Returning to his residence, Baek Yoonjun became lost in thought.
Although Tang Yuhwa was leaving the mountain, it was to a relatively close place, which was somewhat better, but the subsequent problems came to his mind, one after another.
'There were quite a lot of martial artists in Sichuan.'
Whatever their level, there were many martial artists in Sichuan.
'Although they were at a level where they had just started, their numbers were still over a hundred.'
Whatever their realm, there were many martial artists.
Compared to the huge crowd of Sichuan, it was a drop in the bucket, but by Baek Yoonjun's standards, it was a number that naturally brought a sense of burden.
'Martial artists are burdensome, but ordinary people are also burdensome.'
In the end, people were the problem.
Baek Yoonjun thought deeply.
'Well, there's no answer.'
And he gave up.
He would do people-adaptation training like last time, but it seemed impossible to stroll through a large place like Sichuan, even if the sky were to fall tomorrow.
'I've memorized Yuhwa's house, so I'll go around the outskirts at night and go straight there without running into people.'
Having thought of a route to visit when Tang Yuhwa left the mountain, Baek Yoonjun moved on to another problem.
'There were quite a lot of martial artists in Sichuan.'
In the end, having returned to the first question, Baek Yoonjun this time thought of a different kind of problem.
'The guys who popped out at the end weren't cut down in one blow.'
At the two recent instances where a single blow had not gone as intended, Baek Yoonjun became a little more serious.
'In the end, if I go on like this, I might meet strong guys like this, starting from third-rate who are on the same level as me, to second-rate, and first-rate, right?'
Baek Yoonjun's worry about people now moved on to a worry about a crisis of life.
'I haven't met a martial artist of third-rate or higher yet, but I'll eventually see one someday. So.'
Although it was a usual worry routine, today the conclusion was a little different.
'It's not enough.'
In his fear, Baek Yoonjun felt the lack of his current realm.
'I have to rise to second-rate.'
Baek Yoonjun decided on his life's goal.
It seemed it wasn't the first or second time he had decided on his life's goal, but for a homebody introvert, a life's goal was something that changed as easily as breathing.
And so, having decided on his life's goal, Baek Yoonjun pondered the realm of second-rate.
'I have a general idea, though.'
Baek Yoonjun, intuiting that the realm of second-rate he was thinking of was right before his eyes, slowly scanned that realm.
'It seems the realm of second-rate is a realm on the border of life and death... As for death, I have a feeling since I've died once, but I have no feeling at all about life.'
Baek Yoonjun closed his eyes and continued to search for a way to advance to the realm of second-rate, and he saw a subtle gap, but he did not see a path to advance.
And so, after pondering the realm of second-rate for a long time, Baek Yoonjun felt all sorts of stray thoughts rising in his frustrated heart.
'But if the realm of second-rate is the realm of life and death, then instead of the name second-rate, wouldn't it be better to just call it something like the Life and Death Realm?'
Baek Yoonjun, who was having stray thoughts, shook his head at the thought that came to him.
'No, it's just second-rate, so is it a bit much to attach such a grand name?'
Just second-rate.
Thinking it was a bit much to attach such a grand name, Baek Yoonjun moved on to another thought.
'But why can't I see a realm of third-rate or higher in that big Sichuan?'
Sichuan was large, and the population was large.
But he had not seen a being on the same level as himself or higher.
As Baek Yoonjun thought about the reason, he thought about his journey until he entered this mountain.
'I was definitely wandering around looking for a place with few people and ended up staying here, right?'
And so, as he was reminiscing about the past, Baek Yoonjun found his own answer as to why there were no martial artists of third-rate or higher in Sichuan.
'Is it because it's a backwater?'
It was an answer that would have made the dead head of the Sichuan Son family beat the ground and wail, but Baek Yoonjun thought this answer was reasonable in its own way.
'I shouldn't leave here.'
Baek Yoonjun decided never to leave the vicinity of Sichuan and finished his thoughts.
And so, having satisfactorily savored the cooping up in his room that he had not been able to do enough of, Baek Yoonjun came out of his room.
As he came out of the room, he saw Tang Yuhwa sorting medicinal herbs and poisonous herbs in the yard and drying them in the sun.
It was what Tang Yuhwa mainly did after returning home.
'Was the thing you had to do before going back then to pack medicinal herbs?'
Baek Yoonjun felt a sense of disappointment because he had secretly thought that she was staying longer because she was sad to be separated from him.
At that moment, Tang Yuhwa, who had noticed Baek Yoonjun approaching, looked back.
"Master, do you have something to say?"
"Huh? No?"
"It seems you do."
At those words, Baek Yoonjun fell into deep thought.
He certainly had a lot to say, but he also had nothing to say.
'Should I try saying what I decided on earlier?'
After being lost in thought for a moment, Baek Yoonjun voiced what he had been thinking earlier.
"I have a life's goal."
"What is it?"
"To rise to second-rate."
"You can do it."
Tang Yuhwa left words of encouragement to Baek Yoonjun as usual.
After that, there was no particular conversation.
Feeling very embarrassed, Baek Yoonjun helped Tang Yuhwa with her work of drying the medicinal herbs.
The two of them silently dried the medicinal herbs for a while.
And so, time passed, and the work was finished.
"Master."
"What?"
As the work finished, Tang Yuhwa spoke first.
"Thanks."
"What? Drying the medicinal herbs? That was something I had to do anyway."
At Tang Yuhwa's words of thanks, Baek Yoonjun answered as if it were no big deal.
"That's also thanks, but this thanks is for something else."
"What?"
"I wanted to avenge my enemies."
"Huh?"
At Tang Yuhwa's words, Baek Yoonjun just made a stupid sound, but Tang Yuhwa continued to speak without minding.
"Just in time, Master intervened, so I used it as an excuse to get my revenge."
Baek Yoonjun was flustered by Tang Yuhwa's words.
'This brat also wanted to repay her grudge, huh.'
Although Baek Yoonjun was relieved by Tang Yuhwa's words, he was also worried.
'Then I don't know if the words I said about repaying the grudge will be kept.'
It was true that she had repaid the grudge this time, but it was based on Baek Yoonjun's thoughts.
Perhaps if another grudge arose in the future, Baek Yoonjun's request might not be properly kept.
"I have no intention of taking back the words I've said."
"That's a relief."
Fortunately, as if she had read Baek Yoonjun's heart, Tang Yuhwa voiced words that were a little reassuring.
Nevertheless, Baek Yoonjun was worried.
'I wish she would also pay a little attention to protecting her own body.'
This time too, Tang Yuhwa pinpointed Baek Yoonjun's thoughts like a ghost.
"I'll protect my own body, so don't worry."
"Huh?"
"But I don't think it's right to accept the advice to protect my body as repaying a kindness."
"Eh?"
Baek Yoonjun couldn't react properly to the continuous stream of embarrassing words.
"So I'm thinking of having Master's child."
"What?"
At the most embarrassing words in his entire life, Baek Yoonjun's mind left the mountain.
* * *
The decisive battle of Sichuan.
The clash between the orthodox and heretical factions spread to the surroundings in an instant.
"Hey, did you hear the news?"
"News? You don't mean the matter in Sichuan, do you?"
"You know, isn't that surprising? That the heretical faction is pressing the orthodox faction."
"Well, aren't they the same martial artists?"
"Martial artists! The term martial artist refers to the orthodox faction. Don't say such things anywhere! You'll be in big trouble."
The news spread not only in the marketplace but also to the Martial Alliance, which could be said to be the center of the orthodox faction.
The main building of the Henan Martial Alliance.
There, the elites of the numerous family clans that were the mainstay of the orthodox faction were raising their voices.
"We must dispatch a martial force to Sichuan immediately!"
"Are you saying we should just watch as the damn heretical faction guys crawl up, knowing their place?"
"Answer! Alliance Leader!!"
And at the center of that commotion, one of the elderly was maintaining his silence and looking at them with cold eyes.
'How pathetic.'
The abbot of Shaolin, the Divine Monk.
He, the first leader of the Martial Alliance, saw all of the current situation as pathetic.
Therefore, he maintained his silence and continued to chant sutras inwardly to organize his chaotic heart.
"Divine Nun Jihwa, please say something too!"
As the Divine Monk remained silent, the arrow turned to the leader of the Emei Sect, Divine Nun Jihwa.
"How pathetic."
Divine Nun Jihwa looked at the man who had spoken to her with a cold face.
"It is a just authority established according to the ecology of martial arts that you, sir, like, so what is there to say?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? That is the just authority of the martial world!"
"Isn't it because the Emei Sect, located in Sichuan, did not do its job properly!!"
"Sigh."
The Divine Monk looked at Divine Nun Jihwa, who was sighing, and, knowing that she also had the same thoughts as him, smiled bitterly.
In the first place, the groups that could be called sects belonging to the Martial Alliance, or more precisely, the orthodox faction, were only the three groups of Shaolin, Emei, and the Putuo Sect.
Even that was only recognized due to the legitimacy of the three groups.
The group called the orthodox faction was run by the family clans.
The fact that the Divine Monk was serving as the alliance leader was just a show-off position due to the long-standing legitimacy of Shaolin.
Still, with the Divine Monk as the alliance leader, he was able to block the tyranny of the family clans, albeit in a small way.
But that was also gradually becoming difficult.
Divine Nun Jihwa next to him was also in a state not much different from the Divine Monk.
Therefore, Divine Nun Jihwa of Emei made a decision.
"Emei will not intervene in the matter of Sichuan."
"Hey!! Divine Nun Jihwa!"
"Furthermore, Emei will leave the Martial Alliance."
At Divine Nun Jihwa's statement, the audience was engulfed in silence.
The Divine Monk, who had expected the situation to some extent, smiled brightly and opened his mouth.
"Shaolin will also share the will of Emei."
He also had the same will as Divine Nun Jihwa, so he chose to leave the alliance.
'Originally, Shaolin ran on its own. Since when did it become like this...'
The Divine Monk recalled the time when the Martial Alliance was first established.
Although they could not completely become independent from the government, those who held justice and had the same will had gathered.
But not even ten years had passed, and the way the current alliance was run was truly a spectacle.
It was unavoidable for a group to pursue profit, but there was a limit to that.
'When the word 'martial world' first came out and we tried to follow its meaning, it wasn't like this.'
The Divine Monk recalled the time when the word 'martial world' first came out.
The White-Robed Sword Immortal.
A legendary man who had swung his sword against a mighty force alone and had disappeared without a trace.
After that man had defeated the Three Heavens and disappeared into a deep forest, the word that came out of the mouths of those who belatedly chased his footsteps was 'martial world'.
But the current martial world was just a mess where those with power ran wild as they pleased.
The Divine Monk smiled bitterly as he recalled the current situation and got up from his seat.
A man approached him.
"If the will of Shaolin and Emei is so, then from now on, I will classify Shaolin and Emei as heretical factions unrelated to the orthodox martial world."
Namgung Jehyun.
He, the head of the Namgung family and who could be said to be the real power of the current martial world, scanned the Divine Monk and Divine Nun Jihwa with an indifferent face.
It was a truly arrogant statement.
But that's how the current martial world was.
They classified martial artists who did not follow the will of the alliance as heretical factions that did not belong to the martial world.
"Do as you wish, Sir Jehyun."
"Emei also shares the will of Shaolin."
The Divine Monk and Divine Nun Jihwa raised one hand, joined their palms, and left the alliance.
As they left the alliance and were about to go their separate ways, the Divine Monk spoke first.
"It seems Emei is planning to support Cheongseong after all."
"Since a new wind has blown for the first time in a while, there is no need to share the will with those who are like stale dust, is there?"
The Divine Monk looked at Divine Nun Jihwa with a gentle smile.
In the eyes of Divine Nun Jihwa, whose delicate and beautiful appearance made it hard to believe that she was well over forty, a strong conviction that did not suit her delicacy was present.
"Shaolin will seal its gates for the time being and build up its strength. If you need help, please ask at any time."
"Thank you for Shaolin's goodwill."
The two forces that followed the teachings of Buddhism parted with similar wills.
"A new wind."
A few days after that, Shaolin sealed its gates, and the news of the alliance between Emei and Cheongseong spread throughout the Central Plains.
* * *
"Yuhwa. No matter how I think about it, this is not it."
"What's not?"
"I am a master, and you are my disciple, aren't you?"
"That's right."
"A master is like a parent, so how can you try to do such an inappropriate act?"
"You're not my real parent."
"That's true, isn't it?"
"How is a union between a man and a woman inappropriate?"
As a new wind was blowing in the martial world, Baek Yoonjun was facing the greatest trial of his life.
"A girl shouldn't say such words."
"What's wrong with union? Union! Copulation!"
"Are you a sex parrot?"
"Master can just count the grains on the ceiling. I'll take care of it."
That day, for the first time, Baek Yoonjun was afraid of the corner of his room and could not return home all day.
(End of Chapter)
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