Chapter 51

The fear and infamy of the Heavenly Calamity Blood God, Wi Cheon-mu,
pushed the entire Murim into a crucible of terror
and seared it in the hellfire of despair. That era,
the martial artists called the Heavenly Calamity Blood Age and feared it.
Preventing a second Heavenly Calamity Blood Age was
the supreme task of all martial artists.

• A Boring Guy with No Social Skills

Cheonmu Restaurant, what an unoriginal and insincere name.
It was a thoughtless name, with no affection or consideration for the architect.
If it was called Cheonmu Restaurant because it was a restaurant inside the Cheonmu Academy,
how was that different from the second son of the Wang family being named Wang Yi (Wang the Second)?

Bi Ryu-yeon had thought of protesting to the upper echelons of the academy, who had given it such a name, as part of a movement to create a better world, but he decided to give up since there was nothing to be gained from it. Getting involved in useless things that did not benefit him was against his usual life creed.

But what was even more ridiculous than the name was the menu. On the vast menu of this only communal dormitory restaurant, only one name was hung up lonely. 'Cheonmu Special', really, the name... tsk tsk tsk...

In fact, it was also true that it was unreasonable to demand a variety of menus and tastes in such a large-scale communal restaurant. The ideal is far, and reality is harsh. Since they had to prepare meals for nearly a thousand people, it was inevitable that the menu was simplified to one kind for the sake of efficiency, so he couldn't even complain.

But even if he understood such circumstances, having only one kind was too much. Shouldn't there be at least two kinds to have the fun of choosing?

However, as long as the rice was free, Bi Ryu-yeon was willing to generously tolerate it, as long as the taste of the food did not cross the line of making him frown. It was much more comfortable for his mind to sacrifice his sense of taste to a tasteless, dry, and simple single menu than the terrifying fear and flesh-cutting pain of silver taels leaving his pocket for food expenses.

Bi Ryu-yeon, who had entered the restaurant with a firm resolve as hard as granite, was fortunate that the situation was not as serious as he had imagined. As he entered the restaurant, a savory and fragrant smell stimulated his sense of smell. Since a dish with a good aroma was rarely disastrously bad in taste, Bi Ryu-yeon could feel relieved inwardly.

Tonight's dinner menu was a chicken dish, two kinds of seasoned vegetables, and dumpling soup. Seeing that even a cup of tea was served as dessert, there were signs of considerable care.

The bowl was a rectangular iron plate with three small square indentations and two large square shapes indented inward, which seemed to be made for putting rice and soup in the large ones, and side dishes in the small ones. The material was made of iron, so it was a bit heavy.

One soup and three side dishes, excluding the soup, felt a bit insufficient, but it was worth giving a passing score. The food was served in two lines from both sides, and fortunately, it was not a time when everyone rushed in at once, so there was no need to wait long.

"Who is this? The idiot of Mount Hua, the disgrace of the sect?"

As they were sitting around a six-person table and diligently concentrating on their meal, a voice that suddenly interrupted their dinner was heard from behind Bi Ryu-yeon. It was an unlucky voice that was enough to provoke the displeasure of the listener. To see which punks dared to disturb the elegant meal of an elder, Bi Ryu-yeon turned his head and followed the source of the voice. The others also followed Bi Ryu-yeon's gaze to the source of the voice.

Where the gaze stopped, a young man and a woman in red martial robes were standing with arrogant eyes. In that instant, Yun Jun-ho shot up from his seat. His complexion was very dark for some reason.

"S-senior brother... H-have you been well?"

Yun Jun-ho hurriedly greeted them with a fist-and-palm salute. The young man and woman who had spoken to him frowned again at his clumsy and stammering behavior. As Yun Jun-ho acknowledged them, Hyo-ryong asked.

"Who are they?"

"Yes, they are my senior brother and senior sister from the Mount Hua Sect. This senior brother's name is Jong Ri-Hak, and this senior sister's name is Chu Ga Yeon."

Even though they were formally introduced through their junior brother Yun Jun-ho, these direct disciples of the Mount Hua Falling Goose Peak only nodded their heads once. No matter how much Bi Ryu-yeon and his party were their juniors in the academy, this was not polite. It was clear that they were very arrogant and liked to act haughty. Their extremely arrogant behavior could not have pleased the party, and of course, since there was no greeting coming, they thought there was no need for a greeting going, so Bi Ryu-yeon's party also just nodded their heads.

"How did you get in here?"

Senior brother Jong Ri-hak asked abruptly, as if interrogating him. When fellow disciples from the same sect met in a place like this, it was normal for them to be happy and glad to see each other, but such a friendly atmosphere could not be found among them. Rather, wasn't it as cold and chilly as sworn enemies?

"How could a punk like you get in here?"

It was as if he were intimidating him.

"S-senior brother..."

As Jong Ri-hak raised his voice, the soft-hearted Yun Jun-ho didn't know what to do. Jong Ri-hak was cornering and persecuting Yun Jun-ho like a cat cornering a mouse. He was now speaking as if he were not pleased with the fact that his fellow disciple had entered the academy, but since the admission of a fellow disciple should be considered the glory of the sect, what reason could there be for him to be dissatisfied and feel displeased?

"Hmph, it's obvious that you got in here despite your incompetent skills by fawning and flattering the great-grandmaster with all sorts of dirty tricks."

Chu Ga-yeon said with a sneer, as if to support Jong Ri-hak who was cornering Yun Jun-ho. She also seemed displeased with Yun Jun-ho's admission.

"N-no, that's not it. How could I do such a thing? It's an absurd misunderstanding."

Yun Jun-ho tried to make an excuse, but it was no use. His senior brother and senior sister had no intention of listening to his words from the beginning.

"What do you mean, no? You've been receiving the great-grandmaster's affection since your days at the Mount Hua Sect, and now you've instigated the great-grandmaster to enter this Cheonmu Academy with your incompetent skills? A punk like you is a disgrace to our Mount Hua Sect, a disgrace!"

Jong Ri-hak and Chu Ga-yeon cornered Yun Jun-ho as if they were going to eat him alive. Yun Jun-ho, who was being reprimanded alternately by his fellow senior brother and senior sister, Jong Ri-hak and Chu Ga-yeon, soon became tearful. For his tender heart, the severe interrogation of his senior brother and senior sister was unbearably sad. Moreover, he couldn't even dream of fighting back. Yun Jun-ho couldn't say a word, as if his mouth had been sealed.

"..."

Just then, Jang Hong, who couldn't watch any longer, stepped in to help Yun Jun-ho from the side.

"Isn't that too much? From what I've heard, it sounds like Yun Jun-ho's great-grandmaster gave him a Dragon Riding Plaque despite his lack of skills out of affection for him, am I wrong?"

Jang Hong didn't feel like it, but since the two were his seniors, whether he liked them or not, whether they were unlucky or not, he used honorifics for now. But if he didn't like it, it was a matter of when he would switch to informal language. Jang Hong was not one to be bound by hierarchy and follow etiquette.

"Wrong? You're very accurate. This guy got a Dragon Riding Plaque shamefully by fawning on the great-grandmaster with his incompetent skills. A shameful punk!"

Jong Ri-hak was on the verge of spitting. Jang Hong asked again.

"As far as I know, there is only one person in the current Mount Hua Sect who can be called Yun Jun-ho's great-grandmaster. Is that person perhaps the former head of the Mount Hua Sect, the Plum Blossom Sword Saint, Yu Hwan-gwon?"

"That's right!"

Jong Ri-hak answered coldly.

"That's strange, isn't it?"

"What's strange?"

"Isn't the Plum Blossom Sword Saint, Yu Hwan-gwon, the best sword master of Mount Hua in the last 50 years, whose realm of the sword is said to have entered the realm of harmony? I don't think such a person would misjudge things and make a wrong choice, being bound by mere affection. He is no different from the spiritual pillar of the Mount Hua Sect! If you question his choice and interpret it arbitrarily and don't believe it, how is that different from doubting him?"

"Shut up! How dare you speak of the great-grandmaster's name so disrespectfully, you're insolent."

At Jang Hong's sharp counterattack, they were momentarily flustered. Because he had pierced their most painful spot most sharply. So they shouted loudly, a common tactic of flustered people. It was an instinctive action, worried that their agitation would be revealed to others. Jang Hong sneered at them confidently.

"Hmph, disrespectful, I hadn't thought of that. Aren't you the ones who are committing a greater disrespect right now by doubting the choice of such a great person with your insignificant insight?"

Jang Hong said, emphasizing the part 'insignificant insight' with particular force.

"Where is such a forced argument? Will you not shut up!"

Jong Ri-hak shouted with a reddened face. It was a pathetically typical reaction of a person who had been hit where it hurts.

"I think you were the one who made the forced argument first."

As Jang Hong's sharp gaze met Jong Ri-hak's face, Jong Ri-hak's face turned red with humiliation. 'How dare a junior talk back to a senior who is like the sky, what an arrogant punk,' he must have been thinking.

It was no longer a matter of whether Yun Jun-ho had talent or not. The fight had already begun, and once a fight had started, he couldn't just back down like this. Because he couldn't turn his pride into a rag. The faces of the two were already heated red like iron that had been worked in a bellows, unable to control their anger.

"Don't talk nonsense about things you don't know. How can a fool who can't even use the Plum Blossom Sword Method be called a direct disciple of the Mount Hua Sect? My mouth is just ashamed and disgraced."

What was this? Hyo-ryong and Jang Hong's eyes widened. And they began to seriously doubt their hearing and language comprehension skills. They had just heard something completely incomprehensible from the opponent. Only Bi Ryu-yeon was watching the progress of the situation silently with his eyes wide open.

Jong Ri-hak's sharp gaze turned to his junior brother—it was highly doubtful whether he even acknowledged him as a junior brother—Yun Jun-ho.

"A idiot of Mount Hua like you, who can't even properly perform a single form of the Plum Blossom Sword, has entered this sacred Cheonmu Academy. It's a disgrace to the sect and a stain on the academy. If you have a conscience and still have a sense of shame, pack your bags and leave this place immediately."

Jong Ri-hak's abusive words were merciless.

"S-senior brother!"

'No matter how I think about it, he's an incredibly unlucky punk. Should I punch him in the face? Then my stuffy insides would feel a bit refreshed and cool...' Hyo-ryong thought to himself.

"If you don't have any more sense of shame and decide to stay here, be especially careful not to bring shame to the sect! Well, your existence itself is a nuisance, though."

He was arrogant. His words, actions, expressions, and everything were filled with a self-conceit that he was firmly superior to the likes of Yun Jun-ho. There was no way that his arrogant words and actions would have given Bi Ryu-yeon's party a good impression.

"Watch your mouth!"

Hyo-ryong, who could no longer bear the opponent's arrogance and rudeness, stepped forward. Then, Jong Ri-hak's thick eyebrows twitched.

"Ho, what kind of talk is that to a senior? The Mount Hua idiot and his friends?"

At Jong Ri-hak's tone, Hyo-ryong and Jang Hong's expressions hardened, and they were indignant. But Bi Ryu-yeon was still not showing any particular reaction, so it was difficult to guess his inner thoughts. A gaze that seemed to look down on people, it seemed he was a punk who was thoroughly wrapped in authority, arrogance, and self-righteousness from the depths of his bones to the ends of his mind. In a word, a total jerk, a punk not even worth dealing with.

"..."

But Yun Jun-ho said nothing. He couldn't even say a word of rebuttal to Jong Ri-hak's insulting remarks. Just as the atmosphere was getting more and more hostile, Bi Ryu-yeon, who had glanced at the restless Yun Jun-ho, asked Hyo-ryong. He was very easy to ask questions to because he knew a lot of things, unlike a freshman who had just entered this year. But his question was more than enough to push the entire group into a crucible of shock.

"By the way, what's the Plum Blossom Sword Method?"

Bi Ryu-yeon asked Hyo-ryong about the Plum Blossom Sword Method, one of the twelve most famous sword methods in the Jianghu, in a tone as if asking if such a thing existed in this world.

"What, you don't even know that?"

Hyo-ryong asked back in surprise. How could he not be surprised that he didn't know one of the twelve most famous sword methods in the world? Even if Bi Ryu-yeon had asked him, 'Do you happen to know which way the sun rises?', he would not have been this surprised.

Jong Ri-hak and Chu Ga-yeon also looked at Bi Ryu-yeon with sharp but dumbfounded eyes. Their eyes clearly showed a look of 'what kind of punk is that?'. If there was anyone in the Jianghu who did not know the Plum Blossom Sword Method of the Mount Hua Sect, that person would nine times out of ten be a fool or an idiot. In a world where common sense clearly existed, how could such a thing be possible?

But Bi Ryu-yeon's question was neither a joke nor a prank. He really didn't know anything, so he had just asked politely out of a simple desire to satisfy his curiosity.

Although Bi Ryu-yeon had had Hwa Seorok and Jo Cheon-u from the Mount Hua Sect as his disciples during his days at Mount Emei, he had not even heard the 'plum' of the Plum Blossom Sword Method from them during the training camp. Because he had no opportunity to see it.

Well, most of what he had taught and made his disciples do was housework and side jobs that had nothing to do with their ultimate techniques, and the teaching—Bi Ryu-yeon still insisted that those were teachings—was also almost a one-way street, so he was like a blank sheet of paper not only about the Mount Hua Sect but also about the ultimate techniques of all the disciples of the Vermilion Bird group.

All sixteen members of the Vermilion Bird group were busy cooking, doing laundry, chopping wood, and stringing beads, so when could they have had the time to look back on their own martial arts ultimate techniques? Bi Ryu-yeon was not so lenient as to leave them any personal leisure time. So, his question was, in a way, natural. Of course, even if that fact was absurd and ridiculous.

Regardless of the absurdity of the question, Hyo-ryong barely managed to pull himself together from the absurdity and kindly answered his question. It might have been Bi Ryu-yeon's illusion that he felt cold sweat forming on his forehead. Or perhaps he had seen it correctly...