Chapter 190
Jaseong charged forward once more.
'Heaven Evading Phantom Step, Hundred Phantoms in Riot (百影亂舞).'
Shushushushuk!
Jaseong's form began to split.
Ten, twenty, fifty...
In an instant, over a hundred phantoms surrounded True Person Cheongho.
Sword strikes rained down from every direction; every trajectory exuded murderous intent as if they were all real.
"Is it the same trick again?"
True Person Cheongho closed his eyes.
He sought out the real killing intent with his mind's eye.
Within the hundred or so phantoms, he detected a single, genuine energy.
'Found it.'
True Person Cheongho swung his sword.
He targeted the upper left, the third phantom—
Chang!
The swords collided.
It was definitely real.
But...
'?!'
True Person Cheongho's eyes widened.
Among the hundred illusions, there were two more with real murderous intent.
At that very moment, a sword tip flew in from the right and grazed his flank.
Sseup—!
"Urgh!"
His robe was torn, and fresh blood spattered.
True Person Cheongho quickly twisted his body and withdrew.
And, as soon as he looked back at Jaseong, his eyes widened even further.
There were three Jaseongs.
"... What kind of sorcery is this?"
Seeing Jaseong's clones, True Person Cheongho could not hide his confusion.
There had never been martial arts capable of creating actual clones in the world.
This was precisely the battle tactic Jaseong had conceived.
He had fooled the eye with phantom steps, and in that gap, used the clone step to create three real bodies.
And, while True Person Cheongho, as before, let his guard down believing they were all illusions, he created clones among the phantoms.
It was a perfect trap, indistinguishable even to the mind's eye.
"This time, they are not illusions, True Person Cheongho."
"This time, they are not illusions, True Person Cheongho."
"This time, they are not illusions, True Person Cheongho."
All three Jaseongs spoke at once.
At this bizarre spectacle, True Person Cheongho felt as if he were dreaming.
In the next instant, the three Jaseongs swung their swords in unison.
'Heaven Evading Flash Sword, Third Stroke, Hundred Descending Calamities!'
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!
Lightning-like sword aura poured in from three directions at once.
True Person Cheongho exploded his entire internal energy.
"Plum Flower Armor!"
Red energy wrapped his body like a shield.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang! Ku-kwang!
But it was impossible to block all three attacks.
The sword aura broke through the energy.
His shoulder, thigh, and flank were cut.
"Guh!"
True Person Cheongho bled and let out a groan.
Missing no opportunity, the three Jaseongs moved again.
This time, he unfolded the phantom steps once more.
A hundred phantoms and three real bodies mingled and surrounded True Person Cheongho.
"Plum Blossom Full Bloom!"
True Person Cheongho desperately swung his sword.
Plum blossoms made of Sword Ki spread everywhere.
He erased the phantoms.
But the three real bodies were not erased.
Chang! Chaeng! Chang!
True Person Cheongho's sword blocked the attacks from Jaseong and his clones one after another.
But his arm grew heavier and heavier.
His internal energy was running dry.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
As Jaseong and True Person Cheongho clashed in fierce battle, the ground split and boulders shattered.
The surroundings were already scorched earth.
Neither the Murim Alliance warriors nor the Evil Path Association demonic heads dared approach this forbidden zone.
How many thousands of exchanges had they traded?
"Huff...!"
At a certain moment, True Person Cheongho's sword tip wavered.
Not missing this opening, the Jaseong on the left slipped in.
'Heaven Evading Flash Sword Second Technique, Ultimate Heaven Evading Shadowless Slash!'
Swiik!
The sword tip that leapt through space pierced True Person Cheongho's shoulder.
"Aaaargh!"
True Person Cheongho's sword fell from his grip.
He staggered and dropped to his knees.
"Stand aside. I don't wish to continue a meaningless fight."
Jaseong spoke coldly.
He did not want to kill True Person Cheongho.
Though a hypocrite, he was at least not a vile villain like Namgung Cheon-rui.
However, True Person Cheongho picked up his sword and stood again.
Though his legs trembled, his gaze remained unbroken.
"I will not step aside... Even if I joined hands with evil to stop evil, keeping that promise is also chivalry."
Seeing True Person Cheongho rise while bleeding, Jaseong made up his mind.
"If you won't stand aside, then I have no choice but to cut you down."
Jaseong said coldly.
At the moment he moved to attack again—
Chang—!
A blue sword aura like lightning shot forth and knocked aside Jaseong's sword.
It carried immense internal power, enough to seem as if it would twist space itself.
"?!"
Jaseong was forced back several steps.
The shock caused the two clones he maintained to dissolve like smoke and merge back into a single body.
"True Person Cheongho! Are you all right?!"
With a booming voice, a man stepped in front of True Person Cheongho.
A dazzling blue robe, elaborately embroidered with golden threads in a dragon pattern.
It was the Murim Alliance Leader, Namgung Cheon-rui.
At his appearance, the battlefield fell silent for a moment before cheers from the orthodox warriors erupted.
"The alliance leader has stepped forward personally!"
It was a dramatic entrance, as if a hero had saved a comrade in crisis.
The morale of the Murim Alliance soared in an instant.
True Person Cheongho, bleeding, managed to open his eyes with great difficulty.
Namgung Cheon-rui's broad back came into his field of vision.
Yet, True Person Cheongho's eyes were filled more with bitterness than gratitude.
Namgung Cheon-rui's robe was spotless, not a speck of dust on him.
His breath was not disturbed, nor had a single bead of sweat formed.
Seeing this, True Person Cheongho realized.
'He was waiting until the association leader exhausted his strength.'
Namgung Cheon-rui had been watching from the sidelines all along.
While True Person Cheongho put his life on the line battling Jaseong and exhausting his internal energy, Namgung Cheon-rui had simply crossed his arms and observed from the dais.
And only now, as Jaseong's energy neared depletion and True Person Cheongho was on the verge of death, did he appear, acting the hero and savior.
"Kuh..."
True Person Cheongho let out a bitter laugh.
Cough, dark blood mixed with laughter spilled from his lips.
It was both self-mockery and bitter disillusionment at the hypocritical alliance leader.
Namgung Cheon-rui ignored the sarcasm even though he understood it.
He gently tapped True Person Cheongho's shoulder and backed him away.
"Rest now, True Person Cheongho. This unorthodox demon—I, as alliance leader, shall handle."
He acted as though a kind superior was encouraging his subordinate.
That attitude left an even more bitter smile on True Person Cheongho's lips.
But at that moment,
"What a despicable coward you are."
Suddenly, Jaseong's cold voice resounded across the battlefield.
A frosty sneer curved his lips.
"To watch your comrade bleed from the back and only step in now... Is that the righteous loyalty your orthodox sects boast of?"
At Jaseong's words, Namgung Cheon-rui's eyes turned chilling.
"Coward? And who are you, an evil heretic, to utter the word coward?"
Namgung Cheon-rui's murderous intent surged toward Jaseong.
Sensing that intent, Jaseong quickly assessed his own condition.
Only a quarter of the internal power in his dantian remained.
This showed just how fierce the fight with True Person Cheongho had been.
A duel with a peerless master who had set foot in the transformation realm could leave even Jaseong nearly depleted.
'If there's a relief, it's that I haven't opened the Eleventh Gate Opening Heaven yet... But...'
The situation was not favorable.
In his current state, it would be difficult to defeat Namgung Cheon-rui.
Namgung Cheon-rui was at his peak, while Jaseong was exhausted after a protracted battle.
Moreover, Namgung Cheon-rui was a world-class expert who had entered the transformation realm far earlier than Jaseong, with abundant experience and internal power.
Namgung Cheon-rui saw through Jaseong's state at a glance.
His eyes gleamed like a predator certain of victory.
"You seem to be struggling, Evil Path Association Leader. Was the battle with True Person Cheongho that difficult?"
Namgung Cheon-rui slowly drew his sword.
Seureureung—
With a clear ringing, a blue glow adorned a famous sword.
It was the Azure Sky Sword (蒼天劍), the treasured blade that only the Namgung Clan head could wield.
"Gasping for breath—how pitiful. Don't worry. I'll let you rest in peace."
Namgung Cheon-rui leisurely raised his sword, releasing fierce killing intent from his body.
Kuuuuung!
His internal power rolled in like waves, pressing down on Jaseong.
The very air became so heavy it was difficult to breathe.
The surrounding warriors held their breath.
The mere force of his presence rendered even 1st-rate experts unable to move.
The critical pinch.
Yet Jaseong's eyes did not waver.
On the contrary, they shone even colder—and hotter.
'Almost there.'
Jaseong ground his teeth.
'If I can just cut down that man... My revenge against the orthodox sects will be complete. And Heaven's Mandate is nearly fulfilled. The terminus of my entire journey is right there.'
He could not retreat.
Were he to fall here, he would have no face to see his dead older brother and sister-in-law, or the comrades who trusted and followed him.
'If the Eleventh Gate is not enough, then even the Twelfth Gate.'
Jaseong gripped the Wicked Flame Sword once again.
Black flames blazed along the sword hilt.
The Wicked Flame Sword hummed, resonating with its master's resolve.
Uuuuuung—!
The two men's energy collided intensely.
Namgung Cheon-rui's blue sword aura clashed with Jaseong's dazzling golden immortal energy in midair, creating an invisible storm.
The atmosphere trembled.
The ground split, flinging stone fragments into the air.
Surrounding warriors were caught in the shockwave, shrieking and tumbling away.
"Die!"
Namgung Cheon-rui moved first.
Blue lightning-like sword aura shot from his sword.
"Imperial Sword Form Fifth Technique, Azure Sky Divine Thunder Sword!"
Kwa-reureung!
A sword strike like thunder falling from the heavens surged toward Jaseong.
It was the supreme ultimate move of the Namgung Clan, a secret passed down only to the clan head.
Facing this, Jaseong drew up what little internal power he had left.
He ignited every bit of power he had stored in the depths of his dantian, as well as all his innate true ki in the middle dantian.
'Celestial Gate Opening Art, Eleventh Gate Opening Heaven.'
Kuaaaa!
Explosive energy burst from Jaseong's body.
The moment the Eleventh Gate opened, blinding golden ki radiated from his entire being.
In that state, Jaseong clashed directly with Namgung Cheon-rui.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!
The two swords collided head-on, and with a thunderous explosion, a pillar of light soared skyward.
A shockwave swept across the battlefield.
Both Jaseong and Namgung Cheon-rui were thrown backward.
Jaseong twisted in midair and landed, his feet scraping across the ground, dragged back more than ten zhang.
Namgung Cheon-rui spun and touched down gracefully.
His expression still appeared calm, but his sword hand trembled ever so slightly.
'Just as I thought... Namgung Cheon-rui is stronger than True Person Cheongho...!'
Jaseong's hand tingled.
Even after opening the Eleventh Gate, he could not overpower Namgung Cheon-rui's sword.
Namgung Cheon-rui also twitched his eyes, a flash of dismay glinting across his gaze for the first time.
"Your energy was even greater than when you fought True Person Cheongho. To think you saved your strength against the Mount Hua Sect Leader..."
He had to acknowledge that he had underestimated Jaseong.
Deflecting his ultimate move head-on despite such exhaustion—this man was a monster.
Namgung Cheon-rui's gaze turned ice-cold.
This was no time for composure.
If left alive, this man would one day be the greatest threat to him.
"You truly must die. If left alive, calamity will take root."
Namgung Cheon-rui placed his left hand over his chest.
Then, slowly, he began to draw out internal energy from the very depths of his being.