< Non-partisan (2) >
Sanmen Valley is located in the westernmost part of Henan Province, where Shaolin Temple is located, and borders the two provinces of Shaanxi and Shanxi.
There, in a mountain valley, there was a house standing alone.
A quiet hut in the mountains where you can’t find any bandits who make a living by stealing on the mountain path or common people who hide in the forest to escape the chaos.
Inside, an old man with a demeanor like a god slowly stroked his long white beard and opened his mouth.
“···Uh, say that again.”
“Your name.”
Then, a man in his late thirties, with a faint, ghostly presence, knelt down in front of him and repeated what he had said in an emotionless tone.
“Following the collapse of Jeonggeommun, Gyuhonggak, and Suramun in the southern part of Hanam Province, even Heuksobang fell. The nearby forces began to take refuge in the sudden situation, and as a result, the conflicts that had been occurring in the area temporarily reached a standstill.”
As soon as the man finished speaking, the old man stopped stroking his beard, closed his eyes, and became lost in thought.
Here in Hanam, the influence of Shaolin Temple, which was considered one of the most powerful factions in the political sect, was strong.
Because of this, we have been paying special attention to various forces, regardless of their political affiliation, in order to keep them in check and instigate confusion…
‘It’s only a few sects in the southern part of Hanam. It’s not enough to have a big impact on the remaining plans… Hmm, something is bothering me.’
However, in a situation where everything was going smoothly, a variable suddenly occurred—.
The question of the unidentified monster continued to irritate the old man who always pursued perfection.
“What about the evil spirit?”
“After massacring the Gwangakpaedo of the Suramun clan and destroying the Heuksobang clan, he disappeared.”
“Have you figured out his identity?”
“Their attire is so intense that we are having a hard time obtaining detailed descriptions from witnesses. Based on their clothing, they are most likely of Namman origin, but we currently believe that they are likely intentionally dressed up excessively to hide their true appearance.”
“Hmm···.”
In the first place, there probably weren’t many people brave enough to look straight into the face of such a strong man, but even the impressions left in the memories of the few witnesses were limited to a few of his unique characteristics.
There is currently no information available to infer who the opponent is.
‘The mysterious master who wiped out the bandits of Dongjeongho and the Yangtze River a while ago is also like that. I suddenly don’t know what’s going on.’
I thought there would be no more hidden eccentrics after such a long period of confusion.
At the very least, where on earth do these powerful people, who are estimated to be at the very end of the flower world, come from and do what they do to suddenly appear like this?
It’s like it fell straight from another world…
‘No, that can’t be true. Rather than that, it would be more reasonable to assume that it moved from Geumodo.’
The old man, who had thought that far, stroked his luscious beard again.
Now, there were no more ‘real’ otherworlders left in this world.
At best, they would be settlers who gave up even their special abilities and settled down.
“However, there is one thing worth noting···.”
At that time, the old man was quietly lost in thought.
The man, still sitting on one knee, continued speaking.
“They say he called himself a madman.”
“···Hoo, is it a mad horse?”
The old man asked back with interest in his voice.
The mad horse was a master he already knew.
Not only is he skilled enough to wander around alone in this chaotic world, but he is also a person with a reputation for being aggressive and never looking back, and he is given a nickname that only Mine can use.
A thug who, however, rejected the offer to incorporate the religion outright and instead showed hostility towards them.
But the fact that he called himself that—.
“Of course, it is certain that it is not real. It has already been confirmed that the mad horse has been in conflict with Unga in Habuk Jinju until recently.”
In the end, it’s all about impersonation.
Or else he’s a real lunatic who doesn’t care about the world’s opinion, let alone the madness.
After a while, the old man who had been stroking his beard slowly nodded his head and slightly raised the corners of his lips.
“That’s a good thing. I can use that. Secretly leak that information to the madman in Habuk. Given his personality, he will never stay still if someone impersonates him.”
“I will make sure to do so.”
“There’s no need for this side to take the lead from the beginning. The more information you have, the better.”
Thus, thanks to their invisible arrangement, a big match between the ‘self-proclaimed madman’ and the ‘current madman’ was realized.
A legendary title match that one side has been waiting for for a long time to determine the true owner of the nickname.
“It seems like the upcoming event and the timing are pretty much right. Have you finished selecting the target? The candidates for the sacrifices are···”
“Yes. Among them, the place that you should pay attention to is···.”
The two people started having a suspicious conversation again.
The evil plot that emerged from the darkness that covered the Gangwhan area began to grow at a frightening rate.
***
After the two forces of Zhuge Liang and Wudangpa joined together.
The period during which their alliance was able to pass through the territory without much disturbance was not very long.
“Hit! Now is the perfect opportunity to break the momentum of the Jeongpa bastards! Kill all those who entered our territory without fear!”
“Eww! Aah!”
“You’re rushing in like a moth to a flame without even knowing the topic! Okay, I’ll cleanse you all while I’m at it!”
This was because the attacks, which had stopped for a while as if they had never been quiet, resumed.
Knowing that we were allied, they must have joined forces as well, as warriors in various costumes rushed forward roughly.
“Oh my, even at this point, those reckless mobs still haven’t come to their senses. I will personally lead them to the Dark Heavenly Emperor.”
“Unleash the Taeeulyeonhwanjin! Let’s clearly show those foolish bastards the power of our Jegal Se family!”
Against them, the Wudangpa’s Yunhyeonjinin and the elder of the Zhuge family, Zhugegi, stepped forward, shouting solemnly.
In the midst of the chaos that had begun again, Hugo followed the others, his eyes shining meaningfully.
In fact, this situation was something he had planned on, so there was no reason to panic now.
‘···I guess I’ll finally be able to see the actual battle of the non-partisan faction.’
What the Mudangpa, which is both a martial arts sect and a Taoist sect, fundamentally pursues is gentleness, harmony, and balance.
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Such ideas were naturally embedded in the martial arts they used, and it was natural that the martial arts of shamans tended to be flexible but strong.
Of course, as is always the case, there are always exceptions.
‘It’s not time to think that far ahead. Let’s just take it step by step from the beginning.’
But in this situation where everyone is busy, I can’t just sit back and watch.
In order to prevent this from happening later, it was necessary for this side to join in the fight and lend a hand.
‘Well, I’m used to doing multiple things at the same time.’
Maybe it will be more helpful to practice this way.
Saaaa—
Centered around Hugo’s body with the “Heavenly Body”, the energy derived from “Qigong Martial Arts” violently swirled around his body, and little by little, his thoughts began to accelerate and the surrounding environment gradually began to slow down.
And he gripped the handle of his sword tightly, looked straight ahead, slightly bent his waist, and took a heavy step forward as if he was stepping on a stepping stone.
As if I were moving through this world that pulls at my body like water.
Kuung—
“······!”
At the same time, the face of the Sapa warrior, who had been quite far away, suddenly came closer.
The pupils and mouth slowly begin to dilate, as if surprised by the sudden situation.
But before even a word could come out of his mouth, Hugo’s sword blade had already passed through his opponent’s neck.
“Krrrrrrrrr···!”
He turned his gaze away from the enemy who fell with blood foaming at the mouth and scanned the vast battlefield.
‘This is the best I can do for now. It’s still not enough.’
The enemies, who were floundering and dying in confusion as they faced the giant formation with the magic of Jegal Se-ga, and the Unhyeonjin, who were pushing back the opponents by unleashing attacks at a level that was difficult for them to even properly recognize.
And there are even shaman disciples who gather together and use high-level examination techniques worthy of a prestigious school.
‘Seven people… Is that the Chilseong Geumjin I’ve only heard about?’
I was briefly dazzled by the majesty of that organic examination, but that was only for a moment.
No matter how good the passing score is, if it is a test made for humans to deal with humans, it will not work for you.
Also, wasn’t that test probably designed with winged enemies in mind?
‘Of course, you can refer to it and try to make something new. But for now, it’s more important to start from the basics.’
Chaeng—! Chaeng!
“Huh, this kid…! What kind of strength does he have…!”
“Hoooooo—.”
Even while analyzing the surroundings and lost in thought, I continued to move my body.
Deep, shallow breathing continued as he repeatedly struck down enemies with his sword.
But even as he fought, his gaze observed his surroundings and saw a completely different world.
‘It’s visible.’
In addition to gaining “Heavenly Delay” and gaining a stronger sense, several skills such as “Nervousness” and “Wisdom Eye” were activated simultaneously, allowing information from the surroundings to be absorbed in an instant.
Of course, if it was simply that far, the ‘understanding’ needed to activate ‘imitation’ would have been very lacking.
‘I am not alone.’
Hans’ wisdom, Heinz II’s intuition, Heinrich’s skill, Harley’s instinct, Harris’s experience…
And Hubert’s “Analysis” and Horus’ “The Mystery Seeker” are combined together—.
‘Indeed, now I think I understand the general principle of what happens.’
Most of the martial arts in sight were immediately broken down and dismantled into individual pieces, processed into elements that were absolutely necessary and applicable to oneself, and passed on to oneself.
String—
Meanwhile, the brain of Hugo, who was at the center of it all, began to overload due to the connection with several avatars, but this level of pain and fever was nothing compared to the durability of his body, which had been strengthened by pouring in a huge amount of karma.
‘You don’t have to copy everything perfectly.’
It wasn’t impossible if you set your mind to it, but it was too inefficient and there was a chance that you’d end up in a troublesome situation later.
I don’t know if it’ll be any different later when I’m stronger than I am now, but wouldn’t it be wise to at least have a way out?
‘Anyway, the important thing is the core essence contained therein, so I just rewrite the form to fit my body and take only what I need.’
In that sense, the martial arts of the non-partisan faction had the elements he needed most right now.
The most contrasting element to his martial arts, which had grown based on Auterica, was the softness that was the core of the shamanist faction.
‘In Auterica, they had to develop a focus on destructive power in order to deal with monsters that had thick hides and vitality and were immune to most attacks.’
There may have been other martial arts out there, but at least he had never encountered any of them.
In the first place, the ‘Aura’ used by warriors was a force specialized in emitting explosive energy.
‘However, the internal energy accumulated through training is different. It is an absolutely necessary process to reach the realm of a warrior in this world.’
It wasn’t for nothing that people from the martial arts world said he specialized in close combat.
When conditions are similar, the essence of the ever-changing internal energy and the skills optimized for killing can give you an overwhelming advantage.
‘Of course, it does show a somewhat weak appearance to the outsider species.’
Just like how the Thousand-Salmaje, who had just returned from the Ganghwan Realm, showed a weak side against Hans.
As time passed, Hugo’s movements began to change little by little.
From the beginning of the battle, the footsteps that had been heavy and stepping forward with a strong front were now light.
The sword, which emphasized strength and speed, was made to bend smoothly with a mix of flexibility and grace.
‘The only thing I lack is an understanding of the mysteries of martial arts and internal energy. If we look at it simply from a combat perspective, this side has no shortcomings.’
No matter how shallow the knowledge of martial arts in this world may be, this side was already a specialist who had trained several martial arts transcendentalists.
Hugo’s breathing, which had been monotonous, gradually changed.
At first glance, it seems quite similar to the breathing methods of the disciples of the shamanist faction, including Unhyeonjin, but when you feel it properly, it is clearly a different breathing method.
‘Okay. This is enough···.’
Hugo then gave a faint smile to the demonstrators who had taught him and given him enlightenment, and took a slow breath.
Thanks to this, I was able to clearly see what softness and harmony mean in their martial arts, and how they utilize it and apply it to battle.
And to congratulate him.
《The entity grows by achieving the conditions. The skill “Qigong Martial Arts” evolves into the growth-type special skill “Nameless Skill.”》
A new message window appeared before his eyes.
