How to Live as a Writer in the Murim World 31

 <Chapter 31> The Green Forest, the Heavenly Sword, and the Small Immortal (5)

 

 

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The executioner’s blade descended, aiming for her head.

Jang Yu’s Mountain Splitting Blade Technique, infused with all his might, was about to cleave So Seon-Ha in two. His ultimate move, the Great Roc Splits the Mountain, was unleashed.

But just as the blade was about to connect, So Seon-Ha raised her hand.

“You crazy bitch! Both master and disciple are insane! You’re going to be split in…!”

Jang Yu roared triumphantly, but…

Thud.

His broadsword stopped, as if it had never possessed any power, caught in So Seon-Ha’s grasp.

His prized blade, which should have sliced through her hand and severed her arm, was frozen in place.

A look of utter bewilderment crossed Jang Yu’s face.

“What…?”

“Is this all you’ve got?”

Crack. Crack.

Cracks appeared.

Fine, hairline cracks, spreading like a spiderweb across the surface of his beloved broadsword, a weapon that had never been chipped or broken in his forty years of roaming Jianghu.

The cracks spread, enveloping the entire blade.

Shatter.

The broadsword crumbled into pieces, scattering across the ground.

So Seon-Ha’s gaze, cold and sharp as a frozen lake, pierced through him, sending a shiver down his spine.

“That’s it, then?”

Had she infused her strike with killing intent?

Crack!

A simple punch, powered by pure internal energy, sliced through the air. Jang Yu tried to dodge the straightforward attack, but So Seon-Ha’s fist blurred, leaving a faint afterimage.

Her single fist had become two.

He raised his hands to block, but his defenses were effortlessly brushed aside, as if she were untying a knot.

His hands were forced down, and So Seon-Ha’s fist connected with his jaw.

‘What…?’

Excruciating pain exploded in his jaw.

His body was lifted off the ground, flying backwards.

He couldn’t believe it.

Blood poured from his mouth, his jaw shattered, making it impossible for him to speak properly. He let out a guttural roar.

“G-Gah!!”

How was this possible?

He might have been caught off guard, but he was the leader of the Nine Dragons Stronghold, a seasoned bandit. How could a mere child overpower him?

This was absurd.

‘This is bullshit!’

He cursed inwardly, his shattered jaw throbbing with pain. He stumbled, trying to regain his balance, and saw So Seon-Ha charging towards him.

The distance between them, which he had thought was safe, closed in an instant.

He saw her palm strike coming and channeled his internal energy, focusing it in his hands.

‘I’ll turn you into mincemeat!!’

He roared, unable to articulate his rage due to his broken jaw.

“Rrrgh!!”

His hands, transformed into claws, lashed out, aiming for her face.

His nails, sharpened by his internal energy, became deadly weapons, slashing through the air like a whirlwind.

He might have lost his broadsword, but he wasn’t the type to be crippled by the loss of a weapon.

A weapon was an extension of the body, and martial arts techniques were simply extensions of that extension.

The only difference was the range of his attacks.

The Wolf Fang Wind Slash, the ultimate move of the Wolf Fang Crushing Claw Technique, enveloped So Seon-Ha. Jang Yu’s eyes gleamed with triumph.

‘You might have gotten stronger, but you’re still just a brat! You think you can defeat me?!’

He was certain that his Wolf Fang Wind Slash, with its razor-sharp claws, had caught her.

But then, she vanished from his sight.

And the wind, which had been swirling around him, suddenly dissipated, as if calmed by an invisible hand. He stumbled back in alarm, and So Seon-Ha’s foot slammed into his chest.

“Ugh!”

Her kick, infused with spiraling energy, sent him flying.

He twisted his body in midair, landing on his feet. He looked up and saw…

So Seon-Ha, her hand reaching for him.

Her palm strike connected, a metallic clang echoing through the air, and his body was lifted off the ground, spinning wildly. He crashed to the ground, blood spraying from his mouth.

“G-Gah…”

He stared at So Seon-Ha in disbelief.

The little brat, who had possessed such weak internal energy just moments ago, had suddenly become a master capable of overwhelming him?

How was that possible?

Even those blessed with natural talent struggled to control a sudden surge in power.

‘What kind of monster is she…?’

He felt his strength draining away, a helpless laugh escaping his lips.

‘I can’t feel my body…’

That last strike had done him in.

He couldn’t move.

His meridians, his blood vessels, even the flow of energy within his body… It was all disrupted, broken.

“Ugh…”

So Seon-Ha turned away from him, but her hand didn’t stop.

Swish.

Her internal energy, sharp and merciless, sliced through his throat, severing his head. The force of the blow continued, cleaving through the building behind him, causing it to collapse.

The bandits screamed in horror.

“Chief!!”

“That crazy bitch!”

“Get her!!”

“But what about Bang So-Ran?!”

“Forget her! Avenge the Chief!”

They charged towards her, their eyes filled with rage, but…

So Seon-Ha’s gaze, cold and determined, burned like a blue flame.

Swish.

Bang So-Ran’s sword, which had fallen to the ground beside her, suddenly rose into the air, spinning like a whirlwind.

“B-Behind you! A sword!”

“What?!”

“That damn sword is flying…!”

Before he could finish his sentence,

Five bandits’ heads were severed, blood spraying into the air.

Their heads landed on the ground with a sickening thud, their eyes wide with shock and disbelief. Bang So-Ran’s sword, which had flown through the air like a spinning blade, landed in So Seon-Ha’s hand.

“Seon-Ha…?”

Bang So-Ran stared at her disciple, her eyes wide with disbelief. So Seon-Ha’s voice reached her ears.

“I’ll finish this quickly, Master.”

Blood splattered across the courtyard.

The bandits screamed in terror.

“Gah!”

“That little bitch is fast!”

“Form a defensive formation! Damn it… Argh!”

The bandit who had been issuing orders was cut down, his throat ripped open as if by a tiger’s claws.

Bang So-Ran recognized the technique.

It was the Tiger Slaying Strike, the most ferocious move of the Tiger Subduing Sword Technique.

“The Shadow Shifting Steps… and the Tiger Slaying Strike of the Tiger Subduing Sword Technique…”

So Seon-Ha was flawlessly executing the techniques she had taught her, describing each move and its application in detail.

Sword energy, as beautiful and deadly as a blizzard of cherry blossoms, filled the sky above the Nine Dragons Stronghold.

“Thousand Shadows Dance…”

The sword energy rained down, a mesmerizing and terrifying spectacle,

Slicing through the bandits like a scythe through wheat.

Bang So-Ran’s signature technique, the Heavenly Sword Decisive Strike, was unleashed.

***

Bang So-Ran, kneeling on the ground, watched as So Seon-Ha rushed towards her.

“Seon-Ha…”

“Master!”

“You’re amazing. You’ve finally found your path.”

Bang So-Ran smiled faintly, stroking So Seon-Ha’s head.

Her hand was covered in blood, but So Seon-Ha didn’t flinch.

Bang So-Ran spoke.

“The Heaven-Reaching Rainbow Divine Skill. It’s similar to the technique in The Small Immortal Chivalrous Sword Technique…”

So Yu-Hyeon, the protagonist of The Small Immortal Chivalrous Sword Technique, had named her self-created internal energy cultivation technique the Heaven-Reaching Rainbow Divine Skill.

It was a technique born from a moment of enlightenment.

An epiphany that had come to her like a rainbow piercing through a cloudy sky, a technique that had saved her from danger.

So Seon-Ha nodded at her master’s words.

“Yes…”

“Are you alright?”

So Seon-Ha looked down at her hands.

She had wiped away the blood, but the metallic scent lingered.

“I… I killed people…”

Her first kill.

The act of taking a life, often considered a rite of passage for martial artists, was a traumatic experience for a novice.

It was a harsh reminder of the brutal reality of Murim.

Bang So-Ran understood.

She had gone through the same experience.

She took her disciple’s hand.

“You saved me, Seon-Ha.”

“I… did?”

“Yes. If it weren’t for you, I…”

So Seon-Ha finally realized the extent of her master’s injuries.

“W-We need to stop the bleeding! Where’s the wound medicine…?!”

“Hehe…”

Bang So-Ran closed her eyes, a wave of exhaustion washing over her as she watched her disciple frantically searching the dead bandits for wound medicine and finding her some new clothes.

“Master! You can’t lose consciousness!”

So Seon-Ha applied the wound medicine, stopping the bleeding. She then helped Bang So-Ran into the new clothes and lifted her onto her back.

They needed to find the main road.

They could reach Seohyeop County if they followed the road.

The sun shone brightly overhead, as if blessing So Seon-Ha, the future Wandering Butterfly, as she carried her unconscious master and activated her lightness skill, heading towards the main road.