Ancient Sword Technique of the Flowing Blade

Ancient Sword Technique of the Flowing Blade
Hangul	흐르는 칼날의 고대 검 기술
Korean	heuleuneun kalnal-ui godae geom gisul
Information
Type	Swordsmanship Fighting Style
User(s)	The Master of the Glassblade Jintae Yang Hero Killer
Media
Manhwa Debut	Episode 40

The Ancient Sword Technique of the Flowing Blade (날이 보이지 않는 검) was a swordsmanship style that allowed its practitioners to wield the One Hundred-Sided Blade in an unorthodox style of combat centered around their swordsmanship and the Shard's unique ability to mold its shape and design.

Created by The Master of the Glassblade, the swordsmanship was his signature fighting style for centuries but with his successor Jintae Yang's death, the swordsmanship has been lost to the world.

Overview

The Ancient Sword Technique of the Flowing Blade was created by the man known as The Master of the Glassblade, who was a master swordsman and the wielder of the unique shard sword, One Hundred-Sided Blade. The swordsmanship was created for the sole purpose of wielding the shard that involves shaping the blade according to the wielder's desires.

To manifest that shape, one must unsheathe the blade from its sheath, the wielder can then unleash its power to use their techniques to fight against an opponent with a principle that focuses on unorthodox sword wielding and changeable imagination that places an emphasis on creativity with precise versatile as the style has both offensive and defensive techniques that could be alternate between the invisible blade itself or its near unbreakable sheath.

The style used single sword based techniques but was at its strongest with quick draw techniques that required high speed and agility. While an unorthodox style, the user utilizes a stance-based form of fighting but didn't require proper footing as the user could attack from any angle.

History

The Master of the Glassblade wanting to pass down his fighting style opened and started his own dojo to teach his swordsmanship to future disciples at some point during the Age of the Heroes and Villains. Amongst his disciples was a young man named Jintae Yang who showed immense talent as a swordsman.

Jintae once asked his master what the point of learning was how to sheathe one’s during combat and the old man explains the nature of the One Hundred-Sided Blade’s abilities.

He elaborates that the sword’s potential isn’t that it’s translucent but that it forms a shape according to the wielder’s desires. To manifest that it needs to be pulled from its sheath thus the Ancient Sword Technique of the Flowing Blade was created for the purpose of wielding the shard.

A decade later, Jintae started desiring the master’s One Hundred-Sided Blade as he wanted it for himself. He convinced the other disciples to start a rebellion against their master. On the night of a bright full moon, they killed all those who opposed them and confronted the master.

The master asks Jintae if he decided to abandon his morals just to attain the sword that badly, but Jintae refutes the old man saying that isn’t the fact that he can’t part ways with it, a sign of his own greed. Jintae then tells his master that he and his conspirators have decided to determine who shall own the blade once they take the blade from him by force. Tonight, the lone survivor shall become the owner of the sword.

The Master showing bloodlust towards Jintae.

The master, accepting the situation, tells Jintae that they should go outside if he is to die, he wishes to die under the moonlight. Jintae accepts while turning his back, but the master then unsheathes the One Hundred-Sided Blade and unleashes a widespread giant slash that destroys the nearby buildings of the dojo while also killing the other disciples. The master, finishing off one last disciple, asks why Jintae couldn’t wait at least ten more years before his death as the exchange strikes. The master then lectures Jintae to remind him that his pride will bring misfortune and asks if he truly thinks that he deserves to become the wielder of One Hundred-Sided Blade.

The master questions Jintae’s claim that only the owner of the blade will descend the mountain and proclaims that the blade is his as he smiles. He then prepares to give Jintae one final lesson on his way to the underworld.

The details of Jintae’s final fight with his master aren’t full but Jintae realized that his skills and ability didn’t stand a chance against him as the old man intentionally let himself be killed. Asking the master why he died for him, the master states that it was only a matter of time before Jintae would’ve surpassed him. And that Jintae would show the world the might of their swordsmanship whether he wished to or not. The Master laughs manically as he dies with a blade and sheath in his hands in a pool of blood.

List of Known Users

The Master of the Glassblade (Creator) 🪦

Jintae Yang 🪦

Ihwa/Hero Killer

Techniques

Image	Name	Description
	Living Blade	By unsheathing his blade, the user can wield the shape-shifting sword and influence its shape with his mind to give himself new abilities to use against his opponents.
	Crashing Wave of the Living Blade (낙수(落水) 베기)	The most refined technique of the foundation. The technique is performed by unleashing and creating multiple randomized angles of blade extensions that extend to its maximum limit and then swing downward to eradicate everything in its path by unorthodox means.
	Living Blade - Torrential Bind (유수(流水) 묶기)	The user shapes the sword in the form of flexible ropes to wrap around their opponent, immobilizing them and having them at the mercy of the user.
	Living Blade - Grim Reaper (대겸(大鎌)	The user extends and shapes the sword in a long Orcus-like scythe to slash, hook or impale their target.
	Living Blade - Indestructive Fall (금강낙하(金剛落下)	The most destructive technique of the sword style. By extending and reinforcing the sword to its maximum limit and swinging it down with maximum effort, the user can inflict a deep vertical cut downward or bisect their opponent vertically in half downright.

Blade of Eternal Sufferings

The Blade of Eternal Sufferings (등활검).

After becoming the holder of a Torch fragment and experiences from multiple battles, Jintae's swordsmanship was further shaped as he started to use an ordinary sword form in wanting to test his sword skills instead of relying on the One Hundred-Sided Blade's powers. He would go on to create a personal style of swordsmanship dubbed the Blade of Eternal Sufferings in honor of Sapphire and his fallen comrades. The style also used single sword-based techniques with quick draw techniques.

Jintae new focus was entirely on offensive having given up on the clean aspect of his previous precise defense as he could afford to ignore any lethal damages done to him due to his Healing being enhanced by the Torch. He would start shaping One Hundred-Sided Blade into the form of a sickle in the appearance of a "reaper" and started using punches for more deadlier attacks .

And by focusing the Torch's nigh endless supply of EST, Jintae could create extremely destructive attacks that generated giant flying energy slashes from his sword swings.

Image	Technique	Description
	Immortal Transcendence 불사무상(不死無想)	Jintae performs a quick draw of the One Hundred-Sided Blade that unleashes a devastatingly huge slash-like beam at an opponent.
	Soul Theft (연등회)	Similar to Immortal Transcendence, Jintae draws the One Hundred-Sided Blade to generate a powerful slash attack that was capable of cutting through the ground. It left behind a large fissure in his first showing of the technique during his final fight with Hero Killer who thought she'd be turn into dust should the technique connect.
	Soul Theft - Succession	A variation of Soul Theft, Jintae slashes the ground to unleashes multiple cutting waves of Soul Theft in a blinding showing of speed and power.
	Tormenting Flurry	The ultimate technique of Blade of Eternal Sufferings. Jintae concentrates the entirety of The Torch fragment's power into the One Hundred-Sided Blade to unleashes massive EST energy slashes, that take on the color of the Shard, in quick succession without giving his opponent time to counter it as they're eventually cut down.

Trivia

• Ijincheon showed a familiarity with the swordsmanship but it's unknown if he is a master.