Chapter 45

• A Labyrinth of Terrible Luck

It was vast. Ah, so vast.
The Cheonmu Academy was truly enormous.
It was so vast that a first-time visitor would be prone to getting lost and becoming a lost child.

The high walls that blocked the sun and the forest of buildings wide enough to obstruct the path of the wind were enough to overwhelm those trapped within. Moreover, despite being so vast, there wasn't a single properly attached sign in the academy, making it even more likely for one to get lost and wander. Of course, although the Cheonmu Academy was a cradle of learning, it was also a strict organization of the Murim. It was only natural that countermeasures were established with the primary assumption of an enemy's existence.

In that context, all the buildings here were built according to the intricate laws of the Five Elements and the Eight Trigrams. In other words, the layout of the buildings in this Cheonmu Academy followed a kind of giant formation, so if an unknowing person were to visit, they would wander like a mouse in a maze or a blind crow. The complexly built buildings, according to the laws of the Five Elements and the Eight Trigrams, created the effect of a giant formation. In other words, it was a deliberate architecture with the purpose of confusing people's senses and making them lose their sense of direction.

And yet, the Cheonmu Academy did not think of assigning guides to the new disciples. It meant that they had to find their way out and to their dormitories on their own. 'How could they endure the difficult and arduous classes in the future if they couldn't even break through such a simple formation?' was the common thought of the officials here. Their training had already begun.

The place the new disciples were now looking for was a place called 'Muhonji', a kind of male dormitory complex. There, dozens of communal dormitory buildings named Muhon, Geomhon, Dohon, Changhon, etc., were built, and most of the disciples who entered the Cheonmu Academy would eat and sleep there. Of course, as the Cheonmu Academy was vast, there were also several restaurants, taverns, and tea houses within the academy, but since they were expensive to use, most of the disciples ate and slept here.

The old man they had seen earlier at Cheongsim-gwan seemed to be the manager and general person in charge of Muhonji (the land where the spirit of martial arts lives and breathes). That old man had explained the facilities, geography, and rules of this Muhonji in a clear voice, but Bi Ryu-yeon, who was far from following rules from the beginning, did not pay any attention to such trivial stories. Hyo-ryong was in a similar situation, making the saying 'birds of a feather flock together' feel real once again. So, not only Bi Ryu-yeon but also Hyo-ryong did not know the geography leading to Muhonji, and the two were now wandering around here.

If this wasn't called 'reaping what you sow', it would be hard to find an opportunity to use this phrase for a while. Had they wandered for about an hour? Bi Ryu-yeon, who was far from being familiar with formations, had been wandering for an hour and still hadn't found the way. Just as his annoyance was about to reach the top of his head, the two met a person. It was the first person they had met after an hour of wandering. Looking around and wandering through the academy, it was clear at a glance that he was in the same situation as them. The only difference was that his first impression was too old to be a new disciple this year. His mound-like hair, which seemed to have not been weeded for at least a few years, his spiky beard like randomly grown weeds, and his eyes, which were thin but somehow seemed to have a sense of age, made it difficult to see him as being in his early twenties. The relaxed smile hanging on his lips was also the same.

No matter how you looked at him, his appearance was that of a complete middle-aged man. The one who noticed first was the middle-aged man. The middle-aged man saw Bi Ryu-yeon and Hyo-ryong first and raised his hand, waving and acknowledging them.

"Hey? By any chance..."

He probably spoke to them with a glimmer of hope that the two might know the way, but his hope was shattered beautifully.

"We don't know either."

Bi Ryu-yeon's words were firm. He looked disappointed inwardly, but he didn't show it much.

"It's always confusing whenever I come here..."

"Yes, what did you just say?"

He had muttered in a very faint voice, so Bi Ryu-yeon and Hyo-ryong, who were standing next to him, couldn't hear what he was saying well.

"Oh, no, no."

The middle-aged man shook his head and awkwardly dismissed their question. Hmph... The two shot a strong and intense look of suspicion at the middle-aged man. Then, the middle-aged man gave an awkward smile and introduced himself with a fist-and-palm salute.

"My name is Jang Hong! I'm a new disciple who entered this year."

"Liar!"

The two shouted in unison. It was a strong expression of their will, asking who he was lying to, telling him not to lie. At a glance, his face was an impression that could not be seen as being in his early twenties at all. Then, the man who had introduced himself as Jang Hong made a troubled expression and looked embarrassed. Jang Hong's right hand kept scratching the back of his head in vain.

"I'm telling you the truth..."

But his words were by no means words that could give others faith. The weight of faith carried in those words was lighter than a single fallen leaf.

In any case, they were people who had met while wandering together. What use would such a person be in finding the way? So, even after meeting Jang Hong, Bi Ryu-yeon and Hyo-ryong had to wander around the academy for a long time. As expected, Jang Hong was of no help in finding the way. The gamble of the two, who had placed a small amount of hope that their sharp sixth sense might be wrong, ended in a complete failure. And finally...

After three hours of being engrossed in finding the maze, the three were able to stand in front of a long, large rock. On the surface of the grand rock, which was the size of two grown men combined and stood tall in an oval shape, the three characters 'Muhonji' were grandly engraved. It was a wonderful craftsmanship that made one feel the spirit of a warrior right away. Behind it, there was a path surrounded by a forest, and beyond that, dozens of buildings were built in the distance. It was the place where the Geomhon-gwan of Muhonji, which they had been searching for so desperately, was built.

It had already been over 20 minutes since they had arrived here. Even though it was a time when they could have already taken two or three hundred steps, they were just staring at the path like stone statues, without even thinking of moving. Why were the three standing at the entrance and just staring at the path, without thinking of entering, even though they had found the destination they had been searching for so desperately?

Finally, Hyo-ryong turned his eyes and looked at Bi Ryu-yeon. He was probably asking for his opinion. Bi Ryu-yeon's brow furrowed slightly.

"It's a path I really don't want to walk on!"

Bi Ryu-yeon spat out a word. Hyo-ryong also nodded his head at his words. It seemed he had also noticed something.

"It looks really unlucky, doesn't it?"

"It looks so unlucky it even seems dangerous."

"Really, what were they thinking, doing the road construction like this..."

Bi Ryu-yeon nodded his head as if he agreed with Hyo-ryong's words. Only Jang Hong was staring at the path leading to the building with a strange look in his eyes from behind them. His gaze was of a different kind from the gazes of the other two. A strange and mysterious light flowed from his eyes.

'It's finally starting. The traditional hazing ceremony of the Cheonmu Academy. The new student's ordeal, the ultimate hazing of the newcomers!'

Jang Hong probably already knew something. But Jang Hong did not let out the information he knew and give any hint to his companions. He was not in a position to do so.

"I'd rather refuse if I could, but the situation doesn't allow it. In times like this..."

Bi Ryu-yeon's mouth opened again. A playful smile had returned to his face.

"In times like this?"

Hyo-ryong asked back.

"Forced breakthrough!"

Bi Ryu-yeon spat out each word clearly, as if it were obvious.

"Forced breakthrough!"

Hyo-ryong and Jang Hong shouted in unison. Of course, in their gazes, there was a clear light of reproach, asking, 'How about thinking a little and acting with a plan?' But Bi Ryu-yeon had already made up his mind. His gaze was poised to actually carry out such a foolish method. As if there was nothing more to see, Bi Ryu-yeon took a big step forward.

Pew!

An arrow, which had come out of nowhere, flew straight at Bi Ryu-yeon's face. It was a surprise attack with no warning or forewarning whatsoever.

Swoosh!

But Bi Ryu-yeon, as if he had expected this, dodged the arrow with a simple motion of slightly tilting his head to the side, and then lightly took the next step. The arrow that had flown by left only a sound of cutting through the air and got stuck in a tree behind Bi Ryu-yeon. There was not a single change in Bi Ryu-yeon's complexion. On the faces of Hyo-ryong and Jang Hong behind him, an expression of 'I thought so, and it is so' appeared. These two had also noticed that there were traps set on the path.

The three had barely found the entrance to their destination after wandering for an hour and 20 minutes, and just as they were about to enter, they felt a strange sense of unease. Their sixth sense warned them with a strong alarm. That path was not a path to be walked on carelessly... Their premonitions, which had been trained through long years of immense training, were almost never wrong, so they were confident in their senses.

Upon closer inspection, the small path extending to the buildings was suspicious. It did not have the smell of nature, but was full of the smell of artificial manipulation, so how could one dare to step on it easily? Not only that, but if you looked closely, you could find faint bloodstains left here and there. In addition, the faint smell of blood had not yet completely disappeared, so it was clear that something unusual was hidden. And something that threatened their bodies at that. So they had thought 'what if', and their prediction had hit the bullseye with a perfect score of ten. They had only taken one step, but the trap had already been activated. How impatient... But this was just the beginning.

Pababak!

On the second step, there were three arrows. And it was a terrifying chain technique that accurately aimed at the upper, middle, and lower parts. But Bi Ryu-yeon also made them all useless just by shaking his body once.

But the mechanical traps did not end there. More terrifying and more cunning devices were continuously hidden and showed themselves one by one with each step. Bi Ryu-yeon was very displeased with these young ladies who were recklessly rushing in to show off their existence. These terrifying young ladies did not know how to refuse at all and rushed at his chest or entire body without any warning, so what man would like them?

This time, the young ladies were small, invisible flying needles. This was no joke. Judging by the color of the flying needles, it seemed they were not poisoned, but the fact that dozens of flying needles were flying at his eyes was extremely dangerous, with no change. Originally, such flying needles were weak in effect just by hitting the target, so nine times out of ten, they were coated with poison or chemicals. But fortunately, there was no such thing.

He had looked forward to what would come after the flying needles. But the next was a rain of arrows that he had already experienced. The only difference was that the number was incomparably larger than before. But the problem was that that difference was a big difference that could make a person's life hang in the balance. The eyes of the two who were watching from behind widened. Because they thought Bi Ryu-yeon would not be able to avoid the rain of arrows this time.

There seemed to be no way to avoid the rain of arrows that were cunningly flying from all directions. Was the only way to block it with immense skill? But Bi Ryu-yeon completely crushed this expectation. His body swayed limply.

"Th-that's... l-l-like..."

"Yes, it really looks like an octopus."

Jang Hong was so surprised that he stuttered and couldn't continue, just glaring with his eyes, and as if feeling sorry for Jang Hong, Hyo-ryong next to him let out a cry of astonishment instead. Jang Hong and Hyo-ryong were truly astonished. It was to the point where they suspected their hearts had not popped out of their throats. They couldn't believe what they had seen with their own eyes. Had their eyesight gotten worse in the meantime? Or had they ever been negligent in practicing their eye techniques? They even had self-reproachful doubts. Perhaps it was a mistake to have read the secret manual all night last time. How could such an evasion be possible with a human body? And how could one perform such a thing in broad daylight?

Bi Ryu-yeon's body movements were astonishing movements that could not be thought of as human. The movements of his whole body, which swayed and moved limply like a mollusk that had sold off all the bones in its body somewhere, were each and every one movements that could not be thought of as human.