Chapter 65
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Yang Cho-gun's Past
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This was all because of Yang Dan-won's birth mother.
She was the lady of the house in the Hainan Sect, a woman who held the sect's household affairs in the palm of her hand and kneaded them at will.
Why would a woman like that give such precious elixirs to a child born from her husband's affair?
Every time she saw Yang Cho-gun, she would say, "The fact that I haven't thrown you out and let you cling to the Hainan Sect is already a great mercy from me!" She never let him forget his place.
As time passed, the gap between the kids who consumed the elixirs and himself only widened.
After a year, he was demoted to a second-class disciple.
Among the second-class disciples, the rich kids had gotten their hands on extra elixirs separately and achieved faster progress than him.
He prided himself on not being inferior to anyone in skill, which made it all the more frustrating.
But it wasn't enough against kids who grew unrecognizably strong overnight from the elixirs.
He resented his father, but his father showed no interest in him at all.
His father, Yang Mu-hun, was a man completely under his wife's thumb.
One day, unable to control his lust, he raped a servant girl who was cleaning his room, and that was how I was born.
My mother was a blooming flower of a girl at sixteen back then. After that day, when her belly swelled rapidly, he acknowledged the child inside as his and accepted me into the family.
But unfortunately, my mother passed away not long after giving birth to me. So I was raised by the servants.
My father already had plenty of children, so he never sought me out.
He didn't take any concubines, but with his lawful wife, Lady Oh, he had fathered no fewer than ten children.
Truly remarkable marital harmony. And in the midst of it all, the unnecessary me was born.
My father neither loved my mother nor was in any dire need of more heirs.
So naturally, he became indifferent toward me.
In fact, he even seemed uncomfortable whenever our eyes met.
Probably wary of his wife's watchful gaze.
Anyway, while being ostracized in the family like that, I met an old-looking dark-skinned foreigner in a small port village.
The Hainan Sect's location was full of big and small ports, so Westerners often passed through, making it no big deal to spot one.
What drew my interest to him was simply the ornate, slender foreign weapon hanging from his waist.
I wondered about that Western sword.
'What use would such a thin blade have in real combat? Could it even generate proper power?'
I was terribly curious.
It felt like the first time in my life I'd been this curious about something.
After that day, I frequented the port village. And every time I went, I saw that Westerner.
It was strange.
Most Westerners who came here unloaded their cargo, loaded up, and left.
But not this one.
He was always there in the village.
"……."
I wanted to get close to him. But I didn't know his language.
So I just hovered around him.
Then one day.
Someone approached me and spoke.
"Hello there?"
"Gah!"
The blue-eyed Westerner approached first and greeted me—in fluent local tongue, no less.
I was stunned.
"Ah, uh, hello……."
I fumbled, my tongue tied, when he extended his hand and said,
"I'm Louis. What's your name?"
"Yang... Yang Cho-gun."
"Aha! Yan Cho-gun."
"Yang!"
"Yan."
"Yang!"
"Yan."
"Yaaaang!"
"Yaaaayan!"
"……."
Just as I gave up in exasperation, he took my hand and clasped it in his.
Then he shook it.
'Huh? What's this?'
"This is how we greet in my country. Come on, a handshake."
"Ah, handshake?"
And so I exchanged greetings with that giant-handed Western man in the Western style.
That was my first meeting with my master.
From that day on, I spent more time in the small coastal port village with Louis than back home.
I loved hearing his tales of the wonders from the West.
Louis was popular with the village kids. Whenever I went to see him, he was always playing with them.
Thanks to him, I quickly befriended the local kids too, and hanging out with them gradually brightened my sullen face.
After that, I learned a great deal from Louis while spending time with him.
Western martial arts and knowledge, among other things.
I was especially fascinated by their martial arts.
Even treated like a good-for-nothing, I was still from a martial family.
I even sparred swordsmanship with him.
Out of curiosity, I asked for a match, and he gladly accepted.
He seemed quite interested in Eastern sword arts himself.
The result... was a total rout.
I couldn't keep up with his movements at all.
Contrary to expectations, Louis was an incredibly skilled swordsman.
From then on, whenever I had a chance, I challenged him to spars. Of course, I lost every time.
Louis was truly a master of tremendous skill.
Sparring with him made him feel like a monster.
It was like facing the master who taught the first-class disciples.
Western swordsmanship was truly profound.
Instead of blocking enemy attacks with that thin blade, it deflected them while immediately targeting vitals.
Every motion—attack and defense—flowed seamlessly like water, as if one continuous movement.
Each time, I realized Western martial arts were not to be underestimated.
Half a year passed, and thanks to the thousand-year blood ginseng Louis gave me, I achieved massive internal energy growth and reclaimed my spot as a first-class disciple.
It was all thanks to Louis. But that wasn't all.
Louis roamed the mountains researching Eastern herbs, collecting all sorts of plants, venomous snakes, and insects.
Some were extremely rare, but others were outright poisonous to humans.
He tasted them himself and diligently noted his observations in his native script.
Thanks to that, he once shat blood for a week, suffered chills in midsummer, or broke out in rashes and hives all over his body.
He gave me every safe herb after his experiments.
Thus, in record time, I built internal energy rivaling the sect's top prodigy.
All thanks to Master Louis.
'Master...'
Yang Cho-gun snapped back to reality at Yang Dan-won's call, lost in fond memories of his master.
"Hey! Answer when I ask you something! Zoning out like that? You ignoring me right now?"
"Do I have any reason to tell you?"
"Should've crippled your martial arts when I kicked you out. Or maybe right now..."
Watching Yang Dan-won so casually threaten to destroy his internal energy, Yang Cho-gun thought nothing had changed about that rotten family.
He could guess that if Yang Dan-won became the Hainan Sect leader someday, he'd surely try to cripple his arts.
"Cripple my martial arts? What did I do wrong?"
"Don't you think it drags the family name through the mud every time you prance around with that Westerner's sword and get called a Yang barbarian?"
"I'm no longer part of the Hainan Sect. Why would the sect get insulted because of me?"
"You say that now?!"
Yang Dan-won launched a sudden attack.
―Ching!
It was a swift draw rivaling Yang Cho-gun's, but he blocked Yang Dan-won's strike effortlessly.
"The ones who should be ashamed are the Hainan Sect. When my master risked his life to protect the village, what was the Hainan Sect doing?"
―Clang! Ching-ching!
"We never asked to be protected! To us, pirates and that guy are both barbarians eyeing the Central Plains!"
"You said you'd kill me if I called you a barbarian."
In an instant, Yang Cho-gun's rapier whirled toward Yang Dan-won like a vortex and thrust forth.
Infused with sword energy, it left a blue whirlwind afterimage in the air.
"Kuh!"
Yang Dan-won hurriedly unleashed Four Seas Flying Heaven Wind.
For a moment, it seemed like his form split into four.
But even with Four Seas Flying Heaven Wind, he couldn't fully evade Yang Cho-gun's rapier. A long gash appeared on his shoulder, blood slowly seeping out.
Yang Dan-won quickly stanched the bleeding and shouted in agony.
"You bastard! Falling Sun Dragon Slayer Sword!"
Enraged, Yang Dan-won unleashed the Falling Sun Dragon Slayer Sword technique toward Yang Cho-gun.
The blindingly fast Falling Sun Dragon Slayer Sword wove dazzling changes, aiming for Yang Cho-gun's vital points.
But Yang Cho-gun countered even faster.
True to his offensive prowess over defense, it was a swift response.
"I never lose in speed!"
To watch their exchange, which left only blurry afterimages, everyone had to strain their eyes.
Their movements were that quick.
The fighters in the stands were admiring Yang Cho-gun's swordsmanship.
Everyone knew Hainan Sect swordsmanship was exceptional. Yet he wasn't yielding an inch against it.
That alone was enough to amaze the crowd.
Some grumbled in frustration.
"Damn it. Paid good money for these hard-to-get seats, and I can't even see shit."
"Hell. It's not just us who can't see, right?"
"Those aren't even human. If you run into guys like that, you die without knowing how."
"Best to steer clear of anyone who looks like a murim warrior."
Regardless of their complaints, the match on stage grew ever fiercer.
"Flying Swallow Soul Chasing Sword!"
Yang Dan-won moved like a swift swallow, unleashing relentless attacks that left spectators' souls nearly fleeing their bodies.
But Yang Cho-gun's feat of countering them all wasn't to be taken lightly either.
Yang Cho-gun leisurely parried the Flying Swallow Soul Chasing Sword and said,
Clang! Clang! Ching-ching!
"You know what? You've never beaten me."