Chapter 83. Sword Dance (1)
Chapter 83. Sword Dance (1)
1
The Heart Sword, 心劍.
It was only after winter upon winter had passed—so many that she could no longer remember the cold of those winters—that So Baek-hyang began to grope toward that realm.
The sword of the mind, 心劍.
It was in the season when she was no longer called the Fragrance of Snow, 白香, but instead the Heavenly Demon, 天魔, that So Baek-hyang began to glimpse that realm.
...I can see it.......
The woman who had been So Baek-hyang, and had become the Heavenly Demon, murmured.
...A realm no one in the jianghu has ever set foot upon lies before me.......
...It seems as distant as the far shore.......
...But if I can see it, is there any place I cannot go.......
The Heavenly Demon's heart pounded.
The Heart Sword was a realm passed down only in legend. Killing by Intent (心卽殺). If one simply harbored the will to kill, if one merely held murderous intent in the heart, the target would die on the spot. No sword was needed. No words were needed. That realm—she had finally placed it before her own eyes.
...Lord Heavenly Demon.......
If only.
...Our sovereign.......
If only she were given time.
If she were given sixty years, and could devote herself solely to training.
If only that were truly possible.
...Please resolve this grievance.......
The common folk prostrated themselves before her.
...The magistrate's office demands sable pelts as tax. My father left to hunt sable and never returned, so we can no longer pay the tax, and the tax is levied per head of the family. My grandmother said that since she has not long to live either way, she would disappear so the tax might be reduced by one.......
...Lord Heavenly Demon.......
There were many backs bowed before her.
...Drought came last year and again this year, and there is nothing to eat. We have not eaten, and yet the order has come down to build reservoirs and raise dikes. They say it is to prevent next year's drought, but with bodies that have eaten nothing, how are we to lift boulders and build.......
...My daughter was dragged away and has not returned.......
...Lord Heavenly Demon.......
There were so very many.
The Heavenly Demon quietly looked up at the snow mountain, 雪山.
Years devoted solely to training. If she had but sixty years to spare, she would ascend to a realm no one in the history of the jianghu had ever trodden. That was an indisputable fact, beyond argument. And yet. Even so.
...Lead the way.......
The Heavenly Demon rose, taking up her sword. Her ink-dark robes fluttered.
...There are many, so very many things that I must cut down.......
Would she abandon the world? Or abandon herself?
The Heavenly Demon simply cast aside her own desires.
To make desireless the desire for martial arts.
For that had always been her life.
That day too, you cut down those who had frozen the world.
Only, you could not cut down the winter.
2
-Originally.
The guardian spirit knelt.
-For a martial artist to duel through another person’s mouth is unspeakable. There is no greater discourtesy, and by the standards of propriety it would be remembered in the history of the jianghu as a laughingstock.
"......."
The posture the guardian spirit had taken was one I had never seen before. He sat respectfully upon the snowfield. I realized that this was the guardian spirit’s own form of etiquette, offered only to an opponent he acknowledged as a [worthy rival].
-But even knowing it will be a laughingstock, I have no choice but to request this duel.
The Sword Emperor looked straight at my master.
-My epithet is Sword Emperor (劍帝). I am one acknowledged as the greatest under heaven in the world called the World of Ten Thousand Swords (萬劍世界). I beg your pardon for the discourtesy, and I request a duel of swords.
And he lowered his head.
"......."
"Disciple?"
My master blinked.
"Why do you not speak the forms at once? The duel has already begun."
Naturally, my master could not see the guardian spirit. She could not hear his words. She could not see his etiquette.
"...Master."
"What is it?"
"You must have realized that I use strange arts."
"You mean the art that brought my children and the orthodox faction's jiangshi back."
My master laughed softly, hoo-hoo.
The laugh was small, as if it might vanish at any moment.
"I have decided to ask you nothing. Silence is a virtue. I merely choose to believe that the Jade Emperor took pity on me and sent you as a messenger."
My master was smiling with her head resting against my thigh. Whenever she smiled, her head swayed slightly. In that swaying, I could feel the weight of her lightened body.
"...There is one more art I know how to use."
My master did not have much time left. As concisely as possible.
"Among them is a technique that summons ghosts."
"Hmm?"
"The ghost beside me right now happens to be deeply versed in martial arts. He is a man who was called the greatest under heaven in the outer regions."
"Aha, the greatest under heaven of the outer martial world! How splendid."
My master giggled. She seemed to think it was a funny joke.
"Very well. If the ghost of the greatest under heaven, summoned by my disciple, is here, then I should duly pay attention. I shall gladly acknowledge him as an opponent for a duel of swords."
"......."
I looked at the guardian spirit.
The guardian spirit sat silently in a formal kneeling posture.
"So then, what form does the ghost of the greatest under heaven say he will demonstrate?"
"...He says he will yield to you, Master."
"Hmm?"
"He says he will yield three moves to you first."
A little of the mirth faded from my master's expression.
"How insolent. A disciple of mine would never utter such words. It must be a ghost that does not know its place and is fooling about. I shall pierce the Surwol acupoint with the fifth form of the Cloud Dragon Twelve Swords, the Swift Sword of the Emerging Dragon."
One move.
-After using the sixth form of the Earth Dragon Staff Dance, the Dragon Descending from the Western River, as a feint, I step back one pace with the Flowing Cloud Step.
The guardian spirit responded without a moment’s hesitation.
I did not know what the [Cloud Dragon Twelve Swords] was, or what the [Earth Dragon Staff Dance] was. The only thing I knew was the Demonic Heavenly God Art. I merely relayed the two men's battle, calmly, through words.
"After using the sixth form of the Earth Dragon Staff Dance, the Dragon Descending from the Western River, as a feint, he steps back one pace with the Flowing Cloud Step."
"Hmm......."
My master furrowed her brow.
"I shall knock you away with the seventh form of the Profound Void Taiji Art, the Water Hawk Striking the Summit."
-Using the second form of the Six Killing Fists, the Twin Snakes of the Earth's Edge, as a feint, I evade with the Iron Bridge.
My master's elegant eyebrows drew together a little more.
"I shall attack with the sixth form of the Tang Tomb Six Swords, the Heavenly Tomb Six-Rhythm Strike."
-I unfold the Mandarin Duck Kick. I retreat with the Plum Blossom Chaotic Step.
"......."
The three moves ended in an instant.
I could not tell what exchange had unfolded between the two of them.
Only, my master was quietly silent.
-You.
The guardian spirit spoke calmly.
-I can roughly imagine how you lived. After rising to the position of the greatest of all time, you must have been busy with sect affairs with no time to devote to training. You must have glimpsed the realm of the Life-and-Death Realm, but you didn't go there. Why? Because you were busy. Just looking after the sect, twenty-four hours a day wasn't enough. When you're busy taking care of your family and your sect members, where would you find time to pour into something like training?
But, the guardian spirit said.
-Do you know what the most unfair part is?
The corner of the guardian spirit’s mouth twisted.
-That even so, you're still the greatest of all time.
That there was no reason to aim any higher.
-Why? Because you already stand at the peak. You make a decent living, everyone acknowledges you. There's no need to strive. Because, literally, you are heaven.
"......."
-Pitiful thing. Your misfortune was that you were the absolute strongest in this murim.
The guardian spirit crossed his arms.
-I will show you what lies beyond heaven, 天外天.
I did not relay those words.
Because I felt there was no need to relay them.
"Hm."
My master slowly raised her head.
She leaned her lightened body slightly against mine.
And so she sat upright upon the snowfield.
"You are no rabble."
Heavenly Demon, 天魔.
Origin, Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon, 天魔實錄.
The greatest of all time, 古今第一人.
The Demonic Cult, 魔敎.
-Of course. Who do you think I am?
Sword Emperor, 劍帝.
Origin, World of Ten Thousand Swords, 萬劍世界.
The greatest under heaven, 天下第一人.
The orthodox faction, 正派.
"Good. I shall not go easy on you either."
-Come at me as much as you like.
Duel, 比武.
Begin, 開始.
3
"I shall strike upward at your jaw with the first form of the Fire-Blood Flame Dragon, the Explosive Blaze Bursting Ascent."
-Suddenly you're putting on orthodox-faction airs. Matching the rising force, I unfold the first form of the Cloud Dragon Eight Grand Forms in succession. One pass strikes the ground, one pass is an upward fist.
One move.
"I shall change the Explosive Blaze Bursting Ascent to the third form of the Stabbing Kill Blade, the Scholar-Slaying Strike, and pierce the Gushing Spring acupoint to kill that momentum."
-Ho, impressive. What shall I do—counter, or... Very well. I'll mix in the key points of the Life-and-Death Edict and match it with the Bay Wave Receiving Butterfly.
Another move.
"......."
The longer the duel of swords went on, the more labored my master's breathing became.
In the winter, her white breath grew whiter still.
My master clenched her left hand and gripped her knee tightly. With her right hand, she gripped my hand tightly. She was trembling. Her trembling was transmitted to me through her hand.
"...How long do you intend to keep your filthy foot atop my fingers? I shall tear it off with the second form of the Three Demon Leeches, the Burning Leech Jaw Plate."
-I merely matched your provocation, and you've got a temper. I pull my foot back at once, descend from midair, and simultaneously aim at the three acupoints of the right Great Bone, Yang Valley, and White Door with the fourth form of the Divine Chariot Great Revolution, the Life-and-Death Precipice.
"I shall retreat three steps with the Heavenly Demon Sovereign Step!"
My master was enjoying herself.
-Since you were mimicking the orthodox faction, shall I try mimicking the demonic path a little? I'll respond with the Sword of Freezing and stick close.
Yes.
The Murim Alliance Master, Bu Wol-seon, had never been my master's [worthy rival].
Certainly, the Murim Alliance Master was the strongest in this world's orthodox martial world. He was the only one who could even oppose my master. But had it not been proven in the final Orthodox-Demonic War? When the two of them fought at full strength, the victor in the end was my master.
A contest with a predetermined outcome.
Perhaps that was why my master had postponed the conclusion of the Orthodox-Demonic War until the 990th round.
Like a child who, if the candy will melt and disappear anyway, saves it and saves it and licks it as sparingly as possible.
「I'm sorry.」
That was why the Murim Alliance Master had said to my master, in the round that met the bad ending.
「I'm sorry that I'm weaker than you.」
「I was weaker than you.」
「Kill me.」
Squeeze.
Without realizing it, I put strength into my hand.
"Foolishness! I strike the Human Welcome acupoint with the second form of the Stabbing Kill Blade!"
-Not a chance. At the same time as I evade with the Iron Bridge, this time it's my turn with the Explosive Blaze Bursting Ascent.
"Aha."
My master finally broke into a smile. It was not a sad smile, nor a fleeting smile that was fading away. It was a smile that carried the pounding of her heart intact, flushed red.
"Disciple, this ghost you've summoned—he's the best!"
"...Yes."
Now I could completely understand the Murim Alliance Master's feelings.
"Among the people I know, he's probably the strongest."
"Where have you been hiding such a ghost, only to introduce him now!"
It stung a little.
"A martial artist of such surpassing skill—never in my life have I met one!"
No.
It stung a lot.
"I shall twist my arm with the key points of the Heavenly Serpent Dance to kill the momentum. And then I shall retreat four steps with the Heavenly Demon Sovereign Step!"
-Oh dear, you already retreated three steps, and now four more. I suppose I can take it that you're slowly curling your tail. I close the distance to one pace with the Flowing Cloud Step, and then—Midsummer Downpour. I load sword aura into it.
"Aha! Sword aura in the Midsummer Downpour! You're saying the probing is tiresome. Very well, I shall draw you in with the Sword of Thirst and deflect, then at once reverse my grip on the blade and strike the Celestial Pillar, Great Vertebra, and Body Pillar acupoints in order with the Sand-Burrowing Dragon, forms one through three!"
To me... the duel the two of them were exchanging was incomprehensible.
It was impossible even to picture the contest in my head.
The Sword of Thirst, I understood. But I did not know what the [Sand-Burrowing Dragon] was. I understood what descending from midair was. But I did not know what posture the [Life-and-Death Precipice of the Divine Chariot Great Revolution] was.
I did not know, and did not know, and so I was not even permitted to sketch those forms in my mind and fumble after them.
The sword paths the two of them swung, the sword dance—I simply could not see it.
-That's how you should come at me. Good! I evade by grafting the Life-and-Death Edict onto the Butterfly Ten Thousand Swords, and as I retreat one step—the Taiji Flying Heaven Sword!
"Not bad. Not bad!"
Ah.
If it were possible, I wanted to be your worthy rival.
If it were possible, I wanted to monopolize your hope.
I wanted you to spend the end of your life rejoicing solely because of me.
But I could not see it.
At best, what I could see and hear was.
"Good. I shall evade by the subtle principles of the ■■ Step."
-I respond with the third form of the ■■ Sutra, the ■■■ Sword!
Only this.
To me, your swords were invisible.
"Very well, I counter with the second form of ■■■, the ■■ Kick."
-I shall close in with the ■■■ Step of ■■■■!
It was incomprehensible.
"Good. With the ■■■■ Sword of ■■■■, I shall strike your ■■ and ■■!"
-You're in a hurry, so hasty. I evade with ■■■■, then use ■■■■ to aim at the throat.
"I counter, and strike the ■■■ with the tenth form of ■■■■, the ■■■■■!"
-Using ■■, I turn ■■■■■ into ■■■■. After the counter, I swing the ■■ of ■■■■■, the ■ ■■ ■■, and ■■.
"■■■■, ■■■, and then ■■ and ■■■......."
It was dark.
The realm where the two of them cavorted was this far away.
"After the counter......."
That was when it happened.
My master, who had been gasping for breath, turned to look at me.
"......."
For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped.
My master's gaze.
Her ink-dark eyes rested upon my face.
"...Yes."
A small smile lingered on my master's lips.
"Disciple, the day is cold."
"......."
"The seasons have turned to winter again and again, and this place is a snowfield of ten thousand years. A snowfield is a harsh battlefield for people of the jianghu. Even to take a single step, one sinks in deeply, so one must constantly maintain footwork."
My master touched the snowfield with her fingers.
Fine snowflakes clung to her fingertips.
"That is why a duel upon a snowfield always becomes a contest of breaking the opponent's stance. Disciple, do you understand? There is no need to stubbornly insist on taking the opponent's head, or cutting their waist. If you press them until they cannot maintain footwork, that is enough."
"......."
"Your ghost and I are therefore striving to steal each other's space. We steal the space to move, and narrow the range of movement."
Master.
"The frequent use of kicks serves the same purpose. It is not only to strike the opponent, but to kick up the snow and scatter it, obscuring the vision even a little. Hmm, it is truly a desperate fight. Is it not......."
My master whispered into my ear.
"Close your eyes."
My master's left hand slowly covered my eyes.
"To my eyes, the opponent is visible."
"...Yes."
"He is a master of surpassing skill and lofty character. His build is enormous. He must be nearly twice my size. Is he not."
In my mind, I pictured the guardian spirit’s form.
"Yes."
"A master like a giant brown bear is breathing roughly. He grins confidently, as if to say, come at me. Because the difference in physique is great. He must be confident......."
The longer my master’s whisper went on, the clearer the guardian spirit’s form became.
"How could one overcome a natural difference in physique? I accept it. I accept it, but I recall my own strengths. I will be able to move more swiftly than that fellow. Above all, I am accustomed to the snowfield. I will perform Treading Snow Without a Trace more skillfully than he......."
"Yes."
"It is a war of attrition. Do you understand, disciple? I am aiming for a war of attrition."
Aha, my master said playfully.
"But that fellow sees through my scheme. His movements grow urgent. His swordwork quickens. He charges at me like a wild boar......."
Soon.
"But there is nothing to fear. It is already anticipated. I step backward, lightly, step backward and......."
Before my eyes.
"Draw him in."
A landscape unfolded before my eyes.
"I keep stepping backward. My steps are light, and light again. That fellow is truly like a wild boar, charging in and scattering snow in all directions......."
Winter upon winter, and the world was a snowfield of ten thousand years.
My master steps backward.
The guardian spirit charged.
"...With every step the two of us take, snow blossoms bloom and scatter."
To me, too.
The two men's swords began to be visible.