Chapter 100
Chapter 100
Translator: Penny
Chapter 100
Golden Grand Banquet (4)
At that moment, I was walking through the underground corridor of the Estate.
By now, Ma Lingyin must have been captured by Ma Cheolgun. He would try to talk his way out of the situation with all sorts of sweet words, but it wouldn't be easy.
Iho, who was emerging from a room at the end of the corridor, startled when he saw me.
"Why are you here?"
I strode purposefully toward him. He instinctively realized something was wrong.
"You bastard!"
He lunged forward and twisted a lantern affixed to the rear wall.
Click.
It was a device to activate the emergency mechanism.
I kicked off the corridor floor and launched myself forward, already at the end of the corridor and within range of the fourth mechanism.
Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr! Whirr!
Dozens of powerful needles shot out simultaneously from both walls and the ceiling. Not even the most skilled martial artist, let alone their grandfather, could have evaded such an attack.
The Asura Radiant King Sword was drawn with lightning speed.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Every needle aimed at me was deflected, embedding itself in the corridor walls.
Iho stared in disbelief. Even witnessing it firsthand, he couldn't comprehend what he'd just seen. The sheer number of needles was staggering, but their power and speed were even more terrifying.
"You... you're a swordsman!"
I was already charging toward him.
Iho drew his sword and lunged forward.
Shing! Swish!
Iho and I brushed past each other. His sword strikes were swift and precise, almost as if his skill level had been perfectly quantified.
If his opponent hadn't been me, and if I hadn't drawn my sword, he would never have met such an end.
I stopped in the spot where he had stood, while Iho flew through the air and crashed into the corridor I had just passed through.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
Hidden weapons from the mechanism ahead pierced his body.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Blades erupted from the floor, impaling him, while poison smoke poured from the ceiling.
Whoosh!
He likely felt no pain, having already been fatally wounded by my sword the moment we clashed.
Clang.
I returned the wall lantern to its original position. The protruding blades retracted, and the mechanism ceased its operation.
I resumed my advance. The rooms of Ma Lingyin and the Eight Guards were empty.
I paused between Im Yeonjeong's room and the mysterious chamber.
I slowly opened her door.
She stood before a spherical object, visibly tense from the sound of a mechanism activating outside.
But she clearly hadn't expected me to enter.
"You? Why are you here?" Her eyes widened as far as they could go.
"The assassination didn't go through."
"What do you mean?"
She stared at me blankly for a moment before finally grasping the situation.
"You've been deceiving him all along!"
I nodded.
"Indeed. The herb you gave me won't work either. So there's no need to worry."
"Who's worried?"
But a flicker of relief crossed her face.
"What's happened to him now?"
"He's likely been captured by Ma Cheolgun."
I answered readily, as if revealing my feelings for Ma Lingyin. She showed no concern for him.
"Are you going to kill me?"
"That depends on how you cooperate."
"What do you mean?"
"Tell me everything you know about the Mastermind."
"I can't. Even if you kill me."
Sensing her sincerity, a sudden thought struck me:
The trap she's caught in might be one that can't be escaped, even at the cost of her life. I had no intention of killing her for refusing to reveal the Mastermind.
"I'll destroy everything behind you. I'll burn all the books and research materials here."
"No! You can't!"
"I will!"
After shouting fiercely, I softened my tone.
"You hate this research, don't you?"
She was startled, wondering how he had read her mind. Yet, she also felt a surge of joy that someone finally understood her.
"Normally, I should kill you too. But just as you gave me a chance to live, I'll give you one as well. Stay with the organization or leave—the choice is yours."
Tak! Tak!
Without waiting for her reply, he struck the air, suppressing her Pressure Points.
"You don't need to move to make your decision anyway."
He scooped her up, paralyzed, and carried her toward the door. Though her Vocal Pressure Points remained untouched, allowing her to speak, she simply clung to him, silently observing his actions. He had always thought of her as voluptuous and sensual, but...
When I finally held her in my arms, she felt surprisingly frail.
After setting her down outside the door, I walked toward the central sphere.
"No!"
Despite her protest, I drew my sword without hesitation. I was about to unleash my Aura Force and shatter everything in this place when...
Creak.
The door, which hadn't been opened in ages, groaned open with a grating sound.
It was the very room behind us.
I slowly turned toward it. The door remained only slightly ajar, but a powerful energy surged through the gap.
I knew instantly: someone inside was calling to me.
As I moved toward the door, Im Yeonjeong said with a terrified expression, "If you go in there, you'll die."
I smiled at her.
"That's impossible to know. You didn't even anticipate this situation, did you?"
Im Yeonjeong took my words as confidence.
"Who exactly are you?"
"Let's talk when I get back."
I left her and entered the opposite room, closing the door to protect her from any potential harm outside.
Focusing my mind, I sharpened all my senses.
The room was completely empty, devoid of furniture or belongings. It looked exactly like a room that had been emptied after a move.
In the center sat an old man, his long, flowing hair obscuring his face. Only the glint of his eyes pierced through the strands. Beside him lay a single sword. In this room, there was only him and his blade.
An overwhelming presence filled the air.
The aura I had sensed earlier was no exaggeration. The old man was even more skilled than I had anticipated.
Can I truly defeat him in combat?
The thought struck me immediately.
Yet I wasn't surprised. Even if the door hadn't opened on its own, I had already planned to force it open anyway.
"Who are you?"
His tone was surprisingly calm.
The moment I heard his voice, I felt I had heard it somewhere before. His long, tangled hair obscured his face, making it impossible to recognize him instantly.
"I am Nameless," I replied.
He must have heard my name mentioned several times inside. After all, I had practically been living here for the past few days.
"Sit."
We sat facing each other, close enough that our fingertips would touch if we reached out. The old man fixed me with a piercing, needle-sharp gaze.
"You intend to destroy that place?"
"Yes."
"That cannot be. I promised to protect that child and that place."
This explained why the old man was in the room facing me. It also meant that this organization considered the research extremely important.
"Who did you make this promise to?"
"I cannot tell you."
"You do know, though?"
The old man flinched slightly.
But I didn't hold back what needed to be said.
"What do you think their purpose is in developing that antidote? To conquer the Martial Arts World. Do you understand that?"
The old man burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahahaha! That will never happen."
"How can you be so certain?"
Then, he uttered something truly unexpected.
"As long as Cheon Hajin exists, no one can truly conquer the Martial Arts World. They're just playing at conspiracies."
"Cheon Hajin..."
"He's the greatest. Truly the foremost martial artist under heaven."
"Cheon Hajin..."
"No one can kill him."
He didn't know I was dead.
"Have you ever met Cheon Hajin?"
"Of course."
A fierce glint flashed in the old man's eyes.
"He's the only person who ever defeated me in my entire life."
He threw his head back and gazed up at the ceiling.
"This is the calamity Heaven has bestowed upon me."
At that moment, his hair slid back, revealing the old man's face.
Only then did I recognize him.
The Sword Emperor.
Now withered with age, he was the same Sword Emperor I had defeated when I was twenty-nine.
Back then, he had been in his fifties. Over forty years had passed since then, making him well over ninety now.
That year marked my ascent to the title of Foremost Person Under Heaven. In that single year, I had consecutively defeated the Sword Emperor, the Blade Emperor, and the Fist King.
I had maintained a friendship with the Fist King even after our spar, even learning Fist Arts from him.
But I had never met the Sword Emperor or the Blade Emperor again after that day.
To think I'd encounter the Sword Emperor in a place like this. I never imagined they'd involve even him.
"They're going to seize control of the Martial Arts World."
"They won't succeed."
"Cheon Hajin is dead."
The Sword Emperor's eyes widened, and he roared, "Nonsense!"
But I remained calm. "They didn't tell you, did they? Cheon Hajin died a year ago."
"That's impossible!"
"Look at me. Do I look like I'm lying?"
The Sword Emperor's gaze locked onto my clear eyes, and his pupils trembled. He realized I was telling the truth.
He raised his voice again. "No one can kill him! Only I can kill him!"
A twisted madness erupted from him like an explosion.
I directed my cold truth toward that burning intensity.
"What did you agree to receive in exchange for helping them?"
The Sword Emperor's expression twisted. If his cause were truly righteous, he should have retorted, "Do you think I'm doing this for mere reward?"
But the Sword Emperor remained silent.
My icy words continued:
"You must have agreed to receive something that would allow you to defeat Cheon Hajin."
I sensed his agitation. He was a man incapable of lying.
I understood then: ever since his defeat at my hands, he had carried this wound throughout his life. I didn't know when or how they had recruited him, but I knew how they had done it.
Ah, you foolish old man.
"At your age, you should have been able to resist the temptations of such men, don't you think?"
"Who killed him?"
I slowly turned my head to look at the opposite room.
"You did."
"What?"
"It's highly likely this organization killed him. Since you're helping them, you're the one who ultimately killed him. This must be a good thing for you. You wanted to kill him so badly, and now you have."
"Shut up!"
"You shut up!"
I was furious. I was angry at this foolish old man, and I was angry at the mastermind who had manipulated him.
"A master of your caliber couldn't break free from the delusion of victory and defeat? Is that why you were helping those people?"
The Sword Emperor couldn't refute my pointed words.
"Your age isn't a sin, but growing old the wrong way is a clear crime."
"You insolent bastard! I'll kill you!"
The Sword Emperor leaped to his feet, drawing his sword.
His character had already been twisted beyond repair. Having faced countless stubborn old men, I knew their foolish obstinacy couldn't be changed by any means. That's likely why the Mastermind's lackeys were able to manipulate him—to the wrong side, the opposite of what's right.
I rose and drew my sword as well. To eliminate everything in this room, I had to subdue the Sword Emperor first.
He unleashed a Killing Move, truly intending to kill me. Forty years ago, he wasn't this kind of man.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Our swords clashed in mid-air.
After a dozen exchanges, he suddenly cried out in shock, "Could this sword art be...?"
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
He couldn't finish his sentence. I had begun unleashing my sword with all my might. Though my internal energy was relatively lacking, I possessed the fresh power of youth and the righteous cause to win this battle.
Our fight was evenly matched. He was the Sword Emperor, while I was once known as the Sword God.
Though he had become a foolish and pathetic old man, his sword arts remained neither foolish nor pathetic.
Confined to the narrow room, countless sword marks scarred the walls.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
Yet the walls remained unbroken. Our duel possessed an elegance only those who had reached the pinnacle of sword arts could display.
The light from our sword strikes was blinding, and the sword dance we created was breathtakingly beautiful. At times, it froze like a painting; at others, it moved with the speed of light.
I felt every blood vessel in my body open.
For the first time in ages, I fought in a state of complete selflessness, without thinking about which Forms I was using or how I was using them.
I forgot why I was fighting, and soon, I even forgot who I was fighting.
Everything vanished.
Only the fight remained.
What shattered my trance was a single sound:
Thwack!
The sound of flesh tearing.
When I regained my senses, the Asura Radiant King Sword was buried in his heart.
"...You must be his disciple."
Perhaps he had no other conclusion to draw.
A faint smile played at the corner of his lips. He seemed to consider it fortunate to die by my martial arts. He remained standing upright as he breathed his last.
I gazed at his corpse and let out a long sigh. I hadn't intended to kill him initially, but our battle was one that could only end with someone's death.
It had been a grueling fight. Even without using Aura Force, I had nearly exhausted all my internal energy. I had poured almost every ounce of my mental strength into it.
I closed his wide-open eyes.
"It's better you died by my hand."
He would have been used by those men and forced to commit irreversible acts.
"In our next lives, let's meet and fight for a more glorious cause, in a more glorious place."
As soon as I spoke those words, the Sword Emperor, who had been standing ramrod straight, collapsed like a crumbling statue.
I opened the door and stepped outside. Im Yeonjeong's face twisted in shock as I emerged. She clearly hadn't dreamed I would survive.
With a weary expression, I asked, "My battle is over. Have you made your decision?"