Martial God of the Sun and Moon - Chapter 68

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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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Chapter 68
What in the world is all this about?
Why is he suddenly like this?
“….”
Gulp!
Dokgo Myeong swallowed hard and carefully shook his head.
‘I think I understand why he’s doing this.’
Dokgo Myeong stared at Dokgo Cheon.
A master can discern a hundred meanings from a novice’s single gesture, but a novice cannot perceive even one of the hundred meanings hidden in a master’s gesture.
‘But I am different.’
Dokgo Myeong had already glimpsed completion once before. Though his current achievements and realm were diminished, clouding his vision, he knew the landscape visible from the mountain’s peak.
“Why do you suddenly ask such a thing?”
“Answer the question.”
“I would need to know what you’re asking to provide the answer you seek….”
“I do not seek an answer that pleases me.”
Dokgo Cheon cut off his words as sharply as a blade.
“Have you ever faced a master of the Sangcheon Realm, or have you not? Answer only that.”
Dokgo Myeong swallowed.
‘There’s no getting around this.’
Cold sweat trickled down his cheek.
Lying or deflecting would be meaningless. Dokgo Cheon was the Sword Saint and the patriarch of the greatest family under heaven—there was no deceiving his eyes.
In the end, he could only speak the truth.
The problem was….
‘I have faced a master of the Sangcheon Realm. In my previous life.’
Exactly twice, perhaps three times.
‘If I just blurt out the truth like that….’
Flash!
Sunlight glinted off the sword’s edge, blinding.
Please, put that away before we talk.
After much deliberation, Dokgo Myeong opened his mouth.
“I have never seen them.”
“….”
“I have never once laid eyes on the two supreme masters of the Sangcheon Trinity, excluding the Patriarch.”
“…Is that truly the truth?”
“Not a shred of falsehood. I have ventured into Gangho only a handful of times—how could I have possibly met them?”
“….”
It was true.
I had never seen the Sangcheon Trinity.
The Sangcheon Trinity.
“….”
Dokgo Cheon stared at Dokgo Myeong with piercing intensity.
Convinced there was no falsehood in those words, a subtle emotion flickered across his eyes.
‘Relief? Disappointment?’
Countless indescribable emotions rose and fell in succession.
At the same time, Dokgo Myeong glimpsed a thread of doubt woven through those emotions.
“Then explain yourself. How did you perceive that single sword strike?”
“I simply saw it because it was visible—what else should I answer?”
“It was not something that could be seen.”
Dokgo Cheon spoke with unwavering certainty.
At those words, Dokgo Myeong’s expression twisted momentarily.
‘Ah, this won’t do.’
I should hold back.
I should restrain myself… yet Dokgo Myeong’s mouth was already moving.
“Fine, I give up.”
“What did you say?”
Dokgo Myeong asked, crossing his arms.
“How can you be so certain about that?”
“What?”
“Well, when you think about it, isn’t it rather strange?”
Dokgo Myeong exhaled sharply through his nose.
“Not a single one of the things the Family Head has been certain about regarding me has ever proven correct.”
At those words spoken without hesitation, Dokgo Cheon’s eyes widened.
* * *
Dokgo Wi-hak was sharing tea with Geum Seok-du.
“So that is how you came to meet Myeong-i. I am truly grateful for your assistance with my lacking son in many respects.”
“Please speak freely. There is no custom in this world where one owes gratitude to a subordinate their child has gathered.”
“A subordinate, you say? Yet Myeong-i calls you a close friend.”
“That being the case… would it not be the same either way?”
“If that is truly so, may I speak more casually?”
“Of course. I prefer it that way as well.”
“Mm.”
Dokgo Wi-hak nodded.
Despite his rough appearance, Geum Seok-du spoke with courtesy and formality.
‘A fine young man indeed.’
He had been mistaken due to the shaved head and somewhat aged features, but it turned out he was only in his mid-twenties. It was truly gratifying that his son associated with someone of such refinement.
“I am truly relieved that Myeong-i walks alongside someone like you. I ask for your continued care.”
“That is what I should be saying. Ah! These tea leaves I obtained on my way here…”
“Mm?”
“Silver needle and oolong tea blended with dried flowers from the Zhejiang region, ground together. A remarkable thing with subtle sweetness, bitterness and tartness, carrying both fruity and grain-like aromas.”
“How could you offer such precious tea leaves?”
“How could I arrive empty-handed at our first meeting? Haha.”
Dokgo Wi-hak, rarely showing a faint smile, gazed at the bundle containing tea.
That was when it happened.
“Sect Leader, it’s Jang Sam.”
“Come in.”
The door opened, and Jang Sam entered.
“I couldn’t observe the details clearly, but it appears the Young Master entered the secret training hall sponsored by the Gajubu.”
“I see.”
Dokgo Wi-hak’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Jang Sam hesitated at the threshold without leaving.
Dokgo Wi-hak looked at Jang Sam.
“Is there something else you wish to say?”
“Sect Leader, it may be needless worry, but… will it be alright?”
“Again?”
“Pardon?”
“It’s nothing. What were you trying to say?”
“Well… um, the fact that Young Master Myeong went alone… it’s just that…”
“What about it?”
“No, it’s just…”
Jang Sam continued carefully.
“I worry he might make another careless mistake or cause an incident with the Gajubu… Ahem! My apologies.”
“I understand your concern, but that boy is not entirely without sense. He wouldn’t be so reckless as to speak carelessly before the Family Head…”
“…”
“…”
An awkward silence filled the chamber.
Even Dokgo Wi-hak trailed off mid-sentence.
Jang Sam’s expression seemed to ask, “Are you certain about that?” while Geum Seok-du’s face seemed to say, “He’d probably do the same even before the King…”
‘He wagered against the Family Head, challenged the Muhakbu Master to a fight, treats the Geumsan Sect Leader like a servant…’
‘He overturned a gambling den, shattered a sect’s signboard, defeated a disciple from Hwangsan, defeated an elder, and walked into a place where rocks rain down at the slightest provocation…’
In that moment, Jang Sam and Geum Seok-du’s eyes met. They both flinched, sensing an uncanny kinship.
“Ahem, my apologies. I asked an overstepping question.”
Jang Sam suddenly came to his senses and bowed apologetically.
“It’s fine. Coming from you.”
Dokgo Wi-hak picked up his teacup with his usual expressionless face.
“But Sect Leader.”
“…”
“The cup is empty.”
“…”
“…Will that be alright?”
“…”
* * *
“You’ve gained some small reputation outside, and now your arrogance pierces the heavens.”
Dokgo Cheon’s voice was cold.
Dokgo Myeong lifted his chin slightly and decided to press forward boldly.
“Sect Leader, do you remember my martial contest with Dokgo Ak?”
“…?”
“You expected my defeat, did you not? I guaranteed victory.”
That martial contest with Dokgo Ak, that reckless fool.
“And I won, just as I promised. Overwhelmingly.”
“….”
“Furthermore, you said one should not take in a dog raised by another.”
The matter of taking in Son Tae-im from the Geumsan Sect.
“Though I had my doubts, that dog—rather, that person—now leads a major transaction that commands attention throughout the upper echelons of Zhongyuan.”
“Now you dare speak to me thus….”
“What of the Jeongcheon Alliance? I secured the trading rights before all eyes and protected my share.”
“You have only just begun to take root in this soil. Do you truly believe I, your grandfather who built this entire land with my own hands, cannot measure you?”
“With respect, that is precisely the case.”
“….”
“The reason being that I was never meant to be a mere flower in the garden you cultivated, nor do I intend to become one.”
“Heh heh.”
Dokgo Cheon let out a laugh.
That thin laughter was as cold as a blade’s edge.
“You take root in my yard and act as you please? Do you think I would simply allow such a thing?”
Dokgo Myeong swallowed hard.
“But you will allow it, won’t you?”
“What did you say?”
“Isn’t that precisely the type you desired?”
One of Dokgo Cheon’s eyebrows twitched.
“Does the Sect Leader need flowers that grow as expected? No. Because in the end….”
Dokgo Myeong glanced at Dokgo Cheon’s expression before continuing.
“You know better than anyone that it would only result in a second and third sword master emerging.”
“…!”
“I do not know what secret sorrow you harbor, Sect Leader, but if sword masters alone were sufficient, you would have accomplished it yourself.”
Dokgo Cheon’s expression began to shift.
Pulling down the corners of his twitching mouth, Dokgo Cheon slowly spoke.
“If you despise being a flower, what do you wish to become?”
“Perhaps just a weed. I’m hardly suited to be a flower, am I?”
“….”
In that moment, silence descended.
In the stillness where not a single breath could be heard, the corners of Dokgo Cheon’s mouth slowly rose.
“Hahaha, hahahaha!”
Suddenly, Dokgo Cheon burst into laughter.
At the abrupt outburst, Dokgo Myeong flinched for a moment.
“Impudent brat! Speaking to your grandfather in such a manner! And weeds? You’re saying you’d cover the entire field, are you? Hehehehe!”
Well… that’s not quite what I meant.
How did it turn into that?
‘Did the weeds joke strike his fancy? What’s so funny about it?’
In truth, Dokgo Cheon had been suppressing a smile that kept trying to escape for some time now. But at the mention of weeds, the laughter finally burst forth.
“I was mistaken. Your epithet would suit you better as Tongue Blade or Tongue Fist rather than Flatland Tempest.”
“Tongue Blade? But I’m quite taciturn, you know.”
“Exactly my point.”
“Pardon?”
Dokgo Cheon exhaled a long breath.
“Regret, it seems…”
Dokgo Cheon murmured softly, then chuckled.
A glimmer of light flashed across his eyes as he gazed upward at the sky.
“Your words are correct. You’ve always been one to exceed my expectations.”
“Pardon?”
“That martial art you’ve mastered, the one that transcends the principles you learned—even I found it difficult to trace its origins. If it’s that martial art, then perhaps something different might be possible.”
Dokgo Myeong’s eyes widened suddenly.
One of the three supreme masters of the current Gangho—perhaps even throughout history—had just admitted he couldn’t comprehend Cheonoe Gyeong.
Dokgo Cheon slowly turned his body.
“Follow me.”
“…Pardon?”
Thud!
Dokgo Cheon silently pushed off the ground.
No, the moment I thought he was pushing away from the earth, he was already treading through empty air.
‘Void-treading steps. And he makes it look so natural…’
Remarkable lightness of body. Remarkable indeed, but…
‘Wait, he said follow him!’
Clicking his tongue, Dokgo Myeong forcefully kicked off the ground and scaled the wall.
“Ugh…”
Dokgo Myeong groaned as he barely managed to reach the rooftop.
Upon the roof of the Gajubu, grand as a palace.
The back of Dokgo Cheon came into view, his sword hanging at his side, his hands clasped behind him.
“Behold. This is the vista of the greatest family under heaven.”
Dokgo Cheon raised his sword and pointed ahead.
There, bathed in brilliant sunlight, the magnificent form of the Dokgo Family sprawled before us.
“What do you think?”
“Well, the scenery is quite pleasant.”
“The scenery is magnificent. Heh, that’s just like you.”
Dokgo Cheon’s eyes, which had been softly curved, suddenly sharpened.
“A noble clan that stands shoulder to shoulder with the great alliances as a single family. The name ‘First Family Under Heaven’ means nothing more than that.”
“….”
“The current age of Zhongyuan….”
Dokgo Cheon’s voice dropped considerably.
“Permits no one’s absolute dominion.”
“Pardon?”
“There is no First Power, no First Master. Countless alliances, great and small, flourish in every region, and three masters have emerged in this era who would have unified the realm in any other age.”
Dokgo Cheon’s voice deepened as if echoing from within a cavern.
Dokgo Myeong’s eyes widened.
Perhaps this moment—this was Dokgo Cheon’s true face, beneath the countless masks he had worn until now.
“Did you ask of my secret ambition?”
With those words, Dokgo Cheon returned to his usual inscrutable expression.
Behind that enigmatic smile lay words left unspoken.
First Under Heaven.
A dream that all who entered the turbulent Gangho carried quietly in their hearts.
“You still have far to go before you can speak of this old man’s ambitions. Therefore.”
Dokgo Cheon smiled.
“I shall watch to see how far you grow beyond my sight, just as you so boldly proclaimed.”
Dokgo Myeong let out a soft laugh.
“Even if you were to die and be reborn, you would never see the end of it.”
Not even the most deranged Bloodfiend nor the cleverest Martial Arts Alliance Leader could accomplish such a thing.

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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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