Chapter 100
Chapter 100
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: Black Dragon (2)
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As if he never considered that Ouyang Jue might have created it himself, the Omniscient One examined the talisman meticulously without a single question.
“Good heavens, this is incredible! I don’t know who did this, but they’ve elevated the art of talismans to a whole new level!”
The Omniscient One exclaimed in constant admiration. He burst with the pure joy of a scholar who had just discovered a masterpiece.
His reaction was so enthusiastic that Ouyang Jue, standing beside him, felt a bit awkward.
“Is he even aware I’m here?”
“Probably not.”
After that casual reply, the Omniscient One fell silent for the next two hours.
Since this was the first time Ouyang Jue had seen him so serious, he observed him carefully.
Completely focused, he might reveal an opening. Ouyang Jue set aside his curiosity and watched the Omniscient One’s actions.
“…”
“…”
The Omniscient One repeatedly drew the talisman, modified it, and even took out a thin blade to try carving it onto the skin of the spirit beast.
Grroooowl—!
As the Omniscient One unexpectedly brought the blade to its skin, the great bear roared in displeasure.
But it didn’t strike him. It knew this was just a temporary experiment.
The great bear was well aware that it was thanks to the Omniscient One that it had become a spirit beast in the first place.
After observing the great bear for a while, the Omniscient One’s lips parted.
“…Alright, it seems there are no particular side effects.”
“Did you think I showed it to you to try and harm you?”
“I don’t know why you’re talking about trust when we’ve only met a few times.”
The Omniscient One offered a faint smile.
“You’re right. As you said, I recognized Severing Manifestation early on and approached you. And I intended to find out just how skilled you were.”
*You’re a better swordsman than I thought,* the Omniscient One murmured his honest impression, then continued.
“Both your attempt to use the Art of Deciphering last time, and this talisman now. I was rather surprised that your knowledge of sorcery wasn't trivial.”
Ouyang Jue smirked and asked.
“Aren’t you going to ask who I learned it from?”
“Would you even answer? I’d rather not waste time on a pointless question.”
Ouyang Jue fell silent at the coldness in the Omniscient One’s tone.
This was how it should be.
No matter how well Ouyang Jue knew the Omniscient One or how familiar he felt, he was forced to realize anew that the feeling wasn’t mutual, and he couldn’t hide his bitterness.
Just as in his past life, the idea that he could befriend the Omniscient One in this life was nothing but arrogance.
“…You have a point.”
Ouyang Jue rose to his feet with a bitter smile.
“When you’re done examining it, come and let me know. We can talk again then.”
“I will.”
The Omniscient One answered without looking back, but in truth, he was waiting for Ouyang Jue to move away.
There was only one reason. He was feeling a strange sense of déjà vu.
‘No matter how I look at it, isn’t this the style of Mount Mao?’
He had interacted extensively with both the eastern and western Daoist orders during his time on Mount Mao, but drawing a talisman in this manner was something only a practitioner from the lineage of Mount Mao could do.
If so, how could Ouyang Jue draw such a talisman?
And why, of all people, did he show it to him?
He had long since figured out the talisman’s function.
Once Ouyang Jue’s presence could no longer be felt, the Omniscient One turned back, his eyes down.
‘A Daoist who not only knows the talismans of the Mount Mao lineage but also doesn’t shun sorcerers.’
It was suspicious in many ways.
Furthermore, a martial artist would typically roar in anger if treated so disrespectfully.
‘A Daoist who won the Nine Dragons Tournament should know how to live up to his honor.’
As his thoughts reached that point, the Omniscient One realized that Ouyang Jue still hadn't introduced himself, and he frowned at the rudeness.
‘That fellow. Even if I was the one who started speaking down to him, I can’t believe he’d do the same.’
He had seen through Ouyang Jue’s identity from the start.
No matter how dirty his Daoist robes were with ash, there was no way he wouldn’t recognize him.
The Omniscient One had long since deduced that Ouyang Jue was from the Mount Hua Sect, which had deep attainments in the sword arts.
‘Did he leave his manners at the foot of Mount Mao?’
His strangely familiar demeanor also grated on his nerves.
Even though the Omniscient One himself had approached with goodwill and acted friendly, the way Ouyang Jue treated him was far too familiar.
Wondering if they had truly met somewhere before, the Omniscient One furrowed his brow. But if he had met such a person, he would surely remember.
‘I really don’t know.’
The more he thought, the deeper he felt he was sinking into a mire.
A man he was meeting for the first time knew a special talisman art that only the lineage of Mount Mao could draw.
The way he circulated his energy when performing the Art of Deciphering was also strangely similar to his own.
It was all too bizarre.
A hollow laugh escaped him as he wondered if he had a disciple he didn’t know about.
“He’s a truly peculiar one. I’ve never encountered anyone like him in all my years.”
Even after hearing the Omniscient One’s great name, he maintained a sullen expression, and what’s more, he seemed to have little resistance to revealing his sect’s martial arts.
Could it be that he had another technique besides the Plum Blossom Sword Arts?
The Omniscient One recalled the profound martial arts Ouyang Jue occasionally displayed. Then he looked at the Black Dragon mask hanging on the corner of a tree branch.
“…”
The Omniscient One approached the Black Dragon mask and slowly pulled it over his face.
* * *
“I thought I’d be nothing but happy to see him, but it feels so awkward and strange.”
On top of that, a tension that felt like he could be attacked at any moment was constricting his entire body.
Ouyang Jue waited for the Omniscient One to return while polishing the blade of Severing Manifestation. The questions he had would surely be answered once he came back.
Who was the villain called the Black Dragon who appeared from Mount Mao, and why did he harm members of the Martial Alliance?
He had many things he wanted to ask the Omniscient One. At the same time, it seemed the Omniscient One had much to say to him as well.
‘Is there some greater meaning to Severing Manifestation?’
The strongest cutting power and sharpest edge among all existing swords.
Other than that, he hadn’t felt anything particularly special about it.
In fact, its sharpness came at the cost of durability, and he had even experienced the misfortune of the blade bending on occasion. To prevent that from happening again, Ouyang Jue was planning to meet the blacksmith again.
‘Before that, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to hear about the history of Severing Manifestation from the Omniscient One.’
Ouyang Jue gazed deeply at the blade of Severing Manifestation.
‘If it’s something the Omniscient One is concerned about, it must have some kind of sorcerous meaning. Why would he leave something like that to fate?’
As Ouyang Jue was lost in thought.
*Shwaaak—!*
The sound of softened earth being trampled upon by the arrival of spring. The speed was indescribably fast.
It was like a tiger pouncing on its prey.
“…!”
Ouyang Jue immediately straightened his posture.
*Graaaaaaaah!*
A man wearing the mask of a black dragon let out a savage roar. The sound was too deep and guttural to be a human voice.
From the two empty eyeholes of the mask, a red light shot out.
Just from a brief meeting of gazes, Ouyang Jue’s entire body froze.
It all happened in a split second, leaving even Ouyang Jue dumbfounded.
‘This is insane…!’
Ouyang Jue clenched his jaw and drew upon his Purple Mist True Energy.
But the Black Dragon was already upon him.
*Klaaang!*
The sharp clang of blade meeting blade erupted.
For a moment, his vision was filled with what seemed like a shower of red sparks.
The problem was that his opponent’s weapon was bizarre beyond all common sense.
Teeth.
The Black Dragon’s teeth were composed solely of sharp fangs. Moreover, they seemed incredibly hard, effortlessly blocking the edge of Severing Manifestation.
But as if to show he was no pushover, Ouyang Jue grinned and swung Severing Manifestation outward.
“What an incredible set of jaws you have!”
*Kukagagagak!*
At those words, the Black Dragon’s expression hardened.
The strength Ouyang Jue had endlessly trained and the internal energy derived from Ha Jin-ak and the Small Purple Spirit Elixir were nothing to scoff at.
No matter how hard the Black Dragon’s teeth were, enough to block the edge of Severing Manifestation, they could not push Ouyang Jue’s body back.
Veins bulged on Ouyang Jue’s forearms.
This was the true value of his diligent external arts training.
*Crack, crackle.*
As the edge of the mask began to tear, the Black Dragon let out a groan of pain.
“…Keuk!”
Perhaps deciding he could no longer hold on.
The Black Dragon quickly backpedaled, putting distance between himself and Ouyang Jue.
*Crack, thud.*
Having been directly exposed to the edge of Severing Manifestation, the Black Dragon’s mask was horizontally slashed, and pieces of it crumbled away, making for a sorry sight.
Moreover, a wound had been opened beneath the mask, and blood was dripping down. It wasn’t a disguise of chicken or pig blood.
Ouyang Jue touched the blood on Severing Manifestation with his finger.
It was obvious who it was.
“This is the first I’ve known the Omniscient One to be skilled at such pranks.”
“…”
“If you were trying to test my skills, let’s stop here. Even for you, if I start getting serious, you won’t escape unscathed.”
At those words, a smile appeared from beneath the Black Dragon’s mask.
Soon, a voice tinged with self-deprecation followed.
“Still, I wanted to see a bit of your martial arts, but I never expected to be overpowered by sheer strength like this.”
“…”
“Well, for someone so young, you’re truly remarkable.”
*Thump.*
The Omniscient One, having removed his mask, wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand.
“If you continue to train diligently, you’ll become truly formidable. What an absurd talent, haha!”
“…”
“Whoever your master is, they must be quite proud, eh?”
Ouyang Jue didn’t answer. No, he couldn’t.
Everything that had allowed Ouyang Jue to get this far had started with the Omniscient One.
From the first technique he learned, the Six Harmonies Single-Finger Bend, to the Moon-Stepping Shadowless Dance, and even connecting him with reclusive masters.
He had many masters, but the only one who had made Ouyang Jue into a proper human being was the Omniscient One.
Ouyang Jue blinked a few times, then smiled bitterly.
“Of course, he’s proud. After all, his young disciple is being called the Plum Blossom Sword Hero.”
“Finally revealing your identity, are you? Though you’re still talking down to me!”
“Wasn’t age just a trifle to you?”
As soon as he said it, Ouyang Jue instantly regretted it.
It was something the Omniscient One of his past life might have said, but the man before him had not yet spoken those words.
The Omniscient One’s eyes widened.
“…What? Puhaha! Do you even know how old I am to say such a thing?”
“Just that you’re much older than you look.”
At that, the Omniscient One laughed heartily.
“Even the world dares not guess my age, yet a child I’ve known for less than a week sees right through me. Are you not the Omniscient One yourself!”
As the Omniscient One seemed about to display more of his eccentricities, Ouyang Jue cut him off.
If he let him continue, he felt he might blurt out old, unresolved emotions.
“Enough of that. Tell me about the talisman I asked you to identify.”
“You’re one terribly impatient person.”
The Omniscient One grinned and gestured for Ouyang Jue to follow.
*Step, step.*
His pace was incredibly leisurely, a stark contrast to when he had initiated the fight.
His stride seemed to follow a bizarre footwork pattern, and Ouyang Jue, after a glance, tried to mimic it.
Seeing this, the wrinkles around the Omniscient One’s eyes deepened.
“You’re quite observant.”
“If you lack even observation skills in this turbulent world, you might as well be dead.”
“Ha, haha! You’re right about that.”
After those words, a brief silence fell before the Omniscient One cleared his throat.
“Are you well-versed in the history of the Central Plains?”
“I asked you to tell me what the talisman is, not to spout nonsense.”
“Ahem, you’re dressed in fine Daoist robes, yet your temper is worse than a scrawny dog’s. I’ll explain as I tell you, so listen well.”
*Ahem.*
The Omniscient One cleared his throat again.
“In the era when Lü Dongbin, the Pure Yang Master, who is revered as the founder of both the Southern and Northern Schools of what is now called Daoism, was active, there were all sorts of demons.”
Feeling a sense of revulsion, as if the Omniscient One was treating him like a grandson, Ouyang Jue replied in a gruff voice.
“I know that much. Patriarch Lü slaying the vile dragon is a feat known even among the common folk.”
“But what if that wasn’t the end of it?”
*Thud.*
The Omniscient One stopped walking and turned to face Ouyang Jue.
“What if it’s connected to the talisman I’m about to tell you about?”