Doubt
"Maybe..."
Yeon Hwi-tae recalled one possible reason why everything had been possible for him.
"Could it be that... I have an unprecedented talent in the history of the martial world? Honestly, even in my past life, people called me a genius when it came to combat."
...To anyone else, this level of self-praise would have seemed utterly absurd, but Yeon Hwi-tae was dead serious.
"Well, whatever. It all worked out in the end, right? No point dwelling on it."
He simply gave up thinking too much about it.
Yeon Hwi-tae's father, Yeon Chae-ho, officially announced within Geumho Manor that his son had finished his closed-door training. In the process, Yeon Hwi-tae learned something that left him a little shocked.
"What? A whole year has passed?"
"Yeah, you punk. No matter how deep your seclusion was, how does a young guy like you hole up for that long?"
"But why do you look so aged? I thought ten years had gone by or something."
"Whose fault do you think that is?"
After a full year, Yeon Hwi-tae's father appeared noticeably older. Hearing his son point it out, the man—who clearly blamed Yeon Hwi-tae for his condition—was visibly upset.
"You could've come out a little sooner, don't you think? You know your mother's temperament. She's been staying up every night worried sick about you."
"...Ah."
A pang of guilt and gratitude struck Yeon Hwi-tae, and he nearly teared up.
His mother had always cherished and loved him enough to heal the pain from his memories of growing up an orphan in his past life. She was the epitome of a wise and devoted woman, always putting her family first.
She used to tell him:
"Live your life however you want."
"No matter what the world says, I'll always be on your side."
When she sensed that Yeon Hwi-tae had no desire to succeed the Geumho Manor and instead dreamed of becoming a martial artist, she actively supported him. Even though his declaration that he wouldn't inherit the family estate caused a huge uproar within Geumho Manor—especially as its only heir—her unwavering support was what made it possible.
Her selfless love changed Yeon Hwi-tae's entire outlook. In his past life, being an orphan hardened him. He lived only for martial arts, which made his personality cold and withdrawn. But now, he had become more relaxed and easygoing. To put it kindly—carefree and uninhibited; unkindly—maybe a bit immature in his thinking.
Counting his past life, he could be considered a seventy-year-old man. But now, Yeon Hwi-tae came across as nothing more than a free-spirited young man. His mother, who doted on him like a child wandering too close to the water's edge, must have been worried sick with no word from him for an entire year. And it seemed his father had also been affected.
"Because of that, your mother nagged me every single day. Sigh... even when I told her not to worry, she wouldn't listen. So who got the brunt of it? This poor old man, that's who."
"..."
"Not that I'm wrong. You're not the type to get hurt easily—maybe get into trouble, sure—but I bet you were in that cave turning the place upside down trying to invent some strange new martial arts again. Still, I know you: you've got that uncanny instinct for avoiding danger like a ghost. Am I wrong?"
Yeon Hwi-tae's sense of sentimentality cooled rapidly.
And he thought to himself:
'My father knows me too well.'
While Yeon Hwi-tae avoided eye contact and dodged the conversation, his father spoke again—this time with a rare seriousness in his eyes.
"So... did you break through the wall?"
"Yes. I can now circulate my inner energy freely. And not just sword aura—my fist energy is clear and distinct too."
Yeon Hwi-tae clenched his fist and generated fist energy (권기). It was thick and vivid, far beyond the level of someone merely at the peak of mastery. It was the kind of power only someone in the Transcendent Peak Realm could produce.
Yeon Chae-ho, seeing this, looked on with interest.
"Oho... So you've truly reached the Transcendent Peak."
Having lived for many years as a merchant and met countless masters, he could tell right away. So, for once, he gave a rare word of praise. His son truly was a prodigy. At first, he'd worried about Yeon Hwi-tae dabbling in strange martial arts, but at this point, he had no choice but to acknowledge it. With results like this, the reward should be just as solid.
But then, he noticed something off about his son's expression.
"What's wrong?"
"But now that I think about it, something feels a little off."
"What's off?"
"Usually, from the Transcendent Peak (초절정) stage, you're supposed to be able to use Tangang (彈强: a technique that allows one to emit qi outward for ranged attacks), right?"
"Yeah, that's right. When people talk about a high-level master at the Transcendent Peak shooting out sword energy, that's basically referring to Tangang. But you've only just reached the Transcendent Peak, so your range should still be limited... Wait, don't tell me—"
As Yeon Hwi-tae's expression began to shift into something odd, Yeon Chae-ho immediately sensed something was wrong.
And of course—
"My fist qi is this clear... but I can't emit Tangang at all."
"...What did you just say?"
He was at the Transcendent Peak but couldn't use Tangang? But Tangang was a hallmark of that level. It was common knowledge in the martial world that once someone reached this realm, their sword energy would strengthen, and they'd be capable of emitting qi outward. But now Yeon Hwi-tae had casually kicked that knowledge aside—and Yeon Chae-ho was dumbfounded.
"Are you messing with me?"
But no matter how he looked at his son's face, he didn't seem to be joking. That made it even more bewildering.
The martial world had developed a structured understanding of martial stages over many years of trial and error:
Those who could manipulate even a little inner energy were classified as third-rate.
From second-rate, one could begin actively using internal energy, enhancing their body beyond ordinary human limits.
First-rate meant one could channel internal energy into weapons like swords or spears—allowing that energy to extend outside the body, reinforcing weapons far beyond their natural strength.
Then came Peak (절정)—at this stage, all meridians in the body were cleared except for the Im and Dok meridians (임독양맥), enabling the user to emit sword energy. From this level onward, one was considered a master. At this point, unless it was equally powerful sword qi, reinforced qi, or a supreme external technique like Diamond Body (Geumgang Bulgoe), that sword energy couldn't be broken.
Above that was the Transcendent Peak (초절정). Only from here could one be called a true master. Many martial artists spent their entire lives in pursuit of this level and still never reached it. It was a solid, towering wall. When the Im and Dok meridians were fully opened, and the middle dantian (energy center) was formed—this marked the attainment of the Transcendent Peak. At this stage, one could freely use sword energy and project their qi outward using Tangang.
And Yeon Hwi-tae was standing exactly at that level.
"You're absolutely sure your middle dantian has formed?"
"Of course. If it hadn't, would I have called myself Transcendent Peak?"
"But you can't use Tangang? Then that means you haven't fully crossed into the realm."
"Well, it's just Tangang that doesn't work... Should we call it an incomplete Transcendent Peak?"
"..."
"..."
The two fell into sudden silence. As the awkward moment hung between father and son, Yeon Chae-ho adjusted his uneasy expression and finally spoke again.
"So... what do you plan to do next? It's about time you started thinking about your future."
"Ah... I guess I can't just keep training forever, huh."
"Tsk!"
"...Now that I think about it, I've been pretty shameless."
Unlike modern times in his previous life, in this martial world, once someone reached the age of fifteen or sixteen (ji-hak, roughly high school age), they were already considered halfway to adulthood.
After this year, he'd be of yakgwan age—the age of manhood. And yet, instead of trying to pave his own path, he was still loafing around at home under the pretense of training. No wonder he deserved criticism.
"If you've got nothing to do, then just leave home."
"...Huh?"
"You've got decent skills now, so go outside, see the world, and travel through the Jianghu, you brat."
"Ah..."
In other words, it was time to embark on his journey into the martial world.
Even if it meant the same thing, Yeon Hwi-tae grumbled internally about how his father always had to say things in such a rough way.
"Still, just to be safe, maybe I should train a little more before—"
"Are you kidding me? At the Transcendent Peak, you'd be treated like a king wherever you go. Someone at your level has no reason to hesitate over whether they're ready or not."
"But still, you never know. I could be walking down the road and suddenly get ambushed by a group of masters, or maybe old demonic sect leaders come out of hiding to attack me, or assassins take me out while I'm resting…"
"That kind of stuff doesn't happen! What do you think the Jianghu is, anyway?"
"I thought it was a place where martial artists pick fights out of nowhere, and if I barely survive that, someone else comes at me trying to settle old grudges. Then if I manage to find an inn to rest, demonic sect members start tearing the place apart and I get caught up in it, and just when I settle down somewhere, a bloodbath breaks out, and then the Legendary Martial Map incident happens, plunging the entire Jianghu into chaos..."
SMACK!
Yeon Chae-ho, unable to tolerate any more nonsense, gave his son a hard smack on the back of the head.
"What kind of hellish nightmare version of the martial world are you imagining?"
He said this out of disbelief at his son's absurd fantasies...
"...Wait, it's not like that?"
SMACK!
That earned him a second smack. What should've been one slap quickly turned into two.
Since his closed-door training had just ended, Yeon Hwi-tae decided to take a short break instead of heading out right away.
As he was in his room organizing and packing his things, his second sister came to visit.
"Tae-ya, are you in there?"
"Yeah, come in, noona."
As the door opened, a beautiful woman walked in, her elegance tinted with confidence and a touch of boldness.
She was Yeon Ju-mi, the next in line to lead the Geumho Manor and his second older sister.
"Sigh. When you were little, you used to be so cute... Or wait, maybe not? Right, even back then you acted like a little old man instead of a cute kid."
"That's harsh."
"Place your hand on your heart and reflect on your childhood."
"..."
He couldn't even argue with that.
"So, are you planning to leave soon?"
"Yeah. My growth's started to plateau, so I figured it's time to find a new breakthrough."
"Well, they do say there's no training better than real-life experience."
As they exchanged some light conversation, Yeon Ju-mi spotted a set of pitch-black equipment lying next to him—oddly shaped gauntlets, greaves, and a chainmail vest.
"What's all this?"
"Even if I specialize in close-quarters combat, sharp weapons like swords and sabers are still dangerous, right? So I asked Uncle Jang to make these for me."
Upon inspecting the gear, she saw that the gauntlets consisted of steel gloves and forearm guards. Interestingly, the forearm guards had pointed edges at the elbows, which looked like they could be used for slashing as well.