SWISH.

Tap. Tap.

I nudged the floor a few times with the tip of my shoe. The sensation was still unfamiliar and hard.

It was the tournament stage.

It got crushed and wrecked every single day. And yet every morning it came back this clean. It made me wonder how the hell they did it.

It wasn’t like they just patched it with random rocks. It withstood martial artists’ inner power to a certain extent, which meant they were mixing something else into it.

And if they were replacing it with something this new every day...

It was honestly fascinating.

I was still poking at it a few more times, like I was trying to figure it out, when—

“We will now prepare for the martial tournament semifinals.”

“.......”

At the referee’s words, I straightened my posture.

Right. Now wasn’t the time to inspect the ground.

“SSSS.”

I let out a small breath and wrapped energy around my body.

The tension rose, and heat flared faintly. Warmth spread through me.

And beyond my line of sight, my opponent came into view.

THUD—.

A bastard loosening up that rough, massive body, grinning nonstop.

If I told anyone he was my age, no one would believe it—built like a monster, with savage features.

The “miracle” of the Peng Clan.

Heaven-Martial Body Peng Dojun.

He was looking at me and smiling in a way that made my skin crawl.

“.......”

I’m scared out of my mind.

Why the hell is he smiling like that?

‘Ha.’

Part of me wanted to step down immediately. Fighting a guy like that was the problem all by itself.

No. In the first place—

‘The fact I’m even standing here is what’s weird.’

The Dragon-Phoenix Gathering martial tournament semifinals.

The weirdest thing in the world was that I’d climbed up here.

It didn’t feel real that I was standing in a place like this.

‘What a bizarre turn of events.’

Where did it all go wrong?

I didn’t even need to think about that.

I flicked my eyes.

And looked at Yoo Cheongil.

‘It’s because of that old bastard.’

Should I call it thanks? Or blame?

Blame was better. I’d suffered more because of that ghost bastard.

‘...And it’s not like I’m happy about this.’

Even now—right now, when I had to fight that freak—

Honestly, it didn’t feel welcome at all.

“.......”

And then, as I thought that, my mind suddenly stopped.

Because one question surfaced.

‘Is it true?’

Really?

‘Am I—’

Am I really not happy about this?

“.......”

Normally, I would’ve answered yes without hesitation.

I had to fight a bastard like that. Of course I hated it.

That’s how it should’ve been.

But—

“......Huh.”

Without thinking, I touched the corner of my mouth with my hand.

And froze.

‘It’s up.’

Just slightly. Just barely. I could feel my mouth corner lifted.

‘You lunatic.’

Am I trying to smile?

A chill ran down my spine.

I forced it back down, returned my face to normal, and hardened my eyes.

I’d been bewitched. That had to be it.

‘That old bastard bewitched me.’

Calling it bewitched was disgusting, but there was no other answer.

Enjoying a fight? Me?

No way.

I’d been dragged into this violent world and suffered like hell because I couldn’t adapt.

And now I “enjoy” getting into brawls?

I couldn’t believe it.

“Take your stances.”

SHING.

At the referee’s words, the Black-Grand Saber and I drew our sword and saber.

‘Enjoying it, my ass.’

I wasn’t admitting it.

I tensed and looked around—toward the direction I’d glanced earlier.

One corner.

I looked at the woman sitting there alone, with her father nowhere in sight.

She was covering her mouth with a fan, smiling with just her eyes.

It got under my skin.

‘...Ha.’

I’ve got a lot to say, but I’ll hold it for now.

When I see you later, you’re dead.

I swallowed it all down and refocused.

And then—

“Martial tournament semifinals. Hebei Peng Clan’s Peng Dojun versus Blue Moon Sect’s Bang Sungyeon.”

The referee raised his hand high and shouted.

“Begin!”

In a crowd that looked even thicker than usual—

The bout began.

Except—

‘Huh?’

I narrowed my eyes at what was happening.

Even though it had started, Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin wasn’t moving.

‘What is this?’

What was he trying to do? I was on guard when—

“Do you know this?”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin spoke to me.

“Know what...?”

“There are way too many idiots in this world.”

“Pardon?”

Idiots? Out of nowhere?

It was a ridiculous line.

“What the—”

“Frauds who carry around pitiful scraps of talent and delude themselves into thinking they’re real, without even knowing their place. I call those bastards idiots.”

“.......”

“Worms whose names aren’t worth remembering, and who aren’t worth paying attention to. I hate them.”

“.......”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin’s face as he spoke was serious.

He looked like he truly loathed them—like he was looking at trash.

“That’s why I crave the real thing even more.”

BOOM—!

The saber in his hand slammed roughly into the ground.

“Even in filthy mud, the real ones always shine. And that light—how brilliant it is. Enough to make you want to keep seeing it.”

“......Light?”

A metaphor. It wasn’t like he literally saw light.

Probably—

‘To Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin, every genius he recognizes looks like they shine.’

Hearing it made me think back.

How he’d looked at Tang Cheon-il and called him an idiot.

How he’d said the same after seeing Wudang Cloud Dragon.

Those moments overlapped with his attitude now.

‘He hates fakes.’

So to him, Tang Cheon-il and Wudang Cloud Dragon were fakes?

‘To me, they’re both geniuses.’

They were in the Seven Prodigies, no matter what.

Anyone could tell they were talented just by looking.

But Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin didn’t seem to think so.

The issue was—

‘So what?’

Why was he telling me this?

That was what I wanted to know.

And as I was wondering—

“That’s why you’re interesting to me.”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin stared at me.

“What are you?”

“......What are you talking about?”

What do you mean, what am I?

“When I saw Sword Phoenix. That monster nearly blinded me. I’d never seen anything so brilliant in my life.”

Brilliant light.

The monster of the junior generation, Sword Phoenix.

It was a famous story: at the last Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, she’d crushed Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin into a miserable defeat.

“For a moment I thought—so that’s the sky. I was swept up in despair.”

His words held admiration. I could tell how highly he ranked Sword Phoenix.

“I thought I’d never see a light like that again. So I craved it. So that someday, I could break Sword Phoenix.”

CRACK.

A fracture spread across the floor where his saber was planted.

He hadn’t even moved.

“Then, while I lived like that... I saw you. Little Sword Saint.”

“......Me?”

“Yes.”

BZZZZZ.

A thin noise trembled in the air. His saber was vibrating—fast and small.

“I saw a light I thought I’d never see again after Sword Phoenix.”

“.......”

I frowned at his words.

He saw that in me? That was impossible.

“...I was afraid.”

Even as I stared at him in confusion, Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin kept talking.

“Sword Phoenix’s light was brilliant and beautiful. But your light... it was terrifying. I had never seen something so vast and frightening.”

This lunatic was afraid of me?

When the hell—

‘Ah.’

I stopped thinking and remembered.

Don’t tell me—

‘That time?’

The day I first met Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin.

On the way to Henan, when we ran into the Peng Clan’s carriage.

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin had tried to threaten our group—then saw me and recoiled in fear.

More accurately—

‘Not me.’

He’d sensed Yoo Cheongil.

‘A Heaven-Martial Body can even sense a ghost.’

A bastard who couldn’t see it, but could feel it.

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin had sensed the soul of Yoo Cheongil clinging to me and panicked.

‘So that’s it.’

The vast light he claimed he saw had to be that.

‘Not me. Yoo Cheongil.’

He’d mistaken what he felt from Yoo Cheongil as my own.

Only now did it click.

“That’s why it only deepens my doubt.”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin began to loosen his body.

The bout had started a while ago.

And only now was he warming up.

“The light from back then is still there... but something... something is strange.”

“What do you mean?”

“From far away, it feels like it’ll blind you. But when you get close, it’s like... maybe not.”

“.......”

I grimaced.

Look at this sharp bastard.

‘He’s picking up my pathetic presence hidden beneath Yoo Cheongil’s aura.’

That had to be what he meant by “strange.”

“That’s why I was intrigued. What are you? My intuition has never been wrong. But with you, I couldn’t tell.”

“So that’s why you wanted to fight me?”

“That’s right. It’s interesting. A bastard where you can’t tell what’s real... I couldn’t stand it. Ah, of course.”

Mid-sentence, Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin glanced somewhere.

Right where Murong Yeongsun was.

“But that’s not the only reason now.”

“.......”

“Anyway.”

FSSSSSH—!!

The saber planted in the ground was pulled free.

“And if you don’t know this or that, the best way is to experience it yourself. Right?”

If you’re unsure, you find out.

With your body.

It was stupid and simple in the most honest way possible.

“If there’s one thing I hope for—”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin slowly took his stance.

I could feel the end of the talk.

Watching him, I took my stance again too.

“I hope your light is real.”

“.......”

“I mean it.”

SWORD FORCE—!

With the words, sword force surged up along Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin’s saber.

WHOOOOSH—!!

At the same time, Radiant Moon Annihilation-Overturn coiled around my sword.

I tensed.

I watched his movement—watched it like my life depended on it—

“Like I said.”

Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojin wiped the smile off his face and spoke.

“Don’t let your guard down. I don’t want to be disappointed.”

And then—

WHOOOOSH—!!

‘What?’

Black energy erupted from Black-Grand ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) Saber Peng Dojin’s body.

Black Cloud.

The Peng Clan’s secret art wrapped around me.

*****

—That must be it.

—That’s the Peng Clan’s new secret art, right?

—I can’t see anything.

A black dome formed over the tournament stage.

The perfectly rounded barrier made it impossible to see inside from the outside.

With no idea what was happening inside, the spectators grew restless.

—We can’t see anything like this.

—What is happening in there...?

From the perspective of someone who came to watch a tournament, it was a pretty terrible technique.

Especially—

‘...Will he be okay?’

For Murong Yeongsun, it was even worse.

She’d come because she’d already started something—partly for fun, partly because she was worried.

But if it was like this, she wouldn’t be able to know anything.

‘Hmph.’

Now that it came to this, she even regretted it a little.

‘Was I too much?’

She’d lashed out because his “nothing’s wrong” act made her furious.

But guilt and fear could coexist.

And the fear was—

‘...When it’s over, he won’t let this go.’

With the personality of the man she knew, if he’d endured up to this point, he wouldn’t overlook what came next.

The moment it ended, he’d grab her and pour out a scolding.

When he got truly angry, he was terrifying.

Knowing that, Murong Yeongsun swallowed hard.

“Well, yeah—who told you to do it that far?”

Part of her felt wronged too.

‘Acting like you don’t know. Acting like you don’t care. How long are you going to keep that up?’

That man was good at hiding himself.

He hid his emotions well, and he was incredible at never letting his thoughts show.

But—

‘Ten years.’

Time had piled up.

Less than that or more than that—

Murong Yeongsun had watched Bang Sungyeon for years.

No—during all that time, she’d watched only that man.

So she knew.

‘When he puts on that much of an act—’

It meant the opposite.

It meant he was a man who couldn’t be honest.

So even if other people didn’t know—

Murong Yeongsun knew.

That was why she couldn’t let go.

Because that “it’s nothing” act made her burn.

Because someday she wanted to peel off that rotten shell of his.

That was why she’d done this too.

But still—

‘...Still.’

Murong Yeongsun lowered the hand holding her fan and clasped both hands tightly.

‘...If possible, don’t get hurt.’

Even if she’d provoked it.

Selfishly, she held that wish anyway.