Namgoong the Sword Ghost - Chapter 115

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 115. The Sword Ghost Father’s Tale
Crash!
Ho Yeon’s body recoiled, sent flying backward.
Before him stood Namgung Baek, sword held upright, regarding him with an impassive expression.
A mysterious majesty descended—the Martial Presence heavy as Mount Tai, yet sharp and refreshing as wind, both sensations washing over him at once.
‘His raw strength is absurd. Almost inhuman. Was he born with this?’
Snap!
Before the thought could finish, Ho Yeon planted his foot and moved with the swiftness of a leaf caught in a gale.
Bang-bang-bang!
His footwork shifted mid-stride from basic step to advancing step, and his knee bent like a thunderbolt as his body surged violently into Namgung Baek’s embrace.
Namgung Baek countered by planting his foot, and an Qi Aura that commanded all things under heaven and earth—expanding like the sky itself—pressed down upon Ho Yeon.
“Hup!”
“Ha!”
Ring!
Their blades clashed again, and this time Ho Yeon held his ground.
Compensating for his inferior strength with inner energy, Ho Yeon made his sword vibrate in an unconventional manner.
Whirr-whirr-whirr!
His wrist tremored dozens of times in an instant, his blade meeting Namgung Baek’s just as many times.
Reinforcing his parry rapidly, Ho Yeon delivered a strike that was less a cut than a downward smash.
Boom!
‘Ah, so the Iron Sword can be awakened this way too. I never would have thought of it.’
Namgung Baek marveled at Ho Yeon’s method.
A single technique—pushing the Iron Sword Ten Forms to their absolute limit by using the rebound force when clashing weapons with an opponent.
It was a pinnacle of skill that even a seasoned warrior who had spent decades on the battlefield wielding only the Iron Sword Ten Forms would never dare attempt.
Clash-clash-clash!
As Namgung Baek’s stance crumbled while defending against the powerful strike, Ho Yeon seized the opening and scattered his blade.
Sword shadows sprayed like foam, filling the air as they aimed at every part of Namgung Baek’s body.
‘Never letting slip an opportunity—like a wolf’s fangs.’
Whoosh!
Namgung Baek moved his sword.
And the wind moved with it.
At first glance it resembled the Heavenly Wind Sword Technique, but this was its true lineage.
‘The Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword Technique!’
Ho Yeon’s eyes lit up as Namgung Baek unveiled his secret blade art.
If the Heavenly Wind Sword Technique was both swift and a chain technique, then the Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword Technique was a paradoxical fusion—swift yet heavy at once.
Whoooosh!
But watching Namgung Baek’s sword wind shatter the sword shadows with speed and weight, Ho Yeon could only think: Quick-Heavy.
The sword wind did not rest content with shattering the shadows; following the principle of driving force, it pushed Ho Yeon’s body back.
Whoosh!
As he was driven backward, Namgung Baek’s sword fell toward him, but Ho Yeon extended his left palm and unleashed a palm strike.
Crash!
A blue Qi Aura painted the sky above the Yeon Mu Jang. Then Ho Yeon’s leg stretched out like a crane’s wing crossing the heavens, aimed at Namgung Baek’s waist.
“Hup!”
Realizing his sword could not block in time, Namgung Baek clenched his fist and deployed his fist art.
Boom-boom-boom!
The first three forms of the Nine Cleave Divine Fist: Heavenly God Cleave, Earthly God Crack, and Wind God Shatter.
Ho Yeon swiftly drew back his leg and extended his left fist to meet the attack.
Thunder God Strike, Fire God Ignite, and Water God Wave—the middle three forms of the Nine Cleave Divine Fist.
“Heh-heh!”
Recognizing the intent woven into Ho Yeon’s fists, Namgung Baek smiled and unleashed the final three forms of the Nine Cleave Divine Fist.
Mountain God Collapse scattered the explosive force of Thunder God Strike with weighty indifference.
Forest God Break severed the chain of successive strikes from Fire God Ignite across a sweeping, forest-wide range.
And finally, Void God Break’s unpredictable shifts twisted the flowing power of Water God Wave into emptiness itself.
Thud-thud-thud!
Bang-bang-bang!
In the space between heartbeats, fist exchanges flew back and forth, and in this dialogue of body meeting body, a smile blossomed at the corner of both their mouths.
Sometimes a single collision speaks more truth than ten thousand words.
“Truly remarkable. Your movements bear the mark of combat-honed efficiency refined to its pinnacle. So perfectly practical, turning extreme offense into your defense—I would not have believed it.”
Namgung Baek shook his head in wonder.
How much real combat could an eighteen-year-old boy possibly have endured?
‘Is this also an ability of Sword Heart Resonance? If he’s absorbed practical experience from countless swords, these movements make sense.’
Namgung Baek nodded at the thought of Ho Yeon’s talent.
But the truth was that the hardship of his days as a Sword Ghost had simply seeped into his blade.
“Your sword pursues the Middle Path, Father. There’s no bias toward either offense or defense—you’ve achieved perfect balance.”
Just as Namgung Baek had come to understand Ho Yeon, Ho Yeon too had grasped his father.
‘Remarkable. I never knew Father was this strong.’
Though it wasn’t a match fought with full strength, he could certainly sense that his father’s enlightenment ran deep.
In truth, this was the first time Ho Yeon had ever sparred with his father.
His father was always confined to the patriarch’s quarters, too busy with administrative duties to meet in the Yeon Mu Jang.
‘I’ve heard that Grandfather Namgung Jang Hak died young and became clan leader at an age when most men are still rising.’
Buried in work, it was only natural that he’d had little time to devote to martial training.
Beyond that, hadn’t the Namgung Clan faced some difficulties in those years? To oversee the various enterprises he attempted to revive the family’s fortune, ten bodies would hardly have sufficed.
‘Yet despite all that, to have reached such a height that people call him the Heavenly Sword Master—Father’s talent is undeniable.’
A flicker of regret crossed Ho Yeon’s face.
What if Namgung Baek had been born in better times and received sufficient training and support?
Perhaps he would have already broken through the Wall long ago, standing shoulder to shoulder with the realm’s greatest masters.
“Hahaha! If you’ve defeated the Devouring Human Demon Lord, then you’ve surely surpassed your old man. That’s my son for you! I’m proud of you.”
Yet Namgung Baek showed only pride in his son’s accomplishment—not a trace of self-pity or lingering regret.
‘…I see.’
Through his father’s reaction, Ho Yeon came to understand him a little better.
A man who, while tirelessly building the family under the weight of endless responsibility, thought nothing of his own sacrifice.
That was Father.
“What’s your assessment of my sword?”
“…The Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword Technique is a fine method that incorporates the principles of the Emperor Sword Form well.”
The Emperor Sword Form couldn’t truly be called a technique. It was merely form itself.
Therefore, the Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword Technique reproduced the effects of the Emperor Sword Form using swift and heavy sword wind, embodying the subtle principle of quick-heavy strikes.
“Because it drives the opponent into the desired position and then strikes, this technique boasts formidable control over the surrounding space.”
“Then when your brother returns, I should learn the Emperor Sword Form. Though I’m not sure I’ll have the time.”
“No, Father. You don’t need the Emperor Sword Form.”
“Hmm?”
Namgung Baek questioned Ho Yeon’s words.
The Emperor Sword Form was both the clan leader’s personal art and the very symbol of the Namgung Clan.
To say he didn’t need it?
Ho Yeon opened his mouth.
“You believe the Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword Technique is a modified, inferior art meant to make the Emperor Sword Form easier to learn, don’t you?”
“Then…are you saying otherwise?”
“Father.”
Ho Yeon, having grasped his father’s blind spot, exhaled softly.
Then he spoke with quiet gravity.
“Don’t undervalue your own life so. The Heavenly Wind Emperor Sword that you’ve desperately cultivated since your youth—there’s no way it could be inferior to the Emperor Sword Form.”
“……”
At Ho Yeon’s words, Namgung Baek’s brow trembled faintly.
Ho Yeon continued.
“An old man once told me this: desire itself has varieties—Public Desire and Private Desire.”
Ho Yeon voiced the understanding he’d gained from Mo Yong Sang Cheon on the Yangtze River.
“The universe’s motion exists not for selfish ambition, but for the endless cycle of transformation that generates and sustains all things. Therefore, only the universe possesses pure Public Desire.”
“Public Desire…”
“Private Desire, by contrast, springs from purposeful intent—the wish to become rich, to become strong, to surpass others. It’s simply the hunger for power.”
At Ho Yeon’s words, Namgung Baek fell into thought.
Ho Yeon spoke to him again.
“You are not the universe. You are not the Namgung Clan. You are ‘Namgung Baek.'”
“……”
“Don’t settle for being mere fertilizer. You yourself are the root, the stem, the flower, and the fruit.”
“……”
“I understand that you pursue the Middle Path. But perfect balance—doesn’t that mean you’ve never stepped beyond the boundary?”
As Ho Yeon spoke, Namgung Baek’s eyes sank into profound contemplation.
“Live your own life now. Surely you, too, have desires as a martial artist?”
“……”
“The clan is on course. Brother and Sister have both grown. So have I.”
Namgung Baek gazed at Ho Yeon.
The youngest, once so small, had grown tall, and now looked at life from the same vantage as his own.
“From this moment on, the Namgung Clan—myself included—will stand behind you. Father, please allow yourself some personal comforts.”
The moment Ho Yeon finished speaking, Namgung Baek, who had been gazing at him blankly, burst into laughter.
“Hehehe. Ha-haha!”
In that laughter dwelt joy, pride, relief, gratitude, and happiness all at once.
‘When did he grow so much? Children truly do grow fast.’
His father had died young, and at twenty-five, he had become the patriarch of the Namgung Clan.
While others his age, called Later Generation Disciples, roamed the Martial World, he had remained in Hefei to face the enemies that threatened the clan.
It had been truly lonely and arduous.
He had wanted to drink deeply and lose himself in intoxication, but the next day’s duties never allowed it.
Had his wife not stood beside him in support, he could never have endured that grueling existence.
‘Night after night, I gazed at my children’s faces and persevered. I wanted nothing more than for them to grow up without worry.’
Was it enough now?
Had he tried hard enough?
Had he fulfilled his duty as patriarch, as father, as husband?
Namgung Baek, reflecting on his own life, nodded slowly and spoke.
“Thank you, Ho Yeon. But there is one thing you are mistaken about.”
“Sir?”
“I have lived my life fully.”
Click.
Namgung Baek pointed to Ho Yeon with a gentle smile.
“Here—right here. This is my life.”
“……”
“You are my past, my present, and my future. That is why you are my son.”
“……”
At his father’s words, Ho Yeon fell silent.
For someone had come to mind.
Born an orphan and raised without parents, there had once been someone he thought of as a father.
‘Old Man Pyeong. Did you also think of me as your son? I never got to ask you before you died.’
“Hehe, a boy becomes a man when he learns that living well means living right, not just living.”
Even as Ho Yeon’s memory of Old Man Pyeong, whose face had grown hazy with time, surfaced—
Namgung Baek’s words continued.
“But you are right. Now that I have leisure, I should increase my training.”
Softly. Softly.
Namgung Baek stroked Ho Yeon’s head with evident pride as he spoke.
“Late though it is, congratulations on winning the Yongbong Conference. You have realized your father’s dream.”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
“Do you know how to drink?”
“Not really.”
“Hehe, then let this old man teach you. Drinking should always be learned from an adult.”
“But I’m an adult myself?”
“Ha! You fulfill so many of your father’s dreams. One of this old man’s wishes was to sit through the night drinking with his son.”
“Why didn’t you do that with your older brother?”
“Cheong Gang won’t even touch liquor.”
“Really? My brother, yet such an uninteresting man.”
“Hehe, indeed. I wonder how such a wooden fellow came from me.”
“What about me?”
“Our Ho Yeon takes after his mother—quite endearing.”
Step, step, step.
Behind the father and son leaving the Yeon Mu Jang, their shadows merged together as if embracing at the shoulder.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————