Chapter 79 – Northern Sea Ice Palace (3)

The gates of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, which seemed like they would never open, swung apart, and a dozen or so people walked out. They were all dressed in robes the color of pristine snow.

Though human, they were far paler and whiter than the people of the Central Plains, exuding an aura like shards of ice.

This was an unavoidable side effect of mastering the frigid arts of Yin and cold. Yet, their training had not been in vain, for they all possessed formidable auras.

“There are far too many fools these days who don’t know their place.”

The young man leading the group of a dozen frowned. He was the son of Bukri Hwan and the only younger brother of Bukri Eun—Bukri Cheong.

Normally, his sister would be the one to deal with intruders, but he had stepped up in her stead as she was displeased about a certain matter. In truth, his skills alone were more than enough to annihilate any trespassers.

“Prepare yourselves.”

At Bukri Cheong’s command, his subordinates fastened the harnesses of the snow sleds to the shoulders of the snow dogs. The dogs immediately took off at a run, and the sleds glided swiftly across the white expanse. As they raced forward at a terrifying speed, they soon spotted a group of people.

“Halt!”

Bukri Cheong shouted. Hearing his cry, the sleds and his party slowly came to a stop. Bukri Cheong dismounted from his sled and strode toward them, then spoke.

“This is the territory of the Ice Palace. Intruders, you have trespassed upon our domain.”

As Bukri Cheong spoke coldly, a powerful presence erupted from his entire being. However, among Yu-jin’s companions, only Ran was affected by this intense pressure.

Even Ran, who felt it, was not particularly oppressed and simply stared back at Bukri Cheong with a calm expression. Having spent so much time with overwhelmingly powerful individuals, she felt no fear even when facing someone like Bukri Cheong, who had reached the pinnacle of the supreme master level.

Realizing this, Bukri Cheong’s frown deepened as he spoke.

“I will not ask why you have come. Trespassing on the Ice Palace’s territory is a crime punishable by death.”

As soon as Bukri Cheong finished speaking, the warriors around him raised their energy. Yu-jin watched them and smiled. It was utterly laughable.

“I’ll handle this, so just wait here.”

Yu-jin said, stepping forward. The warriors of the Ice Palace couldn’t help but feel enraged by his completely dismissive words.

“Are you truly going to use force against me?”

“Of course! All who trespass on the lands of the Northern Sea are sinners deserving of death!”

With those words, Bukri Cheong unleashed a blast of palm energy from the Ice-White Divine Palm toward Yu-jin. However, with a mere wave of his hand, Yu-jin dissipated the attack.

Yu-jin lightly released his energy, and that alone was enough to subdue Bukri Cheong and his warriors. An immense pressure crushed down on their bodies. With them completely suppressed, Yu-jin smiled brightly and spoke.

“First, I should introduce myself. I am not an intruder who has invaded your territory. I am an envoy, here under the command of His Majesty the Emperor who rules the empire, to meet with your palace master. Would you be so kind as to guide us to them?”

Thus, Yu-jin ‘politely’ ‘requested’ this of the Northern Sea Ice Palace warriors.

* * *

Bukri Eun, who had been making various preparations for the invasion of the Central Plains, suddenly felt a colossal presence and her expression hardened.

“Who is it? Who possesses such a massive presence?”

It was an overwhelming presence, like that of her father, the great master of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, the Ice Dragon Emperor Bukri Hwan… No, perhaps it was even greater.

“Young Palace Master!”

A white-haired old woman approached Bukri Eun. She was one of the Ice Palace’s only three masters of the Transformation Realm, Ice Matron Yeong-yeong.

However, contrary to her status as a Transformation Realm master, she was trembling. The higher one’s realm, the more clearly one could perceive just how powerful the owner of that presence was.

“I know, Ice Matron. The owner of that presence is truly terrifying. I don’t know why such a person has come to the Ice Palace. But now that they have entered our territory, no master, no matter how powerful, will escape death.”

Seeing Bukri Eun speak with such killing intent, Yeong-yeong felt a slight sense of relief. But the reason she was terrified was something else entirely.

“Just a moment ago, the Young Master left the palace with his personal guard, saying he would capture the intruders.”

At Yeong-yeong’s words, even the great Bukri Eun could not help but be stunned. If Bukri Cheong were to encounter this master with such an overwhelming presence….

“No!”

It was a master against whom even she could not guarantee victory. There was no way her younger brother, who had not yet reached the Transformation Realm, could be a match for them.

Hoping her younger brother had not yet met this master, she rushed out of the room. Not to be left behind, Yeong-yeong hurriedly followed after Bukri Eun.

* * *

Yu-jin’s words sounded absurd to Bukri Cheong. An envoy on the emperor’s orders who was such a powerful master? It could only be dismissed as nonsensical drivel. Who in their right mind would send such a master as an envoy?

“What nonsense are you spouting!”

Bukri Cheong shouted with a scowl. Inwardly, however, he couldn’t hide his bewilderment. He hadn’t been struck at any pressure points, yet he couldn’t move anything but his mouth.

It was as if the energy itself had a will, binding him. Of course, he knew how preposterous that sounded, so he didn’t truly believe it.

“Nonsense? That’s a bit harsh. I even have the letter of appointment from His Majesty the Emperor right here.”

As he spoke, Yu-jin began to pull something from within his robes.

At that moment, Bukri Cheong’s eyes gleamed. No matter how powerful his opponent was, this was the Northern Sea—the land cherished and beloved by the warriors of the Northern Sea Ice Palace.

Drawing upon the energy of the land and the power of the Northern Sea’s climate, Bukri Cheong shattered Yu-jin’s restraints. He then brandished a sword carved from a crystal formed deep within the earth of the Northern Sea.

Watching the sword fly toward him, slicing through the cold northern wind, Yu-jin smirked, pulling his hand from his robes and extending it forward.

Clang! Clang!

Bukri Cheong unleashed a barrage of attacks with all his might. While it was true that the ultimate arts of the Ice Palace grew stronger in the lands of the Northern Sea, that advantage only mattered if the gap in skill wasn’t too vast. Against a master of Yu-jin’s caliber, relying on the benefits of terrain and weather was futile.

Naturally, Bukri Cheong had no choice but to give it his all, unleashing every ultimate art of the Ice Palace he knew.

Heavenly Ice Sword, Ice-White Divine Palm, Cold Shadow Hand—Bukri Cheong performed every martial art he could. But unfortunately for him, none of his attacks worked on Yu-jin.

“It will be troublesome if you think you can handle me with just this.”

As Yu-jin spoke, he released the other warriors he had been restraining. The dozen or so men then joined Bukri Cheong in launching a volley of attacks at Yu-jin.

They formed a battle formation and assailed Yu-jin, but he effortlessly parried their attacks, revealing no openings whatsoever.

“Do you think we would lose to a mere martial artist from the Central Plains?!”

“Yes, you will.”

Yu-jin replied instantly to Bukri Cheong’s anguished cry. He had deliberately released them to test their skills, but the warriors of the Ice Palace were less impressive than he had thought.

Of course, the chilling energy from their ice arts was fierce, but it wasn’t enough to freeze Yu-jin. Deciding there was nothing more to see, Yu-jin circulated his internal energy. The very atmosphere began to tremble from his power.

“I won’t kill you. Negotiations would be impossible if I did.”

The moment he finished speaking, Yu-jin’s figure vanished. As soon as he disappeared, several of the young men were sent flying, tumbling across the cold northern land.

That wasn’t the end of it. Moving faster than sound, a continuous series of roars echoed out, and with each one, more young men collapsed to the ground.

“You think I’ll let you get away?!”

Still, being of the Palace Master’s direct bloodline made a difference. Bukri Cheong sensed Yu-jin’s invisible movements and swiftly swung his sword in all directions, creating a sword screen.

The large, solid sword screen, like a wall of ice, formed around Bukri Cheong, blocking any incoming attacks.

Bukri Cheong had no doubt that this technique, at least, would be able to stop Yu-jin. But Yu-jin shattered that belief all too easily.

“What?!”

Yu-jin’s hand effortlessly pierced through the sword screen Bukri Cheong had created. Seeing this, Bukri Cheong couldn’t help but cry out as if screaming. And then, Yu-jin’s hand struck him squarely in the chest.

“Keoheok!”

Overwhelmed by excruciating pain, Bukri Cheong screamed involuntarily as he was sent flying. The process might have seemed long, but it took Yu-jin less than the blink of an eye to defeat them all.

Of course, if he had been trying to kill them, it would have been even faster, but his position did not allow him to take their lives.

“Oh.”

Yu-jin was impressed as he looked into Bukri Cheong’s eyes, which were still very much alive. Though his body had been subdued, his spirit still blazed with anger and hostility toward Yu-jin.

‘This one has some potential for growth.’

Those with such eyes were always bound to improve. Normally, one should nip such potential in the bud, but Yu-jin decided to show mercy. Not that Bukri Cheong would ever appreciate it.

“You may have subdued me and my men, but once my sister arrives, you will be the one who is defeated! When she gets here, your arrogance will be at an end!”

“Oh? How interesting.”

Even after hearing Bukri Cheong’s words, Yu-jin felt no particular fear.

“You bastard! We’ll see how long that arrogance of yours lasts!”

Bukri Cheong ground his teeth and glared at Yu-jin. And just then, two women with immense auras appeared.

One was a woman as beautiful as a goddess, and the other was an old woman with piercing eyes. The goddess-like woman was Bukri Eun, and the old woman was Yeong-yeong.

“Sister! Ice Matron!”

Bukri Cheong laughed loudly and shouted upon seeing the two. Now that they had arrived, he had no doubt that even someone like Yu-jin would die.

In particular, Bukri Cheong’s faith in Bukri Eun was comparable to his faith in his father. No, perhaps it was even greater.

After all, Bukri Eun was attempting to fulfill the greatest wish of all the warriors of the Ice Palace: to advance into the Central Plains. However, Bukri Eun and Yeong-yeong did not even glance at Bukri Cheong and his guards.

“First, I thank you for showing mercy.”

“I did not come here to fight. I have come to this distant place under the orders of His Majesty the Emperor.”

“The emperor of the Central Plains? I do not know what business brings you to the lands of the Northern Sea, but your emperor’s authority holds no sway over us. We simply kill all who set foot on our land. However, because you have shown mercy, I will spare your life. Please withdraw quietly.”

“Sister!”

Hearing Bukri Eun’s words, Bukri Cheong shouted that it was absurd. But Bukri Eun turned to him and roared.

“You fool! Haven’t I, and Father, told you time and time again? To carefully observe your opponent! How could you be so deceived by appearances that you failed to grasp the power this person possesses? Is there anything more foolish than that?!”