Within Namgung Mucheon's eyes was the pride of one who had stepped upon the whole world. Seolhwa knew that this pride was by no means arrogance. For the man who held the title of Sword Sovereign and had the world beneath his feet was none other than Namgung Mucheon.
Where he was, that was the Namgung. The Namgung of the Azure Sky.
“Do you know what the Namgung is called?”
“The sky.”
“Do you also know why it is called that?”
“Hmm…”
Seolhwa recalled the people of Namgung she had killed with her own hands in her previous life. Though they were defeated, their spirits could not be made to submit. That had always been a mystery to Seolhwa.
‘Why did they not forsake the name of Namgung, even in the moment of their death?’
To those who did not bear the Namgung surname, she offered to spare them if they abandoned the family and joined the Blood Sect. But in the end, only a few low-ranking warriors truly abandoned the family. Even those who did not carry the Namgung name threw their lives away under the banner of Namgung.
Why?
Why were they so devoted to the Namgung?
“Is it not because the color of their inner energy takes on a blue hue, like the sky?”
When one cultivates the martial arts of the Namgung, their inner energy takes on a blue color. This is because it is an incomparably pure and clear energy. That was why the people of Namgung would say that the deeper the blue, the stronger the inner energy.
“That is not incorrect, but it is not the answer I seek.”
Namgung Mucheon smiled warmly.
“Then how would you explain those whose inner energy does not bear a blue hue?”
That was right. Just because one was of the Namgung, just because one trained in the Namgung's martial arts, did not mean the inner energy of every Namgung person was blue. Very rarely, there were those whose inner energy was orange, black, or gray.
“I do not know.”
At Seolhwa's honest answer, Namgung Mucheon let out a soft laugh.
“Heh heh.”
“The order is wrong.”
“The order?”
“It is not that we are the sky because our inner energy is blue, but that our inner energy is blue because our martial arts are of the sky.”
Namgung Mucheon tapped his own chest with a finger and spoke.
“Just because it is the same martial art does not mean it holds the same will. Depending on what kind of sky one holds in one's heart, the color of their inner energy can sometimes take on a special hue.”
One who yearns for the sunset sky will have an orange hue, one who yearns for the night sky a black hue, and one who yearns for a cloudy sky a gray inner energy. His hand pointed toward the sky.
“The one important thing is that what they look up to is the sky.”
All martial arts have a starting point that gave birth to them. Many martial arts began by imitating the forms of animals. Some were created with inspiration from the waves, or from blossoming flower trees.
In that sense, what the Namgung emulated was the sky.
“To live a clear and noble life, just as the blue sky looks down upon the world. To follow the righteous path according to the providence of the heavens. This is the code of chivalry that the Namgung teaches.”
The Namgung are never vile, and they never resort to cowardly tricks. Like the sky that looks down upon the world, they do not easily bow their heads, and their martial arts were mostly powerful techniques that established dominance with overwhelming force.
“But…”
‘I acknowledge the Namgung's martial studies that follow the spirit of the heavens. I also know that Namgung Mucheon is a man like the heavens. However.’
To Seolhwa, who had brought down the Namgung in her previous life, their unyieldingly upright justice felt somewhat rigid.
“A straight tree is bound to break.”
In her past life too, the Namgung had crumbled before the vile schemes of the Blood Sect. Because they were too upright, they did not doubt people, and they did not doubt themselves. There were countless dirty tricks like poison, curses, Gu Poison, spies, and betrayal, and the Namgung eventually broke.
Even so, could one say the will of the Namgung was right?
“A broken tree cannot rise again. Even if a new sprout grows and it rises once more, it would take too long to become the same tree as before. Is that right?”
“It is important not to bend, even if it means breaking.”
“Even if a tree that bends does not break easily?”
In any case, wasn't survival what mattered?
“What is important is the spirit.”
Namgung Mucheon tapped his head lightly.
“A tree whose roots remain will one day grow again. As you said, it may take a long time, but it will surely live again. However, a tree that bends is often uprooted completely.”
To bend means that the trunk is not thick and strong enough. A tree with a weak trunk is bound to have flimsy roots. Such a tree, even if it lives long, will not surpass a hundred years.
“As long as the spirit is alive, be it a family or a sect, it will one day sprout again and live on. This would be the same for any orthodox sect, not just the Namgung.”
Seolhwa agreed with those words. The statement that all orthodox sects were upright.
‘That's why they all fell.’
But if one were to ask if the fallen orthodox sects were completely destroyed as Namgung Mucheon said, she could not answer. She did not know what happened after her own death.
‘Perhaps…’
Perhaps the sprouts that were not cut down grew and destroyed the Blood Sect, restoring the orthodox martial world. If she thought of it that way…
‘He is right.’
The words that as long as the spirit is alive, one can live again. A tree that has not been uprooted is not dead.
‘In my past life, I failed to bring down the Namgung.’
Although she had broken the great tree that was the Namgung, she had not broken their spirit. They who protected the family's secret techniques even as they died, who protected the children of Namgung, who protected their pride—they were Namgung even in death. Seolhwa nodded her head.
“I think I understand a little.”
A cool smile spread across Namgung Mucheon's lips. He could tell just by looking at her expression. How his granddaughter thought of the Namgung spirit.
“It may be difficult to accept right now. But as you live here in the Namgung, you will naturally come to understand its meaning.”
Seolhwa nodded.
“This conversation has grown long. Let us return to the main point, and I will ask again.”
Namgung Mucheon's gaze deepened. It was a sharp gaze, as if reading her very soul.
“Will you live as a child of Namgung? If you wish, I can continue to hide your existence as I have been.”
It was an unexpected proposal. To not have to live as a child of Namgung if she didn't want to. If she did not live as a child of Namgung, she might be able to achieve her resolutions more secretly.
After all, she could move more freely as an unknown person rather than with a status that drew attention wherever she went and whatever she did. Like an assassin. But Seolhwa shook her head without a moment's hesitation.
“No. I am a child of Namgung.”
She had already made up her mind. In this life, she would become a person of Namgung, become a shield to take the arrows aimed at the Namgung, and become the sword of Namgung that leads the charge to cut down their enemies.
As great as her sins in her past life were, she would live this life paying for those sins.
“I have resolved to live that way.”
At Seolhwa's answer, a satisfied smile spread across Namgung Mucheon's lips.
“Good.”
He nodded his head, a smile on his face.
“I will see you tomorrow morning at the Celestial Tiger Hall.”
Now, everything was ready. The child's identity had been confirmed, and all procedures were prepared. All that remained was the declaration.
That a child of Namgung had returned. That after eight years, the Namgung had found their lost child.
“Hah…! Hahk!”
“I'm… I'm gonna die… I'm really gonna die… At this rate, I'll really die…!”
The Guest Training Hall. Four warriors were in a horse stance, with heavy weights tied to their arms and legs. Their martial arts uniforms were already soaked and damp with sweat, and their arms and legs had long since been trembling uncontrollably.
‘I, I can't go on anymore…’
“Arm.”
A wooden sword that appeared from nowhere struck the elbow of a squad member who was about to collapse.
Whack!
The squad member flinched in surprise and corrected his posture without thinking.
“It's not much longer. Hold on just a little more.”
This was the problem. Just when it seemed they would give up and collapse at any moment, the child's wooden sword would appear from somewhere and precisely tap the spot that was about to give way.
It didn't hit hard enough to be painful, but strangely, whenever the wooden sword struck, something would jolt through them, making them flinch and automatically straighten their posture.
‘Why… why am I listening so diligently to a mere child…!’
As time passed like this, nearly two hours had gone by.
‘Damn it…! I shouldn't have listened to the Squad Leader…!’
He said they could receive teachings from a master of the peak realm, so they cut their sweet, honey-like sleep short to rush over! He said the guest at the Heavenly Guest Room was surely a great master, so they expected to receive incredible teachings!
‘Is this teaching?! This is a punishment drill!’
‘A master, my foot! What kind of master is that little brat!’
The members of the 11th squad of the Red Dragon Sword Squad glared at their Squad Leader, Namgung Jipyeong, with eyes full of resentment.
“Nine hundred ninety… five…! Nine hundred ninety… six…!”
His face was red as if it would burst, doing push-ups like his life depended on it in front of his squad members.
“Nine hundred ninety-nine…! One thousand!”
Having completed one thousand, Namgung Jipyeong fell face-down with a thud! At the same time, thump!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The squad members also broke their horse stance and collapsed. The only sound that echoed in the Guest Training Hall was the ragged panting of their breaths. In front of the sprawled-out Namgung Jipyeong, a pair of tiny feet approached with light steps.