WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 79: I Was Once a Madman of Chu (1)
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The boat sailed on.
Crossing the blue waters of the South Sea, one eventually reached Haojing, where the sea lay as calm as a mirror.
Yeon Sowol stood at the prow, watching the sea. His lips moved soundlessly, and his fingers fidgeted.
Jin Geol suddenly asked, “What are you thinking about so hard this time?”
“Ah. I feel like I’m about to grasp something.”
“What?”
“Hmm…”
Yeon Sowol felt a little awkward. It was embarrassing to say aloud.
“What is it? Tell me.”
“Well, I’ve been thinking about what a demon is and what righteousness is.”
“…That’s philosophical and boring.”
Jin Geol’s interest immediately vanished from his face.
Yeon Sowol waved his hands. “No, no. There was that big fight recently, right? I felt something then. The demon’s energy was dark energy full of turbid qi, while Great Hero Noh Huideok’s qi was pure metal qi. Watching those two collide, I felt like I was on the verge of realizing something.”
“Oh. Now that you put it that way, it sounds interesting.”
Jin Geol brightened again, then quietly took a step back.
“Still, I shouldn’t interfere with a martial artist’s enlightenment. If I knew anything, I could keep you company and help, but I don’t. My current level of internal energy was practically forced up with spiritual elixirs anyway.”
Then he wandered away without a trace of regret.
Yeon Sowol watched his back and chuckled.
He was a good guy.
The boat continued onward. It traveled up the West River before entering the North River.
Rivers spread like a spiderweb across the magnificent delta.
Looking at scenery he had never seen in twenty-first-century Korea, Yeon Sowol often sank into contemplation. Whenever his thoughts stalled and frustration built, he talked with Jin Geol.
“Jin Geol. Is there any way to build a reputation?”
“You need a reputation? Well, it would help if you want to learn a martial art somewhere.”
Jin Geol stroked his smooth chin and grinned.
“There’s one sure way for a young martial artist to earn a name. The fastest, most reliable, and most accurate way!”
“Oh? What is it?”
“A martial challenge tour.”
“A martial challenge tour…”
By now, Yeon Sowol knew a fair amount about how the Jianghu worked.
“You go around challenging famous masters?”
“No.”
“Hm? No?”
“How long would it take to track down every famous master? And famous masters are famous for a reason. I know you’re strong, but you can’t guarantee you’d beat them.”
“That’s true…”
Yeon Sowol nodded. Now that he thought about it, it made sense.
The famous masters of Guangdong that came to mind were Chu Jinhyeok and Noh Huideok.
But what if he fought without using the Heaven-Killing Star?
‘I can’t say for certain that I’d beat them.’
That made him wonder.
“Then how am I supposed to go on a martial challenge tour?”
Jin Geol grinned.
“You write it as a martial challenge tour, but you read it as picking fights.”
“…Picking fights?”
“Right. Famous masters are hard to find, but it’s easy enough to find people our age who are said to have some skill. The places where they gather are obvious.”
Jin Geol thumped his chest.
“Just go from one such gathering to another, pick a suitable fight, and fight them. That makes it a martial challenge. Beat them there, and your reputation will shoot right up.”
“…”
Yeon Sowol thought.
‘A school thug?’
It was a method he could never have imagined as a model student in twenty-first-century Korea.
He felt a strong aversion to the idea, but decided to hear more.
“How do you pick a fight? You can’t just walk up and say, ‘Let’s fight!’”
Yeon Sowol had actually done something like that to Resentful Dog, Jeon Taegwang. But that had been after they already had a grudge between them.
Picking a fight out of nowhere with someone he had no connection or feelings toward was hard to imagine.
Yet Jin Geol said, “Simple.”
“Simple?”
“Yeah. When you’re drinking.”
“When you’re drinking.”
“Throw your cup.”
“…?”
“At the bridge of their nose.”
“…?”
Yeon Sowol stared at Jin Geol.
‘Throw a cup at someone’s face?’
He wanted to argue about that first, but decided to let it go. Jin Geol was a good friend, but he was still a person of the Jianghu. Yeon Sowol would take that into account.
Still, there was another problem.
“Jin Geol, what I mean is, what do you do before that? Fine, suppose you throw the cup. But there has to be some reason to pick a fight and throw it, right? You can’t just hurl one at them out of nowhere.”
“Huh? That is the reason.”
“…Throwing the cup?”
“Oh, friend. Listen carefully.”
Jin Geol leaned against the boat’s railing and began to ramble.
“What do you think happens if I explain in detail why I’m angry right now, and what you did wrong?”
“We’d have an argument.”
“No. It would be boring and philosophical.”
“…?”
“But what if you suddenly throw a cup at someone’s face?”
Bang! Jin Geol slapped the railing loudly.
“The moment it goes crash, everyone understands. Ah, there must be a reason! How bad must it have been for someone to throw a cup?”
“…”
Yeon Sowol looked up at the sky once, then back at the river.
‘These crazy martial artists.’
He blamed himself for asking a person of the Jianghu anything.
* * *
The sun rose and set.
The boat sailed north, farther and farther north.
After several days, it finally reached Shaoguan.
But Yeon Sowol and Jin Geol did not disembark there.
“Let’s go farther along the Gold River!”
It was Jin Geol’s suggestion.
“Danxia Mountain is a little farther up. It’s one of Guangdong’s finest sights! Young masters from Hunan come all the way there to see it. Let’s build your reputation there!”
“…I’m not throwing a wine cup.”
“Sure, sure. Let’s take the slow road. Just get acquainted, exchange greetings, and have fun together. Something might come up that lets you build a reputation.”
“That’s a good idea!”
The two changed boats and headed for Danxia Mountain along the Gold River.
Danxia Mountain.
Its name meant a mountain like red sunset clouds.
The enormous rocky mountain rising beside the Gold River had layers of red stone, forming an unusual and beautiful view.
The sight was especially breathtaking at sunset, when the light struck the red cliffs and fell over the blue waters of the Gold River, dyeing the whole world purple.
Young martial artists from Hunan even crossed the Nanling Mountains to tour Danxia Mountain.
“Ha ha ha ha!”
Countless pleasure boats floated along the Gold River beneath Danxia Mountain. Every one of them was packed with local magnates, travelers, and men of letters.
“Just trust me!”
Jin Geol strolled among the various groups, found a target, and successfully inserted himself among them.
“Ah, fellow travelers of the Jianghu are always welcome. Who are you, and where are you from?”
A young martial artist standing before a large boat about to depart asked them.
Jin Geol answered, “I’m Jin Geol, of the Jin Clan of Hubei.”
“Ah! You’re from Hubei. It’s a pleasure! Hubei, you say? We’ll have much to discuss!”
His gaze fell on Yeon Sowol.
“And where are you from, young hero?”
Yeon Sowol cupped his fists. “I’m Yeon Sowol of the Guangdong Martial Alliance.”
“Guangdong?”
The young martial artist tilted his head, then suddenly looked as if he had remembered something and returned the gesture.
“I see. It’s a pleasure. Please, come aboard!”
‘That reaction was a little strange.’
It was clearly different from how the man had responded when Jin Geol said he was from Hubei.
Yi Yubaek had mentioned it before, but it was still unsettling.
‘We’re still in Guangdong, though?’
Wasn’t it a little too much for a Guangdong native to be discriminated against on Guangdong soil?
Feeling uneasy, Yeon Sowol boarded the boat.
The boatmen busily pushed their oars, and as the vessel creaked into motion, a feast was already in full swing aboard it.
“As expected of a Zhongnan Sect disciple!”
“You’ve only just passed twenty, yet you’re already at late first-rate! Zhongnan truly is different!”
“Oh, can someone so distinguished really join a gathering of young people like us? I’m overwhelmed.”
“Exactly. Young Hero Won isn’t merely one of the younger generation. He’s a rising young talent.”
“That’s right. He definitely is.”
“It’s truly an honor to meet a martial artist of the famed Zhongnan Sect.”
The atmosphere at the feast was strange.
Everyone seemed busy surrounding one person and praising him.
Yeon Sowol and Jin Geol caught that odd mood and exchanged glances.
“To call me a rising young talent is absurd.”
The center of everyone’s attention was Won Huiseung, a twenty-one-year-old disciple of the Zhongnan Sect.
The term “younger generation” referred to the Jianghu’s juniors.
The term “rising young talent” uses the character meaning “outstanding.” It referred to outstanding figures even among those juniors.
Won Huiseung firmly shook his head.
“Among Zhongnan’s second-generation disciples, I might barely make the top twenty, if that. How could someone as inadequate as me call himself a rising young talent?”
“Good heavens! Are you saying Zhongnan has twenty second-generation disciples who are late first-rate experts?”
“As expected of the great Zhongnan Sect!”
“Don’t exaggerate. That isn’t even a particularly large number.”
“Good heavens! That isn’t a large number?”
“We live in different worlds!”
“You’re too modest, Young Hero Won. You’re still a late first-rate expert, aren’t you?”
“No. Some may praise the late first-rate realm, but for us, it is only the starting point.”
Won Huiseung cut the matter off so firmly that it was almost rude.
“As I travel the world, I feel it every day. The late first-rate realm is nothing in the Jianghu. It is far from enough to fulfill my ambition.”
“What is your ambition, Young Hero Won?”
Won Huiseung’s eyes grew distant.
“I am pursuing a dragon.”
“A dragon?”
“That’s right. I came here because I heard there was a legend of a dragon in the Gold River. It may be a legend here, but dragons truly exist. It isn’t merely a legend. But… perhaps with martial arts no better than first-rate, I cannot even glimpse a dragon’s claw…”
The shadows around Won Huiseung’s eyes deepened. With a melancholy expression, he turned his gaze beyond the river.
He was a handsome man, talented and from a prestigious great sect. He looked almost like a painting.
“Ah…”
“He pursues dragons…”
Several women at the gathering gasped in admiration.
Some of the men watching them lowered their heads, feeling inferior to Won Huiseung.
「What a load of bullshit.」
Jin Geol’s voice transmission slipped into Yeon Sowol’s ear at that very moment.
‘Phew.’
Yeon Sowol found it deeply satisfying.
Rabid fans create haters, as the saying goes.
The excessive adoration, praise, and flattery filling the space had brought out their contrarian side.
Then Jin Geol quietly asked, 「Sowol. What do you think?」
‘About what?’
「Let’s throw a cup.」
Yeon Sowol’s mouth opened slightly.
「It’s perfect, isn’t it? Let’s beat him senseless. If you fight him, I’ll set up bets. We can make a good amount for our travel expenses too. Isn’t that nice?」
‘You lunatic.’
Yeon Sowol mouthed the reply.
Won Huiseung was oddly annoying, but that was no reason to fight him.
‘Even if there are times to fight, why does he keep telling me to throw cups at people’s faces? It’s too barbaric.’
People of the Jianghu were impossible to deal with.
That was what Yeon Sowol thought.
* * *
Jin Geol was quite popular at that gathering. There were many young martial artists from Hunan, which made it even more so. Hunan and Hubei shared a border, but the world was vast and travel was not easy, so everyone was interested.
Yeon Sowol, on the other hand, came from Guangdong, which also bordered Hunan, and was treated like an outsider.
‘Who’s that person?’
‘Ah, he’s Young Hero Jin’s friend.’
‘Really? Why is he so quiet?’
‘Don’t you know? He’s from Guangdong.’
‘Ah.’
With bodily cultivation having refined even the fine meridians throughout his body, Yeon Sowol’s hearing was exceptionally sharp, so he heard every whisper.
‘This won’t be easy.’
Yeon Sowol sat alone, looking at the river and mountains while sipping wine.
Then a man came over and sat down in front of him.
When he turned, he saw Won Huiseung.
Won Huiseung seemed curious about Yeon Sowol sitting alone without a word.
“Pour me a drink too.”
People chattered around them, and the river waves lapped against the boat. Though the surroundings were noisy, the two quietly exchanged several cups of wine.
Won Huiseung grinned.
“It’s nice and quiet here. It was too noisy over there.”
“Was it?”
Then why did he come to a place like this in the first place? Yeon Sowol thought as he drank without much interest.
“I am Won Huiseung of Zhongnan. What sect are you from, young hero?”
Only then did Yeon Sowol truly face Won Huiseung.
He straightened his posture.
Sect.
He did not want to look relaxed when speaking that name.
“I am Yeon Sowol of the Guangdong Martial Alliance.”
“Guangdong. Martial Alliance. An alliance of Guangdong’s chivalrous martial artists…”
Won Huiseung slowly rolled the name around in his mouth.
Unlike the others, he showed none of the strange distance they had.
Instead, he seemed to be carefully considering the name Guangdong Martial Alliance, which made Yeon Sowol like him a little.
‘Maybe he’s a decent person.’
Yeon Sowol smiled faintly and raised his cup.
Then Won Huiseung tilted his head.
“But I truly do not know, so may I ask you something?”
“Ask anything.”
“Does Guangdong have a martial world?”
…?
Yeon Sowol’s hand stopped as he lifted his cup.
Won Huiseung emphasized, “I truly do not know. This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“…”
Yeon Sowol’s grip tightened around the cup.
“Ah! Well, even in Guangdong, there must be at least some people who have learned martial arts… Is it a sort of social club? The Guangdong Martial Alliance, a social gathering for Guangdong’s chivalrous martial artists.”
!!!
The cup flew through the air.
It smashed into the bridge of Won Huiseung’s nose.
Crash!
Footnotes:
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