Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter Title: Find the Students (4)
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Nangong Yun-ho, who had been listening to the story, was startled.
"So... ordinary people just take the forms at face value?"
"That's right."
"Block the head strike on the head, dodge or block the leg strike on the leg?"
"Yeah, that's how it is."
"That doesn't make any sense!"
Nangong Yun-ho burst out in anger.
There was a reason for it.
"My grandfather always said swordsmanship is a battle of reading moves! How can you just block what's visible and felt?"
"That's what others do."
"People aren't idiots. No way they're that simplistic."
"I'm telling you, it's simple."
"Even the young master said there's something to learn from children! You gain nothing by seeing and thinking simply! He said you must endlessly ponder and delve deep!"
"Sigh."
This was exactly the problem.
Nangong Yun-ho was extraordinarily skilled at reading moves.
Not just smart or quick at calculations.
'The issue is he sees the opponent's form and predicts the next one, the one after, several moves ahead.'
Like a form of foresight?
It was a blessing for a martial artist.
Being able to anticipate the opponent's forms meant he could defeat equals, even superiors, with this secret technique.
'The misfortune is that he suddenly gained this ability.'
If it came from building skill, no issue, but gaining enlightenment with sharp eyes but an unprepared body was a curse.
Like forcing an adult's clothes on a child.
'And this guy's personality is a problem too.'
Others would realize their uniqueness, but he thought everyone could do this much.
Overestimating others and underestimating himself had led to this state.
"No way anyone can do that!"
Chu Un-hwi ranted as if fire would spew from his mouth.
"Hey! Ordinary people struggle just to block an incoming blade!"
"They're scared shitless right then—why predict five moves ahead instead of blocking?!"
"Take the forms as they come! Why try to comprehend every possible variation?!"
"If it says thrust, thrust! Slash, slash!"
At the madman's reaction, Nangong Yun-ho flinched.
"I-I'll try."
"Try my ass. Do it!"
"Even if it's obvious to a dullard like me, others wouldn't know..."
"Argh."
Pounding his chest, Chu Un-hwi was convinced.
'This guy's the one. He has to be.'
With this talent, if he didn't give up, he'd reach grandmaster level someday.
'In a few decades!'
Waiting that long would make him die of frustration.
Promotion would be a pipe dream.
In the end, Chu Un-hwi chose the fast path.
"You saw something before gaining this ability, right?"
"Saw something...?"
"You can't suddenly get foresight without the skill foundation. You must've seen something unforgettable related to martial arts. Something intense that sticks in your memory. Ring any bells?"
"Come to think of it..."
Nangong Yun-ho nodded after recalling.
"I saw Grandfather's sword dance. He suddenly gained enlightenment and danced it alone."
"That sword dance he's been doing on his own lately?"
A yogi among mortals.
How ordinary could a sword dance from enlightenment be?
Nangong Yun-ho's grandfather was the current sword hero, the Azure Heaven Sword God.
Witnessing up close the essence of martial arts as he ascended to the Profound Realm—how could it not burn into his mind?
"Ah, why does that old man get the urge to dance under the bright moon?"
"Dance urge...?"
"Whatever. That's the issue. Point is, you suddenly saw a massive mountain, so you can't see the pebbles in front of you."
Like staring at the sun then finding candlelight dim.
Eyes blinded by the sun erase even small flames nearby.
But Nangong Yun-ho was puzzled.
"But that's strange. Father saw the sword dance too, and so did my younger sibling. Why only me...?"
"Obviously?"
Chu Un-hwi summed it up simply.
"They're less talented than you, that's why."
Nangong Yun-ho's pupils began to shake.
The next day, Chu Un-hwi shook his customary twig and said,
"There are exactly two ways to cure your condition."
"Really possible?"
"Ah, been fooled your whole life?"
Ah, fooled his whole life.
The guy who'd been duped by quacks promising cures, third-rate experts, even shamans.
'Getting tough.'
But eager for quick results, Chu Un-hwi ignored the guy's pain and history.
"Before we start properly, one thing to clarify."
Crack!
"Gah!"
Chu Un-hwi smacked Nangong Yun-ho's head instantly and shouted,
"First! Fix that old-man talk."
"O-Old-man talk...?"
"Hey! How old are you?!"
"Twenty-one."
"Fuck!"
Crack!
Smacking the back of his head again, Chu Un-hwi yelled,
"I'm! Fuck! A whopping! Twenty-five!"
Fudged age, but whatever.
"No way you look that..."
Sharp one.
He hastily made up the second condition.
"Second! Don't doubt my words!"
"......"
"Third! From now on, call me Instructor! Or Big Bro!"
"Instructor and Big Bro aren't unified, are they?"
"Fuck!"
Crack.
"Don't doubt my guidance!"
Smacking the back of his head again, Chu Un-hwi raised the twig.
"No time. Start now."
"Right now?"
"Yeah."
Whoosh whoosh whoosh.
Unfurling Clear Wind Swordsmanship with swings, Chu Un-hwi said,
"When learning sword forms from now on, don't read more than one move ahead."
"Not two or three, just one?"
"Predict only the next attack. Consciously avoid move-reading battles."
"Will that work?"
Chu Un-hwi's fist rose.
"My guidance?"
"Don't doubt!"
Good. He gets it.
Satisfied, Chu Un-hwi continued,
"Predict only the immediate next attack and move. At your current level, that's fine."
"Current level?"
"Yeah. Once your skill catches up, you'll know how to use it. Right now, reading forms is useless. Want a demo?"
Aiming the twig, Chu Un-hwi said,
"Like yesterday: Single Stroke Vertical Slash first, then Wind Scattering Horizontal Sweep and Clear Wind Moon Slash."
"Same patterns—I won't fall for it again."
"Really? For real?"
"No reason I can't block the current form simply."
Until now, he'd strained to see beyond the immediate form, but knowing the sequence in advance, he could surely block.
Nangong Yun-ho was confident.
Chu Un-hwi grinned.
"Yeah? Give it a try."
Whoosh.
The twig moved.
'Single Stroke Vertical Slash.'
A simple overhead chop.
The moment he parried with his sword, the tip shifted.
'Wind Scattering Horizontal Sweep? This fast?'
Yesterday, each form was fully executed. Now, he adjusted the timing to the response.
Thus, trying to block his head, Nangong Yun-ho blankly watched the twig smack his side.
"What? Didn't predict that?"
"Again. Once more, please."
"Sure."
Single Stroke Vertical Slash again.
Then Wind Scattering Horizontal Sweep.
But different from before.
Just tilting the twig turned the head strike into one grazing shoulder, side into chest and shin.
"A-again."
No matter how many tries, he never reached the third Clear Wind Moon Slash.
"No way."
Seeing Nangong Yun-ho dumbfounded, Chu Un-hwi tapped his own shoulder with the twig.
"Limits of move-reading. Even a single form varies infinitely by wrist twist, speed control, momentum riding. Without grasping form diversity, move battles hit a wall. Obsessed with unchanging forms in move-reading, you miss the world of variations."
"Unchanging forms. World of variations."
"If you read the world of variations for move battles..."
The twig vanished.
And Nangong Yun-ho saw it.
Countless changes from the sword tip.
Striking everywhere, nowhere still.
As if one sword split into thousands in illusion.
"Hah."
Tap.
The twig touched his chest.
"Single Stroke Vertical Slash."
Thud.
Overwhelmed by the massive phantom, Nangong Yun-ho collapsed.
Pupils wide, limbs trembling.
Seeing this, Chu Un-hwi chuckled.
'Eyes are good, as expected.'
Not all, but reading the myriad changes left in the sword trace—remarkable talent.
'Well, seeing this, he'll forget the Azure Heaven Sword God's dance.'
If sun-blinded to candles, overwrite the sun with brighter light.
Only Chu Un-hwi could do this shock therapy.
"Yaaawn."
Entering Bronze Hall with a wide yawn, Yeom Gwang sneered.
"What kept you so tired? No work, I hear. Bet your mouth's gonna split."
Other instructors around him chimed in fawningly.
"Haha. Busy hunting students, right?"
"Still no volunteers?"
"Who'd follow a green newbie instructor?"
With Hall Master Chung-hyun absent, Bronze Hall was full of Yeom Gwang's sycophants.
Taking the teasing in stride, Chu Un-hwi just blinked.
"Eat shit."
Sitting at his spot, he skimmed schedules casually.
Then, nearby Yeo Mae-hong sent a transmission.
[Instructor Chu. How'd it go?]
Turning, she was pretending to work, flipping a book while glancing over.
Scribbling with a brush while transmitting!
'Clever.'
Licking his lips, Chu Un-hwi transmitted back.
[Nangong Yun-ho. Captured. Success.]