Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 578 (Part 1)



578 (Part 1)

**Chapter 579: Night Arrival**

After Shinryong left.

After finishing a variety of conversations when I returned the Master was already inside the inn.

In fact there was a lot of stuff spread out on the table.

“What is this?”

“Can’t you tell just by looking?”

I could.

I knew it all too well which was the problem.

“Why did you order so much food?”

“There are some takeout items too. Aren’t you curious?”

“What do you mean?”

“Even a monk eats dumplings; how can you not be curious?”

“…”

Hearing that made me pause slightly.

‘He’s figured it out.’

This old man seemed to have caught on.

That the one eating dumplings at the inn was Shinryong from Shaolin.

Well if I recognized him there was no way the Master wouldn’t.

I made a reluctant expression and pulled out a chair to sit down.

Picking up a dumpling from the table I asked

“Can I eat this?”

“Why are you asking when you’ve already touched it with your dirty hands?”

“Dirty? I wash my hands well.”

“You should wash them well. If you don’t do even that what do you plan to do?”

“…”

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What is this annoying conversation?

I grimaced and took a bite of the dumpling.

Yeah the dumpling is still delicious.

It was the same taste I had asked Moyonghee to bring.

Rich in umami.

The aroma is good and the taste is good.

Indeed aside from other things it would be quite annoying if this place disappeared.

Right after stuffing the remaining dumpling into my mouth I asked the Master

“So what happened?”

The Master crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean what happened earlier. Was there anything after that?”

Shinryong had fainted… what was it again?

Anyway it was a question about what happened right after that man was knocked out.

“What could have happened? The members of the sect came and took him away that’s all.”

It seemed there was nothing particularly noteworthy there.

‘The sect took him away.’

If the sect dragged away a top-tier martial artist who was drunk and causing a scene

it didn’t seem like he would come out in a good state.

Probably not.

‘He won’t be seen around here for a while.’

That was a relief.

Watching the scene of him causing a ruckus at the inn…

‘I was thinking of dealing with it quietly.’

It seemed I wouldn’t have to get my hands dirty.

In that sense should I eat another dumpling?

As I thought about reaching for one

“Did you have a good talk?”

The Master asked.

At those words my appetite which had been whetted suddenly plummeted.

“Uh yeah sort of.”

“You didn’t hit him did you?”

“…?”

I frowned at what seemed like a strange question.

“Hit him? What are you talking about? If someone hears that it would be a big deal.”

How absurd.

Do you think I’m some local thug? What do you mean hit him?

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“He wasn’t the type to get hit was he?”

“Hmm.”

The Master didn’t outright deny my words. He couldn’t after all.

Shinryong was clearly an unreasonable being.

“Indeed. Cheonan has produced quite a remarkable character.”

A remarkable character.

The fact that such words came from the Master indicated a different level of understanding.

Hearing that I chuckled and said

“Did you like him?”

Wondering if he liked him that much the corners of the Master’s mouth lifted slightly.

“Why are you jealous?”

What? What kind of crazy talk is this?

“Elder have you lost your mind…!”

As soon as I spoke something came close to my eyes and stopped.

It turned out to be chopsticks.

“Should I give you your eyeballs instead of dumplings? It seems like your eyes are broken.”

“…I’m sorry.”

After a brief apology the Master finally took back the chopsticks.

Seeing this I had to suppress my uncomfortable feelings.

The reason was simple.

‘I didn’t see it.’

The problem was that I couldn’t properly catch the Master’s movements.

Had the Master’s movements become faster as he ascended to a higher realm?

I didn’t know. I didn’t know but there was one thing I could clearly understand.

‘For a while I won’t be able to act recklessly.’

I thought I could mess with corrupted officials but now I couldn’t do that either.

Even so it was an annoyingly frustrating situation that I couldn’t easily overlook.

“What jealousy? There’s nothing to be jealous about.”

Tsk.

The words I spat out with emotion made the Master chuckle.

“While you do have a good physique that’s ultimately useless.”

“Why? Didn’t I say my body is exceptional?”

“You did. However you’re not the only one with a suitable physique.”

That was true.

Although it was a body created through regression and various miraculous encounters

there were plenty of people with the minimum requirements to learn Tuapachunmu.

Ah maybe not plenty but it wasn’t impossible to find them.

‘Having learned it myself I understand better.’

Unlike the Master who was searching for someone with an extraordinary physique and talent

Tuapachunmu wasn’t a martial art that required that much talent.

Contrary to my initial fear of how difficult it might be

once I learned it I realized it wasn’t that hard.

I felt that way at first but the more I learned the more I understood.

The fact that I who had no talent whatsoever was able to learn it proved that.

‘Honestly I think this is largely thanks to the Master.’

If something doesn’t work keep trying until it does.

If it still doesn’t work change the method and try again.

There’s nothing in this world that can’t be done.

That was the Master’s philosophy.

And moving according to his will it really turned out that way.

How frustrating it was to see that.

At that moment while I thought that contrary to the Master’s intentions Tuapachunmu might not be that difficult of a martial art

“Foolish disciple. You’re under a big misconception.”

The Master clicked his tongue and spoke to me.

“While as you said there are many with the right physical conditions”

His gaze was filled with disdain.

“How many of them matched those conditions at your age?”

“Well that’s true.”

A body with the conditions to learn Tuapachunmu.

There might be many but how many achieved that at a young age?

If you think about it it wouldn’t even be ten.

Counting the ones that come to mind there are only four?

That means four including me.

“Moreover the most important talent in learning martial arts is neither physical nor martial talent.”

“Then what is it?”

“Patience.”

Patience?

Looking at the Master’s expression it seemed he was serious but I couldn’t quite relate to that.

Saying patience is the most important thing.

Isn’t that something that should naturally be included in learning martial arts?

If the most important thing is something so obvious I couldn’t relate to it at all.

Did that thought show on my face? The Master clicked his tongue at me.

“Do you think that’s not true?”

“…It’s not something I can particularly relate to.”

I understood well what he meant.

The pain felt while learning Tuapachunmu.

To artificially transform the body one must move bones and stimulate muscles and acupoints.

Because of this I had to endure the pain of feeling like someone was dancing with a knife inside me.

In expressing movements not only qi but also even the slightest disturbance had to be avoided.

I had to endure that pain and repeat the same movement thousands of times.

‘Once I finished taking a step I had to take the next one.’

As it piled up I couldn’t even count how many times I had moved.

If I had to count I would have to count by days.

I spent ten days extending my fist.

And I spent another fifteen days twisting my waist.

That was the kind of time it took.

The Master didn’t rush me and I repeated it until I was perfect.

No one was impatient or frustrated.

While feeling that time was incredibly tight and insufficient

if I were to blame someone I would only blame my past life where I lived poorly; no one was resentful.

And that’s how it came to be now.

That is

“What was so hard about it?”

What on earth was so hard about it?

To learn martial arts patience is naturally required.

I didn’t realize that and lived my past life like a bug.

Now I was just trying not to do that.

Pain can be endured.

Frustration can be endured.

“Let’s go now. It’s getting late.”

At those words I also got up.

“So what exactly did you want to say?”

“Hmm? Ah.”

I asked while following the Master.

I was curious about what he wanted to say earlier.

“It was nothing much. You’ll find out later anyway so don’t worry about it now.”