Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Preta Path
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'This world is all about money, power, and strength.'
'You build wealth by trampling on others, and you gain the power and authority to protect it.'
'That is the true goal of life, the ultimate truth to be pursued.'
There are people who think this way.
But they are tormented by endless thirst and unhappiness.
Exactly how much power and wealth must they amass to be satisfied?
After all, they will always see others who are richer and stronger than themselves.
With such goals, they can never be achieved.
Because this world is unfair, and the young and strong constantly emerge.
A person's true purpose lies not in the external, but within.
Failing to realize this, one flounders in endless greed and suffering.
Overlord Wi-ak of the Hegemony Society did not know this fact.
***
*CRRRRAAASSSHHH—!*
A series of deafening roars echoed with violent impacts.
The earth trembled each time the Overlord's glaive and the Heretic Alliance Lord's broadsword clashed.
A collision of immense power.
A reddish-gold aura surged from the Overlord's body, billowing around him.
His violent energy pressed down on everything in the vicinity.
The more forcefully he used his power, the more reason faded from his eyes.
"Lord of the Heretic Alliance! Die by my hand! Die and give me everything you have!"
*Fwoosh—*
His glaive sliced through the air, creating a powerful gust of wind.
Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance faced the fierce wind head-on, a smile gracing his lips.
"Overlord, I acknowledge you. Among the Black Heaven Four Lords, you are by far the strongest! But that's only as far as the Black Heaven Four Lords go."
*Thud!*
The Heretic Alliance Lord slammed his massive broadsword into the ground, infusing it with tremendous energy as he spoke.
"For me, Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance, that level of skill is nowhere near enough!"
*Rumble-rumble-rumble—*
The ground immediately split apart with a massive tremor.
Martial artists trapped under the debris and those who had just regained consciousness were swallowed by the fissures or buried by the shifting rubble.
"Gyaaaaaah!"
"Aaaargh!"
"Ugh! Someone, help me...!"
Even as his subordinates were being torn apart, Lord Taehong didn't bat an eye, his gaze fixed on Overlord Wi-ak.
"The Hegemony Society. When you were conquering the southern region, you fought against our Heretic Alliance, then suddenly joined us. I'm certain the Overlord who opposed me back then was not you, but someone else."
The Hegemony Society was originally a faction at odds with the Heretic Alliance.
Amidst an atmosphere that seemed on the brink of a large-scale war, the Hegemony Society, with its new leader, suddenly capitulated and submitted to the Heretic Alliance.
In return, the Overlord of the Hegemony Society was given the position of a Black Heaven Four Lord, one of the highest-ranking posts in the Alliance.
"I looked into you as well, Wi-ak. The son of a ruined merchant, I believe. A young man who knew nothing of martial arts suddenly swallows the Hegemony Society whole. What exactly are you?"
Contrary to his flamboyant appearance, Wi-ak had a rather humble past.
His miserable and shabby history always followed him like a shackle.
The usual composure and bold smile gone, Overlord Wi-ak looked at the Heretic Alliance Lord with a twisted face and spoke.
"Why bring up my past in this fight? Isn't it enough for us to fight until one of us is shattered?"
"I was merely curious about you, Overlord."
"Cut the crap. The only thing that matters in this fight is the battle itself. Don't think you can confuse me with pointless words!"
*Rumble-rumble-rumble—*
The Overlord prepared to charge, pressing down on the ground with immense force.
The mere act of pushing off the ground with his feet tore up the earth, causing it to crack and split.
Judging that a tremendous attack was imminent, Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance revealed his true strength, which he had kept hidden until now.
*Vwoooom—*
An aura of harmoniously blended blue and red energy swirled around his body before flowing into his broadsword.
For a martial artist of the heretical factions, it was an incredibly pure energy. Wi-ak and the other martial artists who saw it couldn't help but be astonished.
"How can the Lord of the Heretic Alliance possess such pure internal energy...?"
"Wait, don't tell me...!"
Overlord Wi-ak also realized what the pure energy revealed by Lord Taehong signified.
"You sly old fox...! You were hiding your true strength?!"
"A master never reveals his full strength. That is what amateurs do."
The martial arts of the heretical factions are mostly crude and violent.
Their cultivation techniques also tend to incite greed or aggression, making them closer to demonic arts, if one had to classify them.
Therefore, the typical color of internal energy possessed by martial artists of the heretical factions is red or some other dark shade.
A characteristic of these heretical cultivation techniques is that reaching the peak realm is relatively faster than with the orthodox factions' methods, but the problem is that progress slows dramatically afterward.
Due to the nature of martial arts, which requires one to achieve enlightenment and unite body and mind for training, the heretical arts, despite their rapid initial growth, had a structural problem that inevitably slowed their later development.
However, as the saying goes, "all rivers return to the sea." Regardless of whether it's the demonic, dark, or orthodox path, once a certain level is reached, the nature of their energy becomes remarkably similar.
When a demonic practitioner who has mastered wicked demonic arts reaches a state of transcending the demonic, their cruelty and destructive tendencies subside, and their energy becomes as deep and calm as that of the orthodox arts.
This meant that even the martial arts of the heretical factions, upon reaching a certain level, would contain a pure energy akin to that of the orthodox factions.
And that certain level of mastery is known to the world as the 'Profound Realm'.
*CRASH—!*
Overlord Wi-ak charged with tremendous force, swinging his glaive.
The attack was filled with such power and killing intent that it made the knees of those watching from afar tremble, yet Lord Taehong, who was receiving it head-on, remained perfectly calm, as if it were nothing.
*CLANG— CRRRRRACK!*
Taehong's and Wi-ak's blades clashed violently, producing a harsh metallic screech.
Wi-ak shouted with a twisted smile.
"You sly fox! To think you reached the Profound Realm! How could you even think of hiding that kind of power?! If it were me, I'd be dying to show it off!"
"I was once like that, but after reaching the Profound Realm, I am no longer swayed by such trivial feelings. No, one must attain such a state of mind to even reach the Profound Realm."
The Profound Realm signifies a mysterious state of mastery, also known as the 'Divine Realm' or 'Godly Realm'.
It transcends the principles of martial arts, granting mastery over the mind as well.
To put it with a slight exaggeration, just before entering the absolute state of being called a god, those in the Profound Realm stand on the very boundary between human and divine.
Therefore, the difference between them and a martial artist of the Harmonious Realm, the strongest within the human category, is truly like that between heaven and earth.
*Shwaaaaa—*
Wi-ak's violent energy scattered helplessly in all directions against Taehong's harmonious aura.
Seeing his power so easily nullified, Wi-ak's eyes widened in bewildered shock.
"Grrrgh!"
"Overlord, your skills are certainly outstanding. But you chose the wrong opponent."
*Fwoooosh—*
Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance blocked Wi-ak with his broadsword in one hand, while with the other, he created a spherical construct of pure aura—an Aura Sphere.
This was the most difficult of all aura manipulation techniques, a condensed orb of energy that glowed brilliantly.
Upon seeing the Aura Sphere, Wi-ak hastily tried to retreat.
But Taehong was not about to let him go so easily.
*Vwomp—*
He powerfully drew in the flow of surrounding energy, pinning Wi-ak's feet to the ground.
"Guuuh!"
Thwarted, Wi-ak struggled, unleashing his energy even more ferociously.
But it was not enough to easily escape the energy manipulation of a Profound Realm master.
*Vwooooong—*
Having completed the Aura Sphere in that short time, Taehong answered with a faint smile.
"Farewell, Overlord."
He slowly floated the Aura Sphere forward, sending it toward Wi-ak's abdomen.
No matter how hard he struggled, Wi-ak could not break free and took the full force of the Aura Sphere.
*Kiiiiiiiing—*
As the harmoniously blended red and blue Aura Sphere touched Wi-ak's abdomen, it seemed to shrink for a moment before erupting in a massive explosion with a terrifying rotation.
*KABOOOOOOOM—!*
Everything in the vicinity was blown away by the fierce shockwave as a blinding light burst forth.
Wi-ak coughed up blood and was slammed into the wreckage of a pavilion along with the sphere of energy.
"Kraaaaaaaaah!"
As if in a final struggle, Wi-ak tried to block the Aura Sphere's attack with a barrier of energy drawn from his entire body, but an Aura Sphere crafted by a Profound Realm master was not something that could be blocked so easily.
Every time Wi-ak mustered his energy, the sphere scattered it and tore his body apart even more violently.
Red blood and chunks of flesh burst in all directions.
*BOOOOOOOOOM—!*
Finally, Taehong's Aura Sphere exploded with a tremendous impact and flash, leaving its mark as a deep, hemispherical crater in the ground.
In the center of it lay Wi-ak's body, torn to shreds and utterly mangled.
As the shock subsided, Gwiyeong, who had been watching from a distance, stared blankly.
"...Is it over, just like that?"
[To think the Lord of the Heretic Alliance was a Profound Realm martial artist. This is the worst-case scenario.]
While everyone fell silent, Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance casually brushed off his clothes and spoke.
"Overlord Wi-ak has died by my hand. Those who dared to rebel against the Heretic Alliance, come before me at once and kneel."
Gwiyeong felt as if a heavy stone had settled in her heart.
'*Damn it... things have gone terribly wrong.*'
There was nothing Gwiyeong could do against the Lord of the Heretic Alliance, who had killed the impossibly strong Overlord without so much as a scratch.
The members of the Black Ghost Guild and White Serpent Guild glanced at Gwiyeong, awaiting her command.
The will to fight had already vanished from their eyes.
After witnessing the overwhelming power of the Heretic Alliance Lord, they had no spirit left to fight.
"M-Master. What should we..."
Just as a Black Ghost Guild officer cautiously began to speak.
*Tap.*
A sound came from within the crater created by the Aura Sphere.
Though it was a faint sound, the silence was so complete that everyone nearby heard it.
*Tap, tap.*
Lord Taehong of the Heretic Alliance turned his head and looked toward the crater.
*Tap... tap... tap...*
Finally noticing that something was amiss, Taehong slowly began to walk toward the crater.
*Whirrrrrr—* *Thunk!*
Wi-ak's massive glaive flew out of the crater and embedded itself in the ground before Taehong.
"Don't tell me."
As everyone watched with bated breath.
Covered in blood, yet with his torn limbs completely regenerated, Wi-ak wiped the blood from his lips and slowly climbed out of the crater.
"Who... who died? Who dares speak of an end when it has not yet come?"
A crimson, blood-red energy billowed and rose around Wi-ak's body.
The wounds on his body healed in an instant.
Soon, he revealed his crimson Demonic Eyes and opened his mouth.
"Not yet. I'm not finished yet. My role is that of unending greed. I cannot stop here."
One of the Blood Cult's Six Paths Blood Demons, Preta Path, revealed his true form.