Ghost Face - Chapter 291



Only Krnovel

Chapter 74. It’s about to rain on the mountain, the pavilion is filled with wind (7)

Two days later, the Great Black Cat came by in the morning. He said he was asking for her favor and pretended to be indifferent, but Biho read the real expression hidden behind his mask. The expression of someone who had chewed shit. It must have felt like he had been summoned out of nowhere and was being dragged to the slaughterhouse. But that didn’t matter. The fact that he had come here was important. With this, Gwak Nan-hoe had made a deal with Biho.

“Thank you for making such a big decision.”

“Please take care of me.”

“This person is a person with a strong sense of duty. Let’s work together.”

“Okay.”

The Great Black Cat returned with slumped shoulders. Afterwards, Biho called his colleagues and held a meeting. At that meeting, he officially announced the agreed matters regarding the duel in the Jeichah Yeonman Plains. Since everyone already knew the circumstances of the return, there was no particular disturbance.

1. After the sun rises in the morning, a duel takes place on the Yeonman Plain.

1. The two sides’ claims are that they are the True Sword of the Infinite Sword and the Great Sword of the Nalrakdo, and that they will summon up to six allies and fight together.

1. The duel will be fought until one side is killed, and any form of fighting is allowed as long as it does not exceed the designated range.

1. There will be three observers for the duel. One neutral person from the Wujin Alliance, one renowned Shaanxi Province warrior who has not joined the Wujin Alliance, and one outsider invited from another province.

1. This duel will be personally hosted by Sanye Kwak Nan-Hui. She has a duty to inform the comrades of Jianghu of the process and results, and promises to take full responsibility in the event of an accident.

“So that’s what happened in the end.”

“Hey, Biho. So, is the list of the other side’s troops out?”

“Here it is.”

Everyone looked at the list and their faces turned pale. They all saw the names of the two contestants on the list, Hyun Bing-ok-su and Nak-il-geom. Even Ah-hu was like that. He had estimated the best player on the other side to be around Jang-an Il-geom Masik, but these two were even more famous than him.

Especially the sunset sword… … .

“If this list is anything to go by, I think it would be a force that would never be outdone by the best players from any province.”

When Ho Ye-hwa spoke with a sigh, that was how everyone felt.

Only then did Biho realize. Jin Ga-yong was right. He wasn’t surprised even after hearing the names of Hyun Bing-ok-su and Nak-il-geom. He had said, “You really don’t know the situation in Gangho.” So Biho looked at Jin Ga-yong beyond his agitated colleagues. At that moment, Jin Ga-yong was sitting like a still life painting with an indifferent expression. He felt a cold feeling. Then Jin Ga-yong felt Biho’s gaze and nodded with a faint smile. However, he couldn’t help but feel that his appearance was somewhat artificial.

Maybe she… … .

Biho’s heart grew heavy. However, he smiled brightly at Jin Ga-yong, who faced him with an indifferent expression. Then he clapped his hands to get his colleagues’ attention.

“Everyone’s reactions to that list are heated? Okay, then let’s make our own list. Three out of seven seats are occupied. Jin Gongja, me, and Daeheukmyo. By the way, Daeheukmyo is someone from Gwak Nan-hoe, who was the head of Chumyeondaeju. Should I say I got it from her?”

“Hmm, will he do my part?”

“You can see that he has already done most of his part by joining.”

“Hoo- Is it a connection with Kwak Nan-hoe or something like that?”

“It’s pretty similar. Let’s talk about this story separately, and let’s finish the story of the candidates first. So there are four remaining spots. And it may sound disappointing, but Ho Ye-hwa and Yoon Deok-shin are excluded from the candidates. Do you know why?”

Not to mention Yun Deok-sin, Ho Ye-hwa was not qualified to duel. Even the weakest player on the list, Yuk Bi-cheol-gak Sang Bang-suk, was a master that Ho Ye-hwa had a hard time overlooking. When looking at it objectively, it was hard to predict that even Sang Bang-suk would be able to gain the upper hand if Bi-ho or Hyung Woo-saeng fought alone. So Bi-ho’s words were perfectly valid, but here was where the problem arose.

Ho Ye-hwa asked, his voice heavy.

“Honestly, I admit my shortcomings. But wouldn’t that leave one spot empty? Wouldn’t it be better if I could help out even if it’s not enough? People say that when it comes to planting rice, you can even borrow a cat’s paw.”

“Do you want to die?”

“Who would want to do that? But if necessary, I would.”

“… … .”

Excluding Ho Ye-hwa, the remaining three were Hyung Woo-saeng, Shandong Noin, and Ah-hu. A total of six. That was why I pointed out that one person was missing. And from what I heard, it seemed like they were determined.

As Biho stared blankly, Ho Yehwa asked awkwardly.

“why?”

“Well, honestly, I was touched… I thought Ho-hyung was a bit of a nerd. Of course, he’s a charming person.”

“Oh my gosh. I thought about it for a long time and made a decision, but now it’s just like that.”

“Anyway, thank you. But don’t misunderstand. I’m not going to die. But if Ho-hyung goes, he’ll definitely die. And he’ll be the first to die. You know that, right? That’s what it means to be a master, to mercilessly dig into your opponent’s weak points.”

“But then how are you going to fill the empty seat?”

“Who said there was only one empty seat?”

“huh?”

“The condition of this duel is that each side can have up to seven people, but it doesn’t say that we have to fill it up to seven people, right?”

“Uh… that sound… … .”

“Yes. If possible, I plan to deal with only three of you. So, prospective candidates who really want to participate should think carefully and prepare. After the individual interviews, I will notify you whether or not you will participate.”

“Huh? What does that mean?”

The old man of Shandong was dumbfounded. Of course, he was full of the will to participate in the duel on the Yanman Plain. However, he was not satisfied with the rude words, holding on to his trouser legs and saying, “Please let’s fight together.” He was going to decide whether to select him or not after the interview? This is not some kind of great position, so what kind of guts does he have?

At that time, Hyungwoo-saeng chuckled, and when the old man Shandong asked why he was laughing, he pointed to Biho and said, “I often think about this, but has our Biho-ah’s tongue skills reached a high level? Doesn’t it make the blood boil in the ears of those who hear it?”, causing laughter.

Everyone was laughing and the heavy atmosphere was relieved. But that day’s meeting really ended there. Biho really intended to have a serious individual interview.

***

There are still two days left until the duel.

That day, the Lion King announced to the world that there would be a duel on the Jeichah Yeonman Plain. They promised to handle it fairly and declared that they would accept whatever the outcome.

The Shaanxi River was in an uproar.

Many people responded well to this announcement by the Lion’s Room. They must have been quite angry because they had been hit hard by an individual named Jin Ga-yong, but they paid attention to the fact that they were not trying to suppress it with their power but were trying to solve the problem in a fair way. They were trying to end it with a duel, as befitting a powerful force. So many of them wondered, “Why these guys?” but when they saw the list of people that the Lion’s Room had openly announced, they immediately understood, saying, “That’s right.”

So the general public opinion was like this.

What a pity! In the plains of Yeonman, Inui Sword, Jo Bansan, and Jo Mok, the father and son, died, and now even Bulin Sword, Jin Gayong, will die. The Jo family of Yeosan is finished.

On the other hand, there was also this kind of talk.

No matter what you say, the lion’s room is still scary! It looks like Jin Ga-yong’s side hasn’t been able to find all of their comrades to fight with. Why did they reveal their list first? Maybe they can’t find any warriors to fight with. Who would want to be in that place when they’re sure to die?

***

There are six days left until the duel.

That morning, Biho sparred with the old man Shandong, and broke five swords. However, Biho had a good complexion, while the old man Shandong, who had broken them all, looked dismayed.

“How was it? Was it okay?”

“Tch. Your skills have improved as much as the chick’s tears.”

“Hehehe, you swung your sword so desperately because of a chick’s tears and ended up breaking all the other people’s swords? I’ll just accept it, so swing it as much as you want?”

“Ahem.”

The two finished their training and bare their upper bodies and gave each other a back rub. The sparring was quite intense, so they were both covered in sweat. The shabby old man looked very awkward when Biho sprinkled water on him and wiped him clean. He then told him to wash up and live, but he grumbled and didn’t put up much resistance. Maybe he secretly liked it. After that, Biho even dressed the old man in clean clothes that he had prepared in advance. This time, he resisted a little. He said that his identity was being damaged and such. After arguing, the two drank tea together. This was the conversation that came out during that time.

Biho had recently been learning martial arts from Jin Ga-yong from the very beginning. That’s why the two of them were always together. However, like today, he met with the old man Shandong every other day and spent time together sparring. It was probably because he had noticed. He had said he would take the time to learn from the old man Shandong before, but he ended up learning from Jin Ga-yong first, so he felt bad.

“How is it, does it look a little better?”

“It’s a shame, but that kid, Jin Ga-yong, really seems to have a talent for teaching. It must be a natural talent.”

He was an old man from Shandong who could not tell Biho that he had gotten better even if he died soon. However, Biho, who was quick-witted, understood and smiled happily.

“I thought you’d teach me at least one trick, but why do you only teach me the basics every day?”

“Well, on the last day, I’ll teach you two techniques. Dotting and flowing. However, since you can’t use these newly learned techniques in real life right away, just use them as a reference for now.”

“Oh~ It looks like you’re going to teach me how to draw curves with a stab and a sword. Well, those are the two things you lack when discussing swordsmanship.”

“You know so well, don’t you?”

“So you’re only teaching the basics?”

“That’s not it. It’s just that since I’m used to the quick sword, it seems like they want to add one more thing to it. And for that, I’m currently laying the foundation that’s lacking.”

“Hoo~ What is this base for?”

“Hehehe, old man. But do you know what? The Sword Ghost said that if you can properly use just one Feng Shui Hwan, you’ll have no problem traveling the world of martial arts.”

***

Jin Ga-yong evaluated Feng Shui-hwan as follows:

“The Feng Shui Hwan is originally made up of simple recipes, so it is used for training the basics. In that sense, it can be said to be a pretty good martial art for beginners. However, since you dug a well and reached a state, you put ‘fun’ into the Feng Shui Hwan. That must have been useful in real combat.”

“Yes. But I’ve been feeling a bit skeptical lately. I haven’t been able to get through to the experts I’ve met recently.”

“Do you think there is a limit?”

“If I achieve great success… will things change?”

“Of course. But do you know what you need to put in the Feng Shui ring to achieve that great success?”

“Well, pleasure to the extreme?”

“No. Is there such a thing as a pole? Even if there is, it is nothing more than a play on words that cannot be accomplished even after a lifetime.”

“Uh… Then?”

“Change.”

“Yes? But isn’t Feng Shui Hwan a martial art that only draws straight lines?”

“Who said that only curves change? Aren’t the sixty-four straight lines scattered in one breath enough to bewitch the opponent? That alone can be said to be a world of change.”

“ah!”

“A change derived from pleasure. This is what I will teach you in detail before the duel approaches. Let’s raise your Feng Shui Hwan together.”

“… … !”

Episode 292