The sword that had streaked through the sky plunged into the earth and vanished without a trace.
The ground trembled violently, and the shockwave that had trailed down from the sky crashed into the earth.
Hwaaaaah—!
A faint ripple spread in the air.
Perhaps it was due to the sword's unique spiritual resonance, but the wind seed almost tangible—like the aftermath of a martial master unleashing an air-splitting technique.
"……."
The wide-brimd hat of the Celestial Extre Lord wobbled as it was knocked backward.
Yulha Nangnang, who had been silently watching him, felt a few damp strands of hair brush past her ear. And before anyone had noticed, the Seventh Apostle, who had been perched in the tree, had vanished.
Sabak.
A figure stepped onto the spot where the sword had embedded itself.
A black leather boot, stained with dark red blood.
The hem of an intensely crimson long robe fluttered above the ground.
The one wearing the Bloodfla Cult’s pureblood robes, the Seventh Apostle, slowly parted her lips.
A crazed gleam flickered in her single eye. The eerie glow of blood-infused inner energy.
“…Yeoroe.”
The mont she muttered the na—
"Celestial Extre Lord."
From a distance, seated where she had been, Yulha Nangnang called out to the blind man in the straw hat.
"What do you intend to do?"
"Ah."
The Celestial Extre Lord curved his lips into a smile. He untied the cord securing his sheathed sword at his waist and gripped it, scabbard and all.
As if preparing to dive ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) into a lake.
For him, there was no distinction between the earth and water. He was a supre swordsman—one said to sever even the fundantal principles of the universe.
"A curious thing, is it not? I shall go down and confirm it for myself. It seems my bundle of tales is about to gain a new story."
Compared to before, sothing was subtly different about the blind man known as the Supre Unorthodox Sword.
His expression bore a faint trace of disbelief, but also a hint of excitent, as if sothing he had long awaited was finally within reach.
The man once called the Violet One of Ipwang Fortress had been destined to carve a legend with his sword alone, yet he t his end due to reckless actions.
It had been one of two things: either he had failed to recognize his own limits, or he had valued the lives of commoners and Yulha Nangnang over his own.
Either way, he had been a fool.
"It has always bothered that I could not guide a promising junior down a singular path. Even if that path was branded as unorthodox, if he possessed such natural talent, was it not his duty to see the end of the sword’s path?"
Thud.
A hazy surge of energy erupted from the Celestial Extre Lord’s entire body.
He had montarily drawn upon an imnse amount of internal energy.
He was the first to have forced Jeong Yeon-shin into a true defeat during a mission.
A life-and-death bond forged through battle—nothing could run deeper.
One could say he had shared the closest connection with Jeong Yeon-shin in all of Hangzhou.
"Do nothing."
Yulha Nangnang, still seated, issued a warning.
But the Celestial Extre Lord rely smiled faintly.
"If he truly lives, then he has revealed himself too soon. As the master of all that is unorthodox, how could I ignore it?"
He should have healed before stepping forward.
His additional remark was clear.
At the ntion of "healing," a fleeting athyst gleam flickered in Yulha Nangnang’s eyes—an amalgamation of quiet fury, doubt, excitent, and desperate hope.
The mont the Celestial Extre Lord raised his sword overhead, as if preparing to cleave the very space before him—
The premature sunset descended upon the scene.
A subdued crimson glow spread across the area.
Just as the Celestial Extre Lord assud an exaggerated posture, akin to a perforr in a grand opera—
KWA-AAAAAAAANG!
A thunderous explosion erupted from within the red light.
His figure was blasted backward, flung through the air like a cannonball.
Before anyone could react, Yulha Nangnang, sword already drawn, pursued him beyond the ridgeline.
It was as if she had spent even her inner energy—normally reserved for drying moisture—on her sword strike and footwork. Only a few faint water droplets and a lingering mist of violet aura remained behind.
It had been the Sect Leader of Mount Hua who struck first.
If Jeong Yeon-shin truly lived, if he was indeed rising from an unfathomable depth where no energy could yet be sensed—then at the very least, she had to buy him the ti to regulate his breath and ridians.
And with that, the two of them vanished.
The Seventh Apostle did not even spare a glance in their direction.
Kugugung.
The ground was still trembling.
She lowered her gaze to her feet, staring blankly. Then, she extended her hand downward.
Boom.
The earth quaked as a deep indentation ford.
That was only the beginning.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM—!
Each ti the force she released from both hands synchronized with the tremors rising from below, the Seventh Apostle’s pallid face brightened.
Manic ecstasy.
A trace of euphoria, as if she was reveling in so unspeakable pleasure.
It was as if she were exchanging hands with soone unseen.
She was completely engrossed.
Utterly lost in the mont.
"I’ll help you, I’ll help you…."
Everything else faded from her world.
Her extre martial talent, her madness, and her long-accumulated obsession narrowed her vision.
Not even the approaching figures from the nearby forces registered in her awareness.
Step.
Thirty sorcerers from Tai Mausoleum Fortress, led by the Young Lord himself.
Fifty-nine reanimated corpses, raised through the sorcery of Heaven-Defying Techniques.
And from another direction—
The martial masters of the Celestial Extre Sect, descending upon them in a wave.
Yet despite their approach—
The Seventh Apostle did not even lift her head.
***
The space was filled entirely with stone and earth.
It was damp. Darkness lood in all directions.
[Why isn’t it coming? Did I call it properly?]
“I told you to shut up.”
Jeong Yeon-shin could feel it vividly.
Yeoroe, after soaring high into the sky, had found the earth’s leyline and begun tunneling downward.
The blade, hardened by the calloused hands of the Tang siblings, had now beco an extension of his own limbs.
It was, in a sense, the true form of the union between body and sword.
[If it's Sword Projection, I know a thing or two myself. How about we have a duel here in the underworld, just the two of us? Until one of us dies.]
So Cheonmujuk curled one corner of her lips, adding a remark.
That might have its own kind of elegance.
Her translucent body surged upward alongside Jeong Yeon-shin.
At so point, she had donned the sa pristine white windcoat adorned with long, jet-black embroidery threads. Her leisurely posture, hands clasped behind her back, made her look like a carefree wanderer.
But Jeong Yeon-shin focused solely on ascending, keeping the glow of his internal energy constantly activated in both hands.
His luminous figure reflected in So Cheonmujuk’s hazy eyes.
A monstrous entity, composed entirely of light, gracefully swimming through the abyss.
KWA-AAAAAAH—!
With each grand sweep of his arms, the stone walls split apart like waves.
His body, enveloped in a faint halo of light, deflected falling debris as if they were nothing.
It was his protective energy.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
So of the rocks even rebounded off his head, shattering from the impact.
‘I can… get out.’
What mattered now was the force accumulated from dozens of layered strikes.
KUGUGUNG—
Like an infinite swarm of bees trapped within his grasp, a deep rumble grew, shaking the subterranean world.
The profound principle of Nine Jades Forming a River, a technique that condensed wave-like energy into the Sword Thunder Flash, had beco embedded in his hands.
Jeong Yeon-shin had grasped certain insights from the traces left behind by the Three Peaks Immortal.
And at this mont, as he tore through the unfathomable depths beneath the earth, he was gradually internalizing those principles.
Every mont was a form of training.
[Sure, your face and bravado are important. If that old man from the Beggar’s Sect had done what you’re doing now, he’d have looked ridiculous. No matter how fierce the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms may be.]
“…….”
[Listen, young man. The incantation you devised—it’s quite intriguing. There's nothing worse than a writer who only pens an introduction but never finishes the story. So, tell …]
So Cheonmujuk whispered playfully.
[‘Soday, I will surpass these laws…’ What cos after that?]
She outright asked for the next verse of his martial scripture. A request fitting for a Ming Cult master.
But Jeong Yeon-shin gave no answer.
Instead, he slowly raised both arms, releasing the power gathered in his palms.
KWA-AAAAAAAH!
A massive pillar of light erupted around him.
At the sa ti, a sword engraved with water-like patterns descended through the glow, falling like a single drop of rain.
It was the Divine Sword Yeoroe.
‘How many more tis must I do this?’
Jeong Yeon-shin pondered as he gazed upon the fleeting illusions of the Tang siblings reaching toward him.
***
Tai Mausoleum Fortress and the Celestial Extre Sect had surrounded the Seventh Apostle.
Sorcerers with gauze-like headbands revealing their scalps, revenants clad in an eerie blue glow, and Celestial Extre Sect swordsn who had inherited insights from the Supre Unorthodox Sword…
WHOOOONG—
rely by standing in place, they caused the winds to stir from all directions. The pressure of their energy waves made the very air feel coarse and abrasive.
But while it looked like an encirclent, the reality was slightly different.
They were not surrounding the Seventh Apostle herself.
Rather, they had enclosed the site where the Demonic Sword Yeoroe had vanished.
They had no business with the woman who was tearing through the earth with raw force.
At least, not yet.
Their convergence had another purpose.
“We arrived a step too late. That monster is after the Demonic Sword as well.”
A boy seated in a palanquin muttered.
It was Young Lord Cho Il-seo.
He had no intention of letting the Seventh Apostle—who had all but annihilated Tai Mausoleum’s Jiaxing branch—do as she pleased.
But he also wasn’t reckless enough to handle more than one major operation at a ti.
The Seventh Apostle and Yeoroe?
Between the two, recovering Yeoroe took precedence.
It was a weapon that symbolized the slaughter of the Violet One from Ipwang Fortress at their hands.
A tool to sweep up disciples and subordinate sects.
Ipwang Fortress wouldn’t be able to send a large force to Zhejiang anyti soon, anyway.
Their constraints within the empire were too severe.
Especially after the Black Assembly, their limitations had beco painfully clear.
‘Ipwang’s Divine Spear Ak Su-rim must tread carefully around the King of Gungmyeong. Even if he entered Shaoxing as an enemy of the throne, he’s likely alone. We can take them down one by one.’
Cho Il-seo mused.
There was a vast difference between encountering a hostile supre master in foreign territory and confronting them within one’s own domain.
Victory was far more assured in the latter case.
And Hangzhou was practically the ho ground of Tai Mausoleum Fortress.
They had buried countless mystical artifacts and formations in the roads and mountains.
If Celestial Extre Sect’s Nether Sovereign delivered the Tang Clan’s master’s head, things would beco even simpler.
“What should we do about that blood fiend…?”
Cho Il-seo muttered deliberately, glancing sideways.
A swordswoman in sleeveless white martial robes stood nearby—Thunder Sword, one of the Five Supre Celestial Swords.
She was watching the Seventh Apostle with deep, calculating eyes.
Trying to gauge her strength?
Cho Il-seo clicked his tongue inwardly.
As the Celestial Extre Sect Lord’s disciple, she exuded an aura sharp as a divine blade.
But she was no match for the True Blood Physique, a monster of raw inborn power.
At best, she was a future supre master—soone who might attain that realm soday.
“If you want to take her down… joint attacks are the only way.”
Cho Il-seo spoke firmly.
“…….”
“Pride is useless. Even The One Who Annihilates the Wilderness never beca a true legend. At most, he made a na for himself for a year or two before he died.”
“…Are you certain he’s dead?”
The murmured question from Thunder Sword was almost as if she were speaking to herself, but Cho Il-seo shook his head.
“The world has entered an era of turmoil. Those who survive will inevitably grow stronger, while those who perish will remain frozen in ti. But ti is on our side. One day, you and I will look down upon today’s Wild Annihilation.”
Like the Dark Heaven Emperor and the Lord of Celestial Extremity Gate.
With a faint smirk, Cho Il-seo motioned forward with his chin.
“This works out well. I will take this opportunity to test the might of the Art of Strengthened Corpses. Even compared to the old Jiangshi of the forr Mo Mountain Sect, these should be much stronger.”
All of the Jiangshi created through the Art of Strengthened Corpses were here.
It was impossible to infinitely replicate animated artifacts mimicking the Invincible Vajra Body. That was why they were rare—and their rarity made them powerful.
“Does it matter if the text body does not intervene?”
Thunder Sword quietly asked. Cho Il-seo, instead, returned the question.
“Do you not intend to intervene?”
“……”
“Disciples of Fundantal Nature, prepare yourselves. The Jiangshi will take the vanguard.”
Boom!
The mont he finished speaking, a thunderous noise echoed as the Jiangshi standing in formation stomped down onto the ground in unison.
As the army of the dead surged forward, a faint bluish aura streaked through the air.
A total of fifty streams—equivalent to thirty percent of Taemo Mountain Fortress’s accumulated power—rushed in, surrounding the Seventh Apostle in an instant, striking out with both hands and feet.
So unleashed formless shockwaves.
Crackle!
Thick red light scattered like lightning in all directions. In an instant, the Seventh Apostle’s figure staggered.
No matter how formidable a martial artist, none would willingly take an inferior opponent’s strike head-on. The only reason she had allowed the attack to land was the madness of her trance-like state.
“The protective energy of Blood ridians… Even more overwhelming than I had heard.”
Cho Il-seo, watching from afar, deepened his smile.
The strike had landed.
That was crucial. When facing a supre martial artist, landing the first strike properly was always the most difficult task.
‘That crack will breach her inner power barrier, and eventually… she will suffer a fatal wound…’
His thoughts could not continue.
The ground, which had already been trembling since their arrival, suddenly quaked with violent intensity.
There was no ti to anticipate or formulate counterasures. Like an earthquake, the tremors escalated instantly to their peak.
KWA-AAAAANG!!
A section of the clearing shattered into a massive circular crater, and from the ground—now gaping like a canyon—an enormous, colorless pillar surged upward.
It was towering, seemingly reaching for the sky itself.
“…!”
Cho Il-seo’s eyes widened as he surveyed the clearing.
At the center of the encirclent, a shadow suddenly erged, its figure barely visible. The Seventh Apostle’s shoulder brushed against the chest of the figure behind her. The fabric of his clothing rustled faintly.
A man, nearly bare-chested.
His features were indistinct. He stood against the blinding sunlight, silhouetted against the towering energy pillar still rising into the sky.
Only the fragnts of sunlight, scattering weakly, mingled with his long black hair.
The figure lowered his head slightly.
“The village ahead must remain untouched.”
His breath brushed against the Seventh Apostle’s ear. The fine hairs at the nape of her neck stood on end. Her body was frozen.
“You’ll handle them.”
“Huh…?”
“I need a free hand. I will give you the formula we agreed upon.”
There was a slight flexibility in his words.
anwhile, Cho Il-seo’s hand, which now held a Demon Emperor Paper, was slick with sweat.
The mont the intruder stepped onto the ground, every single Jiangshi froze in place like boulders.
A sight so inconceivable that even those who had mastered the techniques of the forr Mo Mountain Sect questioned their own eyes. This was not re power.
“The law of nature…?”
Cho Il-seo’s lips twitched in a faint tremor.
Step.
“Ipwang Fortress’s Wild Annihilation. There are many who have co seeking you.”
Thunder Sword stepped forward, her eyes flashing like flickering flas. In this mont, her judgnt shone brightest among all present.
“But this land is what the world calls a battlefield of chaos. If you wish to ensure their safety, even two bodies would not be enough. Instead of flaunting your divinity recklessly, it would be better to establish a proper eting place. We will escort you.”
Her tone was unwavering.
The shadowed figure, who had been gazing at her, slowly opened his mouth.
“What of the Sect Leader of Mount Hua?”
“There is no guarantee of his survival. No matter how formidable the Holy Fla Sword God is, he cannot compare to the First Demon Sword. But if you wish to go there yourself, first—”
At that mont.
The shadow’s lips moved, ever so slightly.
There is no need.
“…What did you just say…?”
Thunder Sword stopped mid-sentence, her mouth shutting abruptly.
At so point, a single sword was now floating beside the figure.
The Divine Sword, Yeoroe, the very center of the struggle for dominance.
From its silver blade, an eerie hum began to spread.
A vibration, deep and weighty, like the wailing of an Imoogi who had finally grasped a dragon pearl. Soon, that resonance transford into an unmodulated lody, expanding far and wide.
Uuuuuuuuuuuung!!
It was as if he was announcing his presence.
And it was not just Thunder Sword’s instincts that felt this.
In truth, the shadow who had shattered the earth and stepped onto the clearing—the one who had returned to Hangzhou—
At this mont, Jeong Yeon-shin imbued the Sword Song with an intention unmistakable to any martial artist attuned to their upper dantian.
—Co, all of you.
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