Chapter 264

청 received not just a nickname but also an armband.

It was a blue armband labeled “장長,” which is worn by a leader-level figure in the 천무대.

The Dragon and Phoenix Association isn’t just a social club for future leaders of the orthodox martial world. It’s officially structured as a combat unit under the Martial Alliance too.

Thus, the late-stage disciples of the orthodox martial world belong to the 천무대 and 지용대, which are reserve combat units of the Martial Alliance.

Officially, these two are peer-level and independent combat units without any hierarchy.

However, those among the late-stage disciples who possess exceptional skills or have the backing of a reputable family get assigned to the 천무대, while the leftovers go to the 지용대.

But according to the Martial Alliance’s explanation, there’s absolutely no distinction based on status or backing; it’s just that assignments are made based on the need for additional training.

Young warriors who already have their own martial system and don’t need external teaching go to the 천무대.

Meanwhile, the 지용대 provides tailored guidance from high-level martial arts experts.

Of course, that’s their official stance.

It might have started that way, but most young warriors, still fresh and somewhat naive, didn’t think so.

In fact, those in the 천무대 felt they were more like hostages kept by the Martial Alliance to placate the influential sects, and they found the activities of 천무대 to be quite bothersome.

Their motto was to skip any event associated with 천무대 whenever possible.

In contrast, the 지용대 members were eager to build their strength and reputation to get into the 천무대, often scrambling to volunteer for any incoming tasks.

While being part of the honorable 천무대 should be a glory, 청 wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.

Just because they framed it nicely as a combat unit doesn’t mean it isn’t just a military force.

And as a seasoned soldier girl, I was well aware that combat units are usually given grand names.

It boosts camaraderie and keeps morale high.

But fancy names don’t change the fact that a military force is a military force. No second chances allowed.

“Master, do I really have to participate in the 천무대 or 무천대?”

“It’s not as serious as you think, so don’t worry. The Martial Alliance wouldn’t mobilize elite disciples for trivial matters unless there’s a major disruption in the martial world.”

Just looking at the members of the 반검쌍도회, like 팽대산 and 남궁신재—they’re all part of the 천무대. The heirs from the five greatest families are all packed in there.

So if they were to assign a risky task and someone got hurt, the Martial Alliance wouldn’t be able to handle the backlash.

That’s why, the so-called “missions” handed down are usually just requests for assistance—like escorting someone or attending a feast to leave behind the name of the Martial Alliance in the guestbook.

In reality, it’s more like helping the elite youths with their outings.

“Well, still…”

“But you’ve already won the championship in the 잠룡비무회, haven’t you? For the sake of the Martial Alliance’s reputation, you should be understanding.”

Truth is, as a disciple of the Divine Maiden Sect, 청 doesn’t really have what it takes to join the 천무대.

The Divine Maiden Sect is well-known as a mysterious sect composed entirely of women, but if you were to ask about its martial arts, no one would know anything significant.

Even now, the sect isn’t exactly recognized within the martial world. The acknowledgment goes solely to 서문수린, not to the sect itself.

However, if another peerless master arises following the Best Female Martial Artist, that might change things.

A prestigious lineage often refers to inherited strength, so people would start recognizing that the Divine Maiden Sect has something going for it, and a new prestigious sect might emerge.

“So I hope you help out. If you absolutely hate it, there’s nothing we can do.”

“Helping out is something I should naturally do. There’s no question about it.”

청 quickly changed her tune.

At any rate, if I wander around near the 절검벽 and hang out in the martial world, who knows where I’ll be and what kind of tasks I might end up with?

서문수린 couldn’t hide her pleased expression. How did she get such a kind and docile disciple? It must be the blessings of three lifetimes gathering at the end of her journey.

These days, 청 was feeling somewhat envious while seeking out the elders of the orthodox sects she hadn’t seen for a while, and that made her genuinely excited.

While 청 felt a bit put out, it wasn’t that she was strongly against it.

So she added,

“Plus, as Master said, unless there’s a huge uproar in the martial world, there’s no forced deployment.”

This is what 청 said.

—-

If there’s the Martial Alliance in the orthodox martial world, then there’s a coalition in the heterodox world too.

Called the 天下武林 사도건아 합종연합회!

Or simply, 사도련.

It has a pretty grand name because the heterodox folks tend to be obsessed with appearances.

Orthodox warriors mockingly refer to these heterodox folks as simply 사파련 instead of 사도道.

Anyway, the current leader of the 사도련 is 부안평. His nickname is 패천군, and he’s known to be ranked high among the Ten Greatest Masters.

However, 부안평 doesn’t acknowledge that.

Because he has always been the Number One in the World.

Unlike the orthodox martial world, in the heterodox world, you must keep your true strength concealed.

Because striking someone in the back is regarded as a virtue among the heterodox folks.

If news gets out that someone died from a betrayal, the blame goes on the one who got backstabbed, and they laugh at the fool who couldn’t see it coming.

In such a harsh environment, showing your true strength is a death wish.

So when rumors started spreading that Great Master Muhak achieved mid-stage enlightenment, 부안평 was already at a later stage.

Of course, while the circumstances differ, hiding one’s strength is common in both worlds. When the orthodox sects hide theirs by a third, the heterodox folks have to hide at least half.

So when news of Great Master Muhak breaking through mid-stage circulated, he was likely already aiming for the next level.

Anyway, these days, 패천군 부안평 is feeling quite good.

Every day is filled with good news.

“련주님.”

“Oh, what’s up? Did something else fail?”

“It’s the 용문검파, 영덕문, and 련주도문.”

“Heh, they say ‘without lifting a finger, I reap the rewards,’ haha, even the Blood Sect isn’t being a nuisance?”

“But, is that okay? They’re still from the Blood Sect after all.”

“What, do we have any ties with the Blood Sect? Are we even in cahoots?”

“They say 순망치한—ouch!!!”

With a little thud, the informant dramatically rolled over, shrieking.

“I told you not to write! Just speak plainly! Why do you insist on showing off your literary skills? Who says I’m not educated?”

As his name suggests, 부안평 hails from a family of scholars.

There’s no dramatic backstory for him becoming the leader of a gang; he’s filled with resentment since he could never secure a government position due to his family’s lower status, despite being a genius in martial arts.

Having started at an advanced age with third-rate martial arts and, without a decent master, self-studied to become the greatest heterodox master—it makes you wonder how desperate his situation must have been.

If he had entered the imperial palace sooner, he might have become a legendary martial artist or a Great General, especially with the scholar’s virtues, academic knowledge, and warrior prowess combined.

However, even if someone from the palace learned of him and miraculously traveled back in time, there was no way to break through the barriers of relations, so he would have never had a stake in official roles.

(The opinions of the expert may vary slightly.)

“Ah, that was a mighty blow. The greatness of the 사도련주 is ever-increasing!”

부안평 had only given a light nudge, and his subordinate rolling on the ground was just extravagant flattery.

“Dude. It’s hard not to like you. Now, what is that 순망치한 again?”

순망치한 means “without lips, your teeth get cold,” emphasizing the importance of maintaining relationships; without lips, it would be ghastly to see.

“It’s amusing to see the orthodox sects fail, but if the Blood Sect goes wild…”

“So what? Are we supposed to jump in and save the orthodox sects? Why intervene in a fight between them?”

It started with the disaster at the 광주 진가장.

Of course, with no experts staying behind, it was just a loss of foundation. Still, they couldn’t regain their former clout in 광주.

Since then, all the orthodox sects in 양주 and 교주, and the southeast plains of 중원 have faced mysterious attacks, with one or two crumbling into ashes daily.

Though called mysterious, it was blatantly obvious these were the doings of the Blood Sect.

Tales of witnessing 강시 and corpses with missing hearts, and hearing the insane laughter of 앙천마군 were floating around.

The Blood Sect maintained an ambiguous position; they didn’t confess to the acts, yet didn’t hide the evidence either, launching attacks in such a vague manner.

“But if the Blood Sect truly goes wild, won’t it be a problem?”

“Ha. Man, you sure love to sound smart. That’s not something we say. That’s the Martial Alliance’s line. Besides, if the Blood Sect shows its true colors, they’ll be the ones asking for help from us. Why would we want to interfere when they’re already fighting?”

In fact, the heterodox folks are happy just keeping a low profile whenever the Blood Sect rises.

But the Martial Alliance, claiming to uphold the peace of the central plains, cannot just guard their own territory.

“So keep hosting parties for our families. When the Blood Sect sweeps through, we’ll just gather them all up. This time, 양주 and 교주 will be under our 사도련’s control.”

—-

While chaos erupts in one part of 중원, communication here heavily relies on human messengers, making it a somewhat primitive society.

It’s going to take a while for the news to reach everyone.

Just look at the blood demon incident at the 장강.

After the Cannibal Demon incident, it took a month for the Martial Alliance to receive complaints about 언연영, another month to dispatch an investigation team, another month for them to return and sort things out, and yet another month just to get to where it happened before finally taking a month to analyze everything and produce results.

Even with a rushed effort, it took five months.

So, it’ll still be a while before the strange occurrences in that corner of 중원 come to light.

After the martial tournament concludes, they’ll slowly return home, only to find ashes where their homes once stood, and then they’ll hurriedly head back to the Martial Alliance for help.

So, the atmosphere at Gaebong District, which is just waiting for the closing ceremony of the martial tournament, was buzzing with the excitement of a festival.

And just one person was particularly exhilarated.

“Is it just me, or is the restaurant a bit dark?”

At that, 팽대산 gritted his teeth.

“Please, can you stop already?”

“Alright, alright. Let me turn on the lights for you. Ta-da!”

With that, 청 infused the 청자검 with Sword Aura.

The main difference between Sword Aura and Sword Energy is the glowing factor.

In fact, to the common folks, both are sharp, and the names are so similar.

But while Sword Energy glimmers just for itself, Sword Aura radiates a light around it like a starlit night.

But even then, starry light is still just starry light.

What good is a single beam of light in broad daylight?

It just evolved or strengthened the 청자검 into a brilliantly shining magic sword.

“It’s also a nice addition to the 청자검. Wow, it’s bright! A dining area should not be gloomy; with just one Sword Aura, you won’t need lanterns. It feels safe even on dark night streets.”

“I’ve never heard of using Sword Aura instead of a torch. That’s a first for me.”

“What are you saying? If some weirdos jump out at night, this will take them down in one hit! A Sword Aura can easily cleave through weapons, you know? Sword Energy users wouldn’t know the difference.”

“Cough.”

“Ha!”

Both 팽대산 and 남궁신재 let out exasperated sounds at the same time. 청’s expression grew even more smug.

“Especially for a swordmaster. You better step it up—at this rate, you might just end up as a sword disciple or a sword loser instead. You need to reach Peak Sword Mastery real soon!”

“Let’s just go with Swordmaster.”

Thus, 남궁신재, who brought up the title of swordmaster, faced an unexpected humiliation.

Originally, he made a pointless vow that he would reach the peak solely through swordsmanship without anyone asking him to, which was a worry for the head of the 남궁 family.

However, at this moment, the world seemed so filthy and terrible, and he felt the urge to rank up quickly, sword or not.