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The Five Great Clans, the Nine Great Sects, and then the "others."
Having lived for twenty-two years in a democratic nation, I felt a slight dissatisfaction with such blatant criteria for dormitory assignments.
Even if it were difficult to group students by personality without a magical hat, couldn't they have at least assigned them randomly?
"They say the Heavenly Mandate Pavilion was built with donations from the Five Great Clans, and the Earthly Righteous Pavilion was constructed with money from the Nine Great Sects."
However, after hearing Maeng Ryeong-ji’s explanation, I was immediately convinced.
I was, after all, someone who had lived for twenty-two years under a capitalist system in my previous life.
"Then what about the Human Foundation Pavilion?"
"I heard it was built with the Academy Master’s own private funds."
"What?"
I was utterly shocked.
It wasn't funded by the Murim Alliance’s subsidies or donations from parents.
That eccentric-looking monk had actually dug into his own pockets?
I had only seen him briefly at the entrance ceremony, but... remembering how he appeared in flashy silk robes and seemed to enjoy feeding Energy-Dispersing Poison to the students, I had pegged him as nothing more than a corrupt monk pursuing his own greed.
Yet, that man had built such a decent and excellent dormitory for the students who lacked the backing to provide donations.
"To think he built such a magnificent dormitory with his own money; I see the Academy Master in a whole new light."
From the size and structure of the pavilion to the furniture and cleanliness, it was incomparable to my quarters at the North Sea Ice Palace, but it was still better than any inn I had stopped at on my way to Luoyang.
I doubted the environment in the Heavenly Mandate or Earthly Righteous Pavilions could be any better than this.
"Wow, there’s even a bathhouse...!"
"If this were an inn, it would be on the level of the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, wouldn't it?"
So-woon’s eyes sparkled with admiration, and Gu Won-ui added a word as well.
After looking around the dormitory for a while, we unpacked our belongings in our respective rooms.
Since the rooms were double occupancy, I decided to share one with Maeng Ryeong-ji.
"Are the others not here yet?"
"Indeed. They should be arriving soon."
I had exchanged names with the children who had safely consumed the antidote and arrived early.
Unfortunately, our dormitory had the highest number of those who had failed the struggle.
Praying for the souls of my friends who were likely still climbing the mountain, I rested on the soft bed.
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* * *
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Classes at the Heavenly Martial Academy begin at the Hour of the Dragon, or around 7:00 AM.
Since the day starts earlier here than in the North Sea, where the sun sets quickly, it felt a bit daunting, but I woke up even earlier than the students who had to descend the mountain without internal energy.
Descending would be quick if I used my internal energy, but I wanted to observe the students who started early as they ate their meals.
'What is that?'
However, breakfast was very simple.
There were no cooks in the place designated as the cafeteria; instead, there were only piles of pills.
"Ugh!"
"Are those Grain-Abstaining Pellets?"
"We aren't even in a period of seclusion, so why are we eating these?"
The identity of the pills was quickly revealed.
Grain-Abstaining Pellets.
They were pills consumed to replenish nutrients during fasting training.
"Is it that bad?"
"It's not like it'll kill you to eat it."
"Surely they don't expect us to eat only these every day, right?"
"Argh! This is insane!"
Some children tilted their heads and popped the pellets into their mouths, but others, perhaps due to trauma, were in agony and wouldn't even touch them.
Regardless, no particular problems occurred in the bodies of the children who ate them.
'It feels like eating chicken breast and protein shakes for all three meals a day.'
Having confirmed there was no poison, I popped a Grain-Abstaining Pellet into my mouth.
I hadn't exactly done seclusion training before, but since food supplies could sometimes run low in winter, we generally kept a large stock of Grain-Abstaining Pellets in the North Sea.
Perhaps because of the medicinal ingredients, the Heavenly Martial Academy’s pellets were much more bitter than the ones I remembered.
'Hmm, being told to eat only this every day is a bit horrific.'
The seniors said they would arrive in ten days—no, nine days now.
Perhaps the cafeteria just wasn't operating until then?
I ate the bitter pellet and headed to the lecture hall.
"My, everyone looks quite exhausted."
The martial instructor who arrived right on time was a man with the impression of a scholar rather than a warrior.
"I am Zhuge In. I am in charge of the General Principles of Martial Arts. Haha, don't be too nervous. This is the only theoretical lecture among the required courses. There is nothing difficult about it at all."
Even just at the entrance ceremony the day before, the students had been quite lively, but since they had already been blindsided once, the atmosphere didn't loosen up just because Zhuge In spoke softly.
"The entrance ceremony must have been very difficult. The Academy Master is a bit mischievous, isn't he?"
Those of us who had managed to obtain the antidote, myself included, nodded slightly or gave awkward smiles, but the children who had to descend the mountain since morning didn't even have the strength for that.
"Still, it is all a device for your own benefit. He was happy, saying there were some remarkable students in this batch. I, too, have high expectations since I heard my Long Spear Pavilion and Dark Moon Pavilion were breached. Has anyone studied mechanism formations in advance?"
Zhuge In spoke softly, feeling pity for the children.
But wait, what?
This scholar-looking instructor was the one who built those mechanism formations where spears shot out?
"……."
Silence fell over the lecture hall, and even I, who had let my guard down because it was a theory class, tensed up.
"I suppose not! In that case, you will experience my mechanism formations for the first time. Only three people have made it into the Long Spear Pavilion so far, right? How was it? Wasn't it very fun?"
I shouldn't say it was slow, right?
"It was exquisite and beautiful. Each trajectory of the spears shooting out contained the instructor's deep consideration, so as I broke through the traps, I caught a glimpse of the realm of art and could not help but be filled with admiration."
Unlike Namgung Min or Myeong-gyeong, who were struggling to choose their words, I skillfully tossed out a compliment.
"My goodness, student Seol Sool-ryeo! I have already heard that you passed through the Long Spear Pavilion. I thought someone would understand the beauty of the mechanical devices fitting together perfectly. The Long Spear Pavilion is the first work I created after being appointed to the Academy, and it is a place designed purely with mechanisms, without any formations."
And... the reaction was more intense than I had expected.
What is this?
I may be good at flattery, but...
Are they really that happy about it?
"Ah, but this is the General Principles of Martial Arts hour. Unfortunately, I must postpone talking in detail about the beauty of mechanism formations until later. Students who are interested, please take the elective course on mechanism formations."
Perhaps realizing he was in the middle of a class, Zhuge In promoted his elective course and ended the talk about the Long Spear Pavilion.
He felt like a professor whose real specialty was elsewhere, but who was forced by the university to teach a mandatory freshman course.
"Now, since we seem to have gotten a bit closer by talking about fun things, let's talk about what the General Principles of Martial Arts class is. You must be curious why the Heavenly Martial Academy has a class like this, right?"
"No, we aren't."
"We love it!"
It seemed it was only fun for Zhuge In, but perhaps because they were glad to be sitting down for a class, the students answered loudly this time.
"Hey, you don't have to say empty words. Actually, I don't know why I have to do it either."
"……."
"Hahaha, that was a joke to encourage those of you who are exhausted. Still, it will be quite helpful to you."
Hmm, that means half of it was the truth.
"A significant number of you have come from major sects and clans. I won't say that means nothing. The martial arts of the prestigious righteous sects, created by Great Masters and refined over a long period, are indeed truly excellent. However, in the end, why do we practice martial arts?"
Feeling that the real class had begun, I started to transcribe the instructor's words.
"At the very least, there won't be any students among you who practice martial arts to attain enlightenment."
Even though a third of the students gathered here were from Taoist or Buddhist sects, Zhuge In said it nonchalantly.
"If you wanted to cultivate the Dao, you could have done it in the mountains; why did you come to the Academy? Is it the competitive spirit of wanting to fight each other, or the dream of success and fame to make a name for yourself? Perhaps you were burning with a sense of justice to eliminate evil enemies like the Demonic Cult?"
I wasn't any of those three, but looking at Maeng Ryeong-ji, who was burning with competitive spirit toward the students of the Heavenly Mandate and Earthly Righteous Pavilions, it wasn't entirely wrong.
"To do that, you must know not only your own martial arts but also the martial arts of others. There is a saying in The Art of War: 'If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.' You need to know the martial arts of the guy you want to beat, and the martial arts of the evil sects as well."
If one travels through the Central Plains, the chances of fighting warriors from evil sects would be quite high.
I nodded and took notes on Zhuge In’s self-answered questions.
"It is not for nothing that so many descendants of prestigious clans die pathetically on their first journey through the Jianghu. How much do you know about axes and whips? What about evil sect martial arts? I assure you, the idea that 'all paths lead to the same end' is nonsense. You aren't the Heavenly Martial Body, so how can you master all martial arts on your own? Do you think you'll know about mechanism formations just because you practiced the sword to death?"
Even if you don't know mechanism formations just by practicing the sword, can't you break them with a sword?
I tried to keep my personal opinion to myself and absorbed the professor's arguments through rote learning.
"Now, that is why in this class, we will study righteous arts, evil arts, and demonic arts. We will also learn about various external martial arts such as the sword, saber, fist, palm, finger, and hidden weapons. While you cannot learn every internal energy method, in the basic external martial arts hours, you will try using various weapons yourself alongside instructors who are experts in each field."
Zhuge In emphasized the necessity of the General Principles of Martial Arts.
Since most of the North Sea Ice Palace's martial arts were ice-based, I was originally curious about the martial arts of the Central Plains.
In any case, Zhuge In was a good lecturer, so I listened intently.
'Ah, is this why the martial arts beyond the borders are called a sort of "between righteous and private"?'
The subsequent content of the class followed the book's table of contents, discussing methods of classifying internal energy cultivation techniques.
It was quite interesting because the way they performed Qi Condensation was different.
"It seems everyone is tired after all."
However, while lecturing for quite some time, Zhuge In suddenly clicked his tongue in pity and scanned the lecture hall.
I followed his gaze to look around as well.
The moment Zhuge In finished speaking about something not found in the books, the students jumped to their feet.
‘They’re dozing off during such an interesting lecture? No… setting aside the fact that interest is a matter of taste, why is there such a lack of urgency?’
Sitting in the front row, I hadn’t realized it, but surprisingly, many of the students had been dozing off.
“I understand. It’s fine if you want to sleep. Shouldn’t you at least be able to rest comfortably during my class? Just make sure you study properly for the exam. It wouldn’t be ideal to have to retake the course with your juniors, would it? Haha.”
However, Zhuge In did not scold them.
I had expected him to make them swing their swords ten thousand times right then and there.
Even by the standards of my past life’s schools, not to mention the Murim world, it was an exceptionally generous remark.
“Anyway, we’ve covered all the material for today. Let’s go do something fun with the remaining time. Now, let’s head to the Long Spear Pavilion.”
…The moment I thought that, Zhuge In had the students stand up.
He had told us to relax because it was a theory class, and now he wanted us to go into that trap-filled place where spears shot out?
I had gotten used to it quickly, but even Namgung Min and Myeong-seong had trembled with the fear of losing their lives in there.
“Pardon?”
“The Long Spear Pavilion, you say…”
“It’s a pavilion filled with beautiful Mechanism Formations!”
I searched his expression to see if he was angry and intended to throw the children in there, but he seemed genuinely eager to enjoy the mechanisms.
“Shh, the three students who have already been inside are forbidden from leaking any secrets!”
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