Chapter 221. I’ve Heard the Scholar Bastard’s Esteemed Opinion Well.

The White-Clad Scholar opened his eyes and slowly looked around the study.

“……”

It was a gaze as though he were looking back on his own past life. Of course it would be. Whether he had wanted to or not, he must have spent a long time sitting at that desk, transcribing the words on bamboo slips.

I had pressured the White-Clad Scholar with talk of a final recommendation, but in any case, the decision was his. It was not an easy decision. If there was someone above him, I assumed the White-Clad Scholar would also have to risk his life over this.

After staring at his study for a long while, the White-Clad Scholar said,

“This feels truly strange.”

“What does?”

Only then did the White-Clad Scholar look at me and say,

“I do not think this was my fate. I am feeling an inexplicable, uncanny sensation.”

I closed my mouth, which had been about to fall open on its own.

The White-Clad Scholar’s original fate?

I did not know that well either.

Even after earning the infamous name of the Evil Emperor, he had hidden within the Martial Alliance and operated there, but who knew what would have happened to him in the end? The time when I was being pursued by the Demon Cult was a time when everyone had been defeated by the Cult Leader and lived with bated breath. Had Alliance Leader Lin Xiaobai not run himself ragged, his hair turned white far too early for his age and streaming behind him, the world would long since have bowed its head to the Cult Leader.

Would the White-Clad Scholar’s faction have stopped the Demon Cult? Or would they have stood by and watched?

For some reason, I had the feeling this bastard would have belonged to the Martial Alliance and joined the counterattack. Not because of some great cause. Perhaps he would have fought the Cult Leader because that would have been more amusing……that was my guess.

I asked the White-Clad Scholar,

“What do you think your fate was originally supposed to be?”

The White-Clad Scholar said,

“I suppose I would have lived as I always had.”

In truth, that was probably true for anyone. Even a madman on the level of the White-Clad Scholar had answered that he would have lived as he always had.

“Are you accepting my proposal?”

“Listen, Sect Leader. Why are you so fearless? There is also the possibility that I could kill you before you detonate the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven with your Violet Haze Divine Art. I am not hesitating because I am afraid of your threats. I am hesitating because the way you look at books is unexpected. Perhaps because it makes me think you are a man who stands at the exact opposite end from the First Emperor.”

The White-Clad Scholar raised his hand and pointed at his books.

“A tyrant burned these. And you are telling me we should use them. That is all that is shaking my heart. Why was I unable to think as you do? Why do you suppose that is? Why was the view I gazed upon narrower than yours?”

Did this bastard think himself a genius, and was that why he was suddenly comparing himself to me?

The thought that I had to coax and soothe him annoyed me, so I answered roughly.

“I don’t know. What would I know? There’s a lot I don’t know.”

It was nothing special, yet the White-Clad Scholar laughed. After laughing a few times through his nose, the White-Clad Scholar said,

“Even if I gave you all the books here, that would not make me a traitor. However, the managers of the studies in various places are people of equal standing to me. I cannot interfere with how they make use of their books.”

I suddenly felt my mind clear.

“Hmm…… You believe the ones you transcribed are better than the books of the other managers. Is my guess correct?”

The White-Clad Scholar looked at me.

“That is precisely my pride and self-respect. If you nurture chivalrous heroes, will you be able to stop another First Emperor?”

“Scholar, how could we know what lies ahead? Just because one makes a plan does not mean things go according to plan.”

“Then why make plans?”

“It’s fine even if things don’t go according to plan. To make a plan is merely to set one’s will and make that will firm. It doesn’t matter if the plan goes awry. My inn burned down, and you people were buried in the ground while your books were burned. Such things happened before, are happening now, and will happen in the future. I only hope for a world where chivalrous heroes are made everywhere, reducing the number of bastards like me, and where the diverse intentions of the men of the Hundred Schools of Thought can be respected. I am not proposing this to you so that we can carry out a plan perfectly. I am merely conveying the wish that others do not suffer what I suffered. That is all.”

The White-Clad Scholar nodded, then pointed at the study.

“Jianghu people are greedy for secret manuals. If someone had seized this study by force and carelessly dabbled in this and that martial art, they would have fallen into qi deviation. Most of the content I edited in consists of traps. I predicted that if a powerhouse appeared in the jianghu whom even I could do nothing about, I would be able to kill him with the books made in this study. Though that too was only a plan.”

I looked around the study anew.

Come to think of it, even if I had killed the White-Clad Scholar here and taken over the study, it would not have resolved the situation at all. Because the White-Clad Scholar had cunningly edited the contents, I would have learned martial arts that looked extraordinary at a glance, then fallen into qi deviation and suffered from madness like in my previous life.

The White-Clad Scholar truly was a meticulous man.

However, I intended to persuade the White-Clad Scholar even if it took three days and nights, so I did not hurry.

“So it was a study where you’d go straight to your grave if you tried stealing from it.”

The White-Clad Scholar pondered something, then rose from his seat.

“For now, you see……”

The White-Clad Scholar clasped his hands behind his back, went to the study, looked around, and pulled out a book.

“This should be suitable.”

When the White-Clad Scholar threw the book, it flew toward me horizontally. I caught it and checked the title first.

The White-Clad Scholar looked at me and said,

“You must have your own thoughts, but I have my tastes as well. Deliver that to Murong Bai.”

Surprised by the unexpected words, I asked back,

“Didn’t you say you’d kill him earlier? You said you’d kill him, you bastard. If you lay a hand on Doctor Murong, you’ll have to block my Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven in your sleep. I’ll see whether you can block a Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven exploding from beneath the outhouse while you’re taking a shit. I’m warning you, don’t touch people who heal others. Is this a normal martial art?”

The White-Clad Scholar answered with a laugh.

“……Listen, Sect Leader. Murong Bai’s comprehension is greater than you think.”

“I know that too, so why are you acting so smug?”

“First of all, he is skilled in psychological warfare, and since he has learned medicine, his knowledge of the body and acupoints must be extensive.”

This bastard had the habit of simply saying whatever he wanted to say.

“……”

“This is a martial art that will be helpful if learned by someone excellent at psychological warfare. You said you would raise chivalrous heroes, but Murong Bai is also a man worth making stronger. Even though he shrank before me, he said everything he had to say. Even though he seemed to have grasped what kind of bastard I was, he remained composed to the end. This is a gift for that.”

Written on the book was:

Yihua Jiemu Divine Art (移花接木神功).

Roughly, it meant moving a flower and grafting it onto a tree. My suspicious nature flared up, and I checked the White-Clad Scholar’s expression.

“What is this? You don’t get qi deviation while moving flowers, do you?”

The White-Clad Scholar nodded.

“If a foul-tempered bastard like you learned it, you would fall into qi deviation. Murong Bai’s disposition is different. Because his comprehension in grasping the opponent’s psychology is outstanding, he will use it appropriately. With comprehension of that level, there is no possibility of qi deviation.”

There are times when receiving a gift makes you feel filthy, and that was exactly how I felt now.

The White-Clad Scholar said,

“If you are that worried, tell him it is a book delivered by the man who visited him last time. Then Murong Bai will be wary on his own.”

The White-Clad Scholar clasped his hands behind his back again and searched for the next book.

To be honest, I badly wanted to ask for a bundle, sweep all the books into it, and run off like some grand bandit, but I couldn’t. The truth was, mixed in among them were books that induced qi deviation. If the White-Clad Scholar, who had copied them by hand himself, said so, then that was that.

In any case, I intended to deliver the Divine Art of Shifting Flowers and Grafting Trees to Moyong Baek. The White-Clad Scholar pulled out the next book and tossed it to me again.

“That is the Dugu Heavy Sword.”

“Who am I supposed to give this one to?”

The White-Clad Scholar turned around and looked at me.

“Deliver it to the Sword Demon.”

“Why?”

The White-Clad Scholar let out a slight sigh. Judging by the meaning of that sigh, he seemed to find the Sword Demon rather frustrating.

“I roughly understand why the Sword Demon is training with a wooden sword.”

“And?”

“It’s foolish. The Cult Leader is probably laughing at him too.”

“Why?”

“The realm of the wooden sword the Sword Demon has in mind is not some common wooden-sword realm. What he is pursuing is, in effect, the realm of a Sword God. When does he think he’ll ever reach that? The Cult Leader will try to kill him or subdue him by any means possible, so realistically, he lacks the time to train. In other words, it’s impossible.”

“That’s true enough. There’s no time.”

On top of the pawnshop owner trying to give him a sword and then take it back, the pawnshop owner had many subordinates and was absurdly strong, so the Sword Demon had no choice but to be busy.

The White-Clad Scholar continued.

“The heavy sword is an ancient martial art. It was the martial art of great generals of old. On the battlefield, a commander sometimes lacks even the time to defend, and finds it wasteful besides. Pure, unrelenting offense. It is a martial art that began to be refined as they charged forward, striking aside everything whether the opponent blocked with a shield or a weapon. Outstanding great generals learned it on their own through the battlefield, but a martial artist of the Hundred Schools later compiled it into a proper martial art. The Sword Demon should be able to maintain a body impervious to blades to some degree, so learning an all-out offensive sword art will be easier for him than for others. If the heavy sword is added to his arsenal, it means he can become far stronger than he is now without relying on the Demon Sword every time.”

Only after listening to the White-Clad Scholar’s explanation did I feel my drowsiness vanish completely.

“A sound point.”

As I sat there receiving a lesson on essential points from the White-Clad Scholar, I couldn’t exactly deny that this bastard was a genius. I did have questions, but I couldn’t ruin the mood of the fellow who had started lecturing, so I kept my mouth shut as much as possible.

In any case, talking during class would only be my loss.

After pondering for a moment like someone choosing goods at a street stall, the White-Clad Scholar picked out a book and threw it to me.

“You may learn that one yourself, or hand it over if there is someone suitable.”

I read the book the scholar had given me.

“White Lightning Ten-Stage Art. What kind of martial art is this? Just from the name, it seems to be of the extreme yang line.”

The White-Clad Scholar looked at me and said,

“The Golden Tortoise Wandering Art has too great a gap when moving from Fighting Rooster to Golden Tortoise. That’s why I didn’t learn it either. There are so many ambiguous points that it makes one wonder whether this martial art was truly made for people to learn. It requires time and patience. If I were to summarize its essence at a glance, it is a martial art meant for those who have reached the level of immortals. In any case, it claims that one who possesses extreme yang internal energy will become impervious to blades upon reaching the ultimate realm. In truth, if one were to delve perfectly into the Golden Tortoise Wandering Art alone, there would be no lack in becoming number one under heaven. The problem is simply that no one has ever accomplished it.”

“Mm.”

“In the stage between Fighting Rooster and Golden Tortoise, learn this White Lightning Ten-Stage Art. If I had delved into the Golden Tortoise Wandering Art, that is what I would have done. The White Lightning Ten-Stage Art is a martial art that converts extreme yang internal energy into lightning qi. It is simple yet clear, and in how difficult it is to master, it resembles the Golden Tortoise Wandering Art. But the reason the White Lightning Ten-Stage Art is beautiful is that it focuses solely on the deepening and strengthening of lightning qi’s power. From beginning to end, only the power of lightning qi grows deeper. It is a pure white martial art that does not seek variation. Therefore, it is also relatively easy to combine with other divine arts.”

I answered shamelessly.

“What about the qi deviation sections?”

“Sect Leader.”

“What?”

“Any martial art carries the possibility of qi deviation. Do you not even know that much? The White Lightning Ten-Stage Art cannot be mastered with ordinary stubbornness either. Whether you learn it yourself or pass it to someone else, it must be learned by someone seriously tenacious and obstinate.”

“Understood.”

For now, I had obtained the Divine Art of Shifting Flowers and Grafting Trees, the Dugu Heavy Sword, and the White Lightning Ten-Stage Art. After running my mouth, I’d unexpectedly struck it rich, you could say. No wonder frauds never disappear from this world. Of course, what I’d said was not fraud but closer to a dream, so it contained truth.

Still, I couldn’t help finding it funny. I maintained a solemn expression to the end and said,

“By the way, when I said we should raise a great number of chivalrous heroes, why did you suddenly start handing over these divine arts and secret techniques to the people around me and to me?”

The White-Clad Scholar looked at me with a faintly mocking expression.

“I Jaha, if you intend to raise chivalrous heroes, should you not first survive yourself?”

“That’s true.”

“Do you think your chances of surviving in the current jianghu are high? You have already provoked the Demon Cult’s Cult Leader. I have not seen a man in recent days who has beaten more cultists to death than you. How do you intend to handle the Cult Leader from now on? Even Im Sobaek will find it difficult to protect you.”

“That’s true too.”

“In the end, only if you survive together with those who travel with you will you be able to realize the dreamlike nonsense you spoke to me of.”

I answered in a stern tone.

“You bastard, how dare you belittle another man’s sincerity as nonsense.”

The White-Clad Scholar tilted his head, then sighed.

“Sect Leader, that mouth of yours is truly one of a kind in the jianghu. If my disciples spoke and behaved like that, they would have been beaten to death long ago. It is strange. If that can be called a talent, then I suppose it is one. How odd. Could that also be a kind of martial art?”

The bastard asked so seriously that, for a moment, I was at a loss for words.

“……”

The White-Clad Scholar pointed an unpleasant finger at me.

“You, you know. Later on, you will not become famous for your martial arts, but as a man who runs his mouth well. Somehow, I feel that will be the case. Since that will not work on that strict, solemn, and always serious Cult Leader bastard, you will have to struggle desperately. What I am more curious about is how exactly you will survive from now on. Your theory of chivalrous heroes is highly likely to remain a delusion. Only if that head stays attached to your neck can you continue to prattle, can’t you?”

I had plenty to say, but I held it in. A man must sometimes be able to lose an argument on purpose. In any case, I swallowed the words, Thank you for your valuable opinion, you clever scholar bastard who got taken in by my eloquence and offered up three divine arts...

I answered in an even tone.

“Confirmed.”