Chapter 110
“Hwang Yun, Vice Hall Master. You go first. Show the Orthodox Path trash the power of our cult.”
“Yes, Vice Cult Leader!”
No Yeong-myeong chose Hwang Yun, the Vice Hall Master of the Maitreya Hall, one of the three great protector halls of the White Lotus Cult, as the first to fight.
Among the fifty or so black-robed men who had arrived at the Martial Alliance today, only twenty were members of the White Lotus Cult.
The remaining thirty were masters of the Eastern Depot, Eunuch Han’s subordinates, and Hwang Yun, the Vice Hall Master of the Maitreya Hall, was at least the strongest martial artist among the White Lotus Cult members.
Thanks to that, he had also been able to achieve great merit when they took over the Potala Palace.
“Kikiki. Great Hero No. To put up Vice Hall Master Hwang from the start. Isn’t that too harsh on the fledglings?”
Eunuch Han nodded his head with a sly look in his eyes.
At that, for a moment, a madness flashed in No Yeong-myeong’s eyes.
“Nonsense. Don’t forget our purpose. We must give the Orthodox Path trash a humiliation and sense of defeat that they will never forget. The moment their confidence as a prestigious orthodox sect, the confidence and self-esteem that is ingrained in their hearts, is shattered. The Jianghu will become a masterless land.”
With those words, No Yeong-myeong nodded to Vice Hall Master Hwang Yun.
Hwang Yun, who replaced his answer with a short nod, stepped forward onto the duel stage, his black cloak fluttering.
***
A formal address?
A preparatory stance?
A preliminary exchange?
Although the Martial Alliance was a gathering of prestigious orthodox sects that valued chivalry as their number one value, they were not so stuffy as to follow customs and etiquette in the current situation.
But.
“I am Tang Il-gi, a collateral relative of the Sichuan Tang Clan and an official of the Martial Alliance at the rank of a hundred-man commander. I would like to hear your esteemed name.”
For some reason, Tang Il-gi was asking for Hwang Yun’s name in a polite tone.
But there was a reason behind his action.
‘Whether I win or lose. I have to drag this out as long as possible. I have to buy time for the seniors to be detoxified!’
That was the reason.
Because right now, the detoxification of the masters of the Nine Great Sects and the Eight Great Families was the top priority.
Buying time was the given mission.
But.
“Does a fledgling like you have the right to know my name?”
“…”
Hwang Yun completely ignored Tang Il-gi and spat out a cold voice.
At the same time.
Swaeeeek!
A swift sword strike reminiscent of a ray of light shot towards the center of Tang Il-gi’s body…
‘So fast!’
Tang Il-gi, who was bewildered by the sword strike that was impossible to follow with his eyes, maximized his body’s senses and was busy just barely blocking the sword.
Kkang!
When the sword and the sword clashed, a metallic sound that seemed to tear the eardrums, along with sparks, scattered into the air.
Tremble, tremble, tremble—
With just one clash, Tang Il-gi’s hand trembled, and he almost dropped the sword he was holding.
In addition.
‘Ugh…’
A severe nausea rose in his throat.
‘What kind of absurd internal energy is this!’
A fear that was independent of his will soaked into his five senses.
He had been confident that he had become quite strong.
But Hwang Yun’s power was an unprecedented great power that Tang Il-gi had never experienced before.
But that thought was only for a moment.
“Die, brat!”
Hwiiiiik.
Hwang Yun’s sword flew towards Tang Il-gi again without mercy.
‘He’s not my match. I… I can’t possibly…’
The moment his whole body froze like a stone statue at the heavy and murderous sword path.
—The problem with Brother Il-gi is his imagination. The forms are just a series of processes that make the body remember the correct movements. In a real battle, it’s completely different. You have to consider all variables and possibilities to be able to attack and defend in a versatile way.
In the face of the sudden crisis, So-ah’s teachings came to Tang Il-gi’s mind.
‘Imagination…’
For a moment.
Hwang Yun’s sword narrowly brushed past Tang Il-gi’s neck.
The force contained in the sword strike was so profound that a strange phenomenon of the air distorting with a loud roar unfolded.
But.
‘This brat?’
Naryeotagon (Lazy Donkey Rolls on the Ground).
On the borderline between life and death, Tang Il-gi’s imagination manifested a defensive technique that only street thugs would use.
The Naryeotagon.
Humiliation?
In the current situation, such an emotion was a luxury.
If it were the Tang Il-gi before he met So-ah, he would have died rather than perform the Naryeotagon, but now he had become that much more flexible and had developed by leaps and bounds.
A moment of wit saved his life.
“Hmph! For a fledgling of the stuffy Orthodox Path, that’s a pretty practical move.”
Hwang Yun curled up the corners of his mouth.
“The result won’t change!”
He held the sword in a reverse grip and rushed forward like a leopard, kicking Tang Il-gi’s lower abdomen.
“Keuk!”
A single kick imbued with monstrous power.
Bright red blood spurted from Tang Il-gi’s mouth.
But that was just a preliminary move.
The moment Tang Il-gi’s mind became hazy, Hwang Yun unleashed his true killing move.
Hwang Yun’s sword drew a horizontal line across Tang Il-gi’s chest.
Fortunately, since his reflexes had reached their peak through the ‘threshing’ training, his instincts took over before his consciousness, and he avoided instant death, but the amount of bleeding alone was enough to be dangerous.
“I’ll finish you!”
Hwang Yun tried to kill the collapsed Tang Il-gi by thrusting his sword into his body.
In that moment.
A single ray of sword light that flew in suddenly cut off Hwang Yun’s movement.
It was the appearance of the second duelist, Myo-seon.
“Didn’t this duel adopt a consecutive victory format? Since the winner and loser have already been clearly decided. Your opponent is me.”
Hwang Yun sneered as he looked at Myo-seon’s eyes, which were filled with resolve.
***
The result of the duel was truly shocking.
And they painfully realized how terrifying a master Hwang Yun was.
Therefore, the second runner, Myo-seon, pushed Hwang Yun with all her might from the very beginning.
Myo-seon’s sword path boasted both unpredictability and sharpness.
Currently, in this life-and-death struggle, Myo-seon was raising the Nine Yang Divine Scripture, a forbidden secret art of the Emei Sect that she had never used before.
—Myo-seon-ah. Someday, when you are faced with a crisis of death, only then should you use the Nine Yang Divine Scripture. The Nine Yang Divine Scripture of our sect is incomplete. Because the Nine Yang Divine Scripture is held by Shaolin, Wudang, and our sect, each holding one-third, no one can perform it perfectly. Because of that, you risk internal injuries, and if you make a mistake, you can go berserk and fall into qi deviation. But you, like me, suffer from the Nine Yin Severed Meridians. When the cold ki of the illness collides with the incomplete Nine Yang Divine Scripture, you will be able to achieve the principles of the Taiji for a short time. The reason I can live as a swordswoman while suffering from the Nine Yin Severed Meridians is because of this. In the world, only you and I. Can perform the Nine Yang Divine Scripture.
It was what the Sword Empress Hong-ryeon had said to Myo-seon when she taught her the Nine Yang Divine Scripture.
Myo-seon, recalling the teachings, unleashed the incomplete Nine Yang Divine Scripture and faced Hwang Yun.
‘This is a matter of the pride of the Orthodox Path. Even if it puts a strain on my body, I have no choice but to use the Nine Yang Divine Scripture!’
The power of the Nine Yang Divine Scripture was truly great.
‘This bitch’s internal energy! How can it be so profound!’
A look of bewilderment was clearly visible on Hwang Yun’s face.
Myo-seon’s sword forms, in which the yin and yang ki were alternately activated in a way that was impossible to explain, contained a solid something that was difficult to break through with great power.
But.
‘Kikikiki! So that bitch is the talent of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians. I covet her! If it’s that child, she can complete the Sunflower Manual! If it’s that child! She can destroy the Brocaded Guard and take the imperial palace in her hands!’
Even in the situation where Hwang Yun was being pushed back, Eunuch Han was laughing.
With a look of ugly desire in his eyes.
But.
It didn’t take long for the tide of battle between Myo-seon and Hwang Yun to turn.
‘Uuuugh…’
With a huge roar as if a thunderbolt had exploded, the power contained in Hwang Yun’s sword strike was amplified to an incomparable degree.
‘It’s sword ki!’
Hwang Yun’s sword was imbued with a formless strong ki.
It was the manifestation of sword ki, the highest realm of a swordsman.
Myo-seon had also recently entered the countdown to sword ki, which surpassed sword qi, sword flame, and sword ring.
Although she couldn’t manifest sword ki in a real battle like Namgung Mun, considering her age and seniority, it was a proof of her heavenly talent.
But Hwang Yun’s sword ki was different.
A skilled and refined, perfect manifestation of sword ki that far surpassed the rising generation.
The moment Hwang Yun’s sword ki and Myo-seon’s sword qi clashed.
Myo-seon’s slender body flew like scattering dust and was thrown into a corner below the duel stage.
***
Namgung Mun’s heart was extremely heavy.
‘I never thought such a situation would unfold…’
Originally, the purpose of the rising generation going up to the duel stage was to buy time for the masters to be detoxified, but even so, the current situation was so disastrous that it was hard to accept.
‘Tang Il-gi and Myo-seon have both been defeated by that man. And I’m not confident that I can win either.’
It was a moment when he might have to drink the bitter cup of three consecutive defeats to just one person, Hwang Yun.
Namgung Mun corrected his anxious heart.
‘I have no choice but to do my best. Because the Great Master Gwang-won is behind me!’
That’s right.
If Gwang-won stepped up, he would be able to change the atmosphere!
Although Gwang-won was young, his martial arts were not inferior to the famous masters of the Nine Great Sects.
No, now that he had the nickname of the strongest new monk of Shaolin in history, his martial arts could be said to be the best in the entire Jianghu, not just among his peers.
Besides.
‘If only So-ah comes!’
The strongest was not yet here.
If So-ah, who was now called one of the Ten Great Masters of the Orthodox Path and could not even be classified as a rising generation, arrived.
‘There’s a good chance of winning!’
Namgung Mun was confident that the Orthodox Path would not bow down to that wicked group.
And then.
With a resolve of life and death.
He unleashed the secret art of the Namgung Family, the Boundless Sword Art of the Blue Sky, in the form of a continuous sword ki.
The duel stage collapsed under the force of the iron-imbued sword ki.
At the same time, a small point that was emitted from the tip of the sword shot out a profound force, and soon, it turned into a single gust of wind.
‘Hoho. There’s a pretty useful kid in the Orthodox Path too.’
‘Is that the great Namgung Family? Kekeke.’
Even No Yeong-myeong and Eunuch Han could not help but be impressed by the splendid display.
Of course.
‘It won’t be easy!’
Hwang Yun, who was exhausted from facing Tang Il-gi and Myo-seon in succession, furrowed his brow.
‘But nothing changes.’
A black ki exploded from Hwang Yun’s body as if to cover the heavens and the earth.
Like a pitch-black darkness…
***
‘This can’t be!’
‘What on earth is the power of that place called the White Lotus Cult! How can a mere warrior be so strong!’
‘I can’t believe it… I can’t believe it!’
The people in the room could not hold back their lamentations.
In any era, the sword of the Namgung Family had never not been the best in the Jianghu.
The Boundless Sword Art of the Blue Sky.
The Invincible Sword Ki of the Emperor.
The two secret arts had established the Namgung Family as the strongest swordsman family in the history of a thousand years…
“Keuuugh…”
Namgung Mun’s tattered body could not maintain its balance and fell to the ground.
Bright red blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, and dozens of sword wounds on his whole body opened their mouths and spewed blood as well.
Namgung Mun was not without gains.
Considering that both Tang Il-gi and Myo-seon had fallen without enduring 50 of Hwang Yun’s moves, his martial prowess, which had exchanged over 100 moves, was a good fight and a manifestation of his firm resolve.
‘Phew…’
Hwang Yun’s condition was also bad.
At Namgung Mun’s unexpected good fight, he had raised the Great Black Demon Ki, the strongest rising art of the Blood Cult.
The Great Black Demon Ki temporarily amplified one’s internal energy, but its aftereffects were disastrous, so it was a double-edged sword that was not used unless absolutely necessary.
The black ki of the Great Black Demon Ki, which was imbued with a terrible poison, was slowly eating away at his body.
‘But there are two more left. I can’t fall.’
Hwang Yun intended to finish all the duels on his own.
‘Because I still have the Star Sucking Great Art.’
He intended to recover by absorbing the opponent’s power with the forbidden, strongest demonic art in the remaining duels.
And.
Thump.
Gwang-won stepped forward.
He looked at Hwang Yun with calm eyes.
But Hwang Yun, in those ordinary eyes, for a moment, felt an irresistible great power assailing him.
“Amitabha…”
A profound internal energy felt from the Buddhist chant.
That internal energy surpassed his own, which was raising the Great Black Demon Ki.
‘This person is a monster!’
The moment Hwang Yun’s sixth sense screamed in fear.
“What on earth is going on here!”
On one side of the training ground.
Right at the entrance of the main office, a roar of heaven-and-earth-shaking thunder pierced the ears of the crowd.
“So-ah!”
“Young Master Jin!”
“So-ah!!”
So-ah had appeared.
“Who dares to sprinkle shit on Grandma Hong-ryeon’s election ceremony? Huh?!”
(End of Chapter)