NOVEL NEXT Chapter 195
Chapter 195: The Disciple is My Sun
Gangsimajon furrowed his brow.
Hyeongyeong’s Mastery was dominating the flow of energy within the space with sheer will. This was no joke; it was supremacy over not just internal forces but external as well.
That was Hyeongyeong. Mind’s Martial Arts was the ultimate expression of handling space through Hyeongyeong. It was the pinnacle martial art that encapsulated a warrior’s journey, their experiences, and it superimposed a microcosm onto the space dominated by a master of Hyeongyeong.
Only another Mind’s Martial Arts could stand against it.
Yeah, that was common sense in the Martial World.
If he could have unleashed Mind’s Martial Arts in his first life-and-death match against Lee Cheol-soo, he wouldn’t have suffered such humiliating setbacks.
So, in the second duel, he made thorough preparations. He was absorbing the energies of other Blood Zombies to manifest Mind’s Martial Arts even in the body of the possessed Blood Zombie.
Even now, he was continuously absorbing the energy of Blood Zombies to replenish his power.
But right now, something absurd and nonsensical was happening, where Gangsimajon was just going through the motions of his own life like a show.
Gangsimajon couldn’t believe his eyes.
‘Is it that damned Primordial Sword Technique?’
No, he had encountered this phenomenon once before in the first duel against Lee Cheol-soo. A mysterious martial art that twisted the flow of energy controlled by Hyeongyeong’s absolute master.
That was definitely Engi’s Mind: the Gongdong Sect martial art, Ihap Sin-gong.
And now, the two were using Ihap Sin-gong to maximize the fundamental principle of the Gongdong Sect’s reverse taiji.
With explosive force, they repelled the attacks using the prowess of Ihap Sin-gong.
‘Now I understand why the Lord feared the return of the Primordial Sword Technique and the Gongdong Sect!’
Gangsimajon narrowed his eyes.
Primordial Sword Technique.
To the Blood Sect, it was a mere legend. 300 years ago, when the Blood Lord was at the peak of their power, in the chaotic era when the heavens were at their weakest, a monster named Primordial Sword Technique directly crushed the Blood Lord.
The only entity that a sage-like Blood Lord, who had lived for over a thousand years and faced many masters, feared.
It was the absolute master who had wounded even the precious spirit of the Blood Lord.
Although the Primordial Sword Technique had also been injured in the battle against the Blood Lord and retreated to create Honwon Bidong, it could not compare to the defeated Blood Lord.
That’s why the Blood Sect obsessively maneuvered the Demon Sect to destroy the Gongdong Sect and sever its ties.
But now, what they thought was severed—the martial art of the Primordial Sword Technique—revived like a nightmare through its two disciples.
‘For the sake of the great cause, I must eliminate these two right here!’
Blood light flared in Gangsimajon’s eyes.
Perhaps dealing with the two was an even greater contribution than the plans of Hyeolluma.
As he thought this, he raised his hand.
Mind’s Martial Arts was a world utterly in his control. As his will arose, a giant blood-red claw appeared in the sky, moving in synchronization.
Gangsimajon’s Corpse Bone Melting Technique manifested through the claw made of brutal energy. Not just any energy, but the deadly and pestilent energy of corpses.
“Die!”
Gone was her leisure as Yujinhwi’s eyes turned cold.
In her sight, the flow of energy was laid bare.
‘So, this is what Mind’s Martial Arts is.’
Mind’s Martial Arts.
The culmination of a warrior’s lifetime and experiences visualized. The structure, the flow of energy—it was all visible to Yujinhwi.
It wasn’t just that. She could see every move of Gangsimajon’s martial arts and transformations. The talent bestowed by heaven. Through the Heavenly Body, all of Gangsimajon’s arts and experiences were laid bare.
Crack!
The Hyeongyeong’s Wall that stood in her way was slowly cracking. Even now, she was getting stronger bit by bit.
Yujinhwi smiled. What she once considered a curse, was not so in this moment.
The principles of Ihap Sin-gong rewired and reassembled in her mind. The Hyeongyeong Wall was shaking gradually. Her willpower and inner strength were stimulating the Upper Dantian.
Yujinhwi had grasped the entire highest martial art of the Gongdong Sect that had survived through the ages.
Yujinhwi raised her sword. Dark energy swirled around it.
She sensed the presence of her disciple.
‘Disciple.’
Disciple.
My disciple.
She would protect her disciple. It didn’t matter who the opponent was. Even if the monster in front of her was the Blood Lord, Yujinhwi would stand in her way. She would protect her disciple with her life.
The disciple was her everything. Without the disciple, she too wouldn’t exist.
Yujinhwi thought of this and lifted her sword. In what seemed like slow motion, her sword alone shone black. Just as her sword was about to clash with Gangsimajon’s claw.
“?!”
Her genius instinct sensed a flaw. It was a minuscule flaw, trivial even. But it was a trap.
[Did you really think you calculated Mind’s Martial Arts perfectly?]
Gangsimajon’s mocking voice rang in her head.
[Mind’s Martial Arts manifests the microcosm held by an individual into the macrocosm. Human hearts are unpredictable. No matter how much you are a Heavenly Body.]
Gangsimajon laughed.
At the same time, he felt slightly flustered. The Heavenly Body. Yujinhwi’s innate talent was genuine. In an instant, she had reverse engineered most of Mind’s Martial Arts and even Gangsimajon’s Corpse Bone Melting Technique.
A being that looked human, yet possessed monstrous strength.
That was how far her talent transcended ordinary expectations.
‘Thank goodness she’s only at the Stage of Transcendence.’
The Stage of Transcendence.
A level one step below Hyeongyeong, but a gulf in difference that would have been impossible to overcome otherwise.
No, even now, Yujinhwi was gradually getting stronger. If left to her own devices, she would surely reach Hyeongyeong’s realm.
She had to conclude things before that happened.
And now was the only chance while she was still not fully matured. Gangsimajon thought as he unleashed his hands.
In Yujinhwi’s gray vision, a red hue spread.
She sensed the invading will of the enemy piercing through her defenses. She couldn’t block it. Her disciple was blocking the attacks on the other side. At this rate…
Time stretched endlessly. Her will surged toward the Upper Dantian. But Hyeongyeong’s Wall still stood firm. Just as Yujinhwi bit her lip.
[Disciple.]
She heard Lee Cheol-soo’s voice in her mind.
*
Yeah.
I knew it would turn out like this. It was worth a shot, but defeating Gangsimajon was difficult. A wall named Hyeongyeong stood between him and us.
Of course, I had experienced Hyeongyeong in my previous life, but not now.
More than anything, as I reached the Stage of Transcendence, I realized.
Hyeongyeong.
The realm of Hyeongyeong I must reach was a different peak from my last life. It required a different realization. In my past life, I was a grown man who was a bit of a loser; I completed the microcosm of such a loser. That complete microcosm was already within my Mind’s World.
But I couldn’t use it in reality. I was no longer that loser’s second chance; I was a solid alpha male now.
However, I had to complete the microcosm of my colors, not as that loser, but as a grown man. Poetically speaking, I had to forge a path I had never taken in my past life.
The world of colors, the world of the grown man was still an untouched realm for me. I was only at the foot of the mountain.
Thus, truly becoming a grown man at this moment was a tall order.
But I could take the hits. In my eyes, the disciple was now just one step away from Hyeongyeong.
Just one step.
It looked ridiculously close, but having climbed there before, I knew.
That taking that step was incredibly challenging. Countless masters had never stepped that far in their lifetimes, remaining at the Stage of Transcendence.
Moreover, the development of Mind’s Martial Arts represented the life’s achievements of a warrior, their accumulated experiences. For a disciple as short-lived as him, it was impossible to achieve it perfectly at this moment.
‘I will give that last nudge.’
So, I decided.
I would make the final scar on the thick shell surrounding the disciple. If it were the disciple, she could reach it.
The only way to fill the disciple’s deficient 2% was through shock.
To show my sacrifice.
Besides.
‘If I don’t block it, the disciple is in danger.’
Gangsimajon’s covert move.
The disciple must have sensed it by now, but there was no room to block it.
So, I brought my body to take the hit.
A true grown man knows how to sacrifice for a woman.
That was the color I aimed for.
I thought this as I intercepted Gangsimajon’s attack, using Ihap Sin-gong, letting the energy flow as I took the hit instead of the disciple.
[Disciple.]
In the final moment.
I tried to convey something, but as the Protective Spirit Energy shattered, the overwhelming impact caused me to lose consciousness.
*
Disciple.
Lee Cheol-soo took the hit, leaving just a single word behind.
Thud.
Lee Cheol-soo fell to the corpse-littered ground. The barrier had already dissipated. The reversed taiji beneath his feet vanished.
Clang!
Yujinhwi deflected his attack and immediately rushed to the fallen Lee Cheol-soo.
She quickly checked his pulse. He wasn’t dead. But he was gravely injured. In critical condition. The disciple.
Yujinhwi understood the meaning behind her disciple’s last words.
It was trust. The disciple trusted and depended on her. He had no hesitation in sacrificing himself, certain that he would have his revenge on Gangsimajon later.
‘I am…’
Yujinhwi bit her lip.
She couldn’t protect him.
She was powerless.
Even though her disciple trusted her so much, she could not repay that trust.
“Hehehehe. Such a touching friendship between siblings. Is it because they’re both orphans? So special.”
Gangsimajon’s mocking voice echoed in her ears.
Yujinhwi clenched her fists.
Anger surged in her heart. It was one thing for her, but she could not tolerate insults to her disciple.
Gangsimajon, seated on the throne of cadavers, was now careless. He couldn’t manifest the barrier since he had dealt with the disciple. So now Yujinhwi was like a trapped mouse. That’s what he must have thought.
Her heart burned fiercely, while her head cooled.
It was a chance given by the disciple risking his life for her. The sin of not protecting her disciple could be atoned for after escaping this situation.
‘It’s a chance granted by my disciple.’
I can’t let it go to waste.
Yujinhwi lifted her sword. Her eyes seemed to lose focus. The disciple had fallen. She could no longer sense him. The disciple was gone. My disciple. My ever-smiling disciple. The one who always stayed by my side.
The first peer she ever had after joining the Gongdong Sect. Oddly mature yet sometimes childlike and endearing, her disciple.
A disciple who would pass on coveted elixirs that any martial artist would envy, always taking a step back to allow her prominence as the top disciple of the Gongdong Sect.
The disciple always sacrificed for others, for the sect.
For her, Yujinhwi.
And so, she made a resolution.
Even if all Nine Provinces and Eight Monarchs became enemies, even if the heavens turned against her.
She would protect her disciple’s side without fail. She swore it. But now, she couldn’t even sense the disciple’s presence.
Her will surged like a wildfire. Her eyes started to fade into gray.
The world turned gray.
Breathing became a struggle. Everything felt futile. A world without the disciple was like a dark moonless night.
No, it was merely emptiness. A universe without the disciple meant nothing to her.
Yeah.
That was the Void. Void. That was the true essence of her, born from the Heavenly Body.
A world without the disciple was just emptiness to her. Through this absence, Yujinhwi realized her nature and the true meaning of the disciple.
She didn’t love her disciple.
The disciple was her everything.
The disciple was her sibling, her friend, her family, sometimes a student, and occasionally the object of her affection.
All the emotions she felt were tied to her disciple. The Heavenly Body. Everything that filled her emptiness was her disciple.
The disciple was everything to her. Life itself. Her feelings for the disciple couldn’t dare be summed up with something as simple as love. Without her disciple, she wouldn’t have been able to have any human feelings at all.
KABOOM!
The cracked Hyeongyeong’s Wall collapsed.
Without the disciple, paradoxically, Yujinhwi attained Hyeongyeong’s realization.
Drip.
A tear fell from the gray-eyed Yujinhwi.
As she lifted her sword, a threatening wave of energy surged like a tempest.
[Wh-What is this, th-this makes no s-sense…!]
Hearing Gangsimajon’s voice, Yujinhwi took another step forward.
[Void of Extremes!]
The essence of Yujinhwi, along with her accumulated experiences and absurd talent, unfolded into the world, turning the scenery upside down.
An utterly barren gray sky and gray wasteland consumed by the Mountain of Corpses and Sea of Blood surged forth.
Yujinhwi.
It was the moment she ascended to Hyeongyeong’s realm.