Chapter 288 : Divine Sword Invincible
Chapter 288: Divine Sword Invincible
The moment Jang Woo-hyun saw Ban Un-hwang, he immediately realized what state the giant was in.
The Tower of Ten Thousand Souls and Stacked Sorcery, created by turning sorcerers into red bricks and piling them together.
Ban Un-hwang’s body resembled that tower.
His gigantic body had been created by compressing countless giants together, and Ban Un-hwang was drawing upon their life force and strength.
There was only one group that pulled off grotesque things like this.
‘The Ascension Cult.’
He thought he had killed most of them, but apparently some remnants still remained.
Unlike the Blood Giants, whose upper dantians had already collapsed and whose life force was nearly exhausted, many of the beings inside Ban Un-hwang’s body were still alive.
Jang Woo-hyun swung Baekmu, instantly severing the heads of the Blood Giants before capturing Ban Un-hwang.
Then he stood before him.
Ignoring Ban Un-hwang’s furious screaming, he extended his hand toward him.
In the past, he would have simply killed them all.
But not anymore.
After fighting Hyeon Wol, Jang Woo-hyun had learned how to sever the connection points of sorcery.
Rather than destroying the sword held by the opponent, it was like cutting off the hand holding the sword and taking it away instead.
It was liberation for a weapon being forced into use.
Tok.
Without using any force at all, he placed his hand upon the gigantic body.
At Jang Woo-hyun’s will, the intricately tangled connections of the sorcery were severed.
Peeeeong!
The gigantic body over twenty jang tall exploded apart, and the hundreds of compressed giants came crashing down toward the earth.
To save the dazed giants who could not even regain their senses, Jang Woo-hyun used his power.
Kurung!
A sword over one hundred jang long appeared in the air.
Just as Yong Cheon-myeong summoned dragons separately, Jang Woo-hyun had drawn out only a fragment of his Microcosm’s power.
The giant sword moved, catching the falling giants before gently lowering them to the ground.
After safely rescuing every giant—
Jang Woo-hyun’s gaze turned toward Ban Un-hwang.
Where the gigantic body over twenty jang tall had once stood remained only a skeletal giant.
Though still over two jang tall, his body looked like someone who had starved for months.
He resembled a mummy.
That pitiful giant was Ban Un-hwang’s true form.
---
A tremendous power beyond martial arts.
At the hands of that incomprehensible force, hundreds of Blood Giant heads were severed instantly.
Everyone froze in shock at the sight of the giants suddenly spraying blood from their necks.
But while everyone else was stunned, Jin Ha-un thought of something else.
The sight of Jang Woo-hyun annihilating enemies with a single sword strike was not unfamiliar to him.
“One Sword, Instant Death.”
A new legend of the Central Plains.
He muttered the four-character title that once made the martial world roar with excitement.
Kururung.
The heavens split apart, and a gigantic sword descended to bind the colossal giant.
When Jang Woo-hyun approached him and extended his hand, the giant exploded apart and hundreds of giants spilled out.
The horrifying giant who radiated ominous energy.
Ban Un-hwang, the Sect Master of the Eternal Life Sect and the Giant King, collapsed without even managing to properly fight back once.
“……Divine Sword Invincible.”
Another title unconsciously escaped Jin Ha-un’s lips.
“I think I asked before, but what’s that supposed to mean?”
Seo Ryeom asked from beside him, causing Jin Ha-un—who had been muttering like a man possessed—to finally come back to his senses.
“Huh? What?”
“That stuff you keep saying. One Sword this, Invincible that.”
“That was my elder brother’s title in the Central Plains. The Lower Realm.”
“A title?”
“One Sword, Instant Death. Divine Sword Invincible Jang Woo-hyun. It was the title people in the Lower Realm gave him.”
“One Sword, Instant Death……”
The moment Seo Ryeom repeated the title aloud, everyone nearby nodded simultaneously as if by agreement.
There was no need for explanation after witnessing what had just happened.
“There’s probably no title more fitting than that. Divine Sword Invincible literally means there’s no enemy before the divine sword.”
One Sword, Instant Death. Divine Sword Invincible.
Those eight characters suited Jang Woo-hyun perfectly.
“Well, the title Thousand-Lin Sword Hero was way too weak for the Captain anyway.”
Thousand-Lin Sword Hero.
It was the title given to Jang Woo-hyun long ago by the beastkin he had rescued after seeing him wield the Dragon King Scale.
It was not a bad title, but to the martial artists of the Immortal-Slaying Division, it felt lacking.
“But are we all just gonna stand around chatting here?”
At Cho Su’s words, the people staring blankly at Jang Woo-hyun finally snapped back to reality.
“True enough. We should be doing something too. It’s been a while since we cleaned up small fry. Let’s go.”
“Martial Hero Seo, no sortie announcement today?”
“What sortie? We’re just cleaning up trash. We can skip it today.”
Jang Woo-hyun had only dealt with Ban Un-hwang and the Blood Giants.
There were still many enemies remaining on the battlefield, including the giants of the Great Human Nation.
But they did not even register in Seo Ryeom’s eyes.
The same was true for the Immortal-Slaying Division martial artists.
“Let’s just take it easy today. It’s trash cleanup.”
Seo Ryeom laughed as he moved out first, and the Immortal-Slaying Division martial artists eagerly followed after him.
“Hye, let’s go too.”
Jin Ha-un called out to Goon Yu-hye, but she did not answer.
“Goon Yu-hye, I said let’s go too.”
“Huh? O-oh. What?”
“I said let’s head to the battlefield too.”
“M-me too? You want me to fight too?”
“Of course. What, did you come here sightseeing?”
“Young Hero Jin, Yu-hye can stay here with me. I don’t think she’s adjusted yet.”
“Is that so? Understood.”
Jin Ha-un tilted his head at Goon Yu-hye’s dazed expression before heading outside.
“Yu-hye, pull yourself together a bit.”
“Huh? Y-yes. Sister, um…… was Martial Hero Jang always this strong?”
What shocked Goon Yu-hye was Jang Woo-hyun’s strength.
She knew he was strong, but she never imagined he was this strong.
It did not even look like he had used his full power, yet hundreds of heads flew off simultaneously.
A monster over twenty jang tall exploded apart instantly without even managing to properly attack once.
Among everyone Goon Yu-hye knew, there was only one person capable of displaying that level of power.
‘Master.’
The Heaven Reaching Lord, Seon Woo-baekrin.
Jang Woo-hyun reminded her of him.
‘No, there’s no way he’s at that level.’
Goon Yu-hye shook her head violently, denying the thought that had just crossed her mind.
Seon Woo-baekrin was one of the Six Heavens.
A sky of the Central Heavens Martial Realm, a powerhouse said to have stepped into the domain of gods.
There was no way Jang Woo-hyun could be comparable to him.
‘He’s just… stronger than other martial artists. A little— no, a lot stronger.’
Flustered, Goon Yu-hye forced herself to settle on that conclusion.
“Did Oppa’s strength shock you? Woo-hyun Oppa is strong. Not just his martial arts, but the person himself too.”
Yong Seo-hee had once seen Jang Woo-hyun oppose the power of the True Immortals while returning from the realm of the cultivators.
Regardless of the scale of power involved, the sight of him standing against True Immortals remained vividly etched in her memory.
“It’s burdensome going out there to fight, isn’t it? If you don’t want to fight, you don’t have to. You can stay here with me and guard the Great Thunder Fortress.”
Even Yong Seo-hee believed Jang Woo-hyun’s power and the Immortal-Slaying Division’s behavior would be shocking enough.
And for someone like Goon Yu-hye, who had lived only within the Thousand-Year Paradise, the shock must have been even greater.
“They all fight a bit fanatically…… but they’re not bad people.”
Yong Seo-hee hurriedly added the latter part in case Goon Yu-hye misunderstood the Immortal-Slaying Division.
Though admittedly, they really were a rather strange group.
Listening from beside her, Goon Yu-hye unconsciously nodded in agreement.
There truly was no better way to describe them than fighting fanatically.
‘How many sparring matches did we have on the way here again?’
The martial artists of the Immortal-Slaying Division were all insane.
Even when one of their comrades got beaten by Goon Yu-hye’s martial arts, they clapped in admiration.
Even after getting injured, they laughed happily.
Getting wounded and then challenging her again the next day was as natural to them as the sunrise.
Sometimes they even beat each other up while reviewing Goon Yu-hye’s martial arts.
Their daily lives consisted of fighting, training, and sparring.
Like lunatics obsessed with martial arts and combat.
Even after thinking it over again, Goon Yu-hye still found them bizarre as she looked across the battlefield.
“Uahahaha!”
“Come on!”
“Hey, idiot! Fight properly! Put some strength into it!”
“Uahahahaha!”
Sure enough, the Immortal-Slaying Division martial artists were tearing through the battlefield.
Every single one of them wore expressions of pure joy.
Goon Yu-hye simply could not understand the Immortal-Slaying Division.
No matter how she looked at it, from the Division Leader to the members, every last one of them was insane.
---
Thanks to the Immortal-Slaying Division’s efforts, the battlefield was cleaned up rapidly.
More than half the enemy forces died, and a significant number of the survivors were taken prisoner.
Only around twenty percent managed to flee the battlefield.
It was a complete victory for the Beast King Sect.
“Woo-hyun-ah!”
Now officially the Young Sect Leader of the Beast King Sect, Maeng Ye-ju ran toward Jang Woo-hyun.
Dan Yeong wanted to come along as well, but instead kept stumbling backward while whining.
Considering she had charged fearlessly even at the monstrous Ban Un-hwang, it was an unexpectedly pitiful sight.
Unable to do anything about it, Maeng Ye-ju greeted Jang Woo-hyun alone.
“You…… seriously. I don’t even know how much stronger you’ve become anymore.”
Maeng Ye-ju immediately noticed his growth.
She could not measure it precisely, but she could tell his strength had increased.
“It’s been a while.”
“Eight months? Nine months? Something around that. What do you mean ‘a while’? It’s not like eight or nine years passed.”
She strode over and hugged Jang Woo-hyun tightly.
Then she smacked his back repeatedly.
“I owe you again. If you hadn’t come, things really would’ve become disastrous. What even happened to you?”
“You should let go first if you want me to explain.”
“Ah, right.”
At his remark, Maeng Ye-ju loosened the grip that looked ready to crush his body.
“I recovered from my injuries at the Thousand-Year Paradise and received a good opportunity to train.”
Then he reunited with Cho Su, heard that the Beast King Sect was in trouble, and immediately came here.
Jang Woo-hyun briefly explained what had happened.
“Senior Maeng? Why are you making that face?”
Ever since he mentioned training, Maeng Ye-ju had been frowning deeply.
“What kind of training lets someone grow like that? Teach me that training method too.”
Understanding the reason behind her expression, Jang Woo-hyun let out a small laugh.
“Ye-ju!”
“Elder Sister!”
While the two were talking, the Immortal-Slaying Division martial artists approached, while the Beast King Sect’s leadership—including Dan Hong and Vice Sect Master Yeom Jong-myeong—also came forward.
Naturally, the atmosphere could only be good after receiving help in a moment of crisis.
The Beast King Sect began by expressing gratitude to the Immortal-Slaying Division, and the two groups exchanged greetings and checked on each other.
After the formalities ended, Maeng Ye-ju grew curious about Jang Woo-hyun’s next destination.
“What are you going to do now?”
“We’re attacking the Divine Dragon Clan.”
“Huh? O-oh. R-right……”
The answer was so unexpected that Maeng Ye-ju became flustered.
She never imagined something like this would be said here.
Even considering the heavy losses the Immortal-Slaying Division suffered at Yong Cheon-myeong’s hands, this was too sudden.
“Sword Hero, I understand you’ve grown stronger. But that is far too dangerous.”
Dan Hong voiced her concerns.
That kind of reaction was only natural when the opponent was the Dragon Emperor Heavenly Lord, Yong Cheon-myeong.
Dan Mun, who still gripped his sword tightly, and Dan Yeong, who remained far away in fear of Jang Woo-hyun, both shook their heads.
Everyone else in the Beast King Sect felt the same way.
But there was one exception.
Only Maeng Ye-ju thought differently.
“What are the odds?”
“High enough.”
“Good.”
Maeng Ye-ju grinned at Jang Woo-hyun.
Then she made up her mind as well.
“I’ll join too. No— we’ll join.”
“Young Sect Leader!”
“What are you saying?!”
Naturally, the Beast King Sect members immediately protested.
Putting aside the importance of the issue itself, the decision had been made far too quickly.
Were they deciding to wage war against the Divine Dragon Clan like they were simply visiting the neighbors?
“Ye-ju, this is not something to decide so lightly.”
Vice Sect Master Yeom Jong-myeong stepped forward.
Though he occupied the position of Vice Sect Master, he could never become the true leader of the Beast King Sect.
The Vice Sect Master position was originally meant to support the Sect Master as a strategist and administrator.
It was never viewed as the role of the second strongest martial artist.
Even if the Vice Sect Master possessed outstanding martial arts, that perception never changed.
Due to the nature of the position itself, the Beast King Sect could not exert the same strength with Yeom Jong-myeong alone as it could when the Sect Master was healthy.
But Young Sect Leader Maeng Ye-ju was different.
She was fully capable of becoming the focal point replacing the Sect Master, and someone the disciples could rally behind.
During this war, Maeng Ye-ju had earned the recognition of the beastkin.
Now, every decision and every word she spoke carried enormous weight.
The Beast King Sect disciples would follow Maeng Ye-ju over even Vice Sect Master Yeom Jong-myeong or the elders.
That was why her choices and words mattered so greatly.
Deciding to fight the Divine Dragon Clan this casually was unacceptable.
To everyone else, it looked as though Maeng Ye-ju had reached her conclusion without any hesitation whatsoever.
“From what I can see, this is completely possible. Honestly, it may even be better to strike now. Neither the Divine Dragon Clan nor the Sovereign Clan will expect us to launch an immediate attack.”
She swallowed the words she almost spoke aloud.
‘Once the target is decided, we attack.’
From the moment Jang Woo-hyun declared his target, Maeng Ye-ju had already prepared herself to charge forward.
After all, she was both the Young Sect Leader of the Beast King Sect and a member of the Immortal-Slaying Division.
And Maeng Ye-ju trusted Jang Woo-hyun.
A man who would rush alone against overwhelming enemies for the sake of his comrades would never drag the Immortal-Slaying Division into a battle without a chance of victory.
“If everyone thinks it’s too dangerous, I’ll move independently by myself.”
“That’s unacceptable.”
“Young Sect Leader, you cannot say such things.”
The Beast King Sect had no intention of watching their Young Sect Leader throw herself into danger alone.
Arguments continued for quite some time, and after realizing they could not persuade Maeng Ye-ju, the Beast King Sect finally brought up a realistic concern.
“Will it only be the Immortal-Slaying Division and us moving together? Then our numbers are far too few. The Divine Dragon Clan and the Sovereign Clan are working together.”
It was an extremely realistic problem.
Even though the Immortal-Slaying Division was strong, it was not enough to challenge one of the Ten Sects Three Clans alone.
With only the Beast King Sect and the Immortal-Slaying Division, opposing both clans would be difficult.
Several more discussions followed, but none of them could truly be called solutions.
Unable to think of an answer, Jang Woo-hyun considered simply attacking alone.
If he moved alone, he could just destroy everything in his path without concern or slowly wear down their forces through repeated assaults.
As he seriously contemplated just going by himself, Jang Woo-hyun suddenly remembered Sama Jeong’s advice.
-The comrades traveling alongside Martial Warrior Jang all possess abilities of their own. Trust them.
‘Right. They’re all exceptional people.’
He did not need to think alone.
Jang Woo-hyun had comrades.
They simply needed to put their heads together.
“Cho Su-nim, is there any method?”
“Thank goodness.”
“Huh? What is?”
“I was worried you’d charge in alone again.”
Because Jang Woo-hyun was the type to leap forward first whenever his comrades were in danger, Cho Su could not help thinking that way.
Jang Woo-hyun flinched internally at Cho Su’s words but outwardly pretended nothing was wrong.
“Why would I go alone?”
“As long as that’s true, then it’s fine.”
Cho Su was grateful that Jang Woo-hyun had sought his advice.
Not only had his martial arts grown, but Jang Woo-hyun himself had matured as a person.
Compared to before, his trust in his comrades had become much stronger.
“Don’t worry. There’s a method.”
Cho Su offered a solution to the Jang Woo-hyun who trusted him.
After all, he had already thought of one.
“What method?”
“You know all the things you—and we—have done until now, right?”
The people Jang Woo-hyun and the Immortal-Slaying Division had once helped would now help them in return.
That was the power of connections.
The very thing they had built together until now.