novelraw Chapter 120 : Main Round
Chapter 120 : Main Round
Main Round
Seeing Jeong-un's puzzled face, Mu Jung gently lifted the corners of his mouth and smiled warmly.
"I've seen countless well-trained martial artists' bodies, but I think yours will leave the deepest impression. I'd like to ask what miraculous technique and fate shaped such a vessel, but I'll restrain myself."
"..."
In that moment, Jeong-un's mind flashed back over his own journey so far.
Leaving aside whether One Illumination Movement Technique even deserved to be called a 'miraculous technique', the vast amount of internal energy now in his dantian was difficult to fully account for.
Now, Jeong-un himself knew that the power he had accumulated far exceeded the norm.
Only a few months ago, he had felt acutely how his reserves of cultivated energy were noticeably less than those of his peers.
Especially the prestigious disciples of similar age, who all boasted abundant cultivated power; to defeat them, he always had to rely on clever, unexpected moves.
But now, things were different.
He had managed to shatter the blade of a Qingcheng Sect disciple not only thanks to his unique, precise ki sense, but also because of his deep internal power.
He was no longer a martial artist who had to worry about the quantity of his cultivation during battle.
Mu Jung asked, "Come to think of it, I haven't heard your name. May I ask what it is?"
A peak expert of the martial world was asking the name of a junior of a remote, less supported background. As if he wanted to remember it.
Anyone familiar with the abbot's typically detached and indifferent demeanor would have found this utterly surprising.
'My name...?'
Right now, he was using a different identity. Ordinarily, he would have had to say Cheon Pung of the Baek Sword Gate.
'There's no point hiding it anymore.'
Jeong-un answered without hesitation.
"I am Yu Jeong-un of the Yu household in Hanzhong. Right now, I have left home and am with the Blue Scale Corps of Heavenly Martial Hall."
"Do you have a nickname? I'd like to know the name by which people speak of you."
"..."
After a brief silence, Jeong-un replied respectfully.
"I do not have one yet."
"I see. It was nice meeting you."
It was a natural cue to leave. Jeong-un slowly got up and gave a martial salute.
It was his first meeting with a peak expert of the martial world.
* * *
"You called for me?"
Yeom Baek asked as he entered the room.
This was the office of Zhuge Cheon-woo, Heavenly Martial Hall's chief strategist.
Zhuge Cheon-woo, plainly dressed in simple black martial garb without any gold embroidery, was seated behind a long desk.
'What is this about?'
The abrupt summons meant he'd walked here in haste early in the morning.
Given Zhuge Cheon-woo's usual personality, such things would not be common.
Normally, Zhuge Cheon-woo would send word in advance and arrange a proper meeting.
It was often said that you couldn't buy the chief strategist's time with gold.
So if such a man called in haste, there had to be a reason.
Zhuge Cheon-woo, seeming lost in thought as he stared down at the table for a moment, finally spoke.
"I called because I wanted to ask you something."
"Please ask."
"Annihilating One-Slash—there are a few things I'm curious about regarding that person."
"You mean Yu Jeong-un?"
Yeom Baek repeated, looking a little perplexed.
The chief strategist had specifically called him here only to talk about a mere martial artist within their institution?
Anyone would find it odd.
Above all, if it was about internal information on someone, the General Affairs Department would know better.
Zhuge Cheon-woo nodded and spoke.
"Besides his companions, you are the one who has observed him the longest. I want to know how that young man appears in your eyes. Speak freely."
"..."
When it came to judging people, Yeom Baek could not begin to compare himself to Zhuge Cheon-woo.
The chief strategist's powers of observation were so keen he could gauge a person's power from the subtlest words and gestures.
Yet, despite already having met Yu Jeong-un, he was now asking for Yeom Baek's assessment.
'He must have his reasons.'
Suppressing his own questions, Yeom Baek began to speak slowly.
"He possesses an extraordinary level of martial prowess for his age. He also knows how to stand up for the common people, but at times he's able to make bold decisions. He uses his sword without hesitation—not like someone new to battle. In many ways, he's an exceptional fellow."
"His character?"
"Sorry?"
"What about his personality? Manners, words—anything."
Yeom Baek replied with a hesitant look.
"By the rumors in the hall, he's thought of as quite arrogant... but from what I've seen, he combines real ability with humility. It's rare these days. He's also very well-mannered."
"I saw it that way as well."
"...?"
When Zhuge Cheon-woo replied with an unreadable face, Yeom Baek couldn't help but furrow his brow a bit.
Did he really call me just for this idle talk? For a moment, he wondered if Zhuge Cheon-woo was always so frivolous.
Seeing Yeom Baek's look, Zhuge Cheon-woo let out a dry chuckle.
"I called you because I saw the same thing you did."
"I don't understand what you mean."
"Here—look at this."
Zhuge Cheon-woo opened a drawer below the desk and drew out a stack of papers, scattering them haphazardly across the desk.
"...?"
Yeom Baek quickly scanned the words on the disorganized papers.
They were letters, all from different senders and places.
Then—something odd caught his eye, and Yeom Baek's eyes grew wide.
"... This..."
Muttering in confusion, Yeom Baek looked at Zhuge Cheon-woo, who nodded and explained.
"These are all letters pouring in addressed to the Baek Sword Gate."
"..."
It was a name of a sect he could not fail to recognize: Yu Jeong-un's assumed identity during his important mission.
He himself had relayed that name and status.
"What is going on here?"
"It's just as you see. Every letter tells a different tale, but in the end, each is trying to forge a connection to the Baek Sword Gate somehow. And that's not all—there are many more that haven't arrived yet. The General Affairs Department is checking each for authenticity and intent as we speak."
"But the Baek Sword Gate..."
"Was exterminated. Publicly, it is a sealed sect."
"..."
"I've even heard letters still continue to arrive."
Yeom Baek fell silent, at a loss for words.
The Baek Sword Gate was indeed wiped out—he himself had been on that mission.
A small, Elite group had been dispatched to annihilate the sect in a single night.
In particular, Yeom Baek himself had beheaded the Gate Leader as he tried to flee with a peasant hostage—he'd long been entangled with the Evil Faction, a thoroughly rotten man.
For convenience's sake, they'd simply marked the sect "sealed" in the Murim Alliance's registry.
But all of a sudden, requests for connection were flooding in?
There could be only one reason.
"They all heap praise on Annihilating One-Slash—in other words, Cheon Pung of the Baek Sword Gate. The letters are frantic attempts to ally themselves with a rising star's sect. There's even a letter from a Shaolin layman wanting to serve Cheon Pung as a benefactor."
"..."
"And about half are marriage proposals from matchmaking agents all over. Even famous playboys hasn't gotten so many."
"Matchmakers...?"
Yeom Baek let out a bewildered laugh.
There had always been sects seeking to swell their ranks by marrying off daughters—even as concubines—to promising members of prestigious martial clans.
It was a common way for minor sect leaders to increase their group's influence.
It worked surprisingly well.
Whether martial artist or commoner, everyone loved a beautiful connection.
But this was a bit much.
Even if Baek Sword Gate was on the Murim Alliance roster, it was still a minor rural sect.
Yet now, marriage proposals were pouring in for its disciple?
Clearly, the behavior of the person in question had something to do with it.
But the Yu Jeong-un he had observed was not the type for such attention.
The boy had always kept quietly to himself, spending time only between the hall and the practice room in the Heavenly Martial Hall.
'If anything, he'd probably dislike such attention.'
At the same time, Zhuge Cheon-woo was in thought.
'To think he's made a name for himself as a rising star...'
Judging from Yeom Baek's expression, even he found Yu Jeong-un's course surprising.
He'd heard that Yu Jeong-un had shattered the sword of a Qingcheng Sect disciple without hesitation.
That sort of deed would certainly draw attention intentionally.
'In any case, it seems I wasn't wrong about him after all.'
He recalled their previous meeting.
Yu Jeong-un had demonstrated sharp intuition and insight. Such a person must have his reasons.
At that moment, as silence settled, Yeom Baek finally spoke up quietly.
"Chief Strategist."
"What is it?"
Perhaps he'd thought of something new.
People were complex beings—there could be things he hadn't noticed.
Zhuge Cheon-woo looked at Yeom Baek, curious.
Lowering his voice, Yeom Baek asked, "Is it possible the norigae you gave him is at fault? Could it have changed his character somehow...?"
"..."
"I'm just asking in case."
As Zhuge Cheon-woo silently stared at him, Yeom Baek looked away and muttered.
* * *
Jeong-un's prediction that information would vary greatly depending on one's status had not been wrong.
The young heirs of great clans endlessly swapped and spread rumors.
Everywhere they met became a forum for exchange.
Among these, the preliminary rounds for the Shaolin gathering were naturally the hottest topic.
Each one animatedly recalled what they'd witnessed.
The whole point of these events was to witness the skills of martial artists.
It was always exciting to see renowned experts clash—sword against sword.
But predicting the outcome was not exactly hard.
Usually, disciples from prestigious sects claimed victory.
That was the way of things—they were cultivated geniuses, having received every possible form of support from a young age.
By this point, it was simply the way of the martial world.
Of course, even if predicting the winner was easy, the spectacle of their techniques was entertainment enough.
There was never a dull moment.
That's why the duel of Cheon Pung from the Baek Sword Gate was the talk of all the rumors.
A mid-tier sect disciple had beaten a famous Qingcheng Sect disciple in a duel—with a single slash, shattering the opponent's sword.
It was a moment when the order of the martial world was upended.
People are always most impressed by unexpected results—especially when the underdog wins.
"Shaolin is moving the locations of their treasures, did you hear?"
"Their treasures?"
Jeong-un asked, and Shin Soryeong nodded.
"I heard from a monk I know on my way in. Things are chaotic because of the gathering, so they're shifting the treasures to places they can manage better."
Shin Soryeong was the successor of Shaolin's top lay clan.
Thanks to her status, she could enter parts of Shaolin forbidden to outsiders.
Naturally, she heard all sorts of insider Shaolin news.
And she told Jeong-un everything, holding nothing back. Despite having only just met, they'd built a solid trust.
Jeong-un was reaping the benefits of getting closer to her.
'They're taking precautions, I see.'
Moving the location of the treasures because of the gathering was clearly the official reason.
They were probably moving them every day.
Divine Thief even knew that the Shaolin abbot left the abbot's quarters every nine days.
Having been robbed once, Shaolin was now on full alert.
Just then, a girl approached from the other side.
It was Gongsun Yeong, whom Jeong-un had spoken with a few times lately and now recognized by face.
"Big sis! Young hero Cheon!"
Gongsun Yeong and Shin Soryeong had quickly become friendly and now spoke informally.
It was said great martial clans were often like this.
In regions controlled by their own clans, they were treated as elders regardless of age—so when meeting someone of similar status, they felt especially close and interacted freely.
"Did you hear? Young hero Cheon's next opponent has been decided from the last duel."
Jeong-un had won his remaining preliminary duel with a single slash and advanced to the main round.
His opponent had been inferior even to the Blue Hand Sword he had faced before.
That martial artist could barely control his breathing—Jeong-un had immediately forgotten his name after knocking away his sword and leaving the ring.
"He's a promising expert famous in the Hanzhong government office of Northern Zhili. The Zhao clan of Changshan. I'm sure you've heard of them."
"Zhao clan of Changshan, you say?"
"You mean it's your first time hearing the name?"
Gongsun Yeong widened her eyes in surprise and then slipped right in, naturally falling into step beside him.
This easy familiarity made Jeong-un smile inwardly as he listened.
Gongsun Yeong acted straightforwardly and without hesitation.
It was typical among the children of great clans; they didn't imagine their actions would be rebuffed.
Gongsun Yeong continued, "It's a prestigious clan famous for exquisite spear technique. They've produced many heroic knights, and the one who advanced this time—Zhao Gang—is the same. I've heard countless stories of how, from a young age, he relentlessly tracked down Evil Faction ruffians."
"A chivalrous hero with spear skills?"