The Sword Saint's Disciple
"The Sword Saint's disciple...?"
"The Sword Saint?"
The third-generation disciples stirred at the words. Within Cheongwol Gate, the name of the Sword Saint carried an immense, almost sacred weight.
He was the man who had brought an end to the Great War between Orthodox and Unorthodox sects, the undisputed strongest under heaven, and the greatest martial artist of all time.
A warrior without precedent in the history of Cheongwol Gate—and indeed, the entire Murim.
The Sword Saint, Yoo Chun-gil.
Though nearly two decades had passed since his death, neither Cheongwol Gate nor the Central Plains had forgotten him.
That was how towering a figure he was.
"The Sword Saint had a disciple...?"
To suddenly have someone claim to be the disciple of such a legend naturally provoked a fiery reaction.
It was only logical.
Yoo Chun-gil had never taken a disciple in his entire life.
He had served as the leader of the Martial Alliance and the sect leader of Cheongwol Gate, but he had never taken a direct disciple of his own.
That was why they were so shocked.
"That guy is his disciple? What kind of nonsense...?"
"W-wait a minute."
One young man stared at me, suddenly gasping as if he had realized something shocking.
"His eyes... look at his eyes... It's the Moon Eye!"
"Ah...!"
My pupils were dyed a deep blue. It seemed they had noticed I had awakened the Moon Eye.
The third-generation disciples still seemed unable to fully grasp the situation.
However, there was a clear distinction.
The second-generation disciples seem to have already known.
The second-generation disciples who had entered with the Cheon siblings appeared to recognize me.
It made sense. That explained their stiff reactions.
The eyes of the massive youth standing before me, Hong Gyeong, trembled violently. Staring directly into them, I spoke.
"Are you hard of hearing? Or... was my voice too quiet?"
I tilted my head slightly and added, "Second-generation disciple Hong Gyeong."
"Y-yes, sir!"
Hong Gyeong blurted out the response, looking startled by his own loud, reflexive reply. He clearly hadn't expected to answer so submissively.
"I will ask again. Did you not understand me?"
"No... Well... It's just..."
"'No'?"
"...!"
As I took a step forward, Hong Gyeong flinched and stumbled backward.
I had seized control of the room. All I had to do now was press the advantage.
I scanned the room. Every second-generation disciple who met my gaze flinched. A smirk played on my lips at the sight.
"What an absolute mess. For a prestigious, representative sect of Henan to have such atrocious discipline. If my master were alive to see this, he would be weeping tears of blood."
I didn't know about tears of blood, but Yoo Chun-gil was cackling while metaphorically picking his nose.
"Just how far do you intend to drag our sect's honor through the mud?"
As I spoke with a deep scowl, a reaction finally rippled through them.
They were hesitating, caught in a dilemma.
They were wavering.
Even if my justification was solid, it would still be difficult for them to suddenly treat me as a high-ranking elder of the sect.
But that was exactly what I was aiming for.
I had to keep pushing. Now that I had established dominance, I needed to use it to—
"We beg for your forgiveness."
I turned my head toward the voice.
"I apologize for our insolence toward our grand-uncle."
Thud.
Cheon Hye-in knelt on the floor, bowing her head deeply.
"Cheon Hye-in, a second-generation disciple, greets Grand-Uncle."
"..."
I narrowed my eyes as I watched her.
Well, look at this.
Without a shred of hesitation, Cheon Hye-in had risen from her chair and dropped to her knees before me.
Seeing her action, the other second-generation disciples immediately followed suit, kneeling on the floor.
The third-generation disciples quickly read the room and copied them.
In an instant, everyone in the dining hall was kneeling before me. I stared down at the crown of Cheon Hye-in's head.
She's clever.
Her decisive action had completely disrupted my momentum.
I could have seized absolute moral authority, but with Cheon Hye-in yielding so readily, I could no longer press them.
She must have done this on purpose.
That woman had undoubtedly calculated this move.
She was incredibly troublesome. Since things had turned out this way, I had to pivot.
"...Rise."
At my quiet command, everyone stood up in unison.
Amusingly, the sight gave me a slight rush.
Is this the sweet taste of authority? The childish thought crossed my mind.
"Your behavior was certainly out of line, but given the circumstances, I will not press the matter further."
I switched back to polite speech. It wasn't wise to keep speaking down to them and pushing my luck in this situation.
"However, I hope we will not have a repeat of this the next time we meet."
I made a smooth excuse to excuse myself and turned to leave.
But then...
"Uncle."
Cheon Hye-in called out, stopping me in my tracks. I glanced back, but her head was still bowed, hiding her face from view.
"Though we greet you as our uncle in accordance with the sect's rules... I do have a slight concern."
"What is it?"
"Since it has not been long since we learned of your existence... I worry that some disciples might begin to question your qualifications."
"Qualifications?"
"Yes. Your qualifications."
I tilted my head at her words.
"What kind of qualifications are you referring to?"
"Whether you possess the qualifications to address us as your juniors, Uncle."
"Haha."
A laugh escaped my lips at her words. In other words...
"You are asking if a nobody like me has the right to be called your elder. Is that it?"
"It was merely a simple concern. If I have offended you... I apologize."
Apologize, my foot. She was openly baiting me.
You might have the title, but do you have the strength to back it up? Cheon Hye-in was asking that very question under the guise of politeness.
At her words, gazes from all directions locked onto me.
They were looks of agreement.
Feeling their eyes on me, I swallowed my rising irritation.
I heard other sects take hierarchy very seriously...
But it seemed this place wasn't quite like that.
Well, I suppose so.
Considering they appointed the strongest person as the sect leader, this wasn't exactly a normal, orderly sect.
They take after a certain someone perfectly.
For a sect that talked all about rising blue moons and poetic sensibilities, they were brutally violent at their core.
"If you are curious about my qualifications, I can show you anytime."
I forced the corners of my mouth up into a smirk.
It was a technique to make my smile look natural.
"However..."
I locked eyes with Cheon Hye-in. A subtle provocation radiated from her.
"...only if you have the qualifications to witness it."
Leaving those words behind, I walked straight out.
All the way out, sharp gazes pierced my back.
Immediately after Bang Seong-yeon left, the heavy, suffocating silence persisted. No one dared to utter a word.
Everyone was walking on eggshells, watching the reaction of a single person.
Cheon Ui-jin was especially tense, staring at his older sister with trembling eyes.
He swallowed hard, his throat so dry it felt like paper.
Then...
"Ha..."
A soft chuckle escaped Cheon Hye-in. At the sound, everyone around her flinched.
"Hahahahaha!"
She burst into loud, ringing laughter, as if she had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
She laughed so violently that tears began to well in the corners of her eyes.
"Ah... Seriously..."
After laughing for a long moment, the smile vanished from Cheon Hye-in's face in an instant.
"How amusing... He really interests me."
Within her expressionless gaze, the Moon Eye gleamed. Seeing this, Cheon Ui-jin quietly bit his lip.
This was dangerous.
Whenever his sister made that face, someone inevitably ended up broken.
And always in the most wretched way possible.
"Crazy. Absolutely insane."
The moment I stepped out of the dining hall, curses spilled from my mouth. I couldn't hold them back.
"That was terrifying."
All of this just to get a single meal. I would have been much better off skipping it entirely.
Yoo Chun-gil let out a dry laugh as he watched me.
"Well, I couldn't exactly grovel in front of them, could I?"
Act like you have it when you don't.
Act like you don't when you do.
This was an ironclad rule of human interaction.
And it was especially crucial in a situation like that.
"Who knows?"
I didn't know yet what would change. However...
"We'll have to wait and see from now on."
I was certain that something would change.
That was exactly why I had gone out of my way to provoke Cheon Hye-in in the dining hall.
Yoo Chun-gil hummed, seemingly unconvinced, but he didn't press further.
He was always like this, adopting a "go ahead and try it" attitude.
The more I look at him, the more absurd he is.
Whose fault was it that I was running around like this? What was with that damn attitude?
One of these days, I am absolutely going to exorcise him.
It was my most earnest wish.
"...Setting that aside, can I ask you something?"
"Old man, can you beat Lady Cheon?"
Yoo Chun-gil reacted with mild surprise at the unexpected question.
"I just think I need to know."
I had a bad feeling about this.
It felt like something was going to blow up very soon.
Yoo Chun-gil pondered my question for a moment, then spoke.
He suddenly threw out a timeframe.
"One month?"
Hearing that, I understood.
He had mentioned before that to maintain a possession for a long time, he needed to spend time without possessing me beforehand.
It seemed that recovery period would take a month.
"...A whole month?"
"Wait, you beat the Young Sword of Namgung in less than half that time. Why do you need fifteen minutes?"
Yoo Chun-gil chuckled.
His tone was firm.
...Is the gap really that wide?
Even if she was one of the Seven Great Talents.
Was a rising star of the Young Sword's caliber truly incomparable to the Moon Dance Beauty?
This is a bit problematic.
If worst came to worst, I lacked a reliable way to handle it.
It looked like trouble was brewing in the near future, so I needed to find a solution before then.
"...Hmm."
Just as I was deciding to think of another way if this failed...
My ears perked up at Yoo Chun-gil's words.
"Is there a way?"
I asked expectantly, but...
I was instantly disappointed by his follow-up.
"...If it were that easy, I wouldn't be living like this."
Did he think growing stronger was as simple as eating a meal?
"For that to happen, I'd need to consume some legendary elixir or spirit pill. Who do you think you're fooling?"
Those were things money couldn't buy.
"Unless I raid the secret vault of some prestigious family..."
"My deeply respected elder, I have never doubted you for a single moment."
"As expected, you had a plan all along! I am truly filled with admiration."
"It's a compliment I hear often."
"Let's go. Even if the end of the world is hell itself, I am fully prepared to walk it with you."
No matter what harsh trials awaited, I could overcome them.
"As long as I am with the spirit pills... I mean, with you, Elder."
"Hurry, let's go. The spirit pills are getting cold."
Yoo Chun-gil seemed to be saying something, but his voice didn't register in my ears.
My precious spirit pills were waiting for me.