WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 139: The Black Flame Dragon Meets the Monster of Manseogo (3)

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"Young Master Jin, what happened to your face?"

"Who did this? Who beat you up like this?"

Seong Moran and Namgung Seonhwa spoke as killing intent rose from them.

I calmed them down.

"It's nothing like that. These are injuries from training."

Seong Moran shook her head as though she couldn't believe me.

"Tell us the truth. Was it the Nine Sects One Gang? Or the Five Great Clans? Who on earth beat you up like this?"

"...Is it that bad?"

Lately, my daily routine had been to get up in the morning, seek out the Sword Demon to provoke him, get beaten senseless, then spend the rest of the day unconscious. I hadn't had time to look in a mirror.

"They really turned you into a rag."

Still, wasn't calling a person a rag a little harsh?

Since I couldn't tell them what had really happened, I changed the subject.

"This is the Academy's first break. Aren't you two going home?"

"..."

"..."

An odd silence settled between them as they exchanged awkward looks.

"Well, I thought this was the time to focus on my studies at the Academy."

"If I go back now, I might get too excited and let my guard down."

I tilted my head.

The Martial Arts Academy's first break came after surviving the brutal regular examination. It was the students' first vacation at home.

This wasn't simply a period of rest. It was a triumphant homecoming.

Eun Seollan, whose sect was in the Northern Sea, had no choice but to give up on returning because it was too far to travel during the break.

Even students from places as distant as Hebei or Guangxi Province returned to their sects or clans during the break.

Who would want to miss a banquet held solely in their honor, with notices posted throughout their sect, hometown, and even neighboring cities to draw crowds?

"Is it because your examination scores weren't high enough?"

"..."

"..."

Remembering their poor written-exam scores, I continued.

"Didn't I tell you to memorize everything I gave you?"

"How could we memorize all that? There was so much."

"Young Master Jin, do you think we're monsters like you?"

"Still, that's unfortunate. You only receive that kind of celebration once in your life."

"Then why aren't you going back, Young Master Jin?" Namgung Seonhwa asked.

I answered firmly.

"My father is a miser. He wouldn't throw a banquet for me anyway."

"Um... Would you like to come to the Namgung Clan with us? They'll probably hold a grand banquet."

"Hm?"

"My father keeps asking when Jin Sowoon is coming. So does my grandfather."

Come to think of it, Namgung Jinmyeong had once invited me to visit as his guest.

"I appreciate the thought, but now is the time to train."

Seong Moran pouted.

"Are you really going to train throughout the entire break?"

"Didn't you two say you stayed behind for the same reason?"

"...That's true, but we should rest a little too. We could go somewhere nearby. Dongting Lake isn't far."

"You can go without me."

"What did you say?!"

Seong Moran's eyes narrowed sharply.

Why did I need to be involved in their rest?

Or were they being considerate of my junior disciples?

"I was planning to visit Yueyang anyway."

"Really? When? How many days will we stay?"

"I have something to take care of. Since we'll be there, letting my junior disciples look around would be a good experience for them."

"..."

Seong Moran looked disappointed.

Namgung Seonhwa began whispering something into her ear.

Seong Moran whispered back.

They could use sound transmission, so why were they doing that?

"Fine! Then we'll at least go have some fun in Yueyang."

"I said I was going there to handle some business."

"Sure. We'll have fun once you're done."

"..."

"Then when are we going?"

"I plan to go after I finish some training."

"...You're not telling us to wait indefinitely, are you?"

"Why don't you spend the time training, like my junior disciples?"

"..."

"..."

For some reason, Seong Moran and Namgung Seonhwa were glaring at me with angry expressions.

What had I done wrong?

#

Seong Moran and Namgung Seonhwa weren't the only ones angry at me. If I had to name the person at the Martial Arts Academy most furious with me right now, it would be the Sword Demon.

Every time we met, he beat me until I was on the verge of passing out.

Just as expected of a leading figure of the Black Path.

"You came again even after being beaten like that?"

Crack, crack.

The bones protruding from his back slid back into place, and the Sword Demon straightened.

No matter how many times I saw it, it was fascinating.

His Bone-Shifting Art went far beyond the usual limits of bodily transformation, turning him into a complete hunchback. I couldn't get used to it no matter how often I saw it.

"I plan to keep coming until you teach me."

"Then I plan to keep beating you until you stop coming."

"I'm curious to see who wins."

"I will."

"I have one final option. I can report you."

"If you meant to report me, you'd have done it on the first day I beat you."

"..."

He didn't yield an inch, damn it.

"Therefore, I will win. I have hard fists, while you have soft flesh to be beaten."

"Hmm... That makes sense. Then shall I enjoy getting beaten again today?"

The Sword Demon let out a dumbfounded sigh.

"Why are you asking me to teach you martial arts when I'm not even from the White Path?"

"Weren't you originally from the White Path? That makes you worth learning from."

"That isn't a reason. Besides, you are the one who develops your own martial arts. You aren't challenging me without knowing that, are you?"

We had only exchanged a few moves, yet he had already grasped the essence of my martial arts?

He truly had the makings of the greatest martial arts teacher.

"I know. But it takes too long to develop that way."

"Is someone chasing you already?"

I doubted I'd hear anything pleasant if I explained, so I tossed out a vague answer.

"Do you know my situation? I'm at odds with the Nine Sects One Gang, the Five Great Clans, and the Twelve Peak Alliance."

The Sword Demon furrowed his brow deeply as he looked at me.

"...They call the Black Flame Dragon a rising star of the Black Path, and you truly do lie well. I almost believed you."

"..."

After glaring at me, the Sword Demon let out a long sigh and shook his head.

"Fine. I don't care what you're running from. For all the beating you've taken, I'll teach you one thing. You want to learn sword force?"

"Yes."

"But you know that sword force can't be learned separately, don't you?"

"I do. That's why I want to hear some guidance from you, Sword Demon. You stood unrivaled in the martial world and created your own martial arts."

"Flattery won't help. Are you trying to learn sword force because you want to face sword force?"

I could deal with it to some extent using Ten Thousand Swords, but that had its limits.

I couldn't fight a life-and-death enemy while holding a sword that could break at any moment.

To face a master of sword force, I had to enter the realm of sword force.

"Yes."

"Haha."

"Why are you laughing?"

"You have a nugget of gold in your hand, yet you covet the nugget of silver in someone else's. It's amusing."

"What?"

"You don't need to learn sword force. It would be good if you did, but you don't have to."

"Why not?"

"That martial art you first showed me, Ten Thousand Swords."

The Ten Thousand Seas Heaven and Earth Sword Art was practically the secret essence of the Taeul True Scripture, but it wasn't enough to face sword force.

I'd already said that several times.

"Those Ten Thousand Swords aren't real, yet they are real, aren't they?"

"That's... right."

"Then wouldn't it be enough to coat those swords in sword qi?"

"..."

Coat Ten Thousand Swords in sword qi? What kind of nonsense was that?

"Hadn't you considered it?"

"Isn't that impossible?"

Wasn't the limitation of illusion swords that they couldn't be coated in sword qi, no matter how high one's realm became?

"Only fools think so."

The Sword Demon picked up a branch from the ground.

It was the same branch he had used before to create a wave of sword force.

"Watch closely."

In an instant, the branch swept through the air, and dozens of branches appeared in the empty space.

Then tangible sword qi formed around the branch in the Sword Demon's hand.

The phantom branches floating in the air remained unchanged.

"If you can't coat an illusion sword in sword qi, then make the sword qi itself into an illusion."

Sword qi began forming around each of the branches filling the air.

It was a festival of light.

His sword qi materialized all around us, as though a dazzling feast had begun.

"And when necessary, you bring in something real, just as your sword art does."

Shashashashak-

The branches passing through trees and rocks began leaving scars throughout the forest.

A tree to the right was suddenly severed and fell. A rock to the left was cut apart with unbelievable sharpness.

"Once you master that, you combine the two into one."

The phantom qi extending from the Sword Demon's branch moved even faster.

Before long, the sword qi and the branches became one. It was an illusion sword, yet not an illusion sword, a real sword, yet not a real sword.

"Hah..."

As I stared blankly at a martial art resembling Ten Thousand Swords unfolding before me, the dazzling branches filling the air vanished in an instant.

"Is that enough?"

I nodded.

"As expected, I don't think there is anyone else who could do it."

"What are you talking about?"

"My martial arts teacher."

I drew the Black Dragon Sword as I spoke, and the Sword Demon looked as though he had chewed something foul.

#

"Huff, huff... Thank you for your guidance today as well."

With those final words, Jin Sowoon collapsed heavily onto the ground.

Baek Haegwang, the Sword Demon hiding his identity as the hunchbacked old man of the Ten Thousand Books Repository, watched Jin Sowoon before looking down at the branch in his hand.

'It broke?'

When a frail branch collided with a hard iron sword, it was only natural for the branch to snap.

But it wasn't natural to Baek Haegwang.

It meant Jin Sowoon had taken another step forward after that brief lesson.

"His martial talent doesn't appear all that exceptional."

Baek Haegwang approached Jin Sowoon and examined his body from head to toe.

"Hah, look at this brat. What kind of fortunate encounter did he have to attain the Martial God Physique?"

His natural physique had undergone another transformation, turning into the Martial God Physique.

Considering he came from a sect as unremarkable as the Taeul Sect, he must have obtained an extraordinary fortunate encounter.

Then, as Baek Haegwang inspected Jin Sowoon's palm, he suddenly froze.

"Good grief."

His palm was covered in calluses, hard as stone.

Despite possessing internal energy equivalent to Three Gapja, Jin Sowoon had apparently never stopped training his external martial arts. Every part of his body had been finely and thoroughly conditioned.

"This isn't diligence. It's fierce tenacity. What a mad bastard."

Now, Baek Haegwang could understand why his branch had broken.

Seeing his younger self in the boy made irritation rise inside him.

"Brat, you can't achieve anything through an obsession with martial arts. You'll only lose even what you already have."

Yet part of him felt regret.

If Jin Sowoon hadn't been a disciple of the Taeul Sect, and if he himself hadn't been hiding like this...

Perhaps he could pass on the true teachings of his lifetime.

Such tenacity and fierce determination were proof that Jin Sowoon had lived a life similar to his own.

He would likely be able to master the final sword form Baek Haegwang had created.

Baek Haegwang shook his head.

"Don't be ridiculous, Baek. Are you going to pile up that karma, then pass it on to future generations? Remember the price you paid for the name Demon."

With that, Baek Haegwang turned toward his hut, then looked back at Jin Sowoon once more.

"Tsk, what a troublesome brat."

Wooooong.

Jin Sowoon's body floated about a foot above the ground and slowly followed Baek Haegwang.

#

To the Young Lady,

Have you been well? Here in distant Hefei, I have been hearing news of you.

Thanks to the news that you passed the Academy entrance examination, the Iron Sword Sect held a lengthy celebration.

Many disciples were disappointed to hear that you would not be returning to the sect this time. No matter how busy you are, please visit someday and give the younger disciples some motivation.

I also wonder whether things are progressing well with your beloved.

You have always shown little interest in such matters, so I cannot help worrying.

Perhaps you are not returning during this break because you wish to spend time with that person?

Please do not waste the opportunity. If you have the chance to travel together, make sure you win that heart and make it yours...

Seong Moran crumpled Choe Mubin's letter and tore it to shreds.

"W-What on earth is Unit Leader Choe talking about?!"

Namgung Seonhwa, who had been reading the letter beside her, looked at Seong Moran with wide eyes.

"W-Why? Is something wrong, Sister?"

"Huh? Ah, no."

"Your face is completely red."

"M-Maybe it's hot. Is summer already coming?"

"..."

Seong Moran fanned herself awkwardly, then asked Namgung Seonhwa as though she had suddenly remembered something.

"Seonhwa, do you have clothes to wear when we go to Yueyang?"

"No. I haven't even had time to contact my family since entering the Academy."

"Then should we go buy some clothes? We can't go to Yueyang looking like this."

"Already? We don't even know when his training will end."

"We should buy them in advance."

"..."

Namgung Seonhwa looked at Seong Moran for a moment.

"Sister... I'm sorry for asking this so suddenly..."

"Hm?"

"You still like Young Master Jin, don't you?"

"..."

Seong Moran's already flushed face turned so red it looked ready to burst.

Namgung Seonhwa nodded as though she knew the answer without hearing it.

"I knew it..."

"W-Why are you suddenly asking that?"

"..."

Namgung Seonhwa gazed at Seong Moran for a long moment, then lowered her head as though she had committed a terrible sin.

In a voice so quiet it nearly disappeared, she said,

"Actually... I like Young Master Jin too..."

Footnotes:

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