Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time

Chapter 111 – Divine Technique (5)

While Jeong Yeon-shin deflected the sneak attack with a seemingly casual move, the other two geniuses of the Return Wing Corps moved with equally swift speed.

Whoosh―

Namgung Hwa-shin and Lazy Flame Dragon’s forms scattered like extinguishing flames.

In that instant, they closed the distance while Dragon and Phoenix remained dazed, as though time itself had stretched infinitely.

Swish!

Namgung Hwa-shin drew his sword and held it to Phoenix’s neck.

The White Qilin’s Desolate sword gleaned blue. Azure qi energy coiled up from his body as his expression hardened.

Lazy Flame Dragon placed his hand on Dragon’s nape.

Though no heat emanated from him, the energy quietly churning within testified to the immense power he held.

Their swift, decisive movements made it clear they never considered the possibility of Jeong Yeon-shin being harmed.

Both of them moved with complete confidence, catching the small siblings completely off guard.

“Shall I kill them?”

Lazy Flame Dragon asked, his tone languid.

“Kill? You’ll kill us?”

Dragon responded, his pale, youthful face betraying his fear.

‘Mixed dwarf clan blood?’

Jeong Yeon-shin thought to himself. The assassins’ builds were unusual.

Small people.

Their height barely reached his shoulder.

Their narrow shoulders and small heads matched their petite statues perfectly.

The rumor about the hidden weapons crafted by the Tang Clan’s dwarf craftsmen being close to divine weapons seemed to be more than just hearsay.

When Jeong Yeon-shin remained silent, no one else spoke either. Dragon cried out indignantly.

“That person! That person mentioned thunderclap bombs first! While talking about the Tang Clan! When someone tries to frame our family for treason, how could anyone not get angry? Our main family never violates the Great Ming laws!”

If his words were true, their act of throwing hidden weapons could be considered a moment of mitigated impulse.

After all, if the imperial army rose against them, even the Tang Clan would have to retreat into the mountains, their entire foundation swept away.

“…”

“The flower darts we threw, we barely put any qi in them! We were just trying to subdue first! You—you who blocked them—should know well…!”

Justified words poured out of him without pause, his behavior resembling that of a commoner pleading his case in court.

On the other hand, his childlike appearance, matching his small frame, was unexpected.

“Tang Clan?”

Jeong Yeon-shin asked curtly, already piecing together the puzzle.

“Those are the Dragon Phoenix Twin Poisons.”

Senior Beggar, observing from a distance, nodded, his expression one of slight disbelief.

‘Did he train in hidden weapon techniques?’

He had casually deflected an attack from the Tang Clan’s most talented young elites.

Jeong Yeon-shin’s footwork was nearly divine.

That reflexive precision—more than just martial arts—was a feat impossible without innate talent.

Who could wield internal energy with such mastery?

Even among those who achieved the Three Transformations, only a handful of seasoned supreme masters could attempt such a feat.

‘Though the internal energy realm only affects qi depth and usage speed.’

Other supreme masters would have either dodged with the Body Protection Technique or countered with their swords.

But to kick a stone with such precision to split incoming hidden weapons?

It was a skill—and a sense—of an almost unimaginable degree.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

‘Lightning Genius. I had heard the reports… but indeed, he is someone to watch closely. He must be added to our sect’s roster.’

Currently Upper-Middle, Future Special-Special-Upper.

Senior Beggar evaluated Jeong Yeon-shin’s present and potential future worth.

Even the talent and martial ability shown just now warranted a rank above the realm of young prodigies.

His standing, sect affiliation, and martial lineage made this evaluation subject to change—but it was clear Jeong Yeon-shin was beginning to transcend the limits of his peers.

What else would he reveal? Curiosity mingled with interest as Senior Beggar silently observed.

‘All the fuses of Sichuan’s murim have gathered now. It will explode soon. This seems worth following for a while.’

Amid his musings, Senior Beggar overlooked one thing.

Or rather, he carelessly dismissed it while appraising Desolate Fortress Lightning Genius’ talent.

The Tang Clan would never send just two escorts to accompany the twins regarded as their treasures.

Saa―

Killing intent seeped into the air like a dense mist, its viciousness palpable.

Green-robed warriors emerged from the shadows, exuding honed qi energy.

Among them were sword-wielders, hand-weapon users, and others bearing rows of daggers.

There were only seven of them, but none could be taken lightly.

The lethality of the Tang Clan’s poison techniques had left its mark on martial history many times before.

“Sichuan Tang Clan…!”

The Senior Beggar swallowed hard, realizing he had miscalculated.

“Release them.”

One man stepped forward, large and wielding thick hand weapons. He appeared to be the leader of the Tang Clan warriors.

“If even one hair falls from the young master or miss, you will all die with us.”

Jeong Yeon-shin gleaned the Tang Clan’s essence from those words. Mentioning “hair” revealed their protective nature, while the warning of mutual destruction reflected their grim resolve.

The Tang Clan—or Tang Family, or Tang House—was known by many names in the murim.

They were fearsome and unrelenting.

“Return kindness twofold, grudges tenfold”—this infamous phrase stemmed from their very nature.

Despite the power they faced in reality, their pride elevated their direct lineage siblings above all else.

He had heard much about them, their contradictions birthing a vicious strength.

“Smells as nasty as I heard. My hands are trembling in fear.”

Lazy Flame Dragon smirked faintly.

Heat rose from his fingertips as he lightly stroked Dragon’s nape—a deliberate, provocative threat.

“You b*st*rd!”

The leader shouted and took a step forward. But before he could act—

“Stop.”

It was Phoenix, the small woman held at swordpoint by Namgung Hwa-shin.

She showed no concern for her captured brother beside her.

Her pitch-black eyes locked onto Jeong Yeon-shin, halting the Tang Clan warriors in their tracks.

“I’ll apologize, but I can’t ask forgiveness. About the clan making thunderclap bombs… that’s news to us as well.”

Phoenix of the Dragon Phoenix Twin Poisons spoke softly, her voice carrying clearly despite its whisper-like tone.

“Wouldn’t you have reacted like us? If some stranger you just met muttered words that could lead to your clan’s extinction.”

“Harsh words. Do you know what you’re saying? Our commander faced a similar situation as I. His family is already destroyed too.”

Lazy Flame Dragon replied casually, throwing out the statement. Phoenix’s eyes widened in surprise.

Jeong Yeon-shin glanced blankly at the unnamed disciple who seemed to know everything.

Lazy Flame Dragon’s lips curled slightly.

But when their eyes met, he subtly averted his gaze—a gesture unbefitting the Hwangbo young master known for dominating the Dragon Phoenix Gathering.

“…I apologize for my rash words.”

Phoenix, momentarily flustered, spoke meekly. She even bowed her head, despite Namgung Hwa-shin’s sword still at her neck.

Her graceful demeanor evoked verses from the Book of Songs in the Four Books and Three Classics.

Was this what a well-educated noble lady would look like?

Her apologizing there was also amusing.

Dragon, who looked boyish with dwarf clan blood flowing in him, was the same. They were quite peculiar siblings.

***

Read only at nineheavens.org

Translated by Nine Heavens!

https://discord.gg/XC9DTsTQ9Z

***

Jeong Yeon-shin slightly furrowed his brow. He felt a strange sense of kinship—not toward Lazy Flame Dragon, but the Tang siblings.

‘What is this?’

He couldn’t tell what the feeling was. The spirit entering and leaving the hundred meeting points in his head seemed to whisper something.

“Commander.”

A clear voice rang out. Namgung Hwa-shin called him calmly.

Their gazes met, heavy with unspoken questions. He seemed to be asking how to handle the siblings.

Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t answer. He just kicked the ground once more.

Thud!

This time, the stones split in two and cut through the air.

With a dull sound, small gasps escaped the siblings’ mouths.

It was because they were lightly struck on the yin intersection point above their dantian and fell.

[TL Note: Yin intersection point—Located on the anterior midline of the abdomen, 1 cun (traditional Chinese measurement unit) below the navel.]

[E/N: 1 cun is about 3.33 cm or 1.31 inches]

It was an acupoint right above the sea of qi point in the dantian, also the intersection point of the three branches of the body’s yin meridians.

Jeong Yeon-shin’s qi, carried by the stones, disrupted their internal energy flow.

It was a technique derived from the Seventh Apostle’s blood acupoint strikes, one that

completely blocked smooth internal energy usage.

“Look at that casual kicking form. I’d really feel bad if I got hit by that.”

Lazy Flame Dragon muttered.

“This way.”

Jeong Yeon-shin calmly gestured. Namgung Hwa-shin and Lazy Flame Dragon pushed the siblings’ backs.

The Tang Clan warriors, who were about to spring forward, froze.

It was due to the formless sword qi that rained down fiercely.

Whoosh!

It was White Qilin Namgung Hwa-shin’s Boundless Sky Sword. Dust rose as the ground was carved with streaks.

“You struck first. Even if you didn’t intend death.”

His tone was stern.

Namgung Hwa-shin had definitely changed. He seemed like he wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone with his supreme sword techniques.

‘I should talk to him when the mission ends.’

Jeong Yeon-shin thought silently as he watched them.

Soon, the four drew closer.

The boy slowly parted his lips, pointing at the hidden weapon marks on the ground.

“The trail of Radiant Demon Wing from our sect was cut off here. And here, aren’t these traces of the Tang Clan’s secret techniques? Tell me what you know.”

He spoke directly, without beating around the bush. Lazy Flame Dragon chimed in.

He seemed to have no hesitation in roughly handling direct descendants of a major sect.

“Don’t try any tricks. You probably haven’t experienced torture by Heat Yang True Qi.”

“…”

“We don’t know exactly either.”

After Phoenix stayed silent for a moment, Dragon opened his mouth.

“We only guessed they were traces of our father’s techniques.”

“The Tang Clan Leader?”

Jeong Yeon-shin asked.

It was well known that the leader and clan head of the Sichuan Tang Clan was wandering the murim.

The story went that he had lost his wife to two of the Thirteen Evil Sects of Sichuan’s murim, but when the Supreme Elder didn’t allow all-out war between sects, he cut ties and left home.

It was a tale of him trying to destroy the major sects alone.

“…The marks that were originally here weren’t ours. They were father’s martial arts. We knew right away when we saw them. Besides us, only our father could practice Myriad Heavens Flower Rain.”

Dragon concluded bitterly. Then Phoenix spoke.

“We quickly erased father’s traces and waited endlessly. In case he might come back.”

“Yes. Without letting our grandfather know.”

“However, we can guess why Desolate Fortress’s Radiant Demon Wing and our father’s paths crossed.”

At Phoenix’s words, Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes flashed.

“Speak.”

Phoenix’s complexion paled under the pressure of his sudden aura. Slowly, she moved her lips.

“Though we don’t know exactly what happened, we heard forces from the Ten Perfections Sect and Pure Demon Alliance among the Thirteen Evil Sects passed through nearby. We can’t rule out the possibility they clashed with Radiant Demon Wing. We think our father might have gotten involved in between…”

“So the Tang Clan Leader might know the full story.”

Namgung Hwa-shin said. Lazy Flame Dragon tilted his head slightly.

“You’re telling us too readily? This doesn’t suit the Tang Clan, said to be the most vicious among righteous sects. What’s your scheme?”

At those words, the Tang siblings’ gazes turned to Jeong Yeon-shin. Phoenix’s lips slowly parted.

“…Because your talent is enough to understand us.”

At the same time, Dragon, standing beside her, started grinning. He was an unpredictable boy.

As if someone had roughly touched his head when young, he suddenly showed a childlike side.

“Everyone else seemed dull, so we became isolated. The whole world started looking easy just to us. When discussing martial arts, we can’t communicate.”

“Though entering Myriad Heavens Flower Rain is merely difficult, you seem like you’d be a good conversation partner. If you just don’t bring up the thunderclap bomb, we don’t know about that.”

Phoenix spoke like a young girl. Her two eyes shone black.

Jeong Yeon-shin stayed silent for a moment before speaking.

“I’ve heard many oral accounts about Myriad Heavens Flower Rain. It’s probably the martial art with the most well-known form. They say hidden weapons fall like rain streams according to the user’s will.”

“Yes, yes!”

Dragon agreed excitedly.

“Taking it literally, I can guess the core principles. It’s just a matter of hidden weapon techniques and internal energy control. Like the supreme realms of Three Transformations and Five Qi

Ancestors. That seems to be the key to martial strength. The verses themselves aren’t difficult.”

“What did you just say…?”

Phoenix trailed off questioningly.

Jeong Yeon-shin bent down and picked up stone pieces.

If you clearly understand the phenomenon, that’s enough.

Swish!

The sound came from his crown. The boy calculated backwards.

Like when he realized such force techniques could exist after seeing Ma Se-in’s strong fist and understood the verses of Eternal Blossom Fist Art.

The current him was incomparable to back then.

As his Hundred Meetings point opened naturally, his upper dantian’s power grew stronger too. It was an ability growing together with Jeong Yeon-shin’s despair.

“From what I’ve heard, isn’t this how you use the internal energy?”

Crack.

The stone pieces crumbled finely in his hand. They were completely infused with Jeong Family Moving Force qi.

Then the stone fragments began to whirl in an orderly manner. It was a small vortex.

“So, how does it look? Am I doing it right?”

The boy said.

The Dragon Phoenix Twin Poisons didn’t answer. Jeong Yeon-shin spoke again.

“I hope we can reach an agreement here. We don’t have much time.”

“…”

“The verses are simple. They just need some technique, but if you can’t understand even after seeing it, I’ll teach you. In exchange, you explain everything about the Tang Clan Leader.”

The two siblings remained silent as if frozen.