A Sword Friend for the Journey to Mount Hua
Cheong had always carried herself with bold confidence on her journey toward Mount Hua. This time, however, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had made an utter fool of herself. It was her first true blunder since stepping into the Murim. How diligently and virtuously have I lived until now? Strictly speaking, this incident wasn’t really her fault either. The Taepyeong Sword Sect was to blame for pulling their thuggish antics right in front of her when her mind was completely fried. And then that tactless sparring fanatic had rubbed her the wrong way. Even so, she had gone a bit too far this time. Yeah. She had to admit there was at least a speck of fault on her side. Her perfect morality had cracked.
For that reason, Cheong was depressed.
In truth, she knew her current state—feeling pure ecstasy from slicing people apart—was far from normal. But what could she do when it felt so good? It was genuinely amazing, yet there was no way to explain it to anyone. That was why she had been so careful with her behavior until now. Slashing and tearing for fun was something only villains did. Cheong was simply a little peculiar; at her core, she was just an ordinary person. So her solution for times like this was ordinary too. A city full of terrible memories? Time to leave.
Cheong’s decisiveness was unmatched in the Central Plains. After all, she had nowhere tying her down.
On her way out, she stopped by the Taepyeong Sword Sect. When the warrior guarding the main gate asked her business, she politely handed over the five swords she had taken as spoils.
“This is…?”
“I picked them up on the way.”
“……?”
What kind of person picked up swords on the road? Five of them, no less—and all belonging to a sect. The warrior’s brain froze for a moment. By the time he belatedly reached out, Cheong had already strode far into the distance.
“Miss? Where are you going! Please wait…!”
Bound to his post at the main gate, he could only call after her with a pitiful voice. But Cheong was like the wind; she could not be caught.
That left only one question: where to go next.
First of all, it seems I really don’t get along with water. Every time I get tangled up with a river, things go terribly wrong. That sudden final boss and now this place. My fate must have some water-related misfortune woven into it. It was a shame to waste the Yangtze River free pass, but there was no need to deny the ancestral wisdom that defying one’s fate brought nothing good. Besides, Cheong had never traveled in such luxury before. Since when had she bothered looking for escorts or riding in carriages?
As she prepared to set out on foot—
“What the. Why are you following me?”
“It’s not exactly following. I don’t have anywhere particular to go, so I simply let my feet carry me where they would and somehow ended up here.”
“Even so, there won’t be any sparring, got it? And why don’t you have anywhere to go? That’s a rich-young-master complaint if I’ve ever heard one.”
“Well… the truth is, I’m thinking of running away from home for a while. If I return like this, I cannot guarantee my life will be spared.”
Three days had already passed since the incident. Rumors spread like wildfire, so it was only natural they would reach the Namgung Clan—the true power ruling Anhui Province. The current clan head, the Sword King Namgung Dae-ro, was a man as straight and unyielding as a blade. If he caught wind of someone harassing a woman in broad daylight, he would undoubtedly fly into a rage.
Cheong asked, dumbfounded.
“Then why follow me instead of going your own way?”
“Miss, must you be so cold? We are fellow swordsmen. To those who pursue the path of the sword, everyone under the heavens is a comrade.”
Cheong frowned. What is this, some kind of stand-at-attention speech? How was she supposed to shake off this annoying lump?
Then a sudden thought struck her. Why did she have to shake off this rich young master at all?
The realization came like a flash. Ah! I’ve lost sight of my original intentions!
Cheong had rarely traveled with companions. But whenever she had moved with someone, she had certainly enjoyed the benefits that came with it. Come to think of it, how was Sani doing? Well, leading around a whole group of women, he was probably managing to breathe at least. In any case, there was plenty of value in teaming up with this rich young master.
She had been too focused on how annoying the sparring would be. A few scuffles? She could handle that. Of course, before anything else, she needed to establish the proper relationship. The longer they would travel together, the clearer the hierarchy needed to be. He was only a kid in his mid-twenties. She couldn’t possibly follow him around using polite speech the entire time.
Cheong tested the waters.
“If we’re comrades pursuing the path of the sword, then… for example, we could be sword friends.”
“Sword friend!”
Namgung Sinjae’s eyes flew wide open.
“I have never heard a more moving word in my life. Sword friend… sword friend…”
“Then shall we be sword friends?”
“That is exactly what I have been hoping for! Sword friend. I like it very much.”
“Then since we’re comrades who will train in the sword together, there’s no need to keep a polite distance, right?”
“Hmm…”
Namgung Sinjae thought for a moment before nodding.
“That makes sense. If that is what you wish, let us do so.”
What? That easy? Cheong felt a twinge of disappointment at how quickly he had folded. But the disappointment came too soon. Namgung Sinjae’s title was the Young Sword King, and he had another nickname: sword idiot. A bastard crazy about swords.
Cheong had underestimated him.
“…And that is why the sword can be called the most noble weapon in all the world. The Nine Heavens Mystic Lady went so far as to manifest in the mortal realm to pass the sword down to the Yue Kingdom, and since Lu Dongbin, leader of the Eight Immortals, wields a sword, does this not prove that the principles of heaven and earth dictate that the supreme weapon under the heavens is none other than the sword?”
“Uh. Yeah…”
“People often speak of one hundred days for the spear, one thousand for the blade, and ten thousand for the sword. Of course, if the speaker is close to a spearman or bladesman, those numbers might switch places. Yet no one would dare challenge the position of the sword, which requires ten thousand days of training to glimpse its end. This once again proves the superiority of the sword. Unlike those pseudo-martial artists who handle other weapons, we swordsmen are the only true martial artists…”
Damn it, I got myself into this.
The nonstop sword bragging from beside her showed no sign of ending. The term “sword friend” had struck Namgung Sinjae right in the heart. Having finally met someone he believed truly understood, he was pouring out all the cherished sentiments about the sword he had stored in his chest.
The guy sure talked a lot.
Moreover, Namgung Sinjae’s praise of the sword carried some rather problematic implications even to Cheong’s ears. It went far beyond simple preference. The sword was the world’s one and only true weapon; everything else wasn’t even worth calling a weapon. Therefore, only swordsmen who wielded swords were true martial artists. Anyone using other pseudo-weapons that couldn’t even be acknowledged as real arms should be called not martial artists, but martial-artist-wannabes. That was roughly the argument he was making.
“Ah. It seems I have spoken only of myself. What about you, Miss? You must hold deep philosophical views on the sword as well.”
“Uh. Well, for starters… it’s convenient?”
“Exactly! That overwhelming convenience cannot be ignored. After all, a spear can only stab, and that pseudo-sword called a blade can only slash. Their profundity is shallow and insignificant. As for the staff, it does not align with the will a weapon should possess—the purpose of subduing enemies. And the whip is originally…”
Cheong cut him off.
“Alright, alright. The fact that swords are good is something you know, I know, heaven knows, and earth knows, so let’s save it for later. Isn’t there anywhere worth visiting?”
“Hmm.”
Namgung Sinjae rubbed his chin in thought, then clapped his fist.
“Then how about Mount Hua?”
“Mount Hua?”
“I visited the Sword-Carving Cliff of Mount Hua before. It was truly magnificent; no other words could describe it. Since you belong to the Sinnyeo Sect, the Mount Hua Sect will surely allow you to view the Sword-Carving Cliff.”
“Would that be alright for an outsider disciple with no ties?”
“Even without that, with your divine prestige, Miss, there should be no problem. It was the same when I went.”
“Ohh.”
Mount Hua! She wanted to see it. When would she get another chance to lay eyes on Mount Hua? She was a little worried it might be dangerous, but he had gone and returned safely. Besides, her master had mentioned the Mount Hua Sect several times, so it must be a famous place. Was it one of the Nine Great Sects? If a sect had firmly established its position, perhaps the danger wasn’t too great. After all, how could anyone endure lava hotter than fire?
Cheong’s action speed needed no explanation, and Namgung Sinjae—who desperately needed to flee Anhui—had no time to hesitate. Using his money, they hired a carriage and driver. They also bought plenty of snacks. And plenty of wooden swords for sparring—
Cheong frowned.
“Why buy so many wooden swords? Can you even sell them for money? Is this a local specialty? Is there a famous wooden-sword workshop here?”
“Oh dear. It seems Miss Seomun still doesn’t know. Wooden swords break after just a few spars. Isn’t it far better to bring plenty than to run short?”
It still seemed like too many, but since he was paying with his own money, there was no reason to stop him. Cheong simply thought, Whatever.
Sparring was definitely a hassle. However, if she had to sit in a carriage getting her butt numbed while listening to endless sword praise, the urge to beat this guy up would arise naturally. In that case, she might as well beat him up. In sparring, the difference in skill stood out even more clearly.
No cowardly tactics. Attacking dangerous vital points was forbidden. If one intended to use any dangerous techniques, they had to announce it beforehand.
Therefore, even if Cheong called it sparring, the outcome was obvious. An early-stage Peak rookie who could barely maintain his sword qi, flickering in and out distractingly. In fact, it was closer to guidance than actual sparring.
In that sense, sparring with Namgung Sinjae was ambiguously unhelpful, then helpful, then unhelpful again.
So it happened during their first spar.
Cheong picked two out of the five incoming sword shadows and lightly tapped them away. Once the two real moves were destroyed, the illusory ones that lost momentum shook and vanished.
Cheong took a step forward as a feint and lightly kicked Namgung Sinjae’s ankle. He yelped and instinctively exposed the crown of his head.
Ah! This is it!
Cheong’s left hand curled into a fist with the middle finger slightly protruding.
Master, your disciple is finally doing something too. Please watch over me from heaven.
Thwack!
In that instant, a profoundly deep sense of satisfaction surged up from within Cheong.
So Master always enjoyed this wonderful thing all by himself.
The match was decided, but Namgung Sinjae refused to accept it.
“Miss, isn’t that too petty! It’s a foul!”
Namgung Sinjae shouted resentfully.
“Huh? Me? What did I do?”
Cheong asked, genuinely confused.
“How can you attack with anything other than the sword!”
A strange answer came back. It was a prohibition on kicking and nuclear noogies.
“……? I don’t understand what you’re saying…”
“In sword art sparring, one must use only the sword. Did you not know that?”
Cheong blinked in utter bewilderment.
“What kind of grass-grazing horse talk is that?”
“……? Don’t horses originally eat grass?”
“Never mind.”
Cheong protested seriously.
“In real combat, you wouldn’t say one must only use the sword, right?”
“In real combat it cannot be helped. My skill is lacking, so I have no choice but to use other means. But this is sparring, isn’t it? It is training to purely raise one’s sword power. Therefore, one must of course use only the sword.”
“Hmm?”
Did it… have persuasive power? It seemed like it might. But it also sounded like complete nonsense.