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Chapter 402 – Peerless Realm (2)
by Heavenly CatJeong Yeon-shin glanced down at the bent arrow in his hand.
The shaft was black as if coated with ink, made of solid metal. It was quite a heavy iron arrow.
Perhaps due to traveling an enormous distance, it glowed with a reddish hue, but the protective energy cluster blocked its heat from properly transferring. It merely emitted thick white steam.
The impact had been substantial.
Saaaa—
Even the air was transparently boiling at this moment. It was the effect of the Ten Li Instant Kill.
Originally, this secret technique required numerous archery masters to concentrate their energy for over ten days in the Lightning Flower Bow Formation, releasing a single arrow that could strike targets ten li away.
The Dark Night Palace Leader had deployed it alone in an instant from nearly twice that distance, so the energy waves couldn’t possibly be diminished. In fact, they were even more powerful.
Thud.
The iron arrow dropped to the ground.
As Jeong Yeon-shin released it, the starlight abruptly faded from his left hand.
His protective energy was the calluses of the Tang siblings. It wouldn’t break easily.
Inwardly, Jeong Yeon-shin whispered: Return.
Immediately, a sound like sand being rubbed together rang out.
The radiance that had enveloped his entire body scattered like shining foam, then reformed into a wheel of light in his heart.
Yong Hui-myeong’s laughter reached his ears.
“That’s good protective energy.”
“Whaa…”
Had he unconsciously tried to block it with his body? Yeon So-ha, who had somehow approached and was now awkwardly standing nearby, brushed his chest.
When his eyes met Jeong Yeon-shin’s, he smiled sheepishly. It was quite comical.
“It’s more fitting for Squad Leader Jeong to live than me.”
It was a silly concern, but— Yeon So-ha added briefly. While nervously glancing at the arrow in Jeong Yeon-shin’s hand.
Desolate Fortress’ Divine Sword Group.
They were bound by ties somewhere between sworn brothers and comrades.
Because the faction’s foundation was uniquely positioned between government and martial affairs unlike anywhere else, they felt a connection even without prior acquaintance. This was especially true when they were away from the main fortress, where they would always be outsiders.
“Step back.”
Jeong Yeon-shin said.
“Yes!”
Yeon So-ha retreated with a respectful demeanor. From the side came a snort of amusement. It was Divine Sword Group Leader Yong Hui-myeong.
“So-ha, you rascal, try being that respectful to me.”
“I just received a life-saving favor from him. And unlike you, Group Leader, he seems to have real substance.”
“What?”
“You always said to curry favor with the right people if you want to rise to a high position.”
Though they were bantering, the atmosphere was far from light.
Everyone was busy gauging the intervals between them. This would be true for both the unseen Dark Night Palace Leader and Sword Howling Emperor Namgung Mu-jin, who had already half-opened his eyes and was gripping his pure white sword.
Bow and sword.
In terms of coordinated attack harmony, it was supreme. Since all were peerless masters, they wouldn’t miss a single strike.
“After exchanging one move, he’s probably getting closer now.”
The Divine Sword Group Leader said.
“The archer from Dark Night Palace, I mean. He’s realized that to embed an arrow in a martial artist of your caliber, even a master can’t maintain too great a distance. He’s quite perceptive.”
“Yes.”
Jeong Yeon-shin answered briefly. While interpreting the Group Leader’s meaning.
The fact that the world’s Divine Sword Group Leader would mention the Dark Night Palace Leader’s perceptiveness.
It meant he ranked among the highest in eye techniques among peerless masters. This made sense for a monster who could accurately fire the Ten Li Instant Kill from twenty li away.
‘Hmm.’
Just then, the enemy’s presence vanished. Had he activated a concealment technique close to divine skill? It seemed nothing would be sensed until he drew near.
Swish.
Namgung Mu-jin, who had been casually swinging his sword while facing them, raised the corners of his mouth.
A semi-transparent veil was rippling around him. It resembled condensed lightning.
“The Divine Sword Group Leader’s words aren’t entirely wrong. Too great a distance only dissipates bow energy waves. But that’s not all.”
He spoke languidly.
“The Dark Night Palace Leader once suffered badly at the Divine Sword Group Leader’s hands. This was right before the Divine Sword Group Leader donned that purple robe of yours. How could a peerless archer who nearly lost an arm approach closely?”
His lips bore a sneer. Though they moved together, they didn’t seem to have formed a deep friendship.
“A complete Divine Sword Group Leader was truly a monster beyond comprehension. Even Sichuan’s golden phoenix was busy avoiding the Tyrant Hero and the Divine Sword Group Leader. Of course, she too was a rare absolute being who reigned as Sichuan’s foremost person for many long years…”
Namgung Mu-jin’s tone was peculiar. Perhaps befitting a direct descendant of the southern region’s foremost noble clan, also known as a warlord.
His voice, flowing like a low melody, elegantly mocked his opponent.
“I’ve heard all about your fearsome achievements. They say you killed the Golden Wing Sect Leader. Naturally, you must know well what kind of wonders her energy could work.”
“……”
Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t answer.
He was newly grateful for the principles of the martial world’s highest echelon. Peerless masters, who rarely encounter equals, tend to become talkative when they meet someone who can understand them.
And they invariably examine their opponents with eye techniques.
“Similarly, the man standing beside you is a transcendent being who surpassed his bloodline with his martial arts alone. Though born with dragon energy, he never yielded to the Golden Wing Sect Leader, and the Dark Night Palace Leader, unable to forget the memory from three years ago, can’t even exert his full power but merely shoots the Ten Li Instant Kill from a distance.”
Namgung Mu-jin’s words didn’t reach Jeong Yeon-shin directly.
While he appeared to be a junior with natural modesty quietly listening to his elder, Jeong Yeon-shin was simply staring blankly at the body of the man once called the First Sword of the Eight Great Clans.
Just as Namgung Mu-jin was scrutinizing Jeong Yeon-shin’s physique while speaking.
“Yet now the Divine Sword Group Leader has completely fallen, unable to refuse his junior’s help. Can you take his place?”
Someone who maintains appearances while seeking the martial extremity by any means necessary. The rumors seemed correct. The Sword Howling Emperor was a martial artist between righteousness and evil.
‘He uses a heavy sword.’
Jeong Yeon-shin thought.
The man’s blue martial attire was spread wide across both shoulders. His right arm holding the sword was unusually thick, yet it conveyed a nimble impression despite the muscles.
This was because the energy waves flowing from the Companion White acupoint on his forearm down to the Inner Gate acupoint above his wrist were light as wind. He seemed to have mastered a sword technique that was both heavy and unerring… A heavy sword strike from a peerless swordsman never misses.
It was a frightening fact.
“In any case, thank you for giving us certainty. I was beginning to doubt whether we were forcing an impossible task, as no matter how we swung our swords, the blade wouldn’t penetrate.”
Namgung Mu-jin said. It was a mixture of mockery and sincerity.
“Now the Dark Night Palace Leader will gladly approach and unleash the Phoenix Driving Radiance Bow Technique. I wonder how your noble protective energy will withstand our combined attack.”
“You’re quite shameless. You should be named Earth Dragon Association.”
Jeong Yeon-shin inadvertently mentioned worms. It was directed at the Martial Dragon Alliance.
Namgung Mu-jin laughed heartily as he adjusted his grip on the sword.
“Whatever you like. Today, the martial world will be liberated from beneath the Entering Divine Sword of the Divine Sword Group Leader.”
Kuguung—
The vision trembled up and down finely. The ground shook from just his stance. It was the precursor to the Imperial Sword Form.
“Your energy waves are rough. Azure Qilin was more elegant.”
Jeong Yeon-shin said as he circulated the Luminous Wheel Energy rising from his heart. Energy that filled all his meridians with a soft texture. This was how peerless masters who had fought numerous battles prepared their attack forms.
Unless it was a Transcendent Martial Art.
Namgung First Sword wasn’t exceptional.
He wasn’t an opponent who would be difficult to face without deploying complete dharma power. Jeong Yeon-shin felt he could confront him with just his innate abilities.
The divine sword Remaining Thunder, now cooled in his grip, seemed to whisper to him. That this man’s dignity couldn’t compare to Azure Qilin’s.
“So-ha, step back further!”
Yong Hui-myeong said.
He couldn’t openly engage in energy regulation. This was due to the risk of entering a qi-deviation state. In a situation where two peerless masters could strike at him at any moment.
He had to secretly work on recovery using the spark of energy Jeong Yeon-shin had planted.
“Group Leader, please don’t interfere.”
Jeong Yeon-shin calmly requested. It meant focus on your energy regulation.
Had it been interpreted as youthful arrogance? Namgung Mu-jin smiled with his eyes and took one heavy step forward.
In the next moment, he was swinging his sword right in front of Jeong Yeon-shin’s face.
The pure white trajectory crumpled the air. A straight-line sword energy wave extended toward Jeong Yeon-shin.
Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes narrowed.
Jjeoeoeoeng—!
When he met it with Remaining Thunder, fragments of energy scattered like sparks. At the impact point, a flower of lightning actually bloomed and disappeared.
Tremendous force transmitted to his grip. Even though he had tried to deflect it as much as possible.
Sword energy that seemed to have circulated the Great Heavenly Cycle dozens of times while he was running his mouth. He appeared to have concentrated his internal energy’s momentum into a single sword rather than dispersing it in all directions.
“Can you withstand it?”
Namgung Mu-jin asked in a low voice.
Their faces were close. White steam flowed from his mouth.
It wasn’t moisture but dense internal energy mixed in, having raised his full-body energy to the extreme. It was unlike his seemingly relaxed demeanor.
When Jeong Yeon-shin gazed at him with clear eyes, the man’s beard rose on both sides.
Heavy sword.
It refers to sword energy that is unwavering and firm.
If he loosened his grip here, he would be flung back and his body would be bisected in an instant.
Jeong Yeon-shin recalled the three characters: Crooked Pond, Ruler Marsh, and Small Sea. They were acupoints of the arm joint.
At that moment.
A heavy weight settled into both his legs. Suddenly, colorless clouds rose from beneath the ground and wrapped around both feet.
The Emperor Sword Form at its extreme. It was the realm of peerless masters who could materialize energy.
Namgung Mu-jin’s eyes glowed white. The appearance of having his upper dantian filled with energy. Though he hadn’t even opened his mouth, a voice flowed out extremely rapidly.
[I hear you pursue short decisive battles. We too prefer brief exchanges.]
He was different from other masters. Perhaps because he had deeply refined the Emperor Sword Form. Mental imagery that resonated all around like the Six Harmonies Sound Technique.
He had been buying time, thoroughly assessing Jeong Yeon-shin’s body, balance, energy waves, and posture.
Breaking down.
It’s not exclusive to Desolate Fortress’ Lightning Genius. It’s a skill permitted to all martial artists under heaven.
The power of geniuses who predict the next movement from tiny gestures and energy waves, and stay one step ahead through meticulous calculation.
A sound like whoong pierced the air.
It was above Namgung Mu-jin’s crown. A hazy vortex was rapidly taking the shape of a blade.
Formless Sword.
It emitted streams of heavy wind. Even its aftermath seemed capable of pressing down on skin.
Behind him, another arrow was surging in. A razor-sharp sensation pierced Jeong Yeon-shin’s energy sense in a straight line. The Phoenix Driving Radiance Bow Technique, he had called it.
Even as he was breaking the moment into slow fragments, the Dark Night Palace Leader’s arrow was extremely swift. It seemed he had imbued the full power that could operate the Ten Li Instant Kill into his bow technique.
The combined attack of peerless masters.
He was surrounded. The reason they had stalled for so long to break down this unfamiliar junior. They had predicted all his trajectories.
Faint milky-white currents gripped Jeong Yeon-shin’s limbs like shackles. It was an extremely practical energy operation.
[Farewell.]
Just as Namgung Mu-jin was about to deliver the incantation.
[Why is it so condensed?]
Something invisible suddenly arose and completely swallowed his mental imagery. It was the spirituality of the upper dantian.
Like a loud voice drowning out a softer one. It was incomparably more dense than Namgung Mu-jin’s.
[This isn’t the orthodox Emperor Sword Form.]
[…?!]
Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t seek an answer. Suddenly, in Namgung Mu-jin’s eyes was reflected the Divine Sword Group Leader standing with folded arms in the distance. Even in this state, he…?
Simultaneously.
Dirt rose behind Jeong Yeon-shin.
The ground had already been overturned by fierce battle. It contained many small sand grains, which took only an instant to increase in size after absorbing the incantation of the Myriad Heavens Flower Rain.
The difference in speed was incomparable. Because it was a skill with hundreds of years of time melted into it.
Kwaaaaa—
A vortex as massive as a dragon’s body cast a dark shadow on the ground. At this moment, the Formless Sword rapidly swirling above was not yet complete.
[This makes thrusting easier.]
Jeong Yeon-shin’s mental imagery hummed.
Namgung Mu-jin’s face was reflected in his pitch-black pupils. There was an abyss pooled there.
[You shouldn’t have done that.]
Jeong Yeon-shin silently delivered the incantation.
In the next moment… the yellowish earth dragon that had risen behind him pierced into the vortex of the Formless Sword, tearing apart all the wind streams as it passed through.
THANKS FOR THE CHAPTER!! BROTHER GOT EATEN BY THE DRAGON 🔥🔥