Chapter 225 – Radiant Arts Bond (5)

A faint gasp escaped.

Lazy Flame Dragon, lying on the roof tiles, reacted instantly. After briefly raising an eyebrow, he stood up without even using his hands.

He lifted his upper body with only his feet and waist, as if reversing the subtlety of Iron Bridge Technique. He rose in an instant. It was a refined display of lightness skill mastery.

A soft rustling sounded.

Two black figures descended nearby. Their movements blurred like illusions, a testament to supreme lightness skills.

The dark fluttering robes confirmed the identities of the two supreme masters. They were Divine Sword Spear Yue Shou-lin and Law Enforcement Squad Leader Woon So-yu.

Yue Shou-lin slightly furrowed her brow. She directed her gaze into the distance.

She placed both hands on her hips and looked down from the roof. Divine Blood Extreme Demon Jin Myeong-jo stood motionless at the edge of the Grand Training Ground.

As usual, he kept his head tilted downward. There was no sign of him coming up.

“What are you doing? Our junior might have gained an epiphany, and you can’t even stand guard promptly.”

“I intend to survey the surroundings, so pay it no mind. Three Leaders guarding one direction? That’s not how we should deploy our strength. It’s inefficient.”

“There’s some truth to that…”

Yue Shou-lin trailed off and glanced at Lazy Flame Dragon.

“Hey, Hwangbo Clan kid.”

“…Speak.”

He replied while looking down at the white energy beams. They resembled Radiant Sword Style yet differed in their energy waves.

The beams rising now were denser. They pierced through the quarters in spots, dissipating like mist, a sight profoundly mystical.

Yue Shou-lin did not call out his rudeness. Regardless of where Lazy Flame Dragon’s gaze lingered, she focused on Jeong Yeon-shin inside the quarters.

Nothing else mattered. Lightning Genius’s safety was paramount.

She parted her lips.

“How many days has he been like this? Our Lightning Genius.”

“About nine days.”

“It’s indeed close to seclusion training. Worthy of a Leader’s proxy responding to my notice. What about meals?”

“They were brought at mealtimes. He needs to grow more, doesn’t he?”

“Not something sparse like fasting pills?”

“How does one train eating that? He’s not a Taoist ascetic, and he’s in his prime growth years.”

“Different from our kids, huh? Radiant Demon Wing takes good care of its Leader.”

A soft swish followed.

Yue Shou-lin extended one hand downward. She aimed at the lingering energy waves flowing from the tile gaps.

White light scattered from the edge of her ebony sleeve. It resembled mist blending into dawn twilight.

The corner of her mouth lifted.

“A peculiar energy wave. Distinctly unique. Unlike the categorization of energy, the aftershock of move execution lingers as dense power, amplifying it further. It wasn’t energy circulation but strike practice. No need to stand guard.”

Muttering to herself, Yue Shou-lin raised her head.

“You weren’t guarding, were you? You didn’t want to disturb Lightning Genius’s trance. Hard to see that in a Hwangbo Clan heir. Didn’t you strut like royalty in Jinan?”

“Nothing special. This is guarding too.”

Lazy Flame Dragon answered curtly. The question irked him.

His previously polite demeanor vanished entirely. His stance, legs casually spread, reflected his subconscious emerging.

Yue Shou-lin placed little value on the change.

“But what’s he doing?”

She pointed to a corner of the roof. It sloped gently downward.

Even her supreme senses struggled to detect a breath. It was Hyeon Won-chang, clinging upside-down beneath the rafters.

Yue Shou-lin could not see him. He stuck like a cicada. Her head tilted slightly to the side.

“He’s mastered assassin stealth well. Is he trying to ambush his Leader?”

“The opposite. Overly dramatic, though.”

“Guarding? Why from the rafters?”

“Due to recent rumors. They say several Desolate Fortress quarters’ roofs were wrecked. If an attack comes from above, he plans to intercept it. Hopefully, he won’t get crushed along with it.”

“…”

Yue Shou-lin pressed her lips shut and leapt lightly downward.

A soft rustle sounded.

With a single bound, she landed in the center of the Grand Training Ground. It was the footwork of a supreme master.

Not even dust rose. She stepped on sparse weeds.

The grass tips beneath her leather boots remained still. It was the realm of Grass-Soaring Flight.

Law Enforcement Squad Leader Woon So-yu descended naturally beside her. No sound betrayed her presence. Her noble clan lightness skill mastery reached its peak.

Her bearing as a warrior was formidable. Her elegantly adorned robe stood out as always.

“I’ll take my leave.”

She said calmly.

Yue Shou-lin glanced at Woon So-yu’s profile and smirked playfully.

“Weren’t you eager to learn tricks for devising counter-techniques easily? That’d be quite important for Law Enforcement Squad.”

“I plan to return tomorrow at noon. To show sincerity to the new Leader, if I make three visits while he refuses guests, he might at least hear me out.”

She spoke in a measured tone and turned away.

A faint rustling followed.

Yue Shou-lin briefly watched her receding figure, then turned her head. Divine Blood Extreme Demon Jin Myeong-jo stood upright. His lofty aura enveloped him. He conversed with blue-rank masters sent from Blood Guardian Squad: Asura Demon Soul and Blood Blade Ghost.

‘A hard one to read.’

Yue Shou-lin thought.

Jin Myeong-jo was peculiar. His pale face, hard to decipher, was secondary. He avoided public events like black-rank duels in Desolate Fortress.

While adept at concealing his thoughts, he had amassed remarkable merits against evil factions. Judging by his energy waves, it wasn’t solely due to martial prowess.

Beyond his renowned Blood Claw Technique, he hid a dangerous move. He outdid even typical evil path masters in ruthlessness.

It showed now. His cold inquiries to his former subordinates carried an icy edge.

“You mean he never once reviewed your martial arts?”

Feng Lan and Luo Yi-qian’s pale faces whitened further. Blood Guardian Squad was said to resemble a military unit.

Their expressions lacked the dignity expected of blue-rank masters. They had been with Radiant Demon Wing mere days.

Their temperament still leaned toward Blood Guardian Squad. For now, it remained so.

“Radiant Demon Wing Leader must have been pressed for time.”

“It’s not to blame. Black-ranks are busy with public and private duties, aren’t they?”

“You lot, your energy waves have weakened. The energy flow breaks in spots. It’s a state fools often face when mastering unfamiliar techniques from manuals alone. Neither here nor there. Pathetic.”

Jin Myeong-jo mused aloud.

Leaders under Divine Sword Group were akin to sect masters leading their factions.

When disciples they had trained showed lackluster progress, the sentiment was inevitably strong. Even anger was not excessive.

‘After shedding tears of rage to send them off…!’

Jin Myeong-jo recalled the letter he wrote to Jeong Yeon-shin. He had nearly wept in frustration multiple times.

The new Radiant Demon Wing Leader should not treat Feng Lan and Luo Yi-qian this way. It was utterly deplorable.

He wasn’t holed up devising a training system for juniors like imperial scholars, surely.

“How many times have you seen the new Radiant Demon Wing Leader’s face? Twice?”

“…”

Feng Lan and Luo Yi-qian hesitated to reply. Any answer would slight either Jin Myeong-jo or Jeong Yeon-shin. Their silence spoke for them.

Jin Myeong-jo’s eyes darkened.

“Show me something. Can you chain three strikes with your usual breathing? If not, I’ll demand an explanation from my esteemed junior.”

He glanced at Radiant Demon Wing Leader’s quarters feigning indifference, already plotting excuses to slip away when the door opened.

Demand an explanation? Nonsense. He spoke forcibly only to uphold the demeanor expected of a Leader who had released subordinates.

He thought to himself. It should be words he could deliver in one breath.

The surrounding masters interpreted it differently.

A question of unleashing three moves between exhale and inhale. From a black-rank supreme master.

It implied full-force strikes. A feat difficult for anyone.

A soft step sounded.

Feng Lan, a woman with a slender curved saber on her back, stepped forward.

Known as Blood Blade Ghost. She had mastered Blood Flash Chaos Blade Technique, a branch of Blood Guardian Squad’s Blood Claw lineage.

Relentless linked strikes were its crux. Among blue-rank blade masters, she was often cited as a formidable foe.

“There’s been progress. Only the pace of advancement has slowed.”

Feng Lan said.

The Grand Training Ground fell silent. Blood Guardian Leader’s ire drew all eyes to her instantly.

Blood Blade Ghost Feng Lan.

She resembled Divine Blood Extreme Demon as if of the same blood. Her pale face and sharp jawline were blade-like, yet her motion toward the saber sheath was gentle.

Irregular energy waves flared sharply from the start. She shared her Leader’s sinister flair.

A swift slash rang out!

The blade dance began with its unsheathing.

Her Lightning Genius lineage technique was Fate Defying Scripture. It enhanced power momentarily through focused energy.

This meant she had to prove her blade energy’s strength.

A low hum sounded!

The Blood Flash Chaos Blade Technique’s pattern unfurled long. The thin blade sliced through dusk’s glow.

The blade’s blurred path erupted with sharp energy waves. The rumbling was loud. Two swings seemed to tear the air.

The third did not.

A faint slice followed!

The sound diminished. The energy wave weakened visibly. The blade tip trembled slightly with a horizontal cut toward the ground.

It mirrored Kang Chang-mu and Wei Ye-ryeong’s earlier struggle. She could not sustain internal breathing. The energy in her meridians faltered at the third strike.

She hit a limit with an unfamiliar lineage valuing instinct. Near-self-taught training compounded the issue.

She had not surpassed her long-practiced innate technique.

Further training could resolve it. But Desolate Fortress warriors could not casually speak of the future.

At blue-rank, elites must serve as immediate assets. Few words in headquarters were as shameful as “incomplete.”

At dusk in the Grand Training Ground, Feng Lan gripped her blade and bit her lower lip.

“…”

“You’ve regressed.”

Jin Myeong-jo spoke with an impassive face.

“It’s hard to call it outdated. The power application is clumsy from the start…”

“…”

“You’d have been better focusing on your innate technique. Seeing it firsthand, it’s not my esteemed junior to reprimand. It’s your inadequacy. Greedy for a technique beyond you, you lost linked strikes. What more is there to say? Indeed, it’s not Lightning Genius to blame. He bestowed exceptional martial arts with his rare talent, and sparrows simply couldn’t follow a dragon.”

The cold words carried one meaning. Discard the late-learned Lightning Genius techniques.

They were not for her to master.

None could retort. Ascendant martial arts grew harder to grasp the higher one’s perspective.

Like digging a deep well, it was tougher for blue-ranks than white-ranks.

Only Lightning Genius could wield his techniques fully. A flaw that time would increasingly reveal.

Silence lingered for a while.

Those watching Blood Guardian Squad turned away awkwardly. Yue Shou-lin, too, said nothing, focusing on the Leader’s quarters.

By then, the light from the door cracks and tile gaps had faded.

“Is there a way to teach Radiant Demon Technique well?”

“Mastering it now won’t help with linked strikes. Maybe small-scale missions like other squads?”

“We’re in trouble too. Facing Plum Blossom Swordsmen-level forces in group combat leaves us no countermeasures. Had we a fitting sword formation like Obeying Heaven Wing, filling ranks would’ve been easier…”

Conversations continued without hushed tones. It was a place teeming with blue-rank masters.

Lowering voices out of clumsy courtesy would be more humiliating—they knew it.

Radiant Demon Wing masters comforted and worried for themselves in their own way.

A tumultuous silence prevailed.

***

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Translated by Nine Heavens!

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***

Lazy Flame Dragon reclined on the roof again, and Hyeon Won-chang’s presence remained still.

Cheong Myeong and Baek Mi-ryeo, perched on the training ground’s wall, focused on the white-rank warriors.

Until the Leader’s quarters’ door suddenly opened.

A deep rumble sounded.

Yue Shou-lin leapt onto the wall. Her face beamed with delight.

Her black trouser hem brushed the wall’s edge in an instant step. Dust rose beneath her feet.

“Our Lightning Genius! What kept you holed up? You’re not sulking over being called an enemy, are you?”

“For a moment.”

A short reply echoed. His voice was slightly hoarse.

A steady step followed.

Before Radiant Demon Wing masters fully crossed the wall, their Leader sliced through the air like wind.

He landed mystically in the training ground’s center, as if a phantom. Only his black robes fluttered with his steady frame. It was Wind God Steps.

Jeong Yeon-shin’s form emerged.

He still wore a black robe, bare left arm exposed.

His hair, now reaching below his shoulders, gleamed like ebony. Dusk’s light rippled calmly through it.

“Leader! Did you achieve a breakthrough?”

“We’ve waited so long! You never showed at the training ground, yet you look even healthier.”

Amid the warm welcomes, only Jin Myeong-jo stepped back aloofly. No one paid him mind.

Cheong Myeong, Baek Mi-ryeo, Hyeon Won-chang, and Radiant Demon Wing’s core and veteran masters surrounded Jeong Yeon-shin.

Nearly thirty in number. Early winter’s clear air warmed instantly. Mid-tier newcomers shuffled awkwardly.

“A beloved Leader, huh. Hey, Lightning Genius! We…”

Yue Shou-lin grinned as she called out.

Radiant Demon Wing masters stepped back a few paces. It was right after Jeong Yeon-shin’s lips moved slightly.

The distance widened. They formed a large circle in a long line.

A soft rustle sounded.

The new Leader’s feet naturally pressed the ground.

It began with a straight punch.

Not fast. He extended it naturally, with discipline. Energy waves from his shoulder scattered like snowflakes.

Some of the energy filling his legs surged to his hand. The layered force grew denser.

His body’s energy wave was not strong, yet the punch exploded at its peak.

A fierce surge erupted!

The air seemed to tear—a vivid sensation. It resembled Eternal Blossom Fist’s Advancing Thunder, yet differed.

Harmonized with Radiant Wing Step’s strides, it flowed out gracefully like water. A powerful shockwave spread.

The second move followed suit. A sideways gesture warped the air.

Spiral energy waves emerged. Light flowed from the spinning force gathered at the fist’s surface.

A heavy thud resounded! A fierce surge followed!

With each strike, the energy grew more tangible. Scattered dusk light clashed with the waves, distorting into white.

White flashes glinted intermittently from his black-robed frame. A fearsome, sharp mystique.

“That…”

As someone let out a low groan, the moves continued. A third punch bloomed with faint radiance.

Before Eternal Blossom Fist’s Blossoming Fist aftershock settled, a click sounded from Jeong Yeon-shin’s waist.

A clear unsheathing rang out.

He drew Northern Light Sword with a veined hand. Early winter’s chill rose like frost from the white blade.

A transparent texture spread outward. A thick silence accompanied it.

A single blade moved.

A low hum sounded.

Jeong Yeon-shin danced a sword dance. Trails of radiant light bloomed into countless strands.

The blade paths, streaking like beams, faded slowly, replaced by new trails.

It was as if dawn broke within dusk’s gloom. His right arm, wielding the sword, swayed with the black sleeve.

As the energy waves thickened, the radiant shimmer enveloping him deepened.

A force unattainable with his initial energy wave sliced the air. It was a motion grounded in Fate Defying Scripture.

Eternal Blossom Fist, Radiant Wing Step, and Radiant Sword Style melded into one dance. No one present lacked mastery. They all realized it.