Chapter 18
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: The Forgotten Foe
-----------------------------------------------------------------
At that very moment, Nangong Han-su was suffering through the forced accompaniment to the bluffs(?) of the Eight-Armed Monk and his rattle-wielding son-in-law.
Yu Hyun sat with O Hyun in the pavilion in the front courtyard of Hwiam Hall, sipping tea and chatting idly.
“I never imagined you had such a keen interest in the martial world, Young Master Yu. To think you even know the rising stars who are just beginning to make their names known.”
“As someone who practices martial arts, isn’t a bit of curiosity only natural?”
“Ha ha, of course, of course.”
O Hyun nodded with a laugh.
What Yu Hyun had asked him about were details on a few major factions and figures in the martial world.
He had already met the Sword King, Nangong Seong.
The others were the Wudang Sword Immortal Unhyeon, the Shaolin Divine Monk Won-gang, the Beggars’ Sect Drunken Fire, the Tang Clan Dark Heaven Hand, and the Heavenly Mechanism Diviner Zhuge Murin.
They were the figures who had banded together as one to prepare for the martial world’s chaos, only to be brutally defeated by the minions of that calamity.
His six masters.
The Heavenly Mechanism Diviner wasn’t yet widely known in the martial world, but the other five were already hailed as the young dragons of the righteous path.
You’re all living well, you damnable masters.
The Seven Dragons of the Righteous Path, they called it.
He didn’t know who the seventh was... but still, this was more fitting for dragons.
Hobeok Seven Dragons? Even thinking about it again, it was laughable and pathetic.
Yu Hyun recalled the boastful Dam Cheon-u and chuckled to himself, lost in thought.
...He really was a beggar.
Even if they were trying to save the martial world from the chaos, they threw him into a snake pit to build poison resistance, tied him up and beat him to toughen his body.
They even locked him away without food in those devilish formations and mechanisms for him to experience firsthand.
Just you wait.
Just as you wanted, I’ll track you down one by one and personally teach you the true meaning of putting yourself in another’s shoes.
From now on, I’ll pass back every lesson you gave me, training you immature fools in turn.
Starting with my uncle the Sword King, Nangong Seong....
It definitely won’t be a pleasant experience, I guarantee it.
Hell, it’s fine, isn’t it?
Who suffered through all that hell back then because of you lot, and who’s still suffering now?
Yu Hyun clenched his fist, his heart filled with murderous resolve.
But O Hyun had no way of knowing.
“Hmm, so the current martial world is divided into the righteous, demonic, and evil sects?”
“To be precise, there’s also the outer factions.”
“Hmm, outer factions...”
“But they’re not worth paying much attention to. They’re too busy just surviving on their own.”
“...”
O Hyun was probably right.
The troublemakers known as the outer factions. That is, Heavenly Poison Valley in Yunnan, Ice Palace in the North Sea, and Absolute Gang Island in the East Sea.
They hadn’t shown any significant movements yet.
Even Heavenly Poison Valley was a mess of a dozen minor factions vying for power, and the Ice Palace and Absolute Gang Island weren’t much different.
However, in just a few years, they would all unify into a single force.
All under one man.
That was when the signs of the unforeseen chaos began, unbeknownst to the martial world.
That’s why his masters had repeatedly urged him, after solidifying the foundation of the Spirit Heart Core Method, to prevent their unification at all costs.
Well, that was still far off.
Right now, it was time to perfect the Spirit Heart Core Method by stealing away the four spirit beasts and herbs that the chaos instigator would devour.
The outer factions could wait until after he’d built his strength.
“Anyway, the martial world has been quiet lately, you could say. Even the Demonic Cult, who kept crossing the Qinghai borders daily, has gone silent...”
“I see.”
Yu Hyun nodded silently.
He knew it well. The current peace, and the peace that would last for several more years.
That’s why they hadn’t prepared. They grew complacent in their complacency.
And so, led by that chaos instigator, the outer factions overran the martial world, starting with the thousand-year Demonic Cult, then Kunlun, Sichuan Tang Clan, Qingcheng, Emei... every corner of the central plains held by the righteous, demonic, and evil sects was dyed red with blood.
Thinking about it, what a mad bastard.
Unifying the world—a dream everyone had, but no one achieved—he made it reality.
Ten years.
The time the chaos instigator dominated the martial world, the time the martial world suffered under him, the time the Righteous Six Saints hid in the shadows and resisted him, and the time he was raised.
From around twenty to thirty.
Even after forcibly mastering all martial arts and absorbing all that wisdom over those years, his masters never had full confidence in victory.
If you can’t predict the outcome, you bet on the side with even a slightly higher chance of winning.
That’s why they sent him back to the past.
To have him seek out their younger selves, teach them, snatch the spirit beasts and elixirs the chaos instigator took, and ultimately prevent the unification of the outer factions.
It was a gamble close to desperation, their final card, and the first step was the Child Ginseng in Anhui Province.
It was the tool to open the first gate toward perfecting the Spirit Heart Core Method, and the first measure to keep the chaos instigator from gaining power.
By now, he shouldn’t be that strong yet... Huh?
“...!”
O Hyun looked at Yu Hyun, who suddenly snapped his eyes open, with a puzzled expression.
“What’s wrong? Is there something on my face?”
“...”
Heh heh heh.
Why? Because an awesome idea just hit me.
The chaos instigator. Never met him in person, but just hearing about him made his body shiver with dread.
But right now?
What if he’s pathetically weak?
His masters worried about the version who’d built his power, so what if he found him first and lopped off his head before he got strong?
The outer factions would keep squabbling among themselves like always, and no chaos would ever happen.
No need to build strength or run around the outer factions preparing to stop the chaos.
One strike to save the martial world, then live like a king, squandering riches without envy for the emperor.
And right in front of him was someone extremely friendly and eager to grant any request, practically begging...
The Beggars’ Sect. The answer was the Beggars’ Sect.
“O Hyun Branch Head!”
“Yes?”
“Please find one person for me!”
“...Who?”
As Yu Hyun suddenly grabbed his hand and sparkled with excitement, O Hyun pulled his head back slightly, looking burdened, and lifted his chin.
“That person...”
“...”
“...That person...”
“...?”
“Uh, well, that person’s name is...”
“...??”
Yu Hyun trailed off vaguely for a while, then suddenly clamped his mouth shut like he’d been struck.
His memory... was gone.
What the hell?
He’d been raised solely to oppose that one man. He’d endured those harsh years hearing his name countless times...
Yet when he tried to recall, everything about his identity was blank.
Precisely, the face and name he’d memorized from the portrait, his family background, his past—all of it.
...What if his name was literally “Chaos Instigator Dot”?
Meanwhile, the spirit herbs and beasts he took were etched crystal-clear, down to the times, places, and methods.
Above all, the Righteous Six Saints’ teachings were still vivid...
What the hell happened?
Since when?
“Young Master?”
“...”
O Hyun swallowed dryly, his eyes urging an answer as impatience grew, but Yu Hyun seemed to have forgotten he was even there.
Reduced to a pointless rice straw, he grumbled in resentment.
“You have to at least tell me who it is you want me to find.”
“...Hmm.”
Yu Hyun shook his head gravely, spotted O Hyun, and finally let out an “Ah” before speaking.
“...Sorry about this. The tea’s gone cold.”
“Yes? Oh, yes.”
The tea’s gone cold.
A polite way of saying there was nothing more to offer, so please leave.
Seeing Yu Hyun’s mind clearly elsewhere, O Hyun gave up on hearing the name entirely and rose from his seat.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Yes. It was enjoyable, thanks to you, Branch Head O Hyun.”
“The pleasure was mine... Call on me anytime if you need anything.”
Even after O Hyun left, clinging to a thread of connection like lingering regret, Yu Hyun remained in the pavilion for a long while.
The more he thought about the chaos instigator, the more it felt foggy and vague, his head aching.
Damn it, what the hell’s wrong with my memory!
Frustrated, Yu Hyun hurried off to find someone to examine the anomaly in his body.
“Uncle!”
“Hm?”
Jang Se-yong, who had been perusing a medical text, looked up at him blankly at the sudden visit.
“Something’s wrong with my head.”
“What? Damn it! So it really happened?”
“...”
Jang Se-yong frowned gravely and snatched Yu Hyun’s wrist.
“No wonder he’s suddenly exercising like mad, and that rascal personality’s gotten so meek... I knew it!”
“...”
That’s not it...
* * *
A full day.
Dragged around by Jang Se-yong and thoroughly examined from head to toe, but the conclusion was no abnormalities.
“Damn... Is my medical skill really this lacking?”
“...”
Jang Se-yong, who couldn’t even figure out why Yu Hyun had become so polite, was truly dejected.
“Wahhh, all these years devoted only to medicine...”
“...”
Watching Jang Se-yong down cup after cup of liquor and lament, Yu Hyun felt an urge to cry along, letting out a long sigh.
Uncle, please stop grasping at straws... You’ll trip and die...
Sigh, I can’t exactly say I’m Jin Wi-gang and part of my past memories are missing...
“Do you know? Back when I was an imperial physician... Kuhhh!”
Forced into the role of drinking buddy and listening to his ramblings all night, Yu Hyun finally decided to give up on recovering the memory.
Damn it, it’ll come back eventually.
No, even if it doesn’t, it’s fine. I’ll meet him anyway.
Anhui Province, Child Ginseng.
Once I encounter the bastard who’ll show up there, I can kill him or cripple his dantian so he can never cultivate again.
With that resolve, a slight impatience stirred.
Four months ahead. Until then, he had to fully ingrain every martial art he remembered into his body.
Knowing it in his head and mastering it in his body were different matters.
He had to lose the fat—no, starting with the fat...
While awaiting the day to head to Anhui, Yu Hyun resumed his training.
Pffft!
As always, soaking in the bathing pool, loosening up with basic Six Combinations Fist...
“Hmm, impressive.”
“Yes.”
Nangong Han-su and Nangong Seong couldn’t hide their amazement at the splashing water surging this way and that.
They had bid farewell to Yu Seong-hwan and meant to head straight to Anhui, but curiosity about what Yu Hyun was up to led them to stop by Hwiam Hall.
“How was it?”
“...”
At Nangong Han-su’s question, Nangong Seong pondered briefly.
He hadn’t noticed in the heat of the moment, but calmly reviewing the clash, it felt profoundly impressive.
“He countered my straight punch by disrupting the qi within it.”
“Hmm...”
“What’s astonishing is how feeble his own energy was.”
“Exactly. That’s my thought too.”
The faint energy he’d sensed from Yu Hyun.
It was weaker than even a novice disciple fresh from starting qi cultivation at the Nangong Clan’s training hall.
Yet with such meager skill, he’d blocked Nangong Seong’s punch loaded with power.
Setting aside the difference in energy levels, was that even possible?
No matter how he thought about it, someone from Yu Clan Manor couldn’t possibly know the Exploding Thunder Divine Fist inside out.
He figured luck must have played a role in that split second...
Splash!
Nangong Han-su watched the water spray rising from the wall he struck, his eyes narrowed.
Those fluid movements with no breaks between techniques.
Something utterly impossible from just a day or two of training by normal standards...
“Genius, I suppose?”
“Perhaps we’ve let a promising martial artist slip through our fingers.”
As Nangong Seong smacked his lips regretfully and muttered, Nangong Han-su gave a wry smile.
The power held by Yu Clan Manor—no, by Yu Seong-hwan—was tempting enough regardless of the tangible benefits to the clan.
But now, what tempted him more was Yu Hyun himself, whom he’d seen firsthand.
A martial artist with tremendous future potential...
Though those suffocating chunks of flesh were a bit off-putting, he wondered if rejecting the marriage proposal based on rumors alone had been a mistake.
But it was water under the bridge. Too late to turn back now.
“Huh? Brother?”
“Ah, training over already?”
“...”
“We were heading back to Anhui and thought we’d drop by to say goodbye.”
At the word “goodbye,” his eyes widened briefly, then he brushed back his wet hair and smiled amiably.
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“Ha ha, you seemed so immersed...”
Nangong Han-su suddenly grew curious.
His martial arts, and his talent.
“He seemed comfortable in the water. Holding his breath that long underwater would surprise even the folks from the Yangtze Waterway Gang.”
“...”
Yu Hyun just smiled without answering.
Of course it would. It wasn’t just any water technique—it was the Dragon Water Technique, the signature art of the Yangtze Waterway Gang’s chief.
“By the way, quite the unique martial art. Could it be one from the Heaven-Earth Divine Book?”
“Yes?”
“Hm?”
“This is just Six Combinations Fist?”
“...”
The words “passed down from father to son” flashed through Nangong Han-su’s suddenly speechless mind.
Even bluffs have their limits?
This guy’s basically calling me a fly-shit bird.
If you want to hide it, just don’t say anything—why attach Six Combinations Fist to those refined movements?
“Ha ha, you joker. Next you’ll say you reached that level in just ten days.”
“Huh? You heard that? It’s exactly ten days and a night since Brother-in-Law taught me Six Combinations Fist.”
“...”
Nangong Han-su felt the curiosity and anticipation that had briefly taken root in his mind vanish without a trace.
I tried to treat him well, and because he has some talent, he mocks his elders?
Father and son, both full of shit. See if I ever set foot in Yu Clan Manor again.
Unbefitting the head of the great Nangong Clan, he was thoroughly miffed.