I Became the Namgung Clan’s Omnipotent Item-Powered Martial God - Chapter 14
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 14
Episode 14 – By Any Means, to the Limit
#1
With each thrust of the blade through flesh, his hair bristled, standing on end.
Every time they spat curses and invoked damnation, Ho Ho felt himself being dragged down into an abyss.
But he did not yield.
Ho Ho swung his sword until they all bled and fell.
Thrust and slash.
His first killing left him feeling numb, bloated.
It seemed he might retch at any moment.
Yet he swallowed back what rose in his throat, watching the criminals’ ends through to completion without looking away.
“Hah…….”
His breathing came in shallow, trembling gasps.
His hands shook, and his eyes had gone bloodshot.
But he did not turn away from any of it.
His greatest strength, his truest gift.
It was this: he never fled.
A man who stood against all things and ultimately seized victory.
That was Ho Ho.
Namgung Yeon placed a steadying hand on his shoulder.
“You did well.”
“Thank you…… for that.”
“Do not forget this feeling.”
“But surely it will dull someday?”
Ho Ho’s gaze instinctively sought Man Ho.
Man Ho nodded silently in answer.
For those who carried swords, death was always like the reaper treading at their heels.
Conversely, one might summon that reaper to claim an enemy’s life.
There would come times when the weight of life felt truly fleeting.
Yet a true Martial Artist must know that weight well.
Only then could one live as a Martial Artist and not become a monster.
‘I fear I have already become a monster.’
Namgung Yeon gazed at those sprawled on the ground and thought this.
What did they appear to him as?
Fallen straw bundled together.
Or perhaps heaps of bleeding refuse…….
He did not wish to linger and savor the final moments of those he could see as nothing else.
“Clean it up.”
“Yes.”
“Better to burn them in the back courtyard so no damage spreads through the house.”
“I shall obey.”
Mother would be arriving soon.
The mess had to be cleared before her voice rose again in complaint about the state of the residence.
And yet.
“What in the world is this mess in my home!?”
“…….”
Mother’s scolding remained as cutting as ever.
There was one thing he promptly offered her.
“My, what is this?”
“Mother, I believe it is time you resumed your own training.”
“…….”
Lady Namgung.
She lived as the mistress of the Namgung Clan, but the time had come for her to return to her true nature as Dang So Yeon.
One of the finest talents of the Sichuan Dang Clan, a woman once called the Poison Sovereign.
Perhaps a woman who had even touched the realm of the Poison Human.
It was not only his father who possessed such transcendent talent.
His mother too had inherited a talent that need not have been spent so carelessly.
The pressure of finality had driven this decision.
Because if they failed here now, there would be nowhere left to fall back to.
‘Everyone growing stronger…… I know it is hard. But unless we protect what matters this way, we cannot survive.’
This time, I will finally do everything I’ve wanted to do, everything I’ve planned, and everything I’ve held back from.
Only then will this pitiful life of repeating regressions have meant something.
So Yeon gazed at something her son had held out to her.
[Infinite Archive]
[Thousand Poison Pills]
[Quantity: 999,999,999]
[Currently extractable: 1]
A spiritual elixir crafted from a thousand varieties of poison.
The Dang Clan’s secret legacy, and the inheritance you left me.
Now I return it to you.
That you might rise as the Poison Sovereign.
“You’re really giving this to your mother?”
“Yes. I want to live a long and healthy life with you.”
“This boy of mine…….”
However we must, to the limit.
We must do everything we are capable of.
#2
So Yeon stayed for two days.
During that time, she could only marvel.
News had drifted to her ears from time to time.
Of the distinguished member of the Namgung Clan, absent from home, causing all manner of disturbance.
There were signs of disapproval within the family, though Namgung Mu himself seemed to harbor some measure of expectation.
Yet seeing it in person, the training volume was staggering.
And that wasn’t all.
Whatever technique he was employing, her son’s physique visibly improved with each passing day.
‘Even with the finest natural constitution, that should be impossible…….’
She watched her son train while fingering the wooden box containing the Thousand Poison Pills.
She had hoped for peace within the household, but it seemed others thought differently.
She knew well enough that her son was the offspring of a renowned martial clan.
The martial clans appeared noble and refined on the surface, but within they were filthy and vile.
They showed neither blood nor tears—neither toward siblings nor family.
Even a clan head could fall to assassination if careless, for such was the way of the martial clans.
“At this rate, there’s nothing to worry about.”
He had always been the sorest of her fingers.
The child who always lay coughing in bed.
Perhaps…… the child most likely to be cast out first.
But seeing this, she found there was little to fear for now.
The real problem would be her son’s siblings, who had witnessed his growth.
Though all were her children, they sometimes felt like strangers to her.
Children of a martial household they may be, yet each moved with their own aims.
Could Yeon truly navigate his way through those bound together by talent?
‘This mother still doesn’t fully understand.’
That she had not taken the Thousand Poison Pills immediately was for this reason.
Leaving aside how he obtained it, the elixir’s efficacy seemed so extraordinary that she could not bring herself to use it lightly.
Such spiritual elixirs proved more effective than any ordinary remedy in times of crisis.
This is the way of a mother’s heart.
Worried for her son, she cannot use the elixir he gave her as a gift.
‘Training once more…….’
When was the last time she held a hidden blade and crafted poison?
Ever since she met the man called Namgung Mu, training had fallen to the wayside.
Blinded by love had something to do with it, but more than that, she wanted to support this man called Namgung Mu all the more completely.
So she lived as an ordinary wife, as the lady of the household discussing family matters with her husband, and as mother to seven children.
What heights could she reach even if she took up martial arts again now?
Yet seeing him like this, her heart inexplicably began to stir.
“Martial arts…….”
She would think on that another time.
Now that she had provided for her son, it was time to hasten the true preparations.
Three months would pass in the blink of an eye.
Anhui was flooded with countless people, and she was its mistress as well.
She carefully stored away the wooden box containing the Thousand Poison Pills and left the Martial House.
There was simply too much to do, and he could not afford to waste time.
Besides, staying here too long would only invite unwanted gossip.
“Mother, I should take my leave now. Please take good care of yourself.”
“I understand. And that Spiritual Elixir—you should take it soon.”
“……Yes.”
“I can procure similar medicines for you anytime you need them.”
Namgung Yeon saw his mother off with those words.
She had merely accepted it as natural enough and moved on.
It was not difficult for the Namgung Clan to purchase an Elixir of this caliber with their wealth.
But Namgung Yeon’s conviction was firm.
“This particular Elixir will be most effective if you consume it yourself.”
“I understand. I really must be going now. I need to return safely.”
“Yes.”
If only she understood his true intent.
But there was still time.
A little time remained.
Yet when she truly grew desperate enough to think of the Thousand Poison Pills, the moment would already have passed.
‘I cannot control even that.’
Senses dulled beyond measure.
Possibilities grown achingly urgent.
While these two sensations warred within him, the sun and moon continued their endless cycles overhead.
#3
Three months.
Time flowed with relentless steadiness.
Time is truly honest.
It flows impartially for all, and reveals its results with perfect clarity.
Namgung Yeon was no exception.
For three months, he had given his all.
He had drawn without reserve from the Archive and trained with every ounce of strength he possessed.
And today—today was when he had to return to the Main Residence.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“The rumors have spread considerably.”
Man Ho nodded.
Tales that had spread from the marketplace to every corner of Hefei itself.
They spoke of how Young Master Namgung Yeon had purged the criminals surrounding Hefei.
How he had restored innocent people to the safety of their families.
And so the common people had searched for their mysterious savior.
They sought the identity of this unknown benefactor.
When they tried to trace who this sudden stranger might be, whispers began to drift up from the Slums.
Tales spread by beggars on the streets.
<Young Master Namgung Yeon visited the Slums and swept away the wicked.>
<Was it his martial prowess? His command? Or perhaps his leadership?>
<Never before had anyone shown such love to those cast aside.>
The songs the beggars hummed began to spread far and wide.
And so the people of Hefei gradually came to realize that their mysterious benefactor was Young Master Namgung Yeon.
Following the old saying that words without feet can travel a thousand miles, the news had already spread throughout Hefei.
“I’ve prepared a carriage that won’t draw attention.”
“Well done.”
“And what of this?”
Man Ho held up the creaking Coiled Dragon Shackle with a question.
The chains that now felt barely heavy at all.
The shackles that once shimmered with an otherworldly light had become nothing but worn iron.
Namgung Yeon gazed at them and spoke.
“Keep wearing it for now. You can remove it once I give the word.”
“Understood. I barely notice it anymore, so there’s no trouble.”
“Ho Ho, how do you fare?”
Ho Ho, who had been packing their belongings, turned his head.
The pudgy frame had vanished entirely, replaced by a Martial Artist with a solid, powerful build.
This was Ho Ho, who had trained while consuming Spiritual Elixirs like simple snacks.
The fat that had melted away transformed into fuel, allowing him to digest the most extreme training, and his natural talent—already exceptional—bloomed in brilliant display, like fire meeting oil.
As a result, Ho Ho had become someone who could now truly be called a Martial Artist.
He answered with a bright face.
“I’m ready as well, sir.”
“Good. Let’s depart.”
There was a task his father, Namgung Mu, had given him three months ago.
To reach the level of a First Class Martial Artist or beyond.
Where did he stand now?
Had his son Namgung Yeon, in his own assessment, touched the threshold of the First Class?
He would know once he saw.
One thing was certain: there would be much to accomplish in the Small Clan Master Competition.
Long stretches of training and rivalry stretched ahead.
During that time, countless allies and enemies would emerge.
‘Through that process, my father and the elders will place their trust in me.’
To achieve that, he had drawn freely from the items in the Archive.
The Small Clan Master of the Namgung Clan.
His influence would reverberate not just through Hefei, but across all of Anhui and the Kangho.
That position was essential to forestall the coming calamity.
He pushed open the doors of the Martial House and stepped out.
Now it was time to show the fruits of three months’ labor.
Familiar faces would appear soon enough.
Those he had seen many times before would bare their fangs at him.
‘This time, there will be no mercy.’
The weight of finality pressed down on Namgung Yeon’s shoulders.
A life where one mistake meant no second chance.
So he had resolved to always give his all.
Overwhelming. Certain.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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