.jpeg){kind=tracking}
C38 - Do You Want to See His True Skill?
The Heaven Destroyer Demon Lord Seok Muhae had a dream.
His dream was to unify the power of Nokrim to rival the Seven Great Sects.
He passed on his martial arts to the young prodigies of Nokrim for this purpose. He planned to manage them through the thirty-six fortresses and outposts.
Now that the number had grown to seventy-two, the role of the Twelve Demons had become even more crucial.
Thus, the idea of the Nokrim gathering was born.
In reality, the purpose of the gathering was not simply to foster camaraderie among the bandits. Rather, it was about granting the Twelve Demons official positions in Nokrim, as guardians and inspectors, to effectively control Nokrim.
With a benevolent smile on his face, Seok Muhae looked at the Silent Wind Sovereign.
"So, what problem do you have?"
"Well, when I went to the Five Peaks Mountain in southern Henan Province with the invitations..."
The Silent Wind Sovereign sincerely recounted the incident from two months ago. He even showed his still-healing right hand.
"Are you saying a young bandit from the Five Peaks Mountain defeated you? You, one of the Twelve Demons?"
Seok Muhae's face expressed disbelief.
No wonder. The Twelve Demons had learned the Dark Heaven Asura Manual ten years ago.
Before that, they were already masters in Nokrim.
Since they learned the manual, no one had defeated them. And now, one of the Twelve Demons had been defeated by a young bandit from the Five Peaks Mountain.
"Yes..."
The Silent Wind Sovereign lowered his head, feeling embarrassed.
"How old was this young man?"
"I heard he hadn't even turned twenty yet."
"Goodness!"
If he was that young, his martial arts training time couldn't be more than ten years. Similar to the time the Twelve Demons had learned the manual. No matter how talented he was, that seemed impossible.
"Were you drunk?"
"Yes, a bit..."
"Tsk! Even I could lose against you if I were drunk. Haven't I told you a thousand times not to drink until you are drunk?"
Seok Muhae attributed the Silent Wind Sovereign's defeat to alcohol. There was no other possible explanation. Although, even with that excuse, it was still hard to accept.
"Did you investigate that young man?"
"Yes. His name is Yeon Jeokha. The Boss of the Five Peaks Mountain saved him when he was on the verge of death last year. Since then, he has been living in the fortress. Recently, he is known as one of the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks Mountain."
"Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks Mountain?"
"That's what they call the ten 'strongest' bandits there. It's a well-known name among the merchants traveling through southern Henan province."
"Did they attend the Nokrim gathering?"
"Yes, I saw them from afar yesterday."
"What level are the Ten Heroes?"
"In Nokrim, they are considered third-rate. Only the young man is exceptional; the others are nothing special. They didn't even dare to look me in the eyes."
Seok Muhae nodded in understanding.
If they were third-rate in Nokrim, they were just ordinary bandits.
"So, in summary, only the young man is promising among the Ten Heroes."
"That's right. Do you want to meet him?"
"If I approach, it would only give him more importance. Just find out if he will participate in the tournament. There is no need to meet him before that."
"Understood."
Seok Muhae turned his attention to the Twelve Demons.
"Did you hear that? We don't know if that young man will participate. But if he does, don't underestimate a young man just because of his age."
"Don't worry."
"We'll crush him."
The Twelve Demons responded confidently.
No one believed they would lose to someone who hadn't even turned twenty.
------------
Waryong Manor, east of Luoyang.
In the training ground, someone was practicing swordsmanship with great effort.
It was Yeon Seungbaek, the second brother. As an instructor for the intermediate group, he practically lived on the training ground these days. He didn't want to be looked down upon by the disciples who were former ronin.
Yeon Mubaek, who was casually passing by the training ground, watched him with a satisfied look. Since he became an instructor for the intermediate group, he hadn't skipped a single day of training.
Currently, Waryong Manor has three instructors. Himself, who taught the advanced group; his uncle Yeon Jipyung, who taught the intermediate group; and his brother Yeon Seungbaek, who taught the basic group.
Yeon Seungbaek, who was in the middle of a sword technique, frowned.
Something didn't feel right.
Yeon Mubaek approached with a smile.
"Ha, what's troubling you so much?"
"Oh, brother. I can't execute the eighth form well."
Since they reunited after ten years, Yeon Seungbaek had gone from formally calling him "older brother" to speaking more casually.
"Nine Divine Dragons Turning?"
"Yes. It's the only movement technique in the Nine Heavens Swordsmanship."
"True."
"Does it make sense to move nine times to gather energy?"
Yeon Seungbaek's doubt was understandable. Moving nine times meant giving up nine opportunities to attack. In real combat, every attack was valuable.
Yeon Mubaek replied, laughing.
"That only shows how powerful the ninth form is. I heard our father used the ninth form, Beam of Fragmented Swords, as his ultimate technique."
The eighth form, Nine Divine Dragons Turning, leads to the ninth form, Beam of Fragmented Swords. Basically, the eighth form is used to gather energy and then release that energy with the ninth form.
Yeon Seungbaek looked at his brother with meaningful eyes.
"What do you think?"
"About what?"
"About executing the eighth and ninth forms in sequence or separately. I think it's better to use them separately. Let me show you."
Before Yeon Muryong could say anything, Yeon Seungbaek began to move.
With a fluid movement, Yeon Seungbaek slid across the ground, stepping in nine different directions.
Then, he unleashed the ninth technique, Beam of Fragmented Swords, with a sword strike.
Sshiiik!
The sound of the sword cutting through the air was followed by a sharp gust of wind.
"Now, I will execute Beam of Fragmented Swords directly."
Yeon Seungbaek, from his position, channeled his energy with the Heavenly Dragon Supreme Divine Technique and wielded his sword.
Ssheaaek!
The generated gust of wind was incomparably more powerful than when he used the technique in sequence. The difference between a strong wind and a hurricane.
Yeon Seungbaek spoke with a satisfied face.
"The reason why it is more powerful when I use the ninth technique directly is because of concentration. We use the Heavenly Dragon Supreme Divine Technique as a foundation. By focusing only on that and omitting the eighth technique, it becomes stronger. What do you think, brother? Am I wrong?"
Yeon Mubaek looked at his brother with a mix of pride and concern.
"To be honest, I thought the same thing a long time ago. I even asked Uncle Namgung for advice."
"Oh, so you knew too. What did Uncle say?"
"He said it's hard to be sure without seeing the Mysterious Woman of the Nine Heavens Manual lost by the Yeon Family."
"The elders always say the same thing. We should think about the best we can do with what we have now. Don't you think?"
Yeon Mubaek nodded.
"I recently asked the elders of the family, and they said our father also only used Beam of Fragmented Swords. Everyone knew it was better to use the ninth technique directly rather than combining it with the eighth."
"So, Nine Divine Dragons Turning is like a bone in the throat? It's not used but can't be discarded either."
"However, there might be an unknown ability hidden in it. So we must not take it lightly. Otherwise, the eighth technique could be lost in the future."
"I understand that. I just wanted to confirm if my thinking was correct."
"Have you confirmed it?"
"Yes, Beam of Fragmented Swords is truly a formidable technique. Now it's just a wind of the sword, but someday, like you, I'll be able to unleash the sword's energy."
"It will depend on how much you master the Heavenly Dragon Supreme Divine Technique. Uncle Yeon said our technique comes from the Kunlun sect."
"Kunlun?"
"Yes, an ancient Taoist sect abroad. A mysterious sect that does not show itself in the mundane world."
"In short, it's impressive, right?"
"Correct. Our technique is as remarkable as the lost Mysterious Woman of the Nine Heavens Manual. So there's no need to be discouraged."
"Suddenly, I want to see your Beam of Fragmented Swords with the Heavenly Dragon Supreme Divine Technique. Could you show me?"
"Do you want to see the true skill of Beam of Fragmented Swords?"
"Yes."
Yeon Seungbaek nodded.
What he could do was just generate a wind of the sword, whereas manifesting the sword's energy was completely different.
"Watch closely."
Yeon Mubaek walked to the training ground for his brother.
Then, with the power of the Heavenly Dragon Supreme Divine Technique, he unleashed Beam of Fragmented Swords like a ray.
Tsu-tsu-tsu!
Four beams of sword energy emerged from the tip of his sword.
The beams flew approximately nine meters before softly fading away.
Yeon Mubaek retrieved his sword and regulated his heavy breathing.
"Wow! That's incredible."
"It's nothing. Our father, in his prime, could generate nine beams of sword energy."
"You're still young."
Yeon Mubaek smiled faintly.
As his brother said, he was still young.
Perhaps with time, he could come to generate nine beams of sword energy.
--------------
Mansapyeong, Jiangnan.
Finally, the day of the Nokrim gathering arrived.
The Great Chaeju Seok Muhae proclaimed the martial arts tournament in front of the bandits gathered from all over the country. The bandits cheered upon hearing that the guardians and inspectors would be selected fairly through the tournament.
Unlike the other excited bandits, the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks Mountain maintained an indifferent expression.
In reality, except for Yeon Jeokha, the Ten Heroes were not on par with the leaders of the bandit fortresses. The only one who had the level to participate in the tournament was Yeon Jeokha.
If he participated, winning would be a piece of cake.
However, last night, Yeon Jeokha had told the Silent Wind Sovereign that he wouldn't participate in the tournament. As a result, the Ten Heroes watched the tournament with little interest.
Jang Sobong, the sixth, glanced at Yeon Jeokha and asked.
"Yeon, are you really not going to participate in the tournament?"
"No."
"Why? It would be great to be an inspector or a guardian."
"I'm lazy. If I had one of those positions, I would have to go here and there. Why would I want to do something so boring?"
"It's true, it would be exhausting."
Jang Sobong, tired after two months of travel, nodded understandingly.
The bandits from the seventy-two fortresses numbered around a thousand people. To streamline the process, the tournament's master of ceremonies was the famous bandit Woo Geum-young.
Hundreds of bandits presented themselves to participate in the tournament, wishing to gain power. Among them were also the Twelve Demons, disciples of Seok Muhae.
Initially disinterested, the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks Mountain got involved in the tournament as it progressed. Most of them were former farmers and had never seen a tournament of this magnitude.
Ha Sobaek, who was watching the tournament with bright eyes, spoke.
"It's really exciting."
For Ha Sobaek, who had gone from being a laborer to a martial artist, everything was novel.
At that moment, one of the Twelve Demons jumped into the air and unleashed a flurry of sword energy on his opponent.
As Ha Sobaek exclaimed in amazement, she asked Yeon Jeokha.
"Brother, last time you fought against those bandits in black…"
"Yes?"
"You moved several times in the air. Why did you do that?"
She wondered why Yeon Jeokha didn't unleash his sword in one strike like that person. Although flying through the air was impressive, of course.