Chapter 148: So-yu VS Cheong-yeon-3
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 148: So-yu VS Cheong-yeon-3
"The difference in power is unavoidable, it seems."
Ice Sword muttered with a hint of regret, but Yeom-jin, sitting before him, offered no reply.
Yeom-jin’s narrow eyes, visible above her fan, remained fixed on the arena, unmoving despite the thunderous roars of the crowd.
She lacked the relaxed composure she usually displayed.
In the VIP section, where Ice Sword, Yeom-jin, and the high-ranking officials of the Murim Alliance sat, the observers were seeing a very different version of the battle.
"However, the fight is being dragged out," Yeom-jin said, finally breaking her silence.
Massive ice crystals had formed around Cheong-yeon, who had been sent crashing into the spectator seats.
— Isn't that out of bounds?
Murmurs rippled through the stands, but the referee shook his head. A contestant was only out of bounds if their body touched the area outside the ring; since Cheong-yeon was encased in ice, the rule did not apply.
Furthermore, Namgung So-yu had no intention of ending this match with a mere out-of-bounds ruling.
"Stop dawdling and get back up here," Namgung So-yu said, suppressing her flickering flames.
"......"
Cheong-yeon reached out, manifesting a bridge of ice that connected the stands to the arena. Namgung So-yu stepped back slightly, clearing a path for her return.
As Cheong-yeon slid back into the ring, her face was clouded with a thick mist of exhaustion.
"You're as strong as ever."
The moment Cheong-yeon resumed her stance, Namgung So-yu’s energy exploded once more.
Watching her disciple’s aura erupt, Yeom-jin folded her fan and stood up.
"Are you not going to watch the rest?" Ice Sword asked with a mocking lilt as she prepared to leave.
"The result has already been decided. Is there any need to keep watching?" Yeom-jin replied, glancing back at Ice Sword, who wore a thin, cold smirk.
"I suppose you're right."
Ice Sword smiled broadly as he watched Yeom-jin depart.
"The Ice Wheel Art, the Flame Wheel Art, the Thunder Wheel Art... It’s not just the Three Great Inherited Martial Arts; most martial arts possess an Internal Energy Cultivation Method."
Ice Sword cast his gaze downward.
"And those cultivation methods influence the person."
"If one continues to manifest the Ice Wheel Art, the practitioner loses their emotions and becomes indifferent to the value of life. It is the inevitable influence of the cultivation method."
"That is why Cheong-yeon, with her diametrically opposite personality, is the perfect fit for the Ice Wheel Art."
Below, Cheong-yeon was widening the distance by hurling ice crystals.
"Even when she uses the Ice Wheel Art, her naturally kind disposition allows her to resist its influence."
Cheong-yeon continued to be pushed back by Namgung So-yu.
She rolled across the ground to evade So-yu’s flames and was sent flying by the shockwaves of her shattering barriers, yet she scrambled back to her feet with dogged persistence.
"I asked only one thing of Cheong-yeon for this match: to stall for time by using the Ice Wheel Art to its minimum capacity."
The flames erupting from Namgung So-yu grew more ferocious.
"Yeom-jin. To create a synergy with the Flame Wheel Art, you took an unstable child as your disciple. A child consumed by the desire to become strong."
Ice Sword’s gaze shifted to Namgung So-yu.
Her relentless assault on Cheong-yeon looked incredibly strained. Her breathing was ragged, and she occasionally stumbled, losing her balance as if the heat she generated was making her dizzy.
"I do not know the specific side effects of prolonged use of the Flame Wheel Art... but at the very least, for the sake of your disciple, you should have taught her how to suppress it."
With fire roaring in both hands, Namgung So-yu charged.
She used the explosive force to achieve great speed, but her movements lacked their previous sharpness.
— Thud!
For the first time, Cheong-yeon’s ice barrier successfully blocked Namgung So-yu’s strike.
"Ugh... Aaaaah!!"
Whether out of rage that her attack had been stopped or something else, Namgung So-yu let out a primal scream and forced her internal energy to surge.
The flames clinging to her body began to burn with even greater intensity.
Transformed into a human torch, Namgung So-yu swung her arms wildly, battering Cheong-yeon’s ice barrier. There was no longer any semblance of a martial form in her movements.
"......"
From behind her sturdy wall of ice, Cheong-yeon shielded herself and looked toward the VIP seats.
She was asking her master a question.
Is it time?
Seeing the question in her eyes, Ice Sword closed his eyes briefly before opening them.
The heat radiating from Namgung So-yu had warmed the entire arena, and the spectators in the nearby seats were hurriedly fleeing the area.
Now, only a few people remained in the general seating.
Ice Sword’s eyes fell upon the back of the man Yeom-jin had introduced as her servant. The man’s face was filled with bewilderment; he was likely shocked to see his master in such a broken state.
Or so Ice Sword thought.
As Ice Sword gave a slow, deliberate nod, the look in Cheong-yeon’s eyes changed.
A freezing chill began to gather around her.
— Crack! Crack!
As So-yu relentlessly struck the ice barrier, she felt it finally beginning to fracture.
"Once I break this...!!!"
The moment Namgung So-yu let out a battle cry and thrust her fist toward the barrier, the wall vanished from before her eyes.
Her strike hit nothing but air, and the uncontrolled momentum threw her off balance.
Having repositioned herself beside So-yu in an instant, Cheong-yeon raised a sword made of ice grains high into the air, just as she had done against In-ho.
"Dam... mit!"
The distance was too great to close in time. Namgung So-yu threw her body aside, predicting the trajectory of the downward swing.
However, a pillar of ice erupted from the ground, blocking her path and causing her to hesitate for a split second.
In that moment, Namgung So-yu felt the premonition of her defeat.
Cheong-yeon’s sword cut through the air, and a snowstorm dozens of times more powerful than the one that had overwhelmed In-ho descended upon her.
— Sssssss!
The melting snow rapidly sapped Namgung So-yu’s body heat. She tried to push forward against the blizzard, taking a few staggering steps, but her consciousness soon began to fade.
"No... way...!!!"
Feeling her body freeze starting from her fingertips, Namgung So-yu managed a faint murmur.
Those were the last words she uttered in this match.