Chapter 39:

Chapter 39:

“Fallen Monk (1)”

The day after Hyun-gwang nearly entered Nirvana.

From Hyun-gwang’s residence, a rich aroma wafted throughout the Shaolin temple grounds.

“Hehehe. To think that such immense joy existed in this world.”

Hyun-gwang, savoring the diverse flavors in his mouth, muttered to himself like an immortal.

Thump!

At that very moment, Hyun-gong burst into the room with urgent steps.

“Great, great senior brother! What, what are you doing right now!?”

Hyun-gong, who had rushed out due to the savory aroma spreading through the Shaolin grounds, asked with alarm. However, Hyun-gwang only responded with a hearty laugh.

“Oh. Has disciple Hyun-gong arrived? Wouldn’t you like some too? This is the famous ‘Buddha Jumps Over the Wall’. Hehehe. Indeed, if something tastes this good, isn’t it worth jumping over the fence?”

“What, what, what do you mean!?”

As Hyun-gong’s face turned beet red and he yelled loudly, Hyun-gwang simply smiled warmly.

“Hehehe. I’m not deaf. There’s no need to shout; I can hear you just fine.”

“......Huff.”

Hyun-gong took several deep breaths to calm his anger before asking in a lowered voice.

“Why, great senior brother, are you eating ‘that’ food?”

“They say it’s quite beneficial for one’s health, so I thought I’d give it a try.”

“You’re talking about ‘that’, aren’t you?”

Hyun-gong asked, almost as if he felt ashamed just for mentioning ‘Buddha Jumps Over the Wall’, but Hyun-gwang remained cheerfully nonchalant.

“Hehehe. Thanks to the head disciple, the rules have changed, so it’s permitted for those like me who are unwell, isn’t it?”

“......Does one who has nearly entered Nirvana still need to nourish their body?”

Hyun-gong inquired with a cautious tone.

The fact that Hyun-gwang had almost entered Nirvana was still a closely guarded secret within Shaolin.

Only those who had visited his residence on that day and the true disciples knew. They were keeping silent upon Hyun-gwang’s request.

[12:19 PM]

And Hyun-gwang, who had nearly entered Nirvana, looked at Hyun-gong with an odd expression and opened his mouth.

“Hmm? It seems the disciple does not approve of me eating nourishing food. Hehehe.”

“That, that’s not what I mean.”

“Hehehe. Well, since you disapprove, is that why you locked up our Mu-jin, who was so desperate to save me, in a cave? Hehehe.”

As Hyun-gwang added, ‘Why has the child who used to follow my words so obediently turned out like this,’ cold sweat ran down the forehead of the Head of the Jurisdiction Department.

Hyun-gong was the first to realize that the great senior brother who had nearly entered Nirvana had become somewhat quirky.

* * *

A month had passed since Mu-jin was confined to face the wall.

“The time has come, head monk, for Mu-jin disciple.”

Responding to the second-class disciple who had come to announce the end of the wall-facing, Mu-jin let out a deep sigh and stood up.

“I should never do this again.”

It was different from the last time I had endured for a week.

Abbot Hyun-cheon simply recited Buddhist scriptures and did not engage in any conversation with Mu-jin.

No matter how much one trains their body, practices martial arts, or goes hunting at night, spending a month without conversation is truly a dreadful thing.

“I shouldn’t have underestimated wall-facing.”

Mu-jin had these thoughts even though he hadn’t actually done wall-facing.

“Huff. Still, it wasn’t without its gains.”

Thanks to a month of continuous practice, Mu-jin had managed to smoothen the transitions between the movements of his techniques.

Then, Abbot Hyun-cheon, who had come out of the cave with him, showed a kind smile to Mu-jin and spoke.

“Mu-jin, it seems you might need to trim your hair a bit.”

Except for a very few who were experiencing hair loss, all Shaolin disciples regularly shaved their heads.

This was also true for Mu-jin, but since he had been wall-facing for a month, his hair had grown quite a bit and it was about time for a haircut.

“Damn it...”

It was a terrible thing for Mu-jin.

He had been drawn into this world while reading a novel to avoid stress-induced hair loss, only to find that he would have to live as a bald man here as well.

Although he had practically given up and accepted it, now that his hair had grown a bit longer due to wall-facing, Mu-jin found himself reluctant to let it go.

Therefore, Mu-jin asked Abbot Hyun-cheon something he wouldn’t usually inquire about.

“Abbot, why do all monks shave their heads so short?”

To Mu-jin’s question, Abbot Hyun-cheon answered with a smile.

“The reason is simple. Shaving one’s head symbolizes cutting ties with the secular world. By shaving each time the hair grows back, one is reminded that they have renounced worldly attachments and sought refuge in Buddhism.”

“An act to reaffirm the severance of ties with the secular world?”

[12:33 PM]

“Exactly. Our Shaolin’s founder, Dharma Master, did the same, and so did the Buddha, Sakyamuni. As their disciples, we follow their will.”

“Hehehe. Once you’re able to harmonize the three pulses and achieve the level of Daechujeon, you’ll be able to do it.”

* * *

That evening.

Mu-jin was wrestling with several books in a corner of the room.

These were books stored in the Sutra Repository, but since they weren’t of high importance, even he, as a third-class disciple, could borrow them.

They were simply books on Shaolin’s history or the history of Buddhism.

“Huff.”

Satisfied with the content, Mu-jin closed the book and took a small knife and scissors in his hands.

* * *

The next morning.

Beob Geon looked at Mu-jin with a puzzled face.

“I clearly gave you a small knife and scissors yesterday. Why have you not cut your hair?”

Mu-jin replied to Beob Geon’s question.

“I did cut it, Master.”

“That, that is what you call cutting it?”

Beob Geon asked incredulously.

Certainly, compared to when he had just finished wall-facing the day before, his hair was tidier. His wild hair had been somewhat managed.

But it wasn’t a shaved head.

Pointing to his head with his hand, Mu-jin answered Beob Geon.

[12:52 PM]

“Didn’t you say that cutting hair signifies severing ties with the secular world and seeking refuge in Buddhism? I thought this would be more definitive than simply shaving my head.”

“That, that look is what you mean?”

“Yes. Who would say that someone with this haircut has worldly ties? In addition, I carved a swastika to honor the Buddha’s will.”

Indeed.

To avoid being bald, Mu-jin had chosen an extremely short two-block mohawk and carved a swastika on the right side of his head with the small knife.

“......”

Beob Geon was momentarily at a loss for words at Mu-jin’s explanation.

Even in the modern world, someone with such a haircut might be considered a delinquent or suspected of having ‘Hongdae disease’ (a term for someone trying too hard to be trendy).

Naturally, in this world, there was no one with such a haircut, and there would be few who would want to be close to someone with it.

It was definitely a haircut that symbolized a complete severance from the secular world, even more so than the completely shaven monks.

“Hehehe. That’s an interesting notion.”

Just then, senior brother Hyun-gwang, who had been listening to the two’s conversation, burst into hearty laughter.

Having realized that the intention behind an action is more important than the rule itself, the enlightened Hyun-gwang was accepting Mu-jin’s unconventional choice.

Indeed, it was ironic for him to fuss over Mu-jin’s hairstyle when he himself indulged in alcohol and meat.

However, just because Hyun-gwang respected Mu-jin’s intentions didn’t mean the rest of Shaolin would accept his hairstyle.

In the afternoon.

The Head of the Jurisdiction Department, Hyun-gong, who came to treat Hyun-gwang, was appalled upon seeing Mu-jin’s hair.

“You, you rascal! How can a disciple of Shaolin have such hair!”

Not just Hyun-gong, but also senior brother Hye-dam and Abbot Hyun-cheon were equally flabbergasted. Especially since Hyun-cheon, who had just finished wall-facing the day before, had told Mu-jin to cut his hair, it was utterly exasperating for him.

Yet, Mu-jin remained undaunted by Hyun-gong’s angry voice and repeated what he had told Beob Geon.

He reiterated his bizarre logic that the hairstyle was a decision to sever ties with the secular world and honor the Buddha’s will.

“Do you really think that makes sense!”

Of course, for Hyun-gong, who oversaw Shaolin’s rules, such reasoning was not going to cut it.

“Hair is referred to as the grass of ignorance (無明草) or the grass of vexation (煩惱草), symbols of worldly desires! Cutting it off is the very symbol of seeking refuge in Buddhism!”

“Yes. That’s why I cut my hair, didn’t I?”

“That little bit of hair you’ve left! That represents your remaining attachment to the secular world!”

Hyun-gong yelled, unable to accept Mu-jin’s hairstyle. But Mu-jin couldn’t yield on this matter either.

More than two years had passed since he was drawn into this world of martial arts novels.

[12:58 PM]

Mu-jin was slowly realizing something. It was impossible to return to his original world overnight.

If he considered the story of the novel he knew, at the very least, he would have to spend over ten years in this place.

To live strictly as a Shaolin monk for all that time would be nothing short of torture.

‘I’ll enjoy myself while I’m here, not just rush towards the ending!’

To endure for over ten years, Mu-jin decided to find some middle ground for himself.

And his hair was one middle ground he absolutely could not compromise on, especially considering he was drawn into the novel because of his hair loss.

So, Mu-jin played a strong hand.

“To reach enlightenment, wasn’t it not only hair that Sakyamuni Buddha cut off?”

At Mu-jin’s words, both Hyun-gong and Hyun-cheon flinched.