Chapter 667: My Name Is...
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 667: My Name Is...
Time seemed to still as our eyes met.
I suppressed my aching body and steadied my breathing.
‘Why?’
Why was she here?
I watched as the woman spotted me and gave a light, casual wave.
Her hair held a distinct violet tinge, and her eyes were an even more vibrant shade of the same hue. Her features were exceptional, hauntingly reminiscent of someone I knew. She looked exactly as she had when I encountered her before my journey to the North.
This was no illusion.
But that raised a far more pressing question.
‘Why is she in a place like this?’
I needed answers.
‘I was already looking for her, anyway.’
The Heavenly Demon.
I knew she was in Henan. Having already crossed paths with her once, I had ordered my subordinates to gather every scrap of information they could find. That had been the second task I entrusted to the Unyielding Demon.
And yet...
‘The results were unnervingly thin.’
The intelligence the Unyielding Demon brought back was lackluster. I hadn't relied solely on him, seeking information from other sources as well, but the result was the same.
‘There was nothing.’
There was far too little information on the Heavenly Demon, despite her supposed presence in Henan. Had she realized I was tailing her and gone into hiding? Or had she already departed the province?
Given that even the Dark King’s intelligence network couldn't track her, I had assumed one of those two possibilities was the truth.
‘Does this mean they couldn't find her even when she was standing out in the open?’
The Heavenly Demon had never left Henan. Looking at her now, it didn't seem like she had been hiding, either. Had she left and returned? It was possible, but I doubted it. The Heavenly Demon I knew was not the type to flee.
I forced myself to think. The most critical question was right in front of me.
‘Can I kill her?’
Can I kill the Heavenly Demon, right here, right now?
Back then, in that cramped noodle shop in a secluded alley, I didn't stand a chance. But what about now?
I had regained the strength of my previous life. At my current level, I could likely kill the protectors or elders of the Great Clans in a one-on-one fight without much difficulty. This wasn't arrogance; it was an objective assessment of my capabilities.
I was now on par with the lords of the Unorthodox Faction, the heads of the noble clans, or the sect leaders of the Ten Sect Alliance. Unless my opponent was one of the so-called Ten Masters of the Central Plains, I couldn't lose.
‘Then what about the Heavenly Demon’s current level?’
I recalled our encounter at the Heavenly Dragon Academy. Back then, she was a powerhouse who could have toyed with me like a child. If her strength was the same as it had been in my past life, I would lose.
Should I retreat?
Viiiiing—!
Despite what rational judgment dictated, the energy in my body instinctively surged into a combat stance. My Demonic Qi seethed.
What have you endured all this time to prevent? Will you stop now, with the opportunity right before your eyes?
The Demonic Qi bared its fangs, whispering to my soul. Just as my heart began to hammer against my ribs and I prepared to lung forward—
“Young Master.”
“…!”
The voice at my side sent a jolt through me, my blood turning to ice in an instant.
“What’s wrong?”
For a fleeting second, I had completely forgotten someone was standing next to me. I forced myself to breathe, calming my nerves at Moyong Hi-ah’s worried inquiry.
I had someone to protect right beside me. I couldn't afford to act recklessly. Could I fight the Heavenly Demon while ensuring Moyong Hi-ah’s safety? I wasn't sure. And because I wasn't sure, I had to be cautious.
“Ah.”
Moyong Hi-ah followed my gaze and sidled closer.
“I see you know her too, Young Master?”
I frowned. ‘Too’? I glanced at her, wondering what she meant by that.
“That woman. The Sword Phoenix brought her here.”
“…What did you say?”
My body froze solid at her words.
“Who did you say brought her?”
“The Sword Phoenix.”
“…The Sword Phoenix… You mean my sister? Are you talking about Gu Huibi?”
“Yes, I’m talking about your sister.”
Was she truly talking about Gu Huibi?
“A few days ago, the Sword Phoenix came to me and asked if I could find a job for that person.”
The words kept coming, but it took a moment for them to actually register. The situation was simply too incomprehensible.
“She said the woman is a martial artist and quite strong… and since we were looking to hire escort warriors today, I just included her for now. But it seems you recognize her, Young Master?”
“…”
Gu Huibi hadn't just found the Heavenly Demon; she had personally brought her here and inserted her into this group?
‘What kind of insane bullshit is this?’
I couldn't wrap my head around it. What in the world was happening?
As I stood there, reeling from the absurdity of the situation…
“…Hey.”
“Yes?”
I sensed something was fundamentally off. I looked at Moyong Hi-ah and pointed toward the distant Heavenly Demon.
“You. What do you see over there?”
“Pardon?”
Moyong Hi-ah’s brow furrowed, her expression asking what kind of bizarre question that was. However, assuming I had a reason for asking, she looked toward the Heavenly Demon without further protest.
“…A person. A woman,” she said.
“Give me more detail.”
Even I knew it was a strange request, but I had to be sure. Separate from the Heavenly Demon’s presence, I had noticed something unsettling in Moyong Hi-ah’s reaction.
“I think she’s a bit shorter than me. And her hair is black.”
The person the Sword Phoenix brought. The person I seemed to know. That was the extent of the description Moyong Hi-ah provided.
“She has black eyes and slightly tanned skin… Should I describe her facial features as well?”
“No, that’s enough.”
Hearing her words, I was certain. Something was very wrong.
“What is it?” Moyong Hi-ah asked, her voice laced with curiosity, but I couldn't give her an easy answer.
And for good reason.
‘She didn't mention that the woman looks exactly like Wi Seol-Ah.’
To any normal observer, the woman was a dead ringer for Wi Seol-Ah. Only her hair and eye color were different; otherwise, they could have been twins. Yet Moyong Hi-ah hadn't questioned the resemblance at all.
Furthermore...
‘Her description is completely wrong.’
The height was debatable, but while the woman's hair was dark, it wasn't pure black—it clearly had a violet sheen. Her eyes weren't black, either. As for her skin tone…
‘If that’s ‘slightly tanned,’ then Hi-ah must be blind.’
The woman's skin was so white it was almost translucent. It made no sense to call her tanned.
So why would Moyong Hi-ah say such a thing? There was only one logical conclusion.
‘She is perceiving her differently.’
Moyong Hi-ah’s perception of the Heavenly Demon was being manipulated.
‘Is it the same for the others?’
Was it just Moyong Hi-ah, or was everyone else under the same spell? Or…
‘Are my eyes the ones lying to me?’
Was Moyong Hi-ah seeing the truth while my eyes deceived me? The thought crossed my mind, but I trusted my vision. No—more than my eyes, I trusted the energies reacting within my body.
I stared silently at the Heavenly Demon. She met my gaze without flinching, her expression somewhat dazed. It was a far cry from the arrogant, condescending look I remembered from my past life. It was different enough that I wondered if she was a completely different person who just happened to share the same face.
As the silence stretched and I swallowed my nervousness… I made a decision and turned to Moyong Hi-ah.
“…What do I need to do first?”
If only to uncover the source of this persistent dissonance… I decided to play along for now.
* * *
There were no more than thirty candidates in total. From them, I had to choose seven. That was the task Moyong Hi-ah had requested of me.
“Exactly seven, you said.”
“That’s right. You can pick them at your discretion.”
“So I can do whatever I want.”
As I listened to her, my gaze drifted back to the woman—the Heavenly Demon—who was leaning against a tree with a blank expression. I didn't know her intentions or what she planned to do, and it grated on my nerves.
With that in mind, I stepped forward.
The eyes of every martial artist in the clearing fixed on me. None of them looked particularly pleased; it seemed they had been waiting for quite some time. Just as a flicker of interest appeared on their faces, thinking the evaluation was finally starting…
“You there.”
I pointed a finger at one man. Before he could even look confused, I spoke.
“You pass.”
“…?”
“I said you pass.”
The man’s eyes widened at my bluntness. Ignoring him, I waved my hand—a signal for him to move aside. Though puzzled, he didn't object and stepped to the side. He was the second strongest martial artist here, excluding the ‘Heavenly Demon,’ of course.
Immediately after, I began sorting through the rest.
“The man on the left, you fail. The one with the ponytail next to him, you fail too.”
Fail. Fail… Fail. And another fail.
I dismissed candidate after candidate. In less than half an hour, I had cleared out more than half of them. Only eleven people remained in the "pass" pile; everyone else was rejected.
I looked at the sorted group and nodded.
“This should be enough for the first round of screeni—”
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Just as I was about to wrap up the process, someone roared at me. I turned my head. It was a martial artist with a powerful, overbearing presence.
“Showing up out of nowhere… what is the meaning of this arbitrary nonsense?”
The middle-aged man was fuming, his face contorted with rage. He had a long, jagged scar running down his cheek. His level was…
‘Perfected Peak Realm.’
He was the type of warrior who would be treated with respect wherever he went. He was also the strongest person among the candidates, and the very first person I had failed.
I looked at him and tilted my head. “What?”
“Hah?” My dismissive attitude made the man’s face twist further. “Is that all you have to say?”
“What’s your problem?”
My question pushed him over the edge.
“We’ve been gathered here waiting for two hours! We’ve been sitting under the scorching sun, only for some unknown brat to show up and fail us without a word. Do you think I’d be pleased?”
I let out a dry smirk. “Did you not hear what the Branch Manager just said? She told me to do as I please.”
“Don’t make me laugh!”
Kuuuung—!
The man unleashed his energy in a fit of pique. A blast of wind pressure erupted, sweeping through the clearing.
“Huk—!!”
“Kuh!”
The surrounding martial artists gasped, shocked by the raw power. The first man I had passed looked particularly stunned; he clearly realized this man was far stronger than him. It was no wonder they found it strange that such a powerhouse had been failed.
“Who do you think I am! It’s laughable to be judged by a brat who doesn’t even know his place—!!”
Hearing his fury, the expressions of the other rejected candidates soured as well.
“That’s right, what does he know about conducting an interview?”
“Has the White Flower Merchant Association gone mad? To think we’re being evaluated by a punk like that!”
The mood shifted. They were already bitter about being failed so quickly, and now that a strong warrior had voiced their frustrations, they began to pile on. Even the ones I had passed didn't seem satisfied.
‘They don’t like being evaluated by some unknown kid.’
The martial artists of the Central Plains were people who lived and died by their reputation and were obsessed with status. To think they would quibble over this when they should have been happy to pass without a fight.
‘They really do make life difficult for themselves.’
Regardless, I wasn't in the mood for it. Noticing the atmosphere shifting in his favor, the scarred man’s anger was tinged with a smug smile.
“I never imagined I would be treated like this. Branch Manager, is this truly the will of the White Flower Merchant Association?”
“…”
Moyong Hi-ah didn't answer. She just stared at me with a blank expression, clearly expecting me to handle it myself. Seeing that, I loosened my shoulders.
“The pay was surprisingly good, so I was tempted to come, but to dare treat me this way…”
“It’s always the same,” I interrupted. “The ones with the loudest mouths are always the biggest headaches.”
“What did you…?”
“Though the idiots who get swept along with them are also a problem.”
The man glared at me with murderous intent. I met his gaze and smiled.
“If you failed, there’s a reason. Why question it? If you don’t like it, then get lost.”
“You unruly brat, do you really…!”
Guuuuuu—!
Killing intent and fighting spirit intertwined, vibrating through the air. It was a heavy, oppressive energy, befitting a Perfected Peak martial artist.
“You seem to be connected to the merchant association, so you’d better fix your attitude. No matter how great the White Flower Merchant Association is, my sword is much closer to you than they are.”
He was threatening to kill me. As if to prove his point, killing intent gathered along the edge of his blade.
Watching his display of force, I nodded to myself. He really wasn't a bad martial artist. In terms of raw cultivation, it made no sense to fail him. Excluding the Heavenly Demon, he was the strongest person here. That was a fact.
If there were no ‘particular problems,’ I probably would have passed him first.
Yes—if there were no ‘particular problems.’
“So what? You going to try something with that sword? Oh, I’m terrified.”
“Ha, you little whelp, you really…! I’ll have to cut out that tongue of yours to teach you some respect—.”
“Tsk. You Murim Alliance bastards are all the same,” I spat. “Always drawing your swords at the drop of a hat. No different from common thugs.”
“…!”
The man stopped mid-sentence, his eyes trembling faintly.
“You have no right to criticize the Unorthodox Faction. Damn it. If the so-called ‘roots’ of the Orthodox Faction are this rotten, it’s no wonder the world is in such a state.”
“W-what did you just say…?”
I sighed. The reason the man had failed was simple. He was a plant—a martial artist affiliated with the Murim Alliance.
“I said…”
I spat out a curse and took a single step forward.
My vision blurred. In the next heartbeat, I was standing right under his nose.
“Hut…!!”
The man flinched and tried to retreat. He instinctively attempted to swing his sword, but before he could clear the scabbard, I grabbed his sword-hand and crushed the bones.
Craaaack—!
“…!!!”
He froze, the chilling sound of snapping bone followed by a silent, breathless scream.
“For someone of your standing,” I whispered, “you carry your head far too high.”
Snaaap—!
This time, the sound came from his legs. The man collapsed instantly, forced onto his knees.
“Kuaaaaaaaah—!!”
Only then did a proper scream erupt. With the bones in his arms and legs shattered, he wailed in agony, but…
“You’re noisy.”
Thwack—!
I slammed a hand against his head, plunging him into unconsciousness. Was it because of his size? His scream was unusually loud. How annoying.
Thump.
The Perfected Peak martial artist went limp and collapsed onto the grass. The screaming stopped, and a heavy silence fell over the clearing. The atmosphere was significantly quieter than before.
I shifted my gaze and saw the surrounding martial artists staring at me, their mouths agape. I casually tossed the unconscious man aside to clear the path.
Whoosh—!! Thud—!
He landed somewhere deep in the bushes.
“So?” I asked, dusting off my hands. “Anyone else have a complaint?”
“…”
“…”
Perhaps thanks to my ‘kind’ explanation, no one else had anything to say.
What a relief.