The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 55

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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 055
“….”
I stared at the wooden sword with widened eyes. The carefully crafted blade’s tip rested against someone’s neck.
Pale skin for a man. Yet his body was honed by rigorous training.
Cheon Euijin of Cheonwol Gate.
My wooden sword had, remarkably, come to rest against his neck.
“Hah… Hah….”
He steadied his labored breathing, staring at me with astonished eyes.
“Ha ha…. Well.”
Cheon Euijin spoke with an awkward laugh.
“I’ve lost. You truly are different, Bang Disciple.”
“….”
Cheon Euijin’s reaction suggested he had anticipated his own defeat.
Perhaps it was inevitable for him. No, he must have certainly thought so.
It was only natural.
I had not only defeated Socheongeom of the Namgung Clan, but had also easily overcome Seom Seong-gyeong, the current warrior of Sowoldae.
From Cheon Euijin’s perspective, this was only to be expected.
But.
‘What is this? How did this happen…?’
For me, it was not.
‘Why exactly….’
How had I defeated Cheon Euijin? No, to be precise….
‘Why was it… so easy?’
I had grasped victory without much difficulty at all.
I simply could not comprehend it.
“….”
As I gazed at Cheon Euijin with slightly trembling eyes, he spoke to me without erasing his smile.
“I apologize.”
An unexpected apology. Hearing it, I frowned.
“Why are you suddenly apologizing…?”
Unable to understand the reason, I asked in return, and Cheon Euijin replied.
“I am aware that you held back to match my level. It could have been a more meaningful match… I am merely sorry.”
“….”
Upon hearing his words, I understood what he meant.
Cheon Euijin seemed to believe I had fought while taking it easy on him.
‘I couldn’t have held back.’
If I had held back, would I be gasping for breath like this?
In fact, Cheon Euijin’s breathing had steadied, while mine was on the verge of becoming labored.
This was a difference in physical ability.
Strength, speed, and even endurance.
In every aspect, Cheon Euijin surpassed me.
I could tell immediately through our sparring match, and it was a fact I already knew regardless.
“…No, that’s not it.”
I answered while thinking.
That’s what made it all the more strange.
How could I have defeated Cheon Euijin in such circumstances?
It wasn’t that Yoo Cheon-gil had used my body—I had won purely through my own strength.
As this question lingered, I felt an exhilaration coursing through my body.
“…Sufficient.”
I had defeated Cheon Euijin with my own hands.
“It was a worthwhile match.”
The fervor from that realization was gradually invading my entire being.

* * *
Right after returning the sword.
Even as I walked, I felt strangely dazed.
Nothing rested in my hands, yet they remained slightly curled as if gripping something.
As though I were still holding a sword.
As I walked in that entranced state.
[Didn’t I tell you?]
Yoo Cheon-gil, who had been following behind, spoke to me. Only upon hearing his voice did my steps halt.
[That you couldn’t have gained nothing. I certainly said so.]
“….”
[How is it? Did you truly gain nothing?]
I couldn’t speak at all. It wasn’t that I lacked words to refute him—simply that no words would come.
Silence flowed between us. While I remained speechless, Yoo Cheon-gil simply watched me, as if waiting for my response.
Time passed and passed until my closed lips finally parted.
“…What do you mean?”
Upon hearing my question, Yoo Cheon-gil chuckled softly.
[What are you talking about?]
“How exactly….”
[Can you see the sword completely now?]
“….”
I answered with silence instead. Yet Yoo Cheon-gil seemed to understand my meaning and continued.
[That’s right.]
“…Yes.”
[This is what you obtained from that place.]
Upon hearing Yoo Cheon-gil’s words, I swallowed slightly.
What I had gained through dying thousands of times within that dream realm.
Was this it?
‘I saw through all of Cheon Euijin’s sword techniques.’
His blade remained swift, and equally sharp.
I had sensed it from our first encounter—his movements were pristine, fundamentally well-trained.
Cheon Euijin was formidable.
Whether he matched Cheonhye-in’s level or stood just below at Socheongeom’s rank, I couldn’t say with certainty.
But he was undoubtedly no weakling among those of his age and cultivation stage.
Yet.
‘How did I perceive it all?’
I had sensed every aspect of his swordplay.
Half of it came from the power Wol-an possessed.
I could see which sword path my opponent would take to strike me.
The azure strands of light revealed everything.
Of course, it wasn’t a perfect trajectory. The countless branching strands represented mere possibilities.
I prepared for whichever seemed most certain among them.
That was the efficacy of Wol-an as I understood it.
‘…I saw the strands, and my body moved of its own accord.’
The moment those strands emerged, my body reacted before conscious thought could catch up.
My mind couldn’t be certain, yet my body was.
The dissonance that arose from this was indescribable.
How could such a thing occur? Questions flooded my mind, yet.
‘…In the end, I won.’
Following my body’s response, I swung my sword.
What could be evaded, I evaded. What couldn’t be blocked, I deflected.
My movements weren’t as fluid as when I fought young Yoo Cheon-gil in the dream realm.
Such was the difference between dream and reality. Even after thousands of repetitions there, my waking body couldn’t replicate it perfectly.
Yet.
‘Still, I managed it.’
Through the gap I created, I drove my wooden sword into Cheon Euijin’s opening.
This victory was hard-won.
“…Ha ha….”
A laugh escaped me unbidden.
My realm hadn’t advanced. My inner energy hadn’t grown, and my body remained unchanged.
Yet I had defeated Cheon Euijin, who was expected to be first-rate.
And with my own hands.
‘It’s absurd.’
Just as my lips threatened to curl upward once more.
[Tsk tsk. Pleased with yourself, are we?]
Yoo Cheon-gil chimed in as if he’d been waiting.
[Don’t sit there grinning so comfortably over a single victory. It looks pathetic.]
“…What am I doing, sir.”
[I despise seeing you lost in such elation. The purpose was to make you aware of the situation. It wasn’t meant for you to forget your place.]
Yoo Cheon-gil clicked his tongue repeatedly as he continued speaking.
[It was by a hair’s breadth. Had you been even slightly slower, it would have been you who lost, not him.]
“….”
I had no words to refute. He was right.
My stamina had already reached its limit, and just as he said, had I continued even a moment longer, I would have collapsed and suffered defeat.
So truly, his words about it being by a hair’s breadth were accurate.
Even knowing this.
“…How was this even possible?”
I still couldn’t comprehend it.
How had I managed to defeat Cheon Euijin? I hoped Yoo Cheon-gil would provide the answer.
At such a question, Yoo Cheon-gil looked at me with a pitying expression.
[How did you win? What do you mean how?]
His tone suggested I was asking something obvious.
[That child was weak, and you were slightly stronger. Victory and defeat are determined by nothing else.]
“But….”
[If you dig deeper, there might be something. An intuitive sense evolved from Yeongmong, for instance.]
“Intuition?”
[I told you before. If you move by what your eyes see, you’ll be too late.]
“Yes. I remember.”
My thoughts were too numerous. Move first, then observe. That was the advice Yoo Cheon-gil had given me.
I had remembered it as rather important counsel at the time.
[There’s a flaw in that statement.]
“Yes…?”
Yoo Cheon-gil was saying something different now than before.
“A flaw, you say.”
Tap, tap. At my question, Yoo Cheon-gil tapped his temple with his index finger.
[The body ultimately moves because the mind moves it.]
This was somewhat different from what he’d said before.
Just moments ago he’d told me to move my body first rather than see with my eyes, so what was this?
[Whether you recognize that and move through conscious thought, or don’t—that’s a slightly different matter altogether.]
“That’s difficult to understand.”
[Simply put, how quickly you can react ultimately depends on a disciplined mind.]
Yoo Cheon-gil, who had been tapping his temple, moved his hand to point at me.
[You’ve been tempered through death countless times, so you’ve become somewhat useful.]
“….”
So what he was saying was… in short.
‘By dying thousands of times slashed by blades, the gap between thought and action has become faster?’
Or perhaps the time I spent thinking had unconsciously shortened.
Though difficult to grasp, ultimately Yoo Cheon-gil’s message was singular.
‘Yingmong’s training proved useful.’
That grueling, miserable ordeal had actually benefited me.
It seemed he wanted to say that.
‘…Tsk.’
My expression twisted. The results proved him right, but I wasn’t eager to admit it.
‘I endured that dog-like suffering. If it hadn’t helped, that would be the real problem.’
How many times had my neck been severed? How many times had I parried his blade?
Even after waking, the vivid sensation lingered, raising goosebumps on my neck.
Because of that, I gently touched my neck and spoke to Yoo Cheon-gil.
“…If so, Old Man.”
[That’s right.]
“Could I defeat Cheonhye-in now?”
If I could defeat Cheon Euijin now, couldn’t I also defeat Cheonhye-in?
I asked with that intention.
[Stop it.]
Yoo Cheon-gil spoke firmly with a sigh.
[A sparrow with a tiny feather sprouting from its back cannot overtake a hawk.]
“….”
[Don’t even harbor such hopes. You’re still not ready.]
The metaphor was painfully apt. So I’ve barely become a sparrow, and Cheonhye-in is a hawk?
I could tell that Yoo Cheon-gil held Cheonhye-in in quite high regard.
‘So it’s simply impossible.’
I had harbored some hope, so it was disappointing.
However.
‘He said “yet.”‘
The only thing I took to heart was when that old man said “yet” while looking at me.
[…Hmph.]
Yoo Cheon-gil let out a chuckle as if he knew what I was thinking.
[Listen well.]
“Yes.”
[It’s merely one victory. Don’t become arrogant.]
“What arrogance are you accusing me of now?”
[Don’t intoxicate yourself. You have far too long a road ahead to be drunk on this already.]
“…I see.”
[If you wish to ignite the moon at your blade’s tip, your inner self must always remain calm. Like the tranquil night itself.]
“That’s quite abstract and impractical advice.”
Igniting the moon with a blade.
Remain calm like the night.
All I could do was yawn at such words. Besides.
“I’m not particularly interested in moons or any of that nonsense.”
Moon, this and that.
Words that held little interest or concern for me.
How does one even bloom the moon with a sword, anyway?
The moon is merely a phenomenon that rises when the sun sets.
[Tsk tsk….]
Yoo Cheon-gil laughed at my response.
[Think that way for now. You’ll understand soon enough, regardless.]
His words were so confident that they unsettled me. It sounded as though he intended to make it happen no matter what.
Then.
[In that regard, you handled the Dang Clan matter well.]
“Pardon?”
Suddenly? I turned to look at Yoo Cheon-gil at his unexpected remark.
“…Why are you suddenly bringing up the Dang Clan?”
It was something I had wanted to ask anyway, but I hadn’t expected him to broach it first.
[I was just thinking about how to handle it. Things worked out well.]
“What do you mean?”
[Didn’t I tell you before? That I would procure a better Socheongeom for you.]
Was he referring to when I was fooling around underground?
Yoo Cheon-gil had said that if I managed to advance to the next chamber through my own strength, he would obtain a magnificent Socheongeom for me.
Ah, could it be?
“Surely you’re not obtaining the sword from the Dang Clan?”
The moment I spoke, I couldn’t help but marvel.
If that were the case, I was already thrilled.
‘A Socheongeom from the Dang Clan…?’
The Dang Clan’s weapons were something others could not obtain no matter how much wealth they possessed.
Among them, a sword forged from Socheongeom, comparable in value to Hanchul?
That was something one could not acquire even with a fortune in gold.
‘I could live comfortably for the rest of my life just by selling it.’
I didn’t know how Yoo Cheon-gil would obtain such a treasure, but if he did, I could even bow to that demon.
As I was composing my excited heart with such thoughts.
[It worked out perfectly.]
Yoo Cheon-gil nodded and spoke.
[I still had some things to extract from that household anyway.]
“…Yes?”
[I’ll just sweep it all clean while I’m at it. Tsk tsk tsk]
What did I just hear…?
‘He’s going to raid the Dang Clan…?’
One of the Five Great Families…?
‘No way.’
I must have misheard.
I tried to laugh it off, but it was forced.
“…Old Man. What do you mean by that? Explain it properly, would you?”
Before long, I had to ask with a serious expression.
That old man seemed more than capable of doing exactly that.

* * *
Whiiiish—! Whoosh!
An open field where few people ventured.
In a space that hardly anyone visited, Cheon Euijin swung his sword.
Beads of sweat fell with each violent motion, yet he paid them no mind and continued moving his body relentlessly.
“Huff! Hnngh!”
Though the strain should have made his blade waver, Cheon Euijin’s sword remained steady throughout.
He continued carving through the empty air, again and again.
‘Now—!’
At a precise moment, Cheon Euijin released the power from his waist.
촤아아악—!!!
The blade traced a clean arc, forming a crescent moon.
“Haa… haa…”
Watching this, Cheon Euijin smiled with evident satisfaction.
‘Perfect.’
Now he succeeded eight times out of ten.
It was a technique he had learned from Bangseong-yeon back at the Martial Arts Alliance Anhui Branch.
Eliminating unnecessary force while releasing power at the crucial moment instead.
Cheon Euijin had not forgotten those teachings from back then.
And as proof, he felt the difficult technique gradually becoming second nature to his body.
But.
‘…I still have a long way to go.’
The satisfaction rising in Cheon Euijin’s eyes quickly faded.
‘More.’
He needed to swing his sword even more.
The distance he had yet to travel was far too great to be satisfied with this.
‘…Yes, at least.’
To a level where he would show no unnecessary mercy to himself.
He wanted to reach that point.
‘What a rare opportunity it was.’
How shocked he had been when Bangseong-yeon suggested they have a match.
Cheon Euijin had been so delighted by those words.
‘…Yet in the end, we never had a proper match.’
His level was too low, and he had failed to fully seize the opportunity.
‘Surely, he was deliberately breaking his form.’
During the sparring match, Bangseong-yeon presented himself to Cheon Euijin with a stance that appeared sloppy and unstable.
When I first saw it, I was taken aback.
‘What is this?’
Why were his movements filled with such vague, ambiguous techniques?
Moreover, he only evaded or deflected my attacks, never mounting a proper counterattack.
As the sparring continued, I came to a realization.
‘Ah.’
He was going easy on me.
He deliberately adopted clumsy movements to reduce his speed and power, while moving more vigorously to disrupt his own breathing.
In doing so, he was intentionally leveling the gap between us.
It seemed this was the method Bangseong-yeon had chosen to spar with me.
‘Damn it….’
I bit my lip.
It stung deeply.
The fact that I had to descend to such a level just to match Bangseong-yeon’s pace—that reality was unbearably painful and agonizing.
And on top of that.
‘I still lost.’
Despite fighting with such an absurd stance and breathing pattern, I was defeated even in that state.
‘…He’s truly remarkable.’
My conviction about Bangseong-yeon’s worth was reinforced once again.
‘Just how strong is he?’
I was already amazed when he defeated Socheongeom, but I recently heard he had defeated Seom Seong-gyeong, my senior brother.
The youngest member of Sowoldae.
This was said to be unprecedented in history.
It was said to be on the level of overturning the very history the Sword Saint had established.
“….”
As I recalled this, my body momentarily froze.
What I yearned for and strived to reach, Bangseong-yeon accomplished far too easily.
Remembering this, my body naturally shrank back.
‘…Can I….’
Would I ultimately be unable to reach it?
Such thoughts burrowed into my mind.
“….”
But I forced the thoughts away and grasped the wooden sword again.
‘…I can do this.’
I can do it. I will find a way, no matter what.
Steeling myself with this resolve, I was about to swing the wooden sword once more when—
“You’re working hard, aren’t you?”
“…!”
At the sound of that voice, my body turned rigid as stone.
I forced my damaged neck to move, turning toward the source of the voice.
There stood.
“Hello.”
My own sister and the object of my fear.
“My incompetent brother.”
Wol Muhui, Cheonhye-in, gazed down at me.
“Shall we have a word, just you and me?”
Her face wore that chilling, expressionless mask.

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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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