Chapter 73
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Beyond the Mad Demon
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The Mad Demon was undoubtedly a colossal mountain.
Even if Seo Mun-ha regained the prowess of his previous life, it was an opponent whose victory or defeat could not be guaranteed.
Yet his gaze did not fix solely on the Mad Demon.
The nameless peak behind Mu Geum-hyeon.
Leaping over that countless range of mountains—that was precisely Seo Mun-ha's goal, and achieving it would mark the true realm of Mountain Shattering.
Snap!
The mountain right before his eyes was one he absolutely had to surpass.
"Do you have the luxury to look away?!"
It was far from as simple as those words made it sound.
Injuries multiplied across Seo Mun-ha's body as his thoughts wandered.
Seven Realms, Soul Transcendence.
Qi unbound by form tightened around his throat.
Driven into a defensive stance, Seo Mun-ha focused solely on protection.
He had pioneered a solid mid-realm cultivation, but he wasn't naive enough to let excitement override his caution.
Clang!
His mind hadn't fully settled either.
Thud.
Leaving footprints on the earth, he probed for counterattacks amid his purely defensive footwork.
In this battlefield where crises and opportunities swapped places in an instant, he bided his time.
Seo Mun-ha's aim had always been to buy time, though the situation had shifted somewhat.
With his ascent to mid-realm, the dynamics—or structure—of the fight had changed.
Drawing the Mad Demon's full attention had intertwined with assessing his odds of victory, and that goal was as good as achieved.
Low, mid, and high realms were divided by stark gaps.
Like the difference between child and adult.
Before, even enduring had been a struggle for Seo Mun-ha.
He hadn't fully assimilated the insights from his past life.
Seo Mun-ha had bridged the gap with experience and skill, but he couldn't shed the shell of a child.
Commonly, mid-realm matched evenly; with his deficient inner energy, he could only stand toe-to-toe with those up to the fifth realm at best.
No matter how many small channels he opened, a flooding river wouldn't change course—and against the disaster named Mad Demon, his efforts had been futile flailing.
But now, things were different.
There was no need for despair over an immediate win.
With at least the minimum strength to hold out, tactics could come alive—and viable tactics gave even the unskilled a shot at seizing the advantage from a master.
Kaaang!
Meeting the sword energy head-on, Seo Mun-ha deflected it while clinging tenaciously.
"Truly... you're a young man who gets under my skin in every way!"
The Mad Demon wasn't blind to his intentions.
He could instantly grasp that Seo Mun-ha was laying a foundation.
It might be seen as an insult, yet he accepted the challenge.
With the power of Eight Stars.
As if everything until now had been mere warm-up, his sword energy thickened and rampaged like a soaring beast.
Groooar—
With a flick of the Mad Demon's hand, the earth convulsed.
Nature, which had endured harsh winds and waves while keeping its form, was overturned.
'I've lost too much blood.'
Dodging past a prodigy, Seo Mun-ha suddenly clutched his forehead.
His consciousness nearly fled for a moment.
Deflecting sword energy's might alone drained ordinary mental strength, and in this tightrope walk, even an instant's lapse could claim his life.
Shuuuk.
The gust grazing his head belatedly struck the ground.
Boom—!
The noise wasn't as loud as expected.
Ringing in his ears, Seo Mun-ha struggled to anchor his dizzying mind, while behind him yawned a deep crater as if thunderbolts had rained down.
Sss...
A bright red trickle followed, streaming down his forehead.
'Just a graze.'
The flowing blood briefly veiled his eyes.
It didn't particularly impair his vision, but his bloodshot eyes seemed to mirror his battered body and spirit.
"I almost forgot."
The legendary fiend of old showed a measure of respect in his own way.
"Before I kill you, I'd like to hear it. What's your name?"
It was the highest praise he could offer.
"...Seo Mun-ha."
"I'll remember it well."
The Mad Demon nodded, and his form vanished.
In the instant his red-tinged vision flickered.
Instinctively, Seo Mun-ha slashed at empty air.
Shiiik!
No sensation.
Melding his five senses with qi sense, mobilizing every instinct—even then, he could only chase the afterimage of the Mad Demon at full power.
Thud!
Soon, shockwaves poured in like a tidal surge.
Mukryeong raised reflexively halved the sword energy's force, but pain burrowing past his broken left arm churned his insides.
"Cough!"
Too much damage in too short a time.
At least the agony kept his mind tethered—a silver lining in misfortune.
'Still so far.'
He'd thought the gap had narrowed, yet the distance to the Mad Demon remained vast.
He had escaped the rigid forms of techniques, but that alone didn't double his prowess.
The Soul Transcendence realm dissolved fixed mental images into great nature, shedding the body's vessel as its final destination.
Unbound by techniques or weapons, it even approached infinite inner energy by mortal standards.
The Mad Demon, who had forgotten even his own name, wielded his vast power freely, and in raw numbers, he outmatched Seo Mun-ha.
There were openings, moments of carelessness.
But to play his trump card, that crucial inch remained unbridged.
For Seo Mun-ha, whose energy was plummeting, it felt an eternity away.
'Low-odds gambles aren't worth taking.'
Panting raggedly, Seo Mun-ha scanned his surroundings.
No technique was flawless.
As he himself had realized, relying on forms made him exploitable—other demon heads could adapt and find gaps—but an elder without forms was the worst matchup.
'No way out.'
The Seo Mun Clan's arts: Northern Guard Divine Cavalry Art, Mountain Shattering Heavenly Spirit Sword, Five Inscriptions Twelve Divine Arts.
Having weighed every option, Seo Mun-ha let his right arm droop.
Only a handful remained in this battlefield.
An feat none but the Heavenly Throne Ten Seats could match.
"Be proud. It's been ages since I went all out like this."
Even the fully committed Mad Demon was taken aback by the persistent resistance.
"Thanks to you, I recalled something long forgotten."
Even if he gave up now, no one would blame him—and the man himself brushed away any lingering regrets, adding,
"Wi Jin-yang of the Wi Clan is this old man's name."
A title earned before his hair turned white.
Setting aside Seo Mun-ha's status, Wi Jin-yang had shown proper respect to a junior martial artist.
As one warrior to another.
A talent fearsome enough to move even a life-and-death foe.
The elder had lost many subordinates absent from this place, yet he felt the scales balanced.
"Farewell."
No sooner had Wi Jin-yang spoken than the ground shattered.
Spiderweb cracks.
Craaack—
The pure qi he unleashed bore down on the stunned-still Seo Mun-ha.
"I am getting on in years."
More fatigued than expected, he rubbed his waist with a sigh.
'What next?'
What to do with the fleeing brats.
The warriors still holding ground posed no issue...
They were precisely those who had returned from the jaws of death, and with their lingering stubbornness lightening his load, Wi Jin-yang leisurely pondered amid the wrinkles.
'The cult's kids will have to wait...'
It was then.
A twitch.
An indescribable chill ran through him.
"What is this?"
Voicing his doubt aloud, Wi Jin-yang glanced around.
Not demonic qi.
'Whoever it is, to emanate yin energy this potent.'
Groaning softly, he soon witnessed the impossible.
"..."
Wi Jin-yang's face crumpled.
Seo Mun-ha, who should have left no trace, stood alive and breathing.
Moreover, as if proclaiming his resilience, he murmured low incantations.
The terms forming on his lips were what warriors called the Eight Extraordinary Meridians.
Conception Vessel, Governing Vessel, Thoroughfare Vessel, Belt Vessel, Yin Linking Vessel, Yang Linking Vessel, Yin Binding Vessel, Yang Binding Vessel.
A thread of inner energy coursed through the acupoints.
Swish.
Acupoints that were supposed to be sealed.
Having reached mid-realm, he had gambled and forcibly opened portions of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians.
Northern Guard Divine Cavalry Art.
True to its piercing of yin and yang, its authentic cultivation revealed itself only after breaching these meridians.
Azure Dragon (Conception), White Tiger (Thoroughfare), Vermilion Bird (Yin Linking), Black Tortoise (Yin Binding).
The four yang gates housing the auspicious guardians.
Direct Channel (Governing), Ascending (Belt), Chaotic (Yang Linking), Palace Qi (Yang Binding).
The four yin gates housing the baleful spirits.
Eight meridians forming eight gates—this was the divine qi that had guided Yi Mok-yeom of his past life to the Seven Realms.
"...Palace Qi."
Seo Mun-ha flung open the Yang Binding Vessel.
Inner energy surged forth unchecked.
Uncontainable qi encroached on the air, and alongside prior emanations, Wi Jin-yang instantly recognized the unleashed power.
"Heh heh..."
How many more shocks lay ahead?
Age dulled reactions to most stimuli.
One thing was certain: he couldn't let Seo Mun-ha walk away.
Thwack!
As if on cue, both lunged simultaneously.
Regrettably, time favored Seo Mun-ha no more.
'Thanks to opening Palace Qi.'
Even in a pure clash of strength, he no longer felt overwhelmingly outmatched.
Wi Jin-yang's vast lake of power remained, but a mortal frame had limits on wieldable inner energy.
Kwaang!
Of course, Seo Mun-ha hadn't surpassed mid-realm.
He had simply unlocked previously unusable acupoints.
Even thrusting a single fist required the shoulder for explosive force.
And using shoulder over mere arm—or waist over shoulder—mobilizing the whole body was far deadlier.
Bang!
In essence, the same principle.
He no longer yielded ground against sword energy as before.
Far from safe, yet Seo Mun-ha displayed transcendent divinity, Mukryeong's edge now winged.
"...Infuriating."
His composure cracking, Wi Jin-yang's eyes wavered.
"A ghost that won't even die!"
No mercy lingered.
Ghosts and specters from the past collided repeatedly.
Heavy impacts bloomed, distorting Wi Jin-yang's expression no surprise.
'What's left...'
Conversely, Seo Mun-ha's hazy pupils tallied his remaining qi bursts.
Two more.
Stepping forward, he swung Mukryeong with the second.
Northern Guard Mysterious Distant Spear, Esoteric Technique.
The condensed yin qi in Mukryeong erupted outward.
Palace Qi Thunder Heaven Branching Fate.
Death qi coalesced into a beast's form, devouring Wi Jin-yang.
Flash!
A winged tiger's roar echoed.
The predator that consumed prey bones and all knew no satisfaction.
Paaang!
Wi Jin-yang burst from the death qi, his flesh filling the tiger's maw.
"Kuh."
His steady breath warped for the first time.
His appearance grew unkempt.
Seo Mun-ha, ignoring the ghoul-like Wi Jin-yang, squeezed out his final qi.
Thump.
Someone grabbed his clothes as if to stop him.
"..."
A pleasant fragrance wafted.
Faint voices reached him too, perhaps.
But his mangled hearing turned even a melodious voice into choked sobs that barely registered.
Unable to turn, Seo Mun-ha kept eyes on Wi Jin-yang as an unfamiliar shadow entered his view.
"Well done, young one."
A deep timbre echoed in his muffled ears.
"Leave the rest to me."
Sight and sound converging, Seo Mun-ha silently regarded the giant's figure.
"Fifteen, sixteen years?"
"Mad Fist King?"
Wi Jin-yang, glaring likewise, ignited with fury.
"How are you here?"
Of all to beware, the Heavenly Throne Ten Seats topped the list. Cultists tracked their positions first and foremost, every movement charted.
"That's my line. Thought you were dead, yet you brazenly show up. In the Northern Mountains, no less."
"Heh, who said I wanted to see your ugly mug?"
Had he known the man lurked here, he'd never have approached.
The two bound by ill fate eyed each other like old acquaintances—most unwelcome for Wi Jin-yang, especially drained as he was.
"As for me, I wouldn't dream of stealing the fish this young one nearly hooked."
The Mad Fist King, aura surging, exuded prestige befitting his moniker.
"But I must avenge my grandson."
"Hmph, perfect timing then. I'll settle your loathsome faces all at once."
Heavenly Throne Ten Seats versus Nine Heavens Earth Demon.
Watching them reenact history with terrifying might, Seo Mun-ha gradually released his grip on consciousness, collapsing into someone's slender embrace.