Chapter 536: The Jianghu Roster (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 536: The Jianghu Roster (2)
The cliffside shook.
The experts of the Demonlight Wing faltered for a moment, pausing their vertical sprint up the rugged stone wall. Among them was Shin So-bin, perched parallel to the sheer cliff face.
She tilted her head slightly to dodge the falling stone dust. Her long, braided hair swayed like a whip-sword amidst a white wave of energy. With a sharp flick, she shook out her blue sleeve.
"Just now..."
"It was the Law-Transcending Halo Qi."
A taciturn man spoke as he passed by her. It was Na Il-cheon, the Asura Demon Soul. A pale-skinned Blue-Ranked expert, he had once assisted Jin Myeong-jo in the Bloodkeeper Unit.
He was a man of such towering height that even Jeong Yeon-shin, during his days as the Commander of the Demonlight Wing, had hesitated to pass him side dishes at the table.
"If it's Il-cheon's sense of Qi, it's accurate."
Cheong-myeong, the one-eyed Brightfolk clad in black robes, let his quiet voice drift down from far above.
The distance between them was steadily widening, driven by footwork that resembled the Ten-Mile Light Grace. He was charging ahead alone, almost as if he were abandoning his subordinates.
Cheong-myeong's words were nothing new. Those from the Bloodkeeper Unit were exceptionally sensitive to spiritual energy.
The voices of the Demonlight Wing experts echoed from various spots across the cliff face.
"Who do you think the opponent is?"
"Either the North Blade or the Wudang Sect Leader."
"Why would Lord Jeong trade blows with the Late Emperor? There's nothing to gain. There's a reason the top-tier experts leading the Great Sects rarely make a move. Win or lose, it only brings trouble..."
"Why is winning a problem?"
"Unless the victory is exceptionally clean, it ruins relations between the sects. It makes it hard to cooperate in the future. Even if the parties involved accept the outcome, their disciples won't feel the same. Of course, Wudang might be an exception, but... in the first place, it's highly likely Lord Jeong clashed with the North Blade."
"We can't rule out the Wudang Sect Leader either. There are rumors that Perfected Mystic Concord's decade-long seclusion was due to Qi Deviation."
Phak!
They surged upward again.
They conversed while scaling the cliff, relying not on the wall-clinging Gecko Technique, but on the pure, exquisite principles of their lightness skills.
A faint white light lingered in the wake of every footstep—a testament to their mastery in applying the shockwaves of the Vast Art Formula to all their martial arts.
None of them were White-Ranked.
Since the Radiant Sword Unit warriors had been sent back to the main fortress, everyone here except Cheong-myeong was Blue-Ranked.
"Those kids are far too relaxed," the one-armed Oh Wol-hyang said, glancing down.
Far below the Demonlight Wing experts.
Rumble, rumble—
An incomprehensible troop of horses and riders was charging vertically up the cliff face. Though they were far behind, their sheer weight heavily shook the precipice.
Chilling vibrations rippled out rhythmically from the massive hooves—a sight that utterly defied common sense.
Yet, the riders' overall demeanor remained completely indifferent.
This movement makes no sense. Unless the horses have mastered lightness skills...
Far above them, Shin So-bin spoke softly. Her upper body was tilted forward as she sprinted using the Ten-Mile Light Grace.
Among the Demonlight Wing experts, all of whom had mastered the Vast Art Formula, her propulsion shockwave was the most pronounced.
"Looking at the Roster, they are incredibly knowledgeable about this region's Jianghu. If they know this land that well, even the North Blade wouldn't dare underestimate our Commander... I mean, Lord Jeong. Whatever the reason, I'm certain they won't clash."
"That Roster," Na Il-cheon asked, running up the wall ahead of Shin So-bin. "Who was second?"
It was a significant question.
The top spot naturally belonged to the Lord of the Desolate Fortress. Therefore, the second name would be the person the Northern Jianghu deemed the most practically dangerous figure in the current Murim.
The most active absolute master. Virtually the greatest under heaven.
The current Commander of the Divine Sword Corps, Yong Hee-myung.
Or perhaps someone else.
Naturally, to the warriors of the Desolate Fortress, it had to be the former. The same went for those who knew of the Hegemon Hero Ma Yeon-jeok's Rejuvenation.
The main fortress's Hidden Sword should not, and could not, be on that list.
In truth, it wasn't just the second spot.
The entire Roster was of interest to everyone. It had to be. Out of countless martial artists, Jeong Yeon-shin occupied an incredibly high position.
It had only been pushed aside temporarily due to urgent matters and the immediate situation they faced.
Though the book was already in Shin So-bin's possession, Jeong Yeon-shin was unleashing his energy somewhere out of their sight. They needed to get him in their field of vision immediately.
Shin So-bin hesitated as she ran.
"That was a bit strange. Perhaps some spirituality seeped into it, but from the fourth name onward, the characters were blurry... It seems to require a significant mastery of eye techniques to read."
"Commander, look over there!"
The voice of Wi Ye-ryeong, the Moon-Shooting Bow Ghost, suddenly rang out. Cheong-myeong, who was sprinting alone far ahead, whipped his head around as Wi Ye-ryeong pointed.
"It's imperial martial arts!"
Along the ridge stretching out to the side, a figure was rushing toward the same destination as the Demonlight Wing. Though the figure appeared incredibly small from this distance, they were terrifyingly fast.
They were visibly drawing closer to where the Wudang Sect's Taoist temples clustered.
"What on earth is that?"
Boom!
Cheong-myeong, Commander of the Demonlight Wing, shattered the stone wall as he launched himself upward.
"I'm going ahead, you slugs."
His quiet voice drifted down the cliff like a gentle breeze. Yet, the troop of riders—which included someone with a presence rivaling Cheong-myeong's—did not react.
They remained utterly silent.
* * *
Late Emperor Hyeon-gong.
He was undeniably the pinnacle of the Jianghu.
It was said that when it came to softness overcoming hardness, he was peerless under heaven.
An old immortal who could deflect ten thousand catties of brute force as if it were a mere feather. His martial prowess was not limited to the sword; the same applied to his fist and palm techniques.
Even his title suggested he had reached the absolute peak of Taoist martial arts.
But now, it was different.
"To bargain with the life of my disciple... That does not sound pleasant to a master's ears. I ask for your understanding."
An aged voice.
The face that was once said to be as unreadable as distant clouds was gone. Stark madness clung to his wrinkled skin, and every step he took toward Jeong Yeon-shin exuded overwhelming power.
The grass nearby crumbled on its own, and the very earth cracked open.
Thump— Thump—
A deep resonance, as if rising from an abyss.
It was not a heavy stomp, but a mere step, yet it produced this effect. The ground and the air trembled minutely.
His energy wave is dense.
Jeong Yeon-shin felt the vibration penetrate from the soles of his feet to the acupoints across his entire body. It was a resonance akin to penetrating force; at this level, it was bound to disrupt one's internal energy flow.
Despite not being at his peak due to his long-standing Demonic Possession, his martial prowess was unbelievable.
The battle had already begun.
Even if a victor had been decided once, the next outcome was always uncertain when masters clashed. Gauging each other's combat interval came first.
Jeong Yeon-shin lightly kicked the Songmun Ancient Sword.
"Aaaargh!"
The Super Mad Dream Demon, pinned to the ground, let out a piercing shriek.
But that was all. It was because Jeong Yeon-shin had withdrawn the energy gathered on the blade.
Soon after, a bolt of white lightning cleaved through the air and was drawn into his palm, taking the shape of a long sword with a resounding boom.
Swoosh—
Amidst the fragments of the Law-Transcending Halo Qi scattering like snowflakes, Lingering Thunder revealed itself. Held firmly in Jeong Yeon-shin's hand, it let out a low, vibrating hum—a sword ring fiercer than ever before.
The energy wave he unleashed seemed on the verge of scraping the hilt of the Songmun Ancient Sword.
"Why?" Jeong Yeon-shin muttered quietly to the sword, then winced inwardly, worried he might look like a madman.
"..."
Fortunately, no one in the audience looked at him strangely. Jeong Yeon-shin could focus on Perfected Mystic Concord while maintaining his dignity as the Acting Commander.
Perfected Mystic Concord spoke calmly.
"Since you spoke of a wager, I shall make a proposal as well. Even if my sword defeats you, please fulfill that promise all the same."
"I will."
"You are confident. Have you obtained the Three Pure Powers?"
"I do not know yet."
"You will find out."
Those words rang out right in front of Jeong Yeon-shin. Perfected Mystic Concord had closed the distance to a single step. It was not a distance for swords, but for close-quarters hand-to-hand combat. Jeong Yeon-shin's brow furrowed.
—The Wudang Cloud-Ladder Step, when linked with the Seven Stars Evasion, becomes a movement rare under heaven. They have no need for Void Displacement.
He recalled Shin Cheon-hwa's advice.
He understood it clearly now. It was one of the pieces of advice Shin Cheon-hwa had given him before they departed from the Desolate Fortress to Mount Wudang—just before Shin Cheon-hwa's Nascent Soul vanished from the world.
Jeong Yeon-shin's hand blurred.
Boom!
A shockwave exploded. Their palms collided at chest level. The concentric rings of air currents that erupted instantly forced the weeds to flatten in all directions.
Even though both had employed internal heavy hand techniques, the ground itself sank with a heavy thud, despite the earth being saturated with the immortal Qi of Mount Wudang.
The density of their internal energy was on another level.
It was a clash at the absolute pinnacle of the Jianghu.
Unlike their first clash, Jeong Yeon-shin's mind was incredibly clear. That alone made a massive difference in many aspects. This was immediately evident in Jeong Yeon-shin's second form.
Fist Flower.
Shadowy hands multiplied like clouds, whipping up a gale. It was the second form of the Infinite Flower of Time Hand. The afterimages, each wrapped in a spiral current, converged into one at Perfected Mystic Concord's abdomen.
The strike.
Every single shadow hand was imbued with Brilliant River.
Rumble!
A muffled roar echoed. It was the sound of the Black Jade Solitary Shirt—the body protection Qi passed down solely to the Wudang Sect Leader—collapsing from within.
At that exact moment, Perfected Mystic Concord struck upward at Jeong Yeon-shin's chin, as if using the underside of his palm as a battering ram.
Crash!
Jeong Yeon-shin was flung upward.
There was no softness in this sequence of palm strikes. It was boundlessly, ruthlessly powerful.
Ugh.
While fragments of light from the Tang Clan siblings' garments scattered across his vision, a monstrous shockwave surged into his mind. Yet, Jeong Yeon-shin kept his eyes focused.
His body protection Qi had not been completely shattered. In fact, he had just driven a counter-force right back into Perfected Mystic Concord's palm.
"How...?"
Perfected Mystic Concord let out a brief, puzzled murmur. It was because every strike and reaction flowed seamlessly, connected like a single circle.
The way Jeong Yeon-shin naturally gained distance in midair and swung Lingering Thunder was the same. The entire technique was executed at the speed of Transposition.
Lightning-Flash Sword Ridge Style
Nine Azure Rivers
Boom—!
Lingering Thunder struck downward like a flooding river.
Cleaving the instant. It was a sword shockwave accumulated to its absolute limit through a mere two exchanges.
At the same time, it was a sequence of techniques that defied natural laws. At this moment, every movement of Jeong Yeon-shin left behind dense illusions, like the fluttering of a moth's wings.
He was converting even the recoil of changing forms into strength for his entire body.
His transcendence is natural...!
At this point, even Perfected Mystic Concord had no choice but to raise his sword. The moment the two blades clashed, a sound like thunder tore the mists of Mount Wudang apart.
Naturally, the body of the Super Mad Dream Demon, pinned by the Songmun Ancient Sword, thrashed violently. It should have been blown far away, but it remained anchored to the ground.
Whoosh!
A massive straight line carved through the gaps in the white clouds. The shockwave from the clashing swords had paved a path through the sky.
It was clear. The mnemonic of the Lightning-Flash Sword Ridge Style was not just parrying Wudang's sword; it was flowing with absolute freedom.
This, too, is only natural.
Jeong Yeon-shin had witnessed Perfected Zhang Sanfeng.
The illusion of the old Taoist, who would appear like the sun to the select few with exceptionally outstanding senses. A truly perfect being.
In the current world, there were very few beings who could present Jeong Yeon-shin with such a painful, blinding brilliance.
At most, perhaps the Lord of the Desolate Fortress, who had completely shed the functions of the Nature Sword wrapped around her body, and the rumored Northern God of War. He had reached that level now, and it was only right.
In any case.
Even if the energy of the Nascent Soul fell far short of what it had been in life, his physical form was unmistakably Zhang Sanfeng.
And to Jeong Yeon-shin, the strength of the energy did not matter. The structure of true Qi and the physical form of those who lived intense lives were sources of infinite inspiration. Thus, Jeong Yeon-shin had, if only for a brief moment, truly seen his future self as an old man—granted by the permission of the ancient Songmun Ancient Sword.
Step.
That was why his expression remained calm as his feet touched the ground once more. Conversely, unprecedented shock washed over the faces of the onlookers.
Three exchanges.
That was all the time it took for Perfected Mystic Concord, his legs firmly planted on the ground, to speak again.
"Let us rest a moment."
"...!"
"My old bones are aching."
Was it an illusion? The aged voice seemed slightly clearer. Even though they had not shared the Unified Martial Transcendence, a winter wind settled quietly.
"As you wish," Jeong Yeon-shin calmly agreed. At the same time, the voice of the North Blade, whom he kept on the edge of his senses, echoed.
[That blue flame possesses a strange power.]
On the ground surrounded by a bluish Taiji that spread like a carpet, amidst the sparks that occasionally flared bright blue.
Whoosh—
Jeong Yeon-shin's purple robes fluttered wildly, much like Ma Yeon-jeok's.