The Martial God with Psychic Powers

At Yeon Cheon Baek’s words, the three Gate Masters traded baffled looks.
“How old is your grandson, if I may ask?”
“He’s about twenty now.”
“Pardon?”
If he was only about twenty, how strong could he be?
Even if he was strong, he’d be beneath them.
There was only one way to read it:
He was trying to put his weight behind his grandson.
A message to get with the program and make themselves agreeable to the boy.
The three Gate Masters sighed inwardly.
Odds were, the “grandson who would make them stronger” would, in truth, be the one they would have to prop up.
But they couldn’t voice displeasure.
If they were told to jump, they’d jump.
‘Still, there’s no harm in getting close to the blood of the Lord of Martial Deity Heaven.’
They decided to take the optimistic view.
They thought this way because, despite having a blood grandson, he hadn’t registered him as a Little Heavenly Lord candidate.
No matter how they racked their memories, they’d never heard that the Heaven Lord’s grandson had entered as a candidate.
Why?
Likely because the grandson wasn’t as strong as one might think, so he’d chosen to protect him.
And introducing them would be to build the boy a power base.
Perhaps the reason for the introduction was to build a faction and put him up as a Little Heavenly Lord candidate.
The other candidates might take offense—but they could always explain later:
The Lord of Martial Deity Heaven had personally pressed them; they’d had no choice.
Watching their eyes flick about nonstop, Yeon Cheon Baek smirked.
‘Busy calculating, are they. They don’t even know what a colossal stroke of fortune they’re getting.’
It irked him enough that he almost wanted to call it off.
But Yeon Cheon Baek had his reasons for connecting them to Yeon Woo Jin.
‘We’ve locked down the Central Plains. Next is Martial Deity Heaven. These brats are the start.’
He meant to make it easier for Yeon Woo Jin to bring the gates under Martial Deity Heaven to heel.
Yeon Cheon Baek believed in Yeon Woo Jin.
These men would soon become loyal subordinates.
Just thinking of Yeon Woo Jin made Yeon Cheon Baek feel his twilight years would be happy.
 
****
“What is that?”
People gathered at the site where they were to meet Yeon Woo Jin.
Something invisible was wavering before them.
Strange sigils were carved into the ground, so they could vaguely guess it was a formation.
The question was why a formation had been set here at all.
Faces puzzled, they stared at it.
“What is that?”
“Looks like a formation to me.”
“What purpose would a formation serve here?”
“Maybe he’ll only return secret manuals to those who pass through it?”
“It’ll be faster to ask the sects that already received their manuals.”
Those who hadn’t received manuals approached the Zhuge Clan Head, who would likely be versed in formations.
“Do you know what that is?”
“A formation.”
“I can guess that much. What kind of formation is it?”
“A formation that will make you stronger.”
“A formation that will make us stronger?”
“Yes.”
“Does such a thing exist?”
“It’s right there.”
“If we go in there, we get stronger?”
Zhuge Mun-yeok nodded.
“Huh…”
If the Zhuge Clan Head said so—should they believe it?
Getting stronger just by entering a formation?
If that were true, then with that formation alone everyone in the Central Plains could grow stronger.
“Have you experienced it yourself?”
“I have. My realm rose a great deal.”
“Is that true?”
“It is.”
At Zhuge Mun-yeok’s words, people murmured in awe.
“Then it really works?”
“It works for certain. It’s just… the process is a little painful.”
“Hah! What’s a bit of pain for strength!”
“Right! A man shouldn’t fear pain.”
“Hard to believe you get stronger by enduring a little pain.”
Zhuge Mun-yeok chuckled to himself.
‘Go on, try it. Let’s see if you can still laugh then.’
“Why the long face, Clan Head?”
“Because I’m dreading going back in there.”
“Why dread it? Go in again and you’ll get stronger again, won’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then why worry? Afraid of pain?”

Zhuge Mun-yeok’s smile thinned.
Pain?
That wasn’t the issue.
You had to fight death.
And the problem was, you had to experience that death countless times.
On top of that, this time they were to stay inside for fifteen days.
Fifteen days.
Inside the formation, that was fifteen months.
A year and three months spent in there.
Did they know?
They didn’t.
Sometimes, ignorance was mercy.
While Zhuge Mun-yeok was talking with the crowd, Yeon Woo Jin appeared.
All eyes swung to him.
“Looks like everyone’s here.”
“If you’re returning manuals, how could we not come?”
“When will you give them out?”
They were impatient to receive their manuals.
“The manuals are in there.”
When Yeon Woo Jin pointed to the formation, people wore an “as expected” look.
After listening to Zhuge Mun-yeok’s explanation, they had no wariness left.
“Then let’s go in.”
“Let’s.”
All of them stepped into the formation.
Passing through the rippling veil, they emerged into a completely different world.
“W-what is this?”
“Is what I’m seeing actually real?”
“If there’s another world under Heaven, it’s here.”
“I can’t believe it. From outside we could see right through…”
The scenery inside the formation was a different world entirely.
A horizon spread without end.
There was no trace of Mount Hua anywhere.
On one side, a staggering stockpile of provisions was piled high.
Why so much food?
Tents for sleeping had been set up.
Another side bristled with racks of every sort of weapon.
What was all this?
They’d been told they would get stronger inside.
Don’t tell me—
Not “train to get stronger,” right?
As if the Zhuge Clan Head would spout such nonsense.
They dismissed the thought.
While they looked around, Yeon Woo Jin entered.
“All right, focus up.”
At his voice, all eyes turned to him.
“Those of you leading sects that haven’t received your manuals yet—go stand over there on the sigils.”
Another formation inside the formation?
“If we stand in there, you’ll return the manuals?”
“Yes.”
“Then in we go.”
“You’re going in without even knowing what it is?”
“Why? Are you scared? If you’re scared, just go home.”
“Hmph! Who said I was scared? I’m saying don’t do something stupid without knowing what it is.”
“As if he’d kill us. I’ll go first.”
One man took the lead; the rest surged after him.
They each claimed a spot they liked.
Even Cheongyang Jinin hesitated, then reluctantly took his place.
Yeon Woo Jin extended a hand toward them.
An invisible current struck and sealed their pressure points in an instant.
“Gasp!”
“W-what are you doing!”
“Why are you sealing our points!”
They stared, eyes wide.
More shocking than the act was the method—the sheer mastery to seal so many people at once.
It had happened so fast they hadn’t even felt it.
If Yeon Woo Jin had been an enemy—
They would have been taken without a twitch.
“R-release us at once!”
“What did we do to deserve this!”
Yeon Woo Jin explained to the flustered crowd.
“My apologies. There isn’t time to explain to each of you one by one and then get you into the formation.”
“What kind of formation is this that you do this?”
“A formation that ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) will make you stronger.”
“A formation that will make us stronger?”
“Has anyone heard of the Yoga Tendon-Reversing Formation?”
“I’ve heard of it. An external refinement method from Tianzhu used to harden the body.”
“Right. I’ve specially strengthened it. I call it the Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation.”
“And you mean to use that on us?”
“Yes.”
“We have no need to harden our bodies.”
“Right! That sort of thing is for youngsters just coming up.”
“No. You need it. That’s how you get stronger.”
“Huh.”
At Yeon Woo Jin’s words, gazes shifted to those who hadn’t stepped into the formation.
“D-did you all do this as well?”
“We did. We all went through it.”
“D-does it really make you stronger?”
“Of course. I stake everything I have on it.”
The Head of Wudang spoke firmly.
“I vouch for it as well.”
“Believe it.”
“When the great method ends, a new world opens.”
So it really would make them stronger.
“Fine. We’ll trust you. But release the seals first—”
“No. The seals stay.”
“Why on earth?”
“Because the process is painful. I have to keep you from thrashing. If your bodies come loose, we have to start over from the beginning.”
Start what from the beginning?
“Bodies come loose”?
It sounded like he meant to twist their bodies like ropes.
Yeon Woo Jin strode toward the bewildered men.
Those watching looked away.
Memories of their own pain surged up—an involuntary flinch.
The men inside the formation saw it.
They sensed something was very wrong.
“W-wait…”
They tried to speak.
Too late.
Yeon Woo Jin set his hand on the nearest man’s body—and it began to twist into grotesque shapes.
Crack—
“S-stop! You don’t have to bend it that far!”
Despite the urgent shout, Yeon Woo Jin ignored it and worked in silence.
“Gyaaaaah!”
As the body wrenched into unnatural angles, a scream ripped free.
The rest watched in real time.
“W-what is this!”
“We’ve been totally had!”
“Uwaaaah! Let me out!”
“Stop! Stop it! I said stop!”
“Amitabha!”
After twisting the body into a complete knot, Yeon Woo Jin breathed power into the formation.
Vmmm—
The formation spun up—and the body twisted tighter still.
Crack—
“Ggghhhh!”
The pain was so intense that foam frothed at the lips as they screamed.
Watching the writhing, Yeon Woo Jin wore a satisfied look and turned to the next target.
He was a devil.
“D-don’t come.”
To be helplessly ravaged by a devil—
Crack—
“Gyaaaaah!”
He pleaded, but Yeon Woo Jin ignored him and bent the body every which way.
As time passed, the screams multiplied, until they filled the formation to bursting.
Even those who had endured it before found the sound hard to bear.
It felt as if it were happening to them again.
After setting the Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation on the crowd, Yeon Woo Jin turned to his own subordinates.
“All right. Until their great method finishes, we have our own work, don’t we?”
At that, they nodded weakly.
“There’s no time to face you one by one, so come all at once.”
Faces eased a little at “all at once.”
If that many attacked simultaneously, maybe…
“If I make you open four gates of the Transcendence Gate, we’ll call your training done.”
“R-really?”
“Yes.”
They judged it doable.
Eyes hard, they drew up their qi.
Whoom—
No holding back.
All-out from the first beat.
Yeon Woo Jin smiled, amused by their ferocious glares.
Then he crooked a finger.
“Come.”
 
****
A few days later.
Those trapped in the Yoga Tendon-Reversing Heaven-Dance Formation were now in good enough shape to chat a little.
“How long do we have to keep this unsightly shape…”
“At first, I thought we were being tortured.”
“Still, when he releases us for meals or sleep, the pain vanishes—and the body feels light and fresh, doesn’t it?”
“It does. I felt it too. That’s why I knew it wasn’t torture at all—it really is making the body stronger.”
They all nodded.