It was a space with fog around me.
An old man wearing white robes was looking at me, holding a sword shining with white light.
I couldn’t understand what was happening. I called for Short Sword and Iron Sword in my mind.
‘Short Sword. Iron Sword.’
They didn’t answer me, as if they couldn’t hear. What was this?
‘Could this be heaven?’
Among the dots of the Big Dipper, this seemed like an illusion, like the ability of the heavenly ki.
However, I could only see the past of swords and remembered memories in that illusion. Here, however, the old man was looking at me and said,
-You opened up the Heavenly Blessing as well.
… was he talking about me?
What was happening now must be an illusion. Yet, despite being seen within an illusion, it looked like he was talking to me. The old man then burst into laughter.
-Hehehe. You are one suspicious child.
He was talking to me.
The old man slowly approached me. Feeling cautious, I tried to prepare for something but couldn’t even step back.
It was as if the ground itself was holding me firmly. The old man continued to come forward.
It was the first time I felt something this pure and honest.
-Since you have lived an unusual life, it is only natural for you to not trust someone.
I was a bit shocked by his words, which indicated that he had seen everything about me.
‘… who is this old man?’
At my silent question, he smiled.
-People of this world called this old man the Immortal Sword.
‘Immortal Sword!’
Immortal Sword.
He was a legendary warrior who reached the pinnacle of the sword. Was this old man really that person?
The smiling old man held out his hand.
‘Ah!’
Then, regardless of my own will, my arm raised itself and touched his palm. Like an old man holding a flower petal, he gently touched mine.
Then he closed his eyes and nodded.
While I wondered, the old man who called himself the Immortal Sword opened his mouth.
-You have learned straight and nice sword techniques.
‘Uh?’
-It is a sword that suits you.
‘What are you talking about?’
-I saw the sword you learned.
‘Are you talking about the Xing Ming sword technique?’
-That is right.
He only held my hand, and he could see that much? I couldn’t comprehend this.
Wait a minute, I was holding the Immortal Sword’s hand within my own. What was this?
I had a question to ask, but he said,
-The treasure there contains my will. That is why I was able to meet you like this.
His will?
Something like the Blood Demon?
-Something similar.
Then the person before me was no illusion but the true Immortal sword. I was shocked.
-You are an interesting child.
‘… I really can’t believe this situation.’
The Immortal Sword was one of those considered the best of Murim.
All swordsmen, no, all Murim warriors, worshiped him. If he was a swordsman, then there were many things I wanted to ask.
‘I didn’t know that the treasure… was real. If so, are both of them the treasures left by the elder?’
-Yes
‘Ah…’
To think that the real treasure was also in Chun Mu-seong’s hand.
Who could have imagined that there would be two treasures left by one person? I said nothing, but the elder spoke as if he had read my thoughts.
-Before I took my place, I divided my will into three and transferred them into treasures.
‘Three?’
This means…
-It wasn’t just one or two.
What should I say? Should I say this was unexpected?
-Regardless of my will, it is a treasure that has a relationship with you.
As the elder said, it seemed like good compatibility.
Just listening to his words, it seemed like the treasures weren’t meant to be obtained by one person. But, now that I thought about it, I received two of the three.
-That’s right. Treasures do not fall into the hands of those who desire them.
‘What do you mean?’
-Like you, it can happen when the ring of karma touches us. Besides, I am lucky enough to see two of my treasures connect and have the chance to talk to you face-to-face like this.
‘What…’
Come to think of this, this felt familiar.
Ever since I opened my eyes, I’ve heard the voice of the Heavenly Point, Heavenly Qi, Heavenly Authority, and Heavenly Blessing.
All of them were this man’s voice.
-But if we continue to talk, the will would vanish, so it’s not nice to speak of such things.
Was he saying that the will would wear out?
That meant there wasn’t much time left. I guess I should ask him for advice.
I wanted to get down on my knees and bow, but my body wouldn’t move. He smiled at me and said,
-You don’t have to do that.
‘But…’
-Honestly, I wonder if my teachings are of significance to you
‘Why?’
-You received the best treasure that I left behind. The power to communicate with the sword is the essence of everything I do.
‘Communication with swords.’
I knew what he meant. The ability to hear the voice of swords.
Thanks to that, I managed to escape a variety of troubles and death so many times. I could also speak with Iron Sword, Short Sword, and Blood Demon Sword.
-I cannot say that those sword scars I left in the book are all great compared to the swords you have met.
‘How can you say that? What you left was excellent. If you say otherwise…’
-Do you know the term of all flowing back into one?
It meant that every stream would end up becoming one.
It was also a phrase that people who learned martial arts would hear the most. It was that many martial arts would eventually become one when they reached the end, but I hadn’t experienced this yet.
Immortal Sword smiled.
-There is no better experience than experiencing it yourself.
When he lightly waved his hand, my body, which had been frozen like ice, became able to move. Before I knew it, I also had Iron Sword in my hand.
‘Iron Sword.’
However, I couldn’t hear a response to what the elder said.
-A technique known as the standard movement and path of a sword. However, as one begins to understand it in detail. Eventually, even the movement becomes simple.
Swish!
The white sword he was holding drew a fine line. It was a simple slash.
Strangely, however, it had a sense of complexity, as if numerous movements had united into one.
‘T-this is…’
I was puzzled, but he just waved his hand at me.
-Use the technique you are most familiar with.
‘By a familiar sword technique, do you mean…’
-Do whatever your heart desires.
I didn’t understand why he said this, but I thought I should do as I was told.
I bowed to him and then took on the 6th form of the Chasing Till the End Sword.
There was a stronger form, the 7th technique, but I couldn’t unleash it to the strength I thought it could be no matter how many times I tried, so I am most used to it now.
‘Phew.’
I took a deep breath and showed the technique to the Immortal Sword. I held my sword at an angle, rotated it, and created a sharp whirlwind with a strong pressure.
How will the elder respond?
‘…?!’
What?
I was looking forward to how the man would respond, but he simply stabbed lightly. It was a simple technique.
At that moment, something unimaginable happened.
Chang!
The sword pierced my technique in the center.
As the tip of the swords collided, the Iron Sword that I was holding bounced off. It was just a simple stab.
‘What the hell is this…’
When the sword touched my tip, it rotated violently, creating a complex change that occurred through a single thrust.
This subtle difference could be said to be so far away that even a speck of dust wouldn’t be missed. Even if it was one of the Eight Great Warriors or Four Great Evils, would they be able to show off their swords like this?
I couldn’t help but admire him.
-You have talent. If you didn’t have a talent for swordsmanship, you wouldn’t have realized this.
‘Even if you say it, I cannot…’
-Do not be in a hurry. Even if you try out many things, the choice, in the end, is one for all.
Was it the same logic as the final result of the sword?
Was the end only the sword or nothing?
My head was confused.
-Tangible things eventually become intangible. If you continue to walk the path of the sword, you will eventually understand it.
Then, what can we learn from the alternative form?
This wasn’t a chance to be missed.
I knelt down once again and said,
‘There are still many things I am lacking. Please teach me your sword.’
Even if I had reached the best stage of being the same as eternal and intangible, there would be something I can learn from the man. I wanted to learn that.
However, he shook his head.
-I forgot all the sword forms.
‘You mean the techniques you learned?’
-I’ve deleted the technique from my head because they weren’t perfect at the end.
I was dumbfounded.
The Immortal Sword had reached a much higher plane than I could imagine. Enlightenment wasn’t something that could be gained by words, so then what could I learn?
Seeing my disappointment, he smiled and said.
-Hold the path of your sword.
‘Uh?’
-Four swords, one swordsman, refine your path. Isn’t that a sword path that has not yet been completed?
Xing Ming Sword technique.
A technique that polished and honed all of a single life. Even before his death, the South Heavenly Swordsman refined it further.
The Immortal Sword said that the technique I learned at the start would lead me to a higher path.
Near a building under the Dual Martial Forces.
Seven middle-aged men in black robes stood in the dark alley.
One of them was Guyang Gyeong, the head of an Order. He then gave the other men their orders.
“Those I chose, follow me. The others will deal with warriors from the Martial Heavenly Order and join us.”
“Yes, Lord.”
Those who answered him put on their masks. Seeing them like this made Guyang Gyeong sigh.
He put his hand into his chest and took out a mask before touching a pouch with his fingers.
‘Explosive Blood Pill.’
This was the object that the man who had entered his office had given him.
From the instructions he had been given, the blood in his body would run out of control once he took this, allowing him to exert more power.
‘Phew.’
However, this pill had side effects.
Because it forced the body to work abnormally, the chances of the blood flow becoming out of control were the same. And once its effects ran out, more than three-quarters of their internal qi would be used.
In the book, he was told to use this pill to deal with the other Lords.
‘… does he think I will use this!?’
He wouldn’t sacrifice his body by eating this. Besides, a fortunate thing had happened.
He received the message that the two remaining Lords were now in the underground prison because someone had infiltrated it.
‘I just need to feed him this.’
He cannot miss this chance.
If Jin Song-baek was fed this pill and lost control of his body, the power difference would become balanced.
Guyang Gyeong took out his mask and put it on.
“Let’s go.”
It was a hidden plan prepared for this day. Leading his men, Guyang Gyeong headed straight for the clinic. After killing the targets and heading inside, he noticed something unexpected.
“They are all dead.”
All of the Martial Heavenly Order warriors guarding the clinic were dead. He looked at the corpses and noted that they were killed by sharp attacks similar to those of an assassin.
He couldn’t understand what was happening. He headed upstairs and also found all of them dead.
‘What is this about? Could it be that he did something?’
Come to think of it, he was the one who questioned the reality of the Martial Heavenly Sword. He ended up spending some time simply looking at this.
If any of the two Order leaders had died, everything would be in vain. Fearing this, he rushed to the third floor.
‘Ah!’
He went up to the 3rd floor and saw more unexpected things there. In the front of the stairs at the entrance was the collapsed figure of Chun Mu-seong. One of the masked men checked his pulse and shook his head.
Dead.
“Who is the culprit?”
“Him.”
In addition to the deceased, there was a corpse of a decapitated young man and one that had turned as stiff as a stone.
He seemed to be standing in a daze, but his condition looked strange.
Guyang Gyeong motioned for him to be checked.
Two men moved closer and placed a hand under his nose.
“Alive!”
“Ha!”
How can luck be on his side?
It seemed like things were prepared in advance. Jin Song-baek’s son was likely stiff because his blood points were sealed.
‘All I have to do is feed it to him.’
He was glad things worked and took out the pouch.
He approached the stiff stone-like man.
‘Things went wrong because of you, so pay the price.’
He took out the pill and held it out. The moment he tried to put it into his mouth; however, it closed.
‘Uh?’
The man’s eyes had also returned to normal.
“What were you trying to do now?”
“Tch!”
He thought he would take this man down this time, so he hurriedly moved his fingers to try to subdue his blood points.
At that moment, his hand was captured.
Pak!
‘This guy?’
He was confident he could subdue this kid because he was right before him. Instead, his hand was captured too easily.
He wondered if he had been careless in performing the technique because he thought this man was still young.
“Kuak!”
Surprised at the shine of a sword, Guyang Gyeong tried to slash away the blade that would have cut him in two. The moment his hand and the sword collided, he ended up pushed back.
Pang!
Guying Gyeong looked shocked.
Jin Song-baek’s son simply stood there without being moved a single step.
‘…internal qi increased.’
Even during the day, the boy was already a step above him. He thought he could overcome him then, but the boy had now changed.
Tak!
Something touched his feet, and he looked down to see the face of the man who visited his office.
‘What?’
Was that person he considered superior to him now in this decapitated state?
Judging that something was wrong here, Guyang Gyeong shouted to his men.
“Kill him!”
At that command, his men moved to surround him. All of them were skilled warriors, and Guyang Gyeong’s thoughts were occupied with how to avoid dealing with this boy.
At that moment, something shocking happened.
The son of Jin Song-Baek swung his sword in a circle…
Kwakwakwang!
“Kuak!”
“Kwak!”
Two of the masked men around him were split into two. His sword didn’t even touch them.
‘H-he blew them up….’
