Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: The Courtesy Name Jae-cheon
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While a simple platform was being set up for the coming-of-age ceremony, the spectators hurriedly dispersed. Those who remained were mostly from the Four Great Families. It was a gesture of goodwill, given their close ties.
Only the Yuk Clan Patriarch and Yuk Jin-yang remained in the training grounds.
Martial artists' coming-of-age ceremonies were generally simple affairs. Even those from distinguished lineages had been influenced over generations by the murim's bold and unpretentious ways. The Zhejiang Yuk Clan was no exception.
The Yuk Clan Patriarch skipped most of the four additions and personally placed the ceremonial cap on his grandson's head. Now, only the courtesy name remained. This was the name he would take upon reaching adulthood.
In ancient times, names were considered sacred. Upon adulthood, one would create a courtesy name (zi) to prevent others from casually calling one's birth name, using the zi as the formal style instead.
This custom had somewhat declined in modern times, especially in the murim. Nicknames had increasingly taken the place of courtesy names. Still, remnants persisted, and it remained an important part of the ceremony.
The Yuk Clan Patriarch seemed to have already decided on a name. Without wasting time, he announced it directly.
"The name Jin-yang (振揚: to rise shaking off) evokes the image of a flying dragon soaring into the heavens, and that flying dragon is in the realm of 'flying dragon in the heavens' (飛龍在天). In hopes that your fate will be the same, I bestow upon you the courtesy name Jae-cheon."
Jae-cheon. It meant ascending to the heavens. Grandiose, but it appealed to him. There was a saying that an overly ambitious name could suppress one's fortune, but he paid it no mind.
It would be the name by which the people of the murim would call him, so something ostentatious was preferable. Yuk Jin-yang had the confidence to shatter their doubts.
The Yuk Clan Patriarch smiled warmly at his grandson's composed demeanor.
"I see people there looking for you. Go on. You've done well today."
A man dressed in scholar's robes was approaching from the direction the Patriarch indicated.
Yuk Jin-yang headed to the annex where the successful candidates were gathering. It was empty inside. The other passers had apparently finished their business while he was at the ceremony.
"Please wait here a moment."
The man left Yuk Jin-yang alone and departed the annex.
As he waited quietly, the sliding door soon opened. It was the same man who had brought him here, now carrying a small wooden box under his arm that hadn't been there before.
The man bowed politely.
"Allow me to introduce myself formally. I am Kwak Man, affiliated with the Five Harmony Alliance General Affairs Office. Now that you have officially become a Five Harmony Alliance warrior, we have arranged this meeting to inform you of your duties and privileges."
Clearing his throat with a hem-hem, Kwak Man added,
"Though the current situation doesn't call for fulfilling those duties yet, once the turmoil ends, you too will have to carry out missions, young master."
"I shall listen attentively."
"Do you know the origins of the Five Harmony Alliance's founding?"
"To rein in the lawless chaos of the murim, isn't it?"
Kwak Man smiled enigmatically as he brought up the past.
"Half correct, but there's another reason. To eradicate the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty still lingering in the world."
Yuk Jin-yang recalled the secret histories of the late Yuan and early Ming his grandfather had told him.
"Thanks to the efforts of the Four Great Families' patriarchs and Taizu, the world has regained order. But remnants of the Yuan imperial family's sins still plague the land."
"......"
"Spirit beasts, monsters... even yokai masquerading as humans under human-skin masks roam freely. The Five Harmony Alliance must vigilantly hunt down and capture these otherworldly beings."
"What have the imperial troops been doing all this time?"
"In pitched battles, the Great Ming army is invincible. With hundreds of thousands trained in martial arts. But our enemies are cunning. They hide in remote mountains and wildernesses or disguise themselves as humans to disrupt the populace. They never seek direct confrontation with imperial forces."
It meant they operated in places where large armies couldn't be deployed. Such terrain was where supreme experts truly shone.
"Thus, Five Harmony Alliance warriors require a special mindset. They must be prepared to sacrifice themselves for peace and prosperity."
"I shall keep that in mind."
"I've gone on too long. Having spoken of duties, now let me explain the rewards."
Kwak Man set down the wooden box he had been carrying. Inside, lined with silk, lay a badge carved from ebony. Yuk Jin-yang's name was already engraved on it.
"This is your Five Harmony Alliance identity badge and rank plaque. Given only to warriors recognized as qualified to enter the Alliance."
"It looks like quite a valuable item."
"Indeed."
Kwak Man readily agreed and continued his explanation.
"The cord attached to the plaque is woven from the hair of a human-faced spider yokai. Tougher than ordinary steel, it rarely snaps even under a master's sword strike."
The human-faced spider was a yokai with a human face. Though it preyed on humans, humans hunted it in turn for its many useful byproducts.
"Do not show it to others carelessly or flaunt it. Also, if a comrade falls during a mission, be sure to recover this plaque. For the funeral rites."
"Funeral......"
"It also serves as a horse plaque. As stipulated by imperial law. At any post station in the realm, showing this credential means they cannot refuse your request for a horse."
It was authority equivalent to that of an imperial inspector. Such was the imperial court's lavish consideration to win the hearts of the ancient families.
"Incidentally, the plaque's material varies by rank within the Alliance."
"If ebony is the lowest, what comes next?"
"Ebony wood, water buffalo horn, ivory, bi jade, and iron, in that order."
"Iron?"
"Also known as the Crimson Writ Iron Voucher. Held only by the Four Great Families' patriarchs."
The iron voucher was an iron tile.
Upon it, the emperor would inscribe in red ink: 'Even if the Yellow River runs dry as a belt and Mount Tai wears away to a pebble, so long as the nation's ancestral temple stands, your house shall not end (使黃河如帶，太山如礪，國有宗廟，爾無絕世).' This made it a crimson writ iron voucher.
Those possessing it were exempt from punishment except for treason. A privilege reserved for founding merits.
Gazing at the identity plaque, Yuk Jin-yang asked,
"But you said this wooden plaque is given only to qualified warriors. Didn't everyone affiliated with the Five Harmony Alliance take the entrance exam and prove their worth?"
"There are also outer disciples beyond formal warriors."
With that, Kwak Man elaborated at length.
"Not all Five Harmony Alliance warriors hail from ancient families. They don't always require entrance exams, and they even take in talented orphans from across the land to teach them martial arts. Otherwise, securing talent would be difficult."
Yuk Jin-yang saw through what Kwak Man was glossing over.
The ancient families weren't just the Four Great Families. Including lesser clans and branch families, there was no shortage of talent.
What the Alliance leadership truly aimed for was checks and balances. Infusing external talent to maintain equilibrium apart from the ancient families.
"Ah, and your assignment to a division will be decided later. The situation is urgent on multiple fronts, so please bear with us."
Yuk Jin-yang tilted his head.
"What do you mean?"
"Five Harmony Alliance warriors are assigned to one of the thirteen martial forces comprising the Alliance. Also known as the Thirteen Divisions of the Alliance."
"......"
"Each division leader has the authority to select members. Preferences vary, so they usually observe candidates closely over seven days or so."
"Meaning there's no time for that now."
Kwak Man nodded gravely.
"Yes. With the realm in chaos, we can't afford elaborate procedures. Thus, for this intake, the Dry Edict Corps—which oversees the Thirteen Divisions—will assign missions."
"The Dry Edict Corps? There's a position that high overseeing the thirteen divisions?"
If the Four Great Families maintained balance, such an overseeing role was unnecessary. It would only breed conflict. Or be a figurehead. Either way, useless.
Kwak Man felt perplexed by Yuk Jin-yang's puzzled reaction. He hadn't expected a direct heir of the Four Great Patriarchs to be ignorant of the Alliance.
But Kwak Man didn't embarrass him with unnecessary details. He smoothly transitioned to explanation, a skill honed in General Affairs.
"It's the court's arrangement to influence Alliance operations. The Dry Edict Corps leader is not from an ancient family but a member of the imperial dragon bloodline."
"Ah, I see."
Upon hearing this, Yuk Jin-yang nodded readily.
It was a leash of sorts. Especially with dragon blood overseeing it.
Dragon blood (龍血) was no mere metaphor. Only Taizu's direct descendants among the imperial clan qualified. They truly inherited the dragon's blood.
In the late Yuan, not all supernatural beings that appeared were malevolent.
Some intermingled with humans, birthing heroes. Taizu and the Empress Dowager were such cases.
The Empress Dowager, originally a dragon soaring the skies, took human form and united with Taizu. Thus, the Zhu imperial house flowed with sacred dragon blood.
Legend held that a single drop of dragon blood could unlock one's full potential. Born with it coursing through their veins, the benefits were self-evident.
"In any case, stand by for now. You'll hear from us soon."
"Very well."
Kwak Man bowed and quietly left.
The news that the ancient families' patriarchs had gathered shocked the realm.
The court sent letters demanding clear answers from the Alliance while the emperor personally reviewed the Forbidden Army's Upper Guard Parent Military Guard to display his might.
The Upper Guard Parent Military Guard was the empire's strongest force. Unlike regional garrisons, it solely handled subduing foreign invaders and rebels, and imperial inspections.
Even the infamous Embroidered Uniform Guard fell under its jurisdiction.
Their deployment symbolized the emperor's unyielding resolve.
The regional kings, who had been watching events unfold, also took sides.
Most submitted and accepted the emperor's judgment. But Prince of Yan and his sympathizers differed. After reading a secret letter from the Alliance, Prince of Yan immediately led his army southward.
Under the pretext of correcting the foolish emperor blinded by treacherous ministers.
This marked the beginning of the Jingnan Rebellion.