Chapter 13
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Life Doesn't Always Go According to Plan
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The bastard still had a splint on his finger, and after all the physical and mental torment in the Repentance Cave—mostly because of me—his face looked pretty pale.
"Sorry."
He spat out the apology with zero remorse on his face, then brazenly added,
"I hope you join the sect and become my disciple."
Ho ho, romance-fantasy dialogue in a martial arts world.
Core Disciples took Core Disciples as students, and Outer Disciples took Outer Disciples.
So what he was really saying was that he hoped I'd flunk the Core Disciple entrance exam.
And taking disciples is up to the master's discretion.
Meaning he could just exploit and torment me without teaching a damn thing. It happened sometimes.
Like he wanted to take me as his disciple out of fondness after I basically got him thrown in the Repentance Cave? No way he was doing this out of spite.
Tsk tsk, I can see right through you, punk.
I stared up at the senior disciple—whose personality and speech rivaled any romance-novel villainess—and tilted my head.
"Huh? Can someone who hasn't even figured out their own character teach a disciple properly? You gotta know yourself before you teach others, right?"
Life's all about landing critical hits.
I looked up at his twisted face after hitting him with another zinger and grinned. I'd rather walk out of Mount Hua barefoot than become your disciple, hmph.
* * *
I'd dealt him a huge blow, but he'd succeeded in hitting me back just as hard.
The ironclad belief that Mount Hua would accept me as a Core Disciple? Shattered to pieces.
After that day, I kept having nightmares of failing the Core Disciple entrance exam, losing my name, and getting kicked out of Mount Hua.
I'd jolt awake in cold sweats several times while sleeping. Uihyeon thought that bastard's trash talk had scarred my delicate heart, so he dragged the guy over and made him apologize to me again.
But even if that bastard apologized a hundred or a thousand times, it was pointless unless my Core Disciple spot was guaranteed.
To divine if I'd pass the entrance exam, I first needed to gauge my own talent.
Something like perfectly mimicking an advanced technique after seeing it once, making plum blossoms bloom, right?
That meant I'd have to demonstrate the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques or something. All I knew was the first five seconds of the first form, Plum Blossoms by the Roadside.
Rubbing my full belly as usual, I strolled along the edge of the Core Disciple exclusive training ground where the second-generation disciples were practicing their chair-bellies.
'Oh yeah, he said he'd teach me Plum Blossoms by the Roadside once I learned an internal art!'
Uiseong's words popped into my head, and I marched confidently toward the training ground.
With the training supervisor Do-un away today, it was the perfect day to execute my plan.
As I strode in all majestic-like, the gazes of the second-generation disciples focused on me.
Bathing in their attention, I grabbed a training wooden sword from the neat stack in one corner of the training ground with both hands.
These were for adults who'd trained quite a bit—worlds apart from my tiny toddler wooden sword. The length surpassed my height, and the weight was seriously hefty.
So why was I suddenly trying to lift one when I wanted to learn an internal art?
You gotta show the extreme first to lure them into compromising with something smaller.
If I just straight-up asked to learn an internal art, they'd say wait till I'm older or after initiation, sweet-talking me along.
They'd done it every time so far.
I pouted, thinking of my mini-me wooden sword gathering dust in my room.
Always steering me toward swinging that thing first, tsk.
But what if I insisted on learning external arts with an adult sword? What if I refused to budge an inch until they let me swing it?
Then they'd coax, "Okay, put the sword down first and let's try internal training?"
Perfect plan. I smirked inwardly as I gripped the hilt and poured strength into my hands.
But...
'Why isn't anyone stopping me?'
Looked like the plan went off the rails from page one.
The wooden sword trembled slightly off the ground in my shaking hands.
The looks they gave me were sparkling with excitement. Expectations and interest poked at me from all sides, and I let out a puff of breath.
Someone come running and stop me already.
Did they really have to see me hoist this ridiculously heavy thing into the air?
General common sense just doesn't apply here. Damn murim world.
Primordial Heavenly Venerable, please install some childcare knowledge in these people.
Uiseong, who might've stopped me, had bolted as usual and was nowhere in sight. Uihyeon and Uigang were also absent from the training ground.
"Ooh, it's lifting!"
"Man, a four-year-old kid lifting that. He's got real potential."
"Whoa, strong little guy. He might even swing it if he tries."
"Already grabbing an adult sword? Born warrior, that one's a born warrior."
"Biyeon, you'll be sore tomorrow! Put it down already!"
Cheers from the not-so-distant spectators stirred up pointless determination in me.
Before I knew it, I'd forgotten my original goal and was pouring everything into lifting the sword.
Finally, I held the wooden sword straight up triumphantly and bellowed,
"It's up!"
My hands still shook on the hilt, sweat poured down my forehead like rain, but my expression was pure pride.
Amid the applause, I stood tall and proud, then spotted Uihyeon walking toward the training ground. I wiggled the hand holding the sword.
"Look! I lifted it!"
That's when the heavy sword's weight overpowered me, and I lost balance, staggering.
Uihyeon dashed over with lightfoot skill. Just as I was about to fall backward, he caught my head.
Thanks to him, I barely avoided a lump on the back of my skull.
Uihyeon, still holding the sword I'd gripped tight, soothed me.
"Let's put this down first."
"No."
"It's dangerous. You almost fell back just now."
"Won't die."
Hateful fours are a thing for a reason. Kids who listen well are national treasures for nothing. And I'm definitely not one.
Laughter erupted from all around at my retort. But I stubbornly hugged the wooden sword with my whole body and flopped onto the training ground floor.
"I'm training with this. Not moving till I can swing it freely."
"You've got your own wooden sword. Want me to get it?"
"Nah, that's not a real sword, it's a toy. And you always make me do downward strikes."
Of course, once initiated, they'd drill basics like downward strikes till I puked. As a third-generation disciple, I couldn't throw tantrums like this.
But right now, I wasn't a third-gen yet, so a little whining was tolerable. Only possible now.
"I'm learning martial arts with this one too, Uncle! Not horse stance! Not getting up from lying down! Not downward strikes!"
With my back flat on the ground and legs kicking, Uihyeon clutched his head like it was a headache.
"Senior Brother, he wants to learn that bad. Just teach him something basic."
"Six Harmonies is super basic anyway, and it's even taught in the markets, so no harm."
Uihyeon sighed at the second-generation disciples chiming in with chuckles, then squatted down to meet my eyes.
"Biyeon, how about we learn a martial art that doesn't need a sword?"
"Really? Wow, no sword needed?"
The words I wanted hit, so I slyly loosened my arms around the sword, flung the heavy thing to the ground, and popped up.
Plan successful. I trailed behind Uihyeon, grinning where he couldn't see.
He took me to a quiet corner of the training ground where voices didn't carry.
He sat me under a tree and adjusted my sloppy cross-legged posture.
My heart raced faster than usual with anticipation of finally learning real martial arts.
Once the so-called lotus position was set, Uihyeon spoke.
"Okay, Biyeon. Close your eyes, breathe in deep, then exhale slowly?"
I did as told, slowly inhaling and exhaling repeatedly.
"Everything in heaven and earth has qi. The tree you're leaning on, the grass you're sitting on, the clear lake in Jade Maiden Pond, and inside you too. We call the qi around you external qi, and the qi inside you internal qi."
Stuff I already knew? Piece of cake for a martial arts novel fan.
"You have to feel the internal qi within yourself to sense the external qi around you, and only by sensing that can you draw it in and turn it into your own inner power."
I nodded, letting his NPC tutorial spiel go in one ear and out the other.
"Today, let's start by feeling your own qi."
Mm, okay. Time to focus from here.
I perked my ears, determined not to miss a word, but nothing followed. Why...?
Breaking the quiet silence, I asked softly.
"...Aren't you gonna tell me how?"
"Huh? Just feel the energy, like I said?"
Felt like a nature documentary narration.
Lions shove their cubs off cliffs to toughen them up. The cubs instinctively learn to climb back up to survive.
Ohhh... I have to figure it out myself...
Even spirit beasts I gotta catch myself, and qi I gotta sense on my own. No "found a baby" childcare romance clichés here, damn Spartan murim world.
I closed my eyes and repeated deep breaths. Okay, feel the energy inside me. Qi... qi...
Enlightenment didn't come; sleepiness did.
"Biyeon, don't fall asleep!"
"Not sleeping."
I reflexively denied it and wiped the drool from my mouth with my hand.
Weird. In all the novels I'd read, protagonists just sat lotus and bam—circulation success, blocked meridians popping open.
Why was I struggling just to feel internal qi?
Primordial Heavenly Venerable, if you won't give me the chubby-cheeks-while-breathing baby protagonist buff, at least grant me genius talent, right?