Absolute Dominion

◈ Absolute Dominion

Chapter- 35

As soon as the box was opened, a chilling aura emanated from it, instantly dropping the temperature in the chamber.

“This is the Ice Jade Dagger, a dagger imbued with extreme yin energy. For women, simply carrying it will help enhance their martial power.”

Cha-Ryun couldn’t help but gasp in awe. But when she heard the price, her jaw dropped.

“It costs fifteen thousand nyang.”

‘Could such a small dagger really be worth that much?’

Jeok Lee-Gun spoke to Cha-Ryun as he studied the blade intently.

“What do you think? It seems like a good deal, doesn’t it?”

Then, he posed an unexpected question.

“If I buy this, could you throw in a bonus item?”

Cha-Ryun was shocked.

‘Wait, are you seriously considering buying it? It’s fifteen thousand nyang!’

The mention of a bonus caught the old man’s attention. His eyes gleamed with interest.

“What do you have in mind?”

Jeok Lee-Gun casually looked around the shop.

“How about I just pick something else from the shop—can I choose anything I like?”

The old man stared at Jeok Lee-Gun for a moment before eventually grinning.

“Very well.”

“Good. Then I’ll buy it at that price.”

Cha-Ryun was utterly stunned.

“Are you really going to buy it?”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Jeok Lee-Gun pulled out a promissory note from his pocket and handed it over.

The old man inspected the note and chuckled softly.

“A promissory note from the Continental War Zone… seems legitimate.”

Cha-Ryun was still in disbelief.

No matter how good it looked, it was just a dagger.

‘Is he really spending that much money on a dagger? Even if he can pick a bonus item, fifteen thousand nyang is an absurd amount!’

Jeok Lee-Gun didn’t even seem to care that he spent such an amount. Instead, he casually wandered the shop, inspecting various items. After a while, he picked something up from a dusty box in the corner—a pair of worn leather gloves. They were old, filthy, and even moldy.

Cha-Ryun wrinkled her nose in disgust. It wasn’t something she would even consider touching.

‘Why would he pick that?’

“I’ll take these.”

Cha-Ryun’s thoughts were in complete disarray.

‘Are you insane?! If you could choose anything, why not that sword from earlier?’

The old man gazed at Jeok Lee-Gun for a long time before eventually laughing.

“Very well. Take it.”

This time, Jeok Lee-Gun smiled as well.

As they were preparing to leave, the old man called out.

“May I know your name?”

Jeok Lee-Gun’s expression turned serious as he answered.

“Jeok Lee-Gun.”

The old man asked another question.

“Will our paths cross again?”

“Since you gave me a bonus, I’d say it’s likely.”

The old man laughed once more, and with that, Jeok Lee-Gun and Cha-Ryun left the shop.

After they had gone, the woman in the shop let out a sigh of relief and smiled brightly.

“Finally, it’s sold.”

The Ice Jade Dagger had been difficult to sell due to its high price and the fact that it only benefited women. It had been sitting in the shop for a long time.

“We’ve made quite the profit. But how did you know that the young man had such a large sum of money?”

The old man chuckled.

“His pockets are probably much deeper than you can imagine. But even though we sold such a valuable item, we’ve suffered our greatest loss yet.”

“What? What do you mean?”

The woman was clearly confused.

The old man spoke calmly.

“Do you know what those gloves he took are?”

“What are they?”

“Those are the Wind God Gauntlets.”

The woman was shocked.

“You mean… the legendary weapon of the Fist King? The one who had the moniker of ‘Wind God,’ from three hundred years ago?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

The woman was speechless. If the Wind God Gauntlets were indeed the unique weapon of the Fist King, they were a treasure far beyond the value of the Ice Jade Dagger.

“The Wind God Gauntlets came into our possession sixty years ago. The previous Grand Elder, Elder Yu, knew that possessing such a treasure could bring disaster to the Dark Treasury. He didn’t dare to openly sell it, fearing that rumors would attract all kinds of wicked people to us, thinking we had even more treasures. In short, the Wind God Gauntlets were far too valuable for us to handle.”

“Why would you leave such a priceless artifact to gather dust?”

“It was Elder Yu’s dying wish. He wanted them to go to someone who was destined for them. But I never imagined that a young man like him would recognize them.”

The woman was still in shock.

“How much would they be worth?”

“They are priceless… but if I had the money, I’d gladly pay a million nyang for them.”

The woman was speechless for a moment.

Since the price of the Ice Jade Dagger was only fifteen thousand nyang, compared to the million nyang price tag on the gauntlets, Jeok Lee-Gun had gained great benefit while only paying a fraction. Such a squandered opportunity left her feeling almost sick to her stomach.

“…So he practically got them for free, along with the Ice Jade Dagger?”

The old man replied.

“Indeed, it’s almost as if we gave them away.”

Hwa was still upset at the loss. But now, there was another worry at hand that had to be addressed.

“Now that the Wind God Gauntlets are out in the world, won’t that bring us danger?”

“No, it won’t.”

“How can you be so certain?”

“Because the fact that he recognized them means he’s not just any ordinary person. His sect or his own martial prowess must be extraordinary. He’s not the type to go around recklessly talking about this. He knows I gave him the Wind God Gauntlets on purpose, so he’ll likely repay our favor someday.”

The last conversation the old man had with Jeok Lee-Gun was filled with that understanding.

The old man’s next words shocked the woman even further.

“Did you see the sword and saber that boy was carrying?”

“I did.”

“They were even more valuable than the Wind God Gauntlets.”

“…!”

The woman was rendered speechless by this revelation. If the Wind God Gauntlets alone could shift the rankings of the Ten Great Divine Weapons of the martial world, then what kind of value did those other weapons hold?

The old man’s eyes gleamed brightly as he spoke.

“Perhaps this encounter will bring us closer to realizing the long-held ambition of our Dark Treasury. A wish we’ve harbored for three hundred years.”

“You idiot!”

Cha-Ryun shouted at Jeok Lee-Gun.

Jeok Lee-Gun was squatting by a stream, carefully brushing off the mold from the gloves and washing them in the flowing water. Cha-Ryun’s scolding continued relentlessly.

“Seriously, spending fifteen thousand nyang on just one dagger? You must either be insane or just plain stupid. No, scratch that—you’re a crazy bastard!”

Cha-Ryun was getting more and more agitated. After all, fifteen thousand nyang was an unimaginable sum for her. The monthly salary for the top experts in the Righteous Sword Sect didn’t even reach twenty nyang, and the most experienced among them, like Lim Mu-Yeol, barely earned more than twenty.

But fifteen thousand nyang?

When Jeok Lee-Gun had previously mentioned building a house, Cha-Ryun had assumed he was handling someone else’s business, which was why she hadn’t been too shocked. But this situation was different.

“How on earth do you have that much money? Did you steal it? Or are you some rich noble’s son? No, wait, you said your family ran a fruit shop, right? Was that a lie?”

Jeok Lee-Gun grumbled under his breath.

“Ugh, you’re so noisy. Even noisier than me.”

Cha-Ryun blushed slightly. Now that she thought about it, she realized she had been rambling on and on.

“…So you do know you’re noisy, huh?”

Jeok Lee-Gun spoke while holding out his hand.

“Hand it over.”

Reluctantly, Cha-Ryun passed him the Ice Jade Dagger. She felt a little disappointed, realizing she might have secretly hoped he would give it to her as a gift, even though it was far too valuable to accept.

Jeok Lee-Gun looked at it for a moment before speaking.

“It’ll be great for slicing meat.”

“Ugh! Why did you even buy it for something like that? What a waste of money!”

Jeok Lee-Gun gazed at her sulking face for a moment.

“Did you want it as a gift or something?”

“Absolutely n-not!”

Her voice trembled slightly, revealing her true feelings. She was not very good at lying.

Jeok Lee-Gun casually tucked the dagger into his belt.

“It wouldn’t help you much anyway—it would just attract pests. Maybe I’ll give it to you when your martial arts skills improve.”

“Who said I wanted it in the first place?”

“Well then, hold out your hand.”

“For what?”

Cha-Ryun instinctively recoiled in disgust.

“If you’re thinking of giving me that dirty thing, then forget it!”

Despite her words, the gloves, now free of mold and dust, looked unique and were quite striking. She had initially assumed that they were black, but they were actually transparent.

Jeok Lee-Gun’s expression turned serious as he spoke.

“These gloves will help improve your martial arts. You’ve hit a wall at the seven-star level, right?”

Cha-Ryun was taken aback.

“What… h-how did you know?”

Her eyes widened in surprise.

“There’s nothing I don’t know. Now, come here.”

Cha-Ryun was swayed by his words. She had always been obsessed with martial arts, and now, the possibility of improving her skills was tempting.

“You’re right-handed, right?”

“Yeah. But are you really sure that this will help? If you’re just teasing me again…”

Before she could finish, Jeok Lee-Gun gently grabbed her arm.

“Every item, no matter how seemingly insignificant, carries its own unique energy. If you treat this glove with respect, you will be able to feel its power.”

The seriousness in his tone and touch conveyed his sincerity.

“…Alright.”

Jeok Lee-Gun slowly slipped the right glove onto her hand. The material clung tightly to her skin, fitting perfectly.

As soon as the glove was fully on…

Woooong!

The glove gently vibrated as it melded with her hand, sending an indescribable energy coursing through her palm—spreading throughout her body. The sensation was electrifying.

Jeok Lee-Gun grinned, clearly satisfied.

“There we go. Not bad, huh?”

The rush of energy left her momentarily breathless. Cha-Ryun took a deep breath before speaking.

“What was that?”

The feeling had been one of pure exhilaration.

“It was a signal that the glove has accepted you.”

“What does that mean?”

“I knew my instincts were right. You’ve got potential.”

Cha-Ryun looked down at her hands. The transparent nature of the gloves made it difficult to tell if she was even wearing them. She could feel that these weren’t ordinary gloves. She clenched her fist, feeling strength coursing through her right hand.

“Hey, there’s something written on my palm. Is this… the character for ‘Wind’?”

Sure enough, the character for “Wind” (風) was etched in flowing script on her palm, as if it were a tattoo.

Jeok Lee-Gun raised his left hand, which now bore the left glove. On his palm was the character for “God” (神).

Raising his left hand, Jeok Lee-Gun smiled and said:

“Say hello. These are the gauntlets of the Wind God.”

“The Wind God Gauntlets?”

“Yep. As long as we each wear one glove, we can find each other no matter where we are. You might not be able to sense it yet because your internal energy is still weak, but I can.”

“No way!”

“Yes way. These gloves are made from extraordinary materials, and their previous owner was a legendary figure. These gloves can be considered treasures among treasures.”

Even without him saying so, Cha-Ryun could feel it. The glove seemed to hum with power, almost as if it were whispering, ‘There is nothing in the world more precious than me.’

“They can even block sword qi with ease. Of course, your internal energy is still too weak, so trying that now would injure you. But, in time, even sword qi won’t be able to cut through them. They’re far superior to that dagger—know that, and use it wisely.”

Cha-Ryun couldn’t help but wonder how Jeok Lee-Gun knew so much about the gloves, but a more pressing question weighed on her mind.

“…Why are you being so kind to me?”

When she looked up, Jeok Lee-Gun was already walking ahead.

He glanced back and gestured for her to hurry up. His face was illuminated by the sunlight, making it hard to see his expression clearly.