WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 71: Hell's Entrance Exam: Gate 'I' (5)

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A person's mental strength could be just as influential as their martial strength.

Fear of an opponent, carved deep into one's mind, could not be overcome simply because one's martial arts had improved.

"Eldest Senior Brother..."

That was exactly how Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong felt.

Their fear of Gye Yeonseok, who had ruled over the Taeul Sect for years, could not be easily cast aside just because they had learned new martial arts.

"Should we go somewhere else...?"

Unable to endure Gye Yeonseok's uncomfortable gaze and Gye Cheolyeong's twisted expression, the three brothers watched me anxiously.

"Why? This inn seems fine to me."

"No... It's just..."

Dongryong glanced toward Gye Yeonseok, then quickly averted his eyes.

I spoke bluntly.

"Did you do anything wrong?"

"...No, but..."

"Do you owe them money?"

"..."

"The Gyerong Merchant Group recovered every coin it had sponsored after Gye Cheolyeong left, along with interest. They're no longer our creditors."

They tightly pressed their lips together, pretending to agree, but their unsteady eyes gave them away.

Then someone called to me from behind.

"Jin Sowoon."

It was Gye Yeonseung, once the Lord of Busaeng Hall.

"It's been a long time."

"It has. Have you been well?"

"..."

Gye Yeonseung's lips trembled. It seemed the Gyerong Merchant Group had not been doing well.

That made sense. In the end, Gye Yeonseung had been nothing more than a tool used to raise Gye Cheolyeong. With Cheolyeong reduced to that state, there was no way Yeonseung could have been living comfortably.

"The Merchant Group Head wishes to see you for a moment."

I raised my head and looked at Gye Yeonseok.

His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked raw with resentment. It was no wonder the still-young brothers feared him.

"If he wants to see me, tell him to come down himself."

"..."

But so what if they were afraid?

To me, they were nothing more than people who had tried to use us as tools and discard us.

"Can't you see we've had a hard time? We were just about to eat."

"...He's inviting you to join him for a meal."

"Why? Is he paying for it?"

"...I was once the hall lord who taught you."

"Hall Lord, the only thing you taught us was to submit to Gye Cheolyeong."

"...!"

Gye Yeonseung's face crumpled like paper. I had been getting under his skin badly, yet it was strange that he did not draw his sword.

He would have drawn it long ago while going on about being a Mount Hua lay disciple.

"..."

Gye Yeonseung fidgeted with his fingers, then looked at Gye Yeonseok.

After quietly watching us for a moment, Gye Yeonseok nodded.

"The Merchant Group Head says he'll treat us to a meal. Let's go upstairs together."

"...Sounds good. Hey!"

I immediately called over a passing server.

"Cancel what we just ordered and prepare eight of the most expensive dishes in this inn. Ah, you heard those people over there are paying, right?"

"...Ah, yes. Understood."

Both Gye Yeonseung and Gye Yeonseok looked deeply displeased.

"Let's go."

"...Eldest Senior Brother, can't we eat here?"

"I've been thinking about your next training. Now that you've mastered the movement art, how about walking on your hands?"

"Geumpyo! What are you saying? We can't send Eldest Senior Brother alone!"

"That's right! I'm disappointed in you, Geumpyo!"

Dongryong and Eunho sprang to their feet. Geumpyo looked at them as though they had betrayed him, then slowly stood as well.

Gye Yeonseok had reserved the entire second floor.

Groups of wandering martial artists were drinking and eating, and the table where Yeon Chuak, Han Geumtak, and Dam Cheolgak sat was laden with the finest food and liquor.

Before approaching Gye Yeonseok's table, I pointed the brothers toward an empty one.

"You three eat here."

"Ah! Understood! We'll be right here, Eldest Senior Brother!"

Geumpyo clasped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute, looking delighted.

I sat across from Gye Yeonseok and Gye Cheolyeong.

"It's been a long time."

"...You look well. Has your life improved after abandoning the Gyerong Merchant Group to sponge off the Wang Family Estate?"

"To be exact, the Taeul Sect did not abandon the Gyerong Merchant Group. The Gyerong Merchant Group ran away from the Taeul Sect on its own. Gye Cheolyeong simply paid the price for that."

"Aah, ah, aah."

Gye Cheolyeong kept drooling as he glared at me as if he wanted to kill me.

"So, does the Wang Family Estate's money taste different?"

"Didn't you know? The Taeul Sect recently discovered a mine. Ah, and we also acquired the Changgung Merchant Group's Hefei branch. We no longer need to tolerate people who throw their money around like they own us. Not that the Head of the Wang Family Estate was ever like the Gyerong Merchant Group Head in the first place."

"..."

"Oh, and you've heard that we recovered the Taeul Sword Emperor's legacy, haven't you? Haha, you should have waited a little longer. Then Gye Cheolyeong might have inherited the Taeul Sword Emperor's legacy and entered the Martial Arts Academy regular examination himself."

Gye Yeonseok's eyes held a desperate longing for the opportunity he had lost right before his eyes.

Even an ordinary person would have felt wronged in his position. For someone as greedy as him, I could not imagine how hellish each day must have been.

"Enough. Why did you call us here? We aren't close enough to sit together and share a meal."

From the moment he brought his ruined son to take the Martial Arts Academy regular examination, Gye Yeonseok's greed had already cast him into hell. I had no hobby of tormenting someone who already lived in hell. He could simply go on living like that.

"...The Taeul Sect owes me a debt."

What kind of bullshit was this?

"It was the Gyerong Merchant Group that extended a hand when the Taeul Sect was at its weakest."

The Gye Yeonseok who had once flaunted his wealth was gone.

His merchant group and financial power might still have remained, but once Gye Cheolyeong became like this, all the plans he had laid out for the future fell apart. Forced to head for the Martial Arts Academy examination with wandering martial artists in tow, the prestige he had built with money had vanished long ago.

"It was thanks to the Gyerong Merchant Group that the Taeul Sect was able to join hands with the Wang Family Estate, acquire that mine, and gain the Changgung Merchant Group's Hefei branch."

I quietly listened to his nonsense.

"..."

"Just because you repaid money and interest doesn't mean the debt disappears. A debt of goodwill can only be repaid with goodwill!"

As if convinced by his own words, he continued.

"Your debt. Your fellow disciples' debt. Repay it."

"...?"

Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong stopped eating and looked over.

"Stay with Cheolyeong. Help him enter the Martial Arts Academy. I've already gathered one hundred renowned wandering martial artists. This won't be a losing proposition for you either. Repay the goodwill I showed you with that."

"..."

I thought about it. Why would Gye Yeonseok say this to me, the one who had helped turn Gye Cheolyeong into a wreck, and to the Taeul Sect he considered beneath him?

The answer came quickly.

'Ah, it must be because of the Dragon-Phoenix Association.'

What happened at the Dragon-Phoenix Association had not spread publicly.

The Taeul Sect had kept everyone's mouths shut, and the Dragon-Phoenix Association would not go around spreading news of its own mistake.

Still, someone who had continued watching the Taeul Sect... someone who had been planning to take revenge on the Taeul Sect someday...

'They couldn't have failed to notice.'

He must have thought I would be useful after seeing me refuse to yield even an inch against Hwa Jeongsan and Jong Byeokgi of the Dragon-Phoenix Association.

That explained Gye Yeonseung's attitude and all the restraint he had shown.

"Pfft."

Once my thoughts fell into place, a laugh escaped me.

"...!"

It had only been a light laugh, but the atmosphere on the floor turned cold in an instant.

The wandering martial artists seated with Yeon Chuak stopped with their cups halfway to their mouths.

Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong set down their chopsticks, ready to draw their swords at any moment.

"You should have shown us some real goodwill, then."

"..."

"While you were sponsoring those children, you could have said a kind word now and then. When you held a feast, you could have fed them without being stingy. When Cheolyeong did something wrong, you should have come and apologized instead of solving everything with money."

"...Aah, ugh, aah."

"You say we owe you goodwill? You would have had to show us some before we could owe you any."

"..."

"If you joined the Taeul Sect to apply for special admission to the Martial Arts Academy, you should have at least tried to get along with the Taeul Sect. Whose idea was it to refuse to learn the internal cultivation method because Taeul Sect martial arts were supposedly harmful? You acted like that, and now you speak of goodwill?"

"..."

"Stop talking nonsense. We were the ones who showed you goodwill. Gye Cheolyeong. We could have taken your life, but we didn't go that far. Now the Merchant Group Head owes the Taeul Sect."

Yeon Chuak, Han Geumtak, and Dam Cheolgak rose from their seats and approached us.

"Hey, young man, aren't your words a little harsh?"

"Mind your own business. Wandering martial artists move only when their employer tells them to."

"Hah. Look at this brat."

When Gye Yeonseok gave a small shake of his head, the wandering martial artists spat and turned away.

"...You don't intend to join us?"

"If Gye Cheolyeong must enter the Martial Arts Academy for me to enter it as well... then I'll give up on the Martial Arts Academy altogether."

"..."

Gye Yeonseok's eyes trembled.

"I... If Cheolyeong cannot enter the Martial Arts Academy, then I won't stand by and watch the Taeul Sect enter either."

"..."

"Even if I have to throw away everything I possess, I'll stop you and the Taeul Sect."

Clatter.

Dongryong dropped the spoon he was eating with without realizing it.

"Should I take that as a declaration of war?"

"..."

"To protect the Taeul Sect, I'm prepared to lay down my life."

Looking straight into Gye Yeonseok's bloodshot eyes, I said,

"So when you touch the Taeul Sect, Merchant Group Head, you should be prepared to do the same."

I rose from my seat.

At the same time, Yeon Chuak, Han Geumtak, and Dam Cheolgak stood and glared at me.

"Brat, have you never heard the saying that one should not make enemies lightly in the martial world?"

"There's also a saying that you shouldn't look down on someone just because they're young."

I looked at the brothers.

"Are you done eating?"

They had eaten only about half their food, but perhaps they were uncomfortable staying there. They nodded vigorously.

"Let's go."

#

Gye Yeonseok's group left first that day.

After bathing as planned, we rested for a day and only finished preparing to leave the following morning.

Before departing, I gathered the children.

"You saw what happened yesterday, right?"

"..."

Remembering that heavy exchange, they remained silent.

"That is the martial world. Even if I haven't harmed anyone, if I'm weak, I cannot protect those precious to me."

"We will remember it."

"We will remember it."

"We will remember it."

The brothers' eyes shone more fiercely than ever.

I took two wooden boxes from my bundle.

"The Sect Leader gave these to us."

"What are they?"

"They contain the Namgung Clan's Great Lotus Divine Pellets."

"What?!"

The brothers' mouths fell open.

"The reason I made you train qi circulation with the Taeul True Scripture so fiercely all this time was not only for the reason I told you before. It was also to help you digest these elixir pellets."

Unfortunately, the brothers' internal energy stood at around ten years.

Eunho, who had the greatest talent for internal cultivation, possessed twelve years of internal energy. Geumpyo and Dongryong had not even reached ten years.

"Your internal energy isn't enough to endure the medicinal energy of the Great Lotus Divine Pellet. The moment you take this medicine, you must practice qi circulation even more fiercely than you have until now."

"...Senior Brother."

"What is it?"

"There are only two. How will we divide them?"

I tilted my head. Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong were kind enough to give their own portions to one another even if they could not have any themselves. Had the medicine changed them that much?

"There are four of us but only two pellets, so wouldn't it be better if Senior Brother took both?"

"...Why does your calculation lead to that?"

Eunho continued after Geumpyo spoke.

"Geumpyo is right. Even if we take them, it'll take us a long time to digest them, and we'd only hold you back. You should take them both."

"I agree with my brothers. Besides, medicine doesn't agree with me. I couldn't even take tonics well when I was young."

As they joked around, I split both Great Lotus Divine Pellets in half. A clear fragrance filled the room. I handed each of them a half as they stared blankly at the sight.

"..."

They looked at the Great Lotus Divine Pellets and swallowed hungrily, but they could not bring themselves to put them in their mouths.

"You told the Sect Leader you would get me into the Martial Arts Academy, didn't you?"

"Uh... Well..."

"Ahahaha."

"..."

Looking at their embarrassed faces, I said,

"I have no intention of entering the Martial Arts Academy alone. All of you will enter it with me."

"..."

"..."

"..."

I had said something rather moving, yet they only looked at one another and tilted their heads.

"Senior Brother, honestly, isn't that impossible?"

"Then is it realistic for me to enter the Martial Arts Academy alone?"

"...If it's Eldest Senior Brother, isn't it possible?"

"Yes. I think you can do it."

What exactly did they think I was?

"Then trust me and follow me."

"...I want to, but we're... Honestly, aren't we too weak? We couldn't even raise our heads among those wandering martial artists yesterday."

"To be honest, I was scared."

It was the same feeling I had experienced in my previous life, when I first went to fulfill my mandatory service at the Martial Alliance.

"Don't worry. When you enter the Martial Arts Academy, no one will be able to meet your eyes. I'll make it so."

"..."

Geumpyo, Eunho, and Dongryong stood with their mouths open, unable to say a word.

* * *

Even after they had mastered the movement art while practicing qi circulation, I did not make them climb mountains again.

This time, I made them walk the main road while maintaining a sword formation.

They had to maintain the sword formation while moving, not simply deploy it.

At first, their feet became tangled and the formation broke apart on its own, but gradually, they could maintain it for longer periods.

Whenever I had the chance, I struck the formation with the Black Dragon Sword, and their mastery improved quickly.

Having memorized the sword formation with their eyes and ears blocked, they progressed rapidly.

"Munch, munch. Eldest Senior Brother, is it really all right for us to travel so leisurely?"

While the three brothers ate by the roadside, I wrote a letter for the Hao Sect, tied it to Iron Eagle's leg, and sent the bird flying. Then I released killing intent toward them.

"...Urgh!"

"..."

"Ugh."

Geumpyo and Dongryong looked as though they were about to vomit, while Eunho remained unaffected.

"Haah... Can't we at least eat in peace?"

"How much of the Great Lotus Divine Pellet have you dissolved?"

"...About half."

"If a fight breaks out when you least expect it, that energy could surge in reverse."

"...Haah, understood."

Thanks to the Taeul True Scripture, they were dissolving the Great Lotus Divine Pellet faster than I expected.

"Eldest Senior Brother, aren't we going to fail even Gate I at this rate? How many bandit strongholds are left?"

"Eight hundred and ninety-eight."

When word spread that the Martial Arts Academy's first examination was the suppression of bandit strongholds, the bandits who moved quickly fled deep into the mountains. That slowed the campaign to clear out the strongholds.

Even so, it was astounding that three thousand one hundred strongholds had already disappeared in only fifteen days.

"At this rate, we won't even get to see a bandit stronghold. It feels like we're spending too much time training... Honestly, I don't even know how prepared we are."

I smiled at Geumpyo's concern.

"You'll probably soon have a chance to test how skilled you are."

They no longer looked uncomfortable even while practicing qi circulation, stepping through the movement art, and maintaining the White Tiger Sword Formation.

They had reached the point where they could skillfully block even when I used the Twin Heavens Sword Art to strike them with continuous feints and real attacks.

"Eldest Senior Brother, what did you mean when you said we'd have a chance to show our skills?"

"After leaving the Gold Palace Inn, I made two requests through Iron Eagle. One of them was information on Gye Yeonseok's movements."

The brothers tilted their heads as if they did not understand.

"But this morning, I received word that the three experts in Gye Yeonseok's party were nowhere to be seen."

The reason I wanted the status of a Hao Sect guest retainer even though I already knew all the information about the Martial Arts Academy regular examination was because I needed information about the people moving within it. Even so, I had not expected to make use of it this quickly.

"They ran out of money..."

Geumpyo trailed off as he stared ahead strangely.

Three men stood at the end of the road, blocking their path.

A man with a strange fishing rod slung over his shoulder stepped forward.

"Why are you moving so slowly? Our employer left alone because of you."

A man carrying a massive axe and another whose long sleeves concealed his hands walked out beside him.

"...Why are they here...?"

The Yama Axe Yeon Chuak, the Windless Demon Fishing Rod Han Geumtak, and the Three-Handed Ghost Ape Dam Cheolgak, who should have been traveling with Gye Yeonseok, stood in their way.

"They were probably waiting for us."

Footnotes:

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