Chapter 80

Great Expansion Sword Formation (2)

After listening to Namgung Jun's detailed explanation, Lee Seha's expression grew serious.

Her eyes lowered thoughtfully, as though weighed down by deep contemplation.

"The flaws of the Great Expansion Sword Formation..."

"What do you think?"

"There is certainly merit to your argument. I've often exploited the very weakness you mentioned to lure opponents into overcommitting."

"So you turned the weakness to your advantage."

Namgung Jun lightly tapped the formation diagram he had drawn with his brush.

Lee Seha had clearly recognized the weakness of the formation, but rather than eliminating it, she had treated it as a hidden variable to be exploited.

"Then perhaps it comes down to a difference in perspective regarding formations."

Namgung Jun pursued the perfection of an iron fortress.

Lee Seha, on the other hand, preferred freedom and countless variables, like a vast net cast wide.

"But after hearing your explanation, the instability stands out more than the tactical flexibility. The benefits of correcting the flaw seem greater."

Lee Seha gently took the brush from Namgung Jun.

Then she immediately began drawing a new diagram.

Having heard his explanation, a solution had already occurred to her.

Watching the path traced by his master's brush, Namgung Jun inwardly admired her.

Perhaps because she had spent years commanding the Great Expansion Sword Formation, her understanding ran extremely deep.

The solutions she proposed followed a path remarkably similar to his own thoughts.

This section would actually be better revised according to Master's approach.

Lee Seha playfully ruffled Namgung Jun's hair while he focused on the diagram.

"What do you think about this part?"

"It's not bad. However, I think we should make greater use of the principles of the Later Heaven Eight Trigrams. The essence of the Great Expansion Sword Art lies in the real-time transformation of sword patterns that contain countless variations."

Lee Seha immediately agreed.

"The Later Heaven Eight Trigrams contain the principles behind all changes between heaven and earth. My disciple's choice is the correct one."

Nodding, she immediately incorporated Namgung Jun's suggestion into the diagram.

As fresh inspiration struck her, her brush moved continuously.

"What if we pull the axes of Zhen and Xun a little farther downward..."

"If we do that, the formation's movement may become too rigid. We'd lose one of the Great Expansion Sword Formation's greatest strengths."

"Don't worry. We can simply alter the order of deployment."

Master and disciple exchanged ideas back and forth, gradually dismantling and rebuilding the Great Expansion Sword Formation.

The Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen could only stand nearby and watch.

The discussion involved increasingly complex theories and advanced principles.

Far from contributing ideas of their own, many struggled merely to follow the conversation.

Those who had not spent much time around Namgung Jun were especially stunned.

"At first I thought everyone was making too much fuss over him. Now I understand why."

"He's been practicing martial arts for less than a year, yet he's dissecting a sword formation to this extent."

"Hahaha. You people have to see it with your own eyes to believe it. Only now are you witnessing how brilliant Young Hero Namgung truly is."

Heo Il laughed heartily.

Meanwhile, Gong Junam silently studied the evolving formation diagrams before turning toward Lee Seha.

"Hall Master."

Recognizing his call, Lee Seha nodded.

"It seems we'll need to overhaul the formation and retrain everyone from the beginning. Does anyone object?"

No one did.

The fact that the proposal had come from the youngest member of the Heavenly Sword Hall was completely irrelevant.

He might have been the youngest in age, but he was also one of the Three Fortunes, a pillar of the Heavenly Sword Hall, and the foremost talent of the younger generation.

Moreover, his arguments were convincing from every angle.

The revised formation would require substantial retraining, but nobody cared.

Everyone present belonged to the elite of the Ten Halls.

They were confident that even an entirely new formation could be mastered after only a few training sessions.

"For now, return to individual training. Revising the formation won't take very long."

The moment Lee Seha gave the order, the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen dispersed throughout the training grounds.

Watching them leave, Lee Seha tugged lightly at Namgung Jun's sleeve.

"Shall we go too? Let's finish improving the formation in my office."

"Of course, Master."

BOOM!

The Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen moved in perfect unison as they executed the Great Expansion Sword Formation.

The refinement of the Great Expansion Sword Formation was not yet complete.

At this stage, they were repeatedly deploying the formation to verify the direction of their improvements through practical application.

The person commanding the formation was neither Lee Seha nor Gong Junam.

Since Namgung Jun had played the largest role in revising the formation, he had been entrusted with command.

"The spacing of the left wing's footwork will be widened. Accordingly, your aura circulation must become longer and denser."

At Namgung Jun's command, the Heavenly Sword Hall swordsmen quickened their movements.

The First and Second Fortunes in particular darted their eyes in every direction, desperately trying to maintain their assigned positions.

"Hup!"

"Wait a moment. Wouldn't that increase the distance between sword strikes?"

"Yes. That's why you need to move approximately two breaths faster."

Faced with his immediate explanation, the veterans could only keep moving in silence.

Namgung Jun's method of improving the formation was completely different from what they had expected.

Naturally, they had assumed he would redesign the formation from scratch using manuals and diagrams.

Instead, he deployed the original formation exactly as it was.

Then, while observing it in real time, he adjusted aura circulation, sword trajectories, and positions on the fly.

Every result accumulated and was recorded in his mind as a new cultivation formula.

Even the veterans who had long since mastered the Great Expansion Sword Formation struggled to adapt to the constant changes.

Namgung Jun, however, showed no mercy.

As though this level of adaptation should be effortless.

If the veterans were having difficulty, the younger members were having a miserable time.

"Ghh..."

Sweat dripped from the chin of Man Yewon as he desperately maintained one of the formation's pillars.

This is insane!

He had not even fully mastered the original Great Expansion Sword Formation.

Yet now the sequence of the formation was constantly being altered under the pretext of refinement.

His arms, legs, and even his thoughts felt tangled.

The slightest lapse in concentration threatened to throw him completely out of the formation.

When is this ever going to end?!

Man Yewon sneaked a glance toward Namgung Jun.

The eyes directing the entire formation shone with a frightening intensity.

The Great Expansion Sword Formation isn't a bad formation. But it lacks any truly outstanding characteristics.

It felt like a formation that merely fulfilled the minimum requirements for group combat.

It completely failed to bring out the free-flowing nature of the Great Expansion Sword Art.

As expected, it would be better to rebuild it entirely.

If he attempted to overturn everything at once, resistance would be inevitable.

Instead, Namgung Jun was gradually reshaping the Heavenly Sword Hall from the edges inward, almost as though he were taming it.

Lee Seha and Gong Junam watched from the side.

"Hall Master. Are you truly planning to leave everything to Namgung Jun?"

"Didn't he completely redesign the countermeasures during the Three Fortunes Training Corps? Even I couldn't have done that. His ability to dissect and analyze martial arts may already surpass mine."

She smiled faintly.

"If that's the case, it's better to leave it to my disciple."

Gong Junam did not disagree.

The counter-techniques Namgung Jun had created during the Three Fortunes Training Corps had been nothing short of miraculous.

Even the elders of the Elder Council had expressed repeated admiration.

The accomplishments they had spent decades building had been surpassed by a young man who merely examined them a few times.

Naturally, they had been astonished.

"Let's trust him."

"I already do. Namgung Jun has never disappointed us."

Boom!

The synchronized stomps of the formation shook the entire Heavenly Sword Hall training ground.

The changes led by Namgung Jun had transformed the Great Expansion Sword Formation.

Though the swordsmen had not yet fully adapted, they could clearly feel the difference.

The formation flowed more smoothly than before.

The people executing it experienced the improvement firsthand.

"It's definitely different, isn't it?"

"It is."

"At this level, we could probably challenge the Extreme Martial Hall."

Everyone nodded.

"I thought he'd only patch a few weaknesses. I never imagined the formation would improve this much."

"Namgung Jun's talent is real. He's practically the Heavenly Sword Hall's greatest treasure."

"The Hall Master truly found herself an extraordinary disciple."

The praise never stopped.

Yet Namgung Jun was not focusing solely on the formation.

Whenever he had spare time, he also corrected the individual practitioners' Great Expansion Sword Art.

Since the formation itself was built upon that sword art, he believed personal mastery was the foundation of everything.

Those who received his guidance were continually amazed by the clarity of his teachings.

Watching his achievements from afar was one thing.

Receiving direct instruction made the extent of his talent impossible to ignore.

"That should be enough."

Namgung Jun closed the manual before him.

The formation was not the only project occupying his time.

He had also been working on an entirely new manual.

It was something he had been preparing for quite a while.

He had taken the external-body cultivation methods he learned from Dan Jungse and the Iron Tower Hall and redesigned them specifically for swordsmen.

"With this much, the foundation is complete."

Originally, the method had been designed around his own physique.

But after spending so much time in the Heavenly Sword Hall, he had been able to study the bodies of numerous swordsmen as well.

By accumulating many examples, he had gradually formed a complete external cultivation method.

Picking up a brush, he wrote a title across the first page.

Sword Foundation Art 

It was not an ordinary body-tempering method.

It was an external cultivation technique specifically created for swordsmen.

Since Namgung Jun was not truly an expert in external martial arts, this was the best result he could currently produce.

Still, he had no desire to be greedy.

If this martial art could increase the strength of the Heavenly Sword Hall, that alone was enough.

Just as he finished the manual, Lee Seha entered the hall.

"Everyone."

Her voice instantly halted the training of every Heavenly Sword Hall swordsman.

Surveying the assembled members, she spoke.

"The Heavenly Sword Hall has received its deployment orders."

The room fell silent.

"Our mission is to reinforce the Akan Branch in Jiangxi Province. We may face not only the Sun Moon Demonic Cult but also the Iron War Camp."

"Hall Master... does that mean?"

"That's right. Every available member of the Heavenly Sword Hall—including myself—will be deployed."

The swordsmen's eyes immediately lit up.

"Jiangxi Province and the Iron War Camp. We should prepare for large-scale combat."

"A perfect opportunity to test the revised Great Expansion Sword Formation."

"The timing couldn't be better."

As everyone's attention shifted toward Namgung Jun, Lee Seha turned to him.

"Jun. What do you think? Is the revised Great Expansion Sword Formation ready for actual combat?"

Namgung Jun did not answer immediately.

Instead, he looked at the gathered swordsmen.

He had watched every single day of their group training without fail.

After a moment, he nodded.

"There will be no problems."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Let us show the Jianghu the new Great Expansion Sword Formation."

When Namgung Jun confidently gave his approval, the smile in Lee Seha's eyes deepened.

"Good."

She drew herself up proudly.

"Heavenly Sword Hall—move out!"

Led by Lee Seha, the entire Heavenly Sword Hall departed for Jiangxi Province.