Chapter 176
Chapter 176
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 176
Chapter Title: The Raging Plum Blossoms
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One week before infiltrating Guiyuan Temple, where Mahoraga resides.
Mu-heun mobilized every method currently considered sorcery in the martial world: shamans, instruments, talismans, rituals, and more. There was no better way to counter the ghost arts.
For now, his understanding was limited to the sorcery of the monsters from Yuhua County and the blood-red ghost arts of the Painted Skin Ghosts, but there was no doubt this discovery would turn the tide of the war.
A few days later.
After continuously studying the Butterfly Dream, he finally realized that the 'shackles' engraved on the souls of the ghost spirits were also a type of ghost art. He deciphered it and passed the knowledge to the Soul-Stealing Immortal, who began teaching it to his unit of practitioners, the Totua Unit.
* * *
The Soul-Stealing Immortal had relayed the plan, decided upon in consultation with Mu-heun, to the leaders of the Orthodox Sects. Although quite a few were displeased that a plan involved Baek Mu-heun, a man from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, no one voiced their opposition.
It seemed the recent Jinju Eon Clan incident had instilled a great sense of crisis in them.
'The Jinju Eon Clan...'
The Soul-Stealing Immortal also found the matter of the Jinju Eon Clan regrettable. However, it was also true that because of it, the leaders of the Orthodox Sects had seen Lord Mu-heun's true capabilities.
Therefore, he couldn't say it was an event with no benefits at all.
The insight Mu-heun possessed was nothing short of marvelous in the Soul-Stealing Immortal's eyes. Until Mu-heun had used the divine object to break his soul-stealing arts, he had never imagined his abilities were this profound.
Baek Mu-heun.
If he had been someone who simply relied on the divine object called the Butterfly Dream after coincidentally obtaining it... he wouldn't have felt such reverence.
He never neglected to study and decipher the divine object. He sought to understand it, reasoning that even a divine object was ultimately created by someone.
Constantly observing and researching. It was truly the second coming of Baek Jung-hyeok, who was called the Divine Doctor, and he could be called a true sage of this era.
'Even though I myself am considered quite quick-witted...'
In the Martial Alliance, even the strategists of the Zhuge Clan entrusted him with an advisory role.
However, Lord Mu-heun's wisdom far surpassed his own.
After experiencing the ghost arts of the Painted Skin Ghosts, he began to create a new field of study.
'Lord Mu-heun combined the knowledge of formations he had honed over the years with the knowledge gained from studying the Butterfly Dream. It was a step forward for the field of formations, a discipline built by humanity.'
'Is this truly possible?'
He had thought so at first. But the reality unfolding before his eyes was clear. He had no choice but to accept it as he watched history being made.
Lord Mu-heun was a genius Divine Doctor who had dedicated his life to scholarship, and now he had possessed the body of a young man with a brilliant mind.
All of this was the arrangement of the first Heavenly Demon, who had achieved ascension...
Lord Mu-heun, a Divine Doctor and a sage, soon began to research the ghost arts of the ghost spirits based on his newly created knowledge of formations, and the answer came sooner than expected.
-It is simply that we are not yet familiar with them. The ghost arts are not necessarily on a higher level than our own arts. If we understand the approach and system, breaking them will not be difficult.
He was a master at accepting and adapting to new phenomena. Furthermore, he excelled at deciphering, systematically organizing, and disseminating that knowledge.
He could understand why Mu-heun had once dreamed of creating the Myriad Fragrance Grand Restoration Formation and spreading it to scholars throughout the Central Plains. With him, nothing seemed impossible.
The Soul-Stealing Immortal trembled as he looked at the one he had been waiting for. His heart swelled at the fact that this being surpassed all imagination. And as he watched everyone from the Orthodox Sects depart to carry out the plan, he thought.
'This is only the beginning.'
* * *
The operation began.
The martial artists of the Orthodox Sects were dispatched throughout the Hubei region. They were given warnings about the 'shackles,' and members of the Totua Unit were sent with them.
The operation proceeded smoothly, and with each House Ghost eliminated, the enemy's base at Guiyuan Temple began to reveal itself little by little.
The combined power of the Soul-Stealing Immortal, the Hao Clan, and the Beggars' Sect was truly formidable.
By gathering the shamans, monks, and Taoist priests scattered throughout Hubei, they were able to construct a formation large enough to encircle the entire mountain where Guiyuan Temple was located.
"Well then, let's go in."
"Understood."
"Very well."
Beside Mu-heun stood two absolute masters of the Orthodox Sects.
The Martial Alliance Leader, Du Baek.
The Plum Blossom Sword Venerable, Jin Hong.
With these two men backing him, Mu-heun, wearing the Butterfly Dream on his left hand, walked toward the now fully revealed main gate of Guiyuan Temple. Then, he gathered lines of ki and detonated them.
A blast of Explosive Heat Arts.
KWWAAAAAANG!
He shattered the gate with a single fist.
Crumble...
Thick smoke rose from the broken debris, and a bizarre voice echoed from within.
"KIEEEEEEEEK!"
"HUUUUUMAN!"
Inside were countless ghost spirits like House Ghosts, Five Filth Ghosts, and Hwaenangs. In addition, the corpses of martial artists possessed by Painted Skin Ghosts blocked the path, brandishing weapons.
However, the two absolute masters who shot forward like arrows from behind Mu-heun instantly began to carve a path, slicing through the enemies.
The elders of the Mount Hua Sect who followed the Plum Blossom Sword Venerable.
The executives of the Martial Alliance who followed the Alliance Leader.
All of them displayed outstanding skill, beginning to subdue the ghost spirits and Painted Skin Ghosts.
Blue, red, and purple blood splattered everywhere.
The Five Filth Ghosts, Hwaenangs, and House Ghosts were disappointingly weak, but the Painted Skin Ghosts wearing the corpses of martial artists were different. They pushed the energy of the bodies they inhabited to the limit to fight back; some even reached the level of the Hwagyung realm.
What they were blocking was a door at the end of the path.
A door so covered in blood and pieces of flesh that it was hard to tell if it was a door or a wall. A spine-chilling energy emanated from it.
The chilling aura hinted at what lay beyond. However, reaching it would not be easy.
The Painted Skin Ghosts possessing martial artists near the door. Each one of them possessed the power of an elder.
Mu-heun pointed his sword at the Painted Skin Ghosts and spoke.
"So, this is what you bastards have prepared. You've prepared a lot... but I've prepared more, you sons of bitches."
Mu-heun's preparations.
Jin Hong and Du Baek were here.
As if to show that his martial prowess until now had not been his full strength, Jin Hong unleashed a relentless sword style, like an eagle descending from a rocky mountain.
KAGAKANG!
A speed so fast that even a master of the Hwagyung realm could hardly follow it with their eyes.
And separate from his incredible speed, he executed a flowing footwork, as if flying above the clouds.
"The Flying Flow Steps of Mount Hua!?"
Even the elders of Mount Hua were astounded by Jin Hong's footwork.
Jin Hong closed in on the Painted Skin Ghosts using the Flying Flow Steps. Soon, the tip of his sword blurred, and a sword aura of terrifying power emerged. A light pink sword aura. It blossomed like a plum blossom.
"Twenty-Four Movements of the Plum Blossom Sword. Plum Blossom River Flow."
Before long, the plum blossom petals that bloomed from the tip of Jin Hong's sword began to annihilate the enemies like a raging storm, and the Painted Skin Ghosts found their bodies being split in two as they gazed at the beautiful and brilliant plum blossoms.
A flow of light pink sword aura that was, quite literally, like a flowing river.
The enemies being annihilated.
Finally, Jin Hong unleashed the Heavenly Flow Divine Fire Sword.
To others' eyes, Jin Hong seemed to have multiplied into dozens of figures. Countless Jin Hongs swung their plum blossom swords downward from a high stance.
An illusionary sword that captivated all who saw it.
A swordsman who had reached the pinnacle of illusionary swordsmanship.
As he swung the sword of divine fire, the light pink sword aura that had been raging like a storm formed a river. Then, it transformed into deep red flames and began to burn.
It even created a massive waterspout of fire, completely dominating the area as it blazed. The Painted Skin Ghosts inhabiting the martial artists' corpses were turned into blackened charcoal without even a scream.
This was the scene created by a single plum blossom swordsman. It was akin to a legend forged by plum blossom flames.
Mu-heun was stunned by Jin Hong's swordsmanship.
"Wait, so the Plum Blossom Sword Arts are actually the Plum *Flame* Sword Arts...?"
In any case, the corpses of the martial artists had now met a complete death. Graceful plum blossom petals settled upon them.
As if adorning the final moments of a warrior.
As if consoling their arduous lives.
As if gifting a single flower to their tragic end.
Crackle-
The fading corpses soon began to turn into a handful of ash. Their lives, taken by evil spirits, never buried, only used. The fact that a single flower petal settled upon them in their final moments must have been a small comfort.
Mu-heun swallowed dryly.
'The Plum Blossom Sword Venerable... he was this powerful?'
The conversation he'd had with him was well worth it. He was a greater asset than an army of thousands.
"Is it mostly cleaned up?"
Soon, the final obstacle blocking the door came into view. A giant evil spirit, born from the merged bodies of other spirits. It had five long heads, each one exuding an aura equivalent to dozens of ghost spirits combined.
Just then.
The Martial Alliance Leader, Du Baek, stepped forward.
An evil spirit whose energy alone seemed to be at the entry level of the Hyungyeong realm. Du Baek approached the massive ghost spirit, with its colossal body and immense energy, without a moment's hesitation.
Shinggg
He drew his sword.
As if space itself were distorting, a spiral of sword energy swirled at the center of his blade. Du Baek wrapped the vortex around his sword and swung it at the giant ghost spirit.
Crack, crack
An unbelievable sight, as if the very atmosphere was splitting apart. A strange distortion unfolded. It was as if Du Baek's sword contained a small universe.
The martial artists watching could not even fathom what level of mastery one had to reach to become as strong as these two men.
"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!"
The evil spirit shrieked in terror, but it was only for a moment.
Du Baek's attack seemed to completely annihilate the space in that area, beginning to swallow the evil spirit's torso. The spirit exploded, spraying blue blood.
BOOM!
Flesh splattered everywhere, and the five heads fell to the ground.
Du Baek then used a footwork that seemed to fold the earth, destroying the five heads one by one. Each time, the strange phenomenon of the atmosphere splitting occurred.
Watching the two absolute masters fight, Mu-heun was at a loss for words.
"How reassuring."
He didn't show it, but inwardly, he even felt a slight sense of fear. However, since they were allies fighting for the same cause, they needed to grow even stronger.
Mu-heun soon began to walk toward the door the ghost spirits had been blocking.
He felt a chilling energy that gave him goosebumps.
Beyond that door, there would be an evil spirit that surpassed imagination. One stronger than all the previous spirits combined.
He could not afford to underestimate it.
However!
The formation spread across the entire mountain.
It would weaken the ghost spirit's power.
The Hyungyeong realm masters at his side.
This was their maximum strength.
Yes, if not now...
the chance to catch it would be gone forever.
The enemy couldn't have failed to notice the ghost spirits being freed from their shackles, so this was a race against time.
In that case...
the key was a swift, decisive battle