853——————==

True Martial Home

The true secret of the Divine Thief?

As I heard those words, excitement bubbled up within me, and I said, “Could it be the Divine Skill…?”

“Not a chance. That’s something I can’t teach nor let you use outside, so what’s the point?”

“Then there’s another secret technique that’s not the Divine Skill, right?”

“Hehe… You’ve heard plenty about having no talent, haven’t you?”

“…….”

I fell silent under the jab, and the Divine Thief chuckled.

“You’re not meant to achieve greatness as a martial artist, yet here you are, so in that sense, you’re something else entirely.”

“That’s for you to decide, not me.”

“I’m not insulting you. Lack of talent isn’t a death sentence. In fact, it might make things easier for me if you’re not a hardcore martial artist…”

“……?”

The Divine Thief slowly reached out. Just like a mirage, he became blurry and somehow snatched a piece of my sleeve. Then he said,

“Did you feel the moment I stole it?”

“…Not really. I think I might’ve, though.”

It’s a different sensation than the Divine Skill. With the Divine Skill’s One Hand Take Heart, I was rendered immobile and completely clueless, but the technique the Divine Thief just used made me barely aware of it. I could have defended, but it would have been incredibly tough.

‘Did he use this technique earlier too?’

It was the same method he used to snatch my sleeve despite my defense earlier.

The Divine Thief flicked the piece of my sleeve with his finger and said,

“This is a technique I can use in the human realm, known as Absolute Realm, Technique of All Things! With this, I became the world’s greatest thief.”

“Um… I know it’s called Absolute Realm, but what exactly does it do?”

“You’ve read my book, right? The 100 Transformations of the Thief?”

“Yes.”

“Then tell me about the three levels of the thief’s title.”

I scrambled through my memory to respond.

“The weakest thief is known as Jeol (窃), the middle-level thief as Do (盜), and the highest-level thief as Tu (偸).”

“Do you know the difference?”

“A Jeol thief steals thoughtlessly without skill, a Do player thinks but lacks technique, and a Tu thief combines thought and skill.”

“Wow, you remembered it really well, didn’t you?”

The Divine Thief looked surprised.

“Exactly. So why must one possess both thought and skill to be the ultimate thief?”

“You need to think to anticipate the other’s thoughts, and you need skill to understand their techniques.”

“That’s true too. But there’s actually one more level.”

The Divine Thief’s expression turned serious.

“The ability to read minds. That’s the third skill needed to become a Thief God, beyond thought and skill.”

“Minds…? You mean reading thoughts?”

“It’s somewhat different, hmm… I’ll give it another shot, so try to block my pickpocketing.”

“Sure.”

Tydaht

I poured all my energy into preventing the Divine Thief from stealing my sleeve. Though he seemed to struggle a bit, soon after, he casually placed a chunk of silver on his palm. He flicked the silver piece with his finger while saying,

“It’s hard, but I’ve successfully pickpocketed you 100% of the time. Why can’t you block my pickpocketing?”

“Because you’re one step ahead.”

“So, does that mean my technique is definitely faster than yours?”

“That’s… not true. The speed is about the same.”

“Hehe. This is the essence. I read your martial heart.”

“……?”

“Aren’t you saying there is no heart in martial arts?”

“Martial arts are concepts, not living beings. Can concepts have hearts?”

“That’s a stereotype. Martial arts have life and heart.”

“What…?”

“It reaches a level like mine as the greatest thief where I can hear that voice and read hearts…. Although this is a talent since I was a child! More accurately, it’s not that I read minds, it’s that hearts resonate.”

I had no idea what the Divine Thief was on about.

Martial arts are living beings?

As I was confused, he said,

“Stealing a tangible item is easy. Why? Because it exists. However, the intention tied to that item makes thievery challenging. Hence, I read that intention and flow to find openings. That’s my ultimate level of thievery—stealing what doesn’t exist.”

“I don’t quite….”

“Ah, just zip it and listen!”

The Divine Thief grew agitated.

“I wasn’t planning to share this. This is totally my ace in the hole! I was going to teach you other skills, but my pride made me want to instill respect for the greatest thief in you.”

“……”

“If the main body learns of this, it might blow their mind, hehe.”

With a wry smile, the Divine Thief slowly raised his hand. His hand transformed into a mirage before returning to normal. I watched the process intently as he said,

“To steal something that doesn’t exist… you must first create that item in your mind. You need to manifest its existence within you. After that, as the non-existent becomes existent, you read that flow and steal it as you wish…, that’s the Absolute Realm Technique of All Things.”

Hu Woong!

Suddenly, the Divine Thief disappeared and reappeared behind me. I thought he might’ve used the Divine Skill, but it didn’t seem like it as he showed his palm.

“I just stole your Qi using the Technique of All Things. Do you feel it?”

“You stole my Qi…?”

Jerk

“Ugh!”

In that moment, I felt about 10% of my vitality drain out, like the tide receding. His words weren’t a joke, and when I looked at him, wide-eyed, the Divine Thief said,

“The Technique of All Things is generally used to steal someone’s Qi during close combat, to snatch strategies, read techniques to defend, strike at gaps, or even steal space to adjust distances. There are many applications, all depending on the user’s capabilities.”

Hu Woong!

“If you develop this to its pinnacle, it becomes the Divine Skill and allows you to truly steal everything. Obviously, there are limits in the human realm. It’s the limit of Intent Heavenly Pillar.”

Once again, the Divine Thief seemed to wave his hand in the air and suddenly dashed right in front of my face. I was honestly astounded by his divine abilities.

‘Holy cow… this means stealing everything isn’t simply a fantasy!’

He could even steal the intangible, like Qi, and the very space around the opponent!

Truly, he was deserving of being called a Martial Master of the Absolute Realm.

‘A true superhuman of the same era as Yeodong-bin…!!’

I asked the Divine Thief, “Where on earth did you learn this? I thought I had roamed the Jianghu for ages, yet I’ve never seen or heard similar martial arts before.”

The Divine Thief appeared more incredible than I had imagined, and without realizing, I spoke respectfully. Indeed, I had thought that after exploring various world-class martial arts and secret techniques, the Divine Thief’s abilities were on an entirely different level. He replied,

“I have no teacher, and I belong to no sect.”

“What?”

“Just had talent since I was a kid, picked up thieving roughly…, learned by watching other martial arts…, and over the years became stronger. I’ve self-studied for decades, I suppose. If I had dug deeper into martial arts, I could’ve reached the Absolute Realm even faster, but I just wasn’t that interested.”

“……”

A genius.

Not just any genius, but one that is beyond description.

If what he said was true, the Divine Thief had the extraordinary ability to replicate martial arts just by observing! He might even be on par with or surpass the talent of Yeodong-bin, the Sword Demon himself.

The Divine Thief said,

“To master this, you really don’t require martial talent. The key is to ‘listen.’ After that, you simply strengthen it with Intent Heavenly Pillar.”

“Isn’t that different from martial talent?”

“It is. I tried teaching a few so-called geniuses, but none of them could learn it.”

“…How can I learn something like that? It feels a bit awkward for me to say this, but I lack talent.”

“You can! I have this feeling that you might make it.”

The Divine Thief stared at me intently and then added,

“I like your spirit of wanting to take the easy route. A thief must be that way!”

What the heck!

As I was about to droop my mouth open, the Divine Thief grinned.

“This is just a hunch.”

“……”

“My hunch rarely misses.”

I couldn’t tell if that was a compliment or not…

‘Damn. Why does it seem like I’m seeking an easy route….’

But upon reflection, maybe he was right, and I had nothing to say. Could it really be that the Absolute Realm affects a person’s disposition?

While I was suddenly feeling doubtful, the Divine Thief said,

“Enough talk, let’s get started.”

“…Yes. Please teach me the essence.”

“The essence? There’s no such thing! You need to listen! Do I look like an old-school sect member to you?”

“Then how should I learn?”

“Just figure it out, put in your best effort!”

Pababat

With that, the Divine Thief took another shot at pickpocketing me. I tried to block it again but ended up getting robbed yet again. The Divine Thief tossed the stolen silver piece back to me and said,

“Put it back in your sleeve. If you can block my pickpocketing, you’ve passed basic training.”

“Can I attack you?”

“Of course. Did I say not to? After all, thievery often includes a few knife encounters, but a true thief must overcome that too.”

A blatant underestimation!

Shickack!!

The next time the Divine Thief tried to steal, I immediately drew my sword, attempting to slice him with a thunderous strike. With such incredible speed, I thought even the Absolute Realm wouldn’t escape this distance.

But in the moment I lunged at him, the Divine Thief evaded my strike using a bizarre maneuver and snatched my sleeve.

Pabat

“It’s easier when you attack! Blocking is much tougher.”

“……!!”

How did this happen?!

“How did you dodge?”

“I used Shadowless Escape. This too is an essential trick of mine.”

Feeling a chill, I realized the Divine Thief dodged all my strikes as if they were mere pieces of paper. Someone who can display such abilities at this distance must be one of the top players in the Jianghu!

This was the prowess of Shadowless Escape, the Divine Thief’s unique martial art!

While people claimed that the Soul Removal Technique was superior, the only weakness was sheer running speed; in actual combat, it was a secret technique comparable to the world-class martial arts!

‘Was that also the technique used to effortlessly dodge Yeodong-bin’s Heavenly Escape Sword Technique in the Tang Dynasty palace?’

I always thought Yeodong-bin rated the Divine Thief too highly, but I was wrong. The Divine Thief was indeed no ordinary master.

Gripping my sword again, I said, “Come.”

Pababat!!

Pababat!!

I repeated this over a hundred and fifty times, yet not once did I manage to block the Divine Thief’s pickpocketing. As I took a moment to catch my breath due to exhaustion, the Divine Thief said,

“It’s not a matter of talent, you know? You’re already at a sufficient level. So listen to your heart.”

“Listening to my heart… what does that even mean?”

“This isn’t some Zen riddle. With your current martial arts, you should be able to understand. Recall every instance of thievery you’ve performed.”

“……”

“The heart that wants to take the easy road is what counts the most.”

I’d never heard such advice in my life.

‘To take the easy route…?’

I suddenly thought back on how much thievery I’d done in my life.

Not just the thievery executed through the 100 Transformations of the Thief, but right after my rebirth when I looted all kinds of treasures using the Golden Lamp and Wooden Armor—that too was theft, wasn’t it? Of course, not everything can be defined as theft, but it’s true I seized things that might belong to someone else for my gain. If I included that, my experience certainly overflowed.

But thinking back on it, I felt a bit embarrassed. Given that, it means I’ve been an incessant thief all my life, and I’ll have to continue being one. As my face reddened, the Divine Thief’s eyes lit up.

“Wow… that’s a reaction I’ve never encountered among those I’ve taught before! You really have stolen a lot, haven’t you?”

“That’s not it.”

“Be honest about your true nature. Why must you work hard to achieve everything? Why live so difficultly in this world? For whom do you labor as if you’re an ant?”

The Divine Thief clenched his fist.

“I don’t want to toil! I want to munch my way through life! That’s the will of thieves!”

“……!!”

Damn it!

I hated how much I agreed with him!!

Yet at the same time, I grew irritated and shouted, “No! That’s just wrong! What a ridiculous idea!”

If that were the case, what about all those years of hard work I put in!

I’m truly dedicated to training in martial arts!

“Really? Then prove it!”

Shushushuk

Once again, the Divine Thief’s technique swooped in. His moves weren’t that fast, but irrespective of various methods I employed—even using Peerless Technique—I merely managed to momentarily retreat before it slithered in like a snake and stole from me again. The fact that he could read my martial heart and stay a step ahead of me wasn’t bluster; it was the undeniable truth.

Then it dawned on me; just maybe, I too had to read the martial heart like the Divine Thief. No, I had to hear it. But if martial arts are not living, then how do they communicate? And how should I even listen to that? Moreover, how does that connect to wanting to take the easy route?

It was at that moment.

‘Ah…?’

Is it not possible to simply block his attacks just as I would effortlessly in my daily life? What if I attempt to take it easy?

All those times I sought effortless acquisition in life filled my heart, instantly grounding me in a state of clarity. From there, I ventured further into the master’s space, witnessing everything transform into vivid color, while all my senses roamed wild.

In that state, though unsure, I heard “the heart.” It was the same intention the Divine Thief had for easily obtaining anything, and I flowed according to that direction, executing the Seven Great Techniques and the Thunder God Lineage’s fist techniques along the way.

A moment of hesitation struck, and I felt the Heart Demon creeping in. While I somehow understood this state, a sense of rejection flooded in.

Should I really go forward like this?

Is it truly in my nature to take the easy road and grasp whatever I want?

Living as a martial artist and the path of a thief were starkly contradictory, making that unease unavoidable.

‘I refuse to let a single technique dictate my entire life.’

Yet at the same time, I resolved to overcome myself.

I must acknowledge the lazy and convenient nature within me, but I had also put in tremendous effort. While I may enjoy the easy path, I also recognize the importance of hard work. My heart is sincere.

I have nothing to be ashamed of, so I will take that step with integrity.

No time left for hesitation!

As I shifted my mindset, I realized the “heart” isn’t something you see or touch, but I sensed it for some reason. I grasped the feeling of making “what does not exist” manifest. I also understood what it truly meant to do things instinctively.

Shushuk

And just when the Divine Thief intended to take his next step forward, I, instead, lunged ahead of him, reaching for his sleeve.

Pabat!

Once again, as the Divine Thief and I crossed paths, I found a chunk of silver in my palm.

I had successfully stolen from his sleeve!

The catch was, though I managed it, I had no idea how I did it! But regardless, I did it!

The Divine Thief looked amazed and said, “You did it.”

“……”

“I felt your determination.”

“When you say determination…”

“Perhaps it’s the will to avoid pointless effort and wasted time? Is that what drove your technique? You’re quite the complex fellow.”

“……”

“We’re similar yet different.”

Truly, it was an unfathomable situation.

Meeting this man for the first time, and having never crossed paths before, I felt as if he was peering into my very soul. What he said sparked a sense of urgency within me—this desire to escape a hollow existence, to not spend millennia just passing time.

As I remained silent, the Divine Thief chuckled.

“I won’t teach you more about the Technique of All Things. That’s more of a ‘technique’ than the Absolute Realm. Just keep honing that sensation, and your ability to steal “what doesn’t exist” will keep expanding.”

I had an inkling.

He didn’t just master this “technique” but transformed it into a state of Absolute Realm; in essence, it was a separate ability, shaped by the Divine Thief’s innate talent.

‘I’ve acquired a great weapon.’

I nodded and asked, “So, is it over now?”

“You mentioned giving a gift earlier. There’s one more left.”

“What kind of gift?”

“I’ve taught you pickpocketing techniques, and while the divine techniques aren’t too crucial, that leaves the Absolute Technique we can still cover.”

Slowly, the Divine Thief donned a mask he pulled out from somewhere.

“The world’s most exquisite disguise art, the evolved form of the Dragon’s Mask, the Thousand-Faced Gentleman (千面公子) will be taught to you.”

“Hold on a second.”

I hurriedly interrupted the Divine Thief.

“It feels like we’ve already spent quite a bit of time… but if time flows infinitely here, wouldn’t that be a problem?”

“Do you have pressing matters back in the world?”

“Not particularly, but if the time here matches the world outside, it could create issues…”

“A year.”

“What?”

The Divine Thief said nonchalantly, “With the powers I possess as the Master of the Left, spending about a year here is perfectly fine. Time won’t flow at all while you’re here.”

“……!!”

“I’ll have to send you back after a year, though.”

He crossed his arms.

“Besides, the Thousand-Faced Gentleman requires much more time to master than the previous two techniques. It needs extreme finesse and precision, and there’s a lot of intricate knowledge to grasp. A year may not even be enough, so learn as much as you can before you leave.”