Chapter 168: He Doesn't Get Angry Because He's Not Ordinary

TL: FoodieMonster007

"I forgot!" Seo Daeryong shouted. He had completely forgotten the strategy pouch his master gave him.

"How could I have forgotten this?"

"That's probably why the Elder gave it to me instead of you, right?"

"Ah! I'm saved. I'm finally saved!"

"Is that really so? You might've just lost gracefully, but now that you're opening this pouch, you might overdo it and get yourself killed. Don't you think?"

Seo Daeryong flinched.

"Are you using my own tactic against me? Making me lose steam by imagining the worst-case scenario?"

"No. This time, I'm talking about a very real possibility. Are you still going to open it?"

"I have to. Regardless of victory or defeat, this is the first strategy Master has ever left for me. I have to see it."

I opened the pouch. Inside was a rolled-up piece of paper.

I handed the paper to Seo Daeryong. He took a deep breath before he slowly unrolled it and began to read.

Seo Daeryong looked shocked at the contents. He handed it back to me, trembling, without even finishing it.

"L-look at this!"

A blade art formula was written on the paper.

It was the formula for the first form of the Heaven Destroying Demonic Blade Technique, the exclusive blade art of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. Only the formula for the First Technique was written, not the entire art.

[…It is only the first of the nine forms of the Heaven Destroying Demonic Blade Technique, but it will be a great help in a fight between prodigies. If there is anything you don't understand, you can learn it as the Second Young Lord teaches you, and the Second Young Lord will also show you how to conceal that it is my martial arts.]

Seo Daeryong's face was half-dazed.

"What's wrong?"

"The Heaven Destroying Demonic Blade Technique is a martial art passed down only to the official successor."

"Of course it is."

"Then why aren't you surprised, Director?"

"Why should I be surprised?"

"It means he thinks of me not just as a disciple, but as the Elder's successor."

Seo Daeryong's voice trembled. It was the most he had trembled since I met him.

"Isn't that obvious?"

"Obvious? Master thinks of me as the next Blood Heaven Blade Demon, and you say that's obvious?"

"Among the Elder's disciples, who else is worthy of becoming the Demon Supreme besides you?"

Seo Daeryong was so moved he did not know what to do.

To be honest, this is the first I knew that the Blood Heaven Blade Demon considered Seo Daeryong his successor. I expected it, but the decision came faster than I thought. It means he's that fond of Seo Daeryong.

"But he's passing down such an important martial art on a slip of paper like this?"

"That's why he gave it to me. Because I wouldn't lose it."

Although it was only a part, he had essentially shared the formula of a unique martial art with me as well. It was a clear sign of how much the Blood Heaven Blade Demon trusted me.

"Aaaah!"

Overcome with emotion, Seo Daeryong paced back and forth, unable to compose himself.

Just then, I showed him the last part of the paper.

"Did you read this part?"

"What part?"

A separate line was written at the end of the formula.

[If you lose, you die by my hand.]

"Heok!" Seo Daeryong jumped in shock.

I, on the other hand, burst out laughing. Right, with the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's personality, there's no way he wouldn't have left such a message.

"Ah! The writing here looks especially dark, as if he pressed down hard. He wouldn't… really kill me if I lose, would he?"

There was no way I would miss this perfect opportunity to tease him.

"Is that so? You fight a prodigy with his martial arts, and you lose? With that stubborn pride of his, do you think he'd just let it be?"

"Ah, he might actually kill me." Seo Daeryong clutched his head.

"Even if he spares you for my sake, it'll be hellish training for a while."

"It'll be a lifetime of hellish training. Director! I must win! Please help me win!"

"Don't get excited. If you accidentally injure or kill Miss Jin, the Murim Alliance Chairman will kill you. In that case, you'll really die."

Since he already knew my and Seo Daeryong's identities, we absolutely could not harm Miss Jin. He had allowed us to reach the final duel because of our shared goal of eliminating the Heavenly Enlightenment Society.

"Director! Please help me win without hurting Miss Jin! Help me win using the First Technique of the Heaven Destroying Demonic Blade Technique, but in a way that no one will recognize it as Master's martial arts."

"You know how impossible that is, don't you?"

"I wouldn't ask this of anyone but you, Director."

There were five days left until the final match.

Fortunately, the First Technique did not seem that difficult. For someone as smart as Seo Daeryong, it was worth a try. The goal was not complete mastery, but to use the technique's profundity to defeat Jin Haryong. Just one move would be enough.

"It's a request from my right-hand man, so I have to grant it. Let's go!"

We immediately headed to a training ground in the mountains. We paid no mind to Jin Haryong, the Chairman, or the Heavenly Enlightenment Society.

I actually think this is the best way to avoid suspicion from the Heavenly Enlightenment Society. Who would imagine that people who disappear to train before the final match are plotting some conspiracy? They'll think we're just simple, earnest martial artists from the countryside.

We were purely focused on the duel tournament. I believed that was actually the best way to get closer to the Heavenly Enlightenment Society.

A few days passed, and it was the day before the final match.

On the eve of the final battle, the Murim Alliance was in a truly festive mood. The area bustled with countless martial artists from all over the Central Plains. Many merchants also came to sell goods, and some performed martial arts on the streets to promote their sects.

Con artists tried to swindle newcomers, and many thieves targeted wallets. The Murim Alliance dispatched martial artists from the Green Dragon Brigade and other elite organizations to crack down on any unpleasant incidents.

Amidst the chaos, Jin Haryong entered an inn with her bamboo hat pulled low. When she asked the owner about Geom Yeon, she heard that he and his master had not been back for days.

Where on earth could he have gone?

She wanted to see Geom Yeon before the final match. She wanted to joke with him, asking if she should go easy on his young master. She really wanted to share that joke with him.

She was also curious how she would feel if Geom Yeon begged her to go easy. Right now, she had no intention of holding back, but would she waver even a little?

Disappointed, she left the inn. Since it had come to this, she had no choice but to change the joke. After winning, she would say this to him.

If you had come and asked me to go easy, I would have. My friend, where on earth did you go?

Finally, the day of the final match dawned.

A huge crowd had gathered. As befitting the final, all the important figures were present. The Murim Alliance Chairman, who organized the tournament, filled the seats along with the heads of Murim Alliance organizations and renowned masters from all over the Central Plains.

The talk of the tournament was, without a doubt, Seo Daeryong. All attention focused on whether he, a man from a small sect, could write a new chapter in history. If he defeated Jin Haryong, the granddaughter of the Murim Alliance Chairman, Seo Daeryong would become a true hero. Of course, far more people were betting on Jin Haryong's victory.

At the referee's introduction, Seo Daeryong stepped onto the duel stage first. His gaze was different from his other duels.

I burned myself out completely over the past five days. I've never worked so hard on anything in my life, and I probably never will again. I'll have no regrets even if I lose. Ah, no. I can't lose. The thought of a lifetime of hellish training is horrifying.

Cheers calling his name erupted from all sides. Seo Daeryong closed his eyes for a moment to savor the feeling. It was a gift life had given him. After this, he might have to return to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and live as an investigator for the Sanzu River Hall. This was the final duel of the Young Dragon Tournament, a moment that would never come again.

Seo Daeryong looked down from the duel stage at Geom Mugeuk.

Geom Mugeuk, who had been looking up at the stage with his arms crossed, saw him and nodded. Seo Daeryong nodded back once. That was enough of an understanding between them before the match.

The referee then introduced Jin Haryong. A roar of cheers even louder than the one for Seo Daeryong erupted.

Standing on the duel stage, her gaze went past Seo Daeryong to Geom Mugeuk. He looked at Seo Daeryong and her with an indifferent expression. She did not know why, but at this moment, Geom Mugeuk felt like a different person. Not like a servant or a friend, but like someone else entirely.

"Now, let the final duel begin!"

With the referee's shout and a roar that shook the heavens, the duel began.

Seo Daeryong moved first. His dao cut swiftly through the air.

There is only one chance to win. He had practiced endlessly for that one chance. He absolutely could not be defeated before he could create that opportunity.

Seo Daeryong pressed his attack fiercely, but Jin Haryong blocked with ease. In terms of martial arts skill, Jin Haryong was clearly a cut above. The one saving grace was that his recently increased inner arts kept him from being overpowered in strength.

The fierce clash continued. However, the duel gradually began to tilt in Jin Haryong's favor.

Seo Daeryong's attacks grew slower, while Jin Haryong's sword became faster. Seo Daeryong had to use all his strength just to block her attacks. The fact that he could hold on this long was a testament to his effort and talent. However, nothing could overcome this clear difference in skill.

Seeing him gradually pushed back, the spectators expected the duel to end soon. The Murim Alliance Chairman also watched his granddaughter's duel with a relaxed heart.

Just then, Seo Daeryong was pushed to the very edge of the duel stage.

The moment arrived.

The distance between them, the position of her feet, the position of her sword, his own feet and body, his sword and dao, all fell into the exact positions he had been waiting for.

Seo Daeryong did not miss this one chance.

SHWAAAAAAK!

Seo Daeryong's dao created a variation technique. He unleashed a modified version of the Heaven Destroying Demonic Blade Technique's First Technique. It was the first variation he had used since the duel began, and it was a move that caught her completely off guard.

Surprised, she swung her sword to block, but that too was part of his practice.

Seo Daeryong's dao twisted at a strange angle. It struck her sword repeatedly as it flew towards the fingers gripping it.

In the instant the watching Murim Alliance Chairman shot to his feet!

TAAAAANG!

The sword flew from Jin Haryong's grasp. It soared through the air in an arc and fell to the ground with a CLANG. She had no choice but to let go, as her fingers would have been severed if she had held on.

In the next moment, Seo Daeryong's dao was aimed at Jin Haryong's neck.

Jin Haryong could not believe the situation. The final technique that had sent her sword flying was so exquisite that she had no way to counter it.

Words she truly did not want to utter escaped her lips.

"…I lost."

At that moment, the referee declared Seo Daeryong's victory.

"The winner of the Young Dragon Tournament is Seo Ryong of the Gansu the Western Blade Sect!"

Simultaneously, cheers erupted from all sides. Like a child, Seo Daeryong leaped down from the duel stage and threw himself into Geom Mugeuk's arms.

"Thank you, thank you so much."

Tears streamed from Seo Daeryong's eyes. It was the first time I had seen him cry. Seo Daeryong seemed like the type who would never cry, but he could not hold back his tears.

Although he wouldn't have won without Geom Mugeuk, Seo Daeryong truly worked hard. In other words, Geom Mugeuk's teachings were effective because he was that kind of person.

Geom Mugeuk hugged him tightly and whispered softly.

"You did well."

From an investigator of the Sanzu River Hall to a disciple of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, he had now defeated the Murim Alliance Chairman's granddaughter to win the tournament. His joy was not just from the victory. This feeling, as if he had finally stepped onto the true path of a martial artist, was wonderful.

"Stop crying and get back on the duel stage."

"……"

Wiping his tears, Seo Daeryong climbed back onto the duel stage.

Just then, Geom Mugeuk felt a gaze on him. From far away, the Murim Alliance Chairman was looking at him. It was a distance from which most masters could never send telepathy, but Geom Mugeuk's telepathy reached the Chairman clearly.

[My apologies. My friend who came with me was so sincere that I helped him train.]

[What was that final technique?]

[It is the martial arts of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.]

The Murim Alliance Chairman was startled by my honest words.

[It was the Blade Demon's martial arts?]

[Yes. This friend is the Blade Demon's head disciple.]

I told him on purpose. The Murim Alliance Chairman's anger would subside once he knew Seo Daeryong was not an ordinary demonic practitioner. Indeed, the Murim Alliance Chairman did not make an issue of the result any longer.

[Sometimes, a defeat can be more helpful than a victory.]

It seemed he thought this defeat might be more beneficial for his granddaughter, who had never known loss.

[I can only admire the Chairman's great magnanimity.]

Geom Mugeuk's gaze returned to the duel stage.

And then another moment came.

Beyond the overjoyed Seo Daeryong, a person on the other side caught his eye. It was the woman who had come to congratulate Seo Daeryong after every victory.

Just then, Geom Mugeuk saw it. Her eyes and expression were so cold they were impassive. Having only ever seen her shyly smiling face, that expression was completely unfamiliar.

She practiced relaxing her face. Smiling, frowning, then smiling again. Then, she looked up at the duel stage, waved, and called out to Seo Daeryong.

The moment her eyes met Seo Daeryong's, she smiled brightly. She was a completely different person from the one Geom Mugeuk had seen just a moment before. The reason he could clearly notice this drastic change in her expression even from a distance was thanks to the Divine Eye Technique.

The Heavenly Enlightenment Society!

They had been setting their plan in motion for a while. It was possible they had approached not only Seo Daeryong but also the other martial artists who had advanced to the main tournament in a similar fashion.

To those who liked women, with a woman. To those who needed a friend, as a friend. To those who needed money, with money. Indeed, the Heavenly Enlightenment Society was no ordinary organization.

In any case, I had finally succeeded in catching the tail of the Heavenly Enlightenment Society!

But the joy was brief. Geom Mugeuk looked at Seo Daeryong with a feeling of pity. He was waving and smiling brightly at the woman from the Heavenly Enlightenment Society.

Ah, Daeryong. What am I to do?

I plan not to tell Seo Daeryong until the woman reveals her true colors. It would be better for his words and actions to remain natural if he knew nothing.

I'm sorry, Detective Seo, but the more genuinely you fall for her, the more certain we can be of catching them. It can't be helped. Let's hope you mature as much as it hurts.