Condensing inner strength through the Elixir Refining Secret was arduous and time-consuming.
But the cave had clear underground water and abundant Hanryeong grass. Bu Eunseol patiently refined the technique, and after about nine days, he could condense over ninety percent of his inner strength away from his dantian.
This meant even instinctively unleashing power would only release ten percent.
“I’m back,” Bu Eunseol said, having completed the Elixir Refining Secret, and immediately returned to the old man’s prison.
As he entered, the old man attacked without hesitation, extending his middle and index fingers.
But something was different—he no longer used the Seven Blood Tear Forms. Did he think Bu Eunseol could study and master his blade techniques?
Bu Eunseol was desperate to know the old man’s true power but calmed his mind and attacked with finger strikes, using no inner strength.
Chik, chik.
Despite lacking inner strength, the old man relentlessly created blade aura with his fingers, attacking Bu Eunseol.
‘One direct hit, and I’m dead,’ Bu Eunseol thought.
With over ninety percent of his inner strength suppressed, he could no longer use techniques like the Great Ice Seal. Focusing entirely, he engaged in a contest of techniques.
Chik!
The old man unleashed a technique as if striking Bu Eunseol’s chest. Finding no gap, Bu Eunseol thrust his finger strike at the old man’s neck.
It appeared like a mutual-destruction technique but embodied the essence of demonic swordsmanship.
‘If we strike simultaneously, the one stabbed in the neck takes the fatal blow.’
The old man would likely retract his technique and counter with a versatile blade move. Bu Eunseol planned to seize that moment to subdue him.
Shwaek!
But an unexpected outcome occurred. Instead of retreating, the old man shifted his technique eight times mid-motion, rendering Bu Eunseol’s attack useless.
‘Impressive,’ Bu Eunseol thought.
The old man’s method resembled Cheon Ungwang’s Nine Dragons Flashing Thunder. Moreover, while Bu Eunseol could only manage four variations mid-technique, the old man effortlessly executed eight.
‘The gap in blade techniques is too wide,’ he realized.
If inner strength had accompanied this blade move or if the old man had used the Seven Blood Tear Forms, the blade aura would have torn Bu Eunseol apart before he could dodge.
Fortunately, the old man’s inner strength was sealed, and he didn’t use the Seven Blood Tear Forms, allowing Bu Eunseol to counter.
Chik, chik!
As their fingers clashed in close quarters, a dark gleam emanated from Bu Eunseol’s fingers. He had adapted the old man’s favored variation of the Seven Blood Tear Forms into his own sword technique.
Pop!
But the technique didn’t connect. The old man spotted a flaw in Bu Eunseol’s improvised variation and instantly left a long gash near his neck.
“I’ve lost,” Bu Eunseol said. Continuing would mean losing his head. He immediately admitted defeat and retreated. “Let’s meet again tomorrow.”
Emerging from the cave, Bu Eunseol was drenched in sweat. Suppressing his inner strength made every technique a life-or-death struggle. Fortunately, fighting with suppressed power heightened his focus, allowing him to instantly grasp the principles of the old man’s blade techniques.
“You’re back,” Tak Ilhon said, standing with arms crossed outside Bu Eunseol’s cave.
“What is it?” Bu Eunseol asked.
“What are you doing?” Tak Ilhon said, incredulous. “If your inner strength is intact, shouldn’t you escape this place instead of sparring with him?”
His eyes were filled with urgency. Looking at Tak Ilhon’s face, Bu Eunseol realized, ‘He hasn’t let go of his attachments.’
Most demons in the Repentance Cave had abandoned their ambitions and past glories.
Even if they hadn’t, it changed nothing. Even with Bu Eunseol’s immense power, he couldn’t restore dantians destroyed decades ago. Knowing this, the demons didn’t beg for help or escape.
But Tak Ilhon was different. Having lost his inner strength only fifteen years ago, he still yearned to escape and return to the world.
“What’s the rush?” Bu Eunseol said calmly. “Whether I leave today or tomorrow, it’s all the same.”
Tak Ilhon bit his lip. This nonchalant young man seemed ready to spend a year or two practicing martial arts with that devilish old man unless he spoke plainly.
“I don’t plan to rot here,” Tak Ilhon said earnestly. “If you take me out, I’ll teach you the Ghostly Moonlit Stride and the Mysterious Ice Finger.”
“That’s not a good deal,” Bu Eunseol replied.
“Not good? I haven’t carved my techniques on the walls yet.”
“That’s not what I mean,” Bu Eunseol said calmly. “Your movement technique is impressive, but mastering both the Dreamlike Dark Fragrance of the Shadowless Heavenly Ghost and the Thunderous Torrent of the Hated Heaven Sword Demon would rival your Ghostly Moonlit Stride.”
He raised a finger, and a white aura formed, creating a crystal of ice in the air. “And I don’t need to learn more about extreme yin techniques. The same goes for movement techniques.”
Tak Ilhon’s jaw dropped. He knew this young man’s martial arts were extraordinary, but to surpass him so thoroughly?
Finally, Tak Ilhon pleaded, “What do I need to do?”
“I don’t know,” Bu Eunseol said, shaking his head. “Even if you’ve all reformed, who knows what you’d do outside?”
“You’re a demonic path figure too, aren’t you? Why worry about that?”
“You know well enough,” Bu Eunseol said. “I don’t care about demonic or orthodox distinctions.”
As he exuded his aura, it was like a clear sky without a cloud, the majesty of an unparalleled grandmaster unbound by demonic or orthodox paths.
Tak Ilhon finally understood. This young man wasn’t ordinary but a divine figure sent by heaven. ‘There’s nothing I can do,’ he thought.
“Fine,” Tak Ilhon said, shoulders slumping as he nodded and turned away. “I’ll think on it more.”
“Do that,” Bu Eunseol replied.
In truth, Bu Eunseol was just as impatient. Practicing martial arts was fine, but he couldn’t stay in the Repentance Cave forever. Delaying further would cause chaos in the demonic path or Majeon.
‘No choice,’ he thought, staring into the dark.
The old man no longer used the Seven Blood Tear Forms, and his mental state was deteriorating, his vitality fading daily.
‘I planned to fully master the Seven Blood Tear Forms,’ Bu Eunseol thought.
But dragging this out yielded nothing, so he had to take a risk. Resolved, he returned to his cave, sat cross-legged, and began circulating his energy.
Wooong. Kwawooo!
The sealed inner strength in his dantian surged through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, lifting his body a foot off the ground—Floating Samadhi.
Wooong.
Above his head, different lights shone majestically, the powers of orthodox, demonic, and Buddhist forces within him, unharmonized and radiating distinct glows.
Wooong.
As he fully restored his inner strength, his body rose three feet. While meditating in a trance, Tak Ilhon, watching from afar, widened his eyes.
‘That guy…’ he thought. ‘What is he?’
Tak Ilhon, who had roamed the martial world with his astonishing Ghostly Moonlit Stride, was knowledgeable. But he’d never heard of someone harboring four powers and surviving. Even Floating Samadhi typically lifted the body an inch, yet Bu Eunseol floated three feet. What kind of inner strength could achieve that?
‘Is this fate?’ Tak Ilhon thought, narrowing his eyes.
In his youth, he had dreamed of becoming the demonic path’s greatest master but realized he lacked the talent to create supreme martial arts. His gift lay in movement techniques, mastering any in a short time.
Determined to be the best in movement, he sought out legendary movement technique manuals. After five years, he obtained the Blood Dragon Flight of the Blood-Clad Asura, a master from three hundred years ago, and developed it into the Ghostly Moonlit Stride, one of the martial world’s top eight movement techniques.
But that was all.
Movement techniques didn’t make him the demonic path’s greatest master. Facing stronger foes, he could only flee, leaving him with despair and self-loathing.
‘If so, I’ll steal the world’s greatest martial arts,’ he vowed.
Realizing his Ghostly Moonlit Stride allowed him to infiltrate anywhere undetected, Tak Ilhon became a grand thief, raiding sect libraries. As his thefts became known, he clashed with countless orthodox and demonic masters.
Having stolen and mastered various techniques, he was already a formidable master, killing all who pursued him. Over time, he became a public enemy of the martial world. Yet he didn’t give up, wandering to find more powerful martial arts.
By chance, he learned astonishing news: Shaolin had a hidden Scripture Pavilion filled with supreme demonic martial arts manuals.
‘I’ll do it,’ he decided, infiltrating Shaolin and breaking into the Scripture Pavilion.
But he couldn’t find the demonic manuals and was captured by Shaolin masters, his inner strength sealed, and cast into the Repentance Cave.
“I must choose,” Tak Ilhon said, breathing heavily as he watched Bu Eunseol meditate. He realized the one way to escape and fulfill his dream anew.
The next day, having fully restored his inner strength, Bu Eunseol carved two small stone daggers from a large rock. Today would be the final confrontation. Even if he couldn’t restore the old man’s inner strength, he wanted to give him a sharp weapon to fight without regrets.
‘I’ll subdue him by force and inject the Ban-Geuk Method to briefly restore his clarity,’ he thought.
It was the only way—using all his power to subdue the old man and injecting the Ban-Geuk Method, hoping to temporarily restore his memories, though the odds were slim.
‘There’s no other choice,’ he thought. If the old man had freely displayed the Seven Blood Tear Forms, Bu Eunseol would have stayed a year or two, even if it caused chaos in the demonic path or Majeon. Mastering the Seven Blood Tear Forms’ practical techniques was worth it.
But the old man, even in his broken state, no longer showed his blade path.
‘It means…’ Perhaps someone had tried this before, and the old man, subconsciously remembering, avoided displaying the Seven Blood Tear Forms.
Swish.
Picking up the stone daggers, Bu Eunseol strode into the cave. As if sensing the final confrontation, the resting demons emerged to watch.
Creak.
Opening the iron door, Bu Eunseol entered the stone chamber and approached the chained old man.
[Kah!] The old man roared, glaring at Bu Eunseol with frenzied eyes.
“Stay still,” Bu Eunseol said, infusing inner strength into the stone dagger.
Wooong.
A sharp blade aura, blending dark and white light, surged nearly three feet from the dagger.
Shwak!
With one swing, Bu Eunseol severed the chains binding the old man’s legs.
Clang.
The chains, unbreakable even by a fine sword, split in two and fell. He tossed a stone dagger to the old man.
Tak.
As the old man caught it, Bu Eunseol said solemnly, “I have no other choice but to use my inner strength now. So… let’s fight without regrets.”
He had tried countless times to talk, using the Seven-Finger Demon Blade’s blade path to provoke him, mentioning his grandfather Bu Zhanyang, the Great Hero of the Southern Sky, and the Three Realms.
But the old man only sought to kill him, making conversation impossible.
The old man, for the first time, didn’t rage but silently stared at the stone dagger.
Though roughly carved, he trembled as if moved by nostalgia.
Click.
Lowering his stance with the dagger, an unprecedentedly sharp and terrifying aura spread outward.
With just a crude stone dagger, he resembled a blade master who could dominate the world.
“Good,” Bu Eunseol said.
Wooong.
Raising his inner strength, a powerful shockwave spread from his body. He intended to subdue the old man with full force.
Chik, chik!
The old man unleashed his blade technique. With his inner strength sealed, he instinctively knew he had to strike first and never retreat to face Bu Eunseol’s immense power.
Chik, chik!
Forcing Bu Eunseol back with a single slash, the old man chained five techniques. Though using a mere stone dagger, each move thundered like lightning, intricate and ever-changing, with no flaws from start to finish.
‘Incredible,’ Bu Eunseol exclaimed inwardly.
Despite wielding the blade like a madman, the old man never let his dagger clash with Bu Eunseol’s, aware of his opponent’s superior inner strength. He made his blade path unpredictable, deliberately avoiding weapon contact.
The greatest blade master of the demonic path.
Bu Eunseol began to wonder if this old man wasn’t the Seven-Finger Demon Blade’s shadow but the real Bu Zhanyang.
Swish! Whirl!
They fought over forty techniques. Bu Eunseol poured inner strength into his blade moves, but the old man instantly found flaws and countered, forcing Bu Eunseol to retreat repeatedly to protect himself without completing his techniques.
‘Even with inner strength, I can’t match him in techniques,’ Bu Eunseol realized, resolving to act.
He fully unleashed his inner strength.
Whiii.
A fierce shockwave spread like mist, and a sharp blade aura protruded from his stone dagger.
Flash!
Infused with immense power, his dagger formed a massive cross-shaped blade aura—the fourth technique of the Supreme Heavenly Flow, Waning Moon, Dawn Star, adapted into a blade move.
Slash!
Unable to clash, the old man rolled on the ground to dodge. But the Meteor Chasing the Moon technique was already targeting his vital acupoints.
Thud, thud, thud!
The sharp blade aura pierced the ground like tofu, but the old man rose and countered. That was his limit.
Wooong!
A web-like true energy spread, ensnaring the old man’s retreat—the Wishful True Binding.
Slash!
The old man tried to cut the web with his dagger, but it was a mistake.
Ding!
Striking the Wishful True Binding’s strands, his dagger rebounded with a metallic sound.
Shwaek!
Seizing the moment, Bu Eunseol aimed his dagger at the old man’s neck. “Stop now.”
He couldn’t ask if the old man admitted defeat—subduing him was little different from using brute force.
“Without inner strength, even with the world’s greatest blade technique, you can’t defeat me,” Bu Eunseol said.
The old man’s inner strength was sealed, and years of living on water and Hanryeong grass had weakened his physical strength.
Bu Eunseol’s prowess, at the Heavenly Realm with five hundred years of inner strength, was like the difference between a newborn and an adult.
No matter how exquisite the old man’s blade techniques, he couldn’t bridge that gap.
When the old man remained silent, Bu Eunseol swiftly sent multiple finger winds to seal his acupoints.
Pop, pop, pop.
Sweat beaded on his forehead. The old man’s body was frail, so Bu Eunseol had to focus intensely to send the finger winds delicately, avoiding harm.
“Are you the Seven-Finger Demon Blade himself, or his shadow?” he asked.
The old man said nothing. With no choice, Bu Eunseol injected the Ban-Geuk Method into his Mingmen acupoint.
“…!” Bu Eunseol’s eyes widened.
If the dantian were destroyed, there should be clear signs of damage. But the old man’s dantian was intact, and none of his Eight Meridians were severed. This meant he hadn’t been sealed by external force but had expelled his inner strength himself.
“Why would you do this…?” Bu Eunseol asked.
For a martial artist, expelling inner strength was the most excruciating pain, akin to losing the body’s framework. It would ruin the organs and weaken the body beyond that of an untrained person.
“Why would you do such a thing?”
[Groan.]
A great tremor shook the old man’s body.
Pop, pop, pop!
Absorbing Bu Eunseol’s pure Ban-Geuk Method, the old man dispersed some into his Eight Meridians and used the rest to unblock his sealed acupoints.
Pop, pop, pop!
Using the injected inner strength, he swiftly unsealed his acupoints and swung his dagger, forcing Bu Eunseol to retreat.
Wooong!
The old man channeled all the Ban-Geuk Method into his dagger, and a mist of death rose with a faint glow.
“—Even in death, I cannot close my eyes…”
It was the fifth technique of the Seven Blood Tear Forms: Death Without Closing Eyes.
