Chapter 595: What Have You Done to Your Fists?
Chapter 595: What Have You Done to Your Fists?
Lee An’s eyes brimmed with longing as she gazed at the One Flower Sword Venerable.
Yes, that was the future she envisioned for herself.
She wanted to live boldly, without ever having to walk on eggshells around anyone. That was why she traveled the Central Plains with nothing but a single sword at her hip. She craved a life where she could come and go as she pleased.
For the weak, freedom was nothing but an illusion; only the truly strong could ever be free.
Yeon Baek-in, the master of the Yellow Dragon Martial Arts Hall, felt a similar intensity as he watched from the sidelines. However, if he had to condense his complex feelings into a single phrase, it would be this:
Shut up!
The urge to scream those words dominated him. It was that very desire that had driven him to send everyone else away and stand alone amidst this sea of blood.
Suddenly, his chest tightened at the sight before him.
Corpses were strewn everywhere.
Men he had considered masters had been cut down in a single strike.
And here he was, having acted with such arrogance without even realizing his opponent was a Demon Lord, now clinging to this side just to survive.
Yeon Baek-in’s gaze shifted toward Fist King Kang Hu.
Sitting in the spectator stands, Kang Hu was acting like a mere observer.
Are you just going to sit there while everyone dies?
Since he couldn't fathom the extent of Kang Hu's skill or character, Yeon Baek-in’s mind naturally drifted to another person.
What are you doing, man?
He desperately wished for the man in the basement to emerge.
How wonderful would it be if that chair slid down and the man returned sitting upon it? He believed that man could kill all these terrifying Demon Lords.
*
A flicker of displeasure crossed Ghost Blade’s face before vanishing. Despite being utterly ignored by the One Flower Sword Venerable, he did not lose his temper.
“That’s a bit troublesome,” he said, leisurely smoothing his clothes. “I’m someone who wants my name to be known far and wide. Can’t you tell by my attire?”
His red martial robes were adorned with white depictions of ghosts—the symbol of Ghost Blade.
“Especially lately, since there are so many fools who fail to recognize me.”
He had happened upon a spirit herb by chance. No, it wasn't exactly by chance. He had murdered his closest friend to steal the treasure the man had guarded for years.
The Death Spirit Undying Herb.
Thanks to that herb, he had not only gained immense internal energy, but his skin had tightened and his black hair had begun to grow back.
The reason his friend had never consumed such a precious thing was because of its side effects. The herb’s wicked energy would gradually burrow into the mind, eventually driving the consumer mad.
No one knew when the side effects would manifest. It could be the day after consumption, or ten years later.
Ghost Blade had taken the risk and swallowed it anyway. His reason was simple:
— I’m a wicked, crazy bastard anyway.
Even as the elderly Ghost Blade, he had been a renowned master of the Unorthodox Path. Now, with youth and vast internal energy added to his repertoire, he had become truly formidable. He was confident he could defeat anyone.
This was why he remained composed even after witnessing the One Flower Sword Venerable’s incredible strike moments ago.
“One Flower Sword Venerable, your name will be the proudest among those I have slain.”
She responded with her usual coldness.
“I don’t care.”
However, there was one thing she was curious about.
“What I want to know is what is happening down below.”
Since the Fist Demon wasn't the type to ask such questions, she had to find out for herself. The life of the Young Cult Leader was at stake.
The enemies knew what was happening in the basement, but her side did not. If it were anyone other than the Young Cult Leader, she would have already rushed down there.
Ghost Blade could not answer her. Realizing that he was also ignorant of the situation below, the One Flower Sword Venerable dismissed him once more.
“You talk a lot, but you don’t know the things that actually matter.”
She refused to acknowledge him. He was an enemy to be killed, and Ghost Blade was not a martial artist worthy of respect.
Ghost Blade’s expression hardened at her mockery.
Deep down, he was furious about this very point. Kang Hu had told him absolutely nothing, as if he wouldn't waste words on a mere subordinate.
Truly, Ghost Blade had met all sorts of villains in his time, but he had never met anyone as unlikable and unpleasant as that man.
Just then, Kang Hu spoke up.
“Do you know? You are all standing in a place where you shouldn't be.”
He was certain of Geom Mu-geuk’s death.
“A place where you must take responsibility for the Young Cult Leader’s death. Even if it isn't by our hands, your own Cult Leader will kill you.”
The One Flower Sword Venerable let out a faint laugh.
“You know nothing either.”
Neither about the Young Cult Leader nor the Cult Leader himself.
She had firm faith that the Young Cult Leader would not die, and even if he did, the Cult Leader would not hold them responsible. In fact, that would be even more painful.
Her gaze returned to Ghost Blade.
“Then I have nothing more to say to you lot.”
Since every word she spoke was laced with cold contempt, Ghost Blade stopped talking and silently drew his blade.
His unique martial art was the Black Shadow Ghost Hand Blade Technique.
It consisted of seven domineering forms that had claimed countless lives. Now, wings had been added to this powerful martial art.
Ssssssssh.
A powerful aura erupted from Ghost Blade’s body. He was already wicked by nature, but combined with the evil energy of the Death Spirit Undying Herb, his aura carried a truly vile malice.
Whooooosh!
The blowing evil energy fluttered the One Flower Sword Venerable’s snow-white robes.
Even within that foul energy, she stared at Ghost Blade with haughty eyes. She was no longer at the level she had been when she sparred with Geom Mu-geuk.
She had surpassed Great Achievement and entered a new realm. Her swordsmanship had moved beyond the Eleventh-Star Stage and was heading toward the Twelfth-Star Great Achievement.
Her unique martial art was the One Flower Sword Technique.
Both her title and her path were named after this technique. She had always taken immense pride in her unique martial art, but things were different now.
She was no longer bound by forms; she was carving out a realm of her own. The eight forms of the One Flower Sword Technique were gradually being condensed.
When two forms became one, and even that one form vanished, she would finally reach the ultimate principle of swordsmanship.
She had realized that only when the sword gains freedom does it reach perfect martial intent.
Amidst the suffocating tension, Ghost Blade was the first to strike.
Swish!
A powerful blade qi flew toward her.
The One Flower Sword was drawn, slicing through the air.
Rippppp!
As if silk were being torn apart, the swirling blade qi was split in two.
Boom! Crash!
The severed blade qi flew backward, smashing into and collapsing the perimeter walls.
Ghost Blade’s expression stiffened. He knew she would block it, but he hadn't expected her to do it so effortlessly.
“As expected! A Demon Lord is a Demon Lord, I suppose.”
In a flash, the One Flower Sword Venerable was already closing in to cut him down.
Shick!
The short, crisp sound of a blade cutting the wind.
Clang!
Sword and blade collided. It was a strike that would have taken his head had he been even a fraction of a second late.
Seeing the One Flower Sword Venerable retreat into the distance, Ghost Blade’s eyes instantly blazed with fury.
“Sword Venerable! Today, by my hand—”
Ching!
Sparks flew again. This time, she was even faster.
The One Flower Sword Venerable, who had lunged for his throat, seemed to retreat again, only to strike right before his eyes with a whoosh of wind.
Clang!
Ghost Blade managed to block this strike, but his wrist throbbed as if it were about to break. He could feel it—if he were his old self, he would have already been deeply cut by this attack.
She’s strong!
From the start, he was being pushed back in both speed and momentum. He never dreamed that he, having become incomparably stronger than before, would be pressured like this. He hadn't underestimated a Demon Lord, but he never thought she would be stronger than his rejuvenated self.
Of course, he wasn't just taking hits.
Exuding even more powerful evil energy, Ghost Blade’s weapon repeatedly tore through the air.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
The One Flower Sword Venerable blocked five consecutive attacks with two sword movements and used footwork to dodge the remaining three.
Her movements were concise yet elegant. Usually, elegance implied large, slow motions, but she was demonstrating how fast, concise movements could be graceful.
One moment she seemed to move slowly, and the next, with a gust of wind, her form was already cutting into Ghost Blade.
Light movements, yet a sword that was never light; a strike that remained calm even in urgent situations—each of her moves felt more than just elegant; they felt sublime.
Splurt!
Blood sprayed from Ghost Blade’s shoulder.
He counterattacked immediately, but the One Flower Sword Venerable had already retreated out of his range.
Her movements, freed from the shackles of forms, were like the wind. Sometimes a light breeze, sometimes a gale; as soft as a spring wind, yet as fierce as a storm.
Watching from the side, Lee An didn't miss a single motion. The One Flower Sword Venerable was showing her now.
This was how a person holding a sword should move.
Ghost Blade knew that the longer the fight lasted, the more disadvantaged he would be, so he unleashed his ultimate technique without hesitation.
It was the Ghost Rain—dozens of strands of blade qi pouring down like a spectral deluge.
The blade qi rained down upon the One Flower Sword Venerable. Could a human truly dodge the rain?
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
The One Flower Sword Venerable ran through the rain. Common sense dictated that one should get wet when running through rain, but she defied common sense.
She dodged where the rain fell first, slipped between the strands of blade qi, and parried them with her sword. Every time he perceived her, she was already in a different spot.
And Ghost Blade saw it. Even in the midst of it all, she was staring at him through the downpour.
The moment he saw those calm eyes, Ghost Blade poured all his internal energy into his next form.
WHOOOOOOSH!
The Ghost Wind—a spectral gale that blew everything away. It was his final form.
A massive blade wind struck her. The ground was overturned by the blade wind laden with immense internal energy, and rocks, trees, and walls were all swept away.
The Fist Demon turned and pulled Lee An, who had no internal energy, into his arms, manifesting a large field of Body Protection Qi.
Whirrrrrrrr.
To Lee An, it felt like watching a typhoon sweep past the window of an indestructible building.
She was worried about the One Flower Sword Venerable.
If the surroundings were like this, the One Flower Sword Venerable must have been caught in the very center of that blade wind.
Whirrr...
Eventually, the wind that had been raging like a mad ghost came to a halt.
A smile played on Ghost Blade’s lips.
That strike had landed perfectly. The arrogant One Flower Sword Venerable hadn't dodged; she had faced his Ghost Wind head-on.
Arrogance is always the problem.
As the dust settled and the scene was revealed, the smile vanished from Ghost Blade’s face.
His eyes bulged with disbelief.
The One Flower Sword Venerable stood there, having not moved a single step. Not a thread of her clothes was torn, and not even a strand of her hair was out of place.
She asked calmly, “Do you have anything else to show me?”
He should have. But all he had left was disbelief and terror.
He never thought he would be the one saying these words. They were the cliché words his dying enemies always said to him.
“Just... how?”
The whoosh of wind heard this time was different from before.
It was the crispest sound of wind heard yet.
Ghost Blade stood there dazed, and then...
Ssssh.
Blood lines were drawn diagonally across his face and body.
“My life... was just starting again...”
He collapsed, his body sliding apart in halves. The flowing blood quickly soaked his clothes. The white ghost depicted on them was dyed red.
No matter how young he became, no matter how strong his evil energy grew or how much internal energy he possessed, he was no match for the One Flower Sword Venerable.
For she was a woman who had been silently walking—no, sprinting—toward the ultimate peak of swordsmanship.
It was then.
CRACK.
A sound echoed from the main building far behind Ghost Blade’s corpse.
A diagonal line began to appear across the structure.
Rumble! Crash!
The main building, where Yeon Baek-in’s office was located, collapsed along that diagonal line.
It was a moment that revealed just how deep the essence of the sword contained in her final strike truly was.
The One Flower Sword Venerable turned back toward the Fist Demon and Lee An.
As she walked back, the Fist Demon gave a slight nod. It was a gesture of respect for her swordsmanship and for her as a person.
The One Flower Sword Venerable also gave a slight nod in return.
Lee An’s face was filled with shock and awe.
What truly moved her wasn't the fact that she had killed Ghost Blade or that the building had collapsed.
It was the One Flower Sword Venerable’s clothes.
She had returned from a fight in a sea of corpses, yet not a single drop of blood was splattered on her white robes. She had navigated through that rain of blade qi, yet not a drop of blood from the ground had touched her.
Lee An bowed deeply and said with respect, “Sword Venerable, you have just shown me the future I must strive for.”
The One Flower Sword Venerable gave Lee An a bright smile.
Meanwhile, the Fist Demon stepped forward.
The only ones left alive now were Kang Hu, the young man with red bandages, and Yeon Baek-in.
Yeon Baek-in, who had barely saved his life by desperately fleeing the blade wind, stared at the collapsed building in despair. He felt an ominous sensation, as if he were looking at his own future.
Even though all his subordinates and the two masters he brought were dead, Kang Hu remained composed.
“I’ve wanted to fight you for a long time,” Kang Hu said as he slowly walked out. The young man with red bandages walked out with him.
The two of them unwound their bandages simultaneously.
Beneath them, their fists were densely engraved with tiny, unrecognizable characters. The characters on each man differed in color and content, and an eerie energy was flowing from their fists.
Unlike the One Flower Sword Venerable, who watched the situation silently, Lee An’s expression hardened.
Their aura had been extraordinary even before they unwound the bandages, but now their fists were augmented with bizarre evil sorcery. The aura of death emanating from their hands was exceptionally wicked.
Furthermore, the enemy was not alone. There was the young man in red bandages, who appeared to be a disciple. He had surely stepped forward because he had a role to play.
If only she had her internal energy, she would have wanted to step out with him. She wanted to handle the younger one herself.
But contrary to her complicated feelings, her father’s back, as solid as Mount Tai, did not waver in the slightest.
Just like that back she saw every night as he practiced his fist techniques beneath the cliff.
“What have you done to your fists?”
The Fist Demon walked forward, powerfully clenching his large fists.
“If you don't trust your fists, you might as well just pick up a weapon.”