Chapter 723: Divine Dragon Martial Arts Festival.

Woong-!

I circulated my Ki to check my physical condition.

It went through my acupoints once or twice before returning to my heart. That was enough to confirm.

‘A slight internal injury, and a crack on my shoulder.’

It seemed I took internal damage when sealing my martial arts, and my shoulder, which took the hit when I attempted the feint, also cracked. I defended somewhat with Ki, so it’s only this bad; if I hadn’t even done that, my shoulder would have shattered.

‘Nothing else significant, I guess.’

I didn’t even use a quarter of my internal Ki, and the crack should heal within today. The internal injury will likely recover soon too. It’s just about this much. Pain and injuries that are manageable even during training.

‘This is…’

Are these the marks left on my body after crushing the Central Plains’ Ten Great Masters? I repeated the motion of clenching and unclenching my fists and looked straight ahead.

“Cough.”

The old woman, Bunwol Gwonseon, had collapsed and was bleeding. It was black blood. It wasn’t dangerous; it was a result of slightly treating her internal injuries.

“I’ve stabilized things roughly, so she won’t die.”

Her insides were a mess due to the fight. With heavily twisted Ki and considerable external wounds, she would have died if left untreated. So I took some measures.

“Hoo… Hah…”

Gwonseon, catching her breath repeatedly. I nodded, looking at her. I recalled the recent sparring match. Honestly, there wasn’t much to recall.

‘How bland.’

It was boring. That was the only thought the match evoked.

‘What is this?’

Disappointment filled me. Was it because I was comparing it to the match with Lord Pae? There was absolutely no desperation.

‘Was she careless?’

Could it be that Gwonseon became like this because she let her guard down? I thought it over but quickly dismissed the idea.

‘No way. I made sure she wouldn’t be.’

I had planned it carefully to make her vigilant. I pushed back Gwonseon’s Ki and even revealed a certain level of my cultivation. No matter how senile the old woman Gwonseon might be, she couldn’t possibly not know after I showed her this much.

‘And if she didn’t know, she deserved to die.’

Someone who reached the position of Amipa’s Sect Leader. If she claimed to be careless because she didn’t realize this, it would be better just to leave the place and disappear.

Gwonseon wasn’t careless. Or rather, even if she was somewhat careless, it wasn’t enough to be defeated so helplessly. Then what could it be?

‘Am I strong?’

Have I become that strong? I pondered, looking at my clenched fist.

‘I expected to win.’

What is the extent of my own power? I always tried to judge objectively. Because I needed to know my limits clearly so it wouldn’t interfere with my plans. Therefore, I never thought I would lose the fight against Gwonseon. I can win against someone like that. I definitely had that conviction, but…

‘I just didn’t expect to win this easily.’

The extent of it was rather extreme. That’s why it’s strange.

‘There’s no way she’s this weak.’

I am strong. I am definitely not weak. Even if I don’t know about Plum Blossom Immortal or Sword Master, who are said to be close to the Three Venerables, I wouldn’t lose to any of the average Ten Great Masters. However, I shouldn’t have been able to win this easily.

‘Even if I didn’t use Dragon Speech or Demonic Qi, I intended to at least use Sacred Spear.’

Just conjuring a little flame and using Gui Jeong to finish it. Something was very, very strange.

I approached Gwonseon and knelt on one knee. Making eye contact, I asked her.

“Sect Leader. Why are you so weak?”

“…!”

When I asked directly, Gwonseon’s face contorted.

“…Are you trying… to humiliate me?”

“No. I knew I would win anyway. I’m not mocking you. I’m genuinely curious.”

At my somewhat obnoxious words, Gwonseon chuckled bitterly.

“…I am the one who’s curious.”

Drip, drip. Wiping away the flowing dark blood, Gwonseon asked me.

“Just… how did you reach the Mind’s Eye?”

The realm of the Mind’s Eye. The great realm all martial artists aspire to reach. Not realms like First-rate, Peak, or Grandmaster, but where accumulated life insights finally cause the Mind’s Eye to take form. Gwonseon’s eyes widened as she looked at me, having reached that place.

‘Hmm.’

There was a reason she reacted like that. The martial art Gwonseon was about to use just before. The Ki contained within it wasn’t just internal Ki, but also mixed with the Mind’s Eye. Therefore, to block it, I also had to mix in my Mind’s Eye. It seemed that’s why Gwonseon noticed.

How did I reach it… Well.

“I guess it just happened from living desperately.”

“…”

Of course, she didn’t look like she believed me. Besides, I wasn’t saying it for her to believe.

A moment of silence passed, and Gwonseon spoke, sounding suspicious.

“Perhaps… you performed Reversal of Age and Return to Youth…?”

“I haven’t done any of that idiotic, moronic crap.”

“…”

I immediately shut down the pointless suspicion.

“You know, sometimes absurd things happen in life.”

I had no intention of making excuses or needing to explain. What could she do if she didn’t believe me? Gwonseon wasn’t in a position to be suspicious of such things right now.

“Just answer my question, Sect Leader.”

I asked, looking her in the eyes.

“Why are you so weak?”

“…”

“I’m not teasing or humiliating you. I’m genuinely curious.”

As I said earlier, I have a good objective assessment of my own level. While I don’t know all the Ten Great Masters, I can beat most of them.

‘I lose to those close to the Three Venerables and those just below them.’

Excluding Lord Pae, who was in a unique situation.

From observing Heavenly Venerable nearby, though not precisely, I’d likely lose within twenty exchanges, and Sword Venerable, whom I haven’t seen in a long time, is probably even faster than that. That’s about my standing. So, what about Gwonseon?

‘When I saw her earlier, she seemed around Sword Master’s level.’

That’s how her presence and aura felt. So I intended to fight her expecting that level, but…

‘This is…’

To be honest, the Shinryong who fought Wi Seol-ah. Wasn’t he perhaps barely surpassing that level… She looked about that strong.

‘At this rate, if I fought Tang Soyeol at night, I might even lose.’

If the circumstances were right, the assassin Tang Soyeol might win. The strength Gwonseon displayed was too pathetic even for a Ten Great Master. That’s why this question arises.

“It doesn’t seem like an internal injury issue, and while physical aspects might be due to aging, it’s not about your Ki, is it? What exactly is the problem?”

Her skill was too shoddy compared to the power she showed. If it were simply because I was overwhelmingly stronger and crushed her, maybe, but it didn’t seem like that was the case.

“Your Ki wasn’t moving properly. Is there something else wrong?”

“…”

Hearing my words, Gwonseon’s brow furrowed deeply. Does she still think I’m teasing?

‘What is it? Does she really not know?’

Gwonseon merely frowned as if she had no idea what the problem was.

‘She doesn’t know, even in this state?’

I tapped my forearm with the fingertips of my crossed arms. Something flashed through my mind regarding this bizarre situation.

“Ah.”

I see. I let out a breath and chuckled.

“What…? Why are you laughing?”

“It’s nothing. I just feel a bit sorry.”

“What?”

Gwonseon questioned my words, but I had no intention of continuing the conversation.

‘So that’s what it was.’

I think I roughly understood. It was an obvious matter, so there was no need to delve deeper.

‘I’ll just need to figure out later if this is connected to the Alliance or not.’

Having thought that far, I organized my thoughts.

“Anyway, I won, so let’s proceed according to our bet.”

Gwonseon glared at me as if she wanted to kill me. Looking at her, I asked.

“What is your objective?”

“…”

“The reason you’re looking for Pi Yeon-yeon. Is it the Ghost Artifact, or Pi Yeon-yeon herself?”

At my nonchalant question, Gwonseon, who had been glaring, let out a hollow laugh.

“…You don’t seem to consider defeating me important at all.”

“Well, it’s not something worth considering important.”

Should I be excited or something?

“As if I beat some great figure.”

“…”

“I feel no particular emotion, so just answer me.”

Cough.

Drip, drip. Blood dripped from Gwonseon’s mouth. The white martial robes she wore so neatly were already soaked in blood. Though she looked pathetic, my expression didn’t change one bit.

“If… if I refuse to answer…?”

“I didn’t just put a simple restriction on you. If you can handle the backlash, feel free. If not,”

My eyes and heart grew cold.

“There are many ways to make you speak. Though most of them won’t be peaceful.”

If you want to know, go ahead. As I said that with that intention, Gwonseon’s eyes, which were fixed on me, flickered for a moment.

“…You’re serious… Are you really planning to torture me?”

“If necessary.”

“Are you truly a righteous path disciple…?”

Haha.

I chuckled at Gwonseon’s words.

“I hear that often. Isn’t that a truly funny thing to say?”

“What is?”

“The days when you could take pride in being from the righteous path are long gone. Most of the places that claimed to be its roots have rotted away, yet you still invoke that miserable honor?”

“…”

What if I’m not from the righteous path? In my eyes, the demonic path and the righteous path were all the same. If there was any difference between the two for me,

‘I’d kill first with the demonic path. With the righteous path, I might try talking.’

Of course, even then, most ended up dead.

“If we’re to discuss righteousness and state affiliation, I am indeed of the righteous path right now. Because my father was a righteous path disciple. But.”

I lifted Gwonseon’s chin with my finger.

“That’s not particularly important to me. If you think about it, it’s just like a name tag attached?”

A value that can be removed at any time. That’s what the righteous path meant to me.

“So. Whether you’re righteous or whatever, just speak properly. We had that kind of agreement, didn’t we?”

The finger I just lifted could be sent to her neck at any moment. With that implication, I slightly moved my hand towards her neck.

Then I asked again.

“Pi Yeon-yeon. What’s her connection to Amipa?”

I spat it out and counted to five internally. Just past one, and just before five.

“…Pi Yeon-yeon. It’s related to the child’s mother.”

I stopped the force I was about to apply.

“Mother. Who is she? Are you perhaps referring to Madam Mok?”

I pretended not to know and steered the conversation slightly. Madam Mok was the mistress of Seoan Piga. Hearing my words, Gwonseon looked at me with a strange expression. Did she realize I was testing her? I gave her a knowing smile at her gaze.

Seeing this, Gwonseon shivered slightly.

“…Ah, the child’s mother… is not the person you mentioned.”

“Oh?”

“That child…”

Gwonseon paused for a moment. But then she continued speaking.

“…The Azure Spirit Sword Empress. That child is a descendant of the previous Sword Empress.”

“Wh-what? Gasp. Such astonishing news…!”

“…As expected. You already knew.”

“You just reacted as if you didn’t know. Why are you so sure?”

My acting seemed perfect… Why am I getting the opposite reaction? This is ridiculous.

‘Well, I didn’t intend to hide it anyway.’

I felt quite displeased.

“…Does that mean you supported the child knowing her identity?”

“Sorry, but I don’t take questions.”

I cut off Gwonseon’s attempt to subtly ask further questions. Let me reiterate, only I could ask questions.

“Whether Pi Yeon-yeon is the Sword Empress’s descendant or not, that’s not the background I’m asking about.”

I’m just curious about that. As I asked, injecting a bit of irritation into my voice, Gwonseon’s answer began to shift slightly.

“…It’s because the Azure Spirit Sword Empress was originally a figure of Amipa.”

“Oh?”

Now, this was an interesting piece of information.

‘The Azure Spirit Sword Empress is from Amipa?’

Yeah, this is the kind of information I need. If that statement was true, this was information I didn’t know.

‘Surely the Azure Spirit Sword Empress was unaffiliated.’

A martial artist without background. The previous Sword Empress wasn’t born into a specific clan, nor was she a disciple from a sect.

And she was a disciple of Amipa?

‘But then, why wasn’t it known?’

Even if Amipa’s martial arts were unremarkable, traces usually remain to some extent. Of course, it’s not impossible to erase everything. The Sword Demon of my past life, unlike the current Seong-yul, erased all of Kunlun’s habits, making it impossible to know his core techniques were based on Taoist arts.

‘That’s unclear.’

Let’s put that aside for now. There was something I was more curious about.

“If that’s the reason Amipa is looking for Pi Yeon-yeon, it’s a bit strange.”

Fine. Let’s assume the Azure Spirit Sword Empress is from Amipa. Then there’s something strange here.

“So why are you looking for her?”

Something important is missing. What does it matter that she’s from Amipa? Seeing as she lived unaffiliated, it means she either hid her background or left the sect long ago.

“It’s strange for Amipa to desperately search for the daughter of such a person, isn’t it?”

They must be looking for her for some other reason. It doesn’t make sense to search without one.

In response to that question, Gwonseon said.

“Do you… know what happened to the Azure Spirit Sword Empress?”

“Roughly.”

That was a lie. Not roughly, I knew very well. I gathered so much information to use this, of course I should know. The end of the Azure Spirit Sword Empress that Gwonseon spoke of. The previous Sword Empress, and a woman of the righteous path who once received praise bordering on adoration from heroines. The end of the woman who was expected to shine until the very last was more pathetic than anything.

‘The Azure Spirit Sword Empress’s plot was revealed, she was branded demonic, and executed.’

The Azure Spirit Sword Empress, who was called the dream and hero of heroines, was surprisingly plotting to swallow the Central Plains. She secretly gathered demonic path followers, forming a collective, unbeknownst to the Martial Alliance. As a consequence, a righteous-demonic war actually broke out. At this time, the current Sword Empress, Plum Blossom Sword Empress So-i, and White Lotus Sword Moyong Biyeon, the anecdote of them confronting the Azure Spirit Sword Empress is still famous. The righteous-demonic war was a long yet short conflict. In terms of time, it was less than two months. When that time ended, the war ultimately concluded with the righteous path’s victory. The Azure Spirit Sword Empress, accused of starting the war, was captured and executed by the Alliance.

A woman who was once a hero of the righteous path but ended up a demonic path follower. That was the Azure Spirit Sword Empress as history remembered her. However.

‘The story isn’t just that.’

The truth behind such stories is dark and murky. If that was the end of the story, I wouldn’t have bothered trying to use Bongseon. But somehow.

“…The truth is not that.”

Gwonseon seemed to know this as well.

“In reality, the Azure Spirit Sword Empress never intended to start a war. She wasn’t someone who should have been branded demonic.”

“Is that so?”

“…There is definitely something hidden about this.”

I don’t know if she’s pretending not to know the specifics, or if she truly only has a vague idea. But it’s clear she knows something.

“You mean the Azure Spirit Sword Empress was framed.”

“…You.”

Was my reaction the issue? Gwonseon’s expression changed subtly.

“Perhaps… you knew about this too…!”

“Perhaps it’s due to your age, but your memory seems quite poor. As I said earlier, Sect Leader, you don’t have the right to ask questions.”

I moved a little closer to Gwonseon. Her answer wasn’t finished yet.

“But so what?”

“What…?”

“So what’s the reason Amipa is looking for Pi Yeon-yeon?”

I’ve heard the whole story. So now it’s time for you to speak. Hearing this, Gwonseon’s eyes widened slightly, and then she answered me in a somewhat hurried voice.

“…That’s only natural. Even if not anymore, the Azure Spirit Sword Empress was originally from Amipa. We must clear her unjust accusation.”

“And you’re looking for Pi Yeon-yeon for that?”

“That’s right.”

“Why? Just having it won’t achieve anything.”

“…Because if we can prove that child is the Sword Empress’s descendant, there is a way.”

“Ah. I see…”

If it’s possible to prove Bongsoon is the previous Sword Empress’s daughter, there’s a way to clear the Sword Empress’s name. I nodded at Gwonseon’s words. They were roughly plausible.

After hearing everything, I nodded slightly and said.

“Well, this is something.”

“You?”

Thwack.

“…!”

“Do I seem easy just because I listened patiently?”

I covered Gwonseon’s mouth with my hand so she couldn’t speak. She struggled as if surprised, but I subdued her by applying strong force.

“If you’re going to scheme, at least do it subtly. It’s infuriating to listen to!”

“Mmph… Gck!”

Gwonseon’s wrinkled eyes widened drastically. I applied strong pressure, making it impossible for her to breathe properly. Gwonseon’s already poor complexion rapidly turned grim. The reason I acted like this was simple. As I listened, a thought began to form in my mind.

Looking at the startled Gwonseon, I said.

“Do you take me for an idiot?”

“Mmph… Gck.”

“You people were the ones who framed the Sword Empress in the first place. Why did you conveniently leave that part out?”

“…!”

Gwonseon’s trembling body stiffened. The moaning sound from her throat also stopped. Seeing this, I was certain.

“Haha. Fuck, looks like it, huh?”

It was the answer.