Chapter 36:

Chapter 36:

“Blank Paper (3)

Mu-jin, considering he had nothing to lose, posed a question to Mu-yul.

“Yul, have you ever seen a crane?”

“No~?”

Mu-yul tilted his head, elongating the end of his word.

From the way he spoke, it seemed he hadn’t even seen a crane, let alone know what one was.

‘As expected...’

Mu-jin was not particularly fond of philosophical or profound thoughts. So, he thought simply.

The essence of the Crane Fist.

That is, the movement of the crane.

In that sense, Mu-yul had been trying to imitate the movement of a crane without even knowing what a crane looked like.

“Then, what have you been thinking while following Master Uncle Beob Hyun’s movements?”

“Huh? I wasn’t thinking anything. I just tried to copy the movements that the master showed us. Hehe.”

At Mu-yul’s answer, Mu-jin finally felt a certainty, ‘This is it.’ But that was only true for Mu-jin. Hye-geol and Beob Hyun were still frowning.

“What seems to be the problem with that?”

“The master is right. The Shaolin Five Fists are natural martial arts created by imitating the movements of animals living in nature. All movements are designed to flow naturally. Are you saying that my movements are awkward and Mu-yul cannot follow them?”

Beob Hyun asked incredulously. It wasn’t just because he felt insulted.

If his movements were awkward, how could he freely execute all the techniques of the Crane Fist?

“It’s not about blaming Master Uncle Beob Hyun’s movements. But think about it. Everyone says the movements of animals are natural, but that’s only natural for their own bodies. Is it really natural to imitate those movements with the human body?”

Mu-jin didn’t wait for the other’s response and continued.

“Moving smoothly and then suddenly stopping with a leg lifted, or suddenly striking with the wings and pecking with the beak—all of those are natural for a crane, but from a human perspective, they are a series of very unnatural movements.”

That’s why the Crane Fist was modified to suit human movements, transforming the action of a crane pecking at its prey into a punch.

People who have seen a crane might naturally accept and mimic these modified forms, but for Mu-yul, who had never seen one, he was just mindlessly copying the movements shown by Beob Hyun.

“Master Uncle Beob Hyun may utilize the techniques and vital points learned through years of practice, but Mu-yul can’t do that. He’s a simpleton, after all. This kid needs the basic structure set for him, and then he must be left to move as his body dictates.”

“Left to move as his body dictates?”

“Yes. Mu-yul may not be bright, but his body is quite capable. If he is consistently shown the movements of a crane, he will be able to mimic them on his own.”

While Mu-yul, who was listening to their conversation, indifferently asked whether he was being called a stonehead, the three of them were dead serious.

Especially Hye-geol, who had an epiphany after hearing Mu-jin’s words.

‘So there was a reason Hyun-gwang Sabek sent this child.’

The reason he had taken Mu-yul as his apprentice was due to his unrestrained nature and a physique similar to that of an animal.

But when had he himself become so entangled with the forms and vital points of martial arts?

Having inherited the Shaolin Five Fists, the most unrestrained martial arts of Shaolin, why was he bound by the Shaolin Five Fists not in their true essence, but as created by Dharma Master?

‘Without realizing, I have been harboring a sense of inferiority.’U//ppTodated fr/o/m nô/v/e/lb(i)n.c(o)\/m

Perhaps, because it was a martial art that deviated from other Shaolin arts, he was determined to have its legitimacy recognized.

Hyun-gwang Sabek must have also surmised this fact. And as for Mu-jin.

‘Perhaps it’s because he’s still young. He’s a child who isn’t trapped by fixed ideas.’

Having this realization, Hye-geol decided to accept Mu-jin’s opinion.

After all, what did he have to lose?

“Then, we must show Mu-yul a crane.”

[6:41 PM]

“That’s correct, Master Uncle Hye-geol.”

Hye-geol, upon hearing this, nodded his head but then briefly hesitated.

‘Wait. The Shaolin Five Fists are crane, snake, leopard, tiger, and dragon, right?’

Thus, the Tiger Fist would require a tiger, and for the final Dragon Fist, a dragon would need to be shown?

‘Tiger... I can understand, but a dragon... Since this is a world of martial arts fiction, could it exist?’

Mu-jin had such thoughts but quickly resumed his nonchalant demeanor.

Whether it be a dragon or a tiger, it was the job of Mu-yul’s master and grandmaster to capture them, not something for him to be concerned about.

Rightly so.

* * *

The next day.

After treating Hyun-gwang, Mu-jin, as usual, visited Hye-geol’s pavilion and was greeted by an extraordinary scene.

“Behold, Yul. This is the animal known as the crane.”

Originally, Hyun-gwang had never told Mu-jin to master the Crane Fist. Hyun-gwang had told him to learn the Vajra Fist and meld those vital points.

“The gap between the vital points of the Xiao Hong Quan and transitioning to those of the Guanyin Hands or the Arhat Techniques. There, combining the vital points of the Vajra Fist could increase power while reducing the rebound.”

Observing Hye-geol modifying the vital points to teach Mu-yul the Crane Fist, Mu-jin had found his clue.

And Hyun-gwang had said,

What is seen on the surface is not as important as the original intent .

Perhaps the original intent was not the Crane Fist, but the martial arts that Mu-jin was creating.

Therefore, Mu-jin saw no further need to frequent this place. His next task was to incorporate what he had learned into his own martial arts.

“It seems you have already gained something. You may go now.”

“Yes. Please take good care of Mu-yul, Master Uncle Hye-geol, Master Uncle Beob Hyun.”

As Mu-jin bid his last farewell and was walking away, he had this thought.

‘Wait. Did Grandmaster Hyun-gwang foresee everything that has transpired?’

The more he knew, the more wondrous his grandfather seemed to Mu-jin.

* * *

“Is it okay to let him go, Master?”

As Beob Hyun watched Mu-jin leaving the pavilion, he asked Hye-geol, who let out a hearty laugh.

“Hahaha. There’s no need to worry. What that child needed to learn was never the Crane Fist in the first place.”

He too was a seasoned master, not quite on par with Hyun-gwang, but having spent the last fortnight together, he was able to somewhat grasp Hyun-gwang’s intentions.

The surprising thing was,

‘That young child realized Hyun-gwang Sabek’s intentions around the same time as I did.’

And so, Hye-geol thought.

What an extraordinary grandson-grandfather duo.

* * *

While Mu-jin’s learning of the Vajra Fist and integrating its vital points was happening on one side, the treatment of Hyun-gwang continued unabated.

And when about a month had passed since the start of the treatment, a slight change occurred.

“Grandfather, I will start the manual therapy.”

“Hoho. Proceed.”

As usual, Mu-jin began pressing on Hyun-gwang’s body, starting the treatment.

Abbot Hyun Cheon was watching from behind for a moment.

“Hm!?”

As someone who’d been absentmindedly watching the same scene repeat, he suddenly noticed something different.

“Abbot, is it okay for you to move like that?”

“Hoho. Now that I think about it, it feels much more comfortable than before, Head Monk.”

When the Head Monk asked in surprise, Hyun-gwang responded with a light-hearted laugh.

Previously, Hyun-gwang was like a corpse, moving only by Mu-jin’s manipulation.

But today, he was shifting his body on his own to assume positions for treatment whenever Mu-jin tried to do something.

[6:53 PM]

The movements were simple adjustments—slightly moving his limbs and torso while lying down. Such trivial acts for a regular person were amazing for Hyun-gwang.

Given that Hyun-gwang used to ache all over with even the slightest movement and would be in pain from the smallest vibrations when carried by someone.

“The Abbot’s body is showing improvement! Your treatment must be working!”

Abbot Hyun Cheon, with a childlike excitement on his face, exclaimed, and Hyun Gong and senior brother Hye-dam, who were waiting outside, entered the room with surprised faces.

“Are you saying that these treatments really have efficacy?”

They had been skeptical when entrusting the treatment to Mu-jin, especially since the theories involving Thunder Energy and Extreme Yang Energy were unheard of to them.

“Mu-jin! You are a benefactor to our Shaolin!”

“Please, I implore you. Heal the Abbot completely!”

As signs of improvement became evident, their trust in him surged rapidly.

Regardless of their newfound confidence in him, Mu-jin was not content with just this level of progress.

As another month or so passed, the twisted joints and ligaments began to settle into place.

In other words, Hyun-gwang was no longer at the point where any movement caused him pain.

However, Mu-jin’s goal was not merely to eliminate pain. He wanted to ensure that at the very least, Hyun-gwang could walk on his own two legs again.

Thus, Mu-jin began implementing physical therapy, but about five days into the new treatment, he realized there was a significant problem.

And to solve this problem, he understood that extraordinary measures were necessary.