Chapter 623
Seok Chi-haeng's eyebrow twitched.
"Let's see how much longer you can endure."
Whoosh.
He unleashed another fist strike.
But Bu Eun-seol, who had suffused his entire body with the Way of the Beast, discerned that the fist energy coming from the front was merely a feint—
The real attack was the invisible fist energy pouring in from both sides.
Pat!
As Bu Eun-seol leaped into the air again, the invisible fist energy followed his movement as if it had been waiting for this moment.
Shwiiip!
However, Bu Eun-seol's shadow in midair split into three strands, effortlessly diverting the fist energy in an instant.
This was the profound application of Swift Shadowless, allowing him to constantly shift his defensive position even while remaining in place.
"Your movement technique is impressive."
Seok Chi-haeng, realizing Bu Eun-seol's movement technique had reached the Astonishing Realm, unleashed a continuous barrage of fist energy.
Boom! Boom!
With each slight flick of his left hand, explosions rang out, reducing nearby trees and rocks to dust.
Yet Bu Eun-seol flawlessly evaded every attack by deploying Swift Shadowless.
Clink.
Having dodged all of the Fist King's martial forms, Bu Eun-seol finally drew the Ink Soul Sword.
Sshing!
With a low sword resonance, the dark blade of the Ink Soul Sword revealed itself, unleashing a dazzling cross-shaped ray of light.
He had consecutively executed the Waning Moon Morning Star technique.
Flash!
The sword qi blasted toward Seok Chi-haeng was so swift that it almost felt as though it had already pierced his body.
Kwa-rung!
Instead of dodging, Seok Chi-haeng twisted his left hand and thrust it forward.
Thud.
With that sound, the cross-shaped sword qi was shattered, and a sharp fist energy surged straight toward Bu Eun-seol's face.
He had effortlessly pierced through the Waning Moon Morning Star's sword qi.
Sssk!
Bu Eun-seol swiftly twisted his body to evade, but the fist force that grazed his shoulder turned his sleeve to dust, scattering it into the wind.
Shwiiip!
Seok Chi-haeng, now unleashing a relentless series of fist techniques, sealed Bu Eun-seol's retreat and created a vast, open space.
With nothing more than a passing breeze—
His skin split open, and sharp streams of internal energy burrowed into his meridians.
'He still hasn't used the True Void.'
Bu Eun-seol ceased evading the fist energy and began deflecting the fist wind with the Mystery of Move Heaven Exchange Force.
Sssk! Swish!
As he cleaved through the pouring fist energy like splitting rocks, Seok Chi-haeng halted his movements and furrowed his brow.
"Are you the Sword Sovereign's disciple?"
"We've crossed paths a few times in passing."
"Hmph. So you stole his sword techniques."
Seok Chi-haeng spoke with an arrogant expression.
"Even if you were truly the Sword Sovereign's disciple, you still couldn't defeat me."
He still hadn't even used his right hand.
In other words, despite not yet deploying the True Void, he was displaying astonishing martial prowess.
"Let's try again."
Swish-swish-swish!
Bu Eun-seol unleashed three consecutive sword strikes, coiling around Seok Chi-haeng's retreat path.
Then, using the Caged Bird Longing for Clouds technique, he formed a massive sword qi and slowly poured it toward his opponent.
He had deliberately employed a feinting maneuver to provoke a clash.
Ssss!
As Seok Chi-haeng lightly flicked his left hand—
Whoooosh!
A terrifying fist wind suddenly surged forth like a colossal wave, colliding head-on with Bu Eun-seol's sword qi.
Boom!
The moment sword qi and fist energy clashed, an explosive sound erupted, and waves of true qi rippled outward in all directions.
Dust scattered everywhere as the two stood facing each other at a distance where their expressions were clearly visible.
Bu Eun-seol remained rooted like a stone pillar, not moving a single step.
But Seok Chi-haeng had retreated one step.
'My internal energy is superior, but his mastery of martial principles surpasses mine.'
Judging by the counterforce of the fist energy, Seok Chi-haeng's internal energy was at the three-hundred-and-fifty-year level. Under normal circumstances, he should have been forced back at least three steps.
However, by layering the profundity of martial arts into a single fist strike, he had somewhat overcome the gap in internal energy.
"Impressive. At this level, you must far exceed the four-hundred-year mark."
Seok Chi-haeng sneered, showing little surprise at Bu Eun-seol's internal energy level.
"Did you swallow another one of those artificial inner elixirs or something?"
'He knows about the Three Realms.'
Bu Eun-seol frowned and asked, "Let me ask you again. What exactly is this place?"
"Ridiculous fool."
"I am not affiliated with the Three Realms."
"Hah, of course not. You said you're from the Martial Alliance, didn't you?"
Seok Chi-haeng stroked his right hand as he spoke.
"The young chief of the Martial Alliance who can match me in skill, and all that."
Bu Eun-seol had nothing to say.
Though the Martial Alliance was said to be teeming with prodigies, there was no such thing as a young chief who could rival the Four Gods and Seven Kings.
Thud.
Finally, Seok Chi-haeng slowly extended his right hand and clenched his fist.
The back of his rock-solid fist was densely covered with spiderweb-like scars.
Zzzzing.
Simultaneously, his right hand began to glow red-hot.
'I should have come under my real identity.'
Seok Chi-haeng's suspicion was understandable.
Bu Eun-seol's current martial prowess far surpassed even Baek Mu-seong, who was known as the highest-level grandmaster among the Righteous Faction's new generation.
Even if he were to die and come back to life, he wouldn't believe Bu Eun-seol was merely a Martial Alliance unit commander.
'Since I've already come under the identity of Seon-u Jin, revealing myself as the Martial Soul Lord now would only expose my double identity.'
In the end, this wasn't an opportunity to lightly gauge his opponent's strength—it was a situation where he had to stake his life and unleash his True Void in battle.
"Good. Let's fight to our heart's content."
Bu Eun-seol raised his Internal Power.
But he didn't strike first. Instead, he stood firm, carefully observing Seok Chi-haeng's movements.
Seok Chi-haeng was a natural-born martial prodigy, possessing a physique that allowed him to accumulate Internal Energy at an extraordinary rate.
Moreover, his grotesquely large right hand contained Innate Divine Strength—enough to pulverize stone without even using martial arts.
If a Master hailed as the Fist King were to wield such a fist... its power would surpass imagination.
Before the fierce battle began, Bu Eun-seol intended to observe the Fist King's martial techniques.
Goooooo—
Suddenly, a strange sound, as if air were being sucked in, resonated from Seok Chi-haeng's right fist.
KWA-UUUU!
A Fist Energy like a storm surged forth like a tidal wave, beginning to encase Bu Eun-seol's body.
The force instantly enveloped the entire space, leaving Bu Eun-seol no room to evade.
SHWAK!
In that moment, a black True Qi, shimmering with a translucent light, spread out and coiled around Bu Eun-seol's body.
He had formed a Protective Aura using the Willful True Binding.
KU-WOONG!
With a sound like tearing leather, Bu Eun-seol's legs sank half a foot into the ground.
The overwhelming Fist Force pressing down on his head had slightly driven him into the ground.
'The Seven Forms of the Fist Demon?'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened.
The Fist Technique Seok Chi-haeng had just used—
Wasn't it a variant of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon, the secret fist art of Langya Pavilion, which allowed the free manipulation of Fist Energy?
'This shouldn't be possible.'
The Seven Forms of the Fist Demon had been secretly passed down to him by Domyeong, a former disciple of Langya Pavilion, in the form of a Secret Manual—
And even its first form was incomplete, damaged.
So how could Seok Chi-haeng be using the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon?
'But the method of shifting Fist Energy is exactly the same.'
The terrifying aspect of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon was its ability to freely manipulate intangible Fist Energy,
And its secret lay in the principle of Guiding Intent to Move Qi, the same principle used in the Hand-Controlled Sword Art.
And the Fist Technique the Fist King had just unleashed—
Wasn't it precisely the same? Executing forms through intent and moving them with True Qi, the very essence of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon?
'Did he earn the epithet Fist King by mastering the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon?'
"What are you thinking about?"
KWA-RUNG!
A faint thunderclap echoed as another terrifying Fist Energy surged forth.
At that moment, a crimson current erupted from Bu Eun-seol's left hand.
The third form of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon—
The Destruction Fist Form, Forgetful Shattering Together, was unleashed.
KWA-UUUU!
As the violently rotating Fist Energy clashed with the Fist King's power, instead of a violent reaction, the two forces merged into a single Fist Wind and vanished into the night sky.
"You—?"
Seok Chi-haeng recoiled in shock before pouring out another relentless wave of Fist Force.
This time, five streams of Fist Energy, sharp as axe blades yet supple as whips, spiraled toward Bu Eun-seol.
'Extreme Thunder Blend?'
This technique of the Fist King bore an uncanny resemblance to the Extreme Thunder Blend, the form of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon.
KWA-RUNG!
Instantly, five razor-sharp streams of Fist Force erupted from Bu Eun-seol's left hand.
He had unleashed the same Extreme Thunder Blend.
KWA-UUU!
Once again, a furious Fist Wind clashed between them before dissipating into the night sky.
"How are you...?"
As Bu Eun-seol repeatedly mirrored his techniques, Seok Chi-haeng couldn't hide his astonishment.
"How are you mimicking the Azure Heaven Seven Forms?"
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened.
'The Azure Heaven Seven Forms?'
That meant Seok Chi-haeng's Fist Technique was also composed of seven forms.
And if a Master like the Fist King could think Bu Eun-seol was imitating his own technique...
'They share the same root.'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes flashed.
The Seven Forms of the Fist Demon and the Azure Heaven Seven Forms undoubtedly branched from a single origin.
'A Master from the Righteous and Demonic Paths must have interpreted the same fist art differently.'
A bizarre thought surfaced in his mind.
What if a formidable Master from the Orthodox and Unorthodox Factions had discovered the same ancient Secret Manual of fist techniques—
But each had gleaned different insights from it?
The Demonic Path's Master had developed the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon, while the Righteous Faction's Master had perfected the Azure Heaven Seven Forms.
'Then... could I use the Fist King's Azure Heaven Seven Forms to grasp the Last Three Styles of the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon?'
If the Azure Heaven Seven Forms were complete, he could reverse-engineer them to fill the gaps in the Seven Forms of the Fist Demon.
Click.
Bu Eun-seol sheathed the Ink Soul Sword at his waist and took a deep breath.
He had realized—to uncover this secret, he would have to engage the Fist King in a decisive battle of fist arts.
"Come at me."
As Bu Eun-seol raised both fists, Seok Chi-haeng was so dumbfounded that laughter nearly burst from him.
"Madman. You dare challenge this old man in fist techniques?"
"Do you think you're some kind of king just because people call you the Fist King?"
Seok Chi-haeng's pride seemed deeply wounded, thick veins bulging on his forehead.
"If I don't beat you to death, I'll change my surname!"
Whoosh!
Blue light surged once more from his massive right fist as he began.
Drawing up his Internal Power to the limit, Seok Chi-haeng suddenly struck the ground hard.
An overwhelming Fist Wind instantly coiled around Bu Eun-seol's entire body.
'A preparatory stance?'
When unleashing a technique of tremendous might, sometimes a large preparatory motion was necessary.
But Bu Eun-seol's Beast Path instincts sounded an alarm.
Amid the cascading Fist Wind, he detected an extremely subtle pulse of Fist Energy.
It was as if someone had executed the Fist Demon Initial Manifestation in an insidiously soft manner—just the way Bu Eun-seol himself often used it.
BOOM!
In an instant, Bu Eun-seol's body leaped a full ten feet into the air before twisting like a swallow mid-flight and landing again.
A surge of Fist Energy had erupted from the ground, aiming to snap his jaw upward.
'Had it not been for the Beast Path, my jaw would've shattered.'
"You blocked the Water Flows and Clouds Fill the Sky Form?"
Seok Chi-haeng was visibly shocked.
The motion of striking the ground had been a feint.
The real attack was a low-flying Fist Force, swift as a darting swallow, aimed straight for the chin in a single lethal strike.
Until now, only the most renowned Masters under heaven had ever evaded the Water Flows and Clouds Fill the Sky Form. Everyone else had died instantly with their jaws crushed.
Yet this brat had dodged it so effortlessly?
"Good!"
Seok Chi-haeng unleashed a rapid succession of fist techniques.
But his movements and the Fist Force he unleashed were completely mismatched.
Though his stance suggested the Tiger and Crane Double-Form Fist, the Fist Energy instead drilled toward Bu Eun-seol's ribs.
When he scattered Fist Energy wildly into the air, another surge crashed down toward the back of Bu Eun-seol's skull.
'So the Fist Demon Initial Manifestation can be used like this too.'
Until now, Bu Eun-seol had only thought of the technique as a way to freely manipulate Fist Energy—or to curve it like Sword Qi.
But combined with feints, it could create unpredictable, intricate, and bizarre martial forms.
"Good."
Even as he struggled to evade, Bu Eun-seol retaliated with his own rapid barrage of Fist Strikes.
"Then receive my technique!"
Seok Chi-haeng frowned.
Bu Eun-seol had declared an attack—yet he stood perfectly still?
"You're wasting time with pointless feints—"
BOOM!
A violent Fist Wind roared forth, slamming into both his temples.
Bu Eun-seol had adapted Seok Chi-haeng's Water Flows and Clouds Fill the Sky Form—and executed a new variation of the Fist Demon Initial Manifestation.
"You—!"
Seok Chi-haeng recoiled in shock, jerking backward.
But Bu Eun-seol had already timed it—layers of Fist Energy lay in wait along his retreat path.
BOOM!
The strike landed squarely on Seok Chi-haeng's spine.
Though he spun rapidly to disperse most of the force, his skin still burned where the Fist Wind had grazed him.
"Show me another trick!"
Enraged, Seok Chi-haeng unleashed nine streams of Fist Energy in succession.
The technique resembled the legendary Nine-Wall Divine Fist, its power slow and heavy.
But the instant it neared Bu Eun-seol's body, it began spinning violently—just like the Forgetful Shattering Together!
'He doesn't rotate it from the start—only at the moment of impact.'
BOOM!
Though he gained insight, Bu Eun-seol's body was sent flying thirty feet away.
To master the essence of fist techniques, he was deliberately taking the Fist King's strikes head-on.
Ptui.
As Bu Eun-seol spat out a mouthful of blood, Seok Chi-haeng's eyes widened.
How could this brat still stand after taking a hit that would shatter any normal body?
"Have you... trained in the Vajra Indestructible Body?"
Seok Chi-haeng's eyelids twitched as he demanded,
"Are you a disciple of the Blood Shaolin?"
"Impossible."
"Then who are you?"
"I told you. A captain of the Martial Alliance."
At the same time, Bu Eun-seol crossed his fists chaotically.
Five streams of Fist Energy shot forth with precision—aimed at Seok Chi-haeng's head and limbs.
"Hmph. A crafty trick."
Seok Chi-haeng released a lightning-fast Fist Force at chest height.
Certain that Bu Eun-seol would mimic his method, he prepared to counter the five rotating Fist Energies with a stance that combined defense and offense.
But the unexpected happened.
Bu Eun-seol's five Fist Energies didn't rotate—instead, their points of impact shifted unpredictably.
"Tch!"
Seok Chi-haeng had no choice but to rapidly counter each one individually.
Boom! Boom!
The collision of fist energies sent Seok Chi-haeng staggering backward.
As the intricacies of their fist techniques grew similar, the gap in their true internal power levels became impossible to bridge.
"How...?"
Seok Chi-haeng's eyes wavered.
He had devoted his entire life to mastering fist techniques—no one had ever so easily blocked his strikes.
Yet this brash young man was matching him blow for blow in hand-to-hand combat?
To him, it was nothing short of humiliation.
"Don't you have any other tricks? This is getting monotonous."
At Bu Eun-seol's low mutter, flames seemed to erupt in Seok Chi-haeng's eyes.
"Insolent brat!"
Whoosh!
Closing the distance in an instant, Seok Chi-haeng unleashed his fist technique at point-blank range.
Crack! Craaack!
Though he threw only a single punch, dozens of fist phantoms fanned out in its wake.
This was the Third Form of the Azure Heaven Seven Forms: Spirit-Shaped Hand.
At such close quarters, even a moment's carelessness meant death—victory hinged solely on speed and sheer might.
Despite delivering a rapid single strike, Seok Chi-haeng had conjured dozens of phantom fists, layering precision atop overwhelming force.
'I can't tell which one is real.'
Bu Eun-seol had no choice but to block every single phantom fist.
Kwa-boom! Boom-boom-boom-boom!
But hidden among them were feints.
The moment Bu Eun-seol reacted to every phantom, Seok Chi-haeng instantly pinpointed his opening.
Bang!
A fist energy blast struck Bu Eun-seol square in the chest, hurling him backward.
"Tch."
Another mouthful of blood spilled from Bu Eun-seol's lips.
This time, even his Body Protection True Qi couldn't fully neutralize the impact—his face paled, and the blood he coughed up was unnervingly clear.
"Draw your sword."
Seok Chi-haeng glared at him.
"Don't cling to pointless pride and regret it in hell."
"I'll draw it when the time comes."
Seok Chi-haeng's brow furrowed.
He knew Bu Eun-seol's sword techniques were formidable—if unleashed at full power, the outcome would be uncertain.
So why stubbornly cling to fist techniques, gambling with his life?
Was he really so intent on mocking him that he'd stake his life on it?
'What does it matter?'
Channeling his internal power into his right arm, Seok Chi-haeng snarled in irritation.
"Fine. I'll beat you to death just the way you want."
Whoooosh—
A transparent energy current surged from Seok Chi-haeng's body as he assumed the stance of Heaven Earth Dividing Strike —one hand raised to the heavens, the other aimed at the earth.
'A stance similar to the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave.'
Bu Eun-seol felt a pang of regret.
The fact that Seok Chi-haeng was using a stance resembling the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave as his final trump card only confirmed it—
The Azure Heaven Seven Forms had also lost its Last Three Styles.
"This ends now!"
Whoooosh—
Between his outstretched palms, a terrifying energy current began gathering.
It was several times more violent than the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave.
Even before the attack landed—
Bu Eun-seol's Five Viscera and Six Bowels twisted as if molten blood were surging up his throat.
'But showing your starting stance to the enemy was a mistake.'
Seizing the initiative, Bu Eun-seol erupted with his own internal power, then instantly unleashed the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave.
Kwa-rung!
A colossal crimson energy current morphed into a blood-red dragon, swallowing Seok Chi-haeng whole.
Whoooosh—
But then, something bizarre happened.
The overwhelming energy of the Heavenly Hand Empty Wave was sucked into the space between Seok Chi-haeng's outstretched arms—
And dissolved like snow in fire.
"This is the Fourth Form of the Azure Heaven Seven Forms."
A glacial killing intent flickered in Seok Chi-haeng's eyes.
"Unrivaled Heaven and Earth!"
BOOM!
Bu Eun-seol's body was flung into the air like a severed kite, crashing down over a hundred feet away.
Unrivaled Heaven and Earth.
The Heaven Earth Dividing Strike stance itself was—
The ultimate defensive form, capable of nullifying any attack, while simultaneously reflecting the opponent's own force back at them in a single devastating counter.
Sssss—
Pale steam rose from Bu Eun-seol's fallen body.
The sheer intensity of the Extreme Yang fist energy had engulfed his entire being—his meridians were burning, searing him from within.
Yet something even stranger occurred.
Bu Eun-seol, who should have been dead, slowly pushed himself up with an eerily calm expression.
"A jiangshi?!"
Seok Chi-haeng's jaw dropped as he pointed at him in shock.
"What the hell are you?! A jiangshi?!"
Bu Eun-seol glanced down at his own body, wreathed in white vapor.
Even he found it bizarre that he was still intact.
'So that's how it is.'
After a moment of self-assessment, he understood.
The Fourth Form of the Fist Demon Seven Forms, Heavenly Hand Empty Wave, was an annihilating fist art that embodied the Heaven-Shattering Form's destructive might.
But the Unrivaled Heaven and Earth was different.
By deliberately assuming a grandiose starting stance, it lured the enemy's attack—
Then absorbed the incoming force, accumulated it within the swirling energy currents, and reflected it all back in a single counter.
However, Bu Eun-seol's Heavenly Hand Empty Wave was essentially a wave of amplified True Qi—
And his Reverse Polarity True Qi carried the mysteries of Great Nature.
It could devastate the enemy, but it could never harm its own wielder.
In the end, since the Unrivaled Heaven and Earth merely reflected the opponent's own attack—
Bu Eun-seol, exposed to his own internal energy, didn't explode.
He survived.