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True Martial Home

Miyamoto Musashi looked over the contents of the Book of Five Relationships after getting his hands on it. He was momentarily taken aback.

‘Bi-ryu… is this guy really human?! What the heck does he look like?!’

Bi-ryu, the founder of an ancient kingdom known as Goryeo, was truly something else. He certainly didn’t resemble any human I’d ever seen. Nested within the Book of Five Relationships was an illustration showing the first meeting and conversation between Bi-ryu and the ancient deities of Dongyoung. Both parties looked like genuine monsters.

As for Kotoamatsukami, being a high-ranked deity, it would be expected for him to appear in a wise human form, so it was bizarre for them to look so terrifying.

But Bi-ryu…

He looked like a swirling mass of chaos, with a form that defied description. It was hard to believe a living being could exist like that. There was no way you could call that “human.”

Curiosity piqued, Musashi decided to thoroughly read the Book of Five Relationships. He set off to find a place to isolate himself and began reading in silence for a long time.

The book’s contents were fairly straightforward. Spanning five volumes, it chronicled the interactions between Bi-ryu and Kotoamatsukami, detailing their conversations and the exchanges between ancient Baekje and Dongyoung. After a mere five days of deep study, Musashi realized one glaring fact.

There were way too many complex words that I didn’t understand!

Despite having grown up as the child of a warrior and knowing the basics of writing and kanji, Musashi struggled with the sophisticated vocabulary and ancient language contained within the Book of Five Relationships.

With no other options, Musashi sought out Honganji Jounoshin, the head priest, who interpreted the contents for him, without making any ridiculous demands. It was in his best interest since Musashi’s martial prowess had already far surpassed his.

After three months of scrutinizing the text, Musashi finally finished the Book of Five Relationships.

On the last day of reading, amidst a summer rain, he gazed out the window in silence, the scent of water filling his nostrils.

‘Lunar Kill Technique…’

The first mention of the Lunar Kill Technique came from Bi-ryu of Baekje. The book claimed that Bi-ryu was a “heavenly descender,” but Honganji explained that this expression referred to a high-ranking being from another realm. Naturally, he was a creation of chaos, wielding immense power far beyond a human’s.

Bi-ryu aimed to dominate Dongyoung but faced strong resistance from Kotoamatsukami, resulting in an evenly matched battle. Ultimately, they agreed on a truce, deciding to govern their own lands, and the details of this meeting were precisely what the Book of Five Relationships chronicled.

The reason Bi-ryu mentioned the Lunar Kill Technique during the truce talks was quite simple: it was the cause of the war.

‘The reason Baekje’s Bi-ryu sought to dominate Dongyoung was that he suspected the presence of the Lunar Kill Technique and wanted to locate and eradicate it.’

But why?

Why would the God of Chaos Bi-ryu risk a war against the mighty Kotoamatsukami just to find a single martial arts manuscript?

Kotoamatsukami also confirmed at the truce meeting that they’d never seen or heard of the Lunar Kill Technique. Believing them, Bi-ryu requested that if they ever found it, they should inform him. The Kotoamatsukami agreed, and thus the Book of Five Relationships concluded.

Ultimately, the Book contained no mention of the Lunar Kill Technique. Musashi had wasted his time, but he felt no despair. Instead, his eyes sparkled with vitality.

‘The Lunar Kill Technique exists! I’ve now verified its existence!’

According to Bi-ryu’s words in the Book, the Lunar Kill Technique had three characteristics.

First. There is a legitimate successor.

Second. It involves swordsmanship.

Third. It can slay gods.

The second condition might seem trivial but was a significant feature. In this world, there were over a hundred types of martial arts and thousands of variations. So to specify it as a sword-based technique was a pretty substantial clue. The third condition—that it could slay gods—was also exciting. However, it was the first characteristic that oddly bothered Musashi.

‘A legitimate successor?’

Does that mean it’s passed down through a single heir for generations? Musashi felt something was off.

‘How could such powerful sword techniques, capable of slaying gods, have no traces in history for thousands of years? How is it possible for a wielder of such powerful martial arts to remain hidden for so long?’

That couldn’t be right.

It resembled a contradiction when his father spoke of the Lunar Kill Technique. It’s in human nature to want to make a name for oneself, so how could someone, especially one who exceeds human capabilities in martial arts, not make their presence known?

Sure, if they’d truly abandoned greed and desire, it might be feasible. But knowing human ambition, Musashi thought it nearly improbable. At the very least, in thousands of years of history, there should have been hundreds of successors; how could they all have discarded their desires?

Pondering over it, Musashi finally resolved his mind.

‘Alright. Let’s check out the priest sects or renowned families’ sword masters. I might find clues about the Lunar Kill Technique.’

He headed to Kofukuji.

This was a place where monks practiced spear and staff techniques.

Musashi secretly observed their training and sighed.

‘Nope…’

Musashi’s spirits dropped immediately. Sure, they were strong, but this wasn’t the kind of power he was looking for. Just as he was about to leave, an idea struck him.

‘Since I’m here, why not try out their martial arts firsthand?’

After all, by facing them, he could absorb whatever techniques he encountered.

He had hopes that his formless shadow might become stronger through the experience.

With that in mind, Musashi challenged one of the monks for a quick exchange of basic techniques. And from that single encounter, he vaguely grasped the essence of Kofukuji’s Hojoin spear techniques.

He traveled around Dongyoung, secretly acquiring various martial arts, all while maintaining his focus on discovering the Lunar Kill Technique and not wanting to gain too much fame. Yet, even amidst this secrecy, rumors spread and he soon became regarded as one of the strongest warriors in Dongyoung.

Musashi became annoyed. The Lunar Kill Technique he desired eluded him, but buzzing flies were pestering him. Furthermore, he had assumed that learning from the renowned family’s martial arts would enhance his shadow style, but it remained formless. It was as if it didn’t require any of those techniques at all. Indeed. Musashi was still swinging around without a defined sword style. Nevertheless, he had never suffered a defeat in his life.

As he continued to build his unbeaten record, a thought struck him.

‘This place is too small. I need to go somewhere else.’

One day, after about five years, he made that decision. He’d learned almost everything Dongyoung had to offer in sword techniques, yet that ability hadn’t made him noticeably stronger. In fact, he felt he had surpassed what was called the peak level but sensed an invisible barrier in front of him. This barrier was beyond description.

It felt like an ultimate state of the Realm of Intent, compelling him to create something uniquely his own!

He recalled hearing tales of incredible experts thriving in Goryeo and the Central Plains, and he began to feel the urge to challenge them. He figured that by fighting them, he could grow stronger and push past his boundaries.

For his final battle in Dongyoung, he picked the sword saint, Kamizumi Nobutsuna, and Tsukahara Bokuden. He hadn’t challenged them directly until now to avoid drawing attention, but since he was leaving Dongyoung, he wanted to face them just once. As he prepared for the duel, an unexpected scrappy warrior stepped forward to challenge him.

“Musashi! I am Sasaki Kojiro. Fight me!”

A random warrior named Sasaki Kojiro had come to challenge him.

Musashi figured the guy didn’t even come close to his level, and he found it ridiculous, but the buzz around town left him no choice but to accept. Suddenly, an idea popped into Musashi’s head, and he sought help from Honganji Jounoshin and Fuma Kotaro.

Duel day arrived.

Musashi defeated Sasaki Kojiro in a single exchange and said, “From now on, you’re Musashi.”

“…Huh?”

“Didn’t get that? You’re gonna live as Musashi until I return to Dongyoung, at which point you’ll hand over the title. Until then, do as you please and build your own reputation.”

Then Musashi used the techniques he learned from Fuma Kotaro and the secrets from Jounoshin to completely transform Sasaki Kojiro into his likeness. Externally, it was declared that [Musashi] had won, and for a while, he taught Sasaki Kojiro martial arts. Simultaneously, he documented the dual sword techniques he had learned as ‘The Book of Five Relationships’ and passed it on to Sasaki Kojiro.

The reason for Musashi’s complicated maneuvers was straightforward. If someone were tracking his actions, he wanted to confuse them. If he attracted a nefarious group that could potentially overreach, it wouldn’t hurt to have a little obfuscation as he prepared to leave Dongyoung.

After teaching Kojiro all he could, Musashi planned to leave Dongyoung. He aimed to battle the experts of Goryeo and the Central Plains.

However, as he approached the beach to board his ship, he stumbled upon a strange ruin, which made him pause and step inside.

‘What the hell is that?’

Wooowww

The ruin featured an endlessly spiraling staircase, and at the bottom of it lay countless bodies of foreign beings, while at the very end stood a skeleton warrior, sword in hand, waiting for him.

The skeleton, as if alive, stood up and gazed at Musashi, addressing him in a ghostly voice.

[The Law of Cause and Effect has reached you. Welcome, human.]

“…?”

[You were looking for the Lunar Kill Technique.]

“Who are you? How do you know that?”

The skeleton remained silent for a time before slowly speaking.

[…] “Sadly, you lack the qualifications to be a legitimate successor. You do not meet the criteria.”

“…”

What nonsense.

Without a word, Musashi lunged at the skeleton to strike.

[Hmph, that level of skill.]

Shhhk

But the skeleton easily dodged Musashi’s strike, which had toppled everyone in a single hit, and in return, sliced through Musashi’s arm. Clearly, the skeleton’s sword skills far outmatched Musashi, and as he flinched, the skeleton struck a pose and said.

[Then die. I, too, am a false successor but am waiting for the true one to arrive. It seems the Law of Cause and Effect may have miscalculated.]

“A true successor…? What the hell is the qualification for that?!”

[At the very least, you are not one. You will never meet that qualification.]

A peculiar light flickered in the skeleton’s eyes.

[I am Minamoto Yoshitsune! Reveal your name, human!]

“My name is Miyamoto Musashi! I will be the one to slay you!”

[Ha ha!]

Boom!

Kiiiinng!!

From Yoshitsune’s blade erupted an unusual glow in eight streams. Moments later, his form began to dissipate into shadows as he attacked Musashi. Musashi initially mistook the shadowy figures as common sword strikes, but soon realized that they were anything but.

It was precisely a death trap!

In a heartbeat, Musashi summoned all his strength to meet Yoshitsune’s onslaught, reaching the peak of the Absolute Realm.

Snap!

On the threshold of life and death, Musashi felt his shadow’s essence converge at the tip of his sword, combining all the techniques he had absorbed from various sword masters into one. It was the epitome of a cut.

At the moment Musashi delivered his strike to Yoshitsune, it pierced cleanly through all of his attacks and landed squarely on his neck.

Thud!

[My dual sword technique…?! A skill that penetrated a hundred thousand soldiers single-handedly… ]

Yoshitsune stared in disbelief at the blade piercing through his neck, finally responding.

[Human Musashi, what name do you give this strike?]

“…Huff… huff….”

Musashi barely had any breath left to respond. He had just crossed into a spiritual realm and poured all his heart and energy into that move. Despite being on the verge of death from Yoshitsune’s impending strike, Yoshitsune withheld his final blow. Instead, for a brief moment, the skeleton’s visage flickered, revealing a glimmer of his former self, and he chuckled lightly.

[Name it. Call it Divine Kill Slash….]

Swoosh!

That was the moment Yoshitsune’s form vanished.

Thud!

Musashi felt the flood of all of Yoshitsune’s martial skills, military strategies, and knowledge rushing into his mind.

When he awoke, he found himself collapsed on the beach. The skeleton’s ruin had vanished without a trace.

“…”

Musashi clenched the sand tightly.

He understood Yoshitsune’s plight while simultaneously sensing his own helplessness.

‘It’s not time to reach the continent yet.’

He felt he still had work to do in perfecting the state he had just attained. The moment he reached the Absolute Realm, he realized that such a remarkable master might exist in the world.

Thus, Musashi abandoned his journey to Goryeo and set his sights on the notoriously treacherous Aokigahara Life Sea.

In Aokigahara Life Sea, Musashi utilized his martial prowess to pierce through the Living Sea and defeated a considerable number of demon beasts in the Death Sea. Just as he was about to cross into the Entering Sea, a boy with silvery hair, who looked like a Yin-Yang master, appeared before him out of the blue.

“You’ve grown quite a bit since that time, little one.”

“Abe no Seimei.”

“You remember me, huh?”

“Why are you blocking my way?”

“Ho ho.”

Abe no Seimei chuckled amusingly, pulling out a sword to present it to Musashi. As Musashi accepted the blade, Abe no Seimei said,

“That sword is Amenohabakiri, one of the top three divine swords in Dongyoung history.”

“Why give this to me?”

“You’ll ultimately challenge the ‘King’ of the Life Sea. I have no intention of stopping you. In fact, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that no challenger with your level of skill has ever existed in the Life Sea before. So, just…”

Abe no Seimei grinned.

“Strike the king once with Amenohabakiri. That should satisfy your ambitions.”

“…Hmph.”

Musashi ignored Abe no Seimei and brushed past him.

Though he felt he couldn’t beat the King of the Life Sea, he sensed a desire to at least inflict some damage.