WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Episode 373: Grand Contest (3)
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Secular masters who had reached a high realm of internal cultivation tended to be great eaters.
It was not simply because martial arts consumed their abundant vitality. Food itself was a refinement of natural qi.
Just as those raised in luxury or practitioners of Buddhist immortality digest elixir pills into inner power, masters of internal cultivation who had completed a major circulation of qi treated every meal as a modest spiritual medicine.
It was a form of eating that led to lofty qi storage, burning away every trace of impurity without leaving a speck behind.
That was why even humble sects that struggled to obtain spiritual medicine could produce supreme masters.
‘Even so, they need to retain enough nourishment to maintain their muscle strength...’
Jeong Yeon-shin sat in a cozy guest room, lost in thought.
The room carried the quiet scent unique to a temple.
An extremely thin nun watched Jeong Yeon-shin with unfathomable eyes.
Three elderly nuns of similar age sat on either side of her.
They were all bhikkhunis of the Ami Sect.
―To think the Dark King Among Flowers was truly this young... I heard he even hastened his growth through Marrow Cleansing and Bone Reforging.
―Rumor says he is only seventeen or eighteen. He has not even reached twenty.
―About the martial contest system, is the young benefactor not taking on too great a burden? No matter how exceptional his martial arts and status may be, standing among the leaders of great factions... It is truly regrettable.
―I cannot help but pity him. Our junior sister is right.
―I worry about our sect leader senior sister's manner. She never softens what she means to say...
―I heard Desolate Fortress's youngest Black Uniform strongly takes after his grandfather. The Tyrant Hero, that is.
Gentle ripples of inner power brushed past Jeong Yeon-shin's ears and faded like sighs.
The nuns' sound transmissions were whispers sealed within aura according to the profound formula of secret sound transmission. Yet Jeong Yeon-shin's upper dantian effortlessly unraveled their structures of qi and interpreted them in his mind.
That was the upper dantian's doing.
Unlike its owner, it was quite curious. Jeong Yeon-shin had not intended it. That was certainly true.
‘The Baihui acupoint is the problem.’
Instead, Jeong Yeon-shin worried for the Ami Sect leader sitting silently before him.
Her body looked as though flesh had merely been draped over her bones. Compared to the burly Shaolin monks he had encountered, she was far too gaunt, even considering that she was well past sixty.
Then Master Baek Yak suddenly spoke.
“Is there something you wish to say?”
Her voice was firm despite her frail appearance. The amount of qi she had stored was so immense that even the air trembled for a moment.
Only then did Jeong Yeon-shin notice the ordination scars stamped onto the Ami Sect leader's forehead. Nine of them. Those red marks symbolized the status of Sichuan's most exalted martial nun.
It was said that only the Shaolin abbot and the chief monk of the Potala Palace Beyond the Pass bore the same number of ordination scars.
She was, without question, a peerless master among the orthodox sects.
“Did you not summon me, Master? Please ask what you wish.”
Jeong Yeon-shin answered politely. He saw her as an elderly and venerable nun, not an absolute master of the martial world.
The Ami nuns around them flinched slightly, while Master Baek Yak spoke with an expressionless face.
“I asked because I wished to know your thoughts.”
“...?”
“I have made up my mind. Benefactor Jeong is not suited for this martial contest system.”
“Why not?”
Jeong Yeon-shin straightened slightly.
He had heard the Ami nuns speak of his age earlier, but his shoulders had broadened beyond comparison with before his Marrow Cleansing and Bone Reforging. He now clearly looked like an adult.
“A moment ago, I faintly sensed qi flowing from outside. It was astonishingly auspicious.”
“Was it because of the Golden-Wing Sect Master?”
Master Baek Yak gave a small nod.
“Things that feel auspicious to people are fundamentally similar in some way. Whether it is the inner power of a Buddhist immortal or the energy of a spiritual beast. If they bore no resemblance at all, it would be difficult to group them together as auspicious.”
“That is true.”
“The Heaven-Governing Dragon-Slaying Art is a divine art that shatters the energy of Destroy Evil, Reveal Righteousness. Its essence lies in slaughtering flood dragons, so anyone who possesses numinous inner power must avoid the Golden-Wing Sect Master.”
The Golden-Wing Sect Master's Heaven-Governing Dragon-Slaying Art.
What Jeong Yeon-shin had heard before matched the Ami Sect leader's words.
It was a martial art created to hunt and kill flood dragons, beings considered the pinnacle of spiritual beasts. Master Baek Yak had even exchanged blows with the Golden-Wing Sect Master personally.
“My Guanyin Golden Peak Force Qi shattered after three kicks. When I struck back with the Tiger-Subduing Palm Art, she met my palms with hers. She gave me no chance to build up a force wave.”
She spoke quietly.
“That was the Heaven-Turning Dragon-Slaying Form. Thunderous Force Projection erupted in an instant, stripping away my Protective Qi Technique completely.”
“The sect's worship hall beside us was sent flying as well. As if it had been struck by a barrage of fire bombs...”
One of the elderly nuns beside her added.
The Ami Sect's worship hall was the Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas.
It was an exceptionally historic place.
Countless tiny Buddha statues filled it, drawing incense pilgrims from beyond Sichuan to leave monetary offerings there.
It was also famous for being as large as a respectable palace.
“The Golden-Wing Sect Master's Heaven-Turning Dragon-Slaying Form, empowered by the Heaven-Governing Dragon-Slaying Art, was originally a martial art meant to shatter a flood dragon's scales. This time, I keenly experienced its power.”
“...”
“One who cultivates the inner power of Buddhist immortals must not receive it head-on. The whole world knows this. No one can fault such a young benefactor for avoiding the Golden-Wing Sect Master. I have already spoken with Qingcheng's sect leader, so I ask that you observe how the contests unfold and take on someone other than the Golden-Wing Sect Master.”
Jeong Yeon-shin fell silent for a moment.
None of the Nine Sects had failed to leave an impression on him, but this was the first time he had been treated as such a child. Even though he now looked like an adult.
‘The nuns of Ami are compassionate.’
The resolve he had steeled to avenge Ha Do-un, the Swift Heaven Wing Squad Leader, seemed to loosen for a moment.
Still, the Golden-Wing Sect Master, who regularly performed human sacrifices using a formation, had to die by his hand.
“...”
As Master Baek Yak studied Jeong Yeon-shin quietly, sound transmissions passed endlessly among the nuns on either side.
Every one of them expressed confusion.
Given their sect leader senior sister's nature, she ought to have ended the discussion at once. It was strange to see her trying so hard to convince the Leader of Demon Wings.
They also wondered about the energy she had said she sensed from him.
Master Baek Yak suddenly spoke.
“You have a fine face, but you are stubborn.”
“I am the one who convened this martial contest system.”
Jeong Yeon-shin replied calmly.
“I know you interfered with the Golden-Wing Sect Master's plans. If you act first out of boldness, the Ten Perfect Sect Master and the Pure Demon Alliance Leader will surely step back. You would draw out the Golden-Wing Sect Master.”
Master Baek Yak's tone was certain.
Jeong Yeon-shin inwardly tilted his head.
“I only seized a single formation. It was not something difficult or significant.”
“Was it not a flood dragon sorcery formation?”
“It had no safeguards against being broken. It was likely a minor matter. They may be able to prepare another formation quickly.”
“...I have not seen how she treats a mortal enemy.”
“If that is so, who will face the Golden-Wing Sect Master? The Qingcheng Taoists are famous for weaving Taoist power into their sword arts.”
Jeong Yeon-shin asked. He meant that the same would apply no matter which of them stepped forward.
Master Baek Yak slowly rolled a large prayer bead between her fingers. Her face remained impassive, showing the bearing of an absolute master of the orthodox sects.
“I intend to step forward.”
“...?”
“This martial contest system is not a winner-stays-on format. Even if I am slain by the Golden-Wing Sect Master, I can blunt the edge of those unorthodox sects.”
She was saying she would throw away her own life. It was not something Jeong Yeon-shin expected to hear from a leader of the Nine Sects, whose orthodox martial arts ought to grant a long life. His eyes darkened.
“You mean for both sides to trade lives?”
“Desolate Fortress is clashing with many of the Thirteen Heavens, and famine has grown severe in recent times. Because of this, the conduct of the Demonic Sect has gone beyond all bounds... If we cannot cut off their momentum here, the people of Sichuan will have to bear troubles that never leave them for the rest of their lives.”
Destroy Evil, Reveal Righteousness. Slay demons and eradicate heresy.
At this moment, Master Baek Yak was a person of the martial world. She saw this life-and-death martial contest system as a grave matter that would determine the fate of this land.
“Please understand, Benefactor. My defeat at the Golden-Wing Sect Master's hands was not solely because my own martial arts were lacking. Setting compatibility aside, these eyes clearly witnessed her divine art.”
“...”
“There is no chance of victory. This old nun must go first.”
The elderly nun's voice filled the guest room with stillness.
No inner power infused it, yet it still carried weight. The spirituality unique to one who had perfected a divine art shook the air.
The sect leader of Ami, one of the Nine Sects.
Her martial attainment was unimaginably deep. She had surely attained Transcendent Martial Art.
No matter how many times they fought, Jeong Yeon-shin could picture himself losing at least once. Even now, he could hardly guarantee a certain victory against her.
“I shall ask again.”
Master Baek Yak continued slowly. She seemed to imply that after sensing her martial prowess, he ought to agree with her judgment.
“When you first saw this old nun, what did you think?”
She thought of it.
A young benefactor had faced the leader of one of the Nine Sects.
It was their first meeting.
Anyone would have felt an insurmountable wall. Even peerless masters of similar standing would have.
The complex martial learning that Jeong Yeon-shin had accumulated to reach his current realm made even Baek Yak feel as though she faced a wall.
Both were peerless masters who had honed their upper dantians to the extreme. There was no way for lies to pass between them.
There could only be one answer.
Jeong Yeon-shin looked into the elderly nun's clear eyes and cautiously opened his mouth.
“I thought you should strengthen your muscles and nourish your body...”
“...?”
While Master Baek Yak blinked slowly, Jeong Yeon-shin felt somewhat relieved. He could finally say what had been bothering him, even on the eve of such an important martial contest.
“As the leader of Ami, you are someone the people can rely upon. Yet both sides of your back are terribly narrow. Are you supporting your lumbar spine with inner energy rather than muscle?”
“...This old nun's inner power is like the waters flowing down Mount Sumeru...”
“I do not sense much energy from your psoas muscles either. You should not live with such a body. Ami's martial arts must also have Spinning Thread Force. I worry that something unfortunate may happen when you rotate your waist. Do you eat enough beans? I have wanted to ask you this for some time.”
Hummm.
Things surged through Jeong Yeon-shin's mind like a rushing current.
It was inspiration, something he had not felt in a long time. It shone brilliantly.
How had a body built from little more than threadlike muscles received the Golden-Wing Sect Master's martial arts?
How could someone withstand a fierce blow strong enough to shatter flood dragon scales with such low physical strength?
Judging from Master Baek Yak's appearance, she seemed to have escaped without any critical injuries.
‘She must have manipulated the acupoints through which inner power was emitted with extraordinary flexibility. There is no other answer. Her muscles are too weak.’
Come to think of it, the peerless master known as Wudang's High Sword had also survived a battle with the Golden-Wing Sect Master.
‘Master Baek Yak surpassed Three Flowers Gather at the Crown and attained Transcendent Martial Art. Rather than ordinary footwork, she must have used an inner-power-propelled force wave. With a method that projected force inward rather than at her opponent, she could make her movements far faster and more flexible...’
It was speculation close to foresight.
His knowledge, accumulated in a short yet dense span, crashed together and locked into place like lightning.
Jeong Yeon-shin did not stop talking.
He genuinely felt sorry for this elderly nun who had cultivated Buddhist power so deeply.
“Your waist is not the only concern. The Jianliao acupoint over the triangular muscle near your shoulder is also a problem. The essence of fist arts lies in rotation, but with such a thin muscular sheath, how did you endure such powerful blows... You seem to have mastered a truly lofty principle. If I had to guess, when the Golden-Wing Sect Master's Force Projection reached its peak at the point of impact, through the principle that extremes reverse...”
Jeong Yeon-shin's words held sincerity. The peerless master who had honed her upper dantian to its limit felt it from nearby as she faced him.
Then.
A faint line formed at the corners of Master Baek Yak's mouth.
Footnotes:
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