WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Alyo
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Memoir of a Regressor ◈
Chapter 78: Iron Tower Domineering Fist, Han Beom-seong
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There had been quite a commotion.
For the first time in a while, my hands were tingling.
“Ho ho ho ho ho! Your achievements are truly remarkable. Five Qis Return to Origin at your age... Ho ho ho. In a few years, the strongest man under heaven may change.”
It was the highest praise possible. Myo Man-ri, who said it, looked perfectly fine.
I was not.
My clothes were torn in places, and Myo Man-ri had left his mark not only on my hands, but all over my body.
His inner energy was destructive, and its endurance was tremendous as well.
Then Myo Man-ri’s expression turned serious.
“But that thing you used at the end... Could that really have been it?”
The Dark Asura Heavenly Sword.
I had tried the martial art Sang-gwan Yeon-hwi, the Asura Pavilion Master, had given me. Myo Man-ri was speaking of it now.
“...Huh... I never took that Sect Leader bastard for the sort to take what belongs to another... No, you're my younger brother now, so I suppose that isn't right. Younger Brother.”
“Yes, Brother.”
“Did you become that Sect Leader bastard’s disciple?”
I shook my head.
“The Asura Pavilion Master came and gave me the martial art. It seemed useful enough, so I decided it would not be bad to learn it.”
“Ho ho, you brat. The Dark Asura Heavenly Sword is a martial art comparable to the Emperor Azure Heaven Sword used by the Sword Sovereign of the Emperor Sword Sect. How can you call it merely useful?”
“I only said that because I thought it might offend you, Brother.”
“Ho ho ho. You little... More importantly, I have finished everything you asked of me.”
I could tell at a glance.
I gave a cupped-fist salute.
“Thank you, Brother. If there is anything you need, please tell me.”
“Hmph. How can sworn brothers exchange payment? Forget it. Save it for yourself.”
I did not know Myo Man-ri well, but the more I learned of the man, the more decent he seemed.
“And I will head straight for the main headquarters. If there is anything else you need me to do before I go, say it now.”
I shook my head.
“No. You have already helped me so greatly. How could I ask anything more of you?”
“Ho ho ho ho. Good. Good, then. Stay well. I will visit again.”
“Yes. Travel safely.”
Myo Man-ri vanished in an instant, just as he had arrived.
I turned my head.
“Un Do-hyeon.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Congratulations.”
Un Do-hyeon smiled. We both knew what he was being congratulated for.
“Three Flowers Gather at the Crown is a very high realm, but do not grow complacent.”
“I will bear that in mind, again and again.”
It seemed my sworn brother had a remarkable talent for teaching. Un Do-hyeon, who had stood at the upper edge of the Five Dragons Honoring the Sage, had returned after only a few days as a master of Three Flowers Gather at the Crown.
Of course, he had been at the very edge of that rank, but there was a stark difference between those who stopped there and those who rose above it.
I took a stack of papers from my robes and handed it to him.
Un Do-hyeon silently asked what it was.
“Candidates for branch membership. I am considering you for deputy branch leader of the Jangam Branch, so choose those you like.”
“...My lord...”
“You have one day. At most ten people.”
“...Thank you. I will certainly live up to your expectations.”
I nodded and turned away.
A woman and a young boy.
Myeong-hyeon’s family.
The woman and child bowed to me.
“I heard the general outline of what happened on the way here. And you even removed the restriction... Thank you.”
I shook my head.
“You need not thank me. I only did what had to be done.”
This time, the boy spoke.
“Thank you.”
I quietly looked at him. He could not have been older than six.
Myeong-hyeon was not lacking in looks, nor was the woman. The boy possessed both their best features, and above all, his talent for martial arts was exceptional.
He did not possess a Heavenly Martial Constitution or anything of that sort, but if he learned martial arts, he would surely achieve great things.
After stroking the boy’s head, I gave Un Do-hyeon a look.
Quick-witted as ever, Un Do-hyeon took the child and stepped away.
I was left alone with the woman. I spoke briefly.
“Do not let your guard down.”
It was something that had to be said, no matter who stood before me.
“As long as the Emperor Sword Sect remains, you and that child will always have your lives threatened.”
“I am prepared, sir.”
“Simple resolve is not enough. You must be thorough. I will give you complete freedom within five years at the latest, so be careful until then. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“Once you meet Myeong-hyeon today, you must immediately go into seclusion. I hope you will not change your mind.”
“I can only be grateful for your grace, sir. I will not change my mind. I had already resolved myself after meeting him.”
She was a strong woman. I was satisfied.
At the very least, she could not become something that held Myeong-hyeon back.
“Let us go to the branch. Follow me.”
* * *
In this vast world, which sect used its fists best?
If one asked a hundred passersby, roughly ninety would have answered the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect.
Its Sect Leader, the Invincible Fist King Gong Wi-ryang, sat slouched in his chair. The displeased expression that suited his posture so well made it clear that he was in no good mood.
There were a total of seven elders before him.
He did not like the sight one bit.
“Can someone explain this to me?”
“...”
“I clearly ordered no one to move. So where has Elder Han gone?”
Myeong Mu-seong answered the Sect Leader’s question.
He bore the epithet White Tiger Invincible Fist, had reached the Creation Realm and stood close to the Divine Entrance Realm, and held the same position as Myo Man-ri of the Asura Sword Sect: Great Elder.
“...Sect Leader. Elder Han is currently heading for Jangam County with the assassins of the Assassin Fortress whom we accepted this time.”
Gong Wi-ryang did not like that answer.
Given the overall circumstances, it would have been stranger if he had looked pleased.
“What a damned mess.”
“...Sect Leader, Elder Han has lost his direct disciple. He only seeks revenge, so perhaps you could overlook it this once...”
“Elder Myeong.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Have I not told you repeatedly that an all-out war with the Asura Sword Sect would cost us dearly?”
The elders all fell silent.
“Think for once. If we go to all-out war with them, how much damage will the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect suffer? Whether we win or lose, it is obvious that at least half of us will die. Yet an elder has stepped forward? It is obvious he will become a target for that Sword Sect, which has been waiting for an opening. Am I the only one who does not understand this situation?”
It was certainly reasonable.
Neither the Asura Sword Sect nor the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect wanted an all-out war.
They were undoubtedly enemies, but they tacitly permitted the destruction of a few branches and the deaths of a few martial artists beneath them.
These were two of the Eight Great Sects. There was no way a clash between them would come without losses.
Even if the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect brought down the Asura Sword Sect, it would no longer be the same Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect afterward.
Most of the elders would die, and Gong Wi-ryang himself might suffer fatal injuries. There was no need to even mention the martial artists below them.
There was a reason they had been winning over elders of the Asura Sword Sect and using Mun Hu-do.
That was the background behind it all.
Once that balance was broken, one side would have no choice but to move.
Han Beom-seong’s actions would cause greater ripples than expected.
Seriously, the odds of Han Beom-seong dying were very high.
That did not mean Yi Do would kill him.
It meant someone else from the Sword Sect would likely kill him.
It was absurd.
“Does it make any sense that the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect is thrown into turmoil because of some madman?”
“...Sect Leader, if you permit it, may I speak?”
It was Great Elder Myeong Mu-seong.
“Speak.”
“The person we brought to our side says that there are not many within the Asura Sword Sect who support the Cruel Demonic Way.”
“Not many?”
“Yes. Among the Asura Sword Sect’s key figures, everyone except Sect Leader Dokgo Dan-ya, Asura Pavilion Master Sang-gwan Yeon-hwi, and Great Elder Myo Man-ri looks upon him unfavorably.”
“And?”
“We do not know what will happen to Elder Han, but he has still moved to kill the Cruel Demonic Way. Given his personality, he will certainly kill that bastard. However, the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect has little to gain from merely taking his head. That person says...”
“Get to the conclusion.”
Great Elder Myeong Mu-seong smiled faintly.
“Sect Leader, I believe the time has come.”
“The time?”
“Yes. The higher-ups of the Asura Sword Sect are not considering an all-out war. Neither were we before this discussion. That is why now is the perfect opportunity.”
“Do you have a plan?”
“Yes. First, how about we seize a few branches of the Asura Sword Sect, just as the Cruel Demonic Way did?”
“Will the Jeok Nation stand by?”
“The positions of the Jeok imperial court and the Yan imperial court have become clear because of this incident. They have ruled this a matter for the martial world. That means that even if we seize branches of the Asura Sword Sect, there will be no armed conflict between nations because a precedent has already been set. Furthermore, if we call in the Yan imperial court and have it occupy those places, the Yan Kingdom’s territory will expand. In the end, the Yan imperial court will owe the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect a debt, and our relationship will grow closer...”
Gong Wi-ryang cut him off before he could continue.
“Great Elder.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Draw up the plan.”
Myeong Mu-seong’s expression brightened.
“I do not mean merely taking a few branches. Bring me a brilliant strategy that will minimize our losses in an all-out war and maximize the Asura Sword Sect’s losses.”
“As expected of the Sect Leader. I will prepare a detailed strategy and report back.”
“Good. Send Han Beom-seong a highest-grade carrier pigeon immediately. Order him to return at once.”
“Yes.”
“And Junior Sect Leader.”
The Junior Sect Leader of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect.
Song Ja-myeong, the Lion Iron Fist, raised his head.
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Assist the Great Elder and complete that strategy.”
He was twenty-eight years old.
His realm was Five Qis Return to Origin. One of the most talented members of the younger generation, he gave a cupped-fist salute.
Gong Wi-ryang smiled and asked,
“Has that been completed?”
Song Ja-myeong smiled as well.
“Yes. I believe I will soon enter the Creation Realm.”
“Good. The Fist Sect is truly blessed.”
“You flatter me.”
* * *
That evening.
A man led exactly two hundred martial artists onward.
His face was completely expressionless, without a trace of emotion, but that was merely what showed on the outside.
This man was moving because of rage.
The fury boiling within him was so immense that it had made his face expressionless.
He raised his head.
Beyond that hill lay Jangam County.
There was nothing new about it.
The tragedy of Jangam County was famous.
Because of that tragedy, the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect had become a laughingstock, while Yi Do, the Cruel Demonic Way, had gained the infamous reputation of being a madman unlike any other.
In truth, calling him a madman did not quite do him justice. A truly mad man would have died long ago.
A meticulous man who did mad things. That was Yi Do.
He was too meticulous.
He had annihilated thirteen clans without mercy and handled the aftermath perfectly.
And before that?
He had lured the Jangam Branch of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect into Three Phoenix County and massacred them. It was obvious that everything had been carried out under a thorough plan.
What was the Yan Kingdom’s situation now?
A fierce struggle for imperial power made it difficult for the kingdom to turn its attention outward. More importantly, to whom had the lands occupied by the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, including the area around Jangam County, once belonged?
They had belonged to the Jeok Nation.
Then which martial world did the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, which occupied those lands, belong to?
The Jeok Martial World.
The Yan Martial World did not accept the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, and the term Eight Great Sects was firmly established. Faced with the simple question of how land occupied by the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect of the Jeok Nation could possibly be Yan territory, the Yan Kingdom could not easily answer.
And so.
The two nations ultimately reached an agreement.
Neither army would intervene, and the two martial sects would settle their hierarchy themselves. It was an exceedingly simple agreement.
Han Beom-seong, the Iron Tower Domineering Fist and one of the elders of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, walked onward without hesitation.
He would certainly kill Yi Do, the Cruel Demonic Way.
Not merely kill him.
He would beat him to death. He would pound him into pulp.
After reducing him to a state where he could scarcely be recognized, he would send the corpse to the Asura Sword Sect.
Han Beom-seong spoke.
“Prepare yourselves.”
At his words, the two hundred entry disciples of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, formerly assassins of the Assassin Fortress, drew their weapons in unison.
“Listen. Annihilate the four clans and sects in Jangam County: Un Clan Manor, the Hong Clan, Cheonggang Sword Gate, and the Myeong Clan. Kill every last one. Do not leave even a single ant alive. Do you understand?”
“Yes!”
“If you distinguish yourselves in this matter, only then will you become full members of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect. As my men, you will also wield considerable influence within the sect. Let us do this. The one who earns the greatest merit today will become deputy branch leader of Jangam County. I will select those with lesser merits as branch members. Do you understand?”
“Yes!”
Han Beom-seong was about to give the order to begin.
But he could not.
He saw three men waiting on the other side.
“Ha... Hahahahaha!”
He burst into wild laughter.
He could not help it.
Those three men.
There was no way he would not know who they were.
One wore a long robe thrown on carelessly. His hair was untied, and he looked very tired, but the pressure around him clearly belonged to Three Flowers Gather at the Crown.
The man beside him was dressed neatly and carried two swords at his waist.
And the last man.
The pressure he gave off was so overwhelming that he could not even be compared to the other two.
That bastard was the demonic fiend whom even tearing to death would not satisfy him.
The sword in his right hand was particularly striking.
A dragon soaring downward was engraved on one side, while a dragon soaring upward was engraved on the other. It was a peerless famous sword once used by Kunlun’s Great Elder.
It was not the sort of sword a demonic fiend should carry.
The man whose eyes met his spoke in a low voice.
“What is this commotion in the middle of the night?”
Han Beom-seong’s brow deeply furrowed at Yi Do’s words.
“...You came looking for your own grave.”
Han Beom-seong stopped about ten jang away.
Yi Do smiled.
“Han Beom-seong, the Iron Tower Domineering Fist. I have long heard of your reputation.”
“...What do you mean by that?”
“It means nothing in particular.”
“Are you trying to beg forgiveness? What a pathetic bastard. To think my disciple died to something like you... It makes me angry. So angry.”
Yi Do did not care. Whether Han Beom-seong spoke nonsense or not, he would become a corpse anyway.
“You have a habit of twisting what people say. It is not a good habit... But I will let it go for now. Would you like to receive the gift I prepared?”
“...Are you trying to bribe me? Ha... This is truly... Now I am beyond disbelief.”
Yi Do ignored him.
“Myeong-hyeon, throw it to him.”
“Yes, Branch Master.”
With a faint smile, Myeong-hyeon threw the bundle he had been carrying on his shoulder.
It had not been tied shut in the first place, so its contents were revealed as it flew through the air.
Two heads.
They were slightly rotten and crawling with maggots, but they were unmistakably human heads. They rolled across the ground after falling, then came to a stop against Han Beom-seong’s leg.
Han Beom-seong squeezed his eyes shut after confirming what they were.
They were the heads of his only disciple, Pung Bi-chang, and In Hak, who had assisted him.
“It took some effort to find them rolling around the back alleys of Jangam County. Do you like them?”
“...You think that passes for something to say?!”
Yi Do’s eyes grew cold.
“Do not raise your voice.”
“...You bastard...”
“It is late, and many people are asleep. Who are you to disturb them?”
Han Beom-seong’s face contorted in blotches of red. It was the face of a monstrous killer. His fists trembled, and his eyes blazed.
An exceptionally gentle smile formed on Yi Do’s lips.
“Come.”
Han Beom-seong wrapped himself in Natural Qi and sprang forward.
Above them, the highest-grade carrier pigeon sent by the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect circled through the sky.
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