Chapter 123
Damn it, the weather is utterly perfect today.
The master of the Gongmyo Clan, Gongmyo-ryeong, scowled as he stared at the sky.
Just by looking up, the Heavenly Qi was laid bare—the sky was a brilliant, cloudless blue.
And the Heavenly Qi she saw was unmistakably a great inauspicious omen.
“Curse it, even the Core Formation Nascent Soul cultivators—regardless of how green they are—now number over two hundred, having pulled every ounce of accumulated power from every clan and faction… and they’ve set traps and prepared elaborate plans. Yet the Heavenly Qi still screams great inauspiciousness.”
“There’s nothing we can do about it. Isn’t that just the way of a Nascent Soul cultivator?”
Wall Cheonggi clicked his tongue in agreement.
In the center of the Dabcheon Desert,
there stood Won Rip’s sanctuary, a black castle.
Hundreds of Core Formation cultivators stood in formation around it.
On the outer perimeter, Foundation Establishment cultivators handpicked from every clan filled the surrounding area.
Above them rose warships prepared by the factions, enormous law artifacts requiring multiple operators, cannons, and charging chariots.
War artifacts were also lined up in abundance.
“Foundation Establishment cultivators, prepare the Yin-Dao Call of the Wind!”
Following the order of the master of the Miri Clan, Miri Hwangcheon, the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Miri Clan began gathering their energy while raising formation flags behind them.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
Yin energy began to condense within their formations, summoning ferocious winds.
“The Jin Clan is no match either! Prepare White Fusion and Zhang Wing, and Yang Fusion Red Fire!”
The Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Jin Clan gathered and began weaving a formation.
Within it, blood-red flames began to bloom.
Absorbing the desert’s scorching heat, the Jin Clan’s flames grew even larger than the Yin Wind gathered from the Miri Clan.
Miri Hwangcheon’s eyelids twitched upon seeing it. An elder of the Miri Clan noticed and gave the elder of lower rank a meaningful glance.
The elder of lower rank scowled at the one beside him, then shouted with a face turning red.
“Pump up the Yin Wind even larger than the Jin Clan! If you succeed in creating proper Yin Wind, I’ll give each of you three Life-Sustaining Pills! But if you fall behind, you’ll see something very entertaining!”
Ku-gugugu-gu!
Before his words finished, the Miri Clan’s Yin Wind exploded outward with even greater ferocity.
The Jin Clan responded by enlarging their flames. The two clans competed, expanding their secret formations even further.
Cheongmun Jung-jin smiled faintly.
“These two clans are bound to keep things lively when they’re thrown together.”
“Oh my, even Uncle Cheongmun agrees with that. If our two clans were to merge, there truly wouldn’t be a dull moment…”
“…Master of the Jin Clan, step aside.”
“Hmph, it’s not like the Bongmyeong Castle has appeared yet. Until then, why not loosen up and chat?”
Jin-ru Seon-cheon, the master of the Jin Clan, was a voluptuous beauty wearing a pitch-black long robe with faint blue light emanating from her eyes.
“And why should clan merger be a private matter? Isn’t it public business? Uncle?”
“Hah… Lian-cheon-ah. The masters of the six clans in Seongje Kingdom are glaring at us right now. What if a civil war breaks out before the war starts?”
“Hmph, ha, hee, joon, yeoljeon, ori, jeon. Even if all these trash clans merged, they couldn’t reach Jin-ru Clan. Is that so hard to understand? Let’s talk about something more interesting, Uncle. How about treating me like before?”
Cheongmun Jung-jin furrowed his brows as if his head ached, then hardened his expression.
“…Master of the Jin Clan, return to your place.”
“Think about it, Uncle. If the bloodline of Cheongmun Clan, descended from Changho-ja’s blood, merges with the Jin-ru Clan, the founding clan of the Seongje Kingdom…”
“Enough! No more private talk is permitted. Acting as supreme commander, I order the master of the Jin Clan to return to his place. I will govern the rest myself!”
“…Hmph. Very well, Supreme Commander. I hope you think carefully.”
Jin-ru Yeon-cheon winked one eye at Cheongmun Jung-jin, then laughed boisterously as he retreated.
Cheongmun Jung-jin pressed his temples as if his head was pounding.
“Speaking of which, where is the doctor Seo?” He whispered the question to Wall Cheonggi, who kept clinging to him from beside Gongmyo-ryeong.
“Wall master, you said you went to escort the doctor Seo, didn’t you?”
“Ah… that’s the thing.”
Wall Cheonggi’s face stiffened slightly.
Gongmyo-ryeong had already distanced herself from him in the meantime, and Wall Cheonggi stared at her with a disappointed expression before scowling.
“Wall master, contact has been made.”
“Heh, that’s…”
At that moment,
ku-gugugu-gu!
From the eastern side of the Dabcheon Desert, a massive dark shadow surged toward Won Rip’s sanctuary.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
Black curse patterns burst outward in all directions.
And at the center of the curse patterns, the shadow scanned its surroundings and spoke.
[It looks like I’m not too late.]
Pa-ah-ah!
Wall Mun-seong, following the shadow, immediately approached Wall Cheonggi and greeted him respectfully.
“I have the honor of greeting the master. Mission accomplished.”
“Oh, is that so? Well done. Haha, Supreme Commander. It seems everyone has gathered.”
“Indeed…”
The figure that enveloped his entire body in darkness—the shadow, Seo Eun-hyun.
The Eastern Monarch who wrapped his entire body in white bandages, Manriminrap.
Wall Cheonggi, the master of the Wall Clan, dressed in a confident blue-white long robe.
The three of them stepped forward before Cheongmun Jung-jin.
“Since you three already know the plan inside and out, there’s nothing I need to tell you. Still, I advise you to keep imagining the situation in your heads.”
“Understood.”
Wall Cheonggi answered, but Seo Eun-hyun and Manriminrap simply nodded.
“Also… the Bongmyeong Castle will appear in a little while. Prepare yourselves in advance.”
Cheongmun Jung-jin handed the two law artifacts to Wall Cheonggi and Manriminrap.
“I’ve placed the Main Spirit inside the artifacts.”
“Hah, as expected. Immortal Wine. Just drinking it can temporarily raise all kinds of abilities.”
Wall Cheonggi gazed at the artifact with admiration, while Manriminrap immediately took out the wine from the artifact without a word.
Then he drank all the Immortal Wines right there.
Ku-gugugu!
Manriminrap’s aura changed drastically after downing the Immortal Wines.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
His energy surged in an instant, and he took a deep breath.
“Good. Even if the time is short…”
“Wall master…”
“Ah, I’ll drink before activating the Realm Sky Breaking Part.”
“Very well.”
Cheongmun Jung-jin’s gaze turned to Seo Eun-hyun.
“Doctor Seo… are you currently drinking?”
Seo Eun-hyun nodded inside the curse patterns.
[I’m drinking while waiting.]
“I see. I hope the plan proceeds well…”
Cheongmun Jung-jin finished speaking and raised his energy with a solemn expression.
And he looked up at the sky.
Every Core Formation and Foundation Establishment cultivator in the field looked up at the sky.
Seo Eun-hyun gazed at Won Rip’s castle instead of the sky,
Manriminrap took out a massive ship cannon from the artifact and began embedding spirit stones into the groove at the back.
Wall Cheonggi pulled out the Realm Sky Breaking Part and infused it with spiritual energy.
Everyone looked up at the sky, calculating Heavenly Qi and Heavenly Timing.
“Time has come!”
Gongmyo-ryeong shouted loudly.
“Liberation…”
One of the Eastern Monarchs murmured in a low voice.
“The Bongmyeong Castle is appearing.”
One of the leaders of the vast plains hardened his face.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
The void cracked, and the cylindrical giant castle, which had been roaming the space-time dimension, entered the real world.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
At the same time, countless cultivators in the field sensed the change in the nearby Heavenly Qi.
Liberation energy.
The sealed ones breaking through.
The sealed beings releasing.
Those who had been locked awakening.
Kig, gigigigig!
The secret technique of the Gongmyo Clan.
The Eight Trigrams Yin-Sucking Sealing Formation, connecting and sealing the nearby dragon veins.
From within the formation, crimson energy began to spurt out like stems.
Gugugugugu!
At the same time, many cultivators felt the pressure of spiritual energy and hardened their expressions.
The being inside was about to come out.
The Liberation had entered the present world and completely settled.
Consequently, the nearby Heavenly Qi began to absorb the Liberation energy even more actively.
Ku-keuk, kug-guk!
Blood light began cracking and bursting through every part of the formation.
Across the dry desert, the stench of blood began to reverberate.
Swaaa…
Between the cracks, blood mist flowed out.
Ppak, ppajijik, ppajjijik!
The sealing formations gradually began to crack.
One Core Formation cultivator swallowed his saliva.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
The formations began to shatter piece by piece, and the Heavenly Qi that had formed the formation scattered visibly in all directions.
And at last,
Hwa-ah-ah!
The sealing formation had been completely released.
Crimson blood spread throughout the area, as if the entire desert was soaked in the stench of blood.
Swaaa!
The black castle was enveloped in blood mist.
And from inside the castle, someone began to walk out.
Jwebuk, jwebuk…
Blood-colored long robe.
Ash-gray hair.
Hands wrinkled with age.
And a strangely translucent, unexposed face still covered in black mist.
It was Won Rip, the Blood Wood Daoist.
[How have you been?]
Ku-gugugu-gu!
The four hundred Core Formation and Foundation Establishment cultivators gathered in the field felt as if their breath was cut off by those words.
“Nascent… Soul…”
Cheongmun Jung-jin’s lips trembled as he gauged his realm.
“Middle… stage?!”
Wall Cheonggi’s face darkened.
“Forming both Yin Spirit and Yang Spirit after the Nascent Soul?”
“No need to fear.”
Seo Eun-hyun cut off Wall Cheonggi’s words and spoke.
Swaaah-aah—
The black curse patterns spread around him.
The blood mist could not enter the black mist area formed by the curse patterns.
[He boasted that he would reach Nascent Soul late stage and yet is only bringing out the middle stage. As a Nascent Soul cultivator, how can he not keep his word? Isn’t that embarrassing?]
Kuo-o-o.
The black curse patterns bubbled as they touched the blood mist, which immediately rotted and fell to the desert.
[Come at me, Won Rip. Today, you die.]
[What is this… No demonic energy, but it looks exactly like a demonic technique. Has he mastered a technique created from a demonic technique’s auxiliary method?]
Won Rip only observed Seo Eun-hyun without paying any attention to his words.
[Indeed, interesting. A bold little fellow. But there’s one misunderstanding.]
I spoke to Manriminrap.
[Begin the attack.]
Manriminrap nodded and pointed the cannon he had taken out at the chattering Won Rip.
Hundreds of spirit stones embedded in the cannon’s groove suddenly glowed.
And then,
Bwek!
A blue ray shot toward Won Rip.
In the blue ray, the entire world seemed to turn night for an instant, and the light from all directions poured as if struck by the ray.
Kwa-kwa-kwa!
The sound followed belatedly, and the surroundings shook.
Swi-ii-i…
Dust clouds scattered.
Manriminrap opened his mouth with a doubtful voice.
“It hit…”
[That’s impossible. All of the Miri Clan and Jin Clan, and all the other clans, pour all attacks toward him!]
Cheongmun Jung-jin relayed my words and broadcast them in all directions.
And the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Miri Clan fired the law techniques they had prepared, the Yin-Dao Call of the Wind, at Won Rip.
The Jin Clan also fired their Yang Fusion Red Fire techniques at Won Rip.
Several Foundation Establishment cultivators, borrowing the power of the formations, unleashed a wide-area magical technique that shot toward a single being.
“It hit…”
[I didn’t hit him. From now on, the real fight begins. Everyone, prepare yourselves.]
I poured out more curse patterns and looked inside the dust clouds.
And blood mist began to stretch from inside the clouds.
Cheongmun Jung-jin’s voice rang from behind.
“Scatter!!!”
Kwa-kwa-kwa-gwang!
A crimson blood-colored ray shot toward where we were.
And the dust clouds settled.
Ku-gugugu—
Above the black castle,
there stood Won Rip, and beneath him, thousands of black-red zombie soldiers lined up.
And naturally, all of his law artifacts and treasures.
And in his hand, he held a blood-colored blood-repelling blade that none of us could see.
[Two hundred years is not a short time for you or me. Let’s see what you can do…]
Swi-ing!
He raised the blood-repelling blade.
And then,
Kwa-ah-ah-ang!
With the wind he blew, the blood wind mixed with blood mist spread across the four corners of the world, pushing back the entire Core Formation union.