Book 13: Chapter 23: Drawing the Sword

Volume 13 Chapter 23 - Drawing the Sword

The faction of the Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon, the first three tenths, was revealed.

And a distance of forty paces away from them.

“It is a disaster…!”

One of the Yeon clan blood relative elders showed himself late, in a flurry.

His breathing was rough and his face was flushed, showing that he had run extremely fast, but the Yeon clan blood relative elders could not even hide their bewilderment.

“A disaster is indeed a disaster….”

“…To think it's the Eldest Young Master's faction at this of all times.”

“Since the Deputy Director of the Bank was escorted away under arrest, the Lord of the Law Enforcement Court and the Lord of the Inspection Department will also let go of our hands…” even if they drank cold water, their chests only felt stuffy as if they had indigestion.

“Moreover, since that Eldest Young Master has already built up a force inside the Elders' Hall like that, there is no room to do anything at the level of the Elders' Hall…” even if they loosened their collars, it felt like their windpipes were being choked.

“We are truly besieged on all sides…” under such a shocking appearance of the Eldest Young Master's faction, the other Yeon clan blood relative elders had no room to pay attention to the elder who arrived late.

“I merely gave you all a little bit of courage.”

“No, Eldest Young Master…!”

At the warm and friendly atmosphere that the Eldest Young Master's faction on the opposite side was openly flaunting the Yeon clan blood relative elders ground their teeth.

“What an eyesore…” one of them clicked his tongue loudly so that they could hear, but the elders of the Eldest Young Master's faction did not even pretend to hear.

“Those who are barely fit to be called elders are putting on quite a show.”

“Anyone would think they met the first generation patriarch.”

“Praise should also be within limits. Do they not know shame?”

“And once three tenths of the invalid votes were gathered like that…!”

“The ten percent of the people whom the Eldest Young Master had secured through 'political deals' saw a chance of winning…!”

“And they added another ten percent of invalid votes in the following revote…!”

“…Damn it.”

However badmouthing with such twisted minds was only possible for those who had a minimum level of leeway.

“…….”

“…….”

Blood-red, bloodshot eyes.

Someone was biting their fingernails, not even knowing they were bleeding and someone was shaking their legs so much that the desk vibrated.

“…Tsk.”

One of the Yeon clan blood relative elders who glanced at that sight clicked his tongue.

Those were, even among the elders of the same Yeon bloodline the ones who were openly entangled with the Deputy Director of the Bank.

By the result of this matter, they were bound to take a direct hit right now.

Since he could well guess their feelings, their behavior was not entirely incomprehensible either.

“Although it is regrettable that things turned out this way…” as the bloodshot eyes turned to him one by one, he avoided their gaze and continued what he had to say.

“Since we have helped as much as we could, you all should also take care during the upcoming investigation process so that no damage comes to us.”

'We' and 'you all.'

As soon as the work went awry, it was an expression that openly drew a line.

“……!”

“……!”

When the Yeon clan blood relative elders, who were stabbed in the back by their ally, glared with wide eyes and trembled all over as they looked in his direction “Although I understand your feelings…” like that, while everyone avoided their gaze, they said what they had to say.

“Apart from understanding, what needs to be said must be said…” other Yeon clan blood relative elders, just like the one who drew the line first, spoke.

“We must prevent our entire Yeon bloodline from collapsing due to this matter, should we not?”

“It means now is the time for everyone to seek their own survival.”

“The blood relatives outside the Elders' Hall must have also reached the same conclusion.”

“…You bastards!”

As the Yeon clan blood relative elder who was abandoned in an instant sprang up, one of the elders who was avoiding his gaze turned back to him with a sharp look.

“Why are you so angry at us?”

“If you were in our situation, would you not have acted exactly the same as us?”

“……!”

Anger welled up uncontrollably, but he was speechless at the words that hit the mark too precisely.

Or rather, was it because he was speechless that his anger flared up even more?

“Even so, the Deputy Director of the Bank. Since that guy also has family to think of, he won't open his mouth easily.”

“So do not think it is the end,” giving the disease, then offering the medicine.

“We will also take necessary measures as much as possible.”

But since they had to grasp even a rotten rope in this situation “…I ask you to—” at the moment when he tried to swallow his humiliation and bow his head, the Yeon clan blood relative elders looked at the owner of that voice.

“It is already too late.”

“Did I not say there is a disaster?”

The one who had arrived late and made a fuss sat down heavily on a chair and spoke with all strength drained.

“They say there was a secret ledger in the possession of the arrested Deputy Director of the Bank, and the Law Enforcement Court obtained that ledger.”

“……!”

The last even the rotten rope had snapped.

“The results of the third vote on the no-confidence motion against the Bank Director of the Sword Family Bank: twenty votes in favor of no-confidence, ten invalid votes, eighty against. Therefore…!”

From afar came the voice of Elder Hwangmok, who was in charge of the proceedings.

“Therefore, the motion of no-confidence against the Bank Director has ultimately been rejected…!”

Along with the voice announcing that result “I heard that also had the touch of that bastard of an Eldest Young Master. It is unfortunate, but…” the voice of the Yeon clan blood relative elder who joined late to bring the information overlapped.

“…You all are finished now.”

At that moment, the thread of reason also snapped.

“Yeon—So--hyeon--!”

* * *

Thirty paces.

It was not so rare for someone who suffered a painful defeat in the Elders' Hall to scream.

And because of that the moment when they noticed that the absurd act of using force was taking place, one of the Yeon clan blood relative elders had already closed the distance to thirty paces from the Eldest Young Master.

“You bastard—!”

“……!”

“……!”

It was hard to know exactly who reacted first, but the Sword Peak Splitting Mountain, who had been tempered and tempered on the battlefield.

“Eldest Young Master…!”

Elder Yeom reflexively circulated his internal energy and threw his body to block the path of the Yeon clan blood relative elder heading toward the Eldest Young Master.

“This crazy bastard…!”

And one more person.

The Little Giant.

Since that name was by no means an empty title the Lord of the Elders' Hall, who was standing on the central platform of the Grand Hall, was furious, and along with a roar, he raised both hands, circulating his internal energy in an instant.

Twenty paces.

“……!”

“……!”

Even among the elders who had no internal energy in that brief moment when those who were at least looking toward the center grasped the situation, at the reaction of the internal energy that was forced up too suddenly, the blood vessels throughout Elder Yeom's body stood out like earthworms, and the capillaries in his two eyes bled from the pressure.

“Keup…!”

Suppressing the pain that felt like his whole body was burning, his hand reflexively reached for his back, but this was the Elders' Hall.

“……!”

Since his beloved giant sword was not on his back, instead, he immediately clenched his fists like pot lids.

“Heeup—!”

“Die—!”

Remaining distance, ten paces.

A storm-like qi wave swept from the central platform of the Grand Hall, and at the moment when Elder Hwangmok and others, who were standing near the central platform, were pushed back and tumbled by that qi wave, instead of rushing toward the charging Yeon clan blood relative elder, the Lord of the Elders' Hall threw his body toward Yeon So-hyeon to block his front, skillfully buying time to circulate his internal energy.

“Whoops—!”

*Flash.* gathering a fearsome energy in his double palms, the Lord of the Elders' Hall had already soared into the air.

'The lack of speed in circulating internal energy is compensated for by securing distance…!'

“Halt—!”

His double sleeves burst and fluttered, and blue lightning trailed long in his two eyes.

Ultimate Secret.

Double Thunders of the Moving Wheel.

Apex Phoenix Interception.

And elder Yeom, who glared with eyes like a tiger, also succeeded in concentrating his body's qi into his fist in just half a breath.

The exclusive martial art of the Sword Peak Splitting Mountain.

Super-Heavy Fist Stance mountain-Splitting Force.

“…Heok!”

“…Kuh!”

With him as the center, the stone tiles of the floor cracked in all directions, and the surrounding elders knelt down under that mountain-like pressure.

“Guaaaaak—!”

Mutual destruction.

Circulating even his True Origin Qi, the distance between the Yeon clan blood relative elder, who was practically launching a suicide attack, and the Eldest Young Master was now, just five paces.

'Never, I won't be late—!'

'—!'

The concentration of the two martial artists who had circulated their internal energy to the limit at that moment when they reached the wall of time where everything seemed to flow slowly, there was someone who leisurely brushed past the two of them, and that appearance was the movement of a great Peng roaming the blue sky, indifferent to the salmon struggling in the waterfall of a rough valley.

“……!”

“……!”

'Eldest Young—' in that wall of time where everything had slowed down, the figure of the Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon moved lightly on his own as if there were no restrictions, passing them.

'—Master?!'

And at the moment when the eyes of the Lord of the Elders' Hall and Elder Yeom widened in shock, the toe of Yeon So-hyeon's foot stepped lightly on the ground.

*Tup.* it felt like such a sound was heard.

And centering on that lightly stepped toe without any loud roar, and without even a speck of dust fluttering, the marble floor of the Grand Hall swirled and sank.

'That stamping foot is—?!'

The Lord of the Elders' Hall and Elder Yeom immediately recognized that infinitely characteristic stamping foot.

'The Grand Patriarch's—?!'

And as if chasing the internal energy that rose along Yeon So-hyeon's body due to the stamping foot, the eyes of the two masters reflexively looked at his hand, which was the destination of that internal energy.

'That is—?!'

Clenching his fist as if holding a sword, and extending only his index and middle fingers straight like a sword.

'—The Sword Secret Finger!'

Originally, even if the Sword Secret Finger was a part of sword techniques, it was merely an auxiliary means of the main sword, after all but at this moment Yeon So-hyeon's Sword Secret Finger was like a sealed treasured sword being unsheathed, and its sharp qi seemed to slice even the air, making it sting.

At least for that moment, everyone in that place looked only at the Eldest Young Master's Sword Secret Finger, as if possessed by sorcery.

However, no one in the Grand Hall, no warrior, not even the one with the best eyesight, could capture the moment Yeon So-hyeon's Sword Secret Finger moved.

“……!”

“……!”

“Ah…!”

An exclamation burst from someone's mouth at an instinctive regret that could not be explained precisely and when everyone who was looking at Yeon So-hyeon as if possessed by that exclamation came to their senses, late, while the blood of the Yeon clan blood relative elder was scattered everywhere in the air like a misty rain, similarly late, the identity of that single strike leaked out from the mouths of those who recognized that martial art like a groan.

*Puh-wak—!* the body of the rushing Yeon clan blood relative elder was divided in two from left to right in mid-air just like that, and passing Yeon So-hyeon on both sides with that momentum, the left and right halves crashed and crumpled miserably.

“……!”

“……!”

“…That is the Grand Patriarch's renowned unique skill.”

“Life Ending…!”

Whether they were born with the talent of internal energy or were not from a martial background who among those who rose to the rank of elder in this Luoyang Sword Family would dare not recognize that single strike?

“Huu…” as Yeon So-hyeon controlled his long breath amidst the shock where ten thousand emotions crossed,

*Crack, crackle.* only then, starting from the trace of Yeon So-hyeon's stamping foot, a crack that ran along the floor scraped past the wall in the distance, reaching the high ceiling of the Grand Hall.

*Pitter-patter.* even while being covered in the soil and dust falling from the cracks in the ceiling, at this moment, no one dared to open their mouth.

“…….”

“…….”