Chapter 500 – Martial World (3)

—Your travels have been long.

These were the Desolate Fortress Lord’s final words.

Jeong Yeon-shin came straight out from the Council of Elders hall. He had left his master beside World Tree’s true body.

As Golden Thunder had said, the Desolate Fortress Lord seemed to need some kind of rest there.

He still didn’t know many things about his master.

What kind of relationship she had with World Tree, what reason required her to stay here immediately, whether she needed to replenish some kind of energy.

‘And…’

Why he could feel her breathing even from a great distance.

The world’s foremost Desolate Fortress Lord.

She was a transcendent master whose internal energy breathing was the deepest under heaven. Naturally, it would be difficult to sense her breath unless one was close by, but this time it had been different.

Jeong Yeon-shin thought with slightly lowered eyes. Why wouldn’t she share a little more personal conversation with him?

Apart from the golden inscription carved on his shoulders, was there still some qualification he lacked?

Then.

“Me, right? You’re taking me, right? Let me take a walk!”

The space before his eyes became semi-transparently distorted with a whirring sound. It was because Golden Thunder was floating in the air without any energy waves and blocking his path.

What remained in the hall were only the Desolate Fortress Lord and the First Elder, and World Tree’s three protectors were surrounding Jeong Yeon-shin and moving along with him.

Jeong Yeon-shin naturally passed by Golden Thunder and opened his mouth.

“Where did the one called Northern Darkness Fist Lord go?”

“Unknown.”

Heaven-reaching Bow Spirit answered from the side.

Perhaps because of meeting the Desolate Fortress Lord earlier.

From the green hair of the elf clan absolute master whose mind had united with internal energy, somehow a blade-like temperament seeped out.

Her hair that sharply brushed the great bow on her back each time she naturally matched steps with Jeong Yeon-shin.

Jeong Yeon-shin still didn’t know the relationship between her and the Desolate Fortress Lord either.

Why they resembled each other. Why their relationship wasn’t good. These were all extremely personal matters, so he wouldn’t be able to know until they told him first.

Heaven-reaching Bow Spirit’s dry and tasteless voice continued.

“Northern Darkness’s mind is not whole. Her actions are the same. She habitually wanders outside the tree. That’s why your master said she would only give us two. Because there are practically only three protectors.”

Step.

Jeong Yeon-shin stopped walking. While slightly raising his eyebrows.

“You mean she’s lost her sanity?”

“Her pride in the clans was greatest among us. Until she met Yong Hye-myeong and competed with him.”

At Heaven-reaching Bow Spirit’s calm words, Jeong Yeon-shin immediately asked back.

“Why did the Group Leader…?”

“Hye-myeong? Right, he danced with his sword incredibly well.”

Golden Thunder suddenly interjected and nodded his head alone.

“All ten thousand seconds were sword dance. Ah, that was really good. But when I actually praised him, he looked at me like I was ridiculous. When I suggested having a cup of tea together, he wouldn’t accept either.”

He was a truly modest friend— Golden Thunder concluded his words that way.

Jeong Yeon-shin understood.

It meant the martial contest had been extremely nasty. It meant Northern Darkness Fist Lord had fallen into heart demons after having her techniques toyed with for a long time. Divine Sword Group Leader Yong Hye-myeong seemed to harbor no good feelings toward the elf clans here.

‘Oh no.’

His mind became confused.

Jeong Yeon-shin raised cupped hands to the protectors. Those with whom he might have to coordinate in the near future. It was a situation where gaining even just their favor would be insufficient. Cleaning up the aftermath came first.

“As his successor, I apologize on his behalf. Though my senior committed unworthy acts, fundamentally he has a gentle disposition. Moreover, the Divine Sword Group under my command will be different from him…”

The three protectors didn’t react.

It was a familiar matter.

It was just that he had taken on the karma of the Ma family that Tyrant Hero  and Harbinger of Death had brought, along with the karma of all past Divine Sword Group Leaders.

He had already expected this. If the Jeong family’s Lightning Genius hadn’t existed in Desolate Fortress, heaven and earth in all directions would have been filled only with enemies.

Thus Jeong Yeon-shin quietly asked, inwardly amazed at the insight of his master who had appointed him, the Grand Administrator, Emperor Qian-ling, and the eunuch Ming Yu.

“May I ask one thing?”

“Oh, anything. As long as it’s not that story from earlier. But you are taking me on the outing, right?”

“Where is this city located?”

Jeong Yeon-shin asked an important question.

When traveling with the Desolate Fortress Lord, the sense of distance had disappeared.

The path leading to one of the world’s most mysterious places. The problem started with the feeling of walking through formations. It was also significant that he had always focused all his energy sense on his master.

The world’s foremost, whose breathing itself contained martial arts. Jeong Yeon-shin fell into a state of selflessness whenever he was with her. His cognitive abilities couldn’t have been intact.

“Where is here? Uh… some frontier village in the northern sea? No, we also took refuge to the south, right? Father said so. Right, how high above ground we’re floating here…”

Golden Thunder muttered while floating in the air with his hands clasped behind his head.

He seemed to be talking about some unknown foreign land, but somehow it didn’t feel like he was talking about the Ming Dynasty.

Suddenly Dragon Finger Sword Master interrupted Golden Thunder’s rambling.

“Jiangsu Province. I don’t know the name of the plain.”

Jiangsu Province, the land of fish and rice. The eastern end of the continent. It was literally known as the land of rice and fish. It was also the province with the most plains in the current Ming Dynasty.

The clans of World Tree had hidden their giant tree with formations and taken root in the most fertile land in the nation.

But the reason Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes widened at this moment wasn’t because of that.

Jiangsu Province was directly above Zhejiang Province where Hangzhou was located.

‘Too…’

Far.

He had already experienced it.

From Xiangyang to Hangzhou had practically taken three days.

Even moving west directly from here would take similar time.

Even then, he would need to combine sword flight and energy regulation, and even arriving as quickly as possible, his physical condition wouldn’t be intact.

Moreover, there were clear limits to how long World Tree’s protectors could remain at full strength away from the main body.

Thus.

Jeong Yeon-shin faced a difficult problem.

A very practical matter.

“……”

The interior of World Tree was always shadowed.

Green lights illuminated all directions before repeatedly disappearing, and at this moment, twilight also curled from Jeong Yeon-shin’s shoulders. Like the karma of the Divine Sword Group Leader he had thought of earlier.

Suddenly Jeong Yeon-shin realized.

When Yong Hye-myeong had issued assembly orders to the Squad Leaders, how meticulously he must have calculated the timing of delivering those letters and the distances of the seventeen scattered black ranks. That was impossible work for a mere eighteen-year-old youngster.

The Jeong family’s Lightning Genius wasn’t a strategic genius who had transcended the limits of his age, but merely an inferior breed who had unluckily had his Baihui acupoint extremely opened.

‘Ah.’

His mouth opened slightly. It was because some realization had crossed his mind.

The fragment of Three Clear Powers that the Desolate Fortress Lord had shown him through her own eyes, settled in Jeong Yeon-shin’s body. World Tree that looked down upon all under heaven on this land.

‘And…’

Jeong Yeon-shin half-opened his eyes.

Monkeys use their heads because their bodies are slow.

Mayflies like Jeong Yeon-shin and Invincible would have their own methods.

At this moment, Golden Thunder, who had come close, said something to him, but Jeong Yeon-shin only drew some mental image in his mind. It was a point where some cultivation had become necessary.

Swish.

Suddenly on his left hand gripping the sword hilt.

The left hand of the Unorthodox Path’s Finest Sword overlapped as a phantom.

* * *

A beggar was lying prone on a cliff.

Shabby appearance with roughly patched sackcloth serving as clothing. Even that seemed to lack strings, making it sleeveless.

She was absorbed in brushwork, supporting her upper body with elbows covered in dark dust.

Swish. Swoosh.

[Dragon Head Office Xiangyang Branch Report.

Listed below in order of Desolate Fortress’s north, east, south, west.

1. Northern Xiang River direction.

—Additional report. Radiant Sword Wing annihilation confirmed.

—It appears that Radiant Demon Wing Leader Cheong Myeong led all of Radiant Demon Wing northward, but even if the mission succeeds, it will be impossible to recover more than half of Radiant Sword Wing’s strength.

—Radiant Demon Wing will clash with the Twin Kings forces under Myriad Upper Road Stronghold Leader. Outnumbered by more than twenty times. Moreover, Myriad Upper Road Stronghold has taught secret water techniques to its subordinate masters.

—However, this branch predicts an even match. The divine skill created by the previous Radiant Demon Wing Leader will be a significant variable.

—Myriad Upper Road Stronghold Leader Sea Overflow Fist Heaven left the Yangtze to his subordinates and is heading south to Desolate Fortress.

2. Near Eastern Broad Blade Gorge.

—About five hundred cavalry with mounted martial arts appeared. Charging toward Desolate Fortress while driving strange clouds.

—Gongsun Family, Shandong Yue Family, and Namgung Family exist on the route.

—Presumed to be Gang of Demons Green Forest. The leader is the Grand Chief.

—Two human heads hang at his waist, but identification of the heads is impossible due to the aforementioned clouds.

3. Southern Disaster Plain.

—The whereabouts of the newly enthroned Blood Flame Cult Leader are mysterious.

—Frequent halts in the advance of martial forces composed of blood demons.

—Three military units from Desolate Fortress appeared. Blood Guardian Squad, Immortal Tree Spirit Squad, and Forest Treading Squad respectively. No conflict. Blood Flame Cult neutralized.

—Cause unknown.

4. Western Shaanxi direction.

—Mount Hua Sect closed its gates. Presumed to have suffered severe damage to the ‘gate.’ After Jade Flame Sword God Lady Lu Xian returned to Shaanxi, the Tyrant Sword Sect swordsmen who had been moving vigorously until then have been staying indoors.

—Atmosphere of calm before the storm.

—Tyrant Sword Sect shows no sect-level movements.

—Rumors that the sect leader broke seclusion once again. Truth unconfirmed. Tracking movements impossible.

5. Center, Desolate Fortress main castle.

—King Qiong-ming’s absence confirmed. Strong possibility of having gone up to Beijing.

—Law Enforcement Squad plus additional Azure Sky Squad and Ultimate Martial Hall Leaders spotted. Intelligence that the Desolate Fortress Grand Administrator summoned them.

—Starting with Divine Sword Squad’s Yeon So-ha, warriors from the Divine Sword Group’s Divine Sword Squad that reached near-annihilation in Hebei Peng Family are appearing one after another.

—Warriors of Desolate Ma Family who learned ‘Jeong Family Dynamic Skill’ under Ma Family Head Harbinger of Death are taking defensive positions on the main castle walls. Masters from Desolate Shin Family, Desolate Xiahou Family, Desolate Yu Family, and Desolate Yun Family gathering.

—White Qilin Namgung Hwa-shin has been serving as gatekeeper at Desolate Fortress’s main gate for three days, taking the flag ceremony stance of ‘Judgement Qilin.’ Upper stance with sword pointing to heaven.

—Declared himself a warrior of the Divine Sword Group under the Acting Group Leader.

—Today White Qilin clashed with Martial Dragon Alliance’s First Protector.

—White Qilin Namgung Hwa-shin suffered a penetrating wound to his left side from Martial Dragon Alliance’s Elastic Force Palm Technique. First Protector Mixed Demon’s left hand was severed by Judgement Qilin. Returned to confrontation situation.]

It was one large sheet of paper.

Under the brushwork of the young beggar who occasionally glanced below the cliff, the letter below her chest was filled with countless characters.

Though the handwriting was like crawling earthworms, there was no hesitation.

Argh—!

Soon the beggar stretched while lying prone. It was a posture supporting the ground only with her navel while arching her back.

Separate from her grimy appearance covered in dirt, not even a speck of dust touched the letter.

“This is kind of crazy. Did I really write all this by myself?”

Her voice was somewhat hoarse.

At her grumbling that her arm was about to fall off, an old beggar who had been calling out words to include in the report from beside her clicked his tongue.

He was a supreme master of the same generation as Beggar Sect Leader Divine Beggar, called Wind Pillar Beggar in the martial world, an elder of the Beggar Sect.

“Truly scrawled writing. Not even the traces of earthworms crawling.”

“Wind Pillar old man wants too much. It’s amazing enough that a beggar knows letters.”

“Hey now, are you some ordinary beggar?”

Wind Pillar Beggar looked dumbly at the woman who had sprung up from her spot.

But his gaze wasn’t entirely cold. It would be correct to say it was like sunset formed in the winter sky.

The hearts of adults toward the pillars of their sect were strictly yet warmly like that.

Wind Pillar Beggar.

A name filled with the respect of very many martial world people. It meant the wind raised by the old beggar’s divine technique was like a pillar of the martial world.

“Really now.”

The woman who had been staring at the old beggar for a moment scratched her greasy short hair roughly. The three gourds hanging on her lower back swayed weakly along with her.

“I’m an ordinary beggar. Show me someone as common as me if there is one.”

“You rascal!”

Wind Pillar Beggar shouted angrily.

“How can someone who has learned martial arts speak of being ordinary! How can you become a member of the world’s foremost sect with such a sense of responsibility?”

“Because I don’t have that, I’m ordinary.”

“What?”

“It’s a year of famine and chaotic times. I need to eat well first. Since I have divine skills, first pursuing peace as I can—isn’t that what a truly ordinary person does? Hoarding some food, and giving a beating to those who interfere with it… People who don’t do this despite having power are the extraordinary ones, the respectable ones.”

The woman spoke languidly.

Her voice was too listless to have properly engaged in debate.

Somehow her face seemed to wander in dreams. The way she didn’t fix her legs to the ground but wandered around was the same. The soot faintly smeared on her cheeks was like evening twilight.

“Your jokes go too far before an elder! Dead Successor Beggar would cry in his grave!”

“Uh… but he’s probably in hell? When I die later, I’ll send regards in the underworld.”

“You…!”

Wind Pillar Beggar was about to shout her name and scold her again but hesitated. Who was this friend again? In an instant, the old martial world veteran’s experience burst fierce sparks in his mind.

The extreme of confusion that disturbed even a person’s memory and reason.

‘Drunken techniques, leg techniques, the sect of those who walk on the moon…!’

It was an instant.

“Old man, I respect you.”

Whoosh—!

The woman’s long leg pierced through Wind Pillar Beggar’s abdomen.

Simultaneously, his spine was crushed with a crunching sound as a large amount of blood shot up, and she, supporting the ground with only one foot, calmly lowered her gaze.

“Oh my.”

The young beggar, master of Dream Human Moon among the Thirteen Evil Sects, muttered quietly.

“Is that Jeong Family Dynamic Skill? They said he was a Ma family warrior.”

It was far below the cliff.

A place Wind Pillar Beggar hadn’t noticed until suffering fatal injury.

In the gorge filled with corpses of Desolate Fortress and Beggar Sect warriors, some youth in white martial robes was sending off a bird.

Clearly his breathing had stopped once, but he had risen again as if his heart had started beating on its own to deliver communication.

So that the main castle could grasp the appearance of yet another powerful absolute master.

It was a very important matter. Now Desolate Fortress would summon all its main castle forces to take a complete defensive stance.

All sorts of formations and mechanical formations of the imperial iron troops, plus the sword formations of Divine Sword Group warriors. With all of that prepared in advance, Desolate Fortress would be close to impregnable.

That’s when it happened.

Cough.

A supreme master’s vitality was very tenacious.

“Yes… you’re right.”

Wind Pillar Beggar coughed up blood once with dead eyes. Soon his mouth weakly burst into hearty laughter, and only then did the breath of the white-robed warrior they had been looking down at cease.

“That friend is truly extraordinary.”

Desolate Ma Family’s Ma Ung.

Lightning Genius had called his divine skill Jeong Family Dynamic Skill.

His death announced the beginning of the Great War to the world.