Hyeonjilmusin - Chapter 143



Only Noblemtl

143. Fate (7)

I also knew where the market was. As a merchant, you should at least know the influential families and powers of each region.

I ran so fast that I almost vomited blood. It wasn’t the time to get on a horse.

If I went by horse, I would have to take the official road, so I had to go back. I couldn’t find a horse that could run the thousand li (里) distance between Wudangsan and Luoyang in one go. And, crucially, if I were to fully utilize my lightness right now, I would be faster than a horse.

My peripheral vision quickly moved back. A distance of more than a thousand li. When I traveled a thousand li in my previous life, it took me five or six days.

But many things were different then and now. The circumstances were different, the goals were different, and the people in the country were different.

“Ah!”

When my breath hit my chin and my lungs felt like they were going to burst, I shouted with such anger. That anger was directed at me.

Now, I was not allowed to get tired or rest at all. However, I was desperately wanting to rest or stop for a moment to catch my breath, and my mind became weak. Shouting was a kind of means to keep my weakened mind in check.

If it weren’t for the talent I bought at the Mujae store, I would have collapsed and gasped for breath before I could even leave Hubei.

Although he only used light energy, he had no talent that he didn’t need.

The talents I have now are as follows:

4th grade Manryuguijong

4th grade ghost

5th grade indomitable

5th Grade Sword Talent (Intermediate)

5th grade sacrum

5th Grade Martial Arts Talent (Intermediate)

The internal energy needed to use lightness comes from the help of the Manryu-Gwi-Jong, the most important speed comes from the help of the Ghost, when you feel like you’re going to collapse from exhaustion, you get help from the Indomitable, the stamina that sustains you comes from the Sacrum, when you come across thick tree branches or bushes, you get help from the Sword Talent, and the agility and instantaneous speed needed while running comes from the Taesul Talent.

Of course, my experience as a merchant was also helpful. If I had taken the well-trodden road, I would have had to turn back, but if I took the shortcut I learned while traveling, I could save a lot of time.

“Haa, haa.”

As I continued to gasp for breath, I could taste blood in my throat. I had already gone far beyond my physical and mental limits. The only thing holding me back now was my talent for indomitability.

Where have I ever run so desperately? Running along the ridge of a mountain without slowing down for over ten minutes, using lightness? It was a superhuman level that I could not have imagined in my previous life.

“This is driving me crazy.”

Of course, what I hope for the most is to meet Cheongsu on the way. However, Cheongsu, who left half a day early, was also not visible, as if he was trying to kill himself. It would be nice if I had passed him instead of going the same way as him.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to me. Is there a reason why I should push myself this far to save Cheongsu?

The answer came immediately. Of course, there was none. Cheongsu was not my teacher, and he was also the culprit who leaked the Taegeuk Hye Sword. From the beginning, I thought it was absurd to save someone while pushing me.

But somehow my body kept moving. Even though I knew there was no rational reason to do this, I kept running. I decided to think about it later.

So, after spending almost an entire day there, more than ten o’clock, I was finally able to enter Luoyang.

I felt like some people were staring at me, having been running all day using my light weight, but I had neither the time nor the energy to pay attention to them.

I ran straight to the Banggajang estate that I remembered. Around the main gate of Banggajang, there were already many people milling about, making a lot of noise.

It was clear that Cheongsu had already arrived at Banggajang. There was no time to ask for understanding. I took a deep breath and flew towards the people.

“evil!”

“what!”

Sorry, I climbed over the fence, stepping on people’s shoulders and heads.

As I climbed over the wall, I saw a picture of hell. People’s corpses and blood were scattered everywhere.

Judging from the marks on the cross-section, it didn’t seem like it was made by a shaman. Cheongsu didn’t want to cause trouble to the shaman.

Finding Cheongsu was easy, because the corpses of people made a path. All I had to do was follow the corpses.

As I followed the corpse, I saw a house. I could feel a tremendous amount of energy coming from inside the house. It seemed like I didn’t even have time to go inside the building and take the stairs.

I jumped up the wall of the building and jumped inside the window where I could feel the energy. There, an old man was swinging a knife at a man covered in blood. The man who fell was covered in blood, not to mention his face, but it was not hard to see that he was Cheongsu.

“Ugh!”

I immediately squeezed out all my remaining strength and jumped. Then I extended my sword. Luckily, my black old man blocked the path of the sword as it swung down.

The old man’s eyes grew wide. I met his eyes and smiled.

Anyway, I made it. I was breathing hard. This was the longest my feet had been on the same ground all day.

“Just a moment. Let me catch my breath first.”

I gasped for breath. When I stopped, I felt dizzy and like I was going to collapse. But if I collapsed here, I would be in trouble.

“What are you?”

The old man asked with an unpleasant look. I gestured to Cheongsu, who was lying face down.

“This is the person who came to pick up this person.”

“You must have seen the atrocities that guy has caused.”

“Whether that is not a crime or not, I cannot judge right now. I am just protecting my people.”

“Then you should die with me too!”

The muscles of the giant old man twitched. I saw that and immediately bent my waist backwards using the Iron Plate technique. A strange sword with sharp edges like the teeth of an animal swept across my waist.

I bent my back, put both arms on the ground, and turned my body backward to get up.

“Haa, haa. Let me take a breath. I haven’t caught my breath yet.”

“Shut up!”

The old man rushed at once. However, the old man’s momentum was not as sharp and strong as Gosung’s.

At first glance, the old man wasn’t normal like me. He probably used up a lot of strength while fighting Cheongsu.

Of course, it was not always possible to fight in the best condition. That was only possible in a private match between the Jeongdo sects.

“Ugh!”

I charged my sword with my inner energy and clashed it with the old man’s sword. When we clashed, my wrist snapped. I was so surprised that I fell backwards.

“The old man is also strong.”

“You came here to attack me without even knowing who I am?”

“Who are you?”

“Don’t you know the name Nanga Sword King?”

“Ah. I’ve heard of it. So you’re the Nanga Sword King.”

The blade of the sword seemed a bit strange. I think I heard that the Nanga Sword King used a cavalry called the Nanga Sword, which had a blade like a saw.

“If it’s revealed here, it would be polite to reveal it there too.”

I flinched as I tried to speak. If I revealed here and now that I was a non-partisan, it would be like admitting that Cheongsu was a non-partisan.

“Unfortunately, there is no name to reveal at this time.”

“Huh. That’s something I can look into!”

The Nang-A Sword King leaped again. As I spoke, I also began to catch my breath, and the Nang-A Sword King seemed to have recovered somewhat, as his momentum was better than before.

However, the King of Nanga Sword suffered some internal injuries, as bright red blood continued to flow from his mouth. On the other hand, as long as I could catch my breath, there were no problems with my internal energy.

Both of us were in bad shape, but if we were to compare, the best one was me. If both the Nanga Sword King and I were normal, my chances of defeating the Nanga Sword King would have been lower.

“Ugh!”

The Nanga Sword King and my sword began to mix in earnest.

As expected from his nickname, the swordsmanship of the Nanga Sword King was very rough and had many poisonous hands. Also, perhaps because it was a Ronin martial art, unlike the Jeongdo School that only used swords, he used his hands and feet freely.

I was surprised when he turned his body, thrust his sword upward, and kicked my shin with his foot, because it was the first time I had seen such a formless martial art.

I was lucky that I could barely react and focused my energy on my shins, otherwise my bones would have just broken. Even though I had injected my energy into them, seeing that my shins were still swollen and purple said it all.

As my legs stumbled, my technique became slightly tangled. The Nanga Sword King did not miss the tangled technique. The Nanga Sword King closed the distance between me and me and pressed hard with his sword.

There was no falsehood or deception in the sword of the King of Nang-A Sword. It was a practical swordsmanship consisting solely of killing techniques. The number of swords approaching my psyche increased to five, close to my body. All five sword strikes were aimed at my critical points.

Without even realizing it, I used the Yuun Sword Technique to deflect three blades and block two swords. Right now, I wasn’t at a level where I could win while hiding something from the Nanga Sword King. I was at a level where I had to sacrifice everything to win.

The eyes of the King of the Sword of Nanga opened wide as he saw my sword flowing gracefully. Then, the King of the Sword of Nanga stepped back and shouted.

“You’re a nonpartisan!”

“… … No?”

I flinched, but immediately covered my face and lied. However, the King of the Nang-A Sword did not seem to believe me.

“What is it? As far as the old man knows, there is no swordsmanship that is as cowardly and frustrating as that of the Mudang faction.”

“Cowardly and frustrating swordsmanship? Your words are harsh.”

“Look at that. If you weren’t a nonpartisan, you wouldn’t have gotten so upset.”

“Your mother is a Hongru gisaeng. If you’re not a gisaeng, don’t get upset.”

The face of the Nanga Sword King turned red all the way to the tip of his head.

“bloke!”

As if the mother of the King of Nanga Sword was a real courtesan, he got extremely angry and rushed at me. However, the sword did not waver or move excessively.

Even though I was the weakest swordsman in the world, it was hard for me to defeat him, who was known as a top-notch swordsman. I just swung the shaman’s sword with a feeling of “what the hell is going on?” and defended myself as best I could. Now, anyone could tell that it was a shaman’s sword.

“A few decades ago, a non-partisan guy caused a ruckus in Banggajang. What grudge do non-partisan guys have against our Banggajang? I will hold my non-partisan group accountable!”

The one who shouted at that time was a pot-bellied man hunched in the corner. He looked like the head of the household.

Of course, I had nothing to say because I didn’t know that a non-partisan person was causing a fuss in the Banggajang a few decades ago.

“… … I am not a non-partisan. I left a note asking for your excommunication.”

At that moment, Cheongsu, who had been lying down, spoke in a voice that was fading away. Cheongsu got up, shaking. When I looked closely, I saw that his face was covered in beehives. He had done everything he could to avoid being caught as a shaman.

“I asked you what your grudge was. Hello.”

Bang Ga-ju trembled in fear at the sight and voice of that eerie figure and shouted.

“Yes! What on earth do you have against me!”

“My name is Jang Hae-won. I am Jang Hae-rin’s older brother.”

“… … Jang Hae-rin?”

Bang Ga-ju frowned at Cheong-su’s words. It seemed like he had something to say. Cheong-su continued talking even as he spat out blood.

“Yes. They are the family of the woman you raped twenty years ago.”

Bang Ga-ju was startled by Cheong-su’s words. Bang Ga-ju instantly looked at the beautiful woman and girl next to him. He assumed they were his wife and daughter.

“Wh, what are you talking about! You’re making ridiculous accusations!”

Bang Ga-ju’s voice trembled. Just from that trembling voice, I could tell that Cheong-su’s words were true, and Bang Ga-ju remembered that too.

“I didn’t come here to harm you. I came here to kill you.”

Cheongsu stood up, sticking his sword into the ground. But he still didn’t seem to have the strength to move any further.

“Master! Kill that guy first! Quickly!”

Banggaju shouted at Nanga Sword King while lost in thought. However, I was already standing in front of Cheongsu. If Nanga Sword King wanted to cut down Cheongsu, he would have to cut down me first.

“So that’s what happened.”

I nodded. The King of Nanga also seemed to have guessed something and licked his lips.

“I told you so. Go. If you build up karma in the Central Plains, you will return someday. I clearly told you back then.”

“Wh, what are you talking about, Master!”

The King of the Swords ignored the noisy Banggaju and looked at me.

“Look, I’m sorry, but I’m not a swordsman, I’m a hired hand. I have no choice but to do what I have to do.”

“I understand. Everyone has their own job to do.”

“It seems like we’re both having a hard time, so how about we end it all at once?”

“great.”

A destructive aura burst out from the body of the Nanga Sword King. I also released fog from my sword. It was clearly the Yuun Sword Technique. It seemed as if I could hear Cheongsu sighing behind me.

I tried to hide my shamanism by changing my face, but the guy who came to help me was advertising his shamanism in a big way. However, if I didn’t use the shamanism’s swordsmanship, I wouldn’t have even the slightest chance of winning.

From the beginning, there seemed to be no chance of winning. Even if the Nang-A Sword King had lost all his strength, he was a top-class master who had been known in the martial arts world for decades. Even if I had incredible talent, it would be difficult to win against him in one go.

A thought crossed my mind at that moment. It seemed that there was only one thing I had a comparative advantage over the Nang’a Sword King.

It wasn’t strength, agility, or internal energy. It was the method of becoming one with nature that he had learned from Hyunwol.

Clearly, at that time, I was momentarily immersed in nature and caught Hyunwol. What would happen if I applied this to martial arts? Of course, rather than applying it, it was a priority to segment my perception and become immersed in nature as Hyunwol said.

‘Can you do it?’

It didn’t matter whether I could do it or not. I had to do it with the mindset that I would die if I didn’t do it.

“Go.”

Nanga Sword King spoke slowly. Contrary to his tone of voice, Nanga Sword King rushed towards me with a storm-like momentum and speed.

For a moment, I recognized this room as my entire world. The feeling of being immersed in the truth came back to me.

From above the room, he could see the movements of the Nanga Sword King, as well as the Bangga family and Cheongsu who were curled up in the corner.

“Huh!”

The Nanga Sword King took a deep breath. Since I controlled this space itself, the Nanga Sword King’s trajectory was all in my hands.

I naturally dodged it and swung my sword at the heart of the Nang-A Sword King. And then the fairy tale was cut off. When the fairy tale was cut off, I felt extremely dizzy and vertigo. It seemed like the side effects were coming because my perception was not yet properly segmented.

But still, my black sword pierced the heart of the Black Sword King.

“… … What kind of method is this? How can it suddenly disappear… … .”

The King of Nangagum looked at me in disbelief and collapsed.

As the giant Nanga Sword King collapsed, it was only then that I noticed the Banggaju behind me trembling.