Chapter 58: The Escort
“That's right. It's time to leave.”
Yu Gwangcheol's voice remained calm.
“For the Righteous Alliance... where the Dragon-Phoenix Awakening Tournament will be held.”
The Righteous Alliance.
Just hearing that name was enough to make rage boil inside me.
The place that had torn my life apart before my regression.
The cold stone floor of that blood-soaked underground prison.
The endless screams of the test subjects.
To me...
that place had been hell.
And the man responsible for creating all of it.
Moyong Cheonhwi.
The moment his name surfaced in my mind, rage surged through me...
yet at the same time, my breath caught.
My throat felt completely dry.
I could still vividly remember the sensation of that cold blade brushing across the back of my neck.
Even the moment Moyong Cheonhwi's sword cut off my head...
and my vision turned upside down.
...But.
I clenched my teeth.
I was different now.
I was no longer a test subject who had lost his soul to the Soul-Dissolving Pill and been dragged around like a puppet.
You filthy hypocrites.
I'll tear off every last one of your false masks.
Then Yu Gwangcheol's voice reached me again.
“That's enough for today.”
“Everyone, go recover.”
I gritted my teeth and cut off those thoughts.
Then I pulled myself together.
Now wasn't the time to drown in memories of the past.
It was time to keep moving forward.
“Gather at the Sect Leader's Palace before dawn tomorrow.”
With that, First Elder Yu Gwangcheol turned away.
The martial artists of the Geoncheon Guard and Martial Discipline Office followed behind him.
I quietly watched them leave.
Not long after Elder Yu Gwangcheol departed, the four of us went our separate ways.
I immediately used my movement technique and headed toward the Abandoned Martial Hall.
Throughout the special training period, I had been staying at the Event Hall.
There simply hadn't been enough time to travel every day between the training ground and the Abandoned Martial Hall, which was hidden deep in the mountains.
The path back felt easier than before.
It was probably another result of the special training.
When I finally stepped across the threshold of the Abandoned Martial Hall after so long...
a strange sense of comfort settled over me.
So many things had happened here.
I had gone from a mere laborer at the Event Hall...
to the Master of the Abandoned Martial Hall.
I had even obtained the martial legacy left behind by True Immortal Cheongun.
This place had played a decisive role in completely changing the direction of my life after regression.
The Abandoned Martial Hall.
And at the beginning of everything...
there had been Jin Gwangung.
That damn master who had dragged me to this fateful place.
Of course, he'd kidnapped me here purely for his own selfish reasons...
but I couldn't deny that my life had changed because of it.
...Come to think of it.
Where the hell is that old bastard Jin Gwangung now?
Ever since the special training began...
he hadn't shown his face once.
He'd made a big show of finally teaching me properly as my master...
then suddenly disappeared again.
The more I thought about it...
the more ridiculous it seemed.
I grumbled inwardly without realizing it.
He's probably drinking somewhere and lazing around again.
Seriously.
If your disciple is getting worked half to death in special training...
shouldn't a master at least show his face once?
What if I end up leaving without seeing him at all?
Strangely...
that thought left me a little disappointed.
Was this what people called growing attached despite disliking someone?
Oh, please.
Attached, my ass.
Life's easier when I don't have to see that foul-tempered old man.
I shook my head and headed into the Abandoned Martial Hall's library.
Then the moment I entered...
...Huh?
Something unfamiliar caught my eye.
At the back of the library...
on top of a cabinet that was normally empty...
a neatly folded set of clothes had been placed.
I walked over and examined it.
A Kunlun Taoist robe.
I carefully lifted it with both hands.
It carried the faintly stiff smell of new fabric.
When my fingers brushed the sleeves, the cloth felt crisp.
The seams were perfectly straight, almost as though they'd been cut with a blade.
I stood there holding the robe for a long moment.
...It's mine.
The width of the shoulders.
The sleeve length.
Even the position of the waist tie.
It was unmistakably made to fit me.
For some reason...
my throat moved once.
...Damn old bastard....
My master was eccentric and constantly said whatever rude thing came to mind...
yet once in a while, he did something completely unlike himself and managed to move me.
I ran my palm once over the robe.
Jin Gwangung's rough face briefly appeared in my mind.
Before I realized it...
the corners of my mouth had risen.
I'll wear it well... Master.
The next morning before dawn.
Before the sky had fully brightened, we gathered near the Sect Leader's Palace at the agreed time.
I was the last to arrive.
The others were already there waiting.
“Martial Uncle Mujin! You're here!”
The moment Myeongjeon saw me, he raised a hand with a delighted expression.
There were dark circles beneath his eyes...
but he still looked excited.
I raised my own hand in greeting.
“You're early.”
“Of course, Martial Uncle!”
His eyes lit up.
“We're leaving for the Dragon-Phoenix Awakening Tournament today, right?”
He grinned.
“I was so excited I barely slept.”
“Probably.”
“Wow, I'm already looking forward to it.”
Myeongjeon began rambling excitedly.
“I'm actually going to participate in the Dragon-Phoenix Awakening Tournament, where all the great heroes who'll shake the martial world in the future are born!”
“Keh-heh-heh.”
He looked delighted beyond words.
Hyeongwon, standing beside him, spoke bluntly.
“Stop shouting at dawn.”
He frowned.
“At least show some dignity as a representative of the Elders' Lecture Gathering.”
Myeongjeon pouted.
“Don't be like that.”
Then he gave an exaggerated sigh.
“If you keep treating me this way... I'll be really hurt.”
In the past...
Myeongjeon wouldn't have dared say something like that in front of Hyeongwon.
But after nearly a month of rolling around on the ground together during special training...
the four of us had grown comfortable enough to trade light jokes.
Of course...
that didn't mean Hyeongwon had suddenly become easygoing.
His eyebrow twitched.
“Look at this brat.”
“How dare you speak that way to your Martial Uncle?”
Myeongjeon immediately backed down.
“My deepest apologies, Martial Uncle Hyeongwon!”
He instantly switched to polite speech and bowed.
The change in attitude was so fast it was almost lightning.
His waist bent so quickly that for a moment...
I wondered if he'd just used a martial art.
Even Hyeongwon could only shake his head.
As expected...
Myeongjeon knew exactly when to retreat.
A true master of survival and social maneuvering.
Yu Seola watched the two and sighed softly.
“What is wrong with both of you...?”
As I watched them...
a strange emotion stirred somewhere inside me.
Only a few months ago...
we hadn't been this close.
At first...
we had actually been rivals competing for victory in the Elders' Lecture Gathering.
But then...
we had fought for our lives together in Black Spirit Valley.
We endured brutal special training together.
We sweated together.
Collapsed together.
Then stood back up together.
And somewhere during all that...
our relationship had deepened.
