I Obtained Guan Yu's Martial Arts - Chapter 41

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Obtaining Guan Hui’s Martial Arts 041
Heaven’s Secret Revealed (1)
“Good heavens, what madman turned the Bamboo Forest into this?”
Ju Ho clicked his tongue in amazement.
Never mind the fact that over a hundred bamboo stalks lay scattered across the ground in severed pieces—he was first curious about which lunatic had drilled holes through solid rock.
“How in the world was this even done?”
A boulder the size of a house was pierced clean through with a hole the width of a palm.
The rock was so thick that five grown men standing shoulder to shoulder could barely encircle it, yet it had been penetrated as cleanly as passing a thread through cloth.
“What madman in all the world would do such a thing?”
“That madman is me.”
“Pardon?”
“I did it.”
……
An awkward silence settled between them.
Ju Ho, bracing for a blow, and Guan Hui, debating whether to deliver one.
Reading the tension, Ju Ho moved first with flattery.
“Truly magnificent, brother!”
Ju Ho clapped his hands together with exaggerated praise.
“This hole in the rock! These shattered bamboo stalks! It’s obvious you’ve gained enlightenment and broken through to a new realm!”
Guan Hui’s eyes widened slightly, his raised hand pausing mid-swing toward the back of Ju Ho’s head.
“Hmm? How did you know?”
“It’s different. Brother. I can feel it.”
From the moment Ju Ho arrived at the Bamboo Forest, he’d sensed that Guan Hui was not himself.
“The oppressive aura you emanate—it’s become somehow more refined, if I may say so.”
“You make sense.”
It was a fair observation.
An advancement in realm corresponded to better control of one’s inner energy—they were two sides of the same coin.
“Congratulations, brother. Have you reached the Peak Realm, then?”
“Not yet. I haven’t come that far.”
Guan Hui’s current Martial Arts level was First Class Completion.
Only one step remained before the Peak Realm, the stage where true masters of the Martial World were recognized.
“But how did you defeat Yang Wu Won, brother?”
Someone with Ju Ho’s keen ear for gossip understood martial cultivation stages.
While Guan Hui was First Class Completion, Yang Wu Won had reached First Class Extreme—a higher level still.
Though his training had grown slack, he’d once been a master who glimpsed the Peak Realm itself.
By any theoretical measure, victory in ten breaths should have been impossible.
“Hmm.”
Guan Hui paused to consider before answering.
“It’s because I possess the Heavenly Martial Physique.”
“……Pardon? What did you just say, brother?”
“The Heavenly Martial Physique.”
“……! That—that legendary Heavenly Martial Physique blessed by the heavens itself for martial cultivation?!”
Ju Ho’s jaw fell slack, his pupils trembling faintly with shock.
“So that’s why you’re such a monster, brother.”
The Heavenly Martial Physique was a body born for the martial path.
Like an enormous lake, it took longer to fill than ordinary vessels, yet it possessed a strength that transcended realm entirely.
Both Guan Hui’s slow growth and his ability to fight evenly against masters a realm above him stemmed from this physique.
“I thought perhaps you’d learned some form of magic, brother.”
“Magic?”
“Yes. Those strange practitioners called sorcerers and Daoists—the ones who command the weather and bring about natural disasters, that sort of thing.”
Guan Hui stared intently at Ju Ho.
“You believe in such things?”
Few people in the Central Plains believed in Daoism anymore.
Unlike martial masters, who could be found anywhere, sorcerers and Daoists were exceedingly rare to encounter.
“I’ve seen it myself, brother. A Daoist in yellow robes brought rain to drought-stricken land and then departed.”
“A Daoist, you say……”
Guan Hui stroked his beard thoughtfully, murmuring to himself.
“Curious. But why are you here in the Bamboo Forest?”
“Ah, visitors have arrived, brother.”
“Visitors? At this hour of the morning?”
“Of course, the guest-officials. They said they’d come bearing gifts.”
Guan Hui tilted his head in confusion.
“But weren’t they supposed to arrive three days from now?”
“Yes. Today is the third day, sir.”
“……!?”
Guan Hui’s head snapped up, and he stared at the sky.
Only then did he notice the sun already hung at its zenith.
‘Just moments ago…… it was definitely dawn!?’
Deep immersion sometimes makes one forget the passage of time altogether.
So absorbed in his training had Guan Hui been that he’d lived three days as though they were one.
“Now I understand why I’m so ravenously hungry.”
Guan Hui clutched his empty stomach and walked toward the estate.
Ju Ho hurried along behind him in quick steps.
“Let’s go eat something. I’m starving.”
“My lord, but we must first receive the guest-officials.”
“Then we’ll receive them over a meal, won’t we?”
“My lord, but it is well past the lunch hour.”
“……Your tone is beginning to irritate me.”
“My lord.”
Guan Hui clenched his fist.
Quick-witted Ju Ho bolted away in haste.

* * *
Having returned to the estate, bathed, and dressed properly, Guan Hui made his way to the main gate to receive the guest-officials.
Already, the estate courtyard was filled with guest-officials bearing all manner of rare gifts, engaged in pleasant conversation with the majordomo.
“What a truly magnificent place this is. Now that I’ve visited, I can see why the Guan Estate is so renowned.”
“Magnificent indeed. As they say, magnificent families arise from magnificent lands—hehehehe.”
“Haha. We are grateful for your kind words about our estate.”
Indeed, the majordomo’s conversation flowed far more smoothly and naturally than Guan Hui’s ever could.
Guan Nam Cheon, the majordomo, was a rare intellectual within the Guan Family.
‘Tiresome as it is, I suppose I must make an appearance.’
It was just as he began to furrow his brow at the thought of such an exhausting exchange that—
“What about my gift?”
Hwang So So, the bow-wielder, suddenly thrust out her hand.
“A gift?”
“You went to the Holy Capital, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“Then you should naturally have bought something for me as well.”
“Ah. I didn’t realize.”
“…….”
Hwang So So pouted, her cheeks puffed out in displeasure.
“I never asked you to buy anything.”
“That’s exactly why you should have done it without being told.”
“Quite right. I shall make certain to bring something next time.”
“Understood. You must remember only my gift.”
“I shall not forget.”
Having secured his promise, So So departed with a satisfied smile.
“……?”
“Ah, Lord Guan! Over here, if you please!”
The majordomo Guan Nam Cheon waved, calling Guan Hui over.
Guan Hui walked toward the guest-officials with the benign smile befitting a family lord.
“Delighted to meet you. I am Guan Hui, lord of the Guan Estate.”
“We have heard much of your reputation. Lord Guan, the pleasure is ours.”
“Indeed, you carry yourself with the bearing we’ve heard so much about.”
“Haha. Now that I see the lord in person, I understand why the Guan Estate commands such renown throughout Shanxi Province.”
The merchants gathered from various corners of Shanxi Province vied with one another in lavishing praise and compliments.
“Much obliged. Thank you for taking the trouble to journey here.”
Guan Hui offered them a simple greeting in return.
After all, it was the majordomo’s role to entertain guests and conduct business with merchants.
Guan Hui fulfilled his duty simply by showing his face and exchanging pleasantries.
“Come this way, honored guests. I’ve prepared some fine Plum Blossom Tea for us.”
“Oh my. You’ve gone to such trouble. How kind of you.”
“Please, don’t be shy. Let’s have a cup together.”
The merchants, their faces bright with easy smiles, followed the steward into the reception hall.
Watching their retreating figures, Guan Hui found himself struck by how much had changed.
‘There was a time when I would have been turned away at the gate.’
In the past, when he’d approached merchants hoping to establish trade, all he’d earned were curses and orders to leave.
The position of the Guan Estate had transformed beyond measure.
It was Guan Hui who had remade it all.
“You seem pleased with yourself, Master Guan.”
“A pleasure to see you, Elder Ji.”
Guan Hui offered a respectful fist salute to the middle-aged man with the ferret-like whiskers.
He was the merchant leader of the Unsung Merchant Group, and in years past had rendered the Guan Estate considerable aid. Even now, he visited the Guan Estate often to drink with the steward.
“How are you feeling?”
“About what?”
“About having achieved the family you dreamed of. Wasn’t reviving your house your life’s ambition?”
“It was. But we’re nowhere near there yet.”
He wasn’t grinding bone and flesh merely to establish a minor house of some standing in Anseong.
His goal was to raise the Guan Estate to the caliber of the Five Families of the Celestial Dynasty themselves.
Until then, there would be no satisfaction, no rest.
“Hah! I like your spirit immensely.”
Elder Ji smiled with evident approval at Guan Hui’s ambition.
“A true man must dream large, you understand. I’m certain you’ll achieve it.”
The smile faded from Elder Ji’s face as his expression grew solemn.
“I myself have gained much through you. Since word spread that I’m connected to the Guan Estate, merchants line up to seek trade with me.”
Elder Ji gestured to the servant who had accompanied him.
The servant drew forth a worn book from his robes and handed it over.
“This is a gift to express my gratitude. It will prove quite useful when you speak with merchants seeking to conduct business.”
“What is this?”
“A compendium of information on every merchant house in Shanxi Province. The culmination of thirty years of my own research and documentation.”
“……!”
Guan Hui’s eyes widened in astonishment.
To a merchant, information is power itself.
A volume compiled over thirty years by someone of Elder Ji’s stature would be worth untold fortunes.
Yet he was offering this treasure to Guan Hui without hesitation.
“Am I truly permitted to accept this?”
“It’s only a copy, naturally. But yes, you may have it.”
Elder Ji stroked his ferret whiskers with a slight smile.
“After all, who but the finest Chivalrous Hero in Shanxi Province deserves such a thing?”
Having come solely for this purpose, Elder Ji departed with as little ceremony as he’d arrived, handing over the book.
Deeply moved, Guan Hui gently ran his hand over the worn cover before tucking it into his robes.
“…….”
A flood of emotion—pride, gratification, and more—surged through his chest anew.
The merchants waiting in line to trade with the Guan Estate. The profound goodwill of Elder Ji.
All of it seemed to honor the labor of these past months.
‘I must work even harder from here…….’
“Oi there, Master Guan. It’s been a while.”
“……?”
At a voice he shouldn’t have heard here, Guan Hui turned around.
Among the merchants queued at the Guan Estate’s front gate stood Zhang Cheng, the Absolute Shadow Blade, a long sword strapped across his back, waving his hand.
“What brings you here, Senior Hero Zhang?”

* * *
“……So you’re saying I was cast out because I became too successful?”
Guan Hui’s eyes went wide with disbelief.
“Precisely.”
Zhang Cheng nodded heartily in agreement.
For a man expelled despite his meritorious service to the family, his manner seemed remarkably buoyant.
“It seems the family head’s pride was wounded—having you kill Yang Wu Won before he could.”
The head of the An Moon Jang Family, Zhang Baik Kyung, had long regarded Yang Wu Won as a rival.
And in the midst of all this, Yang Wu Won had been killed by some late-stage nobody, so that great rage descended upon the eldest son.
“You’re all right?”
“What choice is there? If he says to leave, I leave.”
Zhang Cheng shrugged as though it were nothing.
Once, it might have been different.
But he no longer bent to his father’s will.
Meeting Guan Hui had opened his eyes to the truth: his father was simply a man blinded by his own arrogance.
“So here’s what I’m asking—give me one position.”
“A position?”
“A guest-official, I mean. The Guan Estate needs guest-officials if it’s to grow its strength, doesn’t it? I’d say someone like me isn’t a bad fit.”
Zhang Cheng spoke with confidence, though his eyes flickered cautiously toward Guan Hui, gauging his reaction.
He’d been cast out by his family with not a single coin to his name.
If he was refused here as well, he’d truly have no choice but to eat from the same bowl as the beggars of Gae Bang.
‘There’s nowhere better than this place to grow strong. It has to be here.’
Through his time with Guan Hui, Zhang Cheng had broken through a barrier so small he’d never even known it existed.
For a martial artist, such a thing was akin to a heaven-sent opportunity.
Zhang Cheng had concluded that the Guan Estate was the perfect place to train and overcome the next barrier.
Of course, his friendship with Guan Hui had played its part in that decision too.
Though he still refused to admit as much.
‘Surely he won’t turn me down.’
He conceded that he had to defer to Guan Hui, but Zhang Cheng was nonetheless a martial artist of some renown.
One who, at merely twenty-five years of age, had reached the exalted realm of First Class Completion.
Zhang Cheng was internally certain that he would not be refused—
“I’m afraid that may be difficult.”
“What? Why difficult?”
“Because of Miss Hwang.”
Hwang So So, the Guan Estate’s first guest-official, known as the Bow Fiend.
She had formed a bitter enmity with Zhang Ryu, the second son of the An Moon Jang Family.
From her perspective, Zhang Cheng—his elder brother and of the same An Moon Jang Family—would be an uncomfortable presence.
To do right by her, he could not accept Zhang Cheng as a guest-official.
“I… hadn’t thought of that.”
Zhang Cheng turned his head to glance at Hwang So So.
Now aware of his gaze, she adopted an expression mixing wariness with outright hatred.
“Then if I can persuade that young lady, you’ll accept me?”
“If that were the case, there would be no reason to refuse. You’re an exceptional martial artist and a trusted friend.”
“Friend, is it? Ha. We’re plainly competitors.”
Zhang Cheng scratched the bridge of his nose at the awkward words.
By now his cheeks had flushed red, like those of an embarrassed maiden.
……
Ju Ho, wearing a sour expression, mimicked poking his own eyes out with his fingers.

* * *
“So this is the place.”
The Old Daoist, having arrived at the Guan Estate in Unsung, gazed up at the sky and furrowed his brow.
“This is where the Ominous White Star dwells.”
The Daoist—gaunt of frame, pallid of face, and possessed of eyes that gleamed with an uncanny light—gripped his Staff so tightly it seemed it might shatter.
“The heavens are so troubled that I myself must snuff out the light of the star.”
The Great Worthy Teacher raised his hand and swept it lightly through the void.
Crack-crack-crack—
At that moment, a tempest erupted with clouds of darkness.
Shadow descended upon the sky for ten zhang around the Guan Estate.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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