Chapter 279: Martial Prowess (7)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 279: Martial Prowess (7)
"I have already learned from the Fortress Lord," Jeong Yeon-shin replied calmly.
Inheriting a martial lineage. He surely didn't mean establishing a formal master-disciple relationship. The laws of the Desolate Fortress strictly forbade such ties between warriors of the main fortress.
This was to prevent private ties from interfering with their duties. Only the Lord of the Desolate Fortress was exempt from this rule, and Jeong Yeon-shin had received his teachings directly from her.
"There is a loophole in our fortress's laws," the Commander of the Divine Sword Corps said, the corners of his lips curling up. "No matter what you learn, you are no one's disciple. That means you can learn anything from anyone, without any conflict of sect loyalty."
Jeong Yeon-shin didn't reply. He merely stared at his direct superior with slightly widened eyes.
It was quite a sight—a peerless Purple Rank expert openly discussing legal loopholes.
"Hmm? What is it?"
The Commander of the Divine Sword Corps stroked his sharp jawline, looking slightly uncomfortable.
Bathed in moonlight, a sense of refined elegance emanated from his scholar-style purple robes. He looked incredibly stylish. Before his own knees had started aching, Jeong Yeon-shin wouldn't have felt this way, but things were different now.
Living like that... one would have no regrets.
The conduct of the Divine Sword representing the Desolate Fortress was exactly as expected—free-spirited and unfettered. It was the very epitome of an unobstructed life.
Jeong Yeon-shin had realized something while studying Buddhist martial arts to refine his Dharma Power: was such a carefree demeanor necessary to reach the peerless realm?
His niece, Jeong Hye, and his seniors in the main fortress had imparted great teachings to him: humility and the state of being unfettered. Jeong Yeon-shin clasped his hands in a polite bow.
His thoughts were calm. As Hye-ah's uncle—and someone who had even shared drinks with the Fortress Lord—he had to act like a mature adult.
"I am grateful for your offer, Commander, but I must decline. There is little benefit in modifying an already completed martial art to fit my body. The same was true for the Fortress Lord's Moon Spirit Harmony Art."
"Oh?"
"Since my martial arts must originate from my own hands, this junior is not fit to inherit your martial lineage. Even if I were to learn your martial arts, they would only be passed down in a completely different form."
The Commander of the Divine Sword Corps and the Unit Commanders of the 17th Unit shared an incredibly close relationship. Since they would have to see each other until the day they drew their last breaths, there was no reason to needlessly antagonize an active Purple Rank expert.
A martial lineage was the very tradition and identity of a practitioner. No one wanted their martial arts to be inherited in a completely altered state.
Jeong Yeon-shin had already established his own martial lineage. There was simply no room for the Dragon Ring Sect.
"Hmm."
The Commander of the Divine Sword Corps tilted his head slightly. He displayed a playful attitude that seemed unbefitting of the strongest Divine Sword in the Desolate Fortress, yet his underlying demeanor didn't feel light at all.
"Your very premise is flawed. There are plenty of bastards out there who would eagerly jump at the chance."
"My apologies."
"I haven't seen anyone else who catches my eye, so if I truly become desperate, I'll seek you out again."
The Commander of the Divine Sword Corps, who had lain back using his arms as a pillow, clicked his tongue.
"It is a bit of a shame. I might just die in some desolate wilderness without leaving behind a successor... Well, since I have about a one percent stake in your Lightness Skill, that will have to do. A fellow like you will surely complete it in the near future."
"Die in the wilderness? Do Purple Rank experts die like that too?"
"Didn't the Elder Council Head of our main fortress almost end up exactly that way? If a peerless expert encounters two other peerless experts, they can die a futile death. The world doesn't allow any single person to reign supreme. It's damnably vast. Do you think there are only one or two monsters hiding in the cities and wild mountains claiming to be the Lord of the Thirteen Heavens or the Sect Leader of the Nine Sects?"
Lying on the ground with his legs crossed, he tapped his foot in the air.
"You don't even need to look as far as the leaders of the great sects. The fundamental nature of humanity is resistance. People will seek their own benefit by any means necessary. They won't easily submit to oppression just because their opponent is a peerless expert. Formations, combined attack arrays, assassination techniques, joint assaults by multiple Black Rank experts, ultra-long-range archery Fa Jin... Commander of the Demonlight Wing, the world is incredibly vast, and you have yet to experience even half of it."
"Can plucking a bowstring also be considered Fa Jin?" Jeong Yeon-shin asked quietly.
An immediate reply came back, delivered with perfect nonchalance.
"Of course. Archery martial arts are never to be underestimated. The bow has been the strongest weapon since ancient times. Techniques to manipulate the bow and string with internal energy have evolved over countless ages. Furthermore, if that is placed at the center of a formation made up of those pointy-eared archery experts..."
He shuddered exaggeratedly.
"I don't even know how I survived long enough to wear this purple robe. I experienced it once. If my Dragon Ring Sword hadn't manifested instantly, I would have been a goner. It happened back when I was a Black Rank. I couldn't even find a way to counterattack, which nearly drove me mad with frustration. Thinking back, I believe that was only the second strike."
The Dragon Ring Sword.
It referred to a rainbow-colored blade formed entirely from internal energy. It possessed a supreme mystique, one he had fully displayed during his life-and-death duel with the Namgung Clan Head.
Jeong Yeon-shin quietly parted his lips.
"I heard that a senior's younger brother from our unit died to the Ten-Mile One Kill."
"The younger brother of the Blue-Eyed Demon Sword? Well, that was a fairly famous story. Who would have thought a sure-kill martial art, aimed only at top-tier experts, would be used to pierce a mere greenhorn? I believe the entire region was in an uproar over it. You should be careful too. It contains variations, and because it is so fast and fierce, there's no telling where it might strike from."
"I will keep that in mind," the current Commander of the Demonlight Wing replied calmly.
* * *
"Namgung's First Sword is in the Martial Dragon Association. He is the White Qilin's uncle."
It was a quiet graveyard. Cheong-myeong's voice echoed softly over the lush, sprawling grass.
The Commander of the Demonlight Wing and the First Sword of the Demonlight Wing stood side by side beneath a night sky so deep that even the full moon had hidden itself.
Only a vast cluster of stars spread across the heavens, emitting a faint glow like night dew.
"He told me that I must forget my younger brother to achieve great completion in my swordplay. He said I was bound by my own desire to be free. And then, he drove a sword right into my chest."
"Nonsense. A swordsman only needs to use his hands well," Jeong Yeon-shin replied with deliberate blankness.
The Cheong-myeong he knew was a person with a mysterious past, much like Baek Mi-ryeo, and was the hardest man to read within the Demonlight Wing. He was a senior who, from their very first meeting, had trusted and helped Jeong Yeon-shin in a cheerful yet sly manner. Melancholy simply didn't suit him.
As Cheong-myeong chuckled, the tail of his blue bandana fluttered slightly in the breeze.
"You have to use your body well too. A swordsman is a warrior, after all."
Jeong Yeon-shin fell silent. Was he speaking of his younger brother, who had failed to evade the Ten-Mile One Kill?
Suddenly, Cheong-myeong clasped his hands behind his neck. He looked up at the sky, adopting a posture that the Lazy Flame Dragon often assumed.
"You know that stars have energy too, right? Sometimes their waves descend."
"Yes."
"Sometimes, the waves fade and grow dim. In our clan, we call them dead stars. When the moon hides its face, we name those lifeless stars after our sleeping clansmen. Cheongsu is somewhere up there."
Cheong-myeong pointed his index finger toward the distant sky.
It was a direction difficult to pinpoint precisely. Jeong Yeon-shin could see deeply and in great detail, but he didn't possess the eyesight to gaze upon a star that did not shine.
That was something possible only for Brightfolk experts.
"Well, it's a chaotic era, so I suppose it was a natural end. Can a warrior really hope for a peaceful death? We're lucky if we don't just die in some ditch. Cheongsu's body wasn't in a state that could be fully recovered."
"I intend to leave them in the exact same state."
"Who knows. He was struck in a single blow, so he probably went without pain. The one who truly suffered was me. You should be careful, Commander. If you die young, I'll have to lead the Demonlight Wing, and right now, I don't have the confidence to handle those reliable troublemakers."
Starfire shimmered in Cheong-myeong's mysterious blue eyes.
Jeong Yeon-shin stared at the swordsman—who was both his senior and his subordinate—and nodded.
"I won't die young."
That was the end of the conversation.
The current Commander of the Demonlight Wing immediately sent word to the leadership of the Gate of the Heavenly Pillar. He conveyed his objective, only to be met with fierce opposition.
"This cannot be."
"They are on the verge of pinpointing our sect's location. They must have been constantly tracing the earth veins. Just like when you entered, the Commander of the Demonlight Wing's movements cannot be free."
"Many elders oppose this. Why not at least listen to what they have to say?"
"This is a matter beyond mere qualification. Is the very survival of our village not at stake? How many of our children have already died?"
They said the issue lay with the dust that had erupted from the hands of the assassin who visited the lake of the World Tree.
The unanimous consensus was that it must be the tracking incense of the Ten-Mile One Kill. They feared that the moment anyone stepped outside the formation, a lethal strike would fly toward them. They added that exposing the village would be as easy as flipping one's hand.
"Dead men tell no tales," Jeong Yeon-shin muttered to himself as he set out. One of his hands was enveloped in the Dharma Power of the Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand.
A great commotion erupted behind him, but he paid it no mind. He was an adult.
* * *
[So you've come out.]
A voice laced with laughter rumbled, seemingly surrounding him from all directions. It was a voice that pushed the chilly winter wind directly against his skin.
Six Harmonies Sound Transmission. It made it impossible to discern the speaker's location—a technique exclusive to top-tier experts.
[This seat is a Bong-gong of the Dark Night Hall, Go Hwi-il.]
"Go Hwi-il. The one who killed Cheongsu," Jeong Yeon-shin muttered. He had already parted the village's sorcery formation to step outside.
Bong-gong.
It was a term that shared its roots with Buddhist concepts of devotion and selflessness for the public good. In the Jianghu, it primarily referred to a high-ranking position within a sect. As one who prioritized the sect over personal gain, a Bong-gong was said to hold absolute power, second only to the Sect Leader.
[I have no grudge against you... but I hear you are the direct disciple of the woman who betrayed our clan. Your status alone makes you worthy of death.]
He spoke of the Lord of the Desolate Fortress so carelessly. It seemed there was a deep-seated grudge even among the Brightfolk, but Jeong Yeon-shin had a different priority. That bastard had just insulted the Fortress Lord.
[The current imperial family and the Desolate Fortress have brought about this chaotic era. Even the surrounding ten miles are in turmoil, and the moon itself, the symbol of our clan, has grown turbid.]
"A coward talks too much."
[Echoing Ten Miles, One Arrow Washing the Moon. It is our sect's secret technique. Its essence lies in annihilating you all with a single arrow, so you would do well to remember it before you go.]
The arrogant voice rang out via the Six Harmonies Sound Transmission. Jeong Yeon-shin closed his eyes.
Using the sense of Qi emanating from his skin to dissect the vibrations coming from all directions, he began tracing the origin of the invisible waves.
It was a complete reversal. The sense of Qi in the Upper Dantian of the Commander of the Demonlight Wing surged outward. Through his refined senses, he traced the path of the single voice that had been refracted by walls of various energy waves.
Sssss—!
It was the inaudible sound of tearing air, echoing solely within the realm of internal power waves. Passing through ridges, forests, stone walls, and branches, his sense of Qi bent in all directions before shooting forward like a beam of light.
And, finally.
Found you.
His senses suddenly locked onto a certain stone peak.
A figure was releasing a bowstring from within a square formation of ten men. He possessed an incredibly solid upper body, and a monstrous wave of energy exploded from his frame.
The Ten-Mile One Kill had been unleashed.
The force swirling and shattering from his long fingers was like a tempest. Fine cracks spread in all directions, from the ground beneath his feet to the surrounding stone walls, as the swirling waves of force tore the boulders of Mount Tianzhu to shreds.
The mere aftermath caused massive explosions all around, putting the bombardment of fire bombs to shame.
It's coming.
Was even the shaft of the arrow made of iron? In an instant, a chilling texture rushed forward, trailing a massive shockwave in its wake.
Even with his Upper Dantian burning white, it felt incredibly fast. It was not something that could be blocked. A direct hit would mean instant death. If he tried to deflect it with swordplay, his body would be shattered right along with his blade.
A path made of an incredibly long beam of light was engraved into his mind.
His Upper Dantian had long since glowed stark white. The current Commander of the Demonlight Wing manipulated the speed of his thoughts, living up to his alias, Flash Art. The flow of time surrounding his body slowed to a crawl.
The Ten-Mile One Kill was said to possess the subtle principles of Sword Control. It was controlling the arrow with Qi. He had to take his step at the exact moment when it would be most difficult for the arrow to change its course.
Jeong Yeon-shin segmented a near-instantaneous moment into dozens of fractions. He calculated an extremely brief window of time.
Now.
He lowered his upper body slightly. He was already rotating the Law-Transcending Halo Qi of his heart.
Within his newly strengthened twelve meridians and the acupoints of his entire body, the Law-Transcending Halo Qi surged relentlessly. It firmly anchored his cervical spine and gathered like starlight at the Chengfu Point, Yinmen Point, Weizhong Point, and the Yongquan Point on the soles of his feet.
He had already perfectly mapped out the path of his True Qi. He also knew exactly what intent to infuse into it.
The decisive ultimate secret. The mental image that formed the foundation of high-level martial arts.
A dead star. Touching the night air.
Rustle.
He moved his legs while breathing through his divine art.
In the next instant, an earthquake erupted beneath his feet. His vision shifted in a flash. Below, a terrifying shockwave distorted alongside a faint beam of light. His feet stepped upon the shadow of a star.
Whoosh—!
He could almost feel the gazes of the Gate of the Heavenly Pillar and the Demonlight Wing from inside the formation, staring up at his back from far below.
He had soared along the mountain terrain. A faint haze of light emanated from the tips of Jeong Yeon-shin's feet. It was a Lightness Skill imbued with the Law-Transcending Halo Qi.
The edges of the radiance unraveled like thin fabric, painting the mountain ridges, ancient trees, and massive boulders in a pale hue. The night mountain slopes were drenched in the faint light of the shockwaves.
It was the same when Jeong Yeon-shin's foot touched the next patch of earth. In an instant, he released another burst of light.
His figure, soaring in a straight line with a dim glow, resembled a constellation wrapping around the mountain.
Boom!
A massive explosion roared from far below. It was the Ten-Mile One Kill, which had failed to alter its trajectory in time.
Jeong Yeon-shin didn't care. Accompanied by a surging sense of exhilaration, he sprinted through the night where snow lay like a blanket.
His vision narrowed into a blur, as if he were trapped within the eye of a typhoon. The forest scenery changed endlessly. He was moving so fast that the violent wind whipping against his face felt almost soft.
And so, right after taking his fifth step...
Rustle.
Before he knew it, he was atop the massive stone peak.
He stepped right into the gathering of chilly energy waves. In the center of the ten-man square formation, he saw a man loading a single arrow.
The Bong-gong of the Dark Night Hall. He possessed pale skin that seemed infused with moonlight and a beautifully sharp jawline. The hem of his long robe was ash-gray.
Their eyes met.
"......!"
The surrounding subordinates shouted something, but it didn't register.
It was time to strike back. The enemies could deliver a fatal blow at any moment. He couldn't afford to give them room to breathe.
Jeong Yeon-shin took another step. A dry wind flowed from the Northern Light Sword, which was already gripped firmly in his hand.
His Lightness Skill itself was swordplay.
Whoosh.
Enveloped in a faint wind, he swept past the leader. Bong-gong Go Hwi-il's body flinched. Behind his back, a diagonally engraved trajectory flickered stark white.
Ching.
The Commander of the Demonlight Wing sheathed his sword without even looking back. The hem of his pitch-black robe, which had billowed magnificently, fluttered back down.
"That Lightness Skill... how..."
It was the same voice that had spoken through the Six Harmonies Sound Transmission. Stumbling before collapsing to his knees, the Bong-gong of the Dark Night Hall muttered in vain.
He had suffered a fatal wound that would soon bring death. Jeong Yeon-shin glanced at him, resting his hand casually on the hilt of his sword.
"You called it Echoing Ten Miles, One Arrow Washing the Moon. If the turmoil echoes for ten miles, what do you expect to achieve with a mere arrow?"
"Commander of the Demonlight Wing...! Do not mock our sect's secret technique. This matter was merely my own..."
"I only spoke because you asked about this Commander's Lightness Skill."
He was meeting his end as a Bong-gong of the Dark Night Hall. Go Hwi-il fell silent.
The current Commander of the Demonlight Wing parted his lips. An incredibly quiet voice sounded out. It was close to a whisper, but the Bong-gong's long ears twitched.
Soon.
"Heh, indeed... You truly are one of the seventeen precious swords of the Desolate Fortress..."
Letting out a hollow chuckle, Bong-gong Go Hwi-il's eyes lost focus. He met the death that slowly crept upon him. He passed while repeating the words of the opponent who had bitterly mocked him to the very end.
Ten-Mile Strife. Death Star Light.
Even if ten miles are in turmoil,
The starlight remains profound.