The Farmer Who Ended Up Teaching the World’s Greatest Martial Artist - Chapter 64

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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| Chapter 64

“Doyakju and Jakyakyeon? What’s that?”

Ju Yu-ryeon, who had confirmed that Choo Seo-gong had left, burst through the door and asked. Her eyes sparkled with interest as if hearing this name for the first time was quite intriguing.

“…Curious?”

Ju Yu-ryeon nodded her head so vigorously that her hair flew about. Yoo Eun-hyun, who had been showing signs of contemplation under her persistent gaze, suddenly turned around and said.

“I happened to need a porter, so this works out well. Follow me.”

With that, Yoo Eun-hyun simply moved forward silently without looking back. Ju Yu-ryeon hurriedly followed, not wanting to lose sight of him.

“I’ve looked around this entire area, but there didn’t seem to be any place where something might be?”

“There’s a warehouse.”

“Warehouse? That one near the mountain top?”

Ju Yu-ryeon tilted her head as if she still didn’t understand. Yoo Eun-hyun shook his head at this.

“That’s also a warehouse, but the place we’re going now is different. If I had to categorize it, it’s more of a storage room.”

“Storage room? There was such a place?”

“It’s our family’s assets, so we can’t just leave everything in plain sight. Besides, given the nature of the items, we can’t just store them carelessly.”

“That’s true, since what comes from your house are crops, if you store them carelessly they’d spoil quickly. So it’s a secret warehouse then? I’m even more excited now.”

Seeing Ju Yu-ryeon rubbing her hands together as if expecting something else, Yoo Eun-hyun wondered if it was really okay to take her to the warehouse like this.

But since he had already spoken, there was no way to pretend it never happened now.

Having no choice, Yoo Eun-hyun went around to the back of the house and headed toward a small path. At the end of that path was a small cave filled with miscellaneous items.

“Here? There wasn’t anything useful though.”

“That would be right. This is like a junkyard where we pile up tools that can’t be used anymore.”

Yoo Eun-hyun nodded as if agreeing with Ju Yu-ryeon’s words and cleared away a pile of hay that had been stacked in the corner beyond the miscellaneous items. This revealed a wall with nothing on it. Without stopping, Yoo Eun-hyun shone the lantern he had brought onto the upper part of the wall.

“Huh?”

Then a faint shadow appeared on the wall that had seemed empty. Surprised, Ju Yu-ryeon approached and felt around the crevice, revealing a cleverly hidden space.

An exclamation naturally escaped from Ju Yu-ryeon’s lips.

“Wow. There was a place like this? Heukryeon Trading Company probably couldn’t find it.”

“The inside is quite spacious. Come in.”

Yoo Eun-hyun led the way, stepping on the hay pile he had moved aside. Ju Yu-ryeon followed him inside and muttered with wide eyes.

“It’s quite cool in here?”

“It has to be for storage.”

Yoo Eun-hyun, who had entered inside, answered Ju Yu-ryeon’s comment while beginning to organize the dusty warehouse.

Ju Yu-ryeon also helped beside him while starting to look around the warehouse here and there.

“Most of these are things that can be stored for a long time. Which of these should I take out?”

“Gather those wrapped in paper over there.”

With that, Yoo Eun-hyun handed Ju Yu-ryeon ten bundles of Jakyakyeon. Ju Yu-ryeon, who had been watching Yoo Eun-hyun move the liquor jars, asked curiously.

“Liquor and tobacco? Are these the Doyakju and Jakyakyeon?”

“That’s right. Want to try some?”

“I’m not particularly interested in tobacco. As for the liquor…”

Ju Yu-ryeon pretended to be reluctant as she pulled out a gourd from her bosom. After lightly tasting the Doyakju, her eyes immediately sparkled.

“Oh. This is liquor made from medicinal herbs and fruits? The sharp taste is nice.”

“If you want to drink more, go ahead. It’s not abundant, but there’s enough to feed you.”

At Yoo Eun-hyun’s words, Ju Yu-ryeon’s face brightened noticeably. Watching Ju Yu-ryeon pour another gourd without hesitation, Yoo Eun-hyun shook his head.

“Instead, please transfer about three containers into those bamboo tubes over there. And set aside one bundle of Jakyakyeon separately too.”

“Why? These aren’t for selling, I guess?”

“Right. I’m thinking of giving them as gifts.”

“Gifts? To whom?”

“The people we’re going to meet from now on.”

At Yoo Eun-hyun’s words, Ju Yu-ryeon’s eyes widened as she asked back.

“Cheon Se-hyeon-ma and Deo Geom Ssang-seon?”

“Yes. Those people liked these things.”

“When they’re the ones who invited you, do you really need to bring such things yourself?”

Ju Yu-ryeon openly scowled as if she didn’t like it.

“Well, of course there are other intentions too.”

With that, Yoo Eun-hyun subtly recalled Choo Seo-gong’s advice. At his mysterious expression, Ju Yu-ryeon tilted her head, but soon shrugged her shoulders and turned her gaze back to the Jakyakyeon.

While Yoo Eun-hyun was lost in thought, Ju Yu-ryeon quickly separated the Doyakju and Jakyakyeon.

After finishing her work and looking around for something to do, her gaze suddenly stopped at a collapsed crevice in the rocks.

“Why is this place like this?”

“Ah, there? I heard there was an earthquake before I was even born and the corner collapsed. Don’t mess with it carelessly. If it collapses more, there’s no solution.”

“Really? I should be careful then.”

At Yoo Eun-hyun’s words, Ju Yu-ryeon was about to turn the lantern away without paying more attention. Just then, as the lantern’s light swept by, something glinted in the crevice.

“Huh? There’s something there.”

“What’s there?”

Ju Yu-ryeon was not one to miss such a moment.

Ju Yu-ryeon, who had gauged Yoo Eun-hyun’s reaction, carefully removed a few small stones that were stuck in the crevice. Each time she removed a stone stuck in the gap, the light seeping out from inside grew stronger.

When the situation seemed unusual, Yoo Eun-hyun also stopped what he was doing and approached Ju Yu-ryeon. He stuck his head in and his eyes widened.

“Huh? What is this?”

“I still can’t see it well. How about it? Should we try digging it out?”

Ju Yu-ryeon asked with sparkling eyes. If Yoo Eun-hyun just gave permission, she looked ready to dig through the stones immediately. After thinking for a moment, Yoo Eun-hyun looked around and muttered.

“Hmm. If we dig carefully, it doesn’t seem like it would collapse…”

Since learning martial arts, he had become able to sense the natural energy around him much more clearly. He quickly realized that touching a few stones wouldn’t cause this place to collapse.

Moreover, an object hidden in a warehouse he had frequented his entire life. Yoo Eun-hyun also seemed secretly curious.

The two people carefully dug out the stones one by one, preparing for any possibility. Their movements were as careful as if they were excavating artifacts.

Not long after, they were finally able to extract whatever had been hidden inside.

“This is… isn’t this a rake?”

What the two people discovered was none other than a rake-shaped tool. It was a farming implement called a ‘metal rake’ used for leveling or clearing fields.

However, it looked quite extraordinary to be called just a metal rake. The ten-pronged rake teeth were eerily sharp, and it was made entirely of metal from the handle to the rake tips.

Its appearance was too menacing for use in farming.

“Why is something like this hidden here?”

“Maybe they leaned it against the side and forgot about it when they sealed the wall.”

“That aside… This doesn’t seem like an ordinary item. Is this really for farming?”

Ju Yu-ryeon, who had been examining the metal rake they had retrieved, let out a quiet exclamation and muttered.

As Ju Yu-ryeon said, the rake didn’t look like an ordinary object. The long handle was different from ordinary metal. A black luster was subtly emanating from it, and the rake teeth that branched out from its end were plated with a yellowish color. Each time the lantern’s light shone on it, a luster that seemed to seep with red energy flashed on its surface.

Feeling an inexplicable sense of intimidation, Yoo Eun-hyun grabbed the metal rake and said.

“…Let’s take it out first. Mother would know something about it.”

The two people hastily gathered what they needed and left the storage room. Their steps were naturally quickening.

*

The two people who left the storage room immediately sought out Soo Hwa-seon.

“You two… that is?”

Soo Hwa-seon showed a surprised expression as soon as she saw the metal rake. She seemed to know what it was.

After hearing the circumstances of how the two had discovered it, she showed a momentarily wistful look, then carefully lifted the metal rake.

“This is called Sangbo Heukgeumpa (Superior Treasure Black Gold Rake). It was made in imitation of the weapon used by Zhu Bajie in Journey to the West. The entire thing is made from iron called Heukryeon iron, and the blade tips are coated and refined with Yeomjin Hwangok (Flame Precious Yellow Jade)… Where did you find this?”

“It was stuck in a crevice in the storage room.”

“This was in the storage room?”

Soo Hwa-seon showed a momentarily bewildered expression at the unexpected source. Then Ju Yu-ryeon interjected.

“But isn’t this too excessive for a farming tool? Just looking at it, it doesn’t seem like material suitable for farming implements.”

“Ah. This is something Eun-hyun’s grandfather specially made for me when I married into this place. It’s a kind of dowry, you could say. After the earthquake collapsed the storage room, I said it had gone missing… It must have been buried there.”

Soo Hwa-seon looked at the black gold rake for a moment as if it was just an object filled with memories, then handed it to Yoo Eun-hyun.

“Since it belonged to your father, Eun-hyun, you can take it if you want.”

“Really? Can I take it?”

“Since I’ve passed on the position of head of household, that’s already yours. Since it’s too precious a tool to use only as a farming implement, wouldn’t it be fine to use it as a weapon?”

Mu Dong-hwan-mu wasn’t a martial art that was particularly constrained by specific weapons to begin with. Moreover, what Yoo Eun-hyun had handled so far included long swords, short swords, axes, and hammers – quite a few different types. There was no reason he couldn’t master one more metal rake at this point.

And above all, the heavy appearance of the black iron rake pleased Yoo Eun-hyun, who was a farmer, to his heart’s content.

Yoo Eun-hyun took the black iron rake and gave it a light swing to test it.

Whoosh!

It was certainly quite heavy for an ordinary person to use.

While it couldn’t possibly weigh 5,048 geun like in Journey to the West, it looked to be well over 50 geun at the very least.

“Not bad.”

Though it was a bit heavy, the iron rake was a farming tool that Yoo Eun-hyun had handled his entire life. When he gripped it, it didn’t feel strange at all. For Yoo Eun-hyun, who had now learned martial arts, that weight was far from being a burden – rather, it felt like a heft more suited for use as a weapon than as a farming tool.

“Wow… it’s definitely powerful. But… it looks a bit…”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“It looks powerful, but the weapon being an iron rake… it just lacks style, doesn’t it?”

“That works out well. If I look like a farmer, opponents will be less on guard.”

“What if rumors spread and your name becomes famous throughout the Martial Arts World? Haha.”

“Don’t say such ridiculous things.”

Yoo Eun-hyun chuckled and brushed off Ju Yu-ryeon’s joke.

Having gathered his leaping elixir and peony pills, Yoo Eun-hyun stood before Soo Hwa-seon, fully prepared.

“I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Don’t worry, dear. People from the Sega will come by tomorrow.”

“I’ll send word from time to time.”

Leaving the remaining matters to Soo Hwa-seon, Yoo Eun-hyun set out on the road with Ju Yu-ryeon. Their destination was Daessan.

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