Chapter 169
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 169
Chapter Title: To Be So Petty
Baek Ri-pyeong stood facing Ju Si-un.
"Draw your sword. I'll yield the first three moves to you."
Ju Si-un said to Baek Ri-pyeong.
Ha Mu-baek watched the scene with utter disdain. To yield three moves while radiating such thick killing intent all over his body.
It was laughable enough to make a passing dog crack up.
"No need."
Baek Ri-pyeong replied as he drew his sword.
The pristine white blade gleamed coldly in the morning sunlight.
"Insolent fool."
Ju Si-un drew his sword as well.
He wasn't about to offer the three-move yield twice.
Instead...
"Hah!"
Without a word, he launched himself forward, thrusting his sword.
The blade flew toward Baek Ri-pyeong with countless variations.
Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique!
It was the signature art representing the Zhongnan Sect.
The sect's crowning ultimate technique, which only first-generation disciples were permitted to learn.
No, it was Zhongnan's supreme sword art.
From the outset, Ju Si-un unleashed the pinnacle of swordsmanship at his command.
Each strike, brimming with murderous intent, targeted Baek Ri-pyeong's vital points.
Points that could lead to death if struck properly.
Ha Mu-baek silently watched, as if he had anticipated it all.
A life-or-death duel disguised as a spar.
Ju Si-un was fighting for keeps right now.
About four in ten onlookers gasped in shock at the sight.
The rest watched on indifferently.
'Has he gripped about sixty percent of them?'
Ha Mu-baek gauged Ju Jae-seung's influence from the Zhongnan disciples' expressions.
Clang! Clang clang!
The clash of steel rang out.
Baek Ri-pyeong's Celestial Star Sword Technique countered the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique.
A sight no Zhongnan disciple could have imagined unfolded before them.
Blocking the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique with the Celestial Star Sword Technique.
The two arts had a clear hierarchy.
The Celestial Star Sword Technique was merely the foundational stage to prepare for learning the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique.
In other words, it could never match the superior art.
The Milky Way version boasted more intricate changes and fiercer energy.
Yet Baek Ri-pyeong stood his ground against it with the Celestial Star Sword Technique.
"How..."
"Impossible..."
Shocked exclamations erupted from all around.
Ju Jae-seung and his senior brothers shared the same astonishment.
Save for one person.
Jang I-geol. He alone watched the spar with an "I knew it" expression.
He had already witnessed Baek Ri-pyeong's Celestial Star Sword Technique during the Eastern Combat Festival.
"You filthy mutt..."
Ju Si-un spat curses as he swung his sword.
'How...'
Unbelievable.
Even if his own skill fell short of Zhongnan's Eight Swords...
The art he wielded was the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique.
No second-generation disciple had ever lasted more than thirty exchanges against him.
The longest had knelt exactly at the thirtieth.
Yet here they were, already past forty exchanges of back-and-forth.
Both techniques embodied the essence of swift swordplay, so the number of clashes had piled up quickly.
How could the Celestial Star Sword Technique keep pace with the speed and variations of the Milky Way version?
If the Celestial Star was stars adorning the night sky, the Celestial Star Milky Way was the grand river of stars flowing majestically.
Stationary stars could never overcome moving ones.
But now, that common wisdom was shattering.
"Hoo..."
So Jung-san, who had been intently observing the duel, let out a soft exclamation.
Nam Hwa-ryong felt the same.
They had discerned the secret behind Baek Ri-pyeong's Celestial Star Sword Technique.
An elderly man who had suddenly appeared at Ju Jae-seung's side shared their realization.
"Quite the intriguing lad. As expected of Dan-i's grandson."
Ju Jae-seung's eyebrow twitched momentarily but soon settled.
"What do you mean, Grand Uncle-Master?"
Zhongnan's former powerhouse.
When Baek Ri-dan ascended to sect leader, the previous leader and guardian elders had retired to the Elders' Council.
Ju Jae-seung had summoned one such elder today.
The moment he heard Ha Mu-baek and Baek Ri-pyeong had passed through the main gate, he had urgently dispatched a messenger. The duel had already been discussed beforehand.
A former elder, Jong Bae-jin, had gladly stepped forward for a duel against those who shamed Zhongnan.
He was Zhongnan's greatest master of the previous generation.
Though kin to Ju Jae-seung, the current sect leader bore responsibility for Zhongnan.
Jong Bae-jin posed the question with due decorum.
"Does the sect leader not see it?"
"This disciple is too foolish to comprehend."
For anyone else, it might have been humility, but for Ju Jae-seung, it was truth.
Yet his position as sect leader made it seem like modest deflection.
"The speed of the Celestial Star Sword Technique is different."
Ju Jae-seung tilted his head.
"It matches the increased speed with more variations."
Even after the detailed explanation...
Ju Jae-seung blinked in confusion.
A moment passed.
"Ah... Is that even possible?"
He finally grasped the meaning and asked.
"It's unfolding before your eyes, so of course it is."
A fair point.
With someone executing it right there, questioning possibility was pointless.
Ju Jae-seung ground his teeth, glaring at Baek Ri-pyeong.
What talent.
He had only just understood after Jong Bae-jin's explanation.
Yet there it was, performed live before him.
Envy and jealousy filled his eyes, soon turning to killing intent.
'He must be dealt with.'
This one threatened not just him, but his son and grandson.
'I see it.'
Baek Ri-pyeong desperately swung his sword.
The Milky Way waves of the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique surged toward him.
He could trace their origins and paths.
Still, he met them with full effort. Truly Zhongnan's supreme ultimate art.
'If not for the instructor...'
Yesterday.
He had faced it once.
A spar with Ha Mu-baek.
The technique Ha Mu-baek had used was the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique.
How shocked he had been.
Utterly startled.
The sect's ultimate art wielded by an outsider.
'What's the big deal? I just roughly mimicked something I saw long ago. Ju Si-un probably performs at about this level.'
Ha Mu-baek's words from then still echoed in his ears.
A rough mimicry of a glance from the past.
In truth, it seemed a notch above what Ju Si-un wielded now.
It had been harder then than now.
'He did it on purpose.'
Even that level was deliberate on Ha Mu-baek's part.
Thanks to it, he could now hold his own against Ju Si-un.
Only by doubling the speed of his Celestial Star Sword Technique could he barely keep up.
And Ju Si-un's attainment wasn't even that high.
What would it be like from a true master?
Baek Ri-pyeong shook off the stray thoughts crowding his mind.
Now was the time to focus on the duel before him.
Daydreaming with an opponent barely held at bay?
This spar concerned his instructor's eye and arm.
"You bastard."
Flames sparked in Ju Si-un's eyes.
The young punk was rampaging with unusual ferocity.
Inner energy surged madly from Ju Si-un's dantian.
Power flowed into his sword.
The blade, infused with sword qi, grew increasingly savage.
Clang! Clang clang!
Strength began to pour into Ju Si-un's Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique.
"Urk."
Baek Ri-pyeong was pushed back slightly.
As expected of a first-generation disciple.
He hadn't thought he'd lose, but this wasn't an easy win either.
The accelerating sword caught the morning sun, birthing stars across Zhongnan's grand training ground.
One. Two. Three.
The multiplying stars were a magnificent spectacle.
A thousand stars.
The pinnacle of the Celestial Star Sword Technique.
Yet the stars encircling Ju Si-un far exceeded that.
Over a thousand, reaching two thousand.
But the Milky Way torrent of the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique swept them away.
Ju Si-un swung wildly.
Baek Ri-pyeong staggered back before the ferocious onslaught like crashing waves.
Even spilling two thousand stars beyond the Celestial Star Sword Technique's limit, he was still yielding ground bit by bit.
Slash. Slash.
Sharp cutting sounds rang out.
Baek Ri-pyeong's clothes tore in places.
Blood seeped from his skin.
A faint smile crept onto Ju Jae-seung's lips as he watched.
'Hmph, no matter how he thrashes, he's just a worm.'
The Celestial Star Sword Technique existed solely to build foundations for the Milky Way version.
No amount of speed could overcome it.
Ha Mu-baek watched the duel with a calm face.
Boom!
A sword heavy with qi slammed the ground, erupting in a deafening crash.
Baek Ri-pyeong dodged by a hair's breadth.
But he couldn't fully evade the shockwave, stumbling sideways.
A sinister smile curled Ju Si-un's lips.
Immediately, the final stance of the Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique erupted from his hand.
Milky Way waves enveloped everything.
Baek Ri-pyeong swallowed back the surge of blood from the oppressive pressure.
Even with two spirit pills from Ha Mu-baek...
Ju Si-un, nurtured by Ju Jae-seung with myriad elixirs, held an edge in inner energy.
And now internal injuries were mounting.
Ju Si-un sensed it and poured in even more power.
"Urk..."
Baek Ri-pyeong kept retreating.
The Celestial Star Milky Way Sword Technique was formidable indeed.
Even from one like Ju Si-un with middling attainment.
'I can't just take this lying down...!'
Baek Ri-pyeong gritted his teeth.
He recalled his spar with Ha Mu-baek.
He hadn't truly prevailed then either.
Just managed a draw.
He swung his sword harder.
Squeezing every drop from his dantian. Unlike the Eastern Combat Festival final.
There, he had gone all-out for victory.
Here, his foe wielded full killing intent.
Facing human malice head-on for the first time.
He couldn't break here.
Not when that malice threatened his instructor's eye and arm.
And his own as well.
Baek Ri-pyeong focused deeper on the Celestial Star Sword Technique.
It was no weak art. Hadn't it clashed evenly with Joo Woo-myeong's Taiji Radiant Sword in the Eastern final?
He lost, but it was a close fight.
The Milky Way might be Zhongnan's pinnacle, but the Taiji Radiant Sword was Wudang's ultimate too.
If he handled that, he could handle this.
The difference between Joo Woo-myeong and Ju Si-un was the killing intent.
Ju Si-un's blade dripped with it.
'Then I'll shatter it.'
Baek Ri-pyeong recalled the Eastern final's climax.
Two thousand stars converged into one.
Brighter than any before.
That focused point pierced the Milky Way torrent.
"Guh."
A groan escaped Ju Si-un.
The Milky Way vanished in an instant.
Shock from the clash sent Ju Si-un staggering back.
Now Baek Ri-pyeong's Celestial Star Sword Technique surged forth.
One star split to a thousand, then two thousand.
Finally, three thousand.
Baek Ri-pyeong shed another layer.
Ju Si-un bared his teeth, unleashing the Milky Way once more.
But...
Three thousand stars filled the space, devouring the Milky Way entirely, sealing all movement.
One. Two. Three. Four...
The sword shadows aspiring to stars from the Milky Way began to fade.
By now, most Zhongnan disciples recognized Baek Ri-pyeong's swordplay.
Or thought they did. Obviously the Celestial Star Sword Technique.
But it didn't seem so.
No way that overwhelming display overpowering the Milky Way was mere Celestial Star.
"N-No way..."
"How is that..."
"The Celestial Star Milky Way!"
"What technique is that...?"
Three thousand stars blazed across the grand training ground, perfectly encircling Ju Si-un.
Baek Ri-pyeong's sword held no hesitation now.
"You dare!!!"
Ju Si-un roared, flailing his sword.
But he backpedaled relentlessly.
The momentum had shifted to Baek Ri-pyeong.
He pressed Ju Si-un without mercy.
Ju Si-un's face twisted demon-like, but it stirred nothing in Baek Ri-pyeong.
What did a demonic face matter when the sword posed no threat?
Zhongnan disciples fell silent at some point.
They merely gaped at the unbelievable scene.
A second-generation disciple overwhelming a first-generation wielding the Milky Way.
Unbelievable, despite witnessing it.
And the one being pushed was the fiercest first-gen, Ju Si-un.
Some second- and third-gens clenched their fists unconsciously.
Disciples who had suffered much under Ju Si-un.
They cheered Baek Ri-pyeong inwardly.
As if he avenged them by proxy.
"You fucking bastard!!!"
Ju Si-un bellowed in fury, swinging with all his might.
Clang!
A harsh ring echoed.
Whoosh!
His sword flew from his grip.
Thud!
It stabbed into the ground.
And then...
The three thousand stars vanished clean, leaving one alone.
Baek Ri-pyeong's sword tip menaced before Ju Si-un's eyes.
One more inch, and it would pierce his brow.
Ju Si-un glared at Baek Ri-pyeong, killing intent dripping from his gaze.
A low growl leaked through clenched teeth.
"Four hundred. Shall we continue, Senior Brother?"
Baek Ri-pyeong asked with weary, impassive eyes.
The outcome was clear to all.
But Ju Si-un refused to admit defeat, merely glaring.
"..."
Silence blanketed Zhongnan's grand training ground.
Baek Ri-pyeong's sword held steady.
"Senior Brother?"
Baek Ri-pyeong pressed.
Ju Si-un still glared with murderous eyes.
The sword inched forward.
Ever so slightly.
Microscopically.
Closer to Ju Si-un's brow.
"Tch."
A frustrated hiss escaped his teeth, laced with grievance.
But the words he needed to say wouldn't come.
"Enough. Stop there. The spar is over."
Ju Jae-seung intervened.
He sought to end it.
But Baek Ri-pyeong's sword didn't budge.
His mouth did.
"Victory and defeat aren't decided yet, so it can't end."
His low voice, laced with inner energy, spread to all corners.
Every Zhongnan disciple on the ground heard clearly.
"You insolent cur!!"
Ju Jae-seung exploded in rage at Baek Ri-pyeong's words.
"You lowly wretch, how dare you defy the sect leader's command! Sheathe that sword and end this now!!"
Ju Jae-seung pressured him.
But Baek Ri-pyeong stood firm.
He had no choice.
Ha Mu-baek's eye and arm hung in the balance.
It couldn't end ambiguously.
Victory must be declared.
Here, with all Zhongnan disciples as witnesses.
"Senior Brother need only admit defeat."
Baek Ri-pyeong stated firmly.
His sword edged forward more.
"Tch. You arrogant punk! Looks like you need to see blood to shed tears!"
Ju Jae-seung leaped toward Baek Ri-pyeong, sword already drawn.
Aiming for his back.
But he advanced no further.
Ha Mu-baek had appeared to block his path.
"Interfering in an unfinished spar. Is this Zhongnan's way?"
Ha Mu-baek asked coldly, eyes fixed on Ju Jae-seung.
"Tch."
Ju Jae-seung's face flushed crimson.
Even then, he sought an opening to charge at Baek Ri-pyeong.
Ha Mu-baek gave none.
His gaze shifted to Jong Bae-jin.
He had known since the elder appeared. He would likely be today's opponent.
Among those present, he bore the strongest aura.
"Elder, what say you?"
Jong Bae-jin responded to Ha Mu-baek's question.
His mouth opened after silently observing.
"Si-un, as befits a great Zhongnan disciple, accept what must be accepted."
Ju Jae-seung whipped his head toward him.
"Grand Uncle-Master, are you siding with these scum who insulted Zhongnan?"
His voice trembled with fury.
"I won't speak for the one blocking the sect leader, but both Baek Ri-pyeong and Ju Si-un are Zhongnan disciples. How are they insulting the sect?"
The stakes of this duel.
Jong Bae-jin naturally didn't know.
Few did.
Those who drafted the document, Ju Jae-seung himself, So Jung-san who heard from Nam Hwa-ryong, and a handful others.
For Ju Jae-seung, his son's eye and arm were on the line.
Hence his scramble to muddle it.
The witness seal was Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul's.
Declaring defeat now meant paying that price.
"Zhongnan's nothing special. So petty."
Ha Mu-baek muttered with a smirk.
A clear sneer curled his lips.
"You bastard!! Ju Si-un, do you mean to tarnish Zhongnan's honor!!"
Jong Bae-jin's roar erupted. Terrifying pressure bore down on Ju Si-un.
"I... l-lost... lost..."
The words stuck in his throat.
Jong Bae-jin's pressure intensified.
"I... lost..."
Finally, venom-laced admission spilled from Ju Si-un.
Baek Ri-pyeong sheathed his sword.