Chapter 15

In the space where no one was left, the two stood silently facing each other for a moment. At that moment, a stream of blood flowed down from Namgung Sang's sleeve onto the back of his hand.

"Oh my, blood!"

Jin Ryeong exclaimed in surprise.

"Ah, it's nothing. I was just grazed a little."

Namgung Sang said as if it were nothing. He wanted to show a strong side to the woman he adored.

"What do you mean, it's nothing? Please show me the wound."

Jin Ryeong forcibly turned Namgung Sang's body with her beautiful, jade-like hands.

'This is quite nice...' Namgung Sang said to himself, but he turned his back as if reluctantly. The signs of emotion and excitement were evident on his face.

"Oh my!"

Jin Ryeong, seeing Namgung Sang's back, exclaimed in surprise. Namgung Sang's back was torn in four streaks by the tiger's claws, and blood was continuously flowing out. It was by no means a light wound as he had said. It was a wound he had gotten while protecting her when dodging the white tiger's second attack a moment ago. To not even let out a groan with such a large wound. And it was a wound he got while trying to protect her. A small ripple, a concentric circle, formed in Jin Ryeong's heart.

"To say something like this is fine... It's absolutely not fine. Look, I'll treat the wound for you."

Jin Ryeong said as if she was dumbfounded and began to carefully treat the wound. First, she took off Namgung Sang's upper garment and began to apply the golden wound medicine she had on the wound. But Namgung Sang's mind was somewhere else, perhaps in his kidneys, and he couldn't even feel the pain.

'Miss Jin's touch is so gentle...'

A greater ecstasy than the stinging pain was dominating him.

She applied the golden wound medicine as a first aid measure, but she didn't have any bandages. A look of dismay appeared on Jin Ryeong's beautiful face. Since there were no bandages, she couldn't wrap the wound, so Jin Ryeong pondered. But that pondering was brief; as if she had decided something, Jin Ryeong shot up and quickly tore her skirt. It was an action without a moment's hesitation.

"M-Miss Jin, you're tearing your clothes!"

The startled Namgung Sang exclaimed. Her alluring leg line, peeking through the torn skirt, made his already dazed eyes even more dizzy.

"It's alright. Young Master Namgung saved my life, what's a piece of clothing like this?"

The clothes Jin Ryeong was wearing now were one of only two sets of clothes she had received after having her original clothes confiscated by Bi Ryu-yeon on the first day of training. Since she had made her tear one of only two sets of clothes, Namgung Sang was so sorry he didn't know what to do.

"Still, if Miss Jin does that, I'll be ashamed. This is too much for me..."

Namgung Sang's words trailed off. He couldn't continue speaking.

Jin Ryeong began to wrap the bandage made from her torn skirt around Namgung Sang's wound. Namgung Sang was a man, and Jin Ryeong was a woman. It's a natural thing, but Namgung Sang's shoulder width and chest circumference were larger than Jin Ryeong's. It was even more so because he was a person who had trained in martial arts. So when Jin Ryeong tried to wrap the bandage around Namgung Sang's wound, it created a shape as if Jin Ryeong was hugging Namgung Sang from behind.

Once again, Namgung Sang's mind went completely blank. The soft, smooth, and warm, indescribably ecstatic and sweet feeling transmitted through his back struck the top of Namgung Sang's head like a thunderbolt. Finally, whether he had the intention of sharing this moment forever, or whether he had lost his mind and gone crazy, he grabbed the hand of Jin Ryeong that was wrapped around his chest to wrap the bandage. For him, it was probably an unconscious act. It was impossible that Namgung Sang, who had no other specialty than moping around, would have done such a thing in his right mind.

In that instant, Jin Ryeong's body flinched. Since the hand that was wrapped around his chest was grabbed, she couldn't forcibly pull it away, and she ended up in a position of continuously hugging Namgung Sang from behind. But for some reason, Jin Ryeong remained quiet, her face flushed red, without even screaming. And a long silence, like an eternity, began to flow.

Namgung Sang, who had been lost in a daze, seemed to have come to his senses and startledly let go of her hand. As if something was caught in their throats, the two sat silently without saying a word to each other. Whether it was because of the evening sunset or for some other reason, both of their faces looked red. Gradually, it seemed as if the illusion of stopped time had completely captivated them both.

Had the stopped time begun to flow again? How much time had passed? The person who broke the silence first was Namgung Sang. As if he had decided something, Namgung Sang's face was no longer flushed red. Namgung Sang stood up from his seat and, as if he had made a decision, politely extended his right hand and said to Jin Ryeong.

"Well then, shall we go, Miss!"

The extended hand, it was a hand that desired a choice. To extend this hand once, Namgung Sang had to exert superhuman patience and courage like Mount Tai. And the girl, standing at a crossroads of choice. The girl seemed to ponder for a moment, then soon answered with a silent gesture. The ripple in her heart had grown bigger and bigger, and now it was so strong that it shook her heart and broke down the wall that lay between them.

"Yes."

She answered with a smiling face, gently giving her left hand. The smile that appeared on her jade-like face was dazzlingly beautiful. Namgung Sang, who was instantly intoxicated by her smile, carefully held her white, jade-like hand as if it would break. It was a time full of warmth and freshness, where a group of brightly shining lights shattered and shone.

---

• Standing on Water, Walking on Water

Under the sun floating like it was flowing on the water's surface, a person was swinging a sword. His sword seemed endlessly slow and boring, as if someone was holding his body and not letting go. His name was Hyeonun.

He was called a prodigy who would lead the future of the Wudang Sect, the renowned family of the sword called the number one Taoist school in the Divine Land, and he had received all sorts of expectations. He had also confirmed his skills to the Jianghu by passing the entrance exam of the Cheonmu Academy, which every martial artist longed to enter, in a single try.

At the Cheonmu Academy, he surpassed the talents of the nine sects, one gang, five great families, and other sects, who were said to be flying and crawling, and became one of the Nine Dragons, the best of the best, becoming the object of envy for all the young people who dreamed of the Jianghu. His ability was recognized, and he received the secret of secrets, the Taiji Sword, which was not easily passed down in Wudang, from the sect leader. He was a person who had even received the title of 'Flowing Cloud Sword' because his Taiji Sword was like a cloud, impossible to catch, press down, or cut. But his movements now looked so clumsy and difficult. His face was flushed red, and his two eyes seemed to be pleading with frustration, looking as if he was suffering from something.

'This is no joke!'

Hyeonun was now enduring a difficult battle against the bone-chilling cold and the immense pressure of the water's weight. The resistance of the water, the resistance that the water possessed, was holding back and interfering with the path the sword had to take. He was now gradually feeling his limit. No matter how much he tried to endure using his internal energy, he had already reached the extreme of his limit. It had already been 7.5 minutes since he entered this cold valley, and it was impossible to move the sword as if swimming through the water anymore. A feeling of stuffiness from his lungs and the pain of pressure as if his heart would burst were rushing in. His whole body was crying out in pain.

'Is this really the limit?'

No matter how he moved the sword, it would not move as intended along the path of the Taiji Sword. He felt like he was holding and swinging a sword of a thousand catties. His master had said that this training would end only when he could swing the sword in here without any resistance, without any hesitation. But it was easier said than done, and it still felt far from when this training would end. Still, since he said this was the last training, he was working hard like this, receiving some comfort from those words. But any more...

"Puha!"

"Gasp, gasp, gasp."

A face shot out of the water surface with a splash. The figure that shot out began to gasp for breath roughly. He was in so much pain that his breathing was rough and irregular. It was air he had tasted after only 7.5 minutes, but to Hyeonun, it was an endlessly clear and refreshing air, as if he were tasting it for the first time in a hundred years. Who said it? That you only know the preciousness of air when there is no air?

Hyeonun, who was inhaling the air while thinking of words no one had ever said, thanked the heavens for the fact that he could now breathe air. But...

"No, no. Oh, don't do this. I'm falling. I said don't do this. Waaah, I said no. Oh, oh my, oh my."

Arms flailing, waist swaying, legs trembling, body tilting. No matter how desperately she struggled and tried to maintain her balance, that effort ended in vain, and with her chattering words and babbling mouth, she fell into the water.

"Plop."

A large splash was made, the water surface rippled, and high waves were created.

"Aaaargh, no. This can't be, no, no. Aack, plop!"

"Oh my, oh my, plop!"

"Mommy, plop!"

"Daddy, plop!"

"Mother, plop!"

"Miss Yeonsu, plop!"

"..., plop!"

"Ababa, ababa. Plop!"

Different people screamed different screams and threw themselves into the valley water. That's not to say that they were pessimistic about the world and had lost the will to live and had the intention of committing suicide. Rather, their desire for survival was superiorly high and intense compared to others.

Was it said that if you put an object in a full bathtub, water overflows by the volume of that object? Was it said that if you throw a stone into a pond, a ripple is created by the weight of that stone? Just like these theories, when Jin Ryeong threw her body, the water surface began to churn from the aftermath, and thanks to that, the other people who were barely standing on the water with her also lost their balance one by one and fell into the water.

But standing on the water? How can a person stand on water? Had they suddenly acquired some miraculous divine power? In fact, the reason they could stand on the water was because of two small wooden planks. Those wooden plank pieces were planks shaped about a handspan longer and a handspan wider than an ordinary person's foot. Using these, they were able to precariously float on the water.

Of course, standing on the water using such small wooden planks was no ordinary feat. It was not something just anyone could do. First, you stand on the water with one wooden plank on each foot. At this time, the most important thing is the sense of balance, and the next is the secret art of lightness to make the body light using qi. Since there are two wooden planks, they try to move separately, so supporting the planks is also a very important technique.

Since there are no strings attached, everything must be solved with qi and the body's senses. Water has the property of flowing, so it is always changing, and the changes caused by this fluidity of water make people perplexed. If you let your guard down for even a moment, you're headed straight for an underwater walk.

Just because you can stand on the water doesn't mean the training is over. If the stage of being able to stand on the water is called standing on water, then you must go through the next stage called walking on water or moving on water. It is the stage of literally walking or moving on the water, relying on two planks. You must be able to move by sliding on the water surface as if sliding on ice. This stage is just the stage of walking straight forward.

The final third stage was the most important technique, and it was a very tricky and difficult technique. Bi Ryu-yeon began his demonstration, saying he would show that difficult technique. Bi Ryu-yeon stood on the wooden planks so naturally and easily. He was as unshaken and composed as a person standing on solid ground.

"Watch carefully."

Bi Ryu-yeon's right foot slid on the water, drawing a semicircle forward, and was pulled towards his left foot. Simultaneously, Bi Ryu-yeon's left foot drew a semicircle backward and was pulled towards his right foot. Then Bi Ryu-yeon's body naturally became in a state of having turned half a circle. Bi Ryu-yeon continued to repeat this process. Bi Ryu-yeon's body spun round and round on the water as if dancing. And the speed of his body's rotation began to get faster and faster, and finally, he began to spin like a top. In that moment, an amazing thing happened. The water of the valley began to wrap around Bi Ryu-yeon's body like a snake and coil up.

Of course, the water was not magically enchanted and actually wrapped around Bi Ryu-yeon's body. It just looked that way from the side. In reality, the water coiling up the formless pillar created by the propulsive force generated around Bi Ryu-yeon looked to the people watching from the side as if the water was climbing up Bi Ryu-yeon's body. The propulsive force generated by the rotation had pulled the water on the surface.

Soon, a pillar of water was formed on the water surface. Everyone watched the scene, mesmerized. Their master, who always seemed strange, showed such a trick, so there was no one who was not surprised.

"Hap."

A shout burst out from within the water pillar.

"Bang."

In an instant, the water pillar exploded and scattered in all directions. Naturally, those who were watching the demonstration intently without moving from the side had to receive the unannounced shower of water.

"Did you see that well? Try it!"

Amazingly, not a single drop of water was on Bi Ryu-yeon's body. Everyone was speechless, lost in a daze. The water pillar phenomenon just now, that is, the phenomenon of water coiling up due to the propulsive force, is what happens when the Phoenix Dance is performed to its extreme. The higher the mastery of the Phoenix Dance, the larger the size of the water pillar. With that, one can measure the area of effect of the Phoenix Dance. This standing on water and walking on water were the basic training methods Bi Ryu-yeon had received when he learned the Flying Thunder Sect's secret movement technique, the Phoenix Dance, from his master. He was now giving it back to his own disciples. To be precise, he was giving back the pain he had received when he learned it.

The next was the training of swinging a sword in the water. It didn't just apply to swords; those who used sabers had to use sabers, those who used spears had to use spears, and those who used hidden weapons had to swing, thrust, and throw using them. These two trainings were the final stage of their practice. It would be the last training Bi Ryu-yeon would give them.

"Hyeonun, you're too fast. Too fast!"

A roar burst out. It was the master's voice. The moment of joy of returning from another world and breathing air was brief. The time of misfortune had come again.

"Hey, how long has it been that you're already coming out? You should at least, at the very least, endure for 15 minutes. Are you going to fight for just 15 minutes and then drop your sword? Do you want to just get hit by someone else's sword after 15 minutes and die? You want to die that much!"

"No."

Hyeonun answered with a dejected face.

"Then get back in."

"Yes."

Hyeonun answered weakly and put his head back into the water. And he did not surface for a while.

"Next, you! Tang Sam."

Bi Ryu-yeon's finger pointed at the third son of the Tang family, Tang Cheol-yeong, who was said to be fast-handed and venomous. His name was, of course, not Tang Sam. There was not one in a thousand, one in ten thousand, or one in ten million chances that the Tang Clan, a prestigious family of the Jianghu and one of the five great families, would name their children by just attaching the surname and naming them one, two, three, four in order of birth, like poor commoners or ruffians. Bi Ryu-yeon had started calling Tang Cheol-yeong Tang Sam, meaning the third of the Tang family, simply because he found his name troublesome to call. Of course, it was not a pleasant thing for the person being called that, Tang Sam, no, Cheol-yeong, but he had to endure it, chewing on the sorrow of the powerless.

"Yes? Me?"

The third son of the Tang family, who had put his finger to his face as if to ask, 'Are you pointing at me?', responded with a tone as if confirming.

"Yes, you. Is there another Tang Sam here besides you? Don't pretend you don't know and get in quickly."

"Yeees~!"

After answering weakly with a face as if he had chewed on a bitterwood tree, like a cow being dragged to a slaughterhouse, Tang Sam went into the water. In this way, he repeatedly put them into the cold valley water one by one and then took them out. Women were no exception. He put everyone in, regardless of gender. It was Bi Ryu-yeon's philosophy and firm belief that he had to give back to his own disciples exactly what he had suffered in the past. He thought that since he had suffered such a fate from his master, his disciples should also suffer exactly what this master had to go through.

To put it simply, he was taking out his anger on innocent people; it was like a guy who got slapped on Mount Hua going to Mount Song to take out his anger. Watching his disciples disappear into the water one by one like that, the wicked master Bi Ryu-yeon smiled with satisfaction. Behind him, Namgung Sang was lying as if dead. His whole body was limp like a water-soaked blanket, and it was unclear whether he was dead or alive. A while ago, he had been going in and out too much, acting as a skilled assistant, and had collapsed from exhaustion.

The sun was still in the middle of the sky; there was plenty of time. Until the sun hanging up there in the sky disappeared beyond the western mountains and showed no sign of coming out, they had to continuously go in and out of the water. If they fell while practicing standing on the water, they had to practice swinging in the water since they had fallen in anyway. On the water, they trained their lower body, and under the water, they focused on training their upper body. They had to keep coming and going. Between the cold water and the precarious water surface...