WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Episode 275: Inaction (3)
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“Won’t that one be taking the promotion examination later too?”
Languid Flame Dragon spoke indifferently.
He had been slouched carelessly from the moment the spar began.
The sight of him chewing opium poppy had drawn hostile looks from the Heavenly Pillar Gate experts, but he merely kept chewing, unconcerned.
His shadowed eyes moved between Jeong Yeon-shin’s condition and Shin So-bin’s forms.
“It’s a spar with our Squad Leader’s health on the line. If she loses here, she should be buried. As is Demon Wings tradition.”
Languid Flame Dragon muttered with an appalled expression.
Hyeon Won-chang, standing beside him, could not hide his surprise.
“Sihwa Boundless Fist! That junior of the Shin Family has sharpened her skills through training. To perform True Barrier so swiftly... The speed at which she refines and projects force waves has improved by leaps and bounds.”
“Demon Wings only takes missions involving the upper ranks of the martial world, but a White Uniform of Desolate Fortress would struggle to find an equal among all the sword-wielders under heaven.”
“That much is...”
“Think of how many lowly bandits and martial artists with shallow attainment are scattered across this vast land. Desolate Fortress people, who receive missions to take heads and only go around meeting particular targets, would have trouble realizing it. While martial artists tour the famous sights under heaven, they simply borrow fine horses from relay stations and ride at full speed.”
Languid Flame Dragon spoke without much care.
Since putting on the Blue Uniform long robe, he had stopped using honorifics with most of his peers.
No senior of the same rank would force etiquette upon a young expert whose death steadily approached.
The Huangbo Family’s eldest young master, famed throughout the land for the Sun God Meridian.
Whenever he was on the verge of causing trouble while drunk on opium poppy and alcohol, the Blue Uniform seniors tended to step away first.
Hyeon Won-chang glanced down at him and spoke.
“The opponent is not some small or mid-sized sect. This is the Heavenly Pillar Gate, a prestigious school that possesses one of the Five Great Palm Arts Under Heaven. The Huangbo Family must have investigated the Moon-Guarding Piercing Art as well.”
“The martial arts are not the problem. The martial artists are. This village sect keeps away from the outside world, so how much real combat have they experienced? White Cat went around Shaanxi drenched in blood, all while calling, ‘Our Squad Leader, our Squad Leader.’”
“Lower your voice! There are plenty of people here with sharp ears...!”
Hyeon Won-chang forced out the words while watching those around him.
Cheong Myeong’s junior martial brother had been defeated in a single exchange by White Cat, Shin So-bin.
Yet the aura blanketing the valley remained undisturbed.
Dozens of men and women of all ages stood with graceful poise atop towering ancient trees, still giving off a transparent breeze.
The Heavenly Pillar Gate’s distinctive fluctuations of inner power stirred like a gentle wind, and only the rustling of the woods could be heard clearly.
The refined elven race experts exchanged glances or moved their lips with expressionless faces.
They seemed to be discussing the martial arts they had just witnessed through sound transmission.
The Heavenly Pillar Gate martial artists carried away the unconscious Jeong Nan-song.
Then the sect leader, Cheong Bo-hwa, spoke. She looked past Shin So-bin, who calmly lowered her hand, toward Languid Flame Dragon.
“You were right. Nan-song has never faced a life-and-death duel.”
“Hmph.”
“Since Cheong-su passed away, we strictly forbade anyone from leaving. The Dark Night Hall experts who settled on Mount Heavenly Pillar were so elusive that they could even contend with Desolate Fortress figures of Squad Leader rank. On the rare occasion that an unparalleled Purple Uniform expert came, they would vanish without a trace. We had no choice. Still... it must have been a valuable lesson for Nan-song as well.”
Cheong Bo-hwa turned her gaze to Jeong Yeon-shin.
“You have a fine successor. Her talent shines all the brighter because she lives on a different timescale from our clan.”
“It must have been a long time for her.”
The Leader of Demon Wings answered calmly. Shin So-bin, whose back was turned, gave an exaggerated shrug.
Cheong Bo-hwa smiled.
“One exchange has broadened my horizons. What an uncommon and powerful fist. Precise use of the muscles throughout the body, bold advancing footwork, and a straight fist strike that gathers force waves into a single mass before unleashing them... I can see the intent to avoid dragging out a life-and-death battle. How desperate. No, judging by your disposition, the mnemonic formula must contain an intent to show your opponent proper respect.”
Shin So-bin had fought the spar, yet Cheong Bo-hwa was speaking to Jeong Yeon-shin. He was the founder of the martial art. It could not be helped.
“I heard what that opium-poppy child said. Sihwa Boundless Fist, was it?”
Cheong Bo-hwa asked. Her eyes, deep as a lake, stood out.
Wrapped in a quiet, settled presence, she stared at Jeong Yeon-shin with the eye technique of the elven race, said to see through all things.
The answer came from between the two.
“It’s the second form, True Barrier.”
Shin So-bin stood between them with her small frame.
She squared her shoulders. Her black hair, scattered by the force waves she had released, fell over them.
Her movements were disciplined and without waste. The distinctive feel of the Seom-ye Martial Lineage always clung to her, and her understanding of martial arts was the most outstanding.
Jeong Yeon-shin fell silent while watching her back.
It was a strange feeling. Something would remain and be passed on after he died.
There was one more thing besides connections and gravestones.
It felt like a very important moment. Through Shin So-bin, he realized how great a thing he was leaving behind.
‘Will the martial arts I leave behind be passed down through the generations like this?’
They said that teachings created by a founding master were inherited by later generations in many ways.
What remained in writing was called a secret manual, while the spirit permeating martial arts was passed from mouth to mouth.
A martial lineage. Those who shared martial arts more precious than blood through the founder’s intent.
Jeong Yeon-shin could almost see it.
How many people would study the phrases hurriedly scribbled in his mind, then train according to those mnemonic formulas?
The thought alone filled his heart. He wished for the name Seom-ye to continue longer than anyone else’s under heaven.
‘No, the Jeong Family Youth Technique is my diary...?’
Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes suddenly widened.
“True Barrier. I see.”
The wrinkles around Cheong Bo-hwa’s eyes curved slightly.
“I understand the essence of that Force Projection. It seeks to finish a contest in a short exchange. Squad Leader Jeong must be a Grandmaster who pursues swift resolutions.”
“He’s not only skilled in short battles, you know?”
Shin So-bin replied, raising her voice slightly as she placed her hands on both hips.
Cheong Bo-hwa smiled kindly.
“In any case, there is no need to discuss the completeness of that one form. We clearly lost. But... the next bout will be different. We have a child who honed sword qi through years of fighting Dark Night Hall. I look forward to the Leader of Demon Wings’ next martial art.”
The moment she finished speaking, a soft footstep sounded.
A swordswoman in white martial robes walked out from the Heavenly Pillar Gate’s side.
She had sharpened her ears like divine swords and looked to be around thirty.
“I am Gi Geom-hyang, a villager here. I have learned the Heavenly Pillar Gate’s United Way Celestial Image Sword.”
Her face was flushed red, a complexion that seemed to prove the vigor of her inner power.
The air around her face stirred slightly beneath the chilling gleam of her eyes, and even her aura differed from that of the previously defeated Jeong Nan-song.
Languid Flame Dragon whistled.
“So you won’t open the way for us without a fight?”
The Heavenly Pillar Gate’s lake was said to be an offshoot of the World Tree they held sacred.
It was treated as something as precious as the sect’s secret martial arts, so they had no intention of readily letting visitors immerse themselves in it.
They showed no special favor just because the visitors were from Desolate Fortress.
Jeong Yeon-shin recalled Ak Su-rim’s words. Even rural areas with local sects could not compare to their closed nature.
‘They want us to broaden their horizons with a unique martial art...’
Demon Wings had won one of the best of three bouts. As Jeong Yeon-shin considered who to send next, his eyes met Hyeon Won-chang’s.
They were the oldest comrades. The moment their eyes met, they understood each other’s intent.
Swish.
The Desolate Fortress Divine Hero rose from his seat.
“Demon Wings of Desolate Fortress! I, Hyeon Won-chang, will face your sword.”
The hero’s headband around his head fluttered blue.
The fighters switched places. Shin So-bin stepped back.
As she returned, she smacked Hyeon Won-chang’s and Jeong Yeon-shin’s shoulders in turn.
It was the self-praise of a junior who had done her part. Her bold fingertips trembled slightly only when they touched her Squad Leader’s shoulder.
Whenever this happened, Jeong Yeon-shin felt the stature of those who created martial arts in the martial world. All it took was thinking a little harder.
“You did well.”
The Leader of Demon Wings praised his subordinate.
“Your path was slightly off. It was not perfectly straight to its furthest point. If you had extended it properly, you would have shattered the Protective Qi Technique completely. You wasted too much in the use of your force waves.”
Jeong Yeon-shin, who had gradually come to possess a Squad Leader’s mindset, offered advice.
Shin So-bin, who had been smiling brightly, narrowed her eyes.
“I did well, right?”
“Yes.”
Jeong Yeon-shin turned toward the front. Hyeon Won-chang and Gi Geom-hyang had drawn their swords and held them lowered.
“...”
For an instant, the air fell silent. The mountain breeze flowing through the bushes scattered in all directions around the two sword fighters.
The blades of grass bowed in chaotic disorder. Even though they were observing the formalities of a spar, it felt as though they stood in the heart of a fierce battle for life and death.
Gi Geom-hyang spoke.
“I will say it again. United Way Celestial Image Sword.”
“Radiant Art Formation.”
Hyeon Won-chang answered bluntly. His entire bearing had changed the moment he drew his sword.
His narrowed eyes and straight brows were sharp as blades, and the veins standing out on the back of the hand gripping the sword split blue with sword qi.
Saaaaa...
The energy gathered on their blades rode the wind and swept the surroundings with a chill. Shredded grass blades and dust scattered wildly on their own.
“The Heavenly Pillar Gate’s United Way Celestial Image Sword was said to have played a major role in destroying the old Ming Cult.”
Languid Flame Dragon suddenly spoke from behind. He stole a glance at his Squad Leader.
“There is a famous tale of the previous sect leader’s sword shattering the Sword Demon and the Dark Blade Divine General together. The previous sect leader did not even use specially manifested qi, yet the pair’s entire bodies were crushed and swept away as if tossed by waves of transparent sword wind. Debate continues to this day over whether it was a swift sword that reached the utmost extreme of speed, or a profound principle born from some special secret art.”
“I heard that some great sects besides the main fortress joined that battle. No one properly saw it?”
The instant Jeong Yeon-shin asked, Hyeon Won-chang’s and Gi Geom-hyang’s swords collided.
Clangclangclangclang!
The surrounding bushes were instantly swallowed by hazy sword light. The two sword fighters were hidden behind dozens of released trails as well.
Soon, flashes of white began to appear here and there from Gi Geom-hyang’s side. They were the force waves of the Radiant Art Formation.
As the pure white sword light thickened and danced, the aftermath of the clashing sword strikes pressed toward Jeong Yeon-shin as well.
The vibrations struck his skin in tangled threads before dispersing. It felt like something rustling over his collar.
“So needlessly loud.”
Languid Flame Dragon lazily walked backward.
Then he leaned diagonally against the side of the Divine Sword Squad Leader’s palanquin and spoke again.
“I heard that the Heavenly Pillar Gate’s sect leaders learn sorcery arts alongside their martial arts through every generation. It would not be strange if they constantly carried some trick like a formation. For such a closed sect, would they really have openly revealed their ultimate technique on a battlefield crowded with countless people? In any case, it is not compared to the sword arts of the Nine Sects for nothing. The Radiant Art Formation has been put to the test. Today’s result will surely reach the main fortress as well.”
“I see.”
Jeong Yeon-shin nodded calmly.
Cheong Bo-hwa, standing on the opposite side, watched the two sword fighters’ spar closely.
She had said that she wished to broaden her horizons with martial arts unknown to the Central Plains, and she did not even treat a fight between lesser experts lightly.
She seemed intensely interested in examining the structure and path of the force waves created by the Leader of Demon Wings.
Swoosh! Clang!
This was a fight between people around the level of Desolate Fortress Blue Uniforms. It was a realm not easily found in the martial world. Dozens of exchanges passed in the blink of an eye.
Experts lived in their own time. Tremendous fluctuations of inner power spread from the constantly tangling and unraveling paths of their sword strikes.
‘One hundred thirty, one hundred fifty-four forms...’
Jeong Yeon-shin kept the United Way Celestial Image Sword Gi Geom-hyang displayed within his sight.
Its sword paths seemed to ride the wind itself. The sword’s speed was exceptionally fast compared to the force waves dwelling in Gi Geom-hyang’s hand.
It was clear from the way her sword stabbed toward Hyeon Won-chang’s solar plexus. It split through the gaps in the white energy of the Radiant Art Formation gathered on the Desolate Sword.
The sword force that moved as though blending into the wind of light created by the Radiant Art Formation was extraordinarily mysterious.
Hyeon Won-chang struck upward with the Desolate Sword.
Clang! Splurt!
A shockwave suddenly exploded from his chest. Blood spurted along the tip of sword wind that swept fiercely up his collar.
At that moment, a blue gleam flashed in Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes. Why was he getting hurt?
‘If the Radiant Art Formation’s force waves had been a little denser, he would not have been hit. He is being overwhelmed in inner power.’
Jeong Yeon-shin clenched a fist. The muscles of his bare left forearm stood out clearly along with the veins.
The expressions of the Heavenly Pillar Gate experts changed slightly. Earlier, the Leader of Demon Wings had offered rare words of encouragement to the youngest disciple, Jeong Nan-song.
The way the leader was shaken by a subordinate’s sword wound seemed to reveal his character.
A strange light appeared in Cheong Bo-hwa’s eyes.
“A gentle disposition, powerful martial arts, and humble character... surely that is Three Flowers Gather at the Crown.”
That was when it happened.
Clang!
A fierce shockwave struck the air.
At the center of the valley, Hyeon Won-chang staggered backward.
The hand gripping the Desolate Sword shook like a moth’s wings. Anyone could see that he was forcibly suppressing force waves too difficult to endure.
Gi Geom-hyang, in contrast, still carried herself with dignity as she lowered her sword.
Whoosh.
The air compressed within the vortex of force waves from the sword strikes was violently released.
The trails that had clouded and whitened the clearing scattered down like unraveling threads.
“Again... let us fight again.”
A suppressed voice escaped from between Hyeon Won-chang’s teeth.
Gi Geom-hyang shook her head.
“Your sword power does not reach mine. Even if we fought ten times, you would be fortunate to win two or three. You know that clearly.”
“I earnestly ask you, let us fight again. Our Squad Leader needs to bathe there.”
“Your sword paths were chillingly sharp. They were certainly a sword art I have never encountered. Though it falls short of our sect’s United Way Celestial Image Sword, it is still worthy of comparison. That will do. The village elders must have seen it clearly as well.”
It was the defeat of Imperial Hero Hyeon Won-chang.
It was common in the martial world for a martial artist to lose. Yet the failure of a Demon Wings mission was another matter.
Even the safety of the Divine Sword Squad Leader and the Leader of Demon Wings was involved.
Despair could be seen in Hyeon Won-chang’s back. The hand holding the sword trembled for a different reason now, as though swallowing tremendous anger.
That was when it happened.
“I can continue the spar. Are you the next opponent?”
Gi Geom-hyang pointed the tip of her sword at Languid Flame Dragon.
The Heavenly Pillar Gate did not particularly stop her. They seemed to hold the reputation and skill Gi Geom-hyang had built in high regard.
It was a provocation Demon Wings under Jeong Yeon-shin had never experienced.
Languid Flame Dragon’s lips twisted.
“Hey, Great Tongue Sword.”
“...”
“You said you had sealed away seventy percent of your inner power. Is your consciousness attuned to your original inner energy, and was that why you couldn’t fight properly?”
Hyeon Won-chang gave no answer and returned. The sight of him lowering his head toward Jeong Yeon-shin was pitiful.
Sorry, Squad Leader.
Jeong Yeon-shin calmly patted his shoulder.
“It is only a bath.”
Rustle.
The untidily hanging hem of a Blue Uniform outfit passed between the two. A thick, fishy smell of alcohol lingered in its wake, accompanied by a swaggering voice.
“Great Tongue Sword, watch carefully. This is how you use the Radiant Art Formation.”
“You intend to use the same martial art? I have already seen it. Bring out something else.”
Gi Geom-hyang frowned and flicked her sword once.
The remnants of force waves clinging to the blade like awls swept through the grass with a ssssh.
“To say that without even seeing its key point...”
Languid Flame Dragon swallowed the words calling her a lowborn country fool. With cold eyes, he cracked his neck from side to side before gesturing at Gi Geom-hyang.
She said nothing more and raised her sword.
Gi Geom-hyang aimed the tip at Languid Flame Dragon’s brow. Her middle stance was refined to such an extent that even the usual trembling motion of an arm could not be seen.
Best of three. The final spar.
Fwoooosh!
A hazy beam of light suddenly wrapped around Languid Flame Dragon’s entire body.
The energy of his innate Sun God Meridian unfurled through the qi structure of the Radiant Art Formation. Scorching solar qi interwove the grass blades in every direction.
Only for a moment.
The energy that had initially been hazy instantly brightened to a pure white. The brilliance that deepened in an instant now billowed over his entire body like a curtain.
The force waves that struck the air and collided among themselves began accumulating power on their own.
The current of force waves that grew stronger with every exchange tangled itself into a web, increasing the magnitude of its impact. It was a wholly independent path.
Kwooooom!
“Our Radiant Art Stronghold’s secret is a quick battle. We cannot use Radiant River, so we have to do it this way, right?”
His control of qi resembled Jeong Yeon-shin’s. It was extraordinarily instinctive.
“What...!”
Gi Geom-hyang widened her eyes and brought down her sword. Languid Flame Dragon’s lips curved upward as the surrounding bushes turned to ash and scattered into the air.
“Go take your bath, Squad Leader.”
Flames flickered in his eyes.
Footnotes:
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