Chapter 392: To an Even More Upbeat Tune!
Chapter 392: To an Even More Upbeat Tune!
“The time has finally come.”
At Geom Mu-geuk’s words, Bi Sa-in’s heart sank. How could he not know what those mischief-filled eyes were demanding? He felt as though the inevitable had finally arrived.
“I have no idea what you are talking about.”
He feigned ignorance for now. Normally, no one would dare question a man with a face as terrifying as his, but unfortunately, his opponent was Geom Mu-geuk.
“I mean the time to keep your promise.”
Curiosity piqued, Geom Mu-yang, Jin Ha-gun, and Jin Ha-ryeong—who were all gathered together—leaned in. At the same time, they all shared a single thought: Poor man. What kind of leverage did Mu-geuk catch him with this time?
However, curiosity outweighed sympathy at the moment. The same was true for Geom Wu-jin, Jin Pae-cheon, and Baek Ja-gang, who were standing a short distance away.
Bi Sa-in’s eyes pleaded with Mu-geuk.
Surely not here? Please tell me it’s not here.
If Mu-geuk had any intention of letting him off, he wouldn't have brought it up in the first place.
“I don’t think there will ever be a better time or place to fulfill that promise than right now,” Mu-geuk said, intentionally using the word 'promise' to further heighten the curiosity of those around them.
Bi Sa-in’s heart hammered against his ribs. It hadn't raced this fast even when he was waiting beneath the stage for his very first martial arts duel.
Geom Mu-yang spoke up tentatively. “I don’t know what this is about, but don’t make things too difficult for the Young Alliance Leader.”
“He was the one who made the promise,” Mu-geuk countered.
Bi Sa-in emptied his cup with an anxious expression. “You aren't going to give up, are you?”
“What would you do if you were in my shoes?”
Dislike was one thing, but Bi Sa-in had to admit the truth. If the roles were reversed and he had the chance to tease Geom Mu-geuk like this?
“I wouldn't be able to give it up.”
“If I miss this chance, I’ll probably regret today for the rest of my life,” Mu-geuk added.
Bi Sa-in empathized with that. It wouldn't be easy to gather all the people present today ever again. But that was exactly why he couldn't bring himself to say he’d do it. He tried to offer a different excuse.
“The bastards behind the scenes might be watching this summit.”
“They might be.”
“And you want me to do it in a situation like this?”
He was asking if it was really appropriate to be seen dancing.
“Actually, I want them to see it.”
“What?”
“I want to show them that even with them lurking, we are doing just fine. That we are living our lives to the fullest.”
It was clear that Mu-geuk wasn't joking; he was sincere.
“If we can’t live our lives properly, then even if we eliminate them later, it won't be a true victory. Let’s not grant them any significance.”
As always, this was what Geom Mu-geuk desired. A life where one could say, 'Oh, I’ll be back in a moment. Where did I go? Ah, it was nothing, please continue what you were saying.'
Bi Sa-in drank again. He seemed to be agonizing over whether to just go for it.
Geom Mu-geuk changed his tactic. “Young Alliance Leader.”
When Bi Sa-in looked up, Mu-geuk spoke with a gentle expression. “It’s alright. I only said it to tease you.”
“Really?”
“Even if it was a promise, it would be difficult to keep it in a situation like this. It’s a shame, but I should give up. Come on, let’s not worry about it and just drink.”
Bi Sa-in should have been happy that he didn't have to dance, but for some reason, he wasn't.
Unable to contain herself any longer, Jin Ha-ryeong asked, “What on earth is going on?”
“You don’t need to know,” Mu-geuk replied.
Then, Bi Sa-in blurted out, “I promised to dance in front of everyone.”
Jin Ha-ryeong froze, her jaw dropping. Not only Jin Ha-gun, but even Geom Mu-yang was shocked. As all eyes simultaneously flew toward him, Geom Mu-geuk waved his hands dismissively.
“Why are you looking at me? It was a promise the Young Alliance Leader made on his own.”
Naturally, Jin Ha-ryeong didn't believe him. “No way! It must have been the devil’s temptation.”
Geom Mu-yang and Jin Ha-gun nodded in unison.
“You probably pushed him into a trap!”
“The one who’s always looking for a chance to push me from behind is the Young Alliance Leader!” Mu-geuk argued.
“Impossible! There’s no way he would do that.”
“How long have you even known him?”
This time, Geom Mu-yang stepped forward. “I apologize on behalf of my brother.”
Ironically, the actions of the two siblings ended up helping Geom Mu-geuk. Given Bi Sa-in’s personality, he couldn't keep it hidden when they spoke like that.
“No, it is true that I said I would dance.” Bi Sa-in downed three cups of wine in a row. “I will do it.”
Everyone tried to stop him.
“Please, reconsider!” Jin Ha-ryeong cried.
“Don’t get swept up by my brother’s antics,” Geom Mu-yang added.
“Don’t push yourself,” Jin Ha-gun urged. If he were in Bi Sa-in’s position? Ah, it was a horrifying thought.
“I cannot be a petty man who doesn't keep his word.”
“I think it would be better to just be a petty man,” Jin Ha-ryeong said pityingly, before glaring at Geom Mu-geuk. “Look at how satisfied he looks.”
Mu-geuk then delivered the finishing blow to her. “So? You don’t want to see it?”
“……”
Bi Sa-in stood up abruptly. He was swept up in the atmosphere and the alcohol. If I have to do it eventually? Fine, let’s just do it today! A surge of youthful bravado was added to the mix. He also wanted to show Mu-geuk that he was a man of his word. In the end, he charged toward the typhoon, the tidal wave, and the lava.
Bi Sa-in strode over to Baek Ja-gang. Since they had heard the entire conversation from where they were sitting, Baek Ja-gang looked at him with an expression that said, Are you really going to do this?
“There was a promise I made to myself in the past. I said that if I ever escaped that crisis, I would dance in front of people. I intend to keep that promise today.”
Everyone seemed to understand what had happened. There was another meaning hidden in those words. It meant the crisis had been that dire, and that he had ultimately overcome it alongside Geom Mu-geuk. It wasn't just any promise, and it wasn't just any dance.
Baek Ja-gang stared silently into his disciple’s eyes. Did you always have this side to you?
Bi Sa-in’s face was flushed red. It was unclear whether it was from the alcohol or the excitement.
“If you made a promise, you must keep it.”
Baek Ja-gang gave his permission. He was a man of cool and straightforward character, after all.
Bi Sa-in returned and made a request to Geom Mu-geuk. “Please make the arrangements.”
“Are you really going to do it?”
Instead of resentment, Bi Sa-in showed the eyes of a man who was prepared.
“I’m seeing yet another new expression from you,” Mu-geuk noted.
“I’ve come this far because I was deceived by words like that.”
“We still have a long way to go. I intend to see every single one of your expressions.”
Bi Sa-in’s pupils trembled. Surprisingly, he now knew those words were sincere.
Geom Mu-geuk called out from the balcony to Jo Chun-bae on the lower floor. “Innkeeper, go and call some musicians.”
“Understood!”
As Jo Chun-bae was about to run out, the Fist Demon stopped him and sent a Voice Transmission to the Unit Leaders. The Unit Leaders dashed off like arrows and brought musicians from a nearby courtesan house.
Once the musicians arrived, Bi Sa-in headed down to the first floor. Geom Wu-jin, Jin Pae-cheon, and Baek Ja-gang stood by the balcony on the second floor to watch. The four who had been with Bi Sa-in followed him down.
All the masters drinking on the first floor stared at Bi Sa-in. A few were already drunk.
Bi Sa-in addressed them. “To commemorate today’s historic three-party summit, I shall perform a dance for you all.”
Everyone was stunned. When the musicians had arrived and set up in front of the tavern, they had assumed they were called just to liven up the mood. But the Young Alliance Leader of the Unorthodox Path was going to dance?
The warriors of the Unorthodox Path Alliance looked up at the second floor. Baek Ja-gang, standing at the railing, was watching silently as if he had already given his blessing. If that was the case, it wasn't their place to argue.
An old master of the Unorthodox Path asked, “Then, do you intend to perform the Heavenly Transformation Extreme Killing Dance?”
The Heavenly Transformation Extreme Killing Dance was a supreme divine art of the Unorthodox Path, said to leave no survivors among those who witnessed it.
“No.”
“Then, do you intend to perform the Primordial Soul-Snatching Dance?”
It was a dance of death known to drive those with weak internal energy insane.
“No.”
“Then you mean to perform a standard sword dance?”
To most martial artists, a 'dance' meant a performance involving a blade.
“No. I will perform a dance that ordinary people do. The kind of dance one might see on a day of celebration.”
The old master who asked the question, as well as the others, didn't understand at first. What did he mean by just a 'dance'? A dance that commoners performed? You? Here? Why?
“Our Young Alliance Leader is drunk,” the old master remarked.
At his words, the surrounding masters looked up at Baek Ja-gang again. Their eyes asked if he wasn't going to stop him, but Baek Ja-gang merely looked down in silence.
Not only the Unorthodox masters but also the Orthodox masters were bewildered. However, everyone had had a drink, and they were curious to see exactly what kind of dance the Young Alliance Leader would perform.
The Demon Lords looked at Geom Mu-geuk instead of Bi Sa-in. When the Blood Heaven Blade Demon shook his head and scolded him with his eyes—'Ugh, you brat!'—Geom Mu-geuk put on an aggrieved expression. Of course, not a single Demon Lord believed that look of innocence.
The Poison King’s gaze, in particular, was distant. Ah, I was caught in those demonic clutches once and ended up barking at the training ground.
The windows of the inn were thrown wide open. People watched from their seats, some stood, and some even stepped outside. Bi Sa-in stood in the middle of the road outside the tavern.
“Oh, what are we going to do?” Jin Ha-ryeong’s face turned red before he even started. She felt embarrassed on his behalf. “We won't be able to look the Young Alliance Leader in the eye after this, will we? He might go into closed-door training for a hundred years.”
Geom Mu-yang and Jin Ha-gun also launched a combined attack on Geom Mu-geuk.
“You wicked man!”
“You went too far this time.”
“I told you, he made the promise himself!” Geom Mu-geuk’s protest fell on deaf ears.
“Even so, you brought up that promise at a time like this?” Geom Mu-yang pierced through to the core of the issue, but Mu-geuk had a decisive counterattack.
“So? Are you not going to watch?”
“……”
Geom Mu-yang, Jin Ha-gun, and Jin Ha-ryeong all looked in different directions, pretending they hadn't heard.
“Young Alliance Leader Bi! You look magnificent!” As Geom Mu-geuk cheered and clapped, the three beside him joined in the applause.
The old masters of both the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions showed slight signs of disapproval. They didn't like the fact that the successors were mingling like this in the first place. However, they didn't dare scold them openly in the presence of Geom Wu-jin, Jin Pae-cheon, and Baek Ja-gang.
Bi Sa-in closed his eyes. He felt so alone, as if he had been cast out into the world by himself.
Finally, the music began.
His body wouldn't move because of the tension. Ah, if this were a fight, I would have just died.
Watching him, Jin Ha-ryeong covered her eyes. “Oh, I can’t watch.”
“Me neither.”
When Geom Mu-geuk also covered his eyes, Jin Ha-ryeong snapped at him. “Why are you covering yours?”
“Now that it’s actually happening, I can’t bring myself to look either.”
“You’re the one who dealt the blow, and now you’re acting like you can’t stand the sight of blood?”
The musicians played the melody again. How shocked must they have been? They were suddenly told to perform, only to find the Demonic Cult Leader, the Murim Alliance Leader, and the Unorthodox Path Alliance Leader present, along with the Demon Lords and the greatest masters of the land. And above all, the Young Alliance Leader of the Unorthodox Path was about to dance to their music. The musicians were just as out of their minds as Bi Sa-in. Right, this must be a collective dream.
The music flowed again, and this time, Bi Sa-in began to dance.
“Huh?” Jin Ha-ryeong removed her hands.
Bi Sa-in was dancing much better than she had expected. Geom Mu-geuk, who had been peeking through his fingers, opened his eyes wide. Even though he was the one who instigated it, he had been just as embarrassed and nervous.
“He’s good?”
He was actually dancing quite decently. It wasn't just random flailing. His hands and feet were moving in rhythm with the melody. In truth, Bi Sa-in had learned to dance from the 8th Wolf of the Unorthodox Path. The 8th Wolf, who was said to have once ruled the back alleys of Hangzhou, had passed down his secret dance to him.
Bi Sa-in had practiced that dance diligently whenever he had time. He had anticipated that a day like this might come. He just hadn't expected it to be today.
Geom Mu-geuk could tell. He could tell that the man had practiced and practiced again. This was the kind of person Bi Sa-in was—a man who always kept his promises and strove to do his best in whatever he did.
However, Bi Sa-in’s dance soon reached its limit. He wasn't a natural-born dancer to begin with, and it was a dance he had learned hastily. He lacked sufficient practice. As the movements repeated, his hands and feet began to falter out of embarrassment. In times like this, one needed to be shameless, but he couldn't manage it. His body shrank back, and his true lack of skill began to show.
The pitiful movements of a man who had lost his confidence were conveyed to everyone. Geom Wu-jin tilted his head slightly and looked up at the sky. Jin Pa-cheon cleared his throat. Baek Ja-gang closed his small eyes tightly.
Should I have come alone?
It was at that moment, when everyone from the Orthodox, Unorthodox, and Demonic factions was feeling pity, that someone suddenly leaped onto the dance floor.
“Let’s dance together!”
The person who burst in was Geom Mu-geuk.
He began to follow Bi Sa-in’s dance. There was no way a dance he was performing for the first time today would be perfect, but Mu-geuk followed the movements with gusto. He danced in an even more exaggerated and comical way, causing laughter to erupt here and there.
“This is such a fun dance!” Then, as if his excitement had peaked, Mu-geuk shouted, “Play something faster, please!”
The musicians played an even more upbeat tune. Geom Mu-geuk’s joints bent this way and that. It was a bizarre and grotesque dance that made people wonder where on earth he could have learned such a thing.
Laughter erupted again, and this time, Bi Sa-in followed his dance. Bi Sa-in’s hideous face was flushed even deeper. No one would ever know how happy he felt when Geom Mu-geuk jumped onto the dance floor. Even if someone had jumped in to save him when he was surrounded by enemies and on the verge of death, he wouldn't have been this happy.
“Brother, dance with us!” Geom Mu-geuk ran over and tried to force Geom Mu-yang to join.
Sring.
Geom Mu-yang’s sword was drawn halfway. Mu-geuk changed direction and tried to pull Jin Ha-gun out.
Srring.
The sword was drawn even further.
Then, someone jumped in of their own accord. It was Jin Ha-ryeong.
No! Ha-ryeong!
Before Jin Pae-cheon could stop her, Jin Ha-ryeong was already moving to the rhythm. It wasn't because she was a good dancer. She was also someone who was extremely shy about stepping forward like this. But seeing Geom Mu-geuk step up for his friend like that, she wanted to help too. She wanted to share that embarrassment. With that thought, her body had impulsively leaped forward.
With her joining in, the atmosphere brightened. She danced gracefully, while Geom Mu-geuk danced with wild excitement. Bi Sa-in, completely dazed, just threw himself into whatever movements came to mind. The musicians began to play with even more fervor.
It was the first three-party summit, but it was also likely the first time since the dawn of the Murim that warriors from the Orthodox, Unorthodox, and Demonic factions had gathered to dance together.
The radiance from the Demon Buddha’s body shone even brighter. Having traveled all over the Central Plains, the Demon Buddha was tapping his foot and swaying his body to the rhythm as if to say he used to have some fun back in the day. It was a movement that suggested he might have jumped in himself if there weren't so many eyes watching.
The masters of the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions, who had initially looked on with disapproval, now softened their expressions as if watching children’s antics.
Baek Ja-gang was staring at Bi Sa-in, who was dancing with all his might. Jin Pae-cheon had seen that look many times before. It was the look that said, No matter how great someone else’s child is, my own is the best.
Jin Pae-cheon then looked at Geom Wu-jin, who was standing on the opposite side. He was silently watching Geom Mu-geuk dance.
I hope you lose to your son. If your first defeat is to your son... wouldn't that be alright?
Jin Pae-cheon’s gaze returned to the children dancing. “Even when the Orthodox, Unorthodox, and Demonic factions gather, it can be this joyful.”
Youth is such a wonderful thing. Why didn't I play like that when I was young? Fighting and fighting again. Killing this many people this time, and killing someone else the next. Did I spend my entire youth like that? Without ever laughing out loud like that, without ever having such fun?
Then, Baek Ja-gang spoke. “Perhaps it is because we are the Orthodox, Unorthodox, and Demonic factions that it is even more enjoyable.”
Jin Pae-cheon nodded.
Jin Ha-ryeong moved her hands and waist cutely, telling them to follow her lead. Geom Mu-geuk and Bi Sa-in followed her dance. As the three of them synchronized their movements, it looked quite pleasant, like a choreographed group dance.
Bi Sa-in didn't realize it, but he, who had never smiled properly because he hated showing his hideous face, was now wearing the brightest smile of his life.
Lost in the trance of the dance, Geom Mu-geuk shouted.
“To an even more upbeat tune!”
Was it because the wind, carrying the full essence of spring, had come to cool their sweat? The three dancers showed no signs of tiring.