Chapter 58
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Sima Liang's Fiancée
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I could see Un Ja-cheon watching us both. His expression was no different from Cheon-sim-dan's.
Suddenly, he pointed at me with his finger and then drew it across his throat.
'You're dead by my hand.' That seemed to be the message.
'Ho ho. In that case, I can't just let it slide without a response.'
I pointed back at him, extending my index finger once, then my pinky, followed by my middle finger, and finally gave him a thumbs-up.
The flustered Un Ja-cheon turned to the guy next to him named Ja Wol, mimicking the same gestures—index, pinky, middle, thumb—as if asking what it meant.
But of course, he wouldn't know. It wasn't an insult from this era, after all.
The next match was for second-year senior Yeop Cheon-woo.
And his opponent was someone I had a lot of interest in.
He was none other than Heo Mu-seong, grandson of Heo Cheon-seong, the Demonic Cult Leader.
His face was utterly expressionless, betraying nothing.
Moreover, facing an Imperial Palace Martial Academy fighter seemed to dull his enthusiasm even further.
"G-Guard! Hiyaap!"
'Hmm, he's way too tense. At this rate, I won't get a proper look at his skills.'
Senior Yeop Cheon-woo must have been rattled by the rumors of his opponent being a Demonic Cultist, as he couldn't bring out even half his usual prowess.
He deployed the Huang Clan Spear Technique as he'd been taught, but his attacks posed no threat to Heo Mu-seong whatsoever.
Heo Mu-seong merely dodged with his arms crossed, looking thoroughly annoyed.
The skill gap was so vast that spectators watched with pitying eyes.
Soon, some yawned out of boredom, while others even stepped away briefly.
Heo Mu-seong seemed loath to even exchange blows with Senior Yeop Cheon-woo, content to evade endlessly.
Unable to bear the humiliation any longer, Senior Yeop Cheon-woo declared defeat and stepped down from the arena.
The next bout pitted Wudang's Cho Yu-rim against Deung Heo-cheong of the Death God Sect.
Everyone had predicted a win for the famed Wudang, but the match unfolded strangely.
Against all expectations of a Wudang rout, Deung Heo-cheong of the Death God Sect dominated Cho Yu-rim from start to finish.
'They've done their homework thoroughly.'
I could tell at a glance this wasn't a fluke victory.
Even in modern MMA, thoroughly analyzing your opponent beforehand is essential.
Studying their weaknesses, habits, common strategies—everything.
The Death God Sect had prepared meticulously, and it showed. I'd heard they started as a mere assassin group but evolved into one of the top unorthodox sword sects after stumbling upon a master's insights during a mission.
Today, they fully leveraged their specialty—information warfare—to topple Wudang, the preeminent sword sect of the righteous factions.
Their stock would soar even higher after this.
Whether this signaled Wudang's decline or just a skill disparity between the two, I couldn't say.
'If Master had given up on revenge, could he have built a sect like the Death God Sect?'
As that thought crossed my mind, Group 2's matches wrapped up.
Groups 3 and 4 would continue tomorrow, followed soon by the women's division.
After a short break, the women's division began.
The Imperial Palace Martial Academy had no female cadets at all, so only the two academies participated this time.
With few female experts in either academy, the women's bracket started straight at the quarterfinals.
Dang Yeo-rim and Baek Sa-hong represented Dragon Academy's female elites. Among the remaining four, one unexpected figure stood out.
'Wait, that woman?'
It was Nip Baek-hap, granddaughter of the Thousand Gold Merchant Group Leader.
I now understood why she'd scoffed when I mentioned heading to the Imperial Palace Martial Academy.
She was a Dragon Academy cadet.
'Then why wasn't she at Cheonhyang? Was she deliberately avoiding me?'
It made sense. She harbored no fondness for me.
Anyway, I looked forward to witnessing the impressive skills she boasted about. My hand instinctively reached for popcorn.
Too bad there was none here.
'Hmm, maybe snag some puffed rice next time instead.'
Lost in such thoughts while watching the women's matches, I witnessed something unbelievable.
Among Demon Dragon Academy's female experts was a woman of enormous build.
Her massive frame rivaled even ancient warriors, impossible to miss even from afar.
At that moment, Sima Liang's hand began trembling violently.
I stared at it and asked,
"Are you that nervous?"
"N-No, it's not that."
"You're stuttering."
"It's not because of the match."
"If you're scared of competing..."
I didn't want to force him to fight with fiery spirit if he dreaded it.
I was even prepared to let him forfeit if he wished.
We'd already earned plenty of fame.
But seeing Sima Liang's face twist in shock, I sensed his tremors stemmed from something else. I turned toward where he stared.
I couldn't help flinching.
A hulking woman had silently approached and now stood right before me.
She was the Demon Dragon Academy expert I'd just spotted.
'She moved from that distance here this fast?'
It was lightfoot work unbelievable for such a giant.
Her voice flowed like jade beads rolling.
But the term she addressed Sima Liang with stunned those around us.
"My lord."
Sima Liang's flustered face hardened gravely as he blurted,
"Wh-Why am I your lord?"
"Because we're engaged."
"We haven't even held the wedding!"
"That's just been postponed for now."
"I-I don't want any wedding..."
Before he could finish, the giant woman cut him off, refusing to hear more.
"There must be a reason you entered the Imperial Palace Martial Academy, my lord. When you graduate, we'll hold the ceremony then. I'll take my leave."
She vanished like the wind, just as she'd arrived.
As odd as it sounds, her agility at that size felt downright cheat-like.
Once she was gone, all eyes locked onto Sima Liang without relenting.
"W-Well, you see..."
"What the hell happened?"
"Spill it properly."
"Did you two sleep together?"
Jo Chil-bong's idiotic question earned him a furious beating from the surrounding comrades.
As the punches subsided, Sima Liang finally spoke up.
"Th-The truth is, that woman's my fiancée."
"What? Fiancée?"
"She's the very reason I fled my clan and came to the Imperial Palace Martial Academy."
His confession left me and the others speechless, unable to muster any words of comfort.
"Kuhum... Heh! To think you had such a tragic backstory..."
Pyo Gi-myeong's valiant struggle to suppress his laughter while consoling him was truly touching.
The women's matches unfolded with fierce intensity.
First up: Sichuan Tang Clan's Dang Yeo-rim versus Poison King Sect's Baek Seol-gi.
Their venomous cries filled the arena.
Dang Yeo-rim, fiancée of Jang Baek-pung, displayed prowess befitting the clan head's daughter.
Her Poison King Sect counterpart was no pushover either.
The Poison King Sect rivaled any in poison mastery.
Together with the outsider Five Poison Sect, they formed the Three Great Poison Sects.
With poisons banned this tournament, both wielded their clan secret weapons.
Dang Yeo-rim brandished iron chains, Baek Seol-gi meteor hammers.
Their chains and hammers clashed fiercely in midair.
"Golden Dragon Chain Technique!"
"Heavenly Thunder Hammer Technique!"
Dang Yeo-rim's chains writhed like serpents, deflecting Baek Seol-gi's meteor hammers.
The hammers' weight cratered the arena floor repeatedly.
But Dang Yeo-rim held the edge.
Soon, Baek Seol-gi was cornered and pushed out, handing victory to Dang Yeo-rim.
"Sichuan Tang Clan, Dang Yeo-rim wins!"
"Wooooow!"
"Long live Dang Yeo-rim!"
Jang Baek-pung's grin stretched ear to ear at her win.
Next: Baek Sa-hong of the Baek Clan versus Cha Yu-rim of Blazing Flower Valley.
Both were formidable female experts.
Baek Sa-hong wielded a sword, Cha Yu-rim twin daggers, unleashing a thrilling flurry of sword qi.
Baek Sa-hong's swordsmanship was straightforward yet razor-sharp.
It mirrored her cool, no-nonsense personality—precise and without excess.
Her opponent Cha Yu-rim burned with fiery temper.
Their clash evoked fire versus water, trading blows in perfect equilibrium.
Clang! Chaeng! Pafat! —Cha-cha-chang!
But past the hundredth exchange, the gap emerged.
Baek Sa-hong began overwhelming Cha Yu-rim bit by bit.
The contest world is merciless.
In the end, Baek Sa-hong claimed victory.
Defeated Cha Yu-rim teared up, indignant.
Next came the long-awaited match for Nip Baek-hap.
Her foe: Wol Mi-hyang of the Whispering Shadow Sect. But it proved disappointingly dull.
They barely traded thirty exchanges before her opponent dropped her weapon.
Not due to Nip Baek-hap's brilliance, but her rival's inadequacy.
Spectators sighed in disappointment, a far cry from prior bouts.
At this rate, Dragon Academy seemed poised to dominate the women's division just like the men's.
The final women's match: Emei's Cheon Ryeon-ok versus Iron Blood Sect's Yang So-so.
Yang So-so was none other than Sima Liang's fiancée.
She ascended the arena dual-wielding wolf-fang maces suited to her massive frame.
Grasping custom maces in both hands, she resembled a wrathful yaksha with diamond clubs.
"......"
Cheon Ryeon-ok of Emei seemed doomed, already cowed by her opponent's sheer size.