Chapter 316
Chapter 316
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 316
Chapter Title: The Sword of Heaven
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Bu Eun-seol cautiously touched the metal on the combining mechanism again.
*Shwick!*
The poison needles that had shot out from the hilt vanished without a trace.
“So that’s how it works.”
Bu Eun-seol nodded as he examined the hilt closely.
This hidden mechanism had two purposes.
The first was likely to prevent the weapon from being stolen when the short and long sabers were combined.
The second was to fully discharge the embedded poison needles, allowing for an ambush at close range.
“A peculiar material.”
The blade of the short saber was dyed black.
Bu Eun-seol’s beloved sword, the Muk-geom, was also black, but as a divine sword, its surface held a strange luster.
This short saber, however, had no sheen at all, as if it absorbed all the light in the world.
If not for the hilt, it would look like a black rift in the shape of a blade had appeared in mid-air.
“This is not a blade for me to use.”
The Muk-geom was all the weapon he needed.
Besides, he hadn’t learned any particularly useful saber techniques…
Having no greed for weapons, Bu Eun-seol felt little interest in the short saber.
“I’m searching for traces of the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber, not his weapon.”
*Ssk.*
But contrary to his words, Bu Eun-seol tucked the short saber into his robes.
It was good to be free of greed for treasures, but he couldn’t just leave behind something that might hold a clue.
*Tuk.*
Just then, his blood-stained glove touched the demonic saber.
*Vwooom.*
Suddenly, the saber’s blade began to vibrate intensely. At the same time, a faint ‘click’ was heard from near the hilt.
“Was there another place where hidden weapons are launched?”
As he channeled his inner sight, a white light flowed from Bu Eun-seol’s eyes.
While carefully examining the well-worn hilt, his gaze suddenly stopped on a dark ornament at the end of the pommel.
*Click.*
When he subtly infused his internal energy into the ornament,
*Thump.*
The ornament at the end of the hilt opened, and a rolled-up piece of old paper popped out.
“A saber manual?”
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes flashed as he looked at the old, blood-stained paper.
Hyeol-ru-chil-sik (Blood Tear Seven Forms).
To his surprise, what was hidden in the hilt was not a hidden weapon, but a saber art consisting of seven forms.
“Blood Tear Seven Forms.”
Bu Eun-seol didn’t understand.
The names of demonic martial arts usually indicated their power or characteristics.
But the name ‘Blood Tear Seven Forms’ felt far too desolate for a saber art.
“This is…”
As Bu Eun-seol stared at the characters written on the old paper, the white light in his eyes grew even more intense.
Blood Tear Seven Forms.
Could it be that the saber manual contained the very sword arts he had only ever imagined… assuming he had reached the state of Muguk-gyeong?
The martial prowess of Bu Jan-yang, the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber who had created this art, was far, far greater than he had anticipated.
“Astonishing.”
Bu Eun-seol couldn’t take his eyes off the manual as he read through it.
This manual truly unleashed the unstoppable power of Mother Nature.
It was also a unique saber art that required one to burn both their body and soul to execute.
“Why would he, the former Vice-Lord of the Demonic Palace, create a saber art so sorrowful and tragic?”
—First Form, Saeng-gi-sa-gwi (Life is a Sojourn, Death a Return).
This world is but a temporary stay. To die is to return to where one came from.
—Second Form, Sa-jung-gu-hwal (Seeking Life in the Midst of Death).
In a situation where death is certain, a single path to life was found, but…
—Third Form, Ban-saeng-ban-sa (Half-Living, Half-Dead).
Reaching a state of not knowing whether one will live or die.
—Fourth Form, Yok-sa-mu-ji (Wishing for Death with No Place to Die).
Wanting to die, yet unable to find a place to do so,
—Fifth Form, Sa-bu-jeon-mok (Dying Without Closing One’s Eyes).
Even when it is time to die, the eyes cannot be closed.
—Sixth Form, Sa-mu-yeo-han (Dying Without Lingering Regrets).
Even in death, there are no regrets left, but,
—Seventh Form, Sa-yu-yeo-go (Dying with Lingering Sin).
That even in death, sin remains… is merely a pity.
All the forms of the Blood Tear Seven Forms were about ‘death (死)’.
Bu Eun-seol could feel it.
Bu Jan-yang, the creator of this saber art, had always lived with death in his heart, and in the end, he had longed for death himself.
“Why…”
Bu Eun-seol couldn’t understand.
“How could he have fallen into such grief even after creating a saber art that reached the pinnacle of the Dao of the Saber?”
The Blood Tear Seven Forms that the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber had inscribed was not the greatest demonic saber art.
It could truly be called the greatest saber art under heaven (天下第一刀法).
Despite possessing such a supreme saber art and the noble position of Vice-Lord of the Demonic Palace…
Why had he lived such a painful and arduous life?
“He wasn’t my grandfather.”
His grandfather, Bu Jan-yang, had always given Bu Eun-seol hope and encouragement, teaching him not to dwell on past mistakes.
This was a world apart from the mindset of the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber who had created this art.
“I cannot understand.”
He had initially sensed that his grandfather and the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber were the same person.
But seeing this manual made him think they were two completely different people.
“And this manual…”
Bu Eun-seol took a deep breath.
The seven forms were something that even he, at his current level, could not master.
This was because each of the seven forms of the Blood Tear Seven Forms had its own corresponding heart incantation.
And if one did not fuse their spirit and body according to that incantation, the true power of the form could not be unleashed.
In short, it was an incredibly unique and brilliant saber art that couldn't even be performed unless one unified their spirit and body to match each form.
Right now, the only part of the doctrine Bu Eun-seol could even begin to comprehend was the first form. Saeng-gi-sa-gwi.
—This world is but a temporary stay. To die is to return to where one came from.
It was because this perfectly matched his own view of life and death as one and the same.
“It’s certain he wasn’t a cruel murderer.”
According to Jong-ri Sa-hyeon, contrary to what was known to the world, the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber was not such a malicious person.
And Bu Eun-seol could feel it too.
The Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber, Bu Jan-yang.
Not only had he lived in sorrow and anguish, but he had actually yearned for his own death.
That was why he was able to create such a saber art… and why he had been unrivaled.
“Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber.”
Bu Eun-seol gripped the short saber in his hand.
He felt it was his destiny to use this blade.
*Click.*
When he took out the scabbard, the characters for ‘Yeo-ro (旅路)’ were faintly engraved on the lower part.
He must have been the one who named the blade.
“Yeo-ro.”
Bu Eun-seol sighed deeply and shook his head.
To give his beloved saber, which he must have carried with him always, such a lonely name as ‘Journey’.
The Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber, Bu Jan-yang, had not only lived a long and solitary life…
He must have also thought of the life of a martial artist, filled with blood and gore, as nothing more than a passing ‘journey.’
*Click.*
Bu Eun-seol sheathed Yeo-ro.
As the blade entered the old, rusted scabbard, its dreadful black light vanished. On the outside, it looked like nothing more than a shabby old sword.
“Let’s go back.”
Taking a deep breath, Bu Eun-seol turned around.
On Ghost Island, Bu Eun-seol had mended the fractures in his spirit and realized that martial arts were not a contest of power.
He understood that he had to achieve the pinnacle of subtlety.
And now that he had even acquired the ultimate saber art of the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber, the Blood Tear Seven Forms… he had finished his preparations to cut off the head of that vile Cheon-geom.
***
The martial world was in an uproar.
On the island known as Ghost Island, renowned heroes of the Orthodox Faction had been massacred.
Their bodies bore various wounds. But the most fatal was the Internal Expansive Projectile Energy that had shattered their bodies like crackers.
It was the signature art of the Tan-wang.
—The Tan-wang murdered the heroes of the Orthodox Faction?
The martial world, especially the Orthodox Faction, was filled with disbelief.
The Tan-wang, Buk-gung-ryeong.
He was a renowned hero who roamed the martial world with a noble spirit, performing many good deeds, an upright figure who was a model for the Orthodox Faction.
But the bodies of the murdered heroes showed traces of the Purple Lightning Golden Ring, and even more damning, the character ‘Tan (彈)’ signifying the Tan-wang was carved in front of a cave on Ghost Island.
But the Tan-wang had vanished, and no one knew the truth of the matter.
The Orthodox Faction used various intelligence organizations to search for his whereabouts, but he had disappeared completely, as if he had evaporated.
—This matter cannot be judged so easily.
In the end, the Orthodox Faction remained reserved.
Unless the Tan-wang himself came forward, there was no way to know the exact truth.
But this was merely the superficial reaction of the Orthodox Faction’s leadership.
—Find that murderer in human skin!
—How could a great master of the Orthodox Faction, respected for decades, commit such a slaughter!
It was rumored that the friends, relatives, and sects of the heroes who died on Ghost Island were either tracking the Tan-wang themselves or had spent fortunes to send pursuit teams after him.
The Tan-wang, Buk-gung-ryeong.
The hero of the Orthodox Faction who had protected the martial world for a long time, acting righteously and justly, had in the end…
Earned the infamy of being a murderer who had hidden his true nature for decades.
Upon his return to the Demonic Palace, Bu Eun-seol immediately went into seclusion.
He did so to master the Blood Tear Seven Forms of the Seven-Fingered Demonic Saber, Bu Jan-yang.
‘Old man.’
Before entering seclusion, Bu Eun-seol thought of Buk-gung-ryeong with a bitter expression.
He, too, had heard all the rumors about the Tan-wang that were shaking the martial world.
‘Just as I thought, it was a ploy to destroy his honor first.’
Seeing how the incident that occurred on the remote Ghost Island had spread so quickly, he knew at once that it was the work of the same forces that had plotted the events on Jangbo Island.
Bu Eun-seol had originally anticipated all of this and promised to take the blame himself.
But Buk-gung-ryeong had refused and moved according to their intentions.
All for the reason that Bu Eun-seol could one day become a pillar of the martial world.
‘It will take a long time, but.’
Entering the training chamber, Bu Eun-seol took a deep breath and muttered.
‘I will restore your honor, old man.’
Every time they met, Buk-gung-ryeong had always granted him a fortuitous opportunity with his Internal Expansive Projectile Energy.
If only to repay that debt, Bu Eun-seol resolved to one day restore Buk-gung-ryeong’s honor.
Four days later.
Bu Eun-seol, who had been cooped up in the training chamber studying the saber manual, shook his head with a weary expression.
“It’s still not working.”
He had memorized all of the Blood Tear Seven Forms hidden in Yeo-ro’s hilt and burned the manual.
Then, he had devoted himself day and night to mastering the techniques.
In the mirror, the skin under Bu Eun-seol’s eyes was dark.
He was someone who could go four nights without sleep and still be energetic, but the manual for the Blood Tear Seven Forms was on the level of another supreme internal art.
It was even more difficult to learn than the combination of the Sak-jeong-bi-gyeol and the Mu-hwang-jeong-gak, the highest internal arts of the Demonic and Orthodox Factions.
“But with this one form alone, I can cut down the heavens.”
There had been some progress.
Bu Eun-seol had managed to master the first form, Saeng-gi-sa-gwi, for which he could align his spirit with the manual’s principles.
He could guarantee it.
In this vast world, those who could block this one saber form could be counted on one hand.
*Click.*
When he stepped outside, the noon sun shone down on him.
Leaving his quarters, Bu Eun-seol immediately headed for the Hwahong Pavilion.
Having finished his long seclusion, he intended to clear his head with a walk.
Just then, Mu-gwang, Yu Un-ryong’s adjutant, approached from a distance.
“Lord.”
He spoke cautiously, his hands clasped respectfully.
“Division Leader Yu and Division Leader Myo are waiting for you in the conference room.”
In that instant, Bu Eun-seol’s eyes flashed.
The fact that the two of them were looking for him…
Meant that the investigation into Cheon-geom was finally over.
Bu Eun-seol immediately made his way to the conference room.
Inside, Yu Un-ryong and Myo Cheon-u were sitting at a large table with tired faces.
They must have stayed up all night to thoroughly investigate Cheon-geom and refine the information into something reliable.
“You’ve worked hard.”
Before even hearing their report, Bu Eun-seol commended the two for their efforts.
Myo Cheon-u replied with a dry smile.
“Hard work? This is our business too.”
Taking revenge on Cheon-geom for killing Yeong Mun-ho was a duty not just for Bu Eun-seol, but for all the Ten Demonic Disciples.
“The Ninth Assassination Division Leader was a great help.”
Yu Un-ryong, sitting with a haggard face, spoke up.
“I now understand why you spent so much money to make the Ninth Assassination Squad your direct unit. Without their help, it would have been difficult to gather this much information on Cheon-geom.”
Bu Eun-seol nodded.
Cheon-geom was a figure who had always roamed the martial world in secret.
Moreover, now that he had become a first-class Sword Division Leader of the Martial Alliance, a formal intelligence organization would have been concealing his tracks.
In that case, the only ones who could dig up information on him were the Ninth Assassination Squad, who rivaled the Biyeong-gak.
“To summarize briefly, that crazy bastard is imitating you right now.”
Yu Un-ryong explained calmly.
“He’s leading his own unit, dealing with sects that were a headache for the Martial Alliance, and taking care of those who harm the common people. All to build up his fame even more.”
“Hm.”
“The guy is not only incredibly skilled, he also has no fear. It seems to be because he injured his head as a child.”
“He injured his head?”
At Bu Eun-seol’s question, Yu Un-ryong nodded and began to speak.
“They say Cheon-geom was the only child to survive a village massacre by a band of mounted bandits.”
He let out a short sigh before continuing.
“The last house the bandits wiped out was Cheon-geom’s… and just as the child was about to die, the Sword Sovereign appeared.”
***
The mounted bandits had attacked the village and cruelly killed its people.
As they were finishing up, they found a child hiding in a shed.
When the child saw the bandits discover him, he clenched his fists tightly.
Then he ran at the bandits who had massacred his family and swung his small hands.
“Hmph.”
One of the bandits looked at the charging child with annoyance and kicked him hard.
*Thwack.*
The child flew more than ten feet, his head hitting a rock, and blood gushed out.
But he was still breathing, trying to get back on his feet.
“Tough little thing.”
Seeing that the child wouldn’t die, the bandit strode toward him again.
*CRACKLE!*
Just then, with a sound like thunder, a white shadow descended from the sky.
It was the Sword Sovereign, Heon-won Dam-cheong, who had been passing by and was drawn by the horrific screams.
But the village had already been wiped out by the bandits, and all that remained was a single child covered in blood.
“Scum not worth living.”
Enraged, he dispatched all several hundred bandits in less than half an incense stick’s time.
“…”
Heon-won Dam-cheong’s gaze wavered as he looked at the surviving child.
The child was twitching by the rock.
The fate of the child, who had survived this horrific scene alone, was cruel, and his bone structure was astonishingly superior.
“Hmm.”
Heon-won Dam-cheong already had grown disciples.
And having no more attachments to the martial world, he was just about to leave it behind for good.
But seeing the child who had survived the bandits alone, he felt an inescapable sense of destiny.
“Is this also the will of heaven?”
Although he was a farmer’s son, his aptitude showed he was a natural-born martial artist. Having made up his mind, he asked in a low voice.
“What is your name?”
But perhaps because he had hit his head hard on the rock, the child just stared at him with empty eyes.
“His brain has been damaged.”
The child had lost all his memories from the severe impact.
*CRACKLE!*
Just then, thunder cracked and a downpour began.
Heon-won Dam-cheong approached the child and asked.
“Will you follow me?”
The child, who had been sitting with a vacant gaze, nodded.
*Vwoom!*
A blue light emanated from Heon-won Dam-cheong’s body, and an aura as imposing as a great mountain began to pour out.
“So that villains like these may no longer roam the world and cause harm, you shall become the Sword of Heaven and punish them.”
“The Sword… of Heaven.”
“That’s right.”
Looking at the child who repeated his words softly, Heon-won Dam-cheong spoke in a solemn voice.
“From now on, your name is Cheon-geom.”
***
“And that is how Cheon-geom became the Sword Sovereign’s disciple.”
Listening to Yu Un-ryong’s story, Myo Cheon-u stroked his chin.
“It’s too theatrical. Anyone hearing it would think it’s a story from a legend.”
“It was probably information deliberately leaked by the Sword Sovereign’s side.”
Yu Un-ryong shrugged.
“Otherwise, details known only to the two of them wouldn’t have been spread throughout the martial world in such detail.”
He then looked at Bu Eun-seol and continued.
“After that, Cheon-geom became the Sword Sovereign’s disciple and is said to have inherited all of his amazing sword arts.”
Cheon-geom was said to be a martial prodigy who astonished even the Sword Sovereign.
Was it because of his head injury?
Not only did he have a natural talent for learning martial arts, but he also seemed incapable of feeling emotions like fear.
He also never touched the weak and was said to find pleasure in facing the strong.
His only flaw was his lack of mercy and his cruelty when dealing with villains…
But from the perspective of the Orthodox Faction, that wasn’t considered a major fault.
“So he has no weaknesses at all.”
At Bu Eun-seol’s words, a gleam flashed in Yu Un-ryong’s eyes.
“No. He does.”
He then spoke in a powerful voice.
“We found out by thoroughly investigating his every move. That man, Cheon-geom, has a fatal flaw.”