52 – 04# Sugar-Coated Dagger (11)

History, as they say, is written by the victors.

What more could be said of the Namgung Clan, possessing the towering status and reputation of the Righteous Alliance’s leader, one of the Five Great Clans. For such a clan to be pushed around by a heretic?

An event that should neither happen nor be made known. Hence, the Namgung Clan attached the grandiose name “Sword Demon War” to the subjugation of the Sword Demon.

And any allies who aided them in this process were silenced. As were most who knew of these collaborations.

In this way, they protected their blood-soaked position as leader, reigning firmly to this very day. Leaving their younger warriors ignorant of the truth.

Who could have possibly predicted?

That the Sword Demon, thought certainly dead, would not only return.

But would once again clash with the Namgung Clan themselves.

◇

It was an entirely unforeseen visitor who sought out Ko Gyeom and Ma Gang, as they idled away their time in the prison. He wore a navy blue changpao, embroidered not with a dragon, but an Imugi.

His gently cascading white beard and neatly arranged hair made him seem almost divine. Ko Gyeom recognized the elder at a glance. Indeed, how could he not?

“Dark Sword, Nangong Seonwi, Grandmaster, what brings you to such a wretched place?”

“Know him, do you?”

“…Before academic knowledge, perhaps a little decorum, please.”

To not only be unaware of Nangong Seonwi, one of the few survivors of the Demon Sword War, and one of the two wings supporting the Nangong Clan’s leadership…

To treat a person standing right before you as if they were a complete stranger? Truly, ‘keeping silent is half the battle’ held a grain of truth. Nangong Seonwi smiled and spoke.

“It’s quite alright. How can ignorance be considered a sin? Those of us above must generously understand the lack of knowledge of those below.”

“To what do we owe this visit, Grandmaster?”

Ko Gyeom was inwardly startled by Nangong Seonwi’s arrogant response, but maintained his composure and continued. Information was precisely what they needed right now.

“Ah, nothing of great importance. I simply came to hear your final words.”

“…Pardon? Final words?”

Even Ko Gyeom could not help but wear a dumbfounded expression at Nangong Seonwi’s statement. Final words were surely for those about to die? Why would he ask *them* for such a thing?

“Gather your wits. That one intends to kill us here and now.”

“What? Surely, not the Nangong Clan of all…”

“Your friend possesses a keen sense, indeed. Bordering on the animalistic, I would say.”

“Y-You truly intend to kill us?”

Nangong Seonwi offered only a smile in response. Yet the killing intent emanating from him transformed him from a man into a demon incarnate.

“At least tell us the reason! What cause could possibly justify our deaths?!”

“For the sake of the greater good.”

“What greater good could possibly outweigh a human life?!”

“To protect the very roots and history of the martial world we have cultivated thus far.”

“What airy nonsense…!! Have you perhaps joined hands with the Demonic Cult?!”

Before coming to Shandong, he had received vague hints from the nameless grandmaster. That shadowy forces called the Demonic Cult were currently hidden amongst the roots of the martial world, wreaking havoc.

Could it be that even the Nangong Clan had fallen to the Demonic Cult? But before the name of the Cult could even settle, Nangong Seonwi’s previously mild expression twisted into a mask of rage.

“How dare you utter the name of such base and ignorant wretches.”

“I-If not that, then why are you trying to kill us?”

“Why, because of that damned face, of course. How utterly predictable.”

Ma Gang, who’d been listening quietly by the side, let out a long, heavy sigh before finally speaking. It wasn’t that Ma Gang was unintelligent. He simply loathed the notion of stuffing his mind with scholarly things.

Thanks to this, Ma Gang’s understanding of what others called erudition wasn’t exactly profound. But at least he could roughly grasp how things were unfolding in the present situation.

“The Namgung Clan doesn’t want to admit they failed to protect their guests, is that it? So they’re trying to pin the blame on this nameless hero.”

“Is what he’s saying true?”

“Of course not. This is simply an unfortunate accident. Something like…a sudden rampage by the Sword Demon, resulting in the annihilation of the righteous sects’ young masters.”

Only then did Ko Gyeom finally grasp Namgung Seonwi’s intention. Thinking about it again, this incident would damage not only the Seonmu Academy, but also the reputation of the Namgung Clan behind it.

No, beyond mere reputation, there would be immediate, practical losses. Who would entrust work to the Namgung Clan, who couldn’t even properly protect a procession traveling from Hanam to the mountains?

The Socheon Tang Clan, seeing the Namgung Clan as a rival, would relentlessly exploit this incident. And the Jegal Clan, wary of the Namgung Clan’s monopolization of power, would apply pressure as well.

“So you’re trying to blame it on the Sword Demon? To somehow gloss it over by saying that it was unavoidable because the opponent was the Sword Demon?”

“Something like that.”

“You might as well try to hide the sky with your palm!! Do you really think the truth can be concealed?!”

“One cannot create something from nothing, but when power is high, even a deer can be made into a horse. Of course, you all will never have the chance to learn that fact firsthand.”

“Why don’t you cease your empty boasts?”

Ma Gang, who had been listening to the story with his arms crossed and a nonchalant expression, broke in while picking at his ear with his pinky finger. A vein throbbed on Namgung Seonwi’s forehead.

“What was that?”

“Hey, you b*stard. This is a situation where you should be trying to negotiate, not provoking us like that…!!”

“You know it too, don’t you? That old fox has no intention of letting us live.”

Ma Gang had no idea who his opponent was. But judging by the felt aura, he was at least a master of the pinnacle realm. If such a man had decided to kill them, there was no turning back.

“The pinnacle is akin to an immovable foundation. A man who refuses to listen to others and instead, charts his own path. Once a pinnacle master has decided something, no one but he himself can ever change it.”

“You know it well. Especially for someone who hasn’t even reached the pinnacle.”

“Well, it doesn’t scare me one bit. Because I’ve already met the real thing.”

“…The real thing, you say? Are you referring to that mere phantom?”

Though he didn’t say it out loud, Namgung Seonwi had already realized that the person present was not the Sword Demon. That was why he could act so brazenly.

Because his opponent was not the Sword Demon.

The ignorant masses might be mistaken.

But he was a man who had crossed swords with the real Sword Demon.

‘If this incident is handled correctly, the Namgung Clan’s position, which has been wavering lately, can be further solidified. All we need to do is get rid of this mere phantom.’

Of course, he admitted that this phantom was no ordinary individual. Judging by the guise of someone calling himself the Sword Demon, he was at least at or above the pinnacle realm.

But it wouldn’t work.

He was far inferior to the real Sword Demon.

If it truly *were* the Sword Demon, not a soul here would’ve survived. And *that* is why Namgung Seon-wi was so beside himself. This whelp, knowing nothing, daring to call him a fake.

“Ignorance is bliss, they say. You’re a prime example of that.”

“Careful now, lest you take a wrong hit and lose what few teeth you have left. How will you eat your meat then, you paper tiger?”

“You truly are incorrigible. Today, right here, I will….”

“Elders! Quick, come quickly! You must see this!!!”

He was about to deliver a proper lesson to the insolent youth, no longer able to stomach the insults, when one of the Namgung Clan’s warriors burst into the prison, summoning Namgung Seon-wi.

“What’s all the commotion *now*?”

Had it been anything less than critical, he’d have punished the man severely for his reckless intrusion. But the news the Namgung warrior brought was something even the seasoned Namgung Seon-wi hadn’t anticipated.

“The Sword Demon has attacked!!!”

◇

“Step aside.”

The Namgung Clan warriors guarding the main gate froze, faces hardening at Mu-myeong’s chillingly calm voice. Some even trembled with fear.

And how could they not? They were facing the infamous Sword Demon himself. A monster barely repelled decades ago by a righteous alliance led by the Namgung Clan. Though much time had passed…

Few in the Namgung Clan still lived who had witnessed his martial prowess firsthand. Some had succumbed to old age, but most had perished in the Sword Demon War.

“This place is where the Namgung Clan’s warriors and families reside. Enter further, and we cannot guarantee your safety.”

“I will warn you one last time. Retreat, or you will all die.”

“We cannot. We, too, have things we must protect.”

“I’ll grant you that much, your spirit.”

Mu-myeong’s hand rested on the hilt of the sword at his waist. Instinctively sensing the threat, not a single Namgung Clan warrior fled. Instead, they clustered together, forming a defensive formation.

The Namgung Clan’s formation was indeed solid and disciplined, seemingly impenetrable even to a master of the highest caliber. Had the opponent been a mere expert, perhaps.

The Namgung Clan warrior at the forefront snapped to his senses, realizing he was sprawled on the ground. But what entered his vision was an unthinkable sight.

The massive pillars of the grand residence, standing four stories tall, were cleaved cleanly, collapsing horizontally. A single swing, felling countless soldiers with one stroke.

橫掃千軍

*Heng Sao Qian Jun* (Sweeping Away Thousands of Soldiers)