Chapter 55
“Grandpa……”
“Yes, So-yun?”
“Sob…… Daddy said he’d be back after a few nights, but when is he coming? Why isn’t he coming back?”
This question should have come up sooner.
For some reason, even though her father has been away from home for more than seven days and nights, So-yun hasn’t shown any emotion.
Because of that, Master Dongbyeok, who was watching, felt even more sorry, but he felt relieved to see So-yun openly whining like a child.
“So-yun. It seems your father has caused trouble this time…… No, he must have started something big.”
“Heh━ Then is my dad going to be rich?”
“Kekeke! What are you talking about?”
“Daddy said he’d make a lot of money when he leaves the house and goes to work.”
“Haha. Your father is also quite something. Yes, yes. So-yun. Your father has gone to make money to raise you without envy. The delay means he’s making more money, so let’s play with Grandpa for a few more days and wait.”
“Okay, Grandpa!”
So-yun will be five years old soon after the new year.
Seeing So-yun, whom he first met when she was three years old, growing up so fast, Master Dongbyeok felt a sense of the passage of time.
“So-yun. You have to take ‘So-yun Elixir’ today too.”
As Master Dongbyeok opened the small wooden box, a fragrant and pleasant medicinal scent spread throughout the room.
“Yes, Grandpa.”
Good medicine tastes bitter.
The first ‘So-yun Elixir’ was also like that.
For a few days, seeing So-yun struggling to adapt to the bitter taste, Master Dongbyeok put his heart into adding herbs like Angelica gigas, licorice, and peppermint to remove the bitterness and maximize the subtle sweetness.
Gulp━.
As So-yun swallowed the So-yun Elixir, a smile bloomed on Master Dongbyeok’s face.
“So-yun. Taking elixirs can be bothersome, and sometimes you might feel uncomfortable afterward. But you have to take them without fail. You can’t see the effects of a tonic overnight. Consistent long-term consumption is necessary to help with health, promote recovery, and stimulate growth. Understand?”
“Yes, Grandpa. I understand!”
“Huh-huh. And…… If you ever aspire to learn martial arts in the future, the So-yun Elixir you’re taking now will be of great help.”
“Hehe. Grandpa. I want to learn martial arts too.”
“Oh?”
“Daddy said he’d raise So-yun as the Sword Empress.”
“Ugh…… Your father said something terrible. To become the Sword Empress means to become the greatest female swordswoman of the generation. Why would you walk such a thorny path of pain? chuckle. So-yun. If you want to, Grandpa will help you.”
“Hehehe. Then will you teach me martial arts too?”
“Yes. Now that you’re turning five, when that time comes, both your father and Grandpa will…… teach you martial arts.”
Master Dongbyeok stroked So-yun’s hair.
‘The children of the Eight Great Families usually start training when they turn five.’
That’s right.
The children of the so-called Eight Great Families, such as Namgung, Tang, and Moyong, start training when they’re around So-yun’s age.
Therefore, there’s no reason why So-yun can’t start learning martial arts right away.
‘Besides, So-yun is a genius. Of course, martial arts aren’t greatly related to natural talent, but…… If she has excellent comprehension like her father, the speed at which she grasps the essence of martial arts will be significant.’
Moreover, the So-yun that Master Dongbyeok saw was twice as bright as her peers.
Jin So-cheon’s martial arts are great not because of his natural talent, but because of his unique understanding, analysis, application skills, and insight that penetrates martial arts.
There was no guarantee that So-yun wouldn’t become like that in the future.
However……
‘Ugh! Still!! That man is so stubborn. Would he go easy on his own daughter? He’s the type who thinks training without pain is a scam, so he’ll probably try to train So-yun like he’s catching a rat.’
The problem was Jin So-cheon’s brutal training methods.
Master Dongbyeok didn’t deny the direction of training that Jin So-cheon pursued.
However, considering his usual personality, he was worried that So-yun would also be tormented terribly.
‘Hmm…… By the way, that man. Is he really okay?’
Suddenly, he wondered about Jin So-cheon’s whereabouts, who had only sent a message saying he would be late and had been out of contact since.
Of course, Master Dongbyeok trusted Jin So-cheon, so he believed that even if he was in trouble, he wouldn’t be in danger, but he couldn’t shake off all his worries.
‘Well…… I have no choice but to trust him.’
He wouldn’t do anything reckless and leave his bright and pretty daughter behind, would he?
“So-yun. Let’s go for a walk with Grandpa.”
“Yes, Grandpa!”
Thinking that he would have to scold Jin So-cheon when he returned, Master Dongbyeok held So-yun’s hand and headed towards the lakeside.
◈ ◈ ◈
“Jin…… Sect Leader Jin. How about stopping here?”
“He must be a cripple by now.”
“Even if it’s a fight to the death…… This isn’t a duel, it’s a one-sided beating. Wouldn’t it be better to just kill him with one strike……”
Has it been exactly 100 hits?
The martial artists expressed their concerns towards me as I continued to beat up Noh Jeong-ju, who had lost the will to resist.
I glanced at their faces once.
It was an expression covered in shock, to the point where the expression”pale blue”would be appropriate. By now, everyone must have realized the ruthlessness of the Dawn Heaven Sect.
“Jeong-ju. Originally, it would be right to beat you to death painfully in this place. However, since the fellow martial artists are requesting it, I’ll hold back. Live without the name of an assassin from now on.”
Squish━.
As soon as I finished speaking, I stepped on Noh Jeong-ju’s throat once again.
“Grrr!”
Then, a groan and blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.
“Fellow martial artists. As you can see, today’s duel has ended with my victory. Thank you all for gracing this occasion, and since you’re here, how about a drink? Come on! Let’s all go down.”
First.
Since I won the duel and they were the guests I invited, I intended to treat them to a drink.
But……
“Ha…… Haha…… Sect Leader Jin. The drink will have to wait for another time.”
“Th, that is, I have urgent matters to attend to……”
“Next time…… Let’s meet next time, Sect Leader Jin!”
Contrary to my thoughts, the guests vehemently refused and hurried away as if they were running away.
Actually……
I knew it would be like this.
Their reaction was only natural.
They are all martial artists based in Sanyang, regardless of whether they belong to the righteous or evil factions.
In other words, they are the local bigwigs of this area.
Since today’s duel ended with my victory, and it’s clear that Noh Jeong-ju will become a cripple, they will probably hurry back to assess the future power structure of Sanyang and the changing regional situation to solidify their positions.
Another thing.
They seemed to be shocked by my cruelty.
If I had cut down Noh Jeong-ju with a single strike, no one would have blamed my actions, but……
I beat up Noh Jeong-ju, who couldn’t even resist, like a dog on a hot summer day.
Of course, I did that to show the ruthlessness of the Dawn Heaven Sect, but wouldn’t the martial artists who don’t know my true intentions perceive me as a ruthless and stubborn person?
‘Good.’
At least.
From now on, no martial artist in Sanyang will dare to challenge me or the Dawn Heaven Sect.
◈ ◈ ◈
Noh Jeong-ju is being treated in the infirmary after being beaten half to death……
“Don’t worry, your Sect Leader won’t die. I only hit him in places where it wouldn’t be fatal, so his life is not in danger. However, his dantian has been destroyed, so your Sect Leader will no longer be able to use martial arts. Of course, I intend to destroy all of your dantians as well, so from now on, the name Noh Family Assassin’s Guild will cease to exist in the martial world.”
“Understood.”
“Understood? Casual language?”
“Understood.”
I spoke to Noh Woong, the current Vice Sect Leader of the Noh Family and Noh Jeong-ju’s cousin, after returning to the Noh Family Assassin’s Guild.
At first, the family members were openly hostile towards me, but after experiencing Elder Ju Yeong-cheon’s martial prowess, they became very obedient.
In that sense, the real ‘opportunity’ and ‘gift’ of this journey is Elder Ju Yeong-cheon.
If he wasn’t there?
Perhaps by now, I would have been fighting for my life against all of them, or I would have been planning to use guerrilla tactics to take them down one by one.
“Sect Leader Jin.”
At that moment, Vice Sect Leader Noh Woong spoke.
“Why?”
“As promised, we will close down the guild. As soon as the Sect Leader wakes up, we intend to leave Sanyang as soon as possible.”
“But?”
“However…… Could you return Ho-yeong? He’s of no use to the current Sect Leader Jin, is he?”
“Shut up. From the moment Noh Jeong-ju lost to me, Ho-yeong became the permanent ‘asset’ of our sect.”
“An asset? We will transfer all of our family’s assets to the Dawn Heaven Sect as promised. But how can Ho-yeong become your asset? There’s nothing more to take from us.”
“Ho-yeong is currently a ‘living wooden dummy’ of the Dawn Heaven Sect. In other words, he’s serving as a training dummy. Ho-yeong has a good foundation in assassin training, so he has considerable endurance. Where else can I find such an unlimited human dummy?”
“……”
“Anyway, let me know as soon as your Sect Leader wakes up. I’ll be staying at the inn at the crossroads.”
“Understood.”
After finishing the conversation with Noh Woong, I went to the inn I had booked in advance and sat down in a meditative posture.
‘Hmm……’
This fight……
To be honest, if we only consider the fight itself, I didn’t experience any significant growth or enlightenment like when I killed the Demon Slayer Baek Gui-ho.
However, during the seven days and nights of preparing for the duel, I simply meditated consistently to maximize my basic physical abilities, such as reflexes and dynamic vision, and based on that foundation, I was able to identify Noh Jeong-ju’s weaknesses.
But with this basic training and combat method, I was able to defeat Noh Jeong-ju, who was stronger than Baek Gui-ho and Noh Ho-yeong, without much difficulty.
Of course, Noh Jeong-ju’s inherent level of martial arts was definitely not inferior to mine.
He possessed internal energy that far surpassed mine, and he also had a strong body that could withstand the release of that energy.
However.
A fight is never decided solely by the level of martial arts.
That’s why, in my past life, I was able to kill Cheongjin Sword Master, the leader of the Mount Hua Sect and one of the Five Kings among the One Emperor, Three Sovereigns, and Five Kings, at Yeonhwabong, which was practically the front yard of the Mount Hua Sect.
“Hehehe. Little brother!”
At that moment.
Elder Ju addressed me, who had been quietly immersed in meditation.
“Yes, Elder.”
“Actually, I…… had a realization this time.”
“Yes?”
“Little brother, in terms of martial arts skills, you’re only at an average level compared to your peers, but……”
I’m at an average level compared to my peers……
Well, the Elder must see top-notch talents like the Nine Phoenixes of the Righteous Path all the time, so someone like me would seem average.
“It seems like you have a remarkable ability to understand martial arts. Kekeke. How should I put it? It’s like you’re devising strategies during a fight.”
“Isn’t that natural? You have to formulate strategies after exchanging blows with your opponent, based on their approach.”
“Hehe. Easier said than done. Who can do such a thing? I can’t even do it.”
“Well, Elder, you…… don’t need to do that.”
“Hehe. Anyway, that’s what I wanted to say.”
“What?”
“I know someone who’s just like you, little brother. As the saying goes, ‘You can tell a lot about a person by observing one thing,’ and I think you’ll become like him in the future.”
“Who is he?”
“Sword Emperor Dokgo Hwang.”
“Ah……”
Sword Emperor Dokgo Hwang.
If it’s him…… He’s the current best of the righteous faction.
I wonder if he’s also crazy like me……