The Genius Martial Artist Who Remembers Everything [Novel] Chapter 210

Chapter 210. The Enemy’s Favor (3)

I gathered the necessary people to break the formation.

“I brought my master along as well, just as you requested.”

First to arrive was Moyong Jaehwa, accompanied by her martial arts instructor, Yeo Samtong of the Phantom Bow Clan.

Next, I ordered Ilgak, Namgung Seonhwa, and Cheol Sunjik, one of the 12 Peak Stars, to be brought over.

While waiting for everyone to gather, I had the Jegal Family formation master explain the mechanics of the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation.

Given the situation, I probably knew more about the formation than the formation master himself did, but I quietly pretended to listen.

“To begin with, the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation was designed as a ‘Living Formation’.”

“A Living Formation?”

I expertly managed my facial expressions, acting as though this was the first time I’d ever heard the term.

The formation master puffed up his chest, visibly swelling with pride.

“Until the entire energy reserve of the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation is completely depleted, the formation will absolutely never collapse. Whether an impact occurs internally or externally, the energy naturally shifts and circulates to repair the formation.”

It was true that the introduction of the ‘Living Formation’ concept had completely changed the landscape of mechanical formations.

However, seeing this guy acting all smug while standing in the middle of this massive disaster really rubbed me the wrong way.

Acting as if I had just realized a shocking truth, I clapped a hand to my forehead with an exaggerated gesture.

“Ah! So you’re saying that if you try to forcibly break it, the students inside could all die.”

“…”

While listening to the formation master—who now looked like he’d just chewed on a mouthful of crap—explain the formation, the rest of the people I had summoned arrived.

“I was told you were looking for me?”

Standing beside Ilgak and Namgung Seonhwa, Cheol Sunjik wore an expression overflowing with displeasure.

Well, at least he showed up.

“May I ask why?”

I answered him honestly.

“It’s because I don’t know many people who possess sixty years’ worth of inner qi.”

“…Nam Hwaseong also possesses sixty years of inner qi.”

“Do you really think that guy is capable of delicate inner qi manipulation?”

As I shrugged and offered my assessment, Cheol Sunjik couldn’t bring himself to argue.

He fell silent for a moment before staring at me intently and speaking.

“Do you really believe I will help you, Representative Jin Soun?”

“I’m not asking you to help me.”

“Then?”

Who else could it be? My incredibly reliable backer, of course.

“I’m telling you to follow the Chief Strategist’s orders.”

“The Chief Strategist?”

As my gaze shifted past his shoulder, Cheol Sunjik gasped in surprise and spun around.

“Is there a problem?”

Jegal Somyeong’s heavy voice landed squarely on him.

Cheol Sunjik instantly bowed his head, breaking out in a cold sweat.

“…N-No, sir.”

Jegal Somyeong gave Cheol Sunjik a quick once-over before turning his attention to me.

“How long will it take to prepare?”

“I will finish within one quarter of an hour (approx. 15 mins).”

“Good.”

While Jegal Somyeong went to make preparations in case of an absolute worst-case scenario, I turned to Yeo Samtong and asked.

“Can you help Jaehwa shoot four arrows at four different targets simultaneously?”

“Four targets?”

I nodded and explained more clearly.

“They must all land at the exact same time.”

Yeo Samtong fell deep into thought for a moment.

“Hmm…”

“Elder Brother, I don’t have the skills for that yet…”

Then, Yeo Samtong nodded affirmatively.

“I believe it’s possible.”

“Pardon?”

Bypassing the utterly dumbfounded Moyong Jaehwa, Yeo Samtong spoke with confidence.

“The wind blowing around the Grand Horse Track isn’t very strong, so it should be manageable.”

“What do you mean…”

I looked at Yeo Samtong and offered a martial salute.

“Understood. Then please prepare yourselves to fire on my signal.”

“No, wait! Elder Brother! I can’t do it!”

Despite clearly being the primary subject of the conversation, he seemed thoroughly panicked that the conclusion had been reached entirely without his input.

Seriously, it’s not even his first time doing something like this, so why is he always so flustered?

I grabbed Moyong Jaehwa by both shoulders.

“Jaehwa! The lives of seventy-eight people rest in your hands! You can do this!”

“No… Elder Brother! I said I can’t…”

“Could the rest of you please come over here?”

“E-Elder Brother…?”

Leaving Moyong Jaehwa behind, I finished my preparations by instructing Ilgak, Namgung Seonhwa, Cheol Sunjik, and Buk Wonpyeong on exactly where they needed to stand and what they needed to do.

While everyone moved to take their assigned positions, Cheol Sunjik remained planted in place, staring at me intently.

“Is there a part of the plan you don’t understand?”

There was no way a man as sharp as him couldn’t grasp the concept.

Or what, is he really that unwilling to cooperate with me?

Even when lives are on the line?

“That is not what I am curious about.”

Cheol Sunjik’s gaze turned cold.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

Looking as though he genuinely couldn’t comprehend my actions, Cheol Sunjik asked.

“The Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation is a brand-new mechanical formation. No matter how outstanding you are, Representative Jin, I highly doubt you can safely break a formation you are seeing for the very first time. In that case…”

He took a step closer, lowering his voice significantly.

“Shouldn’t you just pretend you know nothing?”

“…”

“If you do that, the White Faction will naturally collapse, and your position as Representative will become unshakeable.”

It was a perfectly reasonable question.

Just as he said, I might be doing something incredibly stupid right now.

Massive factions are essentially monsters that ruthlessly pursue their own interests right up until the moment of their absolute ruin.

By stepping in, I might end up saving the White Faction from the brink of collapse.

However.

So what?

Even in my past life, the ones who were ground to dust for political reasons were always the people at the absolute bottom.

It was only after the blood of the insignificant and lowly flowed endlessly—only after the blood finally reached the feet of the higher-ups—that those bastards at the top finally woke up.

Now that I hold a tiny sliver of power, am I supposed to act exactly like the people who grew stagnant and corrupted by it?

Am I supposed to emulate their depravity and become a bastard exactly like them?

Unfortunately.

“I suppose so.”

I have absolutely no intention of becoming a depraved piece of trash like them.

“Pardon?”

At my response, Cheol Sunjik furrowed his brow, completely failing to understand.

I looked at him with an impassive expression.

“I am saving them because I can. That is the only reason.”

Still unable to comprehend, Cheol Sunjik’s eyes trembled violently.

“…But if you fail, you may have to shoulder the blame for all of this. Are you truly alright with that?”

I shrugged once before giving him his answer.

“Isn’t that exactly the responsibility the person giving the orders is supposed to bear?”

“…”

Cheol Sunjik bit his lip tightly, looking somewhat frustrated.

The Living Formation.

The unprecedented mechanical formation that had severely impeded the demons’ advance and prevented massive slaughter.

However, the emergence of the Demonic Brain—who managed to break even this legendary formation—had been a devastating blow to the Murim Alliance.

Because they had essentially robbed the subjugation squads of the few sanctuaries where we could actually rest, we had ground our teeth down to the gums in hatred for the Demonic Brain.

Yet now, deciding to break the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation using the exact same method the Demonic Brain had used left me feeling incredibly strange.

Am I actually relying on that damned Demonic Brain’s help?

I quickly shook the distracting thoughts from my head.

What does it matter if I borrow the Demonic Brain’s methods?

It means I can save lives.

If it means saving my allies and crushing my enemies, I would gladly accept help not just from the Demonic Brain, but from the Heavenly Demon himself.

Steeling my resolve, I looked around.

“We will begin.”

At my shout, the four people positioned at the Four Gates (excluding the primary ones) simultaneously began drawing out their inner qi.

They surged powerful blasts of inner qi into the lesser Four Gates, leaving the primary Four Gates—Life, Death, Open, and Rest—untouched.

Rumble, rumble, rumble.

Under the crushing pressure closing in from all sides, the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation began to violently shake.

As if its hidden flesh were being exposed, the visualized mechanical formation bared its internal movements entirely to the outside.

Soon, the black mist filling the inside of the formation began to slowly gather toward the four gates under attack.

It was concentrating its power on the besieged points to defend against the external force.

And then.

“Now!”

B-B-B-Bang!

Our opportunity had arrived.

As the inner qi of the four individuals exploded simultaneously, the external structure of the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation briefly shattered.

I shouted toward the four of them.

“This is where it truly begins! Continue to pour your inner qi in at a constant rate!”

The Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation desperately tried to draw in power to repair its shattered outer walls, but the sheer force continuously hammering it from the outside prevented it from recovering properly.

Eventually, even the energy that had been guarding the primary Four Gates began to slowly drift toward the other gates.

“Jaehwa!”

The moment my signal dropped, Moyong Jaehwa, standing on a nearby roof, began firing arrows under Yeo Samtong’s precise direction.

Thwip. Thwip. Thwip. Thwip.

Four arrows launched on different trajectories, soaring so high they vanished from sight, before plummeting down simultaneously.

Moments later, the blunted arrowheads struck the pillars of Life, Death, Open, and Rest at the exact same time.

Kkwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!

With a shockwave that violently shook the earth, the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation visibly lurched.

Realizing its primary gates were under attack, the formation frantically tried to redirect its power back to defend them.

I absolutely could not miss this window.

“You have to grab hold of it!”

This was why I had no choice but to call for Cheol Sunjik instead of Nam Hwaseong.

They had to forcefully pin down the retreating energy.

“Uwaaaaagh!”

“Uwaaaagh!”

“Hup!”

The attractive force was clearly immense. Everyone, save for Buk Wonpyeong, let out powerful roars as they unleashed their full strength.

As patches of the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation’s mist dissipated, the students trapped inside finally became visible.

A sliver of hope had appeared.

Now, for the final step.

Standing atop the roof of the central pavilion, I endlessly unraveled my Flying Dragon Claws, ensnaring the four primary pillars of the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation.

“Uwaaaaaah!”

Gripping the Celestial Silk threads with both hands, I yanked fiercely on the pillars that anchored the primary gates.

Gradually, the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation began to sway.

It felt precarious, like a baby tooth right before it pops out.

I felt like I could uproot all the pillars if I just pushed a little harder.

At that exact moment.

“Uhh-uh-uh!”

I had deliberately called for Cheol Sunjik instead of Nam Hwaseong to ensure precise inner qi control, but…

Perhaps they failed to predict the violently fluctuating power of the energy as the pillars shook, because panic flashed across Buk Wonpyeong and Ilgak’s faces.

“Almsgiver Jin!”

“Jin Soun! It slipped away…!”

The energy that the four of them had been holding back instantly surged toward the pillars I was trying to uproot.

The four of them failed to immediately stabilize the violently thrashing energy.

As a result, the full force of the mechanical formation began rushing toward the primary Four Gates!

At this rate, I might end up being dragged directly into the formation myself.

Goddammit!!!!

From here on out, it was a battle of sheer endurance.

Like a gambler throwing his entire life onto the betting table, I poured every single ounce of my inner qi into the threads.

Do you have any idea how many elixirs I’ve consumed?!!!

Gritting my teeth, I began pulling on the pillars with desperate ferocity.

The taut Celestial Silk threads began biting deeply into my palms, but I ignored the pain and pulled even harder.

Agony that felt like my nerves were being shredded into tiny pieces invaded my entire body.

But bringing to mind the desperate screams of the people trapped inside the formation, I let out a furious roar.

“Uwaaaaaaagh!!”

The moment you step inside the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation, horrific nightmares come alive.

Those who had taken lives were consumed by overwhelming guilt, and those who had committed wrongdoings were paralyzed by crippling remorse.

They had only intended to experience the formation, yet the energy dominating their upper dantian completely drained the strength from their bodies.

They tried to draw up energy from their dantian to protect their Righteous Minds, but they could not shake off the illusions.

Tremble, tremble.

A student who had just snapped out of an illusion stared blankly at his own two hands.

The corpses that had littered his surroundings just moments ago, and the bloodstains that had drenched his entire body, were completely gone.

“B-But I was sure…”

In the illusion, his family had been annihilated due to his own mistake.

His relatives, comrades, and friends had all died, leaving him alone to await his inevitable death.

He was absolutely certain of it…

But just as he was desperately begging an unseen enemy for his life.

The terrifyingly realistic scene suddenly vanished entirely.

What exactly is happening?

Violently trembling hands.

A perfectly clean martial arts uniform without a single stain.

Other students standing around him, looking just as bewildered.

Only then did he remember that he had entered the All-Encompassing Formation and realized he had been hallucinating.

Just then.

“Uwaaaaaagh!!”

Hearing a powerful roar coming from above, he looked up and saw a man gripping thin threads, straining with all his might.

It was a familiar face.

J-Jin Soun?

He couldn’t hide his shock upon realizing the man’s identity.

Is this another illusion? he wondered, glancing around.

The other students were wearing the same shocked expressions, clearly seeing the exact same thing.

“I can’t hold it!”

Someone’s voice echoed from beyond the All-Encompassing Formation.

Accompanied by that shout, the black mist began to blot out the ceiling once more.

The students swallowed by the returning black mist immediately began to scream.

Aaaaaagh!

Uheuuheuk.

Please… please…

Forgive me! I was wrong!

The clear, agonizing cries rang out.

Only then did the students finally comprehend that entering that mist triggered the illusions, and that Jin Soun was actively doing something to stop it.

But why…

To them, members of the White Faction, Jin Soun was practically their mortal enemy.

The vast majority of the people who had entered this formation held deep-seated hostility toward him and had attended the White Faction’s event specifically to support them.

Why on earth was Jin Soun trying to save them?

“Uwaaaaaaagh!!”

Unable to maintain his grip on the thin threads with just his hands, Jin Soun violently wrapped the threads around his forearms.

The immense tension digging into his flesh caused his skin to swell grotesquely, and blood began pouring from both his hands, dripping down the taut threads.

“Why… on earth…”

“What is happening…”

“Not Jegal Jeonggi… but Jin Soun?”

The reactions of the other students were largely the same.

Mesmerized by Jin Soun’s desperately strained expression, they all stood completely dazed, entirely forgetting the fact that they were still in mortal danger.

Right then, Jin Soun looked down and roared furiously.

“What the hell are you idiots doing just standing there! Smash the pillars connected to the threads immediately!”

“What? What did he say?”

Blood was still dripping steadily from both of his hands.

“Ugh… If you want to get out of there alive, smash the pillars!”

“G-Got it!”

Without needing to be told twice, the students scrambled to stand in front of the pillars connected to Jin Soun’s threads.

Even inside the All-Encompassing Formation, locating the pillars wasn’t difficult.

Because the blood dripping from the threads was painting the pillars red.

“Move faster! You bastards!”

Not a single person frowned at Jin Soun’s crude cursing.

As if possessed, they simply began striking the pillars exactly as he commanded.

Kwang, kwang, kwang, kwang, kwang, kwang.

As everyone desperately scraped up every last drop of inner qi to batter the pillars, the pillars soon began to sway violently.

Crack.

And at that exact moment.

“Haaah!!!”

With Jin Soun’s thunderous roar, the pillars were uprooted simultaneously and launched high into the sky.

Thud, thud, thud-thud.

The four pillars crashed onto the ground at the same time.

Soon after, the black mist that had been completely obscuring their surroundings slowly thinned and entirely dissipated.

“M-My god!”

The Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams All-Encompassing Formation, an absolute masterpiece poured over by the Jegal Family.

Jin Soun had just broken an unprecedented mechanical formation said to surpass even the Seven-Star Seven-Catch Formation.

“…”

“…”

Both the people inside the All-Encompassing Formation and the onlookers outside stared at Jin Soun with their jaws dropped open.

“Ah, damn it! I seriously almost died.”

Jin Soun plopped down onto the ground and spat out a curse, naturally drawing everyone’s eyes to his heavily injured hands and arms.

“Those damned White Faction bastards! Can’t you cause a reasonable amount of trouble?!”

Even though the vast majority of the people in the Grand Horse Track belonged to the White Faction, not a single person showed any hostility or rushed forward to argue.

“…”

“…”

“…!”

They simply stood there, staring blankly at his bloody, mangled hands and arms.