Chapter 182
Clank.
Yo Bul-beom connected the spear shafts behind his back. In an instant, a spear more than thirteen feet long took shape.
His Evil Spirit Spear appeared identical to those wielded by the Flame Soul Corps, but their might was worlds apart.
Whoooosh!
As Yo Bul-beom violently swung the spear shaft, a vast empty space erupted around him.
He slashed with the shaft before thrusting at openings with the spearhead. The spear's offensive spread like a folding fan's ribs, only to converge into a single point of light the moment a weakness appeared, driving deep.
With every motion of Yo Bul-beom's hands, the profound opening techniques of the Evil Spirit Jade Blood Spear Art manifested.
"Guhk!"
"Aack!"
Screams followed as the surrounding special guests and Hundred Flowers Ladies inevitably suffered wounds and collapsed.
Carving through the battlefield in all directions, pushing back enemies blocking his path, he finally closed in on Bu Eun-seol's position.
Swish!
With the sharp sound of splitting wind, the Evil Spirit Spear stretched like taffy.
The razor-sharp spearhead slipped through the gaps between a dozen entangled combatants, violently piercing toward Bu Eun-seol's back as he fought furiously amidst the chaos.
Chiiing!
Amidst a clamorous metallic sound, Bu Eun-seol's Ink Sword instinctively swung behind him, lightly deflecting the thrusting spearhead.
It was the flawless harmony of Fluorescent Sword Control and the Way of the Beast.
"Hmph. So it's the Way of the Beast."
Realizing that ambushes held no meaning against Bu Eun-seol's acute senses, Yo Bul-beom spun his spear shaft.
Whirr-whirr-whirr!
Leveling the shaft, which now whipped up a whirlwind, he forced the surrounding Hundred Flowers Ladies away from Bu Eun-seol.
A wide space opened between them, and the two clashed.
"Take this!"
Yo Bul-beom's body floated mid-air as he roared, and Bu Eun-seol, as if in challenge, raised his Ink Sword high.
Fwoooosh!
Dazzling light erupted as dozens of spear shadows carved afterimages through the air, enveloping Bu Eun-seol's body.
What was astonishing was that each spear shadow fell at different intervals—some even hovered motionless in the air.
'So this is the Evil Spirit Spear Art.'
The terror of the Spectral Sect's spear techniques lay in their ability to sustain the energy imbued in their spears—akin to razor-sharp sword qi—in mid-air for a set duration.
Rumors claimed that Spectral Sect masters who had deeply honed the Evil Spirit Spear could maintain that vicious energy for over half a quarter-hour.
Tzzt-tzzt-tzzt!
At that moment, radiant sword qi, like brilliant sunbeams, erupted from Bu Eun-seol's Ink Sword, stitching across the sky.
Caged Bird Longing for Clouds.
The Fourth Form of the Formless Heavenly Flow unfolded—freely manipulating the unleashed sword qi.
Clang-clang-clang!
The sword qi embroidering the heavens erased the descending spear shadows one after another, each timed precisely.
But in that instant, Yo Bul-beom, having landed, thrust his spear shaft straight at Bu Eun-seol.
Just as Bu Eun-seol moved to defend, the piercing spearhead abruptly vanished.
With its target gone, the Ink Sword hesitated mid-air for a split second—
Shink!
A sharp sound of splitting air accompanied the spearhead's vicious thrust toward Bu Eun-seol's uvula.
It was the pinnacle technique of the Evil Spirit Jade Blood Spear—Small Voice in Mid-Heaven.
Splat!
Blood sprayed from Bu Eun-seol's neck as he narrowly dodged.
'Impressive.'
Bu Eun-seol inwardly marveled.
There had been no time to deploy Ultimate Speed Shadowless. Had it not been for the extrasensory perception of the Way of the Beast, that single strike would have pierced his throat.
"Lucky bastard!"
Swish!
In that same breath, Yo Bul-beom's spear shaft bent like a bow, sweeping horizontally toward Bu Eun-seol's torso.
But Bu Eun-seol, already activating Ultimate Speed Shadowless, slipped beyond the spear's range.
"How long will you keep dodging?!"
Yo Bul-beom swung his spear again, sealing off all of Bu Eun-seol's retreat paths and angles of defense.
Meanwhile, ten new spear shadows materialized in the air—each descending with staggered timing.
Below, Yo Bul-beom stood, sweeping his spear shaft across all directions.
'I can't break through immediately.'
Bu Eun-seol shifted through eighty-nine positions in an instant with Ultimate Speed Shadowless.
While evading the onslaught, he sought to discern Yo Bul-beom's openings. But the spear master's techniques were too profound to dismantle in mere moments.
Fwip!
Then, Yo Bul-beom's barrage of opening techniques shifted once more.
This time, rather than straightforward thrusts, he unleashed feints in every conceivable direction.
'He's adept at feints too.'
Unable to instantly distinguish illusion from reality in Yo Bul-beom's onslaught, Bu Eun-seol retreated step by step.
Yo Bul-beom was a Transcendent Realm master who had led the Flame Soul Corps for over twenty years, running rampant through murim.
He immediately saw through Bu Eun-seol's intent—to evade while analyzing the shifting techniques of the Evil Spirit Spear.
"That's why he's spontaneously altering his martial forms—unleashing a spear technique both bewildering and profound."
"To think Brother Bu would be pushed back..."
Hyeok So-jin, who had been scattering the Soul-Flame Corps members charging at him with Divine-Rending Demonic Qi, furrowed his brow.
At the very least, it was fortunate that while Bu Eun-seol and Yo Bul-beom clashed, the battle between the Fleeting Moment Boat's forces and the Soul-Flame Corps had mostly been settled.
Especially the special guests, including Jeong Rip—each of them possessed extraordinary martial prowess.
Their martial arts leaned closer to the Righteous Faction than the Demonic Path, effortlessly overwhelming the sinister energy unique to the Evil Spirit Azure Blood Spear.
Yet the real problem lay in the duel between Bu Eun-seol and Yo Bul-beom—the fight was turning unfavorable.
'The techniques of that Evil Spirit Spear aren't something I can grasp mid-battle.'
Bu Eun-seol coolly assessed the situation.
Until now, he had always sought to develop his martial arts further by analyzing his opponent's forms, finding their gaps, and countering.
But Yo Bul-beom's skill not only surpassed Bu Eun-seol's current level—his combat flow and control were also masterful.
Worse, with a spear nearly thirteen feet long, Yo Bul-beom had already claimed the space Bu Eun-seol needed to maneuver, making even Swift Shadowless insufficient for a flawless evasion.
Swoosh!
Once again, the razor-sharp spear tip grazed Bu Eun-seol's cheek, sending blood flying.
—"Stop thinking with your head!"
At that moment, Sa-u's stern voice echoed in his ears—the same voice that had drilled the Way of the Beast into him on Hell Island, sword in hand.
—"If you try to analyze the forms before dodging, it'll be too late."
Back then, Sa-u had slashed Bu Eun-seol's cheek with a sharp blade before shouting again:
—"The moment the attack begins, you must react instantly!"
In that instant, Bu Eun-seol's pupils burned like hot coals.
'Have I been arrogant all along?'
The strategy of finding gaps and then striking only worked if his skill far surpassed his opponent's.
Until now, Bu Eun-seol had relied on Swift Shadowless—a peerless movement technique—and his heightened extrasensory perception to evade attacks and exploit openings.
But his Swift Shadowless was still incomplete, only at the Seven Stars level.
Yo Bul-beom, a veteran with rich battlefield experience and mastery of feints, had concealed his gaps while seizing control of the terrain, cornering Bu Eun-seol.
"This is the end!"
Instead, it was Yo Bul-beom who found Bu Eun-seol's opening—unleashing thirty-two spear shadows at once.
Each spear shadow struck at different intervals, their trajectories shifting unpredictably.
Even if Bu Eun-seol used Swift Shadowless, a perfect evasion would be impossible.
'If I can't dodge, I'll shatter them!'
BOOM!
The instant Bu Eun-seol channeled his full internal energy, an explosive surge of true qi erupted from his body.
Simultaneously, the Ink Sword's dark radiance violently spiraled before—
SHIIING!
A pitch-black manifestation of light suddenly shot upward from the blade.
Sword Aura.
Vrrrmm...
As the Ink Sword trembled, the inky sword aura began erasing the incoming spear shadows.
It was the Peerless Defense Form—a fusion of Fluorescent Sword Control and Return to the Original Owner.
CRAAASH!
Even though it was merely weapons clashing, the sound was deafening, as if tearing the heavens apart.
The sword aura Bu Eun-seol manifested was nothing like conventional sword aura, which maintained the weapon's form.
This ink-black sword aura stretched and contracted like elastic, its might incomparable to ordinary sword aura.
GRROOOWL!
When the circular sword aura grazed the ground, it left behind a bottomless black chasm.
'This... this bastard?!'
Bu Eun-seol no longer observed his opponent's forms from a defensive stance.
Instead, he poured his internal energy without restraint, unleashing a relentless succession of Heaven Collapse Strikes.
Yo Bul-beom, unable to even dare clash his Evil Spirit Spear against the Ink Sword, was forced into retreat.
SCHIIIING!
Finally, the moment came when he had no choice but to block.
When spear and sword finally met—
SCREEEECH—!
Yo Bul-beom was sent flying twenty paces back, his spear withdrawn as his eyes widened in shock.
"Your internal energy... surpasses even this Great Commander's?"
Having reached the Fifth Layer of the Counter-Polar Internal Art, Bu Eun-seol's internal power was now overwhelming—second to none.
He simply had never before used it to crush an opponent outright.
But when Yo Bul-beom's forms became ever-shifting, Bu Eun-seol forged sword aura with sheer might, suppressing the techniques themselves.
"Enough chatter."
Without giving him time to recover, Bu Eun-seol thrust the Ink Sword forward without hesitation.
The one who had been on the defensive now attacked relentlessly—and this time, it was Yo Bul-beom's turn to panic.
CRACK! BOOM!
Once more, the sword aura grazed the earth, but this time, it wasn't just an explosive sound—it was a deafening thunderclap that shook the air.
With every pass of the black sword aura, Yo Bul-beom's complexion stiffened further.
Bu Eun-seol's Ink Sword wasn't just imbued with overwhelming force—it carried two distinct streams of internal energy.
Counter-Polar Internal Art.
A legendary Internal Energy Method said to govern the very cycle of creation and destruction once mastered to its extremes.
In the past, when Bu Eun-seol channeled internal force into his weapon, it unleashed thirteen razor-sharp streams of internal energy.
But now, as his power had deepened and refined, it manifested as pure Yin-Yang Dual Qi—a force akin to the raw power of Great Nature itself.
'I can't just blindly evade!'
SHIIING!
In the end, Yo Bul-beom had no choice but to manifest his own Spear Aura to clash against Bu Eun-seol's sword energy.
BOOM! CRASH!
Every time the Ink Sword and the Evil Spirit Spear collided midair, Yo Bul-beom's face grew paler.
The two overwhelming streams of internal energy reverberated through his body with each impact, shaking his organs violently.
"You—!"
Yo Bul-beom desperately tried to create distance, avoiding direct clashes.
But Bu Eun-seol moved like a phantom, circling him and cutting off all escape routes.
Even when the Evil Spirit Spear barely slipped past the range of the Ink Sword, Bu Eun-seol would immediately use the Qi Absorption Art to forcibly yank the weapon back into the fray.
'The Paeng Clan has a saber technique that shatters bones through weapon clashes.'
Bu Eun-seol was mimicking Umun Cheong's Five Tigers Gate-Breaking Saber Method—the very technique that had once tried to crush his bones through sheer impact on Hell Island.
"UGH—!"
After forty consecutive clashes, Yo Bul-beom could no longer endure the overwhelming force. Blood gushed from his mouth.
"Guh..."
He dropped to one knee, groaning.
The two relentless streams of internal energy had all but melted through his meridians, leaving him unable to take even a single step.
"This kind of power..."
Yo Bul-beom trembled uncontrollably.
Martial combat took many forms.
Some fought with weapons. Some disrupted their opponent's Mental Power with sharp words.
And then there was this—crushing the enemy with sheer, overwhelming Internal Energy.
"Brother Bu."
Hyeok So-jin approached Bu Eun-seol's side.
The battle was over.
The Soul-Flame Corps, once three hundred strong, had been shattered beyond recognition.
More than half of their forces had already collapsed under the combined assault of the Fleeting Moment Boat's disciples and guest warriors.
And now, with their leader defeated, the remaining troops had ceased all resistance, signaling their surrender.
"Magnificent, Brother Bu. To single-handedly suppress the infamous 'Flame Soul Corps Commander'—truly astounding."
Bu Eun-seol's gaze remained fixed on Yo Bul-beom.
The flicker of Killing Intent in his eyes made Hyeok So-jin hesitate.
"Suppress?"
Bu Eun-seol's lips parted, his pupils gleaming with a bloody light.
"Brother Bu... surely you don't mean to—"
Hyeok So-jin, realizing his intent, raised a hand in protest.
"Killing him will earn you the enmity of the Spectral Sect."
When Bu Eun-seol didn't respond, Hyeok So-jin swallowed hard.
"You already have bad blood with the Hell Blood Citadel and the White Horse Monastery. Must you add the Spectral Sect to that list?"
"Bad blood... you say."
In truth, Bu Eun-seol had long harbored a question in his heart.
—Why does the Demonic Heavenly Emperor demand bloodshed among fellow demonic factions in the name of selecting a successor?
If it were about assessing qualifications, there were countless methods.
If it were about unity, they could simply fight the Righteous Faction, their common enemy.
If it were about comparing martial prowess, they could just hold a Martial Arts Tournament.
But the Demonic Heavenly Emperor demanded endless conflict—and blood—between the sects of the Demonic Path.
"So that's it."
Only now, after breaking Yo Bul-beom, did Bu Eun-seol finally understand.
"There's no way relations could be good."
A cold smile touched his lips as he looked down at Yo Bul-beom.
"Without bloodshed, an alliance like the Demon Hall could never endure."
At last, he grasped the truth.
The battle for succession—the struggle to lead the Demon Hall—was not about allies.
It was about ensuring that anyone who wasn't an ally became an enemy.
There was no neutrality.
Those who opposed him had to be thoroughly broken.
"From now on, I'll show them what happens when they cross me."
Yo Bul-beom's expression shifted in that instant.
For decades, he had roamed the Martial World as the Flame Soul Corps Commander of the Death Command Gate, a name synonymous with terror.
Yet now, he was to meet his end at the hands of a successor of the Langya Pavilion?
"I won't let your hands be the ones to take me."
Wiping the blood from his lips, Yo Bul-beom staggered to his feet.
Gripping the Evil Spirit Spear, he straightened his posture and gathered his remaining Internal Energy—preparing to sever his own Heart Meridian and end his life.
FLASH!
But his attempt failed.
Before his energy could cut through his meridians, Bu Eun-seol's blade sliced through his carotid artery in a single motion.
SPURT!
Blood sprayed.
Yo Bul-beom's eyes widened—
THUD.
—and he collapsed like a felled tree.
Thus ended the life of the Flame Soul Corps Commander, the man who had once terrorized the Martial World for decades.
Yo Bul-beom was no more.