Ch. 10
Chapter 10 - The Heavenly Sword Hall (1)
Namgung Jun, who had entered the Heavenly Sword Hall pavilion alone.
Lee Se-ha, who was watching his departing back, wore a pleased expression.
‘That’s my Jun.’
To indiscriminately shoot sharp auras at a new arrival and watch their reaction.
That was the initiation ceremony of the Heavenly Sword Hall.
She had been curious as to how her disciple would handle it, so she had stayed behind to watch instead of entering with him, but she hadn’t expected him to draw his sword right away.
‘Normally, one’s mind and body would be suppressed.’
When the initiation ceremony began, more than one or two newcomers would end up collapsing right where they stood. Even Lee Se-ha herself, when she had undergone the Heavenly Sword Hall’s initiation, had only been able to barely move her feet after drawing out her Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art to its full power.
But Namgung Jun showed no such signs.
Not only did he calmly receive the auras, he even drew his sword and provoked his seniors.
As if to say, this is nothing.
‘His circulation of internal energy has become more skillful in the short time I haven’t seen him.’
Because the maturity of Namgung Jun’s internal energy was still lacking, he could not suppress the auras of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen that were pressing in from all sides.
However, he had woven his own aura densely to firmly establish his own domain. So that the auras of his seniors could no longer harass his body and clothes.
As if the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen also sensed this, a few of them were already letting out sounds of admiration and fiddling with their sword hilts.
At his prouder-than-expected demeanor, the desire to cross swords with him had risen on its own.
“I heard. That you have some skill in the Swift Sword.”
A middle-aged man had, at some point, arrived in front of Namgung Jun.
With the middle-aged man’s appearance, the auras that had been intimidating Namgung Jun ceased all at once.
On the middle-aged man’s sleeve, three clouds were embroidered. He was of the Three-Cloud rank.
“Let’s have a match. I need to confirm whether you are a newcomer to be welcomed, or a child who needs to be coddled.”
Namgung Jun slightly raised the corners of his mouth.
He could tell in an instant that though the man seemed to be speaking harshly in his own way, his words held no sincere malice.
It was obvious that he was intentionally speaking threateningly just for the sake of intimidation. Though his voice was rough, he could not feel even a little bit of actual ill will.
For that reason, Namgung Jun also smiled leisurely and grasped the hilt of his sword.
“It’s what I was hoping for.”
“Good.”
Swoosh!
Empty formalities, such as a senior yielding the first move, did not exist in the Heavenly Sword Hall.
As if to show what ‘victory is certain for the one who strikes first’ meant, the middle-aged man’s Swift Sword immediately aimed for Namgung Jun’s wrist.
‘Is his intention to prevent me from even drawing my sword?’
Namgung Jun moved his foot to the left side.
It was the Infinite Steps Footwork of Namcheon Palace.
Namgung Jun, who had dodged the thrust by a hair's breadth, felt his sleeves flutter violently. Even though his first move had missed, the middle-aged man’s offensive was seamless.
Twisting his wrist slightly, he extended his sword out long and horizontal. It was a sword path meant to cut off the steps of the Infinite Steps Footwork.
But Namgung Jun’s movement was different than expected. Instead of continuously evading, he, on the contrary, closed the distance.
From Namgung Jun’s scabbard, a sharp sword-light was already writhing. The middle-aged man, without retreating, parried Namgung Jun's Swift Sword that was turning the offensive around.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
In an instant, their sword strikes had clashed seven times, creating a sharp metallic sound.
Thump!
Namgung Jun stomped his foot powerfully to dissipate the shock that had flooded his body. In contrast, the middle-aged man was in the middle of swinging his sword with his waist twisted to the left.
In the exchange of sword strikes they were an equal match, but in the accomplishment of their internal and external arts, a clear gap existed.
The eyebrows of the middle-aged man, who had been trying to continuously pressure Namgung Jun, twitched slightly. It was because even though Namgung Jun had been pushed back a breath, he was, on the contrary, the one taking the offensive.
‘Does he have a belligerent nature?’
The sword strikes of the Thirteen Sword-Thunders of the Lightning Flash continuously flashed, relentlessly aiming for the middle-aged man’s upper body.
The middle-aged man, who had parried the sword strikes driving toward his chest and shoulder, spun around in mid-air. Along with that, his sword was drawn vertically and horizontally, suppressing Namgung Jun’s movements.
Even against the sword strikes that rushed in from both sides at almost the same time, Namgung Jun easily parried them.
Rather, his artistry in using the shock from receiving the blows as a recoil to make his own sword even faster was enough to draw admiration.
As the inwardly surprised middle-aged man gradually increased his sword speed, Namgung Jun also displayed an even faster sword strike.
Chaeng! Ch-ch-ch-chaeng!
The two swordsmen exchanged dozens of blows in a single breath. All without either of them retreating a single step.
‘He’s keeping up with my speed?’
The middle-aged man, who was retrieving the sword he had extended in order to unfold his next form. Though his series of movements was full of discipline, his lips were, in fact, trembling slightly. He was astonished.
It was because the Swift Sword that Namgung Jun was displaying was at an unbelievable level.
The sword skill that the boy before him was displaying was sublime. His talent with the blade was so outstanding that the pathetic level of his internal and external arts stood out all the more.
‘To display a sword strike of this level with such a body and internal energy!’
How many swordsmen in the Heavenly Sword Hall could possibly match him head-on like this?
SWIIISH!
“Hmm? He’s getting faster and faster.”
“Is this okay?”
“To think they’d exchange so many blows like that.”
The swordsmen of the Heavenly Sword Hall who were observing the duel let out low hums of concern. They had not expected the duel between the two to become this fierce.
The gazes of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen could not seem to leave Namgung Jun.
‘It’s hardly right to call him a newcomer at this point.’
‘Where did she find such a monster?’
Though they had held an initiation ceremony without fail every time a newcomer arrived until now, this was the first time it had been such an even match.
Of course, it was a surprising event even considering that the middle-aged man was holding back and controlling his power.
‘He uses a sword well. I see now why the Hall Master took him as her disciple.’
As he crossed swords with Namgung Jun, the middle-aged man felt a growing sense of ecstasy. Though this was the first time they had met, a familiarity flickered, as if meeting an old sword friend.
The middle-aged man became curious.
Just how far could Namgung Jun follow?
Power entered the hand with which the middle-aged man gripped his sword hilt. Just as he was about to draw upon his internal energy, a single line of a telepathic message flowed into his ear.
—That’s enough.
A cold voice.
It was the telepathic message of the Head of the Heavenly Sword Hall.
‘Hmph. Acting all worried about her disciple just because she’s the master.’
The middle-aged man, who had quickly calmed his emotions, gradually began to extend his sword lightly and retreat. Namgung Jun, who understood the meaning of this, also stepped backward to open up the distance.
Whoosh!
As the two swordsmen simultaneously withdrew their swords, a thick cloud of dust rose around them.
“My name is Gong Jun-am. I look forward to our time together. It would be good if we could face off with your Heavy Sword style next time.”
Though it was a sudden self-introduction, Namgung Jun did not mind. He knew that this was Gong Jun-am’s own way of indirectly expressing his acknowledgement.
“...…”
Simultaneously with Gong Jun-am introducing himself, a silence fell over the Heavenly Sword Hall.
It was bound to happen.
The middle-aged man who had stepped up for the duel was a swordsman who was counted among the best of the Three-Cloud members. He was also the one who served as the Acting Hall Master in Lee Se-ha’s absence.
He was not an opponent a mere One-Cloud member could face like this. And with nothing but pure sword skill, at that.
“You’ve all confirmed the newcomer’s skill sufficiently, right?”
As Lee Se-ha approached with a bright smile, the members of the Heavenly Sword Hall finally began to open their mouths.
“To think he won all his matches in the tournament as an opponent of a single move!”
“He’s incredible. The youngest one isn’t like the youngest one at all.”
“If anything, we should be the ones learning from him.”
The swordsmen who had been watching from outside the dueling stage all used their Body Movement Skills to approach.
“Welcome to the Heavenly Sword Hall.”
“Sorry about the aura just now. It’s our Hall’s initiation ceremony… though you looked like it didn’t bother you at all.”
“I’d like to go on a mission with you sometime. Then I could see your true abilities.”
The swordsmen vied with one another to state their names, all talking at once.
“My name is Namgung Jun.”
As if he had adapted to the disorderly yet refined nature of the Heavenly Sword Hall, Namgung Jun still maintained a calm demeanor and paid his respects.
ִ メִ メִ メ
Namgung Jun, who had spent a day in the Heavenly Sword Hall’s lodging, had a poor expression on his face.
“Kugh.”
The Cold Yin Energy of his Nine Yin Severed Meridians was overflowing throughout his entire body.
‘Is this an attack.’
Namgung Jun endured the pain and sat in the lotus position. His already stiff body would not listen to him properly, but Namgung Jun moved as if it were familiar.
The extreme coldness spreading through his entire body made him tremble regardless of his will. It felt as if invisible icicles and frost were digging into his skin.
“Huu.”
Namgung Jun calmly recited the oral formulas of the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art. He began to circulate his internal energy based on the countermeasures he had established through experiencing the attacks until now.
‘The intensity of the attack has gotten more severe.’
The force of the violently churning Cold Yin Energy was much stronger than before.
In the face of the Cold Yin Energy that was rampaging through his meridians, even his countermeasures were not easily effective.
The only way was to endure with the lightning energy of the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art until the attack subsided.
Vwoom!
As his internal energy slowly caressed his meridians and resisted the Cold Yin Energy, a small vibration erupted from within.
The violently writhing Cold Yin Energy had reacted to the lightning energy and caused a clash.
As if it would not permit the existence of Hot Yang Energy in the meridians, it began to spread out in all directions, trying to swallow up the internal energy of the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art.
‘Centering on the Heavenly Center Point…’
A normal member of the younger generation would have been pushed back by the Cold Yin Energy and had to face the attack as it was.
But Namgung Jun was different.
The experience of having circulated internal energy as a peerless master in his past life remained.
Namgung Jun went beyond just delicately circulating the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art to protect his meridians and began to gnaw away at the Cold Yin Energy.
‘If I just endure it, it is nothing more than suffering an attack, but if I scrape away the energy little by little, it is no different from consuming a spiritual medicine.’
Just as this precarious Qi circulation and breath regulation was proceeding, the Cold Yin Energy tried to churn violently once again.
FLARE!
In that moment, a large amount of Hot Yang Energy entered through Namgung Jun’s Gate of Life Point.
‘Master.’
This was unmistakably Lee Se-ha’s Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art.
As Lee Se-ha’s Hot Yang Energy began to suppress the Ice-Cold Energy, his Qi circulation and breath regulation became much smoother.
With Lee Se-ha’s help, Namgung Jun endlessly scraped away the Cold Yin Energy of his Nine Yin Severed Meridians. The residual energy he obtained from that process became a part of his Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art as it was.
How much time had passed?
Namgung Jun slowly opened his eyes.
The inside of the room was filled with a coldness, as if it were a mountain forest in the dead of winter. It was to the point where his breath was visible as vapor when he simply exhaled.
“Master.”
“Jun-ah, are you okay?”
“Thanks to you, I overcame the attack smoothly.”
“I just did what’s natural for a master!”
Lee Se-ha patted Namgung Jun’s head with a proud face.
Possessing the senses of a supreme master, Lee Se-ha had noticed that Namgung Jun was suffering an attack and had come immediately.
Namgung Jun felt a sense of gratitude toward Lee Se-ha.
‘If my Master is by my side, the process of overcoming the Nine Yin Severed Meridians will be much smoother.’
Lee Se-ha, as if she had felt this as well, smiled brightly.
“Is it because you’re still young? It’s a relief that the Cold Yin Energy of your Nine Yin Severed Meridians is at a level I can handle.”
“That is correct. But I must raise my proficiency in the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art as quickly as possible.”
“Right. Because the Nine Yin Severed Meridians will grow powerful very quickly.”
Lee Se-ha turned her gaze.
On the table in the room was a wooden box.
It was the hasuo he had received as the prize for winning the martial arts tournament.
Namgung Jun, who understood the meaning of her gaze, immediately asked Lee Se-ha for a favor.
“Master. I intend to consume the hasuo right away. I was wondering if you could provide your assistance.”
As if she had been waiting for these words, Lee Se-ha’s smile became exceptionally bright.
“Of course! Just trust this master of yours.”
Namgung Jun immediately sat in the lotus position.
Feeling Lee Se-ha’s two hands touch the Gate of Life Point in the center of his back, Namgung Jun immediately put the hasuo in his mouth.
VROOOOM!
The Qi circulation and breath regulation of the master and disciple, for the sake of melting down as much of the spiritual medicine's energy as possible, began.