WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Episode 34: Na Yuk-hyeong of the Paeung Temple (Part 1)
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SaMa Yeong and Jo SeongWon had proven themselves worthy of trust.
Just in case, I had told them to deal with the black-clad men while I faced Gwak Gyeong, the Tiger-Subduing Valiant Hand. They had accomplished it in that brief time.
Then again, someone with SaMa Yeong's martial prowess could have handled it alone.
Gwak Gyeong shook their head.
“You have outstanding companions.”
“They are my junior martial brother and my friend.”
Jo SeongWon’s lips twitched at the word friend.
‘Are they pleased that outsiders do not know they are my subordinate?’
But Gwak Gyeong was interested in something else.
“Junior martial brother? Then you as well?”
Snap!
SaMa Yeong gave a fist-and-palm salute.
“Ma Yeong, the second disciple, pays respects to Great Hero Gwak.”
Gwak Gyeong could not hide their surprise.
“I worried because Great Hero Hoh had been out of sight for so long. To think he had been raising such fine successors.”
Respect filled their voice.
Seeing this, the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster Hoh JongDae truly seemed worthy of being called a great man.
Living a life that earned the respect of so many people could not have been easy. It was remarkable.
Click!
I sheathed the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword.
Gwak Gyeong saw it and asked,
“I did not recognize it because the blade is rusted. Is that not the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword?”
- Oh. They recognized it.
- Ahem.
The SoDam Sword puffed up the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword.
Unlike ordinary swords, the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword had been forged with cold iron. Ordinary craftsmen could not handle it, so its rusted and damaged blade had yet to be restored.
Even so, Gwak Gyeong had recognized it.
“I am unworthy, but my master lent me his sword.”
I deliberately avoided saying he had given it to me.
That would make it sound as though the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster had retired.
I was sorry, but I still needed his reputation.
“Ahh. To see Great Hero Hoh’s sword again. It brings back many memories.”
Gwak Gyeong’s face grew nostalgic.
I became curious about the true face beneath that Skin Mask.
Then Gwak Gyeong suddenly pointed toward the secret passage.
“This is no time for this. If not for that Na Yuk-hyeong, I would have liked to speak with the successor of an old acquaintance. Unfortunately, there is no time to waste. Hurry.”
Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong.
Things had become complicated because of that person.
And we had not even properly achieved the reason we came here.
Then Gwak Gyeong quietly sent me a sound telepathic message.
[Once Ah-song is found, I will make arrangements so you can retrieve information from any main or branch headquarters.]
Fortunately, Gwak Gyeong had not neglected the request.
[Ah. Come to think of it, did you not say there were two requests?]
They had not forgotten the second request either.
After telling SaMa Yeong and Jo SeongWon to enter the passage first, I took the Jade Medallion from my robes.
[Do you recognize this Jade Medallion?]
Gwak Gyeong frowned upon seeing it.
Was this their first time seeing it as well?
After examining it closely, Gwak Gyeong asked,
[Where did you obtain this?]
[...Forgive me. That is the one thing I cannot tell you.]
[Hmm.]
[Do you know something?]
[There is a pattern of a soaring crane engraved upon it.]
[That is correct.]
Did Gwak Gyeong know of a martial family or clan that used a soaring crane as its symbol?
But then something I had not known came from Gwak Gyeong’s lips.
[If you inspect the Jade Medallion closely, do the incised patterns across it not make it look like a full moon?]
At those words, I turned the medallion over and examined it.
I had focused only on the pattern, never realizing that the round Jade Medallion itself resembled the moon.
It looked like a work of art.
Then perhaps it was connected not only to the crane pattern, but to the moon as well.
Still frowning, Gwak Gyeong spoke.
[You may not know this, having only just reached manhood.]
[What?]
[The Soaring Moon Heroic Clan.]
The Soaring Moon Heroic Clan?
I had never heard of it.
Despite the crane in its pattern, its name did not even include the word crane.
[Do you know of the Four Great Martial Sects that rule Peerless Castle?]
Of course I did.
Peerless Castle had been founded by those who pursued only Martial, beyond justice and evil.
Countless martial artists had established and passed down their own martial sects. I had heard there were several hundred large and small martial sects within it.
Among those countless martial sects, four led Peerless Castle.
They were the Four Great Martial Sects.
Their reputations were so widespread that most martial artists knew of them.
The Sea King Star Sect, the Martial Heaven Orthodox Sect, the Flash Force Martial Sect, and the Wind Shadow Eight Streams Sect.
The Martial Heaven Orthodox Sect and the Wind Shadow Eight Streams Sect had even produced members of the Eight Sword Masters of the Central Plains.
[The Soaring Moon Heroic Clan was once on the verge of becoming one of the Five Great Martial Sects. It is a martial sect now being forgotten by the younger generation.]
It had nearly become one of the Five Great Martial Sects?
Did that mean it had once possessed a power base comparable to Peerless Castle’s four great martial sects?
I was dumbfounded.
I had suspected it might be connected to a martial family, but I had never expected Peerless Castle to be mentioned, one of the two powers currently controlling the martial world.
[If my guess is correct, the pattern on that Jade Medallion seems related to the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan.]
[Then what exactly is the crane on the medallion?]
[If my memory serves me correctly, the crane seems related to the origins of the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan.]
[Its origins?]
[I do not know the details. It seems this is not a low-rank request, but a high-rank one.]
Even with a connection to the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster, nothing came free.
Then again, business and personal matters had to remain separate.
[I will pay the price.]
[Very well. But this occurred so long ago that we must investigate it as well. There is no time now, so I will arrange for you to retrieve the information from a branch or main headquarters. Go now!]
Since we had to hurry, I gave a fist-and-palm salute and rushed into the passage.
They had said it was half a li long, and the passage truly went on for quite a distance.
While we moved through it, the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword called to me.
- Un Hwi.
‘What is it?’
- I have heard of the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan.
‘You have?’
Considering the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster’s age and the period when he had been active, it made sense that the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword might know of it.
It seemed the sword had not thought of the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan from the medallion’s pattern alone.
‘What do you know?’
- Ah, I do not know anything as detailed as you hope. However, the Soaring Moon Swordmaster, Ha SeongUn, who led the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan, once pledged to duel my former master.
‘Ha SeongUn?’
My mother’s surname was Ha.
Could the leader of the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan be related to my mother?
- I do not know.
Wait.
The fact that they had only pledged to duel somehow made it sound as though they never fought.
- You are right. My former master never fought the Soaring Moon Swordmaster.
‘Why not?’
- I do not know. I heard there had been an internal problem within Peerless Castle. Not long after, the War Between Justice and Evil broke out, and the pledge was forgotten. I remember my former master being deeply disappointed.
The duel had fallen through because of the War Between Justice and Evil.
Then what had happened in the meantime?
If there had been a master whom even the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster had wished to fight, I could understand why Gwak Gyeong said the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan had nearly become one of the Five Great Martial Sects.
Yet now, no one knew of Peerless Castle’s Soaring Moon Heroic Clan.
‘...Whew.’
My thoughts grew tangled.
I still could not be certain that my mother had any connection to Peerless Castle.
But if my mother’s Jade Medallion truly belonged to the Soaring Moon Heroic Clan, what could have happened over twenty years ago?
After running through the secret passage for some time, I saw two figures.
They were SaMa Yeong and Jo SeongWon.
“Deputy Brigade Leader.”
“We were waiting for you.”
They had waited around halfway through the passage.
Once we joined up, we ran through the passage even faster.
Before long, we saw light.
The light shone down from above, where a rope ladder hung.
“I think we should climb up here.”
“Indeed...”
Before I could finish speaking, SaMa Yeong fearlessly climbed the ladder first.
Jo SeongWon was careful in everything, but she was not cautious at all.
Her voice came from above.
“There is no one here. You can come up. It is a well.”
“A well?”
As she said, we climbed up the rope ladder.
The exit truly was a well.
It stood in an abandoned house, seemingly left that way on purpose.
“It is fortunate that we escaped safely. Let us head for Shimen County.”
Once we left the abandoned house, a village came into view.
They had said the passage led northeast, and it truly opened at the edge of the village.
It seemed we could leave without issue.
We hurried out of the village and headed toward Shimen County.
But a problem arose once we entered the forest.
[Deputy Brigade Leader. I think there is an ambush ahead.]
SaMa Yeong was right.
Beyond the hill stood a group of around twenty people blocking the forest path.
None carried swords, so we had only noticed their presence after getting this close.
‘Are they enemies?’
If we had only noticed them at such a short distance, they were skilled at hiding.
[What should we do?]
In response to her question, I gestured for us to retreat.
There was no reason to waste time fighting people who were lying in ambush.
Avoiding them was better.
Just as we turned to change direction...
‘!?’
A figure stood behind us.
Neither SaMa Yeong nor I had sensed his presence at all.
The moment I saw the gray-haired man standing with his hands behind his back, chills ran across my body.
He wore an eyepatch marked with a snake pattern. He was the person who had given off that bizarre aura on the second floor of Black Hyeonjeong.
- Un Hwi... That is Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong.
- Him?
I had recognized him without them telling me.
We had escaped through the secret passage, so how had he blocked our path?
Jo SeongWon’s body trembled beside me.
Perhaps, being from the Beggars' Sect, they had recognized Na Yuk-hyeong at once.
‘This is insane.’
We had fled to avoid him, yet I had never expected him to pursue us like this.
He was a notorious Master in the martial world.
Perhaps he had entered the same realm as my master, Bizarre Oddity Evil Heaven.
Then Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong shouted.
“Hah!!!”
The sound was so loud that my eardrums felt as though they would burst.
I wondered why he had shouted, but the group of around twenty people quickly appeared beyond the hill.
I had wondered who they were, but they seemed to be Na Yuk-hyeong’s retainers.
We were completely trapped.
‘...’
After hesitating briefly, I called toward Na Yuk-hyeong in a respectful voice.
“This junior, So WoonHwi, pays respects to Elder Paeungsa.”
I had to try negotiating first.
If Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong truly held a grudge against the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster, as the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword had said, I needed to find a way to resolve it.
Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong opened his mouth.
“I have never had a junior like you.”
The Force of ki in his voice was extraordinary.
He was undoubtedly a master comparable to, or perhaps greater than, Hengshan One Sword Jo CheongUn.
This was the worst possible situation.
There were several masters among the group behind us as well.
Na Yuk-hyeong alone was enough to make it uncertain whether the three of us would stand a chance even in a combined attack. This was truly troublesome.
“Senior, I believe there has been some misunderstanding.”
At my words, Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong gave a short laugh.
Then he said,
“Seeing as the Hao clan smuggled you out through a secret passage, I cannot deny that you are the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster’s successor.”
How did he know of the secret passage?
This seemed to be a situation even Gwak Gyeong, the proprietor of Black Hyeonjeong, had not anticipated.
Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong held out his right hand.
Slither...
The dark crimson whip wrapped around his wrist unwound like a snake.
It was the signature weapon that had earned him the epithet Paeungsa.
There were not many people in the martial world who wielded whips, and Na Yuk-hyeong was one of them.
“Where is that bastard Hoh JongDae?”
His sole purpose seemed to be the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster.
Naturally, I was also part of that purpose, having declared myself his disciple.
Intense killing intent poured from his whip.
Shing!
SaMa Yeong drew her sword.
Jo SeongWon spoke worriedly.
“Miss SaMa, that person is...”
“There is no other choice. He is not someone we can reason with anyway.”
She was right.
Na Yuk-hyeong was not an enemy I could deceive with words.
Even if we used every means available and fought him head-on, our chances of survival were only a sliver.
Shing!
I drew the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword as well.
Then I spoke to SaMa Yeong and Jo SeongWon.
“From this moment on, victory or defeat depends on how quickly you two can deal with them.”
I pointed toward Na Yuk-hyeong’s retainers.
“My lord?”
“Deputy Brigade Leader?”
They stared at me in surprise.
They had understood what I meant.
Then Paeungsa Na Yuk-hyeong spoke in disbelief.
“Khahahahahaha! Even if all three of you attacked at once, you would be lucky to block a few of my moves. Yet you intend to face me alone? You have gone beyond boldness. You are completely mad.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Na Yuk-hyeong moved his hand.
His whip curved as though alive and shot toward me.
Its momentum was so immense that it seemed capable of snapping a great tree in one blow.
“Hurry!”
I shouted to SaMa Yeong and Jo SeongWon, then launched myself at the incoming whip.
This was no time to hide my strength.
After opening my Central Dantian, I immediately raised the Stellar Star Mystic Art to the fifth level.
Clang!
The whip and the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword collided.
My palm tingled, and I was pushed back around three paces.
Na Yuk-hyeong frowned.
“You blocked that?”
He seemed puzzled by the innate life energy, whose power differed completely from the internal energy of the Lower Dantian.
But his confusion did not last long.
“As expected, you are that bastard Hoh JongDae’s disciple. I could not sense that bastard’s ki presence either. Like master, like disciple.”
Na Yuk-hyeong truly seemed to have fought the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster.
He even knew that innate life energy did not reveal itself through one’s ki presence.
But through that single clash, I had clearly realized the gap between us.
His Force of ki surpassed mine.
Fortunately, the gap was not overwhelming.
That was because the innate life energy inherited from the Flying Dagger Assassin King Han JiSang had given me a foundation up to the sixth level.
Still, the difference in martial prowess could not be helped.
‘...Must I risk my life?’
That was my only means of defeating him.
Na Yuk-hyeong gave a short laugh.
“Do you think you can face me simply by racking your brains? Even if your master came now, I...!?”
Then Na Yuk-hyeong’s expression hardened.
It was because of the change occurring within me.
Whoooosh!
The blood throughout my body circulated rapidly, making my entire body feel as though it would burn.
Na Yuk-hyeong’s expression stiffened.
“What in the world is that?”
Steam rose from my skin.
This was the symptom of the Golden Blood Body, rapidly circulating my blood.
Unlike Evil Heaven and the twins, I did not possess a special constitution.
How long could I endure the Golden Blood Body?
Footnotes:
The narrator’s mother’s surname is written with the character meaning “river,” while the Chinese character for Ha SeongUn’s surname is not given in this chapter.
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