Chapter 12: Nine Dragons Day (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 12: Nine Dragons Day (6)
Peng Ah-hee had developed a headache shortly before the Nine Dragons Tournament began.
While she was glad the Second Elder had knocked some sense into Peng Woojin, her brother had woken up still insisting he wasn’t ready to return to the clan just yet.
His face still swollen, Peng Woojin rose to his feet looking half-asleep and gave a hollow laugh. “I didn’t see that coming,” he admitted.
He accepted that he would return to the clan as promised, but he insisted on staying to watch the Nine Dragons Tournament first. He didn’t want to leave empty-handed, having gained nothing from his trip.
Peng Woojin was the Young Lord, the highest-ranking member of the Peng Clan after the Lord and the elders, and the future successor to the title. None of the Peng clansmen present, including Peng Ah-hee, had the authority to order him around.
“I’ll return after watching this,” he stated firmly.
“Why are you so determined to see this?”
“It would be a pity… to come all this way and leave with nothing to show for it.”
“A ‘pity’? It’s just a recruitment event for new swordsmen, something our own Peng Clan holds regularly. Let’s just go back—”
“If you keep arguing, I’ll go complain to the Flaming Fist Second Elder. I’ll tell him, ‘Isn’t this a bit unreasonable?’”
Peng Ah-hee immediately fell silent. She knew this fool was brazen enough to actually do it.
In the end, since Peng Woojin had promised to return after the tournament, she relented.
…Fine. Just one more day. One day is fine.
And so, she brought Peng Woojin to the arena, doing her best to cool her simmering irritation. As members of the prestigious Peng Clan, Heaven Market offered them a VIP seating area, but Peng Woojin refused.
He claimed he didn’t deserve such honors, as his presence was neither expected nor invited.
They ended up sitting among the general audience, attracting constant stares from the people around them. The spectators couldn’t believe they were seated next to individuals wearing the renowned Peng Clan robes, but the vast difference in status prevented them from speaking to the siblings. They could only gawk.
Peng Ah-hee felt sick under the unwanted attention, but Peng Woojin didn’t seem to care in the slightest. He had somehow procured a box of dumplings from who-knows-where.
“Brother… when did you buy those?”
“Hmm? I bought them a while ago.”
“When exactly is ‘a while ago’…?”
How did he manage to buy them? I swear he was right next to me the entire time.
Peng Woojin was simply an unpredictable enigma. The elders might debate whether his martial talent was truly the greatest in history, but it was an undeniable fact that he was a bizarre individual.
He ran away just to have fun.
The memory made wrinkles of frustration form on Peng Ah-hee’s brow.
“It’s starting, Ah-hee!”
Oblivious to her irritation, Peng Woojin cheerfully watched the festivities, dumplings in hand.
The Nine Dragons Tournament was nothing new to Peng Ah-hee. Having grown up among the great martial artists of the Four Noble Clans, she found little excitement in watching fighters from lesser clans battle it out.
Of course, a few individuals occasionally caught her eye, but none were spectacular enough to hold her attention for long.
She studied Peng Woojin instead. He seemed amused by the bouts, yet his eyes held a distant, empty look. He had been like that since he was a child.
What was he thinking? Why did someone with his talent only seek frivolity? Peng Ah-hee didn’t know. He always seemed ready to vanish from the clan at a moment's notice, yet he had accepted the position of Young Lord without complaint. And then he had run away, all the way to the Gu Clan in Shanxi.
To her, Peng Woojin was a person who could disappear at any moment, and the thought honestly frightened her. That fear, more than just the guilt she felt from that day, was a key reason she had accepted the Lord’s request to find him.
As the sunlight faded and night fell, the final matches of the Nine Dragons Tournament concluded.
“Let’s return now, brother.”
Peng Woojin remained motionless as a rock, ignoring her words.
“Brother?”
She followed his gaze to a figure standing alone in the center of the now-empty arena. It was a rather tall girl with her hair tied back, wearing the red robes of the Gu Clan.
Gu… Yeonseo, was it?
They had met occasionally at Orthodox Faction gatherings. Needless to say, Gu Yeonseo’s elder sister, Gu Huibi, was exceptionally talented, and rumors said Gu Yeonseo possessed talent that rivaled hers.
Shortly after, Gu Yangcheon stepped into the arena as well. His face was a picture of misery, as if he’d just been forced to chew on a bug.
“Why is he going up on stage?”
“They’re holding a match between blood relatives.”
Confused, Peng Ah-hee looked at Peng Woojin and saw he was holding a strange flyer.
[A duel between the blood relatives of the Gu Clan will commence shortly after the conclusion of the Nine Dragons Tournament.]
[Your support and patronage are greatly appreciated.]
“…When did you get that?”
“They handed it to me when we arrived.”
When exactly?
She looked back at the arena. Gu Yeonseo and Gu Yangcheon appeared to be conversing, but she couldn’t make out their words from this distance. Even when she tried to enhance her hearing with Qi, it was useless.
“That won’t work,” Peng Woojin said. “The arena is surrounded by a Qi barrier.”
“A barrier?”
“One of this size… It was probably set up by that Flaming Fist Senior.”
Now Peng Ah-hee understood the look on Gu Yangcheon’s face. He stood no chance of winning. She knew better than anyone the extent of his martial prowess. Compared to his blood relatives, he had nothing to show. Facing Gu Yeonseo, he would only end up rolling in the dirt.
If she were in his place, being subjected to such public humiliation would probably make her hang herself in shame. For the first time in her life, Peng Ah-hee felt a pang of pity for Gu Yangcheon.
As the Gu siblings conversed, the Second Elder let out a Qi-infused shout that signaled the start of the fight.
Gu Yeonseo immediately charged at Gu Yangcheon. Her speed astounded Peng Ah-hee.
So fast…!
Her footwork and swordplay were flawless, devoid of any wasted movement, and her balance was truly commendable. A seamless, unceasing torrent of attacks flowed from her, executed without a hint of hesitation. It was a display that spoke volumes of her rigorous training.
…Could I beat her if we fought right now?
She honestly wasn’t sure. She lacked the confidence to cross swords with the girl elegantly wielding her blade in the arena and emerge victorious. Her pride as a direct descendant of the Peng Clan dwindled.
“The Sword Phoenix’s younger sister, huh?”
Peng Ah-hee noticed a new light in Peng Woojin’s eyes as he watched. The previous dimness was gone. Seeing this, she had to forcefully suppress a feeling she disliked.
“…Yes. A blood relative of the Gu Clan that age can only be the Sword Phoenix’s younger sister.”
But she couldn’t keep the emotion out of her voice. Even by her high standards, Gu Yeonseo was impressive. Impressive enough to stir jealousy.
“Her attacks are so elegant, aren’t they?”
“It’s difficult to achieve that level of refinement at such a young age.”
“Yes. The way she controls her Qi at every moment is also impressive.”
“Exactly. All that dodging.”
Huh?
Peng Ah-hee found her brother’s response strange. Gu Yeonseo dodging? Gu Yangcheon hadn’t even managed to launch a counterattack.
She tracked Peng Woojin’s line of sight and found, to her surprise, that he was looking intently at Gu Yangcheon, not Gu Yeonseo.
He wasn’t watching her?
Why? She couldn’t understand.
“He’s one beat faster.”
“What?”
“Look closely. Right before her sword moves to strike, he shifts to dodge a beat faster. He knows where she’s going to swing.”
Following his words, she scrutinized Gu Yangcheon’s movements. It was definitely strange. His movements were far slower than Gu Yeonseo’s. Peng Ah-hee wasn’t confident about beating Gu Yeonseo, but she was certain she could defeat Gu Yangcheon in seconds.
“You’re right… but then, how…?”
Gu Yangcheon was slower than her, and Gu Yeonseo was faster. With that speed difference, the match should have ended instantly. Yet, the exchange continued even after Gu Yeonseo had launched over ten attacks.
“What’s going on?” Peng Ah-hee couldn’t comprehend it.
After a prolonged stalemate, Gu Yeonseo disengaged and assumed a new battle stance, clearly intending to end the fight. A faint, red aura began to ignite around her sword.
It was different from the aura of a first-rate sword user, and different still from those who had reached the peak. Even to Peng Ah-hee’s relatively inexperienced eyes, it was clear an immense concentration of Qi was being channeled into the blade.
“She won’t be able to use that,” Peng Woojin stated firmly.
“Why not? It looks powerful.”
“It is impressive. To infuse that much Qi at her level… even I would struggle to withstand that blow.”
Even Peng Woojin? The claim astonished her.
“But all you need to do is dodge it. Striving to use a technique she hasn’t mastered has ruined her posture and breathing. An attack born from such impatience is practically worthless.”
The evaluation seemed harsh, even to Peng Ah-hee as a spectator. But Peng Woojin was never wrong when it came to martial arts.
At that moment, Gu Yangcheon’s expression changed.
Gu Yeonseo charged forward aggressively once her preparation was complete. Gu Yangcheon didn’t perform any elaborate maneuver to evade. He simply took a single step back and tilted his head slightly.
That was all. Yet, with those minimal movements, he completely avoided Gu Yeonseo’s ultimate attack.
And then—
- Pooow!
Huh?
Peng Ah-hee hadn’t taken her eyes off the fight for a second. Yet, an incongruous cracking sound pierced her ears, and in the next instant, she saw Gu Yeonseo collapse to the ground.
“What… What happened?”
“Amazing…!”
Peng Ah-hee turned toward the voice. Peng Woojin was making a face she hadn’t seen in years.
“The Gu Clan isn’t just sheltering the Sword Phoenix.”
He wore the expression of a child who had just discovered something incredible.
* * *
Elder sister should have been born a man.
That thought had taken root in Gu Yeonseo’s mind not long after her tenth birthday.
Not only did Gu Huibi possess prodigious martial talent, but she also carried herself with the dignity befitting her high status and ability. By the age of fifteen, her elder sister had earned the vaunted title of [Sword Phoenix]. Gu Yeonseo was fifteen now herself, yet she still hadn’t earned any title.
Even among all the other rising stars within the Four Noble Clans and the Ten Sect Alliance, that legendary title had been bestowed upon her sister alone.
Gu Yeonseo found her elder sister incredibly cool and was immensely proud of her.
After graduating from the Heavenly Dragon Academy, her sister was promoted to Leader of the Gu Clan’s fifth swordsmen squadron around the age of twenty. It was no easy feat, but everyone acknowledged her talent. She had to be accepted because of that talent. She was an amazing person, destined only to grow more capable with time.
Yet, she could never become the Lord of the Gu Clan.
Gu Yeonseo then thought of her younger brother, Gu Yangcheon.
She and her elder sister were both direct descendants of the main family, while Gu Yangcheon was the child of a concubine. Gu Yeonseo had liked his mother; she was a kind woman. Consequently, Gu Yeonseo had liked Gu Yangcheon too, unconcerned about his status as a child of a concubine.
But one day, his mother vanished. It happened in an instant. Gu Yeonseo tried to search for her, but her father forbade it. No one else in the clan bothered to look.
It was then that Gu Yangcheon began to change.
He grew violent with the servants and anyone he spoke to. He became lazy and arrogant. Rumors even spread of him harassing the pretty maids. He only grew worse.
Men almost always succeeded to the position of Lord. Gu Yeonseo’s father never took another concubine after that, meaning his only son, Gu Yangcheon, was destined to become the next Lord.
Not her outstanding sister.
Not her, despite all her effort.
My sister should have been born a man.
Or at least, I should have been.
She hated Gu Yangcheon, who had everything handed to him without lifting a finger. She despised him for squandering his privilege, growing more wretched by the day.
Huh?
She snapped back to reality. Her last memory was of infusing her sword with flame Qi.
Standing before her was Gu Yangcheon. The same Gu Yangcheon who should have been much smaller than her now seemed to loom large.
Is this a dream?
-Drip.
Something wet dripped from her nose. She wiped it with her hand and looked: it was blood.
Why am I bleeding? Is this not a dream? Then why does Gu Yangcheon seem so big?
As her vision cleared, the realization dawned on her. It wasn’t that Gu Yangcheon had grown larger—but that her own line of sight had dropped.
Gu Yeonseo was sitting on the arena floor. Defeated.
“What… How…”
“I understand where you’re coming from, sister.”
Gu Yeonseo turned toward the voice.
“You don’t like me. I get it. It’s fine if you hate me. That won’t change anything for me.”
Gu Yangcheon’s face was hard to see clearly, cast in shadow by the lighting. But Gu Yeonseo definitely saw his eyes.
Gu Yangcheon's eyes were hollow.
He seemed to feel nothing.
There was no rage. No emotion dwelled in his eyes.
He was simply looking down at her.
A chill ran down Gu Yeonseo’s spine, and she wanted to flee from that gaze, but her trembling body refused to move.
“The words you threw at me were extremely rotten, but I can understand even that.”
What did I say to him? Gu Yeonseo recalled her own words.
You should have just disappeared, just like your mother.
Her heart chilled and sank into her stomach. It was something she should never have said, no matter how enraged she was.
What should I do? Should I apologize?
But even then, fueled by the rash pride of a fifteen-year-old, the mere thought of apologizing to Gu Yangcheon made her feel nauseous.
Oblivious to her turmoil, Gu Yangcheon continued.
“I understand it all, so please understand what I’m about to do.”
She didn’t get a chance to ask what he meant.
The last thing Gu Yeonseo saw was Gu Yangcheon’s palm.
SLAP!