The Swordmaster Wants To Live Peacefully [EN]: Chapter 198

Swordmaster Wants to Live Peacefully – Episode 199

Swordmaster Wants to Live Peacefully 199

Cheonmaeng Fortress (7)

Cheon Woo-gong, Je Gal-ung-ju, and Dang Young-jup gathered to analyze a video.

It was a battle video of Yoo Seong-woo, obtained by an intelligence agent from the Murim Alliance [a coalition of martial arts clans].

Of course, to them, it was a video of a wandering mercenary named ‘Hyeon-wol’.

The video showed him fighting two Hwagyeong-level [a high rank in martial arts] warriors from the Peng family simultaneously.

Hyeon-wol fought skillfully, proving he was a seasoned veteran of the battlefield. He knew how to control the pace of the fight, unlike the straightforward style of righteous martial artists.

However, no one who saw him suspected he was ‘Yoo Seong-woo’.

They had several videos of Yoo Seong-woo fighting, so they compared them, trying to determine if Hyeon-wol could be him.

“…I’m convinced it’s a different person. What do you guys think?”

“I agree.”

“…Appearances can be altered, but habits are much harder to change.”

They all reached the same conclusion: Hyeon-wol and Yoo Seong-woo were different people.

While a changed appearance didn’t definitively rule out the possibility, they analyzed the videos from every possible angle.

Even a skilled fighter has ingrained habits that surface in battle.

The three scrutinized the footage, searching for commonalities between Hyeon-wol and Yoo Seong-woo’s fighting styles, but found nothing.

This was because Yoo Seong-woo had anticipated this and completely changed his fighting style as Hyeon-wol.

He adjusted the angle of his sword swings and altered his footwork.

He meticulously controlled his breathing and muscle movements, creating a completely different persona.

This was possible because Yoo Seong-woo, as a ‘Swordmaster,’ had mastered precise control over every part of his body through his extensive knowledge of sword techniques.

Yoo Seong-woo also has a younger sister named ‘Yong-wol,’ but there was no publicly available information about her, making it impossible for them to identify her.

“…How has someone like this remained unknown? He’s more than capable of taking on two Hwagyeong-level masters alone. In fact, he overwhelmed them.”

“He seems to have a different temperament than Yoo Seong-woo. Look at how he aided the Seomun family’s illegitimate child…”

“Then the quickest way to get information about Hyeon-wol would be to capture Seomun Young-il and interrogate her.”

They were unaware of the true relationship between Seomun Young-il and Yoo Seong-woo.

Therefore, they concluded that capturing Seomun Young-il was the best way to learn about Hyeon-wol.

“Young-jup, bring that child here. I want to hear her story firsthand.”

“Understood, Alliance Leader. I’ll send one of my most skilled infiltrators.”

“…And if possible, eliminate him. Judging by his actions, he’s likely to become an enemy of the Murim Alliance.”

“Although he outwardly supports the Seomun girl, that man is likely the key figure…”

Dang Young-jup nodded and stood to leave.

***

“…What is this?”

Yoo Seong-woo looked down at his feet, which were glowing ominously.

Was this a trap set by Seomun Je?

He scanned the area, recognizing the shape of a formation slowly materializing.

It wasn’t magic.

He was so familiar with magic that he could distinguish it from other arts at a glance.

‘It’s closer to sorcery.’

Then, what was the purpose of this sorcery?

Yoo Seong-woo checked his body for any changes and, finding nothing amiss, turned his attention to Seomun Je.

If it didn’t affect the subject’s body, it must alter the external environment.

In that case, eliminating the caster was the fastest solution.

‘…I need to take him alive.’

He swung his sword to disable him, but was blocked by an invisible wall.

To make matters worse, the attack rebounded back at him.

Yoo Seong-woo deflected the impact with his iron sword and narrowed his eyes.

“Reflection?”

“It’s the Space Isolation Formation. I took great care to set it up without you noticing.”

Yoo Seong-woo reached out and touched the invisible wall, gauging its approximate size.

A cube with two-meter sides, just large enough to swing a sword.

Dumbfounded by his confinement, Yoo Seong-woo chuckled.

He hadn’t noticed the formation being activated, despite their efforts.

Seomun Je mocked Yoo Seong-woo, trapped by the sorcery.

“Your arrogance has become your downfall. I didn’t prepare this just to catch you…”

As he spoke, he drew a sword from his waist. Yoo Seong-woo, his hand still on the wall, muttered:

“Space isolation and reflection, with enhanced durability through various formulas. The reflection works by transferring the impact to another dimension and opening an exit at the point of attack.”

Seomun Je was stunned that Yoo Seong-woo instantly understood the sorcery’s mechanics.

This wasn’t sorcery from the human realm.

It was created by someone who had transcended humanity through offerings and elixirs, designed to restrain powerful individuals.

Originally, this magic circle wasn’t meant to be used in a place like this…

“Even if you understand it, there’s nothing you can do.”

“…That’s true. As Hyeon-wol, I have no way out of this.”

Hyeon-wol, the persona Yoo Seong-woo was playing, was a strongman only slightly above S-class [a ranking system for power].

This barrier was more than sufficient to contain someone of that level.

It was unthinkable that an ordinary Diver [someone with supernatural abilities] could deploy it.

“…Hyeon-wol wouldn’t have encountered something like this before.”

However, Yoo Seong-woo, not Hyeon-wol, had been trapped in similar barriers countless times.

How many times had he shattered the barriers that mediocre magicians used as their trump cards?

These types of barriers inevitably had limitations in transmission and output.

They would break if subjected to more force than they could handle, but since he didn’t know the barrier’s exact strength, he opted for a more refined approach.

“But what if it’s Yoo Seong-woo?”

With that, Yoo Seong-woo put down his iron sword and summoned Il-saeng [One Life].

In his hand appeared a beautiful yet eerie sword with a crimson blade.

Its appearance was crude, yet captivating.

The moment Seomun Je saw the sword, he recognized it.

Although Cheonmaeng Fortress was isolated, it remained vigilant about external threats.

Seomun Je knew some information about Yoo Seong-woo.

A rare red sword.

That sword, seemingly stained with blood, was unforgettable, even from a video.

“Y-You are!”

Seomun Je shouted in horror.

The man before him, Hyeon-wol, was completely different from Yoo Seong-woo.

The way he swung his sword, the way he moved.

It was so different from Yoo Seong-woo’s reliance on brute strength.

That’s why he hadn’t connected Hyeon-wol and Yoo Seong-woo.

But the moment he saw that sword, Seomun Je understood.

He wasn’t facing the wandering mercenary Hyeon-wol.

He was facing the guild master of Sword Demon, Yoo Seong-woo.

“But even if it’s you! You can’t escape this technique!”

Seomun Je gripped his sword and took a stance. The barrier was one-way.

It was impossible to exit from the inside, but possible to enter from the outside, so he intended to strike.

“Die!”

Seomun Je poured his energy into the sword and swung.

The Seomun family’s swordsmanship, executed by the head of the family, possessed tremendous power.

The refined golden energy sliced through the air.

It plunged into the barrier, aiming to cut Yoo Seong-woo in half.

This was checkmate.

If he blocked the sword energy, the impact would rebound, destroying him.

“You can’t deflect the impact like before! You’ll die here!”

Yoo Seong-woo gripped Il-saeng, watching the approaching sword energy, and thrust it forward, channeling his aura.

The sword energy shattered.

Seomun Je, witnessing the sword energy vanish as if blown away, gritted his teeth and launched another attack.

However, it too dissipated upon touching Yoo Seong-woo’s sword.

Seomun Je gasped, firing more sword energy, which Yoo Seong-woo effortlessly deflected.

Exhausted, Seomun Je stared at Yoo Seong-woo, questioning how he had done it.

“From the start, it was foolish to think you could accomplish anything with such crude energy…”

He muttered, gathering aura and divine power into Il-saeng.

Il-saeng vibrated, glowing even more intensely red.

A viscous blood oozed out.

The authority of the True Ancestor Vampire residing within Il-saeng was activated by divine power and aura, emitting an ominous aura.

“And this barrier is also easy to break…”

In the past, he had used brute force, but things were different now.

He could now manipulate power with greater precision.

He lightly poked the barrier’s edge with Il-saeng, coated in blood.

Blood spread like a spiderweb from the point of contact.

In an instant, the entire cubic barrier was covered in red blood and began to dissolve.

“It’s a well-made barrier, but… that’s why it’s easier to break.”

He slowly eroded the barrier from the inside.

Since there was no such thing as ‘perfect’ magic, he identified the structure and reversed it.

He was exploiting a small weakness, twisting and stretching it.

Because of the barrier’s complex structure, even a slight distortion would compromise its integrity.

‘Most powers wouldn’t even allow intrusion.’

Yoo Seong-woo was using authority based on divine power.

It was a power that would inevitably work unless the barrier was constructed with authority.

When the blood injected by Yoo Seong-woo covered the entire barrier,

It slowly began to collapse.

Yoo Seong-woo returned Il-saeng and grabbed the iron sword he had dropped, infusing it with aura.

“I, Igi Sword [a legendary sword]!”

“Igi Sword, my ass. Are you living too much in martial arts novels?”

Yoo Seong-woo chuckled and swung his iron sword.

Seomun Je, having exhausted his energy, couldn’t mount a proper defense and had both arms severed.

The arm holding the sword rolled on the floor, and blood gushed from the wounds.

Yoo Seong-woo immediately approached, grabbed Seomun Je’s head, and slammed it into the floor.

“Since you’re S-class, you won’t die this easily.”

Yoo Seong-woo heated the iron sword with aura, cauterized the stumps to stop the bleeding, and kicked the window, shattering it.

Then, he jumped out of the building with Seomun Je’s head in his hand, who had fainted from the pain.

Skydiving with a half-dead old man.

He felt the wind and fell, shouting loudly.

“I caught the old man, so stop─!!”