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The sole inheritor of the Cloud Dragon Crescent Moon Spear: Divine Spear Baek Ju-heun.
I had nearly crossed paths with the Divine Spear once in the Hubei region, and I was genuinely impressed by my own foresight in choosing Sagong Hee to accumulate inner energy. Thanks to Sagong Hee, I was able to brush past the Divine Spear in Hubei and roughly gauge just how much my inner energy had grown.
'The bastard didn't notice me.'
I was a cut above the Divine Spear. Even if the gap was no wider than a sheet of paper, above was still above. By the time I left Anhui and settled in Hubei, I already hovered on the very edge of the Ten Great Masters of the World, seesawing back and forth with the Divine Spear. That was already over half a year ago.
So then, after accumulating inner energy through mutual development with Sagong Hee and even absorbing Lee Si-a's yin energy, what would happen if I fought the Divine Spear?
'A draw.'
Regrettably, it would be a draw. My inner energy was at least a Gapja greater than the Miyeom Divine Art the Divine Spear wielded, but the martial arts I used were the techniques of Geom-je, who wielded the Heavenly Dragon Emperor Twin High Sword, so it would end in a draw.
The reason was simple. It was because Geom-je possessed a martial prowess similar to the Divine Spear. Geom-je, who at a blossoming age had failed to fully bloom his talents before reaching the Sword God realm, was killed by a Blood Jiangshi.
Therefore, wasn't this current battle the match that would determine the tenth seat among the Ten Great Masters of the World!
"Dragon Phoenix Twin Strike!"
As I swung the twin swords, the iron staff that served as a handle blocked my sword path. I slashed the Reclining Dragon Sword vertically and the Phoenix Chick Sword horizontally at blind angles the iron staff couldn't deflect, but the staff spun in a circle, batting both blades aside.
"Hap!"
Having blocked the attack, the qi aura blade formed at the tip of the staff came at me diagonally, from the opposite direction of my planted foot. I couldn't even spin away to dodge.
"As expected of the Divine Spear!"
I crossed the Reclining Dragon Sword and Phoenix Chick Sword again to block the spear blade. Just like blocking the First Strike, I intercepted the blade with my swords crossed in an X-shape, and this time it was my turn to counterattack.
"But it's as I calculated!"
I pulled the twin swords to the left and right, batting the blade aside. The golden Sword Aura split the spear blade in half and sent it flying.
"!!"
The Divine Spear frowned at his severed qi aura, but immediately withdrew the iron staff and thrust it toward me. The remaining traces of the severed qi had somehow transformed, becoming as sharp as an awl.
"Not there!"
I twisted my upper body to the side, dodging the attack. The Divine Spear's sharp point thrust under my armpit, and I gripped the twin swords in reverse, striking down vertically onto the iron staff.
"I'll cleave you and your qi aura together!"
"Kk!"
The Divine Spear stomped hard on the ground and leaped straight into the air. He spun his body parallel to the ground, and the iron staff whirled along with him.
Clang!
My sword, aimed precisely at the top of the iron staff, slid along the staff as the Divine Spear spun. The Phoenix Chick Sword slipped inward, forcing me to release it and leap back a great distance.
Seokeok!
The front of my shoe was cut off by the Phoenix Chick Sword. A moment slower and the Phoenix Chick Sword would have been buried in the top of my foot. Had I not released it in the first place, the Phoenix Chick Sword would surely have been buried in my prized member.
"Haat!"
The Divine Spear, having fallen to the ground with the iron staff, charged straight forward and snatched up the Phoenix Chick Sword. The phoenix chick imbued in the blade and hilt shrieked as it was caught by a man's hand, but it could not overcome the Divine Spear's brutish grip.
"Heuaat!"
The Divine Spear tossed the Phoenix Chick Sword behind him. The distance had already grown too great to draw it back with Void Object Retrieval, and I could not retrieve the Phoenix Chick Sword.
"Tch."
If I retreated from the cave, I could recover the sword. But in that time, the Divine Spear would surely run deeper inside the altar. Then the reason I was standing guard here would become meaningless.
"To steal a sword from a dual swordsman. Can you even call yourself human?"
"Destroying the enemy's weapon is the fundamental principle of subduing an opponent. You're no different, bastard."
The Divine Spear gripped the middle of his iron staff with his hand. The places he clutched with both hands were exactly where I had struck down on the twin swords from above. Deep sword marks were left between his fingers.
On one side, one of the twin swords had been stolen, and on the other, the iron staff had been severely wounded. Normally, this would be where the fight ends.
"Tch, what a waste of inner energy."
Wiiing. I channeled the energy of the Dragon Emperor Sword into my empty hand. A brilliantly shining golden light formed into a sword in my grasp, identical in shape to the Phoenix Chick Sword lying far away.
"Th-That vivid a sword made purely of Sword Aura!!"
The exclamations of the Qingcheng elders who had been knocked out of the arena reached even here. As men who also walked the path of the sword, they would know well just how high a realm of power it was to create a clear sword from nothing but inner energy in an empty hand.
"Huuuuh...."
And also just how much inner energy it consumed. Since I was not merely densely packing qi onto a sword but creating the sword itself, I had to expend vast amounts of inner energy with each breath.
"Forcing me to consume inner energy... how annoying."
"Then just use one sword."
"You steal a sword from a dual swordsman and tell me to use just one! You're worse than a street thug!"
"Insolent bastard!"
The Divine Spear, whose face was flushed with blood energy due to the Miyeom Divine Art, bellowed at me.
"You dare treat a general of the Imperial Guard like a thug?!"
"My apologies! You're worse than a thug!"
I swung the Reclining Dragon Sword forward. The Divine Spear laid the iron staff to his side and stepped back, but he flinched in shock at my following action.
"Madman!"
"It's a thrown sword!"
Claaang---!! The Reclining Dragon Sword flew in a straight line, splitting the iron staff. Because he instinctively grabbed another part of the staff to protect his hands, it struck precisely where the Phoenix Chick Sword had pierced, shattering the qi aura and the iron staff together.
"H-He threw away his sword willingly?"
I literally 'flung' the sword. Thanks to that, roughly a third of the Divine Spear's iron staff clattered to the ground, but throwing away a perfectly intact sword certainly looked like an act of abandoning the fight.
"Y-You bastard! What's your scheme?!"
"I plan to drive you lot out quickly and share a passionate night with a woman."
Expending all this inner energy made me want to hurry up and practice Energy Circulation Breathing with Lee Si-a.
"...This bastard."
But my true feelings, blurted out without thinking, were more than enough to invite misunderstandings from others. The Divine Spear and the subjugation force glanced sideways at Abbess Jeongja pinned to the cliff, their eyes blazing, and the Lust-Exorcising Abbess, who had been standing back oddly, raised her sword again in genuine fury.
"Divine Spear! A joint attack!!"
"...Very well!"
Rabble was meddling in a duel between the strong. Though calling Peak and Transcendent Peak experts rabble was a bit of a misnomer, interfering in a one-on-one fight between Profound Realm masters was definitely bothersome.
"Interrupting a duel between high masters! The honor of the Martial World has fallen to the ground!"
"Shut your mouth! We are here to subjugate a Sex Demon, not to duel with you!"
"You speak of honor?! Do you not even fear the heavens?!"
"Heh, heheh."
Watching them burn with hostility and murderous intent toward me brought back old memories. I had always faced dozens, hundreds alone, and I had to kill them all.
Shall I kill them, Blood Jiangshi?
'Hold back, little Chu Ma-gwi inside me.'
I swept my empty hand down my chest, steadying my breath. Right then, the warm sunlight filtering through the canyon shone upon me.
"I can't see blood on such a fine day."
The only blood worth seeing on a day like this is a woman's maiden blood. I am not a Blood Jiangshi or Blood Demon who brings about a Blood Calamity. I am the Sky-Soaring Lust Demon, who will serve Lee Si-a with all loyalty.
"Whew, trying to hold back is really upping the difficulty."
Disarm all the enemies. If I can crush their will to fight, if I can burn away all their strength to fight, then I can defeat them all without spilling blood.
"Then I suppose I'll draw out more power."
Clink! The Reclining Dragon Sword, pulled by Void Object Retrieval, flew into my hand. From now on, it was time to fight not as a dual swordsman, but as a plain swordsman.
'The martial arts I possess aren't limited to Jegal Geondam.'
Just because I am the master of the Heavenly Dragon Emperor Twin High Sword, I am not bound to adhere to dual swords. The Divine Spear and Geom-je were evenly matched, and if the Divine Spear tries to join forces with other masters against me, wouldn't I naturally be at a disadvantage?
'Then all I have to do is become stronger than Geom-je.'
There are plenty of ways to win even without Geom-je's martial arts. The only catch is, to draw out that power, I must hide my identity so the enemy cannot recognize the sword art.
"Hey, don't you smell something burning?"
I stretched my hand forward. The masters of the subjugation force, including the Divine Spear, flinched in surprise, but they did not stop their charge using their movement arts to close the distance.
"Zhongli Divine Fire Well, Leaning Heaven."
Fwoosh! Flames blossomed from my hand. A crimson blaze began to surge across the surface of the Reclining Dragon Sword. Several halted their steps as fiery energy, not even Sword Aura, rose up, and only the Divine Spear kept charging, thrusting his qi-formed spear blade at me.
Pow--ck!
The spear blade, descending toward my crown, shattered. The iron staff, swung downward, slid off and slammed the ground, and I stomped on the staff with one foot, leveling the flaming Reclining Dragon Sword that had destroyed the spear blade at the Divine Spear.
"What's there to be so surprised about? This is a world where men and swords fly through the skies, and golden dragons and phoenixes take physical form."
"This is absurd... Flames coiled around a sword? Not an illusion technique?"
"Right. As you think, this is my Sword Aura. One that blazes with fire."
The Divine Spear's eyes shook at the flames aimed at his throat. The qi aura blazing with fire was real, not an illusion, and sweat began to trickle down the Divine Spear's forehead.
"Th-This is nonsense! It's not even the Sindae era, there's no way an ordinary human can wield flames!"
"Though the people of the Sindae are gone, the martial arts of the Sindae remain to this day. Yes, just as Emperor Shaolie's martial arts have appeared now."
Pow--ck! I kicked the Divine Spear in the solar plexus. Had it been up to me, I would have left a 人-shaped scar on his chest to engrave a 火 tattoo, but pity for his wretched future made me settle for simply forcing him back.
"Th-This is nonsense...."
"Is that man... a Sword Immortal?"
Everyone had already lost their capacity for normal thought. I aimed my flaming sword at the bewildered crowd.
"I am Geomdam."
For an instant, the Blood Cult Leader's face flashed in my mind.
That day the Blood Cult Leader burned down the Marquis Wu shrine, having mastered the Sindae internal energy art—the Zhongli Divine Fire Well—under the guise of the Hellfire Great Law. As she wielded all manner of sword arts, creating a flaming sword with her internal energy, she laughed like a child and muttered to herself.
—As expected, Zhuge Liang is a fire sword.
I had no idea what that meant, but its effectiveness was beyond doubt. I aimed the burning Reclining Dragon Sword forward and quirked an eyebrow slightly.
"This is a place that only those chosen may enter. The living cannot come in."
It no longer mattered whether it was Emperor Shaolie's martial arts or Geom-je Jegal Geondam, descendant of the Jegal Clan. All that remained was to stop them from invading the cave with all my might.
Just a little longer, and the situation inside would also be concluded.
With Lee Si-a's victory.
"If you wish to enter, then come prepared to have your entire body burned to ashes."
The inner energy of the Zhongli Divine Fire Well began to blaze up along the blade of the Reclining Dragon Sword.
* * *
"Haa, haa!"
Lee Si-a let out harsh breaths, covering her chest with her hands. Her torn Qingcheng martial uniform kept catching the floating embers and burning away, and the fire had nearly spread to her undergarments.
"Ahaha! Little Princess, did you prance around too much just relying on your bloodline?!"
The Flame Demon clutched her stomach laughing and swung her iron fan once more. The moths that fluttered lightly made the already-hot cave interior even more sweltering.
"I won't go easy on you just because you're the Heavenly Demon's bloodline!"
"Kk...!"
How dare she try to kill the Little Princess. Lee Si-a couldn't bring herself to voice such a pride-damaging retort. She brushed the remaining embers from her body and drew the Heavenly Demon Divine Art to its utmost limits. Though part of her undergarments had burned, exposing a sliver of bare skin, Lee Si-a had not suffered a single burn.
Fortunately, her body was still unharmed. But the Flame Demon had not noticed this.
"Ahaha! Now you won't even be able to show that pretty face of yours thanks to the burn.... What...? Why don't you have any burns?"
Rip. Only after Lee Si-a tore off the tattered shreds of cloth herself, fully exposing her toned lower abdomen, did she adjust her gloves and curl her lips into a sneer.
"That's because my body is imbued with Extreme Yang Energy. Yang Energy from the same internal energy art as yours, you bitch."
"......What? D-Don't tell me the Absorption Technique?!"
"Heh."
Lee Si-a gently stroked her lower abdomen. The warm presence that still felt like it lingered in her belly circulated through her entire body, protecting her from the fiery butterflies of the Hellfire Great Law.
"H-Heuk, there's no way it's the Absorption Technique...! How the hell are you cultivating my martial art's internal energy art?! How can you wield the internal qi of the Hellfire Great Law?! I destroyed the tomb of Chukyung myself!!"
"Absorbing Yin to Nourish Yang, Absorbing Yang to Nourish Yin."
Lee Si-a lightly swept her thumb across her lips. More than half her clothes had burned away, but her internal energy was still overflowing. Lee Si-a casually stretched both arms out to her sides and raised her head high.
"Heavenly Demon Advent."
Guuuuuu----
The rough and ferocious energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art seeped into the pure inner energy of the Zhongli Divine Fire Well. Her eyes, already bloodshot, began to blaze red, and Lee Si-a casually swept her disheveled hair back, sneering at the Flame Demon.
"You, the moment you inherited the seat of the Flame Demon, you chose to become the Eldest Prince's cocksleeve, right? Your eyes that picked that bastard over me are real pretty, so damn pretty. Huhu, I may not know much else, but my eye for picking men seems definitely better than yours. That man figured out you were the Flame Demon in a single glance."
"Why you... you...!!"
Had she realized something? The Flame Demon aimed her iron fan with hands trembling with rage.
"Haa, that son of a bitch! I'll kill you all! He didn't just run off with the money, he ran off with my inner energy too?! And he even gave it to the Little Princess, keuheuk...!"
Complete Demonization. The Flame Demon clutched the back of her neck, nearly coughing up blood. Lee Si-a wagged her index finger left and right, mocking the Flame Demon.
"What are you saying? Did anyone tell you to sell your body to just anyone and steal their inner energy? The thieving slut sure talks a lot."
"Th-This...! You ragged whore! You're the same! You're just a slut who scrapes up inner energy with your body too!"
"You and I are different."
A truly bright smile bloomed on Lee Si-a's face.
"No matter how much I practice Absorbing Yang to Nourish Yin, I will carry only one man in here for my entire life. How about you? Ah... I see."
Lee Si-a folded and unfolded her ten fingers, her eyes sparkling.
"Have you already rolled around so much you forgot how to count?"
"Aaaaargh!!"
Pillars of fire began to erupt madly. Lee Si-a was trapped as the fiery pillars coiled around her surroundings.
"The Hellfire Formation! There's no way you can escape from—"
Pshuuu—
"Huh...?"
Suddenly, the surging pillars of fire died down as if lifeless. Lee Si-a reached out a hand toward the flames and clenched her fist. The fire was absorbed into Lee Si-a's hand, then began to burn black.
"Don't you find it strange? You used that much internal qi, but it only burned my clothes and not my body."
"D-Don't tell me...."
"I'll be taking the seat of the Flame Demon for now."
At the dark-red flames rising from Lee Si-a's back, a cold sweat ran down the Flame Demon's spine.