Softness Subdues Strength
Clang—
Hyeonsong’s sword left its sheath once more.
As if he could scarcely believe what he was seeing, Hyeonsong drew up the internal energy of his entire body. The top floor of Cheongwelru trembled under the force of it.
“What manner of demonic heretics are you?”
Hyeonsong’s face was twisted to its limit. His blade seethed with the killing intent forged across half a lifetime of battlefields.
When pure white sword blade energy bloomed from Hyeonsong’s Songmun Ancient Sword, Yeong-hwa only smiled, soft and knowing.
“Quite skilled,” the voice that was not quite the boy’s murmured. “To think it is the Guhontalbaekgeom.”
A sharp and lethal Wudang sword technique that condenses internal energy into piercing sword qi.
Yeong-hwa clicked his tongue and raised his fan.
“Yet you have not reached the Transcendent Realm. You are still far from enough.”
“……”
Yeong-hwa simply lowered the fan and rested one hand behind his waist. That ordinary posture set the nerves of a swordsman who had spent half his life on the battlefield singing with tension.
“Come.”
Yeong-hwa’s fan traced a slow circle.
“Whether this body is true or false is something you may confirm for yourself, is it not?”
Hyeonsong shouted as though he could not believe the principles of Taiji unfolding from the boy’s fan.
“Hah!”
His sword swept sideways with force enough to shear the entire top floor of Cheongwelru in two.
Swish—
Before anyone could mark the motion, Yeong-hwa’s fan had already struck upward against the spine of Hyeonsong’s blade. It lasted only an instant. The moment fan met sword, Cheongwelru gave a low, resonant shudder. A wave like distant drumbeats swallowed Hyeonsong’s internal energy. The fan, laden with the divine power of Hyeoncheon Sangje, drew the Songmun Ancient Sword gently toward itself. At the same time Yeong-hwa turned and pulled the blade straight into his own body.
Hyeonsong’s grip failed; a cry of involuntary admiration tore from his throat.
The ultimate sword technique of the Wudang Sect, embodying the principle of overcoming hardness with softness.
The sword art that distilled Wudang’s deepest truth—softness subdues hardness—had truly unfurled before him. Only one path remained: for the sword blade energy of the Guhontalbaekgeom he himself had released to return and cut him down. Hyeonsong bit his lip hard, as if he already foresaw the end.
Snap—
What returned was not the sword blade energy, but Yeong-hwa’s fan striking the crown of his head.
“Wh-what is this…”
Hyeonsong’s sword simply rested in the boy’s left hand.
“Do you believe me now?”
Yeong-hwa examined the Songmun Ancient Sword with an expression of pure amusement.
Thud—
Hyeonsong dropped to his knees before Yeong-hwa.
Boom—
He drove his forehead violently into the floorboards.
“O Hyeoncheon Sangje, the very lifeline of our sect is about to be severed.”
“Raise your head.”
“The current Sect Leader—my senior martial brother—is tormented by madness. He set fire to the archives with his own hands.”
“That head of yours…”
“The elders no longer bother to hide their murderous intent. The first-generation disciples are imprisoned.”
“I already know…”
“Please—protect our sect—”
Snap—
Yeong-hwa rapped Hyeonsong’s skull with the fan again.
“You fool! Let us speak properly, will you?”
“Pardon? …Ah—yes!”
“I already knew of these matters when I came.”
Tears welled in Hyeonsong’s eyes at the words.
“Moreover, this boy appears to have intended to use the Wudang Sect for a profitable little scheme.”
Yeong-hwa stroked his chin, lost for a moment in thought.
“Would it not be unseemly for a sect that styles itself the Southern Venerable Wudang to be deceived so easily?”
“Then what would you have us do?”
“Take this boy up to the sect. All problems will resolve themselves.”
Yeong-hwa indicated with a glance the old man who had been listening quietly in the corner.
“That elder as well.”
Yeong-hwa walked slowly toward the old man seated with the drum. The old man set the drum aside and bowed with deliberate care.
“I greet Hyeoncheon Sangje, incarnation of the Taiji.”
“How did you recognize me so readily, Elder?”
“After my eyes went dark, I could no longer see the world—yet I began to see other things in its place.”
“Then you already know what destiny my words now place upon you.”
The old man threw back his head and laughed, a wild cackle that filled the chamber. Tears slipped from beneath his blindfold.
“This body has already turned its back on the dust of the world. I hold no more lingering attachments to the secular realm.”
He took Yeong-hwa’s hand.
“It is enough that my one and only grandson leaves this old man behind and walks his own road.”
Yeong-hwa squatted before him.
“How was your life among the dust?”
“While I walked it, the path was thorns. Looking back, every moment was beautiful.”
“You have endured much.”
The black snakes that had hovered near Yeong-hwa drifted toward the old man’s face.
“I wish to give you a brief gift. Will you receive it?”
The old man only nodded.
Sssss—
The black snakes slipped past the blindfold and pierced both of his eyes.
A raw, strangled cry tore from the old man’s throat. He clutched at his face and collapsed, unconscious from the sudden agony.
Yeong-hwa left the fallen elder where he lay and walked to the railing of Cheongwelru’s top floor. With a face full of quiet sorrow he gazed upon the blood-red full moon.
“All for the single human greed of unifying the Central Plains…”
Pity filled his expression.
“Things that belong in the underworld have been summoned into the living world. The yin and yang of heaven and earth have collapsed.”
Hyeonsong, listening, ventured a question.
“Do you speak of the Blood Cult?”
Yeong-hwa nodded and continued.
“Moreover, the countless souls who perished in war have become vengeful spirits of the nine heavens, wandering the living realm.”
He looked at the moon and drew a Taiji in the air with one hand. Strangely, the figure that should have been divided half black and half white was stained entirely black.
“Thus the strange calamities arise.”
“O Hyeoncheon Sangje, what must we do?”
Yeong-hwa turned and regarded Hyeonsong.
“This boy has already paid the price of a short life for the power to converse with gods.”
He walked slowly toward the elder.
“You try persuading the Jade Emperor—who seeks to open the Ghost Gate through this boy—just once.”
The corner of his mouth lifted.
“Though I suspect he will cause you no small amount of trouble.”
With an amused look he flicked his fingers.
“Yes. This should suffice.”
Then he leaned close and whispered something into Hyeonsong’s ear. As the words settled, Hyeonsong’s expression gradually brightened.
“Ahem. It is a trifle underhanded, but first we must close the Ghost Gates that have already opened upon the world, no?”
Hyeonsong nodded again and again.
“You are right, Lord Hyeoncheon Sangje.”
When their conversation ended, the cold wind that had filled Cheongwelru’s top floor subsided. Yeong-hwa’s face grew wistful.
“I shall take my leave now.”
“Please go carefully.”
At Hyeonsong’s words, Yeong-hwa smiled.
“You may well have to cut out the rotten roots of our sect with your own hands.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“The truth is always more cruel than falsehood.”
Thud—
The instant the words left him, Yeong-hwa collapsed where he stood. His face was deathly pale; blood streamed from his nose. Hyeonsong seized the boy’s pulse point at once and poured pure energy into him. As Hyeonsong’s internal power gradually warmed the frozen meridians, color returned to Yeong-hwa’s cheeks.
Tap—tap—tap—tap—tap—
Footsteps climbed the stairs.
“Elder.”
Hagun, having escorted the provincial governor as far as the government office, reached the top floor of Cheongwelru. Seeing Hyeonsong cradling Yeong-hwa protectively, he wore a puzzled look.
“Have you found a solution?”
“I have.”
At that moment the fallen old man also rose. He tore away his blindfold and slung the drum across his shoulder. As though the world after long darkness still felt strange, he approached Hagun with measured steps.
“This old man’s help will also be needed in resolving the Wudang Sect’s affairs.”
Hagun turned a doubtful face toward Hyeonsong. Hyeonsong only nodded, expression calm, signaling that all was well.
“We return to the sect.”
The old man quickly climbed onto Hagun’s back. Hyeonsong’s steps toward Wudang Mountain were heavier than when he had first arrived. The final words left by Hyeoncheon Sangje still circled in his ears.
“Hah!”
Yeong-hwa’s eyes snapped open. He had been lying as still as the dead. Anxious, he kicked the blanket aside and began frantically searching for something.
“Whew…”
When he found the silver bells lying near his head, he gathered them carefully against his chest. Feeling the throb in his skull and the chill running through every limb, he muttered to himself.
“These damned gods. Every single time they claim it’s not their body, so they just use it however they please.”
He rose and surveyed the room. It was neat yet antique. Old volumes lined the bookshelf; a simple desk stood nearby. Beside it, black Taoist robes that marked the Wudang Sect lay neatly folded. Yeong-hwa looked at the Taiji pattern painted on the wall and the corner of his mouth lifted.
“Well then… shall I fleece the Wudang Sect a little…”
Creak—
Just then Elder Hyeonsong entered, carrying a breakfast tray.
“You are awake?”
Yeong-hwa offered a polite greeting as though nothing at all had happened.
“I have caused the honored guest considerable trouble.”
“It is nothing. Sit.”
Hyeonsong set the meal on the desk and took his seat.
Jingle—jingle—jingle—jingle—
Yeong-hwa closed his eyes and abruptly began ringing the silver bells.
“Have you met Hyeoncheon Sangje—the Xuanwu who rules the north, guardian deity of Wudang?”
Hyeonsong regarded him with an expression of pure disbelief.
“Yes. Thanks to you, I met him.”
“Is that so.”
Yeong-hwa spoke with a thoroughly solemn air.
“He appeared in my dream and taught me the lost oral formulas of the Taegeukhyekeom.”
He opened his eyes just enough to glance at Hyeonsong. The elder was simply eating rice with an indifferent face. Yeong-hwa’s thoughts began to tangle.
This isn’t right…
He pressed on in a voice of grave dignity.
“However, to accomplish this work, a great many ritual fees for the gut will be required…”
Hyeonsong, still chewing, let out a soft snort of laughter and delivered a single line.
“Hyeoncheon Sangje told me how to correct the short-lived fate that is yours.”
“Pardon?”
“That is why you are so desperately trying to earn money.”
Pity filled the elder’s expression.
“To take care of your only family—your grandfather—before you die. Is that not so?”
“That is…”
“Sit. The food grows cold.”
“Yes.”
At those words Yeong-hwa knew at once that the plan had already gone awry.
Hyeoncheon Sangje, you damned old man. Why did you have to say unnecessary things…
After eating in silence for a while, Yeong-hwa gauged the elder’s mood and ventured a question.
“Where is my grandfather?”
“You have a good heart.”
Hyeonsong continued at an unhurried pace.
“He is dining with Hagun at this moment.”
When the meal ended, Hyeonsong himself prepared tea. The fragrant scent of pine needles filled the room.
“Let us move to the main matter while we drink.”
Yeong-hwa barely managed to choke down the laugh that tried to rise.
“Well, the formulas of the Taegeukhyekeom are rather long, so the cost will likely be considerable…”
“Hyeoncheon Sangje also informed me that you do not know the Taegeukhyekeom.”
“Cough—cough—cough—cough—”
Yeong-hwa choked on his tea as though it had gone down the wrong way.
“He further said, however, that your connection with the Wudang Sect would not end here.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You have come at a fortunate moment.”
Creak—
The door opened. Hagun entered with Yeong-hwa’s grandfather. The blindfold the old man had always worn was nowhere to be seen. These were the same eyes he had covered with white cloth every day because their whitened pupils looked unsightly.
“Grand… Grandfather—your eyes, your eyes!”
Yeong-hwa ran to him with a face that could not believe what it saw.
“You rascal!”
The grandfather gathered Yeong-hwa into his arms and smiled with quiet warmth. As the boy sobbed brokenly against his chest, Hagun lowered his head, the bridge of his nose suddenly stinging for no reason at all. Yeong-hwa held his grandfather’s face in both hands as though still doubting and met his gaze directly.
“How did this happen?”
“Hyeoncheon Sangje himself restored them!”
“Gods always exact a price…”
“Come, let us go out. This grandfather has received grace from the Wudang Sect—so you must repay it!”
“Grandfather!”
Just as Yeong-hwa opened his mouth, anxiety rising at the old man’s retreating back that cut off further words, his still-recovering body swayed.
Thud—
Hyeonsong was on his feet in an instant. He supported Yeong-hwa and swung the boy onto his back, then placed the silver bells into Yeong-hwa’s hand.
“How about it? Do you not wish to try performing that gut properly, just once, here at the Wudang Sect?”
Yeong-hwa wiped the tears still sliding down his cheeks.
“I shall play to my heart’s content once.”