Chapter 80 : The Great Expansion Sword Formation (2)
Chapter 80 - The Great Expansion Sword Formation (2)
After hearing Namgung Jun’s detailed explanation, Lee Se-ha’s face became grave.
Her thick eyelashes lowered like clouds; she seemed to be in deep thought.
“The flaw of the Great Expansion Sword Formation.”
“What do you think?”
“It makes plenty of sense. I also often used the part Jun-ah mentioned in reverse to induce the opponent's unreasonable entry.”
“So you used it to your advantage, Master.”
Namgung Jun tapped the diagram of the sword formation he had drawn on paper for explanation with his brush.
It felt like Lee Se-ha had recognized the weakness of the Great Expansion Sword Formation but used it as a hidden variable instead.
“If what you say is true, Master, it might be a difference in perspective regarding the sword formation.”
Namgung Jun pursued perfection like an impregnable fortress, while Lee Se-ha preferred freedom and various variables like a widely spread net.
“But hearing Jun-ah’s words, the unstable flaw hits home harder than the advantage of creating variables. The benefit of supplementing the flaw is greater.”
Lee Se-ha gently took Namgung Jun’s brush.
Then she began to draw a new diagram on the paper.
She was drawing the solution that came to mind immediately after hearing Namgung Jun’s explanation on the floor.
The disciple, capturing the trajectory drawn by the brush held by his master in his eyes, inwardly admired it.
Was it because her understanding had deepened while taking charge of commanding the Great Expansion Sword Style until now?
Lee Se-ha was putting forth a solution in a similar vein to the direction Namgung Jun was thinking.
‘It would be better to modify this part according to Master’s direction.’
Lee Se-ha playfully touched Namgung Jun’s hair as he focused on the diagram.
“What do you think about this part?”
“Not bad. However, it would be good to further bring out the subtleties of the Post-Heaven Eight Trigrams here. After all, the core of the Great Expansion Sword Style is that the sword force harboring various branches of martial principles changes in real-time.”
Lee Se-ha agreed immediately.
“Because the Post-Heaven Eight Trigrams contain the principles regarding all changes that occur between heaven and earth. Our disciple's choice is right.”
Lee Se-ha nodded and immediately applied Namgung Jun’s opinion to the diagram. While doing so, perhaps because new inspiration was rising in real-time, she moved the brush ceaselessly and brought up new opinions.
“By pulling down the axes of Zhen and Xun a bit more...”
“If I do that, the movement of the sword formation might become rigid. The advantage of the Great Expansion Sword Formation will die.”
“Do not worry. It seems it will work if we change the deployment order of the axes.”
The master and disciple fixed up the Great Expansion Sword Formation little by little while exchanging opinions back and forth.
The Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen stood right next to them and watched that sight quietly.
Since complex supreme martial principles were continuously going back and forth, let alone offering new opinions, it was overwhelming just to follow the flow of the conversation.
Especially the Clouds who hadn't experienced Namgung Jun much because the timing hadn't matched were even more astonished.
“At first, I wondered why they were making such a fuss, but there was a reason.”
“To think a guy who hasn't even learned martial arts for a year can dig into sword formations like this.”
“Haha. You people only believe when you see it for yourselves. To think you only now realized that Young Hero Namgung's talent shines this brightly.”
Heo Il burst into hearty laughter, and Gong Jun-am silently looked at the changing diagram of the sword formation before looking at Lee Se-ha.
“Hall Master.”
Acknowledging Gong Jun-am's call, Lee Se-ha nodded.
“It seems we will need to overhaul the sword formation and train anew. Does anyone have any objections?”
At Lee Se-ha's question, no one opposed.
The fact that the person who offered the opinion was the youngest of the Heavenly Sword Hall did not matter in the slightest.
He was just the youngest in age; he was a Three-Cloud responsible for the mainstay of the Heavenly Sword Hall, and the First Rising Star of the Righteous Path.
Furthermore, the opinion he put forth was very reasonable in anyone's view.
There was the downside that the operation of the sword formation would change considerably and they would have to retrain, but no one minded.
Those present here were the elite of the Ten Halls.
They had the confidence that with a few training sessions, they would adapt quickly even to a new sword formation.
“For the time being, return to individual training. Fixing the sword formation won't take that long.”
As soon as Lee Se-ha's order fell, the Heavenly Sword Hall members scattered to various places in the training ground.
Lee Se-ha, watching that sight, pulled on the hem of Namgung Jun's sleeve.
“Shall we go too? Let's finish the sword formation improvements in my office.”
“Very well. Master.”
……
KWAAAANG!
The Heavenly Sword Hall members unfolding the Great Expansion Sword Formation moved in perfect order.
The sword formation improvement was not yet completely finished.
It was to confirm the direction by personally unfolding the sword formation during the intermediate process.
The one commanding the sword formation was not Lee Se-ha or Gong Jun-am.
Namgung Jun, who played a large role in repairing the Great Expansion Sword Formation, came to take charge of the command.
“We will widen the footwork interval of the left wing. Accordingly, you must take the aura operation longer and more densely.”
At Namgung Jun's command, the feet of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen became faster. Especially the One-Clouds and Two-Clouds were trying hard to defend their assigned positions while darting their eyes around busily in all directions.
“Hmm!”
“Wait a moment, if we do that, the engagement distance of the sword strike increases.”
“Yes. Therefore, you must move about two breaths faster.”
At Namgung Jun's ensuing instructions, the Heavenly Sword Hall veterans shut their mouths and were busy moving.
Namgung Jun's method of supplementing the Great Expansion Sword Formation was different from expected.
Naturally, they thought he would devise a new sword formation to solve the flaws based on the secret manual and diagrams, but that was not it.
Deploying the sword formation just as it was before the supplementation.
Namgung Jun was modifying the aura operation, sword paths, and directional positioning while confirming the movements in real-time.
All the accumulating results were being recorded as a single mnemonic chant inside Namgung Jun's head.
It was overwhelming even for the Heavenly Sword Hall veterans, who were accustomed to the Great Expansion Sword Formation, to adapt to the changes happening in real-time.
However, Namgung Jun showed no mercy.
As if implying they should naturally be able to do this much.
Unlike the veterans whose bodies were at least accustomed to the Great Expansion Sword Formation, the One-Clouds and Two-Clouds felt like they were dying.
“Ugh.”
A sweet taste of exhaustion rose in the mouth of Man Yewon, who was undertaking one axis of the Great Expansion Sword Formation and diligently moving his feet and sword.
‘I’m going crazy!’
He hadn't even completely mastered the existing Great Expansion Sword Formation. Yet, suddenly, under the pretext of supplementation, the sequence of the Great Expansion Sword Formation was being dizzyingly switched around.
Not only his hands and feet but his head also became very dizzy.
If he let go of his mind even a little, he was on the verge of being bounced out of the currently rapidly changing flow right away.
‘When on earth does this end!’
Man Yewon lifted his head slightly and looked at Namgung Jun.
The glint in the eyes of Namgung Jun, who was moving the Great Expansion Sword Formation, was merely emitting a terrifying light.
‘The Great Expansion Sword Formation. It is not a lacking sword formation, but it is an ordinary sword formation with no particular special advantages.’
Should I say it feels like it just fulfilled the minimum conditions for group warfare?
It failed to utilize the characteristics of the free-spirited sword style called Great Expansion Sword Style in the slightest.
‘As expected, it would be better to overhaul it completely.’
If he were to completely switch it around from the beginning, there would surely be considerable resistance.
Namgung Jun was changing it slowly, little by little, from the corners, as if training the Heavenly Sword Hall.
Lee Se-ha and Gong Jun-am watched that spectacle from the side.
“Hall Master. Do you intend to entrust it completely to Namgung Jun?”
“I heard he even completely devised a breaking method at the Three-Cloud Training Corps? Even I couldn't do that. In the ability to unravel and analyze martial arts, Jun-ah might be superior to me. Then it would be better to entrust it to my disciple.”
Gong Jun-am did not deny it.
The breaking method Namgung Jun had newly devised at the Three-Cloud Training Corps was phenomenal.
Did not the Elders of the Council of Elders, who received Namgung Jun’s results, also burst into admiration repeatedly?
It was inevitable, as he had surpassed the achievements they had accomplished by investing a long time just by scanning them a few times.
“Let’s trust Jun-ah.”
“I already trust him. Namgung Jun has never disappointed us.”
THUD!
The stomps that the swordsmen unfolding the Great Expansion Sword Formation took in unison rang the Heavenly Sword Hall training ground strongly.
……
The change of the Great Expansion Sword Formation led by Namgung Jun.
Although the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen had not completely adapted to it physically, they had undergone a significant change.
The deployment of the Great Expansion Sword Formation had been refined to be even smoother.
The members who were personally unfolding the sword formation felt this firsthand.
“It has certainly changed, right?”
“That is so.”
“At this level, wouldn't we have a fighting chance even if we clashed with the Martial Conquest Hall?”
Everyone agreed with someone's question.
“I thought he was simply fixing a few flaws, but I didn't know the sword formation would improve this much.”
“Namgung Jun’s talent is the real deal. He is no different from a treasure of the Heavenly Sword Hall.”
“The Hall Master has properly taken in a disciple.”
The members did not spare their praise for Namgung Jun.
Namgung Jun did not just focus on supplementing the Great Expansion Sword Formation.
In his spare time, he helped fix their individual Great Expansion Sword Style.
It was because he thought that, since it is a sword formation unfolded based on the Great Expansion Sword Style, the individual accomplishment of the Great Expansion Sword Style was the most important.
Those who received personal enlightenment from Namgung Jun could not hold back their surprise at his clear teachings and perspective.
It was because, having only watched his accomplishments from the side, receiving teachings made his talent be felt even more deeply.
“This should be enough to organize it.”
Namgung Jun closed the secret manual.
Apart from supplementing the Great Expansion Sword Formation, Namgung Jun was taking separate time to create a new secret manual.
It was something he had been preparing for a long time.
It was precisely the external cultivation method he had learned from Dan Jung-se and the Iron Tower Hall, newly changed to fit swordsmen.
‘This is enough to establish the foundation.’
Originally, he had devised the foundation of the external cultivation method centering on his own body, but staying in the Heavenly Sword Hall for a long time allowed him to refer to the bodies of other swordsmen as well.
Thus, going through various cases, he was able to compile a comprehensive external cultivation method.
Namgung Jun filled in the name on the front cover of the secret manual.
Sword-Based Foundation Technique.
Of course, it was no ordinary external cultivation method.
An external cultivation method that would only be effective for swordsmen who learned the sword.
Since he was not well-versed in external arts, it was the best result Namgung Jun could achieve right now.
But Namgung Jun did not intend to be greedy.
If he could raise the Heavenly Sword Hall’s combat power with this martial art, that was enough.
When Namgung Jun completed the secret manual of the Sword-Based Foundation Technique, Lee Se-ha entered the building of the Heavenly Sword Hall.
“Focus.”
Lee Se-ha’s voice made the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen, who were in the middle of training, stop their movements.
Lee Se-ha examined the faces of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen gathered in one place and opened her mouth.
“The deployment of the Heavenly Sword Hall has been decided. The mission is to support the Evil Eye Branch in Jiangxi Province. There is a possibility of clashing with the Iron War Camp, not to mention the Sun and Moon Demonic Cult.”
“Hall Master. Does that mean?”
“Yes. All available personnel of the current Heavenly Sword Hall, including myself, will move out.”
The eyes of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen sparkled.
“Jiangxi Province. And the Iron War Camp. We must assume group warfare.”
“It is a good opportunity to test out the supplemented Great Expansion Sword Formation.”
“The timing is just right.”
When everyone’s gaze focused on Namgung Jun, Lee Se-ha asked Namgung Jun.
“Jun-ah. How about it? Can we unfold the supplemented Great Expansion Sword Formation in actual combat right away?”
Namgung Jun did not answer immediately and looked at the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen gathered around.
Namgung Jun, who had watched their group training without missing a single day, soon nodded his head.
“There is no problem. Please show the changed Great Expansion Sword Formation to the Martial World.”
As Namgung Jun readily nodded his head, Lee Se-ha’s eye smile also deepened.
“Good. Heavenly Sword Hall. Move out.”
Led by Lee Se-ha, the entire Heavenly Sword Hall moved toward Jiangxi Province.