Chapter 6
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: This Body is the Sword of Completion's Disciple (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Then we should go find Nam Gyeong.”
When I asked Jeok-sam, who knew the ways of the world, how I could spread my master's greatness, he answered as if it were obvious.
Nam Gyeong was my second disciple after Jeok-sam. He was a diligent student who trained in swordsmanship under me for three years.
His talent fell far short of Jeok-sam's, but he was a disciple who honed his swordsmanship through what could only be described as bone-grinding effort.
“Nam Gyeong? Wasn't he working as an escort for some merchant group?”
“That was five years ago. I told him to contact the school more often, but it seems he's been ignoring his one and only senior disciple.”
Jeok-sam grumbled, looking indignant.
I placated Jeok-sam and asked again.
“Then where is Nam Gyeong now, and what's he doing?”
“Nam Gyeong joined the Righteous Alliance five years ago. He's a low-ranking warrior in the Sichuan branch, but still.”
“That's incredible.”
Even with Lee Geum-yeong, a warrior of the Righteous Alliance, right beside me, I knew it was as difficult as plucking a star from the sky for a martial artist unaffiliated with a major sect or great clan to join their ranks.
The Righteous Alliance's influence had been soaring to unimaginable heights ever since their victory in the War of Righteousness and Evil twenty-five years ago.
“To spread the Grandmaster's fame, the best way is for you to show your skills directly, Instructor. And there's no better place for that than the Righteous Alliance.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, because our instructor is the strongest in the world.”
“Haha, the strongest….”
Listening from the side, Lee Geum-yeong let out a hollow laugh.
Feeling awkward, I scratched the back of my head.
‘I might be strong, but the strongest in the world...’
It was a level of skill I had only achieved by following my master's teachings like gospel. Perhaps because I still hadn't fully absorbed everything he taught me, I lacked the confidence to definitively call myself the strongest.
Moreover, it was embarrassing to hear such talk in front of Lee Geum-yeong, a warrior of the Righteous Alliance.
“If Nam Gyeong is a warrior of the Righteous Alliance now, does that mean we have to go to Chengdu?”
I knew the Righteous Alliance's Sichuan branch was located in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan.
Jeok-sam shook his head at my question.
“No. Nam Gyeong is stationed at the Zhonglang County precinct of the Sichuan branch. It should be about a six or seven-day walk from here.”
Zhonglang County was larger than Yimen County, practically a small city.
Perhaps because it was situated on the path from Sichuan Province to Qinghai Province, it was always teeming with people.
“It's closer than I thought.”
I'd been worried since I hadn't heard from Nam Gyeong in years, but he wasn't as far away as I'd thought. From my hometown, Sinnae Village, it was about a ten-day journey.
Then a question suddenly popped into my mind.
“Why hasn't he been in touch all this time?”
“That's what I wonder. I heard he joined the Righteous Alliance, but I've hardly seen him these past few years.”
“Is work at the Righteous Alliance that busy?”
“They say the Righteous Alliance is the backbone of the righteous martial world, so they must be extremely busy.”
As he said this, his gaze shifted to Lee Geum-yeong, a member of the Righteous Alliance.
Receiving our gazes, Lee Geum-yeong cleared his throat.
“Ahem! It varies by department and branch. Besides, the Righteous Alliance is always busy protecting the entire Central Plains.”
“Is that so?”
At my question, Lee Geum-yeong subtly averted his gaze.
“Th-that's right. No matter how many people we have, it's never enough to protect these vast Central Plains.”
“Really?”
“O-of course. We need a great many people for the well-being of the, uh, entire Central Plains. A-and…”
He stammered at Jeok-sam's question.
Jeok-sam watched this version of Lee Geum-yeong with narrowed eyes.
No matter how suspicious he seemed, Lee Geum-yeong was the man who had delivered news of my senior disciple A-mun's well-being and would guide the other disciples of the Sinnae Sword School.
“Jeok-sam, treating this warrior disrespectfully is a discourtesy to my guest. Apologize.”
“My apologies, Warrior Lee.”
At my command, Jeok-sam bowed his head and apologized without a hint of complaint.
Though Jeok-sam was five years my senior, he was a disciple who always listened well to me, his master.
“Ah, no. It's alright.”
On the contrary, Lee Geum-yeong seemed bewildered by Jeok-sam's sudden change in attitude.
Jeok-sam turned to me, but his expression remained grim.
“Shall we get ready, then?”
“No.”
“You can't.”
Lee Geum-yeong and I spoke at the same time.
The journey would be much easier with him along, as he knew the ways of the world from his travels as a peddler, but Jeok-sam's wounds hadn't fully healed yet.
There was no need for him to push himself to travel.
“Jeok-sam, let's wait until you're fully healed before we set out.”
“No, this is nothing a little spit can't fix…”
“Sam?”
“Yes, Child Instructor. I'll rest up before we leave.”
He really was an obedient disciple.
***
“Hey, Nam, you know you're on the night shift today, right?”
A young man in his early twenties stopped Nam Gyeong just as he was preparing to head home.
Nam Gyeong frowned for a moment before smoothing his expression.
The man was a warrior from a branch of the Tang Clan. Even if it was just a branch family, a man from the Tang Clan—one of the Five Great Clans—was in a different league from Nam Gyeong, who had worked his way up from nothing.
‘Damn it!’
Nam Gyeong barely suppressed a curse, forcing a smile onto his face. He put down the bag he was packing and replied in a cheerful voice.
“Ah! I must have forgotten. Was I scheduled for night patrol today?”
He wasn't. Nam Gyeong had already worked the night shift for nearly fifteen days this month alone.
“You don't even check the roster? You've been stuck in this precinct for five years, you should know the drill by now. Why are you so incompetent?”
When he checked the duty roster, he saw his name had been added to the night patrol.
It was a different roster than the one he had seen earlier.
“I'm sorry. I forgot to check.”
“‘Sorry’ is good enough. Just try to be more mindful from now on. Ah, seriously, this is why it's so tiring working with people who have no breeding.”
Nam Gyeong sighed, watching the grumbling Dang Jin-wi walk away. He then unpacked his belongings and began preparing for the night shift.
All this mistreatment stemmed from the fact that Nam Gyeong came from a nameless rural sword school, and his signature martial art was the Three Talents Sword Art.
‘I'm older and have more experience than him...’
But no matter how much Nam Gyeong complained internally, he couldn't defy Dang Jin-wi, a member of a branch family of the great Sichuan Tang Clan.
The influence of the Sichuan Tang Clan was renowned throughout the Central Plains, but its standing was even more formidable in Sichuan, which was practically its own backyard.
“Dang Jin-wi, that bastard... Sigh...”
Nam Gyeong trailed off with a sigh. He then gathered his gear for the night shift: a baton, a whistle, and a belt holding various emergency medicines and salves for wounds.
Two years had passed since his assignment to the Zhonglang County precinct of the Righteous Alliance's Sichuan branch. Before that, he had spent three years rotating through various precincts in the provincial capital. Including his time in Zhonglang, this was already his fifth year in the Alliance.
“Gyeong, night shift again?”
“Team Leader Min, please take care of me again today.”
A man with a lean build called out to Nam Gyeong.
With a bushy beard, unkempt hair, and a martial uniform yellowed in spots, he was Min Sik-gi, the leader of the precinct's Second Team.
He was one of the few people in the precinct with whom Nam Gyeong could speak comfortably.
“That can't be right. How many shifts have you worked this month?”
“Twenty days.”
“And last month?”
“Eighteen days.”
He was on the night shift for more than half of the month. Precinct duty was fundamentally a three-shift rotation: day, night, and off.
Since the shifts rotated every seven days, it was rare for anyone to work more than ten night shifts a month unless there were special circumstances.
“My team is the so-called 'fill-in' team, so…”
Nam Gyeong mumbled with a weary smile. At the Zhonglang County precinct, the Fourth Team was known as the 'fill-in' team.
It wasn't fully staffed, so its members were used to fill in whenever other teams were short-handed.
Ostensibly, it was a system introduced by the Righteous Alliance for flexible scheduling, but it was easily abused, leading to situations like Nam Gyeong's, where he was consistently assigned the most difficult duties.
“Who are you covering for this time?”
“Well…”
Even though he was close with Min Sik-gi, Nam Gyeong couldn't easily answer. This sort of thing wasn't unique to the Zhonglang County precinct.
Perhaps sensing this, Team Leader Min Sik-gi didn't press the issue.
He simply patted Nam Gyeong's back a few times.
“Just do desk duty tonight. Don't go out on patrol.”
“Thank you, Team Leader.”
Nam Gyeong bowed his head, his shoulders slumped.
***
“What kind of disciple is this Nam Gyeong?”
A few days later, as we made our way to Zhonglang County, Warrior Lee Geum-yeong asked.
I glanced at Jeok-sam before speaking.
“In many ways, he was the opposite of Sam.”
“Then…?”
“He had no talent, but plenty of passion. That's why he was a disciple who could learn a single sword strike.”
“A... single sword strike?”
Lee Geum-yeong asked again, his expression unreadable—neither a smile nor a frown.
The truth was, none of my disciples had properly learned even a single technique from me. My teaching was sorely lacking compared to my master's.
“Yes. Nam Gyeong had a rather gentle nature, so I was worried about him. I felt he needed at least one technique to protect himself.”
“I... see.”
“So!”
I drew my sword and thrust it into the empty air.
A thrust.
It was the swiftest path a sword could take. It lacked the sheer power of a slash, but it was the most efficient way to check and subdue an opponent.
It was so simple, yet so difficult to master perfectly, that there's a saying that all swordsmanship begins with the thrust.
“The thrust. That is the one and only thing I taught him properly.”
“So... your disciple Nam Gyeong only learned how to thrust?”
“Perhaps. He might have found another master or learned other styles since then. It's been over ten years since he left the school, after all.”
By my count, it's been about thirteen years.
Just then, Jeok-sam cut in.
“Nam Gyeong is the disciple our instructor worries about most.”
“That's right. I was especially worried these past few years when I couldn't reach him. It's a relief to hear he joined the Righteous Alliance.”
“He may be soft-hearted, but he's just as hardworking. He was always a good example for the other disciples.”
Not something you'd expect to hear from the first disciple, who threw in the towel after just three months.
Still, even though Jeok-sam had given up the sword, he continued to visit the Sinnae Sword School and diligently looked after the junior disciples who joined later.
“Ah! That must be Zhonglang County. I can't wait to see Nam Gyeong. I wonder if he's doing well, if he's eating his meals…”
A gate shimmered at the end of the main road. Near it, we could see people lining up for entry.
Jeok-sam quickly dashed ahead.
“Instructor! I'll go on ahead and register our arrival. I can ask about Nam Gyeong while I'm there.”
He could easily be dismissive, but Jeok-sam had always been a good disciple who respected his young master.
I smiled fondly at my first disciple.
“That would be a great help.”
Jeok-sam rushed on, while Lee Geum-yeong and I walked leisurely toward the Zhonglang County gate.
Lee Geum-yeong kept glancing at me before he finally spoke.
“That... what you showed me earlier... surely that wasn't the same thrust you taught your disciple?”
I tilted my head at his question, which he seemed to have been mulling over for some time.
I had clearly shown him a thrust with my sword.
‘Huh? Is there some other kind of thrust I don't know about?’
A thrust is the technique that closes the distance to a target most quickly.
Usually, one practices by thrusting at straw bundles or trees to develop a sense of distance, but since we were walking, I simply used the empty air as my target.
So I struck at the nexus of the space, severing the flow of energy.
“But it was.”
“Ah, it was. Ah, um, I see.”
Lee Geum-yeong gave a noncommittal reply and averted his gaze.
Apparently, something about it didn't sit well with him.
“Was it that unimpressive?”
Watching Lee Geum-yeong walk ahead toward the town, I thrust my sword out again.
A sparrow was caught on the tip of the sword.
It tried to flap its wings, but with the sword embedded in its chest, it couldn't move properly.
“If he learned it properly, he could thrust without spilling a single drop of blood.”
I muttered to myself as I withdrew the sword from the sparrow.
The sparrow checked its own chest several times, but of course, there was no trace of a wound.
I had slipped the blade between its feathers, through the space between muscle and skin, between the very blood vessels.
When I first showed this to Jeok-sam, he made such a fuss, but it seemed like nothing special to someone from the city.
Feeling a little disappointed, I followed Lee Geum-yeong toward Zhonglang County.