Chapter 72

“You died once today.”

The cold voice continued.

“Your limbs were cut off, you were subjected to Tendon-Splitting and Bone-Twisting, and your throat was cut. The degree and form of the pain may have been different, but you died. Without a doubt.”

Once the relief of being alive faded, anger took its place.

I stood on trembling legs. After swallowing the blood pooled in my mouth, I glared at Jin Mukyung.

What a fucking lunatic.

I wanted to drive my fist into that smug face right away, but I held myself back. Not because I was weaker than Jin Mukyung. Because I knew he was right.

“…So? What are you trying to say?”

His answer came immediately, as if he had been waiting for me to ask.

“That you don’t have much life left.”

“What?”

“You’re only half-finished. You’re neither a martial artist nor a wandering martial artist. A half-baked mess. Someone as sloppy as you is just begging to die the moment he enters the Murim.”

Half-finished.

That might have been the most accurate description of my current state. I was a Hunter and a martial artist at the same time.

“Sleeping Dragon of Shanxi? First Rate master? Even a passing dog would laugh. You’re just a brawler. You’re sloppy for a martial artist, and you don’t even fight as pragmatically as a wandering martial artist. Don’t mistake surviving through good luck for skill.”

I barely managed to open my mouth.

“Then what about Jopil? Was that luck too, according to you?”

“Jopil, One Question, One Kill? He was obviously stupid enough to let his guard down in front of an enemy. You just happened to have one last move capable of turning the situation around.”

“……!”

“What? Do you think I guessed too accurately despite not seeing it myself?”

Jin Mukyung clicked his tongue.

“Even a deaf old man knows that the Third Young Master of the Jin Family of Taiyuan is a wastrel. Did Jopil not know? The moment he let his guard down, he was finished too.”

What is this guy, a stalker?

I felt like Sun Wukong trapped in the Buddha’s palm. His guess was that accurate.

“Let me make this clear.”

Jin Mukyung fixed me with a somber gaze.

“That luck of yours stops working here.”

“……”

“The Murim is crawling with all kinds of monsters. And they don’t let their guard down like Jopil did. You’re no longer the Jin Family’s wastrel of a Third Young Master. You’re the Sleeping Dragon of Shanxi.”

Every word stabbed straight into my vitals. Everything Jin Mukyung said was true, and it was time for me to face reality.

“Damn it.”

He was right. I was half-finished.

Thanks to the greatest stroke of luck in my life—the System—I had somehow survived this long. But it seemed that luck had taken me exactly this far.

But… I really am lucky.

Not only had I discovered the problem early, but an excellent problem-solver was standing right in front of me to help solve it.

“Help me.”

Jin Mukyung.

A fully realized Peak martial artist and a genius of martial arts.

And—

“…Hyung.”

My older brother.

Ding.

System

Time Limit: 9 days 20 hours 23 minutes

Murim people were a proud lot. Even a Third Rate wandering martial artist who wore a rusty sword at his waist and drank cheap baijiu was like that, so the arrogance of scions from prestigious sects reached the heavens.

“Help me, hyung.”

In that sense, this guy had become a decent human being. Three years ago, he would have run to his eldest brother with tears in his eyes… but he had grown. Far more than expected.

He’s a strange one.

Neither his personality nor his martial arts could be easily understood. That was both a strength and a weakness. But one thing was certain: nothing worked against a true master.

But his talent is real.

Over the past three years at Heaven’s Gate Temple, Jin Mukyung had encountered countless prodigies, but Jin Taekyung’s rate of growth was unmatched.

He has advantages they don’t.

He could understand martial arts at a glance. He had excellent combat instincts, and he also knew how to listen to other people’s advice.

Though for now, he’s still a half-finished mess with everything jumbled together.

As time passed, his weaknesses would be filled in and his excesses would be smoothed out. When that happened, Jin Taekyung’s martial arts would be complete.

Like taiji achieving harmony.

Taiji? Is that a little too grandiose?

This was starting to become burdensome.

But he could not stop wondering. How would that bastard grow? How far would he climb?

I’m going to be busy.

He had to leave and return to Heaven’s Gate Temple within fifteen days at the latest. Jin Mukyung finally opened his mouth.

“What are you doing? Pick up your spear.”

“Hyung!”

Seeing Jin Taekyung’s face brighten, Jin Mukyung suddenly had a thought.

When did this bastard start speaking informally to me?

That was the moment the intensity of his training rose another level.

Bang.

Jin Wikyung stamped his seal onto the final document with heavily bloodshot eyes.

He had been freed from nearly twenty hours of backbreaking labor, but he was not happy at all. New work would be piled up by tomorrow morning anyway.

Are these things breeding when I’m not looking?

The only comfort was that he could finally see the end.

After completing his final review, Jin Wikyung rang a small bell. Before its clear sound had even faded, two sturdily built servants appeared.

“Did you call, Lesser Family Head?”

“Take these away.”

“Yes, sir.”

The servants skillfully stacked the documents onto a cart. Just as they were about to leave, Jin Wikyung spoke.

“Ah. You stay.”

The servant he had pointed to blinked in surprise.

“Me, sir?”

“That’s right. You.”

Once he was alone with the servant, Jin Wikyung began speaking in a solemn voice.

“So, how have you been finding the work lately?”

“Very well, sir. It’s all thanks to your kindness, Lesser Family Head.”

“Nothing causing you any inconvenience?”

“Oh, goodness, of course not.”

The servant, Childeuk, did nothing but nod repeatedly. He was illiterate and could not even get through the Thousand Character Classic, but he still had ears to hear and eyes to see.

After its victory in the recent war, the Jin Family of Taiyuan had risen to become the foremost family in Shanxi. Its Lesser Family Head, Jin Wikyung, had begun to be called the Junzi Sword¹ for his swift recovery efforts and fair handling of the aftermath.

Why would such an esteemed person want me?

His heart pounded with nerves. Had he made some mistake? Or had Jin Wikyung perhaps noticed his talent for martial arts?

The former would be disastrous. The latter would be a chance to turn his life around.

My bones and muscles are sturdy, at least. I never even had a stomachache as a child.

He could already see himself wearing a sword at his waist and letting his hero’s headband flutter in the wind.

But when Jin Wikyung saw Childeuk’s eyes growing hazy, he flinched.

What the hell is wrong with this guy?

Childeuk’s eyes were filled with desperate longing, as if he were willing to offer his soul to obtain whatever he wanted.

They were not the kind of eyes one man should direct at another man.

Don’t tell me…?

Male love, something he had only heard about…

No, that was not it. He could not jump to conclusions. Childeuk was a member of the Jin Family, someone he should trust and cherish.

Jin Wikyung forcibly erased his suspicions and spoke.

“I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Y-You have, sir?”

“Of course. I’ve been keeping an eye on you for a long time.”

More precisely, not for a long time. Only for the past three days.

Jin Wikyung had been searching for a reliable servant to entrust with a very important task, and Childeuk was the ideal candidate he had personally selected.

“A talented man possessing all four virtues—benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom. That’s you.”

“How can this be…!”

Childeuk, an exceptional servant possessing all four virtues, shuddered with emotion. He had no idea what those four virtues meant, but he understood the word “talent” perfectly.

I’m talented?

He had been praised for his strength and diligence, but this was the first time anyone had called him talented. And to receive such an assessment from the Lesser Family Head himself, a man as lofty as the heavens…

Was this a dream or reality? Childeuk was swept up in overwhelming excitement. He was so excited that even his tongue became tangled.

“I’ve always been watching you too, Lesser Family Head!”

Jin Wikyung’s body flinched.

What did I just hear?

“…What do you mean?”

“I’ve dreamed of this moment for a long time. The day I would stand behind you, Lesser Family Head!”

“Wait. That sounds strange. Why would you stand behind me?”

“Ah.”

Childeuk swallowed. Jin Wikyung was telling him not to stand behind him. In other words, he wanted Childeuk to take the lead and win glory.

“Then I’ll stand in front!”

“No! That’s strange too!”

But Childeuk’s charge, like a wild stallion, did not stop.

“I will gladly offer this one body of mine!”

Jin Wikyung’s vision went dark.

“No. Don’t do it! Don’t offer it!”

“Lesser Family Head!”

Huff, huff.

Childeuk breathed heavily, and Jin Wikyung gathered his internal energy.

I never thought something like this would happen.

No matter how open-minded he was, this was too much.

Personal sexual preferences were one thing, but he had no desire to be the object of them. Jin Wikyung swallowed hard.

“Then… are you really into men?”²

Childeuk’s eyes flashed. He was thinking about wearing the navy-blue uniform worn by the Jin Family’s martial artists.

“Yes! Just tell me to do it!”

“How dare you set your sights on me? Not a chance, you bastard!”

Smack!

A slap from a Peak master was powerful. Childeuk collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, and Jin Wikyung stared down at him while breathing heavily before hurriedly ringing the bell.

Ding. Ding.

“Lesser Family Head, did you call—? Gasp. Childeuk!”

Jin Wikyung spoke to the horrified servant.

“Take him out immediately!”

“W-What happened?”

“That bastard tried to… No, never mind.”

It was not something he could say to one of his family’s servants. For the first time in his life, anger and wounded sorrow brought him close to tears.

“I-I’ll take care of it.”

Just as the quick-witted servant hoisted Childeuk onto his back, Jin Wikyung added the most important part.

“And that man.”

“Yes?”

“Remove him from his post.”

“Ah.”

The servant suddenly remembered Childeuk’s assignment.

Delivering meals.

The most important duty given to Childeuk, an exceptional servant possessing all four virtues, was to bring every meal to Jin Mukyung and Jin Taekyung.

“Don’t let him go anywhere near my younger brothers. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

Training Day 1

I decided to start keeping a diary today.

So I would not forget what I learned during this training.

Under Jin Mukyung’s guidance, I did nothing but swing a spear all day. Every day begins and ends with a spar. I got beaten half to death, but it’s bearable.

This is my first time grinding ink, and it’s surprisingly fun.

Training Day 2

I swung my spear to the point of death again today. Perhaps because of that, my Strength and Stamina stats increased, and the Jin Family’s Spear Technique reached the ninth stage.

It’s progressing much faster than when I trained alone, but I can’t help thinking that I would be better off learning another Peak martial art during this time.

Still, Jin Mukyung must have his reasons.

Grinding ink has become a little annoying. I’m tired.

Training Day 3

The Jin Family’s Spear Technique again. I asked him to teach me another martial art and got beaten half to death. He said my mind was rotten.

While desperately dodging his attacks, the Jin Family’s Manoeuvre Technique rose to the eighth stage. Damn it. This is surprisingly effective.

Training Day 4

Since starting training, I haven’t slept more than two hours in a day.

Most of my time is spent repeating training, sparring, training, and sparring with Jin Mukyung. Starting yesterday, I began using fasting pills instead of wasting time eating.

Even with the System, I’m reaching my physical limit.

Training Day 5

My arms hurt, so I only ground a little ink.

The sky is yellow.

Going to sleep.

Training Day 6

I don’t understand why the System doesn’t have a notepad function.

I got angry while grinding ink and broke the inkstone. Jin Mukyung beat me.

Training Day 7

The Jin Family’s Manoeuvre Technique reached the ninth stage. My Level also increased by one.

I’ve practiced it so obsessively that these days, I even use the footwork when I’m simply walking around.

I got goose bumps.

Training Day 8

My hands and feet keep getting tangled today. It feels like the martial arts I know, but not quite.

The martial arts I’ve performed thousands—even tens of thousands—of times feel unfamiliar. Jin Mukyung said it was a natural phenomenon.

What the hell is he talking about?

I got beaten because my expression was disrespectful.

Training Day 9

I think I get it.

Bang!

Compressed air erupted from the tip of the wooden spear. Jin Mukyung skidded backward and clicked his tongue as he looked at his broken sword.

“That was a narrow success.”

I did not answer. I stood there blankly, gripping my spear.

So that’s what it was.

I thought I knew the martial arts I had learned inside and out. But I had been wrong. I had merely mistaken the middle of the mountain for the summit.

Whenever my martial arts rose to a new level, a new landscape came into view.

Just like now.

Ding. Ding. Ding.

System

• You have achieved mastery of Jin Family’s Spear Technique!

• You have achieved mastery of Jin Family’s Manoeuvre Technique!

• Achievement Master a First Rate Martial Art completed!

• As a reward, a new Skill, Martial Arts Manual Creation, has been generated!

• All Stats have increased significantly!

• Level Up!

• Level Up!

A wave of System notifications swept over me.