“……!”
The Taesang Gaju felt a stunning shock as if he had been struck on the back of the head.
He was right.
An absolute sword to decide the match in a single strike.
That was the sword art he had sought to create.
“Otherwise, there's no reason for it to be the First Stance.”
At Cheon-hwi's ensuing words, the Taesang Gaju slowly raised his sword.
Following that, internal energy flowed from his entire body.
It was a soft aura, completely contrary to the intense thunder energy he had exuded earlier.
An endlessly light internal qi that looked as though it would scatter at the slightest breeze.
Yet, that very thing was lethal.
The internal qi he radiated slowly swallowed the surroundings, like clothes getting wet in a drizzle.
Quietly, without anyone noticing.
As if becoming intoxicated.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, I've regained the original intention I had forgotten for a while.”
“...Tsk.”
Cheon-hwi smacked his lips.
‘I ended up doing him another favor.’
They were talking, and since they clicked well, he had blurted it out without thinking.
And that had essentially given him a realization.
‘Still, he's amazing.’
It was difficult for a master of his caliber to let go of what he had.
Yet, he discarded it without hesitation.
Believing Cheon-hwi's words just now.
‘I almost want to have a proper life-and-death duel with him.’
The moment his eyes lit up.
Swish—
The Taesang Gaju raised his sword high.
With the tip of the sword pointing straight up at the sky, unlike the solid stance from earlier, there were openings visible.
Rumble—
At the same time, the internal energy that had seeped into the surroundings suddenly grew heavy and pressed down.
Just as the pressure of his presence intensified, making one completely forget even the thought of aiming for the openings, the Taesang Gaju's eyes snapped open.
Then, the seemingly ordinary thin blade swallowed the sun in the sky.
Slash—
And instantly erased the world.
In a white world of nothingness, it felt as though only the sword existed alone.
The manifestation of a true Hegemon (覇王).
“This sword is truly...”
Having unfolded the situation he had dreamed of, the Taesang Gaju murmured without realizing it.
“The sword of an Emperor (帝王).”
As the world returned, they could see the lake had been split.
Crash—
Cheon-hwi's lips twisted as he looked down at the lake, now visible down to the earthen floor.
“...A sword art that never steps back, no, cannot step back.”
It was an interesting sword art.
Although it was a sword art he had given advice on, this was completely insane.
A straight-line sword art with no retreat.
He had poured all his inner qi into a single sword stance, and the trajectory was far too simple.
To be honest, it was full of flaws, with many openings and extremely clumsy.
To the point where other masters would call it a worthless martial art.
However.
‘That's why it's strong.’
Since a master of his caliber had cast aside everything else and swung a single strike filled solely with the resolve to overpower his opponent.
‘There are still lacking parts, but if he refines it little by little and completes it properly, it will truly become a terrifying sword art.’
Meanwhile, the Taesang Gaju, who had been savoring the aftereffects of the sword art he had displayed, sheathed his sword.
“Have I really reached the sword I dreamed of so much.”
Perhaps due to pouring out his inner qi, his face was full of exhaustion, but his expression was remarkably refreshed.
Watching the waters of the lake quickly returning to their original state after being split in half, he approached Cheon-hwi and bowed his head.
“I have received a great lesson.”
Cheon-hwi's eyes showed slight surprise.
‘I didn't expect him to bow his head.’
Usually, as one grew older and possessed strength to match, the stubbornness of believing oneself to be right tended to grow stronger.
Yet, the Taesang Gaju acknowledged it.
That he had received a lesson.
“I cannot fathom how to repay this grace.”
The Taesang Gaju approached and extended his hand.
“I will not forget this grace.”
Cheon-hwi felt burdened by the gaze of the Taesang Gaju, who was looking at him while gripping both his hands tightly.
“Were you planning to forget it then?”
“Hahaha. How could that be.”
The Taesang Gaju laughed heartily.
He was a man who took a liking to him.
To the point that if he weren't a Taoist of the Huashan Sect, he would have somehow arranged a marriage between him and someone from his family.
‘If he's friends with Jin-gyeong, that should be enough.’
The smiling man moved his lips.
“Is there something you want?”
The same question as before.
But the weight contained within it was different.
“Martial arts.”
“Martial arts, you say? Haha. Earlier, you were observing martial arts under the pretext of a sparring match.”
As expected of the Taesang Gaju.
He had completely grasped the meaning of the sparring match.
“You have a lot of interest in martial arts.”
“Wouldn't any martial artist?”
“Even so, there are few who are so obsessed with martial arts. Most are too busy training in the martial arts they've already learned.”
The Taesang Gaju paused mid-sentence and asked.
“Why are you so hung up on martial arts?”
Cheon-hwi scratched his chin.
Why was he so hung up on martial arts?
Why was it again?
Since when was it?
He traced back to the past.
As he briefly traced back to his past life as the Absolute Heavenly Demon, recalling the time he had discovered the Absolute Sovereign Art long ago, his eyes sank deeply.
‘It was to survive.’
Because his voice was so low and calm, the Taesang Gaju seemed not to have heard it and asked.
“What did you say just now?”
“I just want to know all the martial arts that exist in the world.”
“...Hmm. Is that so?”
The Taesang Gaju tilted his head, finding the answer quite dubious, but seeing the change in Cheon-hwi's demeanor, he didn't ask any further.
“However, unfortunately, I cannot carelessly teach you our family's martial arts.”
“Of course.”
Cheon-hwi understood.
It was unthinkable to carelessly pass down a family's martial arts.
“Instead, how about this?”
The Taesang Gaju took out a plaque from his robes.
It was a very worn wooden plaque, so old that even the patterns had faded away.
As the Taesang Gaju handed it over, he added:
“If you meet old fogeys like me in the murim later on, this will be of help.”
* * *
Two days later, as soon as the day came for the group to leave the Nangong Family, they came out to the main gate.
“Tsk. This is a bit too much.”
Cheon-yu, the first to come out the gate and scan the surroundings, clicked his tongue in disbelief.
Normally, when a visiting guest departs, the members of the sect or family would see them off.
But what about now?
At the gate, there was only the gatekeeper martial artist they had seen on the first day, standing alone. With no one else to see them off, it was desolate.
“It is quite excessive.”
Gu Gyeom-wi agreed.
As he casually rolled his eyes, the gatekeeper martial artist came into view, but he looked quite unpleasant.
Leaning his back against the gate and standing still, he looked like he couldn't care less whether they left or not.
“Even if we've parted ways, we're still of the same righteous faction, and they were guests.”
Even Hyun-jin, who normally wouldn't say a word, spoke as if he was dumbfounded.
Having been disappointed many times while staying at the Nangong Family, his demeanor was a world apart from his usual soft and benevolent appearance.
“I didn't know the Nangong Family was a family with such narrow minds.”
“I heard that the Nangong Family's righteous spirit pierced the heavens from long ago, but it was all a lie.”
As they began to express their complaints one by one in very quiet voices.
“There's no need to complicate our minds over such things, so let's hurry and go.”
Hyun-jin led them.
Just as the Plum Blossom Swordsmen, led by Hyun-jin, were about to board the carriage that was already prepared and waiting for their departure.
Creak—
Suddenly, the main gate of the Nangong Family opened, and two familiar figures appeared.
“Young Taoist Cheon-hwi!”
“Where are you going without even saying goodbye.”
They were none other than Nangong Jin-gyeong and the Taesang Gaju.
The appearances of the two were contrasting; Nangong Jin-gyeong was carrying a bulging pack on his back, while the Taesang Gaju was empty-handed.
“That old man... he helped us get in on the first day...”
“More importantly, why is the Nangong Family's Second Young Master here?”
“Surely he's not trying to get revenge for losing to our junior martial brother.”
The group, who didn't know what had happened between Cheon-hwi and Nangong Jin-gyeong over the past four days, watched with heightened vigilance.
“The Taoists of the Huashan Sect are leaving, yet there's no one here.”
“Even if they are currently at odds with the Huashan Sect, isn't this a bit too much?”
“Tsk. This is why I can't trust them.”
Seeing the desolate surroundings, the two conversed as they approached with deeply furrowed brows.
“This is our second meeting.”
The Taesang Gaju scanned the group, then approached Hyun-jin, who looked the oldest, and performed a respectful fist-and-palm salute.
“I am finally greeting you. I am Nangong Han-sang.”
At the respectful salute, Hyun-jin was slightly flustered but naturally returned the greeting.
“I am Hyun-jin.”
“Hyun-jin, haha. It's a Daoist name with a good ring to it.”
“Not at all.”
Hyun-jin waved his hands and added.
“Thank you for your help that day. Thanks to you, we were able to enter the family comfortably.”
“Not at all. Isn't it the natural thing to do?”
The Taesang Gaju paused mid-sentence and glanced at the gatekeeper martial artist who didn't know what to do.
“More than that, I'm sorry for our family's poor hospitality. In the past, we would have seen you off, but how it came to this...”
The Taesang Gaju let out a deep sigh.
Going no further back than when he was the Family Head, he had paid special attention to seeing off guests.
But look at this mess now.
“Phew.”
It was enough to make one feel ashamed of the plaque reading 'Righteous Spirit of the Heavenly Family' (Yigi Cheonga) hanging on the main gate.
“I am truly sorry.”
He bowed his head toward Hyun-jin.
“Haha. It's fine.”
Seeing the Taesang Gaju bowing his head, shuddering with shame, Hyun-jin's expression relaxed considerably compared to before.
He didn't know who the old man was, but judging by the gatekeeper's reaction, he seemed to be a fairly high-ranking person within the family.
And for such a person to apologize and bow his head saying he was sorry, it was only natural for the uncomfortable feelings in his heart to melt away.
‘Seeing this, maybe the Nangong Family is still alive and well after all. But Nangong Han-sang... It's a name that sounds somewhat familiar, like I've heard it somewhere before.’
Meanwhile, Nangong Jin-gyeong ignored everyone else and ran toward Cheon-hwi, but came to a halt.
The Plum Blossom Swordsmen stood firmly in front of Cheon-hwi, blocking his way.
“...Why are you going to our junior martial brother?”
“Are you trying to get revenge for that time?”
Seeing the Plum Blossom Swordsmen glaring at him with sharp eyes, Nangong Jin-gyeong felt awkward and glanced at Cheon-hwi.
“I came to see off my friend, Young Taoist Cheon-hwi, as he departs.”
“Friend...?”
“That's right.”
At the word 'friend', the Plum Blossom Swordsmen glared even more suspiciously.
“Young Taoist Cheon-hwi. Please tell them.”
Nangong Jin-gyeong looked at Cheon-hwi with an embarrassed expression, asking for an explanation.
“...I didn't say we were friends.”
“Why are you being like this?”
Nangong Jin-gyeong became tearful.
“I even prepared gifts for you.”
With those words, he immediately untied his pack.
Clatter—
It was packed full of items, and among them were some famous spirit medicines that the group recognized immediately.
“He Shou Wu?”
“This is ginseng...”
“Ah! Is this Sutugap (Combat Gauntlets)? This form is only from beyond the frontier...”
He inspected all the items in the unpacked baggage and opened his mouth.
“That's quite a lot.”
Nangong Jin-gyeong scratched the back of his head.
“I didn't know what you'd need, so I just packed everything I had...”
“I told him to pack it all.”
The Taesang Gaju, who had finished his conversation with Hyun-jin, approached at some point and spoke.
“Some of these might be useless, but you never know how things will turn out, right?”
“That's true.”
“Still, if you don't need them, throw them away. I brought them to give to you anyway.”
The Taesang Gaju smiled brightly.
Seeing the two conversing as if he were dealing with a grandson, the group fell into slight confusion.
“Did our junior martial brother have ties with that man?”
“He went outside while we were staying at the Nangong Family, so he must have met him then.”
“Not only the Second Young Master, but he's also close with an elderly man. Our junior martial brother is surprisingly well-connected.”
While they were whispering, trying to figure out the situation, the Taesang Gaju approached Cheon-hwi closely and whispered.
“When you go out into the murim, hide at least thirty percent—no, at least seventy percent of your skills.”
“You're saying the exact same thing as the Sect Leader.”
“Haha. It seems the Sect Leader knows about you as well. Or perhaps even better than I do.”
As the Taesang Gaju laughed heartily, Nangong Jin-gyeong also approached and spoke.
“Thanks to you, Young Taoist, I learned a lot.”
He was distinctly different from the first day.
Gone was his somewhat anxious appearance; he looked calm and composed.
“Could you visit our family again later? I'd like to show you how much I've grown by then.”
“Next time?”
“Why not?”
Hmm, could he visit next time?
No matter how he thought about it, there was zero possibility of him coming back.
“Probably not.”
“Do you not want to see me again?”
Nangong Jin-gyeong became sullen.
“The owner of the house hates me.”
“Owner of the house?”
For a moment, Nangong Jin-gyeong didn't understand.
Owner of the house?
“Ah!”
Then he belatedly realized.
That the owner of the house meant his father, the Patriarch of the Nangong Family.
“Hahaha.”
A hollow laugh escaped him.
At the same time, a sense of relief washed over him.
“Then how about I go to the Huashan Sect? That's fine, right?”
“I can't stop you from doing that.”
If he says he's coming, what could he say?
It's not like he could tell him not to come.
As if he had been waiting for those words, delight spread across Nangong Jin-gyeong's face.
“Then I will visit you someday.”
“Okay.”
As Nangong Jin-gyeong was satisfied, the Taesang Gaju, who had been watching quietly, added.
“When that day comes, please look forward to it.”
He looked with satisfaction at Nangong Jin-gyeong, who was clenching his fists.
It was an expression as if he had handed over everything to Nangong Jin-gyeong.
“By that time, this child will show you a properly completed sword art.”
“That's certainly something to look forward to.”