Chapter 117
It took some time to draw up the brackets for the main tournament of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, so it was held two days after the preliminaries ended.
Unlike the Anhui Outskirts Cliff where the preliminaries were held, the venue for the main tournament was the Murim Alliance’s Sparring Arena.
[Fuck, just how many Sparring Stages are there…]
Naturally, it was my first time stepping directly inside the Murim Alliance Headquarters as well. I clicked my tongue as I looked at the dozens of Sparring Stages set up in their Sparring Arena.
And that was…
“L-Leader…”
“Yeah?”
“A-As expected of the Murim Alliance Headquarters… It’s incredibly huge…”
…not just me.
Turning my head, I saw Dongryong trembling as he looked around.
The reason Dongryong was trembling wasn’t simply because the Murim Alliance Headquarters was large.
It was because of the countless people packing this vast area to the brim.
“Ah, hey, stop pushing!”
“Agh! Who stepped on my foot!”
When the main tournament of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering begins, the Murim Alliance Headquarters is exceptionally opened up, allowing Commoners to enter as well.
Naturally, many people gathered not to miss this opportunity, turning the Spectator Stands into a literal sea of humanity.
“I-I expected it, but there really are a lot of people here to watch the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering…”
“You can say that again.”
China’s population really is insane, as expected.
I scanned the Spectator Stands, which looked so packed there wasn’t even room to breathe, before looking toward the high dais set up separately for the Upper Seats.
Among them, I could see the Zhongnan Sect Leader sitting there. That must be the place where the Sect Leaders of each sect and the Family Heads of the Noble Families were seated.
[There sure are a lot of them.]
The number of Sect Leaders alone was in the dozens. And… every single one of them possessed martial prowess worthy of being called an absolute monster.
As expected, no matter how rotten it is, it’s still the Murim Alliance. I couldn’t even fathom that tremendous military power.
I, who had intended to snatch the Gongcheongseokyu and run if push came to shove, naturally had no choice but to scrap that plan.
As I was watching the Sect Leader’s Seat like that…
“By the way, Leader… When exactly is the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering going to start?”
“Hey, you bastard. I told you to call me Senior Martial Brother.”
Still, Dongryong had spoken so quietly, and the other Zhongnan Disciples around us were so nervous that they had no mind to listen to his words anyway.
I patted Dongryong’s shoulder once and said.
“It’ll start soon. Why, are you nervous?”
“…I-I’m fucking terrified.”
In fact, Dongryong’s shoulder, which was touching my hand, was vibrating like a cafe buzzer.
To ease his tension, I whispered into his ear.
“Dongryong, you have to win the championship in front of all these people too.”
“Heeek-!”
“When that time comes, everyone here will be looking at you, right? They’ll look at you and chant your name.”
“Heeeeek-!!”
“Ugh, you coward.”
This bastard just doesn’t have the vessel for it; he really doesn’t.
With his level of skill, he should be able to enjoy this much attention.
What is he so scared of that he’s trembling like this?
I clicked my tongue at Dongryong and grumbled.
“No, more importantly, when the hell is it starting?”
It feels like we’ve been waiting here for one good shichen already.
The Spectator Stands had filled up a long time ago, yet the Organizers showed no signs of starting.
It was right when I was complaining inwardly.
“With the progress being this slow, when exactly…!”
For a moment, I couldn’t continue my words in the presence I felt. And it wasn’t just me.
“…”
“…”
The Sparring Arena, which had been buzzing with countless people, was instantly enveloped in silence.
Step.
It was because of a single man walking in this direction.
Step, step.
A man had descended from the Sect Leader’s dais and was making his way to the center of the Sparring Arena.
His appearance, which seemed to have passed middle age, showed flecks of white hair, but no one would look at him and think he looked senile.
Step, step.
Exuding a feeling as if one were facing King Yama with his intense gaze, he stepped up onto the dais set up in the center.
Every single one of his steps contained an overwhelming Aura.
The current Murim Alliance Leader and the Supreme Family Head of the Namgung Family
Namgung Hwa-Cheon.
As soon as he stepped onto the dais, he opened his mouth with a weighty voice. As he amplified his voice with Internal Energy, his words echoed throughout the entire Murim Alliance Headquarters.
“I greet the Sect Leaders and Sect Members of each sect who have taken their precious time to grace this occasion. And I greet everyone who has come to witness the birth of a young Hero. I am the Murim Alliance Leader, Namgung Hwa-Cheon.”
It was just an ordinary greeting, but combined with the arrogant Aura unique to the Namgung Family and Namgung Hwa-Cheon’s distinct way of speaking, it created a truly overwhelming atmosphere.
At this, everyone present in this place listened closely to his words.
“This Dragon-Phoenix Gathering is…”
It was said that it was a tournament with history and tradition that had been with the Murim Alliance since its inception, that countless Heroes had passed through this tournament, and so on.
Namgung Hwa-Cheon continued his speech, which wasn’t particularly special but was calm and resolute.
A leader’s voice inherently holds the power to command a crowd. The people were captivated and focused on his speech, and some even shed tears, perhaps overcome with emotion.
However, among them, there was someone who couldn’t focus on Namgung Hwa-Cheon’s story…
[Putting on airs and spouting bullshit, absolute bullshit.]
Yes, that would be me.
And it is for good reason. Why did the Righteous Faction collapse so quickly in the Original Novel?
It was precisely because of the Murim Alliance’s incompetence. And where did the Murim Alliance’s incompetence come from?
It came precisely from the incompetence of the Leadership, including Namgung Hwa-Cheon.
The Murim Alliance Leadership fails to realize the danger of those Demonic Cult Bastards right up until the Righteous-Demonic War breaks out.
They’re that stupid, but it’s not like they’re strong either.
Ah, of course, they are strong.
[They are strong in their own way, I guess.]
The people of the world call the Murim Alliance Leader, Namgung Hwa-Cheon, the Strongest Under Heaven.
But that’s only their own version of the Strongest Under Heaven.
In reality, within the novel, Namgung Hwa-Cheon loses his life at the hands of the Demonic Cult.
And it wasn’t even the Demonic Cult’s one-two punch such as the Cult Leader and Deputy Cult Leader…
[Didn’t he get cut down at the Grand Elder level…?]
…he is killed by the Grand Elder.
Not the gold medal, not the silver medal, but the bronze medal.
If the person called the Murim Alliance Leader is pushed back by the Demonic Cult’s number three, that says it all.
Of course, the Grand Elder is a Superconducting Monster who far surpasses the level of an ordinary Monster, but even so, the fact that the Murim Alliance Leader couldn’t even reach the Deputy Cult Leader level couldn’t help but look pathetic to me.
[Stupid bastard. I really want to smack the back of his head to wake him up.]
As I cursed him out inwardly like that, the Murim Alliance Leader’s speech had already reached its end.
“…Then, in the name of the Murim Alliance Leader, I shall now begin the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering!!”
“Waaaaaah-!!”
As soon as Namgung Hwa-Cheon declared the opening of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, cheers erupted from the Spectator Stands and among the Sect Members.
[Sigh… Right. I’m not here to curse out the Murim Alliance Leader right now.]
I readjusted my grip on my saber as well.
I hated the sight of the Murim Alliance Leader, but it wasn’t like I could actually go and smack the back of his head…
I just needed to do what I had to do and take the prize for winning.
* * *
The main tournament of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering began, and large bracket charts were posted all over the Sparring Arena.
“It’s the brackets!”
Many participants flocked to the walls where the brackets were posted to check them.
Without needing to get close, I heightened my Enhanced Vision and checked the brackets from afar…
[Okay.]
…and confirmed that Munseok’s tear-soaked loan money had been thoroughly applied to the brackets.
According to those brackets, the Protagonist and I would face off in the semifinals, and Dongryong and I would meet in the finals.
As expected of Munseok, he handled the job cleanly. Now, all that was left was for Dongryong and me to perform well in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering.
I approached Dongryong, who was still trembling, and whispered.
“Dongryong, the brackets came out great. Now we just have to win.”
“Leader… um, about that…”
“What? If you have something to say, say it now.”
At my words, Dongryong took a deep breath before asking me.
“…Will I be able to beat the other guys?”
And hearing his words, I almost fell over backward.
This bastard, after everything I said, is still doing it!
“M-My very first match is against someone from a really prestigious family…? What if I get eliminated in the first round…”
“Haa… this bastard…”
At this point, it’s just mockery, mockery.
As my desire to smack him poured in, I whispered into Dongryong’s ear.
“Dongryong, if you lose in the first round, just pack your bags and leave. No, just leave our Green Forest entirely. I’d be too embarrassed to let you be the Deputy Leader.”
“…Huh? But you never know what might happen with people…”
“Shut up and go!”
“…”
Unable to withstand my urging, Dongryong nodded and headed toward the Sparring Stage where his opponent was waiting.
* * *
Because Dongryong had previously worked for a Noble Family, he knew the terror of a Noble Family’s Bloodline.
Unlike him, who was born ordinary and learned ordinary Martial Arts, the Bloodline of a Noble Family was chosen people who were born with the blood of a Master, received everyone’s attention, ate elixirs like daily meals, and naturally learned Advanced Martial Arts.
Looking at them, Dongryong felt that there was a wall between him and them.
A wall that could never be broken.
And that was…
“…”
…the same even now.
“Moyong Baek of the Moyong Family requests a Sparring Match.”
“…”
The Moyong Family.
Even if they were at the bottom, they were still members of the Five Great Families.
When their Faction’s size was considered, their influence was wider than even that of the Shanxi Yu Family and the Dokgo Noble Family.
As a young master of such a Moyong Family, he was naturally bound to be strong.
Dongryong knew that he had grown tremendously compared to before.
But standing before a Rising Star of the Moyong Family, he felt as if he were returning to his past self.
“…Dongryong, no, Dong-Bong of the Jongrimun accepts the Sparring Match.”
At the same time Dongryong returned the Cupped Fist Salute, the Supervisor raised his hand.
“Then, begin the Sparring Match-!!”
Paat-!
As soon as the Sparring Match began, Moyong Baek leaped toward Dongryong.
A swift thrust was taking advantage of an unguarded moment.
Pagak-!
“…Keuk.”
With just a single clash, Dongryong could feel his opponent’s strength.
However…
Paat-! Pabat-!
[…I can see everything.]
…he could also immediately tell that he was several moves above his opponent.
Moyong Baek was at a level similar to or one step below Dokgoyeong, whom he had faced in the past.
He was now looking down on the Bloodline of Prestigious Families that he once thought of as a wall.
What had brought about this change…? Had they stagnated?
[No…]
They were Martial Artists too, so they must have trained with all their might. Yet, they were still below Dongryong.
Then what had brought about this change?
Dongryong knew the answer.
His Leader, who was mixed in with the crowd on the opposite side, was watching indifferently with an expression that seemed to say, 'Hurry up and finish it.'
Muyeon had saved the dying Dongryong, had allowed him to function as a proper human being, and had now even molded him into a respectable Martial Artist.
[It truly is a debt of gratitude that wouldn’t be fully repaid even with my life.]
Thinking this, Dongryong blocked or dodged Moyong Baek’s slowly moving sword.
But to the eyes of others, it seemed as though Moyong Baek was cornering Dongryong.
“As expected of the Moyong Family!”
“His movements are hard to even follow with the eyes!”
They praised Moyong Baek’s strength and…
“…As expected, is a mere Lay Branch not enough?”
“He’ll just hold out like that before collapsing.”
…expressed pity for Dongryong.
Even Moyong Baek in front of him seemed to think he had the upper hand, as confidence was cast across his face.
Pfft-.
At this, Dongryong burst into laughter for a moment.
They were guys who once looked like high walls, but seeing them now, completely unaware that they were being played with, was incredibly amusing.
So, without dragging it out any longer, Dongryong readjusted his grip on his sword and…
Swish-!
…slammed his sword straight into Moyong Baek’s wide-open opening.
Kwang-!!
“…!”
“…!”
At that moment, the same deafening roar that had echoed during the preliminaries rang out once more, and Moyong Baek was sent flying out of bounds.
Strike.
Dongryong had claimed victory in just a single Strike.
Cheoeok-.
“…”
“…”
Having defeated a promising Rising Star of the Five Great Families without even drawing his sword, Dongryong stood upright in his place.
Then, putting on a nonchalant expression, he called out quietly toward the Audience Seats just as he had practiced yesterday.
“…This is the sword of Jongrimun.”
“Waaaaaah-!!!”
As soon as Dongryong shouted that, a thunderous roar immediately rang out.
“Zhongnan-! Zhongnan-! Zhongnan-!!”
“Jongrimun!! Jongrimun!!”
Though he felt a bit embarrassed… Dongryong’s lips curled up at the cheers directed at him.