The Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix
The Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix.
The first time I obtained information about her was, naturally, from Moyong Yeong-sun and Dongnyong.
It started the moment I casually brought up the Mount Hua Sect.
Their reactions had been so unusual that it immediately caught my attention.
What was it they said again?
When I pressed them about their reactions, I still remembered the words I heard back then.
“A monster lives on Mount Hua.”
I had found that statement incredibly baffling.
How could a monster live in the heart of the Taoist sects, a place where the legendary hero of the Heavens Beyond Heaven, the Plum Blossom Single Sword, still reigned as the sect leader?
Though it was highly perplexing, I had let it slide at the time.
But when I obtained the second piece of information, I finally understood.
I understood exactly why she was called a monster.
It was evident not from her official title, but from her nickname.
“The Greatest Prodigy.”
The most outstanding existence among all the young prodigies scattered across the Central Plains.
Even now, in an era boasting the Seven Great Talents—geniuses among geniuses—she stood above them all.
For her to be crowned the absolute greatest among such a crowd was nothing short of miraculous.
In fact, she had many other modifiers attached to her name besides "The Greatest Prodigy."
• The Last and Youngest of the Seven Great Talents
• The New History of Mount Hua
• The Genius Slayer
• The Monster of Mount Hua
• The Greatest Prodigy
And finally...
The Future World's Greatest.
The phrase that crowned this absurd list of modifiers.
The World's Greatest.
The previous World's Greatest was none other than the Sword Saint, Yoo Chun-gil.
Yet, she was already labeled as the one destined to inherit that very title.
Even Cheon Hye-in, one of the Seven Great Talents of the Cheongwol Gate and praised as the greatest genius since Yoo Chun-gil, had never received such high praise.
Besides... there was both a lack of information and a strange abundance of it.
The information from the Beggar Alliance that Wolseongeom had procured for me.
It was packed with details about the Seven Great Talents.
This was thanks to my request for deep, classified information that ordinary people could never obtain.
Even so.
Even so, there wasn't much written about the woman named Yu Yeon.
At most, it described her physical appearance.
A woman with a mole on the bridge of her nose and an almost expressionless face.
And.
She is mute.
I had heard she was born unable to speak.
But seeing her in person, it was I who found myself struck speechless.
She's insanely pretty.
First of all, she was gorgeous.
Though she had slightly droopy eyes and a somewhat blank expression.
The mole on the bridge of her nose and her pitch-black eyes were unrealistically charming.
I thought I had grown accustomed to beautiful women after seeing Moyong Yeong-sun, but this was on a whole different level.
Furthermore...
What is this atmosphere?
The moment the Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix appeared behind the Black Great Blade, the temperature inside the tavern plummeted.
Even now, not a single sound could be heard.
And within that silence, there was a palpable sense of dread.
They're terrified.
Every martial artist in the room was terrified of this small, slender woman.
I wondered what the reason could be, but...
...If I had to guess, it must be because of that.
The Yongbong Association held a few years ago.
It was the first martial arts tournament the Sword Phoenix had ever participated in, and she had swept the championship.
She was only fifteen years old at the time.
From that day on, she became the final member of the Seven Great Talents and earned the title of the Sword Phoenix.
The real issue, however...
...was that she didn't just win.
Half of her opponents were defeated in a single strike.
Even the Black Great Blade and Wudang's Un-ryong, who were already members of the Seven Great Talents, were defeated without even managing to graze her clothes.
An overwhelming display of martial prowess.
The sheer, insurmountable gap between them left everyone who witnessed it in utter shock.
That was how she earned the nickname "Genius Slayer."
No matter who it was.
Anyone who faces her is plunged into despair.
A gap in talent that reached the heavens.
Before a sky that even the Heavenly Martial Body could not pierce, everyone was forced to kneel.
What did they say? I think...
I heard that such an overwhelming victory hadn't been seen since the days of Yoo Chun-gil.
Recalling those details one by one, I stared at the Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix.
“...”
With an expressionless face, she stepped into the tavern and scanned her surroundings.
Leisurely, slowly.
As she looked around the tavern, her gaze coincidentally lingered on the spots where the members of the Seven Great Talents were seated.
Yoo Chun-gil burst into laughter as he stared at the Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix.
His tone suggested that even the great Yoo Chun-gil couldn't comprehend what he was seeing.
"Picked up and raised" sounded a bit strange, but putting that aside...
Is it really that shocking?
For him to react like that just by looking at her.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. The sound of him clicking his tongue echoed in my mind.
“...?”
Hearing that, I glared at Yoo Chun-gil.
Surely the "idiot" he was referring to wasn't me, right? If it was, this old man truly had no conscience.
“...”
Yoo Chun-gil acted completely shameless, as if my glaring meant nothing to him.
Dammit.
Frowning, I looked back at the Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix—
“...Whoa, holy crap!”
I cried out, jumping backward. The moment I looked back, the Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix was right in front of my nose.
Startled, I scrambled back.
“W-what is it?”
“...”
Despite my question, the Sword Phoenix just stared at me silently.
“I asked what you want.”
I asked again, but there was no reply.
What's wrong with her? Why isn't she speak—
Ah.
Right, I forgot she was mute. Realizing this, I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly.
I shut my mouth and quietly observed her.
She stared at me with expressionless eyes, then slowly moved her hand.
Her slender, pale finger pointed at none other than her own robe.
“Hmm?”
Why was she pointing at that? I narrowed my eyes and looked closer.
What was this?
It looked like a rather expensive robe. A long robe lined with white fur. Wearing that, one probably wouldn't feel the cold even in the dead of winter.
Yoo Chun-gil gasped in surprise.
He seemed to recognize it.
The item left with Mount Hua? Ah.
Yoo Chun-gil's words triggered my memory. Right. There was something like that.
The item that symbolized him, which he had originally intended to give to me.
However...
...because it was traded away in a bet with Mount Hua, there was only a black fur robe in the Secret Vault instead.
In the Secret Vault, there had only been a black fur robe.
So that robe is the original one?
If so, the robe the Sword Phoenix was currently wearing was the very item Yoo Chun-gil had been looking for.
Which meant...
Is she saying she brought it to give to me?
I looked at her, wondering if that was her intention, but the Sword Phoenix simply kept pointing at her robe.
As if telling me to just take it.
“...”
Though it was strange, there was no reason to refuse a gift, so I slowly reached out.
Just as my hand was about to touch the robe.
Yoo Chun-gil spoke.
“...!”
The instant I heard his voice, I froze my hand and threw myself backward.
At that exact moment.
Shring.
A sharp sound rang in my ears, and a scent brushed past the tip of my nose.
The scent of flowers?
Contrary to the sweet fragrance, what followed was brutal.
A gust of wind blew. Where was it coming from? I rolled my eyes to look.
Huh?
Before I knew it, the Sword Phoenix was holding her sword.
Her posture suggested she had already executed a slash.
No way.
Did she slash at me?
Did she draw her sword to cut me down?
If I hadn't backed away and kept reaching out, would I have been sliced?
What?
I hadn't even seen her draw her sword.
And putting that aside, she tried to cut me? Just like that?
Before I could even process the absurdity of the situation.
Clang!
Shring!
Beside me, Cheon Ui-jin and Do-hyeong drew their swords simultaneously.
They immediately unleashed their techniques, their blades flying toward the Sword Phoenix.
Two streaks of light flashed through the air, but even then, the Sword Phoenix's eyes remained perfectly calm.
Just as the blades were about to pierce her.
Clang!
“...!”
“Ugh?!”
Two swords flew into the air.
Do-hyeong and Cheon Ui-jin's swords had been knocked from their hands, spinning upward.
What on earth just happened?
While I was still struggling to comprehend, Yoo Chun-gil showered her with praise, his eyes filled with intrigue.
It seemed this old man didn't realize that now was not the time to be admiring her.
Clatter.
The swords that had flown into the air clattered onto the floor.
Do-hyeong and Cheon Ui-jin stared at the Sword Phoenix in sheer shock.
Immediately after.
The Sword Phoenix looked back at me as if nothing had happened.
Our eyes met.
Click. She sheathed her sword back into the scabbard at her waist.
Desolate and silent.
That was the current atmosphere of the tavern.
In the midst of this.
“Hahahahahahaha!!!”
A boisterous laugh erupted from the Black Great Blade.
“Hahaha. Well, well, well.”
Grinning from ear to ear as if finding this incredibly amusing, he walked over.
“Ah, this is fun. What's going on, Sword Phoenix? Isn't that greeting a bit too violent?”
He stomped over and stood behind her, reaching out with his massive hand to touch her shoulder.
However...
“...Oh, my.”
The Sword Phoenix quietly stared at the Black Great Blade, and at her gaze, he quickly pulled his hand back in surprise.
“If you don't like it, just say so. Why try to cut a man? Fine, fine, I get it.”
Sensing something dangerous in her eyes, the Black Great Blade backed off slightly.
“I was just curious. It's not often you act so fierce, is it?”
Tsk, tsk. The Black Great Blade chuckled.
“What does it mean for you to react like this? Does it mean he's that interesting? Or is it a warning?”
Oh, great.
Listening to him, I got a bad feeling. I felt like I needed to shut this giant's mouth immediately.
“Are you warning him that the Greatest Prodigy is you, not the Young Sword Saint?”
But before I could act, the giant blurted it out.
This bastard.
I stiffened in dismay. Sure enough.
“What? The Young Sword Saint?”
“Did he say Young Sword Saint?”
“So that weak-looking guy is the Young Sword Saint?”
“...Wait, not the manly-looking guy next to him?”
The eyes of every martial artist in the tavern locked onto me.
Many had assumed it was Do-hyeong, but hearing the Black Great Blade's words, they finally realized the truth.
“If he's the Young Sword Saint, then he's the successor of the Sword Saint...”
“The one they say even the Seven Great Talents can't touch?”
“He doesn't look like much, but he has that kind of power?”
“Even the Seven Great Talents can't reach him? Does that make any sense? The Sword Phoenix is standing right there.”
The murmuring grew louder.
Of all people, the one who had just confronted me was the Sword Phoenix.
The monstrous existence who had defeated all the Seven Great Talents.
The mere fact that she and I were standing together.
That alone would draw attention, but the Black Great Blade's words had completely set the room on fire.
“Has the Young Sword Saint really surpassed the Seven Great Talents?”
“We'll only know if they fight. Rumors are just rumors, after all...”
“Then what was the Sword Phoenix's reaction just now about...?”
Everyone stared at us, their eyes filled with suspicion and curiosity.
This is getting annoying.
This was bad. I knew I would draw attention eventually, but this was the worst way it could happen.
Now I'm going to get tangled up with the Sword Phoenix and the rest of the Seven Great Talents.
The hype surrounding my rumors was already inflated beyond belief.
And now, because the Black Great Blade had to open his big mouth, the problem had spiraled out of control.
Moreover...
...that bastard did this on purpose.
I could tell just by looking at his grin.
He had deliberately said those words to create this exact situation.
He's surprisingly cunning for his size.
I thought he was just a brainless pervert, but it seemed he had a brain after all.
Tsk.
As I clicked my tongue and frowned.
“...”
The Sword Phoenix, who had been staring at me silently, suddenly turned around.
The Sword Saint's robe she wore fluttered. And then...
Tap. Tap.
She walked right out of the tavern.
“Hey! Aren't you going to eat? You must be hungry!”
The Black Great Blade called out to her, but there was no way she would reply.
“Hmm. How boring. Waiter! Order over here!”
After turning the entire place into a chaotic mess, he casually walked over and sat down at a table.
And it wasn't just any table.
“...Why are you sitting here?”
The Black Great Blade had sat down right next to me.
I spoke to him, but...
“Huh? Why? What's the problem?”
“What do you mean, what's the problem? Are you seriously asking that?”
“If we've met twice, we're friends. Shouldn't friends eat together? Come on, sit down. Ah, by the way, why are all the tables here smashed to pieces? Waiter!!! Bring some food and another table!”
“...”
His sheer audacity left me speechless.
My head throbbed with a massive headache.
Between the staring eyes and everything else, it felt like my first day was completely ruined.
Ah... seriously.
I wanted to throw in the towel and just go home.
That thought echoed desperately in my mind.