The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 229

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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 229
I stepped out of the waiting room. There was no reason to keep sitting around, and leaving posed no significant problems.
Though there was one issue.
‘His gaze is rather intense.’
A man leaning against the wall near the martial arena—Daeju of the Martial Arts Alliance, who followed me under the guise of protection, was the problem, if one could call it that.
‘…Should I call this surveillance?’
He was staring openly, which one might describe as surveillance.
It was surveillance, certainly, but it was remarkably peculiar.
‘Doesn’t he have pressing matters?’
This should be a busy time for him.
Not merely busy, but extremely busy.
Of all things.
‘It’s a matter concerning the Demonic Cult.’
The possibility that Socheongeom Namgung-seong, a blood relative of the Namgung Clan, might be connected to the Demonic Cult.
Because of that, an investigation might be launched into the Namgung Clan itself.
‘Yet Daeju is surveilling me?’
It’s not an easy choice. Of course.
‘I’m also involved in Demonic Cult matters, so it makes sense.’
In a way, I understand why he would step forward like this.
‘Hmm….’
Still, it remained uncomfortable.
As I deliberately ignored Daeju’s gaze and kept my attention on the martial arena.
“This is troublesome.”
Someone stood beside me and spoke. Looking over, it was Heuk Taedo.
“That idiot caused a mess, and now my bet is ruined. I should have received his sword.”
“…A bet? Ah.”
I recalled what he meant. It seemed to be about the wager between Naelyong and Heuk Taedo.
This madman had actually placed a bet on my match, not even his own.
‘If I win, Naelyong gives me his treasured blade.’
Conversely, if Naelyong wins, Heuk Taedo’s treasured blade goes to Naelyong.
‘Has he truly lost his mind?’
It was absurd. Naelyong was one thing.
‘Isn’t that sword something he shouldn’t be wagering?’
The younger master of the Peng Clan. Or rather, the one destined to become the younger master.
It was a blade given only to those who would rise to become the clan lord. Yet he wagered it on my match.
No madman could be this mad.
“I should have received that sword and kept it. Tsk.”
“….”
Heuk Taedo was reacting as though he deeply regretted not obtaining Naelyong’s blade.
Though that sword shouldn’t be the issue right now.
“I could have flattened that bastard Naelyong’s nose. What a shame. Don’t you think?”
“…Yes. Well.”
He’s actually seeking my sympathy on this. As if I would.
“Ah, speaking of which. There are no issues with the match?”
“What do you mean, sir?”
“Why, you know, that meddling business from before.”
“Meddling?”
What was he talking about? As I pondered, something suddenly came to mind.
“…Are you referring to the Heavenly Supreme’s match, sir?”
“Yes, that’s it.”
The match between Cheon Euijin and Baekcheon-in. What happened at the very end of it.
When Baekcheon-in was about to send his blade straight toward Cheon Euijin’s throat, I had intervened and stopped it.
The problem that arose then was that I had involved myself in someone else’s match.
It was an incident that could have caused trouble and prevented the match from proceeding.
“It has been resolved well.”
I heard about it this morning.
Word came down from above that it would be fine to proceed.
‘Just as expected.’
I hadn’t been particularly worried about it anyway. Shin Chang had specifically summoned me for a reason.
Since the justification wasn’t particularly poor, I had anticipated that the upper echelon of the Martial Arts Alliance would let this matter pass without issue.
“Is that so? Good then. It would have been regrettable if things had gone differently.”
Heuk Taedo laughed with relief. His mouth curved upward so widely that it looked rough to see again.
“Compared to that bet with him, this matter is far more important to me.”
“….”
“Isn’t that right?”
I held back the sigh that was about to escape.
Damn Youngsoon.
‘Causing unnecessary trouble.’
Why did she have to ignite the fire in that giant’s heart? He was already hot-tempered, but now he’s practically—
‘No different from lava.’
Lava made of fighting spirit. That was precisely the feeling he gave off.
“…Yes.”
I answered vaguely and moved past it.
Just as Heuk Taedo was about to speak again—
-Waaaaaa.
Cheers erupted, so I looked toward the arena first.
People were ascending. Geombong Yoo Yeon and Baekcheon-in.
The cheers came as these two climbed up.
-Geombong! Geombong!
Most of the voices were calling for Geombong. Yoo Yeon maintained an unfazed expression even as she heard such calls.
A completely expressionless face.
I couldn’t discern what thoughts occupied his mind.
And yet.
‘He’s smiling.’
Conversely, Baekcheon-in held a smile on his lips.
That characteristic affable expression. To me, it was nothing but unsettling.
“That man…”
Heuk Taedo spoke, observing him.
“There’s something displeasing about him.”
“…!”
I widened my eyes slightly at those words.
‘Did he sense something?’
Heuk Taedo, renowned for his keen intuition, expressed displeasure upon observing Baekcheon-in. I had to feign a somewhat startled expression at his remark.
‘His instincts are truly sharp.’
What does he perceive in that man? I found myself inadvertently admiring Heuk Taedo’s intuition.
‘They say he’s remarkable. And it seems to be true.’
This man is the real deal.
As I was contemplating this.
“Who do you think will win?”
He posed the question to me.
“…I’m not sure.”
“You don’t know?”
“I haven’t really given it much thought, to be honest.”
“No, there’s no real need to imagine it.”
Heuk Taedo spoke to me with the certainty of one who knew.
“Regardless of what he is, Geombong will win.”
“….”
A remarkably lucid conviction. Where does such certainty stem from?
As I was pondering this matter.
[Chuckle.]
Yoo Cheon-gil released a laugh into the void.
Was that laughter one of agreement?
Or perhaps.
‘A laugh released in anticipation of something different?’
I could not discern that much.

* * *
Clang.
Baekcheon-in stepped onto the martial arena, placing his hand on his waist.
He grasped the hilt of his bound sword and surveyed his surroundings.
Without erasing the smile playing at his lips, he assessed each gaze directed toward him.
Amid it all, he heard the voices aimed at him.
-Can the Miracle Swordsman truly win again this time?
Doubt.
-Perhaps. Who knows if miracles will continue to unfold?
Anticipation.
-No, that’s not it. If miracles keep happening, it’s simply skill. Who knows if the Miracle Swordsman is hiding his true power?
Doubt once more.
Amid the endless torrent of words, Baekcheon-in composed his expression.
‘Keep smiling.’
I mustn’t let the smile fade.
My expression threatens to crumble beneath the mounting irritation.
I endured it and continued smiling.
‘Just a little longer.’
If I can hold on just a bit more, I’ll be able to eliminate all those repugnant fools.
However.
‘How much longer?’
I was frustrated not knowing how much of that “little while” remained.
‘Where exactly is the key?’
Both what I wish to accomplish and what I seek to find.
Neither moves as easily as I desire.
The Shadow Spirit had said it could be sensed in Hanan.
‘But where exactly?’
I still haven’t even discovered it.
At this rate, I’ll have to complete my task without finding the key.
‘The Patcheon Gung faction will begin moving soon.’
Since I’ve sent word through Sangyon, it won’t be long before it starts.
The reformation, that is.
But I must find the key before then.
‘Tsk.’
To think I still haven’t discovered it. Could the Shadow Spirit’s power be insufficient?
‘That’s impossible.’
Even the Celestial Demon, who was both the god and patriarch of the Demonic Sect, could not easily command such a being.
Its words cannot be wrong.
Then it must simply be that I have failed to find it.
‘I need to focus more on the task at hand.’
As meaningless tasks repeated endlessly, my focus on what truly mattered began to wane.
I knew what was important, and now was the time to make certain of it.
‘The fire has been lit.’
Using the Namgung Clan’s pawns, I had kindled the spark—now I merely needed to wait for the right moment and set my plans in motion.
‘It would have been simpler otherwise.’
I rolled my eyes, and then I felt those blue eyes fixed upon me.
‘Because of that man.’
The Protagonist.
The Celestial Demon’s conviction incarnate—that repugnant existence who had thwarted the Demonic Sect’s grand opening.
The Sword Saint’s Predecessor.
That man’s presence had complicated several of my plans.
Moreover.
‘Something feels off.’
Whenever I gazed into those blue eyes, an inexplicable unease continued to gnaw at me.
‘Does he know something?’
Just as I sensed something about the Protagonist,
could he also be sensing something about me?
Such suspicion took root.
‘He is no simple man.’
I cannot fathom what he thinks. His expression remains serene, yet weariness is etched across his features.
No matter who speaks to him or what attitude they display, his reaction remains identical.
And furthermore.
‘To call him righteous faction—’
The aura he emanates is far removed from that of the righteous path.
Where in the world did this man emerge from?
‘Even the intelligence reports revealed nothing unusual.’
Where did he come from?
The Yooryeong Clan itself, and the man’s very existence—there was nothing strange about any of it.
‘It is strange.’
No matter how I pondered it, I could not comprehend it.
‘But it matters not.’
None of it concerns me.
Whatever that man may be.
‘He too shall be dealt with in the south.’
He is merely one more speck of dust to be consumed and scattered by the grand opening.
As I harbored such thoughts.
“Combatants, prepare yourselves.”
At the Referee’s words, Baekcheon-in turned to face his opponent once more.
A beautiful woman with her blade already drawn and lowered into position came into view.
‘Yeon Yeon.’
A disciple of the Hwasan Sect and the current foremost disciple—a figure known by a singular epithet.
Her common name.
‘Monster.’
A woman called a monster by every disciple in the sect.
Upon hearing this, Baekcheon-in laughed.
‘Arrogant.’
Such an absurdly presumptuous title.
Moreover, it hardly suited her delicate and seemingly fragile appearance.
I had witnessed Geombong’s matches several times already.
She was strong, certainly.
‘But not to the degree warranting such a name.’
Though her foundation differed somewhat, she remained merely a disciple.
I saw no reason to call her a monster.
‘Is this the orthodox sect’s typical exaggeration? How repulsive.’
They called her a candidate for Heavenly Supreme, no less.
I suspected the Hwasan Sect had conspired with the Martial Arts Alliance to orchestrate something.
It had to be that.
The orthodox sects I perceived were certainly capable of such deception.
‘Therefore.’
You would be no different.
Baekcheon-in maintained his vigilance but extinguished his expectations.
“Baekcheon-in of the Seo’an Baek Clan. Yoo Yeon of the Hwasan Sect.”
He channeled his power.
‘I must focus somewhat more this time.’
Similar to when I faced Wol Muhui.
Yet different from my encounter with Cheon Euijin.
He layered his foundation and infused it with greater force, deceiving the eye.
I had to compensate for the mistake made against Cheon Euijin.
With that thought, he concentrated his breathing throughout his entire body.
“The match.”
Thus.
“Begins.”
The moment Baekcheon-in attempted to respond to Yoo Yeon’s movement.
Thwack!
‘What?’
His vision shifted.
‘What is this?’
His gaze, which had been fixed forward, now gazed upward at the sky.
His perception was slow to register.
Only after a moment did Baekcheon-in realize his body had been launched skyward.
The moment I recognized this.
Boom—!
“Ugh!?”
My foot came down hard on his abdomen, driving his body into the ground.
Crack—!!
“Cough!”
The arena floor shattered, sending debris flying in all directions.
Rising fragments and the sun obscuring my vision.
And.
Those beautiful black eyes looking down at me.
Baekcheon-in clenched his teeth upon witnessing this.
‘Something.’
It felt wrong.

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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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