Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: As Good As My Command
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After adjusting the Nine Dragons Golden Barrier Formation, the Lion Dao King spoke.
"You take the Dao Division with you, brother. It might not catch your eye, but these are kids I've poured my heart into raising, so they'll show a decent level."
「Huh?」
「Not just handing over the deputy leader position, but the command of the entire Dao Division too?」
I was as startled as the spirits and asked why.
"Brother, aren't you coming with us?"
"I'm thinking of heading off to the side."
「?」
"There are North Sea Sect masters scattered all over the place. I need to pick them off one by one."
"Ah!"
Only then did I understand his scheme.
「That does seem like a viable strategy.」
「Among the transcendent experts at the North Sea Fury Emperor event, the Black Bone Death King isn't the only one—」
「So you're going after the ones that give us the edge in battle?」
The North Sea Fury Emperor gathering was teeming with experts on par with or surpassing the Black Bone Death King.
The Lion Dao King meant to swiftly eliminate them and turn the tide of battle.
It was a bold, independent move that could be dangerous, but his face showed no concern whatsoever.
From his long years as a wandering warrior, he had an instinctive sense of how to lead a battle to victory.
"On the other hand, brother, you know the layout of the manor well, and you seem far better at handling tactical formations than this old bear. Isn't that right?"
I could only smile awkwardly and scratch my cheek.
In truth, having once led the massive Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, my experience in organizational command was inevitably far deeper than the Lion Dao King's.
"So I'm entrusting the Dao Division to you. I believe you can handle it."
The Lion Dao King's eyes shone with steadfast trust as he looked at me.
「The Dao King's gaze on the young cult leader is dripping with honey—」
「It's almost scary.」
I nodded.
"Though I may be lacking, I'll do my best to live up to your expectations, brother."
"Hahaha! If even you're lacking, brother, then who in the world isn't?"
The Lion Dao King burst into loud laughter, then quickly sobered his expression and issued orders to Han In-su and the Dao Division.
"While I'm away, the deputy leader's commands are as good as my own. This takes precedence even over my disciples, so you must protect the deputy leader with your lives."
"Understood!"
"Understood!!"
"Then, brother, I leave it to you. Teach those ice ghosts exactly what this place is."
"Yes. I will."
And so, we set off for the final push of the battle.
* * *
Sima Seon-ui quietly drew her sword as she eyed the three village elders surrounding her.
"Kekekeke! It's been over thirty years since we died, they say!"
"That chick of a Sima brat has grown into such a fine woman!"
"If her frame weren't so dainty or if she had a beard, I'd believe it if you said the Azure Sky Sword Emperor had disguised himself as a woman!!"
The three elders looked just like peasants fresh from the fields in some rural village.
Their shabby clothes seemed ready to fall apart, their faces tanned and dotted with age spots from the sun, and each held farming tools in hand.
One elder, short and twig-like with a stretched-out frame, gripped a sickle.
Another, squat and stocky, carried a pitchfork over his shoulder.
The tallest, over eight feet and burly even in old age, clutched a flail.
One might mistake them for ordinary farmers from any village based on their appearance alone, but Sima Seon-ui knew full well they were anything but simple folk.
Her father, who occasionally boasted of his past exploits, had mentioned them before.
The Ghost Village Three Elders.
Better known as the Guangxi Three Demons, they were once great fiends who had dyed the Guangxi martial world in blood.
Disguised as slash-and-burn farmers, they infiltrated peaceful villages, massacring innocent commoners, draining their life force to build inner power, or even devouring children in their atrocities.
The damage to the Guangxi martial world was immense until the young Azure Sky Sword Emperor personally stepped in to exterminate them.
Yet the demonic cult's sorcery had apparently revived even these irredeemable villains.
The Guangxi Three Demons had swarmed her upon recognizing her instantly as the Azure Sky Sword Emperor's daughter.
"When his daughter comes back as a corpse, even that inhuman Sima bastard's eyes will weep bloody tears!"
"Kekekekeke! We can pay back the pain they gave us in full!"
"Girl! Don't resent us for being too ruthless! This is just you paying the price for your father's youthful sins!!"
They spoke as if they were the victims.
Sima Seon-ui felt no need to respond.
She simply pondered how to shove these villains back to the depths of hell—or deeper still—so they could never return to the living world.
Thus, she said nothing throughout her sword exchange with the Guangxi Three Demons.
She merely let murderous intent flicker in her eyes.
Cha-cha-chang!!
"She's definitely her father's daughter—her sword brims with killing intent beyond her years!"
"Looks like we need to correct that bad habit of hers!"
Sima Seon-ui thought.
'I need to find an opening.'
The Guangxi Three Demons' martial prowess was at the transcendent level, capable of manifesting qi.
They hadn't fully adapted to their jiangshi bodies yet, so their power seemed below their prime, but their coordinated assault was still threatening enough to overwhelm most absolute experts.
For Sima Seon-ui, who couldn't yet fully wield sword qi, their combined attack was overwhelmingly dangerous.
Without the supreme swordsmanship inherited from her father, the Azure Sky Sword Emperor, and the lightness skill she'd learned long ago from Tang Clan Leader Dark Lord, she might have fallen already.
Yet even this wouldn't last; the longer it dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would become for her.
No path to reversal was in sight.
'What would Dang Gongzi do... what would Unhwi Gongzi do?'
Suddenly, her thoughts drifted elsewhere.
She didn't know why his face popped into her mind.
But as far as Sima Seon-ui knew, few matched Unhwi's rapid growth or his deepening understanding of the sword with each passing day.
He undoubtedly possessed that prodigious talent called Sword Fragrance Affinity.
Yet Sima Seon-ui believed the greatest reason was Unhwi's genuine sincerity—or attitude—toward the sword.
Whenever he picked up a sword, his eyes changed.
He delved relentlessly into the tool, the meaning, and the way of the sword.
If someone held a differing view, he sought to hear it out.
And if there was something to fix, he tore it apart and wove it seamlessly into his swordsmanship.
'...Attitude.'
From there, Sima Seon-ui's thoughts began to chain together.
'What was the attitude I once held... what is the way of the sword?'
For a moment, her mind rang like a struck bell.
She had thought herself more truthful to the sword than anyone.
But she realized she hadn't pondered the sword so deeply in ages.
'I've only obsessed over techniques—like how to execute forms more fluidly or build inner power more efficiently.'
The Sword Fragrance Spanning Ten Thousand Miles Art and Clear Flower Coming Heart Method her father had passed down were peerless arts worthy of the name.
Pursuing their formulas and forms alone allowed steady progress.
Thus, only a warrior's competitive drive remained—how to ascend higher realms or fell more foes.
Sometime along the way, her swordsman's attitude had vanished entirely.
Though she had taken up the sword because she loved it...
Yet in the past few days, Unhwi's swordsmanship had struck her profoundly.
How could a Tang Clan member be so obsessed with the sword?
His process—diving in like madness, finding answers, raising new questions, seeking resolutions—was no different from a high monk pursuing enlightenment.
So Sima Seon-ui had asked him directly.
What sparked such obsession with the sword?
But—
'What do you mean by the trigger, milady?'
'Yes. From what I've seen, Gongzi Unhwi never seems weary of the sword. One might tire or grow bored clinging so fiercely, yet you show no such signs. I wondered what motivation could foster such a mindset.'
'Hmm.'
'If it's hard to share, you needn't—'
'Ah, no, it's not that. I was just wondering why it needs a reason.'
「...?」
'It's just fun, isn't it?'
'??'
'The sword, I mean. Turns out it's far more fascinating than I imagined. Unraveling it piece by piece was incredibly enjoyable.'
'!'
'So when you ask for a motivation, it's hard to answer.'
'!!'
Fun.
That's what Unhwi had said.
'When did I stop finding fun in the sword?'
She could barely recall.
Training had become an utterly routine affair.
But not for Unhwi, apparently.
Pouring everything into the sword itself to forge something new.
Then charging ahead to refine that result to its maximum.
Obsessed with the sword.
That was Unhwi's attitude toward the sword—the way of the sword.
And that was the essence of the sword.
With that, the riddle tormenting Sima Seon-ui's mind shifted directions.
—Then what was my original way of the sword, the essence of my sword?
Suddenly, a long-ago conversation with the Dark Lord at Azure Flower Manor flashed through her mind.
"Hehehe! Azure Sky loved flowers from a tender age. He always likened the sword to flowers.'
'I don't understand that part.'
'Which part?'
'Flowers are beautiful. Alive. But the sword—'
'Is a vicious tool for slaying. That's the issue?'
「......」
'Then why not think differently?'
'Differently... you say?'
'Yes. See the sword not as a tool for killing, but for protecting.'
'...Ah.'
'Flowers bring joy to those who behold them. So make your sword bring joy to those who see it.'
'!!'
'The fragrance blooming from your sword gladdens people.'
Gladdening people.
Or making them joyful—that was her initial way of the sword.
From then, Sima Seon-ui had steered her swordsmanship from killing blade to living blade. Or so she had.
But now?
Did that way infuse her swordplay?
The answer came easily.
No.
'This was it. What I'd forgotten.'
Her swords until now had focused solely on efficiently slaying foes.
Far from living blade, so no wonder her swordsmanship stagnated.
Ting-ting-ting-tang!
"You wench, your eyes say you're lost in thought!"
"Daring to daydream with us right in front of you?"
The Guangxi Three Demons sensed her sword slowing and grew irritated.
The Azure Sky Sword Emperor who felled them had shown such arrogance back then.
"We'll make you regret it!"
The Third Demon swung his flail with full force.
While the First and Second Demons sealed her movements from front and back, aiming to crush her slender frame with overwhelming power.
At that instant, the sword qi cloaking Sima Seon-ui's blade underwent a change.
It revealed a sharp blue glow.
"No way—"
The qi unraveled like thread, then wrapped tightly around the blade like a silkworm's cocoon.
Forming a solid shape, it emanated a chilling halo.
Like starlight transplanted from the night sky.
Sword qi.
Flash!
"Youngest, dodge!!"
The Second Demon shouted urgently.
They too could manifest qi, but hers gave an ominous vibe for some reason.
"Don't worry, brother! That this fledgling wench can manifest qi at all is surprising, but I'm not about to lose to some green novice just stepping into it!!"
"That's not what I—"
The Second Demon's words cut off midway.
Sima Seon-ui's qi had already sliced clean through the flail and shattered the Third Demon's head.
Sword Fragrance Spanning Ten Thousand Miles Art
Sword Fragrance in Full Bloom
Slash!
"Youngest broooother!!"
The Third Demon died with a clueless expression, unaware of his own demise.
Blood and flesh sprayed.
Oddly, no rotten corpse stench rose from the jiangshi's disabled form.
Instead, a fresh floral fragrance lingered.
Sima Seon-ui's subsequent swordsmanship was the same.
Sword Fragrance Spanning Ten Thousand Miles Art
Arcane Technique
Fragrant Sword Drift
The arcane technique Fragrant Sword Drift manifested upon breaking through the threshold of the Sword Fragrance Spanning Ten Thousand Miles Art and Clear Flower Coming Heart Method, trailing long like a comet's tail.
The weeds dying from decay poison where the Guangxi Three Demons had trod regained vitality, even bursting into bloom.
Pop-pop-pop-pop!
Sima Seon-ui's sword swept through, roughly flinging the First and Second Demons aside.
"How in the world—"
"To reach such a realm at her age... Even the Azure Sky Sword Emperor wasn't this far along back then...!!"
Sima Seon-ui smiled at them, lost in shock.
And she thanked Unhwi inwardly.
She had reached this realm solely thanks to him.
No, not just her.
'The fragrance Gongzi Unhwi leaves touches everyone evenly, not just me.'
Dang Gon, Jeong Pungak, Nine Dragons Branch Family, Dang Gyujin, Yu Sumun, Dang Yeowon—even Lee Cheolsan now.
Sima Seon-ui thought she wanted to be someone like that.
It was then.
"Let's see if you can block this too!!"
The First Demon hurled himself at her with everything he had.
Screeeee—
The sharp gleam of Fighting Demon Sickle Art rent the air.
Fragrant Sword Drift wounded him all over, but he ignored it.
Judging he couldn't win, he threw his life to at least take her head.
「!」
Even Sima Seon-ui, immersed in enlightenment, faltered in surprise—and Unhwi's face flashed through her mind.
And right then.
Whoosh!
A sudden breeze from somewhere enveloped Sima Seon-ui protectively, then erupted into a gale that tore the First Demon to shreds in an instant.
He scattered in pieces without even a scream.
Utterly shocking power.
But rather than marvel at it, Sima Seon-ui blankly looked up at Unhwi, who had pulled her tightly into his embrace.
Her face burned hot for some reason.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
「......」
"Seems not. Good."
Sima Seon-ui nodded reflexively, then saw Unhwi's face bloom into a bright smile.
But he soon hardened his gaze again, scanning the enemy lines.
"Dao Division."
『Awaiting your orders, Deputy Leader!』
『Give the command, Deputy Leader!!』
Dozens of lions' voices pierced her ears.
Unhwi called out gravely.
"Sweep the enemy blades."
The lion pack charged.