The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 363

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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 363
Roughly a month had passed since Shin Chang awakened.
A point in time where it felt both like ages and mere moments.
Hanam, which had crumbled from the assault, was gradually being restored and now resembled its former state, while the atmosphere that had been sharpened by tension was beginning to settle at last.
Now it was truly winter.
The time when snow would soon begin to fall and accumulate.
Clang—!!
A sharp metallic sound burst forth as the blade sprang back.
“Ugh—!”
I spat blood and my knees buckled. I staggered backward as though collapsing.
I tried to create distance, but by then the blade was already at my throat.
“….”
I raised my hand at the chilling sensation.
Then my opponent casually withdrew his sword.
A withered, aged Old Man. Small in stature with one arm missing, he appeared utterly frail.
‘…I really can’t tell.’
Appearances were deceiving. The Old Man was a figure whose martial prowess touched the heavens.
The current supreme swordsman of the Central Plains.
The Sword Emperor—known as the finest blade wielder in all the martial world of the Central Plains.
He carefully sheathed his sword and spoke to me.
“Not bad.”
“…Thank you.”
I gasped for breath upon hearing the praise. The breath I had been holding finally burst forth.
“Haah….”
I steadied my breathing. The Sword Emperor facing me spoke.
“We’ll stop here for today.”
“…Thank you for the instruction.”
Without another word, the Sword Emperor turned and vanished. Only then could I collapse exhaustedly.
“Phew….”
Sweat poured down. My fatigue was evident.
“This is tough.”
It was never easy. Training with the Sword Emperor was always grueling.
My entire body trembled, and the next day brought muscle soreness that assailed me from all directions.
‘But it seems to be working.’
The results were certain compared to the pain. I could feel my body, now at the pinnacle, gradually becoming accustomed to this level.
Whoosh. Clink.
I spun my sword and sheathed it.
“Hah.”
As I exhaled a different sigh than before and straightened my posture.
[Your energy regulation is not bad.]
Yoo Cheon-gil spoke to me, observing my form.
[What was scattered and messy before is now clean and orderly.]
“…Was it really that unsightly?”
[You speak without understanding.]
“I can’t see it myself, after all.”
[It was a complete disaster. Your realm advanced so rapidly that your body had no time to contain it, leaving everything jagged and chaotic.]
“….”
A body that had reached the pinnacle.
As a martial artist, I was now an exceptional master—someone whose name could carry weight wherever I went.
Yet I had no time to truly feel it.
‘I still don’t sense it.’
Me, at the pinnacle? Just last year, I was wondering if I could even reach the first rank.
Time had rushed past like an arrow, and somewhere along the way, I had entered the pinnacle realm.
‘Of course, it wasn’t through my own strength alone.’
It wasn’t talent either—a realm absolutely impossible to reach by myself.
Fortuitous encounters.
The encounters I gained from meeting Yoo Cheon-gil, naturally.
‘It came from absorbing the Evil Instruments.’
The fruits of the energies I obtained by dealing with Demons and Evil Instruments as circumstances demanded.
Crunch.
I clenched my fist briefly, feeling the flowing energy before releasing it again.
“Hup.”
I rose to my feet. My lesson with the Sword Emperor was finished—it was time to move forward.

* * *
Boom—!!
Whoosh—!!!
Clang clang clang—!!!
Hidden projectiles embedded themselves across the wall in rapid succession. The angle and force weren’t bad, but my expression darkened considerably.
“Stop.”
At my command, Dang Cheon-il, who had been throwing the projectiles, went rigid.
“Your energy is wavering again. What are you doing?”
“…I apologize.”
Dang Cheon-il’s lips trembled at the criticism.
“I told you already. Focus on the flow of your energy.”
“I was focusing….”
“If you were truly focused, this wouldn’t happen. Watch.”
I picked up a projectile and threw it. As it flew, it became enveloped in azure energy.
Crash—!!!
The impact was on an entirely different level from what Dang Cheon-il had demonstrated.
“This is how you do it. Why can’t you manage this? I told you—infusing energy is one thing, but simply releasing it once infused is meaningless.”
“….”
Dang Cheon-il’s expression crumpled. He looked utterly confused.
“…You don’t understand?”
“It’s difficult.”
“You did fine last time. So why is this happening now?”
During the fight with Heuk Taedo, he had performed well, but lately he seemed to be regressing noticeably.
“What exactly are you trying to accomplish?”
“….”
Dang Cheon-il fell silent. His expression suggested he was the most frustrated of all.
“…Tsk….”
I carelessly threw the remaining projectile. This time it simply embedded itself in the target.
“Let’s call it here for today. Continuing won’t help.”
“…Yes. Understood.”
Dang Cheon-il nodded and left. Watching him go, I clicked my tongue inwardly.
It wasn’t that I was angry with him. Dang Cheon-il himself must be the most frustrated.
If there was anything that bothered me, it was simply this:
‘Am I explaining it poorly?’
My frustration stemmed from myself.
Wouldn’t anyone watching think I was unwilling to teach him Manceon Hwau?
The truth was, I was doing my absolute best to explain it.
If Dang Cheon-il still wasn’t improving despite my efforts, perhaps the problem lay with me.
[That’s true enough.]
Yoo Cheon-gil affirmed my thoughts.
“You have no talent whatsoever for teaching.”
“….”
The words struck right at the heart of the matter.
“Your greatest problem is trying to teach others exactly as you understand it yourself.”
“…What’s wrong with that?”
“Obviously it’s wrong. Teaching isn’t about conveying things the way I understand them—it’s about explaining them in a way the other person can comprehend.”
Making it easier to grasp. Allowing the other person to understand the enlightenment I’ve experienced.
That’s how one must teach.
“How am I supposed to do that?”
I asked the question out of curiosity, wondering if such a method even existed.
“I don’t know either.”
“What?”
Yoo Cheon-gil offered nothing but an absurd answer.
“If I knew such things, wouldn’t I have trained a hundred disciples by now? Since I couldn’t manage it, that’s why I’m using you instead.”
“….”
Yoo Cheon-gil had always admitted he lacked particular talent in this area.
It was true. Was this the reason he’d never taken on personal disciples outside of the Cheongwol Sect?
‘What can I do.’
It was only possible because I could teach through possession, but without that method, there seemed to be no solution.
‘At this rate, I might not be able to teach Dang Cheon-il the Manceon Hwau completely.’
That was problematic. There was a reason Dang Cheon-il was attached to me, and I couldn’t keep him by my side indefinitely.
“What should I do….”
As for teaching Sochul Daeju, I was following the methods Yoo Cheon-gil had shown me, but the Manceon Hwau—I had to teach that directly.
‘…How am I supposed to convey this.’
I understood I needed to change my approach, but no clear method came to mind.
Moreover.
‘This isn’t even the time to be worrying about such things.’
The situation itself was pressing.
Then.
“Ah… crackle.”
Yoo Cheon-gil, who had been speaking, wavered. Simultaneously.
“Young Master.”
Someone appeared and called out to me.
“…!”
My eyes widened as I looked at the figure who had called. To all appearances, she was an elegantly featured woman.
‘…A Gwima.’
But within that form dwelt a sinister presence of indeterminate age.
A Gwima in woman’s disguise. He had come seeking me out.
“…What brings you here?”
“Well, it’s nothing particularly urgent.”
Her speech patterns had become more feminine too. I’ve been seeing this for several months now, yet it still doesn’t feel natural to me.
Perhaps because I knew her true identity, it even felt repulsive at times.
“The Scholar is looking for you.”
“…Ah, understood. I should go now.”
Cheon Rijin-an calls for me.
Hearing those words, I moved my feet first.

* * *
“You called for me.”
“You’ve come.”
The moment I entered his quarters, Cheon Rijin-an greeted me.
“Sit.”
“Yes.”
I sat naturally in front of him. The room was a mess of documents and letters. It was always like this, but by now I was accustomed to it.
After casually clearing a space and sitting, Cheon Rijin-an spoke to me immediately.
“Do you see the letters placed in front of you?”
“Yes.”
“Read them.”
“….”
There was no need for unnecessary words. I quietly pulled out the letters before me and began reading.
“….”
“….”
Rustle.
Rustle.
Only the quiet sound of turning pages repeated, and after about an hour passed like that.
“I’ve finished reading.”
I read through the letters in front of me, organized them, and placed them back. Only then did Cheon Rijin-an’s eyes, which had been reading letters, turn toward me.
“What did you think?”
What did I think….
Despite the vague question, my answer came out quickly.
“The problem that occurred at a place called Chuyoung Sect doesn’t seem particularly significant. Furthermore, the protest they raised has many peculiar aspects. It’s true that conflict with the heterodox sects became the main issue, but…. There’s something odd about it.”
“Something odd, you say?”
“The heterodox sect group called Gwido Sect that caused the friction has no reason to deliberately oppose Chuyoung Sect, and the location where the friction occurred is also where the Alliance has a branch. The fact that no one noticed anything at that time is what’s strange about it….”
The conversation continued at length. It was a familiar situation. It was something that had already been repeated for several days.
Right after Shin Chang awakened, and after he resumed his activities as League Leader.
Cheon Rijin-an often summoned me to his quarters.
I wondered what he intended to do by calling me like that.
‘Read this.’
He had me read the letters in his room.
I wondered why he insisted on having me read these.
‘If you listen to what I have to say, I’ll give you Hwasan’s divine texts.’
‘Where should I start reading?’
The reward was too substantial to raise objections.
That’s when it began.
Reading dispatches like a madman ever since.
And starting conversations with Cheon Rijin-an about all of it.
“But that’s only circumstantial evidence?”
“Circumstantial evidence is sufficient. If it’s friction between the righteous and unorthodox sects… the Martial Arts Alliance has ample justification to intervene.”
“But if we’re not careful, we could end up strengthening the unorthodox sects instead.”
“That won’t happen.”
“How so?”
“If Chu Young-mun is at fault, we punish them by citing their crimes. If it’s the unorthodox sects’ mistake as they claim, we use that as justification to crush them. Besides, the Martial Arts Alliance’s military strength isn’t weak.”
It could hardly be called a discussion.
Cheon Rijin-an posed questions and nodded at my words—that was all.
“I see.”
This time too, as I finished speaking, Cheon Rijin-an gave a composed response.
Whoosh.
He then gathered up the dispatch before him and set it aside.
I couldn’t help but wonder why he was doing this.
“…Because it’s the correct answer?”
So I asked, but Cheon Rijin-an only looked at me with a strange expression.
“What do you mean by correct answer?”
“The answer to the dispatch I just read. It seems like a past incident to me.”
I hadn’t thought he would deliberately show me current events.
There was no reason to, after all.
As if confirming my thoughts, Cheon Rijin-an stroked his beard and spoke.
“There’s no such thing as a correct answer. I’m simply curious about your thoughts.”
“Why are you curious about my thoughts?”
“How could I not be curious?”
Cheon Rijin-an looked at me and let out a soft chuckle.
I should have been surprised that he smiled.
“You might become the League Leader someday. How could I not be curious about what you think? Wouldn’t you agree?”
“…”
At his following words, my expression crumpled.
“A candidate for League Leader.”
“…Damn it.”
A curse couldn’t help but escape.

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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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