Chapter 75
Chapter 75
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: Have You Ever Learned the Sword?
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The Golden Sword Sect was escorted to the fourth guest hall.
Gu Min-chae quickly assessed the true state of the Nine Dragons Branch Family while, on the other hand, mulling over the impression he had received from Yunhwi.
'It was definitely different from what Hyeokugi told me.'
Hyeokugi had clearly described the old Yunhwi as a 'timid cripple who couldn't even speak properly.'
But Yunhwi, who had confronted the Lion Sword King and even turned the tables on him, was nothing like that.
Guts, eloquence, skill, talent. Everything was overwhelming.
Naturally, a certain person came to mind.
'It feels like it could even be Yeon Yunhwi.'
That was exactly what Yeon Yunhwi had been like.
A person whose personality was a wreck, who acted selfishly, yet possessed an irresistible charm that made it impossible to hate him.
That was why Gu Min-chae had tried even harder to break him.
'Well, that's not going to happen.'
But Yeon Yunhwi was dead.
There was no way anyone could have survived the collapse of the Iron Heaven Peak.
A body presumed to be Yeon Yunhwi's had even been found.
Still, the fact that he reminded him of Yeon Yunhwi meant Dang Yunhwi was someone who absolutely could not be taken lightly.
'It's certain. He must be the one who harmed Baeksan. That means I need to approach him very cautiously and hunt him down... What should I do?'
Gu Min-chae erased everything Hyeokugi had told him from his mind.
From now on, he planned to believe only what he saw with his own eyes.
'First, I need to gather the Demon Ghosts who infiltrated here before me or are waiting nearby. I should also inform the Sect Leader of my position.'
The Shadow Sovereign assassination plan was already progressing rapidly.
If he rallied them and moved, taking out Yunhwi would be no problem.
Gu Min-chae planned to make eliminating Dang Yunhwi his top priority if necessary, regardless of the North Sea Sect's objectives.
It wasn't just revenge for Baeksan. The Dang Yunhwi he had seen was clearly someone who would hinder the North Sea Sect's and his own future actions time and again.
Various plans flashed through Gu Min-chae's mind.
His gaze never left the direction of the White Hall.
* * *
'It wasn't a mistake. That was definitely sword intent.'
Sima Seonyi still vividly remembered the spear qi Yunhwi had swung in her mind's eye.
The sharpness that cleanly sliced through the unyielding momentum of the Pure Wind Pavilion and the Daoist Corps without an inch of concession.
It had clearly taken the form of a spear, but it wasn't the spear arts composed of Lan Nachal's basic techniques.
It was something more advanced, or perhaps more fundamental.
—Sword.
It was the sharpness of a sword.
The sharpness of a treasured sword honed to perfection.
What she had seen in Dosung-hyeon was not wrong.
That was why her eyes never left Yunhwi.
"Man, it's dripping with honey, just dripping."
Yoo Sumin was busy teasing Sima Seonyi about it.
Dang Gyujin, who had come out from the Blue Hall where she was hanging out with the two to watch the confrontation between Yunhwi and the Lion Sword King, tilted her head.
"What does that mean?"
"Oh, unnie! Actually, this girl—"
"No!"
Yoo Sumin was grinning from ear to ear, about to say something, when Sima Seonyi hurriedly interrupted.
Yoo Sumin's mischievous smile deepened.
"What? I haven't said anything yet?"
"Anyway, no!!"
"What do you mean no? I have no idea."
"Anyway, it's no!!"
"??"
Dang Gyujin's face, clueless about what was going on, was filled with question marks.
But the more it went on, the louder Yoo Sumin's laughter grew, and Sima Seonyi's face flushed even redder.
'I can't let this continue! I'll just keep getting teased by Mina! She'll get the wrong idea!'
She needed to clear up the misunderstanding as quickly as possible.
Sima Seonyi quickly asked Dang Gyujin.
"Unnie, has Young Master Yunhwi ever learned the sword separately, by any chance?"
"Sword? No. Why do you ask so suddenly?"
"As expected....... Ah, it's nothing. I just had something I wanted to confirm."
Sima Seonyi glossed over it vaguely, since sword intent was something hard to recognize unless one was from the Sima Clan, and fell into thought.
Then what was the true nature of the sword intent emanating from Yunhwi?
Yoo Sumin was still shooting her playful glances from the side, but Sima Seonyi tried her best to ignore it.
"Now that I think about it, it is a bit strange."
"Strange... you say?"
But then Dang Gyujin dropped a bombshell that made Sima Seonyi's eyes widen.
"Yeah. Actually, someone else asked me something similar."
"...Could you tell me exactly what that was?"
Dang Gyujin was curious why Sima Seonyi was so interested in Yunhwi.
"Yeah. It wasn't a big deal. We have an Uncle Gon in our branch family, right? He asked something similar about Hui-ah."
"Uncle Gon... You mean Great Hero Dang Gon? The Fierce Wind Knight—"
"Right. That's him."
"!!"
Dang Gyujin recalled what Dang Gon had said after returning from the Old Half-Demon Forge.
'Young Master Yunhwi seems to have commissioned a weapon from Elder Shinjang.'
'Elder? He doesn't usually take commissions from new people, right? Especially not during this busy season. He'd just pass it off to his underlings—'
'He did. But it seems Young Master Yunhwi's commission caught his interest.'
Old Half-Demon Smith Dang Chukyung was someone Dang Gyujin knew very well.
He was the one who had forged her Qinggang Sword.
But precisely because of that, she knew how picky Dang Chukyung was and how he rarely forged weapons casually.
Even she, who had followed him around calling him "Grandpa, Grandpa" since childhood, had barely managed to get a single sword after much pleading.
Yet he had accepted Yunhwi's commission right away?
On their first meeting, no less?
'What was the item?'
'Well—'
'?'
'I didn't check it properly myself; it's all from what the elder told me, but it's a bit odd.'
'??'
'A fan.'
'A... fan?'
'Yes. And a sword.'
'???'
A fan that's a sword?
Could such a thing exist?
Even Dang Gon scratched his cheek uncomfortably as he spoke.
'The elder Shinjang just vaguely said it was that kind of thing and snapped at me not to bother him with more questions.'
According to Dang Gon, Dang Chukyung had looked extremely fatigued.
As if he hadn't slept or eaten properly for days, just hammering away nonstop.
'So that's why I'm asking. Do you happen to know if Young Master Yunhwi has ever learned the sword?'
Frankly, this question alone was the strangest imaginable.
Wasn't Dang Gon himself Yunhwi's martial arts instructor who had taught him weapon techniques?
For the teacher himself to ask about facts like this was downright bizarre.
'Actually, something felt off. As a Dang family member, he showed more interest in hidden weapons or poison arts less than in the eighteen conventional weapons, and rather than basic weapons like swords, he wanted to learn polearms or blunt weapons first—'
Dang Gon, who should know Yunhwi better than anyone, seemed like he knew nothing about him at all.
'...It felt like he was trying to master the characteristics and strengths of various weapons and bring them all together into one.'
In simple terms, it gave the impression that he was aiming for the sword as his final destination.
Dang Gyujin found that point too strange.
She herself had enlisted in the Qingcheng Sect and had opportunities to handle swords, which made her love them, but Yunhwi had never even had such chances...?
She wondered if it was just Dang Gon's misunderstanding, but his serious tone made it impossible to voice that opinion.
Instead, Dang Gyujin just forgot about the matter at the time.
A lingering unease remained, but she chalked it up to some misunderstanding in the middle.
And now, suddenly, Sima Seonyi was bringing up something similar.
After hearing the full story, Sima Seonyi's eyes sparkled.
"Unnie, could you introduce me to Young Master Yunhwi, by any chance?"
"Yunhwi?"
"Yes. There's something I want to confirm."
"I was planning to introduce him to the Mt. Song Cross-Sect Exchange anyway, so it's not difficult—"
"Please do."
Sima Seonyi bowed her head slightly.
Dang Gyujin looked at Yoo Sumin with a bewildered expression.
Yoo Sumin shrugged.
『It seems Seon-ah is interested in Young Master Yunhwi.』
『Lady Seon on Hui-ah...!?』
『Yes. I don't know yet if it's romantic feelings or just simple curiosity or something else.』
Dang Gyujin blinked in bewilderment.
『Uh... that won't do.』
『Huh? Is there a problem? Honestly, not just talk among us, but Seon-ah would be an excellent match, wouldn't she?』
『Excellent doesn't even begin to cover it; she'd be overflowing. But the problem isn't that—』
『?』
Dang Gyujin scratched her cheek with her index finger.
『Hui-ah... already has a fiancée.』
『!!』
『...What do we do?』
Dang Gyujin was quite flustered, uncharacteristically so.
There was no way she'd oppose her dear little brother potentially gaining a sister-in-law.
Moreover, the partner was the beloved youngest daughter of the Azure Heaven Sword Emperor.
It would be good for Yunhwi, who had big ambitions, to form such a connection.
But morally, it couldn't happen right now.
Yoo Sumin was just as conflicted.
Her friend, who had been utterly indifferent to anything but flowers and swords, had finally shown interest in a guy, and she was excited... no, rooting for it!
'I can't let my entertainment get snatched away like this! A water gate doesn't mean the city gate can't be breached!'
『By any chance, is Young Master Yunhwi's fiancée really tough?』
『Huh?』
『If not, just steal him away. Speaking bluntly, until the wedding ceremony, who knows what can happen in life.』
『Well, actually—』
Upon hearing about Yunhwi's childhood betrothal, Yoo Sumin let out a hollow laugh.
This wasn't just tough; it was on another level.
Just how had the branch leader thought of doing that back then?
'Seon-ah, this difficulty level seems way too hellish—'
As Yoo Sumin smiled wryly at Sima Seonyi, Dang Gyujin suddenly shot up from her seat.
She spotted an elderly man with a familiar face passing by outside the window.
"Huh? That person—"
"What's wrong? Do you know him?"
"Lady Seon, you were just curious if Hui-ah handles swords, right? Let's go together."
Sima Seonyi's eyes widened slightly in surprise before she nodded.
The old man Dang Gyujin had seen.
It was none other than Old Half-Demon Smith Dang Chukyung.
* * *
Dang Gon asked.
What my plan was for the spar with the Lion Sword King.
My answer was simple.
'Sword.'
It was a bit earlier than planned, but fortunately, there wasn't much time difference.
Finally.
The time had come to lay hands on the Heavenly Demon Nine Swords.
"Just put it down anywhere on the floor."
At Dang Chukyung's command, the craftsmen who had come with him carefully set down the box strapped to their backs.
Thud!
The sound was quite heavy.
Dang Chukyung eyed it silently before glaring at me with axe-like eyes.
"Making this old man come and go at this hour?"
"I merely sent someone to check if the sword was complete."
After escorting the Lion Sword King to the White Hall, I had separately sent a messenger to the Old Half-Demon Forge.
There was still time until the promised date, but after explaining the situation, I figured it might be done in four days.
But Dang Chukyung had responded by bringing the finished product himself.
"That's rushing a person! Is that not what rushing is?"
"Still, I didn't expect it to be completed so quickly."
"Hmph! Do you know how busy this body is, holding onto your crude order that long? If I set my mind to it, I could make this blindfolded in three days!"
For someone saying that, the dark circles under his eyes suggested he hadn't slept properly for at least a few days, having joyfully hammered away nonstop.
Moreover, the tension in his shoulders and his lips constantly mumbling made it look like he was itching to show it off as soon as possible.
I considered dragging it out to tease Dang Chukyung a bit, but that might burn my own patience too, so I shelved the idea.
Thump thump thump!
I was too excited.
The sword fan, specially designed for a Dang family member to naturally transition into swords without suspicion.
Since it had been conceived purely in imagination, I wondered what the real thing would look like.
Would it function properly? Was there some flaw I hadn't anticipated?
With half anticipation and half worry.
I flung open the box.
Clank!