Chapter 16
Translator: penny
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Sword Training Resolve
From noon, I'd had a wild romp with Somwol.
Holding back my desire had paid off again this time—I'd gained a substantial amount of internal energy.
Still, it wasn't quite on the level of last night.
Leaving Somwol behind after she passed out once more, I slipped out of the Azure Moon Tower and returned to the Mok Family Clan.
As soon as I arrived at the clan grounds, my older brother Mok Jicheon greeted me at the main gate.
"You're later than usual today."
"Huh? What are you doing here?"
"It's been a while since I've seen my little brother's face. Got a problem with that?"
"No, no problem... but..."
"It's been a while," he said, but we'd only talked two days ago.
It had barely been a day since we'd last met.
"I've been thinking it over all day yesterday. Jimyeong, do you really want to head out into the martial world?"
"Yes. I do."
"Then do you have a plan? Not just charging out blindly—do you have a place to rely on, or some idea of what you'll do?"
I'll go out and claim all the countless beauties of the Central Plains.
Of course, I couldn't say that to my brother outright, so I just shook my head.
"Nothing specific."
"If it's because of me, then just stay here and..."
I'd half-expected this.
He must think I'm leaving the clan for his sake.
Letting out a small sigh, I replied.
"It's not that. Even without you, Brother, I would've run off into the martial world anyway."
"...Why is that?"
I thought I'd explained it well enough last time, but it wasn't enough for him, apparently.
This time, I'd have to show a bit more youthful bravado.
"I've been taught righteousness and chivalry since I was a kid, and I've always admired the martial world. Born as the son of a martial family and trained in martial arts—what more reason do I need to make my name known across the land?"
I'd even brought up righteousness and chivalry, things as far from my true self as could be.
This ought to convince him.
But my brother just pressed a hand to his forehead like he had a headache.
"Haa... Jimyeong..."
"Yes?"
"I think very highly of your potential, but as things stand now, wouldn't it be a bit tough?"
Despite the polite preamble, what he really meant was:
-You're way too weak.
Of course, I knew he was just worried I'd die as a vagrant out there, but hearing it straight from him still felt a little off.
'Me, the Lecherous Demon Mok Jimyeong...'
Up until yesterday, I could've brushed it off, but today—after claiming the divine medicine that was Somwol—it hit different.
Even one of the Five Dragons and Five Phoenixes wouldn't stand a chance against me now.
"You might not realize it, Brother, but I'm actually pretty strong?"
"I know your martial arts level..."
He didn't look convinced at all.
Makes sense—he'd watched me train just a few days ago, so this reaction was fair.
'Hmm... showing off my skills right now might be awkward?'
I wasn't hiding my strength or anything, but suddenly being way stronger after just a few days would raise eyebrows.
After a moment's thought, I spoke up.
"I get what you're worried about, Brother. How about this: before I leave the clan, I'll show you my progress and get your permission then?"
"...Fine. But to earn that permission, you'll have to train hard from now on."
"Yes, yes."
I'd been planning to train today anyway.
All the divine arts I'd gained in my Lecherous Demon days were etched in my mind.
It was a far cry from before, but my internal energy was solid enough now.
'The problem is this untrained body.'
In martial arts, balance between mind, energy, and body is key.
Right now, I had plenty of 'mind' and 'energy.'
So from today, it was time to build up the 'body' through actual movement.
After parting ways with my brother and arriving at the training grounds, I let out a sigh.
'Haa, what a hassle. But I have to do it, right?'
At the end of the day, I was a martial artist.
And the reason I took women? Nothing more, nothing less than to build internal energy and boost my martial prowess.
I'd become the Lecherous Demon solely to become the World's Greatest Martial Artist.
If there'd been another way, I wouldn't have chased skirts.
'Yeah, right.'
As I nodded to myself, Somwol's naked body from earlier flashed in my mind.
That pale, soft skin...
'Tch... Maybe skip today and head back to the Azure Moon Tower?'
I barely suppressed the surging temptation.
I could indulge in lust anytime.
Getting stronger was more important.
'That way, I can have even prettier women.'
What a tragedy if I found a girl I really wanted later, but couldn't claim her because I was too weak.
To avoid that, I had to train now.
I drew my sword from its sheath for the first time in ages and gripped it.
Shing—
It felt awkward.
This body was nothing like the one I'd had as the Lecherous Demon.
Fewer calluses on my hands, not enough muscle on my frame.
Stamina would be lacking too, no doubt.
'Whew, this is gonna take a while.'
I needed to raise my body to match my mind and energy.
That was the top priority.
I started with the Three Talents Sword Technique.
A downward strike like a bell, a horizontal slash, a thrust to a single point.
I repeated these simple motions.
'The Three Talents Sword Technique is the foundation of all swordsmanship.'
No divine art could escape the basics of slashing and thrusting.
So the first thing I needed to master was this.
Whoosh—
I spotted the awkwardness in my swings and corrected it.
'Hup...!'
My arm muscles ached from using unfamiliar ones.
But I couldn't stick to comfortable habits.
'This is right.'
When the correct path was set, veering off just because it was hard would be foolish.
Mok Jimyeong wasn't foolish.
Not when it came to martial arts.
I maintained the proper stance.
Correcting any slip-ups immediately.
After about half an hour of practicing the Three Talents alone, sweat began pouring down my body.
'Heh, damn. I must've slacked off hard back then.'
As the Lecherous Demon, I'd galloped nonstop to escape pursuers.
I'd collapsed from exhaustion in the end, but I'd had the stamina to move like that even in battle.
But now...
Just solo training, and I was already wiped.
I set my sword down for a moment and sat cross-legged.
It'd been a short session, but no need to overdo it.
Rest was part of the process.
While my body recovered, I'd regulate my energy.
The harmonious energy from Somwol had already been refined into internal power.
Circulating to absorb new energy would've been inefficient.
'Twenty years of training can't match one round of the Blissful Creation Art...'
So for the remaining time, what I needed to do with meditation was clear.
The energy pathways.
Clearing the meridians.
No point in having a ton of internal energy in the dantian if the pathways were narrow.
Push too hard, and it'd be a straight path to qi deviation.
I had to expand them bit by bit.
'Slowly, without forcing it.'
Honestly, at this stage, it wasn't strictly necessary.
My internal energy was only late Foundation Realm level.
I wouldn't hit qi deviation from a little strain.
But with the Blissful Creation Art, I needed to widen them preemptively.
Waiting until my power grew more would be too late.
'This isn't a one-day fix.'
It was like stamina.
One hard day wouldn't build it overnight—this needed steady work to shine.
I circulated the dantian's energy, slowly increasing its flow.
Enough not to strain the meridians.
But not so easy it'd feel slack.
One circuit, two, three.
After completing the Three Circuits of Heaven, I ended the meditation.
'Stamina's mostly recovered now.'
As I'd said, widening meridians wasn't urgent.
Just do it consistently during short breaks.
I stood and gripped my sword again.
Next up: the technique I'd practiced longest.
'Mokcheon Sword Technique.'
The Mok Family Clan's hereditary martial art.
A fancy name meaning "to curtain the heavens with the sword," but...
'Reality's got nothing to do with that.'
Just a second-rate art advancing slightly beyond the Three Talents.
The one redeemable part? Its grasp of the 'Heavy' principle, maybe.
Curtaining the sky, loading the full weight onto the blade.
Any foe facing this sword would feel crushed by the heavens.
It embodied the 'Heavy' among the five principles: Illusion, Speed, Heavy, Flow, and Force.
I slowly raised my sword.
'Make the sword heavy.'
Common misconception: 'Heavy' isn't the same as 'Force.'
It's not about cleaving.
It's about crushing down.
No need for speed or haste.
I loaded my weight into the raised blade.
And slowly...
Brought it down.
It looked similar to the Three Talents' overhead strike.
But what happened inside my body was entirely different.
'Only this much, huh.'
I couldn't fully commit the weight.
Lack of flexibility was the issue.
'Heavy' might seem to demand raw power, but no.
True flexibility to transmit the body's full weight.
That was key.
As my sword finally came down all the way, someone watching spoke up.
"You've improved a lot."
My second sister, Mok Jieun, had slipped into the training grounds at some point.