Chapter 272. That My Byname Was Once the Mad Demon
“Mongrang.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Do you truly intend to teach her the Okhwa Ice Art?”
The Lust Demon beside me answered.
“Yes. There’s no particular reason I cannot teach it. I had intended to teach it to a female disciple someday anyway. It does feel a little early.”
“Because there is a risk the Okhwa Ice Art may disappear?”
The Lust Demon nodded.
“It is a martial art too precious to vanish.”
The Sword Demon continued.
“There is no need to teach Yoran martial arts in earnest already. But since we do not know what will become of us, it would be better for Yoran to memorize the martial arts that might disappear with us if we vanish from the martial world.”
“Yes.”
Listening to the master and disciple speak, I realized Jang Deuk-su had been right. We were all people who thought about death. The Sword Demon was one thing, but even the Lust Demon was living while imagining his own end.
In other words, the Sword Demon’s opinion was that, just as scholars had gathered the martial arts of the Hundred Schools, we should have Yoran remember ours.
The Ghost Demon agreed.
“Not a bad idea.”
The Sword Demon spoke while staring ahead.
“At the very least, the martial arts of the four of us will be passed down through Yoran. From what I’ve seen, she is intelligent enough. For now, we should have her memorize them unconditionally and leave the rest for the future. That way, if we truly kill all our enemies and are still alive afterward, we can teach her as much as we like with peace of mind. I will not force it, so think it over.”
I also gave my opinion.
“For now, it would be best if she only trains in the Okhwa Ice Art as her heart method. I will teach her lightness skill, but the other martial arts are ambiguous. Even I haven’t organized them yet, or I haven’t completed them.”
If Yoran learned the Golden Turtle Wandering Art or the Zaha Divine Art, the chances of her falling into qi deviation were very high. That was because they were martial arts that even I, the one teaching them, could fall into qi deviation from.
I had always believed martial arts could only be passed down when there was fate between people. Somehow, I did not feel that Yoran was a disciple meant to inherit even the Zaha Divine Art.
The Lust Demon summed up the situation.
“Let us do that for now. Whenever I have time, I will slowly begin teaching her the Okhwa Ice Art.”
“Good.”
The moment I saw the men walking toward the Zaha Inn, I said,
“At last, some welcome news is arriving. Yuk-gap, congratulations.”
“Hm?”
Geum Cheol-yong and Gwak Yong-gae, appearing for the first time in a while, were approaching with one box tucked under each of their arms.
Geum Cheol-yong smiled broadly.
“Sect Leader, it has been a while.”
“Uncle Geum, welcome. Deputy Leader, you as well.”
As soon as Geum Cheol-yong arrived, he set the long box down on the ground and paid his respects to the Sword Demon.
“It has been a long time since I last saw you.”
“Leader, welcome.”
Geum Cheol-yong cleared his throat, then took a longsword from the box and said,
“A stranger suddenly visited and asked me to deliver this. He said it was the longsword from the Muk family that had been promised. In other words, this would be the Yukhap Sword to be delivered to Master Yukhap.”
The Ghost Demon rose from his seat and approached Geum Cheol-yong.
I got up with him.
“Wow, a sword from the Muk family.”
The Ghost Demon, who received the sword from Geum Cheol-yong, could not hide his joy. He looked as though he had been given the finest gift in the world.
The Ghost Demon said,
“Leader Geum, thank you for bringing it here personally.”
“Please, think nothing of it… It was no difficult task.”
A deeply suppressed ink-black hue flowed over the entire sword, and one could tell just by looking that it was no ordinary longsword.
Even the Sword Demon, who had a great interest in swords, came over to look. As the Ghost Demon touched the Yukhap Sword, he then held it out to the Sword Demon.
“Eldest Brother, take a look.”
The Sword Demon nodded, slowly examined the Yukhap Sword, then drew it from its scabbard. The exterior was ink-black, but the blade contained a dazzling silver radiance.
The Sword Demon smiled, a rare sight, as though he had obtained his own sword, then nodded.
“Excellent.”
The Sword Demon sheathed the sword and handed it back to the Ghost Demon. The Ghost Demon was grinning so widely it was truly rare to see, yet he could not quite express it in words. I left the Ghost Demon, who looked as though he had reunited with a lover, alone for a moment, then asked Deputy Leader Yong-gae.
“Deputy Leader, what is that box?”
“This is also a gift from the Muk family.”
“Hm?”
When Deputy Leader Yong-gae opened the box, daggers of the same shape were laid side by side in the long case.
The Deputy Leader said,
“They said it would be awkward to send only a single sword as a gift, so they sent daggers used by the Muk family. Five in total.”
Just looking at them made me exclaim in admiration.
“These are things that cannot be measured in price.”
“Why did they send as many as five?”
The Lust Demon, who had been looking into the box, answered.
“Because including Yoran, we are the Five Great Villains, so they must have sent five.”
No one laughed at the Lust Demon’s words. I had wondered why there were only five daggers in such a large box, but beside them lay leather belts into which the daggers could be placed. They seemed to be leather belts worn around the upper body.
I distributed the daggers and leather belts to the Sword Demon, Ghost Demon, and Lust Demon, then set aside mine and one extra pair.
“Uncle Geum, Deputy Leader. Please eat before you go.”
“Hm, shall we? It has been a while since I had Deuk-su’s cooking.”
All four of us were people awkward at receiving guests, so it was good to send them into the inn, where Brother Deuk-su could serve them a proper meal. It felt as if Brother Deuk-su filled in what we lacked. As things flowed this way, Brother Deuk-su’s words lingered even more deeply in my heart.
His words that I should also consider a life lived thinly and long…
In truth, it was a way of life I had never thought about. After all, the martial world was a place where even a man like the Beggars’ Sect Leader had to pass through the brink of death.
I stood up in order to gift something I had received as a gift.
“I’ll go see the candidate for the Five Great Villains.”
The Lust Demon asked from behind me.
“Who?”
“Moyong Baek.”
“Aha.”
I stopped for a moment and looked at the Four Great Villains. I had called Moyong Baek one of the Five Great Villains, but none of them reacted much.
The Lust Demon muttered again.
“Yoran will be a little disappointed to hear there was a candidate, won’t she?”
Now that I looked at it, this crazy bastard seemed like the sort who would not speak all day if Yoran were gone.
How did he end up like that?
I had no idea.
Come to think of it, Yoran called me Eldest Senior Brother, but the one who would actually teach her the most important martial art would be the Lust Demon.
Then was he both Eldest Senior Brother and master?
Ah, why were the genealogies of villains such a complete mess? It felt as though Yoran would have to start calling Senior Sword Demon Grandmaster again.
* * *
“Sect Leader.”
“Yeah.”
“What is that?”
I set the Mohist dagger and leather strap down on Murong Bai’s desk.
“I received it from a member of the Mohists. It’d take too long to explain, so just take it for now. It’s an excellent dagger. If you’re getting tangled up in the jianghu, you ought to have at least one dagger tucked against your chest.”
“Sect Leader, when you say Mohists… you mean the Mohists of the Hundred Schools of Thought. In other words, this is a gift from a scholar?”
“That’s right.”
“The martial arts I’m learning now were also given to me by the White-Robed Scholar. And now I’ve received a dagger from a scholar too.”
“So you have?”
Murong Bai let out a brief sigh, then said to me,
“From now on, please call me Scholar Murong. Let me see your arm.”
I unwound the bandage and held out my arm.
“It should be all healed. Even that itchy feeling is gone now.”
Murong Bai brought over the disinfectant he applied every time, dipped a medical brush into it, and painted it over the wound. I had visited all sorts of physicians in my previous life as well, but Murong Bai’s medicine and tools were rather unique, so they amazed me whenever I saw them.
“You no longer need to wrap it in bandages.”
I nodded.
“Is Yelü Yan adapting well?”
“She’s adapting quickly. She’s especially close with Heukbaek Soso. How is Yoran?”
“I had no choice, so we all took her on as a disciple. Brother Deuk-su was subtly pressuring me.”
Murong Bai looked into my expression and eyes, then said,
“You find it burdensome.”
“I do.”
“It’s the happiest burden in the world.”
“Why?”
“Her masters are the Sword Demon, Master Liuhe, you, and Young Master Meng. Do you think she’ll grow into an ordinary woman? If you teach her well, the four of you will have a comfortable old age thanks to Yoran. You should feel at least that much burden.”
This bastard was very naturally shifting the burden onto me, but I was not such an easy man.
“It seems Meng Lang has marked her as the successor to his Ice Arts. He said it was originally a martial art suited for women to learn.”
“Is that so?”
“I’ll teach her qinggong, and Liuhe will teach her the sword.”
“What about Senior Sword Demon?”
“Who knows. Maybe his very existence is a lesson? She’ll learn the darkness of the world. Living is this serious a matter. Just looking at Senior Sword Demon’s face will teach her plenty.”
Murong Bai burst into laughter, then hastily turned it into a cough.
“Ah, the laughter just came out of nowhere.”
I sighed, then continued.
“…In any case.”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know if Yoran will be able to endure it. Ice Arts, qinggong, sword techniques… I’ve experienced qi deviation myself, so I know, but if we teach her slowly, nothing should happen.”
Murong Bai said in passing,
“If I obtain a suitable spiritual medicine, I’ll give it to Yoran.”
I immediately replied and went on the counterattack.
“You’ll do that? Thank you.”
Murong Bai suddenly looked at me.
“……”
“What?”
“Ah, no. It’s nothing.”
“Since you’ve already made up your mind, make it a spiritual medicine that helps with Ice Arts. Later, I should visit the area near Blood Night Palace and feed her Woldanhwa too. At this rate, won’t our disciple become the best under heaven? Come to think of it, those scholars must have disciples too. We can’t let her fall behind the disciples of those lunatics.”
Murong Bai stared blankly at the desk, then asked me,
“Um… Sect Leader.”
“Yeah?”
“When should I set out to obtain the spiritual medicine?”
“I’m not telling you to go right now. Go when you aren’t busy.”
“I am busy every day.”
“I see.”
“Since the subject of spiritual medicine has come up, let me ask you this: do you know where spiritual medicines are usually found?”
“I don’t really know.”
Murong Bai took out a sheet of paper, spread it on the floor, and wet his brush with ink as he said,
“Usually… they are in places untouched by human footsteps.”
“I suppose so.”
Murong Bai drew a straight line on the paper.
“A wilderness like this is also a place untouched by human footsteps. However, spiritual medicines are rare in the wilderness. Because, as the word suggests, it is desolate, and there are insufficient nutrients for spiritual medicines to feed on. Then where would be a place untouched by human footsteps, yet rich in nutrients?”
I listened seriously to Murong Bai’s geomancy.
“A valley? Or a spring deep in the mountains.”
“You can assume that any ordinary valley has already been completely picked clean by people of the jianghu.”
“A mountain ridge?”
“You know a little, I see. A mountain ridge with good terrain can receive sunlight by day and moonlight by night, and if there is no mountain path, human footsteps are rare. However, what you can obtain in such places is limited to lingzhi or wild ginseng. Their grade is too low to call them spiritual medicines.”
“Where else would there be?”
“I have obtained maps over time, examined them, and visited places likely to have spiritual medicines. But there were a few places I could not even attempt. They clearly seemed untouched by human footsteps and possessed an environment where spiritual medicines might exist.”
“Where?”
“There are several, but for now, Wanzhang Cliff is the most likely.”
“Hmm.”
“There are also several snowy mountains covered in snow all year round, but for now, they’re too far away. Wanzhang Cliff, however, is somewhere one could make a trip to. The problem is, with my qinggong, it’s out of the question. Descending is an issue to begin with, but I wouldn’t be able to climb back up either.”
“True.”
I knew because I had thrown myself off Wanzhang Cliff before. Falling down had not been a problem, but climbing back up was out of reach with the qinggong of ordinary experts.
In any case, hearing the name Wanzhang Cliff left me with a strange feeling. It was because the memory was so vivid, as if I had leapt off Wanzhang Cliff only yesterday.
I thought through what had happened there one thing at a time, then muttered,
“…There was Wanzhang Cliff.”
“Would it be possible with your qinggong, Sect Leader? What about the others?”
And so I fell victim to Murong Bai’s counterattack.
“Senior Sword Demon and I could certainly do it. I’m not sure about Meng Lang. Liuhe would have a hard time too. But are you certain?”
Murong Bai began drawing Wanzhang Cliff with his brush.
“Seen from afar, it has this shape. It is a completely enclosed gorge. Its depth cannot be judged by eye, and the north and south are blocked off. It widens the farther down you go. In that case, there must surely be a lake formed by accumulated water… What are you thinking so deeply about?”
Murong Bai looked at me.
I pulled myself out of my thoughts and admitted defeat.
“I’ll have to go myself. I know the way, so there’s no need for you to go.”
“I’ll tell you a few minor bits of information about finding the spiritual medicine. When will you go?”
Now that I thought about it, I’d ended up taking on the job of finding the spiritual medicine myself.
“I should make some preparations before I go. Make me some poison to coat the daggers with.”
“Poison?”
“Nothing too strong. A poison with a paralyzing effect. The Muk Clan sent five daggers. Me, the Sword Demon, Yukhap, the Lust Demon, and you each took one. Something suitable to coat those with.”
“Why are you suddenly saying you’ll use poison? If rumors spread, it will only add to your ill fame.”
“It’s fine. I’m already rumored to be vicious enough, so it doesn’t matter if my ill fame grows. If I’m going to live thin and long, I’ll do anything. I’ve been feeling this lately, but the moment I step outside Ilyang County, I end up fighting. It’s truly strange. If I head to Manjang Cliff, the rabble will probably cling to me again. I should leave after preparing myself mentally.”
Also, Moyong Baek needed to practice making poison in advance.
I had no intention of being the only one to live thin and long.
If possible, I hoped that someday the Five Great Villains of my previous life would gather at Zaha Inn in their old age and gnaw on Brother Deuksu’s pork bones. If I could listen to Yoran nagging beside them, that would be even better.
Moyong Baek answered.
“Understood. It will take some time. I have to procure the ingredients first.”
“Until then, I’ll need to circulate my qi and regulate my breathing, and prepare as well.”
“But even if you obtain an extraordinarily good spiritual medicine, do you really intend to give it to Yoran without lingering attachment? To martial artists, isn’t spiritual medicine like a rare famous sword that is difficult to obtain?”
“That’s right. But I should give it to her.”
“Why?”
“I’m already strong. The gap between me and the masters above me can’t be filled with a single spiritual medicine. This is my way. If I had coveted every little thing like that, those demon-like villains wouldn’t have gathered at the inn. To climb higher than I am now, I simply need more of a reason worth doing so. Though who is truly right is something you only find out by living.”
I looked at Moyong Baek.
“Wouldn’t I have no regrets if I lived like this? I’ll give things like spiritual medicine to my disciple, and I’ll spend more time circulating my qi.”
In truth, I had Cheonok, so I didn’t need spiritual medicine. This was merely a countermove I had laid in advance to move Moyong Baek’s heart.
I asked Moyong Baek.
“How is your training coming along?”
“I need spiritual medicine too. I started learning martial arts late in life, and it’s terribly difficult. Between treating patients, training, circulating my qi, and teaching the newly arrived female physician as well, I have to divide up even my sleep into short bits.”
“……”
Inwardly, as if chanting Namo Amitabha, I muttered, “thin and long.” I lightly struck Moyong Baek on the shoulder and said,
“Good. We’ll get Yoran’s spiritual medicine. And if there’s more, I’ll make sure to get yours too.”
“Thank you.”
The Sword Demon was the troubled man of the martial world, but now that I thought about it, I was the pushover of the martial world.
You sucker bastard……
Suddenly, this thought occurred to me.
The fact that my sobriquet had once been the Mad Demon felt like something from the distant past.
Was this what they called a turning point in life?
Moyong Baek, who had been gazing steadily at me, spoke in a worried tone.
“Sect Leader, please don’t push yourself too hard. It isn’t good for a person to change all of a sudden.”
“That’s true.”
When I looked at Moyong Baek anew, I felt as though the gaze of the Poison Demon I had been familiar with in my previous life briefly flickered past. Certainly, before my eyes stood a man who still possessed the dignity of a villain and the basic qualities of an evildoer—things Yoran did not yet dare aspire to.