Chapter 482 – Desolate Day Extinction

In an instant, Invincible scattered like a mirage in the great desert on a summer day, then appeared below the upper sky on the complete opposite side.

It was before she could even compare her protective energy to the sword strike that seemed forged from moonlight.

She had successfully executed Form Shifting Void, a technique that was like a bittersweet memory for Jeong Yeon-shin.

It was different from when he had to strike down his sword multiple times against the Heavenly Extreme Sect Leader, and different from when Jeong Yeon-shin had pulled out Divine Monk Beomheo relying on the resonance of dharma power together with desperate wishes.

But Invincible, who had thus stepped on the void, furrowed her brow for the first time.

She had been in the middle of activating incantations that enhanced the power of martial sorcery techniques. A low intent flowed from between her lips.

[How could you…!]

It felt as if she had chewed and spat out the words with thunder-like anger.

Above the gorge.

Whoooosh―!

The vast sea of flickering lightning clouds was cut by a single sword and scattered to both sides.

They were like violent flames that had caught fire on wicks, a sight as if the sword strike had severed something fundamental about martial sorcery techniques.

Everything disappeared in the time it took for Jeong Yeon-shin below to widen his eyes and exhale once.

Literally breaking techniques. It was truly overwhelming.

[How long have you been watching!]

Rustle.

A light green garment hem brushed through the void. Hair of an even deeper green hue embraced the gentle sunlight following the wind that had begun to carve into the gorge once again.

It felt like descending along Invincible’s Six Harmonies Voice that had earlier risen like thunder.

Stone fragments fell rustling from nearby cliffs.

In the midst of this, the human shadow holding a single sword slowly descended to Jeong Yeon-shin’s eye level, then stopped as if treading on the void like a cushion.

For a moment, the deep green hair that had been lengthily shimmering in sunlight swayed gently from the rebound of landing.

But there was no sound of stepping on air.

There was no presence either.

“……”

Jeong Yeon-shin looked at that figure with a rarely dumbfounded expression.

He was standing on a skeletal tree branch that jutted out from a nearby cliff. The Seventh Apostle, who had somehow approached stealthily, was floating in the air beside him using graceful body technique.

The light of eye technique had long faded from Jeong Yeon-shin’s pupils. In his jet-black eyes was reflected the figure of the Martial God he had missed so dearly.

Ears that were more gracefully sharp than any noble clan’s.

Her slender facial lines reached the pinnacle of harmony, creating a beauty rare in the human world, yet even that was nothing compared to her deep green eyes that seemed to draw in souls.

Saaaa―

In the gorge’s strong winds that had begun blowing naturally once again.

The Desolate Fortress Lord slowly met eyes with Jeong Yeon-shin. For a moment, her lips parted slightly.

“The robe suits your body.”

Her crystalline voice tickled the atmosphere.

Those words.

Jeong Yeon-shin felt as if his purple rank investiture ceremony was being completed.

A hazy consciousness seemed to swell up like clouds from the back of his head, and regardless of the situation, it was tremendous praise.

But at the same time, he wondered.

‘Why…?’

He harbored the same thoughts as Invincible, it would be fair to say.

It was different from when Jeong Yeon-shin had been white or blue rank. It was because the world had clearly entered chaotic times.

The Desolate Fortress Lord should not be together with purple rank. From a worldly perspective, there was no greater waste.

Desolate Fortress, which had to broadly look after the vast populace, was in no position to overlap and operate individually powerful forces.

What ripple effects had the gathering of Divine Sword Group Leaders created? The Fortress Lord would have her own karma.

The purple gentleman still revered his master, but he thought he should speak plainly about what needed to be said.

“Fortress Lord.”

“How was this martial world journey?”

Her question that filled his ears like a gentle breeze left him speechless. It was because the events he had experienced in Hangzhou flashed through his mind like pages of a book. His mouth wouldn’t readily open.

But the Fortress Lord’s green eyes that met his gaze were only peaceful.

There was no sign of urging. She just quietly looked at him. Together with a temperament as clear as dew-laden leaves.

Suddenly, Jeong Yeon-shin wanted to sleep within her eyes. Was it because his body and mind were weary? It would be good if he could forget the suffocating martial world even for a moment.

The Heavenly Extreme Sect Leader, Dark Heaven Emperor, the flood dragon, and Invincible.

He had fought successive epoch-making fierce battles.

Throughout all his martial world journeys, there had never been such a forced march. The level of combat was the same.

His entire body was in tatters and his physical condition was worsening more and more, to the point where it had become difficult to even operate lightness technique while standing on tree branches.

‘…No.’

But inwardly he shook his head.

The heart of High Sword was with him like unbreaking taiji. He had to see the end of this matter.

“Divine Sword Group Radiant Demon Wing’s Baek Mi-ryeo.”

He slowly continued speaking.

“…She is in the Ming Cult Leader’s hands, but this disciple is insufficient and has not yet retrieved his comrade.”

“You are not insufficient.”

The Fortress Lord cut off Jeong Yeon-shin’s words with a low voice. At the same time, her hand slowly extended forward. With a feeling like wind naturally traveling between the gorge.

The realm of Natural Sword.

In an instant, she grabbed Jeong Yeon-shin’s arm and pulled him toward her. The Seventh Apostle who had been beside him reached out blankly, but her fingertips only brushed past Jeong Yeon-shin’s back.

Before he knew it, he had risen slightly and was embraced in the Fortress Lord’s arms.

Rustle.

Their collarbones gently touched, and their purple and green robe hems pressed up and down making soft sounds. Simultaneously, the master whispered in her disciple’s ear.

“Originally it wouldn’t be like this, but your body has many gaps. You should rest after all.”

“Not yet…”

Jeong Yeon-shin couldn’t finish his words.

It was because the Fortress Lord holding his back had pressed the sleep acupoint on his nape with her long index finger. Along with warm sensation, drowsiness spread throughout his body.

His vision rapidly narrowed, and soon his eyes slowly closed.

The energy of Moon Spirit Harmony Formula that filled all his body’s meridians like moonlight filling a lake. It was absolute yet soft.

Thus.

It was only an instant until his vision turned completely black.

“Leave it to me.”

His master’s voice penetrated his ears.

That was all.

A feeling as if the soul within his body was escaping the chaotic world.

Before he knew it, Jeong Yeon-shin’s consciousness fell into deep, deep sleep like a pebble sinking into water.

* * *

Hangzhou Mu Family Estate… It was the estate that the Eternal Candle Divine Physician, whose medical skills were said to reach heaven, had made his base.

Many had shouldered bundles and fled, saying misfortune had fallen upon Hangzhou, but even dragons and monstrous beings of incredible strength couldn’t take priority over people’s health and longevity.

The divine physician’s residence was still bustling even after the flood dragon manifested and disappeared in Zhejiang.

But separate from the commoners who ceaselessly entered and left the Mu Family Estate, the martial artists who surrounded the walls in dense formation did not move easily.

They merely created a stern atmosphere like a forest of swords, each carrying gleaming or rusted weapons.

These were people who had acted like lords in their hometowns, yet with the Mu Family Estate before their eyes, they were cautious even about opening their mouths.

“Is it true that Two Walls Sword Master is here…?”

“Not only is the Qingcheng Sect Leader staying secluded in the inner quarters, but someone even obtained weeds that the Mount Hua Sword God stepped on. They say the completely withered leaves had turned green.”

“The realm of Living Sword…!”

“Couldn’t we meet Divine Monk Beomheo under the pretext of offering alms?”

“Perhaps if you could erase the killing intent accumulated in your body. Until then, don’t even think about it.”

Various regional accents and dialects mixed quietly.

It was after rumors about the peerless masters had spread.

Many common people had left Hangzhou, but conversely, martial artists from all over the world came to the Mu Family Estate, either using lightness technique ceaselessly or riding horses until they foamed at the mouth and collapsed.

It was to gain even small insights and act as strong individuals.

For those who had abandoned farming, the only way to fill their bellies substantially in chaotic times was ultimately to rely on their own martial prowess.

Figures at the level of Nine Great Sects’ leaders were famous for containing supreme martial arts in each small deed.

The same applied to high-ranking warriors of Desolate Fortress, whom many martial artists greatly feared.

However.

The martial artists who had actually flocked there dared not set foot inside the estate. It was because the absolute masters of martial arts were faintly revealing their energy waves.

A presence that seemed to stop time inside the Mu Family Estate. That temperament was truly absolute, creating energy wave vibrations that made internal energy masters with energy sense tremble.

There were also wandering martial artists who hadn’t even developed such energy sense, but just before they spiritedly tried to throw open the main gate, they were restrained by other martial artists.

“Why, why are you doing this…?”

“Shut up and step back. Wait until they come out from inside.”

The moment they entered, they might suffocate from the dense energy waves and fall into qi deviation. The Nine Great Sects’ absolute masters might become angry.

Even the Divine Thief, who was said to have been rummaging through the secret archives of Beijing’s imperial palace recently, turned away. It would be difficult for anyone in the world to enter without permission.

Beyond the main gate they desperately wanted to cross.

The blue-tinted weeds throughout the estate’s courtyard were like footprints of the person who had wandered around, and the buildings in the inner courtyard beyond had all their doors open.

“Those so-called Taoists and monks, what are they waiting for in such strange states…”

The Eternal Candle Divine Physician, who made the estate’s tranquil atmosphere into a beautiful painting, spat out curses saying it was futile.

While sitting on a wooden platform in the open courtyard and treating commoners with acupuncture. Because of this, the patients, each with pale complexions, held their breath.

“……”

The Nine Great Sects’ leaders who had each taken a building in the inner courtyard and sat cross-legged didn’t move at all. They only exchanged words among themselves that others couldn’t hear.

―We’ve waited sufficiently. I’ve also recovered from my internal injuries to some extent now, so don’t try to stop me from leaving.

[That ‘some extent’ would be far from Lady’s perfect condition… Are you determined to seek out Benefactor Jeong?]

―Because I received a favor.

[Please consider whether this is a decision made after considering the Mount Hua Sect Leader’s duty. We’ve been away from Mount Song, Mount Hua, and Mount Qingcheng for too long. The disciples must be struggling greatly.]

―I…

Lu Xian’s words trailed off at Beomheo’s story. On one side, Qingcheng’s Qingshou raised his eyebrows.

―Our sect thinks differently. Disciples raised receiving the earth energy of immortal mountain Qingcheng have strong will. They wouldn’t want our sect’s leader to abandon a life-and-death connection. If we spoke of great causes, they would rather be disappointed.

[I understand. I respect Qingcheng’s intention.]

Beomheo smiled faintly.

The Eternal Candle Divine Physician didn’t bestow medical skills on any of them. He merely allowed them to stay temporarily. He even shooed away Beomheo when he approached.

Nevertheless, the Mu Family Estate was close to being the safest place in the world.

The divine essence located in the upper dantian of peerless masters. The mysterious something that amplified the power of each deeply accumulated internal energy.

That doesn’t fade just because one suffered internal injuries. It only emanated pressure rarely matched in the world.

Moreover, the composure characteristic of absolute masters devoted to Taoism and Buddhism had aspects that surpassed humans, so true energy was always carried in the pressure emitted by their upper dantian.

Even if lightning struck from the sky right now, there would be no worry of sparks flying. It was like an indestructible diamond net spread just by existing.

No approach allowed.

They were accustomed to quiet atmosphere. Because they naturally surrounded themselves with such silence.

Even Desolate Divine Spear Yue Shou-lin, who had been so talkative, had disappeared at some point, so the only sounds echoing in the estate were patients’ groans and the divine physician’s low scolding.

Then.

Beomheo, whose body had become gaunt, suddenly raised his head.

Simultaneously, a storm surged up.

Whooooooosh―!

The invisible net that the Nine Great Sects’ absolute masters had been forming was naturally torn apart. As if the wind that originally traveled between heaven and earth should continue without interruption.

Soon after, a heavy shockwave pressed down on them.

Thump!

From that rebound, earth dust rising like clouds along with strong winds.

“…!”

Lu Xian and Qing Shu jumped up.

[TL Note- Qing Shu is the Qincheng Sect Leader.]

“This is crazy!”

While the divine physician, who had been examining a patient from a distance, rarely widened his eyes and shouted.

Saaaa―

Jeong Yeon-shin, lying on hundreds of layers of leaves, slowly descended riding the hazy storm. His eyes were closed, showing he was unconscious.

And above in the sky.

A human shadow treading on the brightly pouring sunlight looked down at the divine physician and moved her lips. It was an extremely slow movement.

“Treat him within one hour.”

“……”

The clearing was dyed in another silence.