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The Evening After the Preliminary Round

The preliminary round was over, and evening had arrived.

By the time I finished the morning’s events and wrapped up my meal, I looked at Bong-Soon sitting across from me and asked.

“Everything’s fine, right?”

“Uh?”

Bong-Soon tilted her head at my question, seeming confused.

Thinking she didn’t catch it, I frowned and repeated, “Did you cause any trouble?”

Only then did she seem to understand and vigorously nodded her head.

“I didn’t! The Cult Leader told me not to do anything!”

“Really?”

“Yep! I swear I didn’t do anything! So, partner up with me!”

“Shut up.”

“Okay.”

I preemptively cut her off before she could babble nonsense.

‘Did she really do nothing?’

Given her usual behavior, I had my doubts, but there was no way to verify it.

Normally, I would have followed her secretly to check.

‘But getting past the formation is probably impossible…’

The formation spread around us was problematic for testing.

I could theoretically undo it, but a mistake could lead to being discovered, so I didn’t want to risk it.

Maybe it was this suspicion that prompted her to shout, “I really did nothing!”

Bong-Soon yelled, sounding aggrieved.

“I didn’t kill anyone! Not yet!”

Not yet…?

Her follow-up remark was quite annoying, but I nodded vaguely.

“…Okay… Good job.”

“Right! I did well! So, partner up…”

“Get lost.”

“Okay!”

Did she actually listen? Bong-Soon jumped up and disappeared.

I let out a deep sigh at her hasty exit.

She has become a lot more human, but she’s still as clueless as ever.

‘No, you could say she’s a beast in human disguise.’

A beast trying to act human.

That was exactly how Bong-Soon felt.

I brought her in two years ago after she had been living with wild dogs in the Gwangju region.

She had been one of those local strays who used to bite and scrap with others.

Back then, Bong-Soon was practically a talking demon beast.

She could utter a few words, but she mostly acted on instinct.

I still wondered how she reached her level considering she was practically a monster back then.

‘It’s a curious thing.’

Her realm clearly surpassed the peak, and her mentality was like that of a child.

I could only wonder who taught her to improve.

It’s for certain she’s related to the previous Sword Demoness, but given that more than ten years have passed since she died…

The possibility that the Eulryeong Sword Demoness taught her was slim.

‘She even says she doesn’t remember. There’s nothing more to dig into.’

I asked Bong-Soon about this, but she claimed she didn’t recall anything in particular.

Since she couldn’t lie due to the demon energy, her words were probably the truth.

After pondering this for a moment, I decided to put it aside.

‘Anyway, it doesn’t really matter if she can’t remember.’

What matters is that I can leverage her ability.

Utilizing her enhances the quality of my plans.

In this situation, Bong-Soon’s past had no relevance.

“The issue is with the Emei Sect.”

I recalled what had happened earlier and took a sip of tea.

Once the tea touched my tongue, a tingling sensation spread.

I had mixed a small amount of poison into the tea.

Drinking it this way enhances the toxicity, but the bad taste was masked by the poison, so I was intentionally drinking it.

“…Hmmm.”

The Emei Sect. The female priest from Sichuan.

‘What connection do they have with Bong-Soon?’

It seemed they were more interested in her treasures than in Bong-Soon herself.

‘Does that mean… they weren’t looking for the Sword Demoness in the first place?’

The ambiguous responses and shallow situations made it hard to grasp.

But.

“The trap is set, and a reaction should come soon.”

For this part, I laid the groundwork.

I’d killed an Emei Sect woman and sent her to their location.

Using the Demon’s power, I sent a mix of the clan’s emblem and vague words, timing it to erase it right when it would be appropriate.

‘Let’s see how they react.’

The reason I did so was to gauge their response.

If they were moving behind the clan’s back, there would be some change.

But if they had a cooperative relationship with the clan, a corresponding response would come.

‘If the Sect Leader isn’t an idiot, a proper warning should get through.’

The Sect Leader of the Emei Sect was the Powder Moon Fist Immortal, right?

The one with the unique fists famed across the land.

I figured she would not be a foolish person since she was a master among teenagers.

Given that the clan was openly using their emblem in such an obvious way.

Someone must have anticipated a third party’s involvement.

In my case, I would surely be cautious in such a situation.

On top of that.

‘If they know I possess this, they’d be even more cautious.’

I chuckled as I gazed at the letter in my hand.

The letter was taken from an Emei Martial Artist.

A few pages filled with familiar names, including mine and several other martial artists who were participating in the tournament.

‘I suppose these are the names of those sent to investigate after being poisoned.’

The names matched information collected by the assassins I had dispatched.

With a few additional names, it seemed they included those who had failed to gather information as well.

“Hmmm.”

The Righteous Faction.

Why would the Emei Sect, known for their neutrality, go through all this trouble?

Despite having no regard for them until now, I found myself slightly intrigued.

‘Shall I find out a bit more?’

After all, since it involved Bong-Soon, it required some investigation.

Ah, but of course.

It goes without saying that I wouldn’t be the one moving directly.

I cleared the tea and turned to the side.

“Well then, I’ll leave it to you.”

“…Huh? To do what?”

At my words, Cheol Jiseon, who had been mindlessly eating, tilted his head.

Rustle.

As I walked along the path, inspecting the letters in my hand.

The few pages were packed with dense writing, all the information compiled by Jiegal Hyeok and Cheol Jiseon.

‘Hubei is roughly handled, and I can leave Shandong to the Huangbo Clan Head…’

It seemed Jiegal Hyeok had processed things beforehand, as despite the large amount of writing, it was easy to discern.

‘Separate tracking of the First Dragon Great Lord’s movements is needed… and I’ll have to also observe Tang Deok’s situation.’

Since I had sent Nahi to Tang Deok, that would likely be handled.

If situations unfolded in a way that allowed me to bind or eliminate the First Dragon Great Lord during this process, that would be ideal.

But that seemed difficult.

‘Especially while things are still unfolding here.’

As long as my feet were tied in this place, I needed to exercise restraint.

‘To handle things completely, it seems I’ll have to wait until this all wraps up.’

I also needed to see what the situation would be like by the time the martial arts tournament concluded.

Provided it flows predictably, there shouldn’t be an issue. However, I know my life hasn’t been that fortunate.

‘…Always stay prepared for worse situations.’

That way, when an accident does occur, handling it will be easier.

‘The real problem will be with Tang Soyeol and Wi Seol-Ah.’

Both had participated in the tournament alongside us.

Wi Seol-Ah had passed the first round, and it was confirmed Tang Soyeol had also succeeded today.

‘Hmmm.’

Honestly, I found it questionable why the two had joined the tournament, but that alone didn’t present a problem.

The real issue would arise once the preliminaries concluded, and the tournament commenced.

‘If they end up in the same sparring arena together…’

I would have preferred if it were Woo Hyeok instead.

With Woo Hyeok in the sparring arena, I could confidently let my guard down.

Unfortunately, Woo Hyeok could not participate in the tournament.

‘What was the reason again?’

I heard the Clan Leader refused to allow any Wudang members to enter due to fairness concerns.

‘Hah.’

Fairness, huh?

It’s ridiculous to bring that up now.

The clan had sent invitation letters only to those with status for this tournament, yet now they suddenly cared about fairness?

‘If that was the case, they should have maintained it from the beginning.’

Recalling the previous Clan Leaders, that foolish man Nak Geom had sent a lackey during the Dragon Meeting.

The clan’s declaration of fairness was already long gone by now.

‘Is it that they just want to appear virtuous now?’

Right after the Sword Demoness said those words, the public’s reaction hadn’t been bad at all.

I think they referred to her as a Clan Leader different from the previous ones.

‘Tch.’

There was so much I could say, but I held it all back.

In the first place, Woo Hyeok didn’t look like he wanted to participate either.

‘…It’s dangerous for him to enter now.’

He often used sparring as an excuse to practice, but…

In reality, he had become more powersome than he realized.

With bet matches increasing and his body changing, he was struggling to control his strength again.

He didn’t seem to realize how strong he had become, and until he did, it was better to keep him on a leash.

‘While I’m at it, I should probably rein myself in too.’

Time was running out.

I had already surpassed the realm of my past life, but there was no time to rest on my laurels.

‘What if a situation arises where I can’t use the Technique of the Flame Wheel?’

That was a danger realized upon meeting my grandfather.

For some reason, my grandfather seemed able to reclaim the inner energy I possessed.

If I were to lose that flame, it would shatter all my plans to pieces.

Just losing a single martial art technique would render me helpless.

‘I really am powerless, aren’t I?’

If my power were to be stripped away, I’d end up in a state where I could do nothing. How utterly pathetic.

Out of fear of that, I needed to prepare.

To ensure I can still function even if I lose a power, I need to be equipped for it.

Suddenly, I stopped in my tracks.

I had finally arrived at my destination.

In front of me stood a door, and I naturally knocked on it.

Knock knock-

“…”

There was no response. I knocked again, louder this time.

Knock knock knock-

“…”

Still silence.

Knock…

Knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock knock-

Knock…

Suddenly-!

After that relentless knocking, the figure I had been waiting for finally opened the door and welcomed me.

“You bastard! Do you even know what time it is!?”

A thin elderly man with a head full of white hair and beard.

Shin Yi greeted me with a smile.

“It’s dawn! Everyone’s asleep! Why are you here bothering me!?”

“It’s dawn, you say? Elder, it hasn’t even passed noon yet.”

“True, but it’s still time when everyone is asleep, isn’t it?”

“Yet here you are, not sleeping.”

“You damn rascal…!”

Before I could finish, Shin Yi’s face turned a furious shade of red.

Oh, this is bad. That’s a genuine sign of anger.

Quickly, I pulled out the letter from my pocket and showed it to him.

“You can’t seriously think of treating me like that-!”

“This is a letter sent from Hyeok to you. Take a look.”

“…”

Just as he was about to get angry, Shin Yi suddenly went quiet upon seeing the letter.

Good thing I brought it.

“Hmm….”

“It was just given to me. Please don’t be upset.”

“…I’ll let it slide for Hyeok’s sake, but there won’t be a next time.”

“So I can come in now, right?”

“You already walked in, you rascal….”

Just after Shin Yi finished his words, I set foot into his residence.

It looked small and shabby compared to the treatment center next to it.

I heard he had personally requested something small instead of anything large.

He claimed if it were too big, it’d overwhelm him.

Regardless, he was a man of few desires.

I took off my shoes and stepped into his place.

Inside was a small table and a lamp, and on the table, an overwhelming stack of papers awaited, all of them about treatments and medicinal herbs.

Seeing that, I couldn’t help but exhale in disbelief.

“Do you seriously look at all those?”

“Look at them? Hell no! How could this old man read them all?”

“Then what?”

“I memorized them back when I was young! They’re here for when I can’t remember anything.”

“How do you find anything when they’re strung out like that?”

“If you memorize where each one is and how many are there, it makes it easier to look up.”

“…”

So how the hell do you memorize that…?

I couldn’t voice that question and had to swallow it.

“So.”

While I was examining the letters, Shin Yi inquired.

“Are you planning to do it again today?”

I naturally answered, just like it was a given.

“Of course.”

Upon hearing my response, Shin Yi frowned.

“You know there’s a group fight happening in a few days, right? Wouldn’t it be better to ease your body a little?”

“What do you mean group fight! Elder… there’s a fancy term called martial arts tournament, isn’t there?”

“Isn’t that just a group fight?”

“…”

He wasn’t wrong, and I forced a chuckle.

A group fight, huh? That phrase indeed fits the occasion.

Anyway.

“Well, my body can rest after I’m dead. And if I get hurt, you’ll be right here to treat me, aren’t you?”

“You speak of dying right in front of a physician, and you think I’d let you freely use me like that?”

“Since you’re willing, why not go all out?”

“Let me tell you, being this brazen is a trait that even devils would admire.”

Though Shin Yi reacted as though he disapproved, I knew.

That old man might say that, but he was indeed a good-hearted person.

Hence, in the end, he would help me again.

“…Have a seat. Let’s wrap this up quickly and get some sleep.”

“Thank you.”

Smiling at Shin Yi’s words, I took my seat.

The reason I sought out Shin Yi was simple.

“Prepare.”

Right after meeting my grandfather.

I rushed to find Shin Yi and had been learning sorcery from him.

Upon mentioning sorcery for the first time, Shin Yi seemed quite surprised, but when I explained that I had gone to the North Sea to learn it, he seemed to understand somewhat.

Since he’d seen me fix Jiegal Hyeok’s neck, it must have been easy for him to grasp since he was also learning sorcery.

Because I had little information on sorcery, I was receiving training from Shin Yi, who might still know something.

Honestly, I didn’t think it would help me right now.

Since it was mysterious power, I had wanted to learn a little, but….

After using it a few times, I felt like I began to understand something.

The Heart’s Ring of Sorcery that flowed within my heart.

‘This….’

If my prediction is right, perhaps it could lead to an alternate method even if I lost the flame to my grandfather.

On top of that.

‘It might allow me to wield a greater flame.’

It felt like I could enhance various martial arts, including the Technique of the Flame Wheel.

“…Well then, let’s see that ring unfold.”

At Shin Yi’s words, I slowly focused my energy towards my heart.

Time passed as I practiced under him.

Two days had passed.

I found myself within the Martial Alliance headquarters that I had visited previously.

The preliminary rounds consisting of the two groups had concluded over the past three days, and we had just entered the main rounds.

“Are they going to group us by teams then for the main event?”

“We paired up for the preliminaries, so won’t we do the same for this round?”

The crowd didn’t differ much from the first day.

There were plenty of martial artists gathered, clearly numbering in the hundreds.

The significant difference was that all of these individuals had easily surpassed the peak.

They had broken through the Evergreen Iron and shattered the formation to qualify.

Genuine martial artists filtered through after two rounds of selection.

‘The atmosphere feels entirely different from the first day.’

Even the air felt different in density, and the momentum radiating from these beings was on a different level.

It felt intensely oppressive.

They seemed to have no intention of hiding their energy; the fierce clashes of energy were evident in the void around us.

Watching this made me grimace.

‘What the hell are they doing?’

It was baffling that they would expend such energy even early in the competition.

Just then—

“Wow, there are so many people. Look over there, sister! Look at that fluffy… mmmph!”

While Bong-Soon was marveling at the crowd, Tang Soyeol instantly covered her mouth.

“Please… just be quiet…”

“Mmmph! Mmmph….”

“AHHH!”

Tang Soyeol, visibly startled, quickly removed her hand.

It looked like Bong-Soon had licked her palm.

“…”

I shook my head at the sight.

For some reason, Bong-Soon seemed to like Tang Soyeol.

And now, Tang Soyeol was suffering because of Bong-Soon’s antics.

As for me, I found it fortunate that someone was keeping that nuisance in check…

‘The preliminaries ended in three days. The main round will take two days, right?’

I too was participating today, along with Tang Soyeol and Bong-Soon.

“…You didn’t forget what I told you yesterday, did you?”

“Uh? Uh!”

“I’ll say it again, just win. Don’t cause a ruckus.”

“Of course! I’ll win without breaking or killing anyone!”

Confidently, Bong-Soon puffed out her nonexistent chest while I looked on, untrusting of her expression.

‘Tch.’

Despite my efforts not to worry, I couldn’t help but feel anxious.

Starting today, martial artists would be clashing for real in the Shinryong Martial Arts Tournament.

This had already been made clear by the alliance.

‘This is when the real martial arts tournament begins.’

A massive wooden board was placed in front of us.

Numerous spectators were gathered beyond the crowd as members of the alliance set something up on the board.

The match bracket.

The paper that would display the matchups for today’s main round was hung in front of that board, which drew many eager viewers.

Different emotions fluttered in the eyes of the martial artists as they observed.

Some were filled with anticipation.

Others radiated sheer excitement.

Each of them likely craved desperately for their spotlight in this martial arts tournament.

For me, honestly, I couldn’t quite understand it.

While I inspected my surroundings to cool my nerves.

“Prince, I found it.”

Tang Soyeol relayed to me.

Turning my gaze back to the board, as Tang Soyeol had mentioned, there was indeed a sheet prepared by the alliance.

I quickly scanned the paper.

‘Hmm.’

I frowned slightly as I read through it.

‘It’s not looking like we’re grouped by teams.’

White and blue colors.

Green and red colors.

It appeared they had aligned the matches based on color categories.

“Oh no….”

“Damn it! How do you expect me to beat him…!”

With just a glance at the names, I could sense the despair from the martial artists who recognized the titles.

At the same time, opposing voices echoed in response.

“Awesome! I’ll finish my first match quickly.”

“I’ll get this over with and go grab a drink.”

They held firm confidence that they wouldn’t lose.

As those feelings started to grow, I checked for my name.

In the white section.

From the Mount Shan Clan, Gu Yangcheong.

‘Found it.’

Midway among the listed names, I identified my opponent as well.

In the blue section, the renowned Guangdong namesake, Ming Cheong-Seong.

‘Ming Cheong-Seong?’

I recalled hearing that name somewhere.

‘Ah.’

It came back to me.

The one causing a ruckus with the Wind Forest’s Honorary Fist since the first day.

Said to be a somewhat famous martial artist, if I remember correctly.

Honestly, I knew very little about him.

So I hastily scanned for other names on the board.

‘Bong-Soon is also matched up with someone I don’t know.’

As for Tang Soyeol…

‘Huh?’

I widened my eyes as I spotted Tang Soyeol’s opponent.

‘Will you look at that?’

It got a little interesting all of a sudden.

In the green section was the Sichuan Tang Gate’s Tang Soyeol.

In the red was the Liaoning Hundred Families’ Bai Cheong-Jin.

Bai Cheong-Jin, that name sounds familiar. How could I not know it?

Tang Soyeol was going up against Yu Tan-Geom.

What a twist of fate.

Is the alliance doing this intentionally?

Or is it simply pure coincidence?

It feels too suspicious to be mere coincidence.

I shifted my gaze towards Tang Soyeol.

She seemed to be staring at her opponent on the board as well.

I was sure of it by then.

‘No worries there….’

Her lowered gaze mixed with calm energy gave off quite a different vibe.

Rather, I felt an ominous chill from Tang Soyeol.

What was it about her demeanor?

‘It’s like she’s plotting on how to toy with her opponent.’

That seemed to be the distinct impression I got.

 

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