Train Valiantly. (4)

A few days later, masters from the Evil Sect Alliance arrived at Soyo Mountain Lodge.

Their numbers weren’t many, but each one was a master whose name alone anyone would know.

In any case, there was no longer any reason to stay here.

So Yu Jinsan left that place and was descending the mountain path with his granddaughter.

“We won’t come back here again, right?”

Yu Seol glanced back repeatedly, as if she felt reluctant to leave.

It wasn’t that Yu Jinsan couldn’t guess the reason.

“Why? Missing the little brother we left behind? Let him rest in peace now.”

Yu Seol nodded with a sullen expression.

“Peanut Halbae… stay well.”

Yu Jinsan suppressed a smile and comforted his granddaughter.

“The Wind Wanderer is probably pleased in heaven too. We fulfilled his lifelong wish with the Wind-Heart Fist and guarded Soyo Mountain Lodge, didn’t we? We’ve done everything he asked for.”

They had completely exterminated the White Flower Blood Sect and driven out the Murim Alliance leader who had threatened the martial artists of the region.

They had granted all of his requests.

“Mm… let’s go quickly.”

Ta-at-! Tat-!

The grandpa-and-granddaughter pair launched themselves in succession. They began to deploy their lightness skill.

It was a perilous slope with the ground far below, but their movement showed not the slightest hesitation.

The two racing through the air soon entered a ravine between towering cliffs.

After riding the wind through the gap of the ravine below for a moment.

Yu Jinsan murmured with a contented smile.

“How refreshing, this is nice.”

“Yeah. Shall we go a bit faster? Catch me!”

Like birds descending on the wind, they began to pass through it in an instant.

And shortly after, when they were nearly at the exit.

The granddaughter ahead slowed her lightness skill and wore a puzzled expression.

“Huh? Halbae, look over there.”

A vast meadow spread out before the entrance of the ravine.

Countless people had gathered there and set up camp.

They were martial artists of all kinds—no fewer than hundreds.

“…hm.”

Could there be something worth seeing there? Yu Seol asked with a curious look.

“Who are all those uncles? What did they come to see?”

Yu Jinsan already guessed the reason.

They must have come to see the famous person who had stirred up Zhejiang Province.

“See what? They came to see you, of course.”

“Me?”

“Yes. Our Seol is quite popular.”

Yu Seol’s exploits had inflamed the hearts of the martial artists in this region. Moreover, those who had supported the Wind Wanderer were idolizing the Yin Monster.

Naturally, her popularity could only be immense.

They had all likely come to see the granddaughter in person, but recently the entrance to Soyo Mountain Lodge had been restricted.

So everyone must have been waiting outside the ravine.

Then someone among the crowd gathered at the entrance shouted excitedly.

“Yin Yang Twin Monster great heroes have appeared!!”

As if they’d been waiting, everyone sprang up and craned their necks.

“Where, where? Where is it!?”

“Th-there, look at the sky!”

The Yang Monster and the Yin Monster were descending slowly, shoulder to shoulder.

The crowd who spotted them made a fuss and shouted.

“Is that person truly the Yin Monster great hero!?”

“That’s me, the Yin Monster great hero! Do you remember me!?”

“Where are you heading!?”

Among the countless martial artists, familiar faces could be seen.

But there was no way to acknowledge each of them individually.

Stepping down to the ground, Yu Seol smiled and approached them.

“Nice to meet you, uncles. But what do we do? We have to leave now.”

Disappointment and regret filled the faces of the crowd.

“Ah…”

“Are you really planning to leave this place?”

“Just like that?”

Yu Seol looked at her grandfather for a moment with a troubled expression.

• What should I do?

She felt uneasy about just ignoring them and passing by.

Seeing his granddaughter’s troubled face, Yu Jinsan smiled faintly and sent a telepathic message.

• Child. All these people are your ardent supporters. Isn’t it polite to give them a response before leaving?

• How? Shall we slap palms with each of them?

Yu Jinsan, imagining it for a moment, couldn’t help but chuckle.

Of course, the crowd would love it.

If they could physically touch hands with a peerless master who would become the supreme of the martial world, what greater honor could there be? It would be a lifelong boast.

But that too was not an easy thing.

• It’s not just one or two; when would we even do that? Since they’re martial artists, it’d be better to do it the martial way. Show them something.

Yu Seol nodded as if she understood, then drew the Dragon Flower Spear from behind her back.

She intended to provide a spectacle as a token of thanks to the supporters here.

“Hmm.”

Gripping the Dragon Flower Spear at a diagonal, Yu Seol slowly stepped toward the cliff.

Everyone swallowed hard with eyes full of expectation.

“Looks like she’s going to show us something.”

“Wow… to be able to see the Yin Monster great hero’s martial arts in person.”

“This was worth the wait!”

Yu Seol took a deep breath and looked up at the towering cliff.

This steep cliff, soaring as if to pierce the clouds, displayed a majestic presence.

“Hoo~”

Yu Seol exhaled deeply and slowly drew the spear blade behind her shoulder.

What on earth was she going to do?

After a moment of everyone holding their breath and watching.

Suddenly the tip of the Dragon Flower Spear began to vibrate, emitting red martial energy like smoke.

The smoke then turned into red petals that swirled around the spear blade.

Wooooom-!!

This was the innate ability of the Divine Weapon Dragon Flower Spear.

Everyone was mesmerized by that beautiful spectacle, stunned, when suddenly.

The spear tip slashed the air like lightning and unleashed martial energy at the cliff.

Swaaaang-!!

The crescent-shaped red martial qi was enormous, nearly three feet in size.

It then demonstrated tremendous force and struck somewhere on the cliff.

Kwaaaang-!!

The violent impact was enough to shake even the ground.

Dust billowed up from the cliff.

It was truly a terrifying strike—hard to believe it was done by a human.

After a moment the dust cleared, revealing a long groove carved in the shape of the character ‘一’ across the center of the cliff.

“My goodness…”

“It, it was with martial qi, right? How could it do that…?”

The crowd whispered excitedly, but it was premature to be amazed.

Because now the real show was beginning.

Grasping the Dragon Flower Spear, Yu Seol began to perform a series of spear dances.

Like a celestial dancer descending to perform, her movements were supremely beautiful.

The red petals emitted by the Divine Weapon’s aura fluttered like a swarm of butterflies, and the spear tip continuously spewed martial energy like fireworks.

Swaang-! Swaang-!!

Crescent-shaped waves of martial energy flew repeatedly and struck the cliff without pause.

Kwang-! Kwang-! Kwang-!!

Yu Seol’s spear dance continued.

Her movements, becoming one with the Dragon Flower Spear and drawing beautiful curves, stole everyone’s breath.

Even Yu Jinsan was deeply impressed, murmuring as if entranced.

“…One Stroke Sweep?”

One Stroke Sweep. It means writing characters smoothly and decisively with a single brush stroke.

At that moment, he alone perceived what was happening before their eyes.

That his granddaughter was engraving characters onto the distant cliff.

‘Is that even possible?’

It was an astonishing sight, hard to believe even while watching.

Yu Seol first used martial energy to draw the large strokes.

The issue would be the small strokes requiring delicacy, but that posed no problem at all.

Whirrr-!!

The Dragon Flower Spear fiercely flew at the cliff.

Its movement looked like a fish swimming upstream against the current.

The supreme spear art, the Spear Control Technique, was unfolding.

In the blink of an eye, the Dragon Flower Spear flew at the cliff and indiscriminately carved at specific spots.

Shk! Kwang! Kwa-kwaang-!!

The spear tip, moving at incredible speed, astonishingly behaved like a large brush.

It was so fast that it didn’t take long.

Having finished its task of carving the cliff, the Dragon Flower Spear leisurely returned to its owner.

Terup-!

Retrieving the spear, Yu Seol glanced back with a proud expression.

As expected, everyone stared wide-eyed.

They held their breath, waiting for the dust shrouding the cliff to clear.

And after a moment.

A gust of wind blew, and finally the gigantic inscription on the cliff was revealed.

【Spring begins with great fortune; many auspicious events will occur.】

【All calamities will vanish like melting snow, and countless blessings will rise like clouds.】

The inscription harmonized with the majestic cliff to create a truly spectacular sight.

It was unimaginable that a person had carved it.

It was as if a celestial deity had descended and inscribed it.

Hundreds watched this sight, but no one could utter a word.

They trembled from witnessing such a shocking spectacle.

Silence reigned for a while.

But after a short time.

As if by agreement, everyone shouted at once.

“Waaaaa!!!”

For martial artists, it was the greatest sight they might never see again in their lifetime.

In that moment, Yu Seol became an object of their respect and envy.

The crowd’s excitement showed no sign of abating.

“R-Really the best!”

“As expected, you are the supreme under heaven!!”

“The Yin Monster great warrior is my idol!”

“We respect you, great warrior!!”

Yu Seol blushed shyly.

Meanwhile she seemed to be suppressing a pleased smile.

Beside her, Yu Jinsan shook his head with amusement.

“This is enough. Now let’s hurry and go.”

He moved to leave the place with his granddaughter.

The crowd filling the entrance parted like waves and opened a path.

They still seemed flushed as if their thrill hadn’t faded.

Then someone raised a weapon overhead and shouted.

“Yin-Monster! Yin-Monster! Yin-Monster!”

That was the start. As if by pact, everyone hoisted their weapons high into the sky.

In unison, they began to praise Yu Seol as she passed by.

“Yin-Monster!!”

“Yin-Monster!!”

“Yin-Monster!!!”

Yu Jinsan, uncomfortable with the situation, signaled his granddaughter with his eyes.

It was to hasten their exit.

The grandfather-and-granddaughter pair left them behind, unfolding astonishing lightness skill as they advanced.

And the crowd did not stop shouting until the two had completely vanished.

---

A secluded footpath with few people.

Only after they reached a quiet spot did Yu Jinsan sigh and speak.

“They’re nothing but fanatics.”

“Why? They’re all good people.”

Receiving support from martial artists of small and medium factions was certainly pleasing.

But he hadn’t expected them to be this fanatically enthusiastic about his granddaughter.

Before long, the name Yin Monster was becoming a hero to martial artists outside the Murim Alliance.

“Child. But how did you know that inscription?”

The inscription his granddaughter had carved was a Lichun banner wishing for good fortune.

He was amazed that she knew something he hadn’t even told her.

“I’ve seen them a few times passing by. Many houses have such phrases posted in front.”

Indeed, her observational skill was remarkable.

In any case, the inscription at the ravine’s entrance would be a great gift to Soyo Mountain Lodge.

It was almost certain to become one of the famed spots of the martial world.

“Yes, well done. We have a long way to go, so let’s travel in one go.”

“To the Defeating Blade Clan? I’m hungry.”

No matter how peerless a master, moving in one go from Zhejiang Province to Shaanxi is an arduous task.

It’s from one end to the other. By ordinary standards it would be a long journey taking months.

To travel a long distance, they needed to eat heartily.

“Then let’s move to Hubei Province and eat there. I know an amazing place, my child.”

“Heehee. Great!”

---

The grandfather-and-granddaughter, departing Zhejiang Province, passed Anhui Province and arrived in Hubei Province.

They had traveled roughly half the distance to their destination.

Perhaps because they had sprinted at full speed for half a day?

Entering the inn, Yu Seol rubbed her lower stomach as if hungry.

“Wow~ Grandpa, this place is huge!”

Yu Seol couldn’t close her mouth at the size of the inn.

It was a large pavilion structure built with three floors.

It was full of all manner of guests, and there were dozens of servers.

“Alright. Choose whatever seat you like.”

A moment later, a young server approached and began to size up the grandfather-and-granddaughter.

They looked like young kids, but what did that matter?

Their luxurious clothes and ornaments marked them at a glance as children of wealthy families.

Age means nothing if one has money. The server bowed with hands together, hoping for some leftovers.

“Oh my, it’s been a while since we’ve had such handsome and beautiful guests. I’ll seat you at the best table.”

Yu Seol flashed her pouch and said.

“I have lots of money. Show me to a spot with a partition.”

She wanted to eat comfortably without worrying about anyone’s gaze.

“Y-Yes~ This way, please.”

The grandfather-and-granddaughter took a seat in a corner on the first floor of the inn.

It was a table surrounded by partitions.

Yu Jinsan silently crossed his arms and watched his granddaughter place the order.

As always, ordering was the granddaughter’s responsibility.

A moment later Yu Seol pointed with her index finger along the menu on the wall and said.

“From here to here, give me one of each. Got it?”

“Y-yes. Understood. Please wait a moment.”

No sooner had the server gone than Yu Jinsan began to scold.

He spoke not harshly but in a coaxing tone.

“Our Seol has quite the generosity. Why did you order so much? Isn’t it wasteful to spend hard-earned money like that?”

“No, it’s not wasteful~ I saved it to spend it like this.”

“If you squander it and later become poor and starve, you’ll surely regret what you did today.”

Yu Seol shrugged as if she couldn’t understand.

“It’s fine, grandpa. No need to be frugal.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Anyway, you have to spend all your money before you die. Leaving it behind when you die would be such a waste.”

A sigh escaped him.

The little one was already talking about the afterlife.

“You said you wanted to be rich, right? If you waste like that, when will you buy a house?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll earn much more.”

Yu Jinsan leaned back in his chair with a resigned expression.

“Fine, do as you please. If someone has money, they can eat whatever they want. Tsk.”

He had no money on him, so he had no choice. He would have to let his granddaughter buy their food.

Soon Yu Seol propped her chin and began humming a tune.

She seemed pleased at the thought of the delicious dishes about to come.

“Hreung~ Hreung~ Hreeeung~”

Though the song was unintelligible, its rhythm and melody were quite fitting.

Yu Jinsan closed his eyes and enjoyed his granddaughter’s song.

After some time passed.

At some point, his granddaughter’s humming abruptly stopped.

“…?”

It was because of a conversation heard from a nearby table.

They were, to his surprise, speaking ill of someone.

“Yin Yang Twin Monster, those damned bastards!”

“Please endure it, Fourth Brother.”

“Endure? What endure? These scoundrels dared to kill the Mu-jin? If we catch them, we’ll cut off their limbs.”