The Genius Martial Artist Who Remembers Everything Chapter 25

The Taeul Sect had been bustling since early morning because of the unfamiliar visitors.

Dozens of people dressed in matching uniforms swept the grounds, cleaned the buildings, and prepared the morning meal.

The smell of an entire pig simmering in a large cauldron was enough to wake the children on its own.

Even the external disciples, who had entered the sect weighed down by anxiety over the examination, soon forgot their worries as they searched for the source of the rich aroma filling the air.

“What in the world is all this?”

At my mutter, Wang So-so smiled sweetly beside me.

“Father said everyone should eat well on the day of an important examination, so he prepared it.”

“The Estate Master did?”

“Yes.”

“I feel as though we are imposing upon him far too much.”

“Hoho. He originally wanted to slaughter an ox, hold an enormous feast, and welcome the Appraisal Envoys in the Taeul Sect’s name. We barely managed to stop him.”

“……Please thank him for me.”

“Father also said you should visit the Wang Estate sometime. He wants to serve you a meal personally.”

“I will visit soon.”

Every member of the Taeul Sect gathered in the dining hall.

A simple but hearty bowl of meat soup sat before each person.

The children were already struggling to restrain themselves. They swallowed repeatedly while staring at the Sect Leader, waiting for permission to begin.

“Let us eat while giving thanks to the Estate Master, who prepared such a wonderful meal for us.”

“Thank you!”

The moment Hong Mun-gi finished speaking, the children shouted in unison.

Wang So-so merely nodded with a gentle smile.

The children seemed uncertain how to react.

Even after waiting for a moment, she did not begin bragging or acting proudly like Gye Cheol-yeong usually did.

Listening to his long boasts had once been a regular part of their meals.

“Is no one going to eat?”

At Wang So-so’s question, everyone hesitated before hurriedly picking up their spoons.

The atmosphere in the dining hall was warmer than it had ever been.

After the meal, while everyone was preparing for the examination, members of the Gyeryong Merchant Guild entered the sect.

Gye Yeon-seok and Gye Cheol-yeong were among them.

Three distinctive strangers accompanied the pair.

One was a scholarly-looking man. Another was a woman with the bearing of an experienced warrior. Between them stood a middle-aged man who gave off a peculiar air.

Their group looked remarkably similar to a team of Appraisal Envoys.

“Hmph! Did you eat some cheap meat soup?”

Gye Yeon-seok pinched his nose dramatically.

“The foul smell fills the entire hall.”

Wang So-so tilted her head.

“That should not be possible. Father specially slaughtered a Green-Blue Pig, a delicacy from Zhejiang Province. There should not have been even the slightest unpleasant smell.”

A Green-Blue Pig was raised on Anji white tea and Bamboo-Salt Clear Wine from Zhejiang.

No wonder the broth had tasted so rich without even a trace of gaminess.

“……”

Unable to respond to Wang So-so, Gye Yeon-seok redirected his irritation toward me.

“Can you truly swallow meat soup before such an important examination?”

“Soup made from one expensive pig is much easier on the stomach than a feast made from several cheap ones.”

I was referring to Gye Yeon-seok’s habit of buying large numbers of old breeding pigs whenever he held a feast.

“But will you be all right?”

I looked toward Gye Cheol-yeong.

“He could fail the examination. Should you not be visiting a temple and praying with all your sincerity instead?”

“Hmph! It seems you have not heard the rumors yet.”

“Which rumors?”

“The man standing at the center of those three is the famous Ace Instructor, Teacher Jang Sa-gun.”

At Gye Yeon-seok’s gesture, the nearby children turned toward Jang Sa-gun’s party.

“That man has never once failed to send a student through the Special Admission Track.”

Gye Yeon-seok smiled proudly.

“No matter what tricks you attempt, the Taeul Sect will ultimately serve as nothing more than a backdrop for our Cheol-yeong.”

The children who overheard him immediately began to wilt, lowering their heads one after another.

“Judging by the way you are speaking, it seems you truly intend to sever your relationship with the Taeul Sect.”

“Hmph! There is no reason to maintain ties with people who abandon old relationships over a single bowl of meat soup.”

At his words, I slowly released my killing intent.

“Think carefully.”

My voice turned cold.

“Even if it was only in name, Senior Brother Cheol-yeong entered the Taeul Sect as a lay disciple. If he attempts to leave whenever he pleases, he will naturally have to pay the proper price.”

Exposed to my killing intent, Gye Yeon-seok’s face turned deathly pale.

At that moment, Jang Sa-gun stepped forward.

“Hoho. A martial artist threatening an ordinary civilian?”

He shook his head.

“You clearly received a poor education. Is this what the Taeul Sect teaches its disciples?”

I did not retreat.

“A man who sells his knowledge for money should be called a merchant, not a gentleman.”

Jang Sa-gun’s expression twitched.

He quickly composed himself and continued.

“Even Confucius accepted tuition from his disciples so that he might purchase grain.”

“I heard the Ace Instructor demands an entire mansion as tuition.”

Jang Sa-gun’s face flushed bright red.

His fees were every bit as enormous as his reputation.

Even though the arrangement had been made through mutual understanding because supply and demand aligned, it was hardly something Jang Sa-gun could proudly admit while presenting himself as a gentleman.

“Your tongue is remarkably sharp.”

Jang Sa-gun looked at me coldly.

“We shall see whether your abilities are equally impressive once the results are revealed.”

At that moment, Kang Chae-seok’s thunderous voice rang throughout the hall.

“Enough idle chatter! Everyone, gather together! The Appraisal Envoys have arrived!”

The Sect Leader, Elders, and Hall Masters had already assembled.

Once the disciples gathered in one place, a small procession slowly entered the grounds.

“It is the Murim Alliance.”

At someone’s shout, everyone turned toward the front of the group.

The man leading the procession carried the Murim Alliance’s flag, clearly announcing that they had come as official envoys.

“I am Lee Ja-gon, an Appraisal Envoy of the Murim Alliance. I offer my greetings.”

“We offer our greetings.”

When Lee Ja-gon greeted Sect Leader Hong Mun-gi, the envoys behind him bowed in unison.

Excluding the guards, there were eleven Appraisal Envoys in total.

Aside from Lee Ja-gon, five had the appearance of scholars, while the remaining five looked like experienced warriors.

“You have endured a long journey.”

Hong Mun-gi returned their greeting.

“I hope you will select an outstanding talent from our sect this year as well.”

“Selecting talented disciples from among the One Hundred Eight Peaks is also a matter of great importance to the Murim Alliance.”

Lee Ja-gon spoke solemnly.

“We will do everything possible to ensure the examination proceeds fairly and without incident.”

The ten other envoys immediately split into two groups and began preparing the tests.

The scholarly examiners removed the wooden cases strapped to their backs. From inside, they took out stacks of examination papers densely covered in writing and arranged them across several tables.

The junior disciples, most of whom were taking a formal examination for the first time in their lives, had already begun turning pale.

Gye Cheol-yeong, meanwhile, was reading a palm-sized booklet made from several small sheets of paper.

He glanced at the others and laughed quietly.

“Are you frightened by the examination?”

“……Senior Brother, are you not afraid?”

“You are frightened because you failed to prepare properly.”

Gye Cheol-yeong smiled confidently.

“If you had prepared as thoroughly as I did, there would be nothing to fear.”

The disciple speaking with him was Dong-ryong, the youngest of the three brothers—Geum-pyo, Eun-ho, and Dong-ryong.

“If you truly know nothing, shall I tell you a few questions that might appear?”

“……”

Dong-ryong stared at him with obvious resentment.

Geum-pyo and Eun-ho, who had overheard the exchange, quickly pulled their younger brother away.

While the scholars prepared the written examination, the warrior examiners spoke with the Hall Masters.

“Will the martial examination once again cover only basic swordsmanship and basic cultivation methods?”

At Kang Chae-seok’s question, one of the female examiners nodded.

“The martial examination for sects belonging to the One Hundred Eight Peaks always follows the same principle.”

She explained calmly.

“We evaluate how deeply the disciples understand their basic martial arts and how effectively they can apply them.”

She looked toward the gathered disciples.

“They will have opportunities to learn more advanced techniques after entering the Murim Academy. What matters at this stage is whether their foundations are strong and stable.”

“I understand.”

Kang Chae-seok nodded.

“As for our basic swordsmanship and cultivation method, the Hall Masters can explain which aspects you should examine most closely.”

The female examiner shook her head.

“We reviewed all available information regarding the Taeul Sect’s martial arts at the Murim Alliance before coming here.”

She offered a polite nod.

“We appreciate your concern, but no further explanation is necessary.”

Kang Chae-seok appeared visibly flustered.

Even when discussing only basic martial arts, how could outsiders understand them better than those who had practiced them their entire lives?

If these examiners had truly grasped everything from written records alone, then their martial attainment must stand far above that of the Taeul Sect’s Hall Masters.

“Grr……”

Kang Chae-seok said nothing further and merely watched them continue their preparations.

Lee Ja-gon was inspecting the examination grounds when he suddenly noticed someone standing inside the hall.

His eyes widened.

The other man met his gaze and greeted him with a slight bow.

“Senior, what brings you here?”

Everyone’s attention shifted toward Lee Ja-gon and Jang Sa-gun.

“Junior, have you been well?”

“Of course.”

Lee Ja-gon smiled respectfully.

“Thanks to the thorough guidance you gave me, Senior, I now serve as the Incense Master of the Appraisal Envoys.”

“I always knew you would rise so far.”

Listening quietly, I realized that Lee Ja-gon and Jang Sa-gun seemed to have been close in the past.

“By any chance, did you teach one of the examinees this year?”

“Ah, I have yet to introduce him.”

Jang Sa-gun extended a hand toward his right.

“This is Gye Cheol-yeong, a lay disciple of the Taeul Sect and the legitimate heir of the Gyeryong Merchant Guild.”

He smiled proudly.

“Everyone in Hefei knows of the Twin Dragons of the Iron Sword Sect, but there is another remarkable talent hidden in Anhui—a Hidden Dragon. That is why I came here.”

Gye Cheol-yeong straightened his shoulders, stepped forward, and offered a clasped-hands greeting.

“I am Gye Cheol-yeong of the Gyeryong Merchant Guild.”

“He certainly appears impressive. I understand why you chose to teach him, Senior.”

“Hohoho. You claim to have spent all your time administering examinations, yet it seems only your skill with words has improved.”

“Well, every disciple you taught entered the Murim Academy, did they not?”

Lee Ja-gon smiled.

“From our perspective, your efforts make it easier to distinguish jade from ordinary stone. We should consider that a convenience.”

“Kekeke. Yes, yes. I understand.”

Jang Sa-gun nodded happily.

“If you are free after the examination, let us share a drink.”

“I would be pleased to.”

The distance between them and the disciples was not great, so their entire conversation reached us clearly.

Wang So-so, who had been listening, raised her brows.

“This is absurd. I will tell Father immediately and have him file an objection.”

She was only voicing what all of us felt.

Even so, I stopped her.

“They have not shown him any special treatment during the examination yet. Remain seated.”

“Brother, the fact that an examiner and examinee share a personal connection is already unfair.”

At that moment, Sa-ryeon interrupted.

“Senior Brother.”

“Yes?”

“She should call you Senior Brother, not Brother. Should she not?”

“Ah…… I apologize.”

Wang So-so quickly corrected herself.

“In any case, Senior Sister, you also believe this is unfair, do you not?”

“Yes.”

Sa-ryeon glanced toward me.

“But Eldest Senior Brother must have some sort of plan. Is that not right?”

Her gaze made it clear that she would not forgive me if I admitted I had none.

“You both studied the book I gave you, correct?”

“I studied it as much as I could, but……”

Sa-ryeon did not sound particularly confident.

“Yes. I memorized the entire book.”

Wang So-so, on the other hand, answered without hesitation.

“You memorized all of it? There was quite a lot.”

“The only thing I could do while confined to my room was read books. Memorizing that much was not difficult.”

I nodded slightly.

“The other disciples should be prepared as well, then.”

“Junior Sister So-so personally tutored anyone who had trouble understanding the material.”

“Oh.”

That was more than enough.

Despite my confidence, Sa-ryeon and Wang So-so tilted their heads as though they still did not understand.

“The examination will now begin. All examinees, please take your seats.”

The disciples spread out and sat upon small mats arranged in neat rows and columns.

The scholarly examiners walked between them, placing the examination papers facedown one by one.

“You will have one full hour.”

One of the scholars addressed them solemnly.

“Do your best. Anyone caught looking at another examinee’s answers or attempting to copy them will be immediately disqualified. Keep that firmly in mind.”

He raised a small mallet.

“Begin.”

Ding.

The moment the small gong rang, the disciples turned over their examination papers.

Gye Cheol-yeong began scanning the questions with complete confidence.

The other disciples, however, stared blankly at their examination papers with dejected expressions.

They looked as though all they could see was white paper covered in black ink.

‘Notice it already!’

Fifteen minutes passed.

Confusion gradually appeared in Gye Cheol-yeong’s eyes.

He had encountered a question he had not expected.

Meanwhile, the other disciples began tilting their heads one by one.

Then, slowly but steadily, they started writing their answers.

“What is going on?”

Below the training ground, Jang Sa-gun sensed that something was strange and furrowed his brow.

Every disciple of the Taeul Sect was filling out their answer sheet without pause.

Only then did Gye Cheol-yeong realize that he was the only one struggling with the questions.

“Haa……”

He let out a quiet sigh while glancing toward the other disciples.

One of the scholarly examiners immediately approached him and whispered,

“Examinee, if you do not wish to be disqualified, keep your eyes on your own paper.”

“Ah…… Yes.”

Gye Cheol-yeong hurriedly lowered his head.

Even so, he could no longer concentrate on the examination.