The Instructors' Challenge
The instructors were no fools. They would never accept the positions of Chief Instructor and Instructor so readily.
“Very well. Let us follow the ways of the jianghu. If I lose, I shall relinquish the Chief Instructor’s seat. But what will you do if you lose?”
At those words, Hanwol-geom hesitated. Dan Bul-wi smiled and continued.
“I won’t demand your instructor positions. Haomun needs instructors. Instead, apologize to Lord Hong. From what I’ve seen, his words don’t seem wrong.”
It was a humiliating proposal, yet Hanwol-geom could not refute it.
After exchanging glances with Unjung-gaek and Go Geom-haeng, Hanwol-geom answered.
“So be it. But can you face us alone? Dan Yeop may join you, if he has the courage.”
Hanwol-geom looked at Dan Yeop provocatively, mentioning courage.
The instructors were determined to oust the Chief Instructor and Instructor today, no matter what.
“Very well.”
Dan Yeop agreed readily. He had expected a clash with the instructors sooner or later. Unlike Unjung-gaek, Hanwol-geom, and Go Geom-haeng, who were renowned masters of the martial world, he and Dan Bul-wi were mere unknowns from the lowest ranks.
As if they had been waiting, Unjung-gaek, Hanwol-geom, and Go Geom-haeng stepped forward. Dan Bul-wi and Dan Yeop rose from their seats and faced the three instructors.
Once everything proceeded according to plan, Ha So-ran turned to Hong So-gwang of the Amun branch and Baek Cho-gong of the Jeommun branch.
Hmph! Did you think I would simply watch you strut about?
She wore a triumphant smile, but soon furrowed her brows. Hong So-gwang and Baek Cho-gong looked far too composed.
What is this? Surely they don’t believe Dan Bul-wi can defeat the instructors?
Ha So-ran did not even consider Dan Yeop. He had only recently emerged from Byeongmachong.
Dan Bul-wi spoke first.
“I am Dan Bul-wi. Who will step forward first?”
Dan Bul-wi was not usually so courteous. Yet after nearly dying in Baekwol Kingdom and receiving guidance on the Jin-sam-dae-do-beop from Dan Yeop, his words and actions had grown calmer.
Unjung-gaek spoke as though he had been waiting.
“I, Unjung-gaek, shall test your skills first.”
He used the word “test” to provoke his opponent, but Dan Bul-wi paid it no mind. Soon, Dan Bul-wi and Unjung-gaek drew their sabers almost simultaneously.
Confident in his superiority, Unjung-gaek leisurely observed Dan Bul-wi—or tried to. He never got the chance. Dan Bul-wi charged straight in without warning.
The two sabers clashed in midair.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang—!
Four exchanges flashed by in the blink of an eye. The composure vanished from Unjung-gaek’s face.
Huh! He’s strong!
Unjung-gaek stared at Dan Bul-wi in disbelief. Dan Bul-wi was an unknown man from Amun with no title or reputation. Yet he swung his blade without hesitation. Each strike was so lethal that cold sweat ran down Unjung-gaek’s back.
Unjung-gaek quickly retreated to create distance. His face flushed with heat. To show such a pathetic display against someone like Dan Bul-wi—he could not bear to meet the other instructors’ eyes.
Grinding his teeth, he rushed forward like the wind, his saber vanishing from sight as if by magic. It was the Cloud-Hidden Saber, following the Dust-Wind Step that had made his name echo across the four seas.
Dan Bul-wi did not simply take the attack. He immediately unleashed the first form of the Jin-chil-sang-do-beop, Initial Wound to Yin Deficiency.
Since he could not see the opponent’s blade, he assumed it was a yin technique and countered accordingly.
Crash—!
With a sharp metallic clash, both men were thrown backward. Unjung-gaek retreated three steps, Dan Bul-wi only one.
Unjung-gaek’s face was pale, as though he had suffered internal injuries. After calming his churning insides, he spoke.
“I have lost.”
With those words, Unjung-gaek withdrew. Dan Bul-wi’s gaze turned to Hanwol-geom and Go Geom-haeng.
Hanwol-geom stepped forward with an indifferent expression.
“I am Hanwol-geom. You need not rest, I trust?”
Despite his words, he drew his sword slowly, giving his opponent no time to recover. It meant he no longer regarded Dan Bul-wi as beneath him.
“I’m fine.”
Though his tone was calm, Dan Bul-wi’s insides had been slightly shaken when he deflected the Cloud-Hidden Saber. Still, he did not consider it serious. He had faced far more vicious fights in the jianghu countless times. What interested him more was how well he could handle these wandering masters.
Dan Bul-wi’s eyes remained fixed on Hanwol-geom. A former disciple of Mount Hua, Hanwol-geom had wandered as a vagrant and refined the Plum Blossom Sword Technique for real combat. The result was the Hanwol Plum Blossom Sword.
They say it combines the profound mysteries of the Plum Blossom Sword Technique with practical application.
The thought of pitting the martial arts of the Five Great Sword Sects against the Jin-sam-dae-do-beop stirred a faint excitement within him.
Hanwol-geom and Dan Bul-wi glared at each other without moving. The air between them grew taut and heated. In their minds, they exchanged countless blows. Time passed. Gradually, the complex light in Hanwol-geom’s eyes settled.
I will win.
He judged that while Dan Bul-wi’s saber technique was formidable, it still fell short of the Hanwol Plum Blossom Sword. Combat was about momentum, and momentum came from faith in one’s own martial arts. Dan Bul-wi could never withstand the Plum Blossom Sword Technique honed through real battles.
Finally, Hanwol-geom gathered his inner energy throughout his body.
Shhh—.
A hazy aura rose from his sword blade. Sword qi manifestation. Go Geom-haeng, watching from afar, showed a flash of interest in his eyes. He had heard much of Hanwol-geom’s prowess, but it exceeded even his expectations.
Dan Bul-wi’s performance ends here.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Hanwol-geom and Dan Bul-wi clashed. Sword and saber danced wildly, producing heavy whooshing sounds.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang—!
After deflecting the final strike, Dan Bul-wi’s expression hardened slightly. A rising sensation and the taste of metal filled his mouth.
Tsk! When did I suffer internal injuries…?
Each time he deflected the opponent’s sword, his chest had throbbed. But internal injuries? The real fight had not even begun. It was absurd.
As expected of a Mount Hua disciple.
Unjung-gaek’s saber was sharp yet light, while Hanwol-geom’s sword was lightning-fast yet strangely heavy. It must be due to the inner energy cultivation of Mount Hua supporting it.
Dan Bul-wi tried to calm his boiling insides and slipped backward. Regret washed over him for not resting after fighting Unjung-gaek. But Hanwol-geom gave him no breathing room. Like a shadow, he closed in and unleashed the Hanwol Plum Blossom Sword Technique he had been holding back.
Shhh—.
Hanwol-geom’s sword flashed from left to right, then right to left like lightning. Plum blossom-shaped sword qi materialized in the air and rained down chaotically. It was the famous Plum Blossom Scattering of the Hanwol Plum Blossom Sword.
Dan Bul-wi countered with the fourth form of the Chil-sang-do-beop, Four Wounds Form Break.
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop—!
Light bursting sounds echoed in the air. Four plum blossoms exploded, but three survivors struck Dan Bul-wi. In that critical moment, Dan Bul-wi brought out the final form of the Jin-chil-sang-do-beop.
Seven Wounds, Shared Return—“die together with the enemy.”
Ignoring the plum blossoms, his saber shot straight toward Hanwol-geom.
Shhh—!
Hanwol-geom, who had been smiling confidently, widened his eyes. He could block the saber with his sword, but that would require withdrawing the Plum Blossom Scattering.
Has this man gone mad?
If he were Dan Bul-wi’s mortal enemy, perhaps. But in a mere test of martial prowess, to use such a vicious technique…
Though the thought took time, everything happened in an instant. Hanwol-geom’s hesitation worsened the situation. He ultimately did not withdraw the Plum Blossom Scattering, and Dan Bul-wi did not stop his thrusting saber.
In that life-or-death moment, Go Geom-haeng drew his blade and struck the saber aside.
Clang—!
As the saber veered sharply off course, everyone’s eyes turned to Dan Bul-wi, fearing he had been wounded by Hanwol-geom’s sword qi. But what was this? Three plum blossom sword qi had clearly targeted him, yet he stood unharmed. Judging by the saber now in Dan Yeop’s hand, he had dealt with them.
Hanwol-geom stared at Dan Yeop in disbelief. He had not even seen the youth draw his blade, and destroying the plum blossom sword qi with nothing but a saber was hard to believe.
Just then, Go Geom-haeng spoke.
“Dan Bul-wi, using a technique meant to die together in a mere test of martial skill? Don’t you think that’s excessive?”
Dan Bul-wi chuckled.
“Die together? What nonsense is that? It only happened because Hanwol-geom failed to block my attack.”
“Before that, you should have targeted the sword qi, not Hanwol-geom. What else would you call it but a mutual destruction technique?”
Go Geom-haeng pressed the accusation. It was true that Hanwol-geom’s hesitation had caused it, but to any observer, it had been a “die together” maneuver.
“Even if Hanwol-geom were struck, would the sword qi have remained? If you hadn’t helped him, nothing would have happened to me.”
At Dan Bul-wi’s rebuttal, Go Geom-haeng did not press further. He turned to Hanwol-geom.
“Lord Han, will you continue?”
“No. I am done here.”
Hanwol-geom withdrew without protest. He knew he could not subdue Dan Bul-wi with the Hanwol Plum Blossom Sword, so further fighting was pointless.
What a vicious man.
Dan Bul-wi could have destroyed the sword qi, but he had targeted him instead. Even for a long-time vagrant like Hanwol-geom, it was a rare experience. Without Go Geom-haeng’s help, he might have died. Then, as Dan Bul-wi said, the remaining sword qi would have dissipated on its own. It was his defeat.
Once the situation settled, Go Geom-haeng stepped before Dan Bul-wi.
“Can you continue?”
Dan Bul-wi did not answer immediately. He did not feel he would lose, but his condition concerned him. As he hesitated, Dan Yeop intervened.
“Shall I finish this?”
“That would be fine. Let us do so.”
Without looking back, Dan Bul-wi returned to the Amun seats. Dan Yeop addressed the bewildered Go Geom-haeng.
“I am Dan Yeop, Instructor of Jeommun. Shall we begin at once?”
Go Geom-haeng shouted toward Dan Bul-wi, who had already taken his seat.
“What is the meaning of this? Do you truly believe Dan Yeop belongs in this arena?”
Dan Yeop answered.
“Lord Go, if you defeat me, both the Chief Instructor and I shall relinquish our positions.”
For a moment, Go Geom-haeng glared at Dan Yeop with tiger-like eyes. How dare a mere youngster interrupt a conversation among masters?
“A newborn calf fears not the tiger, they say! If you wish to turn today’s duel into a farce, you are making a grave mistake. A sword has no…”
“Yes, no eyes. I often say the same to others.”
Dan Yeop responded politely. Unlike the other Haomun members, Go Geom-haeng’s refined demeanor pleased him. But that was only Dan Yeop’s thought. Go Geom-haeng felt the blood rush to his head.
Was this the typical bluster of a young upstart? Or was he using provocation even in a duel? Either way, it was deeply insulting to his pride.
This is why I never wanted to get involved with Haomun…
Go Geom-haeng shot Ha So-ran a resentful glance. Allowing himself to become an instructor because of his past connection with her had been a mistake.