Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 355

355. The Great Master

The Great Master was an elderly figure, but his large build belied his age.

More than his physique, it was the imposing aura emanating from him that made one forget how old he was.

Dressed in splendid, long robes that emphasized dignity, he looked every bit the part of someone from the imperial family. The attire suited him perfectly.

It was as if he were born to be a monarch and ruler.

Thud.

The Great Master stopped amidst the wreckage of the carriage.

With his hands clasped behind his back, he gazed intently at Unhyun.

His eyes shone brightly, yet strangely, no hostility or murderous intent could be felt.

“…Alliance Lord.”

Younghojun was about to say something, his expression stiff, when—

Whoosh, Thud.

Others appeared from behind the Great Master.

They were individuals Unhyun already knew.

“…You.”

Unhyun gritted his teeth.

Intaesang gnashed his teeth at Unhyun. Intaesang’s plump face, which once resembled a kind grandfather, was now twisted like a demon’s.

Jitaesang, with his long beard and large greatsword, was also present.

And besides them, there was another person—an old man in Taoist [a philosophical and religious tradition] attire who seemed ordinary at first glance but possessed sharp eyes, likely Cheontaesang.

Swish.

Unhyun slipped out of Younghojun’s arms and stood up straight.

“…Are you alright?”

Younghojun’s concern was natural.

However, Unhyun said quietly,

“I’m fine.”

Having said that, Unhyun gently pushed Younghojun back and stepped forward.

As if protecting everyone.

Thud.

Standing tall, Unhyun stared straight at the Great Master.

“You must be the Great Master.”

“…That is so.”

The Great Master’s voice was low and heavy.

He answered Unhyun, his eyes shining.

“Indeed, you seem remarkable.”

The Great Master continued, looking at Unhyun.

“But I am not surprised.”

“If you desire something surprising,” Unhyun said in a quiet voice, “I can show you.”

It was an open provocation.

Intaesang and Jitaesang’s eyebrows twitched, but neither of them spoke.

“Hmph.”

The Great Master let out a light laugh.

“Not bad.”

Still looking at Unhyun, the Great Master said quietly, “If only that child had been like you.”

It seemed as though he was speaking to someone other than Unhyun.

Intaesang’s face twisted even more, and he eventually lowered his head and groaned.

But the Great Master paid no attention.

“Are you the owner of the document?”

“What document are you referring to?”

“I do not know.”

Unhyun frowned.

So, the Great Master was searching for the owner of a book he himself didn’t know about?

“But I know one thing,” the Great Master said.

“It is the only thing that pairs with the Bicheon Sword Manual like the harmony of heaven and earth, and the only opponent acknowledged by the martial power of the heavens.”

Unhyun could understand what that meant.

The document the Great Master was referring to was not a book.

Or perhaps, it might not even be an object.

Looking at Unhyun with eyes like burning flames, the Great Master asked, “Are you the owner of the document?”

“No, I am not,” Unhyun said to the Great Master.

“And I do not wish to be.”

His voice contained a firm refusal.

“It is not something one becomes by wanting it.”

However, the Great Master did not waver in the slightest.

“Nor can you avoid it by not wanting it. It is like fate, suddenly finding you one day.”

Unhyun flinched.

The true meaning of the White Tiger Sword Training that had suddenly come to him, and the astonishing world he had seen as if by destiny.

He gritted his teeth, but he could not hide the momentary tremor.

“…Indeed.”

The Great Master said quietly.

“It is you.”

“Everyone experiences moments of wonder,” Unhyun stared straight at the Great Master.

“It is natural for a martial artist walking the path of the sword. So, even if I felt a moment like destiny, it does not prove that I am the owner of the document.”

His words were extremely rational and common-sensical.

However, the Great Master was not someone with whom rationality or common sense worked.

“You are stubborn,” the Great Master smiled.

“But that cannot be said to be bad either.”

Swish.

The Great Master, who had been holding his hands behind his back, extended one hand towards Unhyun.

“Today,” the Great Master said with eyes shining like flames, “I will test you.”

Whoosh.

The Great Master gathered his fingertips and lightly raised them upward.

However, the result was far from light.

Thud, thud, thud.

The ground on either side overturned and burst upward.

“Eek!”

Tamsok screamed and clung to Gekaong.

Jokwan and Younghojun, as well as Gekaong, also showed signs of shock.

They had anticipated it to some extent through the Three Great Commanders, but they had not known that the Great Master’s martial prowess was of this magnitude.

“Rejection will not be tolerated,” the Great Master said to Unhyun.

“I will not refuse.”

Unhyun glanced back and gestured to Gekaong and Younghojun.

Gekaong frowned slightly but followed Unhyun’s intention.

Thud.

As Unhyun stepped forward, the group of four retreated.

“Rather, I will gladly accept it,” Unhyun said with a determined look.

“Because if I defeat you here, everything will end.”

Literally, everything would end.

To Unhyun, the Heroic Alliance and the Taepyung Alliance were not particularly meaningful.

If the Great Master was not involved, they were merely interest groups in the martial world, nothing more and nothing less.

The special inspector of the court was the same.

If the concern about the Great Master disappeared, the rest would be left to the Dochalwon [an investigative agency] or the court’s usual inspection duties.

Therefore, confronting the Great Master was an opportunity Unhyun had been eagerly awaiting.

“Those words.”

Swish.

As the Great Master released his hands from behind his back, the Three Great Commanders quickly retreated.

Thud.

They knelt on one knee and lowered their heads, creating distance.

“Are the most disappointing of all the things you have said.”

Flutter.

The Great Master’s robes began to flutter lightly.

Even the long robes, which were completely unsuitable for a duel or confrontation, seemed to be of no concern to the Great Master.

The Great Master, who lightly spread his arms downward, said to Unhyun, “Come at me.”

The Great Master’s aura did not change much.

His unique, overwhelming presence remained, but that was all; there was no storm-like aura sweeping around, nor any blade-like murderous intent that made the skin tingle.

But Unhyun could see it.

Whoo-oong.

The flow around the Great Master was changing.

Even though he held nothing in his hands, the Great Master was already taking control of his surroundings.

It was an astonishing sight that even made Unhyun’s expression change.

Clang.

Unhyun drew the Sword of the North Sea, Myeong.

The Great Master was empty-handed, but Unhyun did not hesitate.

Because Unhyun already knew that what one sees is not necessarily everything.

“Ho.”

The Great Master’s eyes lit up.

“…Indeed.”

He said in a somewhat admiring voice, “You are worthy of bringing me down.”

Unhyun could not understand the Great Master’s words.

However, he knew exactly what he had to do now.

Swish.

Unhyun gripped Myeong and held it straight in front of him.

Oong.

Myeong hummed softly.

As if it was ready to follow Unhyun’s will at any moment.

“Hoo-oo.”

Unhyun closed his eyes halfway and calmed his breathing.

Tszzzzzz.

An untimely frost spread beneath his feet.

Gekaong, Younghojun, Tamsok, and Jokwan, as well as the Three Great Commanders, could not help but be amazed by the sight.

Whoo-oo-oosh.

The wind began to blow around Unhyun.

It was as rough and violent as a snowstorm in the middle of winter.

Kukukukuku.

The Great Master simply watched the scene silently.

Swish.

Jokwan and Tamsok had already seen the sight of Unhyun’s sword slowly rising into the sky.

But they could not help but feel a thrill once again.

And Younghojun and Gekaong’s astonishment was even greater.

‘Th-this can’t be…’

Gekaong’s eyebrows twitched.

He already knew what level Unhyun was at.

But even so, the sight made Gekaong doubt his eyes.

Because from Unhyun’s sword, which was held straight up, a presence like a thousand-year-old tree was emanating.

Whoo-oo-oosh.

The power contained in Unhyun’s sword, Myeong, grew even stronger.

Even the Three Great Commanders could not hide their surprise at the enormous presence that seemed to pierce the sky.

And the next moment.

Swish.

Unhyun slashed down with Myeong.

With it, the third form of the White Tiger Sword, Heavy Sword, fell towards the Great Master.

Crackle.

It was literally a scene of the sky collapsing.

A huge being was falling towards the Great Master.

It seemed that no one, nothing, could stop Unhyun’s sword.

But the Great Master was not surprised.

Sreuk.

The Great Master gathered his hands.

And at the same time as raising one hand to the sky, he slammed the other hand strongly to the ground.

As if he were a pillar supporting the sky.

Koo-oong.

“Keuk!”

The Three Great Commanders groaned.

Gekaong immediately pulled Tamsok and Jokwan closer, and Younghojun also had to lower his body due to the pressure that seemed to crush his entire being.

Crack.

A chilling sound spread from beneath the Great Master’s feet.

But that was all.

Kwaaaaa.

A lingering echo, as if a large bell was fading away, spread in all directions.

The third form of the White Tiger Sword, Heavy Sword, was over.

“Is this.”

Rustle.

The Great Master said, withdrawing his hands.

“All you have?”

On the main road where the Great Master was standing, hideous cracks stretched out in all directions.

But the Great Master was still standing there.

Without having received any impact at all.

“No, it is not,” Unhyun also said calmly.

Even though the third form of the White Tiger Sword had returned to nothing, Unhyun’s expression did not change at all.

“Seeing you withstand the Heavy Sword, it seems you didn’t do it unknowingly.”

“Huh.”

The Great Master’s eyes changed.

“…You tested me?”

“That is correct.”

Unhyun already knew that the Great Master would endure it.

Even so, the reason he had unleashed the Heavy Sword was to confirm whether he had truly controlled the flow.

Unhyun had also tested the Great Master.

“Having lived in the world, I have learned that the person who tests me is not necessarily better than me.”

Looking at the Great Master with calm eyes, Unhyun said, “Isn’t this a world where sometimes vulgar people arbitrarily slander noble ones? Without even knowing that they are smearing their own faces.”

The Great Master was silent for a moment.

But soon, he let out a burst of laughter.

“Indeed.”

The Great Master did not hide his laughter.

“As you say. Indeed, it is so. Hehehe.”

It was a light laugh, but the faces of the Three Great Commanders behind him changed greatly.

It was surprising that the Great Master was talking to someone for so long, and even laughing.

It was truly an astonishing thing for them.

“Truly bizarre,” the Great Master said, looking at Unhyun.

His eyes were filled with complete curiosity.

“Perhaps I have been waiting for this moment for a very long time.”

“Is that so? But I,” saying calmly, Unhyun held his sword close to his body.