Chapter 100 - Hellish Regular Exam, The 'Third' Gate (3)

Who is the current ruler of Murim?

People would think of the Murim Alliance in response to this question.

Over the past few hundred years, Jianghu had been reorganized around the Murim Alliance, leading to a revival of Jianghu, and since the Murim Alliance's reach extended to places the government's regulations couldn't, people trusted the Alliance more than the government.

Then, who could be considered the ruler of the Murim Alliance?

Broadly speaking, one could point to the Nine Sects and One Gang centered around the Orthodox Council, and the Five Great Noble Clans centered around the White Path Council.

There was also the Twelve Peaks and Castles, but they were still an emerging faction compared to those two powers, so let's exclude them.

In terms of sheer power, the White Path Council couldn't compare to the Orthodox Council because the presence of the two giants within the Orthodox Council was simply too immense.

The Buddhist Shaolin Sect.

The Daoist Wudang Sect.

It would be no exaggeration to say that these two giants not only represented the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Murim Alliance, but all of Murim itself.

Therefore, making an enemy of the Wudang Sect and the Shaolin Sect was no different from making an enemy of the entire Murim.

"Why did such a Wudang Sect point out Young Master Jin and the Taiyi Sect, as if they had been waiting for this?"

If I had to find a cause, I could point to the incident at the Demonic Spirit Plateau, but could that really be called my fault?

Yong So-ah was the one who ran away to survive on his own inside the Soul-Extinguishing Array, and I had been sucked into the array while trying to stop him.

It was only natural that those who witnessed the tragedy there, having survived by the skin of their teeth, would curse Yong So-ah with one mind, regardless of whether they belonged to the Orthodox or Underworld factions.

In fact, if Yong So-ah had merely been a disciple of the Mount Cangshan Sect, the survivors of the Demonic Spirit Plateau would have all flocked to Mount Cangshan and staged a hundred-day protest demanding the sinner be handed over.

The fact that it was swept under the rug as if it never happened, while also avoiding much criticism, was proof of how immense Wudang's authority was.

"Although overshadowed by Yong So-ah, the skills of the 'Hyeon' generation disciples far exceed those of their peers. If they harbor malicious intent toward the Taiyi Sect, giving up on the exam might be one of the best options."

After seeing the list of duelists for the Third Gate, the disciples of the Taiyi Sect—excluding myself—were left in a daze, and Moyong Jaehwa, who had smartly come out early in the morning to pick an opponent, went to confront the Wudang Sect, declaring he couldn't forgive such an absurd and one-sided atrocity.

"If we give up on the Third Gate, we might fail the exam completely."

To have obtained an admission token for the Third Gate meant they possessed the corresponding skill, wealth, and family backing.

Snatching an admission token from such people was by no means an easy task.

Even if one managed to snatch it, they also had to consider a way to escape from other pursuers.

Moreover, among them were those whose admission tokens moved separately from their bodies.

Ultimately, when considering 'whether to be in the position of just running away, or running away after snatching the opponent's admission token,' the conclusion was that choosing the former was much easier.

"Phew..."

That was why Namgung Seonhwa and Lady Seong Moran were worrying about our exams without even having the time to pick their own duelists.

CLACK.

At that moment, the door opened and Moyong Jaehwa barged in, huffing and puffing.

Naturally, we stopped our conversation and looked at Moyong Jaehwa.

"My prediction was right."

"What prediction?"

"As expected, there wasn't any special reason. They claim they have things to ask regarding their junior brother's disappearance. But the timeline doesn't even add up, does it?"

Come to think of it, it wasn't something to feel so wronged about. Since the Wudang Sect had such a massive number of disciples, it was natural for them to separate their disciples across the four gates spread nationwide, and it was also natural to seek out the opponents who seemed the weakest at the Third Gate.

And if those seemingly weakest opponents happened to be the ones who smeared shit on their sect's name, there was even more reason to eliminate them.

"Right, I figured as much. You should head out and decide on your duelist first."

Moyong Jaehwa was also just an examinee after all. I was grateful that he moved on my behalf, but he shouldn't neglect his own exam because of it.

"I've actually already decided."

"Huh? Didn't you just go to the Wudang Sect?"

"Yes, but since they were so unreasonable, I told them I'd teach them a lesson in your stead and just came back."

"..."

● Third Gate Exam Duelists

Wudang Sect Hyeongun – Moyong Noble Clan Moyong Jaehwa

* * *

"At that level, shouldn't we accept him as a lay disciple of the Taiyi Sect?"

That was what Geumpyo said as he watched Moyong Jaehwa, who was more enraged than the actual disciples of the Taiyi Sect.

"I doubt it. If we did, wouldn't Elder Breaking Sword either grind the Taiyi Sect to dust or cripple Jaehwa's legs?"

Since he wouldn't split the sole eldest son of the direct line in half, it was highly likely he would grind the Taiyi Sect to dust instead. Would it be fine once Cheongi's mechanical arrays were completed?

Even in my past life, Moyong Jaehwa hadn't been able to walk his own path due to Elder Breaking Sword's overbearing interference.

Wasn't the mission of the only man meant to carry on the direct line inherently a tragic one?

"Anyway, we will give up on the Third Gate."

"Huh?"

At Geumpyo's abrupt words, Eunho and Dongryong nodded at the same time.

"What kind of nonsense is that?"

"Taking on the challenge is nice and all, but shouldn't someone from the Taiyi Sect finally enter the Murim Academy for the first time in history?"

"..."

I tilted my head, unable to understand what Geumpyo was saying.

But the punk tilted his head right back at me.

"If we get injured fighting an unnecessary sparring match, we won't be able to help Senior Brother through the grand journey. Were you planning to go alone?"

"Huh?"

Eventually, Geumpyo beat his chest in frustration and suddenly shouted.

"I mean, how on earth are we supposed to face the Wudang Sect's swordsmen!"

This is insubordination, isn't it? How dare he raise his voice at his heaven-like Eldest Senior Brother?

"Geumpyo..."

"Yes!!!"

"Your voice is a bit loud."

"Um... I don't think so?"

I could certainly understand their reactions.

Just how terrifying were the Wudang Sect's swordsmen?

Even setting aside the depth and efficiency of their sword forms, they were incomparable just based on internal energy alone.

Whether Hollow Stone Milk flowed in Mount Wudang's waters or they devoured Ten-Thousand-Year Fleeceflower at every meal, the average internal energy of their disciples who barely reached the age of twenty exceeded half a lifetime's worth.

And that figure was only when talking about the average. Disciples worthy of appearing in the standard exam would have even more than that.

In particular, that bastard Hyeonsu who singled me out was a talent who, in my past life, passed this term's standard exam as the top seat and later even entered the Dragon-Phoenix Summit.

It was just that the light of Yong So-ah's genius made the 'Hyeon' generation disciples look like half-wits; looking at them individually, they were also people who would each engrave their names into Murim's history in the future.

By simple calculation, The Geum-eun-dong Brothers would have to attack simultaneously just to handle a single Wudang swordsman.

However, there was no way the Murim Alliance would accept a plea like, 'There's a difference in internal energy, so the three of us will fight together!' And since they had already incurred resentment, worrying about stepping out pointlessly and getting heavily injured to the point of being unable to undergo the grand journey was not a baseless concern.

"Of course, we don't think Senior Brother would fail the exam without us. Still, wouldn't it be easier with us around than without us?"

"Geumpyo..."

"Yes."

"I'll let it slide this once."

"Hehe... Yep!"

Geumpyo rubbed his hands together for some reason, flashing an obsequious smile.

Eunho let out a sigh as he looked at his older brother.

"Are you perhaps hoping we won't yield to the impossible? If that's the case, we can certainly try. But looking at the big picture, we thought it would be more helpful to move together with Eldest Senior Brother."

Dongryong kept nodding his head while hugging the Azure Dragon Sword tightly.

"Why are you already thinking about losing?"

"..."

"Did you know that the 'Spirit' in Essence, Qi, and Spirit cannot harbor negativity?"

The three Geum-eun-dong Brothers tilted their heads in the same direction simultaneously.

"Tsk, tsk. Studying martial arts verses isn't the only important thing. Without an understanding and insight into all things in the world, you will be trapped by your own limits."

"Does an understanding and insight into all things in the world allow one to overcome the difference in internal energy?"

To think they would show such irreverence when their Eldest Senior Brother was speaking.

Eunho, you bastard, you must be poisoned by the demonic qi of the Dark Soul-Severing Squad.

"Geumpyo."

"Yep!"

"Aaagh!"

Having just been choked by Geumpyo, Eunho rubbed his neck with a deep frown.

I continued speaking.

"The moment you think, 'What should I do to not lose?' the thought of 'losing' is already embedded in your mind."

"Then what should we do?"

"You have to think about how to win to find a way to win."

"A way to win?"

"Think carefully. The clue is right next to you."

Logically speaking, there was no way for a disciple of the Taiyi Sect to win against a Wudang swordsman.

However, considering the nature of a sparring match, and approaching it with the final goal being to obtain the admission token rather than neutralizing and killing the opponent, other methods would arise.

Moreover, wasn't their Eldest Senior Brother the very Third-Rate Warrior who had memorized all the Destruction Forms for the Nine Sects and One Gang?

The only issue was that I only knew the Destruction Form for the Wudang Sect's Taiji Sword, but that meant we simply had to solve that problem.

If they recalled the time I faced Namgung San, they should be able to find the answer.

"... Ah!"

After agonizing over it for a while, Eunho opened his mouth as if he had realized something.

"Did you figure something out?"

"Do you perhaps... believe in some new religion? Like, if you believe, it will come true...?"

"..."

* * *

"To think I have to be doing something like this."

He heard that Ilgak of the Shaolin Sect had obtained three First Gate admission tokens and two Second Gate admission tokens.

Compared to Hyeonsu's original goal of five First Gate admission tokens and two Second Gate admission tokens, it was nothing much, but for now, he couldn't help but envy Ilgak.

Revere Shaolin in the North.

Honor Wudang in the South.

The people of the world described the two great pillars of Murim this way, but it had been a long time since the actual weight of the scales shifted toward Wudang.

Wasn't it obvious just from the fact that the Murim Alliance's headquarters was located in Hubei Province, where Wudang resided, rather than Henan Province, where Shaolin was?

The common folk, who liked to indulge in idle gossip, always enjoyed pitting people against each other, so they wished for Wudang to have a rival. With generous rural goodwill, Shaolin was about the only one that fit the bill, so even if ignorant people compared Shaolin to Wudang, there was no reason to feel offended.

However, even the one sitting at the highest position ultimately had to prove themselves.

The moment the exam site for this standard exam was assigned to Henan Province, Hyeonsu hadn't hesitated to crush Shaolin and prove Wudang's existential value to Jianghu once again.

"But to think it's the Taiyi Sect."

He had acquired one First Gate admission token and had been searching for another stronghold to obtain the next.

Considering that Yong So-ah, the Eldest Senior Brother of the previous term, had entered the Murim Academy with an all-time record, he had been resolved to surpass not only Ilgak but also his Eldest Senior Brother's record.

However, Hyeonsu's exam was halted there. The main sect obtained a spiritual elixir, delivered it to them, and immediately moved Hyeonsu and his junior brothers straight to the Southern Peak.

"It can't be helped, can it? We normally wouldn't be swayed by the words of the ignorant, but they directly mentioned Eldest Senior Brother."

Taemyeong was another victim of this exam.

As he said, the rumors in the world were too loud for the Great Wudang Sect to simply ignore.

"Hmph! What a truly baseless alias. Black Flame Dragon?"

Ever since Eldest Senior Brother Hyeoncheong received the alias Yong So-ah through the standard exam, Yong So-ah had been a symbol of Wudang's underlying strength and the pride of the disciples within the Wudang Sect.

Even Ilmyeong, who was called Little Buddha, was nothing more than a star in the night sky compared to the sun that was Yong So-ah.

Yet those wicked thugs from the Underworld brought in a rootless disciple of the Taiyi Sect from somewhere, slapped the alias 'Black Flame Dragon' onto him, and dared to compare him to Yong So-ah.

It seemed there had been some misunderstanding, as even among the Orthodox sects, stories cursing Yong So-ah frequently surfaced, but he didn't care much.

If Senior Brother Hyeoncheong made such a choice at the Demonic Spirit Plateau, then that choice must have been for the best at the time.

"Still, seeing as Elder Breaking Sword vouched for him, couldn't we say the Taiyi Sword Emperor's martial arts have returned?"

"Is that elder's eccentric behavior a day or two old? He probably just claimed some unverified martial art was the Taiyi Sword Emperor's for some ridiculous, twisted reason again."

Hadn't the Henan Pavilion Master also said that there had never been an exam as murky as this term's standard exam?

All sorts of bizarre rumors and strange incidents were happening one after another. Wasn't that obvious just from the fact that Jin Sowoon, who was expected to be dragged here by Taejeong, had come to the Southern Peak on his own two feet?

"Still, I hope that rumor is true."

"Ah, you mean that one."

The one about him possessing nine First Gate admission tokens and seven Second Gate admission tokens? If that were true, entering the Murim Academy as the top seat over Ilgak wouldn't be an absurd tale. Of course, it was an unbelievable piece of information.

"Senior Brother, it's time."

The one scheduled for the first sparring match today was the youngest, Hyeongun.

Since there were only four disciples from the Taiyi Sect, they had intended to find him another suitable opponent, but then Moyong Jaehwa suddenly barged in, threw a tantrum all by himself, and abruptly applied as a duelist.

"Don't worry too much. Although the Moyong Noble Clan's Heaven and Earth Flash Breaking Sword is an absolute technique, Moyong Jaehwa's comprehension falls far behind the Smiling Iron Sword."

"I'm not worried."

At the grand training ground, there were people waiting for their exams, people waiting for other examinees, and people who had just come out to spectate.

After all the members of the Wudang Sect entered the grand training ground, it wasn't long before the disciples of the Taiyi Sect and their party arrived.

"What a peculiar sight."

Moyong Jaehwa looked just as deeply enraged as before, while Jin Sowoon and Dongryong of the Taiyi Sect appeared no different than usual. On the other hand, Geumpyo and Eunho had haggard faces, as if they hadn't slept a wink all night.

"At this rate, it looks no different from them having given up on the sparring match."

"Do not let your guard down until the very end."

Hyeonsu said that, but inwardly, he couldn't hold back his sneer.

This was how it was. Facing Wudang meant placing this kind of burden on the opponent.

"Begin!"

With the judge's shout, Hyeongun and Moyong Jaehwa took their opening stances.

Hyeongun used Wudang's pride, the Taiji Sword, while Moyong Jaehwa used the Moyong Noble Clan's main sword technique, the Heaven and Earth Flash Breaking Sword.

Considering that the alias Wind God Breaking Sword ultimately originated from the Heaven and Earth Flash Breaking Sword, it was indeed a sword technique that couldn't be ignored, but the important thing was that it varied depending on the person using the martial art.

"It's over."

The tip of Moyong Jaehwa's sword trembled faintly as he took his opening stance.

It was at a level that most people wouldn't notice, but someone who had achieved Unity of Sword and Body could immediately realize its inadequacy.

Considering that the Heaven and Earth Flash Breaking Sword sublimated the two conflicting principles of heaviness and swiftness into a single sword technique, it was a martial art where its destructive power would not be unleashed unless one reached a certain level and achieved their own enlightenment.

On the other hand, the Taiji Sword was built upon the two properties of Yin and Yang—the foundation of all creation—making it a highly effective sword technique where one could attain enlightenment simply by practicing it for a long time, even without initial comprehension.

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

Sure enough, after thirty exchanges, Moyong Jaehwa's hands and feet began to tangle.

Just from shifting the properties from Yin to Yang and Yang to Yin, Moyong Jaehwa became unable to execute his own sword technique.

His once rage-filled face was now tainted with panic, and eventually, it morphed into an expression that looked ready to cry.

Unable to hastily slice through it with swiftness or crush it with heaviness, Moyong Jaehwa was dragged around by the crossing blades until a sword finally touched the bottom of his neck.

"Halt! Examinee Moyong Jaehwa! Will you continue!"

"Huff, huff, huff, huff."

If he had found a suitable opponent and sparred with them, he would have passed the Third Gate.

However, recklessly mounting a hopeless challenge against a Wudang swordsman was a disqualifying act for a warrior, who must always look back on themselves with cold rationality.

And the resentment over such a foolish choice would end up being vented in the form of self-blame.

"Speak! Will you continue!"

"I... I lost."

People let out exclamations of awe at the sight of Moyong Jaehwa bowing his head deeply.

They hadn't even properly shown Wudang's full potential yet, but people felt awe just from witnessing a small glimpse of Wudang.

This was exactly Wudang's position in Jianghu.

"The next duelists are Wudang's Hyeonsu! Taiyi Sect's Jin Sowoon!"

As Hyeonsu's name was called, the cheers in the venue grew louder.

Though he hadn't shined brightly due to Yong So-ah's name, he was already famous for his unbelievable internal energy and skill among his peers. Wudang's Little Dragon Hyeonsu, who already possessed sixty years' worth of internal energy at the young age of twenty.

"Senior Brother Hyeonsu, they say the Taiyi Sect's new sword technique mixes phantom swords and variable swords."

At Taemyeong's words, Hyeonsu couldn't hold back his sneer.

"They said it changed, but it's merely phantoms and variables? You all should keep this in mind as well. Deception cannot shake the Taiji."

"We will keep it in mind!"

As he stepped up onto the grand training ground, Jin Sowoon stood there, entirely dressed in black from his martial robes to his sword.

"You impressively didn't run away."

"Run away? Me?"

Seeing him shamelessly point a finger at himself broke the inner peace Hyeonsu had built through his Daoist power, making him want to snap that finger.

"Since your courage is commendable, I will yield three forms to you."

Jin Sowoon tilted his head. Well, it would be hard to understand someone who was basically a life-and-death enemy yielding as many as three forms.

"I want to see the Taiyi Sword Emperor's sword technique that you supposedly newly acquired. Wouldn't the people gathered here be too disappointed if I ended it without even getting a glimpse of that legendary martial art?"

At Hyeonsu's words, laughter erupted from all directions.

"Ahahahaha!"

Jin Sowoon continued to ponder for a moment before asking the judge.

"Is this allowed?"

Still pointing at Hyeonsu with that finger he wanted to snap.

"If there is mutual agreement, it does not matter."

"Understood. Are you sure you'll really be fine?"

"Go ahead, as much as you..."

While Hyeonsu was still speaking, Jin Sowoon's black martial robes swelled as if they were about to burst.

Hyeonsu's heart plummeted at the emission of an extraordinary aura. His emotions told him it was dangerous, but his reason said otherwise, whispering mixed signals; the two conflicting opinions made his movements hesitate.

SWISH.

The moment Jin Sowoon swung his sword, Jin Sowoon's Black Dragon Sword appeared in all directions. Front and back, left and right, and even the sky were entirely filled with pitch-black swords.

He knew they were phantoms and variables, but their numbers were so vast that he couldn't quite see which one was real.

Hyeonsu instinctively unfolded his Taiji Sword, completely forgetting his promise to yield three forms. However...

'What am I supposed to block first?'

There were too many swords.