Learning Swordsmanship from Guan Yu

The dust in the training grounds hadn't even settled yet. The massive Green Dragon Crescent Blade that had been slicing through the air came to an abrupt halt with a thud. As the deafening whoosh faded, the very air seemed to grow heavy around them.

"Big Brother!"

Guan Xue's clear voice shattered the silence. At her call, the towering figure of Guan Yu slowly turned his head. His long braided beard, his majestic face tinged with a reddish hue. The moment that embodiment of overwhelming might turned his gaze toward me, a chill raced up my spine, raising goosebumps in its wake.

"Oh, is that you, Xue?"

Guan Yu set his crescent blade down on the ground with a heavy thunk and smiled faintly. With the killing intent gone, his face took on the kindly look of an elder brother, though an aura of unapproachable dignity still emanated from him. His eyes soon shifted to me, standing beside Guan Xue.

"And... the master blacksmith. What brings you here?"

"Big Brother, I brought the master blacksmith with me."

Guan Xue hurried over to Guan Yu on light footsteps and explained.

"There was that bandit raid the other day, and the master blacksmith wishes to learn some martial arts to protect himself in these turbulent times. I took the liberty of bringing him here in the hope that you might personally guide him through the basics."

Guan Yu stroked his beard thoughtfully, fixing me with a steady gaze. His eyes scanned me from head to toe, as if an X-ray piercing straight through to reveal the structure and condition of my muscles and bones.

"Indeed. You've bulked up your chest a bit since I saw you at the workshop. The muscles and frame you've forged hammering iron look quite usable."

"I'm ashamed. I may have some strength, but I have no idea how to wield it."

Guan Yu let out a hearty laugh at my honest reply.

"One who knows his own shortcomings progresses the fastest. Since it's Xue's request, and you've perfectly repaired my weapon as a favor... I'll personally open the path of the sword for you a little."

Guan Yu strode ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to a weapon rack in one corner of the training grounds and picked up two wooden swords carved from heavy white sandalwood. He tossed one straight at me through the air.

Thwack! I reflexively shot out my hand and caught it. The weight was far heavier than expected, pressing down on my wrist.

"Now, attack me."

"Pardon?"

"Follow your instincts. Swing at me with whatever trajectory feels strongest to you. I need to gauge your condition before I can teach you anything."

Guan Yu stood in a perfectly open stance, wooden sword held at a slant. It looked full of openings, but facing him with a sword in hand felt like standing before a colossal mountain as a mere ant. I took a deep breath. I maxed out the strength and agility the system had granted me. Planting my feet, I kicked off the ground and brought the wooden sword slashing down from overhead.

Whoosh-! The blade tore through the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠air with a roar—a strike that would shatter bones for any ordinary man, powered by my strength stat.

Crack! But the sound that rang ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out was crisp and light. Guan Yu hadn't moved from his spot; he merely flicked his wrist, tapping the side of my wooden sword. That single light contact utterly destroyed my balance. Unable to overcome the momentum of my swing, I tumbled ignobly into the dirt.

"Kuh...!"

"You've got power. Most squad leaders couldn't take that head-on. But that's all."

Guan Yu evaluated me coolly, propping his wooden sword on the ground.

"Those flashy sword dances the storytellers prattle about, the lightness skills that let you fly through the sky, invisible sword qi... Are you perhaps caught up in such fantasies, master blacksmith?"

He had hit the nail on the head. Images of martial arts from modern media lingered in my mind.

"In real combat, martial arts are tools solely for 'survival' and 'killing.' Draw energy from the earth through your lower body, transmit it via your waist, through your shoulders, and release it from your wrist. Strip away all excess, achieve utmost efficiency with not even an inch of error, piercing the enemy's vitals. That is the way of martial arts."

Guan Yu demonstrated personally. He thrust out his wooden sword. It seemed slow, but in an instant, the tip halted a mere centimeter from my throat. His footwork, the angle of his twisting waist, the timing of his weight shift—it was the epitome of perfect biomechanics.

"Try again."

I gritted my teeth and stood. I swung again. The result was the same. Collapse, fall, roll in the dirt.

My hardware—strength, stamina—was an excellent engine. But I lacked the transmission and software to deliver that power to the wheels: the neural network of martial arts, the muscle memory. My body wouldn't move as I willed. The system had given me talent as a blacksmith, not enlightenment as a warrior.

This... this is real martial arts.

Despair washed over me. Despite my far-superior physical condition compared to an ordinary man, I couldn't even utilize 50% of it. Before the world's greatest warrior Guan Yu, I was worth less than a crudely made F-rank weapon.

"Relax your strength! Your shoulders are tense, making your sword path obvious!"

Thwack! Guan Yu's wooden sword struck my thigh hard. Pain shot through my bones and muscles screamed. I could feel Guan Xue watching with pitying eyes, but I couldn't give up.

I'm a blacksmith. Right now, I'm red-hot iron.

I brainwashed myself. Guan Yu's wooden sword was the hammer tempering me. I had to be beaten, shattered, impurities burned away to become a famed sword. Gasping ragged breaths, I dragged my dirt-caked body to its feet once more. My eyes burned with venom and defiance.

"Here I come again."

I repeated the cycle of swinging and falling dozens of times. Finally, when my sword grazed his wooden blade ever so lightly, glancing off it.

"Enough."

Guan Yu withdrew his sword. The curiosity in his eyes from our first meeting had shifted to thick 'approval.'

"Your grit and perseverance are truly extraordinary, master blacksmith."

"Hah... hah... You flatter me."

"No. An ordinary man would have collapsed after ten swings from the stamina drain. With that spirit and endurance, you'll surely make a name for yourself on the path of martial arts. You have an excellent body; now you just need to forge the vessel to contain it."

Guan Yu patted my shoulder.

"Come to this training ground every night after your work. I'll personally rework your basic footwork from the ground up."

The world's Guan Yu promising personal lessons every night. My heart pounded like it would burst. In these chaotic times, I'd grasped the surest lifeline for survival. I hurriedly bowed deeply.

"Thank you! How can I ever repay such a great favor... Ah!"

I snapped my head up and continued.

"All I know is working iron. Each time I come, I'll bring one of the volunteer army's weapons and repair it. Let that serve as payment for your teachings."

"Haha, from our volunteer army's perspective, it's a profit. If that's what you want, blacksmith."

Guan Yu nodded readily and pulled a sword from the pile of standard-issue weapons by the rack, handing it to me.

"Start with this huan dao. It's been battered in training, so the edge is dull and chipped."

"Tomorrow night, I'll bring it back sharp as new."

I carefully accepted the rusted, chipped supply huan dao.

Night had deepened. I returned to the merchant guild's custom workshop. The forge was deathly quiet after the day's work. I slipped into the secret side room, locking the door behind me. The one privilege granted to me as deputy workshop head: this perfectly isolated private chamber.

I set the worn huan dao I'd clutched to my chest down on the table.

I have to craft once a day anyway to build experience.

Might as well make it good. That was only proper respect for the one teaching me swordsmanship.

"Subspace Opening."

Shooo-! At the quiet command, 11 mana drained from my dantian in a lump.

Flash-. When I opened my eyes again, I stood in the center of my Lv.3 personal forge, greeted by the gray stone floor and sturdy silver steel anvil.

A red timer appeared in the corner of my vision, counting down generously from 11:00.

Upon reaching Lv.3, the place had completely transformed. The floor was laid with heat-resistant gray stone, and a silver steel anvil boasting absolute durability squatted in the center. Racks of high-grade tools lined the walls neatly, and the furnace's heat was incomparably fiercer and purer than before. Here, no outside time or noise existed. Only iron, fire, and I.

I shoved the huan dao deep into the mana furnace and began pumping the bellows.

[Remaining time: 10:10]

Glowing red-hot, then a dazzling orange, I pulled the huan dao out and laid it on the silver steel anvil. I hefted the heavy hammer.

Clang-! Clang-! Clang-! Clear, ringing metal sounds echoed through the subspace. As I hammered, I recalled the body movements Guan Yu had taught me that day. Not striking with just shoulder and arm strength, but channeling power from my planted feet through my waist, shoulders, to a wrist snap delivering it to the hammer's tip. The fundamentals of martial arts strangely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠aligned with blacksmith hammering. Minimizing waste, concentrating all energy on the impact point.

Infusing that realization, each hammer blow flung impurities from the iron. I overlaid new metal on the chipped blade, straightened the bent body into a straight line. The subspace's system correction made the iron's grain visibly denser.

[Remaining time: 05:20]

I finished hammering, tonged the sword, and approached the quenching tank.

Hiiiisss-! The red-hot blade plunged into cold water, spewing massive steam. The clash of fire and water contracted the iron particles rapidly, granting supreme hardness in the quenching moment.

I pulled it from the tank and whetted the edge furiously on the grindstone.

Scrape, scrape. Amid the harsh sounds, the blade began gleaming silver. I ripped off the rotten wooden hilt, carved a new one from stored quality leather and oak, binding it firmly.

Finally, as I wiped the blade with soft felt.

A system message floated in the air. For a weapon forged in a Lv.3 forge with corrections, it wasn't bad. The huan dao itself had been poor to start. Still, considering it was a supply sword needing repair, the upgrade was tremendous.

I lifted the finished sword and gave it a light swing through the air.

Swish-. A sharp cutting power and perfect balance utterly unlike the original crude huan dao transmitted through my hand. Not a famed sword or treasure blade, but perfectly transformed into a 'serviceable weapon' that could reliably protect a soldier's life on a blood-soaked battlefield.

In a normal workshop, it might have topped out at F-grade, but thanks to the subspace's superior facilities and system corrections, it had risen to E+ grade.

"Can't wait to see General Guan Yu's face when he sees this tomorrow."

As I smiled in satisfaction and sheathed the huan dao, the red timer in the corner of my vision reached zero.