Dropped into Murim with an Instant-Kill Skill - Chapter 29

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Chapter 29: A Young Man's Aspirations Lie in the Jianghu

──────

General Chu Seongho asked,

“Yi Yubaek of Shinheung County. Why have you caused this disturbance?”

Yi Yubaek answered.

“Mencius said that one should enjoy things alongside the people. I heard that ten thousand lanterns would be lit here today to honor the Buddha’s virtue. At the same time, the mountains and fields of Shinheung County are overrun with tigers, and the people have been greatly troubled by them. I merely called my friends of the Jianghu here so that we could forget those worries for a while and enjoy ourselves together.”

“...”

A suffocating silence descended.

Even the sound of breathing faded.

After a long silence, the general spoke.

“Your tongue is sharp.”

Depending on how one heard it, Yi Yubaek’s words could have been a scathing rebuke.

The sages of old said people should enjoy things alongside the common folk, so why were they enjoying themselves alone?

Did they not know that the people of Shinheung County were suffering at the hands of bandits?

No, that was exactly what he meant.

Yi Yubaek had openly insulted the second-rank Co-Defender of Liangguang, Commander-in-Chief of the armies.

He did so despite having no confidence that he could withstand either the man’s authority or even a fraction of his martial arts.

The general clasped his hands behind his back.

“Yes. Your words are right. They are right. But!”

He stared directly at Yi Yubaek.

It felt as though the entire world were glaring at him.

Though he was not standing in Yi Yubaek’s place, Sowol still flinched.

‘How can Father...’

He stared blankly at Yi Yubaek’s back, still standing straight and unruffled.

“No matter how right the words may be, when they come from the mouth of a petty man, they are no more than trickery and clever lies. I must learn what kind of man you truly are.”

Standing atop the towering vessel, he gazed down at Yi Yubaek and asked,

“Do you have disciples?”

“I have three.”

“Do you have a son?”

“I have one adopted son.”

“Yi Yubaek’s adopted son, step forward.”

At those words, Sowol felt as though his breath had stopped.

‘Step forward? Me? All of a sudden? Here?’

The qi in the surrounding area was still frozen.

Sowol could feel it.

This entire place was General Chu Seongho’s domain.

With a single gesture from him, Sowol’s head could be lopped off like a stalk of millet.

Sowol was seized by the most primal terror a living creature could feel.

Like a cat unable to stand before a lion, his feet froze in place.

But...

‘...Father.’

Sowol looked at Yi Yubaek’s back, straight and steady.

He was the man who had taken up a sword, destroyed the Heat Cauldron Sect, and saved the children.

The man who had slain countless villains and earned the title of Great Hero from the people.

The man who was about to subjugate Heavenly Road Mountain once again.

That man was waiting for him there.

Once he thought that,

Step.

His stuck feet came loose.

Sowol lightly kicked off the ground, leaped over several boats, and landed softly beside Yi Yubaek.

“I am Yeon Sowol, adopted son of Yi Yubaek of Shinheung County.”

He clasped his hands in salute and bowed.

Before he could even straighten up, Chu Seongho’s frost-cold voice fell upon him.

“One can know the father by looking at the child. Let me ask you. What do you think of what your adoptive father just said? Do you not think he is simply dressing up his words? Can you swear before me that your adoptive father truly rose up for the country and its people without a single selfish motive?”

Rustle.

The qi that had been frozen all around them began to stir.

It revolved around Sowol, slowly, ever so slowly.

As though he stood in the eye of a typhoon.

Sowol felt his back grow damp with sweat.

‘This... I can’t make anything up. I have to say it exactly as it is. Exactly as I think.’

It was a powerful instinct.

A bone-deep certainty that no matter how convincing a lie he made up, the general would see through it at once.

He had to speak.

Exactly as he thought.

With nothing but sincerity.

Even if the people here found it strange or difficult to accept.

It could not be helped.

Sowol swallowed.

Then he slowly opened his lips.

“Even if he has selfish motives, how is that a problem?”

“What?”

Ssssss.

The qi around Sowol grew even heavier.

Sowol tensed his weakening legs and forced out his voice.

“Does a farmer farm because of the great cause of feeding the whole world, or because of the selfish desire to fill the hungry bellies of himself and his family?”

“...!”

The wind trembled.

Sowol gritted his teeth and remembered the economic theories he had learned in school.

'Adam Smith. Individual selfish actions can create social good.'

There was no other path anyway, so he spoke exactly as he felt and thought.

“A farmer farms out of selfish desire, but when those selfish desires gather and gather, they end up feeding the whole world. General, there is no sin in self-interest. Working hard to obtain what is one’s own is part of the natural disposition Heaven gives to people.”

“...”

The water rippled.

The mirror-like stillness broke, warping in every direction.

“What is wrong is not self-interest, but wickedness. If a farmer does not farm to feed himself and instead covets what belongs to others, that would be wickedness. The bandits of Heavenly Road Mountain are exactly like that. My adoptive father took up his sword because he hated that wickedness. Therefore, there can be no wickedness in his intentions. Even if my adoptive father possesses self-interest, there is not a trace of wickedness in him. Just as the farmer feeds the world, he will only feed Shinheung County.”

“...”

The general said nothing.

The surroundings were silent and still.

Not a single Jianghu person, officer, or soldier dared so much as rustle a sleeve.

After a long silence, Chu Seongho finally spoke.

“Ordinary at first glance, yet ingenious. Once examined, it follows reason, yet I have never heard such a strange way of thinking from anyone. You truly are a man of the Jianghu.”

He glanced behind him as if listening to someone speak.

A moment later, he called Yi Yubaek.

“Yi Yubaek of Shinheung County.”

“Yes, General.”

“You have raised an admirable son.”

“You give him too much credit.”

“Good.”

He released his hands from behind his back and looked down at them all.

“The Governor-General has given permission as well. I will hear your words. But today is a day to honor the Buddha’s virtue, so I will hear them only after the lanterns have been lit and the ceremonies completed. Until then, enjoy yourselves over there.”

Flutter.

General Chu Seongho turned away. His body slowly descended the stairs until he vanished completely from sight.

Whoosh.

The wind, which had been blocked and could only tremble, finally flowed freely.

The energy of nature swayed as usual, and the sound of the river slapping against the boats returned.

Then the Jianghu people...

“Waaaaah!”

“Well, would you look at that? It actually worked!”

“We got permission in the end. Thanks to you, we’ll get to see something wonderful.”

“That young hero was incredible. I was moved.”

“What sin is there in self-interest? It is natural too!”

They stomped their feet, beat the sides of their boats, and cheered.

* * *

“All right! Now, let’s really enjoy ourselves!”

At Yi Yubaek’s signal, people who had been hiding along the riverbank until this very moment rose in a great wave.

“Oh?”

“Ho!”

The Jianghu people aboard the boats cried out in amazement.

The newcomers were the inner disciples of Windflow Martial Academy, along with martial artists from Shinheung County led by the Severing Sword Sect and White Dragon Gang.

While the advance party led by Yi Yubaek drew everyone’s attention, the rear party had infiltrated the area much more easily.

Since it had been easy, they had also brought fresh food, courtesans, and musicians loaded down with supplies.

Once the dim lantern light revealed what the martial artists of Shinheung County had brought, everyone cheered at once.

“Waaaaah!”

“Now this is something. Yi Yubaek really went all out, didn’t he?”

The alcohol had been loaded onto the boats from the start, and now dishes carried by the martial artists of the White Dragon Gang and Severing Sword Sect were brought aboard as well.

They were delicacies freshly prepared by the most skilled cooks in Shinheung County.

The musicians who had been carried over took their places and began to play, while the courtesans danced and sang.

Among them, Sowol spotted Choran’s face. Nearby sat Eun-yeong, dressed as a man and wearing her usual expressionless face.

Planks were laid between the boats, lanterns were lit, and costly incense was burned to heighten the mood. In no time, a grand banquet had been spread across the river.

The Jianghu people were astonished by how smoothly it all came together.

“I never expected to be treated this well...”

“Yi Yubaek of Shinheung County. He is an even greater man than I thought!”

“His son was impressive too.”

“Exactly.”

In truth, the martial artists gathered here had all come with different intentions.

Those close to Yi Yubaek, along with a few righteous heroes, had come for a noble cause. Most of the others, however, were not especially interested in such things.

More had come simply to witness the once-in-a-lifetime spectacle of ten thousand river lanterns and ten thousand sky lanterns.

Quite a few had only followed because their friends were going.

They had gathered with all sorts of motives, yet Yi Yubaek had managed to satisfy every one of them.

“Great Hero Yi Yubaek, I will not forget today’s hospitality.”

“Great Hero Yi Yubaek, the food is excellent!”

Even the Jianghu people who had initially been distant toward Yi Yubaek passed by with smiles and kind words.

Sowol and the three disciples stood beside Yi Yubaek, greeting them together.

“Hey.”

At that moment, the Woman-Dressing Official, Chu Jinhyeok, suddenly stepped in front of Sowol.

He looked him over quietly.

Chu Jinhyeok was also exceptionally tall for this era, so his eyes met Sowol’s at precisely the same height.

Yet the oppressive force of his presence was something else.

His face was coated in white powder.

His lips were painted a vivid red.

The lines of his square face stood out sharply.

Sowol swallowed.

“Your name was Yeon Sowol?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me something...”

The Woman-Dressing Official, Chu Jinhyeok, asked,

“What do you think about dismissing an official from office because he dressed as a woman?”

'Here it comes!'

Trying not to stumble over his words, Sowol calmly answered.

“I think it is absurd. An official post is bestowed by His Majesty the Emperor. Before His Majesty, where are men, women, or men dressed as women? They are all equally his subjects. The Emperor has already chosen to employ someone, yet dismissing them simply because they dressed as a woman? That is no different from saying a man who dresses as a woman is not one of the Emperor’s subjects. To say such a thing is to make the realm ruled by His Majesty the Emperor smaller. It is practically treason.”

“You...!”

The Woman-Dressing Official’s eyes widened.

He looked around.

“Heh heh.”

Whenever his gaze met someone else’s, he let out a deflated little laugh.

“Heh heh heh.”

He looked around.

“Heh heh.”

He looked around again.

“Heh heh heh. Did you see that? Did everyone hear him?”

A grin spread across his face.

“Sowol.”

He called him more warmly than before.

“Yes.”

“If anyone gives you trouble, make sure to call me. And take this.”

Whoosh!

Chu Jinhyeok tossed him a round porcelain case.

“It is Golden Wound Medicine. It is incredibly effective on external injuries. Even if you have gold, you cannot buy it when there is none to be found. Do not save it, though. Use it generously when you need it. If you need more later, tell me.”

Pat, pat.

Chu Jinhyeok patted Sowol on the shoulder and moved on.

Yi Yubaek smiled.

“That is a rare treasure worth at least one and a half taels of gold. Some people rack up debts of a thousand taels with one sentence, but you earn a thousand taels with a few words.”

Sowol smiled shyly.

* * *

“Lanterns!”

As the drinking party aboard the boats began to reach its height, a distant voice drifted over the river.

Those who turned toward it without thinking opened their mouths in wonder.

“Ah.”

“Ah...”

Lights floated downstream.

Swaying lanterns, alight with flame, drifted down the Jipseong River.

Then once more,

“Lanterns!”

This time, everyone fixed their eyes upon the source of the voice.

“Ah!”

“This is...”

A full moon rose there.

Though the moon in the sky was clearly only half full that night.

One full moon appeared, then became two, then four, then multiplied without end.

Red, yellow, blue, sky lanterns of every color rose into the air on the wind.

Ten thousand river lanterns.

Ten thousand sky lanterns.

There was no end to them.

Glowing lanterns flowed endlessly down the river, tapping gently against the boatsides.

The sky lanterns formed a Milky Way overhead.

A mysterious fragrance spread thickly through the air.

It no longer felt as though they stood on the river.

It no longer felt like the human world.

Even the well-traveled people of the Jianghu lost themselves in the feast of lantern light filling Heaven and Earth.

“...Perhaps I was born to see this.”

At someone’s muttered words, many people silently nodded.

“Iron flowers!”

Iron flowers were a spectacle where molten metal was struck and scattered through the air.

The performers held willow clubs soaked in water. When a person dropped molten metal toward them, they struck it with all their strength as if hitting a baseball. The yellow and red-hot metal burst into tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of droplets, blooming like flowers in the sky.

Baaang!

With a crisp strike, sparks scattered across the heavens.

“Huh.”

Sowol was left speechless by the sight.

His eyes nearly welled up.

‘Fireworks...’

The molten metal bursting into countless droplets looked exactly like the fireworks he had seen on Earth.

His nose stung with homesickness and unexpected happiness.

“The Governor-General ordered us to set off iron flowers here as well, so we have come.”

The iron-flower performers sent by the Governor-General greeted them, then immediately struck the molten metal.

Baaang!

With another bright sound, sparks burst up beside them and spilled brilliantly over their heads.

Was it not dangerous?

Everyone here was a Jianghu person. They did not care. They simply caught the shower of sparks that fell toward their clothes, laughing as they tossed them into the river.

Sparks fell from the sky and onto people’s hands.

‘Wow. Wow. Wow...’

The Jianghu.

It was a world with little entertainment.

Outside of martial arts training, it was simply dull.

Yet now, ten thousand river lanterns drifted past on the water.

Ten thousand sky lanterns rose into the heavens.

Iron flowers bloomed before his eyes.

Spectacles that would have been incredible even on Earth unfolded one after another.

Sowol stood there entranced.

If someone from the twenty-first century like him felt this way, how much more overwhelmed must the people of the Jianghu have been?

“I am truly glad I came today...”

“Same here. I hesitated because I was worried for no reason. What a fool I was.”

Sowol took in even those Jianghu people as though lost in a dream.

Yi Yubaek approached him.

“Have a drink.”

Clear liquor poured into a red cup.

He drank it in one gulp. It burned hotly going down, then left an apple scent at the end.

At that moment, there was nothing in this place but light, sweetness, and fragrance.

“The liquor... is good.”

“Is it?”

Yi Yubaek stroked Sowol’s hair.

“Sowol.”

He spoke.

“You asked what the Jianghu was, did you not?”

Sowol remembered the conversation they had had atop the wall.

“Yes. I did. Though everyone was rather vague.”

“Before that, you also asked me who Jianghu people were.”

“Yes.”

“Do you remember my answer?”

“You said that people who live according to their station in a country built by law are called the common folk, while people who live as their hearts lead them along rivers and lakes are called Jianghu people.”

Yi Yubaek nodded.

“Then I will explain it in greater detail today.”

Pour.

He filled another cup for Sowol.

The more he drank, the hotter his insides became, and the more richly the fragrance lingered in his nose.

“The people of this land are bound together by fate, and there are countless rules they must follow.”

At that, Sowol thought of Choran, who had said that if she stopped being a courtesan, she would be nothing but a fool.

He thought of the Woman-Dressing Official, Chu Jinhyeok, who had been dismissed from office for dressing as a woman.

“That is why it is only natural for each person to struggle to break an unreasonable fate and escape rules they cannot accept. Even more so when something weighs on their hearts. Most fail, of course, but once in a while, there are people who break their limits, step outside the mold, and come to live in their own way.”

Yi Yubaek paused for a moment and met Sowol’s eyes.

“Those people are called Jianghu people.”

‘People who broke their limits, their rules, their mold... Ah. So that was why.’

Only then did Sowol understand.

Why Yi Yubaek had asked again if he really intended to come along while they stood on the wall that day.

Why his three disciples had said they welcomed him.

At that time, Sowol had stepped outside the mold through his own will.

He had defied the travel ban and chosen to come boating.

He had crossed a limit and broken a rule.

‘So that was where the Jianghu began.’

He suddenly looked around.

People filled every direction.

People who had gone out of their way to come all the way to the Jipseong River, despite the strict travel ban, determined to take a boat ride.

They truly were all Jianghu people.

Yi Yubaek continued.

“Those who step outside the mold the world has set for them, and survive despite it, will somehow make a name for themselves.”

Whether their names were openly declared or discreetly hinted at, like in the Shinheung Danger-Avoidance Manual.

Righteousness and wickedness.

Fame and infamy.

“Even if the name is frivolous and ridiculous. In one way or another, they are people who have made their names known across these rivers and lakes.”

At that moment, someone began to sing.

“For ten years, I dreamed a dream of the Jianghu,

and woke to find I had earned only a reputation for heartlessness in the pleasure quarters.”

Yi Yubaek burst into hearty laughter.

“Yes. There are lives like that too.”

He glanced at the singer with eyes still holding back laughter.

“Sowol. The Jianghu is a place where such Jianghu people gather.”

Some flowed like rivers, while others embraced like lakes. They gathered and scattered, creating channels of fate.

“I am here. You are here. This place itself is the Jianghu.”

“...”

Sowol could not say anything.

He simply watched the lanterns drift down the river.

He watched the lights flowing across the sky.

Baaang!

Sparks covered Heaven and Earth, falling in scattered blossoms.

“Sowol. What do you intend to leave behind in these dazzling rivers and lakes?”

“...”

His mouth had gone stiff.

Something had filled his chest so completely that he could not bring it out in words.

Then a thoroughly drunk Jianghu person happened to pass by and recognized him.

“Oh! I saw you earlier. Your skills were good, and your words left an impression too. There is no wrong in self-interest. Ahh, what was your name again?”

“His name is Yeon Sowol,” Yi Yubaek answered for him.

The drunk Jianghu person nodded again and again.

After looking Sowol up and down once, the person clasped their hands in salute.

“Young Hero Yeon. Welcome to the Jianghu.”

Pat, pat.

They patted Sowol on the shoulder and went on their way.

Had their voice been loud?

Other Jianghu people, all looking for an excuse to drink, immediately clinked their cups together and shouted.

“Young Hero Yeon! Welcome to the Jianghu!”

“Congratulations on your Jianghu debut!”

“Welcome! Here’s to your Jianghu debut!”

Congratulations, congratulations.