The Heaven-Slaying Sword - Chapter 42

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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◈ The Heaven-Slaying Sword ◈

Chapter 42: Chapter Five - Dragon-Phoenix Assembly (15)

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Dang Hwa-seo regained consciousness the day after she collapsed during the duel.

Clutching her throbbing head, she opened her eyes.

“You’re awake?”

The voice belonged to Mok Ri-won.

Dang Hwa-seo turned toward him.

“Young Hero Mok...?”

“You were unconscious for a whole day. I was terribly worried. Is anything bothering you?”

At those words, Dang Hwa-seo felt a sharp ache in her left arm.

That was not all.

Why were her Blood Channels such a tangled mess? Poisonous Qi kept leaking out in little bursts even as she breathed.

Startled, Dang Hwa-seo tried to hold her breath, but Mok Ri-won waved his hands.

“I’m all right, so breathe normally. I can drive away this much Poisonous Qi with my inner power.”

“Ah...”

Dang Hwa-seo exhaled dazedly.

Then she belatedly remembered the duel.

Her memories from before she collapsed were hazy.

She had seen some indistinct scene, reached toward it, and released her inner power.

At the same time, she had felt as though her chest had opened wide, along with knowledge of a new poison she had never known before.

“The duel...”

A bitter smile settled on Mok Ri-won’s face at her cracked voice.

Dang Hwa-seo gave a hollow laugh.

“...Yes. I lost.”

“It was a splendid match. Of everyone I’ve seen since joining this Dragon Phoenix Gathering, you displayed the finest spirit.”

Dang Hwa-seo’s fingertips twitched.

‘I lost...’

She had reached the Peak Realm.

The wall that had blocked her path all this time had crumbled, allowing her to step into a new realm.

She would now be regarded as a true superhuman.

But what good was that?

‘...A loss is still a loss.’

She had failed to keep her promise to herself.

Dang Hwa-seo’s fist tightened with strength she did not know she possessed.

A deep anger began to gather on her face.

She was angry because she had ultimately failed to reach Namgung Jin-cheon.

“...Perhaps I wanted too much. While I was stagnating, he must have continued to grow without rest.”

“It was a splendid match.”

“But a loss is a loss.”

Pity appeared on Mok Ri-won’s face.

‘She is deeply hurt.’

It had been a match she could not win.

No matter how hard she struggled, victory had been impossible.

Dang Hwa-seo must have known that too.

Yet she had planted her feet, risen again, and achieved something.

Mok Ri-won did not want someone who had proven herself in such a way to sink into sorrow.

“Miss.”

“Yes?”

“What was the favor you wanted to ask of me?”

Dang Hwa-seo looked at Mok Ri-won.

‘Ah, he is trying to comfort me.’

She understood at once.

Seeing how dejected she was, this innocent man was trying to offer her words of comfort.

‘He need not do that.’

A loss was a loss, whatever the circumstances.

Dang Hwa-seo wanted to accept the result humbly.

“It’s all right. I failed to achieve my goal, so I do not wish to rely on your pity to make a request.”

“Why do you think you failed to achieve your goal?”

Confusion passed over Dang Hwa-seo’s face.

“...Did I not lose?”

“You did. But I believe that is separate from your goal.”

“What do you mean...?”

“The condition you set from the beginning was something else, was it not?”

Mok Ri-won smiled.

“You made your request contingent on achieving a good result in the duel. Breaking through a wall during the match was an achievement anyone would call remarkable. You are more than qualified.”

Dang Hwa-seo stared blankly.

‘What kind of nonsense is that...?’

It was wordplay.

Given the context of their conversation at the time, the good result she had meant was victory. Mok Ri-won had to know that.

“Well then, Miss. What was your request?”

And yet he said it anyway.

With such a bright smile and such a warm voice.

Something in Dang Hwa-seo’s chest squeezed tight.

“...You are truly bewitching.”

“Uh, um?”

“You say only things that ensnare people. I’m beginning to think you might be some kind of goblin.”

Mok Ri-won flinched.

“I-I don’t know what that means.”

“As if you don’t.”

A suppressed chuckle escaped Dang Hwa-seo’s lips.

Mok Ri-won grew even more flustered. Then a lock of his hair that had fallen over Dang Hwa-seo’s fingertips brushed against her hand.

Without realizing it, she grasped it.

‘It is soft.’

His hair felt like silk.

It was so soft and smooth that touching it somehow made her feel better.

As Dang Hwa-seo absentmindedly wound the hair around her finger, Mok Ri-won lowered his head so she could hold it more easily, his face full of confusion.

“So, the request...”

“Later.”

Dang Hwa-seo murmured the words and smiled.

She was grateful for his consideration, and she wanted to lean on it, but she could not simply follow her heart.

“May I tell you after the Dragon Phoenix Gathering has completely ended?”

He would be flustered if she made such a request.

She could not disrupt Mok Ri-won’s focus when he was about to face the important final.

That was why she answered as she did, and Mok Ri-won nodded without understanding a thing.

“Then I’ll set a condition as well!”

“A condition?”

“If I win this gathering, you may make your request!”

“What kind of condition is that? There is nothing in it for you, Young Hero Mok.”

“Why is there nothing in it for me? This way, you will cheer for me even more earnestly.”

“Pardon?”

Mok Ri-won had already propped his chin on the bed.

One cheek was pressed into his hand, making the corner of his mouth tilt crookedly upward.

As his eyes curved gently, Dang Hwa-seo felt her heart pound.

“You want to ask something of me, so you will want me to win. If you cheer for me earnestly, I will be able to fight with greater strength. So I believe this is quite a reasonable condition for my victory as well.”

He was a bewitching creature.

Dang Hwa-seo pursed her lips, feeling as though his clear smile had stolen her breath.

How could such a bewitching creature exist?

He wore such an utterly innocent face, yet his words were so sweet that heat rose in her chest.

It made her feel ashamed of herself again.

‘Was it really his face after all?’

Was that why she had fallen for him?

She wanted to deny it, but she could not.

After all, Mok Ri-won’s face was far too handsome to deny it.

Of course, that was not the only reason, but it was still such an embarrassing feeling.

She should have ignored those thoughts and looked at Mok Ri-won, but the words that came out were not far from what she was thinking.

“Young Hero Mok.”

“Speak!”

“You must not smile like that wherever you go. Some temptress will ravish you.”

A playful remark lightly layered over her true feelings.

Mok Ri-won’s face went pale.

Even while her body ached, Dang Hwa-seo shook with laughter.

Dang Hwa-seo’s selfish heart in love wished for one thing.

She did not want to share his truly bewitching smile with anyone else.

* * *

The Dragon Phoenix Gathering was drawing to a close.

Yet the debates over victory and defeat, which usually faded around this time, were burning more fiercely than they had in years.

That was only natural.

When had a Dragon Phoenix Gathering ever produced such extraordinary upsets?

Stories of Mok Ri-won had already become so common that one could hear them wherever one went.

Dang Hwa-seo’s story had become a hot topic as well.

A martial artist reaching the Peak Realm.

It was a rare sight that could not be bought with a fortune, so talk of the inner energy and Poisonous Qi that had erupted from Dang Hwa-seo that day never ceased.

Still, someone shone all the brighter because of it.

Namgung Jin-cheon, who had endured that gasp-inducing Poisonous Qi with his bare body and calmly claimed victory.

It was him.

“Sword Dragon is truly beyond words.”

“That is a real monster. Is it any wonder people call him the future number one under heaven?”

“Hah... I envy him. I truly envy him.”

The reactions varied.

Some marveled, some stood in awe, and others even envied him.

Everyone was astounded by the inner power that had crushed even the possibility of an upset into the depths.

Once again, Namgung Jin-cheon had displayed his inner power to the full.

And Mok Ri-won would have to face him.

The heat surrounding predictions of their match only grew with each passing day, and surprisingly, the betting odds stood at one to one.

“We’ll find out next week.”

“I only planned to watch through the semifinals before heading home, but the final is too exciting. How could I possibly leave now?”

In the midst of all that excitement, Mok Ri-won lived his usual life.

“My apologies!”

The greed of the prominent clans grew stronger by the day.

Mok Ri-won was running again today to avoid it.

His destination was, as always, Dang Hwa-seo’s residence, where she was recuperating.

Mok Ri-won was a good chivalrous hero who never forgot Dang Hwa-seo’s request.

Running through the streets, Mok Ri-won turned into an alley.

Then he leaped into the air and bounded across the rooftops.

When he reached the gate of the estate, a deep male voice stopped him.

“Ink Sword.”

Mok Ri-won flinched to a halt.

The person who had called him was not someone he could simply ignore.

“Azure-Forming Sword?”

Namgung Un, the Azure-Forming Sword.

Nephew of the Sword King, uncle of the Sword Dragon, and a transcendent peak master whom the Namgung Clan took pride in.

He approached Mok Ri-won with a smile.

“You are busy today as well. Are you heading to see the Poison Phoenix?”

“Ah, yes...”

Mok Ri-won awkwardly rubbed the back of his head.

Namgung Un chuckled at the sight and continued.

“Do not be nervous. I did not come for the same reason as the other great clans. The Namgung Clan has no daughter to tie to you in the first place.”

“T-That is not why...”

“Ink Sword, do you have a moment?”

Mok Ri-won blinked.

“A moment? I suppose I do...”

“The Supreme Family Head wishes to meet you.”

Mok Ri-won froze.

There was only one person the Supreme Family Head of the Namgung Clan could refer to.

“...You mean the Sword King?”

Sword King Namgung Hyeok.

He wished to meet Mok Ri-won.

* * *

The estate where the members of the Namgung Clan stayed occupied a large area in the center of She County.

As Mok Ri-won entered, an exclamation escaped him.

“What an elegant place.”

“Thank you for seeing it kindly. The Family Head will be very pleased to hear that.”

“The Family Head?”

“Yes, my elder brother. He arranged this estate. He loves the pines of Mount Huang so much that he had several uprooted and brought here to create that pond.”

Mok Ri-won looked toward the enormous pond in one corner of the estate.

Just as Namgung Un said, several magnificent pine trees surrounded it.

“I see...”

“Enough idle chatter. Do you see that building ahead? The Supreme Family Head is there. I hope you have a good talk.”

Namgung Un gave him an easy smile, patted Mok Ri-won on the shoulder, and departed.

There was not the slightest hint that he wished to remain.

Only after he was left alone did Mok Ri-won feel tension welling up inside him.

‘The Sword King is in there...’

Mok Ri-won swallowed hard.

Sword King Namgung Hyeok.

Setting aside the fact that he was a swordsman who represented the Orthodox Sects, he held special meaning for Mok Ri-won.

‘A master of the previous generation who still remembers Master.’

When Mok Ri-won had been a child living in the mountain villages of Jiangxi, Ma Il-seok had spoken of him so often that his ears had nearly worn out.

“That brat has no manners. Do you know how arrogant he is? I had quite the temper in my youth, but beside him I look positively angelic. That is how vicious he is. How can Heaven be so cruel? He was born into such a fine clan as well, so his arrogance is enough to make anyone sick.”

According to Ma Il-seok, he was the most vicious-tempered man among the masters of the Orthodox Sects.

Mok Ri-won considered every possible reason such a man might have summoned him.

An attempt to recruit him, or perhaps a summons to learn about the person who would face his grandson.

Many reasons came to mind, but one seemed the most likely.

‘...Did he recognize my martial arts?’

He had heard that countless events had taken place between his master, Mok Seon-o, and Sword King Namgung Hyeok.

Because of that, Mok Ri-won thought Namgung Hyeok might have recognized the Star-Linking Divine Technique and Seven Meteor Swords during his duel.

In other words...

‘He may know the star I was born under.’

Mok Ri-won’s expression hardened.

His heart began to pound anxiously.

If the Sword King had summoned him because he knew of the Heavenly Slaughter Star, his intentions might be harmful.

Mok Ri-won steadied his breathing and set his face with resolve.

‘...I’ll know once I ask.’

There would be no point in running now.

Mok Ri-won chose to face it head-on.

He walked toward the building Namgung Un had indicated. When he reached the door, a waiting martial artist opened it.

“Enter.”

A powerfully built old man sat upright in the center of the room.

Mok Ri-won felt not even a trace of inner power from him, and that confirmed it.

‘Return to Primal Simplicity.’

A realm in which one possessed such immeasurable inner power that one instead appeared to have none at all.

It was clear proof of the Transcendent Realm.

The instant Mok Ri-won stepped inside, the door shut with a click.

A qi barrier spread through the room.

Only silence remained in the vast chamber.

After looking at Mok Ri-won for a moment, Namgung Hyeok spoke.

“Where is the Sword Star?”

The two men’s gazes met.

At those words, Mok Ri-won realized that his prediction had been right and clenched his fists.

‘He really does know.’

Then what should he say?

What was the true purpose behind that question?

As those thoughts continued, Mok Ri-won remembered what he had to do before anything else.

“Hide your sect. Some who remember the Bloody Affair may learn your identity through it. Among them, there will surely be those who consider the star you were born under dangerous.”

Ma Il-seok had told him to hide his sect.

To conceal the sect he was proud of in order to hide the Heavenly Slaughter Star.

But now, was there any reason to hide it?

No.

At this moment, he did not need to conceal it.

No, this was the moment when he ought to reveal it.

The giant before him already knew his identity.

Before asking about Mok Ri-won himself, he had asked after his master’s well-being.

If so, Mok Ri-won had to show him the respect he deserved.

“I offer my respects to the Sword King.”

Mok Ri-won performed a cupped-fist salute.

“I am Mok Ri-won, the eleventh-generation disciple and Young Sect Leader of the Star-Linking Sect.”