The Sword Demon Regresses

Chapter 129

According to the original future, Cheonung had died about twenty years later.

At the hands of none other than the Immovable Evil Ghost.

By the time the full-scale war had broken out, he had already been a powerhouse equal to Youngho.

‘We really clashed a lot.’

From the very first campaign, it had been a truly grueling battle. But war never ended in a single stroke.

At times, the front lines of the alliance formed by the Martial Alliance and the Unorthodox Alliance were pushed back and forced into retreat. At other times, they slaughtered the Demonic Cult and reclaimed the front lines.

By the time he had fought the Immovable Evil Ghost more than ten times, Youngho had finally managed to sever his head.

It had been such a fierce bloody struggle that he thought, had he swung his sword even a Fleeting Instant slower, the one who died would not have been the Immovable Evil Ghost.

‘To think I’d meet him here of all places…….’

It seemed he was still in the midst of growth. At that level, rather than killing Cheonung, he would have been fortunate just to survive.

Youngho had known that the Demonic Cult had made the proposal in the form of a sparring match out of confidence, but he had honestly harbored a faint hope that Hyeonu might win.

After all, he was a disciple the Sword Immortal had diligently trained in order to kill Cheonung.

‘But this is a guaranteed loss.’

He now understood why Pungwol had said there was no need for a rest period.

‘His name was definitely Gundo, wasn’t it?’

Because it had been a battle where his own life might have been lost, he remembered it clearly.

At that time, Hwa Ryeong, who did not belong to any of the three factions and was most fittingly described as neutral, looked at Jeonghyeon and Gundo and spoke.

“Now then, start on your own.”

With words that did not sound like a declaration of sparring at all, Gundo’s body vanished.

“Haht!”

In an instant, Gundo, whom he had thought disappeared, was already at Jeonghyeon’s back.

Jeonghyeon immediately turned and threw a kick, but with perfect distance control, Gundo avoided it merely by tilting his neck back.

Jeonghyeon ground his teeth and swung his sword.

It was a diagonal slash descending from left to right. Instead of Sword Force, Sword Qi coiled around Jeonghyeon’s blade.

If Hardened Force collided, the massive shockwave would devastate the surroundings, so they had agreed beforehand not to use it.

Thanks to that, even masters unable to wield Hardened Force could observe the spar.

A battle between Absolute Masters was a priceless opportunity that could not be bought even with a thousand pieces of gold.

Swish!

Jeonghyeon’s sword cleaved only the air, unable to cut even a single hem of Gundo’s clothing.

Whoosh!

True to a martial artist who had learned the same martial arts as Youngho, blazing black flames flickered from Jeonghyeon’s sword.

Jeonghyeon cooled his mind as much as possible and stared at Gundo.

‘He’s fast.’

It was not merely fast. It was absurdly fast.

If he were merely a master of the Transformation Realm, he would not have been able to evade Jeonghyeon’s sword so perfectly.

Judging by this alone, one might think the opponent was clearly superior to Jeonghyeon, but fortunately, while he possessed the advantage of speed, he lacked in another area.

Swish!

Sssk!

Gundo’s Fist Strike brushed past Jeonghyeon’s cheek. Blood began to trickle from the shallow cut on his face.

Ordinarily, no one would have found it strange. But his opponent was a master of the Transformation Realm.

It would be one thing if he were at the Transcendent Peak Master level, but from the Transformation Realm onward, one gained strength on an entirely different plane.

Based on that strength, when Gundo’s fist had grazed his cheek just now, it should not have merely left a scratch—his flesh should have been torn away.

Which meant…….

‘His destructive power is lacking.’

Youngho watched the spar between Jeonghyeon and Gundo.

Gundo was extremely fast. In the battle before the Regression, if Youngho had not used Flame Venerable Opening Technique at the proper moment, he would have died without being able to resist at all.

But while Gundo was fast, the power behind his strikes was insufficient.

Of course, mere speed alone was not enough to earn an evaluation equal to Youngho’s martial might.

Gundo’s true terror lay in his control over that speed.

Normally, when one threw a punch with full strength, it was extremely difficult to withdraw it midway.

But such a concept did not exist for Gundo.

At the moment Jeonghyeon’s sword and Gundo’s fist were about to collide, Gundo’s fist passed through Jeonghyeon’s blade.

It was an unbelievable sight. Jeonghyeon must not have felt the sensation of cutting off an arm, yet he would not understand how the fist had passed through his sword.

And then, at some point, the fist that had been passing through the blade vanished like an illusion.

Before Jeonghyeon could even register his shock, Gundo’s fist slammed into his abdomen.

Thud—!

It was not a powerful blow. Rather than the pain in his abdomen, what shocked him more was that Gundo’s fist had just passed through his sword.

And the moment that thought arose, Gundo’s chained strikes continued relentlessly.

Papapapapak!

A continuous barrage that allowed no chance to respond. Even those watching could scarcely breathe at its speed.

Youngho let out a whistle.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen that combo.’

Once caught within that barrage, it was extremely difficult to escape. Gundo’s fists, like the Mount Hua Sect’s sword, focused on speed, illusion, and variation.

Each individual strike was weak, but as they overlapped again and again, the opponent would inevitably fall.

Thus, the best way to deal with Gundo was to defeat him before that ever-shifting barrage could even begin…….

Watching Jeonghyeon being battered without respite, Youngho thought,

‘You did well. You endured quite a lot.’

And so Jeonghyeon was defeated. Youngho climbed onto the sparring stage to support him and said,

“Senior Brother, are you alive?”

“…….”

“You’re conscious at least.”

Looking at Jeonghyeon, whose entire body had swollen, Youngho said,

“How badly did you get beaten? There’s not a single part of you that’s intact.”

“……At the very least, my ribs are definitely broken.”

“Let’s go get you treated.”

Hoisting the thoroughly defeated Jeonghyeon over his shoulder, Youngho asked,

“Did you gain anything from it?”

“……He was fast. And the way he moves his body is bizarre.”

A strange light flickered in Youngho’s eyes.

‘Hmm? He noticed that?’

“What do you mean?”

Feigning ignorance, he asked, and Jeonghyeon let out a deep sigh.

“I don’t know. It’s hard to explain, but it feels like he keeps executing movements that could never come from a human body.”

“That would make sense. He has twice as many bones as an ordinary person.”

“……What?”

“Simply put, you can think of it as Heretical Arts. Or, in other words, the successful product of human experimentation.”

“……Just what in the world is the Demonic Cult doing?”

“I don’t know either.”

Youngho handed Jeonghyeon over to Hyeon-gang and said,

“Normally I would’ve told you to treat him painfully, but he worked hard, so just treat him normally.”

“So you won’t even ask that he be treated without pain?”

“Does he really deserve that kind of consideration? Just get some rest.”

Youngho immediately looked at Hyeonu as he stepped onto the sparring stage and thought,

‘Now then, how will this one come at him?’

Seeing Hyeonu’s tense expression, Youngho grinned.

Hyeonu kept replaying the previous spar in his mind.

…It was difficult.

Far too difficult. When Gundo’s fist had passed through Jeonghyeon’s sword, the hairs all over his body had truly stood on end.

He roughly understood the principle, but he could not believe a human being could actually execute it.

It might have been somewhat disrespectful to think so, but it felt as though Gundo had awakened the profundity of illusion more deeply than even the Mount Hua Sect’s Sword Queen.

With a tense gaze, Hyeonu stared at Gundo’s empty, expressionless eyes.

Hwa Ryeong yawned as if annoyed and said,

“Alright, you’re ready, right?”

Gundo and Hyeonu nodded at the same time.

“Then begin~”

Boom—!

Once again, it was Gundo who seized the initiative. Watching Gundo rush in with lightning-like speed, Hyeonu slowly began drawing a circle with his sword.

It was a beautiful curve. Hyeonu’s flowing blade was as calm as a lake, yet at the same time carried the fierce force of ocean waves.

Gundo’s terrifyingly fast fists shot toward Hyeonu’s abdomen, philtrum, and temple in the briefest instant.

And Gundo was forced to momentarily halt his assault. Originally, his chained strikes should have poured forth like a waterfall.

That was why Hyeonu grinned.

“It seems things aren’t going as you intended?”

Gundo still showed no emotional fluctuation whatsoever.

His eyes were so devoid of emotion it sent chills down one’s spine. Yet Hyeonu merely shrugged as if it were nothing.

“Will you not come any closer? If not……”

Boom—!

“Then I shall go to you!”

It was an extremely slow sword. It looked so light and crude that it was hard to believe it was a strike delivered by a master of the Transformation Realm.

Yet Gundo felt danger from that blade.

He immediately twisted his waist and avoided the upward slash rising from below.

Slash—!

“…….”

It had clearly been a sword slow enough to invite a yawn. And he had certainly thought he dodged it. Yet as if to mock his arrogance, Hyeonu’s sword cut across Gundo’s chest.

Had it been just an inch deeper, it would have reached his heart.

Though his life had been threatened, no emotion appeared in Gundo’s eyes.

He simply stared silently at his flesh regenerating under the effects of demonic arts.

Seeing Gundo’s body regenerate, Hyeonu frowned.

‘It truly is a martial art that defies the natural order.’

Demonic arts were indeed worthy of being called heaven-defying martial arts.

Then, the lips that Hyeonu had thought would never open parted.

“Is that the Wudang Sect’s sword?”

A deep voice that contrasted sharply with his delicate appearance.

Hyeonu laughed lightly and replied,

“My Master placed upon me the burden of the Wudang Sect’s sword.”

Gundo nodded.

“It is certainly troublesome.”

Soon he assumed his stance again. Feeling a subtle change in Gundo’s presence pressing down on him, Hyeonu unconsciously swallowed.

“You keep diverting my fists.”

“That is one of the profound principles of the Wudang Sect.”

“But even diverting has its limits.”

“It cannot be otherwise. I am human, after all.”

“Then it’s possible.”

Before Hyeonu could ask what he meant, Gundo’s body vanished like a flash of lightning.

It could only be described as truly disappearing.

For an instant, Hyeonu felt his life threatened.

Clang—!

True to a seasoned swordsman, his blade did not waver. But unlike before……

‘I couldn’t divert it!’

Instead of guiding the attack aside with the flat of his blade, he had blocked it outright. As a result, his body was pushed back about one zhang.

Gundo briefly clenched and unclenched his fist before speaking.

“I’ve grown accustomed to it.”

“What—!”

Before Hyeonu could finish his words, Gundo vanished once more.

This time, Hyeonu continuously diverted the attacks.

Divert and divert. And divert again. Continue diverting until the opponent grew weary.

No matter how fast, no matter how unpredictable the attack, he perceived every strike and redirected it.

Clang—!

But eventually, he reached his limit. The soft sword Hyeonu prided himself on grew stiff as it struggled merely to block Gundo’s attacks.

Clang—! Clang!

He could no longer divert them. It was too fast—far too fast. Each individual strike was not particularly threatening, but in the time another person could launch one attack, Gundo could unleash dozens.

Watching Hyeonu’s flustered expression, Youngho said to himself,

‘That’s what makes him terrifying.’

Gundo always displayed speed beyond expectations. And above all, he possessed the stamina to maintain that speed.

In terms of endurance alone, Gundo stood at least three moves above Hyeonu.

In the end, Hyeonu could no longer withstand Gundo’s relentless barrage.

As though the best defense was offense, Gundo ignored defense entirely and focused solely on attack, leaving Hyeonu no opportunity to counter.

Thus, Hyeonu’s body was ultimately exposed to Gundo’s fists. He endured as much as he could, but in the end, Gundo achieved an overwhelming victory.

Hyeonu was the sword of the Wudang Sect. At the same time, he was a pillar supporting the Orthodox Sect.

With someone like him defeated, the members of the Martial Alliance could not help but be shaken.

Perhaps because of that, even Han Yonghu, who had maintained his composure until now, ground his teeth.

Not even cheers could be heard. The Demonic Cult’s attitude—as if victory were only natural—caused anger to surge uncontrollably.

Yet Han Yonghu instead observed the atmosphere among the surrounding Great Sects.

Fortunately, seeing that every face had hardened, it seemed they had come to realize at least a portion of the Demonic Cult’s terror.

‘Thankfully, unity will come a little faster.’

Was it because he knew war was slowly approaching?

Han Yonghu was once again reminded that the position of Murim Alliance Leader was an exceedingly heavy one.