We’re excited to present to you the epic action-adventure tale of Jeon Unchi, perhaps Korea’s most famous wizard—old Korea’s free-wheeling and mischievous version of Doctor Strange, if you will. This famous classic tale has been adapted in several genres, including the 2009 movie Jeon Woo-chi: The Taoist Wizard. This is the first part of a multi-part series.—Ed.

 

INTRODUCTION

“The Story of Jeon Unchi” is a classic of Korean fiction that incorporates the fantastic into the realistic. Unlike many of the moralistic works that came before it, “Jeon Unchi” is an adventure tale replete with action. Although no one knows who wrote the story, it has the characteristics of popular fiction written for commoners in the Korean vernacular script(hangul) that was produced in the late eighteenth and throughout the nineteenth centuries. Inspired by a historical figure with the slightly different name ofJ eon Uchi (late fifteenth to early sixteenth century) who was reputed to be a master of the mystical arts, “The Story of Jeon Unchi” is the tale of a rebellious magician and has been adapted to the screen as both a Korean drama and a film. Originally published circa 1847, although even that fact isn’t certain, this is the first time this work has been translated into English.

Toward the end of the Goryeo dynasty,[1] in the southwestern part of the realm, there lived a gentleman scholar whose family name was Jeon, personal name was Suk, and literary name was Unhwa. Although he came from generations of illustrious statesmen, he had no desire to become a government official himself. So he moved into a mountain where he spent his days studying letters with reverence and occasionally gathering his friends to appreciate the mountains and the rivers, the winds and the moon. And so he came to be known by the people as the Mountain Scholar. 

       His wife, Lady Choe, was also from a family that produced many high-ranking officials. She was a person of decorous and modest character as well as of beauteous appearance and virtue. The husband and wife treated each other with respect and lived harmoniously together for about ten years, until they came to lament often that they had no child to care for. But then, one day, Lady Choe had a dream in which many clouds descended upon her to reveal in their midst a young boy in blue clothing holding a lotus flower.

       The boy bowed twice before speaking to her. “I was a servant to the immortal spirits of the holy mountain of Yeongju, charged with gathering herbs for my masters. But due to an infraction I committed, I have been exiled to the realm of humans, so I bid you to treat me with affection.”

       Her husband listened to her and replied. “I felt so sad thinking that we would remain childless due to some unfortunate fate. But this dream you had surely means that heaven will bless us with a precious child.”

       So they rejoiced. And sure enough, Lady Choe showed signs of pregnancy that month.

       On a day beforethe passage of ten months, auspicious clouds surrounded their house and filled the place with a sweet fragrance. Jeon Suk cleaned the place thoroughly and waited for the birth. Lady Choe, disoriented from birth pangs, opened her eyes to see the boy from the dream enter into her. The joy she felt at the vision cleared her thoughts, and she soon gave birth to a wondrous boy. Jeon Suk, filled with happiness, took care of his wife and examined his son. The boy was of magnificent appearance as well as sturdy spirit.

       Jeon Suk spoke out. “This child was seen in a cloud, so let us give him the name of Unchi, or ‘cloud-sent,’ the formal name of Mongjungseon, or ‘a holy spirit in a dream,’ and the household name of Gusipja.”[2]

       Jeon Suk thought Unchi very precious, and his love for him knew no bounds.

       Once Unchi grew up and reached the age of nine, Jeon Suk began to teach him the letters. The boy turned out to be so bright that learning one thing allowed him to understand ten things, which made his father love him even more.

       Unfortunately, after Unchi turned ten, Jeon Suk suddenly fell ill and every medicine proved to be ineffectual. How sad it was! As it has always been the case, a happy event is often followed by a tragic one.

       Jeon Suk summoned his wife and spoke to her. “It won’t be long before I depart for the next world. My greatest regret is that I won’t get to see my child grow up. I bid you to overcome your sorrow and raise Unchi well. I wish you much fortune, and I hope you will properly perform the rituals of reverence for our ancestors. May you live a long life without any illness.”

       His wife could not reply as she shed tears until she fell unconscious.

       When Jeon Suk left this world a few days later, his wife hit herself on the chest and convulsed her entire body as she lamented. Unchi kept fainting as he thought ofhis father, whom he regarded as high as heaven, and the kindness he had shown him. His mother became concerned, so she consoled him even in midst of her own mourning. Although Unchi was still young, he took great care to perform all the funeral rituals properly as his father was buried at a gravesite on a mountain. He then displayed laudable filial piety in helping his mother and undergoing the three-year mourning period, earning the praise of the people of their village.

 

—

 

Jeon Suk’s friend Yun Gong was a scholar who had mastered the world’s learning so thoroughly that he could see far into the future. So Unchi picked up his books and went to Yun Gong to study under him.

       One day, Unchi got up early and was walking to the school when he came across a woman dressed in mourning clothes, weeping by a forest of thick-leaved bamboo trees. He pretended not to see her and went on to learn the letters with Yun Gong, but on his way back home he saw that she was still crying at the same spot. He became curious, so he approached her. She was about fifteen or sixteen, and her jade-like beauty utterly captivated Unchi.

       Unchi spoke to her in a gentle manner. “Where did you come from, and why are you crying so sadly from morning to the middle of the day?”

       The girl stopped weeping and replied in embarrassment, “I live below this mountain, and I am crying because something terrible has happened to me.”

       She would not reveal the source of her sadness, so Unchi came even closer and earnestly asked her to tell him of her troubles until she finally relented.

       “I am the daughter of Maeng the royal assistant. I lost my mother when I was five years old, and then a stepmother came into our household. She has been telling false tales of my wrongdoing to my father because she wants to see me die. I cry night and day, wondering if I should kill myself, but I cannot bring myself to do it. So there’s nothing I can do but weep.”

       Unchi felt a great pity for her.

       “Heaven alone should decide whether one lives or dies. Think of your body as a precious gift from your parents and find a way to live on.”

       When Unchi took her beauteous hand, she accepted his gesture without hesitation. And so they came together and joyfully shared their affection for each other. When it came time for them to part, they did so with sadness.

       The next day, when Unchi came to the place on his way to Yun Gong, the girl appeared and called out to him. “I have been waiting for my young master for a long time.”

       Unchi took her hand with great joy, and they spent some time together.

       “Wait for me here,” he told her before going off to school.

       When Yun Gong saw Unchi, he spoke to him. “On your way here, you committed an unseemly act with a woman, who is actually a fox demon in disguise. She put a curse on you, so no matter how much you study, you will never fathom the ways of heaven and earth or the harmonious principles of the universe. If you want the curse lifted, go back now and see that woman again. You will find that she is keeping a marble in her mouth. Take that marble away from her and bring it to me.”

       Unchi followed Yun Gong’s order and returned to the place where he had met the girl. When he saw her, he took her hand and led her into the bamboo forest, where they came together again. As they did so, he noticed that she indeed had a marble in her mouth. Unchi asked her to let him see it, but she refused. Unchi made a serious face.

       “You are a maiden from a good family and I am a young bachelor. I thought we should tell our parents about us so that we can be together like a pair of faithful ducks that mate for life and live a hundred years or so in each other’s company. But I suppose that you are not interested in that.”

       Hearing those words, the girl felt overcome with love for Unchi, so she rolled the marble out with her tongue and put it in his mouth. After a while, she asked for it back, but Unchi refused to return it. She pestered him, and then tried to forcibly open his mouth to retrieve it. At that point, Unchi swallowed the marble. She searched inside his mouth, but when she realized that it was gone, she got up without a word and left the forest while wailing in sorrow. Unchi felt ashamed, so he went to Yun Gong and told him the whole story.

       Yun Gong spoke to him. “You have eaten the soul of a fox demon, so you will understand the ways of astrology and geomancy. You will also become the master of seventy-two spiritual powers. I also predict that in the fourth lunar month of this year, you will pass the preliminary civil examination and become a literary licentiate. After that, you must handle yourself carefully.”

 

—

 

At the age of fifteen, Unchi’s literary skills surpassed that of Yi Taebaek[3] and his calligraphy rivaled that of Wang Huiji.[4] After he had eaten the soul of the fox demon, he also became the master of thirty-six magical powers of transformation. The preliminary government civil examination was held at this time, so Unchi submitted his writings to the judges. He not only qualified but also attained first place among the candidates. After he made the rounds of visiting dignitaries and relatives for four days, he returned to his mother, who felt both joyful and sad.

       “When your father was alive, he was averse to taking the civil examinations. But how could I not be happy to see you achieve such a distinction.”

       Time went on, and when it became spring, Unchi set off to tour the great mountains and rivers of the land. He came upon a Buddhist temple called Segeum, where he found the place of about a thousand rooms covered in cobwebs and empty of people, which he thought strange. He then went to another temple named Seongrim, where he met a few old monks.

       When he asked them about Segeum Temple, one of them answered him. “Segeum Temple and Seongrim Temple here used to be the home of about a thousand monks, but four or five years ago something came over the two places, and they couldn’t bear to live there anymore. They all scattered to unknown places, so Segeum Temple is now empty, and Seongrim Temple only has us old monks.”

       “This must be the work of some evil spirit.”

       Unchi returned home and related the story of Segeum Temple to his mother.

       “You must be wary of places like that,” Lady Choe told her son.

       After the conversation, Unchi spent his time farming and taking care of his mother. But then, one day, Unchi told his mother that he would go to Segeum Temple to study for the final civil examination.

       “You told me that the temple has evil spirits that harm people. Why would you go there?”

       “What is evil can never overcome what is righteous, so how could such spirits harm me? Please do not worry.”

       He quickly prepared his travel gear and headed for Segeum Temple. On his way, he came to the top of a rough cliff, where he encountered an old man dressed in worn clothing and leaning on a staff.

       When Unchi greeted him politely, the old man spoke to him. “And who might you be, taking the trouble to greet the likes of me in such a polite manner?”

       “How could I carelessly pass by such a senior personage?”

       “I have been waiting here for a long time so that I can give you something.”

       The old man took out of his sleeve some rope and a piece of paper with a talismanic symbol on it.

       “A time will come when you will need to use these.”

       With those words, the old man disappeared. Unchi expressed his gratitude toward the air and proceeded to Segeum Temple. There, he ate dinner prepared for him by the monks of Seongrim Temple and then lit some candles to read. At around the third watch,[5] the door to his room suddenly opened, and a woman walked in to sit next to him. Unchi saw that she was only about fourteen years old but was so beautiful that she evoked the vision of a peony flower with morning dew on its leaves. And her bearing was so exquisite that it suggested willow leaves swaying in a spring breeze. It was enough to melt the heart of the toughest man.

       Unchi felt disoriented with desire as he spoke to her. “Where did you come from, and how did you end up here so late at night?”

       “I am a respectable woman from a noble family who was accompanying her husband on his way to take up the position of magistrate in Jangyang District. But we were way laid by bandits who killed everyone in our household and stole all our things. Only I survived and managed to run away. I hid in the mountains during the day and traveled homeward by night, but then I saw the light from this window and thought there must be people living here. From the outside, I could hear the sound of a man reading, but I am in such a pitiful state at the moment that I abandoned all sense of propriety and came in. If you would please save me, I promise to never forget what you did for me.”

       “Fortune and misfortune are things that are beyond our control. You were beset by bandits, but you managed to escape. Under the circumstances, it is fortunate that you came upon this place. Where is your home, and how old are you?”

       “Our house is outside the South Gate of Gyeongseong,[6] and I am seventeen years old.”

       “We are of the same age. Gyeongseong is about three hundred ri[7] from here. It worries me that it’s too far for a woman to travel by herself.”

       The woman replied in a plaintive voice. “Please take pity on me and allow me to stay the nigh there.”

       “Because I am from a poor family, I couldn’t get myself a wife. I thought that if I am fortunate enough to pass the final civil examination next spring, I would be able to get married. But meeting you on this night, I think that this must be fate. How about we pledge to spend the rest of our lives in each other’s company?”

       When the woman heard those words, she bowed her head and did not say anything. In the candlelight, her modesty made her look even more beautiful.

       Unchi pushed aside his reading table and spoke to her. “I see that I have upset you with my words, which shames me. I bid you to think deeply and make a proper decision about your future.”

       The woman thought for a while before she replied. “I may be in a precarious situation now, but I am still a member of a noble family. I would rather die than allow myself to be dishonored. But your words have filled me with such gratitude that I cannot fully express it in words. If you promise to someday avenge the wrong I have suffered, how could I not follow your will?”

       Unchi thought their minds were in agreement, so he lay with her.

       “This is a wonderful day, so let us share liquor like a groom and bride and pledge our union to the gods of heaven and earth.”

       Unchi poured some liquor from a bamboo bottle into a cup and drank it, and then poured some for the woman. When Unchi tried to give her more, she firmly refused.

       “Why don’t you drink some more?” Unchi said.

       As he insisted, she drank another. But when Unchi took some more and tried to give her another, she refused again. Unchi made an upset expression.

       “A woman should obey a man, so why are you acting in such an improper manner?”

       The woman saw how upset Unchi was, so she forced herself to drink until she became disoriented. When she finally lay down and began to snore, Unchi took her clothes off and wrote a magic spell on her chest with red ink. No trace of the writing appeared on her, so he became certain that she was a fox demon in disguise. He used the rope he was given to bind her hands and feet together, and then put a pick to the crown of her head and pounded it down with a hammer.

       The woman woke up in fright and exclaimed, “Noble sir, what are you doing?”

       “You evil fox demon! I know you committed heinous acts in this temple and murdered people. To prevent you from causing further mischief, I have been waiting here to kill you!”

       Unchi hammered the pick into her head again until the demon could not stand the pain and revealed its true form.

       When the golden-furred fox with nine tails begged Unchi for its life, he addressed her. “If you give me your fox soul, I will let you live.”

       “But my soul is in my belly. If you spare me, I will give you three books of Heavenly Wisdom, which is much better than a fox soul.”

       Since Unchi was a scholar first and foremost, he became glad at the mention of such books.

       “Where are they?”

       “They are in my cave, so if you release me, I’ll go get them.”

       Unchi angrily hammered at the pick again.

       “If you unbind my feet, I’ll take you there and give you the books.”

       Unchi thought that would work, so he unbound the fox demon’s feet and followed it to its cave. It was at the side of a great mountain, below a massive rock. Inside, he found a place full of blue-green pine and bamboo trees, as well as a calmly flowing stream illuminated by a fair light that also revealed countless shimmering dwellings.

       As Unchi forced the fox demon to walk in front of him, maidens dressed in colorful clothing came out.

       “Our young lady has returned from her hunt, so we are sure to eat well today.”

       Overcome with rage, Unchi beat those demons to death before hammering the nine-tailed foxwith his pick yet again. The creature could not bear it, so it called out toothers.

       “Go quickly to my box of precious objects and bring three books that are in it.”

       A demon hurriedly brought the books.

       When Unchi examined them, he could tell that they indeed contained Heavenly Wisdom, but he could not read their characters. He told the nine-tailed fox to teach him.

       “I will teach you only if you unbind my hands.”

       When he raised his hammer, the nine-tailed fox relented.

       Unchi spoke to her without unbinding her hands. “We will go back to the temple.”

       They returned to Segeum Temple, where Unchi drank some liquor and learned to read the book of Heavenly Wisdom, the first volume of which he mastered in a single night. Not even a supernatural spirit could fathom such an ability. It was only then that he unbound the fox demon’s hands. He also attached to the first volume the paper with a talismanic symbol he was given.

       “I was going to kill you to rid the world of your evil, but you have done me a favor, so I will let you live. Do not engage in unseemly acts ever again.”

       The nine-tailed fox bowed to him before leaving.

       After some time had passed, a powerful wind suddenly blew open the door, and a voice came shouting from a blue cloud.

       “Gusipja! Take the rope with you, but leave the talismanic paper behind.”

       Unchi hurried out as the blue cloud flew away. He expressed his gratitude toward the sky and returned to his room. Sometime later, a gentleman arrived outside the temple on a donkey and ascended the stone steps to the building. It was none other than Yun Gong.

       After Unchi hurriedly informed him of all that had happened, Yun Gong addressed him. “This is not a book that a scholar should read, so how dare you even look at it?”

       Unchi did not know how to reply to that. He then realized that Yun Gong had disappeared without a trace. He looked around in shock and found that one of the books was missing. As he wondered where it could be, he heard the sound of a wailing woman. When he went outside, he saw his former nanny coming with her hair undone.

       She spoke to him while weeping. “Your mother was perfectly fine yesterday, but she passed away in the night. You must hurry home.”

       Unchi, in great shock, looked for his books so that he could take them with him, but then he realized that both the nanny and another volume had disappeared.

       Unchi spoke out in rage. “Those evil demons thought me so low as to trick me like this, so I will go to their cave, retrieve my books, and get rid of them all.”

       He went forth with his pick and hammer, but he found the mountains and valleys so rough and the road so long that he could not find the cave. He went back and thought to himself. “I don’t know the full extent of those demons’ magical powers, so I shouldn’t stay here.”

       So he gathered his things and returned home. Because he had put the talismanic paper on the first volume of the book of Heavenly Wisdom, the demons could not steal it back as they did with the others.

 

—

 

Once Unchi studied the book of Heavenly Wisdom, he became the master of all forms of magic. He also lost interest in taking the final civil examination.

       “It will take too long to provide my mother with a comfortable life by becoming a government official.”

       And he came up with an alternative plan.

       With one shake of his body, he gave himself the appearance of a divine official of the Heavenly Realm. He then summoned many-colored clouds and rode them all the way to the royal residence of Daemyeong Palace, where he set himself down while spreading an air that filled the place with a sense of holiness. The palace servants ran about in panic, not knowing what to do, until some of them finally informed the king.

       “An event of extreme rarity has occurred.”

       The king, in great surprise, questioned the servants about what they had seen.

       Out of the thick clouds, Unchi sent forth a heavenly servant boy in a blue suit to announce his coming.

       “King of Goryeo, receive the command of the Great Jade Emperor of the Heavenly Realm.”

       The king ordered that a carpet be laid out and a table with an incense burner placed on it. He then proceeded out to meet the heavenly official who was standing upright in the midst of many-colored clouds, dressed in a red robe, wearing a golden crown, and accompanied by servant boys at his sides.

       After the king bowed down to him four times and then prostrated himself on the ground, Unchi spoke to him. “A palace in the Heavenly Realm has become old and worn. In order to make repairs, I came down to the world of humans and visited many countries to inform people of the upcoming work. I have received from them all the tributes that are needed for the construction, except for a girder of gold. The Great Jade Emperor knows that your kingdom is rich in gold, so he commands that you submit a golden girder by the seventh day of the seventh month, on the Hour of the Horse.[8] It has to be ten cheok[9] and five chon[10] long, and three cheok and two chon thick. If you do not submit it by that time, a great calamity will fall upon you.”

       When he finished speaking, a serene tune was heard as the many-colored clouds flew away to the south. The king bowed down four times in the direction, then summoned all his officials to discuss the matter.

       They spoke to him. “Official pronouncements should be sent out to all eight provinces of the land, ordering the gathering of gold to fulfill heaven’s commandment. We think that is the right course.”

       The king agreed and immediately sent out orders to the provinces to collect gold. When all the necessary metal was brought to the capital, a master craftsman was tasked to fashion the girder in the required dimensions. After it was completed, the king kept his mind and body pure for three days while waiting for the heavenly official to return.

       At the end of the three days, in the Hour of the Dragon,[11] many-colored clouds came and filled the palace with a fragrant air before the heavenly official appeared. From either side of him boy servants in blue robes came riding on cranes, picked up the golden girder with metal hooks, and placed it inside the clouds. The clouds then dissipated to the east and the west.

       The king went up to the incense table and bowed down four times before returning to his residence. There, his officials congratulated him for concluding the matter successfully.

       Because Unchi tricked the king into giving him a golden girder, there was a shortage of gold in the kingdom. He knew that if he tried to sell the precious object, it would draw attention, so he came up with a plan. He cut off just the top part of the girder and took it to a city.

       When a police officer saw it, he became suspicious. “Where did you get that gold, and how much is it?”

       “It came from a legitimate source, and it is worth five hundred gold pieces.”

       “If you tell me where you live, I’ll bring the money to you.”

       “I live in the southwestern side of Songak Mountain, and my name is Jeon Unchi.”

       After the police officer agreed to meet with Unchi, he went to the government office and reported everything to the governor.

       “There has to be some story behind this. We should investigate this matter before arresting the wretch.”

       He then gave the police officer five hundred coins and told him to go and buy the gold. The officer immediately went to the southwest and met with Unchi, who sold the gold to him.

       The officer returned to the governor, who examined it before exclaiming in surprise, “This is the top part of the golden girder for certain. We’ll arrest the culprit and get the truth out of him before reporting the matter to the king.”

       The governor sent a team of policemen led by ten or so officers to the southwest to arrest Unchi. When they came, Unchi served them a sumptuous meal.

       “I know you’ve exerted yourself coming all the way here, but I won’t be going with you. Your governor is not powerful enough to bring me in. But if the king himself orders my arrest, then I’ll surrender myself.”

       As Unchi sat stock-still, for some reason the officers could not bring themselves to lay their hands on him. So they ended up returning to the city and reporting everything to the governor, who became alarmed. He dispatched five hundred policemen to surround Unchi’s house and sent a report to the king. The governor’s story enraged the monarch, who gathered his officials to discuss the matter before ordering the Office of the State Tribunal to take charge of the case.

       Unchi was serving his mother a plentiful meal that he was able to provide with the money he had made, when he heard of the order from the capital city to put him under arrest. He thought a great deal and came up with a stratagem.

       When soldiers led by an officer of the State Tribunal arrived, Unchi picked up a water bottle and spoke to his mother. “Quickly, mother, get inside this bottle.”

       His mother somehow went in, followed by Unchi himself.

       The officer thought it very strange, but he put a plug in the bottle’s opening. As he then traveled to the capital night and day, he could hear a voice coming from inside the container.

       “I went in here to avoid all the chaos outside. But someone plugged up the opening, so I’m suffocating. Remove the plug!”

       The officer ignored the voice as he finally went before the king and reported everything that had occurred.

       The king spoke out. “I’ve heard that Unchi knows magic, but how could he possibly get inside a bottle?”

       Unchi’s voice came from the bottle. “It’s so stuffy in here. Please remove the plug.”

       When the king realized that Unchi was indeed inside, he asked his officials what he should do.

       They answered him. “We don’t know what kind of magic this wretch is capable of, so if we are not careful, he is liable to escape.”

       The king ordered oil to be boiled in an iron pot and had the water bottle placed in it.

       Unchi spoke out from inside. “Because I was so poor, I have been shivering night and day from the cold. But now that I am in a hot place where I can warm my body, my gratitude knows no end.”

       The oil boiled from morning to night until it all dissipated. The king then ordered the bottle to be broken, but when it shattered on the ground, no one appeared. Instead, all the broken pieces hurriedly went before the king. “I am here, your lowly subject Jeon Unchi.”

       The alarmed king ordered that the pieces be gathered and boiled in oil once more. He also commanded that Jeon Unchi’s house be destroyed and his land turned into a pond.

       Upon his order to arrest Unchi again, his officials spoke up. “This wicked criminal seems hard to catch, so perhaps the best way to avoid further trouble is to put up a notice on all four gates of the city announcing that if Unchi surrenders on his own accord, his crime will be forgiven and he will be given an official position in the government. Once he appears, you could give him a very difficult task. And when he fails to carry it out, you could have him executed then. We believe that this is the right course.”

       After the king heard them out, he immediately ordered notices to be put up on the four gates, which read as follows.

       “Jeon Unchi committed a great crime against the country, but given his special talents, he will be pardoned and given an official position. So come forth on your own accord.”

To be continued in the next issue.

 

The Big Book of Classic Fantasy

(Vintage Books, 2019)

Ed. Ann and Jeff VanderMeer

Trans. Minsoo Kang

 

Copyright © 2019 Vintage

Translation copyright © 2019 Minsoo Kang

Reprinted with permission from Vintage.