The Birth of the Absolute Three Swords
Akasha's voice echoed through his mind.
"Go ahead."
The second task was improving the Gale Chain Spear.
Within Ouyang Qiangang's mental world, the thirty-six stances of the Gale Chain Spear uncovered from the Nine Dragons Myriad Mountains Map hung in the air like thirty-six glowing meteors. But now that he had grasped the true essence of martial arts, the divisions between stances meant nothing to him anymore.
"Akasha, the stances of the Gale Chain Spear are far too complicated, and they waste far too much. I want to compress all of it into just two stances. Two perfect stances — one staking everything on speed, the other on mass."
He settled the direction of the refinement.
"The stance that wagers everything on speed, I'll name Gale Flashbolt. The one that stacks destructive mass ninefold, I'll call Gale Ninefold Ruin."
With Akasha's answer, the thirty-six meteors streaming along the galaxy's orbit began to merge into a single, colossal whirlpool of light.
First, only the concept of speed was extracted from that vortex of radiance.
The light condensed into a single point, and before long it became a line of blue flash that tore through space itself.
Where the flash passed, there was only silence, as if everything had simply ceased to exist. Cause and effect seemed to trade places — the mark of destruction appeared first, and only then did the sound follow in its wake. It was a speed that defied causality itself.
It was the moment Gale Flashbolt was born.
Next, the concept of mass revealed itself from the whirlpool.
In his mental world, nine palm shadows began to stack, one atop another, before the simian training dummy. With each layer that overlapped, space sank heavily under the weight, and at the instant all nine palm shadows fused into one perfect whole, the entire mindscape seemed to scream, unable to bear it.
Destructive power that crushed all things by its mere existence, before it was even unleashed. This was Gale Ninefold Ruin.
The refinement of his martial arts continued without pause.
The destructive power of the Detonating Thunder Flame King Strike was enhanced.
He then wove the Nine Palace Subtle Trace Steps, the Whirling Flash Steps, and the Heavenly Shooting Star Divine Art together into a single art.
Ouyang Qiangang named this new movement art the Phantom Shadowless Divine Art.
Within the mental world, his body flickered in and out of existence like a phantom, and the uncanniness of it was on an entirely different level from before. He could veer off at a right angle in the middle of a straight sprint, or even come to a dead stop in midair.
"This really is incredible. It's like ignoring the laws of physics."
"Can't you just play along a little?"
"Ah! Right, you're a baby. My bad. Heh heh heh."
The Dragon-Seizing Golden Net Palm, combined with the Phantom Shadowless, became a spider's web from which there was no escape once caught.
All that remained was the refinement of the Star-Strewn Grand Sword Art.
The twenty-four stances of the sword art obtained from the Nine Dragons Myriad Mountains Map were undoubtedly transcendent technique — yet something was decisively missing to satisfy his heart.
Then, like a bolt of lightning, the memory of that overwhelming sword scar he had witnessed beneath Sand Rock Peak on Dayangsan Island flashed across his mind.
That transcendent realm that had split heaven and earth with a single strike. A single sword stroke that seemed to contain every principle in existence, and yet surpassed all of them.
It was awe — and a longing to reach that place someday, no matter what.
Having glimpsed that absolute realm, the Star-Strewn Grand Sword Art, for all its precision and power, felt like nothing more than an unfinished sculpture.
Ouyang Qiangang wanted to pour the awe and the longing he had felt in that place into his own sword.
Within his mental world, the twenty-four stances of the Star-Strewn Grand Sword Art rose like twenty-four shining stars.
But they were no longer his goal. They were merely raw material for a new beginning.
Soon, the memories of every sword he had ever faced spread out before his mindscape like phantoms.
From the cruel, ruthlessly practical swordsmanship of the Blood Sea killers, to the stately, majestic currents of the hundreds of sword arts glimpsed in the imperial secret archives.
Countless sword trajectories swirled together into a river of chaos — and then, in the next breath, they began to merge into one vast, radiant galaxy of light.
Within that majestic flow, Ouyang Qiangang saw the origin of the sword.
"Tens of thousands of stances, thousands of variations… but in the end, all of it comes down to just two things. Cutting, and thrusting. That's all there is."
At his will, the vast galaxy of light condensed and became a single vertical shaft of radiance.
That flash, splitting space like a bolt of lightning, was an absolute power that severed everything — even the soul itself.
"First Stance — One Flash Severing Heaven."
Next, the vertical flash scattered apart into a galaxy of light, then condensed once more into a single point.
A destructive point of light that seemed to hold every principle of the world within it. The ultimate strike, capable of piercing through the heavens themselves.
"Second Stance — Primal Chaos Piercing the Sun."
But it did not end there.
The point of light that had pierced the heavens scattered once more into infinite shards of radiance, forming a colossal sphere of light that enveloped his entire mental world.
Countless sword trajectories shifted without rest, creating a space of perfect defense — while at the same time, within that ceaseless change, they erupted with unpredictable flashes of counterattack.
Ultimate defense and counterattack alike, warding off ten thousand kalpas of assault through change carried to its very extreme.
This, and only this, was the true realm of Changelessness.
"Third Stance — Ten Thousand Kalpas Changeless."
Ouyang Qiangang blinked, taken aback that such an astonishing report would end in a sigh.
"What's with the sigh?"
"What are you talking about?"
"What? How much internal energy does it take?"
"Son of a bi—"
Even Ouyang Qiangang, who had lived a life far removed from profanity, found it impossible to hold back this time. Sensing his aggrieved (?) mood, Akasha hastily changed the subject.
"The Absolute Three Swords?"
"So you are acting like this because I called you a baby earlier. You hold a grudge, you know that? A real grudge."
He glanced toward the eastern window of the training chamber. At some point, the sky had brightened into full morning.
"The sun's already coming up? Has it really been that long?"
At that very moment, hurried footsteps sounded from outside the training chamber.
"Young Master! Urgent news."
It was Yeom Pung's voice.
The moment Ouyang Qiangang opened the door, there stood Sangguan Wan'er and Yeom Pung, their faces frozen like stone.
"What is it, Elder Yeom?"
"A secret envoy has arrived from the palace. There is an imperial decree ordering you to enter the palace at once."
Ouyang Qiangang's face hardened.
"Do you know what it concerns?"
Sangguan Wan'er spoke up, her expression troubled.
"Word is spreading that the Second Prince has escaped from the dungeon. I suspect it may be connected."
Ouyang Qiangang's expression shifted at once.
The remnants of the Undercurrent must have made their move.
He had been in the middle of enjoying the refinement of his martial arts, so the timing irritated him — but refusing the Emperor's command was not an option.
Munyeong Pavilion.
Emperor Changseong sat upon the throne, greeting Ouyang Qiangang with a face etched in weariness. Attending him, as always, was Chief Seal-Holding Eunuch Sang On and no one else.
"Sit."
The Emperor gestured to the seat across from him. As Ouyang Qiangang took his place, the Emperor slowly raised his teacup and took a single sip.
Even that brief silence pressed down heavily upon the air of the chamber.
At last, the Emperor let out a low sigh and spoke.
"The Second Prince has escaped. In the process, all twelve Imperial Guards who were holding the dungeon lost their lives."
Ouyang Qiangang's expression stiffened.
"The dungeon is the most heavily guarded place in all the palace. How could such a thing possibly happen?"
"The Dongchang believes there was a collaborator within the palace. No — to put it precisely, it means the Undercurrent is still active."
The Emperor looked Ouyang Qiangang squarely in the eye as he continued.
"While investigating the incident, the Dongchang seized upon a small thread. But that thread led beyond the palace walls. More precisely……."
The Emperor paused for a moment.
Sensing the weight of that silence, Ouyang Qiangang asked in a heavy voice.
"Did it lead into Murim?"
The instant he cut straight to the heart of the matter, a flicker of admiration passed through the Emperor's eyes.
"You truly are an easy man to talk to."
The Emperor leaned back in his chair and went on.
"If those who have defied the imperial house are not torn out by the roots, Our authority cannot stand. The problem is that Murim is a realm beyond the reach of the official offices."
How deeply murim folk resented — no, despised — the interference of the government was a fact even a child of three knew. And the feeling was entirely mutual.
A trace of bitterness crept into the Emperor's voice as he continued.
"Martial men — a graceless lot, every one of them — are subjects of the empire, and yet they consider themselves beings who dwell in a world apart. They believe Murim's rules stand apart from the law of the offices, and that Murim's domain transcends the very borders of the empire."
That subtle rift had given rise to the long-standing custom of non-interference between the government and Murim.
Officially, the government had never acknowledged such a thing. But tacitly, it had. There were simply too many incidents arising in Murim that the power of the offices could never resolve.
A faint crease formed between Ouyang Qiangang's brows.
Why is this old man padding his speech out so long before getting to the point…….
The Emperor pressed on.
"If Our subjects continue to pursue them, they will inevitably be noticed by the murim folk, and a great storm will inevitably follow."
His gaze sharpened.
"But you are different, are you not?"
Ouyang Qiangang's eyes deepened. The true matter was finally on the table.
He asked.
"…You wish me to take on this task?"
"I do."
"I hold no position within the government."
"And yet you are a man of Murim who simultaneously stands in a special relationship with the imperial house. There is no one better suited to this matter than you."
You old fox, why on earth would I take on a job like that!
The Emperor's expression turned grave.
"If you take this matter upon yourself, then even should the murim folk learn of it, they will not see it as pressure from the offices."
"I understand Your Majesty's intent. But I am soon to return to Nanchang to rebuild my family. I have no time to spare for missions. So I would ask that you seek out some other suitable—"
A meaningful smile crept across the Emperor's lips.
"The rebuilding of the Ouyang Clan, you say? I had the matter looked into — your family has never managed to escape the shadow of your maternal kin at the Gold Pagoda Mountain Manor. Am I not correct?"
Ouyang Qiangang's face went rigid.
They investigated everything……. At this rate, I'll end up led around by the nose…….
Naturally, what came out of his mouth was something else entirely.
"…That is correct, Your Majesty."
"The greatest obstacle to rebuilding your family would be funds, wouldn't you say?"
"I have already arranged a solution."
Ouyang Qiangang answered carefully, but the Emperor showed no sign of listening.
"No doubt that is true. But were I to lend my aid, would not the time required for this rebuilding be shortened dramatically?"
These were the words of the Emperor who ruled the empire. This would be no ordinary assistance.
Ouyang Qiangang swallowed dryly and asked.
"What manner of aid… might you be speaking of?"
The Emperor smiled broadly.
"Sell anything you wish under the Ouyang Clan's name. The type and the quantity are of no consequence. Every government office in Jiangsu Province will purchase it as a matter of priority."
Ouyang Qiangang's eyes went wide.
That was a truly staggering privilege.
"Furthermore, I shall grant your family immunity from prosecution. A family that rendered great service in driving back the plague has more than sufficient justification. With these two things, even the Gold Pagoda Mountain Manor will not be able to look down upon the Ouyang Clan so easily. Would you not agree?"
"Th… that is so. Your grace is boundless, Your Majesty."
Ouyang Qiangang was silent for a moment before speaking again.
"Before I accept this mission, there are promises I would ask of Your Majesty."
The Emperor's eyes gleamed with interest.
"And what would those be?"
"First — promise that once this matter is concluded, there will be no political interference whatsoever in the affairs of the Ouyang Clan."
"That is rather what I intended to say myself. You have my promise."
"Second……."
Ouyang Qiangang paused, then spoke with firm resolve.
"If I learn the true identity of the Undercurrent, the manner in which it is dealt with will be my decision."
This time, it was the Emperor who fell silent for a long while.
"…What do you mean by that?"
"As Your Majesty must surely sense as well, there is a strong likelihood that an enormous power hides behind this affair."
"Hmm……."
"The methods of the imperial house, which must weigh political considerations, may well end up hindering the uprooting of their roots instead."
The Emperor studied Ouyang Qiangang for a long, long moment.
After a time, he spoke.
"Very well. I leave it to your judgment."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The Emperor summoned his Chief Seal-Holding Eunuch.
"Sang On."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"See to it that appropriate support is extended to the businesses of the Ouyang Clan and of Sangguan Wan'er."
"I shall carry out your decree."
The Emperor turned his gaze back to Ouyang Qiangang.
"As for the information on the Undercurrent that the Dongchang has gathered, you will be able to receive it before you depart Yeomga Manor. And the Nine Dragons Divine Talisman I granted you is a precious artifact bearing the authority to punish any soul outside the direct imperial line — it will serve you well. I entrust this matter to you in good faith. Do not disappoint me."
"I shall give it my utmost, Your Majesty."
As Ouyang Qiangang stepped out of the Emperor's private chamber, he swallowed a sigh.
In the end, he'd been led around by the nose.