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I returned with the martial arts of the North Sea Ice Demon, but there was really no place to use it.

Martial arts I couldn’t learn. Elixirs I couldn’t consume.

Could I even wield the sword she left behind?

As soon as I drew the sword, a brutal chill spread around me. Parts of my flesh froze, and I had no choice but to give up.

It was akin to devouring my own flesh. If it weren’t for this special scabbard, I wouldn’t have been able to carry it at all.

For now, I decided to just leave it be. Since I couldn’t use it, I had to focus on my original strength.

That was about all I thought I could do.

The application form of Dan Hoon Choo. Its first form, Pai-Mu, had reached the mastery stage. It was something I found challenging to practice alone, but now I had someone who could be my sparring partner.

“Dan Hoon Choo… you still haven’t fully mastered it? I’ve already reached the Kuak level!”

“I learn a bit slowly.”

“Aren’t you higher than me in martial arts? Didn’t you surpass the peak?”

Though she found it hard to comprehend, the Twenty-Nine was going along with my practice. After a few clashes of swords, her expression tightened.

“…How should I put this… it’s subtly that.”

She usually spoke with impertinence, but now she was cautious of my reaction.

“I understand what you mean by being slow to learn.”

“You can just say it as is.”

“I guess learning something new feels terribly slow?”

“……”

“Yet, the previous sword form is absurdly refined… it’s like it’s slow to learn, but the swordsmanship built up through effort…”

The Twenty-Nine nodded, immediately grasping my situation.

“A unique oddity.”

“Isn’t that a bit rude?”

“I’m just stating the facts, aren’t I?”

She indeed possessed top-tier skills. Although much younger than I, her achievements were extremely high.

“Dan Hoon Choo is the basic form of the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword, you know that, right?”

“I do.”

“Do you know what the four application forms of Dan Hoon Choo mean?”

“I learned it from books.”

“Hmm… let’s cover the key points simply.”

Despite my higher proficiency level, she was the one teaching me.

Even though our positions were ironically reversed, she didn’t mind.

“This is where the debt ends. You understand?”

“If that’s what you want.”

She got into stance.

“Dan Hoon Choo is a technique that simply swings the sword. At first glance, it might seem so. It’s remarkably crude swordsmanship. There’s nothing particularly special like fancy tricks or flashy sword movements. But it’s heavy and fast. It excels at severing. Yet, because of its simplicity, masters find it easy to block.”

The Twenty-Nine struck her sword down.

It was a clean execution of Dan Hoon Choo.

“If a flying sword is straightforward, then the opponent can easily counter it, right? No matter how powerful it is, if it doesn’t hit, it’s useless. So, the creator of this Dan Hoon Choo added four variations, just like the first form of the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique, Ilma. Stand before me.”

“Is this distance good enough?”

“Yes. This should be fine.”

The Twenty-Nine aimed her drawn sword at me diagonally.

“Let’s start with the first form of Dan Hoon Choo, Pai-Mu. Understanding this well will allow you to move on to the next level. Here. Look closely. Pai-Mu is a defensive sword. It responds to the opponent’s attack, then launches a counterattack. How far apart are we right now?”

“About two steps would be a close distance.”

“Pai-Mu is an extreme counterattack. You predict the opponent’s sword trajectory and counter it accordingly. It’s an attack that unfolds simultaneously with evasion. The closer the distance is maintained, the higher the chances of executing the technique increase.”

“…I guess you can’t use it in every situation.”

“You have to grasp the flow of the opponent’s martial arts before using it. If successful, you can inflict a critical injury on the opponent, but if you fail, you may lose your neck.”

She flicked her sword. Inviting me to respond, I also threw my sword at her, sheath and all.

The second form of the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique, Dan Hoon Choo.

But as soon as I extended my sword, she bent her body from the tip, narrowly avoiding the trajectory and striking my waist.

There was no time to evade in that series of movements.

My waist tingled.

“…Ugh!”

“I know the sword principles of Dan Hoon Choo, so it was easy to break it. Hence, the key point of this application form is understanding how well you know your opponent.”

I exchanged strikes with her. After a few more interactions, I started to get a sense of it, and then I could somewhat awkwardly mimic her.

Having a partner was definitely a good thing. I could test sword techniques I could use.

At first, the Twenty-Nine’s expression was cooperative, but as time passed, it gradually turned pale. She eventually shouted at me.

“Hey, you crazy training freak! Are you not going to take a break?!”

“It’s only been six breaths!”

“Only six breaths?! My stamina can’t take it!”

When she didn’t spar with me, I reviewed what I had learned. In about a month, I started to develop a feel for the sword.

I clashed swords with the Twenty-Nine. A sparring match with limited power.

The sword, still sheathed, struck her blade. The swaying body of the Twenty-Nine tilted backward.

“Come on… you can’t just rely on brute strength!”

The clash sounded.

The scabbard shook. My stance faltered.

Revealing an opening in my body, the Twenty-Nine thrust her sword toward me.

Dan Hoon Choo. The basic form.

I read the gap first. I stabilized my body that was about to topple.

I focused my strength at the center of my body. I drew a circle with my toes. I moved as I had the day she first taught me about Pai-Mu.

Reading the distance with the opponent.

Reading the power of the technique.

A timely evasion at the right moment.

These three factors aligned perfectly. I slipped through the spaces between our swords and struck at her waist.

Clack!

The Twenty-Nine fell to the ground.

“Ah, that hurts!”

“… Huh. I think you’re still lacking in power.”

“What… what power… have you trained in external arts or something?”

“The form of Ilma itself helps train external arts, doesn’t it?”

“What kind of crazy person trains this much? You could just move onto the next one instead!” A new technique would definitely make you visibly stronger!

“There’s something Ilma often said.”

“What?! Ilma?! What did he say?!”

“He said there’s a reason for easy power.”

He always told me to build a solid foundation.

“If you don’t want to die, don’t wield a sword; just keep swinging your fists.”

“…Ilma wouldn’t say something like that! How could such a noble person say that? Don’t slander him!”

Living in a fantasy.

I casually turned my head. It seemed better not to wake her.

“I’ll practice Pai-Mu more.”

“What about the other forms? At this rate, by the time you learn the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique, it sounds like you’ll be left with just bones.”

“Oh. If it’s the other forms of Dan Hoon Choo, I’d like to learn them together. I think it would be mutually beneficial.”

“…You already have enough practice, don’t you?”

“I don’t think it’s enough.”

“Ugh.”

The Twenty-Nine gestured to me with a look of exasperation.

“Go gather two sticks. About the length of a sword.”

Being in the position of a disciple, I followed her pure instruction. After picking up two suitable twigs, the Twenty-Nine took one.

“The second form is a power struggle technique. Ma-Chak. Let’s clash the sticks. Infuse some internal energy. Don’t let them break.”

I followed her instructions. I felt her internal energy rising as well.

When the sticks touched, they shook.

“If you consider this a sword clash, Ma-Chak is a form to win in power struggles and break the opponent’s sword. It’s vastly different from simply putting internal energy in to break it.”

“What exactly is the difference?”

“The direction of internal power’s application is different. You focus the internal energy on the point of contact. You extreme compress the area where the energy goes to draw out a strong output momentarily. Like this.”

Crunch.

Moments later, my branch broke in half and fell to the ground.

“The reason the posture of Ma-Chak is to pressure down is to induce a power struggle. You can’t change how to use internal power at that moment, so you need to determine in advance which part to reinforce with energy.”

“Do you deliberately collide the compressed internal energy against the opponent?”

“Exactly.”

“What if you can’t land it?”

“Since the other parts aren’t filled with internal energy, the extended sword would break instead.”

Everything here seems extreme.

It was as though the essence of Dan Hoon Choo itself did not consider failure.

“Next is Kuak. This one is just a sword draw technique. It’s a lethal strike aimed to end it in one move. A technique that cuts through the opponent in one go with the acceleration that comes from scraping the sheath… if done well, it can end it with a single strike. But if the posture is large, it becomes a significant problem the moment it goes off-target.”

“The last one…”

“I’m not too familiar with that field, but the book had something called Pyo-Rim. I know it’s an application form that releases multiple sword strikes in a splattering manner. Each strike may be weak, but it’s the only form that can target many opponents.”

I learned everything I could. I mimicked the sword techniques she had shown me.

Pai-Mu, Ma-Chak, Kuak, and Pyo-Rim.

Feeling a sense of rivalry, the Twenty-Nine began to pick up her training speed gradually. She mostly stumbled along the way, but she still put in great effort.

“Thirty isn’t making much sense.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique has nine forms, right? Usually, you build on one form before moving to the next level.”

“That’s right.”

“With each form learned, skills increase. Both insights and physicality, as well as internal power, grow significantly. By the time you learn Ilma and acquire Dan Hoon Choo, normally you’d be at an elite level, right? And then only after handling the third form do most people reach the peak.”

“The third form… is that Overlord Demon Technique?”

“Yes, the Overlord Demon Technique. But the Thirty has mastered the realm itself, yet hasn’t fully learned all the application forms of Dan Hoon Choo. Besides, you’re still practicing Ilma…”

The Twenty-Nine lightly kicked the air next to me. A seamless execution of Ilma’s sharp form.

“…Once you master the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique, you inevitably become a madman. The more you achieve the higher the probability rises. But if you think about it differently… the Thirty doesn’t show that aspect at all? Even after reaching the peak.”

“Hmmm.”

“I think that chasing only swift achievements will likely lead to contamination by the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique. If one builds a solid foundation like the Thirty, then even if madness rises, it could be sufficiently controlled.”

That wasn’t completely unfounded. Ilma had emphasized the importance of foundations countless times.

But I felt it wasn’t merely for that reason.

Crossing the line in battle. Didn’t I find myself ensnared multiple times by the feeling of insanity that felt almost inevitable?

It wasn’t only the pain. Just solidifying the foundation wouldn’t suffice. The ability to grasp the entirety also relates to mental strength.

To move without giving up.

I lightly extended Ilma. The form was captured, but the end still remained unseen.

“Then, the Twenty-Nine must train alongside me as well.”

“…It’s already so tough… ugh… but I don’t want to lose to you… I guess there’s no choice. I’ll catch up soon, so be ready.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

It’s much better to train together than to train alone.

Proving that obvious fact, I easily grasped even the fourth form of Dan Hoon Choo. As we advanced in rivalry, the results of training significantly increased.

“…Huh.”

The Twenty-Nine also showed changes. After a period of silence, energy faintly settled at the tip of her sword.

Rushing toward the peak. Shattering through walls.

I gripped the trained sword tightly.

The blood-red sword accelerated from its sheath.

Amidst the smashed stones, I envisioned what I could do.

—Scratch.

A line was drawn across the huge boulder. Immediately, it split into two and shards scattered everywhere.

It wasn’t a clean cut. It wasn’t as smooth as the Twenty-Nine’s from before.

But even though it was rough, I had severed it completely. That massive boulder before me.

I felt myself growing. In martial arts. In swordsmanship. In spirit.

I smiled faintly. Almost simultaneously, an order was given from above.

“Twenty-Nine. Thirty.”

A cold voice I had heard before spoke to us.

“It’s a mission.”

 

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