Chapter 136: The Turbulent Return Journey
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 136: The Turbulent Return Journey
Jeong Yeon-shin saw right through the blue flames.
Caught within the azure water art—which burned as fiercely as the terrifying Samadhi True Fire—the Blood Flame Cult Leader was flailing, much like the Lord of the Tenth Sect had done before him.
The hand blade plunged into Ma Yeon-jeok's abdomen refused to budge.
The power of demon-quelling completely suppressed the cult leader's true qi. Ma Yeon-jeok's iron-clad abdominal muscles, combined with the internal power flowing through his fine meridians, trapped the bastard's hand like a vice.
The strike was completely sealed.
"Aaaaargh—!"
A fierce scream tore past his pale lips.
The Blood Flame Cult Leader's body could no longer manifest its regenerative abilities. Even the blood that formed the very foundation of his Blood Art was being burned away, strand by strand.
The Blood Flame Cult Leader's entire body burned alongside Ma Yeon-jeok. Blue, and bluer still.
"Cult Leader!"
"O Cult Leader!"
The Blood Master Swords, who had been entirely focused on blocking Jeong Yeon-shin, cried out. The situation before them had abruptly overturned.
Abandoning the boy, they kicked off the ground and rushed toward the two peerless masters, their feet blurring with rapid lightness skill.
They were too late. The boy was faster.
Thud!
Riding a swirling wave of internal power, his black robe fluttered violently.
While the rest of the battlefield seemed momentarily frozen, Jeong Yeon-shin surged forward like a beam of light.
Clang!
With a single explosive release of force, he shattered the swords swinging belatedly to obstruct him.
He kicked off the ground, bursting straight through the shower of silver fragments scattering in the air.
Directly ahead burned the blue flame conjured by Ma Yeon-jeok. It was a martial art of his grandfather's own creation, one Jeong Yeon-shin knew better than anyone.
He had vaguely guessed that once this martial art reached the absolute peak, it would take this exact form. The very scene he had imagined now unfolded before his eyes.
Along with his grandfather's fatal wounds.
To seal the Blood Flame Cult Leader's regenerative ability, Ma Yeon-jeok had closed the distance and grabbed him directly by the head.
It was the only way.
The cult leader's supernatural techniques were on an entirely different level from those of ordinary Blood Flame Cultists. Anyone could see it was a profound mystery generated by the bastard's upper dantian. He had to suppress the Baihui point and the upper dantian first.
Ordinary internal power would not suffice. An opposing force was needed. Thus, Ma Yeon-jeok had fully mastered and unleashed his grandson's Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand.
And so, it came to this.
The dying struggles of the Blood Flame Cult Leader were the ultimate techniques of a peerless master. The two were locked in absolute proximity.
The hand plunged into Ma Yeon-jeok's abdomen relentlessly unleashed the heavy shockwaves of an internal heavy hand technique.
The bastard was channeling the Lord of the Tenth Sect's internal power—blunt, yet highly lethal.
The boy saw it all.
Whoosh!
A tempestuous gust of wind rushed past Jeong Yeon-shin's ears.
The headwind from his rapid lightness skill seemed to blow straight into his heart.
No.
That was his grandfather. He could not lose him to a blood ghost like this. Even if the old man were to pass away, it could not be now.
It should only happen after Jeong Yeon-shin himself died, should he fail to overcome his own doomed constitution.
Thud! Thud!
The sensation of his feet stamping the ground was starkly distinct. He ran with only the blue fireball in his sights.
He recalled the sunset that had softly bathed the Jeong Family Manor back when he was creating the Jeong Family Dynamic Art.
A faint orange light had spread a lonely glow through the window bars.
The brushstrokes he had painted while yearning for his mother would rustle quietly in the dim halo of light.
Then, he would climb into his bed, curl up, and fall asleep alone.
He never wanted to experience that again.
Move.
The halo in his heart responded.
Though accumulated internal injuries weighed heavily on the meridians throughout his entire body, the wheel of light began to spin.
It was the full-body circulation of the Law-Transcending Halo Qi.
Hum.
An extremely faint light of true qi enveloped his skin, forming a crude internal energy armor.
Before he knew it, the deep blue flames filled his entire field of vision.
Jeong Yeon-shin arrived first. He was the only master capable of stepping into the shockwave of the Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand.
This was entirely thanks to the dharma power imbued within the body protection qi enveloping his figure. He took a step forward.
Whoosh!
He entered a world of deep blue.
Immediately, his eyes met a pair of crimson ones. The Blood Flame Cult Leader.
The light in the bastard's pupils was already fading.
Since he had just absorbed the deep internal power of the Lord of the Tenth Sect, it seemed he hadn't had the leisure to cast the Blood Art's essence absorption on Ma Yeon-jeok as well.
“You... come here...”
The Blood Flame Cult Leader mouthed the words, his gaze fixed on Jeong Yeon-shin.
He seemed to be trying to say something more.
The boy stepped forward swiftly, his right hand gripping the hilt of his Desolate Fortress Sword.
Perhaps because he was flustered, the Blood Flame Cult Leader was being foolish.
Before trying to speak, he should have first withdrawn the internal heavy hand technique he was inflicting on a grandfather right in front of his grandson.
Jeong Yeon-shin channeled his grip strength into the sword hilt and swung his arm. The Fast Sword mnemonic.
His thumb and index finger were moderately relaxed. It was a sword technique that had now begun to unconsciously imbue itself into every single one of his strikes.
Slash!
A slender trajectory sliced through the flames. The blade, extending in a flash of white light, swept cleanly across the bastard's neck.
The execution of the Desolate Fortress Sword's strike was incredibly smooth.
There was no sensation of hitting a true qi shield; it seemed to have been entirely incinerated by the Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand.
The body collapsed limply beneath the severed head.
The Blood Flame Cult Leader's blood-red robe, which had been fluttering incessantly, finally ceased all movement.
Yet, the Blood Flame Cult Leader was indeed no longer human.
The severed head, still held in Ma Yeon-jeok's frozen grip, slowly curled its lips upward.
Even with a furrowed brow, the bastard mouthed once more:
“My stepdaughter is coming. This seat is different from your clan. I shall never die.”
Jeong Yeon-shin did not care. He swiftly delivered a second strike.
This strike was fast, yet extremely careful.
Before the Blood Flame Cult Leader's body could fully collapse to the ground, the boy stepped to the side and slashed vertically.
Splurt!
The bastard's arm, still plunged into his grandfather's abdomen, was severed at the shoulder.
He had cast the Fast Sword and the absorption mnemonic together.
The spurting blood instantly turned into mist amidst the deep blue flames.
Jeong Yeon-shin hurriedly caught Ma Yeon-jeok in his arms and moved his left hand.
He tapped several acupoints, trying to stop the bleeding from the penetrating wound in his abdomen.
When that didn't work, he forcefully poured his Law-Transcending Halo Qi into the wound to stem the blood flow.
Ma Yeon-jeok's meridians and acupoints had already lost their elasticity. Not a single trace of true qi could be felt.
The peak-stage Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand vanished.
The blue flames that had covered the entire space turned into a haze and drifted upward.
The boy in the black robe felt the skin of the grandfather he was supporting.
It was incredibly rough. The once-robust body had withered away, as if it had never been sturdy to begin with.
He looked like a mummy completely drained of moisture. Vitality was slipping away from his grandfather's body.
Slowly.
A wrinkled hand placed itself on the crown of Jeong Yeon-shin's head. It was incredibly warm.
And that was the end.
The Blood Flame Cult Leader's head slipped from the old man's grip and fell to the ground. No further sound could be heard.
The faint beating near Ma Yeon-jeok's heart stopped as well.
Ah.
Jeong Yeon-shin's eyes widened.
He stood perfectly still, even as the Blood Flame Cultists began to clamor at the sight unfolding before them.
All the while, he continuously stimulated his grandfather's meridians and heart with the internal power of his Law-Transcending Halo Qi.
"The Cult Leader is an immortal god among men! Retrieve his sacred body!"
"The Sect Leader is alive! His breathing is distinct!"
"We are leaving immediately! Clear the way!"
The Tang Clan masters were currently blocking the approach of the Blood Master Swords.
Meanwhile, the warriors of the Tenth Sect, clad in all kinds of armor, suddenly began to retreat.
Their movements, utilizing the Body Protection Scripture, were highly disciplined as their lightness skill carried them back along the path they had come.
It seemed the Lord of the Tenth Sect had survived. He hadn't died from the brief essence absorption.
The sensation of several Tang Clan masters pursuing the retreating enemies filtered into Jeong Yeon-shin's sense of qi.
He didn't care. His mind was completely detached from the battlefield.
Even so, numerous gazes were fixed upon him.
Jeong Yeon-shin, the Flash Art. The boy clad in the black robe of the Desolate Fortress.
He had stepped into the domain of peerless masters and returned alive.
Following his slaying of the Moon-Gazing Radiant Halberd, he had performed yet another miracle.
Now, even as he stood frozen and alone amidst the chaotic battle, he exuded an overwhelming presence.
From ally and foe alike, he received looks of reverence, curiosity, and hostility.
Clatter!
Tang Un-hwang's steel petals swept through the Blood Flame Cultists, forming a protective barrier around Jeong Yeon-shin.
The Clan Head had prioritized his faith in the boy over his revenge for his wife.
Yet, Jeong Yeon-shin didn't even have the luxury to feel grateful right now.
Cradling Ma Yeon-jeok, he poured nearly half of all the Law-Transcending Halo Qi he could currently channel into the old man's body.
Please.
In the realm of the Way of the Sword, there was a concept known as the "living sword."
It was said that the function of the internal qi gong of Buddhist sects was not merely to harm people.
It was like the hand of Buddha, bringing salvation to all living beings.
Dharma power was always mentioned when discussing the miracle of the living sword that could save lives.
Since his grandfather had also refined the Demon-Quelling Azure Steel Hand and engraved dharma power martial arts into his very flesh, Jeong Yeon-shin hoped that his life force could somehow be sustained.
With a desperate heart, he spun the halo for a long time. He squeezed out every last ounce of his energy.
He continued until the Blood Master Swords were wiped out, the surviving warriors of the Tenth Sect vanished, and the servants and martial artists from the inner courtyard of the Tang Family Pagoda finally cleared the battlefield.
Even after all that, time continued to pass.
"Mmm..."
Several groans reached his ears.
The physicians of the Tang Clan approached multiple times to take Ma Yeon-jeok's pulse.
Each time, they shook their heads, bowed respectfully, and departed.
The sun set.
His grandfather did not move.
When the boy finally snapped out of his daze, Ma Yeon-jeok's body had already been moved to a luxurious marble altar. He didn't know when it had happened. Before he knew it, Jeong Yeon-shin was simply sitting blankly on the spot.
"You say it was stolen? The Blood Flame Cult Leader's corpse?"
"Forgive me, Clan Head. We were told it had to be thrown into a furnace and burned, so we were heading to the blacksmith's when..."
"And you couldn't even lift a finger to stop her?"
"She was incredibly powerful."
"Describe her appearance."
"She was a woman clad in a bright red robe. She wore an eyepatch made of some precious material over her left eye, and her other pupil was a deep, bloody red. We suspect she is the Seventh Apostle of the Blood Flame Cult."
"...Any unusual details?"
"She was laughing, but it was as if we didn't even exist to her. She was also muttering incomprehensible things. However, it seems to be no ordinary matter."
"Speak."
"Well... she said, 'I have to bring the Grand Preceptor? I'll just be the Cult Leader instead.'"
Jeong Yeon-shin let the meaningless conversation drift past him.
He stumbled to his feet. The ground beneath him felt exceptionally hard.
The boy quietly gazed at his grandfather, who lay peacefully on the altar.
"Master."
Tang Un-hwang, who had been conversing with his subordinate, quickly approached. He looked at the boy with a sorrowful gaze.
He possessed the dignified demeanor of a great hero, truly befitting the Tang Clan Head. He slowly lowered his gaze to follow Jeong Yeon-shin's.
A great warrior lay there with his eyes closed.
The Hegemon Hero, Ma Yeon-jeok.
An old master who had passed away at the age of seventy-six.
In the end, he had ascended to the Peach Blossom Spring through feathered ascension. His only final wish had been to take one of his grandson's enemies down with him.
He had donned the purple robe at the age of thirty and was hailed as a divine sword until his seventieth birthday.
Though he now looked like a withered mummy, he seemed as if he might rise at any moment to draw his blade once more.
"Senior, rest in peace."
Tang Un-hwang slightly lowered his eyes and bowed his head.
The Tang Clan members lined up on both sides clasped their hands in a solemn fist salute toward the former Commander of the Divine Sword Corps.
They were treating him as a benefactor of their family, right alongside the Flash Art.
It was then.
Cough!
The mummy coughed.
* * *
A day later.
A public notice was posted throughout Sichuan Province.
It was a long proclamation written on a sprawling sheet of paper, plastered on official roads and bustling marketplaces to widely publicize a grand event.
`[...Therefore, on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Martial World Alliance shall be formed. We hope that all fellow comrades of the Jianghu under heaven will welcome this auspicious event...`
`...We hereby invite noble martial artists to the Sect Founding Ceremony of our Martial World Alliance...`
`...The rising stars who will become the pillars of the martial world shall also grace the occasion with their presence.`
`Wiji Myo-hwa the Cloud Sword Dragon, Chwi So-ok the Small Sword Empress, Yu-hyeon the Mount Hua Hidden Dragon, ...Jeong Yeon-shin the Flash Art...]`
"Whether from the Nine Sects or the Eight Families, the titles of every renowned master are written on it. The same goes for the sect leaders. But isn't it ridiculous? Spouting nonsense about rising stars... who do they think they are to invite a master of the Desolate Fortress without permission?"
The speaker was Lazy Flame Dragon, who was now acting completely like a true warrior of the main fortress.
For once, he stood perfectly straight without his usual slouch.
He stared quietly at Jeong Yeon-shin, who was sitting calmly in a chair.
Right in front of the boy, who was idly glancing over the sheet of paper, Ma Yeon-jeok lay with his eyes closed amidst golden silk bedding.
It was a spacious room.
The wooden carvings decorating various parts of the space were extremely ornate, shaped like turtles, cranes, and deer. The landscape painting hanging on the side wall also appeared to be a rare masterpiece of calligraphy and painting.
These canvases and carvings all symbolized longevity. It was a deeply thoughtful gesture from the Tang Clan.
"Well, this is nice."
Lazy Flame Dragon looked around at the Ten Symbols of Longevity. His gaze was highly peculiar.
Meanwhile, Jeong Yeon-shin burned the invitation he had received without a second thought.
Whoosh!
The Samadhi True Fire conjured between his index and middle fingers incinerated the paper, turning even the ashes into a single wisp of smoke.
At the same time, the boy lightly waved his hand. The release formula of the Myriad Blossoms Rain. The faint smoke drifted smoothly out the window.
Lazy Flame Dragon stole a glance at the boy, whose expression remained stoic. Then, he spoke with a deliberately sly grin.
"Hey, I went out of my way to bring that to you."
"Just bring lunch," Jeong Yeon-shin replied. "And some rice gruel for my grandfather as well."