The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 169

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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 169
Mealtime had ended.
After a stretch of time where food barely went down my throat and I couldn’t even identify what I was eating.
I finally returned to my room, trying to soothe my bloated stomach.
‘I wonder if I’m experiencing indigestion.’
I frowned while touching my belly.
Looking at my condition, it seemed indigestion was indeed the culprit.
‘Tsk.’
Well, how could I not be indigested?
‘I’m not some zoo monkey.’
Everyone had been staring at me from all directions. Throughout the entire meal.
That was the aftermath of what Heuk Taedo had announced.
The moment they heard I was the Socheongeom, everyone couldn’t help but stare at me.
Particularly, the gazes from the Seven Pillars were rather sharp.
Among them especially.
‘Was his name Seo-pyeong?’
The Shaman’s successor candidate.
Mudang Unryong Seo-pyeong of the Seven Pillars.
That man’s eyes were quite terrifying—the way he glared at me was far from ordinary.
The wariness and hostility contained within them were deeply unsettling.
Why was he looking at me that way?
As for the other members of the Seven Pillars, well.
‘Rumors are rumors, so it’s understandable.’
A prodigy whom even the Seven Pillars looked down upon.
A figure without equal in this age.
Moreover, the fact that Dok-ryong was traveling with me had spread, making things even more chaotic.
And with Heuk Taedo’s reaction added to the mix, the rumors were becoming established fact.
If Mudang Unryong’s uncomfortable gaze stemmed from that, it wouldn’t be incomprehensible.
‘But is that truly the sole reason?’
It didn’t seem like that was the whole story.
You can tell by looking into someone’s eyes.
‘That bastard had killing intent in his gaze.’
It was definitely not merely a cautious look.
Why did he look at me with such eyes? In terms of quality, it resembled how Socheongeom Namgung Seong gazed upon me.
‘This is strange.’
Truly peculiar. What reason could there be for me to be entangled with the Shaman’s successor candidate?
‘I’ve never even met anyone from the Shaman sect before.’
The Shaman of the Gupaibang.
In terms of position within the Daoist tradition, it’s a sword sect considered nearly equivalent to the Hwasan Sect.
A renowned school characterized by swordplay that flows naturally and beautifully while remaining firm.
Why would a figure from such a place look at me with those eyes?
‘Hmm….’
The uncertainty made it all the more frustrating.
‘In any case, even if I tried to reason it out….’
Ninety out of a hundred times.
‘It must be because of that old man.’
Yoo Cheon-gil. It was obvious that this old man was the problem. Since that had been the case most of the time until now, I assumed it would be the same this time.
‘Or perhaps….’
My face twisted as I recalled that pervert.
A figure of the Peng Clan and one who was particularly irritating.
‘Peng Dojun.’
Heuk Taedo Peng Dojun.
There might be some other reason, just like that bastard.
‘What exactly has he been doing?’
How was he entangled with Muyong Youngsoon that he would say such things?
I couldn’t understand why such a man would approach me and act so familiar.
‘Could it be that Mudang Unryong is the same way?’
If he’s connected in that manner as well, it would be truly troublesome.
‘What did I do wrong?’
To be hated when I’ve done nothing—there could be no more annoying situation than this.
‘Tch.’
I ran my hand through my hair.
‘The Seven Prodigies….’
The Seven Prodigies of the Central Plains.
Seven individuals known to be the most exceptional among the younger generation.
Having faced them directly, I felt a peculiar sense of awe.
‘They’re all monsters.’
Though I defeated them, just looking at Dok-ryong revealed his strength.
They possessed power that the younger generation could never have.
Normally, even one such person would have sparked endless talk about the future of the Central Plains.
‘Yet there are seven of them.’
The world seemed to harbor some intention, producing seven individuals with such extraordinary talents.
And.
“Geombong.”
Among them, one figure stood out particularly.
Hwasan’s Plum Blossom Swordswoman.
The woman regarded as the strongest among the countless younger generation martial artists scattered throughout the Central Plains.
‘What is her intention?’
Such a woman suddenly attacked me.
If Yoo Cheon-gil hadn’t spoken, it would have been an attack that severed my hand.
‘What’s this?’
The fact that she brought Yoo Cheon-gil’s long robe suggested she intended to return it, but.
‘That doesn’t seem to be it.’
If that were her only intention, she wouldn’t have attacked.
I suspected she either wanted something from me or harbored some grievance.
‘I can’t read her expression.’
I couldn’t decipher Geombong’s expression.
What her intentions were, what emotions drove her toward me.
To grasp that, Geombong was….
‘I feel nothing at all.’
She maintained a completely blank face from start to finish.
Even when wielding her sword. That’s why I couldn’t discern what she was thinking.
‘…This is even worse than Cheonhye-in.’
With her, reading was difficult because she controlled her expressions.
‘With this one, there’s simply nothing to read.’
Geombong operated on a different level entirely.
She wasn’t making any expression at all, making it even harder.
‘…None of them are normal.’
They call them geniuses, yet not a single one of them is sane.
“Sigh.”
I exhaled deeply.
At the same time, my hand that had been moving while thinking came to a stop.
The characters being written on the letter ceased simultaneously.
I tapped the ink brush to shake off the excess.
Then.
[Boy.]
Yoo Cheon-gil spoke to me.
“Yes.”
[What did you make of them?]
“Make of what, sir?”
I spoke while examining the letter I’d written.
[Those young upstarts. Do they seem worthy of this path?]
“Ah, that.”
He seemed to be referring to the Seven Prodigies. He was asking what I thought after meeting them directly.
“Hmm.”
At those words, I picked up the letter and examined it briefly.
The Seven Prodigies.
They were certainly geniuses. Ordinarily, I would never have dared to comment on such individuals.
“Yes, well.”
But now.
“It’s not entirely impossible.”
It didn’t seem that difficult, actually.
I folded the letter inscribed with “Chil-geol Strategy Guide” as I spoke.

* * *
Dawn broke the next day.
As soon as early morning arrived, I rose and stepped outside the inn.
Despite it being barely past dawn, the people moved about busily.
Though many emerged from the inn, their expressions betrayed no fatigue despite the early hour.
Rather, what I sensed was tension.
“Ah, you’ve arrived.”
As I descended the stairs, Cheon Euijin approached as if he’d been waiting.
“Did you manage to sleep?”
“No. I was too anxious to sleep a wink.”
“Haha, quite the jester.”
“…?”
It wasn’t a joke.
I genuinely hadn’t slept at all, yet for some reason Cheon Euijin seemed to think I was joking.
“Let us depart. They are waiting.”
“Ah, yes.”
Following Cheon Euijin, I found the group already assembled.
Still a quiet bunch.
Do-hyeong spoke extremely little, and Cheonhye-in wasn’t particularly talkative either.
Dang Cheon-il had been practically observing a vow of silence since the last beating.
“…Let’s go.”
I spoke upon seeing this uncomfortable group.
They immediately joined the procession at my words.
The reason we moved without eating breakfast was simple.
‘We must head to the Martial Arts Alliance.’
Today was the day the Dragon-Phoenix Assembly would commence.
It wasn’t a martial competition, and the first day was more akin to a banquet, but we had to depart at dawn.

* * *
Fortunately, the distance wasn’t far.
Just a short walk and it was already visible in the distance.
The headquarters of the Martial Arts Alliance, known as the Main Alliance.
Towering buildings. And above them, an enormous banner fluttering in the wind.
A long procession of people moved toward that destination.
“와아아—!!”
I heard the sound. Lifting my head to look, people lined the streets watching us pass by.
“How magnificent!”
Cheers erupted. It wasn’t easy to respond to this.
How was I supposed to react to this?
I never expected such an enormous crowd would gather to witness this.
I knew the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering was a major festival, but…
‘Was it really this much?’
I never imagined they’d show this level of interest.
The overwhelming attention was suffocating me.
[Enjoy it. You’ll need to grow accustomed to this eventually.]
Yoo Cheon-gil spoke indifferently, as if he knew I was struggling.
Grow accustomed to this? I really hated it.
‘Ugh.’
Just like in my past life, I still despised receiving attention.
Especially not so blatantly like this.

* * *
—Waaah.
I entered the Main Alliance headquarters while listening to the roar of the crowd.
Though countless people were streaming in, the vast space seemed far from full.
‘So this is the Main Alliance headquarters.’
I shifted my gaze, surveying my surroundings.
It was certainly expansive.
And massive.
‘Extraordinary.’
I had felt this same sense of awe when I saw the Cheongwol Sect and the Dang Clan, but this place appeared twice as grand.
Well, it was the center of the orthodox sects, so it had to be this impressive.
And.
‘The martial artists here have formidable presence.’
The martial artists stationed throughout the space emanated intense auras.
I had heard that only the elite from the orthodox sects could come to this place. Was that why?
‘Fascinating.’
I walked forward with interest.
After walking a short distance, I arrived at the banquet hall within the Main Alliance headquarters.
“We shall now verify your credentials.”
A martial artist standing at the entrance began verifying each person’s identity one by one.
It seemed they hadn’t been particularly thorough when we entered the headquarters, but they were being meticulous here.
“Bangseong-yeon of the Cheongwol Sect. Verified.”
At his matter-of-fact words, I received my letter of recommendation back.
It was rare for someone not to be surprised upon seeing my name.
After receiving permission, I entered. The banquet hall was, naturally, enormous.
It had to be, to accommodate hundreds of people.
‘Our seats are… over there.’
The assigned seats were at the very front.
The ornate decorations made it clear these were reserved only for those who held golden letters of recommendation.
Seeing this, I scratched my cheek and took my seat.
By the time I sat down, several people were already seated.
‘…Huh?’
Something felt off.
‘This…’
The seating arrangement was strange.
I had assumed they would at least group people from the same delegation together based on their recommendations.
‘…Why are these people here?’
As soon as I sat down, the person beside me spoke.
“Oh! Socheongeom!”
A sharply handsome young nobleman.
It was Namgung Cheon, known as Naelyong.
“We didn’t properly greet each other yesterday. And now we meet like this… Isn’t this fate?”
“…Pleased… to meet you.”
“Me too! Hahahaha!!!”
His cheerfulness was almost maddening.
The moment Naelyong saw me, he grabbed my hand and began shaking it vigorously.
Someone watching clicked their tongue sharply.
“Tsk tsk. You’re always so loud no matter when I see you.”
It was Heuk Taedo. His massive frame didn’t fit the chair properly, so he sat in a somewhat uncomfortable posture while picking at his ear.
“With so many people around, why do you have to talk so much?”
“That doesn’t sound like something you should be saying, Peng…”
“What?”
“Setting aside whether I talk too much, your voice is just naturally loud, isn’t it?”
“Ha!”
Heuk Taedo let out a gasp of astonishment at my bold remark.
“What do you mean my voice is loud!”
“…My ears hurt.”
I agreed with him.
He was sitting right across from me, yet his voice was deafening.
Looking at Heuk Taedo like that, I rolled my eyes around.
I felt a gaze. Seo-pyeong was sitting next to Namgung Cheon.
That bastard had been glaring at me yesterday and today as well.
With heavy footsteps, someone else came and sat down beside him.
It was Cheonhye-in and Dok-ryong.
This… no matter how I look at it.
‘It seems like they’ve gathered all the Seven Swordmasters in one place?’
Whether they intended to assemble all the current Seven Swordmasters in one location, they were indeed gathering one by one.
And then.
Creak.
A woman sat down directly across from me.
It was the seat next to Cheonhye-in, and the figure was none other than the Plum Blossom Swordswoman.
She wore what appeared to be the same long robe as Yoo Cheon-gil and sat before me.
She didn’t look in my direction.
With slightly drowsy eyes, she simply closed them.
‘If this continues.’
Excluding Tugwolgaen from the Gaebang, all the Seven Swordmasters were now seated.
‘…Why am I?’
Why was I even included in this gathering?
While my mind spun trying to make sense of this incomprehensible situation.
“Jeongsuk-!”
At the loud voice, the murmuring atmosphere surrounding the area fell silent in an instant.
It happened before I could even comprehend the situation.
“Silence—! The Alliance Leader will now make his entrance!”
“…!”
At those words, my eyes widened.
The Alliance Leader… could it be…?
‘Shin Chang?’
The news had spread the moment the late arrivals entered the venue.
“The Alliance Leader?”
“…Shin Chang, suddenly?”
“What….”
Everyone looked taken aback.
It made sense. Normally, the Alliance Leader’s appearance came at the end of a banquet or just before the martial tournament began.
But appearing this early in the morning?
As everyone stood bewildered, unable to comprehend,
“The Alliance Leader now enters.”
With the announcement,
Thud.
Footsteps echoed. Clear and deliberate. Everyone instinctively turned to look,
and a figure was walking toward them from the source of the sound.
A man with a frame as imposing as Peng Dojun’s, dressed in martial robes and a soft blue robe that marked him as a member of the Martial Arts Alliance.
An old man wearing an eye patch over one eye, his remaining gaze sharp and menacing.
The moment I saw him, I knew.
‘It’s Shin Chang.’
He was the current Alliance Leader and one of the masters closest to the Heavenly Supreme.
‘The problem is….’
But….
‘Why does it feel like he’s looking at me?’
The old man’s gaze seemed to pierce directly through me the moment he appeared.
And it didn’t seem to be my imagination.

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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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