Konnichiwa minna-san~ so I was really busy these past few weeks, and I didn't expect that I would find a good recommendation amidst my tight schedule. I thought this manhwa would be just one of my passing fancies, but after finishing its first chapter, I'm convinced that this will be a good one. It's already completed, so I was relieved and excited at the same time. So now join me as we join the 5th leader of the Northern Heavenly Sect in his journey in The Legend of the Nothern Blade.
About the Manhwa
The Legend of the Northern Blade is an action manhwa that was written by Woogack and illustrated by HAE MIN. It was published from December 31, 2019 to November 19, 2024, and it was serialized under KakaoPage. This manhwa genre is action, adventure, fantasy with a little bit of drama, and since there's action, there's also gore. Its main theme is focused on martial arts, for it really featured a lot of types of martial arts from different sects. Like I've said, it's already a completed manhwa, and it has 202 chapters all in all.
Screenshot from Tappytoon
So the story unfolds with the death of the fourth leader of the Northern sect. With his death, their whole sect was disbanded and their whole place was ransacked of everything that's valuable, and all of those tragedies were witnessed by Jin Mu-won, the son of the deceased leader. For years, he tried to survive under the surveillance of the Central Heavenly Alliance. With no family and a few allies left, he experienced a dire life in his own sect, but despite those experiences, he didn't lose hope that someday he'd get revenge on the people who mercilessly trampled their sect.
Screenshot from Tappytoon
For years everything went as it was, with him constantly suffering under surveillance, but a surprise attack changed the course of his once restrained life. This attack almost killed him, but luckily he survived and escaped. He took refuge in the mountains, where he spent several years of training. There he honed the knowledge he learned in martial arts and also forge a sword that could match his will to cut down any enemy that could come in his way. However, the disappearance of one of his allies forced him to come out of the mountains. He went to the mainland, and upon his journey there, he discovered more about himself—of how similar and different he is compared to his father. His journey will be filled with meet-ups with both his new allies and foes, and ultimately, he will discover something—or someone.
He's more sinister than the foes he faced along his journey. But surely Jin Mu-won has faced a lot of them, and like how he felt while fighting them, he's more than willing to cut down any enemy that would hinder his goal to avenge not only his father's gruesome death but also the fall of his once beloved Northern Heavenly Sect. He will avenge their death while searching for his own redemption, and with his presence, the Legend of the Northern Blade exists.
It's probably one of the fastest manga I've finished, not because it's short but because it's too good to be left for tomorrow. Every chapter is a must read because it's filled with a lot of action scenes that were potrayed really cool. The plot may be the generic family revenge, but ahhhhh the way the creators executed it was something that was entirely enjoyable. The world-building in that manhwa was intricate and great. It's really detailed and well made because they didn't only focus on the sects that were part of the revenge plan of the MC, for they also introduced the other sects that were part of the gray areas of their world.
Also, I liked that they also showed the POVS of both sides, the MC and the villains. Reading their backstory was interesting because it really explained why they ended that way. Aside from its nice plot, what really hooked me up to it was its very likeable MC. He's basically the most sensible and good-natured MC I've encountered. Well, not really the good-natured that's really really righteous, but good-natured in a way that he didn't let his anger consume him entirely all the time. He didn't let his past turn him into a heartless and cold slaughterer. He cared for the people around him, and I like how humble he was until the end. Like with his OP ability, he could really seize the glory back again and crush anyone who would dare to defy him, but our MC was soooo good-natured that he chose the real happiness over those temporal ones. The end was really heartwarming—a nice juxtaposition of how it started.
As for its art style, honestly, it's not that appealing in the earlier chapters. I didn't even recognize some of the characters because I've seen some spoilers of the recent chapters before I was able to finished it—like, is this Mu-sang? What hardships did he face to turn into a daddy like figu—so yeah, hehe, trust me, it gets better as the story progresses. Further, I really loved how the illustrator portrayed the fight scenes! They're really cool and satisfying to watch. From the poses to the angles—it's really gripping to read something that's nicely drawn. Also, I love how each character was drawn uniquely because even though their character design have similarities to some characters, the details that the illustrator put in were enough for me to distinguish them.
Overall, my personal rating for this manhwa is 9.9! It's start may be quite slow, but it's promising enough to get me hooked on it. I really thought that this would disappoint or leave me feeling hollow at the end, but thankfully it was satisfying. The way things unfolded was something that I didn't expect. Also, I'm glad that the fights were not dragged for too long. Fights that last for like eternity just bore me out (no matter how good the art style is), so I'm glad that the fights weren't that long. So if you're up for a great action-packed manhwa that has equally great MC, then you've stumbled into the perfect one! Immerse yourself with the story of Jin Mu-won—The Legend of the Northern Blade.
That's all for now, minna-san~ Have you already read this manhwa before? If you have, have you finished it? If not, this is probably your sign to get back to it. But if this is the first time you encountered it, try reading it now! Feel free to comment your opinions about it. Anyway, thanks for being with me 'til the end.
Edited in Canva