At Mumu’s words, all of them were stunned.
The East River Sword Star was injured and was now in the infirmary? None of them could comprehend what that meant.
Even though they were enemies, Young Gadong, Young Chuseo, and Kang Mui were of the same mind at this moment.
Their first emotion was shock.
‘… Teacher lost to him?’
‘The East River Sword Star lost?’
One of the Four Great Warriors, the best warriors of present-day Murim, was defeated. This was news that could shake up the world.
As a result, denial was the first thing that followed their shock.
“Nonsense! How could our master lose!?”
Young Chuseo, in his most aggressive character, shouted aloud.
He might have been his teacher, but for him, the East River Sword Star was akin to a mountain that would never collapse.
Young Chuseo couldn’t believe that such a man would be defeated by a mere 17-year-old kid.
“What is the nonsense here?”
Mumu tilted his head, making Young Chuseo’s face become even redder.
“How can a kid like you even dare to…”
“Chuseo.”
Yang Gadong stopped him.
“Sahyung? Did you hear this bastard’s…”
“Uh!”
The flow of the conversation was where Young Chuseo might end up rushing in to try and hurt the child. However, Young Gadong knew that his sajae could not handle Mumu.
And if Mumu really did defeat their master, then he wouldn’t even be a match. Kang Mui then spoke up,
“… You said you defeated the East River Sword Star?”
He wasn’t able to simply believe this either. He did have a little expectation at first that Mumu might win, but his thoughts quickly moved towards running for his life.
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
Gulp!
At Mumu’s nonchalant confirmation, Kang Mui gulped.
Was it a problem? This was beyond the level of just a problem.
‘How can this be?’
He thought that the sense of intimidation from the duel might stimulate Mumu to a higher level, but this was more than he expected.
Kang Mui thought that the East River Sword Star would still be victorious in the end, but the opposite happened.
The repercussions from this wouldn’t be limited to just one or two things. Though it wouldn’t happen immediately, rumors of Mumu’s victory will still spread.
It was only a matter of time before Mumu’s fame was raised to the level of peerless warriors as he did something that most thought impossible.
‘Damn it…’
Once that happened, the members of the Eight Evil families who had pledged their loyalty to him would turn to Mumu.
Who wouldn’t follow someone who could prove he was in possession of such monstrous power?
‘… This can’t happen.’
Mumu then asked Kang Mui with some confusion,
“But what is happening here?”
“Uh?”
“Didn’t we decide that you would wait patiently?”
“T-that…”
“Were you, maybe, fighting?”
At Mumu’s question, Kang Mui became speechless.
What should he do? He became confused and nervous as he struggled to find a correct answer.
‘I need to escape this guy’s grasp.’
If he didn’t run away now, he would end up in Mumu’s grasp forever. Kang Mui then looked at him.
Although he looked fine on the outside, Mumu must have suffered critical internal wounds since he had fought against one of the Four Great Warriors.
‘Now is my chance.’
Mumu still didn’t know his true power. It was no exaggeration that he who was capable of utilizing three different energies was almost equal to the top ten warriors.
‘I need to use lightning qi.’
His monstrous item gave him flame qi, ice qi, and lightning qi.
It was said that lightning qi was the most effective of the three energies. Lightning qi scatters an opponent’s internal energy, stiffens, and paralyzes their muscles.
‘After I paralyze his body with lightning qi, I can escape through that hole in the ceiling.’
Kang Mui had made a plan in such a short time.
He realized that he needed to distract Mumu, so he looked at Young Chuseo.
“Yah. Did you make a surprise attack?”
“Surprise attack?”
Mumu turned his head towards Young Chuseo.
‘Yes!’
Kang Mui didn’t miss the chance.
Pachik!
Like a lightning bolt, he launched a kick filled with lightning qi at Mumu. The kick landed directly on Mumu’s neck.
Puak!
‘Done!’
The deception had worked, but…
‘!?’
Kang Mui’s eyes narrowed as the blue sparks penetrated Mumu. On the other hand, Mumu was simply looking at him as if he was wondering what Kang Mui was doing.
‘… No. Surely the lightning qi must…’
Since Mumu had been hit, his muscles would surely stiffen. Kang Mui, who realized Mumu might become angry after what he tried to do, immediately jumped toward the ceiling.
Pat.
At that moment—
Pak!
“Huk!”
Mumu grabbed him by the ankle, flustering Kang Mui to the point of kicking Mumu’s hand, but…
Kwang!
Mumu used Kang Mui’s ankle to throw him to the ground. The sound of air escaping his lungs and mouth could be heard as the latter crashed to the ground.
The pain was indescribable. He knew for sure now that none of the three types of qi were effective on Mumu.
“What was that just now?”
‘That?’
“It tickled.”
The amount of lightning qi he used should be able to paralyze even a skilled warrior, but Mumu only felt a tingle? Kang Mui felt even more lost.
‘Where the hell did this monster come from?’
He couldn’t understand it.
Even those he thought of as monsters could not be compared to Mumu.
‘… He too… I, too… will not be the lord.’
Kang Mui made a face that despaired at the world’s unfairness as he lost consciousness. Mumu, who had stunned him, removed his hand and looked at Young Chuseo.
“As promised, do not touch Kang Mui.”
‘… Fucking monster.’
Young Chuseo gulped at this sight.
After seeing Kang Mui, who had utilized three different types of qi in one attack, being crushed so quickly, he could no longer deny it.
This monster in front of him was a new Great Warrior.
‘My master…’
Young Chuseo and Young Gadong could not hide their complicated feelings.
The rumors had spread quickly.
In just one day, the whole academy learned of the freshman who managed to defeat the East River Sword Star despite not knowing martial arts.
This was enough to shock the entire student body.
[Wait, he didn’t even learn martial arts?]
[How did the guy who was said to not have learned martial arts defeat that great man?]
[There are a lot of other kids who saw it!]
[For real?]
[He talked quite a bit as well once they reached the infirmary.]
[What?]
[There were rumors that this guy passed the entrance test with just his strength alone. I also heard he was one of the ones who caught the culprits of the arson case.]
[How did a guy with nothing but strength do so many things?]
[Oh. Didn’t you know?]
[What?]
[You think it is possible to do it with simple strength training?]
[Then he must have learned a technique to enhance his body.]
[It sounds like that. The grandson of the North Heavenly Fist said something like that. He said it was muscle training?]
[… Isn’t that just strength training?]
[Yah. How can you defeat East River Sword Star by training your muscles and using your two fists?]
[I know. Uh. So, can anyone learn this muscle training?]
[That’s what the manager at the North Heavenly Dorm said. I want to go to that training now.]
[Amazing. I want to too.]
The unintentional rumors began to grow and spread.
Beyond the defeat of one of the Four Great Warriors, the main focus was more on what martial arts could the 17-year-old boy have learned to become so strong.
The rumors weren’t limited to just the first years. Rumors about Mumu also spread to the masters, who were both suspicious and interested.
[To defeat the East River Sword Star… what kind of martial arts did the child learn?]
[Rather than martial arts, all he did was the simple external training of muscles.]
[No, you aren’t saying this is possible without internal energy, right?]
[It is possible.]
[Huh!]
[In addition to the two special masters who possessed titles in the Academy, the child also defeated the East River Sword Star. This child’s training method isn’t simple.]
[What kind of foreign training method does he have to be able to perform such a miracle?]
[A rumor among the academy students says it’s due to muscle training.]
[Muscle training?]
No matter how they listened to the rumors, all of it only felt like a push to train their muscles.
However, the human mind was unique. If it was something that a student with no merit or fame did, most people would consider it nonsense and ignore it. However, their perspectives changed since the East River Sword Star had been defeated.
[There must be something.]
[Actually, it is impossible with simple muscle training.]
[I am also curious who passed on such a great technique to that child.]
[Same here. But there is something more troublesome now.]
[What is that?]
[The fact that the student could do this with just muscle training has brought up a new craze among the kids.]
[They want it to be taught? Is that for real?]
[… Master Kwak. Are you planning to learn it? Even if the student wants…]
[Is that so important?]
[Uh?]
[Isn’t it impossible to consider that child a student anymore? Since he had defeated the East River Sword Star, Mumu should already be referred to as a Great Warrior.]
[What!]
[Do you think it is common to get a chance to be taught by someone of that level? Do you think I will miss this chance?]
[That…]
[This is a chance for the academy. The management side of the academy. We have to sacrifice everything to be able to learn something to push us forward.]
In this way, even the masters of the academy began to take an interest in Mumu’s training.
Only two days had passed since the incident and all that followed. The rumors gradually became a public debate as these topics appeared more often.
At a small village a little distance away from the academy—
Two strangers entered a nearby guest house. The two strangers stood out so conspicuously because their faces were covered by bamboo hats, giving them an unusual atmosphere.
An old man with a long white beard, blue indigo hair, and holding a cane in the shape of a snake’s head could be seen cutting a mulberry bark. His companion, a woman who was holding what appeared to be a loquat, also didn’t look like an ordinary person.
They sat there and called over a server to place an order.
“I am thirsty. Bring me the strongest drink you have.”
“Father. What would you like to eat?”
“Duck soup. What do you want, child?”
“The same.”
“Yes. Please wait a moment.”
The server took their orders and ran to the kitchen. The woman dropped the bag tied to her back and said to the man,
“This afternoon, we’ll get to see Seohan and Seorin for the first time in a long while.”
“Hehehe, right.”
“It will be nice to see them after so long. I hope nothing has happened…”
At her words, the old man removed his hat and smiled.
“Do not worry. That guy is more cautious than any other we know, so they will not touch the daughter of Hwang-suk any time soon.”
“That is good, but I feel bad that he lost his youngest disciple.”
“Hmm. Let’s hurry up and eat. Didn’t we come all the way here without a break?”
“Yes, yes. What do you plan to do next?”
At the woman’s words, the old man shook his head. It had been over 17 years since he had hugged his own granddaughter. The woman noticed his mood, smiled, and said,
“Seohan and Seorin are 18 already.”
“Hehehe. Right. The children have already grown. It feels like yesterday they were holding my hand.”
“Right. All grown up and 18. She should already be old enough to get married. Perhaps she has found some good friends in the…”
Bang!
Before she could finish her sentence, the old man slammed the table.
It was a strong blow, but the table didn’t even budge. It was clear from this that the man was no ordinary warrior.
The bearded old man then said,
“Marriage for Seorin?!”
“Father. I just said that based on her age.”
“No. Until my eyes can no longer see…”
“Do you plan to live until that child dies?”
“Hmm.”
The old man coughed under the woman’s glare before he again spoke in a serious voice,
“I know she cannot live like that, and getting married is important. But if one wants to become my Seorin’s lover, I must like them first..”
“And what is your criteria?”
“Appearance, dignity and basic manners when dealing with families. Shouldn’t he also know martial arts? He should also be able to withstand five attacks from this old…”
“Then whoever he is would probably prefer to live alone. Do you think an academy student could stop you?”
“Hmm. That is the only way that Seorin can be protected.”
The woman clicked her tongue as she saw this side of the old man.
From the looks of it, marriage seemed to be miles away for Seorin.
Who among the students would be able to handle five attacks from the Poison Air of the West, Guyang Gyeong?