Chapter 76: I'm No Joke
The news that Yeop Hyeon had slaughtered three Changmok Academy students with a single strike spread like wildfire throughout the Imperial City.
The entire city buzzed with excitement.
Before they were Changmok Academy students, those men Yeop Hyeon killed had been officials of the court. The tale of him cutting down the kingdom's warriors was more than enough to stir the pride of Jiang Kingdom's people.
On the flip side, the gaze toward Changmok Academy had soured.
Waging war against Cheongran Academy wasn't anything new, so that alone wasn't a huge issue. But calling in the authorities? That was drawing heavy criticism.
Of course, any complaints had to be swallowed down deep inside. Speaking ill of Changmok Academy—an existence as lofty as the heavens—could mean your head rolling at any moment.
This incident seemed to shift opinions toward Cheongran Academy, if only slightly. Crowds poured into Canglan Mountain every day. Among them, a group of women was often spotted craning their necks, peering around as if waiting for someone.
* * *
Inside the grand hall of Changmok Academy.
I Hyeon-chang sat in the highest seat. Flanking him on either side were the instructors and elders of Changmok Academy.
These were the core figures of the academy.
I Hyeon-chang spoke up.
"All three were Soaring Realm experts, yet they couldn't even withstand a single strike from Yeop Hyeon before their heads were severed. What do you all make of this?"
Silence hung heavy in the hall.
Everyone's faces were grim.
Those three court warriors weren't on Fen Jue's level, but they were far from weak.
And yet, they hadn't lasted even one exchange—all of them losing their heads.
What's more, Yeop Hyeon was merely at the Control Qi Realm!
This wasn't a challenge; it was like betting on who would die first.
At that moment, an elder broke the stillness, rising from his seat.
"It seems he's grown to the point where no one but An National Scholar can stop him. For now, we should dispatch messenger birds to prevent pointless challenges and needless deaths..."
"Why bother?"
I Hyeon-chang cut him off in a flat tone.
"Let them keep coming. Let them die."
The others stared at him in confusion.
"The more he kills, the more enemies he'll make. In the end, he'll turn the seventy-two Changmok Academies of Qingzhou against him!"
Borrow a knife to kill—using others to eliminate a foe!
Only then did those in the hall grasp I Hyeon-chang's intent.
I Hyeon-chang slowly closed his eyes. With Fen Jue dead, Bei Chen was the only student left propping up Jiang Kingdom's Changmok Academy.
One wasn't enough.
If they couldn't keep sending geniuses to the head academy in Central Divine Continent, the resources flowing to their branch would dwindle. That was a fatal blow for them.
Every year, the head academy sent techniques, martial skills, and spirit artifacts to each branch.
Branches had to send talented warriors in return to receive those treasures.
Talent!
In this era, it was the most vital—and scarcest—resource.
Even the Changmok Academy headquarters in Central Divine Continent was locked in fierce power struggles and intrigue. To hold their ground, they needed talent above all.
Jiang Kingdom's branch had already lost its absolute ace, Fen Jue. They were falling behind the other branches. There wasn't time to cultivate new students. The only option was to thin out the geniuses from rival branches.
Dealing with Cheongran Academy would consume plenty of those other academies' top talents.
And if someone actually killed Yeop Hyeon? All the better. They could just sit back and watch the beasts tear each other apart.
Yeop Hyeon!
Thinking of him made I Hyeon-chang's head throb again. He'd lost far too much because of that bastard.
But what enraged him more was the fact that Yeop Hyeon had originally belonged to Changmok Academy.
If they'd accepted him from the start, things never would have come to this!
Instead, Cheongran Academy had taken him in and used him as a springboard to resurgence.
I Hyeon-chang spoke again.
"Spread the word once more. Whoever kills Yeop Hyeon will receive two Earth-grade superior weapons, two Earth-grade techniques, a million top-grade spirit stones—and the right to cultivate in our Jiang Kingdom Changmok Academy's secret realm."
The hall fell silent once more.
Two Earth-grade superior weapons! Two Earth-grade techniques! And top-grade spirit stones!
This was massive bloodletting!
A reward like that could easily hire a Divine Fusion Realm expert for an assassination!
And they were offering it for some Control Qi Realm punk?
"Dean, isn't that too much?"
"Too much?"
I Hyeon-chang fixed the questioning elder with a cold glare.
"If he lives, he'll become Changmok Academy's greatest obstacle one day. We have to go all out now to erase him! Otherwise, the day will come when it's not our students' heads on the line—but ours!"
A genius.
Make them yours, or kill them.
And Yeop Hyeon was Cheongran Academy's genius.
Already a great sword cultivator, if he became a Sword Lord or Sword Emperor and turned his blade on them, it would threaten Changmok Academy's very survival.
Sword Lord! Sword Emperor!?
I Hyeon-chang's face darkened further.
Just then, a middle-aged man burst into the hall, gasping for breath.
"D-Dean... Y-Yeop Hyeon... he's here!"
Yeop Hyeon!? Why here?
Everyone's eyes widened in shock.
At the entrance to Cang Mountain.
A lone warrior stood sword in hand, staring blankly at the gate. The Changmok Academy students facing him eyed him warily.
"Don't get so tense. I'm just here to practice my calligraphy."
Yeop Hyeon began dancing with his sword.
When the flashy display ended, letters emerged from the settling dust.
'Come and try to kill me!'
The Changmok students' faces turned icy at the sight.
This was blatant mockery of their academy!
As they moved to charge, Dean I Hyeon-chang and his entourage appeared.
The moment I Hyeon-chang opened his mouth to speak, Yeop Hyeon turned and left.
His steps were so swift, he vanished from sight in an instant.
Where he'd stood, a single sentence remained.
'Hundreds of students, and not a single one with balls!'
I Hyeon-chang's face twisted in rage.
The other Changmok warriors flushed beet red.
To them, this was an unbearable humiliation.
A few tried to pursue, but the instructors and elders blocked them.
I Hyeon-chang barked in a frigid voice.
"All of you, back to the mountain!"
The students didn't dare defy him, turning away reluctantly.
One woman stared at Yeop Hyeon's retreating back, her voice laced with frustration.
"Why won't you let me go after him!?"
It was Bei Chen. She shook her head at Bei Chen's words.
"In Jiang Kingdom right now, only An National Scholar could stop him."
Bei Chen fell silent, unable to argue.
Her strength was evenly matched with Fen Jue's—so she knew she couldn't take Yeop Hyeon either.
Gazing at Yeop Hyeon, now barely visible, she murmured.
"How he survived that day without dying... it's downright eerie."
She turned to Bei Chen.
"You must never go after him on your own. The academy will handle him quietly."
Bei Chen remained silent.
Meanwhile, Yeop Hyeon headed straight for Cheongran Academy after leaving Changmok.
This visit had been behind Dean Ji Yuan Zhang's back. He'd wanted to kill a few, but with I Hyeon-chang showing up, he'd settled for leaving some words.
Ever since they'd kidnapped his little sister last time, Yeop Hyeon's hatred for Changmok Academy had reached its peak.
If he ran into one of their students on the road, he'd cut them down without hesitation.
Suddenly, Yeop Hyeon stopped. His eyes caught a girl crouched by the roadside. She looked about twelve. She wore a black skirt emblazoned with a single skull flower.
The girl was whittling a piece of wood. Her work was crude at best.
She turned her head and looked at Yeop Hyeon.
Now he could see her face clearly. It was far from beautiful. Her gloomy, murky eyes stirred unease in anyone who met them.
After a brief hesitation, Yeop Hyeon approached and knelt beside her. He took the wood and carving knife from her, smiling as he asked.
"What do you want to carve?"
The girl silently pointed to her skirt.
Her finger indicated a tiny black bird. Strangely, it had only one leg.
Yeop Hyeon pondered for a moment, then his hands flew into motion.
Soon, a carving emerged that looked ready to take flight.
Yeop Hyeon had a special reason for his skill with carvings. When he couldn't afford toys for Yeop Ryeong, he'd whittled them himself from wood as gifts for his sister.
After countless pieces, he'd become a master carver. Ordinary wood transformed into vivid sculptures in his hands.
Of course, the skill wasn't terribly useful. But making Yeop Ryeong happy was satisfaction enough.
Yeop Hyeon held out the bird carving.
"Here you go!"
The girl took it gingerly, glancing between him and the carving. Yeop Hyeon chuckled.
"Carving needs a calm heart. Rush it, and it'll turn into a mess!"
He picked up another piece of wood from the ground and carved swiftly. In moments, a human figure took shape.
It bore a striking resemblance to the girl.
She stared at it, entranced.
"Here!"
The girl took it wordlessly.
Yeop Hyeon smiled and patted her head. It was an unconscious habit, born from stroking Yeop Ryeong's hair so often.
At that instant, the girl whipped her head around, glaring at him with unsettling eyes.
Yeop Hyeon flinched in surprise and pulled his hand back.
She turned her gaze back to the wooden doll.
Yeop Hyeon studied her closely. She seemed like an ordinary girl—no trace of qi waves.
Suddenly, he spoke up.
"Kid, are you actually some hidden peerless warrior?"
The girl looked at him.
Yeop Hyeon grinned foolishly, glanced around, then whispered.
"I'll share a secret with you!"
His hand twitched, and the Spirit Water Sword appeared.
The girl stared at it impassively.
Pointing to it, Yeop Hyeon murmured.
"Sword cultivator. I'm a great sword cultivator. No joke, right?"