Chapter 30
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: The Woes of an Arrow Catcher
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*CRUNCH!*
The carriage shattered into pieces.
“Neigh!”
The startled horses bolted forward on their own.
Ha Yuseong and his party, who were inside, all tumbled to the ground.
Fortunately, they were prepared, and though their landing was rough, they managed to do so safely.
Besides, one couldn't become a martial artist of the Murim Alliance without at least this much skill.
Jegal Biyeon was holding the box in her arms. It seemed she had grabbed it as the carriage broke apart.
Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo instinctively formed a triangular formation, placing Jegal Biyeon behind them.
The three of them stared ahead, their eyes filled with palpable tension.
Another arrow—an Ink Arrow, to be precise—was nocked.
The Ink Arrow loomed large in Namgung Yuya’s vision.
*‘A black arrow.’*
He searched his memory and recalled a name.
“Heukmugwang!”
Heukmugwang of the Black Iron Ghost Bow.
He remembered him because he was one of the few in the martial world who uniquely used a bow.
Moreover, his archery was rumored to be skilled enough to assassinate first-rate masters.
*Twang!*
The Ink Arrow was fired.
This time, the arrow spun with incredible force.
Its target was Jegal Biyeon.
Hae Myo raised his sword.
*Vmmm.*
The sword hummed, and a thin, bluish film formed over the blade.
Hae Myo swung his sword.
*Screeeech!*
The Ink Arrow, upon meeting the sword, spun violently, grinding against the blade. So powerful was its force that a single arrow was pushing Hae Myo back.
“Ugh!”
Hae Myo cried out in pain. From the side, Namgung Yuya struck down at the Ink Arrow.
*Clang!*
The Ink Arrow was knocked away from Hae Myo’s sword.
*Whirrrr!*
The arrow, embedded in the ground, continued to spin with immense force, drilling itself deeper.
Hae Myo looked down at his stinging hand.
The calluses built up from long years of training had been torn away, and blood was streaming from his palm.
Namgung Yuya’s hand, having struck the arrow from the side rather than head-on, was in slightly better shape than Hae Myo's. Even so, his hand was trembling faintly.
“Just what is in this box! For the Young Master of the Unorthodox Faction's Black Killers Guild to trespass into the territory of the Orthodox Faction?”
Namgung Yuya immediately voiced his confusion at the incomprehensible situation.
“Probably something really good.”
Namgung Yuya could only nod at Hae Myo's reply. Otherwise, they wouldn't have broken the Orthodox-Unorthodox pact to come here.
In other words, since they had revealed themselves, they had no intention of letting anyone here leave alive.
By the way, where had their big brother gone at such a crucial moment?
*Creeaak!*
Heukmugwang could be seen drawing another Ink Arrow. This time, not only he but also the men beside him were preparing to attack.
*Twang!*
With a clear sound, the Ink Arrow flew.
They could tell it was spinning even more fiercely than before.
His intent was clear: if they tried to block it again, it would pierce straight through Hae Myo's sword.
Frankly, Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo had no confidence they could block that arrow.
“Move.”
Just then, a low voice came from behind. Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo instinctively obeyed. Reversing the formation, Jegal Biyeon stepped forward.
She still held the box in one hand and her sword in the other.
*Swish!*
The sword traced a clean arc.
A faint energy lingered in the air.
It was sword qi.
The Ink Arrow was sliced cleanly in half.
“As expected of you, Senior!”
“This is a Grade 3 martial artist!”
Seeing his Ink Arrow completely blocked, Heukmugwang calmly nocked his next arrow.
This arrow was slightly different from the Ink Arrow.
Seeing it, Jegal Biyeon’s expression hardened for the first time.
“A Strong Ink Arrow.”
Strong Ink Arrow.
This was the arrow that had supposedly elevated Heukmugwang to the ranks of the Twelve Prodigies of the Heretical Path, the one he was rumored to have used to kill a first-rate master in the past.
An arrow made by weaving together multiple Ink Arrows.
Its hardness was said to be at least twice that of a normal Ink Arrow.
Furthermore, its tip was coated with a bluish poison.
Jegal Biyeon tossed the box behind her.
“No matter what. Protect the box.”
Hae Myo caught the box. At the same moment, the Strong Ink Arrow flew.
Twice the spin and speed of an Ink Arrow.
Jegal Biyeon quickly picked up a stone and threw it.
Suddenly, the direction of the wind reversed.
The arrow's speed slowed ever so slightly.
Jegal Biyeon brandished her sword.
Great Heavenly Star Sword Style.
A high-level sword style that only the direct descendants of the Jegal Family could learn.
First Form: Swallow's Circling Flight.
A technique modeled after a swallow circling the sky.
Jegal Biyeon leaped into the air. She spun twice, channeling the rotational force directly into her sword as she brought it down.
*Screeeee!*
Violent sparks flew where the sword and arrow met.
The sword qi coalesced on Jegal Biyeon’s blade flickered as if it were about to be extinguished.
“Senior!”
“Look ahead!”
Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo shouted urgently, looking forward. Jegal Biyeon had no room to focus on anything else, but at their urgent cries, she lifted her head and looked.
In that instant, fear crept into Jegal Biyeon’s eyes.
Heukmugwang was drawing a second Strong Ink Arrow.
“It’s over.”
This was the difference between a swordsman and an archer.
When a swordsman’s move is blocked, it's over. But an archer can simply fire another arrow.
Heukmugwang had killed first-rate masters in this very way.
*Twang!*
The sound of the arrow being released was heard.
In that moment, Namgung Yuya saw death.
Hae Myo felt despair.
Jegal Biyeon wore a look of resolve.
And then.
“Hyaaaaaah!”
From the sky.
A massive rock fell between Jegal Biyeon and the arrow.
*CRASH!*
Accompanied by a bizarre sound.
***
There is a term: 'arrow catcher'.
It refers to people used to absorb incoming arrows before a battle.
And it was something Ha Yuseong was most confident in.
A good thirty years as an arrow catcher!
Ha Yuseong had survived those thirty years. He had his own method of survival.
Which was to hide behind a large rock until the arrows stopped.
In the past, he would have had to run his feet sore to find a rock.
But now, things were different.
His internal energy might be third-rate.
-Your body is already perfected.
-You can probably do most of what you imagine.
-If that’s not enough, you can use that minuscule internal energy of yours to generate even greater power.
-But you must never do it more than once. If you use it twice or more, the balance of your body, which we so painstakingly adjusted, will be shattered.
-And at that point, you will have crossed a river of no return. I trust you understand what that means.
This was a body acknowledged by two of the former Ten Grandmasters of the World.
Ha Yuseong never trusted himself.
What Ha Yuseong trusted were the two former grandmasters.
The moment he realized the enemy's main weapon was arrows, as the carriage was destroyed, Ha Yuseong dashed up the mountain.
To find a large rock to protect himself—no! his comrades—from the arrows.
The thing before them now was the result of that search.
The arrow lay on the ground, blocked by the rock.
“Thankfully, it seems it can’t pierce the rock.”
Ha Yuseong said brightly.
For Namgung Yuya and Hae Myo, the feeling of 'Of course it can't pierce that!' was stronger than the feeling of having survived.
Because the rock before them was so large it would take at least three grown men to encircle it.
Wouldn't one need sword aura to pierce something like that?
How on earth did he move that thing?
“Kukuku. You again!”
Until now, not a single person had ever blocked his arrows in such an unheard-of way.
Who would even think of moving a rock more than twice their size just to block a mere arrow?
“First you break through the trap with a bizarre method, and now you suddenly produce a rock.”
In a way, he thought, this guy was incredible.
It was as if he had no martial artist's common sense.
For that reason, he was even a bit frightening, as his next move was unpredictable.
The unfortunate part was that while the idea was good, he himself had first picked up a bow at the age of five, and had been doing so for over twenty years.
And when you've been holding a bow for that long, you can do things like this.
Heukmugwang nocked a third Strong Ink Arrow and drew his bow.
“Have you ever heard of a Homing Arrow?”
Ha Yuseong peeked his head out from behind the rock. It felt like a provocation to Heukmugwang.
“I guess you really can’t pierce the rock.”
Ha Yuseong had only done it because he couldn't see his opponent.
“Kukuku! Do you think I can be stopped by something merely blocking the way? If you think so, I’ll show you that you’ve underestimated Heukmugwang, the greatest marksman of the Unorthodox Faction! My arrows have no blind spots!”
*Twang!*
The arrow tore through the air. Midway, as if it had a life of its own, it suddenly curved, circling around the rock.
“Did you see that! This is a Homing Arrow!”
Heukmugwang shouted with confidence.
His skill was certainly worthy of it.
In response, Ha Yuseong simply lifted the rock and moved it to the side.
*Thwack!*
The Homing Arrow hit the rock and ricocheted off.
“……”
Silence flowed.
It was awkward.
This was a first for Ha Yuseong, so he didn't quite know how to act. So he just answered.
“This is a rock.”
“How dare you mock me! You Orthodox dog!”
“No, I was just answering you.”
“Fine! I, Heukmugwang, swear on the Black Killers Guild. I will kill you here today!”
*Weren't you planning to kill me anyway?*
Heukmugwang nocked three arrows at once.
“This is called a Triple Arrow Shot!”
The moment Heukmugwang released his hand, three arrows flew.
One flew straight.
Another curved to the left.
And the other curved to the right.
Even Ha Yuseong couldn't think of a proper way to block this.
He had no choice but to grip the rock with both hands and apply force.
*CRACK!*
The rock split into three pieces.
*‘It actually worked.’*
Honestly, he hadn't known it would actually work. Indeed, he was right to trust the two grandmasters and not himself!
The arrow coming from the front hit the rock in front of him and bounced off.
*Thwack!*
Ha Yuseong swung a rock to his left.
*Thwack!*
He swung the rock in his right hand to the right.
*Thwack!*
Silence fell once more.
*‘Uh, this is awkward.’*
What am I supposed to do in a situation like this?
It's not like I have any experience blocking someone's attacks.
This was different from the tavern incident. Back then, the enemies were sent flying before anyone could say a word.
The opponent looked to be somewhere between third-rate and second-rate.
Seeing how well he used the bow, he must have just crossed over from third-rate to second-rate.
*‘A first-rate master's arrow would probably split into tens, or hundreds, of pieces mid-flight and surround me from all directions.’*
-What you just saw? It’s a fake Rain of Ten Thousand Flowers. Even a third-rate martial artist can pull that off.
Someone's mistaken joke had been taken to heart by Ha Yuseong.
And so, Ha Yuseong turned around and said.
“That guy’s out of arrows, you know?”
“Ahem.”
Jegal Biyeon cleared her throat and said.
“Now. Attack!”