WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Chapter 166: If I Hear the Dao in the Morning, I Can Die by Evening (6)
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Deep within Wudang’s inner grounds stood the Council of Dao Discussion Hall, within the Sect Leader’s Residence.
It was a modest yet solemn building.
Usually empty, it was full for the first time in a long while.
Wudang’s Sect Leader, Hwagokja, and every elder had gathered there.
“What a strange matter.”
“A boy called Yeon Sowol has brought the Cotton Palm Art...”
“Hyeonso has confirmed that it appears to be genuine, at least on the surface.”
“If it is Hyeonso, they must have seen the original Cotton Palm Art manuscript several times. It may truly be real.”
“Jangjin. What did this Yeon Sowol say?”
To Jangjin, a second-generation disciple, the Sect Leader and elders were old enough to be his grandfathers. In other words, they were his grandmasters.
Naturally, he answered with utmost respect.
“He said that he personally slew a supreme master of the Demonic Cult and obtained the Cotton Palm Art.”
“Huh. How remarkable.”
“Strange indeed.”
The elders looked at one another.
“At the very least, the Cotton Palm Art must be genuine. No one in the world even knows that Wudang lost its original manuscript. Fewer still would know that someone from the Demonic Cult stole it.”
“But could this not be a Demonic Cult plot? They may have sent an agent among us.”
“Hmm... That is true. It is difficult to believe that such a young hero slew a Demonic Cult master. Since we have heard nothing of it, it must have happened in Guangdong rather than Hunan... Which makes even less sense.”
“Even if Guangdong’s heroes joined forces, they could not handle a supreme master of the Demonic Cult. Especially not that sinister fellow who entered Wudang and stole the Cotton Palm Art. Though he had only barely entered the realm, he was undeniably in the transcendent peak realm. And he had mastered demonic arts.”
“Still, we cannot simply suspect him without cause. He may truly be a benefactor of Wudang.”
They exchanged one speculation after another, but they were only guesses. Their thoughts spread in every direction without reaching a conclusion.
Hwagokja, who had quietly watched them, finally spoke.
“It is good to consider every possibility. But it is not good to nurture suspicion before we have even met him. I believe we have worried enough. Now, let us consider what we should do if Hero Yeon truly is our benefactor.”
At his clear gaze, the elders straightened their posture.
Before becoming Wudang’s Sect Leader, Hwagokja had been its chief disciple.
In private, he was the senior brother of every elder sitting here, so they all treated him respectfully.
Even without that relationship, none could think of defying his words in the face of Hwagokja’s strange bearing.
Hwagokja continued.
“As you all know, the Cotton Palm Art is the root of Wudang’s palm arts. Even the Tenfold Brocade Palm can be considered a palm art derived from it. Yet we lost it. We lost the original manuscript, densely filled with the realizations and explanations our masters had studied and recorded over generations. It is Wudang’s history itself. Hero Yeon has come to return such a thing to us.”
“Mm.”
“The Sect Leader is right.”
The elders nodded one after another.
“Moreover, he recovered it after it nearly fell into the hands of the Demonic Cult. This is no ordinary favor. If it is truly a favor, then consider carefully how we should repay it.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Good. How clear your hearts are, to accept that so quickly.”
When Hwagokja fell silent again, the elders glanced at one another and began speaking.
“...Surely the most likely outcome is that we teach him martial arts?”
“He will probably ask for that from the start.”
As experienced elders, they immediately saw through what Yeon Sowol might request.
After all, this was not the first time something like this had happened.
“Then the question is who will teach him.”
“...For the favor of returning the Cotton Palm Art, one of us elders should step forward.”
“Hmm. Does anyone wish to try teaching Hero Yeon? I hear his talent is extraordinary.”
“Ahem.”
“Hmm.”
But when the question became who, specifically, would teach Yeon Sowol, the elders cleared their throats and avoided one another’s eyes.
“Would the Seventh Elder not be suitable?”
“No, Senior Brother. You know I oversee the cultivation and training of the first-generation disciples.”
“Exactly. You can take on one more while you are at it.”
“Senior Brother! Is that the same thing? Yeon Sowol is a layman. We would have to begin by teaching him Clear Heart... How long would that take...”
“Then should this old man do it?”
“Well...”
Before long, the elders were squabbling among themselves.
Hwagokja watched them with a faint smile, then reproached them warmly.
“You rascals. You still have not let go of likes and dislikes. It is written all over your faces and voices.”
Some elders looked embarrassed.
Others answered him with complete confidence.
“Is that not because we remain at Clear Heart? Those who have already reached Loss of Self may not be moved by such things, but we are different. We have not yet come to a stop, so we are constantly shaken. I barely have enough time for my own cultivation. And now I must teach an outsider who is not even my disciple? I do not want to.”
It was open whining, but Hwagokja did not rebuke them. Instead, he smiled with pleasure.
“It is good to see. Upon reaching Loss of Self, one does come to a stop. Yet it is not a stop forced by will. It simply ceases on its own. Therefore, it is natural for you to say that you dislike what you dislike. You are not forcing yourselves to stop, but letting your hearts go where they will. That is truly right. How very clear your Clear Heart is.”
He turned to the side.
“Since that is the situation, if we repay Hero Yeon’s favor with martial arts, the First Elder, Second Elder, or Sixth Elder may have to trouble themselves.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“We shall do so.”
“Celestial Worthy, Incarnation of the Golden Palace Who Subdues Demons...”
The three elders chosen had an entirely different air from the others.
They were so quiet and still that one only realized afterward that they had been sitting there all along.
Unlike the other elders, who had shown reluctance to teach Yeon Sowol, they displayed no dislike at all. No expression at all, in fact. They accepted it as calmly as if told that dinner would be served at sundown.
The other elders moistened their lips at the sight.
“Hmm... That may be a little too much.”
“One of Wudang’s transcendent peak-realm masters teaching an outsider does not sit quite right with me...”
“Right? It does feel that way, does it not? So perhaps you should just teach him...”
“No, Senior Brother.”
The Council of Dao Discussion Hall grew noisy once more.
Hwagokja watched with a faint smile, then suddenly turned his gaze.
“He will be here soon.”
---
Yeon Sowol and Hyeonso entered the Sect Leader’s Residence.
“Is that jar all right now?”
“Ha ha. Now that we know the problem, our first-generation disciples and potters will work on it together. Still, thank you. We might have ruined everything without even knowing why.”
“I am glad I could help.”
Hyeonso suddenly stared at Yeon Sowol.
“What is it?”
“Now that I think about it, detecting such a minute imbalance in moisture cannot be done merely by having sharp qi sense.”
“Is that so?”
“It is. I believe you stand at the threshold of the peak realm, Hero Yeon. Is that not right?”
“That is correct.”
“At the peak realm, qi gains a nature. But if that qi were inclined too strongly in one direction, it would have been difficult to detect such subtle water qi. My own qi is already too inclined in one direction, so I find it difficult to sense anything that fine.”
A light seemed to shine in Hyeonso’s eyes.
“That is why I believe you have built your qi evenly and harmoniously. Without such exquisite balance, you could not have sensed it.”
To reach such a conclusion from so few clues.
Yeon Sowol nodded, inwardly impressed.
“Yes. I was fortunate enough to gain some insight. I am trying to cultivate qi that is as great and harmonious as possible.”
“Huh... Is that truly so?”
Hyeonso looked at him anew, then smiled.
“I think the elders will think very highly of you, Hero Yeon.”
“Do you think so?”
“Especially if you wish to learn martial arts in exchange for bringing the Cotton Palm Art.”
“Ah.”
Before Yeon Sowol could respond after having his inner thoughts exposed, Hyeonso grinned.
“When ordinary martial artists want something from Wudang, martial arts are never left out. But your qi is already vast and harmonious, making you ideally suited to shape the Supreme Ultimate. If we must teach someone, it is better to teach someone who will learn well. Everyone will surely be pleased.”
That would be wonderful.
Wudang.
There were parts of the sect that made him tilt his head, but its martial arts seemed to be the real thing.
Yeon Sowol felt his heart beat faster and gave Hyeonso a deep fist-and-palm salute.
“Thank you for speaking so favorably of me, Daoist temple master.”
“I should be thanking you. To gain the essence of Wudang’s martial arts, one must cultivate Clear Heart... It will not be easy. Still, with qi like yours, you should make great progress even without Clear Heart.”
As they spoke, the two passed through several doors within the Sect Leader’s Residence.
At the end stood a large building with only one word written upon it: Hall.
It sat majestically atop a raised platform.
Before it lay a broad courtyard paved with stone slabs.
Normally, the masters would stand atop the platform while the disciples lined up below in the courtyard to receive instruction.
But now, masters with refined appearances stood gathered in the courtyard.
“I pay respects to the Sect Leader.”
Only after seeing Hyeonso give a deep salute did Yeon Sowol realize that the Daoist standing in the center was Hwagokja, Wudang’s Sect Leader.
Despite being in his late sixties, his hair and beard were remarkably black.
If not for the wrinkles across his forehead, chin, and neck, it would have been impossible to guess his age.
Yeon Sowol hurriedly clasped his hands and bowed.
“I am Yeon Sowol of the Guangdong Martial Alliance. I pay respects to Wudang’s Sect Leader.”
“It is good to meet you, Dao friend.”
Hwagokja returned the greeting with a light fist-and-palm salute, then stared intently at Yeon Sowol.
“...”
He stared intently at Yeon Sowol.
“...”
He stared intently at Yeon Sowol.
‘...Why, why is he looking at me like that?’
Chirp, chirp. Somewhere, a bird called. The elders’ robes gave a rustle.
At last, just as the elders began looking at Hwagokja in confusion, Hwagokja smiled faintly and held out his hand.
“May I see it?”
Thank goodness.
Glad to escape the awkward situation, Yeon Sowol took the book from his robes and handed it to Hwagokja.
Flip.
Flip.
Hwagokja accepted it and turned through every page, slowly yet swiftly. Then he nodded.
“As expected. It is genuine.”
He smiled faintly at Yeon Sowol.
“In truth, we spoke among ourselves before you arrived, Dao friend.”
At that, one of the elders’ shoulders twitched.
‘Dao friend? Did he just call that boy a Dao friend?’
Only then did the elder realize it.
Hwagokja, who had called Yeon Sowol Hero Yeon until now, had suddenly begun calling him a Dao friend.
A Dao friend.
A friend who walked the path of the Dao alongside another.
It was not a term used for just anyone.
It was reserved for fellow Daoists, or at the very least cultivators such as monks and Confucian scholars.
It carried the shared understanding and respect of those who cultivated and learned together.
Yet Wudang’s Sect Leader was calling a secular martial artist of the Jianghu, barely twenty years of age, a Dao friend?
Hwagokja spoke.
“We had a concern. What if you were an agent of the Demonic Cult?”
“Ah.”
Yeon Sowol’s eyes widened.
From Wudang’s perspective, he could understand why they might think so.
‘But if they truly suspect me, how am I supposed to explain myself...?’
As Yeon Sowol nervously moistened his suddenly dry lips, Hwagokja spoke with an easy smile.
“It was an unnecessary concern.”
He examined Yeon Sowol from every angle, as though he found him fascinating.
“You have already cultivated Clear Heart. Someone like you would never fall for the Demonic Cult’s temptations.”
What? Me?
Yeon Sowol’s eyes went round.
“Clear Heart...?”
“That child already has it?”
“How could a secular martial artist...?”
The elders’ mouths fell open.
“Your qi is unfathomable. How could you hold it in check without Clear Heart? How clear you are. Truly clear. Clear beyond clear, that heart of yours.”
Hwagokja’s voice rang out as though driving in the final nail.
“...I-Is he really that clear?”
One elder’s shocked question rippled through the silence.
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