Chapter 399

“Geom-han is using the Heavenly Killing Blade?”

Namgung Seol could not hide her astonishment.

Lee Geom-han was a man of immense pride.

His pride in the saber was especially strong, so he would not display his saber technique against an unworthy opponent. Among them, he was extremely reluctant to use the Heavenly Killing Blade, the secret supreme art of his clan, because its killing intent was too dense.

Yet Lee Geom-han was using the Heavenly Killing Blade from the very beginning.

It was the first time Namgung Seol had seen him do so since she had met him.

Shhhht!

A chilling sound of something tearing through the air echoed.

For a moment, Namgung Seol felt the illusion that she herself was being cut.

This saber technique, created to kill the heavens, was the crystallization of killing intent.

A single misstep could lead to the master being consumed by the technique. That was why, even among the direct descendants of the Radiant Martial Gate, it was only passed down to a single successor.

Lee Geom-han had mastered the Heavenly Killing Blade to the eighth level of proficiency.

Although he had not achieved complete mastery, his current accomplishment alone was enough that he could find no equal in his age group.

The fact that Lee Geom-han was using the Heavenly Killing Blade was proof that he acknowledged Pyo Wol.

‘Does this mean he is far more formidable than I thought?’

Namgung Seol’s expression hardened.

Claaaang!

At that moment, the two men clashed.

Lee Geom-han unleashed the Heavenly Killing Blade with all his might, and Pyo Wol drew out all nine of his Ghostly Rain blades.

Shuuuu!

Lee Geom-han’s Heavenly Killing Blade aimed for Pyo Wol’s life. But his saber never touched Pyo Wol’s body.

Kaaaang!

A Ghostly Rain blade had deflected Lee Geom-han’s saber.

In return, the Ghostly Rain blade shattered like a dry reed. But Pyo Wol still had eight more Ghostly Rain blades left.

Shhhk! Shhht!

The Ghostly Rain blades took turns aiming for Lee Geom-han’s vital points. However, they could not pierce the Blade Shield that Lee Geom-han had created.

Kakakakang!

The saber and the Ghostly Rain blades clashed repeatedly.

Each time, a tremendous shockwave erupted, sweeping through the surroundings.

“Hup!”

Namgung Seol’s face turned pale.

The shockwave had shaken her qi and blood.

She, too, was an expert in martial arts.

Having learned the martial arts of the Thousand Water Society from a young age, it was hard to find her equal. Naturally, the depth of her internal energy was also formidable.

An ordinary attack could not have shocked her in the slightest. And yet, not a direct blow but a mere shockwave was shaking her qi and blood.

It meant that the martial prowess of Pyo Wol and Lee Geom-han far surpassed her own.

Lee Geom-han’s case was understandable enough.

He was the man who had inherited the true teachings of the Radiant Martial Gate, the strongest sect in all under heaven.

But Pyo Wol was incomprehensible.

He was far beyond Namgung Seol’s common sense.

“How can a mere assassin…”

She was at a loss for words at the martial prowess of Pyo Wol, who was fighting on equal terms with Lee Geom-han.

She realized she had to correct the prejudice she had held against Pyo Wol until now.

‘I shouldn’t think of him as a mere assassin. He is qualified to be Geom-han’s rival.’

Namgung Seol watched Pyo Wol with keen eyes.

It was unlikely, but if by some chance Lee Geom-han were to be defeated by Pyo Wol, she had to use every means necessary to cover up that fact.

Just then, the telepathic voice of the Snow Flower Sword Squad’s Captain came to her, as small as a mosquito’s buzz.

—My apologies for the late arrival.

—Quickly, surround the area.

—Understood.

At Namgung Seol’s command, the Captain answered without delay.

Although they had suffered damage from Pyo Wol, the Snow Flower Sword Squad was still intact.

They surrounded the area without a sound.

Namgung Seol’s eyes were wide open as she closely watched the fight between Pyo Wol and Lee Geom-han.

Kwaaaa!

The duel between the two men instantly reached its climax.

Lee Geom-han’s saber possessed tremendous destructive power.

He did not sheathe his saber in things like Blade Energy or Blade Aura.

He attacked Pyo Wol with his qi perfectly contained within the saber. That made it more terrifying, more powerful.

Claaaang!

Another Ghostly Rain blade that clashed with the saber exploded.

Now, only two intact Ghostly Rain blades remained. All the others had been shattered by Lee Geom-han’s saber.

Even the two remaining blades were chipped and cracked, no longer in good condition.

Pyo Wol realized.

It was time to abandon the Ghostly Rain blades.

They had been quite useful until now, but he had ascended to a world where such petty tricks no longer worked.

Facing Lee Geom-han made him realize for certain that the Ghostly Rain blades would not be effective against the powerful opponents he would face from now on.

Pow!

The last two Ghostly Rain blades scattered into dust.

Pyo Wol was now effectively left with no weapons. The hidden weapons concealed within his Dark Dragon Robe would have no effect against an opponent like Lee Geom-han.

Despite this, Pyo Wol’s eyes did not show a hint of broken spirit.

He had mainly used the Ghostly Rain blades because his hands were used to them, but the art of the flying blade was not his primary martial art.

Pyo Wol charged at Lee Geom-han with his bare body.

He ran along the shortest line connecting point to point. And then, a thrusting fist.

A concise movement without a single frill, with no useless subtleties.

The only thing necessary was the killing intent to slay the opponent.

For a moment, Lee Geom-han felt a chill run down his spine.

Clang!

A fist and a long saber collided, yet a metallic sound rang out.

It was because Pyo Wol had struck the side of the blade, not its edge.

A fine crack appeared on the body of the long saber, which had been forged with the utmost care by the Radiant Martial Gate’s finest craftsman.

Lee Geom-han frowned at the unbelievable sight.

It was an attack applying the Hungry Ghost Path’s Human Body Destruction Art.

No matter how much a human was trained to the extreme, weaknesses were bound to exist, and the same was true for a weapon forged and tempered with great care.

And Pyo Wol’s thought was correct.

His Human Body Destruction Art also worked on weapons.

It was just a pity that his opponent’s level was so high that he could not destroy it in a single blow.

Now that Lee Geom-han also knew Pyo Wol’s level, he would be on his guard.

He would not be able to gain the same advantage as before.

But it didn’t matter.

It is a small key that opens a tightly shut door.

What Pyo Wol needed now was just one thing: a steadfast heart.

Zhaoliang hei’an, yi zhu huo.

Wo qian hei’an, zu dan xin.

A single candle flame is enough to illuminate the deep darkness,

And a firm heart is enough to cut through the darkness before me.

He unleashed the Black Lightning.

The lightning power latent in the human body stimulated his nerves.

Zzzzt!

He felt a tingling sensation as if struck by lightning.

His nerves, stimulated by the lightning power, stood on end, sharp and keen.

The wide-open nerves expanded Pyo Wol’s senses several times over.

His vision cleared, and a new world opened up.

A world that only Pyo Wol could see and feel.

Pyo Wol threw open that door and surged toward Lee Geom-han.

Pop!

Lee Geom-han was startled by Pyo Wol’s face, which had suddenly appeared.

From his perspective, it felt as if Pyo Wol had torn through space to emerge. But he did not panic and unleashed a technique form of the Heavenly Killing Blade.

Kiiieee!

A blade cry, like the wail of a ghost, echoed chillingly.

If Pyo Wol used Black Lightning to speed up his own perception of time, Lee Geom-han’s saber cut through space faster than a flash of lightning, tearing Pyo Wol’s world apart.

By a hair’s breadth, Lee Geom-han’s saber grazed past Pyo Wol’s nose.

If it extended just a little further, Pyo Wol’s face would be sliced off. In fact, Lee Geom-han did just that. But his saber never touched Pyo Wol’s face.

Because Pyo Wol had retreated exactly as far as the saber had extended.

As the saber passed, Pyo Wol’s counterattack began.

His fist exploded into Lee Geom-han’s side.

Thwack!

A force that could shatter a boulder.

But Lee Geom-han was unharmed.

He had blocked Pyo Wol’s attack by opening the palm of the hand that was not holding the saber.

Pabababababak!

Shhhhiiiit!

Fierce sounds of impact and air-rending noises intersected countless times.

Pyo Wol unleashed Jade Destruction, and Lee Geom-han continuously unleashed the ultimate techniques of the Heavenly Killing Blade.

Pshhh!

Pyo Wol’s shoulder was split open, and blood scattered like threads.

But that didn’t mean Lee Geom-han was in good condition either.

A Soul Restraining Thread, extended at an unexpected moment, had pierced his shoulder.

Pyo Wol pulled on the Soul Restraining Thread.

A normal opponent would have been pulled right along with it. But Lee Geom-han was no ordinary martial artist.

He swung his saber wide, cutting the Soul Restraining Thread that had pierced his shoulder. The Soul Restraining Thread, made of qi, was severed all too easily.

Shwiiik!

Lee Geom-han’s body spun, and his saber slashed horizontally.

It was an attack combined with the Spinning Wheel Step.

In an instant, its acceleration and destructive power increased severalfold.

Kiiing! Kiiiing!

As the human body moved, the sound of a mechanism’s gears spinning furiously echoed.

It was truly a movement that shattered common sense.

Lee Geom-han faced Pyo Wol with all his might.

He had long since discarded any thought of underestimation.

‘This man, too, is one sent by the heavens.’

Occasionally, such people exist.

Those who were born at the bottom with nothing, but who seized tremendous martial power through their own strength.

The Fist Demon of Mount Hua was like that in the old days, and more recently, Lee Gwak, the founder of the Radiant Martial Gate, was as well.

They all had one thing in common: they had changed the flow of their era.

Lee Geom-han had inherited the legacy of his grandfather, Lee Gwak.

He was confident in his own martial arts and achievements, but not all of it was accomplished by his strength alone.

Without the background of Lee Gwak and the Radiant Martial Gate, his current achievements would have been impossible.

He was curious.

About the true martial power of Pyo Wol, who had crawled up from the bottom with his own strength to stand at eye level with him.

Kiiiing!

That was why he unleashed the Heavenly Killing Blade with all his might.

Although he had only mastered it to the eighth level, the Heavenly Killing Blade was a supreme art for the ages.

Its power surpassed that of the Jianghu’s top-tier Divine Art Supreme Techniques.

The air in the area roiled from the onslaught of the Heavenly Killing Blade.

Kwaaaa!

It was as if the heavens themselves were enraged.

At that sight, not only Namgung Seol but all of the Snow Flower Sword Squad did not even dare to approach.

“Good heavens!”

The Snow Flower Sword Squad watched the duel between the two men with dazed expressions.

It was a duel beyond the heavens, something they could not even have imagined.

It was unbelievable.

Lee Geom-han was the strongest martial artist they knew.

A martial artist who could fight on equal terms against the Eight Constellations, who were said to be the top martial artists in the Jianghu—that was Lee Geom-han.

Pyo Wol was fighting on equal terms against such a man. When they heard the rumor that Pyo Wol had defeated the Eight Constellations, they had been skeptical, but now they had no choice but to believe.

It was such an unrealistic scene that they would never have believed it if they hadn’t seen it with their own two eyes.

Chwaaaak!

A single thread of qi was drawn out from Pyo Wol’s fingertips.

It was not an ordinary Soul Restraining Thread.

It was Silken Serpent Strong Energy, a Gang Qi made from a thread of qi.

Tatatatang!

The Heavenly Killing Blade and the Silken Serpent Strong Energy clashed countless times.

In terms of destructive power alone, the Heavenly Killing Blade was superior. But in terms of length and the subtlety of its use, the Silken Serpent Strong Energy was far ahead.

Moreover, the one wielding the Silken Serpent Strong Energy was Pyo Wol.

Pyo Wol knew well how to maximize the power of the Silken Serpent Strong Energy.

Pyo Wol fiercely swung the Silken Serpent Strong Energy, attacking Lee Geom-han.

Lee Geom-han advanced steadfastly, like a carp swimming against the current.

Approaching the first zhang was not difficult. But advancing the next zhang was twice as hard.

The closer he got, the shorter the length of the Silken Serpent Strong Energy became. As the length shortened, its power increased.

A tremendous impact battered his entire body.

He swung his saber to offset most of the impact, but his internal organs still reverberated.

A trace of blood appeared at the corner of Lee Geom-han’s mouth. Still, he did not stop his advance.

Finally, he reached striking distance of Pyo Wol.

It was the distance at which the Heavenly Killing Blade could exert its greatest power.

“Chaaat!”

Lee Geom-han thrust his saber toward Pyo Wol’s neck.

Pyo Wol naturally moved to block his saber with the Silken Serpent Strong Energy.

Papat!

The Silken Serpent Strong Energy shatters against the advancing saber.

The Silken Serpent Strong Energy crumbled like sand from the point of impact with the saber.

Lee Geom-han’s saber advanced without hesitation.

It seemed his saber would plunge straight into Pyo Wol’s chest.

It was then.

A change occurred in Pyo Wol’s Silken Serpent Strong Energy, which had been crumbling helplessly.

Suddenly, a light flashed, and black lightning shot up along the Silken Serpent Strong Energy.

Pyo Wol had imbued the Silken Serpent Strong Energy with Black Lightning.

The Silken Serpent Strong Energy, combined with the black lightning, raised its head again. And like a viper, it bit down on Lee Geom-han’s Heavenly Killing Blade.

Ssshaaaek