Chapter 260 The Snow Lotus Sword Technique

Chapter 260: The Snow Lotus Sword Technique

A day had passed since Jin Taedo descended from Fenghuang Mountain’s Peak of the Phoenix and resumed his pursuit.

And as time passed, Jin Taedo’s heart grew increasingly impatient.

Contrary to his expectation that he would catch up soon, he was failing to close the distance to his target at all.

Somehow, the speed of those carrying the wounded had actually increased compared to before.

Then, the problem arose on Jin Taedo’s side instead.

“Hey, Jang Mun-in! Ugh!”

“You, you! You useless bastard!”

Jin Tae-do’s subordinates had been pursuing relentlessly under his relentless urging.

Jin Tae-do’s bold claims that they would catch up soon were also a factor.

But as time passed without results, the exhausted subordinates, unable to endure any longer, began falling behind one by one.

No matter how much Jin Tae-do yelled and threatened them, it was useless.

Their completely depleted stamina wouldn’t return just because he yelled at them.

So now, Jin Tae-do had to continue the pursuit with a dwindling number of men, leaving most of his subordinates behind.

But at this very moment, even the subordinate responsible for Yunmiao Baek-a—the very heart of the pursuit—had finally collapsed from exhaustion.

For Jin Tae-do, this was an incident that could only be met with both anger and a sense of helplessness.

“Can’t you get up?!”

“I’m… I’m sorry, Master. I can’t go on any longer…”

Jin Taedo stood trembling with rage before his fallen subordinate.

He felt like he could kill him on the spot.

Sensing the gravity of the situation, Master Jaseong of the Six Harmonies Sword School quietly approached and called out to him.

“Master Jin.”

Jin Taedo roared back.

“Why are you calling me?!”

Jin Taedo could no longer hide behind his usual friendly facade.

At his sharp reaction, Master Jae-sung inwardly clicked his tongue and cautiously asked him.

“Leaving him behind would make the pursuit impossible. How about carrying him? Like that Inparang fellow did to his companions.”

At those words, Jin Taedo let out a low growl.

“Hmm.”

Carrying a subordinate was something Jin Taedo had never even considered up to this point.

For someone as authoritarian as him, it was absolutely unthinkable.

But now even Jin Taedo had no choice but to admit it.

He asked the Self-Reflecting Sage.

“Could one of the Six Harmonies Sword Masters bear the burden?”

“…

The Immortal Zixing cursed him inwardly.

Why would his subordinate be taken in by his own disciple?

But outwardly, he laughed heartily and accepted Jin Taido’s proposal.

“Hehehe! Of course it is. How could the esteemed Sect Leader possibly refuse?”

“Hmm, then I have a request, Master Jin.”

And so, Jin Taedo’s party was able to resume their pursuit once more.

The group was now sparse, consisting only of Jin Taedo, the Six-Combination Sword Master Pacheonjo, and a single subordinate responsible for Baek-a.

But Jin Taedo no longer harbored any resentment.

With fewer people, their pursuit speed actually increased.

Especially when the Sixfold Sword Master picked up the subordinate assigned to Baek-a, their speed increased, allowing them to finally pursue the Sunwoo clan using the divine techniques befitting supreme masters.

“Master! It seems we’ve closed the distance considerably! Baek-a’s reactions are becoming more active!”

“Is that so?”

Hearing this, Jin Taedo could finally manage a smile on his face for the first time in a long while.

Their current location was Fujian Province. It was about two days’ journey from Shangpo Port, where the men were likely headed.

‘They’re probably planning to take a boat from Shangpo to find the Demon Realm. So we absolutely must catch up to them before they reach Shangpo.’

Jin Tae-do’s eyes flashed sharply.

From here on, the road to Shangpo was a straight highway.

This meant variables like Fenghuang Mountain could not arise again.

‘As long as there’s no situation like Phoenix Mountain, there’s no way we’ll lose them. This time, we’ll finish them off!’

After all, it was a pursuit involving himself, ranked among the Thirty-Six Masters of the World, alongside six supreme masters of the Hyeongsan Sect.

If he could just catch up somehow, there was no doubt that everything would be over.

Jin Taedo stared at the lifeless body on the road, recalling Seon Woo-jin’s face, the one he had missed so many times.

***

Meanwhile, Seon Woo-jin was asleep, riding on the back of the black tiger, Sakwol.

He had told others he was resting to replenish his stamina, but in truth, he had another reason.

He intended to enter the dream space using the Dream Soul Great Technique to train.

“Haah!”

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Within the dream space, as Seon Woo-jin swung his sword, a white chill erupted forward.

Frozen water vapor crystallized into white ice crystals, unfolding like a fan.

“Hmph.”

Standing before Seonwoo Jin, Mokrang smiled faintly and stepped lightly away from the trajectory of the cold air.

His movements resembled the wind even more than Seon Woo-jin, who was casting the Heavenly Wind Technique.

But Seonwoo Jin didn’t give up, flinging his sword toward Mukrang once more.

“Here I go again!”

Shwaaah!

This time, five white wolves burst forth from Seon Woo-jin’s sword.

Five wolves made of ice howled as they charged toward Mokrang.

Wooooo!

“Oh ho!”

Muk-rang let out an exclamation of admiration.

Then he swung his sword lightly.

Swish!

In an instant, the sword of the dark wolf, split into five, effortlessly annihilated the five ice white wolves.

Pssssssssss!

But at that very moment, Seonwoo Jin had already closed in right before Mookrang.

He swung his sword and shouted.

“Heavenly Ice Wall!”

Whoosh!

A brilliant white ice wall erupted from beneath Muk-rang’s feet.

He had used Heavenly Ice Wall, a defensive technique of the Snow Wolf Sword Style, as an attack.

Mukrang swiftly retreated backward to escape the area and shouted.

“An ingenious attack!”

The sword techniques Seon Woo-jin is currently using against Mok Rang are the moves from the Snow Lotus Sword Technique that Mayu Gyeom mastered. The first move was North Wind Sword Wave, the third move was Snow Lotus Circulation, and the second move was Heavenly Ice Wall.

He had mastered all three of the five-move Seolrang Sword Technique that Mayu Gyeom had learned.

It was nothing short of astonishing.

But even after using all three moves, Seon Woo-jin still glowed with intensity from behind the ice wall, as if it wasn’t over yet.

Through his inner vision, he pinpointed Muk-rang’s location and thrust his sword toward the ice wall on that side.

The Snow Wolf Sword Technique, Volume Four.

Absolute Ice Sword.

Shuuuwaaah!

His sword pierced the ice wall.

Then, something astonishing happened.

Behind the ice wall Sunwoo Jin had pierced, a transparent ice blade shot straight toward Mukrang.

Swoosh!

It felt less like a projectile being fired and more like a transparent sword materializing out of thin air.

And that transparent blade instantly pierced through Mook-rang’s body, who had retreated three paces back.

Seon Woo-jin’s eyes flashed as he shouted.

“Did it work?!”

But at that moment, Muk-rang’s body, pierced by the ice blade, blurred.

It was an afterimage.

And before he knew it, Mok Rang had sidestepped to avoid Seon Woo-jin’s attack. He flashed a faint smile and lightly flicked his finger against the blade of the ice sword.

Ting!

“As if that would work?”

The ice blade shattered into pieces, and Seon Woo-jin’s attack ended in failure once again.

Crack!

Seonwoojin watched the collapsing ice wall along with the ice sword, a look of regret on his face, and said to Mukrang.

“If I could have connected it to the Five-Second Snowfall technique at that moment, it might have worked on the elder. What a pity.”

At those words, Mukrang shook his head with a pleased expression and replied.

“You’re still far from mastering the Ten Thousand Snow Blossoms technique. If you could wield that, you’d already be able to unleash the Heaven-Shattering Strike of the Silent Wave Sword Art. And aren’t you being a bit too greedy? You’ve barely mastered the Snow Wave Sword Art, yet you’re already lamenting not being able to wield the Four Absolute Ice Swords—techniques even Mayu Gyeom hasn’t mastered yet.”

“Well, that’s true, I suppose.”

After receiving Seon Woo-jin’s understanding and weeping for a long while, Mayu Gyeom immediately passed the Snow Lotus Sword Technique on to Seon Woo-jin.

Although his body hadn’t fully recovered and he was still under a blood seal, preventing him from demonstrating the technique himself, he had first transmitted the incantation through telepathy.

At first, Seon Woo-jin had tried to dissuade him.

He worried that perhaps some lingering desire to die remained within him, and that he was trying to pass on the Seolrang Sword Technique to another before that happened.

But Mayu Gyeom’s resolve was unwavering.

‘I’d never even consider taking my own life now. But I’m injured, and this is a crisis situation, isn’t it? Just in case, it’s better to keep the old master’s sword technique.’

Saying this, Mayu Gyeom passed down the Snow Lotus Sword Technique to Seon Woo-jin. Yet when Seon Woo-jin offered to teach him the Silent Lotus Sword Technique, Mayu Gyeom refused, stating he would not learn it himself.

‘Your bow is too generous for me. The Seolrang Sword Technique alone was already more than enough; I cannot possibly accept another bow as well. And… I intend to resume training with the Sword of the Piercing Blade. Thus, I require no further sword techniques.’

Seon Woo-jin looked at Mayu Gyeom and couldn’t help but realize he had truly become a different person from before.

He decided to respect his will.

Seonwoo Jin immediately entered the space of the Dream Soul Technique and began learning the Snow Lotus Sword Technique from Mokrang.

What Mayu Gyeom taught him was merely the incantations of the Seolrang Sword Technique, but Mokrang had taught him all the remaining moves and forms as well.

“It was my rule not to teach sword techniques like the Moolang Sword Technique or the Seolrang Sword Technique to other sword successors. But it wasn’t because I didn’t know them that I didn’t teach them. But now, hasn’t the successor of the Seolrang Sword Technique decided to teach you the Seolrang Sword Technique? So, I don’t need to pretend I don’t know it either. Now then, let’s begin with the first form, the North Wind Sword Break.”

That was how the situation had unfolded.

And surprisingly, Seon Woo-jin succeeded in mastering the Seolrang Sword Technique immediately after learning it just once from Mokrang.

While mastering the Seolrang Mind Technique, which required a bit of time, proved challenging, the sword technique itself felt as natural to him as if he had known it all along.

This was nothing short of astonishing, even to Seon Woo-jin himself.

Mukrang suddenly gave a meaningful smile and asked Seonwoo Jin.

“Do you know why you were able to master the Seolrang Sword Technique so easily?”

Seonwoo Jin looked at Mokrang for a moment after he asked that question.

His meaningful expression made it seem like he had some ulterior motive.

Seon Woo-jin asked him with a suspicious look.

“Surely you don’t want me to say it’s because you taught me well?”

Mukrang chuckled softly and replied.

“That’s so obvious it hardly needs saying, is it?”

Seon Woo-jin, who had slightly frowned at his retort, briefly reflected on the earlier situation.

“Hmm, if you ask why I mastered it so easily… I just realized there’s no difference. It’s merely converting internal energy into a single breath to release it—ultimately, swinging the sword is still…”

Seon Woo-jin paused after saying that much.

Then, with a blank expression, he began to sink into thought.

Muk-rang waited silently for him, wearing a contented smile.

A moment later, Seon Woo-jin snapped out of his reverie and muttered blankly.

“So it was the same thing after all. Whether it was a heavy sword or a light sword, it was just a difference between swinging the sword hard and swinging it fast. The fact that you were swinging the sword didn’t change at all.”

And he sighed as he spoke.

“So all swords are the same after all.”

At that, Mokrang finally broke into a bright smile.

Seonwoojin’s realization had finally reached the point of all streams returning to the source.

Seon Woo-jin hurriedly called out to him.

“Master!”

Mukrang nodded and said.

“Hurry. If you miss this realization, who knows when the next opportunity will come.”

Seon Woo-jin was now standing before the ultimate barrier.

So if he could grasp this realization now, he might finally be able to enter the realm of the ultimate.

“Thank you, Elder!”

Seon Woo-jin shouted as he hurriedly broke free from the Dream Soul Great Law.

Then he shouted to the group following behind the moon-chasing horse he rode.

“We must stop here for a moment!”

His urgent cry drew puzzled looks from the others.

***

Jin Taedo and the Six-Combination Sword Masters were dashing across the mountain pass like the wind.

Since there was only one road anyway, they didn’t need Baek-a’s guidance.

He was chasing after the Sunwoojins, racing through the day without pause, only occasionally stopping to check if he was still heading in the right direction.

That was when it happened.

His subordinate, who was guarding the white horse, shouted.

“It’s right around here, Master! They passed through this area not long ago!”

It was news that made his eyes widen in surprise.

Jin Taedo felt renewed strength surge at the welcome news and shouted.

“Good! Let’s pick up the pace, Jinren!”

“Understood!”

Without even checking Baek-a’s reaction, they pushed themselves to the limit to increase their speed.

It was only a day’s journey to Sangpo, and he thought he could catch up before then.

Then, about an hour later, Jin Tae-do’s eyes widened and he shouted.

“There!”

Two figures, a man and a woman, came into view running ahead.

And among them, the man in white was undoubtedly that despicable Inparang.