Chapter 29 – The Eighth Dragon (3)

Even the proud Paeng Won-jun acknowledged Yu-jin’s skill. His body was already reacting to Yu-jin’s strength. His back was already damp with sweat.

Sometimes, the body is more honest than the mind, and Paeng Won-jun trusted his body’s reaction over his thoughts.

“By the way, aren’t you the one facing him in the main tournament?”

Paeng Won-jun asked, gesturing toward Dang Geon-woo. With Yu-jin’s match, the preliminaries were officially over, and the main tournament was scheduled to begin in three days. And Yu-jin’s first opponent was none other than the ‘Poison Dragon,’ Dang Geon-woo.

“That’s me.”

Dang Geon-woo answered Paeng Won-jun’s question lightly. At that, Paeng Won-jun spoke again in a regretful tone.

“This is quite a predicament. You can’t use your famed poison arts in a tournament match, can you?”

Using poison in a match was strictly forbidden. For Dang Geon-woo, who boasted poison arts so exceptional he was called the Poison Dragon, it was certainly a disadvantage. However, despite Paeng Won-jun’s regretful tone, Dang Geon-woo grinned.

“It would be a mistake to think a direct descendant of the Sichuan Tang Clan is only skilled in poison, my friends. I only use it because it’s an easy way to subdue opponents. I am also a master of hidden weapons.”

The Sichuan Tang Clan was famous for its poison and hidden weapons. And its successor couldn’t possibly be skilled in only one of them. At Dang Geon-woo’s confidence, Mo Yong-jin and Paeng Won-jun nodded.

“By the way, you also follow the path of the sword. What do you think of Brother Kang Yu-jin?”

“He is a man who has reached the essence of the sword. A master skilled enough to pour such immense momentum into a single strike. No matter how outstanding your hidden weapon techniques are, do not let your guard down.”

Dang Geon-woo nodded again at Mo Yong-jin’s words. He too was a martial artist; carelessness was not an option.

But despite that, Mo Yong-jin couldn’t hide his unease. For some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that not only Dang Geon-woo, but he himself, were sacrifices meant to bolster Yu-jin’s fame.

*’What am I thinking.’*

Thinking this, Mo Yong-jin gave a bitter smile. There was no need to have such strange thoughts before the match even began.

* * *

“Young Master Kang, he’s truly amazing.”

At Je-gal Min’s words, Namgung Hwa-rin beamed. Praise for Yu-jin was the same as praise for herself.

“The Young Master just hasn’t shown his true skills until now, but he’s actually incredible. He fought on equal footing with my older brother, so of course he can do this much.”

At Namgung Hwa-rin’s words, Dang Ga-hee couldn’t hide her worried expression. It was because she knew Yu-jin’s first opponent in the main tournament was her older brother, Dang Geon-woo.

Even to her, someone unfamiliar with the sword, Yu-jin’s skill was immense, which was why she couldn’t help but worry. Among the women, Dang Geon-woo’s defeat was already considered a certainty.

“Why can’t he use poison in the tournament match?”

Dang Ga-hee grumbled, even though she knew it was a ridiculous thing to say.

Je-gal Min and Namgung Hwa-rin, who understood Dang Ga-hee’s feelings well, could only offer bitter smiles, unable to say anything. But that was only for a moment before Namgung Hwa-rin spoke first.

“Ga-hee, want to go out for a bit? I saw a lot of wonderful things.”

In truth, she wanted to buy a gift for Yu-jin to celebrate his advancement to the main tournament, but she couldn’t just leave her friend like this, so she made the suggestion.

Dang Ga-hee nodded at Namgung Hwa-rin’s words. She also wanted to calm her heart by browsing for a while.

Dang Ga-hee also convinced herself that a tournament match was different from a real fight. When Dang Ga-hee nodded, Namgung Hwa-rin looked at Je-gal Min.

“Going out for a bit sounds nice.”

“You think so too? Then let’s go now.”

And so, the three women went to look at the special goods that the Cheonwon Merchant Guild was selling at a discount to commemorate Han Sung’s seventieth birthday. But none of it caught Je-gal Min’s eye.

*’Young Master Kang is too good for a girl like Hwa-rin.’*

It was true that they were friends, but Je-gal Min still felt it was a waste.

She had reached the peak realm, but her martial prowess was less than the other Five Phoenixes, and she was especially more than a step behind Hwa-rin. On top of that, Namgung Hwa-rin was slightly more beautiful, which made her feel inferior.

It was a thing of her immature past, but seeing Namgung Hwa-rin win over such a good man, that sense of inferiority seemed to be welling up again for some reason.

“Hwa-rin.”

It was then. A gentle voice reached the three women’s ears. And upon identifying the source of the voice, a bright smile bloomed on Namgung Hwa-rin’s face.

“Young Master!”

She cried out and threw herself into the arms of Yu-jin, who had called her name. Too shy to even mention buying him a gift, yet quick to show affection, Namgung Hwa-rin didn’t recognize the contradiction in her own actions.

“You did so well, Young Master!”

Embracing Kang Yu-jin, who had advanced to the main tournament with an overwhelming display of skill, Namgung Hwa-rin spoke with a smile that outshone the sun.

“Haha! Thank you, Hwa-rin! It was only possible because I had your support.”

At Yu-jin’s words, Namgung Hwa-rin was so happy she felt like she could fly. She could feel the affection overflowing from his every word.

Dang Ga-hee clicked her tongue at their sickeningly sweet display of affection. In contrast, Je-gal Min watched Yu-jin and Namgung Hwa-rin, feeling a pain as if her heart were shattering.

After holding Hwa-rin for a moment, Yu-jin soon let her go and spoke.

“It’s not right for me to interrupt when you’re with the other ladies. Hwa-rin, have a good time.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

Hwa-rin looked disappointed at his words but still answered readily. And so, the three women moved on. As they left, Je-gal Min glanced back at Yu-jin, and he gave her a smile. At that, Je-gal Min whipped her head away.

“An inferiority complex?”

Even before Je-gal Min herself was aware of it, her inferiority complex toward Hwa-rin had caused her to use a tone that grated on Yu-jin’s nerves.

“How boring. With an attitude like that, she’ll be too easy to conquer.”

She would be wary at first, but after a few gentle words, she would fall for him on her own.

He found that disappointing, but having no intention of taking the long way around when an easy path was available, Yu-jin decided he would take Je-gal Min when the time was right and moved on.

“It’s Grand Young Master Kang Yu-jin!”

Countless people already knew of Yu-jin, and because of that, all eyes gathered on him. At this, Yu-jin hurriedly used his lightness skill to leap onto the roof of a nearby building.

“Well, well. Becoming famous is tiring in its own way.”

Grumbling to himself, Yu-jin headed for the inn where Eun Seol-rin and Ran were staying together.

It was a high-class establishment called the Danwol Inn, and it was already filled with numerous people. The banquet of someone who could sway the entire Central Plains was practically a grand festival.

“Well, it’s a banquet hosted by someone like that, so of course all the Seven Dragons and Five Phoenixes would gather.”

For a mediocre tournament, not only the Seven Dragons and Five Phoenixes but even the slightly more famous rising stars wouldn’t pay it any mind.

Looking at it that way, Han Sung was truly a remarkable man. As Yu-jin was lost in thought, a young man approached him and bowed his head.

“I’m sorry, sir. All the rooms are already full…”

Seeing that he was clearly a young master from a wealthy family, the innkeeper spoke as humbly as possible.

“Ah, my companions have already secured a room. So please don’t worry.”

“Is that so? That’s a relief. Welcome to the Danwol Inn.”

The innkeeper bowed to Yu-jin with a relieved expression, and Yu-jin headed for the room Eun Seol-rin had told him about earlier.

And as he approached the door, Yu-jin let out a sigh without realizing it. He had sensed what was about to happen. After sighing, Yu-jin opened the door, and in that instant, the assault (?) began.

*Shweeeek!*

He deflected all the daggers flying toward him with the Dark Heavenly Hand. But the attack didn’t end there. Countless silver threads descended one after another, spreading out like a spiderweb inside the room and closing in to constrict Yu-jin.

Yu-jin swung his hand like a blade, severing the silver threads. Unless they were Heavenly Silkworm Threads, which couldn’t be cut even with internal energy, no thread could block Yu-jin’s attack.

Numerous other attacks were unleashed, but Yu-jin blocked them all with ease.

“Attacks like this won’t be enough to do anything to me, Ran.”

As soon as Yu-jin finished speaking, Ran appeared from nowhere and rushed toward him. Seeing this, Yu-jin wore a troubled expression. He hadn’t expected her to take his words as a cue to charge him head-on.

“That’s not what I meant by ‘charge at me directly,’ you know.”

Yu-jin said as he reached out, his hand aiming to grab Ran’s shoulder. But his hand passed right through Ran. And the Ran he had passed through scattered into flower petals and vanished completely before his eyes.

“An afterimage?”

No, it wasn’t a simple afterimage. An ordinary afterimage could never have fooled Yu-jin’s eyes in the first place.

Ran’s form had multiplied to four, and all four Rans rushed at Yu-jin, swinging their swords. However, Ran’s swords failed to reach Yu-jin’s body.

A human-shaped protective aura surrounding Yu-jin’s body blocked Ran’s attacks and caught her swords. Yu-jin smiled, patting Ran’s shoulder as he withdrew his protective aura.

“You’ve worked really hard. I never thought you’d improve this much in such a short time. Seol-rin, you must have worked hard teaching Ran, too.”

As Yu-jin called her name, Eun Seol-rin revealed herself from behind him.

“It was only possible because Ran’s talent is truly outstanding. It makes me want to ask where you found such a child, Master. I only intended to teach her a few techniques, but I changed my mind and took her as my direct disciple. I apologize for not telling you sooner, Master.”

“It’s fine. I was going to ask you anyway, so this is for the best. By the way, what was that technique just now? Most martial artists would have been fooled by that afterimage.”

Those who had grown arrogant after reaching the peak realm would have likely lost their heads to Ran’s surprise attack just now. The afterimage Ran had shown was that incredible.

“It’s one of my signature techniques, the Scattering Flower Steps. It’s an art created by using both clones and afterimages simultaneously; you can’t use it if you lack skill in either. But Ran mastered it in a very short time, which quite surprised me.”

“Scattering Flower Steps… It really was like scattering flower petals.”

Eun Seol-rin smiled at Yu-jin’s admiration and spoke again.

“I didn’t think you’d visit while the tournament was still ongoing. What brings you here, Master?”

At Eun Seol-rin’s question, Yu-jin gave a sly smile.

“Is there really a need to put it into words?”

Saying this, Yu-jin pulled both women into his arms at the same time. He had held these women several times before, but the fact that he was embracing a master and her disciple at the same time excited him.

Yu-jin stripped off their clothes and fell onto the bed with both of them. As he held them, Yu-jin met Ran’s eyes, and the always-expressionless Ran gave a slight smile.

“Ah! R-Ran! What are you suddenly…”