“Back in my day. If you wanted to apologize, huh? It was the way of the martial world to put something in their hand and say you’re sorry. I don’t know when the way has fallen to the ground like this.”

Although he was muttering while looking at the empty air, there was no way she would not have heard.

The Sword Empress’s mouth was agape.

‘When was back in my day…?’

She felt as if her mind was getting complicatedly twisted. To hear such words from a face that seemed to have lived only a fifth of her life.

“If a rumor spreads that the number one Sword Empress in the world was having a match with a junior and almost broke his dantian… and then she just closes her mouth with a single word of apology, what will the gossips say?”

“Y-Young Master Cheon. Please calm down for now.”

“What? Ah, did you hear me? I’m sorry. It’s a habit of mine to talk to myself.”

“…”

Talking to yourself? No, the person was right in front of her, and he was talking to himself?

Anyone who could think a little would easily realize how absurd that was.

But even if she realized it, it was not something that was completely accepted in her mind.

The Sword Empress was dazed for a moment. And only after some time had passed did she grasp the situation.

‘Am I, being blackmailed right now?’

Cold sweat ran down her back.

To think that the great Sword Empress was being blackmailed.

This was…

‘No matter how much I was in the Zhoushan Archipelago, it’s not a reputation I haven’t heard of.’

The Zhoushan Archipelago, where the Botamun was located, was a place that was almost considered a foreign land.

Wasn’t it an archipelago that was located in the middle of the sea, away from the Central Plains?

Even there, Cheon Mubaeck’s fame had resounded. That much, the weight that Cheon Mubaeck’s fame occupied in the martial world was enormous.

But what if a strange rumor related to the Sword Empress spread?

‘Keung…’

Although a public opinion would arise that the great Sword Empress would not do such a thing.

There were still people from the past who remembered what kind of person the Sword Empress was.

For example, the Mount Hua Sect leader, the Zhuge Clan’s grand head, Zhuge Seon, the Fighting Ghost, Gwak Yong… If they just said one word without thinking…

‘A crazy Guanyin Bodhisattva…’

If that infamy, which was now hidden in the past, came out again.

The reputation of the Botamun would also fall.

The Sword Empress swallowed dryly.

Moreover, next to her, Soyong was looking at her with her arms crossed.

It was a clear gaze, as if she were watching to see if she was apologizing properly.

Even if the immortal energy had escaped, Soyong’s spirit was purer than anyone else’s.

It was a stinging gaze that made even the great Sword Empress flinch.

“Yes. I want to apologize sincerely, Young Master Cheon.”

“Yes. Yes.”

Cheon Mubaeck narrowed his eyes and nodded his head slightly with his chin.

“…”

It was not a particularly emotional expression. Just an indifferent, narrowed eye. As if he were expressing with his eyes, ‘Is that all?’ The Sword Empress felt something suddenly rise from the bottom of her heart.

‘Perhaps the ominous star in my heart is not because I feel a crisis.’

The Sword Empress, who had calmed down the hot something that had suddenly risen by reciting the Buddhist scriptures, sighed and said.

“Since I have injured my junior, how can I apologize with just words?”

“…”

“That Iron God Ancient Sword, it is still powerful, but it was a pity to see that its condition was not good.”

Both of their gazes turned to the broken Iron God Ancient Sword at the same time.

“I heard that it was a sword made of meteorite iron. Even the Sword God had a hard time because it was difficult to obtain the materials, even if he wanted to repair the sword.”

Meteorite iron, that’s very expensive. Although it was an unexpected compensation, Cheon Mubaeck did not like it very much.

“But…”

When he had received the sword from Zhuge Seon, hadn’t he said that although the material, meteorite iron, could be obtained somehow, it was impossible?

At that, the Sword Empress said with a slightly hardened face.

“It is not an ordinary meteorite iron. It is something that has been kept in our sect for a long time, no different from a sacred object. It is black meteorite iron.”

“Black meteorite iron, you say?”

Cheon Mubaeck’s eyes flashed.

Black meteorite iron.

Unlike the grayish or reddish-black meteorite iron, it was a jet-black meteorite iron as if it had been painted with ink.

A meteorite that had fallen from the sky, a meteorite iron that could be obtained very rarely from among them.

And even from such meteorite iron, it was the black meteorite iron that was found in a very small amount with an extremely low probability.

As rare as it was, its strength was also known to be impossible to refine. No, in the first place, he had never seen a weapon refined with black meteorite iron circulating in the martial world.

If it were a weapon refined with black meteorite iron, it would instantly become a historical divine weapon.

“In fact, not just now, but I wanted to repay you in some way. Because I have been saved by the Sword God several times. I was going to give it to the Sword Saint, that child, when he came, but. That child politely refused, saying that he already had a good sword. I hope you will accept it this time. Because this old woman almost injured a person who will become a great star of the martial world.”

“No. Didn’t you twist the trajectory at the last moment? Even though you could have been seriously injured. The Sword Empress made such a decision for her junior. Fortunately, it ended with only a slight injury to my hand, but the Sword Empress could have been seriously injured.”

At Cheon Mubaeck’s words, the Sword Empress’s eyes widened.

To think that he had grasped even that. Cheon Mubaeck smiled brightly.

“In that respect, the Sword Empress is no different from my lifesaver.”

A clear and firm tone. A clean smile on his lips.

Without any greed…

‘There is a Buddha.’

The internal energy flowing from the Heaven-Shaking Soul Art, and even the immortal energy that was added on top of it.

“And yet, I will gratefully accept the compensation you are giving me as a sign of your apology. Although it is a shameless thing, it will be of considerable help to the rumors that will spread later.”

“Ah!”

The Sword Empress let out a small exclamation.

That’s right. This fight would inevitably become a rumor. Because Cheon Mubaeck had been bedridden for recuperation after the match.

Considering the exaggeration of rumors, various misunderstandings would be mixed in, and perhaps a story would even come out that the Sword Empress had beaten up the Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero. Then the past infamy of a crazy Guanyin Bodhisattva would come up again…

“I do not wish for black meteorite iron. I was not seriously injured enough to receive such a precious thing.”

In an instant, a thought that pierced her mind made the Sword Empress’s eyes widen.

‘Then, he did this on purpose.’

A warm light appeared in the Sword Empress’s gaze as she looked at Cheon Mubaeck.

He had only wished for a compensation that was enough to save face. So that he would not be swept up in strange rumors later.

The Sword Empress, who had realized that late, did not regret giving the black meteorite iron at all.

‘Truly a descendant of the Sword God, and the most heroic man in the current martial world.’

The Sword Empress smiled faintly.

“Still, I think this old woman’s heart will be at ease only if I give you the black meteorite iron. Please take it. It contains the meaning of an apology, and it is to repay the grace I received from the Sword God.”

“Then…”

Cheon Mubaeck trailed off.

“If possible, I would appreciate it if you could also introduce me to a craftsman who can refine black meteorite iron.”

“…”

The Sword Empress looked at Cheon Mubaeck’s calm face with a dazed gaze.

‘What is this…’

At the very confident attitude, the Sword Empress was at a loss for words for a moment. But she could not say anything, because she had said that it was a compensation for her apology and to repay her grace, so how could she take it back?

“Well, I didn’t particularly wish for it… but since the Sword Empress wants to repay her grace to the Sword God. Well, it’s a bit awkward for me not to accept. Well… haha.”

At the shameless laugh, the Sword Empress’s hand clenched.

‘Should I not have twisted the sword?’

* * *

After the conversation with the Sword Empress had ended, the one who came to find Cheon Mubaeck, who was recuperating, was Jongri Hong.

Jongri Hong, who had been detained and had been released thanks to Cheon Mubaeck’s help, was silent for a long time with an awkward face.

“…”

Jongri Hong hesitated at the gaze that was staring at him.

Even though he was just staring without saying anything, an incomprehensible pressure was crushing him.

It was strange.

Even before, when he had clashed with him on the boat while wearing a mask, he had felt like a huge mountain, but it was not to this extent.

‘It’s different. It’s different from that.’

When he had faced him before, it was a sense of pressure that came from his strong martial arts and the momentum he emitted.

But now, something was different.

‘It’s as if I’m being driven before the Supreme Old Lord or the Buddha, stripped naked.’

Deeply sunken eyes.

A normal gaze that did not contain any power, any energy, or any strong internal energy.

It was transparent.

It was a transparent gaze, as if he knew everything.

His inner thoughts, the thoughts he harbored in his chest, and even what kind of emotions he was feeling now.

A kind of dimension that was completely different from a sense of pressure.

As if he were placed in front of an absolute being, Jongri Hong was literally overwhelmed.

As Jongri Hong was frozen and could not say anything, Cheon Mubaeck’s slow voice flowed out.

“Didn’t you have something to say? Great Elder.”

Jongri Hong could not refute the half-condescending gaze and the half-formal tone.

If the Tae-eul swordsmen were next to him, they would have been surprised, but Jongri Hong was inwardly relieved that he had come here alone.

Jongri Hong, who had been hesitating for a long time, barely managed to open his mouth.

“Thank… you. Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero.”

Wasn’t it a relationship that was filled with a bad fate, if it was a bad fate?

But Jongri Hong also knew his duty.

This matter, not only himself but also Jongnam, would not have been strange at all if they had been driven to ruin.

When he had revealed his identity as the great elder of the Jongnam Sect, the Cloud Sword Army, to the Yugeom Emperor, he had felt as if he were throwing a gamble.

While he was detained in one place, how much had he waited for news of Cheon Mubaeck?

‘In the end, he kept what he had said.’

He had protected the child from the hands of the Poison Demon and the Unorthodox Alliance.

Not only that, but he had also protected his own honor.

No, rather, he had hidden his crime and had praised him. Jongnam had not lost anything, but had gained.

But the most important thing was.

“Thank you for protecting Soyong.”

At first, he was angry.

Because the immortal energy that Soyong had harbored had disappeared without a trace.

But he could not say anything to Cheon Mubaeck.

“I did nothing. I just ran away with the child. Rather, the child protected me from the Poison Demon’s poison with an unknown power.”

At those words, Jongri Hong had nothing to say.

‘A person cannot absorb immortal energy like internal energy. And how could he know and unfold such a technique while being chased?’

Immortal energy was a mystery.

So even if Cheon Mubaeck said so, he had no choice but to agree.

No, in fact, there was nothing to agree or disagree about. Because Jongri Hong was more happy that Soyong had returned safely.

Rather, his heart became at ease when he saw her bright face, from which the sickly color had completely disappeared.

“You have done me a favor. You have protected my and Jongnam’s reputation, and have even protected the future of Jongnam. It is all your merit.”

Was it because he had admitted it frankly?

Jongri Hong rather felt relieved.

‘Since the divine maiden has lost her immortal energy, another divine maiden will come out someday.’

He just had to wait until then. In the meantime, he could recover the rest of the sacred objects. If he could not achieve it in his generation, his descendants could achieve it.

More than those, the fact that Soyong had returned safely was rather something to be grateful for.

‘It would have been terrible if she had fallen into the hands of the Poison Demon.’

He was the key figure who had turned the martial artists of the Orthodox Path into Bidaras.

If she had been caught by such a villain, what would have happened to her?

Jongri Hong was sincerely grateful to Cheon Mubaeck.

Even after the bad fate that was not like a bad fate.

“Thank you, truly thank you. Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero.”

At that, Cheon Mubaeck smiled and waved his hand.

“I didn’t do much. I just acted for my own purpose.”

At the humble attitude, Jongri Hong suddenly had a thought.

Perhaps, he was a better person than he had thought.

If he thought about the appearance of him threatening him with the Shaolin Exemption Plaque, wasn’t it all for one reason?

‘The Blood Demon Valley…’

How could Jongri Hong not know?

What Cheon Mubaeck was trying to achieve by traversing the martial world.

He was gathering the scattered forces of the Orthodox Path under the name of the Righteous Alliance.

Solely to counter the Blood Demon Valley.

‘Truly amazing.’

A young hero who jumped into the great evil with only a sword of faith.

Jongri Hong suddenly felt ashamed. Hadn’t he just blindly pursued strength and had only wanted the revival of his sect?

As an elder of the martial world, as an adult of a sect, was that really the right path?

Seeing Cheon Mubaeck’s actions in front of him, he became ashamed of the path he had walked.

‘How can there be a person who walks the right path so much…’

Jongri Hong’s face softened. His expression, which had been called the tiger of Jongnam with the moniker of the Cloud Sword Army, looked like a benevolent Taoist.

He looked at Cheon Mubaeck again with a warm gaze.

‘Huh?’

But somehow, Cheon Mubaeck’s expression was a little strange. A slightly narrowed eye, a dissatisfied expression.

A gaze that seemed to say, ‘Is that all?’

“So you’re just going to say thank you with words?”

“…Huh?”

Jongri Hong looked at Cheon Mubaeck with a reluctant gaze.

“No, thank you is thank you. Are you just going to close your mouth with an empty mouth?”

“…Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero.”

“Well. Where has the way of the martial world gone? The way has fallen to the ground.”

“…”

“I saved the child, I protected the sect’s reputation, I protected that person’s honor. I saved him from the infamy of a kidnapper. But there’s only one word of thanks.”

“…”

“If I tell the truth here, I don’t know if the Yugeom Emperor or the Sword Empress will leave the great elder alone.”

“…”

Jongri Hong trembled. At the sight of him playing dumb, Jongri Hong, without realizing it, clenched his fists.

But he had no choice but to release his clenched fists.

“What… do you want?”

Cheon Mubaeck grinned.

A feeling of wanting to gouge out his own eyes, which had seen him as a hero with a great will just a moment ago, welled up.

(End of Chapter)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep