that explains it.”
At that moment, a Seed Garden worker carrying a delivery note placed a small box on the counter.
The sun was preparing to set in the afternoon.
Under the fading light, the medicinal fruit fields were filled with golden spiritual fruits.
A worn hoe floated in the air, moving up and down several times before pausing.
Its owner carefully asked the elderly farmer working beside him,
“Why has O Commander been acting like this for days?”
Dan-heon’s gaze followed the other’s.
There, a frail old man sat on a bench, watching the sunset.
His shadow stretched across the ground, lonely and forlorn.
Dan-heon returned to hoeing as if nothing had happened.
“It’s homesickness.”
“Homesickness?”
“Exactly. He misses his hometown.”
Dan-heon’s floating hoe moved effortlessly.
“Leave him be. He does this once every season. It’s exhausting every time.”
Another hoe-wielder, Bi-gwang, tilted his head.
‘Homesickness…?’
He followed Dan-heon, resuming work.
Yet one question lingered.
“Someone of O Commander’s level could return to his hometown in an instant. Why can’t he now?”
Dan-heon’s hoe struck the ground.
“Because it’s a place he simply cannot go.”
Bi-gwang’s eyes returned to the bench beneath the sacred tree.
In the late sunset, a former supreme fighter buried his head in his knees.
“Hmm? Golden… what?”
Tae Cheong-hwan rubbed his ear in confusion.
The O Elder from Jangbaekdong, familiar even with Western glass, had seemed to send a critical mission.
But it turned out not to be so.
Tae Cheong-hwan repeated Kang Yoo’s words.
“So, the O Elder wants to go to his hometown just for the sake of food? And the villagers all agreed to this delivery?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Kang Yoo continued.
“He wants to try a dish one last time before he dies. It’s the wish of his life. He forgets everything else, but he can’t forget that taste.”
“What exactly is it?”
Instead of answering, Kang Yoo opened the wooden box he had received a month and a half ago.
Inside, a pile of thumb-sized green fruits glimmered.
“Sir, what do they call these olives in the Western Regions?”
The Seed Garden worker tilted his head.
“Olive…? Or something like that. The color people must really twist their tongues to say it.”
“Ah, right. Olives.”
Kang Yoo held a single olive in his hand.
The green fruit shimmered beautifully.
“They want the oil from these fruits for fried chicken. Golden Yurin-gi.”
“Huh?”
Kang Yoo recalled the desperate face of O Elder as he had clung to his pant leg before he left.
“Golden olive fried chicken.”
“…”
Thus ended the journey that began in Dang and led to Shaanxi.
Hyehwa returned safely, following Mo Yong-hwi’s instructions, and all the conspirators from Mo Yong-se’s faction were captured, unconscious, and taken away.
“Is Dong-wan returning home?”
“I’ll visit soon.”
Dong-wan returned to his hometown, Hapcheon, after repeated ceremonies.
Only Je-gal So-hyun and other members of the Golden Sect remained.
“So, where will you go next, Agent Kang?”
“I’m heading to Songshan.”
“Songshan?”
“To the Shaolin Temple in Songshan.”
“That must be the Master’s order.”
“Exactly.”
“Which—”
Je-gal So-hyun stopped herself.
Kang Yoo’s status now required the respect given to someone like Master Wi-Yeon.
People already called him not just a new dragon soaring the skies, but a divine dragon.
As a mere group leader, she had no need to know more.
“Take care of yourself.”
Je-gal So-hyun bowed.
“I won’t forget the kindness from Sichuan. My family will remember it too.”
Kang Yoo waved his hand in surprise.
“Nonsense. I learned more than I gave.”
Je-gal So-hyun watched him quietly.
At the moment she thought it was truly goodbye, Kang Yoo had saved her life and provided the Great Elixir that boosted her inner strength.
She owed him too much.
It was a lesson that appearances could be deceiving.
“Thank you for teaching me so much. I hope we meet again.”
At Kang Yoo’s humble words, Je-gal So-hyun closed her eyes.
“Where there is parting, there will also be reunion. I will wait eagerly.”
With that brief farewell, Je-gal So-hyun, Tae Cheong-hwan, and Hwa Mu-seong returned to the Guangzhou branch.
Kang Yoo, having seen them off, headed to the Yun-gang Bridge.
Amid the clustered huts, Yong So-baek, the owner of the Open Ark, came to greet him first.
He leaned on a staff instead of his broken Ta-gu staff.
Reading Kang Yoo’s expression, Yong So-baek jabbed the staff at him.
“Don’t look at me like that. You won’t die from something like this.”
“Hey, why say that…”
“The seven great treasures have been lost, right?”
Kang Yoo blinked several times.
“You knew?”
“Of course. You’ve had a habit of slightly underestimating me.”
Yong So-baek continued.
“What did you say?”
Kang Yoo recalled his conversation with Wi-Yeon in Beijing.
“The lost items can’t be helped for now. We’ll gather the remaining items in one place so nothing else gets lost.”
“So Wi-Yeon must have gone to Haenam while you’re going to Songshan?”
“Yes, that’s what he said.”
“Because there’s no one else?”
“Yes.”
Yong So-baek slammed his staff on the ground.
“You’re one rare kid…”
He looked at Kang Yoo with a mix of pride and disbelief.
After all, he had lost his Ta-gu staff and was in a weakened state.
At his age, even with medicinal elixirs, there would be little improvement.
He had been prepared to hand over the Open Ark not as a placeholder, but to Kang Yoo as its true owner.
“….”
He realized Kang Yoo’s talent couldn’t be confined.
The boy’s wings were meant to embrace the world.
Though he felt reluctant, letting him go was the right choice.
Still.
Still, he thought to speak one last time.
“Thank you for always looking out for me. I’ve always appreciated your offers, even though I refused each time.”
Kang Yoo lifted his head.
“If you or your family ever face trouble, I’ll help without fail. We may be competitors, but we’re also friends on the same boat.”
“….”
“You know we and your Golden Sect are technically competitors, even if we’re on the same boat.”
Though it echoed Yong So-baek’s past words, changing the order made it sound completely different.
“….”
Yong So-baek watched Kang Yoo quietly, then closed his eyes and smiled lightly.
“Alright. That’s enough.”
Kang Yoo adjusted his backpack and turned.
“I’ll come visit.”
The wind blew through the huts as To-yeon stirred.
New growth sprouted amid the gusts.
With arms wide open, Yong So-baek laughed heartily at Kang Yoo disappearing into the sky.
“Go! Divine Dragon!”
