The Battle for the Heavenly Sword - Chapter 12

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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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12
The Struggle for Supremacy
Baek Ho-yang stopped walking and glanced behind him.
He saw Woo Geom-san following him diligently, drenched in sweat.
Although his speed could not compare to Baek Ho-yang’s, his walking posture was roughly similar to Baek Ho-yang’s.
‘He has definitely grasped the feeling of Smooth Flow.’
Riding the current without resisting was the very essence of Smooth Flow.
The core of Smooth Flow itself was not difficult.
The problem was feeling the current and adapting it to one’s body.
Feeling belonged to the realm of the senses.
He had to realize and experience it for himself. That was why it was difficult.
There were many experts who had left their names in the long history of the Quanzhen Sect.
Among them were absolute experts who had turned the world upside down. However, not all of them had mastered the Flowing Void Steps.
This was because a special sense was required to learn the Flowing Void Steps.
Fortunately, Woo Geom-san seemed to possess that sense.
If he kept learning Smooth Flow like this, he would be able to master it without any problems. No matter how long it took.
The problem was Stepping on the Void.
Just because he had learned Smooth Flow did not mean he could easily learn Stepping on the Void.
Stepping on the Void was a cultivation of a completely different level from Smooth Flow.
To enter this stage, bone-carving effort and a long time were required.
There was a long way to go.
Even Baek Ho-yang did not know for sure how far they would have to go.
It was then.
“What are you thinking so deeply about?”
Woo Geom-san, who had approached Baek Ho-yang’s side before he knew it, looked up with a puzzled expression.
Baek Ho-yang smiled gently and said.
“Is it not exhausting?”
“It is exhausting. But it’s fun.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes! It’s fun that the feeling of walking changes every hour. Isn’t it fascinating? It’s just proper walking, yet the feeling can be this different.”
“Smooth Flow certainly provides that kind of enjoyment.”
“Yes! That’s why I don’t even realize how tired I am.”
“That is fortunate.”
Baek Ho-yang’s smile deepened a bit more.
From following him, Woo Geom-san’s face was flushed red.
And rightfully so, because he had only caught the feeling of Smooth Flow but lacked the strength to support it.
Without the backing of Internal Energy, following purely with the strength of the flesh made it inevitably exhausting.
“Listen while walking. From now on, I will teach you how to breathe properly.”
“Pardon?”
“If you breathe properly, walking will be less exhausting.”
“Ah!”
Woo Geom-san let out an exclamation.
Because it was the moment he had been anticipating so much.
“Wuwei Ziran, Muxin Ji Dao. You must remember these eight characters in the future. Because the entire essence of proper breathing is contained within them.”
“Wuwei Ziran, Muxin Ji Dao?”
“Yes! Empty your mind and cut off attachment. Do not strive to gain anything; when you let go of your own desires, the Dao follows you. Among these, the phrase you need to care about right now is Wuwei. Do not force your strength. Do not go against the principles of nature, and follow the flow. Then the energy of heaven will dwell within you. This also connects with proper walking, so if you realize this, you will be able to walk much more comfortably.”
What Baek Ho-yang was teaching Woo Geom-san right now was the very beginning of the Choyeon Simgyeol, the supreme cultivation of the Quanzhen Sect.
The Choyeon Simgyeol was a Mental Law containing the summation of several hundred years of the Quanzhen Sect.
Usually, it was a profound divine art that one entered last after mastering the other martial arts of the Quanzhen Sect.
To learn the Choyeon Simgyeol, one had to erase what they had learned and mastered until now.
Just as one must empty a cup to fill it, the Choyeon Simgyeol followed the same principle.
If Woo Geom-san’s physical condition had been perfectly fine, Baek Ho-yang would have naturally followed this process.
But right now, Woo Geom-san’s physical condition was in the worst state, making it difficult to fill anything.
His damaged Dantian was not strong enough to hold Internal Strength; rather, it was in such jeopardy that it might tear at any moment.
If he tried to fill it completely in this state, there was no telling how long it would take, and even if he was lucky enough to fill it, there was no telling when it would break.
Rather than doing that, Baek Ho-yang’s thought was that it would be better to teach him from the basics of the Choyeon Simgyeol now, while he was completely emptied.
Since he was teaching from a state of absolute nothingness, there was no promising when it would be completed, but he felt this would still be better than taking a long, roundabout path.
Baek Ho-yang pointed at Woo Geom-san’s Dantian and said.
“Qi Ying Ziran. Qi is not to be managed by force, but must be made to flow as if responding to nature. Qi permeates like the wind and flows like water, so never try to keep it trapped inside you.”
“If I don’t keep it trapped, how do I utilize it?”
“You already know the answer.”
“Pardon?”
“The answer lies in proper walking, so examine it yourself.”
Baek Ho-yang told Woo Geom-san a few phrases of the Choyeon Simgyeol.
The phrases he spoke were boundlessly vague, like catching floating clouds. However, Woo Geom-san did not doubt Baek Ho-yang’s words in the slightest.
Because his faith in Baek Ho-yang was already firm.
“If you walk properly and breathe properly, you will understand my words one day.”
“Then I must keep walking.”
“And you must keep rolling the steel balls with your right hand. Doing these three things simultaneously is by no means an easy task. If you endure the pain and keep going, your body will naturally realize it.”
“I will work hard.”
Woo Geom-san answered with a determined expression.
Baek Ho-yang stared quietly at Woo Geom-san’s face and smiled. Woo Geom-san gained strength from his warm smile.
Although Baek Ho-yang was not his real flesh and blood, a deeper affection was felt. That was why he felt like a real grandfather.
Even to meet his expectations, he had to work harder.
Baek Ho-yang tapped Woo Geom-san’s shoulder and said.
“Let’s go. It is fine to walk even slower, so try walking while breathing properly.”
“Yes!”
With his answer, Woo Geom-san moved his steps.
At least proper walking was fine since he had grasped the feeling.
Rolling a single steel ball with his ruined right hand was also manageable. No matter how ruined the nerves in his hand were, he could manage to support at least one steel ball.
The problem was proper breathing.
Instead of sitting cross-legged and concentrating his mind like other heart methods, he had to breathe while walking properly.
‘According to grandfather’s words, proper walking and breathing are practically a single cultivation. I must learn them together.’
Woo Geom-san tried to breathe while recalling the formula Baek Ho-yang had taught him. But there was no way an unfamiliar breathing method would work well from the start.
Just like proper walking, the breathing method Baek Ho-yang taught was not easy to even grasp the feeling of.
Still, he did not think it was hard.
Because he was still alive, breathing, and walking.
***
Breathing, walking, and moving his fingers.
That was all of Woo Geom-san’s daily routine.
Because he focused on breathing and walking, not much speed came out.
There were many days when they could not even travel a few dozen li a day. Still, the two did not care much.
Because walking fast was not important at all.
What was truly important was breathing properly and walking properly.
It had not been very long since he joined Baek Ho-yang, but now Woo Geom-san could also faintly feel it.
That proper walking and breathing were indeed the beginning and the end of the Quanzhen Sect’s martial arts that Baek Ho-yang was trying to pass down to him.
Therefore, without a single word of complaint, he focused only on breathing and walking properly.
Woo Geom-san recalled Baek Ho-yang’s teachings and strove to implement them faithfully.
Baek Ho-yang realized that Woo Geom-san’s concentration was exceptionally good.
His talent was outstanding, but once he concentrated, he rarely looked elsewhere.
This was a tremendously great talent for learning martial arts.
Not just in martial arts, but in any field, a person with this kind of talent had a high probability of growing significantly.
As was the case with most orthodox sects, the martial arts of the Quanzhen Sect also required a solid foundation.
Compared to the martial arts of the unorthodox and evil sects, growth was slow, but once a certain line was crossed, one could achieve an achievement so high that it defied comparison.
The problem was that the process of learning the basics was tedious and difficult.
Fortunately, however, Woo Geom-san did not get bored easily and was enjoying the process of asceticism itself.
In a way, it was to the point where one might think he was simple-minded.
But Baek Ho-yang knew.
That originally, those who achieved great success were all people who dug a single well deeply, to the point of being stubborn or simple-minded.
Watching the growth of such people was an incredibly pleasant thing.
It was even more so for an old man like Baek Ho-yang, whose remaining days to live were shorter than the days he had lived.
If it were in the past, the path walked alone would have been so tedious that he would have hurried his steps. But now it was not tedious at all, and rather enjoyable.
“Hmm?”
Suddenly, Baek Ho-yang stopped walking.
Because out of nowhere, a rather large river appeared before his eyes.
Even at a glance, the width of the river was so wide that it could not be crossed without taking a boat.
If he were alone, he could easily cross it with the Water-Gliding Technique, but Woo Geom-san was with him by his side.
Even if it took a bit longer, it seemed better to cross by taking a boat.
“We should walk along the river and look for a place to take a boat.”
Baek Ho-yang and Woo Geom-san moved their steps downstream.
Fortunately, before they had gone far, a small riverside village quickly appeared.
In the river in front of the village, there was a pier where a fairly large boat could dock.
Quite a few people were gathered at the pier, looking as if they were waiting for a boat.
“That is fortunate. It looks like a boat is coming in soon.”
“Judging by the large gathering of people, it seems a fairly large boat is coming in.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes! Judging by the presence of horses and wagons along with the people, it looks like a Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is coming in.”
Woo Geom-san was born and raised in the Woo Family Manor, which possessed shipping rights.
Naturally, he knew about rivers and boats better than anyone.
Just by looking at the number of people and the cargo gathered at the pier, he could guess what kind of boat would come in.
“If it’s a Cloud River-Crossing Vessel, it must be operated by a power that holds those shipping rights, correct?”
“The probability is high.”
Without the permission of the power holding the shipping rights, one could not operate a Cloud River-Crossing Vessel traveling across such a large river.
Naturally, the boat coming in here was bound to be operated by one of the Seven Great Water Gates.
The two sat near the pier like the other people and waited for the boat to come in.
Fortunately, without having to wait long, a huge Cloud River-Crossing Vessel appeared.
Baek Ho-yang was slightly surprised by the Cloud River-Crossing Vessel, which was much larger than he had vaguely imagined.
It was a colossal boat over twenty zhang in length, three zhang in height, and more than five zhang in width.
Woo Geom-san said.
“At that size, it can be considered a Ren Grade.”
“Ren Grade?”
“At the Seven Great Water Gates, they divide the grades according to the size of the Cloud River-Crossing Vessel. There are five grades in total, designated as Tian Di Ren Feng Huo.”
“Tian Di Ren Feng Huo? Then that massive Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is merely a middle-grade size?”
“Yes! The Tian Grade and Di Grade are much larger, so they can carry many people and cargo. However, navigation is difficult in rivers with rough currents, so they are mainly operated in wide areas downstream. In particular, a Tian Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is over forty zhang in length and ten zhang in width, making it strong and large enough to navigate even the sea.”
“Amazing. For a boat that travels rivers to be able to navigate the sea as well.”
“But a Tian Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is difficult to build, and its operating cost is several times more expensive than a Ren Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel, so there are only a few of them.”
“I suppose so. Then the narrower and rougher the width of the river, the smaller the size of the Cloud River-Crossing Vessel would become.”
“Yes! The smallest Huo Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is only half the size of a Ren Grade. Naturally, it cannot carry many people and cargo. Instead, its speed is fast, so it is heavily deployed for urgent matters.”
In the case of a Huo Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel, they even employ separate professional rowers.
Naturally, its speed cannot be compared to a regular Cloud River-Crossing Vessel. Therefore, it is deployed for tasks where a few people or a small amount of cargo must be transported as quickly as possible.
The transportation cost was also incredibly expensive, so not just anyone could use it.
“However, due to costs and various reasons, the Ren Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is operated the most. A Ren Grade Cloud River-Crossing Vessel is enough to travel almost any river or canal without difficulty.”
“Thanks to you, I learn facts I did not know. Thank you.”
“Not at all.”
Woo Geom-san scratched his head with an embarrassed expression.
Thud!
Meanwhile, the Cloud River-Crossing Vessel docked at the pier.
A red flag was fluttering at the bow of the Cloud River-Crossing Vessel.
“That is the emblem of the Hongjo Bang.”

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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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