Chapter 78
Chapter 78
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Swordsmanship Initiation
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"Hahaha! Not bad at all!"
Tang Chukyung burst into roaring laughter as he watched Unhwi respond to the sudden test with calm composure, showing no surprise whatsoever.
Though born with a disability that prevented him from delving deeply into martial arts, he had spent years observing countless masters and crafting their weapons firsthand, granting him an eye for detail rivaling even the Hidden Venerable.
In his expert view, Unhwi's fundamentals were rock-solid.
It was true that he had viewed this Tang Clan youth wielding a sword with half-skeptical eyes, but Unhwi far exceeded his expectations.
"Starting from the basic spear arts of the Lan Na Chal, progressing through various polearms to master free-flowing forms, then using blunt weapons to harness power. Mastering saber arts was particularly ingenious. Even the slashing strikes, which are inevitably weak in Lan Na Chal, have been perfected—"
Tang Chukyung precisely discerned the path Unhwi had followed to reach swordsmanship.
"A hundred days of spear, a thousand days of saber, ten thousand days of sword, was it? That's exactly the sequence. It might seem stubborn at first glance, but it has built an unshakeable foundation, so no sword art placed upon it should pose a problem."
A soft chuckle escaped his lips.
Pfft!
"Still clinging to the Wild Wind Dance, though—commendable or foolish, I'm not sure."
The Wild Wind Dance was less a martial art and more a martial learning, encompassing the Tang Clan's myriad techniques segmented across countless lineages, woven into one cohesive whole.
Yet Unhwi wasn't limiting it to Tang Clan arts; he was extending its concepts even to swordsmanship.
An impossibility without profound understanding of Tang martial learning and weapons alike.
Despite his realm, it meant Unhwi's martial philosophy was already superior to that of many masters.
Considering he hadn't even reached thirty, it was absurd.
But Unhwi was truly achieving it.
Just look at that Young Child Eight Methods.
Basic forms that sword sects made five-year-olds practice, when blended with Wild Wind Dance, now boasted power and depth rivaling supreme arts.
And he was executing it not with a proper sword, but with a fan.
It was nothing short of divine.
"But that's a fan dance, not a sword dance."
Of course, limitations existed.
No matter how expansively the vessel of Wild Wind Dance had grown, its power ultimately depended on the contents.
Unhwi hadn't yet settled on those contents.
He hadn't fully entered the world of swordsmanship—or perhaps he was biding his time.
In that case.
"I can lend a hand."
Tang Chukyung curled one corner of his mouth upward.
His smile now bore a vicious resemblance to the Hidden Venerable's malicious grin, the very one he had always despised mimicking.
* * *
The lingering spirits sighed in relief as the hidden weapons soared high into the sky on whirlwinds.
「Whew— we've barely cleared this hurdle.」
「The Hidden Venerable lives up to his name... pulling this on a fellow Tang clansman. His vicious tricks are as rumored—」
「Did we finally take him down!?」
「Gasp!」
「You madman! Don't say things like that!!」
「Hm? Why not? We did take him down, right?」
「Saying it out loud just invites disaster, as if it's the natural order—」
Rumble!
At that moment, the hidden weapons hovering in the sky underwent a new transformation.
Thunder roared.
「W-what's that? Lightning energy!? On hidden weapons?」
「Fuck!!」
Indeed. The trap set by the Hidden Venerable had seemed too easy.
He had tried maneuvering the spirits just in case, but possessing the Hidden Venerable's weapons proved difficult.
A master on par with his master, no doubt.
Even this mere device bore some ingenious barrier beyond his reach.
Crackle!
The lightning sparking faintly among the floating hidden weapons in the sky erupted in an instant, igniting into blazing flames.
Each fragment seemed tiny individually.
Yet as they plummeted like rays of light, they resembled black lightning bolts.
Dark Thunder.
The pinnacle of Tang hidden weapon arts, wielded only by those of the highest realms.
If they rained down unchecked, the devastation would be unimaginable.
It wouldn't be hidden weapon arts anymore.
Just bombardment.
But the problem extended beyond that.
In that instant, a foul stench assaulted his nostrils.
The black lightning was laden with poison.
What could it be?
To stir his Poison Dragon Heart Technique, it was no ordinary toxin.
「Acid Yang Poison! It looks like Acid Yang Poison!」
Acid Yang Poison?
The extreme venom that corroded everything it touched?
But its greatest peril was that upon evaporation, it invaded the bronchioles, melting the lungs.
Dark Thunder laced with Acid Yang Poison.
Disaster upon calamity. The worst possible scenario.
This old man clearly had no intention of going easy on a young clan descendant, not even a speck.
「Young Leader! Even with Wild Wind Dance, the Young Child Eight Methods can't block that!」
「Retreat first—that would be wisest!!」
Just before the Dark Thunder fell, a flurry of thoughts raced through his mind in that brief span.
Fleeing as the spirits advised was one option. He knew the Dark Thunder's might all too well.
If he couldn't block it?
Severe injury was inevitable.
With the Demonic Cultists' ambush imminent, wounds were the last thing he wanted.
But evasion meant forgoing the Hidden Venerable's 'gift.'
Gift.
The Hidden Venerable's gift likely meant aiding his complete fusion with this Sword Immortal.
Whether a congratulatory present for a favored subordinate's successor or curiosity over the amusing weapon he'd enabled—unclear.
To any Tang clansman, such a gift from the Hidden Venerable was an unrivaled boon.
Thus, he couldn't shy away merely because it was arduous.
He yearned to unwrap that gift bundle entirely and claim it all.
Only one path remained.
'Reach deeper into the sword.'
Among Tang Chukyung's earlier praises was this: a fan dance, not a sword dance.
There lay the answer.
Sword dance.
The offhand remark rippled across the still surface of his mind like a tossed stone.
The gentle waves swelled into a storm raging in his head.
Not a fan dance—a sword dance.
He pressed his inner mirror once more.
'What is my sword?'
'Not this clumsy Young Child Eight Methods—what is the sword I truly idealize?'
Buried deep in his heart for so long, his singular sword was one.
Flash.
The Heavenly Demon Martial Repository appeared.
Among the countless shelves, one drew his eye alone.
Heavenly Demon Nine Swords.
Nine supreme sword manuals symbolizing his master stood arrayed in order.
One protruded slightly, as if begging to be grasped.
—Mara Thousand Sword Form.
Mara, lord of the sixth heaven of the desire realm, infamous as the evil spirit who hindered Shakyamuni's enlightenment.
True to its name, it boasted bizarre, ever-shifting forms.
In a single breath, it could draw up to a thousand sword strokes, mesmerizing the viewer.
By the time awareness returned, one was ensnared in its net, carved to pieces.
Literally 'Mara's net,' a terrifying sword art befitting the name.
Yet precisely for that reason, the Mara Thousand Sword Form formed the core axis of the Heavenly Demon Nine Swords.
Its myriad strokes could seamlessly link to any other of the Nine Swords.
Perfect for deflecting swift, subtle hidden weapons.
He drew the Mara Thousand Sword Form manual from the shelf.
Opening the first page released a musty scent, words rising sequentially before his eyes.
One concern: this Mara Thousand Sword Form was a demonic art.
An utterly vicious absolute demonic art.
He could mask the demonic qi with Poison Dragon Heart Technique, but would someone like Tang Chukyung fail to recognize it?
Another thought struck: Wild Wind Dance might contain it.
Wild Wind was fierce and swift.
It discriminated against no weapon or art.
Could it encompass the Mara Thousand Sword Form's violent strokes?
Demonic Wind.
Yes. Let's manifest a demonic wind.
The thought was brief.
Snap!
Action swift.
He closed the manual.
The Heavenly Demon Martial Repository vanished, reality returning.
Whoosh—
He folded the open fan straight, gripping it like a sword.
Inhaling deeply, he unleashed the form, dozens of afterimages instantly tracing the air.
Mara Thousand Sword Form.
Paired with Wild Wind Dance.
Simultaneously, the Dark Thunder descended.
Boom! Boom! Rumble!
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The first three bolts glanced off instantly, scattering in other directions.
The Acid Yang Poison sprayed forth, but mercifully failed to pierce the wind barrier conjured by the demonic wind.
「Here come more!!」
As if the prior bolts were mere appetizers, a black downpour cascaded.
Rumble!
The inner energy packed into each was monstrous.
Speed and power immense.
Boom boom boom!
Deflecting them one by one was no easy task.
But not impossible.
From the fan's tip, winds began to swirl faintly.
Sword winds tangled chaotically.
Flutter!
Whirl whirl—
Wild Wind became demonic wind, demonic wind sword wind, sword wind a net filling the air.
Midway, faltering speed nearly created gaps.
Fwoosh!
Alcohol power bolstered his inner energy, filling the voids.
Utter immersion in swordsmanship elevated him to a higher realm.
Wild Wind Dance
Sword Wind Mara
Mara.
The net of demons was there.
The Dark Thunder entangled wholly.
Struggling futilely to break free, like butterflies in a spiderweb.
He swept the fan horizontally.
Mara tore.
Bang!
Dozens of hidden weapons ricocheted wildly, embedding everywhere.
Ceiling, floor, walls, pillars, planks. Floors cracked, walls crumbled.
The building shook as if on the verge of collapse.
The demonic wind's rampage left equal ferocity.
Tang Chukyung's lip curled higher than before.
"Haa— haa—"
By contrast, he was utterly spent.
Forcing a barely comprehended art was folly enough.
Against the Hidden Venerable's hidden arts, no less.
The frantic calculations in that short span had nearly fried his brain.
His crown burned hot.
Yet he had pulled it off.
The relentless drive extending to swordsmanship granted swift insight into the Heavenly Demon Nine Swords—impossible from sword study alone.
At last... success in taking his first step toward his master's domain.
Indescribable elation filled his chest.