In the Martial Alliance (1)
Whoosh!
A dreadful killing intent erupted from Jeok-yeon.
It was so vicious that no one would ever believe she had trained in Buddhist martial arts. The intensity of her malice was enough to evoke the image of a demonic practitioner who had cultivated devilish arts.
Yeon Sim was startled.
“Sect Leader!”
Jeong-an was equally shocked.
No matter how corrupted she had become, this killing intent had crossed far beyond any acceptable limit. It was not merely a departure from the Buddhist path—it had strayed from the path of humanity itself. It was no exaggeration to call it the killing intent of something beyond human, a true demonic existence.
Jeok-yeon growled in a low voice.
“Are you speaking to me?!”
Yeon Hojeong ignored her entirely and addressed Yang Cheon instead.
“Quite the spectacle unfolding in the great King of Combat’s own lair.”
Yang Cheon sighed.
“Had I never crossed paths with you, this would have remained a peaceful place.”
“Do I have permission?”
“You’ve already caused all this trouble, and now you ask for permission?”
“You are still the master of the house.”
“Shameless bastard.”
Yang Cheon nodded.
“I’ll inform the physician.”
The moment those words left his mouth, Yeon Hojeong’s hand swept across his back.
Shrrrk.
In an instant, the Black Dragon Axe rested in his right hand. From hilt to blade, it was entirely black, yet it gleamed with a mysterious luster—a divine weapon.
Jeok-yeon’s killing intent exploded.
“You bastard!”
Flash!
Before Jeok-yeon could even kick off the ground, a streak of pure white moonlight sliced across the hall.
Thud!
“……!”
Jeok-yeon’s body froze in place.
She slowly looked down at her waist.
Her sword, sheath and all, had been cleanly severed and lay on the floor. ‘When?!’ She hadn’t even seen the moment of the strike. It had been as fast as a beam of light.
“Where are you looking?”
Startled, Jeok-yeon unleashed a palm strike behind her.
Whoosh!
It was a horrifying sight. The moment she executed the Guanyin Divine Palm, its power scattered into nothingness.
Yeon Hojeong’s left hand then snatched her wrist.
Crack!
“Aaaagh!”
Jeok-yeon dropped to her knees without realizing it. The crude internal energy flooding through her broken wrist made her legs go weak.
Yeon Hojeong spoke coldly.
“Do not harm yourself or others with such pathetic martial arts. Return to the path of a cultivator.”
His foot sliced through the air.
Boom!
With a sound like a bursting drum, Jeok-yeon spat blood and was sent flying to the center of the hall.
That was the end.
Yeon Hojeong’s foot had precisely shattered her dantian. The Sea of Qi acupoint was destroyed, and her dantian was reduced to fragments. A lifetime of accumulated internal energy had returned to nothingness.
Jeok-yeon trembled violently before losing consciousness. If Yeon Hojeong had shown no mercy, her internal organs would have been completely destroyed and she would have died on the spot.
Yang Cheon let out a quiet murmur of admiration. ‘He’s definitely changed.’
It was different from when he had exchanged blows with Yeon Hojeong before.
In terms of realm, there wasn’t much difference. What mattered was the way he manifested his martial arts.
Yeon Hojeong’s martial arts could be summed up in two words.
Killing, and destruction.
That was why it had been ferocious, effective, and overwhelmingly powerful. It was an extreme violence that completely crushed opponents with peerless combat instinct.
But now? ‘Deconstruction.’
Without needing to draw blood through violent techniques, he preempted his opponent’s martial arts and perfectly dismantled them, rendering them powerless.
His ability to strike at weaknesses remained unchanged, but where he once traded blows and thoroughly broke his opponents, he now dismantled them before they could even execute their techniques.
Even the process of dismantling had changed. Instead of breaking, destroying, and bursting, he simply neutralized. It was an impressive move—far more remarkable than flashy, powerful techniques.
After all, no matter how agitated she was, Jeok-yeon’s martial arts were still at the level of a sect leader. ‘That brat… he’s truly reached the end.’
The realm of the Martial God.
He stood before the legendary sea known as the Limitless Realm, gazing out at the endless expanse of the great ocean.
Yeon Hojeong looked at Yeon Sim.
Her eyes trembled as if struck by an earthquake.
Yeon Hojeong asked,
“Do you want to avenge your master?”
Yeon Sim had already drawn her sword. The moment Yeon Hojeong’s axe had cleaved her master’s blade in two, she had drawn her weapon to stop the fight.
But she had been unable to do anything. ‘I can’t win.’
It wasn’t that she couldn’t stop him simply because he was a difficult opponent to defeat. ‘……This kind of martial art?’
It was a martial art she could not execute in her current state—an impossible technique.
No, perhaps even if she trained endlessly from now on, she wondered if she could ever master a method like that.
The overwhelming sense of powerlessness bound her body.
People called that feeling by another name: defeat.
Yeon Hojeong spoke calmly.
“Do you understand the meaning of the conversation I had with the Vice Lord?”
“……?”
“Everything that has changed in the Botam you know is the work of the Vice Lord standing over there.”
Startled, Yeon Sim turned to look at Yang Cheon.
Yang Cheon smirked and rested his chin on his hand. He showed not a shred of guilt, as if he had nothing to hide.
Yeon Sim asked in a trembling voice,
“You did that, Vice Lord?”
“I did.”
“Why…… why?!”
Yang Cheon replied in a tone that sounded almost cheerful.
“Because I wanted to seize Botam’s power.”
It was a simple statement, yet it carried a terrifying possessiveness.
It was a desire so chillingly simple and personal that Yeon Sim felt fear before anger.
The world, the jianghu, could be ruined simply by becoming someone’s target. The idea that a single person’s will could change the world was exactly what this situation represented.
“……Then we came here begging the very enemy who destroyed our sect to help us?”
“Enemy?”
Yang Cheon spoke with amusement.
“If you truly followed the Buddhist path, you wouldn’t see me as an enemy. The fact that you see me as one means you also disliked Botam’s oppression, doesn’t it?”
It was sophistry.
Throwing the seeds of discord into a peaceful temple that followed the Buddhist path and viewed the world through its own sense of justice was already a grave sin. That was what Yeon Sim believed.
And her belief was, in truth, correct.
The problem lay with her.
“Admit it. You don’t suit the Buddhist laws. You want to make a name for yourself in the world and bloom the talent you possess.”
Yeon Sim could offer no rebuttal. She had been shaken by Yang Cheon’s earlier rebuke and couldn’t bring herself to speak falsehoods.
Yang Cheon spoke in a decisive tone.
“Botam’s collapse stems from the lax cultivation of you all, who couldn’t even withstand something as simple as sowing discord. Of course, knowing that, I orchestrated the chaos from behind.”
This, too, was sophistry. If Yang Cheon hadn’t made his move in the first place, Botam wouldn’t be in this state. If a robbery occurred, the robber should be blamed, not the wealthy patron.
But. ‘……’
Once again, Yeon Sim couldn’t easily open her mouth.
Yang Cheon called it sowing discord. If it had been Shaolin, would they have collapsed from something like that?
This was a matter of cultivation, not martial arts or values. It was unfortunate to be robbed, but as sword practitioners of Botam, they also needed to reflect on the lightness of their training.
Yang Cheon said,
“I’ll say it clearly. I want to have you. Your talent is truly remarkable. Elder Byeoksanho called you a sword that might break at any moment, but to me, you’re already excellent.”
He meant it. Yeon Sim’s martial arts surpassed Jeong-an’s. Even compared to Yeon Hojeong, the difference wasn’t that great.
“As you know, Botam cannot return to the past. At least not for now. In other words……”
Yang Cheon lifted his chin.
“Everything that bound you, suppressed you, and restrained you has collapsed. That means you now have the chance to cast everything aside and pursue the life you truly desire.”
“……!”
“Such opportunities don’t come often. Throw away the Buddhist laws you don’t even believe in and come to me. I promise a much faster and clearer development than growing under Botam’s soft teachings.”
A gentle smile spread across Yang Cheon’s cold, arrogant face.
“Become the true Sword Queen who protects the Buddhist laws—not a half-baked one who can’t even show her true strength.”
It was a chillingly seductive offer.
The fact that it came from Yang Cheon, the King of Combat, made it all the more convincing.
Yeon Hojeong gave a bitter smile. ‘He really is greedy.’
He had no intention of criticizing Yang Cheon. After all, they were cut from the same cloth.
Still, he found it impressive that Yang Cheon could say such things even to the descendant of the sect he had destroyed.
Yang Cheon, who had been quietly watching Yeon Sim, nodded.
“It won’t be easy to decide right away.”
“…….”
“Whatever the case, the half-baked cultivator lying over there is the leader of the Yeonhwa Sect and your master. She may lack even a shred of qualification as a master in my eyes, but there’s no need to debate a person’s worth in the face of human sentiment.”
Yang Cheon leaned back in his grand chair.
“Go to the medical hall with your master. Nurse her and think it over. I can give you as much time as you need.”
Yeon Sim stared at Yang Cheon with trembling eyes before finally slumping her shoulders. At this moment, she could say nothing—absolutely nothing.
Thus, Jeok-yeon and Yeon Sim left the hall with Mukryong’s warriors.
“How was it?”
Yang Cheon smiled at Yeon Hojeong.
“Did you see how I tried to get my hands on two rabbits at once?”
Yeon Hojeong shook his head.
“You’ll choke if you keep this up.”
“I’m a big eater.”
Yeon Hojeong looked at Jeong-an.
Jeong-an also seemed filled with confusion. Yet her clear, deep eyes still radiated a righteous light.
“Things have taken a rather strange turn.”
“……Indeed.”
“Regardless, I will provide enough help to rebuild Botam.”
Grudges, revenge.
Those things had to be set aside for now. Because they lacked the power.
Jeong-an took a deep breath and clasped her hands toward Yang Cheon.
“I will take my leave for today. It was an honor to meet you.”
Yang Cheon’s eyes gleamed.
“Today? Does that mean you plan to come again?”
“Next time, I will return as a force of justice.”
Yang Cheon looked down at Jeong-an with a peculiar gaze before speaking with a slightly displeased expression.
“There really are a lot of talented people around you.”
Yeon Hojeong gave Kang Liang a signal with his eyes.
Kang Liang spoke to Jeong-an.
“Let’s step out for a moment.”
Thus, Kang Liang and Jeong-an also left the hall.
“Whew.”
Now alone, Yang Cheon let out a quiet sigh filled with regret.
“Still, knowing you’re coming puts my mind at ease.”
Yeon Hojeong said,
“I’m not coming right away. I need to get permission from over there as well.”
“You can push that through on your own, can’t you?”
“Let’s say that’s true.”
“So, when can you come?”
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes gleamed.
“There’s something I need to handle in the Martial Alliance. I’ll take care of that first and then come.”
“Leave the ordinary stuff to someone else. That’s why you’re always so busy.”
“This is something I must handle personally.”
“What is it?”
“There’s a spy.”
“……?!”
“There’s a spy from the Three Sects among the Martial Alliance’s envoys.”
Yang Cheon’s eyes turned cold.
“……You need to be there. Definitely.”