Chapter 620: Dragons and Phoenixes

After parting ways with Baek Suryong, Heavenly Martial Principal Jin Ryang went straight to his underground training chamber. Meeting a new peerless master had inspired him, especially since the encounter could have easily ended with one of them dead.

In the end, though, they had never traded a single blow, so Jin Ryang decided to burn off his unspent energy here.

“You look more intact than I expected.”

Someone had gotten here ahead of him. Jin Ryang’s guard had been up the entire time, yet the man had closed the distance to within a few paces, a testament to his formidable prowess.

Jin Ryang smiled wryly. “If it isn’t Mr. Cheon Mugyeol ! You speak as if you were hoping I died tonight.”

Cheon Mugyeol strolled out of the darkness a moment later, a sneer on his face. “I assumed you’d come back with at least one less limb. You went racing off like a dog in heat, after all. For all that, you look remarkably unscathed.”

Few men alive would have dared to insult Jin Ryang like that, yet he only shook with laughter. A man obsessed with martial arts could be extraordinarily generous toward anyone whose skill he recognized.

“Indeed. My head very nearly came off!” he chuckled, stroking his neck. “I only provoked him a little, yet he was already calculating the chances of beheading me a single strike. One strike! Nothing more.”

The chill of that moment came flooding back, along with the sensation of becoming prey. Goosebumps broke out all over his body. He had felt such a sensation only a handful of times in his life.

“The successor of the Heaven Defying Divine Art is truly extraordinary. Enough to make I, the Myriad Weapons Emperor Jin Ryang, jealous.”

I barely strangled the urge to see his martial arts on the spot. It is not yet time for the Heaven Defying Divine Art to show itself to the world. The situation has to ripen further before the age of chaos I want can bloom in full, and witnessing that art completed comes after.

“Whew!” Jin Ryang exhaled heavily, his eyes bloodshot. “I’ve never been this worn out in my life. It’s almost unbearable!”

Cheon Mugyeol regarded the madman with open revulsion, but he had a more pressing concern. “So, how strong was he?”

Jin Ryang pondered the question. He had glimpsed a fragment of the Azure Dragon Hero Baek Suryong’s true nature and power. The smile that came to his lips wavered. “...He’s strong enough that I found myself wondering whether he might be the most powerful martial artist in today’s murim.”

Cheon Mugyeol tensed. He knew that, despite Jin Ryang’s hypocrisy, he never lied about martial arts.

True enough, having stood at arm’s length from Baek Suryong, he could attest to the man’s overwhelming, goosebump-inducing aura. He had spent the entire conversation fighting to contain something that kept trying to claw its way out of him.

If he ever shook off the chains he’s bound himself with, is there a single soul in the murim today who could stand against him alone?

Nobody he knew of came to mind.

“The most powerful martial artist in today’s murim...” he muttered to himself, nodding. Although Jin Ryang’s answer was outlandish enough to throw the entire murim into an uproar, he wasn’t the least bit surprised by the revelation. “What did the two of you talk about?”

Jin Ryang answered eagerly, as if he had been itching to tell someone, “I told him about the man who brought the Blood Cult to ruin. You know, that martial arts instructor I mentioned to you before.”

He was fascinated by the story of the martial arts instructor who existed only in the Blood Cult’s forgotten history. Although many details about the man had been extracted from cultists captured in the last war, the records were sealed away because they were deemed too far-fetched. Even he had only unearthed those records at great expense.

Curiously, the more I learn about the Azure Dragon Hero, the more I see that legendary martial arts instructor in the young man. Perhaps this is nothing more than the intuition of a martial arts maniac, but...

“For a moment, I genuinely wondered whether the two of them might be the same person. Reincarnation... or perhaps the mythical Soul-Transference Art?”

Cheon Mugyeol clicked his tongue. “You are beyond saving. The madness has seeped into your very bones.”

“Kahahahaha!” Jin Ryang burst out laughing.

Indeed, I don’t give a crap whether the Azure Dragon Hero is connected to that Blood Cult martial arts instructor or not! What I want is...

“Had that instructor survived, he would have become either the hero who saved the murim or the greatest demon of all time. What do you, a former Blood Cultist, think of that?”

“He would have died by my hand eventually.”

“Hahahaha! This is exactly why I like you!”

As far as Jin Ryang was aware, Cheon Mugyeol knew more about the Blood Cult and the Heaven Defying Divine Art than anyone else in the murim today.

He had joined forces with the man over a shared goal, but that alliance was steadily losing its meaning. While Cheon Mugyeol wanted revenge, he wanted to unleash chaos and usher in a new golden age of martial arts. Now, they were both close enough to their objectives to understand that tonight would be their last peaceful meeting.

Jin Ryang’s eyes glowed red. “It’s a shame to part like this. Since it’s the last time, care to trade a few light blows with me?”

“Not interested.”

Cheon Mugyeol scoffed. He had heard everything he came for, so he turned his back and melted into the darkness without a shred of attachment.

Jin Ryang shouted after him. “The next time we meet, let’s do our best to kill each other! Hehehe!”

There was no answer.

Smiling faintly, Jin Ryang stepped into his training chamber.

Heavy tremors rocked the Heavenly Martial Academy until sunrise.

Dawn broke on the second day of the Dragon and Phoenix Tournament.

Students and instructors alike closely watched every match, tension etched across their faces. The thirty-two students who had won on the first day were set to participate in two duels each today. If they won both, they would be named one of this year’s Dragons and Phoenixes.

Not everyone was focused on the tournament, though.

Namgung Su knitted his brow and glared at his colleague. “...Baek Suryong. Cease your restless pacing and sit down quietly.”

Baek Suryong stared at him, dumbfounded. “What are you, my father?”

“Headmaster Baek is too busy mentoring students to mind his grown son’s poor conduct.”

“Always with the nagging...”

Namgung Su slid closer, created a sound-blocking barrier, and whispered, “What sinister scheme are you cooking up this time?”

Baek Suryong affected a deeply wronged expression. “What am I cooking up? I’m just going around saying hello to a few acquaintances.”

“And why do these acquaintances happen to be the Murim Alliance Chairman, the Empress of the North Sea Ice Palace, and the Black Snake Alliance Chairman? Key figures of the murim, every one of them.”

Before the tournament began, Baek Suryong had met with the very people that Namgung Su had listed. Given their statuses, it was only natural to be suspicious.

“Did I meet somebody I’m not allowed to meet? They’re all acquaintances of mine.”

While this was true, Namgung Su did not brush aside his misgivings. He let out a small sigh. “If you intend to cause trouble, tell me in advance.”

“I’ve got no particular plans to cause trouble. Not me, anyway...”

I hated every moment of last night’s conversation with that nutjob, but I heard his warning loud and clear.

He smiled coldly. “I just made a few preparations, that’s all. As long as they don’t touch anything they shouldn’t, nothing will happen.”