The Legend of the Northern Blade - Chapter 176: Can a Sapling Topple an Old Oak? (1)
Chapter 176: Can a Sapling Topple an Old Oak? (1)
A demon is born when doubt takes root in the heart. This creature feeds on greed and darkness, gorging itself on jealousy and rage until it grows beyond measure and ultimately consumes its host.
A flash of sword light erupted, and Jin Mu-Won was thrown backward. The strike was impossibly fast, a blur of motion that defied the limits of human perception.
Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s swordsmanship was like a bolt of lightning, flickering in and out of existence in an instant. It flashed, vanished, and reappeared in a continuous cycle. His attacks were as precise as interlocking gears, flowing from one to the next without pause, forcing Jin Mu-Won to abandon any thought of counterattacking and focus entirely on defense.
SHWIIK!
Yeon Cheon-Hwa wielded the massive greatsword as if it were a weightless toy. Each swing generated a crushing wave of pressure that hammered down on Jin Mu-Won.
Jin Mu-Won grimaced as he strained against the immense force threatening to pulverize him.
“This is the Infinite Heavens Sword Technique,” Yeon Cheon-Hwa boomed across the training ground. “This is the sword technique I created.”
He had betrayed the Northern Army to plunder every book of swordsmanship he could find. He had spent years analyzing and deconstructing dozens of techniques, discerning their strengths and weaknesses. He had absorbed the principles that aligned with his martial philosophy while ruthlessly discarding all others. Over the course of a decade, he had forged his own unique sword technique.
It was a technique that existed only for him, one that only he could wield. With every swing, he layered immense pressure upon his opponent, expending such vast amounts of inner qi that only someone with massive reserves of power could dream of performing it.
That was the Infinite Heavens Sword Technique.
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As Jin Mu-Won blocked the blows, he felt strange, constricting pressure coiling around him. It was like being trapped in the crushing depths of the ocean, where every breath was a struggle and every movement an even greater one.
A profound stillness settled in his eyes.
He, too, was a man who walked the path of the sword. For years, he had dedicated himself to mastering the Shadow Blade of Destruction.
Consequently, he recognized the grueling path Yeon Cheon-Hwa had traveled. Only sheer, parasitic obsession could have carried him down that path.
After all, one could not create a new sword technique overnight. It took years just to fully comprehend and internalize a single basic technique. Only then could a martial artist broaden their horizons and begin to study other forms.
Days built into months, and months into years. These years accumulated decade by decade to forge the man Yeon Cheon-Hwa was today.
The Infinite Heavens Sword Technique was the culmination of Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s entire life. Although it was born from sinister motives and corrupt methods, the formidable obsession and effort poured into its creation commanded respect.
Jin Mu-Won grit his teeth. Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s greatsword flashed like lightning. Without his All-Encompassing Cognizance, he would have been cut down many times over without ever knowing what hit him. The man’s swordsmanship was that terrifyingly sharp.
“Ah!” Dong Ha-Pyeong gasped.
Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s Infinite Heavens Sword Technique was truly dreadful. Even though the blade was not directed at him, the ambient pressure was so intense he could hardly breathe. Had Jin Mu-Won not been standing before him, absorbing the pressure waves from the sword, his lungs might have collapsed long ago.
Lord Jin used to say that in terms of raw talent alone, Yeon Cheon-Hwa might not be the absolute best.However, his tenacity when it came to his obsession with the sword was unmatched.
His obsession made it impossible for him to serve under anyone. To him, the Northern Army was not a protective fortress but a cage that shackled his wings. That was why Yeon Cheon-Hwa betrayed the Northern Army and sold Jin Kwan-Ho out to Heaven’s Summit.
Dong Ha-Pyeong had just seen Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s greatsword lunge for his brow. He couldn’t see the blade, but he could feel the pressure deforming his face. His skin rippled, and the capillaries in his eyes burst, flooding them with blood.
Sensing his imminent death, he had squeezed his eyes shut. However, with an ear-piercing metallic ring, the formidable pressure vanished as if it had never been there at all.
Jin Mu-Won.
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Jin Mu-Won moved with the fluid, unrestrained grace of the wind, leaving only a hazy afterimage. Each time his blade flashed, deflecting Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s greatsword. Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s attacks were overwhelming in terms of raw power, but Jin Mu-Won was skillfully and precisely disrupting their flow.
Finally, Yeon Cheon-Hwa was forced to withdraw and take a step back, quiet fury smoldering in his eyes from being unable to land the killing blow. Silencing Dong Ha-Pyeong was no longer the objective.
By this point, the martial artists on the training ground must have sensed that something was deeply wrong. Suspicion would only breed more suspicion, and it was clear that their doubts would only grow.
Since it had come to this, he had no choice but to eliminate the root of the problem.
“You’ve grown up,” Yeon Cheon-Hwa hissed. “You’ve learned how to bare your teeth. You’ve grown strong.”
“Should I thank you for that, Uncle?”
“The time for games is over. Now, let’s play for real.”
Yeon Cheon-Hwa exuded a chilling killing intent. He no longer cared about what others thought. If anything he said would be dismissed as an excuse anyway, it was better to kill Jin Mu-Won and avoid future trouble.
He met the gazes of several Elders on the platform. Cleaning up would be their job. He could trust them, just as he trusted himself.
WHOOSH! VWOOONG!
He injected his greatsword with all of his inner qi, and the blade screamed.
The space around Yeon Cheon-Hwa seemed to shimmer and distort, but this was no illusion. The sheer force of his presence, the power of his qi, was warping reality itself.
The dueling stage on which the two stood began to creak and shake, unable to withstand the pressure he was unleashing.
Amidst Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s oppressive aura, however, Jin Mu-Won looked around. Countless people were watching him, each with a different expression on their face. Among them were familiar friends and bitter enemies.
Some of these people would never understand him. If he had just kept his identity hidden, he could have lived comfortably. Why would he reveal himself to the world and invite such hardship?
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Everyone has their own reason for living.
He did not choose to be born into the Northern Army. Likewise, being born as Jin Kwan-Ho’s son was also beyond his control. He was simply born, and his father happened to be the Northern Army Lord. Because of that, he suffered countless hardships.
Nevertheless, Jin Mu-Won never regretted being born as Jin Kwan-Ho’s son. Restoring the honor of his father, who chose death to protect him, was more important to him than anything else.
Suddenly, his gaze met Ha Jin-Wol’s. The mad scholar was grinning from ear to ear, as if saying, ‘I’ve set the stage for you. Go on, run wild and don’t worry about the aftermath.’
Jin Mu-Won let out a small laugh. He was seriously impressed by Ha Jin-Wol’s ability to find Dong Ha-Pyeong and bring him here in just a few days.
During the day they spent in the basement of the old bookstore, Ha Jin-Wol reconstructed the events of the Northern Army from ten years ago and uncovered Dong Ha-Pyeong, who had been hidden behind a facade of lies.
That extraordinary man was now telling him to trust him and do as he pleased.
Jin Mu-Won smiled. If Ha Jin-Wol was showing him such goodwill, then he had no intention of refusing. He tightened his grip on Snow Flower.
BOOM!
Yeon Cheon-Hwa moved. The spot on the stage where he had been standing exploded as if struck by lightning, sending a fierce shockwave toward Jin Mu-Won.
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Jin Mu-Won did not back down. He swung Snow Flower, cutting apart the space before him with a sound like ripping silk and revealing Yeon Cheon-Hwa.
CLANG!
The two swords clashed in midair, unleashing a violent aftershock in all directions.
“Keuk!” Caught in the blast, Dong Ha-Pyeong was thrown from the stage. He sprawled on the ground, staring blankly up at the two fighters.
RUMBLE!
Beneath the calm sky, the roar of thunder echoed.
Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s greatsword was forged from darksteel, said to be the hardest and heaviest metal in the world. No other metal could withstand his formidable internal energy and the immense pressure he created when using the Infinite Heavens Sword Technique.
Each time he cut through the air with his greatsword, the atmosphere exploded with the force of a natural disaster.
“Aah!”
“To think his martial arts were at that level!”
“Hmm!”
The crowd and even the Ten Great Elders were overwhelmed by Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s incredible might. The Elders prided themselves on being masters at the pinnacle of the current jianghu , but deep down, none of them were confident that they could defeat Yeon Cheon-Hwa.
The martial artists near the stage hurriedly retreated. The granite duel stage was collapsing under the impact of the firece battle.
“Good heavens!”
The crowd trembled at the sight of a sword technique beyond anything they had ever imagined. They lacked the confidence to withstand even a single strike from Yeon Cheon-Hwa.
No, even more incomprehensible was Jin Mu-Won himself. Confronted with Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s cataclysmic offense, Jin Mu-Won swung Snow Flower again and again.
KAKAKANG!
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There was no flashy sword qi, nor the sword flux that could only be wielded after reaching the transcendent realm. He simply thrust, cut, and swung, but Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s overwhelming assault could not break through his defenses.
A glint of greed appeared in Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s eyes.
What in the world is that sword techniqye?
He prided himself on knowing every sword technique in the Northern Army’s arsenal. He was especially confident because he had acquired all of their manuals.
However, Jin Mu-Won’s sword was unlike anything he had ever encountered. If he showed even the slightest opening, Jin Mu-Won would strike like a viper. Its sharpness and precision were enough to make the him wince in shock.
I must capture him and find out what sword technique that is. If I can learn that, I might be able to reach the pinnacle of the sword!
The greedy monster that had once caused him to betray the Northern Army and that still lurked in his heart reared its ugly head once more.
Take his sword technique and make it yours. You can become stronger, strong enough to even force the Nine Skies of Heaven’s Summit into submission!
Yeon Cheon-Hwa gave into the monster named desire.
His eyes turning bloodshot, he plunged his greatsword into the broken floor and pulled six daggers from his robes, scattering them into the air. A black current of energy flowed from the greatsword and daggers, enveloping the stage.
The current completely separated the stage from the outside world, turning the interior into a pitch-black world.
Jin Mu-Won lost his sense of direction in the obsidian space. Everything in sight was black. A wave of nausea rose in his throat, threatening to make him vomit.
Right now, he could not distinguish left from right, up from down. He felt as if he were floating in midair with nothing to stand on.
This is a world created by Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s sword. If I had to give it a name, would it be a sword domain?
Though he called it that, Yeon Cheon-Hwa had not technically created a new world. He merely separated the inner world from the outer world with his sword. Still, it was an unbelievable feat.
Here, Yeon Cheon-Hwa’s abilities would be amplified. Conversely, Jin Mu-Won’s abilities would be weakened by various restrictions. For masters of their level, this could mean life or death.
Regardless, Yeon Cheon-Hwa was already assimilated within the darkness he had created. Finding him was Jin Mu-Won’s first priority.
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Where is he?
Jin Mu-Won raised his All-Encompassing Cognizance to its peak.
SWISH!
A piercing sound ripped through the air.
Jin Mu-Won swung Snow Flower instinctively and knocked a small dagger away. It was one of the daggers that Yeon Cheon-Hwa had used to create the sword domain.
However, the deflected dagger floated eerily in the air as if it were a living creature with a will of its own.
“The Sword Levitation Technique?”
As if to confirm his suspicion, the five other daggers peeked out from the darkness.
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