A Gale Will Blow in the Ten Blades
“It’s the True Three Great Saber Techniques.”
“Ooh!”
“The Myriad Flows Return to the Origin!”
“The True Three Great Saber Techniques!”
Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong waited for the murmurs among the disciples to subside before continuing.
“The Haomun has appointed the grandmaster who achieved this great feat as its Chief Instructor. I, Branch Leader Mok Un-saeng, and Hall Master Wi Ji-cheon were present at that historic moment. We witnessed the power of the True Three Great Saber Techniques with our own eyes. It is in no way inferior to the ultimate techniques of the Five Peaks Sword Sect.”
“Ooh!”
“You mean it’s on par with the Five Peaks Sword Sect?”
“Who is he?”
“Can we learn the True Three Great Saber Techniques too?”
The Jeommun disciples shifted restlessly in their seats. Haomun’s martial arts were universally acknowledged as third-rate. Though a few masters had emerged from their ranks, it was always due to individual talent, never the profundity of their techniques.
Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong raised a single finger once more. The hall fell silent as if the very mice had died.
“That grandmaster’s name is Chief Instructor Dan Bul-wi of our sect.”
“Branch Leader Dan Bul-wi?”
“Was his talent truly that exceptional?”
“Heavens…”
The disciples could not readily accept it. Yet Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong paid their reactions no mind. Once they learned Dan Bul-wi’s True Three Great Saber Techniques, such doubts would vanish.
“Of course, we too can learn the True Three Great Saber Techniques. Someone in our Jeommun branch has already mastered them. Branch Leader Mok and I have decided to appoint him as Jeommun’s Instructor.”
“Ooh!”
“An instructor for Jeommun!”
“Who is it?”
The disciples glanced about, curious who this instructor might be. Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong delivered the final blow.
“He is… Instructor Dan Yeop. From today onward, Instructor Dan Yeop will teach the True Three Great Saber Techniques. To ensure there are no difficulties in his instruction, the Branch Leader and I have decided to grant him the Iron Plaque. Instructor Dan Yeop, please step forward.”
To bolster the young instructor’s authority, Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong spoke without formality. Dan Yeop rose from his seat and walked forward. Murmurs rippled through the disciples.
“Dan Yeop? That trainee from Byeongmachong?”
“The Stone Monkey, Dan Yeop?”
“He couldn’t even master the Heaven and Earth Saber Style in thirteen years. How could he possibly…”
“Is Dan Yeop really that foolish?”
“Yes, he’s an irredeemable idiot.”
“Chief Instructor Dan Bul-wi must have taught him as his adopted son.”
“Even if he was taught, he doesn’t have the head to learn it.”
“Then the True Three Great Saber Techniques must be worthless after all?”
The disciples grew restless, but Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong remained unperturbed. Once Dan Yeop demonstrated his martial arts, all such talk would cease. Unable to bear it any longer, Branch Leader Mok Un-saeng shouted at the whispering disciples.
“Silence!”
The disciples finally closed their mouths, though doubt still lingered plainly on their faces. Once the murmurs died down, Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong handed the Iron Plaque to Dan Yeop.
“Instructor Dan Yeop, please teach our Jeommun disciples well.”
“Yes.”
After Dan Yeop received and secured the plaque, Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong turned to the disciples.
“Instructor Dan Yeop cannot teach everyone alone. Only the Hall Masters and Branch Leaders may receive direct instruction from him. Afterward, the Branch Leaders will teach the True Three Great Saber Techniques to the disciples. When the opportunity comes, learn diligently so that you do not tarnish Haomun’s name.”
“……Yes.”
The disciples’ response lacked enthusiasm, but Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong did not rebuke them. Once they witnessed the power of the True Three Great Saber Techniques, the matter would resolve itself. Dan Yeop looked at Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong with a troubled expression. If instruction was limited to the Branch Leaders, he would have no chance to meet Baek Yu-hwa. He needed to find a way.
“Um, Branch Leader.”
“What is it?”
“I would like to teach any of the Munwi who wish to learn.”
Baek Yu-hwa, a third-generation trainee from Byeongmachong, had ranked first in the exit examination and served as a squad leader, a position equivalent to Munwi.
“Would that be acceptable?”
“There won’t be many volunteers anyway.”
“If that is what Instructor Dan wishes, I have no objection.”
After all, the closer one stood to the originator of a martial art, the better. Fearing Dan Yeop might withdraw his offer, he quickly addressed the disciples.
“Instructor Dan has said he will teach any Munwi who wish to learn. Those who desire instruction may remain.”
“……”
The lowest-ranking Munwi showed little interest. Having heard the rumors about Dan Yeop from the Byeongmachong graduates, none were eager to learn from him.
After the meeting ended, the disciples filed out of the Anshihyeon one by one. Soon, only the Branch Leader, Vice-Branch Leader, Hall Masters, Branch Leaders, and two Munwi remained. Dan Yeop’s face lit up when he saw the Munwi. One of them was Baek Yu-hwa.
Assuming no one else would stay, Vice-Branch Leader Mok Un-saeng introduced the remaining people to Dan Yeop.
“Patrol Hall Master So Wol-hwa, Hall Master Wi Ji-cheon…… and Branch Leader Han Sang-ok…… Lastly, these two are Munwi Im Song and Munwi Baek Yu-hwa.”
Having finished, Vice-Branch Leader Mok Un-saeng stepped back into the group, signaling that Dan Yeop should proceed as he saw fit.
Dan Yeop glanced around the Anshihyeon. With eighteen people to teach, there was more than enough space. In the past, he would never have stepped forward before such a crowd. Now, though slightly nervous, it was nothing he could not endure. The man who once lacked eloquence drew his saber first.
“First, I will demonstrate the first three forms of the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style. Then I will break them down and teach them one movement at a time.”
Dan Yeop performed the forms slowly and deliberately so everyone could see clearly. Knowing Baek Yu-hwa was watching, his heart grew warm. One Mind. Though he had tried to relax his strength, saber qi clung to the blade like a thin layer of frost.
Shhh— Shhh—!
In the blink of an eye, the demonstration of the first three forms was complete. Dan Yeop exhaled the breath he had been holding and sheathed his saber. He then turned to face Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong and the others.
Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong, Vice-Branch Leader Mok Un-saeng, and Patrol Hall Master So Wol-hwa—though they had seen it only days before—had faces flushed crimson. They had been impressed then, but now his skill had advanced even further.
The expressions of the five Hall Masters, eight Branch Leaders, and two Munwi were even more striking. They all looked as though they had seen a ghost. The True Heaven and Earth Saber Style Dan Yeop had displayed clearly resembled the Heaven and Earth Saber Style, yet the difference in power and profundity was like heaven and earth. Moreover, they had all clearly seen the saber qi gathered upon his blade. That was something only the masters of the Five Peaks Sword Sect could achieve. To reach such a realm with nothing but Haomun’s saber techniques!
Their mouths went dry with excitement, and a dizzying vertigo washed over them. Munwi Im Song’s nostrils flared repeatedly as emotion surged within him.
‘That crazy bastard told me to show him what I’ve got? Who does he think he’s dealing with?’
He had only volunteered to learn because he could not refuse his younger brother Im Jeong’s insistence.
—That guy probably only barely learned a few forms from Dan Bul-wi. Giving him Jeommun’s Iron Plaque? Even if he has backing in the sect, that’s going too far. Big brother, show that guy what you’re made of.
He had stayed, partly agreeing with his brother and partly to find fault. But now that he had seen for himself, it was his brother who was the fool. Instructor Dan Yeop’s martial prowess surpassed any warrior he had ever met. Though he had never seen the masters of the Five Peaks Sword Sect to compare, there could not be many such experts even in Chang’an Castle.
‘Good thing I didn’t act rashly and just watched. I nearly made a fool of myself.’
He let out a quiet sigh of relief. As silence fell, Dan Yeop began teaching the movements one by one with an awkward expression. The eighteen Jeommun masters returned to the basics, swinging their sabers with utmost focus. Dan Yeop naturally made his way to Baek Yu-hwa’s side. Watching her sweat profusely brought back old memories.
—You don’t know how to do this form, the Horizontal Slash Across the Mountain?
—I do, but I can’t remember…… Is it from the left? Or the right?
—Instructor Go Mok sings that song every day. Turn left while striking the sky once, the ground once, then slash left and right while facing forward—chack! Chack!
As Dan Yeop stood beside her, staring, Baek Yu-hwa asked cautiously.
“Why, why are you looking at me? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, you’re doing well.”
“Really?”
Baek Yu-hwa’s face, which had been thoroughly cowed, bloomed like a flower. For a moment, Dan Yeop was dazzled and quickly averted his gaze, unable to look directly at her.
‘Becoming an instructor was the right choice after all.’
Using instruction as an excuse, he circled around Baek Yu-hwa.
Training that began at the hour of Sa (10 a.m.) continued without rest until the end of the hour of Shin (5 p.m.). The eighteen masters did not leave the Anshihyeon except during the lunch meal. How many years had they been looked down upon even while helping others, simply because they belonged to Haomun? People of the martial world truly regarded Haomun members as dogs. Insults were the norm; if it ended with a beating, one could count themselves lucky. Occasionally, when they encountered someone with a cruel temperament, they lost limbs or even their lives. Of course, most incidents occurred because Haomun members provoked trouble first, but there were also those who suffered merely for speaking the truth. The reason was simple: they were weak. That was why Haomun members called themselves “trees full of knots.” It was self-deprecation, implying they were “useless,” but it also carried the meaning of “bearing many grudges.”
Did the Branch Leader of Haomun feel no resentment? On the contrary, the longer one lived as a Haomun member, the greater the accumulated anger. And now an opportunity had come to learn saber techniques comparable to those of the Five Peaks Sword Sect? It would be strange if their eyes did not light up with fervor. Though none had an appetite, they forced themselves to eat to show hospitality to Dan Yeop. By early evening, they had barely managed to master the first form. It was only because they had trained in the Heaven and Earth Saber Style their entire lives that they progressed so quickly.
Finally, when the youngest, Baek Yu-hwa, could smoothly execute the first form, Dan Yeop spoke to the group.
“We will stop here for today.”
Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong replied with a face full of regret.
“Instructor Dan, you’ve worked hard. Please come to the Anshihyeon again tomorrow at the hour of Sa (9 a.m.). I intend to keep the Anshihyeon reserved as a training ground until the transmission of the True Three Great Saber Techniques is complete.”
“Understood. But once the instruction here is finished, what work will I be doing?”
He asked because he had been told to teach the disciples through the Branch Leaders.
“I plan to summon everyone here once a month to check whether they have learned properly. At that time, Instructor Dan can provide further guidance. This task will be repeated until the day our Jeommun branch disappears, so you need not worry about your position.”
“Then I only need to teach once a month?”
“Of course, the Branch Leaders may also secretly invite Instructor Dan. In such cases, you may go and instruct them directly.”
“Ah, that’s possible as well. Understood.”
“I’m curious—do you think we can master the True Three Great Saber Techniques before the year ends?”
“You are learning the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style quickly, but I cannot say how the True Hundred Flow Saber Style and True Seven Phases Saber Style will go.”
The Jeommun had learned the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style swiftly because their understanding of the Heaven and Earth Saber Style ran deep. However, even accounting for their existing knowledge, the True Hundred Flow Saber Style and True Seven Phases Saber Style underwent such drastic changes that mastering them would not be easy.
“If it takes longer, there is no harm in teaching at a relaxed pace. In the meantime, it would be fine for the Branch Leaders to teach the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style to the disciples.”
Having learned the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style, Branch Leader Baek Cho-gong’s ambition had grown boundless. He wanted to spread the True Heaven and Earth Saber Style to the Haomun members, who were absurdly weak compared to other factions, as quickly as possible.
“Understood.”
Dan Yeop nodded readily. From his perspective, it made no difference either way. Once the discussion concluded, the Hall Masters and Branch Leaders offered him their thanks.
“Instructor Dan Yeop, thank you. We will never forget today’s kindness—”