Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 33

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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 033
“Elder Gu, I have something to discuss with you.”
“What is it? Speak freely, younger brother.”
When Yang Hwi, who had become part of Eum Hu’s search party and returned to Baek Manor after visiting Gok-ryeol Mountain, requested an audience.
Until this very moment, Gu Ak had been living an extraordinarily satisfying life.
When I first abandoned my direct position at Red Bridge Hall and entered the Baek Manor as a retainer, it felt awkward and uncomfortable.
But now, spending my days wandering through Ak-an County, executing one strike per day whenever I discovered the Black Blade Gang harassing commoners, and spending blissful evenings with my beloved—this life truly had flavor to it.
If I harbored any complaints, that would be the strange thing.
‘Hehehehe, one strike per day—a far more respectable alias than Blood Butcher. And I’ve even acquired the impressive title of Reformation Supervisor.’
Wasn’t this a remarkably successful transition from darkness to light?
Because of this, Gu Ak had recently been in a mentally relaxed state, and that would prove to be his critical mistake.
“Elder Gu, you know I trust you greatly, don’t you?”
“The formal courtesy suggests you’re about to ask something weighty? Hehehehe, lay it on me, younger brother.”
“Thank you for saying so.”
Yang Hwi, performing an unusually formal fist salute, continued.
“Father… the Head of the Main Residence is about to enter closed-door cultivation soon. Would you not assist Han Supervisor and manage some of the family’s affairs during that time?”
Gu Ak’s eyes widened slightly.
To entrust family matters to someone who, despite his reformation, had been a Black Blade member mere days ago.
Gu Ak glanced at Baek Moo-ryang, who sat beside him.
Baek Moo-ryang nodded in agreement.
“I was worried about various problems arising during closed-door cultivation, and Yang Hwi recommended the Reformation Supervisor.”
“Because Elder Gu possesses both capability and trustworthiness!”
Gu Ak broke into a broad grin. Honestly, when I first abandoned everything to become a mere retainer, I harbored many doubts. But receiving such recognition made my shoulders naturally rise with pride.
“If the Family Head commands it, this Gu shall simply obey! By the way, it seems you’ve achieved a breakthrough, Family Head.”
Baek Moo-ryang displayed a pleased smile.
“During cultivation, I grasped a thread of enlightenment. I’m entering closed-door seclusion to refine and perfect it.”
The Hwa-cheon-i-won-gong and Gae-cheon-bak-pal-geom, which had become the Baek Family’s martial arts, possessed depths worthy of being called divine techniques and celestial methods.
Merely days after beginning, the path to first-rate mastery was already visible.
Even though Baek Moo-ryang had long since reached second-rate mastery, such an achievement would have been impossible without the profound mysteries embedded within these martial arts.
“Congratulations on your great progress, Family Head!”
“Thank you. May I impose this request upon you?”
“Of course! Though I’m uncertain whether I can handle it well. There is no other suitable person, is there, Family Head?”
As Gu Ak appeared troubled, Yang Hwi quickly interjected.
“Have no worries. Han Supervisor will select only appropriate tasks for you to manage.”
“Ah, well then.”
“Additionally, you’ll need to handle the external contracts the Family Head has made. Since it involves physical work, this should actually suit your preferences better.”
“I see. I’ll trust you with this, younger brother!”
At that level, there was nothing particularly difficult.
…At least, that’s what Gu Ak believed at the time.
‘Damn it, should I just run away?’
Baek Moo-ryang and Yang Hwi certainly hadn’t lied.
Han Supervisor had only assigned work that could be managed.
The problem was that the sheer volume was enough to break one’s spirit.
But that wasn’t all.
The external work I’d thought would be easier….
“Gu Ak, your escort duty awaits. Good day to you.”
….
Until now, Baek Manor had maintained its household finances through the money Baek Moo-ryang earned from external work.
And naturally, most of the external contracts forged by Baek Moo-ryang, a master of third-rate prowess, were escort contracts.
“Gu Ak, your escort duty. Today I intend to take an outing to Ho-yeong-ru.”
The man before me, today’s charge.
Until recently, he had been a merchant’s son who fawned over Gu Ak, a direct member of Red Bridge Hall and owner of Ho-yeong-ru.
In a single day, their positions had reversed.
“…Gu Ak, your escort? You seem displeased. Shall we rest today instead?”
My charge asked cautiously. Despite the shift in position, he showed no disrespect toward Gu Ak, a first-rate master.
Yet for Gu Ak, this situation itself was unbearably shameful.
“…It’s fine.”
‘It’s not fine! It’s not fine at all! My dignity has been trampled into the dirt!’
…Words he couldn’t possibly speak before the employer who paid him.
That day, after the sun had set and two more hours had passed, Gu Ak returned to Baek Manor and immediately stormed into Han Supervisor’s quarters.
“Han Supervisor! I simply cannot do this! Why must I, Gu Ak, engage in such menial escort work!”
Han Supervisor, who had been examining documents despite the late hour, slowly lifted his spectacles from his eyes.
“Because we need to earn money.”
“But Baek Manor now has business ventures!”
Since the Black Blade Conflict, Baek Manor had acquired three new business establishments—an inn, a tavern, and others.
The family’s influence was no longer so diminished that we need concern ourselves with petty contracts.
“Ho-yeong-ru alone generates such enormous profits that we could pay breach penalties and cancel trivial escort contracts without a second thought!”
Gu Ak’s grievance poured forth. Han Supervisor’s response was one of exasperation.
“It’s all destroyed.”
“What?”
“Ho-yeong-ru and everything else—the Black Blade Conflict turned it into a wasteland. Do you think the interior furnishings and decorations remain intact? The blood stench is so thick we’ll need to replace the floorboards entirely. That all costs money.”
Han Supervisor’s small, measured voice began to rise.
“Breach penalties? Then bring me the money to pay them! Argh, no matter how I manipulate the numbers, there simply isn’t enough!”
It was true that Baek Manor’s business ventures had expanded, and we would soon generate revenues incomparable to the past.
But in the immediate term, we had to cover maintenance costs before we could earn anything.
“Before Young Master Hwi arrived, we never worried about money! The Baek Bookstore investment hasn’t yielded returns yet, and now this disaster strikes—Ho-yeong-ru alone requires two thousand silver taels… Yes, it was you who painted that place in blood! You’re the reason for all this!”
…Gu Ak had no choice but to quietly leave Han Supervisor’s quarters.
It’s difficult. It’s lonely. I want to vent my frustration, but there’s no one to direct it at.
‘I miss Rang-rang.’
Gu Ak headed toward Baek Ik-gak, now called Geng-saeng-gak, the main hall assigned to him.
Then I quietly opened the door to the bedroom I shared with Rang-rang.
“….”
Rang-rang slept peacefully, her breathing soft and steady. She was a light sleeper, so she would wake the moment I lay down beside her.
Gu Ak quietly closed the door and headed toward another room.
Returning home well past bedtime every night had left me sleeping alone for several days now.
The happy life I had recently enjoyed—the betrothal Yang Hwi promised me, a century of marital bliss—had vanished without a trace.
‘This won’t do. I need to find a way.’
The Baek Manor was flourishing.
Using Gu Ak as fertilizer for its growth.
…If I didn’t want to become fertilizer, I had to find another sacrificial lamb.
Gu Ak made a vow.
‘I’ll dedicate myself entirely to rehabilitating those Black Path thugs. I need to create men I can trust, men I can dump all the work onto!’
This was the moment when the nightmare of Ak-an County’s Black Path gangs began—when the notorious reputation of Gu Ak, the Rehabilitation Pavilion Master and One Heroic Act Per Day, was born.

* * *
Whoosh—!
A light leap. My body surged toward the first wooden dummy.
As my feet touched the nearby floor, the mechanical device activated, and the wooden dummy launched an overhead attack.
Instead of ducking, I shifted my stance and tensed my toes.
“Northwest position, move!”
The dummy’s fingertips barely grazed the hair on my head.
I had evaded the attack without moving my upper body at all, shifting only my lower half.
In exchange, my balance between upper and lower body was disrupted, and I was on the verge of stumbling.
“Bend the knees, plant the right foot to the northwest, and push hard against the ground!”
I called out the reason for each movement so that Jegal Seol-ha, watching and listening from behind, could follow along.
Thus I passed through the twenty-fifth wooden dummy, shouting each time.
‘Without using inner energy, this is quite challenging.’
If I used inner energy, Jegal Seol-ha wouldn’t be able to keep up. So I was deliberately matching my pace to her untrained physical abilities, moving through the corridor without relying on inner energy or enhanced strength.
‘It’s truly remarkable. This is certainly an extraordinary movement technique.’
The wooden dummies struck with such speed and force that a direct hit would send a small child flying nearly three meters.
By common sense, it should be impossible to pass through with the fragile physical abilities of a young girl.
But.
Dozens, hundreds of wooden dummies. A single flow contained in their positions and spacing.
The form itself, imbued with the principles of martial ascension, possessed a subtle mystery that made the impossible possible.
‘To use an analogy, it’s like the wind—a movement technique that alternates between the soft, fluttering breeze and the fierce, rapid gale.’
When gentle, it’s infinitely gentle; when swift, it’s infinitely swift.
The subtle interplay of softness and speed.
Though I didn’t yet understand the full mechanics of inner energy application, I could be certain from the form alone.
If I mastered this movement technique perfectly, I would never concede distance to an opponent.
‘It’s no wonder Eum Hu is counted among the greatest swordsmen of the Martial Arts World.’
It’s a movement technique that pairs remarkably well with sound-based martial arts, allowing one to maintain distance from opponents while delivering long-range strikes.
With such thoughts, I completed my passage through the corridor.
Then, retracing my steps in reverse order, I returned to Jegal Seol-ha’s side.
“How was it, junior sister?”
At my question, Jegal Seol-ha’s expression brimmed with confidence.
Today marked the seventh day since entering the wooden chamber.
It had taken approximately five days to decipher all the forms of the movement technique embedded within the wooden puppets.
Over the following two days, Jegal Seol-ha had repeatedly practiced and memorized the forms, seizing every opportunity to perfect them.
“I think this is sufficient. Let’s move on to the next chamber today.”
“Are you certain?”
“I’m already tired of rat meat, you know.”
Jegal Seol-ha, her laughter clear and bright, stepped before the corridor entrance, assumed her stance, and took a deep breath.
I watched her for a moment.
‘She’s gained the confidence to pass in just two days?’
The subtleties of the movement technique embedded in the wooden puppets were highly refined ascending martial arts.
Yet to master all the forms in merely two days.
“Ha!”
Soon after, Jegal Seol-ha kicked off the ground rapidly.
Clang!
Moving northwest two steps, the upper attack from the wooden puppet merely sent her long hair fluttering.
Clang!
The second attack followed.
She bent her knees and crossed her legs, allowing her right foot to occupy the northwest position instead of her left, thereby recovering her lost balance.
Then, pushing off the ground and making her body horizontal, she passed through the upper attack of the third wooden puppet.
“Ha!”
Three steps northeast, one step southeast.
Rotating her body while lowering her stance, five steps north.
I whistled as I watched Jegal Seol-ha progress through the corridor more smoothly than expected.
‘Quite impressive… no, rather, her talent deserves admiration. And this is a child who spent nearly three years confined to her father’s care.’
Until recently, Jegal Seol-ha had lived like a puppet, her spirit broken.
Yet the figure she displayed now was worthy of the word genius.
Indeed, in my previous life, Jegal Seol-ha had earned the notorious alias “Seol-hun Ma-hu” by orchestrating a massive blood massacre.
Though it was the result of learning the soul-binding technique of the Left Path while riding the rampaging Dohwa body to the point of demonic possession, such a feat would have been impossible without genuine talent.
“Senior brother!”
Finally, having perfectly cleared the corridor, Jegal Seol-ha wiped the sweat from her face and waved her hands excitedly.
“Did you see! I told you I could do it! Ahahaha!”
I chuckled softly, then used my inner energy to swiftly pass through the wooden puppets in a single breath, standing beside Jegal Seol-ha.
“Well done, junior sister. Your talent is truly exceptional.”
“Hehe, I am a direct descendant of the great Jegal Family, after all.”
“Then shall we head to the final chamber? Or would you like to rest a bit?”
“Let’s go right now!”
The two children gazed toward the end of the corridor.
The iron door, which had opened wide at some point, now revealed its pitch-black interior.
“I wonder what the final trial will be.”
“Who knows.”
So far, I had been tested on perseverance, martial talent, musical talent, and the virtues of a sage.
Since everything that could come out had already appeared, I couldn’t begin to guess what would be tested last.
“We’ll find out once we go in.”
“It reminds me of what Senior Brother always says—seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times.”
“Right, I did say that. And I told you, I deliberately took those hits and flew away because I was too lazy to come back, didn’t I?”
“Senior Brother is always right!”
We entered through the iron door while conversing.
As I naturally tried to focus my eyes to brighten my vision, I suddenly froze.
“Seolha?”
Jegal Seol-ha’s voice and presence had vanished without a trace.
Darkness so complete that I couldn’t see even an inch ahead.
The only existence within this space was myself.
Then, in that moment.
“Forgive me, Nangjoong Jeil-geom.”
Words I had heard on the final day of my previous life.
I understood what the fourth trial was testing.

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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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