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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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At last, the Ghost Gate opened.
A surge of malevolent energy rippled outwards, a sensation perceptible to every martial artist gathered in Wuan County.
Despite the suddenness of the event….it occurred just a day after the Peng Family’s arrival, the martial artists responded with remarkable swiftness.
The location of the Ghost Gate had already been identified under the Yi Family’s leadership.
As soon as the gate opened, the martial artists dispersed and headed towards their assigned positions.
Namgung-Woo, along with the Yang brothers, raced towards their designated location.
“Can’t we destroy it before it fully opens?”
“We could, but…”
“We don’t have any Taoists.”
“Is it difficult to do with martial arts?”
“It’s possible, but…”
“Only for a handful of exceptionally strong individuals!”
A handful of exceptionally strong individuals.
Could he do it if he unleashed his full power? Namgung-Woo pondered the question.
Meanwhile, Yang Jeong finally snapped at his brother, who kept interrupting him.
“Hyung, please stop interrupting!”
“You talk too much. Time is of the essence. Haven’t received the signal yet?”
“Not yet. We might be the first to encounter them.”
“Tsk. I told them to post lookouts near the Ghost Gate. But they got so caught up with the Peng Family’s arrival…”
Yang Kwai clicked his tongue.
“It’s supposed to be below Blue rank, so they got complacent.”
“Blue?”
“It’s a ranking system for Ghost Gates and yokai, based on the five colors of the rainbow.”
While Namgung-Woo was more familiar with the seven colors of the rainbow, that was the Western perspective.
In the East, the rainbow had five colors:
[Yellow. Red. Blue. Black. White.]
The ranking reflected the intensity of the energy and the level of danger, with Yellow being the lowest and White the highest.
After Yang Jeong’s explanation, Yang Kwai asked casually,
“Didn’t the Yo-Pyeong Escort Agency teach you any of this?”
“Ah, I haven’t been with them for very long.”
While he’d been staying with them for about half a month, he’d only started claiming to be a Yo-Pyeong Escort Agency member three days ago, after agreeing to it with Pyeong Cho-yul.
Either way, it wasn’t a long time.
“Really? Anyway, below Blue means Yellow or Red, which isn’t that dangerous. Even ordinary people can handle Yellow rank yokai!”
“It’s probably Red. With five Peak Realm masters from the Peng Family and the Yi Family head, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“A perfect opportunity to gain some experience.”
The Yang brothers seemed much more relaxed after hearing the rank, their conversation becoming more leisurely.
Namgung-Woo, also easing his tension, decided to satisfy his curiosity.
“Why are the colors of the rainbow used? Isn’t the rainbow considered an auspicious sign?”
“The rainbow? Well, it used to be, but now it’s seen as an ominous omen.”
“And, more importantly, the first being to emerge from a Ghost Gate was…”
“ From the first Ghost Gate?”
“…a giant dragon. A colossal dragon with shimmering, five-colored scales.”
“They call it the Rainbow Dragon. And the prevailing theory is that it’s the progenitor of all yokai and demons.”
The idea that the first being to emerge was automatically considered the progenitor seemed odd to Namgung-Woo.
Before he could voice his question, Yang Jeong asked,
“Do you know about Nüwa?”
“Nüwa? The goddess from mythology who created humans?”
“You know your myths. That’s right. They say she molded humans from clay in her own image. Those first humans became the nobles, and the commoners were created by flicking a rope dipped in mud.”
“That’s bullshit.”
Ignoring Yang Kwai’s interjection, Yang Jeong continued,
“The Rainbow Dragon is similar. They say that yokai were born from the flapping of its wings.”
“So, it’s only natural to use the colors of the rainbow to rank these… Ghost Gates.”
“I see…”
Namgung-Woo felt like he’d uncovered another secret of this world.
There was still so much he didn’t know, about both the martial world and its history.
‘I should spend some time studying history and customs when I get to Beijing.’
But that was a thought for the future.
He sensed an unfamiliar energy approaching and alerted the others.
“I sense malevolent energy nearby. Looks like we’ll be the first to encounter them.”
The Yang brothers reacted dramatically.
“What? You can sense it from here?”
“Come to think of it, you were the first to notice the Peng Family’s arrival…”
“Hey, little brother! Do you have some special detection skill?”
“Not really… I just have good instincts.”
Namgung-Woo vaguely attributed his Ever-Clear Vision to good instincts and estimated the distance to the approaching energy.
At this rate, they’d encounter the yokai in less than ten minutes.
‘No, if they’re moving too, it’ll be even sooner.’
“They’re moving. We’ll encounter them soon.”
“So, little brother, it seems you did have a few tricks up your sleeve after all.”
“I can sense them now, too. Let’s get ready.”
The Yang brothers’ Qi shifted.
They were no longer focused on running, but on preparing for battle.
Their auras intensified.
To an ordinary person, they would have seemed like formidable warriors.
But to Namgung-Woo, they were simply leaking energy, unable to properly contain it.
And that wasn’t his only disappointment.
Their movement techniques were also subpar.
Despite possessing pure and potent internal energy, they weren’t utilizing it effectively.
As a practitioner of the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Art, which also utilized Lightning Qi, their movement techniques seemed crude.
“Such slow speeds, even while using Lightning Qi—the fastest energy in existence?”
He’d initially thought they were conserving energy for the battle, but that wasn’t the case.
While their Lightning Qi wasn’t as refined as his Heavenly Thunder True Qi, the disparity was baffling.
Then he observed the same inefficiency in their swordsmanship.
*Shhk!*
When they finally encountered the yokai.
Yang Kwai and Yang Jeong’s blades sliced through the translucent figures.
Imbued with internal energy, their swords tore through the yokai’s bodies.
But despite the clean cuts, their expressions were grim.
“Damn it! We’re in trouble!”
“Wraiths… it’s the worst.”
The brothers repositioned themselves, flanking Namgung-Woo protectively.
“Little brother since you have good senses. Focus on detecting the enemy’s positions.”
“I’ll assist too.”
Namgung-Woo rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, prepared to draw.
Had they mistaken his earlier hesitation for fear or his inability to track the yokai’s movements?
Just as he stepped forward, Yang Jeong stopped him and calmly explained the situation.
“These are Wraiths. Their bodies are made of Qi, so ordinary attacks won’t harm them. You need to imbue your weapon with internal energy to even cut them.”
Incredibly difficult to kill, and they didn’t even drop any valuable loot.
They were the bane of wandering martial artists.
“Normally, you’d need Sword Qi to destroy them completely, but our internal energy is… special. We can destroy them.”
“Lucky us. Or rather, unlucky us.”
Lightning was believed to have purifying properties.
There was a reason why jujube wood struck by lightning was said to ward off evil spirits.
“But what about the other wanderers, the ones without the Peng Family or the Yi Family head?”
“…There’s nothing we can do. It’s their fate.”
“Harsh, but true. We should prioritize our own safety and retreat if necessary. We’ll have to leave the sealing of the Ghost Gate to the Peng Family.”
Did they really have to?
Namgung-Woo wanted to see this Ghost Gate for himself.
I’d heard that the Ghost Gate was more than just a portal through time and space…it was like a door that connected to another world.
Perhaps it held a clue to returning to his own world.
With his Ever-Clear Vision, he was sure he could find something.
*Shing!*
He drew his sword.
The high-quality blade, a gift from the Yo-Pyeong Escort Agency, given in gratitude for saving Song Chae-ji, hummed as he infused it with his internal energy.
A clear, resonant sword cry echoed through the air.
The sound, so deep and powerful, was impossible for a mere second-rate martial artist to produce.
The Yang brothers stared at him in astonishment, their heads jerking back in unison.
“Little brother?”
“Fellow martial artist?”
Ignoring their shock, Namgung-Woo swiftly cut down the approaching Wraiths, his sword moving in a blur.
As the Yang brothers, momentarily distracted by his display, let their guard down, a Wraith lunged at them with its grotesque claws extended.
Namgung-Woo’s sword flashed.
*Whoosh!*
*Thud!*
A single, effortless swing.
But its effect was devastating.
Platinum Qi, radiating from his blade, sliced through the Wraiths behind the Yang brothers, shattering them into fragments.
Unlike the Yang brothers’ attacks, which tore and ripped, his sword cuts were clean and smooth, like polished glass.
It was a display of perfectly honed Sword Qi, far surpassing the crude Sword Qi that first-rate martial artists struggled to produce.
And it wasn’t just Sword Qi contained within the blade. It was Flying Sword Qi, projected outwards with the force of his swing.
“What…?”
“So, it wasn’t just a fraction…but almost all of your power was hidden, wasn’t it?”
Yang Kwai was left speechless, while Yang Jeong, though visibly shaken, managed to maintain his composure.
The brothers, forgetting their near-death experience, replayed Namgung-Woo’s incredible display in their minds.
“I’ll take the lead from now on. I’m going straight to the Ghost Gate. If you want to follow, stay close.”
Namgung-Woo walked past the stunned brothers, his gaze was fixed on the Ghost Gate in the distance.
Towards the source of the malevolent energy, far more potent than anything the Wraiths had emitted.
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Thanks for the new chapter