Shattering the Wall of Forms
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After raping Yeonji and returning to the Extreme Sword Heavenly Immortal world, my mental world—which had felt like a psychiatric ward—transformed into a vast grassland. Once I shed my lust, sage mode kicked in. Perfect timing for training.
"Huh? Recovering your sanity this quickly... Your time manipulation ability was one thing, but you're no ordinary guy after all."
Han Kangwoo marveled like that. Yet he didn't pry into my affairs. Just as I didn't question him, he treated me simply as his disciple. It was the demeanor of a transcendent being who had seen through the world's illusions.
In my dreams, I focused on reviewing what we'd trained that day. Internalizing through the mind what I'd learned with the body to perfection. Top students always review thoroughly.
"As expected, your combat sense is average. Maybe even a bit below mediocrity."
That was Han Kangwoo's assessment of me. He was right—I was utterly mediocre.
"Disappointed?"
"Not at all! Climbing a tall mountain doesn't require fast legs. It demands persistent stamina, patience, and the right direction. Talent is just fast legs at best. The peak we're aiming for is so high that speed is trivial in the grand scheme."
In the original story, Han Kangwoo had rated Gong Woosun's talent as average too. There was no reason for disappointment just because mine was lacking.
"Remember this: Training martial arts is a competition with yourself, not other geniuses. If you see a genius, let them go ahead. Those who blindly trust their speed either lack patience or take the wrong path and crash first."
"But what about geniuses who have speed and stamina and patience and pick the right direction?"
Han Kangwoo was exactly that.
"The existence of such a genius is a blessing. Watch them closely. They'll show you the path you should take."
And so, Han Kangwoo and I trained in my mental world.
A week passed like that. Subjectively, it felt longer than a month. Breakfast led straight into nearly 24 hours of stamina training before lunch. Then more endless sessions until dinner. In this bizarre world where the scenery blurred, I immersed myself ceaselessly in training.
Han Kangwoo's emphasis on rest had its reasons. An ordinary person would snap mentally under this regimen. What mattered in this brutal training wasn't genius—it was endurance.
So yeah, this insane grind could make even the thickest skull grow.
It made sense how Gong Woosun had grown so strong in a short time. Han Kangwoo's masterful guidance combined with monstrous training volume created a hellish course that even brought change to a mediocrity like me. The silver lining, as he'd said, was having ways to secure rest.
If I'm really beat, I can just hop to reality for a quick fuck and recharge!
When stress peaked, I'd slip to reality or another worldline for some sloppy sex to refresh. That made this hellish training bearable. Nothing beats sex as a remedy.
Han Kangwoo watched me endure his hardcore regimen with an admiring expression.
"As expected of the disciple I chose."
I barely mastered all 258 movements. But this was just the beginning. I'd only learned the alphabet. Knowing letters doesn't mean you can write essays.
"Too slow."
"Too big."
"Too weak."
In that week, I couldn't block Han Kangwoo's attacks even once. It wasn't just speed.
His strikes came from unpredictable angles on unpredictable trajectories. His speed was actually average. That crushed me.
I realized he was teaching me not just defense, but offense too. By observing his attacks, I trained to replicate them.
My only breaks were meals and naps. Han Kangwoo tried giving me more rest, but I couldn't afford it. With worldline travel, I could fuck whenever I wanted.
About two weeks in real time—or months subjectively—I finally grasped what Han Kangwoo meant by the optimal choice in every situation, even if just a little.
This wasn't about mechanically pulling out trained moves on reflex. It was perceiving, judging, and executing in an instant to find the right answer for the moment. The key was never stopping thought, every single instant.
There was a vast gap between knowing and realizing. The difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowing stops at the brain; realization moves the body.
Without Han Kangwoo's systematic training, I might not have grasped it even after a year.
Another week passed.
Once one realization formed, another wall loomed before me. This one dwarfed the last—like the colossal Wall Maria, daunting just to behold.
Standing before it hammered home that I wasn't a genius. I knew that already, but feeling it viscerally hit different.
No clue how to breach it. Even with the greatest master like Han Kangwoo, what I'd learned was mere basics.
Now my basic movements looked decent. I could block about 10% of his ambushes. He was probably going easy, of course.
Another week gone. A hint to breaking the wall appeared—but it flickered in and out like a mirage.
Teasingly close yet elusive, that uncanny sensation only deepened the fog.
"You've finally reached 'that wall'."
Han Kangwoo said to me.
"What is that wall?"
"The first step to freedom from forms, as I mentioned. Cross it, and you can truly be called my successor. Surpassing it means advancing in the same direction as me—toward the peak of this vast martial mountain."
"How do I overcome it?"
"That, you must figure out yourself. I can only guide you here."
Could I surpass it without his help? I felt abandoned in an endless ocean. Maybe I'd never cross it. The thought terrified me.
To advance... how?
Staring at the endless wall, I lost track of what I knew or didn't. What was I even thinking?
Should I ask Master Kim Minyoung for help?
No. Even Han Kangwoo wouldn't assist. Kim Minyoung couldn't either.
A lone skiff adrift in a storm-tossed sea without a compass.
That was me now.
Is this a wall a mediocrity like me can't climb?
Doubt crept in, but I shook it off. Gong Woosun must have passed this hurdle to grow strong.
Ah! How did Gong Woosun handle this part?
I scoured the Extreme Sword Heavenly Immortal novel in reality. Rereading his insights repeatedly.
The moment he realized that complex martial arts, like an intricate mechanism of interlocking parts, were built on the simplest principles, the wall crumbled.
Simplify the complex? Hmm... I get the gist, but it doesn't click personally.
Among my techniques, the closest to pure martial arts was KHC. It used mana, but substituting mana for ki made it nearly identical. Starting there might yield clues.
I began analyzing KHC's movements.
I can perfectly replicate KHC with the 258 basics from Han Kangwoo. Like this...
I fused the 258 basic movements with KHC.
What principle underlay KHC? I dissected it.
Examine each movement's meaning... A martial art like KHC must have a foundational principle for every motion.
A new direction sparked progress. KHC's core principle clicked in my mind. But as I surged forward like a sailboat with the wind, a reef loomed in the vast sea.
The biggest hurdle fusing Han Kangwoo's teachings with KHC was the ki-mana divide. They seemed the same yet weren't.
Ugh... If I just pinpoint the difference, I could analyze KHC somehow...
Without grasping these deceptively similar forces, analysis failed. One problem spawned another, equally elusive.
Ah! Why not try that?
The Mythical Golden Moss from before surfaced in my mind. A boon alongside the Azure Spirit Oil.
This moss, grown in ki-rich lands, boosted internal energy—not as potently as the oil, but still.
Last time, Azure Spirit Oil leveled up Yin-Yang Harmony Skill. Maybe link Mythical Golden Moss's energy to KHC?
Given ki-man similarities, it seemed feasible. I pulled the Mythical Golden Moss from inventory and swallowed it, activating KHC's unique mana circulation. A gamble—even risky compatibility could lead to qi deviation.
Worst case, shatter Life Vessel and respawn.
The elixir's potent ki flowed through my meridians. But absorbed not by normal martial arts—by KHC.
It works!
Ki and mana.
Mana and ki.
Their difference crystallized. Paradoxically, clarity in distinction let me blend them seamlessly. KHC's principles sharpened into view. Hidden parts unveiled by the gap now gleamed.
Is this it?
The martial creation principle etched crystal-clear in my mind. Astonishingly, the towering wall looked flimsy.
The wall shattered. The insanely high barrier crumbled like a lie. Beyond it, a golden-winged garuda seemed to spread wings and soar skyward.
I had my realization.
KHC evolves to True KHC.
KHC - Switch Position (換位) evolves to True KHC - Switch Position (換位).
KHC - Blunt Strike (盾擊) evolves to True KHC - Blunt Strike (盾擊).
......
KHC - Falling Cloud (落雲) evolves to True KHC - Falling Cloud (落雲).