Chapter 120
Chapter 120
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: The Five Great Families' Gathering
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moyong Seol let out a sigh as she comforted Moyong Hu.
"Brother, this isn't the time to be like that. You haven't forgotten about the Five Great Families' gathering, have you?"
At the mention of the Five Great Families' gathering, Moyong Hu's head snapped up. All stray thoughts vanished from his mind. It had been decided that this gathering would take place at the Moyong Family.
Under normal circumstances, he would have welcomed it with open arms, but not now. If they held the gathering here, everything that had transpired in the Moyong Family would spread across the world in no time.
Whatever happened later, they had to prevent it for now at all costs. It was always best to delay bad rumors as long as possible.
"What do you think we should do?"
"I heard the people from the Paeng Family arrived in Shenyang a few days ago. They still don't know what happened here at the Moyong Family. I've made sure our family members keep their mouths shut tight, so we should be safe for the time being."
Moyong Hu nodded, and Moyong Seol continued.
"For now, let's push to hold the gathering at the Paeng Family. They'll be heading to our family soon, so we need to tidy things up here as quickly as possible. I'll convince the elders myself."
The biggest problem facing the Moyong Family right now was the elders. With the family's true experts keeping their heads down, the household was sinking even deeper into stagnation. Moyong Seol was confident she could get them moving again.
"Do that."
Moyong Hu rose from his seat as if there was nothing more to discuss. These matters were best handled with all haste.
Once Moyong Hu had left the room, Moyong Seol sighed again.
"Haa... Nothing's ever easy."
She suddenly felt a surge of resentment toward that Dan Hyeong-u who had reduced the Moyong Family to this pitiful state.
The Five Great Families' gathering proceeded exactly as Moyong Seol wished. Paeng Cheol-yeong gave her a puzzled look, but there was no need to force it when the Moyong Family clearly didn't want it. The full story would come to light in time anyway.
And so, the gathering was set for the Paeng Family in Hebei, with the date moved up as much as possible. It was all thanks to the Moyong Family's urgency.
Moyong Seol wanted to conclude the gathering before any rumors could spread. That was the best course for the Moyong Family.
On the surface, the gathering was for strengthening bonds, but internally, it was where they decided matters concerning each family's interests.
They protected one another's trade routes and discussed ways to deal with threats to the Five Great Families.
The foundation of it all was power. Without it, they'd become mere prey. That was what Moyong Seol feared most.
For now, they still needed the prestige of the Five Great Families. They had to make others believe they possessed that power.
While the Moyong Family struggled to get its act together, the carriage carrying Dan Hyeong-u and his group entered Hebei.
Jong Chil drove the carriage leisurely. Lately, the Sword King had been helping with his training every night for some reason, and the results were tremendous. As far as Jong Chil could tell, this training would end once their journey did.
'And he hasn't been nagging me as much lately.'
Jong Chil had been watching his words more carefully these days. He kept his thoughts buried inside rather than voicing them. No need to provoke the Sword King unnecessarily.
In any case, one thing was clear: the atmosphere between the Sword King and Sword Demon had changed dramatically from before. Jong Chil, sharp as he was, couldn't have missed it.
But it was an ambiguous shift. Neither better nor worse. Jong Chil just did his best not to ruffle their feathers.
The change in the Sword King and Sword Demon stemmed from what had happened at the Moyong Family—or more precisely, the divine prowess Dan Hyeong-u had displayed there.
Dan Hyeong-u had revealed an entirely new realm. They'd always believed his Heavenly Thunder was produced through swordsmanship. And when they'd experienced it firsthand, they'd thought the same. But it wasn't.
At the Moyong Family, Dan Hyeong-u had summoned Heavenly Thunder with just a glance. The effect was identical to unleashing it with a sword. No—even greater.
It was strength on a whole other level. Far beyond what the Sword King or Sword Demon could even approach.
"Heh, what a waste of years."
He had picked up the sword as a child. Now well over ninety, that meant he'd been swinging it for at least ninety years.
The world thought the Sword King was in his eighties, but he was much older. And he'd wielded the sword far longer.
Yet a young man barely out of his twenties had reached a realm vastly superior to his own. A height he couldn't even fathom.
The Sword Demon harbored the same thoughts. His age was similar to the Sword King's.
It was only natural for them to wallow in self-deprecation.
Dan Hyeong-u watched the two silently. He could never truly understand their feelings.
But what baffled Dan Hyeong-u most wasn't that. It was a question that had plagued him since meeting Ak Bi-hwan at the Evil Market—and one he still hadn't resolved.
It was the discrepancy brought by those ten years.
The time Dan Hyeong-u had lived far exceeded ten years. No matter how off his sense of time or his calculations, it couldn't have been just ten.
Yet meeting Cheol-mak-sim had confirmed it once more: it was indeed ten years. Confusing as it was, he had to accept it. That endless stretch of time was merely ten years.
"A long ten years."
Dan Hyeong-u murmured. It had been an agonizingly long decade. A lonely one.
Suddenly, a smile tugged at his lips. He glanced back at his companions standing atop the carriage roof. He was no longer alone. Not with comrades like these.
"Don't smile like that. Makes me fond of you, you rascal."
The Sword King grumbled irritably. He couldn't help feeling resentful. Ninety years of his life outmatched by a mere ten? How did that even make sense?
"Tch, geniuses are all so damn annoying."
The Sword King said that, but he himself was a genius acknowledged by all—a genius of the sword.
From that day—the one when the Sword King had sulked—Dan Hyeong-u began sparring against him and the Sword Demon. It was Dan Hyeong-u who proposed it first.
His suggestion stunned the group as if the heavens had shifted. Jo Seol-yeon and the other women were purely delighted by his positive change.
In any case, it was a truly positive development.
Sparring between Dan Hyeong-u, the Sword King, and Sword Demon. It was a spectacle worth a fortune to witness. For martial artists, it was a stroke of fortune akin to enlightenment. Doing so every night was pure bliss.
The spars lasted exactly half a gak—one incense stick—each night. The Sword King and Sword Demon pooled their strength and wits, devising ways to tackle Dan Hyeong-u.
In a real fight, it would end in an instant. They'd undoubtedly end up as corpses. But this was sparring. Dan Hyeong-u was helping them.
It bruised their pride, but neither saw it that way. They were already enthralled by Dan Hyeong-u's pure strength.
If he'd proposed the same to other Supreme Ten Experts, they'd have refused outright, no matter his reputation. But the Sword King and Sword Demon had fallen too deep.
Their combined assault was terrifying. They threw everything they had at Dan Hyeong-u—likely rarer than rare for them.
And they did it every night, charging with the resolve to exhaust every ounce of strength over that half gak.
The sparring patterns changed daily. They experimented with new tactics, approaches, even devising fresh sword techniques to test on him.
But no matter the flow, the outcome was always the same.
When the half gak ended, the Sword King and Sword Demon flew back, clutching their chests from the impact. Without knowing how Dan Hyeong-u had moved or what struck them.
The onlookers were equally clueless. Yet they gained immense insights—and far greater fear.
Dan Hyeong-u was terrifyingly strong.
"Same as always today."
Umun Hye muttered as the Sword King and Sword Demon went flying. It was the fifth straight day. Their daily travel distance had plummeted since entering Hebei.
Jong Chil was driving slowly on purpose, but the others were dragging their feet too. No one wanted this journey to end quickly.
Umun Hye felt the same. She wanted more time traveling with Dan Hyeong-u. Sure, alone would be better, but she'd grown indifferent to that now.
"Still, it's impressive."
The previous spar had been staggering. Sword ki flew everywhere, walls crumbled. The explosions were deafening, heat and cold whirling together.
Even spectating from afar was no easy feat.
It differed vastly from the first day. The sheer outpouring of energy made its flows faintly visible now.
She could now grasp most of the intense ki streams. If Umun Hye could, stronger ones like Yeong-sa or Tang Ho-gwan saw more. Weaker ones saw less.
The key was that everyone felt the ki flows. It would create huge gaps in their future training and combat.
They were thrilled by this serendipity. What luck to witness such experts' exchange!
But they never realized it was Dan Hyeong-u's deliberate consideration that let them perceive the flows so clearly.
Without it, even the Sword King and Sword Demon's outbursts wouldn't have been this discernible.
If it were that easy, disciples of absolute masters would ascend realms effortlessly. Currently, only those nearing Supreme Ten level could fully sense ki flows.
Though their perceptive abilities still varied greatly.
The enlightening spar ended. Soon, the Sword King and Sword Demon would awaken for new training.
For some reason, they took out their frustrations on Jong Chil like he was a rat. It felt like they were venting what Dan Hyeong-u had done to him. And it was exactly that. Jong Chil was their punching bag.
Who else could they unload on?
Poor Jong Chil writhed in agony every night.
Officially training, but it was torment. Still, his skills surged. Two Supreme Ten Experts drilling him to the brink of vomiting blood? Improvement was inevitable.
Jong Chil was growing fastest in the group. Not that he wanted it.
A few more days passed like that.
"Aren't we going a bit too slow?"
Tang Mun-yeong voiced mild concern from inside the carriage. Leaving the Hechang branch empty for so long made her uneasy.
The Tang Family had sent top talents aplenty, but anxiety lingered.
"What're you worrying about? The slower, the better. We've grown this much in just these few days—no way we'll get another chance like it."
The other women nodded at Umun Hye's words. It was an opportunity for them too.
Even Yeom Hye-mi was benefiting immensely. Lately, the patterns appearing on Thousand Island had multiplied exponentially. Jegal Rin struggled to analyze them all.
"And who can stop those two elders' stubbornness? Unless Young Master Dan steps in."
True enough. The biggest reason for the slow pace was the Sword King and Sword Demon. They controlled the carriage's speed. Whenever Jong Chil tried speeding up, fists flew with murderous intent.
To survive, Jong Chil drove as slowly as possible—without stalling the horses.
Trotting slowly was tricky. His carriage-driving skills were leveling up another notch.
"Lately, even Young Master Dan seems to be enjoying the spars."
Jegal Rin smiled brightly—unusual for her typically expressionless face. Recently, talking about Dan Hyeong-u brought unconscious smiles.
"By the way, I heard the Five Great Families' gathering is soon. Have you heard?"
Jegal Rin nodded at Jo Seol-yeon's question. She was the only one in the carriage from the Five Great Families.
Rumors had spread that it would be at the Paeng Family in Hebei. Impossible not to hear.
"Won't Miss Jegal need to attend?"
Jegal Rin shook her head firmly.
"Why would I? Grandfather handles it all. Honestly, the bonds between the Five Great Families have weakened lately. I don't see it as important. I've never attended once."
"I see."
"But there's zero rumors about Young Master Dan. After the chaos at the Moyong Family."