Chapter 60
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Sparring Stage Battles
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Namgung Hyeok stepped onto the sparring platform, and his opponent, a man named Tang Geon from the Sacheon Tang Family, climbed up as well.
Tang Geon ascended calmly, waving a small dagger ostentatiously.
It was a kind of intimidation, but Namgung Hyeok didn't even blink.
"It's coated in poison."
"Unfortunately, it's just a paralyzing toxin. Not lethal."
Tang Geon smacked his lips regretfully, as if disappointed that he couldn't use deadly poison in a spar between academies.
Sharp snake-like eyes and a long face.
He was a man who evoked the image of a serpent in many ways.
Poison aside, this time both sides were wielding real swords properly.
Under the condition that instructors were standing by near the platform, the matches were to be fought with actual weapons.
If anyone's life was in danger, the instructors would intervene and halt the spar.
On one hand, I was worried.
No matter how skilled the instructors were, could they really jump into the fray in an instant during a battle between the Orthodox sects' top late-stage disciples?
Honestly, I might be feeling this anxiety because I still hadn't seen masters unleashing their martial arts in earnest with my own eyes.
Everyone else except me seemed perfectly accepting of it.
"Begin!"
At the signal from the man acting as the announcer, Namgung Hyeok charged forward swiftly.
It was a wise judgment.
A dagger was fast but lacked weight, making it vulnerable for defense.
It was too small and weak to properly block Namgung Hyeok's sword.
Blocking head-on would prevent any solid defense, forcing him into a stance of deflecting every attack sideways and focusing solely on guarding.
"Urgh!"
And now even that had reached its limit, as Tang Geon's arm began to tremble.
His dagger finally slipped from his grasp upon clashing with the sword, and Namgung Hyeok seized the opening, spinning his body dramatically to swing his blade.
That was the moment.
"Tch."
Instructor Cheol Woong clicked his tongue, and the spectators from our side sighed in disappointment or frowned.
Everyone had seen it.
The moment Namgung Hyeok made his big motion, Tang Geon abandoned the dagger and swiftly drew hidden weapons from his sleeve.
Namgung Hyeok, noticing too late, muttered in shock.
"You discarded your weapon...?"
"I just set it down for a moment."
Whoosh!
The hidden weapon Tang Geon hurled flew straight at Namgung Hyeok's head from close range.
It was too fast for Namgung Hyeok, mid-swing, to dodge.
Then, boom.
A loud explosion rang out, smoke billowed, and Instructor Cheol Woong stood between Namgung Hyeok and Tang Geon.
His expression was so nonchalant, as if he'd been there from the start.
He held the awl-shaped projectile pinched between his fingers, slowly examining it.
"...What just flew by?"
I hadn't seen it at all.
That massive man moving in an instant.
The spot where Instructor Cheol Woong had originally stood was cratered, as if a bomb had detonated.
So that's what they meant by using real weapons under instructor supervision.
"Isn't the gap between them too huge, even for late-stage disciples?"
As I muttered in exasperation, Pung Woon replied with a faint smile.
"The Orthodox sects' masters say they truly grow only after becoming experts."
Pung Woon explained it as a characteristic of Orthodox martial arts.
It takes a long time to become a master, but once you do, growth doesn't slow down, making it relatively easier to reach the pinnacle of absolute mastery.
In contrast, for unorthodox sects or the Demonic Cult, they might reach mastery quickly through shortcuts, but few break through the walls of realms and enlightenment to attain absolute mastery.
"This isn't paralyzing poison."
"...Haha, you know your poisons well."
"Just a guess. Was it real?"
"...It's just something that causes brief unconsciousness."
As Instructor Cheol Woong examined the projectile, Tang Geon answered with an awkward laugh.
It really wasn't paralyzing poison.
Namgung Hyeok looked disappointed at Tang Geon and the instructor before trudging off the platform.
"...Sorry."
"It's fine."
Jeong Seon, up next, offered Namgung Hyeok brief words of comfort before ascending the platform.
But the spectators watching the matches paid little attention to Jeong Seon.
They were still murmuring in faint admiration over the previous bout between Tang Geon and Namgung Hyeok.
"As expected of the Namgung family."
"I thought he lost."
"Ha! I never doubted for a second..."
"Didn't you scream like a little girl when he dropped the dagger?"
Namgung Hyeok's evaluation wasn't bad.
Perhaps expectations for the Inmu Academy were low to begin with.
His solid performance against Tang Geon was boosting his reputation.
Namgung Hyeok must have overheard the conversations too; guilt over his loss mixed with the crowd's praise in his mind, leaving his expression unsettled.
His lips twitched up, then down.
He just couldn't calm down.
Looking at him, he really craves recognition.
Maybe his talented younger sibling stole all the praise growing up.
"Prepare."
On the platform, Jeong Seon and Tang Geon faced off.
Having already used it once, Tang Geon had stowed his dagger and now gripped an awl-like hidden weapon, eyeing Jeong Seon.
Jeong Seon lightly held his sword, rotating his legs to loosen his muscles.
Watching the scene, I gave a wry smile.
What could I say.
This would be a somewhat novel experience for Tang Geon.
At the start signal, both immediately went for their strongest moves.
Tang Geon backed away to create distance and hurled his hidden weapon, while Jeong Seon, just like in our previous spar, channeled his massive internal energy throughout his body and propelled himself forward like kicking off the ground, closing in on Tang Geon.
"Huh?"
A deflated voice escaped Tang Geon's lips.
Had he ever tried hitting a target moving at that speed?
Probably not.
Most people used internal energy only when needed, not wasting it continuously like that.
"You bastard!"
Tang Geon flung hidden weapons at the zigzagging target, pouring out his energy relentlessly.
The weapons embedded in the ground where Jeong Seon had been seconds ago, as he drew ever closer.
Now they were within arm's reach, and Tang Geon finally gave up throwing, drawing his dagger from his sleeve.
"Die!"
Uttering words unbecoming of an Orthodox late-stage disciple, Tang Geon swiftly swung the dagger.
As expected of the Cheonmu Academy.
His quick improvisation made the dagger swing as fast and precise as his throws.
"...What?"
Whoosh—
But even that dagger sliced only empty air.
Jeong Seon, who had been rushing in rapidly, suddenly halted in place.
Then he thrust his sword at Tang Geon's abdomen.
Tang Geon twisted away, avoiding the blade, but it grazed his clothes and skin, leaving a shallow wound.
Blood trickled lightly from the cut.
It was a minor injury that wouldn't affect the match, but in that single exchange, Tang Geon seemed to realize it.
That he couldn't win.
With a frustrated expression, he muttered softly.
"I lose..."
"Jeong Seon wins!"
The match official shouted, and cheers erupted from part of the spectator stands.
They looked like the ones who'd bet on us.
Most of the crowd remained silent in shock.
A few criticized Tang Geon, but few dared raise their voices against the Sacheon Tang Family.
"Awesome! Jeong Seon!"
"That's how it's done!"
Despite the prickly glares around them, those folks, drunk on their upset win, ignored the stares and started cheering for us.
They even broke into some bizarre chant I'd never heard before.
Jeong Seon turned around and looked at me.
His expression seemed to ask, "Did I do good?" So I smiled and clapped for him.
Seemingly pleased with my reaction, he grinned and faced forward again.
"Why, already...?"
Glancing aside, I saw Pung Woon with a stunned look.
Was Jeong Seon's victory that shocking?
Even more astonishing was that afterward, Jeong Seon took down another Cheonmu Academy spectator.
Their instructor looked utterly dumbfounded.
"Heh, such brute internal energy..."
I agreed with that.
My own internal energy level had risen quite a bit, but compared to Jeong Seon, it was nothing worth mentioning.
After Jeong Seon felled two, the next opponent was a man with a vaguely familiar face.
For some reason, he stuck particularly in my memory...
"Ah, the one who directed killing intent at Pung Woon..."
"Me?"
The person himself seemed to have forgotten already.
The man was Jeon Pung of the Jongeum Sect.
Upon ascending the platform, Jeon Pung didn't even glance at Jeong Seon.
He just fixed his sharp gaze solely on Pung Woon.
"Prepare, begin!"
Even after the match started, Jeon Pung's eyes remained locked on Pung Woon.
Seizing the opening, Jeong Seon closed the distance quickly, but by then Jeon Pung had drawn his sword from his waist and aimed it at Jeong Seon's throat.
"Urk..."
"...Jeon Pung wins!"
This was on a whole different level from the previous Cheonmu Academy participants.
You could tell just from how effortlessly Jeong Seon was defeated.
Seeing that, Pung Woon's face grew serious.
"Pung Woon, when's your turn?"
"Fourth."
"Good. Wait for me."
It felt like watching a protagonist and his rival converse.
"I'll go."
Seol Yeong looked at me and said.
Her cold yin energy still emanated from her, but today it felt somehow different.
And I watched slowly as Seol Yeong moved.
"Hm..."
Jeon Pung might not get to fight Pung Woon after all.