The Path of the Sword
Dawn broke. A day had passed since my meeting with Jegal Jin, which meant today was the day the second preliminary round began.
"Whew..."
It was early, before the sun had even risen, when I went out to the training grounds alone.
Perhaps because so many of the young martial artists had been eliminated during the first round, there were plenty of empty spots at this hour.
Thanks to that, I could train in peace.
"Ugh..."
Groaning, I pushed myself up. Every joint in my body ached.
Thud.
Thud, thud.
Once I was fully upright, I unstrapped the sandbags tied to my limbs.
"Haa..."
Heavy thuds echoed each time one hit the ground. They were incredibly heavy. Thanks to the grueling training during my seclusion, the amount of weight I could carry had increased significantly.
...Which is great and all, but the moment I adapted, that old ghost would immediately increase the weight. It was just as exhausting as before.
That damn old man.
[Are you finished?]
Yoo Chun-gil asked, his blue eyes glowing in the darkness.
Did he know what I was thinking? I flinched.
"...Yes. I think this is enough for now."
My voice sounded like an excuse, but I had genuinely pushed myself to the limit.
I had to use my body today anyway, so overexerting myself now would only hurt me. I had to pace myself.
[Hmm. Very well.]
Yoo Chun-gil nodded as if telling me to do as I pleased. His reaction made me tilt my head in confusion.
What's up with that old man?
Ever since we returned from the prefecture, he had been acting like this. I had no idea what he had done to warrant such a troubled expression.
It's getting on my nerves.
It wasn't that I was worried about him.
As if I had nothing better to do than worry about that old ghost.
No, what I was actually worried about was...
...how whatever he's doing might affect me.
What if he was plotting another ridiculous scheme?
What if I got dragged into some bizarre situation again?
That was my sole concern.
I already have enough on my plate with the Trustworthy Spear and Jegal Jin.
If Yoo Chun-gil caused another accident on top of all this...
Ugh.
I didn't even want to imagine it.
Sighing, I picked up my sword.
It wasn't a wooden sword.
It was the Sacred Sword I had been carrying around. Since my physical training was done, I figured I would swing it a few times to wrap things up.
"Old man."
[....]
What?
"Old man!"
[Huh? Oh, right.]
He hadn't heard me when I spoke softly, but he finally snapped out of it when I raised my voice.
"Keep an eye on the surroundings."
[Ah, right. I will.]
Seriously, what was wrong with him? He looked half out of his mind.
It was incredibly unsettling, but for now, I gripped my sword.
Then, I closed my eyes.
Whoosh.
The moment I closed my eyes, I felt the energy in my dantian. The energy of the Cheongwol Mind Method flowed through my body, pouring into my acupoints.
A warm heat rose behind my closed eyelids.
Power surged into my Moon Eye. Yet, I did not open my eyes.
Not yet.
It's still hard to open them.
Not only could I not maintain this newly acquired power for long, but seeing too much unnecessary information made my head throb.
It was better to keep them closed in the dark.
Is this an aftereffect of my seclusion?
It might have been because it was so dark inside that cave... but for now, getting used to it like this seemed like the right move.
Whoosh.
I circulated my energy. I focused more power into my eyes. In that instant—
Hummmmm.
Blue lines began to appear in my closed vision.
Some were curved.
Others were straight.
Some glowed brightly, while others were faint in comparison.
What did this mean?
It hadn't taken me long to figure that out during my seclusion.
Whoosh.
The sword moved. As I moved the Sacred Sword, I channeled sword-qi into it.
Flash!
The moment Gwangwolseomgyeong enveloped the Sacred Sword, light flared even behind my closed eyes.
I swung the Sacred Sword. A line traced itself across the black background.
Sizzz.
I brought the tip of the sword to the end of the brightest visible line.
As the light merged, it began to shine brilliantly.
"Huuu..."
Exhaling slowly, I moved with composure.
The sword followed the path of the light.
Even with my eyes closed, Gwangwolseomgyeong let me know if I was doing it right.
Slash!
I swept the sword upward toward the sky. I immediately transitioned into the next movement. The next line was already waiting nearby.
Screeech.
My toes pivoted. As my body spun, the sword path rotated with me.
Slash! Another strike, drawing a half-circle.
Then a second strike.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
I kept my body moving, determined not to lose the lines.
These were all sword paths.
Not the forms of the Cheongwol Sword Technique, but literally just the path of the sword.
The lines of light showed me where the sword needed to go, and I simply kept moving to ensure the path remained unbroken.
However, as I swung, the end of the line would sometimes break.
A line that severed when I slashed upward would suddenly reappear a couple of paces away.
Tap, tap!
I adjusted my footwork and lowered my stance.
How was I supposed to move to make it work? Sometimes, the line would vanish the moment my sword touched it.
Angle it slightly downward... and make the sword feel like it's scraping the floor?
It was abstract, but I tried it anyway. Clack! The sword reached the distant line.
Fortunately, the line didn't disappear. That meant I was right.
Keep going.
Without even a moment to feel relieved, I continued the sword path.
I was running out of breath. The sword path was endless, but my stamina was reaching its limit.
My internal energy is going to run out soon, too.
Just maintaining Gwangwolseomgyeong was exhausting.
At first, my limit was four or five strikes, but now I could endure up to ten.
Ten sword forms.
Ten sword paths.
As I reached the end of that sequence, a small greed arose.
Just one more.
A little further.
Just one single strike. Let's cut just one more line in front of me.
Even if my energy was at its limit and my muscles screamed in pain,
I felt like I could execute one more strike right now.
Here I go.
Just as the tip of my sword left the previous line and touched another to continue the form—
[Kid—!!! Stop!]
"...!"
I froze instantly at the booming shout.
Frizzle.
The lines vanished. It meant my energy had run dry.
Damn it.
What a waste. If that last one had succeeded, I felt like I would have grasped something.
Because I had stopped so abruptly, the sensation slipped away.
"Haa..."
I let out a long sigh. Frowning, I opened my eyes.
I was about to snap at Yoo Chun-gil, but...
"What the hell was that all of a sud... Huh?"
My eyes went wide at the sight of the person standing before me.
Standing right there...
"Sword Phoenix...?"
Yu Yeon, the Sword Phoenix of Mount Hua.
She was standing right in front of me, and the sword I had been swinging was stopped mere inches from her neck.
"Holy shit."
Startled, I quickly pulled my sword back. I sheathed it immediately and took a step away from her.
"...What do you think you're doing?"
"..."
Even at my words, the Sword Phoenix remained expressionless.
"Are you insane? I almost killed you."
This was ridiculous. If Yoo Chun-gil hadn't stopped me, I would have completed the strike.
Of all people, why was the Sword Phoenix standing there?
Has she lost her mind?
Irritation flared up. Putting aside the fact that my training was interrupted and I had almost decapitated her...
Why didn't he tell me?
This anger was directed at Yoo Chun-gil. I had clearly told him to warn me if anyone approached so nothing like this would happen.
Why did he wait until the last second to yell?
[Ahem...]
Yoo Chun-gil let out a dry cough, looking sheepish as if aware of his blunder.
*Damn it.* It meant he had been daydreaming and forgot to warn me.
"Haa."
I sighed. I could deal with Yoo Chun-gil later.
"Do you have some kind of grudge against me?"
I frowned and asked the Sword Phoenix. She shook her head.
No grudge?
"Then why are you doing this?"
Then why the hell are you bothering me?
Ever since our first meeting, I couldn't understand her.
As I stared at her with questioning eyes,
She suddenly reached into her robes and pulled out two letters, handing them to me.
"What is...?"
Is this for me?
When I looked at her skeptically, she nodded.
"..."
I took them and opened the first letter. It was stamped with a plum blossom crest.
We wish to have the robe returned. Furthermore, we have something to give to the successor of the Sword Saint, so please come to Mount Hua.
"Huh?"
I stared blankly at the words written inside. The letter was quite long, but stripping away the useless pleasantries and formal etiquette, the core message was simple: they wanted the robe back, and they had something to give to the successor of the Sword Saint, so I should visit Mount Hua.
Something to give me?
What could they possibly want to give me? *Could it be the old man's robe?* The robe he said he left behind at Mount Hua.
But that couldn't be it.
No.
I had already seen the Sword Phoenix wearing that robe. Which meant it was something else entirely.
What is it?
Why was the Mount Hua Sect looking for me?
While that question lingered, I wondered about the other letter.
What about the other one?
Curious about the remaining letter, I unfolded it as well.
But...
"Huh?"
This time, my brow furrowed. Unlike the first one, this letter contained only a single line.
Don't you know me?
"...What?"
What did that mean? Did I not know her?
I looked up from the letter to give the Sword Phoenix a questioning look, but...
"What? Where did she go?"
She had already vanished. Did she seriously just drop off the letters and run? In that split second?
It was absurd. I turned to Yoo Chun-gil, hoping he might have seen something.
"...Old man."
[Huh? Oh? What is it?]
Yoo Chun-gil snapped out of his thoughts, startled by my voice.
"..."
As I glared at him, Yoo Chun-gil laughed awkwardly.
[Well... um... uh... Hahaha.]
He was trying to laugh it off. As if I'd let him.
I let out a low sigh, then glared at him and shouted,
"You damn old man, seriously...! What the hell has been wrong with you since earlier?!"
I finally lost my temper and snapped.
Dawn gave way to noon.
Under a clear, bright sky, I was climbing the mountain behind the main headquarters of the Alliance.
I wasn't alone; a massive crowd was climbing alongside me. They were the young martial artists who had survived the first preliminary round.
"...I'm nervous," Cheon Ui-jin muttered as he climbed beside me.
"You'll be fine. Didn't you say you're teaming up with your senior?"
"...Yes. I feel like I'm just dragging senior brother Do-hyeong down."
"Dragging him down? Don't be ridiculous."
The second preliminary round was to be conducted in pairs. Cheon Ui-jin had decided to team up with Do-hyeong.
Strictly speaking, Cheon Ui-jin was weaker than Do-hyeong, so his concern wasn't entirely unfounded.
Still, Cheon Ui-jin is pretty decent.
Compared to the other random rabble, teaming up with Cheon Ui-jin would actually be much more reassuring.
As I climbed the mountain with that thought, my legs suddenly felt heavy. *...Ah, this is actually pretty tough.* My lower body was numb. It seemed my dawn training had been a bit too intense.
"Young Sword Saint!"
A loud voice called out as I trudged up the path. I turned around to see the Lightning Dragon walking toward me.
"So this is where you were."
"Young Master Lightning Dragon."
"I didn't see you anywhere, so I thought you'd abandoned me and run off! Hahaha!"
"..."
To be honest, I had considered it.
"How could I do such a thing?"
Still, the Lightning Dragon was one of the Seven Great Talents. Teaming up with him would make things much easier, so I had no intention of ditching him.
"...Lightning Dragon," Cheon Ui-jin muttered, his eyes widening as he looked at him.
Seeing this, the Lightning Dragon gave Cheon Ui-jin a nod.
"Ah, Young Master Cheon. I've heard a lot about you from the Moon Dance Princess."
"...About me? I highly doubt that."
"Ah, oops. Caught me."
The Lightning Dragon chuckled sheepishly at Cheon Ui-jin's flat response. It seemed he had been lying.
"But I still know who you are, don't I? Good to meet you."
He offered his hand, and Cheon Ui-jin shook it.
They shook hands briefly before letting go, and that was it. The Lightning Dragon's gaze turned indifferent, showing little interest in Cheon Ui-jin.
Did he not like him?
The sudden shift in his expression was so abrupt it felt almost chilling.
He's just like that Pae bastard.
The way Pae Do-jun looked at Dongnyong was very similar to how the Lightning Dragon was looking at Cheon Ui-jin.
...Seriously.
Every single one of these Seven Great Talents seemed bizarre. I had felt it from the beginning, but the feeling only grew stronger over time.
And she's no exception.
I thought the same as I looked at the woman walking in the distance.
The Sword Phoenix. She was walking alongside Pae Do-jun, looking straight ahead.
Watching her, I recalled the letter I had received at dawn.
Don't I know her?
No. I didn't know the Sword Phoenix.
But...
...for her to write that...
Did it mean she knew me?
When?
No matter how much I racked my brain, nothing came to mind.
...It's strange.
It was bothering me. It felt like a bug crawling inside my head. It was as if my mind was constantly nagging me that I should remember the Sword Phoenix.