Chapter 10
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Joining the Cult - The Girl Changes Day by Day
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Jin-gwang Group Leader.
A figure even the cult recognized as a powerhouse, the very embodiment of arrogance. The grandson of the Eighth Elder, a man known for his unmatched strength, couldn't even twitch against him.
That tiny girl had just challenged this great man to a spar.
"What?"
"I request a spar."
'Good lord.'
Was it overflowing spirit, or sheer arrogance?
Geum-gang's brightly shining eyes held only unwavering confidence.
Pushing aside his bewilderment, the Jin-gwang Group Leader decided to play the role of examiner.
It wouldn't be a bad idea to suppress the Left Envoy's disciple here and make an example of her.
That way, they could strip the badges more fiercely.
"Fine. I'll accept. No regrets?"
"My master never taught me regret."
"Ha! Excellent! I'll yield three moves. Consider it courtesy to a junior."
The Jin-gwang Group Leader set down his massive saber and clenched his fists.
It was to accommodate Geum-gang's bare hands, but to the other candidates, it looked like supreme confidence.
"Then, with thanks."
Geum-gang assumed a stance and drew in a breath.
She didn't think she could win.
Without building internal energy, it was hard to gauge her exact level, but this stage of the Golden Body Art was roughly enough to overpower a first-rate warrior.
By contrast, the Jin-gwang Group Leader was a peak master nearing the absolute pinnacle.
No matter what she tried, victory was impossible for her.
Her aim was to leave a strong impression, score quickly, and rest for the full ten days.
This was her first proper spar with a master of his caliber, excluding her own teacher, so she felt tense.
But she wasn't scared.
After all, he had to be weaker than Ha Jin.
"Here I come."
The first move was, as always, her left fist.
The Heavenly Robe Sect's arts were all centered on bare-handed combat, so she needed to control the distance.
The Jin-gwang Group Leader was briefly startled by the fiercer-than-expected punch but dodged lightly and widened the gap.
Once she had the distance, Geum-gang favored irregular attacks.
Ha Jin had taught her that weapon users were weak to low strikes.
Her second move targeted his thigh with a kick.
'As expected...!'
Her master's words were reliable.
The group leader took the hit from the kick curving in at an unexpected angle.
'Such solidity with bare flesh...!'
But he was more flustered by the weighty impact than the irregularity.
His expression didn't change a bit, though, so Geum-gang couldn't read his thoughts.
The final allowed move.
Should she go for the strongest attack?
Or the safest?
'Of course...!'
The strongest one.
A technique learned from South Heaven.
After sparring with Hee Yeon, Geum-gang had realized the need for her own techniques.
Her master had tried to dissuade her from the sidelines, but in the end, Geum-gang developed her own set of forms over the year.
They'd become unnecessary at higher realms, but for now...
In other words, Geum-gang's derivatives.
Geum-gang Style Golden Body Fighting Method.
This was its first form.
Hee Yeon's attack that stabbed four times in one spot.
Geum-gang had reinterpreted One Point Four Sword in her own way.
One Point Three Strikes.
What did it matter if it was a fist or a sword thrusting in?
"Hup!"
A motion that required straining every vein and muscle to barely execute.
Unlike her previous attacks, which resembled simple brawling, this was the stance of a true traditional warrior.
The thrust to his abdomen landed successfully, and the Jin-gwang Group Leader's face twisted slightly.
"Ngh...!"
Unlike the leg hit, she heard his grunt this time.
An attack that worked even on a peak master.
A thrill of joy as a warrior welled up in Geum-gang.
But the pride was fleeting—the three yielded moves were over.
"Impressive. However...!"
His charge was like a bear lunging.
Even as he clearly held back, it was intimidating.
From there, the exchange flowed mostly as the group leader's assaults and Geum-gang's counters.
Despite the Jin-gwang Group Leader dominating the fight's rhythm, Geum-gang's sharp strikes pierced like daggers.
The other candidates couldn't hide their shock.
Masters sometimes appeared at initiation ceremonies, but they were always of a certain age.
Yet for a girl that young to hold her own against a group leader?
It defied common sense.
Among the many candidates watching from the platform was Hee Yeon.
After grueling training, Hee Yeon had been confident she'd grown strong enough.
But look at her now.
The Geum-gang she'd met a year ago had grown even steeper.
Resentment mingled with pride at seeing her own technique in action.
'Ugh. Do your best, Geum-gang. No! Wait, don't! Hey! That's my technique!'
She found herself quietly rooting anyway.
The spar was nearing its end.
No matter how skilled Geum-gang was, she was hitting her limits.
A peak master's punches were now too fierce for her Golden Body Art at this stage to fully block.
'It hurts. But...!'
Geum-gang panted, still hunting for openings in the group leader.
As Ha Jin had said, he was vulnerable to low attacks.
'Vital points are usually clustered above the dantian. That's why most weapon users neglect the low guard.'
Geum-gang gathered her remaining strength for one final blow.
The Jin-gwang Group Leader seemed excited too, his mouth curling slightly.
"Come on! I'll take it!"
He was a powerhouse even in the Heavenly Demon Cult, teeming with masters.
Geum-gang's peculiar twisting footwork had surprised him at first, but he'd long adapted.
"The same trick won't work twice!"
Her shin curved in on the same path again.
A persistent strike to the inner thigh.
The group leader concentrated internal energy into his thigh, intent on shattering her incoming leg.
'She'll be bedridden a while, but she was splendid. Left Envoy's disciple.'
In his mind, Geum-gang had already passed with flying colors; he resolved to give her the highest score he could.
And then Geum-gang displayed a divine skill that shattered even that resolve.
'Aim for the jaw!'
Her right foot didn't strike the thigh.
Like a hook, it caught and spun her body at an angle joints and muscles shouldn't allow.
Without the Golden Body, it would have torn everything, but her unique elasticity and flexibility made it possible.
Her left leg whipped around with tremendous force, smashing the group leader's jaw.
A bursting impact sound rang out, blood trickling from his mouth.
'Did it work?'
Of course not...
"Splendid. The best."
It wasn't enough to fell a peak master.
Ignoring the blood, the group leader knocked her out with both fists.
"When you wake, I'll have good news. Left Envoy's... no, Ha Geum-gang."
The candidates who'd witnessed Geum-gang and the group leader's spar were dumbstruck.
"Insane..."
"I heard the Left Envoy's disciple beat South Heaven's daughter, but I didn't expect this."
Even that arrogant Dam-mok Hyeon was grateful he hadn't been beaten to death.
Hee Yeon bowed her head with a strange expression.
"Did you see? This is the future of our Other-Transformation Freely Sovereign Heavenly Demon Cult! Unyielding boldness pushing forward endlessly! The skill backing it! Let everyone emulate it! Anyone else?"
Visibly thrilled, he deviated from his usual solemnity, excitedly calling for more candidates in a heated tone.
Of course, no one else stepped up to challenge.
"Hmph. Weaklings. The real test starts now—for ten days. Do your best."
With that, the Jin-gwang Group Leader took Geum-gang and vanished somewhere.
Among the stunned remaining candidates, the tension of stealing badges was overshadowed by shock from the spar.
Competitive spirit and fear.
Inferiority and awe.
A flood of emotions surged through them too.
Geum-gang woke ten days later.
After the exam had fully ended.
She'd avoided the headache of dealing with it, but missed the chance to lounge around.
"Ow. My poor body."
Geum-gang patted her shoulders dramatically, but as a Golden Body Art practitioner, she had no lingering effects.
The reason she kept whining was simple.
To tease the Jin-gwang Group Leader beside her.
"Ahem. I must've gone too hard. Take it as recognition of your skill."
"Ow. It hurts. I'm just a fourteen-year-old girl."
When Geum-gang said that, the healers glared piercingly at the Jin-gwang Group Leader.
"To a warrior, that doesn't mat—!"
No matter how he tried to defend himself, a burly man well past forty had beaten and dragged in a young girl.
It was a warrior's spar, but to non-martial healers, it didn't look good.
They understood, yet couldn't accept it.
"Tch. Fine. I admit it. Sorry. That's why I brought this gift."
The paper he handed over bore a prominent letter of recommendation.
[Jin-gwang Group Leader Yeon Mun-gi hereby recommends to the Heavenly Demon a once-in-a-millennium prodigy. With intellect and strength beyond her years...]
"No praise seemed enough. You can skip the third exam entirely. Care to join Jin-gwang Group?"
"No."
Geum-gang munched on the sweets from the healers without even looking up.
'No desire to join the army.'
"A shame. Anyway, I've recommended you to the Heavenly Demon, so no third exam. The Cult Leader will probably summon you soon."
"Why the Cult Leader if you recommended to the Heavenly Demon...?"
"That's my question too. Tch. Never mind. It's to check if you're fit for the Heavenly Demon Hall. By the Cult Leader."
The Jin-gwang Group Leader grumbled in frustration, as if to say more, then shut his mouth.
Pop.
Geum-gang popped a sweet into his mouth.
Ha Jin always calmed down with something sweet in cases like this.
"Have one and cool off. Whatever it is."
"Heh. Hahaha! Yes. Thank you, Ha Geum-gang."
Amused by the novel treatment, the laughing Jin-gwang Group Leader shared extra info he didn't need to.
"One more will go to the Cult Leader's hall besides you. Someone you know."
"Pardon?"
"Curious how the second exam went?"
The brutal test of stealing badges.
Did conflicts arise?
Did groups split and rob each other?
Or maybe...
Everyone too busy hiding.
"How'd it go?"
"Monopolized. One took all the badges."
What.
"You know her. South Heaven's Hee Yeon. Incredible. She crushed those she could beat with force, schemed against the tough ones, and took everything."
'Was she always like that?'
Just a year ago, she was bright-eyed but introverted.
To show such bold moves.
"Kids grow up fast, huh."
"Hm? You talk like you're not a kid."
Oh.
Geum-gang laughed it off vaguely and resumed her fake ailment.
"Ow. It hurts. My beaten belly..."
"No, that makes it weirder...!"
The healers' sharp glares tormented the Jin-gwang Group Leader once more.