Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: A Knight's Duty
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Knights have a duty to guide people on the right path.
Jayvolg instinctively knew it was time to put the creed he shouted every morning at the knight academy into action.
The youngest son of the Pador family, Deyan, was prancing about frivolously right in front of him, clearly heading down the wrong path.
Poor boy...
He knew the circumstances. Being the only one in the Pador family without any talent for the sword—how tough must that have been?
That's why, before setting off on his knightly training journey, he'd tried to teach him with utmost sincerity...
"Since you like to talk so much, I'll teach you a few things myself. Probably... lessons more valuable than anything you'd hear anywhere else."
Was it because they'd entered sparring mode?
The arrogance was off the charts.
Deyan, with his delicate, feminine features and small frame, grinned slyly.
"Remember what I said before? The length of weapons is absolute."
That line again. Didn't it ever get old?
There was some truth to it, sure, but in Jayvolg's eyes, this was a boy who might've barely even seen a steel sword.
"Yes, I understand perfectly, young master. It's just..."
Explaining further was pointless now.
If words wouldn't get through, he'd have to show it with his body.
"Allow me to demonstrate."
Jayvolg felt the thick tree branch in his hand.
It was sturdy enough—swung properly, it'd hurt plenty.
This would do. Not a steel sword, but still.
His opponent was just a boy, after all.
"Alright... let's begin."
But now that they faced each other, was Deyan nervous?
He stood there with his eyes closed.
Of course.
Anyone could swing a sword at the sky in their head.
But theory and real combat were worlds apart.
Deyan was probably regretting it already, but should he pity him and stop?
No. He needed to crush his momentum. Only then would he realize his path was wrong.
Since he was guiding him anyway, Jayvolg didn't think a surprise attack or full-power strike was necessary.
He'd start light.
Jayvolg slowly extended the branch.
But that was by his standards.
It'll look like the branch is rushing at him in an instant...
He had no doubt the branch would tap Deyan's solar plexus in one move.
Yet... even as the branch approached, Deyan stood unmoving, eyes shut.
Then, his eyes cracked open slightly.
"...?!"
A chill ran down his spine.
The surrounding forest, sky, sounds—all seemed plunged into darkness.
What was happening?
For a moment, it felt like he'd been swallowed by a giant's shadow...
The shadow enveloping Jayvolg vanished.
There was no sensation at the branch's tip.
Had he misjudged the distance?
Impossible.
In that instant, Deyan's voice came from behind him.
"Where are you swinging that?"
"...!"
Buuuung!
Jayvolg instinctively sensed the threat and swung, channeling mana.
Oh no—he'd put too much force into it.
Would Deyan get hurt?
But Deyan was already ten steps away.
He'd dodged it?
Deyan just stood there calmly, arms crossed.
His eyes gleamed with a black light, like the night itself.
Were his eyes always that pitch black?
For a moment, Deyan murmured.
"What if your opponent fights at this range? No, even closer..."
As he spoke, Deyan leaned back,
and strangely, his form darkened like an illusion, blending into shadow. When he reappeared, he was even farther away.
Deyan said to Jayvolg.
"What about this far? Even folding space wouldn't get you here instantly."
Jayvolg's mind blanked. He'd never seen movement like this.
What was that...?
Suddenly, he glanced at the ground beneath his feet, which he'd stepped forward on without realizing.
The shadow seemed to stretch everywhere he could flee, an illusion gripping him.
What in the world was this...?
Was he really facing a boy?
To Jayvolg, the frail boy now looked like an invincible giant.
His mind reeled, but he snapped back to focus.
He didn't know what it was, but one thing was clear.
This boy hadn't just bet everything on closing in.
Fine, then... he'd respond in kind!
"Young master, you already know how to use mana? Impressive. But... how about this!"
Time to show this arrogant boy a new world.
Petty tricks like that were useless up close.
Jayvolg concentrated mana at his toes and burst forward. His body shot ahead at unbelievable speed, like an explosion.
This was mana’s power.
He'd reach the boy in an instant...
Shaaaaack...!
"...!"
Jayvolg instinctively swung the branch like a sword into a defensive stance.
His advance halted.
He soon identified the attacker.
Fiercely embedded in the branch was...
"A needle...?"
A needle, like what women used for sewing?
No, more importantly—even a mana-infused branch wielded by a knight, pierced at this range?
While panicking, Deyan widened the gap again, murmuring.
"Escape the opponent's domain while forcing them into mine. Can't get better than that, right? Any weapon has range limits, but there's one unbound by distance or trajectory: hidden weapons... That makes it possible."
Jayvolg stared blankly at Deyan.
What had this boy been training alone...?
Jayvolg took a moment to assess what was happening to him.
Of course he would.
He'd clearly never faced an opponent pulling these tricks on him.
Didn't they teach this at the knight academy?
What a stupid system.
Even in the orthodox sects, some clung to outdated ways.
Like the Wudang Sect, for instance.
They drilled textbook techniques endlessly, and their disciples had climbed to the peak of the martial world that way time and again.
Not bad, but only because Wudang disciples had exceptional talent, and their advanced arts compensated for their lack of experience.
Otherwise, Wudang would've long been ousted from the Nine Great Sects.
Anyway, that made Wudang disciples notoriously weak in real combat.
Fools. Did they think real fights always involved straight swordplay or frontal assaults?
In the real world, enemies blinded you with sand, faked begging for mercy, or stabbed your instep with a dagger.
Even geniuses panicked when thrown into that without practice.
Mark my words—if Wudang ingrained more practical elements, they'd grow even stronger.
Not that those stubborn bastards ever would.
They claimed true experience came from the jianghu and encouraged it.
Perverted lot.
The Sichuan Tang Clan, by contrast, valued real combat above all orthodox sects.
That's why poison arts and hidden weapons flourished there.
Sure, they caught plenty of flak for it.
But that's how they became one of the Five Great Families—and by the time I roamed the martial world, they were the supreme clan.
Jayvolg's reaction now mirrored those Wudang disciples I'd met on my first foray into the jianghu.
Unfathomable by his common sense.
"Let me show you why assassins can't match knights...!"
Jayvolg charged again.
I tried dodging with Shadow Step, but...
Whoosh...!
A sword wave sliced through the air, scattering my hair.
He'd closed the gap this quickly? The top graduate of the knight academy wasn't just for show.
If I hadn't used the Tang Clan's secret art, Seven Pursuits Golden Command, to forcibly awaken my physical potential, I might've been in danger.
But... with my body holding up even a little, I was confident he wouldn't touch a hair on my head.
Shadow Step was one of the top three footwork techniques in the jianghu.
I dodged Jayvolg's bull-like charges from every angle.
He tried closing in; I widened the gap.
We repeated this dance, but I didn't fire another needle after the first.
I needed to gauge his reaction speed and skill.
Now, time to corner him.
Know how hunters take down beasts?
First, lure it in and wear it down until it tires itself out.
Frontal clashes risk claws or fangs.
Same with Jayvolg.
Fighting a vigorous young man head-on? Pass, as an old-timer.
If he'd had more experience, the spar might've gone differently...
Unfortunately, even knowing better, he'd brute-force straight ahead.
Let's drain this brute...
Ignoring my intent, he blabbered nonsense.
"Just running away won't accomplish anything, young master!"
Running is the way, you dense fool.
Time to teach him.
I deliberately ducked behind trees to force more mana use or played hide-and-seek.
Oblivious, Jayvolg swung his branch wildly. He kept reaching for his sword out of habit—frustrated, no doubt.
What could I do?
He insisted on using the branch.
Even so...
Shiiiik!
The ground cracked under his blue mana.
Threatening...
Irritated by my slippery dodges, Jayvolg targeted the terrain.
Aim for the legs to break balance? Not bad ingenuity.
In real combat, he'd use a real sword.
Victory would've been obvious—I'd lose my head in a short exchange before draining him.
Even with Seven Pursuits Golden Command, our gap was that stark.
The issue? He wasn't.
Sticking to that blunt branch narrowed the skill gap.
Plus, he was overly excited and complacent.
A boon for me.
This moment, mistaking my full power, was my chance.
I edged close enough to brush his domain.
This should...
lure him in.
Papapabat...!
As expected, he surged forward.
Then...
I kicked off the tree behind me and leaped skyward.
Instantly dominating his airspace.
This is when hidden weapons shine.
With a sword, you'd close in or fire sword qi—but hidden weapons need neither.
Facing his unguarded form, I flicked my sleeve.
Ten needles shot toward him...
Ting!
Jayvolg instinctively deployed a sword barrier, blocking most.
But the incomplete shield left gaps—needles pierced between his arm and shoulder, unarmored spots.
"Kuh...!"
A short groan from Jayvolg.
Not devastating, he endured and charged.
As my airborne body hit a tree, I channeled mana into my soles and slid into another leap.
Fired more needles.
Like traversing a spiderweb, I weaved through air and trees, relentlessly targeting him.
Was he finally tiring?
"Hah... huff..."
For a moment, he panted. Six needles now stuck in his body.
Surface wounds only.
Still, I smiled. Everything per plan.
No more fleeing—I walked straight at him. Jayvolg grinned.
"Coming head-on? That's it! No sloppy tricks can fell a knight's sturdy body!"
"They say ignorance is bravery."
Like a moth to flame, I closed the gap.
Finally, his branch filled my vision.
Too close to dodge his thrust.
Thud...!
The branch sank into my gut.
Is this really a branch?
I curled like a shrimp and flew back.
Jayvolg smirked, victory assured. Even tumbling from his strike, I unleashed needles.
Dark Spirit Flying Dagger Technique
Reverse Blood Heavenly Path
The needles hit near his navel but failed to penetrate, clattering harmlessly. Jayvolg smirked dismissively.
Drip...
Blood trickled from my mouth from his blow. Yet I smiled.
My foe, Jayvolg...
"Gahhhh...!"
Was wracked with agony.
"H-how...?"
The Sichuan Tang Clan's arts were the pinnacle of martial fusion—designed for the weakest to topple the strongest.
They exploited human frailty relentlessly.
How to fell foes efficiently?
With swords? Huashan and Wudang owned that path.
Fist arts? Shaolin had it covered. Absurd.
Brute force like the Hebei Peng Clan? No—without innate physique, impossible.
So the Tang Clan dissected the human body.
Humans are tougher—and frailer—than they seem.
They aimed for max efficiency with minimal force.
Result? More diverse arts and freak techniques than any sect or family.
I fused Tang acupoint strikes with flying daggers.
Stimulating key points with hidden weapons triggers myriad reactions. Seal death meridians unseen, or...
"Uh... ughhh..."
Like Jayvolg—freeze him solid, fingers immobile.
All humans share the same structure, no matter the training.
One pebble topples the dam.
Hmm.
I strolled up casually, hands behind my back.
Ripples in his eyes, but nothing else moved.
I flicked his rigid, statue-like body with one finger.
"This is the power of everything but the sword you scorned so."
But Jayvolg, who should’ve answered, had foamed at the mouth and passed out.