Chapter 25
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Because of the Heart Method?
Three days had passed since they caught the black leopard.
"This way."
Dan Mok Un-roe spotted a trace and spoke quietly. Once they confirmed the direction, the five spread out widely and moved through the trees.
They didn't forget to erase their own tracks as they moved.
Dan Mok Un-roe, leading the way, raised his hand.
Everyone stopped at once. A simple hand signal.
It was the sign language they'd decided on among themselves.
Then Dan Mok Un-roe's fingers spread out.
Three.
Two.
One.
The five charged toward the same spot simultaneously.
Clang!
Ha Mu-baek burst out from a large pile of fallen leaves.
The five immediately deployed the Three Talents Sword Formation.
On a mountain path thick with trees, they adapted it accordingly.
It was hard to believe they'd only learned it ten days ago—they were that proficient.
How long did the battle continue like that?
"Ugh."
Baek Ri-pyeong groaned and fell back, and Ha Mu-baek exploited the gap to shatter the formation.
"So close..."
Dang Jin-san muttered as he slumped down, his face full of regret.
His eyes were hollow. Dark shadows under them reached almost to his chin.
The other four didn't look much better.
"Seven points."
Ha Mu-baek's curt score.
"Oh. Still, seven's the highest we've gotten so far."
Dang Jin-san grinned.
It was the first time they'd heard a seven out of ten.
The sun was already setting.
"Catch something for dinner."
With those words, Ha Mu-baek vanished. He was heading back to their first campsite.
Now it was time for the five to hunt for their evening meal.
"Should I have shot the arrow first back there?"
Dan Mok Un-roe, reviewing the recent fight, spoke with regret.
Yeon Ha-min shook her head.
"It just gave away our position faster."
A short reply.
Dan Mok Un-roe pondered a bit more, then nodded. Her opinion seemed right.
"Yeah, our archery skills aren't up to it yet anyway."
Resolving to practice archery more, Dan Mok Un-roe stood up.
He lay down to sleep and closed his eyes, but sleep wouldn't come. If anything, his mind grew sharper.
He'd first felt it during the fight with the black leopard. And every day for the past three days since.
That sensation was keeping Baek Ri-pyeong awake now.
The unfamiliarity when thrusting his sword—it created subtle discrepancies with his teammates.
He already knew the cause.
The heart method.
It was because he was using the Zhongnan Sect's heart method with the Three Talents Sword Method and Three Talents Sword Formation.
The solution was simple.
Learn the Three Talents Arts.
That was what tormented Baek Ri-pyeong now.
The Zhongnan Sect's teachings, or perfect unity with his teammates?
Grandfather...
Baek Ri-pyeong thought of his late grandfather.
The former sect leader of the Zhongnan Sect, the Silver River Sword Hero Baek Ri-dan.
A righteous hero respected by countless martial artists. He'd always led the vanguard in the last war and met a heroic end.
"Ri-pyeong. Never forget the pride of Zhongnan."
Those were his grandfather's constant words.
"Ri-pyeong. The basics are most important. Stick to the basics."
Always what he'd emphasized when teaching his young grandson.
Taeyi Heart Method, Four Phases Sword, Heavenly Nature Sword Method, Taeyi Steps.
Those four were all Baek Ri-pyeong had learned, per his grandfather's wishes.
Master those four, and the next path would open naturally, he'd said.
So when his grand martial uncle—the current sect leader, Ju Jae-seung—forbade him from learning any more Zhongnan martial arts, it hadn't bothered him.
The Yu Yu Sword Guest Ju Jae-seung.
When the former sect leader Baek Ri-dan died on the battlefield without naming a successor, he'd swiftly rallied supporters and claimed the Zhongnan sect leader position.
His first act as leader? Pull out of the war, using the previous leader's death and the sect's weakened forces as excuses.
A sect leader who forgot our pride.
That was Baek Ri-pyeong's assessment of the current leader, Ju Jae-seung.
Yet he had no choice but to obey. Ju Jae-seung was the sect leader, after all.
So when ordered to join the Fierce Dragon Corps, he'd come without protest.
He'd always kept a low profile in Zhongnan for good reason.
Many in the sect resented Ju Jae-seung. They gathered bit by bit, and their eyes turned to Baek Ri-pyeong.
The grandson of former sect leader Baek Ri-dan, a disciple brimming with the same righteousness.
To Ju Jae-seung, that was a threat.
So he'd sent his own grand martial nephew to die in the Fierce Dragon Corps.
That gave Baek Ri-pyeong all the more reason to survive.
Even when Ha Mu-baek told him to go home, saying he'd just die a dog's death, he couldn't.
It was the sect leader's order, after all.
He had to complete his service in the Fierce Dragon Corps and return proudly.
To do that, he needed to grow stronger—and uphold Zhongnan's pride here too.
That was his grandfather's teaching.
So he desperately wanted revenge on Hidden Dragon Corps Squad 1. But he couldn't learn the Three Talents Arts.
There lay his torment.
To beat Hidden Dragon Corps Squad 1, the Three Talents Sword Formation needed to be more perfect. That meant he had to learn the Three Talents Arts.
But doing so would betray Zhongnan's pride.
Pride...
No answer came.
Finally, Baek Ri-pyeong rose from his bed.
Ha Mu-baek lay leisurely on his own bedding.
He closed his eyes and spread his senses around. Just as he was about to drift off...
Ha Mu-baek's eyes slowly opened.
"What is it?"
He asked calmly.
"I have a question."
It was Baek Ri-pyeong.
"What?"
Ha Mu-baek sat up on his bedding and repeated the question.
"What is pride?"
Baek Ri-pyeong's question.
He was so frustrated he'd come straight to Ha Mu-baek.
He didn't expect a clear answer. He just hoped for some clue.
"Because of the heart method?"
Baek Ri-pyeong clamped his lips shut at the returned question, saying nothing.
Ha Mu-baek chuckled.
The talented kid must have noticed during the black leopard fight and the past three days of sparring.
As the others grew accustomed to the Three Talents Arts, Three Talents Sword Method, and Three Talents Sword Formation, he was subtly out of sync.
That mismatch might have nearly gotten him killed against the leopard. Luck had his sword hit its shoulder.
"Zhongnan Sect, Baek family... You're that Silver River Sword Hero's grandson, right? What's your relation?"
Baek Ri-pyeong's eyes widened at the sudden question.
"You knew my grandfather?"
Ha Mu-baek chuckled again.
"Figured as much. Your stubborn streak is just like that old man's."
Baek Ri-pyeong looked at him in confusion.
No wonder.
His grandfather had died on the battlefield during the height of the war. No connection to this instructor.
Unless the instructor hadn't joined the war...
Wait...
The instructor always spoke of the horrors of the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest like he'd experienced them himself.
Maybe.
"Were you my grandfather's comrade-in-arms?"
Ha Mu-baek chuckled once more.
"Doesn't matter. So, what'd that stubborn old man say pride was?"
Instead of answering, Baek Ri-pyeong recalled a distant memory from his past.
Yes, he'd once asked his grandfather what Zhongnan's pride meant.
What had he said back then?
He'd been too young to remember—until this instructor's question brought it back.
"Hahaha. Ri-pyeong. Zhongnan's pride means standing tall before the name Zhongnan. It's standing firm before righteousness and justice. Being proud before righteousness, justice, and your own conscience—that's Zhongnan's pride. Too hard for a young kid like you, eh?"
Baek Ri-pyeong's body trembled.
Eyes closed to recall the memory. In that state, he shed a layer of shell with newfound insight.
Three Talents Arts.
Stealing another sect's technique? No.
Betraying Zhongnan's will? No.
Hindering Zhongnan martial arts? No.
Evil technique? No.
Learning it to do evil? No.
None opposed Zhongnan's pride. He could just learn it without forgetting that pride.
Zhongnan's pride didn't mean Zhongnan techniques were the only path.
"I want to learn the Three Talents Arts."
Opening his eyes, those were Baek Ri-pyeong's first words to Ha Mu-baek.
"Good."
Ha Mu-baek nodded.
Dawn arrived, and the four other members of Squad 7 opened their eyes.
Exhausted eyes.
Heading straight to their usual heart method training spot, they froze in surprise.
Baek Ri-pyeong was cultivating his heart method.
"Huh?"
Dan Mok Un-roe noticed first.
"What?"
Dang Jin-san's question.
"Ri-pyeong's aura feels different from usual."
Even sitting in meditation, the heart method subtly changed the atmosphere around him.
Until now, Baek Ri-pyeong's Zhongnan Taeyi Heart Method had set him apart from the other four.
But today, it felt familiar somehow.
At Dan Mok Un-roe's words, Dang Jin-san scrutinized Baek Ri-pyeong.
"Yeah... No way..."
"Yes. Baek Ri-pyeong is cultivating the Three Talents Heart Method now."
Ha Mu-baek's voice came then.
The four's eyes trembled faintly. They hadn't expected Baek Ri-pyeong to learn it.
"He really wants to beat Hidden Dragon Corps Squad 1. But one person's effort won't do it."
At his words, the four exchanged glances and nodded.
Then they sat in meditation and immersed themselves in their heart methods.
Finishing his heart method, Baek Ri-pyeong moved straight to sword training.
He swung his sword without rest.
Sweat beaded on his face. His breathing grew ragged.
Still, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly.
The speed and variations were different.
A tiny difference for now, but Baek Ri-pyeong could clearly feel it.
The Three Talents Sword Method based on the Three Talents Heart Method showed a definite change.
Ping.
An arrow flew.
Tick.
It narrowly missed the target.
The target charged full speed from the arrow's direction.
Baek Ri-pyeong, who'd shot it, slung his bow aside, grabbed his shield and sword, and ran to meet it.
Just before frontal collision.
Swords thrust out from both sides. From deep brush, without a sound.
As the target parried the two swords with a mighty stroke, Baek Ri-pyeong, low to the ground, thrust upward from below, aiming for its chin.
The target hastily leaned back.
Two arrows flew in that instant.
Heavy inner force from the target's left hand swatted them away.
Dang Jin-san and Dan Mok Un-roe, who'd struck from the sides, swung again.
Clang!
The target parried both swords even from its broken stance. The two attackers staggered back instead.
Baek Ri-pyeong didn't miss the opening and thrust in.
Clang.
Once more, the target's sword blocked Baek Ri-pyeong's.
In that moment, Baek Ri-pyeong smashed his left-hand shield toward the target's face.
The target's vision momentarily obscured.
Dan Mok Un-roe and Dang Jin-san immediately lunged for its knees.
As the target stumbled back.
Yeon Ha-min and Nak Woo-jin's swords flew from behind, targeting its back.
The target wildly swung its sword.
Mighty energy scattered everywhere, pushing all five back.
Still, they had gains.
They'd struck the target's left knee.
Its movements slowed now.
They had to press the advantage relentlessly.
A fierce exchange of offense and defense unfolded.
Finally, the target fell.
At a cost.
Nak Woo-jin and Dang Jin-san had fallen too.
"Nine points."
A low voice from the target.
Faint smiles touched the five's lips.
"Impressive progress."
Ha Mu-baek, the target, said as he rose.
"You barely hit the mark. I thought it might be impossible. Throwing the shield was quick thinking, and having Nak Woo-jin switch from pure defense to attack was clever. Your formation handling has improved a lot."
The black leopard fight had been the turning point.
At Ha Mu-baek's praise, the five exchanged looks.
"The moves I showed today are close to Namgung Ji-hu's. I held back to about ten percent of what I know of his skill. The techniques differ, of course. But I tried to mimic the vibe of the Namgung Clan's Spearless Sword of Effortless Dance as much as possible."
This instructor drops bombs like that casually. Like it's nothing.
"And the result was two dropouts."
Nak Woo-jin and Dang Jin-san scratched their heads ruefully.
"Now we need to settle on the overall strategy for the Summer Combat Festival."
Today was the nineteenth of the fifth lunar month.
Two days until the solstice.
Two days before the Summer Combat Festival, Ha Mu-baek would discuss strategy.