Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: The Reed Field Ambush
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What is the pinnacle of liberation?
Bu Eun-seol thought he had tasted the pinnacle of liberation long ago.
This was because he enjoyed playing dead, lying in a narrow coffin for long periods.
What happens when a perfectly healthy person lies down in a coffin?
At first, it’s just suffocating.
But as time passes, you begin to feel the illusion of an invisible, sturdy rope binding your entire body.
When even more time passes, a stifling sensation, as if your nose and mouth are covered, sets in, and you can't breathe. Just as you're about to lose consciousness, stepping outside brings an indescribable sense of liberation.
‘Was what I felt back then not true liberation?’
Bu Eun-seol, having left the Ma-jeon.
Only now did he truly taste the pinnacle of liberation.
Baekmasa and Hwaugeommun had tried to kill him by any means necessary. He had barely escaped the trap they’d set with his life.
Afterward, he had barely woken up from severe injuries, only to find an unparalleled demonic sovereign, whose emotions were impossible to read, toying with his life as if it were a game.
Had he slipped up for even a moment, Bu Eun-seol would not be walking the official road, but the Sanzu River—the path to the underworld.
"We have prepared a carriage for you."
But was it because of the unexpected outcome?
When Bu Eun-seol emerged unscathed, the Ma-jeon sent an old horse and a driver who was much older still.
But Bu Eun-seol was not disappointed.
Once he returned to Nang-ya-gak, he would once again be training his martial arts on the brink of life and death.
So, he thought, wouldn't it be alright if the journey back was a little delayed?
Another fortunate thing was that he had received a generous sum for travel expenses when he left Nang-ya-gak.
"I will return on my own."
If he wanted, he could buy a carriage and a driver to return.
Having left the Ma-jeon alone, Bu Eun-seol decided to look around a nearby village before heading back.
Yeollae Inn.
It was a place Bu Eun-seol, who had been wandering around, entered to sate his hunger.
The inn was bustling with noise.
Perhaps because the Ma-jeon was nearby, most of the people filling the inn seemed to be martial artists of the demonic path.
Some occasionally glanced at Bu Eun-seol, but since he wasn't carrying a single weapon, they seemed to think he was a simple traveler.
"Come again."
His stomach full, Bu Eun-seol stepped out of the inn.
And to find a carriage, he made his way toward the inner marketplace.
Normally he would have walked quickly, but now, he strolled leisurely like a local idler, taking in the sights of the market.
But the more he observed the surrounding scenery, the more he felt a strange sense of unease. And he realized something he hadn't noticed before.
That the peaceful scenery felt unfamiliar.
‘I've changed.’
Ever since leaving Pyeong-an Funeral Home, his days had been entirely consumed by either training in martial arts or fighting others.
He had transitioned too abruptly from the life of a mortician to the life of a martial artist.
‘I... this isn't what I wanted.’
Bu Eun-seol looked down at his own two hands.
These hands were stained with the blood of the many boys and girls who had participated in the Sip-ma-jeon-in competition.
This was never what he wanted.
He faltered.
Lost in thought, Bu Eun-seol's steps faltered for a beat.
An uncomfortable and peculiar sensation.
It was the gaze of a predator stalking its prey.
‘Should I have gotten a sword from the Ma-jeon?’
The iron sword he had brought from Nang-ya-gak had been shattered in two while blocking Go Gun-pyeong's final technique, and he had left it behind at the Ma-jeon.
Sighing, Bu Eun-seol changed direction and headed for a blacksmith's shop at the end of the market street.
"Lookin' for a weapon?"
The blacksmith, seeing Bu Eun-seol as a wandering boy, grinned and pointed to a rack displaying weapons.
"A light sword is good for young folk."
Where the blacksmith pointed, a longsword that gleamed brightly was on display.
*Swish.*
Bu Eun-seol picked up the longsword and frowned.
Its appearance was decent, but the blade was too thin and the center of gravity was completely off. It looked like it would shatter to pieces if it clashed with another weapon.
In short, it was a sword perfectly suited as a decoration in a rich young master's room.
"Do you have anything cheaper? I don't mind if it's secondhand."
At Bu Eun-seol's words, the blacksmith, looking disappointed, pointed to some boxes at the end of the counter.
"Pick one from there. Whatever you choose, I'll give it to you for five nyang of silver."
In a large box, old swords were piled up in layers.
Most were rusted, and many lacked scabbards.
Rummaging through the pile of swords, Bu Eun-seol picked up one that was covered in rust.
It was so old and rusted that it looked like an unfinished sword, barely holding its shape.
"I'll take this one."
"That one?"
The blacksmith, as if his conscience was pricked, scratched his head and offered an iron sword from another box.
"You'd be better off with this one. If you're planning to cut anything, that is."
"I'll just take this one."
Placing five nyang of silver on the table, Bu Eun-seol left the blacksmith's shop.
He then left the village outskirts and moved toward a quiet forest path.
*Step, step.*
After walking leisurely for some time, Bu Eun-seol stopped when he came upon a wide reed field.
Taking a deep breath, he could smell the metallic tang of iron on the wind.
"Come out."
Bu Eun-seol muttered lowly, looking at the distant sky.
"Unless you're looking for a better place than this."
*Rustle, rustle.*
At that, the reeds swaying in all directions began to move chaotically, and suddenly, black shadows materialized around Bu Eun-seol.
They looked as if black mist was rising from the ground and taking human form.
"Hm."
Bu Eun-seol frowned.
The shadows that appeared all had their faces covered and were carrying identical swords.
They were clearly martial artists belonging to the same faction.
"Your senses are quite sharp."
Among the masked men, one who appeared to be the leader stepped forward.
"Bu Eun-seol."
"You know me."
"Of course. Starting with the fact that you're some kind of Jeonin..."
The masked man said, his eyes flashing.
"I also know that in about three years, you'll become a demonic sovereign and ravage the martial world."
"You're spouting nonsense."
"Nonsense?"
The masked man said in a sharp voice.
"Don't you know that as people like you grow stronger, the Ma-jeon, and the demonic path, will only prosper further?"
‘The Ma-jeon and the demonic path...’
He had only chosen to become a martial artist for revenge. He was not a bloodthirsty demon.
He had no desire to get involved in factional interests or power struggles, nor did he seek fame.
"Do you want to kill me?"
"Want to kill you? You're mistaken about something."
The masked man sneered, looking at Bu Eun-seol.
"We hold the right to decide your life and death. It's not a matter of wanting to kill you; your death has already been decided."
"The right to decide life and death?"
In that instant, killing intent flared in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
Those who called themselves strong and deluded themselves into thinking they could control the destinies of others. He despised such people the most.
"Hahaha. The strong can control the fate of the weak. That is the way of the martial world."
At the masked man's words, Bu Eun-seol nodded.
"In that case, I'll control it too."
A crimson, blood-red light erupted from his pupils.
"Your lifelines end today!"
At Bu Eun-seol's murderous shout, the masked man yelled to his comrades.
"Assume the formation!"
*Whoosh.*
The masked men surrounding Bu Eun-seol split into two lines, one circling to the left and the other to the right.
*Shing.*
Drawing his iron sword, Bu Eun-seol lunged toward the circling masked men.
*Fwoosh!*
But before he could fully execute his technique, the tip of his extended sword was deflected as if bent.
‘A strange tactic.’
It felt as though an invisible force had repelled his sword.
In that moment, a sharp sword technique flew from somewhere and grazed Bu Eun-seol's shoulder.
*Shk!*
His clothes tore, and a faint line of blood was drawn on his shoulder.
Because the masked men moved chaotically, constantly creating afterimages, Bu Eun-seol couldn't determine where the sword attacks were coming from.
*Shk! Shk!*
Once again, sharp sword techniques rained down.
Bu Eun-seol quickly dodged the attacks and tried to counter, but his sword was repelled every time.
The seemingly chaotic movements and sword swings of the masked men were complementing each other, covering their weaknesses.
‘They've trained together in this method of attack for a long time.’
What the masked men were using was a peerless formation of the righteous faction, the Hoehoe Salmakjin.
But Bu Eun-seol, who had never learned about formations, simply thought they had practiced a strange joint attack technique for a long time.
*Whoosh.*
Just then, a sword appeared abruptly and once again grazed Bu Eun-seol's shoulder.
"...?"
In that moment, a look of confusion appeared in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
The technique was very sharp, but it couldn't be called a killing blow. The intent was only to strike near the Gyeonjeong acupoint to incapacitate him.
‘Isn't this a demonic sword art?’
Though it looked persistent and venomous on the surface, the masked men's swordsmanship had more moves aimed at the vital points on his limbs than at taking his life.
‘It has nothing to do with me.’
Bu Eun-seol wasn't even curious about who they were or why they were trying to kill him.
‘Isn't the martial world a place of killing and being killed anyway?’
*Woooong.*
As Bu Eun-seol drew upon his internal energy, red points of light surged around his body, and his senses amplified dozens of times over.
He had fully unleashed the internal energy and the senses of the Ya-su-do that he hadn't used until now.
*Flash!*
When he opened his eyes wide, the masked men's sword techniques, which had been invisible before, became clear.
They seemed to be moving chaotically, but they were using a set footwork and swordsmanship.
‘Interesting. They were just moving according to a set pattern.’
The moment a formation is broken, it becomes nothing more than useless movement.
A smile appeared on Bu Eun-seol's lips as he saw through their repeating, fixed movements.
*Shwaaak!*
Bu Eun-seol extended his sword toward the very center of the circling masked men.
At that, the masked men's swords rained down from all directions. But Bu Eun-seol paid them no mind and continued his attack.
‘Feints, anyway.’
*Clang!*
In that instant, the movements of the circling masked men stopped.
It was because one masked man had moved differently from the formation to block Bu Eun-seol's attack.
"Don't panic!"
The lead masked man, seeming to think Bu Eun-seol had found the formation's weakness, said in a loud voice.
"Assume the second formation!"
At that, the masked men began to move chaotically, unleashing a torrent of sword strikes.
But Bu Eun-seol had already pushed his Ya-su-do to its limit.
No matter how erratically the masked men moved, it wasn't difficult for him to find their weaknesses.
‘Their joint attack is excellent, but the gap in skill between the men is too large.’
They were moving chaotically like the constellations in the night sky, but because a few of the masked men's footwork faltered, a weakness was quickly exposed.
‘This seems to be the end of it.’
As the tedious movements continued, Bu Eun-seol finally unleashed a killing blow.
"Gah!"
As his sword cut through the air, one of the erratically moving masked men clutched his throat and let out a desperate scream.
His carotid artery had been severed by a single, lightning-fast strike.
‘He figured out the weakness of the Chilseong Gogeomjin in that short time?’
The second formation, the one the masked men were currently using, was the Chilseong Gogeomjin.
To break the peerless formation of the Wudang Sect, which had never been broken before, in a single strike?
‘The Ma-jeon has already taught the Sip-ma-jeon-in how to break the righteous faction's formations!’
The lead masked man, completely misjudging Bu Eun-seol's abilities, gritted his teeth.
"Use the third formation!"