The Murim Alliance Assembly
The Murim Alliance Meeting. As the name suggests, it was a grand gathering held under the leadership of the Murim Alliance. In the early days following the Blood Cult calamity, when the alliance had only just been formed, the meeting served as the ultimate festival of the entire murim—encompassing the orthodox, the neutral, and even the unorthodox factions—and functioned as the highest deliberative body for charting the murim’s future. Even now, with the Black Lotus Union having withdrawn along with the rest of the unorthodox side, the prestige of the Murim Alliance Meeting remained undiminished. Whenever it was convened, the Black Lotus Union, which divided the murim with the alliance, and even the imperial court held their breath and watched its proceedings. If outsiders reacted that way, the movements of the participants themselves hardly needed mentioning.
The orthodox murim converged on Luoyang. Even the Nine Great Sects, notorious for their reluctance to leave their mountain strongholds, descended from their remote valleys, while the Seven Great Families had long since dispatched their chosen representatives to the city. Was that all? Far from it. Though the Nine Great Sects and Seven Great Families formed the core of the meeting, it was the smaller sects and various martial clans that filled the gaps between the pillars and built the walls. Those who usually remained overshadowed by the great powers often made their names at the Murim Alliance Meeting, so it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were the true protagonists of the event.
Those who spoke of great causes. Those who sought fame. Those who desired growth. Those who chased after wealth. All manner of people gathered in Luoyang. Yet they could largely be divided into two groups: those who came for the alliance meeting itself, and those who came for the martial competition. The alliance meeting, where the upper echelons of the orthodox murim gathered to decide the alliance’s policies, was where the major sects generally focused their efforts. Conversely, the smaller sects, whose voices carried less weight in the meeting, staked everything on the martial competition. That did not mean the great sects neglected the competition, however; in truth, nearly all the young talents known as the rising stars came to Luoyang with the competition as their primary goal rather than the meeting.
Luoyang buzzed with countless stories, enough to make the old saying about Chang’an’s gossip seem forgotten. The topics of conversation shifted with each passing day. Just yesterday, people had been boasting that someone from the Sichuan Tang Clan had arrived; today, they were talking about a famous figure from the Zhongnan Sect. Yet even this torrent of rumors never reached the annex of the Changmu Inn. The place had severed all contact with the outside world, transformed into a kind of closed-door training ground.
“Imagine a swallow in flight. How does it feel?”
“Fast!”
“And?”
“And… um… incredibly fast!”
In the training yard before the annex, a girl was panting as she practiced footwork and swung her sword with intense concentration. It was Namgung Sol. The man speaking to her was, of course, Namgung Woo.
At her answer, Namgung Woo ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “The swallow’s flight is defined by its ability to make sharp turns without losing speed. Don’t try to brake forcibly. Ride the flow and open your sword path along with it.”
“Ugh… How do I… Hah!?”
Thud! Roll—
Namgung Sol’s footwork tangled and she tumbled across the yard. Fortunately, she had been maintaining her protective qi at all times, a habit honed since childhood through diligent internal energy training. She suffered no injuries, though she still rose unsteadily, her head spinning.
“The Swallow Spiral Step still feels awkward…”
Having newly learned the Swallow Spiral Step, a footwork technique better suited to the Azure Sky Flying Swallow Sword Art, Namgung Sol grumbled her excuse even as she began practicing the steps again at a slower pace. Knowing that she voiced her difficulties yet never stopped, Namgung Woo continued offering guidance from the side.
“There was once a martial artist in the Eastern Continent who created a flying sword technique to catch swallows in flight. He was said to be one of the foremost sword masters there. Only a swordsman of that caliber could hope to match a swallow’s agility and sudden directional changes. The Azure Sky Flying Swallow Sword Art and the Swallow Spiral Step were created with that swallow as their guiding image. Master them properly, and no one at a similar level will even dare raise a blade against you.”
Was that person even born yet? Namgung Woo wondered, recalling a story he had once overheard. But what caught Namgung Sol’s attention was something else entirely.
“There are martial arts in the Eastern Continent too?”
Just as Namgung Woo was about to say he didn’t know either, another voice answered for him.
“There are. The Divine Wind Gang, one of the predecessors of the Nine Dragons Society, was founded by martial artists from the Eastern Continent.”
“Oh… The world of martial arts really is vast!”
“More importantly, your footwork is about to tangle again, Uncle’s younger sister.”
“Huh? Ah!”
After watching Namgung Sol execute another spectacular fall, Namgung Woo turned to Paeng Ha-ryeong.
“It’s difficult to receive guests right now…”
The closed-door training in the small training yard of the annex was precisely for Namgung Sol’s intensive instruction. Namgung Woo had even gone so far as to issue rejection plaques to those seeking him out, yet this time his words trailed off with an exception.
“…I suppose I’ll have to make an exception today.”
The reason Paeng Ha-ryeong had come to the training yard herself was because the guest who had arrived was someone she could not simply turn away on her own.
“You said you were going to forge a single blade and return… I never expected we would meet again here in Luoyang.”
Paeng Ja-ryeong. The representative the Hebei Paeng Family had sent to this Murim Alliance Meeting was none other than him. Incidentally, today’s hottest topic in Luoyang was the Hebei Paeng Family.
§
After giving Namgung Sol her assignment, Namgung Woo led Paeng Ja-ryeong into the annex and served him the Huangshan Maofeng tea he kept for guests.
“Huangshan Maofeng! This is quite precious. I can tell it’s top-grade just from the aroma. I’ll enjoy it gratefully.”
“I obtained it through a slight connection with the Huangshan Sect. By the way, did the young master come alone? What about the others?”
Though he had said “the others,” Paeng Ja-ryeong understood that the question was really aimed at Paeng Ye-ryeong, who was practically Namgung Woo’s first disciple. He gave a wry smile.
“Please don’t ask. I had to resort to sneaking out in the middle of the night just to keep Ye-ryeong from following me. I’m not sure whether I’m the young master or the family’s disgrace.”
“Couldn’t you have just brought her along? The Blade King should be there now, after all.”
“It seems he has no intention of sending her out until this year is over. He’s been busy trying to turn the Paeng Family’s five blades into six.”
“Don’t tell me he’s creating a new blade technique?”
“Yes. Since Ye-ryeong now needs to cultivate martial arts based on the Gongryeong Taeheo Singong that our benefactor taught her, the existing five blade techniques of the Paeng Family no longer suit her. He plans to create an entirely new blade technique centered on the upper dantian. Though her heavenly gate has narrowed and her talent has weakened somewhat, she still possesses an extraordinary level of comprehension.”
Paeng Hu-sang, a supreme expert, and Paeng Ye-ryeong, born with extraordinary talent. If the two of them put their heads together, whatever they created would surely be extraordinary. It seemed Namgung Woo was not the only one in closed-door training. Just as he was teaching Namgung Sol, Paeng Hu-sang was also instructing Paeng Ye-ryeong and preparing to rebuild her martial arts from the ground up with a secret technique.
“That aside… I heard from Ha-ryeong, but…”
Paeng Ja-ryeong’s usually straightforward voice had become unusually cautious. The topic was obvious. On the day Namgung Woo had revealed his true name to Paeng Ha-ryeong, he had given permission for the Paeng Family to be informed. He believed it was only right to disclose his identity, since his presence could potentially drag the Paeng Family into the Sword Clan Blood Feud. Paeng Ha-ryeong had waited until arriving in Luoyang to send the news, fearing it might leak midway, and it seemed Paeng Ja-ryeong had learned of it during the journey.
“I haven’t read the letter Ha-ryeong sent separately, but if it concerns my name, then it’s true.”
“Hmm… So it is.”
Paeng Ja-ryeong accepted Namgung Woo’s origins with surprising composure. He had already suspected that Namgung Woo possessed an extraordinary background, and his temperament was remarkably calm and collected for someone from the Paeng Family.
“If Father had known, it wouldn’t be me sitting here—it would be him.”
“You didn’t inform the Blade King?”
“I intended to send word after confirming it myself. I destroyed the letter I received along the way.”
As the young master, Paeng Ja-ryeong possessed the authority to handle such matters with discretion before reporting.
“But even if Father had come instead of me, what he would say to our benefactor would be the same.”
The fact that Namgung Woo bore the surname Namgung. That he aimed to rebuild the Namgung Family. That the Paeng Family might become entangled in the Sword Clan Blood Feud. Despite all of that, the Hebei Paeng Family had received far too much from him to turn away.
“The Paeng Family does not forget kindness.”
They remained on Namgung Woo’s side. Seeing Namgung Woo momentarily at a loss for words, Paeng Ja-ryeong chuckled and spoke playfully.
“If things don’t work out, come to Tianjin. Our Paeng Family is quite willing to take in a live-in son-in-law.”