Chapter 37

## Chapter 37. The Reason a Master is Needed

I immediately recognized the martial arts technique Wijichun had just demonstrated.

There was no way I couldn't.

It was the technique among your master's martial arts that took the longest time to refine.

'It was definitely the Wuji Jian (無極劍).'

At first, it was a unique technique of Sword Venerable Master, but gradually, the interpretations of other masters were added, making it impossible to say whose it was.

Therefore, it was the most difficult and obscure technique.

Even Sword Venerable Master couldn't confidently claim to have perfectly mastered it.

This was also the reason I wanted to forge a sword with Yuncheol.

'Wuji Jian is almost impossible to master alone. No, even with a master...'

It's a technique that will inevitably lead to madness.

Because I made it that way.

"Why are you silent? Do you know anything about that technique?"

Wijiyul questioned me with a stern expression.

After a moment of organizing my thoughts, I slowly shook my head.

"It's a technique I don't know... but I asked because the move just now was incredible."

Wijiyul's face showed a hint of disappointment at my answer.

"Is that so... In fact, I don't know it either."

"Really?"

"A few years ago, I left my grandson here for a few months to visit another place. During that time, someone came looking for him."

"How did they find this place?"

"He was skilled in the school's formations. He felt the traces here on the mountain and came looking. But unfortunately, I wasn't here, and only the boy was."

The man who came to Wijichun was a man wearing a black hood.

- Are you a descendant of the Blood Sect?

The man asked Wijichun this, but Wijichun didn't answer, fearing it might harm his grandfather.

After observing Wijichun for a while, the man gave the boy a blank book and said:

- Do you want to take revenge on the world? If so, master this technique. If you can master it in ten years, you can become the best in the world.

The man left after saying this, and by the time Wijiyul returned, his curious grandson had read the book several times.

"...I tried to find the man's whereabouts, but I couldn't. He never came back."

"Did your grandson learn the technique in the book on his own?"

"At first, I was worried. It could have been a demonic technique that would harm his body. But no matter how I examined it, there was nothing like that. It was a great technique, one that I couldn't even understand."

Wijiyul looked at his grandson with red, bloodshot eyes.

Just then, a mountain rabbit approached the boy and tilted its head.

"He is a genius in martial arts, incomparable to me. That's why I believed he could master the technique from the secret manual. I hoped he would become the best in the world... to avenge his dead parents. But it was all in vain..."

Tears finally streamed down the old man's eyes.

"Later, I realized he had fallen into madness and tried to stop him, but there was no way. At first, I couldn't bring myself to kill my only blood relative, and now my abilities can't reach him."

"..."

"I beg you. Kill the boy and give him peace. If you do this... I will make anything you want."

Pwaaah!

The rabbit's flesh was shredded into pieces and scattered over the two graves.

The boy laughed heartily and slowly ate the flesh stuck to his fingers, savoring it.

"How many years has he been practicing that technique?"

"About three years."

I tried to gauge how much Wijichun had mastered of Wuji Jian.

'If it's three years... it might already be too late.'

The Wijia Clan, one of the ten major families of the Blood Sect, was known more for their metallurgy and explosive-making skills than martial arts.

Their martial arts were relatively weak.

'If it were another family, they wouldn't have recklessly practiced an unfamiliar technique, no matter how powerful it was.'

The boy, who had never learned a technique that could satisfy his talent, must have been completely absorbed in the secret manual of Wuji Jian the moment he read it.

"I understand. I'll accept the request."

I started to walk down the hill. Wijiyul hurriedly followed behind me and said:

"Be careful. Among the wandering warriors who came before, there were also peak experts."

"How many rounds did they fight before dying?"

"...In my memory, they didn't last more than fifty rounds."

Fifty rounds in a real fight is just a blink of an eye.

But to kill a peak expert in less than fifty rounds...

'That's a monster.'

As I approached the thatched cottage, Wijichun, sensing our presence, turned to look at us.

"Hehe."

The boy who met my eyes laughed innocently and stood up.

"Grandpa!"

"...Chun."

Wijiyul clenched his teeth and looked at his grandson. Wijichun pointed at me with his finger and said:

"It's a guest? He came to play with me!"

"...Yeah. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Uh-huh! No one has come for a while, so I was bored!"

Wijichun pulled out the sword stuck between the graves.

He raised the sword with a cheerful smile and pointed it at me.

"I hope you don't die too quickly!"

"..."

I carefully observed Wijichun's stance and slowly drew out Yueying.

At the same time, I wondered who had given the boy the secret manual of Wuji Jian.

'The man in the black hood.'

Coincidentally, I had heard a similar story from Qingtian not long ago.

- ...A man in a black hood threw a book at me. He said I would gain power if I mastered it...

The secret manual Qingtian received was the Blood Demon Technique, and this time it was Wuji Jian.

There was a vast difference in the level of the two techniques, but they had one thing in common.

They both originated from the vanished Blood Sect.

'Are the two men in black hoods the same person?'

With the information I have now, I can't be sure.

There are many people in the martial world who wear black hoods, and I myself wore one when I went to the wandering warrior market.

What is certain is that there is someone spreading the Blood Sect's techniques in the martial world.

'They could be multiple people or an organized group.'

I don't know their purpose yet, but perhaps...

"Grandpa! Can I kill him now?"

The boy's excited voice, eager to play with a new toy, brought me back to reality.

'I need to deal with this kid first.'

I turned my head to look at Wijiyul.

"I have one request. Please retreat to a place where you can't see us until this is over."

"Why...?"

"I don't want you to see me kill your grandson. And when the moment comes, you might weaken and try to stop me."

"It won't be like that..."

"Sir."

"...I understand."

Wijiyul nodded, seemingly unsure, and retreated.

"Chun, when you can't see your grandfather anymore, start playing with this brother. Got it?"

"It's hide-and-seek! Uh-huh!"

Wijiyul retreated with a bitter expression.

Once his figure disappeared over the hill, Wijichun grinned and gathered his inner strength.

Kwakwakwakwak!

The grass around Wijichun flattened, and his disheveled hair rose as if caught in a strong wind.

The boy, with red eyes, bared his white teeth.

A gray sword aura enveloped his sword.

"Brother, are you ready to play with me?"

"Yeah."

An unbelievable aura, one that I, a few weeks ago, could never have faced.

The technique he was using was one that I couldn't have matched back then.

'Thank goodness I took the Seven-Leaf Grass before coming here.'

Before coming here, I took the Seven-Leaf Grass I bought from the wandering warrior market.

Thanks to it, my Reversing Heaven Technique had surpassed the second level and was almost at the third.

"If I had taken one more root... but for now, I'll have to make do with this."

I gathered my inner strength and infused it into Yueying.

The blade hummed pleasantly.

At the same time, a faint but red sword aura enveloped my sword.

I raised my sword and pointed it at Wijichun's forehead.

"Show me the sword you've been practicing on your own."

"Aha-ha-ha! Don't die too quickly!"

The cheerful boy charged at me, laughing.

* * *

Swoosh.

A few strands of hair were cut off.

I thought I had dodged perfectly, but at the last moment, his sword tip wobbled and changed its trajectory.

A faint bloodline appeared on my forehead, and a drop of blood formed.

"Aha-ha-ha! This is fun!"

Wijichun looked as happy as a child who had just received a new toy.

He swung his sword again, his eyes gleaming.

"Don't die! It won't be fun if you die!"

"..."

The gray sword aura on Wijichun's sword swirled violently.

Wijichun, who had stomped the ground, thrust his sword at me with lightning speed.

'Wuji Yishe (無極一).'

The fastest move in Wuji Jian.

I immediately twisted my body, but I couldn't completely dodge it.

Sssss.

My clothes were torn at the waist, and a long wound bled profusely.

Wijichun jumped back in surprise.

"You dodged? Impressive!"

"...You're underestimating me."

"Try this one too!"

Wijichun unleashed a series of Wuji Jian moves as if showing off.

I retreated, dodging what I could and blocking what I couldn't.

Clang!

The swords clashed, sparks flying.

During the dozens of exchanges, all the injuries were on my side.

I frowned and looked at my sword.

'Is this my limit for now?'

The faint red sword aura was gradually fading.

It was inevitable due to my low level of the Reversing Heaven Technique.

At least I needed to reach the third level to properly manifest a sword aura.

There was a way to force it, but...

"First, I'll have to make do without teeth."

Fortunately, my gums were very strong.

Clang!

I struck the sword sharply and briefly, and Wijichun, pushed back by the counterforce, stumbled backward.

"Eh?"

The sudden change to an offensive stance caught him off guard.

"Kid, the fun is over."

I changed my footwork and advanced. Wijichun, seeing my footwork, exclaimed in surprise.

"That's my footwork!"

"It was originally mine."

Wuji Jian is not just a sword technique.

It includes the movements of the feet, the body, and the mind.

It is a martial art that contains all the teachings of a great master who once discussed being the best in the world with a sword.

Slap!

I swung the sword like a ruler and struck Wijichun's thigh.

"Ouch!"

"Your stance is wrong. Lower your center of gravity, straighten your waist, and who taught you to shake the tip of your sword so carelessly?"

"Ow-ow-ow!!"

Wijichun's eyes wavered in confusion. Then, he shouted and thrust his sword again.

"Die!"

But the move, which I had seen countless times, couldn't even brush against my clothes.

I struck his arm, which passed by me uselessly, like a ruler.

Slap!

"Keep your elbows in. Relax your shoulders and use your wrists more. Wuji Jian is a technique of softness."

"Ow-ow-ow!!"

Wijichun's eyes flared with bloodlust as he spun his body.

Whoosh!

The gray sword aura on his sword burned like a flame.

But whether it was a sword aura or a sword beam, it was meaningless if it didn't hit.

Slap!

"Calm down. With such attacks, you might catch a bird or a rabbit, but do you think it will work on a person? Don't disgrace the creator of this sword technique."

"Arghhhhh!"

On the day I escaped from the prison, I compiled your master's techniques into secret manuals and handed them over to Manao.

However, I deliberately omitted or altered the crucial parts of those manuals.

At first, it was hard to notice, but as one practiced, it would inevitably lead to madness.

'The Blood Sect was supposed to be fed this... but it ended up being mastered by this kid.'

Therefore, I felt a bit responsible for Wijichun.

"Brother, this is no fun! I hate you! I don't like you! Die, die, die!"

Wijichun, having completely lost his mind, gathered all his remaining inner strength and infused it into his sword.

Whoosh!

The sword, enveloped in a gray flame, was no longer recognizable in form.

"Tsk..."

It looked very threatening, but to me, its flaws were even more apparent.

His footwork was a mess, and the form of his moves had completely collapsed.

A master would never fall for such an attack.

"To properly teach this, it would take a long time."

I sighed and infused the remaining inner strength into Yueying.

The sword trembled, and the faint sword aura became slightly stronger.

"Yaaaaaah!"

With a roar, Wijichun charged at me like a madman.

I quietly raised my sword.

Recalling the sword technique that Sword Venerable Master had shown me on the day I escaped from the prison, I carefully thrust my sword.

Wuji Jian (無極劍) Secret Technique

True Wuji Yishe (無極一)

In an instant, our figures crossed.

I sheathed Yueying and slowly turned around.

"That's why a great master is important."

Thud.

Wijichun fell to the ground, spewing blood.