Chapter 38
Chapter 38
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Advent of the Gale Blade (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Red plum blossom petals fluttered and scattered.
A faint, sweet scent of plum blossoms filled the air.
But it lasted only for a moment. As the Gale Blade's crimson sword energy flashed past, the lingering petals heated up and erupted in a violent explosion.
-BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
After the spectacular explosions, new petals scattered in every direction. In truth, there was no way to stop this technique unless the user ran out of internal energy or chose to end it himself.
Gwiyeong watched, completely captivated by the sight.
The dazzling bloom of red plum blossom petals.
Seeing them flash and explode with every pass of the sword energy, scattering petals brilliantly, Gwiyeong wore an almost enchanted expression.
And her eyes slowly turned to the Gale Blade, standing aloof amidst the petals.
A fallen demon who once walked the path of a Mount Hua Taoist, only to be betrayed and abandoned.
Despite it all, he still couldn't let go of the sword from his Mount Hua days, a picture of lingering attachment.
For some reason, the Gale Blade looked pitiable.
It seemed as if behind that black wolf mask were eyes filled with sorrow.
In a corner of Gwiyeong's heart, a feeling she had never experienced before began to stir.
'Gale Blade... who in the world are you...'
She wanted to hear more of his story, up close.
And she wanted to soothe his wounded, broken heart.
She was currently 28 years old. An age still young enough to feel new emotions.
Meanwhile, the warriors of the Black Ghost Guild and the Black Dragon Society watching this were just as stunned.
An explosive martial art of incredible range, unleashed by a man who had suddenly appeared.
They couldn't close their mouths, witnessing this magnificent yet deadly spectacle.
They were too shocked and bewildered to say anything.
They could only watch the explosion and rebirth of the plum blossom petals, forgetting even to breathe.
And then there was one who held a different impression.
Yonggak, the leader of the Black Dragon Society, who had barely managed to block the aftermath of the explosions with a sword barrier, frowned and analyzed the situation coldly.
'The continuity and destructive power of these explosions are considerable. More importantly, they're breaking my sword barrier faster than I can repair it. At this rate, I have no chance of winning.'
Indeed, despite continuously pouring internal energy into it, his sword barrier was cracking under the constant explosions of petals from all directions.
-CRACK! CRAAACK! CRACK!
The violent cracking sounds threatened Yonggak.
Seeing this, the Gale Blade let out a sneer.
[So you're the Black Dragon. At this rate, you're no different from a snake hiding in its hole. Aren't you going to try something? For a warrior on the verge of the Transcendent Realm, you're pathetic.]
"...Fine. As you wish, I'll show you my full power. You'd best be prepared."
Yonggak resolved to fight back with all his might, his mind set on a desperate battle.
Since reaching the late stage of the Supreme Realm, Yonggak could count on one hand the number of times he had fought with his entire being.
"Hey, do you know why they call me the leader of the Black Dragon Society?"
At Yonggak's words, the Gale Blade, Gwiyeong, and even the warriors of the Black Ghost Guild and Black Dragon Society watching from a distance focused their attention on him.
He then withdrew the internal energy he had been using to maintain the sword barrier and began to wrap it around his Black Dragon Sword and his own body.
-Fwhoooosh
A black internal energy, carrying an ominous aura, began to rise from his body.
Watching this, the Gale Blade narrowed his eyes and spoke.
[...I don't know what trick you're planning, but I'll shatter you before you can pull it off.]
He unleashed his sword energy with even greater speed and ferocity, causing the petals to explode faster and more frequently.
-BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! KABOOM!
With that, Yonggak's defensive barrier cracked all over and was on the verge of shattering.
With death closing in from all sides, Yonggak calmly gathered his ki.
-Fwhoooooosh
He looked like a monk meditating in a burning hell.
And a moment later.
Unable to withstand the explosions any longer, Yonggak's barrier shattered into pieces.
-Shatter!
Immediately, fierce flames rushed toward Yonggak.
The raging flames opened their maws at Yonggak, ravenous like the demons of hell.
Just before his entire body was swallowed by the fire.
Yonggak, leader of the Black Dragon Society, shot his blackened eyes wide open and unleashed black flames in all directions.
"Black Dragon's Heaven-Scorching Flames."
-Kwoooosh!
The raging red flames were instantly pushed back, clashing with Yonggak's black flames.
The Gale Blade's flames were magnificent and beautiful, blooming and burning petals repeatedly, yet they were mixed with a savagery that created a sense of disharmony.
In contrast, Yonggak's black flames clung tenaciously to everything around them, burning with a persistence that gave off an ominous feeling.
The two flames seemed similar in some ways, but looking deeper, they possessed entirely different properties.
The lingering attachment of a fallen Taoist who walked the noble path of the Orthodox Faction, only to be betrayed and abandoned.
The obsession of a dark path practitioner who entered the Unorthodox Faction, using and exploiting everything around him.
Both men revealed through their ultimate techniques what they had burned through in their lives to rise to their current positions.
The Gale Blade and Yonggak, who had been taunting and mocking each other, said nothing at this moment.
They simply wanted to know whose technique was more complete.
In a situation where blood boiled like this, shallow words would only spoil the excitement.
In a true warrior's duel, words are unnecessary.
Just as the brilliant flames and the vicious black flames were ravenously tearing at each other's territory.
The Gale Blade moved first.
-Step. Step.
He walked slowly, causing a crimson plum blossom to bloom on his sword.
Petals swirled around the blade, carrying small embers, and soon, crimson currents of electricity sparked fiercely around his body.
-Crackle. Sizzle.
Seeing this, Yonggak also cloaked his Black Dragon Sword in black flames and walked toward the Gale Blade.
With each step he took, the surrounding black flames burned even more fiercely.
-Fwoosh
The two men, gradually approaching each other, soon picked up their pace.
After a moment of walking quickly, they lunged forward at a nearly invisible speed, thrusting their swords.
-Swiiish
-Swiiish
The moment the blade cloaked in red flowers and flames met the blade wreathed in black fire.
-KABOOOM!
A powerful shockwave erupted in all directions, and the surrounding flames were pushed back by its force.
-Krrrrrrk
The two blades, obeying their masters' commands, bared their fangs to cut the enemy's throat.
Neither one backed down.
Amidst the fiercely burning flames, the Gale Blade let out a smirk.
Yonggak, too, seeing the Gale Blade not yielding an inch with a technique so similar to his own, raised the corners of his mouth in a slight smile.
-Klang
The two blades were pushed apart by their opposing internal energies, and their masters immediately spun around and swung their swords again.
-Klang! Klang!
The harsh clang of steel echoed as countless exchanges took place.
Every time they swung their swords, their respective flames flowed along the path like an afterimage.
Red flames and black flames mingled, and crimson petals scattered around them, adorning the scene.
Watching their battle from a safe distance, Gwiyeong, her subordinates, and the Black Dragon Society warriors were so entranced that they didn't even notice the flames spreading wider.
Through their clear eyes, the spectacular battle of the two men was reflected.
Crimson plum blossom petals catch fire and explode.
Black flames swirl around the explosions, devouring them ravenously.
Soon after, the Gale Blade's sword, charged with his sword energy, passes through the spot, and the black flames scatter and disappear.
Yonggak parries the Gale Blade's sword with his Black Dragon Sword, imbued with black flames.
Then comes the powerful shockwave and the sound of impact.
-BOOOOM!
Neither retreated a single step, unleashing their ultimate techniques.
After dozens more exchanges, they suddenly pulled back, creating some distance between them.
[Not bad. I thought you were just an arrogant snake.]
"You too. I don't know where you came from, but to think you could last this long against me."
Yonggak had even forgotten why he had come to the Black Ghost Guild, pouring all his mental energy into this fierce battle.
Just then.
-Crack.
The skin on the Gale Blade's face cracked like dry porcelain.
[...Is it time already?]
"You've reached your limit."
As Yonggak frowned, the Gale Blade smirked and replied.
[Hey, how about we start wrapping this up?]
"Fine. That's what I was hoping for."
The two understood each other's intentions and slowly gathered their ki.
-Fwoooooosh
The black flames burned fiercely before being sucked into and absorbed by Yonggak's Black Dragon Sword.
Then, Yonggak's dark internal energy crept up his skin, forming black scales.
-Fwoosh
Soon after, black flames began to churn behind his back, then suddenly erupted upward, transforming into a pair of wings.
When Yonggak opened his eyes, red, vertically slit pupils appeared over his black irises.
It was a black dragon, fully revealed from the black hellfire.
"This is my ultimate technique, a hidden skill I mastered upon reaching the late stage of the Supreme Realm. It was originally developed to defeat the leader of the Heretic Alliance, but today, I will use it for you."
Seeing this, the Gale Blade also prepared his own greatest technique.
-Fwooooooosh
Countless red plum blossoms bloomed around his body, swirling rapidly.
Then, red fire erupted fiercely, using the flowers as kindling, and above it, a form resembling a demon's face appeared.
It formed around the Gale Blade's body in a bizarre shape, as if a fire demon had manifested.
But perhaps he had used too much power, as his cracking skin began to crumble even faster, to the point where fragments of his body were breaking off and falling away.
A fire demon, bloomed by burning his own body.
The negative emotions lurking in the Gale Blade's shadow—betrayal, anger, ugliness, arrogance—all mixed together and were reborn as a fire demon, using the plum blossom petals as a sacrifice.
The ultimate techniques of the two warriors faced each other with a menacing aura.
The burning demon and the dragon cloaked in black flames slowly moved toward each other.
Soon, a fierce pressure erupted as they unleashed their final attacks.
The Gale Blade, wearing the burning demon as armor and incinerating his own body, advanced with his sword outstretched.
Yonggak, who had become the black dragon itself, wreathed in black fire, also responded by extending his Black Dragon Sword.
The moment the two ultimate techniques met.
They burned furiously, heating the surrounding air.
Soon, flames of two different colors soared fiercely into the sky.
-KABOOOOOOOOOM!
A vortex of fire formed around the two men.
It swallowed everything in the vicinity.
Gwiyeong, her subordinates, and the Black Dragon Society warriors who had been watching the battle had already taken cover long ago when they began preparing their techniques.
The Black Ghost Guild's manor, including its pavilions and outer walls, was devoured by the fiery vortex and shattered to pieces.
The moment the swords of the fire demon and the black dragon touched.
A tremendous roar echoed from within the fiercely burning pillar of fire.
-Ruuuuuumble
An enormous explosion followed, and the pillar of fire instantly burst outward, scattering in all directions.
The red and black flames mixed together, forming a large sphere, then quickly dispersed, turning into gray smoke.
-Sssshhhhh
As if it had never happened, the fireball and the pillar of fire vanished, leaving only embers on the ground.
-Crackle. Crackle.
Crimson embers gathered and burned in the center of an area.
And in their midst, a man spoke.
"...My... victory."
He looked at the man—no, the weapon that had been a man—in front of him, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
There, the Gale Blade, which had taken a human form, had lost its power and was stuck in the ground.