Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Namgung Chang disliked Namgung Geom.

It galled him that Namgung Geom received better treatment than him simply for being the eldest grandson of the Namgung Family.

When he learned that the Nine Yang Severed Meridians made it impossible for Namgung Geom to cultivate martial arts, how elated he had been inside.

He had thought that Namgung Geom would never again be treated as the eldest grandson.

But then Namgung Geom had suddenly cured the Nine Yang Severed Meridians and announced he would be entering the Azure Dragon Pavilion.

Namgung Chang had been certain Namgung Geom would fail the first round.

Even if the Nine Yang Severed Meridians were cured, how much could one learn in a single month?

But that was not the case.

Namgung Geom had claimed an overwhelming first place.

Naturally, the family's attention had turned to him.

That attention should have been Namgung Chang's by right.

He was furious that Namgung Geom had stolen the spotlight from him.

He had wished to face Namgung Geom in the sparring tournament, the second round.

He wanted to defeat Namgung Geom and show everyone that he was the superior one.

And his wish had come true—a matchup against Namgung Geom had been drawn.

In the very first round, no less.

Namgung Chang wore a triumphant smile.

"Sorry about this between cousins, but a match is a match. I won't go easy on you."

Namgung Geom smirked.

"Then I won't go easy on you either."

Namgung Chang's brow twitched at that.

"Getting cocky because you took first in the first round?"

"Not just first. An overwhelming first."

Namgung Chang's expression crumpled.

"I wonder if your other martial arts are as impressive as your movement art."

"Don't worry. I'm more than good enough to beat you."

"Let's see how long you can keep running that mouth."

Namgung Chang glared with blazing eyes, then charged straight at Namgung Geom and thrust his wooden sword forward.

His wooden sword drove toward Namgung Geom's shoulder, fast and sharp.

Celestial Wind Cloud Scatter.

The first form of the Celestial Wind Sword Art, which generates a keen sword wind to pierce the opponent.

A swift, razor-sharp sword wind extended from Namgung Chang's wooden sword.

Namgung Geom responded with the Celestial Wind Ice White Sword.

Celestial Wind Returning Flow.

A form that defends against an opponent's attack by generating a whirling sword wind along the blade.

Namgung Geom's wooden sword traced a wide arc, conjuring a glacial sword wind.

Namgung Chang's eyes went wide at the sight.

'Ice arts!'

He had suspected it when he saw the cold carried in the celestial wind of Namgung Geom's movement art, but seeing the glacial sword wind confirmed it.

Namgung Geom had undoubtedly mastered ice arts.

And at a considerable level, too.

Namgung Geom's wooden sword, laden with glacial sword wind, swept in a wide rotation and drove into Namgung Chang's blade.

CRASH—!

Namgung Chang's sword wind was cleaved in two and shattered.

At the same time, a biting cold flowed through Namgung Chang's wooden sword and into his body.

"Ngh—!"

Startled by the cold invading his insides, Namgung Chang hastily summoned his inner arts.

HISS—!

The cold flooding his energy channels was pushed back by his inner arts and dispersed.

But before he could catch his breath, Namgung Geom's wooden sword was already pressing in.

Namgung Geom's blade sent glacial sword wind sweeping in from both sides.

Namgung Chang spun his body and struck at the sword wind closing in from both directions almost simultaneously.

But his sword wind could not overcome the glacial sword wind.

CRACK—!

His sword wind split and crumbled, and the glacial sword wind struck his wooden sword.

Once again, the cold invaded his insides.

"Ngh."

Swallowing a groan at the sensation of his energy channels freezing, Namgung Chang summoned his inner arts.

Having barely driven the cold out, Namgung Chang clenched his teeth.

The energy channels the cold had swept through tingled as if frostbitten.

After just two exchanges, the damage was this severe. If the cold struck a few more times, internal injuries would be unavoidable.

The longer the exchange continued, the more disadvantaged he would become.

Namgung Chang decided to settle it with a single all-out strike.

WHOOSH—!

When he drew his inner arts to their fullest, a fierce gale swept around his entire body.

The wind, rising like a tidal wave, gathered into his wooden sword.

And his blade shot forward.

A raging gale burst from his wooden sword and tore into Namgung Geom.

Celestial Wind Wild Surge.

A relentless cascade of sword wind, crashing like furious waves.

It was one of the most destructive forms in the Celestial Wind Sword Art.

'Not bad.'

Namgung Geom inwardly admired the Celestial Wind Wild Surge that Namgung Chang had executed.

Both his inner arts and his technique were flawless.

Considering his age, it was a remarkable achievement.

'With skill like that, I'd hate to let him go.'

Namgung Geom resolved to make Namgung Chang one of his own people.

The fact that he was the son of his second uncle, Namgung Byeok, gave him pause, but with this level of skill, he could not afford to give up on him.

'First, I'll crush his spirit.'

The Namgung Chang that Namgung Geom had observed was a man of fierce pride.

To win Namgung Chang over, that pride had to be broken first.

What mattered was demonstrating such overwhelming skill that Namgung Chang would have no choice but to submit.

For an instant, a blue flash glinted in Namgung Geom's eyes.

And his wooden sword moved.

Celestial Wind Wild Surge.

The very same form Namgung Chang had executed unfolded before him, stroke for stroke.

'That's impossible—!'

Namgung Chang's eyes bulged at the sight of Namgung Geom deliberately executing the same form as his own.

Celestial Wind Wild Surge was an advanced form of the Celestial Wind Sword Art.

It was not a technique so trivial that a mere month of training could master it.

Even Namgung Chang had only acquired the Celestial Wind Wild Surge after long effort.

That Namgung Geom could execute it was beyond belief.

Moreover, the sword wind of Namgung Geom's Celestial Wind Wild Surge carried a cold that seemed capable of freezing one's entire body.

Namgung Chang gritted his teeth and drove his wooden sword into the frigid sword wind.

CRACK—!

CRASH—!

The Celestial Wind Wild Surge that poured from his wooden sword froze on contact with the glacial sword wind and shattered.

'It shatters this easily?!'

Watching his sword wind crumble so helplessly, Namgung Chang's eyes nearly tore open.

Then Namgung Geom's wooden sword slammed down on Namgung Chang's blade.

BOOM—!

Along with a tremendous impact, the glacial sword wind crashed over him.

"Gah—!"

Namgung Chang was hurled back mercilessly, tumbling across the ground.

He tried to pick himself up, but his body refused to move, frozen solid.

In that opening, Namgung Geom approached and laid his wooden sword against Namgung Chang's neck.

With that, the match was over.

In a real fight, Namgung Chang's head would already be off his shoulders.

It was Namgung Chang's utter defeat.

"Victor: Namgung Geom."

The instructor overseeing the match immediately declared Namgung Geom the winner.

The Corps Masters of the Three Great Sword Corps, who had been observing, wore expressions of uniform shock.

"My word. To defeat the Second Young Lord so one-sidedly—I can hardly believe my eyes."

"I heard the Eldest Young Lord has only been training for a month, but I never imagined he would have mastered the Celestial Wind Wild Surge."

"Still, the cold imbued in the Eldest Young Lord's Celestial Wind Sword Art does raise questions."

Namgung Hyeok, the Corps Master of the Flash Lightning Sword Corps, said with a suspicious air.

"It appears the Eldest Young Lord has blended ice arts into the Celestial Wind Sword Art. What manner of ice arts they are, I cannot say."

"I suspect the Eldest Young Lord's cure of the Nine Yang Severed Meridians is also connected to those ice arts."

"What matters is the origin of the ice arts. If, by some chance, the Eldest Young Lord has learned ice arts from a source that strays from the righteous path......"

"The Eldest Young Lord is the eldest grandson of the main family. I would ask the Flash Lightning Corps Master to refrain from unfounded speculation."

Azure Dragon Pavilion Master Namgung Baek spoke in a stern voice.

"This humble Corps Master spoke only out of concern for the Eldest Young Lord. I trust there will be no misunderstanding."

Namgung Hyeok did not press the matter against Namgung Baek.

The question of Namgung Geom's ice arts could be pursued later.

Namgung Baek sent a warning look, as if to say he should exercise restraint going forward, then turned his gaze to Namgung Geom on the sparring stage.

A smile formed on his lips.

'Blending cold into the celestial wind...... I look forward to seeing what the Eldest Young Lord will show us next.'

Meanwhile, once his victory was confirmed, Namgung Geom sheathed his wooden sword and flashed a grin at Namgung Chang.

"I won."

Namgung Chang trembled with fury and humiliation.

Then he recalled the cold embedded in Namgung Geom's Celestial Wind Revolution.

"What was that cold just now?"

"Why should I explain that to you?"

"If you don't reveal the origin of your ice arts, everyone will suspect your martial arts."

"The azure sky embraces all things. What is so remarkable about harboring a little cold within it?"

Namgung Geom spoke as if he had nothing to hide and stepped down from the sparring stage.

Namgung Chang's expression twisted at Namgung Geom's composed response.

He had tried to pick a flaw in Namgung Geom's martial arts, but it had not worked at all.

On top of that, the impact from the fight had left him with internal injuries.

If things went poorly, he could be eliminated in the consolation round as well.

He could very well fail to enter the Azure Dragon Pavilion.

Now was not the time to question Namgung Geom's martial arts.

He had to recover from his internal injuries before the consolation round, no matter what, and secure his admission to the Azure Dragon Pavilion.

If he wanted to stay in his father Namgung Byeok's good graces, that is.

Having won the first round, Namgung Geom also claimed an easy victory in the second.

Having reached the top sixteen, Namgung Geom's admission to the Azure Dragon Pavilion was confirmed.

In the subsequent top-sixteen and quarterfinal matches, Namgung Geom won with ease as well.

It was not that his opponents lacked skill.

They were comfortably among the upper echelon of their generation.

Namgung Geom was simply too strong.

All who had fallen to Namgung Geom, with the exception of Namgung Chang, accepted the result.

His skill was so overwhelmingly dominant that they had no choice but to concede.

And then the semifinal bracket was set.

Namgung Geom's opponent was Namgung Cheon-sang.

On the other side, it was Namgung Cheol-ung versus Namgung Seol.

Namgung Seol was a hidden talent who had placed fifth in the Banner Contest.

The semifinals were held in the afternoon.

Namgung Geom thought his uncles might come to observe.

But the uncles did not show themselves.

'They don't want to add to my presence, I suppose.'

It was exceedingly rare for the Hall Masters of the Three Halls to observe the Azure Dragon Pavilion's entrance examination.

If they suddenly appeared, it could be interpreted as wariness toward Namgung Geom.

That would only amplify Namgung Geom's presence.

The Hall Masters would not want to create that situation.

After all, even without attending personally, the Corps Masters of the Three Great Sword Corps would assess Namgung Geom's martial arts on their behalf.

Namgung Geom pushed his uncles from his mind and stepped onto the sparring stage.

The first semifinal match was Namgung Geom against Namgung Cheon-sang.

Namgung Geom studied Namgung Cheon-sang across from him.

The grandson of the Grand Elder, and one of the most promising talents in the family.

His energy was close to the first-rate level.

On par with Namgung Chang's energy, if not equal.

Had it not been for Namgung Geom, he could have easily contended for the top spot.

"You'd be wise to go all out from the start."

At Namgung Geom's words, Namgung Cheon-sang nodded.

"I was planning to."

Namgung Cheon-sang already acknowledged that Namgung Geom was above him.

So he had to give his all from the very beginning.

"Then let's begin."

At Namgung Geom's words, Namgung Cheon-sang shot forward and launched the first attack.

Sword shadows rose from his blade and scattered across Namgung Geom's field of vision.

The Grand Expansion Sword Art.

The foundational sword art of the Namgung Family, renowned for its endlessly shifting forms.

At the pinnacle of mastery, a single stroke could contain forty-nine variations.

Naturally, Namgung Cheon-sang had not reached such a level.

But his sword was more than variable enough.

'To pack twenty-four variations into a single stroke...... impressive.'

Namgung Geom read the variations in Namgung Cheon-sang's blade and was genuinely impressed.

For his age, it was a remarkable standard.

Against a different opponent, Namgung Cheon-sang's variations would have left them floundering.

But not Namgung Geom.

Having instantly discerned all the variations within Namgung Cheon-sang's blade, Namgung Geom extended his sword with effortless precision.

His sword struck precisely at the critical point of the variations.

At the same time, a glacial sword wind erupted from his blade and shattered the variations in an instant.

"......!!"

Namgung Cheon-sang's eyes went wide.

He hastily withdrew his sword and retreated to evade the glacial sword wind.

Then, executing the Limitless Steps, he circled toward Namgung Geom's flank.

His sword conjured another wave of variations and thrust toward Namgung Geom.

But once again, Namgung Geom's sword struck the exact critical point of those variations.

The variations Namgung Cheon-sang's sword had conjured were shattered in an instant by the glacial sword wind.

Namgung Cheon-sang was well aware that defeating Namgung Geom would be difficult.

But he had not expected Namgung Geom to dismantle his swordwork this effortlessly.

It was not simply the raw power of the glacial sword wind.

Namgung Geom had read the variations within his blade with pinpoint accuracy and broken their flow.

That was something impossible without complete mastery of the Grand Expansion Sword Art's variations.

What mattered most was that Namgung Geom was not even fighting at full strength.

'Just how strong is he?'

Namgung Cheon-sang was awed by Namgung Geom's skill.

But the fact that someone was stronger did not mean he could simply back down.

He attacked Namgung Geom with everything he had.

He poured in quite literally all he had.

But none of his attacks got through to Namgung Geom.

In the end, Namgung Cheon-sang lowered his sword of his own accord and acknowledged his defeat.

"I lost."

Having given everything he had and realizing he still could not win, he accepted his loss in earnest.

Namgung Geom smiled and spoke.

"Don't be too disappointed over losing to me. Your sword is more than excellent."

Namgung Cheon-sang gave a small smile.

"But 'more than excellent' isn't enough."

"You're well aware, I see. If you want to stand at my side from now on, you'll need to become far stronger than you are."

"Who said anything about standing at your side?"

Namgung Cheon-sang stared at him as if he could not believe his ears.

Namgung Geom shrugged and spoke.

"Think it over carefully. It might just be the best decision of your life."