Chapter 243 The World’s Greatest Martial Arts Tournament (6)

Chapter 243: The World’s Greatest Martial Arts Tournament (6)

People often say that.

The martial arts of the orthodox faction are profound, while those of the heretical faction are shallow.

It’s a rather plausible argument.

After all, the martial arts of the heretical sects were often born and developed in the heat of battle, for the purpose of killing opponents.

While orthodox martial arts began with contemplation of nature and life and death, developing through self-cultivation and refinement.

Consequently, the number of top-tier masters who wielded blades with considerable skill was greater in the heretical sects, while the number of peerless masters was overwhelmingly higher in the orthodox sects. The number of supreme masters was roughly equal on both sides.

But there was one unpredictable factor: the number of absolute masters.

It was a dead heat.

Before the collapse of the Ten Demon Sect, the number of absolute masters in the righteous sects was roughly equal to the number of absolute masters in the demonic sects, including those practicing demonic arts.

Seeing this makes me wonder if the realm of the Hwa Gyeong is something only those born with the innate strength of a genie can tread, regardless of martial arts.

Like the Mountain King Association Leader, Lim Jeong, standing before me.

Boom!

The Exploding Fire Crystal, layered multiple times, embedded itself perfectly into his side.

“Guh!”

The searing pain shooting up from my hand made me involuntarily frown.

Heh.

“Excellent attack!”

Crack. Crack.

His sword swung mercilessly, shattering the floor.

“Huff.”

I barely dodged it, caught my breath, and scanned the front.

‘I didn’t miss it.’

I let him off.

Had he given it his all, that attack would have struck me without fail, and I’d be locked in combat with the Dragon Banner right now.

Drip.

Cold sweat trickled down my back without my noticing.

‘…Like hell I saw it.’

After facing fifteen moves, I realized.

True to his heritage as a descendant of the Green Forest, a orthodox sect, his martial arts weren’t deep, but they were as vast as the sea.

No matter what attack I launched, he countered with calm and composure.

It felt like facing an Asura with eight arms.

“Truly a teenage master…”

Of course, it’s practically a guided sparring session now. No need to be scared. And certainly no reason to stand still.

Pah!

Once more, he unleashed the Flying Dragon Palm and charged straight at him. His fist, packed with explosive force, clenched tightly.

* * *

As if asking when else I could possibly do this, I poured everything I had into my attacks. It was the first time I’d exerted this much force since the Ten Demon Training.

Knowing my intent to pour everything into the attack, Lim Jeong focused solely on defense despite multiple openings, launching only simple counterattacks without committing his full strength.

Thanks to that, I not only drove in Powell but also seized the moment when his feet were pinned to slam a backdoor steal right into his back.

But that wasn’t all.

I moved behind him with a step taken with all my strength, and immediately unleashed the Moon Slice that would cleave everything apart.

Whoosh!

A gravitational force that swallowed everything erupted.

Kwaaang!

The floor of the arena shattered in a circular pattern with an explosion like a bomb had gone off.

Flash!

A razor-sharp edge capable of splitting steel flew toward the front.

Here, as if sensing the threat, Lim Jeong’s expression, which had been consistently composed, changed in an instant.

And then.

Pah!

His great sword, arms, and legs moved swiftly.

First, he vertically cleaved the massive sphere of gravitational force lengthwise. Simultaneously, he shifted his feet to escape the blast radius while spinning his body to collide with the crescent moon.

His movements resembled a performance art piece.

Every one of his actions radiated extreme efficiency.

Watching attacks that consumed over half my energy vanish into nothingness, I briefly considered unleashing hell itself.

‘No.’

I held back, knowing it could easily lead to severe internal injuries.

Then only one thing remained.

“I surrender.”

Surrender.

What’s the point of fighting when nothing works?

It’s just a waste of energy.

As he folded his hands and bowed his head, Lim Jeong nodded with a look of considerable surprise.

“I cannot help but admire the skill of the defeated master. Ten years from now, it will be your time.”

It was the highest praise imaginable.

Whether it was mere flattery or genuine sentiment, considering his status as the godfather of the underworld, the very act of him praising me was absurd.

Naturally, the audience erupted.

Wooooo-!

Content-wise, it was a complete defeat, but to ordinary people unfamiliar with martial arts, it must have looked like a dead heat, making it seem like he’d been acknowledged.

“You flatter me.”

Even in defeat, there is dignity.

I gave a brief bow and descended from the tournament stage.

‘If this had been a battlefield, I would’ve been finished for sure.’

…barely hiding my trembling legs.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a secluded corner far from the tournament grounds. There, North Palace Baek and Mun Sang watched the duel in disguise.

“The depth of the Extreme Killing Demon’s martial arts is as vast as the sea.”

“Hmph.”

Moon Sang inwardly groaned at Baek Gung-baek’s mutter.

He feared that if word got out, the prizes for the championship might be exposed as counterfeits.

‘Well, well, the Nine Dragons Lord put up shoddy fakes as tournament prizes, did he?’

‘Even someone like that resorts to fraud… Truly the end of days, the end of days. Tsk tsk.’

‘Perhaps the entire Nine Dragons Fortress is a gang of swindlers.’

Facing a future too grim to contemplate, Mun Sang shut his eyes tight.

Should I call it quits now?

But that hesitation lasted only a moment.

‘Damn it, I told you to trust me. Even if the old man from the Mountain King Association comes, he’ll never win, I tell you!’

Recalling Mujeon’s bold declaration, he barely suppressed his unease.

‘Since the Dragon Clan Leader made that bold claim…’

Since it had already happened, he had no choice but to believe.

Just as he was sighing, North Palace Baek also sighed and said.

“By the way, that Mu-jeon fellow suffered a complete defeat.”

“Still, he fought well, didn’t he? To my eyes, it looked like a narrow defeat.”

“A narrow defeat? What nonsense.”

Bukgung Baek shook his head dismissively at Mun Sang’s words.

“That’s what you call losing without even getting a chance to fight back.”

“Is the gap really that wide? As far as I know, the martial arts of the Dragon Palace Master are ranked among the top within the Nine Dragon City.”

“It’s not that Wutian is weak; it’s that Jiksal Daema is strong. More accurately, it’s a matter of unfavorable matchups.”

“You mean their matchup?”

Bukgung Baek continued his explanation as he walked toward the castle hall, and Mun Sang quickly followed him.

“He’s always made up for his lack of experience with flashes of brilliance. But the Demon King of Extreme Killing is a martial artist skilled and seasoned in battle, as befits the patriarch of the heretical sect. His mere wit won’t stand a chance.”

“I’ve heard most righteous martial artists lack the real combat experience of the dark side’s warriors. Time will solve that.”

Bukgung Baek scoffed in response.

“If that difference in experience were truly absolute, the orthodox faction would have been crushed long ago by the heretics and the demonic path. Do you suppose you know why a young orthodox martial artist could defeat a seasoned heretic master?”

“……I don’t know.”

“Fundamentals. Practice a powerless technique over ten thousand times. Then practice the next technique over ten thousand times as well. It is through such techniques piling up, accumulating, that experience overwhelms all else.”

“Is that so?”

“That fellow is no different. Had he solidly built his foundation, he would have possessed far more options. Then, no matter how seasoned the Demon King might be, he could have fought a few more moves.”

“Haha, I understand your heart as a teacher, but isn’t that a bit too greedy? His current achievements were surely gained through bone-crushing, blood-sweating effort…”

“I don’t know that guy very well.”

“Huh? What do you mean…?”

“How many hours do you think that guy sleeps in a day?”

“Well… Since the warriors of Seongjujeon usually rise before dawn, I’d guess he sleeps about three to three and a half hours.”

Mun Sang, having grasped the questioner’s intent, deliberately exaggerated his answer, but North Palace Baek shook his head.

“He usually lies down for about five hours.”

“…Getting sufficient rest is also a good approach. Isn’t it true that efficiency is best when one approaches things with a clear mind?”

“If you had gotten up even a little later and devoted yourself to training, I wouldn’t have had to say this.”

“…….”

“He barely moves his body except when he feels like it. If pressed, I’d say he trains for about an hour every ten days at most.”

“No, surely that can’t be true. Martial arts training can’t be that easy to master…”

“That’s precisely why it’s infuriating. He’s overflowing with talent yet refuses to put in the effort. As his master, could anything be more frustrating?”

Cold sweat trickled down Mun Sang’s back as he heard the rebuke for his lazy disciple.

Countless warriors scattered across the land sweat blood, dreaming of a tomorrow stronger than today.

And Mun Sang had witnessed such scenes countless times.

Just look at the Blue Dragon Sword and Black Dragon Sword, known as the treasures of the Nine Dragons Fortress—their wielders scarcely ever let go of their blades.

Yet, to train only when they feel like it…

And yet, they’ve become masters of that caliber.

If this is true, then the Dragon Lord is an unparalleled genius… no, it means he’s a being beyond human, the stuff of legends.

Moreover, he wasn’t merely gifted with martial prowess.

He possessed a strong tendency toward deceit, yet was sharp enough to devise intricate schemes.

And now that his master, Baek of the North Palace, had become the Dragon King, it was like wings had sprouted on a tiger’s back.

Suddenly, trust in Muwon began to bubble up in Mun Sang’s heart.

‘Seems like it was a good move to have that So-pyeong fellow assigned to him.’

The next position of head of the Mun Sang family would undoubtedly go to someone from the Yoo clan as well.

Thump, thump.

But as he walked, composing his thoughts, Mun Sang suddenly remembered something.

“Excuse me… Lord Seongju?”

“Speak.”

“At what hour of the day does Your Lordship retire?”

“……”

The fact that I’ve never seen the lord before me move either.

* * *

Outside the outer walls of Guryongseong lies a lake called Guryongho.

It’s large and boasts stunning scenery, so anyone in Nine Dragons City with some money buys a house near Nine Dragons Lake. Think of it as roughly equivalent to Seoul’s Seokchon Lake.

I was now fishing at that very Nine Dragons Lake for the third hour straight.

The helplessness I felt after so long made my heart stir.

‘…I need to polish my martial arts skills a bit.’

But seriously, why aren’t the carp biting?

I wondered if I was the only one, so I took a closer look at the nearby anglers.

“That’s a whopper!”

“Two at once!”

Hearing the shouts from afar, I almost let out a cry of excitement.

‘Hold it. If I tear it up, it’ll be hard to make braised carp.’

Honestly, there was no need to be greedy.

Just one fish, perfectly sized.

That’s all I needed for Myohyang to make it delicious.

Steamed carp and a few cups of liquor seemed like they could lift this gloomy mood.

‘They say carp is good for stamina…’

I’m already looking forward to it.

Ah, dinner, of course.

After half an hour of summoning patience to hold my seat,

A man clad in soiled gray clothing took a seat near me.

“You’re here?”

“Yes.”

It was Yongmasan.

“You’re wearing a wig? See? I told you it would suit you well. Now all you need is a woman, and you can get married.”

“……”

“Right, how’s it going?”

“All preparations are complete. Once the signal from the Jin clan leader is given, we will move simultaneously.”

His excellent handling of affairs was so impressive it made one nod in agreement.

“Good. Then I’ll give you your next task.”

“What’s the next task?”

“Do you know how to fish? Just catch me one carp.”

“……”

Yongmasan sighed and took the fishing rod.