Chapter 135: Eight Cold Hells (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 135: Eight Cold Hells (2)
The 108 Ice Demon Pillar Formation was a technique that replaced the monks of the 108 Arhat Formation with 108 pillars of solid ice.
The foundation of these pillars was built upon the Ice Soul Divine Art and the Water element of the Five Elements.
Originally, Seo-jun had intended to execute the formation without any Demonic Qi, simply naming it the 108 Ice Pillar Formation. However, Demonic Qi had inadvertently seeped into the technique.
It was all because of the Blood Salt Ten Thousand Soul poison administered by the Blood Crow Sect Leader.
Even though his Protective Astral Qi was a near-perfect defense, Seo-jun had still been infected by the Blood Salt Ten Thousand Soul mixed into the very air he breathed.
The red smoke the Blood Crow Sect Leader initially emitted was a mere distraction. He had covertly released the Blood Salt Ten Thousand Soul immediately afterward, and Seo-jun’s Protective Astral Qi had failed to filter out a poison so seamlessly blended into the atmosphere.
Once the toxin unified with the air itself, the Protective Astral Qi could no longer distinguish it as a foreign threat.
Seo-jun didn't know how such a feat was possible.
He could only speculate that this insidious nature was exactly why poison arts had managed to survive and thrive in the Murim.
Regardless, the mechanics didn't matter right now. What mattered was the result: he had been poisoned.
Seo-jun kept his thoughts simple.
Poison, in the end, was nothing more than a foreign substance invading the body.
With the Blood Salt Ten Thousand Soul, he felt a strange, heterogeneous dissonance within his blood. Thus, he momentarily replaced all the blood in his veins with Demonic Qi, incinerating every trace of the foreign substance.
The remaining residue was gathered in his mouth and spat out along with his saliva.
As a result, his veins bulged and stained his skin black, but he didn't care. His body felt fine.
He simply pulled out the fragment of the Domain he had grasped and engraved it upon the world.
Cr-crack!
The Inner Core he had manifested outside his body resonated with the 108 ice pillars, drowning the entire Blood Crow Sect in a frigid chill.
"Phew..."
Seo-jun exhaled a cloud of white frost. In that instant, he felt everything within the Blood Crow Sect.
The presence of 2,372 living beings, the intricate formations installed inside, the structural layout of the buildings, the secret underground passages, the gazes fixed upon him, their emotions—and a particularly massive surge of terror.
This absolute awareness was possible because he had brought out his Inner Core—a literal piece of himself—and spread his consciousness across the entire range of the 108 Ice Demon Pillar Formation.
The method was inspired by sorcery.
In martial arts, one could not freely manipulate external Qi until reaching the Transcendent Realm. However, in sorcery, it was possible—albeit to a limited degree—through a method called resonance.
The Inner Core was a crystallization of Qi that supported Seo-jun’s Essence and Spirit.
In a way, it was an entity that could be called Seo-jun himself. By manifesting it outside, he had essentially created another version of himself in the external world.
Using that core as an axis, he resonated with the 108 ice pillars to divide his existence. Finally, through the cascading resonance between the pillars, he projected himself into every single inch of space within the formation.
He named this: the Eight Cold Hells.
A pseudo-domain that mimicked the absolute territory of the Transcendent Realm.
With every ounce of cold energy within the Blood Crow Sect under his absolute control, Seo-jun looked down upon every breathing soul.
"W-what is this...?"
The Blood Crow Sect Leader’s eyes trembled violently.
He didn't know exactly what had happened, but he could tell this was no ordinary technique.
His very thoughts began to freeze under the piercing chill.
By the time he realized it, the man before him was growing distant.
No—he was the one backing away.
"How... how can this be...?"
Gritting his teeth, he mustered every drop of his cultivation in a desperate struggle.
He knew instinctively that escape was impossible.
However, he hadn't lived a soft life; his spirit wouldn't break from this level of crisis.
I will kill that man and survive.
The Blood Crow Sect Leader clenched his jaw.
Blood Phosphorus Astral Qi. The signature martial art of the Blood Crow Sect.
Crimson Astral Qi violently swirled around both of his hands.
Sizzle!
Blood boiled and smoke rose from the Astral Qi on his left hand, which now only had a thumb remaining.
He swung his hand, unleashing the gathered energy.
Swish-sh-sh!
The fired Astral Qi split apart in midair, scattering like thousands of crimson will-o'-the-wisps.
Watching the flying fragments of Astral Qi, Seo-jun’s eyes grew cold.
"So that was the trick."
Haa... As Seo-jun exhaled, the incoming fragments of Astral Qi froze solid and plummeted to the ground.
The Blood Crow Sect Leader bit his lip, but instead of despairing, he roared at the top of his lungs.
"Attack!"
At the leader's command, roughly half of the disciples charged forward, completely disregarding their own lives.
A third hesitated, while the rest turned and fled, screaming in terror.
Seo-jun made a simple gesture.
Whoosh!
A wind rose from the light wave of his hand. It was a gale forged of pure frost.
Crack! The freezing gale swept through the entire Blood Crow Sect, turning everything in its path to solid ice.
"A-ah..."
"Spare... me..."
1,987 ice statues were created in an instant.
Of the 2,372 original presences, only 385 remained.
Since 317 of those presences were presumed to be sacrifices captured by the Blood Crow Sect, only 68 actual remnants of the sect were left alive.
Snap!
As Seo-jun flicked his fingers, a massive pillar of ice manifested in the air and violently crashed into the ground.
Rumble!
Now, only 18 remained.
Cr-crack! Cracks rapidly spiderwebbed across the giant ice pillar connecting heaven and earth, and then—
Clang!
It shattered into millions of razor-sharp ice shards.
With another flick of Seo-jun’s finger, the wind blew once more.
Millions of ice shards swirled through the interior of the Blood Crow Sect, carried by the howling gale.
"Aaaagh...!"
Those who had barely survived the initial freeze were swept away by the blade-like wind, instantly shredded into handfuls of bloody mist.
Now, only one person remained.
The Blood Crow Sect Leader, his face pale as a ghost, looked up at Seo-jun.
"Impossible... The poison..."
"There's no way it worked," Seo-jun replied calmly.
Seo-jun opened his palm.
Something in the air froze, and fine red particles gathered above his hand.
It was the Blood Salt Ten Thousand Soul that the Blood Crow Sect Leader had mixed into his Blood Phosphorus Astral Qi. He had scattered the poison dwelling in his own blood by burning it with his Astral Qi.
It was only a guess, but that combustion process likely granted the poison the ability to bypass and neutralize Protective Astral Qi.
It was certainly a troublesome toxin, but not something he would fall for twice.
As Seo-jun stared intently at the Blood Crow Sect Leader, the man let out a hollow laugh.
"This is absurd..."
His will was utterly broken.
However, his pride as a martial artist would not allow him to die submissively.
With crimson Astral Qi coating both hands, the Blood Crow Sect Leader kicked off the ground.
He channeled every last drop of his True Qi to unleash his ultimate technique.
True Blood Claw.
Ten streaks of crimson Astral Qi embroidered the air, following the vicious trajectory of his claws.
Seo-jun gathered all the cold energy within the pseudo-domain into a single, condensed point.
Ice Crystal.
A snowflake-shaped crystal suddenly materialized before his eyes.
The Blood Crow Sect Leader squeezed his eyes shut.
Flash!
The entire area was dyed pure white. When the blinding cold finally dissipated, not even a trace of the Blood Crow Sect Leader remained.
Only his frozen, shattered remnants scattered in the wind.
Seo-jun stood in the center of the devastation, silently looking over the white, frozen ruins of the Blood Crow Sect for a moment.
"...I still have a long way to go."
Pseudo-domain: Eight Cold Hells.
He had certainly taken a step closer to the Transcendent Realm, but it was still woefully inadequate.
The fact that he could only manipulate cold energy, rather than the raw Qi within the domain, was proof enough of that limitation.
Furthermore, because he had placed half of his very being into the Inner Core and exposed it externally, his innate strength had drastically dropped. The mental imagery spread across the 108 Ice Demon Pillar Formation was simply too thin.
It was a technique that would be entirely meaningless against an opponent of equal standing.
Also, with the Inner Core exposed, his weakness was glaringly obvious.
If the Inner Core fixed in the sky were to be destroyed, Seo-jun would suffer a massive, potentially fatal backlash.
It was a technique hastily cobbled together using inspiration from the 108 Arhat Formation. Unless he was targeting an opponent with a specific elemental weakness, it seemed useless for anything other than slaughtering masses of inferior enemies.
Its only real value was that it allowed him to briefly experience the divine power of the Transcendent Realm.
"Sigh..."
Exhaling a long breath, Seo-jun made another gesture.
Rumble!
The moisture deep within the ground froze, violently lifting the earth itself.
A space hidden deep underground was revealed.
317 people were trapped within the cramped, squalid cavern.
They were no more than broken dolls. They had already lost their sanity and were barely clinging to life.
It was a state that even Seo-jun could not heal.
Clicking his tongue in pity, Seo-jun simultaneously froze their hearts and brains, granting them a swift, painless death.
If he were to build a grave for them, the forces of the Black Lotus Union would eventually search the ruins of the Blood Crow Sect and desecrate their bodies.
Instead, he used the absolute cold to break down the 317 corpses. Fine ice particles drifted on the wind, catching and scattering the moonlight to create a mysterious, ethereal aura of light.
Seo-jun watched the scene in silence for a long time.
The slowly fading aura eventually dispersed into the vast night sky.
Averting his gaze from the heavens, Seo-jun summoned the Inner Core down from the air and swallowed it once more.
Whoosh!
The pseudo-domain dissolved, and the natural, warm breeze returned.
"Blegh...!"
Seo-jun violently vomited a mouthful of dark blood, wiping his mouth with his sleeve.
Even though it was only a pseudo-domain, it was still far too early for someone of his cultivation level to perform such a technique.
"At this rate... I might barely make it to the main tournament."
Gauging his rapidly recovering condition, Seo-jun slowly walked away.
After a brief period of recovery, he planned to return to Henan.
*
Chun-bong was in a very foul mood.
That bastard Lee Seo-jun had promised he’d be back soon, but he was still nowhere to be seen.
Time had passed, and the main tournament of the Yongbong Gathering was finally upon them.
Waiting alongside Namgung Myeong and Namgung Su-ah, Chun-bong’s leg bounced restlessly.
"Nothing happened to that jerk, right...?"
"He'll be fine, Geum Mae," Namgung Myeong reassured her.
"Mmm..."
Pouting, Chun-bong finally let out a heavy sigh.
"I guess. It's not like he's the type to get beaten up somewhere."
The important thing right now was herself.
The true Yongbong Gathering was essentially starting today.
Her status as the successor of the Divine Sword Geum Family.
She had agonized over exactly when to reveal it.
Should she reveal it at the very start of the main tournament and ride that momentum straight to victory? Or should she win first, then drop the massive bombshell on the martial world?
She had already made her decision.
All that was left was to wait.
Soon, the brief opening ceremony concluded. As the start of the duels was officially declared, the referee called out the names of the first participants.
"Ju Yang-il of the Imperial Family!"
Waaaah!
Amidst a deafening roar of cheers, a man stepped onto the martial arts arena.
He scanned the massive crowd with an entirely expressionless face.
His eyes were sunken, looking as though he had absolutely no interest in the Yongbong Gathering. Yet, when his dignified, heavy gaze swept over the stands, the spectators unconsciously fell silent.
Chun-bong clicked her tongue as she watched him.
"Look at that arrogant prick. Look at the way he's staring."
He was a descendant of the Martial God Ju Un-cheon, the legendary figure who had once pacified the Central Plains.
Though the Imperial Family had faltered briefly when the Martial God ascended, they still proudly held their absolute authority as one of the Six Great Clans.
Unlike the ruined Divine Sword Geum Family...
"Ah...!"
Just then, the monk serving as the referee looked toward the elders seated in the back, appearing visibly flustered.
The elders, who had already been informed of the situation, gave a solemn nod.
The referee took a moment to compose his strangely overwhelmed expression, then shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Geum Hee of the Divine Sword Geum Family...!"
The Divine Sword Geum Family.
The legendary clan where the great God of the Sword once resided—and the clan that had vanished into absolute ruin in a single night.
At the mere mention of that name, a heavy, suffocating silence instantly fell over the crowd.
Even Ju Yang-il, who had been standing with a perfectly indifferent face, widened his eyes and immediately began searching the stands for the successor of the Divine Sword Geum Family.
And the successor of the Divine Sword Geum Family, Geum Hee.
Geum Hee?
After a brief moment of confusion, Chun-bong finally realized.
Oh, right. My real name was Geum Hee, wasn't it?
Snapping out of her daze, Chun-bong stepped onto the arena with confident, heavy strides.
Every single eye in the stadium was fixed on her.
After standing on the arena in silence for a moment, Chun-bong dramatically threw off her outer coat.
Flutter!
As the coat flew away in the wind, the traditional attire of the Divine Sword Geum Family was revealed to the world once more.
Wa— Waaaaaaaah!!
The spectators, who had been watching with bated breath, finally couldn't contain themselves and erupted into earth-shaking cheers.
The successor of the Divine Sword Geum Family, a lineage everyone thought had been completely wiped from the face of the earth.
Chun-bong gave a cocky smirk at the roaring crowd and straightened her back.
The flamboyant clothing symbolizing the Young Master of the Divine Sword Geum Family violently fluttered in the wind.
A majestic black dragon embroidered on a brilliant golden background.
Ju Yang-il’s eyebrows twitched when he saw her dragon robe.
His own clothing was strikingly similar to Chun-bong’s.
It was just that the colors were reversed—a golden dragon embroidered on a pitch-black background.
"A dragon robe... Your clan is as arrogant as ever."
Ju Yang-il’s eyes held a cold, murderous light as he glared at Chun-bong.
"How dare a mere martial artist wear such a thing..."
Chun-bong simply sneered and raised her middle finger right at his face.
"What are you even talking about? You bastards can't even put the word 'Divine' in your family name."
"Does a family abandoned by their god dare to claim the name of one?"
"...You really are asking to die, you arrogant brat."
Arrogant Imperial bastards.
As Chun-bong bared her teeth in a feral grin, the referee finally made the announcement.
"We will now officially begin the main tournament of the Yongbong Gathering!"