The World’s Greatest Martial Arts Instructor - Chapter 197

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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 197. Speak Quickly

 

 

“Wh, where is this?”

Early dawn.

Dan Mok Un-rae, who had left home with Byeokryeokgae who came quietly, was looking at the shabby Gwanje Temple before his eyes.

It was a Gwanje Temple on the Muchang outskirts that wouldn’t be strange if it collapsed at any moment.

This place was the Dan Mok Family Secret Vault?

A place that countless beggars were using as their home?

“Hehe. Are you surprised?”

Byeokryeokgae, who had recovered most of the injuries from his battle with Gwang Hoe-cheon, asked with a laugh.

“Y, yes.”

Dan Mok Un-rae answered with a bewildered face.

He had no choice.

This was a place he had passed by several times before.

To think this place was his family’s secret vault.

“It wasn’t originally a Gwanje Temple.”

“What?”

“It was an ancestral shrine with an unknown owner. I made that place into a Gwanje Temple. Even before that, beggars and vagrants used it as temporary shelter.”

After making it into a Gwanje Temple, it would have become a base for Beggar Sect members.

Muchang had particularly many Beggar Sect members because of Byeokryeokgae.

Dan Mok Un-rae only learned this fact from Byeokryeokgae this dawn.

He had only known him as a beggar elder who stayed near his home.

“After hearing the location of this place from your grandfather, I made it into a Gwanje Temple. Well, all I did was bring a statue of Guan Yu.”

Since it was originally an ancestral shrine, there was already an altar, he said.

“However, I don’t know how to enter the secret vault either. Now it’s something you must figure out yourself. Go ahead and enter.”

At Byeokryeokgae’s urging, Dan Mok Un-rae quietly entered the Gwanje Temple.

There was no one there.

The beggars had vacated the place at Byeokryeokgae’s command. Of course, they were scattered around the vicinity, keeping watch to see if anyone was coming.

Dan Mok Un-rae looked around.

Broken and shattered.

All sorts of junk rolling around.

There were even food scraps here and there.

Thanks to this, how many mice had he already seen since entering this place?

He carefully examined everything as his mother had told him.

The altar.

She had said it was the original altar.

An altar for someone whose name was unknown.

He looked beneath it.

All sorts of circular grooves were carved there.

Some were so worn that only traces barely remained.

Dan Mok Un-rae removed the bracelet from his wrist.

And he tried fitting the bracelet to each of those many circles.

Every single one was subtly mismatched.

After trying to fit it one by one to the countless circles beneath the altar.

Click.

With a sound, the bracelet fit perfectly.

Rumble.

Something beneath the ground slowly slid to one side with a sound.

Thunk.

The ground where the bracelet was inserted folded downward.

He stepped onto the narrow stairs that were revealed.

Click.

Some mechanism on the stairs activated as Dan Mok Un-rae stepped on it, pressing down slightly.

Pop.

The bracelet came loose and fell.

Catching the fallen bracelet and continuing down.

The ground rose back up and the narrow stairs moved to block the empty space above.

“Th, this is…”

Perfect darkness with not a single point of light entering.

And the way back was blocked too.

Mother didn’t know what came after this either.

He could only follow the path forward.

Groping along the wall, he slowly moved forward.

How far had he walked like this?

Light gradually became visible.

Thanks to old luminous pearls embedded here and there.

After walking like this for a while, an underground cavern appeared.

Water was flowing, perhaps in a cavern formed where groundwater flowed, and there was a stone chamber beside it.

The door of the stone chamber also had a circular groove carved in it.

Now he understood.

The meaning of that door.

Dan Mok Un-rae inserted the bracelet again, and the door opened.

Inside the secret vault were twenty secret manuals, some gold and silver ingots, and several unidentifiable jewels.

On the ceiling were embedded five bright luminous pearls and three jewels of unknown purpose.

And in one corner were three large jars.

They were filled with Byeokgokdan pills.

“Th, this is…”

Dan Mok Un-rae, who had examined the entire interior of the not-small stone chamber, approached the secret manuals.

Danmok Family martial arts.

They were right before his eyes.

Though they should be old secret manuals, they were surprisingly well-preserved.

Perhaps it was thanks to the jewels of unknown purpose embedded in the ceiling.

He speculated as much.

What kind of martial arts could they be?

Even though they were just books lying there, his heart was racing.

Dan Mok Un-rae’s eyes filled with emotion.

Finally, he too would have exclusive martial arts.

Dan Mok Un-rae slowly examined the secret manuals.

His hands moved quickly.

In less than one hour, he had read all twenty secret manuals.

It was a fast pace.

And he looked at the secret manuals with a serious face.

“I, I don’t understand…”

Confusion appeared on his face.

It was natural if you thought about it.

Dan Mok Un-rae had learned only the Three Talents Skill as his martial arts.

Even that was learned entirely under Ha Mu-baek’s teachings.

This was his first time seeing a secret manual.

Thanks to Yeo Hwa’s teachings, he could at least read, but that was all.

No matter how much he read, the manual was filled with content he couldn’t understand.

Dan Mok Un-rae’s face instantly turned into a tearful expression.

He had no choice.

His family’s ultimate technique was right before his eyes.

A martial arts secret manual was right there.

But he couldn’t learn it…

“There… there are martial arts here… but why can’t I learn them…”

This was one of the reasons Yeo Hwa hadn’t opened the secret vault despite knowing of its existence.

The presence of Gwang Hoe-cheon, who was constantly watching for an opportunity to target the vault from somewhere.

And even if they opened the vault and saw the secret manuals, for those who didn’t even know basic martial arts forms, it would just be pie in the sky.

Dan Mok Un-rae looked up at the ceiling with vacant eyes.

Despair that he realized immediately after discovering hope.

He didn’t know what to do.

How long had he been in such a daze?

Dan Mok Un-rae looked at the secret manuals again with a determined face.

“Void Vast Heart Formula. Eighty-One Style Galaxy Phantom Sword Technique.”

Two manuals that were placed with particular importance, different from the other secret manuals.

He could tell just by looking.

These were probably the strongest martial arts among his family’s techniques.

Even their names had a different kind of elegance.

He recalled how Baek Ri-pyeong and Ju U-myeong had displayed their martial arts.

Now he too would be able to display such martial arts.

Just thinking about it was thrilling.

But he couldn’t.

Even looking at the secret manuals, there wasn’t a single thing he could understand.

“Let me look again.”

Dan Mok Un-rae reached for the secret manuals again.

Void Vast Heart Formula.

Even though he couldn’t understand a single word of what it said.

He read it again.

“Again.”

He read it once more.

But he still couldn’t understand what it meant.

“Again.”

Dan Mok Un-rae read it once more.

How long had he been reading like this?

Even though he couldn’t understand no matter how much he read, he kept reading and reading.

The will to learn it somehow.

Dan Mok Un-rae didn’t give up.

How much time had passed like this?

Dan Mok Un-rae had no choice but to get up.

He remembered Byeokryeokgae who would be waiting for him outside.

“I’ve been here too long.”

Dan Mok Un-rae organized the secret vault and came out.

He slowly retraced the path he had come.

Walking through the darkness, climbing the stairs, and touching the dead end with his hand, there was indeed a round groove.

He inserted the bracelet there and came outside.

Byeokryeokgae had been guarding in front of Gwanje Temple until Dan Mok Un-rae came back out.

It was already late afternoon.

Byeokryeokgae had waited for him all this long time.

“So. How was it?”

Byeokryeokgae, who had been asking while watching Dan Mok Un-rae trudge out, soon closed his mouth.

He saw Dan Mok Un-rae’s dark expression.

“What’s wrong? Was there nothing there?”

That couldn’t be right. If so, he wouldn’t have come out this late.

As expected, Dan Mok Un-rae shook his head weakly.

His drooping appearance was like a puppy soaked in rain.

A sight that naturally evoked pity.

For a nineteen-year-old young man to look like that.

“There was something. But… no matter how much I read, I don’t understand what it means.”

Perhaps because he met Byeokryeokgae, the emotions he had been forcibly holding back came flooding up.

A tear dropped from Dan Mok Un-rae’s eyes.

Byeokryeokgae hesitated at that sight, then quickly understood the situation and sighed inwardly.

‘Of course. Getting a secret manual isn’t the end. That’s when it begins…’

But this wasn’t something Byeokryeokgae could solve for him.

As an outsider, how could he interfere with the family’s ultimate techniques?

So Dan Mok Un-rae trudged toward Gyoryong Hall.

It was already time for training to end.

Nevertheless, he habitually headed to the Maengryong Training Ground.

 

Though the chaos in Muchang had been roughly settled just yesterday.

The cadets gathered at the Maengryong Corps 7th Division Training Ground were devoted to their training.

Ha Mu-baek was also leaning against his designated rock seat, yawning lazily.

Gongsun Dan-gyeong seemed to be moving busily, but that old man being busy wasn’t Ha Mu-baek’s concern.

It was about time to wrap up today’s training.

That’s when Dan Mok Un-rae came trudging over.

Carrying a heavy dark aura with him.

His reddened eyes showed he had been crying.

With such an appearance, none of the cadets dared to step forward and ask what was wrong.

‘Why is he like that again? It looked like he was going near the outer Gwanje Temple.’

With his ki sense that could cover all of Muchang, he had quickly identified Dan Mok Un-rae’s location when he was late for morning training.

Gwanje Temple, where he had met Byeokryeokgae before.

He had been near that place.

Dan Mok Un-rae habitually picked up his sword and began training.

But his movements had no strength, no precision, nothing.

He was training but couldn’t concentrate on training.

His mind was completely elsewhere.

The cadets couldn’t even approach him because the dark aura Dan Mok Un-rae was emitting was so strong.

Ha Mu-baek frowned.

A frustrating and irritating sight.

“Hey!”

Finally Ha Mu-baek’s irritation exploded.

Dan Mok Un-rae’s gaze turned toward Ha Mu-baek.

Snap snap.

Ha Mu-baek moved his fingers.

“Come here.”

Dan Mok Un-rae, his sword drooping listlessly, shuffled over to stand before Ha Mu-baek.

The cadets stopped their cultivation and quietly watched the scene.

“What? What’s the problem?”

“….”

However, Dan Mok Un-rae, who had been gauging the mood around him, couldn’t say anything.

“Speak. Don’t make me burst with frustration.”

Ha Mu-baek pressed him with an irritated voice.

He had already set up an energy barrier.

A double layer at that.

There was no chance this conversation would be heard by others.

Yet Dan Mok Un-rae continued to hesitate.

“It’s just the two of us talking. No one can hear.”

Even so, Dan Mok Un-rae’s mouth remained tightly shut.

“What is it? Speak quickly. I’ve already asked three times.”

Three times.

The last chance Ha Mu-baek would give.

It was no different even for cadets.

Finally, Dan Mok Un-rae’s mouth opened.

Stammering.

Hesitating.

Slowly.

“No matter how much I read, I couldn’t understand the contents of the secret manual… It’s my family’s martial arts, but I can’t learn it.”

After hearing the entire story, Ha Mu-baek looked at Dan Mok Un-rae with disbelief.

“Good grief. Over something so trivial. Bring it here. I’ll teach you.”

Ha Mu-baek spoke with an expression of disbelief.

Dan Mok Un-rae’s eyes widened as he stared at Ha Mu-baek.

He would look at a secret manual from a completely different sect and teach it?

Was such a thing possible?

Though Dan Mok Un-rae’s knowledge of martial arts was limited, he knew well that such a thing was impossible.

“What? What’s with those eyes? Why? You don’t think I can teach you?”

Ha Mu-baek asked with a slight smile.

Dan Mok Un-rae flinched.

He couldn’t deny having such thoughts.

Moreover, he began to wonder if it was proper to show his family’s hereditary martial arts to an outsider.

Though it was now a destroyed clan, hadn’t it once been a noble family?

“Well, forget it if you don’t want to. I have no intention of forcing you. It’s not free anyway.”

Shortly after, the cultivation time ended.

 

Dan Mok Un-rae returned home.

He went to his mother who had been waiting.

And calmly told his mother about what had happened today.

However, his eyes gradually reddened and tears flowed once again.

Yeo Hwa simply listened quietly.

Hadn’t she already anticipated this? Even so, she had sent Dan Mok Un-rae to the secret vault because she had hoped for a slim possibility.

And it seemed her hopes might be fulfilled.

Instructor Ha had offered to help.

Yeo Hwa vividly recalled the image of Ha Mu-baek grabbing Gwang Hoe-cheon by the neck and leaving this place.

“He’s the one who treated Hye-ah without asking for any compensation.”

At Yeo Hwa’s words, Dan Mok Un-rae hung his head low.

“Even if Instructor Ha asked for everything in the secret vault, we should rightfully give it to him.”

Dan Mok Un-rae’s head dropped even lower.

It was true.

Wasn’t he the one who had saved the life of his most precious younger sibling in the world?

Such a person had offered to help, yet he had hesitated because he couldn’t trust him.

How much help had he already received from the instructor?

His current level of achievement was something he couldn’t have even dreamed of if he hadn’t met the instructor.

Deep self-loathing washed over him.

‘I must have been crazy. I went mad with obsession over martial arts…’

How had he become so pathetic?

Perhaps he had lost himself in the reality of having martial arts manuals but being unable to learn them.

“But to think he would teach you the martial arts from the secret manual. How could there be anything more grateful than that? Go to the instructor immediately, apologize for your rudeness, and request his teachings.”

“Yes…”

Dan Mok Un-rae immediately headed back to Gyoryong Hall.

His destination was the instructors’ quarters.

He paced back and forth in front of it.

Darkness had already fallen.

It was still cold.

It was a night when breath naturally formed clouds.

“What is it?”

Ha Mu-baek appeared.

“Instructor. I’m sorry. I was temporarily out of my mind. I’m truly sorry.”

Dan Mok Un-rae bowed his head deeply.

Ha Mu-baek quietly observed his eyes.

Dan Mok Un-rae’s eyes had returned to their usual state.

“What are you talking about? What are you sorry for?”

Ha Mu-baek responded as if it were nothing.

Since he had regained his true self, that was enough.

“Pl-please help me… Please grant me your teachings.”

Dan Mok Un-rae dropped to his knees with a thud.

—————
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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