Cheon Woo sank into deep contemplation before finally parting his lips.

“Among the Wudang Elders, those who have suffered greatly seem… rather more relaxed. They tend to make a lot of strange jokes, too.”

“Is it like a process of transcending the world?”

“…”

At that question, Cheon Woo crossed his arms, ruminating on the answer.

“The Fist Emperor once said that when you realize people somehow survive in the end, you become like that.”

Hmm. True words.

Jin Cheon-hee silently agreed. Even when his left arm had been on the verge of shattering, and he had faced two of the Ten Heavenly Lords and two Heavenly Executioners simultaneously—somehow, he had survived.

He had truly believed he would die back then. No one could have predicted that Yeo Ha-ryoon would arrive at that exact moment.

That is why he is the ‘Protagonist.’

An existence that barges onto the stage at the most crucial, decisive moment to flip the board itself—that is the definition of a protagonist.

“Right. Cheon Woo. There’s no law saying you must die. After almost dying a few times, the world does look a bit different.”

Surgery was much the same.

As the years piled up and a physician encountered countless cases, they naturally appeared more relaxed. Of course, what was seen on the outside and what occurred on the inside differed slightly, but experience eventually accumulated into composure.

By the time one became a Senior Physician at the White Qilin Medical Pavilion, they started deflecting most hardships with characteristic old-man jokes. It was different from slacking off; becoming relaxed meant possessing that much confidence.

Still, my Morning Special Tea won’t be easy to handle. Kuehehehe!

Jin Cheon-hee chuckled inwardly. He had to take good care of his frail Senior Physicians. In this Confucian society armed with swords, how many times would they get to drink morning tea personally brewed by a superior?

Sure enough.

As they idled away the time, the wake-up hour for the Senior Physicians approached. Since the time had been set quite late, the sun had long since risen.

Soon.

Clatter-crash!

A chaotic noise rang out from the quarters of another Senior Physician.

“Cheon Woo. Looks like the kids are finally waking up one by one.”

“Hyung…”

“Well, if this goes on, maybe a day will come when they brew their own tea without ordering the Junior Physicians, right? Don’t you think, Cheon Woo?”

Cheon Woo fell into thought as he looked at his sworn brother’s fragrant, benign smile.

Wow… Hyung. He feels more and more like the Fist Emperor.

The Wudang Fist Emperor used to gather the elders out of the blue and pull stunts like this whenever he judged the Wudang administration to be lacking. He would say, ‘This is an apple peeled by my own frail hands. Try it.’

Then, all the elders gathered there would eat the apple and promptly suffer from indigestion.

Since Hyung cooked often, receiving food from him was a familiar happiness—but tea was different.

So this is how you feed people, Hyung.

Cheon Woo made a mental note.

When I become an Elder, I should do exactly like Hyung. Threatening to fire them is low-level. A true master brews morning tea.

Just then, a voice drifted in.

“Oh~ Hyung~ Good morning~”

“Hyeon-ah… your pronunciation… did I pronounce it like that?”

“No? How was my pronunciation?”

I thought a foreigner had fallen into the Murim world.

Jin Cheon-hee swallowed the words he couldn’t say—calling the boy a rascal in his mind—and welcomed Sama Hyeon.

“Yeah. Hye-ah is busy.”

Sama Hyeon spoke while pouring sugar—glug, glug, glug—into the ‘decoction Americano’ Jin Cheon-hee had handed him.

“No wonder she wasn’t around since dawn.”

“Among the rising stars, there are kids who have to wake up early. To interact with them, you have to wake up even earlier than that.”

True. Those who had more were required to do more; the education of children in prestigious Orthodox sects was no joke. Even if a child’s character was lacking, no clan could tolerate seeing their skills decline.

“She’s incredibly diligent.”

“Yeah. Neither Hye-ah nor I have parents, right? For others, the clan backs them up even if they fail a few times, but Hye-ah and I don’t have that luxury. We have to succeed in one go, and once we succeed, we can never fall again.”

“Hyeon-ah.”

“Meeting Hyung was luck for us. But resting on that luck means lingering in that spot. Isn’t Cheon Woo Hyung the same?”

Slurp.

Cheon Woo enjoyed the bitter decoction without sugar and spoke.

“Hahaha, Hyung. My priority is simply wanting to see the end of Martial Arts. That is why I am Wudang.”

At the blatant reply refusing to be grouped in the same category, Sama Hyeon grumbled.

“My Lord (Gaga)~ Do you see? That wicked thing is making this concubine into a bad guy again~”

“Alright. Hyeon-ah. Let’s stop.”

Jin Cheon-hee replied hurriedly, fearing Sama Hyeon might cling to his sleeve again.

“Anyway, Cheon Woo Hyung acts all high and mighty alone. As expected of the hypocritical Orthodox~”

“Phew, Hyeon-ah.”

“My Lord~ This girl is wronged~”

“Right. Okay. Let’s talk about something else. Uh… There must be many rising stars aiming for Hye-ah. Is it okay? She’s in the prime of her youth.”

Ah, whatever. Grenade thrown.

Sure enough, Sama Hyeon’s expression turned instantly cold.

“Right. An orphan daughter who learned medicine. Even a Branch Leader, right? Decent daughter-in-law material for most clans. It’s a bit much coming from my mouth, but aren’t we siblings a bit pretty? Gnats swarm endlessly.”

“…I see.”

“It’s okay, Hyung. Originally, the fiercer the hands, the greener the garden. Any bastards touching my Hye-ah, I’ll turn them all into fertilizer for the Hangzhou Branch of the White Qilin Medical Pavilion.”

Do you know why the cherry blossoms at the Hangzhou Branch are so red?

Because the corpses of those who tried to seduce the Branch Leader and got hit in the back of the head by her brother are buried there.

It reminded Jin Cheon-hee of an end-of-century comic book from his past life. Kids these days probably wouldn’t know the classic.

“You can’t actually kill them.”

“What are you saying? I’m still the successor of the Golden Blood Chamber; would I kill people recklessly? I won’t kill before they date. If they date and make her cry, then I kill. No, even if they try to date, I kill. Don’t worry~ Hyung~ Fufufufu.”

“You shouldn’t be too sensitive about that. Hye-ah is an adult now.”

“Hyung. Think about it. Imagine our Hye-ah married into some clan, and the father-in-law overturns the table asking what the side dishes are, and the mother-in-law throws shoes asking if she can’t even perform ancestral rites because she’s uneducated. And the husband sleeps with unknown women every night…”

“…Phew. I intended not to see blood on my hands except for the Blood Immortal Cult. How dare they torment Hye-ah? That child!”

“Right. Hyung. That’s it… how can I endure without killing them?”

Can’t be helped.

Jin Cheon-hee sighed internally. I have no choice but to bury corpses under the cherry trees of the Hangzhou Branch. Originally, red cherry blossoms are pretty.

Just then, a presence was felt outside the tea room.

“Oppa!”

Sama Hye seemed to have finally finished her work.

***

Sama Hyeon and Sama Hye caught up on stories, while Cheon Woo and Jin Cheon-hee responded appropriately to the flow of conversation. Spending time like that, the meal hour arrived, and the group moved to a nearby inn.

“Hyung, what do you want to eat?”

“Cra… Crab meat with sweet and sour sauce?”

Jin Cheon-hee called out his dream menu like a child making a wish to Santa Claus.

“Ah, shall we go?”

“Good!”

However, although they went and confidently ordered crab meat with sweet and sour sauce, the waiter replied with a regretful voice.

“Sorry, Hero. It’s already sold out, so we don’t have the ingredients now.”

Kugh, was I not a good boy?

Thinking despondently, Jin Cheon-hee eventually ordered Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and Dongpo Pork.

As they ordered their dishes and sipped tea slowly, loud voices began to exchange barbs nearby.

“What?! You are that Dark Blood Demon!”

“Kukukuk, I was waiting. Immortal Master Moon Peak. Come at me!”

Another fight in a sacred inn?

It was a surprisingly common scene at the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly. However, Jin Cheon-hee simply wanted to eat peacefully.

Crash!

Noodle bowls and bamboo steamers were hurled to the floor. Ownerless chili oil flowed down, drenching the wood.

The startled waiter grabbed his head and shouted, ‘Aigoo! Heroes, please fight outside!’

Sama Hye tensed up and grabbed her brother’s collar… no, she grabbed the hilt of the sword at her waist. It meant that anyone touching her chilled pig trotters should prepare to lose a wrist.

Is this the survival skill honed in Hangzhou?

Although a Peak Master, she wouldn’t have experienced much real combat; yet, preparing to protect chilled pig trotters in a situation where martial artists’ flesh and blood might fly showed considerable composure.

And then.

“Excuse me, why don’t you stop?”

Jin Cheon-hee rose resolutely.

If the bastard hadn’t stepped on the white rice, he might have left it alone. But they wouldn’t know how much blood and sweat the chef put into making that rice.

And they had stepped on it.

“Stop? Kuk, Immortal Master Moon Peak. That fellow is an enemy of my sect!”

“Dark Blood Demon! How dare you utter such words! You are the one…”

“…Hahaha. Why don’t you stop? The rice is getting cold. Hero.”

There was no rice left to get cold. It was already scattered on the floor.

Suddenly, the two martial artists looked at the owner of the voice.

A distinctive hair ornament, beauty that made one wonder if he was truly human, and a precious sword at the waist. Above all, a dog sitting at his feet. A bird sitting on his head.

“…Ku, heup. One Light?!”

“Some call me that. No matter how heavy the grudge, must you destroy this wonderful inn?”

“…”

“Resolve your grudges at the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly, and dine for now.”

The two looked at Jin Cheon-hee once, then at their enemy.

One Light… That guy is here.

Just my luck. If this goes on, he might beat us up first, saying he’ll make us bleed in advance so it’s easier to treat since we’ll bleed anyway.

The two martial artists knew One Light’s method very well.

…One wrong move and it’s forced retirement.

He’ll force us back to our hometowns.

Thinking up to that point, the two martial artists eventually sat down.

“Ahem, can’t be helped. We have no choice but to resolve it after the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly ends!”

“Can’t be helped! Ahem!”

The two martial artists sat down calmly. But Jin Cheon-hee didn’t let them go.

“The waiter is having a hard time. Before ordering anew, how about helping clean up?”

“K-Kuh-hm. Understood.”

“You are good people. I am happy.”

Jin Cheon-hee smiled brightly and patted their backs.

Eventually, the two martial artists began to clean up the food they had overturned. Only then did Jin Cheon-hee return to his seat.

“Wow~ Hyung’s prestige is amazing?”

“Yeah, I don’t know how the rumors spread. Anyway, since I’m one of the Ten Greatest Masters under the Heavens, they listen a bit now.”

On the other hand, Sama Hye and Jin Cheon Woo were astonished.

Those guys stopped fighting?

Hyung… really… his madness… no, his martial fame has become greater.

Is there any martial artist in the Gangho who doesn’t know Jin Cheon-hee is a nutjob now?

No. Hyung isn’t crazy. He just uses his hands a bit faster for the sake of peace.

Cheon Woo rationalized his brother’s behavior and spoke.

“Hyung. You are truly cool.”

“Kuehehehe, really?”

Jin Cheon-hee let out a bizarre laugh and picked up a piece of Sweet and Sour Pork with his chopsticks.

Crunch.

“Wow, the frying here is a delicacy.”