Genius Martial Arts Trainer

Chapter 93:

The Shaolin disciples showed interest at the call of Yunheo Zhenren.

“Qing Shui Dojang, huh.”

“Today, we get to see the famous Wudang Sword Dragon’s sword.”

Even Shaolin disciples had heard of Qing Shui Dojang, as its fame had spread across the continent.

However, the Shaolin disciples weren’t particularly worried about Mu-jin. They were more curious.

Mu-jin was showing the most remarkable growth in Shaolin. They were curious about how his level compared to that of the Wudang Sword Dragon.

On the other hand, the eyes of the Wudang disciples were filled with confidence.

The arm-wrestling match in the morning had been decided by pure strength, but in terms of martial arts, they were certain that Qing Shui would win.

Whether they couldn’t read the subtly contrasting atmosphere or didn’t care, Qing Shui Dojang stepped forward with a bright expression.

“That’s right.”

At Yunheo Zhenren’s answer, Qing Shui Dojang clasped his fists and bowed to Mu-jin.

“I am Qing Shui, the third disciple of Wudang. Amitabha.”

“I am Mu-jin, the third disciple of Shaolin. Amitabha.”

Mu-jin, who responded appropriately, had a glint in his eyes.

The name Qing Shui appeared often in novels.

‘Well, the role is pretty insignificant, though.’

Qing Shui Dojang was somewhat of a tragic character. Despite his strength, his presence was too small.

That was because the rival of the protagonist of the second part was another genius from a different sect, Namgung Jincheon.

And Qing Shui Dojang often ended up being the eternal second-in-command of the sect.

Not that there was a huge difference between Namgung Jincheon and Qing Shui Dojang, but it was said to be about one or two levels.

Yet, that made it even more interesting.

‘He’s a perfect opponent to check my current level.’

As Mu-jin, intrigued by this fact, took his stance, Qing Shui Dojang drew his sword and asked,

“How many moves should I let you make first?”

Having lived a life without peers, Qing Shui Dojang naturally asked, assuming it was obvious to yield some moves to someone. Mu-jin merely chuckled.

“Since it’s an exchange of martial arts today, you can go first.”

“Oh! Now that you mention it, you’re right!”

Qing Shui Dojang’s pure-hearted demeanor made Mu-jin think of someone.

‘Mu-yul?’

That thought was soon replaced when Qing Shui Dojang started to move his sword.

Qing Shui Dojang, who had been all smiles, began to wield his sword with a look of rapture.

‘He turns into Mu-gyeong when he wields his sword?’

His sword drew a mysterious trajectory through the air, creating circles in the void.

Some of the Wudang disciples watching exclaimed with surprise,

“Qing Shui Sa-hyung!! Why are you using a real sword!”

Despite it being a friendly match, Qing Shui Dojang had drawn his usual Songmun Sword without thinking.

To the few disciples who had shouted in surprise, the other Wudang disciples replied calmly,

“Don’t worry. With Qing Shui’s skill, he can subdue his opponent without a single injury, even with a real sword.”

However, their calmness didn’t last long.

It wasn’t because Qing Shui Dojang, fully immersed in his sword, swung a real sword at Mu-jin amidst the noise.

Clang!!!

Despite Qing Shui’s real sword, the moment it clashed with Mu-jin’s fist, a metallic sound rang out.

“How can there be a metallic sound when flesh and a real sword collide!”

While the Wudang disciples watching were shocked, Mu-jin, who had exchanged the first move, showed a peculiar expression.

‘He parries it as if it’s natural?’

Normally, anyone would try to cut with a real sword if a fist was presented, not parry it.

With growing interest, Mu-jin continued to exchange fists, palms, and kicks with Qing Shui’s sword.

‘Oh?’

Each time, Mu-jin felt as if his attacks were slightly off-target, as if testing his durability. He gradually increased his internal energy.

As the speed and power of Mu-jin’s attacks increased,

At some point, the situation reversed, with Mu-jin attacking and Qing Shui defending.

However, the Wudang disciples and Yunheo Zhenren watching the duel showed no signs of panic.

From the beginning, the Wudang sword was not meant to kill but to save lives. It was a martial art focused on countering and subduing with the intent of preserving life.

As expected, Qing Shui Dojang, who deflected Mu-jin’s punches, palms, and kicks, showed no sign of panic on his face.

Rather than panicking, he seemed entranced by his sword, with a dreamy expression as if he were drunk.

‘So, he’s like Mu-gyeong, huh?’

Mu-jin wasn’t sure if he would become bloodthirsty like Mu-gyeong when deeply immersed, but he seemed quite peculiar.

‘Well then, can you block this too?’

Curious, Mu-jin threw a punch towards Qing Shui Dojang’s sword, just as he had been doing, but this time a golden aura began to envelop his fist.

“Fist energy!!”

The Wudang disciples exclaimed in shock, recognizing the golden aura.

The monk Mu-jin was only sixteen. How many at that age could wield fist energy in the vast Central Plains?

However, they were merely surprised at Mu-jin’s level. They still believed in Qing Shui Dojang’s victory.

After all…

Qing Shui’s sword, which was meeting Mu-jin’s fist enveloped in fist energy, now began to emit sword energy.

Instead of being startled by Mu-jin’s fist energy, Qing Shui Dojang shouted with a delighted expression.

“Hahaha, you can use fist energy!”

His voice suggested he was finally excited about the fight.

In reality, Qing Shui Dojang’s sword, now emitting sword energy, moved even more gracefully.

The sword’s trajectory, combined with the sword energy, created countless Taiji symbols in the air.

And each time the Taiji symbols headed towards Mu-jin, he shattered them with his fists or feet.

His hands and feet were now enveloped in a golden aura like gloves and shoes.

Mu-jin had already reached a level where he could release energy without regard for specific techniques.

“What in the world!?”

“Huh…”

Everyone watching the duel between Qing Shui Dojang and Mu-jin was either shocked or dumbfounded.

‘Is this really a duel between third disciples?’

‘They can release energy so freely!’

It was because these two third disciples, not even twenty years old, were showing skills that surpassed those of the second disciples from most prestigious sects.

‘He’s holding his own against Qing Shui!’

‘No wonder he’s called the Wudang Sword Dragon.’

While the disciples of Wudang and Shaolin were each amazed by the levels of Qing Shui and Mu-jin,

Yunheo Zhenren felt an inexplicable, peculiar sensation.

It wasn’t because of Mu-jin’s outstanding level for his age.

As someone whose level was among the top on the continent, Yunheo Zhenren had already roughly gauged the level Mu-jin had achieved.

Yunheo Zhenren had already figured out that Mu-jin had absorbed the Great Restoration Pills.

Nevertheless, the reason Yunheo Zhenren insisted on facilitating the duel between Qing Shui and Mu-jin wasn’t solely due to the boastful claims of the boastful monk.

‘No matter how exceptional they are for their age, both Qing Shui and that boy are still too young to be called late bloomers.’

Therefore, what mattered was not their current level but their potential.

He truly wanted to assess Mu-jin’s potential. He wondered if there was something the boastful monk had discovered that he himself had missed.

‘But no matter how I look at it, I can’t sense any mysteriousness in his movements.’

Rather than being mysterious, his movements were extremely simple. They were simple but had the advantages of being fast and powerful.

And this puzzlement deepened as the duel continued.

‘Why, despite using fist energy, is he not employing any ultimate techniques?’

Amazingly, as the duel progressed, Mu-jin’s punches, palms, and kicks increased in speed and power. He still didn’t use any ultimate or complex martial arts techniques.

* * *

Unaware that Yunheo Zhenren was watching the duel with puzzlement, the duel between Qing Shui Dojang and Mu-jin was gradually reaching its climax.

Qing Shui Dojang’s sword, which deflected Mu-jin’s relentless attacks, continued to draw large and small circles.

‘He’s really enjoying himself.’

Completely absorbed in his sword, Qing Shui Dojang wielded his sword with a rapturous expression.

Thinking he had sufficiently gauged Qing Shui’s level, Mu-jin executed the extremely aggressive Fast Ascent Step.

Boom!!

In an instant, as if a bomb had exploded on the ground, a thunderous noise echoed.

Mu-jin, who had been exchanging blows with Qing Shui Dojang from a distance of about 3 meters, suddenly closed the distance and was now right in front of Qing Shui Dojang.

Mu-jin’s fist flew towards Qing Shui Dojang’s body with overwhelming momentum.

Despite the sudden crisis, Qing Shui Dojang, still entranced by his sword, swung his blade.

He began to draw a Taiji symbol with sword energy in the path of Mu-jin’s incoming fist.

Immediately after, an enormous explosive sound erupted as Mu-jin’s fist collided with Qing Shui Dojang’s Taiji symbol.

Boom!!!

Despite his genius talent, Qing Shui Dojang tried to deflect Mu-jin’s power.

‘Try to deflect this too!’

With his fist and the sword in contact, Mu-jin added the Celestial Weight Technique to his strength.

Unable to withstand the immense force of that strike, Qing Shui Dojang’s arm was pushed back.

No, unable to offset the power, his entire body was pushed back along with his arm.

Even amidst this, Qing Shui Dojang, still entranced, tried to steady himself and wield his sword again.

“It’s over.”

Mu-jin’s left fist was already stopped right in front of Qing Shui Dojang’s face.

“Ah……”

Finally snapping out of his trance, Qing Shui Dojang looked at Mu-jin’s fist in front of him with a bewildered expression for a moment.

“Oh! Thank you for the match.”

Realizing belatedly that he had lost, he stepped back and clasped his fists in a gesture of respect.

Only then did the Wudang disciples understand that Qing Shui had lost, and many sighs emerged from them.

“I learned a great deal today. Hahaha.”

Unlike the reactions of the Wudang disciples, Qing Shui Dojang, unfazed by his defeat, laughed heartily, not at all behaving like a young man hailed as a genius.

“May I request another duel in the future? Facing your fists, Master Mu-jin, has sparked many insights in my mind. Hahaha.”

He seemed completely oblivious to the atmosphere among the Wudang disciples behind him.

No, it appeared he was more interested in refining his sword skills than in the outcome of the match.

‘Is this guy only thinking about his sword?’

Understanding the type of person Qing Shui was, Mu-jin smiled lightly and replied.

“I’ll be staying in Wudang for a while, so it would be great if we could spar often.”

As Qing Shui Dojang showed a bright smile at Mu-jin’s words,

“That was an excellent duel,”

Yunheo Zhenren subtly joined their conversation.

“But after watching the duel, I have something I’d like to ask you, Daoist Mu-jin.”

“Please, ask away.”

“May I know the names of the martial arts you are practicing?”

Although Mu-jin wondered why Yunheo Zhenren was asking such a question, he didn’t mind and answered.

“Jade Vajra Technique, Fast Ascent Step, and a few Shaolin martial arts.”

Most of Mu-jin’s martial arts were ones that no one would recognize by name. They were unique techniques he had created with the help of Hyun-gwang and several other Shaolin elders.

Naturally, Yunheo Zhenren, who had never heard of such martial arts, tilted his head in curiosity and asked,

“Does Shaolin have such martial arts?”

“They did not.”

“……Then, are you saying Hyun-gwang created those martial arts for you?”

“It’s true that I learned them with my grandfather’s help.”

After hearing Mu-jin’s answer, a phrase suddenly came to Yunheo Zhenren’s mind.

– I merely pointed him in the right direction.

This was what Hyun-gwang had said while explaining Mu-jin.

Which meant…

‘So, when Hyun-gwang pointed him in the right direction, this boy created martial arts suited to himself!’

Finally, Yunheo Zhenren understood why Mu-jin hadn’t properly learned the Taiji Sword.

He didn’t consider it necessary for his path.

If it were any other child, Yunheo Zhenren might have thought it was the childish arrogance of youth, but Mu-jin was different.

‘To have created martial arts that brought him to this level and to have defeated Qing Shui…’

Yunheo Zhenren realized why Hyun-gwang had chosen this boy.

‘He’s a vessel that only that boastful monk could nurture.’

At merely sixteen years old, Mu-jin wasn’t just a ‘child’ learning what others had taught him; he was a ‘warrior’ progressing toward his own completion.