## Chapter 48.
—
Drip, drip, dripâŠ
Tea that had run down to his chin fell like rain.
A master like Chuk Shin-do maintains perfect control over his body in any situation, so even if surprised or startled, it is rare for him to spit out the tea heâs drinking.
In other words, this was extremely rare.
He hadnât even spat it outâhis mouth simply hung open while it streamed down.
He wasnât even conscious enough to tense his jaw or lips.
âWhat are you doing, making a mess?â
Orca clicked her tongue.
Only then did Chuk Shin-do come back to his senses.
The tea that had soaked down his chin and wet the hem of his pants evaporated in an instant.
âUh⊠uh, uhâŠâ
He fumbled out stupid sounds while covering his mouth and chin with his hand.
His eyes, wide with shock, trembled.
A possessor?
That guy⊠that kid who was something like Fist Wolfâs disciple half a year ago⊠a possessor?
âNo way.â
He simply couldnât believe it.
Chuk Shin-do had seen many possessors until now.
Even those who prided themselves on hiding their identities had never been able to conceal themselves perfectly in front of him.
Half of them stiffened the moment they saw him.
If he showed off tricks with the Demon-Guiding Orb, their cheeks twitched.
And if they saw his signature ceremony, they couldnât hold back their laughter.
Chuk Shin-do had never once felt ashamed of his name, appearance, martial arts, or ceremony.
All of it was something he genuinely likedâ
an expression of respect toward the older brother he admired with all his heart and soul, someone who didnât exist in this world.
At the same time, all of it was a trap to identify other possessors.
The reaction of natives of this world and possessors to his appearance was clearly different.
It couldnât be helped.
The older brother he modeled himself after was a global superstar known across the world.
Anyone who came from that world would inevitably react.
Even Lacy Yuzuha, sitting in this very room, had burst out laughing at his appearance and ceremony before.
âSo⊠that Yuri bastard is a possessor? How could that be?â
Chuk Shin-do couldnât make sense of it.
âWas he blind before he got possessed or something?â
He said it because he couldnât believe it, but he thought it was actually possible.
Otherwise Yuriâs reaction made no sense.
âOr maybe heâs from some backwater region. Somewhere without TV or phones or YouTube⊠maybe he came from the AmazonâŠ?â
âDonât talk nonsense. If he was from somewhere that remote, how would he even play games and end up in this world?â
Lacy clicked her tongue.
She had a point.
After a moment of thought, Chuk Shin-do suddenly jumped to his feet.
âThen⊠was it Guto?â
âHuh?â
âNo, that canât be. If it were Guto, he wouldâve reacted even more strongly to meâŠâ
Even though they were both possessors, Lacy couldnât understand everything Chuk Shin-do said.
They were from different countries before possession.
âGutoâŠ? Did you choke on your tea or something?â
No matter how shocked he was, it was hard to imagine a Martial Zenith Master choking on tea.
Lacy and Orca both looked at him oddly, but Chuk Shin-do didnât answer and paced back and forth, lost in thought.
ââŠâ
After thinking for a whileâ
He suddenly leapt.
âHou!â
Half-spin in the air. Landing. Both arms spread wide like an eagleâs wings.
âPfftâŠâ
Lacy, who had been watching him seriously, couldnât hold back a laugh.
Snap!
His thumb and index finger clapped sharply.
âThatâs the correct reaction.â
âI didnât laugh because it was funny.â
Lacy quickly straightened her face.
âI told you before. Itâs not âHou.â Itâs âSiu.ââ
She pointed demonstratively at her lips and tongue.
âIf you pronounce it correctly itâs closer to âssee-u,â but because you drag the sound and mix projection, it ends with a âwoo.â Ssee-woo. Ssiu.â
âHou.â
âSsee-woo.â
âHo~u.â
Chuk Shin-do scoffed and wagged a finger.
âHey, Thor. You think I say âHouâ because I donât know that?â
âIâm not Thor.â
âI say âHouâ because in Korea, unless youâre a hardcore soccer fan, âHouâ is what people are more familiar with.â
âHOU!â
He spread his arms again.
ââŠâ
Lacy couldnât understand why he was suddenly acting like this.
âAh.â
After thinking for a moment, she realized.
She looked at him, slightly surprised.
âI see⊠Chuk Shin-do, youâre searching for possessors from your homeland, arenât you?â
âExactly.â
He grinned and sat back down.
âIf theyâre foreigners, they wonât react to âHou.â But theyâll react to my appearance. And if theyâre Korean, theyâll definitely react to both my look and âHou.ââ
He had even compromised the authenticity of his beloved brotherâs real ceremony to match peopleâs familiarity.
âBut Yuri⊠that guy didnât react to my âHouââŠâ
Chuk Shin-doâs eyes narrowed.
âAs far as I can tell, he was either blind before possession or from some remote backwater.â
âBlind or remote people wouldnât even be able to play that game. Think more simplyâmaybe he just had incredible mental control and didnât get shaken by you.â
âIs that possible? A possessor who doesnât react to me? Thatâs a psychopath.â
He said it with a serious face.
That made Lacy feel an inexplicable chill.
Full-Moon Play Chuk Shin-do.
It was obvious he wasnât normal, but his appearance wasnât merely the product of innocent madness.
He hadnât been strong from the beginning.
Back then, that appearance had probably been camouflage for the weak.
Many possessors must have judged him insane and approached carelessly.
And Chuk Shin-do had survived.
Lacy knew very well the Demon-Guiding Orb hadnât only smashed the heads of demon cultivators.
The fact that he knowingly kept an appearance that lured possessors closerâ
that slyness always gave her goosebumps.
âItâs not confirmed that Yuri is a possessor.â
Orca spoke.
âItâs only a suspicion.â
âWhat? You didnât confirm it?â
âI asked, but didnât get an answer. Circumstances suggest a high probability, but it wasnât confirmed.â
âWhat happened?â
âTwo years ago in Lagos, Elena, her assassin guard, and Yuri were attacked by the Blood Fiend Ghost.â
Blood Fiend Ghost.
Chuk Shin-doâs brow twitched.
He had many grudges with the Demonic Cult.
The reason he was treated as an honored guest by the Orthodox Alliance was because heâd consistently stood against the Demonic Cult.
âBlood Fiend Ghost⊠I know that old man. Never met him directly though. Didnât he lose to Ghost eyed blade about ten years ago and go into hiding?â
The Blood Fiend Ghost was a disgraceful loser of the previous generation.
He begged for his life, survived, then hid in fear of how the Demonic Cult would treat him.
âYour disciple ran into him? How did they survive?â
Chuk Shin-do couldnât help but question that.
Even if he was an old relic, he wasnât weak enough to dismiss.
This was a world where old men who belonged in nursing homes were often stronger than young sprouts.
âHe wasnât in good condition.â
Orca shrugged.
âHis dantian was cut ten years ago, they say? After that he never recovered his internal energy, then overexerted himself and suffered qi deviation. His rank dropped, and he couldnât even maintain rejuvenation.â
âHmm.â
Chuk Shin-do tilted his head with a serious expression.
âEven so, it doesnât make sense. Internal injuries, qi deviation, rank falling. Even then, the Blood Fiend Ghost was one of the Seven Evils ten years ago. Your disciple wouldâve been 4th Rank two years ago. And the guard assassinâwhat rank?â
âProbably 5th Rank. At the time, Yuri hadnât even been half a year into learning martial arts.â
âHahaha! With that lineup, they met the Blood Fiend Ghost and survived? Thatâs nonsense.â
âThey didnât just survive. The three of them joined forces and killed him.â
âIndeed! Thatâs truly nonsense. Then he has to be a possessor.â
Chuk Shin-doâs face brightened.
Even with countless penalties stacked on him, the Blood Fiend Ghost wouldnât die to a 4th Rank mage and a 5th Rank assassin.
Maybe with an ambushâbut from the sound of it, it wasnât even that.
They faced him head-on and killed him.
For that to be possible, there had to be some absurd, common-sense-breaking variable.
âWhen I saw Yuri two years ago, I never once imagined he was a possessor. His martial talent was obvious, but his mana aptitude was mediocre.â
âSame here. I even checked the internal energy accumulated in his body myself.â
Not just once.
Once when Namgung Jin trespassed into Elenaâs estate.
And once more during an interview, when Orca unfolded the Thunder God form and went to meet Chuk Shin-do.
âThe internal energy I checkedâjust as you said, Full-Moon Playâwas nothing special. Neither good nor bad. Just average talent.â
Meaningâ
He had perfectly deceived both Orca and Chuk Shin-do.
âIs that even possible?â
âIt isnât.â
âDid he learn some special martial art?â
âHard to say. I roughly know what techniques he learned, but there may be others I didnât notice.â
âWhat did he learn? If itâs not some huge secret, tell me.â
âYouâre always trying to take without giving.â
Orca chuckled, but didnât refuse.
âFor his heart method: **Pure and True Heart Method**.
For fist arts: **Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist**.
And I gave him **Purple Lightning Flash Art**.â
At that answer, Chuk Shin-do fell into thought.
âNothing special.â
After a moment, he frowned.
âRantian Flowing Cloud FistâŠ?â
He didnât show it openly, but inwardly Chuk Shin-do nearly panicked.
He knew about Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist.
Not this worldâs versionâ
the **gameâs** version.
—
[Hey you damn trash, still grinding Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist again? lol]
[Isnât that trash-tier? Why are you so obsessed?? That dodge is just RNG garbage]
[Stop gambling and change your build. That damn Rantian crap is literally trash]
[Bro I found a crazy hidden OP skill lately?? Call me hyung and Iâll share the build]
[shut the hell up]
—
No doubt.
âHmm⊠Pure and True Heart Method sounds weak just from the name, and Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist doesnât have any trick to hide internal energy.â
—
[Hey did you get Veil of Deception?]
[Why wonât Veil of Deception drop for me??? Is my game bugged??]
—
Yuri is Pad-lip immune.
Chuk Shin-do became certain.
âSo you finally cameâŠ!â
Pulling himself out of those old memories, Chuk Shin-do looked at Orca.
âPurple Lightning Flash Art⊠sounds like a lightning-type technique. Right?â
âRight. I had no use for it, so I gave it to Yuri.â
âFrom those alone, I canât tell how he hid his internal energy. You said he left two years ago? Why?â
âApparently he already intended to leave after returning from Lagos. After killing the Blood Fiend Ghost, they parted ways. I didnât hear the details. Didnât ask either.â
But Chuk Shin-do could guess easily.
As a possessor himself, how could he not understand a possessorâs difficulties?
His identity must have been exposed inevitablyâ
and that must have shattered his relationship with Orcaâs disciple.
âShould I consider it lucky neither of them died?â
He crossed his arms and looked at Orca.
âIf he really was a possessor, that means he deceived and used your disciple. Youâre fine with that?â
âIf Elena had died or become crippled because of it, I wouldâve held him accountable.â
Orca continued with a strange smile.
âRather, I think meeting Yuri was a major turning point for Elena. She reached 5th Rank in just two years.â
âYouâve got quite a nasty personality.â
âAs a teacher, how could I not be happy about my discipleâs growth? Iâm even grateful to Yuri. Whether heâs really a possessor or not doesnât interest me much now. What about you, Full-Moon Play?â
âI am interested.â
Chuk Shin-do snorted and shrugged.
âOrca Dercia. If he werenât your discipleâs person, Iâd have gone to interrogate him immediately. Pity I canât.â
âIf youâre that curious, why not go find him yourself?â
This whole conversation had intent behind it.
Chuk Shin-do was certain Orca was probing him.
He had met many possessors because he kept this eccentric persona.
Some were good connections. Many were bad.
But there were still some he desperately wanted to meet and hadnât yet.
Cat Panties.
USAUSAMIâáą.ËŹ.áąâ.
Pad-lip Immune.
He hadnât met those three.
If Yuri really was a possessorâ
If he learned Rantian Flowing Cloud Fistâ
âPad-lip. Itâs you.â
Chuk Shin-do was convinced.
But he couldnât reveal that in front of Orca.
Pad-lip Immune had quite the reputation among possessors.
Orcaâs stance was unclear.
And if Lacy really was Thorâ
the sandbag who got beaten up by Pad-lip all the timeâ
then she definitely wouldnât be friendly.
âHe hid his identity even from me. If he really is a possessor, then he probably doesnât want to meet me. Besides, Iâm busy. Iâll be leaving Lutran soon.â
Pad-lip mustâve had his own reasons two years ago.
Chuk Shin-do decided to set it aside for now.
âMaybe weâll meet if fate allows. But I donât think I need to seek him out.â
Heâd answer Orca like thatâ
and search secretly.
âBesides⊠Iâm curious how strong heâll grow without my help.â
He wanted to teach him **Full-Moon Slaughter Kicking Art** and the Hou ceremonyâŠ
But if the techniques he already learned were good, heâd respect that.
ââŠ.â
There were other things he wanted to ask tooâŠ
âRice tastes better after letting it steam.â
âWhat are you talking about?â
âA Korean meal.â
He muttered, leaning his head back against the chair.
âTalking about possessors makes me crave stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew todayâŠâ
More than twenty years had passed since he came to this world.
Chuk Shin-do could no longer clearly remember what the stir-fried pork from his old life tasted likeâŠ
—
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