Chapter 51

Honed and Forged (3)

While blades were flying inside Mukryun Hall, the promotion examination for advancement to the rank of Second Cloud was reaching its conclusion at the Changcheon Society's main headquarters.

"Baekri Cheong! Congratulations on your promotion to Second Cloud!"

At the congratulatory words of Dan Jungse, Hall Master of the Iron Tower Hall, Baekri Cheong offered a respectful salute and lowered his gaze.

Reflected in his clear eyes was a stele made of blue jade stone.

The surface where it had been split apart was remarkably smooth.

It was a feat Baekri Cheong had accomplished with a single strike.

'The young brother also cut it apart in one strike.'

Baekri Cheong wanted to examine the sword mark Namgung Jun had left on his own blue jade stele.

It could not have been exactly the same.

He was curious about the differences.

Unfortunately, he had no opportunity to compare them directly.

'Perhaps I'm still lacking.'

Baekri Cheong inspected his blade.

Though slight, the section that had first struck the blue jade stele had been damaged.

Which meant the strike had not been perfect.

Unsatisfied with his achievement, Baekri Cheong simply stared at the damaged edge without even sheathing his sword.

Watching him, the muscles on Dan Jungse's face twitched.

'Baekri Cheong doesn't seem satisfied.'

Despite achieving promotion with exceptional results, he appeared strangely reluctant to leave.

Seeing through the thoughts hidden in his gaze, Dan Jungse smiled.

"Having a rival with whom you can compete in martial arts is truly a blessing."

"Hall Master."

"You want to cross swords with Namgung Jun again, don't you?"

Caught red-handed, Baekri Cheong lowered his head.

Competitive spirit was not something to be ashamed of, yet he still felt slightly embarrassed.

After all, Namgung Jun was several years younger than him and had not even trained in martial arts for a full year.

After a brief hesitation, Baekri Cheong carefully spoke.

"I heard the young brother is currently at headquarters as well. I was planning to visit the Heavenly Sword Hall soon."

"That won't be necessary. There's a better stage waiting."

"...Pardon?"

Baekri Cheong was slightly surprised by what followed.

A tournament to select the younger generation representatives for the Songshan Gathering.

Not only Namgung Jun, but many of the promising younger talents from the Ten Halls of the Changcheon Society would be participating.

'And at the Songshan Gathering, I'll be able to meet the disciples of the Three Sects, One Gang, and the Five Great Sword Sects.'

Baekri Cheong was always hungry for growth.

Opportunities to meet numerous skilled peers of a similar age were rare.

Especially if they were young talents from the Three Sects, One Gang, and the Five Great Sword Sects, they would undoubtedly rank among the finest in the Jianghu.

By competing against them, he could not only find clues for further growth but also gain a rough understanding of his current standing.

"When does the tournament begin?"

"It will be officially announced in three or four days. For now, only the Hall Masters know."

"Thank you."

"The Hall Master of Extreme Martial Hall is away on a long-term mission, so news reaches you more slowly. It's nothing important, so don't worry about it."

Only after hearing Dan Jungse's explanation did Baekri Cheong turn away.

Even standing idle for a moment felt wasteful.

The moment he returned to Extreme Martial Hall, he intended to resume training.

'I should take the spiritual medicines I received as mission rewards immediately.'

Originally, he had intended to wait longer before consuming them.

Now he had changed his plans.

He intended to go all out in this tournament.

There was no way Namgung Jun would miss an event like this.

As one of Heavenly Sword Hall's most promising younger talents, he would certainly appear.

The accelerated pace of Baekri Cheong's steps revealed the burning excitement in his heart.

"I envy the Hall Masters of Extreme Martial Hall and Heavenly Sword Hall."

Dan Jungse's muscles twitched as he watched Baekri Cheong disappear beyond the wall.

Namgung Jun and Baekri Cheong.

Though they were newcomers to the Changcheon Society, both had displayed astonishing progress in martial arts and accumulated achievements at an incredible pace.

Naturally, their names were being discussed throughout headquarters.

In fact, more than a few Hall Masters regretted failing to recruit them into their own halls.

Both were swordsmen and clearly ill-suited for Iron Tower Hall.

Even knowing that, Dan Jungse could not help feeling disappointed.

That was how brightly the two youths shone.

Their talent was exceptional, and they advanced without hesitation.

"I should start making preparations as well."

Dan Jungse thought of the younger talents he intended to send to the tournament from Iron Tower Hall.

Compared to Namgung Jun and Baekri Cheong, they fell short.

But they were hardly weak enough to be completely overwhelmed.

Dan Jungse had never trained his subordinates carelessly.

'This tournament is essentially a miniature version of the Ten Halls Power Evaluation.'

The Ten Halls Power Evaluation was one of the Changcheon Society's grand events, held once every three years.

As the name suggested, all ten halls participated, competing for superiority and selecting a new Three Pillars.

This tournament was also significant.

The most promising younger talents from all ten halls would be facing one another.

And with the next Ten Halls Power Evaluation gradually approaching, the Hall Masters would undoubtedly use this tournament to gauge the overall balance of power.

"I'm looking forward to it."

***

When Namgung Jun returned covered in blood, the swordsmen of Heavenly Sword Hall nearly jumped out of their skin.

"What happened to you?!"

"I had a bad feeling from the moment you said you were going to Mukryun Hall!"

"Healing powder! And bandages too!"

Heo Il and Man Yewon, who had been in the middle of a sparring match, hurried over and inspected him anxiously.

Blood seeped from the tattered remains of his martial robe.

The sight was anything but reassuring.

"Young Hero Namgung, did the Mukryun Hall Master do this to you?"

"Has the Sword Demon gone into qi deviation or something? I'll go tell Grandfather immediately!"

Heo Il asked in a subdued voice.

Meanwhile, Man Yewon trembled with anger, her face flushed bright red.

Namgung Jun placed a hand on each of their shoulders.

"Please don't worry. They're all shallow wounds. A little healing powder will close them immediately."

As he calmed them down, Namgung Jun turned his head.

At the end of his gaze stood Gong Junam.

The elder silently stared at the dark bloodstains spreading across the shredded martial robe.

His eyes were overflowing with cold fury.

Had Namgung Jun not personally stated that he was unharmed, Gong Junam looked ready to march straight to Mukryun Hall that very instant.

"That's enough. Everyone, get back to what you were doing."

At Lee Seha's words, the members of Heavenly Sword Hall swallowed their anger and reluctantly stepped back.

When Lee Seha merely flicked a finger expressionlessly, Namgung Jun had no choice but to follow as well.

"Sit."

Unlike usual, Lee Seha's demeanor was cold.

Dragged all the way to the Hall Master's office, Namgung Jun obediently took a seat.

Without saying a word, Lee Seha took out healing powder and bandages.

Then she removed his outer robe and began treating his wounds.

A heavy silence lingered between them.

Eventually, Namgung Jun carefully spoke.

"Master. Are you angry?"

Lee Seha had never liked the idea of Namgung Jun getting involved with the Sword Demon.

Seeing him return in this condition could only have worsened her mood.

"Jun isn't reckless, is he? You must've had your reasons."

Her hands carefully cleaned the wounds and applied medicine with delicate precision.

Every touch revealed her wish that her disciple would feel as little pain as possible.

After wiping away the bloodstains on his face herself, Lee Seha leaned closer.

"Still, judging by that refreshed look on your face, it seems you gained more than I expected."

"Yes. I obtained a rather valuable clue."

Examining the wound on his shoulder, Lee Seha pouted.

"Hmph. One day I'm going to stab that Sword Demon bastard in the shoulder the exact same way."

The sword wound carved into his side was somewhat large.

Had it gone even slightly deeper, healing powder alone would not have been enough.

Lee Seha voiced her dissatisfaction.

"I could teach you plenty without you having to get hurt like this."

"I know. Your teachings are the best, Master."

"You certainly know how to talk."

Her response was curt, but her expression softened slightly.

Clearly, she was pleased.

"Even so... I wish you wouldn't get hurt."

Her small voice gently settled over the freshly bandaged wounds.

This was not the first time she had seen Namgung Jun bleeding.

And for a martial artist, injuries were unavoidable.

Yet she still found it difficult to watch her disciple get hurt.

It pained her heart.

Whenever Namgung Jun was injured, it felt as though she had received the same wounds herself.

Looking at Lee Seha's slender profile, Namgung Jun slowly spoke.

"Please wait just a little longer."

"For what?"

"I'll become strong enough that you won't need to worry anymore."

Lee Seha let out a sigh and lightly tapped one of the bandaged wounds.

The gesture carried a sense of relief.

"My one and only disciple never listens. You cause me concern more often than you'd think."

"That hurts, Master."

"I hit you because I wanted it to."

After finishing the treatment, Lee Seha brushed her hair back and suddenly raised her voice.

"Now that I think about it, this is rather irritating."

"What is?"

"My disciple who never listens to me. And the Sword Demon who turned my disciple into this."

Namgung Jun chuckled.

He knew perfectly well that Lee Seha was exaggerating on purpose to lighten the mood.

"Master. How about a spar? It's been a while."

"What are you talking about? I just finished bandaging you."

"Then bandage me again afterward."

"My disciple is ordering his master around now. Really. Is this how it's supposed to be?"

Though she answered with a sulky expression, Lee Seha ultimately smiled brightly and picked up her sword.

"Are you really all right?"

"Yes. I'll show you the clue I gained at Mukryun Hall."

Standing opposite one another in the training ground, master and disciple exchanged a glance before slowly drawing their swords.

Their movements were light and leisurely.

The swords extending from their forward steps moved at the same pace.

Shing—

The two blades brushed gently against one another, producing a clear metallic chime.

The pair exchanged sword strikes very slowly.

It looked almost like a sword dance.

Neither used internal qi.

The two swords moved at an extremely slow pace.

Even a child with no martial training could easily follow their movements.

Yet the sparring was neither crude nor casual.

Even while moving slowly, the trajectories of their swords changed endlessly.

The exchanges lacked explosive intensity, but they contained martial principles of far greater depth.

Many times, their swords never even met, simply slicing through empty air.

As the exchanges gradually accumulated, a clear difference emerged between their sword paths.

Lee Seha's sword was perfectly straight.

Namgung Jun's curved, twisted, and coiled in every direction.

Namgung Jun attempted to entangle and disrupt his master's sword path.

Lee Seha sought to sever her disciple's sword path cleanly.

Twisting and changing endlessly in midair, the two swords chased one another like a pair of dancing butterflies.

Half a shichen passed.

Yet the master and disciple had exchanged barely more than a dozen moves.

Even so, sweat covered Namgung Jun's forehead.

He had to continuously refine and strip away the excess from every sword path and insight appearing within his mind and imagination.

Otherwise, Lee Seha's sword would block him before he could even fully extend his blade.

And if he failed to extend his sword—

The spar would end right there.

'Good.'

As he avoided Lee Seha's leisurely sword strikes, Namgung Jun was able to cleanly refine the insights into Phantom Sword and Transforming Sword that he had obtained in Mukryun Hall.

Clang!

Their swords met once again.

This time, however, neither blade showed any sign of separating.

The blades remained locked together while only the sword bodies shifted and moved.

Kak!

The two swords twisted endlessly, each preventing the other's sword path from extending in a different direction.

The stalemate continued.

Then Lee Seha smiled first and spoke.

"So this is the clue you obtained from Mukryun Hall. It's a sword of an entirely different nature."

"Thanks to you, Master, I was able to refine it much more cleanly."

After exchanging those few words, both master and disciple sheathed their swords simultaneously.

Lee Seha casually brushed her hair back, and moonlight scattered through the strands.

"Maybe I've been using my head too much. Suddenly I'm hungry. Should we get something to eat?"

"I can go buy some dumplings."

Lee Seha immediately moved to his side.

"No. Let's go together. We can take a walk at night while we're at it."

Master and disciple left side by side and headed toward an inn within the Changcheon Society's headquarters.

And so, the tournament to select participants for the Songshan Gathering drew ever closer.