WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Order
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◈ The Heaven-Slaying Sword ◈
Chapter 41: Chapter Five - Dragon-Phoenix Assembly (14)
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What the hell was that crazy bitch doing?
That was the first thought that crossed Dang Hwa-seo's mind when she saw Hye-un brazenly leaning against Mok Ri-won's shoulder.
It felt as though her blood were rushing backward.
Her fist clenched hard enough to shatter, and her teeth ground together with a sharp scrape.
Dang Hwa-seo now knew why.
The love she had finally recognized was raging at that sight.
As the meditation she had managed to maintain all the way to the dueling platform, along with the imperturbability it had earned her, crumbled to pieces, Dang Hwa-seo struggled to catch her breath.
“Do you have time to be thinking about something else?”
A voice cold enough to freeze pierced her ear.
Startled, Dang Hwa-seo turned her head and found Namgung Jin-cheon staring at her with an expression so indifferent it defied description.
“…What are you trying to say?”
“Exactly what I said. Do you have time to think about anything else?”
How dare you let your attention wander before me.
He did not say it aloud, but Dang Hwa-seo understood.
That meaning lay behind his words.
Still, it was not anger.
He truly did not understand the idea of someone being distracted while facing him, or the possibility that anything in this world could matter more than he did.
‘He’s still such an unpleasant sort.’
He was utterly emotionless.
And arrogant.
Yet that was precisely why he seemed so lofty.
Without realizing it, Dang Hwa-seo felt her heart grow cold beneath those jade-blue eyes devoid of emotion.
“It will not affect the duel, so do not wor—”
“Ink Sword, was it?”
“…”
“So after six years, the best you could do was hook yourself a man?”
It was another emotionless question.
Anger swelled within Dang Hwa-seo.
Namgung Jin-cheon continued.
“You seemed useful enough six years ago. Now you’re no different from the rest.”
Namgung Jin-cheon’s gaze swept over Dang Hwa-seo.
“You’ve regressed.”
Crunch.
Dang Hwa-seo’s fist tightened.
“…You’ll regret saying that before we’ve even fought.”
“Are you an idiot? What kind of thought process leads you to conclude that I could lose?”
“It seems Sword Dragon has spent all these years training his mouth. You’re awfully eager to provoke your opponent with words.”
“Your choice of words has regressed as well. I do not provoke people. I see no need for it.”
Dang Hwa-seo’s aura grew vicious.
The atmosphere sharpened accordingly, while the unfortunate host caught between them could only let his eyes dart wildly.
“Um... shall we begi—”
“Whenever you like.”
Only after Dang Hwa-seo answered did the host take a step back.
Then, after steadying himself, he shouted at the top of his lungs.
[Th-then, the duel shall begin! Poison Phoenix! Sword Dragon! Step forward!]
The host raised his hand.
Namgung Jin-cheon lowered his sword, while Dang Hwa-seo began letting Qi Waves stream from her body.
The moment that hand fell, the duel would begin.
Dang Hwa-seo refined her inner energy to seize that instant.
‘If I fail to land the first move, I’ve already lost.’
Namgung Jin-cheon was strong.
That was why he was arrogant.
It was the only opening Dang Hwa-seo could exploit.
A man whose pride soared higher than the sky would surely intend to receive her first move head-on.
‘First...’
Dang Hwa-seo combined the poisons within her body.
Qi-dispersing poison and paralysis poison, alongside poisons that caused rigidity and destroyed muscle.
Poisons potent enough to leave even Namgung Jin-cheon bedridden for a week seeped into her Qi Waves.
[Begin!]
The host’s hand fell.
Dang Hwa-seo shot forward at the same time, scattering Qi Waves all around her.
Whoosh!
It was like a surging tide.
Dark green Qi Waves rose from the ground and began swallowing Namgung Jin-cheon’s body.
Even then, Namgung Jin-cheon simply stood there with his sword lowered.
‘Got him!’
Just as she had expected, Namgung Jin-cheon had not moved, and the poison had struck him head-on.
As Dang Hwa-seo came to that conclusion...
“…Is that all?”
Namgung Jin-cheon’s brow furrowed.
The first change in expression he had shown since stepping onto the dueling platform clearly carried disappointment and anger.
Blue Qi Waves exploded outward.
* * *
“I knew that would happen.”
Hye-un clicked her tongue.
Her gaze was fixed on Dang Hwa-seo, who was being swept around the platform like a fallen leaf.
“It is a lack of information. He has only ever released his qi properly after reaching the semifinals, and Poison Phoenix has not faced Namgung Jin-cheon in nearly six years. That is why she made such a basic mistake.”
“He pushed the poison away with his inner power.”
“Once someone reaches the peak, it is an easy thing to do.”
“Venerable Hye-un could not do it, could you?”
“…I could if I trained a little more.”
Mok Ri-won watched the dueling ground with a grim expression.
‘…He’s overwhelming.’
His heart felt heavy.
Namgung Jin-cheon had yet to swing his sword even once.
He was simply releasing his overflowing inner power and crushing Dang Hwa-seo with Qi Waves alone.
Yet Dang Hwa-seo was already battered and broken.
‘I expected this, but...’
The difference in their level was simply too great.
“What do you think, Benefactor Mok? Do you still believe Poison Phoenix will put up a good fight?”
Mok Ri-won pressed his lips together at Hye-un’s question.
When Hye-un smiled as though she had won, Mok Ri-won finally spoke.
“…I do. I don’t think the young lady will go down so easily.”
“Ha! You still...”
“She has not shown anything yet.”
Hye-un’s mouth closed.
Mok Ri-won kept his eyes fixed on the dueling ground.
It was faith impossible to understand.
Yet Mok Ri-won had something close to certainty.
‘You can do it.’
Mok Ri-won alone could tell.
The Heavenly Slaughter Star.
As someone who bore that malicious martial talent, he could sense it.
‘Then show it.’
Dang Hwa-seo had already reached the end of the wall.
Her inner power had risen high enough to overcome the barrier of the Peak Realm.
Only she had not realized it yet.
Mok Ri-won knew why.
‘Cast away your hesitation.’
She still lacked certainty in herself.
She lacked fundamental faith in her martial arts.
And she had no clear mental image, no goal to guide her as she stepped beyond the ordinary.
‘Think of it. What do you truly want to become?’
If she found that, Dang Hwa-seo would be able to overcome the wall.
* * *
The crushing pressure bearing down on her shoulders made Dang Hwa-seo feel as though she would vomit.
‘Damn it...!’
She could not move even a finger.
The poison she had thought she had driven straight into him was nowhere to be felt. Every move she had tried must have amounted to nothing.
It was infuriating.
She was furious enough to go mad at her own weakness, at the enormous gap between them, and at this body that was breaking without even trying to struggle against it.
Still, there was something that angered her even more.
‘Is that all?’
Those jade-blue eyes looking down at her as if to ask whether this was truly all she could do.
That was it.
“Is this all you prepared? Is there truly nothing more?”
Namgung Jin-cheon did not swing his sword.
He simply asked again, his voice full of disappointment.
It was a natural response for him.
“Your eyes are not dead. If you have more to show, then show more.”
Namgung Jin-cheon still remembered.
The Dragon Phoenix Gathering final six years ago.
How ferocious Dang Hwa-seo’s aura had been that day.
How full of spirit she had looked, charging at him like someone prepared to die that very day.
“I will not swing my sword until then. I promise you.”
Only three moves.
Yet to Namgung Jin-cheon, they had been the most novel three moves he had ever experienced.
The feeling he had felt then still lingered in his memory.
He had only agreed to this childish game because he wished to feel that stimulus again, so he could not accept Dang Hwa-seo’s hollow defeat.
Crunch.
Dang Hwa-seo bit her lip.
Bright red blood ran down her chin.
She meant to shake off the pressure through pain.
‘I know.’
She knew she could not defeat him.
Even so, she had to win.
It was a promise to herself, the compromise she had chosen to protect the love she had only just recognized.
Dang Hwa-seo had to win this fight, if only to protect that desire that bordered on stubbornness.
‘To hell with “is that all”...!’
She wanted to punch that arrogant face at least once.
No, she wanted to soak his entire body in poison.
Then she wanted to win and tell Mok Ri-won proudly.
To stay with her.
Crack.
Dang Hwa-seo twisted her left wrist.
Pain so fierce it nearly made her eyes roll back shot through her, and only then did the pressure lessen.
Namgung Jin-cheon’s brows rose slightly.
Dang Hwa-seo staggered to her feet.
“Damn... bastard...!”
“Have you only prepared venomous words?”
“As if...”
Her vision flashed.
The price of twisting her wrist was brutal, so severe that she could barely speak.
No, that was not the only problem.
The moment she showed a change, Namgung Jin-cheon released even denser Qi Waves.
The pressure intensified again.
It felt as if someone were digging through her brain and squeezing it tight.
Dang Hwa-seo held on to her dazed mind and forced her thoughts to connect.
‘Don’t fall.’
What could she do?
No, what did she have to do?
‘It’s not enough.’
Her inner power was not enough.
The concentration of her poison was not enough.
She did not have the strength to shake off this pressure and drive her fist into his face.
‘What else do I need?’
There was only one thing to add.
A higher realm.
She needed the strength to close this absurd gap enough to throw a single punch.
She was desperate.
She had always desperately wanted to reach the Peak Realm, but never had she wanted it as badly as now.
It was no longer simple ambition. It had become a prayer.
‘I can’t lose.’
Dang Hwa-seo knew herself.
Her nature, the way she struggled to endure no matter the situation, might make her reach for malice without hesitation if she were not careful.
Mok Ri-won’s kindness was no exception.
Her greed was too great to easily let go of something once she had recognized it. If she lost here, she would find some way to bind him to her and use him as a shield.
Whether by appealing to his pity or adding threats.
She would keep him by her side through the same sort of methods she despised in the Tang Clan.
Dang Hwa-seo did not want that.
That was why she had made this promise.
She wanted to become someone she could face with pride, earn the right to stand at his side, and walk beside him.
Tap.
Dang Hwa-seo took a step forward.
The pressure deepened once more.
Even so, as she continued forcing her body upright, the dueling ground gradually fell silent.
‘Move.’
That arrogant man had promised her one move.
He would not break that promise himself.
If so, she had to give everything she had so she could pour all her strength into that one move.
She had to surpass her limits.
Tap.
Dang Hwa-seo took another step.
At the same time, she squeezed out every drop of poison running through her veins.
She did not bother distinguishing their types.
She simply carved a single thought into the Poisonous Qi she released without restraint.
‘Just one hit.’
A lethal poison strong enough to force that man to his knees with one strike.
A poison that powerful.
A deadly poison that would leave him unable to even think of evading it, even if he sensed the danger.
The moment her thoughts reached that point, Dang Hwa-seo seized upon a sudden mental image.
A faint smile appeared on her unsteady lips.
‘…Yes. I know a poison like that.’
The dark green Qi Waves grew denser.
A clear energy began to mix within them.
Dang Hwa-seo curled her hand into a tight fist.
‘A poison that could bring any great figure to their knees.’
Not poison that inspired reverence or awe, but poison that broke the heart itself and forced one to bow their head.
‘The most potent poison of all.’
Poison that made one forget even their own danger, that made them embrace passion while forgetting the danger.
‘Yet a poison so sweet that one cannot break free from it.’
A poison one would rather drown in.
Dang Hwa-seo knew such a poison.
Whoosh.
Qi Waves spread low across the ground.
The Poisonous Qi, drifting like fog, spilled beyond the dueling ground toward the spectators.
A sweet fragrance filled the arena.
Dang Hwa-seo took another step without even noticing it.
“-----!”
A voice rang out as though through tinnitus, but Dang Hwa-seo did not notice that either.
It was dangerous.
The duel had to be stopped.
Yet none of the martial artists present did anything of the sort.
The masters who had noticed something in Dang Hwa-seo’s aura simply surrounded the dueling ground with qi barriers, blocking the Poisonous Qi.
From farther away, Hye-un stared at Mok Ri-won with wide eyes.
Mok Ri-won was smiling in satisfaction.
“How...?”
“I could just tell.”
With that, Mok Ri-won focused on Dang Hwa-seo.
‘It is so clear.’
Though it bore the name Poisonous Qi, the energy he felt from those Qi Waves was startlingly clear.
It felt warm somehow, sweet for some reason, enough to make one want to bury oneself in it.
That must have been Dang Hwa-seo’s answer.
The definition of poison she pursued.
Tap.
Dang Hwa-seo took another step.
Her head felt foggy.
Along with a strange weakness that made her mind float away, drowsiness washed over her.
Still, Dang Hwa-seo could not surrender herself to it.
The realization she had gained in such a desperate moment was too precious. She could not help reaching for it.
‘Lethal poison. This must be true lethal poison.’
Poison that simply crushed and mangled was third-rate.
Poison that approached without a sound was second-rate.
If it was first-rate, if it was truly deadly poison, it had to make someone embrace it even while knowing it was poison.
By then, only around two paces separated Dang Hwa-seo and Namgung Jin-cheon.
Dang Hwa-seo looked at Namgung Jin-cheon’s face.
Her focus was slipping, and she could no longer make out his expression properly.
The Qi Waves pressing down on her and the pain were making her thoughts creak apart.
Yet Dang Hwa-seo could smile.
“I see it.”
A scene that had to be seen not with her eyes but with her mind was being etched into her vision.
Dang Hwa-seo reached out and placed her hand on Namgung Jin-cheon’s solar plexus.
Then she detonated the inner energy she had released.
Love-Heart Poison.
That was the name of the poison she had created.
Whoosh!
A clear, dark green wave swallowed Namgung Jin-cheon.
…That was the end of Dang Hwa-seo’s struggle.
“Quite...”
Soaked in poison, Namgung Jin-cheon reached out toward Dang Hwa-seo.
“…impressive.”
Then he lightly pushed her head back with a tap.
Thud.
Dang Hwa-seo collapsed.
Namgung Jin-cheon looked down at her with an indifferent face.
The host, who had evacuated far away, finally peeked over the edge of the dueling ground.
Clutching his pounding heart, he took in the situation.
‘H-he’s fine even after that poison?’
The host was awestruck.
The poison that had blanketed the dueling ground had made it feel as though his heart would stop the instant he breathed in even a little.
It was poison that he did not know if he would have survived, had a master beside him not dispersed it.
Yet Namgung Jin-cheon had taken it head-on and still stood there so proudly.
The host’s voice shook.
[S-Sword Dragon...!]
For a moment, when Dang Hwa-seo changed, he had thought there might be a chance.
The moment he inhaled the poison, and the moment Namgung Jin-cheon was drenched in it, that faint possibility had nearly become certainty.
But as expected.
[Swooord Draaaagon!!! Wiiiins!!!]
There was no unexpected turn.
Sword Dragon Namgung Jin-cheon.
He was a man who had truly come close to a point beyond the heavens.
Footnotes:
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