Chapter 975
Hyeon-in's eyes widened with shock.
Not only had his Shadowless Great Derivation Art been shattered in a single strike, but even his phantom escape technique had been dismantled?
Could it be that this young bastard had broken through the same heavenly limits as himself—those of Human Heaven?
'Impossible!'
Crrk—crrk—crrk!
Hyeon-in frantically moved both hands once more, unleashing Palm Energy.
In response, skeletal shapes chaotically bloomed from the void, coiling around Bu Eun-seol's body.
It was the activation of Ghost Bone Blood Hand, one of the ultimate arts within the Dark Howling Blood Demon's repertoire.
Tremble.
In that instant, Bu Eun-seol's fists quivered faintly as cloud-like shockwaves scattered in all directions.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Within those shockwaves, countless white meteors erupted, beginning to erase the shadows of Ghost Bone Blood Hand.
The secret technique of the second form of Heavenly Light Seven Forms—Falling Meteors Through Clouds—had been unleashed.
KWA-RUMBLE! CRACKLE!
As Heavenly Light Seven Forms and Ghost Bone Blood Hand clashed relentlessly, waves of True Qi shockwaves expanded, their silhouettes flickering violently within the storm.
Hyeon-in wielded the unorthodox martial arts with unrestrained mastery.
Bu Eun-seol, unbound by the fixed forms of Heavenly Light Seven Forms, unleashed fist techniques that flowed with natural ease.
From a distance, it looked as though a celestial god descended from the heavens and a demonic fiend risen from the earth had tangled in fierce combat.
But then, an anomaly occurred.
Bu Eun-seol's momentum, which had been overwhelming Hyeon-in just moments ago, began visibly waning.
Heavenly Light Seven Forms had only recently been created—this was its first real battle.
Naturally, it couldn't possibly keep up with Hyeon-in's martial techniques, honed over a lifetime of freely wielding the martial arts of countless sects.
—GRRRR! KAAAH!
From afar, a thunderous roar echoed endlessly.
In the meantime, the battle between the Muhan Association's forces and the fake Demonic Calamity Beasts had intensified.
The martial artists of the Muhan Association fought in flawless battle formations, but the demonic beasts, just as Hyeon-in had declared, regenerated endlessly.
'Was their initial momentum all they had?'
Hyeon-in, who had been glancing at the tide of battle, curled the corner of his lips.
'They'll be annihilated soon enough.'
This brat's fist techniques were bizarre and powerful, but his execution of forms was laughably clumsy.
In contrast, he himself stood as the strongest of the Eight Heavenly Servants, a Lord of Heaven who had reached the pinnacle in both martial arts and occult arts.
Even those so-called grandmasters and the so-called powerhouses who claimed to dominate the world had all, without exception, had their necks severed at his hands.
No matter how much this Seol-so bastard wielded the martial arts of Natural Qi, he would ultimately share the same fate as all those who had fallen before him.
"Aside from using Natural Qi, you're nothing special."
Unbeknownst to him, Bu Eun-seol had only just created Heavenly Light Seven Forms and was using it for the first time.
Hyeon-in simply assumed he was relying on martial arts riddled with openings, despite his overwhelming momentum.
"I'll sever your head within three moves."
Hyeon-in unleashed the form Blood Battle in Eight Directions from Ghost Bone Blood Hand.
In an instant, a crimson radiance swept across a radius of a little over a hundred feet around Bu Eun-seol, and razor-sharp hand blades began swirling chaotically.
But who could have known?
Bu Eun-seol, calm and composed, maintaining perfect stability—
Had been using Hyeon-in as nothing more than a training dummy to refine Heavenly Light Seven Forms.
Pat!
Before anyone realized it, a sharp fist energy began grazing Hyeon-in's face.
Just moments ago, it hadn't posed any real threat—yet now, it had grown far more refined and devastating.
'This bastard—?!'
Hyeon-in was inwardly stunned.
Led by Langya Pavilion, the great sect of Practical Combat Martial Arts—
A few sects possessed secret techniques to absorb an opponent's martial principles mid-battle.
But never had he seen someone enhance their martial prowess during combat like this.
"Could his martial arts truly be a step above mine?"
Pat.
Hyeon-in retreated slightly, staring down at his own hand.
He had no choice but to admit it.
This bastard's martial arts were surpassing his own.
"You've forced me to reveal the foundation of this Lord of Heaven's power after all."
Then, muttering an eerie incantation, he suddenly spoke in a low voice.
"From this moment onward, every attack you unleash will rebound upon your own body."
Even as he witnessed it, it was hard to believe.
KWA-WHOOM! THUD!
Because every single fist technique Bu Eun-seol unleashed truly did reverse course, striking his own body instead.
'Something like this shouldn't be possible.'
Bu Eun-seol activated his movement technique, instantly ascending into the air.
Then, he unleashed Falling Meteors Through Clouds once more, firing a massive fist energy straight at Hyeon-in.
BOOM.
Yet, with a deafening explosion, it was Bu Eun-seol himself who crashed back to the ground.
Just as Hyeon-in had declared, every attack was rebounding onto him.
"Don't be shocked just yet."
Hyeon-in recited another incantation, curling his lips.
"From now on, you will be unable to use Internal Energy when executing movement techniques."
Whoosh.
The moment those words ended, Bu Eun-seol's legs lost strength. His internal energy could no longer properly circulate to his lower body.
To restrict an enemy's martial arts and strength with a single sentence—?
Such an ability was no power a human could wield. It was divine authority, belonging only to the gods.
"Now do you feel the greatness of this Lord of Heaven?"
Hyeon-in smirked.
Thud.
Hyeon-in extended a finger toward Bu Eun-seol, who was gasping for breath.
"It was quite entertaining, but let's end it here."
Zzzzt—
An overwhelming force gathered at his fingertip—enough to snuff out any living being in an instant.
"The highest ability of the Lord of Heaven is to deliver absolute death upon his enemies."
"..."
"The words of the Lord of Heaven become law, and there is no escape."
Flash!
In that moment, Bu Eun-seol's pupils gleamed with a golden light.
He had simultaneously activated both the Langya Mind's Eye, capable of analyzing any martial principle in an instant, and the Heavenly Robe Mind Art, which allowed him to perceive the flow of an opponent's True Qi Circulation.
Zzzzt—
But something unexpected happened.
It wasn't the Langya Mind's Eye or the Heavenly Robe Mind Art—instead, his right eye burned hot as the mysterious energy he had obtained from the Ancient Sword Forest began to manifest.
Boom, thudthudthud.
At that moment, Bu Eun-seol sensed Hyeon-in's heartbeat slow to an extreme before explosively accelerating.
Zzzzzt—
Through the heat rising from his eyes, Bu Eun-seol not only saw Hyeon-in's pupils turn glassy and his gaze darken—
But also noticed his blood vessels abnormally contracting and expanding, his skin texture smoothing like polished glass.
'Just as I thought.'
The corner of Bu Eun-seol's lips curled up.
He had seen through Hyeon-in's technique.
"The force from my fingertip will now pierce through your brow."
Hyeon-in declared it solemnly, as if delivering an immutable verdict.
"If you attack, you die. If you surrender, you die. If you flee in fear... you die."
He spoke like a prophet, swearing that no matter how Bu Eun-seol resisted, fled, or struggled—the condensed force at his fingertip would pierce his forehead.
Yet Bu Eun-seol looked down at him with indifference.
Having already discerned the nature of Hyeon-in's technique, he couldn't care less about his grand declarations.
'No wonder he talks so much.'
Zzzzt—
A mysterious light briefly radiated from Bu Eun-seol's body before a translucent mist spilled forth.
He had unleashed all his internal energy to erect a massive Astral Energy Barrier around them.
"Foolish resistance."
Hyeon-in flicked his finger immediately.
But something bizarre occurred.
A crack formed on the fingertip that was supposed to pierce Bu Eun-seol's brow—
Squelch.
His nail tore off, and blood oozed out.
"What is this?"
Bu Eun-seol answered flatly.
"In the end, the difference between the Divine Heavens and the Human Heavens was 'Domination.'"
Hyeon-in's face darkened instantly.
He couldn't comprehend it.
All he had done was declare the law: "No matter what you do—or don't do—you will die."
Yet not only had Bu Eun-seol grasped the nature of his power—something no one should know—
But could he also have found the key to dismantling it?.
"You shouldn't have bragged about creating the Demonic Calamity Beasts."
Bu Eun-seol spoke calmly.
"Whether they're illusions or not, if you could truly create and command an infinite number of demonic beings in numbers like those, you could've swallowed the Muhonhui whole without lifting a finger."
"..."
"But instead, you revealed yourself, flaunting your ability to create such an army."
—Grrrr! Kaaah!
In the distance, the roars of the demonic beasts echoed once more.
Bu Eun-seol clicked his tongue as he glanced toward the battlefield where the Muhonhui clashed with the Demonic Calamity Beasts.
"And those Demonic Calamity Beasts—they never stop roaring."
He smirked.
"Those roars are a form of Sound Arts, meant to disorient the minds of those who hear them... There aren't tens of thousands of them—just around a hundred, at most."
Deliberately stalling, Bu Eun-seol glanced at the distant sky before continuing.
"Second, you claimed to have defeated the Four Great Masters of the Muhonhui with just the Shadowless Great Derivation Art."
The Four Great Masters, including Noe Bi-hon, had undergone repeated Breakthroughs, elevating their martial prowess far beyond what the Murim world knew.
To take them all down at once with the Shadowless Great Derivation Art alone?
Even if the Demonic Heavenly Emperor himself had done it, such power would be impossible.
Meaning—Hyeon-in had secretly employed a Supernatural Ability to restrain their minds or bodies.
Tremble.
For the first time, Hyeon-in's eyes filled with disbelief.
Even for one of the Eight Heavenly Servants,
Creating and commanding tens of thousands of demonic beasts that resurrect through fear was absurd.
But because the phrase "Familiars of the True Demon" was always attached to them, no one in the Murim** had ever doubted this power.
Yet how had this man—
With just a few words—
Seen through the flaws of the Demonic Calamity Beasts—
And pierced the Divine Authority of the Divine Heavens, the 'Domination' that no martial artist had ever grasped before?
Bu Eun-seol curled the corner of his lips as he observed Hyeon-in, who had frozen stiff.
'He's shocked.'
Truth be told, even he hadn't been able to fully grasp the authority of the Divine Heavens.
But then, a sudden realization struck him.
'The Black Divine Heavenly Lord. He too commanded the endlessly regenerating Black Divine Ravens.'
Not only did those ravens regenerate infinitely, but they also absorbed the enemy's power.
By maintaining a certain formation, they exhibited abilities akin to a battle formation.
With the flapping of their wings and their cries, they stimulated the brain, conjuring illusions no less potent than those within a mindscape.
Because of them, Bu Eun-seol had nearly died without even being able to resist the Black Divine Ravens under the Black Divine Heavenly Lord's command.
And now, Hyeon-in was also controlling these Demonic Calamity Beasts—
Monsters that roared endlessly and regenerated infinitely? Even leading a far larger army than the Black Divine Ravens?
That made no sense from the start.
'If I hadn't unleashed the Lion's Roar, I might not have noticed.'
Above all, the decisive clue had been his Lion's Roar.
—"Instead of the main leader, command the branch leaders to hold back those monsters!"
He had infused his voice with internal energy to relay the order to Jeon Dan.
His internal energy was so immense that his voice alone shook the entire area,
momentarily drowning out even the eerie howls of the Demonic Calamity Beasts.
In that instant, their forms flickered faintly, as if an illusion had been cast—and everything became clear.
'Domination.'
The Martial God Heaven Lord had dominated 'space,' completely nullifying the enemy's attacks.
The Black Divine Heavenly Lord had dominated the enemy's mind through the wingbeats of his Black Divine Ravens.
And Hyeon-in, who would become the Destroyer of Gods,
was dominating the enemy's 'physical body' through the roars of those fake Demonic Calamity Beasts and his own voice—Word Command.
"In the end, without the roars of those Demonic Calamity Beasts, you can't exert your ability to interfere with the physical body, can you?"
As expected, his deduction was correct.
The moment sound was cut off, Hyeon-in's mysterious ability vanished,
and Bu Eun-seol immediately struck him with the Heavenly Light Seven Forms.
"..."
Hyeon-in, who had been chattering nonstop, fell silent for the first time.
Though he had defeated countless formidable enemies, never had his ability been so easily deciphered.
"Nature Shattering."
Finally, as if realizing something, Hyeon-in spoke.
"You were the Demonic Heavenly Emperor's disciple."
The power to instantly grasp every attribute and weakness of an opponent's techniques by piercing through their spirit and mind—
That could only be the Demonic Heavenly Emperor's Limitless Power, Nature Shattering.
"What nonsense are you spouting about Nature Shattering?"
When Bu Eun-seol scoffed, Hyeon-in uttered something bizarre.
"So you were the hidden disciple."
'Hidden disciple?'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes flashed, and Hyeon-in curled his lips.
"Nature Shattering may masquerade as Limitless Power, but in truth, it's an entirely different force."
What a strange thing to say.
Nature Shattering was widely known throughout Murim as the Demonic Heavenly Emperor's Limitless Power. Yet he claimed it was something else entirely.
'He's saying that Nature Shattering, known as the Demonic Heavenly Emperor's Limitless Power, is actually a supernatural ability—and that he had a hidden disciple?'
Bu Eun-seol felt a surge of confusion at the sudden revelation.
And Hyeon-in did not miss that opening.
"Whatever the case, the fact remains—you will die!"
With that cry, a pitch-black light surged from Hyeon-in's body.
KWAOOO—!
The dark radiance spread in all directions, and the sky began to darken.
Simultaneously, a black dragon descended slowly from the distant heavens.
"No martial arts can withstand Soul-Demon Magic Energy!"
Hyeon-in's voice twisted and reverberated as though time itself had slowed.
Soul-Demon Magic Energy, like Limitless Power, possessed transcendent destructive force, warping space and time.
BURURURU—
In an instant, the surrounding space, including Bu Eun-seol, began to tremble as if submerged in water.
Just as Hyeon-in had declared—
Once exposed to Soul-Demon Magic Energy, no one could resist its power.
"Die...!"
THUD.
Just as Hyeon-in gathered his strength to deliver a decisive strike, his knees suddenly buckled.
CRACKLE—
Starting from his shattered fingernails,
spiderweb-like fissures slowly spread across his entire body.
"How...?"
Hyeon-in couldn't comprehend what was happening.
How could Bu Eun-seol's body move despite being engulfed by the binding force of Soul-Demon Magic Energy?
"It wasn't just my fingernails that shattered."
Only then did realization dawn on him, and he bit his lip.
"You've already destroyed my body with Natural Qi."
CRUMBLE—
His body collapsed like sand in an instant.
The reason his fingernails had shattered earlier—
Was because, like an endless spreading light, Water Essence Divine Qi had split his skin, Wind & Cloud Divine Qi had torn his muscles,
and finally, Thunder Essence Divine Qi had crushed his bones—
The sixth form of the Heavenly Light Seven Forms, Boundless Radiance, had struck him.
But the energy had been so natural that he hadn't even realized the calamitous force was destroying his body until it was too late.
"You monster..."
THUD.
Hyeon-in knelt down and breathed his last.
'Everything seems like fate.'
No matter how much his martial prowess had recently advanced,
he shouldn't have been able to defeat a master like Hyeon-in—a candidate for the position of Destroyer of Gods—so easily.
'As if someone arranged it.'
But not long ago, he had fought fiercely against the Black Divine Heavenly Lord, who had appeared somewhat abruptly.
Because of that, he had been able to easily discern Hyeon-in's strengths and weaknesses.
What if that battle hadn't happened? He would never have been able to defeat Hyeon-in so effortlessly.
In other words, the events he had dismissed as random were, in reality, all intricately connected like a spider's web.
Rustle.
Then, Hyeon-in's corpse suddenly crumbled into dust,
Whoosh—
scattering in all directions on the wind, as if departing the world without regret.
At the same time, the Demonic Calamity Beasts that had surrounded the Martial Soul Society also turned to dust and scattered.
Since they were beings created through Hyeon-in's Domination, they vanished alongside him.
Zzzziiing—
With even the Demonic Calamity Beasts gone, the oppressive air lightened, and the world became clearer.
"In the end, even the Servants of the True Demon are like Limitless Power—obsessed with a single force."
Limitless Power.
It was something only a master who had reached the pinnacle of martial arts could wield, allowing them to transcend the limits of the human body and unleash extraordinary strength.
But Bu Eun-seol had sensed from the beginning that the Martial Extreme Realm—that Limitless Power—could become shackles to progress.
It made no sense to him that someone who had reached the pinnacle of martial arts would gain enlightenment only to become fixated on a single power.
—Mastery in one field grants insight into the principles of others.
A skilled cook can handle unfamiliar ingredients with ease.
An exceptional seamstress can work with unfamiliar fabrics just as well.
A master of sword techniques excels in all short weapons, and a superb archer quickly learns hidden weapon arts.
It was nonsensical that someone who had reached the peak in one martial discipline could wield only one form of Limitless Power.
Hyeon-in had clearly demonstrated that weakness.
Spells, Domination, Soul-Demon Magic Energy—
he had become so consumed by his own formidable power that he failed to clearly grasp his enemy's techniques.
Of course, this was something only Bu Eun-seol could do—
reading the subtlest shifts in an opponent's expression with his keen insight,
studying the principles of martial arts endlessly, and overturning the situation with a single flaw.
Whoosh—
Bu Eun-seol activated his movement technique and returned to the earthen fortress where the Four Great Divisions were stationed.
The warriors of the Martial Soul Society cheered—
"Waaah—!"
—not only because he had returned safely, but because the Demonic Calamity Beasts had vanished, signaling their victory.
However, the expressions of the division leaders were grim.
—To think it was just one of the Eight Heavenly Servants.
A single Lord of Heaven from the Eight Heavenly Servants had been enough to challenge the entire Martial Soul Society.
What if two of them had come?
Or worse—what if an even more powerful being had appeared? This battle would have ended in defeat.
"That's why the completion of the Mind's Eye Mirror is necessary."
Bu Eun-seol spoke calmly to the division leaders.
"Once it's complete, we'll at least be able to defend against the attacks of superlative martial experts."
The division leaders nodded with shame.
Only now did they understand why Bu Eun-seol had urged them so strongly to master the Mind's Eye Mirror.
"I apologize."
Dae Gu-hwi, quick-witted as ever, stepped forward to apologize on behalf of the division leaders.
"Had we heeded the Society Leader's words sooner, this wouldn't have happened."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
"No need for apologies. That pride and passion for martial arts have brought our warriors this far."
Then, in a low voice, he added,
"Besides, its full effect can only be unleashed by warriors who have trained to a certain level. I can't say the training until now was wasted."
At that, Dae Gu-hwi grinned broadly.
"We'll train even harder from now on."
"From now on..."
Bu Eun-seol gazed at the distant sky with a regretful expression.
"If we get the chance."
"Huh?"
Though he had founded the Martial Soul Society, he had deliberately avoided wielding his authority as its leader.
He had wanted the Society to be a sanctuary for all, a place of peace as much as possible.
But because of that, Bu Eun-seol had made a small miscalculation.
He had thought the Martial Soul Society could be protected even without the Mind's Eye Mirror.
"I had hoped the world would see their existence, but in the end, it seems I'll be the only one who does."
"What do you mean—"
Just as Dae Gu-hwi's expression turned blank—
BOOM!
A streak of light, like a meteor, descended from the distant sky toward Bu Eun-seol.
Zzzziiing—
Bu Eun-seol raised his hand, unleashing the power of the Heavenly Light Endless Art, and a massive hemispherical barrier of martial energy formed in the air.
CRACK—CRACK—CRACK—
As the martial energy clashed with the meteor,
the ground trembled, and pebbles on the floor slowly began to rise into the air.
It was an unprecedented force bearing down upon them.
At the same time, all the warriors of the Martial Soul Society around Bu Eun-seol vanished.
Phase—and Absolute Boundary.
Before he knew it, a Mindscape and a transcendent battle formation had simultaneously unfolded around Bu Eun-seol.
Zzzziiing—
Finally, as the Absolute Boundary completed,
a radiant light shone from the distant sky, and a man clad in white robes descended slowly from the heavens.
His presence and aura were like that of an immortal descending from the heavens.
His features were as flawless as a sculpture,
but his gaze was utterly arrogant, exuding an air of looking down on all beings.
'The Baekri Clan.'
His heart pounded as if it would burst.
The reason he had stalled for time until his mouth tasted of blood—
At last, the servant of the Baekri Clan, whom he had been waiting for so desperately, had appeared.