Chapter 57: Chapter 57
“Why did the Personnel Inspection Hall Master try to take you?”
Walking ahead, Myeong-cheon turned back toward the two and spoke.
Cheon Woo-jin shook his head.
“I do not know.”
In the rank hierarchy of the Martial Alliance, division heads stood above squad leaders, and separately, there were hall masters of halls possessing distinct characteristics.
For instance, the Disciplinary Hall oversaw the administration and enforcement of alliance laws, the Personnel Inspection Hall managed the personnel affairs of alliance members, and the Martial Scripture Hall handled the research of martial arts.
Most hall masters were composed of elder-level figures from the Five Great Clans and the Nine Great Sects and One Clan, and for that reason, they were existences whom no one except the Alliance Leader could speak down to.
“The Hall Master shouldn’t have any particular business with us, though.”
Song Yi-yeon added to Cheon Woo-jin’s words. No matter how much he thought about it, a reason for a figure of the hall master caliber to summon recruits who had just entered the alliance separately did not come to mind.
Martial Scripture Hall Master Myeong-cheon nodded his head.
‘It is the Black Tortoise Squad.’
If the two parties involved knew nothing, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s target was likely the Black Tortoise Squad itself. To be precise, it would be an affair related to the division head promotion scheduled four months from now.
The Martial Scripture Hall Master pressed his temple firmly with his thumb knuckle, as if getting a headache already.
Because whenever the promotion ceremony period arrived, such occurrences took place. For that reason, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s prestige pierced the heavens within the alliance as well.
“Here we are. How is it?”
Stopping his steps, Myeong-cheon pointed toward a pavilion.
The architectural style of the Martial Alliance was generally similar, but the Martial Scripture Hall possessed strong individuality. It was because it was decorated with Buddhist paintings depicting clouds, lotus blossoms, Heavenly Kings, and Buddhas.
The architectural style itself also looked like viewing a grand temple. It was because, by tradition, the Martial Scripture Hall of the Martial Alliance was managed by Shaolin figures across generations.
“Oh.”
Cheon Woo-jin let out a short exclamation of admiration.
Song Yi-yeon was also looking at it curiously.
Smiling warmly at that sight, Myeong-cheon stepped into the Martial Scripture Hall, and the two men followed behind him.
* * *
The Martial Scripture Hall Master’s office was also unusual.
One entire wall was packed densely with all manner of books, so it appeared closer to a study rather than a space for conducting administrative affairs.
The Martial Scripture Hall Master lifted a teapot and filled the teacups placed before the two. Unusually, it was transparent water devoid of any fragrance.
“It is a peculiar tea.”
When Song Yi-yeon said so, the Martial Scripture Hall Master laughed sheepishly.
“It is just water.”
“Ah…”
“As you can see, because it is a space with many books, drinking strongly scented tea causes the smell to seep into the paper. I sought teas with increasingly faint fragrances, and recently I replaced it entirely with warm water.”
Savoring the warm water like tea, Cheon Woo-jin nodded.
Though not much time had passed since they conversed, the Martial Scripture Hall Master’s affection for books could be felt.
Moistening his throat, Myeong-cheon continued speaking.
“How astonished I was upon reading the letter from Shaolin. To think my martial granduncle would send it personally.”
Even when he resided at Shaolin, memories of seeing Master Beop-jin’s face could be counted on one’s fingers. He was a venerable monk living a life completely severed from the secular world.
For such an elder to send a letter asking to look after children of the Martial Alliance whom he had met for the first time was truly astonishing.
“It seems my martial granduncle took a great liking to you. I have already heard of your exploits.”
It was truly a succession of surprises. That his martial granduncle had personally sent a letter was surprising, but the exploits these young recruits accomplished in a single mission were even more astonishing.
“You flatter us. We merely carried out the duties we ought to perform as Martial Alliance members.”
Song Yi-yeon bowed his head with the utmost polite attitude. Glancing at him, Cheon Woo-jin bowed along.
Regrettably, although he had learned martial arts from his two masters, he had never deeply learned etiquette, but watching quietly, it seemed that merely following Young Hero Song took him more than halfway.
“Haha, to be humble despite having ability. It is a virtue difficult to possess at a young age. At any rate, I did not call you to chat about such trifling talk…”
Myeong-cheon took out something from the desk drawer.
It was a wooden box and a single book.
Song Yi-yeon’s eyes flashed. Master Beop-jin had said he would bestow a secret manual related to the Pure Yang Boy Art in the future. To think he would receive it so quickly.
However, Myeong-cheon pushed the book toward Cheon Woo-jin.
“From what I hear, you have quite an interest in Shaolin’s staff arts?”
Myeong-cheon’s gaze turned toward the Crescent Moon Staff leaning against one side of the table. In the present era, martial artists who used staffs were rare. Most revered the sword, calling it the King of Ten Thousand Weapons.
For Shaolin, which possessed deep expertise in staff arts, a young junior who wielded a staff could not help but appear endearing.
A gleam of interest flashed in Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes.
“Are you giving Shaolin’s secret manual to me?”
“Hahaha, regrettably, that cannot be done. I am merely lending it. However, there is no time limit. Return it whenever you feel you have sufficiently read and mastered it.”
Myeong-cheon smiled awkwardly. No matter what, Shaolin’s secret manuals could not be given away recklessly.
However, Cheon Woo-jin did not mind. Being able to read the secret manual was enough.
As Song Yi-yeon, who had been expecting something inwardly, smacked his lips, Myeong-cheon pushed the wooden box toward him.
“This is yours. Since it is handed over by Shaolin and not the Martial Alliance, you need not feel burdened.”
Cautiously opening the wooden box, a pill of quite a lustrous form was inside.
“Thank you, Hall Master.”
Song Yi-yeon stood up from his seat and clasped his hands.
It was neither a Great Return Pill nor a Small Return Pill. However, Shaolin’s spiritual medicines were counted as the foremost under heaven, so it would surely possess precious efficacy.
“Haha, what is there to thank? These are items my martial granduncle sent, saying he had forgotten to commend your merits because his meeting with you was so delightful.”
Stating it aloud like this, the thought that it was wondrous struck him anew once more. It was because Master Beop-jin was a person who involved himself in other people’s affairs that rarely.
Song Yi-yeon nodded his head and asked.
“May I inquire the name of the spiritual medicine, by any chance?”
“It is the Heart Protecting Pill.”
“Mmmh…! Thank you!”
Song Yi-yeon expressed gratitude with effort. It was because it was actually a name he was hearing for the first time.
Noticing this, Myeong-cheon also added.
“It is only natural that you have never heard of it. It is a spiritual medicine that none other than Shaolin monks would ever encounter. The Heart Protecting Pill literally protects the mind. It is effective when heart demons strike during cultivation… I too do not know why my martial granduncle gave this to you when you are not even a Buddhist. However, as he is a person of profound thought, there must be a reason for everything.”
Song Yi-yeon nodded his head, marveling at Master Beop-jin’s profound intention. The fatal weakness of the Pure Yang Boy Art was precisely its vulnerability to yin qi. In particular, if a female expert who cultivated sensual arts like the Lust Demon of before deliberately attacked, there were few ways to fend it off.
If subjected to that, taking the Heart Protecting Pill would have great efficacy.
Just as Song Yi-yeon expressed gratitude once more and Myeong-cheon nodded with a pleased smile.
Clack.
Cheon Woo-jin closed the final page of the secret manual.
Song Yi-yeon and Myeong-cheon looked at that Cheon Woo-jin.
“How is it after reading?”
It was a remark spoken without expectations. Shaolin’s martial arts were not the Three Talents Sword Art sold in local marketplaces, and understanding it simply by skimming through would be difficult.
Cheon Woo-jin answered briefly.
“Martial arts that save people. How peculiar.”
“Y-You understood that?”
Myeong-cheon’s eyes widened round. The secret manual handed over just now was the As-You-Will Golden-Banded Staff. It was famously known that the As-You-Will Staff from Journey to the West was modeled after this staff art.
Among Shaolin’s staff arts, it was extremely domineering and possessed high lethal power, but examining its profoundly hidden intention closely, it was actually a staff art meant to save people.
With a single swing, it would without fail mutilate the opponent’s body. Fracturing limbs or crushing ribs was how it worked.
Yet there was never a stance that caused the opponent to die in a single blow. It was because it was a staff art that bestowed leniency upon the weak through overwhelming might.
Myeong-cheon’s expression turned serious. Because that profound meaning was concealed so secretly, even monks of deep cultivation could hardly notice it on the spot after reading.
“Could it be that you have encountered this As-You-Will Golden-Banded Staff before?”
It was a reasonable question.
However, Cheon Woo-jin shook his head.
“It is my first time.”
“Heo…”
Myeong-cheon let out a sigh. He began to understand his martial granduncle’s words telling him to watch this child closely.
Cheon Woo-jin pushed the secret manual back toward Myeong-cheon once more. At that sight, Myeong-cheon asked.
“Does it not suit your disposition?”
“No. It was very interesting.”
Master Black Elder’s staff art found meaning in killing the opponent without fail. Seeing a staff art aimed at ‘subdual’ in this manner for the first time, he felt his horizons broaden slightly.
“Then why?”
“Because I finished reading it.”
Myeong-cheon’s expression froze. It was because Cheon Woo-jin’s words that he finished reading meant he had completely understood it.
No matter how much of a genius one was, such a thing was impossible. At least within Myeong-cheon’s common sense, that was so.
Myeong-cheon picked up the secret manual and confirmed once more.
“Will you truly not regret this? Shaolin’s secret manuals are not something that can be handed over casually.”
If retrieved now, there would be no opportunity next time.
Cheon Woo-jin nodded his head casually.
“Yes, I read it with gratitude.”
Already in Cheon Woo-jin’s mind, there was himself perfectly executing the As-You-Will Golden-Banded Staff. During the time Song Yi-yeon and Myeong-cheon conversed, he had completed cultivating and refining it within his mental image.
“…Understood.”
Putting away the secret manual, Myeong-cheon tilted his head repeatedly as if still doubtful.
“At any rate, I have taken up too much time of young martial artists. Having returned right after a mission, you must have plenty of things to do.”
“Not at all. It was a fortuitous encounter.”
Song Yi-yeon bowed his head politely. Cheon Woo-jin followed suit.
Looking at the sight of the two, Myeong-cheon’s eyes curved into crescents. Though they looked like two people who could not get along because their dispositions were too different, somehow they also seemed to complement each other.
By nature, karmic affinity had many aspects that human common sense could not comprehend.
“The principle of the world is originally like that.”
“Pardon?”
“It is nothing. Then you may go back now. Such an occasion is rare, but if any problem arises when taking the Heart Protecting Pill, come find me immediately.”
Song Yi-yeon smiled warmly, bowed his head, and turned around. In truth, though he did not dare show it before the Hall Master, his mind and body were quite exhausted after returning from the mission after a long time.
Cheon Woo-jin also followed behind Song Yi-yeon.
Watching their receding backs, Myeong-cheon suddenly recalled the Personnel Inspection Hall Master and called out to stop the two.
“Wait.”
Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon turned their heads.
Myeong-cheon continued speaking with quite a serious expression.
“Because there are many excellent juniors in this batch, I feel truly glad as well. You two stand out in many ways among them.”
“Haha…”
Song Yi-yeon let out an awkward laugh. From the start, choosing the Black Tortoise Squad instead of the Heavenly Tiger Squad had drawn the attention of the world.
Myeong-cheon spoke with a concerned look.
“There will surely be many days to prove your capability in the future. As that happens, those who acknowledge and welcome you will be numerous, but by nature, humans are not beings that harbor only virtuous hearts. There will certainly be those who seek to keep you in check and make things difficult for you.”
Take Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon right now; how much interference from political rivals was there before he rose to that position?
Even now after becoming Alliance Leader, there were quite a few people who viewed his every move with disdain.
The reason was simple: Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon was a man who rose to that position solely through his own strength, without any backing.
Song Yi-yeon, the son of a merchant clan, and Cheon Woo-jin, whose masters were unknown, would experience similar things as well.
When the two young recruits made serious expressions as if to keep it firmly in mind, Myeong-cheon, finally relieved, smiled warmly.
“It is something you must endure. However, if you truly suffer something that crosses the line, speak to me. Aside from my martial granduncle’s words, looking after juniors is the duty of a martial senior, after all.”
However, Myeong-cheon knew that the two would not seek him out.
To his eyes, Song Yi-yeon aside, Cheon Woo-jin was not a person who would ask anyone for help.
‘Though I do not know whether that will become poison or medicine…’
One could not force a disposition upon another.
Watching the two depart with such mixed feelings of concern and fondness, Myeong-cheon soon looked away and gazed at the As-You-Will Golden-Banded Staff.
“Did he truly understand all of it in that brief time?”
It was still hard to believe, but if true, he was indeed a martial talent bestowed by heaven. That is, it would not fall short of being called the Celestial Martial Physique.
* * *
“…”
Having exited the Martial Scripture Hall, Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon were confronting a man in silence.
Since it was dinner time, they intended to head to the dining hall to eat, but this man who suddenly appeared blocked their path and merely glared at them.
Unable to hold back, Song Yi-yeon asked.
“What on earth is this?”
He was a man seen for the first time. However, being here meant he was also a member of the Martial Alliance. His age appeared around thirty, so he seemed like a senior, but…
In the eyes of the man glaring at Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon, enmity was quite abundant.
How much time had passed like that?
Song Yi-yeon was startled. It was because Cheon Woo-jin, who had been silent for a long while, suddenly attempted to grip the Crescent Moon Staff. In Song Yi-yeon’s judgment based on experience, if that staff was drawn, someone’s head would be crushed.
“Good grief, Young Hero!”
Song Yi-yeon was not the only one surprised; the man blocking the way also hastily pulled out a letter from his robes and thrust it forward.
Fortunately, Cheon Woo-jin grasped the letter instead of the Crescent Moon Staff.
Soon the man vanished without any explanation.
“…What was that?”
Song Yi-yeon let out an empty laugh as if flabbergasted. Cheon Woo-jin opened the letter, read down through it, crumpled it, and tossed it behind him. The flying letter caught fire and turned to a heap of ashes before touching the ground.
At that astonishing spectacle, Song Yi-yeon asked.
“What were the contents? No, more than that, wasn’t that Samadhi True Fire just now?”
It was so natural that he almost forgot to be shocked.
Song Yi-yeon resolved once more that he must not get used to such monstrous sights. The more he did, the more his sense of shame would only grow.
“By the way, Young Hero Cheon, at what realm do you stand on earth?”
Cheon Woo-jin answered casually.
“I do not know either. Because my masters disliked dividing people by realms.”
Of course, it was likely because their realms had already transcended the commonly classified realms.
Cheon Woo-jin added calmly.
“The letter was a warning that if we do not join the Dragon and Phoenix Society, life in the Martial Alliance will become difficult from now on.”
At Cheon Woo-jin’s words, Song Yi-yeon walked over to what was once a letter, now a pile of ashes, and stomped on it several times.
“Let us go eat dinner.”
At Song Yi-yeon’s suggestion, Cheon Woo-jin nodded his head.
Meanwhile, flames flared in the eyes of the man watching this while hiding in the distance, but…
Meeting eyes with Cheon Woo-jin, he hastily vanished.