Chapter 121
“…”
“…”
Like that, the Protagonist briefly met my eyes before turning toward the back.
And then…
“…?”
…his emotionless expression changed upon seeing the Paeng Ji-Yeol’s collapsed state.
He must have been surprised to see that his condition looked more Serious than expected.
Smirk.
At this, I hid the smile creeping onto my face and left the area.
I know him, but he doesn’t know me. Oh, what a great sense of guilty pleasure this fact brought me.
But the day will come when I have to face him too.
Since he’s a smart guy, he must have already realized that I, the Chief Stronghold Master of the Hunan Green Forest, know the future.
I walked away, thinking of the future day I would converse with the Protagonist. As I walked, I looked toward the upper seats where the Sect Leaders were sitting.
Enhancing my vision to look closely, I saw the Peng Family Head’s expression turning red and purple; his pride must have been hurt by his child falling so disgracefully.
[But he shouldn’t already be making that expression, though?]
The Second Son might have retired, but the first son still remains.
[That’s what he gets for daring to mess with my Subordinate.]
I chuckled just thinking about the expression the Peng Family Head would make after the first son was taken down too.
* * *
By today, each Participant will have fought two Sparring Matches, and after resting tomorrow, the quarterfinals will begin the day after.
And Dongryong-i won both of his Sparring Matches today…
“Waaaaaah-!!”
“Zhongnan! Zhongnan! Zhongnan!”
“Jongrimun!! Jongrimun!!”
…and decorated them with clean victories.
“Waaaaaah!”
“…”
Even to my eyes, Dongryong-i’s Sword today was Serious and clean. It seemed that meeting those Peng Family Bastards yesterday had served as some sort of stimulus.
And…
“Waaaah-!!”
“As expected of the Hebei Peng Family-!!”
Peng Ji-Sang of the Hebei Peng Family, who secured two wins today, also advanced to the quarterfinals.
With this, Dongryong-i and the Peng Family first son will face off in the quarterfinals the day after tomorrow.
Perhaps feeling it himself, the Peng Family first son stared in our direction as he exited the Sparring Arena.
“Hey, Dongryong-a. He’s looking at you, you know?”
“…It seems so.”
“How about it? Think you can win?”
Peng Ji-Sang’s aptitude seemed quite outstanding, but he was still just a Rising Star.
From my perspective as a third party, anyone could predict Dongryong-i’s victory. Dongryong-i himself shouldn’t be unaware that he had the upper hand.
However…
“…”
…Dongryong-i couldn’t answer easily.
I suppose that makes sense.
A fight isn’t just fought with the body. The psychological aspect is more important than anything else.
Even if I didn’t know exactly what happened to the Peng Family in the past, it was clear that it remained a huge scar in Dongryong-i’s heart, so fighting the Peng Family’s first son wouldn’t be easy.
[Sigh.]
I wanted to give some advice to the somewhat downcast Dongryong-i, but I didn’t. This was purely Dongryong-i’s fight.
And I too…
“Next, Disciple Mu-Yeong of Jongrimun! Prepare for your Sparring Match!”
…I had to go out for my Sparring Match today.
So, leaving Dongryong-i behind, I grabbed my Sword and headed to the Sparring Arena.
* * *
“Huu.”
As expected, the level of the guys I faced had risen quite a bit by this point, but since they were still just Rising Stars, I easily secured one win.
And I immediately met my next opponent, who was…
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Great Hero Muyeon.”
“Oh boy…”
…Yu Jinmyeong, the Eldest Son of the Shanxi Yu Family and Somyung-i’s Older Brother.
Like me, he had just come off a win.
One of us would fall, and the other would advance to the quarterfinals.
So, who did I think would win?
…Is that even a question?
“Tsk, tsk. With your level of skill, you could have made it to the semifinals, but your luck with the brackets is bad.”
“…Tell me about it.”
As I clicked my tongue in pity, Yu Jinmyeong also sighed and nodded.
He was one of the few here who knew something about my true skills.
Yu Jinmyeong must be painfully aware of the fact that he could never win.
However…
“So…, are you going to surrender?”
“Naturally…, I cannot do that.”
…He didn’t give up or withdraw his Sword.
“…I can’t spend my whole life fighting people weaker than me. I know it will be hard to win, but I will still clash with you with my best efforts.”
“Oh…”
Even though Yu Jinmyeong’s body could be seen trembling slightly as he spoke, there wasn’t a single hint of wavering in his eyes.
[He’s got a very good attitude.]
Asking for a fight even knowing his opponent was stronger was definitely not an easy thing to do.
[This guy died in the original work, I think.]
If I hadn’t intervened with the Shanxi Yu Family, he would have died just like in the original. It was no different from saving his life.
[If the guy I saved is someone like this, I might be a little proud…]
Just as I was thinking highly of Yu Jinmyeong.
“A very excellent mindset…”
“And I still haven’t acknowledged you as my brother-in-law.”
“…Huh?”
At Yu Jinmyeong’s sudden words, I was momentarily at a loss for words.
He spoke to me with burning eyes.
“Until I acknowledge you, you cannot take Somyung-i away no matter what…!”
“…Even if you acknowledge me, I’m not taking her.”
Dumbfounded by Yu Jinmyeong’s nonsense, I replied as I did, but he instead shouted in outrage.
“Are you saying you played with Somyung-i’s heart?!”
“…”
This Bastard wasn’t normal either.
“…Let’s just drop it.”
“So, no more talk, just action? Then let’s begin right away.”
“…Sure.”
Paat-!
As soon as I answered, Yu Jinmyeong leaped and thrust his Sword at me.
It was a Swift Sword fierce enough to make me flinch for a moment.
However…
“Your movements are too big.”
…Because he focused too much on speed, his openings were glaringly obvious.
So, aiming for his weak point, I struck his Sword from the side and stepped in…
Paaaat-!
“Oh?”
The Stance containing the Swift Sword vanished, and another Stance immediately unfolded.
The Practical Willow Flower Sword Art contains the profound principle of adhesion.
It wasn’t as flashy as plum blossoms blooming like the Plum Blossom Sword Art, but a soft sensation wrapped around my body.
At this level…
[He could actually use this in a real fight…?]
I briefly marveled at the Sword Art, which was even more complete than what Somyung-i had shown me before.
Even during that time, Yu Jinmyeong’s Sword was approaching my body.
Looking at his expression, it seemed to hold the expectation that he might actually win.
However…
Chwaak-!
“…!”
…Naturally, there was no way that would happen.
In the first place, I was the one who gave Somyung-i the hint about the Practical Willow Flower Sword Art. There was no way I wouldn’t know the Countermeasure.
The Willow Flower Sword Art was a Sword Art that drew the flow to oneself with a Soft Sword Formula, guiding it to secure victory.
Chwaak-!
If you squeezed into that seemingly narrow flow and broke it, the caster’s figure would be completely exposed.
After countering Yu Jinmyeong’s Sword like that, I…
Kwaak-!
“Ugh…!”
Kwaang-!!
…grabbed him by the collar and slammed him straight into the floor.
The match ended just like that. It was my clean victory.
“…”
At this, Yu Jinmyeong blinked for a moment before admitting defeat.
“…I have lost.”
“The winner of this Sparring Match is the Shadowless Taoist Priest of Jongrimun-!”
As the Referee declared my victory, the audience watching the match applauded.
“Ooh…”
“A Disciple of Jongrimun won again this time.”
“But well…, it didn’t look all that amazing, did it?”
However, the audience showed a lukewarm reaction to ours, compared to other matches.
Unlike the flashy Plum Blossom Sword Art, the Willow Flower Sword Art was subtle and not particularly cool-looking.
To the commoners who could only see the external elements, it just looked so-so.
Of course, I could recognize Yu Jinmyeong’s excellence better than anyone. And since I was grateful to him for hiding my identity, I helped the fallen guy up and gave him advice about his weak points.
“Everything is good, but it’s important to maintain your flow when the opponent strikes. It’s a bit of a shame that part isn’t solid.”
“Ah…”
Yu Jinmyeong blinked for a moment at this, then…
“Thank you for the lesson.”
…bowed his head while giving me a Cupped Fist Salute.
It was such a polite greeting that even I, the one receiving it, felt embarrassed.
“No…, it wasn’t that much…”
As I waved my hands dismissively, he suddenly leaned in close and whispered to me.
“Father has noticed your presence, Great Hero.”
“…What?”
At this, I reflexively glanced over at the Sect Leader’s Seat…
[Oh boy…]
…Yu Haseong of the Shanxi Yu Family was staring in this direction with burning eyes.
“Somyung-i and I have explained things in our own way for now, but…, it seems he cannot accept that you are participating in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, Great Hero.”
“…I suppose so.”
“Therefore, we will arrange a meeting, so how about you persuade father directly, Great Hero? Tomorrow happens to be a rest day for the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, so it should be fine.”
“…”
Meet Yu Haseong in person and persuade him…
I wasn’t really keen on it, but it seemed there was no other way, so I nodded.
“I guess I’ll do that.”
I had already once persuaded him with words. Surely I couldn’t fail a second time?
“Then I will see you tomorrow.”
With those final words, we exchanged greetings, and I completely finished my Sparring Match.
And…, I proudly qualified for the quarterfinals the day after tomorrow.
* * *
That evening.
“…”
“…”
A Solemn atmosphere filled Zhongnan’s Lodging, where all the disciples had gathered.
However, it wasn’t gloomy.
Zhongnan had achieved the splendid feat of producing three of the top eight in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering.
As they had achieved better results than Mount Hua, which produced two of the top eight, this could definitely be seen as a success.
But there was a problem…
Namely, that two of the three who advanced to the quarterfinals were lay disciples.
There was a clear wall between direct disciples and lay disciples. But in this Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, that wall had been shattered.
Because of this, I worried that the direct disciples might be jealous of us or something, but…
“The pride of Zhongnan.”
“The light of the lay disciples.”
…It seemed my worries were unfounded, as the direct disciples looked at us with eyes full of immense pride. If the direct disciples were like that, there was no need to even mention the lay disciples.
And the disciples weren’t the only ones looking at us with such pleased eyes…
“…Step forward, those who advanced to the quarterfinals.”
…At the Sect Leader’s call, Dongryong-i, I, and the other qualifier, the Second Generation Grand Disciple Geum Sa-Hwi, stepped forward.
“For the past 68 years, Zhongnan has not been able to win the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering… Of course, that might be the case this time as well. However…”
Then, the Sect Leader looked at us with tears welling up in his eyes…
“…I am already proud of you.”
…and patted our shoulders with a truly affectionate touch.
At this, the Second Generation Grand Disciple Geum Sa-Hwi also reddened his eyes as if overcome with emotion…
[Leader…! Do we have to cry too?]
[I don’t know, fuck…!]
…Dongryong-i and I couldn’t help but be deeply flustered.