Episode 152. Friendly Competition. (4)
It was the second day since the tournament began.
There had been one more match since the first duel, but nothing as attention-grabbing as when Dang Soyeol was eliminated had occurred.
From the start, it was an impossibility for one of the Five Dragons and Three Peaks to be eliminated in the very first duel.
Thanks to that, rumors like this spread quickly by word of mouth.
“Did you hear? Lone Peak already got eliminated.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? Did you start drinking in broad daylight?”
“…No, why won’t you believe people? It’s true, I tell you.”
It might be half-believed if you only heard the story, but evidence was scattered everywhere.
“The Alliance Chief’s son?”
“I’m telling you, it’s true! They say Lone Peak was pushed back without even being able to use his strength. The difference in level was obvious.”
“…That Lone Peak? How is that possible?”
“With the bloodline of the Falling Sword… And right now, one of the heavy seats among the Five Dragons and Three Peaks is empty, isn’t it?”
“That’s why everyone is excited. Who knows if a new Dragon will appear.”
“Then what about that boy? From the Gu Clan this time….”
This is the kind of fame the Five Dragons and Three Peaks hold throughout the Central Plains.
A signboard representing the prodigies of the current orthodox faction’s generation.
The Alliance knows this too, so they try to pay attention to the brackets as much as possible.
Because it could become a troublesome situation if they face each other from the start.
‘I can tell just by looking at this.’
The Alliance is pushing Jang Seonyeon.
Under the name of a new star.
If there was something that started to bother me around now,
it would be the Dragons and Peaks who didn’t attend the banquet.
Sword Peak could be like that.
I know that crazy sister’s personality, so she might not have come just because.
Sword Dragon and.
Hidden Dragon.
Did they really not come of their own free will?
‘I’m not certain, but…’
I had doubts that there might have been some talk with the Alliance about that.
Thinking back to the Plum Blossom Immortal I met, she didn’t seem like someone who would do that,
but you never know with people.
‘…Tch.’
Anyway, through the brackets, Snow Peak and Thunder Dragon were able to advance upward without difficulty,
and Gu Jeolyeop and Namgung Bia were the same.
Namgung Bia in particular maintained a bored expression throughout the entire match and claimed victory.
Some crazy bastards who felt delight at that were spreading rumors, almost worshipping her, calling her the Flower of Namgung, or so I heard.
I was reminded once again that the world is full of crazy bastards anyway.
‘Gu Jeolyeop was a bit unexpected.’
From the start, Gu Jeolyeop had some talent, but it was closer to him being blessed by bracket luck than anything.
Because he avoided the noticeable ones and faced weaker opponents.
It was a slightly different situation from my expectations.
Because most of the guys I expected to come up and clash had fallen.
Representative of that, the young man named Bi Yeonseom I met in my first match was included.
‘…That was truly bad luck.’
He wasn’t bad.
If he could wrap the tip of his sword with internal energy that clearly, he would be among the top of the late-stage experts.
The problem must have been that his opponent was me.
‘Was one hit too much?’
It might have been better to hold back a little, but the situation was urgent then.
And by now, I needed to show a more definitive side of myself.
“I am Wu Yihyeon, the Third Greatest Disciple of Wudang.”
“Gu Yangcheon of the Shanxi Gu Clan.”
From the hand gripping the sword to the toes slightly pushed forward.
The gaze that watched and the breath that was exhaled.
‘So it’s Wudang.’
I couldn’t help but think that.
It was an atmosphere that you could feel even without an introduction.
A martial artist who looked a year or two older than me, with a calm disposition.
It was the second day’s duel,
the last match to advance to the round of eight, which was considered the most important.
While I was loosening my slightly stiff body, Wu Yihyeon suddenly spoke to me.
“I’ve heard many stories about you, young hero.”
“Hmm?”
“They say you finished all your previous opponents in a single strike.”
“Ah… Well, it just happened to turn out that way.”
With openings that obvious, how could I not hit them?
Every opponent I met had their chin and chest wide open.
If you get cut in a real fight like that, you die instantly.
Kids these days… tch, tch.
‘Did rumors spread again amidst all this?’
Come to think of it, I think I had heard earlier that I really seemed to be the disciple of the Paejon.
Mostly, stories about Jang Seonyeon, who took down Dang Soyeol, were so abundant that it got buried.
Wu Yihyeon’s eyes sparkled slightly at my answer as he spoke.
“I won’t fall so easily.”
“I see.”
They all said that.
‘If you’re going to prepare, at least loosen your legs in advance… No, never mind.’
What would I achieve by giving unsolicited advice inwardly?
Especially regarding Wudang, I had a lot to say.
Because it reminded me of that guy who excitedly showed off his swordsmanship, thinking he was so good.
“Daoist Wu.”
“Yes.”
“May I ask you just one thing as well?”
Because I asked something so abruptly, Wu Yihyeon made a slightly nervous expression.
It seemed he thought I was making a provocation, just as he had done.
‘Why did he provoke me if he’s going to be that nervous?’
In fact, I was extremely nonchalant about being provoked.
That wasn’t my intention in the first place.
“It seems Hidden Dragon didn’t come this time.”
“…”
When I brought up the story of Wudang’s famous late-stage expert, Wu Yihyeon’s expression subtly distorted.
“…Why do you ask?”
Even his voice was full of wariness.
I knew why he held such wariness.
‘Seems he’s still the same.’
Hidden Dragon was a crazy bastard in a different sense from Paeng Ujin.
In Wudang, they called him by a different name than Hidden Dragon.
‘A guy too embarrassing to show anywhere.’
He was probably treated roughly like that.
Because despite his outstanding talent, his personality was fucking insane.
So the reason Wu Yihyeon was wary was probably because he was reluctant to bring up the topic of Hidden Dragon to others.
Since I had confirmed that, it was enough.
“I just asked. We’re somewhat close.”
“…Yes? You, young hero, with my senior brother?”
An expression asking what kind of nonsense that was.
Of course, it was about a past life, and we weren’t close yet.
“Anyway, it’s just like that.”
When I spoke with a grin, Wu Yihyeon rather raised his guard as if nervous.
Why…?
Why does everyone step back when I smile?
It’s really sad.
Letting out a sigh full of emotion, the referee judged that preparations were complete and shouted to begin.
Wu Yihyeon immediately raised his sword and slightly loosened his stance.
Seeing that, I nodded inwardly.
‘Not bad.’
He made it loose rather than applying force.
It contained some of the principles that Wudang swordsmanship possessed.
Rather than cutting, he blocks.
Rather than blocking, he redirects.
If Mount Hua’s sword slowly takes root in the ground,
then Wudang’s sword becomes a tranquil river.
However.
‘It’s not bad, but…’
Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to have fully realized the principle.
Well, it was impossible for the Third Greatest Disciple to fully understand the meaning embedded in Wudang’s sword.
That’s why Hidden Dragon must be even more amazing.
He aimed his sword tip and took a cautious posture, seeming to wait and see how I would move.
‘Good choice.’
Was it because of the guys who rushed in recklessly and ended up lying on the floor like they were dead?
Now, people who were cautious against me started to appear.
Ssk.
When I moved my toes slightly, Wu Yihyeon’s eyes followed.
Using his eyes wasn’t bad either.
‘He was worth sending from Wudang.’
I had heard that several disciples came in place of Hidden Dragon.
It seemed Mount Hua didn’t come at all.
Did others come from the Nine Great Sects and Eight Great Families?
I didn’t pay attention to that, so I don’t know.
The timing was somewhat ambiguous too. Because just a few years later, late-stage experts poured out like a flood.
Right now, it was, in a way, a stagnant period.
A generation of meteors where only the most outstanding were gathered.
For the late-stage experts living in the same era, it was a truly hellish generation.
As I watched silently, Wu Yihyeon’s sword moved bit by bit.
The tip of his sword trembled slightly, drawing out the principles of Taiji.
The way he gradually created sword paths hinted at the achievement of training without omission.
Ppaak-!
“Uhk….”
His chin was wide open too, just like the others.
Wu Yihyeon collapsed with a thud.
From the start, the difference in level was not something to even talk about.
I had expressed it as being “wide open,” but to put it plainly, it meant he wasn’t in a state where he could block or deflect my strike.
…Gu Yangcheon wins.
Hearing the referee’s words, I came down from the dueling stage again this time.
His martial brothers would take care of him, I suppose.
“Another one-hit finish…?”
“Maybe the opponent was weak….”
“Hey, do you think the Wudang sect is a joke? You’ll get struck by heavenly punishment.”
“No, Wudang or whatever… does it make sense to end that in one hit? That’s what we should be talking about.”
I heard people talking about me more and more.
Honestly, the talk was spreading later than expected.
I had shown this much; there should have been some reaction by now.
Was it because there were so many variables?
Of course, these kinds of rumors could be helpful, so they weren’t necessarily bad….
“As expected… the rumors about him being the disciple of the Paejon are true….”
“I’m not!”
“Eek!”
Unable to hold back, I shouted, and the people talking quickly scattered.
This damned temper.
Getting triggered by such worthless words.
It was a shitty personality that kept flaring up. I was suffocated by getting angry over nothing and ruffled my hair.
Please act your age, Yangcheon.
As I was calming my heated breath after flaring up, I sensed someone approaching.
“Why… are you like this?”
A quiet voice that seemed cold.
Normally, if I sensed a presence, I would reach out with my hand first, but the accompanying scent calmed my mind.
Blue-white hair fluttered in the winter wind.
“It’s nothing.”
I answered Namgung Bia, who was looking at me as if worried. It really was nothing.
I had just snapped at something trivial.
“Did you finish well?”
It seemed so.
I knew she probably had her match at the same time.
The fact that she’s here now, and
the fact that not a single martial uniform she wore out was dirtied told the whole story.
“Who was your opponent?”
“…You don’t know…?”
She seemed genuinely clueless. I unknowingly expressed my condolences to her opponent.
To be a defeated loser who couldn’t even leave behind a name… it’s a bit bitter, isn’t it?
“Where… are you going? The infirmary…?”
“No, why the infirmary all of a sudden? I’m not even hurt.”
“…Soyeol.”
“I’m fine. She’s probably getting treated well on her own.”
Actually, I had visited briefly in the morning. Dang Soyeol was sleeping, so she probably didn’t know.
“…Then where are you going?”
“Where you were.”
“Huh?”
At my answer, Namgung Bia tilted her head as if she didn’t understand.
Then her eyes widened as if she realized something.
She looked at me with a subtly strange expression right away.
A feeling as if saying, ‘So you were worried after all.’
“What, why.”
Namgung Bia smiled slightly at my words.
Then she shook her head as if it were nothing. It was a gaze I really didn’t like.
To think I’m getting a proud look from that empty-headed fool….
“…What about Seola?”
As I was biting my tongue in displeasure, Namgung Bia asked.
“She went out.”
“Today too…?”
“Yeah. She seemed busy.”
I had been feeling a bit disappointed about that.
She said she’d cheer me on a lot but hasn’t shown up at the dueling stage at all.
Of course, there hadn’t been a match dragged out long enough to matter yet, but
she did look tired, whether from being busy.
It was rare for Wi Seola to look tired.
She always seemed to do a lot of work, yet she was always bright.
She sometimes looked like she was slacking off, though.
‘I need to grab her and ask sometime.’
The simplest way would be to find Hong Wa and ask.
But Hong Wa was hard to find too.
Kuoong-! Kung!
Lost in thought, I walked and heard sounds from afar.
What I found was a corner dueling stage.
It was where Namgung Bia had just finished her match.
And in that spot.
“Wow, why is it those guys again?”
Gu Jeolyeop and Hwangbo Cheolwi were dueling. Those guys again.
What a tenacious ill-fated relationship. You could say that’s a kind of fate too.
I suppose I have to see it that way by now.
Kuuung-!
Hwangbo Cheolwi’s thick, massive fist cut through the wind.
Despite his enormous body over eight cheok tall, his movements were agile.
Kwang-!
But Gu Jeolyeop was faster.
At the banquet hall and on the Baekcheonmaru, I kept saying it.
Honestly, there was no need to watch this duel closely.
That fool wouldn’t lose as long as he didn’t make a mistake.
“But why did you come…?”
At Namgung Bia’s piercing question, I clamped my mouth shut for a moment.
Right, why did I come?
“I was just bored.”
Wasn’t the answer I came up with on my own truly pathetic?
I was reminded of how the old man had asked if I was eating my age with my asshole.
‘…That man is no Taoist.’
What’s a Taoist got to do with assholes, asshole?
And he’s supposed to be a hero.
“Yeah… I came because I was bored.”
Meanwhile, Namgung Bia kindly said it as if I were right, but her eyes were already half-filled with laughter.
Namgung Bia, who rarely laughed, sometimes showed it like this.
She said she was laughing with her eyes.
‘Life.’
How did I end up being treated like this?
“Gu Jeolyeop wins!”
“Damn.”
How absent-minded was I?
I came to my senses at the referee’s shout, but the duel was already over.
The tip of Gu Jeolyeop’s sword was touching Hwangbo Cheolwi’s neck, and Hwangbo Cheolwi’s fist had passed by Gu Jeolyeop’s cheek and frozen.
Waaaaah—!
As soon as the match was decided, the watching spectators cheered.
Nothing stokes their hearts like a fierce duel.
“Fierce…?”
It was a match that shouldn’t have been close, but they say it was fierce?
It shouldn’t have been that close. On the contrary, it would have made more sense if Gu Jeolyeop had won easily.
“Well, well?”
To top it off, Hwangbo Cheolwi and Gu Jeolyeop even shook hands. What the hell.
‘What am I looking at right now?’
The duel ended in a somehow heartwarming atmosphere. No, why is it heartwarming…?
Gu Jeolyeop came down from the stage.
Receiving attention, he made a slightly smug, punchable expression before his body stiffened when he saw me.
“Hey.”
When I called out as if I had been waiting, he even flinched.
But he still couldn’t seem to hide his smug expression.
“You must be happy. The corners of your mouth keep reaching for the sky?”
“…Kuh, no.”
What do you mean no.
You… no, forget it. Good job.
I was about to scold him for barely winning but held back.
Honestly, I didn’t know Gu Jeolyeop would make it this far. Same with that chubby Hwangbo.
“W-why has the First Young Master…”
“I stopped by on my way. To see if there were any matches left.”
“Ah….”
Gu Jeolyeop nodded as if he understood.
It wasn’t a lie.
I had indeed come to watch the remaining matches.
“Did you perhaps see the end?”
“What?”
It was strange for Gu Jeolyeop to talk to me, as he would normally be too scared to even speak.
And he spoke with slight excitement.
“I avoided Lord Hwangbo’s Hoyeontu and with my sword….”
“Oh… do you even know the Hwangbo family’s martial arts?”
“…Yes? No. Lord Hwangbo shouted it like that as he used it, so….”
“…He shouts the name of the martial art he’s using?”
Is he sane?
If he’s going to do that, he might as well kindly say ‘I’ll strike from the left~’ too.
I felt nauseated just imagining that giant fighting while doing that.
“…You’re not like that too, are you?”
“ ”
“Why can’t you answer? You little shit….”
“I-I didn’t.”
“Right? If you had, I’d be too ashamed to show my face.”
“Why would the First Young Master be the one who… if I did it.”
“We share the same surname, you bastard… It’s a disgrace to the family, really.”
No matter how clueless the kid is, he wouldn’t do that. Surely he wouldn’t shout out martial art names.
If he did, I’d burn everything, surname and all.
As I was groaning and making noises, Namgung Bia crept up and asked me.
“Hey… aren’t you going to watch the others?”
“The others?”
Namgung Bia pointed somewhere with her finger.
That direction was definitely where the Sajo were holding their matches.
“I don’t need to watch.”
I wasn’t really curious.
It was where Namgung Cheonjun and Moyong Huia belonged.
They would probably advance.
Because the bracket looked exactly like that.
As expected.
Word that the Sajo matches had just ended came soon.
Because in this small place, rumors spread faster than the wind.
As expected, the ones who advanced were those two.
Up to here, there were no surprising thoughts.
If you excluded Dang Soyeol and Jang Seonyeon, it wasn’t much of a surprise.
Not long after the final group matches ended,
the bracket I had been waiting for was newly posted.
“Oh….”
Checking the news, I immediately let out an exclamation.
The first round of eight match of the day.
-Namgung Cheonjun of the Namgung Clan vs. Gu Yangcheon of the Shanxi Gu Clan.
I didn’t really know why it turned out like that, but it was an interesting situation.
So much so that I smiled slightly without realizing it the moment I saw the bracket.