The Sword of Mount Hua
Having successfully formed his Inner Elixir and gained control over the Yogi, Seong-jin opened his eyes.
“That just now….”
Byukha Nangrang, who had been watching the entire process, felt Seong-jin stabilize the Yogi using the techniques of a Demonic Art and was struck with horror.
“Did you learn a Demonic Art to control that Yogi?”
“Yes, I did.”
Seeing Seong-jin affirm her question so nonchalantly, Byukha Nangrang could not hide her shock.
Those who practiced Demonic Arts were considered potential criminals and the common enemy of the entire Murim. It was only natural. Practitioners of Demonic Arts would be perfectly fine one moment, only to suddenly go insane and slaughter everyone around them. It was practically a guarantee. Even if a practitioner reached the realm of Talma, once their lifespan neared its end and their vitality waned, they would inevitably be consumed by Magi once again. In the end, there were only two types of Demonic practitioners: those who were about to go insane, and those who already had. Thus, merely learning such arts was a crime in itself.
If the fact that Seong-jin had learned a Demonic Art were revealed, he would be unable to escape the status of a public enemy of the Murim. For him, this was no different from branding himself a criminal until the day he died, all for the sake of Byukha Nangrang.
“Why on earth would you do such a thing…!”
Learning a Demonic Art was a separate issue from the side effects of the Yogi. Even if they found a way to cure the Yogi in the future, Seong-jin would never be able to shed the stigma of being a public enemy.
“Even if you were helped by a noble person who trained at Mount Hua, that doesn’t mean it has nothing to do with the Mount Hua Sect. What on earth possessed you to go that far…?”
“Does one need a reason to help a person?”
“……!”
It was a truth so simple that even a child would know it. Yet, it was a story that no one could easily put into practice, and it flowed from Seong-jin’s lips.
“If I lacked the strength to save others, that would simply be a regrettable matter. Much like the disciples of Mount Hua standing outside.”
At those words, there was a flinching movement from outside, but Seong-jin calmly continued.
“But if I have the strength to do so and yet choose not to save someone in distress, that would be a horrific thing. If everyone acted that way, wouldn’t this world be nothing but a living hell?”
“Even if it means you will be branded a public enemy of the Murim?”
“Yes.”
To the senses of Byukha Nangrang, an absolute master, that firm answer was sincere.
“……Mount Hua will surely find a way to heal your body.”
“Haha, ‘surely,’ you say. A Sect Leader shouldn’t go around making such empty promises.”
“No, ‘surely’ is fine. If we cannot, then the Mount Hua Sect will no longer exist in this world.”
Shameless wretches who could not even repay a debt of gratitude should not dare to claim the name of Mount Hua. He had not only saved their mountain gate but had also provided teachings like a saint. If Mount Hua could not save this child, the ancient idiom of ‘a tiger father giving birth to a dog son’ would be rewritten as a story of Mount Hua, and they would all be known by the name of dogs.
However, apart from Byukha Nangrang’s moving sentiment, Seong-jin truly didn’t care about the norms of this era. He wasn’t a person of this time, and if he couldn’t become an immortal, he was destined to die young from the Nine-Yin Severed Pulse anyway.
[Gong-gwa-gyeok Record: Good Deed +5 (Saved a person tainted by Yogi)]
[Current Score: 39 points]
If anything, he was grateful, as this had helped him accumulate Gong-gwa-gyeok points.
“Even if that is your mindset, how did you manage the Demonic Art’s formula?”
“It wasn’t that difficult. Born with the Nine-Yin Severed Pulse, I feel pain immediately if the flow of my Qi is even slightly off. So, I can create new martial arts formulas just by following my senses.”
Because his meridians were constricted, even the slightest error in Qi circulation brought pain as if his entire body were being seared by fire. Therefore, Seong-jin could instinctively know the most perfect method of operation without anyone teaching him. By trying this and that, he found that the path where the pain was minimized was the most efficient and stable one. Once he set a rough direction for what kind of martial art he wanted to create and let his energy flow, he could immediately perceive the ‘most perfect path,’ allowing him to create any martial art he desired on the spot.
“Since I was able to save the Sect Leader in exchange for Heaven deciding my fate, I suppose the Nine-Yin Severed Pulse isn’t all bad.”
Seong-jin said this with a small laugh. Byukha Nangrang, seeing Seong-jin—who was not even half her age—laugh, was moved beyond words.
“How admirable, truly admirable….”
According to Seong-jin, he had suffered from pain since the moment he was born, and his current abilities were the fruit of his efforts to overcome that agony. If it broke a person’s heart just to see a sick child whimpering, then this child had been saving people with the results achieved through his own blood and sweat.
Tears streamed down Byukha Nangrang’s cheeks.
“It is too early to show tears, Sect Leader.”
They had to bring back the Mount Hua Sword Dragon detained by the Murim Alliance and clean up the mess the Seo-saeng-won had made. There was much to be done, but now that Byukha Nangrang had recovered, none of it was a problem.
“Don’t worry. From now on, I will be your hands and feet.”
Byukha Nangrang held Seong-jin in her arms and stepped outside. She looked back at the disciples of Mount Hua and said,
“I’m sure you have much to say, but I will bring Young-myung back first, so please wait a moment.”
At the same time, Byukha Nangrang soared into the air with Seong-jin in her arms. If Yeo Dong-bin’s Sword Flight was about riding a sword, Byukha Nangrang’s leap was a movement that seemed to defy gravity, gliding toward her destination.
“Is it alright for you to move so vigorously? Even if you have suppressed the Yogi, your body condition, which must have been damaged while you were suffering, won’t have recovered yet.”
“I will show you what it means for an absolute master to become your hands and feet.”
Arriving in the sky above the Murim Alliance, Byukha Nangrang scanned below and immediately pinpointed Young-myung’s location.
“That is the place.”
Immediately after, an overwhelming presence erupted from her. It was as if ink spilled onto rice paper were staining the page; her Qi waves spread out. To those watching through their senses, it looked as if the world were being dyed in Byukha Nangrang’s colors.
“People called me the Baek-geom-ja, the First Sword of Mount Hua, even though I didn’t use a sword.”
The energy of extreme Yang gathered at her fingertips. As she raised her finger and pointed at her target, a powerful heat ray shot out.
“This, too, is a sword technique.”
She traced the air with that state.
“……!”
The heat ray, carrying immense temperature, cut through the ceilings of the pavilions in a straight line. As if the world were being erased, it split along the trajectory of her finger. Where her strike passed, the earth’s soil and sand melted, revealing the shimmering, glass-like flesh of the ground.
“After reaching my realm, there were no swords left in the world capable of containing the heat of my Jahashin-gong. Since then, I stopped holding a sword, but I am still a swordswoman.”
Following this, flower shoes embroidered with plum blossoms stepped onto the red-hot glass. Even in the heat that would ignite a fire just by being near, the owner of the flower shoes walked across the scorched earth as if it were nothing.
The 18th Sect Leader of Mount Hua.
Byukha Nangrang, Dongbang Yak-rin.
There was no one who could stop her.
“I am taking my disciple back, so do not interfere. This is a matter of my sect, so any further intervention is an overreach, Grand Steward.”
Byukha Nangrang declared this to those who would be watching her through the formation, then faced Young-myung.
“Master? I thought you had fallen into Juhwa-ipma…?”
“I met a noble person and received help.”
As she said this, she lowered Seong-jin, whom she had been wrapping like a bundle inside her robes. Having brought him wrapped in the Qi of an absolute master, Seong-jin’s identity would not be revealed even in the heart of the Murim Alliance.
“Young Master Joo?”
While Seong-jin answered with a light nod, Byukha Nangrang continued.
“This incident occurred because I did not listen to the child’s heart. I could not afford to lose you as well because of that.”
A commotion began to rise within the Murim Alliance due to the sudden appearance of Byukha Nangrang, who had shattered the prison, but no noise could invade the space where she stood.
“Let us return, to Mount Hua.”
* * *
Upon returning to the inn, Byukha Nangrang immediately ordered a meal to be prepared.
“How are you both so skinny? I must feed you something.”
“Pardon?”
She sat Seong-jin and Young-myung down and began to feed them, the amount enough to fill a banquet table. When Seong-jin looked at Young-myung in bewilderment, Young-myung avoided his gaze and said,
“The Sect Leader is a bit generous with her portions.”
“It doesn’t seem like just ‘a bit’.”
It was an amount difficult for even martial artists in their prime to handle. However, Byukha Nangrang fed them enthusiastically, as if she would not tolerate any leftovers.
“Try this, too.”
“It’s alright. I am controlling the Yogi well, so I can manage on my own….”
“You shouldn’t be picky with food. Come, say ‘ah.’ Ah….”
In the end, Seong-jin couldn’t refuse and took a bite, and from then on, Byukha Nangrang incessantly picked up dishes and placed them on their plates.
“Why are you both eating so sparingly? You have to eat well, especially when you’re sick.”
If their hands even stopped for a moment, she would try to put the food directly into their mouths instead of on the plate, so Seong-jin emptied his plate without rest. Conversely, Byukha Nangrang acted as if the world would collapse if a plate became empty, constantly picking up dishes, and her speed was truly in the realm of divine martial arts.
—Did she just debone that fish with a heat ray?
—If the food looks like it’s getting cold, she’ll put Jahagi on the plate and heat it with sword energy, so don’t be surprised.
Finally, when the two people, who had stuffed themselves, were about to clear the table,
“I’ve had enough. I don’t think I can eat any more.”
“Is that so? Then wait a moment, I will peel some fruit for you.”
Byukha Nangrang, who disappeared into the kitchen, soon came out with a basket full of fruit and began to peel them by hand. Seeing that, Seong-jin felt his vision blur. For some reason, he felt a phantom image of his late grandmother.
In fact, in terms of age, Byukha Nangrang was old enough to have great-grandchildren.
‘Was this what it meant for the Sect Leader of Mount Hua to care for her disciples like her own children?’
In the end, Seong-jin, who repeated the cycle from fruit to tea snacks, and from tea snacks to dinner, was only able to escape Byukha Nangrang’s clutches when it was time to sleep.
“You must be tired, so get some good rest for now. Let’s talk in detail tomorrow.”
Half of his fatigue seemed to be due to his blood sugar levels, but no one voiced that fact.
Lying in bed, Seong-jin opened his eyes at the voice coming from the next room.
“Brother Joo.”
It was Young-myung, who had lost his older martial brother—who was like a real brother—and had been living alone, trapped in the prison. Although Young-myung had remained silent even in the Murim Alliance solely out of trust in Seong-jin, he was just as ignorant of the detailed circumstances as anyone else.
He, who must have had more questions than anyone, brought up the doubts he had been harboring only after he was alone with Seong-jin.
“Yes.”
“Are there many people like that Seo-saeng-won in the world?”
Seong-jin could give no answer to that.
“And you have been wandering the world dealing with such beings?”
Because even an answer could be a leak of heavenly secrets.
“Even though the world is full of such monsters, people were treating them like old fairy tales.”
“…….”
“I am ashamed that I thought I was protecting the peace of Shaanxi as a disciple of Mount Hua, suppressing the evil paths. I am ashamed that I couldn’t even save my Great Martial Brother or the Sect Leader.”
Although he couldn’t see Young-myung’s face because he was behind the wall, Seong-jin somehow knew what expression he was making now.
“Even after resolving the matter of the Seo-saeng-won, you will continue to hunt monsters, won’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t you need a swordsman?”
He wanted to join in the fight against the monsters. Young-myung no longer wanted to remain an outsider in matters concerning them.
“Let me join you in chasing down the Bokma-jeon.”