Transformation
I ran the Small Heavenly Circuit like you told me, and something way worse than crap came pouring out of my whole body. What is this?
The smell was seriously disgusting.
…
…
…
The ringleader behind all this was almost certainly Cheonma. The explanation posts he fired off one after another only confirmed it.
Some bodies just take to martial arts better than others.
Same breathing exercises, and they stockpile energy several times faster. Same techniques, and they use them better. That kind of body.
Martial artists try to build that kind of frame by doing Marrow Cleansing from childhood, or by piling up so much internal energy the body naturally goes through Flesh-and-Bone Rebirth — or they're just born with it.
But I can't tell Juddak to die and get reborn, and it's not like we can perform Marrow Cleansing for him either, right?
If I waited for Juddak to build up all that energy on his own, my insides would explode first.
So I used a grand method of the Heavenly Demon Sect and put my brain to work designing a mind method that could trigger a pseudo Flesh-and-Bone Rebirth.
Meaning the perfect vessel for holding internal energy is complete now.
Hurt a bit, sure — but you handled it, right? Admit it.
After checking the gallery, I sank back into the water and looked my body over.
A pseudo Flesh-and-Bone Rebirth, huh.
Now that I thought about it, something about my senses really had changed. My field of vision seemed wider, sounds came through more clearly, and my body felt lighter.
Guess I'll have to test it sometime.
I turned my remade body this way and that — mine, and yet not quite mine — and the moment I stepped out of the bathhouse:
"Ah, shit. Clothes."
I realized I had nothing to wear.
Fortunately, as thanks for dealing with the Jeonggoe, Ye Hajun managed to get a few sets of clothes from the innkeeper, and then set out for Cheonmu Academy with Han Yumae.
"Any idea roughly how long it takes from here to the academy?"
"If we move quickly, about a week?"
"Faster than I expected."
"Right? And, um, about that…"
Han Yumae hesitated, clearly torn over whether to say what she was about to say, then steeled herself and spoke.
"Since it'll take a while, want to do some light sparring on the way? With me?"
"Sparring?"
"The entrance exam is a spar, after all. It'd be good for you to practice too. And I've never seen anyone from a mysterious single-lineage sect before, so I'd like to broaden my horizons a little."
Ye Hajun fell into brief thought at her words.
I've already been through real combat plenty of times, so sparring with a girl feels a bit… But my body does feel different, and I want to experiment.
After a short deliberation, he spoke.
"When you say sparring, we're talking about not actually hurting each other, right?"
"Yeah. Just a simple match with external techniques only. The moment one of us feels they've subdued the other, we stop right away."
"Alright. But you use a sword — doesn't that put me at a weird disadvantage?"
Han Yumae lifted her sword, still in its scabbard, and showed it to him.
"If I keep the scabbard on, it should be fine."
"Fair enough. Want to go right now?"
With the spar decided, the two of them found a suitable clearing and stood facing each other.
"I am Han Yumae, thirty-seventh generation disciple of Mount Hua. I request your instruction."
"Uh… Ye Hajun? Is there etiquette for this too?"
"Just say something similar. When you request a spar, you use cheonggyo — requesting instruction. The winner says seungyang — thanking the other for yielding. The loser says sugyo — thanking them for the lesson. As long as you observe those, it's fine."
Once again reminded that Han Yumae was a properly trained martial artist of the Orthodox path, Ye Hajun clasped his fists in a formal salute.
"Ye Hajun requests your instruction."
"I'll yield the first move. You may attack."
As Han Yumae settled into her stance, Ye Hajun briefly considered how best to approach her.
If I use the forms of Gunryeo Gwonhak properly, it'll hurt, so better focus on control…
His gaze swept over her from head to toe. Her stance was close to a natural posture, ready for any attack — but to Ye Hajun's eyes, it looked different.
Lots of openings. Let's put her down gently.
Ye Hajun lunged forward and thrust his left hand out wide, blocking Han Yumae's vision. She naturally tried to create distance and counter — and then:
"Huh?"
The world flipped. She hit the ground. At some point, Ye Hajun's leg had hooked hers and sent her tumbling. His joint-lock techniques flowed on without pause, stripping her of her sword and preparing to pin her down when he stopped.
"This is enough… right?"
"Ugh… yeah."
The spar was over in an instant. And it wasn't only the defeated Han Yumae who was rattled — Ye Hajun felt the same.
What was that…? Why did the movements feel so natural?
It had been about a month since he'd learned the bare-handed combat of Gunryeo Gwonhak, and he'd fought plenty of real battles since then. But even that brief exchange told him something had changed.
Because of the body transformation? No — more like my body just… knew the next move on its own.
As if someone had injected the memory straight into him.
Don't tell me… is it because I saw the Spirit of Seeking Justice's dream?
He needed to confirm it further. With that in mind, Ye Hajun turned to Han Yumae.
"Um… want to go again?"
"Yeah. One more time."
She felt the same way after being taken down so suddenly.
What was that just now? My leg got hooked and my sword got stolen in a blink…
She understood the cause and the result, but couldn't reconstruct the process in between.
In the end, they sparred again. The result:
"…Thank you for the instruction."
"Thank you for yielding… is that right?"
"…Yeah."
Same outcome. Han Yumae flat on the ground with her sword gone, and Ye Hajun wearing a dazed expression despite having won.
The situation set Han Yumae's insides boiling.
Should I ask for another spar? No, but asking for more when I'm clearly outmatched is a little… No, but it's so frustrating not even knowing why I lost.
Humiliation at being dropped in a single exchange, competitive fire that wanted another match anyway, and embarrassment all tangled together inside her. Meanwhile, Ye Hajun was just as thrown by how easily he'd won — and by how abruptly his mastery of Gunryeo Gwonhak had jumped.
In the end, he wrote a post on the place he expected would have answers.
Seriously, what did you do to my body?
Having pieced together the full picture through the Blood Sect Master, Ye Hajun sank into thought.
I probably only saw the Spirit of Seeking Justice's dream first because I learned his martial arts… Does that mean every time my skill improves, I get dreams like that?
If so, he might grow fast enough to take down the Heuksabang leader before long. The thought flickered through his mind, and he turned to Han Yumae.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"Want to spar a bit more, then?"
"Uh… yeah? Are you sure? Against someone like me?"
Ye Hajun figured that if he kept raising his mastery of Gunryeo Gwonhak, he might dream again and grow even faster. Han Yumae, having lost, wanted to keep facing an opponent who seemed stronger than her until she won. Their reasons differed, but what they were after was the same.
"Alright. Let's spar as much as we can on the way to Cheonmu Academy."
"Same here. Looking forward to it."
From then on, the two of them sparred the entire road to Cheonmu Academy.
It took a little longer than planned — about ten days in all.
"So this is Chengdu."
The two of them arrived in Chengdu, where Cheonmu Academy stood. True to its reputation as Sichuan's foremost city, the sheer throngs of people briefly overwhelmed them before they each remembered what they had to do.
"Yumae, you said you have to stop by the branch hall for a letter your sect needs delivered, right?"
"Yeah. I'll probably enter Cheonmu Academy a little later than you, Hajun."
Ye Hajun snorted at that.
"You never know. I might fail the entrance exam."
"Then after ten days of not beating you even once, I'd be too miserable for words."
Just as she said, across roughly a hundred short and long spars over those ten days, she hadn't won against Ye Hajun a single time. Flustered, he waved his hands.
"No, that's not what I meant. I'm just not confident about the written portion."
"Ah, that side of things. Still, in the end a martial artist speaks with martial skill, so if you do well on the practical, they'll probably pass you, right?"
"Here's hoping. Anyway — see you again at Cheonmu Academy."
"Yeah. I'll be there soon."
Just as they were about to part ways, a post went up on the gallery.
Our proud thirty-seventh generation Mount Hua disciple Yumae lost to Juddak for ten straight days and something about it feels off.
Can you ask her about one of her forms for me?
It's different from what I remember.
"Hey, Yumae. Quick question."
"Hm? What?"
"In that form you use when we spar — the one where the tip of the sword angles up about half a cun at the end."
"Ah, Plum Blossom Scatter. What about it?"
"Wasn't that originally supposed to be a flat, straight thrust?"
Han Yumae tilted her head at Ye Hajun's words.
"I don't know? That's how I was taught at the main mountain. Did something seem off?"
"No, just curious."
It wasn't really something he could press further, so Ye Hajun left it at that and waved.
"Anyway, see you at the academy. Take care."
"Yeah. See you."
After they parted, Ye Hajun asked.
Anonymous 1 said it was fine, so it would be fine.
With that thought, Ye Hajun set his feet toward the place where Cheonmu Academy waited.