Chapter 312: Vigo of the Dragon. (3)

The day I first met that child.

Beneath a clear blue sky with not a single cloud.

It was a warm spring day.

******************

A clueless newcomer from the Central Plains, having argued with her master and stormed out of her sect.

All she knew was how to make plum blossoms bloom,

and the determination to achieve righteousness and chivalry, this young woman.

Shedding the white martial robes she wore at Mount Hua,

she was in the era of wearing the pale blue clothes provided by the Alliance.

Naturally, she had no sobriquet.

Just a Sword Guard of the Martial Arts Alliance.

It was around the time she was casually called that.

-…Why are we going on reconnaissance?

A sharp voice echoed through the forest.

The woman’s forehead was slightly furrowed.

A clear sign she wasn’t pleased with the situation.

-Be quiet.

The one who answered the woman’s voice was a young man with a fierce impression.

Though he looked fierce, he was a handsome man with a tall stature and distinct features.

He was the captain of the unit the woman belonged to.

He was also a famous martial artist who was stirring up the Central Plains at the time.

The strongest Divine Dragon (神龍) in the Alliance’s history,

and a young martial artist who might even become the greatest under heaven.

The Divine Dragon Gu Cheol-un, he was the woman’s captain.

At her captain’s words, the woman’s furrowed expression deepened.

-No, Seonbae-nim. It’s the Azure Dragon Unit’s mission in the first place… Why do we have to do it?

The mission the woman was currently on was to search for a monster that the Azure Dragon Unit’s Sword Guards had missed.

She didn’t like it.

As soon as she enlisted in the Alliance’s Sword Unit.

They said she was drafted into the Divine Dragon Unit.

How much the Azure Dragon Unit’s Sword Guards had given her the cold shoulder.

Normally, she should have been drafted into the Divine Dragon Unit through gradual steps, but

the captain and the woman in front of her went straight into the Divine Dragon Unit without such a process.

This was the situation.

This was a decision made considering the potential and strength of the two, but

the side-eyes they received from everywhere were so harsh.

-But now, they want us to clean up their mess… Isn’t that too much?

His name was Namgung Jin, wasn’t it?

That impudent guy called the Sword Dragon, I really didn’t like him.

After giving us all the cold shoulder.

They only look for us when they need something.

Is this how a righteous person behaves?

All I could do was sigh.

Even in such a situation, her captain remained silent.

It had been like that since she first saw him.

Half a year since their first meeting.

A person who didn’t speak unless he was teaching something.

Yet, in actual combat, he was someone who displayed unbelievable power.

That’s how the woman saw the Divine Dragon.

Just then, Gu Cheol-un turned to the grumbling woman and opened his mouth.

-It’s the Commander’s order. We just follow.

The Commander’s direct unit,

a unit like the face of the Martial Arts Alliance.

The Divine Dragon Unit.

Just by entering there,

perhaps Gu Cheol-un, who must have endured more envy, jealousy, and side-eyes than the woman,

probably endured more.

Yet, Gu Cheol-un seemed completely unfazed.

As if he had no interest in such things at all.

-Instead of worrying about that, straighten your posture.

-…What do you mean?

-Your sword at your waist is askew, straighten it.

At his words, the woman hurriedly checked her waist.

However, unlike Gu Cheol-un’s words, her sword was properly arranged.

-Seonbae, it’s perfectly fine!

The woman said, sounding incredulous.

Gu Cheol-un spoke to the woman with cold eyes.

-The fact that you listened to me and checked means it’s already too late. It means you lacked confidence.

-What kind of…!

She tried to blurt out that it was illogical reasoning, but

the words wouldn’t easily come out of her mouth.

-Instead of worrying about others’ gazes, have confidence in yourself. That will be more beneficial to you.

At Gu Cheol-un’s words, the woman shut her mouth tightly.

She had so much she wanted to argue,

but the woman wasn’t good at arguing,

and because it was her captain, not someone else, speaking, she couldn’t refute him.

Have confidence in yourself.

That was a distant concept for the woman.

-Seonbae…

Just as the woman was about to ask something after hearing his words,

Gu Cheol-un’s large hand stopped her.

-Seonbae?

-Quiet.

Woong.

Along with Gu Cheol-un’s heavy words, heat spread around them.

It was his unique aura.

-There’s something ahead.

The moment Gu Cheol-un spoke,

the woman, So Yi, changed her gaze.

Ssreung.

Drawing her sword, she raised her sword energy.

Pasak.

Gu Cheol-un instantly enveloped himself in flames,

and charged forward with intense heat.

No further conversation with instructions was needed.

No matter how Gu Cheol-un moved,

So Yi could support him from behind.

A brief moment passed.

Hwa-reuk-!

Gu Cheol-un sped up, burning with flames,

and plunged into the bushes.

As So Yi followed, enveloped in her martial energy,

-…Huh?

The place she followed into, drawing her martial energy,

was a space that seemed quite out of place with the combat atmosphere.

-Was there a place like this…?

This area was somewhere So Yi herself had visited a few times, but

the terrain she was seeing now was completely new.

On a not-so-wide plain,

flowers were blooming vibrantly.

Even though it was spring,

it somehow felt strangely out of place.

As So Yi looked around,

she refocused herself.

Because now was not the time to be looking at things like this.

-Seon…!

So Yi, drawing her sword, urgently looked for Gu Cheol-un.

Gu Cheol-un was still enveloped in flames,

and in that state,

-…Seonbae?

he was holding someone’s neck.

-…Ugh…

-A person?

What Gu Cheol-un held in his hand was a woman he had never seen before.

The only peculiar thing was perhaps

the color of her hair.

‘White.’

It was pure white.

She had never seen hair that white before.

Was it the aftermath of internal energy manipulation?

But she didn’t feel any internal energy from the woman?

-B-breath…

The woman whose neck was held gasped out words with difficulty, but

Gu Cheol-un didn’t budge.

-Seonbae?

-She’s an outsider I’ve never seen. Who is she?

-Ugh…

As he tightened his grip, the woman groaned in pain.

Was he planning to break her neck bones right then and there?

-If you won’t speak, I’ll burn you.

Ah, no. He really intended to burn her.

Is he crazy…?

-Seonbae! Wait a moment!

So Yi urgently tried to block Gu Cheol-un’s arm, but

he didn’t budge.

The fact that the flames clinging to Gu Cheol-un’s body weren’t harming So Yi

meant that Gu Cheol-un was controlling them at that moment.

Gu Cheol-un looked at So Yi and asked,

-What are you doing?

-What are you doing? She doesn’t look like a monster at all!

She checked, thinking it might be the missed monster, but

she couldn’t see anything but a human.

In such a situation, this method didn’t seem right.

As So Yi raised her voice,

Gu Cheol-un replied with a chilling gaze.

-Why do you think that?

-Huh?

-Why do you think this isn’t a monster?

-No…

Because she could tell just by looking.

So Yi didn’t voice the thought that came to mind, but

perhaps it reached Gu Cheol-un, as she heard him click his tongue briefly.

-You can’t know that without tearing them apart to see inside.

His voice was firm and cold.

-It means don’t judge easily based on appearance alone, didn’t Mount Hua teach you that?

-…!

-She’s someone who suddenly appeared in the Alliance’s territory. How can you be so calm, not knowing if she’s a monster in human guise or a martial artist from the Demonic Sect?

To mention her sect here.

So Yi bit her lip tightly.

This guy certainly had a needlessly cruel and cold side.

-…Even if you say that, you won’t get an answer.

-What do you mean?

-If you hold her neck like that, she can’t possibly answer.

At So Yi’s words,

Gu Cheol-un’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

A few seconds passed like that.

Tuk.

-Eek!

The woman held in Gu Cheol-un’s hand fell powerlessly to the ground.

As she fell, her swaying white hair

looked like the fluttering wings of a butterfly.

It swayed.

A petal that fell from somewhere landed on the woman’s hair.

-Ouch…

The woman cried out, perhaps because her butt hurt, but

at the same time,

Ssreung.

So Yi’s sword blade aimed at the woman’s neck.

-What is your identity?

Unlike before, her tone was somewhat sharp.

Hearing that, Gu Cheol-un extinguished the flames surrounding his body.

As if he would observe for now.

-Huh?

The woman looked at So Yi with wide, startled eyes, and

So Yi had to be surprised inwardly as she looked into the woman’s eyes.

The pupils reflected in her eyes

were beautiful like jewels.

-…What is your name?

Her voice trembled slightly due to momentary panic, but

she didn’t let her aura waver.

The woman, hearing So Yi’s question,

tilted her head slightly,

and then replied,

“Cheon Hui.”

Her smile as she said her name

looked like a flower to So Yi,

making her feel inexplicably warm.

-My name is Cheon Hui.

That was her first meeting with her.

******************

“…You say she didn’t die? What does that mean?”

An edge sharpened in Sword Empress’s voice.

Tuduk tuduk.

Not just her voice, but the uncontrolled martial energy leaking out

shook the surrounding qi barriers.

Her cultivation level is much higher than I expected.

This was the thought Cheong Hae Il Geom had while looking at Sword Empress.

“It means exactly that. That child didn’t die.”

Cheon Hui.

Sword Empress’s close friend,

the concubine of a chivalrous hero,

and the birth mother of the True Dragon.

Cheong Hae Il Geom was saying that she hadn’t died.

Sword Empress couldn’t comprehend that.

“I must ask. Why would the Sect Leader mention that child?”

“I simply wanted to tell you a story you would have been curious about.”

“If that were the case, you should have told me much earlier.”

When she was half out of her mind,

or around the time she wandered the Demon Realm.

Or even before that.

When she found Cheong Hae Il Geom.

You should have told me then if you were going to tell me.

“What is your intention in bringing up such an unknown story now?”

I must suppress my martial energy as much as possible.

I had to endure.

“I saw the child.”

“You mean the child?”

“Yes, the child’s child.”

It was about the True Dragon.

“It’s a child I wanted to see at least once, but never did.”

“…I also have my disciple.”

“That’s right, your disciple was also that child’s offspring.”

“Are you saying that has something to do with why you’re telling me this story now?”

To Sword Empress’s question,

Cheong Hae Il Geom quietly remained silent.

Although his eyes were still closed,

Sword Empress knew he was looking at her.

“There is only one thing I can tell you, Sword Empress.”

“…Sect Leader.”

“Decide whether you will listen or not.”

Those were the only two things he could say.

At Cheong Hae Il Geom’s words, Sword Empress bit her lip.

There was something she didn’t know.

Whether it was Plum Blossom Immortal,

Gu Cheol-un,

Sword Venerable,

Heavenly Eye, or Cheong Hae Il Geom.

Those involved in ‘that time’ had lost something.

Something, though she didn’t know what, must have been very precious.

If so,

‘What about me?’

What had she…

lost?

Did she almost lose her life?

She didn’t know. She had regained it now.

And that was thanks to that child’s son.

If that were the case, what should she do now?

Sword Empress did not hesitate.

Her hesitation had ended long ago.

“…Please tell me.”

At Sword Empress’s reply,

Cheong Hae Il Geom stroked his beard for a moment,

and then fell silent again.

“Sect Leader?”

“My apologies, I need to gauge how much I can reveal.”

Anyone would be the same.

If one were to speak of that time, they had to seal their lips.

“Is it true that the child, Cheon Hui, is alive?”

“Yes. That child is alive.”

“Then where is she now…”

“You’re asking something you already know.”

At Cheong Hae Il Geom’s words, cutting off Sword Empress,

she bit her lip.

“Isn’t it because you already knew the reason why you wandered the Demon Realm so much?”

“…”

“As you suspected. That child is in the Demon Realm.”

It was a statement that gave certainty.

“…In the Demon Realm?”

“Yes.”

“Why…?”

“I don’t understand why you question it,”

Cheong Hae Il Geom said, slightly opening his eyes at Sword Empress’s words.

Pure white eyes were there.

“Is it so strange that the child returned to where she originally belonged?”

“…Sect Leader, you know that’s not what I mean.”

“I don’t want to know.”

Cheong Hae Il Geom replied firmly.

“Sect Leader.”

“There are things one must forget.”

“I cannot understand what you mean by that at all.”

It was always like this.

As if the world that could be understood solely through force had passed.

They told Sword Empress, who missed that time, nothing.

She had to find it herself.

The truth and the secrets of that time.

Cheong Hae Il Geom, facing Sword Empress with his white eyes,

softly uttered his words.

“Sword Empress, do you know about the essence of this world?”

“…Essence?”

“Yes, the essence.”

It was a sudden topic.

Suddenly, the essence of the world?

Cheong Hae Il Geom’s shoulders trembled slightly as he spoke.

“That child was the essence of the world.”

The words that Cheon Hui was the essence.

Sword Empress had to constantly ponder those words in her mind.

“What…”

“This land,”

“…!”

Blood flowed from Cheong Hae Il Geom’s mouth.

Sword Empress quickly opened her eyes and tried to approach, but

Cheong Hae Il Geom raised his hand and stopped Sword Empress.

Telling her not to approach.

“Originally, this land should have ended centuries ago.”

Hearing this, Sword Empress flinched.

A land that should have ended centuries ago.

It was difficult to grasp the meaning.

At that moment.

“Sect Leader, wait…!”

Sword Empress had to exclaim in shock, looking at Cheong Hae Il Geom.

Blood was flowing.

She could tell.

That was the aftermath of a seal. Cheong Hae Il Geom had said himself that no seal was placed, but

from Sword Empress’s perspective, it was clearly a seal.

Sword Empress rushed forward, but Cheong Hae Il Geom’s action was faster.

Ttududuk-!

“…!”

Cheong Hae Il Geom instantly broke the little finger of his left hand.

Tuk-!

The finger was severed right there.

“This should be fine.”

What was fine?

The strange thing was, Cheong Hae Il Geom’s expression after cutting off his finger

actually looked more relaxed than before.

No blood flowed from the severed stump.

It meant he had even stopped the bleeding with his internal energy.

“This too is the consequence of the sins I am paying for, so please don’t mind it.”

“…Sect Leader.”

How could that be?

“I will continue the story.”

Cheong Hae Il Geom adjusted his posture and was about to speak again, but

“…Sect Leader, it’s okay to stop now.”

Sword Empress could tell.

The more he spoke those words, the more Cheong Hae Il Geom was breaking down.

Perhaps sensing Sword Empress’s concern,

Cheong Hae Il Geom’s eyes curved slightly.

“You are as kind as ever.”

“That’s not true.”

“Don’t worry. I still have things to do, so I have no intention of giving up my life.”

Sword Empress tightly closed her eyes.

Whether those stories were true or not aside,

she felt like she was standing at a crossroads between needing to hear the story

and needing to stop him.

She didn’t know why Cheong Hae Il Geom was telling her this now,

and although the situation was far from her original goal,

“…If, as the Sect Leader says, this world truly should have ended centuries ago.”

Nevertheless, Sword Empress chose to listen.

Because she felt this was her only chance.

“What connection does Cheon Hui have, and why is the world still maintained? I don’t understand.”

“That…”

Just before Cheong Hae Il Geom could speak to Sword Empress,

Woo-oong-!

“…!”

In the qi barriers spread by Sword Empress and Cheong Hae Il Geom,

something was felt.

The two felt it and flinched, their bodies trembling.

It was that intense a sensation.

It was aura.

A very dense and powerful aura.

‘What is this…?’

Sword Empress was the first to feel it.

It couldn’t be helped, the aura being felt now was none other than sword energy,

and it was something she was all too familiar with.

It was the aura of Mount Hua.

‘The location it’s felt from….’

Sword Empress reacted, her eyes widening as she confirmed the location.

Surprisingly, the location where the sword energy was felt

was near the Hall Master’s room (관주실) where Cheong Hae Il Geom was staying,

and it was where Gu Yangcheon was currently located.