Hyeonjilmusin - Chapter 24



Only Krnovel

24. Mandate of Heaven (1)

Somehow, Cheonghwa unleashed a move that I couldn’t stop at the end. I miraculously stopped it. In the first place, Cheonghwa didn’t think I would be able to go to the evaluation match.

I ran straight to the palace pavilion and stormed into the residence of the Qinghua Jinnin.

“You opened the door without even knocking. I told you to be respectful to your superior.”

“Are you a scammer?”

“Haha. Instead of showing respect to the master, you’re insulting him.”

“They say that if you’re not a disciple of the main temple, you can’t even participate in the evaluation match.”

“That’s why I told you. If you keep doing that, you won’t be able to go to the evaluation match.”

“What do you mean by doing that? Isn’t that what you said in the swordsmanship report?”

“No. I said that because I saw you continuing to spread your wings as a disciple.”

Cheonghwa smiled brightly. This time, I couldn’t hold back and threw my fist. Of course, after I threw my fist, I didn’t know what happened and I was lying on the floor with my back to the ground.

“The secret of Tai Chi lies in grafting flowers onto trees. Of course, the Tai Chi you learn from a shaman is different from what the elderly in the neighborhood learn to improve their health.”

“… … I’m so pissed. Seriously.”

“Do you think I didn’t hear from Jang Moon-in? You said that Jang Moon-sa personally tried to take you in as a disciple of the main temple, but you refused? You must be determined to smear my face.”

“No, even branch workers don’t do things they don’t want to do.”

“It is a destiny for you to become a shaman’s disciple. It is not something you choose.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. I design my life and I choose to live it.”

“Choices are all made within the arrangements of the Original Heavenly Deity.”

This damned idiot doesn’t seem to have any sense of humor. They say that when people are crazy about religion, they go crazy, and the shaman’s idiots were no different.

Of the Taoist sect people I met in my previous life, Hwasan and Jongnam were the best. They still had the air of a secular household, but shamans are the very essence of orthodox Taoism, so they only make fun of people like this.

“Then why did you make me practice that damned Samjae Sword Technique?”

“You must have felt something from your encounter with me. If you were a lay disciple, you would never have been able to block my sword. If you hadn’t practiced the Three-Retribution Sword Technique to the limit, you wouldn’t have been able to block even one strike.”

“But?”

“This is the difference between a lay disciple and a disciple of the main temple. Are you saying that you still don’t want to be a disciple of the main temple?”

“Yes. I don’t want to. After all, the reason the True Man made me a temporary disciple of the main temple is because he had in mind that I wouldn’t be able to become one. I’m not qualified to be a disciple of the main temple. Haven’t you seen me swinging my sword when the True Man isn’t around?”

“No. I thought you had to become a disciple of the main temple no matter what. Jang Moon-sa-hyeong just stopped it. But Jang Moon-sa-hyeong allowed it, so now it’s natural for you to become a disciple of the main temple. What? A named disciple? This is the first time I’ve heard of such a system.”

“After all, it’s a system that exists. Then we should use it.”

“Think about it carefully. I also heard from Jang Moon-sa about the disciples of the underworld, but the disciples of the underworld cannot see the extremes of the shaman. They cannot learn martial arts such as the Taegeuk Hyegeom, which is considered the essence of the shaman. When the Demonic Cult was in power, they taught the basics, so there was probably no time to teach them that far.”

“That’s enough for me. My dream is to be a merchant.”

“Among the four social classes, farmers, artisans, and merchants, the most despised are merchants. I don’t know how they came to have such a dream.”

“That can only be explained by the will of heaven.”

“Isn’t your life something you design and choose for yourself? If there’s a better option, you should choose it.”

“No. The Primordial Heavenly Lord only gave me the choice of being a merchant.”

Our argument was going on at an even pace. Cheonghwa shook her head as if she was tired.

“You had to gain the elders’ recognition anyway, and you were planning to participate in the evaluation match for that purpose. That’s impossible. That is, before you become a disciple of the main temple. Since you have already mastered the Cheongunbo, I would like you to become a disciple of the main temple. How could that not be possible?”

Now, Cheonghwa is starting to appeal to my emotions. But Cheonghwa hit me in the back of the head. I was never emotionally shaken.

“I don’t like it.”

“Then there’s nothing we can do. But you won’t become a strange disciple of the shaman. The elders already know. They say that a strange disciple is planning to run away after stealing the shaman’s martial arts. They’re all so angry that they want to die.”

“Why did you think that? How did you know that in the first place?”

“I’ve been saying that.”

“You really don’t like me.”

“You are a man of few words. To let such a natural talent rot away is to commit a great sin against the Central Plains.”

“Are you now turning normal people into criminals?”

In the end, our argument ended without anything being said.

Anyway, my martial arts training continued. Cheonghwa still looked after my martial arts, and I continued to receive teachings in order to be recognized for my martial arts talent. I didn’t want to be taught by Cheonghwa either, but Cheonghwa was the only one who could teach me martial arts.

On the other hand, Cheonghwa told me more kindly. It seemed like she thought she couldn’t pressure me anymore to turn me around.

So the day of the evaluation match came. I, of course, could not participate in the evaluation match. That was because I was not a disciple of the main temple.

Still, I was able to watch the evaluation match. Judging from the fact that there were no other disciples, it seemed that Cheonghwa had taken some action. It wasn’t like Cheonghwa had improved in any way. Perhaps watching the evaluation match was also used as a means to lure the main disciples.

I stood next to Cheonghwa, and the gazes of the elders and the elders on the other side were sharp. It was perhaps a natural reaction, since Cheonghwa had said something. When I looked at Cheonghwa, Cheonghwa turned her head away. Damn it.

“The evaluation match will now begin.”

The evaluation match between the children who were given the title of Myungja began with the words of Cheongui.

Among them, there were some I knew. Of course, there weren’t many. Only Myeongseong, a disciple of Cheonghwa, and Myeonghan, who had a fight with him.

The evaluation match was definitely fun to watch. It’s fun to watch fights, but it was doubled because I was fighting with martial arts that I knew. I watched the evaluation match while thinking about what I would have done in that situation.

“Next is tomorrow and destiny.”

Although Myeongil was hearing of him for the first time, Myeongun knew him as Myeonghan’s direct disciple. He was also someone I had a feud with.

“Take a good look at it.”

At that moment, Cheonghwa spoke up. Of course, I answered rudely.

“What is it?”

“I’m talking about tomorrow’s battle.”

Before I could even ask why, the evaluation match had already begun. I immediately knew why Cheonghwa was telling me to keep an eye on Myeongil.

“Oh!”

There was an exclamation from the onlookers as well as the elders. The Cheongunbo was as graceful as a glide. I also thought I had a great understanding of the Cheongunbo, but compared to Myeongil, it was a hasty level.

Compared to the graceful style of the swordsmanship, Myeongil’s swordsmanship was not flashy. It was an honest swordsmanship. He didn’t change the sword or break it in the middle. He just flew towards the target.

I knew what it was. The beauty of simplicity. It was the Samjae Sword Technique. Myeongil was only using the Samjae Sword Technique right now.

“The Samjae Sword Technique is the foundation of all martial arts. There is no martial art that does not include vertical, horizontal, and diagonal slashes.”

Cheonghwa spoke softly from the side. Even so, I couldn’t take my eyes off Myeongil’s martial arts.

The hands draw straight lines while the feet draw curves. It may seem like a disharmonious combination, but it is not at all. The curves complement the straight lines, and the straight lines complement the curves.

The face of the man he was dealing with turned red. He seemed embarrassed because he was being overpowered only by the basic Cheongunbo and Samjae Sword Technique. On the other hand, Myeongil’s face was expressionless and calm.

“Taesan Apjeong strikes down with the momentum of pressing down the peak to create two peaks, Heongsocheon-gun sweeps away with the momentum of cutting the waist of a thousand-man army, and Palbangpungwoo cuts down with the momentum of a strong wind that pours down rain. What do you think? Can you still say that the Samjae Sword Technique is third-rate?”

I was speechless. In fact, Tomorrow’s swordsmanship was exactly as described by Cheonghwa. Every single swing of the sword was by no means light.

“The Samjae Sword Technique is a sword technique that must possess the secrets of strength and speed. If you do not understand this secret, then it is not the Samjae Sword Technique.”

“okay.”

It felt like something deep inside my head that I couldn’t grasp was being pulled out. Tomorrow’s swordsmanship and martial arts were definitely on a different level from mine.

Myeongil opened Myeongun’s body with the Horizontal Sky Sword and followed up with a lightning-like Palbangpungwoo. Myeongun, who was hit in the shoulder, was knocked to the ground.

“Tomorrow’s victory.”

With Jang Moon-in’s declaration, Myeong-il turned around and returned to his seat. Cheong-yu, whom I had seen last time, carried the unconscious Myeong-un and left the seat. He was probably going to the medical unit.

“That’s cool.”

I said it with sincerity. Cheonghwa smiled faintly.

“If you become a disciple of the main temple, you will be able to perform martial arts even better than that.”

“Okay.”

I could hear Cheonghwa clicking her tongue, but I didn’t care.

Certainly, Tomorrow was the first entry in the distribution of the names. It is not called One for nothing.

After watching the fight of the next day, the other children’s fights with the famous children seemed like child’s play. And it wasn’t just me who experienced this phenomenon.

“It’s true that Myeongil is outstanding.”

“I will become the next owner of the Taegeuk Hyegum.”

There were many people gossiping about tomorrow even though other children were fighting.

The evaluation match ended with Tomorrow’s final victory. In a way, it was an expected result.

“Hwiyoung-ah.”

“yes.”

We walked together to the archery range. It was already dark after the evaluation match, but now I could walk around Mt. Mudeungsan without a torch.

“Do you really not want to become a disciple of the main temple?”

There was seriousness in Cheonghwa’s voice. This time, I answered with sincerity as well.

“Yes, I’m sorry.”

“But I heard from Jang Moon-sa that if you don’t get the approval of the elders, you will have to become a disciple of the main temple.”

“That’s true too.”

“What would you do if you became a disciple of the main temple?”

“You have to get rid of the Danjeon and go out. Without the Danjeon, daily life would be inconvenient, but as long as you don’t overdo it, it’s okay.”

“That’s it. You really do accept the merchant as your calling.”

To be exact, I was worried, but for now, I had to show my determination.

“Then I am very sorry. I wanted you to become a disciple of the main temple, and in my greed, I ended up spreading bad rumors to the elders.”

“That was a bit harsh.”

“That’s right. As a Taoist, how lacking is this practice to harm others?”

I said it half-jokingly, but Cheonghwa was serious.

“It’s probably impossible for you to gain the approval of the elders unless you win the next day. You’ll probably become a disciple of the main temple.”

“Is that so?”

“But you are of the position that if you want to become a disciple of the main mountain, you should abandon your danjeon and descend from the mountain.”

“yes.”

Cheonghwa took a pouch out of her bosom and handed it to me.

“Try to solve it.”

When I opened the pouch, it was full of silver coins. I guessed it was worth about a hundred nyang. I looked at Cheonghwa with a puzzled look.

“This is the voucher for the Infinite Warfare you gave me last time.”

“It was a hundred coins.”

“Since I was the one who kept it, shouldn’t I pay you interest?”

“Was the profit this high? Where did this much money come from? Even Gokjeongak wouldn’t give it away easily.”

“Sometimes, people who helped me in Ganghohang would send me money. I exchanged them for money and kept them. Taoists are not supposed to accumulate personal wealth, but everyone has some, and I thought I might use them someday.”

“You have a lot.”

“That’s all I have.”

Cheonghwa laughed. He said it as if it was nothing, but it was shocking to me. Where would someone leave all their wealth to someone else? As a natural born merchant, I could never understand it.

“With this, you can make money from your business. Since I have ruined someone’s fate for no reason because of my greed, shouldn’t I at least compensate you with this much?”

“… … True man.”

“But I am also a shaman, so I cannot break the shaman’s rules. To me, the shaman’s rules are like a mandate from heaven.”

A wave of energy emanated from Cheonghwa’s body. My body froze under the overwhelming energy.

“The disciple of the lay people, Mukhwiyeong. What the shaman gives, the shaman takes.”

A blue light flashed in Cheonghwa’s eyes.