Chapter 93

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Translated by Seoulbound

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Along with the wind pressure on my palms following the thunder qi, even the signboard of the Zhuge Clan’s Yidu branch was shattered.

“How dare you!”

The warriors guarding the branch flocked in.

Unlike the Crouching Dragon Scholars, they were carrying swords.

The deep sword qi of the Star Sword of the Distant Void, said to be the secret transmission of the Zhuge Clan, began to illuminate the front.

“Wudang Sect?”

“What! There are only four of them!”

“No matter how much it is the Wudang Sect, to be this lawless!”

“Reveal the reason for committing such an act!”

Anger arose at their shameless attitude, which contrasted with the gently shining sword light.

It was because I could feel the formulas of the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition resonating.

‘The senior sister is here.’

They were fellow disciples who had trained their upper dantian with the same formulas.

Due to the nature of the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition, which sharpened cognitive sensitivity, we could not help but feel each other more closely.

Carrying that anger directly in my true qi, I exploded it above the Lianquan acupoint in front of my vocal cord muscles.

It was thanks to having seen many of the evil cultists’ sound transmission arts.

Since I discarded the wicked formulas and loaded only the intent to suppress the opponent’s mind, a martial art formula was naturally created.

Even if it could not reach the Shaolin Lion’s Roar.

‘Lowering the frequency so that the senior brothers and senior sisters can also hear!’

“Did you think that conversation would be possible even after detaining the disciples of the Wudang Sect!”

The voice loaded with cultivation vibrated the pillars of the manor’s pavilions and seeped into the ground.

Some of the Zhuge Clan warriors grabbed their ears and tottered.

“Keugh!”

Among those letting out groans, someone stared at my face and muttered in a small voice.

“The Wudang Sect, at that age… Bringer of Chaos?!”

The recognition of those who identified me soon spread into fear.

“The one who defeated the Young Spirit Slayer!”

“Why is the rising star who repelled the Blood Cult’s blood lord here!”

As the murmuring of the Zhuge branch warriors grew louder, I felt the enemy’s fighting spirit also dampening.

‘If I overwhelm them, the way will open.’

Coinciding with the thought, I shouted again.

“Open the way! If you hand over the disciples of the Wudang Sect, you will be able to preserve your lives!”

Simultaneously with those words, the condensed air pressure erupted from my outstretched palms, raising a wind.

The second form of the Four Symbols Wind and Thunder Palm.

The palm force of Cloud Void Primal Chaos spread out like clouds, dispersing the sword light.

“Heup!”

The moment the posture of the Zhuge branch warriors, who had been guarding the front while deploying their starting forms, was disrupted, I slipped into the gap with the swift steps of the Willow Leaf Movement.

“Uh!”

“Block him!”

“The swords are not reaching!”

The Willow Leaf Movement, which responded and moved in accordance with the surrounding true qi like willow leaves in the wind, slipped past the sword paths of the Zhuge branch warriors by a fraction of an inch.

With each palm and each step, I dampened the enemy’s fighting spirit even further.

The moment my sleeves, flipped by the sword wind, lightly wrapped around my upper arms, I reached my hand behind my back and drew my sword.

Clang!

Simultaneously with drawing the sword, I infused the cultivation that had been resting in my palms.

The blade, into which the condensed cultivation rushed like a flood, let out a cry.

Vrooooom—!

Watching the blue-glowing blade, the Zhuge Clan warriors shouted.

“Sword hum?!”

“It is the Sword Blade Returning Force! Do not clash swords! They will break!”

“We must retreat and reorganize our formation!”

“We must activate the trap formations!”

As if they knew they could not block it themselves, they retreated.

In addition.

“Inform the branch leader!”

Some warriors tried to head to the back to convey the news.

It was said that the dreadfulness of the Zhuge Clan’s martial arts was revealed when their techniques and trap formations were combined.

“Uh-huh.”

Seeing that, Senior Brothers Myeong-hun and Myeong-jin flew over the heads of the warriors and landed behind them.

The swords they drew, following the lightfoot of the Cloud-Climbing Step’s Entrusting to the Wind and Roaming the Void, blocked and entangled the front of the Zhuge branch warriors.

So that they could neither convey the news.

Nor activate the trap formations, they blocked the way, but they did not immediately cut down the Zhuge Clan warriors.

No matter how certain they were of the connection with the Six Evils, they were the guarding warriors of the branch.

It was necessary to verify to what extent they were involved with the Blood Cult.

In addition, they were the ones who knew the structure of the manor well.

If they subdued them, it would be easier to find their fellow disciples.

“Keugh!”

Therefore, even though Senior Brother Myeong-jin’s sword tip struck the body of the branch warrior, not a single drop of blood fell.

Instead, he collapsed while stiffening like a log.

“Sword Qi Acupoint Sealing and Vessel Blockade!”

A cry of astonishment erupted from the mouth of the Zhuge Clan warrior.

It was a high-level martial art that sealed acupoints with sword qi to block energy vessels.

However, it was also a fearsome technique that could render one crippled if the acupoints were not released for a long time.

I felt the warriors’ spirit completely shatter.

“Surrender.”

A situation where I was in front and my senior brothers were holding the rear.

The ones who were surrounded were the Zhuge Clan warriors.

Soon, their knees headed to the ground.

**

‘What is it?’

Zhuge Beom, the Wind-Water Divine Dragon, noticed the disturbance that arose near the main gate in an instant. It was a sensory perception that had become sharper since he became a blood ghoul. Even if he stayed as if confined in the secret room during the day, he could not have mistaken the commotion that arose at the main gate.

Even so, the warning bell installed in the family did not ring, nor was there any sign of the trap formations being activated.

A chilling intuition flowed down his spine.

And soon.

—Did you think… that conversation would be… possible… even after detaining the Wudang Sect…!

The roaring sound echoed even to the secret room.

‘Finally!’

The man who dreamed of revenge—no, the blood ghoul—activated the trap formation installed in one part of the secret room.

Click.

‘About two double-hours.’

It was the Light-Blocking Technique Formation that temporarily cast darkness over the branch manor.

‘Hehehe. Come.’

This place is an antlion pit.

I will be able to confine the Wudang Sect disciples and take their ‘sweet’ pure blood again.

And the more I do so.

‘It will be a good thing for me!’

A burning thirst arose, and saliva pooled in his mouth.

Having activated the countermeasure for himself who could not step out under the sunlight, Zhuge Beom was about to leave the secret room and head toward the main gate when.

The sound transmission of the blood lord reached his ears.

He immediately turned his steps that had been heading toward the main gate and flew toward where the underground dungeon was located.

**

While we were breaking through the inner courtyard with the surrendered branch warriors in the lead, the sky suddenly turned dark.

As the sunlight shining down on the manor faded, the shadows of the pavilions spread widely.

“Oh.”

“The Light-Blocking Formation!”

“The branch leader has started to move!”

A bizarre madness was felt in the tone of the warriors who spoke as if expecting something.

‘Them too?’

A appearance similar to the madness I had seen all throughout autumn.

The young warriors stared at the sky with eyes that seemed to have seen some miracle.

Meanwhile.

Clang! Whoosh!

In one corner of the inner courtyard, flames rose along with the sound of weapons clashing.

‘Ignition caused by blood qi!’

And the sensation that struck my Hundred Convergences acupoint was.

‘The Tai Chi Diagram Exposition!’

The wave of qi of a fellow disciple who had learned the same Tai Chi Diagram Exposition was strongly felt.

Leaving behind the Zhuge branch warriors whom I had placed in the lead, I deployed the Cloud-Climbing Step toward the place where the flames rose.

And it was revealed.

The twin brothers, Senior Brothers Myeong-heon and Myeong-ryu, along with Senior Sister Myeong-myeong and Senior Sister Yi Chae-yang, came into view, along with three blood ghouls who had surrounded and were pushing them hard.

‘Two of them are Daywalkers.’

Just getting close to them made me feel a heat-yang energy that was in a different class from the blood ghoul I had met at the Yichang branch.

“Wudang Sect?”

“Indeed. You are competent. Just as you said, the prey came on their own feet.”

“Since we came here just in case and got to feast like this, it is great.”

A thick smile spread over the pale faces of the two blood ghouls wearing blood-red robes.

It was a charming smile that would make any martial artist with shallow cultivation in the middle dantian lose their fighting spirit just by looking at it, but.

Their smiles did not enter my eyes.

Because I could see the welcoming, soot-stained faces beyond them.

“Senior Sister Yi!”

“As expected! It was Junior Brother Yeon!”

The face of Senior Sister Yi Chae-yang, whom I had not seen in months, was haggard and pale. The rest of the senior brothers and senior sisters were the same.

It must be the aftermath of having their pure blood extorted by the blood ghouls.

Even so, the reason they were holding out well was due to the power of the Wudang Sect’s martial arts.

“Paying no attention!”

The claw technique deployed by the blood ghoul was unusual.

Flames rose atop the blade-like blood claws revealed between the red robes.

And tore apart the Supreme Clarity Free Hand palm strike shield deployed by Senior Sister Yi Chae-yang to block it.

“Keugh!”

Even though a deep wound was drawn on her palm, blood did not splatter.

It was because the area struck by the blood claws was burned directly.

‘The true qi is not easily connecting.’

From the moment she was struck by the claw technique, I could see Senior Sister Yi Chae-yang’s Supreme Clarity Free Hand true qi cutting off strand by strand.

Even her fine meridians were damaged by the heat-yang energy.

Moreover, her movements were stiff.

She must have been watching for an opportunity to escape from the long confinement.

All of the senior brothers and senior sisters would not be in normal condition.

I immediately blocked the front of my senior sister and kept the blood ghoul in check.

“Please step back.”

“Ha! If you had come just a bit later, I would have wrung that guy’s neck!”

From her words spoken with feigned strength, I could read her intention not to make her young junior brother worry.

I agreed and replied.

“Please leave it to your young junior brother. Isn’t slaying blood ghouls a good deed? Merit will be added to the scales of merits and demerits.”

“Yes. Even for the sake of my junior brother’s ascension to immortality, I should yield.”

Like that, I felt Senior Sister Yi Chae-yang, who was stepping back, immediately gather her true qi.

I turned my entire mind to the front.

“How dare you! To harm a Wudang disciple?!”

While I kept them in check, Great-Martial Uncle Mang-won drew his sword and stepped forward.

On the sword that stretched relentlessly toward the neck of the blood ghoul standing in front of me, a dark blue spiritual qi formed deeply, permeating into the shadows cast over the entire manor.

The full power of a Taoist martial arts master who had unified his upper, middle, and lower dantians pushed back the inhuman entity while dispersing both his presence and form.

However, there were three blood ghouls.

Senior Brother Myeong-hun and Senior Brother Myeong-jin rushed at another one.

Thus, the remaining one stood in front of me.

An attire entirely different from the other blood ghouls.

One wearing the blue robes of a scholar.

‘He is from the Zhuge Clan.’

I could tell from his attire alone.

One who was not a blood cultist but from the Zhuge Clan.

However, the heat-yang blood qi he emitted around him did not reach that of the Daywalkers.

Even so, I had an intuition that he was no less dangerous than a Daywalker.

It was because the heat-yang blood qi and the unique, gentle true qi of the Zhuge Clan mixed around his body, creating a bizarre presence.

“Do you remember me?”

I did not answer the words of the Zhuge Clan blood ghoul who asked.

He looked like someone I had seen somewhere, but I was unsure.

Although blood ghouls looked similar to humans, when they bared their fangs, they looked like inhuman entities.

At my appearance, the man’s whites turned bloodshot.

“Heh. You don’t even remember?”

Along with his anger, heat spread.

The atmosphere shook greatly.

‘One who was a high-level master even before becoming a blood ghoul has now obtained the authority of a blood ghoul.’

Although it was hard to remember exactly, he was a master.

I immediately raised the cultivation of the Primal Chaos Tai Chi Art.

Thump.

Along with my heartbeat, the strands of true qi vigorously filled the muscle meridians of my limbs and resonated with the surrounding force field.

The first silk protective garment of the Three-Section Brocade defensive qi wrapped around my body, and I set up a force field using the Hundred Convergences and the Huiyin as double poles.

As the burning heat was pushed away, a refreshing energy filled the surroundings.

And the third that followed.

The net of true qi that toyed with light wrapped around my body.

At the same time, I modified some formulas.

It was a formula customized for facing blood ghouls.

Having thoroughly grasped it while facing the blood ghouls.

‘Their vision was rather brighter in the darkness. Which means.’

It meant they had a visual system completely different from that of ordinary people.

In addition, what I had learned while mastering the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition was that through cognitive sensitivity training, a martial artist could see even light that ordinary people could not see.

By doing so, I could be sure.

‘Blood ghouls have an excellent ability to detect the infrared rays emitted from the body.’

I manipulated the physical properties of the third true qi fabric of the Three-Section Brocade.

As the true qi manipulation, which had become even more precise through training the sword blade returning force, shone.

Below the visible light spectrum, I confined the infrared rays emitted from my body around myself.

I predicted and utilized the tendencies of the blood ghouls.

And just as predicted.

“Heup!”

The blood ghoul from the Zhuge Clan let out a gasp.

A natural reaction of a master when the enemy standing in front of him suddenly disappeared from sight.

Moreover, since there was not even a sign of movement, his surprise would be even greater.

Taking a step after a time delay.

The steps of the Willow Leaf Movement.

Instead of the Brownian motion that responded sensitively to the movement of true qi, hiding myself within the steps of non-action that assimilated with the flow of true qi, I approached the Zhuge Clan blood ghoul and raised my sword qi.

**

“Bastard! Do you think you can escape just by hiding your body!”

Zhuge Beom spat out his anger and raised his blood qi.

The moment sparks arose in the air, the folding fan spread open in his hand.

As the dragon pattern drawn as if writhing on the folding fan absorbed the surrounding light and began to alter the flow of the atmosphere.

The Zhuge Clan’s secret technique.

The Wind-Calling Art conjured the wind.

Whoosh!

The flames ignited in the air rode the wind and swept in all directions.

Meanwhile.

An anomaly in the flow of the heat energy that covered all directions came into view.

“Is it there!”

Atop the straightly stretched folding fan, the strands of wind summoned by the Wind-Calling Art sharpened like blades.

Technique variation.

The cutting wind of the Gale Art tore through the anomalous space following the movement of the swung folding fan.

Just as the blades of wind that dispersed the flames were about to lacerate Yeon Baek-jung’s faintly revealed body.

Clash clash clash—!

Following the swung sword, the blades of the Gale Art altered their direction.

The sword qi force wave of the Wudang Sect’s Four Symbols Flowing Sword had dispersed the Gale Art.

Subsequently, as Yeon Baek-jung’s sword stretched out straight, Zhuge Beom spread his folding fan and simultaneously raised a shield on the iron plates of the folding fan through the cultivation of the Zhuge Clan’s unique mind art, the Bowing and Exerting Utmost Effort Art.

Clang—!

The moment the recoil of the collision arose, Zhuge Beom retreated due to the cultivation that dispersed over his aching wrist.

‘It is heavy.’

The sensation felt on the folding fan was heavy and dull, as if he had collided with a heavy weapon like a mace.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The more he blocked the subsequent sword strikes with his folding fan.

Zhuge Beom was retreating step by step.

Simultaneously.

Screech!

It was sharp.

The ribs of the folding fan were gouged, and the surface was cracked.

‘What in the world!’

It was a folding fan manufactured for the use of a warrior of a martial family.

The ribs of the fan were all made of iron, and the surface was woven with the Heavenly Silk raised by the family, so it could easily withstand the sword qi of any martial master.

Clang—!

On the sword loaded with a thousand-catty great force, a sharpness capable of cutting even diamonds was standing.

He was being pushed back in both strength and skill.

If there had been even a single moment of a gap to cast a technique, he might have been able to arrange a foothold for a turnaround.

However, Yeon Baek-jung pressed on without giving him a gap.

‘What remains is!’

The authority of a blood ghoul derived from blood.

“Aaaargh!”

Along with a roar, his boiling blood raised a bright yellow holy fire.

The most powerful flame his body could spew tried to transfer to Yeon Baek-jung along the folding fan.

However.

‘Gasps!’

Zhuge Beom gasped for air.

The flames that seemed as if they would melt Yeon Baek-jung in a stone’s throw could not reach him. Even the blood qi itself could not stretch forward.

The place where the flames stayed.

It was Yeon Baek-jung’s blade.

The vortex formed around the sword as an axis distorted the flow of blood qi. As if swept away in a torrent, the fluctuations of the blood qi trapped themselves.

Indeed, the gravity of the Four Symbols Flowing Sword even sucked the flow of surrounding true qi toward the blade.

Whoosh!

The bright yellow holy fire condensed on Yeon Baek-jung’s blade.

And stretched out.

Zhuge Beom instinctively raised his folding fan to block the front, but the sword force, which surpassed the speed of a Zhuge Clan veteran’s true qi release, cut through the folding fan while carrying the holy fire.

Slash.

As the hundred-refined steel fan ribs and the Heavenly Silk were cut through at once, Yeon Baek-jung’s sword charged relentlessly through the opened path.

Squelch—!

Finally, it pierced through Zhuge Beom’s heart.

Zhuge Beom lowered his head and stared at Yeon Baek-jung’s blade with blank eyes.

And soon.

Whoosh!

His body began to burn.

The holy fire of the Holy Fire Bloodline blood ghoul burned fiercely, using the pure blood inside that body as kindling.

Zhuge Beom’s dream of continuing his severed life in the martial world also crumbled into ashes like that.