WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈

Episode 133: Azure Flame (6)

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A vast vortex spread out around Jeong Yeon-shin.

Fragments of stone and leaves scraped across the floor of the Training Hall.

The din mingled with the distant hammering on the divine sword in the forge.

“That’s quite a commotion for qi storage.”

It was the Languid Flame Dragon.

He casually tapped the ground beside Jeong Yeon-shin.

With his aura sense spread wide, he swept his shadowed gaze across the area.

He stood guard in a truly languid posture.

The affairs of the martial world were strange indeed. Jeong Yeon-shin had entrusted his life to the Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family, whom he had once faced as an enemy.

Neither Jeong Yeon-shin nor the Languid Flame Dragon cared much about that. Both had grown numb to such things.

The boy felt a sense of kinship with this opium poppy addict, who was also fated to die young, while the addict found a fresh sort of stimulation in the boy’s martial talent.

It was the relationship between a young Squad Leader and a listless subordinate. Strange, yet uncomplicated.

“Let’s run.”

The Languid Flame Dragon spoke abruptly. He looked fairly serious, but that was all.

How could his words carry much weight while he chewed opium poppy so contentedly?

Still, he continued through his teeth.

“This is beyond what we can handle right now. I’ve thought about it quite a bit, but the outcome doesn’t change.”

Few could match the Languid Flame Dragon’s innate senses.

His talent was so extraordinary that Jeong Yeon-shin had deliberately provoked him by calling him slow.

He must have envisioned a battle against the Thirteen Heavens.

Like Jeong Yeon-shin, he must have seen a crushing defeat.

He would have included himself, Squad Leader Jeong Yeon-shin, the Tang Family Head, and the Tang Sect experts at full strength.

“This makes no sense. Isn’t Desolate Fortress supposed to place the greater cause before keeping faith with some family? The temporary Squad Leader will save quite a few lives in the future, yet we’re staying here? More than anything, this will hasten my early death.”

The Languid Flame Dragon, once the Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family, shook his head.

He was assuming the worst-case scenario.

He pictured facing the Pure Demon Alliance Leader and the Blood Flame Sect Master at once.

They had to be regarded as peerless experts a step above the Huangbo Family Head.

Hadn’t the Languid Flame Dragon’s pathetic father been killed by three Black Uniform super-experts, including the Leader of Demon Wings and the Annihilation Squad Leader?

If they were among the foremost Thirteen Heavens of the Demonic Sect, they could at least fight them evenly.

“Listen, Squad Leader. The Thirteen Heavens are the same breed as the sect leaders of the Nine Sects. They’re monsters you’d be lucky to see once in a lifetime. Unlike us, who have such bright futures... No, not bright futures. Anyway.”

The Languid Flame Dragon swallowed the opium poppy he had been chewing.

Then he narrowed his eyes and spoke slowly.

“Not only a lowly unranked disciple like me, but even a temporary Squad Leader who has only just borrowed his uncle’s robes is still far from ready. The gap between the master of a major faction and the head of a single martial squad is enormous. Of course, the temporary Squad Leader’s accomplishments are unprecedented for his age, but...”

“It’s too late.”

The boy spoke.

He sensed a cluster of powerful auras charging straight toward the main gate of Tang Family Fort.

Boom, boom. It felt as though the footfalls of the Body Movement Scripture were carrying all the way here.

The brow of the opium poppy addict beside him furrowed.

The Languid Flame Dragon must have sensed them too with his naturally broad aura sense.

Before he could respond, the boy continued.

“Let’s settle on a simple tactic. For when the melee begins.”

“Hmm?”

“You and the Tang Sect experts hold off that member of the Thirteen Heavens. It looks like there’s only one.”

“You call that a plan...?”

“I’ll deal with the rest quickly and join you. I’m not saying I’ll face them all. If we overwhelmingly defeat one super-expert besides the faction master, the fighting spirit on the battlefield should collapse.”

“Isn’t this completely reckless? Temporary Squad Leader, did you perform the disciple’s rites before the former Divine Sword Squad Leader instead of the Fortress Lord? I heard his temperament was fiery.”

“Disciple’s rites?”

“I hear there are strange sects these days that perform nine rites at once, calling them the Nine Bows. They say it’s to reclaim their authority.”

“If you’re going to talk nonsense, keep your mouth shut. Just like an opium poppy addict.”

Crack!

The two had already begun using their movement techniques. Once the situation arose, this was how it went.

Though he had spoken of fleeing, the Languid Flame Dragon followed Jeong Yeon-shin without complaint, putting another piece of opium poppy taken from inside his robe between his teeth.

“I should’ve said it sooner.”

“If we abandoned the Tang Sect after finally becoming allies, the main fortress wouldn’t have approved either.”

“Who knows? This is simply the temporary Squad Leader’s chivalry. Desolate Fortress would be more displeased that a promising young talent from the main fortress had been left in grave danger.”

Figures clad in Black Uniform and unranked disciple garb cut through the air. Even while speaking, they displayed superb Body Movement Scripture.

They headed for the main gate of Tang Family Fort.

The Tang Sect experts appeared to have sensed the enemy as well. Presences converged from every direction.

Whoosh!

A gust of headwind struck their ears.

Whenever they stepped down, it felt as though the floor of the Training Hall were sliding away behind them.

The Languid Flame Dragon’s cheerful voice rang out, as if trying to ease the mood.

“Anyway, they say the former Divine Sword Squad Leader walked the path of tyranny in his day. The tactic the temporary Squad Leader suggested is exactly like him. Perhaps you inherited your maternal grandfather’s true teachings rather than the Fortress Lord’s.”

“What nonsense.”

“We desperately need more strength, so I said it. Where in the world has our Purple Uniform expert disappeared to? Surely they haven’t died away from home in this remote corner of Sichuan.”

“They’ll arrive in time. You should worry about your own safety. I have a feeling.”

“The people coming now don’t carry the traits of demonic arts or Blood Arts. No matter how I look at it. Isn’t this the worst-case scenario? It seems the Ten Perfect Sect arrived first.”

The Languid Flame Dragon frowned as he chewed the opium poppy.

Jeong Yeon-shin had sensed the same thing.

Strictly speaking, the Ten Perfect Sect’s Myriad Essences Unified Origin Art was not a cultivation method of the Demonic Sect.

Only their conduct followed the ways of the unorthodox sects.

That meant it was not a natural counter to the Record of the Dharma Light Wheel.

The enemy Jeong Yeon-shin had tried to delay by sparing So Jin-rang, the Extreme Moon Sword, had arrived first.

“At least this side is fully prepared, then? Families are quicker to act than the Nine Sects. That’s some consolation.”

The Languid Flame Dragon spoke.

The outer courtyard of Tang Family Fort lay just inside the gate where guests were received.

Beautifully landscaped groves surrounded it on both sides, but now they rustled against one another with a bleak air.

Jeong Yeon-shin kicked off the ground and took in its center.

Tang Sect experts stood there in green martial robes, equipped with various hidden weapons and gauntlets.

At the front stood the Tang Family Head and the brother and sister known as the Twin Dragons and Phoenixes of Poison.

Their aura was sharp. Their killing intent was venomous, as though they had never spread their loyalty and righteousness far and wide.

The boy landed among them with the Languid Flame Dragon. Black Uniform and unranked disciple robes fluttered.

Tap.

“Master.”

The Tang Sect experts clasped their fists at once. The Tang siblings and Dang Un-hwang did the same.

They folded their hands respectfully before their benefactor even as the enemy approached.

It was the bearing of a prestigious martial family.

“I’ll take the vanguard,” Jeong Yeon-shin said.

It was a reasonable decision. Tang Sect martial arts were best suited to providing cover.

In coordinated combat, they could place someone trained in close-range martial arts at the front, then unleash hidden-weapon techniques laced with poison from behind.

“I will follow Master’s will. It is something I did not dare ask for, yet there is nothing more I could wish for. I am truly grateful.”

Dang Un-hwang clasped his fists once more.

The Poison Commander, a short middle-aged man, wore a complicated expression. Respect and apology mingled on his face.

As the head of a martial family, he was responsible for the lives of his household. He could not easily refuse the favor offered by such a powerful benefactor.

Step.

Jeong Yeon-shin returned the salute with clasped fists, then slowly stepped forward.

“Is it the Ten Perfect Sect?”

“Yes.”

The enemy’s presence was clear now. They had reached just beyond the gate.

Among those who made no effort to conceal their energy, one presence stood out.

A chilling aura.

It felt as though it could slice through the gate and tear into his flesh. It did not feel human.

At last.

The moment he had risen to Black Uniform, a member of the Thirteen Heavens had come for him. Jeong Yeon-shin’s martial world was rapidly expanding.

The boy stood at the front, his expression calm.

The rational decision that he had to annihilate two or so members of the Thirteen Heavens here, together with the banner of chivalry raised by the Clear Qilin, became a firm resolve.

“―Sihwa Boundless Hand, Radiant River. If anyone asks, I’ll call it this.”

“―Good...”

“―It seems you want it widely known, and I too must roam the entire martial world. It is in my nature. I have no choice but to do so.”

“―Yes... Do that. Freely... very freely...”

‘Freely.’

Jeong Yeon-shin had never expected the matter of Tang Tae-dok, the Supreme Family Head, to be resolved so easily.

It was something he had expected to search for over a long period. Now was the time to repay the loyalty Dang Un-hwang had shown him.

The Tang Sect household looked at the boy’s back beneath his pitch-black robe.

A Black Uniform expert of Desolate Fortress stood before the Tang Family experts.

Each face held its own emotion as they watched something difficult to encounter in the martial world.

The Poison Phoenix and Poison Dragon practically looked at him with admiration. Their expressions said as much.

“You should at least take the divine sword with you.”

The Languid Flame Dragon lightly kicked at the ground beside him.

At the same time.

Kwoooong!

The vast gate of Tang Family Fort exploded.

Figures emerged through flying splinters of wood and clouds of dust.

Their unhurried steps were strangely swift. At the front stood a figure carrying a spear.

With a single sweep, a force wave extending from the spearhead cleared away the dust like a whirlwind.

“Is the murderer who killed the Sword Scorpion Demon and the Extreme Moon Sword here?”

A woman’s rough voice rang out. The figure who emerged next was striking.

It began with the spear she held diagonally at her side. From shaft to blade, it was forged from a single piece of steel.

It had to be tremendously heavy, yet she carried it as easily as a bamboo stalk.

She wore iron-colored battle robes like those of a general, and they suited her perfectly.

Her loose hair resembled a lion’s mane.

“Was the Ten Perfect Sect Master a woman? I’ve never heard that. Her aura is strange too.”

The Languid Flame Dragon muttered. Tang Yeo-hwa, the Poison Dragon beside him, shook his head.

“Among the Thirteen Heavens of Sichuan, only the Pure Demon Alliance Leader is a woman. That person is Yeo Ju-ha, the Mangwol Light Halberd. She is the most famous spear artist in Sichuan, renowned as a master. I heard she was originally in secluded training, but it seems the damage to her sect was severe enough to make her leave seclusion.”

“She was the lover of the late Sword Scorpion Demon, Dokgo Gwang.”

Tang Ryeo-ryeo, the Poison Phoenix, added.

Jeong Yeon-shin had already been staring beyond Yeo Ju-ha’s shoulder.

Around forty people had broken through the gate and forced their way inside.

A considerable number of experts had died at the City of Master Craftsmen and on the Qizhou main road alone.

It seemed they had selected martial artists suited for a battle between major factions and brought them along.

Among them stood one man.

He alone stood out.

It was his presence.

The moment he entered, he seemed to have reined in his energy. At a glance, it was difficult to tell whether he had even learned martial arts.

That made him all the more terrifying. It proved he had reached the realms of Three Flowers Gather at the Crown and Five Qi Return to Origin, able to wield his martial power as easily as his limbs.

‘The Ten Perfect Sect Master...!’

The man stood still and gave a brief nod, as though it was not yet his turn to act.

At the same time, Yeo Ju-ha of the Mangwol Light Halberd stepped forward, blocking him from view.

“I asked! Is the murderer here?”

She was acting as the leader of the assault. She had brought the grudge here, and it seemed the Ten Perfect Sect Master had allowed her to settle it herself.

She would avenge her grudge with her own hands. She had raised the banner most valued in the martial world.

“No, there’s no need to ask any more. It must be you, right?”

The spear pointed at Jeong Yeon-shin. Vanguard faced vanguard.

The tactic he had discussed with the Languid Flame Dragon became meaningless in that instant.

The atmosphere of a one-on-one life-and-death duel naturally formed.

“That’s right. I did it.”

The boy answered slowly.

He found it strange that they spoke of So Jin-rang’s life or death, but Dokgo Gwang, the Sword Scorpion Demon, had certainly died by Jeong Yeon-shin’s hand.

With the Ten Perfect Sect Master already present, there was no reason to quibble further.

Yeo Ju-ha’s eyes burned with the light of martial power.

“They say your martial talent is extraordinary? Face me in a life-and-death duel. You must show me how Jin-rang died, and how my Gwang went.”

She had added the word rang, used for a beloved man, to Dokgo Gwang’s name. Her stance was intensely combative.

Saaa...

Even her aura seemed to resemble its master.

It spread toward him, blazing like flames, and Jeong Yeon-shin’s Black Uniform robe billowed fiercely.

‘She’s beyond Blue Uniform.’

The boy’s gaze sank.

They said a major faction normally did not possess two or more Black Uniform-level experts. Only the Blood Flame Sect was an exception.

That was wrong. Seeing her in person made it clear. Had they been concealing their strength?

If every one of the Thirteen Heavens was like this, Desolate Fortress might face an unprecedented crisis.

For now, this was better. If he broke the shaft of the Mangwol Light Halberd, the Ten Perfect Sect would be unable to recover. That alone was enough.

“Words are useless! I will question you with martial arts!”

Yeo Ju-ha’s shout, filled with powerful qi, burst forth.

The Ten Perfect Sect martial artists standing behind her roared in response.

They had the air of soldiers. They were like the Heart Martial Union experts the Clear Qilin had killed.

Yeo Ju-ha, the Mangwol Light Halberd. The word valiant suited her.

Without a word, Jeong Yeon-shin drew the Desolate Sword. The Northern Light Sword had not yet undergone divine sword transformation.

Facing Yeo Ju-ha made him think of Ak Su-rim, the Desolate Divine Spear.

She was the Deputy Leader of the Divine Sword Squad. It was said that after achieving Rejuvenation, she wielded spear techniques that had reached a divine level.

He could not help comparing her to the spear expert before him.

Swaang!

A sharp flash streaked toward him. It was a spearhead filled with powerful inner energy.

Though she thrust with a spear, it tore through the air with the sound of a great saber slashing down.

Clang!

Jeong Yeon-shin struck upward with the Desolate Sword.

The instant he knocked away the attack, a powerful vibration ran into his palm.

The force behind it was tremendous. It reminded him of the sword power of Dokgo Gwang, the Sword Scorpion Demon.

Beneath the rising spearhead, Yeo Ju-ha’s lips curled into a savage smile.

One hand had already left the spear shaft and was emitting the aura of Force Projection. She had caught him off guard with this chain of techniques.

Hummm.

A resonant sound leaked from her clenched fist. It was a fist technique.

The force wave that seemed ready to crush her opponent was exactly like Dokgo Gwang’s. Her use of martial power was incredibly refined.

The spear expert drew her weapon back and followed with a barrage of punches. Every strike carried Force Projection that seemed capable of shattering steel.

Boom! Boom! Kwoooong!

With footwork that seemed to shake the earth, she closed the distance in an instant.

Her blazing eyes were already before Jeong Yeon-shin. Below them, Yeo Ju-ha’s fist seemed to pull the air inward.

The boy struck with his empty hand at the same time. It was a gentle motion.

Swoosh.

His straightened palm blocked Yeo Ju-ha’s fist and brushed it downward.

In that fleeting instant, the colorless force wave of the Record of the Dharma Light Wheel spread out. His technique had reached its limit.

It severed the aura of her storm-like punch, strand by strand.

It was martial power that created its own domain, combined with the movement of Harmonizing Force.

A perfect counterform.

Anyone who used Force Projection like Dokgo Gwang, the Sword Scorpion Demon, could no longer harm him.

Yeo Ju-ha’s eyes wavered for a moment.

Her sharpened aura sense recognized that her punch had been neutralized. It was too late.

Jeong Yeon-shin’s hand had already passed her fist and seized her wrist. He held it tightly.

Her decisive fist technique was restrained, and the spear she had drawn behind her back to aim for a close-range blow was far away.

At that moment, the Desolate Sword fell from the boy’s right hand. He had let it go on purpose. This was not a sword’s distance.

‘Radiant River.’

Kugugugung!

His black sleeve whipped violently.

A storm formed in his palm. The gate’s fragments scattered in every direction amid the swirling vortex of force.

“Urgh...!”

Within the powerful whirlwind, Yeo Ju-ha drove up her knee. In the realm of super-experts, the time it took to execute a move was an eternity.

She had instantly seen through the weakness of the palm technique that had reached a divine level. She drove in with a knee strike.

Thud!

Jeong Yeon-shin’s foot pushed aside her calf. The impact that reached him was heavy.

The Force Projection from the sole of his foot also shattered the force wave of Yeo Ju-ha’s knee strike.

Her response could not escape the flow of the counterform the boy had created.

In that brief instant, Radiant River was completed, and Jeong Yeon-shin’s right hand reached her abdomen.

Yeo Ju-ha’s eyes widened as she hastily formed colorless inner-energy armor. Then the Record of the Dharma Light Wheel, compressed into the form of a typhoon, exploded.

Kwoooong!

The earth shook violently.

Jeong Yeon-shin felt the force of his palm strike more strongly than the trembling ground.

The sensation of tearing apart her qi shield was vivid.

A rebound stronger than the firepower of a thunderclap bomb surged through his palm and swept up his forearm.

His left hand still held the enemy’s wrist.

The weight suddenly going limp told him the outcome of the life-and-death duel.

Through a gap in the faintly rising dust.

Yeo Ju-ha’s dead eyes, still wide open, were fixed on Jeong Yeon-shin’s face.

“You asked how the Sword Scorpion Demon died.”

Jeong Yeon-shin slowly parted his lips.

He raised the right hand that had unleashed Radiant River and gently closed Yeo Ju-ha’s eyes.

“He went in vain. Like you.”

His voice was calm as it rang out with the bleak wind of Tang Family Fort’s outer courtyard.

Footnotes:

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