Surviving as a Genius on Borrowed Time-Chapter 350: Late but Arriving First (6)

Amidst the chaos, the dozen or so individuals in the hall stirred.

There was not a single person present in the Golden Chamber who was not a master.

The vast hall, filled only with those who commanded the hunting of spirits, had once been the gathering place of the Dragon Slayer Alliance, where leaders of various factions had reigned before the Golden Chamber’s unification.

Each of them gripped their weapons tightly, furrowing their brows in tension.

The sights varied—black harpoons, chain sickles, and curved blades—but all exuded a heavy energy, as if their very presence could tear the ceiling apart. Each of them stood unmoving, their focus so intense it felt like they could break through the very heavens.

“The Tang Clan’s secret technique...?”

“No way!”

“The Lord of the Tang Clan couldn’t possibly have come this far?”

“Where are you looking? Over there, at that person.”

Their voices were swallowed by the cacophony.

At the elevated seats of the hall, the young man standing behind the Master of the Golden Chamber had his hand raised, causing a swirling vortex in the air.

A translucent whirlwind followed his arm, and fragments of the ceiling were torn apart with a tremendous noise as they spiraled into the air. It was unmistakably Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo.

Jeong Yeon-shin had cast it.

The moment Hu Gae mentioned the Lord of the Tang Clan and the Dragon and Phoenix Dual Poison, an insight sparked in his mind, and the vision briefly flashed into reality.

It wasn’t his intention, merely a brief thought that manifested. It was an unconscious action—his mind had briefly passed through the idea, and it had materialized.

The thought that he should stop Hu Gae’s words by destroying the ceiling had resulted in the spectacle. The Threefold Convergence Technique had reached an unexpected level of achievement just before completion.

It was after realizing that the Golden Chamber required a Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo of such mastery.

Meanwhile...

‘Is it really this strong?’

Jeong Yeon-shin was momentarily taken aback. The strength of the Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo had exceeded his expectations.

The energy he had used to cast the Tang Clan’s secret technique wasn’t the intense Moon Wheel Technique, but the internal energy that had been cultivated through his training.

Beneath the frustration, there was ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ concern for his seniors and the knowledge that he should not reveal his identity. It wasn’t a display of strength but a protective instinct.

Naturally, he hadn’t expected the ceiling to come crashing down.

The force of expulsion and suction combined at a speed faster than before, like friction between stones, expanding at an incredible rate.

The force of his body resisting the rebound was nothing compared to what it had been before his transformation.

“Elder! I’ll stop it! I’ll deal with this right now!”

“Don’t be rash. The Master is directly facing this man, and the wind feels good.”

“Why are you laughing?”

“This is Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo. It’s like a lucky fortune rolling in.”

“No, at this rate...”

“Has the Tang Clan been cultivating such a weapon? Looks like it’s from the side branch.”

The murmurs of the younger masters of little experience spread throughout the hall.

Some of the older martial artists and young figures from noble families sat quietly amid the storm, tsking at the younger generation.

“You’ve been neglecting your training. How do you even understand the core of the Thousand-Jin Push?”

“You’d rather hone the mental focus of the Thousand-Jin than explore the mysteries of the convergence.”

“Look at the guy holding the armrest. The disciples of the Golden Sword must be sighing. How does he expect to endure the Celestial Dragon’s Breath?”

The hall beneath the elevated seats was bustling. Everyone from various backgrounds spoke in loud voices, as the Golden Chamber Master sat at the head of the room.

Jeong Yeon-shin’s Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo could shake the foundations of the martial world. He remained unmoved, facing the Master of the Golden Chamber as he held his hand aloft, unyielding.

Under the radiant sunlight streaming down in sharp white rays, the features of the young man stood out.

His angular jaw, finely sculpted, seemed to blend with the sunlight, creating a seamless look. His eyes, deep as an abyss, hinted at the demeanor of a martial artist.

The flawless skin, glowing under the direct sunlight, combined with his high nose, created an almost ethereal impression. He seemed to exist alone in the world.

He was of the perfect age, in the prime of his youth.

The term Ban-Ak (the one who blooms) fit him perfectly. Having grown stronger, this young man had blossomed into his potential, whether by choice or by the inheritance of his family.

The transformation from his youth, described by the elder Ak Su-rim, was stark. He was nothing like the boy he had once been.

Even those with the Tang Clan's lineage and Hu Gae didn’t recognize Jeong Yeon-shin.

The Dragon and Phoenix Dual Poison siblings, sitting across from him, could only look between the roof and Jeong Yeon-shin, bewildered.

“What... is that? That’s him, isn’t it?”

“Sister, was there a hidden child in our family?”

“I don’t know!”

“Toxic Phoenix and Toxic Dragon, don’t play dumb. Is this really the first time you’ve seen him?”

“The Master would indeed take him on as an attendant. That’s not just a face—it’s the gathering of wisdom.”

“I wonder if the Thousand-Dragon Sword style might grow longer...”

The atmosphere beneath the elevated seats was chaotic. Everyone was loudly discussing their thoughts. The Master of the Golden Chamber was present.

Only Jeong Yeon-shin’s intense Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo could shake the strength of the Celestial Dragon’s Breath.

He kept his hand extended and made eye contact with the Master of the Golden Chamber.

Her pale brown eyes shimmered with an overpowering aura, filled with an unnerving intensity.

Despite her delicate appearance, the muscles under her shoulders were hardened like sculpted force.

The way the reddish robe fluttered, subtly but powerfully, in a transcendent rhythm was evident to anyone who could see it.

Everything else seemed irrelevant.

The Master’s small stature, sharp features, and emotionless face didn’t matter.

Jeong Yeon-shin unconsciously counted.

‘Three...?’

Could I win three out of ten battles?

I still don’t know. I would need to see the Celestial Dragon Slayer Technique and the Thousand Dragon Sword Style even just briefly to make a proper estimate.

But the feeling I had was undeniably overwhelming.

The world of the faction leaders.

The Black Zone was vast beyond measure. Between the faintly visible Moonlit Blade and the Three Black Pillars of Ipwang Fortress, there existed an almost incomprehensible gap.

It was as vast as the difference between when they first created the Moon Wheel Technique and after they invented the Sun Dragon Convergence.

‘Purple will be even stronger.’

In the midst of brief musings, Jeong Yeon-shin suddenly wondered.

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Could the Lord of the Bright Sect, a figure who had lived for a few more years, truly be on equal footing with him? Was that sarcastic, sly smile perhaps a face that only a corpse could wear?

‘Dead already, or on the verge of death...’

Even with such thoughts, Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t retract his Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo. He let it rampage, as the energy moved according to its natural course, instinctively resisting suppression.

At that moment...

“Still not withdrawing? How dare you be so bold!”

A harsh shockwave erupted beside him, pushing his sleeve away.

It was Wanyang.

The senior attendant who had once served as Jeong Yeon-shin’s predecessor extended his palm in a strike.

Swoosh!

The energy in his palm was immense. With a sound like paper tearing, it cut through the storm of Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo with ease.

At the same moment, something intangible seemed to peel away from Wanyang’s body, as though an invisible layer of clothing had been shed, revealing his form.

For a moment, he appeared to be an ordinary person, but then his appearance shifted, resembling that of a noble clan member. Some hidden martial techniques or aura had now revealed themselves, their true nature exposed through his energy.

‘The Golden Chamber's Heavenly Hand Technique, Dragon Soul Divine Fist.’

From the dark, muted energy wrapped around his blade, it was clear.

Wanyang was one of the Golden Chamber's Two Heavenly Guardians, known for his expertise in trapping and slaying spirits. His alias was widely known, though his true face was rarely seen by others.

A master of martial techniques who was said to be capable of destroying mountains with a single strike.

In Ipwang Fortress, he was akin to a middle-ranking Lord.

Both had deceived each other over the years.

Jeong Yeon-shin instinctively felt that the martial world he was part of was now crossing into something more mystical.

‘Moon Wheel.’

In an instant, he condensed the Moon Wheel Technique energy in his arm and wrapped it with his Jungga Donggong’s energy.

It felt like the image of a wooden pillar surrounded by iron, and immediately after, Jeong Yeon-shin thrust his opposite arm upward.

Boom!

A powerful shockwave erupted, shaking the hall. The vortex that had been swirling around them now wavered.

‘This is possible.’

Jeong Yeon-shin marveled as he felt the Dragon Soul Divine Fist energy shoot toward him. He had borrowed part of Hwan-gang’s formula and focused on pushing his opponent back, achieving success.

The energy fusion state was indeed formidable.

Though he hadn’t fully stabilized the technique yet, he had successfully pushed back one of the Golden Chamber’s top martial artists while maintaining the Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo.

This was a significant achievement. A being with supernatural energy, and Jeong Yeon-shin had withstood the Dragon Soul Divine Fist, which should have been a natural counter to the Dragon Slayer technique.

‘Their strike will be different.’

Jeong Yeon-shin glanced once more at the Master of the Golden Chamber, meeting her eyes.

What was she thinking? It was hard to gauge her intentions, as her light brown eyes carried a strange transcendent quality.

Then, Wanyang let out a roar that could shake the very heavens.

[ENOUGH!]

Once more, the ground seemed to tremble as a powerful force pushed against the air. A translucent wave of energy spread from his legs, causing nearby stones to shatter and rise.

The room was filled with tension, and it felt as if the very air around them was charged with the energy of battle.

‘Damn it.’

Jeong Yeon-shin, like a calm breeze, kept his anger in check, though it was there. The deep calm he had developed over the years stopped him from revealing any outward emotion.

The martial factions of Sichuan, tangled in a web of lies, continued their unseen maneuvers.

It was unclear who had caused the disappearance of his seniors.

The Threefold Convergence Technique’s power had already enveloped his mind, and his thoughts on the Tang Clan’s Twins had formed a bizarre image of what had happened.

The mouth of Hu Gae, who sought to use these moves for his own purposes, disturbed him.

‘That jawline...’

Jeong Yeon-shin brushed aside the idea that he was entering the foremost faction of Sichuan.

“Do you two siblings see me as an enemy? Aren’t the Tang Clan’s lineage too strong to be simply from a side branch? Could it be that Toxic Commander secretly took them in as his new disciples...?”

With that, Jeong Yeon-shin directed the palm of his Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo toward the excited Hu Gae who was watching the battle with intense focus.

He mentally prepared himself to block off the Master of the Golden Chamber’s gaze.

At the same time...

“Enough.”

The Master’s voice was dry and close to a whisper.

Jeong Yeon-shin did not listen.

He adjusted the energy flow between the Shoubu and Rokun points, tuning them upwards.

The whirlwind, which had completely destroyed the ceiling, gathered debris and let out a thunderous sound as it shaped into a sharp pillar.

“Hmm?”

The change was like light itself.

Hu Gae’s reaction came too late.

“What...?”

Crash!

Before Hu Gae could finish speaking, the whirlwind of Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo shot toward his forehead.

“Stop.”

A slender arm rose to block Jeong Yeon-shin’s palm.

A massive, piercing sound echoed as the origin of the Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo was abruptly blocked by the Master of the Golden Chamber’s hand, sending sparks flying from her fingers.

Her arm now radiated an energy that seemed to push everything aside. It felt as though invisible lightning bolts wrapped around her.

Jeong Yeon-shin entered a meditative, almost otherworldly state as he activated his Threefold Convergence Technique.

The air that touched his fingertips became like clear water, and the strained breaths of Hu Gae behind the Master became eerily long.

‘Celestial Dragon Slayer Technique.’

Even as the Master of the Golden Chamber faced off with Thousand-Year-Hwa-Woo, her energy remained unshaken, like a transparent giant merging with her form.

The Master locked her fingers together, initiating a complete blockade.

The trajectory of her fingers, each different, calculated and precise, began to unravel.

Slowly.

Jeong Yeon-shin's eyes sharpened. To lose in a duel? That was impossible.

Before the Master of the Golden Chamber could grip him, he angled his index finger downward, gathering the flow of Threefold Convergence Technique in his fingertips, extending his energy outward.

Boom—

The sound of Hu Gae’s body being struck by the vortex echoed slowly, as if dragged out.

The Master of the Golden Chamber's gaze blurred slightly. It might have been more accurate to say it brightened.

Her eyelashes, which had been forming a dense but faint shadow, fluttered upwards.

In the realm of transcendent mastery, she slowly parted her lips.

“Have you made your decision?”

A fleeting doubt crossed Jeong Yeon-shin's mind. Was he the only one among transcendent masters with both talent and virtue intact?

“I have not,” he replied calmly, as he had once told the Lord of the Bright Sect.

Immediately, the Master of the Golden Chamber spoke, as if commanding.

“Become my weapon.”

“Stop with the nonsense.”