WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 56: Martial Arts (2)

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Martial Arts (2)

The lights were out in the room.

"Jin-hyeok." "What?" "If I eat that Little Return Pill thing, would my dantian form faster? Would my internal energy grow faster too?" "...No." "You never know." "Hey, you just learned the basics of blood pressure points, chi and the Breathing Technique a minute ago." "Yeah, so?" "Did you build that muscle of yours in a day or two?" "...No." "Normally you're supposed to master the Breathing Technique before you turn ten, before impurity settles into the blood points, or your ki circulation won't flow right. You're past that already. I told you this earlier." "Yeah." "Rush it and you could end up with Ki deviation. So don't get impatient, just do what you're told." "Yeah, got it."

Jin-hyeok clicked his tongue inwardly. If a dantian could just pop into existence from eating one elixir, every martial clan in the world would have taken that route already. Whether a dantian formed at all came down to constitution and aptitude in the end. How fast someone grasped ki and made it feel at home inside their body determined how the whole thing came together. Even Jin-hyeok, called a prodigy, had needed a full month to form his own dantian. And even that had earned praise from his masters, who said it rivaled his older brother Yu Jin-sung's talent.

'Well... I guess it's no wonder he's this eager.'

He thought he understood why the kid had gotten so fired up. Jin-hyeok had explained the blood pressure points to him exactly once, and Mumu had memorized every location after hearing it a single time. A monstrous memory, no question. Only now, seeing this, did Jin-hyeok actually believe Mumu had memorized forty martial arts books.

'...His grasp of things is beyond anything I imagined.'

He barely needed to explain anything more than once. Mumu never asked follow-up questions, which had made Jin-hyeok worry the lessons were going in one ear and out the other, so he quizzed him to check. Every single answer came back correct. The one time Mumu did ask a question, he'd pointed out something Jin-hyeok himself had overlooked. With aptitude like that, of course he'd want to rush through everything as fast as possible. Jin-hyeok remembered feeling the same way, back when he first started learning martial arts and his masters kept praising him. Still,

'What in the world is this guy?'

Had he always been this sharp? His mind had turned razor keen almost overnight, like he'd woken up to something. Or maybe Jin-hyeok had just badly underestimated him from the start. That could be it too.

'I always figured he was just a muscle-headed idiot.'

And it wasn't like Mumu had ever shown him anything but trouble and a naive, simple face. Maybe that was exactly why Jin-hyeok had assumed, without even realizing it, that the guy wasn't all that bright.

'I should reflect on that.'

Going forward, he probably shouldn't size anyone up so carelessly. Anyway, he had no idea what to do about all this. Hearing the titles of the advanced martial arts manuals Mumu claimed to have memorized from the underground archive had nearly made his knees give out.

[Great Void Moon Maiden Sword Technique] [New Sun Flying Scythe Leg] [Nameless Sword Technique] [Nine Flowers Soul-Sundering Sword] [Ten Thousand Evils Arrow] [Seventy-Two Forms of Hidden Fist] [Half-Ultimate Twin Principles Hand] [White Blaze Scorching Sun Palm]

These were advanced arts a person might hear whispered about once in a lifetime across the martial world. Some belonged to the Six Stars of Heaven. A good ten or so were even techniques rumored to be lost to time entirely. How this guy had memorized nothing but the absolute cream of the crop was beyond comprehension.

'Looks like he only grabbed the best of the best.'

Jin-hyeok had no way of knowing that all of this had been thanks to the help of Administrator Lim Jeong. Regardless, Jin-hyeok had spent a fair amount of time agonizing over which of these martial arts would actually suit Mumu. At first Mumu had kept suggesting flashy-sounding names, asking how about this one, how about that one, and Jin-hyeok had shot every one of them down. The ones Mumu picked were all too famous. No matter how advanced an art was, if it had a known lineage and was widely recognized, learning it brought nothing good. Not unless you could surpass the people already known for it.

[This one should work.]

Jin-hyeok had settled on two martial arts for Mumu. Strictly speaking it was really just one, but Mumu had said he felt strangely drawn to a second one, so Jin-hyeok agreed to teach that too. The one Jin-hyeok chose was the Flowing Cloud Forbidden Capture Hand.

'This one's exactly what he needs.'

He'd picked it after reading through the verses. Mumu, with his monstrous muscles and freakish strength, leaned far too hard into raw power. Fists first every single time, wasn't that his whole approach? Jin-hyeok decided what he needed to fill that gap was softness and a way to control an opponent, so he recommended the Flowing Cloud Forbidden Capture Hand, an art rumored to have vanished some fifty years back. Mumu, meanwhile, had picked something called the Four Divine Origin Fist.

'How did he even find something like this?'

Jin-hyeok had been fairly startled reading through its verses, wondering what it even was. He'd never heard of it before, which suggested it really was a lost art, and it turned out to be an oddly built fist-and-leg style made of just five techniques.

Dark Tortoise Advancing Fist, Vermilion Bird Wing-Split, White Tiger Raging Thunder, Azure Dragon Extreme Heaven. And the final secret technique, Yellow Dragon Martial Chain Strike.

The problem was, aside from that final secret technique, the movements making up each form were absurdly simple.

'This is supposed to be an advanced art?'

Mumu had said he was drawn to it, so Jin-hyeok was willing to teach it, but all four basic techniques were shockingly plain. Plain enough to make him wonder if it would even work in a real fight. Still, if the kid wanted to learn it, what could he do?

'Actually, with the movements this basic, closer to a beginner's set, it might be easy to pick up.'

That was how Jin-hyeok reasoned it out. In exchange for teaching him these two, Jin-hyeok received one martial art from Mumu.

[New Sun Flying Scythe Leg]

Mumu had said he could take whatever he needed, but one was enough. Jin-hyeok hadn't even fully mastered his own original art yet, so piling on more techniques would be pointless.

'No point being greedy about it.'

He'd told Mumu the same thing too, that there was no need to get greedy over collecting a pile of martial arts. His three masters had told him as much, and so had his older brother Yu Jin-sung. All rivers return to the sea. Every stream, in the end, converges into a single form.

'...Still, I got lucky, I guess.'

Thanks to this guy Mumu, he'd gotten his hands on an art that could be called Master-level. Earlier he'd played it off like it meant nothing to him, but he was clearly thrilled, because Jin-hyeok pulled the blanket up over his face and his lips kept twitching into a grin. While Jin-hyeok carried on like that, Mumu had gone sulky.

'Too slow.'

The basic Breathing Technique Jin-hyeok had taught him was the Three Breathing Technique. Every martial artist knew of it, and anyone starting out in martial arts circulated their ki through this same foundational method first.

[The Three refer to Heaven, Earth, and Man. It means people exist beneath heaven and above earth, and everything comes down to what a person sets their heart on doing. That's the idea behind this basic Breathing Technique.]

Jin-hyeok had explained it kindly, breaking it down piece by piece. But the Three Breathing Techniques were exactly what the name suggested, a beginner's method. Safe, but painfully slow to circulate. The amount of ki that came in through breathing was small too.

'...Should I try that other thing?'

The verse he'd seen carved into the black stone slab on the ceiling of the third floor of the underground archive came to mind out of nowhere. When he'd recited it, a warmth had spread through his entire body, warmth on a completely different level from the Three Breathing Technique.

'Ah... maybe I should've asked Jin-hyeok about that one too.'

Except that thing had read less like the verses of a Cultivation technique and more like the lines of a poem. So he'd almost asked Jin-hyeok about it, then kept his mouth shut, mostly because the vice-master and Administrator Lim Jeong had told him to keep quiet about ever falling to the third floor.

'They told me not to breathe a word of it to anyone.'

The fact that he'd fallen there by accident, without a star mark, wasn't supposed to reach the ordinary cadets. So he'd kept it hidden, though he was still curious what that verse actually was. Then Hae Ryang's words from before drifted back to him.

[There's a rumor that the third floor holds a damaged copy of the supreme martial manual, the True Heavenly Martial Scripture.]

But there hadn't been any book titled True Heavenly Martial Scripture sitting in the display cases. Still, it did strike him as odd that someone would embed a stone slab up in that high ceiling where nobody could ever find it.

'...Could that be it?'

The verse carved into the black stone hadn't been complete. Only about half of it remained. Factoring that in, it lined up with what Hae Ryang had said about a damaged copy.

'Can't exactly ask anyone about it, though.'

He'd been told not to touch anything in the third floor's collection of manuals, so not being able to ask anyone about this was frustrating. So Mumu just gave up trying to figure it out and silently recited the words from the ceiling in his head.

'The abyss knows no name... the spirit sea crosses the river... the origin mind holds no brightness... weak transformation, no track... the ground before, the sky becomes...'

And just like before, down in the archive, warmth spread through his whole body. Mumu let himself sink happily into that warmth.

* * *

The next morning, at the start of the Hour of the Snake. It was the day of Practical Combat Training, a required first-year course shared by everyone. Fifty-two cadets gathered at the Byeong-Five Outdoor Training Ground. Since it was their first practical class since entering the academy, everyone stood with eyes bright, ready for a sparring match. Mo Il-hwa, who usually grumbled about how much she disliked Practical Combat Training, was grinning ear to ear today. It was all because of the paper Mumu had given her.

[Great Void Moon Maiden Sword Technique]

The moment she'd been handed a page copied out with the verses of an advanced martial art, she'd been stunned, asking what in the world it was. But once she heard Mumu had picked it up on the first floor of the underground archive, she couldn't hide how pleased she was.

'Hehehe. What a sweet kid. Bringing something back just for his noona.'

Mo Il-hwa believed Mumu had brought this back for her and her alone. Which only made her mood even better. Jin-hyeok watched her, playing dumb, keeping his face calm. The night before. Mumu had said he wanted to give martial arts manuals to Mo Il-hwa and Hae Ryang too. Jin-hyeok had made him swear up and down not to do that.

[If people find out you memorized that many manuals, it'll cause trouble down the line. If you really want to give her something, just tell Miss Mo you brought back a manual meant for yourself and hand it to her that way.] [Just Il-hwa?] [Right.]

In Mo Il-hwa's case, her father, the Minister of Justice, had asked something of her, and the stronger she got, the less trouble it caused everyone involved. Hae Ryang, on the other hand, was a member of the Hao clan, people who bought and sold information for a living. They'd gotten closer over the past few days, sure, but Jin-hyeok's read on it was that Hae Ryang would sell information about them the moment the numbers worked out in his favor, no matter how friendly things seemed now.

[So don't tell anyone you memorized those manuals. I won't say a word either.] [Yeah, got it.]

Mumu took Jin-hyeok's advice to heart. Partly because he still remembered how quickly word had spread the day he got his star mark.

"All right! That covers how today's class will run, so let's just do a demonstration match or two and call it done for today." "Yes, sir!!!"

Everyone answered with energy at the words of Instructor Jeon Woo-cheong, who ran Practical Combat Training. Standing on the platform, Instructor Jeon swept his eyes over the cadets and asked,

"First class, so anyone want to volunteer?"

At his words, one cadet standing in the lineup felt his eyes light up. Among the cadets, his thick arms and developed upper body rivaled even Mumu's. His name was Go Yeom-hak.

'Perfect.'

He hadn't expected the chance to come so naturally. Go Yeom-hak stared at the back of Mumu's head, standing one row ahead of him.

'This is the guy who took down two seniors with his bare hands?'

His true identity belonged to the Iron Blood Gold Gang, one of the House of the Eight Villains. One of a trio of first-year cadets, he'd received his first assignment from "Master Heo" the night before.

[Test the boy.] [Which one do you mean, sir?] [Yu Mumu.] [The one who got in on nothing but raw strength alone, that Mumu?]

Go Yeom-hak had already been keeping a close eye on him regardless. He'd watched Mumu's monstrous muscles cause trouble for two upperclassmen during dormitory assignment. Strength alone had put him nearly on par with an Expert.

[Master Heo. He's decent, sure, but not enough to really count as a variable yet...] [The kids from the Valley of White Death and the Demonic Joy Palace got taken down.] [What?]

That news had genuinely stunned him. Anyone from the House of the Eight Villains had been through training that could only be called hellish. He'd heard, and he himself was proof, that every single one of them stood close to or even surpassed the masters of Changcheon Martial Academy. And yet two of them had already been beaten? Taking those two down required at least the entry level of Master.

[That's exactly why I want you to test him.] [Test him how, sir?] [That would be...]

Go Yeom-hak's eyes caught the faint shape of a bracelet showing through Mumu's left sleeve. Less a bracelet, really, more like an iron ring.

'The power of an artifact, is that it?'

That explained the strange fact that Mumu had passed the entrance exam without any internal energy at all. If he was borrowing the power of some artifact, that changed everything. Stop him from using it, and dealing with him would be simple. Go Yeom-hak raised his hand.

"Master. I'd like to spar with this one, right here."

He named Mumu directly. A murmur ran through the cadets at the call.

"He's picking that guy?" "Seriously?"

Word had already gone around among the cadets that Mumu's monstrous strength was more than even second-year seniors could handle. And after what they'd seen at the dorm assignment, everyone had been avoiding a match with him. Yet here was someone actually asking for it, and that was surprising.

"Oho. Is that so?"

Instructor Jeon Woo-cheong accepted at once, clearly pleased. Rumors about Mumu had already been circulating among the masters too, one way or another. The first cadet ever to pass the entrance exam without knowing a single martial art. Jeon had been curious whether a sparring match was even possible for someone like that.

"You there. A sparring request has come in. Will you accept it?"

At the question, Mumu blinked.

"Me?" "Yes, you." "Um... sure."

Mumu answered, scratching his head like it was a chore. He'd been hoping class would wrap up quickly, never expecting to get called out himself. Watching Mumu's attitude, Go Yeom-hak thought to himself,

'Cocky little bastard. What's with that attitude?'

Relying on nothing but an artifact's power, and yet reacting to his challenge like it was nothing. It felt insulting.

"Both of you, step up to the platform. Everyone else, fall back."

At Instructor Jeon Woo-cheong's words, the cadets stepped back. Only Mumu and Go Yeom-hak remained in front of the platform. Instructor Jeon addressed them.

"Simple rules. No killing intent, and no targeting the opponent's vital points. Beyond that, if anything goes wrong, I'll step in myself. Give it everything you've got!"

The words had barely left his mouth before Go Yeom-hak dropped into a ready stance. Legs spread almost like a horse stance, he spread both hands wide open. Then he called out to Mumu.

"Hey." "Huh?" "Heard you're pretty strong." "Huh?" "I'll give you a shot. Hit me with everything you've got."

His words set off murmurs of confusion among Instructor Jeon and the watching cadets. He'd been told to spar, and instead of even taking his turn, he'd thrown his arms wide open and told the other guy to hit him. It was a naked provocation. It meant your one strike won't even touch me.

"Hey, don't try anything stupid. Mumu's strength isn't normal."

Jin-hyeok called out, his voice tight with worry. He had no idea who this guy was, but he was badly underestimating Mumu's strength. At Jin-hyeok's words, Go Yeom-hak just scoffed.

"Heh."

'Our gang trains the body in raging rapids starting at age five. At ten, we take blows from blade and sword straight to the flesh. At fourteen, we roll off cliffs with nothing but our bare bodies.'

That was why the secret art of the Iron Blood Gold Gang was called the training method of the indestructible golden body. This one strike would tell him whether the kid was using the artifact or not. He'd heard the power only activated if the wearer actively manipulated it.

[If he tries to activate the artifact, take him down before he manages it. If not, test exactly how much raw strength he actually has. A successor of the Iron Blood Gold Gang like you should manage it easily.]

That man had placed his trust in him, and he would repay it. By putting the boy down in front of everyone, cleanly. Just then Mumu shuffled forward toward him. Then he rolled up the sleeve on his right arm.

Shk!

And there it was, the Ki-Restraining Bracelet strapped to Mumu's right wrist, now exposed.

'That thing, huh?'

Mumu still hadn't touched the bracelet. Then he stepped right up in front of Go Yeom-hak.

"You sure about this?"

At Mumu's question, Go Yeom-hak smirked and said,

"You... ever seen a diamond get scratched? You'd better give it everything. No matter how hard you swing, knocking me down is a long way off."

Rrrrip!

Go Yeom-hak tore his shirt off with a rough yank. What emerged was a gleaming mass of muscle, scarred all over. It didn't look beautiful so much as smooth and hard, like polished diamond. Exactly as he'd said. Gasps rippled through the crowd.

'This guy... he's trained his body to an insane degree.'

Even Instructor Jeon Woo-cheong's eyes flickered with something like surprise. Go Yeom-hak wore a triumphant look.

'He's probably only ever faced weaklings, but I'm different. Let me show him the power of the Iron Blood Gold Body Art, pushed to the seventh stage.'

"Come at me."

At those words, Mumu clenched his rolled-up right fist. Then, without warning, he tightened it with real force.

Grrrrrk!

'Not even using the artifact with everyone watching? Then there's no way he can actually hurt me.'

That was the exact moment.

Crunch! Crunch!

The muscles of Mumu's right forearm suddenly rippled and contracted in tight, precise waves. Not swelling outward, but compressing inward, that thick muscle squeezing down on itself, and Go Yeom-hak's brow furrowed at the sight.

'What is that? How is he even doing that to his muscles...'

Then Mumu spoke, smiling.

"Thanks. I was actually hoping to test this out. Contraction and release." "What?"

Whoooosh!

At that instant, Mumu's forearm, wrung as tight as a twisted rag a moment ago, unwound at incredible speed and whipped through the air in a violent blur.

"This'll hurt, so I won't actually hit you." "W-wait a sec..."

At the same time, Mumu's right hand came down and pressed straight into Go Yeom-hak's skull.

Crack! Snap!

"Ugh, gack."

With a horrible scream, Go Yeom-hak, hard as iron a moment before, crumpled to the ground like a tin can folding in on itself, joints bending the wrong way as he collapsed.

Footnotes:

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