Chapter 135
Chapter 135
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 135
Chapter Title: A Letter (2)
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As he gazed vaguely at the sky, a thought occurred to Ouyang Jue.
*I owe the Omniscient One a great deal.*
Whatever his motives, the Omniscient One had arranged the meeting with Nameless and brought him to the Sword Sage's Cave solely for his benefit.
Thanks to him, Ouyang Jue's swordsmanship had advanced even further than before he left Mount Hua.
Moreover, by succeeding in the Grand Circulation, he had earned the right to aim for a higher realm than in his past life.
When the Omniscient One said they would meet again, it meant he intended to provide more such fortuitous opportunities.
Based on the hundreds of years of experience and knowledge he had accumulated.
Ouyang Jue was grateful for the favor the Omniscient One had shown him.
He was lost in thought when…
“What are you doing, Plum Blossom Divine Dragon?”
At those words, Ouyang Jue’s gaze lowered from the sky to what was in front of him.
He saw Gwak Un-pae, a playful smile on his face.
It seemed Song Muk had already returned to Mount Hua. With the sect's growth, the Disciplinary Hall likely had more work, and Song Muk had appeared busy lately.
Understanding this, Ouyang Jue faced Gwak Un-pae and smiled faintly.
“It's only been about twenty days, but everything feels new now that I'm back.”
“Mount Hua is always Mount Hua. What could be different?”
*Thud.*
Gwak Un-pae placed a hand on Ouyang Jue's shoulder.
The warmth seeping from his palm made Ouyang Jue feel cozy.
It was like the savory smell of a meal cooked by his parents over a hearth.
Gwak Un-pae's lips parted slightly.
“So. You brought the scabbard this time, right?”
At that, Ouyang Jue wore an awkward expression.
He had been so busy traveling with the Omniscient One that he had completely forgotten Gwak Un-pae's request.
“My apologies, Uncle.”
“This is the second time. This uncle of yours is very disappointed in you.”
“I'll speak to the merchant guild and have them prepare it immediately.”
Gwak Un-pae shook his head slightly.
“Why rush people who are already busy with trade? It's a shame not to have a scabbard that can withstand the blade, but it's not needed right away.”
“Ah, yes…”
*Then why is he pestering me about it?*
As Ouyang Jue's eyes narrowed, Gwak Un-pae looked away, abashed.
“Haha. It's getting chilly. Shouldn't we head inside to talk?”
“Chilly?”
Ouyang Jue could feel the approach of spring.
“It's so warm.”
*Swoosh…*
A single plum blossom petal fell where the snow had melted.
* * *
Walking alongside Gwak Un-pae, Ouyang Jue heard many stories.
One problem was the rise of impostors as the Mount Hua Sect's prestige suddenly grew.
But the biggest issue was that the once-upright Daoists were increasingly breaking the sect's rules.
*So there are more factions picking fights and making an issue of it…*
Ouyang Jue committed each name Gwak Un-pae mentioned to memory, rubbing the fingers of his right hand together.
He thought he might offer them a light greeting with his sword if they ever met.
“I've been away so often, I didn't know about that.”
“Aren't these just unavoidable growing pains?”
Gwak Un-pae dismissed it as such, but from Ouyang Jue's perspective, Song Muk seemed all the more remarkable.
*No wonder it's been hard to see Uncle Song lately. So this was the reason.*
Yet, while traveling the martial world with the Omniscient One, he hadn't heard any rumors of this.
It meant Song Muk had handled matters wisely and discreetly.
*Even in the midst of all that, he came just to see my face…*
He had descended hundreds, perhaps over a thousand, steps just to greet him before going back up.
That action alone seemed to convey how Song Muk felt about him.
Just as Ouyang Jue was feeling inwardly moved, Gwak Un-pae suddenly asked.
“Did you happen to visit the Shaolin Temple this time?”
“No. …Did something happen?”
“No, it's not that, but…”
Gwak Un-pae's face suddenly moved closer.
“You're sure?”
“I'm sure.”
“Ahem, well, if you say so.”
Gwak Un-pae swallowed whatever he was about to say and quickened his pace. Ouyang Jue found it incredibly frustrating.
*Did something happen at the Shaolin Temple? No, it was quiet in my past life… But why is he asking me?*
For a moment, he wondered if this was another prank and felt a surge of anger, but he let out a long sigh instead.
Gwak Un-pae wasn't the type to joke about another sect.
He figured something must have happened that he didn't know about.
*If Uncle Gwak is asking, the Sect Leader must know about it too.*
In that case, he figured Bai Duanxian or Song Muk would seek him out without him having to ask.
*Step, step.*
As he sorted his thoughts and looked around Mount Hua, now on the cusp of spring, he found they were already near the main gate.
A cheerful voice greeted Ouyang Jue as if it had been waiting.
“Senior Brother!”
“My goodness, were you waiting out here in the cold?”
Ouyang Jue smiled brightly as he greeted the three sect brothers.
No, to be precise, it was two.
Jo Hun and Ik Hyeon. And, leaning against a tree, secretly glaring at him, was the Divine Demon Fist.
Wondering if his name might have changed by now, Ouyang Jue asked Jo Hun.
“Has Senior Brother given him a name?”
“A name? Ah, Junior Brother Yeon.”
“…Yeon?”
While Ouyang Jue tilted his head in confusion, Jo Hun shouted at Yeon Mu-rang, who was leaning against the tree.
“Junior Brother Yeon! What are you doing when an Uncle has arrived!”
The sight was quite audacious, but as he was still only eleven, Ouyang Jue just found it cute.
The Divine Demon Fist—no, Yeon Mu-rang—seemed to feel the same, as a faint smile touched his lips.
It was a very different atmosphere from just a month or two ago, when he hadn't even treated him as an uncle.
But as if to say, *how dare he*, a spark ignited in Ouyang Jue's eyes.
“You brat! Yeon Mu-rang! Are my words going in one ear and out the other?!”
“Uh, my apologies, Uncle Ouyang.”
Yeon Mu-rang swaggered over to Ouyang Jue and bowed.
His attitude toward him was still insolent.
*Should I pick a day and give him a proper beating like Senior Brother Liu did…*
No sooner had Ouyang Jue entertained this thought than Ik Hyeon spoke up.
“Um, Uncle.”
“Is there something you want to say?”
“I feel terrible asking this when you haven't even been back for a full day, but…”
As Ik Hyeon's words began to drag on, Ouyang Jue cut him off.
“Why does a disciple of the Mount Hua Sect have so much to be sorry for? Speak confidently.”
“Lately, I've lost confidence in my martial arts. Would you mind taking a look?”
“…Hoh.”
As it happened, he had been wanting to deal with Yeon Mu-rang, so Ouyang Jue gave a curious smile.
He had only thought of Ik Hyeon as a hardworking junior, but he liked this attitude.
When you feel stuck, you must ask. That's how you improve.
Ouyang Jue readily accepted.
“Alright!”
“Thank you, Uncle!”
“However… I'm not satisfied with just watching. I want to see how not only you, but the other juniors have progressed as well.”
At that, Jo Hun nodded as if he had been waiting for this, while Yeon Mu-rang looked aghast.
He was slowly starting to realize.
That he was going to be beaten black and blue.
Ouyang Jue first gestured to Ik Hyeon.
“Come.”
“Then I won't hold back!”
Drawing his sword, Ik Hyeon quickly rushed at Ouyang Jue.
His speed was so slow and his path so direct that one would think they could easily block it even with a delayed reaction.
But Ouyang Jue knew.
Ik Hyeon's weapon was not speed or weight, but variation.
The corners of Ouyang Jue's eyes narrowed.
*What are you going to show me?*
How much had the flexibility he once taught him improved?
Ik Hyeon knew well that Ouyang Jue would be curious about that.
*I'll have to surprise him.*
A faint smile appeared on Ik Hyeon's face.
If Ouyang Jue still remembered that flexibility, he would never be able to block the strike Ik Hyeon had now mastered.
“Thousand Changes of the Plum Blossom.”
“…?!”
*Did he create a new technique?*
Ouyang Jue immediately used his footwork to take a step back. It was to get a wider view of Ik Hyeon's technique.
A large part of his calculation was that Ik Hyeon, lacking superior footwork, would never be able to catch up to him.
However, Ouyang Jue immediately realized it was a miscalculation.
Ik Hyeon had wanted to show him this very technique.
*My god, did he train only in 'change'?*
If not for that…
Ouyang Jue suppressed his surprise.
Ik Hyeon had no internal energy or talent. He hadn't even received the proper privileges of a registered disciple.
No one had any expectations for him. Even his only senior sister, Yeong Mo-yeon, had ignored him.
But what about now?
With just a single sword.
With the lump of iron in his right hand, he was painting countless variations.
*He doesn't yet have the skill to connect that technique to an attack. It's merely at the level of tracing every possible variation a sword can make.*
But what if Ik Hyeon develops later, fully masters the Thousand Changes, and sublimates it into an attack?
To be frank, it was a lower realm than the Path of Zen Scripture that Jo Hun would pioneer. But just because it was lower didn't mean the achievement was insignificant.
For Ik Hyeon, it was a sword art worth training for a lifetime.
Most importantly, Ik Hyeon could prove his own worth.
“Truly, truly…”
Ouyang Jue unknowingly felt a lump in his throat.
In his past life, he had been so pathetic, crippled by his inferiority complex, that he had left the sect without ever realizing his own talent.
But Ik Hyeon, standing before him, had no talent. Even while being ignored, he had managed to blossom his own potential.
To Ouyang Jue, the Thousand Changes of the Plum Blossom felt like a flower bud that Ik Hyeon had bloomed himself.
If he didn't praise this, what else was there to praise?
Ouyang Jue's lips trembled slightly.
“That's truly incredible. Hyeon, you have surpassed yourself.”
“…Thank you, Uncle.”
Ik Hyeon clenched his jaw and brought his sword to rest. It looked as if tears were welling up in his eyes.
With that, Ik Hyeon turned his back.
Ouyang Jue didn't scold him for his rudeness. He had a good idea of what Ik Hyeon was feeling right now.
“This is a path you found for yourself. You should be proud.”
For now, those words were enough.
Ouyang Jue composed himself and looked at Jo Hun.
“This time, I want to move a little.”
“Yes!”
*Shing!*
Unlike Ik Hyeon, Jo Hun displayed swift movements.
His innate talent was different from Ik Hyeon's from the start.
It was a cruel thing to say, but if you didn't accept it, you couldn't advance in the martial world.
But there was also another saying.
An old axiom of the martial world: if you rely only on talent, you'll one day die by a stray sword.
Ouyang Jue drew Severing Manifestation.
*With this heavy hammer, where should I strike first to surprise Hun?*
Jo Hun might have charged with renewed determination, but to Ouyang Jue, his technique was completely transparent.
The only martial arts Jo Hun could perform were the Plum Blossom Steps and the Plum Blossom Sword Arts.
How could he, who had practiced them many times more than Jo Hun, not know them?
*I can break through right about here.*
With a light heart and a stable stance, Ouyang Jue swung from right to left.
A strike that Jo Hun could never block from his current stance.
It shot forth from Severing Manifestation.
*Clang!*
“………?”
Ouyang Jue's face stiffened.
Severing Manifestation had been blocked by Jo Hun.
*He… abandoned the technique he was performing, instantly changed his high stance to a middle stance, and blocked it? Did he predict how I would react?*
Seeing this, Jo Hun giggled.
“Surprised? Senior Brother Liu and the others were surprised too.”
“You, this can't be…”
“Oh, have you heard about it already?”
Jo Hun retrieved his sword and proudly announced the name of his martial art.
“It's the Distant View Sword, a sword art based on the Path of Zen Scripture, which maps the eighteen directions an opponent can attack from!”
“…”
Ouyang Jue was at a loss for words, falling into a state of panic.
It was beyond surprise; it was astonishment.
*No, the thing he realized just before he died in my past life… at the age of eleven…?*
Could he have been taught by another master besides Bai Duanxian?
Ouyang Jue unknowingly glanced in the direction of the Plum Blossom Cave.
*No way. Nah, it can't be.*
He had asked him to teach his juniors before, but the Plum Blossom Cave Dweller wasn't one to let people in easily.
Sorting his thoughts, Ouyang Jue's gaze changed.
The reason he had been able to defeat Jo Hun in his past life.
He had to teach it to Jo Hun.
Ouyang Jue raised Severing Manifestation and shot a glare at Yeon Mu-rang, who was stealthily backing away.
“Mu-rang, it's your turn after I'm done sparring with Hun, so don't run away. Stay put.”
“Why… would I run away…?”
Was it because he anticipated the beating that was soon to come?
Yeon Mu-rang swallowed hard.