CLS-Chapter 268

Chapter 268

“Hmm, interesting.”

Cheongyeongja watched the dueling platform with tense eyes.

‘What am I getting so nervous about?’

Cheongyeongja chuckled softly.

He thought that having lived long enough, he wouldn’t get worked up over such things, but it seemed the spirit of competition still lived within his heart.

His chest was pounding even over a match that had nothing to do with Mount Hua.

‘Perhaps it’s precisely because it has nothing to do with Mount Hua.’

If the person standing there had been a disciple of Mount Hua or Wei Yan-ho, Cheongyeongja wouldn’t have been able to enjoy the match like this. If a child of Mount Hua had made it to the finals, he would have desperately wished for victory, and if Wei Yan-ho had been in that position, he would have had to worry about the changes that would come with seizing the title of the world’s greatest young master.

But the match before his eyes was different.

Though it was a peculiar situation, this final match, despite being the championship, wouldn’t greatly affect the power balance of the world. The glory that the winner of this tournament should have claimed had already been completely swept away by Wei Yan-ho.

So there was no burden.

What remained was a purely fundamental question.

‘Which of the two is stronger?’—that was the doubt.

As if everyone else had similar thoughts, the upper seats were buzzing with activity for the first time in a while.

“Who do you think will win?”

“Well, at that level, wouldn’t it come down to the luck of the day?”

“Still, it has to be Wei San-ho, doesn’t it? White Sword Shadow may have had some reputation in the past, but can he really handle the current Wei San-ho? It’s not uncommon for those who were famous as prodigies in their youth to disappear without a trace.”

“That’s a different case from this one. If White Sword Shadow had no achievements, that would be one thing, but didn’t he make it to the finals? All overwhelming victories too. We should consider that the White Sword Shadow of the past has built up his skills. In that case, wouldn’t even Wei San-ho have some difficulty?”

“Wei San-ho also had overwhelming victories. Except for Wei Yan-ho, no one properly withstood even three seconds of Wei San-ho’s attacks.”

The people in the upper seats began a heated debate.

‘No wonder.’

Cheongyeongja smiled contentedly as he watched the crowd’s discussion.

In truth, he couldn’t really guess who would win between Wei San-ho and White Sword Shadow either. Even for those like them who had reached a level where they could roughly estimate martial prowess just from outward appearance, White Sword Shadow and Wei San-ho had already surpassed their ability to judge.

So it couldn’t help but be interesting.

“What do you think, Sect Leader?”

“Hmm…”

At the sudden question directed at him, Cheongyeongja furrowed his brow.

“Personally, I think Wei San-ho might have a slight edge.”

“What’s your reason?”

“Real combat experience.”

Cheongyeongja looked around. Everyone was staring at him with curious faces.

“I believe White Sword Shadow’s talent is not inferior to Wei San-ho’s. Before Wei San-ho rose to fame, White Sword Shadow also received similar treatment. However, there were some unclear aspects to his actual ability. While Wei San-ho clearly stood out compared to his peers, White Sword Shadow received such evaluation based only on a few anecdotes and achievements.”

“That’s certainly true.”

“Even if White Sword Shadow has equal skill to Wei San-ho, there would have been differences in their rate of development. Wei San-ho has experienced countless real battles over the past few years. Doesn’t his nickname ‘Demon-Slaying Sword’ say it all? Having experienced many life-and-death battles with real swords, I’d like to give my support to Wei San-ho.”

“Hmm.”

At that moment, someone raised their hand.

“Instead of just talking, how about we place a little wager?”

“A wager?”

Cheongyeongja’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Now, now, calm down. I don’t mean betting money, just buying drinks at the after-party.”

“Oh?”

People began to show interest.

“Originally, these kinds of matches are more fun to watch when there’s a wager involved.”

“That’s true, but…”

The crowd began exchanging subtle glances. If this had been a private gathering, betting would have already begun, but being a public occasion, they couldn’t help but be mindful of appearances.

If this had been an ordinary final, such talk wouldn’t have come up, but since this final didn’t have much at stake, their hearts had grown a bit lighter.

“If it’s just the cost of drinks…”

“The amount isn’t what’s important.”

“With so many people, it would be awkward for the losing side to split the drink costs. Then how about just one nyang each?”

“Hmm…”

Cheongyeongja nodded.

“Well, what problem could there be with that amount?”

“Hahaha! You’re truly generous.”

“So where will you place your bet?”

Cheongyeongja pulled out a silver nyang from his chest and placed it on the table.

“I’ll bet on Wei San-ho.”

“Then I will too.”

“Me too!”

Silver coins poured out in a rush. Those who didn’t have money on hand borrowed from their neighbors to bet.

But when the results came out, everyone began to panic.

“…Did everyone bet on Wei San-ho?”

“This won’t work as a wager, will it?”

There were nearly twenty people in the upper seats, but not a single one had bet money on White Sword Shadow.

The crowd began clicking their tongues.

“It seems you all see a significant gap between Wei San-ho and White Sword Shadow.”

“Well, achievements are rather…”

“Tsk, this is unavoidable. We’ll have to take our money back…”

Thunk!

At that moment, something dropped onto the table.

“Huh?”

A gold coin.

A nyang of gold gleaming yellow and radiating its majesty had landed on the table. When they turned to find who had thrown the money, their eyes widened.

“Then I’ll bet on the opposite side.”

The one who had thrown the money was Wei Yan-ho.

“…You’re betting on White Sword Shadow?”

While it should have been proper to first discuss whether Wei Yan-ho was qualified to participate in this wager, the amount of money Wei Yan-ho had put down and the fact that he had bet on White Sword Shadow made them forget that procedure.

“Let me ask again. You’re betting on White Sword Shadow, not Wei San-ho?”

“If I bet on my brother, there wouldn’t be a wager.”

“…A whole gold nyang?”

“Well, yes… I’d like to put in just twenty nyang to match your side, but I don’t have small change right now.”

“Wow.”

The crowd began to tremble at his audacity in throwing down gold because he had no small change.

‘There should be limits to throwing money around.’

‘I heard that guy made a fortune.’

‘Come to think of it, our sect also contributed money to that guy.’

The faces of those who thought he might become the greatest tycoon in the Central Plains showed traces of spite.

Regardless of era or situation, when a cousin buys land, the stomach aches.

“Then, how will this be distributed? To divide one gold nyang…”

“Well, for now, each person taking five nyang wouldn’t be a problem.”

As the crowd mumbled, Wei Yan-ho shrugged.

“If you want to bet more, you can bet more. Then whoever bets more will take more.”

“W-wait a moment!”

Someone pulled out several more silver coins from their chest.

“Can we bet more?”

“Th-this will get too complicated!”

“Then let’s appoint a treasurer! Someone bring paper, brush, and ink!”

Watching the upper seats suddenly thrown into chaos, Cheongyeongja looked at Wei Yan-ho with a bewildered expression.

‘How does everything that guy touches turn into such a big deal?’

It was truly a remarkable talent.

It took quite a while for the situation to be sorted out. With everyone competitively putting in money, they eventually exceeded the amount Wei Yan-ho had bet. This dilemma was resolved when Wei Yan-ho threw in another gold nyang.

After several similar incidents, the result was a massive gambling ring worth over ten gold nyang.

Everyone kept raising the stakes, causing the situation to overheat in an instant.

The decisive blow was Wei Yan-ho’s comment: ‘I’ll lend you the money you’re short.’

If they had only bet the money they had, it wouldn’t have come to this, but Wei Yan-ho, having already grasped the human tendency to gamble even with borrowed money, skillfully talked them into expanding the stakes.

The thought ‘Is this really okay?’ came belatedly, but the situation had already transformed from a light wager over drinks into a secret high-stakes gambling ring among the upper class that would be troublesome if discovered.

“The stakes seem to have gotten too big…”

“Then drop out.”

“Wh-who said anything about dropping out?”

Cheongyeongja sighed deeply. He thought about whether he should step forward and stop this even now…

‘What do I care?’

After all, these were people he’d be unlikely to see again after today. It would be burdensome to say unpleasant things to such people.

But what Cheongyeongja was truly curious about was something else.

“But you…”

“Yes?”

“It seems you’ve bet about five nyang?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Will you be alright? Losing that would be quite a blow, wouldn’t it?”

“No, I still have plenty of money. There’s also the money the elder of Mount Hua gave me, and such.”

For a moment, Cheongyeongja’s body swayed.

‘That money was mine.’

It was money he had painstakingly saved, going without food and economizing on necessities. How proud he had felt every time he saw the golden coins gleaming in the treasury.

Naturally, it wasn’t money he had saved for personal use. Thinking that the money he had saved to repair old halls and promote Mount Hua’s development was now rolling around in a gambling ring made him feel like shedding tears of blood.

“…R-right. Still, it’s quite a large sum.”

“I’m going to win anyway, so what does it matter?”

“Hm?”

Cheongyeongja’s eyes wavered slightly.

“Are you saying that White Sword Shadow will defeat Wei San-ho?”

“That’s how it will turn out.”

“…Why? Don’t you know your brother’s abilities better than anyone?”

“I know them well.”

“Yet you’re still saying White Sword Shadow will win?”

The crowd held their breath and waited for Wei Yan-ho’s answer. They hadn’t thought about it seriously, but at this point, they became curious about why Wei Yan-ho had bet on White Sword Shadow.

“Just based on what we can see, my brother would win.”

“Mm…”

“That guy did come up somewhat easily, but compared to what my brother showed, he’s truly at least one level behind.”

“That’s right.”

Wasn’t that why everyone had bet on Wei San-ho despite saying they couldn’t tell?

“But that guy is rather cunning.”

“Cunning?”

Wei Yan-ho nodded.

“That fatty’s hobby is deceiving people, so he doesn’t show everything he has. If he reveals his true abilities, even my brother would find it difficult to handle him. There might not be any variables, but the fact remains that the fatty is strong.”

‘Fatty?’

Cheongyeongja looked around the dueling platform.

Both had bodies that could be called perfect for martial artists, so who on earth was the fatty?

“Fatty?”

“…Yes. That fatty.”

When Wei Yan-ho pointed at White Sword Shadow, Cheongyeongja tilted his head.

“What are you talking about? Fatty?”

“There’s such a thing.”

“…”

Taking his gaze away from Cheongyeongja, who was tilting his head in incomprehension, Wei Yan-ho looked at White Sword Shadow and grinned.

‘It seems he’s released the Bone-Shrinking Technique.’

The appearance when he was a sweating fatty had been amusing, but seeing him appear with such a dignified bearing made it less fun. Having released the martial power suppressed by the Bone-Shrinking Technique, he had probably become several times stronger.

‘Can my brother handle that?’

Wei Yan-ho’s eyes also grew slightly serious.