Auto Hunting

“Hey. I don’t know Chinese. And please be quiet.” Yoo-seong told him.

Tuk-!

Out of nowhere, Yoo-seong hit Ha Yuk-il with the back of his hand. However, Ha Yuk-il felt more outraged than angered.

He stared at Yoo-seong in disbelief, all whilst ignoring the stinging pain on his cheek.

‘Teach him about the Volcano?’

It had been Yoo-seong’s suggestion.

-Hand over the Tech of Volcanic Martial Arts. You can just give me documents or illustrations.

No matter how much Ha Yuk-il thought about it, he could only come to one conclusion. Yoo-seong must be out of his mind.

‘I can’t believe this.’

Ha Yuk-il repressed his indignation and thought for a moment. With a trembling hand, he asked for Yoo-seong’s phone.

—There must be a lot of great martial arts within Tenz. Why are you asking me for this?

This time, Ha Yuk-il looked genuinely curious.

—I don’t want them to give me for free.

After typing it in and showing the message, Yoo-seong glanced at Seoyu. As if he didn’t want her to know what they were talking about.

‘I was right,’ Ha Yuk-il grinned. At that moment, he already had a pretty good plan inside his head.

-Yeah, I’ll give it to you if you want.

Ha Yuk-il then continued to type on the phone.

—But you must swear to me. Swear that no one else sees this. No matter what happens to you, you must not let Tenz see the reprint.

Yoo-seong read his message and nodded before typing in his response.

—Alright. I swear it.

Ha Yuk-il still did not trust Yoo-seong. However, it seemed certain that Yoo-seong and Tenz were clearly not as close as he thought they were.

—This is my account. All you have to do is log in and copy the files.

For someone who was unaware, it might seem like a good deal that favored Yoo-seong. However, Ha Yuk-il knew better.

‘He’s trying to learn the Volcano using only charts. Even a common villager knows better.’

Ha Yuk-il secretly smiled. What he handed over to Yoo-seong was a true reprint of the Volcanic Martial Arts, thought to have disappeared in the last two centuries.

“They are the originals,” Ha Yuk-il reassured Yoo-seong.

The process of recreating martial arts was practiced a century or two ago. However, it was not all about restoring long-forgotten letters and drawings.

Martial arts were done with the body, not with the brain. Could one learn soccer, basketball, boxing, and gymnastics with just a book?

It was virtually impossible.

Rather, someone was more likely to be injured by learning the wrong postures and methods. Simply learning the theory was not enough.

One must undergo countless trials and errors whilst receiving guidance and advice from masters or seniors who had all learned the technique.

Now, the techniques that Ha Yuk-il had handed over were from two centuries ago. When Lee Hwi-min restored it for the first time, there were no masters or seniors left.

Unlike other martial arts that continued to live on through one or two successors every generation, the Volcanic Martial Arts had completely disappeared. Then, how did Ha Yuk-il learn all about it?

Sacrifices.

A lot of sacrifices.

‘Was it 500?’

Ha Yuk-il couldn’t even remember. He had lost count. They were people who did not have the ability, but dreamed of becoming hunters.

The Goryong Company, led by Lee Hwi-min, gathered 500 of these people. They were housed in a facility.

The Goryong Company offered promises.

If someone perfectly mastered the Volcanic Martial Arts, that person would become the company’s successor. None of the 500 questioned their contract.

No one even paid attention to a phrase in the contract that states that the Goryong Company couldn’t be held accountable in terms of injuries or accidents.

Even if they did read that part, they still would have signed, anyway. All they wanted were to be hunters.

Five hundred people, full of dreams and ambitions.

However, out of all the 500, no one had managed to become one.

No one died, but their bodies had been so damaged that they could never dream of becoming hunters again.

It was only natural – an expected outcome. After all, it was not possible to learn a martial art by simply reading a book.

When you learned physical exercises through books, there were possibilities of injuries or permanently crooked postures. If you tried to learn Tech from a book, it would only get worse.

More than the physical damage, you would also suffer damages to your veins and core. After three years, the experiment had come to a conclusion.

Lee Hwi-min and the Goryong Company had gathered the dreams of 500 people, only to shatter them into data.

With the accumulated small successes, a safe reprint had finally been made.

Then, the safe reprint was delivered to Ha Yuk-il, who in turn nurtured it.

This was a plan that had been plotted right from the start.

Ha Yuk-il looked at Yoo-seong, who was checking his phone. The originals were clearly adapted from the original paintings and old books.

It contained everything from the Volcanic Martial Arts that thrived two centuries ago. No matter how good Yoo-seong’s abilities were, he could never do it better than Lee Hwi-min, and the data derived from 500 people.

Wouldn’t it be better if Yoo-seong was destroyed while practicing the original Volcano?

After a while, Yoo-seong turned off his phone and looked at Ha Yuk-il. Ha Yuk-il tensed up.

…

It had been 10 minutes since Ha Yuk-il walked out of the hotel on his own. Yoo-seong could see the curiosity on Seoyu’s face.

“Are you not satisfied?” He asked.

“No, boss.”

“I know you think I’m crazy.”

Seoyu’s expression was enough for Yoo-seong to feel her disappointment.

“It’s done. It’s meaningless to mull over it now.” Yoo-seong told her.

“Oh, you have such a mature mind, boss,” Seoyu’s words were dripping with sarcasm.

Yoo-seong then stood up and wore his coat.

“Where are you going?” Seoyu asked him.

“For a short walk.”

Seoyu’s sarcasm changed to disbelief. “After what happened? Are you serious?”

“What’s done is done. Besides, isn’t it much safer for me to be in a crowded street than in a hotel room?”

Seoyu knew he was right. “Then, I’ll go too,” she decided.

This time, it’s Yoo-seong’s turn to be surprised.

“No. I like to walk alone,” he said.

“But…” Seoyu objected.

“It’s not your job to follow me. You can rest, take the day off,” Yoo-seong’s voice rang with finality.

However, Seoyu was not having it.

She bit her lip. She hesitated a few times, then, when she finally spoke, her voice was barely audible.

“No,” she objected, with a pained look on her face.

Yoo-seong could not simply ignore it.

“I am your employee. It is my job to guarantee my boss’ convenience in this country. And by what happened earlier, I have just failed at doing my job.”

It was not just because her perception of Yoo-seong had now changed. In a way, she was also a thorough Chinese hunter.

“That’s what I mean. You don’t have to worry anymore,” Yoo-seong told her.

“What do you mean?”

“They won’t do anything to me for a while. I can assure you of that.”

Yoo-seong pulled out his phone and showed her the documents that Ha Yuk-il handed over.

“You can’t learn Tech with these alone,” Seoyu said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Contrary to what Ha Yuk-il and Seoyu thought, Yoo-seong already knew.

This was no different from Spider Walk. A lot of factors must be considered in that skill alone.

The spine and pelvis, angles around the body, breathing, which veins must be used, when and how much Aura should be injected.

‘If your body had wrong timing or posture, it will only take a moment for you to break. You have to be careful.’

It was as if Yoo-seong could hear his master’s voice inside his head.

No other Korean hunter knew this technique. It was one of the reasons why Seong-wook was so passionate while teaching it to him.

‘I have received such lessons from my master. How can I not know the risk?’ Yoo-seong smiled.

However, the reason why he needed Ha Yuk-il’s guidance to some extent was that he was conscious of Lee Hwi-min.

‘Why would Ha Yuk-il simply hand it over to me?’

Yoo-seong didn’t know much about the Volcanic Martial Arts, but one thing was for sure.

It was not a third-rate technique.

He also remembered Lee Hwi-min saying that because Ha Yuk-il was the successor, it already made him someone worthy of the Ten Ship Zones.

‘Soon, Lee Hwi-min will surely learn about what happened,’ Yoo-seong thought.

‘Rather than attacking me, I’m pretty sure he’ll observe and wait for me to self-destruct.’

However, Yoo-seong had no intention of self-destructing anytime soon. He also did not intend to give up the documents that he had just obtained.

Rather, he could use Automatic Hunting.

Automatic Hunting had a function that allowed Yoo-seong to perfect the technique by just identifying a diagram.

“I have to leave. I’ll call you when I get back,” Yoo-seong said to Seoyu, who didn’t have the chance to object.

As soon as he left the hotel, Yoo-seong hailed a taxi. Before coming to China, Yoo-seong carefully studied and asked Tenz for information about the law on the theft of Tech.

It was brought about by his argument with Jin Wei-baek, the one about the use of the Pacheonma Geukki. He realized that things could get really serious if Automatic Hunting kept on copying other people’s prized Techs.

Jin Wei-baek was the rightful successor to an unbroken clan. Therefore, he was the clear owner of the Pacheonma Geukki.

If Yoo-seong used the Tech without Wei-baek’s permission, he would face not only moral implications, but also legal consequences. However, in the case of martial arts that had not been in practice for more hundreds of years…

The limitations were endless.

Right now, no one owned the Volcanic Martial Arts.

Ha Yuk-il must be practicing it for more than ten years, and fostered at least one disciple before he could be announced as its owner.

If it happened that Yoo-seong mastered it, say, through coming across the original diagrams and charts, no one could say anything about it.

Soon, the taxi arrived at their destination. It was a shopping center.

He needed to buy new clothes and accessories, to shake off anyone who could have been following him. It was a measure to avoid any possible surveillance.

He spent twenty minutes in the bathroom, and when he came out, it was as if he changed into a completely different person.

Several women turned their heads as Yoo-seong passed by.

His body’s balance looked solid. His proportions were excellent.

After walking for a few minutes, he started to blend in with the crowd.

Once again, Yoo-seong hailed for a taxi.

‘I didn’t have to go far if I wanted someone to stop following me,’ he realized.

The taxi soon arrived, and Yoo-seong stood in front of a magnificent gate.

A surveillance camera aimed at him. Then, he heard the sound of running footsteps.

Kiik-!

The gate to Red Dragon Society’s main building opened for him.

“Oh, hello,” an embarrassed-looking general manager appeared. “I’m sorry to have you wait. Come on inside.”

Two steps in, Yoo-seong looked back at the door that was now starting to close.

“Aren’t there a lot of people who usually enter by foot?” Yoo-seong asked.

“It is rare that outsiders come directly to us in the first place,” the general manager laughed, before adding:

“We usually do business over the phone or the Internet.”

“Ah… I didn’t mean to cause an inconvenience,” Yoo-seong apologized. “It is a little difficult to call. I just wanted to see if Yang Jeong-cheon is available?”

The general manager’s eyes carefully inspected Yoo-seong. Soon after, a happy smile began to spread on the middle-aged man’s lips.

“The Vice Lord overslept because of yesterday’s duties. When I heard that you came, I immediately sent an employee to her room. It’s also about time for her to wake up.”

“What? No, I’m going to see the Lord…”

“I know,” the general manager nodded and beckoned inward.

His smile seemed to say that he understood Yoo-seong completely, even though it was obvious that he was thinking about something else.

“I really came to see the Lord. Yang Biyeon doesn’t need to be disturbed from her rest. Please tell your employees that…”

The general manager answered before Yoo-seong could even finish his sentence, “Of course. I will.”

Yoo-seong wasn’t sure if the general manager meant it.

“This way.”

What came next was a place Yoo-seong had never seen before. A huge garden spread out before his eyes.

‘Is that a deer that just passed by?’

Yoo-seong was amazed by the scenery but decided not to think about it too much.

Instead of a pond, a lake came into his view as he walked further in the garden. A ferry with a small boat was passing by.

He could see Yang Jeong-cheon aboard it.

There was a fishing rod on the old man’s hands.

“Come join me!” he greeted Yoo-seong cheerfully.

“My father loved fishing so much so as a child, my mother told me that I must never hold a fishing rod,” Yang Jeong-cheon laughed out loud.

Then, he noticed something strange as he inspected Yoo-seong.

“Hmm… you look much better than you used to,” he observed.

Yoo-seong only looked at him, unaware of what he meant. Meanwhile, the general manager had set up another folding chair on the deck.

Yoo-seong took it and sat next to Yang Jeong-cheon.

“It doesn’t look like you’re here to take back what you said,” Yang Jeong-cheon spoke.

“Yes. I came here to ask a favor.” Yoo-seong confirmed.

“A favor?” Yang Jeong-cheon looked like he was having fun.

“Are we asking favors from each other now? The last time I remember, you angered me twice. I angered you twice, too.”

“Our disagreement is between us, not with the Red Dragon Society.” Yoo-seong reasoned.

Yang Jeong-cheon considered for a while, then nodded. “Okay, fair point. Go ahead.”

“In the past disaster, I launched a joint operation with the Red Dragon Society. And that was more of a benefit to you than it was to me.”

At the time of the Shanghai Shock, Biyeon stayed by Seoyu’s side at the instructions of Yoo-seong. As the hunters first thought it was Biyeon leading Seoyu, Biyeon was also seen as someone who played a great role.

It was Seoyu who commanded through the thread, but it was Biyeon who had been protecting her, as well as securing the safety of the hunters and civilians.

Unlike Yoo-seong, she was Chinese.

In addition to that, she was the eldest daughter of the Red Dragon Society, a prestigious Shanghai clan.

Biyeon had already become a hero among civilians, and the industry had long since recognized her. It was the Red Dragon Society’s greatest honor since Yang Jeong-cheon stepped down from the Ship Zone.

And it was, of course, all because of Yoo-seong.

If it weren’t for him, Biyeon would have also inefficiently wandered around and fought any monster that caught her eyes. Of course, no one knew this.

“Your honor has been greatly enhanced thanks to me. So, apart from Tenz, I consider the Red Dragon Society as a friend,” Yoo-seong stated.

“Therefore, as a foreigner who is not familiar with Chinese characters, I am thinking that I can ask the Red Dragon’s help for literature interpretation,” he added.

For Yoo-seong, no one was more capable of helping him than Yang Jeong-cheon.

Firstly, it was because he was only asking for a simple favor. He also thought that since Yang Jeong-cheon has inherited Psy from generation to generation, he could also be able to provide some insights on the Volcanic Martial Arts.

Moreover, no matter how excellent the Volcanic Martial Arts is, Yang Jeong-choen wouldn’t covet it given that he had the Ignition Psy.

“Dressing up gave you some confidence, young man,” Yang Jeong-cheon commented.

“Is that so?” Yoo-seong was unnerved.

“Oh, he can’t speak Chinese, I can’t be sarcastic about anything,” Yang Jeong-cheon mumbled in Chinese.

Yang Jeong-cheon shook his hand in a small rage. “Yeah, let me see what the literature is.”

“Thank you.”

“Hey, I haven’t said I’ll interpret it yet.”

Yoo-seong opened the file he got from Ha Yuk-il on his phone and showed it to Yang Jeong-cheon.

Yang Jeong-cheon’s eyebrows went up after reading the first few characters. Yoo-seong seemed to not notice the surprise on the old man’s face, “The part I would like to know about is…”

However, before Yoo-seong finished speaking, Yang Jeong-cheon’s eyes turned to him.

“Is this the original?” Yang Jeong-cheon asked.

“I think it is.”

“I heard how the Moon Faction got their hands on it, but… do you really want to learn this?”

“Yes,” Yoo-seong answered sincerely.

“It will be difficult. No, as a matter of fact, I will not want to recommend it,” Yang Jeong-cheon told him honestly. However, it was only because he thought Yoo-seong did not understand the risks.

“You’re going to ruin your body. Why don’t you reconsider? You can never learn the Volcano by reading a book.

“I know clearly what concerns you. However, I am not asking for an interpretation without any plan in mind. I am grateful for your concern but please, just interpret it for me.”

Yang Jeong-cheon saw the determination in Yoo-seong’s eyes. There was nothing else he could do.

“I see.”

Yoo-seong continued with his question.

“Can I ask you to check if this has the kind of Tech I’m looking for?”

“Tell me,” Yang Jeong-cheon said

A Tech associated with physical movements, such as using fists or bladed weapons were not important to him. Automatic Hunting could easily capture those.

What Yoo-seong wanted was something else, something he believed would be difficult to learn, even with Auto-hunting.

Ever since he stepped foot in China, it was what he had been looking for. However, none of the Chinese hunters he met said that such a thing existed.

“I would like to know if there is any Tech related to breathing.”

Yang Jeong-cheon, and even the general manager who was listening from behind, gasped.

The kind of Tech that Yoo-seong mentioned was the original version of Volcanic Martial Arts. In fact, it was the core foundation of every Chinese Martial Art.

Yang Jeong-cheon hesitated. He didn’t want to talk about it with a foreigner, regardless of whether he liked him or not.

After a while, he sighed.

“Yes. It does,” Yang Jeong-cheon answered truthfully.

“Which part says it?”

Yoo-seong looked at where Yang Jeong-cheon was pointing. Yang Jeong-cheon narrowed his eyes and read four characters off the top of the page.

“There are different manifestations of the Volcano. Among them, this has the highest difficulty…”

He paused and brought the page closer to Yoo-seong, asking him to read it.

“Zahan Gong? Is this the right way to say it?” Yoo-seong asked him.

Yang Jeong-cheon nodded gravely. It was the unknown method that even Lee Hwi-min could not restore.