There’s no need for you to understand. (3)
Kaaang!
The sound of metal crashing against metal rang thunderously through Hwasan.
Usually it would have been a sound they passed over without a thought. Those gathered here, to put it crudely, made their living by the blade. The sound of clashing weapons was as familiar and natural to them as the chirping of insects from the grass.
But things were different now.
‘What in the world is happening?’
They could not see.
Though it was only a little over ten jang away, their abilities were insufficient to discern what was taking place upon that training ground.
Only through the occasional sound of weapons reaching their ears could they guess that something terribly dangerous was happening now.
It was a situation so utterly incomprehensible, so absurd it might draw a hollow laugh. It would not be an exaggeration to call it a first in their lives.
Yet precisely because of that, they had no choice but to realize just how extraordinary those two were.
“…So Illusory Phantom’s reputation was not unfounded.”
Even those who had harbored some doubts about him were left speechless before this sight.
What would have happened had they stood before him?
They would not have endured even a single move. Their consciousness would have ceased to be before they even knew how their own heads had been severed. The Sect Leaders gathered here each possessed confidence in their own martial arts, but not one among them dared claim that he could withstand Illusory Phantom’s attacks.
‘The Peerless One Under Heaven*.’
There was no room for doubt.
The Illusory Phantom Divine Lord had undoubtedly perfected his martial arts. That terrifying speed must be a realm one could never reach unless lofty talent, bone-grinding effort, and even long years had been poured wholly into it.
But… but if that was so.
‘Then what in the world is that man?’
The trembling gazes of the Sect Leaders turned to Chung Myung on the training ground.
The one flying at him with speed too great to be seen was extraordinary. No one could dare belittle his martial prowess. But…
Kaang!
Chung Myung’s sword collided with something in midair. The piercing ring of metal, the shockwave, and the crimson sparks blossoming in the air all testified to it.
He was blocking them. Those attacks coming at that absurd speed.
There was not even the slightest trace of urgency in Chung Myung as he swung his sword. He merely swung his sword at the empty air as though he were dancing. And every time he did, a metallic crash loud enough to tear apart one’s ears burst forth, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
Illusory Phantom was undoubtedly formidable. The very fact that he could unleash such attacks was proof enough of who he was.
But if that were so… then just what realm had the one who so easily blocked those absurd attacks reached?
Kaang! Kaang! Kaaang!
Only the piercing clash of weapons echoed sharply across Hwasan, where even the air itself seemed to be holding its breath.
Nothing changed as time passed. No, if one insisted on finding something that did change, it was only the floor of the training ground, steadily being stained red.
Each time Hwasan Geomhyeop swung his sword, blood scattered through the air. The others could not even begin to guess whether it flowed from the wound he had already carved into Illusory Phantom’s calf, or from newly inflicted wounds.
But there was one thing of which they could be certain. That blood was proof. It proved that merely by blocking his enemy’s attacks as though toying with him, Hwasan Geomhyeop was already driving Illusory Phantom towards inevitable defeat.
‘How merciless.’
There was no need to go this far. If the gap between them was this great, there surely had to be a way to defeat his opponent while still showing him respect.
But when they considered it the other way around, what would have happened if Hwasan Geomhyeop had brought down Illusory Phantom in a single strike?
Everyone here would certainly have praised Hwasan Geomhyeop. Yet even as they did so, they would not have understood. They would not have known just how strong Chung Myung, the one who had cut down Illusory Phantom, truly was.
But now, even if they wished not to know, they had no choice but to understand. Was he not, in the literal sense, toying with the Illusory Phantom Divine Lord – a man whose attacks none of them could have withstood even once? As long as they had eyes, they could not fail to see it.
“…Do you understand now?”
At that moment, someone’s voice broke the silence.
“That is the sharpest sword under heaven.”
Sect Leader of Johwamun, Hyeok Sawol. With an expression devoid of emotion, he was staring at the training ground.
“And yet now… that blade no longer has anywhere left to point. Does anyone here fail to understand what that means?”
“…”
All the Sect Leaders fell silent. Amidst them, who had grown eerily quiet, Hyeok Sawol let out a low groan.
‘To point out Hwasan’s shortcomings…’
A hollow laugh escaped him. No, it would be more accurate to call it a laugh of self-mockery. Was it not Hyeok Sawol himself who had been swayed by such nonsense and taken a seat alongside them?
In his deep self-contempt, Hyeok Sawol realized that he had grown old.
‘Did they truly have shortcomings?’
They did. Surely, they did. Hwasan was by no means a perfect sect.
They did not possess enough power to rule over all under heaven, nor did they possess the wealth to shake all under heaven. Their position was too far removed from the center to extend their reach throughout the realm, and they had not gained an authority that all people under heaven would acknowledge.
‘But what of it?’
Was Shaolin a perfect sect? Did Wudang possess all those things?
Of course not. A perfect sect could not exist in the first place. Even if one were to take the standards they had applied to Hwasan and apply them to any other sect, there would be no reason for the outcome to differ.
Though he knew this, he had turned away from it. Perhaps it was because he had not wished to acknowledge it. For a sect that had once stood on the brink of annihilation to rise to the position of the Northern Star of Gangho in such a short time would be proof that the leaders of the other sects were that incompetent.
But Hwasan Geomhyeop had made it impossible for them to keep turning away from that fact.
Kaaang!
Once again, Chung Myung blocked Illusory Phantom’s attack.
Then the Sect Leaders realized something. Chung Myung was no longer even looking at Illusory Phantom. His gaze had long since been fixed not on him, but on the Sect Leaders seated around the training ground.
With a cold, sunken gaze fixed upon them, Chung Myung swung his sword once more. Into the empty air. Or perhaps, at everyone here who was watching him.
Kaaang!
The instant the resounding clash of metal erupted, every Sect Leader flinched involuntarily.
By this point, they had no choice but to understand. The sword Chung Myung was wielding now was not merely a sword raised against Illusory Phantom, but a sword meant as a warning for them.
As Hyeok Sawol had said, that sword no longer had anywhere left to point. Which meant that it could now point anywhere.
It was at that very moment.
Crimson sword energy rippled around Chung Myung’s sword, which until then had done nothing more than seemingly do ordinary swings. Then, an explosive killing intent, enough to make one’s heart freeze, erupted in an instant.
Kwaaaang!
With a tremendous explosion, something tore through the air like a beam of light and crashed down among the Sect Leaders, whose bodies had been rigid with tension.
“…”
The gazes of the Sect Leaders, frozen so stiff that they could not even scream, naturally turned in that direction. As they slowly turned their heads, cold sweat running down their faces, what they saw was none other than Yuanyang Yue that Illusory Phantom had drawn with such confidence.
Kwadang!
Then came a dull, lifeless sound unlike those that had rung out until now.
“Khheuu….”
Yeo Mugwang, the Illusory Phantom Divine Lord. He was lying collapsed on the floor of the training ground, twitching.
It was a truly miserable sight.
He was somehow still clutching the one remaining Yuanyang Yue, but it was clear that he was no longer in any condition to fight.
Both his legs had been dyed crimson with the blood he himself had shed. Whether they had been cut by the sword or whether his body had failed to withstand his own speed, the hems of his clothes all over his body had already been torn to shreds, leaving them closer to rags.
But more than anything, what stood out was that, in that brief span of time, all traces of vitality had vanished from Yeo Mugwang.
The skin exposed beneath Yeo Mugwang’s disheveled hair looked dry and coarse as sand, unlike when they had first seen him. He seemed so thoroughly drained that he no longer even had the strength to move his lips.
Chung Myung stared intently at Yeo Mugwang for a moment before turning his gaze away.
Flinch.
Every Sect Leader who met Chung Myung’s gaze shuddered. It was not as though he had openly threatened them, nor was there hostility in his eyes.
But how could anyone who failed to read the meaning contained in Hwasan Geomhyeop’s gaze now cast upon them – namely, that warning – dare call himself the leader of a sect?
Clack.
The tip of Chung Myung’s sword, lowered naturally towards the ground, touched the floor.
With this one simple motion, Chung Myung drew everyone’s attention to himself. Then, breaking the brief silence, he opened his mouth.
“What was it you said?”
“…”
“Proof?”
A deep sneer rested at the corners of Chung Myung’s lips.
It was behavior beyond rude, yet no one dared so much as point it out. It was likely not solely because Chung Myung now had justification on his side.
“Isn’t it strange?”
It did not seem to be a coincidence that Chung Myung’s gaze, as it swept over the Sect Leaders, came to rest around Hyeok Sawol.
“No one in the world demanded proof from Saparyeon and Jang Ilso, but apparently we – the ones who crushed those bastards – need to prove ourselves.”
The unmistakable mockery in his voice rendered the Sect Leaders speechless.
“But, well… fine. I can’t exactly ask you to treat us the same way you treat those Sapa bastards. I should acknowledge that much. So…”
Chung Myung deliberately let the words hang for a moment before baring his teeth in a bright smile.
“Is there anyone else who needs more proof?”
Hwasan sank into a silence as still as death.
Other than the faint groans leaking from Illusory Phantom’s mouth, not a single sound could be heard. Chung Myung stood there for a long while as though savoring the silence, then shrugged.
“This is what happens when I say I’ll do it, honestly.”
Chung Myung slid his sword back into its scabbard.
“There’s no need to worry. This probably won’t be your last chance.”
Then, with a bright smile, he looked around at them all and said.
“I’ll do it anytime. Whenever there’s someone who wants it – anytime.”
There was no need to explain how everyone present understood those final words.
“Well, then.”
Chung Myung was about to turn and leave when he suddenly paused. Then he looked back at Cho Geosan, the Hundred-Faced Fox, and grinned.
The Hundred-Faced Fox, already pale as a corpse, went almost completely white.
“….I, I…”
But that was all.
Without doing anything further to the Hundred-Faced Fox, Chung Myung simply walked off the training ground, as though the man was not even worth dealing with.
Even so, the Hundred-Faced Fox could not hide his fear or his trembling. The composure he had displayed while confronting Un Am only moments ago was nowhere to be found.
In the end, that was all it was.
The Hundred-Faced Fox’s confidence, and the confidence of all the Sect Leaders who had come here, could only exist because they had been certain that Hwasan would never truly regard them as enemies.
With that foundation shattered, this Assembly could no longer be anything like what they had first imagined it would be.
“Ahem.”
As tension and fear settled heavily over those gathered, Un Am stepped back onto the training ground and cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Soso.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Treat him. Make sure he is attended to properly.”
“Yes!”
Tang Soso leapt onto the training ground, effortlessly hoisted Illusory Phantom into her back, and hurried away.
“Well, then, um…….”
In this delicate atmosphere, Un Am put on a deliberately gentle smile.
“Shall we continue our discussion?”
Feeling the atmosphere had changed completely from what it had been only moments before, the Sect Leaders found themselves nodding in agreement without a word.
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*Tbh I think there is a typo here. Look. The Three Absolute Supremes Under Heaven [천하삼절(天下三絶)] – 絶 hanja for 절 (for peerless/supreme). What biga wrote here is 천하일절(天下一節) – 節 hanja for 절 and it doesn’t make sense. 天下一節 is not a common title in martial arts novels and 節 means ‘knot, node, joint, segment, link, form.’ BUT there IS a common martial arts title 天下一絶.
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ATTENTION (if you like to draw hehe). There is currently an art-contest starting on my own discord server. Everyone is welcome to join! Submissions start on July 6 and end on July 26.
Join the server, read the server rules and agree to them, read the art contest rules in the announcements! (there are prizes ♡). Link >>> https://discord.gg/vhSBPjTDqv
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