The Terminally Ill Young Master of the Baek Clan

The Sword Emperor added to Yi-gang, “You must become a Supreme Peak master.”

Now, it felt like the distant past, but Gumiho had something to ask of Yi-gang.

It was to ensure the flow of Qi did not stop by connecting the Ren and Du meridians.

That would extend Yi-gang’s life and could also save the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon.

The connection of the Ren and Du meridians was often equated with becoming a Supreme Peak master in the martial world.

However, through a conversation with Dam Hyun, he learned that this was only half true.

With great effort and various trials, Yi-gang managed to break through the gateway of life and death.

But that did not necessarily mean he had become a Supreme Peak master.

As evidence, Yi-gang was still only at the level of a Peak master.

「You must not stay put. You must move forward.」

Zhang Sanfeng also agreed.

He told Yi-gang what he knew about the Evil Cult and promised to guide him towards becoming a Supreme Peak master.

「If your growth stops, that will be the end of a swordsman’s life.」

But he did not expect such stern words.

‘A Taoist shouldn’t be saying such things. If one is a Taoist, one should practice non-action and learn that the world is essentially emptiness.’

It wasn’t for no reason that Taoists spoke of non-action and purity.

The words of Zhang Sanfeng about the life of a swordsman clearly leaned more towards those of a martial artist than a Taoist.

However, Zhang Sanfeng did not look flustered or as if he had been hit by a blow. Instead, he simply smiled faintly.

「Laozi spoke of accomplishing deeds and then stepping back, to abandon possessions, which is also the Tao. For the immortal Zhang Sanfeng to tell the young priest to wield a sword is likewise in accordance with the Tao.」

‘Haha.’

「The study of alchemy is also an important path to becoming a transcendent immortal. I won’t make you eat only pine needles and live secluded; instead, cultivate your internal elixir through breathing and guiding exercises,」sternly said Zhang Sanfeng.

It was as if he was saying, ‘How dare you discuss the Tao when I am an immortal?’ but his tone was not scolding.

Yi-gang agreed as well.

“What specifically should I do to become a Supreme Peak master?”

It was not Zhang Sanfeng who answered this question.

The Sword Emperor, sitting on a rock, responded, “What would happen if you break a bowl filled with water?”

The Sword Emperor replied with a question of his own.

Yi-gang answered, “The water that was contained would spill out.”

“What if a person were like that vessel? If the vessel breaks and the water spills.”

“They would die.”

When the original essence was damaged, we say the vessel had broken.

If the vessel breaks, the person dies.

Even if there are just cracks in the vessel, it’s the same. The energy contained within the body will start to leak out.

The Innate Qi was that water. Hence, if the water ran out, the person would dry up and die.

“How is your vessel?”

“It is full of water.”

“Is the vessel sufficiently large?”

“It is not.”

The condition of Yi-gang’s body was clearly such.

Especially in the Kunlun Mountains, it was severe. With the training and the elixirs taken so far, Yi-gang’s body was like a water vessel filled to the brim.

That’s why Gumiho ordered him to connect the Life and Death Gateway.

“Did you expand your vessel by connecting the Life and Death Gateway?”

“…”

Yi-gang had thought so.

“It doesn’t seem so.”

“That’s right. It was wrong.”

The Sword Emperor said he would teach Yi-gang, who was not even his disciple.

He first assessed Yi-gang’s physical condition. Not just physically, but he also gauged Yi-gang’s level of mental enlightenment.

He may not have been a greater expert than Zhang Sanfeng, but perhaps he was an even better teacher than Zhang Sanfeng.

“When the vessel breaks, where does the spilled water go?”

At that question, Yi-gang was momentarily at a loss for words. What happens after the water spills? Does the spilled water seep into the ground? Or does it keep flowing to join some majestic river somewhere?

“I don’t know.”

“Outside the vessel, there might be nothing but emptiness, it could be inside the belly of a dragon, or it might be within another large vessel.”

“…”

“Your connection of the Ren and Du meridians is like creating another vessel to hold your own. But you didn’t manage to break your original vessel.”

Despite connecting the Life and Death Gateway, that was why Yi-gang couldn’t advance to the next realm.

It was fear that prevented him from breaking the vessel.

“That’s why you were able to add more water to your vessel. Even if a small dish full of soy sauce overflows, the water will naturally collect in a larger vessel that contains it…”

“Then I should…”

“What you need to do is break your existing small vessel. It’s like moving from a pond to a lake.”

The barrier between Peak and Supreme Peak mastery must be such.

Yi-gang suddenly became curious.

Then, is the vessel of an Absolute master another, even larger vessel?

What comes next then?

The already Absolute master, the Sword Emperor, was looking beyond.

The path that Zhang Sanfeng once took, or the path that the Heavenly Demon reached.

“What comes after the lake?”

That’s why Yi-gang asked.

The Sword Emperor paused for a moment before replying, “What is larger than a lake?”

“Is it the sea?”

“Have you seen the sea? Have you ever ventured into the great ocean where, looking in all directions, you see nothing but a blue horizon?”

Yes, in a past life.

The sea, incomparably vast and boundless, could not be compared to lakes or ponds.

The realm the Sword Emperor had reached might be akin to the sea.

As Yi-gang remained silent, the Sword Emperor added, “The ocean is infinite. At the end of human perception lies the sea. A human is smaller than a handful of its water, and that handful of water is larger than Lake Dongting. ‘I’ do not exist in the grand flow of nature; that is non-action and the Tao.”

It seemed the Sword Emperor had indeed experienced the ocean.

“Furthermore, what comes next is…”

「Well done.」

Zhang Sanfeng gave a satisfied smile.

The discussion the Sword Emperor was having diverged from Zhang Sanfeng’s path of martial arts.

Thus, it was clear. The Sword Emperor had stepped out of the shadow of the Heaven Ascension Dance.

Zhang Sanfeng expressed joy that Sword Emperor Jang Kyung had found his own new path.

The Sword Emperor pointed to the sky.

“Isn’t it the sky?”

“The sky?”

“The ocean’s waterways are deep, yet they have an end, and even if Mount Tai is high enough to pierce the sky, the sky does not bleed.”

The Tao of the Sword Emperor. That was the sky.

“Even if Founder Zhang Sanfeng says the evil dragon is huge, when it rises high into the sky, it becomes smaller than a sparrow. I aspire to become the sky.”

If the royal court heard the statement of wanting to become the sky, they might think of it as treason. However, the Sword Emperor was neither arrogant nor boasting.

Yi-gang recalled the strange basin he had seen on his way here.

The place, treated as forbidden even in Mount Wudang, was vast, yet not a single blade of grass or tree grew there.

It was where Zhang Sanfeng had fought with the evil dragon for seven days and nights.

Yi-gang felt overwhelmed by the Sword Emperor.

“Based on my experience and judgment, the Radiant Shadowless Art is certainly a martial art meant for spiritual powers.”

“It seems so.”

“And such martial arts of spiritual power suit you well. It will break your vessel.”

Zhang Sanfeng, the Immortal Divine Sword, and the Sword Emperor all shared this opinion.

The Great Yin Flow was already a part of Yi-gang’s daily life.

When walking, Yi-gang utilized the secret art of light footwork, and when exerting strength, he reached the realm where he utilized the secret art of physical power.

Then the Radiant Shadowless Art.

What kind of martial art was this grandiosely named art?

Finally, the Sword Emperor’s detailed discussion on martial arts began.

“What have you learned?”

“It is said to be a martial art that feels what is not visible and sees what is not audible.”

That’s what Neung Ji-pyeong had told him.

One needs to be proficient enough to strike a flying stone while blindfolded and with ears blocked with cotton.

It was a martial art governing the sixth sense, beyond the five senses; that was the Shadowless Splendor.

“That is merely acrobatics.”

“Acrobatics…?”

Had Neung Ji-pyeong heard this, it would have been a cold assessment harsh enough to wound him.

“The issue is that you haven’t grasped the essence of the Radiant Shadowless Art from the very beginning of your training. I don’t know if it’s to conceal the true nature of the Radiant Shadowless Art…”

Yi-gang promised to share what he learned from the Sword Emperor with Neung Ji-pyeong.

He opened his ears and listened attentively to the Sword Emperor.

“It’s not about the sixth sense, it’s about spiritual powers. Seeing beyond the senses is not a big deal. How many martial artists have tried to utilize intuition in their martial arts? They all tried to walk on the edge of a sword and ended up slicing their feet.”

“So the difference between spiritual powers and the sixth sense is…”

“Perceiving the world by opening the fontanelle is spiritual power. Utilizing the sixth sense is not the way of an immortal’s sword, but that of a spirit or a shaman’s sword.”

Yi-gang nodded.

Understanding the world through infinitely expanded perception. He couldn’t be unfamiliar with that.

Hadn’t Yi-gang felt the perspective of Absolute masters with his own body? What about the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon? She had fought and won against Supreme Peak masters even while blindfolded.

“The Radiant Shadowless Art was originally a divine art permitted only to those Supreme Peak martial artists who had opened their fontanelle from the start.”

“I see.”

“You will train with me for the next three months.”

What was the method of training?

“By meditating deeply, contemplating oneself, and swinging the sword to embody enlightenment. The formal training of the Radiant Shadowless Art will be done at night.”

“At night… you say?”

Although the Immortal Divine Sword emphasized several times that regular sleep and adequate nutrition were the basics of training, one could not always grow comfortably.

“Sleep will be restricted. You will sharpen your mind without sleep. Meals will also be limited. You will subsist only on pine needles, jujubes, and raw chestnuts with me.”

It was an ordeal.

The secularized Taoist sects did not often follow this path of immortals.

“Even if your vessel breaks, since you have prepared a larger one, it is permissible to use drastic methods to break the vessel.”

“I think so too.”

It was clear that challenges far greater than reduced sleep and restricted diet were prepared. However, Yi-gang did not avert his eyes from the Sword Emperor.

He had never avoided pain.

He resolved to live that way.

Moreover, he would not be alone.

“I will be with you.”

“I will follow.”

Yi-gang’s time to return to the Murim Alliance headquarters was not far off.

However, time was even more pressing for the Sword Emperor. Death was approaching him by the minute.

「You’ve met a good master.」

Zhang Sanfeng laughed heartily.

From that day on, the training of Yi-gang and the Sword Emperor began.

It was an ordeal meant to shatter their limitations and broaden their horizons.

The Sword Emperor’s retreat was strictly off-limits to ensure their training was undisturbed.

The flow of time was not the same for everyone.

Some felt time as fast and merciless as an arrow shot, while others felt it was as slow as when one was immersed in hot water.

For Tang Eun-seol and Peng Gu-in, the time spent in Mount Wudang must have felt long.

This was not just any place but the revered Wudang of the martial world, certainly not a place to roam around like a curious child.

The place where they stayed was a Taoist temple where visitors stayed.

Unlike the headquarters of the Murim Alliance, it was neither glamorous nor ornate.

The only thing to do here was to practice martial arts alone and appreciate the scenery of Mount Wudang.

That day, it was snowing heavily.

It had been nearly three months since Yi-gang had secluded himself with the Sword Emperor for training.

During that time, autumn had ended and deep winter had arrived.

Today, with the particularly large snowflakes, Mount Wudang turned into a spectacular snow mountain.

However, Tang Eun-seol and Peng Gu-in could not leisurely enjoy the scenery.

Their faces were tense, having not felt such tension in a long time.

Neung Ji-pyeong, who had come up from Daojing County, had brought a secret message from the Murim Alliance.

“…The Unorthodox Union has started hostile actions.”

“The leader of the Unorthodox Union has gone mad.”

Neung Ji-pyeong’s face was also stern.

The Murim Alliance ordered Neung Ji-pyeong and his party to return immediately to the Kaifeng headquarters.

This was because the sects under the Unorthodox Union were continuously attacking the sects affiliated with the Murim Alliance.

“Why all of a sudden…”

Although they pursued different goals, the relationship between the Unorthodox Union and the Murim Alliance was not bad.

Moreover, the uprising of the Demon Cult was imminent.

It was certain they would not distinguish between righteousness and evil when they invaded Jianghu, so a secret agreement had been made between them.

The actions of the Unorthodox Union were incomprehensible.

Peng Gu-in shouted angrily, “How dare those worthless scoundrels!”

“…”

Peng Gu-in was enraged, and Tang Eun-seol also cast a cold glare.

The letter also mentioned losses to the Peng and Tang Clans.

Several from the Peng Clan’s Fierce Tiger Blade Brigade had died, and martial artists from the Tang Clan’s Inner Hall had also died.

It was a loss not seen in decades.

There was also news that Peng Gu-hwi, Peng Gu-in’s brother, had been injured.

They had been quietly waiting for Yi-gang’s achievements.

But in this situation, they could no longer wait.

“Let’s go see Young Master Yi-gang.”

Neung Ji-pyeong turned his gaze towards the swirling snowflakes.

Beyond there, hidden by the heavy snow, must be Yi-gang.

Indeed, Neung Ji-pyeong wondered if he had reached the realm of Supreme Peak.

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