Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1048: Too Vague (3)

[The concept of ‘moving in stillness’ is not much of a big deal.]

Bak Yeon-Guk paid close attention to Bang Jin-Hun's lecture on screen. Such was the intensity of his focus that he even forgot to blink!

When the online lectures first began, everyone watched them on their phones. Nowadays, though? Most people relied on PCs these days instead.

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That was because the phone's tiny screen made it difficult to accurately follow the physical demonstrations sometimes performed by Bang Jin-Hun. Of course, the improved resolutions of phone screens meant figuring out large movements wasn't that difficult. However, that wasn't quite enough for the purpose of learning martial arts.

A martial artist was required to differentiate even the minute differences in movements that looked outwardly the same. This was why the audiovisual hall recently set up by the Martial Assembly was filled to the brim with martial artists even today.

Bang Jin-Hun inside the computer monitor chuckled hollowly before resuming his lecture. His former stupefied awkwardness was nowhere to be found, and he now resembled a top-tier lecturer with overflowing confidence and charisma.

[I can hear you ask, if it's easy, why do we have such trouble understanding it? It's certainly not because you are at fault. Oh, no. But, uh… I'll be honest, this is a prickly subject that might get me in a lot of trouble. You see, the blame lies with your teachers and instructors.]

It seemed being so frank troubled him since Bang Jin-Hun sheepishly cracked an unfunny joke to lighten the atmosphere.

[Anyone who waddles to their masters and blabs about what I said today, you better believe me when I say Imma find you. Got that? This is all between us, okay?]

Affirmative roars and replies could be heard coming from within the speakers.

At first, Bang Jin-Hun recorded the lecture by himself. However, after various trials and errors, a select few “trainees” were now permitted to attend the recording sessions. The reason? Apparently, this way was better for everyone watching to keep up with the flow of the lecture. This idea came from studying how other online lectures did their thing.

[So, the question is… How did an easy-enough concept become so troublesome to understand? The truth is… Rather than the concept itself, the problem is with the translation.]

Bang Jin-Hun sheepishly chuckled away.

[You might hear the concept of ‘comprehension’ pretty often while cultivating. It also shows up a lot in wuxia novels and philosophy classes. So… What do you think this concept of comprehension is?]

Bak Yeon-Guk stared expectantly at the monitor.

[Kuh~, now that’s a nice reply. It’s an innate ability that every person should possess that helps them to decipher nature around them… Y’know what? I have no freaking clue what the sh*t you’re talking about.]

The trainees attending the lecture laughed loudly.

[So, this whole comprehension thing? It's nothing much in reality. Simply put, it's just your ability to look and hear something and then understand it. That's it. So, you can call it your ability to understand, and there shouldn't be any problem whatsoever. Isn't it funny, though? Calling it an ability to understand will make it easier to understand for you. So, raising your ability to understand will help you understand… My bad. I guess this sh*t is only funny to me.]

All the dad jokes sprinkled throughout the lectures made it harder for Bak Yeon-Guk to keep watching, but the quality of the lectures forced him to power through such obstacles.

[In that case, why do we insist on using words like comprehension when we can resort to easier alternatives? The answer is simple. Because it sounds fancy. Also… This might get me in more hot waters, but the truth is? It is to make it harder to understand.]

“Eh?” Bak Yeon-Guk tilted his head.

Now this was something he couldn’t understand. A master’s job was to teach and guide their disciples, so why would they deliberately make their lessons harder to figure out?

[You might think learning from your masters and inheriting martial arts is something obvious, a natural course of things. In the past, though… Remember that knowledge is power. And this concept still applies to the relationship between a master and their disciple. A disciple who learned everything would no longer respect their master. And an elderly master with no more disciples to teach is no better than an old fart hiding in some remote mountainside.]

Bang Jin-Hun casually shrugged.

[That's why most masters choose not to teach everything they know. And even if they do teach you, they will make it harder to understand. Oh, and they'll make themselves look more mysterious and stuff while doing so. By doing that, you the disciples will go, ‘Aha, so my master is aloof and unconcerned with worldly affairs as expected. And I still have lots to learn.’ And then, you're gonna stick around for longer and maybe keep funding the masters' lifestyle or something.]

“...Holy sh*t?!” Bak Yeon-Guk nearly jumped out of his seat.

Forget hot waters, this revelation was akin to dropping a nuke!

However, Bang Jin-Hun continued on with his lecture as if what he said didn't faze him.

[That's why secret manuals and teachings and whatnots are all so stupidly difficult to master. And that's also why your masters only teach you low-rank crap martial arts for decades while telling you that a sect's secret techniques shouldn't be handed out so easily or some other nonsense… Only to let you have them on their deathbed! Do you know why? Because your masters can't squeeze out any more benefits from you.]

“…”

Bak Yeon-Guk sneakily looked around. Unsurprisingly, other martial artists in the audiovisual room were also making dazed or grimacing faces while staring at their monitors.

[Does that mean the martial world is a corrupted place filled with cheapskates and frauds? Of course not. That’s because people learning stuff way back in the past experienced the same crap as you. So, you guys better be grateful about being born in an era where you can learn anything your heart desires.]

Bang Jin-Hun proudly nodded before sobering up suddenly.

[Eh? How did I get sidetracked…? O-oh, that's right. So, what the concept of moving in stillness is… Eh, to put it simply, you're moving without moving. It's like, uh… You know how boxers get into their stances and carefully watch for an opening to throw a punch? You can see their shoulders and arms flinching all the time, right? They look like they are just staring at each other and not doing anything. But you know they are busy moving around inside. That is the idea behind moving in stillness.]

“Wow. I’m kinda speechless…” Bak Yeon-Guk chuckled while watching the lecture.

The online lectures had led to greater-than-expected changes in the Martial Assembly.

As Bang Jin-Hun had alluded to earlier, most martial arts used by the Martial Assembly’s members were taught through the master-disciple relationship.

Back when Lee Jung-Geol established the Assembly, he asked the younger generation to train within the Assembly's grounds. Even so, the guidance and teachings these young martial artists followed still came from their masters. Which meant what these people knew was varied and colorful, to say the least. Even if they had learned the same martial art, their interpretation would sometimes be vastly different, too.

However, after Bang Jin-Hun began his online lectures… All the messily jumbled-up concepts began getting cleaned up and more organized.

It seemed Bang Jin-Hun was also aware of this phenomenon since the lectures now focused more and more on systematically re-organizing already existing concepts, not just on imparting knowledge of martial arts.

When already familiar concepts began to change, the practical applications began feeling different, too. Techniques Bak Yeon-Guk already knew and trained in suddenly felt like something new and fresh. And it became easier for him to discover what he had been doing wrong all this time.

It wasn’t only him, though. Once the stories spread to all corners, martial arts mastering cultivation techniques not taught by Bang Jin-Hun also began watching his online lectures.

This was no longer something as simple as teaching new martial arts to as many people as possible. No, it was more like reworking the old concepts with the Assembly's new martial art acting as the core.

Bak Yeon-Guk rubbed his chin.

‘Hmm. It’s been a while since I last spoke to my teacher…’

It wasn't only Bak Yeon-Guk, though. The frequency of other martial artists leaving the Martial Assembly's grounds to train had decreased noticeably lately.

Why would they travel some distance away to speak to their teachers and learn something new? When they could do that within the Assembly? And from a martial artist who was clearly far superior to those teachers?

Although Bak Yeon-Guk was too immature to figure it out right now… This process was enabling the Martial Assembly to become even more united than it had ever been.

[Okay! Let's continue, shall we! Open your textbooks to page 320. Today's lesson is important, so you gotta definitely review it later on your own! And tomorrow… Hey, man. When are you going to put this lecture online? The day after tomorrow? Then, uh… On the twenty-fifth of this month, we'll hold a demonstration and adjust your stances accordingly in the main practice hall. So, your new homework is to study this part until you can pull it off even in your sleep! Any punk who fails will get a beating… Kuh-Hum, I mean, you'll get a scolding from me, okay?]

Bak Yeon-Guk chuckled while listening to the lecture.

He could feel himself transforming for the better every day. How could he not pay close attention in that case?

***

Ruuuuumble! Wuuuooong!

The intense blue light began bursting out from the center of strange-looking symbols drawn seemingly randomly on the floor. The rays of blue light filled the empty air and began twisting and distorting around until they formed various runes.

Once the light show stopped its complicated dance, the symbols began spinning in a small circle. It was barely large enough for a single adult to slip inside.

In other words… It became a portal! And Wiggins smiled in satisfaction at the sight of this blue portal.

“Finally. It’s complete.”

After all the hard work, the portal connecting South Korea's Martial Assembly to the Round Table was finally in operation. To use this portal, mages must simultaneously inject magical energy into it from both sides.

Just as the Round Table’s Master wanted, a doorway that couldn’t be opened without the other side’s consent was finally complete.

Wiggins shut the portal down, then picked up his phone.

“...Master? It’s me, Wiggins.”

-Mm? What is it?

“I’m calling you to let you know that the portal on our side is complete.”

-That took longer than expected, Wiggins. Have your skills deteriorated in the last few months?

“My apologies. I overlooked the simple fact that it will be challenging to procure the necessary material for portal construction in this part of the world. I don't know about my skills deteriorating, but it seems my IQ has fallen somewhat lately. Perhaps it's a sign of my age catching up to me…”

-Enough with that nonsense, Wiggins. You're still a youngster filled with energy, aren't you?

Wiggins could only smile wryly. Even though he was getting on in years, maybe that was not something he should bring up in front of the Master.

-When will the Assembly Master pay us a visit, then?

“I’ll have to speak to him first. How are things on that side?”

-I wouldn't be urging for a visit from your Assembly Master if things were rosy on my end. Although no one has publicly said anything… It's easy to see their overflowing dissatisfaction.

“Hmm…!”

-However, there’s no need to worry. Their dissatisfaction toward me is simply a manifestation of their anxiety toward their own limitations, after all. They still need time to accept reality and understand their situation.

The Master was more open-minded than his peers, yet still needed some time to accept the Round Table's current state. Maybe he would have never accepted it without the shock therapy called Kang Jin-Ho shattering wide-open his previously held beliefs.

Those who had never seen Kang Jin-Ho in action and only heard about it from others should be unwilling to accept the Round Table throwing away its pride and going under the Martial Assembly's wings.

That was why Kang Jin-Ho needed to pay a visit to the Round Table as soon as possible.

“Since time zones differ, we might be able to do something later today,” said Wiggins.

-No, wait. Today is not the right time.

“I beg your pardon?”

-It's still too early. The situation has not ripened enough yet. You see, this thing called dissatisfaction? The best time to get rid of it is when it erupts like a volcano in the open. That's the only way to make your attempt count. Try to suppress dissent before it has a chance to erupt, and it will instead start festering away from the inside. You won't get rid of it that way.

“Ah. So, you want to set an example…”

-Unfortunately, we don’t have much of a choice here.

Wiggins chuckled hollowly.

‘Well… It seems the Master has gotten a little more ruthless, then.'

The Master of the Round Table had always been an objective man but never truly ruthless with his methods. As a matter of fact, by the standards of the martial world, one could say he was rather affectionate and caring.

But now, the Master was actually planning to sacrifice the Round Table's Knights in his attempt to completely take over the organization!

“Well, well. I’ll be…”

-No need to react like that, Wiggins. After all, it was you who changed me. Isn’t this what you wanted to see from me?

“Of course, I won't deny that. I always wanted you to be firmer and more heartless, after all.”

-What a sly brat you are. Getting back on topic… For now, please inform your Assembly Master to focus more on the events in South Korea. When the time is right, I shall request for his visit. All I ask for is that he shows up right on time.

“Hang on. You won’t get assassinated in the meantime, yes?”

-Huh. Are you trying to jinx me, Wiggins?

Wiggins laughed and got ready to end the call. However, he stopped when the Master spoke in a cautious tone.

-Before we hang up, there’s something I must tell you. It might be nothing, but…

“What is it?”

-We’ve detected suspicious movements within Japan. The movers and shakers of the Japanese martial society have been seen in secret meetings.

The movers and shakers? Wiggins’ expression grew somber.

Japan’s situation was different from South Korea’s.

While the Martial Assembly acted as the center of the South Korean martial society where Korean martial artists gathered, each Japanese faction had its own territory. The leaders of factions usually didn't leave the safety of the territory's borders.

But such heavyweights were seen making moves? Could that mean… They were gathering in one place?

“...Could it be another invasion attempt?”

-We haven’t determined that yet. However, it wouldn’t hurt to be cautious.

“...I see. Thank you for telling me this, Master.”

-I'll let you know once we receive more intel. And, in case something does happen, do remember that the Round Table will always be here to lend you support.

“Thank you. Knowing that puts me at ease.”

-Then, let’s talk again later.

The call finally ended. Wiggins silently stared at his phone before shooting up to his feet.

It seemed he needed to speak to Lee Hyeon-Su right away.