In the end, they didn’t find much in the bandit camp, apart from the Georyeong Divine Art.

After destroying the rest of the Georyeong Shindan, Seo-jun and Chun-bong returned to the old woman’s house. However, the atmosphere seemed a bit chaotic.

As they looked around, the woman with the strong willpower noticed Seo-jun and approached him.

"Benefactor, thank you so much."

"Huh? What for this time?"

"It’s about Ihyang. I heard you gave her a little push, right?"

Ah, that’s what it was. I wondered what she was talking about.

"It wasn’t a big deal."

"Not a big deal? Ihyang’s condition was so unstable, we were all worried about her, but now I think we can relax."

"Really?"

Well, come to think of it, she did seem a little unstable.

Seo-jun glanced around and asked, "So, what’s going on? Things seem a little hectic."

"Oh, it’s because of Ihyang’s marriage, and also because we’re all planning to leave soon. We feel like we’ve imposed too much on the old woman."

"Ah, I see."

Nodding, Seo-jun instinctively reached for Chun-bong’s head.

"Hey!"

She dodged. This brat. I’ll get her later.

"Then why don’t you come with us? We’re planning to leave soon as well."

"I hope we wouldn’t be a burden…"

"It’s not far to the village. Don’t worry. See you tomorrow."

Waving goodbye, Seo-jun headed back to the main house, where the Wang family was.

Wang Daesan, spotting Seo-jun, gave a faint smile.

"Are you planning to leave?"

"Yeah, it’s about time."

"Are you heading to Mount Hua?"

"Oh, how did you know?"

"With your skills, it’s only natural you’d want to participate in the martial arts tournament. I’m sure you’ll do well."

Wang Daesan was confident. With Seo-jun’s abilities, he could even aim for the championship.

While people from all over the region would flock to the competition, Wang Daesan had no doubt Seo-jun would at least place highly.

Smiling back, Seo-jun responded, "I’ll try out some of the Wang Family Blade Techniques."

"Haha… Just don’t cut anyone down in the tournament."

"I’m just saying."

"Well, that’s a relief, but…"

Why does everyone seem to have no faith in me these days?

It’s sad.

"Anyway, we’ll head in now. Looks like Soryeong needs to be put to bed soon. She’s dozing off."

"Indeed. So, you’ll leave in the morning?"

"Yes. What about you?"

"We’ll stay here until Jang Yu-ho is fully recovered."

"Got it. See you tomorrow then."

"Rest well."

After bidding Wang Daesan farewell, Seo-jun started to head back to his room. However, beside him, Chun-bong’s cheeks were puffed out.

"What the!"

Puffed-up Chun-bong? I can’t ignore this.

Pressing down on her cheeks with his palm, a "pffft" sound escaped from her lips.

"Ah! Get your hands off!"

"Why is she being so rebellious lately?"

"Shut up. And what was that about blade techniques?"

"Oh, right."

Since it came up, I should incorporate it into the Honwon Divine Art and practice some swordplay.

"Come with me."

•  

In the backyard, Seo-jun demonstrated the Wang Family Blade Techniques with his sword.

"……."

Chun-bong watched him with a frown.

Didn’t I do well?

After sheathing his sword, Seo-jun stood in front of Chun-bong and stared into her eyes.

"……."

"……."

"Oh. I won."

"We weren’t having a staring contest!"

"Then why were you staring so intensely?"

Chun-bong’s face twisted in frustration.

"I’m pissed off, you idiot! What’s the point of learning blade techniques when you already have sword techniques!?"

"Blade techniques feel different."

"The Hwangun Divine Sword is far superior."

"True, the Hwangun Divine Sword is one of the best in the martial world."

"Well… as long as you know."

Chun-bong pressed her lips together.

Seeing her calm down, Seo-jun took the chance to playfully squish her cheeks again. Chun-bong, pleased with the praise for the Hwangun Divine Sword, didn’t even resist this time.

Perfect.

Satisfied with the amount of cheek-squishing, Seo-jun lifted Chun-bong up.

"Alright, let’s rest for now. We’ll be walking again tomorrow."

"Actually, I was thinking… Why don’t we stop by a big city? We could travel with some merchants or maybe a security escort service."

"Why would we do that?"

"Riding a carriage, making some money along the way—it’s not a bad idea, is it?"

"Oh?"

That sounds like an adventurer’s guild quest. In a martial arts world, they’d probably call it being a ronin or a wandering swordsman.

A ronin...

Their actual life probably sucks, but there’s something romantic about the word.

Seo-jun, the Mugong Master of Romance. Seo-jun, the Ronin.

Not bad.

"Alright, from now on, call me Ronin Seo-jun."

"I seriously don’t get you…"

Chun-bong shook her head in disbelief.

It was sad.

•  

The next morning, Seo-jun packed up his belongings. Not that there was much to pack—just the same stuff he had when he left the back alleys.

Conveniently, the women had also finished their preparations, so Seo-jun joined them in saying goodbye to the remaining people.

"See you again, old man."

"Of course, benefactor. Feel free to visit anytime. My family isn’t far from this village, so you can always send word."

"Oh, right."

It hit Seo-jun that he didn’t even know where Wang Daesan’s family was located.

Scratching his head, Seo-jun waved at Wang Soryeong and her bodyguard Jang Yu-ho.

"See you again. You too."

"Make sure to visit again, handsome oppa!"

"I wish you luck, benefactor."

There were more people to say goodbye to than he expected.

The old woman, the kind young man from the village, and his companions, Seong Ihyang and Yang Chu-il, all got their farewells, leaving the day feeling like it had flown by.

As for Mr. Seong? Who cares. He’ll probably manage on his own.

And so, they left the village.

Before departing, Wang Daesan had given him directions, so there was nothing to worry about.

"This is the right way, right?"

"Yes, benefactor."

After walking for a while along the mountainside with the women, they quickly found the village they were heading for.

"Aren’t you going to stay for Ihyang’s wedding?"

When Seo-jun asked, the woman with the strong will smiled. Now that he thought about it, she seemed to be the leader of the group.

"The village isn’t far. They’ll be getting married soon, and Ihyang promised to send word."

"Ah, I see."

"I suppose it’ll be difficult for you to attend, though?"

"Yeah… probably."

"That’s a shame."

After dropping the women off at their village, Seo-jun bid them farewell and set off again.

Now, it was just him and Chun-bong. It felt incredibly peaceful.

"Ah, it’s nice just the two of us."

"You sure talked a lot with them."

"That’s just how socializing works. I’m actually an introvert."

"That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever heard."

"Ouch."

When I took the MBTI test, I was a solid introvert.

Pouting, Seo-jun unfolded the map.

"Let’s see…"

He had roughly drawn the path based on Wang Daesan’s advice, so navigating would be easy.

"We should climb this mountain first, right?"

"Yeah, it doesn’t look like it’ll take too long."

"Alright, let’s go, Chun-bong!"

Seo-jun hoisted Chun-bong onto his shoulders and sprinted up the mountain.

For a master like Seo-jun, the incline of a mountain was no different from flat ground.

As he ran as though the mountain were flat, Seo-jun suddenly came to a halt.

"Guh!"

Chun-bong, who was riding on his shoulders, clutched his hair tightly, leaning forward.

"W-what is it?"

"Shh."

Seo-jun’s sharp eyes gleamed as he set Chun-bong down.

He had sensed something—a dark, ominous presence.

"Why are you stopping?"

He explained to Chun-bong about the sinister energy he had sensed. Her face quickly hardened.

"Could it be…"

"You know what it is?"

"It’s probably the Sapha. What you’re sensing is likely the distinct feeling of evil qi."

Sapha. Seo-jun knew about them, at least vaguely.

Most importantly, he remembered what Chun-bong had told him.

It was probably the Sapha who had attacked the Shingeom Gold Family.

"What should we do?"

"Something’s off. If you felt such a sinister presence, these aren’t ordinary Sapha thugs. The small-timers are no different from common bandits."

Chun-bong bit her lip as she continued.

"But we’re still in Shanxi, right? Even if it’s a border area, this is Mount Hua territory. How are these Sapha members running around here? Are they planning to start a war or something? What the hell is going on…"

"Hey, Chun-bong?"

When Seo-jun tapped her on the head, she flinched.

"Ah! What?"

"Is this bothering you?"

"Uh? No? Why would it? Let’s just avoid them. It’s too dangerous."

"No, it’s totally bothering you."

"It’s not! What are you talking about?"

"Nope, I know you too well."

"What the hell does that even mean…?"

Chun-bong sighed, pressing her forehead.

With a grin, Seo-jun scooped her up.

"Let’s go, Chun-bong!"

"No! No, damn it, we can’t!"

It was too late.

Using the Hwangryong Crossing the River technique, Seo-jun soared through the air, heading straight for the group of Sapha members.

"They might be from the Black Serpent Alliance!"

"Don’t worry, my senses say we’ll be fine."

"You’re underestimating the martial world too much—damn it."

In the end, they ran right into the group.

As soon as the dozen or so men spotted Seo-jun, they drew their swords.

Their presence was no joke.

At that moment, Chun-bong was sure. These guys were definitely from the Black Serpent Alliance.

And they weren’t just grunts. There were even some high-level experts among them.

Clenching her teeth, Chun-bong watched as Seo-jun gently set her down and stepped forward.

"Watch closely, Chun-bong."

Sliding his foot forward, Seo-jun twisted his waist, and his hand naturally gripped the sword hilt.

"Just do whatever you feel like."

Seo-jun’s internal energy began to surge wildly. It was the Georyeong Divine Art. The rough, turbulent energy coursed through his body, filling him with power.

He held his breath and then exhaled.

Normally, the rear foot would be the anchor, but for Seo-jun, it didn’t matter. The sword was merely a brush to paint the strokes of the Honwon Divine Art.

"So just trust me and live however you want, okay?"

Most of his internal energy gathered into the sword sheath. He wasn’t holding back—he poured every ounce of energy into the sword, letting it build up.

Sring-

The sword was drawn, and he slashed it through the air.

It was the Wang Family Blade Technique, learned from Wang Daesan. The signature brutal slash unfolded from his sword.

────────────!!!

A golden sword aura shot forward.

Two of the men who had rushed toward him raised their weapons to block, but their swords were cleaved in half along with their bodies.

The sword aura continued, slicing through about a dozen trees before finally dissipating.

The silence that followed was deafening. Not even the chirping of insects could be heard as the mountain fell into stillness.

"So, what should we do with the rest of them?"

Seo-jun grinned.