Chapter 89
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: Another Prodigy
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Hardly suppressed rage exploded outward.
"How dare that bastard hold me accountable!"
Bam!
Urk!
As the Crimson Moon Great Demon thrust out his hand, the floorboards shattered and flipped, sending the woman prostrated before him flying backward into the wall.
"Bring me liquor!"
At his shout, the door to the adjacent room flew open, and a beautiful woman emerged carrying a bottle and cups.
Gulp, gulp...
The Crimson Moon Great Demon snatched the bottle the woman was holding and poured it straight down his throat.
The woman who had crashed into the wall had somehow crawled forward and prostrated herself again.
Huuuh.
Having emptied the entire bottle in one go, the Crimson Moon Great Demon looked down at Cheongmae.
"Did the Asura Demon Lord truly say such a thing?"
"Yes."
"I'll ask again. Did the Demon Lord truly say that?"
Cheongmae couldn't respond.
She knew that one wrong word could cost her life.
"Lord Asura said... that Lord Crimson Moon's abilities are extraordinary. Thus, he hopes you will handle not only the Present Origin Child of Mount Hua, but also the Demon-Subduing Sword Lord of the Joint Faction and the Six Swords Wall of Mount Zhongnan."
Kekeke... Kuhahaha!
Laughter burst from the Crimson Moon Great Demon's mouth.
"Of course. There's no way that bastard would dare say something like that to me. Was there anything else?"
"He said to leave the life of that fellow called Gonggong to Lord Shadowless."
An unpleasant expression crossed the Crimson Moon Great Demon's face.
"Shadowless Demon? Well, that one commands the most subordinates among us. He could burn not just that guy but the whole village to ashes. And those subordinates of his are all mad dogs to boot."
The Crimson Moon Great Demon clung to his pride to the end.
He secretly feared the Asura Demon Lord but hated taking orders or commands.
"Go tell the Demon Lord that I'll grant his request."
Cheongmae bowed her head in respect and backed out of the room.
Once outside, she stroked her trembling chest.
What the Asura Demon Lord had actually instructed her to relay was this:
"The responsibility for the deaths of Cheo-eun-seon and his disciples must extend to include the deaths of the Present Origin Child, the Demon-Subduing Sword Lord, and the Six Swords Wall."
Cheongmae had changed "responsibility" to "request" and saved her own life.
'What an unlucky bastard.'
With a cold sneer, she exited the mountain gate.
That Crimson Moon Great Demon knew nothing.
The Asura Demon Scripture had now ascended to the Five Saints realm.
Once that Demon Scripture was perfected, the Crimson Moon Great Demon would be nothing to fear.
A young man with disheveled hair and tattered clothes walked along the riverbank, gripping a long spear.
'Let's see the face of the guy Elder Yeonggae praised until his mouth went dry.'
The young man's family didn't rank among the Five Great Families.
But it wasn't just any ordinary clan either.
It enjoyed great fame in the martial world and was quite large in scale.
However, it had no experts on the level of the Five Heavenly Kings or Seven Star Lords.
Long ago, it had produced many spear masters and even generals, but now that was just a relic of past glory.
Still, the family's martial arts were impressive enough that they didn't need to bow their heads anywhere.
As the young man walked up the riverbank, he spotted another youth sitting on a rock by the water, gazing at the river.
This youth seemed to be in severe pain somewhere, as his upper body was wrapped in white cloth.
"Hey."
The young man called out to the one on the rock without ceremony.
When the seated youth turned his head, the spear-wielding one pointed upstream toward a hill visible along the river.
"Is that inn up there for martial artists of the rivers and lakes?"
"Yeah."
With that short reply, the seated youth turned his gaze back to the river.
For some reason, the spear-wielding youth felt irritated.
But seeing how badly hurt the other seemed, he swallowed his annoyance and headed toward the hill.
Looking up at the newly built fence as he walked, he soon reached the gate and flung it open without hesitation.
Creeeak!
As the gate swung open, the interior came into view.
Men and women were practicing martial arts, and among them, the monk and the Taoist were familiar faces.
Myeong-gak and Cheongpung recognized the entering youth and scowled.
Once again, the young man felt deeply annoyed.
Why did they have to grimace just from seeing his face?
"Myeong-gak, Cheongpung, long time no see. Still alive, huh? I figured Cheongpung might make it, but Myeong-gak? Thought you'd croak in some gutter."
Myeong-gak's scowl eased, and he clasped his hands in greeting.
"Namo Amitabha, Kwanseum Bosal. Looks like I'll have to break my precept against killing today."
I slowly rose from the rock and headed up to the house.
Ever since surviving that brush with death, faint afterimages kept flickering before my eyes.
I didn't know why, but it didn't feel like a bad thing.
Hah! Tat!
The shouts echoing from the hilltop sounded like the ragged youth's voice.
He was clearly already sparring with someone.
Entering the courtyard through the backyard that led to the river, I saw the ragged youth and Myeong-gak exchanging blows in the middle of the yard.
I quietly observed their movements.
Whoosh! Swish! ...
The spear thrusts were fast and precise, forcing even Myeong-gak, who was dodging the blade and shaft, to stay alert.
But while Myeong-gak's face showed composure, the youth attacking with the spear already looked anxious.
'The spear's too long. No, he's thrusting too far.'
Driving the spear forcefully was fine, but if the opponent dodged, it created an unintended opening.
If their reaction speeds were similar, he might not exploit it, but Myeong-gak moved far faster than the youth.
Every time the spear thrust long, Myeong-gak dodged and closed in instead.
As the opponent pressed inward, the spearman had no choice but to retreat step by step.
Tat!
With another vigorous shout from the ragged youth, the spear spun, hammering at Myeong-gak's entire body from all directions.
Yet Myeong-gak deflected the inner shaft with his palm and burrowed even deeper.
Thud!
Urk!
Myeong-gak's palm strike to the chest sent the ragged youth sliding backward with a groan.
"Myeong-gak! When did your martial arts get this good?"
The ragged youth yelled with a face full of injustice.
Puhehehehe!
Myeong-gak placed hands on his hips and burst into loud laughter.
Grrr...
Taking it as mockery, the youth gritted his teeth and gripped the spear tighter.
"It's not over yet, you dog monk!"
The youth thrust powerfully at Myeong-gak's thigh.
But by then, Myeong-gak had already spun half around, passing him by.
Thud!
Guuuh!
Myeong-gak's fist plunged into his abdomen, leaving the youth's mouth agape as he dropped to his knees.
Thud!
As the youth knelt, Myeong-gak's foot kicked up into his face.
Splat!
Crashing backward, the youth could only twitch, unable to even groan.
Huhuhu... Huhuhuk...
Soon, sobbing sounds began to emerge.
"Why? Why am I always like this? Why? Why? Why?"
Sobbing uncontrollably, the youth screamed curses at the sky.
His sudden outburst left the junior disciples stunned, not knowing what to do.
His figure reminded me of myself long ago.
Even as the elder brother, whenever Gwang-u beat me, I'd climb the mountain and hurl abuse at the heavens just like that.
"Is that him?"
At my question, the dazed junior disciples snapped to attention.
"Yes. It's Hahu Yeong of the Hahu Family."
"Take him, wash him up, and change his clothes. Feed him too."
Myeong-gak accepted reluctantly.
"Better to just kick him out like this. That guy's a walking disaster with no fixing him."
"Even for a monk, he's a guest in my home. Can't send him off without a meal."
With that, I entered the room.
After a short nap, I stepped out to find the kitchen in an uproar.
"Myeong-gak! How can I get as strong as you? Tell me! Is the wall between the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families really insurmountable? Huh? Is it? I wandered the martial world for three whole years to grow stronger! Was that all for nothing?"
Hahu Yeong was ranting loudly by himself.
As I entered the kitchen, the seated junior disciples glanced warily at me.
Noticing their looks, the noisy Hahu Yeong turned and glared at me.
"You're that bastard from the rock, right?"
He really did seem beyond saving.
I ignored Hahu Yeong completely.
"Feed him and send him off."
The junior disciples brightened, especially Myeong-gak.
"Wise decision. Donor Hahu, time to go."
Myeong-gak urged Hahu Yeong to leave, but he pretended not to hear.
Instead, he glared at me even more fiercely.
"Who the hell are you to tell me to leave? Wanna go a round?"
Even Je-gal Ji and Namgung Hye, who rarely spoke harshly, showed anger at his attitude.
"Mind your manners, Young Master Hahu."
"Young Master Hahu, please leave our home."
But Hahu Yeong didn't budge.
"Miss Je-gal, Miss Namgung, I'm not from one of the Five Great Families, so I don't know manners. Is that manners thing something you eat?"
Je-gal Ji and Namgung Hye's eyes narrowed, brows furrowing.
Haha...
But my laughter made them hold back their anger and look at me.
"Laughing?"
I smiled at the provoking Hahu Yeong.
"How about it? Spar with me."
"Beating a cripple just makes me look stupid. Why would I bother?"
He was certainly crude and rough.
But not entirely intolerable.
"It's because of my injury, right? Don't worry about it. If you beat me, I won't care whether you stay or leave."
"Deal. No regrets?"
"None."
Hahu Yeong grabbed the spear leaning against the wall and headed straight outside.
Myeong-gak followed, subtly taunting.
"No crying later. Kneel and beg now if you want."
Hahu Yeong glared at Myeong-gak, then raised his spear toward me.
"Your body's not well, so I'll yield the first move."
Puhehehe...
Hahaha...
Hmm.
As the junior disciples burst into laughter, Hahu Yeong's face flushed red.
"What the hell's so funny?"
"Come on. You said you'd yield first strike? Then I'll go."
Glared at by the junior disciples, Hahu Yeong gripped his spear shaft tightly and fixed on me.
Shhh.
In that instant, my figure brushed past his side.
Smack!
Hahu Yeong took a hit to the chest and flew back without a scream, crashing down.
Gurk!
Only then did he writhe on the ground, clutching his chest.
Cough! Hack! ...
Unable to even breathe properly, Hahu Yeong curled up in agony.
I watched quietly.
After a while, as the pain eased, Hahu Yeong gripped his spear and stood.
"A... again."
"Your tone's changed. This time, I'll yield first strike. Come at me."
No sooner had I spoken than Hahu Yeong's spear pierced toward my shoulder.
But the blade struck only my afterimage, while my fist grazed his abdomen again.
Thud! Guurk!
Hahu Yeong pitched forward with a pained groan.
I stood silently, waiting for him to rise again.