Power, and the Wall (1)
The sword slashed through the air with a chilling sharpness.
It was an impeccably clean strike. A single move worthy of becoming a textbook example for swordsmen across the world.
Yet Yeon Sim stared at her own blade in despair. It’s getting weaker. The luster on the sword’s body had dimmed considerably compared to before.
That luster had been the shine of will. At the very least, the sword arts she had once wielded, even if not stronger than now, had carried clear purpose and dreams.
And now? It feels so empty.
At her level of mastery—or even without reaching such heights—many experts could infuse a single strike with their own color and depth.
She had no color. The faint hue she once possessed had grown even more blurred, leaving her sword qi excessively transparent.
Ting.
Yeon Sim’s sword touched the ground.
Lately, even the desire to train her martial arts had begun to fade. She could barely remember the last time she had broken a proper sweat.
“Haah.”
She had lost count of how many sighs she let out. Yet there was nothing else she could do.
At that moment, a heavy voice came from the side.
“You seem to have a lot on your mind.”
Startled, Yeon Sim turned her head.
There stood Yang Cheon.
“Rather than continuing such meaningless training, you’d be better off not drawing your sword at all.”
Yeon Sim looked at Yang Cheon with eyes full of confusion.
To her—and to Botam—he was the enemy of all enemies. In a sense, he was the culprit who had torn apart Botam’s centuries-old legacy into shreds.
Yet she could neither rage at him nor leave the Black Dragon Department.
Why? I don’t even know anymore.
Yang Cheon studied Yeon Sim’s silent face for a moment before shaking his head.
“I once held your talent in high regard. Temperament and goals can change through experience and enlightenment, but talent is something you are born with. There are those who reach the peak through effort alone despite lacking talent, but I no longer wished to cling to such exceptional cases.”
“……”
“However, now I’m beginning to think my judgment may have been wrong.”
Yeon Sim’s eyes trembled.
While her gaze was filled with turmoil, Yang Cheon’s eyes remained as hard as forged steel.
“Why are you here?”
“……”
“If you wish to remain in this half-hearted, indecisive state where you can’t even hold yourself together, then by all means, continue as you are.”
The corner of Yang Cheon’s mouth curled upward.
It was a smile that made the viewer’s heart sink.
“I tend to embrace the weak and even subordinates who fail their missions. But I consider a spineless half-wit who doesn’t even know what she should do to be utterly useless.”
“……!”
“If my eyes that once saw value in you were mistaken, then I simply admit the mistake and move on. But you will be discarded. A cannon without gunpowder is nothing more than useless scrap taking up space in the warehouse.”
Yeon Sim unconsciously clenched her teeth.
“Is that… is that something you should be saying?”
She had her pride. She wasn’t foolish enough to stay silent after hearing such words.
Yang Cheon’s face grew cold.
“Then what? Your mortal enemy who destroyed your sect stands before you—why can’t you point your sword at me? Are you afraid of death?”
“……”
“There’s a fellow named Kang Liang. He came from a prestigious Dark Faction sect that I destroyed with my own hands. His parents, his siblings—all dead.”
Why was he suddenly bringing up the swordsman named Kang Liang?
“Whether by luck or misfortune, that bastard Yeon Hojeong took him in. When I saw him again, do you know what he said to me? That he would seize even the slightest chance to press me down. To take my head.”
“……!!”
“That fellow will soon arrive at headquarters alongside Yeon Hojeong. He aims for my life, yet until then, he does what he must—or what he can. Even while serving under his enemy.”
Yang Cheon, who had been quietly observing Yeon Sim’s face, turned his body.
“Yeon Hojeong made a request. He asked me to take good care of Botam’s descendants until he returns.”
“……”
“It’s a promise. And I rarely break my promises. Therefore, until those fellows arrive, I don’t care if you keep eating the headquarters’ food or whatever else.”
Yang Cheon’s intention was clear.
Once Yeon Hojeong and Kang Liang arrived, he would drive her out. If she wished to stay, she must change before then and prove her worth to him.
It was an utterly shameless statement. Though Yeon Sim didn’t know much of the world, she understood that a perpetrator should not speak such words to a victim.
But she had overlooked one thing.
This was the Jianghu. This was the Murim. A world of mad warriors who lived by bizarre laws that defied ordinary logic and common sense, even as they claimed to follow certain principles.
Moreover, the Black Dragon Department was the alliance representing the Dark Faction. It was not a group that placed charity, peace, righteousness, or morality at the forefront.
And that truth struck a chord in Yeon Sim, who intellectually knew Yang Cheon’s actions were wrong yet emotionally felt that she herself was half-hearted and indecisive.
Hwooooong.
An intense energy rose from Yeon Sim’s sword like billowing smoke.
Burning rage and wounded pride flushed her face red. In truth, she wanted nothing more than to chase after Yang Cheon right then and challenge him to a duel to the death.
But… …… Yeon Sim let out a sigh.
“Just what am I even doing here?”
There was also someone completely different from Yeon Sim.
Hmm.
Yang Cheon, standing with his hands behind his back as he watched Jeong-an, felt a quiet sense of admiration. How long has it been? She’s already deepened this much.
Since Yeon Hojeong left, Jeong-an had not once properly swung her sword.
Yet she had not stopped training. On the contrary, by spending most of her days in meditation, her aura had become far deeper and more refined than before.
And.
Flash!
Each time her true qi exploded around her body like a burst of light, the qi waves it released grew richer and more flawless with the passage of time.
It was not meditation born of a troubled heart, but meditation meant to advance her own martial arts.
She had already passed the stage of polishing herself by swinging a sword. She had judged so, and at least for her, that method was correct. That was why she could control her qi to this degree in such a short time. So this is what caught Yeon Hojeong’s eye… She really is different.
Yang Cheon felt a faint bitterness inside.
The Yeon Sim he had chosen and tried to claim was having even her innate sharp talent crushed. Yet Jeong-an, the Sword Queen candidate who had come with Yeon Hojeong, was already seeking a path of progress despite possibly possessing less talent than Yeon Sim. Is his eye for people simply better, or was I the one who was wrong?
In the first place, Yang Cheon was not the type to fully acknowledge a master-disciple relationship until his disciples proved themselves.
That was his way, and it was also the way of the Dark Faction. If one had the wits to grow through teaching, then they must either die or struggle desperately to survive—one of the two.
In that regard, Jeong-an was showing more than enough admirable qualities.
“……”
Heh heh.
Laughter slipped out before he could stop it.
Swish.
Jeong-an opened her eyes. She had heard Yang Cheon’s chuckle.
Yang Cheon gave a wry smile and said, “My apologies. Did I disturb your meditation?”
“Not at all.”
Jeong-an rose from her seat and looked directly at Yang Cheon.
“What brings you here?”
Yang Cheon answered in a slightly mocking, amused tone.
“The entire Black Dragon Department is my territory. Wherever I go is my own business, and I occasionally drop by places like this without any particular thought.”
“I see.”
“So it is.”
What kind of reaction would she give? Just what aspect would this Sword Queen candidate favored by Yeon Hojeong reveal?
Swish.
Jeong-an sat back down in the lotus position.
“Then please take your time looking around.”
With those words, she sank back into meditation.
It was not an act of boldness. Her soul had already flown to the far side of unconsciousness in an instant.
Right in the middle of enemy territory, in front of the enemy leader himself, she had truly entered meditation.
Yang Cheon shook his head. What monstrous spirit.
Such a sight was not something even he could easily display.
Even if one knew the opponent wasn’t the type to attack, tension alone would make such behavior impossible.
Yet this young girl with talent inferior to Yeon Sim was doing something so astonishing. Hah.
Yang Cheon sighed inwardly. Truly, human affairs never go as one wishes.
Soon after, he turned away.
Seeing Jeong-an like that suddenly made him crave a drink.
* * *
“Hmm.”
At Pae Yul’s voice, Yeon Hojeong snapped out of his deep concentration.
“We’re already here.”
Indeed. The group had already arrived ten li from the Black Dragon Department’s main headquarters.
Pae Yul punched Yeon Hojeong lightly on the arm.
“You bastard, what are you thinking so hard about? You’re not actually nervous, are you? That’s not like you.”
“Huh?”
“You’ve been spacing out the whole way, so I took the lead.”
“Ah!”
Yeon Hojeong clicked his tongue.
“Sorry. I had a few things on my mind.”
Pae Yul tilted his head.
“You’re not really nervous, right? What were you thinking about so deeply? You haven’t drunk a single drop of water in two days.”
“Has it already been two days? No wonder my throat feels dry.”
Yeon Hojeong stroked his horse’s mane.
“You must have been quite exhausted too.”
“You don’t even remember. We stopped several times, you idiot.”
“……”
“Really?”
Pae Yul clicked his tongue in disbelief.
“A guy who can accurately perceive his surroundings even in extreme concentration completely let go this time?”
It wasn’t that he had let go.
He had simply trusted Pae Yul and Kang Liang completely and focused all his previously scattered awareness entirely on himself.
Yeon Hojeong smiled. He chose not to voice that thought.
“I’ve had a lot on my mind regarding martial arts.”
“Martial arts?”
“Yes. I recently learned something new. To balance it out, I need to squeeze in training even when I don’t have time.”
Even without deliberately circulating his energy, simply tracing the formulas of the divine arts and activating the energy of the Yeon Family Divine Elixir raised his attainment in the Sword Limit Qi and Divine General Qi.
Thanks to that, the two divine arts had advanced significantly in that short period. Although his understanding of the Biying True Art and Dragon Scale Qi had already been perfect, the speed of mastery was still terrifying. It’s all thanks to the Yeon Family Divine Elixir.
All his energies had fused into one, forming a single mass of power. Had he not formed the divine elixir, such rapid progress would have been impossible.
Of course, it was still far from enough.
After moistening his throat with a few sips of water, Yeon Hojeong said, “I’ve caused you trouble. There are only ten li left, so let’s hurry.”
“Sounds good.”
The three of them spurred their horses toward the entrance of the Black Dragon Department.
How much time had passed?
“……Hmm.”
Pae Yul’s eyes flashed.
“Did you feel that?”
Yeon Hojeong answered in a relaxed voice.
“I felt it a while ago.”
Kang Liang scratched his head.
“I only just noticed it now.”
Pae Yul shook his head.
“What tremendous power. The qi waves radiating outward are first-rate. It feels as strong as our sect leader.”
“I think I know who it is.”
“You know the person?”
“Not personally, but I recognize the energy. It’s inner qi based on the Black Dragon Department Lord’s Lion’s Roar Art.”
One more quarter-hour later.
A man appeared before the group.
Pae Yul frowned.
“Who the hell are you?”
The man standing with his hands clasped behind his back answered in a leisurely tone.
“Yeop Seong.”
“Not your name. I asked who you are.”
Perhaps intrigued by the opponent’s blunt speech?
The corners of the man—Yeop Seong’s—mouth lifted.
“I am the eldest disciple of the King of Combat, Yang Cheon.”