Paezon (패존) Biju.

One of the three greatest masters of Zhongyuan, known as the Supreme Masters of Heaven (天下三尊), and a man who, despite reaching the pinnacle of martial prowess and transcendence, still held onto the name "Paezon" (Defeated One).

The undisputed peak of the martial world.

A monster believed to have reached the absolute mastery of real combat, based on countless battles.

In truth, on the day I faced him in battle...

I was made painfully aware of the vast difference between us.

His gaze.

The tips of his hands as he reached out.

The steps he took forward.

I realized fully why Paezon was called the pinnacle of the martial world.

He is, indeed, a monster.

Not just the kind of "monster" that people call a rare genius out of admiration, but...

Paezon is a martial artist who showed the ultimate limit of what a human body could achieve.

If the Sword Queen (마검후) hadn’t intervened in time...

I would have surely died on the spot.

The wounds I sustained back then would have been impossible to heal, had it not been for the Heavenly Demon’s intervention.

Moreover...

Even the Heavenly Demon, who was beyond human comprehension, couldn't help but praise Paezon’s movements.

This gives you an idea of his level.

With a single step, he could shake the earth.

With a single touch, he could crush a mountain.

He never shied away from battle.

He never hesitated to lose.

Among the things Paezon said during his time as a post-heaven genius, there was a famous phrase:

"Even if I lose once, as long as my head stays on my shoulders, one day, I will win."

It was an arrogant yet confident statement.

And to prove it...

A man born into the Biga clan.

Over twenty years ago, during the time when he was known as "Paechulgyeon" (Defeated Iron Dog), he single-handedly killed three of the eight Sages of the Demonic Sect, turning them into the Five Sages.

After that, the man came to be called Paezon.

Having ascended to the rank of Supreme Master, Paezon resided in the west, occasionally showing his face to the Alliance, living out his remaining days in peace.

Then, one summer, about ten years ago...

He disappeared.

It must have been around that time.

The day he abandoned everything and gained the body of a child.

I swallowed hard and looked at the young man before me.

His long black hair flowed down, and his pitch-black eyes were devoid of any light.

‘He’s definitely different from his previous life.’

He looks much younger than before.

However...

Gulp.

Was it because I knew this young man was Paezon?

Or was it because the dangerous aura he exuded was poking at my spine?

I kept swallowing nervously.

‘Biju...’

This felt entirely different from when I faced the Sword Master.

The Sword Master was a truly powerless old man.

No matter how hard I tried to see or feel anything, there was nothing to sense.

That only meant the gap between me and the Sword Master was that vast.

There are likely only a handful of people in all of Zhongyuan who could comprehend the Sword Master's power, so it's understandable.

And this man was...

One of those few.

Although perhaps not in his current state.

‘I can’t see him.’

At least, right now, I couldn’t discern anything about Paezon’s current power.

Is it because of our different levels?

That’s not it.

It’s simply because Paezon is hiding his presence very well.

His ability to conceal and control his energy is overwhelming.

Or perhaps, as a price for reverting to his youthful body, he’s now stuck at a lower level.

‘But that doesn’t seem right, based on what I saw in my previous life.’

At that time, despite his youthful appearance, Paezon wasn’t weaker than the other Supreme Masters.

His body might have deteriorated, and his energy might have scattered back then, but...

How could he have recovered all of it in just a few decades?

That’s beyond my imagination.

Which means, even now, he must already be stacking up the foundation for his power.

With that level of training...

 

And a stroke of fortune to recover his energy.

As I was thinking about Paezon, I suddenly heard a step.

Step.

“…!”

Paezon—or rather, the young man now called Biyijin—took a step forward.

Step.

He walked slowly, and his gaze was fixed on me.

‘What the hell is this?’

My breath caught in my throat.

As if it weren’t enough that this bastard suddenly appeared out of nowhere, did he have business with me?

• "I’ll come see you one day."

‘Ah.’

Only then did I remember the letter Paezon had sent me.

‘...Don’t tell me he came here to see me?’

No way, right? Would the great Paezon really have nothing better to do than come all the way here just to see me?

‘Did Turyong participate in the Shinryongwan in my past life?’

I couldn’t remember.

I had no interest in Turyong back then, especially before I learned that Paezon was secretly Turyong.

How would I know?

‘Maybe he doesn’t know who I am.’

For a moment, I dared to hope.

He probably doesn’t even know my face. Maybe I could just play it off and slip away…

“Oh, Young Master Bi! Over here! This is the person I was talking about, Young Master Gu!”

“…”

My escape plan crumbled in an instant as Dang Soyeol excitedly called out from beside me.

Completely unaware of what I was thinking, she kept smiling and chatting happily. She even whispered proudly into my ear.

“I bragged a lot about you, Young Master.”

“What… did you say?”

“I told him how cool you were at the Yongbong Meeting, how incredibly handsome you are, and how strong you are.”

“…”

What should I do?

It feels like I’m totally screwed.

Maybe I should run?

I had already scouted my escape route the moment Biyijin stepped in, but…

Tap.

Just as I was thinking that, Biyijin was already standing in front of me.

It was too late.

At this distance, even if I summoned my energy, escaping would be impossible.

Should I charge at him?

That might be a better option.

“…”

His eyes were heavy.

Cold and dark.

Eyes that gave no clue as to what he was thinking.

They were that kind of eyes.

As I stared at him, tense, I raised all of my senses to their peak.

Ready to react to anything in an instant.

And then…

Swoosh.

As if waiting for it, Biyijin moved.

As Biyijin moved, the tension was palpable.

The youngest member of the Bi family, Bibie, was observing her second brother with a peculiar thought in her mind.

‘This is odd. My brother is actually showing interest in someone.’

Normally, he didn’t seem to care about the world at all, only showing interest in resting within the clan or going for casual walks. Yet here he was, focusing on someone else.

Of course, it wasn’t as if he had no interest in anyone. Occasionally, he would say he was meeting a friend, but...

Bibie had never actually seen this supposed friend, so she believed her second brother was lying.

With his strange personality, there was no way he had any friends.

Her second brother, who was three years older than her, was a peculiar man even in her eyes.

While others fought for their lives over who would lead the family, he had nonchalantly handed over the position of the minor family head to the eldest brother.

He didn’t care about any external affairs either.

‘Even though he’s definitely stronger than our eldest brother…’

Bibie knew this because she had seen it.

Years ago, she had secretly watched as her eldest brother got beaten up by her second brother during a late-night sparring session.

Though she didn’t know why, she assumed that her eldest brother had done something foolish to provoke him.

That’s just the way it was with him.

She also knew that her eldest brother had sulked for a long time afterward.

And despite her eldest brother being unable to achieve it, her second brother had been selected as one of the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes of the next generation.

Bibie took great pride in this.

After all, she had been the one to coax him into going to the Yongbong Meeting, despite his reluctance.

She wanted the world to recognize how strong her second brother was. And as she had hoped, he earned the title of Turyong, attracting a great deal of attention.

But ever since then, her brother had shown no interest in leaving the house again.

‘Father’s strange too.’

Their father, the head of the Bi family, was also strange.

There was such a stark contrast in how he treated his children.

He constantly pestered her and her eldest brother, but seemed to have given up on her second brother, barely paying him any attention.

No, that wasn’t right.

Sometimes, he would ask her if her second brother was doing well or how he seemed to be feeling.

Bibie didn’t understand why her father didn’t just ask him directly but instead questioned her about it.

In any case...

Their father didn’t seem to seek out her second brother at all.

If there was ever something important, her second brother would be the one to go to him. And every time that happened, their father’s face would sour.

‘Does my brother scold Father?’

She once had an amusing thought—that her second brother was actually the one scolding their father.

But of course, that was absurd, so she quickly dismissed the idea.

Now, their trip to Hanam had a similar motive to the Yongbong Meeting.

Bibie wanted to drag her second brother out of the house again.

Knowing that he had a soft spot for her, she made all kinds of plans.

Strangely enough...

“Let’s go.”

This time, he didn’t resist and came along without any fuss.

It was so suspicious that she couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

She had even considered tying their arms together with a rope to stop him from running away.

‘This is strange.’

The man who hated going out more than anything...

Had agreed to go to the Shinryongwan without much argument.

Bibie found it odd.

So much so that she had even prepared to fast for a week to convince him.

‘It was a stroke of luck to run into Dang So-yeol along the way.’

Meeting someone as famous as Dokbong was quite the coincidence, wasn’t it?

Bibie’s gaze shifted to Dang So-yeol.

‘She’s beautiful…’

Her hair was a lovely color, and her large, round eyes were charming.

Even the small mole under her eye added to her appeal.

On top of that, she was an exceptional martial artist, known as Dokbong.

To Bibie, Dang So-yeol was fascinating.

Traveling alongside a female martial artist she respected felt like a special experience.

Though there was one thing that puzzled her.

‘She didn’t seem like this before.’

She used to be quiet and composed.

She had the grace and manners of a noble lady from a prestigious family—the kind of woman Bibie had always dreamed of being.

But now...

“You know, Young Master, on my way here, I ran into this monster…”

She was clinging to a man, chatting away with him nonstop, which was quite different from her previous demeanor.

Bibie wasn’t necessarily disappointed by this, but it was certainly an unfamiliar sight.

After observing Dang So-yeol for a moment, Bibie’s gaze shifted to the man she was fussing over.

‘So, that’s him…’

The martial artist who seemed to have caught her second brother’s attention.

The same man Dang So-yeol had been talking about for the entire trip.

Gu Yangcheon, known as Jinryong (True Dragon), the last to be included in the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes.

‘He looks fierce.’

That was her first impression of him.

His face was sharp and well-structured, but his eyes were slanted and cold.

His frown gave the impression that he was irritated by something.

He didn’t seem like someone you could easily approach.

‘Even my second brother isn’t that bad.’

Even Biyijin, who was often described as cold and emotionless, didn’t look this unapproachable.

Throughout the journey, Dang So-yeol had praised how handsome and cool he was, but...

‘…?’

Bibie was left with nothing but confusion.

He wasn’t ugly, but he wasn’t particularly handsome either.

And then...

‘…!’

As she glanced around, she suddenly caught her breath.

The people sitting around Gu Yangcheon weren’t ordinary.

‘How can someone look like that…?’

A strikingly beautiful woman with white hair and a cold demeanor sat next to him.

Though her gaze was focused solely on Gu Yangcheon, she seemed to be subtly observing her surroundings.

As soon as his teacup was empty, she poured another cup without a word.

She occasionally glanced at Dang So-yeol, who was chattering away, but even that casual glance, coupled with her stunning looks, made for quite the picture.

The woman sitting beside her was also unbelievably beautiful, though her aura was different…

‘Wait, isn’t that Seolbong?’

Bibie unconsciously narrowed her eyes, studying the woman.

Wearing a light blue outfit and possessing glossy black hair and strikingly captivating features.

Her eyes seemed to hold the color of the sky itself.

That outfit—Bibie was sure it belonged to the Moyong family.

And with such a distinct appearance, this could only be Seolbong.

‘…Dokbong and Seolbong. What is this?’

How did such women end up gathered around Jinryong?

Bibie couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the situation.

Four Dragons and Phoenixes, all gathered in this one inn.

This was like some sort of Yongbong Meeting.

As Bibie’s mind began to spin, she thought to herself:

‘This might not be such a bad thing.’

There was something almost romantic about the situation. It didn’t seem so bad after all.

How many times in her life would she find herself in a situation like this?

‘You have to stay positive.’

Bibie nodded to herself, deciding to stay optimistic.

Now, she only had to watch what her brother was going to do.

‘What’s he planning?’

Biyijin slowly approached and stood in front of Gu Yangcheon.

Watching this, Bibie began to feel a bit nervous.

Whenever her brother acted like this...

It usually meant he was about to beat someone to a pulp.

Or heal someone after beating them up.

‘…He’s not planning to hit him, right?’

As crazy as her brother could be, he wouldn’t just start throwing punches at another Dragon…

‘Would he?’

She remembered the time she had accompanied her brother to a martial arts tournament.

He had calmly and mercilessly destroyed everyone in his path, regardless of who they were.

A thought flashed through her mind.

As Bibie saw her brother’s hand move, her heart sank.

Oh no. Is he really going to do it?

Is he going to start by slapping him?

Bibie moved quickly, planning to pull her brother away by hugging him from behind.

“Ora…!”

But Biyijin was faster.

His hand shot out toward Gu Yangcheon.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Huh?”

He extended his hand for a handshake.

Bibie froze in her tracks.

“I’m Biyijin of the Bi family.”

“What?”

Was her rock of a brother... actually greeting someone?

As if to confirm that this was real, Biyijin continued, looking directly at Gu Yangcheon.

“I take it you’re Gu Yangcheon, the one known as Jinryong?”

It wasn’t just Bibie who was stunned. Gu Yangcheon also seemed dazed, staring at Biyijin with a blank expression.

As if this was a completely unexpected situation.

But after a moment of silence...

Gu Yangcheon gave a slight nod, confirming it.

“I see.”

Biyijin smiled.

Bibie felt a chill run down her spine.

Whenever her brother smiled like that, it usually meant…

“Nice to meet you. I’ve heard much about you from my master.”

…That something big was about to happen.

What was even stranger was the change in Gu Yangcheon’s expression.

What should she call it?

‘…It looks like something’s gone terribly wrong.’

That was the best way to describe it.

It was just a greeting. Why did he look like that?

As Bibie’s confusion grew...

‘Wait, since when did my brother have a master?’

Bibie frowned in bewilderment.

She had never known her brother to train under anyone.

Their father had never assigned a teacher to him either.

Even without one, Biyijin had grown stronger on his own.

So...

‘A master?’

Who could he be talking about?

Bibie couldn’t make sense of it.

Just as the situation was unfolding slowly...

Tap.

Tuk.

An unexpected sound came from outside.

Bibie turned her gaze toward the window.

There...

“Rain?”

It was raining.

It wasn’t a heavy rain, but...

Given the cold winter weather, rain seemed out of place.

Considering the chill in the air, snow would have been more appropriate, but...

As if that didn’t matter, winter rain began to fall gently from the sky outside the inn.

 

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"마검후" (Mageomhu) can be translated as "The Queen of the demonic sword" or simply "The Queen of the Sword". However, the "Demonic Sword Queen" conveys the meaning of her title better, since "마" (魔) usually means something demonic or sinister.