So What Am I Supposed to Do? (2)
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The drums boomed out loudly.
Through the thunder of the drums, Chung Myung’s voice rang out bright and clear.
"Shaolin Fist! Your last chance to learn the strongest fist in the world, right here in Xi'an! And not just that—the greatest prodigy of the martial world, the very man who won the World Martial Tournament, Monk Hye Yeon himself will be teaching you!"
"Ooooooooh!"
No sooner had he finished than the crowd roared in response.
"A chance that won't come again in a lifetime! If you join Hwayeong Gate right now, this opportunity is yours!"
"My heavens, to learn Shaolin’s fist techniques!"
"And Xi'an doesn’t even have a secular branch of Shaolin!"
"Besides, if we can also learn the sword of Mount Hua, it’s like killing two birds with one stone!"
The reaction was explosive.
No matter how much Mount Hua was riding high at the moment, how could it compare to Shaolin, the Northern Dipper of the martial world for centuries?
Especially for those who knew little about the martial world, the difference in their perception of the two sects was stark. Shaolin was the kind of sect even a random child on the street would know if you asked them.
"Isn’t Monk Hye Yeon the one who’s supposed to become Shaolin’s next sect leader someday?"
"Exactly! Exactly! I heard he’s a talent so rare he only comes along once every few hundred years! And that kind of person is going to teach us fist techniques himself? Where in the world could we ever enjoy such luxury!"
The people’s eyes began to burn.
This was a chance you couldn’t even get by joining Shaolin itself. Even if you did enter Shaolin, what were the odds that Hye Yeon—the one they treasured above all else—would personally teach you?
It was the sort of privilege only a tiny handful of Shaolin disciples would ever be lucky enough to experience.
And yet here it was, available at some ordinary secular house all the way out in distant Xi'an. It was no different from buying grain and finding a golden egg buried inside.
"I was wanting to learn fist techniques anyway!"
"Let's be honest! What’s the point of learning swordsmanship for us? We’re not carrying swords around all day. But this isn’t just any fist technique—they’re teaching Shaolin fist techniques! We can’t miss this chance!"
Watching the explosive reaction swell higher and higher without cooling in the slightest, Chung Myung grinned from ear to ear.
"Heh. As expected of Shaolin!"
What?
Mount Hua? Zhongnan?
No, no. Don’t be ridiculous.
How could anything like Mount Hua or Zhongnan be compared to the shining prestige of Shaolin?
But while Chung Myung was delighted beyond measure at the situation, Hye Yeon’s face was going pale by the second.
"M-Master benefactor!"
"Hm?"
"T-this is not allowed. Shaolin’s martial arts can only be learned by Shaolin disciples. I can’t just teach them to anyone as I please!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Look at this kid."
"...Pardon?"
Chung Myung twisted his face as if he were looking at something hopeless and clicked his tongue.
"You’ve been holed up in the mountains so long you’ve gone soft in the head. This is exactly the problem with disciples from famous orthodox sects."
He slipped closer to Hye Yeon and hooked an arm around his neck, pulling him in.
"I said I’d teach you Shaolin Fist. I never said I’d teach you the Arhat Fist."
"...Pardon? W-what does that even—"
"What’s Shaolin’s basic fist technique?"
"Naturally, it is the Arhat Fist."
"Right. But I never said I’d teach the Arhat Fist, did I?"
Hye Yeon stared at Chung Myung with wide eyes. He simply could not understand what the other man meant.
"That makes no sense—"
"Tsk. You little monk."
Chung Myung whispered in a low, serious voice.
"Whose disciple are you?"
"Of course, this humble monk is a disciple of Shaolin."
"Good. You’re a disciple of Shaolin, and the fist techniques you teach are Shaolin Fist. Hell, even if you taught some basic Three-Form Fist lying around on the street, if it’s taught by a Shaolin monk, it can be called Shaolin Fist. See?"
'What kind of nonsense is that?'
Judging by the look on Hye Yeon’s face, Chung Myung only smiled more fondly.
"So all you have to do is teach some basic punching and kicking. Got it?"
"B-but that would be a scam!"
"Hey! You little bald donkey—how dare you slander this master’s profound insight as a scam! Do you want to get beaten senseless?"
Hye Yeon blinked.
But Chung Myung acted as though his reaction didn’t matter in the slightest.
He loosened the arm around Hye Yeon’s neck just a little and draped an arm over his shoulders instead.
"Come on, smile. Smile. The people are watching. Act like we’re close."
"Pardon?"
"Can’t you understand plain speech? Act close. Smile!"
"...Hahaha."
When the hand on his shoulder tightened with unmistakable pressure, Hye Yeon began to laugh awkwardly.
And seeing that, the oblivious crowd continued to marvel.
"Oh! Master Chung Myung and Monk Hye Yeon look rather close, don’t they?"
"How strange. Those two faced each other in the finals of the World Martial Tournament, so it can’t be easy for them to be friendly!"
"Nonsense! Between a noble Daoist and a monk, there must be a lofty bond beyond the understanding of ordinary folk like us! If two people acknowledge each other, can’t they become friends regardless of their relationship?"
"Indeed! Indeed, that must be it! Absolutely!"
A strange expression that was impossible to describe rose on Hye Yeon’s face.
And watching from behind, Baek Cheon and the others smiled with quiet satisfaction.
"That’s rough."
"He looks like some thug dragging him off by the scruff of his neck."
"He probably has no idea what’s happening."
They couldn’t help feeling pity and sympathy for Hye Yeon, who had already begun dancing helplessly in Chung Myung’s palm.
Why had he walked in of his own free will in the first place…?
"And nobody’s even suspicious."
"Who would think Shaolin’s Hye Yeon was being threatened? They’d naturally assume the two are close."
"The ways of the world really are something else."
To those who did not know the circumstances, the scene could only appear warm and friendly.
"All right, all right! Enough of that!"
Chung Myung shouted firmly.
"This isn’t some chance that comes around every day. We can’t accept disciples forever, so everyone who wants to join, line up quickly!"
That only made the commotion twice as loud.
"Take me first!"
"If I join, I get three months free, right?!"
"What are you talking about!"
The benevolent look on Chung Myung’s face vanished in an instant as he glared.
"That was only until yesterday! From now on, anyone joining now or coming back after leaving has to pay like everyone else!"
"...It was free until yesterday!"
"O-our kid left only two days ago, so shouldn’t you just take him back?"
"Have you people sold off your consciences? You walk out on your own, then crawl back in without a shred of shame and expect it for free—hngh! Hngh!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Watching the situation unfold, Hyun Young reached out and clamped a hand over Chung Myung’s mouth.
Then he gently shoved him toward the other disciples behind him and stepped forward to explain instead.
"We put a great deal of effort into inviting Monk Hye Yeon here, so we can’t continue taking people in for free as we did before. But we can promise that the tuition you pay will absolutely not be wasted."
"Hmm. That’s not wrong. If we’re learning from Monk Hye Yeon, free is a bit absurd!"
"I’d be willing to pay a fortune to learn! How much? How much do I need to pay?"
"Me too! Me too! Please take our child first!"
Chung Myung shook off Baek Cheon’s hand, which was still covering his mouth, and shouted.
"So Haeng! Take the customers! And the tuition is now prepaid. Three months’ worth!"
"T-then is that three nyang?"
"What nonsense! Nine nyang! From now on, tuition is tripled too!"
"Yes, Master!"
Even after tuition was tripled, the line showed no sign of shrinking.
It was a crowd packed as tightly as it could be right at the doorstep.
Chung Myung watched it all with a face so smug he looked like a man standing before a golden calf.
"Triple it, quadruple it, I don’t care—just take my money!"
"Ehehehehehe!"
"Move! I’ll pay a whole year in advance! So please, you must take our child!"
"Eheheheheheh!"
"Shut up! I’m putting in all five of my children at once and paying three years’ tuition in advance!"
"Kyaaa! Kyaa!"
Money!
Money was rolling in by itself!
Hyun Young and Wi Lip-san were so overjoyed they could hardly contain themselves. The difference from the time when they had marketed themselves using Mount Hua’s name alone was so stark it was almost unbelievable.
Truly, Shaolin!
No sect in the world could ever beat Shaolin when it came to fame.
"Heh. So this is what it’s like to make money easily!"
When things start going right, even pumpkins roll in on their own… no, monks roll in on their own!
This is the life! This is the stuff!
Chung Myung was basking in delight when he suddenly narrowed his eyes and snapped his head to the side. Then he asked Hye Yeon,
"What are you doing?"
"...Pardon?"
"The people are loving this, so get out there and show them some punches or something!"
At Chung Myung’s words, Hye Yeon’s face turned red as if a flame had been set to it.
"M-Master benefactor. I—"
"Your food money!"
"...?"
Chung Myung glared at him.
"What kind of monk are you, trying to mooch off people with nothing in your stomach? You’ve got to earn your keep!"
"Th-that is true, but…"
Hye Yeon looked at Chung Myung with a helpless expression, and under the relentless pressure, he finally let out a long sigh.
This is practice. This is also practice.
There was no way Chung Myung would make him do something like this for no reason.
Even if others didn’t know it, hadn’t he personally felt the heaviness inside Chung Myung?
So there must be some reason…
Or is there actually a reason?
Really?
In the end, Hye Yeon let go of everything and stepped forward.
Watching him slowly settle into the stance of the Arhat Fist, the crowd exploded into cheers.
"Monk Hye Yeon is giving a demonstration!"
"My word, I’m actually going to see Shaolin Fist with my own eyes!"
"What is this? Zhongnan had opened secular branches for decades and never once did this! How did Mount Hua and even Shaolin show up in less than ten days!"
"Since Hwayeong Gate arrived, it’s really become exciting! Truly exciting! Hah-hah-hah!"
Amid the rolling cheers, Hye Yeon slowly began to extend his fist.
The disciples of Mount Hua all shook their heads.
"There goes another one."
"Even so, look how seriously he’s doing it. We should learn from that."
"Poor thing."
Listening to Yoon Jong, Jo Gul, and Yu I-seol, Baek Cheon smiled faintly.
"There’s a saying in Buddhism, isn’t there? If I do not enter hell, who will? What a truly lofty monk."
"...I think that’s a slightly different issue."
Still.
At any rate, hell was hell, so what did it matter?
"In any case, it looks like the problem’s been solved."
"...Luck may be luck, but…"
The disciples of Mount Hua looked at Chung Myung.
"Kyaaa! Kyaa!"
"...He really does solve things in a ridiculous way. That vicious bastard."
"He really does."
The Mount Hua disciples all let out a sigh at once.
"...Sect Leader. What should we do about this?"
"...?"
Watching the scene from a distance, Nam Ja-myeong’s face gradually hardened to ice.
What a treacherous move!
The image of Hye Yeon, red-faced and demonstrating fist techniques, and Chung Myung behind him laughing so hard he was clutching his stomach, was seared into his eyes.
In all the many situations he had experienced in his life, he swore this was the first time he had ever seen anything so infuriating.
"At this rate, it’s impossible to pressure Hwayeong Gate directly…."
"Grrr."
Nam Ja-myeong’s expression twisted sharply.
If Hwayeong Gate pushed their momentum too far, he had planned to pressure them while the Mount Hua disciples were absent, or to use the name of Zhongnan to stage a show of force.
But with a Shaolin disciple present at Hwayeong Gate, that, too, had become impossible.
No matter how much this place was effectively Zhongnan’s own backyard, they did not have the courage to press with force a place where a Shaolin disciple stood.
"Those sly bastards! Since they couldn’t do it with their own power, they brought in Shaolin?"
"...And not just any Shaolin monk—it’s Hye Yeon. The one Shaolin’s abbot dotes on, the one everyone assumes will become Shaolin’s number one in the future."
"...Those ignorant fools."
Nam Ja-myeong ground his teeth.
What angered him more than Hye Yeon or Chung Myung were the Xi'an locals cheering for them. What had Zhongnan ever done for them until now, and yet they were reacting so wildly for outsiders like that?
"I was willing to hold back for once!"
With a venomous glare fixed on the unfolding scene, Nam Ja-myeong snapped like a viper.
"If they won’t understand with words, then we’ll make them understand with their bodies! So they know how long we’ve been acting like gentlemen."
"Will you strike Hwayeong Gate?"
"You idiot! And how do you expect to handle the consequences if you provoke a place with both Mount Hua and Shaolin together!"
"Then…?"
"What needs to be struck isn’t Hwayeong Gate."
His gaze shifted to the cheering crowd.
"We need to make the ungrateful bastards pay for it."
As the cold in Nam Ja-myeong’s eyes deepened, the people around him all shuddered.
Isn’t this getting out of hand?
This wasn’t supposed to go this far.
But the arrow was already off the string.
Xi'an had begun to boil like a vat of oil with a fire lit beneath it.
And all the while, they remained unaware that a crisis unlike anything they had ever faced was drawing near.
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