Chapter v8c14

The Master and Disciple’s Confrontation

The Decision to Extend the Disciple’s Term Last night!

At a time so deep into the night that even the stars seemed to sleep, two men faced each other in a silent indoor training hall. They were Yeom do and Bi Ryu yeon. A subtle tension stretched the air taut between them.

“I promised!” Bi Ryu yeon said.

“Of course,” Yeom do nodded with a determined face.

“Are you prepared?”

“Of course!”

Yeom do had no more room to retreat. His body was already trembling with excitement.

“Then I won’t have to worry about tomorrow’s drink bill.”

Bi Ryu yeon already seemed to be drooling at the thought. He wasn’t considering the position of the person who would have to pay.

“We’ll only know after we try.”

“Oh! Such great confidence!”

Clap, clap, clap!

Bi Ryu yeon applauded admiringly. Yeom do was not pleased.

“I haven’t been playing around even for a moment.”

Yeom do wanted to tell Bi Ryu yeon not to look for a fight. He hadn’t been just playing around for the past six months either. For him, the Ju jakdan Squad had been good sparring partners. He had been devoted to training without satisfaction. Yet, Bi Ryu yeon seemed to see him as an easy mark. Now, Yeom do planned to prove with his whole body that he was not an easy meal.

“There are many things in the world you can know without having to do them,” Bi Ryu yeon said with a sly smile.

It seems every creature in the world has its natural predator. This thorough, cold, and even cruel food chain does not spare humans.

Every human has their own predator, determined by the dynamics of individual power.

Yeom do thought his only predator in this world was a certain ice cold swordsman. But it had only been a short time, barely two years, since it became clear that there was an even more terrifying predator for him. That day, almost two years ago, was the nightmare day when Yeom do first met Bi Ryu yeon.

In front of this new predator, Yeom do was like a frog in front of a snake, unable to escape his inferior status. Yeom do wanted to say he wasn’t just a lunchbox, but his argument didn’t hold.

If he had maintained a tense standoff with bing geom through a fierce confrontation and psychological warfare, with Bi Ryu yeon, he had only been unilaterally beaten.

For Yeom do, who was proud and hot tempered, it was an unbearable situation. It was too shameful and humiliating, a story he couldn’t dare share with anyone else.

How much effort had he put in to end that story…

“Today, for sure!”

He vowed to raise the banner of ‘escaping discipleship’ even if it cost him his life.

“Watch me!”

Although he had lost all three previous fights, Yeom do hadn’t been idle.

Today, he was determined to defeat the enemy before him, to end his temporary life as a disciple.

Yeom do’s eyes, still holding the hilt of the Red Flame sword, were cautious. The regular battle that unfolded every six months to decide the extension of the disciple’s term was an agreement between Bi Ryu yeon and Yeom do. It was Bi Ryu yeon’s escape plan, a contingency for the unpredictable Yeom do. The agreement was this: If Yeom do fulfilled his duties as a disciple sincerely for six months, he could fight Bi Ryu yeon to decide whether to extend his term as a disciple. In other words, if he wanted to quit being a disciple, he had to settle it with his fists. And after three fights over a year and a half, Yeom do had to admit one thing for sure. He hadn’t lost to Bi Ryu yeon by mistake, he had lost by skill, a terrible fact he had to accept with a heavy heart. After that, Yeom do trained even harder. His training targets, the Ju jakdan Squad and Yoon Joon ho, were the only ones dying.

Yeom do was burning inside.

How futile had his first challenge been, defeated before he could even draw the Red Flame… The Ju jakdan Squad, who bore the brunt of his frustration, suffered. All his anger poured out on them. And the results of the next two fights weren’t any better. If they had been, Yeom do wouldn’t be here fighting Bi Ryu yeon now. It was a series of nightmares he didn’t even want to remember. But a two year long nightmare was too long.

“If I lose again…”

If I end up with a temporary tag and then a permanent disciple tag, I’d rather bite a knife and die. But Bi Ryu yeon, the current temporary master, knew Yeom do’s character so well that he even included a no suicide clause in the disciple’s consent form. His meticulousness was chilling and infuriating.

Yeom do was preparing for the fight of his life. He knew all too well from several failures that if he didn’t give his all in the best condition with the greatest strength, he could never reclaim victory.

“Isn’t this taking too long? You’re being too cautious. Overcaution that doesn’t suit your nature can be poisonous.”

Even in the standoff, Bi Ryu yeon pretended to be concerned about Yeom do. Thankfully, talking didn’t cost money. So Bi Ryu yeon could afford this luxury.

“I think I’ve been fooled enough. You can only be tricked by sweet words once or twice. By now, I should have had enough. I think I’ve learned enough lessons.”

Despite his impulsive nature, Yeom do declared he had enough learning ability.

“Ah! It’s because of that learning ability that you’ve tasted defeat three times. you were careless and didn’t realize it!”

“Ugh!”

Hearing Bi Ryu yeon’s words, Yeom do’s face twisted into a grotesque curve. His chest ached. No, it stung.

With a record of three straight losses, Yeom do’s experience was not insignificant. He knew how vulnerable he was to speed, and the pain he had suffered was enough. How much had he struggled to make up for his lack of speed…

The three defeats were also due to Bi Ryu yeon’s sudden breakthroughs, which he couldn’t withstand.

Yeom do had never trained so hard, even when he had been defeated by Gwan chul soo.

“This time, for sure! Absolutely for sure!”

He was determined to grasp victory and free himself from this pathetic and desperate state of discipleshipYeom do had already become too acutely aware of Bi Ryu yeon’s strength. It was incomprehensible how such a person could possess such monstrous power, but skill is skill. Yeom do felt a sense of disgust with his own existence for not being able to deny it.

Yeom do had devoted himself solely to increasing his speed. He painfully realized that his current speed was insufficient to catch up with Bi Ryu yeon’s inhuman pace. It took a month for the bruises on his aching bones to heal. The lesson was to use that as a stepping stone for a new leap forward.

Yeom do had been extremely busy over the past year, having no time to spare as he was teaching the Ju jakdan Squad and Yoon Joon ho. Surprisingly, instructing the Ju jakdan Squad provided him with a lot of unexpected help.

At some point, the confrontations with the Ju jakdan Squad became the most efficient part of his training regimen. Therefore, his teachings were always bound to be intense. He assumed every opponent he faced was Bi Ryu yeon and unleashed his attacks accordingly. Sometimes, they also served as a vent for his frustrations.

Unless he surpassed Bi Ryu yeon’s ghostly speed, the path to victory would not open.

His Red Flame sword had not yet been drawn. Clutching the sword hilt tightly enough to bleed, his waist bent, and a tremendous pressure crushed his entire body, making it difficult to even twitch a finger. Yeom do couldn’t forgive himself for feeling intimidated in front of that guy, instinctively shrinking away.

“!”

Flash!

A red light split the space.

It was a lightning fast sword drawing technique. It was incomparably faster than before. However, it failed to achieve its ultimate goal of cutting down the enemy. Despite accurately judging the distance, it was in vain.

Bi Ryu yeon had narrowly retreated backward, saving his life in the nick of time.

‘Chet! A failure…?’

Yeom do was disappointed but did not relax his guard. Based on his past experiences, he knew that Bi Ryu yeon’s counterattack following a failed first strike was the most terrifying and powerful. Yeom do poured all his energy into his defensive stance.

Bang!

Bi Ryu yeon, who had stepped back, shot forward like an arrow with the technique of Gungshin Tanying (a technique that involves bending the body like a bow and then springing forward).

Bi Ryu yeon’s fists, leaving dozens of afterimages, rained down on Yeom do.

“Ha!”

Ratatatatat!!

Yeom do furiously swung his sword, forming a red barrier to protect himself from Bi Ryu yeon’s relentless punches.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The red barrier did not allow a single punch from Bi Ryu yeon to penetrate. Three times was enough. Four times would be too many.

“Ho! You’ve gotten a bit faster!”

Bi Ryu yeon genuinely admired him. It was a significant improvement, incomparable to the last time. The snail had become as fast as an ant. Bi Ryu yeon smiled with inner satisfaction.

“I haven’t been just playing around either!”

Yeom do forced a relaxed smile, hiding the trembling in his hands.

Yeom do gripped the Red Flame sword. He straightened his body, taking a mid stance. In that brief moment, Yeom do achieved a state of unity between his body and the sword. His entire body was already like a single blade, ready to use his secret technique.

True Crimson Seventeen Flames

Secret Technique

Sword Qi: Great Flame Wrath

A vision of swirling flames enveloped Yeom do. His eyes began to shine red like rubies.

“Oh! Are you going all out? That’s too much.”

Bi Ryu yeon exclaimed.

The Great Flame wrath is said to be a legendary fire that the Immovable King uses to burn all the energy in the world, purifying everything. Of course, Yeom do’s sword technique didn’t contain such power, but its might was still terrifyingly immense.

Bang! Kaboom!

It was an incredibly brute force technique. The claws of flame mercilessly tore through the earth, leaving it tattered.

Bi Ryu yeon quickly focused on escaping the range of the Great Flame wrath. It wouldn’t be fun to get caught in such a brute force technique.

“Phew! That was close…”

Bi Ryu yeon sighed in relief. He had almost singed all his hair off. It was a moment of extreme danger. Lately, he felt as if his hair had been suffering too much. It seemed many were holding a grudge against his beautiful hair.

Bi Ryu yeon also felt the need to finish this. If things continued this way, there could be a fatal accident. Bi Ryu yeon didn’t want to lose his precious disciple to an accident.bireyo do

Solitary Secret Movement Technique

Phoenix Dance Secret Technique

Secret Realm

Swoosh

Bi Ryu yeon’s body split into two as if reflected in a transparent mirror.

Whoosh! Pop!

Two clones split from Bi Ryu yeon’s body attacked Yeom do from both sides.

“Gasp!”

Yeom do was startled. Even though he had expended a lot of energy just before, he couldn’t just stand there and take it.

Yeom do stabbed the clone on his left with the sword in his right hand and raised the Red Flame staff with his left hand to strike at the clone of Bi Ryu yeon rushing in from his right.

Swoosh!

“Gasp!”

Despite stabbing and striking, he felt nothing. It was like hitting a phantom.

“Illusion!”

Thump!

Suddenly, Yeom do felt darkness before his eyes. A tremendous shock from the back of his head shook his brain. The two clones he thought were real were actually decoys. Neither had any substance. The real one was elsewhere.

‘Behind…’

With that last thought, he fell face first to the ground, a lump as big as a mountain forming on his head.

‘And when I woke up, I was on the bed.’

Yeom do sighed in despair.

The bump on the back of his head still hadn’t gone down. It was still burning and numb.

‘Next time, for sure…?’

Yeom do now had to count down the 181 days remaining until his next opportunity.