Chapter 416
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 416
Chapter Title: A Fortuitous Encounter
Jeok Ga-ye's sword moved with ever-increasing sharpness.
She wasn't forcing her inner energy up from her dantian.
She focused solely on the sword's movements.
When the sword moved, the inner energy in her dantian followed suit.
The moment she sensed it, Jeok Ga-ye willed a slight push to her inner energy.
It surged out smoothly, swirling through her entire body.
A thrilling shiver ran down her spine at the sensation.
"Focus!"
At Ha Mu-baek's sharp shout,
Jeok Ga-ye refocused her mind on the sword.
How long had she been swinging it like this?
The blade began to emit a faint blue glow.
Ha Mu-baek, watching closely, lit up with interest.
He had judged her talented, but
this exceeded even his expectations.
Outstanding students ignite their teacher's passion.
Ha Mu-baek's spirits soared, and he swung his sword faster.
Jeok Ga-ye kept pace with his movements.
All her mind was on the sword.
Thanks to that, their sparring dragged on longer than expected.
The cadets training with their instructors stole glances at Jeok Ga-ye and Ha Mu-baek.
The instructors were doing the same, in fact.
Ha Mu-baek sensed the atmosphere but let it be.
He preferred to focus on Jeok Ga-ye rather than scold the others.
Thus, Ha Mu-baek's sword followed the paths of famous techniques, guiding the Three Talents Heart Method's movements as it assaulted Jeok Ga-ye's body from all angles, and she blocked every strike.
Of course, deploying those famous techniques herself.
Now, Ha Mu-baek gradually increased his sword's power.
To a level that was becoming burdensome for Jeok Ga-ye to defend against.
A power that would make one crave an even stronger sword.
Jeok Ga-ye's sword was already pushing its limits.
The faint, dim blue glow was proof.
To grow stronger from here, she needed to break through to the realm of sword qi.
Jeok Ga-ye had already reached the wall of sword qi.
A burning desire for greater power and concentration beyond her sword's limits.
When these two met,
she might leap over the wall in one go.
That was why Ha Mu-baek was fully focused on her.
For the unexpected chance to shatter the wall in a single breakthrough.
If Jeok Ga-ye crossed it today, it would be beyond even Ha Mu-baek's plans.
Surpassing his own expectations.
That sparked a strange anticipation in him.
The thrill of encountering talent that exceeded his hopes had Ha Mu-baek slightly excited too.
"Going stronger!"
With Ha Mu-baek's curt shout,
his sword truly surpassed Jeok Ga-ye's limits, striking at her.
Clang! Clang! Chaeng!
The harsh clash of metal rang out as their swords met,
and Jeok Ga-ye was slowly pushed back.
Deep footprints marked the ground as she retreated step by step.
'It has to be stronger. Faster.'
Jeok Ga-ye gritted her teeth.
In this moment,
it didn't even occur to her to draw her inner energy to its peak.
Only to make the sword stronger, faster.
She focused on that alone.
Swinging the sword,
the instant inner energy flowed from her dantian through her meridians,
the moment she willed it toward the blade,
her desperate, fervent desire for more power
squeezed her dantian,
and the deep reserves at its bottom
erupted all at once,
racing through her meridians to surge into the sword.
A vivid blue light settled on Jeok Ga-ye's blade.
At that instant,
everyone watching their spar out of the corner of their eyes froze in shock.
Only Jeok Ga-ye, oblivious,
swung her sword with full power.
Her entire focus on Ha Mu-baek's incoming strikes.
'Good.'
Ha Mu-baek allowed a faint smile.
He had pushed her back to make her cross the wall,
but to think she actually did it.
And so cleanly.
Her sword, now gleaming blue with sword qi,
moved swiftly and powerfully, blocking his.
As Ha Mu-baek held back his power,
she counterattacked, slowly regaining her lost ground,
and now she was pressing forward.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Chaeng!
The training ground fell silent.
Only the sound of Jeok Ga-ye's sword striking Ha Mu-baek's echoed.
Now, Ha Mu-baek swung moderately, matching her offense.
Having crossed the wall,
how much she advanced in this state of focus would decide everything.
Her success in manifesting sword qi was no reason to break her concentration.
The Fierce Dragon Corps cadets didn't know this,
but awed by her display
and the atmosphere,
they kept quiet.
The instructors, of course, recognized the critical moment,
as did the Seven Squad cadets.
Dang Jin-san itched to speak but held his tongue.
Talk could wait.
Jeok Ga-ye's fortuitous encounter might not come again.
It could be the one and only of her life.
Under everyone's gaze,
Jeok Ga-ye's sword grew faster, stronger,
more profound.
It was a complete awakening.
Ha Mu-baek silently received her relentless swings.
How long had it gone on?
"Hah. Hah. Hah."
Gasp escaped her lips.
Her stamina had reached its limit.
Yet she swung to the end.
And then,
her sword halted abruptly.
It had to.
Now she felt it.
Her dantian was empty.
No inner energy left to make her sword stronger, faster, more profound.
In the end, she'd swung purely on muscle,
stopping only when she sensed the void.
"Ah, ah, aaah..."
Jeok Ga-ye wore a dazed, confused expression.
"Enter meditation immediately."
Ha Mu-baek commanded sternly,
and Jeok Ga-ye reflexively sat cross-legged and closed her eyes.
She barely knew what meditation was,
but it felt right.
As she did, her mind swirled chaotically.
Only now did she recall her own sword from memory,
and recognize the blue glow on it.
She didn't know what it was yet.
She knew nothing of sword qi.
But reviewing her total focus in the recent spar with Ha Mu-baek,
she grasped many things.
A true awakening, a true fortuitous encounter.
Ha Mu-baek stared at her a moment, then stepped back.
He glanced at the instructors and cadets, waving them off.
They understood instantly, quietly leading the cadets from the training ground.
Today's session was over.
The now-empty training ground
held only Jeok Ga-ye, cross-legged.
Ha Mu-baek, a few steps away, returned to his usual rock and lounged against it.
His senses enveloped the training ground.
No one would enter without his permission now.
"Whew. What the hell was that?"
In Seven Squad's training area,
Dang Jin-san exhaled and spoke.
"A fortuitous encounter."
Ha Seol-ran replied curtly.
"Yeah, I know. What kind of guy is our instructor anyway? Every spar turns into some life-changing epiphany. The kind you might get once in a lifetime, if ever."
Dang Jin-san muttered wearily.
He'd sparred with Ha Mu-baek countless times but never reached that state.
Some here had, though.
"Desperation, urgency, and focus. That's the difference."
Baek Ri-pyeong said calmly.
"Right. And you need the vessel built through grueling training beforehand. It doesn't just happen."
It was Han Seol-bing.
She had come to Seven Squad's area.
Smiling at the cadets.
"So, we keep training? Even for a shot at something like that?"
"Huh?"
Dang Jin-san blinked at the sudden turn.
Han Seol-bing drew her sword.
"Come at me."
Short words.
But the rising battle aura from her body
spurred Seven and Twenty Squad cadets to form ranks and charge.
Her aura demanded it.
Watching Ha Mu-baek and Jeok Ga-ye had ignited her unknowingly.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sword clashes rang through Seven Squad's training ground.
"Whew."
A deep sigh escaped Pung Geon's lips.
The Demon-Sealing Corps headquarters loomed in the distance.
Almost there.
They'd make it back before nightfall.
About then, Pung Geon halted.
The squad leader stopping made everyone else freeze too.
"What do we do?"
Pung Geon asked.
"Report it straight. This is no ordinary matter."
Yu Gwi-gwang said gravely.
He still couldn't shake the tremor in the Mountain-Crossing Great Wall.
A jiangshi attacking the wall? Unheard of.
They always tried jumping near it, then retreated from the spells embedded in the stone.
None had ever assaulted it before.
"If it'd been stronger, the wall might've breached."
Gwan Ha-kyeong's grim words drew nods.
Demon-Sealing and Fierce Dragon Corps members eyed headquarters.
The camp outside the Mountain-Crossing Great Wall's north gate.
Once a bastion of security, now just anxiety.
Whatever the corps leader intended, this had to be reported.
"And... we should inform Instructor Ha too."
Yu Gwi-gwang added.
Pung Geon nodded.
"Same thought."
This dwarfed the poison jiangshi spreading dream toxin.
Ha Mu-baek had mentioned in passing
that the Blood Cult spawned all sorts of jiangshi, some stronger than dark blood jiangshi.
Be cautious.
Probably that one.
Pung Geon figured.
"How do we notify him?"
Gwan Ha-kyeong asked.
Pung Geon's gaze shifted to Chu Ryang.
"Go to Cheongjeon and send a messenger pigeon, then return."
A decent-sized city north of Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
They'd have pigeons to Muchang.
"Isn't that deserting post?"
Chu Ryang asked cautiously.
First-year member; natural worry.
They needed a solid excuse.
Sending word to Dragon Training Pavilion wouldn't fly.
They were Righteous Heaven Alliance, not Dragon Training Pavilion.
Pung Geon frowned slightly.
He wanted to alert headquarters too, but
as a mid-tier sect's scion, he lacked direct channels bypassing chain of command.
"Why not just send to Heavenly Eye Pavilion too?"
Yu Gwi-gwang suggested.
All eyes turned to him.
"We report to them anyway. Say it's urgent, sent direct. What'll the corps leader do? Kill us? Might send us to die, though."
Malice laced Yu Gwi-gwang's voice.
Made sense.
"But without the code phrase, it'll get flagged in review..."
Required snippet for Righteous Heaven Alliance combat units reporting to Heavenly Eye Pavilion; unique per unit.
"Use Fierce Dragon Corps' code."
Yu Gwi-gwang said casually.
Fierce Dragon Corps reported directly to Heavenly Eye Pavilion.
Under Demon-Sealing Corps command but independent.
Yet they didn't.
Demon-Sealing treated them like subordinates.
So reports routed through them to Righteous Heaven Alliance.
But Fierce Dragon was independent.
No leader, but assigned a nominal code phrase.
Yu Gwi-gwang, longest-tenured, knew it.
Pung Geon nodded.
"Got it?"
"Yes."
"Good. Go."
At Pung Geon's order, Chu Ryang kicked off toward Cheongjeon.