‘Crazy.’
The first thought that burst from my lips was a curse. I couldn't help it.
Rumble…
The presence emanating from Bi-eujin was that powerful.
‘...What is this?’
To my knowledge, Bi-eujin’s physical state was supposed to be in its prime. No matter who he was hiding within, there was no way to deceive that level of power.
‘How can this be?’
I could feel my fingertips trembling. It wasn’t something I could control, and it wasn’t from fear.
I wasn’t afraid.
This was purely a reaction to being overwhelmed by his presence.
Bi-eujin’s presence was engulfing my own, devouring it.
It was different from the murderous or fierce aura I had experienced before. When a martial artist builds up their strength and wisdom over the years, it naturally seeps into their very soul.
That’s what a martial artist’s presence is—an embodiment of the vessel they’ve built and expanded.
Unless one intentionally displays it, it usually goes unnoticed.
In other words, Bi-eujin was intentionally revealing his presence to me.
And that presence felt like an insurmountable wall.
‘So, this is the Three Masters…’
Even if his body was weakened, he was still one of the three strongest people in Jungwon.
The presence of this man, who was said to be the pinnacle of martial arts, was heavy and immense.
"Boy."
Bi-eujin's voice had changed when he spoke to me.
His tone was lower, the rhythm gone, and the faint smile had disappeared. He looked the same, but he seemed like an entirely different person.
"When did you realize?"
“Not long ago.”
That was a lie.
I knew the moment I saw him and was already aware of his state. But there was no need to say that.
Bi-eujin’s change wasn’t limited to his tone.
His steps as he approached were different. It was a slight change, but to a martial artist’s eyes, it was significant.
‘Is that even possible?’
A martial artist’s movements are based on the martial arts they’ve honed over a lifetime.
Because everyone’s martial arts are unique, even the smallest differences show in their movements.
One could tell if someone was a swordsman or a fist-fighter just by how they walked or sat.
Bi-eujin, being a martial artist, shouldn’t have moved this way, yet I could see that he was distinctly different.
This movement wasn’t that of Two Dragons Bi-eujin.
No, it was the movement of Pejon.
Pejon’s dark eyes focused on me. Meeting his gaze felt like staring into a bottomless abyss.
It was unlike the chill I’d felt from the Shadow King.
“Does anyone else know of this?”
Pejon didn’t deny my words. I had spoken with certainty, but I hadn’t expected him to confirm it so readily.
“No.”
“Good.”
Pejon then casually sat on a rock. Even this simple action was markedly different from how he’d been as Bi-eujin.
Gone was the casual elegance that he had projected as Bi-eujin. Now, even that seemed to have vanished.
‘He must have been controlling even those nuances.’
It wasn’t just his actions but also his mannerisms that he seemed to control.
To control and master every movement like this... it made one wonder if that was something a human could even achieve.
“If you had told anyone else, things could have gotten troublesome.”
“Yes…”
As he spoke, Pejon crossed his legs and looked at me with a peculiar expression.
His presence was still overwhelming. I was doing my best to conceal my cold sweat as I maintained my gaze on him.
“How did you realize?”
He wanted to know how I had figured out that he wasn’t Bi-eujin but Pejon.
I couldn’t very well say, “I nearly died at your hands in a past life, and I remembered when I came back.” So I went with a prepared excuse.
“I had a hunch.”
“...What?”
Pejon looked at me as if he couldn’t believe his ears. He seemed baffled that I had figured out his identity through a mere hunch.
“A hunch? Did you just say a hunch?”
“Yes. I had a…”
“Boy.”
Pejon rose from the rock. I nearly stepped back instinctively.
The force he emitted wasn’t something an ordinary peak martial artist could muster.
“I suppose you know that I think highly of you.”
Yes, I knew.
Pejon indeed thought highly of me, likely because of the talent I appeared to possess.
‘How annoying.’
It was irritating to know that without talent, I wouldn’t even be on Pejon’s radar.
That’s the way of the world. People praised talent above all, calling this the Age of the Shooting Stars or whatever nonsense. In a world where talent ruled, where did I stand?
Achieving the peak at a young age was an accomplishment, but I had reached the Flowering level beyond that.
Once this became known, what would people say about me?
A genius for the ages? Something like that, perhaps.
‘Disgusting.’
The more I thought about it, the more it made my skin crawl. Wanting to be called a genius was a childish fantasy.
Every martial artist dreamt of becoming the best. In a world where everyone wanted to be a master, actually achieving it might sound romantic.
‘But there’s no time for such dreams.’
I had to stay grounded.
The events of my past life had shown me what happens when I forget my place.
“The only reason I’m not destroying you right now is because I still see value in you.”
‘Destroy, not kill, huh?’
It was a fitting way for Pejon to speak, emphasizing his unique personality.
Pejon continued to watch me, his eyes urging me to speak up, or else he would act.
It made me sigh inwardly.
‘Why is everyone at the top so unhinged?’
Be it obsession with martial arts or a lust for bloodshed, everyone was crazy in some way to reach this level.
“Unless you can provide a satisfactory explanation…”
“Do you remember our match during the entrance exam?”
I interrupted Pejon mid-sentence, bracing myself. Honestly, this was the most nerve-wracking moment.
Pejon glared at me, but he didn’t press the issue.
He was giving me a chance to explain.
“It was then that I realized you weren’t just Bi-eujin but Pejon himself.”
Technically, calling it a match was a stretch. I was weakened at the time, and the difference in our levels was enormous. Pejon had merely toyed with me.
‘It hurt my pride a bit, but…’
It was a blow to my ego, yet I had to accept it.
After experiencing Pejon’s full strength in a past life, I understood why my body had remained intact after our fight.
“So you call that a hunch.”
His gaze grew colder. Clearly, he wasn’t satisfied with my answer.
When he introduced himself as Bi-eujin, he had claimed to be Pejon’s disciple.
It was likely a way to explain away his use of the unique martial art, Two Dragon Destroying Technique, if anyone saw him using it.
In my past life, Pejon had kept his identity hidden so well that no one ever discovered it until he revealed himself during the Blood Carnage.
Pejon was cautious by nature.
‘So, I’ll need a better explanation.’
I took a deep breath and decided to go for it.
“That’s not the only reason.”
I had prepared this in advance. It wasn’t the original plan, but I had little choice now.
“From long ago, I’ve taken an interest in you.”
“…Oh?”
Even as I said it, I felt an itch in my throat. This was hardly the kind of thing I wanted to be saying.
“What?”
“Your reputation as one of the greatest fighters and the meaning behind your title resonated with me.”
There was some truth to that. Although our martial arts weren’t identical, we both used fists.
Pejon was at the pinnacle of his craft.
“I even asked the Beggars’ Sect to investigate Bi’s family.”
That part was true. I had asked Choo-ong, a member of the Beggars’ Sect, to look into the Two Dragons.
Of course, it was to keep an eye on Pejon and gauge his reaction.
“I see, you mean that old fox.”
“Yes.”
Pejon also knew about Choo-ong.
Right, Choo-ong had mentioned being caught by Pejon. All I could do was give him a plausible story.
After mulling it over, Pejon spoke to me again.
“I understand that you admire me and wanted to meet, but…”
“I didn’t say admire.”
Why was he putting words in my mouth? I’d never mentioned admiration once.
Pejon ignored my denial.
“You know that’s not enough of a reason, right?”
Of course.
Sending someone to look into the Two Dragons and discovering Pejon’s true identity didn’t add up. I’d brought this up to establish my interest in Pejon as early as possible.
At this point, I needed to state my reasoning clearly.
“While I became certain during our match, I had suspected it long before.”
“You mean you already knew who I was?”
“Not with certainty.”
“How?”
Pejon’s reaction became more intense. If I didn’t give him a satisfying answer, I’d probably lose a limb.
Luckily, the reason I had in mind was simple and straightforward.
“…It was Elder Il Jang who mentioned it.”
I could say that Elder Il Jang had hinted at it.
I knew of their connection, and from the fact that Elder Il Jang had previously received a recommendation from Pejon, it was likely they’d met even after Pejon’s rebirth.
So, leveraging Elder Il Jang was my best option here.
‘Sorry, Elder, I’ll have to use your name for this.’
Family has its perks, after all. He always called me his grandson, so surely, he’d understand this once.
Now, it all depended on Pejon’s reaction.
I tried to appear calm as I watched his reaction.
Pejon’s eyes widened at the mention of Il Jang, and soon, he responded.
“That damned fool…”
His reaction was intense, but it allowed me to relax a little.
“Guryeon… that rotten bastard…”
Pejon pressed his forehead as if he were nursing a headache.
It seemed they weren’t just acquaintances.
In any case, he seemed more exasperated than angry.
“…So Guryeon told you?”
“He didn’t give a full explanation. I pieced it together from snippets.”
If I claimed he’d explained everything, it could cause problems down the line. I tried to smooth it over.
Hopefully, this would work.
“…Tch.”
Pejon clicked his tongue, clearly displeased.
By now, his overwhelming presence had completely dissipated.
‘When did he retract it?’
I hadn’t even noticed the immense aura receding.
“Boy…”
“Yes?”
Pejon finally seemed to have calmed down as he spoke again.
I wasn’t sure if my explanation had been enough.
“Very well. I can overlook how you discovered my identity because there are more pressing matters.”
‘He doesn’t believe everything I said.’
Pejon wasn’t fully convinced, but it seemed there was something more important to him than my explanation.
“You must have had other motives for revealing this to me now, right?”
“...”
Pejon was right.
I could have kept my knowledge of his identity a secret.
But I had chosen to confront him directly for a reason.
“Do you remember the offer you made to me?”
“I do.”
“Is this about that?”
“Yes.”
I referred to the offer Pejon had made to me—no, the offer Bi-eujin had made.
He’d asked me to be his disciple.
Pejon had told me directly. He wanted me as his disciple.
This was my answer to that.
“Perhaps this is for the best. It’ll make things easier.”
Pejon smiled slightly, his previous air of intimidation gone.
“My offer remains the same. I’m asking you to be my disciple.”
Pejon, who had been so serious earlier, now seemed almost excited.
Is he that happy?
I had no idea.
‘Does he even know what my answer will be?’
Did he think I would simply accept? I was still agonizing over it, truth be told. The internal struggle began the moment he made the offer.
Becoming Pejon’s disciple had obvious advantages.
But I couldn’t afford to discard everything I had learned up to this point to master a new martial art.
The skills Pejon had developed and the martial arts he’d displayed in my past life were undeniably alluring.
Facing him had made me feel an insurmountable wall.
But there was a problem.
To adopt his techniques would mean undoing everything I had built.
That was impossible.
Guyeomhwaryun Art was already a supreme martial art in its own right.
So, I had dismissed the idea of becoming Pejon’s disciple until recently.
But meeting Cheonma had changed things.
The pace I’d achieved was far faster than in my past life.
I thought it would be enough. I believed I could make it.
But I was arrogant. I’d been complacent.
Blinded by praise, I’d forgotten the reality of who Cheonma was.
‘I can’t win.’
How could I win?
I wracked my brain daily, but this path offered no hope of victory.
So I needed another way.
I had to find a way, no matter what.
I’d even thought of consulting my father for guidance on my path forward.
But would that be enough?
I didn’t think so.
All my battles and the experience I’d gained as a martial artist made one thing clear.
‘My martial prowess... it’s lacking.’
My fighting techniques were stiff, lacking flexibility.
And the man before me was the most suitable person to teach me.
After all, Pejon stood at the pinnacle of martial combat.
“I want to become your disciple, but there’s something I’d like to ask first.”
“A request?”
Pejon tilted his head, puzzled but not particularly annoyed.
It was a request, yes.
While I wanted to learn from Pejon, I didn’t want to abandon all that I had built.
And... I also wanted to confirm something.
“I’d like to learn your martial art without giving up what I’ve already mastered.”
I wanted to keep my Guyeomhwaryun Art intact while absorbing Pejon’s techniques.
Pejon’s face twisted at my request.
It was indeed a ridiculous thing to ask.