Hwasan Sect’s Genius Swordsman Chapter 72

Chapter 72

The Righteous Path Grand Assembly, disrupted by the Paewangseong Lord.

Due to the newly emerged issue of the Four Paths Alliance, the Righteous Path Grand Assembly was extended for two more days, and discussions continued.

Mu Hwi didn’t hear the details, but it seemed the Martial Alliance was proceeding as planned. However, it appeared that the Martial Alliance’s future actions would be quieter than expected.

The fact that the Seven Evil Heaven had united under the name of the Four Paths Alliance was the main topic, but after the initial shock of the Four Paths Alliance subsided, the martial arts elders began to talk about Mu Hwi again.

A late-stage foundation level disciple had torn the Paewangseong Lord’s sleeve.

Though it was only a slight tear, the fact that a late-stage foundation level disciple’s sword had reached the Paewangseong Lord was nothing short of miraculous.

This incident firmly imprinted the name Hwasan Sword Devil Mu Hwi in the minds of the martial arts elders.

By now, the glorious reputation of the Six Dragons had long been overshadowed by the name Mu Hwi in the minds of the martial arts elders.

“So this is how it turns out.”

Mu Hwi, who had been meditating, opened his eyes to see the vivid sword marks left by past Hwasan Sword Saints, exuding a strong aura.

Mu Hwi’s eyes were focused on one particular sword mark.

All the sword marks on the cliff were left by Hwasan Sword Saints, each with its own distinct personality and characteristics. The sword mark Mu Hwi was looking at was no exception.

The sword mark left by the Hwasan Sword Saint named Jiseon (志線) was unique in that it wasn’t continuous but instead had breaks in the middle.

It felt as if someone had intentionally erased parts of the long sword mark on the cliff.

‘At first, I thought the sword mark was abnormally short.’

But after studying it multiple times, I realized it wasn’t short. The sword mark truly disappeared in the middle.

Mu Hwi examined the ends of the missing parts of the sword mark and realized that Jiseon, the Hwasan Sword Saint, had intended it this way.

The depth and texture of the sword mark deepened as it approached the end, and the mystery of the sword technique disappearing in the middle was hidden within.

Focusing on the intent embedded in the sword mark, Mu Hwi drew his Plum Blossom Sword.

If I were Jiseon, how would I have left this sword mark on the cliff?

Whoosh!

The Plum Blossom Sword, with its faint purple glow, trembled as it emitted a soft sword hum.

The vibration grew faster, but it was controlled by Mu Hwi’s strong grip on the sword’s hilt.

When the vibration of the Plum Blossom Sword reached its peak.

In an instant, Mu Hwi slightly adjusted his grip, shifting the sword’s center of gravity, and swung it wide.

The Plum Blossom Sword, as if performing a continuous sword technique, violently surged, creating five consecutive arcs.

As if splashing purple ink across the sky.

The rough purple curves, swaying up and down, suddenly plunged straight down, and in that moment, the Plum Blossom Sword disappeared.

Swoosh!

The end of the sword strike, which had pierced the air some distance away, revealed itself, blooming a cluster of plum blossoms.

“Huh?”

The Dark Monkey, who had been sitting on a plum tree chewing on fruit, was startled when the sword strike suddenly disappeared. When the sword strike abruptly appeared in a completely different location, he dropped the fruit he was holding.

The plum blossom that had bloomed in the air seemed as if it had always been there, naturally blending into the space.

“A change that hides change.”

It seemed like a static sword technique, but the mysterious change of completely removing the sword technique in the middle was different.

It was different from the enlightenment of the Hwasan Sect, which became more flamboyant as one’s sword achievements increased, but it felt even sharper because of it.

If this sword technique were hidden within the flamboyance of blooming plum blossoms, it would be even more threatening.

This technique, which showed a deceptive change by hiding the sword technique but ultimately converged into a static, calm sword strike, was named Plum Blossom by the Roadside (梅花路傍).

The meaning that the plum blossom suddenly appears by the roadside.

There was no name more fitting for this technique than the sudden appearance of a blooming plum blossom.

“Keeek!”

The Dark Monkey, who had been sitting on a plum tree in the distance, suddenly jumped to Mu Hwi’s side and tugged at his robe.

It seemed like he was asking to be taught the Plum Blossom by the Roadside technique. But Mu Hwi ignored the Dark Monkey’s tugging and focused on the sword marks on the cliff.

In his past life, Mu Hwi had deepened his enlightenment by studying various sword techniques of the martial arts world, but compared to the past Hwasan Sword Saints who had devoted their entire lives to the mysteries of speed (快), illusion (幻), and change (變), his depth was inevitably lacking.

“If I add the enlightenment of Sword Saints Gongdo and Mukhyun to the Plum Blossom by the Roadside, the technique will be further refined.”

Even though the technique had reached a level where it could be used in actual combat, Mu Hwi wasn’t satisfied. He continued to find areas for improvement, striving to elevate the technique’s level.

Swish!

This time, Mu Hwi’s sword began to move faster.

The sword was being retracted even faster than when it had been thrust into the air. And when the next strike was executed, it surpassed the speed of the previous retraction.

With each repetition of the sword’s extension and retraction, the speed increased dramatically.

As a result, not only the Plum Blossom Sword but even the fluttering sleeves became blurred.

Mu Hwi trained while looking at the sword marks left by Gongdo, which were filled with large and small holes.

‘To create sword marks as small as needles, I need to increase the speed even more and concentrate the force at a single point.’

Sssk!

Mu Hwi’s eyes were serious as he watched the Plum Blossom Sword pierce a single point in the air.

By studying the sword marks and tracing their intent, Mu Hwi was embodying the enlightenment of past Hwasan Sword Saints one by one.

The peak level was a realm he had already reached in his past life.

But now, he was filling that vast realm with a different enlightenment than that of his past life as a Sword Devil.

Moreover, with the enlightenment of his past life fully embedded in his sword, and the insights of past Hwasan Sword Saints added to it, it was only natural that Mu Hwi’s sword would become even more profound.

As Mu Hwi continued to leave sword marks identical to those on the cliff, the form of a new sword technique gradually took shape.

“Keeek…”

The Dark Monkey, who had been watching Mu Hwi swing his sword in the middle of the basin, leaned against a rock and fell asleep, breathing in the thick sword aura emanating from the Plum Blossom Sword.

Meanwhile, Mu Hwi, recalling the Paewangseong Lord who seemed to have reached an even higher level since their last encounter, thrust the Plum Blossom Sword once more.

***

The sword techniques of the Plum Blossom Sword densely filling the air.

As the tip of the sword extended delicately, like embroidery, piercing the air dozens of times in an instant, red and white light gathered at its tip.

The Plum Blossom Sword meticulously refined that light, and soon it took the shape of a flower bud.

Swoosh!

Centered around the plum blossom with five petals, a distant sword aura emanated.

Its form wasn’t as detailed as the one Mu Hwi had bloomed, nor did it have the same vitality.

“Wow!”

Though it was lacking in many ways, it was still a proper plum blossom.

Finally succeeding in blooming a plum blossom through the Plum Blossom Sword Technique, Mu-hwa jumped up in excitement.

“What’s this?”

“Our youngest has finally bloomed a plum blossom.”

“Tsk, I need to train harder. Just when I think I’m catching up, the gap widens again.”

The other disciples training nearby with the Plum Blossom Sword Technique were both happy for Mu-hwa’s achievement and burning with competitive spirit.

“Sigh. But the Plum Blossom Sword Technique is really difficult.”

“It’s completely different from the sword techniques we’ve learned before. Now I understand why we need to receive the Plum Blossom Sword to master it.”

While Musan and Muho paused their training to chat, Musang approached and offered a water bottle.

“Brothers, have some water.”

“Oh, Musang. What’s this? You’ve been slacking off every day, but have you finally come to your senses?”

The sound of the cool water sloshing in the bottle made Musan laugh.

As the disciples shared the water, Musang rubbed his hands together and casually brought up a topic.

“Hehe. Disciples, can you lend me some money?”

“Suddenly, why?”

“I’ll be going out into the martial arts world soon. I want to visit the Huahuadaru when I go.”

Musan and Muho looked at each other.

“Huahuadaru?”

“Ah, I remember. It’s a recently established teahouse where beauties personally brew tea.”

Even though it was just a short time of brewing tea and serving it in cups, allowing for a brief conversation and a glimpse of their faces, it was quite popular among men.

Muho had heard rumors that the beauties of Huahuadaru were not only stunning but also incredibly skilled at brewing tea.

“Sigh. This guy is always the same. Going to see women again?”

“During the last Righteous Path Grand Assembly, he was drooling over the most beautiful woman in the martial arts world with the late-stage foundation level disciples.”

Musang, sensing the mood, added, “The money I get from Scripture Pavilion Master is enough, but not enough to visit Huahuadaru. So I wanted to ask for your help… Haha.”

As Musang laughed awkwardly, Muryun’s hand landed on his shoulder. Instantly, the smile disappeared from Musang’s face.

Just the touch of the hand on his shoulder and the familiar weight made Musang realize who it was.

“This guy has been training hard lately, but I need to discipline his mind before he goes out into the martial arts world.”

“Ah! Disciple Muryun! That’s not it!”

As Muryun dragged Musang by the collar to the training ground, Mujin shook his head and turned to Mu-hwa, who was beaming.

“Mu-hwa, congratulations.”

When Mujin came over to congratulate her, Mu-hwa nodded and raised the corner of her mouth.

“Disciple Mujin, now I can bloom two plum blossoms, right? Just wait a bit. I’ll catch up.”

Mujin smiled softly and shook his head.

“There’s something I haven’t told you yet. A few days ago, during late-night training, I bloomed three plum blossoms.”

“Ah, Disciple Mujin. Did you hold back on telling me until I could bloom one?”

Mu-hwa, irritated, kicked the ground and puffed out her cheek as she retorted.

Mujin just laughed and subtly stepped aside.

Mujin suddenly turned his gaze to Mu-cheol.

Mu-cheol was receiving special training from the Senior Disciple, seemingly learning the Iron Plum Sword Technique.

Perhaps because he was training in both the Plum Blossom Sword Technique and the Iron Plum Sword Technique simultaneously, Mu-cheol’s progress seemed slower than before.

Whoosh!

As Mu-cheol’s massive Plum Blossom Sword moved with a heavy sound, Mu Hwi raised his hand to stop Mu-cheol’s training.

“You seem troubled?”

Mu-cheol wiped his sweat and nodded.

“I guess it shows in my sword technique.”

“Of course. When your mind is unsettled, it’s natural to lose focus on your sword.”

Mu Hwi, looking at Mu-cheol, who had fallen silent again, leaned against a nearby plum tree and spoke.

“Dokgo Yul and the Dokgo Sword Technique seem to be haunting you. They are similar but completely different sword techniques. Think of it as broadening your perspective, but don’t get too deeply absorbed.”

When Dokgo Yul stayed at the Hwasan, Mu-cheol had sparred with him multiple times.

But Mu-cheol had never won against Dokgo Yul, and this seemed to weigh heavily on his mind.

It wasn’t just the frustration of defeat; it seemed he was captivated by the Dokgo Sword Technique that Dokgo Yul had shown.

What Dokgo Yul had shown was likely the closest to what Mu-cheol had always aspired to be.

“Senior Disciple, how can I overcome this?”

“You need to have faith in your own sword. There’s no other way.”

“I guess I’ll just have to keep swinging until I’m confident.”

“Shake it all off. Focus only on the essence of the Iron Plum Sword Technique and the martial path you wanted to walk.”

“Yes, Senior Disciple.”

Having found his own answer, Mu-cheol began to extend his Plum Blossom Sword again.

Watching Mu-cheol’s Iron Plum Sword Technique gradually find its center, Mu Hwi turned his steps to observe the other disciples’ training.

“Senior Disciple Mu Hwi!”

Running from the end of the training ground was Im Sanha, now known as Myeong San (明山) after receiving his martial name. Since he wasn’t officially Mu Hwi’s disciple yet, he didn’t use the title Master.

Myeong San paid his respects to the surrounding second-generation disciples and urgently spoke to Mu Hwi.

“The Sect Leader has ordered you to come to the main hall.”

“What’s the matter?”

“I didn’t hear the details, but it seems a Jeonjin mysterious swordsman has appeared in Shaanxi.”

“Mysterious swordsman…”

A master of unknown origin who inherited the martial arts of the Jeonjin Sect. Mu Hwi had never met him, but he had heard of his notorious reputation, causing his eyes to narrow. Despite his furrowed brow, the corner of Mu Hwi’s mouth slowly rose.

“I’ve never seen the martial arts of Jeonjin. Good.”

New martial arts always excited him. Even during his time as the Sword Devil, he had always felt a thrill when studying new martial arts, and it was the same now.

It felt like exploring an unknown world and finding a new key to break through barriers.

Mu Hwi’s eyes glinted coldly as he thought of the mysterious swordsman.

< A change that hides change. > End

< Who in the martial arts world doesn’t have a story? >