Chapter 76
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Righteous Heaven Alliance Leader
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"Long time no see."
A calm voice brimming with authority echoed through the inn. The tension inside had been on the verge of exploding, but the Tyrant Dragon's arrival shifted the situation into a new phase.
The Tyrant Dragon's eyes met the Sword King's. The Sword King nodded.
"You haven't changed a bit."
The Tyrant Dragon appeared to be in his forties, just like the Sword King. He was a striking man with thick eyebrows and sharp, piercing eyes.
The Tyrant Dragon turned his head to look at Paeyeop. From the moment his father appeared, Paeyeop's confidence had soared. No matter how great the Sword King was, he believed his father wouldn't lose. And he figured they could handle the Sword Demon just fine.
The Sword Demon was sorely underestimated, it had to be said. They were the ones chased toward Xinjiang and Qinghai by the Martial Alliance and the righteous sects, after all.
"With you and the Jade Sword Squad, you should be able to take on the Sword King, right?"
The Sword King's eyebrow twitched at the Tyrant Dragon's words. He glanced at Paeyeop and the warriors encircling him. They were skilled, no doubt, but nowhere near enough to challenge him.
"The Tyrant Dragon wouldn't spout nonsense without reason. Looks like there's something up his sleeve."
The Sword King drew his sword. He wanted to see what the Tyrant Dragon was so confident about.
"Fine. If that's what you want, I'll play along."
At the Sword King's words, Paeyeop and the Jade Sword Squad drew their swords in unison. A faint blue glow shimmered along their blades.
The Sword King's eyes gleamed as he examined their swords. There was definitely something special about them. But he couldn't tell what just by looking.
"No need to wreck the inn, I suppose."
Muttering to himself, the Sword King leaped outside. Paeyeop and the Jade Sword Squad hurriedly followed him out.
Once the Sword King and the Tyrant Sword Sect warriors had all left, the Tyrant Dragon turned to the Sword Demon. The Sword Demon was still standing, his demonic energy filling the inn without abatement.
"How about withdrawing that unpleasant aura now?"
At the Tyrant Dragon's suggestion, the Sword Demon nodded.
In an instant, the demonic energy flooding the inn seeped back into his body.
"I heard you're called the Sword Demon?"
The Sword Demon didn't reply to the Tyrant Dragon's question. Nor was the Tyrant Dragon expecting one.
"I can see just how arbitrary the world's judgments are. Whoever ranked you below the Ten Great Experts deserves a broken neck."
Even without crossing blades, the Tyrant Dragon could tell. How formidable the Sword Demon was. And how tricky he would be to face.
"Are all Heavenly Demon Fortress folks like this? If everyone's this strong, we'd be in trouble."
The Tyrant Dragon chuckled lightly, but the Sword Demon shook his head.
"Not at all, so don't worry. Anyway, you want to do this here?"
The Tyrant Dragon stared silently at the Sword Demon, then glanced at Dan Hyeong-u, who was still seated. More precisely, at the Heavenly Thread slung across Dan Hyeong-u's back.
"Why take the hard road? We'll both be worn out after a fight. No long talks—how much to hand it over?"
The Sword Demon frowned slightly.
"That doesn't seem like my call."
"So you won't interfere no matter how I get the Heavenly Thread?"
The Sword Demon let out a scoffing laugh. A blatant sneer. Then he plopped back down into his seat. There was no reason for him to move anymore.
"Do as you please."
He had no intention of stopping someone hell-bent on dying. Truth be told, whether the Tyrant Dragon lived or died meant nothing to the Sword Demon. If anything, his death would be preferable. It would weaken the Righteous Heaven Alliance, which looked no different from the Martial Alliance.
The Tyrant Dragon glared at the Sword Demon for a moment. He didn't like the attitude. But there were more pressing matters. His gaze shifted to Dan Hyeong-u.
"You don't look pleased. No need to be scared or uncomfortable. I'm not a bad guy. I'll pay a fair price, so no worries."
Dan Hyeong-u's expression held a hint of discomfort because he was sitting. He'd worked hard on it for quite a while, but sitting was still uncomfortable.
"So, how much do you want? Or maybe a martial art? The Tyrant Sword Sect's Jade Sword is a fine technique. How about trading for that?"
Jade Sword was the technique practiced by the Jade Sword Squad. An elite sword art that only select disciples of the Tyrant Sword Sect could learn. But to unleash it perfectly, a special sword was required.
"I'll personally guide you to master Jade Sword perfectly. Sound good? That should more than match the Heavenly Thread's value."
The Tyrant Dragon was brimming with confidence. His offer was outrageously generous. Teaching Tyrant Sword Sect techniques wasn't something done lightly. Mastering Jade Sword would make anyone untouchable. It marked one as connected to the Tyrant Sword Sect.
Dan Hyeong-u remained seated, his face still showing faint discomfort. The Tyrant Dragon began to exude his aura, a domineering pressure creeping toward Dan Hyeong-u.
"You're not ignoring me, are you?"
Flames seemed to spark in the Tyrant Dragon's eyes. But he didn't truly believe Dan Hyeong-u was ignoring him. Who in the world would dare?
"I can't take this anymore."
Dan Hyeong-u finally muttered and stood up. His face instantly relaxed.
"Sat too long. Tough training."
He turned toward the inn's rear garden, where the rooms were.
Umun Hye struggled to hold back her laughter at Dan Hyeong-u's words and actions. She knew he pathologically hated sitting or lying down.
"Hohoho! You're the only one who'd call that training, Dan Gongja."
The Tyrant Dragon's face twisted further at Umun Hye's laughter. Meanwhile, Jegal Rin and Tang Mun-yeong, sitting beside her, paled.
Jegal Rin was on the verge of fainting. Who was the Tyrant Dragon? The man said to possess the greatest raw power among the Ten Great Experts.
Ignoring him like this was a problem too big to overlook.
She knew Dan Hyeong-u was strong. She'd seen him wield the Heavenly Thread and control thunder energy firsthand, and both the Sword Demon and Sword King had admitted he surpassed them.
But still, she was anxious. The opponent was the Tyrant Dragon. And she'd never seen Dan Hyeong-u fight.
Tang Mun-yeong trembled uncontrollably. Fear clouded her judgment. She'd witnessed Dan Hyeong-u fight and knew his strength, but the foe was the Tyrant Dragon.
"How dare you!"
A fierce aura erupted from the Tyrant Dragon's body.
Kwarung!
The inn shook, wood creaking and twisting everywhere. Dust and splinters rained down. The Tyrant Dragon's aura was manifesting as raw force.
Dan Hyeong-u turned to face him, pondering briefly. If Jo Seol-yeon were here, he'd have asked her. Whether it was okay to kill.
Lately, he'd resolved not to kill unless necessary. He'd realized it was the key to blending into the world.
He glanced at Umun Hye, who had sidled up beside him.
"Can't kill him, right?"
Umun Hye's eyes widened at the question.
"Are you... asking me?"
Dan Hyeong-u nodded. Tears of emotion welled in Umun Hye's eyes. She gazed at him a moment, then turned to the Tyrant Dragon.
And inwardly thanked him for creating this moment.
"Don't kill him. We're guests heading to the Righteous Heaven Alliance."
Dan Hyeong-u nodded at her words.
The Tyrant Dragon, having overheard everything, was flushed crimson with rage. His head felt ready to burst.
"You insolent whelps, not even dry behind the ears!"
Sring!
The Tyrant Dragon drew his sword in a flash. Intense light gathered on the blade—sword force.
The Tyrant Dragon's sword force, unmatched in power. Few could block it directly with their own sword. Everyone in the inn, including the Tyrant Dragon, thought so.
He advanced toward Dan Hyeong-u step by step. The sword force on his blade grew larger, denser. The dazzling glow shifted to a transparent sheen like glass.
A sword force tinged with faint blue slowly rose skyward. The Tyrant Dragon had lifted his sword.
"Block it once, and I'll forgive you."
He had no intention of forgiving, of course. In his eyes, Dan Hyeong-u was a flashy third-rate nobody.
No aura emanated from him, nothing of a trained martial artist. It was only natural to judge him so.
This sword force brimmed with the Tyrant Dragon's overwhelming power. No ordinary person could block it. At least a Ten Great Expert level was needed. And with time to gather power, even they might struggle.
"Draw your sword."
But Dan Hyeong-u had no intention of listening.
His indifferent gaze pierced the Tyrant Dragon.
For a split second, the Tyrant Dragon felt as if his vitals were laid bare. A strange sensation washed over him.
Dan Hyeong-u's eyes held no fear. Nor were they ordinary. If anything, they looked down from on high, brimming with leisure.
The Tyrant Dragon's face contorted. Now he knew. The ignoring until now meant he truly wasn't worth considering. He wasn't even on the radar.
"I won't let this slide."
Finally, the Tyrant Dragon's sword descended. The colossal sword force poured down, poised to cleave Dan Hyeong-u's crown.
And a bolt of lightning surged up from below.
Craaaack!
A deafening roar shattered the Tyrant Dragon's sword force into fragments. Shards scattered everywhere.
Craaaackle! Craaaack!
Countless bolts shot out horizontally, pulverizing the sword force shards into dust.
Amid the cascade of light particles like falling snow, Dan Hyeong-u regarded the Tyrant Dragon with the same impassive eyes.
The Tyrant Dragon stared back in stunned shock.
It had shattered. His sword force, condensed with immense power. Power was one thing he was absolutely confident in.
A martial artist's power came from inner energy, naturally. The Tyrant Dragon prided himself on having the highest in the world.
Yet he'd lost in raw power.
The opponent's sword had struck later, from below upward, shattering his own. Utterly overpowered.
The Tyrant Dragon blankly looked down at his sword. The blade, broken along with the sword force, was barely recognizable. His head turned back to Dan Hyeong-u.
"H-how..."
Dan Hyeong-u turned wordlessly and headed to the rear garden. Umun Hye scurried after him, soon followed by Jegal Rin and Tang Mun-yeong once they regained their wits.
The situation was over. Tang Ho-gwan and the escorts rose quietly, careful not to irk the Tyrant Dragon, and slipped away to the garden.
Now, only the Tyrant Dragon, the Sword Demon, and the onlookers remained.
"Looks like things are wrapping up outside too."
At the Sword Demon's mutter, the Tyrant Dragon instinctively glanced at the entrance. There stood the Sword King, strolling in casually as if nothing had happened.
"To think you'd believe a mere sword formation could take me down. Disappointing."
The Tyrant Dragon's gaze shifted outside. Beyond the door, the scene was devastation. Paeyeop and the Jade Sword Squad, marred with wounds, slumped unable to stand.
A perfect defeat.
"Tsk tsk. Looks like that guy got you. The shock will linger."
Muttering that, the Sword King headed to the garden. The Sword Demon lingered last, patted the Tyrant Dragon's shoulder a few times with an expression of total understanding, then followed.
The Tyrant Dragon couldn't shake his dazed look. His mind was blank. But gradually, his expression returned—extreme humiliation and fury.
"Grrrr."
He couldn't retreat like this. The loss came from underestimating the foe. Otherwise, a Ten Great Expert like him wouldn't fall in one exchange.
He wanted to charge in and take his head, but now was the time to withdraw.
"I won't forget this."
Spitting each word, the Tyrant Dragon turned and left the inn.
News of the inn incident spread like wildfire across all of Changsha. It was the largest inn in the city, packed with onlookers—mostly martial artists.
The appearance of the Sword King and Sword Demon was big news, but the Tyrant Dragon losing to a youth barely in his twenties caused a massive uproar.
Changsha was already teeming with martial artists for the Righteous Heaven Alliance's founding ceremony. It was only natural they'd take interest in Dan Hyeong-u, the new powerhouse.
Beating a Ten Great Expert? He'd earned a spot among them.
Thanks to that, the inn housing Dan Hyeong-u's group overflowed with people. Yet few caught sight of him. Since the incident, the group hadn't stepped out.