Chapter 719: Heavenly Dragon Martial Arts Tournament (27)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 719: Heavenly Dragon Martial Arts Tournament (27)
A grand pavilion stood to the left of the tournament grounds, constructed to provide a panoramic view of the dueling arenas.
This was a space specially reserved by the Alliance. Led by the Alliance Leader himself, every person gathered here was a figure of immense influence within the Central Plains.
“Hah…”
Among them, the Lord of the Baek Clan of Guangdong, Heoulgeom Baek Yujeok, let out a sharp breath. He ran a hand down his arm; his skin was tingling so intensely he couldn't stay still.
“…I'm at a loss for words.”
There was nothing left to say. The situation demanded silence. What could anyone possibly say after witnessing that?
KWWAAAAA—!!!
A storm raged. A colossal pressure of wind, like a typhoon, ravaged its surroundings, seeming to devour everything in its path.
CRACK—!!
The sound of destruction echoed from all directions. Just watching it made his body tense. The Qi in his dantian was reacting of its own accord, activating his body’s defenses.
‘…It's all made of Qi.’
The wind was no natural phenomenon. It was a catastrophe forged purely from internal Qi—rough, ferocious, and absolute. How on earth could someone unleash such murderous power?
As Baek Yujeok suppressed a tremor and pondered this, a voice spoke from his side.
“Hoho. It is truly a remarkable sight, is it not?”
“…!”
Baek Yujeok shifted his gaze and flinched. The old man who had spoken was no ordinary person. He was the Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect and one of the Ten Masters of the Central Plains. A member of the Seven Steel and Three Fists.
The Celestial Plum Blossom, Dohwa.
He was the one addressing Baek Yujeok. Baek Yujeok hurriedly tried to form a fist salute.
“…Greetings to the Sect Leader of Mount Hua…”
“I did not speak to receive formalities, so there is no need for that, Lord Baek.”
The Celestial Plum Blossom gently stopped Baek Yujeok's salute. Hearing this, Baek Yujeok flinched again. The Celestial Plum Blossom actually knew who he was.
“You… know of me?”
“How could I not? I spoke with your father a few times. He was a man of truly gentle character. And seeing you, Lord Baek, grown so splendidly, I feel a sense of pride for some reason.”
He had only crossed paths with the man a few times as a child while accompanying his father, yet the Celestial Plum Blossom remembered him.
“This old man was just being a bit forward, hoping to share a little chat… If you are uncomfortable…”
“Not at all…! How could I be?”
“Keke.”
A faint scent of flowers permeated the serious atmosphere. An immortal—it was clear why the people of the Mount Hua Sect called him the most respected Sect Leader since the Divine Sword of Mount Hua…
“Aigoo, that idiotic fellow. He said he'd behave, and now look at him, showing off like that… Tsk, tsk.”
…Huh?
“Well, I won the bet, so I'll just make that bastard buy the drinks. Kekekeke.”
“…Sect Leader…?”
“Ah, my apologies. I just saw a familiar face. Hahaha.”
Did I mishear him? Baek Yujeok thought, nodding slowly. That must be it. There was no way the Celestial Plum Blossom, a man said to be the closest thing to an immortal, would use words like "idiot" or "showing off." He must have been hearing things due to the shock of the scene before him.
Baek Yujeok decided to believe that.
‘...Is it shock?’
Yes, it was shock. A sight that would likely remain etched in his memory for the rest of his life. Baek Yujeok was still rubbing his arm, where goosebumps refused to settle.
He wasn't the only one. Most of the people gathered in the pavilion were in the same state.
“Did they say he's from the Bi Clan?”
“The Bi Clan of Xi'an?”
“We need to find out his age, and whether he has a fiancée…”
While the pavilion seemed silent, people were moving quickly. Those speaking were, without exception, figures from the great merchant associations, while those with pale faces and trembling eyes were martial artists like Baek Yujeok. Everyone was frozen like stone, their faces reflecting the shock of seeing something that shouldn't exist.
He understood. That sight was both a marvel and a catastrophe. Any martial artist would think the same.
‘…The Lesser King of Hell and the Poison Fist. Then the Sword Dragon and the Heavenly Dragon. And also Seomwolgeom.’
The young prodigies—the martial artists of that generation. When they announced their participation in the tournament, no one had expected a scene like this. A young prodigy was still just a young prodigy. They might stand out at the Dragons and Phoenixes Tournament, but this tournament hosted by the Alliance was different.
This was the realm of those in the prime of their lives—martial artists in their thirties and forties. If the young prodigies were the future of the Central Plains, these were the main players leading it today. It should have been an insurmountable mountain for those who hadn't even reached their thirties. That was the consensus.
Th-thump…
How should one describe the scene before them?
Speechless. That was the only word.
The martial artists in the pavilion hadn't held high expectations for the Dao King’s duel. While they looked forward to seeing a master in action, his opponent was a mere youth, so they assumed the Dao King wouldn't even need to show his full strength. It would likely end anticlimactically.
That's what everyone had believed.
“...”
Watching the current situation, they were left stunned. The Dao King was being helplessly overwhelmed by a young prodigy. Something they had never even imagined was unfolding.
It wasn't just being overwhelmed; it was a mockery. The Dao King was being toyed with. Every one of his movements was blocked; even his breathing was controlled. He couldn't make a single move without his opponent's permission.
Could there be anything more humiliating for a martial artist? Especially when it was being done by someone so much his junior.
‘It's like social annihilation.’
Especially since it was the Lord of the Peng Clan suffering such a fate…
Baek Yujeok turned his head to look behind him, where the leaders of the merchant associations were gathered.
“…At this rate, we'll have to adjust the ratios.”
“It would be best to send word to the Hebei branch.”
“Leader Geumcheon, what do you make of this…”
As expected, the calculations had already begun. Just as martial artists valued power and fame, so did the merchants. A martial artist's reputation was crucial to the association leaders; if it wavered, so did the money they had invested.
‘How chilling.’
Baek Yujeok thought he now understood why the great clan lords rarely participated in these tournaments themselves. Just then, another person appeared.
It was an old man with a bent back. He wore shabby clothes and gave off an unpleasant odor. To put it nicely, he was unwashed. In reality, he reeked. But even smelling it, Baek Yujeok couldn't show any sign of displeasure.
‘…Oh no.’
In the pavilion prepared by the Alliance, how many people could enter in such a state? As far as Baek Yujeok knew, there was only one.
‘The Beggar’s Sect Leader.’
The leader of the beggars spread throughout the Central Plains, the man called the eyes and ears of the Alliance: Drunken Beggar Woo Bong Baekdo.
As the old man approached, the Celestial Plum Blossom's eyebrow twitched minutely.
“Baekdo. You smell particularly bad today. Did you take a dip in a cesspool?”
“Hmph, what did you expect a beggar to smell like, flowers? We haven't seen each other in ages and that's your greeting? What a mess.”
“I'm telling you to wash once in a while.”
“Wash? Don't be ridiculous. We barely have water to drink, where are we supposed to find water to wash?”
“Is the river water poison? The world is overflowing with water.”
“I'm about to lose my mind from your flower scent, so why don't you go wash, Dohwa. Who are you to tell a beggar to wash or not?”
“...”
Baek Yujeok was speechless. He wondered if this was really a conversation between two of the most powerful figures in the Ten Sect Alliance. After exchanging a few more rough words, the two old men turned their gazes in unison back to the arena, where the storm still raged.
“If he was going to do this, I wonder why he even told us to keep our mouths shut,” Drunken Beggar Woo Bong suddenly said, clicking his tongue. “He said he'd kill every beggar in the country if we didn't listen… and then he goes and does this anyway. What a pain.”
“I find it more surprising that you actually listened to him and kept quiet.”
“Hah. I might ignore others, but what can I do? I have to listen to what that one says.”
If he said he'd kill them, he would really kill every beggar in the country. The Beast of Shanxi knew how to follow principles over his own emotions, but that monster was different. Even if his fangs were dull, his true colors hadn't changed. In terms of sheer danger, that one was more unpredictable. He was a man who could switch to the Demonic Path at any time if his heart moved him.
Drunken Beggar Woo Bong knew this to his very bones.
“Thanks to him, it looks like I'll be summoned by the Alliance Leader. That's the problem.”
Drunken Beggar Woo Bong subtly shifted his gaze. At the center of the pavilion were the Alliance Leader, the Sword Immortal, and the Sword Emperor. The Sword Immortal was watching the tournament, but he was simultaneously glaring in Drunken Beggar Woo Bong's direction. It seemed he had many questions.
“Sniff.”
Woo Bong started to hawk a loogie in response to the glare but then swallowed it back down.
“This is getting annoying.”
It looked like the Sword Immortal had figured something out. Should I hide for a while? He considered it for a moment, but it was impossible. If it were just the Sword Immortal, maybe—but the Sword Emperor was also watching the Beggar’s Sect Leader intently.
Facing their gazes, Drunken Beggar Woo Bong whispered quietly.
“Dohwa.”
“Speak.”
“We're friends, right?”
“Hoho. Of course not.”
“You heartless bastard. Not even a moment's hesitation.”
The Celestial Plum Blossom smiled. At the sight, Drunken Beggar Woo Bong shook his head. Right, he hadn't expected anything from these guys anyway.
‘Tsk.’
He could only hope that things wouldn't get any more troublesome. That was all he could wish for.
Fwoooosh...
The powerful gale gradually subsided. The wind that had been blowing so fiercely died down in an instant, proving it had been entirely under the caster's control. As the Qi vanished and the thick dust settled, the devastated arena was fully revealed.
“...”
“…That's…!”
The martial artists in the pavilion swallowed hard. The arena was utterly devastated, covered in marks as if it had been torn apart by giant claws. The dueling stage, reinforced with cold steel, had lost its original shape entirely. It was a gruesome scene to have been created by a single person.
And yet, atop that ruin, there were two perfectly intact spots. One was the space where the Dragon Warrior stood. He hadn't moved an inch while casting his art; the ground beneath his feet was unharmed.
And the other one was… the ground where the Dao King was.
“…Heok… Hah… Heok.”
The Dao King was slumped on the ground just a few steps away from the Dragon Warrior. The blade he had been clutching was nowhere to be seen, and he was drenched in cold sweat.
The astonishing thing was that there wasn't a single scratch on the Dao King's body. The surroundings had been torn to shreds, yet the Dao King, who had been at the center of that martial art, was physically untouched.
The Dao King looked as if he had just faced death itself. His face was filled with terror, his fighting spirit long gone. Survival instinct had overtaken anger; he couldn't even gather his scattered thoughts.
Baek Yujeok was certain.
‘…The Dao King has lost.’
This was the Dao King's defeat. Anyone could see it. The Dao King, one of the Six Seats, had been defeated by a young prodigy from the Bi Clan.
Silence fell over the pavilion. The merchant association leaders were already busy checking if they had branches in Xi'an, how many children the Bi Clan Lord had, and whether the Dragon Warrior was engaged.
The Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes—among them, the Dragon Warrior had been the least known. But now, his value was skyrocketing.
‘Could I have beaten the Dragon Warrior?’
Every martial artist present asked themselves the same question. No confident answer came to mind. A monster that defied description stood there. The Heavenly Dragon and Seomwolgeom had been astounding, but the Dragon Warrior went further, making one's mind go blank. Just watching him felt like it could trigger one's Inner Demons.
Only one question remained: Why did the Dragon Warrior not attack the Dao King properly? Why did he leave him completely unharmed? Was it consideration? A childish mercy born of his youth? If so, it was a lack of courtesy to a fellow martial artist.
Just as they were thinking that…
“Don't tell me.”
“Hohaho.”
The two old monsters of the Ten Sect Alliance beside him reacted. Drunken Beggar Woo Bong's mouth fell slightly open in surprise. The Celestial Plum Blossom just smiled leisurely.
‘Why are they reacting like that?’
As Baek Yujeok narrowed his eyes, the Dragon Warrior looked at the Dao King, then turned his head toward the audience seats. He smiled faintly. For some reason, Baek Yujeok shrank back at the sight of that smile. An unknown fear washed over him.
The Dragon Warrior then turned to the judge, who hadn't even dared to step onto the stage and was looking up from below the arena.
The Dragon Warrior looked at him and said:
“I forfeit.”
‘Huh?’
Baek Yujeok froze. It wasn't a hallucination. The judge wore the exact same expression as Baek Yujeok.
“I forfeit,” the Dragon Warrior repeated.
At that moment, the shock rippled through the crowd.
“Wow. That crazy bastard… What are we going to do with him?”
“…Did his brain get younger along with his body? Hoho. He's become just like Gu Ryoon.”
“…Dohwa. Isn't that a bit harsh?”
Drunken Beggar Woo Bong and the Celestial Plum Blossom spoke with faces filled with distaste. However, their words did not reach the ears of Baek Yujeok or any of the other martial artists.
The shock was too great.
The Dragon Warrior, who had clearly won, forfeited. The Dao King, who had been utterly defeated, was declared the victor.
It was the most humiliating victory in the history of the Central Plains.