Chapter 53

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Translated by Seoulbound

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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The name Young Spirit Slayer was not unfamiliar.

The rumors heard from my martial nephew Je Un-seong and the information read at the Yichang branch flashed through my mind.

‘The one who cut off the head of the Mount Heng Sect’s elder and hung it on display in the marketplace!’

It was the moniker of a River of Three Crossings assassin.

The water-drenched bamboo hat slowly turned and swept over the Group Bing-ja members. Beneath the bamboo hat, seeing by his rough beard, a smile formed on the lower jaw of Young Spirit Slayer, who seemed to have just passed thirty.

“Ah, was that sword trace the Diancang Sect’s Sun-Shooting Sword Art, or is the Hainan Sword Sect’s Thirty-Six Swords of the South Sea and the Great Derivation Celestial Wind Sword Art as expected… The wind has grown stronger. Yes. There will be a taste in trampling them.”

His tone as he scanned the surroundings looked excited, like a child who had discovered a well-polished tree branch.

However, what truly drew his interest was something else.

“Qingyun Chixia. It has been a long time. Have you restored the lost martial arts of your sect?”

At Young Spirit Slayer’s question, asked warmly as if meeting an old friend, Taoist Su-gyo’s face froze hard.

“Why don’t you check for yourself.”

It was the voice of Taoist Su-gyo, heard for the first time in such a manner.

He was not the person who had been reluctant to step forward and hid his presence in everything. In his voice, which was tinged with a coldness like a well-tempered sword, a chill naturally arose.

Simultaneously, his hand swept over his own body. He was releasing the seals placed on the vital acupoints of his body. Along with that touch, as if peeling back a layer, his aura began to expand.

‘Nascent Soul Stage!’

This was the true worth of the Qingcheng Sect’s young genius.

“Ohho.”

Young Spirit Slayer let out an exclamation of admiration.

“You have certainly improved a lot compared to back then. It was worth not killing you.”

“You talk too much.”

With those words, Taoist Su-gyo brandished his sword and assumed a stance.

“Young Brother Yeon. I spoke of the lost ultimate art of our sect recently, did I not?”

It was one of the numerous conversations shared in the shade of the Shaolin Temple’s Guest Hall. It was an anecdote about an old Taoist who, upon seeing blue clouds and red sunsets, danced with a sword.

“Although I have not fully restored it yet. I will show you.”

Simultaneously with those words, his sword moved.

Dense sword qi like blue clouds seeped from the sword blade.

The Qingcheng Sect’s Blue Cloud Sword Art, which was said to have been lost long ago, revealed its appearance to the world once more.

The clouds of sword qi dominating the space scattered the light, dizzying the vision and weighing down the body. The sword pressure of the Blue Cloud Sword was added on top of the atmospheric pressure covering the earth’s crust.

It was the function of the materialized sword qi unique to the Blue Cloud Sword Art.

Within the dimly visible space, I received light beyond the visible spectrum into my eyes through the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition.

Finally, the vision brightened, and the view inside the sword qi mist became clear.

Even within that, Young Spirit Slayer appeared peaceful.

“Dear me.”

The grumbling Young Spirit Slayer lightly took a step.

Instantly, a sensation as if the world had stopped awakened my mind, and I captured Young Spirit Slayer’s step in my eyes.

There was no stepping sound, no vibration of the air, and no propulsive force wave like general footwork force.

‘Simply extreme speed.’

The pinnacle of efficiency.

An extremely simple step focused entirely on speed alone, without any energy converted into sound, heat, or light. In the assassin’s footwork force, the gap between Su-gyo and Young Spirit Slayer vanished.

Simultaneously, along with a clanging sound, the swords threw off sparks.

The one being pushed back was Taoist Su-gyo’s side.

Jjjejeojeong!

Even while the swords repeated meeting and parting dozens of times in a single breath, there was no superfluity in Young Spirit Slayer’s sword path. The killing sword, which solely targeted vital points such as the body’s major acupoints, the space between the brows, and the throat, would bring one before the River of Three Crossings just by allowing a single blow.

It was the same as the sword arts of the assassins who had ambushed Shaolin.

Contrary to Young Spirit Slayer’s lower jaw, on which a faint, indifferent smile was drawn while wielding the killing sword, Taoist Su-gyo’s face was distorted.

Who felt uncomfortable even with someone’s gaze. And I opened my mouth, recalling that day, that moment.

Because I could not leave a colleague with whom I had shared life and death to fall beneath the assassin’s blade, I lightly took a step toward the wave of true qi distorted by the sword strikes of the two.

Along with the stomp of the Wudang secret transmission Cloud-Climbing Step, rather than the Slender Willow Flutter, dust like a small ripple arose.

Dung.

The stomp of the foot shook the ground.

As if responding to the resonance, the blue cloud threw open the way.

The sword pressure weighing on my shoulders faded, and speed was added to my body.

Young Spirit Slayer’s head turned toward me in the middle of clashing swords.

“You keep getting in the way. You brat.”

Along with his words, he pushed Su-gyo’s sword away forcefully, separating them, and took a step again.

As if space were compressed, the sense of distance between Young Spirit Slayer and me suddenly vanished.

“Die.”

From the upper right, the sword fell diagonally.

It was a plain killing strike without a single variation.

However, it was a sword art I had already seen once. Because my body reacted first on how to respond.

While twisting my waist, I simultaneously awakened the upper dantian’s function completely.

A silk robe woven from threads of true qi drawn from the Hundred Convergences acupoint covered my body, and a dipole penetrating from the Hundred Convergences to the Meeting Yin acupoint formed a true qi force field, twisting the path of the falling killing sword by half of a half-inch. Simultaneously, a short exclamation of surprise burst from Young Spirit Slayer’s mouth.

“Huh?”

The Three-Section Brocade following the Two-Section Brocade.

The training of the transparent shoulder cloak through total internal reflection of light had dazed Young Spirit Slayer’s eyes.

The split-second moment in which breath was divided into heat.

As the point of impact of Young Spirit Slayer’s sword tip shifted subtly.

Using the twisted upper body and the Three-Section Brocade body-protecting qi covering it as a ditch, I let the killing sword flow past.

“How interesting!”

Just like Young Spirit Slayer’s shout.

I had deflected the opponent’s sword, whose physical form seemed segmented even in the realm of high-level martial arts.

The disadvantage in speed.

A thrill was felt, confirming that Wudang’s study could exert power despite the disadvantage in strength.

However, the opponent was an expert one level above me, capable of running on a different timeline than mine.

Just because I deflected the sword did not mean I could launch a counterattack.

Such was the privilege of an expert who was a step ahead.

True to that thought, Young Spirit Slayer’s sword abruptly twisted its path, as if something like inertia did not exist.

However, through that split-second gap, I was able to buy time to deploy my palm technique.

As I twisted my heel to accumulate stress, I simultaneously released force through the rhomboid muscle and the levator scapulae muscle connecting from my waist to my right arm.

Finally, silk reeling force was formed on my right palm.

The first stance of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm.

The form of Obscure Dust Accumulated Clouds pressed down on Young Spirit Slayer’s sword blade rising from the lower left. In the palm technique form modeled after the movement of the stars, the mystery of deflecting a thousand pounds with four ounces dwelt.

The moment my palm made contact with the sword blade, a fierce counter-recoil force swept through my entire body, riding up my palm and heel.

In the moment of crisis, I entrusted my body entirely to inspiration.

Instead of resisting the sword force, I conformed directly to the power.

While letting the flood of sword qi trying to penetrate inside my body flow like a river along the texture of the Three-Section Brocade true qi precious robe, I simultaneously formed the force-release formula of the Flowing Cloud Movement Skill through my entire body.

I increased the coefficient of friction with the sword qi and reduced the coefficient of friction with my body.

A propulsive force was formed according to the difference in the coefficient of friction between both sides of the body-protecting qi. Just like that, my body floated into the air.

“Taoist Yeon!”

The startled shouts of my Group Bing-ja colleagues were heard in a drawn-out manner.

It was the aftermath of recognizing time in fragments.

Thanks to that, the voices of my colleagues in urgent danger made a smile form on my lips.

‘It is fun.’

Against an expert a step above me.

It was incomparably enjoyable to be able to display the study I had accumulated so far without reservation in the moment of a life-and-death battle.

Above all, because I was not alone.

“Hap!”

The deflected sword of Taoist Su-gyo curved in, aiming at Young Spirit Slayer’s flank.

Jjeojeong!

The sword blade, which had been emitting blue sword qi like mist, was glowing red-hot.

If the Blue Cloud’s sword qi, which tried to sink heavily, was Yin.

The sword blade glowing red-hot and extending fiercely was Yang.

The sword blade, which seemed to contain a red sunset, struck Young Spirit Slayer’s sword.

Jjeong!

Unlike having only been pushed back so far, this time it was Taoist Su-gyo who pushed back Young Spirit Slayer’s sword.

“The Sunset Sword! You have finally restored it!”

Young Spirit Slayer shouted in a voice laced with laughter, as if amused.

The red sword blade. The blue sword qi. Even Young Spirit Slayer’s shout.

All those audiovisual elements stimulated my brain and stimulated my memory.

Simultaneously, I was able to know.

That the Sunset Sword Art deployed by the current Taoist Su-gyo could not last long.

‘Compared to the Blue Cloud Sword, it is unstable. In addition to the consumption of true qi being extreme, the force-release formula is also still relying on intuition.’

It was not woven with a clear formula, but refined by Taoist Su-gyo’s personal talent.

The impression of it being forced was strong.

There was no way Young Spirit Slayer did not know that either.

“But can you use it properly in actual combat like that?”

“Against you, as much as I want.”

Leaving behind the voice in which the resentment of the past was felt, Taoist Su-gyo’s sword moved once more.

Along with the collision, a force wave exploded.

As my upper dantian glowed white-hot using the time bought in that manner as fuel, I conceived a way to stabilize the unstable Sunset Sword.

The cloud of blue sword qi and the red glowing sword blade drew a single picture in my head.

The unit that composes all matter.

It was the appearance of an atom.

A nucleus composed of protons and neutrons.

And a cloud of electrons forming its surroundings.

The appearance of the atom—which the ancient Greek scholar Democritus first named, and which numerous scholars like the English scholar Dalton and Rutherford had struggled to identify and define its existence and structure—was drawn in my head.

However, it was not perfectly the same.

Even if the minimal unit called an atom seemed to be materialized, the flow of the sword and true qi was incomparably massive.

Taking inspiration solely as inspiration, I organized the principles and sent a telepathic message to Taoist Su-gyo.

[If you force the Sunset Sword’s radiating sword qi to be bound to the sword, the consumption of internal energy will inevitably become extreme. If you insert the Peach Garden Force in between the hot Yang sword qi to cushion it, it will become far more stable. If you condense the widely spread Blue Cloud sword qi around the sword blade. Finding the most stable form will reduce true qi consumption. The formula is…]

Even at the telepathic message ringing in the middle of a life-and-death clash of swords, Su-gyo did not falter and began to change gradually.

The unstably flickering red sword blade hardened even more firmly, and the widely spread cloud of sword qi gradually condensed around the sword blade, beginning to take on a unique shape.

As the shape of the Blue Cloud Sword’s sword qi, which seemed to resemble the shape of an electron’s orbital, twisted Young Spirit Slayer’s killing sword path, and at the same time, the extending red Sunset Sword’s sword force threatened Young Spirit Slayer’s physical center.

The unification of the Blue Cloud Sword and the Sunset Sword.

The Qingcheng Sect’s number one sword art, known to have been lost long ago, the Blue Cloud Sunset Sword Art, opposed the killing sword that had severed the neck of a Nine Sects’ elder.

The pushed-back Taoist Su-gyo began to contend on equal terms with Young Spirit Slayer. At that moment, I realized that I had to push further here.

‘An expert one level above cannot be defeated with general strikes.’

Simultaneously with my thoughts, I translated it into action.

As the technique of the Cloud-Dispelling Divine Palm’s internal energy resonance dwelt in the form and force-release of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm, the atmosphere trembled.

Woooooong!

The Blue Cloud’s sword qi scattered by Taoist Su-gyo gathered according to the cold Yin energy attraction formed at the center of my palm, repeatedly compressing like a large cloud mass.

Into the palm strike pushing forward just like that, I mixed the subtle principle of the internal heavy strikes method. It was a palm force vibrating at the same resonant frequency as Young Spirit Slayer’s sword qi.

Jiiing-!

Young Spirit Slayer’s sword blade vibrated violently, and the sword path shifted. At that moment, the red-stained blade swept past, slashing near Young Spirit Slayer’s shoulder.

With a spray, blood gushed out. It had slashed a large blood vessel. However, the slashed shoulder was the left one. It was not the right shoulder that held the sword.

Young Spirit Slayer, who scattered blood, quickly retreated, struck the acupoints on his shoulder, and muttered.

“The study of the materialization of true qi applying the Qingcheng Sect’s Peach Garden Force. On top of that, the Wudang Sect’s redirecting a thousand catties with four ounces and even the internal heavy strikes method. Today is a feast for the eyes. Indeed, seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times.”

It was still an easygoing tone, but the arrogant attitude like when he first appeared had vanished.

In addition to him sustaining an injury, Taoist Su-gyo and I stood at the front. At the same time, our Group Bing-ja colleagues surrounded Young Spirit Slayer in an inverted 品-character formation.

Even if it were a siege by underlings, the Group Bing-ja members were all rising stars of prestigious righteous sects. The resonance of the true qi waves mixed in the breath they exhaled alone could act as pressure in a close combat.

However, as if such a disadvantage were rather enjoyable, the smile formed on Young Spirit Slayer’s lower jaw grew increasingly deep.

“Let us go again.”

Along with a soft voice, Young Spirit Slayer struck with his sword, squeezing through the split gap of time in the high-level realm.

It was a sword art seen for the first time, completely different from what he had displayed so far.

As if filleting raw fish, Young Spirit Slayer’s sword edge shaved off and cut away Taoist Su-gyo’s Blue Cloud sword qi formed in a specific trajectory.

Kagagak!

The sword qi that had been condensed along the trajectory scattered strand by strand, and the red sword blade flickered unstably once more.

“Using incomplete sword qi in actual combat is mere foolhardiness.”

Just like his words, Young Spirit Slayer went about dismantling Taoist Su-gyo’s sword qi without hesitation.

‘If only the Blue Cloud and the Sunset were bound by electromagnetic force.’

With that thought, I unleashed my palm force. The second and third stances of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm tried to push away Young Spirit Slayer’s sword in succession, but the changed sword path rode the texture of the palm wind and scattered the Wind and Thunder Palm vortex.

Chwak!

Young Spirit Slayer’s sword pierced through my palm and was about to plunge between my brows. The moment death arrived before my eyes.

Thump.

The split flow of time was split yet again.

Thump.

My heart fluctuated wildly.

Along the fluctuating middle dantian, the ring of internal energy that had reached the Elixir Condensation Stage rotated furiously.

Thump.

In the moment right before death.

I burst into a blooming smile without even realizing the reason.

**

“Block him!”

“Save Taoist Yeon!”

Young Spirit Slayer retrieved the sword he was thrusting in and swept it to the side.

Chaengkang!

The Diancang Sect disciple’s sword broke.

Jjeong!

The Great Derivation Celestial Wind Sword of the Namgung Clan collapsed in a single blow, and the Namgung Clan warrior lost his sword.

A situation where, with one more move, the rising stars of the Namgung Clan and Diancang would leave this world.

However, Young Spirit Slayer stopped his killing hand for an instant and glanced at the young Wudang Sect disciple.

‘What was that?’

It was due to a sense of incongruity.

The moment the Eight Dismantlings and Nine Annihilations killing sword —which he had created himself based on his talent for stealing the forms and styles of martial arts he had seen and heard—pierced the palm after breaking through and dismantling the young Taoist’s palm force, an unknown resistance pushed back the sword blade.

He wondered if that was the upper dantian’s thought power called telekinesis, a Wudang secret transmission.

It was not the hands of the underlings who had pointlessly thrown their swords that saved the boy, but precisely that unknown resistance that had extended the boy’s life for one more moment, yet.

‘I can just finish him now.’

Because the boy was maintaining a rigid posture while staring at the air with blank eyes, it was clear he would be dead if the sword were thrust just like that.

However.

‘Hmm?!’

Jjijijik.

Along with a sharp noise as if something were tearing.

Light and heat arose in the young Taoist’s hand, and the light in his eyes returned.

Simultaneously.

Kkooreung-jjeong!

Thunder and lightning dwelt in the extended single palm strike, pushing away Young Spirit Slayer’s sword, so he suffered a red burn on the palm holding the sword hilt.

The lower jaw of Young Spirit Slayer, who had been smiling consistently like that, hardened.

**

In the moment right before death, the inner core condensed with the Primal Chaos Tai Chi Art rotated furiously, creating a powerful force field around my body. As the charged particles floating in the air rotated and rubbed against each other around my body as an axis along that force field.

Jjijik. Jjijik.

A small electrical discharge occurred.

The occurrence of a discharge meant that the electrical potential energy around my body had risen.

Energy is like water.

It flows from a high place to a low place.

It was simply that the resistance possessed by the empty space was too high for it to flow.

The moment a path was made through internal energy, a massive current flowed, breaking through the resistance of the empty space.

The True Formula of Thunder of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm was based on such a principle.

I extended my hand to connect a conductive line of internal energy between the rushing Young Spirit Slayer and me.

Kkooreung-jjeong!

Thunder energy blasted on Young Spirit Slayer’s sword.

No matter how swiftly and quickly Young Spirit Slayer’s sword moved, it could not be faster than the speed of lightning, so his sword was pushed back.

“Huu.”

However, the recoil was substantial.

Even though I had only emitted palm force once, the acupoints and energy channels of my entire body tingled.

However, I had to overcome it.

I could know by instinct that if I missed the opportunity that came in the moment right before death, there would be no second chance.

‘It is the same as the Blue Cloud Sunset Sword Art. It is still incomplete and unstable.’

At the moment of the decision that it had to be finished quickly, my eyes locked with Taoist Su-gyo of the Blue Cloud Sunset.

We nodded to each other.

Taoist Su-gyo’s sword blade was stained red once more, and the blue sword qi wrapped around the red sunset. Even though blood flowed from the corner of his mouth due to excessive utilization of internal energy, he did not care.

I also endured my tingling body and emitted the discharge flickering above the center of my palm.

Kkooreung!

As the blue lightning that extended while the atmosphere fluctuated and Taoist Su-gyo’s sword reached Young Spirit Slayer simultaneously.

Jjeojeojeong, chaeng-!

Puhwak!

The killing sword, which seemed capable of cutting down anything and taking away life, broke, and a deep sword wound was left on Young Spirit Slayer’s flank.

“Haha.”

Along with a hollow laugh from the mouth of Young Spirit Slayer, who had twisted his body at the last moment to avoid a fatal injury.

“Keo-heok.”

Black blood flowed.

On his exposed arm, a dark red energy flickered along the blood vessels and acupoints. It was the trace of a burn resulting from the True Formula of Thunder of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm.

Added to that, a massive flow of qi dominating the atmosphere was approaching toward the valley where we were located.

The bastard wiped the bloodstains around his mouth and muttered.

“This will not do.”

Thereupon, he turned his body immediately.

Even though the internal injuries suffered from the lightning energy and the Blue Cloud Sunset Sword Art must have been extreme, as the footwork force focused on speed shone brightly, his physical form soon left the valley.

Calming the boiling internal energy, I made eye contact with Taoist Su-gyo.

The pierced palm was painful, but such pain was felt as nothing major.

Having repulsed an expert who had severed the neck of an elder of the Nine Sects and One Association.

The joy of having brought down a formidable enemy swept away the pain.

We naturally showed a smile looking at each other.