Episode 67 This is the age we are in.
The next day I went to see my father.
It was to report what had happened with the Pungcheon religious leader.
Since it is a situation on campus, my father probably knows everything, but what I come to talk about and what Sima Ming reports to me are completely different issues.
My father was training at the time.
While I was waiting outside, there was a message telling me to come inside.
âPlease come into the training hall.â
The sound heard in the air was Hwi, my fatherâs water guard. Itâs been a while since I heard his voice.
âItâs been a while, mister.â
âYes, master.â
A short answer was heard. I remember holding Hwiâs hand and walking down the streets of Magachon when I was young. I think he was begging me to buy him some street food. Anyway, the memory of that day remained a good memory for me.
âUncle, when will I see you again?â âI will treat you to a meal.â
âyes.â
âRelax, mister.â
I wasnât sure exactly how he would accept my favor or what his current feelings were toward me. For me, it was a pleasant memory, but for him, it may have been an uninspiring daily routine.
Still, you have to be friendly with him. Because he was the person my father trusted the most.
I mentally prepared myself and entered the training center.
just as expected.
Today too, my father attacked me with Myeongwangbo.
While dodging with the blinker, I struck down my fatherâs Heavenly Demon Sword with the Black Demon Sword. This was the first clash between the Black Demon Sword and the Heavenly Demon Sword, and it was a much more dangerous attempt than simply dodging. Of course, my father noticed the change in my state at a glance.
âYour skills have improved!â
My father also attacked while his Myungwangbo level was much higher, but he blocked it in a more dangerous way.
âOf course it should increase. I will do the most martial arts training at this school. No, it would be the second time. Ian does it the most.â
âWhy donât you think itâs the third time?â
From these words, I was able to guess how hard my father was practicing Pungshin Sabo.
âFather, you are doing well. You must achieve great success. Absolutely!â
I walked out of the training center with my father. We walked side by side and talked.
âWhat brings you here?â
âThe leader of Pungcheon Church wants to join hands with me. It feels like there has been a split with Palmazon. âDid you know?â
There was no need to say that he had taught me the art of space-time anomaly. This part was something that the Pungcheon religious leader would not disclose to the outside world.
This is how my father saw the core of this matter.
âIt was arrogant for the Magons to bring the Pungcheon cult leader here. âWe should have gone to him and resolved it, and if we were planning on bringing him in, everyone should have gone to him and asked for him.â
âYou have touched the pride of the Pungcheon Church leader by mistake.â
There may be many reasons why he pushes to advance to the midfield, but when I look at them one by one, it occurred to me that what lies at the bottom may really be his wounded pride.
âThings that are neglected and thought to be insignificant end up becoming the biggest problems. âThis incident is clearly a mistake by Mazon.â
I got a glimpse of my fatherâs agony. If you feel like watching the mazons fight against the Pungcheon cult leader, youâll want to get rid of those that lack loyalty.
However, it was obvious that if they, the main force of the school, collapsed, the Murim Alliance would eventually attack, so Palmazon was truly a necessary evil for his father.
âThen why did the leader of Pungcheon come to me instead of visiting my father?â
My father was firm in his answer this time too.
âThe first reason is because they think itâs difficult for me, and the second reason is because they think itâs easy to take advantage of you.â
âWhat are you trying to do using me?â
I asked, pretending not to know anything.
âAsk your questions to your soldiers.â
âI donât have any military, do I?â
âI have to save it.â
âWhere do you get someone as smart as Master Sima?â
My father just snorted once.
âItâs the luxury of those who have it!â
Truly, my greatest task is to save a soldier as smart as Sima Ming.
âArenât you doing well without the military?â
âThank you for saying that, but most things turned out well because I was lucky.â
I overcome situations based on my many experiences before returning, and I am not a military type person either. I really need soldiers who can assist me with wisdom and insight.
âPlease just answer this question. âWhat does the leader of Pungcheon Church want?â
My father stopped and answered.
âHis dream is to advance to the midfield.â
âAre you someone who wonât leave power just to protect the sacred items?â
âThatâs his obsessive personality.â
âYou are saying that your dream is to advance to the midfield.â
In his life before his return, Pungcheon Gyoju could not advance to the midfield. Because Hwamugi swept away all of Wulin, he did not dare to take a single step into the central plains and ended his life outside the country.
But as I returned, his life was also changing. Because I came to Jungwon, where I would not have come originally, and to our school in person.
âFor generations, the foreign religions have targeted the central plains. âThey have never been successful, but the desire to advance to the midfield is in their blood.â
âNow I understand why you came to see me.â
Although I knew all this without having to ask my father, I acted as if I had heard it from him. Sometimes, even if you know, you have to act like you donât know. It was a courtesy to my father rather than an abomination.
Most parents in the world would like their children to ask them this question. Do you think itâs different from your father?
At least this part was no different. Otherwise, I wouldnât have said this.
As he was about to go inside, my father added bluntly:
âSince youâre already here, letâs eat and go.â
âyes!â
The best thing is when my father tells me to eat and go.
But I didnât say anything good. If you do that for no reason, he will never tell you to eat and go next time.
He is not an easy father at all.
* * *
When I returned to Hwangcheongak after eating with my father, there was a visit from an unexpected person. It was Mabul who came to see me.
âWelcome, old man.â
âOnce you come, itâs too late.â
It was my first time seeing him this close. He was shorter than he looked from a distance, and looking at his golden skin made me want to touch it with my hands.
Mabul.
My brotherâs right hand man in name and reality.
âPlease sit down.â
âThatâs right.â
Mabul sat down. He hated having anyone look down on him. Thatâs probably why you straighten your back like that even when you sit down.
âHow can I just stay when my friendâs important sacred item was stolen? âI came to find out how the investigation is going.â
âI am currently investigating this incident myself.â
âIs it really true that there were thieves?â
âIs it true? âWhat do you mean by that?â
When I asked casually, he looked like he was asking because he didnât know.
âHow can we believe that a thief has entered our school?â
âWouldnât it be more difficult to believe that the Pungcheon religious leader staged a play of his own making?â
From the beginning, we created a tense atmosphere.
There was also a subtle golden glow in his eyes. It was a phenomenon in which only those who achieved great success as the Great Golden Lama appeared.
How strong is Mabulâs martial arts skills? The Golden Great Lama Attack that Mabul had learned was a martial art that was as difficult to deal with as the Seophon Demon Attackâs hex.
âIf there really was a thief in the inner garden, the reputation of our school would be greatly damaged.â
âI guess so.â
âShouldnât we handle it quietly?â
âHow do you mean?â
âHow about sending him back outside to prevent him from making a fuss? âItâs not like you can catch a thief that you canât catch with him anyway.â
It was clearly a comment aimed at me. He was convinced that it was a self-made drama, and he probably believed that I was helping him with it.
âWill you listen to me, who is just a footnote?â
âI heard that the leader of the Pungcheon Church came to visit you?â
âI came to say hello.â
âThe leader of the Pungcheon Church believes that you will be his successor.â
âThere was no such expression. Why do you think that?â
âIf not, Iâm not the type of person to go to someone. He is a man who is used to having someone come and say hello. âIf he found you, he must have seen your potential as a successor.â
While speaking, he constantly looked at my reactions and tried to read my inner thoughts. Iâm sorry to say this, but thatâs an attempt that even my father fails at.
âFor the sake of this school, I have to send him back.â
It was an attempt to kill two birds with one stone.
If I try to send him back, thatâs fine, and if I refuse this offer, they can accuse me of not acting for the sake of the school.
âNo. âThen you shouldnât send him back.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âAs you said, he will use this incident as an excuse to discredit our school. Then you have to hold on to it. On the contrary, you wonât be able to open your mouth without permission until you are at the main school. Let me just hint. âIf you want to find something new, donât open your mouth carelessly.â
For a moment, Mabul could not answer. Of course, he wasnât the kind of person who would come to take off a lump and then put another on.
âThe leader of Pungcheon is a man like a snake. âThere is clearly another ulterior motive.â
âThen Iâll pretend to hold his hand and figure out his intentions.â
âSince youâre this stubborn, it looks like youâll be a great Nether Footnote in the future.â
âMainly in terms of what we believe is right.â
Mabul took those words as a reprimand that he was an unjust person.
Mabul must have thought it was an opportunity, but he quickly made a sign with his finger.
A man of the law!
At that moment, a golden glow emanated from Mabulâs body.
The opponent cannot open his eyes for a moment due to this light, which is more intense than the sun. This fleeting moment was as long as an eon for those with mazon-level skills. Should I stab him here or stab him there? No, letâs stab them in both places.
I closed my eyes too.
But before I closed my eyes, I knew. My eyes were barely affected by that light. Golden light poured out of his body, and the demonic fire was clearly visible in the center of it.
At this moment, it was not the Golden Great Lama Ball that shined, but my Shinan Art.
But I deliberately closed my eyes. There was no need to reveal my skills to Mabul.
When I opened my eyes again, Mabul was sticking his face right in front of my nose.
His face, which seemed both childlike and adult-like, felt unfamiliar.
The way he looked at me was exactly like this.
If I had decided to kill you, you would already be dead!
He was a man who could be confident in himself. The Great Golden Lama has five beasts in total. You donât have to experience it to know how scary the attack will be after it flies in while blindfolded.
I didnât say anything. Even if it wasnât fear, I intentionally showed a reaction of surprise and fear.
Mabul probably thought this was enough warning and stood up. He said the opposite of what he said when Hyeolcheondoma first came to see me.
âI want to see you often. We drink tea and talk like this. âIf you join me, only good things will happen to you.â
âPlease share a lot with your brother.â
Mabul smiled in satisfaction at my childish arrogance.
âYes, this is the age right now. See you then.â
âPlease take a look.â
As he walked out of the room, the stern expression I had put on on purpose eased, and the golden room returned to its original state.
Hey Mabul. You better not see me often. As of now, there are only three types of Mazon that are involved with me.
Either weâre friends, weâre getting closer, or weâre dead.
Which do you think? As of now, I donât think weâll become friendsâŠ
So are you confident in creating the fourth category?