Chapter 158
Chapter 158
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 46
>Chapter Title: Forced (3)
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It was not only him who was surprised.
Cheongryeong could not hide her astonishment at the ferocious aura emanating from Mok Kyung-un's entire body.
‘What in the world is this aura?’
It might not be visible to ordinary eyes.
But the aura of Mok Kyung-un that she saw through her Ghost Eye was ferocious and unspeakably ominous.
This aura was markedly different from deathly qi, the energy of the dead.
-Shwaaaaa!
The Three Flowers Converging on the Crown normally pierces through essence, qi, and spirit, fully opening the Ren and Du meridians to surpass one's limits.
Yet Mok Kyung-un had forcibly broken through them using reverse blood energy circulation with deathly qi.
He had accomplished it with the opposing yin energy.
This aura, which had condensed through the three flowers before exploding, was utterly different from before.
A new aura had been born—one that even Cheongryeong, who had existed for over a century, had never encountered.
'Ferocious... wicked... pure malice. How was an aura like this even created? It's no different from a demon.’
It was unlike evil spirits or vengeful souls.
It had completely transformed into a brand-new aura unique to Mok Kyung-un himself.
At that moment, Na Yul-ryang, the Hierarch's eldest disciple and great young master, spoke up.
"Even as one of our kind, I took you for an unripe whelp... You. You're a more vexing existence than I expected."
"That's pretty much how I see it too."
It went both ways.
Mok Kyung-un likewise viewed Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang not as a pawn to exploit, but as someone who absolutely had to be killed.
Na Yul-ryang gave a small click of his tongue at Mok Kyung-un's reply.
Then he spoke again.
"Are you truly human?"
Na Yul-ryang's question was entirely natural.
In the midst of this dire situation, he had performed the feat of forcibly shattering a wall.
It was progress beyond reason—a deadly gamble with his very life.
"I'm human. What, afraid I might be some monster?"
"A monster? ...That has merit too. That ominous black aura wafting from you... It's like a demon straight out of hell."
"Demon?"
Mok Kyung-un let out a smirk at the word.
Demon, was it.
He had a good idea why the man would say that.
It was his own aura, after all, so he understood it all too clearly.
[Forget the ferocity inside you. Only then can you live.]
Come to think of it, those were words Grandfather had said since his childhood.
He had assumed it was just about the raw thrill of unleashing destruction.
Yet this aura, warped as it pierced through essence, qi, and spirit.
Somehow, it did not feel unfamiliar.
It was as though the darkness and chaos drawing him into an endless abyss were originating from within himself.
"An aura like a demon... Not bad at all. Guess that makes it demonic qi."
"Demonic qi? Ha! You prattle on as if you're some revered grandmaster."
"Who knows. That aside, fascinating. Those eyes of yours."
"......"
"Can you see my aura with them?"
With his Ghost Eye open, Mok Kyung-un could tell plainly.
The right eye of Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang, from which silver light flowed, was far from ordinary.
But those words from Mok Kyung-un became the trigger.
No sooner had the question ended than
-Pat!
Na Yul-ryang's form shot toward Mok Kyung-un at blinding speed.
Prior to forcibly achieving Three Yins Converging on the Crown, Mok Kyung-un had struggled to track Na Yul-ryang's movements.
But now that he had accomplished it,
'I see it.'
Na Yul-ryang's movements were finally visible.
Mok Kyung-un reached out a hand, and the Evil Instant Sword lying on the ground flew into his grasp.
-Woooong!
Black sword gang surged from the Evil Instant Sword.
At the same time, Mok Kyung-un swept his sword upward in a diagonal slash.
-Chaeaeaeaeang!
In that instant, a blue sword gang clashed against the Evil Instant Sword's black sword gang, sending fierce sparks flying.
-Chwarrr!
Mok Kyung-un's form was pushed back some two paces at the same time.
He could track the movements now, but Na Yul-ryang still held the edge in raw power.
Having broken through the wall not by enlightenment but by force, Mok Kyung-un had no choice but to lag behind in internal energy.
Yet Na Yul-ryang's expression was none too pleased.
'He can see my movements properly now.'
I still held the advantage since he had only just broken through the wall, but this punk—mere peak transcendent realm mere moments ago—had entered the same realm as me in a single breath.
The Transformation Realm, no less.
This was no trifling matter to brush aside.
'No choice.'
He had to be slain right here, or there would be endless trouble later.
Elevating him from mere future nuisance to a definite death sentence target, Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang ceased conserving his energy and drew his internal energy up to its utmost limit.
-Goooooo!
As Na Yul-ryang's energy surged, grains of sand on the ground began to quiver and rise.
"Abandon any hope of walking out alive."
"You make it sound so easy."
-Goooooo!
In response, Mok Kyung-un likewise pushed his internal energy to its extreme.
His energy had yet to stabilize after the breakthrough, but failing to match here would leave him crushed by sheer momentum and cleaved apart.
-Pachik! Pachik!
Na Yul-ryang's eyes narrowed as he locked sword gangs with Mok Kyung-un.
My internal energy was undoubtedly superior.
Yet as they met Mok Kyung-un's sword gang, faint wisps of energy began to scatter.
It seemed to stem from this destructive nature of his aura.
Because of it, Na Yul-ryang had to pour in even more qi to keep his energy from dispersing, preventing Mok Kyung-un from being easily repelled.
'Troublesome.'
Sensing an internal energy clash wouldn't suffice, Na Yul-ryang stamped the ground.
-Kung! Jjeok!
The ground beneath Mok Kyung-un shattered in that instant, nearly toppling his stance.
Seizing the opening without mercy,
-Chaang!
Na Yul-ryang rebounded the clashing sword gang with a sword strike, targeting Mok Kyung-un's left shoulder.
But then,
-Hmph!
A sharp sword intent from behind.
'Tch.'
Na Yul-ryang kicked off the ground, twisting his body and cloaking himself in sword gang.
-Chwarrrrrr!
The rotation whipped his sword gang into a vortex, spraying razor-sharp intent in all directions.
-Papapapapapak!
-Good instincts.
-Chachachachachang!
In a flash, Cheongryeong—who had targeted Na Yul-ryang's back—warded off the oncoming sword gangs with her staff.
Mok Kyung-un, too, steadied his wavering form and deflected Na Yul-ryang's sword gangs while hunting for a gap.
This sword-gang-clad technique left no openings.
'He's still stronger than you. We must attack together. I'll pin down his movements, so...'
Before Cheongryeong could finish, Mok Kyung-un shook his head.
-What?
What was this guy thinking?
Fail to kill Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang here, and he'd become the absolute worst enemy within the Heaven-Earth Society.
A forced breakthrough was miraculous enough, but the opponent was a Transformation Realm master already—victory odds remained low for Mok Kyung-un alone.
-It's still too much...
-I have a spare wooden puppet. Hide yourself.
-What?
-Vast curse power coming from over there.
Cheongryeong's eyes flashed at Mok Kyung-un's mental transmission.
She had been too fixated on the foe to notice anything else, yet he had sensed it as well?
Truth be told, Cheongryeong had sensed it too.
Curse power formed the foundation of sorcery and spells alike.
The moment she unleashed her spiritual power—the true power of a vengeful soul—vast curse power rippled outward.
It meant a skilled sorcerer had detected her presence.
Soon enough, that sorcerer would pinpoint her location.
Even so, Cheongryeong meant to aid Mok Kyung-un regardless.
-No. You'd be the one in peril then...
-I'm good now. You know what it means for the sorcerer here to have noticed.
-......
She fell silent at his mental transmission.
What could this guy be planning?
Even having surpassed the wall, he'd still fall short in martial skill.
-Woong!
In that moment, Cheongryeong and Mok Kyung-un simultaneously glanced in a certain direction.
Vast curse power had just blanketed the entire inner fortress.
Which meant the pursuit had begun.
-Hurry.
-You...
-Want to botch the whole thing?
After a moment's hesitation, Cheongryeong replied.
-...If things look dire, flee straight to that poison old man, no exceptions.
With their current gap, he should manage to reach that distance.
With that, Cheongryeong melted into Mok Kyung-un's embrace.
-Sseureureuk!
Just then, Na Yul-ryang—who had been spinning and indiscriminately flinging sword gang—halted.
He steadied his breathing and scanned his surroundings with his right pupil.
'Where?'
Where had that entity masquerading as Wi So-yeon gone?
Impossible to slip his See-through Eye, yet she was nowhere to be seen.
Na Yul-ryang glared at Mok Kyung-un.
"Where'd that woman go?"
Mok Kyung-un shrugged casually.
"What are you on about?"
"The youngest disciple—no, that bizarre entity wearing her face."
"Beats me what you're talking about. Who's that supposed to be?"
"What?"
Na Yul-ryang scoffed in utter disbelief.
After crossing blades with him all this time, spouting such drivel?
"You're toying with this young master. She was right in front of you, then vanished in an instant. Think I missed it amid the spin, even at high speed?"
The real issue: her energy had vanished completely in that moment.
His See-through Eye couldn't locate her, leaving Na Yul-ryang on high alert in all directions.
No telling when or where she might strike.
Mok Kyung-un gave him a faint smile.
"Seeing things, are you?"
"......"
Na Yul-ryang's face grew icy.
He stared piercingly at Mok Kyung-un before rolling his neck side to side, loosening his muscles.
-Crunch! Crack!
"You seem under some delusion."
"Delusion?"
"Indeed. You've only just earned the right to face this young master. Don't mistake it for parity."
-Sseureuk!
No sooner had he spoken than Na Yul-ryang's form scattered like mist.
Mok Kyung-un whipped the Evil Instant Sword upward.
-Pachik!
Sparks erupted as black sword gang met blue.
Mok Kyung-un then twisted sideways, cleaving at empty air once more with the Evil Instant Sword.
Something flickered into view like dispersing haze, then vanished.
-Sseureuk! Sseureuk!
Faint afterimages lingered here and there, and each time the Evil Instant Sword rent them apart.
The phenomenon of endless hazy afterimages was Shifting Form and Position.
Na Yul-ryang's ultra-high-speed lightness skill rendered him invisible save for the attack instants.
Of course,
-Sseuseuseu!
Mok Kyung-un's pupils shook rapidly.
Na Yul-ryang's shadow etched into them for split seconds at a time.
He was capturing the fleeting motions.
Unable to match the speed himself, he countered only in those attack moments.
'One slip. Just one, and your head's mine.'
Na Yul-ryang pressed Mok Kyung-un without respite.
Each ultra-high-speed shift led into a sword form—every one a killing blow.
Fresh off breaking through to my realm, the punk hadn't fully internalized his new power.
That rawness would be his undoing—
-Sseuk!
It happened then.
Mok Kyung-un shifted his foot.
Trying to disrupt the rhythm? No chance in—
-Pachik!
In that instant, Mok Kyung-un's form stuck to Na Yul-ryang's back, black sword gang thrusting at his chest.
Na Yul-ryang parried it effortlessly before resuming his ultra-high-speed movement.
-Tatatatattak!
Twenty paces to a normal man's one.
His steps flowed gracefully, like water itself.
Yet,
-Tatatatattak!
'!??'
One of Na Yul-ryang's brows shot up.
A fluke at first, but now Mok Kyung-un was matching his motion once more.
And that footwork—
'Clear Water Moon Step?'
He was mimicking Na Yul-ryang's own lightness skill: Clear Water Moon Step.
The Na clan's secret art—not passed down from the Hierarch, but from his birth family—the pinnacle of short-range ultra-high-speed movement.
Na Yul-ryang was dumbfounded for a beat.
He himself could dissect an opponent's arts swiftly through calm insight and adapt his own martial ways accordingly.
But this was on another level entirely.
'Stealing my technique right in the thick of battle?'
An utterly preposterous punk.
First of his kind.
Not content with matching his ilk, his talent might even exceed Na Yul-ryang's own.
'No good.'
Killing intent surged in Na Yul-ryang's eyes.
He was already at full throttle, yet he hadn't unleashed the three secret forms of the Heavenly Sword Style.
Even in the same realm, he hadn't deemed the foe worthy yet.
Now his mind had changed.
He would use the secrets to end him swiftly—
-Hmph!
An overwhelming aura right at hand forced Na Yul-ryang to halt his lightness skill.
Mok Kyung-un felt it too.
Both men's gazes snapped to the figure approaching within arm's reach.
It was none other than
"Island Poison King?"
Island Poison King Baek Sa-ha.
"Great Young Master."
"This... is unexpected indeed."
Na Yul-ryang's remark stemmed from one simple fact.
Baek Sa-ha's appearance was strikingly more youthful than before.
Moreover, viewed through his See-through Eye, Baek Sa-ha's aura was incomparably stronger than previously.
"You've crossed the wall."
Baek Sa-ha snorted at the words.
"Great Young Master... Mind if this old man asks what you were doing with my disciple?"
"......"
A blunt query.
The sort of warning one issues despite already knowing.
Rather than reply, Na Yul-ryang cast a regretful glance at Mok Kyung-un.
He smirked faintly, then said,
"You're fortunate."
Baek Sa-ha inwardly marveled at that.
Even with my arrival and claim of discipleship, he made no move to retract his hostility or killing intent.
Arrogant as ever—utterly without peer.
Reason enough not to back him.
-Sseuseuk!
The blue sword gang lingering on Na Yul-ryang's sword fingers faded away.
Mok Kyung-un released his own sword gang in turn.
'Hmm.'
Doubt flickered in Baek Sa-ha's eyes as he observed.
Why did the sword gang on Mok Kyung-un's blade bear such a dark hue?
The power within it was no trifling thing, either.
'What in blazes happened?’
He couldn't conceal his bewilderment.
A child of this caliber couldn't hope to face Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang.
Yet the lingering traces of their clash all around—and from afar, it looked almost even.
What on earth was going on?
As he puzzled over it, Great Young Master Na Yul-ryang addressed Baek Sa-ha.
"Island Poison King. Congratulations on reaching the Great Duke realm. This young master will take his leave."
With that, Na Yul-ryang turned to depart without a second thought.
Baek Sa-ha was inwardly relieved.
-Pat!
In that instant—as he pivoted—Na Yul-ryang lunged like lightning, thrusting his sword fingers at Mok Kyung-un's chest in a sneak attack.
Mok Kyung-un grabbed his wrist in haste, but they had already sunk in nearly two knuckles deep.
-Puk!
"Great Young Master!"
Baek Sa-ha bellowed in fury.
Na Yul-ryang flashed a triumphant smile.
"Did you think I'd simply leave without claiming your life?"
Sword fingers buried in the chest meant the fight was over.
One more inch and it was the heart.
My vastly superior internal energy made the wrist grab pointless anyway.
But,
'This punk?'
Mok Kyung-un was grinning ear to ear in a chilling smile.
His life hung by a thread, yet he smiled?
"Have you lost your—"
"Thanks for coming right to me."
"What?"
It happened in that instant.
-Crunch!
Na Yul-ryang's wrist twisted and snapped clean.
'!??'
[Chapter 46: Forced (3)] End