Chapter 50
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: The Evil Lords Emerge
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Huangbo Wungyeong muttered with a hardened expression.
“……Finally, you’ve shown yourself.”
A sinister smile curled at the lips of the Blood Yin Evil Lord.
“It seems this lord has secluded himself too long. To think a worm like you dares meet my gaze.”
A terrifying murderous aura pressed down on Huangbo Wungyeong.
‘Ugh! As expected of the Blood Yin Evil Lord.’
He knew the Blood Yin Evil Lord was powerful, but the presence was even more overwhelming than anticipated.
‘Can I defeat him?’
He had not yet retired from active duty, but his body was already in decline. Even though he never let a day pass without wielding his sword, he could feel his strength waning bit by bit.
‘Not much time left anyway. Just hold out until today.’
Considering his remaining days, this decisive battle with the Evil Heaven Sect was very likely to be his last.
‘For the glory of our Huangbo family, I’ll burn my final flames!’
He gripped the hilt of his sword as if to crush it.
Perhaps sensing his resolve,
The Blood Yin Evil Lord’s face grew even fiercer.
“Old man, resolve alone achieves nothing! Allow this lord to teach you why I am counted among the Evil Path Four Lords.”
Flash!
With those words, the Blood Yin Evil Lord’s form vanished in an instant.
Soon, something blurry appeared before Huangbo Wungyeong’s eyes. He swung his sword like lightning.
Boom!
“Urk!”
Amid a massive explosion, it was Huangbo Wungyeong who was pushed back.
“Kekeke! Do you think the Huangbo family’s swordsmanship can work on this lord?”
The Blood Yin Evil Lord began to overwhelm Huangbo Wungyeong with terrifying momentum.
Meanwhile, the North Wind Brigade Leader was dominating the Black Bone Brigade Leader.
Clang!!
“Gah!”
The pale-faced Black Bone Brigade Leader staggered and vomited blood. His sword speed was fast enough to block the North Wind Brigade Leader’s blade, but all he could do was endure.
“Let’s end this.”
The North Wind Brigade Leader’s saber energy intensified.
‘I need to finish him quickly and help the others…….’
But suddenly, a chilling sensation gripped him, and he reflexively swung his saber.
Swoosh!
Clang!
Surprisingly, the North Wind Brigade Leader took a step back.
“Hmm.”
It felt like striking a heavy boulder. Before him stood an old monk in a black robe.
His body was massively muscled, straining against the robe, in stark contrast to his white eyebrows.
With his uniquely dark red skin, he exuded a sticky, unsettling aura.
“Amitabha.”
“Who are you?”
“This Buddha is known as the Black Evil Buddha.”
The Black Evil Buddha was a renegade monk immersed in his own twisted dharma, known as the strongest of the Evil Heaven Sect’s Three Evil Dharma Protectors.
The corners of the Black Evil Buddha’s mouth lifted, revealing black teeth.
“You dare invade the Evil Heaven Sect? This Buddha will personally send you to enlightenment.”
In his hand was a set of prayer beads three times larger than usual, seemingly made entirely of steel judging by their color.
“Hmph, a false monk playing at being a cleric.”
At that, the Black Evil Buddha’s eyebrows twisted into an inverted eight.
“How insolent!”
He swung the steel prayer beads like lightning.
Clang!
The North Wind Brigade Leader met it with his saber but was pushed back once more.
‘An external arts master? The power in those beads is no joke.’
He was confident in his own strength, but he had to admit it fell short of the Black Evil Buddha’s.
‘This won’t be easy.’
“Amitabha, seek this Buddha’s mercy.”
“Shut your mouth, you fake monk.”
The North Wind Brigade Leader’s saber traced a strange arc.
Clang clang clang!
Amid the chaos, Seol Hwa-un fended off the Evil Heaven Sect disciples while closely observing the battlefield.
‘Those must be the Evil Heaven Sect’s Three Evil Dharma Protectors.’
He knew of them from Haomen intelligence. Unusually, they posed as a monk, a Taoist, and a scholar, each a formidable expert in their own right.
‘The Black Evil Buddha has engaged the North Wind Brigade Leader, it seems.’
With the North Wind Brigade Leader’s skill, he should manage.
‘The problem is the other two.’
The Ghost Shadow Taoist in Daoist robes and the Mad Scholar in scholar’s attire prowled like beasts stalking prey.
Seol Hwa-un quickly sent a transmission to the Tiger Roar Brigade Leader.
[Tiger Roar Brigade Leader, the Three Evil Dharma Protectors have appeared.]
“……!”
He had heard of their infamous reputation.
[I can’t move as I’m tied up with others. You take the Ghost Shadow Taoist. I’ll handle the Mad Scholar.]
[Understood, Little Palace Lord.]
There was no time to hesitate. These madmen were beyond what ordinary Heavenly Kings or Tiger Roar members could handle.
“Yaaah!!”
Seeing the Tiger Roar Brigade Leader charge at the Ghost Shadow Taoist, Seol Hwa-un immediately launched himself at the Mad Scholar.
Among the brigade leaders, the Tiger Roar Brigade Leader had the weakest martial arts, so he was honestly insufficient against the Three Evil Dharma Protectors.
But the Ghost Shadow Taoist was famed for his exceptional movement arts, so his core martial prowess was somewhat lacking.
If the Tiger Roar Brigade Leader focused on defense, he could hold out.
‘I need to take down the Mad Scholar quickly.’
Without a word, Seol Hwa-un swung his fist at the Mad Scholar.
Whoosh!
“……!”
The Mad Scholar, who had long sensed Seol Hwa-un’s presence, furrowed his brow.
“What a brute.”
Clang!!
With a sharp metallic clash, both men stepped back in unison.
“You’re the epitome of a thug! To dare swing your fist at me!”
In the Mad Scholar’s hand was an iron brush over three feet long (about 90cm) and as thick as an adult’s forearm.
“…….”
The Mad Scholar shouted again.
“You fool! When meeting an elder, you should greet first—what are you doing?!”
“I have no words for the likes of you.”
“What?”
Closing the distance, Seol Hwa-un unleashed a barrage of fist strikes at ferocious speed.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!
“Not a chance, you cur!”
The Mad Scholar countered the fists with swings of his iron brush.
Clang clang clang!!
Piercing metallic sounds rang out. As expected of one of the Three Evil Dharma Protectors, his skill was no joke.
Seol Hwa-un’s eyes changed.
Flash!
In an instant, Seol Hwa-un’s form moved twice as fast as before.
The Mad Scholar’s eyes widened.
Startled, he hurriedly raised his iron brush.
Clang!
Crack.
In a single blow, the iron brush bent severely. Seeing this, the Mad Scholar’s eyes bulged.
‘My brush made of wrought iron?!’
But he had no time to gape. Seol Hwa-un’s opposite fist soon struck his face squarely.
Boom!
A heavy impact resounded.
“Urk!”
He staggered back, but the Mad Scholar’s face was surprisingly intact.
He had concentrated his protective energy the moment of impact. Still, the shock was unavoidable, leaving his complexion ashen.
“Y-You…….”
“You endure well.”
Zzzing!
Immense inner energy gathered in Seol Hwa-un’s fist.
‘Fist Cannon One Split.’
The fist energy extending from his fist was far clearer and stronger than when he had used it against Huangbo Taeseong.
Boom!
The Mad Scholar’s face paled.
‘Straight to that kind of energy……!’
He gritted his teeth.
“Don’t underestimate this old man! Haaah!!”
He wildly swung the bent iron brush.
Slash slash slash slash!!
His flashy brush technique formed characters with energy. It was the character for ‘block’ (防).
Soon, the fist energy collided.
KABOOM!
Once more, the Mad Scholar’s form was pushed back.
‘Impossible! My Protective Brush Wall broken so easily…….’
“……!”
The Mad Scholar’s pupils shook violently. Seol Hwa-un was already right in front of him, thrusting a fist.
‘Damn it…… Hmm?’
But the fist was slower than expected. Unimaginably so compared to before.
‘Tired? Or some problem…… No, it doesn’t matter. This is my chance to counter!’
He hadn’t fully displayed his skill against Seol Hwa-un, but his brush technique was renowned for its terrifying speed.
‘I’m much faster…… Huh?’
As he confidently thrust his iron brush, the Mad Scholar sensed something off. His body wasn’t moving as swiftly as intended.
‘W-Why…….’
To others, it didn’t seem slow, but for a transcendent expert, it was frustratingly sluggish.
Then, realization dawned on the Mad Scholar.
‘Ah, pressure!’
Before he knew it, an oppressive force bore down on his entire body. No wonder it slowed him.
‘Gah!’
Gritting his teeth, he strained to extend the iron brush. Though slowed, it should still pierce Seol Hwa-un before the fist.
But.
Flash!
Seol Hwa-un’s fist shadows increased by one. Simultaneously, the pressure on him doubled.
‘This is ridiculous…….’
Flash!
Another one appeared. Now three fist shadows slammed down at once.
It was the second form of the Ice River Nine Splits Divine Fist: Three Layers Pressure Fist.
“……!”
Rumble!
Under the exponentially increasing pressure, the Mad Scholar’s body trembled faintly.
“Grrr…….”
Splat!
Unable to withstand the immense pressure, his body burst apart, and his cherished iron brush crumpled into a lump of scrap metal, rolling across the ground.
It was a completely different level of power from when he had used it against Eom Mu-hwi before.
The Mad Scholar was a renowned expert even among the unorthodox, no easy opponent. Especially brush wielders were tricky against fist arts.
Knowing this well, Seol Hwa-un gave him no chance to counter, pressing relentlessly and pouring in excessive inner energy to end it in one go.
‘The Tiger Roar Brigade Leader…….’
The Ghost Shadow Taoist was attacking from all directions, but the Tiger Roar Brigade Leader resisted desperately.
‘He’s holding up well.’
Though it consumed more inner energy than expected, resolving the fight quickly had paid off.
As he moved to assist him.
KABOOM!
A massive explosion made him turn. Huangbo Wungyeong’s form was flying back, spewing blood.
Crash!
The impact was so great he couldn’t even land properly, tumbling across the ground.
“Urk!”
Huangbo Wungyeong sprang up like a弹, but his ashen face and the blood ceaselessly flowing from his mouth confirmed severe internal injuries.
“Huff, huff, huff.”
As the raggedly breathing man was approached by the Blood Yin Evil Lord with a sinister smile,
“Kekeke, I praise you for rising immediately after taking this lord’s Blood Yin Killing Palm.”
“…….”
The initial clash had been more even than expected. True to his title as Honam Supreme Sword, Huangbo Wungyeong met the Blood Yin Evil Lord with astonishing swordsmanship.
Even the Blood Yin Evil Lord couldn’t easily pierce his dense sword energy.
The problem came after fifty exchanges. As Huangbo Wungyeong poured all his power into each swing, his stamina plummeted rapidly.
Each motion demanded full effort, accelerating the drain.
Stamina was a fundamental issue beyond inner energy. No matter how profound one’s inner energy, it couldn’t replace stamina.
For the aged Huangbo Wungyeong, it was unavoidable, and he ended up struck by the Blood Yin Evil Lord’s palm force.
“Hmm?”
The Blood Yin Evil Lord raised his hand to check his fingers. A small bloodstain marked his index finger.
“Still, your sword menace lives. You even wounded my hand.”
“…….”
Huangbo Wungyeong glared darkly at the Blood Yin Evil Lord.
‘Is this the end?’
Strength fled his sword hand. At this rate, he wouldn’t swing it properly even once before dropping it.
‘This decrepit body is to blame.’
“You’ve lived long enough, Huangbo Wungyeong. Now die.”
As the Blood Yin Evil Lord, oozing viscous killing intent, moved to sever his neck,
“Stop!”
“……!?”
Turning his head, he saw Seol Hwa-un standing there, radiating pure white frost energy.