Chapter 188
Chapter 188
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 188
Chapter Title: Zhuge Geun-yeong's Choice
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The group emerged from the Great Heavenly Pavilion, following Zhuge Geun-yeong who led the way.
Once turned into a mess due to Zhuge Cheon-sang's rampage, the front courtyard of the Great Heavenly Pavilion had already been neatly restored.
And standing at the center of that courtyard, Zhuge Geun-yeong turned to look at everyone and shouted.
“Who will step forward first?”
At Zhuge Geun-yeong's call, the Martial Assembly Hall Master moved forward without hesitation.
But Hall Leader of the Righteous Guard Corps, Zhuge Cheong, blocked his path.
“…What do you think you're doing?”
“Hall Master. I'm sorry, but wouldn't it be better if you stepped up later instead of now?”
“What?”
Even seeing the Martial Assembly Hall Master's eyes twitching in displeasure, Zhuge Cheong didn't budge and continued speaking.
“I heard that Young Master Yi held his own evenly against the former patriarch. In that case, the only one here with a chance of defeating Young Master Yi right now is you, Hall Master.”
“And?”
Pausing briefly at the voice still thick with displeasure, Zhuge Cheong soon continued as if resolved.
“…So let me and the others wear down Young Master Yi's strength first….”
-Kwak!
Zhuge Cheong couldn't finish his words.
The Martial Assembly Hall Master, his face twisted like a ferocious demon, had grabbed him by the collar.
“You dare…! Tell me to resort to such petty tricks?”
Zhuge Cheong's face quickly turned red from the chokehold on his collar.
But his expression remained firm, as if he wouldn't back down from his conviction.
“Urk…! It was Young Master Yi who said… he would face all of us first…!”
Growling at Zhuge Cheong, who persisted despite gasping for breath, the Martial Assembly Hall Master finally released his grip amid the surrounding interventions.
“Cough, cough-!”
Zhuge Cheong's sharp gaze clashed with the Martial Assembly Hall Master's fierce glare as he coughed.
The two stared at each other silently for a moment.
Then, the Martial Assembly Hall Master averted his eyes first and stepped back, allowing Zhuge Cheong to step forward before Zhuge Geun-yeong.
-Sring
Swords drawn from their sheaths.
Without a word, they aimed their gleaming blades at each other.
-Whooo
A fairly chilling autumn wind swirled between them before gradually dying down.
The moment the wind fully subsided,
-Bam!
The two warriors charged at each other simultaneously.
And they clashed.
-Kang!
The duel began with a sharp metallic ring that pierced the ears.
Sparks flew between the clashing blades as they met and parted repeatedly in an instant.
-The Righteous Guard Leader's momentum is fierce.
-Hmm…. It feels laced with killing intent. Isn't that dangerous?
Just as whispers from somewhere suggested, Zhuge Cheong's aura was as sharp as a duel to the death.
“Haaap!”
With a powerful shout, Zhuge Cheong swung his sword relentlessly.
His savage momentum made it seem, at a glance, as if Zhuge Geun-yeong was being pushed back.
But anyone looking a bit more broadly could see it immediately.
That Zhuge Geun-yeong wasn't stepping back even an inch against Zhuge Cheong's strikes.
Hwa-ryeon, aware of this, watched the two warriors' clash intently.
Soon, her lips parted slightly as she murmured in admiration.
“…Impressive. Without even using Foresight of Heaven's Mechanism.”
As she said, Zhuge Geun-yeong was calmly countering Zhuge Cheong's strikes from his fixed position, without employing any footwork.
His prowess was markedly different from when he had fought the rampaging Zhuge Cheon-sang.
Moreover, he wielded swift sword techniques quite proficiently.
From my perspective, it was a rather satisfying sight.
At least his recent hardships seemed to have paid off.
Nodding in satisfaction, I heard a voice full of doubt from beside me.
“…His swordsmanship seems quite different too, doesn't it?”
Glancing sideways, Hwa-ryeon was eyeing me with narrowed gaze.
Her expression said she already knew everything, urging me to come clean.
Chuckling, I shrugged and answered honestly.
“Well, nothing much. I just gave him some pointers on his swordsmanship these past few days.”
In truth, it wasn't today that Zhuge Geun-yeong had decided against accepting the Chief Steward's intentions.
-Young Master Goon, do you have a moment?
Five days ago.
Late in the evening after sunset, Zhuge Geun-yeong suddenly visited my quarters.
His face was stiff and tense.
Seeing that expression, I had a feeling I knew what he wanted to say.
-Have you decided?
-…Yes. I will not accept the Chief Steward's proposal. Nor will I shift the blame onto the Elder Council Leader.
Staring at Zhuge Geun-yeong, who stated the facts plainly, I posed a question.
-But then, as the Chief Steward said, you'll face backlash from the clan's elders?
-I will endure it as I must.
-Endure it…. May I ask why you're choosing the harder path?
After pondering my follow-up question, Zhuge Geun-yeong replied softly.
-…Honestly, I never really had a choice from the start. I can't choose the same path after witnessing my father's failure firsthand.
-…Hmm.
A small exclamation escaped me, and Zhuge Geun-yeong's words continued.
-Violent Blood Technique, experiments on blood kin, Zhuge Cheon-sang swayed by the Blood Jade's power. I believe all of it stemmed from my father and the elders seeking the easy way.
The Violent Blood Technique, said to surpass any divine art in efficiency.
The Blood Jade, promising infinite internal energy.
The patriarch and elders must have coveted them out of a vain hope to gain power without enduring trials.
With a bitter smile, Zhuge Geun-yeong continued.
-We all saw the results. So I intend to walk the difficult path my father did not.
Having heard him out, I let out a small 'Hm.'
Smiling faintly at my reaction, he asked.
-What do you think? Is my choice the right one?
-Who knows… I wouldn't know.
-…Pardon?
Dumbfounded expression.
Finding his face amusing, I burst into laughter and only managed to stop when his gaze turned askew.
-Ahaha…. I'm no Buddha or Primordial Heavenly Lord—how could I know? Whether today's choice was right or wrong will be told by future results.
-…I see.
Zhuge Geun-yeong nodded earnestly at my words.
Seeing the young patriarch whose shoulders would soon bear a heavy burden, I added belatedly to encourage him.
-Well, I'll say this much: it's a cool choice that sits well with me.
-…….
Zhuge Geun-yeong stared blankly at my words before letting out a hearty laugh.
-Aahaha…! That's quite the grateful response.
His face now noticeably lighter, Zhuge Geun-yeong turned to leave the quarters.
-Well then, it's late, so I'll take my leave. Good night… .
-Hey, where do you think you're going.
Grabbing his shoulder, I met his puzzled look turning back at me.
-Pardon? Our talk is over, so I should head back… .
-Talk over? It's just beginning. If you're set on revealing everything to the elders, you need to prepare for what comes next.
-…Ah.
After a long discussion with the short exclamation from Zhuge Geun-yeong, we reached the same conclusion as with the Chief Steward: first, we needed to subdue them with strength.
Moreover, relying solely on Foresight of Heaven's Mechanism felt a bit unreliable against all the opposing elders.
Thus, from that night until today, I helped with Zhuge Geun-yeong's swordsmanship training every evening.
Incidentally, I also refined his techniques.
“That's the situation.”
“…In other words, you invented yet another new sword style?”
Shaking my head at Hwa-ryeon's incredulous question.
“As if. Not to that extent—just tweaked some forms and patterns a bit.”
Well, even that made a huge difference.
I turned my attention intently to the now-reversed duel in the training ground.
*
“Kuh, kuaaap!”
-Kagak-!
Zhuge Cheong's power surged with his roar.
His blades gnashed against each other, scattering hot sparks.
Yet despite such desperate flailing, Geun-yeong didn't retreat a single step, parrying every attack with an uncannily swift sword.
This only fueled Zhuge Cheong's inner rage.
‘Why!’
Why couldn't his sword reach Young Master Yi?
While he was buried in paperwork at the branch, he had swung his sword thousands, tens of thousands more times!
Denying the unbelievable reality, Zhuge Cheong swung desperately.
Of course, that didn't mean his attacks landed on Geun-yeong.
“Kuhuk…!”
Realizing it was time to go on the offensive as Zhuge Cheong lost composure, Geun-yeong advanced.
The swift sword, learned from introspection, shifted from defense to attack.
“Hup!”
-Kang! Kang! Kaaang!
With sharper metallic clashes, Zhuge Cheong began to yield ground.
Unlike Geun-yeong, who hadn't retreated at all, Zhuge Cheong kept stumbling back.
“T-This…!”
Gritting his teeth to resist, he was utterly overwhelmed by Geun-yeong's strikes infused with swift sword subtleties.
In the end,
-Chaeng!
Zhuge Cheong's sword flew from his hand, clattering pathetically onto the stone pavement.
Before he knew it, Geun-yeong's sword tip gleamed in the sunlight at his throat.
“Do you concede defeat?”
“…….”
Zhuge Cheong, eyes squeezed shut and fists trembling, soon let out a regretful sigh and unclenched them.
“…I lose.”
With the declaration of defeat, Geun-yeong sheathed his sword.
Zhuge Cheong retrieved his own and retreated limply.
-Hmm, Young Master Yi's martial arts are truly astonishing.
-Night and day compared to a few months ago.
Amid the elders' admiration, three more challenged Geun-yeong.
The results were all defeats.
Just like the first, Zhuge Cheong, they couldn't even graze Geun-yeong's robes.
By then, no one else stepped up.
Those who had shown eager ambition tucked tail, and the enraged ones sighed in helplessness.
In the end, only one remained.
“…Now it’s my turn.”
The Martial Assembly Hall Master.
Even within the clan, he was implicitly regarded as equal to—or surpassing—the Zhuge patriarch in attainment.
As Zhuge Cheon-sang's martial master, many called him the true pinnacle of the clan.
Such was the Martial Assembly Hall Master, standing as Geun-yeong's final opponent.