Namgoong the Sword Ghost - Chapter 3

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

Chapter 3. The Sword Demon Emerges
Several weeks had passed.
Contrary to his concerns, Ho Yeon didn’t have to be dragged about constantly.
The reason was simple: he exhausted his Spirit Energy every single day, collapsing and waking in an endless cycle.
Thanks to this, he had the perfect excuse to lie in his bedroom under the guise of absolute rest.
Moreover, when he’d mentioned in passing that the commotion nearby gave him headaches, the area around his chambers had gone quiet as a temple.
“Hm… It’s nice not having to worry about appearances, though.”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Ho Yeon sat cross-legged on his bed, muttering to himself.
All manner of objects floated through the air beside him.
It was the result of relentless training to expand his cramped Upper Dantian.
“Growing fast, thanks to my youth.”
Ho Yeon smiled despite the sweat pouring down his face.
His heated Upper Dantian seemed to scream for him to stop.
He closed his eyes, maintaining Psychokinesis.
‘Using two Spiritual Abilities simultaneously—unprecedented.’
Psychokinesis and Sword Resonance.
Either one alone would be remarkable enough to dominate an entire generation, yet he could use both.
It must be the combined manifestation of his original body’s talent and the Sword Demon’s innate abilities.
‘Which means I must wield these two abilities with extreme caution.’
The sharp stone gets broken first.
Humans rejected those who surpassed them, and the more superior someone appeared, the more they wished to tear them down.
‘Sword Resonance might be manageable, but Psychokinesis—I must hide that completely.’
Of course, in matters of life and death, concealing one’s strength was as foolish as defeat itself.
But there was no need to expose oneself first and invite wariness.
‘Creating a situation where I’d need to use Psychokinesis would be failure itself. To avoid that…’
Ho Yeon shifted his focus to the Qi Sea Acupoint.
Commonly called the Lower Dantian, the Qi Sea Acupoint overflowed with azure energy like an ocean of Qi itself.
‘The Cangyong Dayan Divine Technique—the signature secret art of the Namgung Clan, only for direct bloodline.’
Cangyong Dayan: vast and mighty as the blue sky itself.
True to its name, the Qi Sea was entirely azure, as boundless as an open heaven.
‘I’ve taken spirit pills too. This should be worth thirty years of cultivation.’
At fifteen years old, simple calculation showed he’d amassed double his age in power.
‘It’s not perfect, but Psychic Energy Absorption can fill the gaps. The real problem is this.’
Ho Yeon frowned, staring at the cloud hovering high above his Lower Dantian.
The cloud gleamed white, but he knew that purity was deceptive.
The cloud was an Accumulated Turbulent Cloud, forged by the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Technique.
‘Heavenly Thunder Emperor True Scripture. Yin and Yang in opposition, fire becomes thunder. Qi rises through Dantian, thunder becomes lightning. Imperial might—ten thousand thunders.’
As Ho Yeon began to chant the incantation of the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Technique, the Accumulated Turbulent Cloud responded at once.
Rumble!
Within the Accumulated Turbulent Cloud, countless grains of Qi dispersed.
These Qi Spheres divided into two distinct types.
Yang Qi Sphere and Yin Qi Sphere—each harboring opposing forces fundamentally hostile to the other.
Boom, boom, boom!
Crack, crackle-crack!
The Yang Qi Spheres and Yin Qi Spheres within the Accumulated Turbulent Cloud began to collide.
The two spheres crashed and shattered against each other, friction building until it generated tremendous voltage.
Snap, crackle-crackle-snap!
‘Ugh!’
The Accumulated Turbulent Cloud darkened to a murky gray, transforming into a Thunder Cloud.
White lightning flickered within the cloud, and Ho Yeon’s vision pulsed in rhythm with it.
Crackling-snap-snap-snap!
‘Ahhh… the limit…!’
As the Accumulated Turbulent Cloud turned pitch black and the voltage spiraled beyond control, Ho Yeon cut the incantation short.
Snap-crackle-crackle-snap!
The Thunder Qi scattered rapidly from the cloud.
At the same time, blood welled up in his throat, forcing him to swallow it down.
“Ugh… damn it…”
Ho Yeon opened his eyes, his brow furrowed in frustration.
The objects that had been floating around him had all fallen to the ground by now, and the metallic taste of blood lingered on his tongue.
“Sigh… how on earth am I supposed to circulate this? This Heavenly Thunder Qi is something else.”
Heavenly Thunder Qi.
It was the energy accumulated through the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Technique — so extraordinarily potent that circulating it was fundamentally impossible.
Indeed, Ho Yeon had lost his life precisely because he couldn’t control this Heavenly Thunder Qi.
‘But now that the Heavenly Thunder Qi has already taken root in my Lower Dantian, I have no choice but to use it.’
Ho Yeon shook his head slowly.
Part of him wanted to circulate the Thousand Silk Sword Spirit Technique that he’d used during his years as the Sword Demon, but that was out of the question.
His Lower Dantian was already occupied by two supreme techniques of the Namgung Clan — the Cangyong Dayan Divine Technique and the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Technique.
‘Well, the Namgung Clan’s orthodox heart method is surely superior to the Thousand Silk Sword Spirit Technique, which is just a patchwork of various arts anyway.’
Besides, it wasn’t the Thousand Silk Sword Spirit Technique that had made the Sword Demon the terror of the entire Martial World — it was Psychokinesis.
“But what good is superiority if I can’t use it? A sword in a stone does no one any favors.”
Ho Yeon gazed once more at his crystalline Lower Dantian and the white cloud roiling within his qi field, then exhaled deeply.
This was precisely what the saying meant — a painting of a cake when you’re starving.
“……Though there might be a way.”
As Ho Yeon furrowed his brow, recalling the one method that had occurred to him.
Footstep, footstep, footstep.
Knock, knock!
Someone approached the bedroom and tapped softly at the door.
“Ho Yeon?”
“……Sister?”
The voice belonged to his sister, Namgung Sang Ah.
Looking toward the door, he could see her shadow wavering uncertainly against the paper screen.
“Are you feeling better?”
“Ah, yes…….”
“Then… would you like to go out with your sister? It’s market day today. You always loved browsing the marketplace.”
“…….”
As Ho Yeon fell silent, Namgung Sang Ah, sensing his hesitation, spoke quickly.
“You don’t like it very much… do you?”
“That is…….”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. You said you didn’t like crowds, didn’t you? I completely forgot. Hahaha…….”
The shadow of Namgung Sang Ah on the paper screen began to fade.
Seeing her withdraw like that, Ho Yeon felt a tightness in his chest.
‘Ah…… all right. I understand.’
With resigned acceptance, Ho Yeon exhaled silently and opened his mouth.
“Please wait just a moment. I’ll change clothes and be right out.”
“Really……!”
“Yes, let’s go see the marketplace. You’ll buy me something delicious, won’t you?”
“Of course! I’ll buy you anything your heart desires!”
The shadow of Namgung Sang Ah, now vivid again, showed her hands clenched tightly in fists of delight.
Seeing that, Ho Yeon couldn’t help but smile slightly to himself.
‘Well, I’ve been wanting to take stock of my surroundings anyway. I’m curious to see how much has changed in three hundred years.’
That was all there was to it.
* * *
Hefei in Anhui Province.
The Huai River flowed to the north and the Yangtze River to the south, making it a city where commerce flourished.
As the gateway to the Yangtze River region, it was a vital hub for both trade and military strategy, and many celebrated attractions had made their home there.
There was even a saying that once you’ve seen the Five Sacred Mountains, all other mountains fade from memory — and once you’ve seen Mount Huang, the Five Sacred Mountains themselves become unremarkable.
Mount Jiuhua, one of the Four Great Buddhist Mountains along with Mount Wutai, Mount Emei, and Mount Putuo, drew hundreds of thousands of pilgrims each year.
For this reason, Hefei always teemed with people.
And on market days, there was endless entertainment to be had from the exotic goods brought in from abroad.
“Ho Yeon! Look there! Isn’t it fascinating?”
“It appears to be a tea cup made of glass.”
“Look at that! What distinctive silk!”
“It’s fine silk with gold thread woven throughout.”
Ho Yeon was browsing the marketplace with his sister, Namgung Sang Ah.
Though she was the one who’d brought him here, she seemed to be enjoying it far more than he was.
‘Nothing much seems to have changed, really.’
Ho Yeon looked around, observing the people as they moved through the market.
He’d expected that three hundred years would have wrought some transformation.
But it seemed that the way people lived remained much the same.
“The Qi Ye Festival has arrived! We should go see it later, don’t you think?”
“Yes, Sister.”
Ho Yeon found himself being pulled along by Namgung Sang Ah as they wandered through the marketplace.
Her face was radiant with joy, beaming at everything around her.
“Hehe, shall I buy my dear Ho Yeon some candied fruit?”
“That’s not necessary.”
“Really? You used to love it so much back then.”
“…I would like some.”
The moment disappointment flickered across Namgung Sang Ah’s face, Ho Yeon hastily changed his answer.
She broke into a bright smile and nodded eagerly.
“Yes! That’s right!”
“…”
He’d lost count of how many times this had happened now.
Namgung Sang Ah seemed desperate to feed him something, anything.
‘Sigh. Candied fruit? The kind little children suck on eagerly?’
Ho Yeon felt a wave of self-disgust wash over him.
The legendary Sword Demon, buying candied sweets in the marketplace like some common fool.
“Look, Ho Yeon—candied tangerine, your favorite!”
“…Yes.”
Namgung Sang Ah held out the candied fruit on a skewer, and Ho Yeon accepted it with resignation, bringing it to his lips.
Crunch!
“Ah…!”
He couldn’t help but make a sound of appreciation.
The shell shattered delicately with a sweetness like honey, while the tangerine juice bursting from within was so tart it nearly numbed his tongue.
‘What is this? Did they lace it with a flavor-enhancing powder?’
He’d eaten candied fruit before, even in his Demon Title days, but it had never tasted like this.
Had confectionery techniques advanced so much over three hundred years?
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
As Ho Yeon hastily devoured the unfamiliar delicacy, Namgung Sang Ah watched with unmistakable contentment.
She reached out and gently wiped the traces from the corners of his mouth with her sleeve.
“Hehe, is it that delicious?”
“Mm, yes.”
“Would you like another?”
“…Yes.”
“Then I’ll buy you one more. But not too many, or it won’t be good for you.”
Stroke. Stroke.
She patted his hair affectionately as if he were something adorable, then returned with another candied tangerine.
‘How dare she treat me like a child. Though…I suppose I’ll tolerate it for the sake of the candied fruit.’
Crunch! Crunch!
Munching on the new treat, Ho Yeon was led by Namgung Sang Ah to a vendor’s stall displaying ornamental pins and trinkets.
“Ho Yeon, is there anything you’d like?”
“No.”
“But you used to…”
“Actually, there is something I’d like very much.”
“Hehe, I knew it. Choose whatever you wish!”
Namgung Sang Ah beamed, though Ho Yeon’s expression darkened inwardly.
‘This child treatment is maddening. What am I supposed to pick from all this?’
Sachet pouches, hanging ornaments, hairpins, jade hairpins, and jade rings.
The entire stall was overflowing with the kind of adornments young girls wore.
‘…At least that Silver Ornamental Hairpin looks reasonable.’
Since he knew only swords, his eye was drawn to the Silver Ornamental Hairpin—perhaps the only piece genuinely well-crafted among the jewelry.
“That one…there?”
As Ho Yeon pointed to the Silver Ornamental Hairpin and glanced up at Namgung Sang Ah, he noticed something.
She was staring intently at another part of the stall.
It was a golden jade ornament shaped like an intricately carved butterfly.
Namgung Sang Ah gazed at it with hesitant eyes, her fingers absently fiddling with her coin purse as she asked softly.
“Hmm…how much is that one?”
“Hehe, ten silver taels.”
“T-ten taels?”
“It’s a masterwork carved by a famous artisan from Beijing, so that’s the price.”
The merchant rubbed his hands together as he explained, but Namgung Sang Ah shook her head in polite refusal.
“It’s quite all right. Oh? Ho Yeon, have you found something?”
“…No. Nothing here appeals to me.”
“Is that so? That Silver Ornamental Hairpin looks rather nice, doesn’t it?”
“It doesn’t suit my taste.”
“Well then, shall we try another shop…?”
Just as Namgung Sang Ah took Ho Yeon’s hand and moved to leave.
A man’s sluggish voice drifted from behind them.
“Miss Sang Ah. It has been quite some time.”

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