The Legend of the Northern Blade - Chapter 210: Some Encounters Bring a Storm (1)

“Haa…” A shabby old man dressed in rags with mop-like hair sighed as he looked at Jin Mu-Won. He was Neung Gun-Hwi of the Nine Skies.

Jin Mu-Won was a wretched sight. More than twenty deep wounds marred his body, six of them fatal. However, his internal injuries were far graver. Not only was his heart meridian twisted into a knot, his qi and blood were also boiling. The flow of his qi was severely disrupted, and even immediate meditation couldn’t guarantee a full recovery.

An ordinary man would have collapsed long ago, but Jin Mu-Won’s eyes shone brightly. Despite being riddled with holes, he still tried to move.

“Don’t move,” Neung Gun-Hwi advised. “You must meditate and treat your internal injuries right now.”

“I’ll do it on the go.”

“You’ll die if you try that. Even so, I have to go. She’ll be in danger if I don’t.”

“You are in far more danger right now.”

“I’m fine.”

“No, you are absolutely not fine.” Neung Gun-Hwi put pressure on Jin Mu-Won’s shoulder, forcing him down. Too injured to resist, the young swordsman obediently complied. Neung Gun-Hwi then took a pill wrapped in gold foil from his robes and fed it to Jin Mu-Won.

“What is this…?”

“Just eat it.”

Before Jin Mu-Won could resist, Neung Gun-Hwi pressed his palm against his Mingmen acupoint. Jin Mu-Won’s eyes widened. An immense internal energy flooded his body from the point of contact.

“Hurry and circulate your qi! There’s no time to waste,” Neung Gun-Hwi urged.

Jin Mu-Won closed his eyes. Further resistance would endanger both their lives. Activating the Art of Ten Thousand Shadows, he felt the pill dissolve and its essence permeate his body. Neung Gun-Hwi had given him the famous Great Cycle Pill of Shaolin, a legendary elixir from the temple’s secret manuals said to increase one’s inner qi by thirty years and instantly heal any wound.

As the pill’s effects spread, his tangled heart meridian unwound and his boiling blood calmed. A little color slowly returned to his pale face.

Neung Gun-Hwi’s voice flowed into his ears. “Listen closely as you circulate your qi. You have realized some of the truth by now. Heaven’s Summit doesn’t rule the world. ‘He’ does, from behind the scenes. Not everyone in Heaven’s Summit is under his influence, but many are.”

Who is ‘he’? Jin Mu-Won asked with his mind, unable to speak.

Neung Gun-Hwi answered as if he had heard the question. “His name is Moyong Yul-Cheon. Like me, he is part of the Nine Skies, but he actually looks down upon the world from an even higher place.”

Jin Mu-Won flinched. He recognized the name. The Undefeated Ascetic Moyong Yul-Cheon was the patriarch of the Moyong Clan, also known as the Undefeated Clan. He rarely showed himself to the world, so much so that he was called an ascetic.

Neung Gun-Hwi infused even more of his internal energy to stabilize Jin Mu-Won’s condition. “Moyong Yul-Cheon is a truly fearsome man. The world thinks his martial prowess is on par with the other Nine Skies, but that’s a mistake. All of the other Nine Skies, including me, have been defeated by him.”

“……” The corner of Jin Mu-Won’s eye twitched.

“I know this is hard to believe, but I’m telling the truth. I challenged him and lost in just over fifty exchanges. The same goes for the others. The only difference is that some lasted longer, while others lost quickly.”

The Storm Harbinger Neung Gun-Hwi only lasted for fifty exchanges? Jin Mu-Won was astounded. He couldn’t easily believe what he was hearing, but he had to. Neung Gun-Hwi himself was admitting his loss.

“Among those Moyong Yul-Cheon defeated, some distanced themselves out of pride, pretending to be indifferent to the world’s affairs. I’m one of them. Others, however, actively sympathized with his ideals. The Scarlet Leaf Sage of the Wudang Sect and Seomoon Hwa of the Seomoon Clan are prime examples of the latter. Fortunately, Moyong Yul-Cheon didn’t punish those who withdrew from the murim.”

Neung Gun-Hwi sighed despairingly. Moyong Yul-Cheon understood how difficult it was for someone who had been broken once to find the will to challenge again, especially after completely surrendering their body and spirit.

“Moyong Yul-Cheon, no, the Moyong Clan realized long ago that to rule the jianghu, they had to always steer clear of the watchful eyes of its heroes. That’s why they created Heaven’s Summit and used the other Nine Skies to divert attention from themselves. When the heroes’ discontent reached its peak, they instigated the Silent Night, directing all the anger at them instead. Meanwhile, Moyong Yul-Cheon continues to cunningly rule the jianghu from the shadows, always ensuring that he is never subject to blame.”

Jin Mu-Won’s body quivered slightly at the revelation. In response, Neung Gun-Hwi pumped his internal energy in more forcefully.

“Moyong Yul-Cheon judged your father, Jin Kwan-Ho, to be a future threat. He saw him as a serious risk to the Moyong Clan and his own hold on power. That’s why he used Heaven’s Summit to annihilate the Northern Army. Now, you’ve emerged as a new threat.”

“……”

“You revealed yourself too early. I don’t know if you’ll get another chance, but if you do, please be even more cautious.”

“……”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I can’t help you more than this. I’m sorry I can’t be a source of strength for you.” Guilt clouded Neung Gun-Hwi’s face. For him, an old jianghu warrior known for his pride, Jin Mu-Won represented his one lingering regret.

Once the Great Cycle Pill’s power had completely melted into Jin Mu-Won’s body, he removed his palm. Jin Mu-Won immediately opened his eyes. His external wounds remained, but his wrecked insides had healed to some extent. He still couldn’t use his full strength, but he could at least walk.

He pushed himself to his feet. “I won’t thank you.”

“That’s okay. I didn’t help you to receive your gratitude.”

“What do you want me to do?”

Neung Gun-Hwi smiled. “Please be patient and prudent. You can’t break Moyong Yul-Cheon’s defenses by acting recklessly. Endure, and endure again. Then, when that one chance finally presents itself, you must cut his throat without hesitation.”

Jin Mu-Won couldn’t bring himself to smile back. The unimaginable truth bore down on his shoulders like a giant boulder.

“Go now. Isn’t there someone you have to save? The longer you delay, the more danger she’ll be in.”

Jin Mu-Won gave Neung Gun-Hwi a deep bow and went on his way. Neung Gun-Hwi silently watched the young swordsman’s receding figure.

When Jin Mu-Won had finally disappeared, he said to thin air, “You can come out now.”

“……”

“You saw everything, didn’t you? Come on out.”

A man in his late forties, dressed as a Taoist priest, emerged from the bushes. Beneath eyebrows as thick as caterpillars, a sharp purple light shone in his eyes, seemingly able to pierce a person’s soul.

“Scarlet Leaf.”

“You’ve made a foolish choice, Gun-hwi.”

The middle-aged Taoist priest was the Scarlet Leaf Sage. He was the Sword Sky, a member of the Nine Skies alongside Neung Gun-Hwi.

“A foolish choice, you say…”

“Are you aware that your actions have consequences?”

“Do you think I would act without knowing that?”

“So you’re indeed a fool…”

“Perhaps. However, I’m certain of one thing.”

“And what is that?”

“That I’ll never regret today’s decision.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve been deceiving myself for far too long. I don’t want to live a life stained with lies anymore. This is how I truly feel.” Neung Gun-Hwi smiled brighter than ever before.

The Scarlet Leaf Sage shook his head. “Gun-hwi.”

“I’m ready, Scarlet Leaf.”

Neung Gun-Hwi took off his outer robe, turned the tattered garment inside out and hung it on his staff. Immediately, his entire aura changed.

The Scarlet Leaf Sage’s eyes became chillingly cold. “The Storm Flag, huh?”

When the tattered robe was added to the old staff, the Storm Flag was born. This was the legendary weapon that had earned Neung Gun-Hwi the alias Storm Harbinger. Holding the Storm Flag, Neung Gun-Hwi no longer looked like an ordinary old man. His once-stooped back straightened, and the demeanor of an absolute master radiated from his entire body.

“Are you saying you’ll go that far to stop me?”

“I’m sorry. This is my decision, and I have no intention of backing down.”

“I’ll make you regret that decision.”

SHIIING!

The Scarlet Leaf Sage drew the sword from his waist. Two Chinese characters, 无道, meaning ‘The Dao Does Not Exist,’ were embossed on its hilt. At first glance, it seemed to deny Taoism, but it actually conveyed a deeper meaning.

The Scarlet Leaf Sage pointed his sword at Neung Gun-Hwi, who felt a dizzying sensation as if the sharp blade were dismantling his body piece by piece. There was no distinction between the sword and the man. The Scarlet Leaf Sage’s will was the sword’s will.

Neung Gun-Hwi let out an unconscious gasp of admiration. “I see you haven’t been idle all these years.”

“Hmph!” The Scarlet Leaf Sage snorted and took a step forward. He rode the wind, closing the distance in an instant.

Suddenly, a young boy who looked about eight or nine years old shot out from his body. Like the Scarlet Leaf Sage, the boy held a sword and was translucent.

Neung Gun-Hwi’s pupils wavered. “A Yang Spirit?”

Taoist cultivators often created an inner self, a pure essence of mind, body, and spirit. This other body was governed by their will, and only after abandoning their physical body and transferring their consciousness to the Yang Spirit could they be considered to have truly attained immortality. The young boy was the Yang Spirit that the Scarlet Leaf Sage had cultivated, but it was different from a typical Taoist cultivator’s.

Typically, the moment a cultivator formed a Yang Spirit, they severed their worldly desires and became pure beings. However, the Scarlet Leaf Sage hadn’t completely abandoned his humanity. Because of that, his desires were projected onto his Yang Spirit. The result was an ambiguous existence, neither immortal nor human. It was a Half-Yang Spirit. Nevertheless, its power was by no means inferior to that of a true Yang Spirit.

The Scarlet Leaf Sage and the Half-Yang Spirit, two bodies governed by a single will, attacked Neung Gun-Hwi together. Neung Gun-Hwi focused his internal energy into the Storm Flag. It hardened like an iron shield, blocking the Scarlet Leaf Sage’s sword.

CLANG!

Sword and flag clashed. A metallic sound rang out, devastating an area thirty meters around them. The Scarlet Leaf Sage and Neung Gun-Hwi then began unleashing lethal techniques at each other as the Half-Yang Spirit circled around them. Thus, two of the Nine Skies clashed in a nameless forest.

Confusion clouded Jin Mu-Won’s face as he walked. The names Heaven’s Summit, the Silent Night, the Nine Skies, and Moyong Yul-Cheon surfaced in his mind one after another.

“The Undefeated Clan, Moyong Yul-Cheon…”

His mind was in turmoil, as if a thunderclap had roared through it. Countless thoughts jumbled together, making clear judgment impossible. Jin Mu-Won forced himself to stop dwelling on things. He just let his mind be. Random thoughts flickered in and out, creating more and more branches.

Gradually, the parts that had seemed ambiguous became clear. He felt as if his eyes had been opened anew. “So this is how the Moyong Clan and Moyong Yul-Cheon ruled the jianghu. Moyong Yul-Cheon is the sky above the heavens, looking down on the other Eight Skies.”

A shudder ran through his entire body at the meticulous and profound scheme. He bit his lip firmly. “I must grow stronger!”