Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Honeyed Words, Sword in the Belly (12)
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Dark Sword.
It was the moniker bestowed upon Nangong Seonwi, the guardian of the Nangong Clan's shadows. In the past, having survived the Sword Demon War, Nangong Seonwi had come to embrace the creed that martial might came above all else.
Those fresh-faced youngsters who hadn't lived through that battle couldn't possibly understand. The overwhelming valor of the Sword Demon he had witnessed that day. At first, it filled him with terror—that utterly absurd level of power.
And that terror soon twisted into an obsession. Nangong Seonwi didn't believe the Sword Demon was truly dead. He was convinced the monster would one day return to the martial world.
To ensure such a nightmare never repeated itself, Nangong Seonwi pursued power by any means necessary, no matter how ruthless. And so, he earned the title of the Nangong Clan's Dark Sword.
"Impressive... so you've got the basics down. For a mere phantom."
"Pardon?"
"It's nothing. Withdraw now and evacuate the survivors."
"Y-yes, sir! Please be careful, Elder Nangong Seonwi!"
Nangong Seonwi dismissed him with a casual wave and strode forward with light steps. Sure enough, the clan's warriors lay sprawled before the main gate, blood pooling beneath them.
"You don't bother chasing the ones who flee yourself? For someone claiming to be the Sword Demon, you're softer than I imagined."
"...And who might you be?"
"Forgive the late introduction. I am Nangong Seonwi, Seventh Elder of the Nangong Clan, the Dark Sword. You can just call me the Sword Demon for short."
"You seem to know I'm not the real Sword Demon. So why call me that?"
"I've never said you aren't the Sword Demon. Be careful—daytime whispers reach the birds, nighttime ones the rats."
Even amid the rubble where buildings had been sliced clean like tofu, Nangong Seonwi stood calmly before Nameless. But for the first time in his life, Nameless hardened his expression, glaring at the elder.
'He's on a different level from any expert I've faced so far. At least Transcendent Realm... no, possibly even Fusion Realm or beyond.'
Judging by the pressure prickling his skin, Nameless figured that was about right. Then again, a clan like the Nangong wouldn't be strange for producing a Fusion Realm master.
'Just as I thought—not the real Sword Demon after all.'
On the flip side, Nangong Seonwi was certain the old man before him wasn't the Sword Demon. Though outwardly, he didn't seem like some empty blowhard.
But that wasn't enough.
Not nearly enough to touch the real 'Sword Demon.'
Which was why Nangong Seonwi had orchestrated this himself.
'The Demonic Cult, the Sword Demon—both are thorns in our side. From the Nangong Clan's perspective, the best outcome would've been for those two to clash and mutually destroy each other... Well, life doesn't always go as planned.'
That day, to claim victory in the Sword Demon War, the Nangong Clan had secretly allied with the Demonic Cult. Thanks to that, they triumphed, and the Nangong rose to lead the Orthodox Murim Alliance.
But the real problem lay elsewhere. The Demonic Cult, which they thought would self-destruct soon after, proved far more tenacious than expected.
Naturally, Nangong Seonwi had long advocated purging them—not out of righteousness, but because the Demonic Cult knew far too many of the Nangong Clan's dirty secrets.
Yet his pleas fell on deaf ears within the clan. The other elders and the patriarch prioritized avoiding old wounds.
[Why dirty our own hands unnecessarily?]
[...They know too much, Patriarch.]
[If it becomes a problem, we'll handle it then.]
Truly lamentable. If they'd shown this resolve back then, been willing to bloody their hands... The Demonic Cult wouldn't be rampant today.
"Pretext is always necessary. Especially for those lording over others like the Nangong Clan. And it lets us eliminate all our irritants at once—truly killing two birds with one stone."
"What connection did you have with the Demonic Cult? No— what even happened in the Sword Demon War?"
"Did you really think I'd tell you myself?"
"..."
"I did warn you earlier. Always watch your words. So let's end this fruitless chatter."
This commotion in the Nangong Clan's courtyard provided ample justification for them to 'subdue' the Sword Demon. Especially since the foe wasn't even the genuine article.
"Today marks the day the Nangong Clan overcomes the Sword Demon."
Rest easy. The Demonic Cult dogs will follow in your footsteps soon enough.
True to his moniker of Dark Sword, Nangong Seonwi's blade was brutally savage. There was no trace of purity in his ferocious style—it resembled the unorthodox paths more than the orthodox sects.
In truth, it was only natural. In the past, Nangong Seonwi had been utterly crushed by the Sword Demon and plunged into despair. To overcome it, he poured every effort into his training.
And in that process, echoes of the Sword Demon he'd personally faced seeped into his own style—a natural evolution, one might say. To him, the Sword Demon symbolized despair.
Yet also envy. No warrior could fail to covet that overwhelming might. Nangong Seonwi's sword swung wide.
BOOM!!
The massive impact drove Nameless's legs deep into the earth, cracking the ground. A clash between two Transcendent masters was nothing short of a natural disaster to ordinary folk.
'His sword is heavy. Far heavier than the Moyong Clan patriarch I faced before...!! Definitely the same Transcendent Realm as me... no, beyond that!!'
As proof, the sword aura flowing from Nangong Seonwi's blade was far denser than that of Moyong Gang, the Moyong patriarch. The moment he saw it, Nameless realized.
No doubt about it.
That was the hallmark of the Fusion Realm.
Sword gang, transcending mere sword aura.
Of course, it was just Nameless's misconception. In this place, let alone wielding sword gang, virtually no one but him even knew the concept existed.
To counter Nangong Seonwi, Nameless unleashed his own sword aura. Soon, the blades of the two men, cloaked in aura, swung toward each other.
Surprisingly, the one pushed back head-on was none other than Nameless. Completely overpowered in raw strength, he couldn't help but panic. He'd never been outmatched like this before.
Even against Moyong Gang, he'd held back to subdue without killing. The moment he'd fought all-out, victory was his.
But this old man was different. There was reason he was called the Dark Sword. Against Nameless, Nangong Seonwi held his own perfectly—showing even a slight edge.
'No, is what I'm facing now not just raw power?'
He'd first thought it was pure strength overwhelming him. But the more their swords clashed, the stranger it felt. Like battling a massive log.
"You look rattled. Well, having crushed your foes so easily until now, it's understandable."
"...Tch!!"
"But I'm on a different level from those you've faced."
Unlike other swords emphasizing speed or sharpness, this was the king's blade—infused with the essence of overwhelming heaviness through a massive heavy sword. The Nangong Clan's heaviest technique.
Emperor Sword Form
The Emperor Sword Form began to crush Nameless.
A half-hearted resolve breeds hesitation, and hesitation weakens a man.
By contrast, Nangong Seonwi had faced defeat against the Sword Demon decades ago in his middle years and forged his path. A path eerily similar to the Sword Demon's.
One that scorned means for the sake of ends. The difference? No matter how much Nangong Seonwi inwardly admired the Sword Demon's power and yearned to emulate it...
Becoming the Sword Demon outright was nigh impossible. But mimicking him? For an ordinary warrior, even that was extraordinary.
BOOM!!
The Emperor Sword Form's heavy strikes swiftly bore down on Nameless. The Dark Sword was among the top handful of experts even in the Five Great Clans, having attained the pinnacle of poison immunity.
Half-hearted tricks wouldn't work on him. He was one of the few survivors who'd witnessed the true Sword Demon—and grown several times stronger since.
If this were the old Nameless, he might have quailed before Nangong Seonwi's seemingly dominant might, or even fled in fear. But now was different.
"...You're strong. Damn strong."
A fight to the death, no holds barred, no one to restrain him. With the battlefield before him—a chance to prove his own strength—Nameless grinned.
[Do not be overwhelmed by the enemy's strength. Devour their strength and grow stronger yourself.]
Memories of someone bound, once skirted along the edge of death, began to unravel bit by bit.