Battle
Whoosh!
Beom Chang flew in almost before the sound had faded. He swept his gaze over the wasteland and frowned, his voice thick with irritation, as if his temper had already been roused to the breaking point.
"Why is no one here? Didn't you say you had Jin Somyeong bound in this place?"
"Uh... p-please wait a moment. I'll search for him."
So Yo-gwang was so visibly flustered that cold sweat poured down his face. He hurried from place to place, searching in a panic, but Jin Somyeong did not rashly reveal himself. Keeping his stealth technique active, he quietly watched the horizon.
If something had gone wrong and some old Foundation Establishment monster had followed them here, he would have to flee at once. He was willing to accept a certain amount of risk, but he had no desire to face a Foundation Establishment monster head-on.
Nearly a minute passed.
No one...?
Only then did Jin Somyeong let out an inward sigh of relief. He had strengthened his senses with the Boundless Great Ability and combed the surroundings thoroughly, but no one had followed.
Well, of course. A Foundation Establishment cultivator wouldn't come personally just to catch one little Qi Refining brat.
Reassured, he took a formation disk from his robes. If he activated the one he had bought at the market, he should be able to suppress his opponent. He was just considering whether it was time to move when Beom Chang's voice cracked through the air.
"So Yo-gwang! What exactly are you playing at? You said you personally subdued Jin Somyeong, and now you don't even know where he is? Does that make sense to you?"
"Uh... th-that is, well..."
Beom Chang's face hardened coldly as he glared at So Yo-gwang. In an instant, he retreated three full steps and put himself on guard, a posture that no one would ever take toward an ally.
"So Yo-gwang. Should I still call you my little brother?"
"B-Brother! The truth is, I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd punish me! I definitely tied Jin Somyeong up here, but then he suddenly vanished."
"Hmm...?"
"It seems the bastard used some trick to escape my binding artifact!"
Beom Chang's expression, which had even begun to carry killing intent, eased slightly. He narrowed his eyes like a snake and questioned him as if conducting an interrogation.
"Wasn't that brat only at the early stage of Qi Refining? He shouldn't even be able to handle spells properly. How did he escape?"
"I don't know either. Ah! When I caught him, he did struggle and say I would regret it because he had a friend."
"A friend...?"
At the nonsense So Yo-gwang had blurted out at random, Beom Chang furrowed his brow. Seeing him fall into thought, Jin Somyeong finally moved. Slowly, without making a sound, he drew his execution blade.
After secretly activating the formation, he shifted his feet in silence, drawing a wide circle as he moved behind Beom Chang.
"Hah. Ridiculous."
"Pardon...?"
"So Yo-gwang. You seem especially nervous today. Is there some problem? You're even sweating."
Gulp.
In the suddenly silent wasteland, the only sound was someone's throat swallowing.
"Let all wicked things show themselves!"
Beom Chang roared. He pulled a blue bell from his storage pouch and struck it without even a second's delay.
Claaang!
A bell note imbued with mystery shook in every direction. It was a sonic attack carrying spiritual energy, with real force behind it.
Wuuung!
The vibration born from the blue bell rapidly intensified, spreading outward in every direction and bombarding everything nearby without discrimination.
Ugh!
Jin Somyeong, who had been about to launch his surprise attack, was no exception. The instant the invisible sound wave struck him, he nearly coughed blood. He gritted his teeth against the tingling pain rising from his dantian and fought with all his strength to bring the spiritual energy trying to run wild under control. Barely, he prevented his meridians from being damaged.
With that single strike, even the formation Jin Somyeong had activated and the traps he had set were pulverized into dust. The power of a top-grade first-tier artifact was far stronger than So Yo-gwang had described.
"Hahaha! I knew there was a rat hiding nearby!"
Jin Somyeong's form was revealed as his stealth technique broke. He had no choice; the indiscriminate wide-range bombardment made no distinction between friend and foe. Beom Chang, who had been mocking him, turned his gaze toward So Yo-gwang.
"B-Brother. Why me too...?"
So Yo-gwang, who had taken most of the sound wave at the closest range, was in a miserable state. His skin had split open, exposing his cheekbones, and he was vomiting blood; his internal injuries were so severe that he was even coughing up dark red lumps of flesh.
Looking down at him as he writhed on the ground, Beom Chang spoke in a chilling voice.
"Hmph. Still trying to deceive your master in that pathetic way? You lured me here and then pretended not to know. Disgusting traitor."
Glance.
As though putting on a show, Beom Chang cast Jin Somyeong a leisurely sideways look, then struck the blue bell once more.
Claaang! Claaang!
An invisible sound wave laden with spiritual energy condensed in midair. It became a massive blade with substance and hung above So Yo-gwang's neck.
"Brother? I-I'm sorry! Please spare m—"
Slice!
The sharp blade fell like a guillotine. Beom Chang killed So Yo-gwang without listening to a single word of excuse.
"Trash that couldn't even play the dog properly. Be grateful I'm sending you off cleanly."
Thud!
Seeing him kick the corpse as if in mockery, Jin Somyeong narrowed his eyes.
"...You killed him without even hearing the reason. Perhaps he truly had no choice but to betray you."
"Puhaha! Your thinking is as shallow as your lowly birth. Let me teach you something. Reasons don't matter. A dog kept by its master deserves death the moment it bites the hand that feeds it."
"Or is your capacity simply that small?"
Beom Chang's eye twitched. His lips drew down in displeasure. He spoke in a tone that sounded almost like a lecture.
"Fool! People don't change. A man who betrays once will—"
"Petty bastard. You repeat some common saying as if it were eternal truth. You have no qualities of a superior. What kind of great man do you think you'll become when you kill even someone you call brother?"
"..."
Beom Chang's mouth shut into a flat line. He glared at Jin Somyeong with murderous eyes; he seemed fairly angry.
Hmm.
Holding the execution blade forward, Jin Somyeong observed his opponent. In truth, he also believed a traitor should not be forgiven. What he had just said was nothing more than a probing exchange before battle, meant to identify truth and falsehood. He had tossed it out carelessly to provoke the man, but it had worked better than expected.
So that blue bell artifact is the Phantom-Shattering Bell So Yo-gwang mentioned. It can attack in every direction, and the closer you are, the stronger it becomes.
In the wasteland that had fallen quiet once more, Jin Somyeong approached slowly.
Step. Step.
For Flying Swallow Flash, combined with the Wind-Riding Art, to display its maximum power, he needed to get three more steps closer. One step, two steps...
Just as he was about to take the last step, Beom Chang laughed.
"Hahaha. Good! I'll accept your advice. Jin Somyeong, if you swear to become my subordinate, I'll spare you. Strictly speaking, I can't even say you've betrayed me, so there's nothing I can't forgive. But if you refuse..."
As Beom Chang shook the blue bell threateningly, Jin Somyeong lowered his stance. Was he submitting? Not at all.
He aimed the tip of the execution blade forward like a spear and spread the spiritual energy boiling in his dantian throughout his body. It flowed along his meridians, seeped into every strand of muscle, and strengthened him.
"Insolent! This lord is offering you a chance, and you still choose death? How utterly stupid!"
The cold voice rang out at his unmistakable battle posture, but Jin Somyeong ignored it.
He's bluffing.
Instead, he tensed the muscles in his thighs and took a posture as if he would charge at any moment.
This is the chance.
Seeing someone as foul-tempered as Beom Chang try to coax him only made Jin Somyeong certain. The artifact called the Phantom-Shattering Bell was tremendously powerful, befitting a top-grade first-tier artifact given for self-defense by a great Foundation Establishment cultivator.
But everything came at a price.
There was no way an artifact of that level consumed only a small amount of spiritual energy.
He has to be exhausted.
Once battle began, Jin Somyeong's innate talent shone. His opponent's intentions lay exposed before him as clearly as the lines on his palm. Beom Chang needed time to recover.
Right now, in this instant, Beom Chang was at his weakest.
Boom!
The moment Jin Somyeong took the final step, his form vanished with an explosive roar. Charging like a fierce tiger that had sighted prey, he unleashed the form of Flying Swallow Flash.
Whiiish—
A swift sword pushed to the limit. It was so fast that even the afterimage seemed to stretch out in a long blur. The golden blade, imbued with the Boundless Great Ability, shot forward like a meteor.
"...!"
Beom Chang's eyes flew wide. Even his pupils could not keep up, staring only at where the blade had already passed.
He had failed to react.
With that certainty flashing through Jin Somyeong, just before the execution blade could split Beom Chang's upper body—
Kwaaang!
An enormous impact turned his vision white. Some unknown repulsive force hurled him backward faster than he had charged in.
Ghk!
He clenched his teeth against pain fierce enough to knock him unconscious. The impact felt like being hit by a truck, and it was difficult to keep his wits about him. The execution blade in his hand had been reduced to nothing but a hilt. A treasured saber harder than steel had shattered.
Thud.
He tossed aside the now-useless hilt.
"...Krahahaha! You idiot. You don't even know your place, and you dared come at me? Serves you right!"
Beom Chang's mockery came a beat late. Jin Somyeong spat out a mouthful of blood, his right arm dangling loosely from its dislocated joint. He ignored his opponent's laughter and focused on grasping the situation.
How did he block it? He didn't seem to react.
He forced his mind, which was beginning to blur with pain, back into clarity. Narrowing his eyes, he observed Beom Chang. At a glance, the man's expression looked contemptuous, but a closer look told a different story.
A trace of horror was clearly written on one corner of his face. He was undoubtedly shocked by the unexpected power of Flying Swallow Flash, a swift sword pushed to its utmost limit.
If he blocked an attack he couldn't even detect... it has to be an artifact.
It seemed Beom Chang possessed a defensive artifact even So Yo-gwang had not known about. Once Jin Somyeong looked with suspicion, he found the oddity at once. A faint spiritual light shimmered from the necklace Beom Chang wore.
Thinking back carefully to the instant of collision, he was certain that something had spread out from that necklace.
Whoosh!
Jin Somyeong took the flying sword he normally rode from his subspace and gripped it in his left hand. The moment he aimed it forward, Beom Chang's face twisted viciously and he shouted.
"You damn orphan bastard, how dare you! If you want to die that badly, I'll grant your wish!"
In a rage, Beom Chang raised the Phantom-Shattering Bell.
Claaang!
A thunderous sound erupted. A gigantic blade formed in an instant and shot toward Jin Somyeong like an arrow. Even under the pressure of a sword larger than a house, Jin Somyeong did not shrink back.
Instead, he found an opportunity. If it was not an attack sweeping every direction, he could dodge it.
Crack!
He activated the Boundless Great Ability, amplifying the physical recovery he had been steadily strengthening all this time. Power surged into his exhausted muscles, and he used the Wind-Riding Art and Rising Dragon Step at the same time.
Whoosh!
Light as the wind, Jin Somyeong lowered his posture as if collapsing and leapt. Narrowly avoiding the blade as it grazed the nape of his neck, he gathered every ounce of strength and kicked off the ground.
Kwaaang!
A terrifying shock wave burst behind him, but he ignored it. Holding the flying sword in his left hand like a spear, he squeezed out all his strength and thrust with a swift sword form.
Whish!
Heated wind brushed past his cheek. In a world slowed by extreme focus, the moment of collision came again.
Wuuung!
He could see Beom Chang's necklace reacting nimbly to protect its master. The instant the barrier it formed in the blink of an eye collided with the tip of the sword—
Boom!
Jin Somyeong released the strength in his left hand and let go of the flying sword. Ignoring the blade as it was flung high into the sky, he clenched his right hand, which had already recovered.
Crunch!
He stamped down hard and made a straight fist. Pouring all the destructive force born from his charge into it, he unleashed Collapsing Fist.
"Kuhuk!?"
In that fleeting instant, the continuous attack smashed into Beom Chang's dantian. This time, neither Beom Chang nor the necklace could react. The moment Jin Somyeong used the spiritual energy injected through his fist to suppress the dantian—
"N-no!"
Smack!
Jin Somyeong struck Beom Chang across the face as he belatedly tried to flee. The man let out a strangled sound and fainted, and Jin Somyeong slung him over his shoulder.
"Hoo."
Pale-faced, Jin Somyeong forced his breathing to steady. He hurriedly cleaned up the surroundings and prepared to leave. There had been twists and setbacks, but in the end, he had won.
Now that the hardship was over, it was time to taste the sweet fruit.