The moon hung high over the Jin Clan compound, silver light washing the stone paths in ghostly hues.
Tae-hyun sat alone on the edge of a rooftop, his robes tattered from the trial, his arms resting on bent knees. His breath misted in the cold night air, but he didn't shiver.
He stared out at the distant mountain range—the boundary between the sect and the wild, untamed world beyond.
Wind whispered across the tiles.
And in that silence, his thoughts found words.
---
"You know," he murmured to no one but the night,
"People talk about freedom like it's some birthright—like it just exists, waiting for you once the chains are gone. But that's a lie."
He exhaled slowly.
"Real freedom... it's not about being unshackled. It's about power. Not over others, but over yourself. The power to choose your path and the strength to walk it, even when it's steep, even when everyone wants you to turn back."
His fingers curled loosely, remembering the bruises, the blood, the stares.
"Freedom isn't given. It's carved out—wrested from fear, forged in clarity, and hardened by will."
A pause. A breeze.
"Without strength—whether it's strength of mind, body, or spirit—you're just waiting for the world to decide who you are. And it will. Oh, it will."
He thought of Jin Mu's sneer. Of the elders' indifference. Of the System's sudden intrusion into his life—and the cruel beauty of the Murim world that had replaced Earth.
"Nietzsche called it the will to power—not to dominate, but to overcome. To grow. To become. That's where true freedom lies—not in permission, but in mastery."
His eyes narrowed.
"Like a sculptor who's learned to command the stone, you stop seeing obstacles. You start seeing what could be."
The stars above burned cold and distant.
"So no—I don't want a freedom that's handed to me, wrapped in rules and fear. I want the kind I make for myself. The kind that can't be taken—because I've earned it, because I am it."
He stood slowly, silhouetted against the dark sky.
"The weak can only dream of freedom. But the powerful? The powerful can live it."
He clenched his fist, the System's interface flickering faintly in his mind.
That is why I seek power.
---
Below, lanterns flickered in the windows of the disciples' quarters. Some still celebrated. Others trained through the night.
Tae-hyun watched, distant.
He wasn't like them.
He couldn't afford to be.
---
> [System Notification: Mental Threshold Unlocked – Clarity of Will]
[+1 to All Mental Stats]
[New Passive: Conviction – Resistance to fear and illusion effects increased by 30%]
[Note: Emotional resonance detected. System alignment deepening.]
---
He tilted his head.
The System responded to belief.
Not just stats. Not just battles.
Intention mattered.
Good.
He would make it bend to his will just as he would this world.
Not for glory.
Not for revenge.
For freedom. For mastery. For something that couldn't be taken again.
---
Tae-hyun leapt silently down from the roof, his shadow stretching long beneath him.
Tomorrow, he would enter the Outer Sect.
Tomorrow, the true path would begin.
---
Morning in the Outer Sect was not gentle.
The clang of blades, the crack of fists on wood, the bark of instructors—all of it crashed against Tae-hyun's ears before the sun had even cleared the horizon.
Rows of disciples sparred in the open courtyards. Some ran laps with heavy iron weights strapped to their backs. Others meditated, bloodied and bruised.
This wasn't a school.
It was a forge.
And everyone here was steel, waiting to be tempered—or broken.
---
Tae-hyun stood before the Outer Sect Gatekeeper, a stern woman named Instructor Ma. Her black robes bore the crimson trim of the Ironwind Pavilion.
She looked him over with eyes like cold needles.
"Cripple-turned-wonder. I've seen worse. I've seen most of them die."
Tae-hyun didn't flinch. "Then I'll be a pleasant surprise."
She tossed him a wooden token marked with the character for Eight.
"Barracks Eight. You're bottom-ranked. No privileges. No pill rations. No training scrolls unless you earn them. Survive or rot. Clear?"
"Crystal."
She turned away, already dismissing him.
"Report to the Field by noon. And keep your head down—unless you're strong enough to back it up."
---
Barracks Eight was as miserable as he expected—ten stone bunks crammed into a damp hall reeking of sweat and damp cloth.
Half the occupants were asleep or nursing wounds. The other half watched him with interest.
A boy with a long scar across his cheek approached, arms crossed.
"You're the one who beat Jin Mu?"
Tae-hyun gave a nod.
"Then you've already got enemies. Mu's cousin is in Barracks Two. Rich, well-connected. Word is, he's putting a bounty on your head—disciplinary duel or not."
Tae-hyun shrugged. "Then I'll charge interest."
The boy snorted. "Name's Ryu. You might last longer than a week after all."
---
Later that day, Instructor Ma gathered the new initiates in the open field.
"You're Outer Disciples now," she said. "But don't think for a moment you're worth the ground you walk on."
She gestured to a massive board behind her. Names, ranks, and points were listed beside each disciple.
"This is the Merit Board. Your life now revolves around this."
She pointed to the top.
"Complete missions. Win duels. Collect resources. Kill beasts. Everything earns points. Points buy pills, scrolls, weapons—even entry to the Inner Sect."
Then she stabbed a finger at the bottom of the list.
"And if you stay at the bottom too long? You're expelled. Forgotten. Or worse."
Tae-hyun scanned the board.
He was dead last.
---
> [System Notice: Merit System Detected – Linked to Reputation, Access, and Mission Authority.]
[New Function Unlocked: Merit Tracker]
[Optional Objective: Reach Top 100 in Outer Sect – Reward: ???]
---
Instructor Ma continued.
"Most of you will receive basic tasks. Some of you will be assigned to Field Squads—outer reconnaissance, border patrols, or resource retrieval. It's dangerous. But so is being useless."
She flicked a parchment scroll.
"Squad Nine, step forward."
Five names were called.
Tae-hyun was last.
---
At the edge of the crowd, four other disciples stood—each more worn and watchful than the last.
A tall girl with twin swords. A brooding boy with a bow. A short, muscular brawler with bandaged fists. And one thin, quiet youth who simply nodded at Tae-hyun without a word.
Instructor Ma tossed them a sealed letter.
"First assignment: investigate strange Qi disturbances in the Graywood Basin. Three days. Don't die."
---
As the group walked toward the supply shed, the brawler chuckled.
"Well, this got interesting fast. Didn't expect a 'celebrity' to join our suicide squad."
Tae-hyun gave a dry smile. "If it's suicide, why are you still here?"
The man grinned wider. "Because I like living on the edge. Name's Han Do. I hit things."
The girl added, "Soo-yeon. Twin-blade user. Don't get in my way."
The archer gave a nod. "Min. I watch your back."
The quiet one didn't speak.
Tae-hyun looked at him.
"And you?"
A pause.
Then: "Yul. I hear things."
---
They geared up quickly—daggers, water skins, ration pills, maps, and spare robes.
No one talked about trust.
No one mentioned teamwork.
But something unspoken passed between them as they tightened belts and checked weapons.
They knew the truth.
In the Outer Sect, you didn't survive by being strong alone.
You survived by choosing who to bleed beside.
---
Tae-hyun's thoughts returned to the words he'd whispered the night before.
> The weak dream of freedom. The strong live it.
As they stepped through the gates and into the wild, he clenched his fists and felt the System pulse behind his eyes.
Time to climb.
---
---