How should a martial artist’s realm be divided?

The realm that many martial artists could reach was generally the peak at best.

The teachings and advice of an excellent master, appropriate elixirs, practical experience that becomes blood and flesh, and sufficient talent.

When all of these were equipped, an excellent peak master was born.

The problem was a higher realm.

The realm of entering the divine.

Those who were called the top ten masters in the current martial world were the absolute masters of the realm of entering the divine.

Then what was Cheon Mubaeck’s current realm?

“The realm of entering the divine…”

Cheon Mubaeck was convinced. That his current martial prowess had entered the realm of entering the divine.

Perhaps Neung-heo, who was by his side, and Guk Jihum had also already guessed.

But even so, it was clear that they would not consider Cheon Mubaeck to be on par with the top ten masters in the world.

Even in the same realm of the peak, there was a clear hierarchy depending on experience.

It was the same for the realm of entering the divine.

The top ten masters in the world were absolute masters who had entered the realm years, no, decades ago.

The experience accumulated over a long period of time divided the clear superiority and inferiority even in the same realm of entering the divine.

So even if Cheon Mubaeck had reached the realm of entering the divine, it was an exaggeration to include him in the top ten masters.

Of course, that was a general story.

Hadn’t Cheon Mubaeck already deviated from the general category?

“As for experience, I have enough in my head to the point where I don’t want to accumulate any more.”

Cheon Mubaeck let out a laugh.

In terms of experience, Cheon Mubaeck was overwhelming. On top of that, with his born genius and five senses, it was a joke to melt countless experiences into his martial arts.

If he hadn’t reached the realm of entering the divine, it would be a different story.

But for Cheon Mubaeck, who had already reached the realm of entering the divine, he considered himself to be at least on the same level as the top ten masters in the world.

It was the same for the absolute total amount of internal energy. If he included the supreme yin energy of the lower dantian in the upper dantian, the amount of internal energy was also not lacking. If he even considered the qualitative aspect of his internal energy, there was no need to say more.

Of course, since there was a ranking even within the top ten masters in the world, it was difficult to infer what position Cheon Mubaeck was in.

At least, when he thought of the Zhuge Clan’s great elder, Zhuge Seon, whom he had recently met…

‘If I can just quickly break through the formation he has set up, I can win with a probability of more than fifty percent.’

Cheon Mubaeck evaluated himself coldly. No, rather, he deliberately judged himself terribly pessimistically.

There were numerous variables in a fight, and those variables were unpredictable, so they were not included in the prediction. So he judged as pessimistically as possible.

Even with that alone, it was surprising that he was confident of a fifty percent victory against the great Zhuge Seon. Because he was a legendary master of the previous generation.

But it was a pity.

“It’s because of the body.”

In the first place, reaching the realm of entering the divine was not something that could be done with just effort and perseverance.

A born brain that understood martial arts, and a perfect martial bone that could fully accept it.

The realm of entering the divine was something that was possible only when those were equipped.

The importance of the bone structure became greater as the realm became higher.

So no matter how much Cheon Mubaeck thought about it, if he assumed a fight with Zhuge Seon, he could not calculate a chance of winning more than fifty percent.

“It’s better now, but this is the best I can do.”

Cheon Mubaeck’s expression crumpled.

This body was not a born martial bone. No, rather, it was the worst.

When he had first awakened in his past life, hadn’t even the great Cheon Mubaeck been flustered?

If it weren’t for the Heaven-Shaking Soul Art that had reorganized his body, Cheon Mubaeck was convinced that it would have taken him much more time to get here.

“But if you think about it the other way around, it means that even with the great Heaven-Shaking Soul Art, it only made it to this extent.”

To be honest, it was a body that still did not satisfy Cheon Mubaeck.

“It’s slower than I thought.”

There was a clear limit to what the internal energy of the upper dantian could support.

For example, in Cheon Mubaeck’s head, a perfect sequence of moves to block the enemy’s attacking sword and cut his chest had already appeared.

But to express that with his body, it ended with just blocking the sword.

Of course, even that alone transmitted a huge shock to the opponent, but for Cheon Mubaeck, who had been born with a Heavenly Divine Body in his previous life and had lived as the Azure Sky Sword God, it was frustrating.

So Cheon Mubaeck had chosen.

“To build the body with maximum efficiency.”

There were numerous martial arts in Cheon Mubaeck’s head.

Among them, he had chosen the martial art that he could use most effectively, and had built his body accordingly.

If he had his way, he would have wanted to use all the martial arts of the world according to the situation, just like in his previous life. But wasn’t his previous life a Heavenly Divine Body?

Cheon Mubaeck’s choice was inevitable.

“But still, I didn’t really like it…”

He clicked his tongue.

But if Neung-heo had been there, he would have dismissed it as an absurd statement.

Because to anyone, Cheon Mubaeck’s body looked like a well-carved sculpture.

“But now… my body moves faster.”

The important reason why Cheon Mubaeck was lost in thought now.

While crossing the boat to avoid Wang Jeonyu, Cheon Mubaeck had belatedly realized. That the speed at which his body reacted was much faster than before.

The presence was caught by his five senses, which had become extremely sensitive due to the influence of his upper dantian, and a kind of extrasensory perception that had surpassed it.

But his body had reacted immediately.

As if the calculation process in his head had been omitted, as soon as he felt the presence, Cheon Mubaeck’s body had moved like a thunderbolt.

He hadn’t known because he was focused when he was fighting, but now that he thought about it carefully, it was certainly strange.

“My reaction speed has reached the extreme.”

It was certain.

Cheon Mubaeck closed his eyes.

In his head, the secret repository opened wide.

What could he test right away?

Would the library of the immortals, where all the secret manuals of the world were gathered, be like this? Cheon Mubaeck looked through the secret manuals in his head one by one. Then suddenly, he stopped at one.

“Joyangbi”

The lightness art that the River King, Wang Jeonyu, had shown before.

As it was a rare secret art, its origin had to be traced back hundreds of years.

Of course, if it were such a secret art, it existed in Cheon Mubaeck’s head.

And although what Wang Jeonyu had unfolded was somewhat modified over time.

The Joyangbi in his head now was the original form.

Generally, martial arts could not be maintained in their original form.

The one who created the martial art was an absolute master of martial arts who had reached the realm of a great master. On the other hand, the successors who inherited that legacy did not always have comparable talent.

The successors would slightly modify the martial art so that they could draw out the maximum efficiency.

As time passed, it would deviate from the original form, and in the end, it would lose the powerful mystery that the original form had.

So what Cheon Mubaeck had thought of now was a secret weapon that would have made Wang Jeonyu’s eyes widen and ask for teachings if he had seen it.

“It’s just right.”

Cheon Mubaeck stood on the railing of the boat.

There was not a moment’s hesitation. The upper dantian opened wide, and an uncontrollable internal qi rushed through the eight extraordinary meridians of his entire body.

The heart of the middle dantian pulsed violently, and the band of immortal energy emitted a clear light. Why was it? As the heart pulsed and poured out fresh blood, it felt as if immortal energy was imbued in it, and vitality spread throughout his body.

A sense of exhilaration that rose from the tips of his toes to his head.

Cheon Mubaeck’s figure disappeared from the railing in an instant.

Taat!

Cheon Mubaeck’s body cut through the surface of the water, low and fast.

A strong wind brushed his cheeks, and water droplets that splashed up every time he kicked the surface of the water.

If an ignorant person had seen it, they would have been astonished that he was running on the water, and it was on a different level from what Wang Jeonyu had unfolded.

If Wang Jeonyu’s Joyangbi felt like he was kicking the surface of the water and running, Cheon Mubaeck seemed to be sliding lightly and quickly on the surface of the water.

After running on the surface of the water for a while, a rather satisfied smile appeared on Cheon Mubaeck’s face as he came up to the railing again.

“It’s a little creaky, but I used it properly.”

What was the reason Cheon Mubaeck had only used the Heaven and Earth Eagle Step?

There was a clear difference between the Heaven and Earth Eagle Step and the Joyangbi. That was that the muscles used were different.

Both martial arts required a high level of concentration and a meticulousness that was almost obsessive.

But since the muscles used were completely different, Cheon Mubaeck had only efficiently and extremely trained some muscles to match the more effective and destructive Heaven and Earth Eagle Step.

So that he could adjust it to match the Heaven and Earth Eagle Step.

But now, Cheon Mubaeck had perfectly unfolded the Joyangbi.

As if he were a person who had researched and learned only the Joyangbi his whole life.

What did this mean?

“It’s as if… it’s like the body of my previous life…”

The Azure Sky Sword God.

Born with a Heavenly Divine Body that was said to have been bestowed by the heavens, Cheon Mubaeck had reached the highest realm in all his lives.

It was as if it were the body of that time.

All the muscles and nerves reacted sensitively as the band of immortal energy shone intensely.

Of course, it was still too much to compare it to the body of the Azure Sky Sword God.

But there was a possibility.

The possibility of overcoming the weakness of his born body.

“To strengthen the middle dantian.”

Whether it became a sacred object or whatever, if he just strengthened the middle dantian.

If so…

The numerous secret manuals in his head.

In Cheon Mubaeck’s head, the secret repository opened wide.

* * *

After entering Fujian Province, Wang Jeonyu could no longer steer the boat.

Although the river flowed, the width was so narrow, and there was no dock at the place where the Black Assembly was held for such a large boat to enter.

So he had no choice but to dock at a large dock in the middle and go by land.

“Ugh. Well, this is a headache.”

Wang Jeonyu narrowed his brows as he got off the boat.

Since the personnel who had to guard the boat had to remain, a considerable number of his few remaining subordinates had left.

It was a situation that Wang Jeonyu did not like.

“My kids can’t fight well on land anyway.”

If the river pirates got off the boat, would they be river pirates?

On the water, even first-rate and second-rate river pirates did not fear peak masters.

But it was different on land. The river pirates could not display their specialty at all.

Even if the number of subordinates going by land now was over a hundred, there were only a few useful ones among them.

Was it because of that?

As time passed, Wang Jeonyu came to like Neung-heo.

‘He’s a guy who has been rolling around in the Unorthodox Alliance for a long time. His work skills are very good.’

Wang Jeonyu’s gaze landed on Neung-heo.

Unlike the subordinates who were flustered because they didn’t know what to do after getting off the boat, Neung-heo moved like a fish in water.

First, he found an inn where they could stay in an instant.

There were over a hundred river pirates, and the number that Neung-heo had brought was about seventy, but to find several inns where such a number of people could stay was not an ordinary feat.

‘Looking at his walking posture and movements, his skill is also certain. Was it the Black Heart Gang? It is an Unorthodox Alliance sect with a promising future.’

If such a guy was the leader, he would soon show his prominence.

As time passed, Wang Jeonyu became more greedy.

For him, who had lived only on the river, he had no interest in the Unorthodox Alliance on land.

But Wang Jeonyu knew well what would happen in the future.

‘If a coalition of the Unorthodox Alliance is formed, that is.’

In any case, it would be difficult for Wang Jeonyu, who lived on the river, to exert influence in that coalition.

If the Great Dragon Gang had at least fifty percent of the influence, the Green Forest would take thirty percent, and Wang Jeonyu would take twenty percent.

In the end, because power had to be exerted by stepping on land.

‘But if I can just make a few of those Unorthodox Alliance sects my own…’

Even so, Neung-heo’s attitude towards him was so friendly that he liked him. His skills were good. And his guts were thick. Not only that.

“Oh my, you bastard. Your big brother is running around like crazy, and you’re just dawdling?”

Wang Jeonyu’s eyes narrowed.

It was a sight he had seen several times already.

The sight of Neung-heo nagging the youngest, who had a rather sturdy build, was caught in his sight. At the sight of him hitting the back of the youngest’s head coolly, even Wang Jeonyu felt a sense of satisfaction.

‘That youngest guy, he also has a certain air about him. He seems like a guy who is quite something…’

Even the youngest would not be in a position to be ignored wherever he went…

“Hah. This bastard. He’s only big. His actions are so frustrating.”

Watching the youngest silently endure Neung-heo’s nagging, Wang Jeonyu let out a laugh without realizing it.

That Neung-heo, that young guy who was his guard, and even that youngest guy.

Didn’t they all seem to have excellent skills?

Wang Jeonyu made up his mind.

‘I have to make them mine.’

As my power.

(End of Chapter)

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