Chapter 820: That Person Is Also Here
Jin Paecheon originally possessed a domineering martial nature.
Now, with the profound and incomparably pure aura of the Gentleman’s Sword added to him, he revealed a new presence.
Hwa Moogi recognized what sword Jin Paecheon was holding.
“The Greatest Gentleman’s Sword in All of History!”
The moment he saw the Gentleman’s Sword, Hwa Moogi grew excited. He did not feel fear—rather, he was delighted.
“See? He wasn’t some bookish scholar after all. He came fully prepared to kill me.”
Hwa Moogi’s two eyes burned with a single emotion.
It was the instinctive greed drawn toward the Gentleman’s Sword.
Because he did not hide it, everyone could feel that greed.
“Do you want it?”
At Jin Paecheon’s question, Hwa Moogi answered in his own way.
“Isn’t the difference between a gentleman and a killing star originally no thicker than a single sheet of paper?”
The Cult Leader of the Heavenly Wind Cult, who had been listening, could not hold back and added a remark.
“Just how thick is that sheet of paper supposed to be?”
At those words, everyone showed faint smiles.
“Look at yourself. In what way are you and Alliance Leader Jin only a hair apart?”
Hwa Moogi laughed, but the killing intent contained in that laughter was unmistakable.
“I’ll pierce your heart with that sword.”
In other words, it was a declaration that he would kill both Jin Paecheon and the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Wind Cult.
The Cult Leader of the Heavenly Wind Cult tapped his chest with his hand as if inviting him to try.
“I may not be a gentleman, but I’m no coward. Come anytime. Or rather, you won’t be able to come, since you’ll die by Alliance Leader Jin’s hand.”
Thus, the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Wind Cult boosted Jin Paecheon’s morale. No matter the situation, he was the best at lifting the atmosphere.
Jin Paecheon slowly pointed the Gentleman’s Sword toward Hwa Moogi.
“Whose martial art will you use?”
Hwa Moogi made a cruel choice.
“I’ll kill you with the martial art of the person you claim to trust!”
Hwa Moogi intended to face Jin Paecheon using the martial arts of the Martial Emperor Divine Sword.
The unique martial art of the Martial Emperor Divine Sword was the Radiant Martial Sun Sword Art.
Jin Paecheon’s unique martial art was the Emperor’s Sword Style.
It was the moment when two supreme martial arts of the Righteous Faction clashed.
The two rushed toward each other simultaneously and thrust their swords.
Ting.
As if it were a lie, the tip of one sword struck the tip of the other with perfect precision. To charge at each other at such speed and have the sword tips collide—both men displayed divine prowess from the very first exchange.
Chiiiiiiiing.
The blades scraped past each other as they flew toward their targets.
With a sharp wind-splitting sound, the blades brushed past each other’s ears in an instant. Had they not tilted their faces aside, their faces would have been pierced.
When the two swords crossed.
For a fleeting moment, Jin Paecheon’s face was reflected in the blade. Even though it was a black sword, the reflection was clear.
For a long time now, the face reflected in his blade during battle had always been calm and composed.
It was the face of someone completely accustomed to battle, no longer tense.
It was the weary face of someone tired of life.
The face reflected in the blade had gradually grown older, so he had stopped looking at it.
But today, Jin Paecheon’s face was different.
It was tense and excited—like the day long ago when he fought his first real battle.
Jin Paecheon’s heart pounded like the drums of a battlefield.
Clang! Kaaang! Kang!
Swords collided and sparks scattered. Deadly attacks aimed at vital points followed one after another.
Since it was the Gentleman’s Sword—called the greatest sword of all time—it seemed natural that a single strike would snap the opponent’s blade. Yet Hwa Moogi’s sword remained intact.
First of all, the black sword he held was no ordinary weapon.
The Dark Heaven Secret Sword—the finest treasured sword of the Dark Palace.
That treasured blade was supported by Hwa Moogi’s powerful internal energy. If it had not been protected by such formidable internal energy, a collision like this would have shattered it before long.
Swiik!
Hwa Moogi’s black sword shot forward with incredible speed.
The eyes could not keep up with its speed, so it had to be blocked by instinct.
There were no probing feints meant to gauge the opponent’s skill. If one attempted such things, one would die instantly.
Only by bringing out the very best move he could perform, the finest technique he could unleash, was Jin Paecheon able to endure.
“That really is an incredible sword!”
Those watching could tell. Hwa Moogi’s reaction both revealed his greed and served as a provocation toward Jin Paecheon.
What he was admiring now was not Jin Paecheon’s swordsmanship—but his sword.
This was a battle between those who had reached the ultimate realm of swordsmanship.
A battle where the slightest speck of difference in one’s heart could determine victory or defeat.
If Jin Paecheon were influenced by those words, it would surely affect the battle negatively.
But it was needless worry.
Jin Paecheon was someone who had endured countless hardships and storms of blood before standing here.
If someone provoked him, it meant there was a need to provoke him.
‘In other words, this is a fight worth fighting!’
Jin Paecheon had reached a realm where he interpreted any provocation from his opponent in a way that helped him in battle.
The two swords flew endlessly toward one another.
Straight lines and curves intertwined as the trajectories of their sword paths formed in the air.
Those lines were roads leading to death.
And Jin Paecheon walked that road like a true gentleman.
Even though he was absolutely inferior in internal energy, he endured thanks to the Gentleman’s Sword. The sword was so powerful that Hwa Moogi also had to take care to prevent his own black sword from breaking.
Hwa Moogi’s sword stabbed consecutively toward Jin Paecheon’s neck, shoulder, and heart.
Shik! Shiiiik! Shik!
Every time Jin Paecheon deflected the attacks with his sword, a shock surged through him that felt as if his wrist would snap.
He could hardly believe that attacks this fast carried such deep internal energy.
Each strike felt like a move poured with the utmost effort of a supreme master.
Yet such attacks came continuously as if they were nothing.
Those watching all felt the same thing.
‘This is a battle we can’t even interfere in.’
The moment one lost concentration even for an instant, death would follow. If someone stepped in at the wrong moment to help, they might instead harm Jin Paecheon.
How could anyone intervene in such a perfect battle?
Rather, Jin Paecheon was fighting so well that no one could step in.
Geom Woojin was not watching each individual move.
The exchanges were so fast that even he would not be able to intervene if he tried to follow the techniques.
What Geom Woojin watched instead was the flow of the battle.
He observed their eyes, their expressions, and listened to their breathing.
Whether they were tired, afraid, seeking an opportunity, or preparing their final move—he observed the overall flow of the fight.
The battle grew increasingly rough and savage.
What had been a calm lake turned into a torrent and began plunging down like a waterfall.
Jin Paecheon was completely immersed in the fight. He saw nothing else and heard nothing else.
Only Hwa Moogi and his sword existed.
He fought at the very last realm he could reach.
Because he was so immersed in the battle, those watching were even more tense than he was.
Geom Woojin and Baek Jagang were both genuinely worried about Jin Paecheon at this moment.
It was not because they would be next if he died.
It was because they feared that even though they were present, they might fail to stop his death—and that they might have to deliver that news to his son and his disciple.
For that reason, the mental exhaustion of those watching was also immense.
Slaaash.
Slice!
With the sound of something being cut, the two separated.
The hem of Jin Paecheon’s clothes had been sliced long. Had it gone slightly deeper, it would have been a grievous wound.
“Haa… haa…”
Rough breaths escaped Jin Paecheon’s mouth.
Meanwhile, Hwa Moogi remained calm. Not a single breath of his had grown ragged.
He was not strong merely because the martial arts and internal energy of many souls had been combined.
He had been born with both the Heavenly Killing Star and the Heavenly Martial Body.
There was even a joke that someone with a Heavenly Martial Body practiced punching while still moving in their mother’s womb.
It was a body born for the purpose of cultivating martial arts.
Because of that, Hwa Moogi was not only strong in internal energy—his martial arts surpassed even the masters of three hundred years ago.
“Those people from three hundred years ago, and you people now—you’re all the same.”
Geom Woojin could feel it.
Someone had spoken to Hwa Moogi during the battle.
It had disrupted his concentration and caused him to briefly halt the fight.
Who could it be?
Geom Woojin thought of one person.
That anger was directed toward everyone here.
“You think I’m greedy just because I wanted a single sword?”
Hwa Moogi’s gaze turned toward Geom Woojin.
“While you lot try to possess the entire martial world.”
Then he looked at Baek Jagang.
“You say my birth was a coincidence? I am a necessary existence! One created by you!”
Finally, his gaze returned to Jin Paecheon.
Approaching him, Hwa Moogi asked,
“Isn’t your justice built upon piles of graves?”
Just as Baek Jagang was about to step forward to switch places with him, Jin Paecheon looked at him.
His eyes asked for more time.
Though exhausted, Jin Paecheon’s gaze remained clear.
Baek Jagang looked toward Geom Woojin, asking with his eyes what he thought.
Geom Woojin looked at Jin Paecheon.
“He deserves an answer to that question.”
Since that meant giving him another chance, Baek Jagang stepped back.
Hwa Moogi asked Jin Paecheon,
“You defined yourselves and decided the value of your own existence.”
A red aura flickered in Hwa Moogi’s eyes.
It was a powerful killing intent that had not appeared until now.
“Are you truly righteous?”
Jin Paecheon let out a light sigh and answered.
“As you said, perhaps we really are only a sheet of paper apart.”
In the past, Jin Paecheon had once left the Alliance alone to kill those who had murdered his child.
What would have happened if he had actually committed that act?
“That’s why, even now at this age, I’m still searching for the answer to your question.”
Hwa Moogi could tell he was sincere, so he asked again.
“Alliance Leader, is the martial world you seek to protect truly a place worth protecting even at the cost of your life?”
“It is.”
The answer came without hesitation.
“Does this martial world truly deserve to continue?”
Jin Paecheon’s answer was clear.
“It does.”
“Why?”
“Because people greater than you or me will appear and protect its value.”
Geom Mugeuk—and his grandson Jin Hagun—would carry it forward.
They would build a better martial world than now.
Before, he had only worried.
Now, he believed.
Jin Paecheon spoke proudly.
“You may be able to kill me, but you won’t be able to destroy that value.”
At that resolute answer, Hwa Moogi responded coldly.
“It’s because you’re so stubborn that I feel like tearing it all down.”
The two clashed again.
Although Jin Paecheon was exhausted, he fought even better than before.
In an instant, dozens of exchanges passed.
Clang!
Their swords crossed in the shape of an X.
They could see each other’s expressions beyond the blades.
Hwa Moogi was smiling.
The moment Jin Paecheon sensed the impure intent in that smile—
Hwa Moogi’s technique suddenly changed.
While using the martial arts of the Martial Emperor Divine Sword, he suddenly switched to the martial art of the Heavenly Will Palace Master.
“The Martial Alliance Leader I failed to kill back then—I’ll finish him today!”
As the style of swordsmanship suddenly changed, Jin Paecheon was caught off guard.
His body had been adjusted to the martial art of the Martial Emperor Divine Sword, but a completely different sword technique suddenly appeared.
For an ordinary master, such a change might not matter.
But his opponent was Hwa Moogi.
The changed sword technique flew toward Jin Paecheon at extreme speed.
Papapat!
Blood sprayed from Jin Paecheon’s shoulder and arm.
At the very moment Hwa Moogi rushed in to finish him—
Hwa Moogi suddenly turned and swung his sword behind him.
KWAANG!
The sound of force exploding in midair rang out.
It was the Formless Sword Energy launched by the Sword King.
After neutralizing the formless energy, Hwa Moogi immediately shot toward the Sword King with lightning speed.
Clangclangclangclang!
Under Hwa Moogi’s continuous attacks, the Sword King was pushed back.
He was inferior in speed and internal energy, but not in swordsmanship. Otherwise, he would have already been stabbed five times by those ferocious attacks.
Kakakakang!
In an instant, Hwa Moogi forced the Sword King back to the wall.
Swaaak!
The moment the Sword King’s back touched the wall, Hwa Moogi’s sword came flying in at a bizarre angle.
To anyone watching, it was an unavoidable strike.
Slash!
The tavern wall was cut long as it sliced the Sword King’s hair.
He had narrowly avoided the attack.
Just as the second strike was about to follow—
Shiiiiik!
From behind, Jin Paecheon’s Gentleman’s Sword thrust toward Hwa Moogi’s back.
Hwa Moogi twisted his body, deflected the sword coming from behind, and slipped aside.
“Is there such a thing as a gentleman who stabs from behind?”
Jin Paecheon gave no reply to Hwa Moogi’s mockery.
Blood flowed from his shoulder and arm.
“This is what happens when a gentleman associates with such bad people.”
Geom Woojin and Baek Jagang also said nothing.
Seeing that the Sword King had intervened first in the moment of crisis, they had held back.
In the earlier exchanges between Jin Paecheon and Hwa Moogi, the place where the Sword King had been standing was the optimal position to assist Jin Paecheon without harming him.
Despite his injuries, Jin Paecheon remained calm.
“If I had known doing bad things could be this interesting, I would have tried it sooner.”
The Sword King expressed his gratitude.
“Thank you.”
Because Jin Paecheon had rushed in, the second attack had not followed. If it had, he might not have died—but he would have been gravely wounded.
“I should be the one thanking you.”
If it had not been for the Sword King’s formless sword energy earlier, Jin Paecheon would not have escaped with just these injuries.
Right at that moment—
“There was no need.”
The one who spoke was Geom Woojin.
There was no need? Did he mean there had been no need to help Jin Paecheon?
Everyone looked at Geom Woojin with puzzled expressions.
Then something astonishing happened.
Geom Woojin slowly raised his palm.
It seemed as if he would point it at Hwa Moogi.
But the direction his palm faced was the second floor of the tavern.
Swaaaaaak—!
KWAANG!
With Geom Woojin’s palm force, the wall engraved with writing shattered and flew away.
The wall that Jo Chunbae treasured as much as his own life was blown to pieces.
Since no one expected Geom Woojin to destroy it, everyone stared at him in shock.
Even Hwa Moogi looked surprised and asked,
“Wasn’t that a work created by your son?”
Geom Woojin then said to the Sword King,
“You could have jumped upward to avoid it just now, but you didn’t.”
Geom Woojin had seen it clearly.
The Sword King could have avoided Hwa Moogi’s attack more easily a moment ago.
But his instinct had chosen not to go up to the second floor.
It was for Geom Mugeuk.
He had wanted to preserve that historic achievement left behind there.
Geom Woojin had read that feeling during the battle.
But in a fight this difficult, there should not be any restrictions whatsoever.
So he had simply blasted it away himself.
From now on, everyone could fight freely.
And he also had a solution for Jo Chunbae.
He would simply build him an even better tavern.
“The writing can always be written again. The people who wrote it are all here.”