Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 259

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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 259
After Hyeon Geom’s declaration of challenge, the eve festival commenced.
This eve festival carried a markedly different atmosphere than before.
“It’s quite crowded.”
“Indeed, Father. It should have been sparse, yet here we are.”
Yang Hwi, Baek Moo-ryang, and other members of the Baek Family occupied the space prepared for them.
Despite being a venue designated for the sect of a semi-finalist, it felt cramped.
The reason was simple.
“Surely the eve festival of the Dragon-Slaying Tournament only permits attendance from the sect of the advancing participant. I cannot fathom why this has changed. Seol, have you heard anything of this?”
Baek Heon-so, recovered from his injuries, was also present.
Baek Heon-so shook his head.
“I too am ignorant of the reason, sir.”
The vast banquet hall was packed with people.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that more than half of the martial artists of Baek Do had gathered here.
A sudden premonition swept through me.
‘Is it today?’
As I harbored such thoughts, someone approached.
“Hwi’s Younger Brother.”
“Elder Dang.”
Beside Dang-gun stood the Dang Family Head and other members of the Dang Family.
“Dang Family Head. You have arrived.”
The subordinates rose first, and Baek Moo-ryang also offered his respects to the Dang Family Head.
“Dang Family Head.”
“Baek Family Head. Have you received any advance notice regarding this gathering? I inquire because I wonder if the circumstances differ from those of the advancing participant’s family.”
“We too have been perplexed by this matter.”
As the heads of the two families conversed, people from various sects continued to enter the banquet hall.
Then, suddenly, the surroundings fell silent and all eyes converged upon a single point.
Without looking, it was obvious who had arrived.
‘The Jegal Family has come.’
“Elder Brother.”
A voice that felt stiff rather than its usual liveliness, perhaps due to the crowd.
It was Jegal Seol-ha.
“Brother! Your younger sister has arrived!”
“Jegal Soga-joonim. This is an official gathering—would it not be fitting to maintain proper decorum?”
“Ah, how disheartening such words are.”
Baek Moo-ryang and Jegal Seon exchanged brief greetings, after which the heads of the three families began their discussion.
“The Jegal Family too has received no prior knowledge of today’s events.”
Even the Five Great Families were unaware?
This was clearly no ordinary matter.
-Elder Brother, do you know anything about this?
-Gathering people together for what? It’s obvious. They’re going to make some kind of major announcement.
It was clear.
Today, the establishment of the Martial Alliance would be officially announced.

* * *
It happened exactly as I predicted.
The moment the banquet hall filled without a single empty seat, the Mudang Sect dropped their bombshell.
“Decades ago, the righteous martial world suffered tremendous losses. The Hwa-san Sect, the greatest sword school under heaven, lost so many masters that their advanced techniques fell into disuse, and among the Five Great Families, the Hwangbo Family was brought to the brink of annihilation.”
The solemn voice of the Taeguk Sword Master, standing on the platform with his disciples.
“The Sword King’s Massacre. The blood spilled by traps orchestrated by Hyeol Sa-ryeon formed rivers, corpses piled like mountains and rotted, turning the entire region into a land of death.”
Because of that massacre, Honam remained a demonic territory even now.
‘A pretext. Well, if it’s the Sword King’s Massacre, it’s perfect as a facade for uniting the righteous path.’
After all, the demonic cults’ schism had been considered the greatest calamity in martial history until recently.
“The two greatest calamities of the world—the demonic cults. Everyone will agree. All warriors of the righteous path bear the duty to completely annihilate this evil gang called Hyeol Sa-ryeon.”
Dozens of light swords materialized around the Taeguk Sword Master.
Simultaneously, a heavy and majestic aura erupted.
It was an overwhelming sight.
“Therefore, I proclaim! For the peace of all under heaven and for justice standing righteous! Our Mudang Sect! Hereby announces to the world the establishment of the Martial Alliance, the grand coalition of all righteous martial sects!”
Cheers erupted from all directions.
“Waaaaaaaaaa!”
“Waaaaaaaaaa!”
“Waaaaaaaaaa!”
“Martial Alliance! Long live! Long live!”
“May the spirit of righteousness endure forever!”
“Waaaaaaaaaa!”
It was truly thunderous. The vast banquet hall resonated with a deafening ring.
‘Hmph, that old Sword Master really is a cunning man. He struck at our blind spot like this.’
To create such an occasion before Hyeon Geom even became Jeil-ryong.
I had anticipated and prepared for this to happen after the finals, but this threw me slightly off balance.
‘The main family, the Dang Family, and the Jegal Family have been completely excluded.’
Overall, the number of sects that hadn’t heard about the Martial Alliance was roughly three out of ten.
In other words, even adding the seven out of ten righteous sects that didn’t attend, more than half of the righteous martial world had already agreed to join the Martial Alliance.
‘What exactly did they promise to seduce them this thoroughly already?’
Transmissions were flying back and forth in chaos.
-Baek Family Head. Did you know about this?
-Not at all. The Dang Family Head seems equally in the dark.
-The Jegal Family is one of the Five Great Families, so they should have known… but their expressions suggest they didn’t.
Jegal Seon’s face was filled with shock and fury.
It couldn’t be helped. They were establishing an organization as massive as the Martial Alliance, yet they excluded the Jegal Family—one of the Five Great Families—from prior discussions.
No matter how much the Mudang Sect and the Jegal Family competed over Honam… it was a tremendous humiliation for the Jegal Family.
“Jegal Brother. Calm yourself for now.”
“Let go of me, Elder!”
“If you’re not thinking of drawing your sword, then please sit down.”
Listening to Father and Jegal Seon’s conversation, a sudden thought crossed my mind.
‘The ranks of the Murim Alliance could grow larger than expected.’
I had planned to recruit him eventually, but things were moving faster than anticipated.
Looking at it this way, the establishment of the Murim Alliance didn’t seem entirely bad.
‘The Murim Alliance. The Murim Alliance, indeed.’
The founding of the Murim Alliance, led by the Shaman, would lead to the Righteous-Demonic War.
A full-scale war between the Demonic Sect’s foremost power, Hyeol Sa-ryeon, and the Baek Do alliance.
This resulted in a near-mutual destruction, and the weakened Murim was swept away by the blood of the Three Great Demonic Sects.
‘The chaos of the demonic sects must be stopped. Even if it’s just to kill that bastard Cheonma.’
The Shaman’s guidance of mutual creation and mutual destruction. The path the Taeguk Sword Master walked was certainly righteous, but the direction was wrong.
His sense of chivalry would only birth more blood.
Therefore, the establishment of the Murim Alliance, the beginning of everything, must be stopped.
‘But truthfully, there’s nothing I can do alone.’
I absolutely cannot stop it.
The opponent is the Mudang Sect targeting the position of greatest under heaven, and the Cheonmu-sip-jon Taeguk Sword Master.
Meanwhile, this side has only recently earned the title of Kangsu’s greatest, the Baek Family, and despite everything, I’m merely the Gaecheon Geomryong, a late-stage master.
How could a mere insect defy the will of a giant?
But….
‘There is no impossibility in this world. It’s merely that I haven’t found the way to make it possible.’
Smirking to myself, I recalled a move I had prepared in advance.
It was merely a single brushstroke, but a painting could be ruined by just one stroke of ink.
‘Of course, I’ll need to gather various other conditions.’
One of them being to break the Current Sword Daoist.
Furthermore, to seize the reputation of the greatest late-stage master under heaven and gain at least a voice in matters.
So now was the time to fight.
-Current Sword Daoist.
The Current Sword Daoist, who received my transmission, turned his gaze toward me.
-Let us create a martial contest that will make everyone marvel and tremble.
Only then will the fervor given to the victor burn all the hotter.
-Bin-do will surely emerge victorious.
Ah, is that so.
Then let’s give it a try.
-I look forward to it.

* * *
The sky hung heavy and gray, dark enough that rain could pour down at any moment.
Yet the spectator stands surrounding the martial arts arena were packed with onlookers.
“We can’t miss this martial competition just because of the weather!”
“You’re right. We get to witness the sword of the Current Sword Daoist himself.”
Until now, the Current Sword Daoist had never displayed a particularly thrilling match.
Warriors with discerning eyes had expressed admiration, but his style of blocking preemptively and striking preemptively made his demonstrations seem tedious to ordinary spectators.
Of course, this applied only to his matches before today.
“To think we’d witness a disciple of the Martial Alliance Leader competing. This is my first time.”
“Wasn’t the Martial Alliance the first organization to emerge throughout the entire history of the martial world?”
To be precise, the Martial Alliance hadn’t actually been established yet.
The Taeguk Sword Master had merely announced its founding; the organization itself wasn’t complete.
Nevertheless, the spectators regarded the Mudang Sect disciples with an entirely different perspective.
“I wonder how he’ll handle the Gaecheon Geomryong.”
“Couldn’t the Gaecheon Geomryong win?”
“Fool, in every single match so far, the Current Sword Daoist has dominated his opponents like an adult handling a child.”
Despite the tedious matches, the Current Sword Daoist had long been regarded as the closest contender to Jeil-ryong.
This much was undeniable.
“Of course, the Gaecheon Geomryong was also once a candidate for Jeil-ryong, but…”
“Not anymore.”
“You think so too?”
“An ambush left him with injuries too severe to compete.”
“It’s unthinkable for a warrior. And the aftereffects of those wounds must still linger…”
An ambush? Losing to Nang Hon, who’d been exposed as a demonic spy?
Regardless of his previous reputation and accomplishments, it was now clear he lacked the qualifications to reach the semifinals.
A warrior’s reputation shifts dramatically with the slightest difference.
In the eyes of the people, Yang Hwi was no longer a candidate for Jeil-ryong.
“Come now, place your bets! Wager on the Gaecheon Geomryong and you’ll win thirty times your stake! A chance to reverse your fortune in a single day awaits!”
“Ah, you there. I’ll bet on the Mudang’s Taeguk Hyeon-ryong.”
“I’m putting ten silver coins on the Current Sword Daoist!”
Without exception, the spectators threw themselves into gambling on the match, and Yang Hwi’s odds climbed to fifty times.
“At these odds, it’s not worth betting.”
“Why waste gold coins just to gain a few copper pieces? I’d rather not bother.”
Just as disappointed voices circulated, the Gaecheon Geomryong’s odds suddenly plummeted to twenty times.
Quite a curious thing.

* * *
“Semi-finals of the Dragon’s Trial! The long-awaited duel begins! Two heroes, the Taeguk Current Dragon and the Gaecheon Sword Dragon, take the stage!”
I leaped onto the arena with a light bound.
In contrast, Hyeon Geom walked slowly and took his position across from me.
“Hyeon Geom!”
“Hyeon Geom!”
“Hyeon Geom!”
One-sided cheers. Well, it didn’t matter.
Because I could hear familiar voices mixed in among them.
“Brother! Do your best!”
“You can lose! Let me have some fun too!”
“Hwi, win this.”
“Hwi, younger brother!”
“Yang Hwi! Come back victorious!”
Amid the cacophony surrounding me, one voice cut through distinctly—like a jade bead rolling across a glass tray.
“Brother! Show them what you’re made of!”
Hyeon Geom’s eyes flickered.
No doubt toward Jegal Seol-ha, who sat behind him.
I considered needling him a bit.
“Are you envious?”
Hyeon Geom nodded calmly.
“I am. A strange emotion.”
Suddenly I was curious. This man didn’t seem like the type to fall for a woman based on appearance alone.
No matter how stunningly beautiful Seol-ha was, Hyeon Geom wasn’t an ordinary person either.
“I have a question. Why did you come to like Seol-ha?”
“I don’t know. From the moment I first saw her, she was etched into my eyes. As if it were fate itself.”
I thought briefly that his words were overblown.
Fate. Fate, he said.
Perhaps because I’d grown tired of hearing about flow and destiny not long ago.
It felt strange.
“Perhaps it truly is fate.”
“If that is so, then the victor of this duel would be Bin-do.”
Why was he steering the conversation that way?
“I’ll do my best. So show me yours.”
“Don’t worry.”
I had already decided not to hold back anymore.
I had been confident of taking first place in the later matches and was playing around when I encountered the Cheonma.
Well, to be precise, I hadn’t quite been playing around yet.
But it was enough to shift my mindset.
‘Hyeon Geom… he’s truly formidable. Even with regression, he’s not someone to be underestimated.’
Whether the Current Sword Daoist could seize victory—if I had to say, there was indeed a possibility.
But.
‘Regardless of whose disciple he is, losing to someone merely in the late stages of the Immortal Realm would change nothing.’
Victory in this martial contest would become the cornerstone adorning the final chapter of the Yong-Bong Assembly.
Therefore, I had to win.
“Current Sword Daoist.”
The moment I dropped the formal speech, a flicker of interest crossed his eyes.
“Speak.”
With a soft rasp, I drew my blade and let my left hand hang downward.
“I won’t go easy on you, so don’t let your guard down.”
From my left hand bloomed a pristine white aura.
Strands of light wove together, taking the form of a sword.
A new form of the Gaecheon Sword—devised to incorporate Yeo Dong-bin’s sword essence into my body.
“Surely not…!”
The Current Sword Daoist recognized the true intent contained within the Twin White Eight-Flower Heaven.
Moreover, commotion erupted from the Mudang Sect’s side.
“A left hand transformed into a sword. What dwells within it is Intent. Could it be… Dual Intent? But how could you possibly…?”
“Who knows. What do you think?”
Though Cheonma called it Dual Intent, the clue I obtained when creating the Twin White Eight-Flower Heaven undoubtedly came from the Shaman’s Dual Intent Heart Method.
A supreme divine technique of unparalleled brilliance that allowed one to harbor two intents when ordinarily only one could exist in a single life.
“Current Sword Daoist, what about you? Is Dual Intent possible for you?”
“….”
It was impossible.
No matter how gifted by nature or how much a disciple of the Geom-ong, such a thing was absolutely impossible.
The Dual Intent divine technique was that transcendent and insurmountable.
“Then perhaps this Gaecheon Geomryong should impart teachings on two intents to the Mudang’s Taeguk Current Dragon?”
What Cheonma called Dual Intent was somewhat different from the Dual Intent Heart Method—a different martial principle altogether.
Well, they looked similar enough on the surface.
Using martial arts that appeared to be the Mudang’s own against the Mudang Sect’s disciples.
Quite an amusing situation, wasn’t it?
With a smirk, I swung the blades in both my hands.
Gaecheon One Hundred Eight Sword—Fourth Form, Opening Move: White Feather Pressing Stillness
Divine Variation Opening: Heavenly Wing Pressing Peak
‘Here, the sword technique that melted down your fourth form.’
Geom Seon Yeo Dong-bin’s Heaven Escape Sword Method—its first move, Heavenly Pressure.
For the sake of the spectacle, I should carve it in first before beginning.

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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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