Breaking The Stage

As the two women bowed with clasped hands, a grave solemnity was written on their faces.

“It’s been a long time.”

So So-jeong spoke first with a clear voice, but Hyunjin did not answer.

She held the Gang sword in her right hand slanted before her, and hid the one in her left behind her back.

She had no thought of using both blades against So-jeong. The gap in skill was far too great.

“How is he doing?”

Even while facing Hyunjin’s cold face, So-jeong continued to speak kindly.

Though Hyunjin seemed like the fiercest of women, she was the only one who could help her.

She knew full well that she could not win this duel anyway.

She only wished to know news of them.

“Raise your sword.”

At her cold reaction, So-jeong finally drew her sword.

It was thin and delicate, much like her own appearance.

The Cherry Blossom Sword Art of the Zen Cloud Sword Sect prized many swift techniques; the thinner the blade, the better.

Though it could not compare to her sister So Geum-jeong’s River-Piercing Sword, her sword too had been crafted for their sect’s art.

“Then at least tell me how the child is.”

So-jeong made one last attempt to appeal to Hyunjin’s humanity.

Even after the shock of her senior brother’s death, surely she would not completely ignore their past ties.

“……”

As expected, Hyunjin’s right hand dropped slightly.

She could bear questions about her senior.

But to dare ask about Eun-i—she could not endure.

Whoosh!

Just then, a bead flew from the Zen Cloud Sword Sect’s side toward Hyunjin’s chest.

Distracted by So-jeong’s question, Hyunjin could not avoid it.

By the time she twisted away, it had already struck her left shoulder.

“Ahk!”

“Hyunjin!”

With a sharp scream, Hyunjin fell, and Seomun leapt onto the stage.

The bead that pierced her shoulder rolled on the floor, slick with blood.

“So So-jeong!”

Yi Seomun, his fury at its peak, drew his fan.

He had wanted to spare So-jeong out of past ties.

But now he realized that too was foolish interference.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

So-jeong wept in guilt.

When So Geum-jeong proposed this scheme, she could not refuse.

She knew better than anyone that she had no chance in a fair duel.

“If you’re human… at least if you have humanity…”

Seomun was dumbstruck, unable to speak.

Her tears showed she had known of this vile plan in advance.

She was truly cunning and heartless.

“Two against one—Taiyi Divine Sect truly is nothing but petty cowards.”

So Geum-jeong had stepped onto the stage, pointing her sword at Seomun.

Her face glowed with excitement at her scheme’s success.

“It’s fine. I’ll finish this.”

“Hyunjin…”

Seomun tried to hold her back, but Hyunjin brushed his hand away.

“Don’t you trust me? Take that old woman instead.”

Seeing her determined eyes, Seomun could not stop her.

“Now it’s two against two. Will you fight me first?”

Seomun, feigning levity, aimed his fan toward So Geum-jeong.

It meant that if she interfered, he would fight her himself.

“Hmph!”

Geum-jeong, thinking the outcome was already decided, had no intention to argue.

She snorted and stepped leisurely off the stage.

Even if So-jeong was weak, there was no way she could lose to an injured Hyunjin.

Hyunjin picked up the black cloth lying on the ground and wrapped it around her wounded shoulder.

It was the blindfold Yu I-jeong had cast aside during his fight with Bu Neungpa.

“Did you think I’d need a wound like this just to be your equal?”

Hyunjin slowly turned to face So So-jeong.

Her face was pale as paper as though she might collapse, but her eyes were sharp and fierce.

“But you were wrong. You are still far behind.”

Hyunjin lifted the Gang in her left hand and joined it to the hilt of the Gang in her right.

When their hilts locked together, it became a double-edged spear with a handle in the center.

“This is the true form of Ganggang.”

Hyunjin lightly swung the Ganggang with her right hand, then extended it straight toward So-jeong.

“From now on, never let Eun-i’s name pass your lips again.”

So-jeong finally came to her senses.

She had to endure until the Gu poison coursing through her body took effect.

In half an hour, Hyunjin would not even be able to stand.

“Then, let’s begin.”

So-jeong raised her sword and began to draw great characters in the air.

It was the first form of the Cherry Blossom Sword Art.

Her sword bent in soft arcs, like falling blossoms.

Hyunjin had no intention of accommodating her technique.

She thrust her right hand straight in, stepping into range to shatter So-jeong’s form.

Clang!

A series of clear, ringing clashes resounded through the hall.

Though Ganggang’s movements seemed rough and clumsy, they blocked every orderly stroke of the Cherry Blossom Sword.

Even after using twenty-four forms, So-jeong hadn’t so much as brushed Hyunjin’s sleeve.

By contrast, Hyunjin’s blade had already passed So-jeong’s chest acupoint several times, always stopping just short.

“The gap in skill is just too great.”

“She’s lost in looks and skill alike.”

“To think Taiyi Divine Sect’s martial arts were this formidable…”

The disciples of Five Great Mountain Swords all resigned themselves.

From the start, it was a fight with a vast difference in ability.

After half an hour, the outcome was certain.

The only reason So-jeong wasn’t grievously wounded was because Hyunjin was holding back.

Her robes were already mottled with blood from dozens of cuts.

‘She’s slowing down…’

But one person, So Geum-jeong, watching the duel, could not hide her joy.

Hyunjin’s breath was growing short, her sword movements slowing.

The Gu poison smeared on the bead was finally taking hold.

‘Just a little longer…’

Geum-jeong’s hands were slick with tense sweat.

If So-jeong could draw out her last reserves, Hyunjin would surely fall.

Clang!

With a loud crash, So-jeong’s sword snapped in half and flew from the stage.

It had caught in the gap of Hyunjin’s Ganggang and broken.

The spectators nearby leapt back in fright, creating an opening between the fighters.

‘Now!’

Breaking her sword in the gap of Ganggang had been So-jeong’s final stratagem.

There was no other way to disrupt Hyunjin’s rhythm.

Recalling how Hyunjin had broken Go Geun-dong’s sword, So-jeong realized this was the only chance to halt Ganggang.

So-jeong thrust the broken blade straight at Hyunjin’s neck.

The slanted edge was sharper than before, perfect for severing vital channels.

“Hyunjin!”

Seomun was too far to reach her in time.

He had seen So-jeong’s move the instant the sword broke, but could not stop it.

Stifled, he felt crushed by the thought that another disciple might die tragically because of his own folly.

Thud.

“Ahh!”

The instant she struck Hyunjin’s neck, So-jeong felt a massive rebound.

Her body fluttered like a paper doll, spinning once through the air.

Even after crashing down, she had no idea what had happened.

“Enough.”

At the familiar voice, So-jeong’s face flushed red.

She didn’t need to look up to know.

It was the voice she least wished to hear, yet had longed for so deeply.

“Ma Jingun!”

Only after So Geum-jeong shrieked did the crowd notice the hulking man before the stage.

He who blocked So-jeong’s strike with his arm was Ma Jingun, Cheonseon of Taiyi Divine Sect.

“Jingun!”

“Second Sahyung!”

Jingun answered each of his brothers’ calls, then turned to dazed Hyunjin.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes.”

When she nodded, Jingun studied her face intently.

“It’s Gu poison. If you knew, why drag it out instead of finishing quickly? Was it because of me?”

Hyunjin gave no answer, only a prim expression, and left the stage.

She staggered, barely able to stand.

“So Geum-jeong! Hand over the antidote.”

Ma Jingun roared at So Geum-jeong, trembling with rage.

His voice was so thunderous it gave every Five Great Mountain Swords disciple a pounding headache.

“Hmph! What nonsense are you spouting?”

Before Geum-jeong could finish, Jingun lunged at her.

The distance from the stage to the Zen Cloud Sword Sect’s seats was more than ten paces, but for Jingun it seemed less than two strides.

The Zen Cloud disciples hastily raised their swords to block him, but were powerless.

In the blink of an eye, he reached So Geum-jeong and gripped her throat.

“I’ll kill you.”

His deep voice alone was terrifying.

No one dared rush to her aid, only fidgeting with their weapons.

“Please release my sister.”

So-jeong, resigned, rose and approached Seomun.

“I won’t apologize for using dishonorable means. This is because we’ve lost, so I give this up.”

Ignoring Seomun’s scornful gaze, So-jeong walked straight out.

She could not bear to face him here.

“Let go!”

Sensing Jingun’s grip loosen, Geum-jeong shoved his arm aside and stepped back.

The Zen Cloud Sword Sect disciples quickly surrounded him in attack formation.

“Hmph!”

But Jingun only sneered, unconcerned.

“Are you not ashamed of this contest?”

Seomun stepped forward with a smiling face, sweeping his gaze across the hall.

He stopped his eyes on Jo Yang and continued.

“Surely you won’t claim victory, will you?”

Jo Yang glared at Seomun for a long time, his face grim.

The Five Great Mountain Swords valued righteousness and pursued the proper way, never using underhanded tricks outside their martial arts.

There was no excuse for using hidden weapons, let alone poison.

“However, outsiders interfered twice in the duels as well. Let us admit faults on both sides and call it a draw.”

No sooner had Jo Yang finished than Ma Jingun’s laughter boomed everywhere.

“How convenient, bending the rules as you please. How can the likes of you call yourselves righteous sects?”

Jingun raised his signature spear, pointing to the Five Great Mountain Swords one by one.

His will to fight them all at once was palpable.

The Zen Cloud Sword Sect disciples surrounding him were filled with fear, but could not lower their blades, glancing nervously at one another.

“Venerable Elder, I once respected your character, but today I see how mistaken I was. Are you not ashamed?”

Seomun called Jeok-woo to tend to Hyunjin, then slowly walked to the center of the stage.

With Jingun here now, what meaning was left in this petty duel?

They might as well fight a full-scale battle as planned.

“This is as far as we indulge you. It was amusing enough. Now then…”

The smile vanished from Seomun’s face in an instant.

Without it, his face was like that of a beast hunting prey.

“None of you will leave here alive.”

Seomun swung his fan twice, and dozens of masked assailants poured through the gate.

All wore black clothes and grotesque masks, their appearance bizarre.

Their masks’ eyes drooped in weeping, while the mouths were slashed up to the ears in ghastly smiles — crying and laughing at once.

“Black Butterfly Shadows…”

Yun-seon felt every hair on his body stand on end.

Those masks were identical to the Shadows of the Black Butterfly.

파장(破場), Breaking the Stage:
Cancelling an event by breaking or destroying the venue