The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 377
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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 377
Through the cracks of a ruined building, people gathered above.
“…What happened?”
“How did the Training Hall…!”
A tempest had ravaged the destroyed premises, and its tremors spread in all directions. Before long, sect members had assembled in great numbers.
Everyone stared at the Training Hall with bewildered eyes, and amid their confusion, I found myself exhaling a weary sigh with an awkward expression.
‘I’ve caused trouble.’
I never imagined I would obliterate the entire Training Hall. This wasn’t my intention at all, yet I found myself grappling with the consequences of what had transpired.
How could I possibly explain this? As I pondered deeply.
“Moonju…!”
“…!”
At the voice that reached me, I turned my head. Wol Seon-geom was walking through the throng of assembled martial artists.
Wol Seon-geom appeared and surveyed his surroundings with an expressionless face.
He confirmed the Training Hall, now nearly reduced to ruins, and then his gaze fell upon me.
“Bang Disciple.”
At those words, I flinched and responded.
“Yes.”
“What happened here?”
He demanded an explanation. I swallowed hard. What could I say? That I was merely training and destroyed everything?
‘…There’s no other answer.’
There was no point in lying. A lie wouldn’t go undetected anyway. So just as I was about to confess.
“It was me who-”
“I did it.”
“…?”
An interjection. At Paewang’s voice, all eyes turned toward him.
“Paewang?”
“Ah, my body was stiff from being idle for so long, so I tried to loosen up and made a mistake. My apologies. I’ll cover all the damages with my own funds.”
What was he saying? At Paewang’s words, my expression became utterly dumbfounded.
I was the one who destroyed it, so why did Paewang suddenly step in? Moreover, he claimed responsibility for something he didn’t even do.
What?
“No, this-”
-Stay quiet.
Just as I was about to say it was my doing, Paewang transmitted his voice to me.
-This much is worth doing for you. Just remain silent.
At his nearly forceful insistence, I closed my mouth.
“….”
Observing Paewang, Wol Seon-geom showed no particular reaction. I had wondered if he would even believe this situation.
Not long after, Wol Seon-geom responded.
“I understand.”
Contrary to my expectations, he accepted Paewang’s explanation.
“Since Paewang has his position, I won’t send a separate letter to the Mo Clan.”
“Oh, thank you for being considerate.”
As Paewang spoke with a smile, Wol Seon-geom glanced around the surroundings. Observing the gathered disciples, he spoke.
“Return to your duties.”
“Understood…!”
At his brief command, the disciples moved instantly.
Though the Training Hall had been destroyed, the matter was resolved far more easily than expected.
-Let’s meet again later.
As everyone dispersed, Paewang spoke to me in that manner. It was the same words as before.
“….”
Yet this time, it felt considerably different.
* * *
A day had passed. I rose without hiding my exhaustion, stretching sluggishly.
After washing up quickly, I stepped outside. By then, an official notice regarding the Training Hall had already been issued.
The notice stated that Training Hall One was damaged and under repair, so Training Hall Two should be used instead.
Seeing it, I scratched my cheek.
‘Tsk.’
I couldn’t help but feel guilty about destroying it.
‘…How was I supposed to know it would turn out like that?’
There was an unfair aspect to it. Who could have known the fifth strike would possess such explosive power?
‘Daewol, was it?’
A great moon. The power was as absurd as its name suggested.
Of course.
‘The amount of inner energy I used was also unreasonable….’
Even so, I had never witnessed martial arts with such devastating force.
It was astounding. A power that amazed me even after using it myself.
‘….’
I looked at my hand. The sensation from yesterday still lingered.
‘It was magnificent.’
I wanted to try it again. My mind felt slightly intoxicated, as if captivated.
Truly, if I had my way, I would immediately wield the sword again.
‘…My inner energy hasn’t fully recovered yet.’
The inner energy I had expended yesterday hadn’t replenished. It seemed I would need at least another day or two of rest.
So what should I do?
‘What can I do?’
I had entered a waiting period with nothing I could do immediately.
Yet I couldn’t simply wait around….
‘Perhaps I should master what remains.’
After the fifth sword strike, sword techniques still remained to be learned.
I wondered if I needed to practice that again.
“…Will it work?”
A fundamental doubt took root. I had poured so much power into the fifth stage—how was I supposed to manage the sixth and seventh?
I looked toward Yoo Cheon-gil, hoping he might have some method.
[Impatience.]
The old man just kept repeating the same thing.
‘Ugh.’
Maybe I should just try it. I was pondering for a moment when—
“So you were here.”
A familiar voice reached my ears. I turned to see Paewang standing there, bandages wrapped around one hand.
“Did you sleep well?”
“…Ah, yes. Senior, are you alright?”
“Me? I’m fine.”
He waved one hand dismissively.
I had to show a strange reaction to that sight.
‘He really is fine.’
Yesterday I thought he had taken Daewol’s strike properly. Did he really just step back one pace?
I expected at least some visible wounds.
‘Isn’t he a little too fine?’
While I was thinking something felt lacking—
[How arrogant.]
Yoo Cheon-gil clicked his tongue and spoke to me.
[Paewang has his own level. Did you truly believe that at your current level, you could wound him? Making him step back even one pace is a miracle.]
“….”
It was a cold assessment, and surprising words to me.
‘Is the gap really that wide?’
Paewang, who was evaluated as Celestial Demon-class or belonging to the Celestial Demon tier—to hear there was such a vast difference was astonishing.
‘Setting that aside for now.’
I looked at Paewang.
I did so because I knew his purpose.
“Should we move somewhere else?”
Paewang spoke to me.
“Yes, let’s do that.”
I headed back to my quarters with him.
* * *
The moment I entered my quarters, I had tea brought in.
However, the instant Paewang saw the tea, his eyes widened.
“…Huh?”
“Is something the matter?”
“Don’t tell me this is tea made from Taishan leaves?”
“Ah, yes. That should be correct.”
“…How did you obtain something so precious…?”
Taishan tea.
It was made from Taishan leaves that grew only on the high peaks of Taishan, and while these leaves were exceptionally rare and difficult to find anywhere else, I happened to have some.
“I received it as a gift.”
I had accumulated quite a bit of it. The reason was simple.
‘…Youngsoon sent it to me frequently.’
A gift from the Moyong Clan—more precisely, it was one of the things Youngsoon often sent my way.
‘I thought it was just ordinary tea leaves.’
Turns out it was ridiculously expensive.
After I made a fuss about it once, she stopped sending it, but I had already accumulated quite a stockpile.
“There’s a place that sends this as a gift?”
“Yes. Would you like me to give you some?”
“….”
A moment of deliberation flickered across Paewang’s eyes. So this man actually enjoyed tea more than his appearance suggested?
“I shall prepare some for you.”
“…There’s no need to go to such trouble….”
“I don’t know much about tea. Wouldn’t it be better for someone who appreciates it to have it?”
“…That’s a fair point.”
Unable to resist his desire, Paewang let out a small cough and consented.
“I’ll wrap some up for you later.”
“…Thank you.”
His gratitude was written plainly across his face. This tea turned out to be more useful than expected.
In any case, that matter aside.
“Now then, I’d like to discuss the wager from yesterday.”
It seemed Paewang intended to settle the bet quickly.
“Do you have a request for me?”
“Don’t you need time to think?”
I hadn’t expected him to ask that so directly. I thought he’d at least give me some time to consider.
“If you need time to deliberate, take it. For now, I’ve simply come to confirm.”
“Understood.”
I nodded at his words. A request? Of course I had one. How could I not?
‘That’s precisely why I sought out Paewang.’
Fortunately, a perfect opportunity had presented itself to make this request.
The problem is.
‘Can I even say this?’
Should I speak these words now? The hesitation flickers through my mind, but only briefly.
“If you agree, there’s actually one favor I’d like to ask.”
Having come this far, I decided to just go through with it.
“Are you aware that I’m currently a candidate for League Leader?”
“Ah. That matter?”
Paewang seemed to know about it already. The moment he heard, he let out a chuckle.
“I heard about it. They said the Alliance is doing something interesting.”
“…I have a favor to ask regarding that matter.”
“From me?”
Paewang looked at me with curious eyes. Seeing that gaze, I spoke.
“Yes. From you, Senior Paewang.”
“What is it?”
“Could you take my place as a candidate for League Leader instead?”
“…What?”
Paewang’s eyes narrowed upon hearing my words.
“…What are you saying?”
“Exactly as I mean it. Please take my place as a candidate.”
“Ha.”
Paewang burst into hollow laughter upon hearing that. Then.
“Look at this guy.”
As if he’d figured something out, he furrowed his brow while looking at me.
“You had an ulterior motive.”
‘Damn.’
Paewang seemed to have grasped the current situation from my words.
“Ha. This is something else. Have I fallen into a trap?”
“…It’s not quite like that. It’s more of a two-birds-one-stone situation…?”
“You cunning bastard. You’re as sly as your master.”
[This bastard…?]
Yoo Cheon-gil bristled. Ignoring him, I spoke to Paewang.
“Since you’ve figured it out, I’ll just be honest. If I’m not to become a candidate, I need to ask you for a favor.”
“Why? Wouldn’t it be fine to just become a candidate?”
Becoming a candidate would bring honor and the conditions aren’t particularly bad. Paewang looked at me with a strange expression upon hearing my refusal.
“…There are circumstances.”
“Hmm. Circumstances. Yes, that’s possible.”
He nodded. It seemed he had no intention of pressing further.
“I would normally have agreed without much thought.”
Paewang spoke with a troubled expression.
“But this matter… I’ll need to think it over, even if it’s a favor.”
“….”
Is this truly something that cannot be accomplished through mere request?
“I have no interest in a position like League Leader. I refrain from involving myself in the Alliance’s affairs precisely because I wish to avoid entanglement in such matters.”
It was common knowledge that Paewang did not meddle in the Martial Arts Alliance’s business.
With a reputation of Paewang’s caliber, he should have been considered for the position of League Leader long ago, yet his continued exclusion suggested there was more to the story.
‘Moreover.’
Considering that he was the greatest elder and strongest of the Mo family yet had never assumed the position of Lord of the Clan, it appeared he held little interest in such titles.
To ask such a man to become a candidate for League Leader.
‘This will not be easy.’
What should I do? As such thoughts crossed my mind.
“Still, since I’ve already spoken, I suppose I should hear you out.”
Reasonable words flowed from Paewang’s lips.
“However… I have business at the Cheongwol Sect, so let us discuss this further once I’ve resolved matters here.”
“Business, you say…?”
At my words, Paewang smiled slightly and spoke.
“There is something containing important records of the Mo family hidden somewhere in this place.”
“…Records?”
“Yes.”
Paewang continued.
“Something your master stole and disappeared with. I’ve heard it’s hidden somewhere here.”
“….”
I flinched at those words.
‘…So that’s his true objective?’
Paewang’s real aim.
I had doubted whether it could truly be called mere records.
What Paewang sought was undoubtedly that object.
If that were the case.
‘I might be able to use this to my advantage?’
If I could leverage it, reaching my goal would become far easier.
Such certainty flashed through me in that moment.
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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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