WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Chapter 41: Natural Enemy Martial Art (2)
──────
The stream flowing away from the lakeshore cradled the sun and shimmered.
The boat carrying the promising juniors of the Heart Martial Union continued onward without stopping. Only its owner had changed.
During that time, Jeong Yeon-shin listened to Master Won Jong’s story.
It was a tale like a current of wind winding along the waves.
“I was about your age then. I was immature. I had the build of a piglet, unlike you, who had already established yourself as a martial artist.”
An early spring breeze blew. The old monk’s voice seemed to seep into the trees lining the riverbank.
“My family held great influence. My late father was in the Forbidden City. That was before Father was falsely accused and exiled. By the emperor’s mercy toward a loyal subject, Father barely survived. Even that was a miracle.”
“Then, at the place of exile?”
“Our household became a martial family that had lost its backing. Yes, we were bound to become a target for the Blood Flame Sect, which coveted qi. When I returned after playing at being the leader with my peers, there was no one left alive. Rumor had it that the Blood Flame Sect Master had come personally. I... I wept before my late father’s shriveled corpse.”
The voice was heartrending. A resentment unweathered by the long years could be felt within it.
“I was fortunate enough to catch my master’s eye while my master was collecting alms, and I climbed Mount Song. Yet even after becoming a monk, my anguish would not settle. I knew my aptitude was lacking. So I thought of another way.”
“To create a martial art that would be their natural enemy...”
Master Won Jong nodded at Yeon-shin’s murmur.
“To restore a martial art solely for destroying the Blood Flame Sect, a martial art imbued with the Buddha’s dharma power. Then have my fellow disciples learn it. Shaolin’s exceptionally gifted warrior monks would surely welcome it. Yet there was anguish in this as well. Even if I created it, would I not be pushing my fellow disciples into the jaws of death? Into the hands of the Blood Flame Sect Master.”
Yeon-shin assented.
It was said that the Blood Flame Sect Master was a monstrous being beyond reason.
The lords of the Thirteen Heavens were said to rival the sect leaders of the Nine Sects, but there were especially powerful absolute experts in the vast world.
The Blood Flame Sect Master, the abbot of Shaolin, and the Divine Sword Squad Leader of Desolate Fortress were said to be such people.
The Tyrant Sword Sect Master was also counted among the strongest in the world.
‘Even if such a martial art were created, it would still be a problem.’
The abbot of Shaolin could not personally learn it and seek out the Blood Flame Sect Master.
That was the weight borne by one who led the orthodox sect from the pinnacle of the martial world.
If such a person were defeated, irreversible repercussions would spread.
“That is how life is. No matter how hard you run, you can scarcely grasp the end. You can only climb one level at a time.”
Sixteen-year-old Yeon-shin spoke seriously. Master Won Jong, who had been watching Yeon-shin quietly, turned away again.
“Your realization is greater than mine, though you have not lived even one quarter as long as I have.”
“My family was also destroyed by the Blood Flame Sect. The Tyrant Sword Sect and the Tyrant Sword Sect Master came together.”
“...You showed me the martial art whose beginnings I had barely grasped. I will not ask how. They say a martial artist’s secrets are not meant to be pried into. Now, there is only one thing I wish to know.”
This time, Yeon-shin turned to look at Master Won Jong’s profile.
The nameless river flowing into the Yellow River stretched endlessly onward.
The old monk gazing at the distant horizon seemed to speak of the life already walked.
He was a monk and martial artist who had clung to a single anguish throughout his life.
Master Won Jong spoke.
“Will you tell me what I can do to help? All that matters is for the martial art of Destroy Evil, Reveal Righteousness to enter the world. With such achievement at your age and your talent, you will surely reach the realm of absolute experts someday.”
“Thank you for saying so.”
Yeon-shin brightened.
He had been feeling a lack. The Buddhist teachings briefly learned from Young Divine Monk Gak Jeong were not enough to refine the mnemonic formula.
A martial art mnemonic formula ordinarily also organized the nature of the intent to be imbued in qi.
Even the Three Talents Sword Art manuals sold in the marketplace contained passages such as, “When cutting horizontally, imagine that you are splitting heaven and earth.”
That was generally what martial artists meant by realization in internal qi cultivation.
It meant finding an intent more fitting than before for wielding one’s accumulated power.
Yeon-shin could derive methods of qi circulation after seeing most techniques once, but delving deeply into intent would inevitably change their power.
He eagerly sat closer to Master Won Jong.
“You said it was the tenth chapter of the Diamond Sutra. There is a passage in the Chapter on Adorning the Pure Land, is there not?”
“...?”
“They say, ‘Let the mind arise without dwelling anywhere.’”
“What?”
“I am asking you to explain the teachings.”
* * *
The splendid flower-viewing boat drifted along the river, along with time.
The promising juniors of the Heart Martial Union did not actually row.
Yeon-shin had gathered them to one side. This time, he had not destroyed their dantians.
Commoners were entangled in this matter. Killing Geom Ye-hwa had been enough.
There was already a strong possibility that harm would come to the boatmen and the women.
‘Cleanse the six senses and let the mind dwell nowhere.’
Yeon-shin stood still. Other than while listening to Master Won Jong’s teachings, he closed his eyes and meditated.
Silence alone filled the captives with fear. Yeon-shin had severed the neck of the well-known Geom Ye-hwa in the region with a single blow.
To the promising juniors of the Heart Martial Union, it must have looked like the arrogance and confidence of one who would lead the next generation of Desolate Fortress.
Yeon-shin heard whispers that the heavens had mistakenly sent down a prodigy. Internally, he smiled bitterly. It did not feel entirely wrong.
“I’ll get off here.”
Yeon-shin spoke to the boatmen.
After glancing at Master Won Jong, who had already stepped ashore, he turned back.
Were they trying to see him off? The Heart Martial Union’s promising juniors, lined up in a row, hesitated. It was behavior Yeon-shin had never seen before.
The teachings of prestigious families should not produce fools like them.
‘They are not promising juniors. It means the foremost among juniors. It is not a title given to just anyone.’
The Heart Martial Union was also one of the Thirteen Heavens. There had to be true promising juniors elsewhere.
A successor to the Alliance Leader of the Heart Martial Union would be on a completely different level from these people.
Yeon-shin opened his mouth.
“What are you doing?”
“Hm?”
“Lowlifes like you intend to remain among the common folk? What a ridiculous thought. Get off.”
“...”
“You will go to the Heavenly Sword Sect with me. I will leave your punishment to Desolate Fortress. You are fortunate. You will not die immediately.”
Yeon-shin decided to count their capture as a merit. It was strange that the thought had not occurred sooner.
They had tried to kill Desolate Fortress warriors, a Shaolin monk, and innocent commoners.
Combined with their affiliation with the Thirteen Heavens, it was more than enough to be recorded as a merit.
Yeon-shin bound their arms behind their backs. The rope on hand was insufficient.
He wove fresh straw into a thick rope on the spot. It was called straw rope, a method he had learned as a warrior of Desolate Fortress.
There were times during missions when enemies had to be brought back alive.
While Master Won Jong watched with satisfaction, Yeon-shin set out with the captives walking ahead.
As the official road gradually came into view, passersby went by with puzzled looks.
A few captives faltered as if the humiliation were unbearable.
“Do not stop.”
The killing intent to cut down anyone who tried to flee became sharply apparent. That was enough.
They resumed walking at Yeon-shin’s casually tossed commands.
Then it happened.
“Are those not the young masters of the Heart Martial Union?”
It was an escort agency’s procession. They were said to safely transport goods and people across the perilous Central Plains.
The middle-aged person at the front approached with a placating smile, then stopped short in surprise. They appeared to be the escort chief responsible for the escort mission.
‘An escort chief?’
They seemed acquainted with the Heart Martial Union brats.
The people Yeon-shin had captured had enjoyed boating nearby under the pretext of setting up an ambush.
It was not strange that they had become familiar with people from a nearby escort agency.
“What, what is this...?”
“They committed crimes and were captured by Desolate Fortress. These people are no longer free. We do not need help, so please move along.”
Yeon-shin stepped forward and spoke. The middle-aged person’s expression turned strange.
It was understandable. A young man was creating a bizarre scene.
“Did you say that you belong to Desolate Fortress?”
Rather than answer, Yeon-shin took an identification badge from his clothes. It was called a Desolate Fortress token.
The wooden token, engraved with gold plating, caught the sunlight vividly.
The middle-aged person’s expression became peculiar upon seeing it. Yeon-shin immediately understood.
Freeing the Heart Martial Union’s young masters was more important to this person. Were they hoping to pick up some scraps?
Their loyalties seemed to lean toward the nearby Heart Martial Union rather than the distant Desolate Fortress in Huguang.
‘Not everyone who associates with unorthodox sects will be like this person.’
There were said to be cases where ties had to be maintained out of necessity.
Few people could preserve their convictions before a drawn sword gleaming with a blue edge.
That middle-aged person had drawn a sword without warning. A person like that was simply another unorthodox martial artist.
The middle-aged person spoke.
“I cannot possibly believe this. It seems some powerful adults stirred up a matter out of petty chivalry and left it in your hands. What ignorant fools. Anyone who truly understood the Heart Martial Union could never do such a thing.”
Had some country bumpkin thoroughly misunderstood? It had been the same during the Xinye Baekmu Faction incident.
Between places like the Nine Sects and small or medium martial factions, the difference in discernment seemed greater than the difference in martial strength.
Just as Yeon-shin reached for his sword hilt, a voice called out.
“Escort Geum! What is happening?”
A young person opened a carriage door in the middle of the halted procession and stepped out.
“Ah, Young Family Head. You came as a guest, yet you did not remain seated.”
The middle-aged person turned away with a placating smile despite Yeon-shin standing before them.
A faintly troubled look crossed their face. Yeon-shin could guess why.
The aura emanating from the large-eyed young person was clear and upright.
‘At that age, with that disposition and position, they must be the Young Family Head of the Heavenly Sword Sect.’
They were almost there. The Heavenly Sword Sect was said to serve as a branch of Desolate Fortress.
Enough time had passed for news of the chaos in Xinye County to reach them. It was only natural for them to be patrolling the surroundings.
Yeon-shin took a step forward.
“I am from Desolate Fortress...”
“Good heavens! I am the first in my family to meet young hero Seom-ye!”
The young person appeared to have taken in Yeon-shin’s attire and the token in his hand at a glance.
The Young Family Head of the Heavenly Sword Sect rushed over after using a lightness art, their face excited.
They exchanged greetings as the Young Family Head said that Desolate Fortress’s information network had long informed them of Yeon-shin’s merits. They seemed to have forgotten even the clasped-fist salute in their excitement.
As the middle-aged person’s expression twisted, the Young Family Head of the Heavenly Sword Sect continued in an uproar.
“When I read that you had taken the head of Eight-Fiend Rakshasa Sword, I suspected as much! Someone destined to become a dragon had appeared! And now that I see you, even your gaze is extraordinary!”
“Are you the Young Family Head of the Heavenly Sword Sect? Are there more people from the main fortress at your family residence now?”
Yeon-shin asked without being swept up in the lively energy. The order of priorities had to be made clear.
At once, a glint appeared in the Young Family Head’s eyes.
Their disposition turned calm in an instant, to the point that it seemed this might be their true self.
“That is correct. I am Hyeon Yu-ryang of the Heavenly Sword Sect.”
Only then did Hyeon Yu-ryang smile lightly and offer a clasped-fist salute.
“Many people have already arrived and are waiting. Once young hero Seom-ye arrives, all the Demon Wings dispatched on missions will have gathered. There is also a Young Divine Monk of Shaolin. Demon Wings, the Young Divine Monk, and Seom-ye. It seems today is the day my eyes are opened.”
“Thank you for the information. Then please excuse me for a moment.”
Yeon-shin took a gourd from his clothes. Holding it in his left hand, he poured water into his right hand.
As people watched in confusion, Yeon-shin walked directly toward the middle-aged person from the escort agency.
The person posing as an escort spoke.
“I still do not believe it. You expect to prove your identity with a single token? The dwarven race is not found only in Desolate Fortress!”
“From the moment young hero Hyeon stepped forward, I sensed an aura from your body. It was very familiar. You people truly cannot hide it.”
Yeon-shin operated the layering of True Qi with all his strength.
After kicking off the ground, Yeon-shin’s figure wheeled around, and the end of his sentence rang out from behind the middle-aged person.
The wind-wrapped fingertips felt cold.
Yeon-shin stretched out a water-wet hand and brushed aside the person’s hair. Black water stained his hand as a strand of bright red hair was revealed.
“This has major implications.”
Yeon-shin muttered calmly.
Chaos erupted among the escort agency people, who had been watching anxiously.
The Blood Flame Sect’s doctrine, which prevented its members from covering their hair, was widely known.
It appeared that the doctrine had nothing to do with dyeing their hair. Yeon-shin had never heard of a dye so flawless.
Jin Yul, who had posed as a young noble, had also served as an assassin for the Blood Flame Sect.
However it was made, a Blood Flame Sect member disguised in this manner would be just as deadly as a bald-headed Blood Flame Sect member.
Blood Arts were said to grant rapid progress, especially at the introductory stage.
‘If covering hair is possible...’
It would be easy to plant large numbers of spies in all manner of factions and escort agencies.
Hyeon Yu-ryang reacted differently from the Blood Flame Sect member frozen in place. Perhaps Hyeon Yu-ryang was especially perceptive, because their expression immediately hardened.
Yeon-shin glanced at Master Won Jong and spoke.
“You said you had considered restoring the Shaolin Avalokitesvara Green Steel Hand. I would like to include the words Green Steel Hand in this martial art’s name. Will you permit it?”
“Amitabha. It would be a great honor instead.”
Master Won Jong seemed to understand what Yeon-shin meant and raised one palm.
It was a palm salute, Shaolin’s etiquette. From some point onward, Master Won Jong had treated Yeon-shin with such utmost courtesy.
Even Master Won Jong’s speech and conduct had completely changed. It was the proper courtesy owed to a young Grandmaster.
“You worthless wretches! How dare you act like this before...!”
The revealed Blood Flame Sect member whirled around. The moment their eyes met Yeon-shin’s, a sinister aura arose.
Yeon-shin welcomed it instead. The power felt quite well-trained.
Could this be a Blood Master? There might be a black strand among the dye-stained hair.
‘No matter how many there are now, it is meaningless.’
Amid the Mount Pingzhong escort agency, the Young Family Head of the Heavenly Sword Sect, a Shaolin warrior monk, and the Heart Martial Union’s promising juniors, Yeon-shin slowly raised his hand.
His bearing was different in nature from before.
There was an aspect like a Buddhist Dharma King in the aura of Yeon-shin’s entire body.
It was enough to calmly sweep aside the Blood Flame Sect member’s bursting sinister force.
“The lowlife is you.”
Yeon-shin spoke and moved his hand.
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
