Chapter 70
The Beginning of the Yongbong Assembly (1)
Where dragons and phoenixes meet.
That place was the Yongbong Assembly.
A gathering of rising stars destined to lead the future of the orthodox martial world could never be quiet.
And how could martial arts be absent?
Like a fate shared by all martial artists, it was also a place where martial prowess was tested.
Buzz buzz.
Chatter everywhere.
The grand training ground prepared by the Namgung Clan.
Countless lines stretched out before it.
Not only spectators, but also those holding bronze- and silver-colored invitations.
Wolyeong looked appalled.
"Y-Young master?"
"We have to wait again like this?"
Had they not already stood in a long line just to enter Sohoru?
Back then, thanks to the commotion, they had slipped in easilyβbut still.
"Why is it so long?"
The line of those holding bronze invitations was especially long.
"They invited every nobody under the sun, so of course you have to wait. Tsk."
Nangwang clicked his tongue.
Fortunately, a few people recognized him and flinched away from his vicinity.
"Hoo. At this rate, when will we ever get in?"
The line was shrinking little by little, so it seemed people were at least being admitted.
"I'd feel better if I just swept all of this away."
With his patience at its limit, Nangwang spread killing intent in all directions, gripping and releasing his blade.
Flinch.
Those nearby felt a sudden chill.
They could not possibly imagine it was Nangwang's killing intent.
"If you want to be branded a public enemy of the martial world, there's nothing you can't do."
"I was just saying."
That was whenβ
From far away, an unusual disturbance arose.
[It's the Namgung Clan's Sword Dragon!]
As if announcing someone's arrival.
A path appeared where no path should have existed.
Along it walked Namgung Sanghyeok, dressed to impress.
Flap!
A banner bearing the character Namgung shot up into the sky.
Fluttering in the wind, it symbolized the authority of the Namgung Clan.
"It's the Azure Sky Sword Division!"
The Namgung Clan's prideβtheir elite forceβlined up along the path.
Shrrrng.
Only a single sound rang out.
Dozens of swords were raised toward the sky, yet the sound was perfectly one.
A unity chilling to the bone.
"...!"
Everyone held their breath.
Whooong!
Once again, dozens of swords formed a path.
Step. Step.
The one walking along that path of swordsβ
Was the Sword King.
Namgung Sanghyeok was the heir of the Sword King's lineage.
"Waaaaaah!"
The arena erupted into cheers.
Bathed in the crowd's gaze, Namgung Sanghyeok walked the sword path with a calm smile.
Nangwang clicked his tongue.
"Tsk. Kids these days are all about empty flash. Tsk."
In the past, he might have thought Namgung Sanghyeok a fairly promising talent.
But now, he was unimpressed.
"Isn't he at that age?"
"...."
That was because of Cheon Muyang.
Every time Nangwang saw someone so far beyond his years, his standards rose higher.
"Aren't you at that age?"
"Do I look like a fledgling who walks only on paths laid out by others?"
"Well, that's true."
Heh.
Nangwang smiled.
He finally understood why Namgung Sanghyeok's display left him cold.
"He's just walking the road his clan built for him."
The path Namgung Sanghyeok walkedβ
Not a single step was achieved by his own strength.
He was merely leaning on the glory of the Namgung Clan.
Cheon Muyang smirked.
"That's why they still dress them up with that lousy termβrising stars."
Rising stars.
What a ridiculous phrase.
At Cheon Muyang's sharp criticism, Nangwang only laughed.
He agreed.
"True enough. Being a 'rising star' doesn't mean blades won't pierce them."
"Still, let's watch."
"Watch what?"
"To see if among those worms, there's a true hidden dragon asleep."
Nangwang burst out laughing.
Was there really one?
'Isn't that you?'
If there was such a person, wasn't it Cheon Muyang?
Who else could compare?
Still, Nangwang was curious.
"Perfect timing. I was just bored."
As Nangwang and Cheon Muyang talked, Paeng Dohyeok of the Hebei Paeng Clan passed by.
Perhaps provoked by Namgung Sanghyeok's display, the Paeng Clan warriors were also busy showing off.
Yet Paeng Dohyeok himself walked awkwardly.
When his eyes met Cheon Muyang's, he nearly lost his balance.
"Tsk."
Perhaps because of thatβ
Even Nangwang, who had acknowledged the Paeng Clan, looked at Paeng Dohyeok with indifference today.
He felt none of the Paeng Clan's characteristic ferocity.
"This is boring."
After that, more dull processions followed.
Just as it seemed to be endingβ
"Is that it?"
"Ah, someone's coming."
"...?"
"A man who came alone."
Cheon Muyang smiled faintly.
A man approached, roughly wrapped in shabby straw clothing, walking with the careless gait of a drifter.
"Hougae?"
"H-Hougae!"
"Hougae is here!"
It was Hougae of the Beggars' Sect.
A man who shone on his own, even without the Beggars' Sect's halo.
Nangwang's eyes lit up.
"The hidden dragon has arrived."
Hougae was a true hidden dragon.
So much so that he was already too great for the Yongbong Assembly to contain.
"Why would Hougae, who hasn't attended in years, come now?"
The chatter of onlookers confirmed it.
Hougae was widely considered to be beyond the level of the Yongbong Assembly.
"Hm hm hm."
Yet Hougae paid no attention to the shocked reactions, instead craning his neck about restlessly.
He seemed to be looking for someone.
Then his gaze fixed on one point.
Straight at Cheon Muyang.
"Ah! There you are!"
Whoosh!
As overwhelming as Hougae's presence was,
Everyone's eyes followed his gaze.
"Cheon Muyang, young master."
"The Cheon Clan?"
"The one who smashed the Paeng Clan's second young master?"
"...?"
Strange gazes gathered.
This was a reaction Cheon Muyang had never expected.
"What is this?"
"Waaaaaah!"
Cheers erupted.
Cheers neither Namgung Sanghyeok nor Paeng Dohyeok had received.
With a sly smile, Hougae approached Cheon Muyang.
"What do you think?"
"What did you do?"
"Ah, I happened to see it by chance."
"So that was you."
Cheon Muyang shook his head.
That gaze he'd felt through the window when he crushed Paeng Dohyeokβ
He knew it was a beggar of the Beggars' Sect, but never imagined it was Hougae.
"I just told people what I saw. And the rumor was already spreading, you know?"
That Cheon Muyang beat up the Hebei Paeng Clan's second young master for the sake of a mere serverβ
That rumor was already everywhere.
All Hougae did was amplify it.
Words without legs travel a thousand li.
Passed on through Hougae's mouth, the rumor grew, breeding wild embellishments as it spread.
"I heard you destroyed the Hebei Paeng Clan's warriors with a single sword."
"I saw it with my own eyesβDao Dragon couldn't even move an inch."
Yet at the very bottom of all those rumors, one single fact remained unwarped.
"But for what reason did the Cheon Clan's eldest young master end up clashing with the Hebei Paeng Clan?"
"Hey now. You said you saw it yourselfβwhy ask that?"
The fundamental reason this rumor spread so rapidly and stirred such fierce reactions was simple.
"So what was it about, then?"
"They say it was to save a server."
"Hm?"
"How incredible is that?"
It was the Hebei Paeng Clan.
No matter how formidable the Cheon Clan's prestige might be, it could not be compared to the Hebei Paeng Clan.
And yet Cheon Muyang had drawn his sword for the sake of a mere server.
γRighteous Chivalry.γ
Countless people cried out about righteousness and chivalry, yet not a single one truly embodied it.
"He confronted the Hebei Paeng Clan for such a trivial reason?"
"Yes. Isn't that remarkable?"
At the very least, from the perspective of the powerless and the weak, Cheon Muyang's actions could not help but stir the heart.
"I didn't fabricate anything, so isn't that fine?"
"...."
Hougae smiled and gestured to Cheon Muyang.
It was a beckoning motion toward the path reserved only for those holding gold invitations.
"Go."
Nangwang pushed Cheon Muyang's back.
Standing at the front like that, Cheon Muyang met the gazes fixed upon him.
"...."
Cheon Muyang said nothing.
A swordsman speaks with his sword alone.
And so, he grasped Cheongwang.
Whoooong!
With a cry clearer and purer than ever before, Cheongwang's light burst forth into the world, slicing upward through the sky.
What was it?
Cheongwang was a sword, yet not a sword.
"Ah...."
Even those ignorant of martial arts could sense itβ
Cheon Muyang's will filling the world.
γI will establish righteous chivalry with the sword.γ
At this moment, what Cheon Muyang held was not a sword, but righteous chivalry itself.
"Let's go."
Following behind Cheon Muyang came Nangwang, and then Wolyeong, Neung Ryeoun, and Cha Myeonghak.
Despite holding only bronze invitations, everyone parted to make way.
"As expected."
Hougae followed after them as well.
After Cheon Muyang leftβ
"...."
A silence so heavy it was frightening descended.
No one could continue speaking.
Especially those who had never learned martial artsβthose marginalized and ignored throughout the Jianghuβwere deeply moved.
Before their eyes stood a chivalrous hero who revered a form of righteous chivalry no one else pursued.
"Cheon-hyeop...."
"Truly, a chivalrous hero of the heavens."
Some busied themselves spreading stories about Cheon Muyang, but most simply lingered in the aftertaste of the righteous chivalry he had created.
***
They entered the grand training ground.
All seats had already been assigned.
"Hm."
The arrangement was childish, yet its intent was painfully clear.
Bronze with bronze.
Silver with silver.
Gold with gold.
The sections were cleanly divided.
"How petty."
On the left side of the grand training ground sat those with bronze invitations.
On the right, those with silver invitations faced them.
Those holding gold invitations, however, were seated not in the training ground itself, but in a pavilion overlooking it entirely.
"Indeed."
Seeing Hougae nodding along beside him, Nangwang asked,
"Young beggar, isn't that where your seat should be?"
"How could a beggar suit such a place? This spot is far better."
With a sly smile, Hougae stayed right beside Cheon Muyang.
"Don't get too close!"
Wolyeong warned him.
She was worried Cheon Muyang's clothes might get dirty.
"Ah, I'll be careful."
"I'll be watching."
Even against Hougae, Wolyeong did not shrink back.
"...."
Neung Ryeoun and Cha Myeonghak as wellβ
From behind Cheon Muyang, they sent Hougae a wordless warning.
Who could treat the famed Hougae of all people like this?
Yet Hougae only smiled brightly.
"You have truly fine people by your side."
Even this atmosphereβbeing treated lightlyβpleased him.
'He's crazy.'
'Is he out of his mind?'
Wolyeong, Neung Ryeoun, and Cha Myeonghak each thought Hougae a madman and only heightened their vigilance.
Cheon Muyang, meanwhile, paid no attention, merely gazing at the group with gold invitations seated so smugly above.
"Isn't it ridiculous?"
"...."
"That a mere invitation decides everything."
Hougae took out his gold invitation.
And tore it apart.
"Dividing people by rank?"
"Still, it's effective."
The practice was laughable.
Yet Hougae knew it well.
Petty as it was, the system was extremely efficient.
"We're silverβhow can we sit with bronze?"
"Silver or bronze, what's the difference? Why make such a fuss!"
Even if gold was unreasonable, silver and bronze could never strike back at gold.
Thus, silver and bronze trampled each other, striving desperately to become gold.
And so the hierarchy of bronze, silver, and gold solidified.
Gold watching from above as silver and bronze crushed one another.
This seating arrangement was merely a reflection of that reality.
"It's nothing more than false hope."
Hougae smiled bitterly.
Bronze might become silverβ
But silver could never become gold.
That was the unspoken law of the orthodox martial world.
"One could hardly call it truth, but that's the reality."
"Then we must show them."
"...."
"That even from a muddy stream, a dragon can rise."
Hougae felt a shiver run through him.
Truth was never absolute.
Yet some entrenched powers sought to turn relative truths into unchanging laws.
He believed that was wrong.
'The moment relative truth becomes absoluteβ'
Hope disappears.
And when humans lose hope, they can no longer advance.
When progress stops, stagnation follows.
'And all that remains is rot.'
That much had to be prevented.
Which was why Hougae had been waiting for someone like Cheon Muyang.
And now he had met him.
"Thank you."
Hougae expressed his gratitude sincerely.
It was something that someone had to do.
"What thanks?"
Cheon Muyang laughed.
"I just don't like any of this, so I figured I'd act like a thug for once."
Hougae glimpsed it thenβ
Cheon Muyang's true nature.
'He really is a thug.'
That essenceβ
Was that of a thug.
.