The Farmer Who Ended Up Teaching the World’s Greatest Martial Artist - Chapter 61

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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| Chapter 61

“…Very well. Let’s end the duel here.”

Finally, Seong Jung-hyeok muttered quietly as if spitting out the burning rage welling up inside him. Then he whipped his head around and shot a sharp glare at Gong Yeo-ak.

“Th-then this duel will be declared a draw.”

Receiving that glare, Gong Yeo-ak hesitated for a moment, then declared the outcome of the duel in a weakly trembling voice. From how he couldn’t quite hide his flustered expression, it was clear this was an unexpected result for him as well.

Of course, Gong Yeo-ak wasn’t the only one stunned by the unexpected outcome.

“A draw, you say?”

“No… how could this…”

Yu Yeop and Hong Ju-gwi, who had just returned following Ju Yu-ryeon, also stopped in their tracks upon hearing the word “draw.” Soon the two began looking around as if trying to understand what had happened.

Then Hong Ju-gwi, who had been looking toward where Cho Yeong was, suddenly startled and shouted.

“Wait a moment. Isn’t that woman definitely Cho Yeong, who was the deputy commander of Sohyeol Wongeomdae? So the woman wearing the veil was her?!”

Only now had Hong Ju-gwi clearly confirmed Cho Yeong’s face. At the same time, shock spread across his features. His expression was as if he couldn’t believe the scene before his eyes.

Yu Yeop also turned his head at Hong Ju-gwi’s outcry. After staring at Cho Yeong for a while with furrowed brows, he slowly nodded his head.

“It is Cho Yeong. About 10 years ago, the deputy commander of Sohyeol Wongeomdae suddenly changed and her whereabouts became mysterious, so I thought she had died caught up in internal strife…”

Yu Yeop muttered in a sunken voice with narrowed eyes. Hearing this, Yoo Eun-hyun tilted his head with a puzzled expression.

‘If she was someone who held the position of deputy commander of Sohyeol Wongeomdae, she must be quite a high-ranking person… Why did she come all the way here?’

Just as Yoo Eun-hyun was about to fall into thought, Hong Ju-gwi hurriedly walked over to him. Then he asked breathlessly.

“Don’t tell me the young hero fought against that demoness?”

Hong Ju-gwi looked over the wounds covering Yoo Eun-hyun’s entire body and spoke with a worried expression. Though his tone contained subtle suspicion, expectation was secretly showing on his face.

“Yes. Thanks to heaven’s help, I barely managed to achieve a draw.”

“Haha. A draw against that demoness. Even I couldn’t easily guarantee such a result… Truly remarkable.”

This time Yu Yeop approached Hong Ju-gwi, who couldn’t contain his admiration. Yu Yeop glanced toward where Cho Yeong was standing, then asked Yoo Eun-hyun again with a suspicious expression.

“But… Excuse me, but how was the match decided? The young hero suffered such great injuries while that demoness appears unharmed.”

Though they were at a distance and couldn’t see directly with their eyes, Yu Yeop and Hong Ju-gwi could guess from the energy alone that a great battle had taken place.

Moreover, the intensity was so fierce it was closer to a life-and-death struggle than a duel. It wasn’t unreasonable to think the match had been decided.

Yoo Eun-hyun showed an awkward smile and explained the situation.

“I was just lucky in the final clash and managed to make her drop her weapon. In truth, it’s embarrassing to even call it a draw.”

Saying this, Yoo Eun-hyun circulated what little internal energy remained. The moment the two felt the flow of natural energy, they nodded silently.

“I see… Well, I understand. As a martial artist, if one drops their weapon, acknowledging defeat wouldn’t be unreasonable.”

At Yu Yeop’s words, Hong Ju-gwi also burst into hearty laughter as if in agreement and praised Yoo Eun-hyun.

“Young hero. Truly impressive! At such a young age and seemingly unknown… This makes the name of Cheonmu-maeng’s Jiodae feel shameful.”

“You flatter me.”

“Flattery? In the end, you gave those Ma-gyo bastards a good blow. Young hero, do you have any thoughts of joining Cheonmu-maeng? Someone of your caliber would be worth recruiting even if we paid a fortune.”

Hong Ju-gwi let out a laugh that was unclear whether joking or sincere and lightly patted Yoo Eun-hyun’s shoulder.

Yoo Eun-hyun naturally showed an embarrassed smile and shook his head.

“I’m sorry. I’m just a farmer, so I have no interest in martial arts world affairs…”

Yoo Eun-hyun expressed his refusal without a moment’s hesitation. Just as Hong Ju-gwi was about to open his mouth to add something, Yu Yeop’s low voice cut off those words.

“Hong Ju-gwi, enough. We are Jeongdo-in of Cheonmu-maeng. What matters is whether one has the will to uphold justice in the martial arts world. If we evaluate people only by their strength without looking at their intentions, how would we be different from Mado-in?”

Having thrown out that remark, Yu Yeop turned his head to Yoo Eun-hyun.

“Young hero. You may disregard what was just said. It was unnecessary talk.”

Yoo Eun-hyun showed a modest smile. Just as he was about to step back, Yu Yeop suddenly pulled something from his robes without warning and quietly held it out.

“However, if you ever develop such intentions in the future, please come find us. If the young hero wishes to uphold justice in the martial arts world and pursue righteousness… Cheonmu-maeng will not refuse. The door will always be open.”

What Yu Yeop held out was none other than a round plaque made of jade. In the center of the jade was carved bamboo, and it appeared to be quite an exquisite item.

But no matter how precious it might be, Yoo Eun-hyun had no desire to accept an object of unknown identity. He waved his hands and shook his head.

“It’s fine.”

However, just as Yoo Eun-hyun shook his head and was about to voice his refusal, Yu Yeop’s eyes strangely darkened. He quietly spoke in a voice that concealed his inner thoughts.

“It doesn’t contain only my intentions.”

“Pardon?”

Yu Yeop didn’t bother to continue his words. He simply pointed with his fingertip to the characters carved on the jade bamboo plaque. As the three characters reading ‘Cheonmu-maeng’ came into view, Yoo Eun-hyun could finally understand his meaning.

“…I understand.”

Finally, Yoo Eun-hyun lightly furrowed his brows, then accepted the jade bamboo plaque without further refusal.

Seeing this, a faint smile spread across Yu Yeop’s lips. Only then did he withdraw his gaze and subtly signal to Gong Yeo-ak, who had been waiting restlessly on one side.

“I declare that the duel tournament has ended in a draw!”

“I-I declare it!”

Yu Yeop’s dignified shout, filled with internal energy, echoed through the venue. Compared to that, Gong Yeo-ak’s voice was pitifully weak, but somehow the match was thus concluded.

Soon Seong Jung-hyeok and Yoo Eun-hyun, holding the documents they had exchanged before the duel, stepped forward. The two faced each other and, as if by agreement, tore up the documents on the spot.

Since the match had resulted in a draw, the agreements each had staked also lost their validity.

“Young hero. Don’t think this will end here.”

And since the agreement had lost its validity, the promise not to interfere with this place had naturally disappeared as well. As Seong Jung-hyeok warned as if to remember this, Yu Yeop, who was beside him, intervened.

“The rightful owner of this land is Young Hero Yoo, so if you touch them, our Cheonmu-maeng won’t stand idly by.”

As if proving this was no joke, Yu Yeop’s gaze turned coldly serious. Receiving that look head-on, Seong Jung-hyeok finally couldn’t contain himself and shouted angrily.

“Damn it! What the hell is on this land that even people like you come here and act like this?”

“That’s what I want to ask. You were the ones who started trouble in the first place, weren’t you? Surely you’re not still going to spout nonsense about gold mines or whatever?”

“You don’t need to know.”

Even at Hong Ju-gwi’s sarcasm, Seong Jung-hyeok kept his mouth shut and saved his words. There was no way to deny it now.

He only slowly shook his head with a distorted expression.

“Let’s return now.”

Seong Jung-hyeok turned his head and spoke to Cho Yeong. Cho Yeong, who had been quietly standing with her eyes closed by a tree in the corner, glanced toward where Yoo Eun-hyun was and then left following Seong Jung-hyeok.

Watching their retreating figures disappearing along the winding mountain path, relief spread across the faces of Yu Yeop and Hong Ju-gwi.

“Fortunate that demoness didn’t go berserk.”

“Haha. From what I could see, that demoness had no interest in this matter from the beginning. It seems she had some other purpose…”

At Yu Yeop’s sharp remark, Yoo Eun-hyun felt a pang of guilt inside, but outwardly maintained an unperturbed expression.

“Yu Yeop. Let’s head back as well.”

“Wait a moment.”

Yu Yeop turned his head and stood before Yoo Eun-hyun.

“Young Hero Yoo. Though I spoke as I did, they will likely remain quiet for the time being. Please take good care of yourself and be careful.”

“Yes. I understand.”

At the words filled with concern, Yoo Eun-hyun agreed without complaint. After exchanging brief farewells, Yu Yeop and Hong Ju-gwi’s forms flashed and vanished in an instant.

“Ah~ that was tiring. Still, having a good fight once feels refreshing, doesn’t it?”

Confirming that everyone had left, Ju Yu-ryeon stretched and muttered. Seeing Ju Yu-ryeon moving her arms and neck as if her body was still not fully loosened, Yoo Eun-hyun also replied in a somewhat refreshed voice.

“But the way your opponent was looking at you seemed unusual. Will you be alright?”

“Hmph. Do you think there have been only one or two men who chased after me saying they liked me? That level is cute.”

“You… if you keep that up, you’ll really face divine punishment…!”

Yoo Eun-hyun was dumbfounded by Ju Yu-ryeon’s confident attitude and was about to say something. However, suddenly his head spun and his words were blocked.

“It would be best to rest for now.”

At Soo Hwa-seon’s words, Yoo Eun-hyun’s group finally turned their steps toward home.

*

After that, there were no particular incidents.

Even when the duel ended, Seong Jung-hyeok had left with threats as if he would cause some trouble immediately, but as Yu Yeop had said, perhaps it was just venting his anger at the time, as he hadn’t shown himself since then.

Thanks to this, while having a simple dinner as usual, Yoo Eun-hyun suddenly asked Soo Hwa-seon.

“How is the atmosphere in the village?”

“Overall, it’s not good. Many people borrowed money recklessly to expand their businesses, but now customers have decreased… Everyone’s in a funeral mood.”

According to Soo Hwa-seon’s report from visiting the village, Heukryeon Trading Company had withdrawn most of their operations, leaving only one small branch. With fewer workers coming and going, the surrounding commercial district naturally slumped as well.

“That’s not really a problem we can interfere with…”

Trailing off, Yoo Eun-hyun rummaged through his robes. Now that the major issue was settled, it was time to reveal what he had received from Yu Yeop. Holding the plaque in his hand and taking a brief breath, Yoo Eun-hyun quietly spoke.

“Actually, I received something like this. Do you happen to know what this is?”

When he placed it on the wooden table, a dull resonance briefly spread. Drawn by that sound, everyone’s gaze gathered on the plaque.

Soo Hwa-seon, showing a surprised expression, quietly muttered.

“…Okjukpae?”

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