The Tedious Sparring
Above the training ground.
Namgung Sang was smiling at me, but the aura he emitted was anything but ordinary.
Hostility.
Real, genuine hostility.
And it was directed solely at me—a kind of warning signal.
“Haha, I actually wanted to cross swords with Sword Dragon, but since he’s not here, I suppose it can’t be helped.”
His hand, patting my shoulder as if telling me to understand, was filled with strength.
I nodded roughly and stepped back to create distance.
“This will be my second spar today.”
“Haha, are you tired?”
“No, not really.”
I gripped my sword and swung the sheathed blade through the air a few times.
It was just a light warm-up, but Namgung Sang seemed to take it as me looking down on him.
“Approach this with a serious attitude. You could get seriously injured during the spar.”
“Ah, yes.”
I gave him another half-hearted nod.
“Shall we begin?”
“……”
He wasn’t even worth a proper greeting.
A fool blinded by a woman, doing nothing but idiotic things.
How was someone like him supposed to shoulder the future of the great Namgung Clan?
This is why they fell.
They got swept up in rumors, believed them as truth.
They endlessly tore down anyone they deemed inferior, finding satisfaction only in that.
My own actions hadn’t been perfect either, but those who chewed over them among themselves weren’t exactly in the right, either.
Paak!
Namgung Sang took the initiative.
He must have been quite impatient.
The opening move was the Azure Sky Boundless Sword Art, the signature technique of the Namgung Clan.
A well-crafted sword art that combined a total of thirty-six forms.
Shwaaak! Shwaaaak!
His sword tip, slicing through the air in succession, carried an unusual amount of force.
His sword is filled with emotion.
I sneered at his blade and simply twisted my waist slightly, completely scattering the trajectory of his sword.
It was true that he was strong for his age.
But he was still young.
Seeing his sword tip waver because of mere emotion made me feel it was a waste of the profound art he had learned.
Thud!
I thrust the scabbard straight toward the tip of his sword.
The sword tip and scabbard met, and Namgung Sang bent his arm, retreating one step.
“……”
The entire audience fell into silence.
Being pushed back one step meant he had lost in both internal energy and swordsmanship.
What is this?
Namgung Sang couldn’t believe the reality before him.
Who was Ju Woo-jin?
Wasn’t he the infamous scoundrel of Gangseo Province, a direct descendant of the Ju family who neglected training and only loved to play?
Yet against such an opponent, he couldn’t even land a proper strike and was instead pushed back.
His face flushed red.
“More? Or shall we stop here?”
I asked quietly.
Namgung Sang gritted his teeth and charged at me again.
A fierce gust of wind pressure erupted.
The Namgung Clan’s secret art, the Heavenly Wind Movement Art, was unleashed.
His figure, traceless like the wind and raging like a gale, was truly overwhelming.
Hmm, a poor choice.
In terms of speed, the Heavenly Wind Movement Art ranked among the top three in the martial world, alongside the Ju family’s Gale Shredding Moon.
However, its problems were its extreme consumption of internal energy and its limitation to linear attack paths.
In other words, Namgung Sang’s target was so obvious that it could be seen at a glance.
Tuduk!
I spun the scabbard, reversed my grip, twisted my body halfway, and took a step back.
Wall-Flowing Divine Steps.
Using the flowing movement art, I slipped into Namgung Sang’s embrace in an instant and raised the scabbard.
Thud!
A dull impact rang out.
Namgung Sang’s body floated slightly in the air before dropping to the ground.
As he tried to rise again, I approached first.
And pointed the scabbard at him.
“……”
“Let’s end this.”
At my words, Namgung Sang bit his lip and nodded.
The spar ended in my complete victory.
It was only natural.
I hadn’t gone through closed-door training just to lose to someone like him.
“Waaah!”
From afar, Byeok Gong of the Mount Hua Sect raised his hand high and beamed at me.
What a pure-hearted man.
I cupped my fists and left the training ground.
“Wait!”
Just then.
A familiar voice stopped me in my tracks.
“You! Get back up here.”
Someone pointed at me while huffing angrily.
When I turned around…… it was Paeng So-ryeo.
She glared at me with fierce eyes and beckoned with her hand.
The chief steward of the Mong Family Villa rushed over in a panic to stop her.
“Young Lady Paeng, this is merely a friendly spar. If you let your emotions take over like this……”
“It’s fine.”
I let out a small sigh and stepped back onto the training ground.
Paeng So-ryeo.
Who could possibly stop her in the first place?
Before she could throw a tantrum, I had no choice but to return to the training ground.
“You…… do it properly.”
“Got it.”
I nodded.
No greetings were needed.
Bang!
I took one step and instantly circled behind her.
Tadak!
Then I pressed her acupoint and forced her to sleep.
“……”
The match ended in an instant.
Though whether it could even be called a match was questionable from the start.
“Then I’ll be going.”
After quickly dealing with Paeng So-ryeo, I left the area.
Whew, so much for good connections.
I just wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.
* * *
The friendly spars at the training ground.
They were a customary event that always took place during the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.
Of course, it was rare for them to end this one-sidedly.
After the spars, it was common for participants to seek out those they had defeated and share the insights they had gained.
That could be said to be the true purpose of the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.
“Haha.”
Standing before me was Byeok Gong of the Mount Hua Sect.
He was…… genuinely persistent.
He asked about sword principles, expressed admiration, and asked again.
“So that interpretation was also possible. As expected, while different from the Mount Hua sword, it carries the same righteous spirit of the orthodox path……”
He even talked a lot.
But seeing him half-crazed over the sword somehow lifted my mood.
“I originally wanted to keep crossing swords with you, Young Hero. I’ve heard that the Ju family’s sword is very fierce and carries a grand, heroic spirit, unlike the Mount Hua sword.”
The way his eyes sparkled as he said that was quite burdensome.
I considered sparring with him lightly, but it was still too much trouble.
“The lofty sword stance of Mount Hua needs no further praise. I was simply lucky.”
“Hahaha! The only one who can make this humble one retreat three steps with mere luck is you, Young Hero. At least among the younger generation.”
He was truly pure and clean-hearted.
That was probably the strength unique to a sect.
Untainted by the secular world, inheriting the Taoist spirit, and upholding the righteousness and chivalry that the orthodox path pursued.
“I thought he was a strange one, but he really is strange, isn’t he?”
Tang Jin, standing nearby, chimed in.
Ever since arriving here, Tang Jin had been begging for a room near my quarters and had stuck close to me.
Even here, he was making something again—not a weapon, but something that looked more like a piece of craftsmanship.
“Brother Tang, what are you always making?”
“Ah, this? Just as a swordsman’s sword rusts if he doesn’t train even for a moment, the same goes for blacksmiths like us.”
Tang Jin’s hands were covered in thick calluses and blisters.
Moreover, his palms looked nearly twice as thick as an average person’s.
It was proof of how much effort he had put in.
“Young Master, are you inside?”
Just then.
The chief steward’s voice came from outside the door.
Yet for some reason, his voice was trembling badly.
“Yes. I’m here.”
I opened the door slightly and spoke while looking outside.
The steward rushed over, glanced inside, and opened his mouth.
“So the others are here as well.”
“What’s the matter? Is something wrong?”
“Ah, I’ve already informed the others outside……”
“Please speak.”
The steward’s reaction was unusual.
Sensing the strange atmosphere, Byeok Gong and Tang Jin followed me outside.
“You must return to your families immediately. It seems the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly must end here.”
“What? Suddenly?”
Of course, that was more than welcome, but I was curious about the reason.
“There’s no time to explain in detail. In any case, please return to your families as soon as possible.”
The steward finished his explanation in a fluster and turned away.
His actions could be seen as quite rude depending on the situation, but it seemed something urgent had occurred within the Mong Family Villa.
Asking for more details would have been impolite, so I stopped.
The others did the same.
Tang Jin and Byeok Gong hurried back to their quarters.
Just as I was packing my things, Muyoung rushed in, out of breath.
“Young Master.”
“Yeah, I was already packing after hearing from the steward.”
I didn’t think much of it.
But Muyoung’s face was deathly pale.
“It’s an attack! An unknown group has surrounded Mount Myobang. If we don’t leave now, escaping might become difficult.”
“An attack?”
Only then did I understand why the steward had been so stiff.
An attack by an unknown group.
And they had specifically targeted and surrounded Mount Myobang?
“Are they after the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly?”
“It seems so.”
The rising stars of various sects and clans were gathered here.
Who in the world would dare to harm them……
Plenty.
There were more than enough people who would.
Setting aside the Demon Cult for now, there was even that man who had boldly entered and encountered me here.
More and more enemies keep appearing.
Developments I hadn’t known about.
While I had been drowning in alcohol and women, had the martial world been suffering through such trials?
Well, thinking about it……
When the Mong Family Villa fell, Mong Yu-baek’s figure had been nowhere to be seen.
It meant he had been taken down long ago.
Perhaps today would be that day.
What do I do?
My worries deepened.
Turning my back and returning to the Ju family was, in truth, the most realistic option.
If I stayed here, I would be distracted by the Mong Family Villa, risking the division of my forces.
Having more people to protect wasn’t exactly a welcome situation.
“What about the others?”
“They already left on horseback over half an hour ago.”
Muyoung shouted urgently.
Soon after, I could also sense the presence of the enemies gradually approaching.
What is this……
My expression hardened in an instant.
It was an absurd aura.
The same as that guy.
It was the same energy as the man I had encountered in the abandoned warehouse.
He had told me to look forward to it, but I never expected him to launch such an open attack.
“Is it the Black Horns? No, that can’t be.”
Muyoung muttered to himself and gripped his sword tightly.
While the enemy’s identity remained unclear, I set down my luggage.
“Huh? Woo-jin. What are you standing there for? Hurry up and move.”
From afar, Tang Jin shouted while carrying his own belongings.
“Please go ahead. I’ll follow shortly.”
“You want me to go first? What about you……”
“It’s fine, so please go ahead. I have something to take care of.”
I waved the sword Tang Jin had given me and reassured him.
Tang Jin, who had looked anxious, nodded with a firm expression and turned away.
“Young Hero, aren’t you leaving?”
Before I knew it, Byeok Gong had also approached my side.
Strangely, his expression was completely calm.
As if he didn’t welcome the idea of fleeing like this.
“I still have a few things left to do.”
“Hmm.”
Byeok Gong nodded at my words and seemed to ponder for a moment.
Then he tossed his own luggage at his feet and grinned.
“It seems I’ve also found something to do.”
“Huhu, are you sure about this?”
At my question, Byeok Gong smiled brightly and drew his sword first.
“I’ve had quite a few drinks courtesy of the villa lord, and I’ve lounged around for several days. I should at least pay for my meals and lodging, shouldn’t I?”
“My, it seems our thoughts align perfectly.”
Following Byeok Gong, I let out a cold laugh and raised my sword.
Of course, unlike Byeok Gong, I……
Was simply curious about what kind of people they were.