Chapter 364: The Authority of the Strong (6)
Five days later.
“…So it was like that.”
Zhuge Wen-hu sighed.
“It is truly a pity that we missed the leader of the enemies, but it is fortunate that everyone returned without anyone dying.”
“…”
“In fact, just eliminating the majority of the enemy’s vanguard means we have won this battle.”
“We couldn’t catch the most important guy.”
“Usually in wartime, if a unit loses three-tenths of its troops, they judge it as annihilated and order a retreat. We have eliminated more than nine-tenths of the experts on the Divine Fire Cult’s side lurking in Henan.”
“…”
“It is a great victory not even worth mentioning. You have worked hard.”
Murong Jun silently sipped his tea.
His momentum was quite unstable as if he had suffered a considerable internal injury. Was it because of that? The thunder energy qi he usually perfectly controlled naturally leaked out, creating a somewhat intimidating atmosphere.
Zhuge Wen-hu asked.
“Was the leader of the enemies, the one called First Martial General, that strong?”
“I don’t know how to express it.”
Murong Jun, who set down his teacup, continued his words with a calm voice.
“Worldly people say the experts of the Saintly Heaven have reached the realm of No-Polarity. However, that is a saying that knows one but not two.”
“That’s right.”
“The realm of No-Polarity is different from the Wall of the Martial Arts´ End. If the Wall of the Martial Arts´ End is climbing a great mountain, the realm of No-Polarity is a realm flying in the sky. However, there are grades in the sky as well. The experts of the Saintly Heaven have already soared to that high sky, making the sun and moonlight their companions and looking down upon the world.”
“Those who fall slightly short of that are precisely the Three Sovereigns. Of course, the Three Sovereigns are also absolute experts belonging to the Saintly Heaven Thirteen Seats, but the sky they walk and the sky the ten Gods, Immortals, Emperors, and Kings walk will be different.”
“That is right. Well, to our eyes, all thirteen are beyond the sky, so such comparisons might be meaningless.”
“That is true.”
Murong Jun’s eyes deepened.
“The guy called the First Martial General did not reach the realm of No-Polarity. I can be sure of that.”
He had clearly seen Yang Cheon’s power with his two eyes.
Even though he hadn’t even unleashed half of his own power, Yang Cheon’s energy wave was at a level far beyond imagination. Since he pushed back peak experts just with the shockwave of his charge, if he determinedly unfolded his martial arts, it’s doubtful if one could properly receive even three exchanges.
No matter how he thought about it, the martial might of the First Martial General Beon Jak didn’t even reach Yang Cheon’s feet. Not just Yang Cheon’s level, even if he had just freshly stepped into the realm of No-Polarity, not a single expert in that place would have survived.
That realm was that supreme. The saying that an expert of the Saintly Heaven can wipe out a great sect single-handedly is never an exaggeration.
“However, the guy had a martial might closest to the summit on the great mountain we are climbing. To be honest, two Clan Heads of the Six Families must fight to even make a match possible, and three must gather to look forward to a winning rate of over five-tenths.”
Zhuge Wen-hu’s face hardened.
“Is it to that extent?”
“Of course, compatibility cannot be ignored either. If there is an expert whose martial arts perfectly counter his, it might be possible to settle the match with two Clan Head-level experts.”
“In other words, you’re saying he is an expert to the extent that at least two of us must step forward together.”
“That’s right. Even that would only be possible if luck follows.”
Murong Jun obediently acknowledged Beon Jak’s martial arts. Although he looked down upon him as a lowly thing from the outer regions, he couldn’t deny the strength he directly saw with his two eyes.
Rather, looking at Beon Jak’s martial arts, Murong Jun felt his fighting spirit boiling.
It was a moment where more greed for the growth of his martial arts arose than his desire for power. A pure martial fever had burned for the first time in a long while.
“There are many other issues, so there is no reason to spend more time unnecessarily. So what I am asking now is purely my personal curiosity. Please take this into consideration.”
“Please speak.”
Zhuge Wen-hu carefully asked.
“Clan Head Murong, do you know the true skills of Master Kong-kong and Immortal Seung-hyeon?”
“…I don’t know.”
“Still, you must have at least a vague expectation, right? Around what level the martial arts of the two are.”
“Of course I do.”
“Then I want to ask. Considering the martial arts of the heads of the two groups called the Mount Tai and Big Dipper of the martial world, Shaolin and Wudang, do you think they could match the First Martial General?”
It was a difficult question. And it was also a dangerous question.
Uncharacteristically, Murong Jun pondered for quite a long time.
In fact, although he said it was personal curiosity, such comparison of combat power was an absolutely necessary task.
It was said that the First Martial General was the leader of the Eighteen Martial Generals and the strongest vanguard the Divine Cult could send externally. If the Divine Cult was like that, it was reasonable to view that the vanguards of the other two evil cult groups would also boast a similar martial might.
What if the leaders of Shaolin and Wudang were weaker than the First Martial General?
If so, the Murim Alliance needed to radically grow the individual’s martial arts rather than just organizing the system right now. That’s why Zhuge Wen-hu’s question was important, and Murong Jun was also being cautious.
After a while, Murong Jun opened his mouth.
“In Master Kong-kong’s case… I don’t really know.”
“What do you mean?”
“I am guessing Master Kong-kong’s martial power in my own way. But I cannot be certain of my guess.”
“…”
“Anyway, looking only at the guessed martial power, I think even Master Kong-kong is one move below the First Martial General. However…”
“However?”
Murong Jun’s eyes deepened.
“Master Kong-kong is definitely hiding his strength. To be precise, it would be more correct to say there’s no need to reveal it rather than hiding it.”
“Um.”
“If Master Kong-kong is hiding his strength, I think he would be able to compete well with the First Martial General. At least a neck-and-neck bout would be possible.”
Master Kong-kong is one of the Saintly Heaven Thirteen Seats, the number one expert of Shaolin who enjoyed the stronghold of the Fist God, and a genuine expert acknowledged by Master Mu-heo.
And Master Mu-heo is an absolute expert evaluated as being closest to number one under heaven along with the Sword Immortal Taoist Tak-mu. If it’s a talent acknowledged by such an expert, even if he hasn’t reached the realm of No-Polarity yet, it’s correct to view that he has entered the ultimate realm in this territory.
“Then what about Immortal Seung-hyeon?”
“I don’t know. However, in the past, Master Kong-kong said Immortal Seung-hyeon’s enlightenment could well encompass the world. There’s no law saying that the meaning of enlightenment coming from a monk’s mouth must necessarily be martial arts, but what’s important is the fact that Master Kong-kong acknowledges Immortal Seung-hyeon more than anyone else.”
“That is so.”
“Moreover, the Wudang Sect’s martial arts are the peak of Taoist martial arts that maximized’striking later but controlling first’ and’softness overcoming hardness’. Disregarding skill and looking only at martial arts compatibility, I think Immortal Seung-hyeon could catch the guy more easily than Master Kong-kong.”
“Um.”
Zhuge Wen-hu nodded.
“I heard the Divine Fire Cult’s Heat Yang Arts is particularly adept at releasing true qi. To pour out pillars of fire from a person’s hand, there are not many martial arts under heaven capable of releasing internal force to that extent.”
“That’s right. At the same time, the attribute their martial art possesses itself is’Hardness’. If Immortal Seung-hyeon’s skill is neck-and-neck with the First Martial General, I guarantee he could subdue him within thirty exchanges.”
Martial arts are not simply decided by reaching a higher realm.
As Murong Jun said, compatibility is important, variables are important, and above all, the mindset approaching the match, such as an unguarded attitude and absolute concentration, is also important.
This is why the world of matches is fun. This is why predicting a match is never easy.
That’s why Murong Jun thought Yeon Wi was amazing.
‘I didn’t know he was to that extent.’
Murong Jun recalled Yeon Wi’s sword technique.
The sword technique of Yeon Wi, exquisitely blocking or bouncing off Beon Jak’s merciless martial arts and charging in, was truly perfect.
When defending, he unfolded a sword of iron walls, when flowing it away, it was as soft as the Wudang Sect’s martial arts, and when striking in, it was strong and fast enough to bring his Heartless Heavenly Thunder Stance to mind.
In a word, it seemed to contain the attributes of all sword techniques scattered under heaven into one sword. A sword technique of the Middle Way leaning nowhere, although there might be many stronger than Yeon Wi, there would not be a single person who unfolds martial arts completely counter to his.
‘He hid the martial arts of a beast behind the face of a noble scholar.’
Murong Jun’s eyes deepened.
‘Indeed, is this what being the father of that guy Yeon Ho-jeong means? In some sense, it is more amazing than that guy Yeon Ho-jeong.’
Yeon Ho-jeong is a genius hard to be born again. He is equipped with first-rate talent in all areas including martial arts, strategy, and discerning eye. At least when Murong Jun looked at it, it was so.
However, Yeon Wi’s sword couldn’t be trained just by having talent.
Endless research and self-reflection on martial arts, and furthermore, the process of decomposing and assembling unimaginably many sword techniques to make them his own is absolutely necessary.
Of course, his sword talent would also be outstanding, but he overwhelmed that talent with effort and enlightenment. Even if he told Yeon Ho-jeong to walk the same path as Yeon Wi, he would never reach the same realm.
“I listened well to Clan Head Murong’s highly informed opinion. I apologize for holding you for a long time when you must be tired.”
“No. Since I am the most fine one anyway.”
“Haha, Clan Head Tang was also more fine than I thought.”
“That person is not fine in his mind, right.”
Zhuge Wen-hu unknowingly chuckled.
Murong Jun stood up from his seat.
“Contact the Provincial Military Commander. Remnants of those guys might still be left in Henan.”
“Please don’t worry. The Successor of the Beggars is already investigating.”
“Fast as expected.”
“Since you all suffered so much, we should at least clean up well.”
Murong Jun nodded.
“You work hard.”
“You worked hard.”
* * *
“Phew.”
Drops of sweat formed on Gi wu-hui’s forehead.
Yeon Wi asked in a worried tone.
“How is it?”
Gi wu-hui answered in the brightest voice possible.
“He is quite severely injured. But he is fine. Because he has such strong bones, there will be no problem in recovering.”
“That’s a relief.”
“But he will need to pay more attention from now on. Of course, one cannot afford to be leisurely in a life-or-death battle where one cannot see an inch ahead, but it seems Commander Yeon drew out power beyond his abilities to fight this time as well.”
“…”
“That might be helpful for martial arts growth, but it’s also a double-edged sword, so if he makes a mistake, he might suffer internal injuries hard to recover from. Commander Yeon losing consciousness like this now can also be seen as the fatigue accumulated while breaking through limits until now bursting out at this juncture.”
“Was it to that extent.”
“Perhaps he could have somehow solved it on his own. If he had enough time. But isn’t Commander Yeon a person who runs without resting? Sometimes it’s also important to not think about anything and rest well.”
“I will make sure to pass that on to Ho-jeong.”
Gi wu-hui smiled.
“Still, it’s surprising. I’ve seen thousands of patients so far, but it’s the first time I’ve seen someone recover as fast as Young Master Yeon. Internal energy is internal energy, but he truly has amazing stamina.”
Yeon Wi looked down at Yeon Ho-jeong with a bitter smile.
His complexion was pale, but his expression looked reasonably comfortable. Although they missed the leader of the enemies, since it was a battle they won a great victory in anyway, his tension might have also loosened.
Yeon Wi placed his hand on Yeon Ho-jeong’s forehead.
“Rest well.”