Chapter 15
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Qi Arts
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Demons were the power of reverse principles that overturned the natural order.
Even demonic arts crafted through human research, and the demonic practitioners who mastered them, still fell within the realm of humanity.
But naturally occurring demonic beasts and demon soldiers wrought truly bizarre calamities.
They devoured human nails to steal appearances, siphoned lifespans to forge gold, and ravaged vitality to wither lives.
A mere glance could shred minds, and their very existence warped reality.
Truly aberrant, irregular, grotesque—
A calamity hostile to humanity, beyond mere words.
In his youth, he had roamed the Central Plains, slaying and sealing demonic creatures in a mad frenzy.
Yet he realized that managing them as the Demon Seal Cave Master was more effective against demonic scourges than charging in himself.
By becoming a system unto himself, he sought to erase demonic entities from the world before they touched the impossible.
In truth, Demon Seal Cave Master Lee Se-min despised demons more than anyone.
With a light flick of his fan.
A surge of deep blue-green inner energy unleashed a gale.
“Whoa, oh?!”
The wind pressure hurled So-hyang’s body away. In an instant, she slammed into the cavern wall.
“This is kinda novel, huh…?”
Qi Arts.
Techniques like the Triple True Flame or Void Grasping.
A martial system built purely on projecting inner energy, without sword, spear, or fist.
One couldn’t even begin below the Peak realm, and even then, the energy drained too quickly for practicality without Transcendent mastery.
Thus, most experts used their lifelong martial arts as primary, relegating Qi Arts to secondary roles.
But Lee Se-min was a rare warrior in the jianghu who made Qi Arts his mainstay.
Seizing distance advantages, dominating space, crushing foes in one stroke.
It was the optimal counter to the myriad irregularities wielded by loathed demons.
“I’ll suppress you.”
With emotionless words, he lightly fanned again.
The wind pressure struck So-hyang, now inches away, blasting her back into the distance.
“Ahaha, this is getting tricky…”
Through two strikes, Lee Se-min gauged her power.
Withstanding wind that would shred mortals, she boasted Peak-level physical prowess.
No special abilities or illusions manifested, suggesting either none or conditional traits.
His Ghost Eye detected no anomalies, so he withheld judgment.
“A typical physical enhancement type.”
The simplest, most varied, and numerous variety.
From slightly superhuman strength to earth-shattering feats, it had the widest variance.
Yet this one hadn’t reached that pinnacle, though it hinted at future disaster—
“Not now.”
Having assessed her, Lee Se-min swung his fan fiercely, unleashing a barrage of ferocious gales.
Projectiles launched with a mere twitch of his finger, overwhelming range superiority, and unmatched destructive power.
For some reason, a acrid scent of flames lingered in memory.
“...Brings back bad memories.”
Guns.
The monster that ended the era of swords and spears, monopolizing weaponry.
The hated invention that dismissed his sword-obsessed self as an outdated relic.
In her previous life, So-hyang often mused that without gunpowder, the world might have been different.
Even Lee Se-min’s sword-qi infused gales were worse.
Her unnaturally sturdy body endured, but a mortal would shatter despite defenses.
It was like facing repeated cannon fire.
Yet So-hyang’s expression remained calm.
In the era where edged weapons waned.
Her honed swordsmanship from that life countered firearms too.
Her blade sliced space like paper, tracing countless lines in the air.
Thus, the incoming gales were all severed.
“—Just cut them down.”
With proper sword path and power, nothing couldn’t be cut—
The essence of ‘cutting’: felling trees with wooden swords, steel with steel.
Her enlightenment that sliced bullets and tank armor: Iron Cutter.
“Cut projectiles, did you?”
Without panic, Lee Se-min countered with his next move.
“Then I’ll overwhelm with waves.”
Waves—literal waves.
The inner energy from his fan swelled, engulfing So-hyang’s space like a crashing tide.
An area-of-effect strike blanketing the entire space.
Even sword strikes infused with Iron Cutter couldn’t block the aftermath.
It was the same in her previous life.
Cutting steel, titanium, or tungsten alloys at best couldn’t overcome modern armaments.
Explosions, flames, shockwaves, sonic blasts, biochemical gases—area attacks were unstoppable.
Thus, her second enlightenment.
Grip the sword fiercely and swing wildly.
Where Iron Cutter sliced cleanly without error—
This was its opposite: ragged, messy cuts tearing space.
Maximized air resistance clashed with the blade, birthing a vacuum as the atmosphere quaked.
—And exploded outward.
One sword unleashing shockwaves to repel the entire space: the enlightenment of Sword Pressure.
“Truly trying times…”
Only after mastering Iron Cutter and Sword Pressure could So-hyang wield her blade purely against modern might.
Though missiles vaporizing hundreds of meters were survivable at best, and nukes were beyond scope.
“Impressive. A threatening ability.”
Projectile and Wave.
Part and whole of Lee Se-min’s signature technique, the Mad Wind Qi Art: simple yet devastating.
Even blocked, he remained unperturbed.
“Demons are inherently tenacious by nature. Controlling distance and space aids extermination but isn’t absolute.”
Blue flames roared fiercely in his dead-fish eyes.
“The absolute is power alone.”
Projectiles and waves poured forth.
Faster, stronger, countless.
Overwhelming firepower and volume effective against most demonic creatures.
“Aha, like this—”
If before was rapid fire, now it was a chaotic barrage.
A relentless torrent of projectiles and waves.
Even at max speed—evading, blocking, deflecting, cutting—it fell short.
No time for pure swings; vision filled with bullet hell.
“Got you.”
Finally, one projectile struck So-hyang’s abdomen dead-on, launching her into the cavern wall.
“Cough, cough.”
A thunderous boom echoed as air hissed from her lungs. Breath-stealing impact.
“It’s over. Submit quietly.”
Lee Se-min raised his fan overhead to finish—
“Ahuhu…”
He paused at her face.
“Smiling…?”
Blush bloomed, eyes softened into a smile.
Her ragged breaths brimmed with ecstasy.
Hidden trump card? His expression hardened, vigilance surging.
“...!”
A roar shattered the floor as So-hyang vanished.
Surprisingly, in this life, So-hyang had never been wounded once.
Not even a solid hit.
First-rate warriors fell short; even Peak experts dissatisfied her.
She hadn’t used Iron Cutter or Sword Pressure against Namgung Su or Moon Shadow for that reason.
No joy in instantly bisecting foes without exchanging blows.
“Cough, cough.”
Yet this Demon Seal Cave Master was different.
Cautious, thorough, simply strong.
The torrent of power, purely human martial might, thrilled her unbearably.
“Haaaa…”
The superhuman strength unleashed in life-or-death crises: Hysterical Strength.
Perfectly controlling capillaries and nerves even in limbs, So-hyang could invoke it anytime.
Mortals risked broken bones or torn muscles, but her body’s durability was leagues apart.
Her true full power, sustainable if willed.
She hadn’t because no worthy foe merited it.
“This is enough—I can go all out now.”
Unconsciously slipping into forgotten speech, So-hyang was exhilarated.
In that instant, So-hyang vanished from Lee Se-min’s sight.
His sharp senses caught her late: behind him.
“What.”
She brushed dust from her clothes, stretching with a bright smile.
“Aha, this is thrilling…!”
Bouncing lightly like warm-ups.
Thud, thud—cheerful echoes filled the cavern.
Sinews tougher than steel cables gripped bones fiercely; grip strength incomparable to before.
“...Dangerous.”
As So-hyang planted her feet, Lee Se-min gripped his fan tightly. Standoff ended.
She launched forward.
He responded with projectiles and waves as before.
But her power now blatantly defied common sense.
Light steps crushed stone; limb motions whipped gales.
Previously superhuman, now utterly beyond reason.
“Urk—!?”
Her movements exploded.
Bursting sounds trailed as she darted wildly, gravity failing—walls and ceiling her floor.
Projectiles sliced in one stroke, waves detonated wholesale.
“...This.”
Mad Wind Qi Art’s suppression failed; gaps yawned in the barrage.
So-hyang seized it.
Weaving masterfully through the dense curtain, she closed in instantly.
Now, sword range.
Since this stemmed from misunderstanding, no killing intent—just a light shoulder nick sufficed.
Her blade flew toward Lee Se-min, grazing his shoulder—
“Caught you.”
A meaningful smile crossed his face.
Transcendent expert traits.
Unrivaled inner energy and physique.
Refined techniques.
And Gang Qi.
So-hyang’s sword failed against his Protective Gang Qi, shattering.
Lee Se-min’s fan descended toward her head; thoughts raced.
“Tch, fell for it.”
The sword broke.
A Blood Chase Squad blade originally—poor quality from the start.
Balance ruined, unusable broken.
It would shatter like glass under shock.
Of course, barehanded, she could crush skulls or rend steel now.
But countering endless projectiles and waves unarmed? Tough.
The real issue: his barrier.
A shallow cut, but full-power swing.
Could bare hands pierce the barrier that blocked Iron Cutter?
Doubtful.
Unless her hand became a sword...
“Oh?”
A sudden flash of insight.
Her hand extended straight, forming a hand blade as in many martial arts.
And swung.
In her off-balance stance from the broken sword, a low arc strike.
“—Argh!?”
From pinky tip to wrist, the mere hand blade pierced Protective Gang Qi, slashing his thigh.
Lee Se-min reeled from searing pain and disbelieving shock.
Now, Gang Qi pierced barehanded—
“Whoa, it actually worked?”
Her experimental gamble succeeded; laughter lit So-hyang’s face.
In short, it stemmed from channeling intent via the Upper Dantian.
Projecting spirit-based intent onto the world—a primal supernatural power, mighty yet limited by primitiveness.
Ineffective on non-spiritual targets.
Even then, requiring intense focus and time.
But it dawned: weren’t humans spiritual beings too?
Wind Path Beggar explained direct intent on others yielded little due to innate self-preservation will.
What about on oneself?
So-hyang sensed potential, gradually honing it.
Not yet practically potent—
“Whoa, it actually worked?”
Combat was often the best teacher.
Now her hand blade outsharpened average swords.
A weapon dispersing Gang Qi’s intent with astonishing efficacy.
Supreme flesh forged by her own hands, fused with peerless willpower.
“Sss—”
Meanwhile, Lee Se-min’s shock at the anomaly was fleeting; composure returned as he countered.
“—Ha!!!”
An unbelievable roar from his lean frame.
No fan prelude—he unleashed omnidirectional waves.
“Whoa, startling.”
Swept by the sudden shockwave, So-hyang, yielded distance, grinned appreciatively at him.
His deep thigh gash stitched shut with thin qi threads, stanched instantly.
Qi Arts mastery: exquisite energy control.
No real damage inflicted, ultimately.
“...Not a future threat, but one to eliminate now.”
Bloodshot eyes blazed; squeezing dantian depths—
He drew output beyond full power.
Facing his ominous aura head-on, So-hyang spread her right hand toward him.
“Now this hand counts as a sword.”
Then her left.
“And with two hands, two swords.”
Clashing them like honing blades, metal rang out.
“Have you experience against dual swords?”
Unable to contain her joy, a lovely smile graced So-hyang’s lips.