Chapter 130
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 130
Chapter Title: The Ultimate Technique of My Sect
Central spacious sparring arena.
The arena that hadn't been used even once yesterday.
But today, the eight quarterfinalists were seated in the spots prepared around the arena.
From the quarterfinals onward, all matches would be held purely here.
Students from the Hidden Dragon Corps, Wa Dragon Corps, and Fierce Dragon Corps had already gathered thickly around the edges.
If it had been last year, only Hidden Dragon and Wa Dragon students would have shown up.
This year was different.
An astonishing four Fierce Dragon Corps students had advanced to the quarterfinals.
Half of the quarterfinalists were from the Fierce Dragon Corps.
Hidden Dragon and Wa Dragon had each barely scraped by with two.
Though it wasn't their own doing, the Fierce Dragon students felt an unconscious swell of pride in those from their own ranks.
That's why they had gathered so boldly today to watch the tournament.
"What do you think today will bring?"
When Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul asked, no one answered.
The skill they'd shown in yesterday's round of sixteen had been too formidable to dismiss the Fierce Dragon Corps outright.
They'd thought it was just Ju Woo-myeong, but no.
Even the two students who'd lost in the round of sixteen hadn't been pushovers by any means.
Fierce Dragon Corps Leader Moyong Jin-ho remained quietly composed.
Knowing full well that all these achievements stemmed from Ha Mu-baek's hands, he simply stayed silent.
In response to the leaders' reactions, Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul merely wore a subtle smile.
"Will you be here again today?"
The same spot as yesterday.
Ha Mu-baek was already perched on the rooftop, gazing down at the arena.
Gong Son Mu-oe had come by again today.
"This spot has the best view."
"I thought the same."
"What's brought you here today?"
"It's turning out more entertaining than I expected."
Ha Mu-baek simply nodded at Gong Son Mu-oe's reply.
"Who do you think will win?"
"If he'd used his shield, Baek Ri-pyeong would take it. But it looks like he's fighting without one."
Today's first match was between Baek Ri-pyeong and Namgung Ji-hu.
Unlike in the round of sixteen the day before, however, Baek Ri-pyeong had come out with only a single sword.
Namgung Ji-hu stared at him steadily.
"Wouldn't it be better to use your shield?"
Baek Ri-pyeong shook his head at Namgung Ji-hu's words.
"No. I need to beat you with just my sword to feel right with myself."
"Isn't victory its own justice?"
"In war or battle, maybe. But this is just a spar."
Baek Ri-pyeong smiled faintly as he replied.
Namgung Ji-hu smiled back.
After all, they'd crossed swords countless times in practice bouts.
"Begin!"
At the referee's shout, the two drew their swords and faced each other.
Namgung Ji-hu struck first.
His Vast Sky Unbound Sword Method flowed endlessly from his hand.
Baek Ri-pyeong blocked every assault with the Three Talents Sword Method.
Namgung Ji-hu focused every ounce of his spirit on his opponent.
His internal energy was already at its peak.
Having sparred many times before, he knew just how formidable Baek Ri-pyeong was.
He'd won several times already, but each victory had left a nagging doubt.
Today, he would uncover the source of that unease.
The moment more power surged into Namgung Ji-hu's sword...
Baek Ri-pyeong's sword movements changed.
It wasn't the straightforward paths of the Three Talents Sword Method.
"Ugh."
Caught off guard by the sudden shift, Namgung Ji-hu stumbled back two steps.
Then came a flurry of bewildering attacks raining down.
Like stars adorning the night sky, countless sword shadows flew at him, forcing Namgung Ji-hu to swing desperately.
"This is..."
After barely weathering the onslaught, Namgung Ji-hu stared at Baek Ri-pyeong in bewilderment.
It was a sword art he'd never seen before.
Not in training at the Fierce Dragon Corps drill grounds, nor in any of Baek Ri-pyeong's matches during the tournament so far.
Wherever Namgung Ji-hu had been, Baek Ri-pyeong had used only the Three Talents Sword Method.
"Heavenly Star Sword Method. The ultimate technique of my sect."
Baek Ri-pyeong calmly dispelled Namgung Ji-hu's doubts.
Zhongnan Sect's sword art.
The Heavenly Star Sword Method.
It wasn't the sect's supreme art, the Heavenly Star Lower Heavens Sword Method. But then again, wasn't he himself using Vast Sky Unbound Sword instead of the Sovereign Sword Form?
To think he'd hidden a technique like that until now.
"I see. So the tournament really began long before this."
Baek Ri-pyeong had concealed his ultimate technique during their spars.
That was the source of the lingering dissatisfaction even in his victories.
"No. It was just training in the Heavenly Star Sword Method."
Namgung Ji-hu tilted his head at Baek Ri-pyeong's response.
How could endless practice with just the Three Talents Sword Method count as training in the Heavenly Star Sword Method?
"And now's the time to test the results of that training."
Their brief exchange ended there.
This time, Baek Ri-pyeong stepped forward and unleashed his sword.
Like countless stars plummeting from the night sky.
His blade pierced toward Namgung Ji-hu's vital points from all directions.
If his opponent was the stars of the night sky, then Namgung Ji-hu was the vast blue heavens themselves.
The Vast Sky Unbound Sword erased each star one by one.
Clang! Clang clang! Clang!
The clash of steel rang out fiercely.
The crowd watched, utterly entranced.
It was beautiful.
A different kind of beauty from the match between Namgung Ji-yu and Ha Seol-ran the day before.
The give-and-take between Heavenly Star Sword Method and Vast Sky Unbound Sword Method.
A deadlock where neither could gain the upper hand.
Sweat beaded on both their faces.
And on those faces gazing at each other lingered deep smiles.
It felt good.
Truly good.
Had they ever clashed like this, pouring out every ounce of their power and every technique they'd mastered?
Neither Baek Ri-pyeong nor Namgung Ji-hu had.
Gradually, they sank into a trance-like state.
"Impressive."
Gong Son Mu-oe marveled.
It was a scene that demanded as much.
"Indeed. This is beyond my expectations."
For them to spur each other higher through the spar itself.
It was a realm Ha Mu-baek, hardened in the crucible of battlefields, hadn't even considered.
His master had broken through a wall in their recent spar, but he'd chalked that up to his master's prowess alone.
"If he'd used the shield, it would've felt like a letdown."
Gong Son Mu-oe remarked.
Ha Mu-baek nodded.
"He'd have secured a clear win, but we wouldn't have seen this. He'd have stuck to Three Talents Sword and shield tactics alone."
Ha Mu-baek readily admitted it.
'A spar, not war or battle.'
Ha Mu-baek chuckled softly, recalling Baek Ri-pyeong's words from their conversation, which he'd overheard by channeling his energy into his ears.
The kids were pondering, growing, and acting on aspects he himself had overlooked.
Unlike him, who only thought of battlefields when it came to facing opponents.
'Looks like I still haven't fully escaped that hell.'
Baek Ri-pyeong's words had awakened something Ha Mu-baek hadn't realized.
'Well, I'm shaking it off bit by bit.'
Yes.
While serving as instructor for the Dragon Training Pavilion's Fierce Dragon Corps.
Ha Mu-baek was gradually reclaiming what he'd lost on the battlefield.
Take today, for instance.
Hadn't he just realized that facing an opponent could mean a spar, not just combat?
Meanwhile, their exchange hurtled toward its climax.
A back-and-forth as if they'd rehearsed it beforehand.
The two remained lost in their trance.
Clang clang clang clang!
Their swords clashed even more fiercely.
The resolution came from an unexpected quarter.
Clang!
Namgung Ji-hu's sword couldn't withstand Baek Ri-pyeong's strike and snapped.
It happened in the blink of an eye.
And in that instant.
They snapped out of it.
"Ah..."
"Oh..."
Regretful sighs escaped both their lips simultaneously.
Namgung Ji-hu stared at his broken sword.
Then at Baek Ri-pyeong.
"I lost."
He conceded gracefully.
The crowd, utterly immersed in the duel, let out their own disappointed groans at the absurd, hollow conclusion.
"What a waste..."
"Ha."
"Ahh."
Namgung Ji-hu ignored the spectators' reactions, picked up the shattered blade fragment, and descended from the arena.
It was the second time their swords had broken against each other.
At last year's Summer Combat Festival, it had been Baek Ri-pyeong's sword that shattered—practically pulverized. He'd even taken an injury from a fragment then.
Namgung Ji-hu still remembered that moment vividly.
That's why he accepted his defeat without a shred of complaint and stepped down.
"Ah..."
If anything, Baek Ri-pyeong was the one left wanting.
He'd glimpsed something profound in that last exchange.
"Tch. What a shame. Decided by the quality of their weapons."
"That's part of competition too."
Gong Son Mu-oe nodded in agreement with Ha Mu-baek.
"Still a shame. A Namgung heir wouldn't wield some ordinary blade. How'd he lose on weapon superiority?"
Gong Son Mu-oe muttered in bewilderment at the unsatisfying end.
Ha Mu-baek just smiled faintly.
He kept to himself that he'd personally forged that sword.
The fervor stoked by Baek Ri-pyeong and Namgung Ji-hu still hung thick around the arena.
Even though their match had ended on such a deflating note, the heat hadn't cooled.
How could it?
The next bout was one everyone anticipated.
This was likely the match the gathered crowd most eagerly awaited today.
Namgung Ji-yu.
And Yeon Ha-min.
A duel between the two most beautiful women of the Dragon Training Pavilion.
That alone sent expectations soaring.
Some even called it the Three Flowers Clash.
People were already grouping Namgung Ji-yu, Yeon Ha-min, and Ha Seol-ran as the Dragon Training Trio of Flowers.
Even though her face veil hid her features from full view.
Glimpses alone had sparked the title.
"Woooaaahhh!!"
"Waaahhh!"
Cheers erupted from all sides as Namgung Ji-yu and Yeon Ha-min ascended the arena.
The two faced each other.
Yeon Ha-min had also come with just a single sword.
Last night's events came to mind.
"You won't use your shield?"
Yeon Ha-min had proposed they use shield techniques in the quarterfinals.
Baek Ri-pyeong, who'd actually employed shields in prior matches, turned it down.
"I only used shields because my opponents did too—it was the best counter. But we're sparring here. If they use a shield, fine. Otherwise, I want to test my pure swordsmanship."
"Why?"
Yeon Ha-min asked with a puzzled look.
She'd suggested the option with the highest odds of victory.
"It's a spar. It's okay to lose."
Baek Ri-pyeong had said with a smile.
His words convinced the other three, save Yeon Ha-min.
Even Dan Mok Un-roe opted out of shields.
She wanted to test her true capabilities with sword alone.
After agonizing through the night, Yeon Ha-min had resolved to do the same and left Graceful Dragon Dormitory that morning.
'But win the championship?'
Dang Jin-san's nagging from that morning suddenly surfaced.
A smile tugged at her lips unbidden.
Even beneath the veil, her aura brightened radiantly.
The onlookers could only gape in awe.
Regaining her composure, she fixed her gaze on her opponent across the arena: Namgung Ji-yu.
Namgung Ji-yu stared right back at Yeon Ha-min.
She recalled the outcome of the match just ended.
Her younger brother had lost a one-on-one duel.
Unlike last year's Summer Combat Festival, it had been a fair and square defeat.
To think a Fierce Dragon Corps student had transformed so much in under a year.
It was astonishing.
Yeon Ha-min standing before her had likely undergone the same.
Dang Jin-san, whom she'd met yesterday, had grown tremendously too.
She would need to pour out everything she had once more.
At the same time, anticipation bubbled within.
Just as Baek Ri-pyeong and her brother had meshed so perfectly, could Yeon Ha-min rise to the occasion with her?
She'd felt envy watching their bout.
She drew her sword slowly, hoping it would be so.
Of course, victory would still be hers.
"Begin!"
The referee's shout rang out.