WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 27: The Second-Rate Martial Artist Dominating the Test (2)
──────
The crowd murmured.
That evening, after the test had ended, a large sheet of paper was posted in front of the Grand Training Ground.
As part of the special admission examination process, the examiners who graded the first test announced that day’s results.
The people of the Taeul Sect could not hide their shock when they saw them.
“Is that real?”
“How could the results turn out like this?”
...
18th. Song Jamun.
19th. Gye Cheolyeong.
20th. Kwak Samnam.
...
Gye Cheolyeong could not bring himself to close his mouth after seeing the results.
Sixty-three disciples had taken the test.
Nineteenth place could be considered high, but for an examination that selected only one person, it was far from impressive.
What was more, he had spent a vast sum to hire a tutor.
Jang Sagun, who had been hired for an enormous fee, was even more stunned.
In all his life, he had never had a student receive such a score.
Gye Cheolyeong might not have been a prodigy, but he was certainly talented.
He had clearly understood and memorized the predicted questions Jang Sagun had prepared.
That only meant the predicted questions had been wrong.
“This is absurd!”
Jang Sagun stopped Yi Jagon after the envoy finished organizing the test materials and prepared to head to the lodging provided by the Taeul Sect.
“Cheolyeong placed nineteenth? That can’t be right!”
“...”
Yi Jagon’s face turned cold at Jang Sagun’s outburst.
“Senior. Are you questioning the fairness of the Gyeonseong Envoy?”
“!”
No matter that Jang Sagun was a senior who had once served as a Gyeonseong Envoy himself, the position appointed by the Martial Alliance placed impartiality above all else.
Jang Sagun realized he had made a fatal mistake in his agitation.
“I mean that such a result defies all reason.”
No matter how he phrased it, he was saying he could not accept the result.
Yi Jagon’s expression darkened further.
Jang Sagun’s eyelids trembled, but he could not back down.
If there was nothing wrong with Cheolyeong and his score had still fallen, then the problem lay with Jang Sagun himself.
“Even if you are my senior, I do not believe we need to prove the examination’s fairness to you. Still, I will show you, considering this an objection that the Taeul Sect itself should have raised.”
Yi Jagon took out the test paper at the top of the stack and showed it to Jang Sagun.
“This is the paper of the student who placed first.”
Jang Sagun quickly looked over the questions.
The fifty questions covered basic martial knowledge, the operation of sword formations, the elements of formations, and how to distinguish poisonous herbs from medicinal ones, all things a martial artist needed to know.
“The rankings were decided by the questions in the forties.”
Yi Jagon began pointing out the questions one by one.
“Question forty-two, which appeared for the first time, concerned the possibility of qi deviation and how to respond to it. Question forty-three asked how to distinguish the Liquor-Scent Art from Disguise Art. Question forty-six concerned the characteristics of Concealment Art and how to counter it. Question forty-eight asked how to expel poisonous qi through qi-regulating breathing. Those were the decisive questions.”
“Th-those appeared on the test?”
Jang Sagun was only human, and there were limits to how accurately he could predict an examination.
Still, his predictions had missed the mark by far this time.
“Those subjects aren’t within the scope of a basic examination, are they?”
“The excessive enthusiasm among the applicants has made it increasingly difficult to distinguish them. Thanks especially to the efforts of tutors like you, Senior, there were many perfect scores, so the standard of the examination rose sharply.”
Yi Jagon’s words stabbed at Jang Sagun, but Jang Sagun still had not come to his senses.
“E-even so, isn’t this strange? We teach such things as well. But qi deviation and the Liquor-Scent Art are not subjects applicants who have only completed basic martial arts training would learn. How could there be eighteen people ahead of Cheolyeong?”
The scholars overseeing the test began stepping forward one by one with angry expressions, but Yi Jagon raised a hand to stop them.
“Of course, they are not subjects every applicant would study. But aren’t they subjects all martial artists studying the basics should learn?”
“...You’re saying the Taeul Sect anticipated something even I didn’t?”
“That was not the case. I found it strange as well, so I gathered the first, second, and third-place students and asked them. They said the Taeul Sect’s Head Disciple had gathered the children who neglected their studies and taught them one by one. He even made a book himself.”
“The Head Disciple?”
Jang Sagun’s gaze turned toward Jin Sowoon, who was chatting noisily with the children off to one side.
“Studying for an examination is important, of course, but I believe the Martial Alliance needs people with broad knowledge of martial arts, not people who are only good at examinations like this.”
With that, Yi Jagon headed to the lodgings with the scholars. Jang Sagun stood there for a long while, staring at Jin Sowoon and the Taeul Sect’s people, including the Hall Lords, with blazing eyes.
* * *
“How did this happen?!”
It was only natural for such a disastrous result to bring down a thunderous rebuke.
Gye Yeonseok unleashed a fury he had never shown Jang Sagun before.
“You told me to trust you! Didn’t you say you would make sure he passed?”
“...”
The tone of extreme deference had become merely half-formal, but Jang Sagun could not say a word.
When a child’s future was involved, even high officials grovelled as though before the Emperor. When the results proved disappointing, they had to endure the opposite treatment.
“I’m sorry. I focused on intensive study to bring Applicant Gye Cheolyeong’s score as close to perfect as possible. I believe that may have backfired.”
“If things continue like this... If they continue like this...”
Jang Sagun adopted a resolute expression and calmed Gye Yeonseok.
“Please do not worry. The second test will be different from the first.”
“You have a plan?”
“The second test is what I have put the most work into. It tests the martial arts of one’s own sect.”
“Cheolyeong learned the forms, but not an internal energy cultivation method!”
Jang Sagun shook his head again.
“Please do not worry. The standards of the One Hundred Eight Peaks vary greatly, so the Martial Alliance excludes internal energy and tests only forms. In particular, applicants receive higher scores if they can perform forms skillfully without internal energy. There is no one in the Taeul Sect with greater martial arts proficiency than Applicant Cheolyeong.”
Despite presenting a Perfect Wall countermeasure, Gye Yeonseok still looked unconvinced.
Jang Sagun puffed out his chest.
“Sir. You must trust me!”
People wanted to rely on someone when facing what they did not understand.
The distrustful look on Gye Yeonseok’s face eased slightly.
“...Ahem. I will wait and see.”
After Gye Yeonseok left the room, Jang Sagun turned to his assistant.
“Bring that damned brat here at once. I need to check everything he has practiced again.”
“Yes!”
He had worked as a tutor in this field for fifteen years.
He could not let the Taeul Sect ruin the reputation he had built over all that time.
* * *
“The second test measures how well you understand your sect’s martial arts.”
For some reason, the faces of the Gyerong Merchant Group’s people brightened at Yi Jagon’s words.
“The test will require each person to demonstrate their sect’s martial arts before ten Gyeonseong martial artists. However, the use of internal energy is strictly prohibited for safety reasons.”
“Yes!”
Gye Yeonseok cried out so loudly that the elders and Sect Leader on the platform looked at him, but his gaze remained fixed on the examination ground.
“If no one can use internal energy... then Senior Brother Gye will take first place.”
Geumpyo muttered beside me.
He was the eldest son of a miller and a disciple of Busaeng Hall who hated Gye Cheolyeong the most. As Eunho and Dongryong’s elder brother, he took good care of the other disciples, so many of the children followed him.
“Are you worried?”
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t. Senior Brother Gye always finds famous martial arts masters and trains privately under them.”
The Taeul Sect’s sword forms, centered on swift swordplay, were somewhat monotonous. Since Gye Cheolyeong had already learned a variety of forms, he was more proficient with them.
In fact, if we sparred using forms without internal energy, I was the only one who could defeat Gye Cheolyeong.
“Eldest Senior Brother, you have to take first place.”
“Didn’t you score higher than me on the written test?”
I had deliberately placed around fifth to control my ranking.
Geumpyo was in fourth place, directly above me.
“Even so, I want Senior Brother to go to the Martial Arts Academy.”
“It’s not over yet. And have you mastered the Lesser Heaven Sword Art I taught you before?”
“Of course.”
“Then you can look forward to it.”
“To what?”
Instead of answering, I looked at Yi Jagon as the envoy continued speaking.
“Therefore, the Gyeonseong martial artists will use only the Taeul Sect’s basic sword art, the Lesser Heaven Sword Art. Likewise, applicants will use only the Lesser Heaven Sword Art. You must break the Gyeonseong martial artists’ forms within fifty moves.”
The Hall Lords’ and Sect Leader’s faces hardened at Yi Jagon’s words.
Gyeonseong martial artists were Martial Alliance martial artists of Grade Six or above.
Even if the Taeul Sect’s disciples were proficient in their sect’s martial arts, breaking their forms would be extremely difficult.
But then...
“They said to use only the Lesser Heaven Sword Art?”
“That’s exactly what they said. They also said the martial artists would use only the Lesser Heaven Sword Art!”
“I heard it clearly too.”
For some reason, the disciples could not hide their excitement.
After my battle with Namgung San, I taught the Ascendant Form to the children who had come to me asking to learn the Lesser Heaven Sword Art.
It was a form built on the Sword-Breaking Form, eliminating weaknesses and further developing strengths through shifts in technique.
It would not be an exaggeration to say it was specialized in shattering the original Lesser Heaven Sword Art.
The Taeul Sect’s disciples stepped forward one by one before the Gyeonseong martial artists.
“We will begin!”
At Yi Jagon’s shout, the martial artists and disciples began exchanging sword strikes.
Fewer than three in ten applicants would normally meet the passing mark for the second test.
The high standard of “breaking” their forms was meant to identify the children’s limits.
There was no way a sect like the Taeul Sect could defeat Gyeonseong martial artists of Grade Six.
Only peerless geniuses could possibly accomplish such a thing...
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Gah!”
Something unbelievable happened.
The Gyeonseong martial artists, repeatedly disarmed, stared blankly.
The children cheered.
“I won!”
“We won!!”
“Hooray!”
Even Yi Jagon, who was overseeing the test, could not hide the shock.
What in the world was happening?
Looking around to understand the situation, Yi Jagon saw every child who had passed running toward the same young man.
“Eldest Senior Brother! Eldest Senior Brother! We won because we did exactly as you told us!”
Yi Jagon’s gaze fixed on the young man.
They won because they followed the Head Disciple’s instructions?
The first test, and now the second...
How could someone who was not even a professional tutor have prepared them for this?
What Yi Jagon had thought might be coincidence continued until the second test concluded.
A full eighty percent of the Taeul Sect’s children had “broken” the Gyeonseong martial artists’ forms. Even those who had not showed a deep understanding of forms, astonishing the Gyeonseong Envoys and martial artists.
At the Gyerong Merchant Group, things were heating up for an entirely different reason.
“Sir Jang! What in the world is this?!”
The one who had lost all decorum and shouted in fury was Gye Yeonseok.
Jang Sagun’s expression stiffened further.
...
6th. Kwak Ilnam.
7th. Gye Cheolyeong.
8th. Song Gyeongmun.
...
Even on the second day of testing, Gye Cheolyeong had failed to achieve a top ranking.
* * *
“What are you going to do now?!”
Gye Yeonseok, who had at least maintained a half-formal tone until then, finally began speaking down to him.
Jang Sagun’s eyelids trembled with humiliation.
“Sir. There is still a chance.”
Jang Sagun spoke desperately, even using formal language, but Gye Yeonseok’s eyes were filled with distrust.
“The third test accounts for the most points in this special admission examination. Fortunately, Cheolyeong’s score on the second test was not bad, so we can still turn this around.”
Gye Yeonseok spoke with eyes that looked ready to tear him apart, even if he did not release killing intent.
“...Keep talking.”
“...The third test selects only the top sixteen from the first two tests and has them compete in martial matches. The earlier tests are practically nothing but preparation for this one.”
That was, of course, a lie.
The third test’s matches between applicants measured the overall depth of their martial arts.
If there was no clear difference in skill, the scores from the earlier tests would naturally affect the outcome.
But if someone could win overwhelmingly in martial matches, the earlier scores became meaningless.
“Hmph! The Taeul Sect may be a third-rate sect, but there are still some brats there with decent talent. How can you guarantee Cheolyeong can defeat them overwhelmingly?”
Gye Yeonseok was now speaking as if Jang Sagun were his subordinate. Jang Sagun gritted his teeth and replied.
“I know that as well. Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong. The three miller brothers have fairly solid martial depth among the Taeul Sect disciples. Hong Saryeon, Sect Leader Hong’s daughter, has shown the greatest skill among the children of Busaeng Hall.”
“You left one out. Jin Sowoon! I still cannot believe it, but he defeated Seong Mohyeon, the Bloody Wolf Iron Sword, and Namgung San, the Heaven-Opening Divine Dragon. How could Gye Cheolyeong possibly overwhelm them?”
Gye Cheolyeong, who was being insulted along with everyone else because of Jang Sagun, trembled.
Still, he knew how serious the matter was and said nothing.
“Sir. You must trust me.”
“You need to give me reason to trust you!”
“I have heard the rumors as well. The divine might Jin Sowoon displayed was ultimately a suicidal attack where both sides would perish together. In this examination, the examiners will stop them before it reaches that point.”
“Get to the point! The point!”
At Gye Yeonseok’s urging, Jang Sagun swallowed. Then he nodded at a female martial artist. After hesitating briefly, she took a red wooden box from her robes.
When she opened it, five sinister red pellets rolled out.
“What is that?”
“It is the secret method that will send Cheolyeong to the Martial Arts Academy.”
“...”
“It is called the Bloodburst Pellet.”
Gye Yeonseok’s eyes widened, and his mouth trembled.
“Y-you have decided to end the Gye family line! How dare you bring such a sinister drug here?!”
“Sir, do you know why the Demonic Cult was destroyed long ago?”
“Why are you suddenly bringing that up?!”
Despite Gye Yeonseok’s shout, Jang Sagun calmly posed a question.
“Is it not strange? There are countless heterodox and Black Path factions in the martial world. Then why was only the Demonic Cult ‘subjugated’?”
“...”
“There are many reasons, but the greatest was this secret method. The Bloodburst Pellet can draw out twice a person’s latent potential without any conditions.”
“...Yes, and it turns people into cripples.”
Jang Sagun smiled faintly at Gye Yeonseok’s words.
In a way, this had been the key secret method that had made Jang Sagun the Ace Tutor for the past fifteen years.
“No.”
“What?”
“That is what people believe, but it is not true. That is why the Martial Alliance of that era, fearful that the Demonic Cult would grow too powerful and covet the world, destroyed it.”
“I have never heard such a thing.”
Jang Sagun nodded at a male scholar.
The scholar took a blue-green wooden box from the carrying frame on his back and opened it.
“This is called the Blood-Quelling Pellet.”
“The Blood-Quelling Pellet?”
“Yes. It is a miraculous medicine that calms the latent potential stirred up by the Bloodburst Pellet. If we use this, he can draw out that potential with almost no aftereffects.”
“...”
Gye Yeonseok’s eyes began to waver.
There could not truly be no side effects, as Jang Sagun claimed.
If such a medicine existed, the Bloodburst Pellet would not be traded in secret like this.
Still, he had no choice but to consider it.
There was a countermeasure in the form of the Blood-Quelling Pellet.
More importantly, Cheolyeong’s current score was not enough to send him to the Martial Arts Academy.
Gye Yeonseok looked at Gye Cheolyeong, then spoke to Jang Sagun.
“If you are not honest with me, I will chase you to the ends of hell and ruin you.”
It was a threat from someone with no internal energy at all, but Jang Sagun felt a chill in those venomous words and swallowed hard.
After contemplating for a moment, Gye Yeonseok asked him.
“...What are the aftereffects of that drug?”
Jang Sagun cautiously opened his mouth.
“...If he exceeds one hundred exchanges, it will leave a permanent wound in his dantian.”
“You... Damn you...”
“B-but think about it, sir! Cheolyeong has thirty years’ worth of internal energy in his dantian. Even if that girl Saryeon and Jin Sowoon worked themselves to death with the Taeul Sect’s martial arts, they could not have accumulated even twenty years of internal energy.”
“...”
“They will surely be unable to withstand even one strike from Cheolyeong after he takes the Bloodburst Pellet. There will be absolutely no need to use one hundred exchanges.”
In a fight between masters, one hundred exchanges was only an instant. At Cheolyeong’s level, though, he would be exhausted before he could even reach that number.
Besides, there would be no more than five martial matches in total, so taking the Bloodburst Pellet was not such a bad idea.
“Sir. You must trust me.”
“...”
As Gye Yeonseok struggled to reach a decision and silence fell, Gye Cheolyeong strode forward.
“Father! I’ll take it.”
“...This is not your place to speak.”
Jang Sagun noticed Gye Yeonseok’s wavering gaze and pressed his advantage.
“Think about it, sir. Even though Great Hero Namgung San could use only thirty percent of his internal energy, he and Jin Sowoon did not even exchange fifty moves.”
“...”
After thinking for a long time, Gye Yeonseok finally ground his teeth and glared at Jang Sagun.
“If Cheolyeong’s dantian receives even a scratch the size of a fingernail, I will tear you to pieces.”
Standing at the edge of a cliff himself, Jang Sagun answered.
“Just trust me, sir.”
Footnotes:
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