Genius Martial Arts Trainer

A year passed amid the tense atmosphere.

During that time, the Zhuge Family formally accepted a live-in son-in-law and held a wedding ceremony, while Daoist Cheongsu also took in a disciple.

Since Cheongsu had taken in a disciple after Mukyeong, from Mujin's perspective, peace had come for a while.

For some reason, the Nangong Family briefly ran wild over the matter of the Zhuge Family's live-in son-in-law, but it passed more or less peacefully.

Mujin thought.

'No matter how insane the Nangong Family may be, at least they are not pathetic.'

Aside from that, several other changes had occurred in the martial world over the course of the year.

The greatest incident was the change in leadership of the Southern Heavenly Society.

Pai Jinsheng stepped down from the position of leader and returned to being the Master of the Nine Dragons Room, while Dao Yuechen rose to the position of leader of the Southern Heavenly Society.

Because of that, tension briefly spread throughout the martial world, but the evil factions did not start an all-out war.

Since the peace agreement made by the three great powers of the righteous, evil, and demonic factions had broken down, disputes were still occurring from time to time in regions where their territories bordered one another.

However, no incident large enough to cause a war had occurred yet.

It meant that, amid the strange tension, a relatively peaceful atmosphere had formed.

However, the claim that things were peaceful applied only to the martial world.

“The front remains deadlocked.”

At Zhuge Muhuan's words, Mujin frowned and nodded.

A year had passed since Emperor Taiping's northern expedition began. A major change had occurred in the course of the war.

Unlike at the beginning, when the imperial army had pushed forward one-sidedly, they had been unable to escape the stalemate that had begun several months ago.

There were two main reasons.

One was that, as they had penetrated deep into the northern grasslands, their supply lines had become far too long.

The other was that, as the war dragged on, the northern nomads had begun joining forces as one.

“In the end, conscription will continue for some time.”

As the number of people falling dead on the battlefield increased, the imperial family had begun conscription, rather than recruitment.

Of course, they were not yet dragging everyone they could find into the army.

One person from each household. They were taking young men.

Naturally, since they had to provide basic military training and prepare at least the minimum amount of supplies, they could not drag everyone away at once.

Because the conscription was taking place in stages, there were still quite a few people who had not yet been taken.

The problem was that, since conscription began, the atmosphere throughout the Central Plains had become considerably grim.

As young men, the most important source of labor, were taken into the army, the number of commoner households struggling to make a living was increasing.

“On top of that, it is said that the number of people such as horse bandits and mountain bandits has recently increased.”

“......I suppose so. Most of the imperial military forces are concentrated in the north and Beijing, so public order must be in a terrible state.”

“Public order is one problem, but because so many people have died in the army, it is said that those who fled to avoid being dragged into the military have turned to banditry in order to survive.”

“Tsk.......”

Mujin clicked his tongue with a bitter expression.

“Seeing as you brought this up, I assume a report has come in about mountain bandits operating within our League's territory.”

“Yes. What would you like to do?”

“.......”

Mujin thought for a moment.

Under ordinary circumstances, mountain bandits or horse bandits who tormented ordinary commoners would either be crippled or killed, depending on the severity of their crimes.

He would have chosen one of the two.

However, the situation was a little different now.

Most of those mountain bandits and horse bandits were, in truth, commoners.

It was a path they had been forced to choose in order not to be dragged into the army and killed, and in order not to starve to death.

“......Even if we merely subdue them, that would still be a problem.”

“Yes. If we did that, they would probably end up being dragged into the army and dying meaninglessly in the north. So, why not simply deal with them as we normally would? No matter how bad the situation may be, there are also commoners who endure and continue living. In the end, they are merely people who think only of themselves.”

As though there was no need to handle the matter in a complicated way, Zhuge Muhuan presented the orthodox argument.

However, instead of answering immediately, Mujin sank into thought for a moment.

It was a truly absurd situation.

The imperial family, which was supposed to protect and govern the common people, was conscripting them and waging war in order to create an achievement that would go down in history, while they themselves were worrying about the public order the imperial family should have been taking care of.

And the most absurd thing was that, no matter how much they cared about public order like this, there was no chance the imperial family would be grateful.

They would be fortunate if the imperial family merely took it for granted, and there was even a possibility that they would accuse the Zhengmu League of treason, claiming that its standing among the people had risen above that of the imperial family.

'Just looking at how King Seonjo hated Admiral Yi Sun-sin, the way kings and emperors think must all be like that.'

Since those people already did not particularly like the martial world, there was more than enough possibility.

While thinking about his dissatisfaction with the imperial family, something suddenly occurred to Mujin, and he asked Zhuge Muhuan.

“Come to think of it, martial artists are also included among those subject to the imperial family's conscription, are they not?”

“There has already been a great deal of discussion about that recently. Most sects located halfway up mountains are Daoist or Buddhist sects, so they are not yet subject to conscription, but it is said that the small and medium-sized sects or martial families located in the secular world are currently racking their brains over whom they should send.”

“Hmm. Then, how about this instead?”

Mujin explained the idea that had occurred to him.

“Rather than simply sending righteous martial artists into the military without any plan, we request that they organize a special unit composed of martial artists. As you know, Strategist, unless someone has reached a level at which they could be called a peerless master, there is not much difference between a martial artist and an ordinary person on a battlefield involving tens of thousands.”

It was something Mujin had clearly realized through the previous civil war among the righteous factions, the war against the Evil Alliance, and the war against Shincheon.

Each sect or martial family had researched battle formations and formations of its own, but in the end, battles between martial artists were, to put it nicely, close combat.

To put it badly, they were simply chaotic brawls.

From Mujin's perspective as a former soldier, it was an exceedingly crude method of fighting.

It was fundamentally different from a war in which tens of thousands of people formed ranks and fought one another.

Of course, if the battle developed into close combat, martial artists would slaughter ordinary soldiers, but unless the enemy was an idiot, there was little chance they would fight in such a way.

They were more likely to avoid close combat by maintaining their distance while shooting arrows from horseback, or by digging traps.

In such a situation, a martial artist mixed among ordinary soldiers might become trapped with nowhere to go and die, or grow frustrated and charge out alone, only to become an arrow target.

“But if a unit composed solely of martial artists were organized, would it not be possible to operate them in a manner similar to cavalry?”

“It is certainly a reasonable argument, but is there any need to go out of our way to help the imperial family like that? How do we know what those people will do after succeeding in the northern expedition?”

Zhuge Muhuan had already guessed the same point that the Heavenly Demon Gu Yangpae had suspected.

When the imperial army returned to the Central Plains after successfully completing the northern expedition.

They might attack the martial world.

Naturally, Mujin was also aware of that fact.

“That is precisely why there is even more reason to organize a unit composed of martial artists, is it not?”

A cold smile appeared at the corners of Zhuge Muhuan's mouth as he understood Mujin's true intention.

“You intend to respond to the conscription while planting spies among them.”

“Well, it would not be difficult to mix a few people skilled in concealment arts among the conscripted martial artists, would it?”

“Hmm. It is a good idea. Since we would be able to gather information more directly, it should be easier to predict the imperial family's movements in advance.”

Of course, the imperial family might try to use the martial artists as nothing more than meat shields.

Or, in preparation for the war they would wage against the martial world in the future, they might deliberately keep exposing the martial artists' unit to the most dangerous missions.

They might commit such a despicable act.

However, if the martial world refused the conscription, war could break out immediately.

If so, it would be far more advantageous to have them organize a special unit and gather information through people skilled in concealment arts.

Not only would there be a chance to recognize in advance that they were about to be thrown into a trap and escape, but if the imperial family acted in such a way, the Zhengmu League would also lose any reason to avoid war.

Mujin avoided war with the imperial family because it would be filthy, not because he was afraid of it.

Some of those close to him would die, and countless commoners caught up in that war would suffer.

Just as they had during the war against Shincheon.

However, if the other side touched them first, he had no intention of enduring it.

After listening to all of Mujin's opinion, Zhuge Muhuan nodded and said,

“It is certainly a good idea. However, by what means do you intend to make the imperial army create a special unit composed of martial artists?”

At that question, Mujin answered confidently.

“Is that not a problem the Chief Strategist should think about?”

“.......”

Zhuge Muhuan covered his mouth with his fan to hide his expression, but he could not hide the vein bulging on his forehead.

No, no matter how one looked at it, it seemed that he simply had not bothered to hide it.

“Ahem. I-it was a joke. It is not a certain method, but I thought that if we made the proposal while helping the imperial family with its conscription, it might prove somewhat useful.”

“Helping with the conscription...... Are you intending to encourage martial artists to enlist voluntarily?”

“That as well, but I am referring to the bandits we mentioned earlier.”

“Do you intend to capture them and hand them over to the imperial army?”

Zhuge Muhuan wore a surprised expression.

Looking at that expression, Mujin shrugged once.

“I do not like it, but we cannot simply leave them alone. Still, if a special unit composed of martial artists distinguishes itself on the battlefield, would that not greatly reduce the chance of them dying in the north?”

“Oh. I wondered why the discussion of a special unit came up while we were talking about bandits. So that was what you had in mind?”

“Ahem. For now, it is merely an immediate stopgap measure. There is something else I have been thinking about.”

“Is that so?”

Zhuge Muhuan, who had been waving his fan as though thinking about something, closed it with a 'snap.'

“For now, I will try to realize the proposal you made, League Leader. In addition to capturing mountain bandits and horse bandits and sending them to the imperial army, there seems to be a possibility if we mobilize our connections. It may be possible if we borrow some of the power of the Zhuge Family, the Huangbo family, and the Peng family.”

The Zhuge Family had a certain degree of interaction with civil officials, while the Huangbo family and the Peng family had connections with the military.

“It seems I will be busy for some time, so I will take my leave.”

As Zhuge Muhuan was about to leave, Mujin said to him,

“While you are going, could you call Strategist Baek Garyeong for me?”

“Hmm. Is it perhaps because of the other matter you mentioned a moment ago?”

When Mujin nodded, Zhuge Muhuan answered, “Understood.” and left the Leader's Hall.

***

Several days later.

A guest arrived at Soram Temple on Mount Song.

The middle-aged man, whose appearance was completely different from that of the people of the Central Plains, was dressed in exotic religious robes unlike those of Shaolin.

The man, who had come from distant India, was said to have embarked on a journey to enlighten the world for religious purposes and had arrived in the Central Plains.

He said that, while wandering through the Central Plains, he had come to visit Shaolin, a famous temple.

In particular, when he said that he had become even more interested because Great Master Bodhidharma, the founder of Shaolin, had come from India, Shaolin gladly arranged a time for religious exchange.

Even while surrounded by hundreds of Shaolin warrior monks, the man from India remained calm.

He spoke in somewhat clumsy Central Plains speech.

“First, I will show you the most famous traditional training method from our India.”

The man sat down on the ground as though assuming a lotus position, then calmly inhaled and exhaled as though circulating his energy and regulating his breathing.

And within that peaceful atmosphere.

Swoosh.

Twisting his body like a mollusk, he began assuming bizarre poses.

While kneeling on the ground, he bent his waist completely backward until both arms touched the floor.

Swoosh.

With both arms planted on the floor, he lifted his body upside down, then bent his waist and assumed a pose resembling a scorpion.

“Phew. This training method is called yoga. It can be described as a method of training whose goal is to focus on breathing, enter meditation, and fall into a state of selflessness.”

After demonstrating several more movements and focusing on meditation, the man soon sensed something strange.

“Hmm?”

Eventually, the man broke out of his concentration, untwisted his bizarrely contorted body, and raised his head.

Indeed, what he had sensed was not an illusion.

For some reason, all the Shaolin warrior monks were staring at him with strange expressions.

It was something he was accustomed to.

“Hahaha. It seems my movements surprised you greatly. They may look difficult, but if one trains consistently, they are movements anyone can perform.”

Whenever he had demonstrated them in the Central Plains before, everyone had shown the same reaction.

However, that was the man's misunderstanding.

“Hehe. Do you mean something like this?”

One of the warrior monks standing closest to him. A warrior monk with a bright and innocent face copied the movements the man from India had demonstrated exactly.

“Ook!”

Even the monkey beside him copied the movement.

“Lingling! Let us try that one too!”

“Ook!”

The two of them then began casually demonstrating movements that even the man from India found difficult.

“H-how are you able to do those!?”

At the startled man's question, Muyul, whose entire body was bizarrely bent like a mollusk, answered in an exceedingly calm tone.

“Hehe. I learned all of them when I was little!”

“F-from whom? Ah! Did someone from India come here before me?”

At that question, Muyul tilted his head once, then, while his entire body was already twisted, bent his head backward as well, taking on an indescribably grotesque form, and asked the elders of his sect,

“Did Mujin go to India?”

“.......”

At that grotesque sight, the Shaolin warrior monks had the same thought.

Perhaps Muyul had become possessed by a ghost.