Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: True Nature Revealed
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Nangong Hak, deeply moved, grinned broadly at me. Jeon Ian dabbed at her tears with a handkerchief and smiled at me.
It was praise beyond any words.
The surrounding maids and servants secretly wiped away their tears with their sleeves.
Nangong Mubaek approached me.
"Scholar Cheon, I want to learn the qin from you."
It was such an out-of-the-blue request that I looked at him in surprise.
'Well, at his age, he's bound to be impulsive. Still, a martial artist wanting to learn the qin? That's absurd.'
Martial arts and music were worlds apart.
'No, on second thought, they might be the same. To me, music and martial arts have always seemed part of the same realm.'
Just as a masterpiece stirs the heart with its moving melody, supreme martial arts possess a flow akin to music.
'Exactly. There's no need to separate martial arts from nature or humanity. Martial arts is merely a tiny fragment of nature.'
Whenever I studied martial arts manuals, I always noticed how the higher the art, the more it resembled nature.
In other words, without understanding nature, the humans breathing life within it, and the art they create, grasping the profound essences martial artists speak of would remain a distant dream.
"Very well. But you must heed my words carefully."
"Of course."
Nangong Mubaek was confident he could master music properly, even if academics were beyond him.
There was a reason he had insisted on learning the qin like a petulant child.
'When I heard Scholar Cheon's music, I gained insight into part of the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique. Who knew its essence was hidden in music?'
Having grasped something on his own, he had made the request to Scholar Cheon.
In truth, the atmosphere alone made it clear that Scholar Cheon's performance outshone Zhuge Dowon's.
There was no need to ask anyone else. Yet Zhuge Dowon couldn't accept it easily.
"Courtesan Cheongyo, let me hear the verdict from the girl you brought."
Someone partial might claim his own performance was superior.
"Speak. Feel free to share your honest thoughts."
At Cheongyo's words, the girl with eyes closed opened her mouth.
"I can't see, so I don't know who the performers were. I'll describe the music exactly as I heard it. Please forgive me if my words offend either of you. Before music, I cannot lie."
The girl bowed politely and parted her red lips.
"As I listened to both performances, I felt I'd never hear anything finer in my lifetime. I regretted their endings the whole time. I thought Cheongyo sister's playing was the pinnacle, but yours opened my eyes."
For a blind girl to say her eyes had opened was praise unparalleled.
"Cheongyo sister, I'm sorry. Both of yours were better than yours."
Cheongyo smiled.
"Nonsense. I know you can't lie. If you had, I'd be disappointed. And I felt the same way."
Their exchange proved the blind girl spoke no falsehoods.
"The first performer's music felt like a swordsman dancing with blade in hand. The dance was splendid and majestic. But it seemed the surrounding flowers were sliced and wounded by that sword dance."
"Huh?"
"That girl, is she really blind?"
Doubting murmurs arose from the crowd.
"Why do you say that?"
Someone asked, and a reply came.
"Look at the flowers around Young Master Zhuge. Every petal is slashed and pierced."
"Oh my!"
At those words, the crowd's eyes turned as one.
Zhuge Dowon also turned at the crowd's pointing to inspect the flowers.
Not a single petal or leaf on the blooms was unscathed.
Details visible only on close examination.
The blind girl had perfectly captured his music.
"Urgh!"
The internal energy unconsciously released while riding the melody had damaged the flowers.
Had people been nearby, they would have suffered internal injuries.
"The second performance brought to mind flowers fluttering in warm sunlight and gentle breezes, butterflies dancing among them. It was as if floral scents filled the air, and I myself became a butterfly."
"Oh!"
"How could she know without seeing?!"
I spoke to the girl.
"Hahaha. Since learning music, I've mourned the absence of my muse, but she was here all along. Might I ask the young lady's name?"
The girl blushed and replied.
"I'm just an insignificant blind girl. I can't bear such praise from you, young master."
"Nonsense. Knowing music isn't so remarkable."
"The girl's name is Songran."
"I'm Cheon Taesan. I have a piece I composed; I'd love your thoughts on it sometime."
"That would be my honor."
Cheongyo approached Zhuge Dowon and drew something from her bosom.
"Young master, I came at your request but was no help. Allow me to return the fee."
"Forget it! Think I'm some miser? Who do you think you're shoving money at, you lowly courtesan?!"
Zhuge Dowon erupted in fury.
"I'm sorry."
She had unwittingly stoked his rage.
"Then please visit my main house next time; I'll treat you properly."
Cheongyo withdrew with an awkward look.
Zhuge Dowon knew calmly refusing in such moments was the suave way.
But against his will, his true nature betrayed him through words and expression, fueling his self-directed anger. Knowing it exposed his poor discipline, he still couldn't rein it in.
"Damn it!"
The crude mutter he saved for solitude slipped out unbidden.
As things kept going awry, his true nature surged repeatedly.
This time too, it twisted his feelings and spat them raw from his mouth.
"Mubaek! Grab a wooden sword! We're sparring."
Nangong Mubaek inwardly clicked his tongue at Zhuge Dowon's sudden outburst.
'Tsk tsk, he's gone mad. The young scoundrel's turned into a wild foal.'
Nangong Mubaek stepped forward leisurely, wooden sword in hand.
"Shall we? Let's see if Young Master Zhuge has improved since last year."
He advanced into the open space, radiating the vibe of a senior imparting wisdom to a junior.
'This isn't how it's supposed to go.'
Such sudden taunts always sent Nangong Mubaek into a frothing rage, charging wildly.
Allowing easy subjugation every time.
But now the roles seemed reversed, leaving a queasy discomfort. Acid rose, searing his throat.
Like gulping a steaming potato straight from the embers.
As sharp sword intent rippled across the training courtyard, maids and servants retreated far off.
Before facing Zhuge Dowon, Nangong Mubaek came to me.
"Scholar Cheon."
Cheon Taesan smiled faintly at the words.
Until this moment, Nangong Mubaek had skipped honorifics, but now "nim" came naturally.
"What is it?"
"Listening to High Mountains and Flowing Water earlier, I grasped a thread of insight into the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique. Am I on the right path?"
"Insights vary by individual; how could I interfere?"
"From High Mountains and Flowing Water, I sensed the fourth form. It's right on the tip of my tongue."
Cheon Taesan deemed him headed correctly.
The fourth form's manual felt similarly profound to him as well.
"The fourth form I sensed was White Crow Piercing the Veil. Why not become my muse, young master?"
"Me, your muse?"
As Nangong Mubaek moved to ask more, Zhuge Dowon snapped irritably.
"Learning martial arts from the scholar too, eh? Begging for my weaknesses? Why so chatty?"
To humiliate him, he needled Nangong Mubaek's nerves.
"Young Master Zhuge, one can learn martial arts from the scholar. Is the path of martial arts reserved solely for martial artists? You yourself said that among three traveling together, one may be your teacher. As a martial artist, shouldn't you always seek true essence from anyone unknown? That's my view, but it's a pity you don't share it."
It flowed like a crystal-clear mountain stream.
The old Nangong Mubaek could never have conceived such a retort.
'Leisure broadens vision. Tension narrows it.'
No longer dragged by Zhuge Dowon, by seizing control, his mind and body steadied, granting panoramic sight.
Zhuge Dowon bristled at the sense of futile flailing.
He had often verbally flogged Nangong Mubaek this way.
Back then, with no audience, it barely scarred.
But today, tasting his own medicine in public, his blood surged backward.
"Tsk tsk. I heard Zhuge Dowon was the Zhuge Family's sleeping dragon, but his temperament leaves much to be desired."
A spectator muttered.
"The Zhuge Family's once-in-a-century prodigy? Not living up to the hype."
His barbs already eroded his own reputation.
Nangong Hak watched his youngest rebuke Zhuge Dowon, overcome with emotion.
"Madam, our youngest is eloquently dressing down Zhuge Dowon."
Proud of his boy, he boasted to his wife.
Jeon Ian fell silent; looking over, he saw her wiping tears.
"Win or lose the spar, what does it matter? Seeing our youngest so bold against a Zhuge—my ambitions fade. Your bringing Scholar Cheon was a hundredfold wise. Worth more than striking gold. Thank you."
Nangong Hak clasped Jeon Ian's hand.
"He's changing gradually; we needn't worry any longer."
Their disgraceful good-for-nothing youngest had long been their heartache.
A true thorn in their flesh.
How could they not rejoice seeing him begin to shine?
Zhuge Dowon grimaced at Nangong Mubaek standing blankly before him.
'This punk dares daydream right in front of me?'
He started to snap him alert but instead lunged with his wooden sword.
Getting struck while oblivious wasn't a martial artist's way.
Scholar Cheon's words clung stubbornly to Nangong Mubaek's mind.
'Become the muse? Then that means seeing Zhuge Dowon as the white crow.'
The scholar's casual remark struck him profoundly.
Spotting the incoming attack, he dodged hastily.
Even lost in thought, Nangong Mubaek kept Zhuge Dowon in mind.
He favored dirty tricks, so Nangong Mubaek stayed vigilant.
'Ah!'
Nangong Mubaek exclaimed inwardly.
'I get it! The scholar meant to understand the opponent by becoming the muse!'
He'd puzzled over whether it meant viewing Zhuge Dowon as the white crow to love or forgive him. No.
Understanding let him decipher Zhuge Dowon's strikes.
He'd evaded the warningless sneak attack earlier precisely because he understood.
'Until now, I sought only to comprehend his techniques, not him. That's why I never read his feints or shifts.'
Attacking the pensive Nangong Mubaek, his uncanny dodges grated.
Thus, Zhuge Dowon issued an unnecessary taunt.