I had a meal with my father after a long time.

I treasured this moment—whether playing baduk, sharing /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ a meal, or quietly communicating wordlessly with him. Despite my usual joking, these moments connected me most deeply to my true self. After all, I had lived a mostly quiet life.

“Was training difficult?”

“My body wasn’t tired, but enduring the monotony was tough.”

“How did you bear it?”

“In the end, I emptied my mind. This repetition would be a lifelong task, and once I escaped this boredom, another would await. So I just accepted it. Eventually, the repetition and boredom became one with me.”

My father smiled—not mockingly, but genuinely congratulatory that I had found the right path.

I enthusiastically explained to him how I interpreted the First Technique, the mistakes I made, and how I persevered in practice.

Though I spoke proudly, it was really to give him information—so he could compare my interpretation with his own and refine the technique. I hoped he would succeed.

I had not returned to surpass or defeat my father, but to survive alongside him.

“When you finish eating, let’s go walk off your meal.”

Following him outside, he gazed at the distant summit of Great Heaven Mountain.

“Let’s race to see who gets there first.”

For some reason, he proposed a contest of lightness skill.

“You remembered that if I mastered Rapid Step I would challenge you.”

“How confident are you?”

“Of course confident. For the record, even Majon have fallen before me.”

“Start ahead!”

“Well, then you’ll have to run chasing only my back.”

No sooner said than I sprinted forward. This way, even if I won, my father would have something to say.

Using Rapid Step, I ran at terrifying speed.

The perfected Rapid Step was so fast I doubted even my father could keep up.

Then I heard a strong gust behind me.

Turning, I saw my father beside me.

He flew upright, robes fluttering—not just speed, but with an elegant, lofty presence.

‘So cool!’

While I ran desperately, he soared gracefully. His perfected Heavenly Demon Flight seemed made just for him.

Surely, there’s no point in being slow and uncool.

I ran with all my might, thinking I was as fast as light—but my father arrived at the peak first.

“I’ve lost. In style and speed. Even the god of wind can’t beat a Heavenly Demon.”

Bowing deeply, my father said,

“Rapid Step is fast.”

Though he never acknowledged other martial arts, he respected Wind God’s Step.

Then he said something unexpected.

“When you master Heavenly Demon Flight, you’ll have the same result.”

His words were acknowledgment. There was a reason he proposed the race and spoke so just now.

“I will teach you Heavenly Demon Flight.”

I understood—it was because I had shared my interpretation of the First Technique earlier. Having taught me one thing, he would now teach me one as well. My father never just gave without receiving.

“Thank you, Father.”

I bowed deeply.

“With your current understanding of lightness skill, you’ll master it easily, and perfection won’t take long. Now, listen carefully.”

There, he taught me the palm sequences of Heavenly Demon Flight. Only after repeatedly checking that I memorized them correctly did the instruction end.

I bowed again.

“I’m so grateful, Father.”

My joy was not just because Heavenly Demon Flight was the supreme lightness skill in the martial world, nor because combining it with Wind God’s Step might create an even faster technique.

It was the moment I inherited all my father’s core martial arts—the Nine Flames Demon Skill, Heavenly Demon Body Protection, and now Heavenly Demon Flight. My heart swelled.

“Rise now.”

“Yes.”

Together, we stood on a cliff at Great Heaven Mountain’s peak.

The view of Cheonma Sin Gyo stretched far below.

“When I became Small Sect Leader, I came here with you.”

I glanced at my father, recalling his youth and imagining my grandfather standing beside him.

“Your dream was to unify the martial world.”

I had never known that.

After a pause, I asked,

“And you?”

He said nothing, but I knew. He dreamed of unification. He knew I knew.

I said what was hard to say—something that had to be said someday.

“If you achieve unification and gain everyone’s praise and respect… you still won’t gain my respect.”

My father might have been angry, but he said nothing. He understood my heart well now.

We silently watched Cheonma Sin Gyo and the horizon beyond.

To lighten the heavy mood, I spoke cheerfully.

“Father, please name my friends. I thought of cool names—using ghosts: Night Ghost, Blood Ghost, White Ghost, Heaven Ghost. But that seemed too gloomy. So I thought of the moon: Bright Moon, Waning Moon, Hidden Moon, Soft Moon. Or maybe colors…”

Right then, my father suddenly said,

“East, West, South, North.”

I flinched.

“You’re joking?”

He looked at me dead serious.

“Not plum, orchid, chrysanthemum, bamboo. Not clear wind and bright moon. East, West, South, North?”

Whether he meant not to bother naming spirits unnecessarily, or was thinking about unification, or simply liked those names, I couldn’t tell.

“East, West, South, North!”

He confirmed again.

How could I refuse?

Ah, sorry, my spirits!

“Oh, it sounds good. East Ghost, West Ghost, South Ghost, North Ghost. Easy to remember, perfect. If anyone asks, I’ll proudly say my father named them!”

I spilled the secret about my father’s naming, but he didn’t flinch.

So the names of the four spirits were settled as East, West, South, and North!

After descending Great Heaven Mountain, I headed straight to Tong Cheon Hall.

I needed to hear from Commander Sama Myung about my upcoming duties.

Entering Tong Cheon Hall, soldiers greeted me politely.

Their eyes were warm. Since they knew me well, I paid close attention to their expressions.

After passing strict security, I entered the operations room. Sama Myung was meeting with soldiers.

A soldier suggested informing Sama Myung of my arrival, but I let the meeting proceed uninterrupted and waited.

The place was very busy.

Through over ten holes divided by region on one wall, telegrams arrived continuously, and soldiers sorted them by case.

Some ran about with documents, some took notes, others rearranged dozens of colored flags on the central map. No one was idle.

The martial world was peaceful, but here was a battlefield. The peace likely existed because this was a battlefield.

Soon Sama Myung finished and was surprised to see me.

“Small Sect Leader, when did you arrive?”

“Just now. I told them not to disturb me until the meeting ended.”

“Come to my office.”

“Let’s speak here. Seeing the soldiers working like this inspires me. Makes me want to live harder.”

“You just came out of seclusion training. You should rest.”

“You, who have so many duties, shouldn’t say that.”

We laughed together.

“How was training?”

“I rushed to show off to Father without even shaving.”

The word ‘show off’ contained all the results.

“Congratulations.”

“Thanks to the Commander arranging external schedules. I have much backlog. What should I tackle first?”

“First, you must visit the Honam and Gangseo branches. Honam faces the Martial Alliance in conflict first; Gangseo is the key point against the Satan Alliance. Meeting their branch leaders is your first duty.”

“Understood.”

“The official orders will arrive tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll report back afterward.”

Turning to leave, Sama Myung said,

“You will greatly influence the fate of the main school.”

I smiled.

“That’s why I plan to visit you often.”

Leaving Tong Cheon Hall and walking back, a masked man appeared on a quiet path.

He revealed himself—it was Hui, captain of Cheonma Hall’s guards.

“Uncle!”

“Small Sect Leader.”

“Please call me Geuka, like when I was young.”

“That’s impossible.”

Seeing him after so long was moving.

“How long has it been? You’ve gotten quite a few white hairs.”

“I’m getting old too.”

“Because of caring for my father. He’s really demanding, right? Does he bother you?”

“It’s the happiest part of my life.”

That was the Hui I knew—devoted solely to guarding. His master was everything.

“You carried me on a snowy day.”

His eyes crinkled like moons behind the mask.

“You remember that?”

“Of course. It was wonderful.”

After greetings, Hui revealed why he came.

“When you go out on your official mission, take guards with you.”

I hesitated. I had planned to go alone. He came expecting this.

“Honestly, not for your sake. I know you’re strong enough that guards could become a burden.”

He spoke plainly.

“It’s for my juniors. With you, they’ll grow into excellent guards. I’ve watched your recent actions. You are like an ocean—big enough to embrace all my juniors.”

Knowing his character, it wasn’t easy for him to say this. He cared deeply for the Cheonma guards and his juniors.

That day, they all died with us.

If it’s Hui’s request, I’ll bring not twelve but twelve hundred if needed.

“I’ll go together.”

Hui bowed respectfully.

“Thank you.”

“No, uncle.”

I bowed back.

When I looked up, Hui was gone. He didn’t repay kindness with words, but one day, he would repay today’s favor.

Uncle Hui, no need—you and your juniors have already repaid with your lives.

My guards were training in the sparring grounds.

After watching a while, I went inside.

They stopped and all bowed as I entered.

“Greetings, Small Sect Leader!”

Their voices were strong and spirited.

“You trained continuously for the past hundred days?”

Jeokyeon answered.

“Yes, every day without fail.”

“Then why only six of you?”

“We don’t know when we’ll be deployed for guard duty, so we live in shifts—day and night—and switch monthly.”

So the night shift trained overnight. Impressive.

After so long, I looked into Jeokyeon’s eyes first.

Knowing refusal was useless, Jeokyeon quietly removed her blindfold.

I looked into her crimson eyes.

“You’ve advanced a step in your Ear Technique.”

Jeokyeon was surprised.

“Really? You recognized that just from my eye color?”

“The color changed.”

“I couldn’t even tell, though I looked at the bronze mirror every day.”

It was my Divine Eye Technique discerning the difference.

My attention kept drawn to her eyes partly because of this. I learned Divine Eye for myself, but she learned Ear Technique for others—ultimately for me.

Though all was her choice and fate, sacrificing one’s eyes for others was never easy.

I poured internal energy into her eyes to soothe them.

“It feels different.”

“How?”

“Much less pain.”

If so, it was likely due to changes in internal energy—stronger, purer.

“Tomorrow you’ll accompany me on my mission. Official orders will come early from Tong Cheon Hall.”

Jeokyeon and the guards brightened. Their first real mission was at hand.

Their excitement and joy were unmistakable. If I had left them behind, it would have been disastrous.

“Thank you for trusting us.”

“From tomorrow, watch me well. I’m counting on you.”

With loud responses, Jeokyeon and the guards bowed deeply. Yes, we’d leave and return stronger.

The next morning, two carriages left the hall.

It was my first official mission as Small Sect Leader, now with full escort.