The Challenge of Three Footprints
Danmok Hyeon-u had heard it several times and practiced it himself, so he had no trouble plucking the pipa strings to play the melody. As Ryeon hummed along, savoring his performance, her eyes suddenly sparkled. She bit down on the Xianglin Ji flute and blew into it. At that soft, flowing tune, a deep resonance spread from the depths of his chest. Danmok Hyeon-u simply wore a gentle smile as he thought,
'It was just our Ryeon who was different!'
It wasn't that the other children lacked talent, or that his teaching was insufficient. It was simply that Ryeon was different.
In the meantime, Ryeon cautiously infused a bit of her spiritual energy into her breath as she blew the notes. It was something she'd been planning to try once she got proficient with the flute. Her spiritual energy spread softly and faintly to every corner the sound reached. The surrounding air began to feel refreshingly clear, like the depths of a pristine mountain forest. It was a different sensation from just purifying the air. It wasn't merely becoming clean—it felt filled with something transparent and cool. A carp in the pond some distance away flicked its tail, scattering water droplets. One of its scales glimmered bluish for a moment, but no one paid any mind to the fleeting sparkle of the fish's tail.
'No special effects, huh?'
She'd thought that just playing naturally would turn her into a sound attack master without effort, but life wasn't that easy.
After enjoying the melody for a good while and wrapping it up, Danmok Hyeon-u cautiously spoke up.
"I've been thinking about the kids, Ryeon-ah."
He wiped the flute with a soft cloth as he broached the subject carefully. Ryeon tilted her head.
"Yeah?"
"Aren't we heading to the Kyunghang Yunryeon next spring?"
Winter was already approaching, so spring wasn't far off. Ryeon nodded.
"What if we took some of the kids along? They're young, so we couldn't bring everyone, but maybe the ones with the highest achievements. We have fewer direct descendants than other clans anyway, so adding a few branch family kids shouldn't cause much issue."
"Whoa! That's a great idea!"
Ryeon lit up and agreed enthusiastically. What could be more important for children than diverse experiences at a young age?
"But how do we pick the high achievers?"
"I was thinking of ranking them one to three through a test or something."
"Hmm, instead of that, what if we say anyone who accomplishes it gets to go? Kids who are progressing slowly lately might lose motivation otherwise."
"What if they all succeed?"
"If they all pass even a tough test, we make it work and take them all. I just thought of something for the test."
Ryeon whispered her idea. Danmok Hyeon-u clapped, calling it brilliant, and agreed.
Frost began to settle in the air, and when groups gathered, their breaths became visible, but the children's training never took a day off.
"Anyone know about the Kyunghang Yunryeon?"
At Danmok Hyeon-u's question, the kids assembled in the training ground stared wide-eyed at one another. As silence fell, Mae Sin-yu tentatively raised his hand.
"It's where sects near the Kyunghang Grand Canal gather."
"Oh! You know it. It'd been quiet lately, but next spring, the Namgung family in Namjikryeong Province is hosting it again."
The explanation continued, but the kids still looked puzzled.
"It's a great chance to meet people from various clans, so I thought I'd take along some of you who train hard. Sound interesting?"
"Whoaaa!"
"Woooow!"
"The Kyunghang Yunryeon... us... really...?"
As some kids cheered excitedly, Danmok Wan asked cautiously. Danmok Hyeon-u nodded.
"But only those who pass the test in a month."
"Ah..."
The faces of kids barely scraping by darkened instantly. Meanwhile, Danmok Hyeon-u smiled and drew a line some distance away—long enough for six adults lying end-to-end.
"Only those who reach the other end leaving just three footprints can come to the Kyunghang Yunryeon."
Shadows fell over everyone's faces. Mae Sin-yu raised his hand.
"Can we use tools?"
A glint lit Danmok Hyeon-u's eyes.
"Of course. As long as it fits in one hand. The test is in a month, so train diligently until then!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
The kids replied spiritedly, but their gazes fixed on the line he'd drawn.
"You think they'll really take us?"
"Probably just talk. That test's impossible."
"Still, it'd be awesome if we could go. Wonder what the Namgung estate's like? Bet they have kids like us."
Excitement and doubt mingled among the children. Meanwhile, Mae Sin-yu sat in the training ground's shade, frowning at the line as Danmok Gyu sidled up.
"What're you thinking so hard about?"
Mae Sin-yu scowled harder at Danmok Gyu. Despite the scolding last time, he kept approaching like this, asking random things—like if he'd grasped the heart method.
"Trying to figure out what 'three footprints' means."
"Doesn't it mean cross in three steps?"
"Could you do that?"
"Well, there's Void Step..."
To walk on air required exceptional lightness skill and body control techniques—still a pipe dream for them.
"You think that's possible for us now? Maybe the Supreme Patriarch could."
"No way, right?"
Danmok Gyu grinned innocently, and Mae Sin-yu yelled,
"Seo Geuk-rim! Take this guy away!"
"Hey, no, I was talking fine. Didn't say anything weird!"
As Danmok Gyu protested, Seo Geuk-rim and Danmok Wan approached.
"What's up?"
"Danmok Gyu's saying to cross with Void Step."
"Sin-yu, I wasn't telling you to. I just thought of it while puzzling it out. Really."
Seo Geuk-rim patted his back as Danmok Gyu flailed. Mae Sin-yu had already looked away.
'There must be a reason he said "three footprints" instead of "three steps."'
Why not "cross in three steps"? Did it mean more than three steps were okay?
"Even if more steps are allowed..."
No answer in sight. Danmok Wan glanced at his mutter. Then Danmok Gyu clapped and shouted like he'd had an epiphany.
"Ah! What if we combine forces?"
"Combine forces?"
The unexpected idea drew all eyes from the murmuring kids. Danmok Gyu puffed up.
"Like, five of us link hands and feet, roll like a wheel? Each person leaves three or four prints, and in the middle, stand on one foot..."
"Seo Geuk-rim! Take him away!"
"I'm not his nanny—why me?"
"You entered as chief disciple. Isn't that your job? Hurry."
"Ugh..."
As Seo Geuk-rim slumped, the other kids in the corner sparkled with excitement.
'This kid really... geniuses are geniuses.'
As the branch kids' training hit full stride, Ryeon finally dove into sword practice with Hwaryun. Danmok Bi had finished the Thousand Character Classic and started learning swordsmanship from Danmok Cheon-gi, freeing up Hwaryun.
'It's not exactly like me learning via Divine Eye and applying with Harmony, but he grasps it so instinctively.'
While she mimicked and embodied it directly, Hwaryun seemed to comprehend the sword art's essence in every moment. Right then and there, as he executed the forms. Like imitating what he saw, then 'Ah, that's it!' in the doing.
"Like this, up to here... is this right?"
Hwaryun, having completed the twelve forms, brushed forehead strands over his shoulder and looked back at Ryeon.
"Yeah, perfect!"
'Wait, really? Just like that?'
Ryeon's jaw dropped at the Haengun jumping by a full 3. Was it because she'd helped a future Demon Heavenly Cult Young Cult Leader? Or had his achievement boosted it that much? You're a real genius, huh? The words nearly escaped, but she swallowed them.
How could life have no twists or setbacks? Someday his progress might slow, and she worried early genius praise might trip him up.