Chapter 265
Chapter 265
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 265
Chapter Title: King of All Weapons
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King of All Weapons.
What was the supreme armament among all weapons, worthy of being called the king of ten thousand soldiers?
Every martial artist in the jianghu had their own answer to that question.
And among those answers, the one most often named as the king of all weapons was the sword.
It possessed tremendous power and an irresistible allure.
And among those who wielded the sword, the one standing at the pinnacle of sword arts, the sovereign of the blade.
The Sword Sovereign, Cheon Sumyeong.
Rumors about him were as common as pebbles underfoot.
With nothing but his sword, he had cleaved rivers, split mountains in two, and rent the heavens asunder.
Such unbelievable tales elevated his legends, but setting aside the rumors, for nearly a decade, no one had seen him wield a sword.
There had simply been no occasion or reason for him to do so.
Yet now, Cheon Sumyeong stood gripping his sword scabbard.
In Hyeok Mulin's training chamber, the Heavenly Martial Hall.
A spar between the two men would take place, just as Hyeok Mulin had willed it.
Cheon Sumyeong gazed down at the scabbard, his eyes fixed upon it as he spoke.
"I can't even remember the last time I drew my sword against another person."
Not drawing it in solitary seclusion for training, but against a living opponent.
It had been so long that he could scarcely recall.
He had even refused spars that weren't true life-or-death battles.
The reason was simple.
No matter the battlefield, even in the lightest of spars, the moment he drew his sword, his opponent was as good as dead.
No matter how much he held back or conserved his strength, those who stood before him couldn't endure even that.
And so, for nearly a decade, Cheon Sumyeong had refrained from drawing his sword before others, sealing it away.
Now, he was breaking that seal here.
But even standing in opposition to Hyeok Mulin, he hadn't accepted the spar with the intent to kill him.
This one... might actually survive.
The Sword Sovereign was a martial artist too.
He hungered for a spar where he could wield his sword, seeking someone who could withstand it.
And for reasons he couldn't quite pinpoint, facing Hyeok Mulin made him feel that such a bout was possible.
Even though he'd never seen him draw a sword even once.
That was the sole reason the Sword Sovereign had accepted the challenge.
And Hyeok Mulin's thoughts, standing opposite him, were equally clear.
This is my only chance to witness the Sword Sovereign's blade.
Escaping the Cheon Clan's pressure was his top priority, of course.
But this proposal was born of a mix of intentions: settling things with Cheon Sumyeong once and for all, and a personal desire to see his sword.
At his core, Hyeok Mulin was a sword appraiser, forever gaining insight into blades with every moment.
In his previous life, he hadn't even had a chance before his death.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's greatest asset and his father-in-law's grandfather—he'd never properly seen his face, let alone his sword.
In a way, this spar was an unmissable opportunity for Hyeok Mulin.
Simply crossing blades with the Sword Sovereign would grant him enlightenment as a sword appraiser.
Of course, if he survived it.
"I'll yield the first three moves to you."
Cheon Sumyeong showed Hyeok Mulin this concession of three moves.
It was the Sword Sovereign's final act of mercy toward a sword appraiser of the cult's younger generation.
"And during those three moves, no matter what happens, I won't strike back."
Hyeok Mulin nodded, accepting his words.
"Understood."
His goal from the start was a clash of swords with the Sword Sovereign, so there was no reason to refuse other rules.
Besides, he knew this wasn't underestimation yielding three moves.
If he'd truly looked down on Hyeok Mulin, he wouldn't have accepted the spar at all.
Hyeok Mulin fully understood it as the Sword Sovereign's pride in agreeing to the bout.
And after three moves, it would proceed like any normal spar anyway.
Though how long that could last was anyone's guess.
Shing—
Hyeok Mulin drew the Sky-Splitting Demon Sword.
An overwhelming darkness, as if devouring all the world's light, flowed gracefully from his hand.
"Ho..."
Cheon Sumyeong took in the Sky-Splitting Demon Sword with intrigued eyes.
He'd seen his fill of famed swords and masterpieces.
But this was the first blade to give off such a feeling.
The sword itself was impressive craftsmanship, to be sure.
But the cult leader wielding it has elevated it even further.
The Sword Sovereign knew.
Swords grew as well.
Depending on the wielder, they developed unique traits or withered into blandness.
In a way, the most important thing for a sword was who wielded it.
And Cheon Sumyeong could sense that the Sky-Splitting Demon Sword had grown alongside Hyeok Mulin's hand.
The corners of his wrinkled mouth lifted as he slowly drew his own blade.
A sword as red as if soaked in human blood emerged from his grasp.
Taking it in with his eyes, Hyeok Mulin finally felt it sink in.
Who stood before him.
Who he was about to spar with.
The Heavenly Soul Devouring Sword.
Possessing a name meaning it devoured the souls of the world's martial artists, it was the sole sword owned by Cheon Sumyeong.
A small hole at the tip whistled through the air when swung, like the wailing cries of tormented souls.
The world calls it a demon sword.
Just facing it sent chills down the spine, raising gooseflesh across the body, and legend held that every swing split foes, claiming their souls within.
Its infamous reputation was well-earned.
Most who witnessed it up close had lost their lives, a blade of immense power befitting the Sword Sovereign's renown.
But seeing it, Hyeok Mulin instead found his heart calming.
The Sky-Splitting Demon Sword is more than a match for it.
The Heavenly Soul Devouring Sword was a famed blade, yet Hyeok Mulin was certain upon seeing it.
His Sky-Splitting Demon Sword matched its might, suited perfectly to his hand, and held even greater potential for growth.
Gazing upon the sword, Hyeok Mulin soon raised the Sky-Splitting Demon Sword in his grip and declared,
"Let the spar begin."
"Come at me."
Both men facing each other knew it well.
This spar could never become a fight to the death.
Hyeok Mulin had no intention of harming the cult's greatest asset, the Sword Sovereign.
And Cheon Sumyeong had come to realize Hyeok Mulin's value amid the ongoing power struggle with the Cheon Clan.
Killing him now would only sow massive chaos in the cult.
Though he had drawn his sword for the spar, Cheon Sumyeong knew taking Hyeok Mulin's life would be the worst possible blunder.
Thus, neither side would go all-out, creating a situation perfectly suited to the spirit of a spar.
"......"
Hyeok Mulin watched Cheon Sumyeong, who waited leisurely with sword in hand.
A relaxed stance, blade held at a slant.
Any other martial artist in that pose would be begging to be struck down.
But not him.
Not a single opening anywhere.
No vulnerabilities in sight, so Hyeok Mulin couldn't charge recklessly.
Moreover, with attacks prioritized only in the three yielded moves, he proceeded with caution.
In the silence, Hyeok Mulin met Cheon Sumyeong's gaze.
And in one instant, without any tell, he moved.
Activating the Divine Demon Eye and Extreme Swift Step in tandem, he closed the distance to Cheon Sumyeong in a flash.
From his hand, tracing smooth, flowing curves, the Flowing Dragon Sword unfolded.
Like a dragon gliding through water, sleek sword strikes extended from his fingertips.
Hyeok Mulin's motions flowed without pause, tiny shards of sword light scattering like dragon scales.
Sharp and wide-ranging enough to claim hundreds—no, thousands of lives.
And just as those advancing strikes were about to reach Cheon Sumyeong.
Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!
Cheon Sumyeong deflected every single one.
No matter how intricate the sword paths.
No matter how small and elusive.
Those thousands of strikes bowed before him like wilted grass.
As expected, he blocks even this.
The first of the three yielded moves had passed, but Hyeok Mulin's expression remained unchanged.
He'd used the first only to probe and observe Cheon Sumyeong's sword paths.
The Flowing Dragon Sword had fulfilled its role admirably.
Cheon Sumyeong, clashing blades, sensed it too.
Testing my sword's movements.
Throughout the attack and defense, Hyeok Mulin's eyes hadn't once met his own.
They'd been fixed on the paths his sword had traced.
The Flowing Dragon Sword had been a true strike aimed at him with power, yet in the broader spar, it was a feint.
The next two moves held the real intent.
When the sea churns and waves crash, sailors say this:
The first high wave impresses, but the true power lies in the second.
The first is mere prelude to the second.
Just like now.
The Flowing Dragon Sword was mere probing for the next moves.
Hyeok Mulin's true strike lay ahead.
Both men knew it.
Cheon Sumyeong watched Hyeok Mulin with serene eyes.
The moment he saw the shift in Hyeok Mulin's gaze, he sensed it.
It's coming.
Something was coming.
A different aura emanated from Hyeok Mulin than before.
Alerted by the ominous instinct, Cheon Sumyeong raised his sword into a defensive stance ahead of time, unlike before.
His eyes never leaving Hyeok Mulin's front, and then—he moved.
Chak—
Hyeok Mulin raised his sword toward the sky.
And the instant extreme demonic energy condensed at its tip.
Kwarung—!
A deafening thunder roared, as if to overturn Heavenly Mountain from a clear sky.
It was a bolt carrying world-shaking might.
And the color of the sky bearing that thunder.
Was black.