Genius Martial Arts Trainer

Chapter 108

Protagonist (4)

After the bout between Jegal Jin-hee and Hong So-il ended, two more rounds of duels proceeded.

Finally, the duel that Mu-jin had been waiting for arrived.

On each side of the duel stage stood a swordsman and a saber master.

Dao Yuetian and Namgung Jin-cheon faced off.

In terms of betting odds by the Daegum Sangdan, it was a match between 100 to 1 odds and 1.07 to 1 odds. Without a miracle, it seemed impossible for Dao Yuetian to win.

*Cheng!!*

“Winner! Namgung Jin-cheon Sohyeop!”

In reality, the duel ended in just one move.

Namgung Jin-cheon, the victor, looked expressionless as if it was the most natural outcome, while Dao Yuetian looked slightly dazed.

It was the moment when a man, who had lived like a frog in a well, first encountered the ‘wall.’

‘It’s just beginning.’

And more importantly, this was the starting point of the novel *Legend of the Evil Emperor*.

However, it wasn’t merely to feel such sentiments that Mu-jin was observing the duel.

Spotting Dao Yuetian descending from the duel stage, Mu-jin carefully followed him.

Mu-jin had already made a decision regarding the dilemma he’d been pondering since he first met Dao Yuetian.

Thus, Mu-jin followed Dao Yuetian as he left the area prepared for the Yongbongji Conference and exited the outer hall.

“Sir.”

At some point, he overtook Dao Yuetian and blocked his path.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

Looking at the puzzled Dao Yuetian, Mu-jin thought.

‘At this point, he was still quite naïve.’

If he had suddenly blocked the path of Dao Yuetian, who had started walking the Asura Path after his family was massacred, he would have likely drawn his saber immediately.

And the tremendous saber strike would have cleaved his body in two.

However, seeing Dao Yuetian’s naïve reaction instead, Mu-jin felt assured of his choice.

“I am Mu-jin, the third disciple of Shaolin. Amitabha.”

“I know from watching the duel. I am Dao Yuetian of Cheon Seom Moon.”

Responding naïvely to the sudden greeting from a stranger blocking his path, the young man showed his simplicity.

If he had ignored the misfortune that would befall this young man, who was to become the future Evil Emperor, he would have deeply regretted it later.

The driving force that had helped him overcome his troubled childhood was the desire not to turn a blind eye to the misfortune that would befall his schooldays idol.

And most importantly,

‘This guy, even without that misfortune, would still grow strong.’

Mu-jin decided to trust in Dao Yuetian, his idol from the past.

The only problem was,

‘Suddenly showing up and saying your entire family will be massacred soon would just make me seem like a madman.’

Therefore, Mu-jin pondered how to persuade Dao Yuetian on their first meeting.

The conclusion Mu-jin reached through his deliberation was simple.

“Dao Yuetian Sohyeop, do you have any interest in the Buddha’s Way?”

He intended to sell the idea to the future Evil Emperor.

* * *

As expected, Dao Yuetian looked at Mu-jin with an expression that he had seen something bizarre.

“…I have no interest in the Buddha’s Way. Goodbye.”

And shortly after, Dao Yuetian, managing his expression with effort, replied bluntly and tried to pass by Mu-jin.

“Amitabha. While you, Dao Yuetian, may not be interested in the Buddha’s Way, there is such a thing as fate in this world.”

At some point, Mu-jin had moved a step to the side and blocked Dao Yuetian’s path again.

Already frustrated from losing in just one move and on his way back home, Dao Yuetian was beginning to get annoyed by this persistent monk blocking his path, but he was also curious.

‘Why is a monk, who defeated Hwang Bo-ung from the Five Noble Families in just one move like Namgung Jin-cheon, doing this?’

He wondered why a monk who had reached a level far beyond his own was behaving this way.

“Thanks to studying the Buddha’s Way, I can read a bit of fate.”

However, the more he listened, the more ridiculous it sounded.

“Is that so? I’m not interested in such things, so goodbye.”

Dao Yuetian tried to ignore the crazy talk and walk past the monk, but Mu-jin’s next words stopped him in his tracks.

“And today, I happened to see your fate, Dao Yuetian. You have a small scar on your left forearm, don’t you? The one you got as a child when you swung a real sword instead of a wooden one and cut yourself.”

“How do you know that!?”

Dao Yuetian asked in shock.

‘Of course, I know it from the novel.’

Although the novel didn’t describe the scene of young Dao Yuetian cutting his arm, there was a part where he recalled it.

When Dao Yuetian walked the Asura Path, his body was covered with wounds and scars. The scar on his left arm was hidden among other scars, and he remembered his family while looking at it.

There was another scene in the novel where Dao Yuetian reminisced about his family and his past.

“And you have a younger sister, don’t you? The one who loves the mooncakes made by your mother more than anything else in the world.”

During a conflict with the Hidden Forces, minions of the Paedobang attempted to kidnap his uniquely constituted sister.

To thank him for saving her child, a peasant woman gave him mooncakes.

Mooncakes, being an ancient food, had various fillings depending on the region and family. But the mooncakes the woman gave him tasted just like the ones his mother made, and while eating them, Dao Yuetian reminisced about his murdered sister and family.

And the next day.

In Dao Yuetian’s hands, the Paedobang was destroyed, and a few days later, the Cheonryu Sangdan fell.

‘Ah, that was epic.’

Thinking about how the Cheonryu Sangdan fell and how even the formidable Ryu Seol-hwa lost her life to Dao Yuetian sent chills down his spine.

‘Since Ryu Seol-hwa and the Cheonryu Sangdan have changed, such a thing won’t happen, right…?’

Shaking off the terrifying vision of the Cheonryu Sangdan collapsing at Dao Yuetian’s hands, Mu-jin focused on the man in front of him.

“Did you truly read my fate?”

Dao Yuetian’s eyes were filled with astonishment as Mu-jin accurately mentioned things no stranger could know.

Mu-jin, bowing his head with a solemn expression, responded to the bewildered Dao Yuetian.

“Yes. And I apologize. I know it is wrong to read someone else’s fate, but this matter is too important not to mention.”

“Important? What do you mean?”

“According to the fate I read, a great misfortune may befall Cheon Seom Moon within a year.”

“A misfortune will befall our family?” Dao Yuetian asked, startled.

Normally, if someone he met for the first time said something like this, he would have been angry. Saying that a calamity would strike his family sounded like a curse. However, since Mu-jin had already revealed two things about his life, Dao Yuetian saw him not as a fraud but as a genuine prophet.

Confident that his act as a prophet was working, Mu-jin continued speaking.

“It’s exactly as I said. A great wave of fate awaits both you and Cheon Seom Moon. And, unfortunately, in your current state, you do not have the strength to overcome it.”

“Then what should I do?” Dao Yuetian asked through gritted teeth.

“Amitabha.”

Mu-jin pulled out a small box from his sleeve and handed it to Dao Yuetian. As Dao Yuetian looked at the box with a puzzled expression, Mu-jin smiled kindly and said,

“It’s a Lesser Restoration Pill.”

“!?”

“I wish I could personally help you fend off this misfortune, but I have other calamities I must prevent. So, use this to gain the strength to withstand the wave of fate, Dao Yuetian.”

With that, Mu-jin opened the box, revealing not one but two pills inside. Dao Yuetian looked at the two pills in the box and asked in a bewildered tone,

“Why are you giving the elixir of Shaolin to someone you just met?”

“As I said, I read the great misfortune entangled in your fate.”

Mu-jin’s answer moved Dao Yuetian deeply.

‘He looks about my age, yet this monk is truly remarkable!’

Considering the skill he had shown at the Yongbongji Conference, his deep devotion to the Buddha allowing him to read others’ fates, and his generosity in giving a precious elixir to a stranger, Dao Yuetian was filled with admiration.

With a face full of gratitude, Dao Yuetian quickly clasped his hands and bowed deeply.

“I will repay this kindness with my life if necessary, Mu-jin.”

“It is merely my duty as a Buddhist, so do not concern yourself with it.”

Looking at Mu-jin’s kind smile, Dao Yuetian felt moved once again.

Mu-jin handed him the box with the pills as if he might cry at any moment, and Dao Yuetian accepted the box, not knowing what else to do.

Mu-jin, still smiling warmly, added,

“To be honest, even taking two Lesser Restoration Pills won’t be enough to fend off the misfortune that will befall you.”

“Then what should I do? Should I relocate my family’s home?” Dao Yuetian asked urgently, completely swayed by the pills and Mu-jin’s persuasion.

Mu-jin shook his head and replied,

“Moving to another place won’t avoid this disaster. But, as fate usually dictates, there’s no adversity that can’t be overcome. After all, hardships exist to be conquered.”

“Then, what is the way to overcome this disaster?”

“As I said, Dao Yuetian benefactor must become strong enough to overcome this disaster. For this, your resolve is necessary.”

“My resolve?”

“Yes. The resolve to acknowledge the limits of your talent.”

“!!!”

“And above all, the resolve to endure hellish suffering to surpass those limits.”

Acknowledging the limits of his talent? He had already sensed a wall when sparring with Namgung Jincheon, but hearing it from someone else was not pleasant. However…

“Until the disaster arrives, should I train relentlessly to overcome my limits?”

The threat to his family was more important than a slight sense of humiliation.

“That alone is not enough. You must let go of your greed. Abandon the desire to master the martial arts of your sect. Instead, you must hone just one technique to its limit, just as monks achieve enlightenment through asceticism. The Lesser Restoration Pills I gave you are merely a gift to slightly shorten the period of suffering.”

“……Are you saying that even with my talent, it’s difficult to master just one technique? Even with these Lesser Restoration Pills?”

To Dao Yuetian’s somewhat forlorn question, the monk standing before him made a peculiar expression.

“Yes.”

The monk, as if looking at a distant place or swimming in a dream, added.

“But once you have mastered that one technique, benefactor Dao Yuetian, you will gain a blade capable of shattering the heavens.”

* * *

“Whew.”

Watching Dao Yuetian’s departing figure, Mu-jin sighed.

It seemed his acting had worked.

Well, the main reasons were probably the personal matters he brought up and the bribe of the Lesser Restoration Pills.

‘It wasn’t my original intention to care for Dao Yuetian.’

From the beginning, Mu-jin had secretly taken three Lesser Restoration Pills from the pharmacy when he left Shaolin this time.

Originally, they were meant for Mu-gung, Mu-gyeong, and Mu-yul.

Although all three had taken one each, their internal energy was still lacking compared to their martial arts levels.

Since it was their second time taking the pills, the effectiveness would be less than the first time, but they could still gain about ten years of internal energy each.

However, he had given two of the three Lesser Restoration Pills to Dao Yuetian. Despite this, Mu-jin wasn’t particularly worried.

‘There are ways to obtain elixirs once I leave Shaolin this time.’

Mu-jin couldn’t remember all the fortuitous encounters or elixirs from the first and second parts of the novel, but he remembered one or two.

During this journey, he planned to obtain one of them and share it with the Muja-bae trio.

Since that was the plan, it wouldn’t be bad to give all three Lesser Restoration Pills to Dao Yuetian, but taking the same elixir multiple times reduced its effectiveness.

Up to two pills might retain about half the effectiveness, but by the third pill, there would be little benefit.

‘I should keep the remaining Lesser Restoration Pill as an emergency medicine for internal injuries.’

With that thought, Mu-jin watched Dao Yuetian’s distant figure.

With a face mixed with expectations and concerns.

Could Dao Yuetian overcome his limits before facing misfortune?

It would be nice if Mu-jin could help prevent that bloodshed since he decided to assist him.

‘For now, I can only trust him.’

Helping Dao Yuetian was never part of Mu-jin’s original plan. He had intended to leave him alone.

He thought he could finish his planned tasks and only assist if the bloodshed had not occurred by then.

‘First, I need to win the Yongbongji Conference.’

With his thoughts organized, Mu-jin turned away from the disappearing figure of Dao Yuetian.