Book 7 Chapter 15

Keynote by Junho Yoon

There was no way that Mo Yonghui, who had completed his training, would still be alive.

He had begun his training when his wounds had barely healed.

I saw a smile on his face.

He was pleased with himself.

'How well you have endured this grueling training with your sick body!'

Everyone looked at Mo Yonghui, who had fallen asleep, with admiring gazes.

Even more surprising was Yoon Jun-ho, whose accomplishment was almost miraculous, as he was not among the final four, but he was the one who lasted the longest among the others.

I was stunned, but I have to give him credit for his strength and persistence. Yoon Jun-ho was unexpectedly disciplined.

"How did you get so big?"

It was an unbelievable leap forward, even for Yeomdo, who saw the beginning and end with his eyes open. Curious, I asked Yoon Junho, who had barely regained his senses.

"Yes, I've been doing what some old man taught me, and I've gotten better and better at it!"

"Which grandfather?"

"Yes, a strange meat-loving Taoist grandfather in a tattered robe, who somehow reminded me of our Taoist master in the volcano. Oh! Of course, that's not to say that our Tathagata likes meat, or carnivores. He's a raw foodist."

"Tell me more!"

The Yeomdo was impatient.

"That's why……."

That was a few days ago.

That day, deep in the mountains, Yun Che decided to practice the Plum Blossom Sword Technique for the first time in a long time. After going through the harsh training at the Heavenly Martial Academy and the grueling training at the camp, he somehow felt like his whole body was overflowing with energy these days. He had a premonition that this time, things would go well.

With a serious face, Yun Junho performed the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Technique, a red sword qi emanating from his sword.

"Plum blossoms!"

"Plum Blossom Fire!"

"Plum Blossom Heaven!"

"Plum blossom buns (梅花紛紛)!"

As the red sword light scattered, plum petals began to bloom in the air, one by one, and the scent of plum grew stronger and stronger as the sword light intensified. His face had turned very funny. This was the limit.

"Ouch!"

Finally, Yun Junho dropped the sword he was holding. His entire body was covered in hives.

It was an improvement over the previous four years. The faint scent of plum caused Yun Jun to frown.

"Heh, heh, heh, that's great!"

It was then that I heard a chuckle behind my back.

"Heh, heh, heh, heh, what a funny kid! Black eyes and hives at that age……."

He looked back at his body, still covered in hives. The red spots on his face, along with the hives, made him look ridiculous.

Behind him stood an old man, clad in tattered clothing that must have once been called a dobok.

"Who is the deceased?"

Junho Yoon asked politely. It wasn't like he was being rude or anything.

"What a peculiar child you are, however. I am amazed that you can hold a sword scope, the volcanic sect's specialty, at your age, and yet have such a strong fragrance at such a young age. ……. Your accomplishments are as great as any I have ever seen!"

"Who are you?"

"Heh heh heh, it's Yu Huanquan, I think he's called the Plum Blossom Swordsman in the Huashan Sect? He's as crazy about swords as I am, he's my brother-in-law!"

At one point, Junho Yoon almost went blind. His eyeballs were about to pop out of his head.

"Tae… you mean Master Tae?"

Yun Che's eyes widened. A person who called the highest allotment of the Volcano Sect, the Tasavu Plum Blossom Sword Sutra, a 'pseudo-type', had appeared in front of him. Moreover, although his clothing was old and tattered, it was clearly that of a shaman.

If so, the story is……. There was a story about a windmill that was told to me when I was being petted by the Tathagata.

'I have a brother who's a shaman and a sword-crazy old man… and his name is…….'

Yoon asked cautiously.

"Ho, do you happen to know if your dignity is……."

"Huh? Haven't I told you yet? They call me the Sage Swordsman. It's not a very popular name!"

I strenuously insist that I'm not famous, but for Junho Yoon, it was a name that stung my ears.

"I apologize for not knowing your name."

Yun Junho hastily took up the mantle. If it was the same allotment as Lady Tae-Sa's plum blossom sword ship, it would mean that he was the owner of an allotment that he couldn't even look at.

"Don't you know, my dear, that too much politeness is out of proportion, and I feel all warm and fuzzy inside at such a greeting, but I'm more interested in your story."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"What do you mean, your flimsy plum blossom blade, unworthy of a sword scope?"

The old man's eyes were filled with excitement.

"Hmmm… so you've been bullied for that?"

"Yes!"

Yun Junho replied with a deadpan expression. His heart sank as he remembered the past. Of course, he wasn't talking about bullying in the present.

"As per the king… That's a nostalgic sound."

It seems that Hyun-gyeom was not without experience with bullying.

"You mean you've had that happen to you, too?"

Yun Jun-ho was surprised to hear that the head of the Shamanic Eight Swords and a master of the Heavenly Five Swords had admitted that he had been bullied in the past.

The Sage Swordsman nodded and said.

"That happened to me once," he says, "because anyone who bounces around is always going to get checked."

His talents and abilities were exceptional compared to those of his peers at the time. Only his older brother, Gong Gongqiu, showed greater qualities.

And in any society, there are only two paths for the exceptional. Either you become the envy of others, the object of their admiration, or you become the bully, the object of their scrutiny and bullying.

The former earned the respect and admiration of others, while the latter was bullied into submission. The only person who was kinder to him was his older brother, who possessed even greater qualities. He was able to treat him selflessly and comfortably because he had no need to be jealous of him.

"When you're amongst a bunch of idiots who can't admit that there could be someone better than you in the world, the talented and resourceful are naturally isolated! The weak can't stand the threat to themselves, because they've always looked down on and trampled on those weaker than them. They're afraid of retribution! They've made the world fit their standards and molds, and they think that those who are stronger than them will trample on them. So they cower in fear, and that's how bullying manifests as a social phenomenon."

"Then I……."

Yun Junho's words were cut short by the current swordsman.

"Then what about those who bully and pick on those weaker than themselves, child, why do you ask such an obvious question?"

Yoon Jun-ho looked bewildered, avant-garde indicating that he didn't understand at all right now.

"They are, of course, immature, mentally uneducated people, full of selfishness, who don't have the faintest idea of what counterfactuals are. They are fools and idiots who are not worthy of respect, and they are also immature. A foolish, stupid, immature mind that has no concept of how what it does affects the world around it.

If you see them, laugh at them quietly, and if you don't like them enough, beat their asses until they catch fire, but remember this, child: just because they're immature assholes doesn't mean you have to join them in their immature assholery!"

"Yes……."

Hearing the swordsman's words, Yun Zunhao sealed his mouth and nodded meekly.

"The fewer fools, idiots, nerds, and morons there are in the world, the better."

"Yes, sir!"

"Don't call me a ferryman, call me a guru, it sounds good!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Do, sir, sir!"

The swordsman emphasized each character.

"Yes… yes! Do… master!"

Not for nothing, but Yoon couldn't resist.

"The laws of the world are cold, stern, and just, and those who despise others will one day receive their full reward, if not in this lifetime, then in the next."

The old man was a bit of a maverick for a taoist, Junho thought, but his words were right on the money, and they struck a chord in Junho's heart.

"They're supposed to run out when you get to the point where you're stronger than they are and they can't chase you anymore. I'll show you a few ways."

The Swordsman spoke, his eyes shining. He looked like a child who had just discovered something interesting.

That was nearly 20 days ago.

When he was done talking, Yeomdo said.

"Ho-ho! So the old man taught you all sorts of things, but he told you not to tell anyone who he was or what he taught you?"

"Yes!"

"In a nutshell, it's a coincidence!"

Yeomdo exclaimed. Where did this idiot go and unknowingly get a kiyeon? What made him unique was that he didn't even realize he'd gotten it.

"Is that what you mean?"

Again, no self-awareness.

"So you didn't think Ki-yeon was a big deal?"

"I thought you had to eat a ten-thousand-year-old spirit food somewhere, or fall off a cliff and get a paycheck from your predecessors……."

"Perfect!"

Immediately, Yeomdo's fist flew toward Yoon Junho's head.

"Son of a bitch, do you think kismet is a big deal? If you meet a strange person and it benefits you, that's kismet."

Clutching the bump that protruded from the top of his head, Yun Junho's eyes rolled back in thought. It was the perfect way to look foolish to onlookers.

"Did I get the gig?

But there was no one to answer for him. He didn't even know if he was stronger or weaker.

Where was she when her colleagues were breaking new ground with their physical and mental strength and endurance? Where was she when they were reaping the rewards of their sweat? Where was she when they were reveling in the jubilant exhilaration of the waves of excitement?

"Mmmmmmm!"

By then, Bi Ryuyeon had gone to bed and had not yet woken up. Although he was sleeping outdoors without a blanket, the cold dew of dawn was no problem for him; he had an impressive track record of sleeping in snowdrifts for three days. Worrying about the dawn dew and the chill of the earth was a testament to his tenacious vitality and adaptability.

"Uhhhhhhh!"

As the warm morning sun began to tickle his face, Bi Ryuyeon finally opened his eyes. His every move exuded a sense of relaxation.

"purr"

As soon as I woke up, my belly clock furiously informed me that it was time to eat. Everything else about this watch was good, but it was too accurate.

"Tsk!"

Bi Ryuyeon made a gesture, and a fruit fell from the tree. It was a delicious-looking apple. It was a cheeky apple, falling for no reason when the crows weren't even flying. It was still green, but not red, but that didn't mean it wasn't good to eat.

"Mmmm, fish for breakfast?"

Fruit was just a warm-up before the meal.

Fifteen or so yards from the shade of the tree where the biryu kite was perched, a kite made of stagnant water from a nearby ravine.

To have a fish dish, you must first have fish. In order to catch a fish, a series of labor is required: fishing. But there was no fishing rod anywhere on his body, and he was still lying leisurely with his back to the tree trunk.

All he could do was stare at the deep blue kite, which was part of the reason he was here.

What is he thinking right now?

For a long time, she could only stare at the lake. She felt like she was going to dissect the kite.

"Woof!"

Then, to my surprise, the kite changed. Perhaps something was wrong. How could this happen unless the world had gone mad? It was unbelievable.

Ripples began to form in the center of the kite, and the stagnant water spun, soon forming a huge whirlpool. Then a fish leaped into the middle of the spinning vortex. It was as if the lake had thrown it out.

As the fish floated half a meter above the surface of the water, Bi Ryuyeon snapped his left finger and moved it lightly. With a snap of his fingers, he held up the freshly caught fish in front of him. The sword in his right hand glided over the fish, and in a moment, a plate of impromptu freshwater sashimi was complete.

"Sure! I'll eat it."

Since the children were all down, he decided to end the breakfast with a simple plate of sashimi. After all, she thought, he was a wonderful, kind-hearted godbrother.

Bi Ryuyeon's hand began to glare at the chopsticks.

The sashimi couldn't have been fresher.