Chapter 9

-Let's Never Be the One Who Learns

Inside the transparent water!

A place where a clear blue breathes and a cold chill swims, where a huge current of water embroiders the world. At its center stood Bi Ryu-yeon.

This was a special place where sound could not travel carelessly, so it was natural for Bi Ryu-yeon to be quiet.

Because this place was in the water, right under the waterfall.

A cold chill wrapped around his entire body, but it had no particular effect on the sole disciple and successor of the Flying Thunder Sect who was currently there. In Bi Ryu-yeon's hand was a single Flying Thunder Dagger. He composed his mind, focused his spirit, and looked at a rock about 15 meters away. It was a rock the size of his detestable, hateful master's face.

That rock, for the sole reason that it was the size of his master's face, spurred his desire for destruction twofold. In an instant, Bi Ryu-yeon's hand shot forward. It was not at a fast speed. Due to the water's resistance, he could not yet move his arm as quickly as on land. However, despite the extreme water pressure and resistance, his arm moved smoothly and naturally, without any awkwardness.

Along with that, the single Flying Thunder Dagger held in his hand swam through the water at high speed and embedded itself in the rock the size of his master's head, which was far away. Even though he had thrown a dagger in the deep water where immense water pressure pressed down on his whole body, the dagger, as if scorning the laws of nature, leisurely pierced through the water and embedded itself in the rock. However, despite this great feat of conquering the laws of nature, Bi Ryu-yeon was not particularly happy.

'Tch, a failure... It didn't split in half.'

A look of disappointment flashed across Bi Ryu-yeon's face. What others would see as an incredible achievement was, to Bi Ryu-yeon, just a miserable failure. Bi Ryu-yeon pulled on the Thunder Spirit Thread connected to the Flying Thunder Dagger to retrieve it again. If this were on land, the Flying Thunder Dagger would have returned to Bi Ryu-yeon's hand without fail, but in the water where an invisible, formless current existed, it returned halfway before losing its strength and trying to sink.

At this moment, the water spirits churned violently. The Flying Thunder Dagger, swept away by the current, swam here and there in the water, following the waves. The Flying Thunder Dagger, already out of control, could no longer be adjusted. It was something that happened because his training was still insufficient.

What was the weakness of the Flying Thunder Dagger? Wasn't it underwater combat? When subjected to the resistance of water and strong water pressure, the body becomes sluggish, and the dagger does not fly. If an invisible, formless current is added to that, there is nothing more to say. Of course, the power carried by the dagger also decreases significantly. The speed, of course, decreases. If the dagger, whose life is speed, loses its speed, it means death.

The same went for the thread-sword. It was impossible to control a thread thinner than a hair in the water, which undulated irregularly following the invisible, strong current. At best, a dagger might be able to move a short distance in the water at the speed of a slow turtle's walk.

However, if one tried to wield a thread-sword, which has almost no weight or strength, underwater, people would not hesitate to call that person a madman. If you don't believe it, try putting a thread in the water yourself. The thread will immediately lose its strength and move as the water flows. It's common sense of common sense.

Therefore, throwing a dagger underwater was as difficult as shooting an arrow on a stormy day like a madman and hitting the center of a target 330 meters away. To put it more simply, it's impossible.

But the previous masters of the Flying Thunder Sect did not give up. They challenged the impregnable barrier, broke down the wall that people thought was impossible, and completely overturned their common sense. The advanced training course called Su-roe-bi was developed to compensate for the weaknesses of the Flying Thunder Dagger, which had the characteristics of both a dagger and a thread-sword.

Su-roe-bi, which roughly means 'a thunderbolt that flies through water,' could be called a training course rather than a martial art. It was training to overcome the weaknesses of the Flying Thunder Dagger. The incantation given for this training was just one line:

'Become one with the water. There is no distinction between self and object. Forget yourself, do not go against nature, and become one with nature.'

And so on and so forth.

Although Bi Ryu-yeon had almost completed the first stage, the power carried by his Flying Thunder Dagger was still insufficient, and the speed was not enough. Moreover, his ability to control his true qi was also very poor, so he couldn't even dream of adjusting the thread-sword, that is, the Thunder Spirit Thread, which required the use of true qi. All Bi Ryu-yeon could do now was to be able to throw the dagger with almost no resistance from the water.

Having strenuously retrieved the stray Flying Thunder Dagger, Bi Ryu-yeon was angry. Thinking about how he was still struggling at this level, heat surged from the depths of his chest. At that moment, next to Bi Ryu-yeon's foot, there was a round rock the size of a watermelon. Bi Ryu-yeon lifted the watermelon-sized rock, then, shouting 'Uwaaaah!' inwardly, he composed his mind and threw the rock with all his might towards the outside of the water. The rock, flying powerfully, barely avoided the danger of hitting the rock wall and falling back down, then left this world and flew to the other side of a different world where air existed. This too was possible because he had learned Su-roe-bi. The problem was where that rock flew and what it did. What happened?

After taking out his anger on an innocent place, he felt a little calmer. But this time, his chest felt tight. It was something that happened because he was short of breath, unlike before. Bi Ryu-yeon could still only last for about an hour underwater. Moreover, when he did martial arts training, about thirty minutes was his limit.

Bi Ryu-yeon felt the need to go out of the water to get oxygen again. At this time, he had to climb the rock wall instead of swimming up to the surface. This was because currently, on Bi Ryu-yeon's two wrists and two ankles, there were four Ink Dragon Rings, each weighing 84 kilograms, for a total of 336 kilograms. Bi Ryu-yeon, who hadn't thought of this method at first, had to tediously take off the Ink Dragon Rings one by one and throw them out of the water. It was an incredibly cumbersome task.

Now, when training in the water, Bi Ryu-yeon found it more comfortable to wear these Ink Dragon Rings. At first, he had to overcome a near-death experience because of them, but now, without the Ink Dragon Rings, it was very difficult to maintain balance underwater. Especially since this was at the bottom of a waterfall, the change in the water current was very severe, so even just standing at the bottom of the water was difficult. Therefore, now when he trained in the water, he always wore these Ink Dragon Rings.

"Phew."

Bi Ryu-yeon inhaled the air deep into his lungs. It was clean air. A cool breeze wrapped around his whole body, drying the water on his body. It was a refreshing feeling that could never be felt under the water.

Ah, but what's this? Bi Ryu-yeon, who had been in another world for a moment and then came up to the ground, saw an old man with white hair lying spread-eagled and looking at the sky. The old man's face was swollen blue, and it seemed he had received a major blow to the face. But Bi Ryu-yeon couldn't guess what that certain blow was. Foam was bubbling from the old man's mouth, and it seemed he had lost consciousness. Bi Ryu-yeon approached the fallen old man, checked his pulse, and assessed his condition. Then he soon shook his head.

"Tsk, tsk, he's dead."

Bi Ryu-yeon clicked his tongue with a regretful expression. His breathing had stopped, and his pulse was no longer beating. His heart had also stopped its activity and was silent, and the blood flowing in his body had stopped flowing. The old man lying there was no longer of this world.

"To die so senselessly in such a remote place, how pitiful."

It seemed the cause of death was a concussion. Although he hadn't witnessed it directly, judging from various circumstances, the direct cause of death seemed to be the sharp, wickedly shaped rock protruding behind the old man's head. It seemed that while falling backward, his back of the head had unluckily struck that sharp stone. Moreover, it seemed that by coincidence, the sharp, conical stone had hit a vital point, becoming the direct reason for his sudden death.

However, no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure out the reason why the dead old man's face had turned blue. No traces or remnants could be found around the corpse. He scanned the area with flashing eyes, looking for a weapon that could have inflicted such a blow on the old man's face, but no matter how much he looked around, he couldn't find any trace of it.

Bi Ryu-yeon, who thought of himself and claimed to have a cool and sharp mind, had no choice but to tentatively conclude that this old man had slipped on the slippery rock, fell backward, and unfortunately, his back of the head had hit the conical rock, causing a concussion. But he could never figure out the cause of the certain stimulus applied to the face.

Of course, he would never imagine, even in his dreams, that the certain stimulus applied to the old man's face was the very rock he had thrown in anger from the water. The rock, which had once been relegated to a murder weapon by an external force, had already disappeared into the water. Bi Ryu-yeon, who had given up on racking his expensive brain over useless things, firmly convinced himself that his extraordinary (?) deduction was correct. Only the heavens knew the truth.

Thinking that he couldn't just leave a corpse in such a remote place, Bi Ryu-yeon had the commendable thought of preparing the old man's body for burial and burying him in a sunny spot.

First, before preparing the body, Bi Ryu-yeon began to search through the corpse's clothes. Following the teaching of the Flying Thunder Sect, "came with empty hands, go with empty hands", he first took out anything that could be of monetary value. Such things still had much to do in the secular world, so it was still too early for them to go to the afterlife. They had to be used beneficially by the people remaining in the secular world. Of course, including weapons.

The only thing to take to the afterlife was one set of clothes; that was enough. The gist of the teaching passed down for generations in the Flying Thunder Sect was that a corpse wearing only one set of clothes was the most ideal state for a tomb. The items taken out would now become Bi Ryu-yeon's. That was the rule.

Many strange items came out from the old man's clothes. Eight round, heavy, walnut-sized iron galls that looked like children's toys, twelve flying rings the size of bracelets and as thin as blades, one exquisite human-skin mask, and one letter, and a very heavy pouch that made his heart grow more pleased the more he looked at it.

"Oh, the pouch is quite heavy, wow!"

Bi Ryu-yeon let out a light exclamation of joy.

"Shik, shik."

Bi Ryu-yeon, who had fiercely turned his head left and right to confirm that no one was around, calmed his swelling heart and slowly pulled the string of the pouch. Then the pouch slowly opened, revealing the identity of his curiosity. Inside the pouch were a whopping 10 brilliant golden coins. In addition, there were about 30 silver taels as a bonus. Something completely unexpected had happened. To have such a huge amount of money...

'Sparkling, sparkling golden money shines beautifully, la la la la!'

In this moment, Bi Ryu-yeon was not in his right mind. He had lost his reason. It was truly the first time in his life that he had seen 10 gold taels at once. When would he, who usually made diligence and frugality his life's motto, have had a chance to touch such a large sum of money?

'1 gold tael is 20 silver taels. 10 gold taels is 200 silver taels. Add the bonus 30 silver taels, and that's a whopping two... two hundred and thirty silver taels. My salary for 2 years and 3 months! To think that the money I could only earn by working my bones off in the hot and rough blacksmith shop for the long time of 2 years and 3 months has fallen from the sky! What a windfall! The heavens have blessed me and bestowed upon me this huge sum of money.'

He was happy. To earn such a large sum in an instant, how could he not be happy?

'A person should live righteously after all!'

He even had such a pleased thought.

As Bi Ryu-yeon was jumping up and down like a madman, repeatedly shouting 'Hooray, hooray, ten thousand hoorays,' a single white letter caught his eye. On the outside of the letter, a single line was stylishly written: 'For the personal attention of Iron Gall Flying Ring Jin Joun.'

The words 'personal attention' were used to mean that the sender wished for the recipient to open the letter himself, but since the person scheduled to receive that letter was now in a position where he could never open a letter himself again, Bi Ryu-yeon decided to open it himself instead. While thinking that he might be able to earn the money he had received... Even while doing this, Bi Ryu-yeon was the type to think that he was always at a loss because he was too conscientious and moral.

Letter

For the personal attention of Old Master Jin Joun of Iron Gall Flying Ring

We would like to invite Old Master Jin Joun as a teacher for the summer training camp, which is an annual event and the most important tradition of our Cheonmu Academy. This is the most important time for those children. It is a time of infinite development. I have high expectations for those children now. Therefore, I ask that you bestow much teaching upon the outstanding talents who will lead our righteous path in the future. I am well aware of and trust in the Old Master's high skill, so please teach as you see fit. I approve of all actions necessary to teach the children. I trust that you will bestow your teaching fairly, without being bound by blood ties, regional ties, etc. A specific individual should not receive benefits due to personal, private feelings. Everything will be proven by one's own skill.

The location is the Cheonmu Emei Training Center on Mount Emei, and the scheduled arrival date is July 15th. I am sending 10 gold taels as operational support funds, so please use them usefully. If the support funds are insufficient, please request additional support from the silver depositories under the Murim Alliance. And at that time, please be sure to bring the token. The period is 3 months. I entrust the 16 children to your care.

Cheonmu Academy Master, 'Iron Fist' Ma Jin-ga

"Ma Jin-ga? What a strange name!"

Bi Ryu-yeon muttered as he looked at the three characters that decorated the very end of the letter. The content of the letter was not very atmospheric (?). This letter, which ignored all etiquette and formality and was simple in its purpose, was written in a very business-like tone. Well, looking at the name of the person who wrote the letter, it seemed he wasn't the type to know about atmosphere. Ma Jin-ga! Even after savoring it once more, he couldn't hide the strange feeling. But regardless of the atmosphere, the content of the written letter was gently stimulating Bi Ryu-yeon's interest.

'Hmm, this looks fun!'

The characters that came into Bi Ryu-yeon's eyes right now were 'bestow teaching,' 'support funds of 10 gold taels,' and 'additional support.' Although the words 'additional support' at the end looked three times bigger than the first two phrases, it wasn't that he wasn't interested in the first two contents either. It seemed fun, Bi Ryu-yeon thought. To Bi Ryu-yeon, who was leading a bland, tedious, and boring life these days, this matter felt like a sip of a refreshing drink. Besides, since he had received the money, shouldn't he pay the price?

'To teach... Fufufu, kick-kick. Yes, I'll teach them. Thoroughly and painfully, just as my master taught me... I've finally found a place to vent my anger. I'll teach them. I'll teach them painfully how bone-breaking and how painful it is to learn. And then, I'll make them into masters one by one. Ke-ke-ke.'

Bi Ryu-yeon looked back on his past. His miserable past where he had to be overworked under the pretext of training and practice... At that time, he had sworn to the heavens.

'Let's never be the one who learns. Let's be the one who teaches.'

He was one who had made a blood-boiling oath while looking at the twinkling stars. Bi Ryu-yeon decided to teach them. Above all, it seemed fun. He didn't know who they were, but he would soon find out.

However, to realize his decision, a concrete plan was needed. Bi Ryu-yeon's head began to spin at a furious speed. Now that he had decided to teach, he had to think about how to teach. And how to avoid his identity being discovered... In his eyes, the human-skin mask he had taken from the corpse's clothes came into view. It was a very exquisite and detailed human-skin mask.

In that instant, a picture was clearly drawn in Bi Ryu-yeon's mind, and the plan became more complete. It seemed that a considerable amount of money would be needed to realize this plan. And a long time would be needed as well. It was a bit of a waste, but he decided to invest for his own play-slash-business. Now that he had made up his mind, all that was left was execution.