Chapter 97: Tournament (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 97: Tournament (2)
Shinhyun, a second-generation disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, had first met Gu Ryunghwa about two or three years ago.
It was the tail end of winter, when the first hints of spring were just beginning to bud. The Celestial Plum Blossom, Dohwa, had brought a newcomer with him, introducing her as the youngest member of their group. She was to be their Senior—a direct disciple of the world-renowned Plum Blossom Sword Maiden.
At the time, the sect was in the process of selecting new third-generation disciples from a pool of applicants. Her immediate appointment as a second-generation disciple naturally caused some discontent. To the incoming third-generation disciples, the idea of a young girl becoming their direct superior was distasteful. The existing second-generation disciples, meanwhile, found it problematic to determine how to treat Gu Ryunghwa while also being mindful of the third-generation disciples' feelings.
However, the matter was not up for debate. Her admission had been decided by the Sect Lord and the elders. Their word was absolute. If the Lord deemed something right, then it was right; if he deemed it wrong, then it was wrong. That was the unwavering faith the disciples placed in him.
A few days after her arrival, news of Gu Ryunghwa finally reached Shinhyun. But being occupied with discussions with the elders, he couldn't visit her immediately.
By the time he returned to the second-generation disciples' lodgings, he found his juniors clustered around something—or someone. They were impossible to miss, each boasting a ginormous physique.
…They really are excessively large.
They’d been told their bodies would return to a normal shape once they reached a higher realm in the sect's martial arts. Oddly, this news had sparked looks of disappointment in some.
"My broad shoulders and these biceps will disappear…? Senior, I think I'll have to stop training in the sect's arts from today!"
"Yeah! How can I give up these rock-hard thighs?"
"…Please stop talking while flexing your chest. It's nauseating to look at those grotesque things."
Those guys are truly messed up in the head…
His juniors were so engrossed they didn't notice his arrival. A deliberate cough was usually enough to grab their attention.
“Ahem…! Ahem…!”
But not this time. With no other choice, Shinhyun forced his way through the crowd of muscular men.
At the center of the hulking behemoths was a small child. She trembled incessantly, whether from cold or fear. Cradled in the arms of Shinmil—a rare female disciple among the monstrous giants—the girl stared at her surroundings with wide, trembling eyes, her ears flushed red.
“Step back a little…! Can’t you see you’re scaring her!” Shinmil shouted at the oblivious crowd.
The group of men reluctantly shuffled back. Even then, the girl looked on the verge of tears. The men were confused, unable to comprehend what they had done wrong. To a little girl suddenly surrounded by dozens of men with hulking physiques, it must have been terrifying—a simple fact lost on them.
“Why is she scared? We didn’t do anything.”
“Shouldn’t she feel safe surrounded by us, with biceps the size of boulders?”
“She probably doesn’t understand yet. She’s just a child.”
How did they become so ignorant? They weren't like this when they were third-generation disciples.
Shinhyun sighed in dejection at his juniors' shameful display. He then slowly approached the little girl and lowered himself to her eye level. He recalled his mother saying that children feel more at ease when spoken to at their own level.
“Hello. You must be Ryunghwa? My name is Shinhyun.”
“…!”
Instead of calming her, his words made her burrow deeper into Shinmil’s embrace.
That didn’t work?
“Uh… I just…” He lifted a hand, trying to appear non-threatening.
“Kya…!”
The girl flinched violently, trembling even more. Soon, tears welled up in her large eyes and began to flow.
“Brotherrrr…”
“Woah… The Eldest Senior Brother made her cry.”
“Wow, and he told us to back off. He’s the worst of us all.”
“W-What did I do?!”
He hadn't even been the one to tell them to back away. Frustration bubbled inside him, but that was irrelevant now—the child was crying.
In the end, Shinhyun never got to properly greet her that day. The entire day was spent trying to calm the little girl down, a task undertaken not by the men, but by female disciples like Shinmil. Even after a full day, Shinhyun couldn't hold a proper conversation with Ryunghwa. He wondered if she had slept at all, her eyes were so swollen from crying.
Did she cry all night?
Another thought crossed his mind… Why hasn't her master come?
Typically, the sole disciple of a master would be trained personally by them. Yet, the Sword Queen never appeared. The Sect Lord didn't elaborate, merely ordering them to take good care of the child. The problem was figuring out how.
They brainstormed together, but it was not easy. One day, a junior watched Gu Ryunghwa train and spoke up with a nervous expression.
“…Eldest Senior, about Gu Ryunghwa…”
“What about her?”
“…I don’t think I can do this anymore. It feels like she’d break if I even touched her!”
At first, Shinhyun wondered what nonsense his junior was spouting. But one look at Gu Ryunghwa’s small, fragile frame made him understand. It genuinely seemed a mere touch could harm her. Even approaching her made her cry.
And yet…
“Yes! Move your feet just like that! Good job!”
“Woah! She picked up a sword! She actually picked up a sword!”
“Jeez, what do we do!? Maybe she’s a genius?”
His juniors were still enamored. Their enthusiasm was somewhat understandable; no girls had been selected in the latest intake of third-generation disciples, and the existing female disciples were more masculine than the men. Shinmil, in particular, was so strong Shinhyun doubted he could beat her in a duel anymore.
In the world of martial artists, gender didn't matter. But Gu Ryunghwa was soft, delicate, and embodied girlish traits they rarely saw.
However, is this attitude actually helping her training? They're demons with other juniors. What am I even looking at?
Even as he rebuked them mentally, Shinhyun himself found it difficult to handle Gu Ryunghwa. He worried they would never train her properly. While it was good they liked her, she wouldn't improve if spoiled. So, he decided to have her train with the third-generation disciples. He believed interacting with peers her age would be more beneficial than being around older, muscular men. The Sect Lord had given him discretion to choose the best path, and this seemed it.
It seemed okay at first. Despite her fear and tears, Gu Ryunghwa tried her best to mimic the training movements.
But a problem arose soon enough.
On the fourth day of her training with the third-generation disciples, while Shinhyun was busy with his own regimen, someone came running to him in a panic.
“Eldest Senior Brother!”
“What is it?”
Some second-generation disciples had been adamant about watching over Gu Ryunghwa's training. Though Shinhyun had scolded them, they persisted, so he let them be. One of those juniors now panted desperately.
“G-Gu Ryunghwa has fainted.”
“What?”
An unexpected problem. Thankfully, she regained consciousness not long after, but the way she curled up in fear was disheartening. Shinhyun had to get to the bottom of it.
When questioned, the third-generation disciples could only plead their innocence with sad, frustrated faces. They claimed they had only tried to approach her to teach her, but she started crying and screaming. When one accidentally brushed against her, she fainted on the spot.
The Mount Hua Sect healers found nothing physically wrong with her. The issue, they said, was with her mind.
Shinhyun was a swordsman renowned in the martial world, but he was lost in matters like this.
What is the problem? What is making that small child feel this way?
She was a recent arrival, but Shinhyun already considered her part of their family. The Sect Lord had declared it, and they, as his followers, wholeheartedly agreed.
“Eldest Senior Brother, what do we do?”
“Rushing things will only make it worse. We must let time handle this.”
The healers strictly warned against forcing interaction. And so, time passed amidst uncertainty.
If Shinhyun learned one thing about the girl during this time, it was that Gu Ryunghwa wasn't just afraid of strangers, but of people in general. Especially men. And her fear intensified exponentially if the man was young.
Is it really just fear?
That was his initial thought, but over time, he realized her eyes held a storm of emotions beyond mere fear: resentment, despair, and a blend of other negative feelings, all shimmering in her exhausted gaze. Yet, within that storm, he also glimpsed a trace of yearning. He couldn't simply dismiss it as fear.
Because of this, he couldn't leave her with the third-generation disciples. Since she was uncomfortable with males, the only option was to pair her with female disciples for training.
After that incident, seasons changed, and time gradually passed.
Gu Ryunghwa grew into a young lady, but the wall around her heart remained, a boundary she was unwilling to let others cross. She seemed to get slightly better, yet still struggled to get along with the male disciples. Thankfully, she occasionally seemed happy.
I assume it's when she goes to see her master.
He'd heard her master's residence was somewhere deep in the mountains. Despite the exhausting journey, Gu Ryunghwa visited whenever she had time. Other disciples were forbidden from going there, which inevitably sparked conversations. Most speculated the Sword Queen might be ill, but no one dwelled on the topic long; spreading such rumors could incite disaster.
Around this time, some incidents required disciples to scout the areas outside the sect. It was then that several swordsmen began to disappear. They scouted the vicinity thoroughly but found no trace or clue of the missing men. Forced to return disappointed, it was then that Yung Pung, who was scouting with them, mentioned sensing something in the distance and ran off to investigate.
Yung Pung was prone to following his instincts. Used to such behavior, Shinhyun could only sigh tiredly and follow the brat.
When they reached the spot Yung Pung had run to, Shinhyun encountered Gu Yangcheon. The boy was unconscious, making Shinhyun fear Yung Pung had done something. He almost fainted at the thought. Thankfully, it was a misunderstanding.
After Gu Yangcheon woke up and they spoke, Shinhyun learned he was Gu Ryunghwa's brother. When the boy stated he had come to take Gu Ryunghwa back with him, a sense of relief washed over Shinhyun. He didn't know the exact reason, but Gu Ryunghwa had seemed overly desperate lately. He simply wanted her to have a break from sect life and relax. He suspected the other disciples felt the same.
Shinhyun didn't know much about the Gu Clan, but he was aware the famous prodigy known as the Sword Phoenix hailed from it, as did the Tiger Warrior. The Sword Phoenix was said to surpass even the monstrously talented Yung Pung. Having never seen her himself, Shinhyun found it hard to believe someone could surpass Yung Pung, who could make his sword blossom with plum flowers before even turning twenty.
But then, something far more shocking happened right before Shinhyun's eyes.
When Yung Pung impulsively dueled Gu Yangcheon, he lost.
…Yung Pung… lost?
He watched in utter shock as Yung Pung rolled on the ground, vomiting blood, while Gu Yangcheon stood impassively. He couldn't believe this boy had burned Yung Pung's blooming plum flowers into ashes.
…Flowers burning in those flames? What in the world is this?
The sight of those beautiful plum blossoms filling the area, only to be disintegrated by flames leaking from the boy's body, left Shinhyun speechless. As a man who had devoted all his loyalty and passion to the Mount Hua Sect, the scene was disbelieving.
It was then that Shinhyun became certain of one fact.
…He will be the one to become the Heavenly Dragon.
It was possible Gu Yangcheon wasn't famous due to his youth, but Shinhyun thought it more likely because the boy had never participated in the 'Dragons and Phoenixes Tournament,' the gathering of young prodigies. After Peng Woojin relinquished the title of Heavenly Dragon to become his clan's Young Lord, the spot passed to the Sword Phoenix, then the world's greatest prodigy. In time, Shinhyun had believed it inevitable for Yung Pung to inherit the title once the Sword Phoenix vacated it.
At least, that was what he thought until he witnessed the monster named Gu Yangcheon. After seeing his prowess, Shinhyun had no choice but to change his mind.
…I have nothing to say. He's a true monster.
The boy could read a situation and act without hesitation. He possessed not only vast Qi reserves and destructive power to back his movements, but also speed to complement that monstrous strength. It was hard to believe someone so young could so calmly manipulate such wild, unruly flames. Gu Yangcheon had the power of one who had endured numerous battles. His talent was truly monstrous.
…Just what kind of place is the Gu Clan?
He knew it only as a noble clan famous in Shanxi. But to have raised not only the Sword Phoenix, but also this monstrous boy…
“How scary…”
After a point, he found himself more interested in Gu Yangcheon than in the treasure the boy had brought for the sect. Those strangely hollow, lifeless eyes, which contrasted sharply with his fierce features, were another point of fascination. He treated his servants well, without condescension. Furthermore, a long journey like this should have tired and frustrated a boy his age, yet he never ceased his training, leading Shinhyun to believe he was well-taught and even-tempered.
I assume he has been a good brother to Gu Ryunghwa as well.
Shinhyun sometimes wondered if something had happened in her clan to make Gu Ryunghwa the way she was. But he also remembered her crying in Shinmil's arms, yearning for her brother. However, a few years ago, after her last visit to her clan, that yearning expression vanished completely. It seemed to have helped her resolve something. Of course, the distance between her and the other disciples remained, but she had improved slightly, giving him hope.
However.
Shinhyun noticed a change in Gu Ryunghwa after Gu Yangcheon arrived at the Mount Hua Sect.
He saw her making the same complex expression she had when she was young and fearful—a mixture of resentment, fear, despair, sadness, and yearning. And Shinhyun instantly knew these emotions were directed at her brother, Gu Yangcheon.
Am I seeing this correctly?
He chose to believe Gu Yangcheon was not the type to harm his own family. This made it harder, as Shinhyun prided himself on his ability to see a person's true nature. He still didn't believe Gu Yangcheon was a bad person, but doubt had been seeded.
Shinhyun disliked hesitation. As a martial artist of the great Mount Hua Sect, he had never learned its meaning. That's why he desperately wanted to resolve this matter.
He decided to ask Gu Yangcheon directly. After hesitating for a long, long time, he finally posed the question.
The boy responded immediately, without a trace of hesitation.
“Yes, it’s my fault.”
His reply was firm. Almost too firm.