Chapter 92 : Intensive Training (2)
Chapter 92: Intensive Training (2)
Namgung Jun also drew his sword.
Just like Heo Il, he assumed the opening stance of the Great Expansion Sword Art.
The two swordsmen slowly circled one another, carefully observing each other.
The instant their positions switched, Heo Il made the first move.
His stealthy and swift footwork brushed against the ground as he surged forward.
In contrast to his silent approach, the sword swung by his right hand unleashed a chilling whistle through the air.
Swoosh!
A sword strike carrying the profound principles of the Swift Sword slashed toward the right side of Namgung Jun's shoulder.
Namgung Jun rotated his waist in the opposite direction while slashing diagonally with his sword.
It was the very same Swift Sword form of the Great Expansion Sword Art.
Deflecting the blade rushing in from the side, Namgung Jun simultaneously rotated his body in a wide arc.
His sword strike accelerated even further as it swept forward ferociously, yet Heo Il successfully blocked every attack.
Even so, he divided his breathing into short intervals and launched another counterattack.
Their rapid sword strikes collided ceaselessly, scattering sparks in every direction.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Over a dozen exchanges were completed in an instant.
Yet not once did the two swords touch each other directly.
The one forced backward, however, was only Heo Il.
Holding his sword steadily at mid-guard, Namgung Jun remained firmly rooted where he stood.
As the distance naturally widened, Namgung Jun extended his sword forward and stepped with the Boundless Step.
A thrust shot straight toward Heo Il's chest in the blink of an eye.
Heo Il's shoulder twitched at the exquisitely timed strike that exploited the briefest instant during the change in distance.
'What a sharp attack.'
Was it because this sparring match was conducted as though it were a life-and-death duel?
The forms Namgung Jun displayed now were far more dangerous and ruthless than those he used in ordinary sparring.
He pressed forward relentlessly without allowing the slightest opening.
His unfathomable experience blended harmoniously with refined sword techniques, creating a dense and merciless offensive that left no room to breathe.
'Even so, I can't allow myself to be overwhelmed so helplessly.'
To stop Namgung Jun's lethal thrust, Heo Il extended his left hand.
A glimmer of interest flashed across Namgung Jun's eyes as he watched the response.
'Senior Heo... you've completely abandoned concealed weapons now.'
The Heo Il of old would have countered by throwing daggers and a variety of concealed weapons.
Instead, the movements reflected in Namgung Jun's eyes were entirely different from what he expected.
Heo Il placed his left palm against the flat of the sword he held diagonally and poured his internal energy into it.
It was the orthodox method employed by swordsmen.
Boom!
The sword that blocked the blue-flashing thrust bent dramatically and let out a heavy groan.
Recalling the profound principles of the Flexible Sword contained within the Great Expansion Sword Art, Heo Il hurriedly dispersed the force surging through the blade.
Otherwise, the sword would have snapped instantly.
“Senior Heo. I'm continuing.”
Namgung Jun spoke while continuing to force his sword forward with overwhelming grip strength.
Heo Il could not answer.
The Eternal Justice Sword that had been pressing horizontally against his blade gradually turned upright, becoming heavier with each passing moment.
The Heavy Sword form of the Great Expansion Sword Art was unfolding.
The tremendous pressure transmitted through the sword slowly forced Heo Il's feet backward.
Even so, he did not avoid the contest of strength.
'I can do this.'
Normally, he would have avoided a direct clash of strength and responded with the miscellaneous techniques he had learned as a child.
Even now, dozens of such techniques came to mind.
Though he knew the sparring match would become far easier if he responded with them as usual, Heo Il did not use a single one.
He trusted the external training he had built through the Sword Foundation Art and the sword techniques he had newly learned.
Heo Il understood.
If he continued relying on the miscellaneous techniques that old man had forced him to learn, he would never reach the realm he sought.
That was why he abandoned the miscellaneous techniques and chose sword techniques instead.
It was a bold change, yet he had no regrets.
Even if his martial ability stagnated—or even regressed—for the time being, he believed this was the correct path in the long run.
Heo Il looked at the young man who had led him to make this choice.
Namgung Jun had undoubtedly exerted an enormous influence upon him.
“Young Hero Namgung. I'll come again.”
Steeling his resolve, Heo Il thrust his sword forward.
Whoosh!
The successive strikes of the Great Expansion Sword Art blended together, surrounding Heo Il with heavy gusts of sword wind.
Each blow carried enough weight that a single clean hit would likely shatter bones.
Heo Il tightened his grip on his sword and blocked again and again.
Handling everything with only the Great Expansion Sword Art was incredibly difficult, but somehow he managed to keep pace.
'I see... so this form was meant to be executed like this.'
As he personally received Namgung Jun's sword forms, realizations gradually accumulated like sea foam.
Heo Il concentrated without pause, determined to engrave every one of those insights into his mind.
Namgung Jun watched Heo Il barely managing to withstand his sword.
'Senior Heo's mastery of the Great Expansion Sword Art was only at seventy percent.'
Yet what Heo Il displayed now was far beyond that.
He was enduring every sword form of a fully mastered Great Expansion Sword Art.
He was not merely blocking them.
Little by little, he was attempting to make those forms his own.
Whenever that happened, the focus in Heo Il's eyes alternated between hazy and crystal clear.
'Good.'
Though he had not entered a state of selflessness, Heo Il had completely immersed himself in the present duel.
Clang!
After more than seventy fierce exchanges, the two swords finally separated.
Heo Il steadied his ragged breathing as he looked at Namgung Jun.
The reason was simple.
Namgung Jun had stopped pressing the attack.
“If you carefully digest what you've gained from this sparring match, you'll achieve another breakthrough before long. I think it would be best if you focused on meditation for the rest of today.”
“Hoo... Thank you, Young Hero Namgung.”
Heo Il sat down on the spot.
It could not be helped.
The moment his tension and concentration vanished together, all strength drained from his body.
Fatigue washed over him as though he had swung his sword continuously for seven days and seven nights.
Namgung Jun handed him a water flask.
“So you've completely abandoned the miscellaneous techniques now?”
“I have. I always believed I'd have to abandon them eventually. It's better to cast them aside completely now.”
Namgung Jun did not consider miscellaneous techniques inherently bad.
The effectiveness of any technique depended upon the martial artist who wielded it.
However, Heo Il had no intention of delving deeper into them or incorporating them into his swordsmanship.
Under the present circumstances, they had become nothing more than dead weight.
Furthermore, Heo Il seemed to harbor outright hatred toward those techniques regardless of their usefulness.
In that case, allowing him to let them go was the right decision.
“Hoo.”
After drinking some water and catching his breath, Heo Il looked up at Namgung Jun.
“Will you be alright, Young Hero Namgung?”
“Of course.”
As Heo Il looked Namgung Jun up and down, a faint shadow crossed his eyes.
His own sparring session had ended.
Until the next training exercise, all he needed to do was review the duel or continue practicing the Great Expansion Sword Art alone.
But Namgung Jun was different.
Without taking even a brief rest, he continued sparring with one Heavenly Sword Hall swordsman after another.
Moreover, he was using iron swords in battles that closely resembled life-and-death duels.
The strain on both his mind and body had to be tremendous.
Yet Namgung Jun continued without so much as a disturbance in his breathing.
As though this itself were simply another part of the intensive training assigned to him.
“Young Hero Namgung will surely manage himself well, but I can't help worrying that you're pushing yourself too hard.”
“Heh. I'll be fine.”
Watching Namgung Jun smile, Heo Il slowly nodded.
“Ugh.”
Letting out a groan, Heo Il stood up.
Namgung Jun and every other swordsman of the Heavenly Sword Hall were giving everything they had for the Combat Strength Evaluation.
He could not remain seated like this.
Resting only long enough to steady his breathing was more than enough.
“I'm still far from my goal.”
Following Namgung Jun's advice, Heo Il was aiming to fully master the Great Expansion Sword Art.
That would become the first step toward abandoning his former miscellaneous techniques and walking forward solely as a swordsman.
---
By the time the Sword Foundation Art training and sparring with the Great Expansion Sword Art concluded, the sun had usually set.
Even then, the Heavenly Sword Hall's daily intensive training was not yet over.
“The moon is especially bright tonight. I think we can proceed without torches.”
“That certainly has its own charm.”
“It looks like we're about to begin. Everyone, gather around.”
Using the moonlight as their lamp, the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen sat cross-legged around Namgung Jun.
The final activity of the day's intensive training.
The sword discussion.
More precisely, it was a discussion about the Sword Foundation Art and the Great Expansion Sword Art.
Although Namgung Jun paid as much attention as possible, he was overseeing the entire Heavenly Sword Hall by himself.
It would not have been strange if he overlooked certain things.
This gathering existed so everyone could share what they had found lacking or difficult to understand during the day's training, search together for the answers, and receive further guidance from Namgung Jun.
“Junior. I'm having trouble with the Lake's Edge Emerald Whirl form of the Great Expansion Sword Art. The rotation should naturally increase through the principles of the Swift Sword, but it's difficult to stabilize my body. Yet if I reduce the force, it becomes nothing more than a clumsy dance...”
“Senior Cheong, you need to focus more on the sword than on maintaining your posture. Because you're concentrating only on your body movement, your sword path is becoming distorted. Once the rotation is added, that slight distortion turns into a major imbalance.”
Namgung Jun answered every question from the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen one by one.
This greatly benefited not only the person asking but everyone else as well.
Since they all practiced the same martial art, they might eventually encounter the exact same problems.
Nor did Namgung Jun stop at simply answering questions.
“The forms scattered throughout the Great Expansion Sword Art often seem disconnected from one another. Since each form contains different intent and martial principles, how should one execute them so they flow as naturally as running water?”
The topic Namgung Jun presented was quite difficult.
No one could answer immediately.
Especially when the topic had been drawn directly from the sparring matches earlier that day.
Even when the question was not directed at them, every swordsman fell deep into thought.
After all, no one here had completely mastered the Great Expansion Sword Art.
One could unexpectedly attain enlightenment from the most unlikely place.
Questions poured in one after another, yet Namgung Jun answered every one without hesitation.
Many found themselves astonished.
Being talented and being capable of teaching were two entirely different things.
Those blessed with exceptional talent often failed to understand the difficulties that ordinary people encountered.
But Namgung Jun was different.
His explanations were logical, his words eloquent.
It was as though he possessed years of experience teaching others.
He often raised questions that perfectly exposed what someone had been struggling with before they even voiced them.
The swordsmen could not help but be amazed.
Beneath the moonlight, the discussion of the sword continued without end.
'It's fine if they don't understand immediately.'
Namgung Jun deliberately encouraged the swordsmen to keep thinking.
He continuously handed them new questions to ponder.
As long as they never let go of those questions, the answers would one day reveal themselves naturally.
The Sword Foundation Art.
Sparring.
The discussion of the sword.
Throughout the day's relentless schedule, Namgung Jun rarely rested.
The only time he relaxed was while eating.
Yet he did not find it tiring.
Instead, it reminded him of his days at Namcheon Palace, filling him with quiet joy.
'Those were the days.'
He had spent entire days bustling about with his disciples.
Now was no different.
Only his position had changed—from master and disciple to comrades.
Sharing enlightenment remained exactly the same.
Compared to those days, however, one thing had changed.
The experiences of the Sword Emperor had blended with Namgung Jun's own, allowing his perspective to become far more refined and flexible.
Namgung Jun looked around at the companions gathered beneath the moonlight.
It had been an exhausting day.
Yet no one seemed to mind as they enthusiastically took part in the sword discussion.
Their bodies were weary, but each swordsman smiled brightly as they freely expressed their own understanding of the martial path.
The sounds of people reviewing today's lessons, exchanging thoughts, and the occasional chirping of insects quietly drifted into the night.
The process of discovering one's own Martial Path was surely one of the greatest joys for a martial artist.
And how could one not be happy when surrounded by companions walking that very same road?
Simply gathering with like-minded people and exchanging opinions seemed to melt away all fatigue.
'Moments like these are what shaped the person I am today.'
Watching the lively expressions of the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen illuminated by the moonlight, Namgung Jun smiled faintly.
And so, the discussion of the sword came to an end.
Everyone returned to their quarters.
Only Namgung Jun remained alone in the training ground.
He intended to devote a little more time to his personal training.
Beginning with the Great Expansion Sword Art, he successively performed all five sword arts.
He was not merely alternating between different sword arts.
Yet Namgung Jun never stopped.
Even if no immediate breakthrough came, it did not matter.
This was both the path toward raising the mastery of each individual sword art and an attempt to forge an entirely new path.
---
Every day repeated the same training.
Even so, time passed swiftly.
The swordsmen, in particular, felt its passage even more keenly.
One day they would suddenly wake up and discover that they had grown tremendously stronger.
The intensity of the training certainly played a role, but Namgung Jun's guidance was the greatest reason for their astonishing rate of improvement.
They had always been hardworking.
However, because Namgung Jun consistently addressed every weakness and every obstacle as though scratching an itch they could never quite reach, their growth naturally exploded.
Before they knew it, three months had passed in the blink of an eye.
The Combat Strength Evaluation was now right before them.