Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Needle in the Satchel (5)
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Honing one's martial prowess was fundamental for anyone in the martial world. However, if asked whether I was a good teacher, alas, I couldn't give a definite answer.
That was because all I knew were the basics of the Three Disasters Sword Art. Of course, I had the martial arts from the Moyong Clan, but strictly speaking, it was closer to superficial knowledge than true mastery.
There was still quite a gap before I could claim proficiency in the Moyong Clan's techniques. At the very least, having that much allowed me to put on a show of teaching Sua. If I hadn't even had that...
I probably wouldn't have been able to keep up the pretense of being a great teacher for long. Even repeating all those plausible lines from wuxia novels I'd read had its limits.
From that perspective, the past month had been extremely comfortable. I could slack off under the pretext of preparing for the move. But sweet days always pass in the blink of an eye.
Now that I'd been semi-forced to settle down because of Yang Miyeon, there was no more delaying it. I racked my brain, trying to recall famous lines from wuxia novels, and faced Sua.
"I'll go first."
"Come at me."
No sooner had the words left her mouth than Sua closed the distance. She was at least twice as fast as the last time I'd seen her. It was the fruit of her diligent training.
However, Sua's wooden sword, which struck like lightning toward my right shoulder, failed to reach its target, intercepted midway by my own wooden sword. But she seemed to have anticipated it already.
Sua didn't show even a hint of panic and calmly transitioned into a follow-up strike. Unlike before, her swordplay was seasoned enough to call veteran-level, transcending her age.
'She's definitely around Moyong Hyeon's level now. An impressive achievement for her age.'
I'd heard that Moyong Hyeon was a warrior stepping into the first-rate realm. Considering the average age for entering first-rate was around thirty, that put her a full ten years ahead.
Yet Sua, at the remarkably young age of merely sixteen, was already gunning for the first-rate realm. Of course, once you reached the later stages, superhuman or even flower realm experts were a dime a dozen.
However, Sua's fierce onslaught, which had started with such momentum, didn't last long. She exposed a tiny gap mid-fight, and I exploited it directly.
Before she knew it, my wooden sword had halted just shy of her throat. Realizing this, Sua could only retreat with a look of utter defeat. I nodded and spoke.
"You've improved tremendously."
"I'm still far from ready."
"No empty flattery. With this level of skill, you could put on a splendid match against Young Lord Moyong Hyeon."
"I-if you say so..."
"But you mustn't settle for that. Press on a little further."
I offered the advice with genuine sincerity. Sua's talent was indeed exceptional. But was mere first-rate enough to satisfy? At the very least, she needed to reach superhuman.
Even as Sua and I sparred, Seolhwa sat nearby, meditating and circulating her energy through the Azure Sword Heart Method. At least teaching her was easier than Sua.
She'd truly started from zero basics. I just needed to teach her the Azure Sword Heart Method along with the Three Disasters Sword Art, and that was it. But as expected, the biggest hurdle was none other than Sua.
"Master, I have a question."
"What is it?"
"What do you believe is the true essence of the Lightning Cloud Parting Sword?"
"..."
Unlike Seolhwa, who was in the pure basics class, Sua was closer to an advanced student. Her questions were on another level entirely—so much so that even answering them felt daunting.
'What's the essence of the Lightning Cloud Parting Sword? It's just ridiculously fast, right?'
Was it because I hadn't reached the peak realm yet? When I thought about the essence of the Lightning Cloud Parting Sword, nothing specific came to mind. So I had no choice but to give a roundabout, plausible response.
"Do you think martial arts have fixed answers?"
"Isn't there a correct answer?"
"Wrong. Even with the same sword art, each person pursues their own martial path. That's why sometimes it's important not to rely on others' answers but to look inward."
I'd tried to make it sound as profound as possible, but if you analyzed it, it was basically 'I don't really know, so figure it out yourself.' Even I thought it was pretty impoverished advice.
Surprisingly, Sua wore an expression of sudden realization, then plopped down cross-legged right there and began meditating. Had my garbled words somehow clicked perfectly for her?
A light close to pure white began circulating through her entire body. Soon, it was fully absorbed into her dantian. At last, Sua opened her eyes again.
"Thank you, Master."
"If you're satisfied, then that's enough."
"From now on, I'll train even harder and become a disciple who can truly aid you."
It seemed the grandiose claim of her being an unprecedented genius in Moyong Clan history wasn't exaggeration after all. To gain enlightenment from just a few words was no small feat.
At a glance, the total volume of her inner energy had increased dramatically—at least double what it was before. Moreover, circulating it through her body was as natural as flowing water.
However, since she still couldn't manifest sword aura, it was a slight stretch to call her fully first-rate. Still, this level of achievement at her age was more than admirable.
"Senior Brother! You seem really different now!"
"Thanks for noticing, Junior Sister."
'And she feels subtly more mature somehow. Did the enlightenment spur her mental growth? Whatever the case, it's a good thing for Sua.'
I nodded. Just a few months ago, it would have been impossible to believe she was the same immature girl who'd thrown tantrums out of jealousy toward Seolhwa. She'd changed beyond recognition.
"I've chopped the firewood."
"Good, you worked hard."
"If the firewood's all chopped, you should do other chores too. What are you doing just standing there like an idiot?"
...Or maybe not? She seemed exactly the same.
It felt like someone was clamping down on her airway.
Just a little more effort, a little more struggling, and she could surely break through. Yet in the end, she couldn't ascend and tumbled back down.
This kept repeating, until eventually, she grew afraid to even attempt rising upward. It would fail anyway. Was there any point in honing her martial arts?
What if she stagnated like this forever, never breaking through in her lifetime? She didn't show it in front of her master, but anxiety had been steadily building in Sua's heart.
"Master, I have a question."
"What is it?"
"What do you believe is the true essence of the Lightning Cloud Parting Sword?"
In the end, unable to bear the impatience any longer, Sua posed the question to the master she served. Lately, he'd focused more on sparring than direct instruction.
Of course, she had no doubts about her master. He surely had his reasons. It was simply her own dullness that kept her from finding the answer, forcing her to ask.
"Do you think martial arts have fixed answers?"
"Isn't there a correct answer?"
"Wrong. Even with the same sword art, each person pursues their own martial path. That's why sometimes it's important not to rely on others' answers but to look inward."
Not seeking answers from others, but turning inward to oneself.
If it had been anyone else, it might have only deepened their confusion. But Sua's comprehension pierced the meaning hidden within her master's words (or at least, that's what she believed).
Thanks to that, she finally realized the truth she'd been desperately ignoring. She'd believed there was a correct answer on her path and had wandered endlessly searching for it.
But regrettably, that was merely the remnants of her past. Yes, her damned father who, even before meeting her master, had already dictated the answers for her.
Moyong Gang.
That man's influence still lingered subtly within her.
He had always forced his desired answers upon her.
Thus, from some point on, Sua had relied on others' answers rather than forging her own. But were all the things she'd discarded as 'not answers' truly not answers?
'Relying on others isn't first-rate. Believing in and pioneering one's self-chosen path—that is true first-rate.'
The small enlightenment began changing everything. Given Sua's talent, reaching first-rate long ago wouldn't have been strange. But everything has its reasons.
Until now, Sua had been shackled by the chains named Moyong Gang. But no longer. At last, she drew her sword without hesitation and severed the bonds holding her back.
The arrogant girl who judged others by appearances alone no longer existed here. The moment Sua, reborn as a completely new person, opened her eyes again—what she saw was...
"I've chopped the firewood."
"Good, you worked hard."
...a grotesquely boy-disguised girl wagging her tail by her master's side.
"If the firewood's all chopped, you should do other chores too. What are you doing just standing there like an idiot?"
She'd half-doubted it at first. But as her instincts told her, it really was a girl.
This wench of a hag-in-boy's-clothes was disguising herself to get close to her master?
Her master might overlook it without a care, but she was different.