The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 143

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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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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 143
What was the Hwasan Sect?
It was one of the Nine Pillars of the Martial Arts Alliance, known as the Nine Great Sects and One Alliance, and a prestigious faction renowned as the Sword of Shaanxi.
As sect leader, it had Shin Chang, who was also the Alliance Master, and the Plum Blossom Sword, one of the Celestial Demons, in position.
He was also once mentioned as a candidate for the Alliance Master position alongside Shin Chang.
In fact, there were more who wished for him to become the Alliance Master.
‘Did he say that Hwasan was more important, so he wouldn’t step forward?’
I didn’t know the details, but that’s what I’d heard.
So Shin Chang became the Alliance Master, or so I’d heard.
‘Even without the Plum Blossom Sword, Hwasan’s reputation is more than sufficient.’
Even without the Plum Blossom Sword, Hwasan’s renown was immense and towering. Just like the Sowoldae of the Cheongwol Sect, Hwasan possessed equally formidable collective power.
‘Because it’s the home of the famous Plum Blossom Sword Technique.’
The Sowoldae of the Cheongwol Sect. The Tai Chi Sword Technique of the Wudang Sect.
And the Plum Blossom Sword Technique of the Hwasan Sect were often compared.
This meant that the Plum Blossom Sword Technique possessed exceptional power.
The position and renown of the sect leader. And the power of the Plum Blossom Sword Technique.
Considering all else besides, Hwasan was indeed positioned among the highest ranks of the Nine Great Sects and One Alliance.
‘…Yes, I understand it’s excellent, but still.’
Everyone knew how remarkable Hwasan was, so let’s leave it at that.
“Why in the world is this here?”
I couldn’t help but furrow my brow at the robe before my eyes.
A black robe completely embedded with black fur.
At first glance, it was unmistakably an extraordinary object, radiating an air of nobility.
There was no mistaking that it was an expensive and precious item.
“…No matter how I look at it, this doesn’t seem to be what we were searching for?”
Looking at the flower-shaped embroidery large on the back and small on the front of the robe, I had to frown.
There was no way around it.
‘Because in the Central Plains, only one place uses such a plum blossom pattern.’
The plum blossom of Hwasan.
The plum blossom is Hwasan.
Such a vivid plum blossom pattern belonged only to the Hwasan Sect….
‘Why is this here?’
Why was a robe bearing the emblem of Hwasan turning up?
“It’s called the White Fang Silent Cloth.”
By any measure, it should be white.
Even searching with eyes wide open, I couldn’t find a trace of white.
When I looked at Yoo Cheon-gil, his expression was equally absurd.
[No… This… Why is this…?]
“…You don’t know either, Old Man?”
[Why is the Black Fang Silent Cloth here?]
Black Night Robe.
Even if I wasn’t searching for it, Yoo Cheon-gil seemed to know the identity of this long robe.
“Do you recognize this item?”
[…It’s the robe that Plum Blossom used to wear.]
“Plum Blossom? You mean the Plum Blossom One-Sword Master?”
[That’s right.]
“…Tch.”
Of all things, it had to be the robe worn by the Plum Blossom One-Sword Master.
My own robe that I’d been searching for was nowhere to be found, and instead this appeared out of nowhere.
What on earth was going on? Did the Plum Blossom One-Sword Master sneak into the hidden chamber and swap robes?
‘That doesn’t make any sense.’
Even I had to admit it was absurd.
This didn’t seem right either, so what could it be? I was mulling over the mystery when—
[…Ah?]
A reaction came from Yoo Cheon-gil’s direction.
“Old Man?”
[Ah! That’s it!]
“What is it?”
[I remember now.]
He clapped his hands repeatedly, clearly delighted at the recollection.
[We were drinking together and decided to try on each other’s robes, then just left with them.]
“…What?”
My face twisted immediately at his next words.
“…What… did you just say?”
[Oh dear…I died without switching them back. Hehehehe! What a mess!]
“What a mess? Are you seriously insane?”
You’re telling me you two swapped your symbolic robes while drinking and just parted ways like that?
‘And these are supposed to be the greatest master and the sect leader?’
How was I supposed to accept this? It made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
[Hehehehe. This has become quite troublesome indeed.]
“…Really… for… crying out loud….”
I barely held back a curse. By now, I’d almost given up. There was nothing left that could surprise me about what he’d done in the past.
‘I’m already overwhelmed just hearing about Shin Chang’s Fiancée and the eye incident.’
And now there’s this drunken mishap with the Plum Blossom One-Sword Master.
‘How is this possible….’
The waves of revelations just kept coming endlessly.
“…So what do we do about this?”
The White Abyss Robe is gone, and all I have is the Black Night Robe.
“I can’t exactly wear this.”
[Of course you can’t wear it, you fool. If you went around in that, the world would think you were someone else entirely.]
“At the very least, you’d look like a madman.”
Geomseong’s Predecessor wearing the symbolic garb of Hwasan Sect. It was absurd just to imagine.
‘And it’s even the Celestial Demon’s black sword.’
Hehehehe.
There’s no madder hybrid than this.
“Then what do you suggest?”
[Well… I need to get it back. And while we’re at it, return that too.]
“…You mean.”
Surely not.
“You’re not telling me to go to Shaanxi, are you?”
[Hehe, as if.]
“Hahaha. I believed that too. There has to be a limit to insanity.”
[Hahaha. Right, right.]
“Hahahaha…”
[Hehehehe.]
“…”
[…How could it not work?]
“Could it work, you old fool?”
What are you subtly asking?
‘Go to Shaanxi when I just arrived from Sichuan?’
Even nonsense has its limits.
Sichuan was a mission, but this is different.
Besides.
‘The Dragon-Phoenix Gathering is entangled in this, so I can’t even move.’
Wol Seon-geom had nailed the coffin shut, so there was nowhere I could go.
[Hmm…]
Knowing that, Yoo Cheon-gil seemed to ponder for a moment.
[Ah, then it could work.]
“What could?”
[Send a letter to Hwasan. Ask them to bring the White Fang Ink Brush.]
“…What?”
[They definitely haven’t thrown it away, and when the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering opens, those people will come too. You can exchange it then, can’t you?]
“…I see.”
Send a letter and have them bring it?
“…Me?”
[Well yes, who else is there but you?]
“That’s true. I’ve always been the one wiping your mess, haven’t I?”
[Mess? Such crude language.]
“What should I call it then?”
[A cute mistake?]
“….”
[My expression must look rather frightening.]
“My apologies. I can’t seem to control my face. Damn it.”
[…Your mouth seems equally uncontrollable….]
“As if you could do better.”
[…Hmm….]
I’d traveled all this way to receive something worthwhile, only to find nothing of value and instead become entangled with the Hwasan Sect.
How could I view this favorably?
“Sigh….”
I exhaled deeply. Should I just abandon everything? The thought suddenly crossed my mind.
‘Now it’s the Hwasan Sect?’
The Namgung clan, the Dang clan… all manner of entanglements were accumulating.
I’d never imagined being tangled up with such forces. I’d wanted to avoid them if possible.
Not that entanglement itself is bad. It’s not bad, but…
‘I just didn’t want to become entangled in such a messy way.’
I would have preferred to be involved through more legitimate channels.
[Ah, but still… there is one rather good thing.]
“There’s something good about this? What is it? Did you steal the Plum Blossom Swordmaster’s blade this time…?”
[…How did you know that?]
“You’re truly mad….”
[I attempted it but failed. And that’s not what I meant to tell you.]
“…Then what is it?”
[While demanding the exchange of the Black Night Pellet and White Night Pellet, there is one more thing to demand from Hwasan.]
“…Demand?”
I leaned in to hear what else he might say.
[The Jaseodan.]
“…!”
[The Jaseodan that was agreed upon in the letter—make sure to claim that as well.]
“The Jaseodan…?”
The Jaseodan was a pellet said to rival the Shaolin sect’s Great Returning Pellet.
But to think… we were supposed to receive the Jaseodan?
[Indeed. There were things to extract from those fools as well….]
“Elder, why are you only mentioning such an important matter now…!”
[…but… well….]
“Should I go upstairs immediately and send a letter to the Hwasan people?”
[….]
Yoo Cheon-gil’s expression grew increasingly grim as he watched my actions.
I could distinctly feel his disdain and disapproval.
[Ah, yes.]
“Yes, Elder. Just give me your orders.”
[…You really are consistent, aren’t you.]
“Thank you for the compliment. Shall I move immediately?”
“….”
Yoo Cheon-gil ultimately lost for words.
I had lost my conscience, but it felt good regardless.
‘Does conscience put food on the table?’
It could put food on the table, certainly. But Jaseodan would not.
So I simply decided to lay down a steel plate instead.
A very thick and smooth one at that.

* * *
After that, I slipped out of the secret chamber and returned to my quarters.
There was nothing more to gain by staying there, and once dawn broke, they would discover my absence, so I had to return as quickly as possible.
The difference between entering and leaving was that I had left empty-handed, but returned with something in my grasp.
In one hand, I carried the Heuk-ya Robe, the long cloak of the Plum Blossom One-Sword, and in the other, I held a jade ring emanating violet light.
I brought the cloak according to Yoo Cheon-gil’s orders and stored it haphazardly somewhere in the corner.
The jade ring I placed in a silk pouch and tucked into my bosom.
And immediately I sought sleep.
It was warm and soft bedding after so long.
Sleep would not elude me even if I tried.
I fell into slumber at once.
But then.
‘Hm?’
When I opened my eyes again, I stood in a peculiar space.
‘Ah.’
I let out a sigh as I assessed the situation.
‘Again?’
Another spirit dream?
‘Does this old man have no conscience either?’
He had just exhausted me in the secret chamber, and now he was attempting this again?
‘…There’s truly no limit to how despicable one can be.’
I ground my teeth as I spoke.
“…Stop hiding and come out.”
My voice echoed through the space.
Unlike what I always experienced, this was not a white space, but pitch-black darkness.
“You already know everything anyway, so come out quickly. What is it this time?”
What else could he possibly want from me?
“I could rest for at least a day. How can you do this the moment I return?”
I spoke in an aggrieved voice, but only my own words echoed back. No answer came in return.
‘What is this?’
Where on earth did that fellow go?
‘Where would he go? He’s obviously hiding somewhere.’
It’s clear he’s lurking in some hidden spot, observing me.
“His temperament is absolutely wretched.”
It’s not just his appearance that’s disagreeable—his nature is equally vile.
Especially his disposition seems to have hit rock bottom.
‘How does such a person earn the title of the righteous sect’s greatest hero?’
Either the world’s eyes were deceived, or the old man has been acting all along.
“Ugh….”
No matter how much I called, he never appeared, so I finally took a step forward myself.
That instant.
Splash—!
“Hm?”
I felt moisture seeping into my feet.
‘What is this?’
Looking down, water had risen up to my ankles.
It was dark and murky water.
“What in the—!”
Splash—!
“Gasp!”
The moment the words left my mouth, my body was rapidly sucked beneath the surface.
I had been standing perfectly fine just moments before, yet now my body was trapped underwater.
Glub… gasp!
No sound escaped.
I couldn’t breathe.
Oxygen fled from my mouth in bubbles.
My eyes rolled desperately in agony, yet all I could see was endless darkness.
‘Damn it…!’
I thought I’d experienced every conceivable torment, but drowning? Now?
Glub!
The pain is excruciating. The Spirit Dream, as always, inflicts suffering indistinguishable from reality.
‘…This cursed….’
Cursing thus, I clutched at my throat.
‘Ugh… wh…?’
Beyond my thrashing vision, something began to materialize in the water.
‘What is that… a person?’
It was a person.
In the distance, I could see someone’s back.
Was it Yoo Cheon-gil? No, it doesn’t seem to be him?
“Gasp….”
Even if I tried to call out, being underwater made it difficult to form words.
Just as I was gradually losing consciousness altogether.
The distant figure slowly turned around.
Both the clothes and water were dark, making the face difficult to discern.
The moment his gaze turned toward me.
“…!!!”
Suddenly, electricity coursed through my body with a crackling sensation.
The figure’s face was not visible.
Obscured by black energy, nothing could be seen.
Yet I instinctively knew he was looking at me.
What is this? What is that?
What could it possibly be?
‘Why does it terrify me so?’
It felt as though someone had seized my heart in their grip.
A sensation as if the slightest pressure would shatter it.
The water surrounding me felt like nothing but death itself.
Distant and utterly terrifying. All I could think of was escaping this place immediately.
Then.
The figure’s hand moved.
Slowly raising an index finger toward his lips.
-Shh.
Along with the low sound he exhaled.
“Gahhhhh─!!!”
My body jolted awake, and I sat up abruptly.
“Hah… hah….”
I stared down at my hands with wide eyes. They trembled uncontrollably, and my palms were drenched in sweat.
“What….”
I wiped my palms repeatedly on my clothes, thinking.
“What was that…?”
What dream had I just experienced?
Strangely, I couldn’t recall it clearly.
“…Surely… I saw something?”
It felt like a terrible nightmare.
“Sigh….”
I exhaled the accumulated breath. Having nightmares wasn’t unusual, but this one seemed to have the strongest impact in recent times.
And I couldn’t even remember it clearly.
“…Whatever it was.”
It truly felt like a bone-chilling dream.
“Sigh….”
In any case, I was awake now. Thinking thus, I tried to sit up completely.
-…That’s nothing.
-…Not at all….
“…Huh?”
I heard voices again from somewhere. The sound was coming from outside my room.
‘…What is this? Am I still half-asleep?’
Could I be hearing things because I hadn’t fully woken up yet?
There was no other explanation for it.
‘Those are women’s voices.’
How could women’s voices be coming from my quarters?
And not just one, but two of them. Thinking it might be an auditory hallucination, I turned my head and even gave my cheek a light slap, but the voices only grew clearer instead of fading away.
-It’s pointless to try──
-More than you….
The closer I approached the door, the more distinct they became.
So I grabbed the door handle to check for myself and opened it.
Creak──!!
And so the door swung open.
“…What is this?”
I couldn’t help but stand there dumbfounded at the scene unfolding before me.
“What are you two doing here?”
On the veranda outside my room sat
the sources of those voices I’d been hearing—Heavenly Supreme of the Cheongwol Sect and Muyong Youngsoon of the Muyong family.
And they were glaring at each other with unmistakable hostility.

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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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