Chapter 223 : Chapter 223
Chapter 223. Sichuan Sword Clan (2)
Following the sword strike that Jang Muryong swung, a black, sticky energy scattered in all directions.
Baek Hyang’s flower petals, which came into contact with the demonic qi, crumbled with ridiculous ease.
No, it felt less like crumbling and more like melting away.
“Hahahaha! Behold! This is the true power of this master, the First Sword of Sichuan!”
As if intoxicated by his power, Jang Muryong shouted proudly and charged at Baek Hyang.
As expected, his sword was imbued with a black energy.
Baek Hyang gracefully stepped aside, using her footwork to evade the blow.
The moment Jang Muryong’s blade grazed the collar of her clothes.
The dark energy writhed and lunged toward her body.
SLASH.
A sword strike that should have only grazed her brushed past her skin.
A faint spray of blood splattered.
But there was no particular change in Baek Hyang’s expression.
It was not a serious injury.
A wound of this level was nothing special, thanks to the real combat she had experienced so far.
Baek Hyang, who had evaded the blow and created a fleeting opening, gathered energy in her sword.
Once again, a fruit formed on the tip of the Restoring Name Sword.
The sight of the qi condensed to its absolute limit looked like a bead.
Jang Muryong’s body twisted sharply.
It was as if his body was being swung by the sword, rather than him swinging it.
“Hyaaaah!”
A sharply twisted sword path. Jang Muryong’s sword and the Restoring Name Sword clashed.
BOOM!
Jang Muryong’s dark energy shattered.
With the explosion, fragments of Enhanced Qi scattered.
“How dare you!!!”
Simultaneously with Jang Muryong’s enraged shout, an even fiercer black energy flowed from his sword.
The amount of newly flowing energy was twice that of the energy being dissipated.
The bead of qi formed on the Restoring Name Sword gradually blurred.
Eventually, the bead, its balance of qi broken, burst with a ‘crack’ sound.
The Restoring Name Sword was flung back by the repulsive force.
Baek Hyang’s right arm was thrown up, leaving her upper body full of openings.
Just as Jang Muryong was about to swing his sword at her torso, he felt a stealthy presence from the side.
“Tsk.”
Jang Muryong swung his left arm as if annoyed.
A black palm wind swirled from his hand.
Dang Sopyeong’s stealthily flying hidden weapon was knocked away in vain.
But it was not entirely meaningless.
In the brief moment that Jang Muryong deflected the hidden weapon with his palm wind, Baek Hyang was able to buy the minimal time needed to regain her posture.
SWOOOOOOOSH!
Jang Muryong’s sword flew toward her chest. Baek Hyang took advantage of her broken stance and spun her body rapidly.
As she spun like a dancer and swung her sword again, flower petals scattered in all directions once more.
“Did you think this master would fall for such a cheap trick!”
When Jang Muryong scattered his black energy, the flower petals were torn to shreds again.
Jang Muryong, who had been pushed back by Baek Hyang and Dang Sopyeong’s joint attack, was now overwhelming the two of them.
“Hahahaha! Behold! This is the power of the first clan of Sichuan, and furthermore, the first sword of the Central Plains!”
The Clan Head appeared to be lost in self-admiration.
Normally, the warriors of the Sichuan Sword Clan would have revered him, but they could not do so now.
All the Sichuan Sword Clan warriors who were in the middle of fighting the attackers had confused expressions.
The gazes of a few warriors turned to the side.
BOOM!
The place where explosions were rampant. The Ghost Sword and a man of unknown identity were continuing their life-and-death struggle.
It was not because they were watching a fight that seemed to have transcended the limits of humanity.
A very ominous and sticky energy was also continuously pouring out from the whip of the man fighting the Ghost Sword.
The Sichuan Sword Clan warriors thought.
That man is an outsider.
Furthermore, when that man first swung his whip, several Sichuan Sword Clan warriors were caught in it and died.
So, they had not paid much attention until he started using the demonic art.
It was a man the Clan Head had been with for some time, but it was still an issue they could overlook for now.
‘W-why is the Clan Head also using an energy similar to that man’s?’
But the Clan Head using the same energy was a completely different matter.
The events of the past few days came to the warriors’ minds.
The forced expansion of their influence under the pretext of protecting Sichuan from foreign powers.
And in the process, they had brought various people to the clan.
‘N-no way.’
‘Did the Clan Head really devour them like elixirs?’
At that very moment.
The First Elder’s roar erupted.
“Halt! What are you warriors of the great Sichuan Sword Clan thinking in front of the enemy!?”
At his shout, the Sichuan Sword Clan warriors came to their senses.
“Annihilate the intruders!”
“We must not let a single one of those who dared to attack the great Sichuan Sword Clan live!”
They shouted as if to brainwash themselves and charged at the attackers.
‘Yes. There must be some misunderstanding.’
‘There’s no way the Clan Head would do such a thing!’
They had grown up in the Sichuan Sword Clan their entire lives and lived for the Sichuan Sword Clan.
In their minds, there was only the Sichuan Sword Clan.
At their appearance, which resembled that of religious fanatics, the nuns from Mount Emei recited the Buddha's name.
“Amitabha.”
“To think they would resist to the end even after seeing a demonic art! I, Paeng Daecheol, will not stand idly by!”
“Th-these uncles here are e-even dumber than me!”
Just as the nuns, Paeng Daecheol, Nam Geon, and Choyeon were about to re-engage in battle in earnest.
An explosion erupted, and Hwangbo Ak’s voice, full of annoyance, burst out.
“This is damn annoying! Old man, how dare you be so distracted while facing me, Hwangbo Ak!”
“Keuk.”
Hwangbo Ak was relentlessly pummeling the groaning First Elder.
A moment ago, when the First Elder had let out a lion’s roar to rally the warriors’ spirits.
Hwangbo Ak had not missed the opportunity when his concentration wavered and had closed in on him.
Once he was within striking distance of his fists, it was only natural for the fist fighter to have the advantage.
A faint trickle of blood flowed from the mouth of the cornered First Elder.
“G-gah! How dare you, a mere brat!”
The enraged First Elder brought his sword down on Hwangbo Ak.
But before the sword could fully accelerate, Hwangbo Ak, his gauntlets wrapped in Fist Silk, snatched the blade.
“Seeing as you seem to have less real combat experience than this brat, you must be an even bigger coward than that Paeng fellow over there!”
He meant it sincerely.
In terms of the First Elder’s internal energy alone, it was at least twice as much as Hwangbo Ak’s.
But that was all.
At least, that was how Hwangbo Ak felt.
The power of the internal energy in the sword was terrifying, but the sword path was monotonous. In Hwangbo Ak’s view.
“Damn it! I had high hopes for the number two of the Sichuan Sword Clan, but this is no fun at all!”
So his tension dropped.
He did not feel the slightest eerie feeling that his head might be taken off by an unexpected blow.
And to top it off, while he was already disappointed, that crazy old man even looked to the side and shouted.
“Gaaah! How dare a brat like you look down on me!”
The First Elder fell for the provocation.
Even though Hwangbo Ak had no intention of provoking him at all.
The enraged First Elder’s movements grew larger.
It was to unleash a one-hit-kill ultimate technique.
But.
THWACK!
The moment his stance widened, Hwangbo Ak unexpectedly kicked the ground.
Gravel caught by his leg flew toward the First Elder’s abdomen.
THWACK!
The First Elder’s face turned pale as he was struck by the gravel kicked with internal energy.
Soon after, the First Elder coughed and spat out blood.
“Keok…”
“Damn it. What kind of moron would just take such a big move like that!”
“You, you bastard!”
“This is why I hate fighting those with no real combat experience!”
Hwangbo Ak roared and continued his chain of attacks.
‘I need to hurry up and deal with this old man and join the fight where the Clan Head is, or where Brother Jin is fighting!’
Hwangbo Ak only wanted to fight a stronger opponent as soon as possible.
While his companions were dealing with the First Elder and the warriors.
BOOM!
Wounds were gradually increasing on Baek Hyang’s body.
In terms of the realm they had reached, they were similar.
The problem was the power of the ferocious demonic qi and the extreme gap in internal energy.
But Baek Hyang’s gaze was as calm as could be.
Having already entered a state of no-self, she was solely focused on the sword.
Watching the sword from which the black energy relentlessly poured out, her sword danced.
She swung the Restoring Name Sword to meet the descending blade.
And before the two swords touched, her body moved gracefully.
CLANG!
Like a tree branch bending, her sword deflected the power contained in the demonic qi.
She was using the bare minimum of internal energy to deflect Jang Muryong’s power.
‘The timing of opening the sword path was off. If I swing more accurately.’
Feeling the minute differences that others could not even perceive, she gradually corrected her sword art.
In the process, small wounds appeared on the girl’s body, but she did not care.
Because the process of refining her sword art was enjoyable.
Furthermore.
“You wretch!”
A faint trickle of blood was flowing from the mouth of the shouting Jang Muryong.
Moreover, his eyes were also bloodshot by now.
Thanks to his reckless use of demonic qi, Jang Muryong’s internal injuries were slowly accumulating.
Dang Sopyeong was also aware of this.
‘If Miss Baek can hold on a little longer, that man will collapse on his own.’
The moment he had that thought.
SLASH.
Jang Muryong’s sword once again grazed Baek Hyang’s collar.
A faint spray of blood splattered.
‘Damn it. What’s the use if Miss Baek dies in the process?’
Dang Sopyeong drew up the poison qi remaining in his dantian and sent a sound transmission to Baek Hyang.
- Prepare for poison!
Then, observing the fight between the two, he moved.
And at the moment their weapons clashed again, he swung his fan.
The poison qi that escaped from the meridians in Dang Sopyeong’s palm spread on the wind from the fan.
Precisely toward Baek Hyang and Jang Muryong, who were close together.
‘Miss Baek should be able to withstand this much poison.’
Baek Hyang had been consistently building up her resistance to poison.
Thanks to Jin Yuseong’s insane teachings, from Dang Sopyeong’s perspective.
Besides, the poison he spread was not an extreme poison in the first place.
A poison that Jang Muryong could normally push out without difficulty with his internal energy.
But it seemed it would work now.
Since his internal injuries were already accumulating due to the demonic art.
And Dang Sopyeong’s prediction hit the mark.
Jang Muryong, who had been repeatedly swinging his sword at Baek Hyang, suddenly let out a choked groan.
“Keok…”
Jang Muryong’s bloodshot gaze turned to Dang Sopyeong.
“You, you despicable…”
“Like father, like son. The one using a demonic art calls a poison art despicable.”
At Dang Sopyeong’s words, Jang Muryong’s eyes widened.
“Son?”
Only then did an important fact come to Jang Muryong’s mind.
His gaze momentarily turned toward the nuns.
A few days ago, he had sent the young master to Mount Emei to use the women there as elixirs.
But the young master was nowhere to be seen, and the Ghost Sword’s group had appeared.
“You bastard!!! How dare you forsake heavenly principles and kill your own brother!?”
As Jang Muryong roared, blood splattered from his mouth.
With internal injuries, poison, and an inner demon added to the mix, his demonic qi rampaged even more fiercely.
“Keoheok…”
Blood ceaselessly flowed from his mouth.
Toward such a Jang Muryong, Baek Hyang once again thrust her sword.
CLANG!
Every time he blocked Baek Hyang’s sword, his meridians were torn to shreds by the demonic qi.
“Cough…”
He continued to vomit blood and endure for a few more exchanges.
SLASH!
Finally, Baek Hyang’s sword pierced Jang Muryong’s heart.
“Cough…”
The demonic qi that had been ravaging his entire body began to leave through his whole body.
Was it because a little bit of his sanity had returned?
Jang Muryong looked down at the sword lodged in his heart with a vacant expression.
“I… I am the first in Sichuan… I-I am the man who was to make this clan… the first clan in the Central Plains…”
Muttering his unfulfilled lifelong aspiration, Jang Muryong’s corpse collapsed to the ground with a thud.
At the same time, Baek Hyang let out a cough.
“Cough.”
Blood was mixed in her cough as well.
Dang Sopyeong quickly approached her and drew out a medicinal pill and needles.
“This is an antidote pill. Take this immediately and start circulating your energy to heal, Miss Baek.”
No matter how much resistance she had, she was not completely immune.
Dang Sopyeong urgently tried to treat her, but Baek Hyang shook her head.
“I must help Senior Brother…”
“Don’t worry! That Jin fellow will surely be fine!”
Somehow, both the senior brother and the junior sister seemed to think in the same way.
To persuade her, Dang Sopyeong quickly pointed to where the battle was taking place.
“Look over there! He’s handling it well on his own, isn’t he?”