Chapter 33: Just Pass By
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 33: Just Pass By
Ki Mu-hyeok unconsciously swallowed dryly and asked again.
“Five Elements… Divine Art?”
There were countless martial arts in the world.
Even at this very moment, new martial arts were being created by someone, and existing martial arts, with histories spanning hundreds or thousands of years, were constantly being developed and refined.
The world of martial arts was vast and expansive, but precisely because of that, only a select few were truly worthy of being called Divine Martial Arts.
‘I know of the Divine Martial Arts that exist now, and those that will be recognized as such in the future, but…’
Ki Mu-hyeok had never heard of a martial art called the Five Elements Divine Art.
But the one who mentioned its name was none other than his Master, Sword Demon Choi Geon.
It had to be a true Divine Martial Art, not some legendary technique that Vagrants babbled about when drunk at a tavern.
“I’ve never heard that name before. Is there such a martial art in our country?”
“…It is a martial art known to very few. To be precise, it has been all but forgotten because no one capable of mastering it appeared for a long time.”
Choi Geon’s expression was serene.
From experience, Ki Mu-hyeok knew that when his Master wore such an expression, he was more serious than ever.
“The Five Elements Divine Art is impossible to learn unless one specific condition is met. That is, one must possess a unique Constitution capable of wielding all Five Elements.”
“…!”
Upon hearing that, a memory suddenly surfaced for Ki Mu-hyeok.
“Was that why you were surprised when I mentioned I had a Constitution capable of mastering all Five Elements?”
Choi Geon nodded.
Now that he had brought up the Five Elements Divine Art, he had no intention of hiding anything further.
“I’ve watched you for the past few months and pondered. I taught you Swordsmanship because I believed you possessed innate talent and a righteous character… but one apprehension has made me hesitate until today.”
“If there’s anything I lack, please teach me, Master.”
Ki Mu-hyeok never took anything Choi Geon said lightly.
He always approached learning with genuine earnestness, like someone thirsting for knowledge, and never felt ashamed or offended even by harsh reprimands.
‘Such an attitude is unthinkable for a mere boy in his early twenties.’
However, to Choi Geon, it sometimes seemed excessive.
“Your passion to become the best is excessive. What if, in the future, those expectations aren’t met… will you fall into the path of the Heretical Path, resorting to any means necessary?”
“…”
One might call it an old man’s over-worrying, but Choi Geon had indeed seen many such cases.
Talented Rising Stars, blocked by a wall and stagnating for years, unable to overcome their disappointment and frustration, turning to the Heretical Path.
He had far too many experiences of personally cutting down former comrades who had become villains and committed heinous crimes.
“At one time, I was part of a secret organization within the Martial Alliance. My main duty was to quietly eliminate Orthodox Faction Members who had fallen into Heart Demons and been lured by the Heretical Path. Among them were even some of my former comrades.”
“…”
Ki Mu-hyeok surmised that the story he was hearing now was a secret known only to a select few within the Martial Alliance.
He had never even heard rumors of such an organization existing within the Martial Alliance.
Seeing his disciple’s momentarily thoughtful expression, Choi Geon let out a small laugh.
“Are you surprised? By the fact that your Master was a former Assassin?”
Ki Mu-hyeok nodded.
However, his sparkling eyes, contrary to Choi Geon’s expectation, held a sense of respect.
“I’ve often wondered… now I understand why you’re so good at ambushes. I really think I made the right choice coming to you, Master.”
“…You, aren’t you a bit too unbiased about the word ‘Assassin’?”
“I think it’s even better for me, actually? Thanks to you, I’ve received proper training not just in Swordsmanship, but in assassination techniques too.”
Instead, Choi Geon let out a hollow laugh, as if dumbfounded.
He didn’t know whether to like or scold a disciple whose thinking was far too open-minded for an Orthodox Faction Rising Star.
So, he took a sip of his remaining beer and naturally changed the subject.
“Anyway, Divine Martial Arts like the Five Elements Divine Art carry a great risk of falling into a Heart Demon. Just telling you about it prematurely would have only made you restless and hindered your training.”
Choi Geon didn’t want to repeat the experiences of the past.
…Cutting down a martial artist with his own sword, someone who was once a comrade, or even a disciple.
The decisive reason he chose to live in seclusion was the betrayal by a disciple he trusted, but it was also influenced by the long-term mental and physical exhaustion from his activities as the Martial Alliance’s Hidden Sword.
“So, are you telling me about the Five Elements Divine Art now because you trust me?”
To his disciple, who boldly asked back, Choi Geon gave a playful smile.
“I still can’t quite trust you, but I think I can trust your parents, so I’m telling you.”
“…My parents?”
“Aren’t they both the kind of people who would stop their son from going astray, even if it meant spanking his backside?”
Ki Mu-hyeok’s expression turned sour as he briefly imagined the scene.
“I can’t get my butt spanked by my parents now that I’m all grown up. I will absolutely never fall into a Heart Demon.”
“You talk a good game. If it were that easy to control, would it even be a Heart Demon?”
Despite the gruff words, Master and disciple looked at each other and laughed.
Over the past few months, they had learned a great deal about each other, and consequently, had come to trust and rely on one another.
‘Should you ever fall into a Heart Demon, I will stop you.’
Though unspoken, Choi Geon’s words were uttered with that resolve.
Ki Mu-hyeok also replied playfully, but his gaze was more serious than ever.
“Master. I will become a hero like you and punish evildoers!”
A forgotten memory from the past resurfaced, making Choi Geon’s chest ache, but he forced a smile and focused on the disciple before him.
“…The process of mastering the Five Elements Divine Art will not be easy. Furthermore, it may lead you to make many enemies.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“You rascal! Don’t answer so readily; think it over carefully before you reply!”
Ki Mu-hyeok seriously pondered, as his Master instructed.
He crossed his arms and even closed his eyes.
How many minutes passed?
With his eyes still closed, the corners of Ki Mu-hyeok’s mouth slowly curled upwards.
“Hmph? This rascal?”
“Making many enemies, huh…”
A moment later, Ki Mu-hyeok opened his eyes and looked at his Master with an expression full of anticipation.
“If I fight all those enemies, I can get stronger, right? I think it’ll be a good thing, actually?”
The Sword Demon recalled what kind of fellow his last disciple truly was, and sighed with a lament.
“You crazy bastard. Kang Heon was absolutely right. Looks like I’m stuck with a madman in my old age, and he’s going to drain all my resources.”
“You’re complimenting me, right?”
“Yes! It’s the highest compliment, you rascal!”
Choi Geon chuckled heartily.
He was already curious what kind of alias his disciple would acquire in the Martial world.
He didn’t know for sure, but he wondered if he would be called by an even more terrifying alias by the Heretical Path than he, the Sword Demon, had been.
“Since you seem to have made up your mind, I will now tell you how to obtain the Five Elements Divine Art.”
“…Aren’t you going to teach it to me directly, Master?”
“You rascal. I’m not even a Five Elements affinity user, so how could I have mastered the Five Elements Divine Art? I only know its location.”
He said the Five Elements Divine Art was in the Martial Alliance’s secret archives.
In other words, the first thing Ki Mu-hyeok had to do was arrange a private meeting with the Martial Alliance Leader.
“To meet the Alliance Leader, you’ll not only need to obtain a First-Rate License, but also rank within the top 3 in the overall License Exam.”
For the first time, a hint of bewilderment appeared on Ki Mu-hyeok’s face, which was usually so confident about the License Exam.
“Top 3 overall? Surely, that doesn’t mean…”
While achieving First-Rate in the first License Exam was a competition among his peer Rising Stars, the overall ranking was a different matter entirely.
“Indeed. If your luck is bad, you might even have to contend with Peak Masters.”
Choi Geon replied in a tone that suggested it was nothing significant, and downed the rest of his beer in one gulp.
The next day.
Early in the morning, before the Martial Alliance’s main gate had even opened.
A massive crowd had already gathered in front of it, buzzing with anticipation.
The number of applicants for the official Martial License Exam, hosted by the Martial Alliance and sponsored by the Eight Great Sects, was close to three thousand.
“This year, I’ll proudly be recognized as a Second-Rate Martial Artist!”
“I’ll go and bring glory to the Cheongpung Sect!”
“If I fail again this time, I’m really done for…”
Among them were fresh-faced youths taking the exam for the first time as adults this year, as well as seasoned Martial Artists who, confident in their skills, had come to renew their license grades.
With Martial Artists who came to support their disciples or senior martial siblings, the applicants’ families, and even reporters filming, the area around the Martial Alliance was truly a sea of people.
“Good heavens… there are so many people.”
“Good thing we arrived just in time, right? If we’d come early, we’d just have to wait forever.”
Ki Mu-hyeok deliberately arrived leisurely in front of the examination hall.
Not only did arriving early not mean taking the exam sooner, but it was also obvious that it would only attract bothersome attention.
Just like now.
“Hey, isn’t that Ki Mu-hyeok?”
“Who’s that?”
“You know, the young swordsman who was all the rage on YouTube last fall!”
“Oh? You’re right!”
Ki Mu-hyeok felt the stinging gazes of people recognizing him from all directions, but he ignored them.
“Mu-Mu-hyeok. Don’t mind them staring. It’s just because you’re so outstanding…”
“Our son is calm, so why are you more nervous?”
“N-nervous? Who’s nervous! It’s just cold.”
However, despite Ki Chan-ho’s fuss, the glances at Ki Mu-hyeok only lingered for a moment before moving on.
‘It really was a good idea to stay quiet and out of people’s sight.’
For the past few months, Ki Mu-hyeok had refrained from external activities and focused solely on his training.
Once he was out of sight, public interest naturally waned, and now, even if Ki Mu-hyeok appeared, people would chatter for a bit before immediately losing interest if another celebrity showed up.
WOOOOSH!
Suddenly, with a huge cheer, the Rising Stars who had signed contracts with the Eight Great Sects began to appear one by one.
Each time a young Martial Artist, whose name and face were already known through the media, stepped out of a supercar emblazoned with the Eight Great Sects’ logo, an immense amount of attention poured forth.
“It’s Song Jun-ho! A Grade 1 Constitution Rising Star who signed with the Taiji Sword Sect!”
“Extreme Yin Constitution Yang Ha-yun is here too! Didn’t they say she’s already been chosen as the Glacier Goddess’s disciple?”
“Pi Seung-hwa? I heard the Golden Glory Sect poured a huge amount of money into signing that kid…”
Their popularity was so immense that it seemed as if half the gathered crowd had come just to see the Eight Great Sects’ new Rising Stars.
And among them, boldly.
“URAAT! Shin Kang-heon the Gold! Your boy has arrived—!”
Shin Kang-heon, who had dyed his hair blond overnight and appeared, drew everyone’s attention.
As Shin Kang-heon, stepping out of a rather expensive foreign car (though not emblazoned with an Eight Great Sects’ logo), enthusiastically waved to the crowd, Ki Mu-hyeok shook his head in disgust.
“That psycho. He’s acting up again.”
Unlike Ki Mu-hyeok, Shin Kang-heon actively engaged in social media even while training, and his attention-seeking personality remained unchanged, even if he didn’t upload training videos.
WAHAHAHAHA!
A slightly different kind of cheer and applause erupted compared to those for the Eight Great Sects’ Rising Stars, but he seemed satisfied nonetheless.
What was certain was that with Shin Kang-heon’s appearance, most of the attention had shifted to him.
“Utterly frivolous.”
“He’s not even a clown…”
“Does he have no pride as a Martial Artist?”
As several of the Eight Great Sects’ Rising Stars watched him with displeased gazes.
‘Please don’t pretend to know me. Just pass by.’
Ki Mu-hyeok tried to hide himself as much as possible from Shin Kang-heon’s line of sight.
However, the problem, if there was one, was that after months of tediously clashing weapons and fighting, they had become far too accustomed to each other’s aura.
“Hey! You crazy bastard!”
Shin Kang-heon began approaching Ki Mu-hyeok with a wide grin.
Simultaneously, the gazes of the Eight Great Sects’ Rising Stars naturally turned towards Ki Mu-hyeok.
“Ah.”
Feeling tired already, Ki Mu-hyeok covered his eyes with one hand.