Chapter 35
So-ah and Moyong Hwa.
And Moyong Su, a collateral relative of the Moyong Family who had followed So-ah well since he was young.
The group performed a respectful cupped fist salute to Moyong Baek and the elders of the family with determined eyes.
“We will be back.”
“We will write often.”
“Please, stay well.”
They were three dignified people.
Needless to say, So-ah, and Moyong Su, who had grown from a cute little boy to a reliable young man, also had a bright appearance.
‘Since So-ah is here, I don’t need to worry too much.’
Moyong Baek had a proud look in his eyes and then spoke in a solemn voice.
“So-ah…”
“Yes.”
“Please take good care of Hwa-ah and Su-ah.”
“Don’t worry, Uncle.”
“You are not only the representative of the Moyong Family, but you are also setting out as an instructor of the White Martial Academy. Although you are young, as my father’s top disciple, no one can dare to look down on you. Keep this in mind and always act with dignity and confidence!”
“I will keep that in mind, Uncle.”
So-ah performed a silent bow.
Then he approached Huin-dung-i, who was next to Moyong Baek.
“Huin-dung-i. Hyung will visit often, so you have to listen to Uncle well, okay?”
Huin-dung-i, who had come to follow Moyong Baek well, yawned lazily.
Perhaps because he felt the scent of Moyong Cheon from Moyong Baek, who resembled Moyong Cheon in face, physique, voice, and attitude, Huin-dung-i had come to follow Moyong Baek particularly well.
“So-ah, have a safe trip!”
“Hwa-ah and Su-ah must listen to their Senior Brother well!”
“Come back after raising the prestige of the Moyong Family!”
The adults said their farewells.
The group once again performed a respectful cupped fist salute and then left the gate of the Moyong Family with swelling hearts.
***
“Senior Brother and Sister Hwa-ah, aren’t you nervous? I’m a little scared to be interacting with people from other sects for the first time.”
So-ah’s group walked leisurely along the main road.
In the midst of this, as Moyong Su spoke with a nervous face, So-ah smiled and comforted him.
“Su-ah. There’s no need to be nervous. It will be fine.”
“Right? Senior Brother?”
“Yeah. Don’t worry.”
Moyong Hwa, who had been silent, also smiled and added a chiding remark.
“Su-ah. What’s there to be scared of? Senior Brother is the chief instructor. He’ll take good care of you.”
“But…”
“Junior Sister is right. I plan to help my junior sister and junior brother adapt as much as possible.”
Only after hearing So-ah’s firm answer did Moyong Su relax his tension.
“Alright, I’ll just trust you, Senior Brother!”
“Okay. But you’ll have to be prepared.”
“Prepared… for what?”
“Yeah.”
“What kind of preparation?”
“The reason I accepted the offer to be an instructor is to raise the prestige of the Moyong Family, but there is another purpose.”
“What is it?”
“It’s to improve your martial arts.”
“Yes?”
“Since the family is lacking in young people, there is a limit to improving the martial arts of my junior sister and junior brother. But the White Martial Academy is a place where the rising generation has gathered. If you train with your peers, you can expect great progress. Of course, on the condition that you follow my training method thoroughly.”
“Oops! Come to think of it, I’ll be learning martial arts from you, Senior Brother. I’m excited just thinking about it! I’ve been curious about your martial arts for a long time!”
Moyong Su’s eyes sparkled.
It was a moment when he was looking forward to how amazing So-ah’s martial arts, which he had only heard about through rumors, would be, and how much of that amazing martial arts he could learn.
But Moyong Hwa’s thoughts were different.
For a moment, she remembered what her grandfather had said.
[So-ah, I can say with certainty, has undergone the most rigorous training at the youngest age in the world. The reason your Senior Brother’s martial arts are abnormally strong is because he has endured such bone-crushing pain on his own.]
Her head throbbed.
It was because she thought that So-ah might torment her to death under the pretext of martial arts training.
‘Aww! Surely, a gentle Senior Brother like him wouldn’t go that far, right?’
Moyong Hwa cautiously asked So-ah.
“Senior Brother. Still, you’re not going to teach us with the training method you went through, right? Right?”
“Of course not. If I did, both my junior sister and junior brother would die in a few days.”
“Uh… huh?!”
“I’m only going to teach at an intensity that a person can endure.”
“Aha… right. That’s right, isn’t it? Just enough to endure. Right?”
“Yeah. But know this. Humans are more durable than you think. The more you roll, the stronger you get. So, you won’t die from training unless something goes wrong.”
“What do you mean by that…”
“In other words, it means that even if I roll you and roll you as much as possible, you won’t die.”
“What?”
“You will experience hell. But you have to endure it. Because humans can only become strong through blood and sweat.”
Moyong Hwa’s face turned pale.
It was a phrase she had heard somewhere before.
‘Grandpa used to say that all the time…’
Moyong Hwa, sensing that So-ah’s education would be a true ‘true education’, squeezed her eyes shut.
But Moyong Su just took light steps with a beaming face full of anticipation.
‘If I just endure Senior Brother’s teachings, I’ll become strong too!’
It was still unknown how long Moyong Su’s positive attitude would last.
***
“This is too much! Isn’t this against convention?”
“That’s right. The position of the chief instructor should rightfully go to Great Hero Jong…”
“To appoint a nineteen-year-old boy I’ve never even heard of as the chief instructor. What on earth is this…”
Among the instructors of the White Martial Academy, the group that flattered the second instructor, Jong Jin-do, openly expressed their complaints.
Jong Jin-do.
In his mid-thirties, he was a person whom everyone was reluctant to face because of his fiery and aggressive nature, but his martial arts were so outstanding that he was a swordsman of the Haenam Sect who had many followers.
He had been certain that he would become the chief instructor of the White Martial Academy, but he had heard the news of So-ah’s appointment as an instructor.
At first, he had intended to protest, but he was discouraged after seeing the letters of recommendation from the Martial Alliance Leader, the Beggars’ Sect Chief Hong In-geol, and the Abbess of the Emei Sect, Hong-ryeon.
“I’m also dumbfounded. A young brat… it’s dumbfounding enough that he’s becoming an instructor, but a chief instructor. This is crazy.”
Jong Jin-do ground his teeth.
“Great Hero Jong. Are you just going to stand by and watch?”
“Of course, I won’t just stand by.”
“Then…?”
“I hear that his martial arts are at a heaven-shaking level.”
“I have certainly heard so, but…”
“I can’t believe that.”
“…”
“I plan to see for myself how much of a martial artist that brat named So-ah is.”
“Are you saying you’re going to have a duel?”
“A duel? Huhu. Not a chance. It won’t be a duel, but an education. A very one-sided education, that is.”
Jong Jin-do thought that So-ah was just a scarecrow who had suddenly appeared, riding on the fame of the Moyong Family.
‘Even if that brat’s martial arts are truly outstanding, he can never be my opponent!’
Jong Jin-do curled up the corners of his mouth and smiled sinisterly.
The other instructors who saw him were certain that So-ah would soon resign from his position as an instructor on his own, and that Jong Jin-do would, as expected, take the position of the chief instructor.
***
A fortnight later…
“We have come from the Moyong Family.”
So-ah’s group arrived at the White Martial Academy.
“Ah! You are the heroes of the Moyong Family. Welcome. I am Go Il-seok of the Hubei Go Family, the third officer of the White Martial Academy and in charge of guiding the new students.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“I heard there is someone who will become an instructor?”
Go Il-seok asked with a curious look in his eyes.
At that, So-ah answered softly.
“That would be me.”
“Aha! You are the famous Young Master Jin.”
“You flatter me.”
“Your character is like a jade, and you are also humble. At a glance, you are a young master sent from heaven! Hahaha.”
So-ah was bewildered by the excessive praise and had an awkward face.
“Oh my! I seem to have been rude. You will be my superior as an instructor, but I was a bit flippant, wasn’t I?”
“It’s alright.”
“Look at my mind! You must have had a hard time coming a long way, but I’ve been talking too much. Then, I will personally guide the two students other than Young Master Jin. You two, follow me.”
Go Il-seok performed a silent bow to So-ah and then suddenly spoke informally to Moyong Hwa and Moyong Su.
Moyong Hwa, for a moment, realized that the difference between her and her Senior Brother’s situation was as great as the sky and the earth, and smiled bitterly.
‘Senior Brother has become a person of a different class now.’
But she didn’t feel bad.
Rather, she was proud of such a Senior Brother.
Just then.
So-ah asked Go Il-seok.
“Excuse me… Teacher Go.”
“Yes, Young Master Jin.”
“Aren’t you going to guide me?”
“Aha! I am not qualified to do so. I will send a message to the higher-ups while guiding the two students, so the right person will arrive soon. Young Master Jin, please wait a moment.”
“Ah… yes.”
This was too kind.
So-ah was at a loss for a while at the lavish treatment, which was on a different level from when he had first set foot in the Jianghu four years ago.
***
A shichen passed after Go Il-seok had taken Moyong Hwa and Moyong Su…
A tall and cool-looking beauty in a light dress approached So-ah, who was loitering at the entrance of the White Martial Academy.
‘Hmm… I’ve seen that face somewhere…’
As So-ah tilted his head at the beauty in the light dress.
She spoke first.
“Young Master Jin? No, it would be right to call you Chief Instructor Jin.”
‘Her voice is also familiar…’
So-ah, sensing that the woman in front of him must have a connection with him, cautiously asked.
“Excuse me… young lady. Have we met before?”
At that, the woman smiled brightly.
“Hoho! So-ah. You’ve really grown up so much that I can’t recognize you. You were so cute when you were little, and now you’ve become a handsome man. Haha.”
“Young lady…”
“You don’t remember me?”
“…”
“It was when you were nine, right? You followed me around all day, calling me Sister Min-min. At that time, I showed you the Bipa-gak of the Emei Sect and even gave you some sweet rice cakes. So-ah, you… I’m disappointed.”
“Ah! Sister Min-min!”
Only then did So-ah remember and smile brightly.
Eun Min-min.
She was none other than Eun Min-min, the first disciple of the Emei Sect who had taken care of him on the day he had first taken Myo-seon to the Emei Sect with his grandfather.
***
So-ah, guided by Eun Min-min, headed to the annex where he would be staying.
Eun Min-min was also serving as an instructor at the White Martial Academy, and she had volunteered to guide So-ah based on their past connection.
“Wow… is this my residence?”
“Yeah. How is it? It’s nice, isn’t it? It’s on the same level as the annex where the first-class officials stay, and it’s wider than the rooms where the general instructors stay.”
“At this rate, I could have brought Huin-dung-i.”
“Huh?”
“Ah! No, Sister. Haha.”
The two, who had entered the residence, chatted endlessly for a while.
“So-ah.”
“Yes, Sister.”
“From now on, I’m going to call you Instructor Jin. Don’t be awkward. Got it?”
“It’s a little awkward. Haha.”
“It can’t be helped. At first, the instructors and students will all look down on you, so it’s better for me to be polite. In fact, since you are the disciple of the esteemed God of War, your seniority in the Jianghu is higher than mine, but due to the nature of the White Martial Academy, all your peers are just students.”
“I know. But it’s okay.”
“Huh? Do you have a plan or something?”
“It’s not a plan, but there is a way.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You’ll see when you see.”
Eun Min-min was curious seeing the smiling So-ah, but she didn’t ask any more.
Instead, she explained in detail the situation of the White Martial Academy and the things So-ah had to do as an instructor.
***
The day grew dark…
After meeting Moyong Hwa and Moyong Su for a while and chatting, So-ah returned to his residence and lay down.
Just then, someone knocked on the door of the annex.
—Knock, knock.
‘Hmm?’
So-ah, thinking that perhaps Myo-seon, the Tang siblings, or Gu-yang Seon had come to see him, got up from his seat with a pleased look and opened the door.
But contrary to his expectation, the person who appeared in front of So-ah was a man in his mid-thirties with a sharp impression.
“Are you Jin So-ah?”
“I am.”
“I am Jong Jin-do.”