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#716
Taejonbirok Volume 29, Episode 16
Chapter 156: The Lazy Man Advances (1)
I know that Wei Yanho did not say that with that intention.
But Wei Yanho's words hit Cheonma right where he hurt. He was someone who couldn't protect what he was supposed to protect.
Cheonma, who had been quietly looking at Wi Yeon-ho, opened his mouth.
“Isn’t that also an obsession?”
“Obsession?”
Cheonma nodded.
"I haven't reached that level myself, but ultimately, a warrior is a being who stands alone. The path of learning one walks cannot be understood by others. Even if we start together, it's a path we must ultimately walk alone."
Cheonma closed his eyes slightly.
Does he have the right to say such things?
He has endured for over three hundred years, unable to let go of his obsession. Hatred, vengeance, and unwavering grief are the driving forces that drive the current Cheonma.
Those are not words that should come out of the mouth of a heavenly horse.
But I want to ask.
"The path of ignorance is the path that can only be reached by abandoning even attachment to one's relatives. With that kind of mindset, you will never surpass me."
“I think you’re mistaken…….”
Wei Yanho scratched his head.
“I don’t really have any intention of surpassing my master.”
“……What does that mean?”
"It's exactly as it is. My master, my old master… No, are they the same person? Anyway! They keep telling me to surpass myself, but honestly, it's a bit annoying."
Cheonma looked at Wi Yeon-ho with a slightly dazed expression.
If the Blood Demon saw the Heavenly Demon's appearance now, he would doubt his own eyes. He would never have imagined the Heavenly Demon making such an expression.
“If you don’t surpass me, you won’t be able to save the world, right?”
"Oh, you don't understand what I'm saying. I told you, I'm not interested in that kind of thing. I just want to get my body back."
“Isn’t it the same?”
Wi Yeon-ho clicked his tongue.
"That's what all masters are like. They speak and persecute, yet they don't realize that their words are contradictory."
"……contradiction?"
"Yes. There's something my master always tells me: in martial arts, skill isn't everything. It's not uncommon for a weaker player to defeat a stronger one. Competition is always fraught with variables, so you must never let your guard down. What this means is that depending on the luck of the day, a weaker player can sometimes defeat a stronger one."
“…….”
“But when you teach again, you become stronger and become obsessed with overcoming.”
Wi Yeon-ho shrugged.
"I don't want to surpass my master. I want to beat him. And when it comes to competition…"
“It’s not like things can be decided by skill alone.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Cheonma sighed without realizing it.
“Didn’t your master tell you to surpass me?”
"Parents and masters tend to have excessive expectations of their children and disciples. Even though there are countless master-student relationships in the world, wouldn't it be difficult to find a disciple who satisfies their master? Just give up. Then you'll find peace."
Cheonma looked up at the sky.
'You're incredibly indifferent.'
It's been three hundred years since he met his first friend, and his only disciple, but he's such a person.
The sky is always too harsh on him.
But what should I say… … .
'It's not so bad.'
Perhaps, I thought, if he had met Wi Yeon-ho when he was still called Baek Mu-han, his fate might have been a little different. It's a pointless thought now.
“I’m not so easy that I can win by luck, am I?”
“I’m not so weak that I can’t hope for luck.”
“……You don’t lose a word.”
“Are you going to hit me?”
“Ugh.”
Cheonma's face distorted.
And as they watched that scene, the faces of the nobles gradually changed.
'How strange.'
There is no mercy when holding a sword.
If they even slightly considered each other as teacher and student, they would dare to use a barrage of unspeakable weapons. If Wei Yanhu had made even the slightest misstep, he would have been oxidized, leaving not a single strand of hair behind.
Those who had been calmly throwing such swords are now conversing like a kind teacher and a rude student after putting away their swords.
This strange and yet strange relationship leaves onlookers perplexed.
“……That’s the master that Wei Yanhu was talking about.”
"I thought that monster of a guy couldn't possibly be the one who got hit, because he said he only got hit every time, but now that I see it, it makes sense. If you hit him, you get hit. What else can you do?"
“I think that Wi Yeon-ho, who fought back without saying a word to that Cheonma, is more amazing.”
“Is that so great? That’s crazy.”
“Even if you’re crazy, you’re really crazy.”
“I admit that.”
Wi Jeong-han looked at the two people with sunken eyes.
It's like watching a map match.
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The power and ferocity contained in the number of days makes the word 'sparring' seem meaningless, but if you tone down the power just a little, this scene is not much different from a sparring between a master and a disciple.
He proves himself with the sword, talks about it, and then picks it up again.
'Where did it all go wrong?'
Had fate been just a little more kind to them, the two might have found happiness by now, bickering among themselves. But a twisted fate forced these priests to take each other's lives.
No matter how much Wei Yanhu tries to stop him, Cheonma cannot be stopped.
Even if his opponent is Baek Mu-han, Wei Yan-ho cannot back down.
They carry so much on their shoulders. Putting down the burdens they carry is impossible for them.
Cheonma opened his mouth quietly.
"I know your desires lead to a greater cause. But that's too harsh on you."
“Yes, that might be the case.”
Wi Yeon-ho shrugged.
"But please don't say it in such a pitiful tone. It's you, Master, who's most anxious about that, not me."
“……What did you say?”
“Why did you wait for me?”
“…….”
Cheonma did not answer.
Wi Yeon-ho looked at Cheonma with sunken eyes.
"You could have taken my head any time you wanted. There's a limit to your depth, and if you'd attacked me again, I'd have died. There's no way Master wouldn't know what I know. But he backed down."
“Because it was worth the wait.”
"why?"
Wei Yanho asked directly.
“What do I have?”
"you……."
“There is nothing.”
Wi Yeon-ho shook his head.
"I'm a successor to my master, but I'm meaningless to him. That's because my master denied that he was Baekmuhan. I'm only meaningful to Baekmuhan. But my master isn't Baekmuhan, he's a heavenly demon."
“…….”
"It didn't matter if it wasn't then. I was wondering what would happen if I absorbed the energy… but it didn't even take a day, did it? There's no way it would have taken Master more than ten days to absorb that much energy. If he had attacked again immediately after absorbing the energy, not only everyone here, but me and everyone outside would have died. But Master didn't do that."
Wi Yeon-ho said as if spitting out something.
“You waited here for me to finish getting ready.”
Cheonma looked at Wi Yeon-ho without saying anything.
“What do I have?”
Wi Yeon-ho spread his arms.
"There's no need to search for traces of Baekmuhan in me. My master will have them all. How my master's martial arts were passed down to the world? You've already confirmed that."
Wi Yeon-ho grabbed his sword.
“It’s a bundle of contradictions.”
“…….”
“I want revenge, but I have no one to take revenge on. I want to become a devil, but I can’t abandon my humanity.”
"stop."
"For countless years, I've burned with hatred, but once I regain my body, I realize there's no one I can vent that hatred on."
“I told you to stop.”
Cheonma's voice grew louder.
But Wei Yanhu did not stop.
"Even if I burn the world with my ever-growing hatred, that won't be revenge. Those who deserve revenge are already dead, so what kind of revenge would it be to hunt down and kill their descendants?"
“Didn’t I tell you to stop!”
"I know I should stop, but I can't. Yes, I guess so. After all, even Master is human. He may seem like a god, but he can't be anything but human. If you can't stop yourself, someone else has to."
Wi Yeon-ho raised his sword and pointed it at Cheonma.
“Isn’t that why you waited?”
“…….”
"It's overwhelming, because every master seems to be demanding too much of me. But I'm a good disciple, so I listen to my master. If you can't stop yourself, I'll make you stop."
Cheonma looked at Wi Yeon-ho without saying anything.
Wi Yeon-ho's words accurately hit home on his own true feelings that he was unaware of.
Facing him from the past?
Ask him?
What does that mean?
The past is already gone. And even if Wi Yeon-ho were a disciple of the past, he could never become Baek Mu-han himself.
Do you find traces of yourself in others and ask yourself about those traces?
That's not even funny.
That wasn't the reason why Cheonma waited for Wi Yeon-ho.
“I don’t know what else to say, but…….”
The horse shook its head.
“Maybe the saying ‘good disciple’ is right.”
“You’re finally admitting it now. You’ve always been a bully.”
“……Don’t hold me responsible for something I didn’t do.”
“We’re the same person.”
“That’s true, though.”
Cheonma sighed.
It's getting released.
Yeah, I know.
That what we are talking about now is useless.
That it was just a waste of time, and that this wasn't the conversation to have in this situation.
Still, he did not stop talking to Wei Yanhu.
Every time he speaks, something inside him seems to melt. It's clear that the hatred he's nurtured and clung to for three hundred years is slowly dissolving.
The flames of that fierce hatred, which seemed as if they would not be extinguished even if one's own body were burned, were shaken by a few words from Wi Yeon-ho.
'Maybe I… … .'
Cheonma shook his head.
No, no.
It has no meaning now.
As Wei Yanho had said, he could no longer stand still. If he did, he would be nothing.
“Are you confident?”
“Hey, I said I wasn’t confident.”
Wi Yeon-ho snickers.
"But just because you lack confidence doesn't mean you can't do what you need to do. Isn't that what life is all about?"
“You don’t even feel resentment. I, and they, are so cruel to you.”
"to……."
Wi Yeon-ho scratched his head.
“Honestly, I’d be lying if I said there weren’t times when I got annoyed.”
“I guess so.”
"But there's nothing I can do. Even if I go back in time, I'll still end up here."
“Why?”
“Because I can’t give up going into that cave.”
Wi Yeon-ho said calmly.
"I'm here not because they're weak, or because they're turning away. I'm here simply because I'm strong. And the reason I'm strong is because I met my master."
A pure, spotless smile appeared on Wei Yanho's lips.
“Even if I have to go through something worse than this, I won’t hesitate to meet my master.”
Cheonma closed his eyes.