Whoosh!
A stealthy piercing sound reached his ears, snapping Seok Chi-haeng out of his reverie.
While lost in thought, someone had spotted his opening, leaped into the air, and aimed a long spear straight at his Baihui acupoint.
Boom!
But the thrusting spear—and the assassin who had launched the covert attack—exploded in midair with a thunderous roar.
Drip, drip.
As blood and gore rained down from the sky, Seok Chi-haeng closed his eyes.
The hot blood and its metallic scent.
Only these two things could slightly soothe the rage exploding in his heart.
“Heh.” Seok Chi-haeng let out a low chuckle and resumed walking.
By now, the moon had set, and the morning sun was rising once more.
Rumors spread across the martial world that the Fist King had reappeared and was beating young warriors to death.
In response, ambitious young martial artists eager to make a name for themselves appeared endlessly from every corner, challenging him without pause.
Seok Chi-haeng, his eyes bloodshot, turned them all into bloody pulps without exception.
Doing so eased the boiling anger and pain in his chest, even if only a little.
Yet something felt strange.
Killing certainly seemed to lessen the torment at first, but before he knew it, the suffering had grown deeper.
The sensation of feeling better with each slaughter had vanished, leaving only a stifling thirst.
Step, step.
He walked slowly.
The sun now hung high in the sky. Its round, dazzling rays reminded him of her—blindingly beautiful.
He would find and kill the young bastard who had destroyed Ancient Sword Forest, then return to Ancient Sword Forest where she slept.
“That’s him!”
Hundreds of martial artists had already surrounded Seok Chi-haeng.
All of them were young warriors coveting the title of Fist King.
Among them were fairly renowned figures and rising newcomers fresh to the martial world.
Hot ambition burned in every one of their eyes.
‘If I kill him…’
A position in the Four Gods and Seven Kings was no mere ranking of martial prowess.
Excluding the Three Demons and Three Venerables, it referred to those who had mastered their respective fields and wielded immense influence in the martial world.
In other words, killing a master belonging to the Four Gods and Seven Kings would instantly grant one tremendous honor.
Shiver.
When their gazes met Seok Chi-haeng’s bloodshot eyes, several young warriors flinched.
His aura far surpassed their expectations—far more ferocious and murderous. Even attacking in a swarm felt utterly futile.
‘No—we can do this.’
Yet soon, burning ambition flared in their chests once more.
The Four Gods and Seven Kings—it was a position every martial artist dreamed of. Who could resist such temptation?
“Moths to a flame.”
Flames of rage blazed in Seok Chi-haeng’s eyes.
That bastard must have been the same.
He had surely entered the reclusive Ancient Sword Forest to make his name known.
All fame-hungry scum like them deserved to be eradicated.
Boom!
Seok Chi-haeng unleashed the Azure Heaven Seven Forms once again.
Each time he executed a move, fist force poured out endlessly, as if Mount Tai itself were being hurled.
“Dodge!”
The young warriors scattered in panic.
Normally, fear vanished when gathered in large numbers—courage grew with the crowd.
They had believed this many people could surely handle the Fist King.
But the moment Seok Chi-haeng’s fist struck, they realized instantly.
It had all been an illusion.
‘We were wrong.’
The eyes of the warriors flying away as bloody pulps were filled with regret.
Only at the brink of death did they finally grasp the weight behind the name Four Gods and Seven Kings.
Those who ascended to that position all possessed heaven-given talent and genius.
They were veteran warriors who had reached unfathomable martial heights, surviving countless life-and-death battles.
Even if their numbers were several times greater, they could never bring him down.
Splash! Thud.
Blood sprayed in all directions.
In no time, the three hundred warriors had been reduced to barely a hundred.
The survivors were as good as corpses in their coffins.
Paralyzed by terror, they could not even twitch a finger.
Step, step.
As Seok Chi-haeng, drenched in blood, approached slowly, the remaining hundred martial artists wet themselves in fear or collapsed on the spot, sobbing.
“Heh.”
The Fist King let out a sinister laugh.
Vermin like these didn’t even deserve martial arts. He could simply tear them apart with his bare hands.
Whoosh.
Just as he spread his cauldron-lid-sized hand to grab one of the young warriors,
Whoooosh.
A strange piercing sound spread like waves from the distant sky.
Swish.
In an instant, a figure using the Water Cloud Void Form technique landed opposite Seok Chi-haeng.
Slender build, ordinary features.
Yet his eyes were unnaturally clear, as if they could see through the body and observe its interior.
It was Bu Eunseol, disguised as Seon Woojin.
“Oh dear.”
Bu Eunseol frowned as he surveyed the surroundings.
It was truly a scene straight from hell.
He had expected the Fist King to become a killing demon but he had never imagined the man would be so consumed by bloodlust that he would tear apart mere teenage heroes in under half a watch.
‘He has nearly become a great slaughterer.’
“You.”
The Fist King trembled as he stared at Bu Eunseol.
He didn’t need to confirm the face.
That unique aura, those eyes burning fiercely within cold ice—
It was definitely the young bastard who had entered Ancient Sword Forest and subdued him.
“It’s you—!”
Seok Chi-haeng roared like thunder and unleashed his fist art.
The Azure Heaven Seven Forms, steeped in killing intent, had lost all subtlety but gained several times the power.
Whoosh!
When the fist wind poured out, the ancient trees and boulders where Bu Eunseol had stood vanished completely.
It was power hard to believe even with one’s own eyes.
Shing.
In that moment, Bu Eunseol leaped into the air and drew the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
As the pitch-black blade emerged, a chilling aura spread in all directions.
Sizzle!
Bu Eunseol released three strands of sword energy.
His swordplay was ordinary, with no variation, yet astonishingly, it dissipated all of Seok Chi-haeng’s fist force and dug toward the man’s vital points.
“You bastard!”
Eyes rolling with murderous intent, Seok Chi-haeng exerted full power and executed the Water Cloud Void Form.
Whoooosh!
The Water Cloud Void Form, infused with inner force and demonic killing intent, created dozens of fist shadows. As Seok Chi-haeng continuously unleashed his fist art, the area within ten yards filled completely with his fist shadows.
Whoosh! Sizzle.
Even though no space seemed available to dodge, Bu Eunseol evaded every wave of fist shadows.
It was as if he had turned his body transparent, letting all the fist force pass through naturally.
‘Impossible.’
As the exchange between the two masters continued without pause, the surviving hundred warriors forgot even to flee.
Mouths agape, they watched the fight.
Each time Seok Chi-haeng struck, the terrain changed, and gales strong enough to tear the world apart followed.
In contrast, Bu Eunseol with sword in hand, hid his body in the wind like a falling leaf, continuously producing needle-sharp sword energy and fan-like broad light barriers.
The Fist King’s fist art had reached the pinnacle of dominance.
Bu Eunseol’s swordplay harmonized softness and sharpness.
Were these not the perfect martial arts the young warriors dreamed of even in their sleep?
Whoosh! Boom!
As the exchange continued, the tide gradually shifted.
Bu Eunseol, who had moved like a mirage while stubbornly defending, began launching sword strikes.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
Those strikes landed squarely on Seok Chi-haeng’s body.
They were not enough to break through his protective energy, merely scratching the surface, but if he continued taking hits like this, reversal was obvious.
“Heh heh heh.”
Despite Bu Eunseol landing successive attacks, Seok Chi-haeng laughed instead.
“I always knew your skill was formidable.”
Back then, even unleashing the Azure Heaven Seven Forms with full power had ended in defeat and sealed acupoints. No matter how crazed with vengeance and bloodlust, Seok Chi-haeng was a grandmaster of martial arts.
He knew full well that if they fought again, he would likely lose.
‘If I cannot kill him, we die together.’
Determined on revenge, Seok Chi-haeng had not immediately left for the martial world but searched the ruined Ancient Sword Forest.
There he found a small amount of the black liquid that had healed his arm.
It was both an ingredient for creating Black Divine Energy and a miraculous substance that could instantly fuse with the human body, turning flesh into steel.
He carefully stored the liquid in a bottle inside a sturdy iron case.
So he could drink it the moment that bastard appeared.
Gulp.
Seok Chi-haeng pulled the iron case from his bosom and downed the liquid in one go.
Originally, this liquid was one of many elixirs created in Ancient Sword Forest and was meant to be taken with numerous spirit herbs.
Drinking it raw could transform the body into a monster and erase one’s humanity.
But those side effects were exactly what Seok Chi-haeng desired now.
Only then would his chances of tearing that bastard apart increase.
Crack.
Suddenly, cracking sounds came from his body as his skin gradually turned black.
It was as if he were transforming from human form into dark metal.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
Bu Eunseol’s sword strikes landed repeatedly, but the man’s flesh had become like iron—no scratches appeared.
‘He has transformed his body like Black Divine Energy.’
Bu Eunseol bit his lip, instantly grasping the situation.
‘But I cannot use the Divine Energies or Seven Blood Tear Forms.’
If he awakened the Silent Tiger Soul Sword with Divine Energies or used the Seven Blood Tear Forms?
Even if Seok Chi-haeng had gained a Heavenly Steel Body, he could be felled instantly.
But many warriors were watching the fight and he had come disguised as Seon Woojin.
He absolutely could not reveal his true techniques.
Grip.
Bu Eunseol tightened his hold on the sword hilt.
He had never expected to easily defeat Seok Chi-haeng as Seon Woojin.
‘Heon Won Bright Sword.’
In his mind rested the Heavenly Emperor.
The variations of Heon Won Bright Sword engraved on the surface of the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Jade Coffin began surfacing in his head.
Though incomplete, with only 180 moves recorded, it was a profound sword style whose full execution he could not guarantee.
‘Use the endlessly changing sword moves to accumulate the incoming force.’
Whooo.
As Bu Eunseol gathered his inner force, wind swirled around the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
Heon Won Bright Sword.
It was said to have been created by Gwang Seongja for Emperor Heon Won.
This legendary sword art, which upon perfection produced 385 variations in a single move, contained the profound changes of nature within one strike.
Bu Eunseol had mastered half of those variations engraved on the coffin. Now he would unleash them for the first time.
Shaaaa.
With a sound like crashing waves, mist-like sword energy spread from the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
The energy formed various shapes or shifted like watercolor paintings of nature.
Though only 180 variations—half the whole—he had finally fused them into a perfect single whole.
“Come on!”
Recognizing Bu Eunseol’s trump card, Seok Chi-haeng instantly produced twenty-eight fist shadows.
It was the perfect fist art he could perform: the Azure Heaven Seven Forms, refined to the Transcendent Realm, repeated seven times.
Shaaaa. Rumble!
When the Heon Won Bright Sword Form and Azure Heaven Seven Forms collided head-on, shockwaves from both sides soared to the heavens, and every tree within thirty yards toppled as if struck by a storm.
Booooom!
After the gale passed, Seok Chi-haeng stood crouched with arms crossed.
“Hahaha!”
Straightening up, he let out a triumphant mad laugh.
Though spiderweb-like wounds covered his body, none were fatal.
The Heon Won Bright Sword Form with 180 variations had ultimately failed to pierce the twenty-eight fist shadows created by repeating the Water Cloud Void Form seven times.
“…”
Bu Eunseol’s eyes widened.
The reason he had confidently appeared as Seon Woojin was precisely this trump card—the Heon Won Bright Sword Form.
Yet even half of it could not bring down Seok Chi-haeng.
“Did you take this old man lightly?” Seok Chi-haeng flashed murderous intent and laughed sinisterly. “To wield an incomplete sword art as if it were whole.”
In that instant, a flash passed through Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
Hearing Seok Chi-haeng’s words, he realized why the Heon Won Bright Sword Form had failed.
‘I pretended it was complete.’
‘The one I used was the Heon Won Bright Sword engraved on the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Jade Coffin.’
The greatness of Heon Won Bright Sword lay in containing the changes of nature in a single strike.
The traces left on the coffin were likely a sword art meant to kill the Heavenly Emperor.
In other words—
To pierce the Heavenly Emperor’s defense…
To counter his martial arts…
To sever his throat…
Using that against Seok Chi-haeng naturally had no effect.
‘I must recalculate.’
Step, step.
At that moment, Seok Chi-haeng approached with a murderous laugh, black mist pouring from both fists.
“I will tear you apart and avenge her.”
“Are you perhaps speaking of Biyeon?”
“Do not sully her name with your filthy mouth!” Seok Chi-haeng trembled, tears of blood streaming down. “I will definitely tear you apart and avenge her!”
“I did not kill her!”
“Nonsense!”
White killing intent poured from Seok Chi-haeng’s mouth like mist. His bloodlust had progressed so far that he could no longer control the inherent murderous aura.
“Fine, what need is there for words?”
Even explaining for three days and nights, Seok Chi-haeng would not understand.
Moreover, unable to overcome his bloodlust, he had cruelly slaughtered countless people. Whether by Bu Eunseol’s hand or not, he would have to pay that karmic debt and blood price.
Clack.
Finally grasping the true meaning of the Heon Won Bright Sword Form, Bu Eunseol sheathed the Silent Tiger Soul Sword and stared straight at Seok Chi-haeng.
“Let us fight without regrets.”
Seeing Bu Eunseol assume a fast-draw stance, Seok Chi-haeng laughed sinisterly.
“I can already see your death.”
Boom!
Seok Chi-haeng repeatedly unleashed the Changcheon First Form.
The fist force was not unavoidable.
But Bu Eunseol needed time to recalculate the 180 sword moves to defeat him.
It was too early to counterattack.
Boom!
In the end, Bu Eunseol twisted as his shoulder and leg took hits.
“Hahaha!”
Landing blows, Seok Chi-haeng laughed loudly and poured out fist arts without pause.
Unable to even draw his sheathed sword, Bu Eunseol kept retreating.
It looked as though he were backing away in fear, overwhelmed by the momentum.
“I will tear you apart!”
The Azure Heaven Seven Forms, shrouded in killing intent, grew ever more powerful and dense…
Drawing closer to the Fist Demon Seven Forms.
Boom!
Taking three more fists, Bu Eunseol was pushed back five yards.
No matter how well he dodged, each grazing fist force wrapped around his body, shaking his internals with tremendous power.
Moreover, Seok Chi-haeng’s killing-intent-covered fist art amplified in power the more it was used.
Sssss.
White smoke now rose from Bu Eunseol’s body.
Seok Chi-haeng’s fist force had transformed into something like the Seven Injuries Fist of the Kongtong Sect, sharp strands of inner energy constantly piercing his meridians.
Bu Eunseol resisted with the Ban-Geuk Method, continuously clashing with the remaining strands inside his body, producing pale smoke.
Rumble!
Seok Chi-haeng attacked again.
Even while evading swiftly, Bu Eunseol ceaselessly analyzed the man’s movements.
‘I must create a new Heon Won Bright Sword that blocks Seok Chi-haeng’s fist art and defeats him in one strike.’
“Heh heh, so that’s it.”
Seeing the fighting spirit still alive in Bu Eunseol’s eyes, Seok Chi-haeng realized.
The man was not afraid—he was studying his fist art to unleash a matching sword form.
“There will be no such chance!”
Whoosh!
With a shout, Seok Chi-haeng’s figure vanished.
Simultaneously, enormous palace-sized fist forces poured from all directions around Bu Eunseol.
This was not the Azure Heaven First Form but a killing move created for revenge.
It contained even Primordial Qi, violating martial principles with unnatural speed, and sealed all escape routes.
An unpredictable, sudden killing move no one could anticipate.
Booooom!
As the massive storm engulfed the world and bore down on Bu Eunseol,
Flash!
Brilliant light shone from Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
Shing.
At the same moment, the Silent Tiger Soul Sword emerged once more from its sheath.
Its clear ring cut through Seok Chi-haeng’s fist force, echoing long.
Shaaaa!
Countless uncountable geometric shapes appeared around Bu Eunseol’s body.
Saaaa.
Then, Seok Chi-haeng’s trump killing move began melting away like snow.
“What?” Seok Chi-haeng’s eyes widened.
What sword art had this bastard used to dissolve a killing move containing even Primordial Qi like melting snow?
Shaaaa.
But his surprise came too soon.
The layered shapes that had dissipated all fist force changed form again—into Seok Chi-haeng himself.
It was as if drawn with transparent water.
The posture matched perfectly with the real Seok Chi-haeng’s current stance.
Whoooosh!
Soon, black lines modeled after his own form poured toward him.
“No chance!”
Greatly startled, Seok Chi-haeng roared and spun his body powerfully, unleashing his self-created life-saving ultimate move, the Step Moving Heaven and Earth.
Booooom!
Massive fist force spread like waves from his body, becoming a giant wave that seemed to swallow the world.
Snap.
At that moment, Seok Chi-haeng’s movement stopped.
The shadow of himself created by Heon Won Bright Sword perfectly matched his real posture and stance.
Suddenly, the move he had unleashed completely died out.
The 180-move Heon Won Bright Sword that Bu Eunseol had finally awakened was like a master painter drawing with a brush—creating a perfect image of the enemy.
No matter what move the enemy used, since a sword form mimicking that movement already existed, it was an absolute sword move capable of instantly neutralizing every attack.
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