Chapter 257

Boom. Boom. Boom.

The ground trembled faintly as a distant roar rolled in from far away.

The commoners who knew nothing of martial arts merely tilted their heads and continued on their way.

But the Thousand-Faced Fox, Song Ho, was different.

This is…

The Hidden Shadow Pavilion agents who had been secretly following Song Ho sent him messages through Sound Transmission.

—About seven hundred zhang to the north.

—Something seems to have happened at the dueling platform.

—Pavilion Master, your orders.

Song Ho hesitated. After all his years of experience, he could guess that the roar had been the aftermath of martial arts.

And not just any martial arts…

A Supreme Peak master?

Even if you turned the entire world upside down and scraped it bare, there might not be more than thirty Supreme Peak masters in existence.

The aftermath he had sensed clearly indicated a clash between Supreme Peak masters.

This was no ordinary matter. What had the Always-Victorious Sword, Jongni Chu, finally done?

But we should be well prepared for something like this.

They had already searched every inch around the Murim Alliance. They had thoroughly inspected everyone and everything in preparation for any possible situation, even taking into account the possibility that explosives might have been brought in and planted.

A tiger was still a tiger even after losing its teeth. The Hidden Shadow Pavilion might not have been what it once was, but its intelligence network was still capable of controlling Henan Province.

And there are three of the Ten Kings here.

On top of that, the leaders of the Nine Sects and One Gang, the Family Heads of the Five Great Families, and the elites of the sects and families they had brought with them were all present.

It would not be an exaggeration to call that place a miniature version of the Murim world.

I must be getting old. Perhaps I worried too much.

It was all because of those unknown beings who had yet to reveal their true identities.

Song Ho remembered clearly the conversation he had shared with Dharma King Hong Dao when the man had come to find him a year ago.

Dark clouds are covering the sky.

Could they be clouds from Tianshan?

I don’t even know where they’re coming from or when they’ll arrive. All I have are these two words: Dark Heaven.

Dark Heaven…

Help me. I need your strength.

Half a century had passed since the Great Faction War.

The fox who had once abandoned the secular world and lived buried in the countryside had returned to the world of martial artists.

And he was feeling the passage of time.

The Thousand-Faced Fox, Song Ho, let out a faint sigh and moved his lips.

—Tell the Abbot that I’ll go after I finish my business.

An agent from the Hidden Shadow Pavilion joined him seven and a half minutes later and replied.

—Dharma King Hong Dao left after the Pavilion Master came out.

—The Abbot left?

—Yes.

Song Ho hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. He did not know what had happened, but he trusted Hong Dao’s judgment.

Hong Dao would undoubtedly trust his judgment as well.

—Send one person to the dueling platform. Two of you stay here. Report immediately if anything happens.

—Understood.

—The rest of you, follow me. As soon as we arrive, seal off the area so tightly that not even a drop of water can escape.

—Yes, sir.

Whoosh!

Black figures scattered through the alleyways.

Song Ho sprinted across the endless line of rooftops, putting his wooden crutch to use as he employed his movement technique.

His mind was filled with the report he had received fifteen minutes earlier.

We found Shadow Killer.

Tap!

The force he put into his crutch increased as he accelerated with his movement technique.

The pain grew in proportion.

Bang!

The transparent spearhead of White Flame collided with the rusted blade.

One exchange.

A roar that seemed to split the heavens rang out, and a powerful blast of wind engulfed my entire body.

Kraaaaoom!

A whirlwind rose around us, blocking everyone else’s view.

Amid the dust clouds swirling in every direction, I could see Jongni Chu’s eyes widened in surprise beyond our crossed weapons.

“Impressive. I didn’t expect to be pushed back.”

As he spoke, his body slid several steps backward.

There was no doubt about it. He had been unable to withstand my strength, which had already far surpassed the limits of a human being.

But…

What the hell is this bastard?

If Jongni Chu was surprised, I was utterly aghast.

I was the one who had spent an entire year training with an iron ball weighing more than a thousand catties attached to me. My martial arts—and my stats—were on a completely different level from the past.

And he withstood that?

That exchange should not merely have given me the upper hand. I should have overwhelmed him completely.

Yet Jongni Chu had only retreated a few steps after taking that strike.

Even his rust-red sword had not broken.

Who the hell is this guy?

A bead of cold sweat slipped down the back of my neck.

A playful smile appeared around Jongni Chu’s mouth.

“Four ounces deflecting a thousand catties. You shouldn’t try to overpower someone with strength. You have to read the flow.”

“…”

Kaaaang!

His blade wrapped around the spearhead and changed direction.

I put more force into the hand gripping the spear shaft, but the harder I pushed, the more it felt as though I were sinking into a swamp.

Jongni Chu’s sword was a horse, and my spear was a cart. The cart had no choice but to follow the direction the horse took.

The transparent spearhead of White Flame, made from Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron, struck the ground.

At the same time, Jongni Chu thrust out his palm.

Boom!

Compressed air exploded in front of my chest, and my vision grew hazy.

I barely managed to keep my body from being thrown backward. Gripping the spear shaft buried deep in the ground, I spun around and reached Jongni Chu’s face.

Blue flames gathered around my right foot, which was imbued with one jiazi of internal energy.

Flame Wheel Kick.

The blazing flames slammed into the back of Jongni Chu’s neck.

Bang!

He slid backward and lowered his elbow.

The sleeve of his robe, burned completely black, scattered into ash.

“Too bad. I liked this outfit.”

Crack. Crack.

He twisted his neck from side to side like a Third Rate street thug, then grinned.

“But honestly, you’re amazing. I’m liking you more and more. Now then…”

Whoosh!

His figure vanished with the sharp sound of cutting wind.

A low voice pierced my ear from right beside me.

“Let’s really get started.”

Hooooong.

The wind stopped.

This time, my senses moved a step faster than my body. I crossed both arms in front of me at the last instant, and Jongni Chu’s fist slammed into them.

It was a strike carrying an enormous amount of internal energy, unlike anything he had used before.

Kra-boom!

Its power had already surpassed all ordinary limits. Even though it was only flesh striking flesh, the resulting roar sounded like a bomb exploding.

Although I used the Thousand-Catty Drop technique to anchor myself at the last moment, my body bent backward until my lower back nearly touched the ground.

Crack.

Even my superb Muscles and Bones, good enough to be called the Heavenly Martial Physique, were useless this time.

I clenched my teeth and endured the sharp pain running along my spine.

How dare this bastard.

Boom!

I slammed my empty left hand against the ground.

I shot upward two or three times faster than I had fallen. Jongni Chu’s brightly smiling face appeared before me.

I roared.

“I haven’t even gotten to use these hips yet!”

The fire dragon stretching through my four limbs and hundred bones charged toward my open palm.

A heatwave surged upward, carrying lava-like heat.

The martial art that had once driven me to the edge of death collided with Jongni Chu’s punch.

Flame Divine Palm.

Bang!

My ears rang, and the ground shook.

Still gripping White Flame, I was thrown backward.

When I sprang to my feet, Jongni Chu stood motionless on the dueling platform, which had been blackened from end to end, beyond the hazy cloud of dust.

“That was a poor choice. As you can see, I’m confident when it comes to internal energy.”

I glared at Jongni Chu as he smiled calmly.

Then I suddenly vomited a gush of blood.

The blood was black.

Proof that I had suffered an Internal Injury.

Damn it.

My opponent was a Supreme Peak master who had reached the realm of Returning to Simplicity.

I had expected him to be strong, but he was even stronger than I had imagined.

Even allowing for the fact that he had learned demonic martial arts, it was difficult to understand how someone that young could possess such martial power.

“What the hell are you, really?”

I wiped the blood from my mouth with my sleeve.

Jongni Chu let out a hollow laugh.

“That’s what I want to ask you. I never thought I’d see a monster like you in my lifetime.”

“This bastard’s trying to deceive me now, too.”

“I’m serious.”

“Serious my ass. If I’m a monster, what does that make you?”

“I’m… let’s just say I’m a little special.”

I looked at Jongni Chu’s faintly smiling face and spat out a mouthful of blood-tinged phlegm.

My insides burned from the Internal Injury.

“Is this some legendary demonic martial art, too?”

“Whenever people encounter something that lies outside common sense, they think of the word ‘demonic.’ It isn’t easy to accept something as it is.”

“Yeah, it really isn’t easy. So what kind of demonic martial art did you learn?”

“Any further questions would be a waste of time.”

Jongni Chu raised his sword and pointed it at me.

Transparent qi flowed from the blade in thin streams, gathering into a definite form.

Sword Force.

It was a manifestation of energy permitted only to those who had set foot in the supreme realm of the Supreme Peak.

Tzzzzzzzz!

Just looking at it made my blood run cold.

The aura flowing from Jongni Chu made my palms damp and my lips dry.

This is dangerous.

I took a deep breath.

I had lost count of how many times I had narrowly escaped death by now.

The important thing was that I had survived every time.

And it would be the same from now on.

Wasn’t that why I had followed the Fire King and endured training that had seemed utterly impossible?

Sleep one shichen a day. The rest of your time must be spent training!

That damn old man.

Before I had begun serious training, Jeok Cheongang had said those words.

The memory surfaced, and I let out a quiet laugh.

Like hell I got one shichen.

I had been allowed only half a shichen.

Without the System’s power to restore my body rapidly, those days would have been impossible to endure.

The amount of sleep I got had decreased, while the iron ball grew heavier with each passing day.

Even under those brutal conditions, I had thrown punches, kicked, and swung my spear.

“That was the key to victory.”

“Hmm?”

“My Master was right. Sleep is a luxury for a martial artist. And…”

Status Window, open.

As soon as I muttered the words inwardly, a holographic window filled my vision.

A lot had changed over the past year—not only the Level displayed in my Status Window, but also its numbers and the number of Titles.

But there was only one thing that mattered to me now.

System

Remaining Points: 500

“Repeat Quests are a fucking steal.”

The endless repetition of my training meant one thing: Repeat Quests.

And then there were the points I received from leveling up.

Seeing the savings I had diligently deposited for an entire year turn into a sizable lump sum filled me with satisfaction.

“This is why people need to save.”

“What does that mean?”

Jongni Chu tilted his head, unable to understand my words.

I grinned at him and lifted White Flame.

“It means things are about to get a little harder for you.”

At the same time, countless System commands rang out in my mind.

Strength. Agility. Stamina.

My Muscles and Bones. My Sinews and Meridians.

Everything advanced by one step as new power gathered, connected, and seeped into me.

In a world that had slowed to a crawl, I took a step.

Swish.

Not a sound was made.

With a single step, I appeared in front of Jongni Chu.

The Fire Dragon Divine Spear, which had reached the seventh stage, danced along the spearhead, burning the air and sound alike.

Papapapapat!

The spearhead transformed into streaks of light and poured toward every part of Jongni Chu’s body.

At the same time, his sword, enveloped in transparent Sword Force, moved.

Kwaaang!

In time that had been split apart, then split apart again, dozens of exchanges passed between us.

I could see Jongni Chu’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Roars of impact erupted without end, overlapping one another.

I wondered if this was what it would sound like if the heavens collapsed.

Screeech! Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!

Whenever spear and sword parted, a punch and a palm strike collided.

I narrowly dodged and retreated, only to find another attack waiting where I had landed.

Krrrzzzt!

A single punch and a single kick created massive craters, laying waste to everything around us.

The dueling platform, hard beyond description, was covered in cracks and pits like a spiderweb.

But the most astonishing thing of all was Jongni Chu.

“Incredible! Truly incredible!”

He continued to unleash one form after another with a burst of laughter, his eyes shining with joy.

Even though I was fighting with all my strength, his movements were growing faster.

And stronger.

What kind of bastard is this…?

My mind wavered, and my hands and feet grew disordered.

My shaken composure soon led to a mistake.

Pow-pow-pow!

“Gah!”

My vision turned white, and excruciating pain surged through me.

As I staggered backward, Jongni Chu watched me with an expression filled with admiration.

“Jin Taekyung, the Sleeping Dragon of Shanxi. I’ll remember you clearly. You are the one who…”

At that moment, Jongni Chu’s expression hardened.

As if drawn by something, he stared intently at a distant point.

Then he suddenly kicked off the ground and shot upward.

Bang!

It happened in an instant.

I stared blankly at his back as he stepped on empty air and vanished.

Then I came to my senses and shouted at the top of my lungs.

“Where are you going, you son of a bitch!”