Webtoon- Episode 3

**Episode 3** is the third chapter in the Legend of the Northern Blade webtoon series.

## Summary

Jin Mu-Won sits on the rooftop of the building, Home of Ten Thousand Spirits and thinks about the fact that the ultimate martial scroll of the Northern Heavenly Sect is the Sect itself. When the sun sets, the ruined walls of the Sect cast shadows on the ground. These walls are known as the Walls of Ten Thousand Shadows.

The mysterious patterns inscribed on these walls turn into writings when they are drenched in sunlight. These writing are written in a forgotten language from the Lower Moon Kingdom. These walls were built by the 1st Generation Sect Leader, Buk Jin-Hu and contain all his writings. The following sect leaders also added their own writings and teachings to the inscriptions on these walls and this continued all the way down to the 4th Generation Leader, Jin Kwan-Ho.

Jin Mu-Won remembers that it was due to this reason that his father, Jin Kwan-Ho made him learn the language from the Lower Moon Kingdom rather than practicing martial arts at an early age. To most people, the engravings on the walls merely look like ancient engravings. That is because it is intended for Jin Mu-Won who can read the language of the Lower Moon Kingdom.

Jin Mu-Won is thinking about the fact that it may seem like he is wasting his time by being up on the rooftop. He hopes that the guards continue believing that and thinks that he should make them continue believing it. The combined teachings of all the previous Sect leaders are all written on these walls. Jin knows that he still has a long way to go before he completely learns the ultimate martial art of the Northern Heavenly Sect, the Gathering of Ten Thousand Shadows. He thinks about the fact that as long as he is being watched by the Central Heavenly Alliance, he can't bring any unwanted attention onto himself. He needs to keep all of this hidden and patiently wait for this chance.

As he is thinking about all this, he notices a horse drawn carriage speeding towards the sect. He gets of the rooftop and goes to greet the man controlling the horse and carriage. Jin calls out to the man. His name is Hwang-Cheol, a former warrior of the Northern Heavenly Sect.

Self defense was the extent of his martial arts and as such, he was the weakest warrior in the Northern Heavenly Sect. However, nobody could match his devotion and loyalty to the Sect. After leaving the Sect, he worked as a wandering merchant and did his best to bring supplies for Jin Mu-Won.

Hwang Cheol was a lonely orphan who never had any talent in martial arts. While all other Sects rejected him, the Northern Heavenly Sect accepted him. Sect Leader, Jin Kwan-ho did everything he could to train Hwang-Cheol in the basics of martial arts so he could at least protect himself. Hwang-Cheo never forgot this kindness and while everyone else left the Sect and moved on, he was the only one who continued doing everything he could for Jin Mu-Won.

Hwang-Cheol gets off the horse and greets Jin Mu-Won calling him young master and asking if he has been doing well. Jin answers that he has and asks about Hwang-Cheol. Hwang says that he is the same as always and says that Jin has gotten taller since the last time they met. Jin Mu-Won laughs it off and thanks Hwang-Cheol for coming all the way to see him again. As Jin is saying this Hwang notices that one of Jin's index fingers is bandaged and immediately realizes what might have happened. He asks Jin if the guards hurt him again and calls them bastards. He asks if it is the new guards who did so.

Jin says that it wasn't them and tells Hwang not to worry. He says that he accidentally hurt his finger while blacksmithing and hides his hands behind him. Hwang says hopes that Jin is not lying and just as he is about to ask Jin, Jin changes the topic and and moves to the goods on the back of the cart and says that Hwang didn't have to bring him so much stuff as he looks at the goods laden cart drawn by the horse. Jin says that Hwang should start living for himself and that he is already very thankful for all that he has done.

Hwang replies saying that his heart cannot do that. He says that without the Northern Heavenly Sect he would be rotting away in Murim and tells Jin that he shouldn't be living his life like he has as well. Jin is touched by these words and notices a rock among the good in the cart and asks Hwang why it is there.

Hwang says that he got the rock when he went to Un-Nam . It was a rock that fell from the sky and a certain tribe worshipped it as a sacred object but that tribe was massacred so the rock doesn't belong to anyone anymore. Jin is shocked at this fact. Hwang coughs nervously and says that it seems the tribe fought the Broken Fists Sect. Jin is silent upon hearing this. Hwang continues saying that the Sect has decided to settle down in Un-Nam and as he is saying this it starts snowing.

After betraying the Northern Heavenly Sect, each of the Great Four of the Northern Heavens created their own martial force in Murim. The Cursed Ghost Blade, Yeon Cheon-Hwa gathered a group of elite qi sword users and settles down in the west. They became known as the Protectors of the Western Heavens. The Tempest Storm, Kyung Mu-Saeng assembled a group called the Billowing Clouds but hasn't made any move. The Iron Blood Ruler, Jae Hyeok-Shim supposedly has the biggest martial force and built the Iron Castle in the north. The Demon Fist, Jo Cheon-Woo who was known for his cruel and vicious nature created a bloodthirsty sect called the Broken Fists Sect.

At the words of Hwang-Cheol, Jin Mu-Won falls silent. Sensing the shift in tone, Hwang changes the subject and says that since Jin has picked up blacksmithing, he has brought some iron for Jin to use. Jin replies that he will put the iron to good use and says that they should head inside as it is getting pretty cold due to the snow. As Jin is helping Hwang unload the goods on the cart, he restates that he is always thankful for what Hwang does. Hwang says that it is nothing.

All this while, Seo Mu-Sang has been hiding behind a wall and listening in on the conversation. He thinks that Hwang-Cheol is nothing special. He thinks that his loyalty to the Northern Heavenly Sect is impressive but it's unfortunate that the descendant of the Sect is in such a pitiful state. Mu-Sang believes that Jin walks as if he has no purpose in life, wastes his time in the forge and climbs the top of a tower and gazes at the sky. Jin truly has nothing. The time when Jin talked about the Central Heavenly Alliance and the Great Four of the Northern Heavens, if he had refined his story a little bit more, it would have been more believable. For such a young age, Seo Mu-Sang thinks that Jin has remarkable decision making skill. He thinks that it is unfortunate. If Jin had at least learned martial arts from the North Wall, he would have been a strong leader.

As Seo Mu-Sang is thinking about all this, he spots a messenger hawk and runs inside the building to retrieve the message from it. Inside the building, Jang Pae-San reads the message and becomes very angry. He curses and says that after sending the Third Mercenary Group to rot in the ruined Sect, the Central Heavenly Alliance didn't even contact the group once and now they are telling them that some highly esteemed guests are going to come over. He says this place isn't like the Dong Ting Lake. It's not a place to come sightseeing. He curses some more and tell Seo Mu-Sang to start repairing one of the royal buildings in the Sect, first thing in the morning. Seo Mu-Sang nods and says that he understood.

Jin Mu-Won and Hwang Cheol bring up the goods in the cart to Jin's room and Jin tell Hwang to make himself at home and gives him some tea. Hwang says that Jin's teas are always the best. Jin then asks about what is happening in the outside world right now. Hwang thinks for some time and says that the recent talks are all about a certain martial artist making a name in the Murim world. His name is 'Dam Soo-Cheon' and he has stated that he will challenge 100 martial artists and win against all of them and that is why he is the center of attention in the Murim world right now. As Jin sits down to drink tea with Hwang, he listens to Hwang and is surprised by this.

Hwang continues on saying that Dam Soo Cheon is the third son of one of the Nine Skies, the Unkillable Master, Dam Jeok-Shim. At first people laughed at Soo-Cheon and did not take him seriously. After all, he was merely an 18 year old boy. But everytime he challenged someone, he would wreak havoc and destruction. Now his very essence brings fear and adoration from the people of Murim. Hwang says that right now he has challenged 93 people and hasn't lost against a single one. If he manages to win against 7 more, he would set one of the greatest records in the history of Murim. People are calling this the '100 Man Challenge'.

Upon hearing this, Jin is surprised by the fact that this Dam Soo-Cheon is only 18 years old. Hwang goes on to say that at the rate he's going, Dam Soo-Cheon will most definitely become a formidable pillar in the Murim world. He remembers something suddenly and adds that according to rumors, he's apparently heading north and a lot of sects in the north are quite nervous now. Jin states that he is impressive and asks if Hwang has any other news. Hwang tries to think if he has any other news.

After talking for some time about the affairs of the outside world and other matters, Hwang prepares to leave. Jin advices Hwang to stay and rest for a bit. Hwang says that he should but unfortunately can't. He says that he will be back after the winter and asks for forgiveness for not being of more use to Jin. Jin says that that's not true and says Hwang has done more than enough for him. Hwang gets onto his empty horse drawn cart and rides away into the snow. Jin sees him off.

The sun slowly sets and as it is turning dark, Seo Mu-Sang spots Jin and says that he has been looking for him. Mu-Sang says that it seems some esteemed guests of the Central Heavenly Alliance are coming next spring so the group is planning to repair and use the Hwacheon Palace. Jin says that they can do what they want and says that building has been long abandoned so it doesn't matter anymore. Jin says that if that is all Mu-Sang has to say, then he'll take his leave and walks away. Mu-Sang is flustered by this and says ok.

He walks through the sect and on the way, he sees the Home of Ten Thousand Spirits. As he opens the door to a room, he sees that there is some snow and dirt at his feet that hasn't been tracked into the room by him. He turns his head to look around the room and suddenly finds a knife inches from his face. The person holding the knife brings it up to his neck and asks him who he is. Jin is surprised by the fact that it is a woman's voice. He asks the mystery woman what she means and says that he should be asking her.

The woman presses the knife against his neck and draws some blood. She says that she asked him first. He says that he is the owner of the place. She is surprised by this and asks if he is telling her that he is the descendant of the Northern Heavenly Sect. Jin says that that's correct and tells her it is now her turn to answer his question. Just as she is about to answer, the knife suddenly falls down. Jin turns around and sees that the woman has fallen down and is unconscious. She seems to be bleeding profusely and has blood flowing from her head, her mouth, her right shoulder and seems to have a major, possibly deadly wound near her right shoulder. Her clothes are completely soaked in blood.

## Characters in Order of Appearance

* Jin Mu-Won
* Buk Jin-Hu*(Shown)*
* Nam Un-San*(Shown)*
* Yoo Kwang-Yeon*(Shown)*
* Jin Kwan-Ho*(Shown)*
* Hwang-Cheol
* Yeon Cheon-Hwa*(Mentioned)*
* Kyung Mu-Saeng*(Mentioned)*
* Jae Hyeok-Shim*(Mentioned)*
* Jo Cheon-Woo*(Mentioned)*
* Seo Mu-Sang
* Jang Pae-San
* Dam Soo-Cheon*(Mentioned)*
* Dam Jeok-Shim*(Mentioned)*
* Eun Ha-Seol

## Organizations in Order of Appearance

* Northern Heavenly Sect*(Mentioned)*
* Broken Fists Sect*(Mentioned)*
* Protectors of the Western Heavens*(Mentioned)*
* Billowing Clouds*(Mentioned)*
* Iron Castle*(Mentioned)*
* Nine Skies*(Mentioned)*
* Central Heavenly Alliance*(Mentioned)*

## Locations in Order of Appearance

* Northern Heavenly Sect
* Walls of Ten Thousand Shadows
* Lower Moon Kingdom*(Mentioned)*
* Un-Nam*(Mentioned)*
* Hwancheon Palace*(Mentioned)*
* Home of Ten Thousand Spirits

## Trivia

* In this chapter, the inscriptions on the Walls of Ten Thousand Shadows are shown and they seem to in the Devanagiri script, a script used as the script for many Indian languages such as Hindi, Sanskrit, etc. This points to the fact that the forgotten language that is mentioned could be an Indian language and the 'Lower Moon Kingdom' could refer to a kingdom in the Indian subcontinent.

1. ↑ The name of a place. It means Southern Clouds.