WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 69: When Water Is Too Clear, There Are No Fish (17)

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Ma Gukdo, chieftain of Cheonro Mountain Stronghold, watched Yong Useok's head hit the ground and roll.

"Eek!"

"Eeeek!"

"P-please spare us!"

The only hope they had trusted in. The instant they saw a peak realm expert's head fall, the bandits threw down their weapons and prostrated themselves.

Ma Gukdo slowly lowered the saber in his hand as well. Unlike his subordinates, though, he did not throw it away. Instead, he looked down disdainfully at the men groveling for their lives.

Brushing the blood from his beard, he trudged forward.

He approached Yong Useok's head rolling on the ground and crouched before it.

The martial heroes did not stop him. The outcome had already been decided.

"Fuck. Brother Useok. Is this really how it ends for you? No... You weren't supposed to end like this..."

Yi Yubaek, who had been silently watching, gave a cold laugh.

"Of course it is. It's a fitting end for a bandit."

"Hey, Yi Yubaek. What the fuck are you saying? We aren't some ragged beggars."

"Aren't you? Bandits are beggars who cannot make anything for themselves, so they steal what belongs to others."

"Even so, saying that to a rival you crossed blades with..."

"Rival? He was nothing but vermin that needed killing."

"..."

Ma Gukdo stared up at Yi Yubaek.

Yi Yubaek looked down at Ma Gukdo.

"Fuck. I got my ass handed to me, so I don't have anything to say."

Ma Gukdo looked away and ran a hand through his hair. Then he turned his gaze to Yeon Sowol.

His eyes darkened.

"A first-rate martial artist cut down a peak realm expert. They say true geniuses occasionally do things like that..."

Yeon Sowol was catching his breath. His eyes were still sharp enough to cut.

Ma Gukdo rubbed his arm. Goosebumps had risen across it.

"Terrifying. Really terrifying. Does that presence make any sense at his age? Is he even human? No wonder Brother Useok lost his head."

"Bandits aren't human, though."

Ma Gukdo whipped around to glare at Yi Yubaek.

"You bastard. I've never liked you. This is the first time we've ever met face-to-face, but I still hate your fucking guts."

"I feel the same."

"Fine. I lost. You won. There must be some reason a monster like that became your adopted son. You're right, and I'm wrong."

Ma Gukdo raised his saber.

Yi Yubaek lowered his stance warily and extended his Sword Fingers.

Ma Gukdo did not look at Yi Yubaek.

Keeping Yeon Sowol in his sight until the very end, he slowly drew the blade across his own throat.

"I'm jealous. If I'd been born as you... I wouldn't have needed to take anything from anyone."

Slice!

For some reason, the sound of someone cutting their own throat with their own weapon was especially chilling.

"Cough."

Blood sprayed from Ma Gukdo's mouth and throat as he sank to the ground.

"Gurgle..."

His lips moved as though he was trying to say something, but blood only bubbled from his mouth. No words came out.

Thud.

As Ma Gukdo fell, bled out, and slowly turned cold, he kept looking toward Yeon Sowol.

Until the light completely drained from his eyes.

The martial heroes roughly subdued and bound the bandits around Ma Gukdo's corpse. They intended to interrogate them and uncover everyone who had colluded with the bandits over the years.

Cheonro Mountain Stronghold, which had oppressed Shinheung County for so long, had fallen completely.

* * *

"Great Hero!"

"Great Hero Noh!"

"Great Hero Noh Huideok!"

"Uh... Hm?"

The Undeserving One, Noh Huideok, had been standing there blankly before he finally came to his senses.

At some point, a large crowd had gathered around him.

Every face was flushed with excitement.

"Tell us about it!"

"W-what should I tell you?"

"Ah, how you fought Yong Useok! How did Young Hero Yeon manage to take his head?"

"Please tell us in detail."

"Yes, please. We were fighting our own battles, so we didn't see it properly. You fought beside him and saw it, didn't you?"

Only then did Noh Huideok grasp the situation and look around.

Over there, Yi Yubaek, Yeon Sowol, the martial artists of Windflow Martial Academy, and Yi Yubaek's acquaintances were gathered together, whispering among themselves.

Everyone else had crowded around Noh Huideok and was pressing him for answers.

"Come on, tell us already. I'm dying of curiosity!"

Noh Huideok smiled bitterly.

Since receiving the sobriquet The Undeserving One, had anyone ever come near him? Yet here were so many people.

He thought for a moment about the Yeon Sowol he had seen.

'He used his power, yet not even the slightest trace of it leaked outside.'

It was a realm like the perfected form of the sword he had honed for nearly ten years since descending from Dian Cang Sect.

Perfect control that allowed no strength to escape. It was complete efficiency.

Then the strange martial art Yong Useok had called an assassin’s martial art had been added to it, producing an unexpected effect.

'I couldn't sense the slightest sign before he attacked or moved.'

The moment Noh Huideok thought Yong Useok had not merely failed to evade the attack but perhaps had not even perceived it, Yeon Sowol swayed and bent through the blind spot at Yong Useok's side.

When he wondered when Yeon Sowol would attack, the blade was already bearing down on him.

When he was certain the attack had missed and prepared for the next move, the attack had already landed.

Qi circulated and harmonized without pause, and martial arts flowed forth without restraint, yet no sign of them could be seen at all. It was as if they had been hidden behind clouds.

Only after it had already happened would one ask, ‘Wait. When?’ That was how sudden the movements were.

Then a thought occurred to Noh Huideok, and a chill ran down his spine.

'If the Sun-Shooting Sword Art of Dian Cang Sect were added to movements that showed no warning at all...'

The Sun-Shooting Sword Art was famed as the swiftest sword art under heaven.

Why else would it be called Sun-Shooting, said to shoot down the sun itself?

If swordsmanship of such extreme speed were combined with movements that gave no warning at all... it would create a sword art no one could evade, like a ray of light falling through the clouds.

Before anyone even knew the attack had begun, it would already have struck.

Noh Huideok felt regret.

'If only I... had been a mountain-guarding disciple.'

Then he could at least have begged them to accept Yeon Sowol. As things stood, though, there was no chance Dian Cang Sect would take Yeon Sowol, who was already nearly twenty, as a mountain-guarding disciple.

'What a waste. What a terrible waste...'

The martial heroes around him urged him again.

"No, you looked like you were about to tell us, so what are you doing now?"

"Ah. Ah, forgive me. I was thinking for a moment."

Noh Huideok waved both hands and smiled bitterly.

He swallowed once before answering.

"I only bought time."

He pointed to his wounds. They were soaked in blood, but the bleeding had already stopped. As a first-rate expert from the orthodox schools, he had increased his recovery through partial tempering and the harmony of qi.

"You only bought time?"

The martial heroes' eyes lit up.

"Yes. I held on, and Young Hero Yeon slipped through the opening and took Yong Useok's head in a single stroke."

"His protective qi art was impressive, wasn't it?"

"Young Hero Yeon pierced even that and used an ultimate technique."

"An ultimate technique! Is it a martial art of Windflow Martial Academy?"

"I don't know. It simply... seemed to be an exquisite sword art that severs an enemy's death acupoint in one stroke."

"Death acupoints!"

The first character meant death, and the second meant acupoint.

Acupoints were where a person's energy flowed and gathered, and it was said that some of them could take a person's life from a single blow.

Yet knowledge of where the death acupoints were, and how to strike them, belonged to secret teachings. It was not generally known.

The martial artists of Guangdong gathered here had especially little knowledge in that field. They had only heard rumors of it before.

"Was the legendary Acupoint Art real?"

"Death acupoints? You mean they weren't just theory? They could truly be used?"

Noh Huideok nodded solemnly.

"Acupoint Art is real. Death acupoints truly exist as well. Though I was never taught it."

"As expected..."

"Great Hero Noh Huideok's sect is...?"

"You didn't know? Isn't he from Dian Cang Sect?"

"Dian Cang Sect!"

Noh Huideok felt proud and ashamed at the same time.

Proud because he came from Dian Cang Sect, ashamed because he was an outer disciple.

"...In any case, Yong Useok collapsed for an instant from that one move. Young Hero Yeon did not miss the opening and sent his head flying. It was undoubtedly an astonishingly advanced technique."

"Young Hero Yeon has such a move..."

"Incredible!"

As everyone marveled, Noh Huideok spoke as though muttering to himself.

"But what truly surprised me was not that final ultimate technique."

"Then what was it?"

"The realm Young Hero Yeon displayed in order to land that ultimate technique. That was what astonished me."

Everyone leaned forward, their eyes gleaming.

Had so many people ever listened so intently to his words?

Feeling a strange pleasure, Noh Huideok explained Yeon Sowol's attainment.

That marvelous martial art which moved without showing any presence or warning.

"It was like the sun beyond a sky veiled by clouds."

The crowd held its breath.

"It cannot be seen from outside, but within, its energy circulates endlessly and brings forth harmony. A force that cannot be seen, yet burns hot and vigorous. Yong Useok died because he could not properly respond to it."

"Haa..."

As Noh Huideok savored that realm Yeon Sowol had displayed once more in his mind, he improvised seven characters, as though composing a poem.

"Though hidden, the sun moves heaven and earth."

Even if clouds hid the sun from sight, its light did not weaken in the slightest. It still fell upon the world and moved all beneath heaven.

That single line stirred the hearts of the martial heroes.

"Haa."

"Ha!"

"Has he already reached such a realm?"

"Young Hero Yeon has found his own sword, though he has not even reached the peak realm yet."

Amid the flood of admiration, someone cried out.

"Hidden Sun Sword."

The person beside them exclaimed in wonder.

"It fits perfectly! Hidden Sun Sword!"

Hidden sun.

The two words drawn from the line Noh Huideok had spoken.

"Yeon Sowol, Sole Crimson of Shinheung County, possesses the Hidden Sun Sword! He possesses a sword like the hidden sun!"

"Hidden Sun Sword Yeon Sowol!"

"Hidden Sun Sword Yeon Seonhong!"

"This name will spread far and wide..."

"He'll become even more famous!"

"I'm glad I came."

"Thanks to coming here, we get to see the very moment this sobriquet is born."

The martial heroes of Guangdong quietly lost themselves in imagination.

One day, when Yeon Sowol was even more famous.

One day, when the names Hidden Sun Sword Yeon Sowol and Hidden Sun Sword Yeon Seonhong were known throughout the realm.

At a drinking table.

'Oh, Hidden Sun Sword? Of course I know him. I was there when that sobriquet was coined.'

'No, actually, I was the one who came up with that sobriquet.'

Ah.

Wasn't it enough to make one's mouth water just imagining it?

What a perfect drinking story.

Similar smiles spread across the faces of the martial heroes gathered there.

* * *

Yeon Sowol stood among Yi Yubaek and the martial heroes of Guangdong who were close to him.

They kept stealing glances at Yeon Sowol, apparently full of questions, but no one approached him.

There was something that needed to be discussed immediately.

"Wouldn't it be cleanest to inspect and divide all the spoils here?"

"That's right. We should inspect them together and divide them together. That way, no one can complain afterward."

They discussed how to divide the spoils from Heavenly Road Mountain, asking Yi Yubaek one question after another.

"Great Hero Yi Yubaek, shouldn't we also repay Lord Seo Myeongeum, the Governor-General of Liangguang?"

Yi Yubaek nodded.

"He provided the commander tally and even spent his own money supporting us. Naturally, we should repay him with more than we received."

"Then we should set aside his portion from the spoils before dividing them..."

"No."

Yi Yubaek shook his head firmly.

"It would be best to divide the spoils here fairly among everyone here."

"Then how will you repay Lord Seo Myeongeum...?"

Yi Yubaek smiled.

"I'll collect it from the merchants of Shinheung County. Including compensation for my own efforts."

"Ah!"

"Well, once Heavenly Road Mountain is opened, they will be the ones who benefit most. They should pay for the effort."

"Those who don't pay enough may need a good beating."

The fight for the greater good was over.

Now came the time to settle practical matters.

Words that might seem mercenary were exchanged.

"Little brother."

Seon Jehun, Yi Yubaek's second disciple, whispered to Yeon Sowol.

"This is your first time seeing something like this, so it feels strange, doesn't it?"

Yeon Sowol thought that it did feel a little like collecting protection money, which made it seem rather gangster-like.

"But it can't be helped. Water that is too clear has no fish. You've heard that saying, haven't you? People can't live on good intentions alone. We shed blood to bring peace to Shinheung County, so it is only natural to receive compensation for our efforts."

Yeon Sowol nodded.

He understood well enough now how this world worked.

This was not twenty-first-century South Korea.

It was a world where the law and the state lacked sufficient power, a world without much rationality.

In such a world, people had no choice but to find their own ways to survive.

Jianghu people were simply those who found their own ways to survive before anyone else.

But precisely because of that...

'Isn't there a better way?'

There was something Yeon Sowol did not understand about the current discussion.

"Brother Jehun, you needn't worry. I'm actually enjoying this."

"Really? That's a relief."

"Still, there is something I find a little odd."

"What is it?"

"It seems there should be a way to secure far greater profits, steadily and over the long term, while benefiting everyone. I was wondering why you do not use it."

"Hm?"

"Mm?"

"Hmm?"

Everyone turned to look at Yeon Sowol at once.

It was not because he had spoken loudly.

No matter what anyone said, Yeon Sowol was the main figure in today's battle. Everyone had been paying attention to him, even if they pretended otherwise.

"Explain in detail."

When even Yi Yubaek stepped in, Yeon Sowol's ears turned a little red.

Still, since things had come to this, he voiced his thoughts.

"Do we have to divide these spoils?"

"Hm?"

"Mm?"

"Even if we divide the spoils, it won't be a massive fortune once hundreds of people share it. It will be a decent amount, but it is money that will disappear quickly once people start spending it."

Yeon Sowol glanced at Jin Geol.

「Why are you looking at me?」

Jin Geol, who had apparently made a major contribution with his bow during this battle as well, sent a sulky voice transmission.

Yeon Sowol shook his head and continued.

"Of course, we should give shares to anyone who wants one, but I am suggesting another option as well."

Looking over the martial heroes of Guangdong gathered here, Yeon Sowol spoke.

"Invest that money as it is, build and maintain a road through Heavenly Road Mountain, hire porters and acquire carts..."

What he had in mind was something like a toll gate.

Or a transport business.

"Wouldn't it be better to manage the goods passing through Heavenly Road Mountain and collect either road fees or shipping fees?"

"Hm?"

"What?"

"Isn't that... banditry?"

"No. People who do not want to use it can simply avoid the road we manage. They can go around by the worse route. We would not take anyone's goods, either."

"Oh...?"

"We control the good road, maintain it well enough that using it is worth the cost, and receive fair compensation. Isn't that all?"

"Oh... It is somewhat like merchants or an escort agency, yet also a little different."

"Yes. Heavenly Road Mountain is a naturally ideal route that can connect the coast and Danzhou. If we manage it and make trade easier, wouldn't it bring substantial, steady income for a long time? We could recruit martial heroes willing to work with us and establish a sect together."

The martial heroes of Guangdong looked at one another.

Could it work?

Would it?

It seemed like it might.

But could they really do it?

They had never done anything like this before.

Complex thoughts passed through their exchanged looks.

"Hm."

Yi Yubaek, who had been quietly thinking, muttered almost as if he were groaning.

"Sowol. What you're saying is... we should establish a great sect in Shinheung County."

A great sect.

Not some local sect of a few dozen, or at most a hundred people, pursuing its affairs mainly through the sword. A force with hundreds, perhaps even a thousand members, involved in various interests and influential not just over a single city, but across an entire region.

'Wait.'

Yeon Sowol had never thought of it that way before.

Thump!

For some reason, his heart raced.

'A great sect!'

Footnotes:

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