Yongbong Branch Meet (3)
The test content for the Yongbong Branch Meet was simple. Make a scratch on the massive stone set up inside the tent.
Of course, it wasn't just any ordinary rock. In a world where qi truly existed, all sorts of wondrous things abounded, and the stone called the Bountiful Harvest Stone was one of them. It was a rock formed through transformations fueled by an abundance of earthly qi, and the lands where these stones were found were said to yield bumper crops—hence the name. Interestingly, grinding them into powder and using it as fertilizer could make even barren soil sprout bountiful grains. Probably the earthly qi within had some positive effect.
As for its other traits... insanely tough, I suppose. Just as a sword becomes harder when imbued with sword qi, the Bountiful Harvest Stone, saturated with earthly qi, boasted a hardness incomparable to mere pebbles.
"Even a first-rate martial artist striking with full force would only leave a faint scratch. That's why we use this Bountiful Harvest Stone for the test..."
"Hup!"
I half-ignored the examiner's overly loquacious attempt to cram Bountiful Harvest Stone trivia into my head and swung my sword.
Scraaaape.
Oh. It really is tough.
I swung with sword qi—the kind I could now unleash without invoking the Muryeong Singong. It was still faint, but the white energy flickering like the hallmark of the Peak realm left a clear mark on the Bountiful Harvest Stone chunk.
"Pass, right?"
"Yes... Write your name on the roster over there, and make sure you're not late on the date..."
The examiner, cut off mid-explanation, looked glum but nodded toward a small desk nearby.
I felt a bit sorry seeing him like that, but what could I do? The guy just wouldn't stop talking...
Hong Yeonhwa, who'd followed me, seemed bored out of her mind listening and was off to the side, idly scratching drawings into the dirt with a stick. Five-spice pork loin, tanghulu skewers, fish-flavored meat slices, flower crab... After blowing our wad in Luoyang, we'd stuck to dumplings and noodles, but damn, she was craving meat, huh? For commemorating our arrival at the Murim Alliance, let's treat ourselves to something tasty tonight.
As the next contestant, Paeng Soso, stepped up to the Bountiful Harvest Stone, the examiner perked up and resumed his spiel.
"Ah, using the Bountiful Harvest Stone for tests naturally produces a lot of fragments, but we sell them cheaply to nearby farms, so don't worry and..."
"Haat!"
Like me, Paeng Soso cut him off mid-sentence and swung her saber. Naturally, she left a much deeper gash than I had.
I've still got a long way to go.
As I watched Paeng Soso calmly sheathe her blade, a sudden thought struck me, and I turned to Hong Yeonhwa.
"By the way, isn't this test unfair for unarmed fighters without weapons?"
"Not necessarily."
Hong Yeonhwa shook her head while scuffing out her food drawings on the ground as if preparing to leave. Such a shame—they were well-drawn.
"The stone's hardness comes solely from the earthly qi within. Scatter that, and it reverts to an ordinary rock, no?"
"Ah."
"If one can properly wield the principles of the Earthly Heavy Hand Method, it might even be easier to pass."
She added that smashing something harder than your own fist always starts with External Transformation as a baseline. I'd been learning basic fist and kick techniques from Hong Yeonhwa lately, but nothing in-depth, so I hadn't known that.
"Maybe the examiner talks so much to drop hints on how to beat it."
"Even so, neither you nor Soso are unarmed fighters. It could be deliberate placement from higher-ups, but at least that examiner just seems to love yapping."
A glance showed the now doubly dejected examiner directing his subordinates to collect the fragments from the floor. That face... he genuinely looked regretful. His men, on the other hand, wore expressions screaming they'd had enough.
I wrote my name on the roster and exited the tent with Paeng Soso, who'd done the same.
Now all that was left was to maximize our strength before the preliminaries began.
"Soso, how about learning a thing or two from this lady starting today?"
After a meal at a rundown inn tucked in a remote corner—shabby building, but decent food—we unpacked in our rented room and were about to start training when Hong Yeonhwa suddenly said that to Paeng Soso.
"I'd love to, but... is that okay?"
"What wouldn't be? You're no outsider."
"Sister Hong...!"
Until now, priority had been helping me internalize my insights, and Paeng Soso trained well on her own, so we'd left her be. But now that I'd barely scraped into true Peak realm, we had the bandwidth to coach her.
"Unlike my husband, your talent is exceptional, Soso. Teaching you will be a delight."
"Sounds like I was a bore to teach."
"Watching your steady growth is immensely rewarding. ...It's just that what I can teach is so limited."
True enough. Even if Hong Yeonhwa tried imparting something profound, my lacking talent meant I couldn't master it properly. In the end, all she could teach was handling intent—the foundation of Muryeong Singong—and how to spar brutally.
"But Soso, you could master the countless arts I know and their essences as-is."
Among them were even orthodox faction techniques learned during the Righteous-Demonic Great War, Hong Yeonhwa said, her enthusiasm flaring.
I got the gist. She was excited to finally teach proper martial arts to someone worthy.
Got it... but something felt off. Hong Yeonhwa tilted her head at my expression, then widened her eyes as realization dawned.
"Soso. Soso. Come closer and lend an ear."
"Yes?"
Paeng Soso knelt to accommodate short-statured Hong Yeonhwa, who leaned in with a sly grin and began whispering. I focused my qi on my ears, but the sneaky woman had layered a qi barrier—no dice.
"What? What's that about?"
"Hehehe..."
"Ehehehe..."
Instead of answering, the two giggled and sidled up, each hugging an arm. The soft, squishy sensation from both sides. Hong Yeonhwa was overwhelmingly stacked, but Paeng Soso was no slouch either.
Nice, but why the sudden affection? As I stared blankly, Hong Yeonhwa poked my cheek and spoke.
"You there. Are you jealous of Soso?"
"Jealous?"
This time, Paeng Soso tickled my ear.
"Your jealousy, Jin-gaga. Until now, Sister Hong only coached your training."
That was jealousy? It felt complicated, sure...
"Nah, no way that's jealousy. Jealous of Soso, of all people?"
"Is that so? Doesn't it feel like I'm being stolen away by Soso?"
"I'm fine, really."
I'm not some kid sulking because my best friend is playing with someone else...
"Really? Then why the sulky face?"
Paeng Soso slowly traced my face with a finger.
"See? Tension around the eyes, stiff mouth. If that's not sulky, what is?"
"What?"
Only then did I realize my brows were furrowed. For real...? I desperately tried to relax, but panic made it worse—probably twisting into something grotesque. No mirror needed; I could tell.
The more I tried to loosen up, the tighter it got—until.
Mwah.
Suddenly, Hong Yeonhwa kissed my right cheek.
"Don't be too upset. This lady likes Soso too, but you're always my top priority."
Mwah.
Another pair of lips on the left.
"Sister Hong's right. We're Jin-gaga's women from the start, aren't we?"
Paeng Soso giggled into my ear.
"I'm really not..."
I tried protesting, but they just beamed and showered me with more kisses. Each one thawed my frozen expression against my will, until it returned to normal—no, even more relaxed. That lingering complex feeling? Gone.
So I turned to return the favor—
"Alright! Husband's mood is lifted, so let's start proper training, Soso!"
"Yes, Sister Hong!"
They sprang away like they'd been waiting.
"Hey, wait—you can't just do that and run! Me too! Let me kiss back!"
Cheeky as ever, they bolted after their fun, but as I chased...
"No no. Kissing forbidden during training."
"Right, Jin-gaga. We'll make up for it later, so hold out for now."
Of course, the two stronger than me weren't getting caught easily.
...I need power. Power to grab those runners and kiss them senseless until they melt!
My training motivation was blazing.
About a fortnight remained until the Yongbong Branch Meet preliminaries. A short time if short, long if long—we poured it all into training. No more wandering, so every moment outside eating and sleeping went into it.
...Honestly grueling, but the "night training rewards" from Hong Yeonhwa and Paeng Soso whenever we saw gains made it bearable.
Days of swinging swords by day and lower-sword by night. One such evening, after sending the girls up first, I was chatting with the innkeeper about fetching water for cleanup.
Ding-a-ling.
Didn't expect other guests at this out-of-way inn besides us.
He spoke right away in a low, rumbling voice.
"I'm looking for my daughter. Around mid-twenties, height similar to that young hero over there. Carries a saber like mine on her back... Ah, just so."
Pausing to catch his breath, he emphasized as if sharing vital info.
"Pretty as her late mother—objectively speaking, not just fatherly bias. The kind you could poke in the eye and it wouldn't hurt..."
Despite being a total stranger, he felt oddly familiar as he stared straight at me.
"...Ring any bells?"
Uh... um...