WeTried Translations
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Editor: Abstract
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Episode 47: Fragments of Truth (4)
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Mi-san, not far from Chengdu in Sichuan.
At the foot of a waterfall in one of Mi-san's valleys, a muscular old man sat in meditation with his eyes closed.
-Shoooooosh!
Given both its height and the force of its fall, the waterfall's torrent was strong enough to shatter even rock. Yet the old man remained perfectly still beneath it.
As though accepting the waterfall pouring over him, the old man opened his eyes.
A fierce vitality shone in his gaze.
Still beneath the waterfall, he rose to his feet.
‘Swift as the wind, silent as the forest, fierce as fire, and immovable as a mountain.’
This was called Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain.
People considered it a principle of military strategy, but it did not apply only to warfare. In the end, all paths converged into one.
‘I finally understand!’
The old man had long been held back by a wall.
Yet after meditating endlessly beneath the waterfall, he finally broke through that wall and gained an insight.
Lowering his head, the old man drew in a deep breath.
Then he raised his head toward the crashing waterfall and shouted with all his strength.
“Ha!”
-Baaaaang!
A powerful burst of wind pressure erupted, and the waterfall that had been crashing down surged upward instead.
When it rose roughly ten jang into the air, the old man threw a punch upward.
-Wooooong!
A massive, rippling invisible fist formed in the direction of his punch and pierced straight through the waterfall as it tried to fall again.
-Baaaaang! Craaash!
The invisible fist shot into the sky with unstoppable force.
It did not merely drive the waterfall upward. It made the water spray into the sky like a fountain.
A satisfied smile formed on the old man's lips.
‘I have finally completed it!’
Formless Fist.
It was a realm difficult to reach even for Grandmaster-level masters who had broken through their barriers.
After endless training, the old man had finally completed the Formless Fist.
Now, he was confident he could contend with the Southern Blade Imperial Uncle, said to be the strongest among the Four Immortal Masters.
‘Of course, before that, I must fight a decisive battle with that friend, the Eastern River Sword Sage.’
They had fought several times, but no victor had ever been decided.
By now, Shin Ui-gyeom, the Eastern River Sword Sage, might have gained insight into the Formless Sword as well.
With his natural comprehension, it was entirely possible.
‘I should polish it further. Even if I have completed the Formless Fist, it will be useless in real combat if I cannot wield it as freely as I breathe.’
He could have savored this realization a little longer, but the deeply disciplined old man calmed himself.
As the waterfall began to fall again, he slowly stepped through the air and returned to dry land in the valley.
The sun was already setting in the west.
‘Time to return.’
The old man had just begun dressing to return to his residence when someone's voice rang in his ears.
“Impressive.”
The old man, who had been tying the cord of his upper garment, furrowed his brow.
The voice had come from nearby, yet he had not sensed anyone approaching at all.
‘Who?’
Someone had evaded his Ki sense, something only a supreme master of the same Grandmaster level could manage.
The old man slowly turned toward the source of the voice.
There stood a pale-faced middle-aged figure, their hands clasped behind their back, looking at him with an arrogant expression.
The old man's eyes narrowed.
‘Who is that?’
Now that he saw them directly, the aura coming from the middle-aged figure far exceeded his expectations.
The figure seemed to be concealing their presence as much as possible, yet their pressure was still immense.
The old man spoke warily.
“Who might you be?”
His voice, carrying profound internal energy, spread outward like an echo.
He was also testing the other person.
Yet...
‘!?’
Despite the voice carrying Force of ki, the middle-aged figure's expression did not change in the slightest.
Something even more irritating caught his eye.
The figure was still looking at him with eyes full of arrogance.
‘Was there ever someone like this?’
A master of this caliber was not someone he could fail to recognize.
Yet he had never seen that face before.
As he pondered this, the middle-aged figure spoke.
“Time heals all things. You've grown beyond comparison to how you were back then.”
“What?”
The old man's eyes sharpened.
Though he had entered old age, he was neither frail nor forgetful.
For someone he had never fought or even met to speak so arrogantly, as though addressing an inferior...
The old man spoke in a forceful voice.
“Do you know who this old man is, yet still dare say such things?”
“I do. This lord could never forget an old man like you.”
“This lord?”
Was this person really calling themselves “this lord” before a renowned master said to stand at the peak of the current martial world?
Their arrogance was outrageous, bordering on madness.
As he stood there dumbfounded, the middle-aged figure snickered and walked toward him.
“Do Jin-cheon. Do you not recognize me?”
Do Jin-cheon.
That was the old man's name.
Do Jin-cheon, the Northern Heaven Fist Hero, one of the Four Immortal Masters.
Do Jin-cheon clenched his fist at the figure's question, preparing to strike at any moment.
“I do not know who you are, but one thing is certain. You and I do not share a good bond.”
“A good bond... Yes. You and I have bad blood between us.”
-Swish!
Do Jin-cheon, the Northern Heaven Fist Hero, extended his fist and warned the approaching figure.
“Do not cross the line any further. This old man does not raise his fist lightly, but when I must use it, I show no mercy.”
“Then be as merciless as you like.”
-Step!
The middle-aged figure took a step forward.
-Swish!
At that moment, Do Jin-cheon threw a punch toward them.
A powerful Fist Wind erupted at tremendous speed and brushed past the middle-aged figure's face.
-Bang!
The Fist Wind that passed them shattered a huge boulder behind them.
Do Jin-cheon warned them once again in a low voice.
“I am not joking.”
“Did I sound as though I was?”
-Step!
The middle-aged figure stepped forward again.
The instant they did, Do Jin-cheon threw a real punch at them this time.
A Fist Wind far stronger than before surged toward the middle-aged figure as though it would pierce straight through them.
Yet...
-Baaaaang!
The middle-aged figure casually raised a palm and blocked the Fist Wind.
‘They blocked that?’
Do Jin-cheon's gaze turned grave.
It had appeared to be an ordinary Fist Wind, but his previous strike contained the insight of the Formless Fist. Its power nearly rivaled a Fist ki manifestation.
-Splurt! Drip!
Blood ran from the middle-aged figure's palm.
It seemed they had not blocked it completely.
Yet the wound from which blood had been flowing vanished in an instant.
‘!?’
For a moment, Do Jin-cheon doubted his own eyes.
What had that been just now?
The middle-aged figure looked down at their rapidly healed palm in confusion and muttered to themselves.
“I thought this was a somewhat decent vessel, but this is all it can handle.”
“What?”
What were they talking about?
The middle-aged figure looked at Do Jin-cheon again.
“Ah. It is a fairly well-made vessel, but it ages quickly, and its physical durability is rather lacking.”
-Swish!
The moment they finished speaking, the middle-aged figure's outline blurred.
Then they appeared directly in front of Do Jin-cheon.
-Flinch!
Sensing destructive power right before his face, Do Jin-cheon hurriedly crossed his arms.
-Baaaaang! Sccccrape!
Do Jin-cheon's body was sent flying backward.
Even after regaining his footing, he was pushed back over twenty steps.
Heat haze rose from both of Do Jin-cheon's crossed wrists.
As he lowered his arms, his eyes trembled.
‘Th-this is...’
He had recognized the strike that had just hit him.
Do Jin-cheon glared at the middle-aged figure with trembling eyes.
“The Tyrant Blood Demonic Art!”
It was the Martial Arts of that monstrous being whom all Four Immortal Masters, including himself, had only barely defeated through a combined attack seventeen years ago.
* * *
Southwest of Bijie in Guizhou.
There was a dry valley where not even a blade of grass grew, like a stretch of desert.
Jagged rocks rose throughout the valley like a maze, and countless cave openings lined its walls. People called this place Antlion Hell.
It was called Antlion Hell because the countless caves appeared to be separate entrances, but once one entered, they twisted together into a maze.
No one who entered this place had ever returned, so it was also called Antlion Hell, or the Forbidden Pool.
Of course, that was only its commonly known name.
-Thud!
Someone landed from the sky in a place surrounded by cave entrances.
At the center of the cracked, sunken ground stood Mumu, disguised as a fierce-looking middle-aged man, holding the pale-faced Yang Mu-o and Kang Mu-i beneath his arms.
“Bleurgh!”
“Haah... Haah...”
As soon as Mumu set them down, both staggered and vomited onto the ground.
They had flown from the imperial capital to Guizhou in almost half a day. At that absurd speed, their stomachs had churned so badly they felt as though they would die.
‘That crazy bastard... Does he think everyone is like him?’
Kang Mu-i clicked his tongue inwardly as he looked at Mumu, who did not seem tired in the slightest.
He really was a monster.
As Yang Mu-o and Kang Mu-i barely calmed themselves by circulating their ki, Mumu asked,
“Is this the place?”
Yang Mu-o nodded.
The Forbidden Pool in Guizhou, known as Antlion Hell, was the base of Heavenly Kill Valley.
Pointing toward the cave entrances, Yang Mu-o said,
“At least ninety percent of those lead to deadly formations and mechanism devices. In other words, they are gates to hell.”
“Gates to hell...”
Kang Mu-i snorted.
Yang Mu-o shook his head at Kang Mu-i and continued.
“There are eight entrances in total. Of those eight, only two lead through proper passages. Even if you find those two, the route descending ten li underground is a complicated maze. If you lose your way, you will be in serious trouble.”
Kang Mu-i raised his brows at that and muttered,
“They certainly made sure their defenses were solid.”
Unless someone knew the route, finding the base truly seemed impossible.
And if it lay ten li underground, it was buried at an unbelievable depth.
“Even knowing the way, it takes nearly half a day to reach it. It is the finest fortress.”
“Half a day? Ha! Flying through the sky wasn't enough, and now we have to travel underground for half a day?”
Kang Mu-i clicked his tongue as he looked at the cave entrances.
Yang Mu-o shrugged as though there was nothing to be done.
They had saved time by flying here, but this time they had no choice but to follow the path inside.
Yang Mu-o pointed to one of the caves.
“The entrance is this way. Follow me.”
Yang Mu-o was about to lead them when Mumu shook his head.
“That's troublesome.”
“Even if it's troublesome, there's no choice. It's not as though we can make our own path...”
‘!?’
Yang Mu-o stopped speaking, then looked at Mumu with an expression of disbelief.
Mumu nodded as though he had found a good idea.
Yang Mu-o hurriedly said,
“Wait, have you forgotten what I said? It is nearly ten li underground. How could you force your way through that...?”
“With strength.”
-Swish!
Mumu bent his knees slightly.
Then...
-Boom!
He kicked off the ground and shot into the sky.
After soaring high, Mumu stopped at a point in midair.
Then he kicked off the air in the opposite direction, toward the ground.
-Baaaaang!
A ripple-like shock wave erupted as he kicked off the air.
Mumu clenched both fists, stretched his arms in front of him, and shot toward the ground.
-Craaaaaaaaaash!
He pierced through the earth and burrowed underground.
Yang Mu-o's mouth fell open at the sight.
“Insane!”
Kang Mu-i also looked dumbfounded before running toward the place where Mumu had burrowed in.
A huge hole had opened there, already so dark that its depth was impossible to judge.
-Craaaaaaaaaash!
Thunderous sounds still came from within.
Mumu truly seemed intent on breaking straight through to the base.
Yang Mu-o walked over to Kang Mu-i with a stunned expression and looked down into the underground hole that stretched like a bottomless abyss.
‘...He truly is not human.’
Everything about him defied common sense.
His strength defied common sense, and so did his solutions.
The path was a maze, so Mumu ignored it and made one himself.
As Yang Mu-o remained stunned, Kang Mu-i clicked his tongue.
“Let's go.”
“What?”
“Aren't you coming?”
“Through this path?”
“Are you planning to spend half a day in that maze, then? This shortcut is better.”
-Swish!
With that, Kang Mu-i jumped into the underground hole Mumu had made.
Yang Mu-o sighed as he watched him, then leaped after Kang Mu-i into the hole.
Footnotes:
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