"Changran Academy…"
Seeing the corpse hanging before him, Yeophyeon let out a sigh. Even back in Cheongseong, each sect had never shied away from cruel methods to serve their own interests. Competition between major powers like Changmok Academy was far more ruthless.
At that moment, Yuk Soyeon pointed toward a round, circular platform not far away.
"Do you know what that is?"
Yeophyeon lifted his head to look. On the round platform, wide enough to cover about forty mats, stood nine wooden dolls, each gripping a wooden sword. The dolls were lined up in perfect order, as if measured by a ruler.
"What are those?"
"Those are the Nine Palace Formation, or Gugungjin. It is said to be the work of the founder of Changmok Academy. In Cheongju, wherever Changmok Academy is present, you can see the Gugungjin. It can be seen as a sort of test: if someone can decipher the Gugungjin before the age of twenty, that person gains the privilege of becoming the immediate disciple of the head of Changmok Academy."
Yuk Soyeon shook her head.
"Haha, however, in nearly fifty years, no one has succeeded in breaking the Gugungjin."
'The Gugungjin…'
Yeophyeon stared intently at the nine wooden dolls and asked,
"Lord Soyeon, would you say it's truly remarkable?"
Yuk Soyeon gave a wry smile.
"It's more than remarkable. Once, a master of martial arts boldly entered the Gugungjin, but he was killed within barely ten breaths. Consider this: if even someone exceptional, capable before the age of twenty, couldn't last ten breaths, how formidable must this formation be?"
She took a brief pause, then continued.
"Changmok Academy once invited Mistress An to test the Gugungjin, but no one knows if she truly challenged it herself."
At that moment, a shout from an elder of Changmok Academy rang out across the mountaintop.
"The first gate begins now!"
At once, a crowd surged forward, running up the mountain path.
Yeophyeon patted his younger sibling's head a couple of times before turning to Yuk Soyeon.
"Lord Soyeon, please take care of my sibling!"
"Do not worry!"
"Brother, good luck!"
Yeophyeon smiled once, then disappeared into the crowd.
Watching Yeophyeon vanish, Yeophryeong suddenly began to tremble all over, her body feeling as cold as ice.
Yuk Soyeon, alarmed, shouted,
"L-let's go home quickly!"
"Uncle, I… I'm fine… I need to see my brother pass this test to feel at ease…"
Sighing at Yeophryeong's stubbornness, Yuk Soyeon turned to Yuk Myung.
"Myung, go and fetch a few fur coats to cover Yeophryeong."
Myung nodded and hurried off home.
Meanwhile, Yeophyeon, surrounded by the crowd, was filled with excitement and anticipation. Passing this test today and entering Changmok Academy meant he could save his sibling. He inhaled deeply, gazing up at the mountain.
"Let's do this! For Yeong, for me!"
Shouting, Yeophyeon quickened his pace.
As soon as the race began, the martial artists sprinted fiercely, but after about ten ri, most of them began to slow drastically. As they climbed higher, an invisible energy pressed down on them, growing stronger with each step. By the time the leaders had reached roughly twenty ri, those behind had already started to fall behind.
Yet the front runners maintained their speed, clearly far superior to the others.
Yeophyeon climbed steadily, neither rushing nor lagging, unaffected by the oppressive energy. His physique and strength rivaled even the strongest martial masters.
Golden Body Meridian!
This hidden level of mastery he had trained was now unleashing its power.
Gradually, the number of climbers dwindled. After an hour, barely a hundred remained, most twisted in pain.
Among the leaders, a young man in a silk robe climbed steadily from the start, ahead of the next by ten jang. People had thought he might slow down midway, but he maintained his pace. Behind him were a martial artist in a luxurious robe and a man with a sword at his waist. Their pace had slowed slightly but remained stable.
The hundred or so behind them were already exhausted.
Yeophyeon climbed at a balanced speed, undeterred by the mounting pressure. He didn't rush because reaching the destination was all that mattered; finishing was enough.
Half an hour later, with roughly forty still climbing, the silk-robed young man reached the finish line first, followed by the luxurious-robed martial artist and the man with the sword.
Just before reaching the finish line, Yeophyeon suddenly stopped. His eyes fell on a man tied to a wooden stake. The man, about twenty years old, had had his hands and feet severed, and even his eyes were gone—a scene too cruel to behold.
It was clear the man had been a student of Changran Academy. His body looked recently dead.
Yeophyeon shook his head and sighed.
'How deep must the hatred be between Changmok Academy and Changran Academy?'
He dashed forward and crossed the finish line.
Forty-two had survived the first gate. At that moment, a crane appeared above them. Changjung's gaze, observing from the crane, stopped on Yeophyeon. His eyes instantly turned cold.
Feeling the hostility, Yeophyeon frowned.
Why would they act like this when they neither know me nor have we ever met?
"You there, come forward!"
Changjung, perched on the crane, pointed at Yeophyeon, his voice flat.
Yeophyeon glanced at him and stepped forward.
"To enter Changmok Academy, one must reach the level of Eogigyeong before turning eighteen. You do not meet that standard."
The martial artists beside Changjung looked at Yeophyeon in shock. They knew only those who reached Eogigyeong before eighteen could apply. Yeophyeon, not being Eogigyeong, was considered to be deceiving the academy.
Yeophyeon frowned and said,
"Elder Chang, though I am not Eogigyeong, I have passed the first gate. Therefore…"
"So what?"
Changjung's cold voice cut through.
"By academy rules, only Eogigyeong martial artists under eighteen may participate in the test. Though you passed the first gate, your deception has been exposed. According to regulations, you will receive one hundred strikes of the cane and be sent down the mountain!"
Two masters of martial arts approached Yeophyeon.
He stared straight at Changjung and said,
"Elder Chang, I have never met you, yet you singled me out. Isn't that odd?"
Yeophyeon realized Changjung had targeted him from the start.
Changjung sneered.
"Hmph! Then why did you try to deceive others in the first place?"
'Changjung!'
Yeophyeon's eyes widened. The banquet from last night flashed through his mind. He had punished a man named Changgi at the banquet. The insignia on Elder Chang's chest matched that of Changgi.
Such insignias represented a sect. Changjung was undoubtedly from the same family as Changgi.
At that moment, a man stepped forward and shouted at Yeophyeon.
"Yeophyeon, you are truly foolish!"
Yeophyeon recognized the face—it was Lee Bong, who had represented Maksucheong at the banquet the night before.
Lee Bong sneered.
"You seem to rely solely on Mistress An's backing, disregarding us. Let's see how strong we really are!"
Lee Bong struck a pose toward Changjung in the air.
"Elder Chang, he is not Eogigyeong yet still deceived the test. This is clearly an insult to Changmok Academy. I request that he be severely punished to uphold the academy's dignity!"
Eighteen or nineteen martial artists around them stood and shouted,
"Severely punish him!"
Changjung smiled coldly.
"Indeed, that was my intention. Seize him and strike him until he dies!"
At that moment, Yeophyeon pulled a jade token from his chest.
"This is Mistress An's jade token. She recommended me to Changmok Academy!"
Mistress An's jade token! Its significance was immense.
The appearance of Mistress An's token threw the hall into confusion. The silk-robed martial artist, first to finish the gate, now glanced at Yeophyeon with curiosity.
Mistress An! She was an idol revered by all young martial artists in the strong nation!
Even Changjung hadn't expected the token to appear. In his position, he could do nothing to someone possessing Mistress An's token.
Seeing Changjung silent, Lee Bong panicked and shouted recklessly at Yeophyeon.
"Arrogant fool! A mere beginner cannot possibly have Mistress An's recommendation! That token must be fake—"
At that moment, Yeophyeon vanished and reappeared instantly in front of Lee Bong. All eyes were on him as he raised his hand.
"What kind of martial artist has a tongue this long!?"
Smack!
Lee Bong's face flew backward through the air from Yeophyeon's slap. The martial artists stood frozen, staring in shock at Lee Bong soaring through the sky.