Chapter 217
Chapter 217
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 217
Chapter Title: Chapter 6. Different Paths Lead to Different Ends (2)
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“Damn it! That stench is still lingering. Ack! Ptui!”
With a curse, Cho Yeon-un spat on the ground.
He shuddered as if the memory alone was revolting, then hurried his steps.
Hae So-wol fell in beside him.
“Don’t take it too hard, Cho Gongja.”
She said the words, but her own face wasn’t exactly bright.
“And you, Hae Sojeo? You okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Damn it all!”
“Cho Gongja!”
“I just don’t get why I always feel so foul whenever I run into those guys.”
“I understand.”
“Scheming for merits already.”
Cho Yeon-un shook his head in disgust.
The mood in that hall meeting had been nauseating. They’d all minced words for the sake of face, but the gist was simple.
They wanted to make a name for themselves in the war against the Demonic Cult.
They saw the Demonic Cult war as the perfect chance to solidify their positions.
Chaotic times breed heroes, and racking up feats in a massive war like this could catapult one to hero of the martial world in a single leap.
Do that, and they could shake off the Nine Dragons’ shadow, earning recognition as one of the martial world’s top masters. Just like Damho.
They were around the same age, but no one in the martial world lumped Damho with the Nine Dragons.
Damho’s exploits had been far too groundbreaking. He’d surpassed the later-generation talents to be hailed as one of the absolute peaks of the martial world.
What the Nine Dragons craved was fame surpassing even Damho’s. They didn’t say it outright, but their eyes burned with desire.
Not just Nam-hak, who always clashed with Cho Yeon-un, but even Jin Mu-young of the Wudang, quietly regarded as the top among the Nine Dragons.
They’d wanted intel on Damho from Cho Yeon-un. Even trivial details worthless to others were treasures to them.
Those obsessive stares and vague, roundabout probes had driven Cho Yeon-un up the wall.
“If they want fame that bad, why not step up and fight for it themselves? What do they need intel on Damho for?”
“They’re scared, too.”
“Of what? Damho?”
“Yeah. He terrifies everyone.”
“Still, it’s petty.”
“That’s a good thing.”
“What is?”
“That someone like you is with him. He won’t be lonely with a Cho Gongja around.”
“Hey, come on!”
Cho Yeon-un waved it off with an embarrassed grin. Hae So-wol smiled faintly in return.
She envied Cho Yeon-un.
At least he could express his feelings honestly. Unlike her.
‘I’m no different from them. I have to shine in this war for my sect’s honor, too.’
The Haenam Sect, once her pride, now felt like shackles. It left her with a quiet regret.
Hae So-wol shook her head to clear her thoughts.
The annex came into view ahead. She’d followed Cho Yeon-un and ended up here before she knew it.
A thick herbal medicine scent wafted from the annex. Jong Ri-yeon was brewing another batch.
“Cho Sahyung.”
Then a ghostly pale woman approached Cho Yeon-un. It was Dan Hwa-ran, leader of the Plum Fragrance Hall.
Even though they’d trained together in the Baek Jeon Sect once, she still called him sahyung.
“You’ve had it rough.”
“Why’d you take so long?”
“Something wrong?”
Sensing the unease in Dan Hwa-ran’s voice, Cho Yeon-un asked urgently.
“Dam Daehyeop and Sword Immortal Hyeongeom went out.”
“Together?”
“Yes!”
“When?”
“Two shichen ago, and they still aren’t back.”
“Damn it!”
Cho Yeon-un reacted instantly.
Alarms blared in his head.
He knew better than anyone how bad blood ran between those two. If they clashed again, it wouldn’t end as neatly as before.
“Where?”
“Toward the eastern clearing.”
“I’ll check it out.”
Cho Yeon-un bolted in the direction Dan Hwa-ran indicated. She watched him go with a worried frown.
“That scatterbrain. He’d better be careful.”
Her voice brimmed with concern for Cho Yeon-un.
Hae So-wol gazed silently at Dan Hwa-ran.
‘Dan Sojeo likes Cho Gongja.’
The vibe was unmistakable, even without words. Dan Hwa-ran’s eyes told it all.
Cho Yeon-un unleashed his lightness skill, praying no catastrophe had unfolded. If Damho killed Sword Immortal Hyeongeom by mistake, there’d be no salvaging it.
“Please…….”
He muttered as he reached the eastern clearing.
His steps halted abruptly. Something felt off.
The air hung oppressively heavy, a chill prickling the back of his neck.
Grab!
A hand clamped his shoulder.
“Damho!”
Cho Yeon-un lit up. It was Damho’s hand.
But his eyes wavered. Damho’s chest was slashed longways through his robe. A thin line of blood traced between the ragged edges.
So faint you’d mistake it for a red thread if you didn’t look closely.
The sight sent chills racing over Cho Yeon-un’s skin.
‘An impossibly sharp sword wound.’
Before he could speak, Damho pointed to one side of the clearing.
Sword Immortal Hyeongeom stood there, tall and still.
Eyes closed, sword as a crutch, he resembled a stone statue.
Whooo!
Suddenly, wind swirled around him.
His disheveled hair whipped in the gusts.
“What?”
The gale centered on Sword Immortal Hyeongeom died as abruptly as it rose. A brief silence followed.
Rumble!
The surrounding air rushed into Sword Immortal Hyeongeom, lashing Damho and Cho Yeon-un’s robes wildly.
“Ah!”
Cho Yeon-un realized then.
Sword Immortal Hyeongeom’s arts had advanced. That anomaly was a byproduct of his enlightenment.
‘What insight did he gain?’
The aura from Sword Immortal Hyeongeom felt profoundly ominous.
Damho watched him with deep, sunken eyes.
The Dao of Man Lies in the Heart.
The Sword of the Heart is the Sword of Heaven.
Words Sword Immortal Hyeongeom had unconsciously uttered mid-fight with Damho. A sudden epiphany had spilled his realization aloud.
Insights were useless if others grasped the words but not the meaning. But Damho was different.
Sword Immortal Hyeongeom’s insight resonated with the Chungcheon Heart Formula Damho had once cultivated.
That ancient Mount Hua art, faded from memory, now absorbed into the Dark Cloud Heart Art—but its verses lingered intact in Damho’s mind.
Perhaps because of that, the insight rippled deeply through Damho’s heart.
In that moment, Sword Immortal Hyeongeom’s eyes snapped open.
Dazzling light burst from them, sharp enough to pierce a man’s chest—then faded.
His gaze had always burned fiercely before. Now, it was utterly ordinary. Gentle, even.
Cho Yeon-un didn’t know what realm Sword Immortal Hyeongeom had attained. But one thing was clear.
‘Sword Immortal Hyeongeom has broken through a wall.’
No one knew what wall. It could be a child’s hurdle or a mountain like Tai Shan.
Cho Yeon-un burned with curiosity over Sword Immortal Hyeongeom’s breakthrough. But his exterior betrayed nothing.
“Huuu!”
Sword Immortal Hyeongeom drew a deep breath, reining in his aura.
He walked toward Damho.
“Thank you.”
“…….”
“I’ll never forget this debt.”
In that moment of epiphany, Sword Immortal Hyeongeom had been utterly defenseless. A careless touch could have tangled his qi channels, ruptured his heart meridians, and killed him on the spot.
Damho had stood guard as his protector.
‘I lost. Completely.’
Sword Immortal Hyeongeom smiled faintly, noble and refined.
It didn’t feel bad.
“Hahaha!”
He burst into sudden, booming laughter.
No pretense, no envy. Pure, childlike mirth, free of regrets or obsessions, echoed into the distant sky.
‘Not bad.’
Damho turned away.
***
Back at the annex, Jong Ri-yeon greeted Damho first.
“You okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Really?”
She scanned his body and spotted the chest wound.
“You’re hurt again.”
“Mm.”
“Sit still for a sec.”
Jong Ri-yeon forced him down and examined the wound closely. She gasped.
“A sword wound? How is it this sharp…….”
“…….”
The closer she looked, the more shocked she grew.
Any deeper, and it would’ve severed not just his heart meridians but his actual heart.
She hastily applied a hemostatic powder and needled him. Damho stayed put until she finished.
“Thanks.”
“No need.”
Jong Ri-yeon looked up at him.
His face remained expressionless, eyes devoid of emotion—like a man ignorant of pain.
‘Born to fight.’
Pity stirred in her suddenly.
Damho’s life had been endless struggle.
From the day bandits razed his village, not a single peaceful day.
Fighting daily just to survive, for over a decade.
Anyone would harden like Damho under that.
Prioritizing survival above all, deeming anything in the way an enemy.
Only then did Jong Ri-yeon feel she truly understood him.
‘He’s no devil, no cold-blooded monster without tears or blood. He’s just sealed away every unnecessary emotion to live.’
The bloody scent clinging to him was proof of his battles for survival. It wouldn’t fade anytime soon.
The martial world hurtled toward chaos.
Who knew how many more would die in the Demonic Cult-Orthodox Alliance war? In such times, Damho alone living peacefully was impossible.
She couldn’t fathom the trials awaiting him. And with his nature, he’d never run.
He’d return with more wounds.
Suddenly, Jong Ri-yeon smacked his back with her palm.
Smack!
The crisp sound rang out.
As Damho turned, she grinned wide.
“Just stay alive, got it? Arm chopped off, hole in your chest—whatever. As long as you’re breathing, I’ll save you. Understand?”