[TL Note- This chapter was a bit hard to translate so forgive me if there’s mistakes or a bit hard to understand.]
Blood dripped from the sky.
The ground, alternately covered in white snow and yellow earth, was stained dark red. The sound of crunching accompanied it.
Crunch.
“Urgh.”
Blood Guardian Squad Leader Jin Myeong-jo staggered, tapping his thigh with his index finger.
His upper thigh was deeply gouged, and in the empty space, red mist and auspicious energy collided violently.
The regenerative ability stemming from his bloodline fought against the remnants of mystical martial arts techniques.
[Divine Blood Extreme Demon. I know your secret technique is connected to the Divine Sword Group Leader. Did you think I’d let you use it so easily? Try channeling your true energy once more. I’ll show you the Eight Infernal Hells befitting your clan.]
The voice carried a mocking tone. It was disturbingly human.
The grass beneath his feet and the branches spread around him trembled.
It seemed to boast a realm that influenced all of nature—a mystical six-directional spirit energy slowly unfolded.
[This is my domain. Even Sword Star cannot oppose me here. You will not leave unscathed.]
“Ridiculous. Ink-fed scholars excel at exaggeration. You’re puffed up just because you managed to withstand a few swings from the old man Hyeon.”
Yue Shou-lin slammed her spear tip into the ground.
A clear, ringing laugh descended from the sky.
[Desolate Divine Spear Yue Shou-lin. Do you not realize how wrong you are? Having achieved rejuvenation, have you regressed into a mere child? Your schemes are transparent.]
“What scheme?”
She tilted her head crookedly as she spat out her words.
[You seek me out, don’t you? Your energy waves are desperate. But they fall short. Like your short legs, they cannot reach me.]
“You b*st*rd!”
[It’s not out of fear that I remain here without confronting you directly. I sensed you from afar while traveling abroad. You walked into your death willingly, allowing me to shake Desolate Fortress with your demise.]
“Listen to this fool talk. Does he think he’s some celestial emperor now? Just because Sword Star isn’t here, he thinks this is his world.”
[Conversing with you lowers my dignity. But you guessed correctly. This body seated in Shanxi is divine. And soon, I shall take World Tree from your fortress lord.]
“You lunatic!”
Yue Shou-lin’s entire body erupted with overwhelming energy waves.
Boom!
That alone caused thunderous echoes, and coniferous trees overhead fell in all directions.
The snow-covered ground caved in concentric circles, creating a wide pit as even the sky opened up.
“You cowardly dog! Your martial arts are barely equal to mine!”
[Foolish one, this too is power. Facing me directly will only make it harder for you to endure.]
“Shut up! How long do you think you can hide? You’re dealing with Desolate Fortress’s black-rank!”
[Whether your fellow squad leader comes to me or whether you die before that… there are only two outcomes awaiting you.]
“Yan Hwa-ryeon won’t defeat our youngest. She’ll die before sunset! We’ll start by severing your limbs!”
[Yue Shou-lin, how foolish.]
Far above in the sky.
Standing atop clouds, a scholar spread his fan to cover his face.
Beneath his jet-black bamboo hat and translucent veil, Zhuge Clan Leader’s lips curved smoothly upward.
[What belongs to me cannot be broken without my permission. Why do you think your main family sought me despite knowing their inferiority in strength? Was it merely due to concerns about martial arts leakage? No. The Eight Great Clans are called such because of me. She does not lose under Zhuge Liang’s protection.]
Yue Shou-lin’s delicate eyelashes rose sharply.
“A dharma treasure…?! You handed an ancestral artifact to an outsider?”
[I am complete on my own; it is natural for me to examine tools that fall short.]
Zhuge Clan Leader’s White Crane Fan swayed gracefully as clouds were drawn out like fabric by his movements—a gesture befitting an absolute master.
[Now it is done. Further conversation is pointless. Both you and I have sufficiently gathered our strength.]
Swoosh—
Suddenly.
A colorless radiance bloomed, absorbing clouds and expanding its form.
It was a colorless lightning cloud—a phenomenon occurring in an instant.
A line connecting heaven and earth emerged—a thick pillar inscribed into the air at a speed beyond comprehension.
Jin Myeong-jo twisted his body reflexively but failed to evade completely this time.
It was different from before—there were two streams now.
Whoosh—!
One pillar pierced straight through his upper torso.
***
In just one second, the dignity of the youngest black-rank was revealed.
Now Jeong Yeon-shin’s hands were akin to cannons.
While many Shanxi aristocrats watched the tournament grounds like gamblers under awnings, Jeong Yeon-shin’s strikes sent dust flying around their silk robes.
Even though they knew this was Valor Fist Lord Yan Hwa-ryeon’s revenge match, none dared predict her defeat as aristocrats familiar with her lineage’s prowess and achievements within the Eight Great Clans.
But Jeong Yeon-shin had no reason to concern himself with their thoughts or predictions.
“Urgh!”
Yan Hwa-ryeon groaned close by—it was audible amidst her rapid exhalations brushing past Jeong Yeon-shin’s shoulder as she retreated at tremendous speed.
Hoo—
She laughed as she widened the distance between them before casually tossing something behind her back—a small pebble rolled across the ground nearby.
It bore ancient inscriptions glowing faintly with mystical energy—clearly no ordinary object even at first glance.
Jeong Yeon-shin raised an eyebrow slightly at its presence near the edge of the tournament grounds where curious gazes began converging on it—eyes filled with suspicion and greed alike among Shanxi’s elite spectators positioned close enough to observe closely…
“What is that?”
“It proves how cunning I am… but now it’s just a hindrance. Ignore it.”
Yan Hwa-ryeon spoke indifferently despite likely feeling pain in her fist; her detached demeanor stood out sharply.
‘It seems like one of those mystical artifacts I’ve heard about.’
Jeong Yeon-shin hesitated briefly before deciding against speaking further—it didn’t seem like she knew much about it herself.
From the moment their bodies clashed earlier, he felt an uncanny sensation flowing through him—a strange perception stemming from her internal energy streams and how she whip-lashed her power at astonishing speed using sheer willpower…
It reminded him faintly of when he received fragments of World Tree fruit from Desolate Fortress Lord—it felt vaguely similar to wielding mystic martial arts techniques…
This allowed him to read movements faster than usual—to anticipate trajectories ahead by one step…
It was an odd feeling indeed…
‘Still… better finish this quickly.’
As determination hardened in his gaze…
Boom—!
Yan Hwa-ryeon unleashed the unique explosive defensive energy technique characteristic of her clan lineage once more…
Her side hair whipped wildly across Jeong Yeon-shin’s field of vision as rotational shockwaves erupted beneath her feet…
She approached swiftly like a whirlwind—a movement style belonging solely among Eight Great Clans’ elites—a terrifyingly stable footwork technique…
‘She deflected my strike… Her defensive energy technique is exceptional.’
Crack!
Her hand returned swiftly—grasping Jeong Yeon-shin’s right armpit tightly…
“Huff!”
In an instant—his middle acupoint below his shoulder blade was struck—draining strength rapidly while simultaneously shattering protective energy barriers around his arm muscles…
Her calloused grip radiated concentrated combat power—a fiercely aggressive stance…
‘She assumes my left hand follows my right?’
At that moment—Jeong Yeon-shin’s left palm lightly pressed against Yan Hwa-ryeon’s lower back…
Four fingers gathered tightly together distorted fabric along her robe hem—a precursor signaling one rare devastating strike…
Constantly activated Brilliant River Technique…
Supreme masters’ battles were truly bizarre affairs…
Boom!
Another massive shockwave erupted violently.
The pinnacle of striking force was unleashed.
A translucent, colorless wave radiated outward, crumpling Jeong Yeon-shin’s chest garment as it surged forward. The follow-up strike Yan Hwa-ryeon had been preparing faltered as her eyes widened in shock, and blood spurted from her lips.
At this point, even the aristocrats who had been feigning composure while seated on their luxurious zitan wood chairs began to rise. Their faces betrayed their disbelief, though they tried to mask their astonishment.
“What is that?”
“Isn’t this a technique that defies natural laws? How can he use something like that again? It hasn’t even been long since the last one…”
“Demonic arts! Are you saying this is demonic arts?”
“Stop spouting nonsense, you fool. Your words are embarrassing to hear. If you’re going to speak, at least understand what you’re sensing.”
“I’ve heard of it… They call it Brilliant River, The same technique that sent Azure Qilin Namgung Se-jin across the River Styx…”
“I understand why Sect Leader Guan was so shocked. How can such a devastating technique be used repeatedly…?”
Men and women clad in luxurious silk robes spoke in hushed yet urgent tones. Their voices carried the weight of realization: this duel would undoubtedly leave an indelible mark on Shanxi’s martial world.
But the world outside the duel stage was irrelevant to Jeong Yeon-shin.
‘One strike isn’t enough to finish her.’
His thoughts cascaded like raindrops falling in countless streams.
He analyzed the structure of his opponent’s energy flow, anticipated her next moves, and assessed the precision of his own body’s energy channels and muscles.
There was no time to worry about his disheveled garments.
Yan Hwa-ryeon, the First Fist of the Yan family, was no longer the same person he had faced during the Martial Alliance’s sect-opening grand ceremony.
‘Breaking through her defensive energy technique isn’t enough. Even though my Brilliant River has grown stronger than before…’
The defensive energy techniques cultivated by renowned martial families were said to render blades and spears useless. For someone like Yan Hwa-ryon, a supreme master among the Yan family’s elite practitioners, her internal energy barrier was formidable beyond comparison.
Even after being struck directly by Jeong Yeon-shin’s Brilliant River, her fist remained intact—a testament to her unparalleled mastery.
At that moment, Yan Hwa-ryon’s lips twisted into a grimace.
Boom!
Colorless waves of energy surged up from her entire body. In less than a blink of an eye, her right arm and back emitted a radiant glow.
Her shattered defensive energy technique had already been restored. She had achieved Unity of Essence, Energy, and Spirit, a state where internal energy replenishment matched the speed of thought itself.
‘She’s different from anyone I’ve fought before.’
Jeong Yeon-shin thought briefly as he observed her movements.
She wielded Unity of Essence, Energy, and Spirit with flawless precision, a feat unmatched by any opponent he had encountered thus far. This was what it meant to face one of the Eight Great Clans’ foremost martial artists.
With blood dripping from her lips, Yan Hwa-ryon grabbed Jeong Yeon-shin by his wrist and armpit in one swift motion. Her movements exuded a battle-hardened elegance born from years of mastering close-combat techniques.
The technique she executed belonged to the Yan Family Divine Fist’s repertoire: Twin Brilliance Mountain Shift.
“Hah—!”
A short but explosive shout escaped her lips as she launched into action.
In that extremely fast moment, Jeong Yeon-shin was dealing with the repeated recoil of the Brilliant River.
From her grip to his shoulder, and then to his waist. It was separate from his ability to continuously unleash supremely powerful strikes.
The supreme master who had refined the Yan Family Fist to the realm of mastery, having achieved Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown, penetrated the momentary gap.
Whoosh!
Jeong Yeon-shin’s field of vision flipped upside down. The sky lay beneath him, and the white peaks of the snow-covered mountains beyond the tournament grounds fell downward.
A fierce wind swept past his ears. He was about to be thrown.
A streak of light flashed through his mind.
He thought intensely. How could he land a proper strike? How should he execute his next move?
Bang!
He flicked the Brilliant River energy that had gathered at his opposite fingertip.
He had been channeling it since the moment his arm was grabbed, as calculation and insight were essential when facing supreme masters whose unity of essence, energy, and spirit always stayed one step ahead of him.
A faint finger wind repeatedly struck Yan Hwa-ryeon’s shoulder. As her garment wrinkled in succession, the strength of her grip rapidly loosened.
Boom!
Then he crashed down back-first. The impact that came in dominating his waist raced fiercely up to his cervical vertebrae.
Even though he had weakened it, it felt like being hit by an explosive. Fragments of the shattered tournament grounds flew up past both sides of his vision.
However, in that brief moment, Jeong Yeon-shin was twisting the minute muscles from his latissimus dorsi to his trapezius, generating energy waves through his meridians.
‘Wind Body Technique.’
Jeong Yeon-shin deflected a significant amount of the impact. The faint dust that rose beneath his back was forcefully pushed to the left and right.
This was the realm of using whole-body energy release to achieve harmonious state.
As Yan Hwa-ryeon’s eyes, which had been focused on Jeong Yeon-shin’s chest area, widened, his feet, which had risen high outside his black robe, struck the ground directly.
Boom!
The bundles of tendons throughout his body repeatedly contracted and relaxed. Following instinct. The operation of energy and muscles repeatedly occurred in a short moment, completely reversing the flow of power.
As the Myriad Heavens Flower Rain’s adhesion occurred at the Yongquan acupoint beneath his feet, his abdominal muscles and both arms contained the divine power of the Luminous Wheel that Transcends Law Technique.
“…!”
Yan Hwa-ryeon was lifted up upside down. Her right fist, which was about to deliver a follow-up strike, hit empty air.
A blue light flashed in the eyes of Jeong Yeon-shin as he raised his upper body without even using his hands. He was throwing Yan Hwa-ryeon in reverse.
Crack.
While twisting his arm down with force, he simultaneously emitted propulsive energy waves from the Neiguan acupoint at his wrist. It was a new energy circulation pathway… The close-combat techniques of the Yan Family Fist were rapidly evolving in the hands of the Radiant Demon Wing Leader. Yan Hwa-ryeon’s black hair, which brushed past his arm as she hung, rose violently for just a moment.
[TL Note- It seems like he has become Pain from Naruto Shippuden.]
Crash! Boom—!
“Kuhak!”
The tournament grounds split in all directions as if hit by an earthquake. Immediately, dust raced along the cracks and rose thickly. It happened right after blood spurted from Yan Hwa-ryeon’s mouth as she was slammed down.
There was a limit to the buffering power of protective energy.
However, her body, with eyes wide open, responded nimbly again. The movements of a supreme master who had refined close-combat techniques could only be like rays of light.
Like Jeong Yeon-shin, she stomped the ground with both feet, and as energy rose like a ray of light from her gripped hand, her arm muscles visibly tensed.
Suddenly, the First Fist of the renowned clan…
Saw blue flashing eyes.
The faint energy waves from both hands of the Radiant Demon Wing Leader, who still held her left arm, were distorting in a spiral pattern. It wasn’t a mistake. It was clearly both his right and left hands.
A killing technique that pressed down on even the skin before activation was rare.
“…!”
It was the Brilliant River again.
