Surviving as a Cripple in Murim – Chapter 10

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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Come to think of it, even in fantasy stories, dragons of every color of the rainbow appear quite frequently. Why wouldn’t there be something similar in the martial arts world?

With mystical powers already at play in martial arts, anything could exist. I wasn’t well-versed in martial arts novels, so I couldn’t be certain, but considering that martial arts stories were a kind of fantasy, I thought it was entirely plausible.

I looked at Gwahae, who was curled up, munching on the yakgwa. She quickly turned her head away from my gaze. It seemed she was sulking because I had forced her to show me her teeth. But even while sulking, she still ate her yakgwa.

“Hey, I’m sorry. They’re cute, pretty teeth. Why hide them?”

“Not pretty… Different… from others… Strange…”

She felt that way, so what could I do? It would have been ridiculous for me to suddenly become possessed by the spirit of a light novel protagonist and exclaim, “Not at all! They’re not strange!” or “You’re just a little different from others!” or “You should cherish yourself more!” So I just nodded.

“Right, if you think they’re strange, then they’re strange. Keep hiding them well.”

“…”

Remaining silent, she didn’t verbally express her discontent, but Gwahae stared intently at my right leg with a disgruntled look.

Her gaze seemed to ask why I was so confident despite having a leg that was different, strange, unlike other people’s.

I thought she was a pushover who would just take whatever was dished out to her, but it seemed she knew how to fight back. This would make teaching her more interesting.

Scoffing at Gwahae’s dissatisfied glare, I smirked confidently, twisting the corner of my lips into a smile.

“Because I’m a freaking awesome guy with good looks, brains, and I’m even good at Yut Nori. I’m not going to be discouraged just because my right leg is messed up.”

When I went out for walks, I could feel the stares of various people looking at me strangely. I could hear their whispers behind my back. But I ignored them all. I ignored everything.

Why? Because I was awesome. I had decent looks, a sense of humor, and a good personality. I was even talented in martial arts.

The fact that I was born with a limp was just the heavens’ spiteful act, their fear of Sima Mancheon, the genius who deceives the heavens. It was a balance patch. Regardless of whether it was true or not, that’s how I thought of it.

Conspicuous flaws stem from a lack of confidence. You have to create a multitude of strengths to bury your weaknesses.

My goal was to become the strongest version of myself. To use my strengths to pave over my weaknesses.

Since getting up with my staff was too much effort, I crawled on all fours towards Gwahae. She sensed something was amiss, but it was too late.

Like a wolf pouncing on a rabbit, I toppled her over. She struggled and squirmed, but it was futile. Oraoraoraora.

Who said a dreamy little kid like her was allowed to give me the look of a loser? What an impertinent child. This was her punishment.

I pinched and pulled at Gwahae’s soft, stretchy cheeks. Her shark-like teeth, which she tried so hard to hide, were revealed, and she thrashed about, but I didn’t care.

Instead, I looked down at her with a self-satisfied smirk and taunted her.

“You’re a coward, flinching at something as small as your little shark teeth. But don’t worry.”

I met her eyes and smiled.

“I’ll make you into someone awesome, even if you can’t be as amazing as me. I’ll teach you lots of things you don’t know.”

I released her cheeks. I brushed aside the hair that had fallen over her beautiful forehead and eyes.

“So don’t be discouraged, silly.”

Hmm, she looked much better without her face covered. I should trim her hair with scissors later, or maybe buy her a hairpin at the market.

As I gazed into Gwahae’s eyes, which flickered with a mix of emotions, Jang-sam returned from his errand at the market.

“Young Master, I’m back from the–?!”

A teary-eyed girl. And above her, the landlord’s son with a wicked grin. It was a shocking sight.

“Whoa, whoa…Seriously?! Sima Mancheon, more like Sima Pervert?! The Sima family’s parenting has failed!”

“It’s not what you think, so just close the door and come in.”

“Even if I don’t know what’s going on, it looks bad, so please get up, Young Master.”

Jang-sam, despite his exaggerated reaction for the sake of teasing Mancheon, knew that he wasn’t the type of person to do something like that, so he entered the room and gestured towards Gwahae with his chin.

“Who’s this young lady? I haven’t seen her before.”

“Jegal So-and-so. Right now, she’s Gwahae. I picked her up because I was bored.”

“You can’t just pick people up because you’re bored, Young Master.”

“It’s my prerogative.”

“You’re incorrigible. Still, I didn’t know Jegal So-and-so was such a cute girl. See? Getting cleaned up makes a difference.”

Jang-sam and Mancheon continued their banter, but Gwahae didn’t hear a word. All she could see was the face of the boy who had given her a name. All she could hear was the thunderous beating of her own heart.

Dragons are sacred creatures. But they are also creatures of greed. What they desire, they must possess.

Those they take into their hearts, they will protect even unto death. They will not relinquish them, even if it means killing.

Dragons are celestial beings. The logic of the mortal realm does not apply to them. Therefore, the wise are cautious not to catch a dragon’s eye.

For the insignificant creatures that walk the earth, a dragon’s attention is both a blessing and a curse.

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He had given her a name. He had given her treats. Now, it was time to begin her martial arts training. Normally, he would have received a bundle of dried meat as a customary gift, but since Gwahae only possessed a sparrow with a broken wing, he decided to skip that formality.

“I can’t help it, so I’m teaching you for free now, but these aren’t just any martial arts techniques. They’re all high-level techniques. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

“Good. Then, what will you do when you become successful and famous in the future?”

Gwahae furrowed her brow in thought and then tilted her head in confusion.

“I don’t know.”

“Don’t play dumb! Don’t take me for a fool! You have to repay me! Repay my kindness many times over in the future! Got it?”

It was unclear whether she truly understood, but Gwahae nodded vigorously.

“Yes! I’ll repay you!”

“Good. Then, I’ll start by teaching you an internal energy cultivation method.”

He tried to have her sit in the lotus position and teach her the cultivation method, but she didn’t know how, so he had to teach her that first. They had a long way to go.

“Now, breathe as I tell you. Understood?”

“Yes!”

She was good at following instructions. He taught Gwahae the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method, just as his master had taught him.

“Calm the mind, forget emotions.”

“Calm the mind…, forget emotions.”

“If the body is weak, strengthen the Qi.”

“If the body is weak…, strengthen the Qi.”

“When the heart dies, the spirit lives.”

“When the heart dies…, the spirit lives.”

“When Yang prospers, Yin dissipates.”

“When Yang prospers…, Yin dissipates.”

It had been about a week since he began teaching Gwahae basic literacy and the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method, also known as the Quanzhen Method.

She had no one to teach her how to read or write, yet she could already communicate without issue, proving she wasn’t slow-witted. So, she was learning quickly. The problem was with her internal energy cultivation. Or rather, should he even call it a problem?

He watched Gwahae, who was sitting in the lotus position, exhaling and cultivating the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method. Her form was perfect, impeccably so. Her internal energy was accumulating at an abnormally fast rate.

To put it simply, the principle of internal energy cultivation methods was like distilling seawater to make it drinkable. The human body couldn’t directly absorb natural Qi. Therefore, breathing techniques were used to transform it into a usable form.

So-called ascending internal energy cultivation methods prioritized efficiency over safety, reducing the number of distillation steps to absorb the “seawater.” The Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method, on the other hand, distilled the Qi to the purity of fresh water. It was safer, but less efficient than other methods.

It was a safe method with a low risk of Qi deviation, but it was slow to accumulate internal energy. That was the cultivation method he had learned. And he had taught Gwahae the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method exactly as he had learned it.

But why was her internal energy accumulating so quickly? He couldn’t understand it.

It was as if she could drink seawater by the bucketful without any problems. Raw, undistilled natural Qi flowed directly into Gwahae’s dantian.

The drawback of the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method was that internal energy accumulated slowly for the first ten years of practice. But that wasn’t the case with Gwahae.

High safety and high efficiency. This wasn’t the Orthodox and Upright Internal Energy Cultivation Method anymore. It was something else entirely. Had it transformed into something else?

As he observed Gwahae with a dubious expression due to her unusual breathing technique, she finished her meditation and looked at him with her now intensely blue eyes, giving him a small smile.

For some reason, he felt a chill run down his spine.

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Crap seems like he gotta run for it 🤣