After several days of sleeping rough, I finally set foot in Hubei, where green shoots were already pushing up ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) through the earth.

It looked like the brutal grip of winter had finally retreated and spring was on its way.

I stepped over the soft, thawed soil and lifted my head.

A staggeringly high chain of peaks ringed the horizon in layer upon layer, rolling like waves.

They said it was mountain beyond mountain, and this damned continent really did seem to be blocked by mountain ranges everywhere you went.

It was the kind of terrain that made me realize exactly why Grandfather had made me climb mountains and scramble up cliffs every single day.

Don’t tell me we have to cross that too.

When I stared blankly at the peaks, Yeon Ryang said,

“That’s Wudang Mountain, sister. Gyun County should be coming up soon, so we’ll be able to rest.”

“Oh. There’s a town?”

“There is. From here on, we might even be able to hire a carriage.”

“Really?”

So I didn’t have to cross that savage mountain range on my own two feet?

The moment I realized my life-or-death mountain climbing was finally over, the hateful fog clinging to the mountainsides suddenly started to look almost picturesque.

My mood instantly lighter, I took in the full view of Wudang Mountain.

So that’s where the Wudang Sect is. Are those tiny red dots Taoist buildings?

Yeon Ryang, who had been watching my face change, burst out laughing.

“Hahaha, get a hold of yourself, sister. Your soul nearly floated right out of you. We’d better get to an inn and rest.”

“I want to wash with hot water. And eat meat.”

“Sure. Soak in hot water and get some sleep. But once we’re in Gyun County, it’d be better if you didn’t leave the inn, sister.”

“Why not?”

“This is the sort of place where men from all over the Central Plains, the kind who fancy themselves righteous heroes, flock here because they admire Wudang’s reputation. For an unorthodox bastard like me, it’s a very uncomfortable place.”

Yeon Ryang chuckled and rubbed his chin.

The rough stubble that had grown in covered his cheeks and jaw completely.

...Do I look like that too?

Trying hard to ignore how grimy he looked, every trace of sleeping outdoors still clinging to him, I asked,

“So accidents happen often?”

“With that many hot-blooded country fools taking their first steps into the martial world, how could it possibly stay quiet? Best to avoid trouble. Let’s not stand out.”

Having instantly reduced people from all over the Central Plains to “trouble,” Yeon Ryang laced his hands behind his head and whistled.

He clearly had no idea how much a hulking man shaped like a door, with a long scar at the corner of one eye, stood out just by walking down the road whistling.

You stand out just by existing.

I quietly edged farther away from him, pretending I wasn’t traveling with him. I had no desire to attract attention by association.

As we got closer to Gyun County, I started seeing well-maintained roads and people coming and going.

Just as Yeon Ryang had said, several carriages passed by, and there were plenty of peddlers on the road as well.

“There are starting to be a lot of people.”

“There really are. And not all of them are martial artists?”

“It’s Wudang. It’s an old and prestigious Taoist sect. Naturally, people never stop coming and going.”

Why?

At the baffled look on my face, Yeon Ryang winked.

“Wudang is a Taoist temple before it’s a martial school, sister. People go there to pay their respects. Of course there are lots of worshippers.”

“Oh....”

Now that I thought about it, it was a religious institution. So it was more like visiting a famous temple or cathedral.

Tilting my head, I asked,

“What do they do in a Taoist temple?”

“They listen to Taoists recite scripture, or take home written blessings. I’ve heard plenty of people even ask them to name their children.”

They name people’s children at a Taoist temple? They write out blessings and take money for it too? Was it basically the same as making an offering and receiving a prayer of blessing? This wasn’t a place of pure spiritual practice. It was a major corporation.

“They charge money to name the child, right?”

“Of course.”

“People pay to get a name? Why?”

“Because it’s the easiest way to create a connection between the child and Wudang.”

A connection?

When I just blinked at him, not understanding, Yeon Ryang snorted and began explaining it step by step.

“High-and-mighty sects like Shaolin or Wudang don’t just take donations from anyone. If they accepted money from random nobodies and something annoying came of it later, wouldn’t that be a nuisance? So they avoid leaving an opening from the start.”

He shrugged and went on.

“But donations through child naming are different. Anyone can ask for it, and since there’s no limit on the amount, people can make very large donations. They say it’s because a name affects a person’s whole life, so you can’t put a price on it, but....”

“That just means they want you to decide for yourself how much is ‘appropriately generous.’”

“Haha, exactly. That’s why newly rich people come in droves with their children. It’s the only way to get a foot in the door with one of the great orthodox sects.”

“Wow....”

It was a structure so worldly I almost had to admire it.

So they were skimming it in small, careful bites through a method no one could openly object to.

If people donated like that, did Wudang actually remember them?

As if he had read my mind, Yeon Ryang spoke again.

“There’s no downside to having your name on record. It makes it easier for that child to end up listed in the sect register later.”

“Why does it make it easier?”

“If a child comes to seek admission and turns out to be the very one whose name they gave years ago, wouldn’t anyone be moved?”

“Oh. That’s true.”

“The donors probably aren’t hoping for anything grand. They’re probably satisfied just puffing out their chests and saying, ‘My son is a registered disciple of Wudang.’ Wudang gets money, and the donor gets an outwardly visible tie to Wudang. Both sides profit. That’s the skill of a great sect—blowing its nose without lifting a hand. There’s a reason places like that have lasted so long.”

Nepotism really was the same no matter what world you lived in.

Still, it wasn’t like people could survive just by swinging swords. Even Taoists needed money.

“You seem to know a lot about it. Have you been to Wudang Mountain too, Brother?”

“As if. Sister, if an unorthodox bastard like me stepped onto Wudang Mountain, it’d be a disaster. This is all just what I’ve heard.”

Chuckling, Yeon Ryang folded his arms.

“Oh, right. If you ever do go up Wudang Mountain, I hear you mustn’t forget the incense offering. They care more about appearances than anything, so it’s proper for a visitor to pay respects to Wudang’s ancestors first.”

“You have to pay for the incense too, don’t you?”

“Probably.”

They really did collect a fee for everything.

It wasn’t as though I had imagined immortals loftily cultivating the Dao atop the mountain, but once I started thinking of it as a tourist attraction you paid admission to visit, the whole thing somehow felt deflating.

Quietly listening to him, I suddenly grew curious.

“But if you go up Wudang Mountain, don’t you have to leave your weapon at the gate?”

I remembered a place where the protagonist always ended up fighting because he refused to surrender his weapon. Even Namgung Hwi had once refused and gotten into a fight over it.

“You mean the Sword-Relinquishing Pool? That’s what I’ve heard. Supposedly it means you should cast off worldly attachments and vexations there before ascending Wudang.”

I pressed my lips together.

The Taoists of the Wudang Sect seemed more attached to worldly wealth than anyone else in the world.

“Isn’t that just an excuse? It’s probably to prevent accidents. They don’t want fights breaking out in a Taoist temple.”

“Haha, right. That’s probably what they really mean. Things get bothersome if a disturbance starts.”

Chatting idly with Yeon Ryang as we walked, I soon saw a bustling settlement in the distance.

No—calling it a settlement was underselling it.

The crowded district of tall buildings looked as complicated and lively as if someone had lifted a whole street out of Chengdu and set it down here.

“This isn’t a town.”

“You’re right. It’s bigger than I expected.”

Yeon Ryang’s eyes widened in surprise as well. Apparently even he hadn’t expected Wudang’s influence to extend this far.

“They say, ‘In the north they revere Shaolin, in the south they honor Wudang,’ and they’ve built an entire city beneath the mountain. Sister, you’ll have to be even more careful. At this rate, every innkeeper and shop owner in Gyun County is probably related to Wudang within eight branches.”

“In the north they revere Shaolin, in the south they honor Wudang?”

“It’s a common saying. Shaolin and Wudang are the twin pillars of the orthodox martial world.... You’ve never heard it? Sister, are you really from the orthodox side? Are you telling me a young lady from a distinguished clan doesn’t know something even an unorthodox bastard like me knows?”

At Yeon Ryang’s teasing, I stuck my lip out.

“You keep saying I’m from the orthodox side, from the orthodox side, but I’m a bastard child, you know? Who would bother teaching something like that to a bastard child?”

“Haha, that’s why you got cast out.”

Wow. Should I hit him?

When I shot him a glare, Yeon Ryang pretended to be frightened.

“Yikes. You’re going to hit me, sister.”

“Brother, people tell you you’re obnoxious a lot, don’t they?”

Still bickering with him, I went into the nearest inn.

After seven days and nights, soaking my body in hot water and changing into soft, clean clothes left me so refreshed I found myself humming under my breath.

“Kyuuuu....”

Cane, who had been washed and dried along with everything else, draped itself limply over my head with a drowsy expression.

When I slowly came down to the first floor of the inn, I saw Yeon Ryang, now clean-shaven and tidy.

“Sister, over here. I ordered food in advance.”

In front of the waving Yeon Ryang sat a huge rack of lamb ribs and a plate of steamed fish.

The instant I approached him, a group of men in Taoist robes embroidered with the taiji emblem entered the inn.

Pine patterns were carved into the sword fittings at their waists.

They had to be Wudang’s Taechung Sword Guardians.

I stole a glance at the Taoists and sat down.

They all looked fairly old. Every last one of them wore a long beard, with deep wrinkles at the corners of their eyes.

Except for one.

One swordsman with an unusually youthful face was mixed in among them. Even being generous, he looked no older than his late teens.

Since he was wearing the same Taoist robe, he seemed to be of the same rank as the others, but then had that side somehow gone back to youth too?

When I stared openly at the young Taoist, Yeon Ryang nudged me and asked under his breath,

“Aren’t you staring a bit too hard, sister? Don’t tell me you’ve taken a liking to that handsome Taoist?”

“No. You never get involved with suspiciously handsome boys like that. There’s a high chance he’s either an old master who’s gone back to youth, or some great clan’s young master.”

Yeon Ryang just shrugged as though I were spouting nonsense again.

“An old master who’s gone back to youth? A great clan’s young master? You really do have quite the imagination, sister.”

I’m serious.

Shaking my head, I lowered my chopsticks toward the steamed fish.

I intended to ignore the Taoists and focus on filling my stomach.

“Junior Brother Jinseong. Do you regret having to return to Wudang Mountain?”

“No, Senior Brother. A disciple of the main mountain ought to remain at the main mountain.”

“Senior Brother Jingok, why ask something like that? Have you ever once seen him complain?”

“Haha, Jinseong. You can speak freely in front of us. Aren’t we fellow disciples?”

“If I were Jinseong’s age, would I want to speak comfortably with old men like us? I’d rather spend time with the Song-generation disciples.”

But the conversation that drifted over from behind me made it impossible to keep my attention on my food.

Jinseong?

That Jinseong, Namgung Hwi’s rival? The very same Jinseong who would one day become Wudang’s greatest sword?

My eyes flew wide open, and the moment I turned toward Jinseong, one of the Taoists met my gaze and asked,

“Young Lady. Is there something you want with us?”