Book 12 Chapter 9

Mine from a hundred years ago

- Twin Horse Appearance

The sword of ice and the sword of orientalism, the dao of Yeomdo and the dao of blankness, sparked.

The ground shook with the violent collision, and the atmosphere screamed as if torn apart.

The situation was so urgent that Yeomdo and Ice Sword didn't even have time to calmly comprehend the situation. Their first priority was to clash unconditionally and block the sword and dao of these two old men.

'Strong!'

In their first clash, Yan Dao was able to realize that. He was probably the strongest person he'd ever faced since he'd been recruited to Kang Ho (not counting Bi Ryuyeon, who still hasn't figured out what she is).

The tremendous pressure in my hand, which felt like it would tear my grip, was a testament to its strength, but even as I faced down the storm of a pottery I dare not ignore, I felt a strange sensation in the Yeomdo.

'What? That's weird…….'

Although I could definitely recognize the strength of my opponent, I was not overwhelmed by it. He was surprisingly easy to deal with, even against an opponent who should have been difficult. When he realized that he had improved without realizing it, he stopped being upset and surprised.

"When did I get so strong?

The dōchō released from my fingertips at will. There was no effort involved in releasing and retrieving the inner ball. It was as natural as water flowing down a river.

"Holy crap!

All he had done was become a disciple of Bi Ryuyeon and suffered tremendous abuse, so when did he become so strong? For several years, he had been feeling that his martial arts had gradually stagnated rather than improved. He had been worried about it, and he had even made a lot of noise and practiced unarmed, hoping that there might be a solution. But nothing came of it. I tasted frustration, and it was sour and bitter. It was a flavor I never wanted to taste again.

Suddenly, the conundrum that had been bothering him had been solved without him realizing it. The tangled threads of neglect had been unraveled by a passing breeze. It was something he could not believe until he experienced it for himself.

"When you obsess about being strong, you don't become strong; when you let go of your obsession with being strong, you become strong……."

What a contradiction in terms.

I didn't feel it as much when I was fighting weaker guys, but I definitely felt it when I was fighting a true powerhouse.

Fortunately, Na Yerin seemed to be out of harm's way, thanks to the Yeomdo.

"Hyo-ryong?"

Bi Ryuyeon, who had just jumped from the cliff to the bottom, asked in an urgent voice.

"……."

However, Lee Jin-sul, who was in a daze as she held Hyo-ryong in her arms, could only stare at him, unable to respond. The guilt and heartbreak she felt over the fact that the man she had been so fond of had become such a horrible person because of her was overwhelming, and she was unable to say anything.

Feeling frustrated just watching, Bi Ryuyeon took matters into her own hands and placed two fingers on Hyo Ryong's carotid artery.

"Phew~."

Faintly, but thankfully, his pulse was beating. She could feel a faint breath coming from her nose. The blood on her forehead had stopped flowing, so it didn't seem to be a deep wound. Breathed a sigh of relief, and looked around her.

The battle of Yeomdo and defeat was still raging. The ground dug deep, and pebbles and dirt flew wildly through the air. The clashing of swords and dao echoed loudly in the canyon, and from a short distance away, Na Yerin watched them with a piercing gaze.

"I can't believe you still haven't fixed that short temper… or is it something you'll never be able to fix?"

"Who do you mean?"

Na Yerin heard Bi Ryuyeon's voice behind her, and she turned to look at the four of them, now a step away from the center of the arena. She and many others had gathered to watch the battle between a former grandmaster from a hundred years ago and the prestigious masters of the current era. Everyone watched this fight with sweat on their brow. This was the next level of fighting that they needed to reach. It wasn't every day that you got to see a fight of this caliber, which is why there was so much tension in everyone's eyes.

"Well, who?"

Bi Ryuyeon smiled as she came to stand beside him.

"Yerin, are you hurt?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

At her answer, Bi Ryuyeon said with a note of relief in her voice.

"That's good, because at least they still have hope of getting out of here alive."

Na Yerin couldn't understand what Bi Ryuyeon was saying for a moment, but then she realized that if there was even the slightest sign of life, she would have to bury her bones here.

"This sword technique, this sword technique! I've seen this sword technique many times before……."

Dongfang's face contorted slightly. He glanced at his own sword, which had clashed with the ice sword earlier, and at his hand, which trembled from the impact. The old man now looked like a scholar wandering in a labyrinth, with an unsolvable problem in front of him.

It was strange. Why did he see so many traces of the martial artists he had encountered in the past here today, as well as the young man with the twin swords earlier… And what was worse, they were both the most terrifying martial artists he had ever encountered, the ones who had once brought him bitter defeat and indelible terror.

The scent of the twin swords earlier was faint, like the saltiness of the sea breeze mingling with the inland air, but this one was as distinct as standing on the deck of a ship in the middle of the blue ocean.

Despite the obvious traces, it was not clear in the moment when the sword clashed with sparks, for the technique of the ice sword had changed over the years, refined and adapted to suit the man himself, and to add to the old man's confusion, it was a half-sighted technique.

He wasn't the only one who felt this way; his longtime companion, Gong Fei, felt the same way.

"What the hell are you guys doing? "

The two old men shouted at the same time. The two old men looked at each other.

"What is your relationship to…, the Taegeuk God Army?"

In an eerie voice that seemed to emanate from an icy abyss, Orientalism asked.

"Well, how do you do that?"

A startled Yeomdo asked, his eyes widening.

"Yeomdo!"

But it was too late, and with an 'ahhh', Yin Dao realized that he had made a grave mistake: he had foolishly fallen for the enemy's interrogation.

"Hmph, that's right, that's right, that's right!"

The flesh of his cheeks quivered slightly as he laughed in a guttural voice. It was not a pretty sight. Orientalist's eyes glowed even deeper and colder.

"Who are you?"

Binggum asked, his voice thick with wariness, for he dared not neglect.

"If you are related to the T'ai Chi, you are entitled to ask our name. Nobu says we're called the Orientalists."

"Heh, heh, heh, Nobu is a fraud!"

Two fat, skinny old men, a pair with a sword and a dao. So far, there are probably dozens of people who fit this description. But if their names are Tao Te Ching and Gong Fei, the story takes on a different dimension.

"Seriously, you guys are not……."

Iceblade, always cool and calm except when dealing with Yeomdo, was uncharacteristically agitated.

"Who's that, Iceberg, do you know who those old bastards are?"

Yeomdo urged from the sidelines.

"Redhead, you're too cowardly to trust your meager skills to a subject with a head full of pretzels!"

An old man who introduced himself as Gong Fei exclaimed in an angry voice.

Quick!

His temples twitched, and as he turned to leave, his forehead swollen with blood, he was stopped by an ice-blade hand.

"Don't be foolish. This is not an opponent you can rush in and defeat easily!"

The Iceblade's eyes were filled with unparalleled seriousness, and the razor-sharp gaze emanating from beneath its blue-silver brows was twitching with alertness. Never before had he seen this icy statue so alert, so tense, so wary, and it sent a chill down his spine, like being doused from the top of his head with cold water in the dead of winter.

What kind of beings are they that they can stir up this bloodless, tearless, icy vessel so much? The rage that had risen to the top of my head quickly cooled.

A gentle, but cold smile tugged at the corners of Orientalist's mouth.

"Indeed! You seem to know who we are. It is heartening to see that the terror we sowed is still sprouting. Nobu is the Thunderblade Touhou. And that's Nobu's one and only acquaintance, the Grandmaster of the Thunderbolt Sword. A hundred years ago, they called us the Thunder Twin Demons!"

At that moment, Bi Ryuyeon's sharp gaze flew toward them and pierced through.

'bìi~lóe (飛雷)?

Their introductions, calling themselves the Thunderbolt Siblings, sent Bi Ryuyeon back in time to that moment five years ago. In his hair-covered eyes, fragments of backward time unfolded across my retina.