It Wasn’t a Martial Arts World, but the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 51. Heavenly Extreme Linked Illusion Sword Technique (7)

Even after stepping outside, the excitement hadn’t worn off.

“Have you finished the discussion?”

Sima Yi asked, but I couldn’t answer easily, my hands trembling uncontrollably.

Sima Yi tilted her head, perhaps puzzled by my behavior.

Soon, Liu Bei followed me out, walking in my direction.

“Why are you leaving in such a hurry?”

“I have no time to explain, Yuna.”

“Pardon?”

“Let’s go.”

“…Where are we going?”

Zhao Yun furrowed her brows at my sudden call.

“Hurry up and come! We need to spar, don’t we? A martial artist should never miss a day of training!”

“Isn’t this too sudden?”

“Enough talk, just follow me.”

I grabbed Zhao Yun’s arm roughly.

“Uncle! What are you doing?! There are still things we need to discuss—!”

“Later. That can wait.”

Right now, there was no time.

I needed to swing my sword before this lingering excitement faded.

As I moved forward, Zhang Fei and Guan Yu blocked my path.

“Brother, what’s this? Weren’t you making a big deal before about not doing it, and now you’re eager for some action?”

“Get out of the way, I’m in a hurry.”

“What’s going on, Sis?”

Zhang Fei asked, turning to Liu Bei with a confused look.

“…Uh, he said they’re going to spar…”

“Spar?”

Zhang Fei’s eyes lit up.

She started to fondly caress her Eight-Foot Snake Spear strapped to her back and naturally stepped up next to me.

“That sounds fun!”

“Yide, sparring is fine, but there are more important matters at hand.”

“Oh, Sis, come on. It’s not like they’ll spar all day. Aren’t you curious?”

“…Well, yes, but…”

“Then let’s do this.”

Zhang Fei raised her finger, looking eager and excited.

“We have things to discuss anyway, so why don’t we all just tag along? Once the sparring’s done, we can sit down at a tavern and talk. Nothing wrong with that, right?”

Guan Yu stroked her chin and nodded.

“…That makes sense.”

“Then it’s settled! Sis, you’re coming too, right?”

“Uh, sure?”

Liu Bei glanced between Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, Zhao Yun, and me, her lips twitching in a subtle, almost hesitant smile.

“Alright, let’s do that, as long as General Unryong doesn’t mind…”

“Brother, it’s fine, right?!”

“If you’re coming, then hurry up! I’m leaving now!”

I said and quickly moved forward.

“…Aren’t you going to let go of my arm?”

Zhao Yun muttered softly as I held onto her.

***

Arriving at a vast plain, Unryong immediately drew his sword.

“Are we using real swords today?”

Unryong grinned at the question.

“Well, it doesn’t hurt to mix things up once in a while. We’re not amateurs. It’s not like we’ll kill each other.”

“Not… amateurs…?”

“You’re no pushover.”

“…Is that what you meant?”

Zhao Yun, seemingly dumbfounded, dropped her shoulders. Then, she gripped her spear.

“Well, I was getting tired of sparring with wooden swords anyway.”

Though calm on the outside, Zhao Yun had a fierce competitive spirit.

Meanwhile, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Liu Bei, and Sima Yi stood at a distance, watching closely.

“I wonder how this will go.”

Zhang Fei grinned fiercely, showing her teeth.

“I’ll finally get to see that Azure Sky again.”

“…Azure Sky.”

Guan Yu quietly closed her eyes.

The three of them still hadn’t forgotten that day.

A single ray of light that emerged on a battlefield soaked in blood and despair.

“What Azure Sky…”

Of course, Sima Yi, unaware of the context, crossed her arms and snorted.

“Azure Sky does exist.”

Liu Bei moved closer to Sima Yi, smiling quietly.

Sima Yi, startled, nearly let out a scream.

“Oh, sorry. I got too excited and didn’t mean to invade your space.”

“It’s fine…”

No matter how she looked at it, Sima Yi found Liu Bei unsettling.

If she had to describe it, Liu Bei was the exact opposite of Unryong.

Unryong expressed himself openly, but Liu Bei never truly revealed her inner self.

Of course, this could be her true nature, but the unnerving feeling hidden behind her smile was hard to ignore.

That’s why Sima Yi couldn’t bring herself to like Liu Bei.

There was no particular reason—it was just a biological mismatch.

Suppressing her rising discomfort, Sima Yi spoke.

“What do you mean by Azure Sky?”

“I’ve seen it. I’ve seen him, standing against the wall of helplessness. And from that place, a light rose.”

Liu Bei’s poetic words left Sima Yi puzzled.

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“I can’t give you a clear explanation of what happened back then. To be honest, I’m still not sure myself. It was such an unrealistic sight.”

Liu Bei smiled and pointed ahead.

At the man’s sword.

“The sword emitted a terrifying aura. Calling it a flash wouldn’t be right, since it was blue and distinct, so I’m just using the best description I can. I still don’t know what it was.”

Was she treating me like a fool? Sima Yi’s eyes grew sharper.

– Clang!

The sound of metal clashing rang out.

Sima Yi’s head turned automatically.

The two had begun their sparring, their movements gaining intensity.

She recalled the time Unryong effortlessly caught a flying liquor bottle and handled four armed men with his bare hands.

‘This is insane.’

And now, his swordplay defied imagination.

When Zhao Yun thrust her spear, Unryong dodged with a slight tilt of his head, smoothly swinging his sword.

Zhao Yun countered by sweeping her spear horizontally, but Unryong blocked it effortlessly.

Next, she aimed an upward strike with her spear. Unryong avoided it with a minimal, almost imperceptible movement.

Even as a non-martial artist, Sima Yi struggled to keep up with their movements.

“Wow, that girl is pretty good.”

Zhang Fei spoke, already itching for action, as she planted her spear’s butt in the ground and stretched her neck.

“Her movements are solid.”

Guan Yu nodded in agreement.

“With more experience, she could achieve great things.”

“Man, I want to spar with her.”

“I understand the feeling, but don’t interrupt their match.”

“I know.”

Still, the tension between the two fighters continued to rise.

On the surface, it seemed like Unryong was being pushed back, but the martial artists among them knew better.

“He’s doing a good job as a teacher, at least.”

Zhang Fei tapped her spear lightly, noticing that Unryong was purposefully holding back to let Zhao Yun learn.

Unryong wasn’t taking the initiative but was responding to Zhao Yun’s attacks, allowing her to gain insight through the match.

Gradually, the gap between the two fighters started to narrow.

Zhao Yun lunged forward.

Unryong dodged as before, but Zhao Yun advanced further and kicked at his side.

The kick connected, and Unryong stumbled back.

Zhao Yun didn’t stop there. She pressed forward with a series of flowing attacks—thrusting, slashing, and moving fluidly, gradually taking the upper hand.

“You’ve improved quite a bit.”

“Thank you for the compliment!”

But Unryong wasn’t just passively receiving her attacks.

Keeping up with Zhao Yun’s movements wasn’t easy.

Despite her inexperience, she was still a renowned general. Unryong smirked, impressed by her progress.

For the first time, Unryong stepped forward.

Suddenly, his sword split into two.

The Linked Illusion Sword.

The four observers widened their eyes.

However, the sight was familiar to Zhao Yun.

She calmly dodged and thrust her spear.

Unryong clicked his tongue and placed his thumb against his heart.

Gate of Opening.

It was the moment when his full power was released.

Boom!

Unryong kicked off the ground.

Accelerating.

And accelerating again.

Even Sima Yi could barely track his movements.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The relentless blows from Unryong pushed Zhao Yun back.

But her eyes never lost their focus.

She didn’t blink, ensuring she didn’t miss a single movement from Unryong.

Still, at this pace, it was clear that Unryong would win.

However, Unryong couldn’t stop here.

There were too many powerful opponents in the world. His life-and-death battle with Lü Bu had driven that realization deep into him.

He had been weak, unable to protect, unable to advance.

He couldn’t remain stuck at the threshold of first-rate martial artists.

Once more, Unryong felt the flow of qi surging through his body.

Then, it began to manifest.

“…That’s…”

Sima Yi’s eyes widened.

Azure Sky.

The bizarre phenomenon unfolding before her could only be described as that.

Having already experienced the terror of sword qi, Zhao Yun quickly kicked off the ground, retreating.

“The heavens have no master.”

With his sword pointed at Zhao Yun, Unryong unconsciously muttered.

“The sky is just the sky.”

The Heavenly Extreme Linked Illusion Sword Technique was designed to cut the heavens, with seven forms.

Unryong tilted his head back.

Gently flowing clouds.

Birds flying in flocks.

The rising sun.

And.

The cycle of day and night, the changing seasons, the endless cycle of life.

Where all things in heaven circulate—that was the sky.

Where he would eventually reach—the Heavenly Extreme.

The previously unstable sword qi now fully revealed itself.

Unryong felt a pain as if his muscles were tearing.

But he couldn’t stop.

He agonized further.

Then what was the Heavenly Extreme?

What was the principle of Linked Illusion?

What was the harmony and disharmony that existed between the Heavenly Extreme and Linked Illusion ?

It flowed.

It flowed.

It flowed.

The qi rushing through his meridians quickly spread throughout his body, and the qi gathered in his lower dantian surged upward.

His body burned with unbearable heat.

Finally, his nose started to bleed.

Zhao Yun, who had been holding her stance, was alarmed and shouted out.

“Master!”

“Don’t stop!”

Unryong, still pointing his sword at her, replied.

“Is this sparring over?”

The weight of Unryong’s words kept Zhao Yun from lowering her spear.

However, she could tell something was happening.

The blue light emanating from Unryong’s sword was growing even brighter.

Zhao Yun tensed.

She lowered her stance and raised her spear.

Unryong also adjusted his posture.

Then, he asked himself.

‘Where am I?’

His feet were planted firmly on the ground.

‘Where do I need to go?’

There was no need to ask.

He had already decided to follow the path he believed was right.

‘So, what do I need to cut?’

Was it the bandit who had harassed a woman?

The Yellow Turban rebel who had kidnapped children?

Lü Bu, who had brutally killed his brothers? Or Dong Zhuo, who had thrown cruel banquets?

‘No, it’s the sky.’

Unryong gripped his sword tightly.

‘Then how do I cut the sky?’

A mere mortal body couldn’t reach the infinitely vast heavens.

With this frail body, he could never touch the Heavenly Extreme (天極).

Not with the flesh.

Only the spirit, in harmony with all things, could achieve it.

The weak body, but the strong heart.

Soul.

He had reached it.

His blood was boiling.

He could feel every fiber of his clothing, every particle of air touching his skin.

It was a strange sensation, even to him.

“Here I come!”

At that moment, Zhao Yun kicked off the ground.

A rapid thrust.

She, seeing Unryong still muttering to himself while holding his sword, thrust her spear without hesitation.

‘It’s over!’

She sensed it.

The outcome of this sparring match.

However.

“…?”

Her spear never made contact.

***

“…What, what just happened?”

It was Sima Yi’s question.

“Did… Uncle just disappear…?”

The girl frantically looked around and asked again.

“What the hell was that?!”

But Sima Yi could only keep her mouth shut.

She realized that no one here could possibly answer.