Willpower is single-minded thought.

I could roughly grasp what that meant in my head.

Fundamentally, Willpower is a power that makes the impossible possible. However, its direction varies depending on the individual, and it is heavily influenced by the Heartscape of the martial artist.

There was a time before my regression when multiple masters who had reached the Flowering Stage gathered their strength. While the fact that they were still defeated by the Heavenly Demon was significant, what mattered now was that I had, from a distance, been able to witness the martial arts of those at the Flowering Stage.

The Abbot of Shaolin, symbolizing the Buddha’s compassion, was simply solid, unwavering, and his presence reached the very edge of one’s perception.

The Lord of the Black Lotus Sect, wielding two spears of varying lengths, unceasingly pressured and overwhelmed his opponent. From start to finish, one could feel the Path of Tyranny—the desire to dominate.

The Murim Alliance Leader, having risen from the Beggar’s Sect, displayed a determined, unyielding palm technique that conveyed his resolve to stake everything in the face of injustice.

Other Flowering Stage masters each revealed their own supreme techniques.

I couldn’t say I fully understood each of their martial arts, having only seen them once or twice, nor could I make comparisons. But what they represented came through clearly.

The Abbot of Shaolin sought to become a Buddha.

The Black Lotus Lord sought to become a tyrant above all others.

The Murim Alliance Leader simply pursued righteousness.

Surely, these are what Seo Mun-Hwarin meant when she spoke of Willpower and single-minded thought. In other words, it is the destiny that a martial artist strives to fulfill over their entire life.

Then what is it that I seek to accomplish?

At first, I swung my sword because I was hungry. But at some point, even when I was no longer hungry, I continued to swing it.

To eat better food, to live in a better house, to be admired by more people.

And because I simply liked the sword.

But even that didn’t last long—because vengeance began to mix into my reason for wielding the sword.

During the peak of the Heavenly Demon’s invasion, I fought to survive. Yet, in the final moment—when I saw Tang Sowol fall—my sword once again carried the flames of revenge.

If I had to choose one thing that defined my sword, it would be vengeance…

But if asked whether that’s something worth pursuing for a lifetime, I would hesitate to say yes.

After all, I’ve already failed once, and now I’m making up for it through regression. I even defeated the Lord of the Black Sky Sword Sect before he became the Black Sky Sword Emperor.

In my previous life, maybe. But in this life, vengeance is no longer a lifelong goal.

“It’s difficult.”

The sparring with Seo Mun-Hwarin had lasted until sunset. During that time, I had managed to reproduce a few sword strikes with faint traces of Willpower, but that sensation still felt far off.

As I loosened my increasingly sore shoulders and muttered to myself, Seo Mun-Hwarin chuckled and said,

“That’s only natural. Awakening one’s Willpower is akin to reflecting on oneself and redefining who one is. For people like you and me, it can’t be easy.”

“What do you mean by people like ‘you and me’?”

“Obviously, I mean martial artists of the Unorthodox Faction.”

“I may not look like it, but I’m from the Orthodox Faction.”

“That’s only your affiliation. Of all the martial artists I’ve seen, you’re the second most unorthodox.”

Was it that bad?

I asked, slightly sarcastic.

“Then who’s the first?”

“Who else? The Black Lotus Lord.”

“Mm. I suppose I can’t argue with that.”

If a martial artist who uses martial arts for personal gain is to be called ‘unorthodox’, then none could rival the Black Lotus Lord—at least in this era.

I nodded a few times and sheathed my sword.

“Still, being in this position makes me understand why so few high-ranking unorthodox martial artists reach the Flowering Stage.”

“Indeed. People say it’s because they constantly fight among themselves, or that their martial arts aren’t preserved and easily fade—but that alone isn’t the reason. In fact, proportionally speaking, the Unorthodox Faction has more experts.”

That’s true. The Orthodox Faction often accepts disciples even if they lack talent, whereas in the Unorthodox Faction, someone dies almost every day…

The biggest difference comes from real combat experience.

Orthodox martial artists are only allowed to enter the murim world after they’ve become decently strong, sometimes even under the grand title of “First Step into Murim.”

But Unorthodox martial artists are always thrown right into the heart of the murim.

They face far more life-and-death situations, and if they survive, they inevitably grow stronger faster.

Unorthodox martial arts also tend to focus on rapid strength gain.

That’s why, at the same level of cultivation, unorthodox martial artists are generally stronger in real fights than those of the orthodox side.

Even among the Five Supreme Clans and the Nine Great Sects, most individuals barely measure up by comparison.

Their true strength lies in their massive organizations.

So, despite the Orthodox Faction having superior scale and cohesion, the balance of power between Orthodoxy and Unorthodoxy is roughly maintained.

This remains true even at the Flowering Stage—the realm beyond mere mastery, where one is considered an absolute master. The cause is slightly different, though.

Even at the same cultivation level, unorthodox Flowering Stage masters are usually stronger in terms of pure combat power.

The Black Lotus Lord is one of the youngest among the Flowering Stage, yet is evaluated as being among the strongest.

But the numbers tell a different story.

While many unorthodox martial artists die young, very few of them ever break through to the Flowering Stage.

Up until now, I thought it was due to the impurities in their internal energy, their vulnerability to mental deviation, or that orthodox techniques—built on strong fundamentals—were more suited for reaching greater heights.

But now that I’ve faced it myself, I understand.

Those were just excuses added after the fact.

Even if one’s internal energy is impure, there are ways to compensate. My Raging Wave Death-Stealing Art, for example, uses killing intent to balance it.

Vulnerable to deviation? That only happens when one recklessly reaches for the next realm without qualification. Those who lose control were never meant to ascend in the first place.

And while a strong foundation is certainly important, it’s no guarantee.

If it were, only those born into great martial families would reach the top, and yet, how many nameless individuals have risen to the highest heights? How many masters spent their whole lives on fundamentals and still died in mediocrity?

If you bring talent into the discussion, then the argument ends there—some are born to reach the Flowering Stage, others are not.

So why is it that, despite being stronger on average, unorthodox martial artists struggle to reach the Flowering Stage?

The answer is simpler. And more fundamental.

“This is no different from the path of ascetic cultivation.”

“They say that, long ago, people became immortals through martial arts. I think that’s an exaggeration, but perhaps it’s not entirely baseless.”

Reaching the Flowering Stage through Willpower requires introspection and endless refinement.

Such open-ended cultivation is foreign to most unorthodox martial artists, who are preoccupied with survival and wealth.

But for orthodox martial artists, it’s familiar.

“To be honest, it’s a little overwhelming.”

“That’s how walls are. Once you get past them, sometimes they weren’t that daunting after all.”

“You told me not to rush, not to compromise, and to struggle and seek with intensity, right?”

“Indeed. I let go of myself and endured over ten years of contemplation to reach my current level. Rushing won’t get you anywhere.”

“Mm. Considering your age, Senior Seo Mun-Hwarin, isn’t it more like nearly twenty years? …Ah, for the record, I’m eighteen.”

“Don’t say that out loud!”

Suddenly struck by the cruelty of reality, Seo Mun-Hwarin glared and began pounding my shoulder with clenched fists.

Unlike during the spar, they held no real strength—more like playful taps.

I accepted the blows and nodded.

“Understood. Actually, it’s a good thing. I have more urgent matters right now anyway, so it’s a good time to slow down and focus on training as you advised.”

“And what do you mean by ‘more urgent matters’? Why do you need to train leisurely?”

“Well… compared to my insight, my internal energy and body are a bit lacking.”

“…?”

“I don’t have enough internal energy to maintain sword flame for long, and my body’s so frail that just a few repetitions of movements under Divine Sword Unity leave me exhausted.”

“Huh?”

Seo Mun-Hwarin blinked rapidly in disbelief.

But it was true. Seol Lihyang had suffered during her fight with the Blood Flame Sword Demon due to depleted stamina and the inability to suppress her Pure Yin Physique’s energy.

Meanwhile, I had simply collapsed from pure exhaustion.

“Well, external arts are a bit lacking, but that’s not a huge concern. As long as I keep training, they’ll catch up. More importantly, I haven’t stopped growing yet.”

“You mean height?!”

“Not as much as before, but a little, yes.”

Seo Mun-Hwarin stared up at me with silent envy.

Come to think of it, she was shorter than even Seol Lihyang. Maybe she’d been a little taller before her rejuvenation, but probably not by much.

“The real issue is my internal energy. I was originally planning to supplement it with the Summoning Pill, the prize from the Dragon and Phoenix Summit… but as you know, I was disqualified.”

“S-Sorry…”

“It’s not your fault, Senior. Besides, Seol Lihyang arranged for me to receive a special elixir from the Yeon Clan Head, and I’m getting one from Clan Head Paeng too, so it’ll be resolved soon.”

“But neither of them has even arrived yet. What are you talking about?”

“They’ve already promised me. If they have any pride, they’ll honor it.”

“Your compatibility with Hyang is almost too perfect… It’s just unfortunate that it’s in such bandit-like ways.”

I shrugged at Seo Mun-Hwarin’s grumbling and headed out of the training hall.

On the way, I told to bring Seo Mun-Hwarin’s dinner tray to my room instead of hers, as we’d be eating together tonight.

Unlike Seo Mun-Hwarin, who still looked fresh and dry, I had gone all out in our sparring, so I quickly washed up and changed clothes before returning to my room.

My head had been full of martial arts all day—but the moment I saw the scene before me, all thoughts vanished.

Understandably so, since Tang Sowol was pinning Seol Lihyang to the floor, sitting on top of her with both knees pressing down on her arms, completely restraining her.

“Hehe… You’re not getting away this time.”

“Let—let me go, Sister Tang!”

“Nope. You’re the one who kept running, so this is your fault.”

Tang Sowol grinned with oddly ragged breath, and I couldn’t help but blurt out—

“What the hell are you two doing? In my room?”

At my voice, Tang Sowol jerked her head toward me, looked between herself and the pinned Seol Lihyang, then quickly shook her head.

“P-Please wait! I can explain everything!”

A line I’d heard many times before.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep