Absolute Regression Chapter 681

The 681st Time

“The fact that you consider this superstition…”

When the alcohol had first turned bad, Gwonmuguk had teased him, asking what sort of martial master would believe in superstition.

The look in Chwi-ma’s eyes as he gazed down at the spoiled alcohol deepened.

“It’s not superstition to me.”

At that moment, Gwonmuguk’s voice came from behind.

“If not for you…”

As Chwi-ma turned around, Gwonmuguk continued the rest of his sentence.

“It’s not for me either.”

Gwonmuguk walked over beside Chwi-ma and looked down at the spoiled alcohol.

“It seems there’s still a lack.”

Chwi-ma stared at Gwonmuguk with a bewildered expression, as if to ask what that meant.

“It seems we need to grow stronger, and things need to go more smoothly for us.”

As our fates have changed, theirs must have changed too.

Yes, just because we have gotten stronger doesn’t mean we should think that our opponent has gotten weaker. Taking a path different from the past could lead to unreasonable results. We must not let our guard down until the very end.

“Live harder, you spoiled alcohol.”

Chwi-ma shook his head at Gwonmuguk’s words.

“How could you live any harder than you do now?”

“I guess you don’t know, but I slouch a lot. I go hunting with Father and Brother, and I drank earlier, didn’t I?”

“The alcohol we drank together earlier was the first I’ve had in a hundred years. Going hunting with the three of us was the first in my whole life. You talk so much, but you’ve never truly played.”

It wasn’t that he knew Gwonmuguk well just because they lived frequently together; Chwi-ma knew Gwonmuguk better than anyone.

“It’s a wild drinking party with friends that you missed out on.”

“It would be wild with successors gathering.”

“We even danced together. What’s with that?”

After Gwonmuguk opened the front door and windows for ventilation, he went to the corner and began to clean up the spoiled alcohol.

“Just leave it. I’ll clean it up later.”

“You just want to clean up by yourself while worrying about everything.”

The two cleaned up the spoiled alcohol together and washed the cups thoroughly. Since they were at it, Gwonmuguk rolled up his sleeves, and in the end, the two cleaned the inside of the brewery completely.

“You’re not going to brew any alcohol for a while, right?”

He thought surely that would be the case.

“I will brew it.”

And the reason was precisely because of Gwonmuguk.

“You said you’d believe in this superstition, right? Then you should continue brewing. We need to see if it becomes more spoiled or less spoiled. The alcohol keeps sending us signals.”

Gwonmuguk could feel it. Based on that signal, he could sense Chwi-ma’s heart urging for him to fight more cautiously. Though anxious and troubled, it was still a brotherly heart that wished to inform him.

“I’ll make sure to go see Brother first when I return from being expelled next time! Elder! I apologize in advance!”

“Come last. You don’t have to come if you’re busy. I’m fine.”

Chwi-ma went out of the building first. Gwonmuguk followed him out, saying,

“It seems Brother has grown mature, now that he has a woman to protect.”

“There’s no way!”

After downing some alcohol from the blood jar at his waist, Chwi-ma walked into the misty Qi like a fog.

“Where in the world is there a mature drunkard?”

* * *

After parting with Chwi-ma, Gwonmuguk found himself at his father’s dwelling.

Hwi emerged from the shadows in front of the dwelling.

“Young Master, you have arrived?”

As always, Hwi greeted Gwonmuguk with an unchanging demeanor.

“Have you been well, Uncle?”

“Yes, I’ve been well.”

Hwi’s gaze toward Gwonmuguk was soft. It was the only moment when Hwi, usually showing no emotional expression, became tender.

“Master is still not asleep. Please wait a moment.”

Hwi disappeared and then appeared again.

“He is asking you to come in.”

Gwonmuguk opened the door and stepped inside. It was the chamber of his father, which he had visited before.

“You’re still awake. Ah!”

Just as Gwonmuguk was about to greet him, he looked up in surprise at his father.

His father was wearing a floral-patterned pajamas, the very ones he received as a gift from Wuhan. Gwonmuguk smiled wide with joy.

“It really suits you well! My gift is far more practical and better than Brother’s, right? Where did you stash that scroll? You’ve already thrown it away, haven’t you? I’ll keep it a secret from Brother.”

Gwonmuguk’s gaze settled on a place in the room where both he and his brother featured.

The scroll was hanging on the wall.

Gwonmuguk was not moved simply because it was hung on the wall. It was because of where it was positioned.

The scroll was placed in the most visible position when his father laid upon the bed. He could picture his father looking at his sons before sleeping.

Gwonmuguk stared at the scroll in silence for a moment. Seeing it hanging in his father’s room gave it a new perspective.

“Brother would really like it.”

“Mu-yang has already seen it.”

“Eh? When?”

Gwonmuguk looked at his father with a surprised expression.

“Mu-yang hung it up when he came to see you.”

Had his brother come first? Or had his father called him? In either case, it was proof that both had changed significantly.

“Father, let’s draw a picture of the three of us next time. Should I send the martial soldiers to Wuhan and capture that fire master now?”

In the past, he would have first expressed how much he disliked that suggestion, but no words of objection came out.

“What business do you have on a night like this?”

“For most people, it’s still early evening, though.”

As his father narrowed his eyes, Gwonmuguk quickly spoke.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“What is it?”

“I came to learn the Guhwa Martial Arts.”

Despite the sudden request, his father did not seem that surprised.

“Did you expect me to come?”

His father nodded.

“Didn’t you notice that I had results from this closed-off training? I expected you to come at least once.”

“Of course, I have to come. When else would I learn if not now?”

And there was a concrete goal for his martial arts training.

Until now, he had learned up to the fifth form of the Guhwa Martial Arts.

“I think it’s time to learn the sixth form.”

The seventh, eighth, and ninth forms were the martial arts performed by the Heavenly Demon, so in essence, the sixth form was the last technique of the Guhwa Martial Arts.

The Sixth Form – Heavenly Demon Annihilation (天魔滅世).

The Heavenly Demon that destroys the world.

The last strike reported to be the most powerful in the Guhwa Martial Arts.

However, the last sixth form was extremely difficult to execute, and it poured nearly all of one’s internal energy at once, meaning that if it went wrong, it could cause severe internal injuries.

“I am ready, Father.”

As Gwonwujin silently gazed at his son, he stood up from his seat.

“Follow me.”

Gwonwujin, still in his pajamas, only took the Heavenly Demon Sword with him and went outside.

Gwonmuguk followed behind him.

Seeing his father, who carried just one sword in his pajamas, Gwonmuguk felt a sense of freedom.

It was the first time he felt such an emotion from his father.

The place they arrived at was a training area deep within the inner courtyard.

It was unlike the training ground Gwonmuguk had gone to meet his father in before.

This place had iron walls on all sides.

Gwonmuguk tapped on the wall.

“These walls are quite thick, aren’t they?”

“There are ten more such walls behind this one. Each set ten paces apart.”

“Is it a place where they imprison sinners to prevent them from escaping?”

Then, Gwonmuguk spotted a wall that stood tall enough for a fully-grown adult to hide behind.

It was not an ordinary iron wall.

“Could it be Unbreakable Iron?”

Astonishingly, his father nodded.

“Why is such precious Unbreakable Iron here?”

Moreover, the thickness was immense.

“What on earth is this place for?”

His father did not give him an answer, as if saying he would learn later.

“Now, show me the sixth form.”

Since he already knew the incantation, he could attempt to do it.

He had never tried to execute it before, nor had he ever seen his father perform it.

As Gwonmuguk attempted to perform the sixth form, his father moved behind the Unbreakable Iron wall.

“What are you doing?”

“I cannot allow you to commit the unfilial act of harming your father.”

In that instant, it became clear to him.

This Unbreakable Iron wall in front was erected to withstand the power of the Heavenly Demon Annihilation.

The fact that the Heavenly Demon Annihilation could potentially harm his father meant it was that powerful.

Then what about this room built of iron walls and the ones behind them? It was to verify the power of the Heavenly Demon Annihilation while also preventing that power from escaping outward. Just how powerful could it be?

“Normally, to execute the sixth form, one would need to train for several months, and at the very least ten days for it to be unleashed properly.”

“Then why are you going behind the wall already?”

A response he had not expected flowed out.

“Because it’s you.”

It meant there was a chance he could unleash it all at once. It also indicated that his father held his son’s talent in high regard.

“How long did it take you to execute it?”

“Ten days.”

“Then I should only need a day. After all, the one teaching me is you, Father.”

A smirk formed at the corners of his father’s mouth.

“Now, let’s begin.”

Gwonmuguk took a deep breath and, following the incantation, began to channel his spirit energy to execute the sixth form.

However, the technique did not materialize.

“Your spirit energy is moving too slowly.”

His father stepped forward from behind the wall to give a detailed explanation of the incantation. It was a description of a different level compared to when he was at Ten Stars.

“Try again.”

This time, his father once again moved behind the Unbreakable Iron.

One would expect that he would not need such walls, but his father showed no shame in hiding behind the wall.

Gwonmuguk understood the reason.

It was Guhwa Martial Arts. It was precisely his father’s martial arts.

Had it been another martial art, he would not have done so.

Again, it did not materialize. However, he felt that something about the movement of the spirit energy was different this time.

“It feels different somehow.”

Who would teach and who would learn? Each lesson altered the approach.

“This time, the sword is imbued with my internal energy! Just a little, but it’s there.”

He executed, failed, then executed again, and failed.

Gwonmuguk would ask, and his father would explain.

Several moments passed like this.

The night deepened and time began to approach dawn, but his father did not cease his teachings. Each time he felt it, his father was a completely different person when teaching martial arts.

And finally!

The moment of seeing the fruits of his labor arrived.

It seemed that immense internal energy was gathering in Gwonmuguk’s Black Demon Sword.

Whoosh!

Light erupted from the tip of the aimed Black Demon Sword.

Flash!

The world turned white. It felt as if the sun had exploded right before his eyes. A colossal explosion occurred, yet no sound was heard.

The iron walls vanished. They melted away as if it were nothing. The walls standing behind disappeared as well, and once again, the walls beyond that faded. Everything surrounding was disappearing.

When the light subsided, nothing remained around them.

Everything visible had vanished.

This place was no longer a room made of iron walls.

Sunlight shone from a ceiling that had disappeared, and a blue sky was visible.

The only thing left was the Unbreakable Iron wall standing in front.

“Father!”

When Gwonmuguk shouted in surprise, his father stepped out from behind the wall.

“Haah.”

Gwonmuguk sighed in relief.

He understood why the name of the technique was Heavenly Demon Annihilation. It was a martial art that annihilates everything.

‘What a crazy martial art.’

In a trembling voice, Gwonmuguk asked his father, “Is it successful?”

Gwonwujin nodded. It seemed that he had anticipated that it would be executed in a single day, so he was not surprised.

Gwonmuguk jumped with joy. He had finally been able to unleash even the last technique of the Guhwa Martial Arts.

“I did it!”

Then he plopped down on the spot. All of the internal energy he had in his dantian had completely vanished. It was a technique that could only be executed by expending all his internal energy.

Gwonwujin looked around. He had to assess how many iron walls were left to gauge the power, but nothing remained.

Power that was unmeasurable.

Because Gwonmuguk’s immense and pure internal energy had been too overwhelming.

Even the wall made of Unbreakable Iron had been deeply worn away.

Gwonwujin looked at his son with astonished and admiring eyes before calmly stating,

“When you executed the sixth form, even if someone passed by beyond the walls, they would die, and even those far away in buildings would die. All visible living beings would perish. Those lying down would die and those flying away would also die. Do you understand what I mean?”

Gwonwujin warned of the consequences of carelessly using this martial art.

He knew his son well now and said this for his sake. He knew that if an innocent victim arose, it would haunt his son’s heart for a long time.

Gwonmuguk made a request to his father.

“I want to see your Heavenly Demon Annihilation.”

The Heavenly Demon Annihilation that had achieved Twelve Successes.

Though one could expect him to say to demand it only after achieving Ten Successes.

For some reason, Gwonwujin simply drew the Heavenly Demon Sword.

“Wait! I also need to go behind the Unbreakable Iron wall! Father, I’ll die!”

But already, light was radiating from the Heavenly Demon Sword.

Flash!

At that moment when he thought he was dead, Gwonmuguk saw it.

The light that seemed to reach out to the whole world was glowing only around his father.

‘Father is manipulating the power of the Heavenly Demon Annihilation!’

The light that was to fly off in all directions gradually converged into one place, forming a sword shape.

At the moment the white light sword was completed!

Whoosh!

With a refreshing sound he had never heard before, the light sword flew toward the Unbreakable Iron.

Where his father aimed was the corner.

Boom!

The light sword penetrated through the Unbreakable Iron as if it were tofu.

“Ah!”

An exclamation escaped from Gwonmuguk.

It was the first time witnessing such thick Unbreakable Iron being pierced by a single technique.

Gwonwujin calmly asked, “Did you see it?”

His father could also unleash the Heavenly Demon Annihilation that annihilates everything.

And he must have succeeded in gathering that power into a single unit while achieving Twelve Successes.

His father controlled destruction. There was order even in his father’s annihilation.

“Yes, I saw it clearly.”

His father, once again, casually set a new milestone for his son.

Then, yawning broadly, he walked out of that place.

“I’m going to sleep.”