Chapter 82: Judgement (1)

“Keugh!”

Heo Sochang writhed in pain but barely managed to stop the bleeding with acupoint sealing.

Chwararak!

The moment he finally caught his breath, a chilling sound rang in his ears.

It was the sound of the thread that had severed his hand being pulled back taut.

Suddenly, a shiver ran down his spine.

‘It’s coming!’

Paat!

By the time he realized it, the enemy had already reached three steps in front of him.

The speed of the enemy’s charge grew even faster as the thread pulled its master’s body forward.

‘I must be careful of hidden weapons—!’

Heo Sochang fixed his focus on the enemy’s hands and sleeves.

At present, his fear and vigilance centered on one thing.

Avoiding the mysterious hidden weapon that had the power to break through his protective qi barrier, and flew with such speed he hadn’t even noticed it being fired.

But.

Kkaduk!

‘……What?’

Before he knew it, Sewoon’s fists were clenched tightly, right before his eyes.

Swaeak!

Kwaang!

‘Kugh!’

The enemy did not pull out any hidden weapon.

He simply swung his qi-covered fist at Heo Sochang’s face.

With a buzzing, insect-like sound, like the wings of a wasp.

Kwaruruk!

Kwaga!

It was a strike far from ordinary, crashing into his face with unstoppable force.

The power within the punch twisted Heo Sochang’s face grotesquely.

Kwaduduk!

The shockwave pushed his body back a long distance.

The deck beneath his feet shattered, scattering debris in all directions.

Bzzz!

The black threads of Cheonra roared fiercely, spiraling around Sewoon’s left fist like a storm.

He had instantly unleashed Whirlwind, the second form of Reverse Flawless Heavenly Garment.

Taking a direct blow, Heo Sochang bled heavily from his face.

On the surface, his injuries looked serious, but instead, his eyes gleamed with strange light.

‘If he has no more hidden weapons……!’

If he truly had such a powerful hidden weapon, there would have been no need to engage in direct combat like this.

In that instant, Heo Sochang’s mind turned cold.

He quickly reorganized the enemy’s martial arts and fighting style in his head, preparing a new countermeasure.

If that deadly hidden weapon was out of play—

‘There’s no way I’ll lose in close combat—!’

Swaaa!

Kwaruk!

Suddenly, a ferocious qi erupted violently from Heo Sochang’s entire body.

The martial art of the Blood Cult’s Yacha Sect.

It was Black Heaven Yacha Art, the supreme martial art of Heo Sochang, Sect Leader of the Yacha Sect.

Paat!

This time, Heo Sochang stomped forward with full force and charged at Sewoon.

Bzzzt!!

Now, qi storms from Cheonra whirled violently around both of Sewoon’s fists.

Thus, Sewoon, fists cloaked in Whirlwind, clashed with Heo Sochang, who had unleashed the full force of Black Heaven Yacha Art.

Kwaang!

Kwaaang!!

Roaring explosions burst out one after another.

Both men were striking with the sole intent to kill the other, pouring everything into each punch and kick.

Pazuzuz!

Kururur!

With each collision, waves of demonic qi and innate true qi rippled out, shaking the entire tower ship.

The incredible spectacle left Peng Daeho and the other young successors watching with jaws dropped, utterly stunned.

‘Is… is that even possible?’

‘Even with innate true qi…!’

‘To be fighting evenly against an opponent at peak Transformation Realm!’

Though the enemy had lost a hand in a surprise attack, this was still unthinkable.

Kwajijik!

“Kraah!”

At that moment, the sound of something shattering rang out, followed by the enemy’s groan.

“……!!”

“!!”

The three witnesses were utterly shocked at what they saw.

Sewoon’s strike had landed on the severed stump of his opponent’s left arm, shattering part of the protective qi barrier.

Even with innate true qi, the only condition that could allow someone to break the protective qi of a Transformation Realm expert was—

‘……Impossible.’

‘A-at the age of twenty, at the extreme of Supreme Peak Mastery?’

‘No, even the Sword Emperor couldn’t achieve that at the same age…….’

It meant Sewoon had reached the extreme peak of Supreme Mastery, like Shaolin’s Illyun.

Not mere initiation, but an enlightenment nearly on par with the Transformation Realm.

The three did not even dare to think of joining the fight.

Not because of fear of the enemy, nor because of intimidation.

But because interfering in Sewoon’s battle would be nothing but a hindrance.

Kwaga!

Kwarurururu!

The shockwave of their clash swept out like waves.

Pabat!

Tat!

Sewoon and Heo Sochang stood at the far ends of the ship’s bow.

Saa.

A brief silence fell over the surroundings.

Amidst the razor-sharp tension, Heo Sochang spoke.

“Now I know who you are.”

“……”

“The direct heir of the Sichuan Tang Clan, Tang Sewoon.”

The infant he had once heard of in the Blood Cult’s main hall.

To realize the one who troubled him so greatly was nothing more than a greenhorn not even twenty years old, Heo Sochang’s eyes erupted with murderous killing intent.

“To think such an arrogant brat strutted around after defeating the Poison Demon with the help of a hidden weapon!”

“……”

“I’ll show you that there is always someone above—!!”

His pride wounded, Heo Sochang roared with rage.

The strict orders not to leave traces of the Blood Cult had long been forgotten.

Chwaat!

He pulled a Storage Talisman from his robes and hurled it into the air.

Swaaa!

Like a heat haze, a warped rift in the air opened, and Heo Sochang drew out a demonic weapon.

A black gauntlet engraved with the visage of a Yacha on the back.

The Ghost King’s Hand, the demonic weapon inherited by the successive leaders of the Yacha Sect.

As Heo Sochang infused it with qi—

Chwara!

The Ghost King’s Hand moved as if alive, wrapping around both his arms.

Though his left hand had been severed by Sewoon—

Cheok. Cheok.

The fingers of the Ghost King’s Hand moved as if they were his own.

Flooded with demonic qi, even the lost sensation of fingers returned to him.

‘I’ll crush you with my full power—.’

A divine artifact beyond a treasured weapon, feeding on demonic qi to bestow its master with greater strength.

Kkieee!!

As soon as the Ghost King’s Hand finished preparing to unleash its power, a ghastly wail—like a scream from the depths of hell—covered the surroundings.

“Uegh!”

“Kuugh-!”

From the horrific eruption of demonic qi, Peng So-hye and Nam Mujin, already burdened by severe internal injuries, suffered even greater pain.

Only Peng Daeho, who had barely regained his senses thanks to Sewoon’s innate true qi, was able to stabilize them by sharing some of his own energy.

Swaaa!

The demonic qi bursting out of Heo Sochang was far stronger than anything before.

But unlike the young successors, who were filled with worry and dread—

Sewoon simply stared at Heo Sochang with eyes filled only with unending ferocity.

His gaze was like one looking down at a worthless insect.

“As I thought, innate true qi alone won’t do.”

“……?”

Muttering quietly to himself, in a tone only Heo Sochang could hear, Sewoon’s words went unnoticed by the distant successors.

Heo Sochang twisted his lips upward.

‘This insect dares to play such a petty mind game-?!’

Paaah!

Sggeegeeg!

But it wasn’t that.

The pure blue light of Sewoon’s innate true qi began to change.

As if being dyed by something, it shifted into an ash-gray true qi no one had ever seen before.

‘The nature of his innate true qi is changing…? What the hell is that??’

Such a phenomenon had never been heard of in the martial world.

Whether orthodox, unorthodox, or demonic, innate true qi always appeared the same.

Just as Heo Sochang was about to speculate on this sudden change—

‘It’s done.’

Sewoon scattered the Reverse Heaven Qi of Three Completions from his upper dantian into every meridian of his body.

That was it—the reason for the change of color in his innate true qi was his use of Reverse Heaven Qi.

But that was not the only difference from before.

Normally, when he used Reverse Heaven Qi, torrents of demonic qi would pour out of his body, even greater than Heo Sochang’s own.

But now, except for his innate true qi being dyed gray, there was no sign of demonic qi at all.

This was all thanks to the arduous effort Sewoon had put in after obtaining the Immortal’s Cripple.

Since he could not hide the Reverse Heaven Qi forever from the eyes of the orthodox sects—

He devised a method of blending the power of Divine Poison Qi and the dispersing ability of the Immortal’s Cripple into his innate true qi, masking the Reverse Heaven Qi like a veil of mist.

Pazuzuz!

Paz!

Of course, Reverse Heaven Qi would not stay quiet.

Even now, it raged violently, as if demanding what audacity dared to restrain it.

This meant there was a time limit.

With his current mastery, he could hide the Reverse Heaven Qi for no longer than the time it takes to burn an incense stick.

And that time—

‘Is more than enough to tear that bastard apart.’

Kwarururu!

Pabat!

With a roar like a descending storm, Sewoon charged like a streak of lightning.

Shock appeared in Heo Sochang’s eyes.

‘What?!’

Suddenly, Sewoon vanished from his sight.

Heo Sochang frantically scanned his surroundings.

Impossible.

Unless the hidden weapon that severed his hand was a divine artifact, this could not happen.

With such a gap in realms, how could he possibly lose track of his opponent’s movements?

Paat!

In that instant, Sewoon’s face flashed right before his eyes.

‘Hhh-!’

Panicked, Heo Sochang quickly crossed both hands clad in the Ghost King’s Hand, but—

“—Kkugh!!”

Kwaduk!!

Sewoon pivoted on his left foot, swinging his body, and smashed his elbow into Heo Sochang’s face.

With a gruesome crack, his jawbone shattered.

Kwaaang!!

Unable to endure the force, Heo Sochang was hurled across the air and crashed into a pavilion.

But Sewoon gave him no chance to rest.

Pabat!

Kicking off once more, he rushed in pursuit.

With innate true qi alone, not even Sewoon could overwhelm an opponent at perfected Transformation Realm.

But with Reverse Heaven Qi, the situation was rewritten entirely.

Sewoon’s eyes burned with bloodlust and madness.

‘Heo Sochang, you’re not even at the feet of the Poison Demon.’

The reason he had once struggled against the Poison Demon was only because that monster possessed strength far beyond his realm.

Not all who reached Transformation Realm wielded equal power.

A realm pierced through without sufficient enlightenment was nothing more than poison.

“Kuugh! Guehhhk!!”

Heo Sochang, crashed into the pavilion where the successors’ banquet had been held, vomited black blood from his mouth.

‘Why, what, how, me, why??’

His thoughts refused to connect properly.

But as the shock slowly subsided—

Cheocheok.

“-!!”

Sewoon appeared, like a wolf chasing down prey.

Swaeak!

Without pause, Sewoon drove his molars into Heo Sochang’s neck.

Reverse Flawless Heavenly Garment.

Third Form.

Revolving Wheel Kill.

Like an endless cycle of reincarnation.

Sewoon unleashed not only his fists.

But elbows, knees, shoulders, heels, shins…

Every part of his body spun Cheonra in a relentless chain of strikes.

Bzzz!!

The whirlwind of black threads wrapped his barrage of attacks.

Kwaduk! Kwajijik!

Each blow tore out equally gruesome cracking sounds.

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