Chapter 2: Azure Cloud Taoist (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 2: Azure Cloud Taoist (2)
“Excuse me…?”
Seok Jun was flustered.
He had thrown out the question to test the waters, but Seok Myeong had turned it back on him, asking for his own intentions instead.
“I…”
Depending on how one interpreted it, it could be a sharp, pointed question: Are you involved in this, or not? When Seok Jun hesitated, Seok Myeong let out a good-natured, easygoing laugh.
“I know. I know how you must feel. It must be difficult being caught in the middle, isn’t it?”
“Eldest Disciple…?”
Seok Myeong glanced up at the ceiling. Then, as if he had made up his mind, he nodded.
“If the elders have decided so, then I must follow.”
“...What?”
“Thinking about it, it’s not entirely incomprehensible. If I had known sooner that Qingcheng was in such dire straits, I would have been the first to tighten my belt…”
Unbelievable.
Seok Jun stared at Seok Myeong with an incredulous look. He rubbed his forehead as if bewildered before speaking up.
“Eldest Disciple, aren’t you angry?”
“Why should I be?”
“As you saw, it says the research budget will be suspended. That means you won’t be able to buy the books you need to study the martial arts formulas of other sects anymore.”
“I suppose so.”
“That’s not all. With that budget gone, you won’t even be able to eat properly. You’ll have to spend your time tilling the fields yourself.”
“I likely will.”
“Then… why…?”
“You’ll understand once you become an Azure Cloud Taoist. Or perhaps, do you already know?”
“...”
Seok Jun’s expression stiffened at Seok Myeong’s meaningful tone. Just as he thought he saw a sharp glint in the other man’s eyes—
“I trust the high-ranking members of Qingcheng. I trust the judgment of those who are more outstanding and experienced than I am. Is that not the mindset a disciple should naturally have?”
“Yes… Yes, that is true.”
“That being said… it is a bit of a shame.”
Seok Myeong set the paper down and spoke again.
“I was almost finished finding the points of improvement for the Heaven and Earth Sword and the Azure Cloud Red Mist Sword that Master left behind, along with the Azure Wind Heart Decision. Tsk. I’ll have to try again next time. When the sect has a bit more breathing room in the budget.”
“...”
Sensing a strange atmosphere, Seok Jun watched Seok Myeong with a suspicious gaze.
But he soon shook his head.
There was no way Seok Myeong was hiding his claws or harboring hidden motives. Was he not the Eldest Disciple who was so naive he couldn't even tell which way the wind was blowing?
Then again, since he had nothing to show for himself other than knowing a lot about Qingcheng’s martial arts, perhaps he had simply realized his place.
Well, I suppose this works out for me.
In truth, it was his father who had strongly suggested cutting the support.
“Seok Jun.”
“Yes, Eldest Disciple.”
Seok Myeong spoke with a relaxed smile.
“Is Elder Song Hak doing well?”
“Yes, he is well.”
“Serve him well. A child never knows the importance of their parents while they are alive. They only regret it once they are gone, but by then, it’s too late. Especially since Taoist Song Hak is both your master and your father, you must never forget your duty of loyalty and filial piety.”
“Yes…”
“Right. Then, do you have any other business?”
“No… Ah, there is one more thing.”
Seok Jun blurted out something he hadn't originally intended to say.
“Please refrain from entering the Secret Pavilion from now on.”
He didn't like how a man who couldn't even look after his own affairs was lecturing him on family matters.
“Why there?”
For the first time, Seok Myeong looked surprised.
The Azure Moon Secret Pavilion of Qingcheng was like the Scripture Pavilion of Shaolin. It was the gathering place for martial arts manuals created by Qingcheng and those collected from other sects.
“Several of the elders mentioned it. They said the Eldest Disciple borrows so many books that it’s difficult for the other junior disciples to read them.”
“...”
“So they suggested it might be best to bar your entry for the time being…”
“I understand.”
“...!”
Seok Jun’s eyes widened again.
I understand?
The Secret Pavilion was a place any member of Qingcheng could visit. As a disciple of Qingcheng, it was only natural to borrow the sect’s books.
He had made an unreasonable demand, yet Seok Myeong was nodding as if it made perfect sense.
“The important things aren't inside the Secret Pavilion anyway. They are right around us. They are close, but we simply fail to feel them. Well, there are plenty in the Azure Moon Storehouse as well.”
Seok Myeong spoke calmly.
“Ah…”
“Then, I shall be going.”
Seok Myeong picked up the wooden box and stood.
He carefully took out his sword and walked outside.
Seok Jun watched the door he had exited with a sour expression and muttered to himself.
“Seriously. Is he just a good person, or is he an idiot?”
*
“What did he say?”
Song Gwan, who had been waiting outside, asked.
He had already come out to the front of the temple as if he knew a serious atmosphere would arise.
“He says they are cutting the research budget.”
“What? By how much?”
As if remembering Seok Jun’s words from a moment ago, Seok Myeong hesitated before speaking.
“Aside from food… I’m not sure if there will be any money left over.”
Song Gwan asked in shock.
“Does that make any sense? How much support does the Elder Council even give right now? No… cutting the budget that much is the same as telling you to stop your research, isn’t it?”
“I must still do it. Somehow.”
Seok Myeong walked away with a bright face.
Song Gwan could not do the same. He paced between the temples, continuing to speak out of frustration.
“Tell me. What was the reason? Why the sudden cut? Does it mean they think their chance has come now that your master is dead?”
“...”
“Indeed. Seok Jun’s father, Taoist Song Hak, has hated your master for a long time. Does this mean he’s going to take it out on you now?”
“Your words are too harsh. There’s no way that’s the case.”
“Then what is it? What is the hidden motive behind slashing the budget to that extent?”
Seok Myeong stopped in his tracks.
“Elder, you are only thinking of the negatives. Aren't there many projects to build new temples or expand caves this time? They are rebuilding Chaoyang Cave and the Palace of Supreme Clarity, so there simply wasn't enough to go around. By the way, Elder, do you know what policy the Sect Leader put forward this time?”
“He called it Spring Wind and Transforming Rain.”
“That’s right. Spring Wind and Transforming Rain—it literally means that for a tree to grow, it needs the right wind and rain. It is a decision made by the high elders.”
Song Gwan let out a bitter laugh at those words.
“And what if he had put forward The Tao is Near, Yet People Seek it Afar? He’d be making a fuss about how the Tao is close by, so why look for it in the distance? It’s all just wordplay! They decide on the answer first and then look for a reason to justify it!”
“Even if that were the case, what would complaining change?”
Seok Myeong smiled bitterly. Only then did Song Gwan fall into a somber silence.
“Seok Myeong…”
Seok Myeong wasn't smiling because he didn't know. He knew exactly what was happening and was choosing to endure it.
To provoke him further would not be for Seok Myeong’s sake; it would only hurt him more.
“I am an Azure Cloud Taoist. The last remaining Azure Cloud Taoist, pushed to a corner of the sect without proper treatment. I must accept that.”
“You…”
Song Gwan started to say something but stopped.
Withholding the money to buy books was no different from telling him to cease his research.
But this fellow was the type to follow orders to the letter once a decision was made from above.
You must become strong.
Song Gwan let out a deep sigh and turned toward the Azure Moon Storehouse with Seok Myeong.
They had been walking for about fifteen minutes, passing several temples on their way down.
Groups of boys, about seven or eight years old, were walking out of a massive pavilion in small clusters.
Song Gwan looked at them and spoke with a pleased expression.
“Seok Myeong… do you see them over there?”
“Yes? What is it, Elder?”
“Those children. They are walking out of the True Martial Hall right now.”
As Song Gwan pointed, Seok Myeong finally noticed the children.
“Ah! It’s those children.”
“Yes, those children.”
“Come to think of it, is it already that time?”
Qingcheng recruits formal disciples two or three times per generation.
Usually, a generation refers to twenty to thirty years, and they periodically recruit disciples whenever the sect’s circumstances allow.
The formal disciples of the Qingcheng Sect are raised through a fairly complex process.
Once the decision to accept new disciples is made, the priests travel across the land to bring back children with outstanding talent.
The children brought back in this manner are raised in the True Martial Hall.
The intention is not only to teach them the basic martial arts of Qingcheng but also to feed them precious elixirs to give them an advantage over disciples of other sects.
Once these children, who have received the sect’s immense attention, reach the age of seven to ten, they leave the True Martial Hall to form a generation.
They are raised to be disciples Qingcheng can be proud of anywhere, possessing not only martial skill but also the distinct characteristics of Qingcheng’s arts.
“Elder, those children must be learning the Azure Wind Origin Heart Method, right?”
“Naturally. Is that not the heart method for the Azure Cloud Taoist created by your late master?”
“Yes.”
Seok Myeong’s face brightened again.
The Azure Wind Origin Heart Method was a technique his master had completed after long years of research and then spread throughout Qingcheng.
The fact that it was taught in the True Martial Hall—the very core of Qingcheng—was proof of how outstanding the martial art was.
“One day, from among those children, they will emerge. The Qingcheng swordsmen who will make the sect shine with the martial arts created by the Azure Cloud Taoist.”
Seok Myeong spoke with a smile. His voice cracked slightly at the end, perhaps moved by joy.
However, Song Gwan, who was watching him, remained stoic.
In fact, there was a strange look in his eyes as he gazed at Seok Myeong.
You fool, why do you try to leave it to others? Wouldn't it be a faster path for you to become a Qingcheng swordsman yourself and prove that the path of the Azure Cloud Taoist was not wrong?
Seok Myeong was a brilliant talent.
Since all formal disciples of Qingcheng possessed excellent talent and potential, there was no need to even mention it, but even so, Seok Myeong had something the other children lacked.
His master had called it intuition.
It was the ability to grasp the essence of a thing instantly without specific thought or inference—a special ability that not just anyone possessed.
If Seok Myeong practiced martial arts, he would achieve results faster than anyone else. Becoming a Qingcheng swordsman would be no difficult task.
Song Gwan found it incredibly frustrating that Seok Myeong did not personally train in martial arts despite having such an ability, but he did not reveal his feelings.
For now, Seok Myeong was more interested in research than in training.
No, he likely considered it a duty rather than an interest. He believed it was the path for the sect and the wish of his master.