Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 29

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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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Third-rate Martial Arts Family, Greatest Under Heaven – Episode 029
I organized my thoughts carefully.
‘Eum Hu hasn’t completely abandoned the idea of taking a disciple.’
Combining future knowledge with her current demeanor made this certain.
If I could only prove that Jegal Seol-ha was suitable as a disciple, I could break through this impasse.
‘She won’t accept anyone as a disciple unless they’re virtuous.’
Pacheon-eumhu’s Seongeum Okryeongmun was a mysterious martial lineage, yet if you asked a hundred people, all hundred would call it an upright orthodox sect that valued righteousness—such was the nature of this place.
From its very foundation, it pursued the Way of the Immortals, and one of those paths extended toward saving all people.
‘Debating good and evil with Eum Hu is meaningless.’
Disputes over virtue and vice, righteousness and wickedness, had continued since ancient times, yet no conclusion had ever been reached.
Any logic I presented could be refuted, and conversely, I could refute any counterargument.
Bringing forth even a fragment of such endless debate in this moment would be like walking a path with no end.
‘Then, I need only present logic that cannot possibly be refuted.’
I smiled slightly and performed a respectful bow toward Eum Hu.
“I am Yang Hwi of the Baek Family. May I be so bold as to offer my thoughts before you?”
“You have my permission.”
“I am grateful for your permission, and I wish to ask one thing.”
“You seek a disciple who will grow into a virtuous person—are you yourself virtuous?”
My words might have sounded presumptuous.
Yet while Jegal Seon’s face froze in shock, Eum Hu simply fell into contemplation.
“Reflecting upon my entire life, not a single drop of ink has stained my virtue. Thus, I dare call myself virtuous.”
“My second question: If Seol-ha is indeed a child who will grow into virtue, would you accept her as your disciple?”
Eum Hu nodded.
“I have been seeking a disciple, so there is no reason I could not accept her.”
I declared clearly.
“Then you must accept Seol-ha as your disciple!”
“Young Master? Are you playing word games with me?”
“Not at all.”
As Eum Hu’s delicate brows furrowed, I smiled and continued quickly.
“If you do not accept her as your disciple, Seol-ha must continue living a painful life. Tell me—is it virtuous to ignore a child’s suffering?”
Though her frown eased, Eum Hu simply gazed at me without speaking.
“Before I became a son of the Baek Family, I was an orphan living beneath the sky as my roof. The Baek Family Head, the great hero Baek Moo-ryang of Shi-hyeop-il-jeol, who is now my father, spoke these words to me.”
To ease your suffering and save you.
I will become your father.
“Of course, you said you wish to accept a child who will grow into virtue as your disciple. But here is the truth: growing righteous is not the child’s burden alone.”
‘The classics teach that teacher and father are one, Eum Hu!’
A saying that speaks of the grace of both father and master.
While it means the benevolence of these two beings is supreme, it also speaks of the responsibility of those who teach children.
“If you cannot be certain that a child of the Jegal Family will grow virtuous, the solution is simple: you must teach and guide Seol-ha without ever parting from her side, not even for a moment.”
In short, my meaning was this.
A master’s duty is to nurture their disciples well, so if Eum Hu does well, that’s all that matters!
“….”
Even after I finished speaking, Eum Hu showed no reaction for a long while.
She simply stared at me with eyes that were far too deep and profound for a young girl’s appearance.
It was then that silence settled over the interior of the inn.
“I’ve grown tired of this. I just want to end it.”
All expression drained from Eum Hu’s face as if washed away by water.
Her finger extended toward Jegal Seol-ha, still kneeling.
On the surface, it appeared to be nothing more than a young girl flicking her finger at another young girl.
But the result was incomparably different from such a casual gesture.
Ting!
A sound so clear and crystalline it was hard to believe it came from merely flicking a finger.
“Damn!”
A sense of danger surging to its extreme. I reflexively moved my body.
Time slowed. I felt the sound wave bursting forth from Eum Hu’s fingertip.
Beyond mere sound, a vicious flow of qi potent enough to obliterate a young girl and more.
I could grasp it immediately.
‘My current martial arts cannot block this.’
Nevertheless, I stepped in front of Jegal Seol-ha and spread both arms wide.
Somehow, two chopsticks were already gripped in my hands.
Gae-cheon-bak-pal-geom, Third Form.
Eagle Wing Returning.
Gae-cheon-bak-pal-geom, Fifth Form. Variation.
Eagle Feather Scattering.
The Gae-cheon-bak-pal-geom consists of fifty-four techniques total—six fundamental forms following the principles of the Six Harmonies, each with eight variation techniques added.
Among them, Eagle Wing Returning was the finest defensive technique I could deploy at this moment.
I unfolded Eagle Wing Returning simultaneously with the chopsticks in both hands.
‘Even so, I won’t be able to deflect it all…!’
But I cannot stand by and watch Jegal Seol-ha lose her life.
So, I must block it no matter what!
It was as I made that resolve and brought the chopstick tips to meet the tremendous qi carried in the sound wave.
Whoosh!
Wind swept through, sending my hair fluttering.
The qi that had seemed ready to obliterate both children in an instant transformed into a beautiful rhythm, filling the interior of the inn.
Ching, ching!
My head turned toward Eum Hu.
No matter that my mind was thirty-eight years old, at this moment I couldn’t hide my dumbfounded expression.
“…What in the world…”
“Did you think I was going to kill an innocent child after just boasting about being a sage?”
Watching Eum Hu smile softly, I finally understood what had transpired.
Jegal Seon froze in place, his body still poised to rush toward Jegal Seol-ha, suppressed by Eum Hu’s formless qi.
The flow of energy had been so sluggish that even my current state of no-action could have handled it.
‘I fell for it.’
“Was that a test?”
“I wanted to know what kind of character a young master possessed—one clever enough to see through my true identity.”
Just moments before, the instant Eum Hu flicked her finger, Yang Hwi had positioned himself in front of Jegal Seol-ha.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he had thrown himself into the jaws of death.
“Young master. Or rather, Young Hero. You have proven yourself to be a righteous person.”
“I truly thought I was going to die.”
“That’s the only way genuine sincerity reveals itself.”
“…You’re quite ruthless.”
Such words were hardly appropriate to speak to one of the Cheonmu-sipseon, yet I couldn’t help myself. Fortunately, Eum Hu merely laughed aloud.
“I must say, I was surprised. I only intended to observe your actions, yet you attempted to break through my technique. Your talent is more than worthy of being called a peerless prodigy.”
Yang Hwi asked in a grumbling tone.
“I’m glad you’re satisfied. But I don’t see what taking Seol-ha as your disciple has to do with testing my character.”
“Because I intend to take you as my disciple as well.”
“…Pardon?”
Yang Hwi’s eyes widened in shock.
‘Suddenly me?’
Not just teaching me a technique or two, but accepting me as a formal disciple?
In my past life, I never even received instruction from the Cheonmu-sipseon, let alone from one of the hundred greatest masters under heaven.
‘What is this? Am I being blessed by heaven for doing good deeds?’
Seeing the confusion written across my face, Eum Hu answered before I could even ask.
“When I see a talented child, I get the urge to mark them as my own—it’s a bad habit of an old woman like me.”
In short, the talent I had displayed was so exceptional that she wanted to forge a connection.
‘In the end, it’s because I’m talented.’
Still, it felt odd hearing such words from someone who appeared as a fifteen-year-old girl.
While Yang Hwi was thinking such things, Eum Hu released the formless qi that had been suppressing Jegal Seon with a single gesture.
Immediately, Jegal Seon knelt down once more.
“Thank you! Thank you, Eum Hu! I shall never forget this grace even unto death!”
Jegal Seon’s face was wet with joy.
“Child of the Jegal Family. Father of Seol-ha, who will become my disciple. It is too early to express gratitude. I said I would take you as a disciple, but that comes only after you prove your qualifications.”
Before Jegal Seon could respond, Jegal Seol-ha sprang to her feet.
“Eum Hu, or rather, Master. What must I do to become your disciple?”
“My sect conducts an entrance ceremony to verify a disciple’s qualifications. It is called the Jeongeum-ogwan.”
The entrance ceremony of the Seongeum Okryeongmun. From the name Jeongeum-ogwan, it seemed one had to pass through five gates.
“The Jeongeum-ogwan is designed with safety measures so that even children who have not yet learned martial arts can pass through it. It exists solely to verify talent. However….”
Eum Hu trailed off and approached Jegal Seol-ha, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“I had no intention of accepting disciples. Thus, the preparations are still inadequate, and the danger is great. You could lose your life—will you still attempt it?”
Not long ago, I might have hesitated.
However, Jegal Seol-ha had already shed the shell that had confined her.
“If you give me the chance, I wish to try, Master.”
Her response carried unwavering resolve. Eum Hu’s smile showed a hint of satisfaction.
“I cannot throw a child who may become my disciple into danger without protection.”
Eum Hu’s gaze turned toward me.
“As you said, it is an adult’s responsibility to guide a child properly. Is that not so?”
For a moment, I felt a pang of unease, but I answered nonetheless.
“Yes, Eum Hu.”
“I have said I will accept you as an outer sect disciple. Since I cannot permit the title of master to an outer sect member, you shall call me Teacher.”
“Understood, Teacher.”
“Then I command the third outer sect disciple in this sect’s history. Protect the child who will become this sect’s true disciple. You, Yang Hwi.”
In other words, instead of placing Jegal Seol-ha in the Jeongeum-ogwan without all safety measures in place, she was ordering me to serve as her safeguard.
‘That’s not difficult in itself. It might even earn me a debt from the Jegal Family.’
But why did I feel so uneasy?
Moments later, I understood the reason.
“Now that I think of it, your tongue has caused me considerable trouble. Since I am now your teacher, perhaps I may show my disciple a bit of mischief?”
A sense of crisis surged forth, comparable to when Eum Hu had flicked her finger moments before.
“Teacher, before that, I must say—”
“Hush.”
My body and Jegal Seol-ha’s were seized by Eum Hu’s hand, drawn by an invisible force.
Whoooosh!
In an instant, heaven and earth inverted and swirled chaotically.
When my senses cleared, the inn had vanished, and mountains surrounded us on all sides.
With my energy heightened to its peak, I immediately grasped one fact.
‘The energy around us is distorted. Especially that distortion near the cliff is intense.’
“Where is this…?”
“This is the entrance to the Jeongeum-ogwan that I have been establishing on Gok-ryeol Mountain.”
“An entrance, you say…?”
Eum Hu’s gaze turned toward the cliff.
I somehow sensed what she would say next.
“Surely not.”
“Did I not say? The safety measures are not yet properly in place.”
In that instant, Eum Hu hurled both Jegal Seol-ha and me toward the cliff.
“I hope you will manage it. Seol-ha. So I am counting on you. Yang Hwi.”
Whoooosh!
Our bodies plummeted down the cliff.
“Kyaaaaaaaaah!”
“This is insaneeeeee!”
Hearing the screams of the two children, Eum Hu smiled softly.
“When you return, I shall have to correct your manner of speech.”

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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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