Chapter 10. What Takes Precedence Over Family Law (4)

"Phew, Brother. I was so nervous."

"Huh? About what?"

Yeon Jipyeong let out a groan.

"I was so worried that Father would be angry."

He had been extremely tense watching his brother, who spoke to their father without hesitation.

Yeon Hojeong couldn't help but smile.

"Come on, is Father a soldier? Is he our superior officer?"

"Well, not exactly."

"Whoever says what, Father is still Father, and you and I are still his children. If a child wants to be close to his father, what's wrong with that?"

"Ah."

Yeon Jipyeong stared blankly at Yeon Hojeong. It seemed he had never thought about it that way before.

Yeon Hojeong pinched his brother's cheek.

"Brat."

"Ouch! It hurts!"

"Don't be too afraid of Father."

"Huh?"

The smile on Yeon Hojeong's face, as he looked at his brother, was surprisingly gentle, unlike the Black Shadow Master, known as the terror of the martial world.

"Does Father want to be stiff in front of his children? He has family laws and rules, so he tries to set an example, doesn't he?"

"Ah..."

"Well, even if that's the case, I think he goes a bit too far."

"Choked!"

"Father has lived his whole life that way and will continue to do so. And his love for his children will never change."

Yeon Hojeong turned his body.

"Don't wait for affection, and don't expect rewards. It might be tough, but it's good for your mental health."

"Is that so?"

"There's no rule that only parents should wait for their children, right?"

Watching Yeon Hojeong, who was already far away, Yeon Jipyeong smiled.

"Come to think of it, that's true."

His brother had already let go of his hatred towards him. But confirming the result was his own courageous action.

The relationship with his father was a bit different, but in a broader sense, it was not much different.

"Still, he's scary."

* * *

The next morning.

"I greet the Great Master."

Unlike before, the gate guards bowed respectfully.

Yeon Hojeong nodded.

"I'm here to see Father."

"Yes."

It seemed they had been informed in advance. The sword guard and the saber guard opened the door to the family head's room.

The scene inside the wide-open door was strangely new.

"The family head is currently in the training ground. You can go there."

"Understood."

Behind the family head's room, after passing through a small bamboo forest, an open training ground appeared.

Whoosh.

As Yeon Hojeong headed for the training ground, he suddenly felt a strange resonance rising from his dantian. His inner energy stirred without him focusing his mind on it.

'Synchronization.'

It seemed Byeonja was at a loss. The inner energy itself seemed both frightened and excited.

It was because of Yeon Wei.

Whoosh.

In the center of the training ground, Yeon Wei was sitting cross-legged, and a beautiful sword aura was rising from his body.

Although he had never practiced it, he knew what martial art it was. In the pressure that enveloped the entire training ground, the sharp and noble atmosphere was overwhelming.

'Sword Extreme Thought Qi (劍極思氣).'

Sword Extreme Thought Qi was also one of the Five Great Skills.

'Impressive.'

It wasn't a matter of whether he had achieved great success or not.

The qi (氣) he had honed countless times had surpassed the saturation point and was compressed, and the compressed qi was expanding, filling his entire body.

His understanding of inner energy was on a different level from other martial artists. It was as if he was declaring himself the head of the Yeon family.

Whoosh. Whoosh.

The emitted qi gradually decreased.

"Have you come?"

He spoke even while cultivating his qi.

The most vulnerable moment for a martial artist was when they were cultivating their qi. It required extreme concentration, making them insensitive to external qi, and even a small shock could lead to an irreversible situation.

Yeon Wei was free from the dangers of cultivation. The realm of the Yeon family head was that great.

'At least not below the head of the Namgung family.'

He knew the levels of the Nine Great Sects and Seven Great Families better than anyone else after clashing with the martial world. In Yeon Hojeong's eyes, his father's martial arts were among the best in the Seven Great Families.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Sit here."

Yeon Hojeong ascended the training ground.

Although it was not very high, it felt like climbing an incredibly tall staircase.

Yeon Hojeong sat cross-legged in the center of the training ground, the very spot where Yeon Wei had been cultivating his qi just moments ago.

"Recite the incantation of the Walla True Qi."

Yeon Hojeong recited the incantation calmly.

Yeon Wei's eyes sparkled.

"You've certainly remembered it well."

"Yes."

He sat behind Yeon Hojeong and placed his hand on the Mingmen point (命门穴).

"Move the Byeonja energy according to the incantation of the Walla True Qi. I will help with the changes in the inner energy."

Whoosh.

As soon as Yeon Wei finished speaking, Yeon Hojeong summoned the Byeonja energy.

Yeon Wei's eyebrows twitched.

'As expected, he's in a hurry.'

He understood the mindset. Having been bound by the Byeonja technique for ten years, he must have wanted to learn a high-level martial art immediately.

However, it's difficult to achieve great success in a profound skill with an impatient temperament. He hadn't properly accepted the advice given yesterday.

Yeon Wei calmly guided the surging Byeonja energy.

'I'll give him a stern reminder again after the cultivation ends...'

At that moment.

Whoosh!

The Byeonja energy suddenly flared up to its full power.

Yeon Wei, who intended to guide the energy through one cycle, was taken aback by the Byeonja energy's frenzied surge.

'Danger!'

Rumble!

Yeon Wei, who intended to control the energy, was startled.

The Byeonja energy was coursing through the meridians at an incredible speed. The speed was faster and more intense than anyone he had ever seen before.

And it was smooth.

Natural and magnificent. It was like a fierce but orderly river flowing along its course.

Whoosh!

After a few cycles with a storm-like momentum, the Byeonja energy gradually began to change.

If described in terms of color, it was like a light green wave turning into a clear blue sky. The color of a clear sky, a blue net.

It was changing. The inner energy.

To a higher-dimensional energy, a more majestic energy.

'Walla True Qi (碧罗真气)!'

The speed at which the Byeonja energy transformed into Walla True Qi was beyond imagination.

Sizzle!

The shape and size of the dantian also changed. It was as if a modestly spacious house had suddenly expanded into a grand palace.

It was an unprecedented surprise. Even Yeon Wei himself had spent a whole fortnight on the transformation of inner energy when he transitioned from the Byeonja technique to Sword Extreme Thought Qi. His father had rarely praised him, saying it was fast.

His son was different.

In less than half an hour of cultivation, his son had almost completely transformed most of the Byeonja energy into Walla True Qi.

'How is this possible?'

A moment later.

"Huff."

Yeon Hojeong, who was regulating his breathing, gradually gathered his energy.

Yeon Wei was surprised again.

'He's gathering his energy skillfully, as if he's been doing it all his life.'

Just a single nudge, and the carriage had already descended the mountain and reached its destination.

'Impressive.'

Snap!

Yeon Hojeong opened his eyes.

His eyes were filled with a different, intense light. The pupils, which had a faint blue glow, gradually returned to their original color.

"It's done."

"Indeed."

"I thank you for your guidance."

Yeon Wei gazed at his son intently.

His son showed no signs of joy. He was just endlessly calm.

As if he had known this would happen all along.

"I didn't need your help."

"Yes."

It was an honest answer.

"But it was a meaningful moment because I could feel Father's energy."

The meaning of those words was something Yeon Wei couldn't understand this time.

After a moment of silence, Yeon Wei spoke again after half an hour.

"Do you know all the incantations of the Five Great Skills?"

"Yes."

"Did you choose the Walla True Qi for its stability?"

Yeon Hojeong smiled.

"Yes."

The Five Great Skills were all balanced martial arts, but each had a distinct character.

Among them, the Walla True Qi was the most magnificent and stable. Even when using the inner energy aggressively, the burden on the body was less compared to other profound skills.

It also had output comparable to the other Four Great Skills. Considering Yeon Hojeong's personality, choosing the Walla True Qi was the right decision.

Yeon Wei hesitated rarely.

He had something to say to his son, but he didn't know what it was.

After a moment, he nodded and said,

"If you encounter any difficulties, come to me then."

"Understood."

"You've worked hard."

Unlike yesterday, there wasn't much conversation. However, the father and son shared much more than they did yesterday.

As Yeon Hojeong bowed and was about to leave the training ground, he suddenly looked at the weapon display rack.

There were numerous weapons displayed there.

"Are you practicing various weapons?"

"A martial artist should be able to exert the same power as their original martial arts even with a twig in their hand. To do that, understanding of more weapons is necessary."

That made sense.

In the martial world, you never knew when or by whom you might be killed. You needed to be able to manifest the best martial arts even in the worst moments.

Yeon Hojeong had learned this through fighting, and Yeon Wei had internalized it on his own.

"Can I take a few?"

"Hmm?"

Yeon Wei was curious what his astonishing son would ask for this time.

"Sure. What do you want to take?"

"First, an iron long staff."

"Iron staff?"

"Yes."

"And?"

Yeon Hojeong's lips were curved into a smile, but his eyes were gradually filled with an indescribable ferocity.

"An axe."

* * *

"......So, it's expected to take about five or six months for all the injuries to heal."

Looking down at the young woman with splints all over her body, the middle-aged man asked.

"Internal injuries?"

"They're not as severe as expected. However, the problem is more psychological than physical."

"Psychological?"

"Yes, she seems to have experienced a significant shock. The internal injuries will be under control soon, and the external injuries will be healed in half a year, but there's no way to deal with the psychological trauma."

"I see."

The middle-aged man, Namgung In, looked much calmer than expected.

He patted the doctor's shoulder.

"Although she grew up wild, she is still a Namgung. She can overcome a mere psychological wound. Please do your best to treat her."

The doctor bowed deeply, as if it was an honor.

"Of course. It's only half a year at most, and she will recover faster than that."

"I trust you."

After patting the doctor's shoulder several times, Namgung In left the medical room.

Namgung In looked up at the sky for a moment.

A young man approached him.

"Father."

"Xian."

A handsome man with a noble appearance. Despite his good looks, his build was imposing, creating a mysterious aura.

Namgung In's second son, Namgung Xian.

"How is Shanghua?"

"She was severely beaten."

Father was a man who never exaggerated or lied, no matter the situation. If he said she was severely beaten, it must have been a serious case.

Namgung In shook his head.

"Upon reviewing the circumstances, Shanghua was at fault. I sent her to learn and grow, but it seems she became even worse."

"Originally, she was a child with a lot of vanity and arrogance. It would be good if she can grow from this experience."

"I think so too."

"But."

Namgung Xian's eyes turned cold.

"Just because she learned the value of life from a bandit, it doesn't mean we should forgive the bandit."

"The opponent is the Yeon family."

"Only a fifty-year-old family."

"A fifty-year-old family that turned the Six Great Families into the Seven Great Families. Martial artists are not fools. If they didn't have the qualifications, they wouldn't have dared to be mentioned alongside the Six Great Families."

"No matter how great they are, they have offended the Namgung family."

"The righteousness is on the side of the Yeon family."

Namgung Xian was silent for a moment.

Namgung In spoke calmly.

"Your uncle has already apologized."

"Apologized?"

"Yes."

Namgung Xian's lips curled up.

"Then the Yeon family will bury this incident, right?"

"Even if they hadn't apologized, they would have done so."

"But now that they have apologized, they can rest easy."

"Indeed."

"Your uncle made a mistake, but he handled the aftermath quickly and well."

"If we were to torment the Yeon family, that would be the calculation."

Namgung In looked at Namgung Xian.

Despite seeing his son's cold eyes, Namgung In's expression remained calm. His expression was similar to Yeon Wei's, but the texture was different.

"Are you planning to hold back, Father?"

"Of course. I don't intend to engage in a reckless fight with such a powerful force just because one child was ruined."

Saying this with a kind and calm face, yet making a ruthless statement.

Namgung Xian smiled at his father's words.

"That's the right decision. The head of a family shouldn't act rashly in such matters."

Namgung In smiled strangely.

"Are you planning to visit Jiangsu Province for a leisure trip?"

"Of course not. With the righteousness on their side, there's no need to rush."

"Then?"

Namgung Xian asked with a meaningful tone.

"When is the gathering of the young talents of the Seven Great Families this year?"