The first student Bu Eunseol was to teach was Yoo Unryong.
In a clearing far from the straw hut, he set up a Wooden Man Formation like those used at Nangyang Pavilion.
After meticulously overlapping it with several other formations he knew, he called for Yoo Unryong while holding a bundle in his hand.
“What did you say?”
Yoo Unryong, who had been listening to Bu Eunseol’s explanation for quite some time, let his jaw drop to his chest. He had been expecting the transmission of some magnificent martial art or a terrifyingly rigorous training session. But to think it was just basic training—sensory training, at that—the kind one does when first entering the world of martial arts?
“I must have misheard you, right?”
“Then I shall explain again.”
Bu Eunseol reached out and explained calmly once more.
“This is a Wooden Man Formation I have improved so that one can undergo immediate sensory training.”
A Wooden Man Formation is a type of Doll Formation where wooden dolls are made to attack the person inside. A representative example is the Hundred-Eight Bronze Man Formation installed in a secret cave at Shaolin to deal with intruders according to mechanical patterns.
“Are you serious?”
“About what?”
“You’re telling me to train in a Wooden Man Formation now?” Yoo Unryong complained.
No matter how his martial arts level couldn’t compare to Bu Eunseol’s, he had personally completed the Illustrations of the Ten-Section Staff.
His understanding and depth of martial arts had reached a level where he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the grandmasters who dominated the world.
Yet, he was being told to enter a Wooden Man Formation, something one masters at the very start of martial training? Wasn’t this the same as telling an adult to crawl like an infant again?
“Just why?”
At Yoo Unryong’s question, Bu Eunseol spoke with an expression more serious than ever.
“You need to learn how to use your body more.”
Even for a single minor move, Yoo Unryong constantly analyzed and grasped the situation before unfolding his technique. Of course, thinking and analyzing during combat is by no means a bad thing. Bu Eunseol also constantly thought and analyzed even in the midst of extreme battle. However, Yoo Unryong’s process of analyzing and thinking about the enemy was much longer than Bu Eunseol’s. Above all, he was extremely wary of straying from a set framework.
“Isn’t it natural to analyze the situation in one’s head before fighting?”
“Try it.”
“Try what?”
“Try doing that inside this Wooden Man Formation.”
Bu Eunseol wore a solemn expression.
“Do not use the Ten-Section Staff or your internal energy. You must break all the wooden dolls inside the formation and come out using only your senses and physical strength.”
He then handed the bundle he was holding to Yoo Unryong. Opening the bundle, there was a gourd filled with fresh water and grain pills.
“Why this, too?”
“I have made it so that you cannot come out for three days. Of course, after three days, you will have to voluntarily go back in and continue your training.”
Bu Eunseol pointed to the entrance of the formation and said, “If you do not grow accustomed to the Wooden Man Formation even after three days pass, this training will be a failure.”
When Yoo Unryong hesitated to enter, Bu Eunseol nodded.
“If you don’t want to do it, return to the Suppressed Demon Pavilion. I won’t stop you.”
Yoo Unryong tried to argue, but at Bu Eunseol’s firm gaze, he eventually slumped his shoulders and entered the Wooden Man Formation.
“Fine, fine. I’m going, okay?”
With a face of total resignation, he entered the formation Bu Eunseol had created.
Gi-ing.
The surroundings instantly turned dark, and wooden dolls in the shape of humans began to appear.
“Boy, it really is a Wooden Man Formation.”
Yoo Unryong let out a deep sigh and said weakly as he held out his hands, “To think I’m entering a Wooden Man Formation at my age…”
Even if he wasn’t using internal energy or weapons, he was a young grandmaster who had invented a new weapon technique in the martial world. To think he had to fight mere wooden dolls? This was looking down on him far too much—
Thwack.
Suddenly, he saw stars, and something warm flowed from beneath his nose. He had been struck in the philtrum by a wooden doll that had closed the distance like lightning without a sound.
Swoosh.
Yoo Unryong, wiping the blood from his nose, glared.
‘I didn’t sense the punch thrown by a wooden doll?’
Whish!
In the meantime, punches and kicks rained down on his lower abdomen and thighs. Without time to wipe his bleeding nose, Yoo Unryong twisted his body to dodge. However, as if predicting his evasion, thirty-one punches were already pouring toward his face.
“Where in the world is a wooden doll that pours out thirty-one punches in a single move!”
Yoo Unryong threw himself and rolled on the ground without a second thought.
Pappappak.
Meanwhile, dozens of foot-shadows poured down like rain. Though they were just pieces of wood, they were no different from the kicks of a master imbued with several cycles of power.
‘I’m going to die!’
Feeling his life threatened, he barely managed to dodge the attacks after rolling frantically on the ground twenty times.
Toong.
Performing a Carp Leap, Yoo Unryong sprang up and took a stance with an incredibly serious expression. Then, he calculated the changes in the internal formation.
“This isn’t a normal Wooden Man Formation…”
As he quickly grasped the formation, the focus in Yoo Unryong’s eyes vanished.
“He overlapped the Wooden Man Formation with the Ten Thousand Calamities and Phenomena Formation of the Mansang Lord?”
Bu Eunseol hadn’t just installed a simple Nangyang Pavilion Wooden Man Formation. He had overlapped it with the Ten Thousand Calamities and Phenomena Formation of the Mansang Lord—a world-renowned eccentric—which causes one’s spirit to shatter the moment they enter, forcing them to face powerful enemies created by their own imagination.
“It can’t be helped. To survive, I’ll use my internal energy—”
Woooong. Whirrr.
However, light flowed from the ground, and his internal power instantly scattered. Bu Eunseol’s personality was extremely meticulous. To prevent Yoo Unryong from gathering internal energy, he had even applied a formation from the Imperial Palace’s martial arts that had the function of scattering internal power.
“Hey! How am I supposed to deal with these monsters without internal energy?!”
Rumble.
During that time, the wooden dolls began to beat Yoo Unryong joyfully. Although he had established his own school of martial arts, he had never deeply learned the arts of fists and palms in the first place.
“Bu Eunseol!”
He kept shouting, but there was no answer. For a while, he rolled on the floor and was trampled by the wooden dolls. When the offensive paused for a moment—
“Fine.”
Yoo Unryong, rising unsteadily, began to draw lines on the ground to quickly break the formation. He was the strategist of the Death Shadow Corps who had read ten thousand books. He was at a level where he could break three or four formations in an instant.
“Heh. No matter how great a formation is…”
The focus was disappearing from his eyes as he crouched and confidently calculated the formation’s changes.
“Huh?”
When he actually tried to break the Ten Thousand Calamities and Phenomena Formation, he found that eleven ancient formations, including the Gongsun family’s Peerless Life-Snatching Formation, were overlapped.
“…So that’s why it was three days.”
With a formation of this level, it would take three days even if he gave his all to break it. In the end, the time he was trapped remained the same.
Step, step.
In the meantime, the wooden dolls were approaching, their blood-red eyes flashing.
“This isn’t a Wooden Man Formation; it’s a murder formation.”
Yoo Unryong glared.
Normally, he could have broken them with a single finger… but now, he was prevented from using even the innate strength within his body, let alone internal power. He truly had to face them with his bare body.
***
Myo Cheonwoo was honest and straightforward.
Because of that temperament, his combat style also involves pure clashing rather than using tricks. It was the same when he performed the Annihilation Palm as a grandmaster of Demonic Palm Arts. He rarely used moves focused on pacing or subtlety. He always used tactics of clashing head-on to strike down the enemy.
“Now, I am ready.”
Inside a large clearing in the forest, Myo Cheonwoo looked at Bu Eunseol with burning eyes. He was a man of passion with a heart hotter than anyone’s. When he heard that Bu Eunseol had called them not just to improve Seo Jinha’s martial arts, but to transmit martial arts to each of them—
‘It’s been a while since things got hot.’
His heart burned with a blazing warrior’s soul, and he had been the first to run here.
“Tell me anything. I will carry out the training even if I have to risk my life.”
When Myo Cheonwoo spoke with eyes full of enthusiasm, Bu Eunseol nodded. Then, unexpected words flowed out.
“Succeed in a lie.”
“What?”
“I’m telling you to try lying.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with absolute seriousness.
“The target doesn’t matter. Whether you do it to me or to the other guys here, you just have to succeed.”
“What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”
Myo Cheonwoo blinked for a long time as if he couldn’t understand.
“Didn’t we gather here to practice martial arts?”
“That’s right.”
“But lying?”
Bu Eunseol asked, “Do you even know how to lie?”
“Who in the world doesn’t know how to do that?”
“Then try it.”
“What?”
Bu Eunseol stared at Myo Cheonwoo with an incredibly serious expression.
“I’m telling you to try it right now.”
As Myo Cheonwoo glared, Bu Eunseol spoke again with a sharp look.
“Can’t you do it?”
“I…”
After thinking for a moment, Myo Cheonwoo said with a serious expression, “I hate you.”
“Fail.”
“No, wait.”
Myo Cheonwoo hurriedly gestured with his hands and spoke again.
“Actually, I am the son of the Demon Emperor.”
“Fail.”
“Why? I clearly lied!”
When Myo Cheonwoo felt wronged, Bu Eunseol let out a snort.
“It’s a lie only if the other person is deceived. What you said is just nonsense.”
Myo Cheonwoo stammered to say something, but his face soon turned pale. Watching him for a long time, Bu Eunseol sighed deeply.
“You haven’t done it.”
Myo Cheonwoo’s face turned red as he was hit right where it hurt.
Thinking back, he had no memory of ever lying in his life. He was always honest and acted without a single point of shame. He had never even felt the need to lie. Hadn’t he unhesitatingly agreed to endure the torture at the Annihilation Palace, believing the promise that he would be sent to Bu Eunseol afterward?
“Wait, what does this have to do with improving martial arts?”
“To face an enemy a level above you, you must know how to deceive them. An attack that doesn’t hit is nothing more than a meaningless movement.”
It felt like he understood, yet didn’t quite understand. When Myo Cheonwoo wore a blank expression, Bu Eunseol spoke firmly.
“And if you want to lie, at least control your biological reactions. Make it more truthful than telling the truth.”
“What?”
“There’s no need to turn red or increase your heart rate just because you’re lying, is there?”
Only then could Myo Cheonwoo grasp Bu Eunseol’s intention.
All martial warriors have excellent senses and obtain information even through the biological reactions of the enemy. In other words, even during a fight, they are constantly collecting information about themselves, and through that, they grasp the opponent’s state, find openings in the attack, or calculate the moment of a counterattack.
But until now, he had never considered such things.
“Right, I was too complacent.”
Finally realizing everything, Myo Cheonwoo nodded.
“Fine. I’ll try it—a proper lie.”
From that day on, Myo Cheonwoo practiced lying with all his might. But the target was not Bu Eunseol. From the start, Bu Eunseol not only had excellent powers of observation and insight, but now that his martial arts had skyrocketed… like the Demon Emperor, he had the power to grasp the enemy’s spirit through biological reactions.
Even for a master of lying, it would be difficult to deceive him.
Eventually, after much deliberation, Myo Cheonwoo began to talk to Seo Jinha, Yoo Unryong, or Do Cheonlin, who were training in their respective locations, and practiced lying constantly.
“Stop coming inside the formation. It breaks the function of the Wooden Man Formation.”
“Get lost.”
“You’re talking nonsense.”
But it didn’t work.
No, it was exposed just by looking at his face that he was about to talk nonsense.
“I was too clumsy.”
After failing to succeed in a lie for several days, Myo Cheonwoo was prostrate on a staggeringly high cliff, despairing. Only now did he realize that his biological reactions were at a level that was clearly visible to others.
‘I’ve been lucky until now.’
‘If I fight honestly like this against the world’s strong? In the end, only defeat will remain.’
“I’ll do it!”
Rising again, Myo Cheonwoo shouted toward the rising sun.
“I will succeed in a lie!”
He is a man with a heart hotter than anyone’s. Once he sets a goal, he achieves it even if he has to risk his life.
***
Several days passed. Bu Eunseol was sitting inside the straw hut, constantly writing something down.
Clatter.
At that moment, the door opened and Seo Jinha suddenly came to find Bu Eunseol.
“Bu Eunseol.”
And he spoke with an incredibly serious expression.
“Whatever else you do, stop Myo Cheonwoo’s training.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Lying training? What on earth is that?”
“Don’t concern yourself. I did it because it was necessary.”
Seo Jinha shook his head.
“Don’t do it. As it turns out, there’s a separate reason why that guy can’t lie.”
“A reason why he can’t lie?”
Taking a deep breath, Seo Jinha spoke with an infinitely lonely expression.
“It was the last request of his late mother.”
“Last request?”
“His mother peddled her whole life and tried to open a small tavern with the money she saved, but she was scammed.”
With sad eyes, he told the story of Myo Cheonwoo’s inner circumstances.
“In the end, she died of a broken heart. And when she passed away, she urged Myo Cheonwoo never to deceive others or lie.”
Even after that, Seo Jinha told the entire sad past of Myo Cheonwoo, which one couldn’t listen to without tears.
“…That’s why that guy became unable to lie like that.”
“How did you come to know that story?”
“Myo Cheonwoo was struggling in pain, so I wondered what was going on and we talked. We went down to Seongdo for a bit and had a drink.”
Wiping his nose, Seo Jinha shook his head.
“And he confessed his family history to me—something he had never spoken of until now. Something he hadn’t told anyone, including you.”
“I see.”
As Bu Eunseol nodded repeatedly as if he understood, Seo Jinha wore a satisfied expression.
“Now you get it? Then I’m off.”
At that moment, Bu Eunseol spoke.
“While you’re at it, tell Myo Cheonwoo.”
Then he said calmly to Seo Jinha, “Tell him that he seems to have completed it, so he can end the training.”
“Completed?”
Seo Jinha blinked for a long time.
“What does that mean?”
Bu Eunseol said with a plain face, “That guy is an orphan.”
“What?”
“He grew up in a beggar gang that was quite famous in Suzhou. Thanks to that, he grew up well without starving for an orphan.”
In an instant, Seo Jinha realized. Since Do Cheonlin or Yoo Unryong were hard to deceive, he had chosen the easy target, himself, as a training partner.
“This son of a dog!”
Shouting out, he rolled up his sleeves and ran up the cliff. He would likely bicker with Myo Cheonwoo for a while.
Regardless, Bu Eunseol turned his body and entered deep into the forest. Because the next person to be trained was Do Cheonlin.
“I am different from those guys. I have nothing to learn.”
Do Cheonlin spoke with a face full of pride.
“I have learned the philosophy of kings since I was a child. In short, the process of my life itself is different from those guys.”
He then cleared his throat.
“Ahem, since this isn’t the Martial Soul Society, I will speak in my original manner. Calling you Lord, Lord in front of those guys… it’s also ridiculous.”
“Of course. Do as you please.”
As Bu Eunseol nodded, Do Cheonlin continued.
“Although I lead the Mercenary Corps, that too is just a process for me to fill my deficiencies. I am destined to manage the world’s martial world anyway.”
He then said with an incredibly proud expression, “Realizations and insights shared by others are only necessary for those dull fellows.”
“If I continue to repeat my training in the future, I will enter a stable realm.”
Do Cheonlin had not come here with the intention of receiving training; he only came along because he heard the four of them were training together and wondered if he would have a chance to cross swords with Bu Eunseol. He had no intention of obtaining insights or realizations from him from the start.
Bu Eunseol nodded blankly.
“There would be no need to obtain insights or realizations through me.”
“I’m glad you know.”
“But training is necessary.”
“Training? What training?”
Bu Eunseol said solemnly, “Try to make Seo Jinha, Myo Cheonwoo, and Yoo Unryong your subordinates.”
“What?”
“Since you learned the philosophy of kings, isn’t it an easy task? You must have cultivated the ability to subjugate people since you were a child.”
In an instant, Do Cheonlin’s expression hardened.
“Are you mocking my past self now?”
Ever since his time in the Ten Demon Warriors, he had tried to make outstanding figures like Bu Eunseol his subordinates. But all such attempts had failed, and on the contrary, he had become a loyal subordinate under Bu Eunseol.
“Yes.”
Even if he was a subordinate, he was like a friend, and since he was a god-like man with incomparable martial prowess from the start, there was nothing to be ashamed of. But to suddenly be told to make Seo Jinha and the others his subordinates here?
“What kind of training is this?”
At Do Cheonlin’s question, Bu Eunseol said, “True strength comes not from one’s own ability alone, but from leading others together. Since you have operated the Mercenary Corps until now, you must know that point better.”
He added, “This kind of training is necessary to cultivate the ability for you to manage the martial world in the future.”
Do Cheonlin nodded.
Until a while ago, he thought the current martial world was a playground for the super-strong, and that numerical superiority was of no use. But while fighting the subordinates of the Baekri Family or the True Demon kin, and while operating the Mercenary Corps, he came to know.
There was only one reason why numerous strong people since ancient times have gone through the trouble of gathering troops and building powerful forces. In the martial world, there exist secret techniques like the Mind Realm that can face the super-strong with the power of many, and because of that, the decisive factor in determining victory or defeat is ultimately numerical superiority.
And Bu Eunseol commanded those large forces as if he were flicking his fingers. If he were told to command an army of tens of thousands? It would still be difficult for him.
“Ultimately, the trends and tides of the world are determined by the flow and waves of those forces,” Bu Eunseol said. “That flow cannot be stopped even by a super-strong individual with outstanding martial prowess. Since you will become a leader who can command a large army in the future…”
“Fine.”
Do Cheonlin reached out his hand and cut him off.
“So I just need to subjugate those guys under me, right?”
“That’s right. You can use martial force or conciliation. Do not hesitate to use any means or methods, whether it be financial power or whatever.”
“But… even if I do, aren’t they your subordinates?”
Do Cheonlin crossed his arms.
“How am I supposed to suddenly snatch away subordinates who are loyal to you? It seems a bit forced, not training.”
“Why, do you have no confidence?”
Bu Eunseol smiled.
“Or are you making excuses in advance, keeping failure in mind? To convince yourself that it was inevitable to fail?”
In an instant, a vein like an earthworm throbbed at Do Cheonlin’s temple. He has more pride than anyone. Hadn’t even the Lord of the Blood Flame Blade, Do Mu-cheok, been unable to break his stubbornness and kicked him out of the Blood Flame Blade Sect?
“It’s not that I’m afraid of failing; I was just discussing the issue of probability.”
Do Cheonlin spoke with eyes burning more fiercely than ever.
“Fine. Later, when they become my subordinates instead of yours, don’t say a word.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
When Bu Eunseol showed a smirk he had never shown before, Do Cheonlin snorted and coldly turned his body away. After that, Do Cheonlin went to those who were training and began to constantly try to win them over.
However…
“Ah, I’m not buying.”
“I don’t have time to chat idly with you right now.”
Seo Jinha and Yoo Unryong were too busy practicing their martial arts.
“You’ve come at a good time. Actually, I have a secret I haven’t been able to tell until now…”
Myo Cheonwoo was talking nonsense or laying out lies every time he saw him.
Tremble.
Do Cheonlin’s body shook. Several days had passed, but he hadn’t won over a single one. No, he had never received such a cold reception in his life.
Even his father, Do Mu-cheok, who had shouted and chased him away saying he had lost to Bu Eunseol several times, acknowledged that Bu Eunseol’s ability was great; he had never blamed him for being incompetent.
But these guys… they were simply people who couldn’t be reasoned with from the start.
“These lowly, common pieces of trash!”
Was it because he had been dealing with vagabonds who had foul mouths? Or was it because of these guys’ indifference and coldness? From the mouth of Do Cheonlin, who was trying to control his anger in front of the cave he was using as a dwelling, a thick curse word jumped out for the first time in his life.
“These animals who are worse than beasts! You sons of guns who should starve to death on a remote island!”
Do Cheonlin reached both hands toward the sky and shouted.
“Why won’t you guys even listen to a word I say?!”
He was so angry. He had tried this much. He was a person of this caliber. He was who he was. The world—no, those damn fuckers—didn’t recognize his efforts at all and were just silently doing their own thing.
After much deliberation, Do Cheonlin…
“Then let’s settle the hierarchy through martial arts! Come at me!”
He challenged each of them to a duel. But Yoo Unryong was busy going in and out of the Wooden Man Formation, and Myo Cheonwoo was still only talking nonsense. Furthermore, wasn’t Seo Jinha just constantly repeating some unknown basic sword study?
“Aaaargh!”
Ignored once again, Do Cheonlin screamed and returned to the front of the cave he was using as a dwelling. His patience had reached its limit. Instead of making those guys his subordinates, he felt like his heart would be at ease if he just struck them down with a single blade.
‘Yes, I must control my heart.’
Do Cheonlin closed his eyes and began to sit in meditation. He had always thought that cold-headedness was the qualification of a strong person, and that thorough calculation was the secret to victory. His beliefs couldn’t be shaken by something like this—
But the faces of those annoying guys kept flickering before his eyes. And an unknown wave of anger was surging in his chest.
“I will surely set your rotten spirits right!”
Do Cheonlin, who stood up abruptly while meditating, shouted, unable to contain his rage.
“Even if it takes ten years, a hundred years! I will follow you guys like a water ghost and set those rotten spirits right!”
