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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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One inhale.
One exhale.
He repeated the process of inhaling and exhaling, a deliberate attempt to calm his mind.
It wasn’t as deep as when he meditated, but it wasn’t shallow either. With each breath, the aura within his body circulated.
William closed his mouth and looked ahead.
Hye-ryeong, standing opposite him in the open lobby, held her sword pointed at him with an unusually serious expression. He, too, raised his sword towards her.
Ox Guard.
Ten paces.
It was a considerable distance for ordinary people, but for martial artists, ten paces meant they were always within striking distance. Especially for martial artists who used footwork techniques, this distance was no different from being right next to each other.
In the blink of an eye…
They could be face to face.
Their swords clashed, sparks flying. William immediately closed the distance, pressing his crossguard against Hye-ryeong’s, preventing her sword, which had met his blade dead-on, from escaping.
The movement was instantaneous.
The result followed a fraction of a second later.
Hye-ryeong’s sword vibrated in her hand from the impact against his crossguard. Taking that vibration as his cue, William twisted his sword half a circle and pointed the blade at Hye-ryeong’s neck.
If it had been their first time sparring, she would have been defeated by this move. But Hye-ryeong had sparred with him countless times. As he moved to attack, she used the Haenam Sword Sect’s footwork technique, Flowing Water Steps, moving like flowing water to escape the reach of his blade.
“Your movements have become smoother.”
“Hehe…”
Was she that happy to be praised? William took three steps towards Hye-ryeong, who was grinning from ear to ear, and subtly extended his sword. The tip of his blade aimed for her heart.
Hye-ryeong immediately changed her expression, ducking her upper body and spinning to her left, drawing a diagonal line from low to high. Was she aiming for his chest?
He rotated his sword ninety degrees to the left, smoothly deflecting her attack. Once again, her sword, stopped by his crossguard, created a momentary stalemate.
Now that her attack had been neutralized, she would probably take a step back.
“Oh?”
“Hehe.”
Instead of retreating, she advanced.
Was she determined not to lose the initiative?
Even the strongest martial artist couldn’t display their full potential if they lost the initiative, so Hye-ryeong’s choice wasn’t bad.
It was better to take a step forward than to hesitantly retreat.
The saying “Certain death brings life, certain life brings death” was a truth of actual combat.
Both offense and defense only held meaning when they were in one’s own control. Even martial arts specialized in counterattacks only reached their full potential when one held the initiative.
“You’re mean, Mister. You’re not letting me hit you even once.”
“You’ll die if I let you.”
William lowered his sword, which had been pointed at Hye-ryeong’s neck. She sighed in relief and sat down on the floor, catching her breath.
“Your swordsmanship is strange, Mister. It seems like offense, then it shifts to defense, then back to offense… what was that just now?”
“Have I told you that the further out on the blade you go, the weaker the force becomes?”
“You told me yesterday!”
“Conversely, the closer you get to the base…”
“The stronger the force becomes!”
“That’s why, if you have to block a sword, you have to block it towards the base. As you just saw, I blocked your sword towards the base, locked it against my crossguard, and then twisted my sword to point it at your neck.”
“It’s difficult to deal with because there are no forms…”
“But I can’t use flashy attacks like other martial artists.”
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t that Western arts didn’t have forms. It was just that their forms were practically synonymous with basic techniques. The series of movements connecting one basic technique to another could be considered a form.
“Hmm… but flashiness doesn’t help in actual combat.”
“I wonder…”
If the flashiness was as noticeable as the Huashan Sect’s swordsmanship, it could be a weapon in itself. Flashiness was meant to dazzle the eyes.
William recalled the Pythagorean Swordsmanship he had used on the battlefield.
It wasn’t as flamboyant as a diva on stage, but the isosceles triangles and mathematical formulas drawn in the air were flashy in a different sense. It was a madness that made the onlookers sick.
It wasn’t strange, considering it was a crazy swordsmanship that required studying mathematics to improve one’s realm.
“Isn’t the Haenam Sword Sect’s swordsmanship inherently devoid of flashiness?
It’s a tricky swordsmanship, with its unpredictable attacks and sudden switches to left-handed swordsmanship… but you’ll change your mind if you see truly flashy swordsmanship.”
He hadn’t fought against anyone who used the perfected Haenam Thirty-Six Swordsmanship, so he didn’t know.
He had seen Elder Baek wield his sword, but all he saw was his sword energy spreading like sea mist and his sword swinging in wave-like motions.
“I want to see the Plum Blossom Sword Technique since you mentioned it…”
“You’ll be able to see it at the martial arts tournament.”
“…Do you think I can do well?”
“Are you worried?”
“Yes…”
Hye-ryeong slumped her shoulders and trailed off. Seeing her, usually so energetic, looking listless and covered in sweat, stirred a protective instinct within him.
William crouched down in front of Hye-ryeong and patted her head encouragingly. He seemed to recall hearing that women didn’t like having their hair touched, but Hye-ryeong always cheered up when he patted her head.
Maybe she wasn’t a penguin, but a puppy.
Though she had a rather… ferocious figure for a puppy.
“Mister, I’m going to go wash up.”
“Alright. Come back after you’re done.”
Hye-ryeong stood up and stretched. Her chest naturally jiggled, drawing his gaze. Her sweat-soaked uniform clung to her body, making her movements even more noticeable. He couldn’t help but stare.
“Hehe…”
“Hurry up and wash up.”
“Want to come with me?”
“…Just go.”
“Tch.”
What was with the “tch”? William sighed as he watched Hye-ryeong walk towards the bathhouse.
Every day was a test of his patience.
Wasn’t this supposed to be a Confucian society? Why was she so forward?
He sighed, sheathed his sword, and drank the water he had prepared earlier.
“…The water here tastes awful.”
There was a reason why tea and alcohol were so popular in China.
It was because the plain water tasted like this.
“…Should I meditate while Hye-ryeong is washing up?”
William headed towards the training room.
“Brother Jegal, have you heard the rumors?”
“What rumors?”
“The rumors about a Westerner participating in the martial arts tournament.”
“A Westerner?”
As everyone chatted over drinks, Namgung Hwi, the Azure Dragon Sword, set down his cup and spoke, drawing everyone’s attention.
A Westerner.
It was a word rarely spoken in the inland regions of the Central Plains.
Curiosity filled their eyes.
“Young Master Namgung, is that true?”
“It is.”
Interesting topics were essential for a drinking party. Namgung Hwi, enjoying the attention, grinned and shared the information he had gathered.
“You know that the martial artists from the Haenam Sword Sect arrived at the Wulin Alliance, right? A Westerner entered with them. I haven’t seen him myself, but I heard he’s a giant of a man, seven cheok tall, with a muscular build.”
“A martial artist?”
“Would someone accompanying the Haenam Sword Sect not be a martial artist?”
“He’s not a member of the Haenam Sword Sect, so I wonder where he’s from… hmm.”
“Isn’t it obvious? It’s the Potala Palace. The only Westerners who would enter the Central Plains are from there…”
“Young Master Moyong Jin, the West is larger than you think.”
Moyong Jin tilted his head at Namgung Hwi’s words and said,
“Is that so?”
“According to my uncle, there are countless countries in the West.”
“If it’s from the Elegant Sword, Namgung Cheol, it must be true.”
“No one knows the West better than him.”
Everyone at the table nodded in agreement.
Namgung Cheol, the Elegant Sword.
He loved to travel and had even journeyed to the far reaches of the Western Regions in his youth, so his words were trustworthy. At least, that was the perception among the young martial artists gathered here.
“So, Young Master Namgung, do you have any other information?”
“I heard the Westerner’s nickname is ‘Blue-Eyed Lion.’”
“Blue-Eyed Lion?”
“Ah, the Western martial artist whose name has been circulating lately. He’s traveling with the Haenam Sword Sect?”
“That’s right.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Very few people have interacted with him. But judging by his friendly demeanor with the Haenam Sword Sect members, it seems they have a close relationship.”
“Hmm…”
“A Westerner with a nickname! I look forward to meeting him at the martial arts tournament!”
Paeng Jeok-san, the Fierce Tiger, who had a larger build than most martial artists, laughed heartily and emptied his bottle of alcohol in one gulp. Namgung Hwi chuckled at his boisterous behavior and said,
“A clash between two giants… that would be interesting.”
“Haha! I’ll defeat that Westerner with my Five Tiger Severing Blade!”
“That would be fun to watch.”
Jegal Hyeon-sang, the White-Haired Scholar, fiddled with his teacup, observing the noisy trio.
‘Brother Wi, I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.’
He smiled at the unexpected reunion.
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