Why Grasp the Sword?
Seomun Su-rin’s question hung in the air. “If the Divine Dragon has appeared, why grasp a sword and swing it at all?”
Seomun Cheong tilted her head. “Um. Isn’t it because you need it to survive?”
“That may have been true when your skills were lacking, but you are already a disciple worthy of being called a master in your own right. Now that you possess the strength to live if you simply choose to live, a sword swung only for survival will inevitably lose its edge and grow dull, will it not?”
“Ah.”
She was right. Once someone reached the late stages of the Peak realm, they could walk into any local training hall and live out their days in comfort and respect. Of course, stronger experts kept appearing, but had she truly worried about survival lately? Even when she had dealt with those Blood Sect bastards, she had charged in relying on her poison immunity. And what had she been thinking then? If things went south, she could just run. Her lightness skill was at a level where she could claim to be the best under heaven at fleeing, so she had been overflowing with confidence on that front.
She had never once worried about herself. She had only fretted over vagrants or the occasionally irritating Moyong Juhee. She had never considered that she herself might be in danger.
So was that the problem? Because she had it too easy?
“I… don’t really know,” she admitted.
Seomun Su-rin reached out and gently stroked her disciple’s hair. “The sword you carry in your heart can change at any time. It is not some law you must uphold simply because you once decided upon it. Since there is no single correct answer, whatever answer you choose is the correct one. So feel free to ponder it without burden.”
“Mm.”
To Seomun Cheong, martial arts were simply a convenient tool. Truthfully, she still struggled to feel the reality of it, or perhaps it was that she could not bring herself to believe it. Or maybe she simply could not sense any realness in it at all. After all, what even was internal energy? Focusing the mind, breathing properly, drawing in the qi of heaven and earth to accumulate it—an omnipotent resource that could affect the body anywhere? Her homeland had no such superhuman abilities. If it had, they would have systematized education and management, turned it into a basic school subject, and turned the entire population into martial artists, creating a billion absolute masters. Then what? What would they even do with a billion masters? They would just get mowed down by firearms anyway. If a billion masters mastered the Blazing Sun Palm, they could boil water to turn turbines. That would be eco-friendly, right? Or if a billion masters cultivated ice arts, they could stop global warming. Also eco-friendly.
So if internal energy had existed in the modern world too, would the Earth have suffered so much? The conclusion felt a little off…
Seomun Cheong’s rare moment of serious contemplation had once again veered into absurd fantasy. Seomun Su-rin let out a long sigh at the sight of her disciple’s usual expression—the one that looked as though countless question marks were floating around her.
“Haa. Hopeless. Why can’t you focus?”
But it was not that she could not focus. It was more accurate to say she was unconsciously avoiding it. She instinctively blocked any thought that might lead to doubting the world itself. So she deliberately steered dangerous ideas toward nonsense, dragging the boat up a high mountain and flinging it toward the vast clusters of stars in space.
“Umm. I still don’t know.”
Seomun Cheong’s shoulders slumped. Seomun Su-rin ruffled her hair again, this time with more force.
“It is always harder to find the sincerity within yourself than to seek distant treasures. Mm. Then again, perhaps not. That would not do.”
“Ack. Master, if you start saying something and then stop, your disciple won’t be able to sleep from curiosity!”
Seomun Su-rin snorted. “Then stay awake and train instead. This works out rather well.”
---
The reason Moyong Juhee had her head buried between her legs in the training ground of Mucheon Pavilion was surprisingly simple. She just wanted to sleep. As a woman, she could not simply lie down and nap in broad daylight in an open outdoor space. So she had only assumed a posture that made it easier to doze off.
The reason she had gone to such lengths to sleep was also simple. She could not sleep at night. When left alone in the pitch-black darkness, anxiety kept her awake. Instead of sleeping, she would crawl under the bed, hide her body, cover her mouth, and focus entirely on concealing herself. Only after the endlessly long night passed, only when dawn broke, only when she could hear the sounds of people nearby, could she finally feel at ease.
There was one voice in particular that brought her the most comfort.
It’s all right. Young Lady Moyong has done nothing wrong. It will gradually get better. It just hurts a lot right now, but I believe it will improve.
Those gentle words that had whispered by her ear. When she listened to that voice, it really felt like things would turn out that way. It felt like the truth.
So she had simply come outside to sleep. But now that routine was over.
You rotten girl. You said you wouldn’t throw it away…
Still, Moyong Juhee agreed with Seomun Cheong. Whenever she looked at her, the painful memories resurfaced too vividly. Hatred and resentment with nowhere to go would burst forth before she knew it.
Yes. It made sense that she would be thrown away. Someone like her. Who would… Still, she could endure. She had to endure. Because she had a home to return to. For the sake of her family too.
What should she do? Should she tell her family? She wanted to confess everything and simply receive comfort in the warm embrace of her family. But that too was frightening, and humiliating. The fact that the daughter of one of the Five Great Families had been kidnapped by the Blood Sect would itself be a great disgrace to the clan. Moreover, she had dismissed her escorts and foolishly run away alone at night, only to be captured. Above all, she did not want to worry everyone in the family just because she was hurting. Like when her mother had been ill. She did not want that. She would just pretend it never happened. With time, everything would be fine. Just like that person had said—it’s okay, it will be okay.
The guest lodging assigned to the Moyong Family looked the same as always.
“Ah, Young Lady. You have returned?”
“Yes. Um. Where is Father? And Jun?”
“The Family Head is inside, and the Young Master has gone out to play. He never stays still, after all.”
“Well…”
Moyong Juhee trailed off. She had not expected a grand welcome, but the casual attitude, as if nothing had happened, still pricked at her heart. She had been in so much pain. While she had been suffering, everyone had simply known nothing and just… carried on like that.
Moyong Seong-ik was no different.
“What’s this, daughter? You’re back? You said you were going home. Why did you return?”
“Well…”
Moyong Juhee could not continue. Her throat burned, and she felt as though tears would spill out at any moment. She could not do this. She could not be like this. She had to speak. Otherwise, she would not be able to endure. The memories were too painful to simply pretend they never happened. She wanted to be comforted.
Moyong Juhee gathered her courage. But—
“Going out is fine, but don’t dismiss your escorts. The Blood Sect’s evil spawn seem to be stretching their limbs again. I know our daughter’s skills, but caution is still necessary.”
Moyong Juhee’s heart sank like a stone.
“The Blood Sect, the Blood Sect…?”
“Keep this between us. The Blood Sect bastards had properly set up shop in Kaifeng. Even the Murim Alliance produced three spies addicted to the poison. Two among the Murim Alliance warriors, and one whose family suffered a bereavement. In the Kaifeng government office, there were five households in mourning, and even the military command lost its commander, resulting in a sudden wave of funerals. This happened because the Blood Sect’s leader died, causing all the planted agents to self-destruct at once.”
“It’s fortunate we stopped them early. What a disaster that could have been. Good heavens, the military commander being a Blood Sect spy? Thirty thousand troops could have been played like puppets in the Blood Sect’s hands. Well, the Murim Alliance is in no position to talk, what with even a senior secretary ending up like that.”
Moyong Juhee’s eyes trembled. She had said she would not tell anyone. That she would make sure no one knew. “How… who… who told you?”
“The Deputy Military Advisor supposedly found out by running around alone? As if that’s possible. The Grand Commander must have fed him the credit.”
Moyong Juhee felt a moment of relief. It seemed Seomun Cheong had not deceived or abandoned her after all. She had not broken her promise to keep it secret.
Deputy Military Advisor—Hyeonhwa, that woman? Then what about her own story? Had everything about her capture been exposed too?
“Don’t go around talking about it. If others find out, it will only invite finger-pointing. Haa. I’m embarrassed just thinking about it.”
From Moyong Seong-ik’s attitude, it seemed her own situation had not been revealed. Then perhaps it was for the best. She could naturally let it slip that she had been captured too—
But Moyong Seong-ik’s lament stopped her.
“Anyway, the Murim Alliance is a complete mess. Tsk tsk. Three spies already, and wasn’t there that incident before? They gave some kid from the Jin family an independent patrol position because she was supposedly clever, only to hand such an important post to a Blood Sect lackey. They made a huge fuss about redoing personnel verification, and then more spies turned up.”
“Isn’t that a bit different? Once the Blood Poison enters you, your life is on the line. Those people had no choice either.”
“So they sold out their comrades to save themselves. They should have just died instead.”
Moyong Juhee’s breath caught in her throat. Her insides twisted and churned as if convulsing, sending waves of pain through her.
“The Murim Alliance is in an uproar right now. Every department is in chaos trying to figure out how far the information has leaked.”
“That’s…”
“Really now. Those who know what happened to the Jin family’s child. Didn’t one Blood Sect spy wipe out an entire family among the Ten Great Families? If it were just extermination, that would be fortunate. They turned all those family members and retainers into jiangshi. That’s worse than death.”
The color drained from Moyong Juhee’s face. It was fortunate she was sitting; if she had been standing, her legs would have given out. But her spirit had already collapsed.
“Daughter? What’s wrong?”
“Still… even if those people were captured by the Blood Sect, that wasn’t their fault. They never thought they would be caught either.”
“Shouldn’t a martial artist die rather than be captured? Being taken alive is already shameful enough for a warrior. And once they realized they were poisoned by the Blood Sect, they should have either taken some enemies down with them in mutual destruction or at least warned the Alliance, even if it meant dying. They must have begged for their lives to survive. Haa. Trash, the lot of them.”
“Ugh.”
“Daughter?”
Unable to hold back the churning in her stomach any longer, Moyong Juhee vomited everything inside her.
“Why, why are you like this? Are you sick? A physician, a physician—yes, the Dang Family, someone— No, just hold on a little. Father will bring someone right away—”
“No! No, it’s fine.”
Moyong Juhee let out a sound close to a scream. Not the Dang Family. Not the Dang Family…
“I just overate because I was trying to force it down after feeling nauseous. Now… now I feel a bit better.”
“Good grief. Trying to vomit after eating because of indigestion. How foolish.”
“Heh… hehe…”
Moyong Juhee forced a smile. Moyong Seong-ik, unable to erase his worried expression, spoke firmly.
“If you’re hurting anywhere, don’t hide it. If I have to see your mother’s condition again, this father of yours really will go to the underworld this time. Understand, daughter?”
“O-of course.”
Moyong Juhee desperately tried to maintain her smile, swallowing the screams inside her.
---
With the major events of the Grand Murim Tournament gradually coming to an end, the finals of the Hidden Dragon Tournament were the grand finale. The Hidden Dragon Tournament had seen many unexpected developments. Yet human nature being what it was—different going in than coming out—everyone now spoke as if they had completely forgotten the past.
Seomun Cheong had defeated Wolbong in a match everyone could accept as fair, and in the process revealed her beauty. Furthermore, during the introductions, it was revealed that she was the disciple of the foremost woman in the world. After that, those who had once claimed she must be the Ugly Swordswoman or that an ugly girl needed exceptional martial arts now nodded with solemn expressions.
“There was always something noble about her from the start. And to display such divine might at her age! Truly worthy of being the disciple of the foremost woman.”
Hah. Every single one of them was running their mouths the other way before, and now they’re pretending otherwise. What the hell? These bastards…!
For reasons unknown, after the semifinal matches, large and small fights had become unusually frequent throughout Kaifeng. Not just physical fights, but verbal ones as well. In every restaurant, tavern, eatery, and teahouse in the city, people raised their voices and argued heatedly. Usually, such trends occurred when there was a topic everyone found genuinely interesting, and everyone rushed to voice their opinions. And the subject that had people raising their voices wherever crowds gathered was this:
What nickname would best suit Seomun Cheong of the Sinnyeo Sect, disciple of the foremost woman in the world?