Chapter 91
Chapter 91
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Testing My Strength
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I hadn't failed to anticipate a clash of arms.
Just, I never imagined the opponents would include even the Ghost Horse Captain, the Nine Heavens Jade Maiden.
"...They're elites. And there are a lot of them. Need any help?"
"I'm good."
"Haha! You're all dead! Think about what you'll do in hell...!"
"Shut up."
---Thwack!
The head of Shim Ryul, who took the hit, lolled forward. Black Peony asked.
"You sure you're okay handling them alone?"
"Honestly, I don't know. But..."
The ones I truly needed to face were the group that took down the Four Blood Squad members.
If I couldn't even handle this lot, how could I save her?
...No. That wouldn't happen.
I had to test it. My actual combat experience since arriving in Yeommin could be counted on one hand.
The Blood Cult. Whatever they were, they were a group that had lurked in the shadows for a long time.
They must have undergone special training.
Even more honed than the experts before me.
So let's see. Where do I stand right now?
"I'll give it a shot."
"Got it."
Black Peony stepped back. The eight men called Ghost Horse Squad members bared their teeth.
"You bastard! How dare you pull this filthy stunt in Myriad Demons Sect territory!"
"Surrender quietly! Or we'll cut you down!"
"Sorry, but I can't do that."
I lightly shook out my wrists.
My goal for now...
Maybe just subdue them all.
I slung the sheathed Baekya over my shoulder.
"Come on."
"This son of a bitch!"
Enraged that I hadn't even drawn my sword, they instantly surrounded me from all sides.
Three in the air. Five charging across the ground.
I could see the powerful sword qi on their drawn blades. Even their swings looked heavy.
But...
I could see it all.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art
Third Form.
Hegemonic Demon Path.
Blood-red blood shadows flowed over my entire body. I ignored Baekya's eerie wail.
The Icy Blood Ghost Art could wait. For now, I'd face them with just the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art.
Heavy.
Something I'd practiced over and over.
I stepped toward the first sword thrusting at me. My weighted body seized the gap.
I dodged the tangle of swords coming at me by a hair's breadth. Slipping through, I observed the blade of the one who'd charged first.
The distance between their sword and my body.
I naturally pulled back my forward-leaning body.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art
Second Form
Soul-Pulling Thrust - Grave Rush
---Thaaaack!!
Amid the harsh sound, the opponent's jaw flew off outright. His body launched into the air and tumbled across the ground.
He wouldn't be intact. I'd infused it with qi. Still, he wasn't dead.
Let's go with this feeling.
"He's a master!"
"Don't let your guard down!"
"Form the Linked Strike Array!"
The remaining Ghost Horse Squad members' attitudes shifted. The chaotic swords aligned in an instant, pressing me.
Linked Strike Array, huh. Covering each other's weaknesses with a special formation.
"You bastard!"
A ferocious sword threatened my face. A powerful strike. The full-body force menaced me.
Strong techniques inevitably delay the follow-up. Martial arts are about rhythm. You can't lead with max power every moment.
There's inhale, then exhale. How you connect them is the essence of a technique.
But before I could capitalize on the strong strike they'd unleashed, two squad members filled the gap.
They unleashed their best techniques in relentless succession. The momentum was enough to pressure someone a realm above.
---Kwang!
The two I parried slid back. But another instantly filled the gap.
Swords tangled. The messy blades lunged ceaselessly for blood.
I rode the flow. Ducking and stepping back, I assessed their skill level.
Impressive.
Each one was in the realm of talent.
They probably heard "genius" the moment they picked up a sword. Instinctively piercing efficient paths to target me.
The power in their blades was great too. The edges threatening my neck in real time were razor-sharp.
But it wasn't enough.
The exchanges that flashed in an instant surpassed 30 seconds.
I evaded the charging swords. Gripping my sword hilt, I tensed.
Switching from defense to offense.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art
Second Form
Soul-Pulling Thrust - Numbing Stroke
Once I grasped the overall flow, it was simple.
I predicted the incoming sword paths and powered my arms. In an instant, I chose the qi-condensed points, then...
Slammed down hard.
---Kwaduduk!
"What?!"
I uppercut the jaw of the shocked Ghost Horse Squad member clutching his shattered sword. Lightly tossing my sword upward, I reached toward the squad members closing in from both sides.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art
First Form
Ghost Hand One Demon - White Snake, Fang Pierce
---Karduk!
One's jaw I smashed with my elbow.
The other I ensnared like a snake and yanked down.
"Gahhh!"
"You wench!"
I twisted my body. Using the grabbed squad member to buy time, I snatched the falling sword.
Then a light chop to the nape. I tossed the limp Ghost Horse Squad member aside.
In the flurry of exchanges, three down. With only half left, the squad members' faces hardened.
"What the...?!"
"How can the gap be this wide...?!"
"I-I thought your realm was maybe just one step above...?!"
They were definitely experts. No doubt about that.
Rare ones at that, enough to take pride in belonging to the Ghost Horse Squad.
But complacency from what they had showed in their bodies everywhere.
Their techniques.
Their sword swings.
The weight in their steps.
All poison to them. It had been ages since proper training.
I tapped my shoulder with the sheath.
"...Hoo."
I'd been unsure, but now I was certain.
I could do it. As I am now. No need to hold back.
So...
Crush them all.
"Be careful not to kill them."
"Wha...?!"
I kicked off.
The blood shadows of Hegemonic Demon Path cloaking my body blazed.
The rest was simple.
---Wooduk!
The bones of the four Ghost Horse Squad members leaping into the air snapped simultaneously.
"Gaaaaah!!"
"Hnggh?!"
High-purity inner energy. Tempered body. Countless sword swings.
In that, I confirmed the power I'd built.
"...Ha."
I wasn't wrong.
The First Demon's teachings. My path. Someday...
I would surely surpass the Heavenly Demon.
...
Fire Heaven Explosive Fist
White Hundred Piercing Death
---Kwaaaaaang!!!
The wall crumbles. Dust billows everywhere, filling the air with acrid smoke.
Stone, mud-everything burns and explodes. That was the Fire Heaven Explosive Fist. A technique that reduces all it touches to ash.
But this opponent didn't turn to ash easily. Instead, from the blazing debris, eyes gleamed ominously.
"My turn."
---Kaaaaang!!
A chilling sword strike rang out, targeting the Fire Heaven Fist Demon's upper body. At its tip blazed vivid sword qi. The Fire Heaven Fist Demon hurriedly raised his hand.
Fist and sword.
Enveloped in qi, they clashed in midair.
---Kududududuk!!!
Energy against energy. To ordinary eyes, monsters at the pinnacle of martial arts merging into each other.
The surroundings split. The earth warps and collapses, turning everything to powder.
The spot they clash explodes space itself. Speeds beyond speed shatter each other.
Layer one on top.
Then another atop that. A breathless exchange.
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon grinned unwittingly. This intensity. Yes. The title Nine Heavens Jade Maiden was no fluke.
Thrilling!
This is how warriors clash!
"Arrogance with reason! Then I'll meet you with full power too!"
He surged his Explosive Gong energy to nine stars in an instant. His blazing soles left imprints on the ground.
Bloodbath. A technique craving only the enemy's ashes at its end.
Blazing crimson qi spread everywhere instantly. The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden smirked bitterly in response.
"I'll tear you apart."
Jade qi clung to her raised sword. The Fire Heaven Fist Demon smelled death within.
Her swordsmanship was pure illusion. A sword that slipped away the moment you thought you had it.
Like a butterfly you couldn't catch. They said the technique she wielded was akin to the Butterfly Dream, and it was true.
Beneath her inviting stance lurked certainty. Certainty that she'd devour the likes of him in a sword's dream in an instant.
"Kuhuhu!"
Even at my age, a challenger? Yielding the first move to someone at my level?
Insolent!
"I'll smash it all! With this one fist of mine!"
"Come. Fire Heaven Fist Demon. I'll remember your end."
---Wungwungwung.
In the gathered power, the Fire Heaven Fist Demon raised his hand. Its tip burned red like a mini sun.
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden raised her sword too. Sword qi overflowed from the tip, spilling like mist everywhere.
Building exchanges. The moment of resolution.
The two, readying their ultimate techniques, kicked off simultaneously. But at that instant, Nine Heavens Jade Maiden Geum Seo-ryeon turned her head.
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon faltered as he was about to unleash.
"Mocking me?!"
"Don't talk nonsense. Open your ears first. Look at that before anything."
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden flicked her gaze aside. The Fire Heaven Fist Demon followed her finger.
There stood one man. A warrior. Nameless. An odd guy openly using a fake name.
I could see him swinging his sword. Sheathed, even. Confidence or arrogance? Unclear.
But the next moment revealed which.
Four Ghost Horse Squad members soared into the air at once.
"......!"
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon admired despite himself. Look at those basics.
Damn. Whoever taught him did a real number on it. The real deal. Such feats required rock-solid fundamentals; impossible without.
Amazing. Movements honest, yet an overwhelming physique pushing that honesty against all!
"Your disciple?"
"Planning to make him one."
"Hmm... 'Planning' means not yet, right?"
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon saw it.
The greed in the Nine Heavens Jade Maiden's eyes.
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon changed tack immediately.
"Just words-he's practically my disciple already! Don't eye him and focus on the fight!"
"I'd love to end this, but I can't."
"What?"
"Told you to listen."
"I... I'm a Blood Cult spy..."
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon belatedly heard the voice he'd missed amid the duel.
Words leaked from Shim Ryul's entranced mutterings. The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden sheathed her sword.
"You lot. What exactly are you chasing?"
"The Blood Cult."
His mood soured, the Fire Heaven Fist Demon withdrew his qi. He answered indifferently.
"Heard they're behind this incident, lurking."
"......"
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden added nothing. She just turned and stood before Shim Ryul.
"What did you do?"
"Soul Captivation Technique. Simply entrances them to spill the truth. Ask whatever you want."
"...Shim Ryul. The last brothel you went to?"
"Gu... Guhwa Pavilion..."
"When?"
"Yesterday... during patrol..."
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden sighed.
"Spilling loose-lipped truths. Tsk. Blood Cult, huh? What exactly do you want?"
Nameless, sword sheathed tightly at his waist, answered.
"Just looking for the Four Blood Squad members."
"Four Blood Squad? You mean the Wolhyang who vanished with your Black Night Squad?"
"Yes."
"...Then their story mixes with your Black Night Squad's."
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden checked her fallen subordinate.
"Got them all subdued?"
"Yes. No reason to kill."
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden turned. Looked up at Nameless.
"Impressive. Blade work's seasoned. What's your sect?"
"None."
"Really? Affiliation?"
"That too, for now..."
"Voice is resolute. Build's solid. Face suits my taste. Come closer."
The Fire Heaven Fist Demon blocked her path.
"Told you not to eye him!"
"Not your disciple yet, is he? Don't yell in my ear."
"He is my disciple!"
"No, he's not."
"I'll teach him Fire Heaven Explosive Sword!"
"Fire Heaven Fist Demon. Isn't the important part elsewhere?"
Black Peony patted Shim Ryul.
"Extract the info first. Let's not veer off weirdly. Ghost Horse Captain. Can we count on your cooperation for now?"
"A Blood Cult spy hiding in Myriad Demons Sect? Unforgivable."
The Nine Heavens Jade Maiden clicked her tongue.
"Keep interrogating. Nameless woman. I'll watch personally."