WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time ◈
Episode 48: Encounter (2)
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“Yeon-shin, we cannot leave that child like this.”
An old voice echoed through the room.
It was the Lord of Desolate Fortress's office.
An old martial artist in a violet long robe and Ma Jin, dressed in a Black Uniform, sat respectfully before the Lord of Desolate Fortress.
Sunlight streamed through the completely open wall. A pale green halo gathered around the Lord of Desolate Fortress's hair.
Ma Jin gave their father a sidelong glance.
“The closer we approach, the more he may withdraw. He looked as though he felt nothing for blood relatives. I can imagine how he grew up after my sister left. They said he was a child they had cast aside.”
“How dare the likes of Jeong Family Manor.”
Ma Yeon-jeok, Jeong Yeon-shin's maternal grandfather, wore the same expression as Ma Jin. It was close to utter disgust.
“What right do we have to blame that family? We did not even know their clan had been destroyed, yet we spoke of blood ties only after seeing his talent. The fact that he did not curse at a grandfather he had never met is enough to call him a gentleman.”
They were before the Lord of Desolate Fortress, so Ma Jin did not raise their voice.
Even so, Ma Jin spoke sharply while maintaining a cautious manner.
“He has grown into a proper martial artist, but he is not even twenty. Yet he understands reason and clearly distinguishes what comes first and what comes after. That makes him harder to deal with than most adults. Do not try to keep him in your grasp.”
“I can tell from the fact that he did not blindly seek the benefits of a great family. He knows they would turn into poison. He seeks to stand alone without being swept away by strong winds. But that is precisely why.”
Ma Yeon-jeok enunciated every word.
At last, he looked toward the Lord of Desolate Fortress, whose expression remained impossible to read.
“We must not leave him unattended. If the Son of Heaven, His Imperial Majesty, is the sky, then Yeon-shin can become the brightest sun in that vast heaven. The current Divine Sword Squad Leader alone will not suffice. Yeon-shin can become a treasured sword worthy of remaining at Your Lordship's side.”
“That is for the Lord of Desolate Fortress to decide. It is not for my retired father to discuss.”
After rebuking their father, Ma Jin turned their gaze.
At the end of that gaze was the most revered person in Desolate Fortress, the absolute being whom everyone there served.
The Lord of Desolate Fortress's expression rarely changed. There was a reason rumors of her favoring Seom-ye had arisen.
She was like the radiance of the sun. Even when she seemed warm at first glance, she illuminated the world with indifference. She had always been that way.
Her motionless red lips parted.
“Continue.”
She spoke while reclining alone against a tree trunk, yet her presence was different.
Ma Jin swallowed. Few were unaware of her absolute martial strength, so great that even Purple Uniform experts found it difficult to judge their odds of victory.
The same was true of her appearance, unchanged at twenty years old from the founding of the Ming Dynasty until now.
To the people of Xiangyang, she was a living Jade Emperor.
“It is still far in the future. Yet it has already been decades since Your Lordship first spoke of retirement and washing your hands in a golden basin.”
Ma Yeon-jeok stroked his white beard.
“This is what I think. Do not send that child out on missions. Keep him at the main fortress for ten years first, teach him, and bring him to completion as a martial artist. He must not be tainted by the martial world's vulgar ways at such a young age... During that time, we can arrange a match for him and let him build his strength. He will change. He will become a Divine Sword that only Your Lordship can wield.”
“...Yeon-jeok.”
The Lord of Desolate Fortress spoke. No emotion touched her beautiful face.
“Yes, my Lord.”
“Is there no selfishness in your heart?”
“Selfishness, you say...”
“You are no longer the former Divine Sword Squad Leader. You look only like a blood relative of the Desolate Ma family, seeking to raise the family's name.”
“...”
Ma Jin knew their father's temperament. Once Ma Yeon-jeok became wholly focused on a target, he had never failed to obtain it.
That nature was likely what had allowed him to become Divine Sword Squad Leader.
Ma Yeon-jeok suddenly lowered his head.
“Your Lordship is correct. It was difficult to bear. The day I handed the Divine Sword Squad Leader's treasured sword to the current leader was truly miserable. I have been Your Lordship's friend for decades. I will speak honestly.”
“Father! Watch your words!”
Ma Jin's large frame shifted uneasily.
“If it were not about your sister, you would never have acted like this. You do not need to forgive me. A family must endure for a long time. Even after we die and become dust, we will enjoy immortal lives, revered by others. In the end, a name is all that remains to a person.”
“That is enough.”
The Lord of Desolate Fortress's low voice cut through Ma Yeon-jeok's earnest speech.
“I will decide Seom-ye's affairs. Do not flaunt the authority of blood ties again.”
Her clear voice carried an odd transcendence. Her robes brushed against the tree rooted at the pinnacle of the world.
Step.
The Lord of Desolate Fortress extended her pure white bare feet and slowly stepped down.
Sunlight settled lightly across her translucent face.
“The Leader of Demon Wings should depart now. Take care of Seom-ye.”
She spoke to Ma Jin.
“I receive your command.”
Ma Jin became even more respectful and raised their clasped hands.
* * *
Jeong Yeon-shin stood still and thought.
This was different from when he had beheaded a promising junior of the Heart Martial Union. There were too many witnesses here.
The official road leading to Huizhou was broad, and the stream of passersby seemed endless.
This was territory of the orthodox sects. There was not enough justification to kill the youth.
‘I might turn even the Namgung Family into enemies. I cannot handle that in Huizhou.’
He could not kill the youth here. That was fine. He only needed to inflict humiliation equal to death.
Jeong Yeon-shin recalled what Do Yu-won of the Chief Steward's Office had said.
Desolate Fortress often kept facial-feature portraits of mission targets. That had been the case during the mission involving the Blood Flame Sect's Seventh Apostle.
For something prepared over such a long time, it went without saying.
A facial-feature portrait was a sketch showing a person's defining features. The face that came to mind resembled the youth before him.
It was an unexpected encounter. Caught off guard, he had failed to compare them immediately.
‘What if the youth had simply passed by?’
Jeong Yeon-shin reflected on his mistake. If he had to weigh a mission against martial training, the mission naturally came first. He could not afford to neglect his surroundings.
While he was lost in thought, the Huangbo Family youth sneered.
“You are not curious about my epithet? What you are saying is laughable. A rootless wretch is showing such ridiculous stubbornness.”
Jeong Yeon-shin slowly shook his head and spoke.
“You should not be so absorbed in your little world. The Huangbo Family? In the world at large, it is small. You are insignificant.”
“...So you are mad. Ordinary treatment will not be enough.”
The youth's expression darkened. They strode forward. Though their steps looked careless, they followed a disciplined pattern.
Jeong Yeon-shin immediately sensed advanced footwork woven into them. The fluctuations of qi were unusual.
The youth's posture made it seem as though they could respond to anything even while walking.
‘Good.’
From the moment the spar began, Jeong Yeon-shin had kept the youth's entire body fully within his view.
Once the name Huangbo Family was mentioned, spectators had rushed over and looked at him with pity. He did not care.
At last, he would face the martial arts of one of the Eight Great Families. He wanted to know how strong the force that stood at the pinnacle of worldly martial arts truly was.
Jeong Yeon-shin took a step. The qi of the Jeong Family Youth Technique gathered at the Yongquan acupoint beneath his foot.
It was the first step of the Phantom Wing Step. A faint cloud of dust rose from his heel.
He intended to gauge the difference between his martial arts and those of the Eight Great Families.
Shing! Crack!
The Huangbo Family youth drew their sword and stamped down with the True Step.
From the waist of their forward-leaning body, the dazzling blade of a treasured sword rose.
The sword trajectory drew an extremely narrow ellipse, then shot straight at him.
Jeong Yeon-shin raised his right hand.
Clang!
He flicked the side of the blade with the back of his hand. The watching martial artists' eyes widened. It was a feat no one present could easily believe.
Jeong Yeon-shin shook out his hand. The youth's sword force, carried through the vibration, was light.
It was thanks to the Phantom Wing Step, which had already carried him forward at an angle. He had completely diverted the force wave of the sword strike.
“What?!”
The youth's expression went blank. They seemed unable to accept what had happened in that instant.
This time, Jeong Yeon-shin moved forward.
Boom!
With the Ultimate Realm's qi amplification, the force of the Sihwa Boundless Fist erupted from his extended left arm.
The sword the youth reflexively raised was knocked upward.
Qi already coursed through every acupoint in Jeong Yeon-shin's body.
The Shenshu acupoint at his right waist burned with inner energy.
In an instant, his erector spinae and psoas muscles filled with immense strength. The linked follow-up came in a flash.
He twisted his body and drove his right fist straight ahead. A heavy thud rang from the youth's solar plexus.
It landed cleanly. The smooth feel of Huangbo Family fabric wrapped around his fist.
The force wave of the True Wall of the Poetry-Painting Limitless Fist burst forth explosively.
Bang!
The youth's body flew away as though struck by a cannonball.
Jeong Yeon-shin slowly spread all five fingers of his right hand and looked down. The path of the strike was clear.
Demon's Light was blending into his unique martial arts.
“The Huangbo Family's martial arts seem deep enough.”
He spoke.
“But you are nothing special.”
His words were calm, though disappointment colored his voice.
The face clearly resembled the portrait kept by Desolate Fortress. Still, someone like that could not be the Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family.
They said the Young Family Head was a genius with the Sun God Meridian. Jeong Yeon-shin had heard that even the White Qilin, Namgung Hwa-shin, whom he had once met, had never exchanged blows with the Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family.
There was an age gap between them, and Namgung Hwa-shin had expected certain defeat.
“Not the Young Family Head, then. Perhaps the Second Young Master?”
No one answered Jeong Yeon-shin's question. Everyone seemed too stunned to speak.
Quite a crowd had gathered along the official road by then, yet they all remained silent.
Jeong Yeon-shin slowly turned his gaze. The woman who had picked a quarrel alongside the youth looked utterly dazed.
Disbelief filled her eyes as she stared at the youth convulsing on the ground.
“How could a nobody possibly... This makes no sense...”
“I did not kill them. The Huangbo Family must have miraculous medicine, right? Give them some, and they will get back up just fine.”
“You...!”
The woman sharply turned her head. Her eyes were fierce enough that coldness seemed to rise from their upturned corners.
“I've marked you. I am Huangbo Myeong-rin. Gu Gwa of the Chusil Sect, I will not forget you.”
“I have time to take you on as well. Shall we continue the spar?”
“...”
“If you are a martial family, you cannot have sent only youngsters. Are there no elders here? Where is the Young Family Head?”
At that moment, someone grabbed Jeong Yeon-shin's arm. It was Shin So-bin, her eyes round with shock.
At the same time, aura spread from her lips. It was sound transmission.
-Senior. Aren't you provoking them a little too much? We need to survey the terrain nearby. If the Huangbo Family comes rushing in, this will turn into a pursuit.
Though she spoke through sound transmission, she whispered. She seemed completely frightened.
Jeong Yeon-shin tilted his head slightly, confused.
‘Provoking them? What did I do?’
He had not even started yet. He slowly took another step.
‘The mission is everything.’
There was one thing he especially liked about being part of Desolate Fortress. Its purpose of protecting the people's welfare was clear.
The merits he needed to accumulate to survive were clean. At least, they had been so far.
A sect that could be classified as neither orthodox nor unorthodox was called a faction between orthodox and unorthodox.
The Chusil Sect, which Jeong Yeon-shin's group currently pretended to belong to, was one such faction. They avoided vicious conduct, but they did not raise the banner of chivalry either.
They lived in the martial world for profit and reputation.
‘Then I should imitate a faction between orthodox and unorthodox.’
Huangbo Family retainers had gathered around the fallen youth and Huangbo Myeong-rin.
Jeong Yeon-shin circulated qi through his entire body. The instant his foot touched the ground, a gust of fair wind wrapped around his ears.
In that moment, the Huangbo Family members suddenly loomed larger before his eyes. He slipped through all of them with a movement technique like a leaf riding the wind.
“Ah!”
“What?!”
All manner of missed gusts brushed past behind him.
Jeong Yeon-shin saw Huangbo Myeong-rin feeding a medicinal pill to the youth lying on the ground.
She looked up at the sound of his approach, and her face twisted.
“I challenge you to a spar as well. You were the one who brought up lineage. If you are a person of the martial world, accept.”
Jeong Yeon-shin grabbed Huangbo Myeong-rin by the nape and pulled her to her feet. His bearing was terrifying. No one could interfere.
Then someone spoke from one side.
“Wait. That is far enough.”
A young man holding a gourd smiled as he addressed them. The smell of alcohol wafted over.
He looked about ten years older than Jeong Yeon-shin. Though he wore silk martial clothes, he approached with the air of someone in tattered rags.
He even had a raw opium poppy clamped in his mouth. He was a handsome man with the appearance of a complete wreck.
His smile beneath eyes shadowed in black was languid.
“My younger siblings were wrong in what they said, but that is a bit excessive.”
A fierce heat blazed from the man's entire body. His presence was overwhelming, as though he had cultivated some divine art of blazing yang.
Sun God Meridian.
The term flashed through Jeong Yeon-shin's mind.
The face matched the portrait exactly. This man was the Young Family Head of the Huangbo Family.
Footnotes:
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