Chapter 86 : Chapter 86
Chapter 086. General of the North (2)
“Look here, Princess, this is not your bedroom in Beijing. You should watch your mouth.”
The Senior Elder of the Unorthodox Alliance, Blood Death Lord, the only old man over a hundred years old in this place, clicked his tongue and sighed.
The General of the North Jin Ryeo was already an old woman close to eighty. However, Blood Death Lord, who remembered the days decades ago when she was an Imperial Princess, spoke rudely without hesitation.
“You are talking nonsense, proving you are a thug of the Jianghu. Does it matter if this is Beijing or not? Everything under the heavens belongs to the Emperor.”
Hearing those words, the General spouted old-fashioned nonsense.
However, Blood Death Lord did not even snort. Since the monsters became rampant, the authority of the Imperial Family had declined significantly. To the point where even the Emperor did not recite those laws that were only words.
“Primeval Lord of Heaven……. Why don't you two stop there? You will be able to confirm it with your own two eyes soon anyway.”
The Sword Addict of the Righteous Heaven Alliance spoke with a mysterious smile on his lips. He was watching the series of situations with a very excited feeling right now.
The General would undoubtedly try to confirm Dam Jeok-san's skills with her own eyes. For a martial artist to confirm a martial artist's skills, there was no choice but to engage in a scuffle eventually.
‘I am looking forward to it.’
Considering the General's fiery temper, her hands would be quite harsh.
Would Dam Jeok-san be able to endure it?
Of course, if even half of the contents the Northern Heaven Sword Venerable wrote in the missive were true, he would be able to handle it sufficiently.
However, Sword Addict also could not guarantee that Un Wol-hyang did not bluff.
If her words were true, and if Dam Jeok-san had reached the Ultra-Peak stage.
‘The Martial Sovereign Castle will be chaotic.’
It would be one thing if Dam Jeok-san was exceptionally talented alone. But the Eldest Young Master was also an incomparable genius. The struggle for the successor position of the Martial Sovereign Castle seemed likely to continue for quite a long time.
Of course, it was not something for Sword Addict, who belonged to the Righteous Heaven Alliance, to care about. The Martial Sovereign Castle had always shown overwhelming power even while suffering from internal conflicts.
However, thinking up to there, he could guess the Northern Heaven Sword Venerable's intentions a little.
‘Did she perhaps plan to move that old woman, the General's heart?’
Dam Jeok-san and the Eldest Young Master. The biggest difference between the two was not their individual martial power but their power base.
Especially the Eldest Young Master's biggest base was his maternal family, the Imperial Family. Although it was said to have become nominal, the Imperial Family was still the legitimate and lawful ruler of the Central Plains. The influence they could exert in various aspects was huge.
However, if the General, an elder of the Imperial Family and a power holder in the military, acknowledged Dam Jeok-san's skills, and beyond that, held goodwill towards him. It would become a move that could threaten the Eldest Young Master's power.
The problem was that for this to be established, first and foremost, Dam Jeok-san had to possess skills sufficient to gain the General's acknowledgment and goodwill.
If that premise was not satisfied, it would only become a bad move.
‘Still, if possible, I hope he has real skills.’
Sword Addict thought while recalling the Eldest Young Master he saw a long time ago.
He was certainly a boy with genius talent, but he was too arrogant and cruel to be entrusted with a great cause.
“I suppose so, since everything will become clear once we confirm it directly anyway.”
What cut off his thoughts was the General's answer. She also knew. That what mattered in the end was Dam Jeok-san's skills.
If the Northern Heaven Sword Venerable did not bluff, he was a hero who contributed greatly to saving the Central Plains beyond the North.
‘Surely that cannot be the case, but.’
If all of that were true, Dam Jeok-san was a hero who helped save the Central Plains beyond the North.
No matter how single-minded she was in her loyalty to the Imperial Family alone, she was not narrow-minded enough to treat such a hero poorly.
If by any chance Dam Jeok-san passed her ‘test’, all plans would have to be scrapped.
Of course, it did not mean the General was genuinely worried about him.
His performance was at a level that directly shattered the common sense Jin Ryeo had built up over eighty years.
It was much more reasonable to think that the Northern Heaven Sword Venerable had hastily exaggerated his performance rather than such things actually happening.
Well, it was enough to confirm it directly either way.
‘It won't be long now, until that bluff is revealed.’
At the edge of the vast sense of a master who had reached the Entering Transformation Realm, the presence of the Northern Heaven Sword Venerable and the Monster Repelling Squad began to be felt little by little.
* * *
“Family Head, born as a daughter of the Namgung, I have never once thought that my talent or effort was lacking while living my life.”
Namgung Yeon opened her mouth while tapping the sword handle with her long fingers.
“However, looking at Squad Leader Dam makes me feel like…… how should I put it…… everything I possess feels shabby.”
She continued speaking without hiding her self-deprecating expression.
She was born as the eldest daughter of a prestigious martial family. She swung a wooden sword from the moment she started toddling, and memorized the formulas of cultivation methods as soon as she mastered the Thousand Character Classic. Like that, she suppressed her younger brothers, who received the support of the elders, with overwhelming achievements until she became the Young Family Head.
She thought it was a fierce life that would not lag behind anyone compared to anyone else. But looking at Dam Jeok-san made her think differently. Was I sufficiently fierce? She did not have the confidence to answer ‘Yes’ absolutely.
“Yeon, this father feels the same.”
Namgung Gwan answered while twisting his wrinkled lips up. Even he, who held such a heavy position as the Family Head of the Namgung Clan under Heaven and the Sword King, felt a certain sense of futility when looking at Dam Jeok-san.
“Isn't it the case just looking at right now?”
Surprisingly, Dam Jeok-san endured ten exchanges against Un Wol-hyang, who was unfolding Fist and Kick Arts. And very leisurely at that.
Although there was a deep blue bruise on his left eye socket, other injuries excluding that did not really exist.
“It is unbelievable skill. No matter if it was hand-to-hand combat, these are techniques unfolded by a master of the Entering Transformation Realm. I thought he would become a mess even if he endured, but this father's prediction was completely wrong.”
“So Father also did not expect it……?”
“Yes. Especially at the last moment, I was greatly surprised.”
The tenth exchange.
Dam Jeok-san's sword strike invaded Un Wol-hyang's domain and threatened her.
Since the Sword Venerable reacted quickly, most would not have noticed.
However, Namgung Gwan alone could see that moment clearly.
The sword Dam Jeok-san unfolded dug in deeply near the pit of her stomach. Un Wol-hyang threw a fist strike filled with excessive force to block him.
The bruise mark that dyed Dam Jeok-san's eye socket deep blue was engraved at that time.
“So that was it, I did not even see it. I must devote myself more.”
Namgung Yeon said while shaking her head from side to side.
“It was not something you could see, so do not blame yourself.”
“However…….”
“Yeon, it is good to look up at a tree you cannot climb. A martial artist who has lost the desire for improvement is no different from a corpse.”
“…….”
“However, the thought that you must climb it right now only calls for useless inner demons. The more urgent you are, the more you should take the long way around.”
Namgung Gwan admonished his daughter in a soft voice. The desire to become strong is good, but there is no need to rush.
“Do you not know as well, that Squad Leader Dam also lost his dantian and wasted several years.”
“You are right, I was too hasty.”
Namgung Yeon nodded while sighing.
“Yes, that is a good mindset. However, keep in mind that it does not become a reason to neglect training.”
It only meant not to run so fast that she would fall, not that she should walk. When time passed, those who reached the targeted stage were eventually only those who moved forward constantly without stopping.
“In that sense, I will give you teachings after a long time when we return. It is time for you to learn about the true meaning of the Emperor Sword Form.”
At those words, shock appeared on Namgung Yeon's face.
* * *
It was not just Namgung Yeon alone who harbored desperation while watching Dam Jeok-san's appearance.
Rather, there was someone who possessed a desire to become strong much more, and more desperately than her.
“Young Master, for some reason, you move further away whenever I become useful.”
A young man with bandages wrapped around his whole body due to serious injuries, Dam Jeok-san's personal guard and childhood friend, Gyeong-won.
He did not leave Dam Jeok-san's side even when Dam Jeok-san became weakest. Therefore, now that he had regained his dantian and was soaring again, he was feeling an overwhelming emotion more than anyone else.
However, at the same time, he could not erase the thought that his usefulness was running out.
Of course, it was true that Gyeong-won played quite a big role in the engagement with Wi Cheon-rak. However, even that would have been impossible without the help of the mature Peak masters Baek Ri-gwan and Peng Cho-seol, and the Black Panther Spear.
He is his personal guard, that is, the one who protects. Just because one is a protector, one does not need to be stronger than Dam Jeok-san. However, now he was far from qualified.
To save him even by throwing his body, he had to at least rise to the same stage as Baek Ri-gwan or Peng Cho-seol.
‘What is the problem?’
The level of martial arts he learned?
No, that was not a problem. Dam Jeok-san was a lord who did not spare what he gave to his people. It was even more so for Gyeong-won especially.
The sword techniques and cultivation methods he learned were at a level that could sufficiently be called a unique art, even if they were not comparable to the Heaven-Breaking Star-Destroying Style.
What was lacking was ultimately his talent and effort. And experience.
A genius like Dam Jeok-san ruminated and ruminated on a single battle, reaching a realization in a single breath that someone else might gain only after devoting themselves for ten years.
However, Gyeong-won was mediocre. No, at best, perhaps a talent?
For him to obtain the achievements of a genius, he had to work hundreds of times harder than them.
That was absolutely not an easy task. Because Gyeong-won was making bone-carving efforts even now.
“That is a face full of worries.”
At that moment.
Perhaps reading Gyeong-won's disturbed mood, the woman with red eyes spoke to him with a brilliant smile.
“……Yes.”
“Well, I think I know without listening. You must have been thinking about wanting to become stronger.”
Dark Heaven had watched martial artists for hundreds of years. So now, she could read their minds just by looking at those lips firmly shut in grim determination.
“That is correct. How did you know that? You are truly like a ghost…… Gasp! I apologize.”
Gyeong-won, who was admiring Dark Heaven's words, hurriedly bowed his head after seeing her hand suddenly wavering translucently.
He realized belatedly that her situation of losing her original body was no different from a ghost.
“I am not a martial artist. So in most cases, I could not fulfill their cravings. A martial artist's strength comes from cultivation and training. That is a domain a sorcerer cannot interfere with easily. However, your case is a little different.”
Dark Heaven ignored Gyeong-won's words and continued the story she intended to tell.
“My case is different?”
At those words, a strange light hovered in Gyeong-won's eyes.
“Yes. The wall you built yourself is blocking your achievement.”
Words that Gyeong-won could not easily understand.
However, Dark Heaven had absolutely no intention of making him understand.
She was just helping the human he cherished as a small repayment to Dam Jeok-san.
“You will be able to know once you try dying. That the ‘limit’ you thought of was actually not your limit.”
Dark Heaven said with an alluring smile.
* * *
“It was very excellent.”
Just before arriving at the Northern Branch.
Un Wol-hyang said to Dam Jeok-san while fixing her attire.
“But keep in mind. That damn old woman will be different from me.”
The Fist and Kick Arts Un Wol-hyang imitated were merely empty shells with only clumsy forms remaining.
However, the Fist and Kick Arts General Jin Ryeo would unfold would probably contain the essence of the Shaolin Seventy-Two Supreme Arts, which were said to be the best in the Central Plains for bare-handed martial arts.
It would be much, much trickier.
Nevertheless, Un Wol-hyang was not that worried about her martial nephew.
The true talent Dam Jeok-san possessed was the venom to find a way out in any situation and seek a path to counterattack beyond that.
It was like that when he lost his dantian.
It was like that even when dealing with Un Wol-hyang's Fist and Kick Arts.
To think he prepared such a sharp counterattack at the last moment while being continuously pushed back by her. If she had made a slight mistake, her clothes would have been cut and fluttered in front of the Monster Repelling Squad members.
“I will keep it in mind. It is an opportunity you created for me, so I shouldn't blow off an arm or a leg.”
Dam Jeok-san laughed playfully and said.
He also knew. That the collision with the General was a gateway he must pass to have the achievements he accomplished in the North recognized.
“Right, we are almost there. I can feel the presence of tiresome humans.”
The momentum emitted by the big shots who could be called the pillars of the North, such as Sword Addict, Blood Death Lord, and the General, made her skin tingle. Even though she was not heading to a battlefield.
‘No, it is not necessarily not a battlefield.’
Looking back at Dam Jeok-san, she let out a short sigh.
After losing other senior brothers at the hands of the Eldest Senior Brother she loved and respected the most.
She felt deep disillusionment with the political strife deciding the successor of the Martial Sovereign Castle. However, in the end, she herself was also involved in the political strife related to that succession deeper than anyone else.
To not lose a precious person once again. In that sense, the place she was heading to was another battlefield.
It was the moment she realized that she, who once felt disillusionment with the world, had stepped into the world she was so disillusioned with deeper than anyone else to protect Dam Jeok-san.
‘I do not regret that it turned out this way.’
There was only one thing she feared. Losing Dam Jeok-san.
But the more she looked at Dam Jeok-san, the more she felt a strange certainty. That this time would be different. Provoking the General of the North Jin Ryeo also stemmed from that certainty.
‘My martial nephew can do it.’
Just like that.
The footsteps of the Monster Repelling Squad, led by Un Wol-hyang and Dam Jeok-san, soon reached the place where a flower path welcoming their triumph was laid out.