Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 232

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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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Third-rate Martial Arts Family, Greatest Under Heaven – Episode 232
“Cheon-yeong. My son, born with the qualifications to grasp the heavens in your hands. You were born to become the master of the vast sky. All under heaven will follow you, and nothing shall impede your will.”
Words that had been hammered into my ears since childhood until they became second nature.
In truth, Namgung Cheon-yeong had lived his life without encountering any real hardship.
At most, he’d merely been cautious around his older brother due to their father’s favoritism.
It wasn’t that the Namgung Family had raised Namgung Cheon-yeong like a delicate flower in a greenhouse.
Rather, even the trials the Namgung Family had prepared were merely walls he could easily overcome.
But now, in this very moment.
“As you can see, our squad has gathered four flags. We’re just missing one.”
Namgung Cheon-yeong harbored a single doubt.
‘Father, this seems quite different from what you said.’
Since leaving the family for the Dragon-Phoenix Struggle, nothing had gone according to plan.
Jegal Seol-ha, whom he’d fallen for at first sight and desperately wanted to betroth himself to.
Despite his ardent courtship, she hadn’t spared him a single glance.
This current situation was no exception.
From the start, due to Baek Yang-hwi’s foul play, one of his squad members had become unable to walk, and shamefully, they hadn’t found a single flag.
So he’d returned to the finish line intending to seize the flags found by other squads.
“Now fight each other.”
A voice so full of mischief that merely hearing it made his blood boil.
‘Come to think of it, it’s all because of that bastard.’
He wanted to ambush Baek Yang-hwi and seize all the flags.
With just Okcheon alone, aside from the others, it would be entirely possible.
The problem was that no matter how swift the surprise attack, he couldn’t be faster than that man submitting the flags to the Referee.
“What are you doing? I said fight. Why are you looking at me? Oh, did you mistake this for fighting me? Haha, fighting should be between those on the verge of elimination.”
Amusing behavior indeed.
For Namgung Cheon-yeong, raised under strict discipline within the Namgung inner chambers, each gesture was novel and refreshing.
Perhaps, had they met under different circumstances.
He might have been able to stand in the same place and enjoy that presence.
‘But that fate can never come to pass.’
Setting aside recent events, that man was the root cause of his older brother Namgung Cheon-hu’s downfall.
His elder brother, who bore false accusations and became the family’s criminal, and was even reported missing.
He could not stand under the same sky as Baek Yang-hwi.
And now.
He found himself in a position where he had to rely on that man’s mercy.
“So you’re saying you’ll hand over the flags to whichever squad wins?”
“Yeah.”
An extremely brief answer. Given the difference in their stations, such a thing should be impossible.
“…I cannot fathom your intentions. What purpose does this serve?”
“Why does it matter to you.”
“…”
In ancient times, Wa-ryong lay on brushwood with the resolve of enduring hardship, sucking on ox bile to remind himself of his humiliation.
Now was the time to bend.
“I hope you keep that promise.”
I turned my head to look at Okcheon.
The only competitor I could truly call a rival in this place.
“I never expected our blades would cross like this, Okcheon.”
“Nor did I, Bin-do. But it seems it will be entertaining.”
“What if we eliminate the other two squads first?”
“I agree.”
After a brief moment passed.
Hwa-san’s finest swordsman and Namgung’s finest swordsman drew their blades against each other.
Along with two squad members bound together by iron chains.

* * *
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The metallic sounds rang out without pause.
Yang Hwi watched with his arms crossed.
‘This is amusing.’
To be precise, it was less amusing than it was strangely nostalgic.
Come to think of it, this was the first time in this life that I’d seen Namgung Cheon-yeong wield his sword for such an extended period.
‘We really are tangled up in quite the mess.’
Namgung Cheon-yeong. Chu Dal’s enemy. The one who ended my previous life. The hope of the Namgung Family, a prestigious clan yet utterly despicable.
But if I speak of our first connection… Yang Hwi and Namgung Cheon-yeong were once comrades in arms.
During the Sachyo Campaign, we wielded our blades against the same enemies on the same front, and while circumstances prevented us from becoming close, we occasionally exchanged jests.
Through that connection, I received many commissions from the Namgung Family, and as you know, it ended in catastrophe.
“Forgive me, Nangjoong Jeil-geom.”
Those were Namgung Cheon-yeong’s final words in my previous life.
Forgive? Bullshit. You should never have done such a thing in the first place, you bastard.
‘Still, that talent of his truly shines.’
Okcheon possessed talent that even I could acknowledge, and he was over a dozen years my senior.
Yet Namgung Cheon-yeong was still meeting Okcheon’s blade.
‘I’d like to see that talent bloom. Though it’s impossible.’
The Namgung Family will fall.
By my hand, and no one else’s.
Deliberately forcing this confrontation instead of simply handing the flag to Okcheon was part of that plan.
“Yang Hwi!”
“Ah, you startled me.”
I must have been deep in thought. I hadn’t even noticed Adu approaching and speaking to me.
“You’re back? Where did you go?”
“I brought rice cakes.”
“Hm?”
He brought rice cakes? That means he already passed, not that he arrived late searching for the flag.
“You found the flag?”
“Yeah!”
“Where?”
“In the direction Yang Hwi told me to go.”
…The flag was actually there?
I’d just carelessly pointed in some direction because I couldn’t be bothered to set it up properly.
Well, lucky bastards really do land on their feet no matter what.
“You found just one flag and submitted it right away? What about your other squad members?”
“Du-sik and Sam-sik said they’re fine. I told them to submit quickly before someone steals it.”
Du-sik and Sam-sik? They’re supposed to be from prestigious families, so there’s no way their names would be like that.
Well, that’s not really important anyway.
“See? If you listen to me, even rice cakes fall from the sky, right?”
“Rice cakes?”
“Yeah. Rice cakes. Keep listening to me from now on, okay?”
“Okay!”
I patted Adu’s shoulder a couple of times and turned my attention back to watching the match.
‘It’ll be over soon. Okcheon’s victory, as expected.’
Namgung Cheon-yeong certainly possessed martial prowess beyond his years.
But Okcheon was no different in that regard.
‘Even so, this is quite one-sided.’
There were several reasons for that.
First, positioning.
Three people bound by iron chains—Namgung Cheon-yeong was in the center, and Okcheon was on the right flank.
Moreover, one of Namgung Cheon-yeong’s squad members couldn’t even walk because of Yang Hwi’s kick.
This meant Okcheon had far more freedom of movement.
‘Namgung Cheon-yeong’s squad members are more incompetent. Or rather, should I say this is a matter of leadership quality?’
Okcheon’s squad members moved in perfect unison according to his instructions.
Even though their elimination was already confirmed—winning would only give them one flag anyway.
Meanwhile, Namgung Cheon-yeong seemed unable to convince his squad members.
“Move properly, damn it!”
Watching his squad members’ expressions every time Namgung Cheon-yeong shouted was quite entertaining.
They couldn’t even manage a proper expression of displeasure, crushed under his authority, but it was obvious they were seething with discontent.
‘It was good that I kicked him from the start. A well-bred young master wouldn’t have refrained from showing irritation in such a situation.’
Namgung Cheon-yeong’s squad members surely understood that, with their elimination already confirmed, gaining his favor was the most practical advantage.
But human hearts don’t move purely by rational calculation.
If the other person was nothing but irritating, the chances of earning his favor were slim.
‘Then you’d want to pretend you didn’t notice and secretly smear shit on him without leaving a trace.’
Had there been no iron chains, the outcome might have been different. After all, a match can be decided in a single exchange.
Though Namgung Cheon-yeong ranked below Okcheon, his martial prowess was more than sufficient to create variables in any situation.
While the odds of victory were relatively low, he might have created variables to turn that slim possibility into reality.
‘In the end, it comes down to the person, not martial skill.’
“Peng Soga-joonim.”
“Speak.”
“Do you need the flag?”
“No. I don’t see how I could withdraw with any better appearance than this.”
Peng Wang had been looking for an opportunity to withdraw while saving face from the start. If he obtained the flag but yielded it to his junior, the picture would be even more beautiful.
Once word spread, people would praise Peng Wang’s magnanimity.
“But you see…”
Suddenly, Peng Wang’s expression turned mischievous.
“Watching their duel, my competitive spirit is rising. I’m thinking of playing a bit longer.”
“…Is it because you seem to want to lift both of those people up?”
“Ah, you caught me.”
He was troublesome right to the end.
“Then the Great Sea Dragon King will torment you terribly, Soga-joonim.”
“Hmm. I don’t think that will happen.
“It will happen. Because I will make it so.”
“What?”
Peng Wang had overlooked something.
A final move he’d been saving in case things didn’t go his way.
“If you don’t forfeit the flag, I will. Then I’ll naturally lose the wager and become the Great Sea Dragon King’s disciple, won’t I?”
“That’s right?”
“It’s awkward to say directly, but I’m confident I’ll be a beloved disciple.”
“Granted. But why?”
Anxiety was beginning to frost over Peng Wang’s face.
“I’ll ask the Cheonmu-sip-jon to thoroughly humiliate Peng Soga-joonim until you’re satisfied.”
“….”
“Even if I fall here, I’ll become a disciple of the Cheonmu-sip-jon. What will you do?”
Peng Wang became like a mute who had eaten honey.
In baduk terms, it was a dead end; in janggi terms, it was checkmate.
“Ahem. It was just a joke.”
Just then, the duel between Namgung Cheon-yeong and Okcheon came to an end.
Okcheon, his sword pointed at Namgung Cheon-yeong’s throat, spoke with a satisfied expression.
“The match is decided! That was a good time! For your age, Namgung Soga-joonim, your skills are exceptional! Hahahaha!”
The distribution of flags began.
First, one each to Jin Yeong-jin and Okcheon.
“I have something to say to all of you. This Peng Wang wishes to yield the opportunity to his juniors and withdraw.”
Peng Wang made a graceful fist salute with his declaration, receiving applause from the onlookers.
As a result, one flag remained.
“That’s right, Namgung Cheon-yeong. Do you want the remaining flag?”
“….”
Namgung Cheon-yeong stood motionless like a stone statue.
Yet in his eyes, a single flame burned fiercely.
Was it greed for the flag?
Or something else?
“The wager for this fight was just one flag. If you want to earn another flag, you’ll need to satisfy different conditions, won’t you?”
“….”
“Beg for it. You can even cry if you want. Then the flag is yours.”
In that instant, murderous intent crystallized in Namgung Cheon-yeong’s eyes.
Ah, it’s been a while. It’s been so long since I’ve felt such genuine killing intent.
“Can’t do it? If the Young Master of the great Namgung Family gets eliminated in the second round of the main tournament, what will the people of Anhuei say? Ah, the people of Gangseong will all be shocked and delighted. After all, by your own words, I’ve unexpectedly made it through.”
“Baek Yang-hwi….”
‘Yes, burn brighter. More! More!’
“So what’ll it be? If you don’t need the flag, I’ll pass it to another contestant.”
Instead of an answer, the grinding sound of teeth echoed out.
And then his teeth cracked, damn it.
Broken teeth cause suffering for life, you know.
“Can’t bring yourself to beg? Does it hurt your pride, being the Young Master of Namgung Family?”
“….”
“Beg for ten counts. After that, it’s over.”
Quietly and slowly, I counted from one to ten.
“Nine. Ten. Still quite the pride, aren’t you? Worthy of a Namgung Family Young Master. The spirit to fall rather than beg!”
Thud.
I threw the flag down in front of Namgung Cheon-yeong.
He never begged in the end, but I’d always planned to give him the flag anyway.
This way would be far more pathetic.
This way he’d burn far brighter.
‘Consider yourself fortunate. I need a worthy rival from the Five Great Families.’
Peng Wang was too unpredictable to use.
Who knows when he’d suddenly yield and back away.
“Your expression is truly amusing. Consider this a gift. See you next time, hehehehe.”
Yang Hwi walked toward the Referee without even looking back.
Namgung Cheon-yeong stared blankly at the flag.
“….”
A moment passed, then an hour, then half a day.
“….”
“Young Master Namgung, if you’re not going to take it, may I pick it up?”
Only the tactless words of a Member of Squad 91 echoed out forlornly.

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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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