Chapter 25: Instructional Sparring (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 25: Instructional Sparring (2)
It was a sparring match arranged out of nowhere.
The swordsmen of the Heavenly Sword Hall stopped their training and gathered around the sparring stage.
"The granddaughter of the Head of the Elders' Council?"
"Yes. Her talent is quite remarkable. She's several years ahead of her peers in terms of achievement."
Even without her background, Man Ye-won was famous. Despite being only eighteen, she was counted among the top five rising stars of the Azure Heaven Association.
"They say she hasn't taken the entrance exam yet, but once she receives her Cloud Rank, she's qualified enough to be immediately awarded the rank of Second Cloud."
"Since Baekri Cheong is away on a mission, did she come straight for the youngest?"
The members of the Heavenly Sword Hall spoke with intrigued expressions.
Man Ye-won certainly possessed outstanding talent and was a rising star with a promising future. The only problem was her opponent: Namgung Jun.
The Heavenly Sword Hall had witnessed Namgung Jun's talent from the closest possible vantage point.
No matter how brightly Man Ye-won’s genius shone, compared to Namgung Jun, she was but a firefly fluttering before the full moon.
The onlookers were less interested in who would win and more focused on how much of her true skill Man Ye-won would be able to display.
'The youngest has been improving by leaps and bounds since he began his training in earnest.'
'Even if she is the granddaughter of the Head of the Elders' Council, this is too much for her.'
Meanwhile, the young man and woman faced each other in the center of the stage. The air between them grew sharp, a testament to the fact that, despite their youth, they were respectable swordsmen.
Namgung Jun placed his hand on his hilt as he always did, the motion incredibly natural and devoid of wasted movement.
Even this light gesture was enough to make the wrinkles around the eyes of the Head of the Elders' Council deepen slightly.
"You may begin when you are ready."
Shring!
At Namgung Jun's calm words, Man Ye-won immediately drew her sword. The sharp ring of steel betrayed her burning competitive spirit.
In contrast, the sound of Namgung Jun drawing his own sword was as soft as the melody of a musical instrument.
The two assumed their opening stances.
Man Ye-won's eyes widened. Several swordsmen from the Heavenly Sword Hall also let out short gasps.
It was because they had assumed the exact same opening stance.
This was not the Thirteen Lightning Flash Sword Thunders, the technique that was already famous within the Azure Heaven Association as Namgung Jun's signature art.
"The Great Wind Sword Technique? No matter how gifted he is, this is..."
"He's mastered that sword technique too? Wasn't he practicing the Distant-Cloud Layered-Wall Stance?"
"He has been frequenting the Self-Reflection Martial Repository lately."
Heo Il burst into a cheerful laugh at the surrounding reactions, his voice overflowing with trust in Namgung Jun. "Is that so surprising? You still don't truly understand Young Master Namgung's talent."
Gong Jun-am, who had been watching silently with his arms crossed, chimed in. "I can tell just by looking at his opening stance. He didn't choose that technique on a mere childish whim."
Man Ye-won stared at Namgung Jun, bewildered.
'The Great Wind Sword Technique?'
Namgung Jun's Thirteen Lightning Flash Sword Thunders was legendary. It was a sword art created by a newly minted Cloud of the Azure Heaven Association while battling the Sword Demon. Though rumors abounded, it was clearly a formidable technique.
'That's why I prepared a counter for it...'
They hadn't even clashed, but just seeing his opening stance had thrown her into disarray. All she could do was desperately suppress her chaotic thoughts and barely force out a word.
"You...?"
"Correct your grip," Namgung Jun advised in a low voice. "The Great Wind Sword Technique has a uniquely heavy Qi Wave, so you must apply more pressure with your index finger."
Man Ye-won's lips parted blankly. It was the first time she had ever received martial arts advice from someone her own age. A surge of annoyance flared within her, but she couldn't find the words to retort.
Swoosh!
Namgung Jun swept across the floor using the Infinite Steps, his leather boots gliding smoothly. As the hems of his trousers fluttered, prominent veins bulged on the back of his hand.
His horizontal slash unleashed a distinct sword wind, one that was twice as large and thick as an ordinary one. This was the signature of the Great Wind Sword Technique, which specialized in manipulating sword wind.
Man Ye-won belatedly unleashed the Great Wind Sword Technique as well, but the form she hastily executed was clumsy.
Whoosh!
Instead of her sword thrusting forward, her body shuddered violently and was pushed back. Though it was the same Great Wind Sword Technique, the difference in power was so vast it felt like an entirely different martial art.
Yet, Man Ye-won instinctively realized something.
Even if she had executed the form perfectly, the outcome wouldn't have changed. There was a clear, fundamental gap in their mastery. What could have created such a difference?
'There was never any mention of him learning the Great Wind Sword Technique!'
Namgung Jun's single strike had thrown her mind into chaos. Naturally, her hands and feet grew sluggish, and her sword's momentum faltered.
Just then, Namgung Jun's calm voice pierced her ears like a thunderbolt.
"Calm down. Your mind is wavering, so your blade is wavering. It means you cannot channel your power properly."
Clang!
Deflecting Man Ye-won's sword with a heavy sweep, Namgung Jun continued, "A heavy sword art that feels light because it lacks power? What, then, is the purpose of this technique's existence?"
His body spun, continuously applying pressure. As his trouser hems whipped back, a heavy sword wind swept in from both sides. Sweating profusely, Man Ye-won frantically moved her sword, barely managing to block the incoming gales.
On the other hand, Namgung Jun's eyes grew increasingly calm and focused. Though Man Ye-won was doing her best, her efforts only made the weaknesses of the Great Wind Sword Technique appear more glaringly obvious to him.
'Indeed. So it had these shortcomings. Facing it like this makes them perfectly clear.'
Man Ye-won's mastery of the Great Wind Sword Technique was excellent, at least seventy percent complete. She also seemed to have diligently studied the Annotated Version, as its principles were deeply embedded in several of her forms.
'No. This part is wrong.'
There were instances where she blindly followed the errors of the Annotated Version, and other forms that seemed to stem from her own bad habits.
Therefore, Namgung Jun thoroughly dismantled and countered her sword.
Using Man Ye-won as a mirror, he mercilessly shattered the Great Wind Sword Technique he had created in his past life.
'In the form of the Great Gale and Storm, I must block the opening at the waist...'
Namgung Jun's Great Wind Sword Technique gradually began to transform. As if absorbing the fragments that fell from shattering Man Ye-won's technique, he began to patch up its shortcomings.
'If I overlap the Qi Waves diagonally on the blade, I can unleash a denser sword wind. Based on this, I will rewrite the mnemonic formula for the Great Wind Sword Technique.'
Namgung Jun felt a unique sense of amusement. Re-examining the mnemonic formulas in a manual was entirely different from the realizations gained by facing a swordsman actually executing the technique.
While restructuring the formulas and forms of the Great Wind Sword Technique in real-time, Namgung Jun did not stop offering advice to Man Ye-won.
"When you extend your sword, put more strength into your legs. Your center of gravity is unstable, so the release of your sword wind is being interrupted."
Perhaps she wasn't entirely devoid of talent, as she showed slight signs of correcting her flaws. Whenever Man Ye-won displayed such quick adaptability, Namgung Jun would unleash a new sword strike, renewing his pressure.
With Namgung Jun advising and Man Ye-won correcting herself, this was practically an instructional sparring match.
The Heavenly Sword Hall members, who had been endlessly discussing the flow of the spar, had fallen silent. There was something for them to learn from Namgung Jun's advice as well. Though the words were for Man Ye-won, everyone was listening intently.
Only Man Hun, the Head of the Elders' Council, let out a hollow laugh.
"Astonishing. How can he..."
The Great Wind Sword Technique displayed by Namgung Jun was perfect. No, it seemed to transcend perfection and cross into another realm entirely. Even as he dismantled the weaknesses Man Ye-won displayed, Namgung Jun's own forms became further refined. As if shedding excess fat, his sword forms grew heavier and sharper.
'I heard rumors that he refined a new sword technique while fighting the Sword Demon.'
It was an unbelievable story, but he figured it might be possible for a peerless genius. But this was the exact opposite. He was in a spar against someone far weaker, someone executing the exact same martial art. Yet, using her flaws as a lesson, he was cleanly refining his forms and devising entirely new ones.
As the exchanges piled up, the others also began to sense that the Great Wind Sword Technique was gradually changing.
"The flow of the spar is strange."
"The sequences are changing."
"His sword strikes have grown even heavier. Look at that sword wind."
While blocking Man Ye-won's attacks in ways that forced her to correct her weaknesses, Namgung Jun simultaneously mended the countless flaws within the Great Wind Sword Technique itself.
'A bit heavier. I can draw out even more of its potential.'
He could end this spar at any moment. Not only Namgung Jun, but everyone present knew this. Nevertheless, he did not end it, continuing the exchange.
As the spar continued precariously, like a walk on a tightrope, Man Hun's eyes trembled.
'This can no longer even be called the Great Wind Sword Technique.'
Man Ye-won was nothing more than a supporting character to make Namgung Jun shine. Even so, Man Hun did not feel the slightest bit displeased. Not only was his granddaughter's martial arts rapidly improving, but witnessing the birth of a new sword technique was a truly rare sight. It was an honor for both him and Man Ye-won to be so intimately involved in this moment.
The spar continued for a long time.
Clang!
By the time Man Ye-won's mastery of the Great Wind Sword Technique had risen to eighty percent, Namgung Jun's sword wind unleashed a power completely different from before.
Whoooooosh!
The sword wind, whipping like a wave along the blade's path, gently pushed Man Ye-won back. Although her own strikes had become far stronger, she was pushed back even more helplessly than at the start. The caliber of the sword wind Namgung Jun now conjured was on a completely different level.
"Haaah!"
Just as the off-balance Man Ye-won was about to collapse, Namgung Jun used the Infinite Steps to instantly close the distance and catch her sleeve. He nonchalantly supported her, preventing her from falling.
"Oh? Thank you."
Namgung Jun merely nodded at her thanks. Then, silence fell.
Watching his reaction, Man Ye-won mumbled to herself before finally squeezing out the words with difficulty.
"Thank you for holding back so much, and thank you even more for the guidance. I'm sorry for how I acted at first."
Man Ye-won bowed her head, her face completely flushed.
Seeing the fiercely proud granddaughter of the Head of the Elders' Council so thoroughly humbled, no one dared to speak. The members of the Heavenly Sword Hall stared at Namgung Jun with a myriad of expressions.
Voicing the question on everyone's mind, Man Hun asked, "You have completely transformed the Great Wind Sword Technique. Beyond merely tweaking the forms, you have created an entirely superior sword art."
"You flatter me."
"That sword technique... would you allow me to face it myself?"
The eyes of the Heavenly Sword Hall members widened at the unexpected proposal.
Only Namgung Jun looked at the old master with perfectly calm eyes.
"Very well."
As if he had been waiting for that answer, Man Hun was already stepping forward, his sleeves fluttering.
Five clouds were vividly embroidered on them.
The Fifth Cloud. It signified a peerless expert of the Azure Heaven Association.