EP.12 Nine Dragon Assembly (6)
Nine Dragon Assembly (6)
Around the time the Nine Dragon Battle was about to begin, Peng Axi was racking her brains.
Subduing Peng Wujin with Elder Li's help was good, but the moment he got up, Peng Wujin declared that he wouldn't go back just like that.
Peng Wujin, whose cheeks were puffed up like steamed buns, stood up and made a blank expression for a moment before...
...letting out a hollow laugh, saying, "I didn't expect this."
However, Peng Wujin said he would accept it since a bet was a bet.
He just refused to return, saying it was unfair to have come all this way, so he would at least watch the Nine Dragon Battle before leaving.
Peng Wujin was undeniably the Young Master.
Excluding the Patriarch and elders of the Peng Clan, he held the highest position and was the certain successor to inherit the Patriarch's seat in the future.
Not only Peng Axi, but even the Peng Clan's search squads couldn't treat him carelessly.
"I'll leave, but I'll go after watching this."
"What is so worth seeing?"
"It's unfair... coming all the way here and leaving without seeing anything."
"What's so unfair about it! It's just selecting the Sword Squad, and we do it exhaustingly in the Peng Clan too. Just quickly return to the clan..."
"Keep doing that and I'll go argue with Great Hero Yan A-quan? I'm going to demand how this makes any sense!"
Peng Axi shut her mouth at Peng Wujin's stubbornness. She knew.
This crazy bastard would actually do it.
Since Peng Wujin swore with his own mouth that he would quietly return once the Nine Dragon Battle ended, she gritted her teeth and allowed it.
'...Right, it's just one day. One day is fine.'
Cooling her anger like that, she brought Peng Wujin to the arena where the Nine Dragon Battle was taking place. The Tianyi Merchant Family, seeing the Peng Clan's martial uniform, offered to guide them to good seats, but...
Peng Wujin refused.
Saying he couldn't accept special privileges for an unexpected visit.
In the end, they sat in the general seats. She could feel the gazes of people glancing their way upon seeing the Peng Clan's martial uniform.
They were split between those who thought 'surely not' and those who, as martial artists, couldn't easily speak up.
Peng Axi felt frustrated by this uncomfortable attention, but Peng Wujin didn't care at all.
He even had dumplings in his hand—who knows when he bought them.
"Brother... when did you buy those?"
"Hm? I bought them earlier."
"When exactly is earlier...?"
No, I've been right next to him the whole time, when on earth did he buy them?
Peng Wujin was a person whose actions, from one to ten, couldn't be grasped. Although the elders said his talent as a martial artist might be the greatest in the Peng Clan's history.
Apart from that, he was definitely a strange person.
'He must be out of his mind to run away from home just to play around.'
Perhaps thinking of that time, wrinkles formed between Peng Axi's brows.
"It's starting, Axi!"
Whether he knew it or not, Peng Wujin simply cheered with the dumplings in his hand.
The Nine Dragon Battle wasn't a novel sight from Peng Axi's perspective.
Born into one of the Four Great Families, Peng Axi grew up among the renowned martial artists of her clan. It wouldn't be fascinating to watch the branch family members of mountain valley mid-sized sects or clans compete.
Of course, there were a few who stood out among the dozens of matches, but none who truly caught the eye.
In the meantime, Peng Axi was watching Peng Wujin.
Eyes that seemed to be watching with interest, yet also looked somewhat empty.
Peng Wujin had been like that since he was young.
What he was thinking, why he pursued only fun with such talent.
Looking like he would leave anywhere alone at any moment, yet did he accept the position of Young Master without complaint?
A person who looked like he would leave at any moment. Peng Axi found that truly unsettling.
When the Patriarch told Peng Axi to go with the search squad, she answered without hesitation that she would.
It surely wasn't just because of guilt from that day.
Before long, it was night. All the matches of the Nine Dragon Battle had also ended.
"We have to go now, Brother."
Despite Peng Axi's words, Peng Wujin remained immovable.
"Brother?"
Wondering why, she followed Peng Wujin's gaze and saw someone stepping onto the empty central arena.
"That person is..."
Tall for a woman, tightly tied horse-tail hair, and the red martial uniform symbolizing the Gu Clan.
'Gu Yanxi... I think that was her name.'
She was a girl she had bumped into a few times at the righteous faction's friendly gatherings. Her older sister, the Sword Phoenix, was a peerless genius, and she heard Gu Yanxi also possessed comparable talent.
Soon, Gu Yangtian also stepped onto the arena.
Even from a distance, his uncomfortable expression, as if he had stepped on a bug, caught her eye. It was a face that clearly read, 'I don't want to do this,' to anyone who saw it.
"Why is that guy going up there?"
"I heard they're having a direct lineage match."
Wondering what he meant, she saw a strange piece of paper in Peng Wujin's hand.
[After the Nine Dragon Battle, a sparring ceremony for the Gu Clan's brilliant stars is scheduled to take place.]
[Please show them lots of love.]
"...When did you get that?"
"They were handing them out when we came in."
When on earth?
Peng Axi shifted her gaze back to the arena.
Gu Yangtian and Gu Yanxi seemed to be talking about something, but they were too far away to hear.
It was the same even when she circulated her internal energy to enhance her hearing.
Peng Wujin spoke.
"You won't be able to hear. There's a qi barrier surrounding the arena."
"A barrier?"
"To be able to cast a barrier of that range all at once... it must be the work of Great Hero Yan A-quan."
Peng Axi understood Gu Yangtian's shitty expression. It was a fight he had no chance of winning no matter how she looked at it.
She knew Gu Yangtian's martial prowess better than anyone.
Compared to the boy's lineage, it was endlessly insignificant. If he fought Gu Yanxi, he would probably roll miserably on the ground.
Furthermore, experiencing something like that in the midst of such a large crowd would definitely make Peng Axi want to hang herself.
Gu Yangtian, whom Peng Axi had never once thought of as pitiful, looked a bit pitiful right now.
The two were still conversing, but the observing Elder Li shouted with internal energy.
At that, Gu Yanxi lunged at Gu Yangtian without hesitation.
Peng Axi's eyes snapped open at Gu Yanxi's speed.
'Fast...!'
The wooden sword, swung to match the leaping speed, had no unnecessary sway. It meant her ability to maintain her center of gravity was outstanding.
One step, then another.
The techniques that followed without hesitation spoke of how tirelessly Gu Yanxi had trained.
'...If I fought her, could I win?'
Honestly, she wasn't confident.
Peng Axi lacked the confidence to receive Gu Yanxi's smoothly flowing sword strikes in that arena.
She felt the pride she had to hold as a bloodline of the Peng Clan gradually dropping.
"The younger sister of the Sword Phoenix?"
Peng Axi suddenly saw Peng Wujin's eyes sparkling as he watched the match.
The eyes that had felt empty all day were now filled with life.
Seeing that, Peng Axi suppressed a foul emotion slowly rising within her.
"...Yes, since she's of the Gu Clan's bloodline, she must be the Sword Phoenix's sister."
Still, she couldn't hide the sullen tone in her voice.
Even to her, Gu Yanxi was impressive. Enough to make her jealous.
"Such smooth sword strikes, it's amazing, right...?"
"It's hard to do that at her age."
"Right. Her moment-to-moment manipulation of internal energy seems amazing too."
"Exactly, and he's dodging all of that."
Huh?
Peng Axi felt something strange about Peng Wujin's answer. Did Gu Yanxi dodge something?
In the first place, Gu Yangtian hadn't even been able to counterattack and was just groaning.
Peng Axi followed Peng Wujin's gaze once again.
Following his gaze, Peng Wujin was looking not at Gu Yanxi, but at Gu Yangtian.
'He wasn't looking at Gu Yanxi?'
Then what on earth was he looking at to feel that way? Peng Axi couldn't understand.
"He's half a beat faster."
"What?"
"Look closely, he's moving half a beat before the sword reaches its destination. He already knows where she's aiming and how she's going to swing."
Hearing Peng Wujin's words, she finally examined Gu Yangtian closely.
It was certainly unique. Gu Yangtian's movements were significantly slower than Gu Yanxi's.
If she were up against Gu Yanxi, she wouldn't be confident.
But if she were up against Gu Yangtian, it was a speed she could cut down immediately.
'True? But how...'
Gu Yangtian was slower than her, and Gu Yanxi was faster than her.
The match should have been decided long ago, yet the two had been sparring for over ten exchanges.
"What on earth."
Peng Axi simply couldn't figure it out.
As time passed and the match showed no signs of ending, Gu Yanxi took a stance, seemingly wanting to make a decisive move.
A faint internal qi could be seen condensing on Gu Yanxi's wooden sword.
It was unlike the Sword Qi used by first-rate swordsmen.
And different from the Sword Gang used only by those who reached the pinnacle.
Even to Peng Axi, it looked like deep internal energy was condensing.
At that sight, Peng Wujin spat out in a firm voice.
"It's useless."
"Why? It looks amazing."
"It is amazing, to have packed it in that tightly, even if I received it myself, it wouldn't be easy."
Even if Peng Wujin received it himself? Peng Axi couldn't help but be surprised at those words.
"But that's meaningless if it doesn't hit. She's trying to use something she's not even familiar with, so her stance is ruined and her breathing is distorted. Movements made purely out of impatience are worse than trash."
It was a cold critique that made even Peng Axi, who wasn't the person involved, feel a chill in her chest. But generally, when Peng Wujin discussed martial arts, his words were never wrong.
It was then. Gu Yangtian's expression changed. Having finished her preparation, Gu Yanxi leaped fiercely.
Seeing that, Gu Yangtian didn't take any special stance.
Just one step back, and a slight movement of his head.
That was it. Yet, with just that small movement, he neutralized Gu Yanxi's sword strike.
And then.
-Smack!
'What?'
Peng Axi was certain she hadn't turned her gaze away even once. But she heard the sound of something breaking, and Gu Yanxi was sitting on the ground.
"What... how did that happen?"
"Amazing...!"
At the excited voice, Peng Axi shifted her gaze. Peng Wujin was wearing an expression she hadn't seen in years.
"So the Gu Clan doesn't only have the Sword Phoenix."
It was the bright expression of a child who had found something truly fun.
******************
-My sister should have been born a man.
It was a thought Gu Yanxi harbored alone around the time she passed the age of ten.
Her sister possessed not only talent in the martial arts, but also the dignity fitting of a prestigious family's child.
At only fifteen. At the same age as herself, her sister inherited the moniker Sword Phoenix (Jianfeng).
Her sister inherited the moniker of Sword Phoenix, which was considered the exclusive property of the Four Great Families and the Nine Sects and One Faction.
It was so cool and proud.
When her sister graduated at the top of her class from the Divine Dragon Academy, she was appointed as the Commander of the Gu Clan's Five Swords Division at an age just past twenty.
It wasn't an easy task, but everyone acknowledged it.
She was acknowledged because she possessed the capability for it.
She was a great person. Given time, she would probably become an even more outstanding individual.
But she cannot become the Patriarch of the Gu Clan.
Gu Yanxi thought of her younger brother then.
Her sister and herself were children of the legal wife, and Gu Yangtian was the child of a concubine. But Gu Yanxi liked Gu Yangtian's mother.
She was a gentle person.
So she also liked Gu Yangtian. It was a time when she didn't care whether he was a concubine's child or a half-sibling.
But one day, she disappeared. Truly in an instant. Even as they searched for where she had gone, her father ordered them not to look for her.
No one in the clan looked for her.
It was from then.
That Gu Yangtian started to fall apart.
He only showed violent behavior to the servants, and his sharp words and eyes spared no one.
He became lazy and idle. She even heard rumors that he laid hands on the pretty servants.
He strayed far from effort. His inferiority complex worsened day by day.
The Patriarchship is succeeded by men from generation to generation.
Her father hadn't taken another concubine since, and Gu Yangtian was his only son, so if things continued like this, Gu Yangtian would become the Patriarch.
Leaving behind such an outstanding sister.
Leaving behind me, who works so hard.
My sister should have been born a man.
Or at least I should have been.
She hated Gu Yangtian, who didn't know what he had and only grew fat off his privileges.
She detested Gu Yangtian, who didn't know what he possessed and only kept deteriorating.
'What?'
Her hazy mind slowly returns.
Her memory was blurry from around the time she poured the Nine Flame Wheel Art into her sword.
Gu Yangtian stood before her eyes. Gu Yangtian, who should have been much smaller than her, looked significantly larger.
'Is this a dream?'
Drip.
Something flowed, and wiping her nose with the back of her hand, it was covered in blood. Why am I bleeding? Isn't this a dream?
Then what is it, why does Gu Yangtian look so big?
As her vision and mind gradually cleared, Gu Yanxi noticed the contradiction.
Gu Yangtian hadn't grown larger.
Her own field of vision had lowered.
Gu Yanxi was sitting slumped on the floor of the arena.
"How... on earth..."
"I understand you, Sister."
At the voice, Gu Yanxi raised her head.
"You might not like it, I understand, you can hate me, I don't care. Nothing major will change because of that."
Because of the bright lanterns, Gu Yangtian's face was cast in shadow, making his expression hard to see.
But Gu Yanxi could clearly see Gu Yangtian's eyes.
She felt nothing. Gu Yangtian's eyes were apathetic. There were no distinct emotions like ecstasy or anger.
He was merely looking down at Gu Yanxi.
At that chilling sensation, Gu Yanxi wanted to run away, but her trembling body wouldn't move.
"What you said was really fucked up, but I'll understand that too."
What did I say? At Gu Yangtian's words, Gu Yanxi recalled the words she had spat out.
'You should have just disappeared, like your mother.'
Her heart turned cold.
No matter how out of her mind she was, that was definitely something she shouldn't have said.
What should she say? Should she apologize even now? The thought of having to apologize to Gu Yangtian in this situation made her feel like throwing up.
Whether he knew of Gu Yanxi's thoughts or not, Gu Yangtian continued speaking.
"I'll understand, so you understand me doing this too."
She couldn't ask what he meant.
The last thing Gu Yanxi remembered was Gu Yangtian's palm.
Smack!