Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Natural Qi (1)
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Dang Yu-wol smirked at Hwang No's joyful expression.
"For now, we've secured their support."
'As expected, they hid a trap.'
Blood Cultists had no such thing as a warrior's spirit.
Traps were fair game, and cowardly tactics were simply the basic mindset for achieving victory.
'A Peak Realm expert pitting themselves against another Peak Realm expert one-on-one? Impossible.'
It was far easier when there were more people.
There was no way the Blood Cult's schemes could fool Dang Yu-wol.
"Elder!! Charging in!!"
"Hahaha!! Come at me!!"
Joy filled Hwang No's face.
There were conditions attached, to be sure.
But he was the one who had defeated a Peak Realm expert, after all.
"If the two of us combine our strength, a bastard like that will be a piece of cake!!"
"You wretch!!"
He couldn't tolerate the failure of his scheme.
Nor the death of his subordinate.
Blood-red energy surged from Yeong-chan's hands.
"How dare a mere Peak Realm brat like youuuu!!!"
His face twisted in rage, like a demon's.
Dang Yu-wol showered hidden weapons mercilessly toward his face.
Of course, none of them pierced his body.
-He's protecting his body with qi.
'Revolving Qi Divine Art.'
A technique that rotated qi to shield the body.
It was a qi art that every Blood Cult expert had to master.
-Can you find an opening?
'Not easy.'
In the Peak Realm, inner energy flowed as naturally as breathing.
There was no way to find a gap in something as natural as breathing.
'But that's fine.'
"Hahaha!! You're getting hasty!!"
The gap didn't need to be found—it could be created.
Gray energy filled Hwang No's hands as she charged forward rapidly.
The brief moment created by Dang Yu-wol's appearance.
She didn't miss it.
Phantom Shadow Divine Art, Third Form.
Phantom Shadow Apparition.
Ghosts formed from Hwang No's body.
The qi-constructed ghosts moved their massive hands.
-Kwa-duk!!
"Keuk!!"
He blocked it.
But Yeong-chan's body floated into the air.
That was the opening.
'Ye-ui. Get ready.'
-Got it.
He closed his eyes.
Then slowly extended his hand.
His intent mingled with the inner energy infused in the Black Viper Sword he held.
'The Soul-Chasing Phantom Dart is an extreme-speed hidden technique.'
It flew at speeds like light itself, making it impossible for most to dodge or block.
"Hup!!"
But the Black Viper Sword flying from Dang Yu-wol's hand was different.
It was slow.
Soft and slow, like a butterfly in flight.
"This puny thing!!"
Yeong-chan's hand, having blocked the Phantom Shadow Apparition, moved to swat away the Black Viper Sword.
Qi surged from below upward, targeting the Black Viper Sword.
But astonishingly...
"...What?"
Like barley swaying rather than toppling in a typhoon...
His dagger lightly evaded the qi and flew onward.
"What in the world...?"
He unleashed qi once more.
But again, the sword leisurely dodged.
A free movement, like a living butterfly.
"Impossible!!"
Its destination was Yeong-chan's chest.
The Black Viper Sword inflicted a massive wound on his chest.
"Kwaaaak!!"
And then the exploding pain.
Hwang No knew better than anyone what it was.
"Well done! You rascal!!"
Muscle-Tearing Bone-Crushing Powder.
The horrific agony of one's entire body twisting and snapping apart.
Hwang No knew it all too well.
-Kwa-duk-duk!!
Hwang No's hand reached the head of the writhing man in his torment.
A powerful strike combining Natural Qi and qi.
The current Yeong-chan couldn't withstand it.
"Aigoo... You're done for."
Having landed the strike successfully, Hwang No let out a deep sigh.
"That one's really dead."
No one could survive having their head smashed.
Dang Yu-wol looked down at Yeong-chan, whose head had burst open in death.
"What are you doing?"
"A Peak Realm expert like that is bound to have all sorts of things on him."
"Huh."
"No need for anything to cross the River of Three Roads, right?"
Her brazen attitude left him speechless.
She made no effort to hide her exasperation.
"Anyway, what was that move from before?"
"I infused it with intent."
"What?!"
Freely embedding intent into a technique.
Not even Peak Realm experts could do it easily.
To pull it off and speak of it so casually...
"As expected, you're no ordinary guy."
"Then, did you think the man who beat a Peak Realm expert was ordinary?"
"Hahaha!! True enough."
-Plenty of good stuff.
'Yeah. Quite the windfall.'
There was much to gain from Yeong-chan.
But beyond that, they'd taken down a Blood Cult Peak Realm expert.
That alone was a huge profit.
-And this too.
As Ye-ui said.
Pulled from Yeong-chan's bosom was none other than a small bell.
-Soul-Plundering Bell, was it? Paralyzes the mind with every ring.
'Yeah.'
-It has the drawback of stimulating the brain with blood qi each time it's used.
But if used well, brainwashing a single person would be a breeze.
'Maybe he planned to capture and brainwash Sam Wang-ya.'
Either way, it was a good thing.
Another Reverse Heaven artifact.
It would greatly aid his growth.
-From the Wudang Sect, from Mount Song, and now this. With these three, you could reach Super Peak.
He'd originally planned to acquire one from somewhere else.
But now, there was no need.
'Bought some time.'
That meant more things he could accomplish.
-How about gathering more of the needed personnel in the remaining time?
'Sounds good.'
His power was still insufficient to face the Blood Cult.
Dang Yu-wol pocketed the Soul-Plundering Bell and the other items.
The medicines, poisons, and hidden weapons Yeong-chan had carried would prove useful later.
"Rascal."
"Yes."
"Join the army."
As Dang Yu-wol and Ye-ui rejoiced over their gains, Hwang No mulled it over.
The more he saw of him, the more desirable he seemed.
'If a guy like this served a lord, I'd die in peace...'
"I'll raise you myself."
This was an offer from a Peak Realm expert to train him personally.
Any ordinary warrior would give everything for it.
But Dang Yu-wol was far removed from such people.
"No need to take me as your master. If you want, being a Tang Clan disciple is enough."
"I have a lot on my plate."
"Huh. Don't you know the state of the empire right now?"
Hwang No was frustrated.
He wanted to drag him straight to the imperial palace.
"You might not know, but the Western Podaluo Palace and the northern nomads are eyeing the empire."
And behind them was the Blood Cult.
She bared her teeth as she revealed information known to only a tiny few in the palace.
"The Blood Cult bastards are hiding at the far western edge, near the Western Regions, plotting against the empire and the imperial family."
-All old news.
'Yeah.'
It held no meaning for them as reincarnators.
"This is exactly the time to lend your strength."
"I oppose the Blood Cult just as much."
But joining the army wasn't the way to do it.
There was already so much to handle in the murim world.
"I appreciate the offer. Sorry."
Dang Yu-wol bowed his head calmly.
Hwang No glared at him with annoyance.
"But I will never betray the empire or the imperial family."
"So. You won't touch the imperial family at all, is that it?"
"Not quite."
'Of course, I plan to take down the Blood Cultists inside the imperial family.'
Hwang No sighed at Dang Yu-wol's earnest words.
There was nothing more to say.
"Tsk. Then take this."
Grumbling, she pulled a manual from her bosom and tossed it over with a flick.
Phantom Shadow Divine Art.
The martial arts manual of the enigmatic figure closest to being the world's best.
-Didn't expect her to hand this over.
'Her intentions are obvious.'
-She figures you'll come crawling under her wing when you get stuck trying to learn it alone.
"The art you're practicing looks like it's based on Reverse Heaven techniques, no matter how I look at it."
"Spot on."
"The Phantom Shadow Divine Art is a Reverse Heaven art too."
"Figured as much."
A mere part of nature wielding the power of nature.
What could be closer to Reverse Heaven than that?
She spoke calmly, then turned away sharply.
"Practice it well. And if you get stuck, come to the palace."
She forced a cold tone.
"But I won't just hand it over easily then."
'This should do it. He'll end up working for the imperial family anyway.'
With her back turned, Hwang No smiled smugly.
Thus, she couldn't see it.
The fact that Dang Yu-wol was smirking behind her too.
-What a windfall.
'Tell me about it. Won't be easy to analyze since even the Blood Cult couldn't obtain it...'
-Let's take a look.
'Yeah.'
[One may see no greater thing than the tip of an autumn hair, or no smaller than Mount Tai. One may see no longer life than that of a precocious child who dies young, or no earlier death than that of Pengzu.]
It was from the Zhuangzi.
The preface was Daoist in nature.
This meant the Phantom Shadow Divine Art had evolved from a Daoist martial art.
Dang Yu-wol calmly flipped through the Phantom Shadow Divine Art manual.
[Thus it is. The essence of all things changes according to one's gaze. This may be considered the foundation of Reverse Heaven.]
One could deem the right as wrong.
And the wrong as right.
In the end, it was a matter for the perceiver.
[Then how could one deem a person as merely a part of nature? In truth, a person is nature, and nature is a person.]
-Absurd.
'Using the small to control the great.'
It completely contradicted the natural order.
But that very fact piqued his interest.
-To wield Natural Qi, one must first possess the eye to distinguish right from wrong.
That was Ye-ui's assessment.
How could one separate Reverse Heaven from Natural Order without knowing the target?
-The training method is intriguing. Shall we try it?
'Later.'
The battle wasn't over yet.
Of course, with Hwang No returning to the field, it wouldn't be a big issue.
But it was still ongoing, regardless.
-Then let's go.
Dang Yu-wol took a step forward, listening to Ye-ui, who somehow sounded relieved.