Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

Wei Yan-ho turned his head without regret.

The massive stone gate that had first blocked his path came into view. Now, something like this was nothing at all.

The stone gate was a full jang thick. When Wei Yan-ho first entered this place, even with all his strength, he could barely scratch it.

But Wei Yan-ho was no longer the same Wei Yan-ho who had entered this place. He was the successor of Mad Sword Baek Mu-han.

“He told me to break it and leave.”

Wei Yan-ho smiled faintly.

It would certainly feel good to split in half the stone gate that had blocked his path all this time.

But Wei Yan-ho didn’t do that. Wei Yan-ho approached the stone wall and gently placed his hand against it.

Grrrrrr!

The stone gate slowly rose upward.

The stone gate that wouldn’t have budged even if hundreds of strong men rushed at it, not just dozens, rose upward in a cloud of dust.

If anyone had witnessed this scene, they would have been shocked, but fortunately or unfortunately, the cave outside the stone gate was empty, just as it had been when Wei Yan-ho first entered this place.

Wei Yan-ho slowly walked beneath the stone gate. Even so, as if he had lingering attachments, he kept looking back.

Thud!

The stone gate came down to the ground again.

The stone gate settled back down as if it had been there from the beginning. No one would think there was another space inside.

If he had cut the stone gate, anyone could have peered inside, but now, unless it was Wei Yan-ho, no one would know what lay behind this stone gate.

If the stone gate ever cracked over the years, a lost hunter entering the cave would only discover mysterious traces.

“Still… I’ll visit sometimes.”

Wei Yan-ho smiled wistfully.

He had thought about collapsing the cave. But he couldn’t do it.

If he erased the traces that remained intact inside, it felt like all the time until now would disappear like a fantasy. Even knowing they were together, the sense of loss wouldn’t disappear.

Wei Yan-ho slowly walked out of the cave.

Whether it was because of lingering attachment or because he was being foolish… his gaze kept turning toward the cave beyond the stone gate where no one was anymore.

When he finally managed to lift his reluctant feet, he could see the cave entrance where light was filtering in.

“Hmm…”

The sunlight he was seeing after five years was too harsh.

Wei Yan-ho realized anew that his clothes were worse than rags.

“Let me see… were there new clothes?”

Wei Yan-ho unwrapped his bundle.

“Huh?”

And he discovered something strange. There were clothes in the bundle. The problem was that strange letters were carved into those clothes.

They were letters made by embedding stone powder.

“This is…”

Yan-ho, look here.

By the time you’re reading this letter, I will no longer be in this world.

No, I’m already dead, so these words aren’t quite appropriate.

In any case, I will be gone.

There are many things I want to say, but I’m leaving this in writing lest my final appearance be ridiculous.

You must have been very surprised and confused, but please understand.

I wanted to remain as an unwavering teacher to you until the end.

Transparent droplets flowed from Wei Yan-ho’s eyes. It seemed there were still tears left to shed, despite having cried so much.

“What is this, leaving something like this behind.”

It seemed he would have to take back his words about lacking consideration.

The reason I’ve gone to the trouble of leaving a letter is because there’s something I absolutely must tell you.

As you might guess, your martial arts are not yet complete.

Since they’re martial arts hastily carved into you over five years, there are many unstable aspects.

After much deliberation, I’ve come up with one solution.

A method to establish a foundation while having you complete your martial arts yourself.

“You worry about all sorts of things.”

Wei Yan-ho smiled slightly.

But after reading the next passage, Wei Yan-ho’s face twisted hideously.

If training ended like this, you would obviously return home and spend your whole life playing and eating lazily.

In the end, my martial arts would be buried without anyone even knowing they existed in the world. I know this very well. Oh yes, I know it very well.

Of course, I have no intention of letting that happen.

As you might have noticed, the reason I’m leaving these words in a letter is because I didn’t want to see your terrible expression on my final journey.

Getting to the point, I’ve installed a kind of device in your body.

I’ve established your martial arts based on my Twelve Paths of Light Sword, but centered on my internal core, I’ve made your martial arts grow on their own.

At first glance, it might sound like your martial arts will strengthen themselves without you doing anything…

Not a chance!

There’s no such thing.

If what you experience and gain falls behind the speed at which your martial arts strengthen, you will die having your internal energy drained like a leech by my internal core.

Let me say it again: if you neglect your training, you will die.

This isn’t a joke or a threat.

You will really die.

Wei Yan-ho’s hands trembled violently.

What kind of bolt from the blue was this?

“This… this old geezer!”

Wei Yan-ho’s hands grabbed the clothes.

Of course, you want to tear these clothes apart right now, but you’ll regret it if you do.

I guarantee it, you’ll absolutely regret it.

Wei Yan-ho released the strength from his hands.

He really was a ghost-like old geezer.

I didn’t want to use such methods either, but if I don’t do this, I can see all too clearly how you’ll live.

So you could say this is all your fault.

So now you must go out and experience the world.

Travel to the places I tell you about and experience all under heaven.

The more you see and feel there, the more your martial arts will grow, and if you don’t gain much, we’ll meet again very soon!

You know what meeting again means, right?

“Kraaaah!”

Wei Yan-ho grabbed the hem of the clothes and hurled them to the ground.

“Aaaaah! This old geezer is playing tricks!”

Wei Yan-ho randomly struck and destroyed everything around him. There was nothing to destroy except innocent trees, but to Wei Yan-ho, whose vision had turned red, whether those trees were guilty or innocent didn’t matter.

What mattered was what was visible right before his eyes. Wei Yan-ho struggled with the momentum to destroy every tree on the mountain, then panted as he looked around.

Still, his anger wasn’t completely released.

He felt like immediately dragging the old man over and beating him senseless, but how could he drag over someone who had already died and disappeared without leaving anything behind?

“Ah… I’m ruined.”

Wei Yan-ho sat down heavily on the ground.

Then his eyes caught the writing on the clothes hem thrown to the ground.

If you think I might be making false threats, wait and see. If you feel pain throughout your body, it means what I’ve installed is working properly.

If you feel pain, just accept it peacefully and do as I say.

At that moment, as if it were a lie, unbearable agony surged through Wei Yan-ho’s entire body.

“Grrrrgh…”

The agony was very brief, but it was intense enough to instantly soak Wei Yan-ho’s entire body with sweat.

Wei Yan-ho clutched his solar plexus. He felt a heavy sensation inside his solar plexus. Baek Mu-han’s internal core seemed to be moving.

“This…”

Wei Yan-ho’s face turned bright red.

“What the hell did you do! Damn old geezer!”

But there was nowhere to vent his anger.

After fuming for a while, Wei Yan-ho finally found his composure and picked up the clothes with a powerless hand.

Travel the world and see it.

When you see the world, you’ll feel something, and if you feel something, you’ll gain something.

Don’t be satisfied with staying in a small place and becoming a small person; see big things and become a big person.

The first place you must go is the Scholarly World.

Learning and martial arts have much in common. They are people who pursue the ultimate differently from us.

Find the Grand Scholar under heaven and stay by his side.

You’ll surely feel something.

After that…

After reading the entire text, Wei Yan-ho threw the clothes hem to the ground.

“Argh! Just how many places are you telling me to visit!”

But what could he do?

There was no other way. If he didn’t want to die having his internal energy drained like a leech, he had to do as instructed.

“Anyway, even in death he torments people.”

Coming to this cave had been a mistake.

And meeting Baek Mu-han had been a mistake.

But…

“Damn…”

Wei Yan-ho kept grumbling but still gathered up the hem of the clothes and stuffed it into his bundle.

No matter how disgusting the writing was, it was no different from the last memento Baek Mu-han had left behind. Even if he was angry, he couldn’t tear it up or abandon it.

“I was going to go home…”

Wei Yan-ho looked toward the distance. His home would be far away there. A home he hadn’t seen for five whole years.

He wanted to see his mother and Su-ryeon too.

He sort of wanted to see his father a little, and honestly, he didn’t really want to see his older brother.

“They must be very worried.”

Still, it couldn’t be helped.

It would be better than their child dying, so his parents would understand.

Wei Yan-ho sighed deeply and bowed toward the direction of his home.

“I’ll resolve everything and return, so don’t worry too much…”

Wei Yan-ho quietly looked toward the direction of his home, then turned around and performed a gubae toward the cave.

For better or worse, he had been his teacher.

“You’re tormenting me until the end. I’ve changed my mind. I won’t visit anymore, so you should know that.”

Wei Yan-ho sighed deeply, then turned around and walked away.

“Where is the Scholarly World…”

As Wei Yan-ho walked away trudging and constantly grumbling, the sunset descended behind his back. And as Wei Yan-ho grew distant, the figure of a person appeared in front of the cave.

“Heh heh heh.”

The figure of Baek Mu-han, who was thought to have disappeared, was there.

“Ha ha ha ha ha!”

Baek Mu-han laughed heartily.

Wei Yan-ho’s figure, now small as a dot in the distance, was visible.

It was so satisfying that sesame seeds might pour out.

“You rascal, you’ll dry up and die like a leech if you don’t learn about the world? Where in the world is there such martial arts?”

Baek Mu-han smiled broadly.

The contents written in the letter were lies. He didn’t have the ability to create such martial arts, nor did he have the power left to force Wei Yan-ho’s body.

The pain Wei Yan-ho felt was exactly the result of him squeezing out his last strength.

Baek Mu-han, who had been anxious until the end wondering whether he would be fooled or not, looked at Wei Yan-ho with a rewarding smile.

“The world is too vast to live holed up in a corner. Of course, my martial arts are too precious to waste.”

Baek Mu-han looked at Wei Yan-ho with a warm smile.

“You rascal…”

Baek Mu-han looked at Wei Yan-ho’s back.

Wei Yan-ho, who had constantly given him headaches, was going out into the world.

If he saw and learned many things in the world, Wei Yan-ho would grow even more.

Even if he couldn’t see it directly, just the fact that his disciple would grow was enough to make Baek Mu-han smile.

Baek Mu-han’s figure gradually disappeared.

Now it was truly the end.

“Thanks to you, I was happy.”

Baek Mu-han smiled a joyful smile he had never made once while alive.

“Be happy.”

In the place where he disappeared, only the fragrance of wildflowers remained.

***