A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

The anonymous story places the young Im Kyong-up on a hunt in the mountains. A woodman directs him to an isolated mansion, appears there again and gives him food. At night he leads Im to a lake pavilion and orders him to watch from a tree, tied securely with his belt.

The woodman leaps across the lake, then he and another man rise into the air to fight. Im sees flashes and hears weapons until one combatant falls. The victor calls himself an extraordinary outlaw with many houses. He says the defeated man, outwardly a tobacco seller in Seoul, had become his partner’s lover and attempted his death. His account, including his coercive offer of the house and woman to Im, is the woodman’s explanation, not neutral confirmation of the dispute.

When Im refuses, the woodman kills the woman. He then teaches Im swordsmanship for six days before allowing him to leave. The tale gives its unnamed outlaw superhuman movement and martial knowledge while retaining his violence and moral ambiguity; it does not establish a named Korean species or lineage for him.

Air-leaping outlaw and sword teacherTale-specific identity
01

Origins & earliest records

Korea; tale-specific historical narrative

02

Records & interpretation

Complete story and attribution read in the 1913 English witness; no independent confirmation of supernatural events.

In the literature

“vaulted off into mid-air”
Anonymous · Korean Folk Tales: Imps, Ghosts and Fairies
Tale37, Im, the Hunter, printed p.184 (Gutenberg marker196) · James S. Gale

The woodman and his opponent leave the pavilion to fight in the air.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Korean Folk Tales: Imps, Ghosts and Fairies

    Anonymous; translated by James S. Gale · 1913

    Tale 37, “Im, the Hunter”, printed pp. 182–187 (Gutenberg page labels 194–199). English translation date, not the date of the narrated event.

  2. 02

    Korean Folk Tales: Imps, Ghosts and Fairies — Im, the Hunter

    Anonymous · 1913

    London:J.M.Dent/NewYork:E.P.Dutton1913, actual title page. Gale preface distinguishes Im Bang old manuscript, thirteen Yi Ryuk stories from1911 reprint, and three anonymous selections. Complete selected chapter/signature read; no Korean manuscript collation. Printed pagination checked in retained1913 PDF OCR; Gutenberg body markers are printed+12, physical PDFpages printed+16. No new page-pixel claim. Gale death1937 confirmed by UniversityToronto archival finding aid.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Primary records and illustrations

Direct primary record

Korean Folk Tales: Imps, Ghosts and Fairies

Anonymous; James S. Gale translation, London Dent/New York Dutton, 1913. Tale 37, “Im, the Hunter”, pp. 194–199

Complete story and author signature read from cached Gutenberg51002 HTML. Translator’s bracketed introductions and author notes distinguished from narrative. No illustration claimed.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

Korean Folk Tales: Imps, Ghosts and Fairies

London:J.M.Dent/NewYork:E.P.Dutton1913, actual title page. Gale preface distinguishes Im Bang old manuscript, thirteen Yi Ryuk stories from1911 reprint, and three anonymous selections. Complete selected chapter/signature read; no Korean manuscript collation. Printed pagination checked in retained1913 PDF OCR; Gutenberg body markers are printed+12, physical PDFpages printed+16. No new page-pixel claim. Gale death1937 confirmed by UniversityToronto archival finding aid.

  1. Young Im Kyong-up follows deer into unfamiliar mountains, encounters a woodman and finds an isolated mansion. The same man feeds him, leads him through gates to a lake, instructs him to tie himself in a tree, and leaps across to a lit pavilion. He and another man vault into the air; Im hears weapons and sees flashes until a body falls. The victor carries him across the lake to a grieving woman.

    Tale37, Im, the Hunter, printed pp.182–185, hunt, woodman and aerial contest

  2. The victor claims to be a robber with many provincial houses and partners, alleging that this woman and her lover tried to kill him. He identifies his slain rival as a gifted tobacco seller of Seoul. He offers the woman and house to Im, but when Im refuses, kills her. He predicts Im’s failure, then agrees to teach him swordsmanship; Im remains six days.

    Tale37, Im, the Hunter, printed pp.185–187, woodman’s explanation and final six-day instruction

Only anonymous historical authored narrative is established; the prefatory famous-general biography is an editorial frame. No named monster species or independently established mountain geography. Allegations and prediction belong to the woodman’s speech; no independent proof of the woman’s guilt or valid prophecy. The ending does not identify the outlaw as a deity.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Historical primary narrative translationTale 37, “Im, the Hunter”, printed pp. 182–187 (Gutenberg page labels 194–199) — Anonymous, Gale translationResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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