Hurry Up And Hand It Over, The Martial Arts Manual. (1)

It had been five days since he began training the Muscle Changing Technique with his granddaughter’s help.

It wasn’t a long time, but the effects of the training were astonishing.

Even now Yu Seol’s palm was pressed against his back, adding strength to the flow of vital energy.

A warm and majestic qi shook the room.

Though it was a dark night, it was dazzlingly bright, the golden radiance surrounding the two of them.

The Muscle Changing Technique and the Buddha Lion Roar Divine technique shared a common Buddhist origin qi, so their natures were similar.

Perhaps for that reason, the speed of training far exceeded expectations.

It was when the post-fire stage of the Muscle Changing Technique had just reached seventy percent.

A voice from behind—his granddaughter—was heard.

“What? Your concentration is slipping; you shouldn’t talk during training.”

“How long are we training today? I’m bored.”

“Not much longer. Grandpa needs to get strong quickly to protect you.”

At that moment Yu Seol’s laughter burst out.

“Puhit!”

“This kid is laughing?”

“You said Grandpa would protect me.”

“So what’s wrong with that?”

Yu Seol couldn’t hold it and laughed again.

Yu Jinsan was about to say something but stopped; he himself found it funny.

Still, if he properly mastered the Muscle Changing Technique, at least he wouldn’t be a burden.

“Eh! Let’s end today’s training here.”

He brushed himself off, stood, and headed outside.

Then Yu Seol trotted after him and asked.

“Grandpa, where are you going?”

“To the kitchen to pack some food.”

“Why? Are you hungry already?”

“No. There’s somewhere I have to go.”

Entering the kitchen, he packed simple food and fruit into a bundle. He even took the alcohol bottle the Five men—his granddaughter’s friends—had given.

Is he going on a picnic? Yu Seol asked, puzzled.

“Where are we going?”

Yu Jinsan quietly put the bundle on his granddaughter’s back and said softly.

“You’ll know when we get there.”

The grandfather and granddaughter left the house and used lightness skill to travel four hours.

They moved at least twice as fast as a running horse.

They arrived at Jinyang County in Shaanxi Province. Everywhere looked quiet and peaceful.

“Do you know what place this is?”

“No. It’s my first time here.”

A small smile formed on Yu Jinsan’s face.

“Do you really think that?”

“Hmm~ I’m not sure. But this place feels cozy.”

“That makes sense. We’re almost there, so let’s go.”

His gaze fell deeply on the row of plum trees.

‘Now I can’t delay it any longer.’

This was the village where he had lived for over a decade.

Following a path, they reached their destination and saw the manor firmly closed.

Yu Seol spoke after seeing the plaque over the gate.

“Yu family?”

“Yes, child. This is the place where you were born.”

This was the manor where Yu Jinsan had spent his life.

Seeing the familiar walls filled him with remorse.

“…Grandpa.”

Yu Jinsan retrieved the bundle from his granddaughter’s back and said softly.

“Let’s go in. We should pay respects to your parents, right?”

A government notice forbidding entry was posted on the gate.

But such things mattered little to them.

After hesitating, Yu Seol kicked off and leaped over to the other side.

With a heavy expression, Yu Jinsan leapt after his granddaughter.

They climbed the wall and reached the front yard, seeing his granddaughter’s back as she entered the main hall.

Yu Jinsan slowly looked around the manor.

‘I thought I would never be able to come back.’

Until now he hadn’t had the courage to face this place; he couldn’t bear to relive the memories of that day.

But for his granddaughter’s sake, he had to change his mind.

His legs went weak and he sat down in a suitable spot, dazed.

‘Your father brought our youngest child back home. She grew up very healthy…’

Suddenly his eyes reddened.

It was because memories of fleeing from here with his only surviving granddaughter resurfaced.

They had to leave without even burying their children’s bodies.

The abandoned corpses were cremated by the authorities and scattered into nature, so there was no way to recover any remains now.

As he sighed, he saw his granddaughter looking around the place.

Was she also recalling something in her own way?

Yu Jinsan left the child where she was, grabbed the bundle, and trudged on.

The front yard where his family had been slaughtered before his eyes.

It was while he laid out a mat there and took out the food.

“Grandpa… can I take this?”

His granddaughter was holding a finely carved wooden comb.

Looking closely, Yu Jinsan could recall something.

He remembered his youngest son proudly saying he had made it to give to his wife.

“Yes, I remember. Our youngest daughter-in-law treasured it the most. She used that to comb your hair every time.”

“Mom did…?”

Yu Jinsan nodded with a gentle smile.

It was astonishing she had managed to find a relic of her parents.

Yu Seol carefully tucked it into her clothes.

“Now come over here and take out the food just as Grandpa says.”

“Are we holding a memorial rite?”

Perhaps because she had seen such rites a few times at the Defeating Blade Clan, she was perceptive beyond her years.

“Yes. It’s for your parents and the elders of the family, so prepare it sincerely.”

Yu Jinsan folded his hands behind his back and watched his granddaughter.

It was common for parents not to hold memorial rites for dead children.

But if the family’s youngest granddaughter was made the ritual devotee, the matter changed.

‘Somehow my granddaughter has grown so much. She even knows how to offer rites to the elders.’

He felt proud to the point of being choked up.

He turned his head to look at the distant mountains; watching them made him feel tears coming.

“It’s done, Grandpa.”

“Good. Now pour the alcohol and perform the bowing rite. You’ve seen it before, right?”

“Yes. I can do it.”

Seeing his playful granddaughter appear so serious.

Watching her perform the bow, he felt nothing but admiration.

“Oh my, how pretty. Don’t you have something to say to your mother? Say it.”

Suddenly Yu Seol’s eyes reddened; she had apparently been holding back until now.

After hesitating for a long time, she began to speak, her voice trembling.

“Mom… I’m living bravely with Grandpa. I miss you…”

After finishing, Yu Seol wiped her tears with her sleeve.

She rummaged through the bundle and took out paper money.

It was the traditional offering of money to send with the deceased to the afterlife.

The paper in Yu Seol’s fingers began to burn; she had induced a focused internal flame qi practice.

Whoosh!

Yu Jinsan watched silently as the paper money turned to ash and scattered.

His face wore a bittersweet yet kindly smile.

‘Did you see? I raised her so well, so you needn’t worry. Go in peace.’

The family’s last seed had grown healthier and sturdier than anyone in the world.

Only now could he die with some pride in his children.

Yu Jinsan glanced down and said quietly.

“Quickly clean up and pack. We have another place to visit.”

About five hundred feet from the Yu family’s manor.

The pair hid in a tree, silently staring at a place.

It was an old pavilion with a plaque reading Physician Hall.

“Grandpa, who is that man? Do you know him?”

A middle-aged physician wearing a headwrap was pacing at the entrance carrying an infant.

“I know him well. I thought he’d be a lifelong bachelor, but it seems he found a partner.”

He was a physician named Seok-du.

He had once helped them when they fled while ill.

Thanks to that, he had bought time with the thunder qi pills and survived.

“But why are we hiding and just watching?”

“What’s the point of showing ourselves? It’s enough to confirm if they’re living well.”

If he appeared rejuvenated by Age Revival, it would greatly surprise him.

Since he wasn’t a martial artist, explaining it would be quite tiresome.

“Business doesn’t look good.”

At a glance, the place was deserted.

On top of that, his clothes were torn and worn; clearly his life wasn’t affluent.

Yu Jinsan took a coin pouch from his chest and handed it to his granddaughter.

“Send that to him.”

The pouch contained five silver coins.

It would be enough to support him comfortably for a few years.

When Yu Seol stretched out her hand, the pouch began to glide through the air.

It was an incredible sight; she controlled it effortlessly across a great distance.

A moment later, Seok-du’s eyes widened as if they’d split open.

He couldn’t help but be surprised to see a pouch dancing before his eyes.

He looked around, then cautiously snatched and opened the pouch.

He stood frozen for a while as if turned to ice.

After another moment had passed.

Regaining his senses, he began to shed tears and bow repeatedly.

“Ah, Buddha. Thank you! Thank you!”

He was so happy; clearly his life had been impoverished.

Watching with a satisfied smile, Yu Jinsan signaled his granddaughter.

“We’ve repaid a kindness; now let’s go to the next place.”

The pair headed to the Dragon Door Trading House in Shaanxi.

It was also the place where the Blue Dragon Troops leader said he would stay briefly.

“Seol, wait outside and keep watch.”

“You’ll be back soon, right?”

Yu Jinsan met his granddaughter’s eyes and nodded once.

“Yes. If Grandpa calls, run over quickly. I’ll buy you something delicious afterward.”

“Okay. Come back soon.”

Though it was a truce, they were dangerous people.

As a precaution, he left his granddaughter waiting outside.

Yu Jinsan opened the trading house door and glanced around.

The interior looked fitting for a merchants’ headquarters, but his eyes were not deceived.

The calluses on the merchants’ hands and the faint aura suggested they were martial arts warriors.

‘Is this a secret headquarters under the Blue Dragon Troops?’

It seemed he had come to the right place.

Shortly after, a middle-aged man in light armor with a headwrap approached.

He clasped his hands and bowed, saying:

“This way, please.”

“Hurry. We don’t have much time.”

He couldn’t stay long because his granddaughter was waiting outside.

Yu Jinsan followed him into a hidden chamber.

Passing two doors, they met several familiar Blue Dragon Troops members, but Yu Jinsan paid them no mind.

Beyond one more door, they finally reached their destination.

It was a lavish room incongruous with the trading house—leather chairs, an elegant table, and a tasteful painting on the wall.

And at the center sat him.

Blue Dragon Troops leader Hwang So-cheon. His hand slowly gripped a teapot.

“If you’d come just one day later, I might not have met you; I’m returning to Kaifeng tomorrow.”

“You are very composed.”

Hwang So-cheon slid a full teacup across to Yu Jinsan.

“What business brings you here?”

Yu Jinsan sat stiffly across from him.

“I was on my way to arrange my children’s memorial table.”

“I’m sorry about that day. If I could go back, I would have acted differently.”

Yu Jinsan tapped the teacup aside with his finger.

The overturned cup’s spilled tea soaked the stacks of papers on the table.

“Thinking of that time makes me want to overturn everything. Like this teacup.”

Once spilled, water cannot be gathered back.

He had only endured briefly for the sake of his descendants’ future.

This was the world his granddaughter would live in. He couldn’t stand idly by while Tianzhu turned this place into ruin.

“…What right do we have to speak?”

As expected, the Blue Dragon Troops leader adopted a submissive tone.

He was the sort of man who would abandon pride for the sake of the mission.

Given the current situation, he couldn’t afford to confront the Yin Yang Twin Monster.

Yu Jinsan got straight to the point.

“I need the Blue Dragon Troops’ martial arts.”

“I don’t understand. The Yin Yang Twin Monster’s martial arts shouldn’t be beneath ours, should they?”

“It’s not for us to learn.”

Hwang So-cheon seemed to ponder for a moment.

Then, as if sensing something, he cautiously asked.

“Could it be… you intend to pass them on to those children?”

“Yes. Hand over the martial arts manuals that have high compatibility with the Blue Dragon Troops’ internal cultivation methods.”

“You barged in demanding martial arts manuals. Did I hear you correctly?”

Though he said it, he actually seemed pleased.

The Blue Dragon Troops had been worried because the next cohort of children had fled to Ho County.

If they could nurture them indirectly and if it would help defend against the foreign Murim invasion, there was no reason to refuse.

And Yu Jinsan was no fool to miss that intent.

“You can refuse if you wish. I won’t ask twice.”

“Tell me what your purpose is.”

“Why? Are you afraid the children will grow strong and turn their blades against you?”

“That doesn’t matter. As long as the mission can be completed, lives are of no consequence.”

Yu Jinsan gave a small, dry smile.

“I have no intention of surrendering your lives to anyone. I only want to give the children the power to protect themselves from the impending danger.”

As expected, the Blue Dragon Troops leader readily nodded.

“Very well. In addition to the martial arts manuals, we’ll personally train the children. This cohort’s talents are exceptional; they’ll become the finest elite.”

With the Murim Alliance leader’s help they’d likely kidnapped even greater prodigies. It was natural the Defeating Blade Clan’s children would have higher potential than active Blue Dragon Troops members.

While it would be perfect if they also assisted in training, Yu Jinsan refused outright.

“We don’t need your inhumane training methods. We’ll handle it; just hand over the manuals.”

Why force the children to relive painful memories?

The Defeating Blade Clan also had great talents—Baek Gyu and Jeong Hye—and he and his granddaughter could sometimes lend aid.

Hwang So-cheon realized there was no overcoming Yu Jinsan’s resolve.

“The martial arts manuals will be delivered to the Defeating Blade Clan soon.”

“Understood.”

With that, Yu Jinsan turned his back.

His business was finished; he had no desire to converse further.

At that moment, he heard Hwang So-cheon’s low murmur behind him.

“What a pity. That I cannot be one of those children…”

Hwang So-cheon was the most powerful man—envied by no one.

Yet he complained about his life.

‘Even if one has much, if the heart isn’t fulfilled, one is poor. What fills the emptiness of one who has devoted his soul to an organization’s ideals?’}