Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 017
Chapter Title: Wind Energy, Wind Force
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That night, in his dream, Seok Du-myeong met his master Dan Mun-hyeok again. It had been a long time—no, just one day.
"Master, that's why I unleashed the Seeing Light Flame Division stance like that. You should've seen that bastard's arm fall off and his rotten face back then. The punk had no business charging at me like that. Heh heh."
Seok Du-myeong was excitedly bragging to his master Dan Mun-hyeok about his duel with the first-rate expert he'd faced in battle.
Dan Mun-hyeok silently watched his disciple's antics without any particular reaction.
Seok Du-myeong was sassily demonstrating the stances from the Master's Augmented Piercing Swift Sword Technique that he'd used at the time.
Of course, he didn't keep his triumphant mouth shut either.
"Ah, I was planning to just give him a few light cuts and let him go, but the bastard came at me with everything he had. So I had no choice but to use a couple of the later stances. In that short time, with my genius talent, I mastered them and unleashed a few. He got split in half and died. You know I hate killing people, Master. But that guy... I had no choice. Master, I'm a real expert now, right? I'm getting pretty good. Hahaha."
Seok Du-myeong's neck stiffened with effort as he struck a rigid pose, staring at his master Dan Mun-hyeok and laughing out loud.
Watching his disciple act like this, Dan Mun-hyeok's face remained utterly expressionless as he quietly observed him.
"Master, don't you have anything to say to this proud disciple of yours? Praise would be nice too."
Like a puppy waiting for a tasty treat, Seok Du-myeong gazed at Dan Mun-hyeok with wide, sparkling eyes that didn't suit him at all, eagerly awaiting praise.
"Du-myeong, let's train."
"Yes... Train? Master, on a day like today, shouldn't you let your battle-weary disciple rest for at least a day? Mas~ter."
"Fine. If you can block my first stance, you can skip training for a day..."
"Mas~te~er."
Seok Du-myeong pitifully called out to his master, but all Dan Mun-hyeok's staff did was sway in his hand.
"Yes, I'll train."
'How am I supposed to block that old man's stance? I'll just train and be done with it.'
Seok Du-myeong had once tried to dodge training by taking up this offer from Dan Mun-hyeok, even though he hated practicing.
The result? He'd been beaten half to death.
No matter how much confidence surged into his stiff neck now that he felt like an expert, the moment he looked at Dan Mun-hyeok standing before him, that confidence vanished in a flash.
Seok Du-myeong began unfolding the foundational forms of the Clear Wind Sword Technique. It was far from a simple sword art.
Among top-grade sword techniques, the Clear Wind Sword Technique was notoriously complex and difficult to master.
The first six forms alone consisted of a hefty 46 stances. Many of them demanded extreme flexibility from the body, making them high-difficulty maneuvers.
The latter five forms had fewer stances than the first six—27 in total—but that was still no small number.
'It probably wasn't this many at first. That old man with nothing better to do and all the time in the world must've tacked on useless crap.'
As Seok Du-myeong practiced the Clear Wind Sword Technique's movements, he furtively narrowed his eyes, glaring at Dan Mun-hyeok without getting caught.
Seok Du-myeong wasn't wrong. The original Clear Wind Sword Technique hadn't had nearly this many stances or movements.
The sect founder, Jang Jin-cheon, had essentially fulfilled his duty by creating the unparalleled internal art, the Clear Wind Heart Formula.
He had laid the basic framework for the Clear Wind Sword Technique and Clear Wind Throw, but the Heaven-Connecting Sect's arts at the time were still incomplete.
It wasn't until another once-in-a-generation genius, Dan Mun-hyeok, came along that they finally reached completion.
The only thing Dan Mun-hyeok hadn't touched was the internal art, the Clear Wind Heart Formula.
His vast knowledge of martial arts and unparalleled passion drove him to refine and perfect the Clear Wind Sword Technique and Clear Wind Throw over his lifetime.
With this Clear Wind Sword Technique—which could be said to be his own creation—Dan Mun-hyeok had once defeated the Heavenly Demon and earned the unofficial title of the world's greatest.
Seok Du-myeong executed all 11 forms and 73 stances of the Clear Wind Sword Technique in sequence.
Watching this, Dan Mun-hyeok didn't show it on his face, but he was deeply impressed.
In just eight months of seriously training in the Clear Wind Sword Technique, Seok Du-myeong had mastered all its movements—far faster than Dan Mun-hyeok had anticipated.
It was all because of Seok Du-myeong's slippery, lazy personality. If he were properly managed, the Heaven-Connecting Sect might produce another world's greatest.
The more he thought about it, the more Seok Du-myeong's talent seemed wasted on his personality.
The answer with that punk is to whip him into shape.
That ironclad rule resurfaced in Dan Mun-hyeok's mind.
'Gonna~ beat~ him~ senseless.'
Seok Du-myeong finished all the movements of the Clear Wind Sword Technique's stances, took a long breath to steady himself, and glanced at Dan Mun-hyeok's expression.
Dan Mun-hyeok chuckled inwardly but kept his face stern as he spoke.
"Take a short break and then continue."
Seok Du-myeong and Dan Mun-hyeok sat at the table in the middle of the pavilion.
"But Master, between the Clear Wind Sword Technique and the Piercing Swift Sword Technique you improved, which one's stronger?"
"Hard to say. It's tough to pin down which sword technique is superior outright. Even the pinnacle sword arts' power depends on the practitioner's level."
"Then wouldn't it be better for me to just keep mastering the Piercing Swift Sword Technique I've been practicing instead of bothering with the Clear Wind Sword Technique?"
Dan Mun-hyeok looked at Seok Du-myeong with a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Seeing that smile sent chills down Seok Du-myeong's spine, and he quickly made excuses.
"No, Master, that's not what I mean at all. I'm not saying I hate learning the Clear Wind Sword Technique or anything. I'm just saying, as your dim-witted disciple, wouldn't focusing on one thing all the way through give me a better shot at mastery?"
Seok Du-myeong watched his master's face as he spoke. Fortunately, the smile faded, returning Dan Mun-hyeok to his usual blank expression.
'Whew~ That was close.'
Seok Du-myeong knew what happened when his master flashed that inscrutable, kindly smile.
He'd get beaten mercilessly with that staff. It hurt like hell.
"You are a disciple of the Heaven-Connecting Sect."
"Yessir, a Heaven-Connecting Sect disciple."
Seok Du-myeong replied with a deflated tone. His attempt to cheat on the Clear Wind Sword Technique had failed utterly.
"Master, one more thing I'm curious about?"
"What is it, you rascal? You've got a lot of questions today. This isn't just you trying to dodge training, is it?"
Feeling thoroughly called out, Seok Du-myeong stammered before answering quickly.
"Ah... No, I'd never. Master, you know I'm not like that."
"I know you are exactly like that."
Seok Du-myeong and Dan Mun-hyeok—their master-disciple relationship wasn't built on trust or faith. It was founded on suspicion and beatings, a delightfully prickly bond.
"Everything I do has reasons and solid logic behind it, Master. A strong theory makes for strong foundations, right? That's why I need to understand the Heaven-Connecting Sect's founding principles to train with full sincerity..."
"So what is it you're curious about?"
Dan Mun-hyeok cut him off as Seok Du-myeong's words started to ramble.
"Ah, it's why the martial arts are named 'Clear Wind'?
From what I've learned practicing them, there's no connection at all to the clear, blue breeze the name suggests. I don't get why it's called that, Master."
Seok Du-myeong had been curious about this since first meeting Dan Mun-hyeok. He'd heard his master's nickname was Clear Wind Sword, though those in the world who knew his exploits called him the Clear Wind Sword Emperor.
He didn't think the name Clear Wind was bad or problematic.
Compared to gruesome names like Asura Sword, Blood Heaven Blade, or Ghost-Slaying Sword, Clear Wind felt clean and fine.
Still, no matter how much he practiced, he couldn't find any link between the name Clear Wind and the Heaven-Connecting Sect's martial arts. That's what had always bugged him.
"The sect founder, Jang Jin-cheon, loved the wind, they say."
"Ah—yes. Just because he liked it..."
"No, but Master, nicknames aren't something you just give yourself. Other people bestow them..."
"Investigator Jang Jin-cheon had no special nickname."
"What? Even as the sect founder, he had no nickname?"
'Man, this sect's lame. What kind of founder goes nameless like some no-name wanderer?'
Doubt bubbled up in Seok Du-myeong's heart, but he couldn't voice it in front of Dan Mun-hyeok.
"The investigator, a Daoist from the Quanzhen Cult, was content with creating a martial art to overcome his malformed dantian and make it usable. He never ventured into the jianghu and simply hoped his creation would be a lifeline for other warriors with dantian issues like his. I hear the sect name Heaven-Connecting Sect was just tacked on by the third-generation investigator."
'Yep, this sect's got issues. Founder's a nobody, third-gen picks a name on a whim. Wait, so there wasn't even a sect name at first? Damn, this is pitiful.'
"That doesn't mean the Heaven-Connecting Sect's martial arts have nothing to do with wind. You're still too weak to notice, but when you reach the peak realm and can manifest sword energy, you'll understand."
"What is it?"
"Our sect's sword energy and sword force manifest differently from other sects or typical cases. Normally, when you surpass channeling sword energy into the blade and reach manifesting it externally, you can see its color with the naked eye. Righteous sects with pure internal arts often produce white light, and some sect formulas yield blue. In contrast, Demonic Cult or unorthodox sects tend toward red or black."
"So what color does ours produce?"
"No glow."
"Huh?"
"Exactly that—no light at all."
'Already a pitiful sect, and now it doesn't even shine.'
"Master, even so, once we become experts and manifest sword energy, shouldn't it at least glow visibly so others know? Make it user-friendly?"
Dan Mun-hyeok continued as if he knew exactly what Seok Du-myeong was thinking.
"In terms of power, it's superior to sword energy. That's why we call it Wind Energy and Wind Force. It manifests invisibly like the wind—formless yet present."
Still eyeing Dan Mun-hyeok skeptically, Seok Du-myeong's guts started swelling as he spoke up.
"Master, could I see that Wind Energy sometime? Wind Force would be even better."
Glancing at his master's face, Seok Du-myeong added,
"Seeing what my ultimate martial arts will look like would really fire up my passion for training."
"Fine. After I fought the Heavenly Demon, got injured, and wrecked my dantian, I lost the internal energy for Wind Force. But I can still manage Wind Energy. Here, watch. Du-myeong, give me your sword."
In the dream, Master Dan Mun-hyeok had given Seok Du-myeong a single Clear Wind Sword. It was far superior to the sword he carried in reality—a top-grade blade.
Every time Seok Du-myeong picked up his sword in the real world, he pondered how to bring that dream sword back with him—it was that good.
Dan Mun-hyeok took the sword from Seok Du-myeong, gripped it in one hand, and stood tall.
In that moment, Seok Du-myeong could clearly see and feel it.
A massive mountain rising before him.
The Dan Mun-hyeok holding the sword was no longer the shabby old man from moments ago.
The elder expert stood upright, radiating the overwhelming pressure only an absolute being could possess, along with an invincible aura that blanketed heaven and earth.