A Record of A Mortal's Journey to Immortality

Chapter 40: The Origin of the Secret Technique

Those who complained knew nothing of the truth: the elder who had created this sword technique once possessed profound martial arts skills. But during a fierce battle in his prime, he was unintentionally crippled by an opponent and could no longer practice internal true qi.

Fearing his status within the sect would plummet, the elder kept this secret to himself. Instead, he pretended to make great strides in martial arts, behaving in ways that baffled everyone in the sect, from seniors to juniors.

Yet, the fact remained that he could no longer defend himself. From that moment on, relying on his extraordinary intelligence, he kept a low profile and managed to avoid detection by others.

At that time, the seven mysteries sect was at its peak, dominating Jingzhou.

When the elder realized his inner strength would never recover, despair took hold. Secretly using his authority, he sent his subordinates to raid numerous unknown minor sects. From these, he forcefully seized many hidden martial arts manuals, hoping to discover a supreme technique that didn’t require the use of true qi.

After years of scavenging, he indeed found many incredible secret techniques, but none suited his condition.

Deeply disappointed, this elder—an exceptionally talented and sharp-minded man—had a sudden inspiration. He decided to combine these various secret arts to create a unique supreme technique tailored for himself.

This idea excited him greatly. To create a unique martial art was every martial artist’s lifelong dream. From then on, he devoted himself entirely to this endeavor, researching and experimenting with countless ideas.

To avoid distractions, he even retreated into seclusion, ignoring the sect’s internal power struggles.

Creating a martial art is an incredibly difficult task. Moreover, the technique he sought had strict limits: it had to be usable without true qi, yet accommodate multiple secret skills, forming a profound and supreme martial art.

The unprecedented hardship of this creation process far exceeded his expectations. Yet, with immense perseverance, after nearly half a lifetime of relentless effort and decades of painstaking work, the Blink Sword Manual was finally born.

Elated, the elder rushed to share the good news with the rest of the sect. But just as his technique was perfected, he shockingly discovered that the seven mysteries sect had already fallen into decline.

The entire sect was under siege by numerous small and large factions, facing the constant threat of total annihilation.

Now in his sixties, the elder was both shocked and furious. At this critical moment, he unleashed the strange sword technique he had just mastered, killing many powerful enemies in rapid succession, terrifying the remaining foes.

With sheer force, he carved a bloody path through the encirclement, breaking out to secure the sect’s survival, achieving a monumental feat.

Unfortunately, having escaped danger, the elder soon reached the end of his life. His final wish was to place the sword manual he had painstakingly created into the seven absolutes hall before he passed away.

Even more regrettably, in the years that followed, none of the junior disciples—up until Han Li—attempted to cultivate this technique. This brilliant gem remained hidden and forgotten, never seeing the light of day.

Han Li was completely unaware of these past events. Even if he had known, he would not have been interested.

For him, this sword technique was simply suitable for his cultivation and might just save his life under Doctor Mo’s hands—that was enough. Its origins or creator held no interest for Han Li. He was a practical man who never wasted time on things that brought no benefit.

Inside his room, Han Li lit an oil lamp and leaned over a wooden table. Under the dim light, he continued flipping through the various martial arts manuals.

He had no intention of copying them by hand. Instead, relying on his extraordinary memory, he planned to commit them all to heart. This way, he avoided the risk of losing the copies and the danger of anyone discovering them.