Chapter 52

Chapter 52: A Blood Star Descends Upon Xinjiang (2)

Dam Ho's stomp also affected Eun Ha-seong.

Vmmm!

The intense shockwave that rattled his eardrums caused Eun Ha-seong's pupils to waver momentarily. For an instant, objects blurred and overlapped, and he lost his balance.

But he was a man of extraordinary internal energy. Using his tremendous power, he blocked the sound waves that pierced into his ears and restored himself to his original state.

Shiak!

In that time, the blade he had swung cut harmlessly through empty air.

"Where are you?"

Eun Ha-seong's gaze traced Dam Ho's silhouette.

Dam Ho had already retreated a single step backward. No more, no less—just enough distance to avoid the saber strike Eun Ha-seong had unleashed.

"You!"

Eun Ha-seong roared and channeled his power into the Crimson Saber. A heat haze rippled around the blade, extending its length by another three feet.

It was blade energy.

Though he had not yet attained enlightenment to form blade aura, the blade energy infused with his tremendous power was no less formidable in its destructive force.

That was what Eun Ha-seong believed. If he could only strike Dam Ho's body once, it would be over.

Moreover, Dam Ho was a cripple. No matter how he had learned such powerful martial arts, without a proper footwork technique to support him, his power would be halved.

If the upper body accounted for three parts, the remaining seven lay in the lower body. There was a reason the saying "three above, seven below" existed.

Eun Ha-seong employed his secret footwork technique, the Wind Heaven Step, and pursued Dam Ho.

In an instant, his form seemed to multiply into a dozen. Such was the dazzling complexity of the Wind Heaven Step.

"Chaah! Die!"

Of his signature martial art, the Mad Heaven Harmony Saber, he unleashed the technique with the greatest destructive power: Ghost Eye Blood World.

Tsss!

Seven consecutive saber strikes hurtled toward Dam Ho in succession.

Although Eun Ha-seong had not learned the Demon's inherited techniques, he believed that the internal energy carried within his blade strikes alone could kill Dam Ho.

'I will kill him and then learn the Demon's inherited techniques. After that, I will enter the Central Plains. Heh heh!'

He harbored dreams.

Of mastering the Demon's martial arts and commanding the world under heaven.

Eun Ha-seong's voice echoed through the Blood Demon Hall.

"Turn to dust and vanish."

At that very moment.

Dam Ho, who had until now only evaded, suddenly extended his hand.

Five fingers spread wide, spiraling forward toward the incoming blade strikes.

Cwa-cwa-cwaang!

A thunderous explosion erupted.

The seven blade strikes had been blocked by Dam Ho's palm.

"How can this be?!"

Eun Ha-seong's eyes widened in disbelief. The sharpness and hardness of the Crimson Saber were enough to rival any blade under heaven.

He could cut through human flesh like paper without even channeling internal energy. And yet, that very Crimson Saber had been stopped by Dam Ho's hand.

Upon closer inspection, a microscopic gap existed between Dam Ho's palm and the Crimson Saber. Dam Ho's released qi had shielded his hand from the blade. But Eun Ha-seong had failed to notice this.

Silver Net Hand.

Intricate strands of qi intertwined and wove together to form a net of energy. This net of qi had protected Dam Ho's hand.

It was a martial art he had created by distilling profound insights from the Bamboo Leaf Technique, Crouching Tiger Fist, and Six Harmonies Fist.

The swiftness of the Bamboo Leaf Technique, the heaviness of the Crouching Tiger Fist, and the versatility of Six Harmonies Fist—all had been masterfully fused into this single technique.

The moment Dam Ho's hand made contact with the Crimson Saber, it released a violent surge of qi.

Hwooom!

The Crimson Saber let out a wail, as if screaming.

The violent tremor nearly caused Eun Ha-seong to lose his grip on the saber.

All of this had transpired in the span of an instant. So brief was the moment that ordinary people could not even perceive it. But for a master like Eun Ha-seong, it was an eternity.

Eun Ha-seong instinctively sensed that the air surrounding him had shifted.

A sense of crisis assailed his mind.

'It is coming.'

A sinister atmosphere bore down upon him like a storm.

Shiing!

Eun Ha-seong retreated and swung the Crimson Saber.

Ghost Heaven Bright Extinguish.

The defensive technique of his signature art, the Mad Heaven Harmony Saber. By swinging the blade eighteen times in a single motion, he created a barrier of blade energy to protect himself.

It was the most powerful defensive technique that Eun Ha-seong could employ, having not yet mastered the Demon's inherited techniques.

A solid defense, followed by a counterattack. That was Eun Ha-seong's plan.

Tense beyond measure, Eun Ha-seong blinked.

The instant he opened his eyes, he beheld an impossible sight.

Dam Ho's face had appeared before him. Dam Ho had penetrated his Ghost Heaven Bright Extinguish technique and closed the distance to within arm's reach.

'How?'

Disbelief flooded his face.

He could not comprehend how Dam Ho had pierced through eighteen consecutive strikes without a single collision and closed to such proximity.

A powerful force descended upon him. The entire pressure of his face felt as though thousands of needles were piercing into him.

'A storm?'

Eun Ha-seong felt the dizzying isolation of a man standing in the heart of a vast ocean upon a tiny skiff.

Waves crashing like mountains, winds howling as if to blow the world away—all of it was being driven by Dam Ho.

Grab!

Dam Ho's two hands seized him by the collar.

Even then, Eun Ha-seong could not comprehend the situation and merely blinked.

Whoosh!

In that instant, as though a tree had been uprooted, his feet left the ground and his body was hurled upward.

As if caught in a tornado, Eun Ha-seong's body, held fast by Dam Ho, was flung a full zhang into the air.

"Kuhuk!"

Only then did Eun Ha-seong regain his senses and attempt to break free from Dam Ho's grip. But Dam Ho's strength was too fierce; he could not break loose.

Eun Ha-seong changed his approach and attempted to strike at Dam Ho's neck with the Crimson Saber.

Whiik!

In that instant, Eun Ha-seong's body spun violently.

Head downward, feet toward the sky.

Heaven and earth were reversed. And his body was driven straight down toward the ground.

Splat! Crack!

Eun Ha-seong's body slammed headfirst into the earth.

The face that had only moments ago gleamed with fierce determination burst apart like a pumpkin, its contents spraying in all directions.

There was not even a scream.

For the end of a figure who had aimed to dominate not only Xinjiang but even the hegemony of the Central Plains, it was far too anticlimactic. Though it was a sight that left onlookers feeling hollow, those who witnessed it felt a chill run through their entire bodies.

The entire sequence had transpired so swiftly it felt as if one were dreaming. Unreal, like a nightmare on a midsummer's night.

The Crimson Saber that had been in Eun Ha-seong's hand lay far away on the ground, letting out a mournful ring.

Dam Ho withdrew his hands from Eun Ha-seong's corpse and rose. Not a single breath was out of place on Dam Ho's face, and the sight of him sent a wave of shock and terror through all who watched.

The lord of the West Heaven Mountain Manor had been slain without so much as landing a proper blow. And by a bizarre technique that none had ever witnessed.

Sim Su-myeong suddenly looked down at his own hand. The hand gripping the Blood Scale Saber was drenched in sweat.

His body was reacting involuntarily to a sight of such overwhelming shock—something he had never imagined in his life.

Earth Heaven Strike.

It was the name of the technique Dam Ho had employed.

Earth Heaven Strike had been a technique born from chance during the process of breaking and moving boulders in the underground cavern.

To escape the underground cavern, he had needed to shatter the subterranean rock. It was not enough to simply break the stone; he had to carry the fragments away to clear a passage.

At first, he had carried each boulder on his back. But as he gained experience, he began hurling the rocks instead. After doing this hundreds, thousands of times, he naturally grasped the method of driving boulders into the ground to destroy them.

One day, a thought had occurred to him.

What if what he drove into the ground were not a boulder, but a human?

That hypothetical gave birth to Earth Heaven Strike.

A brutal attack that used the very earth on which humans walked as a weapon.

Thinking that the power was more than adequate, Dam Ho turned his gaze to Sim Su-myeong. Sim Su-myeong flinched involuntarily.

It was not only Sim Su-myeong. Every martial artist he had brought, along with Sim Ok, all trembled.

'Death… it is the God of Death.'

'Where did such a man come from…'

They too were men who had fought countless battles. And yet, in the eyes of these vagrants—whose fierce natures made them difficult to cow—the light of fear flickered.

They had never imagined that such a martial artist could exist. That the lord of the West Heaven Mountain Manor, Eun Ha-seong, would be killed with his head burst open, without having landed a single meaningful blow.

If the world learned of this, they would be struck with astonishment.

A suffocating silence dominated the underground space. But silence is never eternal, and Sim Su-myeong, speaking on behalf of all, broke it.

"Who is this great hero? How did you manage to defeat Eun Ha-seong so…"

Sim Su-myeong's voice trembled as he spoke. But he was so tense that he did not even notice this himself.

Dam Ho tilted his head slightly.

"Eun Ha-seong?"

"The Master of the West Heaven Mountain Manor whom you slew."

"He was nothing special."

"Nothing special? What do you mean…"

Sim Su-myeong's face twisted in disbelief, but Dam Ho's opinion did not waver.

Eun Ha-seong had indeed possessed formidable conditions.

The sheer killing intent he emanated was sufficient to rend flesh, and the immense internal energy left behind by the Demon was undeniably extraordinary.

But the martial artist Eun Ha-seong was not so impressive. His martial arts may have been strong, but his instantaneous reflexes, adaptability, situational judgment, and decisiveness were all below expectations.

A martial artist was supposed to have nerves honed sharp as razors, senses wide open. But Eun Ha-seong, who had spent so long living as a lord, no longer possessed such primal instincts.

If the sword was the weapon, internal energy was the force that enabled its proper use.

A sword, if it did not connect, was useless. And immense internal energy, if it did not collide, served no purpose.

Battle was not won by the one with greater strength. The truly powerful were those who could read the rhythm of victory in an instant and draw it toward themselves.

By that standard, Eun Ha-seong was nothing more than a fool who possessed a fine weapon and great power but had no idea how to wield them. At least by Dam Ho's reckoning.

Dam Ho's gaze suddenly turned to Sim Ok. The cheek struck by Dam Ho was still red and swollen. But Sim Ok did not dare confront Dam Ho. His overwhelming presence made it difficult even to breathe.

Sim Ok's pupils trembled. The image of Dam Ho reflected in her eyes wavered with her.

"You have… brought a storm of blood with you."

"…"

"You could have avoided it."

"Why should I have avoided it?"

"That is because…"

Sim Ok could not find the words.

Dam Ho's gaze fell upon her father, Sim Su-myeong.

"Do you believe I should have done otherwise?"

"I…"

Sim Su-myeong gritted his teeth.

He wished he could deny Dam Ho's words. He wished to fight. But he could not.

Though Sim Su-myeong prided himself on having fought countless battles and navigated carnage, he could not utter a single word before the vision of hell that lay spread before him.

One thing was certain: the man before him was fundamentally different from any martial artist he had ever encountered.

It was not a matter of martial arts or personality.

The man before him was simply a different species of being altogether. He was a creature that the nerves of an ordinary person could not measure or judge.

"Hah!"

In the end, Sim Su-myeong answered only with a sigh. It was a sigh laden with meaning.

Dam Ho passed by Sim Su-myeong and spoke.

"I leave the cleanup to you."

"I… understand."

He had brought the full might of the Blood Scale Stronghold, only to end up doing the cleanup. But Sim Su-myeong could not voice a complaint.

His gaze could not tear away from Dam Ho's retreating figure.

"A blood star has descended upon Xinjiang."

Sim Su-myeong's voice, trembling with unease, spoke for the hearts of all present.