Chapter 172
Chapter 172
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: Nostalgic Sword Emperor
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The Great Might Divine Demon and the Thousand Calamity Marksman, who seemed like they wouldn't mesh at all, surprisingly worked together seamlessly.
The Great Might Divine Demon would hold the enemy at bay from afar using iron chains and meteor hammers, and in that interval, the Thousand Calamity Marksman would exploit the opening in a flash to target vital points.
Twin Thunder Chain Formation.
Adding the South Palace Clan's signature Combined Strike Formation to the mix made it an impregnable fortress that was truly impenetrable.
"First lure!"
"Got it!"
That was why Yu Sumin and Sima Seon-ui were teaming up against the two fiends.
They had never practiced the Combined Strike Formation together, but after spending so much time fighting side by side, they could read each other's intentions perfectly just from a glance.
It was the same now.
Yu Sumin signaled with her eyes that she would draw the Great Might Divine Demon's attention, and Sima Seon-ui conveyed his intent to swiftly take down the Thousand Calamity Marksman with Sword Fragrance Miles Technique.
Flash!
Sizzle!
Yu Sumin and Sima Seon-ui crossed paths as they moved.
In that instant, the Great Might Divine Demon and Thousand Calamity Marksman sneered coldly.
As if they had been waiting for this exact opportunity.
* * *
Flutter flutter!
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor's lightness skill was dazzling beyond compare.
Cloud Dragon Great Eight Forms.
Since ancient times, the Kunlun Sect's footwork had been renowned for its mystical nature, akin to immortals frolicking atop clouds.
This was a natural development given the rugged, expansive highlands of the Kunlun Mountains.
To traverse that vast range freely, footwork had no choice but to form the foundation of all martial arts.
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor was no different.
No, he had even incorporated the Sima clan's heretical tricks, pushing his footwork beyond the mystical into the realm of the bizarre.
It was utterly unlike Duke Gongbeom's pursuit of ultimate speed.
—Strange Dragon Great Nine Forms.
That was the name he had given to this new footwork he had devised.
Tap, tap, tap, tap—
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor kicked off empty air a full nine times as he charged toward me.
Eight were the eight directions. The ninth was the center where he stood.
By shifting the phases of the eight directions in response to his own movements, he created endlessly varied trajectories—a feature unique to the Strange Dragon Great Nine Forms, absent from the Cloud Dragon Great Eight Forms.
His white robe billowed as milky-white aura scattered like powder, filling the surroundings entirely with his domain.
「Young sect master! We must first deal with that damned immortal cloud!!」
「Indeed! That immortal cloud is infused with the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's sword aura, constantly wearing down our protective aura without respite!」
The clouds created by the Nostalgic Sword Emperor were steadily narrowing my range of movement, herding me into ever more confined corners.
‘If it's binding me like chains, then I'll sever it with a single stroke.’
I countered the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's assault with Gale Wind Divine Thunder.
Screeeeech—
Boom boom boom boom!
If the Cloud Dragon Great Eight Forms occupied the eight directions of empty space to bind the foe, Gale Wind Divine Thunder could sever the connecting immortal clouds with its explosive speed and sharp edge.
Thus, his attempts to restrain me failed time and again.
I would burst through the eight directions repeatedly, seizing his rear in the process.
I sharpened my hand blade with Shredding Wind Human Knot. Sword Thunder One Flash erupted.
Rumble!
The target was the back of the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's neck.
Just before the thunderbolt accompanied by thunder could cross its mark, the Nostalgic Sword Emperor scoffed without even turning, rolling his foot against the ground.
“Just looking at your form, you'd think you were some peerless swordsman. But your approach is too damn predictable.”
Boom!
A stone shot up from the ground, deflecting the Shredding Wind Human Knot sideways.
The force burrowed into my hand's back, aiming to sequentially destroy the acupoints of the Hand Lesser Yin Kidney Meridian—Lesser Palace, Greater Palace, Yin Market—that flowed beneath my palm.
「To infuse a mere stone kicked from the ground with such profound force!?」
「What level of footwork mastery—」
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor's force was tyrannical.
If left unchecked, it would ruin the Hand Lesser Yin Kidney Meridian passing through my right wrist, so I suppressed it with soul-binding poison while extending my left palm to unleash a straight-line Thunderclap Blast.
But this too was blocked by the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's Jade Dragon Palm as he twisted his upper body halfway back.
Crack!
With my left hand gripped in his vise, the Nostalgic Sword Emperor grinned broadly, baring his fangs.
“Hey, young friend. Where'd all that ferocity go, the vibe that you were about to devour me just moments ago?”
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor poured internal energy into his grip, clenching with vicious strength.
My wrist felt like it would snap backward.
I resisted with Reverse Fire Mountain's muscular power. Adding Qi Gallbladder Power's energy evened the balance somewhat.
Kukukuku!!
A clash of palm forces.
The ground shook violently as waves of shock rippled across it several times.
Grrr.
The pure demon inherent in the Heavenly Demon Aura growled. As if displeased with this situation.
Well, it must be frustrated.
Pure demon was the incarnation of destruction and domination. It wouldn't be satisfied until everything knelt, yet it couldn't achieve that here.
That was precisely what the Nostalgic Sword Emperor was demanding.
To properly show him again that chilling aura that had unnerved him.
So I shot back with equal sarcasm.
“Yeah, right. Hiding out in the South Palace Clan all this time must've let you hog all the good stuff to fend off my aura, huh? You're at an age where keeling over from old age tomorrow wouldn't surprise anyone, yet you're pushing yourself like this?”
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor's eyebrow twitched.
“…Even on the brink of death, your gift for running your mouth hasn't dulled. Fine. Let's see how long you can keep flapping your gums.”
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor twisted his Jade Dragon Palm aside while sweeping his sword horizontally. The shock waves rippling along the ground swelled into a tsunami.
Flash!
In that moment, the North Underworld Dart flew like a hidden arrow.
“Hmph! Such crude tricks!!”
But it couldn't fool the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's keen senses; his sword trajectory bent midway.
The shock tsunami spiraled, flinging the North Underworld Dart into the air.
That was the opening I needed. Dozens of strands of soul-binding threads moved stealthily.
Whip!
Clang clang clang clang!
I hammered the Nostalgic Sword Emperor relentlessly.
Treading Gale Wind Divine Thunder, I infused every one of the Hundred Strikes with maximum destructive power.
Reverse Fire Mountain's Thunderclap Blasts overlapped multiple times, shattering his protective aura and burrowing deep inside.
The soul-binding threads targeted his joints meticulously: armpits, knees, groin, and such.
If I could bind even slightly the movements of this spry old man, I could tilt the scales of victory my way.
Or better yet, claim a limb or two.
But the Nostalgic Sword Emperor was no pushover.
The immortal clouds he had spread everywhere became his eyes, ears, and nose.
With perception grasping even the subtlest flows of qi, the soul-binding threads found no gap to exploit.
Not only did he evade them all with the Strange Dragon Great Nine Forms' eerie movements, but sometimes he even batted them back toward me.
“Die.”
Then his sword aura surged upward. Immortal clouds trailed in, condensing rapidly into the aura.
A holy milky-white aura gleaming with pure white radiance—utterly unfitting for a wanted criminal of the martial world.
It evoked the sword form said to have been seen long ago when the Kunlun Sect's founding patriarch hunted dragons.
Supreme Void Dragon-Slaying Sword.
No, Thunder-Chasing Dragon-Slaying Sword.
Like the Strange Dragon Great Nine Forms, it was his twisted personal variant. It reeked of the South Palace Clan's other ultimate art, Thunder-Chasing.
Rumble!
Right then, the North Underworld Dart that had arced into the air plummeted vertically once more.
Carrying the full brunt of the North Sea Sect's Northern Winds and Snow.
Boom boom boom boom!!
The shockwave sought to shove me back hard.
I didn't resist, retrieving the North Underworld Dart and riding the wind to widen the distance from the Nostalgic Sword Emperor as much as possible.
Tap!
Regaining my stance, I faced forward.
Black smoke and scorch stench enveloping the Nostalgic Sword Emperor were swept away by the ensuing shock waves, revealing him once more.
“Now I see where that vile mouth of yours gets its source. Straight from those flashy parlor tricks.”
Grit!
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor ground his teeth, yanking the North Underworld Dart from his left shoulder and hurling it irritably to the ground.
I pulled the soul-binding threads to retrieve the North Underworld Dart, flashing a grin.
“Finally starting to look your age, old timer? You shouldn't defy the years heaven granted you.”
“Shut your trap, you brat!! I'll tear your limbs off and feed them to the dogs!”
“You've been yapping 'die, die' since earlier, but you haven't done squat. You sure you can actually pull it off?”
“You filthy bastaaard!!!”
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor's goatee quivered.
But he didn't move rashly—likely due to the soul-binding poison now coursing through his meridians.
And it wasn't ordinary soul-binding poison.
Blue Lotus Hell Art's Lotus Blue Poison.
Just as the Nostalgic Sword Emperor had created the Strange Dragon Great Nine Forms and Thunder-Chasing Dragon-Slaying Sword based on Kunlun ultimate arts, I had refined this curse poison by adapting the North Sea Sect's secret manuals.
Maximizing toxicity by blending soul-binding poison, Black Dragon Qi, Heart-Devouring Ice Poison, and Blue Lotus Hell Art.
Blue lotus-shaped spots bloomed and faded repeatedly on the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's skin for that very reason.
His overwhelming internal energy was suppressing the poison; otherwise, he'd be vomiting blood by now.
Moreover, having once pledged himself to the Soul Horse North Sea Sect, he couldn't fail to notice the traces of the Demonic Horse North Sea Sect lingering in the Lotus Blue Poison.
North Underworld Dart laced with hell art. That ought to scramble his brain.
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor glared at me with blazing eyes.
Demanding to know my true identity. What kind of bastard was I to wield such techniques.
I just grinned back without answering.
To let his insides burn a bit more.
Bet you're dying to know, huh?
Worried that the supposedly dead North Sea Sect Lord who faked his death with Resurrection Half Evil might be a dagger secretly plunged into the Tang clan's heart, right?
Yeah. Get real confused.
That'll muddle your heads, and that hesitation will tighten the noose around your necks.
The Nostalgic Sword Emperor's lips moved. He was rapidly exchanging transmissions with Namgung Oh, who had fallen back.
Thanks to that, I bought some time.
「Are you alright?」
‘No. Feels like death. If we drag this out much longer, it'll really get dangerous.’
The soul spirits showered me with worried gazes.
Truth be told, my condition was far worse than the Nostalgic Sword Emperor's—never good to begin with.
He could retreat and purge the Lotus Blue Poison anytime with proper rest, but I was deteriorating further with every passing moment.
The force starting to damage my Hand Lesser Yin Kidney Meridian was trouble enough, but my body, forged by Fire Dragon Demon Body, was beginning to creak.
I was nearly at my limit.
But precisely because of that, my senses were sharper than ever.
Senses, perception, nerves, wits, reason—all focused solely on the battle at hand.
Foresight, which had only hinted at possibilities, now sharpened into clarity.
The flood of information I had absorbed indiscriminately now coalesced into unity.
Dang Gyujin's victory. Lightning Spear's defeat. Yu Sumin and Sima Seon-ui's panic. Great Might Divine Demon and Thousand Calamity Marksman's assault. Gaps. Convergence. Victory and defeat. My situation. All compounded, then disassembled.
A path seemed to emerge.
“…….”
As if entranced, my feet moved toward it unconsciously.
External stimuli shut down. Mouth closed. Nose, ears closed. Even thoughts sealed away.
Now the path was clear.
No—only the path was visible, precisely.
State of No-Self.
As stray thoughts vanished from my mind, the pure demon that had dwelled within burst forth, filling my entire body.
I surrendered to the Heavenly Demon Aura.