Chapter 1178
As the moonlight dimmed behind veils of clouds,
a splendid carriage drawn by snow-white Snow-Cluster Horses cut swiftly through the night air.
Outwardly, it appeared to be a merchant caravan's carriage.
But in truth, it carried the Family Head of the Namgung Clan, Namgung Jeong, returning to Yellow Mountain after the Martial Alliance's banquet.
Four martial artists flanked the carriage front and back, escorting it with Lightness Art as it raced through the darkness.
At the lead was an elderly man with a heavy longsword strapped to his back, while the rear was guarded by a sharp-eyed young man.
The elder at the front scanned the darkened path ahead, his fingertips occasionally brushing the hilt of the sword at his waist.
This was no mere habit—it was a covert signal to his companions.
Should any unforeseen danger arise, the four martial artists were prepared to instantly form a square formation around the carriage.
The coachman, too, wore plain attire, but his gaze was razor-sharp. Not a single shadow in the woods or the faintest tremor of a blade of grass escaped his notice.
Though dressed as a mere driver,
he was in fact Namgung Gwang, master of the Namgung Clan's Great Expansion Hall, known as "Thousand-Mile Threshold."
Inside the carriage, Namgung Jeong sat with his eyes closed, quietly regulating his breath—
yet his extrasensory perception detected every fluctuation of energy outside:
the horses' hooves, the shifting winds, even the breathing of his guards, all pulsing like a single heartbeat.
'This is just right.'
Leaders representing major sects and clans always traveled with ceremonial guards and security protocols to maintain their dignity and safety.
The Namgung Clan, in particular, was secretly shadowed during journeys by the Azure Sky Unit, an elite guard composed of their finest warriors.
But some time ago, Namgung Jeong had reassigned the Azure Sky Unit to the Information Warfare Unit.
The battles of the current martial world were, in essence, battles of intelligence.
Rather than having such exceptional elites constantly trailing him as bodyguards,
he judged it far more beneficial for the Namgung Clan's survival to deploy them as intelligence operatives, monitoring the movements of other factions and handling classified matters.
Thus, the Azure Sky Unit had now become the unseen eyes and ears safeguarding the Namgung Clan.
Of course, this was a closely guarded secret—and even if others knew, none would dare lay a hand on the Family Head of the Namgung Clan, the foremost of the Eight Great Families.
Clack-clack.
Outside the carriage, the moonlit road stretched silently, the wind bitingly cold.
"The Buddhist Venerable cannot be called a Holy Monk."
Namgung Jeong's brow furrowed as he mulled over his thoughts.
In truth, he was well aware that the recent invasion from Beyond the Frontier and the rise of the Four Great Wicked Lands were staged performances to unite the Martial Alliance.
When forces from Beyond the Frontier stirred,
not only the Martial Alliance but every intelligence organization would detect the signs well in advance.
Even if they somehow managed to evade all eyes and ears and launch a surprise attack,
the fact that the Martial Alliance—barely recovered from internal fractures—had instantly formed the Righteous Path Coalition and deployed the Eight Routes Army with flawless countermeasures...
was something not even Zhuge Liang reborn could have pulled off.
"We had no choice but to pretend ignorance."
The incident of the Martial Venerable's false leadership.
It was an unprecedented disgrace in the history of the orthodox Martial Alliance.
Because of it, the righteous factions could no longer trust the Alliance,
and Baek Mu-seong, newly elected as Alliance Chief, found himself in a position where he couldn't even maintain his authority.
If this chaos wasn't resolved immediately?
The Martial Alliance—the very core of the orthodox martial world—would collapse in an instant.
In the end, Baek Mu-seong invoked the Phoenix Decree, a power never before used,
and brought forth the Buddhist Venerable, a legend of the orthodox path,
appointing him as Phoenix Lord while secretly mobilizing the forces from Beyond the Frontier to stage an invasion.
Then, by swiftly establishing the Righteous Path Coalition, he created an opportunity to rally the orthodox factions—
breathing life back into a Martial Alliance that had seemed beyond salvation.
"There was no other way."
Even if Namgung Jeong had been in Baek Mu-seong's position, he would have made the same choice.
There simply was no other method
to restore the Alliance's shattered prestige and mend its fractured internal state.
Thus, Namgung Jeong and the other orthodox leaders,
though fully aware this was all an elaborately staged play,
could not stand by and watch the heart of the orthodox path crumble.
And so, despite knowing the truth, they joined the Coalition.
"No—it wasn't just a play. It was a flawless resurrection, too perfectly executed to be called mere theater."
After all, the forces from Beyond the Frontier had truly invaded.
The Buddhist Venerable—a legend of the orthodox path—had become the Phoenix Lord and formed the Righteous Path Coalition, while Alliance Chief Baek Mu-seong commanded with flawless precision.
No other figure in the orthodox martial world
could have revived the Martial Alliance so perfectly.
"And yet..."
Still, Namgung Jeong couldn't shake off three lingering doubts.
"With the Buddhist Venerable's prestige, they could have gradually calmed the Martial Alliance's internal chaos over time—without needing to mobilize forces from Beyond the Frontier."
The reason he was called a living legend wasn't simply because his martial arts were strong or because he had lived long.
It was because, as an elder of the righteous faction, he had resolved countless problems and guided people with unwavering righteousness.
Moreover, now that he had become the Phoenix Leader, inheriting the full authority of the alliance leader...
Had he taken his time, he could have perfectly mended the fractures within the Martial Alliance.
"Even if Alliance Leader Baek had proposed such a plan, it would have been normal for him to refuse."
If it truly was the famously benevolent Buddhist Venerable...
There was no way he would have agreed to a scheme that mobilized forces from Beyond the Frontier to suppress the chaos in one fell swoop.
"Moreover..."
Judging by how multiple forces from Beyond the Frontier had been mobilized simultaneously to invade the Central Plains...
Baek Mu-seong—no, the Martial Alliance—must have had long-standing connections with those forces.
If so, there must have been a grander plan in place. Yet, to waste those forces so pointlessly just to quell the Martial Alliance's internal strife?
"Did the plan change midway? But why?"
Just as Namgung Jeong was lost in deep contemplation—
BOOOOM.
A tremor, as if the earth itself were shaking, resounded from the distant sky.
[What is happening?]
Namgung Jeong sent a Voice Transmission, and the leader of the Wind Guard, who had been escorting the carriage on the left flank, immediately responded.
[I will investigate at once.]
In an instant, he shot into the sky and vanished from the formation.
But even after a long while, he did not return.
Not only that—the presences of the martial artists guarding the carriage were disappearing one by one.
"Hah."
Letting out a deep sigh, Namgung Jeong spoke in a low voice to Namgung Gwang.
"Halt the carriage."
The swiftly moving carriage came to an immediate stop. Namgung Jeong stepped outside and surveyed his surroundings.
The night sky had already been dyed an eerie blue, and the area was enclosed by a transparent barrier.
Something was clearly amiss.
"Leave the carriage and escape first. Head to Chengdu and immediately issue the Boundless Order."
"Family Head—"
"Now."
At Namgung Jeong's stern command, Namgung Gwang had no choice but to bow before activating his Movement Technique and swiftly disappearing into the forest.
Whoosh.
Meanwhile, the sky seemed to invert—his vision twisted, and before he knew it, the ground had transformed into a flat, icy-blue surface.
In the next moment, a masked figure erupted from the ground, appearing before Namgung Jeong as if sprouting from the earth itself.
"How peculiar."
Namgung Jeong showed no surprise at the masked man's appearance. Instead, he spoke leisurely.
"To attempt an assassination the moment we leave Henan? Isn't this far too blatant a reveal of your identity?"
Since the Martial Alliance had invited him, they were responsible for his escort within Henan.
But to ambush him the moment he left...
Meant they had tracked his movements perfectly from the start.
In other words, it was highly likely the Martial Alliance itself was behind this.
Shhhhk.
The masked man abruptly extended his right hand.
No words—just a clear declaration of intent to attack.
"That's fine too."
Namgung Jeong clasped his hands behind his back and raised a single palm.
"Then let us begin."
His smooth, composed movements perfectly embodied the demeanor of a grandmaster who had reached the pinnacle of internal energy cultivation—Reaching the Summit.
Swish.
But instead of attacking, the masked man performed a bizarre motion.
Rather than drawing a weapon, he gripped his own outstretched right wrist with his left hand.
And then—something strange happened.
Creak...
His extended right arm began rotating slowly, like a wagon wheel, spinning in place.
"So, you're using the Art of Spells."
Sensing the masked man's attempt at sorcery, Namgung Jeong immediately unleashed a finger sword to sever the wrist.
Zzzzing!
But the moment his finger sword made contact—
An inexplicable resonance echoed in all directions.
His vision darkened, and the surrounding scenery began to vanish.
The masked man knew he couldn't face Namgung Jeong head-on—so he had prepared an unorthodox method from the start.
"Then I'll simply destroy everything."
Clicking his tongue, Namgung Jeong drew the Golden Needle Sword from his waist.
His Emperor Sword Form had reached the Twelfth Star Realm—capable of annihilating all martial arts in the world, and even suppressing the power of spells and supernatural abilities.
Goooooo.
The vertically poised Golden Needle Sword began drawing in all the air within roughly thirty-five yards.
Just as the Namgung Family's Heavenly Outer Absolute Art was about to manifest—
"Darling."
A voice he could never forget, even in his dreams, echoed from behind Namgung Jeong.
Turning his head slightly, his eyes trembled at the unbelievable sight before him.
His wife—who had passed away after failing to endure the pains of childbirth—stood there.
Seol-ran, whom he had longed to see for so long.
Namgung Jeong, whose unshakable Spirit and Mind had been forged through years of discipline, who had never once lost his composure—now found himself faltering.
But when the wife he had yearned for and cherished so dearly all these decades
appeared before him in a form indistinguishable from reality, he finally crumbled.
"Lan Mei!"
Discarding all dignity, Namgung Jeong rushed toward her in a frenzy.
Though his swordsmanship—honed through decades of immersion in the Sword Path—had reached the pinnacle of Reaching the Summit, granting him unshakable composure in any situation...
His deep love and longing for his wife had never faded with time.
If anything, even twenty years after their parting, that love had only grown more profound.
Hadn't it been precisely because he had hidden that love, that sincerity, that Namgung Un—a genius since childhood—had grown twisted and become a brat?
Yet those who knew this truth were few—
only some of the Namgung Family's Elders, and Namgung Un himself, who had realized it too late.
"Lan Mei!"
"Darling."
Snow Orchid gazed at Namgung Jeong with sorrowful eyes.
"I pleaded with you so earnestly. Why are you still unable to forget me, and suffering because of it?"
"How could I ever...?"
Namgung Jeong wept like a child, tears scalding his cheeks.
"...forget you?"
He had missed her so desperately.
Yet at some point, she had stopped appearing even in his dreams.
Unaware of his father's heart,
the young, wayward Namgung Un had secretly shattered the porcelain vase his mother had treasured.
Each time, Namgung Jeong had painstakingly pieced the shards back together, shedding tears of unbearable longing.
And now, that very wife had returned before his eyes?
"I've only ever brought you pain."
"Don't say such things."
At his wife's tender voice, Namgung Jeong forced a smile through his anguish.
"I couldn't follow you because I was consumed by the thought of raising Un properly. But now that he's grown, and the family is stable..."
Namgung Un had not only inherited the greatest talent in the Namgung Family's history—he was the very image of his beloved wife.
For that reason, Namgung Jeong had suppressed his own desire to join her, clinging solely to the resolve to refine his son.
But facing her now, that long-restrained yearning erupted uncontrollably.
"I have no regrets left."
Without hesitation, he pressed the Golden Needle Sword against his own throat.
Living had been nothing but agony.
His wife had been his everything—his reason for existence.
Every breath, every meal, every martial arts training session... had been solely for the sake of living happily with her.
The moment she succumbed to childbirth and drew her last breath, his world had shattered completely.
Zzziiing—
But then, the surroundings trembled as a hazy mist spread.
Simultaneously, a faint metallic sound and distant shouts echoed from somewhere.
Namgung Jeong paid no heed.
He had known from the start that this was the Mindscape.
Yet he hadn't resisted—
because seeing his wife's face, vivid as reality, made him realize just how long he had been forcing himself to endure.
"Lan Mei. Let us reunite in the afterlife."
Namgung Jeong tightened his grip on the Golden Needle Sword.
Even if the heavens collapsed, this resolve would not waver.
But in that instant—
—Do not touch the Family Head!
A thunderous roar split the distant sky.
Namgung Jeong's pupils trembled.
Clang! Clang-clang!
With a metallic clamor, the scenery around him began to shake violently.
Turning his head, he saw a man in blue robes locked in fierce combat with masked figures deep within the mist.
Each flick of his slender sword tore through the air, leaving behind azure Sword Trajectories.
Though his face was obscured, Namgung Jeong recognized him instantly—
Namgung Un.
Ah...
For a moment, he had forgotten.
His wife's final wish.
On her deathbed, Snow Orchid had foreseen that if she died, Namgung Jeong would be unable to bear the grief and take his own life.
So she had entrusted the midwife with these words:
"Tell him to give this child everything he once gave me.
Let the hand that combed my hair now comb this child's.
Sing to him the lullabies you sang to me. Hold his hand as you once held mine.
Then, instead of choosing death in longing for me, my husband will feel my presence through this child—and live on."
Snow Orchid had hoped that by transferring every affection, every habit Namgung Jeong had showered upon her onto their son,
that pure, unwavering love would be preserved in the boy.
She wanted each moment of care, each memory, to remain not as sorrow—but as love.
A final, bittersweet plea—wise and desperate—for him to endure and live.
Yet at some point, Namgung Jeong had forgotten that plea.
He had only wished to raise Namgung Un harshly into the Family Head as quickly as possible, so he could reunite with his wife in death.
But now, seeing Namgung Un appear before him—
Suddenly, those final words resurfaced in his mind.
'I still haven't conveyed Ran-mae's love to Un.'
If he were to leave like this...
He wouldn't even have the face to look upon his wife in the afterlife.
Flash!
Finally regaining his clarity, Namgung Jeong's eyes blazed with divine light.
And in that instant, the scenery transformed.
"This is—"
The visage of his beloved wife vanished without a trace, replaced by grotesque, twisted tree trunks that coiled around his body.
Beside him, the Masked Man—who had been idly rotating his wrist—now stared at Namgung Jeong with startled eyes.
"To shatter a Fifth Layer Mindscape of Phase Integers... on his own...?"
The figure of his wife until now...
Had been a high-tier Mindscape, indistinguishable from reality itself.
"It wasn't by my own power."
Namgung Jeong exhaled heavily.
"Had it not been for Un... I would never have awakened."
Namgung Un was the last light left behind by the wife he cherished.
Only he could illuminate Namgung Jeong's clouded heart and guide him back.
"Either way, you're still going to die!"
The Masked Man drew the sword strapped to his back, his eyes seething with malice.
With the tree roots digging into his pressure points, Namgung Jeong couldn't move a muscle.
Sshhk!
Yet the impossible happened.
A crimson Blood Line abruptly traced across the Masked Man's throat.
Residual Momentum, Forged Anew.
Though his pressure points were pinned by the branches...
Namgung Jeong had harnessed the lingering remnants of the Emperor Sword Form he had unleashed earlier.
From that fading ember of power, he ignited another Sword Stroke.
A Heaven-Severing Sword Art—one that could only be executed by refining the Emperor Sword Form to the Great Origin Realm.
"A Sword Studies... bordering on Divine Skill."
With those final words, the Masked Man's head tumbled to the ground.
Thud.
As the assassin died, the branches withered like severed ropes, crumbling lifelessly.
"A Black Forest Cult occultist..."
Namgung Jeong sighed.
"What an audacious scheme."
That remnants of the defeated Forces from Beyond the Frontier would nurse their hatred and plot such an assassination—no one would doubt it.
"Every trace must have been perfectly fabricated."
Even if this ambush failed...
Neither the Buddhist Venerable nor Baek Mu-seong's prestige would suffer the slightest blemish.
Rather, it would provide grounds to condemn the Forces from Beyond the Frontier's vile methods and maintain the Righteous Alliance.
"But more importantly..."
Though freed from his restraints, Namgung Jeong crossed his arms leisurely.
Namgung Un was fighting too splendidly against the remaining Masked Men.
"When did he refine such swordplay...?"
Thanks to the Tassel obtained from the Three Pure Realms elder, Namgung Un had been able to learn diverse sword techniques scattered across the land.
And before he knew it, he had reached the Swordless realm—where his power remained undiminished, whether he wielded a blade or not.
Slash!Slice!Cleave!
In one breath, Namgung Un beheaded twenty Masked Men before sprinting frantically toward Namgung Jeong.
"Father!"
Namgung Jeong gazed at his son and smiled faintly.
"Your swordsmanship has improved greatly."
Then, surveying their surroundings, he asked:
"What exactly happened here?"
"Elder Brother—"
"I see."
The moment the word "Elder Brother" left his lips, Namgung Jeong pieced everything together and sighed.
Martial Soul Lord, Bu Eun-seol.
Though known as a ruthless Demonic Path grandmaster, he was, in truth, a strategist who managed the world's affairs...
And ceaselessly watched over those under his care.
As the leader of the Namgung Family...
Namgung Jeong had never owed a single debt to anyone—yet now, he found himself indebted to this man twice.
"But why did you come alone?"
Namgung Jeong frowned in puzzlement.
If they had anticipated this ambush, shouldn't the Namgung Family's formidable Sword Unit have accompanied him?
Why had Namgung Un recklessly charged in by himself?
"Well—"
Just as Namgung Un hesitated—
Whoosh...
The forest mist abruptly dissipated, revealing over two hundred Masked Men wielding sharp sickles.
A second assassination squad, prepared in case the Mindscape failed.
"He said... it would be a valuable experience for both me and the Family Head."
"What?"
"These men will undoubtedly employ methods to ensure the Family Head's death—swift, covert, and executed by only a handful."
Namgung Jeong nodded.
Mobilizing a large force would expose their movements to intelligence networks beforehand...
And even if the ambush succeeded, their tracks might be uncovered later.
"And?"
When he pressed further, Namgung Un lowered his head awkwardly.
"If the Family Head has perfected the Emperor Sword Form, he won't die to an ambush. This is the perfect opportunity to break through the Breakthrough wall... caused by his lack of real combat experience."
Thud.
Namgung Jeong's jaw dropped.
He had already sensed that his Martial Arts had reached an extraordinary level, surpassing his own.
But to perceive that the gap was this vast...
To recognize that he was trapped behind an insurmountable wall, failing his Breakthrough—?