Chapter 90: Chapter 90
It was an instant.
Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon, who had been at the edge of the fairly spacious sparring stage, moved to the center in a single stride.
At the same time, Cheon Woo-jin also launched his body forward.
Before the crowd’s gaze could even reach them, the two met at the midpoint of the sparring stage.
Looking at the cheeky alliance member who immediately matched his speed, Bukli Cheon slyly curled up the corners of his mouth.
‘As expected.’
Was he not a rising star who grew more astonishing the more one looked at him?
Bukli Cheon was genuinely filled with competitive spirit. He definitely wanted to make that fellow draw his Crescent Moon Staff within three exchanges.
The two drew breathlessly close as if about to collide right away, before brushing past each other.
Bukli Cheon had no intention of wasting an exchange meaningless.
The moment he passed Cheon Woo-jin, he stamped his foot in a firm stance and leaped high into the air. Bukli Cheon soared as if to touch the clouds, just like the sword qi resembling a white egret he had fired before the duel.
While lingering briefly in midair, his gaze met Cheon Woo-jin’s upward-looking eyes.
At the same time, the crowd’s cheers erupted resoundingly. Already, it was on an entirely different plane from the duels they had watched so far.
In that heat, Bukli Cheon wore a thick smile and raised his pure white blade high above.
‘Now, try blocking this.’
It was the first exchange.
Bukli Cheon’s cherished weapon, White Phoenix, poured pure white sword qi toward Cheon Woo-jin. The size of the sword qi alone surpassed three zhang, approximately nine meters, and its speed was as fast as a seasoned hunting hawk swooping down on prey.
If struck by such sword qi, an ordinary martial artist’s entire body would scatter away like smoke.
At that tremendous sight, Disciplinary Hall Master Chu Pung-gae, Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader Cheon Do-hwi, and even White Sword Hall Master Danwoo Myeong, who was known as the greatest expert excluding the Alliance Leader, raised their qi.
For if Cheon Woo-jin were to dodge that elegant yet monstrous sword qi, the shockwave colliding with the ground could sweep over the commoners.
However, Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon had faith. There was no way the disciple of the White Flower Sword Immortal would dodge, was there?
As expected, Cheon Woo-jin remained standing in place, looking up at the gigantic sword qi surging like a tsunami.
With a merely composed attitude, he unfurled the Crane Feather Fan. Soon, wind converged from all directions centered on Cheon Woo-jin.
As always, the beginning was a gentle breeze.
The gathered wind swirled and soared into the sky. It soon collided with the pure white sword qi striking down like a hunting hawk.
Crrrash!
A bizarre explosive roar spread out.
However, a gentle breeze was not enough to block the Alliance Leader’s sword qi. Only its speed slowed somewhat; the sword qi was still descending.
Cheon Woo-jin fanned the Crane Feather Fan once more. At that, the whirlwind in contact with the sword qi grew even fiercer.
The sword qi came to a halt. High in midair, the gale raised by Cheon Woo-jin and the Alliance Leader’s sword qi held firm, pushing each other with comparable power.
In that process, finely shattered waves of qi scattered in the air, shining brilliant lights.
“…Whoa!”
At the marvelous spectacle, people’s jaws dropped wide open. It was the same not only for the commoners, but also for the martial artists of the Martial Alliance. Even for them, witnessing such a spectacle was unheard of.
However, Cheon Woo-jin, who had been looking up at the sword qi with calm eyes, waved the Crane Feather Fan once again.
Merely a light movement.
Yet the result was by no means light.
Whooosh!
Along with a heavy sound of tearing air, the swirling gale picked up momentum. Sucking in all surrounding air, it grew in size, and ultimately began to swallow the sword qi whole.
Crane Wing Sheltering the Heavens.
Just like its name of sheltering the heavens with the wings of a crane, a truly gigantic gale seemed to cover the entire world under heaven.
Soon, the pure white sword qi was torn to shreds and scattered in midair. Naturally, the aftermath reached even where the Alliance Leader stood.
However, Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon was nowhere to be seen.
Cheon Woo-jin expanded his sensory perception and moved his eyes left and right.
Because of the gale, dust hung thick over the sparring stage.
Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes narrowed. Because his sensory perception could hardly catch anything.
It was then.
A very quiet sound, which he never would have noticed had he not raised his sensory perception to the extreme, grazed his ears.
Simultaneously, Cheon Woo-jin struck upward with the Crane Feather Fan from below.
Clang!
A lump of iron clashed against the Crane Feather Fan and soared into the sky.
Cheon Woo-jin was dumbfounded. He had not imagined that a martial artist in a position like the Alliance Leader would actually throw his sword.
Soon, the thick dust settled and the figure of the Alliance Leader chuckling heartily was revealed.
“Haha, you actually struck that away.”
The Alliance Leader also admired it purely. It was a sword thrown deliberately without using internal qi, solely with physical strength. Thus, there was no way he felt qi, which meant he had detected the minute sound of White Phoenix cutting through the wind.
‘He has already transcended human senses.’ Thinking thus, Bukli Cheon looked at Cheon Woo-jin with fresh eyes.
Cheon Woo-jin spoke in his characteristically calm tone.
“Two exchanges have passed…”
Cheon Woo-jin’s words could not continue to completion.
In an instant, goosebumps broke out along his spine.
A chill was felt as if the nape of his neck was pierced by a sword blade.
‘Sword telekinesis?’
Even Cheon Woo-jin gasped for breath. While Sword Telekinesis was a supreme technique in itself, to a martial artist of Cheon Woo-jin’s level, it was not a particularly astonishing realm.
However, to think that with a sword thrown clearly without operating internal qi, he instantaneously extended formless qi to connect with the sword and operated Sword Telekinesis.
That delicate and flawless method of operating internal energy was admirable. The present technique contained the supreme subtleties that even his two masters could not attempt.
Whatever else might be said, in the control of qi alone, Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon had surpassed the Black and White Elders.
Cheon Woo-jin was about to reverse his grip on the Crane Feather Fan, but gave up. It was already too late. In the moment he turned his body, took a stance, and tried to block, the divine sword White Phoenix would pierce through Cheon Woo-jin.
Letting out a low sigh, Cheon Woo-jin shifted his left hand behind his back instead of his right hand holding the Crane Feather Fan.
Clang!
Without turning his body, he had swung the Crescent Moon Staff and deflected the sword. The impact was so tremendous that the floor of the sparring stage caved in and blew apart. If not for divine weapons and treasured armaments on the level of the Crescent Moon Staff and White Phoenix, they would have shattered into pieces.
Soon, White Phoenix, having bounced into the sky, was sucked into the Alliance Leader’s hand.
“Heh…”
The Alliance Leader chuckled. It was a childlike expression unfitting of his age and status.
At that sight, Cheon Woo-jin shut his mouth tightly. Somehow he felt vexed, and that expression in particular was irritating.
Right around when Cheon Woo-jin was feeling a sense of defeat.
“Phew.”
Along with the sound of someone letting out held breath.
“Waaah!”
Cheers truly shaking heaven and earth burst forth.
Victory or defeat no longer mattered to the people.
For two martial artists situated at the very highest and lowest points of the Martial Alliance to display such a magnificent duel.
Was it not truly a heart-stirring scene?
The Black Tortoise Squad, including Song Yi-yeon, even took off their outer robes and waved them wildly like flags.
Only Tang Bi-cheon, Namgung Jin, and Sima Hwi failed to join in their cheers, merely letting out sighs.
Bukli Cheon allowed people time to enjoy their heightened emotions for a moment, and then raised his hand.
It was a small movement, yet his distinctive presence gripped the arena. As the cheers subsided, people’s concentration poured in.
The Alliance Leader spoke as if making a solemn proclamation.
“It is the victory of me, Bukli Cheon.”
At that sight, Sima Hwi pressed his forehead.
‘No, did you fight and defeat the Heavenly Demon Cult Leader or something?’
Regardless, Cheon Woo-jin ground his teeth in vexation.
“Just once more…”
Cheon Woo-jin also knew. That nothing was uglier than clinging onto a finished duel.
Yet what could he do when the first defeat he had experienced in his life was so vexing?
Of course, the Alliance Leader had no intention of obliging.
“I do not want to.”
“…”
“The opportunity has ended. Do you think my rear is so light? I am the Alliance Leader.”
“…”
There was nothing to say.
Cheon Woo-jin gently closed his eyes and let out a long breath.
What must be acknowledged had to be acknowledged.
“I lost.”
“Yes. I know.”
“…”
The Alliance Leader grinned. It was not simply from the fact that he had won the duel that he was so joyful.
‘Is he not an even more tremendous monster than I thought!’
What if it were not a duel?
What if it did not end in three exchanges, but they tested each other’s full strength?
Even so, the Alliance Leader was certain of his victory. However, it was clear he would have struggled immensely. Against a lad who had merely reached twenty years of age, no less.
‘I must live a long life.’
Another reason to live long had increased.
What would the martial world possibly look like when that fellow passed thirty, then forty, and reached fifty? If he died without seeing that, he would literally pound the earth in regret even in the afterlife.
Soon, Bukli Cheon’s words followed.
“Is your body alright? You did not overdo it, did you?”
“Not at all.”
Cheon Woo-jin said so deliberately. In any case, a bit of vexation still lingered in his heart.
Bukli Cheon grinned at that sight.
“Then let us wrap up the sparring tournament. In truth, an alliance member challenging me is an absurd thing. I only stepped forward with the mindset of repaying the people who came. Now that it is finished, challenge your opponent as originally intended and hold the final duel.”
It was Bukli Cheon’s own consideration. For if he did not do this, it felt as though Tang Bi-cheon down below might fall into qi deviation.
Cheon Woo-jin made a sullen expression.
The lingering sensation from exchanging blows with the Alliance Leader was still entirely present, so what kind of duel was he supposed to hold with Tang Bi-cheon in such a state?
However, aside from having chosen the Alliance Leader out of momentary impulse, a promise was a promise.
Letting out a sigh, Cheon Woo-jin opened his mouth.
“…Yes, well. I challenge Squad Leader Tang Bi-cheon.”
It felt like a choice made entirely from being pushed.
Tang Bi-cheon’s face distorted red with anger and shame.
What was more, he was not even a squad leader, but the Medicine Hall’s Deputy Hall Master.
“That dog-like bastard…”
Tang Bi-cheon immediately took up his dagger. It was the Heavenly Green Dagger, passed down through generations to the Patriarch of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
Although the Patriarch was still alive, the fact that Tang Bi-cheon, the Young Patriarch, possessed the Heavenly Green Dagger revealed the situation of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
Suddenly, his subordinate beside him spoke cautiously.
“Young Patriarch. Will it really be alright?”
Just moments ago, he had witnessed the duel between the Alliance Leader and Cheon Woo-jin.
Cheon Woo-jin’s martial prowess was far higher than anticipated. To the point where he thought that even if all the elites of the Tang Clan attacked together, they might not be able to do anything.
At that question, Tang Bi-cheon crumpled his expression.
“Are you saying that I will lose to that bastard?”
“T-That is not what I meant…”
Actually, it was.
However, it was not something he could speak aloud.
The subordinate merely bowed his head. That reaction only fueled Tang Bi-cheon’s anger further.
Tang Bi-cheon glared at Cheon Woo-jin standing on the sparring stage.
It was true that the fellow was stronger than expected. However, that was not an issue.
“Is that fellow stronger than the Alliance Leader?”
It was truly an arrogant remark. For it sounded as though he himself could even spar with the Alliance Leader.
Yet Tang Bi-cheon sincerely thought so.
Of course, if it were the original him, even having attained the realm of a poison master, he would not have reached even the soles of the Alliance Leader’s feet.
For he was a rising star, while the Alliance Leader was the sun illuminating the entire world.
However.
“Dharma Master Won-dang.”
At Tang Bi-cheon’s call, a middle-aged man wearing monk robes with a bamboo hat pressed low approached. In his hand was a jet-black pill.
It was the biggest reason Tang Bi-cheon kept Dharma Master Won-dang by his side. Because he provided the power to seize control of the Tang Clan and escape the shadow of his father, the Tang Clan Patriarch.
“Young Patriarch. As you know, the medicine’s effect lasts for one quarter of an hour at most.”
It was a pill not yet perfected.
The completed product could last for one shichen, but right now a mere quarter of an hour was the limit.
Naturally, that did not matter to Tang Bi-cheon.
“What of a quarter of an hour? Half of that is more than enough.”
Receiving the pill, Tang Bi-cheon tossed it down in a single gulp. Having directly confirmed it with his body several times already, he felt no anxiety.
In that moment, Tang Bi-cheon’s dark green ocular glow grew murky, then quickly regained its original color. The greatest advantage of this pill was that it could not be detected from the outside.
It was the result of experiments conducted against eminent masters of the Righteous Path, as well as masters of the Unorthodox Path and Demonic Path. Not a single person had noticed this alien power.
Savoring the abundant energy felt throughout his whole body, Tang Bi-cheon stepped onto the sparring stage.
Cheon Woo-jin waited for him with an unenthusiastic expression.
“You have arrived.”
“…Insolent bastard.”
Tang Bi-cheon did not surge with rage as before. For he intended to crush that guy into the sparring stage floor in front of everyone before even a quarter of an hour passed.
Rather, the duel with the Alliance Leader was a good thing. Only if that fellow’s fame was high would his own renown shine all the more after defeating him.
“You have not forgotten the promise, have you?”
“Of course.”
Cheon Woo-jin was still unenthusiastic. He only thought about wanting to spar with the Alliance Leader one more time.
He did not know how that fellow knew he was the disciple of his master, Black Elder. Nor was he interested. He had merely intended to play along because it was sure to become troublesome otherwise.
And now, even that interest was dying down.
It was then.
Tang Bi-cheon’s green pupils dyed even darker. At the same time, qi resembling dark green moss blossomed from his entire body.
Cheon Woo-jin sullenly watched that sight before putting away the Crane Feather Fan and taking out the Crescent Moon Staff. It was a duel that had no need to drag on.
“Both of you, stand facing forward.”
At the host’s request, Cheon Woo-jin and Tang Bi-cheon stood facing each other with five steps between them.
Tang Bi-cheon wore a thick smile. It was difficult to endure the power boiling through his whole body and the impulsive urges. He had no desire other than wanting to hack that guy’s entire body to pieces with the Heavenly Green Dagger right this instant.
Suddenly, Cheon Woo-jin knitted his brows.
Because something familiar was felt from Tang Bi-cheon, whose qi surged like a pony in heat.
Soon, Cheon Woo-jin realized the true nature of that familiarity.
‘Dark Heavens Qi?’
It was the qi possessed by those who had learned the martial arts of the Dark Emperor.
That qi felt from Tang Bi-cheon was so faint and murky, but it could never deceive Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes alone.
For the martial artist capable of wielding the thickest Dark Heavens Qi in the contemporary era was none other than Cheon Woo-jin.