"Tsk. This is a lot of work."
Cheongmyeong climbed the mountain with a face that showed his dissatisfaction.
"At this rate, we'll never get anywhere."
He sighed heavily.
He had never raised a disciple in his past life.
Even Cheongmun, who was desperate to make use of Cheongmyeong, could not bring himself to ask him to take on a disciple.
When the masters worried about whether Cheongmyeong's swordsmanship would not be passed down to future generations, Cheongmun said, "I am also worried about that. However, I am human, and I simply cannot take a disciple under that guy. It is something that cannot be done by someone wearing a mask. What sin have those children committed to deserve such punishment? If you are truly cultivators, you should not speak such harsh words."
After that, the masters never once suggested that Cheongmyeong take on a disciple.
"Thinking about it makes me feel bad. Those brats?" "What’s wrong with me! I’m raising them just fine!" Of course, it was a lot of work.
Raising Cheongmyeong's three great disciples was not much different from an adult teaching a child to walk.
The difference was one thing.
A child would learn to walk on their own if left alone, but those brats needed to be held by the feet and have one foot lifted at a time before they could barely understand what walking was.
"Ugh. I’d rather die than suffer."
As time passed, it took longer than expected, and with the time consumed, there was less time for training.
Now, he was at the point of almost giving up sleep just to find time to train.
Cheongmyeong sighed deeply and looked up at the sky.
"Brother Jangmun, do I really have to go this far? It would be easier if I just played the drum and the gongs by myself."
"Then do that."
"Ugh, seriously!" Cheongmyeong sighed again.
He knew well that restoring the glory of the volcano was impossible with just his own strength.
Making the name of the volcano known? He could do that alone.
But Cheongmyeong could not live forever, could he? He did not need a glory that would vanish when he was gone.
What Cheongmyeong needed to create now was the spirit of the volcano that would continue even after he was gone.
Glory is as splendid as flower petals but fades quickly, while spirit is like roots that, though not visible, sustain the tree.
"I know, but..."
How could it be as easy as saying it? Cheongmyeong smacked his lips.
As he organized his thoughts while climbing the mountain, he soon arrived at Nak-an Peak.
Cheongmyeong quickly scanned his surroundings. 'That woman won’t come, right?' It was the time of the early morning.
It was a time when everyone should be asleep.
No matter how obsessed one was with training, they wouldn’t come out to train at this hour.
Of course, he had met her at a much later hour that day, but that was the day she returned to the volcano.
"She’s not here, right?" Cheongmyeong raised the wooden sword at his waist and carefully examined the surroundings.
He extended the sword quietly, taking a stance, and his eyes slowly settled.
The playful glint in his eyes when teaching the children disappeared, replaced by the gaze of a swordsman who had traversed countless battlefields. 'Regain the old me?' No. That alone wouldn’t be enough.
Cheongmyeong had shattered all his foundations.
He denied the inner strength he had built in his past life and filled that space with new strength.
To move forward.
But that alone was not sufficient.
He had changed his inner strength, but he could not change his sword.
If the sword did not change, then it would only become stronger.
A little stronger, a little faster.
But nothing would change.
'Did I defeat the Heavenly Demon?' No. If the Heavenly Demon had not been exhausted by the combined efforts of those who ascended the Great Mountain, Cheongmyeong would never have been able to stand against him.
They called him the Greatest Sword of the Volcano, the Greatest Sword under Heaven, but the truth was that Cheongmyeong was a loser who could not defeat even the Heavenly Demon alone. 'What if I could defeat the Heavenly Demon alone?' If that were the case, no one would have died.
Brother Jangmun and the masters would have all returned safely and protected the volcano.
Brother Jangmun would have followed Cheongmyeong, and the masters would have continued their peaceful lives, secretly reporting to him.
The deaths on the Great Mountain and the fall of the volcano would not have happened if Cheongmyeong had been strong enough.
Regret? It was not that.
He had no hobby of weeping over what had already passed.
The problem lay ahead. 'What guarantee is there that someone like the Heavenly Demon won’t appear again?' Perhaps someone even more terrifying than the Heavenly Demon might target the martial world again.
To protect the volcano from all those crises, he needed to become stronger.
Stronger than anyone in the world, stronger than the past Cheongmyeong, and stronger than that Heavenly Demon! To do that...
Cheongmyeong's sword had nearly reached perfection in the past.
Yet, he could not withstand the Heavenly Demon. 'Why?' Was it because he did not hone his sword enough? No. "No matter how sharp a tiger's claws are, it cannot catch a bird that flies in the sky."
He had not surpassed his limits.
The Heavenly Demon’s martial arts had shattered everything Cheongmyeong believed to be right.
It mocked him, who thought he could reach the end simply by following the path laid out by the sages.
Like someone with their feet on the ground gazing at the birds in the sky, he could only look at that realm he could never reach.
If he wanted to surpass the Heavenly Demon, he first had to surpass his past self and soar into the sky.
But how? Cheongmyeong's gaze sank. 'I must let go.' But he would not abandon.
To fill, one must first empty.
However, Cheongmyeong had already emptied everything when he was reborn.
So now, he must fill again.
What should he fill with? The things of the volcano? Or Cheongmyeong's own? Or perhaps...
"Anything would be fine."
Cheongmyeong's sword began to move slowly.
To protect the things of the volcano? To abandon everything of the volcano? Or perhaps to abandon Cheongmyeong's own? - It was all attachment.
That's right, brother.
If filling is natural, then letting go is also natural.
There is no need to struggle to decide what to fill and what to let go.
Look.
Does the sword not flow on its own? It does not draw limits.
The moment one decides what to take and what to discard, the sword is bound by the limits it has created itself.
Just let it be.
Let the sword go where it wants.
And let Cheongmyeong go where he wants.
Cheongmyeong's sword drew a gentle curve.
At the same time, plum blossoms began to bloom in the sky, one by one.
Though they were the plum blossoms of the volcano, they were different from what Cheongmyeong had drawn until now.
A little more vibrant, a little more gentle.
They stretched out, scattered, and then settled down.
From movement to stillness, and then back to movement.
The plum blossoms that began at the tip of the sword bloomed beautifully.
Soon, pure white flowers bloomed enough to cover Nak-an Peak, bringing spring in the late night.
Soft, swift, dazzling, and beautiful.
Yet, those plum blossoms would not last long and would soon fall sadly.
In the now quiet Nak-an Peak, where everything seemed like an illusion, only Cheongmyeong, with his sword hanging down, quietly closed his eyes. 'It feels like I’m about to grasp something.' He could not sprout yet.
But he felt he had caught a clue.
The sword of the volcano, but now Cheongmyeong's sword that transcended the sword of the volcano until now.
A sword that could surpass his limits and the limits of the volcano to move toward a new place.
"Hoo."
Cheongmyeong let out a low sigh. 'It won't be easy.' It was not about creating a new sword technique.
It was about pioneering a new realm.
Even now, it was a distant task for Cheongmyeong.
Just as Cheongmyeong's inner strength would grow alongside him, this sword would also grow with him.
For now, it was merely a plum blossom bud.
But someday...
"Hey..."
"Eek!" At the sudden sound from the side, Cheongmyeong jumped back in shock.
"Wow, what the hell!" Someone else had appeared on Nak-an Peak.
Startled, Cheongmyeong blinked to confirm the identity of the person. '...
Isn't that the woman from last time?' Yu...
Yu...
What was it? Ah, right! Yu I-seol! That was her name.
Yu I-seol was looking at Cheongmyeong with a peculiar gaze, her eyes slightly unfocused. 'No, but how did she come here without me noticing?' No matter how much he had entered a state of no-self while wielding his sword, Cheongmyeong was still Cheongmyeong.
Even in a state of no-self, he could feel the presence of a dozen people around him as if he were holding them in his hands.
Yet, both last time, when she had detected his presence, and now, when she had approached him without any issue, something about this woman felt strange.
'Did she learn some kind of stealth technique? How did she not give off any presence?' Now that he thought about it, even though she was right in front of him, her presence felt oddly faint.
If he tried to consciously feel it, he could hardly sense it.
If he could see the person with his eyes and hear their presence with his ears, there would be no problem, but since Cheongmyeong was more accustomed to sensing energy than the five senses, this situation arose.
Staring at Yu I-seol, who was looking at him intently, Cheongmyeong pondered intensely. 'How do I handle this? How much did she see?' For now, he would try to mumble...
At that moment, Yu I-seol slowly opened her mouth.
"Plum blossom..."
She saw everything.
Damn it.
Her head tilted slightly to the side, a look of confusion on her face as if she could not comprehend what she had seen.
Yes, yes.
Keep not understanding.
Cheongmyeong smiled brightly.
If it were anyone else, they would have panicked, but who was Cheongmyeong? He was the greatest troublemaker in the history of the volcano.
Brother Cheongmun had said that since the history of the volcano began, there had been more incidents caused by Cheongmyeong than those that occurred before he entered.
For Cheongmyeong, this was nothing!
For now, he would act naturally.
Naturally, as if nothing were wrong.
He bowed his head slightly toward Yu I-seol.
"Accident. How have you been?" As Cheongmyeong took a step closer, Yu I-seol flinched.
Huh? Why did she flinch? Yu I-seol looked at Cheongmyeong with slightly serious eyes.
"Murderous intent?" "Are you crazy?" "..."
Ah...
So much for being natural.
Cheongmyeong, who had unknowingly cursed, raised his hand to cover his mouth.
While other white ships were still on their way to the volcano, why was this woman here, bothering him like this? Now, there was only one way left.
Cheongmyeong waved his hand and quickly left Nak-an Peak.
"Then I’ll be going!" "Ah... wait a moment!" He heard a voice trying to catch him, but Cheongmyeong cleanly ignored it.
When he could not explain with words, avoiding was the best option.
Yu I-seol's hand reached toward Cheongmyeong's back but slowly lowered.
"Plum blossom..."
She stared blankly at his back and then slightly clenched her fist.
"That was scary!" This was clearly Cheongmyeong's mistake.
But on the other hand, even if she had seen him, it wouldn’t change much.
Even if she told everyone what she saw, no one would believe her.
However, he had to be careful from now on.
If there was one witness, they would say the witness was out of their mind, but if there were three witnesses, they could summon a tiger. 'I need to be careful when training once the white ships return.' Ah...
It wasn’t just training, was it? Cheongmyeong nodded with a determined face.
"I have things to do before the white ships arrive!" He began to descend the mountain toward the gate with quick steps.