Return of the Mount Hua

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Part I

“Is this Hwasan?”

A boy, his face still youthful, lifted his gaze to the signboard that read “Great Hwasan Sect [대화산파(大華山派)].”

It was certainly something out of the ordinary. Though the main gate of the sect, known as the Mountain Gate [산문(山門)], was not particularly large and gave off simplistic, unadorned air unique to Taoist style, the brushstrokes of the characters carved into the plaque, as vigorous as dragons and serpents soaring through the sky [용사비등(龍蛇飛騰)], seemed to carry the full weight of Hwasan Sect’s heroic spirit. The Mountain Gate was no different from the face of the sect. Just from this sight alone, it was enough to understand what kind of place this sect called Hwasan was.

“Indeed.”

The boy slowly nodded, as if satisfied. A faint smile bloomed at the corner of his lips. Because those lips were a touch on the thin side, that smile could seem a little arrogant, but no one would be able to deny that if they passed this youth on the street, they would at least turn back once to look, so handsome and bright did he appear.

“So this is where I’ll be living from now on.”

The boy’s face brimmed with expectation and confidence.

“Young Master.”

“Hm?”

At the voice that came from behind, the boy glanced back at the servant standing there. The man, who had been standing at attention, bowed his head, lowered his posture, and cautiously opened his mouth.

“His Lordship told me that once we reached the Mountain Gate of Hwasan, I was to ask you once more, Young Master. Are you truly sure about Hwasan? His Lordship said that if you so wished, not only Wudang, but even Shaolin…….”

“That’s enough.”

The boy cut him off with a brief wave of his hand before he could finish. In that gesture, in that youthful firmness, was written the fact that this boy was the cherished son of a noble house who had commanded many people from an early age.

“Of course, the sects currently regarded as the strongest in Gangho are Shaolin and Wudang.”

“Yes. That is so, Young Master.”

“But that is all it is. What meaning is there in going to the greatest sect only to take a place already laid out before me? It has meaning to go instead to a place that lags behind, and then make that sect into one stronger than Shaolin or Wudang.”

The boy straightened his shoulders proudly, as though he meant to lay bare the grand ambition within him.

“In that sense, Hwasan is the perfect place. It doesn’t fall all that far behind Shaolin or Wudang, yet it is far superior to the other sects. On top of that, even though Hwasan is a Taoist sect, they say its customs and atmosphere are much more free than those of other Taoist sects, so wouldn’t it be a little easier for me to live there?”

The servant nodded silently. But that response came less from understanding the boy’s words than from having already guessed that he would say exactly that.

“His Lordship said that if you spoke so, Young Master, we were to follow your will. But Her Ladyship said that even so, I was to try persuading you once more. There are many ways to establish one’s purpose, so there is no need to…”

“She must have told you to say I should enter government service at court instead of throwing myself into Gangho. Isn’t that so?”

“…Yes, Young Master.”

The boy shook his head as though there was no need to hear more. In his clear, shining eyes, not a single trace of doubt could be seen.

“Of course, if I took office, I might have gained greater honor than by living in Gangho.”

“That is so, Young Master.”

“I might have even become an excellent official whose name was recorded in history. Don’t you think so?”

“For you, Young Master, that would be all too easy.”

“But that is all it would amount to. If I take office, at best I would end up as a Minister of State, or live my life as a Grand Councillor of the Inner Court.”

“For you, Young Master, even the rank of one of the Three Excellencies or a Grand Councillor would not be a dream.”

“And even then, wouldn’t I just spend my whole life coaxing and placating obstinate nobles who refuse to listen?”

The boy waved his hand with a weary expression utterly unfitting for his age.

“What possible sense of fulfillment is there in living such a life? Being born as a person, one ought to give full expression to one’s aspirations. Struggling to manage and guide people who might dart off in any direction at any moment – that is the sort of thing only those of small caliber busy themselves with.”

“Even so, young master, Confucius said…”

“No matter what you say, it won’t make me bend my will. Enough.”

In the end, the servant let out a deep sigh.

‘What a pity indeed.’

If anyone were to overhear this conversation, they might point fingers and call the boy arrogant. The posts of Minister of State and Grand Councillor are not positions one can attain simply because one wishes to, and leading a single sect to the position of number one under heaven might be an even more difficult task than that.

However, the servant did not think there was the slightest arrogance in the boy’s words. The reason was far too simple. The boy standing before his eyes was none other than Yang Hoe [양회(陽徊)].

The sons of the Yang Clan [정주(郑州)], the greatest power in Zhengzhou, were all renowned as prodigies who would one day bring glory to the nation. And among those exceptional figures, the child with a reputation so brilliant that he was called one of the Three Treasures of Zhengzhou – famed as a genius – was Yang Hoe.  There was only one reason such a precious talent had been able to forgo entering imperial court and come here instead: Yang Hoe’s stubbornness was so extreme that it made even his own parents throw up their hands.

“Since you have truly made up your mind, Young Master, this humble one can no longer stand in your way. However, His Lordship said that he cannot accept that a Taoist master should come from a family of Confucian scholars, so if you enter Hwasan like this, you must understand that the ties between the Clan and yourself will be severed forever.”

“I have already prepared myself for that.”

The servant shook his head from side to side. Just who could possibly break that iron-tough stubbornness?

“In that case, I must take my leave here.”

“Give my regards to Father and Mother. I will make it so that one day I can go to pay my respects to them with my head held high. When that time comes, even they will not be able to reproach me for having chosen wrongly.”

“……I can only hope it turns out that way. Then, farewell.”

After the servant departed, the boy, now left alone, looked at the Mountain Gate of Hwasan and puffed out his chest.

“From now on, this is my home.”

The boy stepped proudly towards the Mountain Gate over which hung the plaque of the Great Hwasan Sect, his chest filled to the brim with boundlessly grand ambition.

❀ ❀ ❀

“Then from this moment on, you are my disciple.”

“Yes, Master!”

The boy, Yang Hoe, beamed with satisfaction.

‘Good!’

There were few things as gratifying as seeing everything proceed exactly according to plan. From the moment he arrived at the Mountain Gate, he had gone through several procedures to be admitted, and in the end, he had succeeded in becoming the disciple of the very man standing before him, just as he had wished.

‘One Sword, Plum Fragrance [일검매향(一劍梅香)]’ Baek Oh [백오(白悟)] – there could be no one more fitting to be my master!’

One Sword Plum Fragrance Baek Oh was the leading candidate for the position of the next Sect Leader of Hwasan. Moreover, his own skill was so great that people said the title of Hwasan’s Finest Sword was essentially reserved for him alone, and rumors abounded that even Wudang and Jongnam felt uneasy at the mere six characters [chinese characters] of One Sword Plum Fragrance Baek Oh. What more needed to be said?

Genius though he might be, there would be limits to how far he could grow on his own if he failed to meet a master who could properly guide him. Yet he had succeeded in becoming the disciple of, in many respects, the best master Hwasan had to offer. How could he feel anything but joy?

‘Thank you, Father.’

Several years ago Baek Oh had already declared, that he would not take on any more disciples. So if it had been by his own strength alone, becoming the disciple of One Sword Plum Fragrance Baek Oh would not have been easy. If the power of the Yang Clan and his own talent together had not satisfied Hwasan, it would have been impossible. This was likely the last bit of help his family would ever grant Yang Hoe.

‘From here on, it all depends on me alone.’

Yang Hoe clenched his fist tight. Since he had become the disciple of the man who would be the next Sect Leader, it was only natural to say that the likelihood of him succeeding Baek Oh as Sect Leader of Hwasan had greatly increased.

‘Among the disciples of distinguished clans, there are those who, they say, enter the mountain and begin training in martial arts as soon as they can walk. By that measure, I am already a little late. But a gap of that size is something I ought to overcome through ability.’

Even if his seniority ended up somewhat behind, if he displayed his full capabilities, the elders of Hwasan would have no choice but to appoint him as Sect Leader. Wouldn’t that be the moment when his grand dream was truly fulfilled?

At that moment, Baek Oh quietly opened his mouth.

“Very well. Now that you have become a disciple of Hwasan, there is one thing I wish to ask.”

“Please ask, Master.”

“What is it that you wish to accomplish, now that you are a disciple of Hwasan?”

Of course, it was to become Sect Leader of Hwasan. But Yang Hoe was not so foolish as to speak his innermost thoughts out loud just as they were.

“As a disciple of Hwasan, I wish to lead Hwasan to become the number one sect under heaven.”

“Mmm!”

Baek Oh nodded with a deeply satisfied expression.

“Good. The Sect Leader is also greatly pleased with your talent, so if you steadily devote yourself, you will be able to realize that dream.”

“Thank you, Master!”

Yang Hoe’s heart pounded wildly. He knew it was still a long road ahead. He also knew it was an enormous dream for a boy who had spent his life only within his family’s estate and had only just set foot into Gangho. But he was confident he could do it. There had never once been something he wished to accomplish that he had failed to achieve.

‘Even if I might lag behind a little when it comes to the use of my body, my mind will not fall behind anyone under heaven. If I can make use of my strengths, then taking the seat of the greatest expert under heaven is not just a dream.’

Yang Hoe knew very well that the way people looked at a famed Grand Scholar and the way they looked at the Greatest Martial Expert under heaven were different. People looked upon a renowned scholar with eyes of respect, but they looked upon the greatest martial arts expert under heaven with eyes of admiration. What he wished to receive was not respect, but that very admiration.

“Then do you know what is most important in order to achieve your aim?”

“Yes, Master! I do.”

“What is it?”

Yang Hoe lightly cleared his throat, then recited proudly.

“Continuous diligence and effort.”

“Mmm.”

“Just as the path of learning has no end, I understand that the path of martial arts also has no end. And rather than running a little faster for a moment, it is only by devoting one’s whole life to constant cultivation, over and over again, that one can achieve one’s goal.”

These were not words he was spouting merely to please Baek Oh. This was truly Yang Hoe’s mindset. Without such resolve, he would never have been able to cast aside a life that was all but guaranteed for him and enter Hwasan.

“Therefore, no matter what trials and hardships may come, this disciple will cultivate himself, and cultivate himself again, and without fail make Hwasan the number one sect under heaven.”

Having slightly changed the words ‘I will lead it’ to ‘I will make it,’ Yang Hoe looked at Baek Oh with a triumphant smile.

He had spoken his true intentions, but even when he turned the answer over again in his mind, there was not a single flaw to be found. Naturally, Baek Oh would be pleased as well.

However, the expression on Baek Oh’s face as he looked at him was somehow odd.

“Well…… mmm, yes,”

Baek Oh slowly nodded. Strangely, that gesture looked as though he were agreeing only with some reluctance. Even though that shouldn’t have been the case.

“Yes. Continuous diligence – that truly is important. Nothing in this world is ever achieved without effort.”

“Yes, Master.”

“But…… there is something even more important than that.”

“If you would tell me, this disciple will listen with utmost reverence.”

Yang Hoe bowed his head in a humble posture. Looking at him once more with a satisfied gaze, Baek Oh quietly opened his mouth.

“You’ve only just entered the mountain, so you don’t know much about Hwasan yet…… but in Hwasan, a master is like a father, and a disciple is like a son.”

“Yes.”

“And your senior and junior brothers are no different from your own blood brothers.”

“Of course, I will regard them as such.”

“That part is especially important.”

“……Yes?”

At the sudden remark, Yang Hoe reflexively lifted his head and asked back, then, realizing his mistake, he hurriedly lowered his head again.

“In Hwasan, the most important thing is not outstanding ability, nor endless effort in cultivation, nor skillful adaptability. More than anything else, the brotherhood between senior and junior brothers is what matters most. Do you understand what I am saying?”

“Ah, I understand. This disciple will strive to live in harmony and affection with my senior and junior brothers.”

“That much is not enough!”

Baek Oh’s voice rose. And the higher it rose, the greater was the bewilderment Yang Hoe felt.

“Do not take this as some customary formality. The brotherhood between disciples is more important than anything! More than anything! Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Yes, Master… this disciple will engrave it into his very bones.”

“Good. It is fortunate if you’ve understood.”

Baek Oh finally let out a long sigh, as if he could at last set his mind at ease. But Yang Hoe could not make any sense at all of the conversation they had just shared.

‘It may be important to get along with my senior and junior brothers and treat them with affection… But that’s more important than ability or effort? I heard Taoism had less of that kind of emphasis. Is Hwasan like this because it’s a sect where the Taoist character is weak?’

Unlike Confucianism, which emphasizes brotherly affection and proper conduct, Taoism was said not to place great weight on personal bonds. Yet Hwasan seemed to be different somehow. In any case, if that was what his master said, then so it must be.

Setting aside such trivial matters, everything else could be said to be proceeding just as he wished.

However, there had been one thing that had been strangely bothering Yang Hoe for a little while now.

‘Was One Sword Plum Fragrance… no, was Master older than I thought?’

Yang Hoe stole sidelong glances at Baek Oh. The age he could see on Baek Oh’s face seemed slightly greater than the age he had heard about.

‘They say people of Gangho look young because of their profound martial arts, but was that all just nonsense?’

He had his doubts, but he could hardly bring himself to voice them. What was even stranger was that, from time to time, he glimpsed on the face of One Sword Plum Fragrance – clearly a mighty swordsman – expressions he had only ever seen on people suffering from nervous exhaustion.

‘Something is a bit off here……’

It didn’t feel as though something had gone terribly wrong, and yet there was a constant, subtle sense of misalignment. That he kept emphasizing things different from what Yang Hoe expected, that faint air of nervous exhaustion that occasionally drifted from One Sword Plum Fragrance, famed as a supreme expert under heaven…

‘I’m probably overthinking it.’

Yang Hoe soon shook his head vigorously, scattering his idle thoughts. He had only just entered Hwasan today. It was only natural for everything to feel strange and awkward. Once he adjusted, things would be fine.

“I’ll say it once more: you must get along with your senior and junior brothers.”

“Yes, Master.”

“…If that’s up to you.”

“Yes?”

Yang Hoe asked back, his face going slightly blank. At that moment, a deep voice sounded from beyond the door.

“Master, it is Chung Mun. I heard you called for me.”

“Yes, Chung Mun-ah. Come in.”

With a creaking sound, the old door opened, and a young man stepped into the room. Reflexively turning his head, Yang Hoe flinched without realizing it as he watched the young man walk in.

‘So this is Chung Mun…….’

Among Hwasan’s disciples of the ‘Chung’ generation, the only one Yang Hoe knew of was Chung Mun. He had learned of him while looking into various matters in the course of preparing to enter the sect. Chung Mun was said to be One Sword Plum Fragrance Baek Oh’s first disciple, and the one who would become the next Great Disciple of Hwasan. In other words, the man standing before his eyes would from now on be Yang Hoe’s Sahyeong, and the strongest rival with whom he would have to compete for the position of the Sect Leader.

However, in this moment at least, not the slightest trace of such competitive spirit stirred in him.

‘He’s big.’

For someone as young as Yang Hoe, men just on the verge of adulthood often looked even larger than fully grown adults. But what he felt now, looking at this man named Chung Mun, was not something that could be explained so simply.

It wasn’t that his frame was large. It was the person themselves who was large. The instant he came face to face with this Chung Mun, Yang Hoe was struck with sudden sense of being overwhelmed, and before he knew it, his mouth had fallen slightly open.

It was truly strange. Born the son of the powerful Yang Clan, he had grown up seeing countless mighty figures who ruled the world with his own eyes. But never once had Yang Hoe felt, upon seeing someone, that they possessed a ‘great bearing.’ Because he was a martial artist? But had he not already met One Sword Plum Fragrance Baek Oh alone? To feel something from the disciple that he had not felt from the master…

Whether he knew of Yang Hoe’s flustered state or not, Chung Mun simply walked calmly into the room. When he came to stand beside Yang Hoe, Baek Oh spoke with a warm smile.

“Greet him. He is the disciple I’ve just taken. To you, he will be your new Saje.”

“Huh?”

Chung Mun looked at Yang Hoe with a bewildered expression. The moment their eyes met, Yang Hoe unconsciously shrank back a little.

“Did you just say a ‘disciple’?”

“…It turned out that way.”

“But…… Master, did you not say that you would take no more disciples?”

“So I did.”

Baek Oh cast a brief glance at Yang Hoe, then shook his head as if there was nothing to be done.

“But… the Sect Leader pressed so adamantly that I could not refuse.”

“N-No, Master. This isn’t the matter that can be decided so lightly.”

“……Won’t it be fine? His aptitude doesn’t look bad.”

“That’s not the issue here. Just what in the world are you thinking of doing……”

Listening to the two of them talk, Yang Hoe unconsciously furrowed his brow. Leaving aside the fact that he couldn’t even understand what this conversation was about, the situation itself was bizarre.

‘Is the disciple really the one scolding the master right now?’

Chung Mun was clearly Baek Oh’s disciple, so how could such a thing as a disciple driving his master into a corner even happen? What was stranger still was that, even though this ridiculous situation was unfolding, Baek Oh did not reprimand him in the slightest. On the contrary, he kept sneaking nervous glances at Chung Mun and clearing his throat from time to time like someone feeling guilty and uneasy.

‘Is the etiquette for treating one’s master in Gangho different from that in the secular households? That can’t be right, can it?’

Covering his mouth, Baek Oh let out a loud cough, then stealthily picked up the teacup in front of him. The tea had already cooled halfway. Even as he held the cup and took small sips, his eyes kept sneaking over to gauge Chung Mun’s expression. Gently setting the cup back down, he forced a smile so awkward that even Yang Hoe could see it, and spoke to Chung Mun in a roundabout way.

“I know you’ve got that, khm…… a lot on your mind, but I’m asking you just this once. The Sect Leader is being so firm about it that I really can’t…….”

“No, Master. I’m not the problem here. That kid…….”

At Chung Mun’s brief sidelong glance, Yang Hoe widened his eyes, utterly confused. Was he the problem here?

“…Won’t he manage somehow? He is quite clever, and I hear he was a famed prodigy in Zhengzhou.”

“That’s not something you can tough out just because you have talent!”

“The Sect Leader says the boy’s aptitude is extraordinary and insists that I personally guide him no matter what, so what am I supposed to do? You know my position too, don’t you? Ehhh?”

“The Sect Leader may be able to say such things. But you, Master, should not be doing this! You should have considered the boy’s situation as well!”

“Didn’t his family specifically name me as the one they wanted to entrust him to? And in return, they made an enormous monetary donation to Hwasan. If he himself says he wants this, what am I supposed to do……”

“Excuse me? He, himself?”

“That’s what I’m telling you.”

“Why?”

At Chung Mun’s question, Baek Oh seemed momentarily at a loss for words and just stared blankly at him. Then, with eyes like those of a sad deer, he lifted his gaze to the ceiling. Chung Mun waved his hand.

“N-No, Master. My words came out wrong. I didn’t mean, ‘Why would he even pay money to learn from you,’ I meant, ‘Why would he pay money just to go through all that suffering’, I mean that……’”

“…”

But since Baek Oh still stared silently up at the ceiling as though wounded gravely, in the end it was Chung Mun who surrendered first.

“Phew………………. This boy will be the last, Master.”

“Y-Yes! Of course!”

As soon as Chung Mun stepped back slightly, Baek Oh immediately lowered his head and brightened up.

“I truly can’t take any more in. From the start, all of this was……”

“I know! I know! All of that is work I ought to be doing, how could I not know that you’re the one taking it on? I am always only grateful to you.”

A groan escaped from Chung Mun’s mouth.

“Still…… I will try my best, but I can’t make any promises. As you know, Master……”

“I know. Of course I know. From that point on, it’ll be something that boy has to bear, won’t it? I will never resent you for it. I’m a man with at least a shred of shame – would I really say something so brazen and shameless?”

“……I leave it in your hands.”

“Yes, yes. Chung Mun-ah! I am always grateful to you.”

Yang Hoe looked back and forth between the two of them, utterly dumbfounded.

‘What on earth is going on here?’

He prided himself on not falling behind anyone under heaven in wits, and yet from beginning to end, there was not a single part of this situation he could understand. For one thing, it didn’t sound like a conversation between master and disciple at all, and on top of that, he had no idea what they were so worried about. From the look of it, it didn’t seem as though they were saying these things because his talent failed to meet their expectations…

“What did you say your name was again?”

“Y-Yang Hoe. My name is Yang Hoe.”

Before he could even sort out his thoughts, Chung Mun spoke to him, startling Yang Hoe into answering immediately. Chung Mun looked at him with a subtly complicated expression, then let out a sigh and nodded.

“My name is Chung Mun. From now on, I am your Sahyeong, so if there is anything you need to ask about life in Hwasan, or if anything is difficult, come to me.”

“Yes, Sahyeong! I look forward to your guidance.”

When Yang Hoe bowed deeply, Chung Mun let out another heavy sigh.

“Master. Then I will take this boy to his quarters.”

“All right. He will need three or four days to adjust, so I won’t deliberately call for him during that time.”

With his eyes narrowing slightly, Chung Mun glanced at Baek Oh, then rose from his seat.

“Come along.”

“Yes.”

Chung Mun left the room first. Yang Hoe bowed deeply to Baek Oh, then followed Chung Mun out. From behind them, he could clearly hear the sound of Baek Oh letting out a sigh of relief.

“This way.”

“Yes, Sahyeong!”

With his hands clasped behind his back, Chung Mun walked beside Yang Hoe. After a short while of walking in silence, he spoke first.

“You said your name was Yang Hoe?”

“Yes, Sahyeong. That is what they called me in my family home.”

“When you say that’s what they called you in your family home, it sounds like that will change now. Are you intending to become a true disciple of Hwasan?”

“How could someone who has become a disciple of Hwasan’s future Sect Leader go back to the secular world? I intend to bury my bones at Hwasan.”

“……Is that so?”

Yang Hoe felt flustered once more. Was it his imagination, or did Chung Mun’s response somehow sound rather reluctant…?

“In that case, you’ll soon receive a Taoist name. Even if you’ve entered the sect, until you receive your Taoist name, it’s fine to change your mind, so think it over carefully.”

“That will not happen! My resolve is firm.”

“…I’m telling you this because resolve alone is not enough.”

“Yes?”

“Nothing. You’ll understand once you’ve experienced it.”

At this point, even Yang Hoe was starting to feel his insides twist a little.

‘No, but from a little while ago, everyone has been…’

What kind of person was Yang Hoe? Even among the Yang Clan, where talent overflowed, he was acknowledged as a peerless genius. Had not the doorstep of the Yang household worn thin from all the famed Grand Scholars under heaven coming to seek him as their disciple?

Nor was he known only within the Confucian world. Even Wudang and Shaolin themselves had come in person to recruit him as a disciple.

So why was it that Hwasan alone kept showing such obvious displeasure at his entry as a disciple? Someone of Yang Hoe’s caliber entering their sect should have been cause for them to welcome him with open arms.

‘No… that’s not quite right either.’

In truth, the Sect Leader of Hwasan had greeted his entry with a beaming smile. What had he said again? Laughing heartily, he had declared, ‘A talent who will lead Hwasan’s next hundred years has come.’ So then why were these two the only ones looking at Yang Hoe so begrudgingly? What, exactly, did he lack?

‘And why am I putting up with this?’

By nature, Yang Hoe was not someone who bottled up his dissatisfaction. Because his convictions were firm, he had never hesitated to call out what was wrong. Yet the reason he was now holding his tongue was not because this was his first day in Hwasan. It was because this young man named Chung Mun before his eyes radiated such an immense presence that even Yang Hoe found it hard to speak casually to him.

Realizing he had been subdued by the man’s aura, Yang Hoe looked at Chung Mun with renewed gaze. If he wanted to become Sect Leader of Hwasan, the one he had to surpass was none other than this man.

‘It won’t be easy.’

He could not claim to have seen much of the world yet, but his instincts were telling him: This person is truly extraordinary. Perhaps he was now looking at someone who would one day become such a great Taoist master that his name would be recorded in history.

‘But that makes it all the better! Only someone of this level is worth striving to surpass.’

If the other members of Hwasan had not been impressive, he would have only been disappointed.

If this was the place he would dedicate his life to – and the people he would have to compete with – then naturally, they needed to be at least this extraordinary.

Perhaps sensing the fiercely burning gaze boring into him, Chung Mun glanced back at Yang Hoe.

“I heard you were the one who wished to become Master’s disciple?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Because I heard that Baek Oh Jinin is an exceptional Taoist master and swordsman.”

“…Did you not hear anything else beyond that?”

Sensing what kind of answer Chung Mun was fishing for, Yang Hoe smiled faintly.

“I heard that Chung Mun Sahyeong, disciple of Baek Oh Jinin, is the outstanding talent who will become the next Sect Leader. They say that in Gangho, they already call you ‘Wise Dragon [현룡(賢龍)]’…”

“Nothing besides that?”

“Yes? Other than that, not particularly…”

Chung Mun lifted his head and gazed into the distant sky.

“That the thing one most needs to know does not easily reveal itself is, at times, truly a pity… In any case, I understand your feelings, so let’s do well together from here on.”

“Yes, Sahyeong.”

“There is a great deal I could say… but it’s not something you can understand just because someone tells you. You’ll come to learn it as you experience Hwasan for yourself.”

“I will do so.”

“If I were to add one more thing: if you ever feel something is happening that you cannot handle, do not think of dealing with it alone. You must come to me. Not to our Master – come to me! I’ll say it again: come to me. Do you understand?”

“…Yes.”

“Make sure you remember that. Truly. I have a great many things I must see to as well, so I can’t always stay by your side. That’s why, make sure!”

With a dumbfounded look on his face, one he had never worn once in his life, Yang Hoe thought:

‘…Does Hwasan have tigers wandering around?’

Why was he acting like someone sending a child alone into a forest full of wild beasts?

He wasn’t that young. There was definitely something strange about this man. Feeling a strong sense of discomfort, Yang Hoe found himself simply wanting to hurry up and get somewhere, anywhere, just so he wouldn’t be alone with him like this. Fortunately, around that time, figures of other disciples, who were training, began to come into view.

“Ah! Sahyeong! Greetings!”

Those who spotted Chung Mun bent sharply at the waist to greet him. From the expressions that lit up their faces alone, one could tell how welcome a presence Chung Mun was within Hwasan.

“You’re all working hard.”

“Not at all, Sahyeong! Of course we should train diligently. But… who is the boy beside you?”

“He’s your newly arrived Saje.”

“Huh? Our Saje?”

At those words, a few of the disciples nearby shouted loudly.

“Sahyeongs! The new kid who just entered the sect is here!”

“Hey, youngest! You’re finally free from being the youngest! A junior has arrived!”

“Really? Wow!”

In an instant, the disciples who had been training swarmed over to gather around Chung Mun and Yang Hoe. Their reaction was so intense it was almost like they were jumping at him. Startled by a response far more heated than he expected, Yang Hoe flinched and glanced around.

‘Is this the norm here?’

Of course, even in the Confucian academies, fellow students were thick as thieves. But here, everyone really felt excessively close.

“The kid looks sharp. But his build seems a bit on the slender side, doesn’t it? Will he be all right?”

“Judging by his expression, he looks like he’s got backbone.”

“I-I heard about this! They said someone really famous was entering the sect today. What was it again? Zheng…… Zhengzhou something? Was it one of the Three Treasures of Zhengzhou?”

“What? The Three Treasures of Zhengzhou?”

“Sahyeong, do you know something about that?”

One of them, eyes locked on Yang Hoe, spoke in astonishment.

“They’re talking about the youngest son of the Yang Clan. Back in Henan, where I used to live, that kid was famous everywhere as a genius. Are you that Yang Hoe of the Yang Clan?”

At the words of recognition, Yang Hoe nodded.

“Yes, Sahyeong! I am Yang Hoe.”

“Well, to think… To think you would come to Hwasan!”

“What is he? Is he famous?”

“Please, try living with your ears open for once, Sahyeong! He’s the boy whose fame as a genius has spread throughout the whole Central Plains. I honestly thought he’d definitely enter government service, but he came to Hwasan instead. I bet the Elders have smiles up to their ears.”

“Wow, so he’s really something, then. I’d better not treat him carelessly.”

Everyone stared at Yang Hoe with fascinated eyes. The more they did, the more his shoulders naturally rose. He wasn’t someone who particularly,enjoyed being fawned over, but having them acknowledge his reputation seemed to soothe a bit of the irritation he’d felt because of Baek Oh and Chung Mun.

‘Yes, this is how it should be!’

Would the world that martial artists live in really be any different from anywhere else? This was the kind of reaction that ought to be normal. Yang Hoe tried his best to hide the creeping gloom that threatened to rise in him. At that moment, one of the disciples observing him grinned.

“Looks like we’d better stay on our toes here. If we’re not careful, we might end up getting beaten by the new kid, no?”

“Come on, no matter how much of a prodigy he is, martial arts are a different story.”

“Shows what you know. Someone outstanding in one field has a high chance of being good in others too. You really think a kid people call a genius wouldn’t be able to handle a sword? With that brain of his, he could swing a sword blindly and still beat the likes of you.”

“Ah, Sahyeong! How does that make any sense?”

Watching them carry on noisily the whole time, Chung Mun let out a brief chuckle.

“So if you don’t want to have your backsides handed to you by the youngest, make sure you don’t slack off in your training.”

“Yes, Sahyeong!”

In that moment, Yang Hoe clearly felt that Chung Mun was different from the other disciples. Among those gathered around them, there were some who didn’t look that far apart in age from Chung Mun, and yet the way they treated him was distinctly different from how they treated other senior brothers. Rather than simply treating him as an older disciple, they treated him like a firmly established superior.

Well, even from Yang Hoe’s point of view, there was no one here who seemed fit to be compared to Chung Mun. There were a few who caught the eye now and then, but they couldn’t possibly be measured against him.

It wasn’t that the others seemed lacking. It was that this man called Chung Mun was a crane among chickens, shining even among Hwasan’s many gifted disciples. Even if you dropped him into Shaolin instead of Hwasan, he would unmistakably stand out.

‘I’ll have to lead Hwasan with these people under me someday. If Chung Mun Sahyeong stands with me then, we might really be able to make Hwasan the greatest sect under heaven.’

As Yang Hoe harbored a grand ambition that was unseemly for someone his age… or perhaps, in a way, perfectly suited to someone his age, one of the nearby disciples laughed and spoke to him.

“Meeting someone famous like you has me straightening my shoulders for no reason. I’m Chung Hwa. Let’s get along.”

“Yes! I look forward to your guidance, Sahyeong!”

Yang Hoe replied in a loud, spirited voice. These people were certainly easier to deal with than Baek Oh or Chung Mun. The thought passed through his mind, that if he lived together with them, life at Hwasan might become a little more comfortable.

“But, Sahyeong, whose disciple is he? I never heard that any of our Sasuks had taken on a new disciple.”

Chung Mun scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed look and answered.

“Well…… he’s my direct junior. Master just took him in.”

“……Whose junior?”

“Mine.”

“…You mean he entered under Baek Oh Sasuk…?”

“Mm, that’s how it turned out……”

It was in that moment.

“Eek!”

Chung Hwa, who had been speaking to Yang Hoe with a warm smile, suddenly let out a shriek and sprang backward. At the same time, the others all went pale and took several big steps back.

“…That’s how it is.”

“N-No, what are you planning to do……”

Yang Hoe blinked. The ones who had been welcoming him with bright smiles a moment ago now all fidgeted like puppies about to wet themselves, not knowing what to do.

‘There it is again – that look.’

That indescribable expression, a mix of pity and fear. The very same look Baek Oh and Chung Mun had worn earlier. At this point, even Yang Hoe could not help but realize it. Something had gone wrong.

“I-is this really all right?”

“Urgh. I did try to stop it, but……”

“They say he’s a famous prodigy – what are you planning to do with a kid like that…”

Letting out a deep sigh, Chung Mun said.

“That’s why I want you all to help him a bit.”

“H-How are we supposed to help? It’d be quicker for an ant to bring down an ox.”

The disciples, glancing back and forth between Chung Mun and Yang Hoe, now started to quietly edge away altogether.

“Uh… I’ve got training to get back to.”

“Oh dear, Master called for me earlier and I totally forgot!”

“Yang Hoe, was it? Well… take care, okay? Really… take care.”

Exchanging looks among themselves and babbling various excuses, they scattered in an instant, vanishing as if they were fleeing. Left standing alone in the suddenly empty, wide training ground, Yang Hoe just blinked like a bewildered cow.

“Um…… Sahyeong, did I perhaps do something wrong just now…”

“No, it’s nothing. They were just making a fuss over nothing.”

If that was all, then why was he making such a pitying expression? Huh?

“Let’s go.”

“…Yes.”

As the two of them started walking again and moved off into the distance, a few disciples hiding behind the nearby pavilion poked their heads out.

“…What’s going to happen to that kid?”

“S–Say, Sahyeong, if Baek Oh Sasuk took him as a disciple, that means he’ll be living in the same quarters, right?”

“I–I guess so, probably?”

“What are we going to do about him?”

“It’s not too late yet. If it were me, I’d run away without looking back.”

“Isn’t Baek Oh Sasuk really going too far? What was he thinking, taking a disciple?”

“What fault could Sasuk have… It’s all…”

The one who had been speaking with a sigh suddenly turned around as if something had occurred to him.

“By the way, where is Sahyeong right now?”

“Where else? In the Repentance Chamber [참회동], of course.”

“Why the Repentance Chamber? Did he cause some trouble again?”

“Does Sahyeong need any special reason to be in the Repentance Chamber? He spends more days there than in his own quarters. I heard he’s practically moved in permanently now. Even Sasuk don’t bother clearing out the room he uses – they say it’s pointless since he’ll just be back.”

“…How long is he staying there this time?”

“Let’s see… he went in five days ago, so if I remember right… I think… it’s…”

As he counted the days off on his fingers, his face suddenly went pale.

“It’s tomorrow.”

Everyone squeezed their eyes shut in unison.

“Primeval Lord of Heaven.”

“Buddha of Infinite Life [무량수불(無量壽佛)].”

“Ahh, that poor kid… I hope we won’t be hauling away a corpse tomorrow.”

The sighs of Hwasan’s disciples grew even heavier. Their gazes, heavy with deep pity, followed Yang Hoe’s back as he walked away after Chung Mun – completely unaware of his fate.

Part II

“This is where you’ll be staying from now on.”

“Here……”

Yang Hoe gazed meaningfully at the small thatched hut before his eyes. A modest, well-built house. Built atop a cliff, it looked somewhat strange and unsettling, but the view created by the clouds drifting right behind the house was enough to make one nod in appreciation even taking all that into account. Only…

Well. How should one put it…

‘It’s modest.’

It certainly wasn’t a house you could call lacking, but considering the financial resources of the Great Hwasan Sect, and recalling the people who lived here, even the word ‘shabby’ would not have been much of an exaggeration.

Still, in a Taoist sect that preached frugality, they couldn’t make some lavish pavilion their living quarters, could they? It was quite understandable.

‘Anyway, my life at Hwasan begins here.’

Steeling his resolve, he turned to Chung Mun as a sudden question came to mind.

“Then, will you also be staying here, Sahyeong?”

“In principle, yes. That’s right.”

Chung Mun nodded with a gentle smile.

“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the disciples of Hwasan all live under their Master’s care. One Master and his disciples share the same residence and live together like a family.”

“Ah……”

“And when a disciple grows up and takes on disciples of his own, he then is assigned new quarters and moves out. So until you’re old enough to take in a disciple yourself, you’ll be staying here, attending to your Master.”

“I understand, Saheyong.”

“……In principle, that is.”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Yang Hoe felt he was going to go mad from the nagging sense of unease. From a little while ago, everyone he met seemed to be hiding something from him. It felt as if there was something he absolutely should know, and he alone was being kept in the dark.

Looking back, there wasn’t just one or two things that were strange. As the oddities piled up, even this little thatched hut began to look strange. Until just a moment ago, it had simply seemed like proof of his Master Baek Oh’s integrity… But thinking about it, wasn’t it a bit strange that the thatched hut of Baek Oh, who was a very important figure even within Hwasan, would be all the way out here in this secluded spot?

‘The other residences weren’t all that far from the main sect grounds, so why is only this place so far away?’

Of course, that in itself wasn’t necessarily strange. If Baek Oh, who had this residence built, preferred seclusion, it was entirely possible.

However, both Baek Oh and Chung Mun, who would be living here, held significant responsibilities within Hwasan. No matter how fond they might be of secluded places, was it really possible for people like that to live this far from the main grounds?

Yang Hoe, famed for his quick wit as well as his prodigious talent, was not oblivious. No matter how he turned it over in his head, it was hard to shake the sense that something about the situation was unnatural and not quite right.

“Um…… Sahyeong. The reactions of the other senior brothers earlier seemed a little strange.”

At Yang Hoe’s question, Chung Mun turned his head and cleared his throat lightly. Then, with a calm expression, he replied in an even tone.

“…There’s nothing for you to worry about. It’s just that it’s been such a long time since Master last took in a disciple, that’s all.”

“Ah…… then after you, Chung Mun Sahyeong, Master has never taken another disciple?”

“Th… that’s right.”

“Ah!”

Yang Hoe nodded vigorously.

‘Right, that makes sense.’

Just by looking, it was clear that Chung Mun was not young. On top of that, since Chung Mun was the head disciple of the Chung generation, it meant that every disciple of the Chung generation whom Yang Hoe had seen on his way here had all entered the sect after Chung Mun.

While so many had joined, Baek Oh, who had taken not a single direct disciple in all that time, had now accepted a new one. It would be perfectly natural for them to be taken aback. And of course they could not help but be wary.

After all, there was a world of difference between a famed prodigy simply joining as a fellow disciple, and that same prodigy entering as the disciple of the next Sect Leader. If they thought of him as a child who would become a candidate for the next Sect Leader, they could hardly treat him lightly as just another junior.

Thinking of it that way, everything more or less fell into place.

‘So Hwasan is more sensitive to power dynamics than I thought. Well, it’s not as if any place in the world is really different.’

While Yang Hoe was agonizing over what sort of attitude he ought to take from now on, Chung Mun was quietly muttering to himself.

‘I didn’t lie. I did enter later, after all.’

“Since this is your first day entering the sect, I should really be spending the day here with you, but as you know, I’m in charge of many duties in Hwasan, so it seems I won’t have time to stay here today.”

“Ah! Yes, Sahyeong. Please don’t worry! Looking after me is a small matter, but attending to Hwasan’s official duties is of far greater importance, isn’t it? Of course you should focus on the greater tasks, Sahyeong.”

“……Really?”

“Yes. Please don’t worry about me, and go with an easy mind.”

Chung Mun nodded as though impressed. So this was the famous prodigy – indeed, the child’s depth of thought was well beyond his years.

“By the way, Sahyeong, then Master……?”

“Mm… Master does not often come back to his quarters.”

“Huh? Then where does he sleep?”

Chung Mun coughed awkwardly before answering.

“Well…… one who pursues the Tao is not bound even by his dwelling, so it’s not something you need concern yourself with.”

“Ah… this disciple has failed to fully grasp Master’s profound intention.”

“…Profound intentions, my foot.”

Chung Mun waved his hand a little irritably. Yang Hoe watched him with a puzzled look.

‘This really is strange.’

In his eyes, both Baek Oh and Chung Mun were anything but ordinary. Even though Yang Hoe was young, he had met many renowned figures in the world, and these two were undeniably extraordinary. Yet from both of them he could feel the same faint nervous exhaustion, they gave an impression of people who had been thoroughly tormented by something. It felt too unsettling to dismiss as nothing more than a passing mood…

“Anyway… You’ll have to spend the night alone today. Will you be all right?”

“Yes, Sahyeong. Although this disciple is still young, I am now old enough to take care of my own affairs. If Master and Sahyeong cannot devote yourselves fully to what you wish to do because of me, that would be a far greater burden to me. So please do not worry at all, and simply finish what you were doing.”

“Hmm, yes. You have such a broad heart and mature demeanor – this senior of yours is truly delighted.”

Chung Mun nodded, very pleased.

“Today there shouldn’t be any particular trouble, so you’ll be fine. Don’t worry. Tomorrow, no matter what, I will come back and stay here with you.”

“What? Sahyeong, there is no need to go that far…” 

“No! I will do so without fail! So there’s nothing for you to worry about!”

“Ah, understood.”

“That’s what any decent human being ought to do……”

“Eh?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Seeing the strange glint in Chung Mun’s eyes, cold sweat suddenly broke out all down Yang Hoe’s back. There really was something a bit off about this man.

Whether he knew what Yang Hoe was thinking or not, Chung Mun swept his gaze over Yang Hoe and the thatched hut behind him and spoke with utmost seriousness.

“Yang Hoe.”

“Yes, Sahyeong!”

“Do you know what will be the most important thing for you from now on?”

Yang Hoe nodded and answered with confidence.

“I believed it is to ceaselessly strive to improve myself, but Master said that the brotherly bonds between fellow disciples are more important than anything. So I intend to follow Master’s words.”

“Yes, diligence is important, and so is camaraderie. But my thoughts are a little different. May I tell you what I think?”

“Of course, Sahyeong! I will gladly listen with all my heart.”

Seeing Yang Hoe’s face full of expectation, Chung Mun brought up something slightly out of the blue.

“When I was still living at my family household…”

“……Yes.”

“I believed there was nothing in this world I couldn’t do.”

Yang Hoe was somewhat taken aback, but he continued listening. In truth, it was entirely believable. His time seeing Chung Mun had been extremely short, but from what he had shown so far, it was plain as day that he was no ordinary man. Surely Chung Mun too had grown up hearing the word ‘prodigy’ so often that he was sick of it. With that, such confidence was only natural, was it not?

As if guessing what Yang Hoe was thinking, Chung Mun looked straight at him.

“And that is probably the same for you.”

“Ah, no, Sahyeong, I……”

Startled, Yang Hoe tried to offer some sort of excuse, but Chung Mun cut in first.

“There’s no need to force it. Excessive modesty is worse than arrogance.”

“……Yes.”

“More importantly. That is why you must remember what I’m about to say.”

Chung Mun’s gaze grew serious.

“There are most certainly things in this world that cannot be accomplished with your own strength.”

Hearing those words, Yang Hoe nodded firmly.

“Yes. I understand, Sahyeong. As I am now, I’m nothing but a greenhorn……”

“No, no! That’s not it at all!”

“……Yes?”

Chung Mun’s face twisted as he spoke in a slightly agitated tone.

“I mean not just now, but for your whole life! I’m saying there are things that will exist that you cannot do anything about, no matter what you try. Even if you spend your whole life on it! No matter what means you use!”

“……Ah, but isn’t that a little too obvious?”

There are far too many things a person cannot do, are there not? A person cannot fly through the sky, nor can one live underwater. The fact that there are things you cannot achieve even with a lifetime of effort is all too self-evident.

“No, that’s not what I mean……. Uuuugh.”

Chung Mun looked at Yang Hoe, his gaze filled with some mix of regret and frustration, then finally let out a groan.

“Fine… You’ll understand once you’ve gone through it yourself. In any case, be sure to remember my words. And remember this as well: a person’s strength is not revealed when one runs into a wall, but in what comes after.”

“Ah, I understand, Sahyeong.”

“Keep it in mind! Absolutely!”

“Yes……”

Having wrung a reply out of him through sheer insistence, Chung Mun kept his eyes on Yang Hoe with a faintly troubled expression, then suddenly squeezed his eyes shut, turned his body, and walked away from the hut in quick little steps. Watching his retreating back in a daze, Yang Hoe let out a weak murmur.

“What on earth is he talking about…….”

Letting out a weak sigh, he turned his head and looked at the humble hut left standing there all alone.

Night fell quickly. Having already heard beforehand that, upon entering Hwasan, he would have to attend on his Master, Yang Hoe skillfully stoked the brazier, just as he had practiced, and prepared to spend the night. Since some provisions had been laid in, he considered cooking himself a simple meal, but he gave up on the idea when he realized he wasn’t particularly hungry.

After a quick wash, he sat down on the doorstep, and looked back over the day.

“……This is nothing like what I imagined.”

There seemed to be quite a large gap between the Hwasan he had imagined before entering, and the Hwasan he had actually experienced. How should he put it – before joining, when he pictured Hwasan, he imagined a Taoist temple filled with the scent of incense, where noble, refined Taoist monks lived. But the Hwasan he had observed over the course of this day was very different from what he had expected.

“Hwasan is said to have a stronger atmosphere of a secular world compared to other Taoist sects… is this what they meant?”

It wasn’t something one could call bad, but there was a peculiar feel to it. Above all, what felt most out of place were Baek Oh and Chung Mun. They seemed oddly distant from the image of a lofty, noble Taoist he had envisioned. Already being in a new place was enough, but with this sense of incongruity piled on top, he felt as though he had been swayed endlessly from the moment he stepped through the sect gates until now. Looking back, the day had turned to night even though he’d hardly done anything at all.

By this point, he could not help but doubt whether his choice to enter Hwasan had truly been the right one.

“……Well, what does it matter.”

But he brushed aside the distracting thoughts that were cluttering his head.

“It’s not as if I can turn back now! When you start anything, a few missteps are only natural. What matters isn’t what kind of place Hwasan is, but whether I can do well here.”

In the end, today was nothing more than preparation for the time to come.

“I’ve only just taken the first step.”

Muttering softly as if to clam himself, he smiled faintly. Thinking of it as the first step towards the grand, long journey he had planned, this much wasn’t so bad.

To be honest, Chung Mun was someone he could not hope to match right now. It was no exaggeration to say they were of entirely different caliber. Even speaking objectively, the gap between him and Chung Mun was like that between a grown adult and a child – setting aside martial arts, which was the most important part.

Yet Yang Hoe did not despair or grow fearful over that fact. What mattered was the future.

“There’s still plenty of time.”

There were still decades to go before Baek Oh took the seat of Sect Leader and the next generation’s Sect Leader was decided. Whatever might be said in other respects, he was confident that at least in terms of intellect, he would surpass Chung Mun. If he steadily broadened his capacity in the years ahead, then the possibility wasn’t zero.

“I’ll make sure it turns out that way!”

For now, he might be spending the night alone in a small, shabby thatched hut, but decades from now he would surely become a hero who roamed Gangho freely, leaving his name in its history!

“All right!”

Having settled his once-turbulent heart, Yang Hoe sprang to his feet. Night in the mountains was not just dark but pitch-black.

“If I’ve made a plan, I have to put it into action. I’ll sleep early tonight, and from tomorrow on, I’ll work even harder!”

He reaffirmed his resolve again and went into the room, closing the door. It was still a bit early to go to sleep, but since mornings in a martial sect were said to begin very early, he intended to turn in ahead of time for tomorrow’s sake. If he went to bed late because of needless excitement and then showed a disgraceful sight to his Master or senior brothers when they came looking for him at dawn, it would be a disaster. Far better to go to sleep early and wake in advance to greet them, wouldn’t that leave a much better impression?

After laying out the bedding, he put out the lamp, lay down, and closed his eyes.

‘Starting tomorrow, I need to show a sharper side of myself.’

He had to remember that the senior brothers already knew of him. If he showed even the slightest hint of laziness or negligence, the prejudices that came trailing behind the title of a ‘prodigy’ would surely cling to him like a tail.

‘It’s not enough for me alone to do well. All those senior brothers have to acknowledge that I’m worthy of the Sect Leader’s title. It’ll be difficult, but I have to pull it off, no matter what!’

Just then, with his eyes closed, Yang Hoe’s brow suddenly furrowed.

‘…Could it be that what Chung Mun Sahyeong said earlier was about this? That no matter how hard I try, I’ll never be able to threaten his position as Sect Leader?’

Yang Hoe’s body trembled. If that were truly the case, then in that short span of time, Chung Mun had grasped exactly what was going through his mind and even left him a warning. To Yang Hoe, who was still nothing more than a child who could not even begin to compare with him.

‘Chung Mun Sahyeong is an even more frightening person than I thought.’

Well, Hwasan was one of the most prominent Great Sects in the Central Plains. The idea that the man who would become its Sect Leader would not possess a ruthless heart would have been more unbelievable. His face might look as kind as could be, but somewhere beneath it had to be a depth of calculation ordinary people couldn’t even imagine.

‘I’ll have to learn from that side of him too!’

If there was one thing Chung Mun had failed to see and had overlooked, it was that Yang Hoe was not the sort of person who would meekly bow his head just because someone tried to press him down by force. If he were, could he ever have overcome the ferocious opposition of his family and entered Hwasan in the first place?

“Let’s see how this goes, Sahyeong!”

It was just then, as Yang Hoe’s competitive spirit was blazing, that…

Bang!

“Ah, damn it.”

The door, which had been closed, suddenly flew open so violently it looked as though it might break, and from the doorway came a brash, youthful curse. Startled out of his wits, Yang Hoe sucked in a sharp breath and hurriedly sprang to his feet.

“How many days are they planning to keep a person locked up, those damned bastards!”

Then, turning towards the voice coming from the doorway, Yang Hoe opened his mouth.

“Wh-Who…….”

“What? Who are YOU?”

“Huh?”

The figure of the intruder, hidden by the darkness, slowly came into view. Yang Hoe blinked vacantly. A little brat was standing in the wide-open doorway. Small enough that he looked easily three or four years younger than Yang Hoe.

Normally, Yang Hoe did not place much importance on a person’s age. Appearance and age were just an empty shell to begin with, weren’t they? Even so, there was a particular reason he felt compelled to first gauge the age of the child standing at the door. It was because the expression on that rather young-looking face did not match that appearance in the slightest.

‘How can a kid be that annoyed?’

When children get fussy, it usually means a sulky pout when their snacks are taken away, or a crying fit when they’re upset, doesn’t it? But this child, with that babyish face, was wearing an expression plastered all over with a thick, pure annoyance.

Because of that, the first impression was truly bizarre. The funny thing was, even so, the child standing in the doorway still looked pretty cute. After carefully observing him and feeling a faint sense of fondness, Yang Hoe opened his mouth, thinking he might as well greet him first.

But at that moment, the child, staring straight at Yang Hoe, tilted his head to the side and spoke first.

“What the hell?”

“Huh?”

“And who the hell are you, sprawled out sleeping here? Are you crazy?”

Ah, forget it. That little brat was not cute in the slightest. Not even a speck. Never mind cute – he was barely even human.

“Hey.”

“……Yes?”

“Are you deaf? I’m asking you: why are you lying here passed out asleep?”

Yang Hoe’s mouth fell open.

Of course, he was still young himself, so it wasn’t as if he’d seen that much of the world. But this, without question, was an unusual experience by anyone’s standards. How many people in this world had ever been cussed out like that by a child who looked as if he could fit into one fist?

About to blurt something out in sheer disbelief, Yang Hoe suddenly froze as a thought flashed through his mind, and he snapped his mouth shut.

‘W-Wait! This is Hwasan!’

He had nearly forgotten that this was a place where the common sense of an ordinary household did not apply. If he’d slipped up, he might have made a serious mistake. Yang Hoe asked carefully.

“Um, excuse me, but…… May I ask your name……?”

“Huh? Me? I’m Chung Myung.”

At the reply, Yang Hoe exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

‘I almost got myself in real trouble.’

Chung meant he was of the Chung generation. In that case, this little child would be his Sahyeong. In the first place, generational rank always took precedence over age. If he had been careless just because the child was young, he’d have had problems from the very first day.

“Ah, then you’re the one in the Chung generation who received the Taoist name Myung…….”

“What are you babbling about, my name is just Chung Myung.”

Ah? So that wasn’t it?

Yang Hoe’s face went blank with confusion.

Come to think of it, Chung Mun Sahyeong had said it himself: there were no other disciples between Yang Hoe and him. And there was no particular reason for the other Chung disciples to come all the way out to this remote place. At this hour, they would each be in their own quarters as well. Which meant this child was not his Sahyeong…

‘Then what is a child doing here?’

At that moment, a thought flashed through Yang Hoe’s mind.

‘Ah, that’s right! Hwasan may be Taoist sect, but it’s a sect that permits marriage.’

Hwasan even allowed the direct disciples who resided on the main mountain to marry. It was only natural that those who married would have children. In that case, the children of those resident disciples who remained in the sect after marriage would, of course, live here as well. A Taoist name was something given to those who chose to devote their entire lives to Hwasan. If the child was still too young to choose his own path, he could very well live in the main sect without yet being a disciple of Hwasan.

“Ah, so you mean Chung Myung is your given name, not a Taoist name?”

“You heard me the first time, and you’re asking again? Ha, this guy is really stupid.”

Yang Hoe’s face twisted. In all his life, it was the first time – he swore it – the very first time anyone had ever called him stupid!

‘Where on earth did such an ill-mannered child come from?’

No matter how young you are, there’s still a minimum level of courtesy people ought to observe with one another, isn’t there? Especially since, up until just yesterday, Yang Hoe had been walking the path of a Confucian scholar. Even if he had now chosen to join the Taoist path, what he had learned did not simply vanish.

However…

‘For now, I should test the waters before crossing the bridge.’

He couldn’t rule out even a one-in-a-thousand, one-in-ten-thousand possibility. For that reason, Yang Hoe forced the friendliest smile he could manage and opened his mouth. After all, they said no one could spit in the face of a smiling man.

“Khmm, um, then…… are you not a disciple of Hwasan……?”

“And what’s with this little punk? Hey! I asked first, so why are you asking me again? I’m asking why you’re sprawled out here sleeping!”

……No, seems there are people who’ll spit. Ah, right, you’re the kind who spits.

“Not answering? You got a death wish?”

At that moment, the Confucian spirit Yang Hoe had been suppressing with great effort surged violently to the surface. A stern old scholar, leaning on a cane, rose within him and began shouting for him to discipline this insolent brat at once. Yang Hoe straightened his back and declared sharply.

“Excuse me there, Sohyeong*!”

“Sohyeong?”

“Even if you, Sohyeong, have been living on Hwasan longer than I have, this is still our first meeting today! The rules of a Taoist sect and those of a secular world may differ, but the fact that there are courtesies people must observe with one another does not change!”

“So-? As in ‘little’? You calling me ‘little’?”

The child’s eyes trembled. Seeing that, Yang Hoe raised his voice even more sternly.

“To speak informally to someone you’ve met for the first time, and on top of that to fling crude words laced with curses, is entirely out of line, is it not?! Have you not even been taught something that basic?”

“Not taught? Are you calling me ignorant?”

“I do not know how high a position your parents may hold, Sohyeong! But even if they do, that does not make your conduct acceptable! Do you understand what I am saying?”

“……Pa……rents?”

The child’s pale cheeks began to twitch. Seeing that reaction, Yang Hoe seized the moment and slapped his hand down on the floor with a sharp smack.

“In a sect, there are originally strict rules and codes of conduct, and such an attitude must never be allowed! If Hwasan is truly a Great Sect, then each and every person living on Hwasan must speak and act in a manner befitting that Great Sect! Do you understand what I am saying?”

Even as he went on with his speech, Yang Hoe’s chest was blazing with flames.

The situation was more or less obvious. That child was, without a doubt, the offspring of someone who held a high position within Hwasan. That was why he acted so insolently. Judging by that utterly heedless attitude, it was clear that the child’s parents were simply tolerating and shielding his rudeness.

Perhaps scolding this child might bring trouble to his future life at Hwasan. Even so, Yang Hoe straightened his back proudly without hesitation.

For Hwasan to be the greatest sect under Heaven – as he believed – it had to be upright from its very foundations. Even if he had only entered today, he could not turn a blind eye to what was wrong, nor compromise with it.

‘Now that it has come to this, it would be better if this turned into a big deal.’

If that happened, he could leave a clear impression on everyone with his logic and his proper attitude. Even if this incident made his life at Hwasan difficult, it would surely become nourishment for his future.

‘All right then! Do as you please!’

Steeling his resolve, Yang Hoe stared straight at the child before him. However… things began to unfold a little differently from how he’d imagined.

At some point, the child had dropped his head and let his shoulders sag, and now he muttered in a voice clearly smaller than before.

“Uh…… so what you’re saying is…… I’m ignorant and half-baked, is that it?”

For a moment, pity flickered across Yang Hoe’s face as his heart softened. Who would have thought that this ill-mannered brat would become so dejected over just a few words? Didn’t that mean there had not been a single person in Hwasan who had properly scolded this child until now?

‘This won’t do!’

Realizing what he had to do for Hwasan, Yang Hoe spoke again in a somewhat gentler tone.

“There is no need to be so hurt. The very fact that you understood what I said already makes you quite admirable, Sohyeong. Besides, strictly speaking, you are not at fault. An adult must bear full responsibility for his own mistakes, but when a child does something wrong, that responsibility lies with his parents. It is not you who are at fault, Sohyeong, but rather the adults of your household who……”

“……Parents?”

“That is so. And so, Sohyeong, you……”

And at that moment, the child slowly lifted his head.

“Paaaaarents?”

“S-Sohyeong?”

Just then, Yang Hoe saw it. The child’s eyes, half rolled back. And after that, the world suddenly grew dim.

‘What the…?’

Startled, Yang Hoe’s eyes flew wide open. No, the lamp had been put out, so of course it was dark, but there had at least been moonlight seeping in through the door – so why had it suddenly become this dark? It wasn’t as if the door had been closed…… Ah. It wasn’t that it had gone dark. Something was blocking it. Then what was this in front of his eyes…

‘Ah. A shoe……’

Boooooom!

In that instant, the child’s foot slammed mercilessly into Yang Hoe’s face.

“Gyaaaaaaaah!”

Kicked in one blow, Yang Hoe let out a scream like a pig being slaughtered and flew straight into the wall of the hut. As his consciousness flickered and faded, the last sound that reached his ears was this.

“You need to HAVE parents to teach you anything, you little bastard!”

________

*소형 – the same as Sohyeop, Sojeo (in the Glossary) where So- means little/small/junior.

Part III

From somewhere came the clear, lively sound of birds chirping.

“Ugh……”

What is it……. It felt like he’d had some kind of nightmare…… His face seemed to throb with a dull ache… Still squirming at a sensation he couldn’t make sense of, Yang Hoe slowly opened his eyes. The first thing that came into view was clouds.

‘Huh?’

And beside those clouds stretched an endless, dizzying cliff face. Seeing himself floating idly above a bottomless pit, Yang Hoe calmly closed his eyes again.

‘So I’m still having a nightmare.’

He thought he’d woken up, but apparently not. Still, for a dream, it was remarkably vivid. The throbbing, burning dull pain in his face was perfectly real, and for some reason his ankle had been aching as if it were about to snap, and the bizarre sensation of his body swaying from side to side felt unmistakably clear, and then…

At that moment, an icy wind, sharp like knife, swept past both sides of Yang Hoe’s torso. A chill ran through his whole body, leaving him shivering. Huh? Cold?

“W-Wait a second!”

This isn’t a dream, is it? Yang Hoe snapped his eyes wide open.

“Hiiik?”

A cliff that seemed to stretch endlessly came into sharp focus in his vision. Even the ground far below – so distant, sooooo far down – was visible.

“Waaaaaah! What is thiiiiiis!”

A cliff? On top of a cliff? Or halfway down?

“No! That’s not what matters! Why am I here?!”

No wonder it felt like his face was going to burst! Had he been hanging upside down off the cliff this whole time?

A sudden gust of wind slammed into him, sending his body lurching violently to the side. Nearly scared out of his wits, Yang Hoe jerked his head up and looked towards his feet. A thick rope was tied around his ankle. The problem was how clumsily and loosely it had been fastened – so much so that it looked as if his foot might slip free at any moment.

“Aaaaaaah! This is insane!”

Faced with death, Yang Hoe unleashed a burst of monstrous strength – folding his body in one swift motion and grabbing the rope tied to his ankle with all his might.

“Huuuk! Huuuk! Huuuk! Huuuk!”

Even in that split second, he must have been so tense – he hadn’t even had his eyes open for long, yet sweat was already streaming down his face like rain. A bead of sweat gathered at the tip of his chin, dropped, and drifted away into the unfathomable depths of the cliff below.

“J-Just tie the rope properly, at least – what kind of lunatic would…! Hi-iiik! I’m slipping!”

Panicking, Yang Hoe yanked the thick rope towards him and wound it tightly around his wrist again and again. Once his weight shifted onto it, his wrist began to ache as if it might be pulled out of its socket – but losing an arm was a hell of a lot better than dying.

“Why, why am I here?”

Wait, when did I fall asleep? No, I mean, so, that…

‘Right! That brat!’

He remembered lecturing that unbearably cocky little devil of a kid. And after that… he’d seen feet. As the memories he’d finally recovered came flooding back, his body began to tremble.

“D-Don’t tell me, that brat?”

No matter how vicious someone was, there had to be a limit! How could anyone hang a living person off a cliff! And not just any cliff – this thousand-zhang drop of an abyss!

‘Is he even human?’

Normally, he would have reflected on just how cruel a creature called ‘human’ could become. But right now, he didn’t have the leisure for deep contemplation.

Snap.

At the small sound coming from the rope, Yang Hoe’s body went rigid.

Um, this rope…… is sturdy…… right?

Snap, snap!

His face turning blue, he clutched the rope with trembling hands, even holding his breath – just in case.

‘T-The Divine Spirits… of Heaven and Earth… please…… please, just until I make it up… please!’

At the line where the ground and sky met atop the cliff, a human hand suddenly shot up from below. The hand, trembling and quivering as if it might slip back down at any moment, managed to latch onto the very edge of the ground with a desperate grip.

“Kkeuuuuuh…….”

Soon after, Yang Hoe’s face slowly appeared. In the meantime, he had become half the man he was.

“Kkeuaaaahp!”

Squeezing out every last drop of strength, he hauled his upper body over the cliff’s edge – and then collapsed limply, like cotton soaked through with water.

“R-Really…… I really thought I was going to die…… K-heuk.”

If the rope had been even a little more worn, he might have cleanly taken his leave of this world on that cliff. Once the wave of relief passed, the anger and resentment he had pushed aside came surging back. Yang Hoe, his body trembling, jerked his head up sharply.

“W-Where did that bastard go?”

Yang Hoe had grown up under the strict etiquette training of the prestigious Yang Clan, and at one time he had even dreamed of an official’s career. Of course, in all his life he had never once let foul language cross his lips. But now – barely a single day after entering Hwasan – curses he had never even held in his mouth his entire life burst out of him.

“I’ll kill you!”

Springing to his feet, he charged towards the thatched hut like lightning.

With a ferocious, demon-like expression, he flung the hut’s door open with a bang – and… he lost all words. His face, taking in the sight inside, gradually relaxed and lost all emotion.

“Kuuuuuu.”

“Kuuuuuuuuuuu.”

It wasn’t because Yang Hoe’s cultivation was deep enough to suppress his fury and regain composure. Not at all. This was… sheer blank disbelief. Yang Hoe realized something: bewilderment beyond all measure can smother even boiling rage in an instant. You could never truly understand it unless you experienced it yourself.

Blinking a few times, then rubbing his eyes over and over, Yang Hoe stared into the room. No matter how much he rubbed them, no matter how many times he shut them and opened them again, the scene didn’t change. His mouth fell open on its own.

‘Is this guy actually insane?’

He couldn’t believe the sight of that brat sprawled out flat on his back inside the room, snoring away. Sleeping? After hanging someone upside down off a cliff, he was sprawled out there, sleeping like nothing happened? And on top of that…

“W-What is that smell? D-Don’t tell me…”

Liquor? Yang Hoe’s eyes flew wide. Liquor in a Taoist temple! So that deranged brat had knocked him out, calmly tied him up and tossed him from a cliff, then came back to the room and guzzled down liquor he’d scrounged up from somewhere before flopping down to sleep?

“…Even the devil wouldn’t do it like this.”

How on earth had things come to the point where a creature like that could strut around this sacred Taoist temple as if it were his own home?

“N-No!”

Hwasan couldn’t be like this. What kind of place was Hwasan? The place that would make him a hero under heaven… no, the place he would lead and turn into the greatest sect under heaven!

They said, ‘A thousand-li dam collapses because of an ant hole.’ Even a massive embankment a thousand li high can be brought down by a single tiny ant hole. Who could say that this child’s lawlessness would not, someday, become the ant hole that brings Hwasan to ruin?

Yang Hoe whipped his head left and right, scanning the area. If he let anger lead him clumsily, he might get ambushed again and end up sprawled on the ground – so he meant to make sure he was properly on guard.

“Good.”

Just then, he spotted a fairly solid-looking fire poker in front of the room. His face brightened as he snatched it up and gripped it tight, as if to seize a lifeline. While forming his resolve and persuading his parents, he had learned more than enough basic martial arts. It wasn’t Hwasan’s martial arts, true – but if he were the sort who couldn’t even handle a brat far younger than himself, would he ever have dared to dream of becoming the Sect Leader of the greatest sect under heaven?

‘Today, I’ll set Hwasan’s rules back in order!’

Drawing a deep breath, Yang Hoe spoke sternly.

“Get up.”

But the brat sprawled out there didn’t so much as twitch.

“Get up! You bastard!”

“Uuugh……”

Letting out a groan, the brat squirmed – and rolled over to the other side.

“You…!”

His anger shooting through the roof, Yang Hoe finally lashed out and kicked the brat’s backside hard.

“Can’t you hear me!”

“…Uuughgh. What is it?”

The one who’d been hit – the boy who had introduced himself as Chung Myung – rubbed his rear and cracked his eyelids open just a sliver. Then, seeing Yang Hoe panting with rage while holding the fire poker, he opened his mouth wide and let out a huge yawn.

“When did you get up here?”

“So it was you who…!”

“Hey, you’ve got some strength. You were hanging there all night, and you still crawled your way back up – good stamina, huh? But…”

Chung Myung propped himself halfway up, pressed his index finger firmly against his temple, and asked.

“Who told you to come up?”

“…What?”

“I’m asking who told you to come up? I don’t think I ever said you could.”

“You insolent little brat!”

“Ugh, my head.”

When Yang Hoe shouted at the top of his lungs, enough to shake the entire hut, Chung Myung pressed his temples with little hands that still looked almost comically small.

“Khuuuuuh…… easy there, my head is pounding…… I should’ve slept at least another two hours.”

Chung Myung staggered as he got to his feet. Only then did he seem to notice the fire poker clenched tight in Yang Hoe’s hands, because he tilted his head.

“Why are you holding that?”

“You-….this bastard!”

“Ah… don’t tell me you’re planning to hit me with that?”

Yang Hoe’s anger surged to the very top of his head, and he exploded in a roar.

“Who you are or what status you hold doesn’t matter! What you did to me alone is enough to deserve punishment – but even that isn’t what matters most!”

“Then what matters?”

“How dare you reek of alcohol in this sacred Taoist temple! How can you commit such an insolent act! You’re nothing but a child!”

“A sacred Taoist temple, my foot. It’s just a place where a bunch of stubborn old mules who can’t even talk straight stare at mountains all day, driving themselves mad, reciting mind-numbing scriptures until they burst.”

“What did you just say?”

Yang Hoe’s eyes flared with fury.

“It is the duty of an adult to admonish a child’s wrongdoing and lead him to the righteous path! Today, I will teach you right from wrong…”

“Man, you sure talk a lot. You chatter on and on like you’re reciting scriptures. You did pick the right place to join, I’ll give you that.”

As if he were sick of it, Chung Myung picked at his ear, then slowly rubbed around his solar plexus.

“I feel nauseous right now, so I can’t deal with you for long. Hurry up and do it. Hurry.”

Yang Hoe’s face hardened. If the boy reflected on his wrongdoing even now, he hadn’t intended to go as far as swinging a stick at a child – but this one’s nature was too rotten. No, it wasn’t merely ‘rotten to the core.’ At this point, it was so spoiled it had practically decomposed, stained a muddy brownish color. So before it completely festered and collapsed, shouldn’t he do something – anything?

“Do not resent me. It is you who have gone too far.”

“…Seriously, you talk a lot. Being a Taoist must be your calling.”

“You little…!”

Yang Hoe lunged at Chung Myung in a single bound.

‘Just enough, as gently as possible – hold back!’

The master who had taught Yang Hoe at his family estate had been truly ruthless. His father, believing that if his son realized he had no talent for martial arts he would abandon foolish dreams and walk the path of an official, had invited a renowned martial artist – famous even in Henan – to teach him strictly.

But what had the result been? After teaching Yang Hoe only briefly, that master had begun persuading his father that Yang Hoe ought to be sent to Wudang instead.

If Yang Hoe were to put real strength into his swing and bring the fire poker down properly, this small child’s body would never be able to withstand it. So he had to control his power – use only enough for it to serve as a reprimand.

Yang Hoe’s fire poker dropped swiftly towards Chung Myung’s shoulder. Seeing Chung Myung not even react until it was nearly upon him, Yang Hoe thought, oh no – and started to pull back even more strength, but right at that moment… 

“Tsk.”

He heard a short click of the tongue, and then a heavy, dull pain spread across Yang Hoe’s face.

Bang!

“Aaagh!”

Not even understanding what had happened, Yang Hoe went flying out through the doorway and hit the ground outside. Dazed, he lifted his head. He felt something warm trickling from his nose.

“…Blood?”

From both nostrils, dark-red, fresh blood was streaming down in thick lines.

“I-I… I got hit?”

But he hadn’t even seen it. Staring in disbelief, he saw Chung Myung slowly walk out through the doorway.

“I figured you picked up a stick first because you actually had something up your sleeve, but what is this… You’re completely hopeless at fighting. You’d better make a living flapping your mouth somewhere else.”

“Y-You…!”

Overwhelmed by the barrage of insults, Yang Hoe sprang to his feet.

‘T-This can’t be!’

The one who had taught him had said it clearly: his talent for martial arts was in no way inferior to his talent for scholarship – that if he trained steadily and put in the effort, even reaching the seat of the greatest under heaven was not an impossible dream. Even if he hadn’t learned proper martial arts, the disciples of famous great sects, if they were of similar age, wouldn’t be able to handle him easily.

But now it wasn’t even someone of similar age – he was getting struck by a child at least a head shorter than him? How was he supposed to accept a situation like this?

“This…”

“Oh, ‘this can’t be happening’, you mean… huh?”

“…”

“And then what was next? ‘Me, to a brat like this? Am I dreaming? If I catch you just once? This is a scam! What kind of sorcery did you use, you devilish bastard?’”

Yang Hoe stared blankly at Chung Myung. Chung Myung, in response, stuck his lips out in a sulky pout.

“Anyway, it’s always the same with the guys who get hit. You all say the same stuff – where do you even learn it?”

“Y-You……”

“‘Youuuuuuu little punk’!”

“…”

“Right?”

Yang Hoe’s mouth fell open. In all his life, it was truly the first time someone had toyed with him like this.

“Y-You little brat!”

“……Brat?”

As if the word really got on his nerves, Chung Myung’s eyes flew wide open.

“I’m not small! For my age, I’m on the bigger side!”

“What are you even saying! You little chestnut-sized runt!”

Yang Hoe shouted back furiously.

“You’ve got one little trick and you think you can talk to an adult however you want?”

“…But why do you keep talking like you’re an adult? Aren’t you the one who just joined?”

“S-So what if I did?”

“Then I’m your Sahyeong.”

“…What?”

Yang Hoe’s eyes went blank.

“Sahyeong?”

“Yeah.”

“You are?”

“Yeah.”

To Yang Hoe’s questions, Chung Myung answered with maddening nonchalance.

“I was the first to enter Hwasan. I came in when I was just a newborn.”

“But y-you’re not a Chung generation disc…….”

“I’m not old enough yet to receive a Taoist name. So I’m not a ‘Chung’ disciple. Isn’t that title only used for disciples who’ve received a Taoist name? That’s how it is with everyone else, at least.”

“Th-That……”

That varied depending on the situation and the sect. But that wasn’t what mattered right now.

“You’re saying you’re my Sahyeong?”

“I’m telling you, yes.”

“You are?”

“Did this bastard seriously go deaf?”

Snorting, Chung Myung spoke roughly.

“And I told you I’m your Sahyeong, so why do you keep talking so casually? Where’d all that etiquette you were screaming about go – did you mix it into your rice and swallow it?”

“…”

“Here, call me ‘S-a-h-y-e-o-n-g.’ Go on. Don’t worry. Everyone feels awkward at first, but you get used to it fast.”

“I-I can’t ackn-…” 

“Hm?”

“I won’t acknowledge it!”

Yang Hoe rolled his eyes back and charged again. In a sect, hierarchy takes precedence over age. That was an iron rule that never changed. It was such an obvious fact that even Yang Hoe – raised under strict teachings in a Confucian household – knew it well, but with his vision blurring red, what use were teachings and principles to him now?

“Waaaaaaah!”

Yang Hoe rushed in and brought the fire poker down. If someone had been watching, they might have gasped at the speed – far too swift for his age – but his opponent was the wrong one. That was Yang Hoe’s misfortune.

“And this bastard thinks…?”

Chung Myung lightly brushed the incoming fire poker aside with the back of his hand, then in the same instant snapped an uppercut into Yang Hoe’s jaw.

“Kyaaaaaaaaa!”

Yang Hoe toppled backward with a bizarre shriek.

“I told you I’m your Sahyeong and you still swing a stick at me? You’re really going all out today, huh?”

“Th-This makes no sense…… this…… a brat like that……”

“What? It makes no sense?”

From Chung Myung’s slender neck, the sound of cracking joints was heard, chillingly echoing through the air.

“Yeah. I’ll make it very clear what turns the impossible into reality. Shut your mouth tight. You’ll bite your tongue!”

Like a wildcat pouncing on its prey, Chung Myung lunged at Yang Hoe in a flash, pinned him down hard with his leg, and started swinging his fists at him without a warning.

“Aaaaaaagh!”

“Brat? No parents? Ignorant?”

“Aaagh! Aaaaaaagh!”

Chung Myung’s small fists struck Yang Hoe’s face – every part of it – with uncanny precision.

“You bastard, you’re actually crazy smart when you look at it, aren’t you? First time I’ve ever seen someone spit out all three things I hate most, all at once, the moment we meet! Say it again, you little shit!”

“Aaaaaaagh! Ahk! Nose! N-Nose!”

“I couldn’t even get past the Thousand Character Classic, and what did you ever do for me! Ever even bought me a single book?”

“I-I didn’t know……!”

“Die! You bastard! Diiiiiiieeeeeeeee!”

“Aaaaaaaaaaagh!”

Yang Hoe’s desperate screams spread far and wide towards Danjang Ridge, where clouds hung low.

❀ ❀ ❀

“…Listen carefully.”

“No…”

“Hold your hands up straight, you bastard!”

Chung Myung stuck his lips out in a pout. Even so, the arms he’d been lowering little by little shot back up. Seeing there wasn’t the slightest sign of remorse, Chung Mun pressed a palm to his throbbing forehead.

“…Wasn’t it until tomorrow?”

“What was?”

“The Repentance Chamber!”

“…They let me out.”

“Let you out? Does that make any sense?! Now you’re even running off from the Repentance Chamber?”

“No, I’m serious! Baek Hak Sasuk [백학(白學)] said I could go out!”

“Baek Hak Sasuk?”

“Yes!”

“…And what about Un Pyeong [운평(雲萍)] Sasukjo, his Master?”

“…”

“Don’t tell me…? You!”

“I’m telling you it wasn’t me! I didn’t hit him!”

“…”

“It’s just, well… Baek Hak Sasuk was alone, so I only asked if I could go out, and then… just…”

The hand that had been covering Chung Mun’s forehead slid down and fully covered his face. It was obvious: he’d threatened the frail(?) Sasuk while Sasukjo was away. In the first place, Baek Hak was one of the youngest among the Baek disciples, so there wasn’t much of an age gap between him and Chung Mun either.

“Now you’re threatening your Sasuk?”

“If I didn’t hit him, that’s good enough, isn’t it?”

“Right. That’s well do-…… No, it’s not, you little punk!”

Chung Mun practically breathed fire. Still raging, he snapped his gaze aside. Seeing Yang Hoe – his face swollen until it was practically the size of a pig’s bladder – he ground his teeth.

“If you ran away from the Repentance Chamber, you should at least have the sense to crouch quietly in a corner! Why did you do that to a kid who was just minding his own business! He’s a precious disciple Master has taken in for the first time in years, and instead of taking good care of your junior…!”

“No, it’s not like I meant to… that bastard…”

“What? What did he do! As if – I can already tell you were the one who picked the fight again!”

“No… that bastard called me an ignorant little brat with no parents, so…”

“Has this bastard lost his mind!”

In that moment, Chung Mun rushed in without warning and kicked Yang Hoe.

“Kyaaaaaaa!”

With about half his soul already handed over to the underworld, Yang Hoe had been staring blankly into space – only to roll helplessly backward from the sudden kick.

“What? ‘No parents’? You just let your mouth run, didn’t you?”

“S-Sahyeong! I’ve been wronged! I never said that! How would I even know something like that!”

“Ah? Ah… Right! Chung Myung, yoooouuu little punk! You lied again, didn’t you?”

Staring blankly at Chung Mun as he went back to bickering with Chung Myung, Yang Hoe finally let go of the last thin string of sanity he’d still been clinging to.

‘I want to go home……. I should’ve just listened to Mother. Mom……’

“Ahem. Are you all right?”

A little later, Chung Mun cleared his throat awkwardly and asked. The two of them had moved to a cliff some distance away from the hut, and the air between them was thick with discomfort. Chung Mun gently patted Yang Hoe’s shoulder, who seemed utterly vacant.

“I’m sorry. If I’d known that he would come yesterday, I would’ve done something about it, no matter what.”

“…”

“Does it hurt a lot?”

“…”

“Right, of course it does. That lunatic beat your face like it was some kind of pig’s bladd…”

“Th-That…… what about Master…….”

Yang Hoe, who had remained silent as if completely choked by his words, finally spoke while turning to Chung Mun with unfocused eyes.

A small sigh slipped from Chung Mun’s lips.

“I know it feels unfair, but even if you tell Master, it won’t really change anything. Now that he’s back, Master will probably only show his face once every three or four days anyway.”

“…”

“His stomach isn’t in great shape.”

Chung Mun added it like an excuse, unable to bring himself to meet Yang Hoe’s eyes, staring off into the distance instead. Yang Hoe, who had been staring silently at Chung Mun’s face, opened his mouth in a trembling voice – like someone who had learned something he never should have known.

“You’re saying he is my Sahyeong?”

“…”

“Him?”

Chung Mun looked at him with nothing but pity in his eyes, and then spoke.

“I know you have many questions. And the one you most want to ask is probably, ‘Why is there a madman like that in our Taoist sect?’ Right?”

Yang Hoe hurriedly nodded. He truly had so, so many things he wanted to ask – but yes, that was the thing he wanted to know most.

Chung Mun, still gazing into the distance, spoke slowly.

“Chung Myung isn’t a child who entered Hwasan in a usual way… To start with, he’s a child Hwasan brought in and raised. So, well… ahem. They couldn’t really examine whether his nature, or his character, was the sort that could properly belong to the Taoist sect.”

“But you said he’s my Sahyeong…….”

“That’s right. He is Master’s disciple, after all.”

“…”

“He still hasn’t officially received a Taoist name. Of course, well… he’s about at the age where he should be receiving it, but since there are quite a few circumstances we need to take into consideration…”

Even without hearing what those ‘circumstances to consider’ were, he felt like he could guess. They were weighing whether it would truly be all right to make that crazy little bastard into a Taoist at all.

“Sahyeong.”

“Right. It’s okay to cry. Should I step away for a moment?”

“That’s not it…”

Yang Hoe asked, blankly.

“Then is he…… no, is Chung Myung Sahyeong that strong because he has been learning martial arts since he was little? If I learn Hwasan’s martial arts too, will I get revenge… no, will I become strong like Chung Myung Sahyeong?”

At that question, Chung Mun turned his head with a lonely expression and looked up at the distant sky.

“Yang Hoe. As I told you yesterday as well…”

His low voice drifted faintly through the air.

“…There are walls in this world that cannot be crossed by any amount of human effort.”

“…”

“Now you need to know that too. And someone who comes to know that – we call them adults.”

A small trace of regret clung to Chung Mun’s voice.

“Let’s…… become adults.”

And at the corners of Yang Hoe’s eyes, sorrowful tears quietly gathered, bleak and helpless. 

“Kuuh.”

Chung Myung rolled around on the floor.

“Ahh, this is nice. That damned Repentance Chamber – why is the floor there so bumpy that you can’t even sleep properly?”

Chung Myung lay back with both hands tucked behind his head, laughing to himself.

“Kkeuuh. Who knew I’d get a direct Saje I wasn’t even hoping for! What a gift. From now on, I’m going to make him do everything – starting with cleaning, all the way to cooking rice.”

Of course, he hadn’t been doing it much to begin with, but now he could not do it even more boldly! Up to now, when Chung Mun set the meal, he at least washed the bowls – but from here on out, wouldn’t the guy beneath him take care of everything on his own? What a deal!

“At this rate, the Repentance Chamber was worth going into. I even got myself a junior.”

Chung Myung threw his head back, cackling. Other Sasuks had as many as ten disciples each, Baek Oh had only ever had two, which had been a constant source of dissatisfaction. Now, at last, it seemed he, too, was escaping life as the youngest.

“But where’d Sahyeong take the kid? The sun’s already set and they still aren’t back. I’m getting hungry now…”

At that moment, the door flew open. Chung Myung poked his head up, spotted Yang Hoe standing in the doorway, and broke into the brightest smile.

“Oh, hey, Saje. You’re back?”

“…”

“Well, there was a little misunderstanding, but that’s just how people live, right? Isn’t it? Now, looks like it’s all cleared up, so come on over and give my shoulders a nice rub…”

“Come out.”

“Huh?”

For a moment, Chung Myung doubted his ears. He widened his eyes and looked Yang Hoe over properly. Yang Hoe’s eyes – swollen until they were no bigger than buttonholes – were blazing.

“Come out, you bastard. Let’s go again. One more round.”

“Hah?”

Chung Myung’s mouth gaped open, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Wow… after getting hit that badly, you can still say that?”

“Of course I can! I got hit! If I hadn’t, would I be saying this? You ignorant bastard!”

Chung Myung flinched slightly and titled his head to the side.

“Hey. Didn’t you hear me say I’m your Sahyeong? You need to know your place…”

“Why? Are you scared? So you’re going to pin me down with seniority?”

“…”

“If you’re a man, come out! Until I accept it, you’re not my Sahyeong.”

“Haaah…….”

Chung Myung, who had been standing there in stunned disbelief, let out a crooked grin.

“You’ve got some backbone. Fine.”

Getting up from his spot, he muttered as if he actually liked what he was seeing.

“The others usually last, at best, two days. How many do you think you’ll manage?”

As Chung Myung slowly curled his small fist into a ball, a chilling crack echoed.

“Try to hold out for three days, at least, you cute little Saje bastard!”

“Die!”

Yang Hoe rolled his eyes back and charged straight at Chung Myung.

Part IV

A week passed.

“…Baek Oh”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

Un Hwa [운화(雲和)], the Sect Leader of Hwasan, looked at Baek Oh with an uneasy expression.

“About that disciple you took in. There’s a rumor going around that these days he’s been… going about in a state that can hardly be called presentable.”

Un Hwa spoke as though nudging him in the side, his voice laden with discomfort.

“You know this already, but they say that in Henan he was famous… a truly famous prodigy.”

“…”

“And didn’t Hwasan receive quite a bit of… ahem. Help from that child’s family. So, that…”

Baek Oh’s eyes, as he sat properly upright, flicked slightly to the side.

“So, what exactly is it that you wish to say, Sect Leader?”

“No, it’s just that… you should perhaps manage your disciple a bit more…”

“Which one? Which disciple are you telling me to manage, Sect Leader? Yang Hoe? Or could it be…?”

“Ahem…”

“Sect Leader, with my abilities alone, I can’t do this anymore… Please, please switch out my disciple. These days my stomach hurts so much I can’t even train. Train! I’ll teach that Yang Hoe bastard and make him the World’s Greatest Sword! Please!”

“Ahem. The World’s Greatest Sword, well… would that really happen just because Yang Hoe tries? At best he’d be the World’s Second-Greatest Sword. As you know, Chung Mun is a bit lacking in talent. And the position of the World’s Greatest Sword doesn’t need to be taught anyway….”

“Ah, exactly! I’m saying someone should take the one who becomes the World’s Greatest Sword even without being taught, and go earn their keep with him! Who? Who is it? Who’s going to take him, I’m asking!”

Baek Oh whipped his head around, his eyes tinged with madness, scanning the area.

“Saje?”

“M-Me, I have many disciples. Sahyeong!”

“Then what? You, Saje – will you take him?”

“I, last time, I… injured my back rather badly…”

Baek Oh snapped his head around again and glared at Un Hwa.

“Sect Leader!”

“Uh… y-yes?”

“Even a first-generation disciple can’t handle Chung Myung. Since it’s come to this, wouldn’t it be better if one of the Elders took charge of that brat instead?”

“W-Well, the Elders?”

When Un Hwa turned his gaze, the elders all averted their eyes at once.

“That would go against the generational order…….”

“If a talented disciple appears, keeping the generational order as it is while instruction is given from higher up is something that happens frequently in other sects, isn’t it!”

“That’s a matter of allocation, somewhat…”

“Allocation? What’s the problem with allocation? In the first place, if things had gone as they should, shouldn’t that fellow Yang Hoe have been taken as the first among the Myung generation! Who was it that, despite his talent, forcibly shoved him into the very last spot of the Chung generation? Wasn’t that you, Sect Leader?!”

“Ah, come on, Sahyeong…… the Myung generation that’s older than Chung deneration is a bit…”

“That’s right. That’s why we were waiting until Chung Myung got older, weren’t we…”

“Shut up! You bastards! Useless, the lot of you – where do you think you’re butting in!”

Baek Oh exploded in rage. At that violent outburst, Un Hwa let out a sigh and stroked down his beard.

“Then… can’t it be managed somehow? No matter what, Yang Hoe – one look at him and you can tell he’s a talent meant to lead Hwasan’s revival. But if this keeps up…”

“Sect Leader! I’ve tried beating him, and I’ve tried hanging him off a cliff! Do you think that’s all?”

“…”

“I’ve locked him up in the Repentance Chamber, starved him, coaxed him and scolded him! There’s nothing I haven’t tried because of that bastard. Nothing I haven’t tried! So what has it come to? What’s left? Tell me!”

The moment Baek Oh clutched at his own head, his hair began to fall out in clumps, rustling down like autumn leaves. The Baek generation disciples, unable to bear looking at that sight head-on, turned away with tears welling up in their eyes.

“Can I spend the whole day doing nothing but follow that brat around? Just half a month ago you told me not to neglect my training either, when you said that Jin Hanbyeok [진한벽(陳寒碧)] of Jongnam had reached the tenth level of the Thirty-Six Swords Under the Heaven!”

“Ah, I know. I know…”

“Please…… please help me. Please…….”

“Alright, alright, Oh-ya. How could we not know your hardship.”

The situation had completely reversed from when the conversation first began. Un Hwa, at a loss for what to do, tried to soothe and comfort Baek Oh.

‘The entirety of Hwasan is suffering because of just one child.’

If it were merely a case of having an eccentric personality, they would have found some way to deal with it. But Chung Myung’s personality wasn’t just simply quirky – it was beyond what anyone could handle. On top of that, his stubbornness ran in a strange direction and was downright incredible. No matter how much they punished him, he didn’t change. Worse still, those who handed down the punishments inevitably met bizarre misfortunes before long, so now even the people who tried to lecture Chung Myung were steadily disappearing. Normally, the right thing would be to throw him out, but…

‘Of all things, that kind of bastard had to be born with talent that comes once in a hundred years…’

Chung Myung’s natural ability was so outstanding that his master – who had once been Hwasan’s greatest sword of the previous generation, then passed down the Sect Leader position and gone into seclusion – would burst out of his retirement and indulged in three days of frenzied revelry upon seeing it. Because of that, no one could bring themselves to say they should excommunicate Chung Myung.

After being put through so much, it wasn’t that absolutely no one had ever, in a fit of temper, shouted that they should just kick him out already. But someone who heard it had blurted out, ‘And what if, after that, the kid joins Jongnam or Wudang? Then for nearly fifty years, all Hwasan’s brats will be slaughtered.’ After that, no one ever carelessly let such words slip from their mouth again.

“Still, he listens to you, doesn’t he?”

“He is not listening to me. He is listening to that bastard Chung Mun’s words! If Chung Mun hadn’t been here, I would’ve escaped Hwasan already!”

“Well, isn’t that something. The way he at least pretends to listen to Chung Mun… If we’re talking about who’s easier to deal with, Chung Mun should be the easier one.”

“Chung Mun is a Taoist through and through, isn’t he? His Tao is great.”

“If only his talent backed it up a little more.”

“…He doesn’t need talent. Don’t you remember last month, when one of the Chung disciples talked back to Chung Mun and got dragged off by Chung Myung? He practically beat the child to a pulp.”

“I remember. That’s why he ended up in the Repentance Chamber.”

“For now it’s fine because it’s all within Hwasan. Later on, other sects are going to suffer the same thing.”

“…Just imagining it makes me happy. Those other sects’ bastards need to get a taste of Chung Myung soon, too. How about we start by sending the kid over towards Xian, where Jongnam is, Sect Leader?”

“…Now is not the time to be talking about that.”

“Ahem. My apologies.”

Everyone lowered their heads again, their faces solemn. Un Hwa let out a deep sigh.

“Anyway, all of you, pay attention to that child Yang Hoe.”

“Yes.”

“From what I can see, the child seems to have a brilliant mind. If that child supports Chung Mun with his head, and Chung Myung helps with the sword… then it wouldn’t be a dream for Hwasan to become the greatest sect under heaven in the era of the Chung generation.”

“Yes!”

“…That is, if Yang Hoe doesn’t get beaten to death before then.”

Un Hwa’s sigh that followed drifted sadly through the great hall.

❀ ❀ ❀

“Kuuuuuukk!”

At the bizarre scream and the sight of Yang Hoe collapsing forward, Chung Myung dusted off his hands with a few sharp pats.

“This bastard really does charge at me anytime, anywhere now.”

“…”

“But why is he so stupid? At this point, even if a thousand years passed, he should have more than enough sense to understand that he can’t beat me.”

Chung Myung clicked his tongue loudly, then spoke in an indifferent voice.

“Well, it’s not me getting hit, so it’s none of my business. Even if it hurts, make sure dinner’s properly prepared tonight. So Sahyeong doesn’t nag. I’m leaving.”

Chung Myung sharply turned his body and walked away. Only after quite a while had passed did the Chung disciples, who had been watching from afar, come rushing over in a swarm, surrounding the fallen Yang Hoe.

“You okay?”

“Try getting up. Here, there’s cold water, so drink some of this.”

“Ughh…….”

The Chung disciples who held a bowl of water to Yang Hoe’s mouth shook their heads. It truly was a gruesome sight.

“But you’re seriously amazing. Wow – how do you keep challenging Sahyeong for more than a week? I gave up in one day.”

“I lasted two.”

“Hehe! Sahyeongs, you’re all quite dumb. I took one hit and immediately lay flat on my face.”

“…Smart. I’ll give you that.”

Yang Hoe’s face was entirely tinged a deep bluish-purple hue. Everyone who saw him either sighed or shook their heads. At this point, it was hard to tell whether the one beating someone to this state was at fault, or whether Yang Hoe was remarkable for stubbornly resisting even after being beaten like this.

“But why is Chung Mun Sahyeong just watching? Normally he wouldn’t leave it like this.”

“…Chung Mun Sahyeong can’t follow Chung Myung Sahyeong around all the time, can he? Besides, even when Sasuks see it from far away, they start running away first.”

“Yeah, but still..”

Just then, Yang Hoe coughed and, with great difficulty, finally opened his mouth.

“I… asked him.”

“Huh? You did?”

“I asked him not to interfere until I was convinced myself.”

“…This guy is seriously insane. In Hwasan, the only person who can handle Chung Myung Sahyeong even a little is Chung Mun Sahyeong… and you turned that down? What on earth are you trying to do?”

“I have to win.”

“No, I mean – how, exactly…….”

“Then are you Sahyeongs just going to endure it while that bastard runs rampant like that?”

“Hey, hey, stop it.”

The Chung disciples all shook their heads with weary expressions.

“That guy isn’t human. You can’t beat him in a fight.”

“We all used to have some skill before we entered the sect. But after seeing that guy, I finally understood why people say ‘There is another heaven beyond heaven’ [or 天外天: beyond the sky, there is yet another sky].”

“I get your pride, but this is just foolish. You can’t win by fighting, I’m telling you.”

Chung Gong [청공(靑供)] let out a deep sigh.

“Chung Myung Sahyeong’s martial talent is unprecedented in Hwasan’s history. It got so bad that even some of the younger Sasuks went through hell at his hands at least once.”

“When was that? These days, the entire Baek generation is starting to avoid him.”

“That’s only natural – if you win, it’s what you should do anyway, and if you lose, you can’t hold your head up.”

Listening quietly, Yang Hoe ground his teeth.

“Anyway, I can’t accept it.”

“…You really are something.”

“Well, I guess that’s why you were called one of the Three Treasures of Zhengzhou. Geniuses, by nature, all have that strange, poisonous stubbornness, don’t they?”

“Like Chung Myung Sahyeong?”

“……Let’s not lump that guy in as just a genius. He’s not human, honestly.”

With an irritated gesture, Yang Hoe wiped away the blood running from his nose.

Of course, he acknowledged it too: that bastard named Chung Myung was a monster no human strength could possibly do anything about. That was why even his Sahyeongs – who were at least twice his size – lived pressed down like mice before a cat. But no matter how he thought about it, Yang Hoe didn’t like this situation at all.

“Then are you all planning to live your entire lives like this, just taking it?”

“…What else can we do? He’s still our Sahyeong.”

“I have no intention of doing that!”

When Yang Hoe’s stubbornness still wouldn’t bend, the Chung disciples shook their heads.

“Good grief, fine then – suffer through it.”

“Get beaten around for another two days and you’ll understand reality.”

“Go to the Medical Hall and make sure you put ointment on.”

Realizing there was no talking to him, the Chung disciples patted Yang Hoe on the shoulder and, one by one, quietly slipped away.

It was when most of the Chung generation had spread out and left.

“Are you really not going to live just taking it?”

Chung Gong, who had been edging away, asked in a low voice. When Yang Hoe replied with a confused ‘Huh?’, he demanded a clear answer instead of elaborating.

“Really?”

“Well…”

“Then after dinner tonight, once the sun’s gone down, come out towards Yeonhwa Peak without Chung Myung Sahyeong noticing. Let’s talk there.”

“Huh?”

“If anyone asks where you’re going, just say you’re doing evening training. Evenings are usually for self-directed training anyway.”

Chung Gong patted Yang Hoe on the shoulder and then walked off calmly, as if nothing at all had happened. Yang Hoe stared blankly at his retreating figure, his eyes filled with confusion.

❀ ❀ ❀

“Is this the place?”

Yang Hoe looked around. He had come because he was told to come out to Yeonhwa Peak, but since it hadn’t been long since he’d entered Hwasan, he had no way of knowing whether he’d come to the right spot.

Luckily – or perhaps unluckily – he had no need to use the excuse Chung Gong had prepared for him. Baek Oh and Chung Mun were both not at their quarters today, and Chung Myung, after throwing a fit because he didn’t like the food Yang Hoe made, had gone off somewhere.

“Is it not here?”

Yang Hoe was just about to turn around, still scanning his surroundings.

“You really came?”

From behind the thick, overgrown trees, a group emerged. Looking closely, they were Chung disciples whose faces he’d come to recognize here and there at the training grounds. There had to be at least twenty of them. Compared to the total number of the Chung generation, it wasn’t that many, but considering they’d gathered on Yeonhwa Peak – far from the main mountain – on this dark night, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it a great number.

“You’ve got grit. I like that.”

Chung Gong, standing at the front, stepped closer and lightly patted Yang Hoe’s shoulder. Yang Hoe asked, bewildered.

“Sahyeongs. What is this, exactly?”

“Ah, there’s nothing to worry about. We just wanted to tell you – you’re not alone.”

Chung Gong added, wearing a meaningful smile.

“You’re not the only one sick to death of Chung Myung Sahyeong’s tyranny.”

“Ah. No, but earlier…….”

“Earlier, we had to behave like that. You might not know this yet, but the Elders of the sect tend to quietly protect Chung Myung Sahyeong.”

“Chung Mun Sahyeong too.”

“That’s right. Even Chung Mun Sahyeong dotes on Chung Myung Sahyeong. Probably because he thinks he can make use of him later when he becomes Sect Leader.”

The good-natured face he’d shown earlier in the day was nowhere to be found. Chung Gong openly, bluntly poured out his dissatisfaction.

“So what, exactly…….”

“Wait. Before that, let’s confirm something. You’re really not going to submit to Chung Myung Sahyeong, right?”

“…Looking at my face, can you still ask that?”

“Fair enough. In all my life, I’ve never seen anyone stand up to Chung Myung Sahyeong for a whole week. If you weren’t like that, I wouldn’t have called you. You’re Chung Myung Sahyeong’s direct Saje, after all.”

He didn’t like being called that bastard’s direct Saje, but for now he nodded.

“So what are you planning to do?”

“As you know, Chung Myung Sahyeong is a monster. So you can’t beat him in any ordinary way.”

Yang Hoe narrowed his eyes, giving him a suspicious look.

“Don’t tell me…”

“Why? You said you’ve read a thing or two, right? You’re not about to say that if you can’t beat someone alone, you have to live getting hit forever, are you?”

Chung Gong tapped his own head lightly as he continued.

“If your strength isn’t enough, you have to use your brain. And luckily, Chung Myung Sahyeong is ignorant – he doesn’t know how to use his.”

“Yeah, it did seem like that.”

When Yang Hoe nodded after thinking it over for a moment, Chung Gong grinned.

“I’m only saying this because you said you’d be in with us. Tomorrow, tell Chung Myung Sahyeong that this time you’ll settle it properly, once and for all – then bring him out here at this hour.”

At those words, Yang Hoe looked around at the other Chung disciples nearby. Chung Gong shrugged.

“Tomorrow there’ll be more. This isn’t all of us. And if things go well, we might even be able to bring one or two of the Baek generation.”

“Ah, no. Still, that’s a bit…”

“Hey, hey, Yang Hoe.”

When obvious discomfort crossed Yang Hoe’s face, Chung Gong slung an arm over his shoulder and tightened his grip.

“Hey. How much have you suffered? It’s only been a week for you. Right? Haven’t you been getting hit?”

“…I have.”

“But we’ve been taking it for years. At least a year each. As for me, it’s already been four years.”

Yang Hoe pressed his lips tightly together.

“I’ve wasted years getting kicked around whenever that little brat felt like it. It’s not living, even if you’re alive, huh?”

“…”

“And is this only for our sake? In the end, this is for Hwasan – and it’s for Chung Myung Sahyeong too.”

“For Chung Myung Sahyeong? What are you talking about now?”

“That bastard is so strong that up to now, he’s never once properly gotten what’s coming to him. What do you think will happen once there’s no one left above him to rein him in?”

“…”

“He’ll turn into a notorious troublemaker known throughout Gangho and become a target for every sect out there. And of course, that’ll affect Hwasan too. You get what I’m saying?”

“Yes, well, I suppose…”

“That’s why everyone needs to learn a lesson at least once in their life. That just because you’re strong doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want without any consequences. Am I wrong?”

Yang Hoe nodded, albeit with a reluctant look.

“Then… you’re calling everyone to do a rotation battle or something?”

“A rotation battle? I thought you were smart, but why do you keep saying such stupid things? What kind of guy do you think he is – how would this work out?”

“…Then what?”

“Obviously, we attack together.”

Yang Hoe’s eyes went wide.

“Twenty people?”

“Twenty, my ass. It’ll be over thirty. With that guy, you need at least that many if you want to do anything at all. Don’t look down on him just because he’s a tiny brat. This much is necessary. You understand what I mean, right?”

Yang Hoe’s chest felt tight, and he let out a long sigh.

“Alright, I understand for now. Then tomorrow…”

“It’s not over yet.”

“Yes?”

“ ‘This’ is the real point.”

Chung Gong rummaged in his robes, then pulled something out and held it out towards him.

“Take it.”

“…What is this?”

“Just take it.”

With a baffled expression, Yang Hoe took what was offered. When he looked closely at what he now held, he could feel something like powder inside a neatly folded piece of paper. Like…

“A medicinal packet?”

“Shh.”

Chung Gong gestured for him to be quiet, then looked around. He was cautious, as if he had to stay on guard even when there was no one listening.

“This is Sangong Poison*. I had my family send it.”

“P-Poison? You mean poison, right now…”

“No, you idiot! Sangong Poison isn’t poison! It doesn’t hurt, it just makes you unable to use your internal energy for a while – like a numbing drug!”

After scolding Yang Hoe sharply, Chung Gong leaned in and whispered by his ear.

“Tomorrow evening, mix this into Chung Myung Sahyeong’s food when he eats. If you don’t want to be suspected, you can eat with him too. You look like you’ve got a fair amount of inner strength yourself, but either way, it’s not like anything will go wrong just because you, alone, can’t use your internal energy.”

Then he patted Yang Hoe on the shoulder.

“I was worried about how we’d even get him to take it, but it’s a relief you’re here. He’s not the kind of person who drinks tea.”

“And we can’t exactly get the alcohol.”

“I have no idea where that bastard even gets it from.”

The Chung disciples who’d been grumbling all turned to Yang Hoe and grinned.

“That settles it.”

“He won’t suspect it, right? His instincts are practically ghostlike.”

“Suspect it? No way. He trusts that kid completely.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“Seems like everyone who runs into him these days gets the same line. ‘Be more like our Saje, you spineless idiots,’ he goes.”

As Yang Hoe stared uneasily at the packet of medicine, his eye twitched for a brief moment. But Chung Gong didn’t notice his reaction and merely tilted his head in puzzlement. One of the Chung disciples added.

“You kept rushing him for a whole week, so even if he talks like that, it looks like he’s actually taken a real liking to you? He said it in passing to me, too. That every time you fight, you change your approach and aim for what you think is a weak point – said your head is really sharp.”

“Really? If he thinks so highly of him, he should treat him better. Why’s he beating him? He’s barely human, honestly.”

“That’s just how he is.”

“It’s certain, right?”

“It wasn’t just me who heard it. I’ve heard it a lot, from here and there.”

“That’s right, Saheyong. I heard it too. He even nagged at me – said if I could follow even half as well as his own Saje, I could at least manage to make a living as some kind of errand-runner, told me to start using my brain.”

“Seems like he really does think well of you. Hearing that from all directions.”

Chung Gong nodded.

“Well, that’s a good thing. Then he absolutely won’t suspect it.”

Grinning, he patted Yang Hoe’s shoulder with satisfaction.

“So do your best. This isn’t for us – it’s for your future life at Hwasan. It’s something that absolutely needs to be done. Got it?”

“Yeah. Hey, if you mess this up, you’re the one who’ll suffer the most. At least we don’t have to live with that guy.”

Hearing that, Yang Hoe let out a faint laugh.

“Well, yeah. I’ll be the one suffering most.”

“Right. Then you can do it?”

Yang Hoe glanced down at the medicinal packet in his hand. The corner of his mouth curled up into a grin. It was an expression that resembled Chung Myung’s smile – one he’d seen often.

“Of course I can handle it. So, what you Sahyeongs are saying is that I open the packet like this and…”

Yang Hoe unfolded the neatly folded packet.

“No, don’t open it right no…”

“Liiiiike thiiiiis!”

And then, in one swift motion, he flung the white powder inside, scattering it as though throwing it at the people right in front of him.

“Aaagh! What are you do…! Cough, cough!”

“Y-You bastard, are you out of your mind! You – hey! What the hell are you doing?!”

Yang Hoe shrugged, perfectly calm.

“I did exactly what you told me to. Was this not it? Ah, if that wasn’t enough, should I do it again? Then please give me another packet.”

“……Y-You, you bastard!”

“Don’t have one? Then there’s no helping it. I’ll have to beat Chung Myung Sahyeong fair and square with my own skill.”

“Hey!”

Chung Gong, furious, grabbed Yang Hoe tightly by the collar.

“You… are you out of your mind? Just because that bastard Chung Myung looks at you a little favorably, you’re going to go running over to his side like that?”

“Let go of me.”

“What did you say?”

“I said, let go.”

Yang Hoe glared at him with cold eyes.

“Running over to him? Who is saying that to whom? I’ll fight until I’m convinced. But I won’t use filthy methods like this!”

“This is a strategy……”

“A strategy is only a strategy when you use it when you’re supposed to! If you use it anytime, anywhere, without rhyme or reason, that’s just being despicable!”

“What? Despicable?”

Chung Gong, eyes brimming with killing intent, yanked Yang Hoe hard towards himself.

“…This bastard, the more I look at you, the more you ask for it. Are we a joke to you? You think you can handle all of us as long as it’s not Chung Myung Sahyeong?”

“No, what exactly would I do? I don’t even have any strength.”

Yang Hoe let out a snicker, then spoke in a cool, composed voice.

“And if I were the kind of guy who cared about that, I’d already be bowing and groveling before that little brat, wouldn’t I? Listen carefully. I’m the man who’s going to make Hwasan the number one sect under heaven. Not with underhanded scheming like this – I’ll make it that way, proudly, with my own skill.”

“Y-You……”

“So if you’re pissed, then build up your skills, fight, and win. Don’t start thinking about ganging up on people already, you little punks, and then slap fancy words like ‘a strategy’ onto it to make it sound good.”

The Chung disciples glared at Yang Hoe with eyes full of poisonous hostility.

“Well, in exchange… I won’t say a word about what happened today, so don’t get your hopes up and go back to training.”

“You think if you talk like that, we’ll just let you go peacefully?”

“Ah, then hit me, I guess.”

Yang Hoe answered indifferently and yawned.

“If you’re going to hit me, do it quickly. Starting tomorrow morning, I’ve got to face that guy again.”

“This crazy bastard, seriously…..!”

Thunk – a dull, heavy sound rang out. Chung Gong had smashed Yang Hoe’s jaw in a single blow. The instant Yang Hoe collapsed, the Chung disciples rushed in all at once and began to stomp him mercilessly.

“Look at you now, you bastard!”

“Every one of these so-called prodigies…!”

“Like none of us were prodigies! What makes you so great?”

Those who had been trampling Yang Hoe only withdrew after a long while, finally stepping back, panting for breath.

“…Tsk, damn it.”

“What if this bastard tattles?”

“Don’t worry about it. Guys like him have too much pride, and they keep their word.”

“Still…”

Just then, a short groan leaked from Yang Hoe’s mouth as he lay sprawled, seemingly unconscious. The Chung disciples glanced at him and clicked their tongues bitterly. Even to them, it felt like they might’ve hit him a little too hard.

“More importantly… why isn’t his internal energy dissipating? Sahyeong, did you bring the wrong Sanggong Poison?”

“Wrong, my ass. Here it is – Sanggong Poison.”

“Huh? But you said it was your one precious packet…”

“How could I trust this bastard enough to hand over that one packet? If he kept reacting fine all the way to the end, I was going to give it to him for real.”

“Damn. They say this bastard is smart, but he seems dumber than you, Sahyeong.”

“He can only be so great. But… ha, what a pain. Then how are we supposed to make him take it?”

“If you give it to him, he’ll take it.”

“No, you think he’ll just swallow anything because we hand it to him?”

“I’m telling you, if you give it to him, he’ll take it.”

“Then that’s what I… huh?”

Chung Gong froze mid-sentence and slowly turned his head. It was as if his whole body had gone rigid.

From the opposite direction of the thicket they’d come out of, a familiar little brat came trudging out. Everyone’s faces turned deathly pale.

“……S-Sahyeong? This is…… I mean…….”

Chung Myung’s gaze went to Yang Hoe, sprawled on the ground. ‘That crazy bastard’, Chung Myung muttered with a snort, shaking his head. Then he turned his eyes back to the Chung disciples.

“You sure stomped him good, didn’t you?”

“S-Sahyeong. This is, I mean, we were training with our junior and…”

“Junior? Junior, you say.”

“Pardon?”

Chung Gong, who had stupidly echoed back the question, brightened in an instant. To him, Chung Myung’s words sounded like he didn’t acknowledge Yang Hoe as his Saje.

“Yes! We were trying to knock some sense into this lunatic…”

“Lunatic?”

Cutting him off mid-sentence, Chung Myung clicked his tongue.

“Hwasan is really a fine sight these days. Calling your Sahyeong a lunatic.”

“S-Sahyeong. That wasn’t meant for you, it was…”

“Yeah, that bastard.”

Chung Myung jerked his chin towards Yang Hoe lying on the ground.

“My Saje. Your Sahyeong.”

“…What?”

“I said that bastard is your Sahyeong.”

For a moment, the Chung disciples just stared at him blankly, not understanding what he meant. Someone spoke up.

“We entered the sect earlier than he did, Sahyeong.”

“Ha…… haha. Right. Sahyeong must be mistaken about something…….”

“Entered what? If we’re ranking by who entered first, then I’m above Chung Mun Sahyeong.”

“…That’s true, but…”

“There’s only one way Hwasan decides generation order. Whoever comes under our Master is the highest in the line.”

“…”

“So among the Chung disciples, that kid is third. From now on, treat him as your Sahyeong.”

Chung Gong stared at Chung Myung with a flustered expression.

“No, Sahyeong! Even so, this is too much…”

“Hand it over.”

“Yes?”

“Give me what you’ve got in your hand.”

“…S-Sahyeong. This is….”

“Want to get hit and hand it over, or just hand it over?”

Chung Gong lowered his head deeply and passed the packet in his hand to Chung Myung. Chung Myung slowly unfolded the paper and stared down at the powder inside.

“Sanggong Poison, huh… so if you take this, you can’t use your internal energy, is that it?”

“S-Sahyeong. For a crime worthy of death…”

“What did I say again? I told you – if you give it to me, I’ll eat it.”

At that moment, Chung Myung tipped the Sanggong Poison in his hand and shook it all into his mouth. Then he scrunched up his face and grumbled.

“Gah! Tastes awful.”

“S-Sahyeong, what are you doing…”

“I told you. If you give it to me, I’ll eat it.”

Chung Myung grinned and shrugged.

“So, what will it be? I ate it. That makes today your last chance, doesn’t it?”

The Chung disciples, clearly flustered, flinched at his words and looked at one another.

“It’s simple. If you want to go on acting like you’re Sahyeongs, you have to prove it. If you’ve been rolling around Hwasan that long, you should be able to show you learned something, right? Beat me after I’ve taken Sanggong Poison – with twenty of you, and that ought to be enough.”

“…”

“If you can’t, then you only ‘entered the sect,’ that’s all. It means you haven’t learned a damn thing. Then you’re not even as good as that bastard there, so you become Sajes. Which is it?”

Thinking there was no other way now, the Chung disciples’ eyes flashed.

“Sahyeong… that really is Sanggong Poison, right?”

“Absolutely.”

“Really? Then… it really is an opportunity.”

“…Yeah?”

“Yes. To be honest, even without Sanggong Poison, with numbers like this we thought it might be worth a try. It was just in case. But if he’s even taken Sanggong Poison…”

Exchanging looks, the Chung disciples began to spread out left and right, slowly forming a wide encirclement around Chung Myung.

“Sahyeong. Don’t think this is only because of bad blood.”

“If things stay like this, Hwasan will end up suffering a huge ordeal someday because of you, Sahyeong. So we’re saying you should experience it once in advance and cool that temper of yours.”

Seeing that, Chung Myung let out a snort.

“But… do you know why I bothered to eat this?”

“…Pardon?”

Chung Myung unfastened the wooden sword from his back, then slowly gripped it and raised it.

“I ate it so you wouldn’t delude yourselves into thinking that if you’d just beaten the crap out of me first and then made me eat Sanggong Poison, you might’ve won. So today, you…”

Chung Myung grinned crookedly and dashed forward.

“…You are all dead.”

His wooden sword viciously cleaved the air.

“Ugh……”

Yang Hoe let out a groan, his face contorting. His leg – no, more precisely, his ankle hurt terribly. To be even more exact, it was the top of his foot.

‘Did someone go out of their way to stomp only the top of my foot?’

Otherwise, how could it burn like this? Even now, it felt like someone kept smashing it down with a rock – thud, thud…

“Ah!”

Damn it. It’s not just a feeling, it really hurts! Yang Hoe jerked his head up and, without realizing it, turned his gaze behind him. He could see his foot dragging limply along the ground.

‘What is it now, again?’

Why is it that every time he loses consciousness and wakes up, some absurd thing is happening?

“You awake?”

“Huh?”

Yang Hoe, who had been staring blankly at his throbbing foot, shifted his gaze forward. But…

“There’s nobody there? Is it a ghost?”

“…You’re going to die, seriously.”

Only then did Yang Hoe lower his gaze. Much smaller than him, Chung Myung was carrying him on his back as he headed down the mountain. Chung Myung was strong, but the height difference was something he couldn’t do anything about. Because of that, Yang Hoe’s foot was dragging, and the top of it was taking all the strain.

“P-Put me down!”

“Yeah? You won’t be able to walk, though?”

Yang Hoe shut his mouth and behaved. In truth, Chung Myung was right. Looking at the state his body was in, there was no way he could walk. But…

“Even so, I don’t care, put me down!”

“No one’s coming out here, you know?”

“…Then I’ll just spend the night here.”

“There are wild beasts out here.”

“R-Really?”

Without a word, Chung Myung turned his head slightly and looked at Yang Hoe. His eyes were full of suspicion, as if to say, ‘Was it really true this bastard got called a prodigy?’ Yang Hoe quietly avoided the look.

Carried along obediently on Chung Myung’s back, Yang Hoe asked, as if in passing. 

“How did you know to come? Were you tailing me or something?”

“Tailing, my ass. I didn’t go anywhere – you came.”

Chung Myung spoke as if it were ridiculous.

“I’m usually up on Yeonhwa Peak swinging my sword at that hour, but you guys suddenly showed up and started whispering. So I watched for a bit to see what you were up to.”

“…No, but why are you swinging a sword at that hour?”

“Well… there’s nothing in particular I need to do down below, and people don’t really like it when I stand out. I was bored, so what else was I supposed to do? Might as well swing a sword. That’s at least a little less boring.”

“…”

“What? Why?”

“N-No, it’s nothing.”

Pressing his lips together, Yang Hoe silently stared down at the crown of Chung Myung’s head. From what he’d heard, it seemed Chung Myung had been abandoned at Hwasan as an infant – and if he’d grown up in this bleak temple without any parents, it would be no surprise if he’d turned out eccentric. He must have had plenty of things he couldn’t speak of, probably.

Clearing his throat, Yang Hoe cautiously opened his mouth.

“Ahem. Back then… when I said that thing about your parents… I’m sorry about that. I really didn’t mean anything by it. I didn’t know…”

“It’s fine. It’s true I don’t have them, so.”

“Still…”

“It’s not like I care. It just pisses me off when other people bring it up and watch my face for a reaction.”

“…Yeah.”

Suddenly awkward for no reason, Yang Hoe started tossing out whatever came to mind.

“So you go up to Yeonhwa Peak before the sun goes down? To train?”

Even as he asked, Yang Hoe couldn’t help but admire him. That monstrous skill didn’t come out of nowhere, after all…

“No. At that time, I just flop down and half-sleep.”

Ah. So it really does come out of nowhere.

“Then why bother staying outside?”

“The sunset you see from Yeonhwa Peak is insanely beautiful.”

“The ‘sunset’?”

“Yeah. You should see it sometime.”

The sunset, huh… For some reason, the unexpected sentimentality in him made Yang Hoe let out hollow chuckle. Yang Hoe lifted his head slightly and looked up at the night sky. Then Chung Myung asked.

“By the way, you – why did you do something that stupid? From what I can tell, your head works pretty well. That means you knew you were going to get beaten. There were plenty of other ways.”

Hearing that, Yang Hoe snorted.

“If I’m going to swallow every injustice and choke down every annoyance and solve things by going around in circles, then I’d have just gone into government service. Do you think I’d be crazy enough to come here, going against everything, if that were the case?”

“…That’s also true.”

“A brain only means something when you use it where it matters.”

“Fine. Then how long are you going to keep charging in? Now this is where that brain might actually be useful.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m never backing down.”

“At this rate, you’ll really end up dead.”

“Then I’ll die if I die! I’m never doing it!”

“…Fine. Go on, then. Try it.”

“I said I’m not doing it.”

“Ah, who said you were? Do whatever you want.”

“I’m absolutely not going to.”

Chung Myung went down from Yeonhwa Peak with a silent smile. The smile at the corner of his mouth stayed there all the way down – and the same was true for Yang Hoe.

It was still far from anything meaningful. Nothing that could be called a profound bond had formed. They had merely drawn half a step closer – just as much as their back and chest touched.

A child walking down the mountain with a young man twice his size on his back. The moon hanging in the night sky watched that ridiculous sight in silence for a long, long while, wearing a faint smile.

The words ‘Damn it! You sword-crazed Sahyeong bastard. You swing the sword – I’ll make my living with my brain!’ would only burst out of Yang Hoe’s mouth a full month later.

And it would take yet another full month after that before polite honorifics finally began to come obediently out of Yang Hoe’s mouth.

As for the day Yang Hoe, having fully settled at Hwasan, would receive the Taoist name Chung Jin [청진(靑津)] – that was a story from an even more distant future.

❀ ❀ ❀

“Ugh…….”

Perched on a hill overlooking the scenery of Hwasan, Chung Myung narrowed his eyes slightly.

“When am I ever going to raise those brats up? Good grief, what a life I’ve got.”

The more he thought about it, the more his insides churned.

To think he was straining himself trying to raise a bunch of kids who couldn’t even measure up to Chung Jin. If that wasn’t karma from a past life, then what was?

“If you’re going to suffer, you might as well die. Tsk.”

Chung Myung let out a short laugh and spoke as if tossing the words to someone.

“You’re watching, right? Kids these days – none of them have even half the grit you had.”

There was no way an answer would come back, but Chung Myung went on as if he’d heard one anyway.

“Then again, even back then there was nobody like you. Later on, Sect Leader Sahyeong grabbed me and practically begged me to stop beating you up, and what did you say? ‘Step aside. This is a man’s duel’? You said that and then you got smacked by Chung Mun Sahyeong, didn’t you?”

Chung Myung cackled as he mimicked Chung Jin. Thinking back, that bastard hadn’t been in his right mind either.

“If you were here, those guys would’ve learned a thing or two at least…”

It was right then.

“Where the hell did that bastard go!”

A thunderous roar exploded from down below.

“Ah, Sasuk! I’m telling you, hold back! If you get hit more, you’ll die!”

“Well, he’s still his Sasuk, so he probably won’t kill him. But he won’t be getting up for three days.”

“Leave him be. You can’t talk sense into an idiot.”

From far off, Baek Cheon came charging in like a wild boar struck by lightning, twisting his head this way and that as he scanned the area – and then he spotted Chung Myung up on the hill. The usually gentle-looking eyes were completely rolled back in fury.

“Hey, fight me again! I messed up – I was supposed to hold out for ten seconds more! This was a mistake, so it doesn’t count! Redo it! Right now!”

“…What the hell is that lunatic saying.”

“Aren’t you coming down? You want me to come up? Huh? Should I?!”

“Ah, just stop it already!”

“Please, act like a human being! Please! Why does your condition get worse with every passing day?!”

Chung Myung stared at the scene blankly for a moment, then let out a deep sigh and lowered his head.

“…No. I guess there is one. He’s just a bit off in the head, that’s all.”

Shaking his head, Chung Myung let out a chuckle and said.

“Well, thanks to that, it’s never boring, right?”

He muttered softly. And with that, Chung Myung sprang to his feet.

“So for now, just rest. Later on, I’ll make sure I never get bored again.”

When he turned his gaze, the sky was filled with sunset. The purple sunset glow that Chung Jin had loved.

“Hey! Aren’t you coming down already?”

“I’m coming, I’m coming! You bastard of a Sasuk! Today you’re going to die at my hands!”

Chung Myung kicked off the ground in one burst and flew at Baek Cheon.

“Aaah!”

“What? What’s going to change if you come at me again, huh?”

“Diiieee!”

“Oh? Now you’re charging in like you’ve gone crazy? Try coming at me for another thousand years. You think you’ll beat me?!”

The sound of the two bickering and grappling, mixed with the shouts of other disciples desperately trying to stop them, filled the world along with the sunset. And above it all, Hwasan’s sky – deeply dyed in purple – watched them silently, for a long, long time.

Simply for a long, long time.

________

*산공독(散功毒) – to scatter(disperse)/cultivated power/poison – poison that scatters one’s cultivated power.

Yeonhwa Peak – or Lotus Peak – west peak of Hwasan mountain.