“Teacher!”
As soon as Jeongalgyun, the subject of our previous discussion, suddenly appeared, Dokgoseok jumped up from his seat.
“Haha, being greeted like this makes this old man not know where to put his body.”
“Please sit this way!”
Saying that, Dokgoseok hurriedly cleared his side of the seat.
“Then I’ll take a seat.”
Perhaps because they had been together for a while, Jeongalgyun naturally sat down next to us.
“I wonder how everyone has been.”
With that, Jeongalgyun looked around at the faces of our group.
“Nice to see you again, Teacher.”
“Have you been healthy during this time?”
“Haha, seeing beautiful young ladies after such a long time makes my eyes feel brighter.”
As Dokgorin and Kyungah greeted him in turn, Jeongalgyun smiled with satisfaction.
“By the way, Teacher, where’s Jeongalsohyup? Are you here all by yourself today?”
“Oh, that grandson of mine attended a birthday celebration and left the capital right after, and he said he’d come separately later. So it’s just me here.”
“What a shame. If he had come, we could have shared a drink.”
As he said that, Dokgoseok naturally poured more alcohol into Jeongalgyun’s glass.
“So, Teacher, what’s the current situation with the Murim Association?”
Jeongalgyun shook his head as if in frustration and downed the drink in his hand.
“Don’t even mention it. The association’s operations have come to a standstill since the leader suddenly died. Weijichun, that friend, has complicated relationships with women but was good at managing things, and thanks to him, I’ve only gotten busier.”
“I see.”
Although shocked by the sudden revelation about Weijichun’s romantic entanglements, Dokgoseok looked slightly ambiguous, while Jeongalgyun seemed unfazed.
“By the way, I heard you might have something to ask me while passing by earlier. What is it?”
“Uh? Did you hear that?”
“This old man has pretty good hearing.”
Chuckling, Jeongalgyun looked at Dokgoseok with a gaze that said to hurry up and speak if he had something to say.
After a moment’s hesitation, Dokgoseok finally opened his mouth.
“Teacher, are you aware of the incidents involving the sects and clans that happened over the past few years?”
“Oh, that, right? I’m well aware.”
“I have some materials I’ve personally investigated, and I’d like to hand them over to you while requesting protection for our Dokgo Clan.”
“Hoh, you’re requesting protection from the Murim Association? Does your friend Dokgojin know about this?”
“No, this is entirely my own decision. If I ask my father, he would certainly say we don’t need the help of the Murim Association.”
“Hahaha! You understand your father’s temperament well! Surely, he would have no problem saying that.”
“Then, Teacher, can we…?”
As Dokgoseok poured more alcohol into Jeongalgyun’s empty glass while making his request, Jeongalgyun nodded readily.
“Sounds good. Isn’t this just between you and me? I could refuse anyone else, but for a precious drinking buddy’s request, I’ll oblige.”
“Thank you! Teacher!”
Dokgoseok bowed his head in gratitude, visibly moved.
“This is nothing. Wasn’t the Murim Association made to help each other when something happens? You could say this is its very function.”
With that, Jeongalgyun smiled benevolently and picked up some food with chopsticks.
“But what exactly does the material you’ve arranged contain?”
Instead of answering right away, Dokgoseok glanced around and lowered his voice.
“They say a bird listens to your words in the day and a mouse hears them at night, so this doesn’t seem like a conversation for this place. I’ll tell you over a cup of alcohol later.”
“Oh, is it such important information?”
“If my assumptions are correct, we might be able to predict where those black-cloaked individuals will raid next.”
“That’s quite an exciting prospect.”
Jeongalgyun said this while stroking his beard.
“Hey, young master. How can you say something and suddenly stop?”
Acting as if he wasn’t listening while secretly focusing on the conversation, Kyungah, who was snacking next to them, spoke as if she found it absurd, and Dokgoseok forced a smile as he explained.
“I’m sorry. This is really important.”
Isn’t it better for fewer people to know about this kind of thing?
As it was truly the correct logic, Kyungah merely pouted her lips but didn’t voice more complaints.
Anyway, perhaps feeling relieved that their business in the capital was over, Dokgoseok soon had a relaxed expression and chatted away with Jeongalgyun.
It was likely that their drinking session wouldn’t end at the funeral home but would move somewhere else and continue late into the night.
At that time, they would secretly share the story they had just started.
But as a mere child, I clearly couldn’t attend that gathering, so I thought I would just sit quietly and watch the festivities while munching on some rice cakes.
*
Including the time taken for round trips from Sichuan Province to Shaanxi Province, our journey to the capital took about three months.
At first, I was worried about traveling such a long distance, but upon returning, I felt it was worth the trip.
Even if this world is a fictional one, the basic background is the same as ancient China.
Therefore, while we visited attractions rich in local flavor that were hard to reach in my previous life, we returned to Shang’an where the Dokgo Clan resides.
“I’m back, Father.”
“Yeah.”
“Have you heard any news about the Murim Association Leader?”
“Even if Shang’an is a backwater, news of a giant like the Murim Association Leader dying spreads quickly.”
As he said that, Dokgojin, who had been about to turn away, hesitated for a moment, cleared his throat, and added,
“You did well to go on such a long journey in my stead. You must be tired, so come in for a bit and rest.”
Hearing those words from Dokgojin, Dokgoseok, who had momentarily looked dazed, promptly responded vigorously.
“Yes! Father!”
Putting aside the dark past, seeing the two men reestablishing as a family gave me a strangely poignant feeling.
‘I wish my father had been like that.’
Reflecting on a wish that can no longer be fulfilled, I gave a bitter smile, nodded respectfully to the martial artist Uncle I had relied on so far, and returned home alone in solitude.
*
The more immersed I became in something, the more time flowed like water.
Having struggled for two years to learn Muryeongsa, I underwent hellish training to improve my basic physical abilities, and after establishing a solid foundation for my body, I learned one of the breathing techniques that Dokgorin had taught me.
The technique she taught was called Mugung (武窮) Breathing Method, which, according to Dokgorin’s explanation, was a slight modification of the Taihe Breathing Method she had learned.
Then, when I asked if it was almost the same as the Taihe Breathing Method she had mastered, Dokgorin unapologetically replied that it was fine since the name was different.
Whatever the case, knowing that the elevated inner power breathing methods couldn’t be learned even if one paid for them, I diligently practiced the Mugung Breathing Method that Dokgorin taught.
As the second winter spent in this place came to an end and the third spring approached, thanks to Dokgorin’s devoted teaching, I was able to fully master Muryeongsa.
*
“Suuuu…”
I took a deep breath.
With my legs spread shoulder-width apart, I expanded my lungs and puffed out my chest, awakening the energy that lay dormant in my lower dantian.
What I was doing now was a sort of warm-up.
Before formally using the energy, I sent a signal to my lower dantian, creating tension.
The threads of silk attached to my ten fingertips were all Cheonjam silk, which Dokgorin had bought for me at a cloth shop when we went to China two years ago.
Since then, I had never taken them from my person, so I could truly say they had become an inseparable part of me.
Once my mental focus was complete, I began to quickly swing the Cheonjam silk hanging from the tips of my fingers in the prescribed order.
Due to the energy injected, the Cheonjam silk flew as if alive and swiftly transformed into a lasso to bind the bamboo I initially targeted.
With that, when I applied force to pull strongly, the bamboo snapped as easily as if it were cutting through tofu.
An ordinary thread without a blade, but when infused with energy, it became sharp enough to pierce through bamboo.
As I bent down to pick up each piece of bamboo that was instantly split into ten by Muryeongsa, I heard the familiar sound of applause from behind.
Clap clap clap!
“You no longer have anything left to learn, so you can leave the mountain now, right?”
“…Don’t tease me, Miss.”
I said that and looked at Dokgorin, who had approached me, with a sullen expression.
Her hair, pale green blowing in the wind, glowed softly, and she wore a black martial outfit emblazoned with a silver dragon, holding two swords resembling Chinese sabers.
In nearly two years, Dokgorin had grown to an unrecognizable level, and with a cat-like smile, she said,
“Surely, I’m always speaking earnestly, right?”
“If you say that while smiling, it sounds totally untrustworthy.”
“Busted.”
She said that and playfully stuck out her tongue.
Already worthy of the term “peerless beauty,” Dokgorin had become a super talented girl.
It had already been two years since we went to the capital to attend the Murim Association Leader’s birthday celebration, and the time was approaching for the original story to begin.
