Lee Geon
Lee Geon, the fifth disciple of Master Cheonggwang of the Cheongseong Sect—one of the Five Great Monsters of the Martial World—had been blind from the very first moment he could remember.
He did not know why.
All he knew was that he had been abandoned by his parents because of his blindness, and that the mountain keeper grandfather had taken him in and raised him.
Back then, when he had no name, the old man simply called him "Aga" (child).
It was a poor and lonely life—often going hungry, living in the deep forest with no one but grandfather.
But strangely, he never really felt sad.
Since he had never possessed anything, he could not feel the sense of lacking.
As a child, he had only one wish.
'To see with my own eyes. Grandfather, myself, this world.'
Yes.
That was Lee Geon's only desire: to see the world with his own eyes.
The mountain keeper grandfather often told him about the world.
About the sun that warmed the earth and its radiant light, about the moon and stars that adorned the night, about the birds and insects whose sounds filled the air, and about the trees, grass, and flowers that gave fragrance to the world.
Lee Geon longed to see all of them.
If merely hearing the sounds and smelling the scents made him this happy, how wonderful would it be if he could see them?
That was his one childhood wish.
Perhaps because of that—
At some point, Lee Geon began to "see" the world through senses other than sight.
Through the resonance of sound, the flow of air, the density of scents.
With just those, he could "see" the shapes of things, determine their exact size and position.
In perceiving space itself and grasping the essence of things, he could "see" even better than his grandfather.
He could not see what grandfather had described as "color," but even so, Lee Geon was happy.
'This is enough. I need nothing more.'
Just as the young Lee Geon was learning to be content with life—
Someone came looking for him.
By his senses, it was an old man with a beard as thick as grandfather's.
But this man was strange.
If he had such a beard, surely he was old, and therefore should feel frail or weak. Yet this man felt nothing of the sort.
On the contrary, he radiated the power of a raging typhoon, of the sun itself.
It was a deeply strange sensation.
His senses told him one thing, while his instincts warned of something entirely different.
As Lee Geon puzzled over this contradiction, curious, the man spoke first.
"Can you feel this?"
Saying so, the old man slowly drew a sword.
Lee Geon did not know it was a sword at the time.
What he sensed was only as if a great typhoon was stretching itself awake before the world.
As though some colossal being, not human, was breaking free from a seal.
And then, when the man lightly swung the blade, Lee Geon felt it.
With a single simple motion, the world itself had been split in two.
Air, scent, sound—everything divided.
In that instant, Lee Geon, for the first time in his life, learned what it meant to feel awe.
He could say nothing.
He only gaped, speechless.
Then the man said:
"A child who cannot see like others, and so sees what others cannot…. Perhaps you might even glimpse the Realm of Legends. Child, will you not follow me?"
Lee Geon could not hold back and asked urgently:
"If I follow you, will I be able to do that too?! To split air, scent, sound, and space?"
The man looked at him for a moment, then answered:
"With you… you may even split the world itself."
That was Lee Geon's first encounter with his master, Cheonggwang.
The master gave him the name "Geon," saying it was the name of one he should aspire to. Since he had inherited his family name from grandfather, only then did Aga finally become "Lee Geon."
Following his master, Lee Geon remained in the mountains until he was over twenty.
At twenty-one, he descended to the world for the first time.
And he found it delightful.
The people, the things, the events—
There was not a single thing that did not excite him.
Of course, that was probably because this was only a single year's rest granted to him before returning to seclusion.
He already knew well that he preferred the stillness of the mountains to the clamor of the world.
And until he glimpsed the Realm of Legends, as his master wished, he had no thought of leaving the mountains for good.
It was his own desire as much as his master's.
But for now, this was his vacation.
A single year's leave, gifted by his master before reentering seclusion.
Lee Geon wanted to enjoy it without regret.
So he stood before the two people who had brought him the greatest joy since coming down the mountain.
And he asked:
"Lord Seonu, would you grant me a match?"
Lee Geon's senior, Hwa Yeongbin, whom he deeply respected, had once told him:
"If there is anyone among your peers who can be your rival, it would be Seonu Jin."
So Lee Geon did not want to let him slip away.
Seonu Jin stared quietly for a moment at this sudden and unexpected challenge.
Then he grinned and nodded.
"Very well. But may I set one condition?"
***
A few days after Cheongseong and the Tang Clan occupied the Jeonghyeop Sect, Bi Sa-yeong and I finally decided to leave.
We could have left right away, but there were a few things I wished to confirm, so we had lingered.
Only three people came to see us off.
Cheongseong and Tang, having taken over Jeonghyeop, were still locked in disputes over territory, and they had no interest whatsoever in me or Bi Sa-yeong.
It was a frustrating and pitiful sight, but after hearing the explanation of Brother Hwa Yeongbin—whom I now called elder brother—it was not hard to understand.
He explained it like this:
"Cheongseong, Emei, and Tang have had fixed spheres of influence for several centuries. Do you know why?"
For centuries, the borders had not shifted.
It wasn't hard to guess why they were now so desperate.
"Because they are orthodox sects. So now they've been given an opportunity they cannot let slip."
Brother Hwa smiled and nodded.
"Exactly. Though whether it's truly that important, I can't say."
At that, Bi Sa-yeong let out a long sigh.
"If you're going to have this conversation, couldn't you have it without me here?"
At his sulky tone, Brother Hwa chuckled and apologized.
"Ah, forgive me. When talking with Brother Seonu, I tend to skip over the steps. So, in other words…"
Here was the point:
Though Cheongseong and Tang were immensely powerful, as orthodox sects—pillars of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families—they could not simply invade other orthodox sects and expand their territory as they pleased.
With Cheongseong, Emei, and Tang holding Sichuan, the demonic sects could never set foot there, and all existing sects had pledged allegiance to them, leaving no excuse or opening for expansion.
Brother Hwa added one more remark:
"And of course, the fact that these three great sects have been constantly keeping each other in check has also kept them from acting rashly."
But then, one day, a group called the Jeonghyeop Sect—orthodox in appearance only—suddenly rose up, unifying the forces that the three great sects had never dared touch. And as if to do them a favor, they vacated their place entirely.
Like a wanderer who suddenly appears, clears wasteland into fertile fields, and then disappears without a trace.
So now, all one had to do was step into that vacancy, and the territory that had been fixed for centuries could finally expand.
What's more, the Emei Sect, which had maintained the balance among the three, was now barely able to manage its own affairs. Naturally, Cheongseong and the Tang Clan were not about to let such an opportunity slip away.
After hearing all this, Bi Sa-yeong spoke up.
"Then Sichuan will be noisy for quite a while, with the two sects clashing over territory."
For once, his rare accurate prediction made me exclaim in admiration.
"Oooh! Impressive!"
"…Hey, are you mocking me right now?"
"Ooooh! To notice that too, amazing!"
"You bastard!"
Bi Sa-yeong pummeled me with his fists, but to my body tempered by external martial arts, his blows—lacking inner strength—were nothing more than tickles.
In any case, just as Bi Sa-yeong predicted, Cheongseong and the Tang Clan seemed destined to be preoccupied with territorial disputes for the foreseeable future.
So I entrusted the aftermath to Hwa Yeongbin, who had come to see us off.
"I'll leave it to you, brother."
"Don't worry. Not a single remnant will be left alive."
The Hao Clan of Sichuan had finally decided to fully cooperate in eradicating the Blood Sect's forces hidden throughout the province.
The Hao Clan was not a centralized sect, but rather a loose confederation of regional branches, so it was impossible to extract the same promise from their branches outside Sichuan. Still, at the very least, they swore never again to provide information to the Blood Sect.
That was exactly the outcome I had been hoping for.
The result that would likely prevent the Blood Sect's advance infiltration, which I had suffered in my previous life.
My second life was truly beginning to change history.
'So it was possible after all… to change the future.'
I felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.
But eradicating the Blood Sect's roots together with the Hao Clan was not something that could be left to the Murim Alliance, nor to Cheongseong or the Tang Clan, who were too busy with their territorial struggle.
So I asked Brother Hwa to take on that part.
And of course, he gladly agreed.
Not only that—this time he would not act alone, but lead the forces that followed Cheonggwang of Cheongseong.
I suspected that his reluctance to associate with others until now had not been due to dislike, but because he had lost his will to live.
Now, with life shining in his eyes again, he spoke with renewed confidence.
"Come to think of it, I've been failing to make use of what I already have. From now on, I intend to make proper use of myself. My position, my influence—I'll wield them to their fullest."
The vitality in his expression filled me with joy.
"Yes, I'll trust you, brother."
After our parting, standing beside him with a bright smile, his junior Lee Geon also spoke to me.
"Let's have another fun fight next time. Take care, Jin, Sa-yeong."
Thus I became friends with Lee Geon, the genius swordsman and fifth disciple of Master Cheonggwang.
That had been the condition for our duel.
"Right, see you soon. Sa-yeong said she'll be back in Sichuan for her next vacation, so we'll meet then. Ah, though maybe she'll be too busy with someone else by then?"
"Cough!"
The truth was, my proposal of friendship had not been without ulterior motives.
If I tied bonds with a genius who might one day reach the Realm of Legends, then even if all my efforts against the Blood Sect failed, perhaps I would gain one more chance… such were my calculating thoughts.
But after spending a few days with him, I realized he was such an appealing person that I felt truly fortunate to have him as a friend—even without such reasons.
Through him, I broke a long-held belief.
'I thought innocence and wisdom could never coexist in one person….'
Perhaps because he had spent his life training in the mountains, or because he viewed the world through senses other than sight, he was the first person I'd ever seen who embodied both the purity of a child and the wisdom of an elder.
Being with him cleared my heart endlessly, and time after time, I found myself admiring his perceptive insights.
His swordsmanship went without saying.
Our first duel had ended without a decisive winner.
But that was only because his lack of experience had let me scrape by with a draw. In terms of raw ability, he was at a level far beyond me.
Every clash of blades with him gave me fresh inspiration.
'And not only his inner qualities—his outer ones are remarkable too.'
Lee Geon's appearance was beautiful—like that of a woman.
No, that was inaccurate.
For there were hardly even a few women I could think of who could match his beauty.
When I saw him smile so brightly, my heart sometimes skipped a beat without my realizing.
It was a pity that he himself could not see that beautiful face.
Just yesterday, Bi Sa-yeong and I had argued over his looks.
We disagreed over who was more beautiful: Lee Geon or Lady Jeongan.
"Honestly, isn't Geon prettier if you look objectively?"
"What nonsense is that?! How could you even say that?!"
"Why are you getting worked up?"
"W-Worked up? No, it's just—anyway! No matter how pretty he is, you can't compare him to Lady Jeongan!"
No matter what she said, I couldn't help but think Geon was the more beautiful.
In any case, meeting both Brother Hwa and Lee Geon through all this had been an incredible stroke of fortune for me.
After bidding farewell to the two of them, we went to say goodbye to the third person who had seen us off.
She was Lady Jeong-in of Emei, rescued from the Jeonghyeop Sect.
She was also the most important reason I had remained here a few extra days.
"Seonu Sohyeop, Bi Sohyeop. I'll repay this debt to you someday. If not… well, perhaps I'll just have to marry one of you! Hahaha! Until next time! Take care!"
She was a spirited woman, with a voice and character bolder than most men.
Her bold words made us exchange awkward smiles as we saluted her in farewell.
"Yes, Lady Jeong-in. I wish the Emei Sect prosperity."
"Please give my regards to Lady Jeongyeon and Lady Jeongan as well."
The reason I had stayed to watch over her was simply out of caution.
If she, known as the Sword Peak of Emei, had been subjugated by the Blood Sect's soul-capturing arts, it would have been disastrous.
But after days of observation, I saw no sign she had been ensnared or subjected to suggestion.
If she had, she could not possibly have remained so cheerful—that was my conclusion.
According to her, a man named Gu Yusang, the White Jade Flood Dragon, had tried something with her, but he left abruptly and never returned.
"At first I was nervous, but thanks to that, nothing happened to me at all. Truly, life is full of fortune in misfortune. Hahahaha!"
And with that, she laughed heartily, like a man.
Hmm, Gu Yusang, the White Jade Flood Dragon….
There was still no trace of him, though he was certainly a member of the Blood Sect. Perhaps he would surface once we finished wiping out the remaining remnants with the Hao Clan.
In any case, at last, it was time to return to meet my comrades—my family.
The thought of seeing them again after so long already filled me with joy.
Suddenly, Bi Sa-yeong asked:
"But how do we even find them? Do you think they're still at Mount Sword Gate?"
"Well, probably. But even if not, we'll find them quickly. They've all become famous in Guizhou by now."
"True enough."
Famous, huh.
That did worry me a little.
Too much attention….
When I meet Lady Cheongyeon, I'll need to discuss this matter with her.
Because it could become a factor that changes everything.
If Jegal Jigang of the Murim Alliance were to become aware of us, things might grow complicated.
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