Placement Exam (2)
"…"
Silence hung over the training grounds.
"Get Cadet Gang Hansang to the Medical Hall, now!"
The only ones stirring were the attendants hastily loading the unconscious Gang Hansang onto a stretcher.
"You call that a spar…?"
The fledgling cadets felt an instinctive terror at Baek Woohyeok's brutal methods. The instructors, caught completely off guard, stood just as mute — not a single one of them had seen this coming.
Chaos from the very entrance ceremony.
"Instructor Hwangbo! Is this really the time to be smiling? Cadet Baek Woohyeok's martial arts… you're sure those aren't demonic arts?"
Hwangbo San, the instructor who had spent the last two months teaching Baek Woohyeok, was fighting a losing battle against the twitch at the corner of his mouth. Even in that short span, watching his student's growth had left him thoroughly satisfied.
As for Gang Hansang's broken limbs… well, a little spit and they'll heal right up, won't they?
"I already told you they're not demonic arts. If they were, the Principal would've ripped that brat's limbs off himself."
Having sent his reply to Bi Yehwa — one of the instructors who had taught the provisional cadets alongside him — Hwangbo San flicked a glance toward Song Muja, Principal of Cheonryong Academy.
"Ah."
Bi Yehwa followed his gaze without thinking, and a short gasp escaped her.
"Oho."
The Floating Cloud Great Tiger, Song Muja, Principal of Cheonryong Academy, was watching Baek Woohyeok on the training grounds with a long, measured look. And against all expectation, a smile sat on his lips.
So that's why the other instructors haven't said a word.
Bi Yehwa had it right. A few of the instructors were far from pleased with the carnage they had just witnessed.
Wasn't that a bit too vicious for a spar?
Still… the Principal hasn't so much as twitched…
But Song Muja was both the Principal and the final arbiter of the evaluation, and he looked thoroughly pleased. They had no choice but to keep their mouths shut.
"Ahem. Why is everyone looking at me?"
As if he didn't already know, Song Muja swept his gaze around the grounds and spoke with perfect composure.
"Well, people get hurt in spars. That's just how it is. Cadet Baek Woohyeok appears to have chosen consecutive matches, so if anyone else wants a go at him, step onto the training grounds. Quickly now."
Just like that, he tidied the whole affair away.
The Mad Tiger of Jongnam, through and through…
It was exactly the sort of thing you'd expect from the Jongnam Sect's infamous mutant — the man who, in his youth, had single-handedly razed five major Green Forest strongholds.
That's right! Nothing beats a spar that feels like a real fight for growth!
The highest authority at Cheonryong Academy had given Baek Woohyeok his blessing.
"…Ugh."
The new cadets trembled, scrambling to avoid Baek Woohyeok's eyes. One wrong glance and they might become the next Gang Hansang.
"Tsk."
Baek Woohyeok had no interest in tormenting opponents who clearly didn't want to be there. He clicked his tongue and was about to amble down from the arena when a clear, ringing voice cut across his path.
"Wait! I'll be your next opponent."
"Right. You were here."
One corner of Baek Woohyeok's mouth lifted on its own.
"You're from Hangzhou, yes? That seizing technique you just demonstrated — was it perhaps the martial art of the previous generation's unorthodox master, the Soul-Chasing Ghost Hand? No, wait. They say anyone who practices the Soul-Chasing Ghost Hand's arts has their hands stained black, so that can't be it…"
The finest woman of her generation — the one who would one day earn the title of Sword Phoenix, and by the end of the Orthodox-Demonic War would be called the Sword Queen herself — Jegal Hui stepped onto the training grounds.
What surfaced in that instant was a memory of the past.
"Woohyeok! One more round today!"
Every time I finished a mission and came back to the Murim Alliance hoping for some rest, Jegal Hui would be there, blocking my path.
"Strategist. The Captain just got back from dealing with the White Knot Sect. Stop harassing him. And why does a strategist love swinging a sword so much anyway?"
Biyeon, vice-captain of the Black Tiger Unit, couldn't stand her.
"It's fine, Biyeon. Even she needs a place to blow off steam. A sword-obsessed maniac got dragged into the Strategy Division because of the Jegal name — how stifling must that be?"
Honestly, I never found her all that annoying.
"I wasn't assigned to the Strategy Division because of my family name… Anyway! I've thought of a secret technique. I won't go down so easily this time!"
We were friends, after all.
"Jegal Hui… it's been a while."
That's right. She and I had been friends.
"…Did we know each other? Though I suppose if you're acquainted with Young Master Namgung Cheon as well, then perhaps somewhere…"
Not in this life, though.
"You're just so famous I felt a weird sense of familiarity. I mean, you're the precious jewel of the Jegal Clan, aren't you?"
"…I don't care for that particular phrasing. Don't tell me you're feeling pressured about sparring with me?"
I wasn't particularly disappointed. Coming back to the past, I'd fully expected this. And besides, becoming friends with her again would be easy enough.
"I'll have you know I'm an equal-opportunity kind of guy. Man or woman, I'll beat the crap out of anyone."
"Ha. I do hope your skill lives up to that mouth of yours."
With a martial arts maniac, you become friends by fighting. That's just how it works.
Their small talk finished, Jegal Hui studied Baek Woohyeok with grave, assessing eyes. Her mind was spinning at full speed.
A country boy from Hangzhou. He probably only started learning proper martial arts through the provisional cadet program.
And that same country boy had just dismantled Gang Hansang without breaking a sweat.
There was nothing particularly brilliant about his technique in the last match, either. His internal energy looked lacking, too.
The spar between Gang Hansang and Baek Woohyeok had been less an exchange of refined martial arts and more of a street brawl.
Still, I can't dismiss him. He did overwhelm the Little Thunder Sword, one of Anhui Province's most renowned rising talents. That's a fact.
The seizing technique he'd displayed in that fleeting instant had been exquisite enough to draw a gasp even from Jegal Hui, who had pored over countless martial arts manuals.
Against Gang Hansang, Baek Woohyeok had taken the first move. Against Jegal Hui, he didn't budge.
In the end, it was Jegal Hui who seized the initiative.
Her form fractured and scattered, a phantom of footwork that bewildered the eye and stole the senses.
Her figure blurred, confounding Baek Woohyeok's vision as she slipped behind him with those wondrous steps and drew her slender sword. Up to that moment, Baek Woohyeok hadn't even seemed to register where she was.
…That ended more easily than I expected.
Two months of training only goes so far, I suppose.
If Baek Woohyeok grew further someday, they might have a proper match then. Holding onto that hope, Jegal Hui extended her blade.
"Wow… already letting your guard down."
His easygoing voice brushed past her ear.
"This is why amateurs—"
Baek Woohyeok had already turned. Crimson light poured from his eyes in a steady, searing glow.
"First, a hit."
WHAAACK!!
Before she could even parse the movement, Jegal Hui felt a staggering burst of pain and went tumbling across the training grounds.
"I went for the face out of consideration for the fact that you're a woman. Hitting anywhere else would've been a bit… you know."
It was a standard that made absolutely no sense.
I'm a gentleman, in my own way. When sparring with a female martial artist, hitting the stomach or the chest always felt a little off. So I went with the face. At least that way the guilt was more manageable.
Breaking arms and legs would actually be the most convenient option…
But that wouldn't be any fun. I had no intention of ending this spar quickly.
"…How on earth."
Jegal Hui stared at me in shock, blood running from the corner of her mouth. I didn't bother answering. She wouldn't have been expecting one anyway.
"Hah…!"
Just as I'd figured, she didn't wait. She stamped out the Heavenly Mechanism Bewildering Step once more, hunting for my blind spot.
Tsk. Is that really all she's got?
It couldn't be helped. Unlike the woman who would one day be called the finest of her generation, the Jegal Hui standing here was just a rising talent overflowing with passion and gift. She lacked real combat experience, and she hadn't even broken free of her forms. There was no way she could beat me with martial arts still trapped in a mold.
And that's before you even get to the overwhelming mismatch in our arts.
In my crimson-washed vision, every one of her movements was laid bare. That was the power of the Iron-Blooded Yama Divine Art.
The martial art of Yama, Judge of Hell — who is said to possess a mirror that illuminates every deed of the dead, leaving nothing hidden.
Before the Karma Mirror Eye, which could read not only an opponent's movements but the very flow of their internal energy, feints and variations meant nothing. Wrapping my eyes in crimson light wasn't just for show.
WHOOSH!!
I tilted my head a fraction and let the thrusting sword slide past.
WHAAACK!!
Then I cracked Jegal Hui across the cheek a second time.
"Kyaaaaah!!"
It wasn't some profound seizing art like that Soul-Chasing whatever she'd mentioned. It was just a slap. Once you reach my level, forms and stances stop mattering.
"A martial art in a form I've never even heard of… what on earth is it…"
Well, Jegal Hui had never experienced a fight between true masters, so of course she wouldn't know.
Especially not coming from the Jegal Clan.
The Divine Mechanism Jegals, peerless in Qimen Dunjia. Few martial artists in the world were as bound to form as theirs. The foundation of their arts was formations, and in formations, the most important things were correct form and proper procedure. The fact that the Jegal Clan had never produced a Transcendental Realm master might have had more to do with their martial arts than anything else.
That's why Jegal Hui always regretted it.
I hoped that this time, she would grasp the meaning of formless technique a little sooner.
If she wants to survive the Orthodox-Demonic War in one piece, she needs to start growing now.
And I fully intended to do my part.
WHAAAAACK!!
"Nngh…"
"Come on, still this predictable? Your martial arts are built on illusion and variation, but if you keep moving inside a box like that, who's going to be fooled?"
Whether Jegal Hui actually wanted this was another question.
Then again, she's a self-confessed martial arts maniac. She'll probably love it.
Or not. Whatever.
Among the cadets watching the spar, almost no one could even track Jegal Hui's movements with their eyes. The Divine Mechanism Bewildering Step, pride of the Jegal Clan, was that wondrous.
WHAAACK!!
Which made the sight of Jegal Hui — a direct descendant of one of the Five Great Noble Clans — getting dropped by a single gesture from some nobody named Baek Woohyeok all the more staggering to the new cadets.
"Kh…"
Jegal Hui's fine features were swollen beyond recognition. Standing over her, Baek Woohyeok's eyes streamed with that searing crimson light.
"Is that all you've got?"
"What the hell is that guy…"
The new cadets couldn't help but be overwhelmed.
"Tsk."
Namgung Cheon clicked his tongue, thoroughly displeased with the whole display.
"Uwaaaaaah!!"
Jegal Hui's sword came screaming out with a cry that was half battle shout, half scream. Baek Woohyeok slipped past it.
WHAAACK!!
And brought his hand down on the back of her head.
"…She's out cold?"
And just like that, the spar was over.
"…A demon. That was the hand of a demon."
The one consolation Namgung Cheon could find was that Baek Woohyeok seemed to occupy a position closer to villain than protagonist.
Even after Baek Woohyeok's shocking matches, the new cadets' spars continued.
CLAAANG!!
"Well fought."
"…An excellent spar. Truly the skill of the Danmok Clan's Hidden Dragon."
Danmok Jin, young clan head of the Danmok Clan, left a deep impression with his signature Hegemon Sword.
THWACK!!
"Kh! I yield."
Namgung Cheon of the Namgung Clan subdued his opponent just as easily, proving himself the finest rising talent in the Murim.
"…Well done."
Contrary to his public reputation, he even showed a measure of courtesy to the children of minor sects.
HUMMMM—!!
And near the end of his spar, he even manifested sword energy — the hallmark of a Peak Realm master. Under ordinary circumstances, Namgung Cheon would have been the one to draw the most attention in this evaluation. That much was certain.
"Mm. Young Lady Jegal's face is still a wreck. And yet she's watching the spars with that kind of focus… truly the makings of a heroine for the ages."
"Meanwhile, that Gang Hansang fellow still hasn't come to, I hear? What a waste of the Little Thunder Sword title."
"…And you'd bounce right back if all four of your limbs were broken, would you?"
"Ahem…"
But Baek Woohyeok's spars had simply been too memorable.
"Instructor Hwangbo. Just as we said — Woohyeok's brought a new wind to Cheonryong Academy."
"Hahaha!! A wind? That's selling him short. Woohyeok's a typhoon!"
Baek Woohyeok had walked through the gates of Cheonryong Academy and immediately become the eye of the storm.