Chapter 126
Chapter 126
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 126
Chapter Title: Clash in the Reed Forest
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A secluded forest far from the city.
Unhyang stepped into the reed thicket where human feet rarely tread.
"Just to be sure, let me ask one more time."
Crunch.
Pausing his steps, Jaunyeop turned to Unhyang.
"Do you have no intention of coming back quietly?"
"No. Absolutely not."
Shing.
With firm resolve, Unhyang drew her sword.
As expected. Jaunyeop sighed.
"Why do you hate home so much?"
"Home? You call that place my home?"
Snorting derisively, Unhyang shook her head.
"Not a chance. I've never once thought of it as my home."
"Your feelings don't matter. If not the place where you were born and raised, then what is home?"
"That place—"
Unhyang shook her head and swung her sword side to side as if waving him off.
"No, forget it. What's the point of talking to you?"
"I just can't understand you."
"You don't know anything."
"Pay your respects."
Recalling a distant memory, Unhyang closed her eyes gently.
"Why I hate that place so much."
"It is the fate given to you."
Slowly opening her eyes again, Jaunyeop came into Unhyang's view.
The priest of Uncheon-guk.
The high-ranker known as the Heavenly Thunder Sword.
He stood there, sword drawn, ready to drag her back.
"Let me ask this time, Uncle."
Unhyang's tone grew polite.
Sensing the fight was about to begin, Jaunyeop sharpened his mana fiercely.
"Speak."
"You're not thinking of just going back empty-handed, right?"
It was a desperate plea.
But.
"Of course not."
He couldn't back down either.
"Haa... I figured as much."
With a sigh, Unhyang's sword glowed red.
"So you insist on dying by my hand."
"......Prepare yourselves."
Shing.
Scrape.
The martial artists drew their swords.
They were different from the last group. Unlike the ragtag bunch that came with Muhwi, these were Shinryeong Castle's elites.
Dozens of elite martial artists at that.
Their sword tips all pointed at Unhyang in unison.
But then.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, Unhyang scattered fierce winds in all directions and shot toward Jaunyeop like an arrow.
Kaboom!
Clang!
Their swords clashed violently. Unhyang had pierced through the martial artists in an instant and reached Jaunyeop, her eyes gleaming.
"Don't send your lackeys. Let's do this one-on-one."
"Wandering outside so long has made your mouth rough."
Clang!
Pushing away the clashing swords, Unhyang swung hers.
Screeech.
Krunch.
Bamboos sliced and flew in droves. Hundreds fell with a single stroke, each sword stroke curving dramatically.
Slash.
A thin cut appeared on Jaunyeop's cheek. He couldn't dodge or block every single strike, missing one.
Thud thud thud.
The tops of the sliced bamboos rained down. As the trees blocking the moonlight toppled, the area brightened instantly.
And under that moonlight, the martial artists charged at Unhyang from all sides.
"Stand down!"
But at that moment.
Flash.
A blue flash erupted, and a bolt of thunder shot toward Unhyang.
Kaboom!
Blue lightning crashed over Unhyang like a wave. Thanks to Jaunyeop's shout a beat earlier, the martial artists avoided being swept up.
Crackle, crackle.
The terrain shifted once more.
Charred bamboos toppled sideways. The ground cratered, a long, powerful sword mark etched in the center.
Witnessing the strike, Shinryeong Castle's martial artists realized they were plunging into a storm.
"This is the Heavenly Thunder Sword..."
"They say one strike summons thunder. The rumors are true."
Most had been born in the Murim world before becoming Players. Thus, they had heard Jaunyeop's name countless times.
A famous high-ranker of the Murim world.
He was an object of admiration for many martial artists.
"Don't rush in recklessly! Your role is support only."
"Understood!"
They replied, but inwardly thought:
Could she really be unharmed after taking that strike?
It had altered the terrain. Normally, a person would be incinerated and torn apart.
But.
"Aren't you underestimating me a bit too much?"
Crunch.
From the center of the ruined reed forest.
Unhyang walked out utterly unscathed.
"Only bringing thirty men."
Her red eyes flashed.
More beautiful than anyone, she pointed her sword at him.
Kaboom!
Thunder struck.
A wave of blue lightning surged, engulfing her body.
Within it, Unhyang stomped her foot.
Whoosh.
The distance closed in one step. Heavenly Thunder Sword Jaunyeop widened his eyes and clashed swords with Unhyang.
Claaang!
Swords collided, sparks flying. Scraaape, the two blades grazed, creating distance again.
Whoosh.
That was when a sword flew from behind.
One of the watching martial artists stabbed at Unhyang's back. In that instant, Unhyang's hand shot out as if waiting.
Grab.
"......!"
The martial artist's eyes bulged as his sword was caught barehanded.
He expected a block or dodge, but not catching the technique barehanded.
Crack!
Snap.
"Gaaah—."
The chest he kicked caved in. Shattered bones pierced the heart.
Another martial artist fell. Yet they charged like moths to flame, unhesitating.
Swoosh.
Kwaaang!
Powerful strikes came from two directions simultaneously.
Shinryeong Castle techniques. Claw-like slashes reminiscent of dragon talons targeted Unhyang's neck.
But.
"This is getting boring, seriously."
Swish.
Unhyang casually swung, making the two strikes collide.
Clang!
The opposing techniques from different angles crashed. Identical strikes of equal power threw both martial artists off balance.
She hadn't used much force. Just nudged the core to redirect them.
"Dragon Claw Sword? Against me?"
She was raised in Shinryeong Castle. She knew every technique perfectly.
Except for one.
Crackle.
Clang!
Jaunyeop charged with a blue line, pushing Unhyang back. Swords clashed, and as she stumbled off-balance, his hand touched her abdomen.
"Didn't I tell you?"
"Damn—."
The curse came too late.
"They're only for support."
Kaboom!
Lightning burst from Jaunyeop's palm, blasting Unhyang away. Snap, she flew through bamboos, rolling on the ground and kicking up dust.
"Ugh......"
She clutched her abdomen, hurriedly regaining balance.
Her insides churned. Lightning spread through her body, numbing it.
The minor cuts from swords were trouble too.
'Same pattern over and over.'
The small wounds, and this one.
All inflicted while dealing with other martial artists.
"Picked some high-quality bait, huh?"
Bait.
That was the role of the thirty Shinryeong Castle martial artists.
They supported Jaunyeop.
And part of that "support" included diverting Unhyang's attention.
"They're not meant to die like this."
Step.
Jaunyeop approached Unhyang.
Sadness filled his eyes. Over ten Shinryeong martial artists had already perished.
"Their deaths won't even be recorded in history. Just fertilizer buried in the soil."
"Yeah, tragic."
"So—"
"So let's end it now? They'll all die at this rate."
Unhyang was confident.
Seventeen Shinryeong martial artists left. She could kill them all.
Jaunyeop knew her words weren't bluff.
But.
"Even if so, you won't win."
Jaunyeop alone outweighed all thirty combined.
Even if she slew them all, as long as he lived, she couldn't escape.
"You don't care if they all die?"
"It pains me a little. But what can be done? They're martial artists on Shinryeong Castle's orders."
"Dog's death, that's what."
"Maybe. But you know we can't retreat."
He was right. Returning empty-handed meant death by Uncheon-geuk's hand.
"Then fight fair, one-on-one!"
"You know Shinryeong Castle has roots in the unorthodox sects."
"Argh, seriously!"
Kaboom, bang!
Thunder roared with every sword clash. Jaunyeop felt his wrists ache, inwardly admiring Unhyang's skill repeatedly.
'He was right.'
Before coming here.
Jaunyeop had thought he could handle it alone.
But Uncheon-geuk convinced him otherwise.
"Take about thirty with you."
It made no sense.
No matter how genius she was called, she was a junior disciple a generation below. A manager who neither Played nor fought as a martial artist. To go this far for her.
"She's too much even for me alone."
"No. Overkill is necessary. Overkill, yet still overkill."
"I know it's important, but..."
"No, it's not about important. It's about sufficient or not."
Sufficient or not.
Understanding that, Jaunyeop couldn't help but feel his pride stung.
"I'm not the me from back then."
"I know. Heavenly Thunder Sword Jaunyeop, such a fancy title."
"You show no interest in me, yet claim to know—"
"Not you. Her."
Jaunyeop was surprised again.
Uncheon-geuk, of all people, admitting ignorance.
"A talent crafted by the gods. I can't even gauge how far she's grown."
A talent crafted by the gods.
High praise from stingy Uncheon-geuk. Blood ties or not, he never spoke lightly.
"So take them. And if you're not certain, use the ones you bring as bait without hesitation."
It was shocking.
Jaunyeop had clashed swords with Unhyang once and thought exactly that.
One-on-one would be tough.
'A talent crafted by the gods...'
Genius.
Among countless geniuses like stars in the sky, she had seized that title like the chosen one.
That was Unhyang.
Whoosh!
A martial artist targeting her back split in half by Unhyang's sword.
In that tiny gap.
Jaunyeop thrust his lightning-charged sword again.
Clang!
"Kuhk—."
Unhyang staggered once more.
Wounds accumulated. Like clothes soaking in drizzle, or water dripping through stone, she was crumbling bit by bit.
'But...'
Gazing at her pityingly.
'The heavens gave you talent but took your fate.'
Jaunyeop gripped his sword tighter.
Now, he was confident he could defeat her alone.