Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 9

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 9
“Just now, that was…….”
At Cheon Hwi’s quiet remark, Hyun Do snapped back to awareness and stared down at his trembling hands.
He’d stopped swinging the sword long ago, yet the sensation he’d felt when deploying the Liuhe Sword Technique still lingered in his palms.
“The Liuhe Sword Technique?”
He whispered the question to himself, but in truth, he already understood instinctively.
What he’d just unleashed was the genuine Liuhe Sword Technique.
Whoosh—
He turned his head to look at Cheon Hwi.
The other stood with the wooden sword slung across his shoulder, his expression coolly indifferent.
It was utterly unlike the overly polite manner he’d shown in the past—quite arrogant, in fact.
Yet it suited the Cheon Hwi of now perfectly.
“Am I wrong?”
At his confident tone, Hyun Do found himself unable to speak, his sword hand trembling.
But only for a moment.
“No. You’re right.”
Hyun Do admitted it without hesitation.
Rather, he had no choice but to admit it.
The Liuhe Sword Technique as he’d deployed it following Cheon Hwi’s lead was every bit as formidable as any Advanced Sword Technique in his own sect.
‘No, perhaps even…….’
Hyun Do swallowed hard and asked.
“How did you ever think to wield the Liuhe Sword Technique in such a way?”
Cheon Hwi regarded him steadily.
The fierce anger that had blazed in his eyes moments before had vanished entirely.
In its place was only a searching gaze.
Unexpected, wasn’t it?
The corner of Cheon Hwi’s mouth lifted in a faint smile.
It was rare—almost never happened—for someone his age to acknowledge another’s words so readily, even when they were right.
Rarer still when that other was a child barely fourteen, with no internal cultivation to speak of.
He’d assumed he’d find only rigid, narrow-minded fools among the Daoists.
A soft laugh escaped him.
He liked the fire in Hyun Do’s eyes.
It was the same look he used to see every day in the mirror.
‘The eyes of one who lives only for martial arts.’
Cheon Hwi lifted the wooden sword from his shoulder and turned the question back on him.
“Why did your master insist that you assume a different stance for each technique form?”
Hyun Do stared at the questioner for a moment before answering quietly.
“The foundation of all martial arts is stance. Without proper positioning, you cannot draw forth true power.”
Cheon Hwi’s brow furrowed.
He’d suspected as much the moment he’d seen the martial texts in Wanjing Pavilion.
They trusted their manuals absolutely.
That’s why they hadn’t progressed in three hundred years.
‘How tediously conventional.’
Of course, when one knew nothing, mere imitation brought swift results.
But blind faith in what you’d been taught could never unlock true power.
‘If something feels wrong, you change it.’
He regarded Hyun Do with an expression of mild contempt.
But Cheon Hwi didn’t know one crucial thing.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Sect and the Orthodox Sect were not the same.
In the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, it didn’t matter if you altered your arts—only results mattered.
But in the Orthodox Sect, for a disciple to arbitrarily change the master’s techniques was a Capital Crime, a transgression grave enough to forfeit one’s life.
And Hyun Do took pride in the Huashan School; he devoted himself to mastering his arts, never once questioning whether what he’d learned was flawed.
So for such a person to suddenly claim that a technique passed down through generations was wrong, and to alter it of his own will?
It would be impossible—unless one day Hyun Do succumbed to Demonic Obsession and lost his mind.
But Cheon Hwi, ignorant of all this, simply stared at Hyun Do and spoke.
“No martial art I’ve ever known has its technique forms scattered and disconnected from one another. Yet this Liuhe Sword Technique felt like entirely separate techniques, each standing apart.”
“The ‘Liuhe’ refers to six directions—front and back, left and right, above and below—all unified into a single technique. Because of that, the forms don’t flow together smoothly…….”
Hyun Do trailed off, and his eyes grew sharp and distant.
A moment later, his gaze locked onto Cheon Hwi with sudden intensity.
“You changed it. Made it flow as one unbroken whole.”
Cheon Hwi’s eyes gleamed as he listened.
‘He has convictions.’
Hyun Do found himself warming to the boy.
His thinking was rigid, his perspective on martial arts orthodox to the point of dullness, yet he possessed a certain stubborn resolve.
And a genuine passion for the martial way.
“Six directions, then… I suppose that interpretation holds merit. But I’ve come to understand the Liuhe embedded in the Liuhe Sword Technique differently.”
“How so?”
Hyun Do’s gaze sharpened.
Swish—
Cheon Hwi raised the wooden sword.
“If the method were simply to teach one how to wield a blade across six directions, there would have been countless ways to do it. Nothing complicated about it—just repeat the motions and you’re done.”
The wooden sword cut through the air in six distinct directions.
This was the original Liuhe Sword Technique in its conventional form.
“But then why bother creating the Liuhe Sword Technique at all? It seems unnecessary to devise an entire technique merely to teach six directional stances.”
Hyun Do furrowed his brow at Cheon Hwi’s words, lost in thought for a moment before answering.
“It is a foundational technique. From ancient times, it has been said that to properly execute swordplay, one must comprehend Unity of Theory and Practice. Whether you understand the principles and the underlying logic means nothing if you cannot wield a blade, just as skill with a blade alone—without understanding its principles and theory—leaves even the most advanced sword techniques incomplete and unrefined.”
Hyun Do’s voice grew quieter.
“The Liuhe Sword Technique serves as a foundational method to resolve this very problem—to enlighten the practitioner on how to wield the blade, preparing them for the moment when they grasp the principles and logic contained within the advanced sword techniques.”
“Then you’re saying the Liuhe Sword Technique contains no underlying principle?”
“That is…”
Hyun Do’s expression twisted.
Principle in the Liuhe Sword Technique?
He had never contemplated such a thing.
And for good reason—the Liuhe was a foundational technique learned before advancing to the advanced sword techniques.
By the time one understood the underlying principles and was ready to properly execute those advanced forms, the focus shifted entirely away from Liuhe and toward the advanced techniques alone.
Cheon Hwi, observing Hyun Do’s increasingly troubled expression, pressed onward.
“In my view, the Liuhe Sword Technique does contain principle. Who in all the realm would call simple blade-waving a ‘technique’ if it lacked principle altogether?”
As Hyun Do grappled with Cheon Hwi’s reasoning, his thoughts grew tangled.
“From the start, I treated the Liuhe as a complete, finished technique. But when I practiced it, I found the transitions between forms lacked smoothness because I was too focused on the stances themselves. So I began thinking about how to bridge those gaps, and eventually, a method came to mind.”
Hyun Do leaned forward, his expression eager.
“What method?”
Cheon Hwi smiled slyly.
“Didn’t I just tell you?”
“What—”
“That I understood Liuhe differently.”
In that instant, Cheon Hwi’s wooden sword transformed.
What had been sharp, discrete cuts now flowed like a reed bending in the breeze, and the six separate forms merged seamlessly into one.
“By binding all six techniques together into a single unified whole.”
“…!”
Hyun Do’s eyes widened like lanterns.
Liuhe bore a dual meaning.
Six and one.
One and six.
Direction and form both.
Once unified and then separated again, the transitions could flow only with natural grace.
‘Such principle hidden in Liuhe…’
He stared at Cheon Hwi in astonishment.
For hundreds of years, tens of thousands had learned this technique.
Yet no one—not a single soul—had ever understood the meaning of Liuhe the way Cheon Hwi did.
Of course, most had simply moved on to the advanced techniques.
But still.
‘For him to perceive the hidden meaning of Liuhe that all these centuries had overlooked…’
His entire body trembled.
Merely fourteen years old.
Having entered the martial way less than three days ago, and Cheon Hwi had accomplished this.
Not only grasped it, but executed it flawlessly.
Admiration burst forth unbidden.
“Extraordinary.”
Hyun Do’s eyes shone bright as he leaned closer, face flushed with genuine wonder.
“When exactly did you grasp this understanding of Liuhe? When you executed the first form? While wielding the blade? Or perhaps as you transitioned into the second form…?”
Cheon Hwi’s brows furrowed.
With his already severe expression looming inches away, the weight of it was suffocating. Catching sight of this change only belatedly, Hyun Do cleared his throat awkwardly and muttered to himself.
“Ah, I got a bit carried away there.”
Soon after, a pleased smile crossed his face.
‘A true genius. A genuine genius!’
The recent swordwork had overturned his assessment that it was crude.
Cheon Hwi’s technique was so remarkably refined that Hyun Do wanted to travel back in time and strike his former self across the head for that earlier judgment.
“When did you grasp the meaning of the Liuhe?”
“From the start.”
……!
Hyun Do’s eyes widened.
‘He understood it from the very beginning?’
While Hyun Do stood stunned as if struck by a stone, Cheon Hwi opened his mouth.
“It became rather unnatural when the next form followed immediately after.”
Cheon Hwi’s voice carried clearly to his ears.
“You wouldn’t have noticed the unnaturalness because you’ve been deploying the Liuhe Sword Technique as you first learned it, but since this was my first time, I caught it right away.”
“Familiarity blinds one.”
“The answer is often hidden in plain sight, so we miss it sometimes.”
“Hidden in plain sight……!”
Crack!
Lightning struck through Hyun Do’s mind.
Days when there was no time to look to the side.
He should have glanced sideways and backward at least once, yet he had rushed headlong forward.
And so his vision had narrowed.
Narrowed so much he could not properly see what lay directly before him.
‘Impatience has blinded me.’
Whoosh—
Hyun Do carefully lowered the sword in his hand and sank to the ground where he stood.
‘I believed that to reach the Tianwu Zhijing Realm, the Taiyi Mili Technique had to reach its zenith. But must one truly perfect it to attain that realm? Perhaps I have already touched that state, but failed to realize it because I was so focused on perfecting this technique…….’
Cheon Hwi stared at Hyun Do, who had suddenly crossed his legs in a meditation posture, his brow creasing.
From Hyun Do, now completely immersed in a state of no-self as he practiced Qi Circulation Breathing, an extraordinary presence radiated outward in all directions.
“……I’ve only served as a stepping stone for him.”
Cheon Hwi muttered this, stroking his chin.
The chin that would once have been covered in stubble now felt smooth to the touch.
Then he narrowed his eyes and turned his head away.
“Judging by his state, it looks like it’ll take a while before he wakes. Shall I practice the sword techniques I saw at Wanjing Pavilion while I wait for him to emerge?”
Having come this far, Cheon Hwi—who had taken up the role of guardian until Hyun Do awoke—gripped the wooden sword in his hand once more.
Crack—
Along with it, he recalled the signature sword techniques of the Huashan School and the lost techniques recorded only in the Huashan Records.
Swish— Swish—
The wooden sword moved in response.
A moment later.
Flash!
Hyun Do’s eyes opened, and his gaze blazed with light. The radiance produced by the inner force he had not yet fully stabilized gradually dimmed and darkened.
Soon his vision grew clear, and his eyes returned to their normal state.
“At last…….”
Hyun Do clenched both fists tightly.
For two years he had seemed on the verge, yet never quite reached that realm—until now.
Then Cheon Hwi entered his field of vision.
Holding the wooden sword with his small hands, Cheon Hwi wore an expression of boredom.
“How much time has passed?”
“About a moment, I’d say.”
Cheon Hwi answered in a tone tinged with irritation.
And indeed, Hyun Do’s state of no-self had lasted longer than he’d anticipated.
Despite Cheon Hwi’s evident displeasure, Hyun Do rose to his feet with a laugh.
“Ha ha ha. It’s all thanks to you.”
Cheon Hwi watched him approach with a soft smile resting at the corners of his mouth.
That expression didn’t quite suit a smile.
Though Hyun Do’s intention had surely been kind, what appeared was altogether different.
The scar writhed at the corners of his upturned mouth, the wrinkles deepening across his face.
It was like the murderous smile that Gui Yanma wore before committing a kill.
But Hyun Do, utterly unaware of what expression now crossed his own face, spoke in a voice softer than usual, barely audible.
“Thank you.”
Though Hyun Do had offered his gratitude with genuine feeling, Cheon Hwi remained indifferent.
It was an impolite manner, but Hyun Do, already smitten, found such reserve rather endearing.
After gazing warmly at Cheon Hwi for a moment longer, Hyun Do tilted his head back and burst into laughter toward the sky.
“Ha ha ha ha. To send me such a treasure, the Heavenly Lord has not yet abandoned our school!”
Hyun Do could not conceal his joy.
But it was brief.
“I cannot linger now. I must hurry and tell the Senior Sect Brother of this excellent news!”
As if remembering something he had forgotten, Hyun Do cried out and turned to Cheon Hwi.
Then he smiled warmly and said,
“I shall speak well of you to him!”
“What?”
Cheon Hwi’s expression grew vacant.
But before he could respond, Hyun Do suddenly drove off the ground and vanished in an instant.
Watching the dust settle where Hyun Do had been, Cheon Hwi muttered with a bewildered face.
“What was all that about?”
* * *
Zixia Pavilion.
In the ancestral residence of the Huashan School’s sect leader, the present leader, Hyun Sang, sat sipping tea from which wisps of white steam rose gently.
‘Everything depends on how our school appears at this Five Mountains Conference after four years in the Central Plains.’
Since the Five Mountains Conference was being held for the first time in twenty years, he had taken exceptional care.
He had persuaded the magistrate of Zaiping to spend considerable funds renovating Plum Fragrance Hall, and had undertaken repairs and embellishments at various locations.
All preparations were complete.
The only regret was that nearly all of the Plum Blossom Sword Masters were absent.
Since the catastrophic Blood Incident eight years prior, the Huashan School’s standing within the Wulin Alliance had steadily narrowed.
As a result, other sects had begun eyeing their position, and he had reluctantly dispatched the school’s finest—the Plum Blossom Sword Masters—and his disciple Hyun Jin to the Wulin Alliance.
To demonstrate that the Huashan School remained strong.
For that reason, no matter how important the Five Mountains Conference, he could not call them back to the school.
‘No, perhaps this is an opportunity. If the school can prove its strength at the Five Mountains Conference without the Plum Blossom Sword Masters…….’
While he was lost in thought,
Bang!
Suddenly the door to Zixia Pavilion swung open, and the yellow glow of sunset streamed in.
“Senior Sect Brother!”
Hyun Do appeared amid the golden rays. Hyun Sang immediately fixed his gaze on Hyun Do standing gracefully before him and opened his mouth.
“What urgent matter brings you—”
But he stopped short, astonished.
Hyun Do stood before him.
Yet no presence emanated from him.
That could mean only one thing.
“Return to Simplicity and Return to Truth?!”
Hyun Do smiled broadly.
Seeing his meaningful grin, Hyun Sang asked urgently,
“Have you broken through the barrier?”
Hyun Do nodded in response, and
“At last……”
Hyun Sang rose, overwhelmed with emotion.
“We must announce to everyone that you have transcended the barrier.”
True to form as fellow disciples, Hyun Sang spoke the very words Hyun Do had uttered. He was about to rush from Zixia Pavilion to spread this joyful news when—
“Senior Sect Brother.”
Hyun Do stopped him in his tracks.
“There is something more important than that.”
“More important? You have just reached the Tianwu Zhijing Realm. What could possibly be more important than this?”
“No. There is.”
Hyun Sang’s face hardened at the resolute gleam in Hyun Do’s eyes, and he asked,
“What is it……?”
“Cheon Hwi is a genius!”
“……What?”
At Hyun Do’s interruption and declaration, Hyun Sang was momentarily left speechless.
“Not merely a genius—the greatest genius of all time, nay, of all ages!”
Hyun Do’s cry shook the Zixia Pavilion to its foundations.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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