****
The sound of a grass flute rang out.
It was wake-up time.
I returned to the place where the lay disciples were like that.
Even when I came back, my peers were sleeping soundly, so not a single person woke up.
Just like that, my short escape ended in failure without leaving a single trace behind.
"Didn't someone go out while we were sleeping yesterday?"
"Well? I don't remember."
"Did I just have a dream?"
"You even had a dream? You must have been less tired. For me, it was morning as soon as I closed and opened my eyes."
Listening to the kids talk, it seemed there was some presence.
Although it didn't seem like I was caught trying to run away.
Then again, there wouldn't be anyone who thought a lay disciple would run away.
"Did you not sleep?"
Jeon Oh-soo asked from the side.
I looked at Jeon Oh-soo.
"Why are your eyes so hollow? Your pupils look a bit red, too. Doesn't that happen when you stay up all night?"
"No. I slept well."
In truth, just as Jeon Oh-soo said, I couldn't sleep a wink.
As expected, he was a quick-witted guy.
Cheong-hwa had told me to wait since he would come tomorrow morning.
He also added not to even think about running away since he had told the guards.
Honestly, my will was broken, so I didn't even have the thought of running away anymore.
"Come out quickly, you lazybones!"
Cheong-hyeon's voice was heard from outside.
The kids who were moving sluggishly immediately moved briskly.
Because I had done the useless act of going up and down Mount Wudang once at dawn yesterday, I couldn't move quickly at all.
When I strolled out the latest, Cheong-hyeon clicked his tongue as if he were displeased.
When I looked at Cheong-hyeon, Cheong-hyeon completely pretended not to see me.
So getting on his bad side meant he became indifferent rather than scolding me.
It was actually better for me.
"Today, I will teach the Three Talents Sword Method. Everyone, come forward and take a wooden sword each."
Cheong-hyeon opened a heavy-looking chest.
Inside, wooden swords were piled up in layers.
My peers took a wooden sword one by one, and I was about to take one too, but Jeon Oh-soo handed one to me.
He had brought two from the start.
"Thanks."
"Your condition doesn't look so good today."
"Are you worried?"
"Worrying doesn't cause me any harm, after all. I can do it a lot for you."
"You consistent bastard."
Cheong-hyeon glared at us chatting.
To be exact, he only glared at me.
Jeon Oh-soo gasped and then looked forward again.
"Since it is such a famous martial art, there might be those who have already learned it, but approach it with the mindset of learning it anew. As you may know, the Three Talents Sword Method consists of forms called Mount Tai Crushing the Crown, Eight Directions of Wind and Rain, and Sweeping a Thousand Soldiers……."
Yawn. I barely held back the sound from coming out.
Since I had done the crazy bullshit of going up and down Mount Wudang at dawn yesterday, my body was tired and I was even sleepy.
I opened my eyes as wide as possible, but my eyelids kept pressing down heavily on me.
"Muk Hwi-young!"
Suddenly, an ear-piercing shout was heard right next to my ear.
I grimaced and blocked my ears.
Looking forward, Cheong-hyeon's face had turned fierce.
"You've been openly sleeping since yesterday. I tried not to touch you if possible, but."
"……Ah, I apologize."
I apologized for this with all my heart.
Before, I had slept somewhat on purpose, but this time was different.
Since I couldn't leave Wudang without Cheong-hwa's permission anyway, there was no need to purposefully sleep.
However, the shock from the dawn mountain climbing was too great.
"I will listen diligently."
"Shut up! The likes of you being a lay disciple is Wudang's disgrace! Pack your bags and leave right now!"
"……Uh, pardon?"
"I said leave! Can you not hear my words!"
"Gasp."
For a moment, I trembled from the joy filling my entire body.
However, Cheong-hyeon seemed to have misunderstood that sound of being moved.
"Why, are you regretting it a bit now? Go down and confess to your ignorant father that you were kicked out. The son is in that sorry state because he does something like farming. Not even knowing his place, how dare he try to squeeze you into the Wudang Sect. Tsk."
I slightly frowned my eyes.
It was true that I was in the wrong, but even so, those words were too harsh.
"Are you really insulting my parents?"
"It is said that a child is the mirror of their parents. The one who disgraced your parents is not me, but you."
"I don't think sleeping for a moment during class is enough to disgrace my parents. Though I do admit that I was in the wrong, of course."
"If you know you were wrong, then get lost quickly. It is already too late to regret."
"No, I'm thankful for that."
"……?"
"I must say this before I go. Farming is the foundation of the world, and it is a noble work that produces what people eat. If there was no one farming, we would all end up starving to death."
I took a brief breath and then continued speaking.
"However, what about martial artists? Are you doing work that helps the world? If there were no martial artists, wouldn't the world actually be more peaceful? Taishang Laojun (The Grand Supreme Elderly Lord) also said this. Weapons are instruments of ill omen, not the instruments of a noble man. Since weapons are inauspicious objects, they are not to be used by a noble man."
At my words, Cheong-hyeon's mouth shut.
He must be a bit flustered since the guy he insulted as ignorant was using sophisticated text.
Moreover, since I quoted Laozi in a Daoist sect, it would be awkward for him to even refute it.
"Then I'll be taking my leave. Thank you once again for kicking me out. I didn't want to be here, you see. I'll even reward you later when I earn some money."
"You, you……."
Perhaps it was his first time being talked back to by a mere lay disciple, Cheong-hyeon couldn't even speak properly.
There was no reason for me to wait for him.
I didn't particularly have any bags to pack, so I just had to leave immediately.
Looking at the result, the sleeping strategy worked out well.
I had a justification to ignore Cheong-hwa's words.
Because Cheong-hyeon, who managed the lay disciples, was the one who kicked me out.
It was when I was about to walk out while whistling.
The person I least wanted to see in this current situation was slowly walking over.
"Haha. Some interesting words were being exchanged."
"……Sahyung."
It was none other than Cheong-hwa.
Cheong-hwa smiled gently while looking at me.
"Did I not say that you cannot leave Wudang without my permission?"
"I am being kicked out because my attitude was poor. Even Jinin Cheong-hwa wouldn't be able to say anything about it."
At my words, Cheong-hyeon added while getting angry.
"That is correct! Sahyung would also want to kick him out immediately if you saw his sorry behavior! You will have to do one of two things: kick him out, or kick me out."
Nice.
I cheered for Jinin Cheong-hyeon from the bottom of my heart inwardly.
However, Cheong-hwa merely wore a faint smile.
"Ah, did you kick him out from being a lay disciple entirely?"
"Yes. That is correct."
"That's a relief. I was planning to pull him out from the lay disciples anyway."
"Pardon?"
Cheong-hyeon tilted his head.
It was the same for me.
While everyone was tilting their heads, Cheong-hwa approached me.
Cheong-hwa handed me something from his embrace.
It was a wooden plaque engraved with the Taiji symbol.
Cheong-hyeon's eyes opened so wide they seemed like they would tear.
"Th-That is……."
"It is a plaque proving you are a main mountain disciple of the Wudang Sect. Your name is engraved on the back."
"Gasp."
At Cheong-hwa's words, the audience became completely silent as if everyone had stopped breathing.
Hiccup. An oblivious hiccup was the entirety of the sound that could be heard.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. I was originally going to come right away in the morning, but I was a bit late because I was negotiating with Sect Leader Sahyung."
It wasn't just Cheong-hyeon and the kids who were dumbfounded; it was the same for me.
"Me. I am a main mountain disciple?"
"Yes."
"I've never learned martial arts before, though?"
"Do you take me for a fool? I have heard that twice already."
"Moreover, I am now of crowning age. Turbid energy has accumulated in my body as much as it could, and my muscles and bones are already stiffened."
"I know that. Would you perhaps read the small writing engraved below your name?"
I looked at the back of the wooden plaque.
Just as Cheong-hwa said, my name was engraved, and below it, other letters were written very small.
"Temporary……?"
"Yes. No matter how much I persuaded Sect Leader Sahyung, he would not allow anything more than that. You will have to strive to become an official main mountain disciple under me. The fact that you are of crowning age and have never learned martial arts before just as you said must have been the sticking point."
"Isn't that normal?"
"That could be the case since he hasn't seen your talent. But I have seen your talent, you see."
Just what talent did he see?
Ah.
He was definitely talking about how I dodged during the spar with Sagong-hyeon.
"That isn't mine."
"What kind of fresh nonsense is that again? Do you hate the Wudang Sect that much?"
"It's not that, but anyway, it isn't my talent. And it's only footwork at best. I have no other talent."
How was I supposed to earn money and buy talent while being a main mountain disciple of the Wudang Sect?
If I became a main mountain disciple, it would truly just be a waste of time.
"Then it means my eyes were wrong, so it is something to blame me for. You have no responsibility."
Cheong-hwa's will was already firm.
I was at a loss for words.
It was already frustrating to death that I was blocked right before being kicked out, but to suddenly become a main mountain disciple.
I didn't want to live risking my life on the edge of a sword.
"Is there no right of refusal?"
"There is none."
Glancing around, everyone had eyes filled with disbelief.
Me being chosen as a main mountain disciple was one thing, but they were even more in disbelief that I was reluctant to be a main mountain disciple of the Wudang Sect.
"This makes no sense!"
At that moment, someone among my peers shouted.
When Cheong-hwa and I looked over there, Sagong-hyeon had eyes filled with anger.
"That guy hasn't even learned a single martial art, and as the child of a farmer, even his roots are incredibly vulgar. How can that guy be a main mountain disciple? Wouldn't I, Sagong-hyeon, be much more suited to be a main mountain disciple!"
"That is correct. Sahyung. It seems there has been some kind of mistake."
Cheong-hyeon added weight to Sagong-hyeon's words.
However, Cheong-hwa's gaze was firm.
"No. I do not doubt my eyes. And vulgar, you say. Just as Hwi-young said, a farmer is not vulgar. They are actually noble like water in the sense that they do hard labor on behalf of others. The highest good is like water, benefiting all things without contention, and resting in places that people disdain! Water benefits all things yet does not fight, and stays in places everyone hates. How can farming not be like this, and how can it be said that it is not the Dao?"
As Cheong-hwa scolded them, Cheong-hyeon and Sagong-hyeon's faces turned red as if they would burst.
I don't know about the others, but being scolded in front of the lay disciples seemed to feel quite insulting to Cheong-hyeon.
"Anyway, consider it settled. I am taking Hwi-young."
"I have not been convinced yet."
As Cheong-hwa tried to lead me away, Sagong-hyeon blocked the path ahead.
Even Cheong-hyeon, who was on his side, was astounded by that action.
"What kind of disrespect is that to Sahyung!"
However, Cheong-hwa dealt with Sagong-hyeon with the same faint smile.
"If you want to take that guy in as a main mountain disciple, please let me spar with him. And if I win, please take me in as a main mountain disciple instead of that guy."
Cheong-hwa, who was silent for a moment, opened his mouth with a gentle voice.
"So I have to convince you."
I suddenly felt a chill.
It actually felt as if the surrounding atmosphere had grown colder.
Cheong-hyeon shut his eyes tightly as if he knew what was about to happen.
"Listen well. In the martial arts world of the Central Plains, the strong do not need to convince the weak. Because they can just kill them. The only ones who need to convince someone are the weak."
Right now, Jinin Cheong-hwa was not the detached Jinin who had been reciting the Dao just a moment ago.
He was a martial artist like a sharp blade.
Fear settled in Sagong-hyeon's eyes.
"Therefore, the one who needs to convince someone is not me, but you. You are the one who must prove to me that you possess the qualifications of a main mountain disciple."
Sagong-hyeon only opened and closed his mouth like a fish, unable to continue speaking.
The atmosphere dominated by Cheong-hwa was that cold and bloody.
"Prove it."
Cheong-hwa drew the sword from his waist.
My heart grew cold at the sharpness of the blue-forged blade.
Even I, who was watching from the side, felt like this, so the pressure weighing on Sagong-hyeon facing him directly would be beyond imagination.
"If you can swing a sword at me right now, I will consider that you have proven it."
Sagong-hyeon trembled.
However, Sagong-hyeon's feet couldn't advance at all, as if blocked by an invisible wall.
He could become a main mountain disciple just by swinging his sword, so why wasn't he swinging it?
I looked at Sagong-hyeon's eyes.
His eyes rapidly became bloodshot, and a nosebleed began to flow.
Cheong-hyeon hurriedly intervened between Cheong-hwa and Sagong-hyeon.
"Sahyung! If you do it any longer, he might fall into qi deviation."
"Far from swinging a sword, you cannot even approach me."
Cheong-hwa ridiculed Sagong-hyeon and sheathed his sword.
As soon as he sheathed his sword, Sagong-hyeon spat out a cough mixed with blood and fell to his knees.
"This is the difference between you and Hwi-young. Because Hwi-young endured Qi pressure of the same intensity."
Only then did I grasp what had happened to Sagong-hyeon.
Cheong-hwa had done exactly what he did when he pressured me with formless Qi when I was trying to sell grass flutes.
Sagong-hyeon looked at me in disbelief.
He seemed unable to believe that I had endured the pressure he couldn't withstand.
Honestly, I couldn't believe it either.
Because I hadn't received a pressure strong enough to make me vomit blood like that.
"Let's go."
Cheong-hwa turned around.
No matter how much it was me, I didn't have the courage to put up a fuss there.
I followed Cheong-hwa and stole a glance backward.
Everyone was blankly tracing my back with their eyes.