Return of the Sword Emperor - Chapter 5

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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 2: Initiation Test (2)

‘He’s arrived.’

Even after the fierce bout with Nam Gung Ho, Jong Gak’s demeanor—which had shown not a flicker of disturbance as he waited—shifted slightly.

“Is that Dok Go Jin?”

Hyeok Ryeon Su, the first to sense the change in Jong Gak, wore an expression of intrigue.

“Nam Gung Ho displayed skill worthy of expectation. What will you show me?”

Jong Gak’s voice carried a note of anticipation as he spoke.
It made little sense to compare the first-ranked with the last, yet Dok Go Jin—who had noticed before arriving at Mil Geom Dan that Jong Gak’s eyes held the same peculiar light when looking at him as they did with Beon Hu—answered with a faint smile.

“You may find it worth the anticipation.”
…….

Perhaps it was an answer Jong Gak hadn’t expected; for a moment his expression went blank before he burst into laughter that seemed to shake the Training Ground itself.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha!”

All those who hadn’t heard the exchange between the two men gasped in disbelief.

“Wh-what in the world! The second-in-command?”

Gok Sa Bong’s jaw hung slack, drool beginning to escape.

“The sun is clearly setting in the west…”

Gwak Ryeong, turning his gaze to the western sky, muttered as if in a trance.
Beon Hu found himself tearing at his own hair without thought, while Yu Seol Ran suddenly brought her hand across Wi Dae Bung’s cheek.
Watching Wi Dae Bung crumple weakly to the ground, Yu Seol Ran tilted her head.

“At least it’s not a dream.”

The squad leaders’ bewilderment was entirely understandable.
No one at Mil Geom Dan had ever seen Jong Gak—the second-in-command, always composed and grave—laugh with such unbridled warmth.

“Ha-ha-ha! A most pleasing answer indeed. I trust your skill shall prove the same.”

Jong Gak, having composed himself, raised his wooden sword toward Dok Go Jin.
A chill crossed his eyes, and an aura wholly different from what he’d shown the other recruits emanated from his entire being.
For an ordinary recruit, that alone would have been crushing; but Dok Go Jin was not ordinary.
As Dok Go Jin slowly assumed his stance, his movements brimmed with ease.

“What…is that?”

Nam Gung Ho’s expression shifted to bewilderment as he observed Dok Go Jin’s martial stance.

“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”

Nam Gung Ho’s words faltered under Yu Seol Ran’s inquiry.

‘A stance I’ve never seen before. Brother, what exactly are you trying to do?’

Nam Gung Ho, who had often sparred with Dok Go Jin away from prying eyes, knew better than anyone what martial arts he employed. Yet this stance was entirely unfamiliar.

‘Could she really have hidden it from me too?’

Thinking of Dok Go Jin’s nature—he had often spoken of wanting to live quietly, unnoticed like a nail that didn’t stick out, and eventually return to his hometown—it seemed entirely plausible.
As Nam Gung Ho let out a hollow laugh, Dok Go Jin’s blade moved.
Not particularly swift, nor did it possess any dazzling shifts to bewitch the eye—just an ordinary motion.
The squad leaders who had expected something remarkable were all disappointed by the unremarkable attack, but Hyeok Ryeon Su, who had grasped the true meaning of that single blow, thrust himself up from his chair.
Jong Gak’s expression changed in an instant at Dok Go Jin’s assault, and he immediately swung his wooden sword.
Yet the wooden sword’s movement was far from ordinary.
It was no longer a simple dodge or evasion like when he sparred with the other initiates.
Whish!
The sharp and terrifying aura that Jong Gak had shown only against Nam Gung Ho naturally enveloped the surroundings, flowing with his wooden sword’s motion.
Sensing that Jong Gak was giving his all, the squad leaders predicted the test would end shortly.
But they were all mistaken.
Rather than crumble helplessly under Jong Gak’s fierce assault, Dok Go Jin instead unleashed bold and agile movements, wielding his blade with mysterious shifts and mounting a counteroffensive.
His sword moved as if slow yet fast, simple yet unfathomably varied—something none of them had ever witnessed before.
Jong Gak’s expression hardened against the unpredictable counterattacks, but the position of deputy commander of Mil Geom Dan was not obtained carelessly.
Even as Dok Go Jin’s attacks pressed in from all sides, Jong Gak calmly held his defense, found an opening, and immediately launched a riposte.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Violent collisions!
More than ten seconds of exchanges passed in an instant.

“How… how am I supposed to make sense of this?”

A gasp escaped Gok Sa Bong’s lips.
Though he had watched with eyes wide open, trying not to miss a single moment of Jong Gak and Dok Go Jin’s movements, in that fleeting instant he had lost sight of what kind of exchange the two were conducting.

“Think you could handle that one?”

Gwak Ryeong, his expression stern and arms crossed, asked Yu Seol Ran.
Yu Seol Ran, watching the two spar with extreme concentration, did not answer.

“Told you so. My instinct was spot on.”

Beon Hu, scratching at the goosebumps covering his skin, was satisfied that his eye for talent had not failed him—though he had to admit Dok Go Jin’s prowess was far beyond what he had imagined.

“Last rank.”

As Jong Gak and Dok Go Jin finished their breathless exchange and stepped apart to catch their breath, Hyeok Ryeon Su tossed the evaluation report he was holding.

“Have all the Training Institute instructors gone blind? Or…”

Hyeok Ryeon Su’s narrow gaze fixed on Dok Go Jin, who was breathing heavily.

“Did you intentionally conceal it.”

It made no difference. Outstanding members joining Mil Geom Dan was always something to welcome.

“Good. A hidden dragon has entered Mil Geom Dan.”

A satisfied smile formed at the corners of Hyeok Ryeon Su’s mouth.

‘He’s definitely formidable.’

Though he had astonished not only Jong Gak, who was sparring with him, but Hyeok Ryeon Su and every squad leader besides, Dok Go Jin’s expression was far from satisfied.
On the day Ma Do Ryeon’s shadow operatives laid waste to Mil Geom Dan, the secret transmission of the Soyeo Moon he had obtained through heaven’s providential encounter—the inner energy of Gwi Won Sin Gong—was still faint, and the sword path of So Yo Sip Pal Geom felt strange and unfamiliar in his current body. The power was incomparable.
Yet there was only one reason he could contend evenly with Jong Gak.
It was the experience and perspective of having defeated the Heavenly Demon, who stood as the unrivaled master under heaven, and the overwhelming understanding of martial technique that came from ascending to the rank of the absolute.
The two men, having steadied their breathing, drew their energy up once more.
Jong Gak, studying Dok Go Jin with a cautious gaze, moved first.
He glided his left foot forward and swung his wooden sword diagonally.
Dok Go Jin did not react immediately, but withdrew with composure.

“Haah!”

A kiai burst forth, and Jong Gak’s form, which had been moving fluidly, suddenly accelerated.
In a single stride, Jong Gak caught up to Dok Go Jin’s movements, and his wooden sword came down with vicious force.
From above to below, diagonally and then reversed again.
Against an attack faster and more dazzling than anything before, Dok Go Jin immediately launched a counteroffensive of his own.
Their offense and defense clashed in the void, releasing a cacophony of impacts that scattered in all directions.
The exchange unfolded without a shred of mercy—fierce and intense, with neither side holding clear advantage.
It was in that instant.

‘What is this—’

Sensing a subtle wrongness, Dok Go Jin immediately employed the exquisite principles of Yi Hwa Jeop Mok to deflect Jong Gak’s attack.
Using the force against him, he swiftly withdrew his body.
Swish-crack!
Jong Gak’s attack, having missed its mark, left countless scratches where Dok Go Jin’s feet had been.
Missing Dok Go Jin by the narrowest margin, Jong Gak’s lips tightened in frustration.
The stroke of pure conviction that no one had witnessed was rendered hollow and void.

‘I didn’t expect him to notice.’

Had Dok Go Jin met his attack head-on with strength against strength, the hidden variation concealed within the elaborate assault would have shone. But Dok Go Jin seemed to have anticipated such a trap—he avoided direct confrontation and instead used the opponent’s own force to slip away.
Jong Gak’s heart grew cold as he glanced at the marks left on the floor.

‘Remarkable.’

As Jong Gak genuinely admired his opponent’s judgment, Dok Go Jin regained his stance and closed the distance.
From his entire frame, sword held upright, an immense pressure radiated outward.
Jong Gak felt Dok Go Jin’s gaze upon him gleam like the eyes of a predator before its prey.
His body shrank back momentarily at that gaze, and Dok Go Jin did not miss it.
A blade shot forth like lightning, driving toward Jong Gak’s lower abdomen.
Jong Gak gasped for breath and twisted his body to the left, swatting Dok Go Jin’s sword aside.
In that instant, the sword’s trajectory shifted, and its edge swept across Jong Gak’s flank.
Jong Gak rushed to recover his wooden sword to block.
As if anticipating that response, the sword’s path changed again.
The blade undulated with liquid grace, targeting Jong Gak’s throat and chest in succession.
Jong Gak remained unrattled, moving his form according to the footwork patterns of Chil Hwan Bo to repel Dok Go Jin’s onslaught.
But the force within the sword was unmistakably different from before.

“Ughh!”

A low groan escaped past lips drained of color.
The unexpected power sent Jong Gak’s body swaying precariously.
As though determined never to relinquish this opening, Dok Go Jin’s assault grew fiercer still.
Against an attack that allowed no breath, the sword’s path became more flawless than ever before.

‘What on earth——’

Driven into a passive defense, Jong Gak felt a suffocating frustration grip him.
Though he exerted every effort to seize a chance for counterattack, his opponent remained effortlessly composed, as though reading every move—just as he himself did when facing novices.
Yet as the vice-master of Mil Geom Dan, Jong Gak could not easily concede defeat; he steadied his wavering resolve and continued to hunt for an opening to strike back.
How much time passed in this manner?
As their exchange of techniques stretched past a hundred moves, despair washed over Jong Gak’s face.
At the sight of Dok Go Jin extending his sword toward Jong Gak’s left shoulder, Jong Gak’s body trembled.
His own movements were already perfectly sealed off, and counterattack was utterly impossible.
Though there was one option.
If he deployed the later techniques of Chil Yeong Geom Beop, victory would still be within reach.
The problem was that each of those techniques demanded far more inner energy than what he was expending now. Of course, he possessed inner energy overwhelming in comparison to Dok Go Jin, so deploying them posed no difficulty in itself.

‘But…….’

Jong Gak couldn’t help but wrestle with the conflict.
This wasn’t a fight where he needed to stake his life, nor was this newcomer an enemy he had to silence at all costs.
It was equally absurd to exert himself fully against someone who had only just joined Mil Geom Dan.
Moreover, the latter half of the Chil Yeong Geom Beop contained techniques that each carried the power of a single killing blow—one misstep could bring catastrophe.

‘Fool! Are you trying to ruin Mil Geom Dan’s future?’

Jong Gak chastised himself, and the tension drained from his face.

‘That’s right. This is how it should be.’

Letting go of his competitive spirit, his mind grew lighter.
Just as Jong Gak decided that further resistance was pointless and prepared to concede defeat, something shifted.
Dok Go Jin, who had been pressing forward with such ferocity, suddenly stopped.

“What are you doing?”

Jong Gak’s brow furrowed.

“I pushed too hard in my desire to win. My inner energy is still insufficient…….”

Dok Go Jin’s expression grew sheepish as he bowed his head.
A thin streak of blood visible at his lips made it look as though he’d suffered internal injury—but Jong Gak, who had been crushed beneath suffocating attacks until the very end, did not believe it.

“You…… are trying to…….”

The moment Jong Gak began to explode, Hyeok Ryeon Su appeared and seized his arm.

“Stop it.”
“Leader!”
“He’s right. You may not have noticed, but I’ve been watching him strain himself for some time now.”

Hyeok Ryeon Su nodded toward the still-unconvinced Jong Gak, then turned his gaze to Dok Go Jin.

“That was excellent martial skill. A family art?”

Dok Go Jin, reluctant to reveal the origins of his techniques, simply nodded.

“Yes.”
“I’ve experienced countless sword arts in my time, but yours ranks among the most profound—worthy of competing for the highest place.”
“You flatter me.”

At Dok Go Jin’s modesty, Hyeok Ryeon Su shook his head firmly.

“No, I mean it. Mil Geom Dan’s vice-leader isn’t so weak that he’d struggle this much against crude techniques.”
“If we’d been using real blades, and if the vice-leader had fought at full strength, it would have ended long ago.”
“Hmph! I gave it everything I had.”

Jong Gak spoke with obvious displeasure.

“The vice-leader did not employ the latter techniques of the Chil Yeong Geom Beop, did you?”

At Dok Go Jin’s words, Jong Gak startled and demanded an answer.

“How did you…… know that?”
“The instructors at the Training Institute told me that the true power of the Chil Yeong Geom Beop lies in its latter half. They said that with proper training, one could master all under heaven.”

Dok Go Jin launched into praise with slightly exaggerated flair.
Of course, it was all a lie.
Not a single instructor at the Training Institute had explained Jong Gak’s martial arts to him. He could only speak so convincingly because he knew the Chil Yeong Geom Beop from memories of his past life.

“Whoever it was, they’re laying it on thick.”

Whether Jong Gak believed Dok Go Jin’s words or not, the hard line of his expression had softened without him quite noticing it.
Hyeok Ryeon Su, watching Jong Gak’s reaction, burst out laughing.

“You know exactly what happened. It looks like you’ve even picked up on how he held back his inner energy to match your level somewhat.”
“That’s correct.”

Dok Go Jin answered firmly.

[Still, even if the deputy master had deployed the advanced moves of the Chil Yeong Geom Beop, I doubt you’d have fallen so easily. I genuinely can’t tell who would have won.]

Hyeok Ryeon Su sent the telepathic transmission suddenly, his eyes fixed on Dok Go Jin with an inscrutable light.
Caught off guard by the unexpected transmission, Dok Go Jin quickly averted his gaze and answered with silence instead.

“Ha ha ha!”

Hyeok Ryeon Su laughed heartily as if he’d known it all along, and gave Dok Go Jin’s shoulder a vigorous pat.

“Welcome once again to the Mil Geom Dan.”

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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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