Chapter 19
Murim Alliance (2)
An unexpected reunion.
Namgung Hyuk glanced at Jegal Lin, walking side by side, and thought to himself.
“To meet again like this here… Fate truly is beyond comprehension.”
When he thought about it, hadn’t they parted ways without even having a proper conversation?
Wishing to open the door to conversation, Namgung Hyuk spoke lightly.
“It was a shame you had to leave the banquet so suddenly.”
“…Was it?”
“I recall you had something you wished to tell me.”
At those words, Jegal Lin suddenly stopped walking.
She turned her body toward him, looked up slightly, and spoke.
“You still remember that?”
“I’ve been thinking about the words you were about to say ever since.”
“…”
Jegal Lin stayed silent for a moment.
Seeing this, Namgung Hyuk wondered if he had perhaps spoken out of turn.
“I wanted to know. About you.”
“About me?”
“Yes.”
Namgung Hyuk sensed that Jegal Lin wasn’t saying this from a romantic perspective, but from something else entirely.
So he asked again.
“What was it about me that piqued your curiosity?”
“When I look at people, I can usually see who they are. But even now, I can’t seem to get a clear read on you, Lord Namgung.”
Jegal Lin wasn’t bluffing.
Even without formally studying physiognomy, she could deduce nearly everything about a person with her exceptional analytical ability.
She had never failed to reach an answer, no matter who it was.
But Namgung Hyuk was different.
It was as if something unknown, something special, was hidden within him, preventing her from fully reading him.
Perhaps that was why, despite usually being indifferent to others, she found herself unable to ignore him.
Thus, she finally voiced the words she hadn’t been able to say back at the banquet.
“I want to know your hidden identity.”
“…!”
Namgung Hyuk’s heart jolted.
“There’s no way she knows I’m an Awakened…”
This was a secret no one could possibly discover.
It wasn’t that Jegal Lin knew the truth; her words hadn’t come from that.
“Even so, the fact that she’s gotten this close to my secret…”
He couldn’t help but marvel at her sharp intuition.
But at the same time, he grew worried about how he would conceal his awakening from her.
“No matter what excuse I give, it probably won’t work on her. If I’d known this would happen, I should’ve just stayed silent…”
But regretting now was pointless.
And even if he spoke the truth, would Jegal Lin believe him?
“If I showed her my Rune’s ability, maybe she would—but…”
That wasn’t something he could reveal lightly.
His thoughts grew heavier, and he couldn’t answer right away.
Just then—
“Amitabha. Might this humble monk pass by?”
An elderly monk in kasaya with a benevolent face approached slowly, palms together.
So focused on each other, neither of them had noticed his arrival.
“Master Gongjin, my apologies.”
Jegal Lin was first to bow with folded hands in apology.
The monk, Gongjin, smiled kindly.
“No need. It is I who should apologize for disturbing your talk.”
Then, raising his distinctive white brows, he turned to Namgung Hyuk.
“Ho, I do not recall seeing this young hero here before.”
“My name is Namgung Hyuk. It is an honor to meet such a venerable monk.”
“I am called Gongjin.”
“He is one of the Elders of the Murim Alliance,” Jegal Lin added.
Namgung Hyuk’s eyes flickered.
The Elders of the Murim Alliance were appointed by the Nine Great Sects and the Six Great Clans, each sending their most respected figures.
Since they determined the alliance’s crucial policies, only those of high prestige and mastery were chosen.
Master Gongjin, a disciple of the current Shaolin abbot Gongyu, was widely revered throughout the martial world.
“He keeps his energy so well contained that I didn’t recognize him at first… Truly a great master.”
Namgung Hyuk forgot his earlier dilemma, overwhelmed by Gongjin’s strength.
Meanwhile, Gongjin studied him for a moment before speaking.
“Hoho, though still young, I see traces of much arduous cultivation.”
Namgung Hyuk’s chest jolted again.
“Don’t tell me… is he also sensing my secret?”
“But it is only natural that one who trains so diligently would reach such a level.”
Fortunately, Gongjin didn’t dwell on it.
Namgung Hyuk glanced sideways at Jegal Lin before replying.
“I am still lacking much. On that note, if it isn’t too presumptuous, might I request the chance to observe Shaolin’s martial arts?”
He knew well how audacious this sounded.
Before him stood one of the mightiest elders of the martial world—yet he dared to ask such a thing.
But this was a chance he could not waste.
“Hoho! How could I refuse such courageous earnestness?”
Gongjin accepted with a laugh.
Jegal Lin, looking puzzled, interjected.
“How can you make such a request of an Elder of the Alliance?”
“I wouldn’t normally presume, but the master’s benevolence assured me he might graciously accept.”
“…”
This sort of unshakable boldness was another reason she couldn’t fully understand Namgung Hyuk.
Soon, the three moved to a quiet clearing nearby.
“Shaolin martial arts developed as a means of cultivating the body through Buddhist practice,” Gongjin explained, slowly demonstrating.
Shaolin’s techniques relied on fists and kicks rather than weapons, punishing the guilty, and their inner power was particularly effective against demonic and heretical forces.
Having endured for over a thousand years, Shaolin’s martial arts were unfathomably profound.
“Even a simple movement carries such depth…”
Namgung Hyuk marveled.
The title Northern Dipper Shaolin, the foremost among the Nine Great Sects, was no exaggeration.
Feeling his spirit ignite, Namgung Hyuk cupped his fists.
“I know this is rude, but might you honor me with a spar?”
“Lord Namgung, that’s—”
“Hoho! It is fine.”
Though Jegal Lin tried to stop him, Gongjin agreed readily.
Namgung Hyuk readied his stance.
Crack!
He closed the distance with Explosive Thunder Fist.
But his punch never touched Gongjin.
The monk, still in a prayer stance, had already seized Namgung Hyuk’s wrist—Dragon Claw Hand, one of Shaolin’s seventy-two arts.
“Kh!”
Unable to break free, Namgung Hyuk gathered qi in his other hand for Heavenly Wind Palm Force.
But Gongjin evaded effortlessly, releasing his wrist with a push that sent him staggering backward.
“Even with my qi drawn up, I was still forced back?!”
He tried to regain his footing and counter—but—
Boom!
A formless gust of fist force brushed past his ear, forcing him to halt.
“Hoho, Amitabha.”
Gongjin withdrew his extended fist and laughed gently.
It was the Hundred-Step Divine Fist, another of the seventy-two arts.
“Thank you for this valuable lesson.”
Namgung Hyuk bowed.
He had never expected to win—just crossing hands briefly was satisfaction enough.
“That Hundred-Step Divine Fist… If I combined it with my Explosive Thunder Fist, it might create something incredible.”
But regrettably, the difference in their realms was too vast, and his special ability failed to analyze Gongjin’s martial arts.
While he lamented that, Gongjin spoke.
“I too am pleased to witness your talent. Someday, I would like to introduce you to my disciple, Hye-ryeon.”
“And who is that?”
“My temple’s third disciple, of similar age to you.”
Namgung Hyuk did not know, but Hye-ryeon was famed as Shaolin’s once-in-a-generation prodigy—mastering ten of the seventy-two arts and even holding his own against the renowned Eighteen Arhats Formation.
“As a monk, he may be overly devoted to martial training. In that, I think you two might get along.”
“Is that so? I would very much like to meet him someday.”
Hearing this, Namgung Hyuk couldn’t help but be intrigued.
“Someone my age with such skill? He may well become my rival.”
Now, he truly wanted to meet him.
“Well then, until next time.”
“Safe travels, Master.”
With Gongjin’s departure, only the two remained.
In the awkward silence, Jegal Lin finally spoke.
“Shall we go?”
“Lady Jegal, about earlier…”
“Please, just forget I said anything.”
She shook her head.
Why had she suddenly decided not to hear his answer?
“It’s a relief for me, but not knowing her real intentions keeps bothering me…”
Namgung Hyuk swallowed his words and followed her.
The Nine Great Sects and the Six Great Clans.
Though both were of the righteous faction, old tensions lingered.
The Nine Great Sects, rooted in Buddhism and Taoism, regarded themselves as the origin of orthodox martial arts and looked down on the clans for pursuing material interests.
The clans, in turn, mocked the sects’ hypocrisy—boasting as pillars of the orthodox world, yet reluctant to step forward when crises arose.
This subtle yet undeniable rivalry extended even into the Alliance’s Four Divisions, where their followers served in separate units.
“So this is the Azure Dragon Division?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Guided by Jegal Lin, Namgung Hyuk arrived at his first division.
The Azure Dragon Division consisted of disciples and retainers from the Six Great Clans.
And its leader was—
“I never thought you’d come to the Alliance.”
“It’s been a while, Uncle.”
The Heavenly Wind Swordsman, Namgung Seho.
Though only in his mid-thirties, he was of the elder generation relative to Namgung Hyuk and served as captain of the Azure Dragon Division.
“I knew he’d been dispatched to the Alliance three years ago, but I didn’t realize he’d become a captain.”
Their relationship had always been indifferent at best.
So even upon reuniting, Namgung Hyuk felt no real warmth.
“Well then, are you here to join the Azure Dragon Division?”
Namgung Seho assumed without asking.
After all, though a branch member, Namgung Hyuk was still of the Namgung Clan.
It was natural to expect him to join.
But Namgung Hyuk’s answer defied expectation.
“I came only to observe, not to decide where I’ll serve.”
“You think it’ll be different elsewhere?”
“…”
“Here, you can bond with disciples from other clans and learn their martial arts. That would benefit you in the future.”
“Of course.”
Namgung Hyuk agreed with the point.
Indeed, joining would have advantages.
“But I’m not yet convinced the Azure Dragon Division is the best. I wish to be where I can truly display my abilities.”
He did not bend.
Yet hidden in his words was an implied doubt of the Azure Dragon Division’s strength.
As its captain, Namgung Seho could not overlook that.
“You say you’re not convinced? Very well. I’ll show you why the Azure Dragon Division is the finest of the Four.”
With those words, Namgung Seho rose sharply to his feet.
At this, the corners of Namgung Hyuk’s lips lifted faintly.
