Chapter 289: The Three Joys of a Gentleman (2)

Come to think of it, I didn’t recall ever hearing that one must lay down their life for righteousness and chivalry.

Perhaps that’s why those from the Tang Clan were only known for being eccentric and ruthless.

Back then, Tang Duhwa disliked that very notion.

But at some point, she found herself becoming just like that.

She had come to understand her eccentric and peculiar uncle, Tang Cheolgi.

That was why, in seeking her true self, she persuaded the Clan Head to let her follow Tang Cheolgi when he said he was heading to the Sky Ocean Merchant Union.

Even Tang Cheolgi alone, being a Peak-level martial artist renowned in the murim, was more than enough to serve as her guard.

Originally, the Tang Clan tried to assign five of the Tang Clan’s Fifteen Venom Spikes to guard her, but Tang Cheolgi rejected them all, saying it would hurt his pride.

Of course, the real reason Tang Cheolgi refused the guards was because he feared they would get in the way of his plan to win over Chouhui, whom he happened to meet along the way.

But Chouhui wouldn’t even spare him a glance.

Because of that, Tang Cheolgi delayed the schedule to the Sky Ocean Merchant Union while he chased after her.

Eventually, Tang Duhwa ended up dragging him there after threatening to report everything to the Clan Head.

Just like that, the behavior of the Tang Clan people was so thoroughly eccentric and bizarre that it was hard for others to understand.

After many twists and turns, Tang Duhwa arrived at the Sky Ocean Merchant Union and, upon seeing Yong Hwarin—who was revered as a hero—fell for him at first sight.

In Tang Duhwa’s eyes, Yong Hwarin was incredibly impressive.

He seemed ordinary yet mysterious, and despite his mystique, he also gave off the warmth of a next-door orabeoni.

Yet the rumors said he was terrifyingly powerful.

There were hardly any in the Tang Clan who had such a common temperament and were also highly skilled in martial arts.

The stronger they were, the more eccentric they tended to be.

Originally, Tang Duhwa believed it wasn’t the Tang Clan that was strange, but rather that Yong Hwarin was simply too inflexible in his thinking.

But after seeing Yong Hwarin and Ha Cheollyeong, she came to realize that she had lived with a misguided mindset all along.

Once she realized this, everyone around Yong Hwarin seemed so admirable.

And recently, it was Ha Cheollyeong who began to catch her eye even more than Yong Hwarin.

Yong Hwarin always had the beauty Bukri Sehee by his side, and Tang Duhwa had no confidence in winning his heart.

She admitted that her beauty couldn’t compare to Bukri Sehee’s, so she shifted her target from Yong Hwarin to Ha Cheollyeong.

Besides, Bukri Sehee’s chest was as big as her own head, which made her feel intimidated for no reason.

‘If I can’t have Yong Hwarin, then at least I’ll make his disciple mine.’

Such a thought had begun to take root in Tang Duhwa’s heart.

Yong Hwarin, knowing full well that Tang Duhwa was hiding behind the building’s pillar, gave no sign of acknowledgment.

Secretly, he hoped that Tang Duhwa would become a good friend to Ha Cheollyeong.

After explaining the mnemonic verse of the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword to Ha Cheollyeong, Yong Hwarin rose to his feet.

He intended to teach Ha Cheollyeong slowly.

Rather than rushing to learn martial arts as he once did, he planned to teach martial arts thoroughly from the foundation.

He had recently realized that if one’s martial foundations were weak, it could lead them astray.

Had it not been for his Demonic Master, he would never have reached his current level, and so he came to understand just how important a master’s teaching was.

“Cheollyeong, learn the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword according to the mnemonic I gave you. I’ll review your forms later. For now, study how the forms and the mnemonic are connected through your body. It’s better for you to realize it yourself than for me to simply teach it.”

Though teaching the forms directly would be faster and easier, it could result in the disciple becoming trapped in the master’s interpretation and failing to grow. That’s why he chose this method.

Yong Hwarin believed that thinking and pondering for oneself was the key to truly understanding martial arts.

He believed a master should only step in to guide a disciple when they were going down the wrong path.

Yong Hwarin turned his steps toward the Sky Ocean Escort Agency.

Before heading to Shaolin Temple, he intended to retrieve the Azure Dragon Three Marbles no matter what.

Thus, he had already asked Baekseom to track down the traces of the Four Demonic Heavens that Eum Sajeok had mentioned.

As soon as Yong Hwarin disappeared, Tang Duhwa stepped out from behind the pillar.

“Your master is seriously amazing. It makes me so bitter that I’m this young.”

Surprised by Tang Duhwa’s sudden appearance, Ha Cheollyeong’s eyes widened.

But when she began praising his master, he smiled faintly.

For him, hearing others praise his master brought the greatest joy. It felt like he himself was being complimented.

“Heh, now that you smile, you’re actually pretty handsome.”

Ha Cheollyeong glanced at her briefly before saying, more boldly than before,

“Lady Tang, just to make it clear, don’t hold affection for me. I’ve committed myself solely to martial arts, so I can’t afford to have feelings elsewhere.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? I just said you’re good-looking, not that I like you. And I actually like your master.”

Ha Cheollyeong twitched his cheek and replied.

“Seriously now, you’re the one who started talking informally, so I’m going to drop the honorifics too. And from now on, don’t talk to me while I’m training, if possible.”

Tang Duhwa responded with a surprised look.

“Wow, turns out you’re a sneaky one, huh?”

“Our master is outstanding both in reputation and in character. Since I have such a great teacher, I must become a disciple worthy of him.”

To Tang Duhwa, Ha Cheollyeong’s frankness, without any pretense, actually made him look more admirable.

“Fine, I won’t get in the way of your training. But I’ll treat you to something delicious tonight, so come to our place.”

Ha Cheollyeong shook his head.

“The Master said there are three joys that bring harm, and you’re committing all three right now. Haven’t you heard of the ‘Three Harmful Pleasures’?”

In the Analects, in the section titled Ji Shi (季氏), Confucius spoke of three pleasures that bring harm.

樂驕樂(낙교락) 樂逸樂(낙일락) 樂宴樂(낙연락)

Loving arrogance and indulgence, delighting in idleness, and enjoying banquets.

Tang Duhwa felt quietly irritated at the thought that Ha Cheollyeong seemed to consider her as a carefree slacker.

Even so, she was simply trying to show closeness to get along with Ha Cheollyeong, so she felt somewhat vexed when he interpreted her words that way.

“Hmph, if you’re really that great to say something like that, then prove it in a duel with me. I won’t use poison or hidden weapons.”

Tang Duhwa wanted to teach Ha Cheollyeong a lesson and show him what kind of person she truly was.

Ha Cheollyeong responded with a hint of annoyance.

“And what exactly do I gain from dueling with you?”

“If you win, I’ll stop bothering you from now on and treat you like an orabeoni.”

Ha Cheollyeong decided to accept it, thinking it wasn’t a bad deal.

In fact, he had learned martial arts from his grandfather since he was young, so he was stronger than others his age.

It was thanks to that he had managed to endure being pursued by the trackers from the Blood Demon Castle.

Moreover, since Tang Duhwa had declared she wouldn’t use the Tang Clan’s hidden weapons or poison arts, he believed he had a fair chance at victory.

Also, she had been getting in his way quite a lot recently, and it was starting to quietly annoy him.

“When shall we duel?”

“You just started your martial training, so let’s do it ten days from now. You’ll probably need to prepare a killer technique or something. And if I win, you’ll have to call me noona and play with me whenever I call. I’ll properly show you the Three Pleasures of the Grandchild you mentioned.”

Once the duel was agreed upon and Tang Duhwa disappeared with a slightly sulky face, Ha Cheollyeong resumed his training.

Before he knew it, Ha Cheollyeong was swinging his sword following the mnemonic formula of the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword he had just learned.

Yong Hwarin, who had been waiting for intel on the Blood Green Unit recently, was thoroughly enjoying the process of teaching Ha Cheollyeong.

In the Book of Rites (禮記), one of the Five Classics of China, there is a phrase in the Study Record chapter called “Teaching and Learning Complement Each Other.”

“Even if there is excellent food, one must taste it to know its flavor. Likewise, even if there is the highest truth, without learning, one cannot know why it is good. Therefore, only after learning does one realize their own shortcomings, and only after teaching does one truly grasp the difficulties. That is why teaching and learning together lead to mutual growth.”

Just as this saying goes, Yong Hwarin was realizing things he hadn’t thought of while teaching the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword to Ha Cheollyeong.

‘Ah, had I never taken a disciple or tried teaching, my martial arts might never have become complete. Though I accepted Cheollyeong as my disciple, it turns out the one learning is me.’

As Yong Hwarin continued teaching the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword and Azure Bamboo Sword to Ha Cheollyeong, he once again came to realize how difficult these sword arts really were.

In the past, he had thought their complexity was simply due to them being advanced techniques, but teaching Ha Cheollyeong made him think otherwise.

Stopping in the middle of instruction, Yong Hwarin hastily summoned the Ten Prodigies of the Heavenly Central Sect.

Once they had all gathered, Yong Hwarin began to speak.

“After taking on a disciple and trying to teach, I’ve come to feel many things. You all will also have to accept disciples and teach one day. From my experience, I don’t believe the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword or Azure Bamboo Sword can be easily understood by disciples. As you know, they are quite abstruse.”

The Ten Prodigies of the Heavenly Central Sect couldn’t understand why the Small Sect Leader was stating something so obvious to all disciples of the Heavenly Central Sect.

Seeing their confusion, Yong Hwarin smiled and said,

“Chief Mu, what do you think is the reason that the Nine Great Sects and the renowned clans have continued to flourish for hundreds of years without decline?”

Mu Iso thought for a moment before replying.

“Well, isn’t it because they have traditions and histories built up over long periods?”

“Not in such a broad sense. Tell me what you personally feel is the core reason.”

“Hmm, it’s probably because they receive systematic training from a young age.”

Yong Hwarin nodded.

“That’s true, but in my opinion, the real reason lies in martial arts. The Nine Great Sects and renowned clans all possess foundational martial arts that are easy for newcomers to learn. Those who master these foundational arts gradually move on to the advanced techniques. On the other hand, smaller factions often have few martial arts, and what they do have tends to be complex and obscure. Because of that, if there is no successor who properly grasps them, those sects either fall behind or vanish from the murim.”

The Ten Prodigies nodded, as if finding his words sensible.

“Heaven Sea Divine Art falls under that category as well, which is why there was no successor to inherit the Heaven Sea Sword techniques. Our sect is no different. Though we’ve lasted over a hundred years, only one or two masters have ever made a name for themselves in the murim. That’s because we lack a proper system. The Ten Prodigies of the Heavenly Central Sect must now begin taking in disciples. So the Heavenly Soaring Dragon Sword and Azure Bamboo Sword must be revised to be easier to practice and understand. We must also develop entry-level martial arts that can be learned before these advanced sword techniques. What we must now undertake concerns the very future of our sect. Please give it your utmost effort.”

Though overwhelmed by the idea of reinventing martial arts, the Ten Prodigies felt a strong sense of duty, driven by the future of the Heavenly Central Sect.

“Understood, Small Sect Leader.”

“And if there are any deficiencies in basic martial instruction, seek the counsel of Elder Demonic Master and Elder Hae Deokgong. With their help, it will not be difficult to resolve.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep