Chapter 144: Black Rank (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 144: Black Rank (2)
"I told you to come, yet you did not listen."
With soft, rustling footsteps, the Lord of the Desolate Fortress stepped forward. She stopped right in front of Jeong Yeon-shin—taking one step, then closing the remaining distance by another half-step.
"Is it because you are coming of age?"
A subtle scent drifted over, carried by her amused voice. It was the scent of fresh grass. The gap between them, once two paces wide, had narrowed to a mere half-step.
Having hit his growth spurt, Jeong Yeon-shin was now roughly her height. Their eyes met on a level plane. His vision was immediately consumed by the gaze of an absolute master—a pair of eyes like a sea of deep green.
The boy braced himself against the overwhelming force dwelling within those dark green depths. Staring into them made him truly grasp why martial artists spoke of concepts like 'Heart-Killing Intent' and the 'Sword of Will and Form'.
How profound and miraculous must her control over internal energy be to channel such terrifying presence and intent? He recalled the sword art she had used to drive back the Leader of the Pure Demon Alliance, even while carrying a heavy burden. Her swordplay, seemingly holding the moonlight itself, had been so beautiful it felt otherworldly.
This was the most memorable eye contact of his life.
Jeong Yeon-shin stared at the pitch-black pupils reflected in the eyes of the Lord of the Desolate Fortress. They were his own. Staring back at him was a gaze holding a power that seemed incredibly feeble compared to the absolute master standing before him.
When would he finally be able to look into her eyes and confidently demand the fruit of the World Tree?
The Halo.
The boy inwardly summoned the wheel of his divine art to regain his composure.
It hadn't been like this when he received the Moon Spirit Harmony Art. Back then, the Mingmen Point—the starting point for guiding another's True Qi—was on his back. Now was different. This was a moment of direct, face-to-face instruction in a martial arts technique.
"The senses of a master cannot be easily deceived. You must engrave this truth upon your heart first."
The Lord of the Desolate Fortress spoke softly, her gaze still locked with his. Jeong Yeon-shin did not find the proximity strange.
The martial arts scattered across the world were so diverse that their methods of instruction were as countless as the techniques themselves. Even Shaolin's Iron Sand Palm required practitioners to thrust their bare hands into a mortar of heated sand.
The Lord of the Desolate Fortress's calm voice continued. "However, once you grasp the ultimate mystery of the feint, that very logic turns into a weapon."
"Is it because of the absolute trust masters place... in their own sense of Qi?" Jeong Yeon-shin asked calmly.
Her eyes blinked once. Her long eyelashes fluttered, casting a faint shadow over her cheeks. For a fleeting moment, the sea-green in the eyes of the Lord of the Desolate Fortress deepened.
"You hit upon the crux of it in a single breath. You are correct. It is a technique that pierces their strength and turns it into a weakness, disrupting their sense of Qi rather than their five physical senses."
"Ah."
"In fact, it is a subtle principle that is far harder to use against novices. Because their sense of Qi is weak."
"Then, the reason we are standing face-to-face like this..."
"Feel it. This should be enough for you."
With a soft whisper, she leaned in. Slowly, her pale forehead touched the boy's.
It was soft. Incredibly warm.
For a moment, Jeong Yeon-shin felt the comforting presence of a mother. It was the same warmth he had felt when she bestowed the Moon Spirit Harmony Art upon him. A scene flashed through his mind—a life where he would have had no need to create the Jeong Family Dynamic Art. If his mother, Ma Yeon-sang, were still alive, wouldn't she have shared her warmth like this while caring for him?
But the feeling only lasted a brief moment. The Lord of the Desolate Fortress quietly pulled away.
Whoosh—
His vision violently flipped upside down. It felt as though his entire body had rotated around his head, completely inverting his position in space.
The boy felt as if he were standing upside down in midair. Even his eyes perceived the world that way. It happened without warning, accompanied by a single gust of wind that playfully caressed his Law-Transcending Halo Qi. It felt as though his sixth sense, which enveloped his entire body, had been gently kneaded like dough.
"..."
Jeong Yeon-shin, seemingly suspended upside down in the air, and the Lord of the Desolate Fortress, still standing firmly on the ground, faced each other. Their lips were now aligned with each other's foreheads. The boy's breath lightly ruffled her grass-colored bangs.
What is this? Jeong Yeon-shin thought, thoroughly disoriented.
Was this truly a type of Illusion Sword designed to induce hallucinations? Or were the fluttering of her hair and the sensation of his own breath also illusions?
Since the Lord of the Desolate Fortress, an absolute master of the supreme realm, was personally demonstrating an ultimate technique, it was safe to assume that the essence of this sword art manifested in the realm of the strange, violent, chaotic, and supernatural.
Did his confusion show on his face? The Lord of the Desolate Fortress smiled.
"The shape of your mouth is cute. It reminds me of the fluttering of a leaf I befriended in my childhood."
It was truly mysterious.
In this moment, the boy realized the inverse truth: just how tightly connected his five physical senses and his sense of Qi truly were. To react swiftly to spears and swords flying from a blind spot, the physical senses of the entire body and the perception of internal True Qi had to be perfectly synchronized.
This was the root of the phenomenon. Deceiving the sense of Qi cascaded into a miracle that hijacked the physical senses.
They say the stronger the connection to one's sense of Qi, the greater the master.
This was how supreme martial artists of the Jianghu could slaughter entire groups alone. And that was exactly why the technique he was experiencing was so terrifying.
The Lord of the Desolate Fortress called it a formless feint, but if a real strike were unleashed the very moment an opponent's internal energy senses were seized, it would guarantee a direct hit. It was a seamless combo that guaranteed instant death.
Its utility was immense. But by the same token, it would be incredibly difficult to execute.
A master's sense of Qi was woven with extreme sensitivity and absolute solidity. The system of a heart cultivation art flowing through the twelve meridians and the countless minute meridians of the body was often compared to a microcosm. It was a defensive network not easily swayed by a mere trick.
Jeong Yeon-shin reflexively asked, "How do you do it?"
"Am I not standing face-to-face with you precisely to show you with my body?" she replied in a calm voice.
He understood her meaning. Jeong Yeon-shin slowly closed his eyes.
He did not sink deep into his inner self. Instead, he surrendered his consciousness to the formless energy radiating from The Halo.
At the same time, he sensed the waves of Qi from the Lord of the Desolate Fortress sweeping over him. It was a bizarre technique. It didn't just crash into him like the shockwave of an attack; it was a wave that enveloped the opponent's Qi as if it possessed a will of its own. It rode up the erupted True Qi, infiltrating and confusing the opponent's sensory network.
So this is it.
He realized it instantly.
This was not a technique that could fool anyone for long. A master who had refined their True Qi over decades would notice the manipulation within a few breaths during a fierce battle.
It was, quite literally, a feint. Hard to succeed with, and even more difficult to maintain.
Even so, it was incredibly lethal. Locking an artificially manipulated sense of Qi in place like this was a transcendent feat only the Lord of the Desolate Fortress could achieve so flawlessly.
Yet, even if it only stole a single breath from the opponent, it was worthy of being called an ultimate technique. It was a stroke of genius. As an unparalleled feint, its power in life-or-death combat would be absolute.
Jeong Yeon-shin focused his mind.
Whirrr!
As The Halo spun within his heart, a separate sense of Qi arose. In an instant, his vision overlapped into a double image. One showed him standing upside down, looking at the lips of the Lord of the Desolate Fortress. The other showed him standing upright on the ground, meeting her eyes.
The latter was his true physical sense.
The boy immediately shifted his perspective, anchoring himself to reality. His head grew feverishly hot as his Upper Dantian burned a blinding white.
Slowly.
He traced backward along the waves of Qi from the Lord of the Desolate Fortress that enveloped his body. He meticulously scanned the flow of energy she was displaying. At the same time, he reverse-engineered its mnemonic.
Words etched themselves directly into his mind. It was the method for manipulating the feint—a secret the Lord of the Desolate Fortress had never spoken aloud.
Rather than deciphering dead lines of text written in some dusty manual, he was instantly grasping the technique's execution by experiencing it with his own body. This intimate form of instruction was only possible because he possessed the Flash Art lineage.
"Yes. That's it."
Her whisper reached him. An amused exhale tickled Jeong Yeon-shin's lips. She seemed to precisely perceive the boy's senses unraveling her waves of Qi. Her realm of mastery was truly astonishing.
To use this in real combat, ordinary training won't cut it, Jeong Yeon-shin thought as he transcribed the mnemonic in his mind.
The moment he placed the final period on the invisible text, his vision snapped back to normal.
At the end of the traced waves of Qi, there was a small smile. A faint, elegant smile belonging to the Lord of the Desolate Fortress.
Swoosh—
The wind enveloping the two of them dispersed. It was the lingering airflow of the shockwave she had used to mask the invasion of his sense of Qi.
"What did you feel?" Her lips parted slightly. Her eyes, gazing intently at the boy, sparkled with interest.
Perhaps it was because their energies had resonated with each other, even if briefly. Or perhaps it was because their senses of Qi had touched and grown intimately familiar.
Jeong Yeon-shin spoke with uncharacteristic ease. "It will be difficult for now..."
"Difficult?"
"It seems hard to use properly. Both controlling the waves of Qi to penetrate the opponent's defenses, and actively disrupting their senses during the chaos of actual combat," the boy said.
The Lord of the Desolate Fortress did not reply for a moment. She simply stared at him with her jade-like eyes. Her gaze seemed to silently ask if it was truly beyond his capabilities.
Just how great were the expectations she placed on a talent of the Flash Art lineage? On the surface, she merely appeared indifferent.
Only after speaking did Jeong Yeon-shin become conscious of his casual tone. Despite the intimate lesson, she was still a daunting presence. It wasn't just because she was the guardian of the World Tree. Anyone would find it difficult to breathe easily in front of an absolute master.
"Still," the boy quickly added, nearly stammering—a rare occurrence for him. "I have grasped the method of manipulating the waves of Qi and the sword wind. I had just grown accustomed to controlling the wind through Senior Cheong-myeong's Body Protection Scripture, and your demonstration has given me several vital clues. I also realize just how terrifying of a martial attainment this feint truly is."
"That is because we were close. At a normal distance, it is difficult to exert this much influence," the Lord of the Desolate Fortress said quietly.
Jeong Yeon-shin nodded silently. If the technique were unaffected by distance, it could hardly be called martial arts anymore. It would belong to the mythical realm of sorcery.
"Think of it as stealing a single breath from your opponent. Anything beyond that is useless."
"I have fully acquired the mnemonic. The day will come when I can put it to good use. I believe it is simply a matter of diligent training."
At the boy's words, the corners of her mouth curved up slightly.
"You have entered the gate."
Her slender breath dispersed just beneath the tip of Jeong Yeon-shin's nose. While they were still intimately close, her pale hand gently pushed against his chest.
Rustle.
Her silken sleeve brushed against him, accompanied by a low, melodic chuckle.
"It will not take you long. Perhaps you will even use it during your Black Rank promotion."
"Ah."
Stepping back, Jeong Yeon-shin let out a soft exclamation. He had temporarily forgotten about the upcoming event, completely absorbed by her instruction.
There had been a martial duel during his White Rank and Blue Rank promotions. The Black Rank would be no different. He had heard that it merely involved more rigorous procedures and considerations.
He would likely have to duel a master whose status was officially recognized by the Main Fortress. Whoever it was, they would undoubtedly possess supreme martial arts.
They will be formidable.
Jeong Yeon-shin slowly clasped his hands and bowed. It was a formal gesture of gratitude for imparting such a precious technique.
"I will not bring dishonor to the Lord, and I shall repay this favor in a manner worthy of your great name."
"You need only display your natural talent," she replied quietly.
Her voice signaled the end of the lesson. She slowly turned around, evidently intending to return to her chambers.
Jeong Yeon-shin suddenly spoke up once more. Even before the boy could finish his breath, the Lord of the Desolate Fortress stopped. She had detected his slightest shift in intent.
"There is one thing I wish to ask."
"Speak," she said, her slender back still turned to him.
"Is it truly impossible to forge a sword of the mind? The Heart Sword of Heart-Killing Intent."
Jeong Yeon-shin asked as a rising star who aspired to the rank of Commander of the Divine Sword Corps. It was a question from a young master who, despite loathing his own frail constitution, was born with a soul that inherently relished martial arts.
"Your path is different from mine."
Her clear, resonant voice flowed out. It rang in his ears, completely detached from the bustling atmosphere of the world outside. It seemed to fill the deserted backyard with a profound, heavy solitude.
"Perhaps it might be possible for you. Someday."
That was all she said.
The sunset was settling upon the wide sleeves of the Lord of the Desolate Fortress. A silent aura of light flowed like waves from her hair, as if to prove how fulfilling the day had been, even though she hadn't drawn a single sword.
Step.
She slowly drifted away. With her long strides, the day drew to a close.
Even after she vanished from sight, Jeong Yeon-shin did not lower his clasped hands.
I've grown stronger again. The koans overflow.
The boy, wearing a borrowed black robe, had stepped through the gate of the ultimate feint. It was a direct teaching from none other than the Lord of the Desolate Fortress.
* * *
The next day.
Jeong Yeon-shin entered the main gates of the Main Fortress alongside his companions. They had finally returned.
As they stepped through the towering, wide-open double gates, Heonwon Chang, walking beside him, let out a heavy sigh filled with deep emotion.
"At any rate, we've returned alive. It was a grueling journey."
"I hope the hazard pay is good. I'm completely out of poppies. No alcohol, either."
Lazy Flame Dragon suddenly stepped down from the carriage, his movements incredibly light. He tapped the young Unit Commander on the shoulder and spoke in a wheedling tone. "Lend me some silver, will you? Everything about this place is great, but the pay is just too stingy. It can't keep up with my spending."
"A drunkard and a poppy addict. I have no desire to lend money I'll never get back," the boy said, his eyes dropping to Lazy Flame Dragon's hand.
It was trembling slightly.
It didn't look like withdrawal symptoms. It seemed to be the backlash of the Fervent Yang Energy from his Solar Divine Pulse, which was said to cause him excruciating pain on a regular basis.
At the same time, Jeong Yeon-shin sensed an unusual atmosphere within the vast fortress grounds. Crowds of people were gradually showing themselves. It wasn't just a handful of onlookers.
An air of buzzing excitement filled the noisy surroundings. Whispers rippled through the throngs of people, all pointing to a single conclusion: the star of the Black Rank promotion ceremony had arrived.
It was a completely different scale from his Blue Rank promotion. It felt as though the entire Main Fortress was turning out to witness a rare and momentous occasion.
Finally.
The greatest event in the current Desolate Fortress was waiting for him.