Chapter 29 - Rising Star

A young vagabond wandering Murim alone, without a master or sect, had fought evenly against two great demons who had run rampant for decades? It was difficult to believe. Yet those doubts were soon dispelled when the origins of Do Heo-ok’s martial arts came to light.

Do Heo-ok wielded an exceptionally domineering saber technique. Every stroke sent thunderous peals reverberating in all directions, as though heaven and earth were collapsing. Many martial arts in Murim were accompanied by thunder, but few thunderous saber arts produced a sound of such intensity.

The Thunder Blade Art.

The exclusive martial art of the Thunder Blade Emperor, the greatest warrior under heaven three hundred years ago. That was the saber technique Do Heo-ok used. No one knew where he had acquired it, but by wielding it, he had proclaimed himself the Thunder Blade Emperor’s successor to the world.

His fair and honorable conduct, the Thunder Blade Art, and the skill to do it justice. The exquisite combination of those three things soon sent his fame racing across the land.

Many great martial sects began courting the promising young man, eager to take him into their fold. If they could bring him under their protection, they would acquire not only an exceptional talent, but also a saber art with the potential to be the greatest under heaven.

Naturally, even a mountain of blades and a forest of swords could not compare to the ferocity of that competition.

Yet, as though mocking their struggles, Do Heo-ok continued to devote himself solely to slaying evildoers who followed demonic and heretical paths. Even so, the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Families of the Central Plains continued to watch him, and the contest for the Rising Star went on.

This unexpected, behind-the-scenes rivalry between the great martial sects came to an almost anticlimactic end after he arrived in Hefei, Anhui Province. Do Heo-ok fell in love at first sight with Namgung Hye, the Namgung Clan’s second daughter.

In the end, the Namgung Clan emerged victorious. The other great sects could only swallow their disappointment and give him up.

These days, the Namgung Clan was frantically busy preparing for Do Heo-ok and Namgung Hye’s wedding—the fruit of that fierce contest for the Rising Star.

Needless to say, the groom himself was exceedingly busy. He personally greeted the well-wishers as they arrived at the temporary reception pavilion erected near the clan’s gates.

Tall and handsome, with an amiable face, Do Heo-ok looked every inch a hero. Even after exchanging greetings and heading off to the guest hall, the visitors never ceased singing his praises.

Ordinarily, there was no need for the groom to come out and receive the guests himself. Yet Do Heo-ok had volunteered even for that tiresome duty, leaving the well-wishers all the more impressed by his humility.

Receiving guests was not his real purpose.

Though he welcomed them with hearty laughter, his keen eyes were studying each visitor. He carefully sorted and catalogued them in his mind: who had come, precisely which sect they belonged to, how strong they were, and so on.

Above all, he needed to establish whether the people whose presence was essential had arrived.

A play required a cast. Do Heo-ok was the lead, but there also had to be a host of extras and several indispensable supporting actors. Even among the supporting actors, however, some roles were decidedly more important than others.

Every day, he waited here for the most important of them all. Once that man arrived, it would hardly matter if a hundred useless extras were missing. The moment he showed his face at the Namgung Clan, all preparations for launching the “grand plan” would finally be complete.

About three days after Do Heo-ok began greeting guests while concealing his true face, the man he had so eagerly awaited—the foremost supporting actor in this “First Stratagem”—finally arrived at the Namgung Clan.

‘He’s here.’

Several dozen people were entering the temporary reception pavilion, a large tent open on all sides. The party was considerably larger than Do Heo-ok had expected, but that hardly mattered. The only person who mattered to him was the cold-looking, brown-robed middle-aged man at their head.

Sure enough, the martial artists who had arrived earlier and were signing the guest register recognized the middle-aged man and began to murmur. It had been a long time since he had appeared in public, but he was an expert of such standing in Murim that his mere arrival caused a stir.

“Hah!”

The middle-aged man turned toward those whispering about him and gave a sharp shout. The murmuring martial artists fell silent at once.

The man sweeping his cold gaze over the crowd was renowned not only as a martial expert, but also as an eccentric. There was good reason people openly said that, had he been just a little stronger and more bizarre, Murim would have had Four Eccentrics instead of Three. No one here would want to offend him.

“How noisy. Are you saying I’ve come somewhere I have no business being?”

His icy gaze and characteristically cantankerous tone sent a chill through the crowd. Recalling his epithet, they busied themselves avoiding his eyes. Death was one thing, but none of them wanted to be pursued even after becoming a soul, so they knew better than to cross him.

‘Just what I’d expect of the Soul-Chasing Poison Hand.’

The brown-robed middle-aged man was none other than Tang Wu.

After spending the entire previous night performing the Great Reformation Ritual, he had walked for a full day to reach the Namgung Clan beside Soho Lake in Hefei. Naturally, those accompanying him were Dong Bongsu, Tang Hwa, and the members of the Danri Family.

Unlike the flustered crowd, Do Heo-ok was smiling inwardly at Tang Wu’s arrival. Why wouldn’t he? He had spent so long working in the dark as a Shadow, all for this one undertaking. Once it was complete, he could finally become a true Shadow in the light, rather than one confined to the dark.

“If you have something to say, stop chattering in the corners. Come out and say it to my face.”

Naturally, no one stepped forward.

No—one person did. The only person who had never once lost his relaxed, welcoming smile since Tang Wu arrived: Do Heo-ok.

“How do you do, Great Hero Tang?”

Only at Do Heo-ok’s greeting did Tang Wu turn his gaze from the crowd to him.

“And who might you be?”

“It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Do Heo-ok.”

A trace of interest appeared on Tang Wu’s face as he watched Do Heo-ok cup his fist in salute. Apparently curious about the Rising Star of Murim he had heard so much about, he rapidly looked him up and down.

Do Heo-ok was untroubled by Tang Wu’s scrutiny. Looking him over would never reveal his true identity anyway.

He prided himself on possessing the most flawless art of transformation in Murim. In this one respect, even “he” could not match him. His transformation was no mere disguise technique. It was an art based on the Thousand Transformations Art, altering his appearance by completely reconstructing his muscles and bones.

“Oho. So you’re the young man they call the Saber Star—the very one who put me to the trouble of coming here.”

“Yes, Great Hero.”

Do Heo-ok bowed his head slightly as he answered.

Tang Wu’s gaze sharpened once more, though not for long.

“Excellent. Truly excellent. But that’s all. Had I met you yesterday, you would have been the best. Seeing you today, though, leaves something to be desired.”

What did that mean?

Leaving Do Heo-ok with those utterly incomprehensible words, Tang Wu walked past him toward the rear of the temporary reception pavilion and the Namgung Clan’s inner residence.

“That fellow Byeok is inside, isn’t he?”

“Yes. He is inside.”

Tang Wu certainly lived up to his reputation as an eccentric. Who else would dare use the Namgung Clan Patriarch’s name so casually? But Do Heo-ok was no slouch himself, responding without the slightest hint of discomposure.

“Then I’ll go in.”

“Of course, Great Hero. The Patriarch has been awaiting you for several days.”

If Tang Wu was an unrestrained eccentric, Do Heo-ok was like a waterfall. He possessed water’s gentleness, yet also strength and boldness. That, of course, described only his outward shell, not his true self.

Throughout the encounter, Do Heo-ok handled Tang Wu’s potentially discourteous behavior with easy composure. The assembled guests found themselves admiring him once again.

Only two people were exceptions.

Tang Wu and Dong Bongsu.

Having already marveled enough at Dong Bongsu’s supreme talent, Tang Wu had no admiration left to spare.

Dong Bongsu, on the other hand, had an entirely different reason.

Fundamentally, Dong Bongsu did not admire people. He merely observed them, then classified them as prey or enemies.

If someone was exceptional, that simply made them exceptional prey or an exceptional enemy. If they were prey, there was no need to agonize over it. He could hunt them or leave them alone.

If they were an enemy, however, the situation was entirely different.

In that case, Dong Bongsu generally chose one of three options: eliminate them before they interfered with his hunting, avoid them, or deceive them.

He had been watching Do Heo-ok ever since following Tang Wu into the temporary reception pavilion.

The reason was Spirit Eye. It had alerted him to the appearance of another high-level enemy.

[20, ... , 10, ...]

Tang Wu had passed Do Heo-ok and was walking toward the tent’s exit. Under normal circumstances, the distance reported by Spirit Eye should have increased until the warning ceased.

Instead, the distance in its warning was shrinking.

That meant the new high-level enemy was Do Heo-ok.

Then which of the three options should he choose for this enemy?

Eliminate him, avoid him, or deceive him?

The answer was already settled.

With a level gap of at least ten, the first option had already been ruled out. The moment he entered the Namgung Clan, the second option had vanished as well.

Only one option remained.

He had to deceive him.