Chapter 439: A Future Borne on the Sword (1)

“What do you think? Quite different from the temple, isn’t it?”

“...”

“This land is vast beyond measure. Across the Central Plains, every region has its own culture, customs, and climate. It is hot and humid here, but farther north there are many dry regions, and even places that remain cool in the middle of summer.”

The middle-aged woman spoke in a kindly voice, yet her eyes held a strange fervor.

The impression given by her voice was utterly at odds with the crimson light in her eyes. To hear her speak, one might have thought her a bodhisattva descended from heaven, but the burning desire in her gaze was far removed from serenity.

“Training and searching for enlightenment are more important than almost anything else. But look at the world. Across this immense land, people entirely different from us devote themselves to their own lives, living each day with all the passion they possess.”

“...”

“There is goodness here that we never conceived of, and evil beyond anything we ever imagined. One’s own enlightenment is important, certainly, but a sword wielded for the sake of the world can be no less valuable.”

The middle-aged woman glanced to her side.

A young woman walked beside her, dressed in identical clothing and wearing the same bamboo hat.

“The Wisdom Sword does not exist only within oneself. Looking upon the world, finding wisdom that remains unshaken within it, and seeking to sever the afflictions of all people—that, too, matters.”

“...”

“Do you understand what I mean?”

Only then did the young woman speak.

“I’m not sure I do.”

“You don’t?”

Once she began, the young woman’s words flowed without hesitation.

“To witness evil in the world, resolve to cut it down, and lend a little weight to the goodness that has been made light by its presence. To take that single act of chivalry as an expression of reverence, show it to the world, and in doing so draw closer to enlightenment myself—was that not the spirit of Putuo?”

“That is the tradition that has sustained our temple for centuries, yes. And it is one among many ways of looking upon wisdom.”

“Exactly. That is Putuo.”

“That was Putuo. I am not telling you to deny the past. What was right in the past was right for its time. But for those who possess power to refuse to use it for the good of the world—to know full well that the weak are suffering and still live only for themselves—that cannot be called right.”

“I see.”

“I will say it again. I am not denying Putuo’s past. What we did then was right. But when the age changes, values must change with it. We should have understood that.”

There were also values that did not change no matter how much the age did.

That was what the young woman wanted to tell her martial aunt.

Those with power cannot be free of responsibility? Yes. That very question has tormented me again and again. But Master... Martial Aunt... did you truly come to the Central Plains to eradicate the evil of the world?

She did not know.

Jeongan truly found it difficult to understand the words and actions of her elders.

More precisely, she did not want to accept how much they had changed.

To Jeongan, her master and martial aunt had always been wiser and kinder than anyone.

And not only them.

Though they belonged to different branches, the elders of both had done little more than engage in a rivalry that was hardly a rivalry at all. They had devoted their entire lives to extinguishing their afflictions through relentless self-cultivation.

Jeongan did not respect them because their martial arts were powerful.

She had truly believed that Putuo’s elders were people worthy of respect.

That was why she had served them, followed them, and acted according to their teachings.

But now?

“Even if you realized that the time for change had come, I think that only means we should proceed even more carefully. Sudden change always exposes fractures.”

“A child is drowning right before your eyes. Yet the temple’s rules are strict, so you turn your back on the child and walk away. Would you call that right?”

“I don’t think that comparison fits.”

“In the end, it is the same. Great or small, Putuo has turned its eyes away from goodness suffering beneath evil.”

The middle-aged woman, Hwaun, continued in a regretful tone.

“I, too, wish I could say that the path our main temple followed in the past was right. You cannot know how fiercely I wrestled with my own afflictions before I could admit that it was wrong. You, who shut yourself away from the world to compete for the position of the next Sword Empress, would find it difficult to understand our pain and turmoil.”

There it was.

This was exactly what Jeongan meant when she thought Putuo’s elders had changed.

The elders had never dismissed or rejected someone merely because they were young or had learned little.

They had never forced others to accept that they alone possessed the truth, that their word must ultimately be right.

If anything, they had always said there was much to learn from the pure perspective of a child. They had encouraged and cherished their juniors, telling them not to look to their elders, but to look within themselves.

Even if their true thoughts had sometimes been different, they had been careful enough to refrain from saying things like this.

How had they changed so much?

Jeongan sighed.

“I really don’t know.”

“Then leave it as something you do not understand. You need only continue as you always have, training day and night until you become a divine sword worthy of the position of Sword Empress.”

Hwaun’s eyes gleamed once again.

It was a worldly gaze burning with deep desire, the sort of look that should never have appeared in the eyes of one who followed the Dharma.

“We will take care of everything else. We will bear all the suffering, so you must not fall behind the candidates from the other branches by even the slightest margin.”

“...”

“Do you understand?”

Jeongan did not answer.

Hwaun might be her martial aunt, but Jeongan had no desire to lie to her.

Hwaun sighed at the sight of her.

“You will understand someday. I am certain of it.”

“...”

“Come.”

And so the two continued on in silence.

How much time had passed?

“You’ve arrived.”

Ga Deoksang gave them a brief bow.

Hwaun’s expression stiffened slightly.

There was a difference in both age and generational seniority between herself and Ga Deoksang. Ga Deoksang might be the Successor of the Beggars’ Union, but she was a serving elder charged with leading Putuo Hermitage.

Customs might differ from region to region, but was this not somewhat inappropriate?

No.

Hwaun corrected herself inwardly.

Her side was the one asking for something.

Her branch had sent her here to seek the Martial Alliance’s aid. Moreover, the man before her was effectively the foremost figure in the Martial Alliance intelligence apparatus.

There was no reason to make an issue of a greeting.

Hwaun replied in her usual kindly voice.

“Is this the place?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Please lead the way.”

“Of course. Ah, but who is this?”

Hwaun looked at Jeongan.

Jeongan bowed her head.

“I am Jeongan of Putuo Hermitage.”

It was a rather stiff greeting.

Depending on how one looked at it, she might have seemed ill-mannered. From another perspective, she simply seemed ignorant of worldly etiquette.

Hwaun spoke in a reproving voice.

“He is the Successor of the Beggars’ Union, the foremost union under heaven with its hundred thousand beggars, as well as an intelligence advisor to the Martial Alliance. Greet him properly.”

And yet, despite the reprimand, there was a subtle note of satisfaction beneath her voice.

Ga Deoksang waved both hands dismissively.

“It’s fine. A greeting is just a greeting. There’s no need to bow so deeply to a beggar.”

“Even so...”

“Successor to a beggar sect or not, I’m still a beggar. Beggars don’t know much about etiquette or anything else. Don’t worry about it. You should head inside.”

“If you say so... Very well.”

Hwaun inclined her head and entered the estate with Jeongan.

Ga Deoksang watched the two women recede, his eyes narrowing.

“...Puhah! There really are a lot of geniuses in this world. Everywhere I turn, it’s another genius, another monster. Damn. At this rate, I won’t even be able to strut around with my chest puffed out anymore.”

Still grumbling, Ga Deoksang suddenly vanished from the spot.

In a world overflowing with geniuses and monsters, Ga Deoksang himself was continuing to improve with every passing day.

******

The moment the two women stepped into the estate, they stopped as a blast of cool wind swept over them.

WOOOOOSH!

The heavy gust seemed to freeze the humid air of Guangdong itself.

Hwaun and Jeongan’s eyes sharpened at the same time.

WHOOOM! WHOOOOM!

A massive axe sliced through the air, leaving afterimages in its wake.

The man wielding it was not moving dynamically at all, yet every casual sweep of the weapon contained terrifying momentum.

And he was using only one hand.

With his other hand held behind his back, he swung an axe as large as a man’s torso with such ease that it looked like a mere switch.

Gradually, the swings accelerated.

WHOOOM! WHOOOOOM! WHUAAAAAM!

The sound of Mad Dragon tearing through the air was downright chilling.

It moved so quickly that not only the axe, but even the arm swinging it had become a blur. From a short distance away, one might have mistaken the man for having lost an arm entirely.

What?!

Shock spread across Jeongan’s face.

How is this possible?!

FWOOSH!

The force wind exploding from the axe harmed neither people nor objects. The instant it burst forth, it shook the air and dissipated.

But the sheer weight of the force it left behind whipped the surroundings into a violent gale.

It was the density of True Qi lingering within that gale, the traces of force emission embedded in it, that stunned Jeongan.

The raw power is extraordinary enough, but an unimaginable amount of True Qi is being coordinated through every single movement. If I treated one of those as a simple attack and tried to meet it head-on, my sword would snap and my body would be shattered on the spot.

A bead of cold sweat slid down the back of Jeongan’s neck.

It certainly was not from the heat.

He’s not only handling a massive weapon like a swift sword—he’s releasing such a complex force-emission method in that tiny instant. Every single time!

Jeongan was deeply shaken.

She no longer noticed the age or appearance of the young man wielding the axe.

All she could see was the overwhelming force pouring from the weapon, the softness hidden within that overwhelming power, and the astonishing force-emission methods contained within that soft flow.

They had completely captured her attention.

How much time passed like that?

BOOM!

The axe did not gradually slow.

It simply stopped.

The abrupt halt detonated the air with a deafening roar.

“As expected. It still won’t work.”

The calmly spoken words shook Jeongan from her trance.

“It is woefully inadequate. The prescribed form looks convincing enough, but my True Qi is still chasing after the movement. Intent should lead True Qi, and True Qi should lead form. Yet because I have not reached the ultimate essence of the martial path, both my intent and my Inner Qi lose their way, wander aimlessly, and vanish with a scream.”

Yeon Hojeong turned his head and looked at Jeongan.

He did not even glance at Hwaun.

His eyes were fixed solely on Jeongan.

“Wouldn’t you agree?”

“...?!”

“Or did it look even more inadequate to you than it did to me?”

Almost as if entranced, Jeongan answered.

“Inadequate? It looked excessive to the point of overflowing.”

“Is that so?”

Yeon Hojeong gave a bitter smile.

“That is unfortunate.”

“Why?”

“I had hoped that one of you would be stronger than I am. I had also hoped that, before we sat down for today’s discussion, both of you would be passionate martial artists capable of looking upon martial arts for their own sake. But...”

Yeon Hojeong glanced at Hwaun.

“No matter how I look at it, neither of your swords seems to have reached my axe. Worse, one of you appears bound not by martial arts and enlightenment, but by worldliness and desire.”

“...!”

“Regardless, I have been rude from the moment we met. You have my apologies.”

Yeon Hojeong put away Mad Dragon and gave the two women a crisp martial salute.

“I am Yeon Hojeong, Supreme Commander of a Martial Alliance field-force unit. It is a pleasure to meet our honored guests from Putuo Hermitage. Now, if you would come ins—”

Jeongan stepped forward.

“Shall we test it?”

“Hmm?”

“Whether my sword has reached your axe or not. Shall we find out?”

Yeon Hojeong looked at Hwaun.

Hwaun’s expression had visibly hardened.

She was displeased that her junior, carried away by martial excitement, had stepped forward without even seeking her opinion.

The corner of Yeon Hojeong’s mouth rose.

One look at their eyes, manner, and presence was enough for him to understand the relationship between them.

“Then shall we exchange a few light moves? Think of it as an appetizer before our discussion.”

“Gladly.”

BAM!

Without so much as looking back, Jeongan launched herself straight at Yeon Hojeong.