NOVEL NEXT Chapter 33
Han Dohyun’s drinking habit was pretty terrible.
It was so bad that Yoo Seolhwa advised him not to go near alcohol at all.
First of all, he becomes blind to everything around him. The hesitation that normally shows in his careful movements disappears completely.
Secondly, when he drinks, he can’t write. It’s as if a white fog fills his mind, blurring the content he needs to write down.
So, he only drinks on Seolhwa’s death anniversary, which showed that the real Han Dohyun was actually abstaining from alcohol.
“Uhak…!”
But he just broke that rule.
Breathing out hot breaths with a grin, he spotted Bing Yeon moving as if dancing, and Azazel sighed.
“……”
Was it really the right decision to become this man’s disciple? After all, he followed him simply because he hadn’t heard any news of Kang Si Woo after waiting for years in the monastery.
“So you’re saying I just need to take away the alcohol? I’ll take that to mean I can break it.”
It seemed like such a simple task. I mean, isn’t it obvious how to overpower someone who’s drunk and out of it?
Azazel moved his black tentacles towards the jar, but at that moment, Bing Yeon tilted his body just enough to barely dodge.
“Raise the Cup to Greet the Bright Moon, Three Shadows in the Reflection.”
The phrase meant, as the bright moon is greeted with a drink, three figures are formed in the shadow.
Bing Yeon recited a poem while casually pouring the alcohol into his mouth. Azazel, thinking it was just a coincidence, tried to attack faster.
“Instead, aim for the blood spots. If you hesitate to break a person’s limbs, it’s better to think that way.”
“Just a mouthful… you’ve really eaten well…!”
“I’ve heard that too often, hic.”
Bing Yeon laughed, even while hiccuping from the drinking.
He wasn’t blocking his disciples’ attacks with external martial arts, but rather displayed a bizarre movement separating his upper and lower body.
The peak of softness, it almost felt like trying to slice water with a sword.
“Ugh…! Why can’t I land an attack?!”
“It’s too monotonous. You seem to be trying to find gaps by brainstorming, but unpredictable variables that don’t come from actual experience are just academic speculations.”
Bing Yeon yawned widely as if bored. His relaxed face, boosted by the spirits, was more than enough to irritate his opponent.
“Little sister, I will help as well.”
Provoked by that comment, Bi Wol sprang into action. She was trying to constrain Bing Yeon by grabbing him from behind.
No matter how skilled someone was at dodging their opponent’s attacks, if their limbs were tied, it was obvious they wouldn’t be able to do anything.
But,
“Bi Wol, didn’t I just say you should hide your energy and move closer?”
As if she understood Bi Wol’s intentions, Bing Yeon tripped her feet and threw her down. It happened because she failed to read his sudden movements.
“To catch me now, you’d need to summon at least a gateway. So don’t worry too much.”
Thud, just before Bi Wol’s face hit the ground, she rolled out of the way to avoid serious injury. She gritted her teeth and looked up.
Why couldn’t she reach her master? She thought her level was on par with him.
‘Even at the beginning of the same pinnacle level, how is there such a difference?’
Bi Wol didn’t realize the cause of her weakness. She had defeated the Simmado alongside her master, and had likely been honest about her hesitant feelings.
Could that very part have turned into a toxin?
“Master is going to dodge or only counterattack until we realize our weaknesses and fix them?!”
“Correct, from now on, the opponents you will face will see through all these flaws.”
Bing Yeon laughed loudly, as if her words were exactly right.
What they faced at Yongbong Alliance were protagonists from the original stories facing the final boss. Plus, it was obvious that Seolhwa would be there to support them.
Now that he was using Drunken Fist, he needed elements that were hidden from the readers. Things the readers didn’t know, only the author knew about character backstories.
“This breaking of levels is called an exception.”
Reciting something Seolhwa often told him, Bing Yeon was imparting teachings to his disciples, who were almost like his own daughters.
“Don’t just watch, help your sister out too!”
Bi Wol shouted to Verdandi. Unlike the two who were fighting vigorously with Bing Yeon, she stood still, just observing their movements.
“Hm, do you need my help?”
Verdandi had been watching the almost evenly matched balance and then gently smiled as she joined the fight.
With many classic movements of Drunken Fist, Verdandi was continuously reading Bing Yeon’s actions to grasp the intricate details.
“Hoho, you’ve minimized unnecessary movements. You’re aiming at the opening in the northern region for a vertical slash…”
Clang─!
Verdandi’s sacred sword targeted Bing Yeon’s head, and he blocked it with an ice wall.
“You must be practicing the Six Harmonies Sword Technique.”
Bing Yeon twisted his eyes into a crescent shape as he observed her now refined sword path.
What Bing Yeon was about to teach was the Volcano Sect’s unique sword technique, designed to block in all directions using the Six Harmonies.
Oddly enough, the first person to correct her weakness was Verdandi. She was the only one accepting Bing Yeon’s advice wholeheartedly right now.
“After reading the direction of your opponent’s attack, focus on blocking, thrusting, slicing, and dodging—these are the fundamental movements of a sword. Use the form to create variations in your swordplay.”
Bing Yeon opened his mouth to express approval, unlike the rising martial arts that required internal energy; this kind of third-rate martial arts was frighteningly accessible to anyone.
“I understand!”
Boom─!
Verdandi’s fierce kick brushed past Bing Yeon’s side and destabilized his posture. Seizing the gap, she aimed straight for the jar.
“Where do you think you’re going? Isn’t this too obvious? Aiming for the north again?”
Bam bam bam─!
Using her palms to break her stance, Bing Yeon used a kick to retrieve the jar once more. It was as natural as flowing water; the bystanders couldn’t help but widen their eyes.
“…Sister, could you lend me that sword?”
Seeing for the first time that a valid hit landed, Bi Wol proposed something to Verdandi. The holy sword emitting a pure white light was in her grasp.
With that, she could mimic the swordsmanship displayed during the fight against the Simmado.
“This is something only the chosen hero can use!”
Verdandi shook her head, refusing the suggestion. If someone like her, draped in crimson demonic energy like a demon king, held it, it would surely spell disaster.
“The holy sword would definitely have an adverse reaction! You could burn your hands!”
“Sister, don’t you want to defeat the master?”
For the first time, Bi Wol suppressed her emotions and chose cooperation with others to defeat her master.
“To preserve the master’s body as much as possible, it might be better for us to win quickly.”
Even if she minimized her internal energy usage through the subtlety of Drunken Fist, Bing Yeon was living on borrowed time due to Nine Pulse Meridians.
Bi Wol brought up a logical counter-argument to persuade Verdandi. If it worked out well, she could tease her master for getting drunk and doing something foolish.
“I can’t say that’s a lie, so I like it!”
“Thank you, little sister.”
Whoosh, the thrown sacred sword spun in the air a few times before landing in Bi Wol’s hand. As soon as it touched her, the sword that had been emanating light trembled.
Boom─!
With a tremendous roar and a crimson whirlwind, it changed color and form. It wasn’t a holy sword anymore, but something you could call a demon sword.
“Oh ho, this is marvelous.”
“……”
Bing Yeon could only keep his mouth shut at witnessing that scene.
Originally, it was the form of the holy sword used by Verdandi, who became a demon king in the latter half of “The Hero Must Die.” But why did it transform into that as soon as it touched Bi Wol?
“I’ll have to show you a bit more of my true skill.”
Realizing it wouldn’t be easy to win anymore, Bing Yeon sighed and poured all the alcohol from the jar into his mouth.
If this world connected with different works, could such a thing really happen?
Since Bing Yeon was utilizing both aura and internal energy, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
*
Thus, I was trying to teach Bi Wol the Three Talented Sword Method, Verdandi the Six Harmonies Sword Technique, and Azazel the Six Harmonies Fist.
‘According to the hint Seolhwa provided, external party critics would find it hard to predict such variables.’
Using backstories of characters that only the author knew – things that readers were oblivious to.
I hoped that by learning these third-rate martial arts, they would have a chance against Seolhwa.
Simply because anyone could learn them, they were considered third-rate (三流).
Just because anyone could grow stronger, it was third-rate (三流).
And because common folks struggled to grasp it, these martial arts were labeled as third-rate (三流).
‘Like Moo-Han Keom-jae, there are those who have bled to master the Three Talented Sword Method and have climbed to the ranks of the powerful—he wouldn’t know that.’
While staggering visions flickered and my body floated in a daze, I continued to evade my disciples’ attacks.
But,
“I won’t let go this time…!”
“Pretty sharp, but your haste is still a problem…”
It seemed that was reaching its limits.
Among them, Bi Wol wielded the demon sword toward me. Originally, that weapon should be used by Verdandi, who had fallen villainously into a demon king.
‘This wasn’t something I originally set, but could the world have adjusted to this logic?’
I nodded and began to ponder.
With the sin of the Heavenly Demon Star that had to kill to survive, Bi Wol was like a demon king born to bring about the world’s destruction.
“Now, going into hand-to-hand combat, a good choice, Azazel.”
“It’s because you won’t hand over the jar!”
And now Azazel also realized how to use her tentacles.
Watching her use the black tentacles bundled like a club, I became even more careful in my movements.
The moment I misstepped, I would lose.
“…Verdandi has run out of advice. Keep striving.”
“Thank you! But isn’t hurting someone against the rules in an actual competition?”
That was a fair point. It was why they would use wooden swords instead of real ones and avoid lethal techniques.
“Probably, the opponents won’t care about such things.”
From my predictions, they’d try to sway the original protagonists to deal with the final bosses.
After all, that was the conclusion of novels that the avid external critics hadn’t witnessed. Because they assumed the original protagonists would always win.
“They’d use every possible means to try to kill you.”
I blocked Bi Wol’s demon sword with my hand and exhaled a cold air, turning the ground into ice.
Then, with a fist wrapped in ice, I tried to mimic someone’s moves.
“…This is the martial arts of those you will confront, Bi Wol.”
It was the stance of the Six Harmonies Fist used by Kim Hyul, the protagonist of “King of Diamond Fist,” who later comes to be known as the Diamond King.