Chapter 6
"Number 1."
Sa-u asked with sharp eyes.
"Do you know why the Main Pavilion, which for hundreds of years had stood at the apex of the Demonic Path Ten Gates, lost its past glory and slid to the lowest rank among the Demonic Path Ten Gates?"
Bu Eun-seol had already heard the whole story from Bu Jan-yang.
But he kept his lips firmly shut and shook his head.
"It is no exaggeration to say that the ultimate mastery of the Main Pavilion's martial arts lies in enlightenment. Unlike other superior martial arts, the might and level of the martial art vary vastly depending on the enlightenment of its inheritor."
Sa-u let out a sigh and said,
"To be honest, the martial arts of the Main Pavilion are too difficult even to lay the foundation."
"..."
"No matter what superior martial art you learn, the difficulty rises as you progress. But the martial arts of the Main Pavilion are, from the very start, at a level more difficult than reaching the realm of Great Completion."
He had been gazing at the distant sky, and now he shook his head.
"Even if a peerless prodigy under heaven were to learn the Main Pavilion's martial arts, whether they would reach Great Completion is uncertain. And on top of that, there was no law saying such a prodigy would necessarily learn the Main Pavilion's martial arts... that was the beginning of its downfall."
Sa-u, who had been looking at Bu Eun-seol's slender, delicate body, shook his head.
"To be honest, with bone and muscle structure and a body like yours, you will either die within three days or run away. In effect, it is a waste of time."
Bu Eun-seol smiled.
"I hear that often."
Suddenly, Bu Eun-seol recalled a memory from the past with Bu Jan-yang.
—You brat! Do you think just anyone can wash a corpse? You'll run away before three days are up!
When Bu Eun-seol said he would help with the enshrouding, Bu Jan-yang had jumped up and said,
—Touching the body of the deceased requires not only nerve but also a thorough knowledge of the human body. If you touch it wrong, something irreversible can happen.
—Shouldn't the final appearance of those who died gruesomely be whole? It is not merely about sewing them up and making them look good on the outside.
Bu Jan-yang always made the corpses he enshrouded appear as whole as they had been in life.
That was because he, with his thorough knowledge of the human body, adjusted the muscles so naturally that they were no different from how they had been in life.
—This kid. You are an undertaker sent by heaven!
But a month later, Bu Jan-yang could only click his tongue.
Because Bu Eun-seol had become able to perform the enshrouding at the same level as Bu Jan-yang.
But that was neither because Bu Eun-seol was an undertaker sent by heaven, nor because Bu Eun-seol had an innate talent for enshrouding.
It was thanks to Bu Eun-seol's bone-grinding effort.
He read and reread the books kept in the house all night, and when Bu Jan-yang performed an enshrouding, he never left his side for a moment.
Tenacious persistence and powers of observation.
Those were the weapons Bu Eun-seol possessed.
"Well, I suppose I must now engage in that waste of time."
"I apologize."
"I will say it once more: there is nothing to apologize for and nothing to be grateful for. The Main Pavilion merely made a pact with the Demon Hall."
In truth, Sa-u found Bu Eun-seol quite to his liking.
Especially those eyes, which seemed to hold nothing in regard yet burned with a persistence as hot as the sun.
Had that not been the case, he would not have bothered to bring up this and that about Langya Pavilion.
"I will ask one final time. Of those who learn the Main Pavilion's martial arts, nine out of ten die. Will you still learn?"
"I will learn."
"Hm."
Sa-u, who had been looking at the small path leading up to the Thatched Cottage, nodded.
"It seems no more trainees will come to learn the Main Pavilion's martial arts. Then I shall now transmit the Main Pavilion's foundational martial art."
Pak-pak.
Sa-u suddenly flicked out a lightning-like Finger Wind and struck the acupoint below Bu Eun-seol's eyes, the Tear-Receiving acupoint.
"Ah."
Bu Eun-seol felt a burning pain in his eyes in that instant.
"Ugh."
When he hastily rubbed his eyes, the whole world went black.
He had gone blind in an instant.
"Do not worry. I have merely sealed your sight temporarily using a secret method of the Main Pavilion."
"Why my sight..."
"In order to learn the Main Pavilion's foundational martial art, the Way of the Beast."
"The Way of the Beast."
"Correct. It not only maximizes the senses of the entire body, but also grants you reflexes like those of a beast. Literally, you gain the senses of a single wild animal."
Sa-u clicked his tongue and said,
"Though most die while learning this foundational martial art."
Sa-u let out a sigh and spoke again.
"In about an hour, the lack of sight will become something you adapt to. I will return then."
Bu Eun-seol stood there blankly.
He could see nothing, and he could feel nothing.
Sa-u's Finger Wind had not only taken Bu Eun-seol's sight, but seemed to have stolen the sensation of something else as well.
'Was sight this important?'
Merely blocking his vision made it feel as though all his other senses had been blocked as well.
When one cannot see, one would expect hearing and other senses to become more acute, but in reality, his other sensory organs had dulled as well.
"I have to adapt."
Sa-u had said that 'normally' one would adapt in about an hour.
But Bu Eun-seol could not afford to be 'normal.'
He had to adapt faster than that.
'I can't just stay still for an hour.'
Moving even a little would lead to faster adaptation than sitting still.
'The others are all learning martial arts too, so they won't launch a surprise attack.'
The scenery of this Hell Island was still peaceful.
No one would launch a surprise attack just because someone had gone blind. Though even if he were attacked, it would be of no use.
Bu Eun-seol wandered around like a madman, touching the ground and eating dirt.
—What if I'm ambushed in this state?
The moment that thought struck him, Bu Eun-seol began to study how he could detect an enemy's attack in this state, and how he should move.
The only fight he had ever had was the one with Neung Un-gang.
But because he had studied his saber technique in detail at the training ground, he could remember Neung Un-gang's movements one by one.
Tilt.
But his body and mind were different.
He had certainly thought he had lightly twisted his body to dodge, but his center collapsed.
'It was balance.'
When sight disappears, the first thing one must regain is the sense of balance.
Having gained this realization, Bu Eun-seol moved like a mad dog.
It was all to acquire a sense of balance as quickly as possible.
"As expected, he's a madman."
Sa-u, who had been stealthily burying his body into the ground again using the Earth Escape Art, wore a dumbfounded expression at the sight of Bu Eun-seol.
In ordinary cases, when one loses their sight, they calmly sit or lie down and wait for their other senses to return.
But Bu Eun-seol was frantically moving about, facing imaginary enemies, and finding his body's balance.
'He passes for now, I suppose.'
If Bu Eun-seol had simply waited stupidly for his senses to return, Sa-u would have only taught him the Way of the Beast half-heartedly.
"Whether he becomes just a madman, or a madman worthy of Langya Pavilion, remains to be seen."
Sa-u closed his eyes again and resumed his Inner Training.
"Try to dodge."
After an hour had passed, Sa-u began attacking Bu Eun-seol with his sword.
Of course, to prevent any limbs from being severed, he struck with the scabbard on, but Bu Eun-seol's joints were on the verge of shattering, and his internal organs were constantly being jolted.
"Bleurgh."
Struck in the lower abdomen by the scabbard, Bu Eun-seol vomited blood and collapsed to his knees.
It was a strike so cunning and swift as lightning that he could not have dodged it even with both eyes wide open.
Let alone being told to dodge the strike of a master from the Demonic Path Ten Gates while blind?
'He truly is a peculiar fellow.'
Meanwhile, Sa-u found himself thinking something curious.
By this point, disciples learning martial arts usually ask about the principles of dodging attacks, or how they might be able to dodge.
But Bu Eun-seol simply took Sa-u's attacks head-on, without asking anything.
In the end, unable to contain his curiosity, Sa-u asked Bu Eun-seol first.
"Why do you not ask anything?"
"Ask... what, sir?"
"You just keep getting hit. Are you not curious about how to dodge, or the principles behind it?"
Having spat out a clot of blood, Bu Eun-seol used his iron sword as a staff to raise himself up.
"Did you not say at the beginning that all the essence of Langya Pavilion lies in 'enlightenment'?"
"Hm?"
"I thought there must be a reason you were striking me without a word, Elder."
"W-well, that is true."
It felt as though the roles of guest and host had been reversed.
Rather, it was the teaching master who had more questions, while the learning disciple held no doubts at all.
'The Elder's dignity is in shambles.'
Clicking his tongue, Sa-u raised his scabbard once more.
"I shall tell you one thing."
Holding his sword at mid-level, he spoke calmly.
"Human senses are originally as sharp as those of wild animals. But for two reasons, they have lost their superior senses. Do you know what they might be?"
"It must be sight."
"Correct."
Bu Eun-seol could not understand.
"Among animals, there are many with eyesight far superior to humans. Humans are not the only ones with sight, so why do you say it is because of that that we have lost our senses?"
"It is because human intelligence is too outstanding."
"Intelligence."
"Rather than uncertain senses, humans have grown accustomed to obtaining and analyzing information through what is visible."
As Bu Eun-seol nodded, Sa-u spoke again.
"Then, do you know the second reason?"
No matter how much he thought, he could not guess.
As Bu Eun-seol shook his head, Sa-u said,
"Wild animals never know when or where they might be attacked. They are always on guard against their surroundings, their senses perpetually sharpened."
Understanding Sa-u's words, Bu Eun-seol nodded.
Unlike beasts, humans do not always stay alert to their surroundings. Though martial artists train in martial arts and possess superior hearing and senses, they are not as keenly sensitive as beasts.
"If you have understood with your head, now you must accept it with your body."
Sa-u picked up his sword, scabbard and all, once again.
"Now, here I come again!"
Before he knew it, it was the third day.
Without a single sip of water, let alone food, Bu Eun-seol was being beaten by Sa-u's attacks while blind.
Thud, thud, thud.
He could not even feel the passage of time.
The only thing Bu Eun-seol felt was the cunning sword techniques flying at him from within the darkness.
'Attain realization, he says.'
Collapsed on the ground, Bu Eun-seol clenched his fist tightly.
'Am I really only capable of this much?'
Lying on the ground, Bu Eun-seol grasped a handful of sand.
At this level, how could he possibly avenge his grandfather?
Whoosh.
At that moment, along with the sound of wind sweeping across the sky, cold raindrops began to pour down.
"Number 1. Are you lying around enjoying yourself?"
Sa-u's cold voice rang out.
"If you want to lie down, I can make you lie down forever."
Thud.
Bu Eun-seol silently raised his body.
And he gripped his iron sword with his left hand. It was because his right hand had been completely torn open from being struck by Sa-u's swinging scabbard, and his fingers were swollen thick.
Rumble! Swish!
At that moment, along with the sound of thunder, Bu Eun-seol felt something sharp shooting toward his forehead.
"Ugh."
As he instinctively leaned back and twisted his body, he felt something slicing through the air graze past his face.
It was a single strike from Sa-u.
"Ho-oh."
Hearing Sa-u's exclamation, Bu Eun-seol felt something stir within him.
'When I heard the thunder, I saw the sword trajectory.'
The sword techniques Sa-u unleashed were not only nearly silent but also exceedingly cunning.
But when the thunder sounded, he could feel the pouring sword strokes against his skin. It felt as though the sword strokes were wrapped in the thunder's roar.
'So this is my body's true sense.'
It was the first time he had heard thunder that shook heaven and earth while blind.
For the first time, he felt that intense sound wave and vibration not through sight or hearing, but through 'sensation.'
Ssss.
At that moment, Bu Eun-seol felt a strange sensation behind his back.
He felt a sword stroke that freely roamed the empty air, bending like a whip.
'I cannot dodge it.'
It was a sword stroke coming in at an angle that was utterly impossible to avoid.
If he took that hit, he wouldn't have the strength to get back up. Without even a moment to think, Bu Eun-seol shielded his back with the iron sword he was holding.
Clang!
With a clear ring, the sound of the iron sword and the cast-iron scabbard colliding echoed out.
He had finally blocked Sa-u's single strike.