Shattering the Transcendent Peak Barrier
Dan Gang-cheol, the leader of Yongma Dae, had shattered the wall of the Transcendent Peak Realm. As commander of Yongma Dae, a unit under the Demon Sword Sect, he was an extreme demonic master leading roughly twenty Transcendent Peak swordsmen. What made him unusual was that the Dan clan within the Heavenly Demon Cult belonged to the Phantom Demon Sect—an uncommon case of someone from the Phantom Demon Sect crossing into the Demon Sword Sect. Perhaps because of that, Baekri Hyeong bit his lip as he watched the black energy rising from Dan Gang-cheol. He had crossed blades with the man in his previous life, so he immediately understood what Dan Gang-cheol had done.
The man had torn out his own heart and converted the condensed life force within it into demonic energy—a forbidden spell that let him exceed the limits of his original martial prowess for roughly half an hour. Dan Gang-cheol had judged victory impossible and activated the technique anyway.
This is bad. My body is already in poor shape, and now I have to fight him?
Baekri Hyeong knew Dan Gang-cheol’s sword technique well enough to handle it, though only at the level of barely coping. The brief moment of triumph when the man’s arm had been severed passed quickly; Dan Gang-cheol simply reformed his right arm with demonic energy. Baekri Hyeong aimed his sword at him with a bitter smile.
“The Heavenly Demon Cult really is a den of lunatics. Pulling out your own heart just to use some sorcery like that.”
“No matter what you say, you will still die here.”
“Let’s see if you can make that happen!”
Baekri Hyeong abruptly unleashed Blood Wing Explosion. In the blink of an eye he was right in front of Dan Gang-cheol, swinging for the neck. Yet—
Thud.
“Now I can see you clearly.”
“Damn it…!”
Baekri Hyeong was stunned to see Dan Gang-cheol catch his blade bare-handed. He had wondered why the man failed to read the speed of the Vermilion Bird Killing Sword, something odd for an extreme demonic master. It must have been because his body was no longer in normal condition. Now, with his own body drugged and heightened, everything was painfully visible. In the end Baekri Hyeong abandoned his sword and leapt far back. Stubbornly clinging to it would only get him killed. Fortunately, Dan Gang-cheol seemed unaccustomed to his altered body; he discarded the sword and twisted his neck. Crack. Crack. The sound of bones realigning echoed as a grotesque aura burst from Dan Gang-cheol’s frame. Even though Baekri Hyeong had witnessed this sorcery many times in his past life, he still found it utterly repulsive.
I have to endure. Mother is right behind me. If I go wild alone, we’ll both die.
Baekri Hyeong trusted his father. Baekri Hyeok would surely slay the leader of the Tiger Army and return to the Baekri Clan Residence to end this. If not, he simply had to hold out for half an hour. What else could he do?
No choice. I have to break through to Transcendent Peak right now.
Kwaaaaaang!
When Baekri Hyeong executed the True Step, an unimaginable aura erupted from his body. Already possessing internal energy on par with—or exceeding—the Transcendent Peak realm, he had tempered his physique again and again until it reached its absolute limit. The instant the pure energy sealed within him was released, the ominous black energy that had filled the surroundings vanished. Every martial artist inside the Baekri Clan Residence stood frozen in shock. Such pristine energy could not be felt even within Daoist or Buddhist sects. It was pure, compressed, immaculate, and radiant.
“Hoo… Reaching the Transcendent Peak Realm at eleven years old. Truly remarkable.”
“I would have preferred to stay hidden a little longer, but the situation leaves me no choice.”
Having quickly adapted to his new realm, Baekri Hyeong spoke calmly while picking up a fallen sword. Without a peerless divine blade, he had no choice but to fight with an ordinary weapon.
“For such talent to be born in the Murim… Had you been born in our cult, you would surely have caught the Heavenly Demon’s eye. A pity. Therefore, you must die.”
“Try it—if you can!”
Now fully established in the Transcendent Peak Realm, Baekri Hyeong ignited the Vermilion Bird Fire Qi to its utmost. The materialized killing intent took the shape of a Vermilion Bird and bore down on Dan Gang-cheol. Even at the same realm, the man could not help but voice pure admiration at the power Baekri Hyeong displayed.
“I had hoped you would prove a worthy son of a worthy father, but it cannot be helped!!”
Dan Gang-cheol performed the True Step and charged. His body, wrapped in demonic energy, felt like a colossal elephant thundering forward. Yet Baekri Hyeong’s eyes held no fear. He could block it—no, he could defeat it.
“Haaaaah!!”
Baekri Hyeong reshaped the Fire Qi into wings and soared skyward. It was neither Void Step nor Empty Flight, merely the flapping of wings formed from internal energy. Still, the Vermilion Bird Fire Qi granted the freedom of a bird cutting through the heavens.
“Did you think fleeing into the sky would save you!”
Dan Gang-cheol leapt high, sneering at Baekri Hyeong’s retreat, and aimed for his legs. But Baekri Hyeong’s movements had long since anticipated every action. Without hesitation he unleashed the Vermilion Bird Killing Sword.
Piiiiiiik!!
The Vermilion Bird cried out in fury and descended. It was the second form of the Vermilion Bird Killing Sword, Killing Wing Heavenly Fall, wreathed in flames.
Dan Gang-cheol raised demonic energy as a shield to block the unexpected strike. Yet Baekri Hyeong, already kicking off the air, had circled behind him and thrust his sword.
Puuuuk!
“Kuk!”
Dan Gang-cheol failed to react to the mystical movement and took a blade through his side. He immediately swung his own sword to drive Baekri Hyeong away. His body was already dying; there was no point worrying about the wound.
If it has come to this… I’ll change the target.
Baekri Hyeong’s speed, having crossed the Transcendent Peak wall, rose exponentially. His sword technique carried the subtlety of extreme swiftness, making it difficult to counter. Moreover, demonic energy was eroding his body and gradually dulling his perception. Would it not be wiser to strike an unguarded opponent rather than chase after someone so fast?
“Damn it!”
Realizing Dan Gang-cheol’s intent, Baekri Hyeong dropped in front of Han Seol-eun and was forced to block the man’s sword without retreating. In the end he abandoned the Vermilion Bird Fire Qi and drew forth White Tiger Wood Qi, clashing directly with Dan Gang-cheol’s blade.
Chaeaeaeeng!
“Kuluk!”
“As expected, this was the correct answer. Do not call it despicable. That is simply how battles are fought.”
“I don’t think it’s despicable. To win, one must do whatever is necessary.”
“..?”
“You may believe demonic energy is a complete force, but I will prove you wrong!”
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!
As Baekri Hyeong released pure, upright energy, Dan Gang-cheol’s body began to be pushed steadily backward. It was not a contest of raw strength. The demonic energy itself reacted to the pure internal energy and instinctively recoiled from it.
How… is this possible!?
Even Shaolin, Wudang, or Huashan could not repel demonic energy in such a manner. Perhaps the abbot or a sect leader might manage to block it, but they would never be driven back like this.
While Dan Gang-cheol stood bewildered, Baekri Hyeong rejoiced inwardly. This was precisely why he had been reluctant to ascend to the Transcendent Peak Realm. The sacred energy that countered demonic energy could only be cultivated after obtaining every ounce of power available at the Peak Realm and then stepping into Transcendent Peak. When one raised their realm without allowing even a trace of impurity into their internal energy, sacred energy accumulated naturally. The situation had left him no choice but to ascend. Compared to his previous life, where no sacred energy had existed at all, this was far better.
Meanwhile, elsewhere—
“Haa… haaa…”
“Goebu Gongson Ryong. As expected of a master who reached the extreme demonic realm, your final struggle was quite entertaining.”
“Extreme demonic, my ass. The proper name is Hwajing realm.”
“Our Yongma Dae is composed entirely of Transcendent Peak experts. Killing ten masters while facing fifteen of them—truly worthy of the title Axe Ghost.”
“Ptooey! If you’re going to flatter me, just kill me already.”
Gongson Ryong spat out the harsh words with regret, feeling no internal energy left in his body. He wished he could have taken at least one more enemy with him. Fortunately, the fierce battle still raging nearby suggested the situation had not yet turned hopeless. The real problem was what would happen once the five masters he had been holding were released.
“It seems my heaven-ordained fate ends here.”
“If you served our cult’s heaven, you could remain with us longer.”
“Bullshit. My only lord has always been Baekri Hyeok-nim, from the very beginning.”
“I see.”
The Yongma Dae member nodded at Gongson Ryong’s unwavering resolve. Since recruitment was impossible, only death remained.
“Your ignorance will be your end—”
Shwaeaeaeaeaeak!!
Just as the Yongma Dae member moved to deliver the killing blow, flying swords streaked in from somewhere and burst the heads of five Yongma Dae members. At the same time, Gongson Ryong shuddered. He knew exactly who wielded those swords and the level of power they commanded. Joyfully, he shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Baekri Hyeok-nim!!”