Chapter 245 – The Martial Arts of the Dead

Hong Yeon-hwa explained the rough characteristics of the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship in the first two lines and pointed to the last two lines.

“I cut down a demon with this sword a long time ago, so now it’s time to cut down your growing anxiety. In my opinion, the meaning of this phrase is…”

Hong Yeon-hwa paused for a moment before speaking.

Then she looked at me as if something was broken, making a creaking movement.

“Um, you. Didn’t your master live in sympathy for his entire life?”

“Huh? Yeah, he did.”

But why is she suddenly talking about this?

“Maybe… the reason for his sympathy was because of martial arts…”

“Ah.”

I guess the phrase “cut down anxiety” could be interpreted that way.

In this world, there are those who can use sympathy as a tool. However…

“It’s not because of martial arts. If it were, wouldn’t your master have sung a song about how fate brought him a love from the sky until a few days before he passed away?”

It’s a surprising true story.

Since he was so talented, he could have gotten married if he wanted to… but he insisted that love, not conditions, was necessary for the first time.

Of course, it’s not entirely incomprehensible.

Even I had some fantasies about my first experience.

Since the master had been sympathetic for hundreds of years, maybe even over a thousand years, he must have had high expectations and fantasies.

Hong Yeon-hwa, who heard my story, breathed a sigh of relief as if she had discovered a surviving duck in a world of destruction.

“Phew… that’s a relief. Of course, it’s not even a heart technique, so I don’t think there’s much chance of that happening, but isn’t it a fresh martial art that’s almost at the peak of the Dao of martial arts?”

“Did you really worry about that?”

“Of course. If you were to become a eunuch, I…”

Hong Yeon-hwa shuddered with a terrified expression.

Why does she seem more scared than me?

“Oh my god.”

“That…”

“Oh, no!”

Come to think of it, other women were making similar expressions.

It’s definitely my private parts, but it feels like something that’s not mine has been taken away…

However, just as my women’s bodies became mine, I had no complaints about touching them frequently.

The silence was broken by Hong Yeon-hwa’s small cough.

“Cough cough. The conversation keeps going off track. Anyway, if it’s not that, then what I first thought is probably right.”

Then she changed the mood and spoke in a serious tone.

Chapter 245 – The Martial Arts of the Dead

Perhaps it was because Hong Yeon-hwa grew up among those who were crushed to death by horses. The weight of her words was different.

“So anger, regret, greed, and attachment. All of these are human anxieties, a kind of devil’s magic. Nothing in the world is heavier than eyelids that fall asleep, so the devil that eats people is more powerful and frightening than anything else.”

“If you can cut down anxiety, wouldn’t that be something that cannot be surpassed in the world? I have never seen a demon, but I dare say that no sword that has become truly free can withstand it.”

Is a sword that is not bound by anything really that powerful?

It’s hard to imagine since my path is completely different.

“On the contrary, I have decided to acknowledge and embrace the devil. Whether it’s mine or the congregation’s, it doesn’t matter. It is a being that breaks and acts as a substitute for everything, even if it means carrying all the devils in the world. That is the Heavenly Devil.”

“Oh, wait. So?”

I blurted out without realizing it. Hong Yeon-hwa nodded her head as if to reassure me.

“Right. The reason why the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship and the Heavenly Devil’s Martial Arts are polar opposites is because of this. I use human devils as my strength, and the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship is a martial art that cuts through everything like cutting through those devils.”

The Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship (天遁劍法).

Literally translated, it means a sword technique that escapes from the sky.

Since it has escaped from the sky, it must be a sword that unfolds without being bound by anything.

The first words of the testament left by my master.

“He only knew the sword in his life.”

Now I think I understand what that means a little bit.

Not being bound by anything means that nothing has been put in your heart.

But I am my master’s disciple.

I am the first disciple who said that I would not be bound by anything. I am the successor of the Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts, which my master created by combining all his enlightenment.

Looking back now, I may have been a bit hesitant, but I think I did a pretty good job as a disciple.

It was a matter that happened after my master passed away, and it was possible because of the coincidence of fate, but I also reached a certain level in Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts.

The path of the sword is not just one.

This is something my master proved by walking a completely different path.

So what about my path?

Of course, the philosophy contained in Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts is not mine. I am already bound by many things.

Hong Yeon-hwa, Paeng Soso, Sama Mang, and Sama Yeoryeong have all taken up heavy space in my heart.

Thanks to them, I was able to withstand the fierce storms and threats I have encountered so far and move forward.

Then what about the philosophy contained in Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts?

It goes without saying, but there are also words in Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts.

Chapter 246 – The Essence

What’s important here is not how to breathe or how to send your inner energy through your blood vessels.

Just as Hong Yeon-hwa was able to understand the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship by interpreting just four lines, the teachings that permeate throughout Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts are important…

But my master never explained this.

He just created a new martial art and told me to learn it, pounding the words into my head.

Why did he do that?

He always said that someday I would need strength, and that this would be the necessary strength.

But was there a need to hide the principles and fundamental beliefs?

He wrote so well about the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship he wanted to teach me at first.

I fell into a deep thought, questioning everything. My mind was spinning, and the frustration was twisting my insides.

…Suddenly, I remembered the conversation I had with Myeongwoljinin a few days ago.

He said that if he taught me too much, even if I learned quickly, it would be difficult to understand the true essence.

Did my master think that I could achieve the highest level of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts?

All I showed my master was the appearance of a dullard who couldn’t properly learn any martial arts except for third-rate ones.

I was able to extract a similar sword qi to the Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship using Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts, but… where did my master see that potential in me?

What exactly is Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts?

Normally, I would have just thought that it was a martial art that I couldn’t understand.

But now that I have a rough understanding of the principles of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts and have a better understanding of my master’s intentions, I couldn’t just let it go.

I know what my own simjang is.

Through a strong belief and inner energy, I can create a simjang that is strong enough to overcome anything.

But I still couldn’t grasp the true essence of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts.

What did my master create? And what did he see in me?

It’s just too much. He only taught me the words.

…No, he taught me one more thing besides the words.

Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts. The name of my martial art.

The process was a bit complicated, but you could understand the meaning behind the name Heavenly Emperor Swordsmanship.

There must be some meaning behind the name Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts too.

Muryeong武靈.

The spirit of martial arts? The embodiment of martial arts? Neither seems quite right…

It’s a spirit.

If it were in my past life, I would have laughed at the word, but now I believe in its existence.

After all, I experienced reincarnation.

I died, but I was reborn. The me from my past life and the me from my current life have different names, appearances, and even live in different worlds, but I am still me.

Even if my physical body has changed, my spirit is still the same. In essence, I am still the same…

Chapter 246 – The Essence

“What’s the essence of martial arts?”

“Ah!”

Kwaaang!

As I pondered the essence of martial arts, a thunderbolt struck my mind, sending a shockwave through my entire body.

It was a sensation similar to the one I felt when I first extracted my inner energy and experienced a spiritual awakening.

Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts is a martial art that elevates the mind and body through the power of the inner energy.

Therefore, the training of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts is nothing but the cultivation of one’s willpower.

Just like when I purified my inner energy on the Hwagyeong, I felt a sense of discomfort when the pieces of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts fell into place.

I quickly forgot about it as I focused on my opponent, but the strange feeling lingered in my mind.

And now, that feeling has returned.

The Hwagyeong is a state where one can control their willpower. In other words, it is a state where one can control their beliefs.

The inner energy of a Hwagyeong master is so powerful that one can feel their spirit just by looking at them.

After all, beliefs are the essence of the inner energy.

And the ultimate goal of martial arts is to manifest one’s beliefs into reality.

Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts is a martial art that aims to achieve this goal.

Therefore, it was natural for my master not to teach the entire philosophy of Muryeong’s Divine Martial Arts.

He never had it in the first place.

My master knew that I had doubts about martial arts, even though I admired them like everyone else.

He believed that it didn’t matter if I took a different path, as long as it was my own.

Just like my master, who took a different path in his later years, I too can find my own path.

I will continue to move forward, even in the face of adversity, and eventually achieve my goals with even greater strength.

Because that is the essence of Muryeong武靈.

***

“Phew….”

As I slowly opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the four women with uneasy expressions.

“Did you wait long?”

“No, it’s not that….”

Paeng Soso hesitated for a moment before tilting her head.

“Did Jin Ga just gain enlightenment from the Cheondung Swordsmanship?”

“More accurately, I just recalled my previous enlightenment and consolidated it. Why do you ask?”

“No reason, I just felt that Jin Ga was like a disciple of the Sword Sect on the verge of enlightenment. Oh, by the way, how will the distribution be?”

“Ugh, but isn’t the distribution based on the same martial arts sect? Our master never established a sect, so who will treat me well?”

“Well, if you prove yourself, you’ll at least be treated as a senior by the younger generation in the Gonryun Sect. After all, it’s a sect that follows the teachings of the Eight Lines.”

What? Is that so?

“…Still, if something really troublesome happens, let’s keep it a secret unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

After all, there are still people in the martial arts world who remember our master, like the ones who call him the Eternal Wanderer, the person who went on all sorts of adventures, but was actually Yeodongbin of the Sword Sect.

For the sake of our master’s honor, we must keep this a secret…