Chapter 123: Uninvited Guest (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 123: Uninvited Guest (4)
There is a term: a natural disaster.
A calamity that a single human can do nothing to stop.
A disaster that strikes when it is least expected, all too suddenly.
And right now, Tianqiao was forced to experience firsthand what a natural disaster truly felt like.
Rumble!
The ground split apart like dry twigs.
"Ugh..."
A heavy groan escaped Tianqiao's lips.
His hands and feet trembled, but he didn't even have time to complain.
Because the next attack flew at him immediately.
Boom!
A blasted burst of sword force slammed into Tianqiao's tachi.
Tianqiao was sent flying back about four meters.
It was a miracle he managed to keep his balance; otherwise, he would have crashed face-first into the dirt.
"Wow. You're surprisingly sturdy. I guess the Zhonghua Guild's scouts managed to dig up some decent talent after all."
Jinhyuk let out an impressed exclamation.
No, seriously.
He had intended to finish this in three exchanges, but he hadn't expected the man to endure five.
At this rate, he might even last another round or two.
"How dare you... pull a stunt like this! If the entirety of Zhonghua seeks retaliation, no matter how famous of a ranker you are, you can never face them all alone. Damn it! You know this too, don't you?!"
Tianqiao roared, the veins in his neck bulging.
Great Zhonghua!
That single phrase used to carry absolute weight.
World-famous guilds would hesitate, and minor guilds would tremble in fear.
Indeed, with their massive numbers, immense capital, and powerful rankers, they had every reason to be arrogant.
Above all, with the three characters of Namgung Cheon's name backing them, the Zhonghua Guild had solidified a position that no one in the world dared to look down on.
But.
There was one thing they didn't know.
Even Namgung Cheon, whom they deified so much, had not yet surpassed the 20th floor of the Tower.
And that Jinhyuk, the man standing right before them, was a player who had climbed to a height incomparable to that.
"If I kill you and wipe out the rest of these guys, does that mean Namgung Cheon will come here himself?"
"What?"
Tianqiao's eyes widened to their limits.
As if he couldn't believe his own ears.
But Jinhyuk casually ignored Tianqiao's reaction and continued.
"You heard me. Everyone keeps chirping his name like a parrot, so I wanted to see for myself just how much he's grown."
"...You're insane. If you ever meet him in person, you will regret those words."
"That's why I want to find out. Whether I'll regret it or not. Whether I'll be the one crying, or if it'll be Namgung Cheon. I'm dying of curiosity."
Jinhyuk shrugged.
His tone was incredibly nonchalant, completely devoid of tension.
At that sight, Tianqiao bit his lip hard.
'I don't know if that man can truly stand against Lord Namgung Cheon, but...'
One thing is certain: he is an enemy far too powerful for the players here to handle.
In a one-on-one, there is absolutely no chance of winning.
But even if they ran, they were dead anyway.
In that case... there is only one way.
Tianqiao's eyes narrowed.
He had made his decision.
"Everyone! Deploy the Blood Demon Formation!"
"...!"
"...!"
The faces of the players waiting in the rear paled.
The Blood Demon Formation.
A formation designed solely to kill the target, even if it meant attacking the surrounding allies in the process.
It was a last resort used when there was an extreme disparity in power, completely disregarding defense to pour everything into the attack.
"Even if we all bury our bones here today, we must eliminate that man!"
"Understood!"
"Ugh!"
Once the order was given, they had to obey, no matter how unreasonable.
The players instantly formed a perimeter around Jinhyuk.
It was so tight that not even an ant could slip through.
It was a testament to how harshly the players of the Zhonghua Guild had been trained.
They had undoubtedly practiced this countless times on actual people.
Although kept strictly off the record, the sheer brutality of the Zhonghua Guild's training was already an open secret.
* * *
'As expected. They're deploying the Blood Demon Formation.'
Jinhyuk nodded as if he had anticipated this.
In truth, there was a reason he had pushed his opponent into a corner like this.
To mentally exhaust him and force him to use his last resort.
More precisely, to fulfill the 'copy conditions' he wanted.
—————————————————
Name: Tianqiao
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Level: 29
Strength 31, Agility 24, Stamina 25, Magic 33, Inner Qi 55
Stat Points: 0
Coins: 17,463
Class: Commander
Unique Ability: 'Taesan Sword'
Skills: Lv10 'Taesan Sword Qi', Lv9 'Formation Enhancement', Lv9 'Blood Soul Hand', Lv8 'Taesan Steps', Lv7 'Inescapable Net'
——————————————————
[Copy Condition: Mutual Destruction. Force Tianqiao and his followers into an extreme situation, prompting them to deploy the mutually destructive Blood Demon Formation. If you can survive that formation without sustaining a single scratch, you will be able to copy one of Tianqiao's skills.]
Since he already possessed 'Grave of Swords' and even 'Soul-Chasing Sword', there was no reason to copy 'Taesan Sword', which was a lower-tier ability.
'It would only get in the way.'
Jinhyuk frowned.
He had no desire to copy a bunch of inefficient, minor skills just to indulge in a mental victory about how many skills he had.
However, that didn't mean all of Tianqiao's skills were useless.
His offensive skills were mediocre, but there was exactly one non-combat skill that caught his eye.
'I guess anyone who makes it to raid leader has at least one trick up their sleeve.'
Inescapable Net.
A dragnet that left nowhere to run under the heavens would be highly useful in many ways later on.
Yes, if he was going to copy anything, it had to be this skill.
'By the way, the Blood Demon Formation... The last time I faced this was when I had a clash with those Murim guys. It's been quite a while.'
Jinhyuk slowly scanned the surrounding net.
As expected of a formation passed down directly from the Murim, its overall solidity was impressive.
Anyone trapped inside would be breaking out in a cold sweat, fearing for their life.
Yet, in Jinhyuk's eyes, it was riddled with flaws.
They were minor, but letting them slide would keep him up at night.
He had to point them out.
It was simply the instinct of a veteran player.
"Hmm... You there, second from the right. If you're going to use left-handed swordsmanship as your main style, you shouldn't be positioned at the wing of the Blood Demon Formation. Your timing will be off by half a step when coordinating with your comrades."
"What?"
"And you in the center... Where are you looking? Yes, you. I'm talking to you. Your center of gravity is too far forward. You need to position yourself so you can move to the sides, not just forward."
"H-How do you know that...?"
As the critiques continued, the startled players hurriedly adjusted their stances.
Meanwhile, Tianqiao's face contorted in horror.
He couldn't help it.
Because not a single word Jinhyuk said was wrong.
And.
If they insisted on using this formation against an enemy who understood the Blood Demon Formation so perfectly...
There was no need to even state how this fight would end.
Even though he knew this.
"Kill him!"
Tianqiao had to order the attack.
Because this was the only option left.
Swish!
Whoosh!
First Form: [Blood Demon Jade-Shattering Formation].
Dozens of swords thrust forward, their trajectories overlapping to cover any gaps.
An attack that calculated the opponent's escape routes, willing to cut down even allies if they got in the way.
Thus, this First Form alone was enough to suppress most rankers.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Clash!
Brilliant sparks erupted.
Countless clashes of offense and defense occurred in an instant.
Yet, only the deafening screech of clashing metal filled the air.
There was no sound of tearing flesh, nor any groans of pain.
Every single attack had been blocked.
"Still, you guys have the best teamwork of anyone I've met so far."
Jinhyuk shrugged.
He meant it.
It wasn't just decent... actually, this was a level they could be proud of anywhere.
Of course, to his opponents, even this praise would sound like an insult.
"Hurry... transition to the Second Form immediately!"
Tianqiao roared, but it was already too late.
"Who said I'd just stand here and watch?"
Jinhyuk had already penetrated the weakest point of the Blood Demon Formation. Since the joints of the formation had loosened to transition to the Second Form, his surprise attack was incredibly effective.
"H-Here!"
"Damn it!"
"Strike... Strike him!"
The players spun around, swinging their swords and spears at Jinhyuk.
But their futile struggles...
[Unique Ability 'Blessing of the Stars' has been activated!]
...were blocked by a brilliant light falling from the heavens.
Hummmmm!
As the Blessing of the Stars and divine power merged, a gentle aura enveloped Jinhyuk's body.
At the same time.
"I've done plenty of defending. Now, it's my turn."
Sheathing his dagger, Jinhyuk summoned the Twin Dragon Swords from his subspace inventory.
From the distorted space, a pair of relics revealed themselves.
"Those are...!"
Dangerous. The moment Tianqiao felt that instinct.
A smooth sword strike swept across the ground.
* * *
A single strike.
With just one sword strike, the Blood Demon Formation shattered.
To be precise, it wasn't just shattered; every single player maintaining the formation was instantly killed.
And the only survivor of that disaster was Tianqiao.
"T-This can't be..."
Tianqiao's voice trembled violently.
His comrades and subordinates, who had trained with all their might even before the Tower of Trials arrived to preserve the lineage of Chinese martial arts...
The elites handpicked from within the Zhonghua Guild specifically for this mission...
...to fall so helplessly.
'Just... how strong is this guy?'
He had thought that dragging him down to hell with them would be enough.
But he was wrong.
Even with the resolve to throw away their lives, inflicting a single scratch was an impossible task.
Perhaps he was a monster that only Namgung Cheon could truly face.
As his thoughts reached this point, he felt the sheer gravity of the situation sink in.
'I must never... let him point his sword at that person.'
Tianqiao's instincts screamed.
That those two must never be allowed to clash.
Because if a life-or-death duel were to occur, they might end up drawing the absolute worst possible outcome.
His hesitation was brief.
Tianqiao gripped his greatsword with both hands.
"I will settle this with my next attack. Win or lose, there is no next time for me."
With those final words.
The atmosphere shifted.
No, it wasn't just the atmosphere.
A blue energy flared from the tip of his sword.
Crackle...
The tempered sword qi surged sharply.
'Taesan Sword Form'.
Capable of splitting a ten-meter boulder in a single strike,
'Second Form'.
The secret technique of the Taesan Sword was unleashed.
'Taiyi Slash'!
Rumble!
The sword qi surged right before Jinhyuk's eyes.
In a mere fraction of a second, his head would be cleanly severed.
Right then.
Jinhyuk slowly took his stance.
'Soul-Chasing Sword Dance'.
The sword chosen by the Sword Saint to reach the pinnacle of the sword.
The ultimate sword, rumored to be capable of cutting even the soul, was manifested through the Twin Dragon Swords at this very moment.
'Eighth Form'.
An aura of an entirely different caliber began to dominate the space.
The pitch-black sword aura manifested through the 'Grave of Swords' awaited the completion of the form.
And finally.
Someone took their first step into a realm that even the residents of the Murim had failed to reach.
Dark-Soul Unity.
And just like that,
everything was dyed in black.