Chapter 659
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 659
Chapter Title: And She's Strong
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Another day slipped by.
It was now the third day since their arrival at the Hubei Yeon Clan.
The first day and the second.
Was it because of the commotion over those two days?
The atmosphere in the Yeon Clan had grown even stranger.
No one from the clan approached Jin Na-yeon's annex, as if it were forbidden ground.
Thanks to that, Yeon Ha-min and her mother Jin Na-yeon could enjoy some intimate mother-daughter time alone.
Though Yeon Gong-hu did visit often.
Ha Mu-baek paid no attention to the two women at all.
He simply tended to his two disciples.
He didn't wander off anywhere, as if there was nothing in the Yeon Clan that piqued his curiosity.
The only times Ha Mu-baek moved were when the children went somewhere.
But perhaps because of yesterday's experience, Gong Hae-bin and Gong Hae-jun didn't stray far from the annex.
And so, the third day at the Yeon Clan passed without incident.
A night that had deepened to midnight.
As was his custom, Yeon Gong-hu drew his sword alone and immersed himself in training.
His sword had grown noticeably sharper over the past few days.
Its momentum felt different from yesterday's.
A blade that now carried killing intent and even a hint of ferocity.
Yeon Gong-hu was summoning murderous intent to the fullest, clashing against an illusion of Ha Mu-baek.
The results were, of course, repeated defeats.
He'd lost count of how many times he'd "died."
By the time Yeon Gong-hu's body was drenched in sweat...
"As expected, once you've experienced it, your sword starts to change."
Ha Mu-baek's voice rang out abruptly.
It was just like that sudden visit the other night.
"Something else must have happened in that garden, right?"
Yeon Gong-hu startled at the question.
He wondered if Ha Mu-baek had overheard what Yeon Da-hye had said back then.
"When you start leaking that much killing intent so suddenly, how could I not notice? Even from a distance."
Yeon Gong-hu inwardly sighed in relief at Ha Mu-baek's follow-up.
It wasn't that he'd heard Yeon Da-hye's words—he'd simply sensed the killing intent.
"Well, thanks to that, your sword has changed."
Ha Mu-baek grinned.
"Is that so? Honestly, I don't sense much difference."
"That's because you're up against me."
Ha Mu-baek knew that the imaginary foe Yeon Gong-hu had conjured was himself from that day.
Yet Yeon Gong-hu seemed only vaguely aware.
"Yesterday was the first time you truly envisioned killing someone with all your heart, wasn't it?"
Yeon Gong-hu paused at the question, then nodded.
Come to think of it, it was a first in his life.
The first time he'd genuinely wanted to kill someone.
But the fact that it was his cousin Yeon Da-hye made it all the more heartbreaking.
"And the first time you felt killing intent that made you think you might die."
Yeon Gong-hu nodded again at Ha Mu-baek's question.
"Just some flowerbeds, huh."
Ha Mu-baek chuckled.
One might expect him to bristle at such words, but Yeon Gong-hu found himself agreeing.
It was because he'd faced Ha Mu-baek's killing intent and harbored his own.
'Indeed... I've been too sheltered within these walls.'
The towering fence of the Hubei Yeon Clan.
No matter that he'd reached the Absolute Realm.
Even though he'd gone to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest with his uncle Yeon Baek-ryang.
Honestly.
This was his first real experience like this.
The zombies in the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest were mere demonic beasts driven by instinct.
That was worlds apart from Ha Mu-baek's killing intent.
"Killing intent is another weapon in battle. Overwhelming killing intent can momentarily confuse your enemy. Like this."
With those words...
An immense wave of killing intent erupted from Ha Mu-baek's body.
Aimed solely at Yeon Gong-hu.
He couldn't react at all. Not even a scream or a groan escaped him.
He simply froze.
Was this how a mouse felt before a viper?
He truly couldn't twitch a finger.
And then.
He felt a chill against his throat.
Ha Mu-baek's sword had somehow appeared on his shoulder.
Only then did Yeon Gong-hu's eyes tremble faintly.
"Overwhelming killing intent can also subdue your foe."
Ha Mu-baek sheathed his sword as he spoke.
"H-How...?"
It was utterly different from the killing intent three nights ago.
He really hadn't been able to do a thing.
"That was me going easy on you."
Ha Mu-baek said it like it was nothing.
"In your case, it's the same. If you unleash this kind of killing intent on someone at your level or lower? It'll definitely affect their movements. Of course, only after you've learned not to buckle under the enemy's killing intent first."
Ha Mu-baek looked at Yeon Gong-hu and continued explaining.
"Your sword before was too pure. It held only a yearning for strength. No lethal intent to kill your foe."
Yeon Gong-hu scratched his cheek.
Now he understood what that meant.
"Now that it carries true killing intent, even in real combat, you won't be overwhelmed by your opponent's at least. If you're fighting me as your opponent, well, you wouldn't notice any change."
With that, Ha Mu-baek drew his sword again.
He crooked a finger at Yeon Gong-hu.
Understanding the signal, Yeon Gong-hu gripped his sword and kicked off the ground.
The White Rak Heavenly Flower Sword unfolded from Yeon Gong-hu's hand.
Ha Mu-baek did the same.
There was a clear difference from three days ago.
He'd lasted at least one or two more exchanges, after all.
Such progress in a mere three days was astonishing.
How long did they clash?
Ha Mu-baek nodded as he looked down at Yeon Gong-hu sprawled on the ground.
"Definitely improved. At this level, you can't push it to the limit, though. Someone would notice."
A battle between Absolute Realm experts brimming with killing intent?
Truth be told, it was impossible not to notice.
Last time, Ha Mu-baek had set up a barrier, and Yeon Gong-hu hadn't fully unleashed his killing intent, so no one had caught on.
But tonight was different.
Killing intent at Yeon Gong-hu's level.
It could leak out even past a barrier.
"It'd be nice if we could set up a formation... but you don't know how. Guess we'll have to step out for a bit?"
When Ha Mu-baek asked, Yeon Gong-hu rose to his feet, eyes gleaming, and nodded.
"There's a suitable spot."
With that, Yeon Gong-hu kicked off and vaulted over the Yeon Clan's wall.
It was a swift, traceless movement that the guards couldn't possibly detect.
The place Yeon Gong-hu led him to was a forest somewhat removed from the clan grounds.
"This should work."
"Good."
Sword auras rose simultaneously from their blades.
The outcome was as expected.
Exhausted, Yeon Gong-hu lay on his back, staring at the sky.
A storm of insights swirled in his mind.
"I'll bring up leaving tomorrow. We'll depart the day after at the latest. No later than the next day. Get your things in order."
Ha Mu-baek left those words and returned to the Yeon Clan.
Only Yeon Gong-hu remained behind.
Ha Mu-baek's overwhelming display.
Even squeezing out every last drop of his strength, he hadn't been a match.
Yeon Gong-hu sat cross-legged.
Immersed in meditation, he didn't open his eyes until dawn.
"Pardon?"
At the breakfast table.
Yeon Ha-min couldn't help but ask in surprise.
"We're leaving the Yeon Clan tomorrow."
She'd known they wouldn't stay long, but this was sooner than expected.
She'd thought at least two more days.
"We have a stop along the way. It's for Seol-ran's vacation."
At those words, Ha Seol-ran widened her eyes and looked at Ha Mu-baek.
She hadn't known either.
Yeon Ha-min nodded at Ha Seol-ran's reaction.
Seol-ran might not know, but it seemed like something the Corps Leader had arranged.
Just as he'd prepared for her to visit her mother.
Even if it left some regrets, she should follow.
Seol-ran had done it for her, so now it was her turn for Seol-ran.
"If you're reluctant, you could stay longer and return to the Fierce Dragon Corps on your own, but with the Yeon Clan's odd situation, I'm not sure you'd be fine without me."
It was true.
Yeon Ha-min had sensed it too.
Even staying only in this annex, she caught the strange vibe from the occasional maids and servants coming and going.
"So please decide, Madam. Will you leave with us tomorrow, or stay behind?"
With that, breakfast ended.
Ha Mu-baek had tossed a huge dilemma to Jin Na-yeon and Yeon Ha-min, yet he himself spent the day leisurely and at ease.
And so, as that day too drew to a close...
Yeon Ha-min stepped into the annex's rear garden, sword in hand.
With Jin Na-yeon.
In truth, it was at Jin Na-yeon's request.
She'd returned to the Yeon Clan and shared countless stories with her mother, but never once demonstrated her martial arts.
Yet suddenly, her mother asked Yeon Ha-min to show her.
Specifically, that sword art her father had passed down.
And so here they were in the rear garden.
Yeon Ha-min gripped her sword.
Jin Na-yeon had brought a chair to a suitable spot and sat.
"That's good. Now show me."
At Jin Na-yeon's words as the cue...
Yeon Ha-min's sword moved.
Starting from the preparatory stance, it progressed step by step, painting graceful arcs.
Her movements were beautiful too.
Moonlit Plum Blossom Sword Dance.
She was showing it to her mother now.
"Ah...!"
A gasp escaped Jin Na-yeon's lips.
It was beautiful.
Exquisitely so.
And it suited her perfectly.
It fit her breathtakingly beautiful daughter, Yeon Ha-min, so well.
As if it had always been one with her.
"Darling..."
Jin Na-yeon murmured softly, thinking of the man no longer in this world.
What Yeon Baek-un had prepared for his daughter was finally revealing itself in the Yeon Clan.
And so beautifully at that.
Tears streamed from Jin Na-yeon's eyes.
Her daughter, displaying such beauty and strength.
Yet her growth had stalled because of heart demons caused by her.
Unthinkable.
She too needed to find her courage.
Thus, Jin Na-yeon made her decision.
It was time to break free from the chains of the Yeon Clan.
Even if her daughter returned to being Lim Ha-min or Jin Ha-min instead of Yeon Ha-min.
It didn't matter.
Wasn't she wielding her sword so proudly right now?
With that, she completed the final form of the Moonlit Plum Blossom Sword Dance.
Regulating her breathing and sheathing her sword, Yeon Ha-min smiled brightly at her mother.
This time, even she was satisfied with her performance.
"Ah."
Only then did she notice Jin Na-yeon's flowing tears.
And at the same time, an even more perfect vision of the sword dance she'd just performed crystallized in her mind.
She wanted to rush over and wipe her mother's tears.
But...
The sudden inspiration flooding her head.
Unable to let it go, Yeon Ha-min bowed slightly to her mother and drew her sword again.
She was a martial artist too.
She couldn't ignore a flash of insight.
And so Yeon Ha-min kept moving her sword, all while gazing at Jin Na-yeon.
"Beautiful."
Yeon Gong-hu whispered from beside Jin Na-yeon, unnoticed until then.
Jin Na-yeon nodded faintly, unsurprised.
Her eyes never left Yeon Ha-min.
"And she's strong."
Yeon Gong-hu let out a sigh of admiration.
Yeon Ha-min's sword was emitting a pink sword aura.
No one else in the Yeon Clan had reached the sword aura stage after just a couple years since starting martial arts.
Yeon Ha-min alone had done it.
That's why Yeon Gong-hu was impressed.
It was something even he hadn't achieved.
Yeon Ha-min's sword aura deepened.
Deeper than at the Summer Combat Festival.
Deeper than during her spar with Namgung Hu.
And then, the deepening aura finally unified into one.
At that moment, Yeon Gong-hu widened his eyes.
Unbelievable events were unfolding before him.
"Has she overcome her heart demon?"
Ha Mu-baek murmured, leaning back on his bed with eyes closed.
Was it because she'd stagnated due to the heart demon?
Having overcome it, Yeon Ha-min grew stronger in a single leap.