Chapter 34 : Teach Me That
"Kkeueueu."
Jin Sohyun, who could confidently say he was the man who loved sleep the most in this world, opened his eyes on the bed with a displeased face.
"It's not even noon yet..."
The sun had not even reached its zenith, but Jin Sohyun was resentful of himself for waking up.
"To think I only slept for five shichen... this is a serious matter."
Jin Sohyun, who had a certain pride in his laziness, sat on the edge of the bed with his arms crossed.
"This is all because of that ferocious-looking guy."
It had already been three days since the Bud Crushing luring operation had ended.
At Jin Sohyun's words that his life or death was unknown, the martial artists of the Namgung Family launched a large-scale search operation at Jiao Lake.
If the assailant who had attacked the next-generation talents had died at the hands of Jin Sohyun, he would have floated to the surface.
But the assailant's corpse could not be found anywhere.
That meant there was a high possibility that the assailant was alive or that the Heretic's Path Alliance had recovered the body.
Either way, Jin Sohyun was in a very uncomfortable state.
How bad must it have been for him to have a nightmare, which he had never had before?
"How does that brat know me?"
The reason Jin Sohyun was uncomfortable was because the man he had seen for the first time in his life had spoken as if he knew him.
Moreover, the man's attitude, as if he had been eagerly waiting for the moment of their meeting, made him even more concerned.
"I want to go back to the family estate as soon as possible, if possible..."
Jin Sohyun stared at the small note placed on the table next to the bed.
[Brother! I was invited to the Anhui commercial rights meeting hosted by the Namgung Family. I'll be back with Siu, so rest well! If you need anything, you can just tell the Namgung Family. Then see you later.]
Jin Gahyeon was currently busy moving to expand the commercial rights of the Jin Family.
With his younger sister working busily day and night for the family, the one called 'older brother' could not pester her to go home.
Jin Sohyun got up with a sullen face and went outside for some fresh air for the first time in a long time.
In the annex where he was staying, there was a small pavilion, and next to it was an old, ancient tree, which was picturesque just to look at.
Arriving at the pavilion, Jin Sohyun sat on a chair that was prepared inside, which was hollowed out and comfortable to lie down and rest on, and hummed a tune.
But Jin Sohyun's humming did not last long.
"The fact that that brat knows me... does it mean I'm also one of the targets of Bud Crushing?"
According to Namgung Muhyeok, the Bud Crushing that the Heretic's Path Alliance was carrying out was an operation to assassinate the promising next-generation talents of the orthodox martial world.
Although Jin Sohyun did not recognize himself as a martial artist, he had a master named Kang Cheon, who was one of the Five Great Masters of the Central Plains.
'My master is quite famous compared to a lazy bum like me, so the Heretic's Path Alliance must know about it.'
As long as he didn't leave the Jin Family, there would be no danger, but the problem was Jin Gahyeon, who was actively engaged in external activities.
"If they try to use Gahyeon to get rid of me..."
The Heretic's Path Alliance were guys who would do anything to succeed in Bud Crushing.
There was a high possibility that they would use Jin Gahyeon to lure out Jin Sohyun, who was unwilling to leave the nest of his family.
"Hooooo... this is so troublesome. I might really die at this rate."
Jin Sohyun, who had barely gotten up, recalled the advice Kang Cheon had given him.
—One day, a day will come when you will have to fight to protect your precious person or for your own beliefs.
As he had said, if the Heretic's Path Alliance threatened the Jin Family, Jin Sohyun was ready to hold his flying sword and fight at any time.
The problem was that he was not yet fully prepared.
"I should have learned more of the Heavenly Hand if I had known."
Recalling the experience of lacking flying swords in the fight with the assailant, he was quite disappointed that he had not learned all of the Heavenly Hand from Kang Cheon.
At that time, Kang Cheon had ended his teaching with the words, 'You will realize the Heavenly Hand on your own.'
But Kang Cheon would not have known.
That Jin Sohyun had not even touched a flying sword for a whopping five years after that.
Anyway, Jin Sohyun, who had realized his own shortcomings, looked at the brush holder placed on the table in the pavilion and extended his hand.
As he concentrated his mind and sent his qi to his fingertips, the released qi blew away the brush holder.
"This isn't it..."
Throwing a flying sword was easy, but retrieving it was very difficult.
No, in the first place, he couldn't get a feel for it.
"My master did it like this."
No matter how much he extended his hand, the qi went out but did not come back.
Without even knowing that what he was trying to do was the stage of Void Object Manipulation, which was the highest level among the realms of martial arts, Jin Sohyun struggled for about a quarter of an hour.
"This won't do. As soon as I get back home, I have to find my master and ask him! Would father know?"
Since Kang Cheon was an old man who lived a life like the wind, he had to first check if he was still exchanging letters with Jin Seomok.
A scene flashed before the eyes of Jin Sohyun, who had given up on struggling alone.
"Come to think of it..."
Having finished his thoughts, Jin Sohyun shot up.
"There was that method!"
***
"What?"
Namgung Muhyeok let out a hollow laugh as he looked at the cheeky brat who had suddenly come to see him.
"You want me to show you what?"
"That! The thing that made the prostrated Siu stand up... should that be called a martial art? That thing!"
"Are you talking about this?"
As Namgung Muhyeok extended his hand, a teacup that was far away floated up following his hand.
Soon after, as the teacup flew through the air and came into Namgung Muhyeok's hand, Jin Sohyun's eyes widened, and he smiled brightly.
"That's right! That!"
"So, you're saying you want me to teach you Void Object Manipulation?"
"Yes. Please teach me."
Namgung Muhyeok contemplated what to do with this brazen and audacious brat.
Of course, it was a common occurrence for a young martial artist to ask for teachings from a senior in martial arts.
But to ask him to teach the subtlety of the martial way so suddenly?
No, in the first place, Void Object Manipulation was not something that could be taught.
'Is it for the better?'
Namgung Muhyeok had been thinking of keeping Jin Sohyun at the Namgung Family for a little longer anyway.
Why would he have held the Anhui commercial rights meeting within the family estate?
Namgung Muhyeok, who had realized that he had to hold on to Jin Gahyeon to keep Jin Sohyun, was keeping Jin Sohyun at the Namgung Family by holding his younger sister hostage.
Of course, Jin Sohyun, who had no way of knowing this, was staring at Namgung Muhyeok with sparkling eyes.
"Then what can you do for me?"
"What?! I saved the next-generation talents of the Five Great Families by devoting my entire body, and you're asking me to give you something else? What's the difference between that and asking for the bundle after saving someone from drowning!"
"We have already made a deal on that matter. You just did what you had to do."
Since it wasn't wrong, Jin Sohyun's face became serious.
'There's nothing I can do for him... what should I do?'
As Jin Sohyun glanced around, Namgung Muhyeok let out a hearty laugh.
"Hahaha! Then how about we make a bet?"
"A bet?"
"Yes. If you win the bet, I will teach you the subtlety of Void Object Manipulation without any price."
"What if I lose?"
"You'll have to grant me one more favor."
"Hmm... what's the content of the bet?"
"Five days. I will teach you the subtlety of Void Object Manipulation, so you try to succeed in it within five days."
"Five days..."
For Jin Sohyun, who had no intention of learning for a long time in the first place, five days was a time worth trying.
"Alright."
As Jin Sohyun meekly nodded and accepted the bet, Namgung Muhyeok inwardly rejoiced.
'This foolish brat! Did you think Void Object Manipulation was possible just by being born with talent? You will be played in the palm of this Namgung Muhyeok's hand. And then...'
Namgung Muhyeok knew that Namgung Seolu had recently gone to see Jin Sohyun.
'Seolu must have become interested in that brat too.'
Namgung Seolu, who revered strength more than anything else, had finally begun to take an interest in Jin Sohyun.
'His face is handsome, his family is excellent, his talent is overflowing, and he has the Flying Sword Hero as a backer... it can't be better than this.'
Kang Cheon was one of the martial artists that Namgung Muhyeok acknowledged, and Jin Sohyun was his only disciple.
'Being lazy is a flaw, but... Seolu will handle it well. That child is no ordinary person either.'
Since she was a precious and dear daughter who wouldn't hurt even if he put her in his eyes, Namgung Muhyeok had wished for Namgung Seolu to be with him for her entire life.
But this was just a father's personal greed.
If an excellent match appeared, to give up one's own place at any time was the attitude of a true parent.
"Then shall we begin!"
Looking at Jin Sohyun, who was burning with enthusiasm, belying his title of Slothful Young Master, Namgung Muhyeok nodded.
"Follow me."
***
The place they arrived at with Namgung Muhyeok had a large cauldron with three legs.
It was filled with sand, and the combined weight was a whopping two hundred geun (about 120kg).
Namgung Muhyeok stuck a long stick in the sand on top of the cauldron and then moved five steps away from the cauldron.
"Martial artists who walk the path of martial arts also call Void Object Manipulation the realm of the transcendent. It is a realm that is that difficult to reach."
"Then isn't it impossible for a third-rate martial artist like me?"
The words 'Why are you third-rate!' rose to his throat, but Namgung Muhyeok managed to swallow them.
"It's not impossible if you realize the subtlety. Stand here."
"Yes."
Jin Sohyun stood next to Namgung Muhyeok.
"Void Object Manipulation requires going a step further from the stage of releasing qi. And that is the connection of qi."
"Connection of qi..."
"Think of the qi you have shot out as a thread. And you must continuously imbue it with qi so that this thread does not break. The amount of qi should not be too much, nor should it be too little."
If the amount of qi sent out is too much, the object you are trying to move will not move as intended and will be repelled, and if the amount of qi is too little, the thread of qi that has been connected will break.
'That's why it's difficult.'
To maintain the connection of qi, one had to continuously imbue it with internal energy, and the required amount of internal energy also changed depending on the weight of the object one was trying to move.
That's why the heavier the object, the more internal energy was needed.
'The amount of internal energy required to achieve Void Object Manipulation is at least one gapja.'
To move an object with the weight of a sword, one needed about one gapja of internal energy, which could be said to be 60 years' worth of internal energy.
But it wasn't enough to just have internal energy, so Void Object Manipulation required an equal balance of internal energy and enlightenment about martial arts.
'No matter how much you have the talent of the heavens, Void Object Manipulation will be difficult.'
Having finished his explanation of the subtlety, Namgung Muhyeok turned his back.
"Then I'll see you in five days."
"Is this the end!?"
"Yes. Did you think there would be more? This is the end. The higher the realm, the simpler it becomes."
Having finished his words, Namgung Muhyeok left, promising to see him in five days.
"I knew it! To think the head of a family could be so petty!"
Jin Sohyun guessed that Namgung Muhyeok had spoken vaguely without teaching him the important details.
"I'd have to know something to argue..."
Jin Sohyun, who couldn't argue because he didn't know anything, glared at the cauldron in front of him with bulging eyes.
"Alright. Let's give it a try. It'll work out somehow."
Jin Sohyun extended his right hand forward and drew up his internal energy.
Soon, his hair danced.
(End of Chapter)