Ultimate Martial Venerable - Chapter 35

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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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Episode 35. I Won’t Go to Cheonggeom Academy
The moment Yeonmu Plaza came into view, screams erupted among thousands of new disciples.
The ground, now hundreds of feet below, had shrunk to the size of a palm. People who’d lost their footing clutched at each other’s robes, and some simply collapsed where they stood.
Yuk Beom felt the vibrations beneath his feet, the Weaponless Heavy Sword strapped across his back.

A steady tremor rippled through the enormous Yeonmu Plaza.

‘It’s not over yet.’

The premonition became reality in an instant.
Crack-crack-crack!
The blue-stone floor split like a go board. The fractured earth broke apart into uniform sections, scattering into the sky as hundreds of small islands.
Only the central ground where thousands had been standing remained intact.
A single instructor in silver martial robes appeared on each island.

“New disciples, each of you choose a Martial Stage!”

A voice booming from above shook the entire plaza.

“Two at a time will face off, and the matches continue until only ten remain!”

Before the announcement even finished, the front rows of disciples shot forward.
Those who’d waited for more explanation saw their faces go pale.
Yuk Beom didn’t hesitate.
He pushed off the blue stone with his toes and soared through the air, landing on the nearest island just as a heavily built young man touched down on the opposite side.
A third disciple tried to leap up, but the instructor in the center of the island merely turned his gaze.

“Two is the limit. Find another place.”

The latecomer quickly changed direction.
Laughter echoed from another island—Hwan Wol’s voice.

“Turtle! If you just stand there gawking, you won’t even get a spot!”

Yuk Myeong, who’d been waiting in the center, ground his teeth and launched himself toward a distant Martial Stage.

“Who are you calling turtle!”
“You can yell while you’re running!”

In moments, every island had filled with two disciples each.
Only then did the voice from above call out again.

“All those who failed to claim a Martial Stage are eliminated. Proceed to the Seo Hyang Gak

and await further selection.”

Hundreds of disciples frozen in the center stood paralyzed.

“Wait! You never mentioned such a rule!”
“How can you eliminate us without even giving us a chance to fight!”

Complaints rippled through the crowd in an instant.
In that moment, the clear sky darkened with thunderclouds.
Thunder rumbled.
Between flashes of lightning, a face as massive as a mountain peak appeared. Each movement of its eyes pressed down on the disciples’ bodies.

“When has the world ever told you all its rules beforehand?”

A voice like thunder itself shook the islands hanging in the void.

“Fall behind by a single step, and you lose the advantage. Make one miscalculation, and you lose your life. Everything people say after they’ve lost is nothing but excuses.”

Bang!
A bolt of lightning tore through the space between islands and struck the ground. The earth a hundred paces below caved inward, and black smoke billowed upward.

“Whoever wishes to keep talking—step forward now. I, Cheon Gye, shall test you myself.”

The voices of protest died at once.
Kang Gyeong, the instructor standing across from Yuk Beom, laughed like a man exhaling.

“That’s the academy’s enforcer. Step out of line, and lightning like that comes down on your head. Remember it.”
“Does it happen every year?”
“Every year, someone falls for it.”

Kkamangi sat docile at the instructor’s feet until he looked up at the vast face in the sky. The moment a small flame flickered in his mouth, Kang Gyeong pressed the creature’s head down urgently.

“Don’t bite that thing.”

Kkamangi’s ears drooped.

“The first match begins!”

Jang Han, facing him, drew a long saber.

“Just my luck. Of all people, my first opponent wields a heavy sword—and swings it like some village bumpkin.”

Yuk Beom drew the Weaponless Heavy Sword and held it in one hand.
The moment the blade touched ground, the entire island sang.
The smile faded from Jang Han’s mouth.

“Begin.”

The saber flew first at Kang Gyeong’s word.
Yuk Beom’s arm moved in answer.
The Fusion Strong Energy channeled through the blade drove Jang Han’s saber back.

Heavy Sword Formula, Qi-Breaking Form.

The follow-up strike landed square across his chest.
Bang!
The large body tumbled to the island’s edge and lay unconscious.
Kang Gyeong’s eyes moved back and forth between Jang Han and Yuk Beom.

“Winner: Yuk Beom.”
“When does my next opponent arrive?”
“You just sent a man flying. At least pretend to catch your breath.”
“I wasn’t struggling much.”

The instructor’s mouth twitched faintly.
The second opponent was a young man wielding a long saber.
Each movement of his blade shattered sunlight, and fragments of radiance poured in from both sides. Yet the dazzling flashes of his saber could not pierce the broad face of the Weaponless Heavy Sword.
After two collisions, the long saber spun through the air and flew from his grip.
Yuk Beom’s blade stopped an inch from the young man’s throat.

“I’ve lost.”

Her opponent gazed down at her blade in deflation.

“Was my swordwork truly that sloppy?”
“It was a pleasure to watch.”
“That only makes it worse.”

The third woman to ascend made her legs her primary weapon.
Wind-splitting kicks lashed out in quick succession, aiming for ribs and temples alike. Yuk Beom took the blows on his forearms and shoulders, his sword sheathed.
Thwack! Thwack!
The woman’s expression grew increasingly peculiar.

“Wait a moment.”
“What is it?”
“Am I striking a person, or a wall?”

Rather than answer, Yuk Beom stepped forward, and she retreated all the way to the edge of the platform.

“That’s enough. If I keep going, I’ll just break my own legs.”

As she raised her hand in defeat, laughter erupted from the observers below.
The fourth opponent wielded a blade in his left hand.
His swordwork was sharp, but his mouth was faster still.

“All you heavy-sword wielders are the same. Slow as molasses, and once I get close, there’s nothing you can—”

Yuk Beom evaded the first strike.

“Lucky, aren’t you? Next time I’ll take your shoulder—”

The second strike also missed.

“You talk too much.”
“What?”

Yuk Beom’s fist, drawn from his sheathed blade, drove into the man’s abdomen.

Destruction Collapse Mountain Fist.

Bang!
The left-handed swordsman flew beyond the platform’s edge. Had the instructor below not caught him with Strong Energy, he would have plummeted all the way to the ground.
Kang Gyeong clicked his tongue.

“Couldn’t you hold back just a little?”
“I became absorbed in the match and forgot to regulate my force.”
“Well, at least you’re honest.”

As successive bouts continued, the floating platforms in the air dwindled rapidly.
Then, on the central Martial Stage, a burst of crimson flame erupted.
Hwan Wol’s Dual Daggers deflected her opponent’s weapon aside, coming to rest before his throat.
Among the ten positions in the sky, a white-haired woman looked down upon her.

“That one requires no further evaluation.”

A cold voice carried across the entire Yeonmu Plaza.

“Hwan Wol. The Yin-Yang Academy

will take you in.”

Hwan Wol didn’t hesitate. She sheathed her daggers.

“Good. I came here intending to go there anyway.”

As she descended from the Martial Stage, she suddenly turned back.

“Yuk Beom!”

Dozens of eyes across the platforms shifted at once.

“I’m leaving first! If you can manage it, come to the Yin-Yang Academy!”

Yuk Beom waved his hand instead of answering.

‘Not going.’

His opponent seized the moment and drove a fist forward.
The blade of the Weaponless Heavy Sword came down, pinning his opponent’s body to the ground.

“Keep your eyes on the match.”
“You’re the one who got distracted!”
“Yet you’re the one who was hit.”

The opponent writhed for a moment, then finally slapped the ground in surrender.
From high above, watching the scene, Hyeon Jin, a Sageun of the Blue Sword Academy,

laughed.

“That boy with the heavy sword—not bad. The Blue Sword Academy will take him.”

The message reached Kang Gyeong through transmission.
The instructor finished the match and called Yuk Beom over.

“You’re fortunate. Sageun Hyeon Jin has personally selected you. If you accept now, you won’t need to complete the remaining matches.”

Envy flashed across the faces of the other new disciples.
The Blue Sword Academy was the second-strongest of the Nine Branch Academies. The chance to enter with a promise of direct instruction from a Sageun was something anyone would want to seize.

“I decline.”

Kang Gyeong blinked.

“To where?”
“The Blue Sword Academy.”
“No, I’m asking because I think I may have misheard.”
“You heard correctly.”
“Sageun Hyeon Jin called for you himself. If you just enter, you might receive his personal instruction.”
“I understand.”
“Yet you refuse?”

Yuk Beom gazed at the remaining platforms and readjusted his grip on the heavy sword.

“I have somewhere else I need to go. Shall we continue?”

Hyeon Jin’s eyebrows twitched as the message reached him.
Beside him, a portly man with his belly thrust out let out the first laugh.

“Ha! A kid wielding a Heavy Sword just knocked out the Blue Sword Academy. Hyeon Jin, isn’t that the rumor—that you can’t teach swordsmanship?”
“Il Cheong, close your mouth.”
“Better than dragging in someone unwilling and losing face over it.”

Mong Un, a Sageun from Emblem Tomb Academy, watched Yuk Beom with newfound interest.

“Do you think he’s aiming for the Yin-Yang Academy?”

Seong Yeon, the white-haired Sageun, didn’t change his expression at all.

“His foundation is sound. Let’s watch more before we decide.”

Only dozens of new disciples remained now.
The next challenger came forward and bowed respectfully.

“I am Su Won.”
“I am Yuk Beom.”

Su Won held a blade in one hand and a sword in the other.
The blade in his left hand hung heavy, aimed low, while the sword in his right hand moved with quick, probing strikes. Though one person wielded two entirely different weapons, they moved without interfering with each other.
Yuk Myeong’s expression hardened as he watched from below.
Su Won was the younger brother of Su Mu Jeong, a master of Cheonin Academy.

He had reached the Second Realm of Inner Energy and had mastered his family’s Combined Blade-Sword Technique.

“Turtle. Yuk Myeong.”

An unwelcome voice came from beside him.
Jeon Pung was approaching with Su Mu Jeong.

“Your younger brother’s luck runs out here, it seems.”
“Watch till the end.”
“Oh, you have faith in something?”

Jeon Pung’s smile deepened.

“Then let’s wager. If Yuk Beom loses, you’ll be my errand boy for a year. Whether it’s laundry or collecting herbs, if I say run, you run. If I say stop, you stop.”
“And if I win?”
“I’ll do the same for you.”

Snickers rippled through the crowd.
Yuk Myeong looked at the back of the figure on the Martial Stage.
The one who’d endured three moves from Gwak Jin Hyeok. The one who’d broken Mak Lim and drawn his sword first in front of the Mak family’s heirs.
The hesitation drained from his clenched fists.

“Fine. Don’t back out.”
“Ha! From today on, better prepare for laundry—”
“Who said you’d be doing his laundry?”

Yuk Myeong’s gaze wasn’t on Jeon Pung, but on Yuk Beom.

“Yuk Beom wins.”

Some distance away, Mak Un Bi stood with arms crossed, looking up at the Martial Stage.

“Laugh all you want now. Yuk Beom isn’t the kind of new disciple you know.”

When someone asked why, the corner of Mak Un Bi’s mouth twisted.

“If you don’t believe my word, then put everything you have on the wager.”

From the Emblem Tomb Academy’s viewing stand, Jang Wol Ham leaned against her senior beside her.

“That’s him. The one who humiliated me.”
“What would you like me to do?”
“I wish he were dead.”

The light laughter that had been playing at her senior’s lips faltered for a moment. But he soon pulled her closer by the waist.

“Ways can be made if needed.”

At that instant, on the Martial Stage, the blade and sword moved simultaneously.
Su Won’s two attacks differed in both direction and speed. Blocking one meant the other slipped through.
The broad face of the Weaponless Heavy Sword received the onslaught of strikes.
Clang! Clang-clang!
Dozens of collisions followed in succession.
One sword point sliced through Yuk Beom’s sleeve and grazed his skin.
Yet what remained was merely a faint white mark.
Rather, Su Won’s palm reddened as if scorched by heat.

“What on earth is your body made of?”
“I’ve eaten a great deal of meat.”
“Is this really the time for jests?”
“You asked, so I answered.”

Su Won’s breathing grew ragged.
He widened the distance and crossed his blade and sword before his chest.
Su Mu Jeong below’s eyes flashed with light.

“It ends now. Droplet Water Technique, Blade-Sword Rain.”

In an instant, the forms of both weapons vanished.
Dense afterimages, like rain streaking the sky, enveloped Yuk Beom’s entire body.
There was nowhere to evade.
Yuk Beom drew upon the Blazing Gold Body.

Red flames erupted across his skin.
Kkamangi, lying at Kang Gyeong’s feet, sprang upright. The moment his eyes blazed with light, a single streak of black flame wove through the crimson fire.

‘This is…’

Kkamangi’s power reached him without him even activating Spirit Beast Fusion.
There was no time to think.
As Yuk Beom drove Fusion Strong Energy into the blade, red and black flames coiled around the Weaponless Heavy Sword.
It was a power even Yuk Beom himself had not anticipated.
Yuk Beom swung the heavy sword.
One blade cleaved straight through the afterimages of the blade and sword that had been raining down.
Boom!
Flames exploded, and the floating island tilted sharply.
Su Won’s blade and sword slipped from his grip. His body flew to the opposite side of the island, rolling across the ground several times before finally coming to rest.
No one could speak at once.
Jeon Pung’s laughter remained frozen at the corner of his mouth.

Su Mu Jeong’s mouth hung open in shock, and he couldn’t seem to close it.
Yuk Myeong slowly unclenched his fists.

“One year.”

Only then did Jeon Pung turn his head.

“What?”
“Start with my laundry.”

Before Jeon Pung could protest, laughter erupted from the crowd.
On the Martial Stage, Kang Gyeong was checking on Su Won, who had lost consciousness.
Even the Sageuns in the high sky had stopped laughing lightly.
Sageun Sin Do leaned forward first.

“Hyeon Jin, if that boy doesn’t go to Cheonggeom Academy, we at Hengsan Academy will take him. I’ll grant him a Spirit Beast Fusion technique of the superior rank immediately.”

“Would a boy who rejected me really come to you?”

Even as the two Sageuns bickered, Sageun Seong Yeon’s gaze never left Yuk Beom’s blade.

“Director.”
“I saw it too.”

The Martial Arts Academy director’s eyes narrowed.

“That boy’s Strong Energy is not ordinary Strong Energy.”

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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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