Chapter 1156
—KRRRAAAH!
—UUUAAAGH!
Three hundred elite soldiers of the Martial Soul Society, clad in wanderer attire, charged forth on horseback with unstoppable momentum.
RUMBLE—
Like a black storm sweeping across the land, their advance split and shattered the ranks of the tens of thousands of troops invading the Beast Palace in the blink of an eye.
Though they rode horses, their martial prowess was so high and their Internal Power so overwhelming that they practically flew across the battlefield while still mounted.
SHWIIING—!
With the sound of splitting air that seemed to tear the heavens, their blades severed enemy necks even before their horses' hooves touched the ground.
SCHLICK! SWOOSH!
Bing Han-pung and his Ice River Vanguard unleashed martial techniques derived from the Glacier Thousand Streams Art, wielding extreme cold.
Every time their frost-colored energy split the air, enemy flesh froze white.
In an instant, the battlefield was engulfed in a blizzard.
BANG! CRACK!
Do Cheon-rin's Rogue Vanguard was even more ferocious.
They carved through the chaotic battlefield, pouring out blade energy like madmen.
With each slash, razor-sharp currents erupted, cleaving dozens of enemies apart at once.
As the enemy ranks collapsed, Noe Bi-hon's Swift Thunder Corps surged into the center with a deafening roar that seemed to split the sky.
Blinding lightning exploded from the tips of their spears, piercing straight through the battlefield.
Wherever the dazzling flashes passed, soldiers' bodies were split midair before crashing down.
It was as if bolts of thunder had been unleashed upon the earth.
The elite forces of the Martial Soul Society—
Like an army of death gods riding upon destruction—had turned the battlefield into hell in an instant.
—AAARGH!
Just then, amid a bloodcurdling scream, the head of the Divine Dragon Society Leader—who had been directing the battle formation—soared into the sky.
Dae Gu-hwi, who had been watching the scene, took a deep breath.
'Master... and even the unit leaders... all of them...'
"How did this happen?"
"As I told you—the lord has long been keeping a close eye on the situation Beyond the Frontier."
Bing Han-pung, leader of the Ice River Vanguard, was the palace lord of the North Sea Ice Palace, while Dae Gu-hwi was a successor of the Beast Palace.
For the sake of these two men—who had willingly left their sects to join the Martial Soul Society and aid him—Bu Eun-seol had constantly monitored the affairs and safety of both factions.
And when he recently detected unusual movements around the Beast Palace, he had already devised a way to shatter the impending crisis.
"So that's why."
Dae Gu-hwi wore an awkward expression.
"I wondered why you suddenly left for training."
When he had departed the Martial Soul Society, not a single person had come to see him off—he had simply left for training.
But that was because he had secretly coordinated with Dae Gu-hwi's departure for the Beast Palace.
He had covertly left the Central Plains to rendezvous with the Wanderer Unit, ensuring a flawless trail.
The moment it became known that the Martial Soul Society had intervened, this conflict could escalate into a full-blown war between the Central Plains alliance and the factions Beyond the Frontier.
"You should go now."
Heuk-pyo took out a pill from his robes—a Demon-Subduing Divine Pill.
"Thank you."
The moment he swallowed the pill, his depleted Internal Power and Thunder Essence Divine Qi surged back in an instant.
ZZZT—
As his Thunder Essence Divine Qi recovered, his minor wounds healed at a visible rate.
"Then."
Clasping his hands together, Dae Gu-hwi—
KWA-RUMBLE—!
—shot forward like a gale toward the direction of the Myriad Beasts Hall, accompanied by a tremor that shook heaven and earth.
Pushing the Thunder Essence Divine Qi flowing through his body to its limits, his fighting spirit and exhilaration began to rise.
Inside the Myriad Beasts Hall, flames, screams, the heat of battle, and the stench of blood filled the air.
'Dae Un-pung!'
Dae Gu-hwi bit his lip until it bled.
Though the heart of the Beast Palace—the Myriad Beasts Hall—had fallen, the mastermind behind this catastrophe, Dae Un-pung, was nowhere to be seen.
That cunning serpent was surely holed up somewhere deep and safe, completing his despicable scheme.
'If you lay a hand on the palace lord, I will never forgive you!'
ZZZT—
His rage manifested as crackling white lightning, continuously surging from his body as his true energy endlessly replenished.
BOOM—
Just then, a massive iron gate—approximately three feet thick—suddenly blocked his path.
Dae Un-pung, who had infiltrated the Myriad Beasts Hall first, had activated a mechanism the moment Dae Gu-hwi stepped inside.
But Dae Gu-hwi did not halt his Movement Technique.
'No time.'
ZZZT—
Fusing the destructive power of Beast Martial Arts with his Thunder Essence Divine Qi, he slammed straight into the iron gate.
KAAANG—!
With a deafening explosion like the roar of a beast, the gate was torn apart like paper, fragments scattering in all directions.
Finally, as he neared the palace lord's quarters—
He saw the forces of the Western Heaven Poison King Palace brutally cutting down the Beast Palace warriors defending the interior.
"Stop him!"
Spotting Dae Gu-hwi charging toward them, they immediately moved to intercept.
"Out of my way!"
Dae Gu-hwi's fingers curled into Tiger Claws, and from their tips, white Thunder Essence Divine Qi surged like blades.
Using his solidified Thunder Essence Divine Qi, he began severing the necks of the Poison People from the Western Heaven Poison King Palace.
His Thunder Essence Divine Qi surpassed even Noe Bi-hon's in his youth.
And now, he was combining the martial arts of the Thunderclap Gate with Beast Martial Arts—capable of tearing and shattering everything in its path.
CRACK! SPLAT!
Dozens of Poison People's heads soared into the air in an instant.
The sight of blood and flesh scattering through the air carried the majesty of a Martial God descending upon the battlefield.
"ARGH!"
"GAAAH!"
The invaders, staining the Myriad Beasts Hall with blood, were being torn apart under Dae Gu-hwi's hands like wet paper.
Though he had once been gentle by nature, there was no room for pity in his heart for them now.
A streak of lightning, he tore through the battlefield—ripping, crushing, and exploding everything in his path.
With every strike that combined Thunder Essence Divine Qi and Beast Martial Arts, heads flew and limbs were sent spinning into the void.
BOOM!
In a single breath, he shattered the enemy's defensive line, leaving behind a mountain of mangled corpses in his wake.
"Hmph!"
Finally reaching the heart of the Myriad Beasts Hall, a familiar battle cry struck his ears.
Amid the sea of enemies flooding his vision—
Far ahead, a massive, mountain-like shadow was struggling to hold its ground.
It was the Beast Palace Lord, Dae Gon.
And behind him...
'Dae Un-pung!'
Dae Gu-hwi's eyes burned crimson with fury.
Dae Un-pung was swinging his sword with practiced ease, as if valiantly defending the Palace Lord's back.
But Dae Gu-hwi's eyes could not be deceived.
'He's waiting for a chance to strike!'
Even as he fought, Dae Un-pung subtly moved his hand, quietly loosening a small leather pouch at his waist.
Then, a colorless, odorless poison mist began seeping toward Dae Gon's back.
It was the Extreme Poison of the Western Heaven Poison King Palace—the Ten Thousand Soul Silkworm's venom pouch.
And that venom was the final blow—pushing Dae Gon, already weakened by the Western Heaven's poison, past the point of no return.
"DAE UN-PUNG!"
At Dae Gu-hwi's roar, shaking the very heavens, Dae Un-pung's shoulders flinched.
Spotting Dae Gu-hwi carving a bloody path toward him, drenched in gore, panic and confusion flashed across his face.
'The plan's ruined!'
Losing all reason, he resorted to a final, desperate act.
"Palace Lord! It's Gu-hwi!"
He deliberately shouted loud enough for Dae Gon to hear.
"We must save him—quickly!"
Diverting Dae Gon's attention toward Dae Gu-hwi, he drove his sword—
Deep into the Palace Lord's gut.
THUNK!
A sickening sound of steel piercing flesh echoed.
THUD.
Dae Gon dropped to one knee.
Already exhausted from resisting the Extreme Poison for over two hours, this final betrayal was too much.
"DAE UN-PUNG—!"
A scream tore from Dae Gu-hwi's throat.
With a thunderous battle cry, he swept through the surrounding forces like a storm, charging straight for Dae Un-pung.
Seeing the enraged beast lunging at him, Dae Un-pung fearfully drew a dagger from his robes and slashed—
But there was no contest.
His blade shattered against Dae Gu-hwi's Thunder Essence Divine Qi, and in the next instant, Dae Gu-hwi's claws pierced straight through his spine.
CRUNCH.
With a grotesque snap, Dae Un-pung died before he could even blink.
A pitiful end for a traitor who had betrayed his father, his brothers, and overthrown the Beast Palace.
"Palace Lord!"
Dae Gu-hwi caught the collapsing Dae Gon with bloodied hands.
Tears welled in his eyes.
Once, he had thought his father heartless—but now, he knew the truth.
Even while poisoned for years, Dae Gon had endured in silence—
So that Dae Gu-hwi could pursue his ambitions in the Central Plains, free from the Beast Palace's burdens.
SHINK!
Instead of answering, Dae Gon gathered the last of his Internal Power and forced the sword lodged in his dantian out.
The blade shot free like an arrow, followed by a fountain of crimson blood.
TAP.
With practiced ease, he sealed his acupoints to stem the bleeding.
But his dantian was critically damaged—his Internal Energy scattering uncontrollably.
GASP.
As Dae Gon's face rapidly paled, Dae Gu-hwi tried to transfer his own energy—
But Dae Gon shook his head.
"Don't bother."
"Palace Lord—"
"No theatrics."
Even at death's door, the Beast Palace Lord's dignity remained unbroken.
"No amount of energy will heal this."
RUMBLE—!
But in that very moment, the enemies who had been biding their time surged forward like a tidal wave.
"You damned maggots!"
Dae Gu-hwi roared, unleashing Beast Martial Arts once more.
He mowed them down like autumn leaves—yet their numbers did not dwindle.
For every one he cut down, two more took their place.
Meanwhile, Dae Gon's ragged breaths grew weaker.
Just as despair threatened to swallow Dae Gu-hwi whole—
KABOOOM!
A pillar of white lightningshattered through the ceiling of the Myriad Beasts Hall.
Amid the blinding radiance, a towering figure stood imposingly.
Every enemy froze mid-charge under that overwhelming pressure.
Noe Bi-hon had finally arrived after fighting the forces that had disguised themselves as wanderers and surrounded the hall.
He slammed both palms against the floor,
Kwa-rurururuk.
A web of white lightning crackled across the ground.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The bolts pierced through the Bubbling Spring pressure points of the charging enemies, detonating every muscle in their legs.
"Gyaaah—!"
Those who screamed—
Tssss. Splorch.
—collapsed, writhing as white smoke billowed from their bodies.
Without a shred of mercy, he relentlessly channeled his Thunder Essence Divine Qi, incinerating them alive.
'Why...?'
Dae Gu-hwi, watching this unfold, was utterly bewildered.
They absolutely could not leave any trace of Central Plains sects intervening.
That was why even the disguised Wanderer Unit—high-level experts of the Martial Soul Society—had refrained from using their signature martial arts entirely.
So why was Thunder Essence Divine Qi being unleashed so blatantly now?
"It's the Thunder God!"
Not only were Poison People of the Western Heaven Poison King Palace still stationed inside Myriad Beasts Hall,
but the Black Blood Gang had also erected an impenetrable defensive formation capable of repelling even an attack from a master like Noe Bi-hon.
"Deploy the battle formation!"
Oooong.
As the Black Blood Gang's formation solidified, a massive energy barrier spread outward, blocking the Thunder Essence Divine Qi from penetrating their bodies.
—Uuuugh... Aaaargh!
But then, something unexpected happened.
The Black Blood Gang troops, shielded by a barrier as solid as diamond,
suddenly began melting away with agonized screams.
Saint Among Poisons.
Only one who had reached the pinnacle of Poison People could wield such an extreme poison.
'So that's it.'
Finally, Dae Gu-hwi understood why Noe Bi-hon was unleashing his poison arts without restraint.
'The Society Lord has arrived.'
Because they intended to wipe out every last martial artist who had stepped into Myriad Beasts Hall,
Noe Bi-hon was free to unleash his True Void Absolute Art to its fullest.
"What the hell?!"
Un Cheong-gyo, lord of the Western Heaven Poison King Palace, widened his eyes in shock.
Myriad Beasts Hall was saturated with his Western Heaven's Bizarre Poison—
so how had it all vanished, leaving his Black Blood Gang allies to die from poisoning instead?
Splorch.
In the blink of an eye, half the Black Blood Gang's forces dissolved into liquid within their own formation.
"Lord Un!"
Baek Ryeong-hu, leader of the Black Blood Gang, shouted in panic.
"Why aren't you stopping those poison flames?!"
'Poison flames?'
Un Cheong-gyo's eyes bulged.
Where the hell were these so-called poison flames?
Zzzzzzzz.
Suddenly, his vision darkened, and a massive spider loomed over him, staring down with countless eyes.
It wasn't real—just a hallucination.
"I've been poisoned?"
Even if he had only just stepped into the threshold of the Saint Among Poisons realm, he was still a Saint Among Poisons.
He should have been able to neutralize any poison instantly. So how could he have been poisoned?
Sssssk.
Then, the enormous spider grinned at him before morphing into a dazzlingly handsome man clad in black robes.
Bu Eun-seol.
'That man...'
In that moment, Un Cheong-gyo recalled another legendary realm whispered in tales.
One that could endlessly create new poisons from the surrounding environment—
the Myriad Poison Sovereign, the Absolute Poison Emperor.
'He used my own poison as a foundation to create a new one... and poisoned me with it.'
Understanding everything, Un Cheong-gyo instead smiled.
If he was to die at the hands of someone who had recreated the realm Poison People dreamed of even in their sleep...
then he had no regrets.
'It wasn't that I was weak.'
Tzzzt.
Purple veins spread like spiderwebs across Un Cheong-gyo's body before—
Splurt.
—he liquefied into a puddle of blood in an instant.
"Lord Un!"
Just as Baek Ryeong-hu's eyes bulged in horror at the sight—
Zzzzt.
A shadow wreathed in violet lightning had already pressed a hand against his lower abdomen.
Bu Eun-seol.
"You dare—?!"
Furious, Baek Ryeong-hu immediately attempted to kick him away with the Viper's Strike stance.
And that... became his final struggle in this life.
Boom!
Baek Ryeong-hu's body exploded into chunks, scattering in all directions.
Thud. Splat.
Blood and viscera splattered across the hall.
Sploosh! Sploosh! Splaaash!
Simultaneously, the remaining troops inside burst apart or melted into bloody sludge.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
As if doused in Bone-Melting Powder.
Myriad Beasts Hall became a river of liquefied corpses.
Noe Bi-hon had deliberately provoked the enemy into gathering inside their defensive formation by unleashing his Thunder Essence Divine Qi.
And the moment they did, Bu Eun-seol flooded the formation with poison, annihilating them in seconds.
"Palace Lord."
Noe Bi-hon strode forward and bowed respectfully to Dae Gon.
With great effort, Dae Gon rose and returned the gesture.
"Master Noe."
Noe Bi-hon's official title was Commander of the Swift Thunder Corps.
But since he was Dae Gu-hwi's martial master and adoptive father, the honorific was used out of deep respect.
Squelch.
Bu Eun-seol emerged slowly from the sea of blood, having reduced every last soldier inside to crimson slurry.
He had rushed to Beast Palace alongside the Martial Soul Society's Four Great Commanders, disguised as an ordinary martial artist.
But knowing that the situation at Mansujeon had taken a dire turn, Noe Bi-hon and Bu Eun-seol had rushed here together.
"Lord."
"Palace Lord."
The two giants exchanged brief, respectful bows.
Heroes speak through their eyes.
A single shared glance conveyed volumes.
"Palace Lord!"
Only then did Dae Gu-hwi snap out of his daze, screaming as he rushed forward.
Bu Eun-seol spoke in a calm, low voice.
"It's alright."
Whoosh.
Immediately, he unleashed the power of the Saint Among Poisons, expelling the Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin that had been gnawing at Dae Gon's body.
'He's been poisoned for a long time.'
But the toxin had accumulated over such a prolonged period that expelling it completely was impossible.
Huuuuum.
In the end, Bu Eun-seol began drawing the Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin from Dae Gon's body into his own.
The Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin had been corroding Dae Gon's body for so long that, even with the power of the Saint Among Poisons, extracting all the accumulated poison in one go was an extremely difficult feat.
Yet Bu Eun-seol didn't expel the toxin—he absorbed it himself.
Because of this, even the lingering remnants of poison that had refused to leave now surged into his body in an instant.
Whoooosh.
As the Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin was absorbed, alternating flashes of pitch-black and snow-white light flickered in Bu Eun-seol's pupils.
With each new poison he absorbed, his mastery deepened further.
By taking in the Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin, he had leaped into yet another new realm—becoming the legendary Ancestor of Poisons, a figure spoken of only in myths.
Though he was not yet aware of it himself.
"Palace Lord. Take this."
He extended a jade vial shimmering with a luminous aura.
"It's a spirit medicine from the Cloud Sea Azure Spirit Palace, designed to restore your dantian and infuse you with fresh energy."
For years, the Cloud Sea Azure Spirit Palace had researched methods to heal destroyed dantians.
And now, they had finally condensed all their findings into a single, perfected elixir.
When Dae Gon took the vial, he first felt a chilling cold like ten-thousand-year ice, followed by a warm, life-giving energy like spring sprouts.
Exhaling roughly, he nodded with difficulty.
"I am grateful for the Lord's kindness."
He had always been blunt and taciturn, treating Bu Eun-seol like a junior in the past.
But now, his courtesy was nothing short of reverent.
Bu Eun-seol was not just the mentor who had guided Dae Gu-hwi and helped him leave his sect—he had also become a grandmaster of his generation, renowned not just in the Central Plains but even Beyond the Frontier.
Gulp.
The moment he swallowed the elixir—
Crack.
Something unexpected happened.
As soon as the medicine took effect, his skin split open, and from within, a soft glow began to rise.
Dae Gon's body had already been weakened by severe injuries and the poison's invasion, and after being struck by Dae Un-pung's blade, even his Internal Energy had scattered.
Now, with Bu Eun-seol absorbing the Western Heaven's Bizarre Toxin, his body had been left in a state of complete emptiness.
And when the spirit medicine entered him, not only did his body recover instantly—he had achieved Metamorphosis and Bone Renewal.
Huuuum.
As Dae Gon completed his Qi Circulation, his dark skin now shimmered with an eerie luster.
Not only had his body fully recovered, but his Internal Power had deepened even further.
"Thank you."
"Think nothing of it."
Bu Eun-seol smiled faintly.
"Are we not family?"
For a moment, Dae Gu-hwi trembled, overwhelmed by emotion.
And he wasn't the only one.
While training with the Shadow Spirit Hall's Lords, bickering with them, sharing meals, and fighting for Greater Righteousness under Bu Eun-seol's leadership—
Somewhere along the way, they had all come to feel like family.
Bu Eun-seol, the heaven-revered Absolute Grandmaster, was like an elder brother.
Noe Bi-hon was the kind-hearted uncle.
The Lords were the stern but dependable older uncles.
'I'm no longer alone.'
Once, he had thought that when everything was over, he would return to the Beast Palace and live out his days in solitude.
But that would never happen now.
Because they were all family.
"Palace Lord."
Just then, Bu Eun-seol tilted his head as he surveyed the blood-soaked wreckage of Mansujeon.
"There's something I still don't understand."
His gaze swept over Dae Un-pung's corpse and the shattered remnants of the invaders.
"What reason could they have had to form an alliance and stake their lives attacking the Beast Palace?"
The Beast Palace may have been the ruler of the Southern Barbarian Region, but it had never encroached upon the Central Plains or invaded other sects.
Yet these people had braved treacherous mountain terrain to invade a barren land with little to gain.
And there was another question.
How had young Dae Un-pung managed to persuade the warlords of various regions to join him in this?
Bu Eun-seol had investigated thoroughly while preparing for this confrontation, but beyond confirming that Dae Un-pung had allied with outside forces—
He had found no motive.
"The reason they attacked this palace..."
Then, breaking the silence, Dae Gon raised a trembling hand.
"...is because of this."
From the ornate necklace around his neck—adorned with the bones of countless beasts and dazzling gemstones—he carefully withdrew something.
Ssshhh.
Resting in his palm was an orb so radiant, so mystically luminous, it seemed impossible for human hands to have crafted it.
Even in the dim palace, the orb emitted its own light, its interior swirling with tens of thousands of colors like a living nebula.
"The Nine Heavens Radiant Cloud Pearl."
Bu Eun-seol and Noe Bi-hon's eyes widened simultaneously.
The reason they had dared death itself to invade the Beast Palace—
It was for this legendary treasure.