Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Heavenly Flower Path
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It was always like this.
This kind of intuition never failed. Wi Sungcheon's leap was simple. He just kicked off the ground and jumped. Nothing more.
Footwork, lightness skills... No martial arts involving leg movements came to mind.
It was just fast. A straightforward motion devoid of any finesse, but not so fast it couldn't be tracked. And though quick, it wasn't as blistering as when he'd moved to save Dang Heeran on Samgok Mountain.
'He's holding back?'
He'd conceded the first five moves. That meant he wouldn't counterattack while the opponent struck five times, but it didn't mean he'd just take the hits. He could dodge or block.
'First strike... He's not rushing? Ah, right.'
The thoughts raced by, but he couldn't afford to get lost in them. Wi Sungcheon was already right in front of him. Seok Ijin felt his heart pounding as he curled his lips into a grin.
'Speed isn't the key right now.'
The hand thrust forward. The right hand led. From index to ring finger, four fingers hooked like claws. The thumb was extended straight but not tensed taut.
'No.'
This time, it was incredibly fast. The hand shot out explosively, grasping at Seok Ijin's robes.
Wearing clothes felt like a massive disadvantage right now. Seok Ijin swiftly leaned back, dragging both feet rearward.
The extended hand didn't shoot straight but curved like a sickle. It was fortunate he wasn't wearing loose robes. Wi Sungcheon's hand barely grazed Seok Ijin's clothing.
'One move.'
Dodged it. This was utterly against his nature. Conceding five moves? What kind of ridiculous spar was this? He checked an instinctive counter from his arm without thinking.
Then Wi Sungcheon's body sank low with a thud. He vanished from sight in an instant. The distance was close enough, and their eye levels matched.
Ducking low made him disappear from view. But Seok Ijin was a master. He didn't panic at a momentary disappearance.
As Seok Ijin's eyes shifted downward.
Wi Sungcheon, with his upper body pressed close to the ground, kicked off.
Boom!
The surrounding earth shook violently. Seok Ijin's body, retreating backward, staggered for a moment. This was exactly why he hated it. Seok Ijin clicked his tongue and threw himself flat to the ground.
Crack!
Wi Sungcheon's outstretched arms sliced through empty air just as Seok Ijin's body rolled across the dirt, the motions crossing perilously close.
"Rolling dodge?"
He couldn't help but be a little surprised. Rolling dodge. Rolling on the ground to evade an attack...
Proud martial artists rarely resorted to rolling dodges. It was incomprehensible for Wi Sungcheon, but the reason martial artists avoided it was simple.
It was humiliating.
"No."
Thud.
Seok Ijin, landing a short distance away, replied without changing expression.
"Looked like it to me."
"Rolling dodge means tumbling through the dirt and dust. I didn't tumble."
He'd floated just a bit. Seok Ijin bragged. And he was right. Seok Ijin's body wasn't caked in dirt.
"Got time to chat?"
"Three moves left."
Wi Sungcheon straightened his crouched body as he answered. Ah, right. Seok Ijin smacked his lips. He regretted pulling out the wooden sword.
"Three moves."
Wi Sungcheon muttered, lifting one foot. But he didn't leap or charge like before. Instead, he strode toward Seok Ijin with measured steps.
"How should I use these..."
"What are you doing?"
"I've failed twice at conceding five moves, and now three are left."
"So?"
"This doesn't count as an attack, does it?"
Wi Sungcheon's steps halted. About three paces from Seok Ijin. Seok Ijin pondered deeply, staring at the halted Wi Sungcheon.
"...True enough."
"So what now."
Wi Sungcheon began circling around Seok Ijin.
"How can I embarrass the professor..."
"You're a sly one."
Seok Ijin grumbled, narrowing his eyes.
"You really want to humiliate me that badly?"
"Might as well. And you said you've never been embarrassed in an entrance exam before. Hearing that just makes me want to do it more."
"This guy..."
Seok Ijin's face twisted.
It was awkward. He'd sparred with students in entrance exams countless times, but this was a first.
Conceding five moves. Proud geniuses took that concession as an insult.
Most flew into a rage and charged. The cautious ones stayed calm at the concession, aiming to capitalize on it.
But in the end, they stuck to 'sparring.' They didn't brazenly circle around like Wi Sungcheon was doing now. The reason was simple.
They were all geniuses raised, trained, and cultivated in prestigious righteous sects. What Wi Sungcheon was doing wasn't sparring at all. How cowardly...
"Urgh."
The word 'cowardly' crossed his mind. Seok Ijin shook his head, chastising his own pettiness.
"So. Planning to circle me until sunset?"
"It won't end before then."
"What if I lose patience and attack?"
"That works too. You'd be breaking the rules, professor. I'm not breaking any, and there's no time limit for entrance exams, right?"
"You're really infuriating. Don't tell me you're holding onto what I said on Samgok Mountain?"
The threat that he'd kill him if he didn't kill Jizon Chang. He asked just in case, but Wi Sungcheon burst into honest laughter.
"Of course not."
"...This will affect your evaluation."
"Don't care."
With that answer,
[Which class are you assigning me to?]
Wi Sungcheon sent a transmission. It surprised Seok Ijin a bit. Answering and transmitting simultaneously wasn't easy.
[Top class.]
He replied without too much fluster. The top class housed the best first-years: Bi Yeon Saeng Ilrin, Cheonin Mu Yeonjun, Bonehead Hwangbo Seongu, Venom Needle Dang Heeran, and the like.
Wi Sungcheon belonged in top class. From what he'd seen on Samgok Mountain, nothing less would do.
The speed saving Dang Heeran, the decisiveness killing Jizon Chang. Especially since it was his first kill.
Yet Wi Sungcheon showed no disturbance. His martial arts and mindset both fit top class perfectly.
[I don't want top class.]
[Why?]
[It's awkward explaining that. Can't you put me in bottom class?]
Absurd words.
Was this his goal all along? As Seok Ijin opened his mouth to respond, Wi Sungcheon moved like lightning.
He'd been had.
Seok Ijin, stepping back, glanced down at his shoulder. Wi Sungcheon, after one attack, stopped moving.
His shoulder stung. Grabbed... no, nearly grabbed. A torn shoulder seam dangled between Wi Sungcheon's fingers.
"...Two left."
[Asking for bottom class after this is pretty shameless, no?]
[Middle class is fine too.]
[Why? Ah, it's a secret.]
[Anywhere but top class.]
"Hmm."
Seok Ijin let out a small groan.
"Not bad. Should've taken my jacket off beforehand."
"Two left."
[You wouldn't be asking me to go easy in exchange for granting your request, would you?]
[I'm not good enough to go easy on you, professor.]
[You know it. So? Gonna stop stalling? That won't work either. Seems you're misunderstanding—I'm doing this because you're interesting. I could end the evaluation here. Of course, I'd recommend top class then.]
[That's why I'm saying this. Aren't you curious?]
[...About what?]
[Me.]
Wi Sungcheon grinned cheekily.
"...I see."
Seok Ijin understood what Wi Sungcheon meant.
Of the five moves, three had been simple. Leaping, running, grabbing with hands. Nothing else. No flashy, genius-level martial arts. The speed was impressive, but... no technique.
Seok Ijin had seen Wi Sungcheon subdue Jizon Chang on Samgok Mountain. His attacks started with 'grabbing' the opponent's body. Grab, twist, break.
Slam to the ground. Efficient, smooth techniques, but all began with 'grabbing.'
[Grabbing isn't everything, right?]
[Of course not.]
[How much will you show?]
[Not everything. But enough to satisfy your curiosity, professor.]
[Good. Bottom class it is. Even if I have to force it.]
A broad smile spread across Seok Ijin's face.
That was the trigger.
Attacks came in a flash, and Seok Ijin deftly evaded. One done, immediately two. Five moves ended.
The three moves had taken time, but filling five was instantaneous. With the answer he wanted, no need to hesitate.
[Didn't promise anything.]
[You said it though. If you don't keep your word, well, nothing I can do. Others might not know, but you'd be volunteering for embarrassment, professor.]
"Cheeky."
Seok Ijin's lips curled upward.
The dangling wooden sword slowly traced a line.
Wi Sungcheon felt intense desire swirling in his eyes. It was excitement as cold as ice.
His skin prickled again. The wooden sword in Seok Ijin's grip felt like a real blade.
'First time...?'
Fighting a master of this caliber.
A familiar mountain breeze brushed him.
Tension melted away fluidly.
"Back."
Seok Ijin whispered. A warning. Truth be told, Wi Sungcheon didn't need the words. Instinctively, he retreated. And then.
The inner energy dormant in his dantian finally stirred.
Inner energy rose following the incantation of the Heavenly Flower Chain Art, spreading through Wi Sungcheon's body.
The incantation floating in his mind guided the energy's path, while his breathing propelled it.
The leg pulling back trembled. It started there. Seok Ijin's eyes, aimed at him with the wooden sword, twitched.
A momentary illusion? Wi Sungcheon's form... seemed enormously vast.
'Fearless Guard Divine Might.'
Three Sever Flash Fire Killing Forms.
The first form, Flash Fire Deathblow, shot forth.
A few paces' distance. The sword pierced. The thin, small blade tip dominated his vision in an instant.
'Pacifying Path.'
Wi Sungcheon fearlessly thrust his left hand toward the blade tip.
'Heaven-Striking.'
His right hand surged upward.
It felt bizarre.
The sword was clearly thrusting. Wi Sungcheon's left hand blocked it. Even without sword qi, it was recklessly bold.
Yet he didn't slow. Palm pierced or shoulder dislocated—fine. Not crippling.
So he didn't relent. Wi Sungcheon was mischievous. It wouldn't instill respect for the professor, but it'd teach him not to strut so arrogantly.
'...Huh?'
The hand meeting the sword didn't resist its path but was pushed back. Wi Sungcheon's feet lifted off, his body riding the thrust backward.
The wooden sword and Wi Sungcheon's hand seemed connected from the start. Its weight transferred fully to Seok Ijin gripping it. He faltered once.
Crack!
When the ultra-swift backhand strike shattered the wooden sword, Seok Ijin's mouth fell wide open.