Chapter 146
Seong-ryun recognized the identity of the gray-clad man at a glance.
"The Ten Demonic Heir from White Horse Monastery."
At Seong-ryun's question, the gray-clad man—Yu Un-ryong—nodded.
"And you must be Seong-ryun of the Beggars' Sect."
"Correct."
"How absurd."
Seong-ryun blinked, then let out a scornful laugh.
"The same Ten Demonic Heir who fled with his tail between his legs after being defeated by Pyeong Seo-un now dares to challenge me?"
True to his origins in the Beggars' Sect, his sharp words were already unsettling Yu Un-ryong's composure.
"Heh heh heh."
In the past, Yu Un-ryong would have flared up and struck first without hesitation.
But the Yu Un-ryong who had clawed his way back from death was no longer the arrogant Ten Demonic Heir who let his emotions rule him.
"What matters is that I survived that battle."
At Yu Un-ryong's words, Seong-ryun's smirk faded.
Surviving a life-or-death battle against a Great Righteous Expert—such an experience would bring tremendous benefits to any martial artist.
And if that were the case, his skills must have improved by leaps and bounds in the meantime.
"I see. So you do have the qualifications to face me."
Seong-ryun glanced at his own hands, then casually spread one arm wide.
"Make the first move."
Yu Un-ryong gripped the White Horse Whip with a solemn expression.
Seong-ryun's ease and superiority didn't stem from arrogance—he simply had the strength to back it up, and Yu Un-ryong could feel that truth in his bones.
'Every last one of them is a monster.'
As the word "monster" left his lips, Bu Eun-seol's face abruptly surfaced in his mind.
With features so beautiful they could rival a peerless maiden, yet something indescribable—something monstrous—seemed to lurk beneath that flawless exterior.
'Compared to him, this man is nothing.'
Yu Un-ryong's ultimate goal was the Heir of the Demon Hall.
To reach that pinnacle, he had to overcome this trial and even bring down Bu Eun-seol himself.
Whoosh.
But then, with a sharp sound of tearing air, five shadows descended from the sky behind Seong-ryun.
Clad in tattered robes, their entire bodies radiated an overwhelming presence like Mount Tai, and at their waists hung bluish-green long staffs.
They were none other than the masters of the Killing Dog Squad.
"Step aside, Junior Martial Brother."
The leader of the assembled Killing Dog Squad, U Gang, stepped forward and spoke to Seong-ryun.
"We'll handle this one."
"No need."
Seong-ryun shook his head with an easygoing smile.
"I can deal with him just fine."
"I know. But these so-called Ten Demonic Heirs are demonkin who've inherited the cruel martial arts of the Demonic Path Ten Gates."
U Gang shook his head gravely.
"You're the future pillar of our sect. If you were to get injured..."
His words trailed off unfinished.
Tsk-tsk-tsk-tsk.
A strange sound of splitting air echoed as a man with a rusted sword strapped to his back materialized midair. Bu Eun-seol.
"You—?"
Before U Gang could finish his question, Bu Eun-seol struck without another word—a single fist aimed straight at him.
Though the motion seemed almost casual, a storm-like surge of fist energy erupted.
In the end, U Gang and the four other squad members had no choice but to hastily retreat.
"Who the hell are you?!"
At U Gang's shout, Bu Eun-seol replied coldly.
"None of your concern."
For a moment, U Gang wore a bewildered expression before sneering as his gaze flicked between Yu Un-ryong and Bu Eun-seol.
"Planning to gang up on one, are you?"
"That sounds more like your style."
At Bu Eun-seol's retort, U Gang responded shamelessly.
"Junior Martial Brother Seong is the Green Bamboo Beggar, destined to lead the Beggars' Sect. There's no need for him to dirty his hands against demonic scum like you."
"So even beggars discriminate against people now?"
Despite Bu Eun-seol's mocking tone, the look in U Gang's eyes remained unchanged.
"Call it the privilege of status."
"Privilege, is it?"
Bu Eun-seol slowly extended his right fist.
A faint glow flickered around his knuckles. As his formidable internal energy surged, the flow of his true qi became visible to the naked eye.
"Let's see if that privilege lasts beyond death."
As killing intent billowed from Bu Eun-seol's body, U Gang barked an order.
"Attack!"
The Killing Dog Squad members behind him stepped forward as if they'd been waiting, unleashing their fist techniques.
Swish!
Fist winds from four different directions simultaneously tore into Bu Eun-seol, threatening to shatter his bones.
It was the Beggars' Sect's renowned Jade-Shattering Fist—a technique said to split jade boulders with a single light strike.
CRACK!
As Bu Eun-seol thrust his fist forward, a surge of fist energy began pushing back against the Jade-Shattering Fist force raining down from all directions.
This was the exquisite power of First Appearance of the Fist Demon.
"What...is that?"
U Gang's eyes widened as he watched.
To block the Jade-Shattering Fist unleashed by four fighters simultaneously, one needed either equal force to repel it or four consecutive martial forms executed in rapid succession.
Yet Bu Eun-seol was miraculously blocking the combined power of four fighters with a single fist strike?
'Such a fist technique exists...'
The fist energy Bu Eun-seol unleashed not only changed directions freely like materialized sword qi, but maintained its destructive power throughout.
'Only overwhelming internal energy could make such a technique possible.'
Realizing Bu Eun-seol's fist technique wasn't just bizarre but backed by formidable internal energy, U Gang stepped forward.
"Fall back. I'll handle this myself!"
Striding decisively toward Bu Eun-seol, he whirled his fists like windmill blades, unleashing his own fist technique.
True to his role as leader of the Dog Slaying Squad, U Gang's Jade-Shattering Fist carried vastly greater power than what the four fighters had displayed earlier.
WHOOSH! SWISH!
As their techniques collided, the distance between them rapidly closed.
Before they knew it, they were exchanging blows at a proximity where each could clearly see the other's face.
In pure fist technique, Bu Eun-seol held a slight edge.
But U Gang was a master who had honed the Jade-Shattering Fist for thirty years—compensating for any power deficiency by deploying subtle forms with perfect timing.
'Between Senior Brother U and the four squad members, they shouldn't lose at the very least.'
From a distance, Seong-ryun turned his head toward Yu Un-ryong as he observed Bu Eun-seol and U Gang's battle.
"Shall we relocate elsewhere then?"
At Seong-ryun's words, Yu Un-ryong's lips curled into a smile brimming with killing intent.
The moment for their one-on-one duel had finally arrived.
"Agreed."
As Seong-ryun shot skyward, Yu Un-ryong instantly followed.
The two soon streaked across Yeongpung Gorge like twin comets before landing in a reed field.
Seong-ryun halted his Lightness Art upon finding the moonlit reeds.
"This place will do."
Yu Un-ryong stepped forward slowly, advancing about twenty paces before stopping.
An ordinary whip's effective range was thirty feet.
But the White Horse Whip could extend up to sixty feet when needed, or be wielded as short as a longsword.
Well aware of this, Seong-ryun recognized this twenty-pace distance as Yu Un-ryong's preferred range.
'So this is his favored engagement distance.'
FWHIP!
With a sound like tearing silk, a white whip lashed toward Seong-ryun's brow like a striking serpent.
Had he been an ordinary master, this single strike would have pierced straight through his forehead.
SNAP!
But Seong-ryun's reflexes were lightning-fast.
Twisting his body to evade the White Horse Whip, he traced a circle with one hand—unleashing the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, one of the Beggars' Sect's two supreme arts alongside the Dog-Beating Staff Technique.
As overwhelming palm energy surged forth, Yu Un-ryong instantly retracted his whip, spinning it like a top.
The Dragon-Subduing Palm, being the pinnacle of external martial arts, grew stronger when met head-on.
Yu Un-ryong circled Seong-ryun continuously, dispersing the palm energy while seeking an opening.
"Since when did the White Horse Whip's techniques become so passive?"
Seong-ryun chuckled hoarsely as he unleashed consecutive palm strikes with both hands.
Though seemingly playful, these palm techniques contained the heaviest and most profound form of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms—Riding Six Dragons.
"Hup!"
With a short exhalation, Yu Un-ryong flicked his wrist—suddenly splitting the White Horse Whip into three strands that struck the palm energy head-on.
CRACK!
The whip tore through the air, instantly dispersing the palm force as Yu Un-ryong retreated another ten feet.
Finding Seong-ryun's palm techniques fiercer and sharper than anticipated, he sought to regain his whip's advantage through distance.
"Retreating won't help you."
Seong-ryun whistled as he swung both palms erratically once more.
Dust instantly billowed from all directions as invisible palm energy rained down like arrows—the exquisite Treading on Frost and Ice form of the Dragon-Subduing Palm.
"Hmph."
Yu Un-ryong let out a short, derisive snort as he retreated once more, his footwork fluid.
He had anticipated that if he neutralized the palm technique and counterattacked, Seong-ryun would immediately close the distance again.
"You're the cautious type, I see."
Seong-ryun knew Yu Un-ryong was deliberately holding back, searching for openings in his palm techniques.
"Or has the White Horse Monastery's trickery changed?"
The true terror of the White Horse Whip Art wasn't just that it defied the limitations of a whip as a weapon.
The real problem was that every single one of its techniques preemptively dominated the opponent's space, leaving no room for retaliation.
Yet Yu Un-ryong was doing the exact opposite—constantly defending and retreating.
"I see your plan, but it's about time we ended this!"
Crack.
As if drawing his internal energy to its absolute limit, the sound of bones shifting echoed from Seong-ryun's body.
He was preparing to unleash Proud Dragon Repents—the pinnacle of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, its most devastating technique.
Thwip!
With a sound like bamboo bending and snapping back, a massive, circular wave of palm energy surged toward Yu Un-ryong.
Flash!
At that moment, a glint of light flickered in Yu Un-ryong's eyes. Simultaneously, his body shot forward like an arrow, crashing straight into the oncoming force.
Sssshhk!
Astonishingly, when the Proud Dragon Repents struck his body, it didn't land squarely—instead, it slid off him as if glancing away.
"What—?"
Seong-ryun's voice sharpened with urgency.
Through the torn fabric of Yu Un-ryong's robes, the White Horse Whip could be seen coiled tightly around his body.
Like a hidden layer of armor, the whip had been wrapped around him from head to toe.
This was the Whip-Protecting Garment—a technique only possible for those who had mastered the White Horse Heart Art, the highest internal art of the White Horse Monastery.
Whoosh!
Panicked, Seong-ryun unleashed three consecutive palm strikes.
Blades of dragon-subduing force rained down, yet each one still skidded off Yu Un-ryong's body as if repelled by an invisible layer.
It was this very technique that had allowed him to survive the Seven Injuries Palm of Pyeong Seo-un, the Great Righteous Expert of the Kongtong Sect.
Whiiing—CRACKLE!
Breaking through Seong-ryun's assault, Yu Un-ryong closed the distance in an instant—and from his body, hundreds of whip shadows erupted like a storm of arrows.
A blizzard of white lashes swallowed Seong-ryun whole, as if an avalanche had crashed down upon him.
BOOOOM!
When the dust settled, Seong-ryun was crouched low, his body battered.
The Whip-Protecting Garment had done its work—his body was torn, bruises blooming across his skin.
"So this was your strategy... Clever."
"Don't get cocky!"
Seizing the momentum, Yu Un-ryong twisted his body in reverse—and once again, the White Horse Whip wrapped around his body once more, sending hundreds of whip shadows lashing outward.
A variation of the Whip-Protecting Garment.
"If you've unwrapped the whip, you'll have to wrap it again. I already saw through that move!"
A fierce light blazed from Seong-ryun's right hand.
At the same time, he slashed his left palm like a blade straight into the whip storm.
SHWIIING!
Like water splitting before a sword, the tempest of lashes parted—revealing Yu Un-ryong within.
Because he had not expended all his power in the Subduing Dragon Palm, his hand had hardened like steel—as if he had trained in the Heavenly Dipper Hand.
"Farewell."
Simultaneously, five distinct palm shadows formed in his right hand.
This was Impermanence of Up and Down—a rarely seen technique in the martial world.
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!
Yu Un-ryong was struck five times in succession, sent stumbling back five steps.
Though the Whip-Protecting Garment shielded his body, it couldn't fully block the five streams of internal energy Seong-ryun had unleashed.
Drip.
A thin trail of blood escaped from Yu Un-ryong's tightly pressed lips.
A single exchange—and yet, his heart meridian trembled as if on the verge of snapping. The internal damage was severe.
"Impressive skill... but tricks like that won't defeat me."
Seong-ryun's Subduing Dragon Palm was nearly the perfect counter to Yu Un-ryong's White Horse Whip Art.
Not only that, the gap in their martial prowess was vast—Seong-ryun had already seen through Yu Un-ryong's trump card.
"Ghk—"
Yu Un-ryong, now on one knee, tried to rise and swing his whip again as Seong-ryun approached with solemn gravity.
But his qi vessels had been shaken by Seong-ryun's energy—his body paralyzed as if the Demon Blood Point had been struck.
Seong-ryun raised his palm, expression unreadable.
"This is the end."
Without hesitation, he swung down—straight for Yu Un-ryong's skull.