Chapter 128
Chapter 128
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 128
Chapter Title: The Time for Tempering (5)
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Zhuge Seolji unfolded my answer sheet and gulped in surprise, her pupils dilating.
Nearby, Yin Ha-seong and Jeong Hyeon could no longer hold back. They shoved their heads in from either side of Zhuge Seolji, despite not being particularly close to her.
"Blank? Lady Zhuge, what on earth do you mean? Let me see too."
"Excuse me for a moment as well."
The two of them checked my answer sheet a bit later than Zhuge Seolji and simultaneously widened their eyes.
Among them, the first to speak was Yin Ha-seong.
"Huh? You really turned in a blank sheet? Just the dorm name and your name—six characters total, nothing else? And you got a perfect score like that, Brother Yong-un?"
"I just thought submitting it that way fit the theme of 'emptiness' the best. And they gave me a perfect score."
At my words...
Yin Ha-seong rummaged through the stack of answer scrolls, quickly found his own, and snapped it open toward us as he spoke.
"No way, we're only one point apart, so why's the grade difference this huge?"
I shifted my gaze to his answer scroll.
"Dear esteemed professor. Emptiness is void. Is it not refraining from greed? As my learning is insufficient and I could not find a better answer, yet as a cadet, I felt it improper to submit a blank sheet out of mere etiquette, so I write this letter..."
He had apparently written a letter.
I applied the Golden Na Palm technique to snatch Yin Ha-seong's scroll like lightning and crumple it up.
"Get lost!"
I smacked the decorative trinket hanging around his neck.
"Ow!!"
"You call that an answer sheet? You call that an answer?"
"Ack! Ouch!"
Though caught off guard by the sudden strike, Yin Ha-seong was no stranger to such situations. He swiftly hid behind Jeong Hyeon and Zhuge Seolji as he protested.
"This is unfair!"
"If you're calling this unfair, then no one in the world has it fair. I told you over and over to study, and you write a letter? What's unfair about that?"
"I actually thought at first that if I was going to scribble something half-baked, maybe I'd just submit a clean blank sheet! But the seniors told me that even if I didn't know the answer well, I should write what I did know and at least add a letter to the professor. So that's what I did. That means I had a shot at a perfect score too!"
His excuse only fueled my growing irritation.
"Young Master Yin."
"Y-Yes, Master Jeong Hyeon?"
Seizing the moment, Jeong Hyeon stepped aside, grabbed Yin Ha-seong firmly with his own hands, bound him, and positioned him in front of me before speaking.
"They are completely different."
"Pardon?"
"Young Master Eon deeply contemplated the theme of emptiness, realizing that nothing surpasses leaving it blank when discussing 'void,' and acted accordingly. But Young Master Yin, you truly didn't know, didn't you?"
"......"
"The professors are not lax individuals. Even if you had submitted a blank sheet just like his, you wouldn't have gotten a perfect score. Your blank answer was shaped by the Q&A during class, the assignments given, and your behavior in various academic affairs."
Yin Ha-seong quickly attempted to negotiate with Jeong Hyeon.
"Th-That's a great point, Master Jeong Hyeon. But could you let go first and keep going? Brother Yong-un's eyes are gleaming murderously. I'll die like this. Surely that's not the Dao you've always sought?"
It was a remark aimed at Jeong Hyeon's values, but unexpectedly, Jeong Hyeon shook his head firmly.
"It aligns with the Dao. In fact, it's virtuous guidance."
"You lunatic! You've abandoned being a Daoist!!"
"Even stains on old clothes must be beaten out with a laundry bat. To cleanse the stains from the thoughts and words Young Master Yin just uttered, proper virtuous guidance is needed. In Daoism and Buddhism, they've long used the waking stick to admonish practitioners who falter during meditation. So this is indeed the Dao."
"Ack! Aaaack! Ughhh!!"
How long had it been since I, with Jeong Hyeon's assistance, personally imparted the Dao to Yin Ha-seong?
Come to think of it, someone I'd momentarily forgotten came to mind.
I turned my head to look.
Zhuge Seolji was still staring blankly at my exam paper.
"......"
At the sight of Zhuge Seolji like that, a word came from my master's voice at my waist.
- Is that Zhuge Seolji girl finding something worth seeing in your blank submission?
Hearing that, a sudden thought struck me.
'Is she about to ignore our promise from earlier not to make a fuss and start whining about how it can't be accepted or whatever?'
Well, even Yin Ha-seong was grumbling about being just one point off.
'With her competitive spirit like a ghost, Zhuge Seolji might not accept it.'
Even if her sharp mind understood that my answer deserved full marks, her inner competitive drive would deny it—that was Zhuge Seolji.
However, there was nothing she could do about it.
'She already declared publicly multiple times that she'd surpass Jeong Hyeon first.'
She had even staked her grandfather's name for one wish.
So, without any burden, I tossed out words to see what she would say.
"Lady Zhuge? Why are you staring so long at an answer sheet with nothing but your name and Blue Bamboo Hall?"
But at my question, moisture began welling up in Zhuge Seolji's eyes.
"......? Are you crying?"
I added one more remark, and now her lips began to quiver.
- ...Why are you making the girl cry?
'What did I even do? I only repeated verbatim what you asked me.'
- Didn't you add one more thing after that?
What one more thing?
Oh, asking if she was crying?
- Yes! When someone wants to cry, hearing 'Hey, you crying?' only makes them more upset!
It was then.
While I was briefly bickering with my master...
"...Hoo."
Zhuge Seolji, who had stared at the ceiling to suppress the tears in her eyes, bit her quivering lip before turning her gaze back to me.
She seemed to steel herself, exhaling a long "Hah" breath with a subdued voice as she spoke.
"I lost."
Huh?
I hadn't even asked her to say it.
She didn't need to declare defeat so dramatically?
'Zhuge Seolji isn't the type to say something like that with her own mouth in the first place.'
And rightly so.
This was the Zhuge Seolji who rolled in the dirt until exhaustion yet insisted she hadn't lost.
'Did meeting Great Commander Zhuge Hye at the Murim Alliance change her mindset?'
I couldn't tell.
But she seemed to have made some major resolution, and prodding her with "That's not like you" felt off.
I chose moderate words and opened my mouth.
"I got lucky."
At my words, Zhuge Seolji shook her head and spoke again.
"It's not luck. The study halls at Yun National Academy must be twice as good as this Self-Governing Hall."
Not wrong, but...
That was a bit harsh.
"Lord Yong-un prepared for the exam in a far worse environment than me. You're even learning from the passers, so you must have lacked time too."
Anyway, since Zhuge Seolji seemed to be pouring out something pent up inside, I just listened.
"Yet I was busy boasting what I'd learned and failed to penetrate the theme. I lost completely."
Having said her piece, a faint smile of relief touched Zhuge Seolji's lips.
Her expression now refreshed, as if she'd never teared up...
She lifted her chin and uttered her final words.
"But I won't lose on the finals."
It was her usual line, but today's tone felt different from before.
I chuckled and returned the words I'd said to her once before.
"No one's ever said that to my face and gotten the result they wanted."
With Zhuge Seolji's declaration of defeat and declaration of war, the midterm exams of the first semester came to a close.
While the cadets of the Righteous Martial Academy wept or laughed at the posted rankings and revealed grades...
Swaaaaack!!
Swaaaaack!!!
Two men—one clad in a black orchid-patterned robe, the other in a blue bamboo-embossed robe—were racing along the official road in Henan Province like the wind.
They were Cheong Ryang and No Sam, heading north to uncover clues about the cadet assault.
How long had the two been taking turns leading and following?
Since Cheong Ryang's destination lay west and No Sam's east from the official road stretching from the Righteous Martial Academy to Henan...
The pair reached a fork in the road.
"...Hey, this isn't some trivial matter—it's about the kids. Don't act all high and mighty and screw it up. Do it right."
"That's my line. Don't you, Senior, go picking up random junk to eat on the way and mess up from food poisoning."
"My stomach's on a different level from you lot. I could eat rotten tofu and be fine."
"Not jealous at all. Well, I'll be off then."
"Hmph! Hmph!"
After exchanging brief well-wishes(?), Cheong Ryang and No Sam parted west and east respectively.
Among them, No Sam's eastward path led to Kaifeng.
Kaifeng.
Even counting across the world, this metropolis proudly ranked among the top five. Its nickname was the City that Never Sleeps.
A vital hub linking water and land transport across the realm, its markets and streets blazed with lights day and night, never extinguishing—hence the name.
No Sam avoided such bright places, weaving through to the dimmest underbelly: the largest bridge over a canal in Kaifeng, beneath which lay a dingy culvert.
This was the Beggar's Union's Main Branch, known as such.
Well, anyway.
Even for No Sam, meeting the Gang Leader required minimal procedure.
Before the sprawled, snoring beggar at the culvert's entrance, No Sam cleared his throat.
"Ahem."
But this plump beggar, ears stuffed with fat, didn't twitch.
No Sam decided instantly.
Crack!!
"Ack! Which bastard dares kick a beggar in Kaifeng?!"
"Are you a beggar pup or a pig pup? Look at that gut from gorging on grease every day! I was gonna overlook the belly, but fat ears? No way!"
"...N-No, Elder No? Is that you?!"
"Yeah, it's me! Is the Gang Leader inside?"
He'd sent a letter beforehand about his business and checked nearby branches and huts en route, confirming the current Gang Leader was at the Main Branch—no chance of missing each other.
"Yes! Please wait a moment. I'll notify him."
After a short wait, permission to enter came from within.
No Sam passed under the bridge, amid countless pigeons cooing hoo-rook, and entered the Gang Leader's hovel.
"Eight-Knot Beggar No Sam pays respects to the Gang Leader."
A sturdy old beggar in rags with nine knots at the waist scratched his back with the Beggar's Union's sacred Hit Staff and greeted him.
"Long time no see?"
"Yes, Gang Leader. I hope you've been well?"
He was the current Beggar's Union Gang Leader, Strong Bone Beggar Man-bok.
"Same as always for me. Messed with letters, got hit by pigeon shit, eat when it's time. You, No Sam, must like academy grub—your complexion's glowing?"
"How could it beat Kaifeng's gleanings? On the way, I saw Sam-sik devouring five meals a day, not living up to his name—rolling around."
"Pitiful guy if you look close. Don't be too harsh. Huh? Wait, looking again, your glow's off. Where's that tooth?"
"Ah, this? A gift from the new era."
"Damn it. I'll assign you a successor, so sit. At your age with your rank, getting your tooth knocked out like an idiot—who beat you?"
"It's true! Really from the new era. You don't believe me, so why assign a successor? And my temper's foul anyway—I can't be Gang Leader. Keep clutching that Hit Staff till you wanna smear shit on the walls, then hand it straight to that Cheon Jang-ho bastard."
Anyway, enough catching up.
Man-bok pulled the Hit Staff from his scratching back, rested his chin on it, and spoke.
"So, what's the business?"
"One thing to request permission for, and one to inquire about. Couldn't do it by letter, so I came in person."
"Then first, the permission."
"I taught the Dragon Subduing Palm to an outsider."
Even the Beggar's Union, gatherer of worldly news, couldn't access secrets known to but a few.
No Sam's transmission of the Dragon Subduing Palm to Eon Yong-un fell into that category.
At the unprecedented news, Man-bok let out a hollow laugh.
"Damn punk. Not 'may I give it?' but 'I gave it' and now asking permission."
His words held no malice.
After all, Eight-Knot disciple No Sam had the authority under the non-transmission-to-unworthy rule—i.e., to anyone with upright character and hero's qualities—to pass on his personal martial arts.
He was merely curious who had caught the fancy of No Sam, once called Mad Storm Beggar.
"So, who'd you pass it to?"
Well, sitting where beggars' gathered intel converged, Man-bok could guess.
"That Eon Yong-un kid?"
"Yes."
"Hm. That guy's rumors always come in pairs—one calling him a scoundrel, one saying he's not. Looked good to you, No Sam?"
"Good? He's a gem. See him yourself, Gang Leader, and you'll know why I did it."
"If you say so, No Sam, then it must be. Got it. Noted. Anyway, what's this inquiry?"