The fate of a clan and the entire foundation of the family business was
now caught in a brutal whirlwind of destiny,
demanding a choice between utter destruction or a miraculous revival,
between all or nothing.
ㅤ
Jang Woo-yang, the patriarch of his family, and also the leader of the Central Armed Escort Agency, was fully aware that the person before him now – though not directly stating it in words, the overwhelming and destructive aura oozing from the man's entire body made the demand for a life-or-death choice clear enough – possessed power matching his status in Gangho, enough to easily destroy everything his family had built.
In the past, the infamous tale of razing three bandit strongholds to the ground in a single night, just because they blocked his path, was all too well known. Originally there had only been one stronghold barring his way. But after turning that one stronghold into a scorched field, the man's anger still had not abated, so he swept away two more nearby bandit strongholds in one go. Those other two strongholds merely existed adjacent, as innocent neighbor cousins, but faced utter destruction under his merciless blade for that simple, absurd reason.
The fate of the Central Armed Escort Agency now was no different. Thus Jang Woo-yang knew he had to do something immediately. This was not an individual's choice, but an important decision concerning the survival of the Central Armed Escort Agency as an organization, with over 300 lives at stake. However, Jang Woo-yang was paralyzed under the tremendous weight of this grave responsibility, unable to make a proper move.
Then, as if reading his very thoughts, his son Jang Woo-kang and Deputy Leader Deung Yeo-ho suddenly rose from their seats and slowly approached Blazing Blade. Of course, the two did not harbor the slightest notion of subduing Blazing Blade through force – Jang Woo-kang had no desire whatsoever to test the sharpness and subtleties of his Qingcheng swordplay, refined amidst the high peaks of Mount Qingcheng, against this fearsome man. Deputy Leader Deung similarly stayed a hundred paces away from such an idea.
The two men, forcing courage as they walked towards Blazing Blade, had only one simple, desperate wish – how to quell this raging wildfire of a man and escape from this crisis of absolute life-and-death.
'We'll do anything, just please spare us! We'd be grateful down to our bare bones! Please spare us!'
That represented their current feelings best. To do so, dialogue between both sides was essential. As they walked, Jang Woo-kang and Deung Yeo-ho ceaselessly exchanged glances and gestures, battling wordlessly over who would be the first to address this extremely dangerous man. The intensity and speed of their exchanged glances rivaled that of top masters exchanging moves. This fierce exchange of gazes and glowers between them, to determine the first sacrificial lamb with the bell around the cat's neck, was all the more bitter and intense.
Of course, Jang Woo-kang hoped Deputy Leader Deung Yeo-ho would be the first to speak up. But his pride was too wounded to clearly convey that intention to Deung Yeo-ho. He disliked revealing his weak side to Deung Yeo-ho, even if not as much as death itself. Yet taking the lead to speak up didn't sit well with him either. Life was a precious, valuable gift from the heavens, to be treasured and protected.
Deputy Leader Deung Yeo-ho felt the same. Though he had mustered the courage to approach Blazing Blade, in hindsight, he wondered why he had done that. Deung Yeo-ho was also someone who knew too well the value of life. His position, unable to suggest to his lord Jang Woo-kang to speak first, only added to his difficulties. Jang Woo-kang was the successor who would lead the Central Armed Escort Agency in future. No matter how small his potential or how dull his sword's edge, that was an immutable fact.
As a subordinate, he couldn't say "I don't wanna, so you go apologize to that dangerous man for our mistakes." Thus the two were now caught in an extremely archetypal, textbook, and absolutely prime exemplar of a maddening, crazy situation.
Still, befitting the heir, Jang Woo-kang wore his sword by his waist. He likely agonized tremendously before resolving himself thus. The pride of being a direct disciple of the prestigious Qingcheng Sect also greatly aided his determination. Polite and barely managing the etiquette of holding his hands cupped, Jang Woo-kang parted his tense, slightly trembling lips.
"I am Jang Woo-kang, the minor head of the peerless and supreme Central Armed Escort Agency, the finest in Sichuan, wielder of the Qingcheng One Sword. Have you heard of our name? Even a no-name warrior would've heard of us at least once. I speak of the famed Central Armed Escort Agency, whose name is on everyone's lips in Gangho lately. Hahaha!"
"?"
Blazing Blade was flipped upside down once more.
Blazing Blade's already distorted face crumpled up even further. Hearing the rumbling, arrogant words that seemed to say "Do you know how high the heavens or how vast the earth is?" no one in Gangho could've kept silent. Especially not the fiery-tempered Blazing Blade – that goes without saying.
But this guy just vomited out words full of the intention "I wanna get beaten up real quick, so beat me up fast!" Even considering Jang Woo-kang was too tense and lost his mind from panic, this was still perplexing. And the man who might die any second continued speaking.
"Our supreme Central Armed Escort Agency wishes to stay here today, but there seems to be a lack of seats. Still, we need to sit and comfortably eat our meals. So what can be done? What shall we do?! We need to secure seats! How so? Wouldn't it be best if you quietly left your seat for us and exited this inn? Good idea no? But why ask only you to leave when there are others here too?! Ah, that's because you're clearly the easiest target! What, are you upset I'm belittling you? Is it wrong to belittle others? The one acting belittling is in the wrong! Right? So you understand now yeah? How about leaving your seat for us then?"
While every single word and syllable flowed like a mountain spring, fresh and unconcerned with listeners… this must be what they call an inconsistency between words and actions. Their hunched backs glistening with cold sweat were all too visible, heads dripping sheets of cold sweat as they wrung their hands desperately to shake the sweat off – completely impossible words were drilling into Blazing Blade's ears, flipping his insides about.
Given Blazing Blade was cocking his head, momentarily lost in thought amidst this absurd and preposterous inconsistency between words and actions, if their actions had matched their words, the two would have already become guests of the netherworld at his sword's edge. Just what was going on here? Of course, if the cowering, teeth-chattering Jang Woo-kang and Deung Yeo-ho still retained their right minds, they would not spit out words filled to the brim with such blatant disregard for life.
Why dig even deeper into a grave that's already exposed, no less? Jang Woo-kang and Deung Yeo-ho had never uttered such words before. Yet they clearly rang in Blazing Blade's ears as such. Neither were Blazing Blade's ears at fault. So just what was happening here? Truly a perplexing matter.
The actual plaintive words of Jang Woo-kang, at a complete loss, were:
"Oh, meeting the famed Giant of Gangho, Blazing Blade Gwak today brings my family three lifetimes of glory! I… I am the minor head of the tiny, no-name Central Armed Escort Agency from Sichuan, Jang Woo-kang, wielder of the equally no-name sword of Qingcheng Sect. To… to meet face-to-face the brilliant sun of the martial world, the Blazing Flame whose name shakes the realm, my enormously admired senior Blazing Blade, ah… what limitless glory for my household! As a junior of this world, it is only right I greet senior Blazing Blade so, furthermore, just now it appears some massive misunderstanding unfortunately arose between senior and my Central Armed Escort Agency. Thus my humble self now bow our heads in apology, hoping senior can clarify this mistake and dissolve our misunderstanding! Our Central Armed Escort Agency h-has never had the slightest notion to c-commit disrespect towards Blazing Blade Senior whom we endlessly admire. All of t-today's events were purely by a-accident! So please f-forgive our discourtesy with your magnanimity, s-senior!"
If not for Blazing Blade merely nodding away in thought amidst this ridiculous inconsistency, the two would've become netherworld residents from his blade already. They threw their pride and dignity away, begged and pleaded as if their lives depended on it (which it did). Yet why did such drastically different words reach Blazing Blade's ears? The truth is thus:
Let there be three masters A, B, and C in the martial world. A and B are having a conversation. A compliments B – kind, wonderful words to delight the other. But simultaneously, C uses artful Ventriloquism, his voice modulated to be A's voice, indiscernible by listeners as ventriloquism, to hurl abuse at B.
What would happen? B would naturally be unable to hear A's compliment yet only hear the torrent of abuse, and assume it came from A. Then A and B would break out into massive arguments and fights.
Ventriloquism is the art of loading sound waves into one's inner energy and sending them towards a target, using inner energy to directly transmit sound to the ears of others by shocking the air. If both normal speech and ventriloquized speech reach a person at once, said person would be unable to hear the speech traveling by air and could only hear the ventriloquized speech sent via inner energy. As ventriloquism relies on inner energy to directly reach the target's eardrums by shocking the empty space, an invisible energetic veil of sorts would be formed over the ears by the inner energy – blocking out normal speech in the air while allowing through only the ventriloquized speech. It is, quite literally, being energy-veiled.
What just transpired between Blazing Blade and Jang Woo-kang was the exact same situation as the example. Jang Woo-kang was A while Blazing Blade was B. Then who was C, the malicious culprit driving A and B apart? Needless to say, it was Bi Ryu-yeon. Using artful, and arguably despicable, ventriloquism, he toyed with Blazing Blade and Jang Woo-kang once more.
The first was the signboard of Central Armed Escort Agency slamming onto the dining Blazing Blade's table out of nowhere. Furthermore, this matter shoved the Central Armed Escort Agency deeper, much deeper, into the abyss of demise. With Bi Ryu-yeon's casual joke, Jang Woo-kang and his entire escort agency now faced a crisis of life and death, all because Jang Woo-kang was deemed arrogant…
Unaware of Bi Ryu-yeon's machinations, mixed sounds of anger and derision towards Jang Woo-kang, no, the entirety of Central Armed Escort Agency, flowed from Blazing Blade's mouth. His face was flushed red, like a heated lump of iron from a furnace.
"Keukeukeu, Central Armed Escort Agency? I've heard the name recently, but for a tiny no-name escort agency to dare provoke me, Blazing Blade Gwak?! Telling me to scram for lack of seats here?! The mighty Central Armed Escort Agency doesn't give a damn about me?! You've got some gall! Do lives mean so little to you?! Keukeukeu, yet still wish to leave safely?! Wish to keep your pathetic lives?! Haah!"
Along with the explosive roar shaking the inn's interior, tremendous pressure erupted from Blazing Blade's being. So fierce and oppressive that the two before him nearly collapsed to their knees and lost consciousness.
"W-What do you m-mean, great senior Gwak! We… we…."
Jang Woo-kang stammered in utter shock from Blazing Blade's horrifying reaction. He couldn't understand Blazing Blade's words at all. Merely standing on violently trembling legs was hard enough for him.
"H-How could we dare u-utter words to offend the dignity of great senior Gwak Yeonghee, G-Gangho's greatest wandering warrior?!"
Deputy Leader Deung Yeo-ho's complexion turned deathly pale in an instant as he watched the two with a gaze that nakedly conveyed a wish for their demise.
"M-My lord, stop!"
Deung Yeo-ho's cry was nearly a shriek. Hearing it jolted Jang Woo-kang as well – too late. His final blunder had erased any possibility, however unlikely, for Blazing Blade to think twice or reconsider. The arrow had left the bow.
***
The Forbidden Name
Before the blade cradling flames,
never let his three characters pass your lips.
Else the fires of his wrath
shall turn your body to ashes.
This is a story about one taboo circulating the mighty martial world. According to the unwritten rules of the martial world, there is one absolute rule that must be obeyed in front of the Blazing Blade and his saber – a forbidden act that must not be violated. The unconditional taboo that must be followed at all costs is to never speak his full name out loud.
Countless people, whether intentionally or by mistake, have violated this forbidden unwritten rule, embarking on a one-way road of no return, or suffering the tragic fate of living disabled for the rest of their lives. There were too many cases where one misspoken name led to a misplaced life.
Blazing Blade! The object of envy for all martial artists in the martial world, possessing unmatched martial prowess and superior martial fame. But he had one serious inferiority complex. And that was the eternal inferiority towards his three character name.
Young Hui!
[TL/N: Young,영(榮) means glory/honor; Hui, 희(喜) means love/joyful]
Younghui! A thoughtful name given by his parents, wishing for a glorious and hopeful future. And presently, he was living up to that name, enjoying the highest glory in the martial world. But unfortunately, the lingering echo of his name evoked that of a woman's name. It was the resonance and tone that was the issue.
"How can a mighty man use a name that sounds like a woman's?"
That was Blazing Blade Gwak Younghui's thought. He extremely disliked how his name resonated like a woman's title. But the core issue and misfortune of the martial world was that he could not randomly change the name given by his parents.
Had Blazing Blade been able to change his name, he'd have swapped it over tens of times. But he obviously couldn't, leaving his indignation with nowhere to vent but out. Thus, he established one taboo—that no one was allowed to speak his three character name in front of him. If anyone violated this taboo, he would take immediate action to ensure terrible consequences. As a result, the number of people who suffered miserable fates could fill a three volume limited edition of "Record of Those Punished for Violating Blazing Blade's Taboo". What more needs to be said?
Thus, given Blazing Blade's explosive temper, there's no way Jang Woo-kang could remain unscathed after ignoring his absolute taboo. Were he fine, how would the phrase "Blazing Blade's Wrathful Inferno of Great Rage" ( Blazing Blade losing his shit and torching everything around him) circulate about?
"Baam!"
No one knew exactly when, but the instant his three character name slipped out into the world, Blazing Blade leapt up from his spot, stepping his right foot heavily onto the wooden floor directly in front of Jang Woo-kang. The previously extremely sturdy wooden floor of Flower Cloud Pavilion shattered from his powerful stomp, sending debris flying. At the same time as that one powerful stomp, his outstretched burnt-red right hand shot out a fierce wave of energy, heavily striking Jang Woo-kang's chest. Of course, the power contained within was the formidable might of his Blazing Spirit Skill. Getting hit would certainly lead to immediate death.
But Jang Woo Kang was no straw man either. As if to prove that his swordsmanship honed at the peak of Mount Qingcheng against the cold winds was no joke, he made an attempt at that instant to writhe his body in an effort to evade Blazing Blade's powerful strike. In other words, he instantly spun his body right while twisting back to pull himself out of harm's way. But the mere fact he had avoided a direct hit was impressive and admirable. He couldn't evade even half of Blazing Blade's crimson palm and ended up taking the full brunt of the blow.
"Thud!"
Jang Woo-kang's body shook violently before he was sent flying with a boom, crashing into the wall two jang away. His imprint was deeply embedded in the wall, with radial cracks stemming out from around him. Thanks to his initial evasion, he had barely managed to escape death. But there was no doubt he had suffered serious injuries. However, Blazing Blade thought differently. He was displeased at having failed to take the life of Jang Woo-kang, that bare-faced scoundrel, with a single strike. Gwak Younghui the Blazing Blade raised his right hand towards the ceiling.
It was the posture of wanting to deliver the final, decisive blow. As the Flaming Soul qi circulated through Blazing Blade's meridians and coalesced into destructive power in his right hand, two streams of silver light flashed across the sky in that fleeting moment.
"Swish–!"
Due to these two streams of silver light containing ominous foreboding while slicing through the air, Blazing Blade had no choice but to pull back his right hand and retreat from his position. In fact, it was an after-the-fact surprise retreat. The two silver lights did not strike his body, narrowly grazing his side instead as if merely posing a threat.
In a flash, the twinned streaks of silver light nullified Blazing Blade's strike before circling back through the air into someone's hand— likely the mastermind who sketched these coiling silver spirals across the empty space called the painting "Void". Two small steel beads now rested in his palm, just retrieved by him.
As the dust that had been diffused inside the pavilion from the debris of the shattered wooden floor caused by Blazing Blade's stomp slowly settled, the outline of its owner became distinct.
"Who is it?!"
Blazing Blade's fiery red pupils piercingly stared at the original creator who had painted beautiful, delicate silver spiral patterns across the transparent scroll named "Void". Since those silver spirals had fulfilled their role of hindering his next intended action, his eyes contained a hint of puzzlement and overflowing rage.
Finally, the outline of that creator became clear. His crimson eyes, as if wanting to eat him raw, boil him, sauté him, or deep fry him alive, began shining even brighter. But even amidst the swirling vortex of murderous and furious intent, a subtle puzzlement still lingered.