Chapter 276
Chapter 276
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 276
Chapter Title: Celestial Realm
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I headed straight to the Supreme Sword Sect next. I wanted to deal with the Twin Gates first by taking out the Twin Gates' Supreme Sword Sect before approaching the Four Great Families. Less than an hour after half-destroying the Iron Blood Sect, I stood before the Supreme Sword Sect's main gate, and old memories flickered to life.
'I came here to the capital to join the Golden Guards and ended up in the debt of the Supreme Sword Sect Leader.'
I also remembered sparring with a disciple of the Supreme Sword Sect back then. It had been an entertaining experience in its own way, and I'd shared drinks with the sect leader. From those memories, the Supreme Sword Sect Leader wasn't a bad man—he was a martial artist with a calm disposition. Things had gotten messy later, leading us to cross swords, but there was really no reason for enmity between us.
But now, there was no helping it. I steadied my breathing calmly and spoke to the Supreme Sword Sect's gatekeepers.
"I am Baek Woong. I've come to challenge the Supreme Sword Sect to a match."
The gatekeepers looked dumbfounded. A boy who appeared to be in his teens at most had come to challenge the supreme figure of Luoyang's Twin Great Sects, the Supreme Sword Sect Leader. Rather than taking it seriously or getting angry, they just snickered.
"Kid, this isn't the place for jokes."
"Hmm..."
I could tell my young age was the issue. The Iron Blood Sect had taken my challenge seriously because their people were as sharp as needles, but normally, this was the reaction.
'Causing a ruckus doesn't appeal to me.'
Unlike the Iron Blood Sect, which had tried to behead me, I harbored no ill will toward the Supreme Sword Sect.
After a moment's hesitation, I wordlessly leaped into the Supreme Sword Sect.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh.
"Gasp!"
The gatekeepers gasped in shock as my body vanished like a mirage and shot toward the sect's interior in an instant. When properly executed, the Soul Extinguishing Step allowed movement too fast for the eye to follow, making it impossible for them to block with their skills. I wove through the crowds like a phantom and soon arrived before the sect leader's office.
Pushing open the door, I found a refined middle-aged man in neat white robes sitting there. He gazed at me steadily, and I offered a courteous clasped-hands salute.
"Supreme Sword Sect Leader. I've come to request a match."
"It's you."
The sect leader muttered as if he'd known I was coming and continued.
"The mysterious figure who half-destroyed the Iron Blood Sect."
Mysterious figure, huh.
I fell silent for a moment at his words before replying.
"You've already heard the news about the Iron Blood Sect."
"I learned of it half an hour before you arrived. From the traces and characteristics of the martial arts, I could infer you're of the Thunder God Style."
That made sense. The Supreme Sword Sect Leader was a close friend of Lee Gwang and knew well the might that had once shaken the Shaanxi martial world. He was one of the few martial artists who could recognize the hallmarks of Thunder God Style techniques.
"I have no personal grudge. I'd prefer not to see blood, so please accept this as a friendly match."
"Before that, I have a question."
"Please ask."
"Are you a rejuvenated elder master?"
I shook my head.
"No. You could say I simply had a fortuitous encounter."
"I see... I've never seen anyone reach that level at your age. Then, what is your connection to the Thunder God Style?"
"I'm not sure what you mean."
I answered innocently and asked him in return.
"If I may ask, has word reached the Four Families as well?"
"Of course. They'll all be tense, awaiting your visit."
"......"
"Come with me."
I could sense the Supreme Sword Sect Leader was far stronger than the Iron Blood Sect Leader. From the start of our conversation, we'd been probing each other with intent and formless energy, but unlike the Iron Blood Sect Leader, he wasn't being overwhelmed. If anything, we seemed evenly matched.
'No wonder he's friends with Lee Gwang.'
He had the skill to be acknowledged as an equal by Lee Gwang. Unlike with the Iron Blood Sect, this would be a proper duel, so I felt a twinge of tension.
Soon, the Supreme Sword Sect Leader stopped in an open clearing. It wasn't quite a proper sparring ground or arena, but it was spacious enough. Before long, his disciples who'd followed us gathered around to watch.
The sect leader and I naturally took positions ten paces apart, facing each other. I looked at him with calm eyes and said.
"Then, I ask for your guidance."
"This one humbly requests the same."
In the next instant, the sect leader's and my sword strikes clashed in midair like beams of light. We'd both unleashed swift sword forms without any feints. Amid the swirling pressure, I gauged his skill more precisely.
'He's strong!'
The claim that he'd forced a Mount Hua Sect elder to his knees in a hundred exchanges was no exaggeration. Realizing he was at least a cut above the Iron Blood Sect Leader, I began to gain the upper hand by deploying the swordsmanship I knew.
Clang!
The intricate variations of the Cave Empty Sword and Tianzhu Sword toyed with the sect leader's spacing and pressed him relentlessly. Faced with Wudang's arcane arts, he unleashed sword aura to block, doing so more skillfully and effortlessly than the Iron Blood Sect Leader had.
The sect leader's form slid backward as gracefully as if gliding over a mirror. Moving as if teleporting through space, he unleashed a single cleaving strike that seemed to split heaven and earth.
Boom!
A steel sword strike that felt like an aerial bombardment! I withstood it head-on with my internal energy, but any ordinary expert would have been bisected. Not content with that, the sect leader freely shifted between swift, illusory, and variable forms to attack me.
I countered his assaults with the Cave Empty Slash while thinking.
'His swordsmanship cultivation is profoundly deep...'
He was on a whole different level from the Iron Blood Sect Leader.
The Cave Empty Sword and Tianzhu Sword allowed me to control distance at will even against supreme experts. Thus, I held the advantage in offense and defense, yet the sect leader was bridging the gap with his sword skills alone. He wielded multiple sword essences that ordinary people might never grasp in a lifetime, truly marking him as a master artisan.
His terrifying sword aura surged forth, feeling like a horde of spirits descending.
Hundreds of threads twisted together as the sect leader's and my sword auras intertwined. I slashed low to the left, and he leaped high to the right to parry. Amid the phantoms flickering in the air, we exchanged over a hundred clashes.
After the fierce exchange reached a lull, the sect leader spoke.
"My prediction was off. Your swordsmanship doesn't seem to be of the Thunder God Style."
"Then what does it look like to you?"
"...I've heard of a Wudang eccentric who uses swordsmanship with those traits."
The sect leader had apparently heard rumors of the supreme expert, the Dragon of Fame. I let out a light sigh.
"I thought dealing with the Iron Blood Sect Leader would be easy. But seeing your true skill weighs on my mind."
"You're too kind. For me, crossing hands with an expert like you is an honor."
"Are the heads of the Four Families as strong as you, Sect Leader?"
At my question, the sect leader blinked and replied.
"Well, personally I don't think so, but who knows. I believe there are heavens beyond heaven somewhere."
"I see."
Perhaps he even sensed Han Baekryeong's presence lurking in Luoyang's shadows.
Clang!
Clang clang!
I clashed with the Supreme Sword Sect Leader with all my might. Silver light erupted, dyeing the air in hues of destruction with our auras. It was clearly an even match—the most satisfying bout I'd had since arriving in Luoyang.
The thought of seizing victory with Thunder Roar crossed my mind several times, but I dismissed it. The Iron Blood Sect Leader had no real ties to the Thunder God Style, so I'd used it without qualms, but the Supreme Sword Sect Leader knew it well. With his far superior martial prowess, he was at the level to counter it if I revealed Thunder Roar, just as I'd feared.
'Unless it's a fight to the death, using Thunder Roar would be too risky.'
The duel dragged on inconclusively. Past eight hundred exchanges into the thousandth, I sensed the end in sight. My near-bottomless internal energy let me endure with minimal stamina drain, but the sect leader couldn't match that. His breathing was visibly ragged.
I unleashed a Cave Empty Slash, traded blows, then said to him.
"Isn't this enough?"
"Huff... huff... Indeed..."
The sect leader wiped the sweat from his chin with his hand, sighed, and said.
"The match is my loss."
Murmur murmur.
The watching Supreme Sword Sect disciples stirred. From their perspective, we'd seemed evenly matched, so the sect leader's sudden concession must have seemed odd. But factoring in stamina and endurance, I now held an overwhelming edge. Of course, he likely had a trump card to reverse his internal energy deficit, but he wasn't foolish enough to use it in a friendly match.
"Thank you for yielding."
The sect leader then gave me a strange look.
"What is your goal? What do you gain by turning the Twin Great Sects upside down?"
"I have no particular goal. I'm simply satisfied with the gains from this duel with you."
"Heh heh..."
The sect leader grumbled.
"If your sword styles were unified, I wouldn't have lasted a hundred exchanges. I wish you reach even higher realms."
"......"
I turned and left, but a chill ran down my spine.
'The Supreme Sword Sect Leader noticed the disarray in my sword styles.'
He must have realized that though my advanced sword arts were all high-level, their lack of internal unity scattered my power. That was why, despite knowing far more techniques, I'd only managed a draw. Before a supreme sword expert like the sect leader, I couldn't hide my weakness.
Next, I headed to the Lee Family. The Lee Family was renowned for producing many warriors and soldiers who served in the government, and accordingly, their specialty was spear arts and halberds.
'Spear, huh.'
An idle thought crossed my mind. I resolved to finish everything within the next day at most.
"A complete victory over the Twin Great Sects—impressive."
Han Baekryeong, head of the Han Family, leisurely puffed on her pipe. I was currently seated in the Han Family head's secret receiving room with Han Jinseong and Han Baekryeong. Though I'd fought nonstop without sleep, my internal energy left me utterly fatigue-free.
She eyed me oddly and said.
"So, what was it like? Share your impressions."
I answered honestly.
"The Supreme Sword Sect Leader was the strongest, and the rest were a notch below."
I'd defeated the Lee Family head, Lee Uk, in a hundred exchanges, and similarly toppled Seo Yun of the Seo Family and Jang Bong of the Jang Family. Their skills were on par with the lower-tier Twelve Laws Sect Leaders. Not one had given my current self any trouble.
"Accurate. My own assessment aligns."
Han Baekryeong picked a ruby-like fruit from a platter and continued.
"If we consider previous generations, it might differ somewhat. There was one who honed the Jang Family's saber arts to the limit... In any case, at present, the Supreme Sword Sect Leader is unequivocally Luoyang's top expert."
"......"
Yourself excluded, of course.
I was struck anew by the overwhelming gap between the Dharma Protector Lions and ordinary martial artists.
"You seem to have something to say?"
I looked her straight in the eye and said.
"Sparring with the Supreme Sword Sect Leader made me realize this won't do."
"What do you mean?"
"I need time to better control the disarray in my sword styles. I'm planning to leave for personal training."
Han Baekryeong tapped her pipe on the floor and replied.
"Then do so. Reporting to the Cult Leader will take half a year anyway."
A straightforward approval.
It was fortunate, but something didn't add up, so I asked back.
"Pardon? That long?"
"Though I am a Dharma Protector Lion, the Cult Leader has little interest in seeing us. Orders are relayed swiftly, but meetings are another matter."
Han Baekryeong stretched out languidly and continued.
"He wishes to maintain the independence of the Four Martial Flows, granting us autonomy in exchange for avoiding direct contact. Thus, a meeting request to the Elder Council yields a response at earliest half a year later."
"......!!"
This was unexpected information. Limited contact between the Cult Leader and Dharma Protector Lions—even they couldn't easily meet him! Forcing a meeting would spark massive clashes with the Elder Council's supreme experts, no simple task.
"Wouldn't that slow communication and hinder the White Lotus Cult as an organization?"
Han Baekryeong snickered.
"That would only apply if an enemy beyond our power emerged, requiring the Cult Leader's strength. Does such a foe even exist in the Central Plains?"
"......"
"Exactly. The Cult Leader concerns himself only with the Young Cult Leader's strange illness—we can't trouble him with Central Plains matters."
Confidence that the Dharma Protector Lions alone could handle the entire Central Plains!
It might seem arrogant, but in truth, Han Baekryeong dominated the Five Great Families, Yong Bicheon was seizing the Nine Great Righteous Sects via Yellow Mountain Sect, and Duggo Jun could easily subjugate the Eight Demonic Sects. Conquest of the Central Plains was feasible with the Dharma Protector Lions' abilities alone.
'I must uncover the White Lotus Cult's secrets.'
There had to be a fundamental secret enabling such a powerful organization. I vowed that in this life, alongside performing Mangryang's soul-sealing rite, I would definitely reveal the White Lotus Cult's secrets.
"Then I'll be off."
"Go ahead."
Leaving the Han Family, I met privately with Han Jinseong. Under a willow tree, he handed me a golden plaque and said.
"Return within half a year, a year at most."
"Understood. But what's this golden plaque?"
"I mentioned supporting your forces before. This allows free use of any stronghold under the Han Family. Spend money as needed. With it, you can command the Blood Wolf Corps, Black Star Sect, and other Han Family martial forces."
"......!!"
"Our supported sects and leaders are listed here for reference."
Opening the letter, I let out a groan. Over thirty sects were named, including several formidable mid-tier families and sects. These alone could form an independent alliance in the martial world. Stunned, I muttered.
"Is the Incarnation Style's influence this vast?"
"Incarnation Style? This is merely my direct subordinates. Actually, it's double that."
"......"
"The Incarnation Style has been active in the Central Plains for over a century. This is to be expected."
No one in the world would imagine it.
Though part of the Twin Gate Families, the Han Family stood at the pinnacle, kneading such vast forces like dough! Han Jinseong urged me.
"I don't know where you're going, but remember—you and I are bound by fate henceforth. Becoming the Cult Leader's disciple and ascending to the top is a grand scheme spanning decades."
"Got it. I'll make good use of the support."
"Safe travels."
Flash.
Out of Han Jinseong's sight, I used Flight Equivalence. My first destination was Taekyung Village.