The Fortunate Sword God of the Zhuge Clan - Chapter 55

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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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Episode 55.
The preliminary round was held in the Training Grounds of the Wudang School.
As was customary with the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, anyone was permitted to watch, and the area around the Training Grounds was packed with an unprecedented throng of spectators.
The hawking of merchants, the predictions of enthusiasts, and the cheers of onlookers mingled together, wrapping Wudang Mountain in a festive atmosphere befitting the Orthodox Faction’s greatest celebration.
A passerby who had claimed a good spot near the Training Grounds turned to the enthusiast standing beside him with a question.
“There seem to be more participants this year than usual. Over two hundred, wouldn’t you say?”
The enthusiast shrugged as though it were obvious.
“That’s because there are more worthy competitors now.”
“What do you mean?”
“Originally, the main round had sixteen competitors total, but this time, thanks to the Nine Great Sects’ participation, they’ve expanded the main round to thirty-two.”
“Really? Is that such a significant difference?”
The enthusiast regarded the passerby with a look of pity.
“Of course it is. Excluding the young masters from the Five Great Families, only eleven could advance to the main round before. Now they’re selecting seventeen additional participants. It’s simple arithmetic.”
“I see. So that’s why they’ve all come.”
“Well, they’re probably thinking they might have a chance. Though I doubt it would mean much.”
“What do you mean it wouldn’t mean much? How is that possible?”
The enthusiast turned his gaze elsewhere, studying the Training Grounds.
“In all the years since, not a single martial artist from outside the Five Great Families has ever won the Dragon Phoenix Gathering. There’s simply a difference in caliber.”
“Is the gap between prestigious sects really that wide? Are they truly unable to even put up a proper match?”
“Good heavens. You’d be better off just watching. If these were disciples from the Five Great Families, they’d leave claw marks like a bear’s on that stone.”
Startled by such a decisive tone, the passerby also turned to gaze at the Training Grounds alongside the enthusiast.
At the end of that gaze lay a massive stone unlike anything he had ever seen before.
A clearly artificial, perfectly square block of stone.
The preliminary round of the Dragon Phoenix Gathering proceeded on a simple principle: the seventeen martial artists who left the deepest marks on this stone with their own weapons would advance to the main round.
***
“That stone is no ordinary rock, is it?” Yang Mujin asked.
Namkoong Seo Ryong nodded in response.
“It was specially crafted by the Jegal Clan. I’ve heard that martial artists below the First Class rank cannot even scratch it.”
“That explains it. No matter how hard the martial artists strike it, it resists remarkably well.”
The two men stood upon a high pavilion, looking down at the Training Grounds where the preliminary round unfolded.
For two individuals who had long since transcended the human norm, such distance posed no difficulty at all.
In fact, it was far more comfortable than being caught in the crowds below.
Yang Mujin gazed down at the massive stone, which bore only shallow scratches, and spoke softly.
“I was worried whether a single stone could accommodate the entire preliminary round, but it seems my concern was unfounded.”
There was no hint of contempt for non-prestigious martial artists in his words.
After all, even among those from famous sects, there appeared to be almost none with the skill to shatter the stone completely.
“Outside of you and Mu Heun, even the companions we’ve recruited seem to be struggling with it.”
At Yang Mujin’s words, Namkoong Seo Ryong broke into a pleased laugh.
“Ha! Coming from you, I cannot help but be gratified.”
“I’m not flattering you for the sake of friendliness. You truly are exceptional.”
Though Yang Mujin and Namkoong Seo Ryong had not known each other long, neither harbored reservations toward the other.
Both were the sort who did not stand on ceremony, and as martial artists bound by nature to pursue strength, they recognized each other’s merit.
“I still fall far short of you, sir.”
“With that level of talent, it won’t take long. I can hardly imagine what it must feel like to already have your position threatened before you’ve even formally begun.”
“Hah. I harbor no such ambitions.”
More than anything, both men trusted Mu Heun deeply, and thus held a fundamental goodwill toward anyone he trusted in turn.
“Now that I think of it, where did Mu Heun go? He was the one who suggested we come support your friend Dok Go Hyun.”
Namkoong Seo Ryong nodded in agreement with Yang Mujin’s question.
Even Yang Mujin, still an ordinary person, had no obligation to be here, and neither did Namkoong Seo Ryong.
Those who had advanced to the main round had no duty to watch the preliminaries; most young masters from prestigious sects used this day to conduct a final assessment of their strength.
Namkoong Seo Ryong had forgone such a session and come to support his friend Dok Go Hyun at Mu Heun’s suggestion.
Of course, he would have wished to support his companion regardless, but this was different when it was the one who had proposed it who failed to appear.
“You’re right. He invites us and then doesn’t show up himself. What’s the meaning of—ah.”
“What is it?”
“Speak of the devil and he shall appear.”
Following the direction of Namkoong Seo Ryong’s gaze, Yang Mujin spotted Mu Heun hurrying toward the Training Grounds with urgent steps.
“At least he seems aware of his tardiness, given how quickly he moves.”

Seo Ryong threw out a light jest, but Yang Mujin couldn’t bring himself to play along.
He was taken aback by Seo Ryong’s abilities.
‘What kind of Qi sensitivity does this fellow have….’
While sensitivity to Qi was largely an innate gift, Seo Ryong was clearly still a martial artist of a lower realm than Yang Mujin.
And yet he had sensed Mu Heun’s approach before Yang Mujin had.
Ignoring Yang Mujin’s bewilderment, Seo Ryong waved broadly toward Mu Heun.
“Oy! Mu Heun!”
At that call, Mu Heun looked up at the Pavilion where Seo Ryong and Yang Mujin stood, but—
“This way… hmm?”
Mu Heun merely flashed a smile and wedged himself into the crowd.
“What? Where’s the vice commander going?”
“I’m not entirely sure. He seems to be in a hurry, though….”
Mu Heun politely pushed through the throng, moving forward with purpose.
Yet he did not press all the way to the front; instead, he positioned himself somewhere in the middle.
Directly ahead of where Mu Heun planted himself stood Dok Go Hyun, waiting for his turn.
***
“Dok Go! Show us your true strength, won’t you!”
At Dang Cho Bin’s unabashed cheer, Dok Go Hyun flinched and gave only a small wave of his hand.
‘Troublesome….’
The moment Dok Go Hyun entered the Dang Clan, he found Dang Cho Bin’s advances burdensome—she had fallen for him at first sight.
One might ask why the courtship of a beautiful woman should prove burdensome, but hers was of an entirely different intensity.
Obsession would be the proper word.
In everyday life, she insisted on being at his side constantly; she even attempted to follow him into his sleeping quarters and bathing chambers.
Though Dok Go Hyun himself gave her no encouragement whatsoever, Dang So Muk’s glare had become so murderous that he could scarcely eat a proper meal.
‘Damn it all, I’ve neither the heart nor the time for this!’
Dok Go Hyun devoted every ounce of his focus to growing stronger for the sake of revenge, and he found the situation deeply unjust; yet none within the Dang Clan believed him when he tried to explain.
‘And I have to endure this on top of everything else….’
Unfortunately for Dok Go Hyun, Dang Cho Bin possessed considerable talent, and had been recruited into the Cheon응 Group.
Recalling the expression on her face as she accepted the offer without hesitation—simply because she could stay at his side—Dok Go Hyun exhaled a deep sigh.
‘So be it. As long as I can have my revenge, nothing else matters.’
Thus composing himself, he waited for his turn to come.
Then a familiar voice echoed into Dok Go Hyun’s mind.
-Dok Go. It is I. Do not turn around, do not so much as acknowledge this—simply listen.
Startled by Mu Heun’s sudden Telepathic Transmission, Dok Go Hyun nonetheless betrayed nothing and listened obediently.
-I believe I mentioned the possibility that the Black Guard had replaced this particular martial artist.
Dok Go Hyun remembered.
Yi Young.
At a drinking gathering with Seo Ryong, when he had first mentioned that Peak-stage martial artist’s name, Mu Heun had grown deeply alarmed and suggested the man might be an impostor.
-If my suspicion is correct, the Black Guard, believing you have discovered their existence, has infiltrated the Dragon Phoenix Gathering in another attempt to eliminate you. Moreover, the fact that I spoke of my journey with you at that tavern has likely marked me as well as a person of interest to them.
At this, Dok Go Hyun’s eyes narrowed slightly.
‘Others are being dragged into danger because of me again?’
The memory of an ordeal he had hoped never to relive surged forth, and his hands clenched.
Noticing this, Mu Heun sent his voice gently through the connection.
-This is not your fault. How could I blame the victim for the harm that befell him?
Though Mu Heun’s words offered some comfort, Dok Go Hyun’s unease remained.
He wanted to respond, but having exhausted all his Inner Power through the Break Qi Form with the Dang Clan’s aid, he could not send a Telepathic Transmission in return, and so swallowed only his frustration.
-All will be well. The Black Guard’s superiors do not yet know of this. The ones who discovered it have not yet returned to headquarters. We must prevent them from doing so.
Dok Go Hyun wholly agreed, but at the same moment, a question arose.
‘How exactly are we to prevent it?’
He trusted Mu Heun’s judgment, yet Yi Young had taken no particularly conspicuous action.
Was it not the weakness of the Orthodox Faction that they could not move without justification?
But Mu Heun did not disappoint him.
-I have a method.
Of course.
Dok Go Hyun smiled faintly and committed to memory what Mu Heun described as his method.
And after Mu Heun had finished his explanation—
‘As always, I haven’t the faintest idea what he’s planning.’
He smiled once more with quiet satisfaction, resolving simply to follow whatever instructions came his way.
After all, Mu Heun’s strategies had never once led to anything but the right outcome.
‘Still….’
There was one thing Dok Go Hyun grasped from Mu Heun’s explanation.
If you take first place in the preliminary round, those people will have an excuse to approach the Xiao Xia of Dok Go. And when they do, the Xiao Xia will….
Mu Heun had devised a strategy with the premise that Dok Go Hyun would claim first place.
He hadn’t even asked whether it was possible, whether it could be done.
Such trust made Dok Go Hyun smile.
“Next, preliminary number 124. Dok Go Hyun, martial artist of the Dok Go Nine Swords! Please step forward to the Testing Stone!”
Just then, the examiner called out Dok Go Hyun’s number.
“Kyaaah! Dok Go oppa!”
The crowd around Dang Cho Bin, who had cried out loudly, stirred a little.
“Who is this martial artist that the Dang Clan’s precious jewel is cheering for like that? She’s been doing it since earlier.”
“Dok Go Nine Swords? What kind of martial art is that?”
“You know, I feel like I’ve heard of it… what was it again? Anyway, it seems to be some ancient sword technique, but does it actually exist?”
“Hmm, is he the successor of the Mysterious School?”
“Bah, it’s just a sect that’s never made a name for itself and merely carried on, hasn’t it? Nothing worth getting excited about.”
Complex emotions—curiosity, jealousy, a trace of anticipation—pierced through Dok Go Hyun’s ears.
But it didn’t matter to him.
‘The smartest person under heaven said I’d take first place, so what’s the worry.’
Dok Go Hyun trusted Mu Heun, and he trusted his own sword that Mu Heun believed in.
Besides, the month spent training at the Dang Clan had been entirely different in quality from all his previous cultivation.
Though it wasn’t intended for Dok Go Hyun specifically, Dang So Muk, the Family Head of the Dang Clan, had personally guided his training as a result.
Your sword technique alone is truly worthy of recognition. Yes, your sword technique alone….
Setting aside for now the rest of those words—that everything else displeased him—Dok Go Hyun recalled only the beginning of the assessment, closed his eyes, and lifted his sword.
Yang Mujin, watching from the Pavilion, asked Namkoong Seo Ryong.
“How much of that stone do you think Dok Go will cleave? I understand his body and spirit have reached the Master Stage, but without internal power, it’s hard to gauge precisely.”
Namkoong Seo Ryong shrugged in response.
“I confess I don’t know the details of Dok Go Nine Swords well enough….”
Namkoong Seo Ryong recalled Dok Go Hyun from the first night at the tavern, who had cut through his released Qi in a single stroke.
He had been truly furious at that moment and released his Qi force strongly without holding back.
And yet—the subtlety with which Dok Go Hyun had severed his Qi in that one instant.
If that principle could be applied to something else….
“We might need another Testing Stone.”
The moment Namkoong Seo Ryong finished speaking, Dok Go Hyun opened his eyes.
In his gaze, the stone was no longer a simple stone, but rather appeared as a single tangled skein composed of countless currents of Qi.
The weak points in that skein came sharply into Dok Go Hyun’s view.
All things under heaven are composed of Qi.
Qi moves and transforms ceaselessly, yet the fact of its existence never changes.
To sever it is the beginning and end of the sword.
All else is merely trifling and unworthy of the Way.
The Ninth Form of Dok Go Nine Swords: Breaking Qi Form.
The Breaking Qi Form descended upon the stone.
The blade, as if indifferent to mere physical force, passed silently into the rock as easily as cutting through tofu.
Feeling the point where his sword caught, Dok Go Hyun clicked his tongue.
“Tsk… a shame.”
His blade had stopped at the two-thirds mark of the stone, unable to progress further.
‘I think I could have done more.’
Because the Breaking Qi Form was not yet perfected, he had been unable to cleave it entirely.
Dok Go Hyun swallowed his regret and turned away.
Of course, Dok Go Hyun’s own disappointment and the reaction of those who witnessed it were two different things.
Most of the martial artists, seeing this, rubbed their eyes in disbelief and found themselves speechless.
“Wow….”
“Wow! Woooow!”
“Woooooow!”
At last, realizing what had just happened, the crowd in the Training Grounds erupted in a thunderous roar.
“What, what is it?”
Dok Go Hyun was taken aback. He had never expected such an uproar.
Yet objectively, his martial display was certainly worthy of such acclaim.
Until the preliminary round ended, no one surpassed his record, nor did even a single person come close.
***
“If the Xiao Xia of Dok Go continues thus, he might very well defeat all the disciples of the great sects and become the New Dragon!”
“Indeed, Dok Go Nine Swords! A tremendous martial art has revealed itself to the Central Plains!”
“You’re already as formidable as a dragon, are you not? To cut so deeply into that solid stone! Which of the great schools could accomplish such a feat?”
Immediately after the preliminary round ended, Dok Go Hyun found himself surrounded by martial artists from minor and mid-tier schools.
“Ha… no, I’m hardly….”
“Such modesty too! Truly, the title of Chivalrous Hero suits you without a flaw!”
“Remarkable! Such talent emerging from an unknown sect…!!”
Dok Go Hyun had heard that if he claimed first place, it would give the Black Guard legitimate cause for action.
Still, he hadn’t expected the response to be quite this intense, and he found himself struggling to keep up.
Of course, Dok Go Hyun’s imagination had simply been limited—in truth, such a reaction was only natural.
Hadn’t the martial artists from other mid-tier schools also tested their blades against that stone?
So their elevated appraisal of Dok Go Hyun’s strength was perfectly understandable.
This was the moment when the Dok Go Nine Swords would once again make its name resound across the Central Plains, and when Dok Go Hyun would truly earn the title of Lesser Hero—but he had no time to dwell on such things.
That overwhelming display had drawn all attention onto him alone, eclipsing the other sixteen main-round contenders.
Cursing silently to himself, Dok Go Hyun gave half-hearted responses to the minor school martial artists’ enthusiasm.
He would have liked nothing more than to brush them all aside, but that wasn’t an option.
There was someone he was waiting for—someone crucial to the plan Mu Heun had given him.
‘Where the hell is this bastard?’
Unfortunately for Dok Go Hyun, the person he awaited was deliberately holding back, waiting for the crowd to thin out.
As a result, Dok Go Hyun had to maintain a smile that never quite reached his exhausted face for what felt like an eternity.
After an hour or so, when the crowd’s interest had finally begun to wane, the figure Dok Go Hyun had been waiting for at last appeared.
“Your performance today was most impressive. Lesser Hero Dok Go. I’m Yi Young of the Sung Gwon School—we exchanged words last night, if you recall?”
Dok Go Hyun looked at Yi Young with a drained expression.
“…You certainly have nerve.”
“Pardon? What do you—”
“Nothing. Yes, I remember you, Yi Young. What brings you here?”
At Dok Go Hyun’s question, Yi Young offered a disarming smile and stepped closer.
Save for a somewhat prominent nose—or perhaps even including it—his was the sort of unremarkable face you might pass a dozen times on the street without a second thought.
“Though I myself have advanced to the main round, I frankly lack the confidence to compete evenly with Lesser Hero Dok Go.”
Dok Go Hyun concealed his discomfort as best he could with a shrug.
“Why be so modest at your level? You don’t seem weaker than me.”
“Heh, I’m honored by your assessment, but… even at the same stage, there exist differences in martial skill, you see.”
Yi Young waved a hand dismissively, rejecting the compliment.
The large calluses on the back of his palm were striking, even as his palms faced forward.
“Precisely because I recognize such differences, I have a proposal for Lesser Hero Dok Go.”
“…A proposal?”
“Yes. Should I face you in the main round, I will immediately forfeit. That way, you can proceed to the next match without expending your strength.”
“….”
The proposal was bold enough that Dok Go Hyun raised an eyebrow.
A martial artist forfeiting a match was not something that happened lightly, regardless of skill disparity.
But what followed was even more shocking.
“Furthermore, I will hand over an elixir in my possession. It is an heirloom of the Sung Gwon School, and upon consumption, it grants temporary power that transcends one’s current stage. Should Lesser Hero Dok Go take it, you could achieve strength approaching the Ultimate Peak. With that, victory would be practically assured.”
“!!”
Temporary power exceeding one’s current stage?
That was only possible through the use of Innate True Qi.
If what he said was true, that single elixir would be worth a fortune beyond measure.
“That’s absurd.”
For this reason, Dok Go Hyun believed the words to be false.
Or rather, he wanted to believe them false.
Yi Young was with the Black Guard.
If such an elixir existed in their hands, the trials ahead would only grow more perilous.
However, Yi Young’s response contradicted Dok Go Hyun’s hopes.
“I speak no falsehood.”
“Then why hasn’t news of this elixir’s efficacy spread across the realm? Why has it never left the Sung Gwon School?”
“That is… because there is a severe drawback. But that drawback poses no threat to Lesser Hero Dok Go.”
“What drawback?”
Yi Young spoke with unwavering certainty.
“Upon use, all one’s Inner Strength is lost. But that is hardly a problem for you, is it not?”
The implication was clear: the Dok Go Nine Swords did not rely on Inner Strength.
Since the preliminary round had already exposed this truth to the world, Dok Go Hyun made no denial.
“You seem to have mastered martial arts requiring Inner Strength, yet you carry something like this. Why?”
“Heh, I confess to some ambition regarding modest fame. Win at the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, and afterward, even without taking disciples myself, many would come bearing gold to become students of our school.”
“How pedestrian.”
“Your words are just, sir.”
Yi Young did not waver at Dok Go Hyun’s cutting remark.
“And yet, having encountered someone so perfectly suited to this elixir—a Xiao Xia like yourself—my thoughts have shifted. I felt, shall we say, the hand of fate at work.”
“Fate, is it. Hmph.”
Though the words rang plausible enough, Dok Go Hyun let out a dry chuckle.
“Enough. I’m not so green as to believe there’s any free lunch in the martial world—men who do tend to end up as corpses. Tell me plainly what you want. If the terms suit me, I’ll agree to it.”
Yi Young’s eyes widened slightly at Dok Go Hyun’s response.
He had apparently assumed his intentions would go undetected.
“Indeed, your perceptiveness is remarkable, sir. Since you put it so plainly, I shall venture to make my request regardless of the discourtesy.”
Yi Young clasped his fist and bowed respectfully.
“After the first day of the main round concludes, might you spare some time to offer me instruction? I shall provide the elixir immediately thereafter.”
***
Mu Heun calmly channeled the Tianshan Yeon Technique, summoning forth his sword energy.
A pristine white sword energy, as cold and piercing as a winter gaze.
Mu Heun gazed upon this blade-force, the inheritance from his mother, for a long while before exhaling softly and offering a faint smile.
Though it was his own energy, observing it brought a peculiar tranquility to his heart.
His mind’s eye expanded as well.
‘I can face them all.’
Mu Heun nodded with quiet certainty.
‘Whatever schemes they weave, I will overcome them.’
He had considered dozens of possibilities and devised countermeasures for each.
If even these proved insufficient, then from the outset he would never have been the vessel to command the Black Guard.
Though he might struggle to the bitter end if it came to that, at least for now he could cast off his anxiety.
‘And besides, there is the prior agreement.’
He could not afford to approach the martial practice carelessly, not for this reason among others.
Mu Heun steeled his resolve once more, centering himself for the competition ahead, and circulated his energy through the Great Circulation.
***
Talk of the preliminaries and eager anticipation of tomorrow’s sparring tournament stretched on through the drinking into dawn.
Not all harbored identical thoughts, yet each bore within them some measure of excitement.
That fervor, threaded through countless hearts like a sky filled with stars, passed quickly into night.
“Now! The main round of the Dragon Phoenix Gathering! The sparring tournament begins!”
At last, the day had broken for the martial competition—the flower of the Dragon Phoenix Gathering.

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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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