The Third Son of the Zhuge Clan is a Returned Martial God - Chapter 10

========== CHAPTER 10 ==========

========== CHAPTER 10: MUHAKDANG (3) ==========

A few days later, early morning.

Jeok-un observed the trainees gathered at the training ground within the Muhakdang.

It was early in the training, so they could have looked exhausted, but their eyes were filled with determination.

‘This year is definitely different.’

As he glanced around, he met a pair of unfocused eyes.

Black eyes whose inner thoughts were impossible to read.

‘I’m already looking forward to seeing what they show me today.’

The child who had stood out the most during the past few days of internal energy cultivation and physical conditioning was none other than Mu-yeon.

His fundamentals were so incredible that it was hard to believe he hadn’t learned martial arts before.

‘Is it true that he was born with the martial talent of the Jin Clan, that old school of the sword?’

The old, vanished name came to mind for no reason. It would be better to tell the Hall Master of the Martial Arts Hall after observing him a bit longer.

Having collected his thoughts, he opened his mouth.

“Today, we will be practicing footwork.”

Before one can grasp a sword, one must first learn how to walk.

No matter where you extend your sword, the beginning always stems from the stepping foot.

At that moment, my gaze darted quickly to the side, and Jeok-un’s figure blurred, reappearing behind the trainees.

“This is the Jegal Clan’s footwork, Cheongimiribo.”

A shout of amazement erupted from the trainees’ mouths.

“Wow! Instructor-nim disappeared and then reappeared!”

“I didn’t even see him move his feet.”

“That’s the Cheongimiribo of the Divine Machine Jegal!”

“Isn’t that the legendary technique of shifting forms and changing positions?”

Cheongimiribo is the Jegal Clan’s basic footwork.

However, the word ‘basic’ never meant it was shallow.

The stepping is minimal, leaving no trace, and the movement flows like water, yet its end cannot be guessed.

The moment a step treads the path.

The place where one stayed is already empty.

Elusive and ghostly.

That phrase must exist for this very footwork.

Jeok-un, having confirmed the trainees’ reactions, let out a smirk.

Meanwhile, my eyes narrowed as I listened to the explanation.

‘It’s truly worthy of being called one of the Five Great Clans.’

I had seen it in the past, but encountering Cheongimiribo after such a long time was a marvel in itself.

‘If the Jin Clan’s martial arts are about weight, the Jegal Clan’s martial arts are about change.’

This means that from now on, I will be walking a path completely different from my previous life.

My heart pounded for no reason at that thought.

If I use that martial art, wouldn’t I be able to reach Jegal Sang a little faster?

Jeok-un continued speaking while walking slowly.

“Footwork is not simply walking.”

It is the method of determining the path forward, and with that single step, the path of life and the path of death are divided.

“For a swordsman, it is the advancing step before striking with the sword, and even if the weapon changes, the principle remains the same.”

It means that all martial arts must begin beneath one’s feet.

Jeok-un made eye contact with each of the trainees.

“Among them, Cheongimiribo means ‘a thousand-branched step’.”

Its essence lies in stepping into time that has not yet arrived, getting ahead of it.

As expected of the footwork of a family called the Divine Machine, its mysteriousness was beyond words.

Jeok-un’s explanation continued.

I nodded slightly.

‘If one masters Cheongimiribo, it’s hard to even follow the movement with one’s eyes.’

In fact, when I stayed at the Murim Alliance in the past.

I had often sparred with martial artists from the Jegal Clan.

The one thing I had to pay attention to every time was just one thing.

It wasn’t the sword or the momentum, but stopping those very feet.

‘Now, I get to learn that mysterious footwork.’

Something overwhelming surged within me.

At this moment, I couldn’t help but feel nervous as a martial artist.

Because new martial arts are always like that.

Jeok-un stepped onto the platform.

“From now on, I will teach you the incantations and the stepping positions of Cheongimiribo.”

Cheongimiribo follows the stepping positions of the Eight Trigrams.

You must circulate the internal energy in your body according to the incantations and step into the designated spots.

‘Unlike the Jin Clan, which heavily occupies a position, Cheongimiribo does not stay in one place for long.’

The steps only graze these ‘eight trigrams’ and never fully tread on the main trigram.

The moment you fully tread on a trigram.

That spot is already a read position.

‘Therefore, the steps of Cheongimiribo must always move between the trigrams, into the gaps of change where the Eight Trigrams connect.’

Having already read through the Jegal Clan’s martial arts books for two years, the theoretical parts were densely organized in my head.

But from now on, it’s practical application.

To quickly master the footwork, I must give it my all.

Jeok-un’s explanation ended.

The trainees repeated the footwork incantations for a while and then moved to their positions one by one.

“From now on, we will tread the Cheongimiribo.”

Faint lines of the Eight Trigrams had been left drawn on the training ground floor.

They must be the traces of past trainees’ practice.

The line connecting Heaven (Geon) and Earth (Gon).

Water (Gam) and Fire (Ri) intersect and merge.

When Jeok-un nodded to signal, the trainees began to move as they had been taught.

“Do not tread on the main trigram. You must pass between the trigrams.”

The words were simple, but their bodies did not follow easily.

“No, it’s not as easy as it sounds.”

“Ugh, when I circulate the internal energy according to the incantations, my body shoots out as if it’s bouncing.”

Even if they were children of small sects or families in the Hubei province area, they should have learned basic footwork.

However, Cheongimiribo was different.

“It is a footwork that is only completed when you understand a thousand branches. There is no way you can do it from the start.”

Jeok-un’s scolding continued.

Since it was their first time, they were incredibly clumsy, but their efforts were still commendable.

Suddenly, his gaze stopped at one place. Ju-sang, who had been moving well, stepped on the Heaven trigram and his center of gravity tilted.

“Huh?!”

His foot slipped without gripping the floor, and immediately his balance collapsed, causing his body to tumble sideways.

Thud.

Ju-sang rolled on the training ground floor.

“Ju-sang, try again.”

“Ah, yes!”

The second and third times were not much different.

Trying to avoid the trigram, they stepped on it instead, and their hurried footwork outpaced their bodies.

“The problem is that you try to move your body before moving your feet.”

Jeok-un’s critique fell, but the steps of the trainees, including Ju-sang and Dae-myeong, only became tangled like a knotted thread.

Because they were overthinking it, their bodies wouldn’t follow.

Sounds of bodies hitting the floor continued throughout the training ground. Even amidst that, a few were moving quietly.

‘Hmm, Mu-yeon’s movement isn’t bad?’

His footwork was neither fast nor large.

He seemed to tread on a trigram but grazed past it, and just when it seemed he was stepping down to the next trigram, that spot was already empty.

“He is executing what he learned exactly.”

Jeok-un evaluated him as such, but there was another problem.

It was slow.

It was too slow, even for that.

Like a calf taking its first steps.

‘No matter how gifted the child is, this must be the limit.’

Because Cheongimiribo is that kind of footwork.

Even he himself, who had reached the peak realm, was only at seven-tenths achievement.

And even that was on the fast side among martial artists of the same level.

Jeok-un’s gaze naturally shifted.

Suddenly, he caught sight of Jegal Jeong-gwon moving at a surprisingly fast speed. His expression was filled with clear confidence.

‘Even if he is from a branch family, he is of the Jegal bloodline. It seems he has already learned Cheongimiribo beforehand.’

In other words, it meant that both his internal energy cultivation and footwork had already reached the initial stage.

‘Are the Jegals really that different?’

The starting line is different.

It was the difference from someone who had encountered martial arts and solidified their basics before even turning ten.

‘Compared to that…….’

Jeok-un’s gaze rested again on Jegal Mu-yeon, who was moving with slow steps.

‘Even if it’s not too late to learn martial arts, this gap will eventually widen.’

Things that cannot be overcome by effort alone.

That, too, was the realm of martial arts.

A bitter light flashed in Jeok-un’s eyes for a moment.

Recalling the distant past.

That’s how it should have been.

“This kid is a genius…….”

One week later.

This was Jeok-un’s assessment as he came out to the training ground.

“No, the word ‘genius’ is not enough.”

In just one week, Mu-yeon unfolded Cheongimiribo not just as a form, but as a completed flow. Since that itself was beyond the realm of common sense, no other words came to mind.

He had heard that the current Clan Head, Jegal Sang, had achieved things quickly in his childhood, but it wouldn’t have been to this extent.

At least not until reaching the initial stage.

Heaven-born martial body, Yin-Yang body.

He had only considered stories about heaven-sent constitutions as legends.

But seeing what was happening before his eyes now, those words didn’t feel absurd.

“My mind is going blank. Has he really never learned this before?”

With suspicion, Jeok-un glanced away. The trainees were glancing at Jegal Mu-yeon.

Vigilance and jealousy.

“When a child you thought would fall behind gets ahead, it’s natural for a sense of alertness to arise.”

That level of competitive spirit was necessary.

Because to move forward, there must always be a rival.

However.

Suddenly, the face of ‘a genius’ he had encountered at the Murim Alliance came to mind.

A name that once shook the world, but is now forgotten.

“I cannot let him walk the same path as me.”

Jeok-un took a short breath and made a decision.

“I must report this part to the Hall Master.”

A conviction was quietly taking root in his mind.

The possibility that another absolute master might be born in the Jegal Clan.

Soon, his gaze reached the sky.

The sun that had been hanging in the middle of the sky had already tilted and reached the mountain ridge.

“Training stopped. Everyone gather.”

“Yes!”

As the shout fell, the trainees gathered in an orderly manner and lined up.

Only two weeks.

During that short time, the children were clearly changing into martial artists.

“We will end today’s training here.”

Murmurs spread at the short remark.

“Already?”

“The sun is still high, isn’t it?”

“Maybe it’s because we’re doing so well?”

Watching that, Jeok-un let out a smirk.

The previous evaluation is cancelled.

“For the past two weeks, you have learned internal energy cultivation and footwork. So, starting tomorrow, we will enter into new training.”

“What kind of training is it?”

Dae-myeong asked with pure eyes.

Jeok-un walked slowly and picked up a wooden sword that had been set aside.

“Swordsmanship training.”

“Wow!”

“Are we finally holding swords!?”

The training ground was stirred.

Since the beginning of martial arts was the sword, it was understandable.

“So, go in early today and take a rest. Because full-scale training will begin tomorrow. Dismissed!”

As the words ended, the trainees scattered with excited faces. I stared blankly at their retreating figures and slowly exhaled.

‘Hmm… I want to train a little more.’

It’s training I’ve endured for seven years.

Cheongimiribo, which had only just reached the second stage, was more profound the more I walked it. It was the exact opposite of the Jin Clan’s martial arts, which precisely tread on the trigrams.

‘At this rate, it won’t be enough to use in actual combat.’

To weave it with swordsmanship, it must be at least the third stage.

It was the moment I realized with my body why there aren’t many masters in the Jegal Clan who have broken through the realms.

‘Is Jegal Sang, who mastered this before he was even twenty, even human?’

Even though he is an ‘enemy’, as a martial artist, I couldn’t help but acknowledge him.

“Shall I take a break today too?”

Suddenly, I thought of Hyun-ah, who would be guarding the annex alone. I should keep her company. She didn’t seem to have many friends either.

The moment I turned to leave the training ground…….

Glare.

I met a fierce gaze and flinched, my body stiffening without me realizing it.

“Instructor-nim… is there something you’d like to say….”

Only then did Jeok-un seem to realize he had been glaring, and he coughed dryly.

“Ahem, you were deep in thought, so I was just waiting.”

“Ah, is that so?”

“Go in and rest quickly. Resting is also a virtue of a martial artist. Especially for a child like you, since it’s a time when your muscles and bones are growing, even more so…….”

Unlike his manly appearance, he was the type to nag quite a bit.

The position of instructor must be his true calling.

“Yes. Then this student will head in first.”

I bowed my head, turned around, and walked toward the gate.

Even so, the feeling of a prickling sensation on the back of my head never went away.