Chapter 192
Pusshk!
Amidst the cruel sound of flesh being ripped apart, Namgung Cheon-rui's eyes widened.
The Wicked Flame Sword pierced straight through his chest.
Black flames were burning his heart.
"This body... this body...?"
Namgung Cheon-rui muttered in disbelief.
Blood spouted up like a fountain, and the light in his pupils gradually faded.
Jaseong spoke in a cold tone.
"Namgung Cheon-rui. In hell, the countless people who died by your schemes will be waiting for you."
"Kuh-hlk...?!"
"Take the punishment you deserve."
Jaseong pulled out his sword.
Puh-uk!
Blood erupted like a fountain.
Namgung Cheon-rui's body stumbled backward.
He looked up at the sky.
His vision began to blur.
'How did this body, once called the World's Greatest, end up like this... so empty...'
Namgung Cheon-rui's body slowly toppled forward.
Thud.
That was the end.
The Murim Alliance leader, Namgung Cheon-rui.
The heaven-level expert once called the Greatest Sword under Heaven had finally breathed his last.
Jaseong watched the scene with an expressionless face.
He too was not unharmed.
Blood flowed from every part of his body, while the pain of shattered bones and torn flesh wrapped his entire being.
The side effects of the Twelve Gates Opening had reached their peak.
But Jaseong didn't care.
'I did it... finally...'
In that moment, he recalled the vow he had made in front of his eldest brother's grave.
To become an expert who would reign over the world, and annihilate both the orthodox and demonic factions that had caused his elder brother and sister-in-law's deaths.
With the death of the Murim Alliance leader, he had accomplished half that vow.
The boy who no one ever expected to rise from the very bottom of the Red Light District had finally brought down the greatest evil in the jianghu.
'Now, only the Demonic Cult remains...'
Yet that joy was brief, for at that very moment, the sound of footsteps echoed from every direction.
Jaseong lifted his head.
Though his vision was blurred, he could see dozens of human silhouettes surrounding him.
They were experts of the orthodox sects.
An elder from the Wudang approached.
Behind him, elders of Zhongnan, Qingcheng, and Emei all drew their swords.
Their eyes were filled with rage and murderous intent.
"Evil Path Association Leader... This monster-like fiend...! How dare you strike down the alliance leader!"
The Wudang elder raised his sword in anger.
"He is an abominable fiend! Cut him down at once!"
"Kill him! Avenge the alliance leader!"
Unfortunately, Jaseong had no strength left to repel the orthodox sect experts closing in.
In fact, it was a miracle he hadn't fainted already.
He could not move even a single finger.
But—
Jaseong, swaying, squeezed out the utmost of his strength to rise to his feet.
His gaze had not lost its light.
He had finally defeated the giant of evil, Namgung Cheon-rui.
Now, only the Demonic Cult remained.
But he could not die so futilely here.
'The Demonic Cult still remains... I must destroy them... Only then can I truly complete my revenge for my eldest brother and sister-in-law...'
With a gaze burning with venomous energy, Jaseong raised his sword.
Even covered in blood, his presence did not waver, and even the orthodox experts faltered instinctively.
At that moment—
"Stop!"
A desperate shout rang out from somewhere.
Jaseong and the orthodox experts all turned their heads.
From the edge of the battlefield, dozens of monks and beggars were running over.
Leading them was an elderly monk with white hair.
It was Master Hye-gong, a high elder of Shaolin.
Alongside him were division chiefs of the Beggar's Union, each wielding a great cudgel.
They were the "Anti-Murim Alliance" faction, furious after hearing of Namgung Cheon-rui's misdeeds at the last Hero Assembly summoned by Jaseong.
Master Hye-gong stood in front of the orthodox experts.
"Enough! Any more bloodshed is meaningless!"
The Wudang elder protested in fury.
"Master Hye-gong! What are you saying! That man is the one who murdered the alliance leader! He is the mortal enemy of all the orthodox sects!"
But Master Hye-gong shook his head firmly.
"Was Alliance Leader Namgung Cheon-rui truly a righteous man? He assassinated Master Hyun Gong, the abbot of our Shaolin! How can one who murders his own peer for power be called alliance leader?!"
Zhang Daebong, a division chief of the Beggar's Union, slammed his great cudgel to the ground.
"He's right! Namgung Cheon-rui also assassinated the former leader of our Beggar's Union, Meng Hojul! Both Shaolin and the Beggar's Union have obtained clear evidence of his crimes! That's why we couldn't join the battle until we confirmed the truth!"
Monks and beggars all shouted in unison.
"Will you still call Namgung Cheon-rui, who murdered your own former leaders, alliance leader and follow him?!"
"The alliance leader is dead; there's no reason to fight anymore!"
"See the truth! Who is the real evil?!"
At the cries of the Shaolin monks and Beggar's Union division chiefs, the orthodox experts began to waver.
'If even Shaolin's high monks and the Beggar's Union's chiefs say so...'
'Does this mean Namgung Cheon-rui really committed those atrocities...!'
Again, master Hye-gong spoke.
"Now, sheath your swords. What will fighting any longer accomplish? Only grudges and corpses will remain."
Silence fell.
Only the sound of the wind echoed mournfully across the battlefield.
After a long while, the Wudang elder let out a sigh and lowered his sword.
"... Withdraw. There's no justification or reason to fight any longer."
Orthodox experts began to put away their weapons one by one.
At that moment, more newcomers appeared.
"Leader!"
They were the leaders of the Evil Path Association: Heavenly Black Sword Venerable, White Bone Spirit Monarch, Lord of Ten Thousand Poisons, and others.
They were all drenched in blood from their battles with the sect masters of the Nine Sects-One Union.
But each of them still had strength left.
Seeing them, the orthodox experts quickly and quietly retreated without another word.
Jaseong watched this situation with blurred vision.
'I was fortunate...'
As the tension faded, Jaseong's consciousness began to darken.
At last, he collapsed to the ground.
Thud.
Seeing Jaseong fallen, the leaders of the unorthodox factions were all left speechless.
Single-handedly, he had defeated both True Person Cheongho, sect leader of Mount Hua, and Namgung Cheon-rui, alliance leader of the Murim Alliance.
He had brought down, alone, two of the top experts of the orthodox world.
The World's Greatest, who had emerged from the lowest depths of the underground, brought down the orthodox Murim Alliance.
This moment would never be forgotten by the jianghu.
* * *
Immediately after the struggle with Namgung Cheon-rui ended.
Before the heat of battle had even cooled, Jaseong's consciousness sunk into pitch-black darkness.
Twelve Gates Opening.
The price for forcibly drawing in the power of the Celestial Realm—something no human body could endure—was harsh indeed.
The meridians throughout his body were shredded, and the dantian was emptied, like a dried-up well.
"Great hero! Great hero!"
Lee Rin's urgent voice faded into the distance.
Thus, Jaseong was brought to a secret safe house of the Hao Sect nearby.
The most deep and quiet chamber.
There, Jaseong did not awake for three days and nights.
"......"
Lee Rin did not leave Jaseong's side for even a moment.
Her hands never stopped moving.
She desperately poured over the *Eternal Medical Sutra* left by the Eternal Divine Physician, using it as reference in her frantic effort to heal.
'He fought True Person Cheongho, then Namgung Cheon-rui right after... no way his body could've held out.'
With trembling hands, Lee Rin checked Jaseong's pulse.
His pulse was irregular and faint.
The energy within him was tangled in chaos, pushing him to the brink of not only ki deviation, but utter ruin.
"Please... just open your eyes..."
Lee Rin muttered so as she drew out her silver needles.
Heavenly Physician's Needle Technique.
Marshalling every skill she had learned from her master, she tried to clear Jaseong's blocked meridians and gather his scattered energy.
Whether the night deepened or dawn broke, Lee Rin did not sleep.
She feared Jaseong would stop breathing if she closed her eyes even for a moment.
And then, on the dawn of the third day,
As the faint morning light slipped through the paper doors—
"Krrgh..."
From the bed came a faint groan.
Lee Rin, dozing off, jerked awake.
Jaseong's eyelashes trembled, and slowly, his eyelids lifted.
He glimpsed a familiar ceiling through his hazy vision.
Suddenly, a face appeared above him—equal parts worried and relieved.
It was Lee Rin, her eyes ringed with dark circles, looking down at him.
"Great hero..."
Lee Rin's voice shook, thick with emotion.
"... Lee Rin?"
Jaseong's voice was cracked and hoarse.
At his call, Lee Rin burst into the tears she had been holding back.
"You're unbelievable. Why do you always come back a wreck whenever there's a fight? It should've been enough after you defeated True Person Cheongho—so why did you have to take on Namgung Cheon-rui afterward too?"
With Lee Rin's teary voice, Jaseong wore a slight, apologetic expression.
"My face must be a mess. Thank you, for taking such good care of me."
"If you know that, treat me better from now on. I really thought my heart was going to stop."
"I understand. I'm sorry."
"Don't think you can get off with just a sorry this time. You'll have to pay back big for this one."
Lee Rin said, pretending to be stern.
Jaseong chuckled as he asked:
"Shall I buy you some pastries?"
"Pastries? You're going to settle for just pastries?"
"Then what do you want?"
"That's..."
Lee Rin's lips quivered.
But in the end she didn't reveal what was in her heart and instead stood up.
"I'll tell you later."
With a coy look, Lee Rin disappeared.
Watching her leave, Jaseong gave a faint smile.
It was only now he felt the reality of having survived.
Three days later,
As Jaseong regained some of his strength, Hyang-I visited the chief's office.
In her hands was a thick report.
"Leader, how is your health?"
"Much improved. Thanks to Lee Rin."
Jaseong, reclining on his bed, welcomed Hyang-I.
With a look of relief, she sat down and began her report.
"While you were unconscious, much happened in the jianghu."
"Tell me."
"After Namgung Cheon-rui's death, the Murim Alliance has all but collapsed."
Jaseong nodded.
He had expected as much.
With the absolute ruler gone and his vile crimes exposed to the world, the organization could not remain whole.
"The orthodox sects, having lost their rallying point, can no longer speak with one voice. The Nine Sects-One Union and the Five Great Clans are blaming each other and are fractured."
Hyang-I opened a map and pointed to several locations with her finger.
"In Luoyang, Kaifeng, taiyuan... there are ongoing small-scale skirmishes between remnants of the Evil Path Association and the Murim Alliance. With the command structure gone, there are constant uncontrolled fights."
"It was never going to be easy. The grudges run deep."
Jaseong muttered bitterly.
Just because the greatest evil had fallen did not mean the world would suddenly know peace.
"But there is some good news as well."
Hyang-I's voice brightened a little.
"Shaolin and the Beggar's Union have stepped in to mediate."
"Shaolin and the Beggar's Union?"
"Yes. Master Hye-gong from Shaolin and Zhang Daebong, division chief of the Beggar's Union, have taken the lead, going around to each sect and persuading them to agree to a truce. Now that Namgung Cheon-rui's evil is exposed, there is a legitimate cause to stop further pointless bloodshed."
Jaseong let out a breath of relief.
"That is some comfort."
If, as during the last War of Orthodox and Unorthodox, all of the Central Plains were stained with blood, the powerless common people would suffer most.
If that were to happen, more people, just like Jaseong, would unjustly lose their families in the crossfire of martial artists' battles.
Jaseong could not bear to see such tragedy repeated.
"But, Lord... The word in the jianghu is no small matter."
"What kind of word?"
"Rumors about you are stirring up the entire martial world."
"?"
"Not only the warriors of the Evil Path Association and the jianghu, but even the martial artists of the orthodox sects are now calling you 'The World's Greatest (天下第一人).'"