Chapter 142
Chapter 142
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 142
Chapter Title: The True Face of the Plum Blossom
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“Why are you staring at me like that?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
Neung Un-bi tilted his head, but Dokgo Seong simply smiled.
Age is not just a number. When one has lived long enough to grow accustomed to being old, one learns to see past a person’s appearance and glimpse, however faintly, what lies within.
If even a mere village elder could do so, how much more so for a Daoist who had spent his entire life in cultivation?
Though his hearing had weakened with age, he could clearly discern the intent behind a voice. Though his vision had blurred, unable to properly distinguish the forms of things, he could vividly see the sincerity in one’s expression, gaze, and conduct.
Neung Un-bi, a disciple of the Demonic Cult. Although his words were laced with exaggeration, Dokgo Seong knew he was not speaking falsehoods.
And so, he observed him all the more carefully.
His appearance, the aura he exuded, and the emotion held within his eyes.
And then he understood.
“Hoho, Dam Un-cheon has raised his disciple remarkably well.”
“…I grew up well on my own. It’s not that he raised me well.”
“Is that so? Hoho.”
Even the slight flash of defiance felt genuine, and Dokgo Seong couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
What an interesting fellow.
In such a situation, it would be proper to call it excessive praise or to agree with the compliment about his master.
“But what is your history with my master? Why did you become so angry just from hearing his name?”
“Did he not tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
As Neung Un-bi tilted his head in confusion, Dokgo Seong nodded as if in understanding.
“So that’s how it was. Then again, knowing him, that might be the case. He probably wouldn’t have considered it something to boast about.”
“…Something to boast about?”
“That’s what I thought, but it seems I was wrong.”
“What do you mean by that? What on earth happened?”
As Neung Un-bi pressed again in frustration, Dokgo Seong, after a brief pause, slowly began to speak.
A long time ago. It wouldn’t matter if he told him about that incident, an event everyone else considered so humiliating that they had hidden it away.
If Neung Un-bi, a disciple of the Demonic Cult, wished to know, there was likely nothing he couldn’t find out. Besides, hadn’t he himself brought it up first?
“Do you know who gave your master his martial name?”
“My master’s martial name… the Heavenly Demon Emperor?”
“That’s right.”
“Let’s see… I only heard that he gained enlightenment at the Heavenly Demon Spirit Peak…”
“Surely you don’t think he earned such a grand title just for that?”
“…?”
“‘Jecheon.’ To reign over all the heavens. That is the name I, and we, the Central Plains, gave him. That is the kind of man your master is.”
Neung Un-bi’s eyes widened.
Wasn’t that too high of praise?
He never imagined that a master of the Orthodox Faction would acknowledge Dam Un-cheon so readily.
“In addition, he was also called ‘Heaven Shatterer.’”
“He shatters the heavens?”
He had never heard of it. Nor was it in the memories of the Neung Un-bi in his head.
“Yes. The heavens were literally shattered. No, those who believed themselves to be the heavens met the true sky.”
“…”
“It was a long time ago. About forty years have passed, so it was well before you were born.”
“F-Forty years?”
“Yes, when your master was around thirty. It must have been shortly before he ascended to the position of Cult Leader.”
“…”
Forty years ago.
That was the period when, under the name Cheok Wol-rin, he had just begun his life of slaughter after completing his training according to ‘his’ will.
What could have happened back then?
“At the time, the Cult Leader was nameless. He challenged the Central Plains alone.”
“Challenged the Central Plains, you say…?”
“There were twelve martial artists. Each one prided themselves on having reached the pinnacle with their different weapons and different martial arts.”
“…”
“Dam Un-cheon came to Mount Hua as well. At the time, I was the one who could make the most splendid plum blossoms bloom, so I represented Mount Hua and fought him.”
“What? What do you mean?”
Neung Un-bi frowned at him, but Dokgo Seong’s eyes were distant, as if recalling a moment from the past.
“On a night when the sky was stained by moonlight, the plum blossoms fell.”
“…”
“I thought I was strong enough that no more flowers could be made to bloom, yet I couldn’t even overcome a single strike of his sword. I was afraid. In the terror that one more step could mean death, I ended up lowering my sword. The entire Mount Hua Sect was defeated by a single martial artist.”
Dokgo Seong’s expression turned grim, as if he were reliving the sense of defeat from that time.
“It must have been the same for the others, but after that, I broke my sword and secluded myself in a cave.”
“…”
“In there, I agonized over how to break the sword he had shown me. And now, I have finally found a clue and was on my way to meet him. I was heading to see my disciple, intending to retrieve my beloved blade, Jao, which I had left in his care for a while.”
“So that’s why you came to Hagiwon?”
“That’s right. It’s near my disciple’s residence.”
“…”
For a moment, Neung Un-bi blinked blankly.
His beloved blade Jao, his disciple, Hagiwon…
“Could that disciple be?”
“It’s Cheong Jin. A praiseworthy fellow who earned the name Sword Saint.”
“…”
*So that’s who he was. Cheong Jin’s master, and Un Hak’s grandmaster.*
*No wonder… he was using skills like walking on air so casually.*
Fate was truly fickle. To think he would meet a man who had been defeated by Dam Un-cheon.
Anyway, the Cult Leader was truly something else. At the age of thirty, he had single-handedly taken on the Central Plains and won.
“I know my disciple’s personality well. He probably wouldn’t have kept Jao at his residence. He’s surely waiting at Lotus Peak. That boy would definitely try to stop me.”
“But why were you in Hagiwon?”
“I just stopped by for a moment. It’s a place with many memories of my disciple…”
“Memories?”
“Yes, I thought I might never see it again if I left immediately after retrieving Jao. And that’s when I saw you.”
“…”
And because of that, he had almost died.
“But if you’re planning to go see the Cult Leader, you must have had some sort of an epiphany, I suppose?”
“As I said, I’ve found a clue.”
“Just a clue?”
“At my age, a single clue is more than enough.”
Indeed, for a master who had already reached a level where he could climb no higher, a single clue was an immense opportunity.
It would show him the way forward on a path no one had ever walked.
“And it’s not necessarily about winning.”
“Pardon?”
“I just wanted to show him.”
“Show him what?”
“That Mount Hua’s plum blossoms are not so lacking…”
“…”
“To be honest, I didn’t know when I was defeated by him. I thought it was the end once all the petals had fallen. But I was wrong. A flower is not just one, and even if it withers, it will bloom again after winter passes.”
His words were like a Zen koan.
*The plum blossom falls and blooms again…*
From those words alone, he couldn’t even begin to guess what the man had realized.
However, recalling the things he had said, a dizzying image formed in his mind.
The reason he came to Hagiwon, thinking he might never see it again if he left immediately after retrieving Jao.
“Are you, by any chance, intending to risk your life?”
“Hm?”
“It’s just that hearing your words, the thought suddenly came to me.”
“…”
“‘The flower withers and blooms again…’ I wondered if it meant that even if you were to be defeated and lose your life, the plum blossom would bloom again through future generations.”
“Ha!”
Dokgo Seong let out a cry of astonishment.
Neung Un-bi’s words did not point to the meaning of the sword he had realized through long contemplation, but they had perfectly grasped his state of mind.
Just as he said, he was prepared to risk his life. The Demonic Cult was unlikely to spare someone who came to their headquarters seeking a fight with the Cult Leader.
Furthermore, if Dam Un-cheon were to face the ultimate truth of the sword that he had finally realized, one of them would inevitably have to die.
“I think I understand why the Sword Saint wants to stop you.”
“…”
“I probably would have tried to stop you too.”
Neung Un-bi’s gaze grew distant.
Of course, the situations were different. But the way Cheong Jin must have felt about his master didn’t seem so different from the way he cherished ‘that person.’
He had to prevent that person from being revealed to the world, even if it meant losing his own life.
That was why he had accepted death without any regrets.
That was why he had never uttered that person’s name, even under brutal torture.
“Elder.”
“Speak.”
“This is not something a disciple of the Demonic Cult should say. Nor am I trying to stop you.”
“…”
“However, there is no need to go out of your way to prove that plum blossoms exist on Mount Hua.”
“…What do you mean by that?”
“Have you ever seen a flower speak?”
“…!”
“And yet, people know that flowers exist. If they just continue to bloom and wither beautifully as they do now… people will know well enough. They don’t need to prove their existence.”
Dokgo Seong’s eyes shot open.
Then, his hands began to tremble slightly, and even his breathing grew ragged.
“The Sword Saint bloomed from the roots you laid, and now Un Hak has begun to form a bud.”
“Y-You…”
“Even without you proving Mount Hua, everyone will know that there are plum blossoms there.”
“…!”
“If you truly have Mount Hua’s best interests at heart, you should become the soil that nourishes them. If you have realized something, you should become the foundation upon which the Sword Saint and Un Hak can bloom even more brilliantly. Not risk your life just to show that a plum blossom is not inferior.”
Dokgo Seong could only stare at Neung Un-bi with trembling eyes, unable to say a word.
“It’s just what I think I would have done… I suppose I overstepped. I didn’t mean to say you’re weak or anything like that. You know that, right?”
Neung Un-bi’s laugh as he scratched his head dug deep into Dokgo Seong’s heart.
What had he wanted?
Was it the victory of the plum blossom? Or did he simply want to wash away the humiliation he had suffered?
He didn’t know. He couldn’t be sure what his true feelings were.
But one thing, he seemed to understand now.
The fact that he was already a withered plum blossom… and that, as Neung Un-bi said, he should become nourishment for future generations rather than struggling to bloom again.
For that was the law of nature.
“Hoho, ahohohoho.”
Laughter escaped him.
It was a laugh that felt as if all the worries he had obsessed over while facing a wall for forty years had suddenly shattered and poured out.
“You’re right.”
“…Pardon?”
“You’re right. It was my own pettiness. I was still trapped in that moment.”
“…”
He hadn’t said it to make him realize anything. He had simply been moved by his words and mood and had spoken his mind, wondering what he would have done in his shoes.
But had he said something wrong?
He wasn’t offended, was he?
This old man was already prone to emotional swings…
Though he had already said his piece, Neung Un-bi belatedly grew worried and was studying Dokgo Seong’s expression when it happened.
Dokgo Seong slowly stood up, glanced around, and then broke off a small tree branch.
“…Huh?”
Then, as he saw the man approaching him with a smile, Neung Un-bi scrambled to his feet and backed away.
The branch in Dokgo Seong’s hand. Wasn’t it just the right size to be used as a switch?
*Damn it, my big mouth.* *What right did a greenhorn like me have to spout such nonsense?*
“E-Elder, wait a moment. What’s going on? I didn’t mean to rebuke you or anything like that.”
As Neung Un-bi stumbled backward, Dokgo Seong approached and stopped, his eyes holding a subtle glint.
“Would you like to see?”
“Pardon?”
“It is not something that should be shown to an outsider, but for some reason, I want to show you.”
“Pardon?”
“It took me forty years to realize this.”
“…”
“The true face of Mount Hua’s plum blossom.”