WeTried Translations

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 180: The Black Flame Dragon Swallowing the Sea of Blood (10)

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Daoist Myeonghyeon regained consciousness with a piercing pain.

His head felt heavy, as though he had drunk himself senseless the night before, and there was no strength in his body.

He had shared a few drinks with Hyesung, but it was strange. Since reaching the Peak Realm, he had never once felt drunk.

The disciples who had awakened them were in a strange state as well.

As Mount Cang Sect disciples, they had always been expected to keep themselves neat and presentable.

Yet their beards had grown rough, and dark circles ringed their eyes.

"What... happened?"

Myeonghyeon startled at the sound of his own voice.

It scraped from his throat like rusted iron, as though he had not used it for days.

The disciple before him muttered as though their mind had gone blank.

"They used dark arts, Elder."

"Dark arts?"

How was he supposed to understand when someone suddenly brought up dark arts out of nowhere?

"The people who attacked us three days ago... were practitioners of dark arts."

As he listened, Myeonghyeon roughly shook his head, as though it were impossible.

"Nonsense! Do you not know that Mount Cang Sect cannot fall to such cheap tricks as dark arts?!"

"...."

The disciples, who had been left to deal with the aftermath because they could not even chant the Demon-Subduing Mantra during their battle with the blood-robed men, exchanged displeased looks.

Did dark arts simply avoid members of Mount Cang Sect?

Then why had they been affected this time?

Whether the disciples doubted him or not, Myeonghyeon sprang to his feet.

"It must have been some incompetent Black Path scum daring to cause trouble without fearing the Martial Alliance."

The moment he rose in indignation, dizziness swept over him and made him stagger.

"You were unconscious for three days, Elder. Please rise slowly."

Yi Gipung, a Mount Cang Sect disciple, tried to steady him, but Myeonghyeon roughly brushed off his hand and headed outside.

What filled his sight after he burst from the tent was...

"W-What is this...? What in the world happened here?!"

A corpse lay on the ground.

The martial uniform on that corpse unmistakably belonged to the Great Mount Cang Sect.

Myeonghyeon opened his eyes wide and hurriedly looked around.

"W-What...?"

A gravely wounded person lay unconscious.

Their martial uniform was also unmistakably that of a lay martial sect affiliated with the Great Mount Cang Sect.

Throb.

A sharp pain stabbed into Myeonghyeon's head, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

"It seems the effects of the dark arts still remain. Jin Sowoon... No, the Academy Representative said that, to avoid lasting effects from malevolent qi, you must rest and maintain steady qi circulation."

Myeonghyeon reacted as though having a seizure at Yi Gipung's words.

"Jin Sowoon? Why are you suddenly speaking of Jin Sowoon?"

This event had been meant to restore Mount Cang Sect's honor, which had been stained in Yueyang. At the same time, it was meant to suppress Jin Sowoon's reputation, which had continued to grow without limit.

Naturally, Jin Sowoon was not supposed to appear here. His name was not even supposed to be mentioned.

"...."

Amid the fallen silence, the Mount Cang Sect disciples exchanged glances.

At last, Yi Gipung gathered his courage and spoke.

"The Academy Representative rushed here to save us. If not for him and his companions..."

Though he swallowed hard, he did not avoid Daoist Myeonghyeon's fierce gaze.

"We would certainly have died."

The other disciples immediately nodded in agreement.

Daoist Myeonghyeon glared at them.

"Representative? Did you just call Jin Sowoon that?"

His gaze showed utter disbelief.

Myeonghyeon shouted at his foolish disciples.

"You idiots! I even arranged this event because you could not surpass a single Taeul Sect disciple! And now you defend that bastard without a thought?!"

"...."

"Jin Sowoon... Is that bastard here right now?!"

Yi Gipung hesitated at Daoist Myeonghyeon's question, then nodded.

It was an unexpected revelation.

"Hah... A bastard who should be attending the Academy's schedule came all the way here?"

With pain constantly wracking his head from the aftereffects of the dark arts, Daoist Myeonghyeon racked his aching brain.

Jin Sowoon could not have come here without reason.

There had to be some scheme behind it!

"Yes! That's right! This entire situation must be that bastard's scheme!!"

As though he had received some great revelation, Myeonghyeon shouted.

"...."

Normally, the disciples would have strained to remember every word Myeonghyeon said. Now, their response was lukewarm.

Whether he noticed or not, Myeonghyeon continued.

"That bastard must be colluding with the Black Path as well. He clearly arranged a trap with them beforehand! Jin Sowoon! Where is that scoundrel?"

None of the Mount Cang Sect disciples answered his question.

"You said he is here! I asked where he is!"

At Myeonghyeon's urging, a disciple from a lay martial sect pointed in one direction.

"I-I heard he just returned from observing the enemy's movements."

"Lead me there! I will personally judge that bastard!"

"...."

"Did I not tell you to lead me there at once?!"

Once again, only silence settled over them.

When none of the Mount Cang Sect disciples stepped forward, Yi Gipung finally supported Daoist Myeonghyeon.

What followed was exactly what every Mount Cang Sect disciple had expected.

"You dare pull tricks against Mount Cang Sect? What are you all doing?! Subdue that bastard at once and drag him before me!"

Daoist Myeonghyeon's thunderous command rang out, but no one moved.

"Not only did a mere Academy student collude with the Black Path, you attacked the Elder Council as well? Your crimes cannot be repaid even by death!"

Daoist Myeonghyeon shouted until his face turned red, but Jin Sowoon did not seem to have any intention of offering a single excuse.

Instead, he reached for the Black Dragon Sword.

"No matter how rotten you are, I thought you would at least know the difference between shit and piss."

He slowly drew the Black Dragon Sword.

Disappointment filled Jin Sowoon's face.

Even in his past life, people like that had turned deaths that should have claimed ten people into deaths that claimed a hundred.

"You were better educated and more capable than us... So I believed, again and again, that there had to be some greater plan."

Only after tens of thousands of innocent people had died did he understand.

Only when he saw their backs as they fled to the Northern Sea, scattering the victims' blood across the ground, did he realize it too late.

The grand plan they spoke of was no more than a signboard concealing their own political interests...

Jin Sowoon had stood on the very front line among those being sacrificed. No one knew better than him how deep that betrayal ran.

"You turn your eyes from the misery before you for your own political interests. People like you are enemies of the Martial Alliance, more dangerous than heretical martial artists or those of the demonic path."

Jin Sowoon pointed the Black Dragon Sword at Myeonghyeon, and Myeonghyeon exploded in fiery rage.

"You bastard! It was not enough for you to scheme against Mount Cang Sect, you dare defy the Martial Alliance's Elder Council as well?!"

Unlike Myeonghyeon, Jin Sowoon's tone remained completely calm.

"What exactly do you claim I plotted?"

"Did you think I would not know that you conspired with the Black Path to interfere with our Orthodox Society event?"

"If you had not brought Moyong Jaehwa and Eun Seollan with you, I would have simply watched you die."

"W-What?!"

In his past life, Daoist Myeonghyeon had reached the Transcendent Peak Realm.

Even if he had not attained Red Serpent Crossing the Pass, he would certainly have reached Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown.

His essence, qi, and spirit would have fused into one, protecting his Heavenly Palace. Even if he had unknowingly fallen into an illusion formation, he would not have lost his reason.

Which meant that Daoist Myeonghyeon was spouting nonsense with a perfectly clear mind, even if he was suffering the aftereffects of malevolent qi.

"Hyesung is here with me as well. Do you know that you resorted to underhanded means against the Elder Council?"

"Keep talking."

"This is no different from treason against the Martial Alliance."

"Hah... Hahaha."

The situation was on the verge of exploding.

Moyong Jaehwa and Eun Seollan, who had been tending to the others, approached Jin Sowoon's side.

Nam Hwaseong considered whether he should stand near Jin Sowoon or keep his distance, then ultimately moved right beside him.

"So what do you intend to do?"

"I will escort you to the Martial Alliance and have you punished! Do not think your fellow disciples and sect will remain unharmed either!"

Before Daoist Myeonghyeon had even finished speaking, Jin Sowoon's martial uniform swelled as if it were about to burst.

Killing intent erupted in every direction. A few people who had barely stabilized themselves coughed up blood again.

Even Myeonghyeon's face turned pale as he struggled to endure the force of that killing intent.

Jin Sowoon slowly raised his head.

"Do it."

"W-What?!"

"I said, do it."

"...."

Killing intent glinted in Jin Sowoon's eyes.

Unable to accept that defiant stance, Daoist Myeonghyeon shouted furiously.

"Can't do it? I'll help you."

Jin Sowoon shifted his grip on the Black Dragon Sword.

Then he strode toward Myeonghyeon.

And then...

Thud.

He drove a kick filled with internal energy into him.

"Urgh...!"

Myeonghyeon, who had been leaning on Yi Gipung, tumbled pitifully across the ground.

Jin Sowoon looked down at him coldly.

"If you think I am colluding with the Black Path and plotting treason to overturn the Martial Alliance, then do it properly!"

"Y-You truly...!"

Thud!

Jin Sowoon's brutal kick slammed into Myeonghyeon's face.

"Puahk!"

Blood streamed from Myeonghyeon's injured nose.

Yet Jin Sowoon did not withdraw his killing intent.

"If I am an enemy of the Martial Alliance and a threat to the martial world, then try killing me!"

"Y-You bastard! If only I... had not suffered internal injuries...!"

"Internal injuries?"

Contempt entered Jin Sowoon's eyes.

He sent a finger wind at Myeonghyeon's vital acupoints.

Thud, thud, thud! Thud-thud-thud-thud!

It was not any special martial art, just finger wind fired with internal energy behind it. It was more like a barrage of brutal punches.

Myeonghyeon felt as though dozens of enormous men were beating him at once.

Jin Sowoon's eyes trembled as he looked down at him.

"Is that all the resolve a man who claims to protect the martial world possesses?"

The Sojeong Unit members had possessed such paltry internal energy that mutual destruction had been routine.

They drew upon their innate true qi as a matter of course, and whenever they had the chance to take a Bloodburst Pellet, they swallowed it without hesitation.

They did it even knowing what future awaited a third-rate martial artist whose innate true qi had been damaged.

Because protecting the martial world's future with their meager strength left them no other choice.

"Even third-rate martial artists earning a paltry monthly stipend do that. Yet an elder of the Martial Alliance cannot even prepare to die with the enemy because you fear your innate true qi will collapse? I truly see no reason to let you live."

Thud!

Myeonghyeon rolled several times from Jin Sowoon's kick.

"Ghk! Y-You...!"

Perhaps Myeonghyeon finally realized he had no other choice, because he forcibly tried to raise his internal energy.

A hollow smile formed on Jin Sowoon's lips at the sight.

"Not when heretical martial artists threaten you, not when your disciples' lives are in danger. In the end..."

Jin Sowoon lightly unleashed a fist force.

"Do you only find the resolve to die with the enemy when your own life is at risk?"

The fist force of the Myriad Blossoms Invincible Fist shot from his hand and struck Myeonghyeon's lower dantian, middle dantian, and major energy channels, disrupting his qi circulation.

"Kuheok!"

Daoist Myeonghyeon vomited blood as he rolled across the ground. He looked no better than a cripple.

Jin Sowoon still showed no sign of stopping and continued toward him.

Myeonghyeon backed away with a face full of terror and shouted at the Mount Cang Sect disciples.

"What are you bastards doing?!"

"...."

"Why are you not seizing and beating that criminal at once?!"

"...."

Yet silence fell again.

Filled with anger, Myeonghyeon stretched out his limbs with difficulty and shouted once more.

"What are you doing?! Do you take my order to make that criminal kneel as a joke?! Yi Gipung!"

When Myeonghyeon singled out Yi Gipung, the eyes of the Mount Cang Sect disciples and the lay martial sect disciples turned toward him.

"Yi Gipung! Subdue that fellow in one stroke with the Mount Cang Sect disciples!"

"...."

Yi Gipung looked between Jin Sowoon and Myeonghyeon, then let out a sigh and began walking.

"What are the rest of you doing?! Move at once!"

Yi Gipung slowly approached Jin Sowoon and Myeonghyeon.

He studied Jin Sowoon's relaxed expression for a moment.

"Excuse me. I'll be passing by."

He walked past Jin Sowoon and approached Myeonghyeon.

Then...

"What are you doing?! Subdue that bastard at on... Ghk."

Daoist Myeonghyeon, who had been pointing, let out a strangled cry as Yi Gipung struck him without warning. He grabbed Yi Gipung's hem with an expression of disbelief.

The one who had interrupted Daoist Myeonghyeon's words and attacked him was...

"Y-You...!"

None other than Yi Gipung, who had supported him all this time.

Thud.

Myeonghyeon stared at Yi Gipung in disbelief before fainting.

Yi Gipung looked indifferently at the fallen Daoist Myeonghyeon, scratched his head, and spoke.

"It seems... Elder Myeonghyeon was exposed to malevolent qi for too long and has lost his reason."

"...."

"...."

Yi Gipung looked at the other disciples.

If this went wrong, Yi Gipung could have the grave crime of betrayal of master and sect pinned on him.

Still, the other disciples nodded as though they had made up their minds.

"Mm, that must be it. We don't properly understand what happened yet, either."

"I'm still seeing things that aren't there."

"Daoist Myeonghyeon had shown some signs of senility for a while."

As the Mount Cang Sect disciples joined in one after another, the disciples of the lay martial sects did not dare step forward.

Yi Gipung handed Daoist Myeonghyeon to another disciple and slowly came forward.

Then he respectfully clasped his hands in a martial salute.

"Representative Jin Sowoon, I apologize on Elder Myeonghyeon's behalf for his careless words."

Jin Sowoon looked at Yi Gipung as though he found him strange.

"You are worse than Jong Byeokgi. Can you deal with the consequences of what you just did?"

"...You remember me?"

"Of course. You showed a rather sharp move at the docks."

"...."

Yi Gipung felt truly ashamed.

During the regular examination, he had tried to obstruct his opponent for no reason other than to make him fail, regardless of whether Yi Gipung himself passed.

Yet that same opponent had saved them and suffered humiliation for their sake.

It made him feel even more apologetic.

"The crime of betrayal of master and sect is punished as the gravest of sect crimes. Would it not have been better to take a few blows from me and be done with it?"

Yi Gipung raised his head and looked at Jin Sowoon.

Though Jin Sowoon knew about his past, he acted as though it did not matter. Yi Gipung felt even more ashamed.

"I wanted to become a martial artist so that I could know honor and avoid living a shameful life. If I must live such a shameful life, I would rather commit the crime of betrayal of master and sect."

"It would be a shame if you were locked in Mount Cang Sect's Golden Prison. I wanted to see how you would change."

Yi Gipung looked at Jin Sowoon with complicated eyes for a long while.

Just how broad-minded was this man, to say such things without hesitation?

Yi Gipung had never felt such overwhelming greatness in his life. He felt as though his head were bowing of its own accord.

'The political schemes we have engaged in before a man like this must have been nothing but petty tricks. How shameful.'

Yi Gipung respectfully bowed and clasped his hands in a martial salute.

"Thank you again for fighting as though your life were no more valuable than a blade of grass to save these foolish people. I will carve this kindness into my bones and repay it one day."

Starting with Yi Gipung, the Mount Cang Sect disciples began bowing one after another.

"Thank you, benefactor. We will carve this kindness into our bones and repay it one day!"

"Thank you, benefactor. We will carve this kindness into our bones and repay it one day!"

Once all the Mount Cang Sect disciples had bowed, the disciples of their lay martial sects followed. After them came the Shaolin Sect disciples and the disciples of Shaolin Sect's lay martial sects.

They all stopped what they were doing, bowed as one, and clasped their hands in a martial salute toward Jin Sowoon.

"Thank you, benefactor. We will carve this kindness into our bones and repay it one day!"

"Thank you, benefactor. We will carve this kindness into our bones and repay it one day!"

Their sincere voices echoed in every direction.

Moyong Jaehwa, who had hooked his fingers around the bowstring of the Steel Bow, lowered his bow and blankly watched the scene.

For some reason, Eun Seollan had turned away and was wiping her tears.

"Tch..."

Jin Sowoon sheathed the Black Dragon Sword with a complicated expression before slowly opening his mouth.

"Fine... That's enough. Let's hurry back."

Jin Sowoon turned and walked away as though fleeing.

Nam Hwaseong chased after him and asked, "Are you happy? Happy that people who were once your enemies are praising you like that?"

"Get lost. You're pissing me off!"

Still, a faint smile rested on Jin Sowoon's face.

#

After settling Daoist Myeonghyeon down(?), something similar nearly happened with Hyesung, but Ilgak somehow stepped in quickly(?), so I did not have to have an angry confrontation with Hyesung.

Once I had organized the unit, I sent them off first and remained on that same peak.

Nam Hwaseong said it would be awkward for him to join the unit and wanted to follow me, but when I frightened him by saying we might encounter another Iron Zombie, his expression turned serious. He told me to return quickly, then joined the unit.

"Um... Brother..."

Moyong Jaehwa cautiously spoke up.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Well... Why am I the only one still here...?"

Everyone else was returning, so he seemed deeply uneasy about being left behind alone.

I patted his head and said, "You have not completed the Thunderclap Arrow yet."

"...Yes? Ah, r-right."

"There are such good targets here. We should complete it before we leave, right?"

"B-But you said an Iron Zombie might appear..."

Tch. Had he heard what I said to Nam Hwaseong?

"It won't appear. Probably."

"...Probably?"

"Don't worry. Unlike Nam Hwaseong, you're light enough for me to carry while I run away."

"Yes?"

Jaehwa's wavering gaze trembled helplessly.

To reassure him, I patted his head even more.

"Well, as long as your clothes don't tear or anything, nothing unfortunate should happen, right?"

Moyong Jaehwa suddenly began feeling over his clothing.

"What do you mean by that...? No, more importantly, what do you plan to do by staying here?"

"Tiger Hall is heading this way. If we don't stop their advance unit, the damage will only grow worse."

Jaehwa's mouth fell open in disbelief.

"Then you mean the two of us will stop their advance unit...?"

"Yes. Why?"

"...Is that possible?"

"It will be if you complete the Thunderclap Arrow."

"...."

The greatest losses in war were most likely to occur during a retreat.

The vanguard groups from Shaolin Sect, Mount Cang Sect, and elsewhere had not even properly recovered from the aftereffects of the dark arts.

If they were ambushed in this state, the Orthodox Society would suffer severe losses, and so would my own party.

'And above all, I cannot let the Scarlet Radiance Sword... No, the Blood Sea Jade slip away.'

This was like seeing one's beloved and picking mulberries, two gains from one trip.

I gazed deeply at the stunned Jaehwa and said, "Shall we go pick some mulberries?"

"Yes? What does that..."

At times like this, you had to press forward until you left them dazed. Taming... no, training, was a basic principle.

"Now, over there! There! Can you see that red tent?"

"Yes? That tent two hundred zhang away?"

"Right. Give it one Thunderclap Arrow first."

"Um... Brother, even with the Steel Bow, its maximum range is only one hundred and fifty zhang."

"Come on, what are you talking about? I've seen you shoot targets three hundred zhang away."

It was true. In my past life, the Shattering Bow had casually fired at targets three hundred zhang away on average, with a maximum range of four hundred zhang.

'He said that in theory, once he completed his martial art, he could reach five hundred zhang.'

Of course, the Shattering Bow in my past life never reached that level. But in this life, he had taken up the bow earlier, so perhaps he could do it before the Orthodox-Demonic War.

So...

"What are you doing? Hurry up and shoot."

I needed to recover the Blood Sea Jade and return quickly.

Footnotes:

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