Chapter 24
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Sun-Piercing Sword Revelation
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"What is this?!"
"Hah! So you've truly mastered the Sun-Piercing Sword!"
A massive commotion erupted in an instant.
The source was, naturally, the First-Generation Disciples of the Point Cang Sword Sect, each with their own profound insights into the Sun-Piercing Sword.
"How did Gwang-il learn the Sun-Piercing Sword?!"
"Did Eldest Senior Brother break the rules and teach him...?"
"As if Eldest Senior Brother's temperament would allow that! It must be a fortuitous encounter he gained from the founding ancestor's secret chamber!"
The Second-Generation Disciples, who were deeply immersed in mastering the Sun-Piercing Sword, were also swept up in the uncontrollable uproar.
Unlike most First-Generation Disciples who had partially retired from the front lines due to their advanced age,
the Second-Generation Disciples, who handled frontline duties, could not afford the slightest neglect in training the Sun-Piercing Sword, the sect's symbol to the outside world.
Especially those like Tong-cheon, who was destined to inherit the Sect Leader position, or the others striving tirelessly day and night to become elders supporting him—they were even more deeply devoted to the Sun-Piercing Sword.
"Eldest Senior Brother!"
"H-How did Gwang-il master the Sun-Piercing Sword...?"
Realizing the foundation of the terrifying sword intent Gwang-il was emanating right in the center of the grand training ground, their immense shock was an utterly natural reaction from their perspective.
A chilling sharpness that sent shivers down their spines.
This stemmed purely from the unique, piercing sword intent possessed only by the Sun-Piercing Sword in the world.
"Never mind mastering the Sun-Piercing Sword— what in the world is that terrifying sword intent?!"
"I-It can't be! Gwang-il is barely in his thirties this year. How could he already possess such momentum...!"
Moreover, it wasn't the needle-like sharpness of a novice who had just begun learning the Sun-Piercing Sword.
It was an awe-inspiring presence reminiscent of the jagged peak of a towering mountain summit.
"Hah, hahaha! Ha ha ha ha!"
"Even seeing and feeling it myself, I can hardly believe it, Sect Leader Brother...!"
Among those gathered in the grand training ground, Sect Leader Gwan-hae and Great Elder Gwan-seong—undoubtedly the ones with the deepest attainments in the Sun-Piercing Sword—were stunned beyond words.
Having reached a high realm themselves and refined the Sun-Piercing Sword to a transcendent level, their reaction was all the more inevitable.
'He's not beneath me at all!'
"It's embarrassing to admit, but compared to this old junior brother weighed down by age, that kid Gwang-il's achievement doesn't seem inferior in the slightest."
Gwan-hae's bitter smile at the thought that had bubbled up unbidden was pierced by Gwan-seong's faintly trembling voice in his ear.
"Indeed...... You feel it too?"
"......Then you as well, Sect Leader Brother?"
"Haha! The gap between you and me is less than a single sheet of paper. How could I be any different?"
Back in their Second-Generation Disciple days, he had boasted the mightiest prowess as Eldest Senior Brother.
But after taking on the busy Sect Leader role, Gwan-hae naturally couldn't devote as much time to martial arts training, ending up on the same level as his immediate junior brother.
That was why he could speak so candidly now.
"I thought Gwang-il's one-sword victory over Gwan-ho before was largely due to luck. But seeing this, it seems I was greatly mistaken."
"I agree completely."
Gwan-ho was publicly hailed as the sect's sword master, but it was clear he was a step below them.
In a quick-draw duel leveraging that advantage, it wasn't so strange for an inferior swordsman to be overwhelmed by a superior's single strike.
"That's not the aura of someone who's merely superficially learned the Sun-Piercing Sword."
"Haha! Is that what you mean? I'm questioning whether anyone in the sect besides you seniors and me could withstand that sword intent and cross swords with Gwang-il right now."
A strong conviction had already taken root in both their hearts.
Gwang-il had undoubtedly achieved great success in at least two or more introductory stances of the Sun-Piercing Sword.
Since his sword intent was comparable—no, superior—to theirs, this was merely the minimum estimate.
"It's definitely more than two. What do you think, brother?"
"Haha, who knows. At least three, for sure."
"......It might even be more. This unworthy junior brother has perfected three, yet I still can't confidently claim victory, after all."
"Hahaha! Is that so?"
Before they knew it, sticky cold sweat drenched the hands of the two senior brothers.
This was the thick rivalry and tension that no true rival swordsman could escape.
As they exchanged bitter smiles, gazing at each other—
"Sun Receives Initial String."
Gwang-il's Point Cang Sword, exuding a lofty aura like a serene mountain peak, finally unleashed an intense radiance at his low murmur that no one could dare face.
Flash—!
"?!"
"!!!"
A brilliant glow evoking the moment the sun rises at dawn.
That single stroke, faintly tinged with red, produced no whistling through the air—only proving its existence with dazzling light.
"A-ahhh!"
"For Sun Receives Initial String to emit such radiance!"
Sun Receives Initial String was the first stance of the Sun-Piercing Sword and a symbol of its identity as a swift sword technique.
It was the stance that every disciple initiating into the Sun-Piercing Sword trained first.
Thus, there was no need to explain how sublime a realm Gwang-il's strike had reached.
While later stances were selected based on individual aptitude and talent, no disciple of Point Cang who had begun the Sun-Piercing Sword neglected training this one.
"Hah, haha! Hahaha!"
"......Perfect. Truly the pinnacle of swiftness...!"
"The founding ancestor must be watching over our Point Cang. How else could such a young lad reach this height?"
Chaos erupted!
The buzz grew louder!
As if the silence had never been.
Not only the Second-Generation Disciples who had focused on Sun Receives Initial String, but even the First-Generation Disciples who had moved on to other stances couldn't hide their inner shock.
Especially those across generations who had reached perfection in Sun Receives Initial String—they clearly discerned the ultimate swiftness hidden in the brilliant glow and were plunged into massive shock and thrill.
'So that's how Sun Receives Initial String is truly executed!'
'I've been too fixated on blindly thrusting faster! Oh dear, how could I never have considered the clue in the stance's very name?'
Witnessing that single strike had made them reflect on their own long-perfected stance and even glimpse ways to refine it further.
No matter how identical the stance, the results varied starkly by practitioner.
This arose from the gaps in countless sword paths walked over a lifetime, vast experiences, and the insights accumulated over long years.
A truth so obvious in the martial world.
Thus, such a transcendent demonstration of a stance was typically what an elderly master showed to seated disciples.
'Though in our sect right now, things are perfectly upside down.'
Gwang-il swallowed a thick, involuntary bitter smile as he glanced at the surrounding agitation.
Hadn't he anticipated this as well?
No one in Point Cang at this point had walked a hellish path as arduous as his.
As the last survivor of the sect destroyed in his previous life, he had become a wanderer in the southern rivers teeming with evil paths, enduring unimaginable hardships.
He had gathered the scattered evil path forces like grains of sand, formed the Evil Path Alliance, and ultimately waged a prolonged righteous-evil war against the Murim Alliance, the united front of all orthodox sects.
His Sun-Piercing Sword, tempered in those blood-soaked years of slaughter and tears, could confidently rank among the highest in the sect's long history.
It was obvious this would be a tremendous inspiration to all his senior brothers and elders here.
Thus, demonstrating just Sun Receives Initial String alone sufficiently proved the confidence he had declared moments ago.
Having confirmed the true face of a strike perfected through asura-like real combat, no one would doubt his words now.
'But I can't stop here.'
Even if it was an unexpected stroke of fortune,
hadn't the chance arisen to show his Sun-Piercing Sword to all his sect brothers?
For a mere Third-Generation Disciple, it was an invaluable opportunity hard to come by.
'So, I must not only prove my skill but provide the spark of enlightenment to those worthy.'
And for those not yet qualified, instill commensurate motivation and zeal.
This was a fitting duty for him, who had monopolized all the founding ancestor's fortuitous encounters across past and present lives...
'I hope it helps even one more person.'
Huuuu......
After a long exhale tidied his brief reverie to a corner of his mind,
swish.
Gwang-il straightened his sword again, aligning the base of the hilt to his dantian with inner energy.
Three more stances remained, after all.
Gwang-il's successive demonstrations of the Sun-Piercing Sword.
This unscheduled public display, born from Gwan-jong's suspicions and interrogation, became a shocking pivotal event that turned the entire Point Cang Sword Sect upside down.
It started from his pure intent to prove his own achievements and worth.
Yet the majority who witnessed Gwang-il's stances—roaming in realms far higher than imagined—gained profound shock along with precious sparks of enlightenment rivaling it.
"Se-Seclusion! I must enter seclusion too, Sect Leader Brother!"
"Hey! Even cold water has hierarchy! Step aside! I was first!"
"Agh! If I don't hurry, the insights in my head will vanish!"
"Same here!"
Chaotic shouts!
"......"
The Point Cang First-Generation Disciples, dignified elders of advanced years.
A good number—no, nearly all—of them clung desperately to the Sect Leader's robes, begging permission for seclusion.
No matter how semi-retired they were from the front lines,
they still had minor duties to fulfill.
Was this the sorrow of Point Cang Sword Sect, relatively understaffed compared to other sects?
And the greatest victim of this sorrow was, without doubt—
"Ahem! Sect Leader Brother? This little brother also wishes to enter seclusion briefly......"
"......You too? Who fills the Great Elder's seat if you leave?"
"Cough! Well...... Sigh! Hear out this old junior brother. Gwang-il's stances are shimmering before my eyes like a mirage about to fade...!"
"......"
Sect Leader Gwan-hae of Point Cang Sword Sect.
He himself burned to enter seclusion and replicate Gwang-il's stances he had just witnessed.
Especially since two of the three stances after Sun Receives Initial String differed from his own choices, the urge was irresistible.
Perhaps this could be the golden opportunity for his long-stalled Sun-Piercing Sword progress to leap forward.
"Haaa......!"
But if everyone clutched their swords and secluded themselves, who would manage this massive sect?
'However...... Enlightenment comes and goes without notice, after all.'
When even he couldn't quell his anxiety over a fragile insight that might vanish anytime, who could criticize whom?
As he racked his brains, unable to decide—
Amusingly, the soft voice of the very person who had brought both enlightenment and headache approached cautiously, brushing his ear.