WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Episode 339: Tyrant's Way (4)
──────
Desolate Fortress promotion ceremonies were conducted under the Lord of Desolate Fortress's supervision.
They were like the palace examination, which the Emperor personally oversaw. The same applied from the Blue Uniform onward, so a promotion to Purple Uniform could not even be discussed without the Lord of Desolate Fortress present.
Even the Tyrant Hero's formidable name could not disrupt the laws.
That was why the current Leader of Demon Wings could refuse the long robe offered by the former Divine Sword Squad Leader. Its color was burdensome as well. The plain black robe he wore now was preferable.
His original long robe had been torn apart by the Zhuge Family Head, and this one had been given to him by the Gongya Family's eldest daughter.
The corners of Ma Yeon-jeok's mouth rose.
The pink long robe in the young old man's hand looked more splendid than ever today.
It was because the art he had displayed had drawn the starlight from the night sky together like balls of thread.
“Five Qi Return to Origin, Transcendent Martial Art. Once you have fully comprehended the martial arts you have created over the years, your thoughts will change. Though it seems you will wear the Purple Uniform before that... Let us put this off for now.”
Jeong Yeon-shin watched him put the long robe back on, then spoke.
“When will I see you again?”
He asked because his grandfather seemed to be preparing to leave.
His grandfather had just given him a rough explanation of the Purple Uniform martial world.
It was a demon-suppressing den, or so it was called. Yeon-shin had heard that it confronted the supernatural phenomena that had appeared alongside the elven race during the founding era.
His grandfather had come a great distance after hearing that his grandson was in danger, despite having little time to spare. It was only right for him to return as quickly as possible.
Ma Yeon-jeok patted his grandson's shoulder. A gentle warmth flowed from his large hand.
“This old man cannot keep involving himself in your travels through the martial world. I will lend my strength from afar for your promotion and your lifespan, but I cannot turn away from the realm's safety and withdraw from it. This grandfather of yours has always been the Divine Sword Squad Leader. Even after I handed the title of Divine Sword to that fellow from the Dragon family, and even when I saw my daughter off...”
It meant he had too much work piled up.
His voice trailed off for a moment before he removed his hand from Yeon-shin's shoulder.
“We will meet again when you rise to Purple Uniform and take on duties like mine. Matters requiring two peerless masters are exceedingly rare... but in troubled times like these, no one can know what may happen.”
“Then I'll see you soon.”
The proud grandfather and grandson shared a smile.
Hummm.
The distorted space suddenly returned to normal.
Beams of light bearing mandala-like patterns straightened one after another and faded away. Above them, where the night sky had felt like barred iron, transparent winds once more swept past.
Yeon-shin studied the sight closely. He felt he needed to encounter more peerless masters.
‘Transcendent Martial Art.’
The intent that embraced every technique one possessed.
A decisive ultimate move, so demanding that anyone without a sufficiently deep realm would struggle to use it even once in a life-and-death duel.
The Moyong Family Head's sword domain was an art that heightened the blade's speed.
Only after exchanging moves with Yeon-shin for a long time had he been able to create that space. By Yeon-shin's count, it had come on the three hundred twenty-fifth move.
“Your Three Flowers Gather at the Crown will not take long. Even now, I can clearly feel you repeatedly unifying and releasing it.”
Swish.
The hem of the pink robe brushed the dirt. Ma Yeon-jeok rose and continued.
“Eat as much as you can. Marrow Cleansing and Bone Reforging is a truly strange transformation. It invigorates the body's vital essence while consuming stamina, so if you put on a little flesh, your essence, qi, and spirit will naturally align. Seeing how thin your face has become troubles me. At least your muscles have grown thicker... Though the more I think about it, the more astonishing it is.”
Yeon-shin rose as well, then changed the subject in embarrassment.
“The wild boars you caught, are they all for me...?”
Ma Yeon-jeok nodded.
“I wanted to see you promoted, but it seems my timing is poor. At least gain some weight and put this grandfather's heart at ease. You learned how to smoke meat from your uncle, did you not?”
“...Yes.”
“If you fill out your cheeks a little more, you will become a peerlessly handsome man. You take after your mother, no less handsome than Song Yu and Pan...”
Ma Yeon-jeok could not bring himself to say Pan Yue's name and turned away. Song Yu and Pan Yue were handsome men of old, often invoked in classical anecdotes.
“May you remain well until we meet again. You have beheaded two of the Eight Family Heads, so the martial artists at the main fortress must be anxiously awaiting your return. They will not care how much the martial world is shaken because of you.”
Yeon-shin bowed to him.
The late-winter wind was warm. The moment Yeon-shin said he hoped his grandfather would remain safe as well, Ma Yeon-jeok's presence shot into the air with a deep laugh.
A fierce gust swept in at once and ruffled Yeon-shin's hair.
* * *
When Yeon-shin descended into the village, familiar faces entered his sight.
The swordsman wearing a hero's headband and the wastrel chewing opium poppy.
They were confronting a black-haired, red-eyed woman who had already risen to her feet. Only the Seventh Apostle looked at ease.
Her Pure Blood Robe was vivid red, wrapped around her and falling in smooth lines over her shoulders.
There was no flow of force waves at all. She looked as though she had simply wrapped herself in bedding, far from serious.
With a thin red smile, she only watched Hyeon Won-chang and the Languid Flame Dragon's auras closely through her crimson eyes.
Then her lips moved.
“I’m deeper.”
Anyone could have seen her intent in those words. With no more than a brief glance, she had compared their martial attainments.
Radiant Art Formation and Mara True Blood Art. Both martial arts had come from one person.
Yeon-shin, who had been taking a step, tilted his head inwardly.
‘Why is she pretty?’
“Squad Leader!”
Shin So-bin had been standing off to one side, fidgeting anxiously. The girl beamed when she met Yeon-shin's eyes and waved vigorously.
As a White Uniform martial artist, there was nothing she could do in this situation.
“What are we supposed to do here?”
At the same time, Yeon-shin's body cut through the air.
Step.
With his sleeves fluttering, he positioned himself between the two sides. He parted the heated wind stirred up by Hyeon Won-chang and the Languid Flame Dragon with his body.
The translucent currents tore upward with a deafening roar.
‘I’ve grown heavier.’
Yeon-shin swallowed a small exclamation. His pants, now shortened to his calves, were a little bothersome, but the winds of aura produced by his two companions were far heavier than that.
They had gone through many things. The masters of Demon Wings had never stopped catching up to their Squad Leader's progress.
“It has only been a few days, yet I cannot get used to it. I almost did not recognize you.”
Seeing Yeon-shin unharmed, Hyeon Won-chang relaxed the atmosphere with a relieved expression.
It had been difficult to make out the Squad Leader within that strangely warped space, and the person who had once kidnapped Yeon-shin had calmly greeted them. They had no choice but to remain wary.
“I just arrived. White Cat looked like she was about to tell me something, but there was no time to listen with a demon like that in front of us.”
Standing crookedly, the Languid Flame Dragon spoke with slurred pronunciation.
This was immediately after he had confirmed the Squad Leader's safety. The movement of his jaw as he chewed the opium poppy slowed.
“As you know, she is the Blood Flame Sect's Seventh Apostle.”
Yeon-shin spoke.
“She saved Demon Wings in the City of Master Craftsmen. She will accompany us to the main fortress.”
“What did you just say...?”
The Languid Flame Dragon closed and opened his eyes once. Yeon-shin paid no attention to the stunned look on the opium-poppy chewer's face.
“We need to cure her qi deviation, but we have no time. Cooperate as repayment.”
He did not explain at length.
Desolate Fortress was a faction that operated much like a military force.
The current Leader of Demon Wings rarely treated his companions like subordinates, but the masters of Demon Wings never argued against a decision he had made.
The Languid Flame Dragon, who only became sharp when battle began, was no different.
“If it is an order, I will obey.”
The former eldest young master of the Huangbo Family nodded readily.
The Eight Great Families had long proclaimed themselves orthodox sects, regardless of their worldly tendencies.
Yeon-shin had been choosing words to persuade them, but now doubt surfaced within him. Had the time they spent together and their increased martial prowess turned into trust?
“Will traveling with her be safe?”
“The Seventh Apostle is weak. She only seems like a master to you. Do not worry.”
“Weak...?”
“We do not need to procure food. We are returning to the main fortress.”
Yeon-shin glanced at the three wild boars lying nearby.
“Seventh Apostle, cover your eyes.”
“Okay.”
Rustle. The Seventh Apostle took a white cloth from her robes and covered both eyes. She was remarkably obedient, enough to make her past actions seem unreal.
The moment the Blood-Protecting Brocade Blindfold, a precious dharma treasure of the Blood Flame Sect, covered her eyes, the irregular aura unique to Blood Arts vanished without a trace.
Yeon-shin watched her for a moment before suddenly speaking.
“The final mnemonic formula of the Mara True Blood Art is...”
“Hm? Grand Preceptor, we have not even started yet. Why is it the final one? I only remember the first mnemonic formula.”
She said they had not even begun, yet claimed she had received the first mnemonic formula.
The Seventh Apostle's rambling came smoothly, laced with a faint madness. Yeon-shin had no choice but to ask.
“You have regained your senses, haven't you?”
“Hmm?”
Her reply, mixed with a thin breath, settled into the night air.
He could not question her further.
He did not.
* * *
They traveled south toward Huguang, where Desolate Fortress's main fortress stood.
There were countless cities to pass through before reaching Xiangyang in Huguang Province. Naturally, they heard many rumors.
“I heard the Star Radiance Great Sword Lord died.”
“You mean one of the Eight Family Heads? What nonsense.”
“No, it is true. You know Desolate Fortress's noble young master? They say the young Leader of Demon Wings sent the Meteor Sword flying.”
“That fellow who beheaded the Zhuge Family Head...?”
“Exactly!”
As news of the Moyong Family Head's death gradually spread and shook the vast land, they heard that the escalating conflict between the Tang Sect and Golden-Wing Sect was shaking Sichuan.
There were also rumors that Master Won Jeok of Shaolin had slain a monster near the Gongya Family in Shanxi.
“Master Won Jeok's hand grew this huge, then smashed the monster's spears and swords in one strike! I clearly saw the Heart Martial Union soldiers suffer alongside it!”
“They said Hero White Qilin had been active in the south... The orthodox lot truly are different.”
“The only ones different are the Nine Sects and Desolate Fortress. I heard that, in one village, a martial family pretending to be an orthodox sect seized the government office. These days, nothing can be trusted. If you have grain stored away, guard it well.”
“They say an enormous fog rose in Xinjiang and is already reaching Sichuan. What is happening to the world...?”
Among the countless rumors, Yeon-shin confirmed that Master Won Jeok was safe.
That was a relief. Before confronting the Moyong Family Head, he had placed Galhon, the squirrel, in Shin So-bin's arms together with a Purple Cloud Pellet. Whenever it occasionally poked its head out and tilted it in confusion, it had made him uneasy.
‘If I am to return Galhon, I should visit Shaolin someday.’
Rumors that made the troubled times feel real continued until their group of five entered Xiangyang.
The official road was packed with people.
Martial artists with the character for desolation emblazoned on their shoulders began to appear here and there. At the same time, Yeon-shin's heart settled comfortably.
It was a sense of stability beyond comparison to Xinye County, where Jeong Family Manor stood. At last, he had returned home.
A gleaming white fortress appeared in the distance.
They had reached Desolate Fortress. Their long journey to Shanxi had come to an end.
“Grand Preceptor.”
“Do not call me that here.”
“Yeon... shin. Yeon-shin.”
“Speak.”
“I remember something. I think I cut off someone's arm here.”
“What?”
“It may cause trouble for you. It was a woman from the Ju family.”
“Ju Yeon-jeong of the Desolate Ma family?”
“Yes, I think so. I heard she treated you badly.”
The Seventh Apostle's hair brushed Yeon-shin's shoulder. That was why he stopped.
Her words did not shock him anew. Strange ripples of inner energy could be felt throughout the main fortress. They were the aura of Phantom Wing Step.
At the same time.
Someone approached them.
It was a woman with long, toned limbs. Passersby who had been moving about nearby and stealing glances at Hyeon Won-chang and the Languid Flame Dragon scattered with shrill cries.
“Dragon Fist...?”
“It is Yeo-ui Cheon Ju!”
She had appeared out of nowhere, as if she had been watching Desolate Fortress's main gate all day.
Yeo-ui Cheon Ju, Bukgung A.
She wore an extraordinarily lavish black robe. Its hem split into many strips like ceremonial attire, and it billowed in the air like black flames.
The dark martial garb wrapped around her unusually long legs bore many small cuts, as though she had just come through a fierce battle.
There was something strange about her approaching steps.
Step.
“...?”
They were familiar, yet unfamiliar to Yeon-shin's eyes. It was like watching a strangely disordered Phantom Wing Step.
The woman spoke.
“Judging from your bearing, you people have learned Phantom Wing Step as well. You in particular. It is astonishing that I cannot sense your aura... Are you from Nethercurrent Squad, or Blood Guard Squad? Those bats were raising a hidden dragon.”
Without first asking what was happening, she addressed them as though it were the most natural thing. Yeon-shin's group came to a stop.
“Let us compare our footwork. If you can follow me through three steps, I will give you a precious Internal Injury Pill. If your journey has been exhausting and you need rest, I can understand that...”
Yeo-ui Cheon Ju continued saying something.
Yeon-shin did not listen any further. His expression went blank as he sank into despair.
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
