Episode 451
A journey to find the truth (1)
There was a huge tree boasting leaves full of vitality.
When viewed from a distance, the branches and leaves of that giant tree somewhat resembled a large lotus flower.
Jeongan liked that tree. So after coming to Guangdong, I enjoyed sitting against that tree and meditating.
Today too, she tried to meditate. I constantly tried to empty my mind in order to erase distracting thoughts and enter the world of selflessness.
But…
“Whew.”
A soft sigh flowed from Jeongan’s mouth.
Just like I tried for the past few days, I tried to meditate today as well. And like my failures over the past few days, I failed to fall into deep meditation today.
Actually, it may not be the time to meditate. The more I tried to control myself, the more I tried to control myself, but it wasn’t easy.
“The ground will disappear.”
Jeongan raised his head.
Yeon Ho-jeong was there, leaning behind him.
“Ah Yeon Daehyeop.”
Yeon Ho-jeong chuckled.
“What is Daehyeop? “Forget embarrassing titles.”
He is a strange person.
The tone of speech was quite harsh, but it didn’t sound hateful. Should I say that it seems like a way of speaking that fits exactly with this person’s nature? To someone who does not like pretentiousness, this person’s speaking style seemed very honest.
“Then I’ll call you boss.”
“As long as it’s not Daehyeop, you can do whatever you want.”
“yes.”
“by the way.”
Yeon Ho-jeong tilted his head.
“Did you get the answer?”
“yes?”
“After that incident, didn’t you come here every day and meditate constantly? Even though he was a practitioner, the frequency was too frequent. “There’s no need to go that far unless you’re looking for something.”
Jeongan smiled bitterly.
“Perhaps due to lack of execution, there were only many plausible attempts. Instead of looking for an answer, you just feel dizzy.”
“okay?”
Yeon Ho-jeong smiled.
It was a smile that exuded a very unique feeling that was difficult to define.
“The more you try to forget, the more clearly it comes to mind, and the more you try to bury it, the more it rises to the surface. “That’s what meditation is.”
“Do you know much about meditation?”
“Countless people who have faced limitations are masters of meditation. It’s the same for me too. However, even if you are a master, meditation has a high rate of failure.”
“Ah…”
“Don’t try too hard to forget. Sometimes it’s not a bad idea to leave your consciousness to distracting thoughts. “If you approach those distracting thoughts microscopically and dig them out again, sometimes the things you wanted are clearly revealed in places you didn’t want to see.”
Those were words full of wisdom. At least that’s what Jeong-an heard.
It wasn’t just a list of plausible words. Words that are difficult to say without experience. These were words that resonated with sincerity.
Crucially, Yeonhojeong was a more expert than Jeongan. He was not someone who was just a rough martial artist, but a true expert who knew how to put an immeasurable amount of depth into each move.
That fact gave strength to Yeon Ho-jeong’s words.
Jeongan bowed his head.
“Thank you for the advice that has become my blood and flesh.”
“It doesn’t have to be blood or flesh. Instead, focus on protecting your pure and sincere heart. Just keeping it for a lifetime will make your life a difficult journey.”
Jeongan looked up at Yeonhojeong.
Yeon Ho-jeong was still smiling and looking down at himself with clear, deep eyes.
At that moment, Jeongan felt a strange feeling.
‘It’s familiar.’
Why?
Unlike the first time we met and the few times we talked over the next few days, today’s Yeonhojeong felt oddly familiar.
How can I say… it feels like family or alumni? The strange radiance emanating from his entire body had a sense of composure and depth that could have been evoked by Buddhist Zen masters.
Is that why? Jeongan ended up asking a question that he normally wouldn’t have asked without realizing it.
“Have you ever experienced an embarrassing change in someone who was like family to you?”
This is probably referring to her accident and luck.
Yeon Ho-jeong nodded.
“Of course. However, the case was different with you. “I’ve never thought of my father as having such a smile and a laid-back personality.”
“okay.”
“On the contrary, my father and younger brother were embarrassed because of me.”
“why? “Has your personality changed a lot since you were young?”
“Very different.”
“How amazing.”
Yeon Ho-jeong shrugged his shoulders.
“Whatever it is, it can’t be considered right to just sit around and waste time like that. Do you do fortune-telling every day?”
“yes? Ah yes. I never leave out Ungong.”
“Good. “Then, shall we have a little fun?”
“…Suddenly?”
“I tried to immerse myself in meditation, but I couldn’t, and even if I tried to give myself up to idle thoughts, what I learned and mastered was mindlessness, so it wouldn’t be easy to even try.”
Jeongan’s face turned slightly red. It was because I was embarrassed because I felt like my true intentions were discovered.
“In that case, it’s best to cut off the sweat with a knife. Follow me.”
“Will you please accept it personally?”
“There are only a few people here who can properly handle your sword. “I am the least busy person among them.”
Yeon Ho-jeong’s high evaluation made Jeong-an feel better.
So the two arrived at the small training hall in the corner of their residence.
“Are you here?”
“okay.”
“This is…”
“Why? Is there a problem?”
Jeongan cleared his throat.
“It’s not a big problem, but… as you saw then, the area of my sword is rather wide…” I
was too embarrassed to say that this narrow training hall wouldn’t be able to handle my sword power.
Yeon Ho-jeong chuckled.
“Before we begin, I would like to add a word: freely increasing and decreasing your sword power is also a practice. “If you limitlessly expand the realm of martial arts implementation, you may lose delicacy.”
“Ah yes.”
“If it’s narrow, try to focus on using as much power as possible according to the situation.”
It wasn’t wrong. Jeongan was embarrassed because he felt like he had boasted about himself for no reason.
“Then let’s go.”
“whenever.”
Yeon Ho-jeong had bare hands. However, Jeong-an did not ask why he had bare hands or why he would not come with an axe.
At that time, Yeon Ho-jeong’s martial arts skills were so powerful that it was difficult to handle him with his bare hands or with an axe. Rather, I thought that in such a small area, bare hands might be more scary than an axe.
Paaaaang!
Jeong-an moved without any ceremony or even a word that he would start.
I don’t know anything else, but I liked her attitude toward competition. If you say you’re going to dance, it’s as if it’s started without even saying ‘start’. She knew at least a little bit about winning.
Sigh!
The sharp sword grazed Yeon Ho-jeong’s hair.
It was an extremely clean and quick sword. Even without using the Manga Jeonggeomgyeol, her sword was fierce. One of the many reasons why he was able to achieve a similar level to Mukbi at a similar age is because of these basic skills.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s feet kicked the ground.
Fuuuuuuu!
An intangible shock wave spread out in a circle along with the sound of an exploding drum hitting the air.
‘Quick!’
It was fast and strong.
Just this one kick heightened the tension. If I hadn’t dodged it, my head would have been blown off. Even if I had blocked it, it was an attack that would have left me unconscious from the shock.
Even if it is not a real battle, you can die. The same goes for any business in the world.
Jeongan’s concentration rose to its peak in an instant.
Bababababaak!
The trajectory of her sword was surprisingly beautiful.
It was beautiful and fast. Even before a single slash left a trace, a series of attacks from two swords and three swords rained down on him, to the point that even a decent swordsman could not be a match for him.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s hands moved violently.
Titty teeting!
Jeongan’s eyes wavered.
Although I didn’t use Mangajeonggeomgyeol, it was clear that it was quite a threatening sword. He cut off the dangerous swordfish with his bare hands.
‘Scary body vision!’
It would have been less surprising if he had struck the blade away with his hand, which had been strengthened by internal strength.
In that split second, Yeon Ho-jeong hit the sword with the back of his hand and turned the sword. It was a divine defense technique that was several times more difficult than blocking while protecting the hand with internal energy.
That wasn’t all.
thud!
The movement of digging into the arms like a snake along with the advance is also natural enough to make you laugh.
Fast, smooth and natural movements. As if he knew the opponent would retreat, his insight to overpower the opponent half a beat ahead of time was at its peak.
Fuuuuuuu!
Jeongan tilted his head back. The steel-like fist shot up like a cannonball. If I hadn’t avoided it, everything from my chin to my skull would have been pulverized.
grasp!
‘Ugh!’
As she briefly struck down the sword, the fist that rose up moved in an instant and grabbed her shoulder.
It was the side holding the sword on the right shoulder. The swinging sword stopped one inch in front of Yeon Ho-jeong’s side. My shoulder joint was stuck and I couldn’t move it.
It was a moment of surprise. Botaam, who used the sword as a tool for training, had a swordsmanship that could be considered the best in the world, but there was no box fighting and killing techniques based on a knowledgeable understanding of the human body.
Yeon Ho-jeong grabbed Jeong-an’s shoulder and swung his arm.
Jeongan was unable to resist at all, spinning around helplessly in the air before falling to the ground.
Quang!
Jeongan’s eyes wavered.
I collapsed from the back of my head to the back without even being able to use the technique.
But strangely, there was no pain. It seemed like he suffered enough damage to his head and spine, but it was just a dull impact.
Yeon Ho-jeong, who was looking down at Jeongan, smiled.
“I tried to sweat it out, but it ended up being too bland. “You weren’t like this, were you?”
“I think the leader is too strong.”
“To you, yes. Still, it wasn’t meant to be treated this harshly. “But I think I know why you collapsed so quickly.”
“What is it?”
“It’s because it’s half-baked.”
“…!”
Yeon Ho-jeong let go of Jeong-an’s shoulder and said, shaking off his clothes.
“I wasn’t sure if I was going to attack with a killing intent or just respond moderately, which is why I got hit so quickly. “If you had focused a little more, you wouldn’t have been caught in the shoulder or your sword technique would have been blocked.”
“….”
“Whether it’s meditation or competition, anything half-hearted is just as bad as not doing anything. Once you’ve decided on a path, clear away any confusion as quickly as possible and jump in without hesitation. “Don’t be afraid of adventure.”
Jeong-an, who was lying down and listening to Yeon Ho-jeong, closed his eyes.
“I am a coward.”
“know.”
“Even though I witnessed the embarrassing changes in adults and knew that it was wrong, I was unable to actively stop it.”
“I know that too.”
“Bota will not change just because I step up. Still, I had to step forward. “I had to risk my life to stop it.”
“That’s not it.”
“…yes?”
“Bota has already changed when you step up. “The reason I thought you were cowardly wasn’t because you didn’t stop their rampage.”
“sure?”
“Because it was half-baked.”
Jeongan’s eyes brightened.
Her opened eyes were full of shock.
I couldn’t deeply agree with what I said earlier about it being meaningless. But now these words were tearing at her heart mercilessly.
Yeon Ho-jeong, who had been quietly looking down at her, turned around.
“I am leaving Guangdong soon. “I’m going to the Murim League.”
“….”
“But there is a place to stop on the way. “It is a group headed by the person who provided the excuse for Botaam to get to that point.”
“…?!”
“If you’re going to go with me, take care of your mind and body starting today. I’ll tell you in advance, I can’t guarantee your life.”
A flash of light erupted from Jeongan’s eyes.
