This is my role. (3)
Beop Gye’s wrath of did not stem from mere personal emotions. He was the one who held the position of the head of Shaolin’s Disciplinary Hall. This went beyond private feelings.
“Right now.”
More than ever, he spoke sharply, placing weight on every word. It was to make sure Hye Yeon understood.
“Are you saying you would defy the order of the Abbot?”
Hye Yeon smiled faintly, in a way that was hard to read.
“I do not know how I should respond to that.”
“…What?”
“As a Buddhist, I act according to where my heart leads. How could that be called defiance?”
Beop Gye’s face twisted for a moment.
“No matter how much of a Buddhist you claim to be, your body still belongs to Shaolin. Do you truly not understand what it means to defy the Abbot’s command, and what consequences that brings?”
“…”
This time, Hye Yeon did not answer. Beop Gye spoke again, his voice tinged with anger.
“That is insubordination.”
“…”
“And insubordination without just cause is punished by excommunication. Do you understand what excommunication from Shaolin entails?”
Hye Yeon nodded.
“Yes.”
“You say you understand?”
“Yes, I do.”
Beop Gye narrowed his eyes.
“A disciple excommunicated from Shaolin is subjected to the punishment of ‘dangeun-chammaeg’ – cutting the tendons and severing the meridians [단근참맥(斷筋斬脈)].”
At the mention of dangeun-chammaeg, Hye Yeon’s face turned slightly pale.
“Destroying the dantian, and cutting the tendons and meridians of the limbs means you will never be able to use martial arts again. Even so, are you saying you will commit the sin of ‘gisamyeoljo’ [기사멸조(欺師滅祖) – glossary] and accept excommunication?”
There was not a trace of mercy in his voice.
Hye Yeon looked up at the sky for a moment. Beop Jong and Beop Gye were the ones who had opened a path in life for him. Seeing such people now showing him disappointment and anger was not easy to bear.
But…
‘If it is not right, then that too is merely attachment.’
When Hye Yeon lowered his head again, not a hint of hesitation remained on his face. His eyes were calm and clear.
“If that is Shaolin’s law, and the way for me to repay the grace I received from Shaolin, then I will accept it.”
“You foolish…”
This time, Beop Gye’s face turned pale. He had never imagined Hye Yeon would give such an answer.
Dangeun-chammaeg.
A cruel punishment where the tendons of the limbs are severed, the dantian is destroyed, and the flow of energy is broken. One who receives such punishment will never again be able to use martial arts.
No, it’s worse than that.
A person who loses their inner strength and the use of their hands and feet becomes less than an ordinary commoner. Who could bear living in such a state, unable to even lift a spoon with their own hands?
“Have you gone mad? What on earth are you thinking…!”
Just as Beop Gye could no longer hold back and shouted in anger, Beop Jong raised his hand to stop him.
“Abbot!”
Despite Beop Gye’s urgent voice, Beop Jong quietly shook his head, holding him back. Then he looked at Hye Yeon in silence. His gaze was cold. It was clear that his intervention had nothing to do with kindness towards Hye Yeon.
“I will ask you one thing, Hye Yeon.”
At Beop Jong’s voice, Hye Yeon flinched slightly. But he quickly composed himself and nodded.
“Yes, Abbot.”
“What is your reason?”
“…”
Beop Jong continued in a cold tone.
“All you have to do is return to Shaolin. There, countless things await you. The future seat of the Abbot of Shaolin, the position of the strongest under heaven, and glory beyond compare – all will be prepared for you.”
“…”
“Even so, why would you defy my words and go so far as to accept excommunication? Do you have a reason worth discarding everything you’ve trained for until now?”
Coldness poured from Beop Jong’s eyes. It was hard to believe he was looking at a disciple of his own sect. When had Hye Yeon ever received such a look or words from Beop Jong?
And yet, at that moment, a calm smile appeared on Hye Yeon’s lips. Strangely enough, Beop Jong’s words helped to clear the confusion in his heart.
As if posing a Zen riddle, he asked Beop Jong in return,
“What are all those things?”
“…What?”
“Attachment. And emptiness [공(空) – or void].”
“…”
Beop Jong’s face stiffened. It was as if he couldn’t even begin to imagine hearing such words from Hye Yeon.
“The seat of the Abbot, the title of the greatest under heaven, incomparable glory…”
Hye Yeon softly recited the words, then shook his head.
“You asked for a reason?”
And he answered calmly.
“Because I am a Buddhist, not a martial artist.”
“…”
“Now that you’ve said those things, I believe I understand my own heart even more clearly. Abbot, how could you speak of glory? How can there be glory for one who walks the Buddha’s path? The path a Buddhist must walk is solely for the sake of all sentient beings. How can glory be fitting on such a path?”
For a moment, Beop Jong could only stare at Hye Yeon, as if lost for words.
“What is the worth of the martial arts I’ve accumulated in this one body? Even if I were to possess martial skills that reached the heavens, they are nothing more than petty tricks when compared to saving a single life.”
“You… you…”
Beop Jong’s hands began to tremble.
He could endure anything else.
But to be given a sermon by a disciple of Shaolin – what could be more humiliating?
“I am a Buddhist before I am a martial artist. If there is no path of the Buddha [불도(佛道)] for me to walk in that place, then why would you try to drag me there? Even if the body resides in paradise, if the heart lies in hell, then how is that any different from hell itself?”
“…Hye Yeon.”
“If you wish to cast me out.”
Hye Yeon slowly nodded, his face serene and free of even the slightest confusion.
“If you must cast me out, then do so. Even if I am excommunicated from Shaolin, even if I lose my martial arts, the fact that I am a Buddhist will not change. And isn’t that enough?”
With a gentle smile, Hye Yeon lowered both hands.
He was completely at peace, showing no intention to resist.
Now it was Beop Gye who found himself at a loss.
Who was Hye Yeon?
A genius among geniuses, the very embodiment of Shaolin’s hopes for a thousand years. Everyone believed he would raise Shaolin to a whole new height. He was undoubtedly the future of Shaolin.
Even allowing him this rare journey beyond the sect – despite it breaking with tradition – had been solely because they believed it would further his growth.
And now that very man was saying he would leave Shaolin of his own accord. That he would abandon all the martial arts he had painstakingly cultivated.
‘Why? Why on earth!’
Beop Gye’s mind simply could not grasp it.
Everyone in the world longed to be a disciple of Shaolin. And yet the one who stood at the pinnacle of all that envy was choosing to walk away.
“You foolish boy…”
From Beop Gye’s lips – who, more than anyone, should have been strict – came a voice tinged with sorrow. But unlike Beop Gye, Beop Jong’s gaze only grew colder.
“That is truly your will?”
“It is, Abbot.”
He stared at Hye Yeon in silence.
At another time, such words from Hye Yeon might have been dismissed as childish defiance. But not now. The timing was all wrong. From Beop Jong’s perspective, it could only seem that the disciple he had so carefully nurtured had chosen Hwasan over him – and over Shaolin.
“Hwasan has clouded your vision.”
“Hwasan merely showed me the path I should take.”
“I should never have sent you to Hwasan.”
“I am truly grateful that you did send me there.”
“…To the very end.”
A blade-like sharpness appeared on Beop Jong’s face.
One who leads a sect must be infinitely gentle, but also, at times, mercilessly cold. If he failed to punish someone who had committed the sin of defying the sect’s will right in front of its sect leader, the very foundations of Shaolin’s laws would begin to crumble.
No.
‘Am I truly angry that the boy broke the law? Or is it my pride that I cannot swallow?’
Beop Jong, for a brief moment, struggled desperately to cast off the confusion that had gripped him.
“Beop Gye.”
“…Yes.”
“Hye Yeon is to be excommunicated.”
“A-Abbot!”
“For the crime of defying the will of the sect, everything granted to the disciple Hye Yeon by Shaolin shall be revoked. As the Head of Disciplinary Hall, carry out the sentence.”
“A-Abbot!”
Beop Gye, unable to bring himself to destroy Hye Yeon’s martial arts, made a desperate attempt to avert the course of events.
“This is not Shaolin – it is Hwasan! Abbot! If you must punish Hye Yeon… no, the sinner, then at least let us escort him back to Shaolin first…”
“How can there be a separate location for enforcing the discipline?”
“…But still-”
“Or what?”
Beop Jong’s eyes bore into Beop Gye, sharp enough to pierce through.
“Are you suggesting that Shaolin must now concern itself with Hwasan’s opinion when upholding its laws?”
“N-No, of course not. I would never dare harbor such a presumptuous thought.”
“Then carry it out.”
“…”
“Now!”
Beop Gye tightly shut his eyes. If Beop Jong was going to be this resolute, then there was no way for him to turn the situation around.
‘How did things come to this?’
Everything had gone wrong. The timing of every event was ill-fated.
‘Foolish boy… You should’ve just run!’
Why did he have to appear before the Abbot of his own accord, and at this moment of all times? If only he’d come after Beop Jong had calmed his fury, another path might have been possible.
Beop Gye opened his tightly shut eyes. He saw disciples of Hwasan cautiously gathering, having sensed the disturbance. Perhaps what the Abbot truly wanted was to display the authority of Shaolin in front of their eyes. And yet…
‘If the cost is Hye Yeon, then what we stand to lose is far too great, Abbot.’
But whatever Beop Gye thought, he could not disobey the Abbot’s order. Gritting his teeth, he turned to Hye Yeon and said,
“Kneel, sinner.”
Before the words had even finished leaving Beop Gye’s mouth, Hye Yeon’s knees touched the ground. Beop Gye forced his reluctant steps and moved behind him.
“What’s going on over there?”
“Why is Monk Hye Yeon like that?”
The disciples of Hwasan murmured with furrowed brows as they looked on, but Hye Yeon was a disciple of Shaolin. It wasn’t their place to interfere in Shaolin’s affairs.
Sensing that something was seriously wrong, a few quick-witted disciples immediately turned and sprinted with all their might towards the Sect Leader’s quarters.
“Carry out the sentence.”
Beop Gye raised his hand, taking the shape of a sharp blade. A faint blue aura glimmered along the edge of his hand. That hand, sharper than a blade, would sever all the tendons in Hye Yeon’s body and destroy his dantian.
“Hye Yeon.”
Beop Gye couldn’t bring himself to strike, and tried one last time to persuade him.
“If you change your mind now, the Abbot will still show you mercy.”
But all he could see was Hye Yeon’s resolute back, shaking his head in firm refusal.
“Elder, please do not hesitate.”
“…”
Beop Gye bit down hard on his lip.
“What did you see in Hwasan that makes you act so foolishly? What could Hwasan’s teachings possibly offer that surpass those of Shaolin? It’s nothing but a delusional temptation.”
At those words, Hye Yeon replied calmly.
“I didn’t particularly learn anything from Hwasan. They didn’t try to teach me. And what can you learn from those who make no effort to instruct you?”
“Then! Then why are you doing this?”
“Because I realized something.”
“…Realized?”
“Yes.”
Hye Yeon, still calmly kneeling, smiled softly.
“I came to understand what altruism [이타(利他)] truly means – something I could not find in Shaolin.”
“…”
“I found the path I had been searching for here. So why would I hesitate? Elder, if you truly care for me, then don’t hesitate. That is the way to honor me.”
Beop Gye closed his eyes.
As an Elder of Shaolin, those were words he could never accept. But as one who walked the path of the Buddha, he felt he could understand them.
‘I don’t know anymore.’
It was sorrowful that Hye Yeon defied his words. But as a fellow Buddhist, it was a joyous thing to see someone establishing their own Dharma. In that paradox, Beop Gye’s heart burned black with grief.
And yet…
‘…I am an Elder of Shaolin.’
There could be no room for hesitation.
“The sinner…”
Beop Gye bit his lip.
When he briefly looked up, Beop Jong gave him a silent nod.
“All that you received from Shaolin, I now reclaim in the name of Shaolin.”
“Amitabha…”
The moment Hye Yeon’s Buddhist chant ended, Beop Gye’s hand, laced with sharp inner strength, struck down towards Hye Yeon’s ankle.
“Aaagh!”
“Monk Hye Yeon!”
Hwasan’s disciples screamed all at once.
They had never imagined it would come to this. In a panic, they kicked off the ground and rushed forward. but it was already too late.
“Nooooo!”
Just as Beop Gye’s strike was about to sever the tendons in Hye Yeon’s ankle.
Kaaaaagaaaang!
A loud crash echoed as Beop Gye stumbled backward, clutching his hand. At the very instant his hand was about to strike Hye Yeon’s ankle, a sword energy flew in from somewhere and struck his hand away.
“How dare-!”
This was a disciplinary act of Shaolin. Who would dare to interfere with force?
Shocked and enraged, Beop Gye turned his head – and saw a man walking towards them.
Hwasan Geomhyeop.
He was sheathing his drawn sword and walking straight towards them.
“Who,”
Chung Myung growled,
“…the hell gave you bastards permission to pull this kind of crap on Hwasan’s grounds?”
“…”
“Come on. Say it. You filthy sons of bitches.”
The fury he exuded began to sweep through the surroundings like a storm.
________
IF ONLY Beop Gye had some spine to at least once say his true feelings and defy Beop Jong to some extent, so many things could have changed. Beop Gye is obviously not such a lost cause, like Beop Jong.
________
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Return of the Mount Hua 
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