I Shouldn't Have Joined the Martial Arts Alliance - Chapter 44

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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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Why rashly enter the Murim Alliance — Episode 44
‘……Ah, what do I do……?’
Clearly, Je Gal I Su had refused to deploy the Eight Formation, saying it was dangerous.
Yet the moment he began to unfold it, Je Gal I Su found himself unwittingly releasing the Incantation to manifest a formidable Eight Formation.
Even Je Gal I Su himself didn’t understand why.
No—his urge to test it in that instant had suddenly grown overwhelming.
He wanted to know why this man Sa U Rin earned recognition from Dang I Ryeong, from the Dang Clan itself.
‘……I shouldn’t……. I need to stop…….’
That’s what his heart said. But his hands wouldn’t move, and his mind harbored no such intention.
Even as a catastrophically fatal outcome could unfold before his eyes.
‘……He said it would be fine…….’
Perhaps it would be fine, he told himself.
‘……Why did I do that?’
Je Gal I Su couldn’t fathom where such an impulse had come from. It happened far too quickly.
Panic-stricken, Je Gal I Su’s gaze drifted toward Dang I Ryeong.
‘No……, this…….’
Wasn’t his face far too composed?
Truly, one couldn’t display such composure unless one trusted that handsome fellow implicitly.
And Dang I Ryeong surely knew.
How dangerous the Eight Formation was. How the Jegal Clan had become part of the Five Great Clans because of it.
‘Then…….’
Perhaps it wouldn’t be amiss to trust that composure and wait.
Meanwhile.
Sa U Rin was drowning not in fear of the Eight Formation, but in its mystery.
“Wow…….”
A gasp escaped him unbidden.
The moment the Eight Formation Talisman touched the ground, Sa U Rin found himself facing not the Jegal Clan Territory within the Murim Alliance, but an entirely different world.
“Three moons?”
Countless stars merely adorned three crimson moons in the sky.
It was night, draped in deep darkness.
Or rather, it seemed as though this cold, lightless world simply existed as it truly was.
Bright daylight had no place here.
A blue night, perhaps?
Or blue darkness?
Either way, the darkness felt blue. A clear, pristine black world.
The ground lay entirely beneath sand. Mountains jutted skyward so sharply they seemed to pierce it—barren, hard peaks bereft of a single blade of grass or tree.
Yet nothing felt hard. Whether this was Sa U Rin’s peculiar perception or universal, he couldn’t say.
Though he could have known. Sa U Rin sensed through the Hwon Won.
All he beheld was false—and yet it was real. The illusory world revealed through the Eight Formation was substantively existent within it.
That which appears through illusion is the actual world within the Eight Formation.
– U Rin.
“Father?”
His father Sa Cheol Gang appeared before him.
– My son.
“Mother?”
Jang Ryeo, the supreme authority of Sapa, materialized as well.
Father and mother stood side by side, regarding Sa U Rin with bright, gentle smiles.
“So this is the Eight Formation.”
It was wondrous, mysterious.
Wasn’t it just like meeting father and mother in a dream?
He had read of it in books.
How countless souls fell into the Eight Formation and spent eternity dying within its embrace. Yet Sa U Rin would suffer no such fate.
He would never truly perish trapped in this convincing falsehood, lost in a false world.
He harbored no aching longing for his father, no desperate yearning for the existence called mother.
Then it happened.
Sa Cheol Gang and Jang Ryeo, sensing little reaction from Sa U Rin, underwent a drastic transformation.
Their bodies convulsed violently, warping into grotesque monsters, swelling to twice their size.
Then they charged toward Sa U Rin.
False, yet real.
The fierce energy that bore down on him was genuine enough to slay.
Yet Sa U Rin remained unbothered. Everything was real, but equally, everything was false.
That was Sa U Rin’s nature. Which made it all the more fascinating.
Not another world beyond the world, but another world within it.
Sa U Rin perceived Hwon Won and mastered the art of Hwon Won.
In other words, he had studied the source of all things in existence, and was now cultivating the ability to wield that source freely as if it were his own.
The problem was only that his studies remained incomplete.
In any case, that was why everything Sa U Rin saw within the Illusion Formation appeared false to him.
The light pouring from the Eight Formation Talismans twisted the rays of sun and moon, trapping the eye in deception, while the space where the talismans stood created the illusion that sun and moon occupied different positions—warping reality itself.
Thus the illusion formed. In the end, it deceived mankind, deceived the sun, deceived the moon.
Sa Cheol Gang and Jang Ryeo, transformed into monsters, drew near. Fake or not, response was necessary. For everything was false yet also true.
Sa U Rin swept his hand outward, summoning Hwon Won. The Hwon Won restored the twisted time and space of deception to their proper places.
It happened in a single instant.
Everything vanished as though it had never been.
The three moons that burned red, the stars that shone brightly as friends to that crimson lunar companion, the barren mountains and deserts—all gone.
The fake that had seemed real could only disappear, for it was false after all.
And then.
* * *
Crack!
The Eight Formation Talismans lost their luminous glow, fractured, and shattered to pieces.
Witnessing this, Dang I Ryeong stared at Je Gal I Su’s face in shock.
His astonishment was so profound that Je Gal I Su’s eyes looked ready to burst from their sockets.
That wasn’t all.
His mouth gaped so wide he seemed capable of swallowing dozens of moths in one breath.
‘…What do I do…?’
This was no ordinary object.
He knew it to be an extraordinarily expensive one.
No wonder Je Gal I Su looked so shocked.
Dang I Ryeong’s head throbbed.
Now, finally, he understood why the squad leaders spoke of him as a walking disaster.
Part of him wanted to scream at this very moment that he must be mad, but then—this was Sa U Rin, wasn’t it?
Sa U Rin, the one for whom Dang I Ryeong would tear out his own heart.
Dang I Ryeong squeezed his eyes shut. Then he turned away from Je Gal I Su’s bulging gaze and faced Sa U Rin.
“Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
“That was fun.”
“…Fun?”
He could have simply enjoyed himself without needlessly destroying such a valuable Eight Formation Talisman in the process.
“Yeah. But what now? The talisman’s broken.”
“…Yeah.”
Why had this happened? Truly.
He really hated this.
The disciples of the Nine Sects and One Gang were always, without exception, compared to the direct descendants of the Five Great Clans.
Given the current situation, shouldn’t he be bowing his head to Je Gal I Su?
So yes, he really hated this. But what choice did he have?
He had to clean up Sa U Rin’s mess.
“…Uh, I Su…”
Je Gal I Su was so startled that his wits had scattered; he stood with his mouth hanging open, eyes vacant.
“…I Su?”
Only then did his senses return; his mouth closed and he managed to speak.
“Huh? Wha—why?”
“The talisman… what do we do?”
Asking him to pay for it would be awkward. Well, if he paid for it, that would settle it. But the cost…it was no trivial sum.
As far as Dang I Ryeong knew, it went for several thousand silver taels. Even as a direct descendant of the Dang Clan, such an amount would be difficult to bear.
And besides, he’d left his family—asking them for money felt wrong.
Of course, the fact that words still hadn’t come suggested that his grandfather and father understood to some degree…
Yet worry could not help but take the lead.
At last Je Gal I Su’s long-awaited words came out.
“…It’s fine.”
“It’s—it’s fine? Really?”
“…Yeah. Really, it’s fine.”
Je Gal I Su’s astonished gaze turned toward Sa U Rin.
“……What on earth happened?”
He couldn’t have been more puzzled.
More than that—Je Gal I Su had never seen anything like this before. Never even heard of it.
“Just. It just happened this way.”
Sa U Rin hadn’t imagined the Eight Formation Talisman could shatter like this either.
“……Just?”
It was absurd.
“Yeah.”
There was no way it should have happened like this…….
Dang I Ryeong had no intention of missing this moment while Je Gal I Su was still reeling from shock.
Better to leave this place before asking for the Eight Formation Talisman back.
“I Su. We’re going now.”
Overwhelmed and bewildered as he was, Je Gal I Su didn’t care about the Eight Formation Talisman.
“……W-wait? Oh, okay.”
With that, Dang I Ryeong hurriedly seized Sa U Rin’s arm and swiftly vanished from Je Gal I Su’s sight.
And Je Gal I Su was left alone.
“……How……?”
Still dazed, Je Gal I Su stood there.
“……No, this isn’t the time for that.”
Je Gal I Su hurried away as well.
But Je Gal I Su soon returned, clutching the broken Eight Formation Talisman in his hand, and left once more.
* * *
Once Dang I Ryeong entered the Dang Clan’s territory within the Murim Alliance, his shoulders finally relaxed as he exhaled deeply.
“Phew.”
Then he turned his gaze toward Sa U Rin.
“But really—how did the Eight Formation Talisman end up like that?”
“I have no idea.”
“Is that so? Well, setting that aside—why did you come looking for me?”
It had never happened before. Which is why, if he was being honest, a small spark of hope kindled within him. He wondered if perhaps Sa U Rin had sought him out because he wanted to see him.
Slim as the chance was, the world held surprises.
“I heard the Dang Clan recommended our Squad Leader for promotion to Deputy Sect Leader. Do you know anything about that?”
Just as he’d expected.
Not the kind of conversation he’d been hoping for. Still, he was grateful to see Sa U Rin’s face.
So Dang I Ryeong brushed aside his disappointment and answered with a smile.
“Not at all. That’s something my father and grandfather handle themselves—there’s no way I’d know. Why? Did the Squad Leader get promoted to Deputy Sect Leader?”
“Not yet.”
“Not yet?”
Either he’d been promoted or he hadn’t—there was no “not yet” about it. Dang I Ryeong couldn’t make sense of it.
So Sa U Rin relayed what he’d heard from the Squad Leader.
At that, Dang I Ryeong leapt so high he nearly touched the heavens.
“What?! How is there such a bastard?! That’s totally shameless. But what can we do about it? There’s nothing I can do. And the Elder here—my uncle—doesn’t seem like he can do much either?”
The other side had the backing of the Namgung Clan. Without that, the Elder might have found a way, but with the Namgung Clan involved, the Dang Clan’s hands were tied.
If the Dang Clan moved, the Namgung would move too, and everything would end up back where it started.
“I know that much already.”
“So?”
“I’m not asking you to do anything special. It’s just—what if the Elder came to the martial competition tomorrow?”
“Why would that help?”
“Someone capable of going that far wouldn’t be hard to predict. They might have already decided on a winner before the match even begins. No matter how much our side wins.”
“That’s true. All right, I’ll make sure my uncle gets to the Martial Arts Arena tomorrow. Oh, I’ll come too. Is that okay?”
“Of course.”
Now that the conversation was done, Sa U Rin would be leaving. So Dang I Ryeong spoke up.
“Want to have some tea before you go?”
“No.”
“Right, you hate tea. But you like liquor, don’t you? Should I have some prepared?”
“No, it’s fine. I need to prepare for tomorrow’s match. Just in case.”
Though he was certain—absolutely certain—he would win, he’d learned through his time in the Jianghu that you could never truly predict what might happen. It was always wise to be thoroughly prepared.
“……I see.”
“Yes.”
“Well then, you might get lost again, so let me walk you out.”
“No. I can’t have you following me around because of directions forever. I need to learn to navigate on my own.”
“……Well then. I suppose there’s nothing to be done about it.”
“Ah, right. There’s one more thing I wanted to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“I’m not a woman, and I haven’t walked in your shoes, so I don’t understand everything. But even so, what the Squad Leader said isn’t the whole answer.”
“……What do you mean by that?”
“I just hope you won’t deliberately keep your distance from me.”
Dang I Ryeong’s eyes widened. He tried to regain his composure, but his heart wouldn’t obey.
“……No, how could……, I mean, that’s not…….”
“Don’t misunderstand. Listen to me. When you’re beside me, I feel at peace and happy. So I’m asking you not to deliberately distance yourself. Do you understand?”
“……Y-yes. No, I mean, that’s not……, it’s just…….”
“Well then, I’ll be going. Count on me tomorrow.”
Sa U Rin left it at that.
“……What was that?”
What was it?
“……Did he just confess that he likes me?”
No. No, it’s not, is it?
He couldn’t make sense of any of it.
Dang I Ryeong’s mind was burning white-hot.
Because of Sa U Rin, who could surrender his very heart, his own heart felt as though it might burst.

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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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