Training – Jimin
After the Head of the Peng Family, Peng Qi (奇), paid his visit, the stream of visitors did not cease.
Yet none dared recklessly present a calling card or rudely force their way upstairs.
News had spread that Peng Qi had been broken on the spot.
Those who considered themselves beneath him did not even attempt the climb.
In a sense, an example had been made.
The story of Peng Qi becoming "the Spotted Peng" spread swiftly through the rumor-loving jianghu.
Rumors in the martial world rarely spare the defeated.
They turn the fallen into figures of ridicule.
That was the way of the martial world.
The Spotted Peng returned to his main estate in Hebei with his head lowered.
He declared closed-door seclusion and refused all visitors.
It was said he constantly wrapped a scarf around his neck to conceal the mark.
Because he had always been a harsh and domineering man, the shock struck him harder.
With Peng Qi unable to step forward, the family's movements slowed.
Their enterprises gradually contracted.
The prestige of the Peng Family began to wane.
Rumor and business are closely entwined.
The more a venture depends upon the name of a martial clan, the more directly it feels the impact.
The family's fortunes declined, yet Peng Qi remained in seclusion.
Meanwhile, Huanghak, who had traveled the farthest, set out from the Jin estate in Henan.
The three disciples who usually followed him could not match his pace.
He ordered them to follow later and launched himself ahead alone.
He arrived in the capital like the wind.
His heart was urgent.
That was why he came first.
When Huanghak arrived, Soun and the others were not at the inn.
Soun had been wandering back and forth near the government offices and the imperial palace.
It was not mere curiosity.
There was something more behind it.
"Young Master, we were just here. Why are we walking the same road again?"
Jimin asked with a puzzled look.
"I wish to take a look at the Imperial Palace Armory (皇宮武庫) you mentioned before."
"You are already that strong. What more do you intend to learn? Do you think the armory will simply appear because you stroll around here?"
"Am I that strong?"
He asked as though he truly did not know.
Or as though he did not believe it.
The sunlight was warm.
Standing too long in the open street was enough to tire anyone.
And the way he asked—about something everyone seemed to know—made him look almost sly.
"You may or may not be the greatest under heaven, but there are very few who could trouble you. Then why learn more? I heard you have already surpassed the level of Hua-gyeong."
"Surely not. Am I truly so strong? I cannot believe it. Who would say that no one under heaven could endanger a fifteen-year-old scholar?"
Jimin shook her head.
"You may trust my words. Instead, why not teach me a move or two? You drag me around every day. Is it truly that precious? Please teach me some of your secrets."
Soun turned and looked at her seriously.
His young face grew firm.
In the middle of the wide street, as he pivoted to face her, the atmosphere subtly shifted.
"When have I dragged you around? You are the one who follows."
"I see."
"Then, Jimin noona, do you wish to deepen your martial arts as well?"
Jimin drew a breath before speaking.
"I live within the jianghu as well. Of course I wish to learn. Those who seek you out fall into three kinds.
First, those who want to test how strong you are.
Second, those who wish to use your strength for themselves.
Third, people like me—pitiful souls hoping to catch even the broth you spill.
I belong to the third.
I want to learn.
The Spotted Peng who came before was of the first.
I am of the third.
I want to learn, Young Master."
There was something painfully sincere in her confession.
Most people conceal their true intentions.
After the affair with Peng Qi, Jimin seemed to feel no need to hide hers.
"Ah, such a pretty young lady—what would you do learning such things? Ah."
Soun sighed, wearing a look of exaggerated disapproval.
Jimin knew he meant it.
That made persuasion harder.
In his mind, she was simply a beautiful woman.
One who could marry well and live peacefully.
Soun did not yet understand the jianghu.
It was a world where gender blurred and a person was judged by martial skill alone.
His lack of even the most basic understanding of the martial world was the real issue.
Across from the government offices, a broad road ran parallel to the deep moat encircling the palace.
The water below shimmered with an eerie blue.
On the far wall of the palace, imperial guards stood at measured intervals.
They had walked these paths several times to gauge the atmosphere around the Zheng household.
There had been no unusual disturbances.
Those involved were dead.
Power had shifted into new hands.
But Soun's interest lay elsewhere.
It was with Mo-eoja (墨語子), the author of the General Compendium.
His search for the Imperial Armory was not for hidden manuals.
He believed Mo-eoja himself might be there.
He wanted to see the man.
"Such things cannot be taught. They must be realized. No one can hand you such understanding. It must open within you."
Soun shook his head.
"The problem is that I do not even understand what that means. Instead of rummaging through the Imperial Armory or chasing after Mo-eoja to deepen only your own martial arts, perhaps you could offer guidance to someone like me. Must I spell it out like this?"
As Jimin's voice rose, passersby began to glance at them.
A noble lady would not shout in the middle of the street.
But Jimin was of the martial world.
She was not bound by such decorum.
Still, this was the heart of the capital.
Eyes gathered.
She paid them no mind.
Raised in a martial household, she was used to scrutiny.
She barely thought of herself as a woman at all.
"I had not considered it. I have never taught anyone before. It would be difficult. Ha… forgive me."
Soun smiled awkwardly.
"Do not lie. The members of the White Dragon Unit boast that their martial level rose greatly under your guidance. And you claim you have never taught anyone?"
"Miss—no, noona. That was not teaching. It was training. Military training. Like a seasoned drill instructor demonstrating. I did not teach them."
"That is precisely what I am asking for. You can at least demonstrate like a seasoned instructor,