A clear and bright sound continuously echoed from the duel stage.
It was the sound of my sword and Senior Brother Un Chi's sword clashing repeatedly.
To be honest, I was surprised as soon as the duel began.
Because the weight carried in Senior Brother Un Chi's sword was heavier than I thought.
I could feel how desperately he had been training.
"Heok— Heok— Heup!"
Throughout the duel, Senior Brother Un Chi said not a single word.
He just put all his strength into each and every strike he made.
My impression of Senior Brother Un Chi was that he was arrogant for his skills, didn't know how to be serious, and had a ridiculously strong pride, but now that evaluation is about to change.
No, it has already changed. Seeing that serious appearance, I don't even seem to rember my past thoughts.
The senior brothers watching this duel might be thinking this.
Why isn't Unhwi imdiately countering Un Chi's attacks? Is he perhaps going easy on Un Chi?
That's entirely possible.
Because right now, I am only defending repeatedly and not attacking at all.
And that is the second reason why I am a little flustered.
I can't see an opening to attack. To be precise, I think I could attack enough, but I'm not sure if Senior Brother Un Chi can receive my attack.
It's not that he can't receive the attack because his skills are lacking, but because for so reason, he didn't even seem to have the thought of blocking the attack.
Mutual destruction.
Right now, Senior Brother Un Chi is so desperate that the word 'mutual destruction' flashes through my mind.
Of course, even if we were to have a mutual destruction, the one who would get hurt would not be , but only Senior Brother Un Chi.
"Senior Brother. Why are you so desperate? This is a duel. Not a real battle."
"Heup! Haap!"
"Senior Brother Un Chi?"
I said to him while receiving his sword, but Senior Brother Un Chi, pretending not to hear, just swung his sword even more strongly.
For a mont, I wondered if this was also a strategy.
A strategy to make it difficult for to counterattack by showing such a desperate appearance, and thus get a good evaluation for the martial arts he perford.
But looking at Senior Brother Un Chi's expression now, it doesn't seem to be the case.
He has a face that is focused only on this duel, with no other thoughts.
'There's no other way. I have no choice but to use more strength, even if it's a little dangerous.'
In the end, I thought the only way to calm him down was to press him down with my skills, so I put in more internal energy than before.
The sound of the swords clashing itself changed, and at the much stronger impact, Senior Brother Un Chi was pushed back.
But he is grinning.
He also began to clash with a sword imbued with even stronger force and internal energy than before.
"Was Un Chi that strong?"
"That kind of sound wouldn't be made when swords clash unless it's a considerable amount of internal energy."
"Un Chi? Did you say that child's Taoist na is Un Chi? Seeing that I haven't heard his na until now, he seems to be a child who hasn't distinguished himself much... is he a late bloor?"
I can hear the elders sitting nearby talking in low voices.
As they said, Senior Brother Un Chi is not originally one of the strongest among our senior brothers.
But after this duel is over, there will probably be many more people who will rember his Taoist na.
Because he is showing that good of a performance in this place right now.
"Hwa-a-ap!"
As ti went on, Senior Brother Un Chi perford his energy even more desperately.
A state of using his energy almost to its limit.
Because of that, his internal energy control is showing signs of breaking down.
I was a little relieved inside.
Because in this situation, it would be much easier to subdue him.
If the duel had dragged on any longer, a really dangerous situation might have occurred.
After exchanging about twenty more blows with him, at the mont his internal energy was montarily cut off.
I, stepping on the Seven Star Steps, dug into his body in the blink of an eye.
A swordsman must be proficient in hand-to-hand combat.
Because when you dig into the inside of the arm like now, you can't swing a sword.
Senior Brother Un Chi had trained a lot in swordsmanship, but his fist and foot techniques were still lacking, so he couldn't respond properly to my movents.
The mont my fists struck his chest and abdon in succession, he tumbled backward.
He, as if in pain, even let go of the sword in his hand and is caressing his chest.
I walked towards him and held out my hand.
My senior brother, after looking back and forth between my hand and my face, grabbed my hand and stood up from his seat.
"To be honest, it was excellent. When did you train like that?"
"Not when... I did it every day. Rain or shine, always."
"You did well. Isn't there a saying that you should train as if you're breathing?"
"Ha! That's sothing you would say."
"That's right. Because I just made it up."
"What?"
Senior Brother Un Chi, who had a serious expression, finally smiled.
He had a relieved expression.
He, with a polite expression and attitude, bowed his head slightly to and said, "I lost."
At the sa ti as those words, the grand-elder declared my victory, and I ca down from the duel stage with Senior Brother Un Chi.
"I have no more lingering feelings for this tournant now. Because I showed everything I wanted to show."
"It was amazing. It's the first ti I've seen that senior brother work so hard."
"What on earth is your impression of ? I usually train so hard that Senior Brother Jihak tells to stop."
"You don't do it in front of , so of course I wouldn't know."
"From now on, I think I'll have to follow you around where you train."
"That's a good idea too. Wouldn't I be able to correct any wrong postures while I train?"
Seeing answer without losing a single word, Senior Brother Un Chi shook his head and then burst into laughter.
He, after laughing for a while, said to with a slightly more serious face, "To be honest, I wanted to show you. Do you rember our first martial arts tournant?"
"How could I not rember?"
At that ti, I had used various tricks to legally beat Senior Brother Un Chi, and he had been spanked so much that he couldn't walk properly for several days.
"Since that day... I've been reflecting on myself. And I realized. That even I think I'm a hopeless case."
"I don't think it was that bad."
"That's right. If you hadn't brought to my senses at that ti, I would have continued to live like that. Arrogantly, believing in the little bit more internal energy I had compared to my senior brothers. And that internal energy would have eventually been caught up to by those who train hard."
"......"
I swallowed the words that I had thought so too, without spitting them out.
No matter how much I have a personality of saying what I should and shouldn't say, I know how to read this kind of atmosphere.
"So I wanted to show you. How I've been training with what kind of feelings since that day. And how much I've changed. I don't know about you, but I'm satisfied with today's duel. Although I lost, I think it beca an opportunity for you to see in a new light."
"If that was your goal, you succeeded perfectly. I really... saw you in a new light."
I expressed my feelings honestly. Then Senior Brother Un Chi grinned.
"Good. That's enough. That was more important to than becoming one of the Five Swords of Wudang."
With those last words, Senior Brother Un Chi and I parted ways to go to our respective seats.
To be honest, in the duel with Senior Brother Un Chi, which I hadn't thought of as very important until now, I received a greater resonance than in any other duel I had today.
The responsibility that I had changed a person's life.
And the expectation that I can change soone so positively.
'At least it ans I'm not going down the wrong path right now.'
There are still a few more duels left, and it's just a matter of confirming what I've done so far, but I couldn't help but feel my heart swell.
***
"Today's martial arts tournant will end here. The remaining tournants will be held tomorrow. And if we can't finish tomorrow, it may be extended to the day after tomorrow. Until then, all training and missions will be temporarily suspended."
The martial arts tournant was originally planned for one day, but the Sect Leader, who realized that it would be impossible to handle it in one day, finished today's schedule early before the sun set.
As I said before, the martial arts tournant is a kind of festival period. The food in the dining hall is good, and at this ti, the atmosphere becos one where you can enjoy yourself a little, away from training.
But since the Sect Leader had extended that festival from one day to three, everyone had an excited face.
"Now, shall we go back quickly?"
"Let's do that. In my opinion, the training ground will be full today too, so let's move quickly and get a spot."
But not only the senior brothers from our room, but the atmosphere of the senior brothers from other rooms is a little strange.
They couldn't have not heard the Sect Leader's words just now about suspending training, but no one seems to want to play.
Sohow, I also thought that I would be able to et most of the senior brothers at the training ground.
I was about to go back to my room, change into my training clothes, and head to the training ground again.
Soone was standing in front of the room.
"Senior Brother Un Gak?"
"Unhwi-ya. Can we talk for a mont?"
"Of course."
Senior Brother Un Gak was waiting for , fidgeting like a person waiting for a lover, and I couldn't refuse Senior Brother Un Gak's words.
Just in ti, all the senior brothers from our room also ca out after changing their clothes, so I sent the senior brothers to the training ground first and went into the room with Senior Brother Un Gak.
But Senior Brother Un Gak, who clearly looked like he had sothing to say, was just looking at the ground without saying anything.
The atmosphere is getting stranger and stranger, and I'm starting to think that he might really be about to confess to .
His obsession with Un Gwang, and I was even starting to suspect that he might be of that inclination, so I opened my mouth first.
"What are you trying to say that you're setting the mood like that?"
"Hmm. To be honest, until a little while ago, I thought I could say it right away, but now that I'm facing you, the words don't co out easily."
"What on earth is it?"
He, after hesitating for a long ti after that, said, "I'm sorry."
"Yes? For what?"
"The duels in the martial arts tournant are a precious ti and opportunity for you, no matter who you fight, but because of my petty heart, I wasted your precious opportunity."
"No. That was also a good duel."
"To be honest, after watching your duel with Un Chi... I felt a lot. To be honest, objectively speaking, Un Chi's martial arts are not more outstanding than mine... but he showed a much better performance than in my duel."
Senior Brother Un Gak had a very serious attitude.
Of course, he was also shocked by the duel with Senior Brother Un Chi, but in the first place, it would be possible for him to co out like this because Senior Brother Un Gak has a serious and sincere personality in everything.
The attitude he showed when he dueled with earlier was probably not because he had any ill will.
He must have developed his skills while training with Un Gwang, and he might have felt as if I had taken that opportunity away.
"What are you apologizing for? Of course, that can happen."
"Huh?"
"Do people always live with only right thoughts and good thoughts? They make mistakes while doing this and that, and they live while clashing with each other. So get up now."
I stood up from my seat with a start.
If he's upset because he thinks he lost the opportunity to beco stronger because of , then I can just give him that opportunity, right?
"I don't think the conversation is over yet..."
"Isn't there a saying that one action is better than a hundred words? So hurry up and change your clothes and co to the training ground."
"I don't think that's how that saying is used..."
"I think it is. I'll be at the training ground first. If you co late, you'll have less ti to train."
And then I, leaving him in our room, ca out and headed to the training ground.
Not long after I left, I heard the sound of my senior brother hurriedly coming out of the room and heading to Room One.
'So another one has been added.'
I smiled broadly.
Even in this mont, no matter what ups and downs there are, the fact that our Wudang is continuously getting stronger makes smile.
(End of Chapter)
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