Chapter 27
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Two Geniuses
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On the way to the Murim Alliance headquarters, a path he walked every day as usual.
Perhaps it was his different mindset, or maybe because this was his first official, designated mission.
The atmosphere felt strangely subdued.
Ha Yuseong turned his head and looked around.
"I see."
He soon understood why.
"Looks like I came too early."
That was it. Ha Yuseong had arrived so early that no one from the Crouching Dragon Unit had shown up for work yet.
Ha Yuseong sat down blankly. Not long after, the Unit Leader arrived.
It was the first time he had seen the Unit Leader come to work.
What was the commute like for one of the Hundred Grandmasters of the Martial World, a first-class warrior?
With careful eyes, Ha Yuseong took in every detail of Seo Pung's appearance. Seo Pung's eyes widened slightly in surprise upon seeing him.
Then, he went to his desk, sat down, and, as if by habit, propped his feet up on the table, leaned his chair back slightly, and fell asleep.
Ha Yuseong couldn't help but marvel at the sight. He had always thought that simply sleeping was Seo Pung's entire identity.
By now, Ha Yuseong even felt anxious if he didn't see Seo Pung sleeping every day.
But watching him properly like this, he realized the Unit Leader wasn't just sleeping.
‘The Unit Leader is training every single day!’
That was right. The Unit Leader was currently engaged in a highly advanced balancing exercise.
The very same balance he himself was training in!
Look at the legs of that chair, ready to snap.
He had no idea how old it was, but the chair's legs were on the verge of rotting away. A single tap would turn them into a handful of dust—that’s how decayed they were!
And yet, the Unit Leader could shift his entire body weight onto the thinnest leg of such a chair and sleep so peacefully.
Ha Yuseong once again reflected on his own shortcomings.
‘One day, I too must sleep like the Unit Leader.’
Though he knew it was unlikely, Ha Yuseong vowed that if he ever became a Unit Leader, he would be sure to pass on his leader's teachings to all the unit members.
After a short wait, the second member of the Crouching Dragon Unit arrived.
It was someone Ha Yuseong was seeing for the first time within the unit's quarters.
Senior Jegal Biyeon.
He finally met his senior at the Crouching Dragon Unit. Ha Yuseong stood up, intending to greet her.
"Hello."
But he was a step too late.
His senior approached. Ha Yuseong couldn't take his eyes off her stern face.
‘She’s going to punish me.’
Because he hadn't greeted her first!
His senior came right next to him, sat down, and said nothing.
‘This is silent discipline!’
Ha Yuseong reflected on his actions and knelt.
A moment later, Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo arrived almost simultaneously.
Both were drenched in sweat, as if they had been training since morning. Just looking at them was motivating.
Ha Yuseong couldn't help but reflect on himself again.
He had trained too, but honestly, hadn't he stopped as soon as the poison was somewhat neutralized?
His thinking had been shallow.
It was a clear example of why he was only a third-rate warrior.
The two had merely run into each other on their way to work and raced to see who would arrive first, but Ha Yuseong was unaware of such deep circumstances.
It was then that Jegal Biyeon stood up.
"Mission. Let's go."
At her two simple words, Ha Yuseong, Namgung Yuya, and Hae Myo responded thunderously.
"Loyalty!"
Jegal Biyeon briefly looked at the three, who were now full of military discipline. Her clear, transparent eyes were unreadable.
‘Like the Demonic Cult.’
That was what she was thinking.
This was the first time Jegal Biyeon had gone on a mission with her juniors. Deciding it wasn't so bad, she headed outside. The three followed closely behind her, like ducklings trailing their mother.
The Crouching Dragon Unit’s office grew quiet once more.
Slowly, Seo Pung opened his eyes.
He briefly questioned what he had just seen.
Just yesterday, he had been unstable.
And that instability was growing. To the point where his body might one day shatter.
"But how is he stable?"
Although it could just be a temporary phenomenon.
Having sparred directly with that body, he knew. ‘That thing’ might look human at a glance, but it wasn't ‘human’.
"Well, not my problem."
He had lost interest in martial arts long ago. He closed his eyes again, intending to sleep as usual.
His slowly closing eyes snapped open again.
An uninvited guest had arrived.
"I don't recall inviting any guests."
Standing at the entrance of the Crouching Dragon Unit was a dashingly handsome young nobleman.
The man, wearing a heroic turban in a stylish fashion, spoke.
"Are you the former Divine Dragon?"
"Oh! Is there still someone who remembers that title?"
It was a glory now all but forgotten.
Long ago, there was a story that was like a legend.
A young man who appeared out of nowhere.
He recorded an undefeated legacy and eventually won the Divine Dragon Tournament.
People unanimously said that this young man would one day become the greatest master in the world.
Thus, the young man was granted a title given to only one person of his era, signifying he was the greatest of the rising generation.
That was the Divine Dragon.
A glorious title bestowed only upon the winner of the Divine Dragon Tournament.
Every person who had received the title of Divine Dragon throughout history had left their mark on the martial world.
With the exception of just one.
"Why would the prince of the Moyong family grace such a humble place with his presence?"
The visitor to the Crouching Dragon Unit was Moyong Jin, the top rookie of the current class.
"I heard that you and I are the same."
"Me? The same as a direct descendant of the Moyong family? Someone might get the wrong idea hearing that."
It was a light joke, but Moyong Jin's face remained as serious as when he first appeared.
"I came to find you out of curiosity."
—How much do you know about this martial world?
That was the question the Alliance Leader had posed to Moyong Jin a while ago.
Moyong Jin hadn't been able to answer it properly. And Neung Cheonhwi had added another remark.
—You are weak.
The word "weak" was something Moyong Jin had heard for the first time in his life.
—Don't you want to see a wider world?
It was both a question and a proposal.
—Go and cross hands with a warrior named Seo Pung.
For the first time, Moyong Jin had spoken to Neung Cheonhwi.
Because, if nothing else, the name Seo Pung had piqued his interest.
He was the same as himself.
—He possesses the same talent as you. Unfortunately, it's broken now.
A man who possessed a Heavenly talent.
"I want to know why the Alliance Leader sent me to you."
At the mention of the Alliance Leader, Seo Pung's eyes, which had been about to close, opened again. He scratched his head and rose from his seat.
"I had a feeling something was fishy. So that old man was behind this. So, what did he say?"
No matter how composed Moyong Jin's personality was, he couldn't help but be angered by Seo Pung calling the great Alliance Leader "that old man."
Even if he was a figure acknowledged by the Alliance Leader himself.
"Take it back."
"Take what back?"
"Your last statement."
"Ah. 'That old man'? Don't want to. What are you going to do about it?"
A flick.
Seo Pung beckoned with his finger, grinned, and continued.
"You think you have the power to make me apologize?"
The moment he finished speaking, Moyong Jin lunged.
His movements were disciplined.
They were so fast it was hard to believe he was just a rookie.
And they carried an aura so powerful it could make an opponent flinch.
A perfect combination of all three elements.
A flawless charge toward his opponent.
"Perfect!"
Seo Pung was genuinely impressed.
Who else at that age could display such a flawless, pressuring movement?
Even if Seo Pung counted all the years he had lived in the martial world, only a few names came to mind.
And among those few was Seo Pung himself. Although it had been a long time since he'd given up martial arts, the Divine Dragon was still the Divine Dragon. That name didn't just disappear.
Seo Pung leaped from his seat as if taking flight and snatched Moyong Jin's arm.
Moyong Jin immediately lowered his center of gravity with the Thousand-Pound Drop technique.
Reading this, Seo Pung swept Moyong Jin's legs, breaking his balance.
*Whoosh.*
Moyong Jin felt his body lift into the air as his vision flipped upside down.
In that instant, Moyong Jin's back arched like a bow.
He found a new point of balance in mid-air and shifted his center of gravity just as his body was about to hit the ground.
*Thud!*
Dust rose from the floor. Moyong Jin's two feet were planted firmly on the ground. And one of Moyong Jin's hands was touching Seo Pung's palm.
"Hoh!"
Seo Pung let out a sound of admiration at the sight, and Moyong Jin immediately executed an energy expulsion.
Seo Pung released Moyong Jin's arm and dodged out of the technique's range.
Moyong Jin freed his arm, brought it to his side, and placed his hand on his sword.
"So the rumors were true."
"Hm? What was?"
It was a long-held belief that only one such person was born in any given era.
There were even eras when none were born at all.
Whether by chance or destiny, in this current era, there were two.
That was why people sometimes called this the Golden Age.
Although one of them had fallen, the detailed circumstances didn't matter much to those looking for gossip.
As long as they had something to talk about, that was enough.
Now, two with Heavenly Martial Bodies were in the same space.
Predators naturally recognize one another.
In terms of martial talent alone, Moyong Jin had never met anyone superior to himself, with only one exception.
But now, he thought he might have to add a new person to that list.
"Are you sure about this?"
There was a world of difference between simply throwing a punch and drawing a sword.
Seo Pung picked up a thin twig lying nearby.
In that instant, the atmosphere changed.
Moyong Jin was greatly surprised by the immense pressure suddenly bearing down on him.
‘This… this is!’
Right now, Moyong Jin wanted to find out.
Just how far he could go.
Moyong Jin unleashed the greatest technique he could muster.
*Step.*
Moyong Jin took a step.
Simultaneously, his sword hummed, and a long stream of energy extended from it. It was a distinct sword aura, incomparable to Hae Myo's.
"Sixty years of internal energy at your age, impressive. Fine. I'll use exactly sixty years' worth as well."
Moyong Jin saw Seo Pung's arm slowly rising.
And he instinctively knew what he was about to do.
A simple slash.
Just how lightly was he being taken to be dismissed like this?
Moyong Jin's grip on his sword tightened.
Heaven and Earth Hundred-Fold Sword Resolution.
A high-level sword art known to be so esoteric that no one in the Moyong family had ever mastered it.
Moyong Jin had mastered it all.
Secret Art: Great Sea of Heaven and Earth.
A wave of sword aura dazzled the space before him.
In front of it, Seo Pung looked like a frail human being before the might of nature.
*Slice!*
The moment Seo Pung swung the twig downwards, a miracle occurred.
The wave of sword aura was split in two.
A mere mortal had triumphed over nature.
In disbelief, Moyong Jin looked at his defeated technique.
And then at his sword.
*Crack!*
The sword split in half and fell to the ground.
"Come back when you're a little older, kid."
As if it were nothing, Seo Pung staggered back to his spot.
*Grit.* Moyong Jin clenched his jaw tightly.
All he could do was watch Seo Pung's retreating back.
It was his first defeat.
On the roof.
A man had been watching the entire fight.
The Heavenly Sword Emperor, Neung Cheonhwi, was smiling broadly.
That day, Moyong Jin went to see Neung Cheonhwi.
"Is the offer you made me still valid?"
"Of course. From now on, call me Master."
On this day, unbeknownst to anyone, a major event took place in the martial world.