Dropped into Murim with an Instant-Kill Skill - Chapter 34

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Chapter 34: In April, All the Flowers of the World Have Faded (5)

──────

River lanterns drifted with the current, and sky lanterns vanished into the wind. Moonlight and starlight steadily deepened over the Jipseong River.

The Jianghu's nighttime revelry was drawing to a close. Between the fading laughter and shouts, someone plucked a zither and sang.

The river was filled with the rich colors of night lanterns.

A lone small moon hung, the only vivid red.

Sowol.

Small moon. It called to mind the crescent moon currently hanging in the sky.

Yet a red moon made no sense. It had to be a phrase meant to evoke Yeon Sowol, whose name contained the word for moon.

The river glowed red and yellow with tens of thousands of lanterns, but the reddest of them all was one moon hanging high and alone.

A small moon, not yet twenty.

The martial artists of the Jianghu slapped their knees and shouted.

"A lone small moon, the sole vivid red!"

"Brilliant!"

"Sole Crimson of Shinheung County! Young Hero Yeon Sowol!"

Sole Crimson.

Alone, vividly red.

No epithet could have suited the young man who had stood out most during tonight's festivities better.

Some people in Shinheung County had begun calling Yeon Sowol the Elegant Young Lord. Now, in a single night, he had made the Jianghu remember him by another name, Sole Crimson.

"Sole Crimson... That isn't even in the same league as our epithets, is it?"

Mo Cheong muttered quietly as he listened to the chatter around them.

"Ahem. You shouldn't compare it to fake epithets like ours."

Seon Jehun lectured him with a stern expression.

"People only grouped us together as the Windflow Young Lord, Gale Young Lord, and Pure Breeze Young Lord out of respect for Master. That is a real epithet, one the Jianghu gave him after seeing him with their own eyes and remembering him."

"I'm jealous..."

Mo Cheong's shoulders drooped. Since he was so small, he looked even more pitiful.

"Well..."

Yeon Sowol, who had heard every word, only felt awkward.

Then Kang Muhyeok, the eldest disciple, shook his head.

"What is this? You still don't have proper, genuine epithets?"

"What? Senior Brother?"

Seon Jehun spun around in surprise. At that moment, a martial artist passing by clasped his hands to Kang Muhyeok.

"Young Hero Kang, One-Smiling Sword. It was a pleasure meeting you today."

"The honor was mine."

One-Smiling Sword.

It was an epithet Kang Muhyeok had earned after laughing heartily as he knocked aside military officers' arrows and javelins.

"Hmph."

Once the martial artist had passed, Kang Muhyeok straightened his back and swept his gaze over his fellow disciples.

"Urgh..."

"Ugh..."

While Seon Jehun and Mo Cheong twisted with envy, Kang Muhyeok put an arm around Yeon Sowol's shoulders and took a step back with him.

"Little Brother, shall we keep some distance from those two from now on? Associating with people who don't even have genuine epithets feels a little beneath us."

"What? What?"

Yeon Sowol panicked, Kang Muhyeok laughed, and Seon Jehun and Mo Cheong kicked at the ground.

Yi Yubaek, who had been watching the scene, finally spoke.

"How sad."

"What? Master, what do you mean by that...?"

Kang Muhyeok's eyes widened as Yi Yubaek let out a long sigh.

"I don't have a genuine epithet either. Windflow Sword of the Windflow School, can that truly be called a proper epithet? Sole Crimson and One-Smiling Sword! I'm jealous... I suppose my standing has fallen too low for me to associate with you."

"No, Master. That isn't what I..."

"Father, I have never once shared Brother Muhyeok's opinion."

"L-Little Brother?"

The situation had reversed.

Now Seon Jehun, Mo Cheong, and Yi Yubaek gathered together and sighed heavily, while Yeon Sowol joined in and pretended to sigh with them. Kang Muhyeok alone stood there at a complete loss.

"No, Master... Please listen to me..."

A voice suddenly cut into their amusement.

"You work us to the bone, then you lot get all friendly among yourselves!"

Shin Jae-eon, the Leader of the Severing Sword Sect, appeared with his hands behind his back. He was a man in his mid-forties.

"Elder Brother, I came too."

Hang Inwoo, the leader of the White Dragon Gang, was with him. He stood even taller than Yeon Sowol, with a hulking, muscular build.

They strode directly toward Yi Yubaek as though they had something to say, but stopped before Yeon Sowol when they spotted him.

'This is... Resentful Dog's master.'

Yeon Sowol tensed.

Everyone in Shinheung County knew that he had constantly picked fights with Resentful Dog before finally beating him down.

It would not have been strange if Shin Jae-eon bore him ill will.

"Sole Crimson Yeon Sowol. I see. You must be this capable to have taught my disciple such a lesson."

Shin Jae-eon smiled and patted Yeon Sowol's shoulder.

"Thank you. Thanks to you, Taegwang seems to have come to his senses. He did not even come out on a day like this. He was practicing swordsmanship. Normally, he would have insisted on pushing himself through inner cultivation method training, but now he is following the proper order and advancing step by step. That is thanks to you."

"You flatter me."

"No, I mean it. And there is this as well. Today, you upheld Shinheung County's pride. You defeated the disciple of Already Gone When Seen, so people will realize that Shinheung County's martial artists are no ordinary lot."

Pat, pat. Shin Jae-eon patted Yeon Sowol's shoulder once more before walking past.

"Well done. You were Shinheung County's pride."

Hang Inwoo followed, giving Yeon Sowol's shoulder one firm squeeze as he passed. The large, rough hand seemed to leave a powerful impression behind.

'This feels...'

Yeon Sowol touched his throbbing shoulder and smiled faintly.

Being congratulated by the people of Shinheung County felt different somehow.

Yi Yubaek spotted Hang Inwoo and broke into a broad grin.

"You're here! My sworn younger brother! Bones!"

Hang Inwoo's thick brows drew together sharply.

"Come on, Elder Brother. How old is that nickname? Can't you see the body I've got now?"

His shoulder and chest muscles flexed. The movement was visible even through his clothes.

"Ha ha. Bones, seeing you grow up so well makes me truly happy. When I first saw you, you were skin stretched over bones, slashed by a blade and nearly dead..."

"Are you drunk, Elder Brother? You keep bringing up things from ages ago..."

"Ha ha. Sorry. I am a little drunk. Our Bones."

"Honestly... Haven't I told you? Calling people by such strange nicknames is not a good habit."

"Sorry, sorry. The wine tastes too good today, so I drank too much. I'm happy. I can't help it."

Until he met Governor-General Seo Myeongeum, Yi Yubaek had deliberately kept himself sober by burning off the effects of alcohol with internal energy.

There was no need to do that after the discussion had gone well.

No matter what anyone said, Yi Yubaek had been the star of the day. Once he appeared, people had offered him wine from every direction.

Yi Yubaek had not refused a single cup. He drank them all.

Since he had not burned the alcohol away with internal energy, it was only natural that he became completely drunk.

More drunk than he had been in years.

"Cough. Cough. Ahem! Wooden Man, bring me some water."

"Yes, Master."

Wooden Man had been Kang Muhyeok's childhood nickname.

Yi Yubaek had given it to him because, even as a child, he had been stiff as a tree.

Yi Yubaek had stopped calling people by nicknames long ago, but he was apparently too drunk tonight for his old habit to stay buried.

Kang Muhyeok handed him a water flask with worried eyes. Hang Inwoo frowned when he saw it.

"Elder Brother, your internal injuries still have not healed? Yet you drank that much?"

"Ha ha. It's fine. Fine. I'll rest and recuperate for a few more days."

"Unbelievable. You led the way and cleared a path while your internal injuries had not healed? I was wondering why you were not burning off the alcohol with internal energy. It was because of your injuries. Then you should have drunk less, damn it."

"Ha ha. Sorry, Bones."

"Ah, seriously..."

"Sorry, sorry."

Shin Jae-eon, the Leader of the Severing Sword Sect, had quietly listened to their conversation before joining in.

"Still, you look happy. I take it your talk with the Governor-General went well?"

"It did. It went very well."

Yi Yubaek grinned and pulled out a pouch from his robes, then opened it.

Inside lay half of a wooden tally.

"I-Is that a commander tally?"

"Yes. A commander tally. He granted me temporary military authority. Of course, I cannot mobilize troops with this, but it should allow us to receive all kinds of assistance."

"Madness. This is madness."

Shin Jae-eon's beard trembled.

The world was vast.

Guangdong Province alone was nearly twice the size of twenty-first-century South Korea.

Even if Yi Yubaek was the strongest man in Shinheung County, there were plenty of martial artists throughout Guangdong who were just as strong.

Compared to Seo Myeongeum, the Governor-General who governed both Guangdong and Guangxi, Yi Yubaek was little more than dust.

Yet this man had set his mind to it, secured an audience, persuaded the Governor-General, and even received a commander tally that symbolized military authority.

"Who would not feel their heart pound after hearing this?"

At this point, the commander tally's practical use had become a secondary matter.

The martial artists who heard this story would feel their blood heat up, and martial artists with heated blood did not hesitate to take up their swords.

Yi Yubaek was no longer some unknown man from the mountain backwaters of Shinheung County. He was now a man whose name would be recognized throughout Guangdong.

If he called for people, voices would surely answer.

"The Heavenly Road Mountain Expedition will only be a matter of time now."

Yi Yubaek and Shin Jae-eon met each other's eyes and smiled.

"So you're really doing it. Heavenly Road Mountain."

Hang Inwoo nodded heavily.

* * *

Late that night, Yeon Sowol stood alone by the Jipseong River with a lantern hanging from a tall pole.

The revelry was finally coming to an end.

The place where they had held the boat festivities was a stretch of riverbank some distance from Shinheung County. Martial artists unfamiliar with the area could easily lose their way.

So Yi Yubaek had scattered his disciples at every crossroads. They were to stand with lanterns hanging from poles and guide the martial artists returning from the festivities.

One person, then two.

Martial artists passed beneath Yeon Sowol's lantern, greeting him as they went. At some point, barely anyone was coming by anymore.

'Is it almost over?'

It had been a long, exhausting, wonderful night.

He was alone, holding back a smile as he revisited moments he felt he would never forget.

A sudden presence brushed against Yeon Sowol’s senses.

Yeon Sowol sprang forward in alarm, putting distance between himself and the spot where he had stood.

"Your qi sense is sharp."

About ten feet away stood a man wearing white wandering-hero clothes beneath a black robe. He looked to be in his early thirties.

"Who... are you?"

Yeon Sowol asked warily. He did not think he had seen this man during tonight's festivities.

Instead of answering, the man said something else.

"That is a fine sword. Did your father get it for you? Hmm. It is too good for that, though. Yi Yubaek should not have been capable of obtaining something like this..."

Yeon Sowol realized with certainty.

'He was not with us tonight.'

Anyone who had joined them would have known about this sword.

Then who was he?

Thud!

Yeon Sowol drove the pole he was holding into the ground.

He lowered his stance, let both hands hang loose, and tensed every muscle.

An unknown martial artist.

One who had even tried to take position behind him without making a sound.

He had to assume the worst.

Yeon Sowol's world flattened out.

Fine threads drifted through the air.

‘If he comes closer... If I can touch him with even a fingertip...’

He was ready to kill at any moment.

"Would you look at that? You're leaking killing intent?"

Yeon Sowol was deeply startled.

'He read that?'

Ever since Eun-yeong taught him how to train and control his qi sense, he had started disciplining his own mind.

Otherwise, his intentions could be exposed, just as Resentful Dog had once read Yeon Sowol's killing intent.

As a result, Yeon Sowol's intentions now moved in considerable secrecy. Unless someone had an extraordinarily keen qi sense, it was difficult to read them.

Yet the unknown man saw through them at once and crooked his lips.

"Boy, do not get carried away. I could kill the likes of you with one finger."

He waggled his index finger.

Crack!

In an instant, he folded it against his thumb and flicked.

Yeon Sowol snapped his head aside. His qi sense had detected a disturbance, and his body had moved on instinct.

Whoosh!

Something grazed past his earlobe.

It stung.

'What was that? There was not even anything for him to flick...'

He had only flicked his fingers through empty air.

Yet something as hard and fierce as a bullet had brushed past Yeon Sowol's ear.