The Great Heavenly Sword Emperor - Chapter 61

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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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#061. The Gate of Dongbang (5)

The narrow passage opened suddenly, and a vast plaza spread before them.
It was so spacious that merely stepping into it brought a sense of relief.
That was the moment the two of them arrived at the plaza’s edge.
Whistle!
At the sharp sound, the presence of those pursuing from Biyeong-dae and Yuyun-dan abruptly vanished.
In their place, a considerable number of martial artists materialized in the center of the plaza.
Three distinct groups, marked by their uniforms.
Jeonggeom-wi under Dongbang Jinheok, Cheolbyeok Musadan under Dongbang Cheolyun, and Myeonggyeong-dae under Dongbang Cheongnyu.
“Hah…… hah…….”
While Cheon Mujgyeol observed them calmly, Bukgung Danya’s breathing came in sharp, labored gasps.
Having pushed forward to aid Cheon Mujgyeol without properly regaining his breath, his body had spent far more than it had to give.
“Rest for a moment.”
Cheon Mujgyeol spoke to Bukgung Danya without taking his eyes from the three units arrayed before them.
“No, I’m fine.”
His words said fine, but his face told a different story.
“Recovery won’t come easily like this. You’re in no condition to push yourself.”
Cheon Mujgyeol spoke as though he could see straight through Bukgung Danya’s state.
Bukgung Danya, his head still lowered as his breathing struggled to steady, finally forced his gaze upward.
“You’ve just broken through a wall. Your body hasn’t caught up with your spirit yet—that’s why it’s hard. Recovery will take time.”
At Cheon Mujgyeol’s words, Bukgung Danya clenched his teeth.
Breaking through was cause for joy, but he bristled at being unable to carry his weight in a moment like this.
“Instead.”
Bukgung Danya’s eyes shifted back to Cheon Mujgyeol’s back at his words.
“Watch our rear. Biyeong-dae and Yuyun-dan could appear anywhere at any time. Rest until then.”
Bukgung Danya’s pupils trembled at his words.
He had entrusted the rear without hesitation.
The weight of that trust landed heavily on Bukgung Danya.
It meant he had grown enough that Cheon Mujgyeol could place his faith in him—a realization that kindled pride, gratitude, and a surge of fierce emotion.
“Yes!”
Bukgung Danya answered with force.
Having heard his reply, Cheon Mujgyeol nodded once and stepped forward.
The Cheonsingeom still sheathed at his side, held loosely in his grip.
As he walked forward, Cheon Mujgyeol stopped at a measured distance.
Then he surveyed the formation of the three units before him.
Jeonggeom-wi stood in the vanguard.
Behind them, Cheolbyeok Musadan held position like an enormous wall guarding the Main Gate itself.
Flanking both sides, Myeonggyeong-dae stood arrayed in confrontation with Cheon Mujgyeol.
His gaze shifted from their formations to elsewhere.
Cheon Mujgyeol’s eyes rose to the Watchtower above the Main Gate of Dongbang Sega.
Seven figures stood there.
Dongbang Cheongnyu and the Five Lords’ Dharma, along with Dongbang Cheonbaek and Dongbang Yeonhwi.
Save for Dongbang Cheongnyu, every face was unfamiliar to Cheon Mujgyeol, but he had read the information Gwang-an had compiled at Bohyeon Temple beforehand, so he could roughly guess who each was.
They waited for the coming battle without much change in expression, their gazes fixed downward.
As Cheon Mujgyeol’s eyes traveled from one to the next, they landed on Dongbang Yeonhwi.
In that instant, without his own volition, his brow twitched.
‘That one…….’
The gazes of Cheon Mujgyeol and Dongbang Yeonhwi collided in midair.
There was something subtly different about this figure compared to the others—a faint sense of foreignness.
‘Cheon Mujgyeol.’
Dongbang Yeonhwi met his stare directly in return.
And in that moment, Dongbang Yeonhwi recalled the private meeting he’d had with Dongbang Cheonbaek after their council had adjourned, before Cheon Mujgyeol’s arrival at the village.

* * *

After Dongbang Cheolyun and Dongbang Mujin decided to face Cheon Mujgyeol at the Main Gate.
Dongbang Cheonbaek and Dongbang Yeonhwi, having concluded their meeting, took time aside together.
“So Cheon Mujgyeol has come all the way here.”
“Yes. But this was a thoroughly calculated matter.”
At Dongbang Yeonhwi’s words, Dongbang Cheonbaek nodded.
“It must never be proven, and it must never be known, that Cheon Mujgyeol is a descendant of the Cheongeom Daeje.”
“Of course.”
“Perhaps once the Cheongeom Daeje was the sky of Gangho, but now the sky of Gangho is Dongbang Sega. It has been so, and it must remain so.”
“All preparations are complete.”
As he spoke, Dongbang Yeonhwi bowed his head toward Dongbang Cheonbaek.
“Soon the picture that the head of the house desired will be finished.”
At Dongbang Yeonhwi’s words, Dongbang Cheonbaek nodded.

* * *

Dongbang Yeonhwi, recalling that brief conversation, continued to gaze at Cheon Mujgyeol.
‘Of course, it may turn out slightly different from the picture the head of the house imagined.’
With that thought, Dongbang Yeonhwi allowed himself the faintest of smiles.
The gazes of Dongbang Yeonhwi and Cheon Mujgyeol, tangled in midair, shifted away from each other.
Dongbang Cheonbaek’s penetrating stare had drawn Cheon Mujgyeol’s eyes toward him.
His expression was serene, yet his eyes held a sharpness none could rival.
After holding Dongbang Cheonbaek’s gaze for a long moment, Cheon Mujgyeol turned his focus straight ahead.
It was not an evasion.
Wait.
That was precisely his bearing.
With the core personnel of Dongbang Sega watching from the Watchtower above the Main Gate, Cheon Mujgyeol concentrated fully on the opponent before him.
He even abandoned all thought of Bukgung Danya left behind, channeling every ounce of his awareness solely toward the enemy he would face.
His focus sharpened, and naturally the Gi-un pouring from Cheon Mujgyeol intensified in turn.
The Gi-un emanating from Cheon Mujgyeol alone was pushing back the combined Tugi of Jeonggeom-wi, Cheolbyeok Musadan, and Myeonggyeong-dae in their entirety.
Whoosh.
As the Gi-un of both sides pressed against each other in stalemate, it was Jeonggeom-wi who moved first.
It was not a large motion, but rather like a small creature puffing itself up to survive—the Jinhyeong of Jeonggeom-wi widened.
In response to Jeonggeom-wi’s movement, Myeonggyeong-dae on both flanks shifted as well.
Their Jinhyeong transformed into one that enveloped Cheon Mujgyeol more broadly.
Though Cheon Mujgyeol stood motionless in his place, Jeonggeom-wi and Myeonggyeong-dae, with nothing more than subtle shifts, had drawn him into the depths of their formation.
The swordsmen of Jeonggeom-wi raised their blades in unison toward Cheon Mujgyeol.
Whooooom!
Following the direction of the blades extended by Jeonggeom-wi, their Gi-un converged and poured down upon Cheon Mujgyeol.
Flinch!
But it was Bukgung Danya, standing behind Cheon Mujgyeol, who flinched.
Though not directed at him, the very sensation was extraordinary.
‘So this is Dongbang Sega.’
Even in Danae Valley, it had not been like this.
It meant the level of Jeonggeom-wi was that formidable.
Cheon Mujgyeol, receiving the Gi-un of Jeonggeom-wi head-on, did not waver in the slightest.
Instead, he took several steps forward, and in doing so, the Gi-un pouring from Jeonggeom-wi was driven backward.
Drip.
Sweat rolled down the foreheads of several Jeonggeom-wi swordsmen.
The stark contrast between Cheon Mujgyeol’s ease and Jeonggeom-wi’s strain became unmistakable.
Watching this from the Watchtower, Dongbang Jinheok’s brow furrowed for a moment before smoothing again.
There was no pleasure in seeing his own direct command retreating.
Then it happened.
Whoosh-whoosh!
Myeonggyeong-dae spread wider to the left and right, positioning itself as if to embrace Cheon Mujgyeol.
Whooom!
And Myeonggyeong-dae too began to unleash Gi-un, pressing down upon Cheon Mujgyeol.
The Jeonggeom-wi from the front and Myeonggyeong-dae from both sides simultaneously pushed vast quantities of Gi-un toward Cheon Mujgyeol.
Throughout this, Cheolbyeok Musadan stood in place, observing the situation.
A demeanor that seemed to mirror the temperament of their commander, Dongbang Cheolyun.
And so the stalemate continued.
Tension hung thick in the air, and the world around them grew progressively still.
In the moment when that tension reached its apex—
Whoosh.
Bang-bang-bang!
The instant Cheon Mujgyeol shifted his feet ever so slightly to shatter the silence, the Jeonggeom-wi surged toward him in unison.
At the same moment, the Myeonggyeong-dae on both flanks moved with perfect coordination, their rhythm matching the Jeonggeom-wi’s assault.
The Myeonggyeong-dae did not attack Cheon Mujgyeol directly.
Yet with their vigorous movements, they filled every gap that opened in the Jeonggeom-wi’s formation, sealing shut any avenue for a counterattack.
Hiss-hiss-hiss-hiss-hiss!
Dozens of blades pressed down upon him.
Thrusting from the front, striking down from above, slashing from the sides—a storm of steel converging from every angle.
Though the cold gleam of metal closed in upon him, Cheon Mujgyeol did not so much as blink.
Boom-boom-boom-boom-crack!
An explosion tore through the air, unleashing a violent wind.
The Jeonggeom-wi warriors who had rushed him were hurled backward like leaves in a gale.
A pale cloud of dust rose thick into the sky.
So dense was the haze that Cheon Mujgyeol’s condition could not be discerned.
Yet no one believed he had suffered any serious wound.
Whiiiing!
As though demanding they see for themselves, the violently churned air swept the dust away on a gust of wind.
And there stood Cheon Mujgyeol, unmarred.
Not a single thread of his garments bore any mark of damage.
The Cheongang Geommak.
Centered on Cheon Mujgyeol’s form, a luminous veil of sword-shaped Gi-un shimmered softly.
Whoosh.
Cheon Mujgyeol’s gaze turned toward the watchtower.
‘Can you endure?’
His eyes posed the question with silent clarity.
Traces of blood stained the lips of some Jeonggeom-wi warriors.
Yet they did not retreat.
Instead, they reformed their Jinhyeong and began to close the distance between themselves and Cheon Mujgyeol, methodically and without haste.
Like the temperament of their commander, Dongbang Jinheok.
The Jeonggeom-wi revealed in full their orthodox, unbending nature.
Bang-bang-bang!
The Jeonggeom-wi charged at Cheon Mujgyeol once more.
More cautious than before, yet with even greater power.
Slash!
And this time, Cheon Mujgyeol moved.
Unfurling the Cheonun Muwae-bo Bobeop, he wove through the labyrinth of blades.
The Cheonsingeom began to dance.
The Chosiks of the Cheonmyeol Sibi Geom unfolded, denying the Jeonggeom-wi’s blades any opening.
The Chosik of Nakseong Bigwang burst forth as the Cheonsingeom released a blur of strikes too swift to follow.
With precision, he turned back the dozens of blades pressing against him.
Swish!
The Cheonun Muwae-bo unfurled anew, his movement shifting its rhythm.
And with it, the Chosik of Gwanghwa Soecheon drove the Jeonggeom-wi back with ruthless force.
The Jeonggeom-wi held their ground, though they struggled visibly under the weight of his relentless assault.
It was then that the Myeonggyeong-dae moved.
They bolstered the Jeonggeom-wi’s rear while probing between their lines, launching a fresh offensive toward Cheon Mujgyeol.
Strikes that came from shadow were keen and exquisite.
Each was aimed to sever the very thread of his blade’s flow.
Though the severed current rejoined and continued its course, the momentary void the Myeonggyeong-dae carved gave the Jeonggeom-wi a crucial respite.
Thud! Thud!
At last, the Cheolbyeok Musadan, who had until now watched from behind, began to move.
Bang-bang-bang!
The Jeonggeom-wi withdrew in unison, and the Myeonggyeong-dae flowed into the vacant space, barring Cheon Mujgyeol’s advance.
In the next breath, the Myeonggyeong-dae parted like waters yielding to the prow of a ship, and the Cheolbyeok Musadan surged forward to take the front line.
Crash!
The Cheolbyeok Musadan’s blades descended in a single hammer blow.
Cheon Mujgyeol, his rhythm interrupted by the Myeonggyeong-dae’s interference, fell back.
Cheon Mujgyeol watched the Cheolbyeok Musadan advance with perfect indifference.
Even as the massive formation blocked his path like an impenetrable wall, he remained utterly unmoved.
The Jeonggeom-wi fell back, regrouping and lending support to the Cheolbyeok Musadan’s assault.
The Myeonggyeong-dae continued to circle, waiting for any opening to sever his momentum.
Each unit had its own character, its own pride, yet their combined assault moved with flawless synchronization.
Shing!
Cheon Mujgyeol finally drew the Cheonsingeom.

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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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