115 - Martial Arts Ain’t That Big of a Deal

Early morning. As Chun Bong carefully stepped out of her room, the first thing she saw was Seo Jun grinning like a fool. "Awake now? Oh my, Chun Bong. You're all grown up now, huh?" She twisted her body and landed a solid kick. "Argh...!" Seo Jun, having been struck and sent flying, writhed on the ground in pain. Chun Bong pressed a foot onto him and glared fiercely. "You're banned from approaching me for a while." "What...!" Seo Jun wailed. Chun Bong let out a snort and suddenly grimaced, rubbing her stomach. Seo Jun looked at her in surprise and asked, "Hey, are you okay?" "...Be quiet." Chun Bong stuck out her tongue, darted away in a flash, and disappeared. Watching her retreating figure, Seo Jun laid back down and scratched his head. "Tsk... What do you do in a situation like this?" What was the proper way for a brother to react when his younger sister experienced her first menstruation? Normally, siblings would not make a fuss about such things, but the bond between Chun Bong and him wasn't a simple one based on mere blood relations. He wanted to do something for her... but what would be appropriate? He felt quite flustered. * Chun Bong, who had vanished, returned after some time with Nam Goong Soo Ah. When Seo Jun glanced at Chun Bong, she snorted disdainfully and turned her head away brusquely. "What the..." Seeing this, Nam Goong Soo Ah chuckled softly and approached Seo Jun. "Don't worry too much. Though it's a bit late, everyone goes through this." "Well, I do know that..." Seo Jun scratched his head. Last night, he had been occupied with his own thoughts, but the unexpected situation made everything slip from his mind. Though his initial reaction was to tease her, it had been quite a disconcerting ordeal for him too. "You can go about your day like normal, but it might be wise to take it easy with today's training, just in case." "Yeah, I should." Nodding, Seo Jun hesitantly made his way to the training ground. Along the way, he peeked at Chun Bong's expression and noticed that she didn't seem in a particularly bad mood. Though some girls become more sensitive during that time, she fortunately didn't appear to be one of them. In fact, the faint upward curve of her lips suggested she was in good spirits. "Oh, you're here?" Upon arriving at the training ground, Pae Jin Gwang greeted them. Briefly puzzled by the slightly different atmosphere, he quickly disregarded it, hoisting a large boulder effortlessly. "Alright, time for a warm-up." "Yes, of course." Seo Jun, having grown accustomed to such routines, lifted a boulder without a word. He felt a strange pleasure in the strain and pain on his muscles. After the (heavy) warm-up, they started the real training. Of course, the so-called real training was the Perception Beast Transformation Technique. Pae Jin Gwang confidently passed down the Perception Beast Transformation Technique in front of Chun Bong and Nam Goong Soo Ah. He didn't particularly care if they learned it by peeking on the side. "You've already created the energy sinew (氣筋), huh. I was planning to guide you today, but how'd you manage?" "Isn't it just as you taught me, with the Perception Beast Transformation Technique?" "Hmm, true." Energy sinew involves integrating energy into the muscles and transforming it into another form of muscle through training. In Seo Jun's case, he managed to form the energy sinew but hadn't fully matured it yet. Ideally, he'd love to take an easy path, but even Seo Jun couldn't skip the entire process of training to develop the energy sinew. It's an issue of cause and effect. Energy sinew grows through consistent training. While one might speed up this growth, lounging around and scratching his belly hoping for its development was impossible. Thus, Seo Jun committed himself to training without complaint. He lifted a large boulder for endurance, ventured outside the courtyard to uproot a tree for squats, and when tired of lifting weights, threw punches following the Perception Beast Transformation Technique's routine. Watching Seo Jun, who was unusually dedicated to exerting his body, Nam Goong Soo Ah approached with a damp towel prepared. "Oh my, your body has improved so much already." Nam Goong Soo Ah wiped Seo Jun's sweat-drenched face with the towel and felt his arm. His arms had become quite thick. Previously, while muscles were present, there was a sense of fragility, but now he appeared rather manly. Of course, compared to Pae Jin Gwang, he still seemed slender. She giggled softly. "If you keep this up, you might end up as burly as Grandmaster Pae." "Probably not. With the transformation, my body has reached an optimal form, so I doubt it'll change much from here. Why, would you like that?" "No, I think you're just right the way you are now." Her hands moved from his arm to his shoulder, clavicle, and chest, down to his abdomen. "Hmm, I feel like we should include the character 'king' in your nickname soon." "Was that a joke?" "...Wasn't it funny?" "Ha ha." As Seo Jun laughed awkwardly, Nam Goong Soo Ah put on a pouty expression. Instead of offering an excuse, Seo Jun stretched out his hand and touched Nam Goong Soo Ah’s belly. Her body lightly shivered. Pressing firmly, it felt solid, yet there wasn’t any sign of a six-pack. He sensed firm muscles just beneath her soft skin. ‘Where does she get such strength from in this body?’ Seo Jun, finding it pleasant, continued pressing, making Nam Goong Soo Ah blush and let out a breath. “Mmm…” “Your taste is always consistent.” “Hehe, want me to hit you?” “That’s a bit…” Meanwhile, Pae Jin Gwang, who had been watching the pair, finally clicked his tongue and turned his gaze away. “That detestable guy…” A martial emperor without even one child. His love was for muscles, his partner was stone. Watching their annoyingly endearing display made his sides ache for some reason. “So why are you like that?” “What do you mean?” Chun Bong replied indifferently. At first, she at least pretended to be courteous, but now, not even that. Following her brother's mannerisms, she responded bluntly, making Pae Jin Gwang chuckle. "Did you have a fight or something?" "No." "You definitely did." "I'm telling you, I didn't." "My goodness." "Hmph." Snorting in disdain, Chun Bong watched her brother exchange playful banter with Nam Goong Soo Ah. She felt that if she let her guard down, a smile would inadvertently creep up onto her lips. Though the thought of his mischievous antics made anger flare up within her, the joy of her body having recovered completely suppressed that anger. Her brother’s dedication had saved her life and potentially that of a life yet to be born. 'Lee Seo Jun Junior...' Imagining little ones running around, Chun Bong couldn't help but giggle. She concluded that she'll need to be a bit strict when it comes to parenting. Thinking about raising children as unruly as her brother made her anticipate the future with a mixture of amusement and dread. * "Is that really true...?" Namgoong Hyuk gathered information oscillating between the Namgoong clan and his secluded home. He couldn't just hand over the King’s Sword Technique to that insolent Seo Jun. To know one's enemy is to never fear a hundred battles. He was already well aware of himself, so he set out to gather intel on the young rascal... "Are you referring to the master? He's truly a remarkable person! Besides the Thunderclap Divine Heart Technique and the Thirteen Blades of Thunderclap, there are numerous accolades to his name. If we were to recount them all, a single night wouldn't suffice." "Of course! Isn't he known as the God of Alchemy? I still can't quite believe it. Would you like to visit Cheonyakdang? There are traces he's left behind, and they're quite something..." "If I ever venture into battle again, nothing will be more reassuring than to fight alongside him. Even now, I vividly remember the moment just before death in Daedong-hyeon when he appeared and healed me. My prowess might have waned slightly, but it's recoverable, isn't it? In fact, the realization I encountered on the brink of death has allowed me to advance further." Somehow, a significant portion of the Namgoong clan seemed favorably disposed toward him. Especially in Cheonyakdang, they went as far as erecting a small shrine in their section. Seeing them carve a little wooden idol and worship it as if it were divine tested Namgoong Hyuk’s patience — he nearly obliterated the place in a fit of rage. "These people must be out of their minds." Cheonyakdang wasn't like this in the past. Thinking back to several hundred years ago, Namgoong Hyuk sighed heavily. So much had changed while he was away from the secular world. "What on earth has become of the world...?" No matter how the world transformed, if even half of what was said about this Lee Seo Jun was true, he was a treasure not to be lost. Although the man's seemingly fickle nature wasn't appealing, his capabilities made him entirely different. A true expert's arrogance is not mere arrogance. So what steps should be taken? After pondering, Namgoong Hyuk prepared a test. In theory, the purpose was to determine who could learn the King’s Sword Technique, which meant testing sincerity, swordsmanship, and martial arts. If he could use that as an excuse to keep him tied to the Namgoong clan, it would be beneficial. Ideally, if he could impose more permanent restraints, it would be perfect. ‘Was it Nam Goong Soo Ah? Could that child manage to tether him to the Namgoong clan...’ Granting such a monumental legacy as the King’s Sword Technique, even considering the great deeds, was something he didn’t want to do unless Seo Jun showed genuine devotion to the clan. Though, logically, teaching such a technique to anyone not the head or heir doesn’t really make sense... After witnessing the antics at Cheonyakdang, he started to reconsider. If that was the direction of the times, attempting to forcibly block it would only backfire. So, a new question emerged. ‘How could I ensure there's no escape for him...’ Namgoong Hyuk delved deeper into his contemplations. * Seo Jun continued training for several days. Not only did he focus on the Perception Beast Transformation Technique, but also on the King’s Sword Technique, Yellow Cloud Divine Blade, domains, curses, and the Mundane Heavenly and Reverse Heavenly forms. He postponed delving into his demonic transformation for now. The thought of revealing such a transformation in front of Namgoong Hyuk seemed like it could lead to unnecessary trouble. ‘But when is this guy supposed to come?’ Despite initially acting as if he would turn the place upside down any moment, he still hadn’t shown his face. ‘Did he run away?’ It's a possibility. If he accidentally angered his father-in-law, he'd surely face dire consequences. In the martial world, where the generation gap spanned around a hundred years, a granduncle who'd left the family for a long time and met only a few times was practically a stranger. Although they might not be treated entirely as strangers, the important person in question was Namgoong Jin Cheon. To challenge someone who could supposedly take down the head of the Qi-Men in less than ten moves? Seo Jun didn't have that kind of confidence. This is truly the power of connections — otherwise known as social networks. After momentarily praising his father-in-law in his mind, Seo Jun soon lost interest in Namgoong Hyuk. ‘Who knows, he’ll turn up when he does.’ Instead, it seemed more prudent to use the time to prepare his sister for the upcoming Dragon-Phoenix Gathering in the spring. And right now, a far more pressing issue was at hand. ‘What’s with her...?’ It seemed Chun Bong was entering puberty. Damn it.