Chapter 450: The Past Revealed
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Cheol Ryu-heun revealed a startled reaction at the unexpected scene.
‘What?’
Create an invincible divine weapon surpassing the Divine Martial Sword?
Through the booklet presumed to have been written by the legendary swordsmith Ou Yezi?
Was such a thing truly possible?
But it wasn’t entirely impossible.
It was natural.
At that time, Ou Yezi, together with Gan Jiang, had achieved fame as the foremost swordsmiths under heaven.
Literally, both were the best blacksmiths under heaven.
The same was true even now.
Though truly vast ages had passed, the appearance of a swordsmith transcending those two’s names had been nonexistent.
That’s how extraordinary their stature was.
They were even revered as gods of the forge.
The commonly said “Forge God (???)” was a title and divine name symbolizing the peerless achievements of Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang.
They were truly no different from mythical beings elevated to the status of ancestors (??: ancestor-like persons of a certain field) in the smithing world.
That wasn’t all.
At some point, shrines honoring Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang were even erected in various places.
So it became customary for any swordsmith to offer sacrifices praying for good business.
Thus, Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang were revered as gods of the smithing world, setting them apart from later famous swordsmiths.
Therefore, it was hard to dismiss the creation of a divine weapon surpassing the Divine Martial Sword as absolutely impossible.
But there was a precondition.
The contents of the booklet, that essence, must be of the same vein as Gan Jiang’s or identical……
Cheol Ryu-heun suddenly thought.
Of the relationship between the two in their lifetimes.
‘Fellow disciples.’
Indeed.
The legendary swordsmiths Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang had been fellow disciples in the past.
That meant they had learned their knowledge from the same master.
Though the kings and countries they served were different.
Perhaps because of that, they couldn’t determine who was superior as swordsmiths.
What Gan Jiang had accomplished, Ou Yezi had also accomplished.
Both boasted truly genius-level skills.
They formed twin peaks of equal rivalry.
It was long ago, but there was no one who didn’t know that famous relationship.
In his lifetime, Ou Yezi had crafted superb swords.
Namely, the Zhanlu Sword (???), Juque Sword (???), Shengxie Sword (???), Yuchang Sword (???), and Chungou Sword (???).
Five weapon names attached to the name Ou Yezi.
All had achieved fame as precious swords of the era.
The earnest beginning of that competitive relationship was because of Gan Jiang’s achievements.
In ancient times, the king whom Ou Yezi served heard a piece of news.
-The famous swordsmith Gan Jiang of the neighboring country has made excellent swords. Though he didn’t name each one, they are said to be more than worthy of being called precious swords.
The king, stimulated by that, immediately summoned Ou Yezi and commanded.
-You too shall put your heart and soul into making precious swords. They must be superior to that Gan Jiang’s finished products. That country will someday use its might to devour us. You must keep that in mind.
So the Zhanlu Sword, Juque Sword, Shengxie Sword, Yuchang Sword, and Chungou Sword were born one after another.
From that point on, the earnest competition began, and Gan Jiang ultimately created his lifework masterpieces, the Gan Jiang and Mo Ye Sword.
Those two swords’ fame soared sky-high.
Truly, they were called the strongest, greatest weapons of that era.
At that news, Ou Yezi’s king issued a command again.
-Recently the fame of the Gan Jiang sword and Mo Ye Sword has risen peerlessly! You too shall make swords like those again! We cannot lose!
Consequently, Ou Yezi also worked tirelessly day and night to present his lifework masterpieces to the world.
Three swords in total.
The Longyuan Sword (???), Tai’e Sword (???), and Gongbu Sword (???).
Having thus completed famous swords rivaling the Gan Jiang and Mo Ye Sword, Ou Yezi’s illness worsened right after completion and he passed away.
It was around the same time Gan Jiang breathed his last.
‘If Ou Yezi had secretly exchanged correspondence with his fellow disciple Gan Jiang……’
Having recalled that historical fact, Cheol Ryu-heun formed a hypothesis.
What if, before they died, the two had exchanged knowledge and completed the essence for creating a divine weapon in the form of the Divine Martial Sword?
In that midst, the scene within Wang-ryu’s memory continued flowing.
The Heaven Emperor Society Lord, having put away the booklet, uttered a quiet voice.
“The swords Ou Yezi made in the past…… they are the core materials. to create the Divine weapon surpassing that Divine Martial Sword, it is proper to unite the spiritual energies of each Sword.”
At that moment, Cheol Ryu-heun intuited.
What the spiritual energy he had just mentioned truly was.
‘Soul!’
Indeed.
That must mean Ou Yezi’s soul.
His intuition immediately transformed into conviction.
Of course.
It was almost certain.
Earlier, Cheol Ryu-heun himself had confirmed.
Gan Jiang’s soul that had been dormant within the Gan Jiang……
Long ago, he had already perfectly mastered the mysterious essence for crafting divine weapons using a human’s spiritual soul energy and left it in writing.
If the hypothesis he had formed earlier was correct…… The booklet Ou Yezi left behind was probably also writing of the same kind.
The words the Heaven Emperor Society Lord had just uttered proved that fact.
Right then.
One Divine General standing beside Wang-ryu followed up.
“We shall bring all of them into our hands before long. definitely……”
Following that, the other two Divine Generals also opened their mouths in turn.
“Yes, now that we’ve identified the locations, it’s only a matter of time.”
“Please leave that task to us as well. we shall successfully steal the remaining swords while evading the surveillance net.”
At that sound, the Heaven Emperor Society Lord shook his head.
“No. I shall handle that personally. you stay away from me for the time being. and…… there is a task you must do separately.”
He then placed something on the stone table.
“Take one each. these are secret martial arts manuals obtained while evading the surveillance net.”
Thereupon Wang-ryu asked with a curious expression.
“Martial arts manuals……? What type exactly?”
“Diamond Indestructible Body.”
At the Heaven Emperor Society Lord’s brief words, all the Divine Generals were startled.
His quiet voice continued again.
“They are copies of secret manuals stored at Shaolin Temple.”
Right then, one Divine General asked with a meaningful gaze.
“Ah, then the person who helped……”
“An apostate monk. of course, I have already dealt with him. this was an affair conducted very secretly from the start, so I didn’t inform you. are you disappointed?”
All the Divine Generals shook their heads and spoke in unison.
“Thank you. my Lord.”
The Heaven Emperor Society Lord, having nodded, spoke again.
“I’ll go first. you stay here a while and then move.”
As he rose and slightly lifted the brim of his bamboo hat.
Cheol Ryu-heun heightened his concentration even further upon seeing that.
It was the moment his features were about to be revealed.
Yet at that moment.
CHWAHWAT, CHWAHWAAT, CHWAHWAT……!
That scene shattered into pieces and scattered, vanishing.
Because of that, he couldn’t see his appearance.
Was it Wang-ryu’s instinctive defense mechanism?
Blocking the securement of clues regarding his master’s identity……
Cheol Ryu-heun inwardly chuckled.
‘Hu, struggling.’
Reading thoughts was just beginning.
There was still time to spare regarding the amount of divine energy and its operation.
So he would definitely obtain an important clue.
‘His lifespan is shortening Because he triggered his innate vital energy. wait. it’s not time to die. I definitely have to see What I want to see.’
He employed extreme willpower harmonized with divine energy to continuously sift through Wang-ryu’s memories.
Then.
SEUSEUSEUT, SEUSEUSEUT……
The light shimmering before him revealed one past scene.
A drill ground like a plaza.
The surrounding walls on all sides were shattered and collapsed.
It was presumably the interior of a large-scale Orthodox martial arts faction.
Metallic sounds burst out ceaselessly.
Also, death screams rang out continuously.
The scent of blood vibrated through the air of the area.
Here and there, the sight of swordsmen dead and bleeding was wretched beyond measure.
A battlefield of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, viewed from Wang-ryu’s perspective.
Cheol Ryu-heun immediately discerned where this was.
It was a place too familiar to his eyes.
It couldn’t help but be.
Because it was a faction where he had once resided.
‘I see. it was a fight that fellow directly participated in.’
Over there on the ground, a shattered signboard caught his eye.
The four characters engraved on it were ‘Namgung Family.’
Indeed.
This was the internal situation of the famed sword house founded by Blue Sky Sword Saint Namgung Je, who had owned the Divine Martial Sword over two hundred years ago.
He even precisely discerned the point in time.
Eleven years ago.
In other words, it meant the scene from the day of Namgung Family’s clan extermination.
Black Tortoise Divine General Wang-ryu had also participated in that heinous atrocity.
In a situation where most of the elite martial artists belonging to Namgung Family had been killed in battle, a middle-aged swordsman in an unusual attire let out a groan with a pallid expression.
“Kkeu…… Uk……”
He was a man in his forties with bold features.
An outstanding bearing at a glance.
On top of that, his long black beard added a composed and stern atmosphere.
But his physical condition was not very good.
He had suffered a deep wound on his left ribcage.
So even breathing looked arduous.
For Cheol Ryu-heun, this was a person he was encountering for the first time.
But his martial attire told his identity.
It was Namgung Si-ryang, the father of the brothers Namgung Sang-rin and Namgung Heon-rin and the patriarch at that time.
“You…… dare…… this house…… kulleok!”
Namgung Si-ryang, speaking with difficulty, spat blood.
It was the effect of his wound as well as his internal injuries worsening.
He soon wiped the blood from his mouth and leveled his sword straight.
“What on earth is your…… purpose……”
Thereupon Wang-ryu let out callous scorn.
“Hut, you don’t need to know.”
Namgung Si-ryang trembled his cheeks and raged.
“Gal! do you think…… you’ll be unscathed after this!”
“Unscathed and then some. your house, as you can see, is on the verge of total annihilation. we will simply come like the Wind and disappear. without any trace.”
“Keut……!”
“Rest assured. from the start, we only intended to test martial prowess and then leave. so even if substandard personnel fled, we didn’t pursue. be grateful.”
“Shut up! Kkeuk…… someday this price…… will definitely…… be paid!”
Thereupon Wang-ryu let out callous scorn.
“Hut, that won’t happen.”
No sooner had his words ended than Namgung Si-ryang shot forward like a ray of light.
PAPAPAPAPA… !
Resolved to die and intending to deploy his final ultimate technique.
Azure Heaven Great Evolution Sword Art.
A powerful ultimate technique of the sword studies that represented the brilliant history and stature of Namgung Family was explosively released through Namgung Si-ryang.
Majestic blue sky sword energy was thus fiercely emitted from the sword point.
But even that couldn’t approach Wang-ryu’s outstanding martial prowess.
PEOHEOEOEOONG, JJEOGEOEOEONG!
Along with a loud noise, Namgung Si-ryang’s sword, carrying a large amount of internal power, was broken in half and flew away.
Before he could even feel the mental shock.
SYUKAAAAK!
Wang-ryu’s sword rushed in.
At a speed that defied vision.
TUHAAK!
A chilling sound rang out.
“Kkeo……!”
Namgung Si-ryang, having let out a pained groan, collapsed to the ground.
With a large hole pierced through the center of his chest.
Wang-ryu’s counter-movement was simple.
Moreover, he hadn’t even used twenty percent of his true internal power.
Yet the man who in name was the supreme head and warrior of Namgung Family had met his futile end.
Truly a gap as great as heaven and earth.
Following that.
PEOGEOEOK… KKWADEUDEUTK… !
Wang-ryu stomped on Namgung Si-ryang’s head with one foot and let out a triumphant smile.
“Hu-hut. we shall take the Ou Yezi Sword that is here.”