Chapter 297 : Immortal Realm
Chapter 297: Immortal Realm
Shock and disbelief surfaced in Yong Cheon-myeong’s eyes.
After witnessing Yong Moon-geuk being utterly overwhelmed, he had expected Jang Woo-hyun to have grown stronger.
But not to this extent.
The fact that he could no longer properly gauge Jang Woo-hyun’s strength meant that Jang Woo-hyun had reached a realm comparable to his own.
‘Unacceptable!’
When they first met, Jang Woo-hyun had been nothing more than an amusing insect.
Something he could crush at any moment simply by extending a hand.
And now that existence had climbed to the same realm as himself.
He could not believe it.
No—
He refused to acknowledge it.
An ordinary human should never possess such absurd talent.
Grrrrrr—
Responding to Yong Cheon-myeong’s emotions, dozens of dragons raised their heads.
The dragons moved according to his will even without commands.
At the same time, they opened their mouths and unleashed their breaths.
Fire and ice, wind and lightning, poison and acidic clouds.
Each one filled the air with overwhelming power.
In response, Jang Woo-hyun raised a hand.
With the tiniest movement, more than ten enormous swords—each larger than most dragons—rose into the air and formed a single shield.
Kwaaaang!
The shield Jang Woo-hyun created blocked the dragons’ breath attacks without difficulty.
The next attack followed immediately.
A gigantic horned dragon resembling a bull rammed into the shield and shattered it, while from the sky descended a massive sword like the blade of a guillotine.
Kwajik!
The head of a dragon as large as Yong Moon-geuk was severed instantly.
Instead of blood, tens of thousands of snakes poured out from the severed neck.
Watching the snakes fly toward him like a rain of arrows, Jang Woo-hyun summoned Baek Mu.
Out of habit, he stepped forward and swung his sword.
At the same moment, tens of thousands of floating swords around him unleashed slashes together.
Midnight Three Swords, Black Wolf Fang.
As tens of thousands of crescent-shaped slashes covered the sky, the approaching snakes were torn apart.
【Burn.】
At Yong Cheon-myeong’s declaration, one side of the Minor Universe rippled.
What emerged were fire dragons covered entirely in crimson scales.
The dragons exhaled flames from their maws with every breath.
The world turned red.
Everywhere the eye could see became filled with fire.
Jang Woo-hyun stepped forward and thrust Baek Mu ahead.
Then he rotated the tip of the sword as though drawing a circle.
Small Wheel of the Three Wheel Sword Art.
The countless floating swords around him also began drawing circles.
Originally, it was a flexible sword technique meant to redirect or deflect attacks.
But now, the countless circles appearing simultaneously dispersed every attack entirely.
The flames vanished the instant they touched the circles.
After extinguishing the incoming inferno, Jang Woo-hyun immediately counterattacked.
As his will surged forth, the blades filling the world responded.
Countless spears rose like cavalry and raced through the sky, while arrows poured down like torrential rain.
There was no need to draw Dragon King Scale.
Within the Minor Universe Jang Woo-hyun created, the entire world itself was a weapon.
When he stretched out his hand, gigantic swords the size of Mount Tai descended from the heavens.
From the earth rose mountains composed of tens of millions of blades.
Even mythical dragons and legendary serpents could not stop Jang Woo-hyun’s blades from cutting and destroying everything.
Every collision between the scaled beasts and the silver army of blades caused the two Minor Universes to ripple violently.
Dragons were sliced apart.
Serpents lost their heads.
Swords shattered.
Spears broke.
Yet every time that happened, new dragons and serpents filled the space, while fresh blades emerged once more.
It was an endless war.
【Die.】
The world trembled at Yong Cheon-myeong’s suppressed voice.
The dragons and serpents tangled together across the sky and formed new land as they raised their heads.
Countless colorful dragons and serpents radiated savage killing intent.
At the same time, brilliant and violent energies filled the entire space.
Watching the dazzling yet brutal powers rushing toward him, Jang Woo-hyun drew back the hand holding Baek Mu.
Wooooong.
Baek Mu glowed and trembled.
At the same time, the cries emitted by the countless floating swords shook the heavens.
Every sword carried immense power.
A pleasant vibration transmitted from the blade.
Jang Woo-hyun thrust forward the arm he had drawn back.
Light flashed from the tip of Baek Mu, and the countless floating swords also released brilliant radiance.
Half the world became dyed in countless colors.
The other half filled with pure light.
Then the world exploded.
---
The Demon-Immortal Slaughter Division, the Beast King Sect vanguard, and the young Sun Palace martial artists following Young Palace Master Hwa Jin-myung—
Even combined, they numbered fewer than four hundred.
Compared to the Divine Dragon Family’s forces, it was a ridiculously small number.
But the number of experts was different.
Yong Woon, who had appeared after receiving Yong Seo-hee’s request, occupied the remaining elder.
That left the Divine Dragon Family with only the Clan Head and three members of the Divine Dragon Eight Swords.
In comparison, the Demon-Immortal Slaughter Division’s side had Gongsun Jung-rak, Seo Ryeom, Mak Ya-wol, Seon Tae-gyeong, Dan Moon of the Beast King Sect, and even Cheok Hwa-hong and Hwa Jin-myung of the Sun Palace.
Even with Golden Scale Dragon King Yong Wi-gun—one of the Seventeen Emperors—it was difficult to predict victory on this battlefield.
Moreover, even though the Divine Dragon Family had greater numbers, it did not help much.
The Demon-Immortal Slaughter Division possessed a weapon capable of overwhelming sheer numbers.
Ku-guung!
The floating fortress firmly supporting the Demon-Immortal Slaughter Division from behind.
The power of the Great Thunder Fortress, which continuously unleashed countless artifacts and treasures, rivaled that of a respectable mid-sized sect.
That was not merely a mobile fortress.
It was the pinnacle of Gigantic Kingdom technology, practically equivalent to a supreme artifact itself.
Whenever light flashed from the Great Thunder Fortress’s batteries, one section of the Divine Dragon Family’s formation collapsed.
Hundreds of martial artists vanished without a trace from a single attack.
Yong Wi-gun, who fought while covered in golden scales, gradually twisted his face in frustration.
Meanwhile, Gongsun Jung-rak, Seo Ryeom, and Mak Ya-wol laughed loudly as they charged at him.
“You insect-like bastards!”
He wanted to rip them apart instantly, but it was not easy.
The combined assault of the three attacking as one could not be treated lightly.
‘The Divine Dragon must arrive.’
Yong Cheon-myeong needed to appear.
Only then would this situation be resolved.
Even without Yong Cheon-myeong, Yong Wi-gun did not believe they would lose.
But even if they won in the current situation, the damage would be catastrophic.
They might lose more than half their forces.
‘Why have you not arrived yet?’
He had sent signal after signal to Yong Cheon-myeong, but received no response.
As though something had delayed him on the way.
‘Did he encounter that man?’
The thought crossed his mind, but Yong Wi-gun quickly rejected it.
He knew Heavenly Scale Sword Hero Jang Woo-hyun was strong.
But there was no way he could oppose Yong Cheon-myeong.
Yong Cheon-myeong was the sky of the Middle Heavens Murim.
Only the monster of the Demon Suppression Hall could stand against him.
And now they had already found a method to deal with even that monster.
There was no way Yong Cheon-myeong could have been delayed by someone like Jang Woo-hyun.
‘There must be another reason.’
He convinced himself that Yong Cheon-myeong was merely delayed for some unknown reason.
If they endured just a little longer, Yong Cheon-myeong would surely arrive.
Yong Wi-gun firmly believed that.
---
World collided against world.
Had the Minor Universes not existed, a portion of the Middle Heaven Realm itself would have been annihilated from the collision.
After the massive explosion, Yong Cheon-myeong prepared his next attack.
Behind him floated five dragons formed from the Five Elements.
Red Fire Dragon.
Blue Wood Dragon.
Black Water Dragon.
White Metal Dragon.
Yellow Earth Dragon.
The five differently colored dragons bit one another’s tails and formed a gigantic circle.
Golden light emerged from within the circle and enveloped Yong Cheon-myeong, causing his appearance to change.
Golden scales appeared upon the portions of his face and hands visible outside his clothing, while sharp fangs lined his protruding mouth.
Originally, he already possessed vertical pupils and horns despite his human form.
Now he stood midway between dragon and human.
Pajijik! Pajik!
Between the golden scales writhed lightning—the strongest force between heaven and earth.
Lightning shaped like dragons coiled around Yong Cheon-myeong.
Opening his Minor Universe had not been the end.
Within the Minor Universe, Yong Cheon-myeong transformed himself further to unleash even greater power.
The moment Jang Woo-hyun met Yong Cheon-myeong’s eyes—
His figure vanished.
Kwa-gwagwagwang!
Only afterward came the explosion and thunderous roar.
The entire world became dyed with lightning.
The swords flying around Jang Woo-hyun exploded apart, and the blade-filled world itself began melting.
Swords worthy of being called divine weapons.
Blades comparable to supreme artifacts.
All shattered instantly.
The Minor Universe itself was being destroyed.
This was destruction unlike anything he had ever felt before.
Its power could not be described merely by saying it was strong.
Right now, Yong Cheon-myeong could reduce an enormous floating continent to dust with a single punch.
Kwaang! Kwaaaang!
Jang Woo-hyun defended with Baek Mu against Yong Cheon-myeong’s attacks.
Every collision blasted him dozens of li backward, and each time a massive trail of lightning carved through the world of blades.
With both Yong Cheon-myeong and Jang Woo-hyun having opened their Minor Universes, the world had split in two.
One side was filled with dragons and serpents.
The other side contained only blades.
The perfectly divided world gradually began changing due to Yong Cheon-myeong’s power.
The blade-filled domain slowly shrank.
【Regret opposing the great bloodline.】
Pushing Jang Woo-hyun back, Yong Cheon-myeong opened his mouth and stretched out his hand.
Light and lightning capable of illuminating the world burst from his body.
Thunder Roaring Silver Galaxy.
Between Myriad Dragon Heavenly Nest Cave and Blade Mountain Sword Forest—
Another Minor Universe momentarily formed, filled entirely with thunder and lightning.
The dragons and serpents filling the world burned alive or exploded under the lightning.
The countless blades filling the opposite side were also all destroyed.
Jang Woo-hyun defended with Baek Mu while being endlessly pushed backward.
Though being overwhelmed by the massive force, he did not panic.
Yong Cheon-myeong had sat among the Six Great Heavens for countless years.
Even if Jang Woo-hyun’s talent was extraordinary, he could not catch up instantly.
But Jang Woo-hyun continuously grew stronger while fighting.
The gap between them was steadily narrowing.
Moreover, Jang Woo-hyun possessed another trait unlike any other martial artist.
He always unleashed power beyond others of the same realm.
Even after reaching the Immortal Realm, that remained true.
Chrrrrk.
From the shattered Minor Universe, new blades rose.
Countless weapons floated into the air.
According to Jang Woo-hyun’s will, the innumerable weapons moved rapidly.
The weapons unleashed martial techniques.
Those techniques overlapped upon one another, forming a single pattern.
Nayuta Sword Mandala.
Jang Woo-hyun’s unique technique created by layering martial arts together.
And a martial art possessing overwhelming destructive power.
The Nayuta Sword Mandala capable of blocking even the power of True Immortals unfolded now.
Brilliant mandala patterns rose throughout the Minor Universe.
Ten.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Forty……
Before long, hundreds of large and small mandala patterns filled the Minor Universe completely.
Toward Yong Cheon-myeong, who charged forward wrapped in a gigantic thunder dragon, Jang Woo-hyun swung Baek Mu.
Hundreds of patterns unleashed their respective martial arts simultaneously.
Beyond tens of millions—
Beyond hundreds of millions.
It was as though countless martial artists poured every ounce of their power toward the incoming thunder dragon.
Kwa-rurururung!
The collision with the thunder dragon caused the entire world to convulse.
The blade domain that had shrunk endlessly from being pushed back expanded once more.
Even after being bombarded by hundreds of mandala patterns, Yong Cheon-myeong remained unharmed, merely pushed backward.
Then his power surged again.
Yet even seeing that, Jang Woo-hyun felt no fear.
‘I can win.’
This was different from before.
When they first met, the gap between their strengths had been so vast he could not even comprehend Yong Cheon-myeong’s power.
The second time they met, he had only fled while being crushed beneath that overwhelming force.
He had even wanted to give up.
But today was different.
Their third meeting.
Jang Woo-hyun no longer feared Yong Cheon-myeong.
He did not even think about losing.
He believed absolutely that he could win.
Responding to Jang Woo-hyun’s resolve, five-colored wheels appeared behind him and began rotating.
Previously, they had merely amplified power according to the principle of Five Elements mutual generation.
But now it was different.
He recreated something he once failed to imitate.
The five wheels gradually expanded.
Around them appeared the four seasons.
Beyond the four seasons appeared heaven, earth, and sea.
And beyond those three spaces revolved enormous black and white energies.
---
Unlike before, the world of blades had shrunk greatly in both power and territory.
Within that place, the energies of the Five Elements appeared.
Then came the four seasons.
Then heaven, earth, and sea.
And outside the vast world revolved light and darkness, yin and yang.
Yong Cheon-myeong knew this Minor Universe well.
He had already seen it once before.
【…….】
It was not perfectly recreated.
But neither was it merely imitation.
Though incomplete, it was undeniably another Minor Universe.
Jang Woo-hyun had recreated Sword Heavenly Lord Jang Sam-bong’s Minor Universe, Circulating Taiji.
Even Yong Cheon-myeong had never experienced one person opening two Minor Universes simultaneously.
Witnessing such absurd talent caused the anger inside him to fade instead.
The lightning surrounding Yong Cheon-myeong disappeared as his form returned to normal.
【Remarkable.】
For the first time, Yong Cheon-myeong sincerely acknowledged Jang Woo-hyun.
He no longer regarded him as merely a growing insect.
Now he viewed him as an equal martial artist.
And thus, he resolved to use everything he possessed against him.
Would Yong Cheon-myeong, who had lived for countless years, truly have no hidden trump card?
Though it had not originally been prepared for Jang Woo-hyun, he finally revealed it.
At some point, a plain and unremarkable scabbard had appeared in Yong Cheon-myeong’s hand.
The sword drawn from it was equally ordinary.
A sword one could easily find at any blacksmith shop in a marketplace.
Yet unlike its simple appearance, the power within it was anything but ordinary.
The moment the blade was drawn, the entire world resonated.
Holding the sword in reverse grip, Yong Cheon-myeong—
Puuk.
Stabbed it into his own chest.
At the same time, white light erupted from the blade.
【Come to me.】
Hwoook.
At those brief words, the dragons and serpents filling the world were sucked into Yong Cheon-myeong.
It all happened in a single instant.