Chapter 36: The Adversary-2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 36: The Adversary-2
Absolute Martial God Lee Jae-won.
Appearing in the Murim like a rising star twenty years ago, he shook the entire martial world with his unconventional actions.
His first shocking move was taking the head of the Sword Demon of Shanxi, a man who had plunged Shanxi Province into a state of terror at the time.
The Sword Demon of Shanxi was the leader of the Blood Sword Sect, which ruled over Shanxi. He was a man of eccentric and violent temperament; dozens of people died by his hand every day. Moreover, he was a lecher who stained the province with fear by ravaging women regardless of whether they were virgins or married.
That was when Lee Jae-won appeared. Though he was barely twenty at the time, he decapitated the Sword Demon of Shanxi in a single stroke, making his name known throughout the Central Plains.
Even if the Sword Demon of Shanxi had neglected his training while indulging in wine and women, he was still undeniably a master who had reached the Super-Peak Realm.
Yet, Lee Jae-won, a mere youth, had crushed such a master in one move.
It would have been stranger if people hadn't been shocked.
Following that, Lee Jae-won continued his extraordinary streak, further elevating his fame.
He engaged in a duel for three days and nights with Yang Tae-san—the ultimate weapon of the Orthodox Faction and the common successor of the Nine Sects and One Gang—and ultimately emerged victorious. He also defeated the Black Dragon King, the ruler of the Unorthodox Faction, after a bloody battle. These were absurd achievements for a Rising Star who was only twenty years old.
Normally, reaching the Peak Realm at twenty would be enough to be hailed as a talent of the ages, but Lee Jae-won had grown to a point that transcended the common sense of the Murim.
Later, after meeting the legendary eccentric known as Seon-ong and reaching the Profound Realm—often referred to as the Half-Immortal stage—Lee Jae-won saved the Murim by defeating the Yin-Yang Demon, known as the Greatest Demon Under Heaven, and the Heavenly Demon Emperor, who harbored ambitions to conquer the Central Plains.
People called him the World's Greatest Martial Artist; everyone praised and revered him.
Except for one person.
The first time the Yin-Yang Demon saw Lee Jae-won was at Seon-ong’s residence.
At that first meeting, the Yin-Yang Demon felt nothing special.
His mind was filled only with the thought of defeating the absolute being, Seon-ong.
A mere fledgling like Lee Jae-won was beneath his notice.
While reaching the Transcendent Realm at such a young age was impressive enough to be called a talent of the ages, it wasn't as if there were no precedents, like himself or the Heavenly Demon Emperor.
Soon after, a world-shaking battle began, and the Yin-Yang Demon finally managed to defeat Seon-ong.
The Yin-Yang Demon was filled with ecstasy.
By defeating the absolute master Seon-ong, he had established himself as the World's Greatest Martial Artist.
But his joy was short-lived.
Enraged by his master's death, Lee Jae-won lunged at him.
When he first attacked, the Yin-Yang Demon merely scoffed.
Though he was exhausted from the life-and-death struggle with Seon-ong, he didn't think for a second that he would lose to a brat like Lee Jae-won.
However, the battle unfolded contrary to his expectations, and the Yin-Yang Demon was defeated.
Even now, he could not understand that defeat.
Lee Jae-won had also reached the Profound Realm, but it was nonsensical for him to win against someone like the Yin-Yang Demon, who had already reached the very pinnacle of that realm.
Who was he?
Was he not the one who had reached the Profound Realm long ago and was already looking beyond it?
So how could he lose to a fledgling who had just stepped into that realm?
They were in the same Profound Realm, yet the difference between them was stark.
Nevertheless, he lost and fell from a cliff.
It was strange.
Lee Jae-won was clearly a brat who lacked the qualities of the Profound Realm.
His mental discipline was poor, he couldn't control his emotions, and his focus was utterly lacking.
Yet, Lee Jae-won was unnervingly lucky.
The moment Seon-ong died, he coincidentally ascended to the Profound Realm, and he 'happened' to strike the wound Seon-ong had inflicted, defeating the Yin-Yang Demon.
From the Yin-Yang Demon's perspective, it was beyond absurd.
To lose to a brat like that—what on earth was happening?
As he fought the Yin-Yang Demon, the newly ascended Lee Jae-won began to grow even further.
The Yin-Yang Demon was appalled by that rate of growth.
How could someone who had just reached the Profound Realm use the Heart Sword as naturally as breathing?
Establishing the Sword of the Mind was the minimum requirement for the Profound Realm, but using it as naturally as Lee Jae-won did required years of painstaking effort.
Yet, Lee Jae-won had gained some kind of enlightenment and began to use the Heart Sword at will. In the end, the Yin-Yang Demon had no choice but to lose.
Of course, being able to use the Heart Sword freely wasn't enough to defeat the Yin-Yang Demon on its own, but he 'coincidentally' struck the wound dealt by Seon-ong, forcing the demon to his knees.
Having narrowly escaped death after falling down the cliff, the Yin-Yang Demon could not accept the defeat.
No matter how much he thought about it, it felt wrong.
He challenged Lee Jae-won several times after that, but he never once gained the upper hand.
It was all thanks to Lee Jae-won's unnaturally fast growth and the strokes of luck that occurred by chance.
At first, the Yin-Yang Demon was certainly superior in terms of martial arts, but as the fights progressed, Lee Jae-won rose to an equal level.
He would realize in a single duel the enlightenments that the Yin-Yang Demon had spent years accumulating.
They say there is no better teacher than real combat, but the Profound Realm was a different story.
Rather than through combat, one was supposed to create their own path through mental discipline, yet Lee Jae-won just grew rapidly to fit the situation without any of that.
In the first place, wasn't even the Formless Sword he used as his primary technique the specialty of his master, Seon-ong?
It wasn't as if he practiced his martial arts diligently, either.
His level was always stagnant whenever they met.
He only grew passively when his life was in danger.
The Yin-Yang Demon began to harbor doubts about Lee Jae-won.
Lee Jae-won's path was filled with inexplicable luck.
He always won, and he was always lucky.
It was as if the entire world was helping him.
In the end, hadn't he even defeated the Heavenly Demon Emperor, a man so powerful that even the Yin-Yang Demon had to acknowledge him?
The Heavenly Demon Emperor was a being beyond humanity.
He was so powerful that one wondered if he was even made of the same flesh and blood as other humans.
And yet, that pathetic brat had beaten him.
And 'coincidentally' at that.
The Yin-Yang Demon formed a hypothesis.
The hypothesis that some transcendental, unknown entity was tuning the world so that whatever Lee Jae-won did would succeed.
If his hypothesis was correct, then theoretically, no one could ever defeat him.
Though he was superior in martial arts, even the Yin-Yang Demon could not suppress Lee Jae-won.
He would grow, and eventually, he would surpass him.
Therefore, to deny Lee Jae-won the chance to grow, the Yin-Yang Demon only parried his moves and never launched an active attack.
There was no telling what would happen if that man became even stronger.
The Yin-Yang Demon knew Lee Jae-won's petty and ugly nature all too well.
Because he had followed him for days, looking for an opportunity to ambush him, he knew exactly what he did and where.
If a brat like that reached the Life and Death Realm, the stage of the Immortals, the situation would worsen beyond control.
He might try to rule not just the Central Plains but the entire world, or he might become an eternal being and rule the world forever.
Whatever the case, it was certain to lead to the worst possible outcome.
Of course, it wasn't the Yin-Yang Demon's concern, but he had absolutely no desire to become a stepping stone for such a brat's growth.
Thus, he was about to just ignore him and live his life.
That was when he saw Sun-woo.
In the past, the Yin-Yang Demon had a woman he shared his heart with.
She was the woman who had pulled him from the valley and treated him after his first defeat by Seon-ong. At first, the Yin-Yang Demon intended to ravage her as soon as he recovered and use her as a sacrifice for his Yin-Yang Demon Art.
However, he fell for her devoted nursing and her unchanging attitude even after learning that he was a hermaphrodite, and he came to love her sincerely.
Before long, they shared their affections, and she became pregnant with his child.
He was thrilled at the thought of becoming a father, but his identity as the Greatest Demon Under Heaven weighed on him.
Though he was living hidden from the eyes of others for now, if it became known that he, a Public Enemy of the Murim, had a woman and a child, they would surely be caught in a harsh storm.
Furthermore, she was the successor of a sect that, while having only one disciple per generation, was undeniably part of the Orthodox Faction, which weighed even more heavily on his mind.
After agonizing for a long time, he eventually left, fearing that she and the child would be harmed.
After Lee Ho-seon left, the woman gave birth to a child, and that child inherited her mother's martial arts.
Perhaps inheriting the talent of her father, the Yin-Yang Demon Lee Ho-seon, his daughter grew day by day and was eventually called the Best Among Women.
That daughter was Lee Ok-seon, the former Best Among Women who had been the Sect Leader of the Baekgeom Sect, Ok-ryeong's master, and the one called the Sword Empress.
Hearing rumors of her, the Yin-Yang Demon felt a sense of pride, yet he felt deeply regretful that he had done nothing for her as a father.
However, knowing that his existence would only hinder her, who shone like a star, he merely watched her from afar.
He had watched the entire process of her entering the Murim, performing acts of chivalry, and taking in and raising a disciple.
Then, one day, he heard the news of Lee Ok-seon's passing.
The cause was a chronic illness inherited from her mother.
Though she had reached the absolute state of the Transcendent Realm, she could not overcome the disease and ended her life at a young age.
Upon hearing the news, Lee Ho-seon lamented and cursed the heavens.
If they were going to take someone, they should have taken him, a withered old man; why did they have to take his young daughter?
He fell into despair, and after severing all lingering attachments to his wife and daughter, he immersed himself solely in martial arts.
As a result, he was able to reach the pinnacle of the Profound Realm and surpass Seon-ong, who had once driven him to the brink of death.
Of course, he had then lost to Lee Jae-won and fallen down a cliff.
Then one day, a sudden change of heart occurred.
He thought he had severed all Five Desires and Seven Emotions after reaching the peak of the Profound Realm, but on that day, he missed his wife and daughter so intensely it was maddening.
Without hesitation, the Yin-Yang Demon climbed White Flower Peak to find the graves of his wife and daughter. On his way up, he happened to see Sun-woo confronting Lee Jae-won.
The sight of the young man, whose body was like a tattered rag and couldn't even move, yet was pressuring Lee Jae-won with his words, was quite amusing.
But the amusement was brief.
The moment Lee Jae-won lowered his pants and approached Ok-ryeong with his phallus dangling...
He felt a surge of irritation.
Who was that girl?
Was she not the only disciple his deceased daughter had cherished like a precious gem?
Unable to bear the sight of him approaching such a precious child with his phallus swinging, he stepped forward.
He knew he shouldn't give the man a chance to grow, but unable to suppress his boiling rage, he had acted.
"Sigh."
A sigh escaped Lee Ho-seon's lips.
He had triggered the internal energy of the collapsed youngster to move him to the secret hideout of the Baekgeom Sect, while he himself confronted Lee Jae-won.
He had intended to only parry and stall for time as much as possible, but in the end, he had been forced to use his hands, causing Lee Jae-won to grow once again.
He had managed to lose him somehow, but if they fought again, he might have to stake his own life.
Upon arriving at the secret hideout and treating Sun-woo, the Yin-Yang Demon could not hide his astonishment.
The young man he had coincidentally saved was practicing the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art.
Thanks to that, despite having sustained injuries that should have left him a cripple, he gained the opportunity to recover completely.
It was bizarre.
He had questions about everything.
The first thing he questioned was his own change of heart.
Why did he suddenly feel the urge to visit the graves of his wife and daughter today, after not seeking them out for decades?
If he hadn't visited White Flower Peak today, this young man and Ok-ryeong would not have survived.
Because currently, he was the only person in the Central Plains capable of rivaling Lee Jae-won.
Furthermore, for what reason had this young man been staying on White Flower Peak?
It was natural for Ok-ryeong to be there as the Sect Leader of the Baekgeom Sect, but this young man was someone he had never seen before.
He questioned why the boy was at White Flower Peak, a place deeply connected to himself—the only one who could oppose Lee Jae-won.
And why did the young man whose life he saved happen to practice the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art, giving him the chance to fully recover?
This, too, felt too unsettling to dismiss as mere coincidence.
Who had handled the things he had left in his hideout before his final battle with Seon-ong, and how had they ended up in this young man's hands? It was all a mystery.
After agonizing over all these questions, the Yin-Yang Demon came to a single hypothesis.
The hypothesis that this young man before him, like Lee Jae-won, was also being influenced by the luck of some unknown transcendental entity.
If his hypothesis was correct, the young man before him would be the one and only being capable of killing Lee Jae-won.
The Yin-Yang Demon's eyes began to shine as he looked at Sun-woo.
And a smile formed on his lips involuntarily.
A being had appeared to slaughter that pathetic, dog-like bastard.
"...The Adversary."