The Youngest Participant (1)

Looking closely, Dong-gu was awkwardly turning his head around with a puzzled expression.

He even wore the bracelet they had shared as a token of friendship on his wrist.

There was no way he wouldn’t be pleased to see him.

“What a small world. That dopey kid is here.”

“Looks like Mister Dong-gu will enter the spear technique contest too.”

It’s not strange for the Dong family lord from Hanan to enter the spear contest. It was a prime chance to raise the family’s honor, if only they could achieve good results.

It worked out perfectly. With Dong-gu’s help, they could reduce unwanted attention.

“Seems so. Go on, call him over here.”

“Yes! Heehee.”

Yu Jinsan watched leisurely as his granddaughter called Dong-gu over.

Dong-gu and his granddaughter grabbed hands and bounced with joy the moment they met.

They seemed very happy to reunite after a long time.

‘His appearance may have changed, but his heart’s the same.’

Even at a glance, Dong-gu’s martial skill had clearly improved.

His eyes were deeper, his step more measured, he felt different from before.

At least his internal qi felt like it was on the verge of peak; he’d surely had a fortunate encounter.

‘He must have received internal qi from the old man.’

The Dong family lord, Dong Un-geol, someone who was like a grandfather to Yu Jinsan, sympathizing with his situation, decided to help.

He had once told Dong-gu he would pass on his internal qi, to be given later to his grandchildren.

Transferring internal qi entails tremendous pain and usually loses more than half in the process, so it’s rarely used. Still, he must have resolved to do it to revive the family.

“Hello, elder!”

Dong-gu ran over holding his granddaughter’s hand, smiling brightly.

Yu Jinsan nodded with his hands folded behind his back.

“Well, is your father doing all right?”

“These days he’s mostly bedridden, but it’s not an immediate life-or-death situation.”

Having lost all his internal qi, that was inevitable. The family lord would likely die within a few years at most.

“So what’s going on here? Are you entering the spear contest too?”

“Yes… I thought if I won, my father would be pleased.”

“This kid… as filial as our Seol. But it’s not going to be easy, you know?”

High internal qi alone doesn’t make someone a skilled warrior. Although the Dong family was a martial family, they didn’t have a proper family martial arts.

Winning, or even placing in the top five, would be difficult.

Dong-gu scratched his head sheepishly, seemingly aware of that.

“So I plan to hide the Dong family name for now. If my results are good, I’ll reveal it then.”

“That’s probably best. If you embarrass yourself, it would only harm the family.”

Unless you were truly confident in your skill, there was no reason to reveal your school, and there were no entry restrictions anyway.

“Yes. I’ll do my best. But what brings you here, sir?”

“I’m here to enter, you rascal. Do you think I came just to watch?”

“Ah…”

“What’s that look? You don’t really think it’s ridiculous that this old man would enter the contest, do you?”

“Ha ha. Of course not. Everyone will think I’m the youngest participant.”

Yu Jinsan snorted softly and looked toward the registration desk; it was empty at the moment.

If they wanted to avoid attention, now was a good chance.

Someone might recognize him later, but concealing his identity as long as possible was advantageous.

“Come register with me quickly, then let’s get something to eat.”

“Yes, elder. I’ll lead the way.”

Registering didn’t mean immediate participation in the spear contest.

There were too many applicants of all ages, so they had to take a simple qualification test.

With time to spare, the three sat opposite each other at a roadside stall in the nearby village.

They ordered three bowls of thin wheat noodles.

Dong-gu, happy to reunite, kept talking without pausing even as he moved his chopsticks.

“Seol, how have you been? You look even prettier since I last saw you.”

It wasn’t mere flattery. Having undergone another transformation, Yu Seol’s beauty was flawless even as a child.

“Heehee. Thank you, mister Dong-gu. These days I’m teaching Grandpa martial arts.”

Yu Jinsan flinched and gave a little cough.

“Ahem ahem. Don’t mind what she says. I’m just an old man playing with his granddaughter. By the way, Dong-gu, how have you been?”

“I’ve been training in martial arts all day. This is my first time going out like this.”

The calluses on his hands showed he’d been training intensively.

But his purpose likely wasn’t limited to the spear contest.

“I see — you’ve been working hard. What’s your goal?”

“I’ll go to the Murim Alliance as soon as the contest ends.”

“The Murim Alliance? Why there?”

“To join. I don’t know if they’ll accept me, but if our Dong family becomes affiliated with the Murim Alliance…”

Yu Jinsan set his chopsticks down with a clack and cut him off.

“No Murim Alliance!”

He wore a more serious expression than ever.

Seeing the future so clearly, how could he just stand by and watch?

It wasn’t his decision alone, but it couldn’t be ignored.

“Huh? Why…?”

“You foolish boy. If you’re coming out into the murim world, you should first understand the situation, why crawl into a death trap yourself?”

“I know well that the current murim world is dominated by the Justice factions.”

Yu Jinsan sighed in frustration.

How could Dong-gu know that the once-fortress-like power of the Justice factions had recently begun to shake?

If the righteous-evil war intensified, someone like the Dong family would be swept away in an instant.

“Even with Fist Emperor having been struck down recently?”

“Whaat?”

“In Shaanxi everyone knows of this. The rumor may not have reached here yet, but those who should know already do.”

Dong-gu wore an expression of disbelief.

Who was Fist Emperor? One of the Ten Great Warriors; to the Justice faction he was like a god.

“Who on earth would dare to topple Fist Emperor?”

Yu Jinsan nodded toward the seat beside Dong-gu.

“The very fellow who is eating noodles next to you right now.”

Yu Seol squeezed her chopsticks and smiled brightly.

Dong-gu was stunned into silence.

Although her fragile, cute appearance made it easy to forget, he too knew well that Yu Seol’s true identity was a terrifying Yin Monster.

“Seol, Seol defeated Fist Emperor…?”

“Yes. So if you join the Murim Alliance, you could become our enemy.”

“T-Then have you decided to side with the Evil faction?”

“Hmm. Martial artists in Shaanxi think of us as Evil Faction people, but that wasn’t our intention. In any case, we share a common enemy with the Evil Faction.”

Dong-gu nodded as if he understood and replied.

“Then I’ll forget about joining the Murim Alliance. When it comes to loyalty, isn’t that what I, Dong-gu am about?”

“You don’t want to get beaten by the Yin Monster, do you?”

Dong-gu couldn’t help laughing at Yu Jinsan’s joke.

“Ha ha! Caught me. Just imagining it is awful.”

Yu Seol giggled and raised her left arm to show him something.

It was the colorful friendship bracelet Dong-gu had once bought her.

“Puhihi. Don’t worry. If you wear this token, you’ll always be my friend, mister.”

“Thank you, Seol. Really? I won’t take it off for my whole life.”

The three stayed at the inn overnight, then went to the venue for the qualification test.

The spear tournament was organized by the local government office.

It had started during wartime to encourage physical training for the defense of the homeland, but it had become a local tradition.

From retired officials to students of village disciples, and martial artists regardless of their alignment, many showed up.

Numerous challengers came seeking glory.

“Eliminated!”

A middle-aged man with drooping shoulders turned away dejectedly.

Five judges were testing the participants’ qualifications.

The rule was to hold a training wooden spear and withstand three exchanges.

Of course, Yu Jinsan had no chance of failing the qualification test.

‘There sure are a lot.’

Standing in line waiting his turn, Yu Jinsan scanned the surroundings.

Hundreds of participants, and officials placed around to maintain order.

Although there had been a fight with government troops in Dunhuang, it didn’t seem related.

News from the distant desert hinterlands wouldn’t likely have reached here.

They waited for quite some time.

• Next is Grandpa’s turn. Good luck!

It was Yu Seol’s distant voice transmitted through qi.

He felt bolstered by his granddaughter’s encouragement from somewhere watching over him.

Yu Jinsan casually raised a hand behind his back and stepped forward.

“Participant number 136, Tae-san.”

The judge murmured in a pitying tone.

“Kid. Even if there are no entry restrictions, the judging must be fair, so I can’t give you any special treatment. We’ve seen kids like you more than once.”

He meant: if you don’t want to get hurt, just give up and go home.

If anyone found the other amusing, it was Yu Jinsan; he just couldn’t show it.

He pointed the wooden spear in his hand at the judge and urged him on.

“Begin.”

“Huh… I warned you, so don’t regret it.”

The sighing judge finally launched his attack.

The spear tip raced in, aiming not for vitals but the shoulder; he was still showing mercy.

Yu Jinsan simply twisted his torso slightly and deflected the judge’s wooden spear.

‘…He dodged that like that?’

In an instant, the judge’s expression hardened.

He realized from that single move that his opponent was no ordinary person.

He pulled back the spear and quickly moved to his next technique.

From the second exchange onward, there was no mercy.

The spear, sweeping in like lightning in a semicircle, aimed precisely at the waist.

He could have counterattacked, but Yu Jinsan merely brought his spear shaft to meet the incoming weapon.

Thud!

The impact of the spears clashing was not small, yet Yu Jinsan’s posture did not waver.

He saw the judge’s face in panic.

He was confident he could fell him with a single strike if he countered, but what point was there in humiliating him?

Out of respect for the man’s intent to give him a fair exchange, he didn’t want to do that.

“This is the last one.”

The final third exchange; if he stopped this attack, he’d qualify.

No sooner had Yu Jinsan finished speaking than the judge’s final strike came.

The spear tip split into two, targeting both the shoulder and the leg at once.

Any normal opponent would have been flustered.

But for Yu Jinsan, head of a famed spear family, it was laughable.

There was leisure in his defensive movements.

Crash!!

Two short clashes rang out. That was all.

Afterwards they each stepped back and retrieved their wooden spears.

“I can’t believe it. How can you move like that at your age…”

Yu Jinsan had only defended, yet the judge, sensing something, was greatly astonished.

“Did I pass?”

“Of course. You may even become the youngest participant in the tournament’s history.”

“Thank you.”

Yu Jinsan gently lowered the spear and turned his back.

Then the judge’s final words were heard in a low voice.

“You seem like a child of a martial family clan; may I ask which school you belong to?”

The name ‘Yu family’ rose to his throat, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak it.

“Please understand. I cannot say right now.”

With those words, he walked away from the judging area.

Then his gaze turned toward somewhere in the distance.

There he saw Dong-gu and the granddaughter jumping up and down with joy.

‘Ugh. I told you to stay quiet, making your grandfather embarrassed…’}