Invincible with Twin Swords

Chapter 29 : He Was Smiling? Why?

Jin Myeong of Wudang!

The moment he revealed his identity, I froze.

It wasn't that I was surprised by the two words 'Wudang'.

The moment he drew his sword, I had already recognized it as the Songmun Ancient Sword.

If Huashan has plum blossoms, Wudang has pine trees.

The Songmun Ancient Sword, with the pattern of a pine tree engraved on its blade, is a sword that is like a symbol of Wudang.

Although I couldn't understand why a Taoist of Wudang was staying here in the Forest of Swords.

But it wasn't just that I was surprised by the two words 'Wudang'.

What surprised me was his name.

He is Jin Myeong of Wudang.

It was a name that anyone who held a sword could not not know.

A genius who was once the head of the Three Swords of Wudang and whom no one doubted would lead the future of Wudang!

The one whom all the disciples of Wudang aimed for...

He was the future of Wudang.

But he disappeared at some point.

Wudang did not reveal any position, and no one knew the reason.

"I thought Wudang had to change. But the thoughts of others were different from mine."

His face, as he calmly confessed his past, was dark.

"I demanded a chance to prove the martial arts I had changed. I was too young then."

He could have changed Wudang slowly.

He had plenty of opportunity to do so.

Because the next sect leader was his share.

"I told the elders of Wudang who were trying to stop me that I would leave Wudang if they didn't give me a chance to prove it. And... I lost the duel."

"You lost, but didn't you get a chance? Then why did you break your promise and come down from Wudang Mountain?"

"I wanted to prove it. Aren't young martial artists like that? I thought only I was right."

There is not just one right answer in the world.

Even if the goal is the same, there are many paths to get there.

"I changed Wudang's martial arts in the direction I thought. There were many trials and errors. I also hit a wall."

"So all the way to this Forest of Swords..."

"I expected to be able to meet the end of my sword here. I was thinking of completing my sword and returning to Wudang. Because Wudang is a place I must return to."

He left Wudang to complete his sword, but perhaps the one who loved Wudang the most was him.

Because Wudang was everything to him, he wanted to change it.

"But as you know, I was not chosen in the Forest of Swords."

He raised his head and looked straight into my eyes.

"I think you can do it. No, you can."

I didn't answer at all.

It's not the confidence that I think I can do it myself.

Because I have a reason why I must be chosen.

"After meeting you, I saw something. A very small crack to break down the blocked wall."

"That's a relief."

"The solution you are looking for is not the Two Forms Divine Art. It is not possible with that."

He stood up from his seat.

As if cherishing the very old Songmun Ancient Sword, he carefully put it into its scabbard.

"When the insights I have gained are organized, I will tell you too."

I sat in my seat for a long time even after he left.

* * *

"No, what happened?"

Parip hyungnim, who was resting in his quarters, was startled and looked outside.

My appearance when I returned at dawn was a mess.

Because my martial arts uniform was all torn and my whole body was covered in dirt.

"It's nothing. I just had a duel with someone."

"What kind of duel is this? Was it a life-and-death battle?"

As expected, the only people who worry about me are Parip hyungnim and Deoksam.

But why isn't Deoksam here?

"Where's Deoksam? Didn't he come in?"

"He came in earlier, but he seemed to have tossed and turned all night and then went out again."

At that moment, Deoksam happened to open the door and come in.

"No, hyungnim! What's with your appearance? You were walking around with your shoulders squared after getting the power of the Black-Scaled Blood Serpent, you look good! Haha!"

I'll correct it to say that the only person who worries about me is Parip hyungnim.

"By the way, I think I have a problem."

Deoksam said, collapsing onto the bed powerlessly.

"Why? What's the matter?"

It would be a big problem if a problem arose before an important event.

"Is there some kind of strange sorcery cast on this Forest of Swords?"

What sorcery all of a sudden?

"Since I came here, my chest has suddenly become stuffy and my qi and blood are boiling. I can't concentrate and I just keep staring blankly at the ceiling."

Look at this guy.

I know what he's talking about.

"You just keep thinking of one thing, right? Your heart is pounding even though you haven't raised your energy."

"No, how did you know, hyungnim? I can't calm my mind at all. Even now, my chest is so stuffy that I was wondering if I would feel better if I got some cold air..."

Oh ho! This bear-like fellow has fallen in love!

He was cooped up in the mountains, tsk tsk.

No wonder there was a blush in his eyes when he looked at Dam Sook earlier.

It's not the time for this before a big event, but what can you do about a person's heart?

Still, we have something to focus on right now.

As I was about to give him some advice, Parip hyungnim chimed in.

"Ah! Our Deoksam must be having a hard time. I know that problem well, so I'll tell you what to do."

"Please explain. My face turns red all the time and my heart keeps pounding, I'm going crazy."

"It's a relief that you confessed to us before it's too late, Deoksam!"

As expected, Parip hyungnim has the experience of having lived life.

Hyungnim, please give him some good advice in my place.

That we're not in a situation for this right now.

"It's a difficult thing for anyone to accept easily when they experience it for the first time. It must be even more so for you since you have no experience."

Parip hyungnim carefully brought up the topic.

"That is the initial symptom of qi deviation!"

What? What?

Qi deviation? The initial symptom of qi deviation?

"I had similar symptoms when I tried to learn a secret manual that had flowed out from the unorthodox faction in the past. Your blood vessels are just a little blocked."

Deoksam was tilting his head.

"Why qi deviation all of a sudden?"

"It's a relief that we found it early. Are you secretly learning some other martial art without us knowing? This is why you shouldn't just learn anything."

Parip hyungnim, who was demanding the secret manual, and Deoksam, who was saying there was no such thing, were bickering in the small room.

I decided to give up on these two.

They're both just big and handsome, but they're fools.

* * *

The next morning, I woke up early.

Parip hyungnim had woken up earlier than me and had already changed his clothes, and was leaning against the window, watching the children playing outside.

He must be seeing his sister's image in those children. Because regret was mixed in his bright smile.

Parip hyungnim is tall and thin.

His face is also quite handsome if only those cool eyes would soften a bit.

Since he was an assassin, he always wore a black martial arts uniform, and due to the nature of his profession, which required him to move secretly, he preferred a martial arts uniform that fit his body perfectly.

Thanks to that, he was like a well-sharpened sword.

If he hadn't spent his time crazy for revenge, he would have been popular with women.

Even now, when the three of us go around together, the gazes of women don't leave us.

Thirty percent of them are directed at Parip hyungnim.

The remaining seventy percent are directed at me, the Jade-Faced Divine Dragon.

Deoksam had gone to bed late and was still rolling around in bed.

I think he called someone's name in his sleep.

When Deoksam wakes up, I'll have to do something about that beard.

He says it's a symbol of a man or whatever, but from my experience, most women hate beards. Moreover, Deoksam's beard was twisted like a thick wire.

I'll probably need my Ink Blood Saber to shave off that beard.

I changed into a clean martial arts uniform and went to see the Soul-Taking Divine Woman.

I have a lot to ask her.

She was with Na Yeryeong.

Na Yeryeong had changed into a gorgeous dress befitting a sorceress and was sitting by the Soul-Taking Divine Woman's side.

It seemed she had put on some light makeup too.

She smiled slightly at me.

My face flushed and my heart began to beat fast.

When I go back to my quarters, I'll have to ask Parip hyungnim how to treat the initial symptoms of qi deviation.

"I heard you had a tiff with Jin Myeong last night."

"Aren't men supposed to talk with their swords?"

"He is a child with many wounds. But thanks to you, his face looked bright today."

He is a person who must return to Wudang.

I hope he can find what he wants and return to his beloved hometown.

"Will you ask what you want? Or shall I tell you the story I have to tell first?"

"I will ask first."

My heart trembled. If she knows the answer I want...

"How much did you see?"

"...I saw many things. But I did not see everything."

Before I asked the next question, I glanced at Na Yeryeong.

"This child also knows everything."

Well, what can you hide from a sorceress who sees the future?

"Do you know who the Heavenly Demon is?"

"I don't."

"Then do you know the content of the Demonic Cult's revelation?"

"I know there will be a revelation, but I do not know its content."

I must have had too many expectations.

Well, if they could know everything with the power of sorcery, they wouldn't have been waiting for that long either.

Seeing my somewhat disappointed expression, the Soul-Taking Divine Woman said with a smile.

"A sorcerer cannot read all the future. We only see a fragment of the numerous futures. Depending on how you interpret that scene, numerous futures are decided."

I got to the point.

"How much do you know about the Demonic Cult and the revelation?"

"What I know is vague. There are also things that are not certain. But I will tell you everything I know."

She began to explain the facts she knew step by step.

The number of Demonic Cult members who follow the Demonic Cult may be countless, but only four families support the Demonic Cult in the absence of the Heavenly Demon.

They have existed along with the history of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and after the Heavenly Demon descends, they assist him from the closest distance.

These four families are called the Four Pillars of the Demonic Cult.

The revelation is sent down to each of those four families, and the timing and content are all different. The revelation is only complete when all four revelations are gathered.

"What is the content?"

"Three of them are the way the Heavenly Demon reveals himself to this world. When, where, and in what form he will appear."

"And the other one?"

"The purpose of the advent! What will the Heavenly Demon do after he descends to this world?"

I don't know the other three, but I already know the last fourth one well.

He came to destroy this world. To him, this world was nothing more or less than a toy to be played with and then thrown away.

"The Demonic Cult's revelation goes against the order of heaven. When the revelation is sent down, a divine killing will befall this world. I have already felt that divine killing twice."

It means that two revelations have already been sent down.

I have to find out the content before the remaining revelations are sent down.

"You have appeared many times in the future I have seen."

She said with a friendly smile.

I guess you get attached to someone if you meet them often, even in a dream.

She said I had appeared several times in the future she had seen.

Fighting fiercely, and laughing.

She said there were also times when I was crying.

My journey in the future will be like that.

I hope there will be many things to laugh about.

"How was my end? Did I achieve my purpose?"

I know why people visit fortune-telling houses.

Even a person like me who doesn't believe in fate wants to know the future, no matter what the cost.

But the Soul-Taking Divine Woman did not give any answer.

"Could it be that you can't reveal the secrets of heaven or something like that?"

"Hoho! Your fate is not up to the secrets of heaven. The reason I am hesitating is because I do not know if the scene I saw was your last scene."

And she added.

"I'm telling you in advance, no one knows if the story I'm about to tell means your result. I'm just telling you what I saw, so the interpretation is up to you."

"Please tell me. I will accept it well."

The Soul-Taking Divine Woman closed her eyes and was lost in thought for a moment.

It seemed she was recalling a memory.

"Hmm... numerous corpses were scattered, and you were standing on the mountain of those corpses. It was a truly gruesome scene. Your whole body was covered in wounds and stained with blood."

I have already prepared myself for my future stained with blood.

"And in front of you, a man with a white face was kneeling. He was as pretty as a woman's face."

The face of the Heavenly Demon, who had cut off my right arm with a smiling face, came to mind.

"You cut off that person's neck."

If that person is the Heavenly Demon, then I have finally achieved my purpose.

A thrilling joy pierced my whole body.

In this moment, I wanted to believe Na Yeryeong's words that fate is fixed.

"But..."

"But?"

"The man who was kneeling in front of you was laughing loudly. Even at the moment his neck was being cut off."

He was smiling? Why?

"...And you were crying. Tears full of sadness were flowing endlessly from your two eyes."

(End of Chapter)