Chapter 222
Chapter 222
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 62
>Chapter Title: Mixed Blood (2)
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The real craftsman Hong Bong-yuk's daughter, Song Ah, fell from the wind pushed by the masked Imperial Guard, her eyes widening in shock.
And it was all because of the face revealed as the mask shattered.
Even though only half was visible, from the blue eyes to the prominent nose, and that distinctly foreign face—it was clearly closer to a Western Region native than a Central Plains person, no matter who looked.
"Milord..."
Unknowingly, she called out to the masked Imperial Guard—no, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard.
At that, he, covering his face with his hand, snapped at her.
"Don't look!"
In that instant, she reflexively lowered her head.
She would have been startled by the shout alone, but with killing intent laced in the voice of such a master, an ordinary girl like her couldn't help but feel her heart drop.
-Grit!
Yet even at her reaction, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's nerves sharpened further.
He had been extremely wary of his face being exposed.
[Blue eyes?]
[Why is a Western Region bastard here?]
[Damn foreign spawn!]
These were the words he'd heard since before he could even walk.
The endless discrimination he'd endured simply for being different had tormented the blue-eyed Imperial Guard, making him psychologically withdrawn.
Had he not met his master, his life might have twisted into the worst possible path.
But still, he didn't want to show his face to anyone.
The blue-eyed Imperial Guard, covering the exposed area with his hand, glared at Mok Kyung-un, who had shattered his mask like this.
However,
"What's there to be so shy about?"
"What?"
"There's nothing particularly wrong with your face, so why hide it like that?"
At these words, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's expression twisted ferociously.
Was this bastard mocking him right now?
Already sensitive from his face being revealed, his blood boiled in reverse.
'This guy at least!'
-Pak!
The blue-eyed Imperial Guard stomped the ground twice.
With that, his form scattered like afterimages, soon splitting into two and charging at Mok Kyung-un simultaneously.
The two split forms unleashed their stances at the same time.
'Cloud-Sending Palm Series, Sixth Stance: Secret Distant Hasty Yield!'
'Earth-Shaping Fist Series, Fourth Stance: Fragile Chain Wave Form!'
The left form surged with a palm strike at an uncanny angle that made distance hard to gauge, soft and yielding, while the right unleashed a domineering fist heavy with weight.
'Yielding Palm and Heavy Fist?'
-Pak!
In response, Mok Kyung-un also stomped the ground twice.
Like the blue-eyed Imperial Guard, his form split into two amid afterimages.
Seeing this, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's eyes sharpened.
'It's certain.'
He was dumbfounded.
He'd harbored some doubt, but this guy was using the same lightness skill technique as his own.
What in the world was going on?
Lightness skill splitting techniques weren't something you could mimic just by watching.
You needed the exact energy circulation method and incantation to perform it.
But that wasn't the important thing now.
'I need to stay calm.'
Even if this guy had superficially copied his lightness skill, he couldn't have grasped its depths.
Thus, the two split forms of both men clashed.
-Papapapapak!
The afterimages intertwined, unfolding a bizarre confrontation.
As the original practitioner, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's two afterimages moved with incomparable naturalness.
Yet Mok Kyung-un countered this by having both hands execute different stances.
'Again?'
Executing different stances with each hand was even more awkward to face than the splitting clones.
Because, inexplicably, the stances unleashed separately by each hand retained their full power.
-Papapapak!
'Kuhk!'
Naturally, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard was pushed back.
He couldn't fathom this guy's true nature.
From the moment his form split via lightness skill, it was as if his thoughts had divided as well—and on top of that, different stances with each hand.
'A monstrous bastard.'
Excluding his master and those two in the imperial palace, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard had been confident no one in Kaifeng could match him in pure martial arts.
Yet he never imagined he'd be overwhelmed in stance execution.
-Papapapapak!
Ultimately unable to endure the stance battle, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard first pulled back distance.
-Pat!
Of course, Mok Kyung-un had no intention of letting him go.
He immediately tried to pursue.
Glared at by Mok Kyung-un like this, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's eyes grew solemn.
At this rate, he couldn't win.
He had to unleash his ultimate trump card, his full power.
[You haven't fully mastered the essence of this martial art, so Second Class is your limit. But if you're faced with a truly unforeseen crisis, I'll teach you a secret technique allowing Fourth Class for just one stance.]
This was the supreme secret technique passed down by his master.
Even this monstrous guy couldn't block it, he was certain.
As he launched his form backward to gain distance, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard soon pressed his foot to the ground and bent his knee.
With that,
-Kwang!
He fiercely stomped the ground,
-Swaaaaa!
And with a gale-force wind, something bizarre occurred.
The blue-eyed Imperial Guard's form had split into four.
'Four?'
A gleam flashed in Mok Kyung-un's eyes.
He'd thought splitting into two afterimages was the limit, but four?
Moreover, the energy circulation was completely different from before—this wasn't a stance reproducible at a glance.
The four split blue-eyed Imperial Guards charged at Mok Kyung-un.
"Hap!"
Powerful shouts accompanied the unfolding stances.
-Papapapapapapa!
They consisted of four entirely different martial arts: fist, palm, kick, and claw.
Yet they linked together with exquisite precision.
Thus, their power was on another level from when split into two afterimages.
The momentum was like a storm itself.
-Pat!
Mok Kyung-un, pursuing the blue-eyed Imperial Guard, immediately pulled his form back to create distance.
To him, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard shouted.
"You think you can dodge?"
-Papapapapapak!
For even that monstrous guy to retreat meant he hadn't found a way to counter the secret technique.
He couldn't miss this golden opportunity.
It was right then.
"This seems worth testing, even if it's not fully perfected yet."
-Sring!
Mok Kyung-un drew the Demon Instant Sword from the scabbard on his back.
As it emerged from the scabbard, the Demon Instant Sword emitted fierce sword energy with a resonant cry.
'Not an ordinary sword.'
It felt ominous, beyond even a treasured blade.
But the sword wasn't the issue.
The moment Mok Kyung-un took his sword stance, the atmosphere shifted.
It was as if a volcano on the verge of eruption—some sense of dissonance swelled intensely.
'What is this?'
The blue-eyed Imperial Guard had been certain of victory since unleashing his secret technique.
Yet this rising dissonance from Mok Kyung-un didn't heighten his battle intent; it triggered alarm instead.
It was in that instant.
-Pat!
Mok Kyung-un, in stance, swung his sword toward him.
The first sword stance wasn't particularly strong.
It was utterly ordinary,
'Was it just nerves?'
Perhaps he'd been overly cautious.
Did he think he could counter the Fourth Class secret technique with such a mundane sword stance?
-Papak!
Thus, the Fourth Class and Mok Kyung-un's sword stance collided.
Like four masters attacking in concert, the Fourth Class stormed forth irresistibly.
'He's going for the decisive blow.'
Sword energy alone could protect hands and feet sufficiently, but the blue-eyed Imperial Guard concentrated his energy further, converting it to protective aura.
His hands and feet shimmered with blue light.
However,
-Chaeng!
It was around the third clash.
Mok Kyung-un's Demon Instant Sword suddenly turned pitch black.
'What is this?'
The moment auras collided, dark blue flames sparked, sending intense pain through his palm.
This left the blue-eyed Imperial Guard inwardly puzzled.
He didn't know what this ominous black energy was, but each clash distorted his aura.
And that wasn't the only problem.
-Chachachachachang!
'The sword stance of one form exceeding six?'
The sword stance within Mok Kyung-un's sword attack defied common sense.
It didn't transition to the next stance; the sword forms continued unfolding in utterly unpredictable trajectories.
And with each added trajectory,
-Chachachachachang!
'This!'
The stance's power was increasing.
Clearly, at the initial clash, there had been several flaws.
But as trajectories accumulated, not only were the flaws gone—finding even an opening became difficult.
A sword stance growing stronger and more perfect with each moment—what kind of sword art was this?
-Chachachachachang!
It was the moment the sword forms surpassed seventeen.
Three of the afterimages executing the Fourth Class stance scattered, leaving only one form solidifying.
In that instant, Mok Kyung-un's sword thrust toward the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's brow.
His pupils shook wildly.
'I can't block it.'
No time to react—the blade aimed to pierce his brow.
Facing death, a flood of memories flashed through the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's mind like a lantern show.
Was this how he died?
It was right then.
-Pak!
The sword stabbing ferociously at his brow halted.
Right before touching his forehead.
-Drip!
Yet it hadn't fully killed its momentum—a scratch appeared on the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's brow, blood trickling down.
-Gulp!
With the sword stopping just before death, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard swallowed dryly without thinking.
Why had it stopped?
He couldn't comprehend.
Finally, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard asked.
"...Why did you stop?"
To this, Mok Kyung-un smiled nonchalantly.
"Nearly scarred your face."
"Scar?"
"Yeah. To peel off your face skin, it needed to be as intact as possible. But unfortunately, there's a scratch now. Well, this much should be fine."
-Chill!
At Mok Kyung-un's words, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard went from dumbfounded to goosebumps.
The reason he'd stopped the sword was just to avoid scarring his face?
He'd truly intended to skin his face?
"You must be insane..."
-Swish!
Then the Demon Instant Sword's blade turned toward the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's neck.
The black, ominous sword energy seemed ready to sever his head any moment.
"I said the face needs to be intact—not that I won't kill you. So calm down."
"......"
Faced with Mok Kyung-un's threat, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard was speechless.
A complete defeat.
He was no match for this monster.
Even with the secret technique from his master, he couldn't win—perhaps the outcome was decided from the start.
Gazing down at the Demon Instant Sword at his neck, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard asked.
"...If I'm to die anyway, tell me."
"Tell you what?"
"The sword art that broke the Fourth Class... what's its name?"
"Oh, this sword art?"
"Yes."
At least this, he wanted to know.
A sword art surpassing his master's secret technique must surely be renowned.
But unexpected words came from Mok Kyung-un's mouth.
"Hmm. What to do?"
"What do you mean, what?"
"I haven't named it yet since I've only made one stance."
"What... what did you say?"
Hearing this, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's mind went blank white.
What had he just heard?
He'd assumed this exquisite transcendent sword stance belonged to some famed supreme sword art.
But this guy created it himself?
'Ha...'
Beyond absurd.
What kind of being had he fought?
How could anyone claim to have created such an astonishing sword stance on their own?
"...I can't believe it. You created this transcendent sword stance?"
"Why lie to someone you're about to kill?"
'!!!!!'
At Mok Kyung-un's words, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard was at a loss for words.
If true, it was all the more terrifying.
He hadn't just lost to a heaven-sent prodigy—it was to a monster with grandmaster potential.
'Such a being actually exists?'
He was genuinely shocked.
To duel a monster capable of inventing martial arts himself.
From despair in defeat to a sense of emptiness, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard's face soon relaxed.
He even felt a strange relief.
Perhaps, for a martial artist, this was the ideal way to meet one's end.
When else would he encounter such a rival?
'Yeah, better this way.'
His life was already in this guy's hands.
Dying now without burdening his master didn't seem bad.
Had his mind settled?
With a relieved expression, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard said to Mok Kyung-un.
"No more regrets. Kill me."
'Ho.'
At his words, a gleam entered Mok Kyung-un's eyes.
Among countless people he'd met, he'd never encountered one who truly accepted death so cleanly.
Yet this man genuinely embraced his end without hesitation.
What an unusual fellow.
"Kill me already."
The blue-eyed Imperial Guard urged again.
Staring at him intently, Mok Kyung-un spoke.
"I like the cleanliness, but before killing you, mind if I ask one thing?"
To this, the blue-eyed Imperial Guard replied firmly.
"Accepting defeat cleanly doesn't mean I owe you all my secrets. So kill me."
This was his last pride.
And what the guy would ask was obvious anyway.
Why a Western Region blue-eyed man served as an imperial palace guard—something like that.
He had no desire to bicker over it before dying.
But contrary to his expectation, completely different words emerged from Mok Kyung-un's mouth.
"Is that so? Too bad, then. I was curious why you'd stuff something worm-like in your gut."
'!!!!!!'
The moment he heard it, his eyes—resigned to death—widened in shock.
What the hell was this guy?
[Chapter 62: Mixed Blood (2)] End