Chapter 81
Thump, thump… thump, thump, thump!
She was trembling.
Of course, it would be a lie if she wasn’t trembling.
‘Will… will my brawling skills work?’
It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in the Ten-Second Invincible Arts.
It was even less that she didn’t believe in the hellish training process she had gone through.
But Moyong Hwa was just feeling anxious because her Ten-Second Invincible Arts was still at a beginner’s level, and her enlightenment of the Great Whale Heart Law was weak.
For a swordswoman to abandon her sword and ‘change jobs’ to a brawler was, in a way, a considerable adventure.
Because what one has learned once is not easily discarded.
But So-ah had boldly changed the foundation of her and Moyong Su’s martial arts.
And at this moment.
The fruits of that bold challenge began to be revealed to the world.
Papapa…
Moyong Hwa’s initial move, which started with the Swift Whale Step, was clearly on a different level from So-ah’s.
If So-ah’s Swift Whale Step boasted the speed of a ‘Bow Body Ejection Shadow’ with explosive power, Moyong Hwa’s Swift Whale Step contained a gentle softness like the flowing waves of the Yangtze River.
‘Like a mirage!’
Jang Un-ho exclaimed at Moyong Hwa’s ethereal initial move.
He had expected a fist strike to come from the front and had taken a middle stance to defend against it, but her body had slipped and scattered right in front of him.
And it didn’t take long for his exclamation to turn into astonishment.
—Kkang!!!
‘Wh-What?!’
Jang Un-ho had to clutch his surprised chest.
It was because a tyrannical fist strike had been shot at his temple in an instant.
Fortunately, Jang Un-ho, who had shown his wits, unfolded the Jang family’s saber technique and blocked it, but Moyong Hwa’s fist strike contained a heavy force that was hard to believe was a woman’s fist.
‘Not bad.’
‘Fast!’
‘Leaving everything else aside, a fist and a saber clashed, and such a metallic sound erupted?’
It wasn’t just Jang Un-ho who was astonished.
Everyone in the training ground who was watching the duel had their eyes wide open at the loud noise that erupted when Moyong Hwa’s fist and Jang Un-ho’s saber clashed.
“Good job!”
“Student Moyong Hwa. We believed in you!”
“Crush him!”
Cheers erupted from the ranks of the Human Division students.
‘Damn it! You think I’ll be defeated? By a mere nobody from the Human Division?’
Jang Un-ho, who was furious, moved his body back and readjusted his saber.
His fighting spirit boiled up at the thought of being pushed back.
Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish!
At the same time, a sharp saber shadow scattered a brilliant light and began to occupy Moyong Hwa’s surroundings.
But.
‘…I can see it!’
For a moment, as if she was surprised herself, a look of astonishment crossed Moyong Hwa’s face, but she soon dodged the saber shadow well and neutralized her opponent’s attack.
‘Keke. My junior sister, who has been threshed by my club for over a year, is going to be defeated by such a shabby saber technique?’
So-ah, who was watching the duel between the two, burst into laughter inwardly.
Because the outcome of the match was already clearly visible.
As expected, the aspect of the duel gradually tilted.
Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish!
Just by hearing it, goosebumps rose.
In addition, Jang Un-ho’s saber technique, which seemed to tear through flesh at the slightest touch, was truly fierce.
Therefore, at a glance, one might think that it was Jang Un-ho who had seized the momentum in the current situation.
But the thoughts of So-ah and a few other masters were different.
‘That fast saber technique…’
‘Not at all…’
‘It’s not working!’
That’s right.
The trajectory of the continuous saber strikes was repeatedly being nullified by the exquisite martial principles of the Swift Whale Step, which flowed like water.
‘Damn it! Why isn’t it hitting? This can’t be. This can’t be!’
Jang Un-ho, who was extremely annoyed, exploded his internal energy to the maximum.
Gooooo!
The explosion of his internal energy was so powerful that his saber technique became more and more like a ferocious beast, scattering a terrifying saber light and covering Moyong Hwa’s entire body.
At that.
‘Alright!’
Moyong Hwa shouted with joy.
In fact, she had already set up a ‘duel plan’ with So-ah the night before.
[Junior Sister. What’s your specialty?]
[Specialty? Hmm… I don’t have one.]
[You brat! What do you mean you don’t have a specialty? At least you have one definite advantage over the students of the Heaven or Earth divisions.]
[What’s that?]
[Stamina!]
[Huh?]
[You, and the students of the Human Division, have the tremendous advantage of stamina.]
[Aha!]
[When the duel begins, don’t be hasty. Slowly. And accurately. You know what I mean, right?]
So-ah’s advice had awakened Moyong Hwa in many ways.
The gist of the Ten-Second Invincible Arts was to engrave the martial principles into one’s soul through infinite repetition.
No matter the opponent, no matter the situation, one could be said to have achieved the basics only when one could enter a state of selflessness and unleash their martial arts as if they were the only one in the world.
In that respect, Moyong Hwa was still an ‘incomplete’ fighter.
Mentally, and in terms of the completion of her martial arts, she had not even achieved the basics.
But for Moyong Hwa, who had endured So-ah’s threshing and trained for a long time, Jang Un-ho’s saber light was…
“You slippery eel! How long are you going to keep running away?”
“Don’t get excited. You’re all talk, aren’t you?”
She was able to dodge it without much difficulty, and,
“Gasp… gasp…”
While Jang Un-ho, who had excessively drawn out his internal energy, had a tired look on his face.
Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish!
‘Not a chance, you brat!’
Moyong Hwa’s face, which easily dodged the attack, showed no sign of trouble.
And
‘Shall I start giving it back?’
The moment the corners of her mouth twisted.
Hwiii, thwack!
“Keoheok…!”
Moyong Hwa’s foot accurately struck Jang Un-ho’s lower abdomen.
“Eup…!”
Jang Un-ho could not continue his words.
Of course, he couldn’t speak.
Because although it was not perfect, Moyong Hwa’s kick was a single blow of the Tsunami Kick, which boasted a powerful force among the Ten-Second Invincible Arts and was efficient at mid-range.
‘That must hurt a lot. Keke.’
As his junior sister’s blow landed cleanly, So-ah felt like he wanted to cheer.
But without even a moment for that, Moyong Hwa’s attack continued with the momentum of a landslide.
Bagaaaak!
A sharp hitting sound.
At the same time, Jang Un-ho, without even being able to scream, staggered.
This time, Moyong Hwa had struck Jang Un-ho’s Adam’s apple with the technique of the Heaven-Shattering Consecutive Cannon like a flash of lightning.
Thud!
Jang Un-ho’s body collapsed like an old tree struck by lightning.
Fortunately, he had raised his internal energy to the maximum and had wrapped himself in a protective ki, otherwise he would not have been able to avoid a serious injury.
Moreover, Moyong Hwa’s hands were currently wrapped in fist gloves made of Diamond Heavenly Silkworm Silk.
So Jang Un-ho had no way to endure it.
“Keuuu…”
A low groan flowed from the mouth of the fallen Jang Un-ho, and his body trembled convulsively.
Also, white foam leaked from the corner of his mouth, and seeing that, the duel facilitator, Jong Jin-do, shouted urgently with a terrified look.
“Quickly, take student Jang Un-ho to the medical hall!”
At that, the students of the Earth Division rushed to the center of the training ground, picked up the fallen Jang Un-ho, and quickly headed to the medical hall.
…
In an instant, a heavy silence enveloped the room.
‘My goodness…’
‘I thought there would be a move, but…’
‘To knock out Jang Un-ho with just two attacks?!’
A look of astonishment appeared on the faces of the people.
Of course.
“Alright! Not bad, student Moyong Hwa!”
Only So-ah spoke calmly with a playful expression.
At that, Jong Jin-do, who had come to his senses, shouted, encompassing the crowd.
“The winner of the first duel is… student Moyong Hwa of the Human Division!”
In that moment.
A murmur flowed from the ranks of the Human Division.
“D-Did we win?”
“No, the problem isn’t that we won, but how easy was that?!”
“Crazy… look at Moyong Hwa. That’s the Ten-Second Invincible Arts, right? That’s right. She’s the spitting image of that monster… no, Instructor Jin.”
“Knocked out Jang Un-ho in just… two shots.”
“Scary, so scary. Keke!”
Soon, their murmurs turned into a huge roar.
“Moyong Hwa is amazing!”
“Good job!”
“We got an easy win from the start!”
Moyong Hwa, with eyes that still couldn’t believe it, slowly looked at her own two hands.
A faint white light flickered from the fist gloves she was wearing.
‘Did I… really win this easily?’
She did not doubt her victory.
Because her efforts had been desperate, and her obsession was also sincere.
But what surprised her was the process of the duel.
Just as So-ah had instructed, after quickly depleting her opponent’s stamina, just two times.
With the consecutive blows of the Tsunami Kick and the Heaven-Shattering Consecutive Cannon, Jang Un-ho had collapsed, foaming at the mouth.
‘I…’
Moyong Hwa’s shoulders trembled slightly.
Just then, Jong Jin-do approached her and said nonchalantly.
“Student Moyong Hwa. You won. Go back.”
“Yes? Yes, yes…”
Only then did Moyong Hwa, who had come to her senses, stagger back to the ranks of the Human Division.
Although it was a short distance, the faces of each and every student came into her sight.
‘I…’
Her heart pounded.
She had been worried about whether she could express the sublime martial principles of the Ten-Second Invincible Arts, and whether she would bring shame to her senior brother’s face.
But with every step she took, all her worries flew away into the empty air.
And when she finally reached her colleagues.
Among the students who were patting her shoulders with smiling faces, So-ah’s short words came into her ears.
“Good work. You did well enough.”
“Senior Brother…”
“You all saw what Junior Sister did, right? There’s no going back now. It’s only forward. Let’s go!”
“Let’s go!”
“Ajaaaaaa!”
The cheers of the Human Division students filled the training ground.
The people who were watching them each had different thoughts.
‘To be so proud of just one win!’
‘But their momentum is certainly good.’
‘Does that mean Instructor Jin’s crazy training method is really that amazing? Hah… that can’t be. Isn’t there a set path for martial arts? There’s no way such an ignorant and indiscriminate training method would have good results!’
But their envy and jealousy did not last long.
Because.
“The next duel is between student Myo-seon of the Human Division, from the Emei Sect, and student Seo-mun Yeong of the Heaven Division, from the Seo-mun Family. The two students, forward!”
It was Myo-seon’s turn, who was receiving the most attention among the female martial artists of her peers.
Thump, thump, thump.
Myo-seon’s appearance, as she strode forward, bathed in the sunlight that had risen to the middle of the sky, was so enchanting that it was reminiscent of a celestial fairy.
But before they could even enjoy her beauty, the people felt the firm will in her eyes and were shaken as martial artists.
‘Her body… is reminiscent of a well-forged sword.’
‘As expected of the Sword Empress’s disciple!’
Her opponent’s determination also seemed extraordinary.
Seo-mun Yeong of the Seo-mun Family.
As her affiliation suggested, her martial arts were among the strongest of the students.
‘Myo-seon’s swordsmanship is renowned, but she has less real combat experience than me. I have a good chance of winning.’
In particular, since Seo-mun Yeong was the daughter of the Seo-mun Family, which had recently been gaining momentum, she did not fall behind Myo-seon even in terms of background.
“Young Lady Myo-seon. You should be prepared.”
“Young Lady Seo-mun. I will just do my best.”
With a light greeting, the two drew their respective swords.
And then.
—Kagagagang!
The moment the two women’s swords clashed through a simultaneous initial move without anyone going first.
“Did you hear that? She told Myo-seon to be prepared. What do you think?”
“She must have eaten something wrong.”
“Isn’t Myo-seon’s Jade Void Thirty-Six Swords almost comparable to Namgung Mun’s?”
“That’s right. Besides Namgung Mun and Tang Il-gi, Myo-seon is the strongest among us.”
“Not just the strongest among us, but the strongest in the entire academy.”
“Of course.”
“Then the outcome is obvious, right?”
“The outcome? I give it three moves.”
The students of the Human Division began to chatter freely, almost mocking Seo-mun Yeong, and the students of the Heaven Division, who were sitting next to them, frowned and growled.
‘Are those guys crazy?’
‘They’ve lost their minds, tsk tsk.’
‘Seo-mun Yeong! Win. You can’t lose to those trash from the Human Division!’
So-ah, who was glancing at the contorted faces of the Heaven Division students, just smiled slyly.
‘Pfft… these guys are going to cry today, they’re going to cry.’
(End of Chapter)