The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 15

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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 015
I picked up the blue orb and several questions came to mind.
The initial mystery began with why Namgung Seong had come to the Martial Alliance in person.
Sanchen Gwiin was a heretic who killed Namgung Clan martial artists and fled, and he continued killing Namgung Clan warriors in Taishan, Anhui.
Since the Alliance had eliminated Sanchen Gwiin and preserved his corpse, it made sense that a blood relative of the clan appeared directly to assess the situation.
Viewed that way, there was nothing strange about it.
‘Really?’
A hollow pretext.
I concluded it was nothing more than that.
Before meeting him, I couldn’t be certain, but once I did, it became clear.
‘He’s not the type to concern himself with such things.’
You can tell from the feeling.
His eyes said it. His breathing said it.
His purpose wasn’t the dead Namgung Clan warriors or Sanchen Gwiin.
Then what was it? Why would Socheongeom go out of his way to visit the Martial Alliance?
‘Me?’
The news that the Sword Saint’s successor had appeared.
Did Socheongeom appear after hearing that news?
‘It’s possible.’
Certainly plausible. But.
‘The timing doesn’t match.’
The time for news to spread through the Alliance and reach the Namgung Clan in the southeast.
And the time to depart immediately and bring an investigation team here.
If I also consider the preparation period in the clan and planning what conversation to have, the timing didn’t align.
‘Of course, I could assume they hastily planned it in the carriage.’
But we both know this wasn’t urgent or desperate enough for that.
So only one thing remained.
‘His purpose wasn’t me from the start.’
The Sword Saint’s successor appeared in Anhui. I understand why a blood relative would show up for that reason alone.
But now I had to realize it wasn’t just for that reason.
That’s why I said he arrived faster than expected when Namgung Seong appeared.
So what was his purpose?
I stared at the orb in my hand.
“Is it this?”
An orb whose purpose I didn’t know.
The Elder said it came from Sanchen Gwiin’s possession and that the Namgung Clan considered it an important item.
I wondered what could be so significant about such a small orb.
‘There must be something to it, or Sanchen Gwiin wouldn’t have stolen it.’
This was speculation, but honestly, I was certain of it.
Sanchen Gwiin killed Namgung Clan martial artists and fled.
Thus, he issued a death warrant, and the Namgung Clan pursues him.
This too is a plausible story.
‘Would the Namgung Clan really continue like that for several months?’
He’s not even a blood relative—just a martial artist.
I don’t know much about the Namgung Clan, but are they really that sentimental?
Or perhaps they interpreted Sanchen Gwiin’s actions as an attack on their house itself.
‘No, that’s not it.’
It wouldn’t be that simple.
There had to be some other reason.
A reason why they had to capture Sanchen Gwiin by any means.
I concluded that reason was this orb.
‘The old man mentioned it from the start, after all.’
The significance of whatever the blue orb possessed.
That must be why Namgung Seong sought out this Anhui Branch.
The Alliance must have immediately informed the Namgung Clan upon capturing or discovering Sanchen Gwiin, and on the way here after hearing that, he also learned about the matter concerning the Sword Saint.
I’ve grasped things up to this point.
‘As for Cheon Euijin’s matter, who is the one moving him?’
There’s someone behind Namgung Seong.
That much was evident from the conversation.
‘I’ll think about this conversation later.’
For now, I need to handle what’s most important first.
“So, specifically, what exactly are you planning to do?”
I set Socheongeom aside.
I asked Yoo Cheon-gil the meaning of what he’d said.
[Hmm? What do you mean how? We destroy it, of course.]
“…So how exactly?”
[Is there a method to setting something aside? Ah, whether we smash it by striking or break it by cutting—is that the difference…?]
“That’s a truly brutal and crude method. Your help is really appreciated.”
I held my dizzy head and stifled a sigh.
‘So in the end, he’s planning to smash Socheongeom to pieces.’
I could vaguely guess the reason why.
But I couldn’t quite understand why it had to be done that way.
‘He’ll figure it out on his own, I suppose.’
That cunning old man must have something in mind.
Trusting in that, I sent the letter obediently.
Of course.
‘Though I didn’t write exactly as he instructed.’
What you’re looking for, I have.
So come see me again, obediently.
The old man told me to write it that way and send it.
It seemed insufficient with just that, so I added something more.
Nothing significant.
‘I simply put my abilities to use.’
I merely sent what I could ‘see’ as it was.
It should have some effect.
Quite a bit, actually.

* * *
Drip… drip…
Inside the dungeon where water droplets fell bit by bit.
Torches illuminated the surroundings.
Blood still dampened the floor, and the metallic stench of so much spilled blood hung thick in the air.
Surveying the interior, Socheongeom Namgung Seong narrowed his eyes.
“Is this all there is, you say?”
“Yes, that is correct, Young Master.”
To Namgung Seong’s words, Go Gyeong, a martial artist of the Martial Alliance and First Commander, replied.
Watching this, Namgung Seong spoke with a troubled expression.
“…So here, such brutal slaughter… our martial artists fell to death. At the hands of that heretic.”
Crunch.
His fists clenched with surging anger—anyone could see his indignation.
Namgung Seong, grieving the deaths of his clan’s martial artists.
Seeing this, Go Gyeong couldn’t help but nod in acknowledgment.
‘The future of the Namgung Clan is bright.’
A young man whose talent was already renowned.
Moreover, if he was such a benevolent person who cared so deeply for his clan’s martial artists, the Namgung Clan under Namgung Seong’s leadership as patriarch would shine even more brilliantly.
‘I must secure connections before that happens.’
Just as Go Gyeong quickly assessed the practical benefits and steadied his resolve.
“…”
Namgung Seong, surveying the surroundings, secretly furrowed his brow.
‘Vermin.’
The Namgung Clan’s martial artists who had died here in countless numbers.
Recalling them, Namgung Seong bit his lip.
‘Unable to capture a single heretic and dying instead. Can one truly be so incompetent?’
Sanchen Gwiin, who had stolen the Cheongryong Gu from the main clan and fled.
Every means to capture him was being employed.
Yet he remained frustratingly elusive.
But then.
‘So a loach had slipped in and caused this.’
One of the Cheonwol Gate’s hidden protectors harbored treacherous intentions and schemed.
Because of this, information leaked and capturing Sanchen Gwiin became difficult.
It’s all because of that.
‘Losing Sanchen Gwiin to the Martial Alliance. Failing to find Cheongryong Gu.’
Everything has fallen into disarray.
‘How troublesome.’
Soon a struggle would erupt over the position of Daeju, and if things continued like this, problems would arise.
If I failed to find Cheongryong Gu, I knew exactly how my father would regard me.
‘One misstep and I could lose my opportunity to that bastard.’
I was skilled in political maneuvering and had managed to secure my position, but it wouldn’t be surprising if I were overtaken at any moment.
There was a real possibility that the elders would turn their backs on me if they made an issue of Cheongryong Gu.
‘Disgusting old fools.’
They surely knew what hand I held.
Yet they still wavered and hesitated.
‘Regardless, I must find it.’
I needed to get to the bottom of this before any more troublesome matters arose.
‘The Anhui Branch hasn’t reported anything in particular….’
If they’d discovered something, word would have reached me immediately. They would have already sent correspondence to the clan head.
But the silence meant either they hadn’t found anything.
‘Or they’re keeping what they found secret.’
If they were indeed keeping it secret….
‘Are they trying to warn me?’
It meant they knew this would put me in a difficult position, and simultaneously that they wanted something from me.
‘Ha.’
Daring to make demands of me? Who did this fool think he was? Namgung Seong’s eyes grew cold as he considered the culprit.
There were at most three likely suspects.
The three who survived this ordeal.
Yoo Hyeong-in, the eldest son of a fallen clan. His martial prowess was said to be surprisingly first-rate.
The second was the prime suspect, Cheon Euijin.
‘Annoying bastard.’
The son of the Cheonwol Gate Master and one of the candidates for the next Cheonwol Gate Master.
Calling him a candidate was meaningless. His standing was far too low compared to the other candidates.
‘So he hid Cheongryong Gu.’
The justification was sufficient. If he had truly discovered Cheongryong Gu and hidden it, he could have used it to bring the Namgung Clan under his control.
However.
‘I’m not convinced.’
Despite the logic, Namgung Seong found it hard to believe.
Cheon Euijin was too upright.
He appeared intelligent and talented, but his overly righteous nature was his downfall.
Weak in politics and incapable of harboring cunning in human relations, his position remained shallow.
That’s probably why he ended up betrayed and nearly dead.
Could such an upright man as Cheon Euijin hide Cheongryong Gu and engage in a tug of war with me?
I didn’t believe it was Namgung Seong.
‘He’d already have his hands full digesting what he’s swallowed.’
Cheon Euijin had definitely obtained something from this place.
Traces of the Sword Saint? A secret treasure he left behind?
Whatever it was, he’d certainly acquired it.
Since it was obtained by a successor of Cheonwol Gate and no one else, the Martial Alliance wouldn’t be able to intervene heavily.
Namgung Seong was curious about how significant what he’d obtained was, but that was as far as it went.
‘No matter how great what he obtains, his vessel won’t be able to contain it.’
He cannot digest it.
That was how Namgung Seong assessed Cheon Euijin’s worth.
That’s why he remained unshaken.
Then, was there only one remaining suspect?
‘Bangseong-yeon… that was the name.’
The Yeolyeong Bang Clan.
A fallen family that was once famous. A place where a man named Bang Cheon-ho served as the family head.
‘There’s nothing particularly known about that place.’
There’s little significant information.
Since the decline, the family head has been played around by the women’s whims, the eldest son is a wastrel, and the eldest daughter left the family.
It’s a complete mess of a household.
Yet from such a family….
‘Suddenly a successor of the Sword Saint appears.’
And not the eldest son, but a bastard who stayed only in Yeolyeong and came to Anhui a year ago.
‘Is he hiding something?’
It was so strange and bizarre that it almost seemed plausible instead.
Or perhaps it wasn’t really Bangseong-yeon at all, just borrowed identity.
After all, Cheon Euijin had done exactly that.
‘Tsk.’
Information so flimsy it was practically useless.
The appearance of an unexpected figure.
This was the situation Namgung Seong hated most.
Moreover.
‘A snake-like bastard.’
Bangseong-yeon was something strange.
He was skilled with words and subtly twisted the initiative in conversation, even pulling it toward himself.
He possessed a power that could never be gained from wielding only a sword one’s entire life.
‘Such a man worked as a low-ranking member at the branch for a whole year?’
A year here, treated as a third-rate martial artist.
Could this dungeon have been the purpose the Sword Saint’s successor needed to stay for?
How did the Sword Saint, who supposedly died over a decade ago, even create a successor?
And how does Cheon Euijin prove it?
As the inconsistencies piled up, Namgung Seong’s brow furrowed deeper with each revelation.
‘Enough. What I need now isn’t his identity. It’s the Cheongryong Gu.’
I rapidly reassessed my priorities.
Bangseong-yeon, who killed Sanchen Gwiin. The probability that he possessed the Cheongryong Gu was highest.
It was possible Sanchen Gwiin had left the Cheongryong Gu behind, but I dismissed such possibilities for now.
If that were the case….
‘For now, let’s withdraw and attempt an approach.’
Just as I made this decision and was about to order the investigating martial artists to retreat.
“Young Master.”
Someone approached from behind and spoke to me.
It was a martial artist of the Namgung Clan.
“What is it?”
There were many from the Martial Alliance present.
I quickly composed my expression and asked.
The man then handed me a letter.
“It’s a letter sent from the Branch.”
“From the Branch?”
“Yes. He said you’d understand if I mentioned Bang Disciple sent it.”
“Hmm?”
Bangseong-yeon?
Namgung Seong’s brow creased at this unexpected turn.
‘Is he trying to discuss patronage again?’
If so, he would be disappointed.
It meant he was no different from the other rats who needed the Namgung Clan’s name.
Keeping my furrowed brow as it was, I unfolded the letter.
“….”
Upon reading it, I found myself frozen in place.
“…Young Master?”
Sensing something amiss, the man cautiously called out to me.
Still, I didn’t move.
“Young—”
In that instant.
“Where is he?”
I unfroze and asked.
The man flinched at my question.
My expression was strange.
I attempted to smile but couldn’t, and combined with my distorted face, it created an eerie expression.
Moreover.
“This bastard… Bang Disciple. Where is he right now?”
An inexplicable murderous intent gleamed in my eyes.

* * *
I lay back leisurely, gazing up at the ceiling in stillness.
How many lines were there? I counted every visible line and even catalogued each stain I could see.
While doing so, roughly half an hour must have passed?
Knock, knock.
I sensed someone outside. It seemed like the news I’d been waiting for.
I lifted my head slightly and spoke.
“Who is it?”
-Namgung Seong has come to visit.
Hearing the servant’s words, I scratched my cheek.
It felt strange being treated with such courtesy.
‘A servant, no less.’
My family had fallen into ruin—there were no servants to speak of, and what little remained was merely the clan’s guards.
Having someone serve me like this felt uncomfortable somehow.
‘A sensation I don’t need to grow accustomed to.’
These aren’t my clothes.
Thinking thus, I pushed myself upright.
“Yes. Please show him in.”
Creak.
The door opened almost before my words finished, and a young man bowed with a smile to the servant who’d opened it.
It was Namgung Seong.
The servant’s face flushed with embarrassment as he closed the door.
“….”
In that instant, Namgung Seong’s expression shifted dramatically.
Wow, look at that glare. Quite menacing.
I chuckled and addressed him.
“What brings you to-”
“What is this?”
He cut me off, stepping closer.
Then he tossed a letter onto the space before me.
“It’s rather inconvenient when you throw trash into someone else’s room like that.”
I picked up the letter that had fallen to the floor.
There were only a few short lines written on it.
All of them in my own handwriting.
The content read as follows:
[Fair skin. A single mole on the bridge of the nose. Hair in a short bob reaching the shoulders. Age approximately nineteen. Cause of death appears to be strangulation.]
[Slightly darker complexion with two moles beneath the eyes. Hair reaching the waist with a brownish tint to the eyes. Age around sixteen or seventeen.
Cause of death the same.]
[Moderate complexion with monolid eyes. Small burn marks visible on the neck, appearing to be just under twenty years old….]
“What is this?” he asked.
As I read the document, I hear Namgung Seong’s voice.
He’s staring at me with eyes raised in a murderous glare.
Looking at him, I let my lips curl upward.
“You’re being difficult? Then I’ll be difficult too.”
“What?”
At my casual words, Namgung Seong’s eyebrows twitch.
“Why ask what it is? You already know. That’s why you came here.”
At my words, Namgung Seong’s face contorts.
The composure he’d barely maintained crumbles away.
“These are all the women you tormented and killed. Aren’t they?”
Talented bastards always live up to their appearance.
My father was like that, for example, but this one takes it to another level.
Just how severe it is.
‘Evil spirits are clinging to him like that.’
The women—malevolent spirits glaring at Namgung Seong as if to kill him—from the moment I first saw them.
I kept my gaze fixed solely on Namgung Seong, lest I accidentally meet their eyes.
The old saying goes that when a woman harbors resentment, it becomes truly terrifying.
That saying was no lie.
“I don’t understand what you’re saying. I merely—”
“Enough.”
I cut him off as if unwilling to listen.
“If you don’t want me wasting time on this pointless act.”
From the start, I had only one objective.
“Let’s just fight. You sick bastard.”
“…What?”
I draw Socheongeom.
It was time to execute what the old man desired.

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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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