Chapter 129: Fierce Battle Valley (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 129: Fierce Battle Valley (2)
A heavy silence settled over the clearing of Fierce Battle Valley.
The youngest disciple of the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley had been utterly defeated without even a chance to make a move.
And in such a miserable state, forced to both his knees.
"Puhaha!"
The first to shatter the silence with laughter was none other than the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley himself.
"Oh Byeong. You lost quite miserably. You didn't even get to use that palm technique you were so proud of."
The boy called Oh Byeong flushed crimson, not daring to even pick himself up.
"You must have been overflowing with confidence after breaking through your limits twice in a row. Even so, you were far too arrogant. I have told you time and again that reading an opponent's momentum isn't everything."
"I am sorry, Master."
Looking down at Oh Byeong, who bowed his head low, the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley turned his gaze toward Namgung Jun.
"What was that technique you just showed? On the surface, it seemed you simply overwhelmed him with the sheer force of your Qi Wave, but it was clearly a type of sword technique. It was as if an invisible blade pressed down on the very air."
With just a single glance, the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley had accurately perceived the technique Namgung Jun displayed.
As expected.
Impressed, Namgung Jun showed his respects.
"It is a martial insight I am still refining. It does not yet have a proper name."
"Hooh."
The Lord of Fierce Battle Valley nodded, his eyes filled with interest as he studied Namgung Jun.
"Hu-seong."
The Lord of Fierce Battle Valley called out to the man who appeared to be the oldest among his disciples.
He was also the one Namgung Jun had been keeping an eye on.
"Yes, Master."
"As the head disciple, you must step forward. Since the youngest was beaten, shouldn't you, the eldest, pay them back?"
"Of course."
Namgung Jun also turned his head to look at the man.
The head disciple of Fierce Battle Valley, the Tide-Piercing Sword Jeon Hu-seong.
I heard that among the mid-tier experts of Hunan Province, none can match the Tide-Piercing Sword.
The story of Jeon Hu-seong defeating the head disciple of the South Hengshan Sect in about forty exchanges—and subsequently holding his own against the combined attack of three of their first-generation disciples—was famous.
It was an event that had severely damaged the prestige of the South Hengshan Sect, so much so that their disciples had not shown their faces in the Jianghu for quite some time afterward.
Jeon Hu-seong gestured with his chin to his martial brothers on either side.
"Everyone, step back."
"Yes, Eldest Martial Brother."
Stepping forward, Jeon Hu-seong looked at Namgung Jun.
"I understand you originally came to face me. Let us have a proper duel."
"Very well."
As Jeon Hu-seong and Namgung Jun faced each other, everyone around them backed away to clear a space.
Watching Namgung Jun place his hand on the hilt of the Eternal Righteous Sword, Jeon Hu-seong slowly gripped his own.
"I hope you last longer than the head disciple of the South Hengshan Sect," Jeon Hu-seong muttered lightly before drawing his sword and lunging forward.
He seemed to merely flick his ankle, but in an instant, he had leaped so high that one had to crane their neck back to see him.
Jeon Hu-seong's sword slashed vertically from above, threatening to cleave Namgung Jun's forehead in two.
Crack!
A series of violent sword strikes hammered down on his upper stance, clearly aiming to break Namgung Jun's posture through sheer force.
Though he had maintained an expressionless face, it seemed he had taken his junior brother's defeat to heart.
Is he planning to return exactly what his junior brother suffered?
With a smirk, Namgung Jun effortlessly deflected the strike with the Eternal Righteous Sword.
As the blade slid smoothly aside, Jeon Hu-seong's downward slash was redirected laterally.
His sword was naturally pushed away, slightly exposing his upper body, and Jeon Hu-seong's eyebrows twitched.
Thud!
Wary of a counterattack, Jeon Hu-seong responded by repeatedly kicking off the air. He intended to disrupt Namgung Jun's breathing with a flurry of kicks, preventing him from exploiting the opening.
Blocking the heavy kicks with the flat of his blade, Namgung Jun's body spun rapidly to the left, using the full momentum of the kicks to his advantage.
In an instant, the trajectory of his sword reversed.
On top of that, the tip of his sword seemed to wriggle, creating over a dozen variations to deceive the eye.
It was an unnatural, forced combination of moves that only an exceptionally skilled swordsman could pull off. Yet, the young man before him connected the sword paths as if it were nothing, demonstrating a flawless, continuous assault.
So natural!
Jeon Hu-seong, who had been looking for a chance to counter, instantly changed his mind upon seeing Namgung Jun's attack.
Using the recoil from snapping his waist, he flipped in midair and barely managed to evade the sword.
It was a paper-thin margin. Had his reaction been even slightly delayed, his thigh would have been slashed open.
Despite almost being struck, Jeon Hu-seong's face was flushed with excitement.
He instinctively knew this duel would be thoroughly enjoyable.
"Here I come!"
Landing lightly, Jeon Hu-seong lunged at Namgung Jun once more.
By then, Namgung Jun was already advancing, executing an Earth-Trembling Stomp.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Neither swordsman retreated a single step.
The pair of swords clashed fiercely, repeatedly unleashing sharp Qi Waves.
Rather than targeting Namgung Jun directly, Jeon Hu-seong's sword strikes focused on suppressing the Eternal Righteous Sword. With every blow, his pupils darted restlessly, as if trying to read and pierce through something.
Highly intuitive. A sword technique adept at reading an opponent's patterns and disrupting their flow. I can feel an intent that derives pleasure from dismantling another's martial arts.
Jeon Hu-seong's sword momentum was tricky yet profound. It was a style designed solely to shatter the opponent's techniques and secure victory.
So this is the martial art—and the martial artist—of Fierce Battle Valley. Strong indeed.
Namgung Jun acknowledged it: Jeon Hu-seong's prowess and fighting spirit were impressive.
Just as Namgung Jun's smile deepened with growing interest, a sharp gleam flashed in Jeon Hu-seong's eyes.
Right here!
Having spotted a gap in the form Namgung Jun was executing, Jeon Hu-seong thrust his sword forward.
Clang!
The thrust was blocked by the Eternal Righteous Sword, which had twisted at an impossible angle. The sword path had shifted in an instant. The spot that had been a weakness was suddenly an impregnable fortress wall.
With his attack blocked, it was Jeon Hu-seong's own flow that was disrupted.
"What?" he let out a bewildered cry.
He recognized that Namgung Jun had instantaneously altered the sword path through a fluid combination of elbow and wrist movements, but how such a thing was possible remained a mystery.
It's as if he's looking several moves ahead, anticipating exactly what I'm going to do.
As Jeon Hu-seong's eyes widened, Namgung Jun gently pushed his opponent's sword aside and raised the Eternal Righteous Sword to a middle stance.
"I have observed your martial arts well. Now, I shall get serious."
"What?" Jeon Hu-seong asked, confused, as he deflected a sword strike aimed at his chest.
At that moment, a blue mist began to seep from the Eternal Righteous Sword.
He was deploying the Vast Sky Boundless Sword Technique.
*
In an instant, a blue mist filled Jeon Hu-seong's vision, obscuring everything.
He had never seen Sword Qi disperse into such fine particles before.
It's a trick!
Regaining his composure in a split second, Jeon Hu-seong made a long thrust with his sword.
The strike, aimed at Namgung Jun's solar plexus, bent abruptly as the Eternal Righteous Sword emerged from the side and forced it away.
Just when it seemed Namgung Jun was deflecting his strike in a wide arc, the attack suddenly transformed into a fierce bolt of lightning plunging downward. The blade rushing toward his flank seemed to lift slightly, then floated up to target his chest.
It wasn't just the sword path that had changed; the Sword Force imbued in the blade had shifted as well.
What kind of sword technique is this?!
Clang!
Jeon Hu-seong's expression stiffened as he violently parried the blade. He had barely managed to deflect it, but his grip throbbed with pain. His hand would have been torn open if he had been even slightly off.
What on earth was that sword form?
His thoughts could not reach a conclusion.
Whoosh!
Countless sword strikes, shrouded in blue mist, came rushing in. Attacks carrying entirely different sequences blended together in a dazzling array, surging forward.
"What?!"
Jeon Hu-seong retreated two steps, swinging his sword repeatedly.
Clang! Clang!
As he deflected two strikes aimed at his shoulders, five more surged toward him. Each of them was a completely different attack.
It felt as though he were facing five different swordsmen at once, each trained in a unique sword style. Yet, there wasn't the slightest gap in their combined assault.
No, it's not a joint attack…
It was as if nature itself had transformed into a sword.
Lightning, clouds, rain, wind.
It was as if all the harmony one could see when looking up at the sky was contained within a single blade.
Thud!
Jeon Hu-seong executed an Earth-Trembling Stomp to steady his stance. In that moment, though he felt a sense of vastness from Namgung Jun's sword, his chest grew hot with excitement.
It's been a long time since my blood boiled like this.
He could not easily gauge the sword's momentum, which held such lively variations. The patterns, which would normally be clear to his eyes, were barely visible. Just when he thought he saw them, they shifted again, revealing a new path.
If he couldn't disrupt his opponent's flow as usual, he would have to push through with sheer power.
Boom!
Bending his body like a bow, Jeon Hu-seong sprang forward with a powerful thrust.
Namgung Jun met it head-on with a short, sharp slash. The Eternal Righteous Sword immediately pursued the repelled Jeon Hu-seong. The strike, crashing in like lightning, swept horizontally in an instant, tearing through the air and unleashing a formidable Sword Force.
Clang!
Though he barely managed to block it by tilting his sword, Jeon Hu-seong was forced back five steps.
What kind of sword technique is this?!
Elusive variations and countless sequences.
Even Jeon Hu-seong, who had encountered numerous sword techniques of the South Hengshan Sect—including their representative Superior Peerless Art, the South Hengshan Sword Technique—could not help but be astonished.
The sword technique displayed by the young man before him was a step above the techniques of great sects like the Five Great Mountains Sword Sects, which boasted long histories and grand reputations.
Even the superior sword techniques of the South Hengshan Sect and the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult were not like this!
Jeon Hu-seong's lips trembled. A mix of excitement, shock, and pleasure tangled within him, making it impossible to control his expression.
Whoosh!
A blue sword strike surged before his eyes.
Countless sword paths were engraved into his vision. Yet, no matter how hard he looked, he could not find a single point or weakness to disrupt the flow. It was as if the majestic flow of the Yangtze River had been manifested right before him.
The endless variations made it impossible to perceive where he should thrust his own sword.
Vast Sky Boundless Sword Technique.
Azure Flash.
The blue water, sweeping past in an instant, drenched the surroundings.
Rumble!
Jeon Hu-seong resisted by executing his own ultimate techniques in succession, but it was a futile attempt.
His sword could not cut flowing water.
Slash!
Drops of blood splattered from all over Jeon Hu-seong's body. He was covered in sword marks; dozens of wounds would have been fatal had they been even slightly deeper.
"Ugh."
Jeon Hu-seong gasped for breath. Above his heaving chest, the tip of the Eternal Righteous Sword was just a hair's breadth from his Adam's apple.
He looked down at it, squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, then nodded.
"I lost."
"It was a good duel."
As Jeon Hu-seong admitted defeat, a commotion erupted in Fierce Battle Valley.
"Jeon Hu-seong lost? He couldn't even last fifty exchanges?"
"That sword technique… What on earth was it? It seemed to be executed at random, yet some kind of order emerged from it."
Just as everyone in Fierce Battle Valley was struggling to believe Jeon Hu-seong's defeat, an exclamation silenced the area.
"How interesting! To think the Azure Heaven Association possessed such a sword technique!"
The Lord of Fierce Battle Valley's voice, laced with excitement, cut through the noise. Staring intently at Namgung Jun, he then glanced over at Jang Mu-yeon.
"Sword Lord. Is he your disciple?"
"No way."
"Then how is it that your sword dance is reflected in his technique?"
Fiddling with his earring, Jang Mu-yeon shrugged playfully.
"I suppose he managed to pick it up by looking over my shoulder."
"Your Harmonious Music-Reflection Dance is a martial art born from the union of raw sensation and unique talent. Others shouldn't even be able to learn it properly."
Jang Mu-yeon did not deny it. This was precisely why he had never taken a disciple. The secret manual of the Harmonious Music-Reflection Dance contained no forms, stances, or even proper mnemonic formulas. It merely recorded fragments of the emotions and thoughts he felt whenever he performed it—a loose weaving of movements and intents that he had named and recalled particularly often.
Yet, Namgung Jun pulled it off. He used his own talent to make the sword dance his own.
Jang Mu-yeon didn't show it, but he was actually quite surprised by the Vast Sky Boundless Sword Technique. It felt as though a disciple he had never taken had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"So he isn't your disciple. That makes me even more interested."
Turning away from Jang Mu-yeon, the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley clutched his forehead and burst into laughter. Then, he walked straight toward Namgung Jun.
"I shall ask for your name."
The Lord of Fierce Battle Valley already knew Namgung Jun's name and title. Asking for an introduction was as good as acknowledging him as a true martial artist.
Realizing this, Namgung Jun sheathed his sword and politely showed his respects.
"I am the Azure Star Sword, Namgung Jun."
"I am the Wandering Battle Venerable, Geuk Jeon."
Geuk Jeon examined Namgung Jun, the corners of his mouth curling high.
"Sword Lord. Let us change the terms of this duel."
"What do you mean?"
"I shall duel the Azure Star Sword. Of course, I will control my strength. He won't die."
"And your reason?"
Geuk Jeon's gaze rested on the Eternal Righteous Sword hanging at Namgung Jun's waist.
"A sword technique that has freely absorbed the sword dance of the Heaven-Reliant Sword Lord. It is only natural to be curious. Is this not a sword technique that will never be seen again in the Jianghu?"
Shaking his head, Jang Mu-yeon looked at Namgung Jun and said, "I leave the choice to you."
"I'll give it a try."
At Namgung Jun's bold reply, Geuk Jeon burst into laughter.
"I shall judge it for myself."
Geuk Jeon slowly walked toward Namgung Jun. A formidable pressure surged forward, feeling as though it were pressing down on every inch of Namgung Jun's skin.
Geuk Jeon, who possessed a small frame, now appeared like a ten-foot giant.
"I will see whether your sword technique will merely flash briefly before vanishing, or become an immortal divine art that carves its name into the history of the Jianghu."
The sudden duel with the Lord of Fierce Battle Valley began.