The Sky He Must One Day Reach
Namgung Clan, the Family Head Hall.
Though dozens of clan members were gathered, the vast hall was so silent that not even the sound of breathing could be heard.
And at the very center of that silence sat a single man upon the dais.
Beneath his detached gaze, only Jegal Hwa wore the same gentle smile she always did.
Unlike her, however, the second young master, Namgung Jin, felt a heavy weight pressing down on him.
With the eldest young master away at the Martial Alliance, the burden weighed all the heavier.
And at the very end of the line of clan members, in the least conspicuous spot of all, stood Namgung Cheon.
He neither tensed up nor averted his eyes the way Namgung Jin and the others did.
From beginning to end, his gaze had been fixed on one thing alone: Namgung Mugang, seated upon the dais.
And the emotions steeped in those eyes bore a complexity that no single word—neither fear nor awe—could hope to define.
……So we meet again, like this.
While the other clan members, crushed by his suffocating presence, could not so much as lift their heads, Namgung Cheon alone faced him with perfect calm.
Namgung Mugang was merely sitting on the dais, and yet his presence bore down upon the entire Family Head Hall.
It was a depth unlike the man he had once crossed blades with—a depth compounded by the weight of years.
That unchanging strength, if anything, stilled Namgung Cheon's heart.
The Great War of Justice and Demons. The duel at the Dark Forest.
At first it had been righteousness against evil, a life-and-death struggle between enemies—but as time went on, that meaning had faded away.
What remained was only the exhilaration and communion that could be felt at the tip of each other's blades.
An emotion he had never known anywhere else.
And at the very end of it, that moment when they had faced each other, bloodied from head to toe, and laughed.
Without a word, exchanging blades, they had made each other a promise.
That someday, from the very apex of the world, they would fight their final battle.
And now, he could do nothing but gaze up at that sky from within his son's body.
Even so……
Namgung Cheon's eyes flickered like flame.
Someday.
He would cross blades with him once more.
No matter how vast the gulf between heaven and earth might be now, he need only run faster than the speed of the years that man had walked.
The moment he hardened that resolve, Namgung Mugang's gaze began, ever so slowly, to sweep across the clan members one by one.
Wherever his eyes touched, the weathered elders found themselves bowing at the waist without meaning to, and Namgung Jin felt his breath catch in his throat.
And at last, his gaze reached the man standing at the very end of the line—Namgung Cheon—and stopped.
His youngest son, the only one who had neither avoided his eyes nor wavered, meeting him head-on with unshakable will.
Namgung Mugang's gaze drifted naturally to Namgung Cheon's waist.
On one side hung Changcheon, the pride of the Namgung Clan—and on the other, the pitch-black sword he himself had once sealed: Mukhon.
At the strange sight of light and darkness coexisting, his indifferent eyes wavered, briefly.
A ripple so slight it was as if a single pebble had dropped onto the surface of a still lake.
But that was all.
He showed no further reaction.
He simply regarded his son in silence.
Under the strange stillness flowing between father and son, the air in the hall grew heavier still.
The other clan members, having forgotten even to breathe, could only watch the strange exchange of gazes between the two men.
And it was the Grand Elder, Namgung Gyeong, who broke that silence.
He stepped forward and spoke.
"I shall now report on all matters that occurred during the Clan Head's absence."
When Namgung Mugang gave the faintest of nods, Namgung Gyeong began his report without a hitch.
The great affairs of the clan passed back and forth—its administration and finances, its relations with the Martial Alliance, and more.
And finally, his voice dropping a register lower, he raised the subject everyone had been waiting for.
"Lastly, the report concerning the third young master."
The report on the third young master.
At those words, the posture of the elders—who until then had maintained indifferent expressions through the other matters—shifted almost imperceptibly.
Once more, every ear in the hall turned toward Namgung Cheon.
Namgung Gyeong glanced briefly at the young man, then spoke.
"As already conveyed by letter, the third young master attained the Sword Selection, and……"
After touching briefly on the Sword Selection, Namgung Gyeong moved straight on to the results of the young master's martial pilgrimage.
His report was a plain recitation of objective facts, but the contents within it were more than enough to astonish everyone in the hall.
The defeat of Gwak San, Sect Leader of the Thunderbolt Sect. The death of Gal Mu-seong, leader of the Blood Sword Gang.
All of it was already known—but hearing it officially from the Grand Elder's mouth carried a different weight altogether.
As the report continued, low murmurs of awe erupted across the hall, and several elders found themselves glancing at Namgung Cheon with admiring eyes.
And when the atmosphere had reached its very peak, Namgung Gyeong drove in the finishing blow.
"……Thus did he best nine of the finest masters in and around Hefei—and his final opponent was the Wolf King's disciple, the Silent Extinction Sword, Mujin."
The moment the name Jeongmyeolgeom was spoken, the air in the hall grew leaden.
From the mouths of several elders who had only just returned alongside the Clan Head and knew nothing of the news, gasps of sheer disbelief burst forth.
"What! The Wolf King's disciple!"
Even those who had already heard the news found themselves swallowing drily at the weight of hearing it formally reported before the Clan Head.
The Silent Extinction Sword, Mujin.
He was a master of the Transcendent Realm—one whom most of the elders seated here could not have guaranteed victory against.
That the young master had brought down such a man meant his martial prowess had already surpassed the level of the clan's own elders.
Namgung Gyeong drove the final wedge into the stirring elders.
"Furthermore, that same Silent Extinction Sword Mujin has offered himself as the third young master's personal retainer, and remains at the main estate to this day."
Murmurs and gasps of astonishment broke out here and there.
By his own strength alone, he had drawn a Transcendent Realm master from outside the clan into his service.
It was a dangerous variable that could shake the very balance of power within the clan—and, at the same time, an achievement of staggering magnitude.
But the report did not end there.
As if to turn the mood on its head, Namgung Gyeong's voice dropped even lower.
"One. However, the problems hidden behind this martial pilgrimage are likewise not to be overlooked."
At those words, the elated atmosphere in the hall chilled to ice.
Across the faces of the elders aligned with the eldest and second young masters' factions—above all the Seventh Elder, Namgung Do—flickered the smiles of men who had been waiting for exactly this.
Namgung Gyeong began to list, in dry tones, the problems the pilgrimage had caused.
"The third young master's actions have completely shattered the existing power structure of Anhui's underworld, beginning with the Blood Sword Gang."
His words carried achievement and consequence bound together like the two faces of a single coin.
"Petty unorthodox gangs are now sprouting up in a scramble to seize the vacant dominion of the underworld, and their infighting has left the people of Anhui in considerable unrest."
The people's hearts.
The moment that word left his mouth, several elders coughed pointedly and shot disapproving glances at Namgung Cheon.
Utterly unbothered, Namgung Gyeong reported the final problem.
"And with the collapse of the Blood Sword Gang, the Four Black Alliance—to whom that gang paid tribute—has dispatched the Black Wind Squad to Hefei, ostensibly to investigate the circumstances."
When the report ended, a heavy silence once more settled over the hall.
The Grand Elder's report had been scrupulously objective—but its contents came back unmistakably as arrows aimed at Namgung Cheon.
The fact that he had won glorious merits, yet in exchange had created problems he would now have to shoulder.
Every clan member held their breath, watching to see how Namgung Mugang would judge the matter—and upon whom he would pin the responsibility.
Every eye in the hall converged on Namgung Mugang upon his seat, and on Namgung Cheon, who stood utterly motionless beneath the weight of the entire report.
Then the Seventh Elder, Namgung Do, stepped forward and raised his voice.
"Clan Head, this calamity was clearly brought on by the third young master's overreach! The clan must act at once to set this chaos right—"
The instant he tried to continue, Namgung Mugang quietly raised a hand and silenced him.
Every sound in the hall stopped as if by magic.
Namgung Mugang remained silent for a moment, as if in deliberation—then turned his gaze upon Namgung Cheon.
"Cheon."
"Yes."
"What say you?"
To that question, Namgung Cheon answered in a voice that did not waver.
"Every duel I fought followed entirely legitimate procedure, and none of it was done out of private sentiment. Furthermore, the chaos in Anhui's underworld is merely the natural consequence of uprooting a rotten stump called the Blood Sword Gang. I believe there was no wrongdoing in my actions."
At that bold declaration, the brows of several elders knitted together.
Paying them no mind, Namgung Cheon moved on to the next step.
"However."
He put force into his voice.
"Even so, every one of these affairs began because of me. And so, I will see them through to their end as well."
No fault, and yet he would bear the responsibility all the same.
At that arrogant, unflinching bearing, a flicker of color lit the deep eyes of Namgung Mugang.
The clan members held their breath, waiting for the Clan Head's next words.
A long while passed before Namgung Mugang's mouth finally opened.
"Very well."
At once, the faces of several elders stiffened.
Paying their reactions no heed, Namgung Mugang continued.
"I entrust full authority over this matter to you."
Full authority.
This was no mere assignment of responsibility—it meant granting him power equal to the Clan Head's own in all matters concerning the affair.
To the youngest son, until now a man of no presence, he had handed complete authority over the unorthodox gangs of Anhui and the Four Black Alliance—a matter of grave import.
"C-Clan Head! This is——"
The Seventh Elder, Namgung Do, opened his mouth, but Namgung Mugang's words crushed whatever he meant to say next.
"That is the Clan Head's command."
The command of Namgung Mugang, the Sword Emperor and patriarch of the clan.
Before that absolute weight, neither Namgung Do nor anyone else dared open their mouth again.
But Namgung Mugang's shocking declaration did not end there.
"All of you are dismissed. Cheon alone will remain."
A private audience.
As if granting him full authority were not enough, the Clan Head now meant to face him alone.
The clan members could hardly conceal their shock.
What on earth did the Clan Head see in that youngest son, to walk so unprecedented a path for him?
But the elders and clan members did not dare raise an objection; bowing their heads in silence, they began to file out of the Family Head Hall.
Jegal Hwa alone, wearing a faint smile whose meaning none could read, was the last to withdraw.
Creeeak… boom.
The massive doors closed, and within the great hall only two men remained.
Father and son.
And once, the Heavenly Demon and the Sword Emperor—each the other's match.
Namgung Mugang descended from the dais and walked slowly toward Namgung Cheon.
But his gaze was fixed not upon his son's face, but upon the pitch-black sword hanging at his waist—Mukhon.
Then he spoke.
"I never thought I would see you again."
Deep reminiscence weighed upon his voice.
For to him, Mukhon was no cold lump of iron, but the trace of that day, long ago.
"……"
Namgung Cheon could say nothing.
For he, too, had felt the same when he first laid eyes on Mukhon.
You were waiting as well.
After gazing at the scabbard for a long moment, Namgung Mugang raised his eyes and looked his son squarely in the face.
Complex emotions were steeped in his eyes.
Looking back and forth between the two blades hanging side by side at his son's waist, he asked:
"Was Changcheon not enough? Why did you covet Mukhon as well?"
It was a question of pure curiosity.
The treasured blade that symbolized the righteous path of the Namgung Clan, and the relic of the man who had once stood at the very apex of the demonic path.
He was asking why his son sought to grasp two swords that could never belong together, all at once.
Namgung Cheon answered with unshaking eyes.
"Changcheon showed me the honor of the Namgung name."
He paused, and looked down at the Mukhon hanging at his waist.
A smile touched the corner of his mouth.
"But this sword showed me power itself."
"……Power."
Namgung Mugang murmured the word quietly.
So simple an answer that, precisely because of that simplicity, he could understand it all too well.
In his son's reply, Namgung Mugang read not honor, not reputation, nor any such trifle—but the primal craving of every warrior: the raw desire simply to grow stronger.
That pure ambition, so like the old rival he had once known.
At length, the man turned away and spoke.
"I trust you can bear it."
That was the end of their conversation.
Namgung Mugang walked slowly back up toward the seat of honor where the dais stood.
He did not spare his son another glance.
Namgung Cheon bowed silently toward that retreating back in a gesture of respect.
Having finished his bow, he paused for a moment, watching Namgung Mugang return to the dais.
Or more precisely—watching the vast sky he himself would one day have to surpass.
Then, without regret, he turned away.
Toward the massive doors, sealed shut, he walked forward step by steady step.
Boom.
The moment the heavy doors closed behind him, the grand spectacle of the Family Head Hall vanished from view.
Only a single thread of light, slipping through the seam of the doors, faintly lit the corridor.
Namgung Cheon stopped in place for a moment, and felt it.
Behind him, beyond those doors—the colossal presence.
Beyond any doubt, still a distant azure sky he could not touch, could not even dare to look up at.
But……
His hand moved slowly toward the Mukhon at his waist.
The cold touch met his palm.
This is my will—the will that will one day reach that azure sky of yours.
His eyes gleamed, cold and clear.
Wait for me, Namgung Mugang.
Until the day I reach the azure sky.
To see the ending we never finished.
Namgung Cheonma
Author | Baek Rihaeng
Publisher | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
Managing Editor | Editorial Department
Published by | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. — Dream Books
Address | 7F, Gwangseong Building, 28 Bongeunsa-ro 114-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
ISBN | 979-11-7306-734-1
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