Chapter 182

Step. Step.

Under countless watchful eyes, two men walked toward each other. When they finally came face-to-face, they exchanged cupped-fist salutes.

“I am Jin Wikyung of the Jin Family of Taiyuan.”

“I’m Baek Museong of Huashan.”

Huashan.

And Baek Museong.

Those two names alone carried tremendous weight.

Exclamations erupted from every direction, instantly shattering the silence.

“Huashan!”

“Baek Museong! It’s Huashan’s Lone Crane, Baek Museong!”

Though ordinary civilians were mixed in among them, a considerable number of those gathered here today were martial artists.

The name of Huashan and the epithet Huashan’s Lone Crane carried immense prestige.

“My heavens, why did Huashan’s Lone Crane come here?”

“Was the Jin Family of Taiyuan really this influential?”

“W-Wait. If Huashan’s Lone Crane came here, then…”

The people who had been talking over one another began scanning the area. Before long, they spotted the man and woman beside Baek Museong, and another round of exclamations broke out.

“That young man must be the Defeated Flower Fist. He’s enormous, just like I heard.”

“The Flower Sword Phoenix is here too! She’s even beautiful!”

“Whoa! It’s the Three Plum Blossom Elites!”

Chulwoo and Eunhyang looked bewildered by the unexpectedly fervent reception.

Both had accompanied their Master, the Heavenly Sword True Person, into the martial world a few times, but neither had ever received cheers like these.

“What the hell? Am I really this famous? They even know my epithet?”

“Senior Brother Chul, did you hear that? Someone just called me beautiful.”

Chulwoo’s expression turned stern.

“You heard wrong. Pay it no mind.”

“…You’re seriously annoying.”

They had trained together under the same Master since childhood and grown up like brother and sister. Jin Wikyung smiled faintly as they glared daggers at each other.

“You two seem close.”

“They’re still immature and constantly causing trouble. They have a long way to go.”

“Ha-ha. The Defeated Flower Fist and the Flower Sword Phoenix are both outstanding young prodigies. Surely that can’t be true.”

“You flatter us.”

A faint smile touched Baek Museong’s lips. Though this was their first meeting, he found himself liking Jin Wikyung.

Perhaps it was because of the man’s distinctive way of putting people at ease. Or perhaps it was his familiar bulk, which reminded Baek Museong of Chulwoo.

“Let us go inside. This is hardly the place for an important conversation.”

“I agree.”

They had already drawn attention unintentionally.

If even a single word about the Sword Saint slipped out with so many people watching, there would undoubtedly be an uproar.

“Well, then.”

Jin Wikyung dipped his head and led the way.

Baek Museong followed amid the cheers and countless stares, only to stop short.

He could no longer sense his junior disciples behind him.

What is it?

Baek Museong glanced back and saw Chulwoo standing tall as an iron tower, staring intently at something.

“Second.”

At Baek Museong’s call, Chulwoo slowly turned his head.

“Yes, Senior Brother.”

“Is something wrong?”

“No. Nothing.”

Eunhyang, who was standing beside Chulwoo, abruptly cut in.

“That’s not true. Senior Brother Chul was staring at someone just now.”

“Do you know that person?”

Chulwoo immediately shook his head. His massive frame subtly blocked Eunhyang from view.

“As if. Other than going out a couple of times with our Master, I’ve been cooped up at headquarters the whole time.”

“That is… true.”

“My stomach suddenly started hurting, so I was only looking for a privy.”

“Really?”

“Yes. So, if you don’t mind, could I stop by the privy before we go?”

“How long has it been since you last took a piss?”

Chulwoo deliberately hardened his expression.

“If you take care of the big business first, the small business gets taken care of at the same time. But you can’t take care of the big business while doing the small business.”

“…Uh, sure.”

Baek Museong felt vaguely uneasy.

Perhaps it was because his Second Junior Brother, who usually rambled on without making a lick of sense, had answered so smoothly.

“Second, are you thinking about something else—”

He could not finish.

Jin Wikyung had stopped and was looking back at them in puzzlement.

“Young Hero Baek, is something the matter?”

“Oh, no. My junior disciple said he had an urgent matter.”

“What sort of matter?”

“Well… he needs to relieve himself.”

“Oh.”

The people who had been listening closely snickered. Chulwoo scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

“I apologize.”

“Not at all. You must be exhausted after traveling all the way to our family. You should take this opportunity to rest properly.”

Baek Museong considered it for a moment, then nodded. The important conversation was between him and Jin Wikyung anyway. Better to let his junior disciples rest than have them standing beside him and yawning their heads off.

“Great Hero Jin has given you permission, so go ahead.”

“Big Bro—no, Senior Brother. Can I go too?”

“Yes. Do you dislike it?”

“Yes. I just want to stay beside Senior Brother.”

Eunhyang nodded vigorously, and Jin Wikyung smiled.

“Then that settles it. Young Hero Baek?”

“Ah, yes. Let us go.”

Baek Museong resumed walking, still looking unconvinced. Before long, however, he put the matter out of his mind.

Surely nothing could happen in such a short time.

As Chulwoo watched the group recede into the distance, a martial artist from the Jin Family of Taiyuan approached him.

“I’ll guide you to the privy.”

“What do I need a privy for?”

“Pardon?”

“We’re surrounded by mountains. I can just take a dump by the side of the road. Don’t you agree?”

The people surrounding them burst into loud laughter.

There was a common prejudice that members of the Nine Sects and One Gang¹ would be arrogant and rude. But Chulwoo’s refreshing banter made everyone feel as if a weight had been lifted from their chests.

“Of course. That’s right.”

“Though this is the frontier, the mountain scenery around here is beautiful. Go take care of your business while enjoying the view!”

“Hey, Defeated Flower Fist! Since fate brought us together, would you like me to recommend a scenic spot?”

Chulwoo threw back his head and roared with laughter.

“Ha-ha-ha! A scenic spot? Sounds good. But I don’t want to go to the place where you took a dump. Let’s see…”

Chulwoo casually swept his gaze over the crowd, then raised a finger and pointed at one man.

“How about that Brother over there guides me?”

The middle-aged man who had been staring blankly at Chulwoo all this time jolted in surprise.

“M-Me?”

“That’s right. You.”

The middle-aged man was Woo Hwangtae, and his face turned the color of shit.

“Slow down a little. Let’s take it easy from here.”

“Why?”

“Can’t you see the horse is foaming at the mouth? And if we arrive panting and out of breath, everyone will look at us and think, Ah, that bastard was late.”

“That makes a strange amount of sense.”

We gradually eased up on the reins. As we descended the hill, the Jin Family of Taiyuan slowly came into view below.

“By the way, there sure are a lot of people.”

“Seriously. From what I heard, they weren’t supposed to invite anywhere near that many.”

Even a rough count put the crowd camped out before the main gate of the Jin Family of Taiyuan well over several hundred.

Though we were still quite far away, we could even hear faint cheers.

Did an idol show up or something?

I drew on my internal energy and focused on my ears. My hearing, now several times sharper than usual, picked up every cheer from the crowd.

Hyuk Mujin quietly watched me for a moment before asking, “What’s going on? Did they say an important guest arrived?”

“Huashan’s Last Crane and the Plum Blossom Cutoff, apparently.”

“…Those are epithets?”

“Don’t ask me. That’s what I heard.”

We were still pretty far away, so there was a limit to what I could make out.

Still, what kind of epithets were those? Did the Plum Blossom Cutoff have some sort of grudge against Huashan?

At that moment, Cheongpung, who had been lying facedown across his horse’s neck, spoke.

“Benefactor. They said Huashan’s Lone Crane and the Three Plum Blossom Elites.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. I heard them clearly.”

He could hear that from this distance?

Cheongpung was the strongest martial artist among us, so he was probably right.

“I see.”

While I merely nodded without much interest, Hyuk Mujin was so shocked that he nearly fell off his horse.

“H-Huashan’s Lone Crane! The Three Plum Blossom Elites!”

“Are they famous?”

“Famous? That’s putting it mildly! They’re the direct disciples of the Heavenly Sword True Person, the Sect Leader of Huashan!”

“Is this one of those things where you’d have to be an idiot not to know them?”

“No martial artist could possibly not know them!”

“Oh, really?”

I casually pointed behind me. Cheongpung was staring wide-eyed and clapping.

“Wow, those are cool epithets. But where did they say they were from?”

“…”

“…”

“Shaolin Temple, maybe?”

Was he insane?

This was coming from the youngest Junior Brother of Huashan’s Sect Leader himself.

After a long silence, Hyuk Mujin finally spoke.

“Huashan’s Lone Crane. The Three Plum Blossom Elites. You really haven’t heard of them?”

“I like Huashan! I like plum blossoms even more!”

“…Right.”

Style was temporary, but class was forever.

It wasn’t even “I like Dad, but I like Mom more.” What the hell was this?

Was Huashan filed away in his head as Dad and plum blossoms as Mom?

While I pondered the workings of Cheongpung’s mind, Hyuk Mujin finally collected himself and reached a conclusion.

“Anyway, they’re insanely famous.”

“I see.”

“I see.”

“…Is that really all the reaction you’ve got?”

“What kind of reaction were you expecting?”

“Most people would react like I did.”

“So I’m supposed to be so shocked that I fall off my horse?”

Hyuk Mujin climbed back into the saddle and launched into an impassioned speech.

“That’s how big a deal they are! The Heavenly Sword True Person’s disciples! The future of Huashan!”

“I see. They’re no joke.”

I turned toward Cheongpung.

“May I ask your grandfather’s full name?”

“His surname is Mae, and his given name uses the characters Jong and Hak. Mae Jonghak.”

“And his epithet?”

“The Sword Saint.”

“Did you hear that, Mujin?”

“Yes.”

Hyuk Mujin nodded with a blank expression, then came to his senses. His eagerness to make us understand how extraordinary Huashan’s Lone Crane and the Three Plum Blossom Elites were was almost palpable.

“Great Hero Mae Jonghak, the Sword Saint, doesn’t count. Honestly, that would be like an adult joining a children’s fight.”

“So what’s your conclusion?”

“Huashan’s Lone Crane is already a master who has surpassed the level of a young prodigy. At this rate, becoming the next Sect Leader won’t be a problem. The other two members of the Three Plum Blossom Elites are objects of admiration among young martial artists too.”

They really were impressive. From the way he talked about young prodigies, they still seemed to be quite young, yet the public considered them at least world-class.

“Then why am I not particularly impressed?”

“That… I’m not sure.”

Hyuk Mujin thought about it carefully, then his expression suddenly went flat.

“Now that I think about it, I’m not exactly bursting with excitement either.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Huashan’s Lone Crane used to be my idol.”

Cheongpung abruptly cut in.

“Isn’t it because of Grandpa Jeok?”

“Huh?”

“Eh?”

“He’s incredibly strong. And he’s trying to take you as his Disciple.”

The second part was complete bullshit, but the first part was right.

If the Sword Saint, Mae Jonghak, was something above the clouds that I could not even properly picture in my mind, the Fire King, Jeok Cheongang, was a monster that had revealed itself in the flesh.

After experiencing a monster larger than a hundred-story building, it was only natural that a monster the size of a four-story commercial building would make less of an impression.

“And…”

Cheongpung looked straight at me and continued slowly.

“You’re plenty strong, Benefactor.”

“…What?”

“I mean it.”

Something tickled in one corner of my chest, but he was undeniably right about that too.

It wasn’t that I thought I could fight Huashan’s Lone Crane right now without falling behind.

I was certain I could catch up to him before long.

It had taken me only a few months to go from a Third Rate martial artist who knew nothing about martial arts to a Peak master.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine how much I might grow in another year or two.

To me, Huashan’s Lone Crane was a milestone along the road—not an impassable wall.

“Thanks for saying that.”

Cheongpung answered with a sunny smile.

“You’re welcome. Grandpa said weak martial artists without firm resolve need constant attention.”

“…”

Fuck me. It had just been a pep talk.

I was wrestling with the urge to split open the crown of Cheongpung’s head when—

“H-Hey, Young Hero Chul!”

“Hah, listen to this old coot calling me Young Hero Chul. Didn’t you call me a cow’s head earlier?”

“N-No, Great Hero Chul! I committed a grave discourtesy, -so!”²

“Committed-so? -so? Cow? You just called me a cow again, didn’t you?”²

“Eeeeeek! Isn’t that taking it too far? Do you even know how old I am?”

“Yes, Elder. Let’s head up there and have a little talk.”

A young man with a massive build reminiscent of Jin Wikyung was dragging a middle-aged man behind him.

Just as they were about to enter the mountainside beside the hill, the young man spotted us and stopped.

“Brother over there, do you need something?”

He means me, right?