852——————==

True Martial Home

It’s a spirit summoning technique.

In that moment, I recalled something Cheon Woo-jin had said in the past.

[Are you using the Spirit Summoning technique? No matter what, you can’t escape the Illusion Fog.]

When I challenged Cheon Woo-jin’s Illusion Fog in the past, I tried to escape his encirclement using the Soul Removal Technique but failed and ended up using the Seven Luminaries to break his formation. At that time, Cheon Woo-jin referred to the Soul Removal Technique as the Spirit Summoning technique. It didn’t cross my mind much back then, but thinking about it, it strongly relates to what the Divine Thief mentioned.

‘If I think of it this way, it’s definitely like a spell, but…’

Originally, the Soul Removal Technique was a martial art that could only be learned by those with the talent known as “Rogue Spirit.” It was impossible to even learn without it. However, thanks to my research with the Dongyoung Martial Artists and the Split Heart Technique studied by Lee Kwang, it had been adapted into a method that could be learned. Gradually developing this Soul Removal Technique, I eventually rescued a senior of the Thunder God Lineage, Cheongwol, at the Life Sea and received the secret technique called Heavenly Light, which I thought marked my peak.

Looking at this flow of acquisition, the Soul Removal Technique is undoubtedly a martial art.

So, what is the Soul Removal Technique that I’ve learned up to this point?

Is it a martial art? A spell?

Just as I was caught up in confusion, the Divine Thief spoke.

“Don’t keep people waiting too long. It seems like someone has wanted to talk to you for a while now.”

“Who…?”

“Look beside you.”

When I glanced sideways, there stood an ancient martial artist with his arms crossed. He was called ancient because he was wearing a costume that was at least over a thousand years old. Straining my vague memories, it seemed to be clothing from the Era of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms; I recognized it as official attire.

‘Is that guy a civil servant? No… it looks more like a law robe.’

He chuckled softly and said, “I didn’t expect to be summoned to a place like this, but it’s nice to meet you, successor.”

“…Who are you? You seem to be wearing attire from the Later Liang.”

“I am Zhu Ling-tong, the fourth Grand Master of the Thunder God Lineage! Ha ha.”

The fourth Grand Master?!

I was shocked by his words and turned to look at Zhu Ling-tong, who turned to the Divine Thief keeping an eye on things and said, “This isn’t an ordinary place; where is this, and who are you?”

“The seat of the Martial God. I am the Divine Thief of the Eight Immortals period of the Great Tang Empire and the owner of this seat.”

“Seat…?”

Zhu Ling-tong tilted his head in confusion and said, “Anyway, since I appear here not as a spirit but in essence, it means this isn’t the afterlife but rather a different dimension. I should pass on my inheritance to my successor; please allow me some leeway.”

At those words, the Divine Thief clicked his tongue in disbelief.

“Seriously… only the Thunder God Lineage would be so reckless. You’ve always been like this in the Jianghu.”

“Don’t flatter me.”

“Let me know when you’re done.”

As Zhu Ling-tong smoothly passed that off, the Divine Thief seemed to lose interest and lay back, beginning to snack on something he pulled out of nowhere. Clearly revealing his intention not to interfere with the discussions, Zhu Ling-tong turned to me and said, “Once again, congratulations on reaching the peak of the Soul Removal Technique.”

“Peak? What do you mean? I’ve already been learning the Soul Removal Technique for nearly decades, and I’ve mastered the secret technique Heavenly Light as well. I thought I had already reached my peak, and now you talk about a peak? Furthermore, I can’t understand why the Soul Removal Technique is mixed with Spirit Summoning.”

“Hmm, it would be confusing. Let me explain one by one… um?”

Zhu Ling-tong suddenly narrowed his eyes, reached out to my shoulder, and inspected my muscles. After a moment, he spoke as if he couldn’t believe what he saw.

“No… you learned the Soul Removal Technique without having the necessary talent? And doing that while reducing the power of the Upper Dantian? How? This is just… that’s not what I originally intended.”

“……?”

“I need to think some things through.”

What is Zhu Ling-tong talking about?

Zhu Ling-tong seemed to ponder for a while before fiddling with his headgear and opening his mouth.

“Um… successor, you might not know, but originally, learning the Soul Removal Technique requires a special talent.”

“I know. I called it Rogue Spirit, it was a kind of freedom-seeking streak… something like that.”

“Good to know you didn’t need an explanation.”

“Is there something wrong with that?”

“Yes. It seems you must have learned the Twin Heart method from somewhere and used it to lower the barriers of entry by separating your talent and martial arts. That’s not a bad method but ultimately took you further away from what I intended.”

“What…?”

Zhu Ling-tong continued, “The Soul Removal Technique is a martial art based on the spell called Spirit Summoning. Unlike normal martial arts, it requires a natural talent, and based on that talent, you train the Upper Dantian to ease into the Spirit Summoning technique. However, trying to force a talentless person to practice by removing the domain of talent would be detrimental.”

“……!!”

“Your achievements and experiences could have already surpassed the peak, but the reason I could only achieve the initial awakening now is due to that.”

I couldn’t believe that using the Split Heart Technique, derived from the Wudang Sect’s Dual Mind Cultivation, to learn the Soul Removal Technique would have such a disadvantage.

I felt puzzled and asked, “Why would you create such a martial art? The Soul Removal Technique stands on its own, so why incorporate Spirit Summoning or the power of the Upper Dantian…?”

“Um… is that something I need to explain too?”

Zhu Ling-tong appeared somewhat annoyed as he continued, “Perhaps your understanding of the Soul Removal Technique has changed, but follow its principle and utilize the spell.”

I did as Zhu Ling-tong instructed. As I activated the Soul Removal Technique, instead of feeling like I was flying on the back of a steed, I felt like I was weighed down by ten layers of rebar, absurdly heavy. Thanks to my internal power, I could manage to at least catch the speed of an average spell, but this was anything but the usual feeling of completing the Soul Removal Technique.

“What is happening?”

“Originally, the proportion of Spirit Summoning in the original Soul Removal Technique was 50%, while that of martial arts was also 50%. Exactly half each. Yet in your modified version, it has fallen below 20%, reinforcing the martial arts aspect and making it easier for ordinary people to learn.”

“Uh-huh.”

“This has caused it to revert to a state where it entirely relies on 100% Spirit Summoning.”

“……”

“When you reach the peak, the martial arts themselves evolve. I designed it like that from the start.”

I was baffled.

So, I had just reached the peak, and it meant I became completely unable to use the Soul Removal Technique?! Stunned, I saw Zhu Ling-tong glance at the horizon and say, “However, if you can properly use the Soul Removal Technique evolved at the peak…”

Boom!

“……!!”

In that moment, I realized Zhu Ling-tong had crossed about 20 ri in the blink of an eye, going back and forth without a moment’s pause. I was astonished to see his speed hardly apparent to my eyes. This was speed beyond that of any normal person’s technique. The only comparison might be to that of Lee Cheong-un, who achieved Thunder Spirit.

“You can truly obtain the world’s greatest technique.”

Amazing.

Even the Divine Thief, who had been mindlessly snacking, looked intrigued as he gazed at Zhu Ling-tong. Feeling my heart race, I said to Zhu Ling-tong, “Please teach me the peak of the Soul Removal Technique!”

“Of course I’ll teach you. That was my intention all along when I bound my soul to the Soul Removal Technique. I had planned to appear and teach you directly lest the future generations forget.”

“Thank you.”

“But, to be honest, I’m a bit hesitant to teach…”

“Why?”

“Making the Spirit Summoning proportion 100% means that you must be entirely dependent on talent. The talent for Rogue Spirit you just mentioned. So now it seems obtaining the peak of the Soul Removal Technique and gaining a speed several times faster than before will feel like a tough journey.”

“……”

I lack the talent for Rogue Spirit.

Knowing first-hand the arduous path that awaited me without talent made him hesitate.

“This situation is something I hadn’t anticipated, making it a bit troublesome.”

At that moment, the Divine Thief, who had been listening, suddenly shouted, “Hey! To make Spirit Summoning 100% means it’s just a spell, right? If that’s the case, why bother with this martial arts integration? You could just find a spell genius and make them learn it in spell format! What an idiot!”

The Divine Thief’s words were harsh but held some truth. Then Zhu Ling-tong replied.

“No, if it were that easy, I’d just pass on the Traceless Technique and call it a day. However, the Traceless Technique is way too craft-based for direct combat, and the time and effort it takes to learn it isn’t efficient. So, I aimed to create a technique that could surpass even the Traceless Technique!”

“Oh? And what’s the reason for incorporating Spirit Summoning?”

“What I desired was the world’s top technique that could even surpass the Traceless Technique, but achieving that was limited by human physicality. The speed one can achieve using the power of the lower and middle dantians has obvious limits, so I wanted to draw from the Upper Dantian’s strength. However, the Upper Dantian is a realm only the exceptionally gifted are born into.”

The Divine Thief’s eyes lit up at his words.

“So you gave 50% weight to the best technique of the Thunder God Lineage and 50% to Spirit Summoning, intending to gradually strengthen your ability to use the Upper Dantian. The minimum required innate talent would be Rogue Spirit.”

“Precisely.”

“Then wouldn’t it have been better to just lower the weight of Spirit Summoning? The standard you just proposed seems extremely high.”

“I did think about that, but I considered it meaningless.”

“Meaningless?”

Zhu Ling-tong let out a short sigh.

“If you want to be just an ordinary expert, you can learn any martial art from the Thunder God Lineage. But if one aims for the world’s best through the Soul Removal Technique, one must have overwhelming ability to defeat countless competitors in the world. Hence, it was inevitable to set a basic condition of being talented.”

“Hmm. After all, without being talented, one can’t be the best, so that requirement was the minimum compromise.”

Listening to their conversation, I somewhat understood.

Since the Thunder God Lineage was full of martial arts geniuses from its inception, it madeSense that a Grand Master like Zhu Ling-tong would have such a mindset. Many entering the almost top martial arts world of the Thunder God Lineage are prodigies and geniuses; why would they bother catering to the mediocre or talents? However, for someone like me, leaning more toward mediocrity, it was a bitter reality, so I could only mustered a wry smile.

Zhu Ling-tong continued, “The Soul Removal Technique you learned has lowered the weight of Spirit Summoning, so its potential has a limited ceiling. What that also means is that to reach the level of integration between what I originally aimed for with martial arts and spells… the Heavenly Destruction Step has not yet been fully mastered in the Upper Dantian.”

“Heavenly Destruction Step?”

“It’s my theoretical realm. Just now, the Divine Thief said that if we change the weight to 100% Spirit Summoning, it becomes a spell, but that’s not true. If learned correctly, the fusion of techniques and martial arts would yield an amplification effect beyond that, and in that state, it’s neither martial art nor spell but a separate realm. I believe the Heavenly Destruction Step is an ultimate technique that could manifest power verging on that of the owners of the Four Great Spirit Deities.”

“……”

The owners of the Four Great Spirit Deities.

According to Yeodong-bin’s memories, they could transform their bodies with nature and wield powers that transcended humanity. Although there was a significant disadvantage in that it couldn’t be sustained for long, it appeared Zhu Ling-tong had developed the Soul Removal Technique with that state in mind.

I spoke, “Then to master the Soul Removal Technique, it means I should first develop the Upper Dantian through spell training. So does that mean I should perfect the spells?”

“Simply thinking of it that way makes sense, but… the world of spells demands innate talent more than martial arts does. I could hardly expect that a miraculous being with innate genius in both martial arts and spells, as well as the heart of Rogue Spirit, would emerge in my future generations. That’s why I deliberately arranged the training process of the Soul Removal Technique.”

“……”

“If the weight of Spirit Summoning has been reduced, then no matter how you think about it, you won’t be able to use the Upper Dantian to the desired level… and you’d need to awaken your Divine Ability as well.”

As Zhu Ling-tong continued to hesitate, the Divine Thief, who had been listening, suddenly shouted out loud.

“Damn it! I still need to teach that brat the Shadowless Escape, but this has eaten up all my time! Ugh〜!! I don’t even know what’s so impressive about this, just hurry up and finish it already!!”

“Ugh. There’s no helping it.”

Provoked by the Divine Thief, Zhu Ling-tong reluctantly turned to me and began to explain how to operate the technique.

“The key is to maximize the path I carved through the Upper Dantian in the training of the Soul Removal Technique, that is to say, the meridian through which Spirit Summoning flows. By utilizing Spirit Summoning, one can transcend the limits of flesh and penetrate the boundaries of materiality. It’s a mental leap, not a physical one.”

“I understand.”

“Then… go ahead and give it a try.”

Whoooosh!!

In that moment, my mind felt as though a colossal bell had tolled, and I sensed my entire body grow cold, immediately feeling as light as a feather. It wasn’t the typical lightness I felt from the Soul Removal Technique; it was as if my very essence was about to vanish. At once, I charged toward the horizon with all my will, and at the moment my will reached it, so did my body. Returning, I found Zhu Ling-tong staring at me with his mouth agape in disbelief.

“Ah… no?! You didn’t have the talent for Rogue Spirit yet… how did you do it right after I taught you…?”

“Seems like it worked…”

“Um… I don’t get it! I need to hear about your life journey.”

I told Zhu Ling-tong about all the techniques, martial arts, and spells I’d learned until now. As he listened intently, Zhu Ling-tong marveled.

“…Oh!! So the lack of training time in the Soul Removal Technique… you filled it by acquiring all sorts of treasures and the Seven Luminaries while honing your spiritual abilities!!”

Come to think of it, I had received the magical artifact from Miho for training, and often consumed Spirit Power, along with acquiring various treasures and the Seven Luminaries, continuously improving my spell potential. It seemed that had returned as experience points, more than enough to compensate for the lack of proficiency in the Soul Removal Technique.

Zhu Ling-tong patted my shoulder and laughed heartily.

“Hahaha, there’s no regret! Finally, a true person who has reached the peak of the Soul Removal Technique has appeared! I’m proud of you.”

“……”

Just moments ago, I was on the verge of death…

I looked at Zhu Ling-tong with discontent and said, “But I don’t sense that vague realm called Heavenly Destruction Step.”

“I think it will emerge when you unleash all your essence in one rush, giving everything to life and spirit…”

“Are you sure?”

“Or not.”

“……”

“Phew, then I must take my leave. This has been quite satisfying.”

“Wait, just a moment!!”

Whoosh

“Why are you calling me?”

Zhu Ling-tong paused mid-disappearance. I sighed in relief and said, “Please tell me more about the Four Great Spirit Deities or the White Lotus Sect at that time.”

“The Four Great Spirit Deities? That had disappeared in my era, and I was born as a prince of the Later Liang during the Era of the Five Dynasties. I abandoned the court’s intrigue and entered the Thunder God Lineage. There’s really nothing special about it.”

“Don’t lie. Then why were you fixated on the Soul Removal Technique or the Heavenly Destruction Step?”

You left behind the afterlife and risked everything for martial arts.”

“……”

“Did you hold any sense of mission as a Grand Master? I need the information.”

“Hmm.”

Zhu Ling-tong delicately fiddled with his headgear, finally saying, “Actually… calling it a Grand Master’s mission is a bit much, but I did split the Thunder God Lineage.”

“You split it?”

“The Thunder God Lineage was in its heyday, which meant a plethora of martial arts and spells running rampant, and the clashes between martial artists and sorcerers grew more frequent. Many practitioners ended up doomed by foolishly trying to learn both together. As a Grand Master, I thought I’d pacify that chaos by separating the lineage of sorcerers.”

“Could it be…?”

“The split line became the Ghostly Spirit Sect, a minor sect, though I wonder if it still continues to your age. Regardless, it seems I spent my entire life trying to smooth over the conflicts between the mainstream and the Ghostly Spirit Sect…”

Of course, I know.

Ghostly Spirit Sect!

They were the only faction in the Thunder God Lineage that didn’t focus on martial arts as their primary ability. They specialized in spells or sword techniques and were the most secretive. I felt my heart race and decided to ask the most crucial question.

“Then… one last question.”

“Go ahead.”

“What can you tell me about the Martial Soul?”

“What’s that?”

“……”

“I can’t answer unless I know what it is.”

Ah, right… he’s practically a thousand years old; if he began researching Martial Souls during Lee Cheong-un’s fifth generation, he wouldn’t know. I realized this question was likely useless.

As Zhu Ling-tong gradually began to disappear, he said, “If you show me the realm of the Soul Removal Technique, the Ghostly Spirit Sect will genuinely submit to you…”

After Zhu Ling-tong vanished, the Divine Thief gruffly spoke.

“Is it over?”

“…Yes.”

“Tch.”

The Divine Thief seemed displeased for a moment and fell silent. Then he said, “I can’t stand it. My pride is wounded.”

“What?”

“The Shadowless Escape has been taught. When I was active in the Jianghu, I was known as the fastest in the martial world. But honestly, the Shadowless Escape is inferior to your Soul Removal Technique.”

His words continued.

“Instead, I’ll reveal my true secret technique.”