Wudang Sacred Scriptures-Chapter 62

A heavy silence filled the Great Elder’s hall.

The palace lords of the Six Palaces were all puzzled by the inexplicable summons of the Great Elder.

“I have gathered you all because I have a request to make of the palace lords.”

At the words of Great Elder Yunhak Jin, the palace lords exchanged confused glances.

Did that not mean there was some urgent matter requiring a collective decision?

“How urgent must this matter be? You summoned us separately right after the Cheongmu Tournament ended.”

At the question from the Hyeonmu Palace Lord, Great Elder Yunhak Jin briefly closed his eyes, then opened them and spoke.

“It concerns the very essence of our sect’s inner current. I could not delay the summons.”

“...?”

“I’ll speak plainly. I wish to make a decision regarding the disposition of Daoist Hyeonmu of Three Spirits Palace.”

In that instant, all the palace lords swallowed hard.

Truthfully, each of them had already been secretly trying to figure out a solution.

A jewel had been found buried in mud.

And not just any jewel, but a true gem—something that might be seen once in a hundred years.

That gem had been tossed aside without anyone realizing its worth.

Though now it was claimed by someone else, there were still ways to bring it into one’s own hands.

Throughout the entire Cheongmu Tournament, that thought never left the minds of the palace lords.

“What matters most is who moves first. I’ll go up Three Spirits Peak at dawn tomorrow and convince him: ‘A gem only shines when it meets the right master to polish it.’”

“If I prepare substantial support for the expansion of Three Spirits Palace and persuade them with that, it could work. They lack proper martial instruction anyway, so it would be good for the disciple, too.”

“Our Ujin Palace is in the best position. We’ve got Seok Jangsan, his close friend. If necessary, we can even send Hyeonmun to persuade him. That child would have no reason to refuse us.”

While the palace lords were all wracking their brains like this, Great Elder Yunhak Jin suddenly announced a discussion of the disciple’s future. Of course they all lit up with intensity.

“Daoist Hyeonmu is a once-in-an-era martial genius! It’s only right that you, Great ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Elder, should take the initiative and guide him into the martial lineage.”

“Well said. Letting him waste time even for a moment as part of the spiritual branch is a loss to our Wudang Sect. We must act quickly.”

“Whatever support the Palace Lords’ Assembly can provide, we’ll give it. Great Elder, you needn’t worry.”

Great Elder Yunhak Jin looked at their burning eyes for a moment before speaking in a solemn tone.

“I ask the Palace Lords’ Assembly to formally bar Daoist Hyeonmu from entering the True Martial Hall.”

Their expressions instantly twisted into shock.

What kind of thunderclap was this?

Breaking the silence, the Oryong Palace Lord asked,

“Great Elder, did you not see Daoist Hyeonmu’s True Gong for what it is?”

“I saw it, of course. That’s precisely why I’m making this request.”

“Ha! A talent like his is nearly impossible to find. Why would you prevent him from walking the martial path when he’s already in your grasp?”

“That is exactly why I must forbid it.”

All the palace lords, stunned into silence, simply waited for the elder to continue.

“Would the palace lords permit the Three Spirits Palace, a branch of the spiritual line, to become the leading palace of Wudang?”

In Wudang Sect, tradition dictated that the palace which produced the current Wudang Sword was to be followed as the Lead Palace.

Historically, that had always been Registration Palace. But the other six martial palaces had never fully given up on that dream.

“Great Elder, wouldn’t it be enough to bring Daoist Hyeonmu over into the martial line?”

“Have you forgotten who leads Three Spirits Palace?”

The Great Elder countered calmly and without hesitation.

“Six cycles of the land’s seasons have passed—perhaps you’ve all forgotten.”

Daoist Unseon, Lord of Three Spirits Palace, had once been Great Elder Yunhak Jin’s senior brother.

One day, he had suddenly declared that he would join the spiritual lineage. To prove his commitment, he conducted a one-hundred-day hunger strike in front of Registration Palace’s gate.

The Grand Elder at the time had no choice but to save the stubborn disciple’s life and accept him into the Three Spirits Palace.

“It’s not just that the Palace Lord of Three Spirits would never allow it. Let’s say, by some miracle, he does permit the transfer—then whose disciple does he become?”

“...”

“If the palace lords can reach a consensus, I’ll follow your decision.”

The six palace lords closed their eyes.

Not once had they ever managed to compromise in a battle over a gifted disciple.

And this time, the matter involved a certain candidate for the Wudang Sword.

Once the room returned to silence, Great Elder Yunhak Jin spoke.

“I take it there are no objections. I will deliver the Palace Lords’ Assembly’s decision to Three Spirits Palace.”

Seeing the palace lords’ bitter expressions, Great Elder Yunhak Jin swallowed his own frustration.

The decisions of the Palace Lords’ Assembly could not be overturned even by the Sect Leader himself. To reverse or block such decisions, one had to go through the Assembly again. That was why he had gone through this trouble.

Wudang, in its current state, was bogged down with too many rules and too many regulations.

Every decision became slow and sluggish.

Responding to the ever-shifting world of Jianghu was becoming increasingly difficult.

It was like having seven boatmen trying to steer one boat.

No—now that Three Spirits Palace was rising, it made eight.

At this rate, wouldn’t the boat run aground on a mountain?

Great Elder Yunhak Jin looked beyond the window, toward Three Spirits Peak.

Now that I think about it, there are two broken candidates for the Wudang Sword up there.

Great Elder Yunhak Jin had decided to use this opportunity to further isolate Three Spirits Peak.

****

Kwak Yeon stood by the railing of Azure Cloud Bridge, clenching his fists as he looked down at the full view of the Wudang Sect.

Seeing the massive and dazzling Daoist halls nestled across each peak made his rage surge.

Were they really so small-minded?

This was a Daoist sect that had lasted a thousand years. Since Patriarch Jang Sam-bong, it had been hailed as the greatest martial Daoist sect in the world—praised as “In the South, Wudang Reigns Supreme.” And yet, even if he belonged to the spiritual lineage, they couldn’t find it in themselves to take in a single young disciple?

This was not the same anger he had felt before. It burned deeper now—enough that he felt real fury.

And Kwak Yeon knew exactly what lay at the heart of that fury.

Supreme Azure Sword.

Ever since the day he saw Cheongun perform that technique, he hadn’t been able to get it out of his head.

During the sparring match, Cheongun had fought as if he held four swords in four hands. There had been no way to respond.

If he hadn’t exploited Cheongun’s lack of combat experience to create an opening, he wouldn’t have lasted even a few more seconds.

So that’s the wall of the next realm in martial arts.

The more he recalled the brilliance of Supreme Azure Sword, the more bitter the sense of despair became. It had become something utterly unreachable.

Just then, Daoist Hyehae stepped up beside him.

“Are you disappointed?”

At his question, Kwak Yeon answered honestly, without hiding.

“I am.”

“What was it you hoped to gain?”

“Martial arts, of course.”

“So you say you gained no martial arts?”

“...?”

“If you master a hundred martial arts, will you be satisfied? If you master a thousand, will you then be satisfied?”

Kwak Yeon understood what Daoist Hyehae’s question meant, but he couldn’t answer so obediently.

He had witnessed a higher-level martial art, and was already ensnared by its allure like a dream.

That longing for peerless martial techniques—every martial artist eventually experiences it.

Daoist Hyehae already knew what Kwak Yeon was feeling. He also suspected there might be a trace of resentment toward him.

Because he was the one who halted the Advanced Match that day.

Still, it was his responsibility to remove the seed of obsession before it could take root.

And he had fulfilled the other reason he had attended that day’s match on behalf of his master.

Even so, he had hoped Kwak Yeon would continue his training in the True Martial Hall. But the Palace Lord had already said the boy had more than enough. The decision from the Seven Martial Palaces to keep their distance might be for the best.

That is, if the budding seed of obsession was truly uprooted.

“Your master permitted you to learn martial arts and sent you to study. And you did learn.”

Daoist Hyehae continued in a calm voice.

“Who decided what counts as a 'basic' martial art? And what is it, really, that makes a martial art ‘advanced’?”

Kwak Yeon, of course, had no answer.

“All of Wudang’s martial arts begin with the Tai Chi form. Whether it’s the Divine Tai Chi Technique, or the Two Forces Primordial Method, or the Profound Seven Stars Technique, or even the Pure Yang Primordial Method that is passed only to the Sect Leader—all of them originate from the Tai Chi Internal Skill. The Flowing Cloud Sword, the Supreme Azure Sword, even the Tai Chi Wisdom Sword—all of them begin with the Tai Chi Sword Forms. Footwork, palm and fist techniques, hand techniques—it’s the same for all of them. So haven’t you, in truth, learned everything there is to Wudang?”

Daoist Hyehae did not say that he had personally witnessed that truth during the tournament.

Partly because of the direct order from his master, but more importantly because he knew Kwak Yeon now needed to find and open the path himself.

This question was also the final gate his master had prepared.

Daoist Hyehae waited in silence, sincerely hoping Kwak Yeon would pass through that gate.

****

Each time Daoist Hyehae posed a question like a Zen riddle, Kwak Yeon thought deeply.

He sank into his own turmoil and gradually came to recognize that he had been trapped in delusion.

“If you’re dissatisfied after learning one thing, then even learning ten thousand won’t bring you peace.”

With just the Tai Chi Sword Forms, he had been able to face all of Cheongun’s many sword techniques.

I managed to pull that off just by harmonizing with the internal energy routes!

The more he learned, the more bottomless the Tai Chi Sword Forms became. It felt like digging into the roots of a thousand-year-old tree.

Though the sixty-four forms of Tai Chi Sword were often dismissed as simple, just as Daoist Hyehae had said, within them lay the foundation of every sword technique.

Slashing, thrusting, sweeping, wrapping, turning, blocking...

It could encompass infinite variations.

In contrast, techniques like Flowing Cloud Sword or Supreme Azure Sword were already formalized, which meant they couldn't be altered or evolved further.

Because it was simple, it was pure.

Like writing on a blank sheet of paper, you could inscribe anything. You could draw anything, too.

Ah! So the reason I could harmonize my internal energy so easily must be because Tai Chi Sword Forms are built for exactly that.

He couldn’t say with certainty that he had interpreted the secret verses correctly. He had no master to verify or consult with.

And yet, there had been no resistance when applying internal energy to Tai Chi Sword.

That’s why the True Martial Hall teaches the fundamentals first—why they always make you perform the basics before any martial training!

Before training in the Small Azure Sword, and before Flowing Cloud Sword, they always required the Tai Chi Sword Forms.

When he asked why, even Guide Cheongjin had said he didn’t know the reason.

It was the same with palm techniques, hand techniques, footwork, and stepping methods. And Kwak Yeon had learned them all.

So in truth, he had learned everything that made up Wudang’s martial arts.

The only difference is that it takes a little longer. But I’m slow at everything anyway—so maybe this really is the path meant for me.

Coming to that slow and clear realization, Kwak Yeon lowered his head toward Daoist Hyehae with deep embarrassment.

“My thinking was shallow.”

A smile appeared on Daoist Hyehae’s previously stern face.

“Then let’s head back.”

With a light and lifted heart, Kwak Yeon left Azure Cloud Bridge.

“How’s your internal energy training going in the Immortal’s Room?”

Daoist Hyehae asked casually as they walked across the courtyard.

“It’s not increasing very much.”

Kwak Yeon had come to realize that the amount of internal energy he could accumulate in the Immortal’s Room depended entirely on the amount of True Origin Energy he possessed.

“That’s why I’ve been meditating in seated posture as well.”

“Meditating?”

“After meditating and then entering the Immortal’s Room, the amount of internal energy I accumulate goes up a little.”

If the amount of internal energy he could gather felt noticeably different, that meant he was gaining a substantial amount of True Origin Energy through meditation alone.

A true vessel, indeed.

But what could he do now? He had already strayed far down another path.