Chapter 24: Strange Internal Energy (3)
Yong Hwarin’s thoughts grew deeper and deeper.
‘First, there was no expert capable of merging both martial arts into one. Second, because both were demonic techniques, their power was halved when not using demonic energy. That’s why, despite its grand name, my clan’s martial arts became no more than just an average style.’
Through this one moment of insight, Yong Hwarin came to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the Heavenly Central Sect’s martial arts.
‘Ah! Now I finally understand what Ha Cheolryeong said back when he became the strongest in the world.’
After becoming the top martial artist under the heavens, Ha Cheolryeong had been asked what the strongest martial art was, and he had answered like this:
“The strongest martial art is one that is complete, even if its power is weak. If the Three Element Sword Technique were complete, it would be stronger than the incomplete Tai Chi Wisdom Sword.”
Yong Hwarin now understood why Ha Cheolryeong had said those words.
Ha Cheolryeong had already mastered the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra, the strongest mental technique.
Therefore, even a weaker but complete Three Element Sword Technique allowed him to break through all martial arts.
And Yong Hwarin realized what it truly meant for a martial art to be “complete.”
A martial art was only complete when offense and defense were properly balanced, with seamless transitions between attack and defense. He finally grasped that meaning.
A martial art emphasizing only one side could never be considered a good martial art. He realized then that his clan’s martial arts were not particularly outstanding either.
‘If I could just strike the right balance between the Soaring Dragon Emperor Sword and the Azure Bamboo Sword, only then could my clan’s swordsmanship reach the level of an advanced martial art. And if I added the most powerful Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra on top of that… the strongest martial artist in the future might not be Ha Cheolryeong, but me.’
Just thinking about it made his heart race like crazy.
But there was a mountain of things he had to do first.
He needed to merge the two sword arts into one and master the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra.
These two tasks might not even be achievable in a lifetime.
But Yong Hwarin didn’t have that kind of time. He had to complete these tasks within a year to prevent the misfortune looming over his clan.
‘An impossible task indeed.’
With disappointment filling his heart, Yong Hwarin could no longer continue his meditation.
Thus, he broke the state of insight that, for a martial artist, might only come a few times in an entire lifetime.
“Hoo.”
Though he had only been meditating, his whole body felt as exhausted as if he had trained nonstop for days.
“Let’s not rush. Everything has its natural order. Rushing it will only ruin the result.”
Having lived a full life in his past life, Yong Hwarin knew how to restrain his impatience.
He knew all too well how a single misstep could lead to a massive ripple effect.
That was why, first and foremost, he had to leave the Jaegal Clan.
Yong Hwarin washed up and went to bid farewell to Jaegal Cheok, the sect leader of the Jaegal Clan.
Then, he said his goodbye to Jaegal Cheongyeong.
“Yeongmae, don’t tie yourself down too much with martial arts training. There must be other things you like too, right? Just training in martial arts alone doesn’t make someone a master.”
“Like you, oppa? Hwarin oppa always did whatever you wanted.”
Jaegal Cheongyeong already saw Yong Hwarin as a martial master.
“Martial arts aren’t just about swinging a sword. They need to carry your life experience. Without that, martial arts are nothing more than movements of the body.”
At those words, Jaegal Cheongyeong stared at him for a long time.
“Oppa, I feel like there’s a deep meaning in what you just said.”
Indeed, her eyes were starting to waver.
“When you say martial arts should carry one’s life… you mean that by seeing, hearing, and experiencing many things, martial arts can become stronger, right?”
Yong Hwarin smiled faintly.
‘Not just sounds reasonable—I’m living proof. Even though I didn’t live as a martial artist in my past life, that life has become an immense help to the martial artist I am now. You wouldn’t understand that yet.’
You’d understand just by seeing how the martial world never looks down on older martial artists.
Eyes gleaming, Jaegal Cheongyeong said:
“Then, oppa, next time, you’ll spar with me, right? You have no idea how much I wanted to after watching you spar with Jeok Gwang.”
“Hahahaha!”
Yong Hwarin thought to himself that he would never spar with his betrothed.
“You promise, right? You’ll do it?”
Seeing her so serious and full of expectation, he couldn’t bring himself to say no.
“Alright. Next time you visit my clan, we’ll do it then.”
Jaegal Cheongyeong, having been told to free herself, felt like she could speak more openly to Yong Hwarin now. Before, she always found him burdensome and had a hard time talking, but now she felt oddly at ease.
‘Shedding just one shackle from the heart can make such a difference.’
Jaegal Cheongyeong felt like she finally understood what Yong Hwarin had been trying to convey.
‘Just as freeing your heart brings peace, martial arts must also break free of constraints. I think I’m beginning to understand now.’
Thanks to meeting Yong Hwarin, Jaegal Cheongyeong believed she had the chance to deepen her own insight.
Whether she would make it her own or let the opportunity pass was entirely up to her.
With a comfortable farewell, the betrothed bride turned away without looking back as Yong Hwarin departed the Jaegal Clan.
She wanted to enter meditation quickly and achieve her own insight.
Watching her warmly, Yong Hwarin turned away.
But somehow, standing at the front gate was Jaegal Yohye, as if she had known he was about to leave.
“Isn’t Lady Jaegal Yohye lingering around our young master a bit too much? She might fall for him,” said Namwook, noticing that Jaegal Yohye seemed to seek out the young master more than his actual betrothed, Jaegal Cheongyeong.
“Seriously. Ever since Mount Wudang, there seems to be something between them.”
“Cut the nonsense and get ready to leave,” said Mo Biyoung, who had been listening to the two.
At her scolding, the Two Wook Sword Demons darted off like daughters-in-law fleeing their nagging mother-in-law.
Yong Hwarin walked up to Jaegal Yohye and asked,
“What brings you here?”
Her eyes were deep, like they could see through the very fabric of things. Sometimes, even someone like Yong Hwarin—who had lived nearly fifty years in his past life—found her gaze chilling.
“I have to go to Jeongju with Byeok oppa. Would it be alright if I traveled with you until then?”
“We’re not taking it easy. We have to march quickly. It’d be hard to keep up.”
Yong Hwarin politely declined her offer.
“We’re also in a hurry, so we won’t slow you down.”
But Yong Hwarin still didn’t accept her offer. He couldn’t read her intentions.
“I’m sorry. I’d love to, but we have a few more places we need to stop by.”
Jaegal Yohye didn’t press further and stepped back.
“Alright. Still, I have a strange feeling we’ll meet again.”
Yong Hwarin offered a polite cupped fist salute.
“I’ll look forward to that day too.”
But his thoughts were different.
‘Miss, I’m afraid… there probably won’t be a next time for us to meet.’
The path to the Heavenly Central Sect located in Yongjung Mountain and the path to Jeongju, the capital of Henan, were the same up to a certain point. So, traveling together wouldn’t have been a problem—but he declined because something about her felt strangely burdensome.
‘She’s definitely a woman with something peculiar about her.’
Yong Hwarin shook his head as he watched Jaegal Yohye disappear.
*
Even after leaving the Jaegal Clan, Yong Hwarin found himself glancing back repeatedly.
He had gained far more than he had expected there.
Originally, he had only meant to see Jaegal Cheongyeong’s face, but he ended up attaining insight as well.
In some ways, it was the greatest gain of this entire journey.
Yong Hwarin and his party headed straight for the Heavenly Central Sect.
The three companions smiled as they watched the young master diligently making his way back to the sect, never distracted.
He was like a completely different person from when they first came.
He had grown more mature, and seemingly stronger. It was a satisfying sight.
During the journey, Yong Hwarin said little.
His mind was completely consumed by martial arts, leaving no room for other thoughts.
The group crossed from Hubei into Henan, entering Uihyeon, a county on the border.
There, they headed for the finest inn in the area. But as they arrived, someone spotted them and quickly headed somewhere else.
That person had once served as a guard during Jeok Gwang’s visit to the Jaegal Clan.
Jeok Gwang, who was finishing a meal at a tea house, set down his teacup with a clatter upon hearing the report from his escort.
Clang!
“What did you say? That bastard’s here?!”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“Well, that’s just perfect. I was on the verge of falling ill from my inner fire worsening before seeing Cho Uhui again, and now he’s come to me to cure my illness himself.”
“Indeed, Young Master. We must thoroughly repay the disgrace we suffered at the Jaegal Clan.”
Jeok Gwang fiddled with a golden token lying on the table.
It was an expensive pass made of pure gold, with the name "Cho Uhui" engraved on it.
Even among pure gold tokens, this one was incomparable. The Cho Uhui token had to be bought with the equivalent of ten gold ingots—something that even the wealthy couldn’t easily get their hands on.
In the martial world, the so-called Cho Uhui Token was extremely famous.
There was only one reason for its fame: it was issued by Cho Uhui, the beauty who occupied the highest floor of Gangseon Peach Blossom Pavilion, the top courtesan house in Henan.
Cho Uhui was not an ordinary courtesan.
Only those who passed through five rigorous trials were granted the right to sit across from her and share a drink—and possibly spend a night with her.
People would wonder just how great her beauty was to warrant such standards, but it was said that once a man had seen Cho Uhui, he could never embrace another woman again.
Even poetic expressions of beauty like Graceful as flowers under the moonlight, A beauty who could bring down nations, or Fish sink and geese fall from the sky seemed to pale in comparison when placed beside her.
To attempt the trials set by Cho Uhui, one had to first purchase this golden token.
It was merely a right to challenge her gates, yet the tokens were sold out as soon as they appeared.
That was why the wealthy of the Central Plains, or rich martial artists, would buy the Cho Uhui Token in pursuit of pleasure and challenge the trials.
Jeok Gwang, confident that his martial skills were the best among his peers, had bought this token to take on the challenge.
He had to save money steadily for several years to afford this token.
He had stopped by the Jaegal Clan only briefly to catch a glimpse of Jaegal Cheongyeong before going to Gangseon Peach Blossom Pavilion.
To impress Cho Uhui, he had even selected ten of the most skilled people from within his own sect to accompany him.
But he was humiliated by some nobody at the Jaegal Clan and forbidden from ever setting foot there again, which made his rage boil to the heavens.
And now, by chance, he had encountered that very enemy.
Jeok Gwang thought it was a heaven-sent opportunity.
“I’ll kill him!”
At his words, his ten escorts flinched in surprise.
“If I don’t, how could I ever hold my head high in Hebei again? Unless I avenge this insult, I can’t wield a sword in Hebei ever again.”
Jeok Gwang’s authority in Azure Pine Sect was immense.
None of the guards dared to question his decision.
“Follow them. Once they reach a secluded place, we’ll kill them. Everyone, get ready.”
Jeok Gwang smiled.
He could already picture Yong Hwarin kneeling and begging for his life.