The Martial God with Psychic Powers

A faint smile formed on Yeon Woo Jin’s lips.

Seeing that, Cheongi Jin-in asked,
“Why are you smiling?”
“Ah, my apologies. It seems I unconsciously smiled because I feel like I’ve found what I’m meant to do.”
“And what is it that you must do, Gongja?”

“To protect this world. I feel as though that is the reason I was born into this world. Perhaps the heavens, fearing the world would fall into chaos, sent me down as an unforeseen variable.”
Hearing those words, Cheongi Jin-in became curious about Yeon Woo Jin’s true strength.
“How strong are you, Gongja?”

At that, Yeon Woo Jin smiled faintly and replied,
“Stronger than my grandfather.”
Grandfather…
“Y-You mean… stronger than the Martial God and Celestial Lord?”

“Yes.”
It was unbelievable.
But it didn’t sound like a lie either.
Cheongi Jin-in stared at Yeon Woo Jin for a moment before bursting into hearty laughter.

“Hahaha… Well now… If that’s true, Gongja, you are no different from an army of thousands. As I said earlier, our Jeomchang will do everything we can to assist you.”
“Thank you. I will also do my utmost to support Jeomchang.”
“I heard there will be a competition to select the next Martial God. Are the other candidates as strong as you?”

“They are not.”
“Then why bother? When we already have Gongja, someone stronger than the current Martial God?”
“At the time, I had no interest in the position of Martial God. I was young as well. So my grandfather did not force me and sought to select a new Martial God through proper means.”

Hearing Yeon Woo Jin’s explanation, Cheongi Jin-in roughly grasped the situation.
It was obvious. The next Martial God would undoubtedly be Yeon Woo Jin, standing right before him.
“Not just offering assistance in every way… I shall stand with you, Gongja.”

“Stand with me?”
“If you become the Martial God, Jeomchang will align itself with you.”
“You mean Jeomchang will officially become part of Mushincheon?”

“Indeed. That way, it will be much easier for us to lend our strength. I will handle persuading the sect disciples.”
“That’s quite the responsibility you’re placing on my shoulders.”
“Hahaha, but Gongja will accomplish it well. I believe that.”

Yeon Woo Jin smiled lightly.
“Then, to commemorate us becoming one family, I suppose I should leave a small gift behind.”
“A gift? You’ve already given us the Fourfold Blade Art, a tremendous gift.”
“That originally belonged to Jeomchang, so it’s not a gift. Is there a pill refining chamber here?”

“There is… But why do you ask?”
“I possess some talent in alchemy as well. I will craft elixirs for Jeomchang’s disciples.”
“Normally, I should refuse… But in these times, we must grow stronger. I will gratefully accept your gift.”

“Also, I’d like to examine the Sect Leader’s body.”
“My body?”
“Yes. You need to live long and lend me your strength.”

“Hahaha… Have your medical skills also reached the heights of heaven?”
“Not quite to that extent.”
“You are no ordinary man, Gongja. That is why your fate remains unseen. The divine have no need for fate’s rules.”

“You flatter me.”
“I speak only the truth. Should I lie down here?”
“Yes. It will be somewhat painful.”

“Hahaha, that’s fine.”
 
****

The next day.
Cheongi Jin-in looked over his transformed body with a faint, incredulous smile.
Unbelievable as it was, even his medical skill had reached heavenly heights.

Moreover, the innate qi within him—something that seemed impossible to replenish—had been completely restored.
It made no sense.
Innate qi isn’t something one can refill just because they wish to.

It is life force itself.
Yet, it had been replenished.
‘Gongja Yeon truly is a divine being…’

A god sent down when calamity strikes the world.
And that god had personally crafted elixirs for Jeomchang.
Those elixirs would not be ordinary by any means.

Cheongi Jin-in sat in a lotus position and began the Great Heavenly Circulation with his renewed body.
The qi spread throughout heaven and earth rapidly surged into his body.
That qi became inner energy, quickly circulating through his meridians.

His body gradually began to levitate.
At the same time, golden light radiated from Cheongi Jin-in’s body.
A sacred aura spread in all directions, reaching even the Daoists standing guard outside the Upper Pavilion.

They instinctively understood.
The Sect Leader was attaining enlightenment.
“The Sect Leader is ascending to a new realm! Lock down the entire area, let no one approach!”

“Yes, sir!”
In an instant, Jeomchang’s Daoists surrounded the Upper Pavilion and began securing the perimeter.
 

****
Who knows how much time had passed.
Crrrack—!

The Upper Pavilion began to tremble.
Simultaneously, doors and windows shattered from the overwhelming qi.
Craack—!

Crackle—!
A storm of raw qi engulfed the Upper Pavilion, raging uncontrollably.
“T-That…!”

Within the swirling maelstrom of energy, Cheongi Jin-in hovered in midair.
His body appeared remarkably younger.
“The °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Sect Leader has undergone reversal of aging—Return to Youth!”

“Primordial Celestial Lord has blessed the Sect Leader!”
The disciples all rejoiced at Cheongi Jin-in’s breakthrough.
Whoooosh—!

The immense energy permeating the area was instantly sucked into Cheongi Jin-in’s body.
Having absorbed all the qi, his body slowly descended to the ground.
Flash—!

Cheongi Jin-in opened his eyes.
For a brief moment, a fierce light shone in them before fading.
He slowly rose to his feet, inspecting his body, as the Daoists of Jeomchang rushed over with congratulations.

“Congratulations on your attainment, Sect Leader!”
“Congratulations!”
Cheongi Jin-in smiled at the disciples offering their praise.

“Thank you. There’s something I must say to you all…”
His gaze shifted to the ruined state of the Upper Pavilion as he spoke.
“But first, let’s move to another place.”

 
****
The leadership of Jeomchang gathered in the Ho Cheon Pavilion.

Cheongi Jin-in spoke to those focusing their attention on him.
“I know you all have many questions regarding the Heavenly Signs.”
“That’s correct. What exactly do those visions mean?”

“What do you think they mean?”
“Does it signify the Demonic Cult will soon reveal itself to the world?”
“That’s right.”

“T-Then isn’t this a catastrophe?”
“We must alert the world immediately and prepare countermeasures!”
At their words, Cheongi Jin-in shook his head.

“It’s useless. It will only cause further division.”
“What do you mean, division?”
“When I first announced reading the Heavenly Signs, didn’t all of you argue fiercely over it? Some of you wanted to use this as an opportunity to reclaim the leadership we lost to Mushincheon. Wouldn’t other factions be harboring similar thoughts? Especially the Martial Alliance or the Heretical Alliance—they’d be even more aggressive in that regard.”

It was true.
Particularly sects like the Wudang Sect or the Mount Hua Sect would pounce with blazing eyes.
All in the name of restoring their former glory.

“Then what should we do? Just stand by and watch as disaster unfolds?”
“No. That cannot happen. We must unite all of the Central Plains as one.”
“Is such a thing even possible?”

Cheongi Jin-in nodded firmly.
“The one capable of uniting the entirety of the Central Plains is already here within Jeomchang.”
“What?”

“When did they arrive?”
“Who is it?”
Confused expressions appeared across the faces of the leadership.

At that moment, one person seemed to recall something.
“Wait… Could it be the one who saved the Sect Leader? The Master of Sincheon Trading Group?”
“That’s right. The Heavenly Signs revealed him. He is the one destined to save the world.”

The gathering fell into shock.
It was written in the Heavenly Signs.
That he would be the one to save the world.

If Cheongi Jin-in said so, it was true.
“He is already a complete being. Incredibly strong.”
“How do you know this?”

“How do you think I achieved enlightenment?”
“Did he assist you?”
“He did. He replenished the innate qi that had withered within me and healed my diseased body. Thanks to him, I was able to achieve enlightenment.”

Cheongi Jin-in’s words made little sense.
“Innate qi… is that something that can be replenished?”
“So it seems. He is a divine being. A celestial sent down to protect us. Thus, we must serve him with the utmost sincerity. If we disappoint him and he departs… then truly, the world will descend into hell.”

A divine being?
Sent from the heavens?
Are they really expected to believe that?

Had the Sect Leader been bewitched by him?
But no—the Sect Leader’s eyes shone with nothing but pure, radiant clarity.
“Are you… speaking sincerely?”

“Do I look like I’m joking right now?”
“Well… no, but… it’s such a fantastical tale…”
“No matter how much I examine the Heavenly Signs, over and over again, the only way to overcome this calamity is for him to step forward.”

“Is he truly that strong?”
“He is. Even if the entire Jeomchang were to attack him, we couldn’t lay a finger on him.”
Someone like that… does such a being even exist?

Ah—there is one.
The Martial God and Celestial Lord.
“Are you saying… he’s stronger than the Martial God himself?”

“Yes. Even the Martial God cannot defeat him. The Heavenly Signs declare it so.”
If the Heavenly Signs said so, there was nothing to refute.
Cheongi Jin-in’s readings of the Heavenly Signs had always been uncannily accurate.

“From this moment forward, Jeomchang will follow him.”
“What? W-What do you mean by that?”
“Have you not been listening? I said we must unite around him to overcome this disaster.”

“But… we’ve overcome the Demonic Cult in the past. We can prevail again.”
“You know nothing. This time, the Demonic Cult will emerge after thorough, meticulous preparation. They will exploit every weakness, sow division among us. To prevent that, we must rally around a singular, overwhelming force.”
Cheongi Jin-in produced the Sect Leader’s Command Seal and issued his decree.

“All disciples will obey the Sect Leader’s command!”
The leadership of Jeomchang simultaneously prostrated themselves.
“From this day forth, Jeomchang will serve Yeon Woo Jin Gongja as our leader. This is an official command of the Sect Leader!”

“W-We receive your command with utmost loyalty!”
Cheongi Jin-in spoke with clear dissatisfaction on his face.
“I didn’t want to resort to such measures… but without this, conflict would erupt again. I have no choice. I hope you will all cooperate.”

“We understand.”
“Tomorrow, go to the Alchemy Pavilion. Gongja Yeon has prepared a gift for you all.”
“A… gift?”

“Yes.”
Everyone tilted their heads in confusion.
‘Fine. We should see this person for ourselves.’

They all shared the same thought.
Cheongi Jin-in, too, believed that once they encountered Yeon Woo Jin in person, they would understand his words.
That was precisely why he hadn’t revealed Yeon Woo Jin’s true identity to them yet.

It was better they naturally discovered it themselves—it would lessen their resistance.
 
****

The next day.
At the Alchemy Pavilion, Yeon Woo Jin distributed something to the Jeomchang leadership.
“What is this?”

They spoke with formal respect, remembering they were instructed to serve him sincerely.
“These are called Inyeondan.”
“Inyeondan?”

“Do you know of Johwadan?”
“Of course! Isn’t it the most famous elixir in the Central Plains?”
“We recently managed to purchase two pills with great difficulty. The effects were astounding, just like the rumors claimed.”

“I am the one who created Johwadan.”
“What?”
“Is… Is that true?”

“It is. And the elixir you now hold in your hands surpasses Johwadan in every way.”
At Yeon Woo Jin’s words, all eyes shifted toward the Inyeondan in unison.
“These elixirs are made only for those with a destined connection to me. You must immediately circulate your qi after consumption to fully absorb their power.”

“H-Here? You mean to start circulating our qi right here?”
“Yes. The unique property of Inyeondan is this: the more people who consume them in the same place, the greater the effect on each individual.”
Everyone began exchanging cautious glances.

“Quickly now. There is much to be done.”
Much to be done?
Aside from this, what else could there be?

In the end, they each popped the Inyeondan into their mouths and sat down in a lotus position.
Truthfully, had it not been for the Sect Leader’s command, they would never have obeyed so easily.
They only listened to Yeon Woo Jin because of that command.

As they began circulating their qi…
Yeon Woo Jin stretched out his hand toward them.