CHAPTER: Chapter 21
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Chapter 21
“I permit it.”
Those single words settled the boiling air of the training ground.
Everyone’s eyes now turned toward one person—the cadet who would stand face-to-face with the Mad Blood Saber, Jeok Mugwang.
CLANK.
Uncheon stepped onto the sparring platform.
The two figures contrasted so sharply that they seemed almost alien beside each other.
A cadet with heavy Iron Weights fastened to his limbs like a prisoner.
And an instructor who was a Peak Realm master.
At that strange sight, the noise filling the training ground died away in an instant, as if cold water had been thrown over it.
Within that absolute silence, only the sound of Ma Chung and Yajin swallowing dryly from the Head Instructor seats rang out with unusual clarity.
‘Damn it… The original plan was for him to perform well against the cadets. If this happens, will my investment go to waste?’
Ma Chung clutched his head.
‘No, wait. What if he performs well against Instructor Jeok Mugwang? But… is that even possible?’
Beside him, Yajin’s eyes were also filled with confusion.
‘Did Instructor Jeok Mugwang recognize that child’s talent? If things continue like this, taking him into the Shadowless Killing Sect may become difficult….’
Senior Head Instructor Yajin realized that he could no longer monopolize Uncheon on his own authority.
‘Of all times, observers had to come today! The number of competitors will increase. I must contact the main sect at once.’
Only Yuha watched this extraordinary stage with shining eyes, full of interest.
‘Instructor Jeok Mugwang and Uncheon… Considering the instructor’s temperament, this will flow in a direction the other cadets cannot understand.’
On the sparring platform, Jeok Mugwang stood with his hands clasped behind his back.
“Brat, this time, there is no restriction of a circle like before. Can you handle me in that state?”
Uncheon’s answer was brief.
“…I will only do my best.”
Just then, at the very moment the spar was about to begin, Yayul Hui stepped forward.
“Chief Instructor! Instructor Jeok Mugwang is a master of a higher realm than the other Head Instructors! Therefore, that must also be taken into account in this cadet’s evaluation.”
At that bold cry, a faint smile that no one noticed brushed across Gal Muheun’s lips upon the platform.
‘Oh? Is she a daughter of the Yayul Family? She has quite a bit of spirit. It could not have been easy to step forward in this atmosphere.’
As if it were only natural, he nodded and said, “Of course… I will take that into account.”
By Gal Muheun’s standards, Yayul Hui’s action conformed to the demonic path.
As his epithet, One-Brush Soul-Stealer, suggested, he was a master of calligraphy with a profound cultivation in scholarship as well.
The spirit and conviction that refused to bow even before power were precisely the demonic path he pursued.
“Even if Instructor Jeok Mugwang does not use internal energy, he is still a master who far surpasses the level of an ordinary Head Instructor. This fact will be reflected in Cadet Uncheon’s evaluation.”
Gal Muheun’s gaze turned toward Uncheon.
“Since your sparring opponent was suddenly changed, is there anything else you desire for the sake of a fair match?”
Yayul Hui cried out inwardly.
‘Ask him to reduce the time you have to endure, or put another restriction on him! With your mind, it should be easy to think of a suitable limitation!’
However, Uncheon’s answer defied everyone’s expectations.
“Please allow us to exchange offense and defense from the start, just as Cadet Muk Hajin did.”
Disappointment and shock flashed across Yayul Hui’s face.
‘You fool! You want to face Instructor Jeok Mugwang from the start without restrictions? That is absurd!’
Only Yuha smiled as he looked at Uncheon.
‘Well… Simply avoiding the attacks of a Peak Realm master would be even more difficult. Even so, he is not asking for any other restriction… Uncheon has no choice but to reveal his skill.’
A strange gleam also appeared in Gal Muheun’s eyes.
‘Yayul Hui, Yuha, and Uncheon. The cadets of this Hidden Demon Cave might be amusing to raise personally… It is a shame that observers are present.’
At last, he declared the start of the spar.
“If that is the cadet’s wish, so be it. Begin the spar.”
CLANG—!
The gong rang, and the spar between Uncheon and Jeok Mugwang began.
“When I saw you last time, you made fairly good use of distance. Advancement and retreat, the foundation of footwork. You know when to move forward and when to fall back.”
Jeok Mugwang moved first.
Even though he still kept his hands clasped behind his back and merely moved his feet lightly, his form closed the distance at tremendous speed.
Light and swift—that was exactly what he was.
“It is an achievement rarely seen at your age… but this time, this instructor is not confined inside a circle, so the situation will be somewhat different from last time.”
Jeok Mugwang approached with rapid footwork, pressing Uncheon.
Each step he took seemed to bind Uncheon’s path of retreat.
‘When I asked him to permit offense and defense, does he mean to test footwork first?’
Having sensed Jeok Mugwang’s intent, Uncheon responded with the Limitless Step.
With the heavy Iron Weights still fastened to him, he seemed to move one beat too slowly.
To the cadets watching, Uncheon’s footwork clearly looked inferior.
“The difference in speed is enormous!”
“As expected… that is the footwork of a Peak Realm master!”
He appeared helplessly pushed back even by Jeok Mugwang’s light probing attacks, struggling merely to defend himself.
At that precarious sight, the cadets in the spectator seats began to sneer openly.
“What is that? Is he joking?”
“He cannot even move properly because of the Iron Weights!”
“He dared to face an instructor without taking off the Iron Weights? How utterly arrogant!”
However, as time passed, the match began to flow in a strange direction.
Uncheon’s movements were neither swift nor unpredictable, yet oddly enough, they disturbed Jeok Mugwang’s composure.
‘I already saw Instructor Jeok Mugwang’s movements once before.’
The actual distance was certainly short.
Yet it felt as though Uncheon was not one step ahead, but several steps ahead.
As if he were predicting Jeok Mugwang’s advances and retreats.
‘This brat’s movements themselves are not fast, but the places he reaches are strange…!’
The one moving quickly was clearly Instructor Jeok Mugwang, and yet, oddly enough, Uncheon could not be caught.
“……?”
“What is going on?”
“Could it be… that the instructor is going easy on him?”
“Of course. The instructor said he would take it into account.”
“He said he would take it into account for the evaluation, not that he would go easy on him….”
On the sparring platform, a fierce contest of footwork continued without pause.
Yet among the cadets, who lacked the level needed to understand it, doubtful murmurs began to break out.
However, the Demonic Martial Hall Master, Gal Muheun, grasped the situation at a glance.
‘Heavens…! That is the subtlety of slowness! A step that governs space and flow, not speed… How can a mere cadet already be walking his own martial path?’
Yuha, too, could not hide his shock.
‘What a monstrous fellow. How can he do that? No matter how many heavenly geniuses there may be among those afflicted with the Severed Meridian Affliction… this is absurd talent!’
However, Uncheon’s inner thoughts were different.
He had once been the First Sword of Gonryun, and had been called by the epithet Cloud Dragon.
The hellish training and all manner of medicinal herbs from the past several months had tempered his body like steel and stabilized his blood and qi.
‘…I may be unable to use internal energy because of the Severed Meridian Affliction, but that applies to my opponent as well.’
In a battle of forms under the same conditions, there was no reason for him to be pushed back by a martial artist at the Peak Realm.
‘Ha… this is unbelievable. Where in the world did a brat like this come from?’
The most shocked of all was Jeok Mugwang, who was personally exchanging moves with him.
Uncheon’s robe, which seemed as though it would brush the tips of his fists yet never quite did, was gnawing away at his patience.
Not only had he failed to gain the upper hand in footwork, but even his fists, palms, and kicks kept cutting through empty air.
‘Damn it. He is clearly not fast, yet I cannot touch him…!’
The one who had been hiding his strength in the previous three-on-one spar was none other than Uncheon.
‘Even after I had him investigated, nothing special came up. Are you telling me that an orphan picked up off the roadside truly is a heavenly genius?’
While he was flustered, a cold light flashed in Uncheon’s eyes after he had sufficiently committed Jeok Mugwang’s footwork to memory.
Now, it was about time to repay his debt.
SHHHK—.
In that instant, Uncheon’s foot moved at a strange angle, and he slipped into Jeok Mugwang’s range by the breadth of a sheet of paper.
It was a movement like a shadow seeping in.
At that sight, Yajin’s eyes filled with shock.
‘That movement is… my sect’s Shadowless Step? While carrying those heavy lumps of iron? No, he is actually using that weight in reverse to control his center of gravity!’
In the next instant, Uncheon’s upper body vanished from sight.
Then a fierce rotation stirred the wind.
Soon, a sharp kick tore through the air and shot forward.
There was only one target—Jeok Mugwang’s side.
“That… that is my Blood Wind Leg!”
Before he realized it, Ma Chung sprang up from his seat.
‘That bastard, that monstrous bastard! He is demonstrating my martial art against Instructor Jeok Mugwang! Did he not forget his promise?’
It was a promise even Ma Chung himself had not expected to be kept.
To think Uncheon would demonstrate his martial art against an instructor.
‘What kind of nerve does he have?’
Jeok Mugwang tried to lightly knock away Uncheon’s Blood Wind Leg with the edge of his hand.
However, as if he had anticipated even that, Uncheon folded his leg midway.
Then he turned another half-circle and slipped into Jeok Mugwang’s lower line.
THWACK!
In the end, Jeok Mugwang unclasped his hands from behind his back for the first time and blocked the kick with his palm.
As a result, he retreated half a step.
That “half step” was the signal.
“Was that Senior Head Instructor Yajin’s Shadowless Step just now?”
“The leg art belongs to Head Instructor Ma Chung! It is called Blood Wind Leg!”
“U-Uncheon attacked the instructor?”
At that moment, Yajin’s and Ma Chung’s shoulders rose as if they knew no limit.
‘He is using my Shadowless Step… so naturally. I must bring that child into our Shadowless Killing Sect no matter what…!’
‘This madman! He actually displayed Blood Wind Leg against the instructor! My investment is a complete success!’
The two investors’ expressions changed from despair to shock, and then to ecstasy.
They now began sincerely cheering for Uncheon.
Uncheon no longer focused solely on defense and evasion.
The brilliant counterattacks that erupted from time to time made Jeok Mugwang feel that he could no longer face him barehanded.
‘…Even if I am not holding a weapon, to think it would reach this level.’
Jeok Mugwang was confident that he could subdue any Head Instructor barehanded without a weapon.
That was why the shock he felt was even greater.
A vein bulged between his brows.
“Urgh….”
A low groan escaped between his lips.
In front of everyone, he had shown the disgrace of retreating half a step against a mere cadet.
Humiliation made anger surge within him, but what came before that was pure joy at the fragment of martial skill the brat before his eyes had displayed.
‘I acknowledge it… brat. Your footwork does not lose to mine.’
He no longer looked at Uncheon as a mere brat.
‘You are already a martial artist.’
Just then, the gong rang.
CLANG—!
The clear sound announcing that half a quarter-hour had passed since the start of the spar echoed throughout the training ground.
The referee’s cry followed.
“Half a quarter-hour has passed! Put on the Black Iron Plaque!”
Without taking his eyes off Uncheon, Jeok Mugwang drew a palm-sized Black Iron Plaque from his robes and attached it to his chest.
Now, Jeok Mugwang had something to defend.
It was the point at which the structure of the match would change into a contest to seize it.
However, Jeok Mugwang paused the match for a moment and spoke to a nearby Head Instructor.
“…Give me a wooden saber.”
At those words, the entire training ground stirred.
“A wooden… saber?”
“The instructor is taking up a weapon… against a cadet?”
It was unprecedented.
For Jeok Mugwang to take up a saber was a declaration that he would face his opponent with his full strength.
The moment he grasped the wooden saber, dignity vanished from the instructor’s face.
In its place remained only a cold, brutal gaze like that of a starving beast.
A blood-reeking killing intent and madness pressed down on the entire training ground like tangible pressure.
Mad Blood Saber.
Only then did his epithet reveal its true form.
“Now the real fight begins, brat.”
Before that overwhelming momentum, Uncheon breathed roughly for the first time and shook his head.
“…I suppose any further would be impossible.”
It sounded like a declaration of defeat.
At his words, the cadets let out exclamations mixed with regret and relief.
“You fought well, Uncheon!”
“That was quite something!”
“The instructor took up a weapon, so there is nothing you can do!”
Even Ma Chung and Yajin were just about to sigh in relief, thinking that this was more than enough for him to have done his part.
But Uncheon’s actions were different.
Instead of admitting defeat, he curved his lips into a faint smile.
An out-of-place sound rang through the quiet training ground.
CLANK—.
Everyone’s eyes turned toward the source of the sound.
Uncheon was calmly undoing the joints of the Iron Weights fastened to his legs.
THUD!
The sound of the heavy lump of iron falling onto the floor of the sparring platform struck everyone’s hearts.
Only then did the cadets’ eyes take in the hideous chunks of iron that had been binding Uncheon’s arms and legs.
Shock swept over the training ground.
“Wh-What is that?”
“Th-The sound was incredibly heavy!”
“They are Iron Weights! Come to think of it, that bastard has been wearing them this whole time!”
“…He was not fighting the instructor with his full strength?”
Uncheon loosened up his now far lighter body.
CRACK, CRACK.
The sound of joints and bones shifting came from his body.
The weight that had been restricting his movements was gone.
“Whew… Now my body finally feels a little light.”
His body felt light, like a compressed spring released upward.
Jeok Mugwang’s eyes also filled with shock.
“Ha….”
Yuha, Yayul Hui, and even Gal Muheun upon the platform.
All of their eyes widened.
At some point, all of them had forgotten about the Iron Weights fastened to Uncheon’s limbs.
That was how overwhelming Uncheon’s spar had been.
In a low voice, yet one clear enough to echo through the entire training ground, Uncheon said,
“Now then, shall we go again, Instructor?”
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