The Heavenly Sect’s Young Sect Leader
The second brother headed for the largest and grandest building among the many that stood around us.
When we reached the entrance, the guards escorted us inside.
It was an audience chamber with a majestic air about it.
At the center sat Cheon Muhyeok, receiving us with a solemn expression.
"Welcome. It has been a while, hasn’t it?"
"Thank you for inviting us. It’s a modest gift, but I brought this."
The second brother took something from his robes and handed it to Cheon Muhyeok.
"How is Han Gungjoo doing?"
"He’s in such good health that it’s almost a problem."
The second brother and Cheon Muhyeok chatted pleasantly for a while.
Then the doors to the audience chamber opened, and a girl a little shorter than me stepped inside.
"You came at just the right time. Say hello. These are Han Yubyeok and Han Yugang from the Ice Palace. And let me introduce my daughter, Cheon Yura."
Cheon Yura walked over with brisk steps and spoke to the second brother.
"So you’re the one who uses a sword so well? Let’s have a match."
The second brother looked flustered, glancing back and forth between me and Cheon Muhyeok for help.
"Haha. I think Yura has mixed things up. He’s Han Yubyeok. He’s training in fist techniques, not swordsmanship."
Cheon Yura frowned in confusion.
"But Father said Han Yugang was handsome..."
My head went numb, as if someone had hit me with a hammer.
I had always thought that in this life, at least when it came to looks, I didn’t lose to anyone. But to think that, of all people, I’d been outdone by the second brother, who looked like a bear or a tiger, just because I resembled our father—I was utterly dumbfounded.
"Thank you for the compliment, but the Yugang you heard about being good at swordsmanship is my younger brother."
The second brother’s face was full of an unmistakable smile, and he looked at me with the easy confidence of a winner.
That look, the one that seemed to look down on me, stung my pride a little.
Meanwhile, Cheon Yura, realizing her mistake, went red in the face.
"If it’s all right with you, I can spar with you instead."
Without answering, Cheon Yura dashed behind her father and hid there.
"Heh heh. It seems Yura is embarrassed. You’ve come a long way, so you should rest from your journey first, and we can speak about sparring later. I’ve specially prepared a banquet for the sons of my old friend."
Well, everyone has different tastes...
I was bruised in my pride, but I let it go by reassuring myself of that.
The meal was truly lavish.
There were dishes I had never even seen in the Ice Palace, and just tasting each one left me so full I could barely manage another bite.
Cheon Yura, still embarrassed from earlier, didn’t speak to us at all. She only ate in silence before leaving for her room.
"Are you still focusing on your footwork, Yugang?"
"Yes... since that day, I’ve been focusing on conditioning, so my sword training is still... not there yet."
"Hmm... then sparring will be a little awkward. Would it be all right if Yubyeok handles the spar with Yura?"
Han Yubyeok agreed at once.
"Of course! Anytime is fine with me."
"Then I’ll personally take a look at Yugang’s swordsmanship. There’s no need to delay the sparring, so why don’t we set it for tomorrow?"
The second brother and I agreed with Cheon Muhyeok’s suggestion and headed to the guest room we’d been shown.
Travel fatigue must have gotten to us, because both my brother and I fell asleep almost as soon as our heads hit the pillow.
The next morning, the moment I opened my eyes, I looked out the window and began circulating my energy in a refreshing state of mind.
As I lightly stretched and continued my breathing, the second brother watched me and asked, "Are you cultivating right now?"
"Yeah. It’s morning, so I figured I’d wake up properly while I was at it."
"But you’re not just sitting still—you’re moving while you cultivate?"
"If I just sit there, my body gets stiff."
At my answer, the second brother stared at me with a stunned, bewildered expression.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
"I don’t even know where to start, but... can you actually feel the energy around you while you move?"
"I can. It was hard at first, but now it feels the same as when I do it sitting down."
"You can feel that?"
Hearing me, the second brother tried hard to cultivate while moving about.
After a while, he stopped and looked at me.
"I can’t do it. Is this the training method of geniuses? I don’t think even you could do it while moving, Brother..."
He let out a hollow laugh.
"Well, I can just do it while sitting, so~"
Then, saying he was hungry, he went on ahead to the dining hall.
I’d been doing calisthenics, so I was a little late and hurried after him.
When I got to the dining hall, my brother had already finished eating and was waiting for me.
"Why are you so late?"
"I got caught up in training and lost track of time."
"Finish eating, then let’s go to the training yard. The spar between me and the young sect leader is first. I think they’re planning to look at your swordsmanship after that."
I wolfed down my meal in a hurry.
Then I headed to the training yard with my brother.
I didn’t know whether all of the Heavenly Sect’s training grounds were like this, but this one was indoors, inside the building.
It seemed to be a private training hall for the young sect leader.
At the center of the hall, the young sect leader was waiting with a wooden sword in hand.
"I look forward to our spar."
"Likewise, I hope to learn a thing or two."
Han Yubyeok went up onto the training floor, and I sat down beside Cheon Muhyeok.
Looking around, I noticed two unfamiliar faces as well.
As if noticing my curiosity, Cheon Muhyeok spoke first.
"Those two are two of the three leaders of our Heavenly Sect. I told them we’d be showing the young sect leader’s spar and your swordsmanship today, and they got excited and came to watch."
"Three leaders? Like elders or something?"
"The Heavenly Sect doesn’t have elders. The Heavenly Sect has long been led by the Cheon clan, and you know that the sect master inherits the Heavenly Demon Sword Art, don’t you?"
"I know that much."
"But the Heavenly Sect also possesses excellent fist techniques, saber techniques, and spear techniques. So unlike the sect master, the strongest in fist, saber, and spear are selected separately and given the titles of Fist Demon, Saber Demon, and Spear Demon. Within the Heavenly Sect, they’re granted authority just below the sect master and the young sect leader. The three positions aren’t inherited; they’re seized, which means they must always accept challenges from those who want to take the seat. The two people over there are the ones who currently hold the positions of Fist Demon and Saber Demon."
From Cheon Muhyeok’s explanation, I could feel just how impressive those positions were.
The strongest within the Heavenly Sect...
"The Spear Demon is a free spirit and didn’t bother coming, but the Saber Demon and Fist Demon both love sparring and fighting like this. That rough-looking fellow with the bandages around his fists is the Fist Demon, and the narrow-eyed one is the Saber Demon."
People with narrow eyes always seem sneaky and traitorous...
Just as I was worrying about that, it seemed their preparations were done.
"Then begin the spar!"
At Cheon Muhyeok’s words, a fierce wave of energy burst forth from the training hall.
The first to move was Cheon Yura.
She advanced slowly, exuding killing intent.
The inner power she released darkened the surrounding area slightly.
[Ice Armor Technique]
Han Yubyeok clad himself in ice armor with the Ice Armor Technique.
Then he charged at Cheon Yura.
The distance between them closed in an instant, and fist and sword clashed in rapid succession.
Han Yubyeok was the one pressing forward with relentless force, but Cheon Yura calmly absorbed every blow without yielding ground.
The assault continued like that until Han Yubyeok made a larger move.
His strike carried a completely different force than before as it flew toward Cheon Yura.
Cheon Yura then carved a sword slash through the air at unbelievable speed.
The black arcs left in the wake of her sword did not vanish. They remained where they were, becoming a wall that blocked Han Yubyeok’s fist.
Han Yubyeok’s fist shattered a few of the slashes as it advanced, but it couldn’t break through all of them, and in the end it was stopped.
Still, Han Yubyeok thrust out his other hand.
"If one strike won’t do it, then I’ll keep hitting until it does!"
Han Yubyeok’s hands never stopped, madly smashing apart Cheon Yura’s sword wall.
At last, every last sword wall was broken.
Han Yubyeok’s fist shot straight toward Cheon Yura.
Cheon Yura blocked the countless flurries of strikes, but in the end she was driven back.
Han Yubyeok had also lost some momentum after breaking through the sword wall, so he couldn’t press the attack any further.
"They say your younger brother is the genius, but you’re no slouch either."
"I can’t let myself lose to my little brother that quickly."
As Han Yubyeok smiled brightly, a faint smile appeared on Cheon Yura’s face as well.
"I’m starting to run out of breath too, so I’ll finish this with one last strike."
With those words, Cheon Yura’s wooden sword began to turn black.
Han Yubyeok responded by raising his inner power as well, and blue energy rippled across both his fists.
Before long, the wooden sword had gone completely black, and Cheon Yura moved.
Cheon Yura’s sword swept upward from the ground in a single, straight line.
Its speed was so terrifying that even the shadow itself seemed to be split cleanly into two for a split second.
Han Yubyeok tried to stop the rising blade with his ice armor and both fists, but he was still sent flying back. A straight sword wound slipped through the ice armor on Han Yubyeok’s chest, leaving a cut there.
The second brother accepted his defeat immediately.
"I lost. You’re incredibly strong."
Cheon Yura looked flustered when she saw the wound on Han Yubyeok.
"I should have stopped..."
"No, it’s fine. I thought I could block it, so I didn’t dodge. And a scar like this is what makes a man look manly, isn’t it?"
Han Yubyeok said it was nothing and laughed it off heartily.
Still, Cheon Yura looked deeply apologetic.
"It’s been so long since I had a spar like this that I got carried away..."
And then, in the middle of that, the Fist Demon leapt into the training hall.
"What an excellent fist and what guts! Would you not become my disciple?"
Caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, the second brother looked bewildered.
"Huh? What do you mean all of a sudden? And who are you?"
"My name is Kwon Taesan!"
"So, who’s that supposed to be...?"
At that, Cheon Muhyeok personally stepped down to sort out the situation.
"Who would know from the way you’re saying it? Let me apologize on his behalf. Even if he doesn’t look it, he is the one who holds the title of Fist Demon here in the Heavenly Sect, with the finest fist technique in the sect."
"That’s right! I am the Heavenly Sect’s greatest fist! There was no man in the Heavenly Sect fit to teach my fist technique, but at last I’ve found one! Become my disciple!"