Throughout the history of the Martial Alliance's selection examinations, the Nangong family had produced more first-place candidates than any other family.
Known as the foremost of the Five Great Families, the Nangong family had earned that distinction for good reason. Its young martial artists were trained to an extraordinary level of proficiency before they were ever permitted to enter the martial world.
Moreover, this year's examination had been attended by none other than the family's eldest son, the man destined to become its next head.
Naturally, the Nangong family had taken first place for granted.
The only question had been how overwhelming their margin of victory would be.
And yet, some strange fellow had appeared out of nowhere and claimed the top position.
Cheon Woojin...
A fierce light burned in Nangong Jin's eyes.
That was the name of the man who had taken first place and caused such an uproar throughout the Martial Alliance.
Thanks to him, Nangong Jin could barely show his face before the representatives of the great families residing within the Alliance. The elders of his own family were particularly unforgiving, openly clicking their tongues whenever they saw him.
To the Nangong family, second place was no honor.
It was a humiliation so profound that they could scarcely hold their heads high.
And now, with a single remark from Nangong Jin, the atmosphere among the successful applicants had changed.
Everyone had been harboring complaints about the delay, but none had dared voice them openly. Now that the young master of the Nangong family had taken the initiative, however, their dissatisfaction found an outlet.
An unspoken pressure settled over the gathering, demanding that Cheon Woojin and Song Yiyeon apologize.
"Ahem. The instructions about the orientation weren't properly conveyed to us..."
"Spoken like a true merchant."
Nangong Jin cut off Song Yiyeon's awkward explanation without hesitation.
"Song Yiyeon, this is the Martial Alliance, not that rice shop of yours. There is an etiquette that martial artists are expected to observe. A proper martial artist apologizes when he has done wrong. If he refuses to admit his fault, then he draws his sword. He doesn't stand there making excuses like some merchant."
Song Yiyeon's expression twisted.
He and Nangong Jin were already acquainted.
The Anhui Song family and the Nangong family had maintained relations for many years. Both were based in the same region, though one was a merchant family and the other a prestigious martial clan.
Unfortunately, the martial world had a strong tendency to look down upon merchant families.
And because the Nangong family's influence was so overwhelming, an invisible hierarchy had always existed between the two households.
"A rice shop? That's going a little too far."
Song Yiyeon's voice dropped slightly.
Nangong Jin merely smirked.
"Are you ashamed of your family's business? What's wrong with starting as a little rice shop and building the Anhui Song family into such a wealthy household? It's quite an accomplishment. Even the Nangong family holds Family Head Song's business abilities in high regard."
Of course, there was not the slightest trace of genuine respect in Nangong Jin's tone.
If anything, his words only served to emphasize the vast difference in standing between the Nangong family and the Anhui Song family.
Song Yiyeon pressed his lips together.
He was not a man who easily lost his nerve, even in difficult circumstances.
However, the image of the Nangong family that had been ingrained in him since childhood was not something he could simply dismiss.
He remembered a warning he had heard countless times.
"Yiyeon, when you venture into the martial world, there are two groups you must never get involved with: the demons of the Heavenly Demon Cult and the martial artists of the Nangong family."
Within Anhui, the Nangong family's influence was so immense that people spoke of it in the same breath as the Demonic Cult, which inspired fear throughout the world.
Merchants, entertainers, farmers, courtesans, shop assistants—even government soldiers who received their wages from the imperial court.
Anyone who wished to eat, sleep, conduct business, or simply go about their daily life in Anhui had to remain mindful of the Nangong family.
And so, while Song Yiyeon struggled to suppress the anger boiling inside him—
"You're taking your anger out on the wrong person."
"What did you say?"
Nangong Jin's blade-sharp gaze immediately swung toward Cheon Woojin.
Most young martial artists would have been overwhelmed by Nangong Jin's formidable presence and prestigious background. Simply meeting his eyes would have been difficult, let alone confronting him directly.
Cheon Woojin, however, was nothing like them.
He merely wore an odd little smile.
Although that smile was clearly provoking Nangong Jin's anger, Woojin seemed completely unconcerned.
Neither prestigious lineage nor martial prowess could intimidate him in the slightest.
After all, he had been raised by two masters whose attitudes toward such things were decidedly unusual.
"Woojin, if you ever meet a martial artist from the Nangong family, smash his head before he has a chance to open his mouth. Whatever comes out of it is bound to be infuriating."
Black Master had despised the Orthodox Path, the Black Path, and the demonic path in equal measure.
Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that he simply hated humanity itself.
White Master, on the other hand, had been the sort of person who tried to find something admirable in even the most despicable villain, no matter how much effort it required.
And yet, even White Master's assessment of the Nangong family had been rather unflattering.
"Black Master is only half right. It's true that the youngsters of the Nangong family can be rather sharp-tongued, but if you go around smashing their heads without a second thought, what does that make you other than a bloodthirsty demon?"
"You're saying that for my benefit, aren't you?"
Naturally, conversations between the two masters tended to end with them grabbing each other by the collar.
In any case, if even White Master had spoken of the Nangong family that way, their members must generally have been rather unpleasant people.
Now that I've finally come down into the martial world, I can see that my masters weren't wrong about these things at all.
Seeing with his own eyes the world he had previously known only through their stories, experiencing its sights and sensations firsthand...
It was all tremendously enjoyable.
While Cheon Woojin was happily absorbed in those thoughts, paying scarcely any attention to Nangong Jin, the thoroughly enraged young man strode toward him.
His approach was deliberately intimidating.
Yet Woojin did not so much as reach for the Crescent Moon Staff strapped to his back.
Nangong Jin stopped before him and spoke in a low voice.
"Young Hero Cheon, what exactly are you finding so amusing?"
His tone was considerably calmer than Woojin had expected.
That, too, struck Woojin as interesting.
When dealing with Song Yiyeon, whose background and martial abilities Nangong Jin clearly considered inferior to his own, he had been openly condescending and dismissive.
Yet when facing Woojin, he displayed at least a measure of courtesy.
Furthermore, unlike Gu Jinseok, he had not made the foolish mistake of losing control of his emotions and needlessly circulating his Internal Energy.
Outwardly, Nangong Jin appeared to be a man who allowed his temper to dictate his actions.
Beneath that appearance, however, his mind was constantly calculating.
Cheon Woojin smiled gently.
"Everything is enjoyable. I've spent my entire life living in the mountains, and now I've finally come down into the world. The tall pavilions I could never see up there, even a passing breeze carrying all sorts of unfamiliar scents... I find all of it fascinating."
"..."
"And I apologize for unintentionally keeping everyone waiting. To you, Young Hero Nangong, and to all the young heroes and young ladies behind you."
Woojin paused briefly.
"However, if you continue insulting my friend and me, I won't simply stand by and do nothing."
He continued looking at Nangong Jin with that same peculiar smile.
But the instant their eyes met, a chill ran down Nangong Jin's spine.
What kind of eyes are those...?
An old memory suddenly surfaced.
When Nangong Jin was young, he had once accompanied several family elders on a hunting expedition.
They had spent the day shooting deer and wild boars with their bows.
Then, unexpectedly, they encountered a tiger.
Of course, the hunting party consisted of martial artists rather than ordinary people.
And not just any martial artists, but accomplished masters of the Nangong family.
Naturally, none of them had been frightened.
None except one.
The young Nangong Jin.
The tiger's eyes had been unlike anything he had ever seen.
Its enormous pupils seemed capable of swallowing his tiny body whole.
Even after the elders struck it with their swords and pierced it with arrows, even as it released its final roar amid clouds of white breath, the light in its eyes had never faltered.
Not for an instant.
And now, looking into Cheon Woojin's eyes, Nangong Jin saw the very same gaze he had long since forgotten.
The eyes of a predator.
Of course, what constituted a predator depended entirely on one's circumstances.
To a rabbit, a fox was a predator.
To a fox, a tiger.
And to a tiger, a spiritual beast that had lived for hundreds of years might be the predator it feared.
Nangong Jin himself would undoubtedly be a predator in someone else's eyes.
Yet throughout his entire life, he had experienced this particular sensation only three times.
The first had been when he encountered that enormous tiger as a child.
The second had been when he saw Martial Alliance Leader Beili Tian from a distance after entering the Alliance.
And the third had been when he stood before the head of the Nangong family, the man the martial world called the Sword King.
In other words, his own father.
A hollow laugh escaped Nangong Jin's lips.
That idiot Gu Jinseok actually picked a fight with someone like this?
Well, it was hardly surprising.
Gu Jinseok had never possessed the discernment necessary to recognize such things.
Nangong Jin, however, was different.
Born and raised as the eldest son of the Nangong family, he had spent his entire life surrounded by masters whose very names could shake the martial world.
It was only natural that he had developed an exceptionally keen eye for martial prowess.
The Gu family might have accumulated a fair number of powerful martial artists in recent years, but how could they possibly compare with the Nangong family?
After staring at Cheon Woojin for some time, Nangong Jin suddenly realized something.
He had been holding his breath.
Without even noticing.
He slowly exhaled.
Then his gaze shifted toward Song Yiyeon, standing beside Woojin.
"Unlike you, your friend is unquestionably a martial artist."
With those words, Nangong Jin gave a faint smirk and returned to his place.
Cheon Woojin clicked his tongue.
"Did I interfere unnecessarily?"
"Of course not. You've made me admire you all over again, Young Hero. Ah, naturally, I mean as one person admiring another."
Song Yiyeon hurriedly added the clarification.
Despite his joking tone, however, he could not quite erase the bitterness lingering around his mouth.
As the son of a merchant family, this was the sort of treatment he would have to endure throughout his life in the martial world.
Unless I become strong enough that I no longer have to endure it.
Song Yiyeon glanced at Cheon Woojin beside him.
He knew nothing about Woojin's martial lineage.
He did not know which school he belonged to or what martial arts he had learned.
In other words, Woojin possessed none of the verified legitimacy that the Orthodox Path considered so important.
And yet, no one dared look down on him.
The reason was perfectly obvious.
...Because he's strong.
This was a rising talent who had single-handedly destroyed the formidable West Heaven Society.
Who in the world would dare disregard such a monster?
Watching even the mighty Nangong Jin retreat with his tail between his legs had once again driven home just how important martial strength was in the martial world.
As Zhuge Lin continued guiding the newly admitted members, Song Yiyeon's gaze remained fixed on Nangong Jin's back.
I don't know about anyone else, but I'll definitely surpass Nangong Jin.
It was a familiar ambition among martial artists born and raised in Anhui.
While Song Yiyeon continued staring at Nangong Jin, Cheon Woojin studied his friend's expression.
And once again, he remembered the contrasting teachings of his two masters.
"A martial artist's goal should never end with merely becoming stronger. That is why setting your sights solely on surpassing someone, or seeking revenge, can be so dangerous."
"Nonsense. For a martial artist, strength is everything."
Remembering their opposing opinions at the same time, Cheon Woojin thought for a moment.
Then he simply shook his head.
This is Young Hero Song's own affair.
Stepping forward to offer unsolicited advice would be presumptuous.
It would be little more than meddling.
And above all—
Young Hero Song's martial abilities are already no worse than Nangong Jin's.
Of all the martial artists Cheon Woojin had encountered since descending into the martial world, Song Yiyeon possessed some of the most extraordinary talent he had seen.
The problem was that the enormous shadow cast by the Nangong family had taken root deep within Song Yiyeon's heart.
It made him shrink back without even realizing it.
In Woojin's opinion, the person Song Yiyeon truly needed to overcome was not Nangong Jin.
It was the limit he had unconsciously imposed upon himself.
If he failed to overcome that limitation, the gap between him and Nangong Jin would only continue to widen.
But this was not something he could resolve merely by listening to another person's advice.
He would have to recognize it for himself.
"Young Hero Song."
"..."
Song Yiyeon was so deeply absorbed in thought, his gaze still following Nangong Jin's back, that he did not even respond.
Woojin called him again.
Only then did Song Yiyeon shake himself free of his thoughts and turn toward him with wide eyes.
"What is it?"
"We're all just people. Me, you, and Young Hero Nangong over there."
Woojin could not bring his friend to that realization for him.
But what he had just said was not intended as advice.
It was simply a little comfort offered by one friend to another, rather than one martial artist to another.
Song Yiyeon looked at Cheon Woojin in surprise.
Then he glanced once more at Nangong Jin's retreating back.
"You're right. Just because he has Nangong family blood flowing through his veins doesn't mean a sword won't pierce his body."
Song Yiyeon nodded, a peculiar expression on his face.
One of the young martial artists walking ahead of them suddenly turned around with a startled look.
Song Yiyeon caught his reaction and grinned.
"I'm joking."
"W-what are you talking about? I didn't hear anything!"
The young martial artist shook his head vigorously, looking as though he desperately wished he could wash his ears clean with water.
"Primordial Heaven-Honored One..."
He was Jin Yun of the Mount Hua Sect.
Having placed fifth after Gu Jinseok's disqualification, Jin Yun had joined the Heavenly Tiger Unit.
And if there was one thing he absolutely wanted to avoid, it was becoming entangled in the political quarrels of his fellow young martial artists.