Chapter 67: Dispatch to the Ascension Pavilion (2)
The Seogak, visited after so long, stirred nostalgia within me.
Though the Seogak mostly held only basic techniques and intermediate martial arts, lacking anything truly advanced, I’d come here whenever I could.
Unlike the geniuses from the Inner City Eight Palms who entered after mastering some martial arts, I had absolutely nothing back then.
Still, thanks to that, I found the martial art that suited me perfectly: the Parkryong Thirteen Steps. In a way, it was a blessing in disguise.
“Hmm, it should be around here? Eh, nope, still not here.”
I searched the spot where the Parkryong Thirteen Steps had been, just in case, but sure enough, it was empty.
Disappointed, I flipped through various manuals stuck nearby, but none sparked much interest.
I put the books back and sat at a nearby desk, looking around inside.
Memories came flooding back of frantically searching for the Parkryongshimsiptu manual and reading it.
‘Look once, go out, unfold it, come back in, read, go out, look again.’
I wonder why I went to such lengths when I could have just borrowed it to read.
‘I never enjoyed learning martial arts as much as I did back then.’
I was truly obsessed.
I’d visualize the moves in my head every time I closed my eyes, and I practiced with every step, extending my hands and feet as if in combat.
‘I was a madman.’
As I briefly savored the memory, my conversation with Baekgong Baek came to mind.
‘I crossed the wall by separating life from death on the battlefield. Since your martial arts began at the Ascension Pavilion, returning to the starting point and reexamining it will help you find a way to cross that wall.’
