Chapter 98

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Translated by Seoulbound

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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As rumored, the body of the Sword Immortal, Master Jin-cheon, did not seem normal, at least to outward appearances.

However, as a translucent membrane overlaid the old Taoist’s body, his missing arm and leg sprouted.

As natural energy transformed into essence based on the Taoist Three Clarities Power originating from his upper dantian’s spirit, his internal strength and natural energy created a physical form.

A physical reality.

The old man was no longer a cripple.

A whole body.

A body composed of internal power and natural energy replaced half of his body.

He made possible only through true qi control via internal power what would otherwise only be possible in the realm of techniques.

It was a matter close to a miracle.

It was possible because he was a master who shook the upper dantian of the head of one of the Seven Great Clans with a single word.

However, the Zhuge Clan did not just watch that sight quietly, since a body being equipped meant moving toward perfection.

The Zhuge Clan’s Star Sword Squad Leader, Zhuge Sun the Silent Sword of the Profound Wind, and the Three Great Guests—Heart-Piercing Sword, Soul-Destroying Awl, and Spirit-Exhausting Saber —approached the Sword Immortal.

[He is a crippled old man!]

[That strike just now. The consumption of internal power must have been considerable!]

[He is full of openings!]

They were those who stepped forward because an opportunity to defeat the world’s number one sword did not come easily.

“Wait!”

Sagacious Eye Scholar tried to stop them belatedly, but…

“Tsk.”

Along with a short tongue-clicking sound, the sword drew a straight line.

‧

Space was severed.

There were no screams, nor any roars.

Thud.

For human bodies simply misaligned and separated along the severed space.

Four pairs of corpses neatly sliced in two rolled on the ground.

Meanwhile, the Sword Immortal’s body assumed a complete form.

The translucent half of his body absorbed the surrounding light and dyed itself pitch-black.

The black half of his body, contrasting with the white Taoist robes of the Wudang Sect, achieved harmony just like a Tai Chi pattern.

In that state, Immortal Jin-cheon’s gaze turned upward.

“I told you to come down.”

Along with those low words, the Sword Immortal’s black foot stepped on the air.

And he ascended.

Again, a leg wrapped in white Taoist robes stepped on the air above it, and then the black leg stepped again.

As if climbing stairs, Immortal Jin-cheon’s body naturally rose into the air and met the eyes of the Marquis of Divine Martialry.

Immortal Im-won of the Wudang Sect watched the figure of Wudang’s number one with blank eyes and let out an exclamation of admiration.

“Soaring Sky Ladder!”

It was said that if one reached the limit of the Cloud-Climbing Step, they could easily walk in the air, and that was precisely the realm of the Soaring Sky Ladder.

He did not strictly need to ascend.

Since, if it were the Sword Immortal, he would have easily been able to drag the Zhuge Family Head to the ground.

Yet he showcased the lightness skill of the Soaring Sky Ladder.

It was a statement to all Wudang Sect disciples.

– This is the shape of having reached the end of the martial arts you practice.

He imparted a lesson even during a fight between sects.

The morale of the disciples had no choice but to be inspired.

“Hap!”

“The Sword Immortal is with us!”

The melee between the Zhuge Clan and the Wudang Sect began with the steps of the Sword Immortal.

**

The face of the Marquis of Divine Martialry was hardened like rock.

The arrogance that had been worn at the moment he made Yeon Baek-jung clash with his son, Zhuge Jeong, was gone.

Because the Sword Immortal did not exist upon the path of heaven he had read.

“How…”

He had never imagined that an old man locked away in a back room, confined within a completely ruined body, would appear again.

He was not even read by the Kongming Eyes that read the path of heaven. The absolute rulers of the martial world were exceptional beings who escaped even the grand path of heaven. Therefore, he felt it instinctively.

That the martial prowess shown a moment ago was no bluff.

It was correct to judge that the Sword Immortal’s martial prowess was close to his peak, or even beyond it, despite possessing a crippled body.

At the moment when, under the sense of crisis that his neck would fly off the instant he let his guard down, he concentrated all his internal power on defense:

The Sword Immortal’s gaze drifted away from the Marquis of Divine Martialry.

‘!’

And the voice that came from his opened mouth was:

“Why don’t you call the remaining two as well? Ah, those things probably won’t be able to take Void Steps like you.”

The ‘those things’ the Sword Immortal spoke of.

Could not be anything else.

They were the Blood Lords of the Vajra Bloodline and the Sacred Fire Bloodline.

Lightning flashed in the eyes of the Marquis of Divine Martialry at the statement that he would face both him and the Blood Cult’s Blood Lords all at once.

“⁞ ⁞ ⁞ ⁞”

A high-speed condensed mantra burst from the mouth of the Marquis of Divine Martialry. As the Zhuge Clan’s family-transmitted technique, which surpassed the Wind-Thunder Scattering-Destruction that he had struck with in anger at his son’s death, unfolded.

A cloud-like mist arose in the air.

And hid Zhuge Seok-yun’s figure.

What appeared along with it was hundreds of soldiers who seemed carved from rock surrounding Immortal Jin-cheon.

It was the Zhuge Clan’s family-transmitted technique, the Stone Sentinel Maze.

In addition to that.

Above the mist, purple lightning wriggled between the dark clouds summoned by the Marquis of Divine Martialry, and then split into nine streams to pour down upon the single person of Immortal Jin-cheon.

Ku-gu-gung!

The Nine Provinces Deviant Thunder technique added to the Stone Sentinel Maze.

Each and every one of them was a technique capable of destroying an average sect in an instant, yet:

“Tsk.”

When the Sword Immortal’s sword tip touched the sky, the nine streams of lightning were sucked into the sword like a lightning rod.

Tjejejejeong!

Following the sword swung horizontally toward the rushing stone soldiers:

Chzzt!

As the thunder energy that had risen in the sword went toward the stone soldier army.

The stone soldier army vanished like smoke.

In addition to that.

“Bring the blood ghouls you summoned as well.”

Along with those words, the sword moved lightly.

Immortal Pointing the Way.

The space was shaken along the straight sword stance of the old Taoist.

‘!’

Neither the wild wind that arose from the altar of the Chibi Wind-Worshipping Platform, where Zhuge Liang had summoned the southeastern wind, nor the divine power accumulated in the Yungzhong Shrine of Marquis Wu was of any use before the absolute martial prowess of the Sword Immortal.

As if a boulder had pressed down.

The body of the Marquis of Divine Martialry was driven down onto the ground.

Boom!

It took less than five breaths to dismantle the two divine arts deployed by the Marquis of Divine Martialry and drive him to the ground.

When the Sword Immortal’s figure descended onto the ground like a feather:

“Indeed.”

An arc was drawn at the corners of the old Taoist’s mouth.

Because a massive presence was felt on both sides of Zhuge Seok-yun who was rising from the hollowed ground.

The faces of those who spoke looked to be at most peers of Zhuge Seok-yun, but the content of the words they spewed was unusual.

“They said he was a disciple of Sanfeng. That young child has become a sword.”

“Even so, he is a mortal. We just have to devour him.”

A way of speaking as if the Sword Immortal were young.

A tone possible only because they were immortals whose endured years were difficult to measure.

Beings beyond human.

The Blood Lords of the Dawn Sky Blood Cult’s two bloodlines—the Sacred Fire Bloodline and the Vajra Bloodline—rushed toward the Sword Immortal.

Along with that.

The Sword Immortal stretched his empty black hand into the air and murmured in a low voice.

“Come forth.”

At that moment, a round pupil-like void opened in the air, and after the space rippled like waves, a sword dyed pitch-black was grasped in his hand.

Double swords—one dyed pure white and the other pitch-black—were held in the hands of the Sword Immortal.

Along with that, the figure of the Sword Immortal also headed toward the rushing blood ghouls.

It was a fight of the absolute masters of the martial world.

**

In the midst of the melee, he glanced at the fierce battle that was turning the space of the manor into a dynamic void.

He had no choice but to do so.

‘Grand-Master!’

Because his eyes locked with his Grand-Master’s.

– Watch closely.

He faithfully followed what those eyes said.

In addition, his Master also swung his sword beside him in the midst of the fierce battle and offered brief advice.

“Watch closely. That is the martial art of Wudang’s number one sword, and furthermore, the world’s number one sword.”

In accordance with his Master’s words, he blocked the rushing Zhuge Clan martial artists on one hand, while taking a glance at the battle of the absolute masters.

Just watching it poured in a vast amount of information that felt like it would burn his upper dantian’s fine meridians, but this time he did not turn his head, because he could endure it now.

On top of that, the energy of the blood ghouls facing his Grand-Master was also unusual.

‘Danger!’

Simultaneously with the thought, a deep blue flame arose inside the sleeves of the brilliant blood robe.

Phwahwa!

The fiercely spewed blue-white flames, along with immense heat, tried to turn his Grand-Master’s entire body into a pile of ashes.

At that moment, the pitch-black sword held in his Grand-Master’s right hand, the black hand, moved.

Fwhooo.

The blue-white flame vanished upon meeting the pitch-black sword blade.

‘!’

The blue flame, which was incomparable to the heat of the fire emitted by the practitioners, vanished like a lie.

In addition, the properties of the true qi seen through the Tai Chi Diagram Exposition told the principle.

It was completely different from the method he used, which was suppressing the materials of the combustion reaction.

‘Ultimate Yin Supreme Force.’

The heat was simply extinguished upon meeting the sword that contained the essence of Yin energy.

That was all.

Over the left hand swung next, the pure white sword blade, a blue-white cluster of light arose, and the sword qi containing starlight carved the space.

‘That is… Sword Gang!’

It was said to be a stage that went beyond the Unity of Body and Sword, where the sword qi transcended the Neutralizing Force stage to form essence that created physical matter.

As the Sword Gang swept through the space while emitting light like the Milky Way illuminating a pitch-black night:

‧

The giant blood ghoul’s body was sliced in half.

Even blood did not splatter.

Because the ultimate Yang energy loaded in the Sword Gang completely burned the severed cross-section.

Fundamentally blocking the regenerative ability achieved by using blood as a foothold.

Handling two extreme energies with a single body.

‘Two Polarities Creation Divine Art!’

Following the internal cultivation considered the greatest divine art of the current Wudang Sect, the ultimate Yang energy and ultimate Yin energy intertwined harmoniously upon a single body.

In addition to that.

‘The convergence and divergence of true qi!’

The ultimate Yang energy, being light and active, diverged, while the ultimate Yin energy, being heavy and sluggish, converged.

Was it simply like that?

No.

Even in the ultimate Yang sword, convergence mnemonics were intertwined, and upon the ultimate Yin sword, divergence mnemonics were engraved.

‘Sword Gang. The amount of true qi required to form it is absurd. An incalculable amount of internal power is compressed upon that narrow sword blade, the edge.’

‘The ultimate Yin sword. It utilized the Yin-cold force to the extreme. The Yin-cold force absorbs the surrounding true qi to take on the same property, and meeting the heat, neutralizes it. Any true qi is helpless before the ultimate Yin sword.’

Just when he was grasping his burning upper dantian, struggling to somehow capture his Grand-Master’s martial arts in his head and make them his own:

An incomprehensible, high-speed mantra echoed.

The Marquis of Divine Martialry, who had been driven into the ground, was raising techniques once more.

Fwoooo!

A fierce wind of true qi blew, trying to sweep away the natural energy around the body of the Sword Immortal, Immortal Jin-cheon, and create a vacuum state.

Creating a complete vacuum in a specific space using wind.

A matter that seemed possible only in one’s head was implemented in reality.

That was the divine art of the head of the Zhuge Clan, the technique school lineage.

‘No!’

He shouted inwardly.

He did so because he knew the physical reality of a vacuum.

‘It will explode.’

What was a vacuum?

It was not simply that the air to breathe disappeared.

It was that the pressure of the atmosphere pressing down on the body disappeared.

Meaning that the pressure formed within our bodies to withstand atmospheric pressure would collapse the body.

According to theory, his Grand-Master’s body should have exploded from within.

Yet his Grand-Master just stood blankly in the vacuum.

And with a composed face at that.

At that moment, thanks to the vanished air layer, a force field made of true qi and internal power, engraved even more vividly upon his corneas, was creating an artificial atmospheric pressure even within the vacuum.

And the source of that force field was:

‘The Primal Chaos Tai Chi Art!’

The internal dynamic cultivation mnemonics he had created based on the transmission of the previous generation, Martial Uncle Jin-heo, were implemented through his Grand-Master’s body.

‘Turning the impossible into possible.’

That was the martial art of a martial artist standing at the pinnacle of the Jianghu.

In addition, he realized.

– The internal power mnemonics you created can also be used in this way.

He came to learn a way to utilize the Primal Chaos Tai Chi Art that he had not known before.

‘He is teaching me.’

Even though he was capable of wiping out the evil scoundrels.

His Grand-Master was imparting a lesson at the same time as facing the leaders of the Six Great Evils and the head of one of the Seven Great Clans.

Just as the Marquis of Divine Martialry had tried to make his own son grow through him, his Grand-Master was trying to make him grow through the battle of the absolute rulers of the martial world.

‘I will take it all into my eyes.’

He engraved the information entering his retinas completely onto the space of his upper dantian.

And he crystallized a single concept.

‘The Hundred Convergences acupoint. The wall blocking the opening of the Conception and Governing Vessels. The shape of the true qi passing through that wall.’

The true qi surged over the sword held in his hand and then seeped into the blade.

The internal power converged and compressed along the sword edge sharpened the blade.

Exquisitely down to the level of a single true qi particle.

The sword qi made in this manner swirled over the blade.

And finally.

The sword, an object external to the body, felt like an extension of his own hand.

‘Returning force.’

He rotated the internal power that had assumed an exquisite form upon the blade along the sword, to the hilt, to the palm center, to the fine meridians, and then to the upper dantian.

He pulled it up.

Thus, he stood before a small wall.

The flow that assumed an exquisite form down to the level of a single true qi particle approached the wall that severed the Conception and Governing Vessels.

And.

‘Like a wave.’

The moment the size of the true qi particle became smaller than the wavelength of the returning force.

The true qi passed through the blocking wall without resistance.

It was the moment the Conception and Governing Vessels were opened.

**

In the midst of the melee.

Sagacious Eye Scholar held the head of his most cherished nephew in his arms.

Although he had departed from being human, to him, he was still family bound by heavenly ties.

‘Kill them.’

Them.

It was only right to inflict the same pain of loss upon the Wudang Sect.

Such was the calculation method of the martial world.

Therefore, even as the family members were falling, Sagacious Eye Scholar, the second-in-command of the Zhuge Clan, did not actively join the fight. Instead, he suppressed his presence and looked at only one person.

Wudang Sect’s Bringer of Chaos.

And finally, the time came.

‘To look away in the middle of such a melee!’

Yeon Baek-jung, who was looking at Immortal Jin-cheon with dull eyes, came into his vision.

With the thought that he deserved to die, he raised the internal power of the Bowing and Exerting Utmost Effort Art to the extreme.

And the folding fan he thrust out.

A single strike of Creation out of Nothing, a secret stance of the Zhuge Clan’s family-transmitted fan method, the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Gate Fan, aimed at Yeon Baek-jung’s Leiho acupoint.

At that moment.

‘!’

A sword dyed blue moved.

While mobilizing a heavy energy wave.

The wind bound to the Creation out of Nothing of the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Gate Fan was swept away by the energy wave, and his routine collapsed. The sword, moving as naturally as the hand of a dancing maiden, cut Sagacious Eye Scholar’s folding fan.

Slicing.

The moment the blade, which had sliced even the ribs made of iron and the surface woven with thousand-year silk threads in a single strike, passed through Sagacious Eye Scholar’s neck, he had no choice but to fall into doubt.

‘How?’

Because the sword that had just cut his neck was a sword of the Neutralizing Force stage that had achieved the Unity of Body and Sword.

However, the doubt ultimately could not be resolved.

Thud. Thud.

Two heads rolled on the ground.

Sagacious Eye Scholar’s own, and that of his nephew he had held in his arms.

On that day.

The Zhuge Clan lost eighty percent of its strength.

The Dawn Sky Blood Cult lost two bloodlines.

It was a complete victory for the Wudang Sect. —