Chapter 135 – Azure Flame (8)

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Translated by Nine Heavens!

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***

“This should rightfully be called the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique.”

That night was cloudy.

An elderly man of high status secretly shed tears.

In his arms was the manual of the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique that he had kept from his son Ma Jin.

The old man treasured the secret manual left by his grandson like a precious treasure.

Though Jeong Yeon-shin had said it was martial arts good for preserving health, to Ma Yeon-jeok with his long murim experience, that wasn’t quite right.

While strengthening muscles and blood flow, it also tempered all the meridians and channels throughout the body.

It transforms the physical body into one bestowed by heaven. It was martial arts for tempering bones and muscles.

A mystical cultivation method, a divine technique.

Ma Yeon-jeok was a peerless master.

Even completely controlling internal energy throughout his body was just the basics.

Though his unity of essence, energy and spirit had broken.

Only his physical body had been declining.

His body rusted by aging simply couldn’t withstand tyrannical martial arts anymore.

His sharp mind and supreme internal energy were not so.

It was like his young days as Divine Sword Group Leader. Sharp and profound.

“Your father…”

At Desolate Fortress’s Kuizhou branch, Ma Yeon-jeok who had suddenly sensed the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s presence called Ma Jin and spoke.

“Does not regret sending your sister away like that.

For Sang-ah’s happiness and upholding the family’s honor, looking back now there was no other decision I could have made.”

“…”

“It would have been better if she had died young, before meeting that scoundrel Jeong Ban-ak.”

“A regret for the ages.”

“Yeon-shin is a blessing. That child must be protected. It’s just that the presence of that vicious blood demon lurking around is unsettling. It seems to be targeting Yeon-shin.”

“Is it really the Blood Flame Sect Leader? Then the Elder Council Leader…”

“It seems heaven’s mandate has descended upon me. What I couldn’t accomplish while leading the Divine Sword Group, I must finally achieve this time.”

“Can you handle it?”

“Handle…? There’s something you must keep in mind. Among the world’s supreme masters, few remain stagnant. Unless heaven’s principles block their bodies like your father, even those Thirteen Evil Sect Leaders and Nine Schools sect leaders continue to grow. They’re all madmen obsessed with the martial way. None stay content. Also…”

“…?”

“I am no different.”

It was Desolate Fortress’s purple-rank.

Ma Yeon-jeok had instantly grasped the profound meaning of the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique.

He was a peerless master whose internal energy control had reached the realm of Divine Sword Group Leader.

He pierced the core of the secret manual and circulated energy without rest. The speed was like lightning.

His body gradually revived. It was a truly mystical art.

The secret manual that had accompanied his grandson’s childhood was like a mother’s gentle touch, soothing the muscles and veins.

Warm internal energy flowed.

In essence-energy-spirit unity, essence is the body, and spirit is the mind dwelling in the brain. Thus it is called spirit-energy.

Energy, for martial artists, is the internal energy that harnesses the power of nature.  so Ma Yeon-jeok who cultivated the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique as his nature regained unity of essence, energy and spirit.

It was while pursuing the Blood Flame Sect Leader.

In that moment, along with ecstasy throughout his body, enlightenment bloomed like a lotus flower.

Extinction, liberation, transcendence… Buddhist scripture terms exaggeratedly expressing martial artists’ insights flashed through Ma Yeon-jeok’s mind.

At the same time.

Separately from the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique, the precious book he had been carrying unfolded in his mind.

The pages seemed to flutter and turn by themselves. The words written in the book penetrated with complete understanding.

When his whole body was elevated through reuniting essence, energy and spirit, a certain cultivation rushed towards its peak.

It happened in an instant.

A fortuitous encounter. A fortuitous encounter indeed.

Perhaps it was due to having carved away at his heart while watching his grandson who had entered the main family.

All Ma Yeon-jeok needed was time to consolidate his enlightenment.

Even if the Blood Flame Sect Leader who had foreseen the clash between Tang Clan and Thirteen Evil Sects had his subordinates lying in ambush, it didn’t matter.

The former Divine Sword Group Leader staked everything.

‘Desolate Fortress’s divine sword will brim with righteousness.’

The old man resolved. To burn away worries of his grandson and the common people with his own hands.

Even if his body burned, it was fine.

It was what had to be done.

* * *

At the Tang Clan’s outer courtyard.

Ma Yeon-jeok said he would show his grandson the Divine Sword Group Leader.

“…”

It was words that brought silence to those around.

The prestige of Desolate Fortress’s Divine Sword Group Leader reached even the borders of the Central Plains.

They weren’t words that should come from the mouth of an old master whose strength had declined from aging after walking a tyrannical path, not having cultivated the orthodox way like the Nine Great Sects.

“How interesting.”

A smooth voice rang from above. It was the Blood Flame Sect Leader standing elegantly at the roof’s edge.

His bright red lips drew an arc.

“Yeon-jeok, Yeon-jeok. I remember when you wore black robes as a brat. Your youthful spirit from those days is vivid. Along with those Nine Sects youngsters, you blocked this sect leader’s procession saying you’d catch me and the Deep Martial Alliance Leader. Didn’t you even make that noisy Mount Hua Agreement?”

His words were long-winded.

Ma Yeon-jeok knew the reason. Just by looking at his appearance and energy, it was easy to guess.

Swish swish―

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s white hair moved like heat waves.

The space around his body rippled like air scorched by the sun.

The veins bulging on his snow-white hands were also grotesque.

His slightly furrowed brow and smile were eerie, but to Ma Yeon-jeok it was empty show.

He couldn’t control his energy. He was trying to buy even a little time.

Because there were limits to the energy a human body could handle.

‘Blood Flame Sect Leader. Even if you’re not of human descent, it’s the same.’

Heaven does not grant infinite power to any individual.

The time to digest that power was the same. Martial artists’ true qi is not easily refined.

It takes a long time to gather the energy drawn from nature through cultivation methods.

Blood techniques would be no different. Such is the natural order.

‘He cannot fully handle the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s true qi.’

Ma Yeon-jeok saw his chance there.

To fully absorb the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s profound power, he should properly refine true qi through closed door training for over ten years.

The power the Blood Flame Sect Leader now contained in his body was very unstable.

Being not his original true qi, precise energy control was impossible.

Meaning the precision of his techniques was gone.

The Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s resistance was also great.

Ma Yeon-jeok watched the energy clash between Ten Perfections Sect Leader and Blood Flame Sect Leader with his eye techniques.

He had captured it in the purple realm while pursuing from afar.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader hiding his body by creating his own night was certainly fearsome.

Using the supreme blood technique stealth arts to take the rear while the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s qi sense was focused on Jeong Yeon-shin and the Tang Clan Leader, he had unleashed qi absorption.

It was a situation where the blood technique grandmaster had personally sunk in his fangs. Originally it should have ended there.

It wasn’t so. A battle occurred in the realm of an instant.

A close-quarters struggle, so close it was hard to call it close combat.

The Ten Perfections Sect Leader had activated an internal energy armor from where he stood, and manifesting his true qi like thorns, pierced the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s entire body.

It was power control amazing enough to surprise even Ma Yeon-jeok.

Even in a situation where he was already helplessly subdued, the Ten Perfections Sect Leader had dealt severe damage to the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s body.

If the Blood Flame Sect Leader didn’t have regeneration ability, it would have been mutual destruction.

A terrifying energy wave instantly evaporated even the bloodstains, but the shock within him was undoubtedly present.

Yet, he still stood firm.

He coveted two things.

The Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s profound power. The chance to cut down the evil path’s great trees and sprouts.

Just by looking at the surging energy, it seemed anything was possible.

Ma Yeon-jeok observed his opponent with the eyes of a warrior facing life and death.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s blood-stained lips moved slowly.

“Your Mount Hua Agreement was an annoying pact. I should have spilled a few more drops of blood that day and killed you all. I let seven brats go…… Three of them became sect leaders, and our Yeon-jeok now wears purple. If the pact passes to the next generation, won’t a new wind blow?”

“……”

“I know your martial prowess has returned to an astonishing degree. But can you compare to the Dragon family brat? Speaking of him is madness. Is it because you have a grandson now? A grandfather’s spirit is admirable.”

The current Divine Sword Group Leader was of the Dragon Clan.

They are at the top of the murim.

Each has their own connections, or their appearances and personal information are actively collected.

It was a light provocation from the Blood Flame Sect Leader, anticipating a fierce battle.

Ma Yeon-jeok did not respond.

Thud.

Holding the famous sword Moon Protector, he silently took a step forward.

Having observed enough, there was no reason to give more time.

The old man hoped.

That this life and death battle would be fully captured by his grandson’s thousand-age sense.

And that it would become the catalyst to lead his grandson to the realm of transcendence in the future.

Boom!

The ground split from one true step. Earthquake-like vibrations spread with Ma Yeon-jeok’s footwork.

By the time those who had staggered regained their footing, the old man had already soared into the air and was floating before the Blood Flame Sect Leader.

At the edge of the roof. The two peerless masters locked eyes.

It was as if they both were enveloped in a transcendent aura.

Below Ma Yeon-jeok’s purple sleeve, the snow-white Moon Protector sword gleamed like a dragon’s fang.

An invisible force surrounded the long blade.

Only the intense waves striking the atmosphere could be felt. It was a resonance that seemed to tear through space.

The old man in the purple robe swung his sword diagonally. While treading air.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader, with a crimson smile, extended his palm towards Ma Yeon-jeok.

It was a palm technique to suppress the fierce energy waves emanating from Ma Yeon-jeok’s Moon Protector. It was extremely graceful.

Boom—!

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s one move contained the will of a monster that had lived hundreds of years.

It seemed he had infused the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s energy into palm technique with monstrous control.

He met the famous sword Moon Protector’s blade with his palm but only mist-like blood scattered.

Ma Yeon-jeok’s expression was indifferent. A ripple-like energy wave erupted from the hand holding the sword.

He displayed the subtleties of force deflection in that flash-like moment.

It was a technique to send mighty force through his wrist into the void.

Crash!

The roof the Blood Flame Sect Leader had been standing on shattered with a crash.

It was as if dozens of thunderclap bombs had exploded simultaneously, accompanied by a storm-like force.

The shockwave collapsed the six-story pavilion down to the ground.

The rippling force of the energy swept in all directions, carving deep trenches everywhere.

Amidst the dust and chaos, Ma Yeon-jeok’s wrinkled eyes narrowed.

***

Read only at nineheavens.org

Translated by Nine Heavens!

https://discord.gg/XC9DTsTQ9Z

***

The Blood Flame Sect Leader, while elegantly displaying his evasion techniques, was trying to distract Ma Yeon-jeok.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader, with his hands behind his back, stepped lightly on the fragments of the collapsing pavilion, his movements graceful and mesmerizing.

His silky white hair fluttered softly, exuding an air of nobility even in his refined movements.

He had not suffered any loss in the exchange.

Unlike Ma Yeon-jeok whose right arm meridians were strained despite his power racing toward its prime.

‘It hurts.’

The old man thought. His wrist ached, much like the chronic pains that plague the elderly.

It felt as if small explosions were going off inside his body. The vortex of energy was truly terrifying.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader.

He even possessed regeneration ability. He was truly reaching perfection.

To the point of wondering if he was preparing to face the Lord of Desolate Fortress.

Ma Yeon-jeok trod the air once more.

His pitch-black eyes closely followed the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s erratic movements.

When his eyes moving up, down, left and right accurately captured the white-haired handsome man, the old man’s one step distorted space.

It was a mysterious form of void-walking.

In an instant, he blocked the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s path of evasion. He had arrived before him.

His purple robe fluttered nobly.

Moon Protector sword once again gathered a terrifying energy wave, and the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s white fingers moved delicately.

The white trajectory Ma Yeon-jeok unleashed fell short yet intense.

The energy waves scattered by the sword alone seemed capable of shattering the atmosphere.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader deflected the sword strike with a sidestep, and the explosive force contained in his palm struck with terrifying power.

Boom—!

The roar filled all directions deafeningly. Sword technique and palm strikes were in completely different realms.

They contained subtleties reaching the extreme in cutting and exploding.

IIt was a state where a single ounce of energy could produce a thousand pounds of force.

From that moment the absolute beings exchanged blows in the air.

Faintly overlapping trajectories obscured the twilight, and the wind generated by the evasion techniques swelled into a mighty typhoon.

The aftermath of the battle began to devastate the Tang Clan’s outer courtyard.

Rumble!

The ground they hadn’t even stepped on sank. It was an earthquake reaching the entire Tang estate’s outer courtyard.

Ancient trees collapsed along with leaves everywhere,  and the surging fragments of energy carved deep marks into the earth.

Whoosh–!

Crack!

About fifteen masters from Ten Perfections Sect, Tang Clan, and Blood Flame Sect near their feet collapsed after being cut to pieces by energy blades.

The ground flipped whenever Ma Yeon-jeok unleashed force deflection’s energy waves.

It wasn’t a wave—it was a tsunami-like force that crushed all the experts.

The old man paid no heed.

Originally having learned tyrannical martial arts, he had poor compatibility with the current Blood Flame Sect Leader… The profound meaning of Ma Yeon-jeok’s sword techniques originally lay in handling mighty power, but the Blood Flame Sect Leader clumsily wielded the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s energy together.

Every time he exchanged moves with him he had to redirect power through force deflection technique.

He had to act twice for every move. Yet, he stood on equal footing.

He exploited the gaps in the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s sloppy techniques, slicing through his body.

Each time, the regenerative ability stitched the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s flesh back together.

Ma Yeon-jeok was not unscathed either.

He couldn’t easily handle the blood technique true qi’s overwhelming energy.

His sturdy body was now marked with bloodstains.

‘This one. What is he aiming for.’

The old man pondered.

Would he have leisure to consolidate the Ten Perfections Sect Leader’s energy during battle?

If not, would he unleash his ultimate move seeking quick victory?

The answer wasn’t far away. After exchanging about fifty moves.

Suddenly the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s toes pointed downward.

“Form ranks!”

“Fall back! They’ve laid poison arrays!”

“Don’t approach the Grand master! Don’t meet sword strikes head on!”

Chaotic battle had spread on the ground. The killing intent of the Ten Perfections Sect masters who had lost their sect leader was fierce.

They seemed to consider it a plot by Blood Flame Sect and Tang Clan.

The Blood Flame Sect masters who had been lying in ambush everywhere also sprayed blood technique

The Blood Flame Sect masters who had been lying in ambush everywhere also sprayed blood technique force waves indiscriminately.

The Tang Clan who had their backs against the wall at their estate didn’t back down either.

Myriad Heavens Flower Rain scattered with various hidden weapons, making blood bloom like flowers.

Everything had become completely entangled.

Among them was Jeong Yeon-shin, who was single-handedly killing over ten Blood Swordmasters

His fluttering black robe seemed to speak of invincibility.

No one could withstand more than two exchanges. He was only briefly delayed.

He was creating his own space.

“There he is.”

At the tip of the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s foot, which was walking through the void, was the Grandmaster.

Just his Body Protection Technique footwork revealed his intentions.  He was trying to unsettle Ma Yeon-jeok, who had become a formidable opponent.

‘Blood Flame Sect Leader.’

Jeong Yeon-shin had already been watching the battle between his grandfather and the Blood Flame Sect Leader.

It wasn’t because he had reached the realm of defeating multiple Blood Swordmasters without even looking at them.

It was because he was concerned about his grandfather, who seemed to be speaking his final words.

There were exceptionally powerful ones mixed among the Blood Swordmasters.

They were nearly comparable to Desolate Fortress blue-ranks.

In the vast Central Plains, the Blood Flame Sect’s influence was widespread. These were the ones who directly served the Sect Leader.

It would be strange if they were weak.

He had to consider it fortunate that the apostles said to be spread across the vast Central Plains’ branches couldn’t overcome distance limitations.

“The left flank is open!”

“Strike!”

Their joint attacks were complex. They deployed sword formations incorporating formation technique principles.

Five or six swords took the front while applying pressure in perfect unison.

It was a move that acknowledged their own inferiority.

‘Where’s Lazy Flame Dragon?’

The boy briefly focused his qi sense behind him.

He could feel the hot qi waves of Lazy Flame Dragon’s Scorching Divine Meridian.

He was struggling with all his might to break through from the Tang Clan experts’ side toward here.

“Commander! If you die before me I’ll kill you myself! Don’t make things boring!”

The Ten Perfections Sect warriors’ momentum was like evil spirits.

While multiple Blood Swordmasters blocked Jeong Yeon-shin, the other Thirteen Evil Sects masters were clashing with the Tang Clan.

Some stabbed their swords into the backs of the Blood Swordmasters facing Jeong Yeon-shin.

It was a chaotic battle. The boy turned his qi sense forward again.

Having lost three in the initial clash, they were now extremely cautious.

The particularly strong ones tied down Jeong Yeon-shin while the rest moved around with Body Protection Technique throwing thunderclap bombs.

There were many of them.

Boom!

Their movements didn’t distinguish friend from foe. Jeong Yeon-shin grit his teeth. His back stung.

He had unleashed Myriad Heavens Flower Rain’s emission energy waves in an instant, but the casting time wasn’t sufficient.

Impact accumulated and internal injuries piled up.

Nevertheless, the boy was Desolate Fortress black-rank.

Though he dropped to one knee occasionally before the explosions of energy waves and thunderclap bombs, he carved fear into the enemies’ expressions.

He cut their necks with straight sword strikes of the Radiant Sword Style, while his left hand’s Eternal Blossom Fist shattered both the enemies’ bodies and the air around them.

Pure white sword trajectories and hand shadows exploded overwhelmingly.

It was a martial art that single-handedly faced the elite group of the Blood Flame Sect.

Slash!

The boy raised his sword to cut one Blood Swordmaster’s neck while preparing for another strike.

He casually dismissed the heavy feeling in his hand holding the sword.

‘Here he comes.’

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s figure, with a smooth smile, descended diagonally.

The speed was astonishing.

Could the ancient Kunlun Sect’s Cloud Dragon Eight Forms said to freely traverse the sky have been like this? His smile was chilling.

That’s when it happened.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s red robe hem fluttered violently. It wasn’t from the wind he had created.

The old man in the purple robe, with a terrifying expression, peeked over the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s shoulder.

It was Void-walking technique, followed by Void Crossing Technique.

He seemed to have moved his form by completely exploding his true qi.

Crack!

Ma Yeon-jeok’s wrinkled hand grabbed the white head.

At the same time, the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s palm pierced the old man’s abdomen.

The sound of tearing through protective energy and flesh echoed.

Along with the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s long smile.

“I caught a young old man. Though many martial artists feared you, this sect leader did not. The Ma family of Desolate Fortress is weak through generations.”

The two supreme masters’ forms fell in that position. They landed simultaneously with a thud.

“Blood demon, that stings quite a bit.”

Ma Yeon-jeok’s lips twisted upward.

The old man didn’t release the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s head.

With height greater than the noble blood demon’s, he gripped his crown and created flames like Samadhi Fire.

It was blue enough to seem chilling.

“What…?”

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s whole body suddenly lost strength. He nearly went limp.

His ruby-like eyes suddenly wavered. The sect leader fully felt it. Demon Destroying Azure Flame that breaks demonic paths.

No heat could be felt.

It was just extremely blue.

It was the appearance of martial arts reaching its peak.

Ma Yeon-jeok.

He had let go of all defilements through the Jeong Family Dynamic Technique’s verses, and returned after mastering his grandson’s martial arts.

The mystical dharma power of Demon Destroying Manifestation sprayed azure sparks while toying with the Blood Flame Sect Leader’s vision.

The supremely handsome man with white hair twisted his expression for the first time.

Whoosh!

Azure flames arose in an instant.

In an instant, azure flames erupted.

They were immense. They could endlessly burn even while engulfing the two absolute beings.

All movement on the battlefield ceased. It was a sight that forcibly drew everyone’s gaze.

It was far beyond the realm of humans. It wasn’t even a technique.

It was a divine skill.

“Leader of the Blood Flame Sect.”

“This, this is…!”

“Are you not curious about the next world? Reincarnation. You too must have learned Buddhist teachings. Didn’t you preach your sect’s teachings using the Buddha’s words?”

“No. This cannot be! Stop!”

“As Desolate Fortress’s divine sword, I ascend to heaven.”

Ma Yeon-jeok’s voice rang out calmly. The old man slowly continued.

“Shedding this cumbersome shell, I shall carve an immortal name in the world along with you.”

He seemed to have grasped and pulled back his prime realm. Tremendous power overflowed in his voice.

The Blood Flame Sect Leader’s voice was the same. Only shock was contained.

“Dharma power martial arts… the Grandmaster’s…!”

“Grandmaster? Wrong.”

Whoooosh—!

The azure flames that had swallowed the two supreme masters grew even intense. It was the form of great achievement.

The young grandmaster’s martial arts manifested through his grandfather’s hands.

Before the major faction masters who lived at the murim’s highest level.

“This is Desolate Fortress Lightning Genius’s divine technique.”

An aged voice rang out from within the comet-like azure flames.

Burning spirit accompanied the tired voice.

Demon Destroying Azure Unyielding Palm.

It pierced the darkness in all directions, illuminating the sky with its brilliance.

The azure light that descended to the earth was deep and profound.

A mysterious wave swept over the ground like a gentle breeze.

“Stop! Stop it!”

The Azure Flame burned magnificently.

It instantly grew as large as a house. It seemed about to pierce the heavens.

The bewitching beautiful voice transformed into a blood-curdling scream.

***

Read only at nineheavens.org

Translated by Nine Heavens!

https://discord.gg/XC9DTsTQ9Z

***