Chapter 20: Peak Master (3)

I looked at the Sword Silk I had awakened.

The realm of Sword Silk (劍絲), also known as Sword Aura (劍芒).

The materialization of sword aura was a realm every swordsman dreamed of.

Of course, there was the overwhelmingly superior Sword Gang (劍罡), but since Sword Gang was a realm only reachable by masters who had reached Three Flowers Gather at the Summit, it was half-legendary in the martial world.

The realm of sword aura, much more accessible than Sword Gang, was the object of envy for many.

Seeing my sword aura, the assassin seemed daunted, their energy diminishing.

I took advantage of this and engaged them again in combat.

Blue and red lines crossed in the air.

Our intents tested each other.

The assassin's dagger lunged at me.

Simultaneously, five red lines extended from the tip of their dagger.

It meant that there could be at least five follow-up moves derived from this attack.

However, I held Sword Silk.

In the world of peak masters, my sword had transformed, resembling a thread.

To the assassin's eyes, my sword must have appeared like a red thread.

The transformation of sword energy into Sword Silk is not just about increased power.

Swoosh!

From the tip of the sword, now a blue thread, several blue threads extended, creating paths.

There were far more than the paths I had created before.

As I slightly twisted my wrist, adjusting the tip of the sword, the position of the blue threads moved in unison.

The predetermined blue thread lines moved.

Seeing this, the assassin's eyes widened in shock.

'Last time, when I fought with Kim Young-Hoon, it was fortunate he had only recently reached Three Flowers and that too by directly skipping over the Pinnacle Realm.'

If he had fought me in the same manner, I would have been defeated instantly.

I could project far more paths, more freely.

Though they seemed to fend off my sword for a while, eventually, the paths extending from my side were far more numerous, and they began to be pushed back as tehy tried to calculate my moves.

Mountain Lord Martial Arts (山君武).

Pressing forward with the momentum of a mountain lord.

Transcending Peaks Step (越岳步).

Starting again from the first move, continuously linking techniques,

To drain and kill the opponent.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

For a while, our sword and dagger collided.

The assassin seemed to fight to the end.

However, having become much more skilled in handling sword aura and intent, I eventually defeated them in our struggle, allowing me to land a strike.

Thud!

My leg struck the assassin's waist.

The assassin fell to the side, dropping the dagger, and their mask came off.

"Ho, a familiar face."

The assassin was one of the recently appointed female attendants of the Emperor.

Seeing the roughly 20-year-old's face, I marveled quietly.

"Such talent to be a peak master at that age. You could have reached Three Flowers Gather at the Summit if you had lived longer."

"...My brother was more talented. But... because of the Emperor..."

"Oh, are you trying to appeal to emotion?"

"You are the Infinite Fighting Monster, correct? You're making a mistake. People are dying because of the Emperor's orders! He..."

Swoosh!

I didn't listen further and cut off the assassin's head.

"Sorry, but this position doesn't allow for much listening."

I felt a slight regret for having to eliminate such talent and, with the help of others, cleaned up the scene.

Despite the noise outside until a moment ago, the Emperor in the bedroom seemed not to stir.

I heard that a cultivator had installed a soundproofing spell in the Emperor's bedroom for the light-sleeping Emperor.

Thanks to that, the Shadow Guards could fight assassins without being reprimanded for the noise.

'Though, it seems the Emperor himself set up that spell, not a random cultivator.'

In fact, no one in the Shadow Guard was unaware that the Emperor was a cultivator.

In the eyes of a peak master, the consciousness of a cultivator was visible.

But everyone just silently guarded the Emperor as it was their given duty.

'However, were there always so many assassination attempts on the Emperor?'

Establishing a Shadow Guard like us was also a recent event.

I heard that the frequency of sending assassins to the Emperor had also increased recently.

As chief strategist of the Wulin Alliance and leader of an information organization in my past lives, I had never heard of such things.

After all, the imperial court had no reason to advertise the increase in assassination attempts.

'Why have there been more recent assassination attempts on the Emperor?'

Yanguo had been enjoying an unprecedented peace recently.

Of course, the poor are still poor, but at least ordinary people weren't turning into bandits or anything of that sort.

'Considering the level of civilization akin to medieval China, that's quite decent.'

Moreover, in the state of Yanguo, the nobles humbly bow and obey in front of the powerful royal authority of the cultivator clan, leading to a very strong centralized power.

If there was an insane organization bold enough to attempt the assassination of the Emperor...

'Could it be the martial arts factions?'

Given the poor relations between the government and certain martial arts factions, this was the only assumption I could make.

But strangely, during my past lives as the chief strategist of the Wulin Alliance and leader of an intelligence group, I never heard of such incidents.

'If not the martial arts factions, then who could be sending assassins so persistently and frequently to threaten the Emperor? Especially someone like the assassin just now, someone who knew my alias.'

Furthermore, their command of the Yanguo's language was quite proficient.

From this, I could infer that they were neither assassins from the neighboring countries of Byeokra or Shengzi.

'They are people of Yanguo. People from Yanguo are sending assassins to kill the Emperor on a regular basis.'

Although I wanted to interrogate the assassins, they were to be executed immediately before they could say anything, as per the protocol.

'Well, I can slowly figure it out.'

By staying in the royal palace and gradually gaining the Emperor's trust, I would be able to gather the necessary information over time.

I hid in the darkness again, organizing my thoughts.

After guarding the Emperor for 10 years.

I constantly guarded him and earned his trust.

With that authority, I was able to learn information from various parts of the royal palace.

Of course, I couldn't learn core information, but I was able to learn a lot that could only be known from the government offices.

For example,

"In the 33rd year of Hayeon calendar, thanks to His Majesty the Emperor's grace, the number of orphans and beggars greatly decreased, eliminating the influx of bandits. Consequently, praises for His Majesty never ceased throughout Yanguo..."

Census conducted by the government offices.

The census was a matter directly related to taxation and was controlled only by the government offices. I couldn't properly access such information even with my status in past lives.

Only now that I had become part of the Emperor's Guard, I was granted the authority to view the census records.

'Not only beggars but also the number of poor peasants decreased.'

In my past lives, I never looked into the numbers of orphans, beggars, or poor peasants. However, upon seeing the census records in the royal palace, I realized something was amiss.

'How could the number of orphans, beggars, and poor peasants decrease like this?'

It wasn't simply about helping the poor and creating livelihoods for them.

Many of these people simply disappeared, just vanished.

'Did they starve to death?'

But the numbers recorded in the ledgers were far too large for mass starvation.

If such a large number had died of starvation, I would have known about it in my past lives.

'It's not starvation. They were simply [erased].'

There were no records of bandit attacks either, and during my time leading the intelligence group, I had never heard of bandit gangs specifically targeting and killing the poor.

If such cruel bandits were rampant, I would have known.

I looked into a few more pieces of information and methodically compiled them with my past live's knowledge.

'As a strategist in the Wulin Alliance, Kim Young-hoon and I eradicated the unorthodox factions throughout Yanguo and established a just world.'

'Furthermore, when I founded the intelligence organization, Gwiyeonggak, it was strangely easy to quickly defeat other dark intelligence organizations in secret battles.'

The common point in both lives was that, as life went on, it became easier to eradicate unorthodox factions.

'And towards the latter part of life, many factions, like the Hoejaeng faction (group that mass attacked MC when he challenged them to a spar), suddenly transformed from unorthodox factions to righteous ones.'

Unorthodox factions are fundamentally illegal organizations.

Like bandits and pirates.

These factions often start with beggars, orphans, and poor peasants turning to robbery out of hunger.

As bandit gangs and pirate groups gradually gather experience, power, and funds, they grow in size, sneak into cities, and start engaging in illegal activities, becoming proper unorthodox factions.

'Perhaps, the ease of eradicating unorthodox factions in my past lives was because...'

If the content of this census is accurate, the new blood that would have been part of the unorthodox factions, the poor, suddenly [disappeared], leading to reduced size of the factions and their subsequent suppression.

'If that's the case...'

Where did all these [erased] poor people go?

As I compiled the information, a foreboding feeling came over me.

'The cultivator clan.'

This case seemed to be related to the cultivator clan.

'The recent increase in assassination attempts on the Emperor and the establishment of the Shadow Guard...'

It all seemed to have some connection with the disappearance of the poor people.

A few years ago, like the assassin with the dagger I met, there were assassins who due to their lack of proper education, spilled their guts before dying.

Most of these assassins said the same thing before dying.

―Do you know how many commoners have died because of the Emperor!

It was strange.

The current Emperor, while not a sage king, was decent enough to rule the country.

His reign did not worsen Yanguo nor lead to numerous deaths.

In a peaceful country like this, why would assassins say such things?

'The cultivator clan. This is... related to the cultivator clan.'

The only thing I couldn't find out, even after digging this deep, was regarding the cultivator clan. 

'It seems I will have to leave the investigation beyond this point...'

To Kim Young-hoon.

The retirement ceremony of Kim Young-hoon, the first Wulin Alliance leader, was held.

He stepped down from the position of leader amidst the congratulations and regrets of many.

Many lamented his retirement, but his eyes were full of refreshment.

Naturally, as his stepping down from the position of Wulin Alliance leader meant he had fully understood the 6th volume of Gazing Cultivation and Exceeding Martial Arts Scripture. Especially the final realizations.

"Feeling refreshed, I see?"

I was waiting in Kim Young-hoon's room and asked him when I saw him.

"Wow. Someone sneaked in so I thought it was an assassin, but it was you. The Shadow Guard is becoming more and more like an assassin."

"Well, we're becoming more like those assassins we face. But now that you've retired from the Wulin Alliance, what will you do?"

"You know and still ask? Having fully understood the Scriptures, I will now seek out the cultivator clan to fight and gather combat experience. I will move beyond the Five Energies Converging at the Origin."

"Hmm, have you completely achieved the accomplishments written in the Scripture?"

At my question, Kim Young-hoon shook his head and spoke.

"No, not yet. Gazing Cultivation and Exceeding Martial Arts Scripture is not so much a martial art as it is a kind of martial arts system. You know, we don't call 'third-rate, second-rate, first-rate, peak' as martial arts. They are the standards and stages of martial arts.

The Scripture describes the 'next stage' after Five Energies. It tells you how to reach that 'next stage,' what kind of training is correct at Five Energies stage, and so on.

While I have 'understood' all of the Scripture, I haven't 'internalized' it to move beyond Five Energies. From now on, I plan to fight against the cultivator clan to gain combat experience and reach the beyond."

"I see."

I nodded and then told him.

"Actually, working in the royal palace recently, I've noticed something very suspicious."

I explained to him about the information and conclusions I had gathered.

"…Hence, I believe the cultivator clan behind the royal palace is using the royal family and government offices to kidnap or slaughter the poor."

"Hmm…"

"But since I am a member of the Shadow Guards, unless I apply for leave like this, it's difficult to leave the capital. Even if I do, I can't freely investigate the cultivator clan. Therefore, I would like you, Young-hoon Hyung, to go and gather information regarding the cultivator clan."

"That's definitely worth looking into. But even I honestly don't know where to find cultivators…"

"Don't worry about that. I will provide you with the information."

Having worked in the royal palace, I had learned the locations of several places where cultivators lived, which I did not know in my past lives.

"I'll give you the information, and I'd like you, Young-hoon Hyung, to go and extract information from them."

"Alright, I'll do that. I'll go and see what they are up to…"

I decided to thoroughly unravel the schemes of the cultivator clan through Kim Young-hoon.

'Recently, the number of assassins has decreased a bit.'

For nearly 10 years, assassins came almost incessantly, but recently, their frequency has been gradually decreasing.

Moreover, the skills of the assassins who came had greatly diminished from the peak level to about the first-rate.

'First-rate masters are now just practice targets for the new recruits…'

Well, thinking about it, it was impossible for the assassins' side to infinitely produce peak masters.

As they kept sending them and getting killed, they would eventually run out of high-quality assassins to send.

Having worked in the Shadow Guard for 15 years, my rank has risen, and I've been promoted to deputy leader. If the leader retires due to aging, I'm set to become the next leader.

'But if we keep getting only low-grade assassins like this, our Shadow Guard becomes redundant...'

That's when I noticed something stirring in the distance.

An assassin.

'What level of mastery might this assassin have... If it's around first-rate, the new recruits should handle it...'

Thinking so, I entered the world of peak martial artists to gauge the assassin's level of skill.

"…!"

A red glow filled the space, stable and circular.

The round form of the assassin's consciousness was slowly approaching.

'Cultivator! These crazy...'

These madmen, seeing the decline in peak martial artists, directly sent a cultivator to assassinate!

Suddenly, the entire secret Shadow Guard assembled in front of the Emperor's chamber, having recognized the domain of the cultivator.

"It's a cultivator, everyone get ready!"

The leader of the secret Shadow Guard raised his halberd with a tense voice.

Despite being called assassin, the cultivator's stealth techniques and perception methods were a mess by the standards of martial artists.

Clearly, they had only roughly learned these techniques.

However, I grew more tense seeing this.

'How did they infiltrate the imperial palace with such sloppy skills?'

They must be hiding something.

Noticing us, the cultivator who was approaching stopped.

"Hmm, are you all peak martial artists? Annoying. Peak masters all seem immune to stealth techniques. Is it because of that irritating vision of theirs?"

Without a second thought of hiding, the cultivator dropped his invisibility and blatantly walked out.

"With your eyes, you should recognize I'm a cultivator. If you value your lives, get lost."

No one reacted or responded to his words.

"Tsk, do you think you can take me on? Relying on numbers? You'll only meet a dog's death. One last warning: the limit of you peak martial artists is, at best, against a Qi Refining 1st Star cultivator. I am a great 2nd Star cultivator."

The air around him stirred as he pulled out a talisman.

"Just as there's a significant difference between first-rate and peak, there's a huge gap between Qi refining 1st Star and 2nd Star cultivators. If you don't leave now..."

We didn't let him talk further and quickly charged towards him.

My thrown weapon hit an invisible barrier in front of the cultivator, indicating he was casting defensive spells.

As peak martial artists attacked him, he scattered talismans into the air, which transformed into bright white flying daggers heading towards us.

"You fools. I have several talismans to support my assassination today."

When the cultivator scattered several talismans, a strong repulsion was felt.

The leader and I, excluding the others, cut through the repulsion with our energy-infused weapons and held our ground, while the rest were thrown back.

"Hmm, are you the strongest of the pack?"

Again, the cultivator took out a talisman.

Flames appeared above his hand.

'If it hits, it'll turn us to ash!'

I couldn't ignore my survival instincts and retreated, escaping the cultivator's area of influence.

I couldn't predict his attacks from within his domain, as it was impossible to read his intent due to the overlapping red color.

Conversely, if I retreat too far, I'd be at a disadvantage against a cultivator adept at long-range attacks.

'He's forcing a fight that's advantageous to him.'

The compatibility between martial artists and cultivators is extremely bad.

The fireball hit a pillar behind me but didn't spread much and was quickly extinguished, indicating the cultivator didn't want the situation to escalate.

I signaled a few of the faster members of the Shadow Guard to escape the cultivator's vicinity and call for reinforcements.

"Where do you think you're going? You can't escape."

A dark shadow burst out as the cultivator waved another glowing talisman, forming a barrier that enclosed us.

"Even sound will not escape this barrier. After I kill all of you, I'll take care of the Makli clan's branch family."

The cultivator took out dozens of talismans.

'Damn it. What a shit situation.'

If it weren't for the talismans he brought, we might have been able to kill him with a combined attack from the leader and me.

But with those talismans, he was demonstrating far more power than his actual skill level.

'If only I had reached the Three Flowers stage.'

With the strength of Three Flowers, I could shatter the cultivator's defensive spells and split him in two.

But I was only at the mid-peak and hadn't yet grasped the Three Flowers.

'...But maybe.'

"Leader, I have a plan."

"What is it?"

"Create a moment for me to approach the cultivator. Just one, single moment. I'll try to inflict a fatal wound on the cultivator."

"I'll trust you."

The leader nodded and charged at the cultivator with his halberd, creating an opportunity for me.

I took poison from a bottle at my waist and applied it to my sword.

'If I can break through his defense and graze him with this sword.'

We would win.

I joined the attack on the cultivator.

The cultivator scattered talismans in the air, which turned into bright white flying daggers aimed at us.

I rushed towards the cultivator.

The white daggers targeted my forehead.

The leader's halberd spun and deflected the daggers aimed at me.

The cultivator then hurled a fire spell at me.

"Aaah!"

A recruit, a dual sword user, crossed his swords and sent energy to intercept the fire spell, altering its course.

I was now within three yards of the cultivator.

'Entering the cultivator's domain now.'

I couldn't guarantee my life inside there. I couldn't see his intent due to the red surroundings.

"Hmph."

Intense wind blew, pushing me away.

Using the initial forms of Severing Mountain Swordsmanship, I cut through the wind's weak points and entered the cultivator's area of consciousness.

I couldn't see the enemy's intent.

Then.

My last life's experience, maximizing all senses like spatial form, hearing, touch, and smell, helped me indirectly calculate the enemy's attacks.

'Left and right.'

I felt vibrations in the air on both sides.

Something was coming.

"Leader, go now!"

"Capture him!"

One of the guards tackled the spell on the right while the leader shattered the one on the left with his halberd.

And.

'Front!'

I sensed a change directly in front.

The temperature and humidity were different.

In the cultivator's domain, white ice materialized in the air, forming an arrow.

Severing Mountain Swordsmanship, Entering Mountain.

I quickly switched to a lower stance to narrowly avoid it, then launched an attack.

But right in front of me was the cultivator's defensive spell.

As expected, even as I launched a surprise attack, the cultivator looked bored.

Absolute leisure!

'I'll wipe that languid expression off your face.'

I smirked, infusing different moves into my attack.

Severing Mountain Swordsmanship, Qi Mountain, Heaven Sky.

The flow of the Sword Silk quickened and strengthened.

My entire body's energy pathways momentarily opened, further amplifying the Sword Silk.

And then.

'I'll squeeze out all the energy in my body!'

Focusing on the energy pathways, I drained all my energy into my sword.

The absurd energy of yellow bamboo roots of hundred of years infused into my sword.

The Sword Silk evolved in an instant.

Flash!

Sword Gang!

For a brief moment, less than a second, the light on my sword pierced through the cultivator's defensive spell like tofu.