Chapter 49: The Feeling of Living

After the late-night drinking session ended, the thieves dispersed to their lodgings.

Shim Yang-gak, the secretive sword expert, Huang Yaoming, the mind-reading wanderer, and Cheon Gideok returned to their rooms to prepare for sleep.

But perhaps things didn't go as planned, and their hearts were twisted.

Huang Yaoming, who had been grumbling towards the end of the drinking session, quietly approached Shim Yang-gak.

"Sir, what do you think about what Feng Cai said?"

"What do you mean?"

"About the 'buy low, sell high' thing. He said we should let the merchants deceive us, right?"

"So what?"

Shim Yang-gak looked at Huang Yaoming with a squint.

'Wow! This fool has been the steward for four months, and now he's getting cocky.'

He still hasn't come to terms with his past. Who knows when the Ten Heroes of Wufeng will surpass him.

"Should we really just let the merchants deceive the greenwood? Isn't that a problem?"

"If the temple is no good, the monk should leave."

"Huh?"

Huang Yaoming thought he must have heard wrong.

Why would Shim Yang-gak, who always badmouthed Feng Cai behind his back, suddenly change?

"Are your ears blocked? If you don't like Feng Cai, leave the mountain, brat."

"Sir, that's not what I meant... I just thought it would be better if you were in charge..."

"Damn fool!"

Shim Yang-gak kicked out from his seated position.

Kwang!

Huang Yaoming rolled backward a couple of times and quickly knelt down.

"I was wrong! Please forgive me!"

"If you want to die, do it quietly on your own. If you speak out of turn again, I'll personally break your neck. Got it?"

"Yes, yes. It won't happen again."

Huang Yaoming pressed his head to the floor and blinked.

He couldn't tell if Shim Yang-gak was serious. Could someone who had been eyeing the steward's position for months really change so much?

***

The next day.

Cheon Gideok finally woke up around noon.

The room was quiet, and he glanced around to see no one was there. Usually, Huang Yaoming would kick him awake if he woke up later than him. The fact that he left quietly suggested he was quite shocked by yesterday's events.

Cheon Gideok felt a sense of relief from not being bothered by Huang Yaoming.

Rumble.

Hearing the sound from his stomach, he suddenly felt hungry.

Cheon Gideok went to the dining hall, ate whatever he could get his hands on, and then went to the courtyard.

After filling his stomach, he suddenly had nothing to do.

Wandering aimlessly, he accidentally found his friend Lee Cheolsan in the backyard.

"Cheolsan."

"Hey, Gideok. What brings you here?"

Lee Cheolsan waved his hand with a happy face.

They hadn't been as close since their rooms were changed.

"I was just wandering around. What were you doing to sweat so much?"

Cheon Gideok asked, even though he already knew.

"Yesterday, the steward told us to practice martial arts. We have to do as he says. How about you? Have you made any progress?"

Lee Cheolsan inadvertently used the word "progress."

"Progress" is a term used when you're focusing on a particular martial art.

Cheon Gideok, who had only learned the basics while moving from one military camp to another, had a bitter smile on his face.

"Well, I've learned the Three Talents Dao Method and the Six Harmonies Dao Method, among others. You know that, right?"

Lee Cheolsan nodded.

The Three Talents Dao Method, Six Harmonies Dao Method, Eight Directions Dao Method, and Dragon Tiger Dao Method were essential teachings in small military camps.

"How about you? I heard you've been learning martial arts from Brother Yan. Have you improved?"

Cheon Gideok looked at Lee Cheolsan with a curious eye.

They had grown up in the same neighborhood and knew almost everything about each other. After more than ten years of fighting and playing together, they knew each other's strengths and weaknesses well.

Lee Cheolsan replied calmly.

"I've improved a bit, but... I still have a long way to go. Brother Yan said I need to practice for another two or three years."

"Is that so? How about a sparring match? It's been a while."

Cheon Gideok looked at Lee Cheolsan with a competitive glint in his eye.

He wanted to see how much he had improved under Yan Jieha.

"Sure, why not?"

Lee Cheolsan was also curious about his own progress.

There was no better opponent to test himself against than Cheon Gideok, as they had been evenly matched just a few months ago.

They picked up wooden swords and faced each other.

"Ha!"

With a shout, Cheon Gideok took the initiative.

Clack, clack, clack, clack.

Cheon Gideok moved his wooden sword according to the teachings of the Six Harmonies Dao Method.

After a while, Cheon Gideok was seized by a strange feeling.

It was as if their wooden swords were colluding, clashing in the middle with a precise "clack."

Even by chance, they never missed.

Normally, when using wooden swords, one or two out of five strikes would miss. But their wooden swords were interlocking with a precision that was almost eerie.

Of course, it wasn't intentional on his part.

Clack, clack, clack, clack.

After a storm of strikes, Cheon Gideok was panting heavily.

His heart felt like it was about to burst.

Thump.

Cheon Gideok nervously struck Lee Cheolsan's wooden sword and backed away.

"Ha! Ha! Let's stop. I can't keep going, I'm too tired."

Seeing Cheon Gideok breathing heavily, his shoulders heaving, Lee Cheolsan nodded.

"Alright. Good job."

"..."

Cheon Gideok couldn't meet Lee Cheolsan's eyes and turned his head to look at the distant mountains. Just half a year ago, they were evenly matched, but Lee Cheolsan seemed to have truly become a martial artist.

How could someone change so much in just half a year?

No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't understand.

"Damn, I need to quit drinking and practice more. I can't be this out of breath."

Cheon Gideok shook his head and left the backyard.

Once he was out of sight, Lee Cheolsan switched to a broadsword and performed the Dragon Soaring to the Heavens.

Starting from a low stance, the sword moved in a zigzag pattern, reaching its peak above his head. From there, it smoothly drew a curve and fell to the ground.

For a moment, a pale blue aura enveloped the sword.

Sssss.

Lee Cheolsan stood the sword upright and calmed his slightly labored breathing.

The heavy aura on the sword dissipated like smoke.

Next, he performed the Dragon Soaring to the Heavens, which he had recently learned.

From a high stance, he struck left and right, and finally, thrust deeply forward.

As he lifted his heel, the tip of the sword trembled.

Unfortunately, unlike Yan Jieha, the sword wind did not rush out.

"Ah!"

If he just put in a little more effort, the aura might pour out from the tip of the sword.

'What a shame. So disappointing!'

In a couple of years, he would be able to draw out this tingling aura.

What then?

Suddenly, he felt strange.

If Xiaosu Bai's dream was to run a teahouse, then Hanyeon's dream was to run a small inn in a big city. To do that, they first needed to leave Wufeng Mountain.

How long could the Ten Heroes of Wufeng maintain their name?

Becoming a master was a happy thing, but the thought of parting made him a bit melancholic.

***

At dusk.

Yan Jieha, who had been practicing the Nine Heavens Technique on the highest peak of Wufeng Mountain, put away his sword. Looking at the burning sunset, he felt unusually empty today.

On days like this, it would be good to cultivate the Nine Heavens Qi, but the human heart is not always so willing.

To soothe his emptiness, Yan Jieha headed to the backyard.

The Ten Heroes of Wufeng, who were having a heated discussion about martial arts, flocked to Yan Jieha.

The eldest and leader, Feng Yanchao, spoke first.

"Brother Yan, we've noticed something strange and wanted to hear your opinion."

"What is it?"

"You taught us the first and second forms of the Nine Heavens Technique."

"That's right."

"When we perform the first form, Dragon Soaring to the Heavens, a pale blue sword aura appears on the broadsword. That's the sword aura that only masters can produce. It's impossible for us at our level, but it really appears."

"So what's the problem?"

"We've only been practicing for half a year, and this is possible? Does this make sense? Some say 'We've become masters,' while others say 'No, we haven't.'"

Hanyeon added a comment.

"Right. Brother, please tell us exactly what our level is. We don't want to act like masters and get killed by a sword."

Yan Jieha understood the confusion of the Ten Heroes of Wufeng.

It was due to their lack of understanding of the White Jade Formula and the Nine Heavens Technique.

"The speed of cultivation with the White Jade Formula is indeed fast, but you haven't reached the level of emitting sword aura yet. Remember what I said at the Po Clan Ancestral Hall? The correct posture of the Nine Heavens Technique allows you to fully harness your power. If you try other techniques like the Demon Subduing Dao Method, the Heavenly Earth Dao Method, or the Six Harmonies Dao Method, nothing will happen."

Feng Yanchao asked, half understanding.

"So, the sword aura only appears when we perform the Nine Heavens Technique?"

"Exactly, when you use the power of the White Jade Formula to perform the Nine Heavens Technique."

"Ah! So we're only half-masters."

"Don't be discouraged. With diligent practice, you'll eventually be able to produce sword aura with the Heavenly Earth Dao Method, too."

The eighth, Lee Cheolsan, spoke cautiously.

"Brother Yan is right. I just sparred with Cheon Gideok, and his movements were clear to me. Even without using the Nine Heavens Technique, I could easily handle him. It seems that the deeper we delve into the Nine Heavens Technique and the White Jade Formula, the higher our martial arts skills become."

The Ten Heroes of Wufeng nodded.

They also felt that the Nine Heavens Technique contained profound martial principles, and their skills improved with practice.

Suddenly, the third, Ma Xing, turned to Feng Yanchao.

"Big Brother, have you heard the rumors that you're stepping down from the mountain?"

"Huh? I never said I was stepping down."

The fourth, He Yindal, added.

"I heard it last night too. They were saying you stepped down and retreated to the background."

"Is it because I haven't been going on mountain raids?"

The second, Zhuo Gao, nodded in agreement.

"Since we've been leaving it to Huang Yaoming, it's understandable that such rumors would spread."

"I see. Do you want to go on mountain raids again?"

Feng Yanchao looked at the Ten Heroes of Wufeng.

Those who met his eyes shook their heads as if they had agreed beforehand. They shouldn't sell their faces as bandits if they weren't going to live in the mountain for life.

Ma Xing and He Yindal, who had no other goals, also opposed it. Of course, in their case, it was because they didn't want to run around in the cold winter mountains.

"Third and Fourth, will you go on mountain raids when the weather warms up?"

"Yes."

"Of course."

The two, who were former thieves and bandits, were satisfied with the life in the greenwood.

Feng Yanchao, nodding, turned to Yan Jieha.

"What about you, Brother Yan?"

"I'm not sure."

Yan Jieha shrugged.

He had no specific life plan, so he didn't worry about mountain raids. He had just gone along with whatever the Ten Heroes of Wufeng decided.

Zhuo Gao interjected.

"Then, Brother Yan, why don't you give up on mountain raids? Using such skills for mere thievery is like using a butcher's knife to kill a chicken. It would be better to stay here and teach us more, don't you think?"

"Right, Brother. I want to learn more from you. To live long in the martial world, we need to learn as much as possible while we're together."

Moved by Xiaosu Bai's plea, Yan Jieha nodded.

In fact, he preferred watching over his sworn brothers' martial arts skills to thievery.

"Alright, I'll do that."

The Ten Heroes of Wufeng cheered at Yan Jieha's agreement.

Amid the noisy and boisterous brothers, Yan Jieha smiled.

Now, it feels more like living.

The Nine Heavens Daily Scripture says, "The Nine Heavens Qi comes from the void, so wait with an empty heart," but for now, the noise is better.

He doesn't particularly want to become a great master.