Chapter 147

After playing around and hugging for a while, I put Sososo down.

Sososo didn’t dislike it, no, she actually liked it… but she was still embarrassed, her cheeks flushed red as she pouted and her lips twitched.

“Really… Young Master Sima, sometimes you’re just too mischievous.”

But I wasn’t embarrassed at all.

“But it was nice, right? How do I know? Because I liked it too.”

I’m not a man who’s stingy with affection.

Especially with Sososo, there was a certain charm in lifting her up and hugging her. It was perfectly optimized.

I felt like periodically picking her up and showering her with affection.

And at Mantian’s shameless smile, Sososo also smiled with a hint of joy.

“Hoho~ You’re impossible.”

For Sososo, who had been tormented by the internal politics of the Namgung Family and the revenge against her parents’ enemy, Wuji Wudi, these peaceful daily moments with Mantian were an irreplaceable treasure.

As we chatted about this and that, a warm atmosphere continued.

“But how did you learn the Moon Goddess Sword Technique?”

I asked about the high-level Moon Goddess Sword Technique that had been displayed earlier. It wasn’t a level one could reach with just a day or two of practice.

“It’s completely different from the martial arts of the Namgung Family.”

“……..”

At my question, a shadow momentarily crossed Sososo’s face, and I quickly backtracked.

“Ah! If it’s difficult to talk about, it’s okay.”

I was just curious and didn’t mean to make Sososo uncomfortable.

After all, even if you asked me where I learned my martial arts, aside from the Jeonjin Sect martial arts I learned from Master Wang Miaoyang, I’d have to make up the rest.

People should stick to the genuine article.

Sososo shook her head slightly and answered with a faint smile.

“No, it’s okay. It just made me think of my mother for a moment.”

“Your mother…?”

Sososo’s father was the former head of the Namgung Family, Namgung Seon, and her mother was Princess Seol Wolha of the North Sea Ice Palace.

“The Moon Goddess Sword Technique is a martial art my mother practiced.”

And together with her husband, she fought to save Sososo from the martial arts world’s enemies.

She was brutally killed in a fight against Wuji Wudi.

***

On the way to our destination, we stopped by a village.

The elder of the Ilwol God Sect, Unmu Yong, wearing a hat to cover his pale skin, passed through the marketplace.

“…Hmm? What’s wrong?”

He stopped and looked at Muming, who was quietly watching a street play.

“Ah, sorry. I was just reminiscing for a moment.”

The infamous martial arts world enemy, Wuji Wudi Muming, smiled awkwardly.

“Once, I almost died to the Moon Goddess Sword Technique.”

The play was about the legendary warrior Yue Nu from the Spring and Autumn period.

Though, since not much is known about her, the story was more like a folk tale.

But what caught Unmu Yong’s attention was the mention of the Moon Goddess Sword Technique.

“…You almost died to the Moon Goddess Sword Technique?”

The Moon Goddess Sword Technique isn’t a weak martial art, but it’s just a fast sword technique. It was hard to believe that a martial artist who had reached the level of invincibility with the Diamond Body could almost die to it.

As if reading Unmu Yong’s thoughts, Muming added an explanation.

“It’s about the compatibility of martial arts. Have you heard of ‘Xishi Holding Her Heart’?”

Xishi, a beauty from the Yue Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn period, had a heart condition and often frowned due to chest pain. Her expression was so beautiful that it became a saying.

“Close to a folk tale, but it’s said that Xishi’s heart condition was caused by Yue Nu’s sword energy.”

A young girl who had mastered the world’s greatest swordsmanship but was still pure.

Having grown up without parents, Yue Nu felt parental affection towards Fan Li, who treated her well, and gradually fell in love with him.

However, Fan Li, worried about his lover Xishi, who had been sent to the Wu Kingdom for a beauty scheme, didn’t notice Yue Nu’s feelings.

As time passed and the Wu Kingdom fell, Xishi returned to the Yue Kingdom.

Yue Nu, wanting to kill Xishi, who had taken Fan Li’s heart, released sword energy with her gaze.

But seeing Fan Li’s happy expression, she couldn’t bring herself to kill Xishi and withdrew her sword energy, disappearing.

It’s said that the cold sword energy Yue Nu released remained in Xishi’s heart, causing her heart condition.

“The fast sword is just a shadow of Yue Nu’s true technique. The true terror of the Moon Goddess Sword Technique is the sword energy released through her gaze.”

Muming recalled the time he killed the former head of the Namgung Family and his wife.

“The former head of the Namgung Family, Namgung Seon, wasn’t weak… but he was just moderately strong. His wife, however, was dangerous.”

The anger of seeing a loved one killed before her eyes, an unexpected awakening.

Who would have thought the combination of the North Sea Ice Palace’s ice arts and the Moon Goddess Sword Technique would recreate a legend.

“That’s why they say a woman with a grudge is terrifying. Right after her husband died, the cold sword energy reached my heart, and I almost died.”

Recalling the chilling event, Muming smiled awkwardly.

“Even if your body is indestructible, your heart isn’t.”

And Unmu Yong glared at Muming with one eye.

“Talking about killing your senior brother in front of your junior sister is already strange enough.”

Namgung Seon was a disciple of Jaro, the leader of the Martial Alliance.

In other words, he was Unmu Yong’s senior brother.

To be precise, since Unmu Yong’s true gender is female, they were senior sister and junior sister, not senior brother and junior sister.

…Whatever. It’s all in the past.

“And seeing the body, you killed him in one strike. Aren’t you just making a fuss?”

At Unmu Yong’s question, Muming shrugged.

“Just because I killed someone in one strike doesn’t mean they were weak. It just means I’m strong.”

With deep, dark eyes, he continued calmly.

“Kill before being killed. That’s what the martial arts world is all about.”

As he spoke, something seemed to occur to him.

Muming’s face showed a bitter smile.

“However… yes, Sososo. I did something unforgivable to Sososo, the child of Namgung Seon and his wife.”

A village famous for its hot springs.

When I saw her at Jeoseokhyeon, she seemed close to Mantian.

The relationships in the martial arts world are truly complicated.

And personally, she was a pitiful child.

Her parents’ enemy wasn’t just me…

The Thunder Emperor, Namgung Cheon. Her grandfather, who ordered her parents’ death, was the mastermind.

Plop- plop-.

Feeling the sensation of moist droplets falling on my head, Muming looked up at the sky.

Dark clouds heavy with rain were gathering.

***

Sososo, looking gloomy, was in front of me.

I lifted her up and showered her with affection.

“Young Master Sima…”

Sososo was flustered as I hugged her again, but she didn’t try to escape.

She didn’t want to let go.

In Mantian’s embrace, she felt warmth.

“……..”

I thought about saying something, but I just closed my mouth.

Instead, I gently held Sososo’s delicate body and stayed by her side.

For a while, we just felt each other’s heartbeats.

Now, it seemed she was feeling better.

“Um… I’m… okay now…”

With a red face, Sososo squirmed in my arms, and I smiled and let her go.

“Ugh… I showed you such an unseemly side.”

Perhaps a little embarrassed at acting spoiled in front of me, who’s younger, Sososo coughed into her fist.

“We’re lovers. You can rely on me more.”

After all, I’m always acting spoiled with Sososo, saying, “Heehee~ Namgung noona~ Feed me~!”

“Lovers… that’s right.”

Like caressing a precious gem, Sososo’s lips twitched as she repeated the sweet and happy words.

“Thank you, Young Master Sima.”

The enemy of her parents, the politics of her family, the fate she was born with. Since childhood, she had grown accustomed to bearing it all alone.

Mantian’s gentle smile and Sososo’s bright smile crossed.

A precious benefactor, a hero, and a beloved lover.

So now…

For a moment, a cold chill lingered in Sososo’s beautiful gray eyes with a hint of jade as she looked at Mantian.

She couldn’t even imagine a world without Mantian.

She wouldn’t just stand by and let such a world come to pass.

She wouldn’t just cry weakly anymore.

Judging that Sososo’s mood had improved, I changed the subject.

Something we had postponed.

A consultation about the Heavenly Thunder Qi and the Pure Hook, one of the Ten Thousand Swords.

***

Moving to Sososo’s room in the Namgung Family’s villa.

“Fortunately, there seems to be no problem with the Pure Hook.”

After examining the blood-red blade of the Pure Hook, Sososo placed it on the table, finding no abnormalities.

“So, can I use it?”

I wondered if I could finally become the owner of a real named weapon, not just a cookie-cutter one like Tagujang.

With expectant eyes, I asked, and Sososo shook her head.

“The Ten Thousand Swords are unique swords that choose their owners. Usually, when you pick one up, if it accepts you as its owner, a voice will echo in your head.”

From the first time I saw it, I thought it was an unusual weapon.

Like the Dragon Flame Sword of the Ten Thousand Swords I saw at Jeoseokhyeon.

Are all the Ten Thousand Swords ego swords with their own consciousness?

“Young Master Sima, if it’s okay with you, could you leave the Pure Hook with me for a while? I’ll look into it further.”

After all, I don’t know much about swords.

In the current situation, it’s just a slightly unusual sword, so I nodded readily.

…And at that moment.

Without any warning, like a bolt of lightning.

Knock- knock-.

As Sososo’s door was knocked on, without waiting for an answer, the door opened, revealing an elderly man with a strong gaze and his hair neatly pulled back.

The Thunder Emperor, Namgung Cheon, Sososo’s grandfather, famous as one of the top ten masters in the martial arts world.

“Hoho~ Excuse me. Our cute Sososo brought a friend.”

Namgung Cheon entered with a plate of fruit in one hand.

“I’ve brought some fruit. Have some.”

His sharp eyes scanned Mantian up and down.