Chapter 226
“Pretty flowers, pretty flowers—I like them, I like them!”
Yul sang, her face alight with excitement.
Yul was on her way back from somewhere with Vermilion Bird, holding her hand.
Vermilion Bird carried a large basket full of flowers.
As soon as Yul woke up today, she tugged Vermilion Bird by the hand and headed somewhere.
It was the Hebei Peng Family's large garden. It was vast at the best of times, but it was also a place where all kinds of beautiful flowers bloomed to delight the eyes of everyone who visited.
Even Vermilion Bird, who normally had little interest in flowers, occasionally found her eyes drawn to them, so that was saying something.
Some time later.
Yul was on her way back after picking a whole lot of flowers with Vermilion Bird.
Upon returning, she and Vermilion Bird made all kinds of things, from flower crowns to flower necklaces and flower rings.
Before long, the basket was filled with everything Yul and Vermilion Bird had made.
“Phew. Good!”
A satisfied smile spread across Yul's lips.
Vermilion Bird was curious.
What was Yul planning to do with all of it? There were far too many for her to play with by herself.
Yul answered Vermilion Bird's question.
“They're gifts for the people precious to me!”
With that, Yul got up and began racing all over the Hebei Peng Family estate.
Then,
“Here you go!”
Whenever Yul came across members of the Peng Family, she gave them flower crowns, necklaces, and rings.
“Oh my, thank you, Young Miss.”
“Oh dear. Our Young Miss, giving me something like this. Thank you so much.”
Everyone who received a gift from Yul broke into a smile.
Thanks to her, people all over the Peng estate were giving off the fragrance of flowers.
The White Wolf Unit also received gifts from Yul, and every one of them looked delighted.
They weren't the only ones.
“M-me? You mean me? Y-yes. Thank you.”
Nangong Hwan, the head of the Nangong Family,
“…All right. I'll use it well. You want me to put it on my head now? …Hmm. I understand.”
Tang Jinwoo, the head of the Sichuan Tang Family,
“Hahaha! Our Yul does nothing but the sweetest things. Ah, but Yul, this is too small. Give me two.”
Hwangbo Gyun, the head of the Hwangbo Family,
“Haha. A flower crown? It's been a long time. Thank you, Yul.”
And Zhuge Seung, the head of the Zhuge Family.
Every one of them put the flower crowns Yul had given them on their heads.
They couldn't help looking rather awkward, but seeing Yul beam with satisfaction at the sight warmed everyone's hearts.
Unfortunately, Peng Mugang and Dan Huiyeong were out at precisely this moment.
“Mom! Dad!”
After racing excitedly all over the Peng estate, Yul finally found Peng Seo-yeon and Yeo Un-hwi.
She promptly took out flower crowns and placed them on her father and mother's heads.
With such a handsome man and beautiful woman wearing flower crowns, they couldn't have looked more lovely.
“Thank you, Yul.”
Peng Seo-yeon and Yeo Un-hwi smiled at Yul.
Soon, Yul began hurrying off somewhere again.
“Yul, where are you going?”
“There's someone I need to make pretty!”
“Huh? Someone you need to make pretty?”
Who could that be?
Peng Seo-yeon and Yeo Un-hwi could only tilt their heads in puzzlement.
Vermilion Bird was also extremely curious about who Yul meant.
And before long, when she found out who it was, she nearly burst out laughing.
“Y-Young Miss?”
“May we ask why you were looking for us?”
“I have something to give you!”
Yul soon took out three flower crowns.
The three protectors besides Vermilion Bird reflexively sat in a row in front of Yul.
Yul soon began diligently decorating them with flowers to make them look pretty.
As the three protectors gradually became more glamorous and pure,
Pfft.
Even Vermilion Bird, who normally wore a stern expression, burst out laughing.
The sight of the Heavenly Demon Divine Church's protectors—men capable of striking fear into the entire martial world—wearing flower crowns was simply too incongruous.
The three protectors felt a surge of irritation at Vermilion Bird's twitching lips, but with Yul smiling brightly in front of them, they had no choice but to keep their expressions under control.
But then,
“Hmm. Why?”
Yul's expression grew complicated.
“Why aren't you getting prettier? Uuung.”
“……”
The three protectors' fierce faces showed no sign of improving, even with the beautiful flower crowns, and Yul grew serious.
That was how Yul first realized that sometimes things in the world didn't go the way she wanted them to.
In any case, after much difficulty, Yul finally finished decorating them. The three protectors disappeared into the distance with dazed faces, awkwardly thanking her as they went.
“Bwahahaha!”
At the sight, Vermilion Bird finally burst into loud laughter.
When had she last laughed so freely?
Just then,
“Big Sis, this one's yours!”
Yul took out the most beautiful flower crown she had been saving until then.
“Huh? One for me too?”
“Yep! You're also someone very, very precious to me!”
Someone precious. Had Vermilion Bird ever heard words like that before?
Soon, Vermilion Bird lowered herself to Yul's eye level, and Yul placed the flower crown on her head.
“How is it?”
“You're so, so pretty!”
At Yul's exuberant praise, Vermilion Bird gave a gentle smile.
A radiant smile no one had ever seen her wear.
***
The Justice Alliance's training ground.
The place was in a great uproar.
“This is impossible. You mean even the ‘Martial Dragon’ can't handle that mere brat?”
What was happening before their eyes was that shocking.
But the person who had received the greatest shock was ‘Martial Dragon’ Doyil himself.
“Huff. Huff!”
Doyil was a sorry sight.
He was being beaten so one-sidedly that it was practically pitiful.
His opponent was a young man who looked younger than him, seemingly only just old enough to be an adult.
His hair was swept back, and his large, sharply raised eyes were striking.
Those eyes were filled with competitiveness and a desire to win.
“What? Is that all you've got?”
The young man looked disappointed.
“I heard you were the most skilled in martial arts among the somewhat famous Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes, so I was expecting something, but this is really disappointing.”
Doyil's face twisted with anger at those words.
Such humiliation.
But in reality, Doyil could not bring out any strength at all against that young man.
His opponent was simply that strong.
It was unbelievable.
Doyil had devoted his entire life to nothing but training in martial arts.
Thanks to that, he had earned the title of Martial Dragon at a young age.
But what was this supposed to be?
He wasn't even a match for his opponent.
‘This won't do.’
Doyil's gaze changed.
He readjusted his stance.
In an instant, the air around them changed.
Soon, one of Shaolin's famed techniques unfolded from Doyil's hands.
[Lion Muni Seal (獅子牟尼印)]
It was one of Shaolin's Seventy-Two Secret Techniques. Doyil formed a specific hand seal with his fingers, then fired a powerful blast of qi.
Swoooosh!
The Shaolin martial monks watching the scene let out cries of admiration.
Pride shone in their eyes.
Doyil was displaying martial arts that had grown far stronger than before.
But,
“Ugh. Boring.”
His opponent shattered the attack with the casual wave of one hand.
Doyil's eyes widened until they seemed ready to split apart.
The technique he had trained to the point of death had been rendered so utterly futile…
“There doesn't seem to be anything more to see… Let's finish this now.”
The opponent's bored gaze changed.
And then,
Kwoooooong!
The man revealed an aura completely different from before and charged toward Doyil at tremendous speed.
“Gurk!”
Doyil collapsed in an instant without even knowing what technique had struck him.
“Senior Brother!”
“Junior Brother!”
The Shaolin martial monks who had been watching the match hurriedly ran toward the fallen Doyil.
Looking at them, the young man said as though nothing had happened,
“He shouldn't be seriously hurt. Take him away.”
One of the Shaolin martial monks glared at him for his insolent attitude, but no one could say anything to him.
They all knew his identity well, so they couldn't speak recklessly.
In the end, they quietly carried Doyil away.
“Tch. Growling, huh.”
“I told you not to overdo it.”
A short while later, a man and a woman about his age appeared behind him.
The man shrugged.
“I didn't overdo it.”
“That's what you call not overdoing it? And you should show some basic courtesy. Are you trying to make everyone here your enemy?”
“Ugh.”
“And openly playing with your opponent like that is discourteous. If it were me, I would have finished it more decisively and quickly.”
The woman lectured the man as though she were used to doing so.
At her words, another man standing beside them nodded.
He was neatly dressed and handsome, and he was the only one who continued to speak formally.
“I feel the same way. That is what I think.”
“Yeah, yeah. I'm sure you two know best. I was wrong. I was wrong.”
The broad-eyed man who had fought Doyil shrugged.
Then he scratched his head as though he were bored.
“Anyway, time sure isn't passing. I wish we could do it right now.”
“It's not some tiny event. How could it happen that quickly? I hear they're already rushing to hold it as early as possible.”
“Me? I don't know about that stuff. I have no interest in anything except fighting.”
“Oh, aren't you proud.”
“Anyway, let's prepare well during the time remaining before the martial arts tournament. Our masters are expecting a lot from us, after all.”
At the woman's words, the broad-eyed man snorted.
“Hmph. How long am I supposed to wait for that? My blood is boiling too much.”
“You were perfectly patient while you were locked in the training cave. Why are you making such a fuss now that you're out?”
“That's because I thought there was no end in sight back then. But we've finished and come out now, haven't we? I want to show the world our strength as soon as possible.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Want to hear it? I just had a fun idea.”
The broad-eyed man grinned, and everyone looked curious.
“What is it”
“We're going after one of the Ten Great Experts. If we defeat one of them, rumors will spread everywhere even before the martial arts tournament begins. People will learn just how incredible the secret weapons raised by the Nine Great Sects are.”
“What?”
“I would advise against it.”
A man whose demeanor was the exact opposite of the broad-eyed man's spoke up.
“Why?”
“For one thing, no one even knows who we are yet. There would be no point in starting something like that before our identities are known.”
“Who cares if the rumors spread later? We can just do it. That's how heroes are born. You don't calculate everything in your head.”
“What hero?”
“Besides, if we recklessly provoke one of the Ten Great Experts, we'll have plenty of headaches to deal with.”
“That's right. Each of them has their own faction, so if we provoke one of them carelessly, our masters will do nothing but scold us.”
“You think I haven't thought that far? Of course I have.”
“Huh? Do you have some other plan?”
“Heh.”
The man gave a meaningful smile.
“There is one among the Ten Great Experts who has no faction at all.”
“Who is that?”
The man grinned.
“Mu-myeong.”
An unexpected name slipped from his lips.
“Mu-myeong…”
It was a name they all knew well.
The mysterious expert who had defeated the Ghost God Lord and taken his place among the Ten Great Experts.
“But if we want to challenge this Mu-myeong, we need to know who he is and where he is. Yet nothing about him is known at all.”
“Of course that's true.”
The broad-eyed man nodded.
“But I've already thought of a way to deal with that, so don't worry.”
“A way?”
“Yeah.”
When the woman looked curious, the man grinned.
“There's a place that will find out anything in the world if you pay it enough money.”
“You don't mean…”
“Yeah. We're going to the Hao Sect.”