Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time Chapter 17

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There he was, at the end of a path dimly lit by torches.

It was different from the Blood Flame Cultists I had seen so far.

Hair with black strands mixed in here and there.

The ominous atmosphere that enveloped her entire body was so strong that it could be felt on Jeongyeonshin’s skin.

Blood Sect Sword.

It was just as I had heard.

It is said that the red hair of the Blood Flame Cult’s warriors is a sign that their internal energy is revealed through their hair, and that some of their body hair is gradually returning to its original state, meaning that they have reached a state where they have refined their true energy.

‘It won’t be easy.’

The Blood Sect Master approached with his sword drawn and an angry expression on his face, and his momentum was incredibly fierce as if he was shooting out hundreds of needles.

“You trivial thing has ruined the work of the church. I will shed my blood through your suffering!”

“Are you trying to steal my true energy through bloodshed?”

I wasn’t asking because I was curious. I was thinking about it before I blurted out what I wanted to say.

A boy of about sixteen years old is in charge of a branch of the Blood Flame Cult by himself?

It was unimaginable.

The guy who is slowly approaching me with a knife in his hand must also have that kind of confidence in his heart.

It was the same even if several of the disciples were killed.

The Blood Flame Cultist who started growing black hair is on a different level from the pure red-haired Blood Flame Cultist.

‘Go.’

The true energy that arose from my wide-open dantian ran through my entire body.

The true energy of Jeonggadonggong began to circulate through the veins of his entire body while embracing the principles of Shigeukgyeong.

‘We have to rush in before they approach.’

The utility of preemptive strike was realized through defeating the blue master of Changcheon-dae.

Thud!

I took a big half turn, stepping on the nameless leaf’s secret recipe.

The energy was concentrated on the waist and thighs, and the speed of the internal energy was different from that of the Jeonggajang.

The atmosphere was torn apart threateningly by the magic light technique that swung all the power gathered in an instant.

Phew!

The face of the Blood Flame Sword, which was approaching with its back to the torch, showed a look of surprise, but at the same time, it threw back its chest to avoid Jeongyeonshin’s back kick.

“Ugh!”

And then, with an angry expression, he swung his sword, and therein lay Jeongyeonshin’s winning move.

Percussion!

He quickly lands by cutting through the air and kicks the ground with his right foot, then charges sharply.

A body tilted downwards. It was a movement that cut off the sword strike in an instant.

The wind blew along with the movement of the body that quickly approached the unsuspecting enemy.

In the divine wind that he was emitting, his outstretched left hand aimed for the opponent’s wrist.

The first departure from the Jeongga clan before its destruction, it was Geumnasu that Jeonggadonggong led with instinct.

The Blood Sword Master’s eyes grew wide as if they were going to tear apart.

Not surprised. Just a look of rage, as if to say, ‘How dare you.’

For someone who has reached the ranks of an expert, this approach is absurd.

However, Jeong Yeon-shin was not a boy who could not handle the destruction of his family.

The left hand extends gracefully. The golden thread and the magic wand are added to it.

“What······!”

In the end, the horror he vomited was no different from the Blood Flame Cultists lying around at the entrance to the cave.

Jeong Yeon-shin knew how to use her looks and age like the teeth of a beast. If she bites, that’s the end of it.

The strength of Jeong Ga-dong was embedded in the hand that clung to him and grabbed his pulse.

“Ahhhh!”

He looked like he couldn’t come to his senses due to the pain, but as if the master was different, a strange energy spread from above and below.

I could tell without even looking. He was going to lift me up with his knee and smash my head with his sword.

However, the quick sword strike of the Ip Hwang Geum, which had been changed to a reverse sword, came first.

-Magwanggyeol does not discriminate between legal forms.

Teachings of Margin.

His voice, which had died more than a month ago, was smiling at this moment.

At the same time, the overlapping true energy of the Shigeukgyeong gathered in his right arm.

He thought of the giant Pangu in mythology who pushed Mount Tai away, and pushed the sword in his fist.

At this point, with raw power, not even a sword is needed.

“Kwaaak!”

I went in deep. I could feel the waves dispersing without any trace.

Jeongyeonshin slowly opened her mouth.

“You’ve only caused me pain. I can tell just by looking at you. You’ve never been through anything.”

“Whoaaaa!”

As I push further in, the bastard’s screams break off into a squeak.

Now, I could almost feel the fading vitality with my whole body as I held it.

It was a feeling that I couldn’t even express my feelings because of the values that had been hardened through the destruction of my family.

“There’s a saying in martial arts: Be careful of the elderly, women, and children.”

I whispered in his ear, but he didn’t seem to hear me.

Jeongyeonshin carelessly pushed the bastard’s body away. The Blood Sword was lying there, a corpse in no time.

‘I just had to kill one of Jinpyeonghyeon’s Blood Flame Cultists.’

As it turned out, I ended up organizing a branch of the Blood Flame Cult.

As a result, it was a great achievement, so it was a good thing.

Still, the reason why the taste is bitter is probably because of the boys and girls lying here and there, looking very thin.

I was reminded of Jeong Ga-jang.

“Go to the paradise of Mu-reung.”

Jeongyeonshin squatted down and closed their eyes one by one.

* * *

“You split the sword. What happened? Are you feeling okay?”

Those were the first words Baek Mi-ryeo uttered when she saw Jeong Yeon-shin coming down from the mountain.

Now, I didn’t feel bad about her concerned gaze, which seemed almost like that of an older sister.

It was understandable, since he was wearing a bloody white uniform that wasn’t his to begin with, and he was carrying a non-breathing child on his back.

“It’s not my blood. I found what appears to be a Blood Flame Cult branch.”

“Blood Flame Church Branch! As expected······.”

Baek Mi-ryeo nodded and opened her mouth again.

“I’m glad you’re feeling okay. If you have any information on their composition, tell me. How many of them did you have a skirmish with? Since their hideout has been discovered, there will be some kind of movement. We need to be prepared.”

“There were eight Red-Haired Blood Flame Cultists. I even saw one strong one with black hair and red hair mixed in.”

“Bloodborne Sword······!”

Her eyes widened slightly. Jeong Yeon-shin, whose story was interrupted by an exclamation, could not even say anything.

Baek Mi-ryeo poured out her words in a way that was true to her personality.

“Yes, if there was a Blood Flame Sword, then it must be a branch of the Blood Flame Cult. They were parasitizing here too. No matter what the mission is, the Blood Flame Cult is a target for the destruction of Ip Hwang Seong. You’ve accomplished a great task, so take a rest now. I and Cheongmyeong will be going.”

“···I fought against the nine. You can just send the soldiers.”

“Didn’t you say one out of eight? If it’s nine······. Did you just say that the soldiers were enough? Hmm···?”

Was it only then that he felt a sense of discomfort at Jeong Yeon-shin’s calm demeanor?

Baek Mi-ryeo furrowed her brows. Then, her face slowly began to show surprise.

“Island. Are you saying that you just… defeated the Blood Flame Cultists, including the Blood Flame Cultist, all by yourself?”

“I killed them all.”

“Hot······!”

It was a strange exclamation. It seemed more like pure surprise and amazement than suspicion.

At the same time, someone fell from above.

The scent of grass wafted along with light movements. Cheongmyeong looked up with a surprised expression.

“You single-handedly destroyed a branch of the Blood Flame Cult?”

“They were already making a mess of blood.”

Jeong Yeon-shin answered with an expression that was difficult to read.

Their gazes briefly rested on the child on the back. Damn social bastards. Baek Mi-ryeo muttered.

“······Those who are as powerful as the Blood Slayer Sword have a strange regenerative ability. Haven’t you ever been stabbed in the back?”

Cheongmyeong asked as if trying to change the subject and then continued speaking.

“I’m sorry. We overlooked something that we should have told you quickly. Bloodstained Swordsmen are almost like messengers in the civilian and lower-level martial arts world, and masters with the skills to kill them are rare throughout the Central Plains. It’s not easy to share the story.”

Baek Mi-ryeo nodded and showed a rare expression of apology.

“This is truly our fault. It’s fortunate that he seems to be safe, but… I hear news like this a little bit when Ip Hwang-seong is here. It’s a story from another sect. Even though they managed to defeat the Blood Sect Sword, they didn’t know about the regenerative power of their blood attack, so they got stabbed in the back and died.”

“Anyone who isn’t a great expert would be susceptible to this, but you’re lucky to be safe.”

Cheongmyeong said with a happy smile.

Jeong Yeon-shin, who had been listening quietly, slowly nodded her head.

“Regenerative power. So there is such a thing.”

He released the arm that was supporting the child from behind. As he extended his hand forward, his red and black hair flowed down.

The head of the Blood Slayer Sword. It looked even more hideous because its glaring eyes were not even closed on its pure white face.

“······.”

Cheongmyeong and Baekmirye remained silent for a while.

“Yeah······ The power of regeneration. There is something like that.”

Soon, Cheongmyeong answered with a look of relief. On the other hand, Baek Miryeo patted Jeongyeonshin on the shoulder, saying that she was proud.

“You definitely need to take care of the ball. It’s a good attitude.”

“Well, it’s definitely······not an ordinary achievement. It’s even more so for a freshman in the martial arts world who has just become Hwangseong Baek.”

Cheongmyeong continued speaking while carefully examining the bastard’s head.

“It hasn’t been long since you’ve had black hair. That branch must have been pretty weak.”

Baek Mi-ryeo shaking her head.

“In any case, the achievement of finding and defeating the Blood Flame Cult branch on his own cannot be underestimated. The Seventeenth and even the Changcheon-dae may covet Seomye more, but they cannot belittle his achievement. It was not even the Blue, but the White that did it. It is an event that goes beyond mere surprise.”

“That’s a given.”

Cheongmyeong nodded and hit the shoulder of Heonwonchang, who was standing next to him. Iphwangsinhyeop, who had come closer without notice, was holding his breath and looking at the head of Hyulsagyogyeom.

“He’s dead. What are you afraid of?”

“Ah, what, I’m not scared! How many times have the Green Forest and Surochae thieves put their lives on the line in my hands!”

The group laughed as they watched him, as if he had returned to the time when he first came to Jinpyeonghyeon.

What happened after that was out of Ma Gwang-ik’s hands.

Ji-hyeon was shocked to see the supply of the Blood Sword and sent soldiers.

There was a story that several soldiers wet their pants after seeing the mess at the Jinpyeong-hyeon branch of the Blood Flame Cult.

Ji-hyeon, knowing that there were scary bloodthirsty demons active nearby, held Jeong-yeon-shin’s hand with both of hers as if she had never been reluctant and repeatedly expressed her gratitude.

The infamy of the Blood Sword Sword was even more famous among the people, separate from its martial arts skills.

The corpses lying around the branch were said to not be Jinpyeong-hyeon’s children.

It was assumed that the Blood Flame Cultists had captured them nearby, but since it was unknown whether the disappearance was the work of a Murim person, they did not enter Iphwangseong.

After sorting out the case over four days.

“Would you like to stop by again next time you have business?”

Ji-hyeon, who had become more polite than ever, looked up at Ma Gwang-ik and his party riding on horses.

A sight similar to when we first met, yet completely different. In particular, the gaze of Ma Gwang-ik looking at Seomye seemed to be burning.

Although Jeongyeonshin had not experienced much of the outside world, she could feel that what was in Jihyun’s eyes was not just pure respect.

-You seem to want to tie up with the martial arts master you’ve only heard of, and even with the promising Ji-su Hui?

It was a clear, laughter-filled sound.

‘Jinpyeonghyeon Jihyeon. That’s that person’s life.’

I nodded roughly and looked at Jihyun smiling brightly as I thought.

Is he a bigger person than he looks?

It was a little admirable that he could do that even after going through such humiliation.

“My name is Yu Jin of Jinpyeong County! Please remember me!”

The group turned their horses and turned their backs on Jinpyeong-hyeon.

It was a long yet short, peaceful yet cruel affair that had come to a close.

The first appearance of Ma Gwang-ik and Baek Haek-du in Gangho ended with the recording of Seomye’s solo achievement.

* * *

The return journey was a little more leisurely, with the horses’ feeding time being quite long.

Thanks to that, I was able to avoid seeing Heonwonchang’s face turn pale, but he often had a sad look on his face on the way there.

“Jeong So-hyeop has achieved brilliant feats, but I have done nothing······.”

“Rather, that’s normal. It’s enough to just keep a watchful eye and stop the evildoings of the Jinpyeonghyeon clan.”

At first, Baek Mi-ryeo tried to comfort him in her own way, but after the same thing happened several more times, she became expressionless and didn’t say anything.

Rather than sleeping out in the open air, I stayed at an inn and slowly entered Yangyang.

The first thing that caught my eye was the Iphwangseong Fortress, which was even larger than the outer wall of Yangyang.

Jeongyeonshin smiled faintly. Even though we hadn’t been together for long, the joy of seeing him stick his head out was strange.

“There’s a certain excitement in the atmosphere.”

Cheongmyeong suddenly said.

“It’s been a long time! Now that I’ve completed my first mission, I’m going to go to Yangyang Jeiljuru.”

Heonwonchang was smiling brightly at some point. The road leading to Iphwangseong made him that way.

The energy exuded by merchants, touts, and people going about their business in various ways was tremendous.

Enough to blow away even the dispirited appearance of the Iphwang Shinhyeop.

“No, not you. I mean the people here. More than usual. Wait a minute······”

The group, riding on horseback, have their eyes closed and their mouths shut. This is because they are accustomed to the keen hearing of the Ming tribe.

It was thanks to Qingming that no one in the group had to stand guard for a long time.

“Ah. He’s coming. It’ll be a big deal for everyone here. Considering that our Iphwangseong treats those who have made great achievements with great respect.”

“I just heard that too. The former Shingeomdan master has finally arrived.”

Likewise, Jeong Yeon-shin’s body froze for a moment as she listened to Baek Mi-ryeo’s words.

She glanced at him as if she found it strange, then opened her mouth again.

“If you are challenging the position of the senator, you cannot ignore the popular sentiment of Yangyang.”

“The head of the Iphwangseong Senate would be closer to the imperial family than the Yangyang branch office. I think that even if it’s not enough, each person would get at least a bowl of rice. If it’s a good harvest, it’s okay, but how excited would they be in a bad year?”

“It looks like you’ve already moved in.”

“Yes. They say he passed by with a boy riding on the front of his horse. I think he was the adopted son of the famous Ip-Hwang-Ma-Ga. I heard he was very talented.”

But soon Cheongmyeong started to urge him to speak as if he wasn’t interested.

“Qualification.”

Baek Mi-ryeo’s jet-black hair, which hung down while she was snickering, swayed along with the horse’s gait.

She turned her head to the side and glanced at Jeongyeonshin.

“······.”

He nodded with a calm face.

After patting the horse’s neck and keeping pace with the group, the four of them, including Ma Gwang-ik, soon arrived at the main gate of Iphwangseong. It was the end of a long mission.