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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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Since they were going to eat anyway, he decided to bring Jang Sam along, who seemed awkward being alone and friendless at the Martial Alliance headquarters.
“Jang Sam, we’re going to eat. Want to come?”
“Of course, I’d love to. Buy me lots of delicious food, I had a really tough time getting here.”
“I’m not paying.”
He jerked his chin towards Xue Yuehua, who was beaming with a smug expression.
“Mooching off a girl, and even inviting someone else when it’s not even your money.”
Jang Sam’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Mancheon.
“I see the seeds of a kept man sprouting. Sima Mancheon, more like Sima Kept-Man.”
The brat sure knew how to push his buttons after a long time apart. Unable to refute him, Mancheon lightly whacked him with Taegu-zzang.
“Be quiet!”
“Ouch!?”
Anyway, since they were at the Martial Alliance headquarters, he suggested they invite Wang Meiyang, his little master, to join them, but…
she was apparently sleeping, perhaps because her younger body needed more rest, or perhaps because she was exhausted from trying to figure out how to counter the Ancient Tomb Sect’s techniques.
So, they decided to go without her.
Still, she would be hungry when she woke up, so…
he should buy her some dumplings on the way back.
“Come on, come on, let’s go!”
“Why is that young lady so excited?”
Jang Sam whispered to Mancheon, looking at Yuehua, who was leading the way with a bright smile.
“I don’t know, maybe something good happened.”
“She’s probably excited to see her brother.”
Xiaoshao, who had been watching Yuehua from behind, explained.
“Brother?”
Come to think of it, she always introduced herself as the younger sister of the Ice Dragon, Xue Feng.
“Yes, his name is Xue Mudan. He’s known as the Ice Dragon among martial artists.”
“He’s staying at an inn near the Martial Alliance headquarters to participate in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering. He must have heard that Yuehua and I arrived and sent someone to invite us to dinner.”
Mudan (牡丹). The male character mu (牡) and the red character dan (丹).
It meant the king of flowers, the peony.
The youngest daughter’s name meant moon flower, and the son’s name meant king of flowers.
Whatever the reason, the Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace seemed to really love flowers. Perhaps living in a cold region where ornamental plants didn’t thrive made him appreciate them even more?
“Hmph~ Sima Mancheon! You’re quite capable, handsome, and eye-catching!”
Yuehua’s golden eyes sparkled, her pride swelling like a puffed-up sparrow.
“But in front of my brother, you’re just a baby seal trembling in fear before its natural predator, the white wolf!”
If you encountered your natural predator in the wild, you’d just die.
He had thought he was just going to get a free meal, but he was walking into a death trap. How shocking.
And he had noticed it before, but she really liked baby seals.
‘Awoo~!’
Well, baby seals crying and rolling around in the snow were cute. He liked them too.
Anyway, it was good that the siblings had a close relationship.
‘Brother.’
Beautiful red eyes, porcelain-white skin, a polite demeanor.
Unlike him, a rambunctious child, she exuded the elegance of a noble family.
The image of his cute younger sister came to mind.
‘I wonder how Yeonhwa is doing? Is she eating well?’
She was a lonely child, despite not showing it outwardly, so he worried about her.
Since she was coming to the Martial Alliance headquarters with his father, they would meet soon. It would be a good opportunity to introduce her to Gwahae.
He glanced down at Xiaoshao, who was walking gracefully beside him, matching his pace.
Of course, he should also introduce her to his new sworn brother, Xiaoshao.
It would be nice to have everyone gather together sometime.
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As they entered the inn with a large signboard that read “Dragon Gate Inn,”
the first thing that caught his eye was a painting of a carp swimming upstream against a waterfall, hanging in the center of the inn.
“Which martial artist do you think will earn the title of ‘Dragon’ at this Dragon-Phoenix Gathering?”
“It has to be someone here, right?”
“Hahaha~ Indeed! Let’s raise a toast to the future Dragon!”
Numerous young martial artists, the rising stars of various sects, were seated throughout the inn.
So that was why it was called the Dragon Gate Inn.
Dragon Gate (登龍門) – A legendary gate in the upper reaches of the Yellow River. It was said that a carp that leaped over this gate would transform into a dragon.
The main customers of this inn seemed to be aspiring martial artists, full of youthful energy, who had come here to make a name for themselves.
Perhaps that was why this inn had the most lavish interior he had seen so far.
It was clearly a place where direct descendants of noble families and the top disciples of the Nine Great Sects… or rather, the Eight Great Sects, excluding the beggar gang, stayed.
“It’s a bit noisy, but the food is definitely good here.”
Xiaoshao, who seemed to have been to the Dragon Gate Inn before, guided him with a faint smile.
“We have a room reserved on the second floor, so let’s go up.”
Just as they were about to climb the stairs,
“Senior Brother? Senior Brother Sima, is that you!?”
One of the martial artists seated at a table stood up and approached them enthusiastically.
“It’s me! Quan Cong! You saved my life before! Hey, Tao Jun, come over here!”
He remembered them. The aspiring martial artists he had met at the inn in Bai Hua Town.
Quan Cong of the Zhongnan Sect and Tao Jun of the Qingcheng Sect, and…
-Click-clack click-clack
“Young Master Nangong, it’s been a while. How have you been?”
Tang Mei-niang, the Poison Phoenix of the Sichuan Tang Family, her alluring eyes scanning Xiaoshao’s body.
“I haven’t been well. My beloved fiancé abandoned me.”
It was Tang Mei-niang who had distanced herself first, saying she needed to focus on her poison research, but that didn’t matter. She just wanted to tease, torment, and play with the little prince.
Tang Mei-niang’s words caused a stir, drawing many curious gazes.
“The Poison Phoenix’s fiancé… and the young master of the Nangong Family… Could it be?!”
“That little kid… is the Sword Dragon, Nangong Xiaoshao?”
“So he’s participating in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering… The birth of the True Dragon…?”
He, too, was surprised and looked down at Xiaoshao.
‘What…? My Nangong… brother… had a fiancée…?’
But now that he thought about it, she looked like a girl.
He had simply assumed she was a girl disguised as a boy for some reason, but he had never actually confirmed her gender.
But… he had seen the curves of her body when she was wet from the rain!
‘Though her chest was small.’
Anyway! She smelled nice! And she always insisted on separate rooms!
And she always had bathwater prepared in her room! Anyone would think she was a girl disguised as a boy!
Otherwise, he would be a creepy gay guy who buried his face in an older brother’s chest while drunk.
This was a matter of pride for Sima Mancheon, the genius who could deceive even the heavens.
Well, rather than agonizing over it alone, it would be better to ask Xiaoshao directly.
If she didn’t want to tell him, there was nothing he could do, but…
since he wanted to remain friends with her, it was a matter he would have to address eventually.
Xiaoshao, who had simply wanted to enjoy a pleasant meal and conversation with Mancheon,
“It’s an arrangement made by our families. I’m sure you don’t feel the same way.”
drew a line coldly, her face hardening at the unwanted commotion and Tang Mei-niang’s taunts.
She looked at Tang Mei-niang with a coldness she never showed to Yuehua, her family member who needed her care, or Mancheon, her friend and savior.
“I have a prior engagement, so excuse me.”
Humiliated by her cold demeanor, Tang Mei-niang’s face contorted slightly, her eyes twitching.
“Young Master Nangong! That’s a bit harsh!”
Quan Cong, who had a crush on Tang Mei-niang and harbored resentment towards Xiaoshao, her fiancé, stepped forward.
“Apologize to Lady Tang right now!”
Quan Cong’s outburst, the gathering crowd, the heated atmosphere.
“D-do… something…”
Yuehua, trembling like a baby seal caught by an arctic expedition, tugged at Mancheon’s sleeve.
“Alright, alright, stop pulling.”
This was where his shamelessness came in handy.
He stepped between the three of them with a brazen face, his back half-covering Xiaoshao protectively.
“Everyone, please calm down…”
And at that moment, the temperature in the inn dropped.
“How pathetic. Losing your composure over a mere woman.”
Mancheon was the first to notice the change.
His amber eyes darted around like a wild animal sensing a predator, trying to locate the source.
“You’re a disgrace to the Zhongnan Sect, Quan Cong.”
-Thud Thud
Snow-white hair reaching down to his neck, sparkling golden eyes, a face like a sculpture carved from ice by a master craftsman, a blue butterfly earring dangling from one ear.
The owner of the voice slowly descended the stairs from the second floor.
The appearance of Xue Mudan, the Ice Dragon, caused several women’s faces to flush red, as if they had just seen a beautiful flower.
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Well the MC’s stills confused about the xiaoshao gender tho 🤣
Plus. I love how the author even using the OG sect of the OG Murim novel. Let’s see if there there’s an art that suck other Inner Energy. It’s called North something.
(Vietnamese btw so in our language it has the word North in it)