Ultimate Martial Venerable - Chapter 59

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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 59. Formless Fist
The Light Sword came down upon the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword.

Bang!
Yuk Beom’s arms buckled beneath the blow. He’d exhausted nearly all his reserves just moments ago on the 6th Floor. Yet from touching a single star, the attack that flew toward him was indistinguishable from the full power of a martial artist at the threshold of the Outer Gangjing Realm.

Yuk Beom pushed back against the sword strike and turned to look at Hwan Wol.

“Is this supposed to be help?”

Hwan Wol grinned, entirely unapologetic.

“Yeah. You block the sword, and I pull out my martial art. Simple, right?”
“You should have explained first.”
“You think the sword’s going to wait while I talk?”
“You could have waited for me.”
“I don’t like that.”

The sheer confidence of her answer left Yuk Beom silent for a moment.
She really was a dangerous woman.
Hwan Wol paid his reaction no mind and grabbed his wrist.

“Come on, let’s go up. My neck’s killing me looking down from here.”
“Where to?”
“There.”

She was pointing at the head of the Golden Marionette that guarded the 6th Floor.

Before Yuk Beom could answer, Hwan Wol hurled herself upward, dragging him along by the wrist.
The Golden Marionette lifted its head.

“A student must—”
“Quiet, tin head.”

Hwan Wol tapped the marionette’s forehead with her heel.

“You complain again, and I’m telling the Academy Director to take you apart and use you as a stair railing.”

The Golden Marionette’s mouth closed.
Yuk Beom glanced between Hwan Wol and the marionette. Whatever guarded the 6th Floor had to be stronger than the White Silver Marionette below. And yet it had fallen silent at a single word from her.
Hwan Wol slipped and grumbled atop its polished head.

“Who made this thing so smooth? Round and slippery, with those pointless formations etched all over it. If you’re going to stand someone on you, you should have a flat top.”

The Golden Marionette opened its eyes again.

“My head is not a platform for students.”
“It is now.”
……

The marionette slowly closed its eyes. It had come to understand that further protest would only exhaust itself.
Yuk Beom looked down at his feet once, then let his gaze drift across the Martial Arts Star River.

“Do I catch the stars and pull them out like on the lower floor?”
“The catching part’s much the same. It’s what comes after that’s the problem.”

Hwan Wol gazed at the constellation of martial power before her.

“The martial arts here have a filthy nature. The moment I try to pull one out, flocks of Light Swords come flying at me. I’ve attempted this several times, but I lost them all in the end.”
“So you’ve been here for half a day.”

Hwan Wol’s head snapped around.

“How did you know that?”
“You mentioned it directly just now.”
“Did I?”

Hwan Wol shrugged with casual indifference.
She showed no sign of being pressed for time. While Yuk Beom had been climbing to the 6th Floor, Hwan Wol had been sitting atop the Golden Marionette’s head, admiring the stars. Her position was entirely different from that of other trainees, who had to scramble to gather a martial art and hurry back down.
Yuk Beom glanced down at the marionette. Even with Hwan Wol treading on its head, it made no real protest. Whoever this “Academy Director” she’d mentioned was, it seemed they held no ordinary power within the school.
Yuk Beom pressed on the point that troubled him.

“Isn’t the time one can stay in the Training Tower limited to one hour?”
“That’s for you lot.”

Hwan Wol tapped the Golden Marionette’s head with her foot.

“I’ll stay until I find something I like. Can you throw me out?”

The Golden Marionette remained still, eyes closed.

“See? It can’t.”
“It hasn’t said anything.”
“When you’re frightened, you can’t speak anyway.”

Yuk Beom decided not to press further. Hwan Wol had the sort of background that allowed her to disregard the academy’s rules. Even if he dug deeper here, she didn’t seem likely to give him a straightforward answer.
Besides, the time left to him was not abundant.

“How should we divide the work?”
“I’ll draw out the stars. You block every sword that comes flying at us.”

Hwan Wol spread two fingers.

“One martial art per person. Fair, isn’t it?”
“So I block first, and you choose first?”
“We’ll figure out the details as we go.”
“That doesn’t sound very fair.”
“Men who calculate too much aren’t popular.”
“I never said I wanted to be popular with you.”

Hwan Wol’s eyebrows shot up.

“You know, you have a real gift for saying irritating things.”
“I hear that often.”
“From whom?”
“From Han Pung.”

Hwan Wol let out a soft laugh and rolled up her sleeves.

“Fine then. Let’s see if two irritating people can work in sync. I’m going for a big star, so don’t miss it.”

A crimson Strong Energy bloomed from her body.
The energy stretched out and transformed into a whip. As Hwan Wol flicked her wrist, the crimson whip burrowed deep into the Martial Arts Star River.
It wound through countless stars and coiled past them until its tip seized one star that burned with particular brilliance.

“Got it!”

Hwan Wol yanked the whip with all her strength.
The river of stars rippled.
What began as mere wavelets soon spawned whirlpools at every turn, and from within them emerged dozens of Light Swords all at once.

“Here they come!”

Yuk Beom raised the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword.
Its broad blade became a shield before them both.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
The Light Swords poured down like a downpour.
The moment the first blow landed, Yuk Beom’s wrist went numb. Each blade carried the full force of an early External Force Realm master. Dozens of them struck the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword without pause.
The impact traveled up his arm, driving through shoulder and waist. The Strong Energy he’d burned through breaking the final trial of the 6th Floor hadn’t fully returned. With each parry his breath faltered, losing its rhythm.
Yuk Beom pressed the lower portion of the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword down against the Golden Marionette’s head, widening his stance to lower his center of gravity on its smooth, rounded surface. One slip and he and Hwan Wol would both plummet.
The Golden Marionette’s eyes opened. It looked up at Yuk Beom pressing the blade against its head, then glanced once at Hwan Wol before closing its eyes again. It seemed to have grasped completely that nothing it said today would matter.

“How much longer?”
“Almost there!”

Hwan Wol gritted her teeth and pulled harder. The captive star inched free from the river. Beyond the brilliant light, the corner of an ancient tome began to emerge.

“Just hold on a bit more!”
“You’ve been saying ‘a bit more’ the whole time.”
“If you’ve got breath to complain, you’re fine!”

The blade strikes intensified.
Yuk Beom’s feet slid backward inch by inch. He poured Fusion Strong Energy into the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword, keeping its blade steady and firm.
Then it happened.
Some of the Light Swords streaming from the front suddenly changed course, arcing around the side of the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword to drive in behind Hwan Wol.

“Behind you!”

Hwan Wol couldn’t release her grip on the star. The instant she turned her head, her concentration faltered, and the manuscript that had nearly escaped was dragged back into the river.
Yuk Beom moved.
The Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword stayed fixed against the front assault. He shifted his body behind Hwan Wol and took the incoming Light Swords on his back.
Screech-screech-screech!
Silver scales erupted across his entire body. The flames of the Blazing Gold Body

flared up between the interstices of the scales.
Dozens of Light Swords rained down upon his back. Deep gouges carved across the scaled armor, and the shock reverberated to his very bones.
Hwan Wol’s hands stilled.
Her eyes found Yuk Beom, who had exposed his back, and a flicker of bewilderment crossed her face.

“Why are you staring?”

Yuk Beom shouted.

“Pull it out! Now!”

Hwan Wol snapped back to herself.

“I’m not stopping!”

Black and white light bloomed beneath her feet.

“Yin-Yang Energy,

rise!”

Hwan Wol’s Gangjing erupted with explosive force. The crimson whip thickened as it seized the star in a single breath.
At last, the book was pulled completely free from the Martial Arts Star River.
All the Light Swords stopped at once.
The star’s power subsided into quietness, as though it had never wavered.
Yuk Beom collapsed onto the head of the Golden Marionette, his strength spent. The arm holding the Blunt-Edged Heavy Sword still trembled faintly.
Hwan Wol looked at Yuk Beom before the book.

“Are you all right?”
“A bit tired, that’s all.”
“A bit?”

She moved behind him. His silver scale armor bore deep gouges left by the Light Swords, layer upon layer. In several places, the scales had cracked, and blood seeped through.
The playfulness drained from Hwan Wol’s face.
It had been Yuk Beom’s task to block the Light Swords pouring in from the front. But she had not known he would take the attacks that came from behind without hesitation.

“I never told you to block with your back.”
“If I’d let it hit you, we would have failed.”
“That’s true, but…….”

For the first time, Hwan Wol could not reply at once. No one knew which of them the first extracted martial art would hit. Yet Yuk Beom had taken the blade instead to see their shared work through to the end.
Hwan Wol bit her lip, then struck his back firmly.

“Not bad. I owe you one now.”
“You hit a man’s back that hard?”
“I was checking you were still in one piece.”
“It hurts.”
“Don’t be a baby.”

Hwan Wol let his words pass over her, but made no move to touch him again.
Yuk Beom flowed his Fusion Strong Energy into the scales. The cracks slowly fused together, and the dented sections gradually returned to their original form.
Hwan Wol’s eyes gleamed as she watched.

“The more I see it, the more I covet that art. You really won’t teach it?”
“I cannot.”
“You’re harsh. A person risked her life to help you.”
“I was the one who helped.”
“Which is exactly why I said I owe you.”

Hwan Wol shook the book.

“If there’s something you want, tell me. I’ll grant it someday.”

Yuk Beom studied her for a moment before speaking.

“First, please forget the time you chased me for supposedly taking a treasure.”

Hwan Wol’s expression froze.

“Did I do that?”
“You held a Black Short Sword and said you’d kill me.”
“Ah.”

Hwan Wol struck her own forehead as if remembering.

“I’d completely forgotten about that.”

Yuk Beom’s mouth closed.
Hwan Wol laughed broadly.

“Fine. Then let’s square that old debt and this one. We’re even now.”

Yuk Beom fell silent in an instant. He had carelessly brought up something he’d already forgotten, erasing his own debt in the process.

“Why that look on your face?”
“It’s nothing.”
“You look like you’re regretting something.”
“Just check the book first.”

Hwan Wol laughed softly and flipped open the tome.
At the end of the book, a single line of crimson markings was engraved.
Yuk Beom’s eyes shifted.

“First Class Martial Art.”
“For real.”

Hwan Wol’s lips curved upward as well. It was a rank worthy of the effort to climb to the 6th Floor.
She opened the cover.
Three characters revealed themselves.
Formless Fist
.

Yuk Beom’s gaze fixed on the book.
What he had sought on the 5th Floor was neither the Yeon Che Gong nor the Movement Technique. It was a proper fist art that could fuse with the Limitless Evolution Formation and draw out greater attacking power.

Such a fist art had now appeared before him as a First Class Martial Art.
Meanwhile, Hwan Wol quickly lost interest.

“A fist technique.”
“Do you dislike it?”
“I prefer Movement Techniques or the Yeon Che Gong. Fist work isn’t my taste.”

She offered the book without hesitation.

“You take it.”

Yuk Beom accepted without delay.

“Thank you.”
“In exchange, you’ll help me with the next martial art too.”
“Didn’t you say there was no debt?”
“This is a transaction. I gave up a First Class Martial Art.”
“Hwan Wol gave it because you didn’t need it.”
“Needed or not, a First Class rank is a First Class rank. If you say much more, I’m taking it back.”

Yuk Beom immediately opened the Formless Fist

.
Hwan Wol reached out her hand, then stopped.

“You’re quick to move.”

The moment he turned the page, a brilliant light surged from the book.
The light pierced between Yuk Beom’s brows, and the tome in his hand scattered like an illusion, returning once more to the Martial Arts Star River.
Yuk Beom’s body went rigid.
A majestic voice resonated within his mind.

The Formless Fist

is the Formless Martial Sovereign
Formless Martial Sovereign
This was the essence of fists built over a lifetime.’
‘To value intent above form, and embrace all schools of fist technique.’
‘Without form, without shadow. Without substance, without shape.’
​
Countless fist principles and insights flooded in like waves.
The shadow of a single figure appeared in his mind. That shadow did not extend its fist in one fixed posture. Sometimes it moved heavy as a mountain being pushed, sometimes light as wind passing through. With each change in opponent, the path of the fist transformed, and whenever facing a different martial art, it swallowed the advantages within and made them its own.
There were established techniques, yet none bound the fist. Though the form of the strike might vanish, the intent remained. It accepted both the opponent’s force and one’s own martial art, ultimately fusing them into a single punch.
It resembled, with startling precision, the path Yuk Beom had been seeking.
The Limitless Evolution Formation
melting many martial arts into one—
the Formless Fist, too, was a martial art that embraced the forms of all schools of fist technique and transformed them by one’s own intent.
​
Yuk Beom traced the path of the fist within his mind, eyes closed.
Countless variations bloomed and faded within a single punch. Though the appearance changed, at its center remained only one intent.
After some time, Yuk Beom slowly opened his eyes.
A keen light flickered in the depths of his gaze.
​
“A formidable martial art,” he said quietly.
​

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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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