Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Secluded Training
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“This can't be...”
But it was.
He couldn't very well pretend something that happened didn't.
Just in case, Namgung Urin closed the Primordial Chaos Art manual, then opened it again.
“...”
Nothing had changed.
No matter how many times he flipped through the pages, all he saw was blank white paper.
“Strange...”
It felt as if something had entered his mind.
The characters that had vanished.
He hadn't seen or read the Primordial Chaos Art, yet Namgung Urin had already read it and committed it to memory.
“How... is something like this... possible?”
Having never heard of such a thing, Namgung Urin was confused.
It was then.
[A pleasure to meet you, Master.]
Namgung Urin glanced around.
He had clearly heard a person's voice from somewhere.
There couldn't be anyone in the room.
So, Namgung Urin threw open the door.
No one was there.
He closed the door again.
One might expect him to wonder why these things kept happening, but there was no trace of curiosity on Namgung Urin's face.
[Master. I am here. Inside your head.]
“Inside my head?”
[Yes, Master.]
How bewildered would a thirteen-year-old boy be if such a ghostly event suddenly occurred?
But Namgung Urin was the very picture of indifference.
“Master? Am I your master?”
[Yes, Master. And you don't need to speak aloud; we can converse through thought alone.]
‘Like this?’
[As expected of the master of the Primordial Chaos Art. You learn quickly.]
‘But who are you?’
[I am the Primordial Chaos Art itself.]
The martial art was speaking.
The Primordial Chaos Art could think and speak like a person.
‘But you're not a person. How can you speak?’
[I merely lack a physical form. Otherwise, I am not so different from a human.]
‘Why?’
[...That, I do not know. Why I became this way.]
‘That's similar to me.’
[What do you mean?]
‘Let's just say there is.’
Namgung Urin knew from his father and mother that he was different from other people.
And neither his father nor his mother knew why he was different.
[Today is the first time I have ever conversed with a person.]
‘Why?’
[Because you, Master, are the rightful one to learn the Primordial Chaos Art.]
‘Me?’
[That is correct, Master.]
‘You call me your master, but I never said I would be. And it seems I didn't choose you; you chose me, didn't you?’
Namgung Urin was indifferent, but he was brilliant. He saw the current situation with perfect clarity.
[Yes, that is correct. However, that is also why not just anyone can learn the Primordial Chaos Art. It is only possible for someone with the right martial physique, character, and a sharp mind. In other words, it is not that I chose you, Master, but that you and I were finally able to meet.]
In short, the reason countless martial artists had failed to learn the Primordial Chaos Art despite their tireless efforts was not necessarily due to a lack of effort or skill, but because they had not been chosen by the art itself.
Of course, it was possible no one with such a sharp mind and outstanding martial prowess had appeared, but that was little more than an excuse for the Primordial Chaos Art's search for its one and only master.
After all, even Namgung Urin's father, Namgung Hyeok, a man with talent said to appear once in a century, had not been deemed worthy. To say more would be a waste of breath.
This was what the thirteen-year-old Namgung Urin had seen through.
‘I've never been told I have a good character. In fact, I've been pointed at and called a frightening brat.’
[It depends on one's perspective.]
‘I'm indifferent even in the face of death. I've never cherished anything. I have no friends I get along with. The other children dislike me. The family elders disliked me too.’
Namgung Urin was well aware of what he was like.
With all the talk and gossip in the family, it was impossible not to know.
[You are still young. It is an age where such things are understandable.]
‘What if I'm still like this when I'm older?’
[Then it must be because you have your own justification, Master.]
‘Justification? That sounds like something an old fogey would say.’
Namgung Urin's father, Namgung Hyeok, had never been like that with him.
He had always been an open-minded father.
It was usually the elders, worried about the future of the Namgung Family, who would scold Namgung Urin for causing trouble or acting strangely.
And they often spouted a lot of nonsense in the process.
That was why Namgung Urin didn't like old fogeys either.
["O-Old fogey... By chance, are you referring to an elderly person who spouts dogmatic or old-fashioned words at children and young people?"]
‘Yeah. That kind of old fogey.’
[I must decline.]
‘You're the one who said it. Justification. It sounds like something the family elders would say.’
[That was not the meaning I intended. The justification I spoke of refers to you yourself, Master. To me, everything you do is right. That is how I will see it.]
It was a terrifying thought, to imagine what might have happened if the Primordial Chaos Art had fallen into the hands of the Demonic Cult or the Unorthodox Faction.
It would have deemed killing people for no reason or committing heinous acts as righteous—what a perilous notion.
‘Then are you going to be the master who teaches me the Primordial Chaos Art?’
[No. I am merely a guide to help you learn the Primordial Chaos Art quickly and smoothly.]
‘So that's the same as saying I can learn the Primordial Chaos Art, then?’
[But of course, Master.]
Unconsciously, Namgung Urin clenched his fists.
An aura flowed from the fists of the thirteen-year-old boy, an intensity one would never expect from a child.
It was the combined effect of Namgung Urin's firm resolve and the Primordial Chaos Art, which had already become one with him.
“Father. I will do this even if you try to stop me. The Sword Demon who did that to you. The Martial Alliance Leader, the Murong Family, and the Baekri Family who did this to our Namgung... I will repay them with vengeance far greater than what we received.”
When he was young, his father had told him.
That those who harmed the Namgung were surely people with evil intentions.
That's why.
That's why I will become strong.
That's why I will rise to the highest position in the martial world. And I will tell them.
To kneel.
Before the eyes of the Namgung. Before the eyes of the martial world.
Until their knees are crushed and bleeding.
And to bow their heads until their faces touch the ground.
Please watch over me.
“Father.”
Namgung Urin left his room and headed for the family head's office, where his uncle was.
Namgung Urin felt it was time to turn his resolution and decision into action.
* * *
For the current Namgung Family Head, Namgung Yul, the past month had been hell itself, as he had to watch over everyone in the family sink into despair and frustration.
It was enough to make him resent his older brother, Namgung Hyeok, for sending him away.
But he endured and held on.
The saying that time heals all wounds didn't exist for nothing.
Everyone was beginning to calm down.
And now, they would look only forward and press on.
They were only 300 children, but their eyes were filled with venom.
They were pushing themselves hard in their training to become stronger.
To the point that it seemed excessive.
The children of Namgung also knew.
That this hadn't happened because the Namgung were weak.
That the Heavenly Demon's head and his infamous Blood Fiend Brigade had all died at the hands of the Namgung.
That the Namgung had been strong.
That they had never shown a shred of cowardice, even at the end.
The extraordinariness of the Namgung and the will of the Azure Sky were being engraved upon the children's hearts.
The Namgung Family Head, Namgung Yul, was confident.
In 20 years, the Namgung Family would once again stand tall as the hegemon of Anhui, and in another 10 years, they would look down upon the martial world as the world's greatest sword family.
All 300 of them had the makings of the Namgung's finest elite.
If not for the War of Orthodox and Demonic Factions, the Namgung Family... the Namgung Family in 20 years...
Sigh.
Dwelling on the past would only bring sighs.
It was time to bury the past and truly look only forward.
Yes, they just had to start anew.
Step by step, from the foundations up, like building a tower one stone at a time.
A bright future would welcome the Namgung Family with open arms.
However...
Namgung Yul knew of a way to hasten this timeline.
“That boy...”
Namgung Hyeok, the former head of the Namgung Family who had severed the Heavenly Demon's head, had possessed immense talent.
But the talent of his brother's son, Namgung Urin, seemed to surpass even that of Namgung Hyeok.
It seemed so.
But no matter how genius the talent, it was useless without effort.
The talent of a genius unsupported by effort was bound to stagnate at the level of a common person.
“And this kid is the perfect example of that.”
Furthermore, his nephew possessed a madness different from others.
At times he was too indifferent, at times too cruel, at times too self-centered.
He was a nephew who always inspired worry first.
Along with his ridiculously immense talent.
That was why he was worried.
A worry clouded Namgung Yul's mind—that a shocking event like the fall of the Namgung Family might make him even stranger.
Just look at him now.
While everyone else was gritting their teeth and dedicating themselves to training, only Namgung Urin remained cooped up in his room, showing no sign of coming out.
“This is a problem.”
He had to do something, anything.
Just then, the door to the head's office burst open.
‘Damn it.’
Now, anyone just throws open the door to the head's office.
This was because the guards who would normally protect the office were now also training.
Namgung Yul himself had ordered everyone except a skeleton crew to focus on training.
The Namgung were in a situation where every single person counted.
“Uncle.”
Speak of the devil.
Namgung Urin, the source of Namgung Yul's worries, had appeared in the office at this very moment.
“Why are you here?”
He looked up at his nephew, Namgung Urin.
He couldn't read the expression of the thirteen-year-old boy.
“If you've come, then speak.”
“Uncle.”
“I'm listening.”
“There is something I wish to do.”
“...”
Namgung Yul was surprised.
His nephew was the type to just do whatever he wanted. What could he possibly want to do that he would announce it to him like this?
He prayed it wasn't something troublesome, especially at a time like this.
“If you're planning on doing something useless again, I'd rather you didn't.”
“I know. But this isn't something useless.”
It was for his grandfather and father, and for the Namgung.
And it was exciting, interesting.
He was filled with anticipation.
To get revenge.
At having found a long-term goal.
“Alright, then. Let's hear it.”
The moment the words left Namgung Yul's mouth, Namgung Urin answered.
“I will enter secluded training.”
“Right. Secluded training...”
At first glance, it sounded like he was finally going to start training, which should have been a joyous occasion, but secluded training was another matter entirely.
“...Se... what? Did you just say secluded training? Did I mishear you?”
Namgung Yul could only hope he had heard wrong.