Heavenly Demon of Mount Hua

Chapter 10

—–CROW—– 

A while after Hyeon-do left.

Cheon-hwi, watching the sun begin to set, hopped onto a large rock beside his hut and sat cross-legged.

‘I should cultivate some energy.’

He entered a state of meditative breathing.

Exhaling and inhaling deeply, he slowly observed his internal state.

He slowly began the Macrocosmic Orbit.

His minuscule amount of internal energy began to circulate through the eight extraordinary meridians, merging with the energy he inhaled and accumulating little by little.

After a while, he finished the Macrocosmic Orbit.

‘How much has accumulated?’

He observed his lower dantian with his inner eye.

In his pristine lower dantian, a speck of internal energy had settled firmly… but the increase compared to before the meditative breathing was so insignificant that it was almost imperceptible unless he looked closely.

‘This is all I gained even after performing the Macrocosmic Orbit. It’ll take at least ten years to reach the minimum amount of internal energy I have in mind.’

He frowned at the slow cultivation speed.

Perhaps it was because the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation was a foundational technique learned before advanced cultivation methods.

It allowed for stable meditative breathing and the accumulation of pure internal energy, but its limitations were clear.

It was only this much because it was the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation, accessible only to true disciples, and not the Six Harmonies Art practiced by nominal disciples.

‘I would have accumulated ten times this amount with the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.’

He recalled the effects of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art he had practiced in the past and shook his head.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Art was superior to any other cultivation method in the world in terms of energy cultivation.

It was absurd to even compare it to the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation, a mere foundational technique.

‘Should I modify the verses a bit?’

It seemed like a decent idea.

Since the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation was a foundational technique, it would be easier to modify compared to other advanced cultivation methods.

If anyone knew what he was thinking, they would be shocked.

Reforming a martial art was a daunting task even for a grandmaster who created martial arts.

But Cheon-hwi spoke of it as if it were a casual stroll.

Because he was overflowing with confidence.

That much was easy.

He slowly reviewed the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation.

And he fell into deep thought.

After swimming through the sea of countless martial arts manuals in his mind for a while.

Cheon-hwi prioritized the martial arts of the righteous sects.

‘Focusing on the Nine Great Sects.’

The Shaolin Temple’s Prajna Great Power Art.

The Wudang Sect’s Two Forms Tai Chi Divine Art and the Mysterious Void Seven Star Art.

The Kunlun Sect’s Jade Heart Returning to One Art.

Followed by the Mount Song Sect, the Mount Heng Sect, and more.

Countless cultivation methods of the Nine Great Sects flashed through his mind, appearing and disappearing repeatedly.

Hmm? They’re quite similar.

He sensed something odd.

On the surface, the cultivation methods seemed completely different, but upon closer examination, he found many similarities.

Tai Chi, Two Forms, Nine Palaces, Primordial Chaos.

All originated from the same source.

Not only the righteous techniques of the Nine Great Sects.

But even the demonic techniques of the Heavenly Demon Cult.

They all shared the same roots.

‘That means…’

Cheon-hwi, to put his sudden thought into action, first gathered all the internal energy of the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation.

Then, with the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation as the core, he began to integrate the verses of other cultivation methods that kept surfacing in his mind.

As all the verses in the world were patched together.

Whoosh!

The boundary between demonic and righteous techniques crumbled, merging into one.

All streams return to the sea.

Whether demonic or righteous, all techniques ultimately pointed towards the same destination.

Returning to the Source, the True Path!

Whirl—

An astonishing energy surged from Cheon-hwi’s cross-legged form, engulfing his surroundings.

An energy too sharp for a righteous technique.

Yet too pure and clear to be a demonic technique.

It resembled the Purple Cloud Divine Art, a cultivation method of Mount Hua Sect.

And that was natural.

The Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation was the root of the Purple Cloud Divine Art.

Tracing back their origins, their paths converged.

But it was slightly different from the Purple Cloud Divine Art.

While the Purple Cloud Divine Art emitted a characteristic purple energy and had several limitations, the energy emanating from Cheon-hwi was transparent and unrestrained.

A primordial martial art surpassing the Purple Cloud Divine Art.

Thus, a peerless cultivation method that would be etched in the history of Mount Hua Sect was born.

Flutter—

Cheon-hwi opened his eyes.

This is not bad.

He was quite pleased with the cultivation method.

Its energy cultivation was excellent, and the internal energy it contained was so pure that it would undoubtedly unleash great power.

‘I was just going to modify the verses a bit, but I ended up creating a new cultivation method.’

He slowly examined his lower dantian.

Traces of the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation remained.

But the contents within had completely changed.

If it had been his former self, he wouldn’t have created such a cultivation method.

Or rather, he wouldn’t have bothered.

He already possessed the Absolute Reign Technique and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

A new cultivation method… Should I give it a name?

Believing that a martial art should have a name, he crossed his arms and fell into thought.

“Since it’s based on the Plum Blossom Energy Cultivation, it should include the word ‘Plum Blossom.’  What should I add after that? Heaven? Manifestation? Or…”

After pondering for a while, he uttered a name that suddenly came to mind.

“…Divine Art. Yes, Plum Blossom Divine Art. Since I created it, it deserves the title ‘Divine.’”

He said with a voice full of pride and smiled with satisfaction.

“Now that I’ve decided on a name, shall I properly perform the Macrocosmic Orbit?”

He closed his eyes again.

As he recited the verses of the Plum Blossom Divine Art.

Whoosh!

He instantly achieved the Macrocosmic Orbit, and an energy far greater than before surged in, rapidly filling his lower dantian.

‘This is a cultivation method.’

He became engrossed in the Plum Blossom Divine Art.

Flutter—

An hour later, he slowly opened his eyes.

His vision was clear, and the scenery looked different.

A martial artist needed four things: Eyes, Feet, Courage, and Power.

First, observation.

Second, footwork.

Third, an unwavering heart in the face of any threat.

Fourth, the ability to execute techniques decisively in any situation.

Only by mastering these four aspects could one be called a true martial artist.

And now, thanks to the Plum Blossom Divine Art, his eyesight, which he considered the most important, had improved.

“Good.”

He jumped to his feet.

His movements were lighter, like a feather.

He gently moved his neck from side to side, loosening his stiff muscles from the long period of meditative breathing.

Then he noticed his thin arms and skinny body.

“I’ll have to address this as well.”

Thinking about the future, he looked down.

The wooden sword he had put down before the meditative breathing was lying on the ground.

“Before that…”

He kicked the wooden sword.

Whirl—

He caught the spinning wooden sword effortlessly and his eyes flashed.

“Shall we see how much I’ve improved?”

He channeled the internal energy of the Plum Blossom Divine Art.

Perhaps because it was still weak.

There was no visible change.

But Cheon-hwi could feel it.

‘The power within my internal energy is different.’

Perhaps because it was close to a primordial martial art.

Because it had reached the origin of martial arts.

Or perhaps because of its purity.

With his current internal energy, he could face someone with sixty years of cultivated energy, even though his own was less than half that amount.

Flash!

His eyes widened slightly.

He stepped forward with his left foot.

Then his hand, gripping the wooden sword, swung down in a large arc.

Whoosh!

The wooden sword sliced through the air, leaving a trail of energy.

“With this level of internal energy, I should be able to execute the Plum Blossom Sword Technique, which I couldn’t do before.”

The corners of Cheon-hwi’s mouth twitched.

He couldn’t execute it before due to lack of internal energy, but now he had enough.

He channeled his internal energy into the sword.

He couldn’t emit sword Qi yet.

But even so, the wooden sword was imbued with a sharp energy and power.

“How was it executed again?”

He recalled the manual he had seen in the Ten Thousand Classics Pavilion.

The Plum Blossom Sword Technique, or more precisely, the Twenty-Four Hand Plum Blossom Sword Technique, was the first manual he had picked up from the sword technique section.

After all, it was the sword technique that immediately came to mind when thinking of Mount Hua Sect, and it was the one that loud-mouthed Taoist had used.

‘It was flashy, with plum blossom fragrance and flower blossoms every time the sword was swung, but it was a fierce sword technique.’

A sword technique that bewildered opponents with its dazzling display.

That’s what he had thought while facing it.

“How was it done again?”

He widened his stance to shoulder-width, raised the wooden sword, and slowly drew a circle.

Starting with the first move, Plum Blossom Roadside, he executed the moves one by one.

Second move, third move, fourth move…

As he continued the Plum Blossom Sword Technique, Cheon-hwi’s expression changed to one of astonishment.

‘It’s among the top sword techniques I’ve ever seen.’

He recalled the sword techniques that filled the Heavenly Demon Library and the Ten Thousand Classics Pavilion.

Hundreds of sword techniques.

The Plum Blossom Sword Technique he had just executed was among the top ten, and in terms of illusionary swordsmanship, it was undoubtedly a top contender.

‘Of course, there are some shortcomings, but I’ll address those later.’

He channeled his internal energy and opened his eyes slightly.

Flutter—

Internal energy flowed naturally into the wooden sword.

As he channeled it according to the verses, a faint plum blossom fragrance emanated from the wooden sword, tickling his nose.

‘It’s the same fragrance as back then.’

As he recalled the loud-mouthed Taoist.

Flutter—

The trajectory of the Plum Blossom Sword Technique the loud-mouthed Taoist had used appeared before his eyes like an afterimage.

Sweep—

His hand naturally followed the path.

After repeating the sword movements several times.

The boundary between his hand and the sword blurred.

‘This is…’

He smiled as the familiar sensation washed over him.

It was a state of trance, where he gained enlightenment or rapidly progressed in martial arts.

‘It came sooner than expected.’

He quickly focused on the Plum Blossom Sword Technique.

A trance was a fleeting moment; he didn’t know when it would come again.

As Cheon-hwi, engrossed in the Plum Blossom Sword Technique, fell deeper into the trance.

Thud.

Two people appeared.

Hyeon-sang, the Sect Leader, and Hyeon-do.

“…!”

“…!”

The Sect Leader, who had come to Cheon-hwi’s hut to confirm what Hyeon-do had said, was the first to be stunned, and Hyeon-do’s jaw dropped as well.

Cheon-hwi was performing a sword dance.

A beautiful sword dance that filled Mount Hua with the rich fragrance of plum blossoms.

—–CROW—–