The Martial God with Psychic Powers
Chapter 132

The following day.

The Northern losers—Heukho High Division—released an official statement acknowledging «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» their defeat to the Southern Baekyeong High Division.

Shortly after, the Eastern powerhouse Hwangyong and the Western defeated Heukseok issued identical announcements.

What did this mean?

It meant that Baekyeong High Division of the South had unified all of Mushincheon’s High Divisions.

A feat that had only ever existed in legend.

The legend was now reality.

And its central figures—Sunwoo Baek, Jang Woon, and the leadership of Baekyeong—became the center of a storm of celebration.

Starting with the Jincheon Sect, all families affiliated with Baekyeong held massive feasts.

Jang Gong, father of Baekyeong’s second-ranked student Jang Woon, stood dazed as congratulations poured in from every direction.

Even Ouyang Hyeon, head of the Guardian Hall, came in person to congratulate him.

“Hahaha! Turns out your son’s been hiding his talent all this time!”

“Th-thank you, sir...”

“I looked into it—he did field training with us last year, didn’t he?”

“Yes, that’s right. He just happened to be assigned there.”

“Make sure he comes again this year.”

“Excuse me?”

“Help shape his impression of the Guardian Hall. That way he’ll want to join us after graduation.”

“Ah... understood.”

“I’ll make sure he’s placed in a good position—talk him into it for me, will you?”

“Thank you very much.”

As Ouyang Hyeon mentioned assigning Jang Woon to a favorable post, a smile crept up on Jang Gong’s lips.

What parent wouldn’t be thrilled at the thought of their child rising to prominence?

Jang Gong resolved to do everything he could to convince his son.

Meanwhile, Ouyang Hyeon walked away feeling just a little regretful.

He’d fought hard to recruit Sunwoo Baek into the Guardian Hall, but the competition had been brutal.

He’d only been able to extract Jang Woon thanks to Jang Gong’s cooperation.

Still, that was enough—for now.

He’d just have to use Jang Woon to bring in Sunwoo Baek later.

He was determined to bring as many Baekyeong talents into the Guardian Hall as possible.

That’s how hot the Baekyeong name had become across all of Mushincheon.

But not everyone was pleased with this turn of events.

There was one place in particular where rage was boiling over—

****

The Fist King Gate (Gwonwangmun)—Ho Cheon’s clan.

Gate Master Ho Gwang had been in a foul mood for days.

He had fully expected his youngest son, Ho Cheon, to unify Mushincheon.

People had even begun offering premature congratulations.

Ho Cheon had already been treated as the de facto number one of all the High Divisions.

And then it all collapsed in an instant.

BAM—!

The more he thought about it, the more furious Ho Gwang became.

“This all happened because I wasn’t there.”

He had recently returned to the sect to oversee expansion efforts, leaving his youngest behind in Mushincheon.

He’d believed his son could handle it alone.

He’d been wrong.

He should’ve been there, helping Ho Cheon dominate the field.

He should’ve cleared any obstacles out of his son’s way.

He hadn’t.

“Who did he lose to?” he growled.

The chief steward beside him quietly replied,

“To Sunwoo Baek of the Jincheon Sect. Rank seventy under Mushincheon’s hierarchy.”

CRASH—!

That only enraged him more.

If his son had lost to the scion of a top-tier sect, it might’ve been understandable.

But rank seventy? It was humiliating.

Too embarrassing to even complain about publicly.

“What’s Ho Cheon doing now? He’s not curled up in despair, is he?”

“Quite the opposite, sir. Word is, he’s devoted himself to training harder than ever.”

Ho Gwang’s scowl softened slightly.

“As expected of my boy. He won’t stay down after one loss—he’s working to pay it back.”

“He takes after you, Gate Master.”

“Damn right. That temper of his—never able to accept defeat—that’s what made him strong.”

He let out a short chuckle, then grew serious again.

“Mushincheon is in an uproar over that brat, Sunwoo Baek.”

“I’m aware.”

“I can’t let this slide.”

“Now is not the time, sir. All eyes are on them.”

“I know. But I can’t stand this. I have to avenge my son.”

“Gate Master—please reconsider—”

“I’ll marry him to my daughter.”

The steward froze, stunned by the unexpected turn.

“...Excuse me?”

“Isn’t that the ultimate revenge? Forcing him to marry my daughter. Ugh. Just thinking about it makes me sick.”

“...”

The steward fell silent.

Sure, the Gate Master had a strange streak, but today was something else entirely.

“You’re... joking, right?”

“No.”

“You’re... serious?”

“Dead serious. You know how wild that girl is. I’ve been racking my brain over who to marry her off to—but if it’s that family, it solves everything. I get revenge, clean up a mess, and form a political bond. A perfect triple-win.”

That last part sounded like the real goal.

Why not just say he wanted to befriend the family?

Why always say things in the most confusing way possible?

“I believe other clans have already sent matchmakers.”

“What? Then send ours right now! No—forget that, I’m going in person!”

“W-what?”

“Get ready. I want to see the punk who beat my Ho Cheon with my own eyes.”

The steward bowed deeply.

He knew that once the Gate Master got like this, there was no stopping him.

****

“F-Father!”

Ho Cheon spotted Ho Gwang and halted his training, running over at once.

He could already guess why he’d come—and bowed his head.

“I’m sorry I disappointed you.”

Ho Gwang looked silently at him.

“So this is why you’ve been training so hard?”

“...Sir?”

“I’ve been watching your training. That’s not training—it’s self-torture.”

“T-that’s not...”

“You took it hard, didn’t you? But one loss isn’t the end. Even I lost plenty when I was young.”

He was clearly misunderstanding something.

This training wasn’t about the loss.

It was the routine Yeon Woo Jin gave him—and he personally checked in every day.

If he didn’t meet the quota?

Shudder—

Goosebumps prickled up Ho Cheon’s spine.

To Ho Gwang, that tremble looked like trauma from defeat.

He grabbed Ho Cheon’s shoulders, comforting him.

“You’ll overcome this! You can defeat your inner demons—I believe in you. You’re my son.”

That wasn’t it at all.

But... it was easier to just nod along.

“I’ll be okay, Father. I’ll overcome it.”

“That’s my boy! Hahaha! You’re truly my son!”

Ho Gwang laughed heartily, and Ho Cheon smiled weakly in return.

“And don’t worry—I’ll handle your revenge for you.”

“...Excuse me?”

What now?

Revenge?

“You said it was Sunwoo Baek, right? The one who beat you.”

“Y-yes, but—”

“I’ll take care of it. I’ll serve him a revenge so cruel—”

“N-no! You can’t!”

“Your protests are useless. That’s the very reason I’m here.”

“Father! You must not!”

“Don’t worry. You won’t suffer any consequences.”

“FATHER!”

This was bad.

Touching Sunwoo Baek meant offending that person’s will.

Ho Cheon immediately thought of his liege—Yeon Woo Jin.

The one and only grandson of Mushincheon’s Lord.

That was Yeon Woo Jin’s true identity.

And he wasn’t just powerful.

He was a monster—the kind of man who could crush even three Transcendent-level martial artists simultaneously.

He was guaranteed to become the next ruler of Mushincheon.

To provoke him?

That would mean the complete annihilation of the Fist King Gate.

Ho Cheon was about to urgently persuade Ho Gwang when—

“I’m going to send Sohyang to that bastard.”

“...Pardon? What?”

Ho Cheon stared at Ho Gwang with a face that said, What the hell are you talking about?

“I said I’ll marry Sohyang off to him. What do you think? Isn’t that the perfect revenge?”

“...Why would that—”

“Are you kidding me? Don’t you know Sohyang’s personality?”

“I do. She’s reckless and self-centered.”

She was beautiful.

And she knew it.

Men flocked to her even when she did nothing, trying every possible thing to get on her good side. If her nose weren’t stuck in the air, that’d be the weird part.

Which is why they’d been worried.

She didn’t take men seriously. At all.

They had to force her into something—because word of her colorful history with men had already spread to the more prestigious sects. None of them would take her.

So now, they were going to push her into Jincheonmun, whether she liked it or not.

After all, if a man strong enough to unify all of Mushincheon’s Senior Academies came from that sect, they’d soon soar with wings.

You just want Seon Woo-baek. Just say it plainly.

But no—he had to wrap it up in some twisted "revenge" narrative. That was her father for you.

Ho Cheon stared at Ho Gwang like he couldn’t make sense of any of this.

“...You’re going to ask Sohyang how she feels about it first, right?”

“Nope.”

Ho Cheon pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You know what she’s like...”

Ho Gwang flinched at that.

And then, wearing a stern expression, said—

“A daughter should do as her father says! Don’t talk back!”

Which was rich, coming from a man who always caved whenever Sohyang threw a fit.

“Please don’t drag me into this. I’m telling you right now, I can’t handle her.”

“What are you talking about? You need to help. This is your revenge, too.”

“How is this my revenge? You’re just trying to marry Sohyang off somewhere decent.”

“Exactly! So let’s get your sister married off somewhere decent! No backtalk — help me! I’m ordering you as the Gate Lord!”

Finally, Ho Cheon thought, he says what he really means.

He sighed.

“Then you need to approach her in a way that won’t make her immediately rebel.”

“Huh? There’s a way to do that?”

“You have to make them meet naturally, build a connection, and then bring it up. That’s the only way it might work.”

“Hmm... A natural meeting, huh... But is that even possible?”

“Don’t worry. She’s probably already on her way to see Seon Woo-baek.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“He’s the first man in Mushincheon to unify the Senior Academies. Sohyang’s definitely going to want to see his face.”

“True. She does brag that she can seduce any man.”

“Exactly. She’ll go after Seon Woo-baek no matter what. That’s a guarantee.”

At that, Ho Gwang smiled.

“Then it’s as good as done. No man can resist our Sohyang when she turns on the charm.”

“...Right.”

I still don’t get why guys like her so much, Ho Cheon thought.

****

“So this is the place.”

“Sohyang, you really shouldn’t have come all the way here...”

“Why not? Aren’t you curious, too? He’s the first man to unify all of Mushincheon’s Senior Academies.”

“Well, I mean, yeah, but... this place is for men only...”

“So what? Shouldn’t they be grateful that a beauty like me has graced this man-only space?”

As Sohyang said that, her maid, Chu Yeon, shook her head.

She wasn’t wrong — Sohyang was beautiful. But something about her just rubbed you the wrong way.

Right then, Sohyang started walking over to a group of White Flame Senior Academy students.

“Excuse me.”

With a dazzling smile, she approached them — but one of the two male students immediately stepped forward, blocking her path with a wary look.

“What do you want?”

A man being wary of her?

That was... new.

Sohyang glanced between the two men.

One avoided her gaze.

The other was staring at her like he might eat her alive.

What is this?

What’s with this weird vibe?

Are they... dating? With each other?

She’d heard of couples like that before — were these guys one of them?

“Could you tell me where I can find someone named Seon Woo-baek?”

At that, the more guarded of the two replied—

“Why are you asking?”

The moment he spoke, Sohyang tilted her head.

It’s weird. Talking to him... kind of feels like I’m talking to a woman?

“Just curious. About what kind of person he is. Why are you so defensive, though? Did I do something to offend you?”

The other man quickly stepped in, trying to smooth things over.

“Apologies. We’ve had a lot of people coming by lately asking the same thing, so he’s a little on edge. Really sorry.”

Sohyang nodded.

That made sense.

If everyone and their mother was asking the same question, anyone would get testy.

“Ah, I see. Sorry — I didn’t think about that.”

“No problem. Comes with the territory, I guess. When you’re in a Senior Academy with a celebrity, this kind of hassle’s unavoidable. Haha.”