The Taiji gives birth to yin and yang, which in turn become the four images and eight trigrams, forming the universe and all its wonders.

The universe, in its infinite cycle, follows the principles of the Taiji, an unchanging truth that sustains the world.

This unchanging truth is infinity itself.

Infinity is yet another Taiji.

The supreme martial art of the Wudang sect, transcending the endless cycle and capturing infinity within the sword.

The Taiji Wisdom Sword.

Song Mungo’s sword descended slowly from above, tracing a path.

A gentle flow of pure white yang energy formed a graceful arc, while the black yin energy surged violently, creating a chaotic line.

The black and white arcs, starting from the top and bottom, met in the middle, spinning into harmony and forming a single circle.

Taiji.

The very peak of Tianzhufeng seemed to tremble as if the mountain itself was quaking under Mu Hui’s feet.

“Heh.”

Mu Hui let out a short laugh, his eyes capturing the black and white Taiji. With just a single sword stroke, the surrounding nature was in turmoil.

Could this truly be the result of a martial artist’s sword?

No, the term “martial artist” seemed inadequate. Even the title “martial god” might not suffice.

‘Is this the realm beyond transcendence?’

A world of swords beyond comprehension.

The instincts and experiences of the sword demon, who always pushed forward, now urged him to retreat for the first time.

The difference in level was staggering.

Crack!

Mu Hui began to awaken his frozen muscles, forcing his unyielding knees to move.

Boom!

Even as he channeled his inner strength into his steps, the sword aura of the Taiji Wisdom Sword, which had become one with the very air, remained unshaken.

Yet Mu Hui pressed on.

The Plum Blossom Sword burst forth with radiant purple light.

Petals began to scatter from its tip.

Swish!

Countless purple dots filled the air in an instant. These dots coalesced into a sword shadow, raining down over the head of the sword sage.

Like a torrential summer rain, the sword shadow fell, but the sword sage, with hands behind his back, calmly deflected it with Song Mungo’s sword.

A white arc was drawn.

The straight sword shadow was absorbed into the flow of the Taiji Wisdom Sword.

The sword shadow, now one with the Taiji’s cycle, quietly and naturally disappeared, like raindrops soaking into the earth.

As Mu Hui prepared to move his sword again, a black arc was drawn this time.

Boom!

A fierce sword strike, like a black dragon roaring, split the ground and threatened to tear through Mu Hui’s brow.

‘Plum Blossom Movement, Iron Plum Path… No, no technique can block this.’

Unable to even consider blocking or deflecting, Mu Hui quickly spun on his ankle to evade.

The sword strike, which swallowed the faint afterimage left by his movement, stretched out, soaring through the sky over Wudang Mountain before finally dissipating.

Watching this, Mu Hui let out a hollow laugh.

‘I would have died.’

Had he faced the sword sage’s strike with reckless bravado, that would have been his fate.

Feeling the sweat trickle down his smooth jawline, Mu Hui tightened his grip on the Plum Blossom Sword.

Just as nature is not always gentle and warm, the Taiji Wisdom Sword of the sword sage did not show only its gentle side.

The sword sage was relentless, pushing forward without mercy.

As the sword sage had said before drawing his sword, what Mu Hui could gain depended on how much he could withstand.

The Plum Blossom Sword, trembling violently, split into dozens of paths. It became branches, blooming with countless plum blossoms.

Purple plum blossoms bloomed in full on Tianzhufeng.

The once gentle breeze of Tianzhufeng was now filled with the rich scent of plum blossoms.

“How long has it been since I last smelled plum blossoms? It’s delightful.”

Mu Hui captured the image of the sword sage, smiling contentedly with eyes wide open.

The sword sage’s breath, the twist of the sword, the tremor of the sword strike.

Every detail was reflected in his eyes.

The sword sage’s every minute movement was as natural as could be, as if he were one with nature.

Even the motion of drawing Song Mungo’s sword up and down seemed to Mu Hui like a pine branch swaying gently in the wind.

“Hmm…”

Around the sword sage, thirty or so plum blossoms bloomed. Even a master of the highest order would struggle to withstand them and would likely be reduced to a pool of blood.

Yet the sword sage, with a half-drawn arc, returned the plum blossoms to the state of wu wei, the natural way.

Swish!

The more this happened, the more Mu Hui clung to the sword sage, unleashing his sword with desperation.

Plum Blossom Radiance.

The seductive purple light of the plum blossoms spun, scattering petals to entice the sword sage’s eyes.

Plum Blossom Blood Rain.

Above the sword sage’s head, the purple petals revealed sharp serrated edges, thirsting for blood.

Plum Blossom Scent Soaked to the Bone.

Ten purple streaks of light quietly surged toward the sword sage, covered in plum blossoms and petals.

Mu Hui unleashed three techniques in succession, pressing the sword sage.

‘Hmm. All new techniques. Even the movements just now… Has Huashan developed new martial arts?’

The sword sage, leisurely observing Mu Hui’s techniques, twisted his sword to form a small circle.

Buzz!

But once again, nothing changed.

According to the principles of the Taiji, the plum blossoms faded, and the petals that filled the surroundings scattered across Wudang Mountain beyond Tianzhufeng.

The sword sage stood there, enjoying the scent of plum blossoms, unchanged from the beginning.

Even though his three techniques were nullified in an instant, Mu Hui paid no mind and continued to recall and analyze the sword path shown by the sword sage.

‘It’s definitely a technique of the Taiji Wisdom Sword, but I glimpsed other Wudang sword techniques. Or perhaps it’s only natural.’

As Mu Hui pondered deeply, the sword sage released his hands from behind his back and stroked his beard.

“Heh heh.”

With a deep chuckle, the sword sage drew a complete Taiji.

Except for the initial demonstration, the sword sage had only been using the energies of yin and yang separately, never forming a true Taiji.

Now, the Taiji Wisdom Sword was fully unleashed.

Gentle yang energy and violent yin energy.

These two opposed and depended on each other, seemingly at odds yet in harmony.

The principles of yin and yang became the sword techniques of the Taiji Wisdom Sword, reaching out to Mu Hui.

It felt less like facing a human sword stance and more like confronting a part of nature itself, vast and overwhelming.

It was not just a wall to overcome, but like wielding a sword against the expansive earth, sea, and sky.

‘There’s no way. I’ll pour everything I have into this.’

He abandoned the thought of clashing swords.

He abandoned the thought of closing the distance.

He abandoned the thought of finding the sword sage’s weakness.

Mu Hui’s thoughts faded, and he relied on his accumulated experience and instincts to wield his sword.

The sharp gleam in Mu Hui’s eyes dimmed, and his pupils grew unfocused.

The sword sage immediately recognized Mu Hui’s state.

‘Has he entered the state of no-self?’

No-self is a rare state where one lets go of all attachments, including to oneself, breaking down fixed boundaries.

It is a moment when one transcends everything to focus solely on the essence of martial arts.

That is the state of no-self.

This state is so elusive that many martial artists never experience it, despite a lifetime of dedicated training.

With his mind clear of distractions, Mu Hui’s Plum Blossom Sword became a single plum tree, scattering its sword scent.

Plum Blossom Nine Transformations.

Plum Blossom Full Bloom.

Plum Blossom Splendor.

With all his worldly concerns cast aside, Mu Hui’s Plum Blossom Sword unleashed the new techniques he had developed.

Each drop of the shimmering purple sword energy became a seed, from which plum blossoms sprang forth.

The profusely blooming plum blossoms filled Tianzhufeng, and the rotating Taiji once again emptied them.

It was as if spring had arrived on Tianzhufeng, with countless petals falling, while the black and white yin and yang swirled and intertwined.

As Mu Hui unleashed his newly created techniques, he deployed the Three Peaks, Seven Breaks, and Luminous, three Plum Blossom Sword techniques.

Though nothing changed, the Plum Blossom Sword did not stop.

This marked the beginning of a journey through the Plum Blossom Sword techniques, including the Plum Blossom Sword Formula, Iron Plum Sword Technique, Falling Plum, Gentle Wind, and Myriad Fragrance, all the Huashan sword techniques Mu Hui had mastered.

Thus, he retraced all the Huashan sword techniques, returning to the beginning.

From the branches back to the roots.

To the Six Harmonies.

Six Harmonies Sword.

A simple vertical and horizontal sword path faced the myriad forms drawn by the sword sage.

There were no dazzling petals or captivating plum blossoms, yet the unadorned Six Harmonies Sword raced through the myriad forms created by the sword sage.

In that moment, a faint sword mark appeared before Mu Hui, who was lost in the state of no-self. It was the sword mark left by the Six Harmonies Sword God in the valley of the sword sage.

A mysterious sword mark that had yielded nothing until he analyzed and understood the sword marks of other sword sages.

‘The direction of the Six Harmonies. It is merely a process. Did the founder intend to fully embody the Six Harmonies in the sword?’

The Six Harmonies represent the east, west, south, north, and the heavens and earth.

In other words, the world itself.

Just as the Wudang sect captured the cycles and principles of the universe in their Taiji Sword, the founder of the Mount Hua sect sought to encapsulate the essence of the world within a single blade.

“I only grasped what was visible to me.”

Inspired by the Taiji Sword, Mu-hui realized that his understanding of the Six Harmonies was shallow, a half-formed answer at best.

The Mount Hua sect pursued a sword that could cut through anything by extending in all directions, embodying the idea that all paths are one, and that the essence of the world is a singular path.

If one could infuse this singular path into a sword, what could it not cut through?

This was the true meaning of the Six Harmonies.

“Ah…”

A deep breath emerged from within Mu-hui, and a violet light filled his once-empty eyes, a sharp energy radiating from his gaze.

“Have you returned?”

The Sword Master waved at Mu-hui, who had emerged from his trance, and Mu-hui responded with a slight smile.

“Let’s go again.”

With renewed determination, Mu-hui gripped his sword, the Plum Blossom Sword scattering the energy of the Purple Mist Sword as he began to execute the Six Harmonies Sword technique.

From the Six Harmonies came the techniques of the Whirlwind, the Fragrance, and the Falling Plum.

From the Plum Blossom Sword came the techniques of the Three Edges, the Luster, and the Seven Breaks.

Mu-hui retraced his steps from the roots back to the branches, his swordplay both familiar and transformed.

Having grasped the true essence of the Six Harmonies, Mu-hui redefined his sword techniques, aligning them with his newfound understanding.

As insights poured in, even the traditional Mount Hua techniques and his own innovations began to evolve under the true meaning of the Six Harmonies.

The new techniques left by the ancestors and sword spirits, the insights of past Mount Hua sword masters, and the marks of the Six Harmonies Sword God all began to merge with the newly redefined Mount Hua sword techniques.

Veins bulged in Mu-hui’s eyes, and steam rose from the crown of his head, yet he continued to wield the Plum Blossom Sword with fervor, like a spirit possessed by the blade.

With each swing, the sword path became more refined and precise, as if scattered pieces were coming together.

“The erratic sword path is finding its center.”

The Sword Master nodded as he observed the increasingly composed Plum Blossom Sword.

Mu-hui thought as he watched the sword extend straight and true.

“The techniques are converging into a single path.”

Previously, Mu-hui had created and refined many new techniques, but they never coalesced into a single sword style.

He couldn’t quite understand why, but the techniques felt disjointed, each standing alone.

That’s why Mu-hui had been selecting and using techniques individually.

But now, things were different.

The techniques were converging under the Six Harmonies.

Over thirty new techniques merged and vanished repeatedly, leaving twenty-four.

A flash of insight pierced Mu-hui’s mind.

This insight transformed the twenty-four techniques into a single sword style.

Sensing the change, the Sword Master halted his sword, and Mu-hui slowly lowered his.

“Have you gained enlightenment?”

“Yes, and I’ve also discovered a new sword style.”

“A new sword style?”

The Sword Master stroked his beard and chuckled at Mu-hui’s claim of creating a new martial art.

“What is the name of this sword style?”

Mu-hui closed his eyes, delving into the insight that lingered like the scent of plum blossoms in his mind.

This insight didn’t feel like something he achieved alone.

Indeed, he had received help from countless others.

The ancestors, the sword spirits, the Six Harmonies Sword God, past Mount Hua sword masters, the Dark Empress, the Sword Master, and all of Mount Hua.

Without any one of them, this insight wouldn’t have come to fruition.

As he practiced the sword style composed of these twenty-four techniques, it felt as if twenty-four invisible hands were supporting the Plum Blossom Sword.

It was as if the will and enlightenment of those who helped him were manifesting through his hands.

“It feels like I’m casting off solitude.”

Unlike the solitary enlightenment of the sword spirit in his past life, this insight was entirely different.

In some ways, this sword style was closest to the ideal the sword spirit had sought to create—a sword to cut through solitude.

This insight, born from the hands of many, was the perfect sword to sever the encroaching loneliness.

Lost in thought, Mu-hui opened his eyes.

“Ancestor, is this our sword style?”

Twenty-four techniques.

Twenty-four hands and wills.

Could there be a more fitting name?

“The Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Style.”

The moment the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Style, destined to be hailed as the greatest martial art of Mount Hua, made its debut in the martial world.

End