The Self-Proclaimed Chief Disciple and the Disciple Aspirant
The girl who stepped out of the building glanced between Soso and me standing in the training yard, her eyes widening like a startled rabbit.
"Huh? Soso unni!"
"Seol-hwa!"
As the girl hurried over, Soso waved cheerfully in greeting.
Seol-hwa looked about the same age as Soso, yet she was nothing like the bright, bouncy girl. She had a calm, neat appearance and a surprisingly mature figure for her age.
After exchanging greetings with Soso, Seol-hwa turned her curious gaze toward me.
“Who is this? A friend of yours, unni?”
“Yeah! This is my new friend, Yeonhwa unni. I’ve got myself a reliable master and big sister all in one!”
The moment Soso proudly introduced me and used the word “master,” my heart dropped straight into my stomach.
What, what?! What master?! This kid’s going to get us both killed!
I screamed inwardly, cold sweat trickling down my back.
Why the hell would I teach her the Divine Maiden Sect’s arts? Any woman who cultivates them grows a monstrous cock between her legs!
I frantically waved my hands.
"Ahaha, hello. Nice to meet you, I’m Yeonhwa. And Soso, that’s very flattering, but… just so you know, I’m definitely not your master. We’re just close sisters. Yeah, close sisters."
While I wiped away cold sweat and drew a firm line, Jin-woo, who had been watching, scratched the back of his head awkwardly and introduced Seol-hwa.
“Haha… This is my little sister, Seol-hwa. We’ve been fixing up this place and living here together.”
Before Jin-woo could even finish, Seol-hwa whipped around toward her brother and snapped at him in a sharp voice.
“Oppa! Is this really the time to be lounging around? You said you were going to make a name for yourself at the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering this time! If that’s the case, you should be training every spare moment!”
“U-uh… Fine, I got it… I’ll do it…”
Crushed by his sister’s fierce scolding, Jin-woo slunk off to a corner of the yard with his tail between his legs and resumed practicing his fist techniques in silence.
Seol-hwa watched him with satisfaction, then turned back to us with a bright smile.
“Well then, don’t just stand there. Come inside. It’s a humble place, but I’ll bring you some tea.”
Wow, what a temperature shift. Looks like the real power in this household is this girl.
“Uh, yeah. Thanks.”
I let Seol-hwa lead me into the old building the siblings had patched up as best they could.
Inside, the room was surprisingly tidy despite its worn exterior.
Seol-hwa offered us seats and soon brought steaming cups of tea.
After carefully setting the cups down, she smiled at me.
“By the way, how did you meet our Soso unni, Yeonhwa unni?”
“Huh? W-well, that’s…”
For a moment I was at a loss for words, my eyes darting around.
How am I supposed to say I chased her down and bonked her on the head because she tried to run off with my precious dildo bundle, then made her my guide?
I quickly composed my expression and glossed over it.
“Haha, well, you see… Soso once grabbed my things and tried to run off… I mean, she accidentally took my luggage. We cleared up the misunderstanding, talked it out, and ended up becoming close. Quite the fateful encounter, huh?”
As I fumbled through the excuse, Seol-hwa’s expression instantly turned icy.
“Soso unni!”
When Seol-hwa called her name sharply, Soso, who had been fiddling with her teacup, flinched.
“Y-yeah…?”
Seol-hwa clicked her tongue and scolded her fiercely.
“Unni! Haven’t I told you before? If you’re going to touch someone else’s things, do it properly and don’t get caught! What are you going to do if the owner grabs you by the scruff of the neck like this?”
“Hik… S-sorry, Seol-hwa…”
“Unni! How many times have I told you that if you’re going to do something, at least do it so you don’t get caught?! What if Yeonhwa unni had bad intentions and hurt you right there?!”
“……?!!!”
I stared at Seol-hwa in disbelief, my jaw dropping.
Hold on. She’s not scolding her for stealing… she’s scolding her for getting caught while stealing?!
Seol-hwa’s way of thinking left me momentarily dazed.
Wow… the harsh ecology of orphans is terrifying.
I fiddled with my teacup, cold sweat pouring down my back.
Seol-hwa’s terrifying lecture continued for quite a while after that.
Wow, at this rate my eardrums are going to start bleeding. She’s not going to finish today, is she?
I decided to butt in and change the subject.
“Hey, Seol-hwa. Sorry to interrupt your scolding, but what exactly is this Dragon and Phoenix Gathering you mentioned earlier? Jin-woo said he was going there?”
At my question, Seol-hwa’s mouth fell open mid-rant. She stared at me as if I were a complete idiot.
“…Excuse me? You don’t know what the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering is?”
Seol-hwa asked in disbelief. Soso, who had been hanging her head, suddenly perked up as if this was her chance.
“Ah, Seol-hwa! Our Yeonhwa unni only recently entered the martial world, so she doesn’t know much about the major events yet. That’s why I’ve been teaching her everything one by one!”
Soso proudly thumped her chest.
Teaching? What teaching, you blockhead. I’ve read enough wuxia novels in my past life to fill several trucks. I don’t even need to hear it. It’s just some tournament for rising stars hosted by the Martial Alliance or the Nine Great Sects when they’ve got too much money and time on their hands, right? A place where the young masters of famous clans show off their martial arts and compete for dominance.
While I snorted inwardly, I blinked innocently on the outside. Soso, taking my feigned ignorance as confirmation, continued excitedly.
“The Dragon and Phoenix Gathering is a huge martial arts tournament held for the young experts of the martial world—the rising stars! The great sects like the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans take turns hosting it every few years.”
Soso clenched her fists, her eyes sparkling.
“Just making it to the finals brings not only fame but also a huge prize! And if you stand out, you might even get the chance to join a prestigious sect! Men get the title ‘Dragon,’ women get ‘Phoenix’—isn’t that amazing?”
“Aah, is that so? Just a bunch of kids beating each other up to rank themselves?”
When I replied indifferently, Soso smacked my arm in frustration.
“Tsk, unni! Why are you reacting like that?! With your martial arts, winning the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering would be a piece of cake! You should enter too!”
“Am I crazy? Why would I bother with kids’ games like that? I’d only play if the level matched.”
I snorted and cut her off cleanly. This body of mine was an absolute expert who had beaten even the Sixteen Stars of the World bare-handed. Joining a talent show full of fresh-faced rookies just didn’t add up.
Besides, drawing unnecessary attention from the Martial Alliance would only bring endless trouble.
“Aww, unni! You’re the great Sect Leader of the Divine Maiden Sect, yet you don’t even have a proper title in the martial world? This is the perfect chance to win and get yourself a respectable title!”
“What am I supposed to do with a title, boil soup with it? The prize money I can get anywhere, and a title just means more annoying people coming after me. If you want to go so badly, go with Jin-woo.”
As I waved my hand dismissively, Seol-hwa, who had been quietly listening, suddenly widened her eyes like saucers.
“W-wait a moment… Did you just say Divine Maiden Sect? That… the legendary Divine Maiden Sect?”
“Huh? Uh, yeah, I guess.”
Seol-hwa shot to her feet, gripping the tea table.
“The sect that rarely shows its face in the martial world but shakes the heavens whenever it appears… the legendary supreme sect composed only of mysterious and beautiful women—is that the Divine Maiden Sect you mean?”
Well, it is made up only of women, but if you knew those women used to have something dangling between their legs, would you still be looking at me with those sparkling eyes?
I swallowed a bitter laugh and nodded awkwardly.
“Uh… well, it’s true that it’s only women. And I happen to be its Sect Leader.”
The moment the words “Sect Leader” left my mouth, Seol-hwa’s breathing grew ragged and her cheeks flushed red. She clasped her hands in front of her chest as if she might faint, gazing up at me with rapturous eyes.
Thud! Grab!
“Yeonhwa unni! No, Sect Leader! Please take me as your disciple!”
Seol-hwa slammed her teacup down and lunged forward, seizing both my hands.
“W-whoa? Hold on, Seol-hwa? What’s gotten into you all of a sudden? Calm down and…”
“I’ve admired the great heroines of the martial world since I was young! But as a poor orphan and a woman, I never even had the chance to learn proper martial arts. All I could do was watch sloppily and imitate from the sidelines.”
Seol-hwa gripped my hands tightly, her breathing quickening as she poured out her heart.
“But if it’s the legendary Divine Maiden Sect that only exists in stories! A supreme sect of women, by women, for women—then it’s different! Please accept me as your disciple!”
“……!!”
Though I wore an awkward smile on the outside, inside I was screaming, cold sweat pouring down in buckets.
Are you insane?! A sect of great women, my ass! If you knew the Sect Leaders were all men, what then?!
Then a thought struck me.
Oh, wait. She’s originally a woman, right? So she won’t grow a dick?
But that wasn’t the real problem. No one knew what horrific side effects a woman might suffer from cultivating this demonic art.
While I stood there flustered, Soso shrugged and butted in with a smug grin.
“Seol-hwa! If you want to become a disciple of the Divine Maiden Sect, you’ll have to get in line behind me! I’m unni’s chief disciple, after all!”
“When the hell did you become my chief disciple, you little brat?!”
I shouted, but Soso just grinned ear to ear, ignoring me completely.
I turned back to Seol-hwa, who was still gazing at me with desperate eyes, and put on a stern expression.
“Ahem! Seol-hwa. Your passion and story are truly admirable, but the Divine Maiden Sect is an extremely secretive and strict sect that follows the principle of single-successor transmission. Moreover, the entry requirements are unimaginably strict, so a delicate child like you…”
“I’ll gladly take any test! I’ll do the cooking, laundry, cleaning, and all the chores! Please just let me stay by your side, Sect Leader!”
“No, listen to me for a second!”
Even as I tried to refuse, Seol-hwa clung to my hands, rubbing her face against them without any intention of letting go.
Haa… How am I supposed to shake off these troublesome brats?
I let out a deep sigh, now burdened with two lumps named Soso and Seol-hwa hanging from both arms.
“Hmm! Seol-hwa, martial arts aren’t something that can be achieved with passion alone. Above all, you need a constitution and talent capable of withstanding bone-grinding training, as well as a vessel to contain great fortune.”
She clasped her hands together and looked up at me with tense eyes.
“The martial arts of our Divine Maiden Sect are more noble and dangerous than those of any other sect. If you attempt to learn them with mediocre talent, you could fall into qi deviation and lose your life… or suffer a terrible, irreversible ‘physical mutation.’”
Yeah, physical mutation. The kind where a forearm-sized slab of meat dangles between your legs.
I clicked my tongue inwardly, but Seol-hwa swallowed hard and showed no sign of backing down.
“I’m not afraid! I’ll endure any pain or side effects if it means I can become stronger!”
No, you just don’t know yet. Once it actually happens, you’ll be crying and throwing a fit.
I pressed a hand to my forehead and shook my head.
“Easy to say. But how can I trust your talent and accept you as a disciple right away? If you lack the aptitude for martial arts, I absolutely cannot take you in.”
I cleared my throat and tilted my chin as if doing her a favor.
“However… that Dragon and Phoenix Gathering you mentioned earlier. If you participate and achieve decent results, proving your talent and perseverance right before my eyes… then I might consider accepting you as a disciple.”
“Really?!”
Seol-hwa’s face, which had been on the verge of tears moments ago, instantly brightened.
“Yes, I don’t make empty promises. But there’s a condition. You must defeat the rising stars of the great sects and reach the finals. Only then will you have the qualifications to discuss the vision of our Divine Maiden Sect, don’t you think?”
The chances of two slum orphans who had never learned proper martial arts reaching the finals against rising stars armed with the secret techniques of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans were close to zero.
Yet instead of giving up, Seol-hwa shot to her feet and clenched her fists.
“Understood! If that’s what you say, Sect Leader, then this Seol-hwa will train day and night with my brother, carving our bones! I will definitely reach the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering finals and prove my talent!”
Her eyes already burned with unwavering resolve and fighting spirit.
“Ah, yeah. Do your best…”
I clapped awkwardly. Then, suddenly remembering, I asked, “By the way, when and where exactly is this Dragon and Phoenix Gathering being held?”
Seol-hwa’s eyes sparkled as she answered immediately.
“It’s scheduled to be held in one month at the Seomun Clan in Hebei! The Seomun Clan is hosting this tournament!”
“…One month? The Seomun Clan?”
I doubted my ears. The faces of Seomun Jin, the lustful golden spoon who had clung to me in front of Kaifeng’s main gate two days ago, and Seomun Cheol, the Night Emperor I had encountered at the Dragon Gate Inn, flashed through my mind.
Are you kidding me?! It’s those perverted golden-spoon brothers’ family home?!
The cruel twist of fate I had never anticipated left me momentarily dazed, unable to hide my horrified expression.
