The Martial Genius Who Remembers Everything Novel - Chapter 94

Chapter 94
### Chapter 94. The Sharpest Blade in the Darkness

“Why can’t I find it here?”

Jin Tae-san murmured to himself, tilting his head in confusion as he rifled through the most ancient storage chamber belonging to the Taeul Sect.

“What exactly are you searching for?”

Hong Mun-gi peeked his head through the doorway.

“Ah, Sect Leader.”

A slight tremor shook Jin Tae-san’s eyes as he looked at Hong Mun-gi.

The prowess of this man, who was fast approaching his fiftieth year, seemed to intensify with every passing day, rendering him almost unrecognizable from before.

“Have you been practicing your martial arts?”

“A man who holds the title of Sect Leader can hardly afford to be outmatched by his own pupils, can he?”

Jin Tae-san himself had been far too consumed with managing the estate assets transferred from the Azure Sky Merchant Guild to dedicate time to his own advancement. In contrast, Hong Mun-gi, alongside the various Hall Masters and their younger martial brothers, had completely neglected sustenance and rest, dedicating themselves entirely to mastering the combat texts of the Taeul Sword Emperor.

“In that case, please return to your training. I am more than capable of completing this search on my own.”

“Be that as it may, I still bear the responsibility of the Sect Leader. How could I simply stand by while the Hall Master of the Outer Hall struggles?”

“…….”

It was blindingly obvious that he had grown weary of his repetitive exercises and was looking for a distraction.

Even during his youth, his instructors had frequently disciplined him for his inability to remain anchored to a single task.

Jin Tae-san had harbored a faint hope that maturity might have tempered this trait, but it appeared that when it came to solitary training, the man remained unchanged.

“I simply cannot recall where the sect flag was stored.”

“Are you referring to the official flag of the Taeul Sect?”

“Indeed.”

The grand undertakings of the Merchant Guild had finally been brought into order, and the output from the Iron Ore Mine was steadily rising.

Once they secured reliable buyers for their resources, establishing a permanent commercial transit network would be the next logical step.

Though the sect’s main gates remained formally shut against the world, the time was ripe to leverage the name of the Taeul Sect to bolster the reach of the Merchant Guild.

After all, the renown of the Taeul Sect would naturally expand in tandem with the prosperity of the Merchant Guild.

“Someone else already claimed that item.”

“……Excuse me?”

Jin Tae-san blinked, wondering if his ears were deceiving him.

A sect’s banner was effectively its mobile identity.

The Taeul Sect had historically been so obscure that they rarely had cause to unfurl it, yet a flag that embodied the very honor of their lineage was not something to be casually surrendered to another.

“So-un mentioned he had a use for it, so I permitted him to take it.”

“Jin So-un? Are you speaking of my boy?”

“The very same.”

Why did that troublesome brat’s name keep surfacing at every turn?

“……For what purpose?”

“How should I know? He merely stated he wished to carry it along as a precaution. So, I saw no harm in letting him have it.”

“…….”

Lately, an involuntary knot of anxiety tightened in Jin Tae-san’s stomach whenever Jin So-un took any action whatsoever.

“Is the flag absolutely necessary right now? Perhaps we should take this opportunity to fashion a grander one?”

“There is no need for that. I will simply commission a replacement.”

“Ahem. How can you say that? A sect banner ultimately contains the very soul of our order. As the supreme leader, I ought to personally embroider it, stitch by stitch, with total devotion……”

“Please, just go back to your exercises. What modern sect leader wastes his hours sewing fabric?”

*Bang.*

Driven by a sudden wave of irritation and unease, Jin Tae-san abruptly slammed the heavy wooden door of the storage room shut.

—

“To begin with, we shall restrict our travel along the main thoroughfare strictly to the daylight hours.”

We resolved to leave behind at the Pleasure House those companions who had suffered wounds, those with impaired mobility, and those whose frames refused to stir due to sheer physical exhaustion.

When I strictly commanded them not to venture outside the perimeter of the Pleasure House, those remaining wore rather peculiar expressions, unable to fully conceal their immense relief even as they harbored genuine anxiety for the group that was departing.

“Our primary obstacle is the public route connecting Heze to Puyang.”

By riding our mounts relentlessly to the brink of collapse, we could manage to reach a small settlement during the day while en route to Heze.

However, on the path stretching past Heze and over the provincial boundary into Puyang, not a single village could be found within a half-day’s journey.

This meant we would be forced to either pitch camp in the wilderness or press forward under the cover of night.

“The moment darkness falls, they will undoubtedly strike.”

Clashing with the Dark Soul-Severing Unit in the pitch black was equivalent to attempting to combat water while submerged within it.

“If we simply ride through the night hours……”

As Seong Mo-ran offered the suggestion, I gave a firm shake of my head. The members of the Dark Soul-Severing Unit were masters of the Heavenly Demon Reigning Step.

In terms of sheer swiftness as well as destructive capability, it was a style of movement that easily stood among the ten most formidable techniques under heaven.

They were not foes one could hope to outrun on horseback.

“Such a course will merely result in futile losses.”

“…….”

Seong Mo-ran clamped her lips together tightly.

The sheer terror inspired by their very reputation was immense enough to strike dread into someone as bold and spirited as her.

Namgung Seon-hwa offered her thoughts next, fighting to suppress the visible trembling in her voice.

“If that is the case…… what path remains for us?”

My gaze shifted toward Eun-ho.

“We use this.”

Eun-ho unfurled the heavy material he had been gripping.

Even the somber Seong Mo-ran and the quietly shaking Namgung Seon-hwa suddenly widened their eyes in absolute astonishment, looking like startled rabbits.

“Have you…… lost your mind?”

“No matter the circumstances, this is surely going too far……”

The reactions of the remaining martial artists upon laying eyes on the Taeul Sect flag were identical to those of the two young women.

“The one thing they desperately wish to avoid is the exposure of their true identities. We will obscure ourselves by mingling with the masses.”

“No, hold on…… *haa.*”

“Young Master Jin, I cannot agree that this is a sound plan. The moment we hoist that emblem, every martial artist under heaven will hunt us down.”

“That is precisely the outcome I am angling for.”

The two women let out a synchronized, heavy sigh.

—

“Is this truly the correct path?”

As our mounts galloped toward An County, the initial village on our route, Seong Mo-ran directed her question to Eun-ho, who was maintaining a firm grip on the banner.

“This is no different from cloaking oneself in dry tinder and diving headlong into a blazing furnace.”

We had permitted more than ten wounded fighters to remain behind at the Pleasure House located within Feng County.

By now, however, our total numbers were steadily climbing toward the one hundred mark.

Yet, no matter how peerless an individual master might be, overriding a massive disadvantage in numbers remains an impossibility.

Furthermore, none of them could be considered flawless, invincible masters.

Despite this, Jin So-un was boldly displaying the Taeul Sect flag, deliberately inviting hostilities without a second thought.

“I cannot say.”

Eun-ho shook his head from side to side, confessing his own lack of certainty.

Such a frank admission felt remarkably novel coming from him.

Among the Gold, Silver, and Bronze brothers, Eun-ho possessed the sharpest intellect and the most silver tongue. Had it not been Eun-ho who regularly clarified the seemingly erratic maneuvers of Jin So-un that puzzled the rest of them?

“Is that the truth?”

Yet, even the resourceful Eun-ho found himself in the dark regarding this choice.

“It is. Our Eldest Senior Brother occasionally executes strategies that completely defy conventional logic. Actually, strike that. It is not occasional; it happens quite frequently.”

“……And yet, you are exerting yourself tremendously on his behalf.”

Eun-ho had gone out of his way to source a sturdy bamboo pole to hoist the standard as high as possible.

Though managing a massive banner while controlling a galloping steed was an incredibly taxing feat, he had enthusiastically volunteered for the duty rather than shifting the burden to anyone else.

“I may not comprehend the logic, but my faith in Eldest Senior Brother remains absolute.”

“Oh?”

“Every single decision made by Eldest Senior Brother is ultimately calculated for our benefit. Never once has he acted out of self-interest. I am entirely certain that with this strategy, our safety was his foremost priority.”

For some inexplicable reason, Seong Mo-ran felt a sudden, heavy throb within her chest.

Memories of the trials they had collectively endured during their brief companionship flashed through her mind.

He could easily have chosen to practice his Sword Forms in comfort alongside his fellow sect members and enjoy hot meals, yet he had chosen to remain by their side through the thick of danger.

Because of his constant presence, Kang Seo-pyo and Cho Mu-bin, who bore the responsibility of safeguarding her and Namgung Seon-hwa, were afforded the freedom to assist the remaining warriors.

Throughout their entire journey, she had scarcely ever witnessed him resting.

Even on the occasions when she purposely utilized her own sleep acupoints to force herself into slumber, he remained vigilant. Upon her waking, he would invariably be on his feet ahead of everyone else, quietly tending to the firewood.

“For that reason, I occasionally choose to silence my own doubts. If I waste time analyzing and trying to decipher the deeper motivations of Eldest Senior Brother, my physical responses falter.”

“……You hold your Eldest Senior Brother in incredibly high regard.”

While navigating his mount with one hand and balancing the heavy standard with the other, Eun-ho managed to retrieve a strip of dried meat to chew on.

He masticated slowly before breaking into a wide, bright grin.

“How could anyone refrain from following a leader of his caliber?”

“…….”

She found herself silently agreeing with his sentiment, nodding her head in unison.

“Very well. Then I shall abandon my overthinking as well.”

“A highly intelligent resolution. Given the grueling itinerary that awaits us, traveling with an unburdened mind will undoubtedly make the journey far more bearable.”

“Hm? What are you implying by that?”

“Just as we were departing the settlement earlier this morning, Eldest Senior Brother requested that Hao Gate broadcast our exact route to all the competitors. I cannot say for certain, but from this moment onward, we likely won’t even find a spare second to enjoy a piece of jerky.”

“Hey! That is something you should have mentioned at the start!”

Seong Mo-ran frantically fished a small pouch filled with dried provisions from the folds of her garments.

—

We encountered no major resistance until our arrival in An County.

A few scattered factions consisting of independent test-takers crossed our path, but these competitors, thoroughly blindsided by our absurd tactic of launching a relentless, direct assault, failed to pose any real hindrance to our advance.

However, the entire dynamic shifted dramatically as we traversed the stretch between An County and Chengwu.

Spotted from incredible distances away, waves of test-takers and mercenary fighters began converging upon our position from every conceivable angle.

We eschewed the deployment of coordinated Sword Formations or static defensive perimeters.

Instead, we maintained a fierce, unwavering forward momentum regardless of the obstacles.

Whenever a horse suffered a disabling injury, its rider would instantly vault onto the mount of a companion without breaking stride, continuing the frantic sprint.

By the time our group surged past the boundaries of Chengwu, a massive tail of hundreds of pursuing competitors had formed a dense, undulating line in our wake.

Upon reaching Chengwu, we deliberately made a temporary halt at the local outpost of the Azure Sky Merchant Guild.

Given that hundreds of hostile individuals had already enveloped the perimeter of the Azure Sky Merchant Guild facility, casting furious glares in our direction, there was no logical reason to seek out a standard Pleasure House where illumination persisted throughout the night.

The journey separating Chengwu from Heze claimed the highest toll in terms of fractured forces.

A portion of our numbers sustained severe injuries during clashes with rival martial artists and could no longer maintain our blistering pace, while others were stealthily plucked away by the shadows of the Dark Soul-Severing Unit.

An unexpected ambush by rival test-takers just as we approached the outskirts of Heze caused us to lose daylight, and the combatants who lingered even momentarily within the total obscurity of the unlit night amid the frantic melee simply vanished forever.

Our effective fighting force had now dwindled to a mere eighty individuals.

The vast majority of the survivors were thoroughly spent, their bodies pushed to the absolute limit by the unrelenting forced march.

“The true trial begins now.”

Leaving Heze behind, we galloped furiously, hauling a massive contingent of relentless pursuers in our wake, but as our path crossed into the borders of Shandong Province, the sun began its steady descent toward the western horizon.

Behind our position, hundreds of pursuing martial artists began igniting their torches one after another. Simultaneously, up ahead, groups of ambushers who had taken up positions in advance kindled their own brands, boldly signaling their presence.

“By what means are we supposed to identify those hidden monsters?”

In response to Seong Mo-ran’s frantic query, Jin So-un offered an explanation that sounded entirely matter-of-fact.

“The moment you scan an area and register an absolute void of any human presence, unleash your Sword Qi directly into that vacuum.”

“Excuse me?”

It sounded like an entirely reckless and irrational approach to combat.

“When you are surrounded by such a massive, chaotic throng in every direction, yet a specific spot registers as completely devoid of life or intent, that is precisely where those creatures are lurking.”

“……Understood.”

Blazing torches began flickering into life across the landscape.

They dotted the nearby woodlands, lined the crests of distant ridges, and illuminated the billowing plumes of dust trailing behind the group.

The gathering included those tipped off by the information networks of Hao Gate, those alerted by the intelligence of the Beggars’ Sect, those drawn by the conspicuous sight of the Taeul Sect flag, and those simply tracking the movements of rival factions.

Well over a thousand martial artists had congregated with the sole, greedy ambition of plundering the Trial Tokens.

And navigating within the dark spaces separating this chaotic mass were entities far more lethal and terrifying.

If the exhausted survivors allowed themselves to dwell on the horrific reality of their situation, their dread would paralyze them.

Thus, they anchored their minds to a single, repetitive directive.

“Where there is a void, strike. Where there is a void, strike.”

The voice of Dong-ryong, chanting Jin So-un’s instructions like a mantra, resonated clearly through the ranks of the beleaguered fighters.

*CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!*

*CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!*

*CLANG! CLANG! CLANG—!*

“Please, move forward!”

Ultimately, our remaining eighty warriors found their path completely obstructed by a dense human wall composed of hundreds of adversaries.

The mounts we rode frequently collapsed from exhaustion or threw their riders in a panic before bolting away into the fray. Those who found themselves unseated did not waste a single heartbeat before hurling their blades directly at incoming foes, utilizing the scattered glows of small torches to navigate the chaos.

“Advance!”

Kang Seo-pyo, whom I had previously attempted to leave behind to recover from the severe laceration on his chest, but who had stubbornly insisted on remaining with the vanguard, seized my mount’s reins.

He forcefully spurred his horse ahead, attempting to close the distance to safeguard Namgung Seon-hwa.

Breaking away from his trajectory, I activated the Unrivaled under Heaven Movement Art, rapidly distancing myself from the center of the chaotic melee.

Immediately following this, I activated the core energies of the Taeul True Scripture to its absolute limit, scanning the shifting matrix of presences across the entire environment.

My senses registered not only the formidable auras of high-tier masters but also the crude, chaotic energies of common martial artists who had thrown themselves into the fray.

With that baseline established, I began actively hunting the specific pockets within the crowd where an absolute void of any spiritual presence existed.

This particular tactic for rooting out those abominations was something that would normally only be realized after the onset of the Great Righteous-Demonic War, once the horrific nature of the Dark Soul-Severing Unit was formally exposed to the world.

Because the area was overflowing with an excess of humanity, I inverted my tracking method to search exclusively for the total absence of presence.

Targeting those empty spaces, I unleashed a concentrated blast of Fist Qi into the vacant air.

Only pure, condensed manifestations of internal Qi possessed the capacity to inflict genuine harm upon those specialized killers.

*Thud.*

Within a patch of darkness where common senses insisted nothing existed, a pair of startled, crimson eyes abruptly manifested, wide with shock like a cornered rabbit.

“Did that catch you off guard?”

The eyes instantly dissolved back into the enveloping shadows.

Simultaneously, I felt an icy sensation constricting around my forearm.

I discharged another burst of Fist Qi directly toward the source of the constriction, but this time, my strike met absolutely nothing but empty air.

“Your tactics remain completely unchanged.”

A sudden instinct caused me to whip my head to the side.

*SHNK.*

A gleaming, pale sword forged of pure bone sliced through the exact coordinates my head had occupied a fraction of a second prior.

It was a misconception that these entities were entirely invincible.

The reality was simply that the counter-strategy required an extraordinary degree of precision and was immensely taxing to execute.

“That holds true for someone facing you for the first time. Unfortunately for you, this is far from my first encounter with your kind.”

In a flash of motion, I lashed out and clamped my fingers firmly around the bone sword of the assassin attempting to melt back into the shroud of night.

*Creeeeak.*

I exerted a degree of crushing force that would have effortlessly shattered human skeletal structures, yet the weapon held firm without a crack.

Stunned by the fact that I had not only evaded the lethal thrust but had successfully seized the weapon, those rabbit-like eyes materialized once more from the void.

“I have grown thoroughly disgusted by the sight of these things.”

Maintaining my iron grip on the bone sword, I executed the Lotus technique in absolute reverse.

The moment I channeled my internal force in direct opposition to the weapon’s natural rotational axis, the sound of tearing muscle and bursting tissue echoed out as the assassin’s physical form failed to withstand the inverted torque.

*Craaaack.*

*Thud.*

A sudden torrent of dark blood sprayed across the pale surface of the bone blade.

The hidden assassin had sustained critical internal damage from the inverted Lotus execution.

The macabre weapon, which had emerged directly through the entity’s own palm, desperately attempted to retract back into its housing, but……

“I don’t think so.”

I instantly flooded my right foot with a massive surge of True Qi and brought it down like a hammer upon the protruding blade.

*Snap.*

*-SKREECH!*

The structural integrity of the bone sword finally gave way, snapping completely and forcing a horrific, unnatural shriek from the depths of the shadows.

“Even the noises you make sound identical to common beasts.”

-!

The creature’s eyes flared into view once again.

By this point, they had suffused with a deep, blood-red hue, amplifying its monstrous appearance.

-What manner of being are you?

A grating, disembodied voice echoed directly inside the confines of my mind.

Because their physical vocal apparatus was entirely destroyed during the agonizing Fluid-Body Bone Sword transformation process, they relied on a specialized esoteric technique known as the Heavenly Demon Mind Transmission Art to communicate.

“Do you truly believe you are entitled to an answer?”

With a final, desperate exertion, the creature managed to draw the jagged remains of its fractured weapon back beneath its skin.

Immediately after, it vanished entirely back into the protective gloom.

During that brief flash of dialogue, the remaining torches carried by the nearby combatants were extinguished simultaneously, plunging the area into total blackness.

‘They are closing in……’

Enveloped by the dark, I leaned heavily on the tactical memories retained from my previous existence to anticipate the precise vectors of their incoming assault.

Since relying on sensory perception to detect their presence was useless, I acted entirely on muscle memory and advanced preemptively.

*Shhhhhk.*

Three separate bone swords tore through the residual afterimage generated by my Taeul Eighty-Thousand Divine Steps, precisely targeting the phantom coordinates of my skull, myocardium, and lower dantian.

Within that microscopic window of time, two additional hidden assassins had joined the coordinated strike.

Had I not relied implicitly on the memories of my past life to dictate my movements, that lethal skewering would have been my absolute reality.

Determined to avoid repeating the failure of their crippled comrade, the trio of assassins instantly sought to dissolve back into the surrounding void.

I temporarily suppressed the core principles of the Taeul True Scripture within my pathways, instead drawing upon the dark, volatile insights of an entirely different esoteric text.

The Reverse Demon Scripture.

This particular style was the masterwork of the Reverse Demon, an identity forged by the Hell Demon Emperor—the supreme Heavenly Demon of his particular epoch—while he languished trapped within the absolute confinement of the Boundless Eight Trigrams Soul-Severing Formation, fueled by a consuming malice toward the cult members who had abandoned him to his fate. Because it was forged from the absolute depth of a true Demonic Practitioner’s malice, its fundamental purpose was engineered entirely toward the brutal eradication of fiends.

“To think that the legendary Heavenly Demon and an individual like myself would find ourselves perfectly aligned in purpose. Isn’t this exact brand of irony usually reserved for theatrical plays? What is your assessment?”

*Clink-rattle.*

As I fully extended the lengths of the Flying Dragon Claw, a brilliant, pristine radiance began coalescing along the fine strands of the Heavenly Silkworm Thread.

The concentrated mass of luminous energy surged upward along the path of the Heavenly Silkworm Thread, enveloping the incredibly fine filament in a thick, shimmering shroud before finally saturating the tip where the lethal claw was anchored.

Identical to the legendary Heavenly Demon Scripture authored by the Hell Demon Emperor, the text of the Reverse Demon Scripture contained pure, raw foundational principles rather than rigid physical forms or established katas.

Consequently, the physical shape and pattern the technique assumed were dictated entirely by the depth of my personal comprehension and shaped by my current intent.

It manifested as the most visceral, unyielding craving for retribution born from the countless thousands of localized horrors I had suffered throughout my prior incarnation.

And the physical vessel that this consuming desire assumed was—

The Demon-Severing Radiant Whip.

*SLASH—.*

The devastating, light-fused implement engineered specifically to tear through fiends was unleashed in a sweeping arc.

The luminous lash instantly snagged against solid matter in a region of space that common senses dictated was completely vacant.

“!!”

And within that pierced darkness, three distinct pairs of rabbit-like eyes suddenly materialized, wide with absolute horror.

A cold, dark smile spread naturally across my face.

“I have finally pinned you down.”