Prologue: The Master Taoist and the Boy

Light Novel: Prologue
Manhwa: Chapter 1

The mountains stretched endlessly, resembling waves undulating in the distance. Along a narrow mountain path connecting the peaks, twenty or so monks marched.

It was early spring, and a chilly wind brushed past the monks. The chilling sensation caused shivers to run down the monks’ spines, prompting them to tighten their Deluo robes1 and lower their heads.

Suddenly, the middle-aged monk leading the group raised his head. The monk, who appeared to be in his late forties, clenched his teeth tightly.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his shoulders trembled with constant tension.

“Mount Hua has made great sacrifices in the war against the Demon Sect, and all we get in return is Jianghu’s cold shoulder? The kindness of the world is truly fleeting.”

“Senior Brother.”

“We will become stronger. Never again will the world look down upon Mount Hua.”

The middle-aged monk’s words resonated with a powerful conviction. The monks following him clenched their fists tightly with bowed heads.

They felt the same way as the middle-aged monk.

But only one middle-aged monk, with clear and serene demeanor, shook his head with his eyes nearly closed. 

‘Amitabha Buddha! It seems like Senior Brother harbors poison in his heart.’

The middle-aged monk at the forefront of the group, emitting a chilling aura, was none other than Hyun-cheon, the sect leader of the Great Mount Hwa Sect, one of the Nine Great Sects.

And that Sage Hyun-cheon was now angered. His rage would surely guide Mount Hua’s course.

‘Where will Mount Hua end up now?’

Just as the serene-looking monk, Sage Hyun-so, sighed,

“There’s smoke over there.”

A sudden voice interrupted the reverie of both Sage Hyun-cheon and Sage Hyun-so.

Smoke was rising from the hills just ahead. The acrid smell carried by the wind made the monks’ expressions tense.

‘The scent of blood?’

“Let’s go and see.”

At the scent of blood stimulating his sense of smell, Sage Hyun-cheon said as he tried to shake off his anger. 

The monks hurriedly crossed the hill, and as they did, a horrific sight greeted them. 

“Ugh!”

The scene that unfolded before their eyes rendered them speechless.

A small village was engulfed in flames. About thirty houses were either burning or had already been reduced to ashes, and the streets were littered with people’s bodies.

“Amitabha Buddha! What on earth happened–”

“It seems like the village was attacked by a band of bandits. Even if they weren’t, I’ve heard stories of bandits running rampant everywhere these days.”

“No way!”

Sage Hyun-so’s expression turned grim.

‘Amitabha Buddha! With the fall of the Demon Sect, now bandits are rampant. How will we deal with this situation?’

The monks scattered and searched the village thoroughly, but they found no survivors. More than a hundred people from more than thirty families, children and adults alike, had been wiped out.

“Those cruel bastards. How could they slaughter an entire village of innocent people?”

“Primordial Heavenly Being. Please look upon them with compassion.”

As the monks prayed for the souls of the dead, Sage Hyun-so suddenly heard a faint moan. The voice was so soft that at first, he thought it was an illusion.

“Mmm!”

However, upon hearing the moan again, Sage Hyun-so realized that what he heard wasn’t a hallucination.

“Where is it?”

Sage Hyun-so looked around, trying to find where the voice was coming from.

A faint groan could be heard from the burnt and crumbling ruins of what had once been a family’s cherished home.

Sage Hyun-so hurriedly went and searched through the debris and rubble. He cleared away the half-burnt pillars and sifted through the ashes with his hands.

“Priest, what is it?”

“Senior Brother! What on earth–”

“There is a survivor in here.”

Upon hearing Sage Hyun-so’s words, the younger monks joined in to help clear the rubble.

As they cleared away half the debris, the charred body of a man was revealed amidst the ashes.

Sage Hyun-so furrowed his brow as he observed the man’s corpse. The man wore an upper garment made from animal hide and on his waist was a sword. 

“An…enemy?”

Even at a glance, his attire and demeanor didn’t fit with the villagers. The calluses on his knuckles proved it.

Sage Hyun-so reached out and touched the bandit’s body but he neither could he feel any warmth nor detect any signs of life.

“It seems the Priest was mistaken. This man has been dead for a while.”

“But how did this bandit die? Did someone in the village know martial arts?”

Sage Hyun-cheon, along with Sage Hyun-so’s Senior Brothers, each made a comment. However, no one could answer their questions.

It was then.

“Mmm!”

Once more, a faint moan was heard. This time, not only Sage Hyun-so, but everyone present heard it.

“Could it be?”

Sage Hyun-so quickly turned the bandit’s body over.

Unlike his charred back, which was exposed to the ashes, the bandit’s front side was relatively intact. As the monk gazed at the bandit’s corpse, their pupils shook. 

The bandit’s throat was torn open, as if a beast had bitten into it, exposing his vocal cords. The wound in his throat seemed to be the cause of death, but it wasn’t the bandit’s wound that alarmed the monks.

Underneath where the bandit had lain, a frail boy was pinned. He was merely hidden by the hefty body of the bandit. 

Whether it was his natural state or or a result of his encounter with the bandits, the boy’s arms and legs were grotesquely deformed. The horrific injuries and scars made one naturally wonder about the tragedy he had experienced.

“Ah!”

“Amitabha Buddha!”

Seeing the gruesome sight, the monks inadvertently cleared their throats or averted their gazes.

The boy, whose eyes had been shut as if he were dead, suddenly opened.

“……”

The empty gaze, void of everything yet filled with desperate vigor, even made Sage Hyun-so flinch.

“Oh my!”

Just as Sage Hyun-so was about to reach out to the boy out of sympathy, the boy laboriously turned his head and spat out something he had been holding in his mouth.

Pthu!

Something the size of a fist rolled on the ground. The red, mangled object was clearly human flesh.

“W, What?”

A profound silence descended heavily upon the shoulders of Mount Hua monks. 


SoundlessWind21’s Notes:

Thank you for reading!

  1. Deluo Robes. Raws: 득라의(得羅衣). This is a is a cross-collared gown with large sleeves worn by Taoist priests.
    • 得 dé – to obtain / to get / to gain / to catch (a disease) / proper / suitable / proud 
    • 羅 luó – gauze / to collect / to gather / to catch / to sift
    • 衣 yī – clothes  

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