Chapter 928
Wonpung's expression flickered with surprise as Bu Eun-seol pierced through his secret, but he soon straightened and declared boldly:
"It's because I offered my life that I can freely wield the Black Divine Artifact."
"Are you satisfied? With this kind of existence?"
Bu Eun-seol's voice was low, like winter wind.
"At best, you have three years. Perhaps not even one."
"What use is clinging to life if it means achieving the Greater Righteousness?"
As Wonpung continued speaking with unwavering conviction, a fleeting shadow of anguish and regret passed through his eyes.
"The Ancient Sword Forest must be erased. Turning living humans into ancient weapons—condemning them to exist as spirits who cannot even die—none of it should exist."
Bu Eun-seol could sense it faintly.
That Wonpung was not an evil man. That he had raced forward relentlessly, driven by his own convictions.
That he had willingly sacrificed his life for the sake of the Greater Righteousness.
"I see."
Clack.
As Bu Eun-seol sheathed the Ink Soul Sword, a pale mist began rising from his entire body.
No more words were needed.
He had extracted all the information he could from him.
Now, it was time for a battle to the death.
BOOM!
Wonpung soared into the sky and swung his greatsword at the speed of light.
Countless flashes erupted from the blade's edge, swallowing Bu Eun-seol whole.
It was an attack beyond evasion—a strike surpassing speed itself.
SHWAK!
Yet in that instant, a barrier of darkness absorbed the flashes as if devouring them.
The Willful True Binding had been unleashed.
'The True Qi Martial Arts of the Demonic Path?'
Wonpung instantly recognized Bu Eun-seol's true nature.
"So you are the Martial Soul Lord!"
With a roar, he smashed his greatsword against the massive barrier formed by the Willful True Binding.
CRACK!
The impact caused the surrounding earth to explode inward, crimson light radiating outward like spilled blood.
CRACK!
Meanwhile, Bu Eun-seol closed the distance and unleashed a razor-sharp Sword Stroke.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
As blades clashed, flashes of light split the sky, shockwaves rippling out dozens of yards.
Every time the forces contained within their weapons collided, the earth turned to blackened glass, trees crumbling like sand.
This was no battle between humans.
It was as though a celestial god descended from the heavens was clashing with a demon risen from the earth.
HISS. HISS.
But something was strange.
Bu Eun-seol's Sword Duke techniques, which had been unleashing terrifying destructive power without yielding an inch against Wonpung's attacks—
Were gradually weakening, reverting to the level of an ordinary martial arts novice.
Compared to Wonpung's strikes, which shattered the earth and evaporated the air, transforming the surroundings into a wasteland in an instant—
His attacks now seemed pitifully lacking.
"HAHAHA!"
The fiercer the battle grew, the louder Wonpung's Mad Laughter roared as he unleashed a storm of Sword Qi.
In contrast, Bu Eun-seol dodged precariously, like a small boat battered by raging waves.
It seemed only a matter of time before his body would be torn apart.
Yet even after a quarter of an hour, Bu Eun-seol did not fall.
Instead, Wonpung was gradually losing strength.
"...This."
Only then did Wonpung's eyes flash as he surveyed his surroundings.
Unnoticed until now, a white mist-like energy had filled the air.
River Waves Spreading Across the Lake.
The ninth form of the Formless Heavenly Flow, infused with the power of the Way of Nature, had silently unfolded.
ZZZT.
Each time the Natural Qi of the River Waves Spreading Across the Lake technique brushed against his body like mist—
The radiant glow flickering across Wonpung's form dimmed bit by bit.
"You adapted the Nature Sword."
Wonpung raised his greatsword.
"But it's useless!"
WHOOSH!
In an instant, he leaped dozens of yards upward, evading the mist of the River Waves Spreading Across the Lake, and unleashed thirteen sword strikes at Bu Eun-seol.
SHWING!
Each of Wonpung's Sword Strokes carried the overwhelming power of the Black Divine Artifact—a force no human could withstand.
BUZZ—
But then, faint afterimages rippled around the Ink Soul Sword—
PA! PA! PA! PA!
—and one hundred and eighty-one Sword Qi variations, embodying countless transformations, rained down upon Wonpung.
It was the Sword Laughs at Xuanyuan.
For an instant, sword light flashed like sunlight, engulfing the sky as the shrill ringing of steel echoed relentlessly.
Trees were uprooted and flung away by the violent currents, stone dust and soil scattering in all directions.
Bu Eun-seol and Wonpung stood frozen in their final stances. The power of the Sword Laughs at Xuanyuan and the Black Divine Artifact had reached a stalemate.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The two resumed their relentless close-quarters exchange.
The forms of the Ink Soul Sword and the greatsword were no longer visible—only dark, translucent currents spreading through the air.
Their high-speed clash made their weapons indiscernible, leaving only blurred energy in their wake.
CRASH!
Wonpung shoved Bu Eun-seol back with his greatsword and gritted his teeth.
Only now did he realize—the power of his Black Divine Artifact was not activating properly.
"What is this...?"
He looked down at his own body.
"Even though I clearly became a perfect Black Divine Artifact... Why is this happening?"
"The Misty Waves of Rivers and Lakes is not meant to kill the enemy—it restores all that is unnatural within them."
Bu Eun-seol spoke to Wonpung, who was examining his own body with an expression of disbelief.
"And this sword can shatter a Black Divine Artifact."
"Shatter a Black Divine Artifact?"
Wonpung's eyes widened.
Though no energy could be felt from the Ink Soul Sword, weren't mysterious emblems flickering endlessly from its scabbard?
"I've already broken the power of the Black Divine Artifact, and with the Misty Waves of Rivers and Lakes, I've temporarily suppressed the Demon-Sealing Fragment embedded in your body."
"What?"
"You've now become nothing more than an ordinary martial artist."
Bu Eun-seol spoke calmly.
"What remains is the strength of the martial arts you've cultivated over time... So wield it without regret."
Then, with an infinitely desolate expression, he fixed his gaze on Wonpung.
"So that the short life you chose does not end in futility—without regrets."
Wonpung's eyes widened.
Only now did he understand Bu Eun-seol's consideration.
He was giving him the chance to clash with everything he had—to shine brilliantly, just once.
"Ah... I see."
All martial artists are moths chasing a fleeting light, comets living for a single moment of radiance.
What if Bu Eun-seol had unleashed the Heaven-Shattering Form's Harmonization from the very beginning?
He could have shattered Wonpung's Black Divine Artifact body and claimed an easy victory.
And Wonpung, too—
He hadn't even used the Omnipotent Being he had prepared.
He must have instinctively realized—
That this was his last chance to pour out everything.
The final opportunity to shine, infinitely bright.
"I gave my life for the Greater Righteousness, and now only the last battle remains..."
Clang.
Wonpung gripped his greatsword with both hands.
Then, with a thunderous battle cry, he roared—
"I HAVE NO REGRETS IN THIS LIFE!"
The battle, fueled by his very life force, melted away everything.
The dreams he had harbored, his ambitions, even his obsessions—all turned to ash and vanished.
Only one thing remained in their place—
The single, unyielding will of a martial artist.
—I want to pour out everything, without a single shred of regret.
Freed from the power of the Black Divine Artifact—
Wonpung, in fact, severed the restraints and limitations of his physical body, moving freely through time and space.
The martial arts he had mastered at the cost of his life force unleashed destructive might capable of annihilating the world.
He sought no victory.
Now, he was simply a martial artist, staking his life in a duel to the death.
Clang!
When sword met sword, a deafening metallic clash rang out.
Though it was merely blades colliding, the strike—imbued with the life and soul of two martial artists—
Was like two colossal dragons clashing, sending violent currents surging to the heavens.
The endless succession of sword strokes, like waves, became searing beams of light, erasing every shadow upon the earth.
Neither of them showed any sign of seeking victory.
They were simply pouring out every ounce of martial prowess they had ever attained.
"So this was the choice the Lord made... for my sake."
Heuk-pyo, watching the battle, felt tears threatening to spill.
At last, he understood—
What Bu Eun-seol sought, and why he had grown so strong in such a short time.
"Only by overcoming my limits and transcending boundaries can I truly step onto the Martial Way..."
Heuk-pyo clenched his fists as he witnessed the martial arts Bu Eun-seol displayed.
"The stronger the enemy, the stronger I become."
Bu Eun-seol's attacks carried no intent to crush or destroy his foe.
Mountains do not move, yet stand unshaken. Rivers meander, yet never cease to flow.
The truly strong rise again, no matter the trial.
The truly powerful martial arts are those that can maintain the most natural form.
Witnessing the battle between—
A peerless Grandmaster of martial arts, who had reached the pinnacle at a young age,
And a berserker who had staked his entire life force to achieve the Martial Way—
Heuk-pyo continued to gain profound insights.
Hiss...
Before he knew it, the heat of their life forces had scattered, and the battle reached its conclusion.
As the two masters ceased their movements, leaves swept up by the stormwind slowly drifted to the ground.
"Those who seek strength cannot attain it... Only those who can discard everything can truly become strong."
Clatter.
Wonpung, letting the greatsword slip from his grasp, stared blankly at the sky with a hollow expression.
Thud.
As his knees hit the ground, blood gushed from his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears in thick, bubbling streams.
Unable to withstand the pressure of Bu Eun-seol's martial arts, his body had ruptured from within.
"Are you satisfied?"
At Bu Eun-seol's question, Wonpung wore a dazed expression for a moment.
"No."
Then, he smiled—a smile unseen until now.
"...If I were satisfied, how could I grow further?"
Yet despite his words, his smile was one of utter contentment.
In this moment, he had shone more brilliantly and burned more fiercely than ever in his life.
And his opponent—was the man who would one day stand as the greatest under heaven.
"...As a swordsman who lived by the blade, this was the most exhilarating and glorious death one could ask for."
With a soft rustle,
he closed his eyes as if falling asleep, still wearing that faint smile.
This was the final sight of Wonpung—a martial artist of the Same Heart Society who had offered his long life, his very vitality, in a fleeting moment for the sake of the Greater Righteousness and the perfection of martial arts.
Clack.
Bu Eun-seol sheathed the Ink Soul Sword and bowed deeply to Wonpung's remains.
Though they had been irreconcilable enemies from opposing factions, he paid his respects to the man's blazing Warrior Spirit.
Then, slowly, he turned away.
He couldn't remember the last time he had fought such a desperate battle.
Most of the opponents he had faced until now—
had sought victory by suppressing or sealing away his strength.
But Wonpung had made no such attempt. He had sought only to overwhelm his foe with sheer power.
And the source of that power had been his very life force.
In this battle, Bu Eun-seol had faced no restrictions—only martial artist against martial artist.
As a warrior of the Rivers and Lakes, he had fought with everything he had.
"Thank you."
Heuk-pyo approached, wiping away hot tears that had spilled unbidden, and bowed solemnly.
"For awakening me."
The battle between Bu Eun-seol and Wonpung had not merely been a contest of martial arts—
it had been a demonstration of the path a true martial artist must walk. The very essence of their way of life.
"And for risking yourself in battle... for my sake."
Heuk-pyo understood.
Bu Eun-seol could have easily defeated Wonpung—but for his sake, he had deliberately prolonged the fight, enduring hardship and danger.
"It was for myself as well."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
"I needed to gauge the strength of the Same Heart Society, now that it has become a gathering place for the powerful."
Wonpung had displayed overwhelming might by merging the profound principles of martial arts with the Black Divine Weapon's capabilities.
What if that power had been beyond even Bu Eun-seol's martial arts to counter?
He could never have exposed his subordinates to the Same Heart Society.
And he himself would have had to enter Closed Door Training once more, not emerging until he had reached new heights of martial prowess.
"In the end, the price of that power was their life force—and that became their fatal weakness."
The martial artists of the Same Heart Society had become human Black Divine Weapons by offering Demon-Sealing Fragments and their own vitality in exchange for strength—
but it was like a child wielding a roughly 106-pound guandao.
Uncontrolled power ultimately destroys its wielder.
Through this battle, Bu Eun-seol had proven that.
"I see. I've truly learned so much."
Heuk-pyo's expression brightened as he grasped the profound truths of martial arts that Bu Eun-seol had demonstrated firsthand.
He hadn't strayed down the wrong path.
If he worked just a little harder—
he could surely follow in the footsteps of that great Grandmaster... That conviction and confidence now burned within him.
Crack.
As the Boundary Formation shattered, the interior of the Ancient Sword Forest became visible once more.
"Let's take another look."
Bu Eun-seol and Heuk-pyo surveyed the ruined Ancient Sword Forest.
The buildings were filled with corpses.
All wore iron masks, marking them as members of the Ancient Sword Forest.
And since there wasn't a single elderly person among them—
it seemed they, like Bi-yeon, who had once led this place... had lingered as wraiths for ages, unable to die, all for the sake of forging the Black Divine Artifact.
"There don't seem to be any survivors."
At Heuk-pyo's words, Bu Eun-seol gazed at the distant, blackened tower.
A strange surge of emotion rose within him.
In the past, Bi-yeon had used the tower's mechanisms to impart the principles of martial arts to him.
And there, through his blade, she had finally ended her long, long life.
"She said she lived an endless life, unable to die, all to create the Black Divine Artifact."
—"I think... you might be able to do it."
Back then, Bi-yeon had smiled sadly as she spoke those words.
—"I think you might really be able to shatter this wretched world."
"Perhaps she already understood the state of the current martial world."
At the time, he hadn't understood her meaning.
But after clashing with the Baekri Clan, the True Demon, the Same Heart Society—
and all manner of Abyssal Forces like the Covenant in the Sacred Realm and the Executioners—
he finally realized.
The people of the martial world, the members of the Ancient Sword Forest—
they had all been caught in the crossfire of their war.
Bi-yeon must have sensed that this world was wrong.
And she had wanted someone to break it all.
"Not to mention, she was shocked when she saw my real face."
In her final moments, as Bu Eun-seol released his disguise disguise, Bi-yeon had stared at him in astonishment.
At the time, he hadn't known why.
But now, he faintly understood.
He resembled his father—Baekri Mu-ha, the head of the Saha Manor and a descendant of the Baekri Clan.
She must have recognized his face. That was why she had been so startled.
"It's completely collapsed."
Heuk-pyo, having swiftly scouted the area, returned shaking his head.
"There don't seem to be any survivors here either."
Bu Eun-seol closed his eyes briefly.
After Bi-yeon, the pillar of the Ancient Sword Forest, died, the place had begun to crumble.
Yet it still retained its form.
Which meant—
the Forest Lord who presided over this place must still be alive.
"There's something hidden here."
Wonpung was tirelessly combing through the ruins of the Ancient Sword Forest.
Which meant he, too, was searching for something here.
Krrrung.
Bu Eun-seol stepped inside the Black Tower at the center, where Wonpung had gone in and out, but still, he found nothing.
'It's definitely here.'
In the past, he might not have been able to find it—but now, he had the Wind & Cloud Divine Qi.
And the greatest use of Wind & Cloud Divine Qi was uncovering hidden things.
Shhhh—
As he spread the divine energy outward, his extrasensory perception rapidly expanded, allowing him to detect a strange movement he hadn't been able to sense before.
'This is...'
It was miraculous.
As the Wind & Cloud Divine Qi spread, the collapsed tower itself felt like a living organism.
"Lord."
"Wait."
Bu Eun-seol, who had been staring at the rubble, closed his eyes.
'If this is a massive living creature, how do I get it to show me what's inside?'
After pondering for a long while, he began carefully infusing it with the power of the Three Divine Powers, one by one.
First, he gently caressed it with Water Essence Divine Qi, then probed the gaps with Wind & Cloud Divine Qi.
Finally, he stimulated whatever was inside with a surge of Thunder Essence Divine Qi.
Gurgle. Grrrgle.
Suddenly, the shattered debris softened in texture.
Then, like the limb of a mollusk, the interior of the rubble began to undulate.
As Bu Eun-seol stepped forward, the wreckage naturally parted to either side, revealing a vast space beyond.
"Lord."
"Wait there for now. We don't know what might be inside."
Slowly, Bu Eun-seol walked inward.
After following the winding path for some time, he saw a small boy leaning against the wall, covered in blood.
"I expected this, but it's still surprising."
The boy lifted his head and looked at Bu Eun-seol.
His face appeared to be that of a fourteen or fifteen-year-old, but his eyes and expression were filled with the wisdom and serenity of an old man at dusk.
"You shouldn't be able to contain so many different powers in your body at once."
The boy's abdomen bore a gruesome wound, as though it had been torn apart by sharp sword qi.
Bu Eun-seol quickly approached and reached out.
"Let me examine your injuries in detail."
"It's alright."
The boy shook his head, gazing at Bu Eun-seol with perfect tranquility.
"The Lesser Forest Lords, who oversee the scattered fragments of the Ancient Sword Forest, possess one ability comparable to a Black Divine Artifact. And I... have a very limited ability to see the future."
The boy smiled.
"You must have heard—the metallic humans guarding this sanctuary are called Omnipotent Beings. They are, in essence, human-shaped Black Divine Artifacts."
"..."
"This sanctuary was artificially refining Black Divine Artifacts. And though incomplete, they succeeded in creating the Omnipotent Beings."
The boy continued calmly.
"Some factions within the Same Heart Society have been seeking out these sanctuaries across the world, systematically stealing our power."
Bu Eun-seol frowned in confusion.
Why was this boy pouring out all this information to him, a complete stranger?
"I saw it in a dream. You trying to help me. The questions you were going to ask."
As if reading Bu Eun-seol's mind, the boy spoke serenely.
"Despite enduring boundless sorrow and anguish, you've maintained a kind and pure heart... which is why you can subdue darkness and make it your own strength."
A boy who could see the future.
This sanctuary's Forest Lord spoke in riddles before extending his hand toward Bu Eun-seol.
In his palm, a single orb now shimmered with a mysterious light.
"This is what they want. With this, you can find the Great Forest Lord—the one who oversees all the Ancient Sword Forests."
"The Great Forest Lord."
"The one who governs the Ancient Sword Forests scattered across the land."
Now it made sense—Wonpung had been after this orb all along.
Though Bu Eun-seol said nothing, the boy continued as if he already knew everything.
"Please, save the Forest Lord. If you do, you'll naturally come to know everything you seek."
"The one who destroyed this place belongs to the Same Heart Society, but they must have some connection to the Ancient Sword Forest..."
As if anticipating the question, the boy answered first.
"Correct. Originally, he was just a young boy newly admitted into this sanctuary. But once you enter, you become part of it—you can never leave. He found that unbearable."
The boy continued.
"And in the Martial World, isn't possessing treasure itself a sin?"
Blood trickled from the corner of his lips.
"The Same Heart Society has been using the Infinite Realm to dominate this sanctuary from the beginning. Now that they've collapsed, other factions are bound to set their sights on it."
The Same Heart Society was less a unified alliance and more a collection of independently operating factions.
"So, in short—now that the Infinite Realm, which once controlled the Ancient Sword Forest, has fallen, other factions within the Same Heart Society are trying to seize it for themselves."
"Even clear water rots if left stagnant for too long. This sanctuary was destined to fall."
The boy's fading gaze fixed on empty space.
"We endured for a long, long time. Far too long..."
His voice grew weak, and he winced briefly before speaking again.
"You will face one brief trial in the future, and in the end, you will unlock the orb's power."
Then he said something utterly shocking.
"And after that... you will inherit the inherited legacies and power left behind by your mother."