Wudang Sacred Scriptures

After briefly stopping by the garden, Grand Elder Danmok Seong visited the Clan Head’s Hall for the first time in nearly ten years.

His expression grew even more rigid as he looked up at the newly built, enormous main pavilion.
Danmok Seong had lived alone in a thatched cottage near the bamboo grove, slightly removed from the Danmok Clan estate, occasionally instructing his grandnephew Danmok Cheong in martial arts during the boy’s visits.
He had shown no interest in how the Danmok Clan was being run.

He had refrained out of concern that his presence might cause discomfort for his nephew, the Clan Head, and possibly spark unnecessary internal discord.
In his youth, Danmok Seong had come to understand the complicated feelings of an elder brother overshadowed by a remarkable younger sibling.
From that day on, he had completely severed involvement in clan affairs. He met with no retainers and maintained his distance.

He had even cut ties with the woman he once loved.
From then on, he devoted himself solely to martial cultivation.
All for the peace and future of the clan.

And yet… look at this wretched state.
The guards stationed at the entrance to the Clan Head’s Hall flinched in shock upon recognizing Danmok Seong.
It had been so long since the Grand Elder had set foot in the Clan Head’s Hall.
“We pay our respects to the Grand Elder!”

“……”
The stoic look on the Grand Elder’s face made the Guard Captain tense.
“A grand clan meeting is in progress. I will go announce your arrival. If you could wait a moment…”

“……”
The Guard Captain, chilled to the bone by the cold gaze of the veteran martial master, hurriedly opened the doors to the main hall.
―Dulkkeodeok! (clunk)

At that moment, a roar burst from inside.
“Who dares interrupt during a grand clan meeting?”
It was an outburst of rage from someone frustrated by the interruption of an intense meeting.

Everyone inside turned their gaze to the doors.
The meeting had been dragging with no resolutions in sight, leaving everyone increasingly irritable. Now, with a convenient target for their frustration appearing, it was only natural that curiosity flared.
But the person who entered was not someone who could be treated as a scapegoat.

“Gasp—! The Grand Elder!”
The retainers rose in unison.
“We pay our respects to the Grand Elder!”

“My apologies for the outburst. Had I known, I would not have spoken so carelessly.”
“You should have sent word ahead! We would all have come to receive you.”
Danmok Jong, head of the Danmok Clan, remained seated on the clan master’s seat as he greeted his uncle, the Grand Elder.
“Uncle, welcome.”

“……”
“I had just been planning to visit you at Bamboo Grove Hermitage.”
His tone carried a subtle rebuke—how could the Cave Daoist, who had assaulted the Young Clan Lord, have been let go so easily?

“In any case, since you’ve graced the Clan Head’s Hall with your rare presence, please take a seat and observe the grand clan meeting. As for a seat… Elder Council Leader, perhaps you might yield yours?”
“Of course. Grand Elder, please—this way…”
Just as the Elder Council Leader stood to yield his seat—

“Clan Head, I suggest we adjourn this meeting.”
At Danmok Seong’s words, Clan Head Danmok Jong spoke with a troubled expression.
“Uncle, that would be difficult. This grand clan meeting was not easy to convene, and there are still many issues to discuss.”

Though he respected his uncle, Danmok Jong found the request inappropriate. It was one thing to barge in unannounced, but this…
“Still, I insist we adjourn.”
The rare sternness in the Grand Elder’s voice shifted the atmosphere of the hall to an awkward silence.

The Elder Council Leader stepped in, trying to smooth things over.
“Perhaps the Grand Elder has urgent matters to discuss with the Clan Head. It may be best to quickly conclude the meeting.”
A diplomatic suggestion—maintaining the Clan Head’s authority while acknowledging the Grand Elder’s unusual presence.

But Danmok Seong dismissed it with a single word.
“Clan Head. Disband the meeting immediately.”
As his uncle’s unyielding stance became clear, Danmok Jong had no choice but to begrudgingly turn to the gathered elders and retainers.
“Let us adjourn today’s meeting. I ask for your understanding, as my uncle has come to the Clan Head’s Hall for the first time in ages.”

Though his tone tried to maintain dignity, the Clan Head’s displeasure was plain.
The elders and retainers, their expressions puzzled, began making their way toward the doors of the hall.
At that moment, Danmok Seong spoke to the last person exiting—the Elder Council Leader.

“Elder Council Leader, ensure that not even an ant remains within fifty jang of the Clan Head’s Hall.”
The Elder Council Leader flinched.
“Do you include the guards posted at the hall?”

“……”
When the Grand Elder remained silent, the Elder Council Leader cautiously continued.
“Grand Elder, that would be unacceptable. No matter the circumstances, the guards must remain close to ensure the safety of the Clan Head…”

“Elder Council Leader. Do you mean to say that the Clan Head’s uncle is not to be trusted?”
“……Of course not.”
“Anyone—regardless of rank or status—who sets foot within fifty jang will be executed on the spot. And you will bear full responsibility.”

The Elder Council Leader recoiled in shock at the deadly seriousness of the command.
Danmok Inryong had never once issued such a brutal order.
What in the world is happening…?

Even the mere fact that he had come to the Clan Head’s Hall—something he had never done in his life—was extraordinary.
Today, Danmok Seong did not appear as a benevolent dragon (Inryong). He looked like a wrathful, rampaging beast (Boryong).
“I will see to it that the area is cleared immediately.”

The Elder Council Leader rushed outside, where a great commotion erupted. But before long, the chaos quieted, and an eerie silence fell.
The Danmok Clan’s main pavilion stood completely empty—a nearly unprecedented event.
Seated still on the clan master’s chair, Danmok Jong watched his uncle with clear displeasure.

“Uncle, I don’t know what has made you so angry, but isn’t this excessive? I may be your nephew, but I’m also the Clan Head. Surely you should consider my position too?”
“What I’ve done, I did after considering your position ten thousand times over.”
“…Pardon?”

Danmok Seong flicked his sleeve, and from within spilled a bundle of thin twigs.
They were all fresh branches, with sparse, vivid green leaves still clinging to them.
“Uncle… what is this?”

“Do you not recognize it even after seeing it?”
“I mean—why the sudden switch to a switch…?”
“Jong-ah.”

 
****
When his uncle suddenly called him by his childhood name, the Clan Head, Danmok Jong, was confused. But what truly bewildered him came next.

“Come here and roll up your pant legs.”
“Uncle… what are you saying? This is absurd.”
Danmok Jong began to wonder if his uncle had lost his mind in old age.

But when he met his uncle’s grave eyes, he realized it was no jest.
“All this time, I have not meddled in what you do. Whether you turned the Clan Head’s Hall into a grand palace for luxury, whether you kept three wives and four concubines, I said nothing. Even when you engaged in business or rewrote the clan laws as you pleased, I did not interfere. And I never will.”
“……”

“You know very well why I refrained—because upholding your authority as Clan Head would ensure the stability of the Danmok Clan.”
At his uncle’s solemn words, Danmok Jong straightened his posture.
“…Yes, Uncle.”

“But today, there is one thing I cannot overlook. I cannot remain silent while the future of the Danmok Clan is being erased.”
A hint of confusion crossed Danmok Jong’s face.
“Uncle, I’m afraid I don’t understand. How is the future of the Danmok Clan disappearing? Our enterprises are more prosperous than ever, and our retainers are outstanding.”

“If the pillars shake, even the most luxurious house will collapse.”
“……”
“I’ve heard all about what Cheong-ah has been up to.”

Danmok Jong’s face paled slightly.
“Uncle, that’s all been exaggerated. The Cave Daoist of Mount Wudang must have twisted the facts to cover his own misdeeds—”
“Silence! I met the Cave Daoist in person.”

Danmok Jong realized he had made a grave error in summoning his uncle from seclusion. The old man had spent his entire life in the bamboo grove—his ways had grown uncompromising.
That’s why he’s storming around with a switch at his age. Gods…
While he floundered internally, his uncle’s stern voice cut through:

“Did you think I cherished Cheong-ah merely because he was the clan’s legitimate successor?”
“……?”
“It was because he was more gifted in martial talent than anyone, and because he was brilliant. Now tell me—who do you think ruined that child?”

Danmok Jong met his uncle’s burning gaze and finally grasped where this rage stemmed from.
“There’s still time to correct it. That’s why I came.”
“Uncle… I understand now. From here on, I’ll be a strict father to Cheong-ah and guide him properly.”

“Good. I’m glad you’ve come to your senses. Now, hurry up and roll up your pant legs.”
Danmok Jong was struck dumb.
That’s not what I meant…

“Uncle…? I’m fifty years old.”
“Whether you’re fifty or sixty, you’re still a nephew I must teach.”
“There must be other ways to guide me. Frankly… at this age, a beating with a switch is just too much.”

“……”
Grand Elder Danmok Seong looked at the Clan Head for a ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ long moment and said,
“If you truly feel that way, then gather every retainer and servant in the Great Martial Training Grounds.”

“…Pardon?”
“It’s been a while, but I suppose I could offer you a training duel.”
Danmok Jong’s face turned ashen.

He called it a training duel, but the meaning was clear: he would beat him bloody. In front of the entire clan.
“Let’s see, then, just how much you’ve accomplished in the past thirty years.”
Thirty years ago, as the Young Clan Lord, Danmok Jong had sparred against his uncle. It had left him bedridden for four days.

Though his uncle was gentle in daily life, once a spar began, he was as merciless as a demon.
Knowing now the depth of his uncle’s fury, Danmok Jong shivered. If it happened now, he’d likely be bedridden for a month.
“…Uncle, I will accept your lesson with the switch.”

Danmok Jong thought it was a small mercy that the fifty-jang radius had been cleared.
He rose from the clan seat, slowly rolled up his trouser legs, and clenched his eyes shut.
To receive corporal discipline at this age—how utterly absurd.

His uncle’s supreme martial strength was the foundation upon which the Danmok Clan’s current prestige rested. But at this moment, that very strength made him unbearable.
As Danmok Jong braced himself, caught in a swirl of resentment and shame, his uncle’s voice, quiet and resonant, reached him.
“Jong-ah, there was a time when your father asked me to take the position of Clan Head in his stead.”

“…!”
“He told me it was a difficult decision made solely for the future of the Danmok Clan. And that day, I resolved to abandon myself and live only for the clan’s future.”
Danmok Jong’s hands trembled as they gripped the hem of his pants.

“Today’s beating is meant to set the Danmok Clan straight, which has begun to lean astray. But make no mistake—this switch will strike not only your heart, but mine as well.”
“Uncle…”
“And as for Cheong-ah, I already have another way to discipline him. Do not worry. I too bear fault for having been negligent.”

“……”
“But if you truly believe the switch is too much—then lower your pants.”