Chapter 1068
—"Martial Soul Society Leader Seol-so Defeats the Eight Overlords of India!"
A shocking piece of news struck the martial world.
Among the Eight Overlords of India—figures revered as near-divine beings—the Myriad Bones Gate's Bazrakan and the Phantom Dream Fortress's Dream Lord Rahula had been defeated by the Martial Soul Society Leader at the Moon Wheel Palace in Ratrasa.
Martial Soul Society Leader Seol-so.
A mysterious figure who had founded and now led the Martial Soul Society, the first-ever alliance between the orthodox and unorthodox factions in martial history.
Originally known as a wandering martial artist who had learned martial arts under the Bullet King, his true identity was now revealed to be that of a profound master who had inherited the legacy of an immortal from fifteen hundred years ago and wielded the Way of Nature.
At one point, suspicions arose that he might be the same person as the Martial Soul Lord—due to the shared name "Martial Soul" and his close ties with Dae Gu-hwi, leader of the Beast Division.
However, countless intelligence organizations and even powerful figures from the Abyssal Forces had since confirmed that the two were entirely different individuals.
The Sacred Realm.
Especially those supreme masters who possessed its transcendent power had a mysterious ability to see through any disguise in an instant.
Thus, their acknowledgment of the Martial Soul Society Leader was tantamount to definitive proof of Seol-so's identity.
—"The birth of a new grandmaster?"
The current martial world's younger generation had been represented by the Heir of the Demon Hall, the Martial Soul Lord.
However, he had monopolized the martial world's newly emerged treasure, the Ten Thousand Li Treasure Ship, and in doing so, had lost much of the people's favor.
In contrast, Seol-so had silently led the Martial Soul Society, finally making his name resound beyond the Central Plains to external forces.
Now, martial artists revered him as a figure far surpassing the Martial Soul Lord.
—"The Martial Soul Society Leader's movements are anything but ordinary."
From then on, the name of the Martial Soul Society Leader began circulating prominently among the martial world's major intelligence networks.
Because he was now preparing for a secret conference.
Specifically, negotiations to address conflicts with the newly established orthodox alliance—the Azure Heaven Alliance.
—"Even if it's an alliance between the orthodox and unorthodox, territorial boundaries must be clearly defined, no?"
The Martial Soul Society, having established itself in Shaanxi, had greatly expanded its influence, and its prestige now extended even to the border regions of Sichuan—the Guangyuan area.
—"And isn't it true that the Azure Heaven Alliance frequently crosses into Hanzhong?"
With the Zhongnan Sect and Mount Hua Sect currently unable to exert their strength, the Martial Soul Society could be considered the unrivaled power of Shaanxi.
And the Hanzhong region was a crucial basin and strategic stronghold in southern Shaanxi.
Now that the Azure Heaven Alliance was staking its territorial claims, the Martial Soul Society naturally had something to say in response.
—"This is... troublesome."
Though the leaders of both factions were moderate, preventing the situation from escalating into a full-blown conflict,
the Azure Heaven Alliance's leader, Bukgung Ryeong, wished to clearly demarcate the Martial Soul Society's sphere of influence.
—"The current martial world is in utter chaos. Must we carve into our own flesh over territorial disputes? Let us meet and discuss this properly."
Ultimately, the two leaders reached an understanding, and thanks to that, the conference was swiftly arranged.
And this development
was quietly relayed to every major intelligence organization in the martial world.
Dongcheon Prefecture, Kaiyang County—a secluded teahouse.
An old man clad in luxurious silk robes, a sword hanging at his waist, sat quietly by the window, engrossed in an ancient text.
Though his gaze remained fixed on the book, his eyes occasionally darkened and lightened in turn, as if contemplating something profound.
The only thing lingering around him was the faint aroma of tea as he occasionally sipped from his cup while reading.
"Hmm."
How much time had passed?
The old man, having finished his tea, boarded the carriage waiting outside the teahouse.
Clack, clack.
After traveling along the main road for some time, the carriage soon entered a dense forest where thick shadows loomed.
The worn-out carriage, the kind commonly seen at relay stations,
creaked incessantly from its worn axles, its weathered surfaces bearing deep marks of time.
The middle-aged coachman wore shabby clothes, his back slightly hunched,
his hands gripping the reins with the rough familiarity of long experience.
His weary expression spoke of life's hardships as he drove the carriage in silence.
The forest was so quiet that only the creaking of the carriage and the rhythmic clatter of hooves disturbed its tranquil stillness.
After traveling through the woods for a while, the carriage returned to the teahouse.
The old man stepped into the tea house as if nothing had happened.
Then the carriage departed once more, leaving the outskirts of Chengdu behind.
By the time the carriage had been traveling along a deep mountain path for a while,
Swish.
A shadow as dark as the abyss, sharp as a blade, abruptly rose before the moving carriage.
Like a black specter buried deep underground suddenly surging forth to halt the carriage in its tracks.
"Whoa, whoa!"
Startled, the coachman yanked the reins, bringing the carriage to an abrupt stop.
Drip... drip...
The black shadow soon began taking human form.
"G-good sir, this carriage is empty!"
The coachman, assuming the sudden black figure was a bandit, clasped his hands together in desperate supplication.
"I've already dropped off my passenger and am on my way back!"
When no response came from the shadow, the coachman shakily pulled out a money pouch.
"This is all I have. It's a humble offering, but please, Great King..."
[He'd fool most people. Just the look in his eyes alone would make anyone believe he's a real coachman.]
A voice as dark as the abyss slithered out from the shadow.
[Then again, he'd need that level of skill to lead a coalition at such a young age.]
"Sir, what are you—"
[Disguised as a coachman, ferrying the Azure Heaven Alliance Leader to a secret meeting...]
[Hah. Clever indeed.]
Seol-so, the Martial Soul Society Leader.
For a covert rendezvous, he had disguised himself as a coachman and headed toward the Sichuan border.
There, he had quietly met with Bukgung Ryeong, the Azure Heaven Alliance Leader, who was disguised as an ordinary old man.
After concluding their lengthy discussion inside the moving carriage, he had resumed his coachman guise and was now returning to the Martial Soul Society.
The meeting had been conducted in absolute secrecy—not a single intelligence organization had caught wind of it.
And yet, this black shadow had seen through it all?
"Hmm."
In that instant, the coachman's gaze shifted.
The dullness in his eyes vanished, replaced by a sharp, glacial glint.
An aura as unyielding as steel radiated outward, piercing through the surroundings.
"Who are you?"
[You already know.]
Whoosh—
As the shadow's low voice echoed, the entire forest darkened.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of crows had begun gathering around the woods.
Black Divine.
The ruler of crows, the Heavenly Lord of Sasincheon, who turned all spaces into domains of death.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord had made his appearance.
[For a mere wanderer...]
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord emerged from the darkness.
[...to slip through my grasp...]
From the silence deeper than darkness, a figure slowly took shape.
A man clad in eerie robes modeled after a crow's form.
Somehow, he looked almost absurd—yet at the same time, an indescribable, sinister power coiled around him.
His face was hidden behind a crow mask,
but the exposed contours of his eyes and the weight in his gaze suggested considerable age.
[...So you're the one who founded the Martial Soul Society. Heh heh heh heh.]
As his laughter erupted,
a viscous, mist-laden gale surged through the forest like a ravenous beast.
Not just the flow of the air—even the soil's composition, the scent of earth, the very atmosphere... everything shifted.
[Oh?]
For a split second, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's eyes flashed behind his mask.
Instead of trembling in fear like some greenhorn, the young man's eyes gleamed with cold light.
And at the corners of his lips—was that not a faint, mocking smile, as if he knew everything?
[You leaked the information on purpose.]
In that moment, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord understood.
[To lure me here.]
"I was curious, you see."
Bu Eun-seol, having shed his middle-aged coachman disguise and reverted to his true appearance as Seol-so, removed his worn hat and spoke nonchalantly.
"I figured someone of your standing—the Black Divine Heavenly Lord—might know about the Land of the Ultimate Void."
Among the Three Attendants, Pa-myeong was said to be endlessly training in the Land of the Ultimate Void to seize the Chain of Reincarnation.
If that was the case, then a subordinate like the Black Divine Heavenly Lord...
Surely he would know where Pa-myeong was. Where the Land of the Ultimate Void lay.
[The Land of the Ultimate Void?]
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord's expression twisted strangely.
[Are you also searching for the Heaven and Earth Divine Artifact?]
For an instant, Bu Eun-seol was too stunned to hide his reaction.
He had merely asked about the Land of the Ultimate Void—yet the Black Divine Heavenly Lord had brought up the Heaven and Earth Divine Artifact?
"Also"...?
Regaining his composure, Bu Eun-seol swiftly analyzed the situation.
The phrasing—"Are you also..."—did not refer to someone else.
It referred to the Black Divine Heavenly Lord himself.
"Why would the Black Divine Heavenly faction want a sacred artifact from India?"
[That is none of your concern.]
Hearing the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's voice, a strange intuition flickered in Bu Eun-seol's mind.
He couldn't explain why,
but he suddenly knew—the reason the Black Divine Heavenly Lord had never shown himself in the martial world,
the reason he had been commanding his crows in secret...
It was all to find the sacred artifact of the Yona Tribe.
[Of all those who have slipped through the grasp of the main Heavenly Lord, you are the only one.]
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord let out a cold laugh.
[Neither-Human-Nor-Beast... that fool failed in his task, taking one-tenth of this Heavenly Lord's power.]
"How fascinating."
Bu Eun-seol replied leisurely.
"So the Servants of the True Demon can share their power with their subordinates?"
If the higher-ranking beings could distribute their strength to their underlings—or amplify their abilities—then...
"That means there exists a definitive total quantity of power they possess, and that it can be transferred."
"In the end, their strength isn't independent—it's organically linked to a higher being, isn't it?"
"The Servants of the True Demon aren't strong on their own..."
Bu Eun-seol said,
"They're strong because they're connected to the colossal power source that is the True Demon."
In other words, the power the Servants wield—
It wasn't something they generated themselves, but rather something granted or borrowed from a higher being.
"That's why they didn't care when their Servants died."
Which meant that as long as the higher being remained, the Servants could be endlessly replenished.
[So.]
As the Black Divine Heavenly Lord spoke,
Flutter.
The ravens filling the forest slowly began to beat their wings.
[What does that have to do with you?]
In that instant, the eyes of the ravens—the Black Divines—flashed.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord didn't know that Seol-so, the Martial Soul Society Leader, was Bu Eun-seol.
Even so, unlike before, he no longer underestimated him.
After all, the Martial Soul Society had withstood attacks from the Servants of the True Demon—once from Hyunincheon and once from the Baekri Clan—and not long ago, they had even taken down two of the Eight Overlords of India.
[The martial arts of this era have advanced brilliantly.]
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord curled his lips as he gazed at the Black Divines filling the forest.
[Even the Three Demons and Three Venerables, who were once merely ordinary, have now become entirely different beings.]
Step. Step.
He slowly walked toward Bu Eun-seol.
[A disciple of the Bullet King, a Special-Grade Wanderer—if someone like that has become the leader of an alliance, there must be a formidable background behind him.]
"......"
[Show me. Just how extraordinary your power is.]
Flutter—
The ravens filling the forest suddenly took flight, vanishing into the sky in an instant.
Clang.
At the same time, light flowed from his arms, and in the blink of an eye, two pitch-black short spears materialized.
Clack.
When the two spears combined, they formed a single black polearm, about 3.6 meters in length.
"Come."
As the ravens filling the forest disappeared, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's voice—which had resonated in all directions like the Six Harmonies Voice Transmission—
Shifted into an ordinary tone.
Bu Eun-seol tilted his head slightly.
In their previous encounter, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord had been able to summon countless ravens without even revealing himself,
And through those ravens, he had unleashed overwhelming power upon Bu Eun-seol without even lifting a finger.
He had expected the same this time—that the Black Divines would unleash an immense supernatural force.
Yet here he was, manifesting alone, gripping a raven-formed spear like a martial artist?
"You intend to engage in martial combat?"
"You misunderstand."
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord smirked.
"The Black Divines I commanded were merely tools to control my overwhelming power."
Then, in a low voice, he added,
"Channeling my power through the Black Divines was simply a means to finely regulate my infinite strength."
Step.
A single step. Just one step—and in that instant, he was already right in front of Bu Eun-seol.
"What's got you so deep in thought?"
This wasn't the speed of a movement technique or the suppression of presence.
It was as if he had slipped through the very gap in time—
The infinitesimal moment when human senses perceive danger and relay it to the brain.
CRACK!
But Bu Eun-seol's reflexes had long surpassed the limits of human capability.
Before he could even consciously register the Black Divine Heavenly Lord closing the distance,
His body—forged through countless trials—reacted first, and a flash of light erupted from his right fist.
BOOM!
With a deafening roar that tore through the air, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's upper body was obliterated on the spot.
Everything touched by the fist's radiance turned into black feathers and dust, scattering like a storm.
"......!"
But far from sensing victory, Bu Eun-seol felt every hair on his body stand on end.
Rustle.
The scattered Black Divines gathered back together like feathers coalescing into a single point.
Squelch.
With the nauseating sound of flesh and blood reforming—as if time itself were rewinding—
The fragments returned to their original positions.
Click.
In an instant, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord stood there again, unharmed, wearing the exact same smile as before.
"Despite being of the Righteous Faction, your Fist Technique bears an uncanny resemblance to the Fist Adept's."
His expression and voice were like that of a gourmet savoring the finest dish.
As if relishing the sheer force of Bu Eun-seol's fist.
"After all, martial arts are ultimately about destroying the body—flesh, muscle, bone, and organs."
Step. Step.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord smiled.
"But how do you fight an opponent with no body to destroy?"
Whoosh—BOOM!
Bu Eun-seol unleashed the Heavenly Light Seven Forms once more, striking at the Black Divine Heavenly Lord.
A single beam of light pierced through the darkness like a descending spear—One Light Piercing Radiance.
Then came Meteor Striking Clouds, pouring down a torrent of fist force like a meteor tearing through the heavens.
Next, Storm and Thunder Shaking the Skies, a relentless barrage of strikes as if wind and thunder had merged to upheave the firmament.
And finally, Jade Light Illuminating the Moon, a deceptively fluid yet overwhelming assault capable of countering any attack in a single breath.
Under the relentless onslaught of the Heavenly Light Seven Forms, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's body was torn apart without pause.
His heart was impaled, limbs severed, skull crushed.
Each time, with the phantom sound of crows shrieking, his body would be engulfed in black mist—only to regenerate in an instant.
"You shouldn't be so fixated on merely felling your enemy."
The voice now came from behind.
Whoosh!
A chill ran down Bu Eun-seol's spine as he spun around like lightning.
What met his eyes was—
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord, mimicking the stance of Jade Light Illuminating the Moon, one of the Heavenly Light Seven Forms.
Though crude, the martial principles embedded in that posture were unmistakably Bu Eun-seol's own.
"Human perception... ultimately shifts depending on where one places their mind."
'There is no such thing as an indestructible body capable of infinite regeneration.'
Zzzing—
At that moment, scorching heat erupted from Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
He activated the power of the Ancient Sword Forest, attempting to pierce through the mechanism behind the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's restoration.
"Ah, those eyes! The power of the Ancient Sword Forest—the very thing the Revered Lord coveted!"
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord, sensing Bu Eun-seol's probing gaze, did not evade.
Instead, he spread his arms wide, baring everything—as if inviting scrutiny.
"Not that it matters. In the end, you'll just become another of the Revered Lord's infinite playthings."
He even knew—how the masters of the Ancient Sword Forest, sworn to oppose the True Demon's ambitions, had instead been toyed with and slaughtered by him.
Zzzing—
The power of the Ancient Sword Forest fully activated.
'Connected... to the crows?'
Bu Eun-seol's pupils lost focus.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord's body was merely a focal point.
From it stretched countless black threads, finer than spider silk, spreading in all directions.
And at the ends of those threads—
Crows. Crows... Every crow scattered across the Central Plains was linked to him.
'Unless I exterminate every crow in existence... he cannot die?'
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord was bound to every crow in the Central Plains, siphoning their life force to sustain himself and heal his wounds.
In essence, his body was—
A reservoir and conduit for the life force of every crow under heaven.
"Now you see the magnificence of Soul-Demon Magic Energy."
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord smiled as he spread his arms.
"This Heavenly Lord commands every Black Divine Crow across the entire Central Plains."
There had to be at least a million crows in the region.
Meaning—his lives numbered in the millions.
"Well?"
Grinning, he stretched out his arms.
"I can afford to die a hundred more times. Come, strike me again."
Until now, he had deliberately taken Bu Eun-seol's attacks—just to instill fear.
Had it worked?
Bu Eun-seol only glared, hesitating to act.
'He's absorbing my martial arts as well.'
Bu Eun-seol analyzed the information gleaned from the Ancient Sword Forest's power.
Myeong-myeol, who had slain the Blood God Heaven Lord in the past, had possessed a Fake Body—
One that stored every martial art and Limitless Power of those he had defeated.
And now, it seemed the Black Divine Heavenly Lord wielded a similar forbidden technique.
Each time Bu Eun-seol shattered his body with the Heavenly Light Seven Forms—
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord analyzed the martial principles etched into his ruined flesh, assimilating new insights.
"The power of the Ancient Sword Forest is impressive. To even discern that this Heavenly Lord is learning your martial arts."
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord clicked his tongue.
"Not that it changes anything."
Flap—flap—flap!
As crows beat their wings from all directions—
BOOM!
Bu Eun-seol was sent flying dozens of yards away.
Simultaneously, hundreds of razor-sharp gleams erupted from the black spear in the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's grasp.
They were attacks derived from the four Martial Forms Bu Eun-seol had used to dismantle his body—now refined and hurled back at him.
CRASH—!
As Bu Eun-seol slammed into a distant cliff—
A storm of Spear Aura, sharp as arrows, rained down upon him.
"The more you attack, the more I absorb the essence of your martial arts."
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord swung his spear leisurely, unleashing a deluge of pitch-black Spear Aura.
"If you don't attack, I'll tear your flesh to shreds with the martial arts I've absorbed from you."
A being who dominated the Black Gods of the Central Plains, wielded a million lives, and engraved even his enemies' martial arts onto his own body to make them his own.
That was the Black Divine Heavenly Lord.
Thud! Whirr!
In that brief moment, Bu Eun-seol—
His body split apart under the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's sweeping spear strikes, turning him into a bloodied figure in an instant.
Though he avoided fatal wounds by deploying his movement technique, the barrage of spear strikes showed no sign of stopping.
"Dodging won't save you."
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—!
Seeing Bu Eun-seol evade his lethal attacks, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord this time formed massive spear orbs and hurled them forth.
BOOM!
When the Heavenly Light Seven Forms clashed with the spear orbs, Bu Eun-seol was sent flying back into the cliffside once more.
There were no choices left.
To attack was to reveal his martial arts; to defend was suicide.
Even as his body was torn apart by the onslaught of his own techniques, Bu Eun-seol forced himself upright like a stubborn doll.
Surprisingly, his eyes did not reflect despair—instead, they gleamed with a chilling, razor-sharp calm.
Thud.
Rising from the pool of blood, Bu Eun-seol's eyes flashed.
'He absorbs everything...'
Suddenly, those words gave him a crucial clue.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord had said he engraved and absorbed his enemies' martial arts into his body.
But what if something unmanageable—something fundamentally incompatible—were to enter him?
What would happen then?
'At least getting beaten wasn't for nothing.'
A brilliant light spilled from Bu Eun-seol's pupils as he finally grasped the truth.
He, too, had been deliberately enduring the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's attacks all this time—analyzing his power.
'It's an Limitless Power extremely similar to the Bone Blood Demon King's methods.'
The Heavenly Light Endless Art was the pure force of nature itself—the energy of life.
That was why it had been able to shatter the Bone Blood Demon King's Limitless Power, Frozen Blood and Bones, which was said to be indestructible, and wound him.
Huuuung—
As Bu Eun-seol summoned the Heavenly Light Endless Art, a majestic golden radiance erupted from his body.
Fwoosh!
He unleashed the Heavenly Light Seven Forms, infused with the principles of Misty Waves of Rivers and Lakes—
Screeeech!
But unlike with the Bone Blood Demon King, it had no effect on the Black Divine Heavenly Lord.
'Mind-Training Formula.'
If the Bone Blood Demon King had ascended to a higher realm through the Three Attendants, the Black Divine Heavenly Lord was rooted in the very source—the True Demon.
Just as executing the Bloody Tears Seven Forms required understanding the meaning of death and entering its realm—
Conversely, to wield a Fist Technique imbued with the energy of life—
One had to clearly define what life was—what existence itself meant.
'Then—'
Without realizing it, Bu Eun-seol recalled something he had long forgotten.
The Mind-Training Formula of the Martial Emperor—a secret discipline that stirred beautiful emotions deep within his heart.
Zing— zing—
His body flickered like a star, repeating its flashes—
—"Why aren't you eating?"
Suddenly, a conversation from the past surfaced in his mind.
Back then, Bu Eun-seol had been on the verge of freezing to death when the old man brought him to Peaceful Burial House.
But at the time—
He had viewed the world with endless coldness, unable to even feel joy at being taken in.
It'll only be temporary anyway.
Steam rose gently.
Bu Jan-yang had placed a steaming bowl of noodles on a small tray, but Bu Eun-seol remained curled up, refusing to eat.
—"Does it look unappetizing? Or do you dislike noodles?"
At Bu Jan-yang's question, Bu Eun-seol lowered his head.
—"You'll change anyway."
—"What?"
—"Everyone was like that. Every single person who tried to help me."
The young Bu Eun-seol lowered his head.
—"And then they became unhappy."
Bu Jan-yang, who had been silently watching him, saw through his frozen heart and spoke.
—"Do you believe you're the source of misfortune? That others suffer because of you?"
He sighed.
—"There's no such thing as a cursed fate in this world. Only a fate that carries a heavier burden than others."
His gaze softened as he looked at the huddled boy.
—"If you truly possess a unique energy that affects those around you—
Your duty isn't to curse it and hide. No—you must master it, turn it into something beneficial."
When Bu Eun-seol lifted his head, Bu Jan-yang met his eyes with warmth.
—"Don't fear it. Don't run from it. Seize the fate given to you with your own hands—cultivate the strength to live in this world your way."
Then, smiling, he added—
—"This old man will help you do just that."
—"Then... what should I do?"
Bu Eun-seol's large eyes blinked as he asked.
Bu Jan-yang, finding him endearing, burst into a hearty laugh and pointed at the food.
—"First, eat until you're full. You'll need strength, won't you?"
Snapping out of the memory, Bu Eun-seol clenched his fists.
What his grandfather had taught him about life was this—
If there was misfortune, he had to master it—turn it into something good.
Then, the energy of life was no different.
He had to control the negative energy—transform it into something righteous.
Huuung— FWOOOOOSH!
A new form of the Heavenly Light Endless Art erupted from Bu Eun-seol's body, fueled by his newfound realization.
He grinned.
In that instant, a dazzling golden light burst from his pupils.
As if his very existence had become the sun itself, it erased the shadows of the Black Divine beings upon the earth.