Chapter 171
They say that when humans face death, their entire life flashes before their eyes like a revolving lantern.
But what Hyeok So-jin saw was not his past life—instead, he saw himself riding crimson clouds, merrily crossing the River of Three Crossings.
'...I'm going to die!'
Snapping back to his senses in an instant, Hyeok So-jin flung his body to the left with all his might.
CRASH!
The fist energy of the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave grazed past him as he rolled across the ground, and with a thunderous roar, one side of the training ground's wall crumbled away.
RUMBLE—
The hall standing before it began collapsing entirely.
—Such fist techniques...
Not only Feng Yu-rang, who had been watching from behind, but even Hyeok Gong-baek's mouth fell open.
The single fist Bu Eun-seol had unleashed surpassed the destructive force any human could produce—it was as if dozens of cannons had been fired all at once.
WHOOSH—
The thick dust filling the training ground was swept away by a gust of wind.
"You moved."
Bu Eun-seol muttered indifferently as he withdrew his fist.
Hyeok So-jin, who should have remained standing tall at the center of the training ground, had shifted fifty feet to the left.
'This madman... he truly unleashed the True Void—!'
Just as Hyeok So-jin was about to shout in fury—
FSSHH—
His words died in his throat as he looked down at the shredded fabric of his shoulder, now reduced to drifting powder.
The range of the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave's fist energy Bu Eun-seol had unleashed was so vast that even after moving fifty feet, Hyeok So-jin hadn't fully escaped its reach.
'Is he truly unafraid of death?'
Hyeok So-jin glared at Bu Eun-seol.
If he gave the order now, the masters of Heaven-Severing, Earth-Destroying would swarm out and cut Bu Eun-seol to pieces.
"..."
Yet Bu Eun-seol stood there, unshaken, his expression serene as if nothing had happened.
'He's serious.'
A cold sweat trickled down Hyeok So-jin's forehead.
'To deflect a fist technique of this magnitude, my Divine-Rending Demonic Qi would need to reach at least the Seven Stars level.'
"Now I understand why you were so confident in your wager."
Clearing his throat, Hyeok So-jin forced a casual tone, masking his unease with bluster.
"Indeed... no one could possibly withstand this fist technique head-on, even if it's just the first form."
Shaking his head, he continued,
"No—if one could wield such a technique freely, there'd be no need to fight at all..."
But then, an unexpected remark spilled from Bu Eun-seol's lips.
"No need to worry. I won't be using this fist technique anymore."
"What do you mean?"
"The True Void should be something you can unleash freely, regardless of stance or situation. But this fist technique... I haven't refined it to that level yet."
Clapping his hands lightly, Bu Eun-seol spoke with an air of composure.
"Though I suppose a frog in a well wouldn't understand what I'm saying."
At that, Hyeok So-jin's body flinched.
He realized exactly what Bu Eun-seol was implying.
A frog in a well.
Hyeok So-jin, who had spent his days gazing coldly at the world, wasting his years in idleness.
While Bu Eun-seol progressed, he would not achieve a single step of growth.
"What does it matter to you how my martial arts fare?"
Hyeok So-jin's eyes flashed with anger as he spat out the words.
"Just because you've trained your martial arts a bit more diligently, you think you have the right to lecture me—?"
"I'm not here to lecture you."
A scorching heat, intense enough to melt steel, flowed from Bu Eun-seol's pupils.
"Prepare yourself."
"For what?"
"You lost the bet. Fulfill your promise."
SHIIING—
As the Ink Sword was drawn, the air in the training ground seemed to freeze over.
"No more childish wagers. A real fight."
At that moment, Hyeok So-jin's pupils trembled violently.
Because he realized—Bu Eun-seol truly intended to swing his sword at him.
'He's... serious.'
Hyeok So-jin could sense it instinctively.
Bu Eun-seol would fight in earnest, and if that happened, he would not walk away unscathed.
HUM—
A low sword resonance reverberated as ink-black sword qi surged about seven inches from the Ink Sword.
'He's materialized True Qi across the entire blade?!'
His perpetually half-lidded eyes flew wide open, as if tearing at the edges.
'His internal energy exceeds 120 years...?!'
Hyeok So-jin's internal energy was around a hundred years.
And that was only because he had consumed spirit medicine in place of meals since childhood, coupled with the Divine-Rending Demonic Qi's effect of enhancing qi circulation throughout the Twelve Double-Hours.
'I prided myself on not being inferior in internal energy to any successor of the Demonic Path Ten Gates...'
Hyeok So-jin gritted his teeth.
'With Divine-Rending Demonic Qi at the Three Stars level, I can't possibly block his attacks.'
Then, Bu Eun-seol's cold gaze bore down on him.
"From now on, I will unleash the True Void with my full power. Don't resent me for not warning you."
"Are you serious? You intend to cut me down? Right here at headquarters?"
"I've already discussed it with the Illusion Demon."
SHHK—
Pointing the Ink Sword at Hyeok So-jin's forehead, Bu Eun-seol spoke in a bone-chilling voice.
"I could cut you down a hundred times, and the Elder would never intervene."
"Nonsense. Let me ask Grandfather directly."
As Hyeok So-jin scoffed and tried to move—
Flash!
A thin blood line bloomed across his cheek in an instant.
"I told you to prepare."
Drip. Drip.
Hyeok So-jin's eyes widened as he watched scarlet droplets fall to the ground.
His life had been tediously repetitive.
He had long believed he wouldn't mind dying at any moment.
But now, faced with death, his mind went blank.
'Would I really die to a single stroke of his sword?'
He wasn't afraid. Only unjustly aggrieved.
Had he properly mastered the supreme art of Heaven-Severing, Earth-Destroying, the Divine-Rending Demonic Qi, he could have deflected such an attack effortlessly.
No—had he diligently trained even one of the hundreds of demonic arts swirling in his mind, he wouldn't be this helpless.
The life of a lazy genius.
In truth, it was less the life of a genius and closer to that of a fool.
"Wait!"
He couldn't die like this.
Hyeok So-jin thrust out a hand, desperation sharpening his voice.
"I've never seriously trained in martial arts until now!"
"And?"
"This isn't fair!"
"Ridiculous."
Bu Eun-seol's smile was glacial.
"Do you truly believe that, you trained hard from now on, you could stand against me?"
Then, his voice dropped lower.
"While you wasted your days here, I carved my bones through grueling pain, sacrificing sleep. I ventured into the Martial World and crossed blades with death itself."
"I just—"
"Because life was boring?"
A sneer curled Bu Eun-seol's lips.
"Those who truly have no attachment to life don't gamble. They swallow their suffering and endure each day."
Bu Eun-seol, who had witnessed countless lives and deaths, saw through Hyeok So-jin in an instant.
The man before him wasn't disillusioned with life—he was bored by it.
"That resentful look on your face... Fine."
Lowering the Ink Sword to the ground, Bu Eun-seol spoke coldly.
"Two years? Three? Name your time. If you wish to delay this fight, I'll allow it. But—"
He paused, locking eyes with Hyeok So-jin.
"In that time, I will grow even stronger on the path of the Martial World."
His next words were absolute.
"No matter what you do, you will never surpass me."
Hyeok So-jin's eyes flared wide.
A giant.
Bu Eun-seol stood before him like an unscaleable mountain, exuding an aura that made even looking up at him daunting.
'Was I truly a frog at the bottom of a well?'
Until now, Hyeok So-jin had believed no prodigy could surpass him.
Yet here stood a peerless genius of martial arts—one he could never overcome.
"Don't mock me!"
Gritting his teeth, Hyeok So-jin mustered his Internal Power once more.
Rumble—
In that instant, a razor-sharp energy erupted from Bu Eun-seol's body, and behind him, the phantom of a colossal sword flickered into view.
It was the momentum of one who had danced between life and death in countless blood-soaked battles.
'This man...'
Thud. Thud.
A true martial artist stood before him—one who had walked the Blood Path, his life balanced on the edge of a blade.
Unbeatable.
The moment Hyeok So-jin realized this, fear didn't seize him. Instead, a long-buried yearning ignited.
"I concede."
Hyeok So-jin bowed his head.
There was no room for pride left. He cleanly admitted defeat and clasped his hands in respect.
"For now."
A sharp glint flashed through his languid eyes.
"Later, I'll come find you. And then—we'll fight properly."
'He means to train seriously in martial arts.'
Click.
Bu Eun-seol nodded and sheathed the Ink Sword.
"Very well. I accept."
Straightening, Hyeok So-jin smirked.
"You'd better prepare. Once I master martial arts for real, I won't lose."
Then, as if remembering something, he clenched his fists and muttered darkly,
"Well... no matter how strong I get, I'll still just end up as the Sanctuary Master of Heaven-Severing, Earth-Destroying—stuck managing those old demonkin."
Only then did Bu Eun-seol understand the root of Hyeok So-jin's despair.
'His suffering came from the shackles of being the Heaven-Severing, Earth-Destroying successor.'
Whether he trained or not...
The pinnacle of Hyeok So-jin's fate was already set—the title of Sanctuary Master.
No matter how prodigious his talent, no matter how fiercely he honed his skills, nothing would change.
"But now that I have you as a goal... I'll try again."
All traces of weariness and bitterness had vanished from Hyeok So-jin's eyes.
Bu Eun-seol's provocation had reignited his fighting spirit. From now on, he would properly hone his martial arts to defeat him.
'This should suffice.'
Bu Eun-seol gave a slight nod.
Then he turned his head and spoke to Hyeok Gong-baek.
"It seems I've fulfilled the second promise as well... How does it look?"
"Hmm."
Hyeok Gong-baek, who had been stroking his beard, slowly walked to the center of the training ground. After a brief moment of contemplation, he voiced a question he had long harbored instead of answering directly.
"But tell me this."
"...?"
"Did you truly intend to cut down So-jin?"
—In exchange, grant me one condition.
Before coming here, Bu Eun-seol had made a request of Hyeok Gong-baek.
It was that "the moment I step onto the training platform, no matter what happens, do not intervene."
At the time, Hyeok Gong-baek had casually agreed to the proposal.
Partly because he had faith in Hyeok So-jin's martial prowess, but also because he thought, 'Surely he wouldn't actually do anything to the heir of the Heaven-Severing Earth-Ending Sanctuary?'
Yet when Bu Eun-seol had pointed the Ink Sword at Hyeok So-jin earlier, he had realized—
Bu Eun-seol had been completely serious.
"I did."
"Heh heh heh. Hahahahaha!"
In that instant, Hyeok Gong-baek burst into booming laughter.
"This isn't just audacity—it's a liver swollen to bursting! Kekekeke!"
Every peerless grandmaster who had ever shaken the martial world possessed an untouchable madness.
A true madness that shattered worldly principles and conventions, allowing them to commit any act without hesitation.
After laughing heartily for a long while, he nodded.
"Our side will now formally pledge its support to you. I'll dispatch a messenger to the Demon Hall at once to relay this to the Demon Hall Lord."
"Thank you."
As Bu Eun-seol's expression lightened, Hyeok Gong-baek asked,
"Are you leaving immediately?"
"I am."
Bu Eun-seol respectfully clasped his hands.
"Then, I shall take my leave."
"May fortune favor your martial path."
"Thank you. Until next time."
Turning away, Bu Eun-seol vanished abruptly beyond the gates of the Heaven-Severing Earth-Ending Sanctuary.
Hyeok So-jin watched his retreating figure with clouded eyes.
Warrior Spirit.
The sight of Bu Eun-seol's back, blazing with that scorching warrior spirit, shook Hyeok So-jin's heart profoundly.
Hyeok Gong-baek nodded and remarked,
"He's been perfecting his martial arts through solitary travels in the martial world. That's how he achieved such prowess at his age."
At those words, Hyeok So-jin flinched.
Martial world travels.
Once, he too had considered embarking on such a journey. But because he could master martial arts so effortlessly, he had abandoned the idea instead.
—"Martial arts can be learned just by glancing at secret manuals anyway. There's no need to take the arduous path of wandering the martial world."
Only now did he realize—
That without life-and-death battles, true mastery of martial arts was impossible.
"Will you follow him?"
Just then, Hyeok Gong-baek's gentle voice resonated in Hyeok So-jin's ears.
"If you wish to follow him, then follow."
"What do you mean...?"
"Those who pursue the Martial Way are always met with formidable foes and trials."
Hyeok Gong-baek gazed at Bu Eun-seol's distant figure as he spoke.
"Like that successor from Langya Pavilion."
He knew.
That his grandson, with his fighting spirit rekindled, wanted to follow Bu Eun-seol into the martial world.
But his pride was making him hesitate.
"Go. Traveling the martial world with someone like him... Not only will it hasten your mastery of martial arts, but it will also bring you immense benefits."
Under Hyeok Gong-baek's firm persuasion, Hyeok So-jin took a deep breath.
"Will it truly be alright if I leave?"
"Heh heh heh. Nothing pains me more than watching my grandson laze about every day. Go, quickly."
As he looked at his suddenly matured grandson, Hyeok Gong-baek felt both pride and concern.
"Ah, one more thing—just in case—"
"No."
"Hm?"
"Don't even think of secretly attaching the Evil Soul Squad to me."
Hyeok So-jin, having seen right through him, spoke resolutely.
"That would turn my martial world travels into nothing but a leisurely tour."
"Well, a good blade isn't forged without hammering."
Only through trials does a martial artist grow.
Clearing his throat, Hyeok Gong-baek pulled Hyeok So-jin into a tight embrace.
"Take care of yourself."
Though he was the master of the Heaven-Severing Earth-Ending Sanctuary, a figure who shook the martial world, at this moment, Hyeok Gong-baek was simply a grandfather who cherished his grandson.
"Don't worry."
After holding Hyeok Gong-baek tightly for a while, Hyeok So-jin suddenly made a noise of realization.
"I must chase after him quickly."
Though he had arrived by carriage, he hadn't borrowed one for his departure.
Bu Eun-seol must have already left the sanctuary using a swift movement technique.
"Hahaha. Don't fret. His whereabouts will be easy to track."
"How?"
"His destination is obvious."
"You know where he's headed?"
"He is the successor of Langya Pavilion. With our sect's support alone, securing his position as the Heir of the Demon Hall would still be difficult."
Hyeok So-jin's eyes narrowed to slits.
"Then he must be heading there."
"Indeed."
A flash of light flickered in Hyeok Gong-baek's eyes.
"Fleeting Moment Boat. He will seek the backing of that vast and formidable women's sect to solidify his claim as the Heir of the Demon Hall."