Chapter 225

Chapter 225
Chapter 225: The Third-Rate Clan’s World’s Greatest

A heavy quiet fell over the entire grounds, brought on by the staggering spectacle that had just taken place.

Right before their eyes, the Young Leader of the Blood Fiend Alliance—a prominent figure from one of the world’s Ten Great Evil Sects—had been struck down by a single thrust from a man widely dismissed as a mere puppet.

It was a turn of events so extraordinary that even those witnessing it firsthand struggled to process reality.

The gamblers were the first to break the silence.

“Holy shit!”

“I knew you had it in you!”

“Hahaha! A fiftyfold payout! Fifty to one!”

“I’m rich! I’m freaking rich!”

Wagering on match outcomes had long been a staple of any major martial gathering. What had once begun as shadowy, illicit betting at the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering eventually gained implicit approval when a renowned master of an older era dismissed it as harmless fun. Over time, the organizers themselves had stepped in to manage the wagers, effectively making tournament betting the sole form of gambling sanctioned by the orthodox martial world.

Observing the wild celebration, Baek Yang-hwi thought to himself that it made complete sense. Multiplying one’s capital fifty times over in a single day was practically hitting the grand jackpot. It was impossible for anyone to maintain their composure under such circumstances.

Rakbul served as absolute proof of that.

Seated high up in the grandstands, the man was grinning uncontrollably, his mouth moving rapidly as he prattled on to the person beside him. It was clear he had staked a staggering sum, likely thinking that a fiftyfold return made all his effort in becoming an expert well worth it.

Yet, amid the general hysteria, a few sharper observers caught a hint of something strange.

“Wait, were the odds on the Heaven-Covering Sword Dragon really capped at fifty to one?”

“That doesn’t add up. Based on the rumors floating around, it should have been over a hundred.”

“Exactly. Did someone lay down a massive fortune on him?”

Their suspicions were spot-on. Off to the side, Baek Yang-hwi sent a silent mental transmission.

*Chudal, how much did you throw down?*

*Heh heh heh! What do you think? A fiftyfold return!* came the gleeful reply.

Enduring the indignity of being labeled a figurehead for more than a month had all been for this exact moment. If one had to swallow such embarrassment, the financial reward needed to be equally monumental.

*He must have bet every last coin he had, and probably borrowed more on top of that… Wow. He could easily purchase a few inns with those winnings.*

Baek Yang-hwi wasn’t alone in his satisfaction. Baek Heon-so, Jegal Seol-ha, and everyone who possessed true insight into his martial prowess were all beaming. Even Dang Gun-ma, who typically steered clear of gambling, wore a radiant expression identical to Rakbul’s.

Amused, Baek Yang-hwi sent him a quick transmission.

*I thought you said you weren’t going to bet. How much did you put in?*

*Ahem. Wealth attracts wealth—as the Young Heir, I couldn’t pass up a chance to enrich the clan.*

As Baek Yang-hwi contained a slight laugh, the unconscious Young Leader finally stirred and regained his senses.

“Wha… how…?”

“How? Isn’t the answer obvious?” Baek Yang-hwi replied.

Looking up, the Young Leader saw Baek Yang-hwi standing untouched and completely fine, looking nothing like his own battered state. A wave of profound despair washed over his features. One of them had been knocked out cold, while the other remained entirely unscathed. Unless he was completely brainless, the reality of his defeat was undeniable.

“Don’t start crying ‘sorcery,'” Baek Yang-hwi added flatly. “That excuse is far too cliché.”

Judging by the shifting expression on the young man’s face, he had indeed contemplated using that exact lie. But for an evil sect heir to claim sorcery after losing to a young orthodox warrior would be laughable. Besides, he had even handed over a heavenly-grade invitation urging the young man to spread news of the victory, yet the guy had dawdled and caused all this unnecessary hassle. Though he wasn’t an absolute fool, the sheer reality of the gap was hitting him hard.

*Let him shout ‘sorcery’ so I can knock him out again for a better show…*

Chudal must have been thinking along the same lines, as another transmission arrived.

*Brother. Listen to the kid’s excuse, then crush him thoroughly. It’ll give your reputation a much bigger boost.*

*No.*

*Why not?*

*The guy is just a decoy. The crowd is already buzzing over the Blood Fiend Young Leader going down in a single move. But the true Young Leader—the actual heir to one of the Heavenly Martial Ten Lords—wouldn’t have been defeated so easily.*

*Decoys still have their uses,* Baek Yang-hwi continued. *There’s no need to cultivate unnecessary enmity when he can still be helpful.*

*…? Isn’t it a bit late to avoid bad blood?*

*It’s fine. Probably.*

On second thought, perhaps it wasn’t. It was time to lay down some preliminary groundwork.

*Young Leader. In this Dragon-Phoenix Contest, there are at least five young experts who could take you down within ten moves. Were you aware of that?*

“No… that can’t be… Master said…”

*Even if you’re shaken, don’t reply to mental transmissions out loud.*

His outward reaction made it abundantly clear: he had been entirely in the dark. It appeared the Blood Fiend Alliance Leader had simply fed him stories about having top-tier dragon potential before dispatching him to Wuhan.

*That confirms my suspicion.*

*Listen up. I just bought you a reprieve from death. Catch the hint and come to my living quarters tonight.*

He had traveled to Wuhan on the Alliance Leader’s command, only to face the judgment of the Tai Chi Sword Elder, while encountering orthodox juniors whose skills far exceeded anything he had anticipated. Though he was panicking now, once he regained his composure and evaluated his circumstances, he would grasp his true position.

“Lake North Heavenly Sword, Great Hero,” the referee finally announced, taking his cue from Baek Yang-hwi. “The winner of this match is Baek Yang-hwi of the Heaven-Covering Baek Clan!”

“Wooooaaah!”

“Heaven-Covering Sword Dragon! Heaven-Covering Sword Dragon!”

“Haha! Thank you! Fiftyfold payout!”

“A genuine immortal has descended upon Wuhan!”

Framed by roaring cheers and wild excitement, Baek Yang-hwi stepped off the stage. To secure his spot in the second prelims, he needed one more victory, but he decided to observe the other matches for a bit first.

The contestants who advanced from the primary round were each required to state their chosen domain and wait for challengers.

Adu, for instance, kept his challenge extraordinarily simple.

“Anyone who thinks they can beat me in an arm-wrestling match, step right up!”

Alongside Wudang’s Present Sword, Adu had generated the most hype as a premier contender. Nearly an hour passed without anyone daring to step forward, until a towering giant finally entered the ring.

“No internal energy allowed, right?”

“Correct!”

“Then I’ll take a shot.”

The challenger was a massive brute whose physique rivaled Adu’s own. However, the contest ended in a split second.

“Adu of Shaolin wins!”

“Victory is mine!”

The challenger turned out to be a disciple from a prominent outer arts sect, yet Adu had overwhelmed him in seconds through pure physical force.

The spectators roared with approval.

“As expected of Shaolin’s top genius!”

“Shaolin has always possessed the world’s ultimate outer arts—this was only natural!”

On the other hand, Present Sword of Wudang—the other top pick alongside Adu—had a match that dragged on painfully.

“Whoever believes they can surpass me in a sword debate, step forward.”

Those who possessed confidence in verbal swordplay lined up, but Present Sword didn’t manage to claim victory until a full hour had passed.

*You can practically see the disappointment on the faces of the Wudang seniors.*

While the Tai Chi Sword Elder remained unreadable, the elders beneath him showed clear displeasure. They had placed such blind faith in Present Sword that they hadn’t even bothered to ask what event he intended to run. He had started with great fanfare, and his rival Adu had delivered a spectacular show of force. Then Present Sword had picked a verbal debate that offered zero visual entertainment for the audience.

*If you impress them with debate, that’s skill too,* Baek Yang-hwi noted to himself. Still, debates were inherently dull for crowds. Most onlookers were not martial experts and possessed only shallow knowledge; asking them to sit through abstract arguments was hardly thrilling. Sword debates sounded romantic in legends and rumors, but fell flat in reality. Furthermore, his opponents had dragged the process out by clinging to desperate excuses.

Unlike Present Sword, Namgung Cheon-yeong put on a bold display.

“Anyone who considers their skill equal to this Young Clan Heir, come face me.”

He unsheathed his blade and manipulated it to dance through the air using telekinesis alone, leaving no one daring to step up. In the end, Namgung Cheon-yeong became the first participant to advance completely unchallenged. As he declared his victory, he cast a sharp glare directly toward Baek Yang-hwi’s group.

The most entertaining match belonged to Nanghon, a wandering warrior whose strength was estimated to match Adu’s previous level—the very man whose presence had soured Baek Yang-hwi’s experience in his past life.

“Anyone confident that they have mastered more unconventional arts than I have, step forward.”

His raw power suggested he was a disciple of a secretive sect, yet his event was classic rogue fare. Nanghon demonstrated twelve distinct arts—including sleep darts, blinding powder, and disguise techniques—to secure his win. He had mastered all those miscellaneous tricks while simultaneously reaching an exceptional level in core martial arts.

*What a wild card that guy is turning out to be.*

By that time, Baek Yang-hwi registered at an opportune moment and effortlessly claimed his second victory.

“Baek Yang-hwi of the Heaven-Covering Baek Clan advances to the secondary prelims!”

*All my companions and the kid advanced. No major surprises.*

The preliminary rounds were scheduled to span half a year, accounting for rival placements. For all the build-up, it felt somewhat underwhelming and predictable.

*The real game starts now. I wonder how it will unfold.*

The bait had been set. Now it was just a matter of seeing what would bite.

—

A seven-day gap was placed between the primary and secondary prelims. Wudang framed this as a courtesy to allow injured fighters to recover, but in truth, it was designed to let the excitement build. Rumors needed time to spread far and wide.

Unquestionably, the most talked-about topic was the eldest son of the Heaven-Covering Baek Clan.

…Though the nature of the gossip was far from ordinary.

“Hahaha! Fifty to one! Fifty to one!”

“Ugh. You actually put money on him?”

“A real man sticks to his word! What did you say back then? That if I was going to throw money away, I should bet on you.”

“Fair point. You had the vision. I had no idea the Blood Fiend Young Leader was such a push-over.”

Regardless of his background, the favored champion from the Blood Fiend Alliance had suffered a one-hit humiliation at the hands of a scion from a mid-tier clan. Under normal circumstances, the stories circulating would have declared: “The Heaven-Covering Sword Dragon—previously dismissed as a mere puppet—is actually powerful enough to crush the Young Leader in a single blow!”

Instead, the narrative took a very different turn.

“It makes sense why the Blood Fiend Alliance sent that guy.”

“Word from Gyeju is that he was only appointed a few months ago. They were just using him to test the waters with the orthodox sects.”

Even though the difference in clan prestige should have elevated the mid-tier scion’s fame, the rumors consolidated into a single consensus: the Blood Fiend Young Leader was simply weak.

“Brother! Aren’t you furious?!” Baek Heon-so fumed in front of Baek Yang-hwi, who was calmly sipping his drink.

“Furious at what?”

“Even if he was a decoy, dropping their Young Leader in one hit is huge! It should bring you massive renown! But look at what people are saying!”

“Heon-so.”

“Yes! You’re angry too, right?!”

“Not really. In fact, it’s good news.”

“Good news?”

“Yeah. The betting odds are still great.”

“Oh?”

Though the payout had dropped from fiftyfold, it still hovered around ten to one. Had he not crushed the Young Leader, the returns would have plummeted to fractional odds rather than tenfold.

“Besides, I expected this.”

“You knew rumors like this would spread?”

“I figured it would go one of two ways. Either they would hype the Heaven-Covering Sword Dragon as a top contender for defeating him, or they would tear down the Young Leader’s credibility. It seems they chose to trash him.”

“These rumors… Wudang or some other prominent sect must be pulling the strings behind the scenes.”

“Manipulation? Why would they do that…?”

“It’s better for them to suppress my momentum now than to let my fame build, only to risk losing to me later.”

In short, keeping the Heaven-Covering Baek Clan in check took priority over elevating their own disciples’ reputations. That meant the favorable odds would remain intact for a while longer.

“Empty gossip will vanish the moment I take the title of top dragon. Don’t worry about it.”

“True! You’re definitely going to be the top dragon!” Baek Heon-so’s eyes sparkled with deep trust and admiration.

Baek Yang-hwi reached out to pat his head, but paused—the kid had grown too tall. He clapped him on the shoulder instead.

“Right. Now go greet our guest.”

“A guest?”

“Yeah. You’ll see.”

A few moments later, Baek Heon-so returned, leading someone inside.

“Brother, is this the guest?”

“You brought him well.”

A surge of conflicted emotions washed over the Young Leader’s face.

“The fact that you came means you grasp the situation, more or less,” Baek Yang-hwi said. “I’ll take your thanks first.”

“…Thanks? I came here to find out why you said those things to me.”

Was he truly still oblivious, or merely putting up a front?

“They sent you here as a sacrificial pawn to create a pretext,” Baek Yang-hwi explained. “I saved your life, so a thank-you is owed.”

He watched as the young man’s expression shifted dramatically. The guest had clearly realized the truth, even if he was reluctant to admit it.

Baek Yang-hwi couldn’t help but grin. ” decoy or not, you are still the Blood Fiend Young Leader. Let’s hear that thank-you.”