A Medieval Knight in a Martial Arts Novel

“…Yunnan Dan family…”

Jin Mu-han’s eyes dragged up one by one the memories of a distant past. It was an immensely difficult task to recall a specific instance, given the number of clans and families he had wiped out.

“…The Yunnan Dan family…weren’t they the ones that begged so desperately for survival?”

Even Jin Mu-han didn’t know the precise reasons.

The time when he eradicated the Yunnan Dan family was when he had just started building the Sabyeol Sect and was expanding its influence step by step. It wouldn’t have been wise to question him then.

‘Back then, I should have exterminated them to the last.’

He regretted letting a single child slip through his fingers, which had come back as karma. Clicking his tongue, he unsheathed the sword on his hip.

“To survive such a massacre should’ve been the end of it, or were you so brazen as to crawl to me for revenge?”

“…If you truly feared retribution, you could have abandoned everything and fled, couldn’t you?”

Responding to the accusation with her own rhetoric, Dan Mok-kyeong slowly assumed her fighting stance.

This was the Dan family swordplay—her family’s martial arts.

The Sabyeol Sect leader recognized her posture and felt a sense of déjà vu.

“Dan family swordplay, I see.”

“You’ll do well to keep your eyes open. This is the sword that will send you to King Yama.”

Mok-kyeong issued her threat as she drew the internal energy stored in her dantian. Though she had only recently passed the half-century mark, for her age, it was an impressive amount.

“Arrogant. Even if your achievements for your age were commendable, do you truly believe you can face off against my sword and survive?”

“…I can only hope the one in the back doesn’t interfere.”

If the rumors about the Lion Sword Hero were even half true, his involvement would mean no chance of survival except by fleeing.

Jin Mu-han, with his arms crossed, eyed William, who watched silently nearby, as he imbued his sword with his energy.

A peculiar yellow energy, akin to sand, rather than the usual azure glow of conventional internal energy, emanated from his blade. The distinctive aura caught William’s attention.

“An unusual energy.”

It wasn’t malevolent energy, nor was it the red energy often seen in the secret techniques of the martial world.

“Still…it feels familiar.”

He had seen the yellow-tinged blade energy before, though rarely.

“…I should question him about this later.”

Provided, of course, he survived to ask.

William leaned against a nearby wall with Hye-ryeong, calmly observing the impending duel.

Meanwhile, Jin Mu-han, aware of William’s gaze, cursed inwardly as he weighed his options.

“If the Martial Alliance Leader’s strength matches his reputation, I have no hope of surviving.”

Thus, instead of unleashing his full sword technique, he resorted to blade energy.

Although there was a way to start with his full power, his current level was achieved through incomplete martial arts and shortcuts, making it inefficient.

While his blade energy was powerful, it could be drained rapidly if his opponent prolonged the fight. Jin Mu-han extended the energy around his sword to about three feet and spoke.

“Let’s see what skills you bring for revenge.”

Mok-kyeong responded with silence, propelling herself off the ground, as she deemed no reply necessary. Instantly, her sword multiplied into a hundred, rushing towards Jin Mu-han like a flood.

‘Illusory swords!’

A memory from a decade ago. Jin Mu-han, finding the hundred swords somewhat sluggish, calmly identified the actual strike among the illusions and swung his sword. The ensuing explosion pushed Mok-kyeong two steps back.

‘Even with the same energy, the sword of an utmost grandmaster is different.’

A pang of discomfort in his chest reminded him of the gap between them. Nevertheless, Mok-kyeong steeled herself and launched another of her most powerful moves, aiming at his critical points.

Head.

Neck.

Heart.

Chest.

Jin Mu-han effortlessly deflected all four simultaneous attacks with a light blade movement. The hundred swords immediately dissolved, and Mok-kyeong’s blade was deflected upward.

Sensing another incoming strike, Mok-kyeong gritted her teeth and employed her footwork to evade his blade.

“Like an elusive rat.”

‘If only I could attack…’

The fight was ostensibly one-on-one but not truly so. It bore the gravity of a lethal duel, yet it wasn’t exactly that either.

Jin Mu-han considered negotiating with William but quickly abandoned the thought upon seeing no leniency in his eyes. He then turned his gaze back to Mok-kyeong.

‘No matter how many attacks I make, the gap in skills remains overwhelming, with each strike differing significantly in power.’

Mok-kyeong tried to calm her rising fury with a deep breath and extended her sword forward.

Even with the difference in skill levels, victory wasn’t categorically impossible.

The disparity in skill did not guarantee absolute success. If it did, then skilled masters would never fall in the battlefield.

What mattered was overcoming the illusion of possible defeat and devising strategies for victory. Recalling her sparring with William, Mok-kyeong pushed off the ground once again.

This time, three swords.

Seeing the reduced number of swords approach, Jin Mu-han’s eyes sparkled with intrigue.

‘She’s choosing to fight with fewer blades, understanding that quantity doesn’t define quality.’

Right. Left. Center.

The three swords, each brimming with lethal intent, hurtled towards him in precise arcs but didn’t seem particularly threatening to Jin Mu-han.

As he parried Mok-kyeong’s strike, three resonating clashes followed.

‘There’s no escape from dying here if I can’t win!’

Jin Mu-han abandoned his defensive stance, stepped forward, and employed his Sabaek Sword Technique, scattering his energy like sand, aiming for Mok-kyeong’s throat.

Instinctively raising her blade to block, Mok-kyeong quickly recognized the debilitating effect of the yellow blade energy on her internal strength and swiftly retreated using her advanced footwork. Yet, this was merely the beginning of Jin Mu-han’s assault.

“Hah!”

Like a sandstorm testing desert travelers, the yellow blade energy spread, scattering into fine particles and dominating the space. Confounded by the peculiar martial technique, Mok-kyeong swung her blade in an attempt to create wind, to clear out the suffocating yellow powder.

But the yellow energy did not yield to the blade’s wind.

‘Sabaek Sword Technique in play. There’s no hope for her now.’

A nameless martial art once given to him by the Demonic Sect, which originated from the Tian Shan mountain range, had been adapted under his hands. This unique energy-scattering technique was re-christened “Sabaek Sword.”

‘Strange sword…how to counter it?’

Though different from William’s aura armor, it was equally perplexing and troublesome. As the yellow particles continued to engulf the space, Mok-kyeong grit her teeth and navigated through them.

‘Running forever is not an option.’

If she didn’t fight, death would be inevitable.

Mok-kyeong faintly wrapped her body in energy and extended the length of her blade aura to two feet.

“Haah!”

With a cry, Mok-kyeong shot forward like an arrow, targeting Jin Mu-han’s neck within the swirling yellow mist. Jin Mu-han observed her approach with a composed demeanor.

‘Entering this space…what a fool.’

The most terrifying aspect of Sabaek Sword Technique is that the scattered energy could instantly become a deadly blade around the throat at any moment. Thus, Jin Mu-han could only find humor in Mok-kyeong’s reckless charge.

“Seeking death willingly!”

“Chiip!”

Mok-kyeong’s clothing began tearing bit by bit, and soon the yellow particles piercing through her defensive energy began grazing her skin. But she did not stop.

‘It’s enough to protect the vital areas!’

When complete defense was impossible, protecting the crucial spots would suffice.

Mok-kyeong shielded her face as much as possible and reached Jin Mu-han.

Then, her sword created five streaked illusions and lunged forth.

These thrusts, targeting vital points, were as swift as a swift swordsman’s strike. However, swinging a sword inside Jin Mu-han’s energy field was akin to swinging a sword while carrying a sandbag.

Jin Mu-han parried the strike with ease. The difference in skill level, though not complete, was not easily bridged.

Then, Jin Mu-han’s foot blurred, followed by a dull thud.

“Ahah!”

“…Foolish upstart who doesn’t know his place will die young.”

“…Mister, if Miss Mok-kyeong…”

“Not yet.”

“Excuse me?”

“One favored by heaven always finds a lifeline, no matter the situation.”

Though Hye-ryeong didn’t understand William’s words, she nodded reluctantly simply because it was William speaking.

‘The worst-case scenario, I step in. But…not yet.’

A reckless fight.

Given the disparity in their skill levels, the chance of Mok-kyeong’s victory was as good as nonexistent.

Without William, she would have been a corpse, rolling on the ground by now.

However, William believed.

‘Mok-kyeong…’

That she wouldn’t collapse here, not futilely.

And as he expected, Mok-kyeong, using her sword as a crutch, shakily stood up.

Covered in blood, her clothes torn to shreds.

Her hair, scattered.

Everything pointed to her defeat.

But, not yet.

Dan Mok-kyeong—the sole survivor of the Yunnan Dan family, and a vengeful spirit—was not one to fall here.

She pointed her sword towards Jin Mu-han once more.

And, though slowly, she assumed her stance.

“It’s…not over yet.”

The glimmer of stars could be seen in Mok-kyeong’s eyes.

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