It has been some time since the Zhuge Family and the warriors of Mount Wu Sect have moved together.
After several fights since their first battle together, they finally entered the Tiefeng district of Henan Province.
“Finally arrived.”
“That is the sacred ground of the Unbroken Gate, Mount Song… Truly one of the Five Great Mountains of the Central Plains.”
The party, who had faced countless hardships, smiled in satisfaction as they admired the scenery.
‘Surely, there won’t be any more fighting from now on.’
That was the common thought among them.
With the Shaolin Temple located just around the corner from Tiefeng, the chances of any problems arising here were minimal.
As they neared the sphere of influence of the Shaolin Temple, conflicts had already sharply decreased, bearing testament to that fact.
“Indeed, it is Shaolin. They have stabilized peace to this extent. Thanks to that, we have had a relatively easy journey lately.”
“It is a long-awaited conference, so Shaolin has likely made some effort as well.”
While everyone was moving about with a much more relaxed mindset, the representative of Mount Wu Sect, Woon Hyun Jin, wore a serious expression as he lost himself in thought.
‘…Was his name Ha Seung-hoon?’
What he had been contemplating recently was a young man included in the envoy from the Zhuge Family.
An impressive figure he had been watching closely since their first meeting.
‘Impressive indeed.’
His interest had grown even larger after the battle they shared together for the first time, as he had witnessed firsthand the young man’s growth.
How could he not feel that way?
Having watched him develop right beside him during their time together, it was only natural.
‘日新又日新 (rì xīn yòu rì xīn), indeed. He embodies the saying that one continually renews and develops every day.’
As a master of martial arts, he certainly wouldn’t have missed noticing the changes in Ha Seung-hoon.
He recognized the young man’s inexplicable growth pace and had already figured out that it was influenced by his fellow warriors.
‘It appears that we have had quite an impact on him this time…’
That was why he was in his current predicament.
The young man’s sword and movements were gradually beginning to resemble those of Mount Wu, yet at his current level, it was ambiguous to say anything right away.
He hadn’t stolen any techniques or imitations of their forms.
One couldn’t criticize the significant growth he achieved merely from the influence of combat circumstances, could they?
After all, it’s not like Mount Wu’s sword was the only one in existence.
Without knowing about _“Imitation,”_ Woon Hyun Jin was trapped in his thoughts.
And more importantly…
‘It would be a shame to let him go like this.’
During his time with the Zhuge Family, he had realized something.
The bond between that young man, Ha Seung-hoon, and the Zhuge Family wasn’t as strong as he had initially thought.
The way they treated him, not as a long-standing member but almost like a guest they had met not long ago, was enough to overturn his first hypothesis.
Just looking at how Zhuge Jung-hyuk, the representative of the family, treated him with a certain distance was indicative.
And most importantly, the fundamental martial arts he used bore no relation to that of the Zhuge Family.
‘I might have been mistaken from the beginning. If he is simply a guest helping out temporarily rather than a late-stage heir trained by the Zhuge Family…’
A hint of intrigue played around Woon Hyun Jin’s eyes.
In that case, wouldn’t it be possible to draw him into Mount Wu Sect this time?
He seemed to have a considerable affinity for the swords of Mount Wu, making it a good idea to lure him in with the bait of a powerful technique.
‘It would be inferior to learning Mount Wu’s inner techniques since childhood, but with that level of potential, it shouldn’t pose a significant problem.’
The world had changed.
In a time where strong martial power was necessary to pursue peace.
Of course, he couldn’t just share the teachings of Mount Wu with anyone, so he needed to reflect more carefully on the matter. But based on his character seen so far, he was satisfactory.
‘We have time ahead. I can casually bring it up whenever.’
As Woon Hyun Jin glanced at the young man who was sightseeing like everyone else, he mused.
Since there was still a long time until the meeting concludes, they would indeed have ample time to converse in between.
While Woon Hyun Jin was mulling over these possibilities, the party continued their steady footsteps.
“Buddha Amitabha, welcome. Thank you for your hard work on your long journey.”
They had finally arrived at the Shaolin Temple, where the conference would be held.
*
“Hugo is growing smoothly as well.”
Hugo, who had gone to study in the Ganghwan Realm, striving to become an excellent martial artist, was currently stepping into a significant growth phase thanks to the support of Harris following the foundational help provided by Harley.
‘_“Heavenly Body Technique,”_ followed by _“Nameless Skill.”_’
A skill without a name.
He had tried to name the skill several times out of curiosity, but the system showed little response.
Perhaps it was because the direction had not been properly established yet…
‘A growth-type skill means it evolves based on how one utilizes it, right?’
Then, it wouldn’t make sense to obsess over it right now.
As he had done until now, he would continue to push forward.
“Hubert is still busy analyzing the secret techniques.”
Since they had plundered quite a few sects this time, many martial arts manuals had come into their possession, keeping Hubert extremely busy in his existing duties alongside his secret technique research.
Regrettably, none of the acquired techniques had reached S-rank yet.
‘There are a few around A-rank.’
If they had not raided the giant faction Suramun, led by a master of the realm, they wouldn’t have found any at all.
Considering that A-rank techniques are rare even among the major sects, that was understandable. However, from the point of view of having already encountered the S-rank _“Soft Eight Trigrams Secret Skill,”_ that level didn’t quite satisfy him.
‘Still, I should learn a few of them. That might serve as a catalyst for the _“Nameless Skill.”_’
After a brief contemplation, he made a decision and nodded.
Having roughly sorted out his thoughts regarding Hugo, his mind shifted to Harley, who was also in the Ganghwan Realm.
‘Harley worked hard this time as well.’
Though most of it had been centered around destruction and killing, it was still commendable.
Thanks to that, he had managed to accumulate quite a decent amount of Karma.
So, since he was in the Ganghwan Realm, it would be good to learn a usable martial art…
“Finding one suitable for Harley isn’t easy, though I somewhat expected it.”
He let out a deep sigh that he didn’t know he was holding and shook his head in annoyance.
Naturally, his attempts to use systematic martial arts with Harley’s physique had not been few.
It was only natural to anticipate how effective it would be if someone with the highest physical capabilities like Harley could execute proper martial arts.
However, the results had not been so favorable.
‘Though it wasn’t completely unhelpful.’
That much could be determined by simply observing Harley’s past performances.
How to use one’s body efficiently and how to project power properly could clearly demonstrate what happens when a monster learns human skills.
But when it came to more advanced techniques of boxing or footwork, which had been systematically refined and established, things changed.
It was as if they were forcing themselves into clothes that didn’t fit, resulting in a failure to utilize their full strength.
‘At least for Harley, swinging his hands based on instinct is stronger than the boxing principles of martial arts.’
Thus, with various unusual martial arts of the martial world, he hoped there would be techniques suited for Harley…
Yet regrettably, so far, there hadn’t been any promising leads.
‘Well, if I keep searching, I’m sure something suitable will appear eventually. Techniques that fit Harley and are sufficiently high-level are rare.’
Hugo… no, Ha Seung-hoon’s martial journey was just beginning.
Once he entered the full phase of his activities, he would naturally encounter various martial arts and secret techniques.
At that point, it would be sufficient to select what he liked.
‘There’s no great hurry.’
Having just arrived at the Shaolin Temple, it would still take some time before the actual meeting commenced.
It was only natural for various individuals scattered across the continent to congregate in one place.
So, for now…
“Hmm, should I grab some chicken?”
As a form of comfort for Hugo, who would soon face a vegetarian diet imposed by the temple.
*
Deep within the Northern Mountain Range, shrouded in its usual strange energy, lay the Undying Castle.
Hmm… This can’t be utilized right away.
In a laboratory deep inside, a sinister voice echoed.
Those with weak minds would faint merely trying to listen, while even those hailed as heroes would find their bodies stiffening under that wicked voice’s owner—.
Still, it was worth a shot… I must keep it in storage for now.
It was the Undead King Hans, the arch-enemy of Auterica.
Somehow having executed a finishing move on the Buncheon Society head and stealing part of the Holy, he had returned to the Undying Castle to stabilize what he had taken and recover his damaged body, immersing himself in research for an interesting subject recently.
Although that research had just concluded.
Ssss—
As he waved his hand lightly, several corpses on the experimental tables began to be devoured by shadows rising from below, vanishing smoothly.
With pallid faces devoid of blood, these corpses bore exotic attire unseen in the region of Auterica.
They were the experts of the Ganghwan Realm, supplied through Harley.
‘It seems that creating otherworldly natives into Undead using the existing methods won’t work.’
This was a different case than transforming Awakened Ones into Undead.
These individuals had purely grown and lived within the laws of the Ganghwan Realm, thus seemingly being foreign substances in Auterica.
As if this world rejected the mysteries of another dimension.
‘After all, since they all consist of beings who have trained under the foundations of the Ganghwan Realm, I can see why.’
To properly turn them into proper Undead, Hans would need to cross over to the Ganghwan Realm himself.
As an Awakened One transcending the world’s laws, he’d have no issues using black magic there.
Of course, the quality of the results might degrade slightly since he wouldn’t be able to churn out the latest facilities and high-quality materials from this place…
No, that’s not it.
Hans, halting his thoughts, let a gleam appear in his eye sockets.
If he were to employ the techniques for producing Undead from this world in another dimension, it was only natural that efficiency would drop.
Then would it not be possible to supplement the lack by adding techniques usable in that realm?
‘Right. I’ve heard there’s a method to create Jiangshi in the Ganghwan Realm.’
While Hugo’s place, the Zhuge Family, did not deal with such wicked arts, he had easily learned about it in the information-gathering process.
He also heard it from Je Gal Hye-mi, who spent time reading in her room due to poor health.
‘It was said to be a technique mainly used by forces like the Demon Cult or Blood Sect.’
Since their activities took place mostly in shadowy territories, they inevitably lacked the considerable strength of those in the light.
To compensate for this deficiency, they had devised various methods, one of which was the Jiangshi technique, granting them the ability to control the corpses of the strong.
Heheh— Jiangshi technique, how interesting. I wonder what it would be like to apply it to other Undead… especially Awakened Ones.
He had heard that Jiangshi from the Ganghwan Realm were extremely difficult to make, yet even mass-produced varieties easily surpassed ordinary masters.
With the boost from skills and statuses, in addition to the growth from acquiring the _“Nameless Skill,”_ Hugo was just on the brink of reaching the legendary peak…
Seems I should go out for a field trip.
As Hans left the laboratory, he absentmindedly stroked his jawbone.
After all, there was nothing for him to do if he stayed in Auterica any longer.
Heinrich, who remained at the cult, was hastily preparing for the northern advance, setting up their final battle.
Ultimately, there would come a time when he’d have to pack his things and leave after everything concluded, so it wouldn’t hurt to check out a potential new home before completing the move.
First, I’d better check on the kids again.
And so—.
The invasion of the Demon King from another world loomed on the crumbling martial arts world.
