Proving Himself: The Black Flame Dragon (5)
The position of Murim Academy headmaster held an ambiguous status within the Murim Alliance. If someone who had served as a division leader or hall master took the seat, it was seen as a guaranteed path to promotion. On the flip side, if someone who had risen as high as deputy leader ended up assigned there, it was time to start preparing for retirement.
Viewed in that light, the current headmaster, Three Pure Ones Dragon Buk Wonpyeong, was blazing a career path rivaling the elites of the Nine Great Sects and Eight Great Clans—a rarity for a disciple of a one-man succession sect. Even in a martial world where building factions had become the norm, the prestige of the Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword remained uniquely exceptional. Perhaps it was only natural, given that its sanctity stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Shaolin's Daruma Reversal Meridian Scripture and Wudang's Heaven-Earth Supreme Ultimate Divine Art.
How did someone like me end up in this mess...?
Buk Wonpyeong gazed at the young man before him. Dressed head to toe in black—martial robes, sword, even the cloth binding his hair—the youth stared back with piercing eyes.
"What I want to learn is the Jade Pure Heavenly Star Sword."
"......"
Buk Wonpyeong swallowed a groan at the youth's attitude, as if demanding something that was already his. Even when teaching a single sword form to a third-rate ronin, one did at least three full bows, if not nine. Yet here was this impudence from someone barely out of his teens.
"You're not thinking of backing out on our bet now, are you?"
Despite the tone rivaling a loan shark's, Buk Wonpyeong couldn't voice any complaint. The bet they'd made from the start had been about teaching martial arts, after all.
"Before that, I have a question."
"What might that be?"
"How is it that a mere youth in his twenties knows about the 'theory on the correlation between acupoints and qi deviation'—something even most instructors are unaware of?"
In the common view of the martial world, qi deviation stemmed from impure inner energy in the dantian or excessive energy operation. But lately, among warrior-physicians and doctors versed in martial arts, a theory had emerged that even weak acupoints could trigger it. It was knowledge unfamiliar to instructors, let alone those uninterested in martial theory.
That was why Buk Wonpyeong had confidently accepted the bet.
Yet this young man, barely past his twenties, recited it flawlessly.
"I felt limits in my sect's martial arts and devoured every book that might help."
Buk Wonpyeong was well aware that Tae-eul Gate was an unremarkable sect. In the martial world, treating Tae-eul Gate on par with the one-man lineage of the Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword would itself be seen as an insult.
"......And that's how you learned about the acupoint-qi deviation correlation theory?"
"Yes. I have a pretty good memory."
"......"
Only then did it click for Buk Wonpyeong—Jin Sowoon rattling off the names of all 360 acupoints when questioned by an instructor about acupoint theory.
'Plans depend on man, success on heaven...'
Even in this desperate situation, he'd done everything possible for his sect. No wonder the story of reclaiming the Tae-eul Sword Emperor's progression felt less like coincidence.
"You're not trying to renege because you didn't know about my memory, are you?"
Jin Sowoon eyed him suspiciously. Buk Wonpyeong had harbored ill will toward the troublemaker, but somehow, his actions no longer grated.
"I heard you reclaimed the Tae-eul Sword Emperor's progression. Why seek another sect's arts?"
"I don't know how to use sword force."
"Pardon?"
Buk Wonpyeong's brow furrowed. For any advanced manual, the path to sword force was always detailed. Even if exaggerated, if half the legends were true, its absence from the Tae-eul Sword Emperor's manual was odd.
"The Sword Emperor didn't seem to place much emphasis on sword force."
"Is that so? Still, among your sect elders..."
"I've seen Kwaehwa Dang Lord Gang Chaeseok project sword energy, but..."
Buk Wonpyeong grasped the situation. No peak experts in the sect meant no way to cultivate them.
"That fellow... yes."
"You know him?"
"We attended the academy together. Quite promising back then..."
He omitted that lacking a strong foundation had stalled his growth—a frustration for nearly sixty percent of special admissions from the 108 Peaks.
"So, I thought the headmaster might help with sword force."
"Not a request—a bet."
"Wouldn't your investigators grieve if you handed over arts due to a lost wager?"
"Then you shouldn't have proposed it."
"Is that so?"
His brazen attitude, as if unsure of his fault, left Buk Wonpyeong with a strange feeling—like meeting his younger, driven self. Gang Chaeseok had once shown similar resolve.
"A promise is a promise. I'll teach you. But I can't teach sword force. To master it, you'd need full transmission, and you're not aiming to inherit the Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword."
"No crash course or shortcut?"
Buk Wonpyeong looked incredulous.
"Do you think sword force is some sleight-of-hand trick?"
Jin Sowoon nodded readily.
"I figured as much. That's why I asked for the Jade Pure Heavenly Star Sword."
Buk Wonpyeong shook his head.
"Regrettably, that's impossible too. The Jade Pure Heavenly Star Sword requires Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force from the Three Purities."
That was why the Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword remained one-man succession: the Three Purities—Azure, Jade, and Supreme—weren't about speed or will, but built solely through Heavenly Virtue Force, the essence of the Three Purities. And to cultivate that required an innate martial sage body and a dantian forged from pure energy. Anyone tasting grains from childhood was effectively barred.
"The Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force is the purest among them, so even mastering the forms..."
Buk Wonpyeong trailed off, mouth agape. His eyes locked on something like a meteor shuttle extending from Jin Sowoon's left hand.
"Th-that's..."
The dangling weight and thread shimmered with golden light.
"Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force?"
He sounded disbelieving even as he spoke.
"H-how can a lay disciple..."
"The Tae-eul Sword Emperor's manual is based on Heavenly Virtue Force. Fortunately—or not—I've only trained the Tae-eul Heart Technique since childhood, the foundation of the Tae-eul True Scripture."
It was astonishing. Heavenly Virtue Force came from ancient Daoists accumulating emptiness, distinct from worldly martial qi.
"Five hundred years without progression kept it from straying... is that it?"
"Who knows if it's good now."
"Does the Tae-eul True Scripture you speak of lack Three Purities arts? If it uses them, such techniques should exist."
"Actually, I realized this training a technique from some eccentric. The Tae-eul True Scripture adapted, letting me wield Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force."
"You stumbled into it? What technique from this eccentric... can you not say who?"
"Yes."
"Haha..."
"My biggest issue now is this: my Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force suppresses demons effectively, but lacks impact for strikes."
"Makes sense. It's for accumulating emptiness, not harming."
"Tell me how to use it offensively, and I won't need the sword forms."
"Hm..."
Fascinating that a manual wielding Three Purities energy omitted usage. Perhaps its era assumed it obvious. Maybe the Tae-eul True Scripture rivaled the daunting Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword.
"No interest in becoming a lay disciple?"
"No."
At the firm refusal, Buk Wonpyeong waved hastily.
"Not imposing duty. Mastering all Three Purities needs more than one or two forms."
"Maybe. But if the Tae-eul True Scripture doesn't manifest Azure or Supreme Force, other arts are futile. Switching inner arts now, even pure ones, won't change my foundation."
"True..."
Buk Wonpyeong smacked his lips in regret. Approaching fifty, he needed a successor. He'd planned to seek one after Alliance success, but hadn't risen as hoped. No matter the prestige, one man alone achieved little.
"Conversely, how about you join Tae-eul Gate as a lay disciple?"
"Pardon?"
He chuckled at the cheeky jest, ready to begin training, but Jin Sowoon was dead serious. And then came the bombshell.
"Isn't it time you sought a disciple?"
"......"
"Finding a vessel for the Three Purities isn't easy, right?"
"How do you..."
"I told you—I studied everything. So, how about joining Tae-eul Gate as a lay disciple?"
"What does my need for a disciple have to do with Tae-eul Gate?"
"Isn't the foundational Tae-eul Heart Technique tied to Heavenly Virtue Force?"
"......"
It hit Buk Wonpyeong like a hammer to the head.
"I only recently realized, but considering the Tae-eul True Scripture and Tae-eul Heart Technique as one study, children building foundations with it would have bodies suited for the Three Pure Ones Unfettered Sword."
"......"
If true, even grain-eaters could gradually purge fire energy via the technique, and a dantian formed that way could easily hold Three Purities energy. Finding martial sage bodies was about innate low-fire constitutions anyway.
"Can you teach me the Tae-eul Heart Technique?"
Teacher and student had swapped, but neither minded.
"Haha..."
After circulating energy per Jin Sowoon's incantation, Buk Wonpyeong let out an incredulous laugh. His pure-energy dantian operated flawlessly. Proof the technique cultivated Heavenly Virtue Force.
"Lay disciple... lay disciple..."
Seasoned and nearing fifty, he felt no aversion—rather, eagerness. It could break the one-man tradition, reviving the art as a sect.
"Will Tae-eul Gate accept me as a lay disciple?"
"You seek no heart technique, just the foundation. No issue. Our sect leader is broad-minded."
"Haha... music to my ears. May I visit tomorrow?"
Jin Sowoon frowned.
"Still term time. And you owe me a lesson first."
"Ah... right."
As Buk Wonpyeong taught for the first time, a sudden question arose.
"Why clash with the Jeongdo Council?"
He knew the instructors gossiped. Neutrality was expected, but affairs weren't so pure. The exam fiasco stemmed from council-aligned instructors suspecting Jin Sowoon.
"The Nine Great Sects, Eight Great Clans, and Twelve Peaks are giants. Not for youthful bravado."
He spoke as if to his younger self. Jin Sowoon mirrored that past drive—but he'd been broken. Some barriers defied effort and will.
"I've never clashed."
"......"
"I merely called out injustice."
"That can still make you their enemy."
"Doesn't matter."
"Not fame or fortune?"
Frail convictions crumbled against desire. Aware or not, Jin Sowoon replied firmly.
"What joy in success through foul means? I just want to face my juniors and elders unashamed."
"......"
"Absolute powers don't exist. If I fall resisting, my juniors carry on. If they fall, their disciples will. Isn't that the spirit of the White Path?"
"......!"
Buk Wonpyeong gaped, stunned as if struck by lightning. He murmured after a long pause.
"Born in a puddle, yet a dragon remains a dragon..."
He wondered if joining Tae-eul Gate would let him raise disciples like Jin Sowoon.
"Still, be cautious. Instructors hint at something brewing."
"You'll be sect family soon. Why worry?"
Buk Wonpyeong burst into hearty laughter at the tease.
The academy buzzed with excitement post-written exams. The practicals directly gauged skill via sparring—a festival for martial-bred students.
"Already so crowded on day one."
Students, sect brothers, and Alliance visitors packed in for the Group A practicals and disciples' showings.
"Mostly Nine Great Sects and Eight Great Clans today."
Seong Moran noted clusters in matching attire.
"Prestige battles for them too."
Eunho's words drew her knowing nod.
"Who’s Jin Gongzi facing?"
Before I could answer, Namgung Seonhwa spoke.
"Group A has only their elites, so probably from Group B."
I agreed. Mismatched foes skewed evaluations; instructors adjusted coldly.
"Group B... Black Whirlwind Yuk Jagwang?"
From Beijing Yukga, Yuk Jagwang matched Nine Great Sect elites.
Seong Moran eyed me.
"You're not tense. Yukga Spear Forms are top-tier."
Luckily, thanks to Yuk Sirang, I knew all six forms—and with Jegal Cheongi's aid, their crushing variants. His revenge dream unfulfilled, perhaps I'd realize it here.
"No life-or-death stakes. Why tense?"
Group B contenders waited amid spectators.
"Murim Academy practicals begin! Called names, to the arena!"
The instructor's roar echoed across the grand drill ground. Glancing at his paper:
"Tae-eul Gate's Jin Sowoon!"
Gazes swarmed—envy, jealousy, hate, wariness, discontent.
As I rose for the arena, Eunseollan beside Saryeon cheered.
"Fight hard, Oppa!"
I nodded; oddly, Seong Moran and Namgung Seonhwa glared venomously.
"Focus. No slacking."
"Black Whirlwind Yuk Jagwang trains ascetically... tough win for Jin Gongzi."
I feigned grievance, but they turned away with sniffs. Women’s hearts remained mysteries, as in my past life.
Heading out, I spotted Yuk Jagwang in blue robes rising opposite.
The instructor eyed me oddly, then bellowed at his paper.
"Opponent... Shaolin Temple's Ilgak."
My steps halted.
Yuk Jagwang's too.
A monk rose quietly from the Shaolin group.
"Insane..."
A mutter sparked market-like chaos across the drill ground.