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Day broke.
Hwangbo Hye-ji and her sisters had to devote themselves entirely to kitchen work.
"Sister, please pass me the salt."
"I-is this salt?"
"That's... no, I'll get it. Ye-ji, that boiling pot... never mind. You go chop the green onions."
The kitchen is a battlefield, and when many people cook together, the best cook must act as the field commander. However, no battlefield commander personally steps forward to fell the enemy.
Hwangbo Hye-ji ended up handling everything herself.
The men who came as guests to the Hwangbo Clan were potential bridegrooms. No matter how many cooks the Hwangbo Clan had, a wife who couldn't manage kitchen work would easily be treated poorly.
Hwangbo Hye-ji was sincerely grateful she had trained in martial arts. Otherwise, moving swiftly would have been impossible, even if she had seven bodies.
"...The rest just needs to be ladled into the soup and carried over. You can do that, right?"
After ending the roughly one-watch-long war, Hwangbo Hye-ji left the remaining tasks to her younger sisters and took a brief rest.
She had even postponed her morning energy circulation breathing to focus on preparing breakfast in the kitchen. Now, she quietly observed the men entering the dining hall where the Hwangbo Clan warriors ate.
"Heh heh, the notice was so short we had to bring our own food, and yet they told us to come."
'Eliminated.'
"What is this? They grilled the fish and expect us to debone it ourselves?"
'Eliminated.'
"Lady Hwangbo, the soup is too salty."
'Elim— I admit that one.'
Hwangbo Hye-ji was testing the men with her own private, meaningless judgment. Her personal verdict could not influence the final result, but at the very least, it could help her mentally prepare.
'Two strong frontrunners so far.'
She felt sorry for her sisters, but Hwangbo Hye-ji was certain the winner would choose her. She thought deeply about who the victor of the martial tournament—the strongest man—would be.
Men enjoyed subduing strong women.
If a first-rate master took a wife like Hwangbo Hye-ji, who neared the Peak Realm, he would be immensely pleased to see a woman stronger than himself fulfill her wifely duties.
But for that to happen, the victor would first have to defeat the Peak Realm masters.
Bang Do-rim, the former Azure Heaven New Dragon who had flown all the way from distant Sichuan to Shandong.
And Baek Bo-jun, the legitimate heir of the Hyeoncheon Baek Clan, who came shouting only Hwangbo Hye-ji's name.
Two men who had reached the Peak Realm as masters were simultaneously aiming for Hwangbo Hye-ji. She watched them both and sighed deeply.
'Both are eliminated.'
One's eyes were dense with an inferiority complex and a sense of defeat; the other's eyes were filled with arrogance and conceit.
Her younger sisters seemed to quite fancy the handsome, tall ones, but to Hwangbo Hye-ji's eyes, they were thoroughly unsatisfactory.
When she compared them to 'him,' it was useless even trying to give them a generous score.
"......Please."
If she was fated to marry someone, she wished a man would appear who could make her forget the one buried in her heart.
Hwangbo Hye-ji's worries only deepened.
* * *
The lengthy group preliminaries ended with this final batch.
Elder Hwang was genuinely irritated by those who didn't bother to hide their sinister glares, but he still felt relieved by the famous and skilled young heroes who had passed the earlier tests.
The pool of candidates vying for the groom position had already narrowed to roughly seven.
There was such a vast gap between the seventh and eighth place that rumors were openly spreading that the seven men would effectively marry the Hwangbo Seven Princesses.
'They just won't give up.'
Elder Hwang sighed deeply as he watched people tenaciously enter the testing ground until the very end.
Some stepped into the clan's martial arena bolstered by liquid courage, and there was even a man coming forth while being cheered on by a woman.
"Be sure to succeed!"
"I will succeed without fail."
Were they childhood friends, or perhaps martial siblings? Even though anyone could see they seemed like lovers, the woman cheered the man on as she sent him off.
"Excuse me."
The man strode boldly toward Elder Hwang.
He was a tall young man with sturdy, striking features. Though he seemed quite advanced in age, the air emanating from his stride suggested he was no ordinary martial artist.
"...Write down your name, epithet, and sect."
"Hmm."
The young man picked up the brush. Elder Hwang felt relieved by the young man's neat handwriting as he began to write his name.
This document, which looked like a guestbook, was also a basic test.
How could a man meant to be a member of the Hwangbo Clan have an unclear identity? One who could not reveal his own name was not an upright person, and those with guilty consciences would not be able to write properly.
But the young man wrote his personal details in one fluid stroke. Elder Hwang waited until the young man put down the brush, then examined his information.
"Mountain Lord Sect, Soul-Seizing Crushing Fist (奪魂崩拳), Mumyeong (武名). ...An unfamiliar sect, an unfamiliar epithet, and an unfamiliar name."
"Is there a problem?"
"Of course there are many problems. How could we admit someone whose identity is unclear?"
Elder Hwang pointed outside the clan grounds. It was a signal to leave immediately, but the young man named Mumyeong did not move a single step.
"Leave, now!"
"Make me leave, if you can."
One by one, the warriors of the Hwangbo Clan appeared, but the moment the young man cast a sidelong glare, the warriors' bodies stiffened.
"Guh, guuh...!"
"I came because you were seeking a strong martial artist, and yet you treat me so poorly."
At the young man's words, the Hwangbo Clan warriors swallowed hard. His presence was far more powerful than any of the other candidates who had entered the groom martial tournament.
"I will prove my name with strength."
"W-why has such a powerful warrior only appeared now...!"
"Hah, isn't that only natural?"
The young man named Mumyeong patted his own chest and grinned.
"The main character always appears last."
* * *
"Be sure to succeed, darling."
After seeing off the Sky-Soaring Lust Demon as he entered the Hwangbo Clan grounds, Dokgo Yeon turned and immediately slipped away from the onlookers' attention.
Sticky gazes prickled against her back.
Even though she concealed her face with a veil and a hat, innate beauty cannot be hidden. Moreover, all of these men were suitors who had come seeking marriage with the Hwangbo Clan's Seven Princesses.
About one in five of them turned their eyes wild at the mere sight of a woman. Dokgo Yeon hastily hid herself before the stares could intensify.
"Hoo."
With swift movements, Dokgo Yeon slipped through the crowd and succeeded in securing lodging quite far from the Hwangbo Clan estate.
The innkeeper found it strange that a woman had come alone, but when Dokgo Yeon subtly let out a wisp of Sword Qi, the innkeeper nodded and guided her to a room.
"This will do."
The room had only one bed. Dokgo Yeon lightly clapped her hands, removed her overcoat, and lay down on the bed.
"The martial tournament needs to end quickly."
According to the information she had gathered, the trial was composed of three stages.
In the first stage, an inner energy test would weed out all the riffraff. Then, the second stage would determine victory or defeat not through a tedious brawl, but through a scorching contest of pure skill.
Effectively, the seven candidates would be decided during the second stage.
Although the third stage had not yet been announced, Dokgo Yeon, drawing on her prior knowledge and intelligence about the Hwangbo Clan, could see clearly what kind of trial awaited.
"Picking first."
The groom candidates would establish a hierarchy among themselves, and the strongest man would claim the woman he wanted first.
In other words, the strongest would have the chance to choose first among the seven.
Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, everyone would choose Hwangbo Hye-ji.
Murim warriors generally felt uneasy if their wife was stronger than them, but some of the candidates were already mightier than Hwangbo Hye-ji's martial realm.
"Hye-ji, I've come to repay your kindness."
Dokgo Yeon recalled the day of her duel with Hwangbo Hye-ji. The encouragement from Hwangbo Hye-ji had made it possible for Dokgo Yeon to set out in search of love, committing what was practically a grave breach of filial duty against the Murim Alliance Leader.
Soul-Seizing Crushing Fist, Mumyeong.
In other words, on the day Bi-cheon became the victor and chose Hwangbo Hye-ji, Dokgo Yeon would personally reveal her identity to Hwangbo Hye-ji and persuade her. So that Hwangbo Hye-ji, too, could be with the man she loved.
"I believe in your love, Hye-ji."
Even if the process involved testing the man to see if he truly loved her—and thus amounted to deceiving him—Dokgo Yeon believed in the love between Hwangbo Hye-ji and her man.
Could it be that Hwangbo Hye-ji's lover would not change his heart, even if Hwangbo Hye-ji had been violated by a lust demon?
"Heaven and Earth Spirits, please."
Dokgo Yeon joined her hands and offered a prayer to the heavens.
"Let Hye-ji agree to my plan, but please ensure she doesn't actually do it with my darling."
Dokgo Yeon set out a bowl of water and continued her prayers.
"Jade Emperor, please, under no circumstances allow Hye-ji to surrender her body to my darling's skills...!!"
Why was it?
- ...This is the plan. What will you do?
- Pfft. To deceive the world, you have to do it properly. It's fine, I don't mind. Should I just take my clothes off first?
Why did Dokgo Yeon's mind keep painting a picture of Hwangbo Hye-ji willingly offering her body?
- Yeon, I'm sorry. He's a man you fell for... How could I not fall for him too?
Bam! Bam! Bam!!
Dokgo Yeon's agony only deepened.
* * *
Racing from the sea at the break of dawn, we arrived in Jinan without being late.
Not only did we arrive on time, but I was also able to join the final group at precisely the right moment.
If the night's play had caused a delay, there were fallback plans, but I was relieved I didn't have to resort to a second-best option.
"Everyone is assembled."
Atop the steps overlooking the martial arena, a man with a dignified presence scrutinized each of us thoroughly.
Thunder Divine Fist, Hwangbo Yeom.
Indeed, he was strong. His gaze alone was enough to make third-rate warriors keel over, and even second-rate warriors, if mediocre, would immediately suffer internal injuries and kneel.
'A man worthy of being the world's greatest fist must reach at least this level.'
Even if he would later pass the title of World's Greatest Fist to someone else, for now, he was strong enough to boast of being the best in fist techniques under heaven.
The Harmony Realm.
With just a small trigger, he could even aim for the Profound Realm. His gaze carefully scrutinized every candidate, but it was fixed on me in particular.
"Hmph."
I deliberately stoked my aura more fiercely. As I flared my inner energy to avoid being overwhelmed, Hwangbo Yeom's eyebrows twisted deeply.
"Urgh...!!"
Hwangbo Yeom began to glare at me with bulging eyes.
In a battle of aura projection, the moment you falter, your defeat is sealed. If you lose this fight, you will remain on the back foot forever.
"Gack!!"
"Heog, heok!!"
Even fairly famous first-rate masters, surpassing second-rate warriors, found their breath blocked by the overwhelming clash of inner energy and tried to retreat.
Truly, the Thunder Divine Fist. It was on a different dimension of power compared to the Thunder Divine Fist I knew from the future.
In later days, the title of World's Greatest Fist would be taken by Bang Cheol-su-Bang Yun.
Following behind them in line were the Hundred Steps Divine Fist of Shaolin, and then my target, who was surveying the surroundings with worried eyes—Hwangbo Hye-ji.
After Hwangbo Yeom's death, Hwangbo Hye-ji would inherit his epithet and display the power of a peak-level master without reservation as the Thunder Divine Fist.
Because of this, a competitive spirit rose within me at the current Thunder Divine Fist's power. As is the nature of all martial artists, but especially so for fist masters, they possess a strong competitive urge to test themselves against the powerful.
'Restrain yourself, my inner Mountain Lord.'
The master of Mount Tai bared his ferocious fangs at a challenger daring to scheme against him, but I barely suppressed it.
There was no need to unnecessarily raise the difficulty of the trial myself. The moment I sensed I had drawn enough attention, I let out a light cough and lowered my posture.
"...Keuheum."
The moment I made as if to drop to one knee, Hwangbo Yeom finally withdrew his inner energy. Feeling considerably more at ease, I straightened both legs again.
Murmur, murmur.
At a single glance, I saw the Seven Princesses, including Hwangbo Hye-ji, staring at me in surprise.
"...Goodness."
Hwangbo Yeom tightly shut his eyes with a sheepish expression. I looked around and deliberately provoked the defeated ones.
"You are all weak men."
Not a single person in the martial arena could stand upright. No one had survived the aftermath of the aura battle between Hwangbo Yeom and me.
If the Hwangbo Clan's warriors had pushed into the gaps of our energy clash to drag away the disqualified, I would likely be the only one left standing in the arena by now.
"It seems it's over."
"...So it seems. Escort them all outside."
At Hwangbo Yeom's command, the clan warriors supported the collapsed martial artists and guided them out. Left alone in the arena, I shrugged my shoulders.
"I withdrew my energy because it seemed any more would kill them all."
"What did you say?"
At my provocation, Hwangbo Yeom furrowed his brows deeply, then—
"Kuahahahahaha!!"
—burst into roaring laughter.
"How impudent!!"
"Do you think I would lose if we went all the way?"
"Good, very good! Heh heh heh. For such a monster to appear at the very end, magnificent!"
Hwangbo Yeom descended the stairs and stood face-to-face with me. I had grown fairly taller, but he was much larger than me. He looked down at me and clapped me on the shoulder.
"I sincerely hope you don't waste your time and fail in the second or third trials."
"Such a thing could not happen even if the heavens collapsed."
"Well, I suppose not. Heh heh, a lucky charm has rolled into the Hwangbo Clan. But, by the way...."
Already treating me like a son-in-law, Hwangbo Yeom smiled slyly and gestured with his eyes behind him.
"Who catches your eye?"
I deliberately raised my voice.
"Hwangbo Hye-ji!"
I came to violate Hwangbo Hye-ji, and violate her I shall.
The lust demon disguised as a martial tournament participant would take the most beautiful woman of the Hwangbo Clan, then flee without marrying.
A dine-and-dash—but with a body.
That was the plan Dokgo Yeon had devised.