Chapter 30 – Genius (2)
The mountains were bustling with activity.
In the midst of repelling and recovering from the attack, the elite martial artists of the Zhongnan Sect returned after attacking a branch of the Sword Sect.
After a day of hearing the news, Yeon-shin and Won-chang were able to meet the ruler of Mount Zhongnan.
They were accompanied by Elder Ye Yil-sin, who had shown favor to Yeon-shin during the Jeong Family’s extermination.
“You have done a great service.”
The Sect Leader of Zhongnan Sect was a man with an extraordinarily handsome appearance. His sharp, blade-like ears and the yellow robe he wore exuded the aura of a hero of his time.
Sword Master of the Western Heavens, Gu Yang-cheon.
He was said to be the son of the Sword Sect and Ye Yil-sin.
He was known to be in his seventies but didn’t look a day over thirty.
He was a mix of Han and Ming blood, evident from his ears alone.
“Little Hye-ah is privately watched over by the Sword Immortal. You have saved a disciple of our sect, it is only right to reward you.”
Like most Ming people, he was exceptionally handsome, but his aura was different. He had a dignified presence befitting the leader of a sect.
Gu Yang-cheon, staring blankly at Demon Wings and Yeon-shin, finally spoke.
“Tell me what you desire from this sect.”
Yeon-shin felt the tremor from Won-chang beside him.
It seemed he hadn’t anticipated such a reward.
It felt like he could hear the sound of a thoroughly blocked dantian rolling around.
He hoped they wouldn’t think of making an unreasonable demand.
He didn’t want to demean his status as a guest by asking for some elixir.
He decided to speak first.
“Please allow us to assist in the fight against the Tyrant Sword Sect.”
“Hmm.”
The person who responded was Ye Yil-sin. She looked at Yeon-shin with a complicated expression and then slightly closed her eyes.
She wanted to ask the reason for the Jeong Family’s extermination, but she didn’t want to waste the opportunity with such an obvious question.
“Demon Wings, the legacy of my father has been recovered by someone from the Desolate Fortress.”
Gu Yang-cheon spoke, showing a slight expression of interest.
“He did not pass on his secrets even to his son, despite being a disciple of another sect. It’s an ironic thing. I didn’t expect it to be taken by the Desolate Fortress.”
“I only used it as inspiration for my swordsmanship. I will not learn or spread the Nine Yang Unified Art.”
“Interesting. Fascinating.”
Perhaps he felt some persuasion in Yeon-shin’s calmness. He saw a glimpse of Yeon-shin’s unique temperament.
He believed that the martial prowess of his grandfather Ma Yeon-jeok had significantly diminished compared to its peak.
Otherwise, the Sword Master of the Western Heavens and the Sword Immortal of Zhongnan wouldn’t have seemed so intimidating.
“I heard you shared the formula through Myo-hwa. That is also a great favor. I can’t refuse if you wish to be at the forefront.”
Being at the forefront in a martial sect’s battle was akin to being the face of the sect.
The Sect Leader of Zhongnan Sect had greatly acknowledged him.
Gu Yang-cheon’s deep eyes didn’t leave Yeon-shin.
Even someone hailed as a sword master in the west couldn’t be free from his father’s influence.
There seemed to be a faint mix of love and hate in his eyes.
Ye Yil-sin felt the same. The boy she saw during the Jeong Family’s massacre had restored her husband’s swordsmanship.
“The workings of heaven are mysterious. How could the connection continue like this…”
“I have something to ask the Great Elder separately. I couldn’t hear it due to the urgency back then.”
At Yeon-shin’s words, her face stiffened.
Myo-hwa’s sword was raised high, blocking the sunlight.
A graceful high stance. The clear air of Mount Zhongnan mingled with the sunlight gently falling from the mid-sky.
In the midst of this, her lone sword was anything but peaceful.
The Nine Yang Unified Art was a single-strike attack, true to its name.
Yeon-shin, who created the flow of swordsmanship through the repetition of a single sword strike, was peculiar.
Hoo!
The sword path, which should have cut down nine suns simultaneously, was disrupted.
The Sword Immortal, watching from the side, clicked his tongue.
“You can’t focus at all.”
“I’m sorry. I’m only making it messy.”
“Is it because of Yeon-shin?”
Myo-hwa shook her head.
“No, it’s my heart that’s the problem.”
She had already fully acknowledged Yeon-shin’s sword. Myo-hwa’s heart demon didn’t stem from jealousy.
She wasn’t so narrow-minded.
It was just that her own martial prowess, which she had diligently built up and refined along with her life, seemed futile.
It was closer to emptiness than jealousy.
“His sword technique, the Radiance Sword Style, isn’t inferior to the Nine Yang Unified Art. Am I correct in my observation?”
“Indeed.”
The Sword Immortal answered briefly. There was no need to elaborate further on Yeon-shin’s martial arts.
“It wasn’t at the level of a first achievement. While sparring with me, he surpassed the first achievement and reached the second and third. It’s unbelievable that he created such a supreme martial art, but the achievement of mastering it without any prior experience and surpassing my Nine Yang Unified Art is even more so.”
“That child has already achieved your goal.”
When Myo-hwa lowered her sword and looked at the Sword Immortal, he continued speaking slowly.
“He is a grand master who transcends age. It’s natural for him to master his own created martial art quickly. Everything in human affairs and learning is the same. The creator’s body is bound to fit best. There isn’t a single martial art in the world that doesn’t fit this way.”
“Is he someone with unprecedented talent that even I can’t follow…”
“Shaolin Da Mo and Wudang Sect founder Sam Bong-jin were also like that. Living in the same era as such a grand master can be a blessing depending on how you look at it. Even you have inherited the Nine Yang Unified Art.”
“…You’re right. It’s a grace beyond measure.”
Myo-hwa faintly smiled. It was a smile of resignation.
The tormenting anguish was forcibly suppressed thanks to the discipline she had built as a Zhongnan disciple.
Her pride as a sword dragon and youthful fervor cried out not to be overtaken, but she couldn’t bear to turn her back on Yeon-shin forever.
In the near future, Myo-hwa would be watching Yeon-shin’s back. She decided to accept it.
The soft wind gently brushed her silky hair.
However, her grip on the sword didn’t immediately tighten.
She was preparing to step down from the peak of her peers. There was no way her energy could be full.
“…I didn’t want to say this.”
Sword Immortal sighed. Although he considered Yeon-shin like a grandchild, he couldn’t compare to Myo-hwa, whom he had truly raised as his own.
“You must listen and keep it to yourself.”
“What?”
“It’s about Yeon-shin. That child’s Baihui Point is communicating with nature.”
As Myo-hwa looked puzzled, he continued.
“It was a subtle change but it was different every day. He is excessively absorbing the power of heaven and earth. It’s not good at all. Even a top-notch martial artist can’t handle it.”
“What do you mean…”
“He doesn’t have much time left. Yet he struggles like that, as if trying to leave his mark on the world.”
Shocked by his words, Myo-hwa’s eyes widened.
The Sword Immortal, with his hands behind his back, was already staring blankly at a cloud-covered mountain peak.
“Regardless of martial prowess or age, I have nothing but respect for Yeon-shin.”
After the conversation with Gu Yang-cheon and Ye Yil-sin.
News came that the Sword Sect had sent a challenge letter. It was said to be short but intense.
– Let’s have a battle three days after Yushui1.
It was the end of February.
In the martial world, a battle meant a full-on confrontation risking a sect’s fate.
It was completely different from the sporadic skirmishes until now.
It was a direct confrontation between one of the Thirteen Heavens and one of the Nine Great Sects. It was an event that would shake the martial world.
The date of the decisive battle approached quickly, giving little time for the sects across the central plains to react.
Hoooong~
The wind sweeping across the vast Guanzhong Plain felt harsh.
It was said that Myo-hwa had earned her title of Cloud Sword Dragon here after cutting down the head of a demonic sect.
Yeon-shin stared ahead among the disciples of the Zhongnan Sect.
A force of around two hundred people was brimming with sharp energy.
The Tyrant Sword Sect of the Thirteen Heavens. It was a sect that sought the most tyrannical power in the world.
At the forefront stood a familiar figure.
The Tyrant Sword Sect Leader. His expressionless face was familiar.
He still stood with a huge sword planted in the ground, showing his energy without restraint.
Even from a distance of a thousand steps, the overwhelming energy wave hit them.
Now that he had properly mastered martial arts, he could comprehend how absurdly powerful the man had become.
“That man is your enemy, Master Jeong.”
Won-chang, who knew his comrade’s story, said while glaring ahead.
He had grown deeply attached somehow, showing no sign of retreat.
Yeon-shin saw for the first time in Heon Won-chang the qualities that could be called those of a divine hero.
With gratitude in his heart, he walked forward.
The Sect Leader of Zhongnan, Sword Master of the Western Heavens, Gu Yang-cheon, stood gazing ahead.
At that moment, someone from the Tyrant Sword Sect stepped forward and shouted.
“The third disciple of the Sword Sect Leader! I, Wei Mu-hyeok, challenge anyone to receive my sword!”
It was a challenge for a vanguard duel.
It was a common practice in martial disputes for middle-level masters to fight as a means to gauge the opponent’s strength and to break their spirit.
It was something Yeon-shin had experienced once through Mount Hua Sect’s Yu Hyeon.
“I will present my request now, Sect Leader.”
“Go ahead.”
Gu Yang-cheon turned his head. Their eyes met.
“As someone who has recovered the legacy of the Sword Sect’s great elder and the Great Elder’s husband, I humbly request to step forward as a guest of Zhongnan Sect.”
“Master Jeong.”
Myo-hwa, who always wore a strange expression when looking at him, stared at him with mixed feelings.
Yeon-shin slightly bowed and looked at Gu Yang-cheon.
‘I can do this.’
It was a place unfit for her to step up.
Wei Mu-hyeok was slightly older and had a different level of fame.
Gu Yang-cheon nodded slowly.
If victory was necessary, there was no better choice among his peers than Yeon-shin.
“Go ahead.”
“Thank you.”
After bowing, he stepped forward.
Myo-hwa, standing among the elders of Zhongnan Sect, watched Yeon-shin’s back.
Her gaze didn’t leave his departing figure.
A supreme master burning himself to write the traces of his life was standing there.
“He is already a splendid young man.”
The Sword Immortal’s lament scattered in the air.
“Zhongnan Sect’s fate is sealed.”
Facing Yeon-shin, Wei Mu-hyeok’s first words were these.
He looked about seventeen or eighteen, transitioning from a boy to a young man.
He was not only armed with a dazzling precious sword but also wore a splendid crimson robe. Yeon-shin vaguely remembered seeing him at the Jeong Family’s place. He was one of his enemies.
Wei Mu-hyeok sneered as he looked Yeon-shin up and down.
“You, I remember. From the Jeong Family? You were hopelessly floundering. I should have killed you then. Lucky for you to be standing in front of me now.”
“You couldn’t do anything back then, could you?”
“It’s a martial artist’s fate to die by the sword. What excuse would the former Sword Master have to interfere? It would only damage his reputation. If you think it will be the same as last time, it’s truly pathetic.”
Wei Mu-hyeok exuded arrogance throughout his entire body. He was a nobleman in all but name.
‘A disciple of the Sword Sect Leader. I can take my revenge and gain merit.’
Yeon-shin silently drew his sword.
His gaze was fixed far beyond Wei Mu-hyeok to the Tyrant Sword Sect Leader standing behind him.
The sharply defined face was still as indifferent as back then.
“Now, die.”
As Wei Mu-hyeok spoke and unleashed his sword attack, his demeanor was typical of a demonic sect martial artist, unconcerned about where his opponent’s attention was.
Zzeong! Hwaaak!
The explosive energy wave generated a gust of wind. Their swords clashed, unmoving.
Wei Mu-hyeok’s expression shifted, finding the unyielding sword force unexpected.
“Not bad.”
Yeon-shin didn’t respond. Now that he had properly mastered swordsmanship, he could see the flow of his opponent’s blade.
His opponent’s sword was no different.
He suddenly recalled the time when Cheong Myeong had tested him upon his initial entry into Demon Wings.
He slowly opened his mouth.
“A Ming person I know once said. They judge a person’s potential by their sword wind.”
“Hm?”
“So that’s what he meant.”
As Yeon-shin smiled, Wei Mu-hyeok felt a chill run down his arm.
Radiance Sword Style.
The blade in Yeon-shin’s hand absorbed the sunlight.
Simultaneously, a faint light beam burst forth, pushing the intersecting swords away.
“What…!”
Yeon-shin’s hand didn’t stop. Enveloping his body in wind, he passed Wei Mu-hyeok with a swift step.
At the end of the sword strike, which cleaved from the neck down, Wei Mu-hyeok’s head fell.
With a thud, the body collapsed.
Without looking at the corpse, he sheathed his sword.
“……”
For a moment, silence blanketed the plains.
Footnotes:
1: The traditional chinese calendar divides a year into 24 solar terms. Yǔshuǐ / 雨水, Usui, Usu, or Vũ thủy, literally meaning rain water, is the second solar term. It begins when the Sun reaches the celestial longitude of 330° and ends when it reaches the longitude of 345°.