Black Cat and Miss Yeo Il-ye quickly moved their belongings to Tang So-yeol’s workshop.
“Sisters… are you leaving Rye-ah’s house…?”
The two couldn’t bear to part with the teary-eyed Rye-ah, so they sought permission from Tang Do-gyeong and Tang Moon-gi, who were the fathers of the group.
“It’s my first time sleeping at someone else’s house…! I’m so excited!”
Thus, the residents of Tang So-yeol’s workshop became five. As Tang Do-gyeong and Tang Do-yeon joined as moving helpers, the sounds of cleaning and redecorating echoed even into the blacksmith shop.
Swoosh—
Whoosh!
I was struggling to melt a piece of metal in front of the furnace once again today.
“My Disciple, still no progress today, huh?”
Tang So-yeol, puffing away on a cigarette next to me, gave me some jabs.
“Why is that?”
“What do you mean, why?”
Swoosh—
As I repeated this seemingly meaningless task, I asked.
“Master, don’t you dislike people to begin with? Why are you suddenly bringing so many people in?”
“I don’t know what you think you know about me. And can’t I do that?”
“Master, it’s clear that you’re someone who dislikes people. So, what’s the purpose?”
“I am the Great Gate.”
“What’s that?”
What’s the connection between Tang So-yeol and the Great Gate?
Tang So-yeol is the future greatest craftsman. Anyone aiming for master-level skills in the Martial World would want to take him as their teacher.
In the game’s Martial World, Tang So-yeol holds significant importance.
So there should definitely be some information in the [Setting Books].
Should I take a moment to check?
I stopped for a moment and concentrated.
“My Disciple. Your feet are resting.”
Ignoring Tang So-yeol’s taunts momentarily, I began to dive inward. As I delved deep within, a single door welcomed me.
It was the door to the [Mind Library].
Creeeak—
Along with the sound of an unheard echo, my consciousness immediately entered the Mind Library.
There stood a bookshelf in one corner. The [Setting Books], which had now flown from my mind, were neatly stored.
Since the last week I spent as the External Instructor of the Golden Guards, I had been inserting the [Setting Books] into my mind little by little, and afterward, I had gathered all the [Setting Books] into my mind after closing down.
Now, all the [Setting Books] were inside the Mind Library.
“Tang So-yeol… Tang So-yeol… found it.”
[Genius][Intuition][Pessimistic][Rebellious][Great Gate Physique][Hidden Talent][Weakness Penetration][Sensitive Qi Sensitivity]
I hoped at least one of the eight traits would be there, and wow, there were seven tempting traits! Only the [Pessimistic] trait wasn’t directly related to martial arts or techniques, while the rest were all martial arts-related. Although the rebellious trait was the worst, even it had its downsides but also its own merits.
“The Great Gate Physique, huh.”
The [XX Physique] traits are incredibly powerful and rare. They’re terms used to describe people with natural talents advantageous for martial arts, so that’s not surprising.
It’s true that these traits are rare, but those at the top of the vast Martial World usually possess at least one.
The character Jeong Cheol, involved with the Emergence of the Sacheon Outcast, possesses the [Heavenly Energy Physique]. The Shaolin Temple’s leader has the [Diamond Physique], and one of the disciples of the Mu-dang Sect has the [Two categories Physique]. The Hall Master of the Martial Forest Alliance possesses the [Heavenly Martial Physique], and there are even those with [Extreme Yin Physique] or [Extreme Yang Physique] in places like the Solar Palace and the North Sea Ice Palace.
The examples listed are traits that could be said to be rare among one or two people in the world, but even without special properties, being [Sturdy Physique] or [Resilient Physique] is enough to be recognized as a superior physique.
So, the [Great Gate Physique] can also be regarded as a symbol of special talent.
The issue is…
“Tsk. It doesn’t even say what kind of effect the Great Gate Physique has.”
I either couldn’t remember it or didn’t write it down; it’s likely one of the two. In either case, it’s evidence that they deemed the information’s importance to be low.
It’s regrettable that I couldn’t find out about the Great Gate Physique, but just because I entered the Mind Library doesn’t mean the outside time stops.
I was in the middle of talking to Tang So-yeol, so I should hurry back.
As I closed the bookshelf and returned my consciousness, I found Tang So-yeol’s cigarette was flying towards me. Reflexively leaning back, the cigarette narrowly missed where my forehead had been a moment ago.
“My Disciple, how many times have I called you, yet you ignored me so brazenly?”
“So what does that Great Gate mean?”
“Just as that Black Cat carries the energy of the Moon, I too possess the energy of the Great Gate.”
“…That’s amazing. How did you know that Black Cat has a Moon Physique?”
“It seems like you’ve had quite an association with that child. Surely you’ve experienced the power of the Moon, right? If you think I share a similar force, then you should understand.”
“I get that you have the Great Gate Physique, but what do you intend to do with the Black Cat?”
“Well, I don’t know. I’ve never seen anyone born with the star’s energy before.”
Tang So-yeol pointed at me with his cane.
“It’s unpleasant that you, a slow-witted one, agree with me, but I too have found myself at a loss concerning how long it would take to make a sword like this. That Black Cat might understand me and relay it to you.”
“Hmm…”
After pondering for a moment on Tang So-yeol’s statement, I replied.
“It would be nice if that’s the case, but isn’t it a bit unreasonable to have such high expectations without evidence?”
“It doesn’t matter. If it works, then good; if not, then that’s that.”
What a carefree person. It dawned on me that he planned to exploit someone and then toss them aside without flinching.
“For the first time in a while, my instincts are sending signals. There’s no evidence, but there should probably be results.”
What can I say? Just as I confirmed the [Intuition] trait a moment ago, I couldn’t say much. If it doesn’t work, I already had a headache imagining the Black Cat panicking later, but I had no choice but to agree that we should at least give it a go.
However, the next day.
I met someone who would lend more credence to this vague plan.
It was none other than the Poison Doctor.
“Ha ha, so the Black Cat and Tang So-yeol met, huh.”
“Yes, talking about star energy and such, he’s thinking of teaching through the Black Cat.”
“Hmm…”
While going through the treatment, various conversations naturally occurred, and this was just a casual mention of something that happened yesterday without any significant meaning.
However, the reaction of the Doctor was anything but ordinary.
“Do you know of the Seven Stars?”
“I don’t know well, but…”
“It’s a type of astrology that observes the celestial energies. It represents celestial bodies that strongly influence the energy between heaven and earth, including the Sun, Moon, and the Big Dipper and Little Dipper. It’s one branch of fortune-telling in Confucianism.”
“So… does that mean from a Confucian perspective, there’s a connection between the two stars, two people?”
The Poison Doctor nodded.
“You can say these two people are embodiments of the Great Gate and the Moon. They are excellent in comprehending the energies of the stars without needing to gauge them. When the Moon is the main star, the Great Gate enters in the House of Fortune, and when the Great Gate is the main star, the Moon enters the House of Buddha.”
“Uh… um.”
I suddenly lost track of the conversation’s flow. As I stumbled over my words, the Doctor quickly summarized.
“To So-yeol, the Black Cat possesses the fate of a partner, while to the Black Cat, So-yeol’s influence can be significantly mental.”
“…A partner?”
So you mean to say Tang So-yeol is eyeing the Black Cat? In that kind of way?
Seeing the confusion on my face, the Doctor rushed to add.
“It merely means a strong attraction towards such types of people. It implies that they might fill the shortcomings of the Great Gate.”
“Umm…”
“Be aware that you must help the Black Cat not to be negatively influenced by So-yeol.”
True, that pessimist and outsider had suddenly let in the Black Cat and two others into his home; from that perspective, it was an outrageous display of favor.
It’s hard to imagine Tang So-yeol positively influencing the Black Cat, so I would need to handle things properly.
Limiting the time the Black Cat is involved seems wise.
Having pondered that, I began the day…
“If you sweep your feet like this, the air swooshes smoothly. Though the temperature of the charcoal remains the same, the heat is transmitted more to the iron rod, and if we move it like this… now, we melt it once really well….”
The Black Cat fully grasped Tang So-yeol’s disastrous explanation in one go.
“Hmm…. I’m not entirely sure, but senior, at least stepping on the bellows harder or softer doesn’t really seem crucial. What’s more important is the feeling of creating a canopy to prevent the wind below from escaping.”
“Ooh…! That’s it! You dim-witted disciple, hurry and act!”
“…Hmm.”
Creating a shelter for the air.
That was indeed a thought I’d never tried before. Until now, I had only aimed to increase the total amount of air entering the furnace with each stomp.
But if I could only make one blow in a limited time, this direction does seem correct.
I had failed for a week straight, yet I didn’t think it was wasted time. I had confidence in the maximum amount of air I could achieve with one blow.
As I carefully stomped down on the bellows, Tang So-yeol’s continuous instructions poured out from behind me.
“No, that’s not it! After one blow! Then, swoosh! Gradually it rises and ignites!”
“Hmm, so after one strong blow, I need to maintain that flow, right?”
A strong blow, then…
“Is it the same as spinning?”
I am Ho Cheon-an.
The one who maintains a double-helix flow of internal energy all day. Spinning? That also reminds me of Ho Cheon-an.
In the end, it was an instruction to stir the air in the furnace.
If I blow in a significant amount of air from below, it should bounce against the walls of the furnace and try to come out again at the entrance. If I blow too weakly to allow such air to escape, then it should return to the internal flow.
Swoosh—
Whooosh!
After several trial and error attempts, results finally started to show.
The piece that had been a dull red began to glow with a more vivid orange.
“That’s it, keep going.”
The blowing was both successful at times and failed at others. Although failures were more frequent, every time I did succeed, I slowly familiarized myself with the sense of success at my feet.
I continued to blow into the bellows.
I could clearly feel that sense of success infusing into my foot. The piece began to emanate a bright orange glow. With every pump of the bellows, the piece, once tinged with orange, was now glowing as if it would burst with heat.
“Success, my disciple! It took you over a week to get this simple thing down, you dullard!”
“Master, don’t you think your explanations might have been the problem?”
“Some people understand on the first try. And isn’t it your comprehension problem if I have to explain such simple things to you? Even after I considered your dullness and gave you metaphors, you still didn’t grasp it.”
Should I hit him?
Honestly, isn’t this enough to avoid punishment?
I was seriously contemplating whether to unleash my fist when a hand reached out to me.
“Remove it and place it on the anvil.”
I promptly erased my stray thoughts and followed the great Master’s insightful direction, placing the fully heated metal on the anvil.
What’s the reason for placing it on the anvil?
Of course, it’s for hammering.
If my guess was right, Tang So-yeol handed me one of the hammers hanging on the wall.
“It’s a shame for a rookie to strike the ingot, but since we can’t let this heated ingot cool down as it is, we have no choice. Make sure to remember the feeling of striking truly hot metal.”
Raising the hammer to head height, I swung it down with force.
DONG!
With a brilliant sound, my first strike marked the ingot.
“Congratulations on becoming a novice craftsman, you slow disciple!”
I finally took the first step in making a sword.
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