Chapter 714: Heavenly Dragon Martial Arts Tournament (22)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 714: Heavenly Dragon Martial Arts Tournament (22)
Once, during her training, the Sword Venerable had told Wi Seol-Ah:
“Seol-Ah. You must always contemplate not just how to wield the sword, but what to imbue it with.”
Hearing this, Wi Seol-Ah had tilted her head in confusion. She hadn’t understood.
Imbue the sword with something?
A sword wasn’t a vessel, so what could it possibly hold? As a child, Wi Seol-Ah couldn’t grasp the meaning. Or rather, it was more accurate to say she hadn’t truly tried to understand. She had been too impatient back then, her mind too crowded with other things to leave room for such philosophy.
It was only after she surpassed the Fusion Realm that she finally began to comprehend her grandfather’s words.
What kind of sword dance to perform. What path of the sword to follow. Where to apply strength, and how to circulate her Qi. Before any of that, one had to consider what to imbue the sword with. What thoughts, what state of mind, should one possess when facing the blade?
The Heavenly Venerable, who had also taught her, once said:
“A martial artist can be categorized by their realm, but a swordsman cannot be so simply defined.”
“How much of yourself can you pour into your sword? For a swordsman, that is all that matters.”
How much of yourself can you pour into it?
It was a profoundly difficult, yet straightforward, statement. Was this what they called Shingeomhapil? The dream of every swordsman: to become one with their sword. She had only begun to grasp the concept when she started to understand the weight of those words.
However...
‘Pour myself into the sword…’
If so, what was ‘myself’ to begin with?
The reason the answer remained out of reach, even after she had found a direction, was likely because Wi Seol-Ah herself did not know who she was.
‘What am I?’
What in the world was she? Wi Seol-Ah pondered this constantly, but the answer eluded her. If she continued to contemplate in silence, would she one day find it? And if she did—if she became certain of who she was—would anything change?
For some reason, Wi Seol-Ah found that thought terrifying.
“...”
Her closed eyes fluttered open. As she lifted her heavy eyelids, her vision swayed slightly. A few seconds later, Wi Seol-Ah realized she was being carried in someone’s arms. Though surprised, she didn’t struggle. She instinctively knew who was holding her.
“You’re awake?”
The owner of those arms, Gu Yangcheon, spoke to her as he walked.
“…Yes.”
Her reply was faint. Her body, heavy with exhaustion, hung limp. Even so, Wi Seol-Ah managed to whisper a question.
“…Did I… lose?”
“Yeah. You lost.”
Wi Seol-Ah nodded at his blunt reply. Seeing this, Gu Yangcheon chuckled.
“Disappointed?”
She had to be. After all, it had been an incredibly close loss.
‘It really was close,’ Gu Yangcheon thought.
It had been decided by a hair’s breadth. If Wi Seol-Ah had been able to control just one more sword, or if she had managed to pour just a little more of her mind’s eye into that final strike, the victor would have been Wi Seol-Ah, not the Heavenly Dragon.
‘Hmph.’
Gu Yangcheon swallowed a groan as a faint pain radiated through his chest. He had hastily deployed a sound barrier to block the shockwave of their final clash. He had contained it, but the impact was still strong enough to cause a minor internal injury.
The injury itself wasn't the problem; it would heal in less than a day. The problem was the implication.
‘The fact that I was injured at all.’
The clash between those two had generated a shockwave powerful enough to penetrate his defenses. The fact that they had reached such a level left a strange impression on him.
‘I can understand Wi Seol-Ah…’
She was someone who had reached the pinnacle of the world in her past life. Knowing the power she wielded in her prime, he wasn’t particularly surprised. No matter how much he had wished for her not to pick up a sword, he knew this would happen once she did.
But…
‘What’s with the Heavenly Dragon?’
What the hell was that bastard? Every single strike of his Hundred Steps Divine Fist had been imbued with his mind’s eye. It didn’t even seem intentional; the man was naturally channeling his very being into his movements. To put it in perspective, he could probably defeat that Pungrim-whatever-his-name-is with ease. And it wouldn’t take him long to take down the Oil Bullet Sword, either.
‘And that’s the level of someone who’s barely twenty?’
It was absurd. Gu Yangcheon himself had gained much through his regression, but that guy was demonstrating a level far superior to his past life.
‘He’s weaker than the Ghost Monk was, but he’s so different from his past self.’
The title of Heavenly Dragon—he was more than worthy of it. Moreover…
‘…I didn’t sense any of the Blood Demon’s energy, either.’
He hadn’t yet felt a trace of what he had suspected. He had assumed the boy would have long since fallen prey to those Meteor bastards, but he showed no sign of it.
‘Did I just not feel it?’
That was a possibility, but Gu Yangcheon judged it unlikely. This was the result of pure, unadulterated talent and effort. The Heavenly Dragon had climbed to that height on his own. If that was the case… then really…
‘Isn’t he a madman?’
Could he be anything but a madman? Gu Yangcheon was certain of it.
‘What the hell has he been doing with his life? This guy’s a psycho.’
He should have known when that damn monk was running around stuffing his face with dumplings. The man was beyond imagination. And he didn’t even have any hair.
The crystallization of talent. A genius sent from the heavens, transcending eras. Even if you piled on all those superlatives, you couldn’t reach that level just like that. That required…
‘You’d have to literally carve away your own flesh and bone.’
You’d have to be born with talent and then dedicate your entire life to nothing but training. Otherwise, it was impossible to reach that state at his age with pure energy alone.
‘His internal energy is pure, so he’s probably eaten a lot of Daehwandan Pills, but still.’
Could one’s realm really rise just by stuffing dozens of those things down one’s throat? There was a limit to that.
‘If something like that existed, I should have reached the Transcendent Realm long ago.’
The Heavenly Poison Orb was said to be on par with the Daehwandan Pill, and Gu Yangcheon used to pop them in his mouth whenever he was bored.
‘…That guy is the real deal.’
The realest of the real. Perhaps his talent was on par with Wi Seol-Ah’s. In the current Central Plains, rife with fakes, he was one of the few seeds of a true martial artist Gu Yangcheon had seen.
That was why he had let it go.
‘I was about to jump in and tear them apart.’
He had been so pissed off by the Murim Alliance’s bullshit that he was ready to burn everything down if things went south. But he had held back because the Heavenly Dragon was not a fake. It was also a silent apology for having completely looked down on him.
‘It wasn’t bad.’
The Descent of the Golden Buddha. He had seen an ultimate technique of Shaolin that he had never witnessed in his past life. The Ghost Monk had never used Shaolin’s ultimate arts, so he’d never had the chance to see it.
‘…It seems a lot has changed in this life.’
Even if he was currently weaker than the Ghost Monk of the past, the current Heavenly Dragon held infinite potential. He was such a formidable presence that even Gu Yangcheon, a man furthest from the spirit of martial arts, felt a faint flicker of passion watching him.
So he wondered.
‘Will he be an obstacle?’
In the grand scheme he had laid out for the future, would the current Heavenly Dragon get in the way? If so, he would kill him in advance. He considered it carefully, but…
‘I don’t know yet.’
He wasn’t sure. It seemed he would have to watch a little longer.
‘What on earth really happened? What did the Heavenly Dragon eat to change so drastically? Was it the dumplings? Were the dumplings the secret?’
Then did he not eat dumplings in his past life? In the first place, a monk eating dumplings was the problem itself.
‘I wonder which bastard fed them to him.’
The Heavenly Dragon wouldn’t have just picked up dumplings on his own. He wanted to see the face of whoever it was. They were definitely not a normal person.
Just then.
“…I’m disappointed,” Wi Seol-Ah whispered from his arms.
Gu Yangcheon thought for a moment before remembering. ‘Ah, right. I asked her.’
He had asked if she was disappointed. Of course she would be; she had to know she had lost by a razor’s edge. As the one who fought the duel, she couldn’t possibly not know. But then…
“Ah… I’m not disappointed about losing the duel.”
Wi Seol-Ah’s words made him pause. “Huh? Then what are you disappointed about?”
“...”
Not disappointed about losing? Then what was it? Gu Yangcheon asked again, confused, but Wi Seol-Ah didn’t answer. She simply averted her gaze.
“…What is it?”
He didn’t understand why she would pique his curiosity and then shut down. Still, he didn’t bother asking a second time. It was obvious she wouldn’t answer even if he did. Wi Seol-Ah’s ears were faintly red.
He considered touching them but restrained himself, settling for a light smile.
“Let’s get you checked out and then go get something to eat. She’s waiting, too.”
Namgung Bi-ah had already gone outside to wait for them.
“…Okay…”
“Is there anything you want to eat?”
“I want to eat meat.”
“Oh, okay… Let’s get that, then.”
Gu Yangcheon felt a sense of relief at her response. She was the same as always. That was enough. For Gu Yangcheon, that was always more than enough.
* * *
After the second day of the main tournament ended, all of Henan was buzzing. Naturally, the conversations were dominated by the recent duels.
“I’m telling you, the Sword Dragon of Mount Hua this time…”
“The duel the Dao King fought was like a painting…”
“Who knew there were so many hidden masters in the Central Plains?”
The talk of the first day had all but vanished. At most, people mentioned the story of the Poison Phoenix crushing the Oil Bullet Sword. But amidst the growing pile of stories, the most popular topic was already decided.
“They called him the youngest to reach the Fusion Realm. It was truly an incredible duel.”
“He more than lived up to the name Heavenly Dragon.”
“More than lived up to it? I think this Heavenly Dragon might be the most outstanding in history.”
“To think I’d see such a duel in my lifetime… It was like a dream.”
The vast majority of the stories were about the Heavenly Dragon’s duel. How could they not be? The spectacle had been that brilliant and intense.
“Perhaps The Light of Might has returned?”
The Light of Might—one of the heroes of Shaolin who had stopped the Blood Disaster in the past. Some had even begun to believe that the current Heavenly Dragon would become a figure comparable to him. And why not? With that level of talent, it wouldn’t be difficult.
With this duel, the Heavenly Dragon had firmly imprinted his presence on the world. He was the hope of Shaolin and the strongest of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes. In other words, he was now recognized as the talent who would lead the Central Plains into the future.
And he wasn’t the only one being viewed in such a light.
“And what about the descendant of the Sword Venerable?”
“That young lady was amazing too! They said she was the Sword Venerable’s descendant, and she lacked nothing.”
“Those beautiful controlled swords floating in the sky… I never knew martial arts could be so beautiful. I had only heard rumors, but it was all true.”
“And that young lady’s appearance…”
The Moonlight Sword Dance. The Sword Venerable’s unique martial art was exceptionally famous. Its characteristic golden hue and its beautiful path, as if bathed in moonlight, were legendary. The way it materialized internal energy to be used as controlled swords was particularly eye-catching.
Materializing internal energy required delicate Qi control, and to make it float in the air and use it for Sword Manipulation… one could only imagine the level of precision required. For a woman barely twenty years old to use such a martial art, it was only natural for the world to be astonished.
Thanks to that, Wi Seol-Ah had unofficially earned a title.
“The Moonlight Sword… It was as if the Sword Venerable himself had reappeared.”
“A fitting title.”
The Moonlight Sword. It seemed to have been coined after the crescent-shaped sword strike Wi Seol-Ah had shown at the end.
Hearing it, I recalled something.
‘The Moonlight Sword… Seems a bit weak compared to her past life.’
In her past life, Wi Seol-Ah had been called the Young Sword Saint. It was a less impressive title than that one, but it wasn’t bad.
Gulp.
In an inn on a high floor, I took a sip of tea. It was a pleasant sensation, listening to the sounds from below as I drank. I had intentionally not put up a sound barrier yet. It was to hear what Tang Soyeol and Wi Seol-Ah were talking about.
As I filtered through the rumors and stored them away, Cheol Jiseon, who had been eating with me, continued his report.
“…There’s no particular movement from the Emei Sect. It seems they’re laying low after that last incident.”
It was late at night, but we had deliberately come out to an inn in the city. The reason was simple: to check how the rumors were spreading among the common folk.
At his words, I turned my gaze to him. Simultaneously, I moved my hand and deployed a sound barrier.
Vwmmm—.
It was time to get to the main point.
“You’re saying the people who were posted around us are all gone?”
“Yeah, at least according to the reports I’ve received.”
“A shame. I was hoping they’d be a little more foolish.”
So, Bunseon wasn’t completely incompetent. Then again, if she had made a move even after such a blatant warning, she would have had to step down from her position as Sect Leader long ago.
“Anything else?”
“Lord Hwangbo sent word. He said the preparations are complete and to let him know whenever you're ready.”
“Good.”
I liked that things were moving quickly. I could feel Lord Hwangbo sharpening his blade.
‘Is he that eager to take his seat?’
The position of Lord of one of the Four Noble Clans—the thing he had dreamed of for so long. Lord Hwangbo’s desire to ascend to that position was laid bare. This wasn’t bad, either. His ambition made him easy to handle.
“Tell him to wait a little longer.”
“Got it.”
There were less than ten days left. It was best to use him at the most opportune moment, so having him on standby was the priority for now.
‘The most important piece isn’t ready yet.’
It was about time I heard some news. Just as I thought that, Cheol Jiseon spoke again.
“Ah, and… there was one more message from the Hwangbo Clan.”
I focused on his words. He seemed to hesitate slightly before speaking.
“Say it. It’s fine.”
“…The Captain of the First Dragon Army has captured a martial artist in Hubei and is transporting him back.”
Thud.
Hearing his words, I stopped the teacup I was raising.
“The martial artist is one of the Demonic Cult members who attacked Wudang…”
With each word Cheol Jiseon spoke, I steadied my breathing.
“His name is said to be Tang Duk.”
Clink.
I put down the teacup I was holding without drinking from it. Cheol Jiseon’s gaze on me was strange. What would he ask me? Would he ask if I was okay? Or would he ask how we were going to get him out?
In my opinion, it was neither. At least, the Cheol Jiseon I knew would surely ask this:
“Yangcheon. Was this… your doing?”
“...”
At Cheol Jiseon’s question, the corners of my mouth lifted slightly. As expected, the guy was smart.
“That’s right.”
To guess the correct answer so quickly.