Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 134

134. A Time to Reveal Greed

When Namgung Yoon asked again, Lee Seo-yeon turned her head, her gaze settling on a point in the distance.

Following her line of sight, Namgung Yoon spotted a man rallying the other bandits. He seemed to hold a higher rank than the one they had just bypassed.

“For Lee Seo-yeon of the Hoam Merchant Guild, I would gladly do so,” Namgung Yoon said, feigning politeness, and lightly pushed off the ground.

He charged towards the bandit Lee Seo-yeon had marked as her target.

It was a far cry from yielding, but Lee Seo-yeon wasn’t surprised by his actions.

“Huck! Stop him!” the bandit shouted, his face contorted in alarm, and other bandits moved to intercept Namgung Yoon.

*Swish.*

The sword flashed in Namgung Yoon’s hand, and the bandits’ blood splattered. However, the bandits, arranged in a Three Talents Formation [a strategic battle formation], were enough to slow Namgung Yoon down.

And that was precisely what Namgung Yoon intended.

Distracted by Namgung Yoon’s sudden appearance, the bandits in the immediate vicinity began to scatter, creating an opening.

*Tak.*

Lee Seo-yeon stomped her foot, seizing the opportunity. Thanks to Namgung Yoon drawing the enemy’s attention, a path to her target had opened.

*Swish.*

Lee Seo-yeon moved quickly and deftly, brushing past the bandits and Namgung Yoon.

Even in that fleeting moment, she caught the faint smile on Namgung Yoon’s lips as he glanced at her.

—Lee Seo-yeon of the Hoam Merchant Guild.

Namgung Yoon’s words from moments ago echoed in her mind.

*Tsk.*

The bandit Lee Seo-yeon was targeting stood directly before her.

Still preoccupied with shouting orders at his subordinates, he remained oblivious to her presence.

Sensing the intense battle raging around her, Lee Seo-yeon tightened her grip on her sword.

‘Lee Seo-yeon, of the Hoam Merchant Guild.’

The moment the bandit finally noticed Lee Seo-yeon and the moment her sword began its arc were almost simultaneous.

In the bandit’s widening, fearful eyes, Lee Seo-yeon foresaw her victory. It was the look of a loser, a look she had witnessed countless times.

*Slash.*

As the bandit frantically raised his sword in a desperate defense, Lee Seo-yeon’s blade sliced across his neck.

*Fwoosh.*

The gushing torrent of hot blood belatedly announced the death of its owner.

*Tak.*

Landing gracefully on the ground, Lee Seo-yeon slowly turned, observing the outcome she had already been certain of.

The bandit’s lifeless body collapsed powerlessly to the ground with a dull *thud.*

*Thud.*

‘…But someday.’

For Lee Seo-yeon, the name Hoam Merchant Guild had never represented privilege.

It was a place where even the smallest mistake was met with unforgiving consequences.

The Hoam Merchant Guild was the battlefield she had been thrust into since birth.

And it was also her ultimate goal, the summit she had to conquer someday.

“I will be called Lee Seo-yeon’s Hoam Merchant Guild, not Hoam Merchant Guild’s Lee Seo-yeon.”

A thick, metallic scent of blood permeated the air.

The surrounding bandits were thrown into disarray; the bandit who had just fallen seemed to have been a figure of considerable importance.

Lee Seo-yeon watched as the bandits began to retreat.

It wasn’t just in her immediate vicinity. The entire bandit force was withdrawing, and the fierce battle between the two sides was gradually subsiding.

The Namgung Clan’s elites, too, stood their ground, guarding against the retreating bandits but refraining from pursuit.

‘Is this the end?’

Lee Seo-yeon sensed that the battle was concluding.

The reason the Namgung Clan wasn’t chasing after the bandits was clear: they were preparing to confront the ‘Hwangcheon Corps’ [Yellow Sky Corps], who could be considered the true enemy.

If that happened, there would be no place for Lee Seo-yeon to contribute.

No matter how much martial arts she had learned within the Namgung Clan, she couldn’t compare to the clan’s direct disciples.

*Rustle.*

Lee Seo-yeon turned away without regret.

The screams of the bandits echoed occasionally, and the cold moonlight bathed the night sky.

“Indeed.”

Jegal Yeon, the Murim Alliance [Martial Arts Alliance] representative from the Jegal Clan, who had been observing the battlefield from a short distance, frowned.

“It is clear that the Jianghu [Martial World] pirates have formed an alliance once more.”

The Murim Alliance representatives beside him nodded in agreement.

The situation was unfolding as they had feared.

The bandits opposing the Namgung Clan weren’t solely the Heartless Sect.

It was evident that at least six or more large pirate groups from the Jianghu had been mobilized.

The pirates had reunited in an alliance.

“Why did they reunite again?” Jegal Yeon continued, a questioning look on his face. “What on earth could have motivated those who had been lying low for the past thirty years to rise up again?”

That was a question shared by all the other representatives.

The Jianghu pirate alliance had been virtually nonexistent since its destruction by the Murim Alliance thirty years prior.

As long as the Murim Alliance stood, there was no room for them to rise again.

But how could they even contemplate forming an alliance against the Namgung Clan?

“They must have obtained power,” Cheongjin, the representative of the Wudang Sect [a major Taoist sect], said in a calm voice.

“The reason thieves refrain from crime is because they fear punishment. The fact that they have revealed their greed suggests they have gained enough power to disregard the consequences.”

“They are not afraid of the Murim Alliance, so what kind of power did they gain?” Hyeokryun Pil of the Hyeokryun Clan asked.

“We cannot definitively say that they have gained power,” a heavy voice interjected, replacing Cheongjin’s answer.

It was Jinheo, the representative of the Shaolin Sect [the most famous Buddhist martial arts sect].

“Greed blinds the eyes and clouds judgment. Whether they have truly gained power or whether their eyes have been darkened by greed will soon be revealed.”

Jinheo clasped his hands and chanted a Buddhist prayer.

It was as he said.

The ‘Hwangcheon Corps’ would soon make their appearance.

Then, everyone would know.

Whether the bandits had gained the strength to stand against the Namgung Clan, or whether it was merely a reckless act of desperation.

“Tsk, neither outcome is welcome,” someone’s quiet grumble perfectly captured the representatives’ sentiments.

If the pirate alliance had genuinely acquired power, it posed a serious threat.

Even if it was just a reckless struggle, it was still unwelcome.

It was clear that the influence of the Namgung Clan, which had suppressed the bandits, would inevitably increase.

Many sects held vested interests within the Jianghu.

The increased influence of the Namgung Clan meant that the influence of other sects would be diminished accordingly.

The atmosphere among the Murim Alliance representatives, as they watched the conflict between the Namgung Clan and the Heartless Sect (or rather, the Jianghu pirate alliance), was heavy with apprehension.

“They have come out.”

Someone’s hushed voice broke the Murim Alliance representatives’ reverie.

The representatives all turned to look in the same direction.

A group clad in dark yellow uniforms appeared near the retreating bandits.

“Now,” someone muttered, their voice tight with tension.

“It’s time to witness the true power of the Namgung Clan.”

There was only one reason the Murim Alliance representatives had accompanied this observation: to ascertain the true martial prowess of Namgung Jincheon, the Lightning Sword and head of the Namgung Clan.

That moment had finally arrived before their eyes.

The representatives watched the unfolding situation with rapt attention.

Depending on the martial prowess displayed by the head of the Namgung Clan, significant shifts within the Murim Alliance were inevitable.

The eyebrows of Namgung Jincheon, the Lightning Sword and head of the Namgung Clan, who had been observing the battlefield from atop a white horse, twitched slightly.

At the same time, Namgung Byeok, the head of the Outer Affairs Bureau standing beside him, spoke in a grave tone: “Finally, they have revealed themselves.”

Namgung Jincheon understood the emotion behind those words.

Daring bandits had spilled the blood of the Namgung Clan.

The time had come to exact retribution for that blood.

“Move the disciples back,” at the order of Clan Head Namgung Jincheon, Namgung Byeok, the head of the Outer Affairs Bureau, nodded.

*Flap.*

Someone in the rear raised a flag as a signal, and Clan Head Namgung Jincheon slowly urged his horse forward.

“Clan Head.”

“You stay here,” Namgung Jincheon instructed Namgung Byeok.

“This place is enough for me alone.”

Namgung Jincheon’s expression was solemn as he spoke.

Namgung Byeok obeyed the clan head’s command and halted his horse.

However, he ensured that five of the clan’s disciples followed at a distance, prepared for any unforeseen circumstances.

The disciples, armed with spears, trailed the clan head on horseback.

*Clatter, clatter.*

The Namgung Clan disciples who had been positioned at the front retreated, and Clan Head Namgung Jincheon passed through their ranks, slowly advancing.

His appearance, as he rode towards the Hwangcheon Corps, was as majestic as a war god from mythology.

“Ahem,” one of the watching representatives cleared his throat and said, “Those are the Hwangcheon Corps.”

Turning their gaze away from Namgung Jincheon’s imposing figure was likely motivated by envy.

However, the Hwangcheon Corps was not an opponent to be underestimated.

Dressed in dark yellow uniforms and wearing yellow bands on their wrists, their aura was distinctly different from that of the other bandits.

Their numbers were also around a hundred, contrary to initial reports.

Considering the exhaustion of the Namgung Clan’s elites, predicting the outcome was difficult.

*Clatter, clatter.*

However, Namgung Jincheon didn’t halt his horse.

Even after the five disciples who had been following him stopped at a distance, Namgung Jincheon continued to ride towards the Hwangcheon Corps.

He also lacked a long weapon suitable for mounted combat.

But for Namgung Jincheon, that was inconsequential.

*Swish.*

As the distance closed, arrows rained down from the Hwangcheon Corps.

As if on cue, countless arrows were unleashed upon Namgung Jincheon.

*Thwack, thwack, thwack.*

Namgung Jincheon drew his sword to defend against the incoming barrage.

*Whoosh.*

At that moment, an unfamiliar energy emanated from Namgung Jincheon’s sword.

It swiftly transformed into a vibrant blue sword aura, erupting from his blade in torrents.

“Gasp!”

The Murim Alliance representatives watching the scene swallowed hard.

“S, Sword aura!”

Since the establishment of the Murim Alliance, the Jianghu had remained relatively peaceful for decades.

The skills of the clan heads and sect leaders were merely the subject of rumors, and their actual martial prowess remained unknown.

But today, before the representatives’ very eyes, the head of the Namgung Clan was displaying his martial prowess without reservation.

*Whoosh.*

As Namgung Jincheon swung his sword, the straight, blue sword aura danced through the air.

The incoming arrows were effortlessly cleaved apart by the potent aura.

*Thud, thud, thud.*

Namgung Jincheon’s horse, its snow-white mane billowing, charged into the heart of the Hwangcheon Corps in an instant.

*Squelch.*

Namgung Jincheon, astride his white horse, wreaked havoc within the Hwangcheon Corps, wielding the blue sword aura with devastating effect.

Arrows could no longer find their mark.

The Hwangcheon Corps pressed in on Namgung Jincheon from all sides, but their efforts were futile against the blue sword aura.

“Heh.”

The Murim Alliance representatives watched the scene unfold, their faces pale with awe.

Namgung Jincheon’s mastery over sword aura was reminiscent of what the Hwanwoo Ohcheonjon [Five Great Swords of Hwanwoo] had displayed during the Righteous-Demonic War of the past.

No, the Lightning Sword’s ability to freely manipulate sword aura clearly indicated that his skill would soon surpass even that legendary level.

“To think that Lightning Sword Siju’s [a respectful title] martial prowess was at this level…”

Shaolin’s Jinheo lamented quietly.

Lightning Sword Namgung Jincheon’s martial prowess exceeded all expectations.

The Four Great Clans, including the Namgung Clan, were generally considered to be inferior to Shaolin, Mount Hua [another major Taoist sect], and Wudang.

However, Lightning Sword Namgung Jincheon’s sword aura rendered such generalizations meaningless.

‘If the Namgung Clan possesses this much power…’

Jinheo suddenly realized.

If the Namgung Clan had reached such heights, the other clans wouldn’t be far behind.

While there might be some variations, it was reasonable to assume that they, too, possessed comparable strength.

‘The Murim Alliance’s path will not be smooth.’

Earlier, Wudang’s Cheongjin had stated that when someone consumed by greed reveals their desires, it signifies that they have acquired power.

If that were the case, how could the Four Great Clans, now wielding such power, remain passive?

“Heh.”

Jinheo sighed once more and quietly recited a Buddhist prayer.