“Excuse me? A disciple? Let’s put that aside for now.”
As I attempted an urgent escape, Tang Hochang not only refused to let go of my arm but also began to grope my body all over.
“You seem to be in better shape than I thought. I don’t know who your master is, but you’ve learned your basics well. Your bones aren’t bad, and for your age, you’ve got quite a bit of internal energy. At this level, you’re like a top disciple from any decent sect. Who did you train under?”
Feeling chills from Tang Hochang’s excessive interest, I quickly shouted, “Most of it was taught by Rin!”
Tang Hochang looked at Dokgorin in surprise. “Rin, you taught him?”
“Yes. He will be my future husband, so I did some preparation in advance.”
“You’re even better than me. The disciples I trained before would whimper and run away at the slightest difficulty, so I still haven’t found anyone to pass on my martial arts to. With this level, you can skip the intermediate steps.”
With a meaningful smile, Tang Hochang stroked his neatly trimmed beard and asked, “Do you know what the Sicheondang family is famous for?”
“Um… poison and memorization, right?”
“Hahaha! That’s true, but the Sicheondang originally started as a family of martial artists known for Tangmun Kwon.”
“…Tangmun Kwon?”
Since it was a story I had never heard before, I stared blankly, and Tang Hochang smiled as he explained.
“Of course, it’s not that poison and memorization are bad. As long as you win, it doesn’t matter how you do it. But when you win like this, you’ll always have someone saying they can’t accept it and asking for a fair fight. To smash those types head-on, I’ve become a master of the Tangmun Kwon passed down through my family.”
Indeed, Tang Hochang’s muscles were impressive, unlike the typical martial artists using poison and memorization.
It was the body of someone who had trained external martial arts.
“Though my nickname is Poison King, the Tangmun Kwon is such an excellent martial art that even the legendary Golden King, Zhu Yusheng, acknowledges it.”
I plan to pass that on to you.
“…Is it really okay for me to learn such a precious skill?”
At this point, I couldn’t help but feel intrigued.
The martial arts created by the family renowned for poison and memorization, doesn’t it sound amazing just to hear about it?
“Tangmun Kwon is our family’s treasured martial art passed down through generations, but no one among the direct descendants wants to learn it. If you’re okay with it, I’ll teach you. Just don’t go sharing it everywhere.”
“……”
Honestly, from my perspective, choosing between a cold meal and a hot meal was not a luxury I could afford.
If I wanted to protect Dokgorin, I had to learn stronger martial arts than what I knew.
“If, um, it really is all right, then I would like to learn.”
After some contemplation, when I expressed my determination to learn, Tang Hochang smiled at me.
“Good choice.”
“……”
It felt like I was voluntarily stepping into a tiger’s den.
But it was already spilled milk, so I couldn’t take it back now.
*
The entrance ceremony for the Cheonmu Academy is on April 11.
And since it’s now the end of January, if I exclude the time spent traveling, I have about two months to learn martial arts from Tang Hochang.
During this time, we decided to stay at the Sicheondang family.
Honestly, it might have been good because I had no place else to ask for help.
Just sitting still, I was getting free meals and a place to stay!
The only thing I’m worried about is that starting today, I’ll be learning Tangmun Kwon under Tang Hochang.
After two years of training under Dokgorin, building basic endurance, and learning the martial art called Muryongsa, this would be my first time learning actual combat martial arts.
Thanks to this, half of me was worried and the other half was excited as I headed toward the training grounds in the Sicheondang, where Tang Hochang awaited me, revealing his muscular upper body without his white training robe like the first time I saw him.
“You’re a bit late.”
“Excuse me? I think I came about ten minutes early…”
“Not! That’s no excuse! As a disciple, you should naturally come out before your master to wait!”
Tang Hochang scolded me sternly.
It felt somewhat unreasonable, but since I had to regard him as my master going forward, I replied with an apology and moved on.
Thus began my first martial arts lesson.
“First, let’s start with some light stretches and then do Mabo.”
“Mabo, you say?”
“Don’t tell me you don’t want to do it?”
“No, that’s not it, but I remember you saying last time that since my basics are sufficient, we could skip the intermediate steps.”
Tang Hochang clicked his tongue disapprovingly and said, “Just because your basics are sufficient, does it mean you shouldn’t train? After all, in martial arts, the lower body is the most important part. The lower body stabilizes the upper body, allowing you to put all your strength behind your punches.”
Saying this, Tang Hochang assumed the Mabo stance first.
Since my master was doing it, I couldn’t refuse. I found myself standing next to him, spreading my legs shoulder-width apart and lowering my waist awkwardly.
It was a stance very similar to a squat, one of the exercise movements referred to in modern terms.
The difference might be that, unlike squats where you repeatedly stand and sit, Mabo requires maintaining a single position?
So, it felt more like a punishment than a practice.
Anyway, after maintaining the Mabo stance for about a meal’s time, Tang Hochang examined my basic endurance and flexibility, making me do various movements.
Thanks to this, as I followed what he instructed, I pushed my body to the limit in a short time, and after only an hour into the first training session, I collapsed.
“Haah, huff, huff, huff.”
Feeling too exhausted, I lay flat on the ground, hiding my face with my arm and gasping for breath. Just then, Tang Hochang, who had been observing my training closely, spoke up.
“Alright, you pass.”
At least it seemed I had the minimum qualification to learn Tangmun Kwon.
“Really? I pass?”
It was such welcome news that I could barely squeeze out my words, and Tang Hochang smiled in amusement.
“If you’re tired, feel free to lie down. Tangmun Kwon comprises eight primary techniques and three principles. Each technique is interconnected and can be applied depending on the situation. The three principles are advanced forms of the basic techniques, and those who see these principles for the first time will surely be killed.”
So, does that mean the three principles are the finishing moves?
“But since our time is short, I’m planning to teach you just these eight primary techniques and exactly one principle. You don’t have any complaints about that, do you?”
I didn’t have the strength left to respond verbally, so I merely nodded slightly.
“Good, then I’ll take that as full agreement. Today, we’ll start with the first primary technique, Butterfly Needle.”
“Butterfly Needle?”
“A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Saying this, Tang Hochang stepped back a few steps, took a deep breath, and prepared himself.
It seemed he was drawing on the internal energy within his dantian.
In an instant, Tang Hochang slightly lifted his right foot before forcefully stomping the ground.
Boom!!
With the shock, the ground shook momentarily, and before the tremor subsided, Tang Hochang’s fist shot forward, piercing through a training log with a single strike.
“Wow-”
What sheer destructive power.
As I gazed in astonishment at the circular hole pierced through the log, Tang Hochang explained as if it were nothing special.
“If you learn this Butterfly Needle technique, Chilbongi, you’ll inherently grasp why taking the initiative in battle is so important.”
Swallow-
Without realizing it, I swallowed hard, roused by the display of Tangmun Kwon’s power right before my eyes.
Just seeing one technique made me realize how high Tang Hochang’s martial arts level was.
‘This is what a master of the Transformation Realm looks like…’
There was a huge disparity between reading about martial arts and witnessing it firsthand.
‘Can I also become that strong?’
No, I must become strong.
To survive in this harsh world, and to stay by the side of my beloved Dokgorin, even if the odds are only 1%, I had to give it a shot.
‘And there’s a saying that you should aim for big goals from the start.’
If I train hard enough, maybe one day I could reach the level that Tang Hochang has achieved.
I don’t know how many years it might take, but at least it would be far better than doing nothing and whining.
Thus, reinvigorated with determination, I sprang up from the ground.
Seeing me like that, Tang Hochang grinned and asked, “You’ve already recovered, huh?”
“Yes. Honestly, seeing you demonstrate like that, I couldn’t just stand still.”
I said that while clenching my fists tightly.
My fists of justice.
In this perilous world, the only thing I could trust was my fists.
So,
“Over the next two months, I will seize everything I can. Master.”
As I spoke resolutely, looking into Tang Hochang’s eyes, he chuckled heartily and said, “Alright! If you think you can, then give it a try! If you can keep up with my training, then I’ll lay bare all my skills for you!”
