Chapter 44
“Older brother… you call me older brother… haha. How absurd.”
Namgung Mun let out a dazed laugh.
It was because So-ah’s proposed condition was truly bewildering.
“You’re really just a childish brat… to think of such a condition.”
“What’s wrong with it? It’s more useful than you think. Don’t come crying to me later, asking to take it back or to let you off.”
“Alright! If I lose, I will serve you as my older brother.”
For a moment, the two looked at each other and simultaneously curled up the corners of their mouths.
‘Haha, there’s no way I’ll lose.’
‘Huhu, the world will probably be surprised! The whole world will be astonished by the full power of the Namgung Family!’
With Namgung Mun’s first step that swept the floor of the training ground, the duel between the two began.
***
“Hah… I definitely heard it was a friendly duel…”
“Straight to it without even a battle of nerves?”
“It’s brutal, so brutal.”
The crowd’s eyes widened.
And for good reason. Namgung Mun had immediately performed a real move without even the common courtesy of a preparatory stance or a preliminary exchange.
A typical friendly duel would involve taking a preparatory stance and exchanging three preliminary moves to probe each other and build up the heat of the duel.
But Namgung Mun did not want to show such courtesy to So-ah.
‘I will definitely bring this man to his knees!’
Namgung Mun was only boiling with fighting spirit and the instinct of a martial artist.
But…
‘Oh! His spirit is good!’
So-ah, on the other hand, had a sneer on his face from beginning to end, as if he didn’t care about Namgung Mun’s firm resolve.
Namgung Mun’s sword strike sharply covered So-ah’s figure.
But So-ah simply avoided the sword strike just by taking a few steps.
“Hmph, are you just going to run away?”
Namgung Mun sneered and provoked So-ah.
But So-ah was still the same.
He was just maintaining the distance of his figure while escaping Namgung Mun’s offensive.
‘What is he thinking?’
Namgung Mun felt a sense of wonder inwardly.
‘This man is definitely hiding his claws on purpose.’
He had no choice but to think so.
If So-ah was really having a hard time and was busy evading, such a scene could never have been produced.
Currently, So-ah was narrowly avoiding the sword path by a hair’s breadth.
Namgung Mun realized that it was a high-level mind game to intentionally show an opening and draw out more attacks.
Therefore, even while launching a one-sided offensive, it was Namgung Mun who was under mental pressure.
“As expected, he’s worthy of being the once-in-a-millennium prodigy of the Namgung Family! He’s completely pushing back the disciple of the God of War, isn’t he?”
“That’s a very sharp sword path. He’s definitely not at the level of a student.”
“That looks like the Boundless Azure Sky Sword Technique… isn’t the Boundless Azure Sky Sword Technique the basic sword technique of the Namgung Family? But does it make sense to forge such sharpness? He’s a real genius!”
Cries of the crowd erupted from all over the training ground.
In the eyes of those who could not grasp the situation, it looked as if Namgung Mun was one-sidedly cornering So-ah.
But the thoughts of the prominent figures of the Jianghu were different.
‘Is So-ah planning to land a powerful blow…’
Moyong Baek thought so, and,
‘That child named Namgung Mun… if he swings his sword like a madman like that, his stamina will be greatly depleted…’
‘How long can such a situation be maintained…’
Abbess Hong-ryeon and the Dragon Head of the Beggars’ Sect, Hong In-geol, watched the duel between the two with such thoughts.
In that moment.
—Shushushushuk!
The momentum contained in Namgung Mun’s sword changed completely.
Namgung Mun’s sword, which had started with a flashing brilliance, scattered hundreds of shadows and at the same time, was shot at So-ah with a transparent force. The crowd who saw it could not help but exclaim in admiration.
“Sword ki… it’s sword ki, but such a brutal sword ki?”
“He’s crazy… how profound is Young Master Namgung’s internal energy!”
“That’s something that even a great master can’t imitate!”
It was an astonishing event.
Sword ki.
Usually, one would be called a master from the time they could emit this sword ki.
Currently, among the students of the White Martial Academy, there were quite a few who could use sword ki.
For example, So-ah’s friends, Tang Il-gi and Myo-seon, could also emit sword ki without difficulty.
But emitting sword ki and using that sword ki as naturally as Namgung Mun in a real battle were completely different matters.
Moreover, the sword ki that had just been emitted from Namgung Mun’s sword was not a single strand.
Hundreds of strands of sword ki!
Hundreds of strands of sword shadows!
Hundreds of strands of sword light!
This was truly a heaven-shaking, astonishing sword release.
“Hah…!”
The Martial Alliance Leader, Ha Won-sang, let out a gasp with an impressed gaze.
“Head Instructor. You’re truly amazing. How reassuring must it be for the eldest son of the Namgung family to be such an outstanding talent? Hoho…”
The head of the Wudang Sect, Master Jong-ryeo, also could not hide his surprise and said to Namgung Won.
Just then.
“It’s still too early to be surprised.”
Namgung Won’s unexpected answer.
He spat out in a heavy voice.
“My son has not yet touched a single hair of Instructor Jin.”
Only then did the prominent figures gaze at So-ah.
‘…A mirage. That is close to a mirage!’
‘Is that the Swift Whale Steps of the God of War, Moyong Cheon?’
The Alliance Leader and Master Jong-ryeo were once again astonished as they saw So-ah, who was avoiding all the sword moves like lightning, to the point where the word ‘swift’ was insufficient.
“But!”
In that moment, Namgung Won spoke again.
“It’s not over yet.”
“…”
“What do you mean by that, Namgung Family Head?”
“I mean that my son’s true skills are not all that.”
“Namgung Family Head…”
“If Mun-ah’s true skills are revealed, Instructor Jin will not be able to escape unscathed either.”
At the same time as he finished speaking, Namgung Won clenched his two fists.
Then, for the first time, he showed a faint sneer.
‘My son! Today, pour out everything you have!’
***
“You bastard!”
“Why, you bastard!”
An unimaginable situation unfolded.
When Namgung Mun covered So-ah with hundreds of strands of sword ki, most believed that this duel would soon be over.
But the fight was not over.
So-ah still did not counterattack, but he was perfectly evading Namgung Mun’s attacks and was just chipping away at his stamina.
“How long are you going to just run away?”
“It’s my business, isn’t it?”
A blood light flashed in Namgung Mun’s eyes.
In the end, he lost his reason and, in a great rage, let out a roar.
“Alright! I don’t know what your intentions are, running away like a loach, but this time, you will not be able to avoid the tip of my sword.”
“As you wish.”
—Gooooo…!
It changed.
The density of his entire body’s ki path and killing intent.
A deep sound echoed from Namgung Mun’s sword along with a powerful force.
‘Oh? Is that a sword cry?’
So-ah couldn’t help but be surprised this time.
Sword cry.
Certainly, letting out a sword cry was a prowess on a different level from using sword ki.
Of course, there were those who clumsily let out a sword cry, but to So-ah’s ears, Namgung Mun’s sword cry was a deep wail that could only be emitted when one had entered the initial stage of the unity of sword and self.
‘He’s the real deal. It’s no wonder the rising generation praises him so much. If he can use a sword cry of that level, he would be at the level of Brother Chan when he was young.’
So-ah’s heart pounded.
As a martial artist, he felt a competitive spirit, and the heart of a warrior throbbed.
‘Shall we play properly now?’
Just as So-ah was staring intently into Namgung Mun’s eyes.
—Wuuuuuuuu!
An unbelievable sight unfolded once again in the training ground.
“Th-That’s…”
“What am I seeing right now… I’m seeing things, right? Right?”
“You too?”
“Me too?”
“Hey!”
“Me too!”
The students were astonished.
What had entered their field of vision was a giant concentration of ki created by the tip of Namgung Mun’s sword, a sword gang.
That sword gang rushed towards So-ah in the blink of an eye.
“That is… the Emperor Sword Technique… if it’s a gang-form Emperor Sword Technique, isn’t it the Emperor’s Invincible Sword Gang!”
Disbelief appeared in the pupils of the Martial Alliance Leader, Ha Won-sang.
Namgung Mun’s age was now only 25.
He was a young man who had not yet reached the age of thirty.
But such a young man was performing the Emperor’s Invincible Sword Gang, the highest martial art of the great Namgung Family!
This was something that could not be understood in common sense.
But the surprise was only for a moment.
An even more astonishing event unfolded in the training ground.
—Kwarurururung!
A thunderclap erupted.
A thunderclap that covered the world with a deafening roar.
That thunderclap, with the momentum of a thunderbolt, created a gust of wind. The gust of wind gradually swelled with the momentum of a rising sun and eventually became a giant whirlwind.
At the center of that whirlwind was So-ah.
“…Moyong Family Head. What on earth is that?”
“I’m not sure, but that is probably the Iron Armor Great Rotation, a move specialized in defense among the Ten-Second Invincible Arts that my father created.”
“Iron Armor Great Rotation…”
“My father blocked the Heavenly Demon’s Nature Sword with that Iron Armor Great Rotation.”
For a moment, not only the Alliance Leader, Master Jong-ryeo, Abbess Hong-ryeon, and Hong In-geol, but also even the Namgung Family Head could not say anything with their mouths agape.
***
—Kwagagagagang…!
A roar that shook the heavens and the earth.
Those with weak internal energy even spat out blood.
The aftermath of the clash between the Emperor’s Invincible Sword Gang and the Iron Armor Great Rotation had a destructive power that could split mountains and seas.
Even so, if So-ah had not been conscious of his surroundings, there might have been serious injuries.
Swoosh…
The air settled.
The thick fog also gradually subsided, and in the field of vision of the crowd, who could not distinguish anything as if a transparent curtain was in their eyes, two figures came into view.
“My… my… Emperor Sword Technique… the Emperor Sword Technique…”
Namgung Mun muttered like a madman.
He had definitely poured out all his life’s study just a moment ago.
Therefore, he had no regrets.
But how.
How on earth could that person named Jin So-ah not be harmed in the slightest!
“The Emperor Sword Technique… the Emperor Sword Technique is the Namgung Family… the Namgung Family is the Emperor Sword Technique… and the Emperor Sword Technique is the Namgung Family… is the Ten-Second Invincible Arts of the God of War truly invincible…”
Namgung Mun’s gaze turned to the empty air.
Dazed, empty, dejected, astonished, disbelieving.
And as the light of despair brushed past his eyes and face, his will as a martial artist seemed to be exhausted.
Just then.
“You’re wrong.”
A low voice flowed out of So-ah’s mouth.
“What did you say?”
“How can the Emperor Sword Technique be the Namgung Family and the Namgung Family be the Emperor Sword Technique? The sword technique is just a means.”
“…”
“Moreover, you are not the Emperor Sword Technique, nor are you the Namgung Family itself. You are just the natural person, Namgung Mun, right? But why do you identify your personality, your martial arts, and your family as one? Tsk tsk… your martial arts are amazing, but your thinking is pathetic.”
“What?”
“Honestly, I was surprised. I didn’t know you were this good. Well, since I didn’t use one hand, it’s half-assed in the end, but anyway, you made me use the Ten-Second Invincible Arts.”
Namgung Mun’s body trembled at So-ah’s words.
‘One hand… you didn’t use it?’
But that bewildering question soon disappeared completely.
Because a sharp remark came out of So-ah’s mouth.
“I’ll acknowledge you. Namgung Daemun! No, Namgung Mun. You’re useful.”
“This… brat…”
“But the duel isn’t over yet, is it? I haven’t attacked even once, have I? Now it’s my turn to attack you, isn’t it?”
“…”
“But don’t be scared. I’m just going to give you a taste.”
“Don’t you dare shut…”
—Kwang!
Namgung Mun’s words could not be continued.
It was because So-ah’s fist had mercilessly struck his chest.
“Gasp…!”
“What?”
“In one blow…”
That’s right.
It was one blow.
Namgung Mun had launched an offensive of over two hundred moves at So-ah, but So-ah had only thrown a single punch at Namgung Mun.
But So-ah was not harmed in the slightest, and Namgung Mun…
Hwiiiiing…!
He flew through the air and was stuck like a rotten old tree at the edge of the training ground.
“Can he get up?”
“It’s completely impossible.”
“Aww… he’s even pitiful. Tsk tsk.”
The students of the Human Division squeezed their eyes shut as they looked at Namgung Mun.
The person who had thrown the punch, So-ah, was just scratching his head in the center of the training ground and smiling bashfully.
‘Should I have hit him a little softer? Aww… I don’t know either!’
(End of Chapter)