Chapter 137

Chapter 137
## Chapter 137. The Black Flame Dragon Meets the Monster of the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository

“Monk Il-gak, do you truly not feel aggrieved? The highest honor should have belonged to you from the start, isn’t that right?”

Il-gak harbored no such resentment.

Even though his challenger had grabbed the premier rank using underhanded tactics and guided the chosen delegation with an arrogant disposition focused solely on individual gain, such was simply the nature of worldly beings who had yet to achieve spiritual awakening.

A structure erected solely on raw power would eventually crumble, and a revolt that defied the cosmic order would inevitably align itself with truth once more.

Yet, Jin So-un had crossed the line.

Had he merely chased his own desires, it could be overlooked, but he had actively sought to fracture their unity and wreck the established framework through this scholarly gathering.

Il-gak had previously dismissed him as a common mortal unable to master his cravings, but the man was truly a lunatic consumed by an evil spirit.

He recognized that his own current course was not entirely holy.

Nevertheless, if he failed to halt this deceptive and cunning mortal, a far more devastating turmoil would descend upon the mortal realm.

The stability of the martial world would be shattered, and because of that, endless innocent lives would endure misery.

‘That was the reason I chose to intervene, and yet…’

Jin So-un’s combative style was just as treacherous and unpredictable as his inner self.

It obscured vision, clouded judgment, and tore flesh.

Il-gak had mastered the Thousand-Jin Armor to forge an unyielding mind and body, yet it currently felt as if his skin were being stripped away and his skeletal frame were warping to the point that his decades of grueling training felt completely worthless.

He posed a severe threat.

A massive threat.

This individual was highly prone to turning into an internal menace, one far more perilous than even the Dark Path.

It was this realization that compelled Il-gak to unleash the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic, an art he had vowed never to display.

Even if it meant returning to the Central Monastic Mountain to contemplate a stone wall for countless seasons, he believed he must halt this creature.

Right then, his consciousness snapped into sharp focus as a malicious whisper pierced his hearing.

“So you chose to betray me in this manner.”

Jin So-un uttered phrases that made no sense to Il-gak, then shifted back into a combative stance.

‘Does he truly wish to persist?’

The core tenet of the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic rested upon the Divine Decree.

Exorcising Phantoms and Annihilating Malice formed the bedrock of the Righteous Sects, but Shaolin’s Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic was a stream so untainted that it viewed even such motivations as worldly attachments.

A sinister intent versus spiritual clarity.

Righteous Path combat styles that prioritized mere functionality lost their brilliance when facing the elemental truths of the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic.

*PAPAPAPAPAPAPAT!*

That ought to have been the outcome, and yet…

The deceptive martial manual, which still concealed illusions alongside reality, refused to surrender its drive.

*THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD! PAK! BOOM!*

Had it been the secret art of any other lineage, it would have already collapsed into nothingness, but the Taeul Sect’s style merely lost a fraction of its power and held firm.

In stark contrast to the opening moments of the contest, Il-gak remained firmly planted on his feet, while Jin So-un showed signs of exhaustion.

Yet even that filled Il-gak with disbelief.

‘The secret art of the Taeul Sect… holding its own against the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic…’

He cleared away the unsettling doubts creeping into his thoughts.

The essence of the Divine Decree could never be grasped unless one sought the ultimate source.

There was no possible way a person as grounded in worldly vanity as Jin So-un could possess such profound cultivation.

“With this strike, I shall restore the proper balance. Honored Guest.”

Il-gak brought his palms flush together, channeling the definitive strike of the Diamond Demon-Subduing Fist.

By now, this had transcended a mere test of skills, yet not a single proctor stepped forward to intervene.

Every one of them must have been enduring the disruption Jin So-un was currently unleashing.

Right as Il-gak hardened his resolve.

“As if I would ever bow to the nonsense you hypocrites have concocted.”

“…!”

Jin So-un likewise began adopting an alignment Il-gak had never witnessed before.

He sank into a wide horse stance, resting both fists against his hips.

It mirrored the exact form of a novice executing a basic punch for the first time.

Was he genuinely planning to intercept the Diamond Demon-Subduing Fist—a technique formidable enough to challenge one of the ultimate forms of the Taeul Sword Emperor—using nothing but raw internal cultivation?

Evidently, deceitful individuals always ended up trapped by their own cleverness.

“Haaap! Amitabha!”

*BANG!*

As Il-gak pressed his palms tight, the atmosphere detonated with a sharp crack, scattering a brilliant golden radiance across the area.

In an instant, the luminous energy of the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic converged into his hands.

An untainted clarity that discarded not just avarice and longing, but also concepts like righteousness and expectation.

*RATTLE, RATTLE, RATTLE-RATTLE-RATTLE.*

The shattered stone debris littering the ground vibrated violently, unable to endure the immense gravity of the moment.

The ten-foot space separating Jin So-un and Il-gak condensed rapidly, as though packed with a dense, unseen matter.

“Demon-Subduing and World-Governing!”

Il-gak’s feet lunged forward as he executed the Immovable Movement Art.

Closing the distance in a single heartbeat, his fist, cloaked in radiant gold light, surged directly toward Jin So-un’s chest.

At that exact instant,

Jin So-un snapped his eyes open and punched forward simultaneously, colliding directly with Il-gak’s Diamond Demon-Subduing Fist.

*CLANG!*

———-!

————–!

The surrounding air was violently drawn inward between Jin So-un and Il-gak.

Simultaneously, the golden ring of force radiating from Jin So-un’s knuckles repelled Il-gak’s Diamond Demon-Subduing Fist.

The imploded atmosphere detonated outward in a massive shockwave.

While the onlookers shielded their eyes from the gale of grit and rock shards erupting from the center of the ring,

An earth-shattering blast echoed out, threatening to rupture their eardrums.

—————-!

The audience instinctively clamped their hands over their ears to dull the agonizing pressure, keeping their visages lowered for several moments.

*KWA-GWA-GWA-GWA-GWANG!*

Next came the rolling echo of a massive detonation.

*BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!*

The previously clear arena was once more blanketed by a dense cloud of dust.

“…….”

“…….”

The crowd gaped at the platform, entirely stunned.

Through the swirling haze, the silhouette of a single figure materialized.

As the dust began to drift downward, a young warrior with pitch-black hair and an equally dark training uniform stood perfectly composed.

“Ah…”

“Wh-What sort of sorcery is this…”

Il-gak lay unconscious on the stones, having clearly suffered a catastrophic blow, leaving a pool of crimson blood where he fell.

The eyes of everyone present locked onto the luminous golden current swathing Jin So-un’s fist.

“…J-Jade Purity Heavenly Image Power?”

Though the season of spring was well underway, the climate in the arena suddenly turned frigid, as if a layer of winter ice had instantly settled over the ground.

—

With the conclusion of the evaluations, the mood across the Murim Academy turned considerably brighter.

The reason was the imminent arrival of the academy’s seasonal holiday.

Naturally, this sense of relief extended beyond the student body.

Excluding standard clerical duties, the staff could also take advantage of the upcoming break, which offered a prime window to accept gifts and favors from the guardians of prospective applicants hoping for special treatment for their offspring.

Even so, Buk Won-pyeong’s countenance, hidden away in the inner chambers of the academy’s headquarters, remained grim despite the festive atmosphere.

“This is driving me completely insane.”

Buk Won-pyeong, who had intended to depart for the Taeul Sect the moment the holiday commenced, had instead been dragged across the province by the Murim Alliance without a moment of sleep due to an unforeseen catastrophe.

Ordinarily, no one would dare boss around Buk Won-pyeong, whose illustrious path forward was set in stone, but that rule changed entirely when dealing with the elders who held the keys to that very future.

“You appear thoroughly exhausted.”

Even when faced with my comforting words, Buk Won-pyeong’s expression snapped into a glare.

“And who exactly caused all of this?!”

Faced with his accusatory tone, I simply gave a small shrug.

“I am merely drafting a letter of introduction for you, Headmaster. Why direct your anger at me?”

“Ugh…”

To be fair, it wasn’t as though I lacked understanding of the situation.

The Jade Purity Heavenly Image Power had collided directly with the Dharma Tendon-Changing Classic.

It was common knowledge across the martial landscape that the solitary lineages utilizing that specific energy were the Three Pure Ones Peerless Sword and the Wudang Sect.

Given that the Wudang Sect would never have shared secrets with the Taeul Sect, the lone remaining target for suspicion was Buk Won-pyeong, wasn’t it?

Granted, Buk Won-pyeong had stated he never passed that energy down to me, but from their viewpoint, who would blindly accept such a claim?

Those arrogant fools carried the belief that “everyone outside our circle is an imbecile” carved into their very marrow, so if they chose to disregard reality just to shift the blame onto me, I could only shake my head at the injustice.

“Furthermore, considering the circumstances, we will soon be part of the same house, so wouldn’t it seem rather odd if you kept claiming we have zero connection?”

“…….”

Buk Won-pyeong paused to ponder, then released a lengthy breath.

“Well, there is truth in that.”

Observing Buk Won-pyeong acknowledge the point, I celebrated silently.

Honestly, could events fall into place any more perfectly?

The Three Pure Ones Power was an elite force that stood on equal footing with Shaolin’s Golden Nature Power and Wudang’s Taiji Power.

Securing the Three Pure Ones Peerless Sword for the Taeul Sect was equivalent to deploying a massive siege engine capable of obliterating hordes of Evil Practitioners in a single motion.

‘I need to convince him to establish his estate right alongside the Taeul Sect.’

It remained uncertain if he could build a functioning faction before the Demonic Cult gained full momentum.

Even so, remembering his terrifying prowess from my past existence during the Great Righteous-Demonic War—where he single-handedly dismantled an entire army of flesh puppets—if he offered the Taeul Sect even a modicum of assistance during a dire moment, I could set aside my anxieties regarding the sect’s survival.

‘The lineage dynamics might get slightly tangled, but… he is the legendary Three Pure Ones Peerless Sword under heaven, so they are unlikely to decline.’

From the start, he had no intention of studying the Taeul Sect’s internal styles anyway; it was merely a matter of instructing them in the Taeul Heart Method, which the Sect Leader had distributed to the local public for basic physical wellness. Once they moved past the initial awkwardness, it shouldn’t present a major obstacle.

“I have already dispatched the message bird, so you may deliver this document personally.”

As I slid the introductory missive forward, Buk Won-pyeong hesitated before inquiring,

“Are you not journeying alongside me? During this initial break, most individuals typically journey back to their home ground to throw a celebration, do they not?”

“I still have numerous tasks requiring my attention on these grounds.”

“Are you already preparing the groundwork for the upcoming gathering?”

“I was actually just about to bring that up. What word has come from the Mount Heng Sect?”

Via Maeng Ju-won, I had received reports of the absurd proposal by the Elder Hall to send academy students into Sichuan, prompting me to accelerate the Mount Heng Sect gathering that I had originally slated for the absolute end of the schedule.

For this specific instance, I also discarded the enrollment cap entirely.

This would serve as their absolute baseline defense to shield their fragile existence from the Corpse-Mountain Blood Cult they were destined to confront later within Sichuan.

With this arrangement, I had fulfilled every obligation required of me.

If they chose to point fingers at me even after perishing because they skipped the training, even King Yama would scoff at their audacity before dropping them straight into the depths of the boiling underworld.

“They dismissed the proposal initially, but upon hearing your identity, they agreed to cooperate.”

“That is excellent news.”

“…?”

“Is something amiss?”

“Are you not thrilled? It signifies that your reputation has ascended to incredible heights.”

That was undeniable. The martial domain was a realm populated by individuals who valued their names more than their lives, thick as sand on a beach.

“Furthermore, due to this recent spectacle, the collective view of you across the campus has shifted entirely. No one will dare slight you as they once did. Why not unwind a bit and savor the moment?”

Yet, I had witnessed far too many gruesome scenes of endless warriors dying purely for the sake of their reputations.

The instant a person decides prestige outvalues survival, their end is swift and miserable.

I could not afford to slacken my pace for even a heartbeat.

“I will permit myself to celebrate once the entire objective is secure.”

“Does that imply the task remains unfinished?”

“It hasn’t truly even commenced.”

—

The Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

The sole archival library of the Murim Academy, christened the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository under the claim that it housed ten thousand texts.

Yet, contrary to its title, over generations of accumulation, countless new documents had been integrated, rendering the specific number completely irrelevant.

In all honesty, even the caretakers tasked with preserving the archive lacked any clear metric of the actual volume inside the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

‘Precisely thirty-six thousand seven hundred twenty-two volumes.’

The memory of how I acquired that specific knowledge still kindled a spark of irritation within me even now.

After forcing me to commit every single registry of the Mantongbu to memory, the Murim Alliance then commanded me to memorize every lone text within this very Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

They claimed that roughly ninety percent of their foundational knowledge originated from the depths of the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

Yet, when the Great Righteous-Demonic War actually erupted, they never once called upon me to reproduce the contents of this archive.

To begin with, it wasn’t a project a single human could execute effectively, and they ultimately deemed the entire endeavor largely irrelevant to the conflict.

Simply put, they had subjected me to an exhausting, utterly meaningless wild goose chase.

“To think I voluntarily guided my own steps back to this place. I must truly be losing my wits.”

If there had been an elite martial blueprint or a hidden technique hidden amidst the shelves I reviewed during my past life, my journey inside would not feel so incredibly tedious.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of the texts within the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository amounted to nothing more than speculative essays on ineffective combat theories.

Prior to completing their tenure, Murim Academy pupils were required to draft a thesis reflecting their personal insights and deposit it within the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

Because these documents were composed by individuals of mediocre competence, those shallow papers accumulated in massive piles, effectively burying the truly invaluable records.

In essence, I had endured the torment of memorizing documents that weren’t even fit to serve as kindling for a campfire.

“Sigh… Regardless, I cannot afford to simply stand still either.”

Ever since my clash with the Shadow Warrior from the Alliance Leader’s Hall, I had continuously felt as though my progress had slammed into an invisible barrier.

While I was receiving guidance from Buk Won-pyeong regarding the application of the Jade Purity Heavenly Image Power, the specific execution of the technique I wielded diverged from the method he utilized, making the learning process highly problematic.

Furthermore, I was experiencing a deep yearning to master Sword Force, leaving me with no alternative but to seek answers here.

“Given that no one else should be aware of his presence just yet anyway.”

As I raised my gaze, the carved plaque for the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository met my eyes.

With the vacation period looming, the typical crowd of students utilizing the library had vanished entirely, leaving the halls wrapped in silence while the attendants focused on sorting the shelves for the seasonal break.

I cast a brief, cautious glance across the archive—which felt like a recurring nightmare from my past—before commencing my search for him.

“He ought to be quite simple to spot.”

True to my expectations, as I navigated the rows of shelves, his figure quickly materialized in my field of vision.

“Hey, crooked back! Sort these out.”

“Ah! Right away, right away.”

Unkempt hair, a tattered training uniform, an arrogant posture that suggested he feared absolutely nothing under heaven, and a towering, powerful physique.

As the imposing figure passed a stack of texts to an elderly, stooped worker, the senior citizen bowed his head multiple times in compliance, gathered the heavy bundle, and shuffled away.

‘So you truly were hiding here.’

The elderly attendant attempted to haul the entirety of the heavy volumes the warrior had discarded all at once, only to lose his footing and tumble to the floor.

“I-I apologize deeply. I shall rectify this immediately.”

“What an absolute nuisance.”

With a casual flick of the warrior’s wrist, the texts the senior citizen was scrambling to retrieve were swept away in a gust of force.

The elderly man frantically scrambled after the scattered papers.

“As anticipated, your demeanor leaves much to be desired.”

Hearing my remark, the large warrior knit his brows in irritation.

“Were those words meant for me?”

“Not at all. I was simply musing aloud, so feel free to disregard it.”

The warrior scanned me from head to toe for a brief moment before speaking again.

“Now that I take a closer look, you are the academy’s chosen representative.”

“And you happen to be So Cheon-su of the Heavenly Dipper Sect.”

“You recognize me?”

“It would be far more accurate to say I am familiar with the Heavenly Dipper Sect.”

The Heavenly Dipper Sect was a faction that, quite oddly for a member of the Orthodox Path, maintained an unhealthy fixation on raw dominant power.

Their preoccupation was so extreme that if an initiate joined their ranks and failed to manifest Force Qi, they weren’t even recognized as true practitioners of the arts.

‘They maintained that the baseline requirement to venture outside the sect grounds was the mastery of Force Qi, if I recall correctly.’

Their combat methodologies were equally eccentric; while Force Qi typically required an individual to approach the absolute pinnacle of the Peak realm to manifest, their disciples could project it the moment they brushed against the boundaries of the First-Rate realm.

Naturally, that specific manifestation of Force Qi could not be deemed standard or complete.

Because they could project Force Qi at an uncommonly young age, members of the Heavenly Dipper Sect carried themselves with an incredibly insufferable arrogance.

“Do you possess some form of business with me?”

“Initially I did not, but currently I do.”

“Hmph. I am quite eager to learn what that might be.”

So Cheon-su smirked, simultaneously conjuring a visible swirl of Hand Force across his palm.

True to his title as the premier disciple of the Heavenly Dipper Sect, he acted entirely according to his youth.

‘Then again, until ordinary martial artists comprehend its true limitations, most fools would find their limbs trembling simply from witnessing that display of Force Qi.’

I closed the distance between us with slow, deliberate steps.

“I did not venture to this archive to engage in a brawl with you.”

“Then for what purpose?”

“I came here to offer you assistance.”

“Huh?”

As the words left my mouth, I shot forward with the White Phoenix Hand, trapping the limb where his Hand Force was gathering, before rapidly striking his Numbing Acupoint and Sleep Acupoint in succession.

“Y-You underhanded…”

“Why label it underhanded? I am taking these measures precisely to benefit you. While focusing heavily on Force Qi has its merits, you must not abandon your foundation in standard combat forms. Is it not the primary flaw of the Heavenly Dipper Sect to fall prey to such rudimentary tactics?”

“…….”

Despite my well-intentioned guidance, So Cheon-su’s muscles had already locked up completely, and he drifted straight into a state of forced slumber.

“Tsk, out cold already?”

I quickly surveyed the immediate surroundings to ensure no onlookers were present.

“To employ such deceptive maneuvers against adolescents, your style truly mirrors that of the Dark Path.”

I triggered the Azure Dragon Bracelet, extracting the corrupted black energy nestled deep within his physique.

Had that toxin lingered inside him, So Cheon-su would have succumbed to a mysterious, wasting malady, and his cognitive focus would have withered away.

Because the strike had been delivered with absolute stealth in a split second, even So Cheon-su himself had been entirely unable to detect the intrusion.

After witnessing that singular demonstration of his capabilities, I was fully convinced that I needed to secure his tutelage.

His current developmental stage was notable, but more importantly, he had reached the apex of power utilizing a starkly straightforward yet incredibly intricate combat philosophy he had fashioned entirely on his own.

If anyone held the key, he might possess the knowledge of how to introduce Sword Force into a martial lineage where such a concept was fundamentally non-existent.

“The question remains, how do I go about winning him over?”

This was a figure who had once occupied the absolute apex of the Dark Path martial world.

I remained entirely ignorant of his motivations for concealing himself within the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository.

Furthermore, he was notorious for his volatile and fierce disposition, leaving me at a complete loss as to how I could successfully convince him to cooperate.