WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Episode 284: Lotus (3)
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Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes widened.
The winter sun’s halo seemed to ripple faintly. A brief wave of dizziness washed over him.
Before an antique rosewood gate, a handsome man and woman in red martial uniforms regarded the scholar Gojin with different expressions.
Come to think of it, they did seem to possess refined airs. They carried themselves like members of a prestigious family.
‘They’re direct descendants of the Gongya Family?’
He did not lower his expectations too quickly. They were surely blessed with innate instincts.
They were children of a prestigious family. They could not be like Jeong Family Manor, which could scarcely be called a martial family.
He had heard the Gongya Family was a renowned noble clan in Shanxi. Even if their bodies seemed somewhat poorly trained for direct descendants of a great house, they would surely make up for it with instinct.
He should not be disappointed without cause. Hye-ah and Clear Qilin in his mind both told him so.
“Teacher Go!”
“You returned safely!”
The young lady and young master welcomed Gojin. Their lightness skills carried them over in a single bound.
The hems of their red garments fluttered as they swiftly approached, kicking up dust from the ground.
Step.
They came to a stop, their delight clear.
The siblings resembled one another. Both had sharp eyes like sword blades and elegant jawlines, with dispositions that suited their scarlet martial uniforms.
Even the hands that straightened their clothes carried the generous confidence unique to those raised in privilege.
The woman, whose hair was slightly longer than her younger brother’s, spoke first.
Was she around twenty? Her bearing was steadier than that of the Second Young Master, and she carried an equally unrestrained presence. She was the eldest daughter of the Gongya Family.
“We were worried when you hadn’t returned even after daybreak. We were just about to look for you, so it’s a relief to see you safe.”
Her voice was low and pleasant. The younger Second Young Master spoke in a higher tone.
“There are many enemies around, so you should bring guards with you next time. Men dishonorably discharged from the army have formed bandit bands. The roads are dangerous.”
The Second Young Master, his long hair smooth, examined the scholar from head to toe as though checking for injuries.
Scholar Gojin seemed to command considerable respect. He smiled awkwardly.
“I apologize for causing concern. I had gone to meet an old acquaintance...”
“I was curious about that. I spotted someone whose appearance stood out even from afar.”
The eldest daughter’s gaze met Jeong Yeon-shin’s. Their eyes were nearly level.
Yeon-shin flinched inwardly. He felt guilty before any accusation had been made. Something about her obsidian-like eyes seemed profound.
Worthy of the eldest daughter set to inherit the family, she seemed to be saying that one could not judge a person by martial skill alone. He could not help reflecting on himself, if only briefly.
“He is my benefactor. He cut down the bandits I encountered on my way to take the metropolitan examination. He also drove off blood demons several times.”
“I am Geom Un-bi, sect leader of the Huangcheon Sect. I am seeking the inheritor of a unified martial lineage.”
Jeong Yeon-shin clasped his fists.
The eldest daughter immediately returned the gesture.
“I am Gongya Jeong. Regardless of age, you are the founding master of a sect. Since you are Teacher Go’s benefactor, you are a friend of this family as well. I hope you will stay comfortably while you are here.”
Her tone was gentle, though her manner of speech was stiff.
The Gongya Family was not one of the Eight Great Families commonly recognized in the martial world. Still, with no major faction in Shanxi, it was widely regarded as a great family.
That weighty position seemed to have shaped her conduct.
So had her unconscious tendency to place the status of a noble clan above martial-world etiquette.
The master of an unknown single-successor sect could not expect complete respect from the heir of a powerful martial clan. Such was the reality of the present martial world, made harsher by famine.
The Second Young Master’s manner was far freer. His wide eyes held no sense of distance. He seemed about the same age as Jeong Yeon-shin.
“I’m Gongya Su! Did any of your ancestors belong to the elven race?”
“No.”
“You’ll surely inspire pride in the Han Chinese one day! I want to introduce you to my friends. If you have no epithet, may I give you one? How about Jade-Faced Divine Sword?”
“Not particularly.”
“You’re humble, aren’t you? Would you like to go boating on North Lake with me? Fellow martial artists our age would be desperate to join us with a face like yours! Divine Sword is such a common title, anyway.”
“That would be inappropriate.”
It truly would. The current Leader of Demon Wings did not get swept up in Gongya Su’s cheerful chatter.
Divine Sword was not a title bestowed lightly. It was a name reached only at the end of one’s martial path.
No one in Desolate Fortress, not only Jeong Yeon-shin, used the epithet Divine Sword carelessly. It was a name permitted only to the Squad Leader.
Gojin’s smile stiffened slightly.
“He is someone I urgently invited because I understand the eldest daughter’s concerns. Though his connection to my humble Go family is slight, he graciously accepted. I guarantee this will become a fortuitous opportunity.”
“A concern, and a fortuitous opportunity...?”
Gongya Jeong furrowed her smooth brow. Gojin waved a hand.
“I have not yet dared raise the matter with Sect Leader Geom. But I believe the eldest daughter’s thoughts are correct. Please consider that this scholar has brought another kind of learning.”
“I still don’t understand. This is all so sudden... Still, we will treat you generously while you recover from your journey.”
She changed the subject. At the same time, Gojin acted as though apologizing to Jeong Yeon-shin.
“Perhaps Sect Leader Geom has been offended. There are private circumstances within this family that I could not explain. I hope you will be understanding.”
“It is fine. I will impose on you for a while.”
Jeong Yeon-shin acted like the confident sect leader of the Huangcheon Sect.
He had rehearsed his cover story and manner of speaking with Ak Su-rim several times. She had told him it was fine to be somewhat shameless, though the explanation had been rather complicated.
She had also told him not to think of the Nine Sects. A bold disposition, she said, was as important a virtue as appropriate humility.
Yeon-shin understood it to mean that in the lower martial world, boldness was proportional to one’s martial skill.
‘This is difficult.’
He still did not understand that kind of rough disposition. Qualities like magnanimity, boldness, and arrogance did not suit him.
He was too busy completing his mission with a humble attitude.
Yet, judging by the eldest daughter and Second Young Master’s reactions, they seemed to accept it.
They appeared to find it natural enough. That was fortunate.
Gongya Jeong turned around.
“I will arrange for you to stay in Teacher Go’s side residence. Welcome to our home.”
Her voice swept through the air with a soft resonance. It carried the bearing unique to the heir of a prestigious family.
The four of them began walking through the clear winter air.
Jeong Yeon-shin casually asked, “What about the real gatekeepers...?”
“Oh, I should tell the martial artists we sent to look for Teacher Go to return. We sent out quite a few.”
Gongya Su answered casually. The Leader of Demon Wings said nothing.
* * *
Jeong Yeon-shin unpacked his travel bag in a cozy room.
A faint scent of wood tickled his nose. The wood of both the tea table and bed was polished smooth.
As a blue silk quilt caught his eye, someone knocked at the door. Gojin asked to see him.
“Sect Leader Geom.”
“Scholar Go.”
Jeong Yeon-shin offered Gojin a seat. Gojin was a subordinate of the Nethercurrent Squad, with whom he would discuss affairs of the main fortress and move together for the time being.
Since he had concealed his identity, he would have to entrust Gojin with much work despite his limited freedom of movement.
“There isn’t much time.”
“With Sect Leader Geom’s martial skill, it’s only natural that you would feel that way.”
“It’s essentially a proxy martial contest. I’ve never experienced anything like this.”
Would it not be better to hide his identity and enter the martial competition himself?
It was impossible. A human-skin mask could easily be seen through by a master with keen eyes.
Besides, the Shanxi martial competition was said to be a social gathering where people formed connections through the sword. It was little more than a gathering where acquaintances confirmed one another’s martial skill.
‘Could I turn the gatekeepers into elite martial artists...?’
Jeong Yeon-shin questioned himself inwardly. He did not show it, but the shock had been considerable.
Should he not have left it to his dependable seniors?
Ak Su-rim, however, looked younger than Yeon-shin despite how much he had grown. The Blood Guard Squad Leader was also a problem.
They had said their strange presence would make it difficult for them to gain trust. The current Leader of Demon Wings could not understand that. They looked so impressive.
“Are their aptitudes decent? It would be good if they have practical combat sense.”
“From what I have seen, they seem outstanding. They say the eldest daughter’s position as heir has never once been shaken within the family.”
“I see.”
“That is fortunate.”
Gojin spoke with a small smile.
Then, despite the risk of being rude, he carefully studied Jeong Yeon-shin’s face.
He still could not believe it.
Gongya Su was still a spoiled child beloved by his whole family, while the Leader of Demon Wings had drawn terrifying lightness skills and mysterious arts from the same stream of years Gongya Su had lived through.
It was astonishing.
‘Shanxi has rarely been the center of the martial world...’
The life-and-death duel between the Zhuge Family Head and the three Black Uniforms of Desolate Fortress.
It was difficult even to imagine, yet it sent a thrill through him.
How would it unfold? Who would witness it? The moment it became widely known, it would be a monumental event that sparked a great migration across the vast martial world.
“Word of Sect Leader Geom’s visit has likely reached the Gongya Family’s leadership. I have praised you repeatedly, so they will probably welcome you at least once for the sake of their scholar’s reputation. I expect they will verify your abilities there... It would be best to have your clothes pressed in preparation for the banquet.”
“All right.”
“Hmm? If you leave them to a servant, they’ll take care of it.”
“I see.”
Jeong Yeon-shin withdrew the hand he had extended toward his travel bag.
This was his first time visiting a manor belonging to a great family since leaving Jeong Family Manor. It carried a strange fragrance.
The Second Young Master and eldest daughter, who seemed to have grown up amid boundless love, and even the side residence, both splendid and lonely, carried that same strange scent.
‘I need to sharpen the Light Wheel qi. I may run into the Zhuge Family Head.’
After sending Gojin away, Jeong Yeon-shin sat cross-legged.
* * *
Sunlight and moonlight crossed paths four times.
Geom Un-bi, sect leader of the Huangcheon Sect, spent four days in the unfamiliar side residence.
The food was excellent. As the benefactor of the family’s scholar, he received extremely generous treatment.
That was all.
No one from the Gongya Family came to see him.
Four more hours would make it the fifth day. By then, it was difficult to tell whether this was neglect or hospitality. Yet it felt terribly familiar.
It was like returning to Jeong Family Manor. Distant silence.
Noble clans with much to protect were wary. Only Gojin, the Desolate Fortress martial artist, occasionally visited and lowered his head with an apologetic expression.
Though he was said to be quite formidable, he was young, making it uncertain whether they could set aside appearances and ask him for instruction.
With the eldest daughter as heir, it was all the more understandable that they would hesitate.
“...”
Jeong Yeon-shin blankly watched the winter sunlight sink into dusk from the long, reddish-brown floor of the side residence.
The brief feeling of having returned to Jeong Family Manor was not unpleasant. He could clearly feel the warmth of the Jeong Family Youth Technique settled throughout his body.
The image of his mother he had created himself always shielded him from loneliness.
What he missed more were his fellow disciples from Desolate Fortress. It was the price of creating a swift lightness skill. He was vulnerable to emptiness.
‘Still... I need to work.’
Swish.
He slowly rose to his feet. The time for deliberating over how much to reveal had ended.
* * *
“White Cat of the Shin family, your blanket is sticking out of your travel bag. It’s unpleasant to look at. This Blue Uniform advises you to tuck it in properly. And stop stepping on the grass so carelessly. Act like a martial artist who serves the Lord of Desolate Fortress. You’re ruining the charm of this mountain path.”
“I find the sound of you chewing grass unpleasant.”
“Enough. I understand the Jegal brat, but why does the big-tongued Swordsman look so miserable too? Hey, say something pointless like you usually do.”
“...”
“With the Squad Leader gone, everyone’s acting out of sorts. Perhaps this young master should train in lightness skills too. I’ll create an incredible new one.”
“What?”
“That constellation lightness skill, was it called Ten Miles of Deep Light? It made my family’s Elegant Verse Heavenly King Scripture seem lacking. It was thrilling.”
“Boasting again. If something like that could be created so easily, Senior Opium Poppy would be a Squad Leader too.”
“White Cat, White Cat. Didn’t your horizons broaden through this young master’s Radiant Art Formation, Flame River?”
“Our Squad Leader’s martial lineage is perfect even without that.”
“Yes, yes. Anyway, we’re the ones drawing attention in Shanxi, right? It would be strange for the main fortress to sit quietly as though it knew nothing of that old Jegal’s scheming. In the end, our range of activity for this mission is broader than the Squad Leader’s.”
“Yes. If we happen to meet the Squad Leader, we’ll pretend not to know him. We’ll avoid entering the Gongya Family unless necessary.”
“With our Squad Leader’s temperament, nothing that happens would surprise me. If he were this young master’s younger brother, I’d have handed over the heir’s position long ago, bowed my head, and lived at leisure. The name Huangbo Degenerate would have disappeared, leaving only Huangbo Heavenly Demon standing tall. In ten years or so, wouldn’t the Squad Leader be called the Entering Desolation Divine Demon?”
“Don’t measure the Squad Leader’s patience with your paltry judgment, Senior.”
“Isn’t causing havoc the very foundation of Desolate Fortress? I’m saying that I intend to vent my pent-up rage in Shanxi, so how much worse must our Squad Leader feel? Isn’t that better than being neglected by the Gongya Family? The Squad Leader is your age, so they may look down on him.”
“If that really happens, Senior Opium Poppy will have no chance to step in.”
“Such resolute fighting spirit. Very well, of course.”
Footnotes:
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