The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 79

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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 079
Four more days had passed since arriving at the Dang Clan.
Six days had elapsed since my arrival, and during that time, we had been spending peaceful days without any particular schedule.
When food was provided, I ate.
When it was time to train, I trained.
When it was time to sleep, I slept.
“Wow.”
A sigh of admiration escaped me. How could I possibly spend time so indulgently?
With such unparalleled laziness, I had never known such happiness.
Yes, this is what life should be.
‘I’ve been living far too busily until now.’
Merely six days, at most.
Six days of leisure, and yet I felt this happy.
Tears nearly obscured my vision.
“Bang Disciple, are you alright?”
Cheon Euijin, standing beside me, asked with concern.
Cheon Euijin was drenched in sweat, having just finished his training.
“…Ah, yes. Of course. I’m perfectly fine.”
More than fine, actually. I was genuinely overjoyed.
Pat, pat. I brushed off the sword I’d been holding and sheathed it at my waist.
At the same time, I removed the sand-weighted pouches bound around my hands and feet.
“Phew…”
Like Cheon Euijin, I too was drenched in sweat.
My limbs all ached.
The soreness was intense.
‘This is rather demanding.’
The weight was no joke. It had been added recently.
The Old Man had glanced at me training and suddenly ordered me to put them on.
It’s a rather crude method, but since he said to do it, I did.
As I began using them, Cheon Euijin started doing the same beside me.
By now, we both trained with them until we were too exhausted to stand.
Cheon Euijin had asked me about this while utterly spent.
He questioned whether such a method was truly necessary, since martial artists control their bodies through the qi in their dantian anyway.
Upon hearing this, Yoo Cheon-gil replied bluntly.
[If the pathway isn’t straight, how can water flow properly?]
It seemed to mean that the body is the pathway and qi is the water.
When I relayed this to Cheon Euijin, he widened his eyes as if he’d grasped something profound.
What is this? Why does only he get to have realizations…?
I was at a loss.
‘Anyway.’
The added weight made training feel like torture.
Yet I didn’t think it was a bad thing.
‘I prefer simplicity over complexity.’
Rather than overthinking, it’s better to simply do what I’m told.
I found that easier, actually.
‘I’ve been working quite hard lately.’
I’ve been living far more intensely than my circumstances warranted. Since most of it was forced upon me, it was all the more exhausting.
Thanks to even this brief respite, I felt considerably more at ease.
I washed away the sweat that drenched my body and stepped outside.
The day seemed unusually clear, and nothing grated on my nerves.
Especially since the Old Man, who usually made such a racket, had been disappearing somewhere frequently of late.
These past few days had been perfectly quiet.
‘It should be mealtime soon.’
Just thinking about it lifted my spirits.
I hadn’t known it before, but the food the Dang Clan provided was far more delicious than I’d expected.
I’d worried that Sichuan cuisine might not suit my palate, but fortunately, it did.
Especially since this was a place that dealt in poison, I was initially cautious…
‘…but they do take care of this matter.’
The Dang Clan seemed aware of such concerns, and through their servants, they demonstrated whether poison was present or not.
If I’d had to request it, it would have seemed rude, but since they handled it of their own accord, I understood why they were considered a prestigious clan.
However.
If there was one thing that nagged at me amid this comfortable situation.
It was someone I frequently spotted around my residence.
“…You’ve come again today.”
I sighed upon seeing someone near the wall.
‘What is she doing?’
It didn’t seem to be from the first day, and I’d been noticing her for about four days now.
She hid, though not very well—a woman who was oddly easy to spot.
It was Lady Pi, the mistress of the Dang Clan.
To be honest, she’d hidden herself well at first.
If Yoo Cheon-gil hadn’t pointed her out, I wouldn’t have noticed, but once I knew, she became obvious.
‘…What could it be?’
Why did she keep coming around?
Should I acknowledge her? I pondered this troublesome question.
‘I’ll ignore her.’
I decided to ignore her. My instincts warned me that pretending to know her would be a mistake.
Besides, she wasn’t really interfering. She merely observed me from a distance and didn’t seem to be doing anything else.
So I’ve been ignoring her deliberately.
‘…But for how long?’
I wondered just how long I’d need to keep ignoring her.
I’ll have to ask about it someday.
‘But not today.’
Not on a day as pleasant as this one.
With that thought, I turned to head back into my residence.
“Are you here?”
A voice called out from the entrance of my residence.
I turned my head at the sound.
Was it mealtime already?
The hour was drawing near, after all.
My steps quickened with anticipation.
“….”
But I had to stop when I saw who stood before my residence.
It wasn’t the servant who usually brought my meals.
The person before me was someone entirely different.
“Young Lord of the Dang Clan….”
It was Dokho, the current Young Lord of the Dang Clan.
My expression darkened at the sight of him.
“I hope you’ve been well.”
Dokho smiled as he looked at me. As always, the members of the Dang Clan had unusually fierce appearances. Dang Yeeran was comparatively gentle, Dok-ryong looked terrifying, and Dokho was a sharp-featured handsome man.
Among them, Dang Yeeran was the softest in appearance, Dok-ryong seemed frightening, and Dokho possessed sharp, handsome features.
“…Ah, yes.”
“I apologize for the sudden visit. The matter is….”
I couldn’t hide my reluctance as I regarded Dokho.
One might wonder why I would adopt such an attitude toward the Young Lord.
But I knew the truth.
‘…The fact that he came to me directly.’
It meant something had certainly happened.
In other words.
“The Lord of the Clan has said that preparations for the matter are complete, and he has instructed me to bring you.”
It signified that the lazy peace I had barely begun to enjoy had come to an end.

* * *
I followed the Young Lord’s guidance, moving forward step by step.
In the end, I hadn’t managed to eat, but my appetite had long since vanished anyway.
I continued walking, feigning composure. The destination wasn’t the Lord of the Clan’s residence, but rather the steel forge located within the compound.
‘…Hmm.’
The moment I entered, heat poured forth just as it had before.
The temperature was suffocating enough to steal one’s breath, yet having experienced it once before, I managed to endure it somewhat.
Clang—! Clang—! Clang clang—!
I pushed through the heat, enduring the ear-piercing sounds as I moved forward.
After a brief walk, the iron door I’d seen before came into view.
The moment I arrived, Dokho extended his hand and opened the door.
끼그그그극—!!
The heavy iron door was forced open, emitting a harsh, grinding sound.
The instant the gap widened, a cold gust burst forth, contrasting sharply with the heat.
This too was that same chill I’d felt before.
After fully opening the door, Dokho grasped the handle and spoke to me.
“I humbly ask for your assistance.”
Dokho bowed his head as he spoke. It was quite burdensome to see someone of the Young Lord’s station act this way.
I forced an awkward smile and stepped into the iron door.
Inside, Dokuou and Dang Jichul, the master blacksmith I’d met before, were already present.
Hisssssssss—!
Accompanied by a boiling sound, Dang Jichul was extracting something.
From ice on the verge of freezing, he slowly drew out something long.
My eyes widened at the sight.
‘That is….’
I wondered what it was, but upon closer inspection, I recognized the object.
Originally, it wouldn’t have looked like this.
That’s why I was slow to recognize it.
One thing.
‘…Manwol.’
What Dang Jichul was drawing out lengthwise was unmistakably Manwol.
Not the corroded and half-shattered blade it had been.
A pristine, razor-sharp blade.
Its form made it instantly clear what it had originally looked like.
Merely looking at it caused my fingertips to tremble.
Even as Dang Jichul simply held the blade, it was so.
The muscles of the old man, well past seventy, bulged with exertion.
Simply grasping the blade caused his muscles to swell visibly—testament to Manwol’s considerable weight.
“Huuuuuuh….”
Dang Jichul, examining the blade, released a low breath.
And then.
Dang Gyeong-ak leaned against the wall, observing it calmly.
“That’ll do.”
As Dang Jichul spoke quietly, Dang Gyeong-ak finally opened his silent mouth.
“…You’ve worked hard.”
“Hard work, nothing of the sort.”
Dang Jichul chuckled softly.
Then he lifted Manwol, which he’d been holding, onto the table.
For some reason, I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Manwol.
Why was that? Despite it being merely a blade, my heart thundered wildly.
‘…What is this?’
What was I sensing? I carefully traced my hand across my chest.
I felt my heartbeat unusually intense.
My body trembled with excitement.
More precisely, not my flesh but my spirit.
Or perhaps my dantian itself had become excited.
It was difficult to put into words. Yet I was undoubtedly sensing something from that Manwol.
Then.
“You’ll bore a hole through it at this rate.”
At Dang Jichul’s words, I regained my senses.
“Is it fascinating because it’s your master’s blade?”
“…Yes, somewhat so.”
I withdrew my gaze as I spoke.
“So this was its original form….”
It possessed such a pristine blade.
I asked while gazing at it with wonder.
“…Is the repair completely finished?”
I thought I’d heard it would take at least ten days, yet the repair was already complete?
To my question, Dang Jichul replied.
“Unfortunately, that’s not the case.”
“It’s not?”
“No, this is merely a temporary measure.”
“What do you mean…?”
A temporary measure? I was puzzled by his words.
“The repair is not complete. I’ve merely restored its appearance.”
“You mean to say?”
Not a repair but merely restoring its appearance? So he hadn’t actually repaired it using his skills?
Why on earth?
Unable to comprehend, I looked toward Dokuou, and he met my gaze with these words.
“It was necessary to open the secret chamber.”
It was about Dokjon’s secret chamber and matters concerning it.
“…Is this what Manwol told you?”
“Indeed. Since the first condition has been completed, this is why I summoned you, Bang Disciple.”
I had only restored Manwol’s outward appearance, not truly repaired it.
So that’s why I was called here?
In other words.
“You’re saying you’ll give me an answer to what we discussed before?”
“….”
Dokuou fell silent for a moment. By “what we discussed before,” I meant the conditions I had negotiated with him.
In exchange for helping open the secret chamber, I wanted to obtain certain things.
We had discussed this matter back and forth.
Eventually, near the end, Dokuou said he would give me a definitive answer the next time we met, and it seemed that time was today.
What answer would he give?
As I waited with anticipation.
“…I will accept your conditions.”
Dokuou spoke with a slight sigh mixed in.
“I am grateful for the Lord of the Clan’s consideration.”
I responded to Dokuou with relief in my voice.
With this settled.
“Now, I can assume you’ll be able to help when needed?”
“I’m not sure what I’ll be helping with, but if the conditions are met, I’ll do my best.”
Surely it wouldn’t be something that would kill me.
And since I had attached conditions specifically to avoid such a fate, I thought it would be acceptable to some degree.
“….”
Dokuou simply observed me for a moment, then nodded just as he had before.
“…I understand. I called you today to inform you of Manwol’s condition and this matter. As for the secret chamber, it will likely.
Dokuou held up two fingers with his hand.
“proceed in two days.”
I nodded carefully at those words.
It seemed time was running short.

* * *
I finished my conversation with Dokouou and stepped out beyond the iron gate.
The two of them said they still had more business to attend to, so they wouldn’t be coming out.
Dokho was nowhere to be seen either.
I didn’t particularly need a guide, so it didn’t matter much.
The chill vanished, replaced once more by oppressive heat.
Though suffocation still coiled around my throat, I pushed it aside and walked toward the exit.
Right now, the thoughts swirling in my mind were far more stifling than the heat.
‘Dokjon’s secret, then…’
I’d agreed to help on certain conditions, but what exactly was I supposed to help with?
I’d taken what precautions I could, yet the unease remained unchanged.
‘The Old Man said it was nothing serious and just to go ahead with it.’
But half of what that old codger says is nonsense, so I can’t trust it completely.
“Tch.”
What if I end up getting dragged into something troublesome?
As I was pondering what to do about such thoughts.
Clang—!
“…”
A sound suddenly reached my ears. Familiar. It was a sound I always heard whenever I came to the forge.
But.
Claaaang—!
“…Hm?”
The same sound, yet something felt different.
Claaaaaang—!
Each time the sound rang out, my shoulders flinched.
Simultaneously, something within me responded.
‘This…’
This sensation was definitely something I’d felt before.
There’s no way I could mistake it for something I’d just experienced moments ago.
‘…It’s similar to when I saw Manwol?’
When I saw Manwol, who possessed only the form.
It felt similar to what I’d sensed then.
Not the body reacting, but the soul.
That was exactly what this sensation was.
‘What is this?’
Why was my soul responding to such a sound of its own accord?
Clang—! Clang clang!
Claaaaaang—!
Among the loud forging sounds, it was the smallest one.
Yet my soul still responded to it.
“….”
My feet pivoted toward the sound, turning of their own accord in that direction.
My pace quickened. The heat was intense enough to turn my insides out, yet I ignored it all the same.
Clang—!
Nothing but that sound.
Claaaang—!
I focused solely on that noise, growing louder as I drew closer.
And so.
Clang—!
I reached a door from which the sound emanated.
It was smaller than the iron door where Dang Jichul had been, and it appeared corroded in places.
Claaang!
The sound was coming from within this very room.
As if entranced, I extended my hand.
Screeeech.
I grasped the door handle and pulled it open.
Screeeeech.
I wrenched it open with force, and the door swung wide.
I peered through the half-opened door.
Heat wrapped around my face.
It was far more intense than the heat outside.
Why was it so scorching? Standing still here, I felt as though I might be roasted alive.
The temperature was absolutely unbearable for any living person.
Yet within that inferno.
Clang—! Clang—! Clang clang!
Dang Yeeran, her hair tied tightly back, sweat pouring down her face, wielded a hammer as large as her own head, striking something with all her might.
And behind her.
‘…Dokjon?’
A ghost presumed to be Dokjon gazed quietly at Dang Yeeran.
His gaze was suffused with profound anguish and desolation.

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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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