Chapter 189 : Preparation
Preparation
The news that Jeong-un had faced the Heavenly Martial Hall Lord directly spread quickly throughout the hall.
There was nothing particularly confidential about it, so it happened that way.
The Heavenly Martial Hall even publicly announced, as if it were nothing noteworthy, that Jeong-un was no longer a member of the Blue Scale Corps.
However, the content was so sensational that every warrior within the hall couldn't help but talk ceaselessly about it.
"Did you hear? Heaven-defying Lone Sword has been removed from the Blue Scale Corps."
"Not removed, but I heard he requested it himself directly to the Hall Lord. That's what I heard from a scholar I know in the General Affairs Department."
"What I heard is that he handpicked some people and is forming a fifth Corps."
"Is that for real? If so, should I ask for a spot myself?"
Really, all sorts of rumors spread through the hall, one after another.
It was even more so because the main character, Yu Jeong-un, was nowhere to be seen.
Not that Jeong-un purposely secluded himself in his room to avoid appearing.
He simply carried on as he always did, commuting between his quarters and the training hall—his daily life.
The only difference since he became a four-stripes was that he now used a single dormitory and had a personal training hall, so he simply didn't run into anyone by chance.
The personal training halls used by four-stripes warriors were places with wide, neatly-laid white stone floors, surrounded by a low wall.
Jeong-un spent time in this training hall every day.
Today was no different.
He sat cross-legged, introspecting within his body, while at the same time recalling his conversation with the Heavenly Martial Hall Lord—specifically, when he was told that he was no longer part of the Blue Scale Corps.
'He said I could move on my own.'
He'd been told he could act independently, with full support. Still, it didn't mean he was no longer a Heavenly Martial Hall warrior.
It just meant that, quite literally, he was no longer part of the Blue Scale Corps. Since Hall Lord Zhang Mun-gi had given the direct order, Jeong-un now had no need to receive instructions from anyone, not even Yeom Baek.
"......"
But rather than feeling free, he felt a bit lost.
Since joining the Heavenly Martial Hall, he hadn't taken on a great number of missions, but every mission always came with a specific objective, so this was only natural.
"... Let's not overthink it."
Jeong-un muttered to himself.
He didn't know enough to set up some grand plan anyway.
The Hall had said they'd support him with information, but he had no particular expectation that it would be anything special.
From the start, the location in Xinjiang that the man mentioned had been like that.
It was so far from the heart of the Central Plains that ordinary commoners did not even know its name.
Especially the Tian Mountains, with their rugged and barren terrain that made it impossible for villages to form.
Of course, even if they were heretical cultists, they were martial artists blessed with extraordinary power.
That's why they could establish a stronghold in such an inaccessible place.
Jeong-un considered that to be just about all he needed to know.
After all, he didn't know their internal organizational structure or the specific location of their stronghold.
Instead, he planned to memorize the details of the mountain range's geography thoroughly.
'No doubt, they'll be waiting with a formation set up again.'
If that was the case, the layout of the terrain itself could easily have been altered.
The enemy's formations could completely transform the surrounding environment.
'In the end, internal energy is the key again.'
He had already once broken through their formation.
Sensing the current of the formation, he had cut through it at the crucial moment and even tore off the man's forearm.
What had made that possible was the sharp sensitivity brought by his pure cultivated power.
That's why he sat cross-legged and introspected every day.
Currently, Jeong-un had both the twelve regular meridians and eight extraordinary meridians fully opened.
He had reached the point where he could instantly muster energy from all the veins in his body and pour out his energy.
Still, it wasn't enough just to maintain this sensitivity—he wanted to sharpen it even further.
It was endless training, provoking true ki while examining his body.
It was tedious and repetitive, but he was sure it would help, even a little, in his fight.
'He's someone who can even wrap his body in the mysteries of formations.'
His martial arts alone were at the level of a peerless expert.
On top of that, he would wrap himself in mysterious formation energy, performing strange movements.
Even Shaolin's Monk Mu Jung had been unable to see through those methods, calling them spells instead. He was a tricky opponent.
There was much to prepare for.
It was then that—
"...?"
The personal training hall of a four-stripes warrior always had two servants guarding the entrance, to prevent anyone from carelessly disturbing training.
Jeong-un felt a presence carefully approaching from the entrance.
It was probably one of the servants on guard. That meant someone had come to visit.
Jeong-un slowly opened his eyes.
Just then, the approaching servant, looking slightly startled, respectfully lowered his head and said,
"Warrior Baek Sang from the Blue Scale Corps is here."
"Young hero Baek Sang?"
"What would you like to do?"
"Please tell him he may come in."
The servant nodded and trotted to the entrance.
Soon, Baek Sang stepped right across the threshold into the training hall.
The distinctive jet-black martial garb of the Heavenly Martial Hall and three gold stripes on his left arm immediately stood out.
He, too, had advanced from two to three stripes, befitting a first-class expert reputed throughout the martial world.
"......"
Jeong-un looked at him with a newly appreciative gaze. It had been ages since he'd seen that face.
He suddenly recalled when he had first joined and heard all sorts of explanations from Baek Sang about the Heavenly Martial Hall.
In truth, it hadn't even been that long.
Still, perhaps because their ranks had now switched, it felt somehow as if time had passed very quickly.
Soon, as Baek Sang drew near, Jeong-un spoke first.
"Have you been well?"
"Oh my, to have the four-stripes himself greet me—how touching."
Baek Sang grinned mischievously. At his characteristic playful manner, Jeong-un smiled slightly and asked,
"What brings you all the way here?"
"Nothing special. You're just the talk of the town lately, so I dropped by to say hi. I happened to have some free time after returning, too."
Then he turned his head, giving the training hall a quick sweep with his gaze.
"You use this place alone? I've heard the four-stripes warriors are treated exceptionally, but I didn't expect this much. It's much more spacious than I heard."
"I'm still not used to it myself. Honestly, I don't even need this much space..."
"Well, you'll need to get used to it. When you leave the Hall, you'll likely have offers for entire estates instead of just training halls."
It was something he had already heard.
Every year, on the day the warriors left the Hall, multiple sects would line up outside the main gate waiting for them.
By the time someone reached four stripes, there might really be places that would offer a fortune to have them as honored guests.
Last year alone, there was a merchant guild that promised to sponsor all expenses for founding a new sect for a single graduating warrior.
Baek Sang was not exaggerating.
"That applies to you as well, young hero Baek Sang. I heard three-stripes warriors also receive excellent treatment."
"That's beside the point. I already know where I'm returning to."
Baek Sang laughed, waving it off.
He was right.
Baek Sang was a disciple of the distinguished Mount Hua Sect.
Mount Hua was said to be the leading group even among the Old Sects.
Baek Sang was reportedly highly likely to become one of the Plum Blossom Swordmasters—the sect's elite sword brigade.
In fact, given a bit more time, he might even vie for the leader of the Swordmasters.
'Now that I think about it, he's quite a figure.'
Jeong-un found himself oddly struck by the fact that he was standing and chatting with someone like Baek Sang.
He'd only loved swinging his sword at first, but now he was bantering with a Mount Hua disciple and squaring off against the Demonic Cult Leader.
As Jeong-un was thinking this, Baek Sang spoke again.
"I heard you left the Blue Scale Corps?"
"That's right."
At Jeong-un's somewhat composed answer, Baek Sang raised his eyebrows.
"You really have a way of making the strangest things sound ordinary. It's almost a talent."
"It truly just happened that way. I didn't ask for it, either."
Baek Sang's eyes grew round.
"You didn't ask for it? Then were you kicked out?"
"......."
"I'm joking. Of course not. So how did it happen?"
At last, Jeong-un briefly explained what happened when he met the Hall Lord.
There wasn't much to hide—the General Affairs Department had already announced it publicly.
Baek Sang said,
"So that was it. I thought you were forming a new corps."
"What do you mean?"
"You didn't know? The rumor throughout the Hall is that you're going to be made the leader of a new martial unit. Even many Central Plains sects believe it. Frankly, I came here thinking of demanding a spot myself."
Baek Sang explained with astonished eyes, but Jeong-un just looked at him with resignation.
He had noticed the way Baek Sang's lips were twitching as he spoke.
"... Enough."
"Sorry."
Baek Sang apologized with a light tone.
He obviously knew those rumors flying around were all nonsense and was just teasing Jeong-un.
'Is he really a Taoist?'
One called an Immortal by the people—truly from Mount Hua? Jeong-un unconsciously shook his head.
Just then, Baek Sang—having finished laughing—spoke again.
"Yeah, as if. The Heavenly Martial Hall is a place with strict discipline, if not as much as the royal laws."
"The Hall Lord just told me to make my own plans and act accordingly."
"So, do you have any plans yet?"
Jeong-un shook his head.
"I'm not sure yet. I didn't expect to hear such things. Honestly, I thought they'd just give me a specific mission."
"I figured."
Baek Sang nodded, staring quietly at Jeong-un's pale face.
'A decidedly unusual guy.'
He himself was often called eccentric by others, but compared to this young man, he was nothing.
Jeong-un's every action was utterly unconventional.
He'd begun that way, too.
Not from a prestigious sect, he had grabbed the Cloud Dragon Token of Mount Hua and passed the special test, scoring first on the entrance exam.
Looking back, he'd never been normal.
'His innate nature is remarkable, too.'
Not yet two years into the Hall, and he already had the four stripes.
From the rumors and even what Baek Sang had experienced firsthand, his martial skill was beyond that.
Baek Sang felt an utterly incredible presence from Jeong-un.
Not just because of the immense cultivated power radiating from his ki pathway, but by the way he had organized it—so much so that Baek Sang thought of the "returning to the roots" realm.
It was just an instinctive sense.
This guy had advanced so far that he was now distant, unreachable.
The fact that Baek Sang once considered challenging Jeong-un to a duel now seemed embarrassing.
He then happened to notice the sword at Jeong-un's waist.
"So that's the sword I've been hearing about."
"Is there a rumor about that, too?"
"There's a rumor that the General Affairs Department made a huge fuss preparing a new sword for the four-stripes. It must have been made with enormous dedication by a famed craftsman."
Baek Sang nodded.
It was well-known that the Heavenly Martial Hall spared no support for its warriors. Let alone for a promotion to four-stripes—they would have spared no expense.
"So, you're taking that with you for this job, right?"
When Baek Sang asked, Jeong-un glanced down quietly at his own waist, deep in thought.
'It's certainly a famed sword.'
According to Jo Yoo-hyeon, Dragon Sky was a blade crafted with special effort by the master craftsman of the Hall.
Having held it himself, he could attest that the rumors were deserved. It was a true masterpiece, ranking among the greatest of famed swords.
'But...'
After a moment, glancing down at his waist, Jeong-un spoke.
"This time, I don't intend to bring it."