Chapter 82
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Seek the Hidden Secret Manual
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Even after realizing I wasn't just some moderately talented genius but a true prodigy, my daily routine didn't change a bit.
Things like suddenly mastering the fifth level of a martial art in a single day or grasping its essence from a single skim through the manual didn't happen.
That was because what I was learning was the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques, the most intricate advanced art among Mount Hua's signature esoteric techniques.
Since I still couldn't wield sword ki yet, what I performed relying solely on its endless variations was only a half-baked version of the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques.
"Sigh, I need to memorize the incantations quickly."
I grumbled as I trudged toward Mugyeong Pavilion.
The first form, Plum Blossoms by the Roadside, had been easy to understand since I'd been listening to the incantations and practicing the movements since childhood.
But from the subsequent forms onward, I was barely keeping up with memorizing and interpreting the incantations.
And it wasn't enough to just recite them by rote—I had to comprehend their meaning in my mind and train until they flowed naturally without conscious effort.
Thanks to that, Uihyeon was pushing his work late into the night to extend my training sessions.
How could I slack off, rest, and sleep away when my master was sacrificing his own sleep to help his disciple advance in martial arts?
I cut back on rest time too, cramming the incantations until my head throbbed and swinging my sword until my arms ached.
I was in the middle of a growth spurt, so I couldn't skimp on sleep lest my height growth stall.
Thus, I was living the least leisurely life since being born in this place.
If I could, I'd gather up all the time I'd slacked off before and make a day 30 hours instead of 24.
I missed those leisurely days when I was learning the first form, Plum Blossoms by the Roadside.
The western front? Even if the Sect Leader hadn't told me not to go, I wouldn't have been able to.
Mugyeong Pavilion smelled of old books.
I scanned the shelves packed with martial arts manuals.
It would be a paradise for book lovers, but unfortunately, I was a physical type who preferred swinging a sword, so I felt no particular thrill.
While the Plum Blossom Swordsmanship was Mount Hua's signature art and the main one disciples learned, the sect's martial arts weren't limited to that—there were quite a few varieties.
Besides the Six Harmonies Sword, Falling Petals Sword, Seven Plums Sword, Twin Five Sword, and 14 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques, the sword arts I'd learned excluding the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques numbered three.
Adding lightness skills, fists, and staff arts brought the total higher.
The Nine Palaces Heaven-Reversing Sword, composed of eighteen forms advancing from the six harmonies to the eight trigrams' directions and the central nine palaces.
The Thunderbolt Sword, a speed sword as fast as thunder and lightning, though no lightning emerged from the blade.
The Clear Wind Sword, which incantated the gathering of soft, clear winds into twelve forms.
Illusionary sword arts were typically Plum Blossom Swordsmanship variants, so these swift sword styles were what I'd learned separately.
Among them, the most intricate advanced art, the Nine Palaces Heaven-Reversing Sword, I'd learned fully from Uihyeon while practicing the 14 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques.
The Thunderbolt Sword, I'd picked up by asking Uihyeon about the tricky parts.
The Clear Wind Sword, relatively less demanding than the first two, I'd self-taught from the manual alone.
As for Uiseong... well, he still lacked talent for teaching, so he'd probably just pointed out my mistakes from the sidelines.
"Don't go too far inside."
I bowed to Senior Brother Uiwun, who worked in Mugyeong Pavilion, and headed for the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques manual.
He urgently called out to my back, then clutched his stomach, face paling white as he bolted from his seat.
Seemed like he was in dire need of the latrine.
A golden opportunity—the first time approaching the restricted area without anyone stopping me.
Covering my mouth, I smirked and dashed straight into the forbidden zone I wasn't permitted to enter.
"Eh, what’s this..."
It was less impressive than I'd thought.
Manuals so profound that just glancing at the incantations made my head spin.
Martial arts still far beyond my level—I closed the books without regret.
Still, places like this always hid a secret ultimate technique or two, right?
I carefully pulled out manuals to check for anything tucked behind, peered into crevices for slipped-in books, but disappointingly, nothing.
Thus, I reached the farthest corner of Mugyeong Pavilion's library.
Unlike the neatly maintained shelves so far, a bit further in—right in the very corner—the shelves seemed neglected, covered in thick dust.
Books were haphazardly stacked or leaning against the shelves.
Visibly, their condition was poor.
I pulled out the least dusty one and flipped it open.
Seeing the half-torn pages confirmed my guess.
This shelf collected manuals too badly damaged for restoration or no longer viable as manuals—ruined copies.
Might there be an intact manual hidden here?
Scanning every inch of the ruined shelf with eagle eyes, I finally spotted something odd.
At the bottom left of the shelf, a haphazardly stacked pile of crooked books.
Two books overlapped at an angle, the overlapped middle bulging unnaturally.
Leaning my upper body far back, I stretched out my hand and extracted the two dusty books from the pile.
Fearing discovery, I clamped my free hand over my mouth to stifle a sneeze.
Holding them with just two fingers, a worn manual tumbled out from the loose space between.
I picked it up and rifled through—quite old, pages yellowed, but no damage or tears.
It was an intact manual, not a ruin—the very thing I'd been seeking.
Even better, the pile above where it had been wedged was thick with dust—not artificially placed to avoid suspicion, but naturally accumulated.
Meaning it hadn't been touched in ages.
'A fortuitous encounter! A fortuitous encounter!'
Roughly classified as a manual tucked in the corner.
I slyly tucked the old book into my bosom and returned to its original spot.
Brushed the dust from my robes and hair, then pulled out and opened the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques manual as if nothing had happened.
Senior Brother Uiwun, peeking from behind the desk, met my eyes and asked sternly.
"You didn't go too far inside, did you?"
"Oh come on, of course not. What do you take me for?"
Grinning cheekily in response, he relaxed his stern expression, chuckled, and shot back.
"What do I take you for? A walking disaster of a kid."
"I'm too grown now to be called a kid."
"Even if you reach thirty, you'll still be a kid in our eyes, you rascal."
Seeing the manual I held, he reminded me to return it before too long, then turned away.
Some manuals in Mugyeong Pavilion could be checked out, others couldn't.
Since it was the sect's signature art with many copies, the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques manual could be borrowed.
Of course, taking it beyond the upper palace was strictly forbidden.
Non-circulating manuals were the unique ones without copies—losing or damaging them would be catastrophic.
Like the one in my bosom, for example.
'Where to read it?'
I listed candidates for a place to read undisturbed, without anyone noticing its existence.
The training ground? Everyone would peek over asking what manual it was—rejected.
My dorm? With sharp-eyed Biyeong right next to me, high chance she'd notice something fishy—rejected.
In the end, I chose my eternal favorite spot, the dawn training ground: the Jade Maiden Pool.
Leaning against the plum tree that had been my personal nap bed at the Jade Maiden Pool, I pulled the manual from my bosom.
The dark navy cover was so worn the title was barely legible, so I turned to the first page.
Finally, the name of the art appeared.
[Heaven-Severing Flying Sword]
What kind of name was that? Why sever the heavens? Was it a demonic art?
Didn't the Demonic Cult's most famous, the Heavenly Demon Three Swords, include an art that cleaved the sky? Breaking the Heavens or something.
With flash-like speed, I slammed the book shut.
The minimum consequence of mistakenly learning a demonic art: meridians severed, dantian crippled, expelled from the sect.
The maximum: qi deviation and death.
Still barely scratching the surface of the 24 Plum Blossom Sword Techniques, how could I tell from the manual alone if this was Mount Hua's art or some demonic text that had leaked in?
No hobby of stepping on a bridge that might flip when a safe path existed.
So, I decided to ask someone I trusted.
Someone who knew Mount Hua's arts better than anyone, who would turn a blind eye to me sneaking out a manual once.
"It's not a demonic art—it's one of Mount Hua's advanced esoteric techniques. The format confirms it's definitely our sect's."
Supreme Elder Muyeong finished flipping to the last page and gave her verdict.
The refreshing sound of the waterfall served as background.
Surrounded on all sides by bizarre rock cliffs, this serene spot—save for the waterfall—was Supreme Elder Muyeong's main training area atop Mount Hua's peak.
I glanced back at the stone bridge leading to the waterfall.
The small stones placed midway after I'd fallen in as a child were still there, stirring complicated feelings.
Supreme Elder Muyeong followed my gaze, a faint smile playing on her lips as she asked.
"Can you cross it now without those middle stepping stones?"
"Psh, of course. Give me a bit, and I'll even catch up to your height, Supreme Elder."
Clicking her tongue at the fickleness of time, I posed my question to her.
"Didn't even you say you'd never heard of it, Supreme Elder? Why was an advanced esoteric technique unknown and hidden like this?"
She rose, drew her sword from its sheath, and replied indifferently.
"It's no wonder."
Her words trailed off there, leaving me staring up blankly.
At her beckoning gesture, I drew my sword and stood before her.
A sharp strike flew at me at once.