WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈

Episode 184: Swordsman (7)

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Jegal Cheong-a's expression did not change upon hearing the boy's words, but the Little Sword Empress’s and Gongsun Min’s eyes widened slightly.

The new Leader of Demon Wings had seen through the Jegal Family's secret eye technique.

He had not merely noticed that an eye technique was active. He had even named several acupoints.

"Ha."

A faint flush rose to the Little Sword Empress's cheeks. Sitting before the drinking table, she toyed with her sword hilt.

It was the excitement of a swordswoman who had devoted more than a decade to the blade. The hand that had long trained in the Jeomchang Sect's Four Escapes Sword Art held both competitive spirit and admiration.

'The sword path he draws with senses like that must be incredibly delicate...'

It was difficult to judge just how sharp the aura sense of the boy seated in the place of honor truly was.

Seom-ye seemed to have been born with the upper dantian senses that the Jeomchang Sect leader had awakened through training.

His talent let him cross, in a few short steps, the years accumulated by established mid-tier masters.

He had pulled time forward.

It made no sense unless his martial talent had already stepped into the realm of supernatural ability.

Even if he lost to the Mount Hua Sword Absolute in the near future, few would look down on him. His future was bright.

'It was almost a rotating assault, yet he drove back twenty-three Martial Alliance martial artists in succession. His forms must be extraordinarily refined, no matter how chaotic the battle became.'

A coordinated attack by many people might be another matter, but no one could handle him in one-on-one rotating assaults.

The Martial Alliance's leadership should be starting to realize it as well. At this point, they were likely placing their hopes only on the Mount Hua Sword Absolute and the First Fist of the Eon Family.

Neither martial artist could be called the strongest among the Nine Sects or the great families. Still, they were the strongest cards at the grand founding ceremony.

The world was vast. The major factions were scattered across it, and seniority was tangled in complicated ways.

How would this young Squad Leader fight them?

It was a subject steadily stirring the gathered heroes of Hanzhong. The Twenty-Four-Hand Plum Blossom Sword, Eon Family Fist, and Sihwa Boundless Hand.

Those were the ultimate arts that would appear on the martial stage at the grand founding ceremony. The Little Sword Empress quietly steadied her breathing.

Jegal Cheong-a, who had stared at the boy in silence for some time, slowly parted her lips.

A faint radiance still lingered in her eyes.

"...I have been rude. I did not mean to probe the Squad Leader on my own initiative."

The light faded from the girl's eyes. The power that had flickered there vanished completely.

She had reached the level where the constantly active technique could only be stopped through conscious intent. She had the talent to become a supreme master one day.

Jeong Yeon-shin looked at the girl his own age with interest.

"Do you maintain it constantly?"

"Yes."

"Your aura was stable. It looked like you had reached completion."

"...It is an attainment that makes the inner energy throughout my body respond to the mnemonic formula. There is room to improve as my qi storage increases and my body grows. Compared to the Squad Leader, who has trained in many martial arts..."

"Tell me your real purpose. My martial arts are not yet profound enough to serve as such a convenient excuse. A martial artist of the Jegal Family wanting to discuss the sword with this Squad Leader. If it were your brother, perhaps."

He spoke while thinking of the Immortal Dragon, Jegal Hyeon.

He was someone Jeong Yeon-shin needed to repay someday. At their first meeting, he had ridden atop Jegal Hyeon's fan.

At West Peak Road, Jegal Hyeon had opened the first form of an unnamed sword art for him. Of all the people he had met at the Martial Alliance Assembly, he was the finest.

As the young Leader of Demon Wings renewed his resolve to repay that debt, Jegal Cheong-a gently shook her head.

"That is misleading. The Black Uniforms of Desolate Fortress are divine swords watched by the entire world. The moment the Squad Leader donned black robes, the reputation of all your own martial arts changed. Even Brother Clear Qilin, who named your ultimate palm art, would not agree with your words."

"Are you using Clear Qilin as a means as well, like Ak Ye-rim? Trying to see in me what you want to see?"

The boy asked calmly.

He did not raise his momentum. The Go board left behind by the Spirit Sky Sword Ghost and the teachings of the Go Ten Precepts given by Jegal Hyeon had deepened his mental cultivation somewhat.

He would not recklessly draw the sword of sacrifice stones to seize initiative. His opponent merely needed to avoid crossing the line.

The Languid Flame Dragon, who had been quietly watching the young Squad Leader, was inwardly impressed.

'He has become more frightening.'

He had become a sword that concealed its edge within its sheath. That was the realm of a supreme master. Inner energy used intent as its driving force.

The fact that one great concern in his heart had settled meant his qi had grown stronger, even if only slightly.

Mental cultivation. It was as though he had personally grasped a distinguished family's training method.

He had continued to grow stronger even after putting on the black long robe.

What would happen if he gained a sword art capable of fully containing that refined heart?

To the well-traveled Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family, the answer was easy to imagine. It would produce an extraordinary sword path.

Yet to the Languid Flame Dragon, none of that seemed to be Jegal Cheong-a's concern.

"I am curious about you."

Her expression was calm, and her tone held no rise or fall. Perhaps it was simply her nature. Nothing showed on her face.

It suited a martial artist who had mainly trained an eye technique. She had learned to keep others from noticing her probing gaze.

"What about me?"

The boy asked.

Jegal Cheong-a spoke calmly, as though the Leader of Demon Wings' indifferent tone did not matter.

"My family is obsessed with investigating you. Martial artists skilled in sorcery arts have been busy trying to capture your attack patterns, calculate their trajectories, and measure the forms of your power fluctuations. We have learned many things. Most importantly, the Squad Leader's forms are..."

Her lips moved slowly.

"...rushed."

"..."

"The Squad Leader never exchanges more than a hundred moves. Every battle where you have revealed your martial prowess has been like that. Since the martial arts you have learned are suited to short battles, those betting on the outcome of the grand founding ceremony have gathered around the Mount Hua Sword Absolute. Even if the fight ends in ten exchanges, your opponent is the Sword Absolute. The Mount Hua Sect's sword arts are reputed to be nearly flawless."

"Did you come here to pick a fight?"

Hyeon Won-chang abruptly asked. His fingers twitched as though he were preparing something.

Jeong Yeon-shin, who had listened quietly, shook his head slightly.

"What is it you want to say?"

"If you ask me for help, I will teach you the principles of a special sorcery martial art. You will be able to weave your martial arts together organically. It will be a great help when facing a fully accomplished supreme master, the Sword Absolute of the Nine Sects. But I want something in return."

"..."

"After the grand founding ceremony ends the day after tomorrow, please come with me. There is something I want to show you."

"You seem to have many complaints about your family."

A sky-blue gleam passed through the boy's eyes.

His upper dantian aura sense flashed. It caught the faint signs within Jegal Cheong-a.

Anxiety and unease.

It was not normal for her to bring up her family's internal affairs so suddenly.

In one way or another, this girl intended to overturn the Jegal Family. She wanted to borrow the sword of the Leader of Demon Wings, who was free to act independently of the Martial Alliance.

Jeong Yeon-shin did not know what the cherished daughter of the Jegal Family had seen. Nor did he know how she had examined the forms of a supreme master far above her.

A practitioner's nature was bound to show through in inner energy techniques. The more deeply one trained, the more so it became.

"After following your insignificant proposal, you think this Squad Leader will move as you wish."

"I have seen the Squad Leader's character. What I intend to do is honorable. It is difficult to tell you now, but..."

She was bold.

Jegal Cheong-a's pitch-black eyes shone brilliantly. Even with her eye technique withdrawn, it seemed as though radiance bloomed within them.

The boy thought of Clear Qilin. He remembered him scolding the martial artists of his family.

He also remembered how Jegal Hyeon had hesitated to mention his father. The orthodox martial artists under the great family.

It seemed this girl planned to do what those two young people could not.

"I should correct you."

"What...?"

"Are you not the one asking this Squad Leader for help? Do not approach this as a negotiation. Your standing is far beneath that of the Leader of Demon Wings of Desolate Fortress."

"..."

"You do not know it, but your proposal has already become useless. You have not even fully assessed this Squad Leader's martial arts. After the grand founding ceremony ends, lower your head and come find me. Do not repeat yourself then. Do not speak in vague generalities either."

Swish.

The boy rose from his seat and ordered them out.

"Go back. I need to meditate."

For a long while, Jegal Cheong-a remained seated.

She brushed back the black hair tied beside her collar. Touching her hair seemed to be a habit. All the while, the girl stared quietly at Jeong Yeon-shin.

As though trying to determine whether his words were a bluff or sincere.

"What?"

"...I have been rude. I sincerely apologize for carelessly judging the Squad Leader's character."

When she rose a while later, the Little Sword Empress and Gongsun Min were shown out as well.

"That’s too much, isn't it? I haven’t even had a drink!"

"I wish you martial fortune! I will keep everything that happened today to myself!"

A brief commotion swept through the courtyard. The food laid out on the drinking table was mostly untouched.

The Languid Flame Dragon, who alone had picked at a few dishes, leaned forward slightly. He did not even look at those leaving through the gate.

"She is a demure yet brazen young lady. A few words, and the sun is already setting. Still, are you truly all right? The Sword Absolute is... Wasn't the original mission given to the Squad Leader to shame mid-tier masters? Frankly, you have already accomplished that much. The Great Revitalization Pill is the problem, though."

"..."

"Mount Hua Sword Absolute Cheon Ju-jin... Even this young master had heard of him until he was sick of it as a child. They say he draws twenty-four plum blossoms with a single sword. If that is true, it means he possesses a peerless sword art that occupies the eight directions threefold. Those worthless gamblers have reason to chatter. Quite a few of them have ghostly eye techniques, after all. Though every last one of them is mad."

"That is rich coming from a drunkard and opium addict."

The boy shook his head. The Languid Flame Dragon grinned.

"Even if you give it everything, luck will need to be on your side, so hold your sword hilt lightly. Mount Hua sword arts are famous for their splendid variations. If you tense up and your body stiffens, you will be swept away without a chance. Once the Sword Absolute's force waves reach that level, even heavenly silkworm silk will not remain unharmed. It is fortunate we brought spare martial robes."

"Thank you for the advice. Do not disturb me now. I am going to meditate deeply."

"An unranked disciple should keep his mouth shut."

Hyeon Won-chang added with his chin raised.

The Languid Flame Dragon's eyes narrowed. He looked over the Imperial Hero with an odd gaze.

The way he stared at the White Uniform was far from ordinary. The elderly unranked disciple muttered to himself.

"I must skip that rank."

* * *

"Mount Hua has been the greatest sword sect under heaven since ancient times. Along with Wudang and Zhongnan, it has produced peerless swordsmen remembered in the history of the martial world. That Cheon Ju-jin over there will likely become one as well."

"Are you saying that because you are from Shaanxi? In our town, Wudang Sect's Hyeon Gong-jin is called the greatest sword under heaven. Well, in truth, it might be the Divine Sword Squad Leader of Desolate Fortress..."

"At any rate, the day has come. I have been very curious to see when the new Leader of Demon Wings' gallant banner would finally break."

"Who did you bet on?"

"They say Cheon Ju-jin's Plum Blossom Sword is perfect in every way. How many swordsmen in the world could surpass the Sword Absolute? There cannot be many here in Hanzhong, at least."

"People like you must be the reason the odds have fallen."

"Is the new Leader of Demon Wings not famous for his Hand Arts? I know that palm art called Radiant River is the finest under heaven. But it will be difficult to breach the distance kept by a swordsman of equal or greater level."

"The masters slain by that Sihwa Boundless Hand were no ordinary figures..."

"If we are judging by that, the Sword Absolute clearly has the advantage! He is a mid-tier supreme master. The heads of Demonic Sect martial artists who have fallen beneath the scent of plum blossoms must number in the hundreds. Mount Hua's sword momentum is straight and severe."

Their conversation was buried in thunderous murmuring.

An enormous crowd had gathered. It could not be compared to before.

The duel between the Mount Hua Sword Absolute and the Leader of Demon Wings had been arranged as the first match.

It was the most anticipated fight of the entire Martial Alliance Assembly's grand founding ceremony.

On the martial stage, Jeong Yeon-shin thought of the Great Revitalization Pill.

He thought of his maternal grandfather, Ma Yeon-jeok.

"I heard the rumors. Is Ma Jin well?"

The middle-aged swordsman before him asked.

He had sharp features and a terrifying aura. Plum blossom embroidery stood out at the hem of his white martial robe.

It was the clean uniform of the Mount Hua Sect. Yet he did not feel like a Taoist. His entire body felt like a single enormous blade.

It felt as though Jeong Yeon-shin's glabella were being pierced by a sword tip.

He was the supreme master who had stood beside Yu Hyeon as a protector when Jeong Yeon-shin first met him. Now they faced each other as opponents.

"He should be well."

The boy answered, thinking of the inner energy-powered prosthetic arm planned for his uncle. Mount Hua Sword Absolute Cheon Ju-jin silently nodded.

"...I deliberately did not come looking for you. It feels like only yesterday that you melted a Purple Cloud Pellet into Yu Hyeon's body... but I believe we should catch up after the duel."

"You are right."

"Draw your sword."

Jeong Yeon-shin did not answer.

Shing.

He calmly drew the Northern Light Sword and lowered it. The feel of its hilt quickly grew warm.

He studied Cheon Ju-jin before him. The Sword Absolute of the Mount Hua Sect drew his own sword and raised it with a lofty bearing.

For an instant, it felt as though the wind held its breath. The pressure he gave off was immense.

The Sword Absolute he faced after becoming a Black Uniform was different again. He understood the words of the gamblers whom the Languid Flame Dragon had called loose-tongued.

He had heard that the flow of the Nine Sects' sword arts was long and unbroken. The young Leader of Demon Wings did not care.

All he needed was to cut through that lofty structure from the start, so long as his sword tip touched his opponent once.

'Ten exchanges, my foot.'

He had no intention of imitating the uninterrupted flow of orthodox sword arts.

The boy thought of ending it in two exchanges.

"...I can see what you are thinking. You are very bold."

Cheon Ju-jin spoke with a satisfied smile, unlike his words.

He seemed pleased by the younger swordsman's competitive spirit. There was a reason Ma Jin had treated Cheon Ju-jin warmly as a worthy rival.

The noble swordsman who had descended from Mount Hua aimed his sword at the boy's solar plexus.

The clouds were bright.

It was already White Dew, when the air was at its clearest among the twenty-four solar terms.

The autumn wind blew and passed clear, indifferent to the lives of all people. During that time, Jeong Yeon-shin had also taken each step like the turning of the seasons.

He had been the burden of Jeong Family Manor.

Not here. He raised his sword as the Leader of Demon Wings of Desolate Fortress.

He had changed greatly. Until now, the boy had run desperately to seize hold of his own lifeline. Now, he was a little different.

He raised his power to protect his maternal grandfather. A wheel of light turned within his heart.

It was tremendously fierce.

'First form.'

He recalled the sword path, clearer than before, in his mind.

Northern Light's pure white sword tip pointed at the sky. He raised it above his head.

A sword that rose from his heart overlapped with the Northern Light Sword in his hand.

At the same time, a sword art capable of fully containing the auspicious energy of the Record of the Dharma Light Wheel began to stir.

It was as though sunlight had descended along a stream of wind. Jeong Yeon-shin's presence became vivid.

Whoooosh!

The force waves of Wind Body swept through all eight directions. A fierce wind drove away the dust.

The black robes around the boy's body fluttered. They seemed unusually distinct.

The Mount Hua Sword Absolute's sword drew a blossom in colorless force waves.

The young Leader of Demon Wings' figure blurred and distorted. Sword light rose from his hand.

"What is that?!"

"What in the...!"

In that instant, startled reactions erupted from one side. Masters capable of discoursing on all under heaven reacted.

The canopy over the Martial Alliance leadership flipped and flew away. Mid-tier masters, who had instinctively raised their auras, stared at the martial stage.

Light raced.

Footnotes:

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